Toni

“Homefront” tells the story of a young woman whose life changed for ever when Britain declared war on Germany in 1939. This wartime romance is about families pulling together and the struggles their loved ones were risking on the front line.

The synopsis sounded right up my alley, I love this time in history and never get tired of reading WW11 wartime stories, not knowing this author I thought it was an opportunity to do so and gave “Homefront” a go.

This novel is definitely an undemanding read that dilly-dally a lot. But if you love a homey type of story this may tickle your fancy. The story is smooth, the language is restrained and we find a pleasant ending. I think most readers will give the novel a pass.

But on the other if you are an avid reader you will be quite disappointed in the lack of depth and substance in the plot. Nothing exciting happens: no conflicts, no fights, no one gets hurt, the people get along just fine and romance lacks imagination. This is one boring novel for anyone who loves a story with lots of movement, twists and turns , in “Homefront”, we have none, every move is predictable, action where is it? Suspense, yep, you guessed it: none. “Homefront” is penned in a straightforward style, using a stilted dialogue, a bunch of cookie-cutter characters.

In all, not a bad read but not my cup of tea. I think this novel would be more suited for novice readers than a mature audience.

“The Guardian of Lies” brings us back to 1953 in the South of France, a time when the peace between the West and the Soviet Russia was fragile and volatile. This is the story of one family torn apart by secrets and conflicting allegiances.

It is hard not to be spellbound by the sense of place and times that utterly take us at the heart of Camargue during the Cold War. In the 50’s the south of France had become a battleground between the Americans and the Soviets. By establishing a nuclear airbase with the intent on stopping the spread of Communism, the Americans turned the small town of Arles upside down and caused conflict within its residents.

The author has taken writers privilege in her fiction and has placed the airbase in the south of France rather than in the north where the tactical air units where located during that time. Having said this, although the actual area may have been changed the story nevertheless reflects the challenges those affected had to go through.

The main character is Eloise Caussade, a courageous young Frenchwoman raised on a bull farm who followed her brother André to Paris after he became an intelligence office working for the CIA. Her dream was also to become a CIA operative but instead worked at a PI Agency. When her life was thrown into turmoil she headed back home only to find a town in a state of unrest. What happens in the town is a wonderful tale of courage, subterfuge, love, betrayal and murder.

The story maintains a steady pace and the author keeps it jogging throughout the entire novel. The narrative is as deceiving as the spies who played roles. Who are the good guys and who are the bad guys, it is easy to get fooled ……eventually, what is slowly revealed is a twisty plot full of switches and a scheme Eloise is drawn into.

This is an enjoyable read

I received this ARC from Simon &Schuster Canada via NetGalleys for my thoughts

What a story, if I could give this book 10 star rating I would. Once again Mr. Miller confirms why he is one of my favourite authors.

New Orleans, 1926

August Chevalier, a ruthless businessman with questionable morals is found murdered, investigative reporters Justice Harper and Remy Moral are determined to flush out the killer. Working alongside the police, they narrowed down the list of suspects to three:

The Sinner, Blaze Barbeau, a real estate magnate with a checkered past

The Saint, Lucinda Boyd, a pillar of New Orleans society

The Serpent, Belladonna Dede, a well-known voodoo queen

One potential suspect:

A mafia gangster: Nicky the Knife

This is a story rich in content written with a cinematic perspective approach. It is vividly told through rich dialogue. The narrative is incredibly fast-paced and the prose sails smoothly throughout making this one of those stories next to impossible to put down. It is so filled with tension I was trying so hard to figure who may be the killer. Justice and Remy did such a good job interrogating each one of the suspect that it was hard to pin point the guilty. They all had a reason to do the deed. Mr. Miller is definitely a master of plot twists and he threw some doozies to surprise us. I was on the edge of my seat from page one and so captivated trying hard to figure where the author was going with his story. Would we finally have the killer identified….or would we be kept guessing. By the epilogue Mr. Miller give us the most mammoth twists of all and what an ending….I never saw it coming.

The author created sub-plots for the other characters what essentially happens in their life when they are not part of the main plot. Serenity Dupree, a sultry jazz singer is one of the secondary players along with Barbeau, Boyd, DeDe and Knife’s contribution all make a delightful reading adventure. Of course we also have the police investigators trying to solve the case.

A special note as for the main characters:

Justice is a man of deep morals, very diplomatic hard not to like him. Remy is a complete darling, she is one to speak her mind with absolutely no filter whatsoever. At times Justice wanted to strangling her….Their interaction makes an excellent read.

I love this mystery it provided all the entertainment one can wish for. What a page turner you provided Mr. Miller, well-done.

I received a ARC from Lume Books via Netgalleys for my thoughts

If you were caught up in a con game and lost all of your money, how far would you go to get revenge on the person who did this to you?

Investigative journalist, Jessica Williams, becomes an unwitting victim of identity theft after being caught in a grifter’s game. Her instinct kicks in and she soon discovers there are other victims with the identical names and birthday that also have fallen into the scammer’s paws. In number, it is time for gather strength and fight. The crusade begins….

I have mixed feeling about this story although original in parts it is so farfetched and unrealistic that it was hard to be invested in such a plotline. Yes, there’s a lot of Jessica (2,3,4) all of them with the same twisted story. While we follow them in their quest, we have the hunt being intercepted with Jessica‘s reliving her life as a cult member in the Land of Todd. The portrayal of the cult life, although sobering is the most interesting part in this novel. Back and forth we go from memory to plotting revenge and the drama flows this way till the two threads come together and we reach the climax. A plus for this story: I really didn’t see the ending coming…

The characters are definitely not likeable but they are well portrayed in their roles. As the pacing drags a lot, it was easy for my mind to wander but thank goodness for the dramatic scenes in Jackson, Wyoming and the description of the beautiful landscape of Grand Teton that added another dimension to what could have been a bummer read. This story has great parts but in some way too stretched out to have made it a terrific read.

Good but I read better stories from Ms. McKenzie

Thank you Simon& Schuster and Netgalleys for this ARC

“Coming Home” is a moving romantic drama about building a new life after the Second World War - and about searching for love, stability and happiness.

After the victory the boys are coming home…..

We have two main protagonists: Megan and Steven who play wonderful and touching roles in this beautifully written story. The secondary characters help this drama to move forward.

A short synopsis:

After a long correspondence with Steven during his time away Megan has been anxiously waiting for his return. She has deep affection for him and only hopes her feelings are mutual.

Once home, Steven’s desire is to have his own farm. Bad blood between brothers is raging so Steven has to go on his own but the road ahead is not an easy one. With Megan off to college to finish her degree in teaching Steven struggles to build a home for both of them. Poor Steven has to jump one hurdle after the other but with the help of family, friends and neighbours he is on the right track to success. As all romantic stories unfold the hard work pays off and everything turns out all right. AWE….

My thoughts:

What a nice and heartwarming story this turned out to be. The story depicts the struggles of the time and the hardships the men returning home had to face along with their love ones. The book is easy to read although I found the tempo to be very slow moving but what it does well is to vividly bring to life the reality of post war rural Scotland. In this type of soft romance you can see how everything will end, from the get-go it was a given that Steven and Megan would end up together….no secrets there…..

“Coming Home “is a cute classic story of love and hope.

“Coming Home” is a moving romantic drama about building a new life after the Second World War - and about searching for love, stability and happiness.

After the victory the boys are coming home…..

We have two main protagonists: Megan and Steven who play wonderful and touching roles in this beautifully written story. The secondary characters help this drama to move forward.

A short synopsis:

After a long correspondence with Steven during his time away Megan has been anxiously waiting for his return. She has deep affection for him and only hopes her feelings are mutual.

Once home, Steven’s desire is to have his own farm. Bad blood between brothers is raging so Steven has to go on his own but the road ahead is not an easy one. With Megan off to college to finish her degree in teaching Steven struggles to build a home for both of them. Poor Steven has to jump one hurdle after the other but with the help of family, friends and neighbours he is on the right track to success. As all romantic stories unfold the hard work pays off and everything turns out all right. AWE….

My thoughts:

What a nice and heartwarming story this turned out to be. The story depicts the struggles of the time and the hardships the men returning home had to face along with their love ones. The book is easy to read although I found the tempo to be very slow moving but what it does well is to vividly bring to life the reality of post war rural Scotland. In this type of soft romance you can see how everything will end, from the get-go it was a given that Steven and Megan would end up together….no secrets there…..

“Coming Home “is a cute classic story of love and hope.

elf.Full disclosure: I did not finish reading this book and this is why: Pointless mundane day to day activity and beyond repetitive.

“Boys for Men” is the true story of two soldiers separated by 100 years. Taken from excerpts from the journal of Sylvester Waltz, an infantryman during the Great Sioux War (1876) and of Derrick Wolf’s tour of duty during the Vietnam (1970) conflict, their memoirs are told in alternate paragraphs as their day to day monotonous life moves on. Over and over we have paragraphs saying the same thing. I wanted to skipped the Sylvester Waltz part and simply read Wolf experiences but that didn’t last long I simply couldn’t take another chapter of all the minor details such as heating coffee and other mundane tasks that were constancy repeated. This is written as a daily journal and is very boring to read. I rarely give up on a book but I couldn’t take it, ¼ into it, enough was enough.

Not having served in the military I may not have appreciated what the book was trying to tell us but to those who came back home after their tour of duty, reading it may trigger fond memories. So don’t take my words for it… judge for yourself.

This latest is another winner, one of those stories that grab your attention from the start, an awesome medical thriller that deals with the terrible opioid crisis. The Last High (TLH) is carfentanil, a derivative of fentanyl a drug so lethal who ever tries it may end up dead. The story takes place in Vancouver BC one of the cities where the crisis is at the highest level but although this city is in Canada, the crisis is certainly a worldwide occurrence that kills thousands of users. Mr. Kalla, an ER doctor by profession has penned a story of what happens when teens show up in the ER from a deadly drug overdose.

The development is said in alternate chapters from the point of view of ER doctors, the toxicologist, the homicide detectives, the dealers and their associates. The pace is a bit slow at first but as good thriller does it soon springs into action and from then on we are into a rollicking tempo till the very end. The plot has a lot of intrigue and some violence after all dealing with the Triad, major drug gangs and petty dealers, one cannot pussyfoot around. We find a lot of medical jargon and chemical references in the book regarding the illicit drug world; I learned a few things (actually a lot)……and following the cleaver police force at work we find out the tricks they need to do in order to get the drugs off the streets. “Chapeau” to them. Thank you, Mr. Kalla for writing such a lively and timely story to enlighten us as well as for our enjoyment.

I received an ARC from the publisher Simon & Schuster for my thoughts.

Ivy Nash Thriller book #2

Redemption Thriller book #8

I love John Mefford’s books because you can rarely figure out how the mystery will turn out, definitely hard to guess who the perpetrator is, who he is pursuing, who might be his next victim, when his next move will be and what gruesome action he will do next. “In Pursuit”, is much darker than anything I have read so far by this author. It is simply spine-chilling, evil and hair-raising. Even with all this, I loved every moment.

We follow two threads seamlessly, jumping between characters and time frames with no confusion. Although the subject matter may be over the top it is smoothly put together so we can read it with ease.

A serial killer is terrorizing San Antonio and the method of murder is beyond macabre. Ivy Nash seemed to be the one intersecting point between the victim and herself. She is pulled into the case by her police friend.

Meanwhile Ivy is on a case of a run-away teen looking for her parents.

M. Mefford once again has created a winning crime thriller with defined characters and a dramatic plot that kept me on the edge of my seat and turning pages furiously. The story is visual; it definitely would make a captivating movie. This is no doubt that books from this author are my kind of books, ones that are captivating from the start and never let go.

I am a huge fan of this author, I simply love the way he writes. This may be the second book in this series but it has been more than a dozen I have read so far. I loved them all.

Milo Weaver book # 4

What a confusing read this turned out to be. The story is layered with spies and their handles, past and present, working what it seems to be with an assortment of people who work for an agency embedded in the United Nations. Some say it keeps us on edge until the very last page because it’s hard to separate the truths from the lies, the good guys from the bad. I totally agree but is it a good read?

“The Last Tourist”, is a complex tapestry that weaves together a story of politics, espionage and trickery on a global scale. This saga is filled with unexpected twists and turns and has a large cast of characters all outfoxing each other. The sheer number of players and their individual agenda were far too many to follow and so hard to keep up with that I lost interest and “The Last Tourist” could not win me back in the long run.

I enjoy a demanding plot but on the other hand passing too much time deciphering what is being said is way too demanding and by far less enjoyable read. This book was not an easy read. I frequently had to think back who was who and who did what and who double-crossed whom. I guess the best way to read this book is to take notes or to make a spreadsheet…. The narration switches from first person to third person without a good transition, things are quite jerky and do not flow smoothly. But be prepared for an awful lot to occur at a breakneck pace…..such a chaotic presentation …. I am not saying this is a bad book, I simply did not enjoy it as much as the previous in this series….some you win and some you lose…This is the way I see it.

I received a free copy of this eBook from St. Martin’s Press / Minotaur Books and NetGalley

Book# 2 in the Karen Andersen British Political Thriller series

This thriller is the sequel to “The Missing Activist” featuring London PI Karen Andersen and her second assignment. The story tackles the far right politic which has existed in the UK for ever and the wish of concern groups to preserve what is perceived to be the British culture. The plot is set around the thorny issue of Jihadi brides returning home from Syria. The topic couldn’t be more timely. What a catching start the author gives us: it opens with a confession and a deadly act committed to an ISIS captor….

I do recommend reading the book #1 first as many of the characters have a good part in the 2nd book. I found it an asset to have known them previously but no worries it could perfectly be read on its own if you start here.

In this gripping, chock full of twists story we have PI Andersen once again immersed in the world of radical extremism. The plot follows the events that happened in the previous book. Everyone is on edge, Jihadi terrorist Zinah al-Rashid (Tammy Bishop) is about to be released from Prison. Is she really reformed? When Labour MP for Cherrywood facing deselection is found murdered, the suspicion falls on a Far Right group and an intensive investigation is set off. Is the group really behind the murder? The action doesn’t stop there, would we have suspense without the esteem police force doing their bit. The hunt for a lone wolf who has been threatening former Jihadi brides is at the top of the list.

This story is steeped in conspiracies, politically motivated and deadly. The scenes are vividly said, it seems so real, it could definitely happen. The pacing is steady although moderate but the pull to know what is coming up is strong so much so I couldn’t stop flipping just one more page…..Such a page turner I simply couldn’t wait to see the outcome.

This thriller is an enjoyable and captivating read one that kept my attention from page one. In my books it is even better than the “Missing Activist”. Well-done.

I wish to thank Louise Burfitt-Dons for a copy of both books in this series. My thoughts have not been influence by this offer this is the way I see it…

Book #1 in The Danger Never Sleeps series

It took some time before I was hooked by this story and I still wonder why I was so ridiculously slow in grasping how good it was. After all, “Collateral Damage” is fast-paced, very suspenseful, has great characterization and to boot a great storyline….so why did I find it hard to stay focus and this from the get-go. Distraction is my best guess….but in hindsight I admit the story did gel and I loved it.

The story line has two main characters: military psychiatrist Brooke Adams honorably discharged from the Army after an explosion nearly killed her and Former Army Special Ops Sergeant Asher James who has nightmares from his time in Afghanistan. Both have flashbacks and struggle with PTSD and are helping each other heal from their past trauma. But trouble keeps on following them even back home with the duo drawn into a web of terrifying circumstances……from then on I was tenfold into this mystery and flipping pages furiously….

We have two storyline, at first this may be a bit confusing but I knew that eventually things would fall into place and as the threads come together it would make perfect sense. The story has villains, intrigue and unthinkable acts caused by greed but we also have heroes, faith and strong values. There is a light romance in the background that doesn’t take anything away from the overall suspense. This is a complex plot that also touches the sensitive subjects of illegal adoption and organs trafficking for gain.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from Revell Publishing via Netgalleys. Opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own.