Review: Fatal Justice by Marie Force

Fatal Justice by Marie Force

Jacket blurb:
Standing over the body of a Supreme Court nominee, Lieutenant Sam Holland is hip-deep in another high-profile murder case. The fact that she was one of the last people to see Julian Sinclair alive only complicates matters even further. On the plus side, her relationship with Senator Nick Cappuano is heating up - but it's also attracting a lot of unwanted attention and blinding flashbulbs.

The pressure is on for Sam to find Sinclair's killer, but a new lead in her father's unsolved shooting puts her in unexpected danger. When long-buried secrets threaten to derail her relationship with Nick, Sam realizes that while justice can be blind, mixing romance with politics has the potential to be fatal...

My Thoughts:
I picked this book up at the Harlequin booth at ALA in Chicago on Friday, I am writing this EARLY in the morning on Sunday.  I even stopped back at the booth on Saturday to let them know how much I was enjoying the read.

This is a non-stop action thriller with suspense, mystery, over-the-top romance, political intrigue, and the whole gambit of emotions that go along with all that rolled into one genuinely appealing story.

Her characters are wonderful.  They are all so real and yet so perfect for the roles that they are given in the book, almost too good to be true in some ways.  Every character appears to have been created with tremendous thought and careful planning.

The storyline is believable and the plot is incredibly well done, but the idea behind it is truly sad as a reality in our world.  Loved the romance - mutiple romances going on in varying stages on various levels - and they all find their way straight to that spot in our hearts that make us sigh.

I have never read Marie Force before and was thrilled to find her book. I will be getting book one in this series in hopes that I will one day finish the rest of the books from ALA so I can read more from Marie Force.

Untimed By Andy Gavin

Charlie's the kind of boy that no one notices. Hell, his own mother can't remember his name. So when a mysterious clockwork man tries to kill him in modern day Philadelphia, and they tumble through a hole into 1725 London, Charlie realizes even the laws of time don't take him seriously. Still, this isn't all bad. Who needs school when you can learn about history first hand, like from Ben Franklin himself. And there's this girl... Yvaine... another time traveler. All good. Except for the rules: boys only travel into the past and girls only into the future. And the baggage: Yvaine's got a baby boy and more than her share of ex-boyfriends. Still, even if they screw up history -- like accidentally let the founding father be killed -- they can just time travel and fix it, right? But the future they return to is nothing like Charlie remembers. To set things right, he and his scrappy new girlfriend will have to race across the centuries, battling murderous machines from the future, jealous lovers, reluctant parents, and time itself.

My thoughts:
     This book is a little bit of everything rolled into one wonderfully written story filled with a host of creative characters - not all of whom you will fall in love with.  I enjoyed the combination of genres in this tale; you get history, romance, mystery, science fiction - time travel, fantasy, adventure and steampunk - - - all working really well together.
     In this story we follow Charlie as he learns about time travelers, Tocks, decision making, taking responsibility, falling in love and becoming a grown up.  
     The characters are interesting, the story line is original and the plot is twisting and entertaining.  I was thrilled with the way things worked out - or sort of worked out - and can't wait until the next book.  
(I received this book in exchange for an honest review).

Blue Line Bone Collector (Chicago Serial Crimes #2) by Kristi Loucks

Publication date: July 12, 2013 ~ Click HERE to pre-order your copy today.

The Blue Line Bone Collector: Chicago Serial Crimes, book 2 by Kristi Loucks
Devon Cole was not prepared for the call that came in the middle of the night. And no one was ready for the wake of bodies that surface in the days that follow an attack on Molly Shaw. Dakota's twenty-three year old friend and co-worker who unknowingly survived an attack by a killer dubbed The Blue Line Bone Collector. What follows is a dark and twisted tale with an origin that pre-dates a killers existence.

Author: Kristi Loucks is a Pastry Chef and Cake Designer with a degree from Le Cordon Bleu Chicago. Her writing and storytelling has always been a way to manage the day to day stresses of working in the world of restaurants and food service. Kristi is currently hard at work on her Chicago Serial Crimes Series! Ms. Loucks currently resides in a suburb of Chicago.


Excerpt from Book Two of the Chicago Serial Crimes Series, The Blue Line Bone Collector:
It had been unseasonably warm for early February in Chicago, but at two o’clock in the morning, the streets were still relatively quiet in Logan Square. Having lived in the city most of her life, Molly Shaw was no stranger to public transportation and she was always aware of what was happening around her.

She had just moved through the turnstile at the “El” station and she was headed towards the steps to the platform, when she noticed a tall thin man lurking in the shadows at the top of the landing. Her instincts put her on edge as she tried to get a read on him before ultimately turning back towards the street behind her. She could feel the rumble of the “El” as it coasted into the station above them, and she prayed that the man would be lured towards the train.

As she made it back to the turnstiles, she chanced a look back in the direction of the stairs. When she didn’t see the man, she breathed a sigh of relief while she berated herself for her evident paranoia. Her relief was short lived. When she turned back toward the exit, Molly caught a glimpse of the man as he reached out from her right side.

She gasped as she saw the glint of a steel blade and tried to scream as his hand clamped over her mouth, just before the blade tore through her skin.

“Such lovely bone structure,” he whispered, staring at the blood that coated her skin and running his thumb over the bones of her wrist.

Molly was fixated on the blood that ran in thin rivulets across the veins protruding from the back on her hand. That was when she noticed the markings that covered the hand of the man who held her captive.

Though she was spared further contemplation of those markings when pain shot through her system. Molly cried out behind his hand, which reeked of bleach and cigarettes, as she heard the sickening crackle and pop of bone and ligaments when he savagely wrenched her arm back at an awkward angle. In an instant, her survival instincts kicked into high gear, briefly drowning out the pain.

She fought hard as he pulled her back towards the shadows from which he’d emerged, slamming her forehead against the rail as she struggled against him. She could feel the warmth of her blood as it ran down her temple. She frantically dug through her bag, which hung to her left side, looking for anything that would give her a moment’s advantage.

Her fingers finally gripped her salvation, a tiny bottle of pepper spray that Devon had given her a few weeks back. She’d thought it was ridiculous at the time, but if she got out of this, she was certain she would kiss him for his part in her escape.

She quickly slammed her eyes shut as she sent a burst of the pepper spray over her right shoulder in the direction of her attacker, feeling the burn against her own skin as well.

The moment she felt his fingers open slightly, she bit down as hard as she could on the hand covering her mouth and flung her head back towards his face. He fell backwards as her skull connected with his and she quickly flung herself towards the turnstiles and out towards the street in the hopes that a car or a taxi might stop for her. Her only hope was that the man wouldn’t pursue her with witnesses.

Review: The Condor Song by Darryl Nyznyk

Press release:

A Tale of Conservation, Betrayal and Murder
Lawyer-turned-author captivates readers with environmental legal thriller 

LOS ANGELES – Lawyers, and killers, and endangered birds? Oh my. This unusual combination sets the stage for a riveting legal thriller by best-selling author and former attorney, Darryl Nyznyk.
Guided by his experience in the legal arena and inspired by the 1960s and 70s Sierra Club battle with Walt Disney over a proposed ski resort in the Sierra Nevada Mountains, Nyznyk brings captivating realism to his newest novel, The Condor Song (June 2013).
Described as “The Verdict”, starring Paul Newman, meets John Grisham’s The Pelican Brief, the book follows Sean Donovan, a new partner in a major law firm who lost everything when he took a costly ethical stand. Wifeless, jobless, and betrayed by his closest friend, Sean spends 13 years trying to find his way back.
Barely eking out a living on small cases, Sean’s redemption comes with the death of renowned environmentalist, Buck Anderson. When the dead man’s niece requests Sean’s help in resolving Buck’s last case with the Sierra Club, Sean happily accepts, but learns too late the opposition is his former law firm and the partner who betrayed him. He may have just signed his own death warrant.
Is Atticus Golden, the Disney-like developer against whose project Buck was working, connected to the Mexican Mafia and groups that would go to any lengths to protect their investments? As Sean gathers evidence against “Uncle Atti,” all signs lead to Buck’s murder. A battle to save a precious environmental resource turns into a classic struggle of good versus evil where a national treasure - and a man’s soul – is at stake.
The Condor Song is a gripping thriller that appeals to suspense lovers and environmentalists alike
“Writing this book, I was able to play with the things that I had been fascinated with for years: Disney, real estate development, the law, the Sierra Club and the environmental movement,” Nyznyk says.

DARRYL NYZNYK lives in Manhattan Beach, CA with his wife, Loretta. After practicing law for 20 years, Nyznyk became a full-time writer and teacher. He is also the author of the holiday novel, Mary’s Son; A Tale of Christmas. For more information, please visit www.crossdovepublishing.com.

My thoughts:
This is truly a story of conviction and desire, of betrayal and perseverance.  The characters are carefully constructed and interesting.  I tend to choose a favorite and for me - it's Carla.  I feel that she was the strongest character, she played an enormous role in the outcome of the book and yet I felt she was portrayed as a secondary or supportive character.  
The rivalry between Richard and Sean is a thread that keeps you reading, wondering what nastiness Richard will come up with next and how Sean will cope.  Richard is a horrible character!  He has been created just right to make the reader really dislike him - well done!  Sean was of course the main character, but there were times that I wanted to shake him and say, "Stop feeling sorry for yourself!!!" So, he too was wonderfully developed.  Each character, no matter how big or small a role they played in the plot of the story, elicited some kind of emotion from me as I read.
I enjoyed the Disney/Golden comparison and Uncle Atti's drive to create a world from his dreams and imagination. 
The mystery surrounding the Condors, the building site, the property buying, and the murders and attempted murders make for a page turner.
I was thrilled with the ending of the book. The author brings closure to every issue of the story and you are left with a completely satisfied feeling as you close the cover.
(I received this book in exchange for an honest review).

**For every copy of the book purchased from Amazon on JULY 1st, Darryl will donate $1 to The Sierra Club.**

Review: The Gordonston Ladies Dog Walking Club by Duncan Whitehead

The Gordonston Ladies Dog Walking Club by Duncan Whitehead

Amazon product description:
Something is not quite right in the leafy Savannah neighborhood of Gordonston. 

As the friends and fellow members of her afternoon cocktail club gather to mourn the death and lament the life of their neighbor, Thelma Miller, not all is what it seems. 

When old friends vie for the attention of widower, alderman and mayoral candidate Elliott, jealousies surface and friendships are strained. An old woman with a dark secret and an infamous uncle plots her revenge for a perceived wrong done over thirty years before, a once successful children's writer with his own secret is haunted by memories of the past and aspiring model Kelly Hudd has just won the trip of a lifetime.

Soon secrets are revealed  and an intertwined web of deceits and lies surfaces in the middle class neighborhood where a killer lurks, but is anyone really who they seem to be? A mysterious old man in South America, a young Italian count parading the streets of Paris and a charitable and kindhearted nephew recently arrived from India add to the remarkable assortment of characters in this story of intrigue, deceit and revenge. What is the secret a recently retired accountant is trying to hide and just why did  former showgirl and attractive sixty two year old widow Carla Zipp really have plastic surgery?

As the plot thickens and the Georgia temperature rises we discover who is destined for an early-unmarked grave in the wooded park that centers the tree-lined avenues of Gordonston.

A mysterious organization with links to organized crime, a handsome fire fighter who can do no wrong, and a trio of widows with deep hidden agendas compound a story of simplistic complexity. As twists and turns lead the reader to a conclusion that they will not see coming and a sucker punch ending that will leave readers breathless, the Gordonston Ladies Dog Walking Club's top priority remains the need to chastise the culprit who refuses to 'scoop' after his dog walking sessions in their treasured park.

My thoughts:

At under 200 pages this book could easily deceive the would be reader into thinking that it's a quick, mindless read, but this little book packs a BIG story.  This book is filled with mystery and misdirection rolled into what appears to be common, every day happenings in a small neighborhood called Gordonston.  There is so much going on within the pages that you really have to be on your toes not to miss the details.  Irony, steeped in nuance and subtlety, make up an interesting, original and fairly complicated storyline.
The characters are creative and well done.  The connections between and around the characters are brilliantly planned and strategically eluded to until the whole thing comes together in an expertly crafted, ingenious ending.

Well worth a read! Don't let the "skinny book" look fool you.

Book Release and Giveaway! Choke by S R Johannes

The new Breathless novelette, Choke, released Monday, June 24th. 

Choke is the 2nd in a series of sci-fi novelettes and the sequel to Suffocate.

When Eria escapes her home in the Biome, she uncovers more about her
features and specifications as a HumaNot. Following her father's
instructions, Eria embarks on a journey into a dangerous and unpredictable world.

Along the way, she encounters a young rebel, Dirk, who explains he's from the Anarchy, an underground human resistance rising up against the BOTs--advanced man-made robots gone wild. Together, Dirk and Eria battle underground serpents, desert dingos, sand storms, and advanced Bots that are always hot on their trail. As they become closer, Dirk reveals his hatred of machines, forcing Eria to hide

the secret of what and who she really is.

When the truth of her identity comes out, Eria is forced to become the very thing she hates the most.

by S.R. Johannes ~Award-winning author of Amazon Bestselling thriller, Untraceable.Don't forget to hang out with her on Pinterest, Twitter, Facebook or her blog!

Choke is the 2nd novelette in THE BREATHLESS series. It is a 20,000 word young adult thriller that combines the dystopic and science fiction genres. The two novelettes will be available on ebook only for only 99 cents!  The 3rd novelette in the series, Exhale, is scheduled for Nov/Dec 2013 just in time for the holidays.

Fans of Wool, Never Ending Sky, Mila, or Across the Universe will love this mini-series.

=================

 Giveaway:
The author is offering a free ecopy of either Choke or Suffocate to one randomly drawn commenter.  You must be 13+ to enter.  Please leave your name/alias and a valid email address in your comment.  The giveaway will run from June 25, 2013 until July 2, 2013.  Winner will be notified by email and the prize will be sent by the author.