Book Review: Deadly Obsession (Steele Ops #1) by April Hunt

Title:  Deadly Obsession (Steele Ops #1)

Author: April Hunt

Stars: 4 1\2 stars

Review:
I feel like I shouldn't love this book but I do!! I couldn't put it down from the second I started reading the book.  
The characters were fun, sassy, family and the theme to live your life to the fullest knowing life could throw you a curb ball changing everything.
April Hunt as the ability to create Alpha characters who are charming, funny, love the women in their lives. The women as snarky, feisty, strong and know who they are before the men come into their lives. 
April Hunt is able to write steamy sexy scenes that ca either keep readers fanning themselves. While the sex scenes are graphic she is also creating a connection between the two characters that will push the story forward.  Readers can skip the sex and still feel the connection between the characters.
The mystery is interesting and most readers will see it coming but if they do not there are enough men and woman the readers will be able to pick apart to figure out who is the killer.
 At times the story is over the top but readers who love April Hunt will love this new series she has created.  If you are new to April Hunt once again I think you will love this new series as well.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an advance copy of April Hunt Deadly Obsession 

Synopsis:
Someone is watching their every move.

After a lifetime spent in and out of hospitals, Zoey Wright is tired of playing it safe. She’s ready to take charge of her own life and get out of her comfort zone, starting with a new job as a CSI agent. But when her childhood crush Knox Steele gets pulled onto her case, Zoey needs to put her feelings for him aside or more women will die at the hands of the serial killer preying on her hometown. 

Former Army Ranger Knox Steele is back in Washington to help his brothers open an elite private security firm. He never expected to stumble onto a crime scene, or see his best friend’s little sister working it. Zoey is all grown up now, and the attraction between them is electric, despite his best efforts to resist it. But all that changes for Knox when he realizes the victims have one thing in common . . . and Zoey might be next.

Kindle Edition, 416 pages

Expected publication: April 30th 2019 by Forever

About The Author:

April blames her chocolate addiction on being born near the country chocolate capital in Hershey, Pennsylvania. When April's not busy raising her husband and two young children (yes, that's worded correctly), she can be found writing about her next brooding alpha hero and the woman who can easily bring him to his knees.

Book Review: Nothing But Trouble by Amy Andrews

Title: Nothing But Trouble 

Author: Amy Andrews

Stars: 5 stars

Review:
A delightful, and eye opening, look at the intricacies of fallen in love with the lest expected individual. Both of the main characters are moving forward with their individual lives when they are thrown even more together owing to an outside unexpected source. Having been together, in a professional relationship, for five years this unexpected turn throws them together in a more personal relationship. Like peeling an onion each begins to learn more about the other's personal lives. Before long, that dreaded three letter word (sex) raises its head. The question then arises as to whether either of the parties will be able to admit their true feelings for each other. If you like, and appreciate, sassy modern love stories this book should be on top, or very near to, your must read list.

I enjoyed this story and was hard pressed to put it aside at the end of the day. I just wanted to read 1 more chapter.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions  are my own based on my unbiased review.

Thank you Frank for the review.

Synopsis:
For five years, PA Cecilia Morgan’s entire existence has revolved around playing “left tackle” to former NFL quarterback Wade Carter. She’s so good at her job, the man can’t even buy his own condoms! Well, today she’s giving the Worst-Boss-Ever her notice.

To say CC’s announcement was a bombshell is an insult to bombs. And horribly timed, with his publisher breathing down his neck. Not too many things defy Wade Carter. Well…except his mother. His PA. And this annoying cursor.

Time to call an audible.

CC is gobsmacked. Three months in his small hometown—somewhere devoid of “female distractions,” he says—while he finishes his book, and he’ll cut her loose?! And he thinks a cowboy hat and dimpled smile and she’ll just say yes? Penalty flag.

Wade can’t believe CC and the council arranged busloads of single women to visit their dying town. She never gives up. But three Super Bowl rings prove he’s no quitter either.

But then their fighting starts to feel a whole lot like foreplay. What’s a quarterback to do when he realizes he might be falling for his left tackle?

Time to throw a Hail Mary.

Paperback, 400 pages

Expected publication: April 30th 2019 by Entangled: Amara

About The Author:

Amy is an award-winning, USA Today best-selling Aussie author who has written sixty plus contemporary romances in both the traditional and digital markets.

Her books bring all the feels from sass, quirk and laughter to emotional grit and panty-melting heat. 

She loves good books and great booze although she'll take mediocre booze if there's nothing else. For many, many years she was a registered nurse which means she knows things. Anatomical things. And she’s not afraid to use them!

She lives on acreage with a gorgeous mountain view but secretly wishes the ocean was lapping the back fence. 

Book Review: Every Last Breath (Final Hour #1) by Juno Rushdan

Title: Every Last Breath (Final Hour #1)

Author:  Juno Rushdan

Star: 4 

Review:
This is the first book I have read by Juno Rushdan.  The author background is the reason why this story will keep readers needing more and loving every second they spend reading this romantic suspense. The story is action packed with just the right amount of action, romance and twisty to keep readers excited for the next book in the series as well as stories written by Juno Rushdan.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the advance copy of Source books Casablanca 


Synopsis:
Maddox Kinkade is an expert at managing the impossible. Tasked with neutralizing a lethal bioweapon, she turns to the one person capable of helping her stop the threat of pandemic in time: the love of her life, back from the dead and mad as hell at her supposed betrayal. Recruiting Cole to save millions of lives may be harder than resisting the attraction still burning between them, but Maddox will do whatever it takes...even if it destroys her.

When Maddox crashes back into Cole Matthews' life, he wants to fight back. He wants to hate her. But the crisis is too strong to ignore, and soon the two former lovers find themselves working side-by-side in a breakneck race to stop a world-class killer with a secret that could end everything.

Mass Market Paperback, 448 pages

Expected publication: April 30th 2019 by Sourcebooks Casablanca

About The Author:
Juno is a former Military Intelligence Officer who writes romantic thrillers with sizzle, pulse-pounding suspense, and plenty of action. Her stories are about strong heroes and gutsy heroines fighting for their lives as well as their happily-ever-after. Expect an intense emotional journey and a thrill ride to keep you turning the pages.

A native New Yorker, she currently lives in the Washington, DC area with her patient husband, two vivacious kids, and a spoiled rescue dog. Juno loves hanging out with readers and anyone friendly over a great glass of wine.

Book Review: Taken (Deep Ops #1.5) by Rebecca Zanetti

Title: Taken (Deep Ops #1.5)

Author: Rebecca Zanetti 

Stars: 5 

Review:
Not gonna lie I am starting to become a fan of Rebecca Zanetti and her new series Deep Ops.
This is a side story between the first and second story. As a readers of the series I will admit I was a little lost at first trying to figure out how it connected to the Deep Ops series. Once it became clear the humor from the first book arrives almost with the goofy characters from the first book.
I think it will impossible for readers of Rebecca Zanetti to miss this story as well as the series. Faye is a lost soul who knows her soul mate but can't seem to keep her temper in check long enough before she hits Hunter. Hunter is you Rebecca Zanetti Alpha Male with a heart that have readers wanting more of the two lead characters.
The story has heat and soul that new readers will be able to fall in love with Rebecca Zanetti characters and books
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher Zebra for the advance copy of Rebecca Zanetti Taken.
This is a can't miss read.


Synopsis:
Hunter Holt might be the most stubborn ex-soldier ever born, but when he’s called on to help find a lost foster kid, he jumps into action. Even if it means working with the woman who broke his heart five years ago—the woman who still haunts his dreams . . .

Faye Smith has spent five long years trying to get her life back on track. She knows she should’ve turned toward Hunter and not away from him. But they both had too many demons to destroy. Maybe now they’ll get another chance—and save someone else’s life too . . .

But first they’ll have to stop arguing long enough to trust the Deep Ops team. Hunter was a lost boy himself once. In fact, he ran away from the exact same man, their monster of a father. Now he and Faye will have to unite to find the brother he never knew—and maybe each other 

Kindle Edition

Expected publication: April 30th 2019 by Zebra

About The Author:

New York Times and USA Today Bestselling Author Rebecca Zanetti has worked as an art curator, Senate aide, lawyer, college professor, and a hearing examiner - only to culminate it all in stories about Alpha males and the women who claim them. She writes dark paranormals, romantic suspense, and sexy 

Book Review: New Orleans Rush by Kelly Siskind

Title:  New Orleans Rush

Author:  Kelly Siskind 

Stars: 4 

Review:
Kelly Siskind has written a sweet cute, awkward characters that readers will fall in love with before they even get past a few chapters. The author creates fun banter along with families relationships that will keep readers wanting more from the author.
The story is cute, sweet romance with crazy fun characters and endless fun. I can't wait to read more by this author.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher Everafter Romance for the advance copy of Kelly Siskind New Orleans Rush

Synopsis:
Beatrice Baker may be a struggling artist, but she believes all hardships have silver linings...until she follows her boyfriend to New Orleans and finds him with another woman. Instead of turning those lemons into lemonade, she drinks lemon drop martinis and keys the wrong man's car.

Now she works for Huxley Marlow of the Marvelous Marlow Boys, getting shoved in boxes as an on-stage magician's assistant. A cool job for some, but Bea's been coerced into the role to cover her debt. She also maybe fantasizes about her boss's adept hands and what else they can do.

She absolutely will not fall for him, or kiss him senseless. Until she does. The scarred, enigmatic Huxley has unwittingly become her muse, unlocking her artistic dry spell, but his vague nightly activities are highly suspect. The last time Beatrice trusted a man, her bank account got drained and she almost got arrested. Surely this can't end that badly...right?

Paperback, 310 pages

Expected publication: April 23rd 2019 by Everafter Romance

About The Author:

A small-town girl at heart, Kelly moved from the city to open a cheese shop with her husband in northern Ontario. When she’s not neck deep in cheese or out hiking, you can find her, notepad in hand, scribbling down one of the many plot bunnies bouncing around in her head. She laughs at her own jokes and has been known to eat her feelings. She’s also an admitted book addict, devouring novels into the wee hours of the morning.

2015 Golden Heart® Finalist

Book Review: Lies My Teacher Told Me for Young Readers: Everything American History Textbooks Get Wrong by Rebecca Stefoff, James W. Loewen

Title: Lies My Teacher Told Me for Young Readers: Everything American History Textbooks Get Wrong 

Author: Rebecca Stefoff & James W. Loewen

Stars: 4

Review:
As a history nut this book is a great read but it reads like a history text book that will turn off many readers.
Many part of history are in fact boring which will be skipped over by teachers or completely ignored.  Which can cause  misinformation or history being lost to the winner instead of the defeated.  This book tries to get to the root of all stories.  
This is a great recourse book for any history nuts or anyone teaching history to children and teens.
Thank You to Netgalley and The Publisher The New Press for the advance copy of Lies My Teacher Told me.

Synopsis:
Lies My Teacher Told Me is one of the most important—and successful—history books of our time. Having sold nearly two million copies, the book won an American Book Award and the Oliver Cromwell Cox Award for Distinguished Anti-Racist Scholarship. Now Rebecca Stefoff, the acclaimed nonfiction children’s writer who adapted Howard Zinn’s bestseller A People’s History of the United States for young readers, turns Loewen’s beloved work into Lies My Teacher Told Me for Young Readers.
Essential reading in our age of fake news and slippery, sloppy history, Lies My Teacher Told Me for Young Readers cuts through the mindless optimism and outright lies featured in most textbooks. Beginning with pre-Columbian history and then covering characters and events as diverse as Helen Keller, the first Thanksgiving, the My Lai massacre, 9/11, and the Iraq War, Loewen’s lively, provocative telling of American history is a “counter-textbook that retells the story of the American past” (The Nation).
Like the original, this streamlined and abridged version for young readers is rich in vivid details and quotations from primary sources. Lies My Teacher Told Me for Young Readers brings this classic text to a new generation of readers (and their parents and teachers) who will welcome and value its honesty, its humor, and its integrity.

Kindle Edition

Expected publication: April 2nd 2019 by The New Press

About The Author:

James Loewen's gripping retelling of American history as it should, and could, be taught, Lies My Teacher Told Me, has sold more than 1,500,000 copies and continues to inspire K-16 teachers to get students to challenge, rather than memorize, their textbooks.

Jim Loewen taught race relations for twenty years at the University of Vermont. Previously he taught at predominantly black Tougaloo College in Mississippi. He now lives in Washington, D.C., continuing his research on how Americans remember their past. Lies Across America: What Our Historic Sites Get Wrong came out in 1999. The Gustavus Myers Foundation named his book, Sundown Towns, a "Distinguished Book of 2005." In 2010, Teachers College Press brought out Teaching What Really Happened, intended to give K-12 teachers (and prospective teachers) solutions to the problems pointed out in Loewen�s earlier works.

As the Sesquicentennial of the Civil War approached, Loewen asked thousands of K-12 teachers in workshops and audiences about its cause(s).  Depressed at their replies, he recruited a co-editor and published The Confederate and Neo-Confederate Reader (University Press of Mississippi, 2010), which sets the record straight in Confederates' own words. 

His other books include Mississippi: Conflict and Change (co authored), which won the Lillian Smith Award for Best Southern Nonfiction but was rejected for public school text use by the State of Mississippi, leading to the path breaking First Amendment lawsuit, Loewen et al. v. Turnipseed, et al. He also wrote The Mississippi Chinese: Between Black and White, Social Science in the Courtroom, and Lies My Teacher Told Me About Christopher Columbus.

Book Review: Hide and Seek (Criminal Profiler #1) by Mary Burton

Title: Hide and Seek (Criminal Profiler #1)

Author: Mary Burton

Stars: 5 stars

Review:
Hide and Seek is a dark gritty thriller that will have readers biting there nails.  The story starts with Macy Crow from a previous Mary Burton book . 
The characters feels she needs to prove she can still be the best FBI agent possible. Her old mentor Mike Nevada wants to in a way save Marcy from the darkness that steals a part of your soul.
The story is about rap and the characters who were rap give readers a graphic review of what happened to each one of them.  Breaking readers heart realizing what can happen to women who are sexual assaulted. 

The story is difficult to read for women because the characters who dealing with every woman's worst nightmares.  At the same time the author has the ability to bring out the best in woman who want to fight for what is right.
Thank you to Netgalley and the Publisher Montlake for the advance copy of Mary Burton Hide and Seek.

Synopsis:

Special Agent Macy Crow is a survivor. After a vicious hit-and-run nearly kills her, she gets right back to work, and now she’s gunning for a spot on the FBI’s elite profiling team. As an audition, she offers to investigate the recently discovered bones of Tobi Turner, a high school girl who disappeared fifteen years ago.

While investigating with local sheriff Mike Nevada, a former colleague and onetime lover, Macy discovers a link between Tobi’s case and several others that occurred around the same time as her disappearance. As Macy interviews victims and examines old cases, she uncovers a sinister picture of a stalker who graduated to sexual assault—and then murder.

Macy and Nevada race to put this monster behind bars before he can come out of hiding. But the murderer’s had years to hone his skills, and soon Macy herself becomes a target. She’s no stranger to pain and terror, but will Macy’s first profiling case be her last?

Kindle Edition

Expected publication: April 23rd 2019 by Montlake Romance

About The Author:

Mary Burton loves writing suspense, researching law enforcement and forensic procedures, morning walks, baking, books, and tiny dachshunds. She also enjoys hunting down serial killers, which she does in her New York Times and USA Today bestselling novels. 

Mary is routinely featured among the top ten writers in Amazon’s Author Rankings for romantic suspense. Her recent novel, Her Last Word, reached number three on the Kindle eBooks Store bestseller list.

Research is a favorite part of Mary’s day. She never tires of learning more about police work, evidence collection and analysis. She’s known for taking a hands-on approach, whether it means interviews with professionals in the field, forensic seminars or lessons at the firing range.

A Richmond native, Mary has lived there for most of her life. Her first book was published in 2000, and she’s now the author of thirty-one published novels and five novellas. She is is also known for her five works of contemporary fiction written as Mary Ellen Taylor.

When not traveling for research or visiting with readers at bookstores, book festivals and conferences, Mary remains very much a homebody. She and her husband spend time alternately enjoying their empty nest and spoiling their four-legged babies Buddy, Bella and Tiki.

Book Review: Matchmaking the Billionaire (Billionaires & Babies #2) by Leslie North

Title: Matchmaking the Billionaire (Billionaires & Babies #2)

Author: Leslie North

Stars: 4

Review:
Leslie North has the ability to write sweet, steamy romance stories that has characters readers are able to connect with and enjoy.
The author has the abilities to blend romance, life events, passions and very predictable. 
This is a cute fun romance for readers who are on the run.
Thank you to Netgalley and the Publisher for the advance copy of Leslie North Matchmaking the Billionaire.

Synopsis:
When single mother Haley Renault’s boss, Nicholas Hunter, makes a bet that he’ll get married before his buddy does, Haley sees the perfect opportunity. While Haley is no romantic, she firmly believes her dating app can find anyone—even self-centered, maddening Nick—a perfect match. If she can show Nick the app actually works, then he might approve it, and Haley’s dreams of success could begin. There’s only one hitch. The man Nick presents to the outside world is nothing like the caring, selfless one she’s getting to know—the one she’s starting to fall in love with.

Nick loves money and all the power and prestige that comes with it. With a cool million riding on a bet with his buddy, he’s determined to win, and Haley’s dating app is just the advantage he needs. But the app’s matches bore him—they’re only interested in his money. He can’t help but wish they were more like Haley—funny, sexy, intelligent, and a woman who sees the man behind the billions. But just as he realizes Haley just might be his perfect match, the app comes through with his “ideal” woman. It’s a chance—maybe the only chance—to show the world Haley’s app actually works.

All Nick wants is Haley, and all Haley wants is for her app to work. It’s a bind all the money in the world can’t fix, and Haley and Nick will have to unravel it before their perfect ‘match’ gets away. 

About The Author:

Leslie North is the pen name for a critically-acclaimed author of women's contemporary romance and fiction. The anonymity gives her the perfect opportunity to paint with her full artistic palette, especially in the romance and erotic fantasy genres. 

The truth of the matter is she loves her fictional persona, Leslie North, more than her normal, day-to-day persona! Her bestselling books focus on strong characters and particularly women who aren't afraid to challenge an alpha male. Inspired after years of travel, her stories are set all over the world, from the tough streets of Russia to the beautiful beaches of the middle east. 

Leslie fell in love with romance when she first picked up a scrappy, dog-eared romance book from her local library. She began writing soon after and the rest, as they say, was history. She now lives in a cozy cottage on the British coast and enjoys taking long walks with her two Dalmatians, George and Fergie. 

She LOVES reader feedback, and if you have any comments, don't hesitate to contact her on Goodreads.

Book Review: Pray for the Girl by Joseph Souza

Title: Pray For The Girl

Author: Joseph Souza

Stars: 4

Review:
Pray for the Girl seems to have more twist than a reader might need. The story is intruding with a descent pace that readers can dive into and beg for more. The author has the ability to create a story that knows what it wants to be.  The story pick up half way though the story keeping readers memorized.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher Kensington Publishing Corporation for the advance copy of Joseph Souza Pray for the Girl

Synopsis:
Lucy Abbott never pictured herself coming back to Fawn Grove, Maine. Yet after serving time in Afghanistan, then years spent as a sous chef in New York, she's realized her only hope of moving on from the past involves facing it again. But Fawn Grove, like Lucy herself, has changed.

Lucy's sister, Wendy, is eager to help her adapt, almost stifling her with concern. At the local diner, Lucy is an exotic curiosity--much like the refugees who've arrived in recent years. When a fifteen-year-old Muslim girl is found murdered along the banks of the river, difficult memories of Lucy's time overseas come flooding back and she feels an automatic connection. At first glance, the tragedy looks like an honor killing. But the more Lucy learns about her old hometown, the less certain that seems.

There is menace and hostility here, clothed in neighborly smiles and a veneer of comfort. And when another teen is found dead in a cornfield, his throat slit, Lucy--who knows something about hiding secrets--must confront a truth more brutal than she could have imagined, in the last place she expected it 

Hardcover, 304 pages

Expected publication: April 30th 2019 by Kensington Publishing Corporation

About The Author: 

Joseph Souza's award-winning short stories have been published in various literary journals throughout the country. Winner of the Andre Dubus Award for short fiction, he also won Honorable Mention for the Al Blanchard Award and the 2013 Maine Literary Award. His mystery, UNPAVED SURFACES, was published by Kindle Press in 2015 and was an Amazon bestseller. NEED TO FIND YOU, his crime thriller set in Portland, was the first novel to go direct-to-publish by Kindle Press. His new domestic thriller, THE NEIGHBOR (Kensington) will be published April 24, 2018. Visit josephsouza.net for more information about his work.

He lives near Portland, Maine with his wife and two children and enjoys running, cooking and playing golf when not writing.

Book Review: Forgotten Legacy (Singing River Legacy #2) by Robin Perini

Title: Forgotten Legacy (Singing River Legacy #2) 

Author: Robin Perini 

Stars: 4 1\4 

Review:
This is the first I have read in the Singing River Legacy series. This story could be a stand alone novel but readers will feel like they are missing the connection between Riley and Thayne.  Even though the author updates the readers quickly with what happened in the last book the romantic connection feel off as the characters are trying to find out what they want.  
The murders, investigation, the love between all the different characters flow brilliantly though the story intertwining as the grandmother suffers from the Alzheimer with a secret everyone is needing to know.
The author brings to light to suffering and joy comes from Alzheimer. You can feel the authors pain that she has personally experienced.   
It made the story heart breaking but as it came closer to the ending the story broke apart leaving readers wondering why the madman really was killing people.  It didn't make since.

I wish the grandmother secret was the main focus instead of the killer who didn't quite make it believable his reasons for killing.

The author has a passion for her writing and her characters but the mystery fell apart as if she wan't sure what she wanted the killer to be and why he was killing lack focus.

Thank you to Netgalley ad the publisher Montlake for the advance copy of Robin Perini Forgotten Legacy.

Synopsis:

On the outskirts of Singing River, Wyoming, a couple dies in a fire that ravages their remote mountain home. Everyone believes it’s a tragic accident—except FBI profiler Riley Lambert. She isn’t convinced, and neither is her fiancé, ex–Navy SEAL turned sheriff Thayne Blackwood. When they discover that the couple’s daughter is missing, Riley’s dark memories of her own sister’s kidnapping ratchet up the urgency to find the girl—before it’s too late.

Racing through a maze of deceit and a buried past, the pair find themselves under attack from an unknown assailant. Dodging danger, they follow a tangled web of clues pointing to a forgotten secret that Thayne’s Alzheimer’s-stricken grandmother holds dear. But when their deadly investigation veers too close to home and brings a twisted killer to Riley’s and Thayne’s doorsteps, can they save those they love and stop the murderer before time runs out?

Kindle Edition

Expected publication: April 16th 2019 by Montlake Romance

About The Author:

Internationally bestselling and award-winning author Robin Perini is devoted to giving her readers fast-paced, high-stakes adventures with a love story sure to melt their hearts. A RITA Award finalist and Romance Writers of America© (RWA) Honor Roll Member, she sold fourteen titles to publishers in less than two years after winning the prestigious RWA Golden Heart Award in 2011. An analyst for an advanced technology corporation, she is also a nationally acclaimed writing instructor and enjoys small-bore rifle silhouette shooting. As a result of her mother’s battle with Alzheimer’s Disease, Robin has become an advocate. She donates 10% of her royalties received from her novel, FORGOTTEN SECRETS, to the Alzheimer’s Association. In addition, she started the 1 Memory Challenge, a challenge to encourage others to share memories and donate to the Alzheimer’s Association, whose vision is a world without Alzheimer’s. You can learn more and connect with her by visiting her website at www.robinperini.com.

Book Review: Singapore Sapphire (A Harriet Gordon Mystery #1) by A.M. Stuart

Title: Singapore Sapphire (A Harriet Gordon Mystery #1) 

Author:  A.M. Stuart

Stars: 4 

Review:
A well composed mystery that will take you to Singapore during the early 20th century when it was very much a part of the British Empire. The story will transport you to a time and place you can only imagine. I felt as if I could feel the oppressive heat and humidity in addition to smelling the various odors that were described so vividly. The mystery was well defined and easy for the reader to follow.

I have rated the book 4 stars and would recommend to any who enjoys a period tale.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions  are my own based on my unbiased review.

Thank you Frank for your review!

Synopsis:
Singapore 1910--Desperate for a fresh start and to distance herself from her tragic past, Harriet Gordon finds herself in Singapore at the height of colonial rule. Hoping to gain some financial independence, she advertises her services as a personal secretary. It is unfortunate that she should discover her first client, Sir Oswald Newbold--explorer, mine magnate and president of the exclusive Explorers and Geographers' Club--dead with a knife in his throat.

When Inspector Robert Curran is put on the case, he realizes that he has an unusual witness in Harriet. Harriet's keen eye for detail and strong sense of duty interests him, as does her distrust of the police and her traumatic past, which she is at pains to keep secret from the gossips of Singapore society.

When a second body is dragged from the canal, Harriet feels compelled to help with the case. She and Curran are soon drawn into a complex web of stolen gemstones and a mysterious gang of thieves who have no qualms about killing again to protect their secrets.

Kindle Edition, 320 pages

Expected publication: August 6th 2019 by Berkley

About The Author:

Australian author, A.M. Stuart, began her writing career half way up a tree in the school playground where she wrote her first (unpublished) historical romance. She now writes historical romance as Alison Stuart (a Goodreads author).
Born in Kenya, her family came to Australia when she was ten years old. She has also lived in Singapore.
In her life outside writing, she enjoyed a varied career as a lawyer in a wide number of fields including the military and as a senior executive in the fire services. 
The first of The Harriet Gordon Mysteries, SINGAPORE SAPPHIRE, will be published by Berkley in August 2019.

Book Review: Smokies Special Agent by Lena Diaz

Title: Smokies Special Agent

Author: Lena Diaz 

Stars: 4

Review: 
From first to last page Smokies Special Agent keeps readers connected to Remi and her desire to put the bad guys behind bars while seeking the person who killed her sister.  
The Alpha Male Duncan has a big heart and lots of love. Readers won't be able to keep from falling in love with this tender love for Remi and her quest becomes his.
Lena Diaz is able to create characters that readers will stick with readers long after they close the book.
While it is a Harlequin Intrigue it is one of the best blend of action, mystery and romance.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher Harlequin Intrigue for advance copy of Lena Diaz Smokie Special Agent.

Synopsis:
For ten years, Remi Jordan has been hunting her twin sister’s kidnapper. When baiting a killer backfires, the FBI agent’s career and freedom are suddenly on the line. Joining forces with Smoky Mountains investigator Duncan McKenzie ups the ante, unleashing treacherous desire. Now, with another woman missing, Remi’s fighting a lot more than the ghosts of the past. Is she also ready to fight for her future?

Paperback, 256 pages

Expected publication: April 16th 2019 by Harlequin Intrigue

About The Author:

Award of Excellence in Mystery and Suspense. She's also a former Romance Writers of America Golden Heart® finalist and has won numerous other awards.

Her popular Buchanan brothers family is highlighted in the Deadly Games Series, beginning with HE KILLS ME, HE KILLS ME NOT. Her EXIT Inc. series features assassins-turned-heroes who work to bring down the corrupt company they used to work for and save the innocent civilians in the company's crosshairs.

Book Review: Red, White & Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston

Title: Red, White & Royal Blue

Author: Casey McQuiston 

Stars: 2 1\2 stars

Review:
Romance Comedy I find are either a hit or miss. This story is a romance between English Royal and American Political Prince. The characters are what readers expect from LGBT stories right now and the political climate.  The author uses this book as her platform taking away from the story readers would enjoy. The writing is what readers expect from this genre with sassy characters and snarky attitudes.
Thank you to Netgalley ad the publisher Martin Griffin for the advance copy of Casey McQuiston Red, White and Royal Blue


Synopsis:
A big-hearted romantic comedy in which First Son Alex falls in love with Prince Henry of Wales after an incident of international proportions forces them to pretend to be best friends...

First Son Alex Claremont-Diaz is the closest thing to a prince this side of the Atlantic. With his intrepid sister and the Veep’s genius granddaughter, they’re the White House Trio, a beautiful millennial marketing strategy for his mother, President Ellen Claremont. International socialite duties do have downsides—namely, when photos of a confrontation with his longtime nemesis Prince Henry at a royal wedding leak to the tabloids and threaten American/British relations.

The plan for damage control: staging a fake friendship between the First Son and the Prince. Alex is busy enough handling his mother’s bloodthirsty opponents and his own political ambitions without an uptight royal slowing him down. But beneath Henry’s Prince Charming veneer, there’s a soft-hearted eccentric with a dry sense of humor and more than one ghost haunting him.

As President Claremont kicks off her reelection bid, Alex finds himself hurtling into a secret relationship with Henry that could derail the campaign and upend two nations. And Henry throws everything into question for Alex, an impulsive, charming guy who thought he knew everything: What is worth the sacrifice? How do you do all the good you can do? And, most importantly, how will history remember you? 

Paperback, 432 pages

Expected publication: May 14th 2019 by St. Martin's Griffin

About The Author:

Casey McQuiston grew up in the swamps of Southern Louisiana, where she cultivated an abiding love for honey butter biscuits and stories with big, beating hearts. She studied journalism and worked in magazine publishing for years before returning to her first love: joyous, offbeat romantic comedies and escapist fiction. She now lives in the mountains of Fort Collins, Colorado, with a collection of caftans and her poodle mix, Pepper.

Book Review: Savage News by Jessica Yellin

Title: Savage News

Author: Jessica Yellin

Stars: 3 1\2

Review:
Jessica Yellin background in politics keeps this story read, honest and very human.
Natalie Savage is a weak character what slowly develops a back bone finding her voice in the world of news.  The story is very much a chic lite story line where the lead woman slowly discovers who she is and what she wants to be in life.  
The story pacing was off and at times extremely slow. I found some editing in certain areas would have help with the pacing as well as the dynamics between the different characters. Natalie Savage is working in one of the most cut throat fields in the world and yet she seems to be the biggest pushover which might have readers wondering how she got to D.C to cover the biggest stories.
The books wasn't great but it wasn't bad it fell right in the middle of being ok.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher MIRA for a advance copy of Jessica Yellin Savage News.

Synopsis:
Be noisy. Natalie Savage grew up hearing these words from her beloved father, who admired Walter Cronkite so much he named the family dog after him. Natalie--who spent her twenties missing out on life's benchmarks--finally sees her efforts pay off when she's assigned to cover the White House for her network, ATN. The problem? The position is only temporary, a test to see if she has what it takes. She has always relied on her grit, her principles and her news sense to gain success. But now her competition is a twenty-six-year-old spoiled frat boy who got his big television break by eating raw animal parts on a reality show.Of course, he's winning.Natalie, along with her scrappy production team, has to navigate ratings wars, workplace sexual harassment and an international political crisis in order to prove herself. But the closer she gets to achieving her dream job, the more she wonders if it is worth all the compromise.

Hardcover, 352 pages

Expected publication: April 9th 2019 by MIRA

About The Author:

Jessica Yellin is the Emmy and Gracie award winning former Chief White House Correspondent for CNN. She is the founder of SAGE, a Los Angeles based digital media company that will bring news from a female led newsroom. Her first novel, Savage News, will be published by HarperCollins Spring 2019. Yellin has covered Capitol Hill, domestic politics, state and national elections, the culture wars and issues facing women in the workplace. She's interviewed four living Presidents as well as First Ladies Michelle Obama, Hillary Clinton and Laura Bush. Her work has been published in The New York Times,The Los Angeles Times, The Daily Beast. She serves as a fellow at the USC Annenberg Center on Communication Leadership and Policy and sits on the board of the Center for Public Integrity. She is a graduate of Harvard University and the Westlake school for Girls in Los Angeles, California.

Book Review: Second Act (Second Glances #2) by Nancy Herkness

Title: Second Act (Second Glances #2) 

Author: Nancy Herkness

Stars: 3  

Review:
Second Chance is cheesy over the top story that lacks any conflict that is needed in someway to drive a the story forward.
The writing and story line isn't bad it just unbelievable as well as a slow pace story that drags on though out the book.
Thank you Netgalley and the publisher Montlake Romance for the advance copy of Nancy Herkness Second Act.

Synopsis:
Lights. Camera. Romance.

Jessica Quillen, veterinarian for the charitable K-9 Angelz program, didn’t mean to stumble into the middle of a New York movie shoot. She just wanted to rescue the stray dog she’d been chasing. Instead, she’s playing catch-up with her ex-fiancé—and the screen’s hottest action hero, Hugh Baker. The only man she ever loved. The dream that disappeared. The heartthrob who’s now hoping for a “take two.”

Seeing Jessica triggers emotions Hugh has tried to forget. Abandoned by his mother to foster care, he still struggles to feel worthy of love and to open his heart to a woman. His biggest mistake was not trusting Jessica. It was his fault she left. All he wants now is to make up for lost time. But he has to prove that she can trust him.

Though the sparks still smolder, he’s still Hollywood—a world far away from Jessica’s. Now it’s up to her to give their love story a happily ever after. 

Kindle Edition, 320 pages
Expected publication: April 2nd 2019 by Montlake Romance 


About The Author

Nancy Herkness is the author of the award-winning Whisper Horse series, published by Montlake Romance, as well as several other contemporary romance novels. She is a two-time nominee for the Romance Writers of America’s RITA® award. Her new series, Wager of Hearts, follows the romantic adventures of three very wealthy men who make a life-changing bet. 

Nancy is a member of Romance Writers of America, New Jersey Romance Writers, and Novelists, Inc. She has received many honors for her work, including the Golden Leaf Award, the Maggie Award in Contemporary Romance, and the National Excellence in Romance Fiction Award. She graduated from Princeton University with a degree in English literature and creative writing.

A native of West Virginia, Nancy now lives in suburban New Jersey with her husband, two mismatched dogs, and an elderly cat. 

Book Review: The Devil and the Deep Blue Spy (Nora Baron #4) by Tom Savage

Title: The Devil and the Deep Blue Spy (Nora Baron #4)

Author: Tom Savage 

Stars: 4

Review:
This is the first time I have read a book by Tom Savage honestly I should have started with book one than jumping into book 4.
The story is very much written like a Caper adventure story as a wife can't seem to stay out of her husbands operation. The characters are likeable, fun and easy to connect with right away.
Readers of Adventure Caper stories will love this Tom Savage Nora Baron Story.
Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for the advance copy of Tom Savage The Devil and the Deep Blue Spy.

Synopsis:
A typical middle-aged couple on a first-class Caribbean cruise: That’s what the CIA needs for its latest mission, and husband-and-wife agents Jeff and Nora Baron leap at the chance. All they have to do is observe and report on fellow passenger Claude Lamont—a shady French businessman who’s attracted the Company’s interest—and his mysterious wife, Carmen. It’s an easy assignment . . . until a shopping trip at a port of call turns deadly, and Nora and her husband are forced to split up.

After Carmen abruptly disembarks, Nora follows her to Martinique while Jeff remains on board with Claude. But the beautiful French island holds a shocking secret. One American agent has already vanished from the area, and Nora soon learns why. A shadowy international terrorist known only as Diablo has come to the islands for a sinister purpose. With Jeff out of contact, Nora investigates on her own. But Diablo is waiting for her, and now Nora Baron is trapped between the Devil and the deep blue sea.

Kindle Edition

Expected publication: April 9th 2019 by Alibi

About The Author:
TOM SAVAGE is the USA Today bestselling author of A Penny for the Hangman, the Nora Baron series, and many other novels and short stories. His books have been published in fifteen countries, and his bestselling novel, Valentine, was made into a Warner Bros. film. Raised in St. Thomas, Virgin Islands, he now lives in New York City, where he worked for many years at Murder Ink®, the world’s first mystery bookstore.