#rosepointpub – Rosepoint Publishing

Rosepoint Reviews – February Recap – Welcome March (and spring?)!

Rosepoint Reviews-February Recap

Much as I bad-mouth this area (California it’s not!), I must admit that February wasn’t all that bad. Little of that cold white stuff and temps that ranged up to 74-75 degrees. In this area, anything above 50 is t-shirt weather, so February was pretty nice with the exception of a few throwback days to below freezing temps. Can’t wait to see what March will bring, besides winds and rain, the other problem with this area—wind. Chicago isn’t called “the Windy City” for nothing and the wind always wreaks havoc when trying to ride (whether bicycles or motorcycles).

February is also a month for getting everything caught up on the blog; still wrestling with that and doing the necessary yearly appointments. The CE volunteers with our son at the annual AARP tax service for seniors at a farming community library which gives him a nice outside interest for a short while and he always enjoys. Slows down his reading services though!

I’m always excited about March–Reading Ireland Month—that and my birthday—a big one last year. I am, however, increasingly dismayed at the treatment service people extend to seniors. I would argue that some gray hair does not always mean a loss of brain cells. (And no—not something I’ll just get used to without some blow-back.)

With all that and continuing to work with the little Pomeranian (now with us almost five months), we managed to provide reviews for twelve books. As always, links on titles are to our reviews that include purchase or source information.

February Recap

Death in the Ozarks by Erik S Meyers (CE review)
Where Butterflies Wander by Suzanne Redfearn
Being Henry by Henry Winkler (audiobook)
The Great Gimmelmans by Lee Matthew Goldberg
Someone Else’s Shoes by Jojo Moyes (audiobook)
The Wager by David Grann (audiobook)
The River We Remember by William Kent Krueger (audiobook)
Rich Justice by Robert Bailey (CE review)
The Longmire Defense by Craig Johnson (audiobook)
The Lost Pope by Glenn Cooper (CE review)
The Millionaire by Keenan Powell
Flight of Dreams by Ariel Lawlon (audiobook)

Favorite Book of the Month

Several great books in February caught our attention. Clyde loved The Lost Pope, while I gave five stars to both Henry Winkler’s book, Being Henry, and The Wager. I didn’t read The Lost Pope and feel Henry enjoyed professional and brilliant collaboration on his. So I have to give The Wager the nod for February. I didn’t want to shut down the audiobook and listened while grocery shopping, cooking, and cleaning. Okay—not vacuuming—I couldn’t hear it.

Book of the Month for February—The Wager

My Reading Challenges page… I’ve worked on the Reading Challenges page but am not completely up-to-date yet, nor have I been able to incorporate the Goodreads Challenge banner. Always a work in progress.

Miscellaneous Comments

Update on Punkin adopted the first week of October last year. At almost five months with us still prefers her crate to human companionship, but she is beginning to seek us out sometimes. We think she wants company or to play but has no idea how to do that. We’ve been trying to find ways to engage her. Still doesn’t want toys, doesn’t respond well to treats, or games. Being ever vigilant, we are catching her potty habits more often. Now if only we could tie those successes with her initiating the desire to go out.

I’ll be posting a list of books and activities tied to Reading Ireland Month shortly. Still getting that gathered and organized. Spoiler alert: Includes a Michael Connelly audiobook, of course.

Welcome to my new subscribers! I appreciate all my followers and love your likes and comments.

Rosepoint Reviews – December Recap – Welcome 2024!

Rosepoint Reviews-December Recap

After the Halloween snow, it warmed up and December was lovely with above normal temps. It was also rather dreary with gray skies. If it rains, that little Pom rescue we acquired in October balks at going out. She is currently “blowing her coat” which would normally require us to brush her every day. Easier said than done when she still prefers her crate over human companionship and any gentle uninvited encouragement is met with canine obstinance. So, yes, little progress from last month and will soon be three months. It can be discouraging.

The big push to get everything ready for Christmas took any spare time. Despite the extra projects, I continued to try using the little treadmill as I don’t particularly like getting in my steps when it’s raining either. The CE doesn’t like the machine—he continues to walk outside.

First I tried reading while walking. That left me dizzy. Then I tried listening to my audiobooks while walking and that quickly clashed with the CE’s choice of TV programs. Then I discovered trail guides—the problem is that they don’t communicate with my health apps. If I could get everything to “shake hands” it’d be a boon, but not so far. Except for turning pages, how do you exercise in the winter? Gym membership?

Of course, those cloudy, cold gray days I’d prefer to just curl up with a good book and not do anything but read, but that’s still not an option either. Anyway, between everything else, we reviewed thirteen books in December. Those we managed to read are below, and as always, links on titles are to our reviews that include purchase or source info.

Rosepoint Reviews-December Recap

Mission Target by Mark Nolan (CE review)
Rivers of Wrath by Jean Grainger
None of This Is True by Lisa Jewell (5* audiobook)
Ghost Team by Paul Heatley (5* CE review)
Game Over at Guild Hall by Amy Patricia Meade
The Lost Recipe for Happiness by Barbara O’Neal (audiobook)
Six Truths and a Lie by Ream Shukairy (CE review)
The Twelve Dogs of Christmas by Susan Wiggs
Up on the Woof Top by Spencer Quinn (audiobook)
The Rumor Game by Thomas Mullen (CE review)
Cold Pursuit by Nancy Mehl
Dead West by Matt Goldman (audiobook)
Pirate Trap by Matt Cost (CE review)

Favorite Book of the Month

The CE really enjoyed Ghost Team; I was blown away by Lisa Jewell’s None of This Is True. I listened to the audiobook beautifully narrated by a large cast of impressive artists seamlessly integrated. Well-developed MC manipulated in a dark, intense thriller.

Book of the Month for December—None of This Is True

My Reading Challenges page…I read 157 books of a goal of 145 in Goodreads and am still at a 97% feedback ratio in NetGalley. Unfortunately, I barely made 50/50 this year in my Challenges, making the goal in Goodreads and Netgalley, failing miserably both the audiobook and historical fiction challenges where I thought I had solid confidence. Obviously, I’ll have to look at those category goals a little harder next year.

I’m taking a harder look at the blog in general, however, disappointed with performance this year and looking for answers. I want to update the blog home page, try again to introduce a recurring feature, add a couple pages, enlarge the font size (is this better or worse?), and still have more time for blog hopping. Is it possible given I’ve never been able to learn how to manage the block editor? Looking at free templates on WP, all are now using the block editor and I’m still limping along with the Classic Editor. I’m open to any suggestions—thank you!

As always, welcome to my new subscribers! I love your likes and comments.

Happy New Year!

Rosepoint Reviews – August Recap—Woohoo, it’s September!

I mentioned last month the fun with new gardening possibilities and while the sauerkraut was a bust, the carrots did pretty well. The rest of the veggies in the gallon fermenter got too soft. Now, I have ripe cherry tomatoes coming out of my ears and already dried the first batch. A bit too much pepper on some, but otherwise, they are like little tomato-flavored candies.

Okay, admittedly, that has little to do with books, although an excellent reason I’m slow to read this month. Thank heaven for audiobooks and the CE!

us back in 62 — We don’t have any wedding pics, but I think this is in 1962.

Speaking of the CE…we will be celebrating our 60^th wedding anniversary on the 2^nd (cue the horns!). Hoping to do a couple things; still there are issues with gas and Covid. Because I am writing this ahead of those last three review posts, the links will be to Amazon rather than my review which I will edit upon return to my computer. (Sadly, I don’t know how to get a link to a review scheduled, not yet posted. Yes, I know—don’t say it.)

Together we did read or listen to nineteen books in August, most from NetGalley as I’m still working on the 500 badge; as I’m writing this, now up to a count of 494. So close!

The Wedding Plot by Paula Munier
Holy Chow by David Rosenfelt (audiobook)
The Last Sentinel by Simon Gervais (a CE review)
The Final Hunt by Audrey J Cole (a CE review)
Such a Beautiful Family by T R Ragan
Lie Down with Dogs by Liz Milliron (a CE review)
The Girl Who Escaped by Mark Nolan (a CE 5* review)
Overkill by Sandra Brown (a CE review)
Christmas Scarf Murder by Carlene O’Connor, Maddie Day, and Peggy Ehrhart
Bad Axe County by John Gallagan (audiobook)
Out of Patients by Sandra Cavallo Miller (a CE review)
Dark Rivers to Cross by Lynne Reeves (a CE review)
Murder at Black Oaks by Phillip Margolin (a CE review)
Lies She Told by Cate Holahan (audiobook)
Bernice Runs Away by Talya Tate Boerner (my 5*)
The Lindbergh Nanny by Mariah Fredericks (a CE 5* review)
A Sliver of Darkness by C J Tudor (scheduled—link to Amazon) (CE review)
The Double Agent by William Christie (scheduled—link to Amazon) (CE review)
The Italian Daughter by Soraya Lane (scheduled—link to Amazon) (CE review)

Reading Challenges

My challenges—promises, promises, promises. Yes, I caught it up! Not once, but twice as I lost all my input the first time. My challenges for 2022 are all listed and linked in the widget column on the right. You can always check out the progress of my challenges, if you are so inclined, by clicking the Reading Challenges page. I’m now at 73% of the Goodreads Challenge of 180 books at 132 and achieved my Audiobook Challenge of 30 and the Historical Reading Challenge of 25. I also achieved the yearly goal of 75 for Netgalley and Edelweiss, although of course, those books are all from NG.

Having to do over the Reading Challenges page taught me one thing: I’m not keeping up with it well. Not updating, nor reporting to the challenge hosts. My apologies. I think going forward I will undertake fewer challenges and not try to list individual entries to the challenge. Makes the page unwieldy and for what purpose? Tell me, honestly…have you ever looked at it?

Where the Crawdads Sing (my review of the book here by Delia Owens) starring Daisy Edgar-Jones—was excellent. Did you get a chance to view it? I’ll be doing a critical review discussing both shortly. I’d love to hear what you thought, too! Did you read the book?

We here in the upper Midwest had a beautiful August—I can’t complain—with pleasant temps during the day and cool in the evening perfect for sleeping. Did you get the kiddies off to school? We’ve been informed we are expecting our second great-grandchild. Too early to know boy or girl. In the meantime, the boy is trying to walk. He’s nine months. The fun begins…

Welcome to my new followers and as always I appreciate those who continue to read, like, share, and comment. Please let me know if you saw something above that got your interest.

Granny graphic attribute: wdrfree.com

#BookBlitz – Lily Fairchild by Don Gutteridge – #historicalfiction – @RABTBookTours

Yes! You know I’m always happy to host a Book Blitz post for a historical fiction novel (being one of my favorite genres), this one called Lily Fairchild by Don Gutteridge. “Lily Fairchild is a novel about a remarkable woman, born in the backwoods of Lambton County, Ontario in 1840.”

Historical Fiction

Lily Fairchild follows the life of a pioneer woman on the Canadian frontier over 77 years of her long life. She is witness to and a pawn of the great historical events of that period: the Underground Railroad, the clearing of the forest, the coming of the railroads, the discovery of oil, the two Riel Rebellions in the West and the flu pandemic of 1918. A story of love and survival.

KIRKUS REVIEW

Long-haul, multigenerational historical fiction such as this is often a victim of skewed perspective, as authors, deeply ensconced in often years of research, often overestimate how much detail their readers will want to endure. Gutteridge’s narrative is prodigiously researched (and includes a bibliography), but he never overloads his audience; instead, he seamlessly works the historical grounding into what is, first and foremost, an intensely personal story. The book’s large and varied cast is uniformly well drawn, but Lily towers over the rest; from her earliest scenes, she’s by far the most compelling figure in the narrative. Gutteridge believably and effectively captures her youthful exuberance, as well as her resilience, even in the face of a heartbreaking tragedy in the book’s final pages. He combines his character study with beautifully evocative prose; at one point, for instance, after sunset, “Lily was sure she could hear the River tuning up for its nightsong”; at another, a character’s skin is described as having “the pallor and touch of gray-white mushrooms too long in the rain.” Overall, the author does an excellent job of giving his narrative the feel of a life as it is lived. Readers of such books as Larry McMurtry’s Lonesome Dove (1985) or Anna Waldo’s Sacajawea (1978) will see a similar kind of storytelling here; it’s a difficult feat to manage, but Gutteridge does so. A long but intensely involving tale of a tempestuous life.

About the Author

Don Gutteridge is the author of 71 books, including 22 novels and 39 books of poetry. He is a graduate of Western University, where he is currently Professor Emeritus. He lives in London, Ontario.

Contact Links

Purchase Links

(Brought to you by me and thee.)

Leap by Michael C Grumley (Breakthrough Book2) – A #BookReview #technothriller

Book Blurb:

ONE OF THE GREATEST BREAKTHROUGHS IN HUMAN HISTORY.
AN ACHIEVEMENT THAT STUNNED THE ENTIRE WORLD.
AND IT WAS ONLY THE BEGINNING.

Facing the cold, clear glass, Alison Shaw stared nervously into the giant seawater tank.
It was just one year ago that she and her team of marine biologists had stunned the world with their incredible breakthrough. And now, they were about to do it again.

But an ocean away, something strange was unfolding. Along a lonely coast in South America, an experimental Russian submarine, long thought to have been dismantled, has suddenly resurfaced. And the U.S. Navy has taken notice, sending officers John Clay and Steve Caesare to investigate.

The sub has been studying a group of unmarked soldiers. Disappearing into the jungle each night beneath the cover of darkness. Something has been discovered…something big.

And it’s about to fall into the wrong hands. Unless Alison Shaw and her team can find something that no one else can.

His Review:

Search for the Fountain of Youth meets interspecies communications. Michael Grumley mixes scientific speculation with current world reality. Many years ago my communications class explained that we transmit information 60% by facial expression and 40% by words. As with most academia this was abridged to be 55/38/7. That is 55% of our communications is body language, 38% voice tone and 7% actual words. This was postulated by Mr. Mehrabian in 1967. I find that if anything can be confused, the academic world will do it.

This book is very entertaining when using the above ratios and consider inter-species communications. What if you cannot see the animal before it charges or leaps or is trying to warn you? A rattlesnake shaking its’ tail is a complete communication without necessarily a visual component, but I digress. One main feature in this tale is a new communications device called IMIS. Dolphins communicate with various sounds and clicks and this IMIS system when aimed directly at the creatures translates these sounds into a kind of abbreviated language like pig-Latin. The complete sentences are not there and yet the researchers and the animals communicate.

A concurrent plot is a Chinese war ship parked in the harbor of Georgetown, Guyana. A US Naval research ship and the dolphins are sent to investigate. Under the cover of darkness, the Chinese are harvesting something from the jungles of Guyana. A very rich man wants to find out why one of the monkeys in his “nature retreat to protect animals” has lived to be nearly one hundred years old. The animal is observed trying to untie the netting in the forest compound to free his fellow animals. When they try to capture the animal, he escapes and the team, including IMIS, are hired to help find him. He is a Capuchin Monkey and the “humanitarian” wants to find out how he is living so long.

When arriving near the Georgetown harbor an old Russian submarine is detected. There is some very innovative equipment on the sub which seems to eliminate its’ navigational footprint. Putting these factors together, the US Navy becomes involved in trying to figure out what is happening. Why would a Chinese naval warship be in Caribbean waters? Both questions became a part of a very entertaining plot.

The outcome is surprising and also very entertaining. A modicum of science fiction adds to the overall plot and the ending is satisfying. This accomplished author includes a gateway to another segment and an additional novel. The villain is really just a man getting older and is too rich to want to leave this life. He theorizes there must be a genetic anomaly that will lead from his drinking of the fountain of youth. With enough money to make his dream a possible reality he sets out to find the secret. Read the book and see if he was successful. 4.5/5 stars CE Williams

FTC Disclosure: I received a complimentary review copy of this book from the author through BookBub. These are my honest thoughts.

Book Details:

Genre: Sea Adventures, Techno-thrillers

ASIN : B00LXRJICK
Print Length: 486 pagesPublication Date: July 14, 2014
Source: BookBub
Title Link: Leap

Rosepoint Publishing: Four point Five of Five Stars

The Author: For years, Michael Grumley dreamed of writing thrillers the way he thought they should be written; complex, multi-genre stories with unique plots that ‘move’. Enter BREAKTHROUGH, AMID THE SHADOWS, and THROUGH THE FOG: all deeply human stories with endings you will never see coming.

Michael C. Grumley lives in Northern California with his two young daughters. He’s an avid reader, runner and most of all father. He dotes on his girls every chance he gets. His website is http://www.michaelgrumley.com and his email address is michael@michaelgrumley.com

He is currently working on the next Breakthrough story.

Watch Her Vanish: (Redux of the) Rockwell and Decker Book 1 by Ellery A Kane – A #BookReview – #policeprocedural

OOPS! The CE finished the book, gave me his review and I published it on September 27. See that review here. However, we were invited by Gail Torr as part of Galaxy Media USA to participate in the book tour currently unfolding. Mia culpa—in the meantime—I’ll repeat his review and please enjoy the tour!

Readers love Watch Her Vanish:

‘PERFECTION! Be prepared to skirt your responsibilities because you won’t want to put this book down… keeps you guessing until the end. I cannot wait for the next installment!’ NetGalley reviewer, 5 stars

‘A taut fast-paced thriller in every sense of the word. Dark and oozing with suspense. Well plotted and stunningly written. Loved it!’ Kelly Russo Reviews, 5 stars

‘WOWZA!!!… I cannot wait to get my hands on the next installment in this series!’ NetGalley reviewer, 5 stars

‘Absolutely fantastic… I couldn’t put it down once I started.’ Goodreads reviewer, 5 stars

‘A scream!… Grabs a hold of you and keeps you reading till the end!’ Goodreads reviewer, 5 stars

‘Loved!! Everything about this book was spot-on!… I was pulled in from the beginning and it didn’t let up once! Can’t wait for book 2.’ Goodreads reviewer, 5 stars

‘A fantastic book. Like wow! I really got into this read… This book will draw you in and you won’t be able to stop.’ Goodreads reviewer, 5 stars

‘Grabs you by the heart, then grabs you by the throat and shakes up all your cells.’ Goodreads reviewer, 5 stars

Book Blurb:

The beam from the lighthouse slices through the dawn sky as she runs down the rocky stairway to the beach. She tries to take it all in—the waves crashing against the cliffs, the whip of salt grass in the wind—before finally dragging her eyes down to the innocent girl’s blonde hair, strewn across the bottom step like seaweed…

Returning home to Fog Harbor, California, to be closer to her little sister, Olivia Rockwell is struggling to adjust to life in a town so small she can hardly breathe. That is, until the sound of a scream leads her to the body of a local teacher in the shallows nearby. All the evidence points to Olivia’s most threatening criminal psychology patient, Drake, who is safely locked up behind bars…

Convinced of Drake’s innocence—and desperate to believe in the system that’s keeping her murderer father in prison and away from her sister—Olivia gets to work on her own suspect list. All her life she’s run towards trouble, but this time she’s treading on the toes of Detective Will Decker, whose past mistakes mean this case is his last chance to make amends.

Then a second woman’s body is discovered, strangled while out on an evening jog. The strip of blue material used to choke her implicates Drake once again, forcing Will to admit he needs Olivia’s special talent for understanding the minds of killers. It’s clear more innocent women will die if they don’t get one step ahead of the murders, and Olivia knows she will need her estranged father’s help to get close to Drake.

But when Olivia’s profile leads them to believe Drake could be masterminding murders from within the prison walls, a message written on a scrap of paper found in the latest victim’s car leads them to a terrifying realization: Olivia’s little sister will be next…

An addictive and unputdownable crime thriller that will keep you up all night. Perfect for fans of Melinda Leigh, Kendra Elliot and Mary Burton.

His Review:

Murder intricately designed in a maximum-security prison. Ms. Kane has developed characters that are both engaging and exasperating. Heap that on a prison system with type A personalities and both officers and inmates jostling for position and control and the plot develops. Both the men and women charged with rehabilitating the criminals and the criminals themselves seem hell-bent on controlling the entire system.

Olivia Rockwell is a Doctor of Psychology who strives to rehabilitate these hardened convicts. A mysterious murder of one of the workers at the prison opens the narrative. She and her younger sister Emily are working at the prison and trying to make the prisoners lives better and more productive. But at what personal psychological costs do these prison workers pay for their attempts at helping? Law enforcement and the wardens at times seem to be on the opposite end of this rehabilitation tug-of-war.

Crescent Bay State Prison set in northern California’s north coast is the place where dangerous killers and hardened career criminals reside. The other residences are career prison workers who have been washed out of other California prisons. They are all very smart and crafty and have been trained by the hard knocks of the California Penal System. Add to this the dregs of Bay Area gangs like The Oaktown Boys who wield tremendous influence in all prisons and the plot matures.

I found myself wondering why seemingly intelligent and highly trained women would devolve into situations which led them to being at risk. The further into the narrative I got, the more I began to wonder; can these people be so naïve and stupid? After a couple of similar killings, I would have expected the characters to wise up and not put themselves in threatening and exposed positions. Foggy and cold nights on the northern California coast are not really inviting times to be on the backroads at night, especially knowing there have been some gruesome killings.

Will Decker is a career law enforcement officer who is attracted to Olivia and is charged with finding the killer or killers. The prime suspect is a career criminal who has written a best-selling novel. He is closely watched by everyone and held in maximum security and yet appears to get out and commit the crimes.

The twist at the end of the book caught me unprepared. I recalled dealing in psych wards with people who seemed very normal and suddenly turned into psychiatric basket cases. I did not expect this to happen with people who had so much education and training. My kudos to the author for delving into that aspect. I also appreciated the lack of gratuitous hot sex scenes. Rather, this author made the characters more believable by pointing out their insecurities. CE Williams

I recommend you set aside a good time period to read this tale, as it really isn’t one you can take all at once—at times moving at a rather slow pace. I had a few problems with the protagonist and Detective Decker is a bit cliché. Be aware of the cliffhanger ending. A good pot of coffee or a glass of wine will help. CE Williams

Book Details:

Genre: Police Procedural, Serial Killer Thriller, Organized Crime Thriller
Publisher: Bookouture

ASIN : B08D3X8Y2X

Print Length: 441 pages
Publication Date: October 9, 2020
Title Link: Watch Her Vanish [Amazon]

The Author: Forensic psychologist by day, novelist by night, Ellery Kane has been writing–professionally and creatively–for as long as she can remember. Just like many of her main characters, Ellery loves to ask why, which is the reason she became a psychologist in the first place. Real life really is stranger than fiction, and Ellery’s writing is often inspired by her day job. Evaluating violent criminals and treating trauma victims, she has gained a unique perspective on the past and its indelible influence on the individual. And she’s heard her fair share of real life thrillers.

Ellery lives in the San Francisco Bay Area of California, a picturesque setting that provides the backdrop for many of her novels. If you don’t find Ellery interviewing murderers behind prison walls or pecking away at her latest novel, she is probably at the gym landing a solid jab-cross to a punching bag; riding bicycles with her special someone; or enjoying a movie the old-fashioned way–at the theater with popcorn and Milk Duds.

Ellery was previously selected as one of ten semifinalists in the MasterClass James Patterson Co-Author Competition, and she recently signed a three book deal with Bookouture for her new Rockwell and Decker mystery thriller series. The first book is scheduled for release in 2020.

If you’d like to receive a notification when new books are released, please sign up for Ellery’s newsletter at ellerykane.com. Ellery also signs e-books on authorgraph.com.

One by One by Ruth Ware – a #BookReview – Thriller & Suspense

“Her scent trails after her like an oil slick.”

Book Blurb:

Getting snowed in at a luxurious, rustic ski chalet high in the French Alps doesn’t sound like the worst problem in the world. Especially when there’s a breathtaking vista, a full-service chef and housekeeper, a cozy fire to keep you warm, and others to keep you company. Unless that company happens to be eight coworkers…each with something to gain, something to lose, and something to hide.

When the cofounder of Snoop, a trendy London-based tech startup, organizes a weeklong trip for the team in the French Alps, it starts out as a corporate retreat like any other: PowerPoint presentations and strategy sessions broken up by mandatory bonding on the slopes. But as soon as one shareholder upends the agenda by pushing a lucrative but contentious buyout offer, tensions simmer and loyalties are tested. The storm brewing inside the chalet is no match for the one outside, however, and a devastating avalanche leaves the group cut off from all access to the outside world. Even worse, one Snooper hadn’t made it back from the slopes when the avalanche hit.

As each hour passes without any sign of rescue, panic mounts, the chalet grows colder, and the group dwindles further…one by one.

My Review:

Faithful to the end, when I reviewed The Turn of the Key I promised to read another of Ms Ware’s books. She is currently running #2 in the hit parade for psychological literary fiction on Amazon. She is an international bestselling author. I feel like a spawning salmon who’s decided she’s had enough of jumping fish ladders and wants to retreat back to the Pacific.

I’ve read perhaps three other novels recently with roughly the same premise, albeit slightly different settings. In One by One, a group of tech execs arrive at an exclusive French Ski Chalet to do a little bonding, some brainstorming, and decision-making on company direction. Of course it’s roughly divided equally with the tipping vote in the hands of a former employee, Liz, a mousy little thing who becomes one of the two POVs.

They are to go skiing, even in the face of a very nasty French winter snowstorm, and it sounds very Squaw Valley worthy. The tension is palpable. When the avalanche occurs, it’s a douzy, wreaking havoc on the chalet, cutting them off from services and utilities. And when they count noses, realize one of them didn’t make it down the mountain back to the chalet in time.

There are two resort workers, the chef Danny, and Erin the other POV who is the resort guest interface. Each chapter is headed according to their Snoop stats, but I’ve yet to discern a real value gleaned from those facts. Certainly sounds like a more invasive personal information source than Facebook but I’m still scratching my head over why I’d care what anyone else is currently listening to.

The tech company personnel are mainly entitled brats of wealthy families who turn demeaning eyes to both Danny and Erin. No way you’d really care what happens to them and when nine becomes eight becomes seven—do you really care? For that matter, I couldn’t rustle up a sympathetic bone for Liz the mouse either. Erin is okay and I’d extend her a hearty hoo rah, but I won’t be shedding a sympathetic tear. And the language? The novel would be half as long if it weren’t for four letter words.

The narrations of Liz and Erin tend to overlap just a tad where one leaves off and the other takes up the storyline. The killer becomes a bit obvious. The conclusion ramps up the tension but adds disbelief to the superhuman feats of Erin. Whoa! She did what with what? And then the novel inexplicably continues. I thought it finished! Wasn’t that the end? It was for me.

FTC Disclosure: I received a complimentary advance, uncorrected reader’s proof of this book from publisher and NetGalley. These are my honest thoughts.

Book Details:

Genre: Psychological Literary Fiction, Mystery, Thriller & Suspense Literary Fiction, Psychological Thrillers
Publisher: Gallery/Scout Press

ASIN : B084G9Z5C3

Print Length: 383 pages
Publication Date: September 8, 2020
Source: Publisher and NetGalley

Title Link(s):

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Kobo

Rosepoint Publishing: Three point Five of Five Stars

The Author: Ruth Ware is an international number one bestseller. Her thrillers In a Dark, Dark Wood, The Woman in Cabin 10, The Lying Game and The Death of Mrs Westaway have appeared on bestseller lists around the world, including the Sunday Times and New York Times, and she is published in more than 40 languages. She lives on the south coast of England, with her family.

Visit http://www.ruthware.com to find out more, or find her on facebook or twitter as @RuthWareWriter

Magic Once Removed by James Kirst – Book Blitz for RABT Book Tours and PR #paranormalsuspense

I am excited to present to you today a book blitz for Magic Once Removed by James Kirst for RABT Book Tours and PR.

Paranormal Suspense

Published: June 2020

Publisher: World Castle Publishing

photo add-to-goodreads-button_zpsc7b3c634.png

Down on his luck, former police detective turned private investigator Peter
Cunningham thought the beautiful Abigail Mitchell was just another crazy
client. Now he’s entangled in an ancient conspiracy that dates back to
the Salem Witch Trials, a far cry from the simple assault case the woman
wanted him to solve.

His budding romance with the witch Abigail will have to be put aside as he
travels the Pacific Northwest with estranged friend and former partner Kelly
Martinez to discover who these people are and their goals.

A coin, a five-year-old case, the Malleus Maleficarum, televangelist and
motivational speaker Tony O’Stein, Pope Innocent VIII, and a secret
society all tie back to a tragedy from Peter’s childhood and he will
need to figure out what it all means and a solution.

Though many witches live amongst us, they are also part of a secret society
but their clandestine organization seems to have been discovered which has
led to a new wave of persecution. Internal tensions were already high and
the attacks have only exasperated the issues. Peter must expose the members
of the conspiracy and thwart their nefarious plans before an even bigger
tragedy strikes.

About the Author

James Kirst lives in the Evergreen State in a humble little abode within
the forested city of Dupont. There, he earned his Master’s Degree at
the University of Washington. Commuting up north to Tacoma, he has worked as
a senior programmer and software development lead for almost ten
years.

With a borderline obsessive interest in the paranormal, James has conducted
an intensive study on the subject. To that end, he has visited some of the
most haunted places in the United States including Salem, the LaLaurie
Mansion of New Orleans, and his personal favorite, the Shanghai Tunnels of
Portland, Oregon.

As an avid fan of mystery both in fiction and in real life, he has done
extensive research into police procedurals, the machinations of detective
work, and life as a private investigator.

A big sports fan, James is sure to either be watching or participating in
one when not writing about or educating himself in one of the aforementioned
subjects. In fact, he has won multiple championships in bowling and
slow-pitch softball and has made several appearances as a softball All-Star
where he was given the privilege of playing in Cheney Stadium. He is still
seeking that elusive kickball title, however.

Contact Links

Purchase Links