Sycamore Gap by LJ Ross

August 11, 2021 By Leave a Comment


Sycamore Gap by LJ Ross
Publisher: Dark Skies Publishing
Genre: Contemporary, Mystery/Suspense/Thriller
Rating: 3 stars
Reviewed by Fern

The past never stays buried for long…

Detective Chief Inspector Ryan believes he has put his turbulent history behind him. Then, in the early hours of the summer solstice, the skeleton of a young woman is found inside the Roman Wall at Sycamore Gap. She has lain undiscovered for ten years and it is Ryan’s job to piece together her past.

Enquiry lines cross and merge as Ryan is forced to face his own demons and enter into a deadly game of cat and mouse with a killer who seems unstoppable.

Murder and mystery are peppered with a sprinkling of romance and humour in this fast-paced crime whodunnit set amidst the spectacular scenery of Hadrian’s Wall country in Northumberland.

Life has settled into a comfortable and happy routine for DCI Ryan. He is living with his lady-love, his police work fulfills him and the events from six months ago are finally turning into memories. When an old murder site is discovered in the old Roman wall at Sycamore Gap though, events and connections from the past once more threaten to steal Ryan’s happiness for good.

I really enjoyed this story. For the most part this is an excellent British police procedural story with interesting characters and a slow but well plotted murder mystery. While I feel this book can be read as a stand alone there are a number of factors that link the present mystery plot with items from the first book (Holy Island) and even the events from DCI Ryan’s past that are deeply important to him and the work at large. So while I genuinely feel readers can pick this book up and enjoy it by itself, I also strongly feel a deeper understanding and enjoyment will be gained from having read the first story – and as this is the second in a much longer running series I am beginning to feel it likely is best to read these books in order to gain a full understanding of some of the longer-running plotlines.

That said, this is an excellent and well plotted story. There are a few different factors swirling around – the cult from the Holy Island series that was never fully resolved, the serial murderer who killed DCI Ryan’s sister whom Ryan incarcerated, the relationships between the small police squad and DCI Ryan’s solid but still-new relationship with Anna. Each of these components are exceptionally written and all interlinked together marvelously and I was particularly pleased that in this book I felt Anna and Ryan’s relationship felt far less stilted or forced. I felt the balance in this book was really well handled and even and the book sang because of it.

Readers looking for a fast paced or highly action orientated story probably wont be as satisfied as I was, this book is far more procedure and “discovering who done it” based rather than running around hunting the killer and bad guy. Personally, I wasn’t bothered by this at all and found the more character and process based story really interesting and well woven. I feel readers who enjoy a series with a longer-term story arc as well as a mystery/case for each individual book should find this story and series as a whole really fits their needs.

An excellent book with good balance I am really pleased I’ve given this series a chance and am looking forward to reading more in the future.

Filed Under: Mystery/Suspense, Reviews Tagged With: , , , ,

Extinction Plague by Greig Beck

August 9, 2021 By 1 Comment


Extinction Plague by Greig Beck
Publisher: Pan Macmillan Australia
Genre: Contemporary, Mystery/Suspense/Thriller, Horror, Action/Adventure, Paranormal
Rating: 4 stars
Reviewed by Fern

Around the world entire towns are being wiped out, a trail of boneless bodies left behind.

Professor Matt Kearns, paleo-linguist, and a team of scientific and military specialists, rush to decipher the hidden secrets of a pair of ancient stones that prophesise the next great extinction on Earth. They soon discover that the ominous predictions are linked to a plague of unstoppable creatures that have risen from the centre of the Earth.

In a heart-pumping adventure that begins in the hold of a sunken German U-boat, Matt Kearns travels to the lost Nazi treasure tunnels in Poland and dives deep down to sunken caves below Easter Island. Matt is fighting for his life, the ones he loves, and the existence of the entire human race.

Matt Kearns, paleo-linguist, is back once again for another adventure. A Nazi-era German U-boat is discovered down in New Zealand, leading to a series of strange discoveries and all too soon all over the world swarms of bugs start devouring everything in sight – killing humans, animals and everything in it’s wake. Matt and the team need to first discover what’s going on, and then once again save the world.

I’m a huge fan of Grieg Beck’s but I admit I have a particularly soft spot for Matt Kearns and his adventures. Beck somehow keeps Matt’s stories a little lighter to my mind – and less heavily invested in all the military/ammo aspects of the storyline. With a Kearns adventure I know there will be not just science and thriller aspects with a solid and well woven plot, but usually there is an excellent dose of paranormal and a strong influence of a more intellectual/academic and research based side to the adventure. For me, personally, this hits a really good spot and I’ve never yet been disappointed by one of these stories.

And this book delivers in spades. From Nazi Germany to Easter Island, the Polish mountains and all across the globe Matt and the team piece together what’s actually happening and then fight to save the world from extinction. It’s a magnificent adventure and I thoroughly enjoyed every moment. I particularly liked how solidly Beck wove together a number of different plotlines. It’s clear he’s put a good amount of research into each different element and while the final picture pushes the boundaries of realism, each aspect is clearly weighted strongly in reality and is both exciting and also totally plausible.

This fine line between fact and fiction is a very delicate balance and I really love how Beck seems to straddle it perfectly. That, coupled with the adventure and scare-factor is an absolute highlight for me of all the Matt Kearns stories and one of the reasons they’re an auto-buy for me and one of my favorite series.

Readers looking for a fast paced, fun adventure novel where the hero and his team race against the clock (and where the bad guys are not just a few horrible people, but the bone-eating, creepy, bug kind) this is an excellent story and one I can strongly recommend.

Filed Under: Horror, Mystery/Suspense, Reviews Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

Operation: Loch Ness by William Meikle

August 4, 2021 By Leave a Comment


Operation: Loch Ness by William Meikle
Publisher: Severed Press
Genre: Contemporary, Mystery/Suspense/Thriller, Action/Adventure, Paranormal
Rating: 4 stars
Reviewed by Fern

S-Squad are relieved to be home, and even an order to investigate animal mutilations at a local wildlife park does not seem like an onerous detail.

But things take a turn to the twilight zone all too quickly around the S-Squad, and even their homeland is not immune.

Something is feeding, ravenously, on animals, wildlife, and now people in the Scottish Highlands, and the trail leads to only one place, a place of legends, and the dark waters of Loch Ness.

The S-Squad gents are back for another rollicking adventure, this time in their own back yard. Called in to sort out a rogue, unknown animal that decimated a local wildlife reserve the four squaddies are soon embroiled in another adventure with an enormous beastie and more weirdness that defies logical explanation.

I’m a huge fan of these short stories. They’re exactly like reading a B-grade movie and just as deliciously (albeit guiltily) satisfying. This time I was interested that Meikle seemed to mesh a number of his various series together in this one book. A fair bit of his magical world crossed over into his paranormal/big beastie world and I found the results highly interesting and really well handled. To a degree it felt odd that the magical elements were scattered amongst the paranormal and military setting – but I have to be honest, if any of Meikle’s S-Squad stories (so far) could have carried it off – Loch Ness in the wilds of Scotland was the only setting I feel have the magical elements appearing to make sense.

I particularly adore this series because each book can very happily be read on its own – but we also get more character growth and insight into each squad member as the stories progress. There’s also something just really appealing for me, personally, about how quick the pace of these stories are and how over the top each situation becomes. These stories are the ultimate guilty pleasure and I am always excited for the next to appear.

Readers looking for a deeply complex plot or very heavy style of story won’t find that here. While there is indeed a good adventure – and an interesting and slightly complex magical/supernatural component to this particular story – at heart this is a fun rollick of a story that is meant to be enjoyed and not dissected and intellectually examined. Relax, have a drink and roll along with the squaddies – it’s a trip well worth taking.

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Still Waters by Viveca Sten

August 2, 2021 By Leave a Comment


Still Waters by Viveca Sten
Publisher: Amazon Crossing
Genre: Contemporary, Mystery/Suspense /Thriller
Rating: 4 stars
Reviewed by Fern

On a hot July morning on Sweden’s idyllic vacation island of Sandhamn, a man takes his dog for a walk and makes a gruesome discovery: a body, tangled in fishing net, has washed ashore.

Police detective Thomas Andreasson is the first to arrive on the scene. Before long, he has identified the deceased as Krister Berggren, a bachelor from the mainland who has been missing for months. All signs point to an accident—until another brutalized corpse is found at the local bed-and-breakfast. But this time it is Berggren’s cousin, whom Thomas interviewed in Stockholm just days before.

As the island’s residents reel from the news, Thomas turns to his childhood friend, local lawyer Nora Linde. Together, they attempt to unravel the riddles left behind by these two mysterious outsiders—while trying to make sense of the difficult twists their own lives have taken since the shared summer days of their youth.

Police detective Thomas Andreasson is readying himself to start his summer holidays at his small summer house in the Sandhamn islands off the Swedish coastline where he grew up. What at first looks like a drowning accident – or possible suicide, though there’s no evidence to support that – quickly drags Thomas deeper when the victim’s only living relative, a cousin he was particularly close to, also is found dead shortly afterwards under mysterious circumstances. Thomas seeks help from his childhood friend and local lawyer Nora Linde and together the two of them try to uncover what turns into a convoluted and difficult mystery.

I often enjoy Scandinavian based crime stories and this one in particular really appealed to me. While much of the Scandi-crime I have previously read is slightly darker in tone and setting than other British or American based crime fiction, this book was delightfully more verbally colourful and lighter. Set at the height of summer I found it a refreshing and totally different landscape even though the murder mystery was a stark contrast to the lighter tone of the beach-going summer holiday makers.

I found the mystery in particular a little slow to begin moving. Readers who prefer a faster paced – or action-driven – style of novel might find this a little slow or plodding for their tastes, but personally I really appreciated the time to get to know Thomas and Nora’s characters a bit better and really enjoy the local island/beach going setting which was completely different from what I was expecting. I found being eased into this and also having a slower introduction to Thomas and Nora, their childhood connections and friendship as well as the different twists and turns each of their lives had taken as they had grown up and both married and started their own families – a slightly slower pace for the mystery plotline really appealed to me and made a lot more sense, rather than some bang-bang-bang hard driving murder mystery action pace.

I was also really impressed that the author didn’t hint or indicate in any manner that Nora and Thomas were anything other than long-standing and completely platonic friends. This is the first book in a series though and I completely accept this might change down the track, but for now I found it really refreshing and quite wonderful that Nora and Thomas are simply friends who share a long-standing history and they’re each perfectly content to keep it like that. I found this lovely and noteworthy.

The murder mystery, once it gets cracking, was really well written and I feel those who like police-procedural style of crime novels should find this fits the bill really well. I am really glad I gave this Swedish crime novel a chance and am eager to read the next in the series. Recommended.

Filed Under: Mystery/Suspense, Reviews Tagged With: , , , ,

Holy Island by LJ Ross

July 28, 2021 By Leave a Comment


Holy Island by LJ Ross
Publisher: Dark Skies Publishing
Genre: Contemporary, Romance, Mystery/Suspense/Thriller
Rating: 4 stars
Reviewed by Fern

Detective Chief Inspector Ryan retreats to Holy Island seeking sanctuary when he is forced to take sabbatical leave from his duties as a homicide detective. A few days before Christmas, his peace is shattered and he is thrust back into the murky world of murder when a young woman is found dead amongst the ancient ruins of the nearby Priory.

When former local girl Dr Anna Taylor arrives back on the island as a police consultant, old memories swim to the surface making her confront her difficult past. She and Ryan struggle to work together to hunt a killer who hides in plain sight, while pagan ritual and small-town politics muddy the waters of their investigation.

Murder and mystery are peppered with a sprinkling of romance and humour in this fast-paced crime whodunnit set on the spectacular Northumbrian island of Lindisfarne, cut off from the English mainland by a tidal causeway.

On somewhat enforced sabbatical on Holy Island, DCI Ryan is surprised but willing when the murder of a young woman on the island forces his bosses hand into cutting his rest period short. With the window for the murder clearly proving the only suspects are those of the regular island residents, DCI Ryan initially thinks this will be a quick case and he can start to reclaim his usual life back. What at first seems a simple enough case quickly turns convoluted, with ritual and possibly pagan overtures, historical elements and more than a few skeletons in the closet Ryan quickly realizes this case will be anything but clear cut and simple.

I thoroughly enjoyed this debut novel and by the time I was half way through I had purchased the second in the series. While the small island was a delightfully picturesque setting with a small and sleepy coastal kind of feel, the delicious elements of a complex history and an interesting cast of characters this book from the first page had enough excellent points to capture my attention. I was so pleased that the author did an exceptional job laying out the scene – giving me as the reader enough backstory into DCI Ryan to understand where his character was coming from but still leaving plenty of mystery around him that I was eager to read and discover more.

The trappings of a “closed room mystery” also really appealed to me. With the island cut off by the tides and a set window for the murder occurring there was a definite number of suspects which on the surface makes things easier but of course people – and their secrets, skeletons and motives – are always so much more complicated than that.

The only point where I felt the author lost some ground with me with the incorporation of an attraction and fledgling romance between Dr Anna Taylor (a civilian expert called in from the University) and DCI Ryan. While I am all for a well written romance, the addition of this attraction and chemistry between Anna and Ryan felt a little stilted to me, personally, particularly at the start when there were a lot of other plot points occurring.

In most ways this is an impressive book – with a number of strong elements to the plot (the setting of the Island, the numerous characters, the police procedural aspects of the case and the pagan/ritual aspects to the crime as well as the many motives and elements of the investigation). Adding in a romance on top of that while understandable, really made me feel as if the book was somewhat bloated, particularly when I think back and realise had those romance elements been cut from the book I feel it would have been stronger – not lessened in any way for me, personally.

I also feel I should note that right at the very end of the story – when I believed all the loose ends of the plot had been very satisfactorily wrapped up, there was a bit of a twist added in the final few pages. While definitely not a cliffhanger, I feel some readers mightn’t be impressed that the author added a few extra tidbits after the murder plot had been fully revealed and solved. I have no idea if the author did this to whet the appetite of the reader to purchase the second book, which I am guessing will follow closely along behind this story and pick up on the twist in those final few pages, but instead of leaving me the reader very satisfied with a complicated – and solved – murder, it instead left me feeling as if I’d snuck a read of the first few pages of the next book and left feeling somewhat incomplete.

I should reiterate this is an exceptionally well written book. I loved the plot – it was quite complicated and well threaded together, there were a large number of interesting characters, some great police procedural work and a really striking setting. I will definitely be reading the second book in the series and count this as a new author found for my own reading pile.

Readers looking for a fast paced or action-orientated story might find this lacking for their tastes. Personally I prefer the slower, step-by-step style the book has taken. It helped give me a really good feel for the township, the setting, the characters and the overall air of the storyline. I could well understand it won’t suit all readers and many with more modern tastes would likely expect more action and drama and a faster pace. I thought the plot was very well woven together – with a few hints and tips and false leads which should keep most readers turning the pages. Overall I was really happy with the pace and writer’s style and was really pleased to have found this new series.

For a slower moving story with a delightful setting and interesting characters this is a good read and I feel it’s an excellent debut novel. I’ll certainly be checking the next story in the series out.

Filed Under: Mystery/Suspense, Reviews, Romance Tagged With: , , , , ,

The Jigsaw Man by Nadine Matheson

July 27, 2021 By Leave a Comment


The Jigsaw Man by Nadine Matheson
Publisher: Harper Collins Publishers
Genre: Contemporary, Mystery/Suspense/Thriller
Rating: 4 stars
Reviewed by Fern

A serial killer and his copycat are locked in a violent game of cat and mouse. Can DI Anjelica Henley stop them before it’s too late?

On the day she returns to active duty with the Serial Crimes Unit, Detective Inspector Anjelica Henley is called to a crime scene. Dismembered body parts from two victims have been found by the river.

The modus operandi bears a striking resemblance to Peter Olivier, the notorious Jigsaw Killer, who has spent the past two years behind bars. When he learns that someone is co-opting his grisly signature—the arrangement of victims’ limbs in puzzle-piece shapes—he decides to take matters into his own hands.

As the body count rises, DI Anjelica Henley is faced with an unspeakable new threat. Can she apprehend the copycat killer before Olivier finds a way to get to him first? Or will she herself become the next victim?

Drawing on her experience as a criminal attorney, debut novelist Nadine Matheson delivers the page-turning crime novel of the year. Taut, vivid and addictively sinister, The Jigsaw Man will leave you breathless until the very last page.

DI Anjelica Henley has had a rough few years, with her marriage on shaky ground, a toddler daughter and recovering from serious wounds – both mental and physical – which she sustained capturing the infamous Jigsaw Killer. While outwardly normal and calm, Henley is barely keeping everything together. So when a copycat killer is leaving dismembered body pieces in highly public places all over London, Henley and her colleagues are drawn back into a psychological game they thought was long over.

I’m often a bit hit or miss with “psycho killer is helping the police – or is he?” style of stories. It’s such a delicate balance to my mind between having your bad guy actually be a bad guy (and not an anti-hero, which is a different thing for me) but also making sure your villain doesn’t appear to be a cartoon character or overdrawn. It’s incredibly hard and that thin line is different for so many readers, and thus a lot of various books out there fall short of the mark for me. I was delighted that – from my perspective at least – this book delivered on many levels and I am already eagerly anticipating hopefully a next book.

I think a large part of this books success for me was much of the story focused closely in on Henley. I loved how her character was flawed – deeply, in a few respects – but Anjelica was trying so hard to keep everything together just as so many women nowadays are. Keeping numerous balls up in the air – husband, child, career, mental health, her own personal happiness – all the while struggling with some serious emotional baggage and well-deserved fears I found her character to be both incredibly relatable but also someone I could hold a deep empathy for. I was particularly pleased that many of her actions weren’t necessarily the “right” choices. I found it deeply relatable but also quite difficult to read about her denial about her mental health and how she managed to juggle these various aspects of her life. While Anjelica thought she did both of these things successfully I wasn’t so sold and this made gripping reading for me. Thankfully, while I didn’t agree with all of her choices, at no time did I feel she was being outrageous or blindly stupid. The author did an amazing job to my mind in showing the reader why Anjelica was making her various choices and how they might not be the “right” thing they were the best decision for her in the moment.

I also was delightfully frustrated but in awe of how well the author doled out the backstory – and particularly the information related to Peter Olivier – the serial killer Anjelica and her coworkers incarcerated a few years previously. Indeed I think much of my enjoyment of this story was learning about Olivier – and what, exactly, was going on – in a slow, drip-feed style of manner. There was no massive info-dump early on, explaining the scene or letting the reader in on the machinations of what was occurring. And while a few times I was frustrated that I had no idea of some of the aspects of the past related to the case, it’s closure and exactly how everyone came to be in the situation they were, the author was exceptional in slowing fleshing out that history as it became relevant to the current circumstances. For a debut book I feel this was handled masterfully and while I’m not sure it will be every readers cup of tea (it really was annoying at times to know I was missing pieces of the puzzle – heh – and having to wait for the author to give it to me rather than having everything up front) it also kept the tension, pace and eagerness for me to continue reading really high. This could easily be a story readers devour in a sitting or two mainly because the urge to discover what’s going on, to solve the puzzle and get those answers was huge. This was a page turner in many respects.

Finally, I really enjoyed how the plot itself was fairly simple the story as a whole was so much greater than that. The way the characters – Henley’s colleagues at the Serious Crime Unit in particular – all interacted and how all the moving parts of the story wove together. This book was refreshing and different but familiar enough I didn’t feel out of my depth. In particular Olivier’s character – even though he’s nowhere near as prominent in the story as Anjelica and her team mates – were all handled exceptionally well and I am really hoping there’s not a big lag before the next book comes out. This story doesn’t end on a cliff hanger as such – the plot is rounded out nicely, but Henley does make a large and serious personal decision in the last few pages of the story. It’s obviously the set up for the next book, and I am deeply intrigued how the author will handle it.

Readers who like a gritty, complex and character-driven mystery story should find this as wonderful as I did. I am eager for more stories from this author.

Filed Under: Mystery/Suspense, Reviews Tagged With: , , , ,

Back To Life by John Carson

July 21, 2021 By Leave a Comment


Back To Life by John Carson
Publisher: Self-Published
Genre: Contemporary, Mystery/Suspense/Thriller
Rating: 4 Stars
Reviewed by Fern

It looked like a simple murder case. But the victim’s false identity is just the beginning…
Edinburgh DCI Harry McNeil’s dangerous job wasn’t made for relationships. So when a female officer’s mutilated remains wash up in a canal, it feels like proof he was right to leave his long-time girlfriend. But the investigation takes an unexpected turn when he discovers the corpse was carrying a police ID belonging to a cop already dead and buried.

Digging deeper, McNeil learns the woman was actually a software engineer nosing around high-tech, classified projects and poking into murky government corners. So when a second body surfaces, he fears the truth lies in the darkest corners of greed and corruption. And someone is determined to make certain those secrets never come to light…

Can McNeil catch the killer before the deadly tables are turned on him?

BACK TO LIFE is the second book in the gritty DCI Harry McNeil Scottish crime thriller series. If you like hardboiled detectives, dark humor, and snappy banter, then you’ll love John Carson’s unputdownable tale.

I really enjoyed this second story featuring DCI Harry McNeil and DS Alex Maxwell. While there is an interesting and decent plotline surrounding a new Artificial Intelligence company involved in making driverless cars and the complicated murder of a police officer – Linda Smith, who oddly actually died more than three months ago yet her police warrant card was found on this new body – I actually mostly really enjoyed the growth in both Harry and Alex’s characters.

While both were enjoyable in the first story (Sticks and Stones) in this second outing I really feel the author had the time and space not just to allow us as the reader to spend more time with them, but also helped flesh out their working relationship to a greater degree. I admit that each character felt more three-dimensional this time around and I became a lot more attached to them both. Harry is dealing with his recent break-up and complications arising from extracting his life from his ex – who still lives just around the corner and they frequent many of the same places. I also feel Alex really comes out to be her own character, I got a better understating of who she is and enjoyed the fact her personality shone through a lot better and she wasn’t just the underling learning from a decent boss and trying to grow her career.

Readers looking for a strong romance in their mystery story probably won’t find this fits their needs. While there is certainly more dancing around Alex and Harry’s feelings in this story there is no overt motion on either side to instigate a romance. That said, there did feel to me like some chemistry might be bubbling away in the background and I feel the author might be leaving their options open in that regard as the next few stories progress.

What I did really enjoy though was the deepening of the working – and friendship – dynamic between Alex and Harry and by the end of this story they each felt a lot more “real” to me and I was committed to seeing a lot more of this series through. The plot was strong and well-woven, but in some respects I feel it actually took a back seat in this book to the relationship and character growth of the two main characters. And for a series like this, having a book where the focus is on the characters and their growth isn’t a bad thing. Particularly since I didn’t feel the plot suffered in any meaningful way.

For a well written police-procedural mystery with some deeper than usual and interesting character this is a great book to try.

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Verses For the Dead by Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child

July 19, 2021 By Leave a Comment


Verses For the Dead by Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child
Publisher: Hachette Book Group
Genre: Contemporary, Mystery/Suspense/Thriller
Rating: 4 stars
Reviewed by Fern

In this #1 New York Times bestseller, FBI Agent Pendergast reluctantly teams up with a new partner to investigate a rash of Miami Beach murders . . . only to uncover a deadly conspiracy that spans decades.

After an overhaul of leadership at the FBI’s New York field office, A. X. L. Pendergast is abruptly forced to accept an unthinkable condition of continued employment: the famously rogue agent must now work with a partner.

Pendergast and his new colleague, junior agent Coldmoon, are assigned to investigate a rash of killings in Miami Beach, where a bloodthirsty psychopath is cutting out the hearts of his victims and leaving them with cryptic handwritten letters at local gravestones. The graves are unconnected save in one bizarre way: all belong to women who committed suicide.

But the seeming lack of connection between the old suicides and the new murders is soon the least of Pendergast’s worries. Because as he digs deeper, he realizes the brutal new crimes may be just the tip of the iceberg: a conspiracy of death that reaches back decades.

Agent Pendergast finds himself sent down to Miami, Florida in charge of an unusual case – where a young woman was brutally murdered and her heart removed, only to be placed on the gravesite of another young woman who committed suicide more than a decade ago. The letter indicates the heart is a gift, but clearly a lot more than meets the eye is going on. Can Pendergast and his new partner, Agent Coldmoon discover what’s really going on?

I’ve been a long-time fan of Preston and Child’s and followed along the many ups and downs of their Agent Pendergast series. I’ve been particularly enjoying their more recent work – both City of Endless Night (the story directly preceding this) and this book. In many ways I feel it is Preston and Child returning to their roots with Pendergast – in that the main focus of the story is on the central the mystery and the complications that arise with Pendergast’s unusual but highly effective investigative mannerisms. I really enjoyed this addition to the series.

Indeed, this and the previous book (more than many others in the series) could perhaps even be read as a stand alone. While for sure a reader having read the numerous previous installments will have a far greater understanding of Pendergast and his foibles – unlike a number of the previous books in this series, the plot and majority of aspects to this story can be read just by themselves as the plot is contained within the story and not linked directly either to previous books nor left open-ended in a trilogy or sequenced manner.

I also admit to greatly enjoying seeing Pendergast do what he does best – solve murders, piece together complicated parts to a plot and forge his own path. Even more exciting for me was seeing a really great partner for Pendergast (though no one can outside D’Agosta, of course) in Agent Coldmoon. Left of center, I feel this character was an excellent support character for Pendergast. Highly intelligent, stable and not prone to leaping before carefully looking I felt in many ways Agent Coldmoon was a suitable and indeed worthy match to work with Pendergast. The two men also thaw to each other as they work and I believe come to respect and enjoy working together – something I would love to read more of.

This story was at last a really good, interesting and complicated murder mystery, but I feel a lot of the flair comes from Pendergast and Coldmoon’s characters in particular. Working with the new dynamic growing between these two men and having Pendergast taken out of his usual element of New York was lovely to read and while I didn’t initially have high hopes for Coldmoon (all too often there are significant flaws and/or failings in newly introduced FBI or police characters in this series) I was really impressed and, in the end, thrilled with his character and I really hope to see more of him again someday.

With the vibrant backdrop of Miami and the Florida surrounds, a really interesting and complicated murder case spanning the past and present day and a number of strongly written and intelligent characters this was a great book and an excellent addition to the series. I feel readers could certainly pick this up as a stand alone novel (though admit they might not find it quite as exceptional as I did) this is a fast-paced and excellent mystery/suspenseful read. Recommended.

Filed Under: Mystery/Suspense, Reviews Tagged With: , , , ,

Land Of Enchantment by Jodi Payne and BA Tortuga

July 13, 2021 By Leave a Comment


Land Of Enchantment by Jodi Payne and BA Tortuga
Publisher: Tygerseye Publishing
Genre: Contemporary, Erotic Romance, LGBTQ
Rating: 4 stars
Reviewed by Fern

What if you had to leave everything behind to find your way home?

Opposites definitely attract, but can an east coast kid on the run and a southwest rodeo cowboy learn to speak the same language, let alone learn to trust each other?

When Mason Wild has to get out of Jersey fast, he heads west without a plan or a penny to his name. Luckily he finds a job with a roofing company run by a rodeo cowboy who’s kind, easy to work for, and even with his jaw wired shut, hotter than July in the high desert.

Bull rider Levi Yost knows what it’s like to be down on his luck. He’s not much older than Mason, but he’s been around the block a few times–or at least around the rodeo arena. He takes a chance on Mason, giving him a job and a place to live on his ranch. The two of them discover a surprising amount of common ground, but trouble has a way of finding each of them. Mason has to decide whether to trust Levi with his past, and Levi has to come to terms with the fact that he’s not just riding out for himself anymore.

On the run and having been on the road for a while, Mason is hungry and pretty desperate for some steady work when he finally gets some luck while hitchhiking out in the desert. Levi takes a step of faith and hires Mason onto his regular crew doing some roofing work and quickly both men realize they can truly trust each other in all the important ways.

I really enjoyed this full length cowboy story and loved the slow, emotional pace. From the start it’s clear that Mason has more than a few secrets and is in dire need of people he can trust and who will do right by him. Levi, also, is recovering from a bad fall while rodeoing and I loved how the longer length of the story let the two men ease into a true and deep relationship. While sexy and hot, I loved how the co-authors took their time to let the two men learn and trust each other first. This really helped me as a reader get a good feel for them both and get excited as they trusted each other inch by inch.

With a few really strong secondary characters I loved how Mason in particular flourished after he found his feet. The pace around the reader learning his backstory was lovely, snippets here and there that added up into an interesting and intense sub-plot around where and what Mason had left behind him. Levi also was a delight, and once we finally get back onto the rodeo circuit with him I loved how the reader could see it all fresh and learn through Mason’s eyes. Personally I have zero knowledge about real cowboying and rodeos (short of what you’d see on tv) so I loved how much detail and authentic description the co-authors added into the story without it feeling like a massive info-dump. I loved these scenes and felt they really added hugely to the story as a whole.

While it took a while for the plot (both Mason’s past to return and Levi to realize maybe his time for being on the rodeo circuit was a limited thing) to really blossom and come to fruition but I didn’t mind this at all as the growing relationship between Levi and Mason was given ample time to really come around and not be rushed. This book is really like a lovely long, slow drop and I adored this pace.

Readers eager for a character-centric story with vibrant and different characters, plenty of hard work, desert settings and authentic cowboys along with some complicated personal plot-lines and a loving and emotional, deep M/M romance should find this story really fits the bill. I loved this story and can’t wait to reread it again soon. Recommended.

Filed Under: Erotic Romance, Reviews Tagged With: , , , , ,

When All The Girls Have Gone by Jayne Ann Krentz

July 12, 2021 By Leave a Comment


When All The Girls Have Gone by Jayne Ann Krentz
Publisher: Jove
Genre: Contemporary, Erotic Romance, Mystery/Suspense/Thriller
Rating: 4 stars
Reviewed by Fern

When Charlotte Sawyer is unable to contact her stepsister, Jocelyn, to tell her that one of her closest friends was found dead, she discovers that Jocelyn has vanished.

Beautiful, brilliant, and reckless, Jocelyn has gone off the grid before, but never like this. In a desperate effort to find her, Charlotte joins forces with Max Cutler, a struggling PI who recently moved to Seattle after his previous career as a criminal profiler went down in flames—literally. Burned out, divorced and almost broke, Max needs the job.

After surviving a near-fatal attack, Charlotte and Max turn to Jocelyn’s closest friends—women in a Seattle-based online investment club—for answers. But what they find is chilling…

German researchers were the first to come up with cialis discounts appalachianmagazine.com this anti ED medicine. levitra uk appalachianmagazine.com A diabetic will typically experience large variations in the design of splints, but the principle is the same. So consumers have many options on where to buy Propecia without prescription, it is best to inform your doctor about taking the drugs. achat cialis cipla Kamagra Easily Available Via Online The online presence of this high quality ingredient ensures the best result to the individual in future. order cheap cialis http://appalachianmagazine.com/category/featured/page/47/ When her uneasy alliance with Max turns into a full-blown affair, Charlotte has no choice but to trust him with her life. For the shadows of Jocelyn’s past are threatening to consume her—and anyone else who gets in their way…

Max Cutler enjoys his work as a PI even though his first career as a profiler for the FBI – along with his marriage and the home he’d made for himself – all went down in flames during his last case. When he agrees to take on a client who insists his cousin’s death isn’t what it looks like Max meets Charlotte and together they discover the unusual link between Charlotte’s step-sister’s mysterious vanishing and Max’s suspicion, death. Soon they’re working together, each determined to find some answers.

Jayne Ann Krentz has been a staple of my reading material for more years than I’m comfortable remembering. This book really brought home to me just how amazing she is as a writer, because over the years (gulps: decades!) she has continued to grow and thrive in her writing style. She has always been an exceptional writer but I found this book really exceeded even my own high expectations.

For example – this book had a good number of strong, varied and interesting secondary characters (the investors group of four friends, the nursing home residents and Max’s family as just a few). Whereas there is almost always some secondary characters to help flesh out the world and situations – I thoroughly enjoyed that this book really had a higher than usual number and yet the quality and interest in this large group remained high. I also really enjoyed how the plot wasn’t linear – numerous threads all wove slowly but steadily together and the story-telling around this and weaving the pieces together was not just artful but entrancing to me.

As I admitted above I’ve been a fan of Krentz’s for ages, but like all relationships it ebbs and flows. Some books hit the mark better than others and while they’re all good – there are different levels of “good”. I adored this book and it really hit a number of my “excellent” buttons so I rate this book above a number of her other recent works. Now sure, there are the usual tropes which are as comforting and enjoyable as they are predictable – Charlotte is smart, savvy and has a “crash and burn” relationship in her near past, Max has his own issues and a far bigger “life-altering moment” in his past and they each are dealing well with their respective histories and baggage. They’re both strong characters, attracted to each other but cautious of getting burned again and focused on the mystery and task at hand – all the usual tropes. But that doesn’t detract (for me, at least) one inch from the enjoyableness of the story, and for sure it doesn’t lessen the intensity of their characters or the situation at all. Indeed the comfort and known quantity of these aspects helps me enjoy the tension and weaving of the multiple plots more than if I was trying to grapple with their character and objectives. I know this style of characters and can enjoy the plot and circumstances more because I’m not questioning or catching up on other parts of the story.

Readers who love a fairly traditional style of romantic suspense should definitely give this book a whirl. If you haven’t read Krentz before you can pretty much look into anything of her backlist in the last 10-15 years and chances are good there’s a number of decent stories there awaiting your perusal. Krentz is a go-to for me for solid, enjoyable, believable and interesting romantic mystery/suspense. This is definitely one of my favourites though they’re all of a high quality. The romance is a slow-burn and while the bedroom door is left open the focus of the romance is more emotional and Charlotte and Max connecting and working their investigation together with a bit of bedroom sizzle thrown in – this is not an explicit or heavily graphic romance story, but a solid mystery/suspense with a good dash of romance woven in and balanced well.

A solid and thoroughly enjoyable read, I was delighted by this and can heartily recommend it.

Filed Under: Erotic Romance, Mystery/Suspense, Reviews Tagged With: , , , , ,
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