The Lord and the Marriageable Lady by Katherine Ann Madison – book review

Disclosure.  This post is a review of an e-book I was sent for free.  All opinions are my own.

I have received a free e-copy of the book The Lord and the Marriageable Lady by Katherine Ann Madison to review.

Here is the book blurb.

She doesn’t want love or romance…

What Lady Anna Summers wants more than anything is to be this season’s most successful debutante. But when Lord Smith steps into her path, he’s no one that her family would wish for her to wed and everything her heart cries out for.

Will she follow her heart or allow her mother to dictate her future?

Katherine Ann Madison is a pseudonym of prolific author Tammy Andresen and this is the fifth title in her sweet Regency Romance series Matchmaking on the Marriage Mart. The story works perfectly as a stand-alone read. However if you do plan to read them all, I certainly recommend you read them in order. In particular this one does feature a spoiler for an earlier title.

This story features Lady Anna, sister of Juliet, the heroine of the previous title, The Viscount and the Spinster. Anna believes Juliet is better than her at almost everything, but she had been hoping to use her best asset of beauty to outshine Juliet in the Marriage Mart, as this year will be her first season.

She cannot afford to be distracted by the compliments and attention of Lord Smith, a second son with no inheritance.

Meanwhile Ashton, Lord Smith wishes he had more than the promise of future business success with which to woo the lady, especially when he sees her mother attempt to find opportunities to match Anna with the Marquess instead. Can he come up with a plan?

The Lord and the Marriageable Lady is available on Amazon in Kindle format. Once again a delightful sweet novella from Katherine Ann Madison.

---

About Tammy Andresen

USA Today Bestselling Author, Tammy Andresen lives with her husband and three children just outside of Boston, Massachusetts. She grew up on the Seacoast of Maine, where she spent countless days dreaming up stories in blueberry fields and among the scrub pines that line the coast. Her mother loved to spin a yarn and Tammy filled many hours listening to her mother retell the classics. It was inevitable that at the age of 18, she headed off to Simmons College, where she studied English literature and education. She never left Massachusetts but some of her heart still resides in Maine and her family visits often.

Website – http://www.tammyandresen.com

Visit Yet Another Blogging Mummy on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram

Discovery of the Five Senses by K N Smith – book review

Disclosure.  This post is a review of an e-book I was sent for free.  All opinions are my own.

I have received a free e-copy of the book Discovery of the Five Senses by K N Smith to review. You may find out more about the author on her website.

Here is the book blurb.

Welcome or unwelcome. Fate has arrived.

A suspenseful incident in a forbidden preserve heightens the senses of five friends. Sight, sound, touch, taste, and smell become super-gifts that forever change the world. But furious battles confront the boys as they try to understand their sensory super powers in a race to save mankind. With light beings and mysterious strangers complicating their plight, will the boys defeat the evil Druth before it’s too late? Get prepared for the twisting and grinding of this award-winning, action-adventure story — an edge-of-your-seat narrative for young and mature readers alike.

The prologue is set late at night in the mysterious forest where a despicable act takes place. But the readers are not the only witnesses!

Moving forward 20 years to the main story, we are introduced to five teenage friends and their families who live in the town Danville Heights. The boys are Kinsu, Chase, Jordan, Rhee and Alex.

A few miles away in neighbouring town Sandry Lake, hooligans now roam the streets led by evil Druth.

Humans are not the only characters in the tale, we also have peaceful Naculeans, tiny light beings who look like fireflies and rely on nectar.

But when the boys set foot in the forbidden preserve, they are unaware of either their encounter with the Naculeans or of the mysterious stranger who observes them.

They awake, back in Rhee’s home, not really aware of what happened, each with a heightened sense and a bonding connection.

I did find some of this tale rather confusing, but effectively it was a chain of events set in motion. The boys need to work together as a team, harnessing each of their individual super-powers for this book to progress to a positive conclusion. Plenty of twists and turns en-route in this fantasy action-packed adventure. I loved the characterisation of the boys, plus how their family members, friends and neighbours were all developed too. Although it does mean a lot of people and relationships for the reader to remember.

Discovery of the Five Senses is available on Amazon in paperback and Kindle format, targeted at young adult readers. An interesting fantastical adventure. Suitable from age 13 upwards in my opinion.

However this is billed as book 1 in The Urban Boys series. But there doesn’t appear to be a book 2 yet, although this title was published in 2015.

Visit Yet Another Blogging Mummy on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram

The Space Between by Shawn D Brink – book review

Disclosure.  This post is a review of an ebook I was sent for free.  All opinions are my own.

I have received a free e-copy of the book The Space Between by Shawn D Brink to review. You may find out more about the author on his website.

Here is the book blurb.

“I’m the hundred-year-old woman in the hundred-year-old store. With my hundred-year-old eyes I guard the hundred-year-old door.”

After five nights of the same vivid dream, Hunter sets out in search of the ancient woman who haunts his nights. When he and his wife Nora find the elderly Nancy Love, they find far more than they bargained for. She refuses to let them leave her antique shop until they open the door. What could it possibly hurt?

What is behind that door will send Hunter and Nora on a journey beyond imagination.

This is the first book in a trilogy.

Initially the story seems to be unrelated events. So in chaper 1, a lone driver Kenneth is killed in Nebraska by an alien who appears through a lightning bolt. Then in chapter 2 we meet Hunter, one of the main characters having a dream about the “hundred year old woman”, but his dream morphs into a dark evil alien nightmare. Hunter also has an OCD around the number 5 and apparently he has now had this dream 5 nights in a row. He decides to try and find the “hundred year old woman”.

But by chapter 3, I had settled into the tale as we get introduced to Hunter’s wife Nora who coincidentally has had a nightmare about the Century Old Antiques store for 5 nights.

And of course in chapter 4 we meet Nancy, aged 100, devout Christian owner of an antique shop, who by now as the reader could anticipate has also had a repetitive dream for 5 nights.

Can you guess what happens next? Yes both Nora and Hunter separately find Nancy in her shop, but what happens when they open the “hundred year old door”. Things take an even more far-fetched turn, as the story progresses into the fantasy realm in Outer Earth. It also gets more spiritual with lots of biblical references. But plenty of surprises too. Can any of them save the day?

The author had personally told me that this was Christian fiction. However the blurb doesn’t make this clear, and although a different genre to the previous title My Gypsy War Diary which I have also read by this author, once again I did feel rather uncomfortable to have the religious godly message thrust at me, particularly as this time it was through a large proportion of the tale.

I subsequently rechecked on Amazon and there is very little to indicate that this is specifically Christian fiction. I eventually spotted the book was categorised as Religious & Inspirational Fiction and if you are viewing the paperback version rather than kindle, it includes an image of the back cover with some clues to it being somewhat religious. I feel it would be more appropriate to forewarn the reader within the blurb, to give the opportunity before purchasing to consider whether they wish to read this genre.

That said, it is still an interesting read with a unique storyline.

Visit Yet Another Blogging Mummy on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram

Wanted: Title of Countess by Tammy Andresen – book review

Disclosure.  This post is a review of an e-book I was sent for free.  All opinions are my own.

I have received a free e-copy of the book Wanted: Title of Countess by Tammy Andresen to review.

Here is the book blurb.

She dreams of a hero…

Or perhaps he’s actually the villain. But Lady Laurel relives the day she lost her sister and of the man who was there on the worst day of her life. Was he rescuing her that day or was his part far more nefarious?

But the more she seems to learn, the less she knows. Only one thing is certain. She’ll never be free of these nightmares until the she uncovers the truth of her past. When she finally finds her mystery man, the Earl of Seacrest, he doesn’t provide answers. Just more questions. Are her growing feelings for Seacrest helping her find the courage to face the truth or is this the worst mistake of her life?

This is the seventh book in the Calling All Rakes series, but works perfectly as a stand-alone read. Here are the links to my reviews of the previous titles. These are romantic tales, all with a touch of mystery.
Wanted: An Earl For Hire
Needed: A Dishonorable Duke
Found: Bare with a Baron
Vacancy: Viscount Preferred
Lost: The Love of a Lord
Misssing: An Elusive Marquess

I felt a real vested interest in this story-line right from the forward where we are told that the story is set in the villages of Warrington, Widnes, Garston and St Michael’s hamlet before reaching Liverpool. More about why after my review.

The story begins in Warrington by introducing us to Lady Laurel who has hired two sleuths, Lady Charlotte and Lady Rebecca (heroines of earlier titles in the series) to investigate the day 10 years ago back in her childhood when she was rescued from drowning by a mysterious stranger, but lost her sister Daniella. She has continued to have harrowing nightmares ever since.

By chance, Parker, the Earl of Seacrest is also visiting Warrington for the first time in a very long time and overhears the 3 ladies speaking to Constable Danby moments before Laurel faints as she recognises him. He is the man she seeks.

However Daniella is a bigger question-mark? Will anyone answer their ad with relevant information? How will Laurel react to any clues? What can she do? Will she get closure?

Wanted: Title of Countess is available on Amazon in both Kindle format and paperback. A nice short romantic story with a mystery to solve too. I especially loved the ending.

So the Widnes connection is that from family history research, I discovered that my great grandmother was born there nearly 150 years ago. Of course this was after the Regency period, when I believe this tale is set, but I never realised that Widnes or Warrington were on the river Mersey. No longer villages, but big towns now. However I can see from GENUKI that Widnes was quite small back then. But the population of Warrington appears to be over 20,000 in 1801, so I’ll take it as a fictional stretch, calling it a village.

---

About the author

USA Today Bestselling Author, Tammy Andresen lives with her husband and three children just outside of Boston, Massachusetts. She grew up on the Seacoast of Maine, where she spent countless days dreaming up stories in blueberry fields and among the scrub pines that line the coast. Her mother loved to spin a yarn and Tammy filled many hours listening to her mother retell the classics. It was inevitable that at the age of 18, she headed off to Simmons College, where she studied English literature and education. She never left Massachusetts but some of her heart still resides in Maine and her family visits often.

Visit Yet Another Blogging Mummy on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram

Her Final Breath by Carolyn Arnold – book review

Disclosure.  This post is a review of an ebook I was sent for free.  All opinions are my own.

I have received a free e-copy of the book Her Final Breath by bestselling author Carolyn Arnold to review. To find out more about the author you may visit her website.

Here is the book blurb.

Faint sunlight dapples the two figures lying on the ground. The mother cradles her daughter close to her side, a stuffed toy elephant next to them. Leaves from the tall trees fall onto their faces, but neither moves to brush them off.

When a dog walker in a local Virginia park finds the bodies of a mother and daughter, Detective Amanda Steele is first on the scene. Her own daughter has a toy just like the girl’s elephant and seeing the child like this is her worst nightmare come true. Heartbroken, she vows to get justice.

They quickly get an ID—Jill Archer and six-year-old Charlotte were reported missing last week, but interviewing Jill’s husband, Roy, Amanda’s gut tells her he is hiding something. When the autopsy reveals a terrible pattern of bruises, she’s certain that a domestic argument escalated out of control, and tiny Charlotte got caught in the crossfire. But just as Amanda is about to arrest Roy, another grave is found, containing another mother and daughter.

Desperate for a lead, she goes to every place the women could have been targeted, and learns from a concerned ER nurse about Leanne Reilly and her young daughter, Gracie, who haven’t been heard from in a week. Amanda hopes that Leanne has simply left her deadbeat husband, but she’s gripped by the fear that they are the killer’s latest victims. Now every second counts for Amanda to find the family and stop a little girl’s nightmare before it ends in tragedy…

This is the seventh title in the Detective Amanda Steele series and here are the links to my reviews of the previous titles.
The Little Grave
Stolen Daughters
The Silent Witness
Black Orchid Girls
Her Frozen Cry
Last Seen Alive

The prologue gives us a brief introduction to Leanne and her young daughter Gracie who have been abducted and held against their will.

Meanwhile the main story begins with the discovery of a grave in the park, revealing a woman, child and stuffed toy elephant. Detective Amanda Steele and partner Trent investigate. The deceased are identified as Jill Archer and daughter Charlotte, immediately leaving the reader to draw your own conclusions between the Archers and Leanne & Gracie.

Amanda and Trent get a bad feeling when they interview Jill’s husband Roy, a fellow police officer. At best he appears guilty of abuse, but did he murder his family?

And why is Sergeant Graves being so much more helpful on this case than usual?

Interviews and warrants abound. And I love how the clues are gradually revealed to us.

As always, we follow a sub-plot of Amanda’s home life with adopted daughter Zoe, who is a similar age to the children in this case. Plus there is a focus on Trent’s reaction to the abuse, in the knowledge that he is unable to help someone close in a similar situation.

Every so often we get another chapter with Leanne and Gracie. And then another grave is discovered in the park, with striking similarities to the Archers. Is there a serial killer?

When I reached the point where Amanda and Trent hear about Leanne and Gracie going missing, I’m devouring the pages. Can they piece everything together and find them in time?

Her Final Breath is available on Amazon. A thrilling page turner indeed.

Includes some continuity references to earlier stories for those who enjoy reading the whole series but works excellently as a stand-alone read too.

About the Detective Amanda Steele Series
Gritty. Raw. Unapologetic.

Immersive crime fiction for fans who love their mysteries set in a small town and hard-boiled to perfection. From the murder scene to the morgue, interrogation of suspects and following down leads, you’ll feel like you’re part of the investigation. Realistic and complex characters, accurate police procedures and forensics paired with tight, serious writing make these books read more like true crime than fiction. Meet Homicide Detective Amanda Steele with the Prince William County Police Department in Woodbridge, Virginia. She’s smart, motivated, and real. Her tragic past has her claiming to be no one’s mentor, but she’s more hero than she thinks.

Here are the links to my reviews of other books by Carolyn Arnold.
Remnants
Power Struggle
The Secret of the Lost Pharaoh
On the Count of Three
Shades of Justice
Exercise is Murder
Past Deeds
The Legend of Gasparilla and his Treasure
What We Bury
One More Kill
Girl on the Run

---

About the author

Carolyn Arnold was born in a small Canadian town and enjoys spending time outdoors, but she also loves the lights of a big city. Grounded by her roots and lifted by her dreams, her overactive imagination insists that she tell her stories. Her intention is to touch the hearts of millions with her books, to entertain, inspire, and empower. As an international bestselling and award-winning author, she has several continuing fiction series, including her popular Detective Madison Knight series. She offers readers nearly three dozen published books in genres ranging from crime thrillers and hard-boiled mysteries to cozy mysteries and action adventures. She currently lives north of London, Ontario, with her husband and two beagles.

---

I’m participating in the blog book tour. Do take time to browse round some of the other posts.

Visit Yet Another Blogging Mummy on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram

Before Dawn by Laura Murphy – book review

Disclosure.  This post is a review of an ebook I was sent for free.  All opinions are my own.

I have received a free e-copy of the book Before Dawn by Laura Murphy to review. You may find out more about the author on her website.

Here is the book blurb.

Feisty New Yorker, Max, falls for her mysterious coworker, Tommy, who is fourteen years her senior. Wanting to please him and meet his beauty standards she conflictingly conceals her natural hair from him and avoids tanning so her skin doesn’t get too dark. Max tightly holds onto their forbidden romance while trying to figure out who she is and her place in a world she doesn’t always fit in. Too caught up with her feelings she becomes oblivious to the consequences of her actions. As tragedy strikes Max has to face her own worst enemy, herself.

The prologue drew me straight into this book, just a few intense pages with a cliff-hanger question at the end, so no choice but to dive straight into the main tale, where we are introduced to the main character, 23 year old adopted Max, who has been having a secret affair with a married man, Tommy on and off for 6 years, although she had no idea he was married for the first 2 years of their relationship.

As the reader I really hated Tommy, which made me feel more empathy towards Max, particularly as early in the story, she has to come to terms with the death of a family member. But her family and best friend Larissa buoy her up, as yet more lands on her plate.

Meanwhile whenever Max is at her lowest, the same stranger Smith seems to turn up. And who is the other stranger in the park?

A complex story which deals with relationships, mental health, racism and bias. Plenty of twists in this tale.

And as an aside, Max is really into expensive branded clothing. I had no idea what red bottom shoes were, but a quick search on Wikipedia revealed them to be the trademark of fashion designer Christian Louboutin.

Before Dawn is available on Amazon in kindle and paperback formats. A good read.

Visit Yet Another Blogging Mummy on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram

Missing: An Elusive Marquess by Tammy Andresen – book review

Disclosure.  This post is a review of an e-book I was sent for free.  All opinions are my own.

I have received a free e-copy of the book Missing: An Elusive Marquess by Tammy Andresen to review.

Here is the book blurb.

Lady Rebecca has seen a ghost…

Three years after the death of her fiancé, the Marquess of Northhampton, she swears she sees him walking down the street. Why now? She can’t afford to lose her mental faculties after all this time. But then again at his father’s funeral, she sees his specter. That can’t be him under the trees. Because if somehow, he’s alive and not lost at sea, after three years of unspeakable pain, she swears, she is going to kill him.

But when danger begins to circle, Rebecca has to admit, alive or dead, she could only hope to have Bennet by her side. If not him… who is going to save her?

This is the sixth book in the Calling All Rakes series, but works perfectly as a stand-alone read. Here are the links to my reviews of the previous titles. These are romantic tales, all with a touch of mystery.
Wanted: An Earl For Hire
Needed: A Dishonorable Duke
Found: Bare with a Baron
Vacancy: Viscount Preferred
Lost: The Love of a Lord

The story begins at the funeral of the Marquess of Northampton. He should have been Rebecca’s father-in-law, but her fiancé Bennet was lost at sea 3 years ago. She never married and is now a reporter with the Morning Herald. However she still can’t stop thinking of Bennet and 2 weeks ago thought she saw him in the street. And now again she thinks she sees him in the distance under the trees, but the man leaves before she can reach him.

Who is the man? Could it actually be Bennet? How will she find him?

Missing: An Elusive Marquess is available on Amazon in both Kindle format and paperback. Romance and mystery bundled together in this delightful short story.

---

About the author

USA Today Bestselling Author, Tammy Andresen lives with her husband and three children just outside of Boston, Massachusetts. She grew up on the Seacoast of Maine, where she spent countless days dreaming up stories in blueberry fields and among the scrub pines that line the coast. Her mother loved to spin a yarn and Tammy filled many hours listening to her mother retell the classics. It was inevitable that at the age of 18, she headed off to Simmons College, where she studied English literature and education. She never left Massachusetts but some of her heart still resides in Maine and her family visits often.

Visit Yet Another Blogging Mummy on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram

Journey to Justice: The Adventures of Spider and Ruby by Tanni Haas – book review

Disclosure.  This post is a review of an e-book I was sent for free.  All opinions are my own.

I have received a free e-copy of the book Journey to Justice: The Adventures of Spider and Ruby by Tanni Haas to review.

Here is the book blurb.

Journey to Justice, Book 1 of The Adventures of Spider and Ruby, is a fast-paced, suspenseful novel that takes place in a post-global-warming future in which the Earth has flooded. The surviving population lives on houseboats on the water or in large greenhouses deep in the water. They are all servants to a small group of people (The Chosen) who run the planet from a mysterious, man-made island. Spider, a HouseBoater, and Ruby, his friend, who’s an AquaGrower, are on a quest to free Spider’s 12-year-old twin brother Luke, who’s been arrested and imprisoned on the island for trying to organize an uprising against The Chosen. Along the way, Spider and Ruby face many dangerous obstacles including being held hostage by marauders, escaping from prison, and participating in high-speed chases.

This story is set in a dystopian future after climate change has caused the world to flood.

12 year old Spider and his family live on a houseboat, surviving on meagre catches of fish within a 3 mile patrolled zone, most of which they are forced to give away to the “Collectors” for “The Chosen” or face arrest by the “Patrollers”.

The powerful Chosen rule the world from a far-away man-made island and Spider’s twin Luke has been arrested for trying to start a revolt against them.

When fate intervenes, Spider discovers the “AquaGrowers” who live and grow fruit and vegetables in greenhouses at the bottom of the ocean, similarly oppressed by The Chosen. Likewise the AquaGrowers had not heard of the Houseboaters and are not happy about Spider appearing in their midst. Is he a spy? Disaster almost strikes.

But Spider is saved by Ruby. Her grandfather tells them both how the world used to be. Together the 3 of them hatch a great plan.

We also discover that there are yet more groups of people called Mauraders, Preparers and Servants.

This is a really good tale as it weaves together many themes of social inequality and environmental issues in an easily understandable adventure read for older children.

Journey to Justice: The Adventures of Spider and Ruby is available on Amazon in Kindle format, targeted at readers from about age 9-12. I highly recommend this great adventure read.

Also listed on Goodreads.

---

About Tanni Haas

Tanni Haas, Ph.D., is a professor in the Department of Communication Arts, Sciences, and Disorders at the City University of New York, Brooklyn College. He’s the author of three books and hundreds of academic and popular articles (including dozens of articles on parenting) and the editor of two books. His poems and short stories have appeared in many literary publications. His various writings have been translated into Chinese, Greek, Korean, Persian, Polish, Portuguese, and Spanish.

Visit Yet Another Blogging Mummy on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram

Paper Targets: Art Can Be Murder by Steve S Saroff – book review

Disclosure.  This post is a review of an ebook I was sent for free.  All opinions are my own.

I have received a free e-copy of the book Paper Targets: Art Can Be Murder by Steve S Saroff to review. You may find out more about the author on his website.

Here is the book blurb.

A loner bails an artist out of jail and sets free a deadly mistake. Enzi, a dyslexic drifter, becomes a criminal computer hacker who falls for Kaori, a displaced artist from Tokyo. When Kaori confesses through drawings, Enzi questions everything he has ever done. When he tries to extricate himself from the violent people he has become indebted to, Enzi looks to his past for answers.

Character-driven and then speeding to its end, Paper Targets is a Literary Thriller that tries to explain why people sometimes do bad things.

The story begins slowly with the background of Enzi, who struggled with dyslexia and stuttering at school, not being able to read or write. His mother died when he was 12 and he was eventually taken into care as his father was not coping, but he ran away when 14, hitchhiking and sleeping rough, ending up in Montana. Finally learning to read from newspapers and getting to grips with maths patterns, he would devour maths books in the libraries. We are introduced to Helen, his first love.

Moving on 10 or so years, Enzi is now a computer whizz hacker and chapter 2 describes how he met Kaori, an artist. He barely knows her but bails her out of jail. Is that a mistake? Kaori describes events through her pictures. And can he untangle himself from the murky hacking world that business-man Tsai has dragged him into?

Very well written with depth of description, this was certainly an intriguing read. Some parts I liked a lot and others not so much.

Paper Targets: Art Can Be Murder is available on Amazon in hardback, paperback, audiobook and kindle formats. A romantic dark thriller.

Visit Yet Another Blogging Mummy on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram

When Fire Splits the Sky by Tyler James Russell – book review

Disclosure.  This post is a review of an ebook I was sent for free.  All opinions are my own.

I have received a free e-copy of the book When Fire Splits the Sky by Tyler James Russell to review. You may find out more about the author on his website.

Here is the book blurb.

Following Ben’s weekend hunting trip outside Juneau, his wife Maranda—a trauma survivor with multiple personalities—makes a discovery that looks like it will finally put their limping, less-than-a-year marriage out of its misery. But in the morning, when a cataclysmic blast throws the world into chaos, Ben and Maranda find themselves stuck in a car, heading north to Anchorage, on a seemingly hopeless quest to reunite with a missing family member before it’s too late.

I struggled to get into this book, being turned off on page 2 by the casual use of strong swear words. There is a lot going on in the story, as Maranda has 6+ multiple personalities, both male and female, both child and adult, an extra complexity for the reader. Maranda and Ben’s marriage is in a mess, when their own situation is dwarved by a huge blast in Yukon.

As sirens wail, a memory resurfaces for Maranda and they head on a long car trip to Anchorage, Why does Ben come too? Who do all Maranda’s alter egos represent? Who is Maranda trying to find? What is Maranda’s history? And who are trailing them? Why are they heading the opposite way to everyone else fleeing? What dangers await?

The author has packed a lot in encompassing mental illness and post traumatic stress.

When Fire Splits the Sky is available on Amazon in paperback and kindle formats. Plenty going on in this dark storyline, but it didn’t hit the spot for me.

Note does include human trafficking and suicide.

Visit Yet Another Blogging Mummy on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram