The Letter Carrier by L.C. Lewis

 

The Letter Carrier by Laurie L.C. Lewis
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This is an absolutely beautiful read that was well-researched. I found this book to be very moving and historically accurate.

Michelle and her family are trying to escape before the Nazis take over when they are re-routed back home. However, not all the family members are allowed to return home. Even when they do return, it's not really home as the Nazis have overtaken everything and made the Nater family their servants in all things.

I can't imagine the horrors of raising a family during this time in history, not knowing from one moment to the next if the family is in danger or being protected. Young children had to grow up at a remarkedly fast pace and see things that I hope no one, child or adult, would ever have to see.

This is a beautiful read and one that I hope will be well-loved by many!

View all my reviews

Notebook Mysteries ~ Unexpected Outcomes (Notebook Mysteries Book 4) by Kimberly Mullins

 

Notebook Mysteries ~ Unexpected Outcomes by Kimberly Mullins
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Book 4 of this series has been my favorite so far!!! Emma and Jeremy have been tasked with taking down a ring of robbers. They are responsible for bringing back the jewels from Tiffany & Co to the museum for an exhibit but they know that evil is lurking at every corner. On top of that, there is a murder to try to solve too.

This read holds a lot of excitement and mystery!! I love seeing Emma mature and how she is handling what could be a most difficult situation in this particular story. Can the relationship she has with Jeremy be sustained given the current circumstances??

You'll have to read to find out!

View all my reviews

Notebook Mysteries ~ Decisions and Possibilities (Notebook Mysteries Book 2) by Kimberly Mullins

 

Decisions and Possibilities by Kimberly Mullins
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Emma is a young 18 year old lady who has a love for sleuthing! She's always looking for a way to help out others and wants desperately to be recognized as a female sleuth back in a time (1800's) when it wasn't acceptable to women to work outside the home. She has some decisions to make about the men in her life and she's not quite sure which one to choose. It will determine how her life could turn out after all! Life is also full of possibilities and Emma is excited about the prospects for her future.

This book can be read as a stand-alone but I do recommend reading in order. I am currently reading these books out of order and there are portions that are a bit confusing to me. However, the story is very well written and I do enjoy seeing what Emma is getting into!

View all my reviews

Bake Happy (Bake Believe Series Book 3) by Cori Cooper

 

Bake Happy by Cori Cooper
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This trilogy comes to an end with this book that focuses on Cat's continued baking escapades. I'm going to miss this neat little series of books that features some really good recipes, as well as a great story!

Cat and Nate still have a love-hate relationship. More on the hate side. When they swap family curses, things become a little more interesting. I do like that Cat got a taste of what Nate felt. Not sure the curse had the same effect on Nate in regards to Cat. I think it gave Cat a better appreciation for Nate, although she continued to be pretty icy towards him.

This is a great book for pre-teens and teen girls and boys who enjoy baking. It would be a great book to read with a trusted adult that could help them bake some fun recipes! There is a hint that Robyn might get her own story and I do hope she will!

View all my reviews

Stitch by Stitch by Marie-Therese Hernon

 

Stitch by Stitch by Marie-Thérèse Hernon
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Elizabeth Candew has a lot of things going on in her life but most of them aren't going the way she'd like for them to. She's divorced, has a child that was conceived after an affair, has a pre-teen son who keeps getting in trouble, a crazy and overbearing ex-sister-in-law, and the list goes on. It's when she attends a party for Lady Lily Wear that things really start to get interesting.

I love that Elizabeth's last name is "Candew" because I firmly believe that she can overcome the challenges that life is throwing at her. She has a lot of lessons to learn and she stumbles several times along the way but the end result is worth it. I enjoyed this book although I do feel that it slowed down considerably after a character is found murdered. Overall, I was pleased with this debut book by Ms. Hernon.

View all my reviews

Ritual Obsession (Blood Obsession Book 1) by R.L. Dunn

 

Ritual Obsession by R.L. Dunn
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Max loves his job as a detective for his local precinct but he's still mourning over the loss of his relationship with Carole. They were running for the altar when everything changed and he found himself alone.

Roberta (a.k.a. Bobbi) is a socialite turned cop. No one wants to take her seriously because of her amazingly great looks and money. She just wants to be accepted and make something of her life while staying out of the papers.

When Bobbi is hired on as the new partner for Rosie (another cop in the department), every man is vying for a chance at her. She only has eyes for one person but really don't want to mix business with pleasure after the outcome on her last assignment for another precinct.

A series of murders start happening in the city and this murderer's M.O. is pretty gruesome. He only desires brunettes with hazel eyes and most of them are call girls. It's when his m.o. starts changing that things really start to heat up for the detectives on the case. How many more women have to die before they can catch this creep?

This is my first R.L. Dunn book but will not be my last!! From the get go, this one had my attention. Just when I thought I had it figured out, things would change and I'd change my mind. I'm still trying to untangle all the clues and details!! This is gripping, chilling, and will stick with you for awhile. I'm glad the next book in this series is released in a couple of weeks. I'll have to reserve some time for it because it's that good of a series so far!

View all my reviews

Murder Most Pemberley (Eliza Darcy Mysteries Book 1) by Jessica Berg

 

Murder Most Pemberley by Jessica Berg
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This is a modern day reunion of sorts for Jane Austen's Darcy family. Eliza is going to London to meet up with her cousin. It's been several years since they've seen each other and Eliza has always wanted to go and see her "homeland". What she doesn't know is all the adventure and excitement that awaits her upon her arrival. Actually, all the excitement begins at the airport when she runs into this gorgeous man named Heath, who ends up sitting next to her on the plane. Her time with her family is rather enlightening and many family secrets are learned, while others are still a mystery.

I rather enjoyed this book and I must admit, I've never read Pride and Prejudice. I know, such a failure on my part!! I love how this book includes segments of that story though. I've always been interested in it, I've just never taken the time to actually read it. Now I have even more motivation to go back and read a great classic.



View all my reviews

Shake Down (First Coast Thriller Book 1) by Armand Rosamilia

 

Shake Down by Armand Rosamilia
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Clayton misses his old life....his wife, his kid, his job as a cop. He's doing his best to right his previous wrongs and is working as a repo man. When he's asked to repo a boat, he gets weak in the knees and literally spends the rest of the trip throwing up. Little does he know, that's how his stomach would feel since the cartel is now on his back.

This is a new-to-me author and I found myself unable to put this book down for any extended period of time. It was fast-paced, full of action and adventure. There are several jokes included, mostly movie references, that put a smile on the face of the reader and one particular scene that made me fist pump in the air! I look forward to reading more from Mr. Rosamilia as I really enjoyed this story!

View all my reviews

The Girl Who Escaped by Mark Nolan

 

The Girl Who Escaped by Mark Nolan
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Clear your schedule for the day when you plan to start reading this one! You won't be able to put it down!

Angie and a group of her friends are wanting to enjoy their last night of spring break. They go out to all the places where all the people are but Angie has this nagging feeling. Something's not right. A hot waiter passes by them handing out jello shots and her friends are all hands on grabbing those shots. Angie passes as she's the designated driver for the night. Before she knows it, she sees the waiter again, only this time in the back of her SUV with his gun pointed at the head of one of her friends. Angie is ordered to drive down a path that has only one end. A dead one.....

Angie escapes physically but the scars will remain forever. While spending some time in a mental hospital, she meets great people like Evelyn, Brenda, Jake, and Cody. Together, they form a bond that will help to bring justice to those that caused great harm to Angie and her friends.

Wow, this book has several twists and turns! It kept me on the edge of my seat and I wasn't able to put this book down until I finished it from the very beginning. I love the author's notes at the end of this book too, going over some safety tips while discussing how some of the scenarios came about for this book. I highly recommend this one and it's definitely in my top 3 for book of the year for 2022!!

View all my reviews

Saved by Love (Bellevue Bullies Book 7) by Toni Aleo

 

Saved by Love by Toni Aleo
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

A hockey player and a gymnast. Both are lost in different ways. Evan is dealing with a host of mental health issues while Callie is trying to find her way in the world after losing both of her parents and being raised by her sister. She desperately wants her brother-in-law to adopt her too.

This book focuses on several real-world issues and I appreciate the author tackling these. Some of them are more difficult than others! I think that's my favorite part of this story, is how the characters aren't your typical picture-perfect people. They are flawed and that's what ultimately makes this story loveable.

While this book is part of a series, I read it as a stand-a-lone. I am guessing the previous books cover some of the other characters that we read about in this story but I did not feel at a loss while reading this one. However, I do believe that I will go back and read the previous books for more context.

View all my reviews

Taylor's Law by Jennifer Raines

 

Taylor's Law by Jennifer Raines
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Ella is struggling to deal with the loss of her sister Chrissy after an intense two year battle with cancer when she receives a summons from Taylor's Law office to come in for an inquiry. Ella feels blindsided that she is having her ability to care for her niece put into question. Once letters surface there written by her sister, things get a little uglier for the time being.

Jake Taylor is doing all he can to put his law office back on the maps with the right reputation after his last partner pretty much ruined everything for him. Then his aunt and uncle ask for his help in a family matter, when he doesn't even practice family law. At what lengths can he help his family?

This book was set in Sydney, Australia and was a fun little romantic read. There were a few times when I felt the writing was a little bit choppy but overall this is an enjoyable story. I would hope that no one I know would ever have to endure what Ella has had to endure in keeping her family together!!

View all my reviews

Let It Be Love (A Mustang Prairie Romance Book 5) by N.D. Jackson

 

Let It Be Love by N.D. Jackson
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

KiKi Ramirez is living the life as a pop princess. She's gone on world tours and met many famous people. She has the world at her fingertips. It's show time and she's stepping into the cage that will lift her high above the crowd of her adoring fans but she's feeling dizzy, like she might actually get sick. Next thing she knows, everything turns black.

Eric loves being the mayor of his small town Mustang Prairie, but he loves Kiki more. Why can't she see it? He'd love to make more of their relationship but he doesn't want all the paparazzi that comes with dating an international superstar. Is there a balance in all of this?

Life for Eric and Kiki is about to change in ways that they could never imagine. Can both of their careers sustain all these changes and challenges being thrown their way? Can love win over their hearts?

This was an enjoyable contemporary romance to read in an afternoon. The characters are loveable and realistic. I had no idea this book was part of a series, which is awesome, because I can go back now and read about some of Eric and Kiki's friends! This book was easy to read as a standalone but knowing I can read more about the other couples gives me even more reasons to love this author!

View all my reviews

A Quirk of Destiny (Quirk of Destiny Book 1) by Catherine Greenall

 

A Quirk of Destiny: Ignoramus et Ignorabimus by Catherine Greenall
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

It's where the Hunger Games meets The Walking Dead! There are so many great things about this book! It's thrilling, scary, edge of your seat reading enjoyment!

First of all, I know this is a fictional book but I could see this really happening. Maybe it already is in other forms?!?! Calum is still dealing with the loss of his fiancé, Siobhan. We never really know why she took her life but I could only surmise after reading this book. He throws himself even more into his work for the Department but becomes more and more troubled by some of the research that he sees is going on. It's not long before he finds himself on a journey to save not only himself, but others who are still very much like him in their thoughts and beliefs.

Moral of the story? Be mindful of what you eat. It might come back to haunt you.

I am excited to know that this is a trilogy and I eagerly await an opportunity to fit the other books in my reading schedule. There is something about Hannah that I did not like in this book and I have a feeling (actually I'm really hoping that my hunch is correct) that we might be seeing her again in a more prominent fashion.

View all my reviews