Category: Mystery

Review: Breath of Scandal by Sandra Brown

Posted February 22, 2015 by Marsha in Mystery / 0 Comments

Breath of ScandalTitle:  Breath of Scandal
Series:
Author:  Sandra Brown
Genre:  Romance, Mystery
Published:  re-published February 26, 2013 (original 1991)
Source:  NetGalley

Story Blurb:

On a rainy Southern night, Jade Sperry endured a young woman’s worst nightmare at the hands of three local hell-raisers. Robbed of her youthful ideals and at the center of scandal and tragedy, Jade ran as far and as fast as she could. But she never forgot the sleepy “company town” where every man, woman, and child was dependent on one wealthy family. And she never forgot their spoiled son, who, with his two friends, changed her life forever. Someday, somehow, she’d return, exact a just revenge — and free herself from fear, and the powerful family that could destroy her.

Read on for my thoughts on Breath of Scandal.  No true spoilers, promise.

**This novel describes a brutal rape.  If this might be a trigger for you – please read no further and click away now.**

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Review: Chasing Vito’s Ghosts by G. R. Benyue

Posted February 22, 2015 by Marsha in Mystery / 0 Comments

Chasing Vito's GhostsTitle:  Chasing Vito’s Ghosts
Series:
Author:  G. R. Benyue
Genre:  Paranormal, Mystery
Published:  February 3, 2015
Source:  NetGalley

Story Blurb:

Becka Brandt’s ability to see the dead is pushing her farther from the living. When an explosion in Boston’s downtown district kills her fiancé and colleagues, Becka reluctantly leaves the city she loves to seek refuge from her heartbreak and the restless spirits of those she lost.

Moving to a small Massachusetts suburb, her life is further disrupted when she unknowingly leases a haunted house. Her new roommate is Vito, an ornery old ghost whose flashbacks to his recent murder draw Becka into the terrifying world of a serial killer who targets small children. When Vito was killed, his great-grandchildren were taken. Becka races against time to solve the mystery of their disappearance before an evil force, activated by Vito’s tangled past of hatred and revenge, invades the neighborhood and destroys the trail to the children.

Plagued by new ghosts and haunted by visions of her lost love, Becka struggles to connect clues from Vito’s past life to current events. She is aided in her investigation by her closest friends and a handsome FBI agent who understands her ability in a way that nobody ever has. Despite the pain of her broken heart, Becka will have to embrace the living to free the dead and start life over.

Read on for my thoughts on Chasing Vito’s Ghosts.  No true spoilers, promise.

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Review: Ugly Young Thing by Jennifer Jaynes

Posted February 22, 2015 by Marsha in Mystery / 0 Comments

Ugly Young ThingTitle:  Ugly Young Thing
Series:  Sequel to Never Smile at Strangers
Author:  Jennifer Jaynes
Genre:  Mystery
Published:  March 3, 2015
Source:  NetGalley

Story Blurb:

Sixteen-year-old Allie has already experienced a lifetime of horror, having lost her mother and serial killer brother to mental illness.

Returning to her childhood home in Louisiana, Allie ends up in foster care and is placed with Miss Bitty, an eccentric but kindly older woman who shows her a new direction and brighter future.

But Allie’s new life takes a devastating turn when young women in the area start turning up dead, and she begins to see shadowy figures outside her bedroom. As Miss Bitty grows inexplicably distant, a nagging voice makes Allie wonder if death has found her yet again…or if it never really left her at all.

Read on for my thoughts on Ugly Young Thing.  No true spoilers, promise.

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Review: Rumors by A. C. Arthur

Posted February 19, 2015 by Marsha in Mystery / 0 Comments

RumorsTitle:  Rumors
Series: 1 of 2 parts (at least)
Author:  A. C. Arthur
Genre:  Mystery
Published:  December 30, 2014
Source:  NetGalley

Story Blurb:

Her death tore them apart. Will solving her murder bring them back together?

Best friends Landy, Tenile, Nicole, Nathan, Justin, and Kareem were the golden children of Tanner University. Their paths were set: doctors, lawyers, business moguls, they were going to light the world on fire. Then, two weeks before graduation, Landy was murdered—and Nathan was blamed. Though he was never charged, vicious rumors drove him from town, and the circle of friends broke.

Ten years later, Nathan is back in Tanner, determined to clear his name. He’s asking questions no one wants answered, and soon rumors threaten to divide the community once more. Everyone in this small town is keeping big secrets—especially Landy’s old friends—and someone is willing to kill to keep their darkest deeds buried. . . .

This is a new edition of the previously self-published title Within The Shadows.

Read on for my thoughts on Rumors.  No true spoilers, promise.

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Review: Violets & Violence by Morgan Parker

Posted February 19, 2015 by Marsha in Mystery / 0 Comments

Violets & ViolenceTitle:  Violets & Violence
Series:
Author:  Morgan Parker
Genre:  Mystery, Thriller
Published:  December 15, 2014
Source:  NetGalley

Story Blurb:

Violet has magical talent. She can levitate, walk through glass, and be in two places at one time. What happens when Violet discovers true magic in the arms of a new man?

Luke Kemble enjoys the luxury of having Violet, all of her magic and all of her beauty, all to himself. What happens to Luke’s illusion of reality when he and the love of his life are threatened by another man, a dangerous one that holds grudges and anger?

Carter Borden never fully recovered from the heartbreak of his ex-wife leaving him. What happens to a damaged man who begins to believe in magic once again?

Follow two men — Luke and Carter — as they learn the one truth about Violet’s magic (that it’s an only an illusion) and the one truth about her love (that it’s not)

Read on for my thoughts on Violets & Violence.  No true spoilers, promise.

I’m not even going to send you to the next page.  I cannot truly review this one without giving away important (In My Opinion) spoilers.  So let’s cover the very basics.

Violet is an amazing magician.  She is magical on the stage.  One night during a show an audience member joins her on the stage.  The rest, as they say is history – or the story.  The story is told through the viewpoints of the two men in Violet’s life.  Luke, not only her manager, but her love, her only love for a long time.  Carter, still reeling from a divorce, he is broken but stating to mend as Violet’s love rushes through his life.  Was illusion only for the stage or did it flow over into Violet’s personal life as well?

Reading Violets & Violence was like peeling an onion, layer after layer until you finally reach the core.  I honestly cannot say more or I will give away key parts of their story.

If you love mysteries and thrillers – you won’t be disappointed.  If you love romance – there is plenty of steamy loving going on.  If you love trying to figure out a magician’s secrets – I dare you to figure out the finish.

It’s a 4 outta 5 rating for me.  I really enjoyed this one.  It was a slow, detailed builder of a story.  Even now, I’m still not sure I know all of Violet’s magic tricks.  Read it for yourself – I think you’ll find a wonderful love story at the middle of a mystery.

*I received an e-ARC of Violets & Violence from the publisher and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. That does not change what I think of this novel.*

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The Confessional by Reiny Pierson

Posted February 19, 2015 by Marsha in Mystery / 0 Comments

The ConfessionalTitle:  The Confessional
Series:
Author:  Reiny Pierson
Genre:  Mystery, Thriller
Published:  January 6, 2014
Source:  NetGalley

Story Blurb:

Sarah Tazewell, a cerebral, highly intuitive woman, knew from an early age that she was psychic. When she and her husband David buy a confessional booth from The Governor’s Antiques in Mechanicsville, VA and convert it into a phone booth for their Queen Anne Victorian, Sarah senses a presence in the confessional. Later, the voices become only one voice: that of a murderer that rapes and strangles his victims. Though consumed with fear and anxiety, Sarah refuses to be a victim and sets out on a journey to learn more about the confessional. Sarah’s antagonist is a brilliant, charismatic sexual psychopath who conforms to a ritual of murder and confession. The confessional in the 100-year-old church where he confessed was an integral part of the ritual. When he comes to confess after another murder, he finds “his” confessional gone and begins a frantic search to find it.

Read on for my thoughts on The Confessional.  No true spoilers, promise.

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Review: Bridged by Kendra Elliot

Posted February 9, 2015 by Marsha in Contemporary Romance, Mystery / 0 Comments

Can two people who live, almost daily, with the results of the actions of crazed killers find the way to keep their own romantic relationship growing strong?  Let’s find out.

BridgedTitle:  Bridged
Series: a Callahan and McLane mystery
Author:  Kendra Elliot
Genre:  Romance, Mystery
Published:  February 10, 2015
Source:  NetGalley

Cover Blurb:

After a congressman’s tortured body is found dangling from a Portland bridge, the FBI joins the Oregon State Police to investigate the case—and FBI Special Agent Ava McLane, still recovering from a bullet wound, hunts the twisted killer alongside the man who captured her heart, police detective Mason Callahan.

But once a third body appears and all evidence points to a serial killer, the public furiously clamors for answers—and the couple’s relationship grows fractured under the pressure. Ava and Mason search in the past for clues that predict the future. And when Ava’s mentally ill twin spins out of control, the FBI agent who battles monsters every day wonders if she shares her sister’s self-destructive streak…

In the latest thrilling romantic suspense novel from award-winning author Kendra Elliot, the past and the present violently collide…and the fallout can be deadly.

*I received an e-ARC of Bridged from the publisher and NetGalley in exchange
for an honest review. That does not change what I think of this novel.*

I have not read the previous novel Vanished.   In Bridged, the relationship between Mason and Ava has already been established.  I was a bit concerned as I started this novel, but it soon became apparent that I could fall into this story without having to read the previous one.

Read on for my thoughts on Bridged.  No true spoilers, promise.

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Review: Never Smile At Strangers by Jennifer Jaynes

Posted February 7, 2015 by Marsha in Mystery / 2 Comments

Sleepy Southern towns hold secrets.  Long-past history secrets and deadly secrets.  But nothing stays buried forever, especially in small, sleepy Southern town.

Never Smile At StrangersTitle:  Never Smile at Strangers
Series:
Author:  Jennifer Jaynes
Genre:  Mystery
Published:  January 27, 2015
Source:  NetGalley

Story Blurb:

When nineteen-year-old Tiffany Perron vanishes without a trace, the residents of rural Grand Trespass, Louisiana, launch a desperate search to find her. But few clues are unearthed, and before long another young woman disappears.

As locals continue to vanish, residents begin to discover that they might not know those closest to them as well as they had thought. Lies and insecurities quickly surface, leading everyone to question one another…and their involvement in the disappearances.

Meanwhile, an unstable, twisted killer is hiding quietly in their midst. Ever since his mother’s murder four years earlier, he’s been forced to raise his disturbed teenage sister. He’s terrified of her—and of women in general—and his world revolves around his fear of and obsession over them.

Before you go any further in reading this review.  Know right now that in this novel there is mention of implied sexual abuse from the “killer’s” memories.  If this type of content bothers you then don’t go any further.  This is the only mention of these parts of the novel you will read here – my review centers on the mystery.  But know what you may read before picking up this book.

Knowing that – Read on for my thoughts on Never Smile At Strangers.  No true spoilers, promise.

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