#TheNatureofSecrets – Rosepoint Publishing

November was a mere flash of a month, eclipsing present goals, and creating new ones. Never a dull moment—guess that’s a good thing at this age!

November weather was so mild that the CE and I got to explore a new trail close by and walking was inspired by the cyclists whizzing by. Remembering the years we rode our own bikes, nostalgia took over and I went on the quest for a bike—not the motorcycle kind (had to give that up), a bicycle. My new, used Trek bicycle. Our son delivered his wife’s mountain bike and proving too big and heavy for me, defaulted to the CE. I finally found a guy who carefully guided me into a good used Trek that fits. LOVE this hybrid cruiser!

Then a crisis with our daughter diverted our attention to a quick trip to southern Illinois and another crisis in our son’s wife’s family short-circuited Thanksgiving plans, so it turned out to be a quiet, private Thanksgiving. How was yours? I hope you enjoyed family, a fabulous dinner, and lots of love. Speaking of—our little great-grandson had his first birthday the latter portion of November. Phew!

We did manage to do some reading in November though. (I did some reading, the CE the driving.) Together we read or listened to twelve books in November, most from NetGalley (still our primary resource).

November reads

The Rising Tide by Ann Cleeves (audiobook)
Back in the USSR by Patrick D Joyce (CE review)
Defending Jacob by William Landay (audiobook)
What Have We Done by Alex Finlay(CE review)
More Harm Than Good by Jean Grainger
Hell and Back by Craig Johnson (audiobook)
The Nature of Secrets by Debra Webb (CE review)
The Sandcastle Hurricane by Carolyn Brown
Mitzy Moon Mysteries Books 2 and 3 by Trixie Silvertale
Clive Cussler The Sea Wolves by Jack Du Brul (audiobook)
Devil’s Way by Robert Bryndza (CE review)
Hang the Moon by Jeannette Walls

Reading Challenges

I think I pretty well caught up my challenges page. As mentioned before, all my challenges have been achieved with the exception of the Goodreads Challenge of 180, now at 177 and 98% which is also my Feedback Ratio on NetGalley. Check my Reading Challenges page for updates.

I cranked up the speaker and listened to a number of my YouTube favorites, Queen, Abba, Andrea Bocelli, and 2Cellos (which, btw, did you know they quit as a team? Gees!!), and started my inside Christmas decorations. Almost done—next, the outside lights. Are you getting ready for the season as well? Do you celebrate with a crèche, cards, trees, and lights? Next week, my annual trek to the post office with my boxes. Pray for me.

I appreciate the follows; thank you to those who like, share, and comment—especially comment! And, please, let me know if you saw something above that got your interest.

Me and the CE

Book Blurb:

From USA Today bestselling author Debra Webb comes a thrilling installment in the Finley O’Sullivan series about a well-connected woman who stands accused of her husband’s murder. She’s innocent—unless Finley proves otherwise.

Legal investigator Finley O’Sullivan has had a difficult year in the wake of her husband’s murder. But in her line of work, there’s no time to grieve. Her job is to protect the firm’s clients and defend their innocence through grueling investigative work.

Ellen Winthrop is a force to be reckoned with in the financial world. In a male-dominated industry, she shattered the glass ceiling by empowering and promoting women. But now her husband is dead, killed in the Winthrop family home—and she stands accused of his murder.

Finley, as the investigator at the firm Ellen Winthrop hired to defend her, has a clear objective: prove that Ellen didn’t do it. But the deeper Finley digs into the Winthrops’ marriage, the more she starts to doubt Ellen’s story. The uncomfortable truth is that Ellen Winthrop may in fact have killed her husband.

And he might not have been the first.

His Review:

Working as an assistant detective for the police department was not the career Finley O’Sullivan envisioned for her life. Leaving the department and organizing a private detective firm seemed to be the answer to her problems. She and another of the detectives went into private investigations.

This book had so many murders and unnatural deaths that I almost lost track! Finley cannot maintain a lasting relationship. She keeps choosing losers that wind up being killed! I began to feel like she has become a black widow and men should run, not walk, away from her.

CE Williams I prefer more mystery in my mysteries! I felt sorry for any man that decided to go out with the attractive Finley because it put a hit on their lives. I finished the book and applaud the writer for doing the same. Fans of the author will no doubt enjoy the addition to her series. My expectation in a mystery novel, however, is to try to determine who the killer is rather than compile a body count. 3.5 stars – CE Williams

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with the opportunity to read and review this book.

Rosepoint Publishing: Three point Five Stars

Book Details:

Genre: Women Sleuths, Police Procedurals
Publisher: Thomas & Mercer
ASIN: B0B3M9TNB8
Print Length: 351 pages
Publication Date: March 14, 2023
Source: Publisher and NetGalley
Title Link: The Nature of Secrets [Amazon]

The Author: DEBRA WEBB is the USA Today and Publisher’s Weekly bestselling author of more than 160 novels, including reader favorites the Shades of Death, the Faces of Evil, and the Colby Agency. She is the recipient of the prestigious Romantic Times Career Achievement Award for Romantic Suspense as well as numerous Reviewers Choice Awards. In 2012 Debra was honored as the first recipient of the esteemed L. A. Banks Warrior Woman Award for her courage, strength, and grace in the face of adversity. Recently Debra was awarded the distinguished Centennial Award for having achieved publication of her 100th novel. With this award Debra joined the ranks of a handful of authors like Nora Roberts and Carole Mortimer.

With more than four million books in print in numerous languages and countries, Debra’s love of storytelling goes back to her childhood when, at the age of nine, her mother bought her an old typewriter in a tag sale. Born in Alabama, Debra grew up on a farm. She spent every available hour exploring the world around her and creating her stories. She wrote her first story at age nine and her first romance at thirteen. It wasn’t until she spent three years working for the Commanding General of the US Army in Berlin behind the Iron Curtain and a five-year stint in NASA’s Shuttle Program that she realized her true calling. A collision course between suspense and romance was set. Since then she has expanded her work into some of the darkest places the human psyche dares to go.

Visit Debra at http://www.debrawebb.com.