Category Archives: Suspense

Contemporary Women's Fiction, Review, Standalone, Suspense, Thriller

#WOTR22 #Review – Aggravated Circumstances by Michele Shriver

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Aggravated Circumstances by [Michele Shriver]

Goodreads

Review by Twinsie Kelly

I need to start by saying that this is a really great, but intense story. I don’t think there is anything crazy that would be a trigger for someone but there are some areas that will really make you feel some things. I have experienced “the system” and I must say that this story is very accurate but not all cases turn out the same way. This is full of hope and love but with a lot of struggles.

This author took a very difficult situation and wove it into a beautiful story. You see several points of view including the judge, social worker, the lawyer, and the addict. You really get a full sense of how one decision changes everything. One small decision, every moment of every day can make huge shifts or transitions in a short amount of time. Depending on whether that decision is for a good change or a bad change can cause a lot of sacrifices for yourself and others. Sort of like the butterfly effect and you have no idea how far it reaches until sometimes it’s too late.

Aggravated Circumstances is one of those stories that I had to sit and process at times because it gives you a crazy amount of feels. It will make you really think about all the little things that affect everything. This is a very intriguing and compelling story that I highly recommend!

Michele Shriver

Review, Suspense, Thriller, YA

#review #standalone #yathriller The Fear by Natasha Preston 

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Don’t be afraid. Be terrified.

It’s just a stupid meme that’s going around their small fishing town in the dead of winter—people reposting and sharing their biggest fear. But when her classmates start turning up dead—dying in the way that they said scared them the most—Izzy knows it’s no joke.

With each death hitting closer to home, Izzy sets out to try to stop the killer. Could her older sister’s friend Tristan have something to do with the deaths? He’s given her some strange vibes. Or what about his brooding cousin, Axel? But he’s in her classes at school. He’s not a murderer . . . is he? Izzie’s soon on a path that will lead her right to the killer . . . and her own worst nightmare.

Goodreads https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/58447437-the-fear?from_search=true&from_srp=true&qid=Q3deNmWLvu&rank=13

Amazon https://amzn.to/3xGeNau

Review by Twinsie Dee

I bought this book and this is my honest review

What is your greatest fear? Which way do you think is the worst way to die? When the newest meme is going around town and is being reposted by everyone with the worst way they think would die but they never figured that posting their fears would be used against them and be the actual way they would die. Izzy seemed to be the only one who didn’t repost he fear meme and the killer isnt going to let that slide. With 4 dead students and 1 that will never be found the killer isnt planning on slowing down anytime soon even with the cop of the killer’s heels. But who is this killer that is killing teens by their fear will they catch them before number 5 will be found your gonna want to find out for yourself but remember don’t let everyone know your greatest fear. Omg omg omg Natasha has done it again this is one of the best thrillers she’s written i ha no idea who the killer was until it was revealed and still I didn’t believe it. Natasha has a way of making you think that you know exactly who it is with all the clues pointing to one person and then completely turning it 180 and being someone else, its was amazing and i love when thrillers do that.

#1 New York Times Bestselling Author of The Cellar and The Cabin. Romance and YA Thriller writer, boy mum, Tom Hardy enthusiast. Always buried in a book and a glass of wine.

Apocalyptic, Reverse Harem, Review, Suspense, Writers on the River Attending Author

#WOTR22 #Review – Creepy: A Post-apocalyptic Reverse Harem Romance (The Zombiepidemic Book 1)  by Morgan Jane Mitchell

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Creepy: A Post-apocalyptic Reverse Harem Romance (The Zombiepidemic Book 1)

Welcome to Creepy, Louisiana, Population 1.
Sissy outlasted the Zombiepidemic, but when other survivors arrive, she finds herself with another dilemma, too many men to choose from. Sounds like a good problem to have if it weren’t that a parish over, her ex has become the king of a gang of savages called the Stayers. Dillon is hell bent on making her his. Can her new suitors save her from an old one or can she really have them all?

Goodreads

Review by Twinsie Kelly

There were many different aspects of this book that I thoroughly enjoyed. Sissy lives in Creepy and is the only resident. She has a routine for scavenging, stock piling, and keeping safe. Her ex has assured her that no one will mess with her but he has to give him some ‘Miss Mary’ in return. They have quite a past and the way he changed really has her messed up inside because she doesn’t understand it. She keeps him sated so he will keep his thugs away from her. Then one day, a new neighbor comes to town. But this neighbor is hawt! Then another! All of a sudden, it’s a party, LOL! There is a lot of tension and angst that is built up throughout the book with a good storyline. It really makes you think about what you would do if you were in the same situation and how you would handle it. I imagine that I would be a lot like Sissy. She is a great female lead for this story. The push and pull between her and her men is delicate but just blooming too. There is a lot more to develop on this level and I imagine it will explode. Now, I generally use books as my escape so I must say that the only thing I didn’t care for is that the handling of the Zombie pandemic was very similar to the handling of the Covid pandemic, and I am sort of over it. Other than that point (and it was not dwelled on long) the story was great and has me looking forward to the next in the series.

 

Morgan Jane Mitchell

www.morganjanemitchell.com

www.facebook.com/themorganjane

www.twitter.com/morgijane



Audio Book, Psychological Thriller, Standalone, Suspense

#Review #AudioBook – Mother Knows Best: A Novel of Suspense by Kira Peikoff

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One of POPSUGAR’s Top 15 Medical Thrillers
One of REAL SIMPLE’s 35 Chilling Psychological Thrillers

A mother’s worst nightmare, a chance at redemption, and a deadly secret that haunts a family across the generations—“the psychological thriller everyone will be talking about” (Lisa Scottaline)

There’s only room for one mother in this family.

Claire Abrams’s dreams became a nightmare when she passed on a genetic mutation that killed her little boy. Now she wants a second chance to be a mother, and finds it in Robert Nash, a maverick fertility doctor who works under the radar with Jillian Hendricks, a cunning young scientist bent on making her mark–and seducing her boss.

Claire, Robert, and Jillian work together to create the world’s first baby with three genetic parents–an unprecedented feat that could eliminate inherited disease. But when word of their illegal experiment leaks to the wrong person, Robert escapes into hiding with the now-pregnant Claire, leaving Jillian to serve out a prison sentence that destroys her future.

Ten years later, a spunky girl named Abigail begins to understand that all is not right with the reclusive man and woman she knows as her parents. But the family’s problems are only beginning. Jillian, hardened by a decade of jealousy and loss, has returned–and nothing will stop her from reuniting with the man and daughter who should have been hers.

Past, present, and future converge in this mesmerizing psychological thriller from critically acclaimed author Kira Peikoff.

Um…this book. Wow. What the heck did I just listen to??

So I went in completely blind, which I highly reccomend doing if you can and what a ride it was. I had absolutely NO idea what was going on. I was left feeling confused at times, frustrated and stressed out but man, those were amazing feelings to have while listening to this book.

So Kira Peikoff is a brand new to me author and this will definitely not be my last book of hers that I read/listen to. I enjoyed how detailed this book was. There are things in it that I’m left wondering if they can actually happen or not but I’m no doctor or scientist, so I’ll leave that up to the professionals.

Claire and Ethan have been trying for a baby for a while. They had a son, who unfortunately had a medical condition that ended up taking his life. They decided to try for a second baby but that hadn’t happened yet and they weren’t getting any younger. So a woman desperate to have that baby, would almost do anything to have one. Trust me, from someone who knows how that feels, I’ve been tempted to do some crazy things to have a kid of my own. But that’s a story for another day over lots of alcohol.

Claire ends up going to this fertility doctor and it all becomes crazy from there.

A woman desperate to have another baby.

A scientist desperate to make her way in a world that for the most part, is run by men.

A man who thinks this fertility doctor’s ways are unethical.

And more.

Wow. Just wow. I really enjoyed the twists and turns in this book. I was left yelling at my phone, demanding to know what was going on and I was trying to urge the narrators on to talk faster. I needed to know!

The book is written in 3 different POVs (point of views) and I enjoyed them all but the one, actually got on my nerves part way through the book. If you listen to the audio book of this, you’ll understand why.

Thank you, Kira, for an amazing story and for making me feel things as a reader that doesn’t normally happen.

Oh and if you like a little romance with your suspense, this book has that too.

Suspense

#NewRelease – Danger on the Mountain (Marshall Brothers Book 3) by Carolyn LaRoche

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Danger on the Mountain (Marshall Brothers Book 3) by [Carolyn LaRoche, Booksmith Design, Hot Tree Editing]

She’s sold her soul to the devil for the last time…

When an unexpected inheritance comes her way, high-powered defense attorney, Layla Evans, gives up everything she’s known and seizes the opportunity to start over. The mountain ranch is the perfect escape from a life she can no longer stand. In the solitude of her mountain escape, she can wrestle her demons and never hurt anyone with her job again.

She never counted on her past following her there.

Ben Marshall knows a thing or two about running away…

After a decorated military career ended in the worst way possible, Ben leaves his Special Forces unit and seeks sanctuary high in the Blue Ridge Mountains. He needs the solitude. It’s enough, until a beautiful brunette, who has no business running a ranch, literally falls into his life. When Layla’s past catches up to her, Ben’s old instincts kick in. His need to keep Layla safe becomes stronger than his desire to protect himself from her.

Can he protect Layla without risking his battered heart or will love truly conquer all?

Goodreads

Carolyn LaRoche grew up in snow country but fled the cold and ice several years ago. She now lives near the beach with her husband, their two boys, two finicky cats and one old dog. When she is not at the baseball field cheering on big hits and home runs, she is busy teaching science to unwilling teenagers.

M/M, Mystery, Review, Suspense

#WOTR21 – #Review – The Pinkerton Man Series by C.J. Baty

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The Pinkerton Man Series (The Pinkerton Man, #1-2)

BOOK ONE:
THE PINKERTON MAN
Stiles Langberry leaves England under the dark cloud of blackmail.
He resettles in America with a new name, becoming a Pinkerton Agent.
His new employer sends him undercover to a brothel that serves homosexual men, where prostitutes are being murdered. In the course of his investigation, he becomes involved with Paul, one of the prostitutes. Complicating matters, one of the suspects draws Stiles like no man before him. Stiles knows he must stop the killer before he strikes again.

BOOK TWO:
HOME ON THE RANGE
Pinkerton Agent Stiles Long is sent to the Circle W Ranch to uncover who is killing the ranch’s cattle. In order to discover the truth about the goings on at the ranch, Stiles has to prove to the ranchers he’s more than a good-looking city slicker.
Savage Beare, the head ranch foreman, is far from happy that Stiles is there to check things out. He has secrets of his own.
Stiles finds Savage incredibly good-looking, but cold and aloof.
He’s also a suspect. One of many.
When Stiles’ best friend and partner, Lizzie Ferguson, is kidnapped things begin to shake apart.
Stiles doesn’t trust anyone and he needs to find Lizzie before time runs out.

Goodreads

Review by Kelly

A provocative detective series set in the late 1800’s that won’t disappoint. Stiles has moved to the United States after being blackmailed for being a gay man in England. He never loses himself but rather reinvents himself. On the boat he forms a wonderful friendship with Lizzie and soon these two become the best of friends. Stiles eventually moves to St. Louis and becomes a Pinkerton Man. He has to go undercover for his first assignment to a brothel that caters to M/M. While investigating he gets attached to one of the gentlemen at the club. He ends up having one of the hottest nights of his life. Things take a turn for the worse. His “friend” ends up murdered. He takes this incredibly hard but has to move on. The silver lining is that Lizzie ends up popping back into his life. These two go on the road undercover together to solve another mystery. In true Stiles fashion, he ends up playing while working and grows rather fond of the foreman. Things really go crazy when Lizzie is kidnapped. Stiles could never live with himself if something happened to her. This is a rollercoaster of a story. I don’t normally read M/M books but the actual story is what keeps me going. I look forward to continuing their journey!

C. J. Baty

C. J. Baty lives in southwest Ohio. Her heart however, lives in the mountains of Tennessee where she hopes to retire some day. The mountains have always provided her with inspiration and a soothing balm to the stresses of everyday life.

The dream of writing her own stories started in high school but was left on the back burner of life until her son introduced her to fan fiction and encouraged her to give it a try. She found that her passion for telling a story was still there and writing them down to share with others was much more thrilling than she had ever expected.

She has a loving and supportive family who doesn’t mind fixing their own meals when she is in the middle of a story. And a network of friends, who have encouraged and cheered her on in her quest of being an author.

One thing she has learned from life and she is often heard to say is: “You are never too old to follow your dream!”

Military, Suspense

#WOTR21 #ContemporaryRomance #MilitaryRomance #RomanticSuspense – HOLDING HADLEIGH, Raptor Book #2 by PJ Fiala

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Holding Hadleigh: A Protector Romance (RAPTOR, #2)

A RAPTOR operative on a mission.
A social worker with unfaltering compassion.
And the competition that sparks desire…..

Former Army Ranger Donovan Keach can’t stand the scum that threatens children. Determined to take down an online pedophile, he’ll stop at nothing until the criminal is locked up for good. But when he encounters a sexy, but nosy social worker, he suspects foul play.

Hadleigh Watterson will do anything to protect innocent children. While gathering evidence during a case study, Donovan sidetracks her plan. She’s ready to barrel in and take down the vermin muddying the innocent. Donovan has other plans. With an intense attraction building between them, teaming up is their only option. Can Donovan uncover the criminal while holding on to Hadleigh for good?

Goodreads

I was born in a suburb of St. Louis, Missouri named Bridgeton. During my time in Missouri, I explored the Ozarks, swam in the Mississippi River, played kickball and endless games of hide and seek with the neighborhood kids. Spending summers in Kentucky with my Grandmother, Ruth, are the fondest childhood memories for me.

At the age of thirteen, my family moved to Wisconsin to learn to farm. Yes, learn to farm! That was interesting. Taking city kids and throwing them on a farm with twenty-eight cows purchased from the Humane Society because they had been abused, was interesting. I learned to milk cows, the ins and outs of a breeding schedule, feeding schedule and the never ending haying in the summer and trying to stay warm in the winter. Our first winter in Wisconsin, we had thirty-six inches of snow in one storm and were snowed in our house for three days! Needless to say, I wasn’t loving Wisconsin.

I am now married with four children and three grandchildren. I have learned to love Wisconsin, though I still hate snow. Wisconsin and the United States are beautiful and my husband and I travel around by motorcycle seeing new sites and meeting new people. It never ceases to amaze me how many people are interested in where we are going and what we have seen along the way. At every gas station, restaurant and hotel, we have people come up to us and ask us about what we are doing and offering advice on which roads in the area are better than others and great rides others have been on if we are interested.

I come from a family of veterans. My grandfather, father, brother and two of my sons and one daughter-in-law are all veterans. Needless to say, I am proud. Proud to be an American and proud of the service my amazing family has given.

Romantic Suspense, Suspense

#ReleaseDay – Sainted, The Invisibles #8 by Heather Slade

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Sainted

He’s a playboy M16 agent trying to change his ways.
She’s straight-shooter working for the CIA.
Together, they’re INVINCIBLE.

SAINT
I’ve got a reputation to mend—a lifestyle to correct. Hell, I’m no saint; I like my women. But I want this job more than anything. Walking the straight and narrow is going to be hard, but being an INVINCIBLE is even harder. And the hardest job of all: keeping my hands off of the sexy CIA assistant who has me praying for mercy.

HARPER
With a cheating ex and a new job on the horizon, I just need to blow off some steam. Sleeping with a rugged and hot stranger does the trick—right up until my first day of work when I’m face-to-face with my one-night stand. Now, we’re working together, and things are heating up. Whoever said that the sinners are much more fun have never met SAINT.

Goodreads

Heather Slade gave herself the gift of writing a book for her own birthday one year. Thirty-plus books later (and counting), she’s hit a couple of best-seller lists and has had the time of her life. For Slade, the joy is in the writing, but nothing makes her happier than hearing from a reader who tells her that she’s made her laugh or cry or gasp or hold her breath or stay up all night because she can’t put one of her books down.

The women she writes are self-confident, strong, with wills of their own, and hearts as big as the Colorado sky. The men are sublimely sexy, seductive alphas who rise to the challenge of capturing the sweet soul of a woman whose heart they’ll hold in the palm of their hand forever. Add in a couple of neck-snapping twists and turns, a page-turning mystery, and a swoon-worthy HEA, and you’ll be holding one of Slade’s books in your hands.

Find me here:
Amazon: https://geni.us/hslade_amazon
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Learn more about my series here:
Butler Ranch: https://geni.us/butlerranch_gr
K19 Security Solutions: https://geni.us/k19_gr
Military Intelligence Section 6: https://geni.us/mi6_gr
The Invincibles: https://geni.us/theinvincibles_gr_a
Cowboys of Crested Butte: https://geni.us/cab_gr

Apocalyptic, Review, Sci Fi, Standalone, Suspense, Writers on the River Attending Author, Zombie

#WOTR21 – #Review – Outbreak: A Zombie Novel by L.C. Mortimer aka Sophie Stern

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Outbreak: A Zombie Novel

Emily thought she could survive the apocalypse and save her sister from hordes of undead. She was wrong. By the time she found her sister, it was too late. All hope was shattered. Heartbroken and disillusioned, Emily returns home. There’s just one problem: her haven is no longer empty. Someone has moved in.

Neil was a leader long enough to know when to cut his losses. Surviving in the city was one major loss. He gathered his friends and hoofed it to the forest. He knew there would be abandoned farmhouses and plenty of land. The fewer inhabitants before the apocalypse struck, the fewer zombies to deal with after.

The house they find is incredible. It’s isolated, well stocked with food, and Neil even finds a few loaded guns. Soon it becomes obvious that the home isn’t as empty as they originally thought, however. When the owner returns, she demands that Neil and his friends move out. She seems to have no problem with the idea of tossing them out on their asses, but there’s a major problem.

A storm is coming, and it carries with it a greater threat than just zombies.

Goodreads

Review by Twinsie Kelly

I received this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

Zombies! Need I say more? This is a standalone novel that gives you a bit of everything. There are so many emotions that are part of this journey, and everyone has their own story with their own demons to fight. This story brought a rag tag group of travelers together and they almost made it work. You know that saying “When it rains, it pours”? Well, just when this group seems to catch a break, the sh!! hits the fan. The characters are very relatable. They are regular people like you and me who were trying to figure life out. Then, BAM! They are forced to survive. Each character’s back story will humble you. It’ll really make you wonder what would really happen and how would you handle it. Each had their vices and crazy as it may seem, they even had some happy times during the Z apocalypse. This story will make you laugh, will give you the warm and fuzzies, and some of it can be a bit gory. Best of all, you will NOT see what is coming and are definitely not ready for the end. I swear that when I finished this book, I had one of these moments that just made me sit there, like wow, that happened. I had a book hangover! I am still going over this in my head going, how could that have happened? Seriously, you need to read this!

L. C. Mortimer

L.C. Mortimer likes zombies, shifters, and things that go bump in the night. When she’s not busy dreaming up her next story, Mortimer can be found dancing, traveling, or curled up with a cozy mystery.

Mafia, Suspense

#NewRelease #Mafia – Glitter & Greed (Brooklyn Brothers, #4) by Melanie Munton

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Glitter & Greed (Brooklyn Brothers #4)

We are the Rossetti’s.
The exiled “sixth family” of the New York mafia. We’re the good guys.
People don’t fear us…much. They respect us.
The five of us? We’re the Brooklyn Brothers.
And we protect what’s ours.

Don’t ask me what made this girl different, what made her stand out. I’m not proud of it, but it wasn’t exactly my first ever lap dance. The last thing I expect is for the same woman I’ve been obsessing over for two months to waltz right into my gym.

Catalina “Cat” Vasquez is the most alluring, sensual woman I’ve ever met. She has secrets, and I want all of them. It’s the only way I can protect her. Because it seems I’m not the only one who’s been looking for her.

Just my luck that I would fall for a woman who has connections with the Mexican cartel. Who would have thought her stalker would be the same man who’s about to wage an all-out war on my turf?

I’m a fighter by nature.
I fight for what’s mine.
And I’m not about to lose to someone who wants to steal Cat away from me.
If he thinks his guns will save him from my fists, he came to the wrong city.

Goodreads

Melanie grew up in the Midwest, but she loves living in the Southeast (where the beaches are!) now with her husband and daughter.
Melanie’s other passion is traveling and seeing the world. With anthropology degrees under their belts, she and her husband have made it their goal in life to see as many archaeological sites around the world as possible.

She has a horrible food addiction to pasta and candy (not together…ew). And she gets sad when her wine rack is empty.

At the end of the day, she is a true romantic at heart. She loves writing the cheesy and corny of romantic comedies, and the sassy and sexy of suspense. She aims to make her readers swoon, laugh out loud, maybe sweat a little, and above all, fall in love.

Go visit Melanie’s website and sign up for her newsletter to stay updated on release dates, teasers, and other details for all of her projects!
http://www.melaniemunton.com/

You can also follow Melanie on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Instagram, and Goodreads.