Category: Fiction

The Heirs by Susan Rieger

Title: The Heirs
Author: Susan Rieger
Pub. Date: 23-May-2017
Rating: 4.5 Stars

The Heirs is an exceptional story about the complexities of family ties. The story starts with the death of the family patriarch, Rupert Falkes, a wealthy and prominent attorney in New York City.  He dies leaving behind a wife, Eleanor, and five sons. Six months after his death a woman comes forth and declares that she had two sons by Rupert. At first, the family dismisses the claim as a gold seeker looking for a way to make money. As the story progresses and more family secrets are revealed the truth is slowly uncovered but not before the whole family is pushed into turbulence.

The whole family is dysfunctional. Some of the characters I liked and some I didn’t. Eleanor’s character was the best by far mainly because she was the most believable. However, some of the sons lacked in development. They made stupid decisions, which all people make, I just never fully understood why and that detracted a little from the story. Nonetheless, it was not enough of a flaw to affect my overall rating of the book. Continue reading “The Heirs by Susan Rieger”

The Singles Game by Lauren Weisberger

Title: The Singles Game
Author: Lauren Weisberger
Pub. Date: 12-Jul-2016
Rating: 4 Stars

When I was offered a copy of this book I jumped on it, for two reasons, I loved The Devil Wears Prada and the book meets task one on the 2017 Book Riot’s challenge. The theme of this book is buyer beware because sometimes you get more than you bargained for.

That is exactly what happened to Charlotte “Charlie” Silver. After a devastating injury Charlie is not hearing the words she wants to from her coach. She is a driven young woman and being told she may not be able to play tennis on the same level again does not sit well with her. Therefore, she fires her longtime coach and hires Todd Feltner, a no nonsense coach, with a reputation of being ruthless on his players and expecting the same from them. Continue reading “The Singles Game by Lauren Weisberger”

Come Sundown by Nora Roberts

Title: Come Sundown
Author: Nora Roberts
Pub. Date: 30-May-2017
Rating: 4 Stars

Come Sundown is the story of the Bodine family and is part romance and part thriller. The story opens twenty-five years ago when Alice, the prodigal daughter, who ran off to California to become a movie star, is returning home. Just miles from her family home she is abducted by a stranger known only as “Sir”.

Skip forward to the present and Bodine Longbow, she is the fourth generation, now runs the Bodine resort which sits on a sprawling thirty thousand acre ranch in Montana. Vacationers and honeymooners alike come to the resort to experience the cowboy life and Bodine runs the show seamlessly with the help of a large staff. Continue reading “Come Sundown by Nora Roberts”

The Postman’s Fiancee by Denis Theriault

Title: The Postman’s Fiancee
Author: Denis Theriault
Pub Date: 6-Jun-2017
Rating: 4.5 Stars

The Postman’s Fiancée by Denis Theriault, is reminiscent of the movie While You Were Sleeping. In this story, Tania, a waitress in Montreal, falls in loves with one of her customers a postman by the name of Bilodo.  Unbeknownst to Tania, Bilodo has already fallen for his haiku pen pal in Guadeloupe, a young woman he has never meet.

As fate would have it, Bilodo loses his memory after an accident in which Tania saves his life. Seeing an opportunity, Tania decides that she will tell Bilodo they are engaged. She moves him into her apartment and fabricates a web of lies that she will never be able to extract herself from. Bilodo’s physician believes that his memory will eventually return. What will Tania do then? Continue reading “The Postman’s Fiancee by Denis Theriault”

The Beaumonts: The Kentucky Bourbon Series by Bobby Collins and Jimmy Star

Title: The Beaumonts: The Kentucky Bourbon Series
Authors: Bobby Collins & Jimmy Star
Pub Date: 5-Jan-2017
Rating: 3.5 Stars

The Beaumonts: The Kentucky Bourbon Series is the story of two rival Bourbon distilling families, the Beaumonts and the Taylors.  The families just became linked when Rickey Beaumont marries Donna Taylor. No one in either family even knew they were dating. Therefore, when Rickey and Donna arrive at the Beaumont estate it is quite a surprise.  Despite the shock, the Beaumont family welcomes Donna with open arms, the only exception being Cliff, Rickey’s older brother.

Rickey is not so fortune when the time comes to meet Donna’s father, Joe Taylor. Joe is livid and very vocal in expressing his displeasure over the marriage. He views it as the ultimate betrayal by Donna. He sees the Beaumonts as his enemy and declares that as long as Donna is married to one he will have nothing to do with her. Continue reading “The Beaumonts: The Kentucky Bourbon Series by Bobby Collins and Jimmy Star”

All the King’s Soliders by John Anthony Miller

Title: All the King’s Soliders
Author: John Anthony Miller
Pub Date: 17-Feb-2017
Rating: 5 Stars

All the King’s Soldiers is set in 1940 Lisbon shortly after the German invasion of France. There is a large network of spies, of multiple nationalities, in and around Lisbon, given that Portugal has decided to remain neutral.

The story opens with the murder of Taylor Hartridge, a British spy, in a small town just outside of Lisbon. It is thought he was killed for the contents of his safe.  It is believed the safe contained the German invasion plans for Great Britain, a very valuable commodity and definitely one to kill for.  Continue reading “All the King’s Soliders by John Anthony Miller”

The Boundary Stone by Gail Avery Halverson

Title: The Boundary Stone
Author: Gail Avery Halverson
Pub Date: 16-Nov-2016
Rating: 5 Stars

The Boundary Stone by Gail Avery Halverson is the perfect example of why I accept requests for reviews and read authors that are new to me and/or debut authors. More than once I have found, as is the case here, a great story and fell in love with another author that I might have never known about.

Ms. Halverson has done a remarkable job with her debut novel. The plot was well thought out and the scenes were true to the period. The characters are beautifully drawn and her descriptive prose was spot on. I love it when the author describes a scene so well I feel like I am watching through my own eyes. Continue reading “The Boundary Stone by Gail Avery Halverson”

Lola by Melissa Scrivner Love

Title: Lola
Author: Melissa Scrivner Love
Pub Date: 21-Mar-2017
Rating: 4.5 Stars

Wow! What a great story. I could not help falling in love with the character of Lola. Yet, I feel like I am not supposed to like the gang banger she is, this is morally wrong, but I could not help myself. Lola and her story are so compelling. How can a Mexican-American woman rise to power in a gang in South Central LA.? Lola does it because she is a strong, determined woman. She knows what she wants and she is smart enough to get it.

Most people think Lola is just the girlfriend to Garcia the leader of a small gang that calls themselves The Crenshaw Six.  Lola likes it this way. She likes being in the shadows biding her time. Yet, her time is running short. The cartel, unaware that Lola is the true leader, has asked Garcia to disrupt a rival’s drop and bring them the drugs and two million cash that is to change hands. When the drop goes bad because Lola’s younger brother, Hector, makes a fatal mistake, Lola’s very life is on the line. She gets drawn much deeper into the world of drug trafficking than a small time gang leader would normally go. This just might be the chance for Lola to prove herself and rise from the shadows. That is IF she manages to stay alive.

There are many twists in the plot and that kept me on my toes. I was constantly trying to figure out what was going to happen next and what brilliant plan Lola was going to devise to get out of the sticky situations she finds herself in. One problem with the story, all the men of power too readily accept Lola as a leader.  Sure, it maybe plausible but I say highly unlikely is more like it. For this reason, I think the story was a bit Hollywood.  At the same time it was so well written I can easily over look this.

I recommend this to anyone who likes thrillers. Note of caution, the story does contain violence and talks about drugs, child prostitution, pedophiles and other topics some people might find disturbing.

I received a free ARE from Crown Publishing through LibraryThing’s Early Reviewers program.

 

The Original Ginny Moon by Benjamin Ludwig

Title: The Original Ginny Moon
Author: Benjamin Ludwig
Pub Date: 2-May-2017

Ginny Moon is a 14 year old girl with autism. Ginny’s story is told from her point of view giving the story a very unique voice. The reader gets a glimpse into the how the mind of a child with autism might work and how they view the world.

Ginny was raised by her biological mother, Gloria, until the age of 9 when she was removed for abuse and neglect. When we meet Ginny, five years have passed and she is currently in her third “Forever Home”. Because of her autism she struggles with communicating. She has been trying to tell everyone that she needs to find her Baby Doll.  The last time she saw her Baby Doll was the night she was removed from her mother’s home. All her actions are centered around getting back to Gloria and her Baby Doll. She knows Gloria is not taking proper care of Baby Doll and to Ginny it is a matter of life and death that she returns. As she works towards this goal things begin to spiral out of control and those around her struggle to keep her in a safe home.

The story telling was superb and it will touch you. I was hooked after just the first few pages. I was cheering for Ginny the whole time and I am sure you will too.  There is not one particular kind of reader I would recommend this to because I suspect most any reader will enjoy this book.

I received an ARC from Harper Collins in exchange for my honest review.

Never Let You Go by Chevy Stevens

Title: Never Let You Go
Author: Chevy Stevens
Pub Date: 14-Mar-2017
Rating: 5 stars

Never Let You Go is an engaging thriller written by Chevy Stevens. The plot is well thought out and had me totally vested, which kept me turning pages well into the early morning hours. The character develop was excellent also. I especially liked getting into Lindsey’s head a little to understand how an abusive relationship starts and then escalates. How the mental abuse wears a person down and they begin to question everything and are so afraid to seek help.

In the story we meet Lindsey and her daughter Sophie who live in a remote part of Canada’s Pacific Coast accessible only by boat. They escaped there after Andrew, Lindsey’s ex-husband, is sentenced to 10 years in prison for killing a woman one night while drinking and driving. They have been carefully building their new lives. Lindsey now has a successful cleaning business with a few employees. She is finally feeling like her life is nearing normal. Sophie is a gifted artist and is finishing high school with plans to attend college.

Then strange things start happening shorty after Andrew’s release from prison. For example, Lindsey finds her keys and phone placed just so on her purse when she is at a client’s house cleaning. This is something she never does, but Andrew always berated her about losing them. How could Andrew have found her… and so quickly? Deep down Lindsey knew this day would come. Andrew is never going to let her go. She is his and he will go to any length to keep her. At least that is the logical conclusion given Andrew’s history.

Even though I figured out Andrew’s role or lack thereof as the case may be, I was still truly surprised by the ending. A great story and it was intense. If you love thrillers, you have to read this book and you will devour it.

Please note, I received a copy of this book from the publisher, St. Martin’s Press, through a Shelf Awareness giveaway.