Wednesday, November 30, 2022
Guardian Angel by Linda Wisdom
Amazon
The lady in command—a graduate of Annapolis—beautiful Alex Page had put a career in Naval Intelligence and a bitter marriage behind her. Now, as security chief of a major firm, her main charge was guarding the body of its dashing president.
Proud, aloof, an absolute professional, Alex had no interest in protecting Jared Templeton from the exquisite society women who assaulted his magnificent body by night—no interest in challenging the Sydney Sorceress or the South Seas Siren—until, without warning, the climate changed. Suddenly the man who moved through women like a shark through shoals of fish launched a calculated attack on her senses. And Alex, master of self-defense, could no longer guarantee the safety of her own heart.
Tuesday, November 29, 2022
Dream of Me This Christmas Eve by L.A. Sartor
Dream Of Me This Christmas Eve is the 4th book in the Star Light ~ Star Bright
Christmas Romance series. And was written because my readers clamored for Caro,
Brice’s sister we heard him talking about in Forever Yours This New Year’s Night.
I always listen to my readers! You also meet Maximillian Henderson III who might be
stuffy with such a name, but wild child Caro works on that.
them. Or does it?
After creating the perfect wedding for her brother, Caroline Young wonders if her promise to stay in Boulder, Colorado, through Christmas was a mistake. After all, her award-winning float-design business is in California, and being idle isn’t in her vocabulary. Then her brother convinces her to help his friend during her stay.
Maximillian Henderson III is in a bind. His law office is opening in its new location in two weeks and his designer has come down with the flu. In desperation he enlists Caro’s help, and then is more than a little leery when she totally revamps the design plans.
As they work together to beat the deadline, Max not only admires her innovative design, he can’t ignore the vibrancy Caro brings into his black and white world of law. If only she didn’t have one foot out the door.
Dream Of Me This Christmas Eve is the fourth book in the Star Light ~ Star Bright series
set in the charming town of Boulder, Colorado. If you enjoy holiday romances with
characters who face seemingly impossible obstacles, in a series where characters
you’ve grown to love make reappearances, then this book will you believing in the
magic of a Christmas star and smiling at the evidence that dreams do come true.
Buy Dream Of Me This Christmas Eve for a cozy read, filled with the joy of the holiday
and the magic of first love.
Links:
Amazon: https://amzn.to/3ERxhbp
Apple: https://books.apple.com/us/book/dream-of-me-this-christmas-eve/id1444487499?ls=1
Kobo: https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/dream-of-me-this-christmas-eve
Nook: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/dream-of-me-this-christmas-eve-la-sartor/1129943428?ean=2940161897454
About L. A. Sartor
That English teacher stopped my writing for years. But the muse couldn’t be denied, and eventually I wrote, a lot, some of it award winning. However, I wasn’t really making a career from any of this.
My husband told me repeatedly that independent publishing was becoming a valid way to publish a novel. I didn’t believe him even after he showed me several Wall Street Journal articles. I thought indie meant vanity press.
I couldn’t have been more wrong.
I started pursuing this direction seriously, hit the keyboard, learned a litany of new things and published my first novel. My second book became a bestseller, and I’m absolutely on the right course in my life.
Please come visit me at www.lasartor.com, see my books, find my social media links, and sign up for my mailing list. I have a gift I’ve specifically created for my new email subscribers. And remember, you can email me at Leslie@LeslieSartor.com
You can also find me at:
Goodreads
Monday, November 28, 2022
Suspects & Suitors (A Skullduggery Inn Cozy Read Book 3) by Kathy Carmichael
$2.99 or FREE for Kindle Unlimited Subscribers
Amazon
A Novella. Amateur sleuth and owner of the Skullduggery Inn, Amy
Sands, is up to her elbows in anonymous Valentine’s suitors. Problem is,
one of them is threatening her life.
Skullduggery Inn Cozy Reads:
Mayhem on the Winterland Express
My Favorite Corpse
Suspects & Suitors
Something Borrowed, Something Deadly
About Kathy's first mystery novel, Diary of a Confessions Queen:
Booklist
*Starred Review* "Carmichael (Hot Flash, 2009) has created a thrilling
whodunit in her trademark sassy, breezy style. Readers will enjoy her
unique blend of humor and suspense." ~ Shelley Mosley
Saturday, November 26, 2022
Enjoy an Excerpt from Murder, Lies and Chocolate by Sally Berneathy
$2.99
Amazon
USA TODAY BESTSELLING AUTHOR
Book 2 of the Death by Chocolate Series.
Rodney
Bradford comes into Lindsay's restaurant, offers to buy her small house
for double its value, eats her brownies, and drops dead on the sidewalk
in front. Then someone breaks into her house and tries to dig up her
basement. Next her almost-ex-husband offers to sign the divorce papers,
but only if she'll give him her small, old house and take his big, new
house instead.
Suddenly everybody wants Lindsay's house. Is
there oil under the basement, plans to bring the railroad through,
pirate treasure buried in the basement? A second break-in occurs and
causes her cat, King Henry, to launch into full attack mode, taking a
few chunks out of the intruder.
Lindsay enlists the aid of her
enigmatic neighbor, Fred, to help solve the mystery while trying to keep
her police detective boyfriend, Trent, from getting in their way with
his insistence on all those silly cop rules.
On the positive
side, sales skyrocket for the special dessert Lindsay calls Murdered
Man's Brownies. Prisoners, murderers, crazy relatives and strippers are
all part of the chaos in this second book of the Death by Chocolate
series.
BONUS! Chocolate recipes at the end of the book. Poison optional.
Chapter One
Friday, November 25, 2022
Nathan: Brotherhood Protectors World by Regan Black
$3.99 or FREE for Kindle Unlimited Subscribers
Amazon
When hope is lost, truth is blurred, and your life is on the line,
it’s time to call in the Guardian Agency...
From
the privacy of her home office, computer genius Claudia Mitchell offers
technical assistance for the bodyguards of the Guardian Agency.
Whatever a protector needs, Claudia taps a few keys and makes it happen.
When she receives a desperate call from her sister, Claudia can’t use
cyberspace or assets to save her. For this case, Claudia has to take the
lead. Afraid her secrets will jeopardize her perfect job, she reaches
out to Hank Patterson’s Brotherhood Protectors for backup.
Nathan
Jennings showed the world what being a hero looked like despite serving
time in prison. His selfless actions earned him a place as a protector
on the Guardian Agency team. Practically since day one, he’s fantasized
about his tech assistant, Claudia, the woman with the sexy voice, quick
wit, and razor-sharp mind. When she suddenly disappears and he is tasked
with finding and protecting her, will his fantasy finally come true?
Author note: Previously published as Nothing to Lose, this novel has been updated and revised for your enjoyment.
Chapter One
Claudia Mitchell had her agency cell phone on her hip as she moved
laundry from the washer to the dryer. If she was lucky, she’d complete
the task before the device chimed with another incoming call. As a
technical assistant to several protectors within the Guardian Agency,
she was on call twenty-four/seven.
The work challenged her and kept her mind sharp, even on the slower
days. Working from home gave her a perfect, flexible schedule and
although she didn’t personally venture out into the field, she enjoyed
living vicariously through the investigators who did. In her role as
operational backup, she offered assistance behind the scenes on all
kinds of cases from murder to missing persons. With the agency resources
and the latest tools and electronic developments at her fingertips, she
couldn’t imagine a more ideal career.
Agency protocol prevented her knowing anything beyond the names and cell
phone numbers for the investigators she supported. From her
perspective, that was one of the best perks. There were no office
politics, no judgment in the break room about fashion, bad hair days,
who was putting on weight, or who had gotten sloppy drunk at the company
end-of-year party.
The only time she laid eyes on one of the protectors was when they were
occasionally caught in the unflattering light of a security camera. Her
boss knew she was more than capable of digging into the lives and
histories of the protectors and the agency at large, but she’d signed an
agreement that she wouldn’t snoop.
Only one investigator tested her resolve, but she refused to risk the
perfect job because of her natural curiosity. Some things in life were
better as a fantasy. She smiled to herself, thinking of how often the
protectors teased her during cases, trying to pry out her personal
details. It was a harmless game they all played. She’d become adept at
evasion and fabrication, lessons she’d learned first in college and
honed during her time with the CIA.
No one placed enough value on solitude anymore, Claudia thought as she
hung up the few items that needed to air dry. Her task done, she turned
into her small kitchen and refilled her bottle of water before returning
to her desk. The background check she’d been assembling for one of the
agency cases should be done by now.
At the sound of a ringing phone, she reached for the agency cell on her
hip, then realized it was her personal cell phone. She raced for the
device sitting in the charger. Only two people had that number: her boss
and her sister, Diana. If either of them were using this number the sky
must surely be falling somewhere.
Her sister’s name and cell number showed on the screen. She took a deep
breath and said a quick prayer for patience as she answered.
“Oh, thank God,” her sister’s exclamation barely registered above a whisper. “Claudia, I’m in trouble.”
“What’s wrong?” She tried to keep the exasperation out of her voice.
Diana’s definition of trouble rarely lined up with Claudia’s. It could
be as simple as a flat tire. Or it could be a plea for another loan to
launch her next can’t-miss career endeavor. Claudia had supported Diana
during attempts to take the world by storm as an actress, model, and
singer. Most recently she’d decided to turn her communications degree
into a career as an investigative reporter, but she hadn’t shared the
specifics with Claudia.
“I’m at home,” Diana said. “Sort of. North of town. You can trace my phone right?”
“Yes, but—”
“Do it quick before I have to turn it over to him.”
“Him who?” She sat down at her desk and started the trace. “What are you talking about?”
“House rule number one is no cell phones.” Diana groaned. “It’s
complicated. Claudia, I’m so sorry. I followed a story and things went
bad. Escalated. It’s big. You have to come help me. Please.”
Of course she had to help and, irritated or not, she would. Diana was the only family she had left.
Thursday, November 24, 2022
My Kind of Trouble by Kathy Carmichael - NEW RELEASE!
Five incorrigible women are members of a library reader's group, The Readers Organization Uniting Book-loving Littlemouth Elites. Their nickname, Trouble, fits them perfectly.
There's no avoiding
Trouble. They run every volunteer and civic organization in town and
feel justified in creating chaos in pursuit of their own amusement.
Now
that they have inherited a wedding venue, they are determined to make a
splash for themselves, not only by creating beautiful wedding settings,
but also by providing both a bride and groom, if needed. They do, after
all, pride themselves on matchmaking!
And they have decided that Blake and Mandy will be a perfect pair. Even though they've never met...
Wednesday, November 23, 2022
Enjoy an Excerpt from The Chase by Mary Hagen
Amazon
Life hangs in the balance when four women on a backpacking trip are attacked by four convicts running from the law. To survive, they must outsmart the men. To do so, they take an alternate route away from the trail and head for a distant mountain pass leaving back backpacks behind. Without their survival gear, they know they cannot survive. In spite of the risks, Tannya Hudson returns to their campsite to retrieve whatever she can find and to find Cindy, one of the backpackers who is missing. The convicts return to the camp and make plans to catch the women. Tanya barely escapes. In spite of her efforts to hide her tracks, the convicts pick up her trail and follow as she climbs to meet her fellow hikers. Will the women meet? Will they outrun the men? Will they survive in dismal weather conditions or will they die? The Chase begins.
Reluctantly, Greg Moore backed his Jeep out of his carport. His terrifying dream about Tanya Hudson and her backpacking trip stayed with him as he drove toward Julie's house. The premonition that something bad was going to happen to Tanya and her three friends never left him. How could he, a civil engineer who dealt in concrete facts, not dreams, reveal his misgivings? He laughed. The dream was real, and he couldn’t put it out of his mind.
He loved Tanya, had from the moment he met her and could not bear the thought of something happening to her. It was his fault that Tanya broke off their relationship, but his marriage and subsequent divorce from Andrea had been painful. He was not ready to make another permanent relationship. Marriage terrified him, but Tanya would not agree to anything else. She chose to remain friends because of his refusal to agree to a permanent commitment. What was he thinking? Tanya was not Andrea.
The premonition haunted him at the intersections, as the sun rising in the east turned the sky a vivid orange and red, at the dark clouds gathering in the west. Blood came to his mind. He could not reveal to anyone his misgivings. Certainly not Tanya. It was only a dream, a stupid nightmare.
He braked at a stoplight, impatiently tapping his fingers on the steering wheel as he waited for the light to change. The dawn accentuated his feelings of gloom. The light changed from red to green and he drove forward, the inner fear never ebbing from his mind.
At the time he met Tanya, he believed he never could fall in love again. Tanya was the most beautiful woman he knew. Just thinking about her filled him with desire and a love so deep it hurt. She was opposite in every way from the women he usually chose - small, blonde, and blue-eyed, who were dependent on him to make decisions and to take the lead in planning activities like Andrea. Andrea wanted more of everything, money, fun, and adoration from every man she met.
Tanya was tall, independent, with beautiful black hair and eyes. More importantly, she challenged him, his beliefs, and his ideas in ways he did not think possible. Life was never dull with her. She was a free spirit. He did not want her to change even if she did not believe him.
Tanya's words echoed in his ears over their last dinner when she announced the end of their relationship. "You're a macho prude."
Greg smiled to himself. He liked the sound of her voice, the almond shape of her eyes that radiated sparks of light, her high cheekbones, the shape of her mouth. He knew he had blown the relationship. Because of him, it was on hold. Friends, he thought, I can't deal with just being a friend, but at least, he would see her. Could he watch her date someone else? He knew the answer.
His motives in the beginning had been to bring the tall, aloof beauty to his bed, seduce her and drop her. In a short time, he realized she excited and challenged him in ways akin to the feelings he had when he climbed a 5.11 pitch on a mountain or conquered a difficult peak. He had the same anticipatory anxiety every time he thought about meeting Tanya. It was with him now as he drove to pick up Cindy and Rebecca Kerr and Julie Johnson, but it was mixed with dread and concern.
He and Tanya clashed over many things but, in time, Tanya subdued him and changed his mind on several issues about women but never his desire to seduce her. She refused any sexual relationship, demanding a deeper commitment from him than he was willing to give. Look where it had gotten him.
He loved Tanya but something in him made him want to conquer her first. Their mutual stubbornness, mostly his, was about to break them apart but he could not give up his need to dominate her, first. Stupid, he admonished himself.
As much as he wanted, he could not reveal his premonition, his misgivings, his fears that something disastrous was going to happen on their trip. It was foolish on his part, but the most he could bring himself to do was to call Tanya and say, "The weather's going to change. You could be caught in rain or snow."
Tanya refused, laughing at him as she replied, "You know by now a little wet weather has never stopped the four of us."
Greg called Rebecca and Julie to ask them to reconsider their trip to no avail. In the end, he agreed to drive them to the trailhead and to pick them up at the end of their trip. He would see Tanya, be near her, but the reason he had offered to drive them was with the hope he could persuade her to change her mind.
The light was on above Julie's front door. Greg pulled into her driveway. Steve, Julie's husband, opened the door before Greg was out of his vehicle.
"Julies got her stuff in the garage. I'll be out to load her gear in a second."
People have happy marriages, Greg thought. He only needed to look at Steve and Julie. They had been married five years and still acted like newlyweds in spite of their differences. Julie was like Tanya. They both enjoyed camping, hiking, climbing, and working together on outdoor projects. Steve did not care if he ever went camping except during hunting season. They gave each other space to pursue their interests.
Greg knew he and Tanya would do the same. Why then, could he not marry her? Why couldn’t she agree to a live together with a commitment? Greg clacked his tongue against the roof of his mouth. He had no answer.
Steve and Greg helped Julie stash her backpack into his SUV. Steve wished Julie a safe trip, kissed her a lingering goodbye until Greg interrupted, “Hey, we’ve got to pick up the others.”
Steve slammed the car door, gave Julie another kiss, and waved them on. Greg drove toward Rebecca's house. She and her daughter, Cindy, were on the porch waiting.
“That girl is well-endowed for an eighteen-year-old. She looks more like someone twenty,” Greg said as he turned into the driveway.
"I hope the disagreements between Cindy and Rebecca don’t upset our trip,” Julie said, “Rebecca’s expectations of Cindy are almost impossible. No wonder the poor kid resents her. She absolutely insisted Cindy go with us.”
“This is a farewell trip for Cindy before she’s off to college. Good thing,” Greg said.
“I know.” Julie paused. “I can’t understand the two of you.”
Greg glanced at Julie. “Changing the subject?” Greg stopped the motor.
“When are you and Tanya going to stop playing this little game of friendship and get back together?” Julie asked. “She’s my best friend. I hate to see her hurt by you or anyone for that matter.”
Greg shrugged his shoulders. He opened the door and climbed out of the SUV. “Jim must still be asleep, lucky dog,” Greg said.
“Who needs him? Rebecca manages everything. Now that’s catty of me. Rebecca’s my friend,” Julie said.
The sullen expression worn by Cindy announced her displeasure over the backpack. Greg relieved her of one pack and shoved it into the space behind the seat.
"You look unhappy," he said.
"You know Cindy," Rebecca said. "She's never happy at the beginning of one of our trips. She'll cheer up as we get into it."
Greg caught the hostile glance Cindy gave her mother. He sympathized with her co-workers, and her friends, except Tanya and Julie. For ten years, she had worked as office manager in their consulting business. They considered Rebecca the reason their business succeeded, but Tanya could work with anyone without conflict.
Julie stepped out of the car to let Rebecca and Cindy into the back seat. Cindy barely acknowledged her greeting as she buckled her seat belt.
As they drove away from the Kerr home, the inner fears surfaced in Greg's mind to plague him the remainder of the distance to Tanya's house. He could not stop them. He had even risked Steve's teasing and tried to convince him that he should discourage the trip.
A bolt of lightning flashed above the mountains to the west. "You know, the weather gets better in a few days. Why not wait?" he said.
"You still at it, Greg? You might as well give up. We're packed and moving. Wet weather isn't going to hold us up. Besides, you know as well as we, the weathermen are wrong half the time with their mountain forecasts. The mountains make their own weather," Rebecca said.
"I'd be in favor," Cindy said. "I don't even want to go on this dumb trip, and I wouldn't if it wasn't for Tanya and Julie."
"We're going to miss you when you leave for college,” Julie said in an effort to appease Cindy.
The sun appeared briefly on the eastern horizon under the clouds as Greg parked in front of Tanya's townhouse. Before he could open his door, Tanya came out of her house with her pack and her miniature poodle, Figwort, named for the plant family Greg knew Tanya loved. Figwort pranced ahead of Tanya furiously wagging his tail and ran to Greg.
"Hey, old buddy, miss me?" Greg stooped to the dog's level to pet him. Figwort licked his face and gave Greg a smile showing his canine teeth. "At least, you still love me."
He opened the back door of the SUV and said, "I’ll take that pack.” He removed the straps from Tanya’s shoulders, restraining the desire he had to hold her. Her hair, braided and tied with strips of leather, smelled fresh and clean, surfacing his feelings of loss and misery.
He took a deep breath to control his emotions. "Ouch. What’ve you got in this pack, the kitchen sink? It weighs a ton. Are you sure you’re going to be able to meet me in six days?"
Tanya's laugh sent stabs of discouragement through him and shredded his insides. If only he could talk her out of this trip.
"I decided to take my rope and a few carabineers just in case we need them for a river crossing or as a climbing aid on one of our side trips."
"Thought you were going to just backpack, not climb." Greg struggled to keep his feeling of anxiety out of his voice, the dream sharp in his mind. He put her pack in his vehicle and slammed the door. "I've missed you," he said as he held open the right door.
Tanya said nothing. A cloud blotted out the sun and a black chill enveloped him.
Figwort jumped into the front seat of the SUV. He wagged his tail at the three women sitting in the back seat.
"Hi, everyone. I decided to take Figwort. Hope you don't mind but when I took him to the kennel, he looked at me with such a pitiful expression, I couldn't leave him."
"Come, Figwort, sit on my lap," Cindy called. "I don't care. I love Figwort. I just wish I could have a dog, but you know Mom. She's Mrs. Neat, Neat, Neat. No animals at our place. They might dirty her floor."
"Lighten up, Cindy. I don't want us to be in constant disagreement on this trip. Think of Julie and Tanya if not me. They want you to have a good time."
Cindy hugged the poodle. "Sorry, guys.”
Tanya sat quietly, aware of Greg's after shave, her gift to him on his birthday, the warmth of his body, and the soft sound of his breathing. She missed him, felt lonely when he wasn't with her, but she was determined to end a relationship she saw stagnating. Her unhappiness weighed heavily on her mind when she was alone, and she had buried herself in her work to keep from thinking about him.
She had been burned once, and she was not about to let it happen again. Jack Egger had been her Mr. Right, who turned out to be Mr. Wrong. Lately, her relationship with Greg seemed headed in the same direction.
For months, she and Jack, her former lover, shared dinners, spoke of their futures, and planned joint holidays. Abruptly, he did not call. Finally, Tanya with reservations swallowed her pride and called Jack. His words cut her to the core. "I've met someone else." The real reason, Tanya realized, was that she was half Blackfoot, an orphan, and Jack’s parents were against his dating her.
She was not going to let that happen again. Difficult as it had been, she told Greg of her decision over dinner at Suhiro’s. He protested but refused to make a commitment. To bury her disappointment, she spent hours in the field on any project she could, and she vowed no one was going to destroy her hopes and dreams of the future, including Greg.
She smiled as she recalled his words. “Remain friends! I don't like that." It was his problem. He had to understand, she needed more than an ongoing affair. As a foster child, she had moved from house to house never knowing how long she would be in one place. Permanent friends and relationships were important to her.
The voices in the vehicle hummed around her, but she was only aware of Greg. She glanced at him. Something bothered him. The set of his jaw revealed his moods to her. Still, she had no right to ask.
Figwort jumped into Tanya's lap. Her breath caught in her throat as a blue Buick with four men passed them on a double line, blind curve. "Wow! That was stupid."
"A bunch of idiots," Greg responded. He slowed his SUV.
"I need to put my heart back in place after that," Julie said. "I do want to live.”
As Greg turned off the main highway and onto a narrow, one-lane road the same blue Buick roared past them. He shook his head. "They must have a death wish for themselves and someone else."
"Tanya, you haven't uttered a word this whole drive," Rebecca said.
"I've been mulling things over in my mind, trying to remember if I've forgotten anything," Tanya answered. She felt but did not see Greg's glance.
"Hope you're weighing the odds of having a miserable trip," he said.
Tanya chuckled. "It's not going to be miserable. We'll have perfect weather. Fall is a beautiful season to be out."
"Take a look above you. Those clouds are building. We can have terrible weather in September, the fall equinox."
"Come off it, Greg. We're going. You're as bad as Steve. He thinks I'm nuts every time I venture out in bad weather, but I actually like it," Julie said.
"I'll go home with you. I hate bad weather, and I hate being forced to go on backpacks," Cindy said. “Look at those black clouds. We’re going to be wet the whole trip. I’m already shivering. Come, Fig, sit on my lap and keep me warm.” The dog jumped over the seat and licked her face.
"Cindy, shut up," Rebecca ordered. "I'm tired of your constant complaining. You know you always have a good time once we’re on our way."
“Hang in there, Cindy. We’ll see to it you have fun. It won’t be the same without you around to keep us in tune with life,” Tanya said.
Greg stopped the SUV at the end of the road. "Sure you don't want to change your minds and wait a few days. Sky's pretty heavy," Greg said. He looked at Tanya, his eyes conveying a message to her she could not read. Her heart banged against her chest just being next to him, and she gulped to rein in her emotions. She turned away and went to the rear of the vehicle to reach for her pack. Figwort followed her.
One by one, Tanya handed packs to Julie who stacked them by the side of the SUV.
“I’m going to put my rain gear on top of my pack. I know I’ll need it before we’ve gone a hundred steps.” Cindy laid her pack on the ground, opened it, and scrounged around for her rain jacket and pants.
“Good idea,” Julie said. “Though, I hope we don’t have to wear them. I get so hot with mine on.”
“I’m optimistic. The weather’s going to clear,” Tanya said. She reached for her pack.
"Let me help you," Greg offered. His six-foot, two-inch height made her feel small even though he was only six inches taller than she. His arm around her as he helped her into her pack sent pulses of warmth through her veins, his nearness sending her heart racing. She gritted her teeth to keep from uttering words that would undo her vow to herself to end her ties with Greg.
Tanya slipped one arm and then the other into the straps. Before she could stop him, Greg pulled the belt around her waist and buckled it. His closeness brought her heart to her throat. She gulped to regain control of her emotions and took three backward steps. He looked into her eyes.
“Sure you want to make this trip?” Do you have your cell phone?"
"No. Stop fretting. You know, we don't take them on a backpack. Half the time they don't work.” Tanya moved her shoulders from side to side to settle her pack and pulled the straps closer to her back. “Feels comfortable.” She moved her arms in a half circle.
Rebecca shouldered her pack and offered to help Cindy who brushed her aside. “I’m not helpless.”
“If everyone’s ready, we should hit the trail. Want to lead, Cindy, and set the pace? I’ll bring up the rear,” Tanya said.
"Have a good trip,” Greg said. "I'll see you in five days."
"We will. Thanks." Tanya hitched the waist belt of the pack tighter and turned up the trail, Figwort at her heels.
The cheerful voices of the women carried to him, but he could not rid himself of the remorsefulness that flooded through his mind and engulfed his body, leaving him deeply depressed as the dream returned.
A rag bundle of blue and red cloth lay at the base of a cliff. As he turned it over to examine it, he looked into unseeing eyes, Tanya's deep brown eyes, lifeless and vacant. A moan escaped him, but he uttered no words, no calling out for Tanya to come back. Greg shook his head to rid himself of the black memory, the dream of her fall so real. Still, the alarm and the fear pumped through his veins.
"Tanya," he whispered.
As though hearing him, she turned and waved.
Mommy Heiress by Linda Wisdom
Toto, I Don't Think I Want to Be in Kansas Anymore…
Stranded
without her credit cards, heiress-on-the-run Cori Peyton had nothing to
depend on but her wits—and Dr. Benjamin Cooper. When the feisty blond
beauty fainted in the car repair shop in a backwater Kansas town, she
woke up to the sexy doctor's bombshell: she was pregnant.
Ben was
perfectly happy mending the bodies and breaking the hearts of the women
in his small town. And he delivered babies all the time. Why did this woman and this pregnancy affect him so much? And when the rumor hit town that her baby was his, why did that sound so good?
Tuesday, November 22, 2022
BRINGING HOME CHRISTMAS by Vicki Hinze
Saturday, November 19, 2022
Death by Chocolate by Sally Berneathy
FREE
USA TODAY BESTSELLER! First book in the Death by Chocolate series
Lindsay loves chocolate. It tastes good, it makes her feel good, it
never cheats on her like her almost-ex-husband. It's her best friend.
But someone wants her dead and uses her weak spot—chocolate—to try to
murder her. Lindsay's only secret is the recipe for her chocolate chip
cookies, but she is surrounded by neighbors with deadly secrets.
Suddenly she finds herself battling poisoned chocolate, a psycho
stalker, and a dead man who seems awfully active for a corpse. Her best
friend and co-worker, Paula, dyes her blond hair brown, hides from
everybody and insists on always having an emergency exit from any room.
Secrets from Paula's past have come back to put lives in
jeopardy.Determined to help Paula, Lindsay enlists the reluctant aid of
another neighbor, Fred, an OCD computer nerd. In spite of his mundane
existence, Fred possesses tidbits of knowledge about such things as
hidden microphones, guns, the inside of maximum security prisons and how
to take someone down with a well-aimed kick to his chin. As Lindsay
battles the elusive stalker, poisoned chocolate, and the dead man, she
will need more than a chocolate fix to survive. But that’s always a good
start.
Review:
Cozy mysteries have become one of my favorite genres. I especially love
mysteries that feature pets or great food. Death by Chocolate by Sally
Berneathy not only has an amazing plot with an unexpected ending, but
delicious sounding food and an adorable cat named King Henry. What's
even better are the recipes found at the end.
I found this book very easy to get into and read through it rather
quickly. There were a couple areas of the book that gave me an uneasy
feeling. The book does feature a woman who has been beaten in the past
by her ex-husband and when she finally tells the story to her
best-friend (the lead character), it's a chilling tale. However, the
scene really adds to the overall feel of the book and wouldn't be the
same if readers didn't have the whole story. In other words, it stirs
the right emotions in the reader to make the book even better.
Death by Chocolate by Sally Berneathy was one of those books that
actually made me laugh out loud several times. And made me hungry on
more than one occasion. If you love cozy mysteries, this one is a must. I
can't wait to read the rest of the books in the series.
Friday, November 18, 2022
BLOOD STRANGERS (BEHIND CLOSED DOORS: FAMILY SECRETS Book 2) by Vicki Hinze
In this heart-wrenching suspense, Gabby Blake, the estranged
daughter of a single-parent father who has always kept his distance, is
summoned. Her father has had a stroke and he insists Gabby help him by
doing work that will cost her not only her job but her life. Yet she
cannot refuse. She’s craved her father’s approval, longed to just once
feel that she isn’t alone in the world and unloved. Maybe through this
work they can finally bond.
Her hope is short-lived. Her father
is murdered . . . and Gabby is advised to vanish. No one can protect
her. Disappearing is critical to her staying alive and avoiding
assassination.
Aided by an online friend, Gabby disappears and
starts a new life. An unknown past rips open old wounds and family
secrets that cut deeper than she believed possible—and unleashes a new
betrayal from the one man in the world she had dared to trust with her
life and her heart.
Even betrayed, they must continue to
discover, reveal and accept secrets. They must untangle the past from
the present to shield themselves from the wrath of ruthless, powerful
people with secrets of their own. People determined to inflict twisted
revenge and then to kill them, knowing they are Blood Strangers.