FTC: I received a free copy of this book from the author in exchange for my honest review. I received no other compensation and the opinions expressed in this review are one hundred percent true and my own.
My Oxford Year by Julia Whelan was an interesting book. While I was reading this book, I wanted to go to England because I was interested because of this author writing. I loved following along as Ella went through her year and how she grew and changed as the book progressed. I am not going to give any spoilers because the ending of this book did surprise me which doesn’t usually happen with this genre of books. When I first started reading this book I wasn’t that into it because I was so sure that I knew how it was going to end but once I realized that I was wrong I didn’t put it down until I knew how it was going to end. I think that is one of the reasons that I fell in love with this book because I wasn’t able to figure out what was going to happen even if I did figure out some of the events before they happened. I know if you love this genre of books that you will love this book as much as I do.
About The Book
American Ella Durran has had the same plan for her life since she was thirteen: Study at Oxford. At 24, she’s finally made it to England on a Rhodes Scholarship when she’s offered an unbelievable position in a rising political star’s presidential campaign. With the promise that she’ll work remotely and return to DC at the end of her Oxfordyear, she’s free to enjoy her Once in a Lifetime Experience. That is, until a smart-mouthed local who is too quick with his tongue and his car ruins her shirt and her first day. When Ella discovers that her English literature course will be taught by none other than that same local, Jamie Davenport, she thinks for the first time that Oxford might not be all she’s envisioned. But a late-night drink reveals a connection she wasn’t anticipating finding and what begins as a casual fling soon develops into something much more when Ella learns Jamie has a life-changing secret. Immediately, Ella is faced with a seemingly impossible decision: turn her back on the man she’s falling in love with to follow her political dreams or be there for him during a trial neither are truly prepared for. As the end of her year in Oxford rapidly approaches, Ella must decide if the dreams she’s always wanted are the same ones she’s now yearning for.
About The Author
JuliaWhelan is a screenwriter, lifelong actor, and award-winning audiobook narrator. She graduated with a degree in English and creative writing from Middlebury College and Oxford University. While she was in England, her flirtation with tea blossomed into a full-blown love affair, culminating in her eventual certification as a tea master.
FTC: I received a free copy of this book from Partners In Crime Tours in exchange for my honest review. I received no other compensation and the opinions expressed in this review are one hundred percent true and my own.
Hiding by Jenny Morton Potts wasn’t my favorite book. I say that because I had a hard time following what was going on and who was talking. I am not sure why that was, but it made reading the book super hard for me. I did enjoy the authors writing but I just couldn’t stay interested in the plot of this book. It also could be because this isn’t a genre that I usually read so I just wasn’t super interested. I really liked Rebecca from the start and I couldn’t stand Keller right from the start. He just acted super strange though out the book and because of that he just got on my nerves. I had no idea how this book was going to end so that was a good thing because I get tired of being able to figure out how the book is going to end. If you are interested in this genre than I would give this book a shot but it wasn’t a good fit for me.
Book Details
Genre: Psychological Thriller Published by: Cahoots Publishing Publication Date: February 2018 Number of Pages: 323 ISBN: 1976862817 (ISBN13: 9781976862816) Check out Hiding onAmazon | Goodreads
Keller Baye and Rebecca Brown live on different sides of the Atlantic. Until she falls in love with him, Rebecca knows nothing of Keller. But he’s known about her for a very long time, and now he wants to destroy her.
This is the story of two families. One living under the threat of execution in North Carolina. The other caught up in a dark mystery in the Scottish Highlands. The families’ paths are destined to cross. But why? And can anything save them when that happens?
About The Author
Jenny is a novelist, screenplay writer and playwright. After a series of ‘proper jobs’, she realised she was living someone else’s life and escaped to Gascony to make gîtes. Knee deep in cement and pregnant, Jenny was happy. Then autism and a distracted spine surgeon wiped out the order. Returned to wonderful England, to write her socks off.
Jenny would like to see the Northern Lights but worries that’s the best bit and should be saved till last. Very happily, and gratefully, settled with family.
There was a walk now. They passed doors, like random choices. They all looked the same, all the colour of pale nicotine. But some of those doors were in the business of living and some were not. As you walked past them, you could feel hope slipping away. Which door? Which one? It was like a game the devil might play as you entered hell. Eventually the passengers reached the end of their journey and were shown into another room which was similar in size to the last but with what looked like a window on one side. The window was dark for the moment, with a black blind pulled down and opposite, there was a gallery with seating. The seating was slightly raked, like a theatre. They were here for a performance.
‘That’s 11.30 gone now,’ someone said from the far end.
‘Show must go on.’ Keller mumbled.
There was a crackle and then an audio test from the speaker in the corner. Keller imagined that President Descher had arranged a televised viewing and that all over the State the people could see and hear this: factory workers, grandmothers, schoolchildren, stopping what they’re doing and watching. From the audio speaker, Keller recognised words from the phonetic alphabet, then the date, today, June 23rd 2021, the location, the prisoner’s name and number HCI 72259-931 and the time scheduled for execution.
Keller knew that the duration for the poison to act was ten minutes maximum and that the ratio to be injected was set against the inmate’s weight and height.
Somewhere behind him, Keller could hear mumbling about the victims’ families and an officer explained that they were seated separately, in another viewing room. He imagined that the families’ room was crowded, since eight victims had lost their lives that day.
At 11.45 am, the time was announced once more on the speaker and the blind was pulled up manually, revealing the execution chamber. Keller had forgotten who was seated directly next to him now, but whoever it was flinched.
The prisoner was already strapped onto the gurney. There was a sheet over his body but you could see where the constraint buckles jutted up into the clean white cotton. His left arm was exposed however and the intravenous tube was already in. He was clean shaven. Keller had never seen him without a beard. He could almost pretend he did not know him.
Three Harfield guards came into the chamber now. They did not look at the window, which to them was a mirror. Who would want to see themselves doing what they were about to do, even if it was their duty. The three guards were each handed a syringe. The content of one of the syringes was deadly and the other two contained a harmless fluid. The guards would never know who among them administered the lethal injection.
The condemned man’s chest began to rise and fall. He blinked rapidly and his Adam’s apple bulged in his throat, as he struggled to find an impossible place between dignity and the screaming of his nerves to stay alive.
Keller murmured, ‘There is nothing to do now but die.’
A man in the chamber who had been out of their view, moved into sight. He was dressed in a plain dark suit. He identified himself as Warden James and held up a chart. His hand was steady enough, his white knuckles though suggested a very tight grip on that chart.
Keller stared down at the inmate who seemed to be staring back, though Keller knew that the glass was one way and that all the condemned could see was a reflection of his own final scene. All the same, their eyes met.
Warden James turned to the prisoner. ‘Is there anything you would like to say or read before we administer this lethal injection?’
‘Yes.’
Keller frowned down at the neighboring lap. It was the redhead next to him, the PhD student, twisting that engagement ring. The girl who more than likely had it all, the girl who could not cope without her cell, was barely coping at all. Keller could feel her trembling against the length of his torso and the anger in his veins burned. The young woman held her hand up to her mouth and whispered into it, ‘God, dear God.’
The Warden lowered his eyes to Prisoner HCI 72259-931 on the gurney and blinked several times. He said to the inmate, ‘Go ahead, what do you want to say.’
‘I would like to ask a question.’
‘What is your question?’
‘I would like to ask a question and have it answered.’
Warden James looked around the room at the other officials.
‘Go ahead and ask your question.’
‘Not until you tell me that I will have an answer.’
Keller smiled and nudged the redhead. ‘You see? Make the most of every goddamned moment.’
The young woman was on the edge of her seat and on the edge of tears.
In the chamber, the suits and uniforms huddled and muttered amongst themselves and the Warden came free of the pack once more.
‘We shall try to answer your question. And cannot commit beyond that. I ask you therefore again, is there anything you would like to say?’
The inmate tried to lift his head but the strap across his brow was held tight. He cleared his throat and said in that thick Carolina accent that Keller thought he’d forgotten but which now reignited in his memory and ripped through his heart.
FTC: I received a free copy of this book from the publishing company in exchange for my honest review. I received no other compensation and the opinions expressed in this review are one hundred percent true and my own.
Primary Suspect by Laura Scott was a very predictable type book, but it was well written, and I enjoyed the characters. This was a shorter book, so I was able read it in a few hours which I also enjoyed because I can read it fast and move on to another book. I knew what was going to happen without knowing all the details in this book. I wasn’t the biggest fan of Mitch through most of the book but by the end of it he had grown on me, but I loved Dana right from the start. She seemed like someone I would get along with and I know I will check out more books by this author in the future because I enjoyed her writing. This book would be great if you are looking for something to read that isn’t super intense and a quick read.
About The Book
Wrongfully Accused
A Callahan Confidential story
When fire investigator Mitch Callahan is attacked at a crime scene, he’s shocked to uncover the body of a slain ex-girlfriend—and realize someone’s framing him for murder. Widowed ER nurse Dana Petrie believes Mitch is innocent, and not just because he makes her feel alive again after tragedy marred her past. But is she willing to risk everything only to love and lose again?
About The Author
Laura Scott is honored to write for the Love Inspired Suspense line, where a reader can find a heartwarming journey of faith amid the thrilling danger. She lives with her husband of twenty-five years and has two children, a daughter and a son, who are both in college. She works as a critical-care nurse during the day at a large level-one trauma center in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and spends her spare time writing romance. Visit Laura at http://www.laurascottbooks.com.
FTC: I received a free copy of this book from Partners In Crime Book Tours in exchange for my honest review. I received no other compensation and the opinions expressed in this review are one hundred percent true and my own.
The Victim of the System by Steve Hadden was a great book. I chose to review this book because the plot seemed different from books I have read lately, and I am so glad that I decided to review this book. I know I will be checking out more books by him in the future because I really enjoyed his writing. I felt so bad for Jack in this story. I don’t think he should get away with what he did but I did understand why he did it. This book left me thinking about how our justice system is and how things like this might happen in the world. This book was one that made me think and I enjoyed that about it. I wasn’t the biggest fan of Ike through the entire book and even after I finished the book I didn’t like him. He is just one of those characters that I don’t like. I know you will enjoy this book if you love thrillers and are looking for something different to read.
About The Book
Genre: Thriller Published by: Telemachus Press Publication Date: April 3rd 2018 Number of Pages: 330 ISBN: 9781948046039 Purchase Links:Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Goodreads
Twenty-two years ago, Ike Rossi’s life was shattered when his parents were murdered in cold blood. He surrendered his football scholarship and returned home to find their killer and raise his nine-year-old sister. Now, the crime of a local ten-year-old genius, Jack Cole, threatens to unearth old wounds rather than provide the closure Ike desperately wants.
When Ike meets Jack inside the Pittsburgh courthouse, he doesn’t see a murderer but instead a boy who has been victimized by a system that has left them both without justice. Despite knowing the case will resurrect the painful demons of his parents’ unsolved murders, Ike agrees to clear Jack’s name. The court of public opinion and the district attorney have an airtight case. Worse, taking Jack’s side thrusts Ike into the crosshairs of the most powerful family in Pittsburgh, the Falzones.
Now, with only days before the trial, Ike confronts the Falzones’ crumbling empire to find the shocking evidence that could save Jack. At the same time, he races to decipher a series of cryptic clues from Jack’s dead father that could hold the key to his son’s freedom. But each step closer to the truth draws them further into danger, and as three fractured families collide, Ike is forced to choose between saving Jack-and saving himself.
The Victim of the System is an intriguing and entertaining thriller about the justice system, closure and the abyss between them.
About The Author
Steve Hadden was born in Columbus, Ohio but spent much of his childhood in North Severna Park, Maryland. Building a short-wave radio with his father (an electrical engineer), frequent trips to the US Naval Academy, and the gift of a chemistry set, sparked his interest in chemistry and mathematics at an early age. At the end of elementary school, Steve’s family moved to Columbus, Indiana where he developed his love for basketball and where his favorite book was Stranger Than Science by Frank Edwards. Two years later, Steve moved to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania where his junior high school creative writing teacher sparked his interest in writing. Steve attended North Allegheny High School and fell in love with Clive Cussler’s Raise the Titanic.
He attended Penn State, graduated with a degree in chemical engineering, and began a career in the oil and gas business, where he’s worked in engineering, management, and advisory roles. He’s traveled to intriguing places around the world and met fascinating people. His experience in the oil and gas business ultimately led to the idea for his first thriller, The Sunset Conspiracy. His interest in biology and science formed the foundation for his next four thrillers, Genetic Imperfections and The Swimming Monkeys Trilogy. He returned to his hometown of Pittsburgh with his latest thriller, The Victim of the System, a story with a mind-bending scientific twist.
Steve now lives in the foothills of the Cascades outside of Seattle. When he’s not working on his next intriguing thriller, Steve is hiking the trails with his wife and two Labrador retrievers, playing guitar or piano, reading great books, listening to music and consulting on business matters.
FTC: I received a free copy of this book from the author in exchange for my honest review. I received no other compensation and the opinions expressed in this review are one hundred percent true and my own.
Billionaire Bachelor: Michael by Eve Black was a good book. This is one of those books that I knew was going to happen without knowing what was going to happen. With that being said I really did enjoy this book and I read it from start to finish in about a day and a half. I think this might be the first book I have read by this author I am sure I will pick up more books by her in the future because I did enjoy the authors writing. I liked Helene right from the start of the book. I felt her, and I could be friends in the real world because we had quite a few things in common. I wasn’t the biggest fan of Michael and I can’t really tell you why, but I just didn’t like him and that never changed as I was read the book. I know that you will love this book if you are a huge fan of chick-lit books.
About The Book
Title: Billionaire Bachelor: Michael
Author: Eve Black
Series: Diamond Bridal Agency #2
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Release Date: April 18th, 2018
Format: Digital
Michael
Born into money, Michael Donovan has never known a moment of need or true want…until his father gives him an ultimatum; marry or lose his company. Tired of the clingy women in the elite social circles, and just plain done with one-night stands, he hires an exclusive bridal agency to find him a wife—any wife, he ain’t picky, as long as she’s willing to live by a hands-off policy.
He’s ready to settle down into a life of domestic boredom…until he meets his new bride.
Helene
Tired of living in her famous mother’s shadow, Helene Collins is ready to give up on her own happily ever after until she sees an interesting ad. Her mother’s name gets her through the door of the Diamond Bridal Agency, but it is up to her to make sure she doesn’t mess up the chance of a lifetime. Everything starts falling into place…until she meets her husband-to-be. He’s gorgeous, charming, and oh so sexy…so why does he need to marry her? And why does he keep breaking his own rules?
This is a sexy, smart, and fun contemporary romance novella.
About The Author
Eve Black is a lover of all things sexy, naughty, dirty, filthy, and chocolate.
She loves to write all the sexy scenes she wishes were in the books she reads. And so she writes sexy books!
When Eve isn’t writing, she is reading, and when she isn’t reading, she’s drinking tea and coloring in her adult coloring books.
FTC: I received a free copy of this book from Partners In Crime in exchange for my honest review. I received no other compensation and the opinions expressed in this review are one hundred percent true and my own.
Lying, Cheating, and Occasionally Murder by Ginny Fite was a great book. It has been awhile since I have read a book that I enjoyed as much as I enjoyed this book. I think that this is the first book that I have read by this author and I can’t wait to read more books by her in the future. I hoped through the entire book that Charlotte was the one who did it because it would have made this book different from most of the other ones that I have read. I fell in love with this author writing and her characters right from the start. This is one that left me sad when it was over because I wasn’t ready to say goodbye to these characters yet. At times I was annoyed with Lagarde from time to time, but that always happens when the author makes the characters come to life for me. If you love mystery books like I do I am sure you will love this book as much as I did.
About The Book
Genre: Fiction-Murder Mystery Published by: Black Opal Books Publication Date: February 10th 2018 Number of Pages: 270 ISBN: 9781626948 (ISBN13: 9781626948648) Series: Sam Lagarde Mystery Series, Book 3 (Each is a Stand Alone Novel) Purchase Links:Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Kobo | Goodreads
When it comes to murder, even brilliant scientists aren’t immune.
The night Harold Munson is shot dead in his car, the primary suspect is the man’s brainiac wife. But Charlotte, who has a passion for science and sex with strangers, swears all she wants is a Nobel Prize for curing brain cancer, even if that requires fudging her research and a few dead patients along the way.
When the next body drops, all signs point to Charlotte, but Detective Sam Lagarde doggedly follows the clues until he has his own Eureka moment.
About The Author
Ginny Fite is an award-winning journalist who has covered crime, politics, government, healthcare, art, and all things human. She has been a spokesperson for a governor, a member of congress, a few colleges and universities, and a robotics R&D company. She has degrees from Rutgers University and Johns Hopkins University and studied at the School for Women Healers and the Maryland Poetry Therapy Institute. She is the author of I Should Be Dead by Now, a collection of humorous lamentations about aging; three books of poetry, The Last Thousand Years, The Pearl Fisher, and Throwing Caution; a short story collection, What Goes Around; as well as two previous Detective Sam Lagarde mysteries: Cromwell’s Folly and No Good Deed Left Undone. She resides in Harper’s Ferry, West Virginia.
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