Distortion

Back Cover

A husband’s lies can have deadly consequences.
 
When Juliet Cole’s husband of fifteen years is murdered before her eyes, she thinks it was a random shooting.  Devastated and traumatized, she answers hours of questioning, then returns home to break the tragic news to her sons.  But a threatening voicemail escalates this from a random shooting to a planned, deliberate attack.
 
Juliet realizes that she and her children are in danger too—unless she meets the killers’ demands.  But as she and her sisters untangle the clues, her husband’s dark secrets come to light.  The more she learns, the more her life is dismantled.  Was her husband an innocent victim or a hardened criminal?

Review

This book reminded me of the Nancy Drew novels I used to devour when I was younger.  Every chapter ended on a cliff-hanger, practically “forcing” me to read the next one to get a resolution, only to end up reading the next chapter, and the next…until before I knew it, the novel was over, and I could finally pry my tense fingers off the page and breathe normally again.
 
Distortion was very much like those Nancy Drew mysteries, where nearly every chapter ends on a climax, and it was so hard to stop reading!  The story was fast-paced, packed with action, and so many twists and turns to keep you guessing.  Even the last chapter ended on a climatic note, causing me to search the author’s website for the publication date for book #3 (March, 2015!).  I would highly recommend this read for the suspense lovers out there!


POSTSCRIPT: This book is actually #2 in the “Moonlighters” series.  I don’t normally read books out of order, but it just happened that way with Distortion.  Throughout this novel, there were a lot of references to what happened previously in the characters’ lives, and while I was able to navigate through the book with little difficulty, I would recommend reading book #1 (Truth Stained Lies) first as there are some plot spoilers in Distortion. 


I received this book free from the publisher through the BookLook Bloggers <http://booklookbloggers.com> book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 <http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/cfr/waisidx_03/16cfr255_03.html> : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.

Death by the Book

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Drew Fathering wanted nothing more than to end the summer of 1932 with the announcement of his engagement.  Instead, he finds himself caught up in another mysterious case when the family solicitor is found murdered, an antique hatpin with a cryptic message, Advice to Jack, piercing his chest.

Evidence of secret meetings and a young girl’s tearful confession point to the victim’s double life, but what does the solicitor’s murder have to do with the murder of a physician on the local golf course?  Nothing, it would seem—except for another puzzling note, affixed with a similar-looking bloodied hatpin.

Soon the police make an arrest in connection with the murders, but Drew isn’t at all certain they have the right suspect in custody.  And why does his investigation seem to be drawing him closer and closer to home?

Review

Reading a “Drew Farthering Mystery” feels like I literally stepped into 1932 England, with the dinner parties, housekeeping staff (including the butler!), accents (detectable even through the written word), and the dry, but witty British humour.  The teasing banter between Drew and his best friend, Nick, never ceases to crack me up.  I love the picture shown of a steadfast friendship between the two – it illustrates the way friends should be: honest, loyal, and always ready to help.

The story itself was awesome!  The murders and clues were so bizarre and had me completely befuddled until the culprit was finally revealed.  I love it when the story keeps me guessing and has me figuring out the story at the same pace as the character.  Nothing spoils a mystery novel more than knowing who the culprit is long before the “big reveal”.

A thread of romance was woven throughout the story, creating a nice balance with the dastardly crimes.

All in all, a smashing mystery novel, and I will be looking forward to the next instalment in this series!


Book has been provided courtesy of Baker Publishing Group and Graf-Martin Communications, Inc.  Available at your favourite bookseller from Bethany House, a division of Baker Publishing Group.

A Heart's Rebellion

Back Cover 

In a world governed by unspoken rules,

one young woman is about to break them all…

Dutiful Jessamine Barry is tired of waiting patiently for a man to decide her future.  So even though Lancelot Marfleet, second son of an aristocrat, is taking an interest in her during the London season, she refuses to consider him as a suitor.  Instead, she’s ready to take fashionable society by storm—and finds a rakish young man all too willing to help her do it.

Can Jessamine trust her heart to lead her to a love that proves true through thick and thin?  Or will her rash actions close the door on the life she really desires?

Review 

While it took me a couple chapters to get into this story, but once I was in, I was hooked.  The relationships, the drama, the romance weaved into a Regency style story made for a very entertaining story.  The character of Jessamine was very relatable – a girl who had her heart broken and feels very unwanted.  Feeling very inadequate, she decides to become someone else, someone presumably exciting, a person that everyone would want to know and be drawn to.  We’ve all felt at times unwanted or lacking, and feeling if we just flip that magic switch, to be like the “other person” who always appears to have friends and attention, then all our cares and worries would float away, and the fun would begin.  While it is always a good thing to strive to improve one’s character, when we stray from who we are, and become someone we are not – someone God did not create us to be – the end result is completely unsatisfying.  True friends will love you for who you are. 

Jessamine’s emotions provided the perfect backdrop to cause me to root for her in finding true acceptance, and true love.  A tense climax in the novel kept me flipping pages with bated breath, waiting and hoping for a Knight to burst into the scene.  A Heart’s Rebellion is a lovely story, and one of the best Regency novels I’ve ever read.

Book has been provided courtesy of Baker Publishing Group and Graf-Martin Communications, Inc.  Available at your favourite bookseller from Revell, a division of Baker Publishing Group.