Hold On To Your Seat! ' Protecting Tanner Hollow' - by Lynette Eason

About the book:

Four nail-biting novellas in one!

Lethal Homecoming: Nolan Tanner never got over Kallie Ainsworth's sudden, unexplained departure. Now when he comes to her rescue after an attempt on her life, all the old feelings come rushing back.

Lethal Conspiracy: When professional fundraiser Lillian Maloney sees her father's campaign manager commit murder, she goes on the run from the men he hires to kill her. A close call brings firefighter Jason Tanner to the rescue, but the killer is closing in . . .

Lethal Secrets: Someone wants Honor McBride dead. When Eli Murphy helps her change a flat tire and discovers the danger Honor is in, he longs to help--but Eli has secrets of his own that could get them all killed.

Lethal Agenda: When Detective Derek St. John rescues a woman he's met only once before--and has never been able to forget--he finds himself falling for her. But he'll have to keep Claire Montgomery alive if they're to have a future together.

My review:

These stories were incredibly suspenseful; you definitely need to hold on to your seat for the wild ride!  They move at a pretty fast pace since they're novellas with plenty of action and some romance thrown in.  They had varying levels of faith content as some of the characters were Christians, one even an interim pastor, and others had turned their back on their faith because of tough circumstances.  I liked how Nolan and Jason turned up in other stories than just theirs so there's more connecting the stories than just the town.  The characters were great, strong women and tough men.  There was also an incredibly cute and funny little girl in the third story that made me laugh out loud.  It was great to see a St. John story here as I had finished that series not too long ago.  I haven't read the rest of Eason's books yet so I wondered if there were more fun connections I was missing.  I highly recommend this book if you like suspense!

I received this book from Revell.  I was not compensated for this review.  All opinions are my own.

           The Author

1. 

   © Mary Denman

   Lynette Eason

   Lynette Eason is the bestselling author of Collateral Damage and Protecting Tanner Hollow, as well as the Blue Justice, Women of Justice, Deadly Reunions, Hidden Identity, and Elite Guardians series. She is the winner of three ACFW Carol Awards,...
   

   Continue reading about Lynette Eason 

Amazing! 'A Match for Emma' - Mitchell's Crossroads 3 - by Pepper Basham

About the book:

Emma Mitchell may enjoy sprinkling romance into the lives of others, but her own plans involve a single first-class ticket to culinary school in Europe.

When her best friend, Jon Noble, suddenly moves back to Ransom, Emma’s fairly certain her life can’t get any better…until her matchmaking schemes nosedive, her culinary future falls flat, and a life-long friendship begins to teeter on the brink of something unexpected.

With a little inspiration from Jane Austen’s classic and a touch of Blue Ridge charm, will Jon and Emma discover that what they need the most may be the last thing they’re trying to find?

My review:

This was an amazing story I didn't want to put down!  I loved the modern day retelling of 'Emma' but with a little twist since it was set in the Blue Ridge mountains and they were also trying to catch a thief!  It was so cute to watch Emma and Jon's relationship develop from best friends to something more as the story progressed. This is one of my favorite tropes, best friends falling in love, and it was done so beautifully here.  The romance was amazing!  The banter was funny and there were so many wonderful quirky characters in this small town.  I also loved that the faith element was strong; most of the characters were Christians and Emma grew a lot in this story as she realized she was being prideful and not treating someone right.  She also gave some wonderful advice about a man not being able to solve the real problem in your heart; that only God can do that.  There's also some discussions about hard things, like losing a parent and dealing with that grief, or having a bad childhood, though the story doesn't dwell on these things.  It does give the story some depth so it's not all light-hearted fun.  This worked well as a stand-alone, though it looks like some characters overlap.  I can't wait to read her other books!  I highly recommend this one!

I received an ebook from JustRead Tours.  I was not compensated for this review.  All opinions are my own.

Free for Kindle!

Free for kindle!

Amazon

Free For Kindle!

Free for kindle!

Amazon

Wonderful! 'Deadly Deceit' - Harbored Secrets 2 - by Natalie Walters

About the book:

Independent and tenacious journalist Vivian DeMarco is back in Walton, Georgia, for one reason -- to do her job and get out. When her boss suddenly dies under suspicious circumstances, Vivian's only hope for finding the truth -- and the next big story -- is small-town law enforcement's lanky poster boy, Deputy Ryan Frost. But the deeper they dig, the more twisted the truth becomes. False leads, incriminating emails, and someone called the Watcher force Vivian to fight for answers -- and her life.

My review:

This was a wonderful story, suspenseful and with such a cute romance!  I liked how this book had more emphasis on the relationship aspect than a lot of other suspense stories do.  It was fun to see how Vivian and Ryan interacted and I loved all of the references to superheroes!  They had some amusing banter and so did him and his sister.  There were cute little nerdy things Ryan did that just made him so endearing.  He wasn't perfect as he did do something stupid but he tried to fix it right away.  He also had a strong faith but I did think it was odd that they didn't discuss it much other than he knew she was uncomfortable when he wanted to pray for their meal.  We see her struggle with her faith and turn to God more throughout the story but he doesn't see it and they don't talk about where she's at or think maybe they shouldn't rush their relationship so I was a little disappointed with that. There's talk of faith and forgiveness and some good conversations about God.  There were some good suspenseful moments.  This book works as a standalone as I hadn't read the first book yet and didn't feel lost but there were characters from the first book in this one.  I can't wait to read the first one or for the last one to come out!  I highly recommend this book!

I received this book from Revell.  I was not compensated for this review.  All opinions are my own.

The Red Journal - The Mosaic Collection - by Deb Elkink

About the book:

Flirty globetrotter Sybil badgers her friend Libby to travel along in seeking out the world’s “sacred places”—a monastery in Japan, a mountaintop in Africa, a mosque in Istanbul. Her footloose wandering far from family values costs her more than money.

But Libby can’t afford to travel, and she’s plagued by a different kind of restlessness. Grieving the recent death of the grandmother who raised her in their inner-city Minneapolis tenement now slated for demolition, Libby faces homelessness in both heart and habitation.

When Libby discovers a cryptic message from beyond the grave and an antique ring pointing to a mystery in an inner room of a mansion museum in North Dakota, she sets out on a quest of her own for the meaning of heritage and home.

My review:

I actually had a really hard time getting through this book.  Sybil drove me nuts as she only cared about herself and when the story was told from her perspective it had so much detail about new age practices and her reminisces about guys she'd hooked up with that I ended up skimming her parts after I was halfway through the book.  There were hints that she wondered if there was a different way to live but she quickly squelched those.  I liked Paige more as she was a pregnant grad student trying to finish her thesis before her baby was born.  She worked at the museum and her thesis focused on the builder of it but her sections also had so much detail about the history that I got a little tired of it.  I liked Libby a lot and felt for her trying to find her place in the world after her grandma died.  She wanted to make a forever home somewhere but worked for a horrible boss and lived in a bad part of town and I wondered if she would ever see her dream realized.  The story felt slow as she finally discovered the message and ring quite a ways into the book.  Her grandma seemed to have faith in God based on some of the things she said but it seemed like she never explained to Libby what that meant so she was wandering around in the dark.  She would have these strange memories or dreams and I was curious to see what that was about.  I'm glad everything is explained at the end.  There's at least one true story told in the book about the "Black-Bearded Barbarian" which was interesting.  I googled it and found out he was a real person.  The story deals with forgiveness and discovering the truth.  This might appeal to someone from a new age background or who likes less religious content in the stories they read. 

I received an ebook from JustRead Tours.  I was not compensated for this review.  All opinions are my own.

Free for Kindle!

Free for kindle!

Amazon

Free for Kindle!

Free for kindle!

Amazon

Free for Kindle!

Amazon

Free for Kindle!

Amazon

Enjoyable! 'A Christmas Haven' - An Amish Christmas Romance 2 - by Cindy & Erin Woodsmall

About the book:

For fans of holiday romances and Amish life comes a new Christmas tale of surprising expectations and discovering miracles.

Old Order Amish Ivy Zook is wrestling with her need to shed her community's ways so she can grow the business of her dreams: planning parties. As long as she's stuck living without modernization, she can barely get her business on its feet. But if she leaves too soon, she'd cause trouble for her sister, Holly, who is planning her wedding to Joshua Smucker. All of their plans become twice as complicated when an old car crashes into the storefront of Greene's Pharmacy, carrying a Swartzentruber (ultra-conservative sect) Amish man, Arlan, and his very ill sister.

The Zooks take in Arlan and Madga, tending to the woman's illness and Arlan begins helping around the family farm. Ivy and Arlan are on different tracks, one wanting to leave her community and the other to return to his. But both young people are trying to discover what God has in store for their futures and what miracles might lie around the corner this Christmas season. 

My review:

I enjoyed this story about Ivy as she tried to figure out where she fit in the world.  It was interesting to learn about the Swartzentrubers as I had never heard of them before.  I had a hard time with Arlan at first because of his judgmental ways but he, too, was trying to figure out his faith and how that fit with his ultra-strict upbringing as compared to the almost worldly Amish (in his opinion!)  It's hard to fathom this sect and how strict they must be if they won't even associate with Old Order Amish!  I really enjoyed Ivy's and Arlan's conversations as they challenged each other.  It was also nice to see Arlan's journey as he saw what a family could be like as they were open with each other about their thoughts and feelings and he realized he wanted that.  There was a hint of romance to the story and we also see Holly planning her wedding to Joshua but running into a snag with his bishop and her plans to work at the pharmacy and become an LPN after they marry.  This worked well as a stand-alone but you'd probably enjoy Holly and Josh's story, too, in book one.  I enjoyed the themes of freedom and grace.  I would recommend this story if you like Amish fiction.

I received this book from Waterbrook Multnomah.  I was not compensated for this review.  All opinions are my own.

Fire - San Juan Shadows 1 - by Lynnette Bonner

About the book:

She’s a first-year teacher in a school where kids are dying because of a new drug.
He’s an undercover cop who’s been sent in to find the dealer.

Years ago, Kyra Radell’s brother died from a drug addiction, so when students in her new school start buying a new street drug called Fire—and dying because of it—she’s determined to help in any way she can. Even if that means putting her own life in danger.

Case Lexington, an undercover cop, has been sent in to pose as a high school senior. He wants her to stay safe and mind her own business. The only problem is, she’s not willing to listen to a mere student.

Can he protect her and keep his cover intact? More importantly, will he be able to find the drug dealer before any more students—or teachers—die?

My review:

I really enjoyed this story that kept me guessing!  It was hard to tell who the bad guy was and it was fun to watch Kyra and Case run into each other at the school after they met before he went undercover.  Talk about awkward!  He's worried about his cover and she thinks she might have flirted with a high school student!  I liked the investigation and I especially liked how both Kyra and Case had a strong faith in God and showed it by praying regularly.  I liked Kyra's intelligence and determination to get out of some sticky situations she landed in.  There were some good romantic moments and some exciting action, also!  I would recommend this is you like romantic suspense!

I received this ebook from the author.  I was not compensated for this review.  All opinions are my own.

Free for Kindle!

Free for kindle!

Amazon



Free for kindle!

Amazon

Free for Kindle!

Free for kindle!

Amazon

Free for Kindle!

Free for kindle!

Amazon

Free for Kindle!

Free for kindle!

Amazon