Book Review: Kill for Me

Kill for me by Karen Rose

Description: Samantha Vartanian was hurt many years ago. But by not coming forward she has realized that many other women have been hurt. She is ready to stop that cycle. She is an ADAA and her job is to put people away. Luke Papadopoulos is a detective that has seen to much. And he wants nothing else then to have the people who do evil things to children put away.

The killer seems to still be out there. He is trafficking women and hurting those that he is done with. Samantha and Luke must stop him. Can they do it in time?

Thoughts: This is a great whodunit author. The book has a combination of mystery and thrill in it that also allows the readers who like a touch of romance to be happy as well.
The subject may be dark but it will keep you on the edge of your seat until you finish the book!

What genre would you consider this?
Mystery/Thriller

Overall:

Book Review: I Can See You

I Can See You by Karen Rose

Description: Eve Wilson was the victim of a horrible crime twice in her life. Who would imagine that it could happen a third time? When she was hurt she learned to escape by going online and now that she is a graduate student she is using that experience to help her with her degree. She follows those in an online world and evaluates them. When her test subjects begin showing up dead – Eve knows she needs to get help.

Enter Noah Webster – homicide detective. He has had his own history with tragic events. He isn’t ready for a relationship but at the same time can’t deny his attraction to Eve. More than anything now he needs to catch a killer and she can help.

Thoughts:Thoughts: This is my second Karen Rose book and I loved them both. They were fun and have a bit of a romantic twist without being all about the romance. Instead they are about the mystery of figuring out who-done-it as well as what is going to happen next.

For anyone who likes mysteries and thrillers I would recommend this book. While it is told from a woman’s prospective I don’t think it would just entertain women.

What genre would you consider this?
Mystery/Thriller

Overall:

Book Review: Dial Emmy for Murder

Dial Emmy for Murder by Eileen Davidson

Description: Alexis Peterson is a soap star who looks to have it all. Of course life is never that easy. She loves her daughter and has a supportive mother. She has moved to a new soap because of the problems she had at her last one (everyone thought she was a murderer for a while - and who can work like that)? But she has moved on and is ready to present at the Daytime Emmy Awards. But for Alexis life throws her a curve ball - and in this case it is a fellow soap star dead on the awards show.

Many people would go their own way - but Alexis can't leave a mystery alone. And she can't help her attraction to Dective Frank Jakes either. Both drag her into another mystery that maybe only she can solve - as she has all the inside scoops. But being a detective can mean danger. Can Alexis figure it all out in time?


Thoughts: This was my first Eileen Davidson book. From what I an tell she has several Alexis Peterson books out there. And it was different to read a book about a soap star from the perspective of someone who really is a soap star. She seems to take the world as it is. She is lucky (or at least Alexis is) to have what she has. She works hard but she gets lots of benefits. And beyond that is this idea that she loves a mystery. It makes me think that if I could Eileen would be a great person to meet in real life. The books are written as if the "star" is down to earth and knows what is important to her - mainly her family.

Add a touch of romance and a murder mystery and you have a very entertaining book. I am not a big mystery reader (my interest comes and goes) but I would definitely be willing to pick up another one of these books!

What genre would you consider this?
Mystery

Overall:

Book Review: Long Lost

Long Lost by Harlan Coben
Description: Myron had a fling with Terese years ago. So imagine his surprise when she calls him and tells him that she needs his help and that he needs to come to Paris. Before you know it he is there and they have been thrown into a world of intrigue. Terese's husband is dead. Others are turning up dead around every corner and bad guys can't wait to get their hands on them (and neither can the authorities). Can they figure out what is going on soon enough?

Thoughts: The thing I like about Harlan Coben's books is when you think you know what way the story is going - it goes in another direction. This book does that as well. The only thing for me that I didn't really like was the mobsters and crazy things that are thrown in to complete the story. It isn't that it makes it a bad story - it is just a lot to take.

I don't want to ruin the ending for anyone so I will be vague - but the ending is hard to take as well. Can anyone truly be uncaring. Can you grow up in an environment that teaches you that kind of hate. sometimes I think we want to think that so we can justify the bad that some do. But for me that wasn't something that made me walk away happy with how things ended.

What genre would you consider this?
Thriller/Mystery

Overall:

The Witch’s Grave

The Witch’s Grave (An Ophelia and Abbey Mystery) by Shirley Damsgaard

Description: Ophelia is just a good witch trying to recuperate from the last time something weird happened to her. She is trying to raise her new adopted daughter and maybe even meet a man. When she starts having dreams about a particular man and then she sees him – she wonders what their connection is. Is he her soul mate?

Unfortunately that question can’t be answered right away as he is shot! Ophelia (with the help of her grandmother Abbey) must figure out why he was almost murdered. Was the person after Ophelia instead? Are they after her now? A witch’s investigations are never done as Ophelia quickly learns!

Thoughts:Ophelia and Abbey’s relationship is fun and keeps you entertained. It is a relationship you can either identify with or say that you want.

While Ophelia gets herself into these situations it also seems like fate is playing a fun hand in getting her into trouble

This book touches a bit on the idea of soul mates and past lives. I actually found it really interesting. Righting wrongs and finding past loves in an appealing and possible way.

Ophelia and Abbey books are something that I will continue to enjoy and would pass on to anyone who loves mysteries with a twist.

What genre would you consider this?
Mystery

Overall:

Ritual in Death

Ritual in Death by J.D. Robb (Part of the Suite 606 Anthology)

What was this book about?

Detective Eve Dallas is at a society party with her husband Roarke when a man stumbles in naked and covered with blood. They find a woman dead (and it is quite a grisly murder) in another room in the hotel. The room – Suite 606 – but a quick bloody swipe has made the room much more menacing.

Eve will do anything to find the killers. But it quickly is figured out that there is more to this then just a murder. Satanists are involved. They have destroyed several people’s lives as well as killed. Can Eve stop them? Who could do this?

What did you think about the book?

If you have read this blog before you may have noticed that I have a thing for J.D. Robb books. They just make me happy. I love revisiting the characters I have grown to love over and over – and there is almost nothing that J.D. (Nora Roberts) can do to make that change.

So despite my overall hatred (maybe that is too strong a word) for short stories – I picked this book up. I find that authors who are not normally short story authors have a problem making a concise, short story that doesn’t feel rushed. I was afraid that would be the case with this one.

Maybe it is my love of all things Eve Dallas – or maybe it really is pretty good – but I didn’t feel that about this story. Was it short? Yes. Did I wish it was longer? Yes. But did I feel I got a complete story where I wasn’t rushed into the beginning or the end? Yes.

Overall, therefore I was happy with it.

What genre would you consider this?
Mystery

Overall:

Question for You!
What is your favorite short story author?

The Devil Can Wait

The Devil Can Wait by Marta Stephens

What was this book about?
Several teenagers have turned up washed up and dead. Sam Harper needs to figure out what is going on and why. As additional murders crop up he figures out that it all seems to be connected to this so-called cursed black pearl ring that used to be the ring of a pope.

Can Sam find out in time whether the curse is real? Can he figure out how the ring is connected to the teenagers? What about Jennifer Blake, the writer who gets involved with the ring's story and ends up risking her life to find out the truth of it?

What did you think about the book?
There was a lot going on in the book. The first character that I really liked - you saw a little bit of and then nothing else happened. So that was a bit disappointing to me.

I have never read any of the other Sam Harper books that Marta Stephen's has written so I don't know if I had read them - if I would have liked Sam more - or gotten to know him better.

The mystery part of it - figuring out who had killed the teenagers and why, was interesting. And there was a lot of promise in the sub-plot of the cursed black pope ring. I think it was just all put together a little too quickly. You kept finding new characters and another sub-plot going on before I was totally ready to focus on something else.

So if you want a fast paced book that has a touch of mystery and action this is probably a good one for you.

What genre would you consider this?
Mystery

Overall:

Question for You!
Do you believe in prophesies?

The Book of Lies

The Book of Lies by Brad Meltzer

What was this book about?

There has always been some that wondered about the story of Cain and Abel. The Bible makes no mention of what Cain killed Abel with and what happened to it afterwards. Because of this there are many powerful men and women that would do anything to find it.

Cal has a history of pain when his father killed his mother. But when he comes across him again – he is brought into a mystery like which he never imagined. He has no one to trust (including his father) and no idea what to do next.

This mystery of finding the “Book of Lies” the book that Cain killed Abel with is something Cal can’t help but want to figure out. It will bring him and everyone around him into danger. At some point he will find out there is a connection between the man that created Superman and this book. Can he figure it all out in time?

What did you think about the book?

I was highly intrigued as to how they were going to tie this Book that has to do with Cain and Abel and the death – to Superman and the creator’s father. And they definitely do so. I thought that parts of the book were great – while others were a little harder to get into.

It kept my interest but I would have loved to have more puzzles, have more feelings for some of the characters. From the get go there was almost no one to like or identify with. Everyone was acting suspicious.

I would definitely suggest this as a possibility for anyone who enjoyed the DaVinci Code not just because of the religious implications. This book has a touch of religion embedded in its meaning – but it isn’t something that redefines totally how you think of things (or makes you questions things ) at least in my case it was something I had never really though of before and it brought some interest about how much of it was possible.

What genre would you consider this?Suspense

Overall:

SlipKnot

SlipKnot by Linda Greenlaw (A Jane Bunker Mystery)

What was this book about?

Jane has given up her high stress/high power job as a detective to become an insurance woman in Maine. She loves the sleepy town that she has moved to – though it takes a little while to get accustomed to small town living.

Before she can get her feet firmly on the ground, during a insurance investigation they find a washed up body. Things don’t seem quite so obvious to Jane in terms of what happened and why and she can’t help herself and must keep poking her nose in it.

What did you think about the book?

While the mystery was interesting it was very hard for me to get passed the Nautical information to the meat of the story. Linda Greenlaw is heralded as another “Mystery She Wrote” and I can see where the comparison comes from.

So overall not bad – probably not the first book I would go out and read myself – but would definitely suggest to any of my friends who loved mysteries with a nautical twist.

What genre would you consider this?
Mystery

Overall:

Vampyres of Hollywood

Vampyres of Hollywood by Adrienne Barbeau and Michael Scott

What was this book about?

Ever wonder how the actors and actresses of Hollywood look so good? Many of them are vampires. They have helped create the myth of vampires – they can go out in the sun, they can go to churches, they are just like humans, just on another evolutionary tree branch.

Ovsanna Moore is a renowned actress, writer, and studio queen. She is known as the “scream queen”. She is also a vampire. When her people – either changlings or staff – have been marked for death and show up murdered she realizes there is something odd going on and she must solve the case.

In pops Beverly Hills detective Peter King. He knows he must stop these murders before more of Hollywood ends up dead, and more people panic. He can tell that Ovsanna and her assistant Maral MacKenzie have something to hide. He also knows they want to stop the murders. Can they do it in time?

What did you like/dislike about the book?

For me this was a fun and unusual (but in a good way) mystery. The book slowly reveals the characters secrets while still progressing to figure out who is causing all the chaos.

The view of Hollywood is something that will attract anyone who likes to find out what actors and actresses do. While (of course) the stars of Hollywood are not really vampires, many of the cold-blooded behavior, the favorites getting roles because of romantic entanglements, and many other touches are, I am sure, true.

If you like the paranormal and you like mysteries this would be a must read for you.

What genre would you consider this?
Paranormal Mystery

Overall: – It was a surprise to me that I would like this book as much as I did. I truly hope this isn’t the last we see of Ovsanna and Peter

Tailspin

Tailspin by Catherine Coulter (Sherlock and Savich Novel)

What was this book about?

Two mysteries for the price of one. Jackson Crowne, family friend of psychiatrist Dr. Timothy MacLean is brought in because someone is trying to kill the psychiatrist. He has a debilitating disease that affects his brain – and the normal quiet psychiatrist can’t help but spill his prominent client’s secrets. This means that one of his clients wants to stop him before he spills the wrong secret.

Rachel Abbott has finally found her father, and in doing so found danger. Her father is killed, and someone tries to drown her (among many other assassination attempts). She needs to stop the person who is out to get her before she dies.

Jack and Rachel run into each other when Jack’s plane crashes and Rachel is the first to help him and Dr. MacLean out. She can’t keep her secret around FBI agent Jackson – he wants to help.

What did you like/dislike about the book?

This book reminds me of many of the others in this series. You get to consistently see Sherlock and Savich (which are great characters) and solve a mystery and get a romance with a new couple. There is even a little whodunit involved as you try to figure out what is going on where.

Was it my favorite book ever? No. Will I keep reading this series? Definitely. It has a good plot, with enough twists and secrets to keep you interested.

What genre would you consider this?
Mystery/ Contemporary Romance

Overall:

Mercy Street

Mercy Street by Mariah Stewart


What was this book about?

Two teens are dead and two are missing. Did the missing teens kill the others? Where are they now and are they ok? Their family and friends are convinced that they are innocent but the fact that they are gone now – makes them look guilty.

Former police detective Mallory Russo is hired by one of the missing teen’s Priest to find out what happened (and save them). Mallory has a history of doing the right thing even if it means her losing her job and he believes that she can figure out what is going on. The police are shorthanded as it is and don’t have the time to dedicate to the case. New detective Charlie Wannamaker wants to help Mallory find the teens and bring whoever did this awful deed to justice.

What did you like/dislike about the book?

I enjoyed the story and mystery of the book. It isn’t one of those books that you will figure out what is going on and “solve” the case – but it is riveting.

I was slightly disappointed that the original “missing persons” were not found. But I am hoping that this book is just the first in a series of Charlie and Mallory books so that I can find resolution to all my questions..

What genre would you consider this?
Mystery

Overall: