#SegueSaturday #BookReview: A World I Never Made (The Invictus Cycle 1) by James LePore @jlepore5

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I started my book review blog in 2009 and I have read so many outstanding books that I wanted to share them again with my followers on #SegueSaturday.  I first posted this review in March 2009.  It is a great foreign espionage suspense thriller that kept me at the edge of my seat.  Enjoy!

It’s January 2004 and Pat Nolan has received a call from Paris informing him that his estranged daughter Megan (well-traveled, freelance journalist) has committed suicide. When he gets to Paris it is revealed that the body is not Megan and she has left behind a strange suicide note to stage her death. The plot thickens when he finds out she had been staying in Morocco for some time with an extended diplomatic visa and she is hiding from a powerful enemy who stops at nothing to exact revenge. Continue reading “#SegueSaturday #BookReview: A World I Never Made (The Invictus Cycle 1) by James LePore @jlepore5” →

#BlogTour #BookReview: Perfect Match by Zoe May @zoe_writes @rararesources @HQDigitalUK

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Publication Date:  18 January 2018
Publisher:  HQ Digital
ISBN: B075MW7HNC (Kindle book)
Pages:  362
Category: Women’s fiction / Humor

ABOUT THE BOOK

Can you ever find true love online?

Sophia Jones is an expert in all things online dating: the best sites, how to write a decent bio, which questions to ask and the right type of photos to use. The only thing she’s not so great at? Picking the guys…

After sitting through yet another dreadful date with a man who isn’t quite what she expected, Sophia is just about ready to give up on the whole dating scene. But her flatmate, Kate, persuades her to give it one more chance, only this time she must create a profile describing her ‘perfect’ man. Continue reading “#BlogTour #BookReview: Perfect Match by Zoe May @zoe_writes @rararesources @HQDigitalUK” →

#Book Review: The Passage (The Passage #1) by Justin Cronin @jccronin @penguinrandom #sciencefiction #series

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Publication Date:  8 June 2010
Publisher: Ballantine Books; 1st edition
ISBN: B003F3PM7A (Kindle book)
Pages:  897
Category: Science Fiction/Fantasy/Dystopian/Series

ABOUT THE BOOK

“It happened fast. Thirty-two minutes for one world to die, another to be born.”

An epic and gripping tale of catastrophe and survival, The Passage is the story of Amy—abandoned by her mother at the age of six, pursued and then imprisoned by the shadowy figures behind a government experiment of apocalyptic proportions. But Special Agent Brad Wolgast, the lawman sent to track her down, is disarmed by the curiously quiet girl and risks everything to save her. As the experiment goes nightmarishly wrong, Wolgast secures her escape—but he can’t stop society’s collapse. And as Amy walks alone, across miles and decades, into a future dark with violence and despair, she is filled with the mysterious and terrifying knowledge that only she has the power to save the ruined world. Continue reading “#Book Review: The Passage (The Passage #1) by Justin Cronin @jccronin @penguinrandom #sciencefiction #series” →

#SegueSaturday #BookReview: Humpty Dumpty was Pushed by #MarcBlatte #HipHopNoir

~ Sharon Clayton ~ 2 Comments

I started my book review blog in 2009 and I have read so many outstanding books that I wanted to share them again with my followers on #SegueSaturday.  I first posted this review in February 2009.  “Humpty Dumpty was Pushed” was one of my first books posted on my blog and it is a fantastic “hip-hop noir” novel full of suspense, humor and great characters.

MY REVIEW

Humpty Dumpty was pushed.  Nothing happens by accident and lightening can strike twice in the same spot.

Who murdered the big man with the yellow socks?  This story takes us from a hip-hop recording studio to a New York City nightclub to a socialite’s home in the Hamptons.

Detective Salvatore Messina, aka Black Sallie Blue Eyes, is a smart cop with a criminal profiler mind.  He dreams of keeping the streets safe, but this case has got him working to keep his captain, the record producers and the socialites from breathing down his neck AND, as fate has it, his ex-wife is back in New York City. Continue reading “#SegueSaturday #BookReview: Humpty Dumpty was Pushed by #MarcBlatte #HipHopNoir” →

#BlogTour #BookReview: The Uncompromising Lord Flint (The King’s Elite Book 2) by @VirginiaHeath_ @rararesources #Regency

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Publication Date:  1 January 2019
Publisher:  Harlequin Historical
ISBN: 9781488047008 (Kindle book)
Pages:  288
Category: Regency romance/ historical romance

ABOUT THE BOOK

Imprisoned by her past- Set free by her enemy!

Charged with high treason, Lady Jessamine Fane is under the watchful eye of icily calm Lord Peter Flint. It’s a task this spy won’t be swayed from, no matter how alluring his prisoner! Only it’s not long before Flint realizes that tenacious Jess hides a lifetime of pain. With so much at stake, can he afford to take a chance on their powerful attraction? Continue reading “#BlogTour #BookReview: The Uncompromising Lord Flint (The King’s Elite Book 2) by @VirginiaHeath_ @rararesources #Regency” →

#BookReview: There’s Something About a Cowboy by Rich Amooi @richamooi #romantic #comedy

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Publication Day: 25 October 2018
Publisher:  Rich Amooi
ISBN: B07JQ5ZT4C (Kindle book)
Pages: 266
Category:  Fiction, Romantic Comedy

MY REVIEW

She’d promised herself to quit dating cowboys since she had such a poor track record with them.

Amy Weaver is in a pickle.  Her night out with her niece Jennie turned out to be a disaster.  She challenged a complete, but hunky, cowboy to a bull riding contest at the Double Deuce bar and paid with a kiss that knocked her socks off.  A kiss that her niece posted on social media for the entire world to see including Amy’s family who now thinks she is engaged.  When her grandfather, “The Great Exaggerator”, manipulates Amy in bringing her new fiance to his birthday party at the family ranch, she has to locate Luke as soon as possible to convince her judgemental father and her ex-boyfriend that she has moved on.  Will she be able to keep up this charade with a perfect stranger, or will it backfire on her? Continue reading “#BookReview: There’s Something About a Cowboy by Rich Amooi @richamooi #romantic #comedy” →

#BlogTour #Review: Naked Truths (Naked, Book 1) by Karen Botha @KarenBothaNovel @rararesources

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Naked Truth

ABOUT THE BOOK

He’s a grieving widower, the perfect boyfriend, and the prime suspect…

Lucy knows the importance of boundaries. As a massage therapist, she keeps her work and her personal life completely separate. But when a handsome widower shows up on her table and sparks an instant attraction, Lucy is shameless. Breaking her rule, she crosses the line, triggering a series of thrilling mysteries.

Paula isn’t so sure about her best friend’s perfect man… or the story of his wife’s death. To uncover the truth, the former detective infiltrates his social circle. When she examines a scandalous lodger, a jealous brother, and a protective mother-in-law, everyone seems to have a hidden motive for murder…

Lucy is torn between her old friend and her dark new love. Will she follow her head or her heart? And can Paula discover the true killer before her friend makes a fateful mistake?

Naked Truths is the first book in a series of pulse-pounding romantic suspense books. If you like the odd steamy sex scene, complex characters, and twists you won’t see coming, then you’ll love the suspense of Karen Botha’s gripping romantic suspense.

The rest of the Naked Series of gripping mystery romances can be read as stand alones or as part of the series and are free on Kindle Unlimited. Continue reading “#BlogTour #Review: Naked Truths (Naked, Book 1) by Karen Botha @KarenBothaNovel @rararesources” →

#BookReview: Lincoln Shaw (Heartbreakers & Heroes Book 8) by Ciana Stone @CianaStone @CandidBReview

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Publication Day: 12 November 2018
Publisher: Ciana Stone
ISBN: B07GQLQGMS (Kindle book)
Pages: 261
Category:  Fiction, Romance, Paranormal, Mystery, Series

Thor mowed through those rednecks like a god, even taking time to give her a wink when she yelled a warning about someone behind him.

Tallulah (Lula) Christmas Duval is a former Olympian gymnast, comic geek, stripper who has been cursed by her dead grandmother.  But that’s not all; she has a dangerous secret that has brought her to Cotton Creek, Texas.  However, when an over-zealous customer gets out of hand at the strip club, her rescuer is none other than the Asgardian God, Thor, or Lincoln Shaw to his family and friends.

Lincoln Shaw is a player who leaves broken hearts behind wherever he goes, but Lula is like no one else.  She’s beautiful, funny, outgoing and honest.  Or is she?  She’s told him about her past, but her current situation is not all that it seems to be, and why is she so interested in the high school football coach? Continue reading “#BookReview: Lincoln Shaw (Heartbreakers & Heroes Book 8) by Ciana Stone @CianaStone @CandidBReview” →

#BookReview: The Savage Shore (A Nic Costa Mystery Book 10) by David Hewson @david_hewson ‏ @severnhouse #LoveBooksGroup

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Publication Day: 1 November 2018
Publisher: Severn House Publishers Ltd
ISBN: B07JGM35N4 (Kindle book)
Pages: 499
Category:  Fiction, Crime, Mystery, Suspense, Police Procedural

ABOUT THE BOOK

Detective Nic Costa finds himself a stranger in a strange land when he’s sent to infiltrate the mob in a remote part of southern Italy.

Roman police detective Nic Costa has been sent undercover to Italy’s beautiful, remote Calabrian coast to bring in the head of the feared mob, the ‘Ndrangheta, who has offered to turn state witness for reasons of his own.

Hoping to reel in the biggest prize the state police have seen in years, the infamous Butcher of Palermo, Costa, and his team are aware the stakes are high. But the constant deception is taking its toll. Out of their depth in a lawless part of Italy where they are the outcasts, not the men in the hills, with their shotguns and rough justice, the detectives find themselves pitched as much against one another as the mob. As the tension rises, it’s clear the operation is not going to plan. Is Nic Costa getting too close to the enemy for comfort – and is there a traitor among them …? Continue reading “#BookReview: The Savage Shore (A Nic Costa Mystery Book 10) by David Hewson @david_hewson ‏ @severnhouse #LoveBooksGroup” →

#Book Review: Our Kind of Cruelty by Araminta Hall @aramintahall @mcdbooks #psychological thriller #obsession

~ Sharon Clayton ~ Leave a comment

Publication Day: 08 May 2018
Publisher: MCD
ISBN: B076H4X9D4 (Kindle book)
Pages: 288
Category:  Fiction, Psychological Thriller, Obsession, Mental Illness

I decided to read another book from my TBR pile and remembered that I selected this book because of the author’s acknowledgments page.  She notes, “The first draft of this book was written in a mad spurt of anger at the continued injustices perpetrated against women in our so-called civilized society”.  Though it was published in May of this year, the injustices continue to this day and I couldn’t wait to begin.

When I lived with my mother there were monsters only I could see in the corner of my room, hidden by the cobwebs and filth that clung to our walls. I came to an agreement with those monsters. If I agreed never to look straight at them, they agreed not to eat me. It lessened the terror a bit.

Continue reading “#Book Review: Our Kind of Cruelty by Araminta Hall @aramintahall @mcdbooks #psychological thriller #obsession” →

#BookReview: Go Home, Afton (The Afton Morrison Series #1) by Brent Jones @AuthorBrentJ #serialkiller #suspense

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Publication Day: 25 June 2018
Publisher: Brent Jones
ISBN: B07CBRX77Q (Kindle book)
Pages: 116
Category:  Fiction, Suspense Thriller, Serial Killer, Series

Being plain on the outside was a good aesthetic for a woman planning to commit homicide. It was a style that I liked to call thrift-shop fabulous. It made me a bit of an odd duck, sure, but it kept the human race at a distance, which is just how I liked it.

Afton Morrison’s alter ego, “Animus”, describes her as “a female psychopathic vegetarian librarian with a pet goldfish”.  Afton sees herself as doing good by killing evil, but she hasn’t killed yet, she has only dreamed it.

She is stalking a local man who was accused of sexually assaulting women in her town, but no charges were filed.  She is going to make him pay, but she has a stalker herself, “The Man in the Shadows”, a person from “the incident” in her past.

I picked up this book because of the female librarian serial killer perspective, but I found Afton’s snarky quips extremely engaging and couldn’t wait to see how she pulled off the murder.  The suspense is enthralling not only for what Afton is planning but what is happening to her against her will.  The only “bad” thing I can say is that the first book in the series is way too short at 116 pages.  Yet another series that I plan to continue.  Highly recommend. Continue reading “#BookReview: Go Home, Afton (The Afton Morrison Series #1) by Brent Jones @AuthorBrentJ #serialkiller #suspense” →

#BookReview: Icy Heat (Heat Series) by Leigh Wyndfield #romance #scifi

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Publication Day: 6 June 2008
Publisher: Samhain Publishing, Ltd.
ISBN: 160504038x (ebook)
Pages: 217
Category:  Fiction, Romance, Science Fiction, Erotica

I am working on my TBR pile and came across this great read.  I’m a sucker for scarred heroes and Warwick the Enforcer is no exception.

His left hand was covered with a tight leather glove that matched the mask hiding his face. Holes for his eyes, nose and mouth were cut into the leather, giving him a frightening appearance. His head was encased by a leather helm, completing the frightening view.

As a young boy, his body was burned with acid while watching his parents die by the hand of Balten.  After many years as Warwick the Enforcer his time for revenge is near but he wasn’t expecting the distraction of the tall, beautiful, and fiery pilot, Aidan.  He was stunned that she did not cringe at his scarred body like all the others.  She actually preferred him without the mask. Continue reading “#BookReview: Icy Heat (Heat Series) by Leigh Wyndfield #romance #scifi” →

#Book Review: It Ends With Us by Colleen Hoover @colleenhoover @AtriaBooks #womensfiction #abuse #mentalillness

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Publication Day: 2 August 2016
Publisher: Atria Books
ISBN: 9781501110368
Pages: 384
Category:  Fiction, Contemporary Romance, Women’s Fiction

An exceptional read!  My emotions ran the gamut of joy, laughter, anger, and sorrow with this book.  Goodreads Choice 2016 Winner, Colleen Hoover, is remarkable at drawing you in with so much joy and happiness for her characters and then ripping your heart out on the next page.

Lily’s life has not been normal or easy, to say the least.  She grew up in Maine watching her abusive father brutalize her mother swearing she would not let that happen to her.  As a teen, she met and fell in love with a homeless boy who was squatting in the empty house next door, but he moved away.  She meets the man of her dreams (a neurosurgeon) on the top of a building in Boston, but is he too good to be true? She has a wise best friend who gives her the best advice she can give her despite the consequences to Lily’s life. Continue reading “#Book Review: It Ends With Us by Colleen Hoover @colleenhoover @AtriaBooks #womensfiction #abuse #mentalillness” →

#BookTour #BookReview: Chasing Monsters (DI Will Scott, book 1) by Paul Harrison @PHarrisonauthor @UrbaneBooks

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Publication Day: 4 October 2018
Publisher: Urbane Publications
ISBN: 9781912666041
Pages: 360
Category:  Fiction, Genre: Thriller / Crime

ABOUT THIS BOOK

In a sleepy northern seaside resort, The Eastborough Police Force is shocked into action when a heavily mutilated body is found in a quiet suburb. Murder rarely happens in these parts. Within a short space of time, the body count begins to rise rapidly, as a serial killer runs amok.

DI Will Scott is tasked with finding the killer. In doing he treads paths he never expected to traverse and uncovers a web of deceit that leads to a world where no one can be trusted.

The killer relentlessly continues to strike terror across the community. Then without warning, the killing ground changes. Where will the killer strike next …? Continue reading “#BookTour #BookReview: Chasing Monsters (DI Will Scott, book 1) by Paul Harrison @PHarrisonauthor @UrbaneBooks” →

#BookReview: The President is Missing by Bill Clinton and James Patterson @BillClinton ‏@JP_Books @littlebrown

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Publication Day: 4 June 2018 [Kindle]
Publisher: Little, Brown and Company
ISBN: 0316412694
Pages: 529
Category: Fiction, Genre: Action & Adventure, Mystery

ABOUT THE BOOK

As the novel opens, a threat looms. Enemies are planning an attack of unprecedented scale on America. Uncertainty and fear grip Washington. There are whispers of cyberterror and espionage and a traitor in the cabinet. The President himself becomes a suspect, and then goes missing…

Set in real time, over the course of three days, The President Is Missing is one of the most dramatic thrillers in decades. And it could all really happen. The President Is Missing is Bill Clinton and James Patterson’s totally authentic and spellbinding thriller. Continue reading “#BookReview: The President is Missing by Bill Clinton and James Patterson @BillClinton ‏@JP_Books @littlebrown” →

#BlogTour #BookReview: Losing Time (Knights in Time #5) by Chris Karlsen @ChrisKarlsen1 @BuoniAmiciPress

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Publication Day: 16 September 2018 [Kindle]
Publisher: Chris Karlsen
Pages: 293
Category: Fiction, Genre: Historical Romance / Time Travel

ABOUT THIS BOOK

Felicia Wycliff’s peaceful stroll through the woods turned to disaster when her dachshund bolted after a rabbit. One minute Felicia was running after the determined little dog, the next she was hurled to the ground. Gathering her wits after her tumble, she brushed herself off and continued her pursuit—-right into three mounted knights who blocked her path.

They were so authentic looking. They might’ve stepped from the keep of the nearby castle, Elysian Fields. But the old Norman fortress was a ruin and had been for three hundred years.

“Seize her,” the middle knight ordered, the knight who sat tallest in the saddle.
“Let me go.” She fought, striking out when the two knights grabbed her. “Who the deuce are you?”

“I’m the Captain of the Baron’s Guard, and you are trespassing.”

Kidnapped, her confusion and fear consumed her. But when they rode through the gates of Elysian Fields, the castle looking as formidable as the date it was built, her terror exploded.

When she fell she knew exactly where she was. But where the devil had she landed? Continue reading “#BlogTour #BookReview: Losing Time (Knights in Time #5) by Chris Karlsen @ChrisKarlsen1 @BuoniAmiciPress” →

#BlogTour #BookReview: Cabin 12 (Rock Point #2) by Freya Barker @freya_barker @BuoniAmiciPress #romanticsuspense

~ Sharon Clayton ~ Leave a comment

Publication Day: 13 September 2018 [Kindle]
Publisher: Freya Barker
Pages: 260
Category: Fiction, Genre: Mystery / Romance / Suspense

ABOUT THIS BOOK

Even at thirty-seven, with a challenging but rewarding career as a paramedic, Bella Gomez is treated as the baby of the family. It’s made her allergic to anyone meddling, so she chooses to keep mostly to herself. Unfortunately, that doesn’t stop her family from inserting themselves in her life. Nor does it deter the one man she knows she shouldn’t get close to from showing up on her doorstep.

Jasper Greene, an FBI agent with the La Plata County field office, doesn’t even know the meaning of family. His team is his family, which is why–when his boss asks him to keep an eye on his baby sister–Jasper readily complies. Even when the sister in question is a spectacularly developed princess with plenty of attitude.

With a shooter on the loose and corruption running rampant, Bella is a magnet for trouble, and Jasper finds himself with his hands full–in more ways than one. Continue reading “#BlogTour #BookReview: Cabin 12 (Rock Point #2) by Freya Barker @freya_barker @BuoniAmiciPress #romanticsuspense” →

#BookReview: Paulie Zahn Vampire Huntress (The Purloined Pint Series Book 2) by E.M. Sørensen @bookhubauthors #vampires

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Publication Day: 24 June 2018
ISBN: B07F1BBP5X
Pages: 368
Category: Fiction, Genre: Fantasy/Paranormal, Vampires, Series

ABOUT THIS BOOK

The last thing Sgt. Paulie Zahn expects when she wakes up in a strange hospital is to be told that a Rogue Vampire bit her.

Worse, she must cope with the inexplicable changes her body’s going through she’s stronger, faster, and she feels and senses things she never believed to be possible. Her mentor, Eddie Vangh, has been a Vampire since World War II. He wants to teach her how to live by the code of his clan, which includes not directly feeding off human beings. Continue reading “#BookReview: Paulie Zahn Vampire Huntress (The Purloined Pint Series Book 2) by E.M. Sørensen @bookhubauthors #vampires” →

#BookReview: The Janus Witch by Michael Scott Clifton @michaelsclifton

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Publication Day: 1 September 2018 [Kindle]
Publisher: Book Liftoff
ISBN: 9781947946415
Pages: 344
Category: Fiction, Genre: Romance / Fantasy

ABOUT THIS BOOK

A beautiful witch with a violent past forms an unlikely love affair with a compassionate young doctor…until she fears she may end up killing him.

Tressalayne is a member of a murderous witches’ coven. An attack by witch hunters forces the coven to escape through a hastily constructed portal of magic. Ripped from her medieval world, the portal hurls Tressalayne and the coven’s leader, Morganna, into present-day East Texas. Critically injured in the passage, Tressalayne awakes in a hospital with no memory of her previous life.

Lucas Beckett finds himself in charge of the mysterious patient’s recuperation, and soon develops more than just a medical interest in her recovery. However, their blossoming relationship is marred by Tressalayne’s nightmarish flashbacks and uncontrolled manifestations of magic. Continue reading “#BookReview: The Janus Witch by Michael Scott Clifton @michaelsclifton” →

#BlogTour #BookReview: Implant (Gardener and Reilly Crime Series #3) by Ray Clark @T1LOM @UrbaneBooks #lovebooksgrouptours #IMPLANT

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Publication Day: 9 August 2018
Publisher: Urbane Publications
ISBN: 9781911583981
Pages: 376
Category: Fiction, Genre: Thriller / Crime / Psychological

ABOUT THIS BOOK

Bramfield, near Leeds, a sleepy little market town nestled on the borders of West and North Yorkshire. Detectives Stewart Gardener and Sean Reilly discover the naked corpse of Alex Wilson, nailed to the wall of a cellar in his uncle’s hardware store. His lips are sewn together and his body bears only one mark, a fresh scar near his abdomen.

Within forty-eight hours, their investigation results in dead ends, more victims, no suspects and very little in the way of solid evidence. Gardener and Reilly have a problem and a question on their hands: are the residents of Bramfield prepared for one of history’s most sadistic killers, The Tooth Fairy?

Implant is the perfect read for fans of Peter May, Mark Billingham and Peter James. Continue reading “#BlogTour #BookReview: Implant (Gardener and Reilly Crime Series #3) by Ray Clark @T1LOM @UrbaneBooks #lovebooksgrouptours #IMPLANT” →