The Lady Tempts An Heir Review

Author: Harper St. George

Series: The Guilded Age Heiresses #3

Genre: Historical Romance

Publisher: Berkley

Release Date: Feb. 22, 2022

Order Link: Amazon

Rating: 4 Steamy Hearts

Special thanks to Berkley Publ. for an arc of this book.

A fake engagement brings together a lady with bold and daring dreams, and the heir whose heart she captured—perfect for fans of Bridgerton!

Review:

American Maxwell Crenshall returns to London at the news that his father is ill.  He finds him recovering and determined to force Max into a marriage by Christmas in order to secure a heir for Crenshaw Iron.  Max has no intention of marrying even though every woman in London would love to hook him, but his father plays the one card that will convince him otherwise.  The elder Crenshaw threatens to withdraw funding for a project Max's sister August is involved in if he doesn't choose a bride soon.  He can't allow his sister to be hurt so he hatches a plan for a fake engagement with the one woman he's never forgotten - Widow Lady Helena March.  Helena is skeptical but she agrees to go along with the charade in order to secure funding for a project near and dear to her heart - the London Home for Young Women which houses and secures jobs for the "fallen" women that society turned their back on.  Both Maxwell and Helena will gain what they want from a fake engagement and then go their separate ways, right?

Oh, I do love a good fake engagement story, and The Lady Tempts An Heir is perfect!  Readers who have followed the series are aware of the chemistry exploding between Maxwell and Helena from the previous book.  Harper St. George has upped the odds in this book and the result is a sinfully sexy story that also dives deeply into gender roles and social class prejudices of the time period.  Helena is the perfect heroine to buck societal expectations as she crosses barriers and spurns expectations.  She is feisty, strong and on a mission to provide a better life for the women of the home in spite of society's scorn.  She's also carrying a dark secret that delegates her to life as a single woman no matter how much she may wish otherwise.  Maxwell is a dashing, bold if somewhat brooding hero with a kind heart and strong determination to make it on his own.  The clash, bump and grind between these two makes for a deliciously sinful story with a whole lot of heart!  I highly recommend it to fans of historical romance and fake relationship tropes as well as to any reader who loves a good romance with a lot of meat on the bones.

Synopsis:

Tall, dark, and brooding—to say that American Maxwell Crenshaw stood out in the glittering ballrooms of London, is an understatement. He vowed never to set foot in England again, but when a summons from his father, along with an ultimatum to secure his legacy, has him crossing the Atlantic for the last time, reuniting him with the delectable Lady Helena March, he can’t deny the temptation she presents. Or the ideas she inspires...

Lady Helena March is flirting with scandal. Instead of spending her time at teas and balls in search of another husband, as is expected of a young widow, Helena pours her energy into The London Home for Young Women. But Society gives no quarter to unmarried radicals who associate with illegitimate children and fallen women, and Helena’s funding is almost run out. So when the sinfully seductive Crenshaw heir suggests a fake engagement to save them both—him from an unwanted marriage and her from scorn and financial ruin—Helena finds herself too fascinated to refuse the sexy American.

As their arrangement of convenience melts oh so deliciously into nights of passion, their deception starts to become real. But if Max knew the true reason Helena can never remarry, he wouldn’t look at her with such heat in his eyes. Or might the Crenshaw heir be willing to do whatever it takes to win the one woman he’s never been able to forget...

Do I Know You? Review

Author: Sarah Strohmeyer

Genre: Mystery Suspense

Publisher: Harper 

Release Date: Nov. 30, 2021

Order Link: Amazon

Rating: 3 Unique Hearts

Special thanks to Harper Paperbacks for an arc of this book.

For readers of Lisa Jewell, Liv Constantine, and Megan Miranda, a lightning-paced psychological thriller about two women, a tragedy that connects them as teenagers, and the terrible reckoning that will decide their fates a decade later.

Review:

Jane Ellison is working for Homeland Security at Logan Airport scanning incoming passenger faces for terrorists or any other threat.  Her ability as a super recognizer makes her perfect for the job as she can recognize anyone from as little as the shape of a jaw, forehead or brow.  Jane also never forgets a face so when heiress Bella Valencia enters the airport, she jumps to detain the woman she holds responsible for her sister Kit's disappearance eleven years earlier.  All chaos ensues, and Jane ends up fired when the mega-wealthy Pease family intervenes.  Disgraced and black-listed, Jane decides to infiltrate the Valencia/Pease wedding to finally get justice for her sister.  What she learns may surprise her.

Do I Know You is an intriguing thriller with a unique plot line.  It starts off strong and sets a steady pace as Jane pursues Bella searching for the truth.  It becomes a bit convoluted midways with several schemes hatched by Jane that seem doomed to fail from the beginning.  The basic plot line is thrilling, and I enjoyed the story based on that and Jane's character and unique talent.  The pace picks back up in the latter half and that's when it becomes hard to put down.  All in all, Do I Know You is an enjoyable roller coaster of highs and lows that kept me guessing for some time.  Recommended for fans of mystery, suspense and thrillers.

Synopsis:

Jane Ellison is a “super recognizer” able to identify strangers by the slightest facial details—the curve of a head, the arch of an eyebrow. When she spies human rights activist and heiress Bella Valencia in a crowded Boston airport, Jane’s convinced she’s found the person responsible for her sister Kit’s disappearance and presumed death eleven years earlier. But her attempt to detain the suspect ends with Jane herself fired and humiliated. 

As Bella prepares to marry Will Pease, scion of the uber-wealthy, influential, and ruthless Pease family, famous for their wholesome wellness and lifestyle brand, on their private Cape Cod island, she grows increasingly anxious that her dire secret will be revealed and used against her by—of all people—the man she loves.

She has reason to fear: Jane is ready to risk everything for the chance to publicly expose Bella’s crimes at her upcoming celebrity wedding. But the more she digs into what happened that night, the more she questions her own assumptions. 

Combining magnetic, wise-cracking narration and a skillfully layered plot, Do I Know You? is a gripping psychological thriller and tale of redemption that reveals the power of a sister's love. (less)

The Ex Talk Review

Author: Rachel Lynn Solomon

Genre: Rom Com

Publisher: Berkley

Release Date: Jan. 26, 2021

Order Link: Amazon

4 Truthful Hearts

Special thanks to Berkley Publishing for a copy of this book.

Public radio co-hosts navigate mixed signals in Rachel Lynn Solomon's sparkling romantic comedy debut.

Review:

Long time radio producer Shay Goldstein has a thorn in her side, and his name is Dominic Yun - her fresh out of school with a masters and know-it-all-attitude colleague and nemesis.  Neither of them misses a chance to foil the other in any way possible.  They both panic when they receive the news that the radio station is making cutbacks and they'll have to work together on Shay's newly proposed podcast or lose their job.  The podcast, the Ex-Talk, is a show about two exes delivering relationship advice live on air including all the back and forth banter and answering call-in questions from the radio audience.  Forced to fake a relationship, Shay and Dominic find themselves lying to an audience that has fallen in love with them as an ex-couple.  The podcast is a huge hit, quickly climbing to the top of the charts.  They've become everyone's ex-sweethearts.  As the show progresses, Shay and Dominic find themselves in the unique position of falling out-of-hate and in-to-love.  And of course, they must keep it hidden from their audience.  What will happen if their secret surfaces?

The Ex-Talk is a unique, sometimes funny, sometimes heartwarming rom-com.  I quickly fell for this couple that wasn't a couple until they were a couple.  Solomon does a fantastic job building tension between the two characters as the story progresses at a steady pace.  Readers will laugh out loud as these two characters match wits both on-air and off.  Quirky, sexy and heart warming, The Ex-Talk is an excellent way to spend an afternoon reading.  Highly recommended to fans of Rom-Com and enemies-to -lovers stories.

Synopsis:

Shay Goldstein has been a producer at her Seattle public radio station for nearly a decade, and she can't imagine working anywhere else. But lately it's been a constant clash between her and her newest colleague, Dominic Yun, who's fresh off a journalism master's program and convinced he knows everything about public radio.

When the struggling station needs a new concept, Shay proposes a show that her boss green-lights with excitement. On The Ex Talk, two exes will deliver relationship advice live, on air. Their boss decides Shay and Dominic are the perfect co-hosts, given how much they already despise each other. Neither loves the idea of lying to listeners, but it's this or unemployment. Their audience gets invested fast, and it's not long before The Ex Talk becomes a must-listen in Seattle and climbs podcast charts.

As the show gets bigger, so does their deception, especially when Shay and Dominic start to fall for each other. In an industry that values truth, getting caught could mean the end of more than just their careers. 

Finlay Donovan Knocks 'Em Dead Review

Author: Ellie Cosimano

Series: Finlay Donovan #2

Genre: Rom Com Suspense

Publisher: Minotaur Books

Release Date: Feb. 1, 2022

Order Link: Amazon

4 Hilarious Hearts

Many thanks to Minotaur Books for an arc of this book.

From Edgar-Award nominee Elle Cosimano, comes Finlay Donovan Knocks 'Em Dead―the hilarious and heart-pounding follow-up to Finlay Donovan is Killing It.

Review:

The hilarious escapades of Finlay Donovan is back in Finlay Donovan Knocks 'Em Dead.  Once again, Finlay finds herself struggling to pay the bills as she blows off deadlines and procrastinates on writing her next book even as she gets caught up in trying to reveal the identity of the person who wants her ex-husband dead.  He might have been a lousy, unfaithful husband, but he's a good father to her daughter, and Finlay can't stand by while a hit-man . . . or hit-woman takes him out.  At the same time, Finlay's trying to figure out what's bothering her nanny and best friend Vero even as she tries to stay below the radar of Detective Nick Anthony.  He may be sinfully sexy, but Finlay can't afford to stop and play cops and robbers with him while her family is in danger.  The story that ensues is highly entertaining and a laugh a minute.

Finlay Donovan Knocks 'Em Dead is so much fun to read and really quite heartwarming.  I loved the inclusion of characters from book one as the whole gang returns for Finlay's latest adventure.  A fast paced plot line drives the action through one catastrophe after another as Finlay tries to keep her head above water less she go the same way as her daughter's decidedly dead fish.  Cosimano has mastered the art of comedy with a heavy side of reality and a questionable heroine battling danger in the form of the Russian mob and an unknown hit-person.  Again as in book one, I'm reminded of the hilarious slapstick comedy of Lucy and Ethel that I love so much.  Finlay Donovan Knocks 'Em Dead has it all - action, haphazard sure to fail scenarios that will leave readers laughing and a touch . . . just a hint of romance.  Needless to say, I'm anxiously awaiting book three.  Highly recommended to fans who love to laugh at their heroine - the one who always manages to come out standing in the end.

Synopsis:

Finlay Donovan is―once again―struggling to finish her next novel and keep her head above water as a single mother of two. On the bright side, she has her live-in nanny and confidant Vero to rely on, and the only dead body she's dealt with lately is that of her daughter's pet goldfish.

On the not-so-bright side, someone out there wants her ex-husband, Steven, out of the picture. Permanently. Whatever else Steven may be, he's a good father, but saving him will send her down a rabbit hole of hit-women disguised as soccer moms, and a little bit more involvement with the Russian mob than she'd like.

Meanwhile, Vero's keeping secrets, and Detective Nick Anthony seems determined to get back into her life. He may be a hot cop, but Finlay's first priority is preventing her family from sleeping with the fishes... and if that means bending a few laws then so be it.

With her next book's deadline looming and an ex-husband to keep alive, Finlay is quickly coming to the end of her rope. She can only hope there isn't a noose at the end of it... 

Rules For Engaging An Earl Review

Author: Janna MacGregor

Series: The Widow Rules #2

Genre: Historical Romance

Publisher: St. Martin Paperbacks

Release Date: April 26, 2022

Order Link: Amazon

4 Fiery Hearts

Many thanks to St. Martins Press for an arc of this book

Get ready for lost wills, broody dukes, and scorching hot kissing all over London in Rules for Engaging the Earl by Janna MacGregor.

Review:

Society dictates that Constance Lysander find a husband so her unborn child will be legitimate.  Constance was left penniless by her late husband - a trigamist who married her and two of her now best friends and then disappeared with their dowries. Constance turns to the only honest man she knows - her childhood friend who marched off to war and hasn't returned to see her even though he's been home for some time.  Jonathan, Earl of Sykeston returned from war with some dark shadows threatening him.  His injuries, both physical and mental, have left him a cold, dark hermit - a man suffering from PTSD that avoids contact with others at all cost.  And yet he can't resist responding when the only woman he's ever loved summons him with a request for his hand in a marriage of convenience.  

Rules For Engaging The Earl is the story of two former friends who secretly desire one another and yet both are hiding dark secrets with misguided thoughts of protecting the other.  They embark on a marriage of convenience while trying to deny the fiery attraction simmering between them.  I greatly enjoyed these characters with all their flaws and hangups as they tip-toed their way around each other.  MacGregor does a brilliant job manipulating them both through a plot line that sees them going toe to toe with each other even as they fall more deeply into love.  The support cast added so much depth and reinforcement to the story as readers get to see more of the characters from book 1 which I love.  The author takes this story to another level by tackling issues like PTSD, abandonment and societal prejudices prevalent of the time period.  Sexy, sizzling chemistry that threatens to explode keeps the heat turned up on this spicy historical romance.  Highly recommended to fans of romance, especially historical romance and the friends to lovers trope.

Synopsis:

Constance Lysander needs a husband. Or, so society says. She’s about to give birth to her late husband’s child—a man who left her with zero money, and two other wives she didn’t know about. Thankfully, she has her Aunt by her side, and the two other wives have become close friends. But still—with a baby on the way, her shipping business to run, and an enemy skulking about, she has no time to find the perfect match.

Enter Jonathan, Earl of Sykeston. Returned war hero and Constance’s childhood best friend, his reentry into society has been harsh. Maligned for an injury he received in the line of duty, Jonathan prefers to stay out of sight. It’s the only way to keep his heart from completely crumbling. But when a missive from Constance requests his presence—to their marriage ceremony—Jonathan is on board. His feelings for Constance run deep, and he’ll do anything to make her happy, though it means risking his already bruised heart.

With Constance, Jonathan, and the new baby all together, it’s clear the wounds—both on the surface and in their relationship—run deep. But when the nights come, their wounds begin to heal, and both come to realize that their marriage of convenience is so much more than just a bargain.

Carolina Moonset Review

Author: Matt Goldman

Genre: Suspense Thriller

Publisher: Forge Books

Release Date: May 31, 2022

Order Link: Amazon 

Rating: 4 Forgetful Hearts

Many thanks to Forge Books for an arc of this book.

Review published in Mystery & Suspense Magazine

Both suspenseful and deeply moving, Carolina Moonset is an engrossing novel about family, memories both golden and terrible, and secrets too dangerous to stay hidden forever, from New York Times bestselling and Emmy Award-winning author, Matt Goldman.

Review:

In Carolina Moonset, Matt Goldman probes beneath the seemingly smooth surface of small town life to explore inner family relationships as well as the complex, often volatile relationships between families - especially those of different social status. He takes readers on a journey inside the mind of a man with dementia with virtually no short-term memory, but perfect recall of past memories that threaten to destroy the lives of loved ones in the here and now.  Carolina Moonset is a twisted story of how past memories that refuse to stay buried change the present and future of one small town and its people.

Joey Green returns to his childhood home to help his mom care for his dad Marshall Green who is suffering from advanced dementia.  Joey's surprised how badly his father has deteriorated since he last saw him and is baffled by the weird one-sided conversations his dad is carrying on with deceased childhood friends.  When Joey convinces his mom to take a much needed few days away with friends, he's left to care for his father alone.  There are locks on the doors preventing his dad from getting out, and so Joey leaves him alone for a few hours while he pursues a budding relationship with the daughter of family friends next door.  When Joey returns home to find the back door unlocked and his father eating a fresh picked orange, he has an ominous feeling that something is seriously wrong.  He's proven right when news of the late night murder of a prominent businessman circulates through the town's people the next morning . . . a man his father repeatedly proclaimed to hate.  As the investigation progresses, the past and present clash as all roads lead back to Joey's father as the murderer.  Joey doesn't believe his father capable of murder, but if he didn't do it, who did?  The one character who knows the truth about the past is highly unreliable in spite of his ability to remember past events with precision, and his inability to recall the present means he can not truthfully say that he did not murder a man he considered his arch enemy.  As Joey works to clear his father's name, shocking past events threaten to rock his world and destroy his family.  Will the truth set them free?  Or shatter his family into a million pieces?

Carolina Moonset is an intriguing, twisted story that unfolds at a steady pace charging readers with finding the connection between past and present murders and how they tie to the Green family.  Goldman has rendered a potent story about the power of family, love and secrets.  The poignant late life journey of a man with a mentally debilitating disease is brilliantly depicted, along with the consequences of his past actions to both him and his family.   I found the plot line to be intriguing as I worked to solve the mystery of both past and present murders.  With the introduction of several red herrings, the list of suspects expanded.  I was lucky to figure things out fairly early in the second half, but it didn't diminish my enjoyment of this book in any way.  I highly recommend Carolina Moonset to fans of family dramas, mystery and suspense.  Carve out some time to dive into this mystery and see where it leads you.

Synopsis:

Joey Green has returned to Beaufort, South Carolina, with its palmettos and shrimp boats, to look after his ailing father, who is succumbing to dementia, while his overstressed mother takes a break. Marshall Green’s short-term memory has all but evaporated, but, as if in compensation, his oldest memories are more vivid than ever. His mind keeps slipping backwards in time, retreating into long-ago yesterdays of growing up in Beaufort as a boy.

At first this seems like a blessing of sorts, with the past providing a refuge from a shrinking future, but Joey grows increasingly anxious as his father’s hallucinatory arguments with figures from his youth begin to hint at deadly secrets, scandals, and suspicions long buried and forgotten. Resurfacing from decades past are mysteries that still have the power to shatter lives—and change everything Joey thought he knew.

Especially when a new murder brings the police to his door... 

Unmasked: My Life Solving America's Cold Cases Review

Author: Paul Holes with Robyn Gabby Fischer

Genre: Memoir True Crime

Publisher: Celadon Books

Release Date: April 26, 2022

Order Link: Amazon 

5 Broken Hearts

Many thanks to Celadon Books for an arc of this book.

Review published in Mystery & Suspense Magazine

#CeladonReads #UnmaskedBook

From the detective who found The Golden State Killer, a memoir of investigating America’s toughest cold cases and the rewards--and toll--of a life solving crime.

Review:

If I ever harbored any delusions that monsters aren't real, reading Unmasked shattered them, opening my eyes to the fact that monsters are out there - watching, stalking their next victim, preparing to strike quick as a cobra before fleeing, leaving behind a trail of tears and fear.  What do monsters look like?  Like you and me and the guy in your neighborhood grocery store, a coach playing ball with kids, a co-worker sharing a cup of coffee, a member of your church.  Monsters wear many ordinary disguises while destroying lives, leaving victims and families scarred for life.  

Unmasked: My Life Solving America's Cold Cases is the career memoir of a man, a master criminologist, who's made it his life's mission to solve cold cases by unmasking the monsters that have eluded authorities for years.  And he does so by following the scientific evidence piece by piece.  It's the career story of Paul Holes - his early years working in a lab when he first discovered a cabinet of cold case files, including the Golden State Killer's file, and realized what he wanted to do - what he had to do - with his life, continuing through the middle years as he moved up the professional ranks honing his skills as a forensic scientist and pursuing cold cases, to the later years as he came to understand that his compulsive obsession for hunting monsters and solving cold cases was what he was born to do . . . no matter the cost to his personal life and well-being.  Holes, an admitted introvert, opens the door to his inner soul, and allows readers the opportunity to ride along as he relives some of his highest profile cases.  He speaks candidly of his panic attacks and nightmares of mutilated bodies, his deteriorating personal life, his ever burning need to solve cold cases and bring closure to victims and families.  

Unmasked opens with Holes packing up his office, preparing for the end of his storied professional career. His thoughts turn to the one monster that has eluded him for over twenty years, the one who first lit a burning desire in his gut for working cold cases - the arrogant, notorious EAR Killer aka the Original Night Stalker aka the Golden Gate Killer.  How can he retire without apprehending the most terrifying, illusive serial killer of the twenty-first century?  In order for readers to understand his obsession with this particular criminal, Holes' memoir follows a chronological path through his storied career as a natural born criminal profiler solving both the famous and little known cold cases.  From start to finish, he grips readers' hands and transports them behind the scenes of real investigations, demonstrating firsthand the manner in which forensic science is used to unmask criminals which I find fascinating.  Throughout his career, he repeatedly returns to the GSK case applying the newest technology to the evidence, hoping for a breakthrough.  This reader became so engrossed while reading Unmasked that I forgot that it's a memoir . . . that it's a true story.  I was sucked into the story as surely as if I was reading a favorite suspense thriller.  I repeatedly told myself, "This is real. This is r.e.a.l."  I was consumed by the cases and while my heart hurt for the personal toll it took on Holes, I kept thanking God for men like him who aren't afraid to follow the science and track down the monsters.

Unmasked is a stunning, brutally honest memoir about a complex, highly gifted forensic scientist who sacrificed his own personal life, even his marriage and fatherhood, in his relentless pursuit of monsters.  I highly recommend Unmasked to fans of Memoirs, True Crime, and Suspense Thrillers.  This book entertains like fiction because it's brilliantly delivered in an all engrossing format and pace that makes it impossible to put down and because it's still so hard to comprehend the depravity of some sick humans.  While I know he would not agree or want to hear it, Paul Holes is my Super Hero.  I highly recommend his memoir to everyone.

Synopsis:

I order another bourbon, neat. This is the drink that will flip the switch. I don’t even know how I got here, to this place, to this point. Something is happening to me lately. I’m drinking too much. My sheets are soaking wet when I wake up from nightmares of decaying corpses. I order another drink and swig it, trying to forget about the latest case I can’t shake.

Crime-solving for me is more complex than the challenge of the hunt, or the process of piecing together a scientific puzzle. The thought of good people suffering drives me, for better or worse, to the point of obsession.

People always ask how I am able to detach from the horrors of my work. Part of it is an innate capacity to compartmentalize; the rest is experience and exposure, and I’ve had plenty of both. But I had always taken pride in the fact that I can keep my feelings locked up to get the job done. It’s only been recently that it feels like all that suppressed darkness is beginning to seep out.

When I look back at my long career, there is a lot I am proud of. I have caught some of the most notorious killers of the twenty-first century and brought justice and closure for their victims and families. I want to tell you about a lifetime solving these cold cases, from Laci Peterson to Jaycee Dugard to the Pittsburg homicides to, yes, my twenty-year-long hunt for the Golden State Killer.

But a deeper question eats at me as I ask myself, at what cost? I have sacrificed relationships, joy—even fatherhood—because the pursuit of evil always came first. Did I make the right choice? It’s something I grapple with every day. Yet as I stand in the spot where a young girl took her last breath, as I look into the eyes of her family, I know that, for me, there has never been a choice. “I don’t know if I can solve your case,” I whisper. “But I promise I will do my best.”

It is a promise I know I can keep.

“Paul Holes takes you on a fascinating and sometimes disturbing journey inside the mind of someone who hunts monsters for a living—and in order to live. And his insights on Michelle McNamara—whose loss I still feel every day—are incredible.”
—Patton Oswalt

"Paul Holes is a natural criminal profiler with a talent for describing how the process works. In his book, Unmasked, he marches the reader into the real world of criminal behavior and blends his forensic expertise with his unfiltered personal life experiences as he tackles both cold cases and modern crimes. This is a book you will not be able to put down.”
—Dr. Ann Wolbert Burgess, author of A Killer by Design and co-author of Sexual Homicide