The Other Woman Review

Title:  The Other Woman
Author:  Sandie Jones
Publisher:  Minotaur Books
Release Date:  Aug. 21, 2018
Purchase Link:  Amazon

My Rating:  4 Diabolical Hearts


*Many thanks to Minotaur Books for a copy of this arc via Netgally.




Synopsis:
HE LOVES YOU: Adam adores Emily. Emily thinks Adam’s perfect, the man she thought she’d never meet.

BUT SHE LOVES YOU NOT: Lurking in the shadows is a rival, a woman who shares a deep bond with the man she loves.

AND SHE'LL STOP AT NOTHING: Emily chose Adam, but she didn’t choose his mother Pammie. There’s nothing a mother wouldn’t do for her son, and now Emily is about to find out just how far Pammie will go to get what she wants: Emily gone forever.

Review:

I'm always excited to discover a debut novel that keeps me up at night, burning through pages to reach the end.  The Other Woman certainly did that with an air of impending doom surrounding the heroine, Emily.  I knew it was just a matter of time before everything hit the fan as this gripping story unfolded.

Emily and Adam meet in a bar and are immediately in lust and soon after "in love".  Emily has finally met her prince, and now she's meeting his perfect mother, Pammie - a woman who does no wrong in his eyes.  Emily is nervous, but ready . . . she thinks.  It quickly becomes obvious that Pammie isn't ready to share Adam's affections with another woman.  Her devious actions undermine Emily at every turn, even as she presents a sweeter than sugar persona to Adam and everyone else.  When things take a malicious turn, the question becomes . . . Is Pammie dangerous?  How far will she go to keep Emily and her son apart?

The Other Woman is an intense, engaging, medium paced read told through Emily's point of view.  Readers have a front row seat to what's happening to Emily both physically and mentally.  She's a perfect spokesperson for the old saying "Love is Blind" and still, I was sympathetic to her plight.  The author does a great job weaving the plot and enhancing it with a varied cast of support characters.  I will say I suspected the main twist way too soon and while the delivery of the story had me flipping pages and freaking out early on, the ending left me feeling a bit disappointed and wanting something more.  In spite of that, The Other Woman is a gripping debut thriller that I enjoyed reading.  I'm looking forward to more from Jones.  Avoid all spoilers and settle in with this Must Read!

My Rating:  4 Diabolical Hearts . . . And that's the truth!

Cross My Heart . . . xxx

Sandra

IWSG: The Name Game

June IWSG Question:  What's harder for you to come up with, book titles or character names?

The Name Game by Shirley Ellis (originally published in 1964)

Does anyone remember one of the many versions of the rhyming song, The Name Game?  What a fun, contagious way to make rhymes with names.  So addictive and impossible to get out of your head!  If only naming book characters was as simple  - or finding the perfect book title.

Naming our babies in both real life and the book world is serious business.  Not only do the names have to be a good "fit", they also have to stand up to a lot of wear and tear.  Most of the time, character names come to me as I become intimate with my characters.  I have to know them both physically and mentally before I can saddle them with a permanent name.  I usually form a short list of names for consideration once I have researched time period, popular names, possible nicknames, etc., and after I've settled on attributes such as appearance, demeanor, motivation, goals, desires.  At this point, if everyone is cooperating with me (a BIG "if"), a name usually screams Pick Me, Pick Me!  Other times, I have a name in mind from the moment the story idea takes root and starts to grow.  I can't really explain it - it just is.  

A fun exception to the rules of naming characters is in a fantasy/sci-fi world where the only limitations are those of your own mind.  You get to create a make-believe world, story, characters, and names . . . how great is that?!  While this applies in some degree to the writing of all genres, it's never more evident than in fantasy.  I'm currently in the early stages of developing an idea that has my creative juices flowing and imagination soaring and am hopeful things will mesh together in a way that progresses into a book set in my very own fantasyland.  Maybe the rhyming Name Game song will be helpful in naming the characters!  Who knows! lol

Book titles give me more grief.  I think it's probably easier for those of you with a long list of completed titles, but I find it a difficult decision to make.  Deciding on a title that reflects my story as a whole while enticing readers into a purchase is tough.  If there's a secret to it, please feel free share!

What about you?  Do you find it harder to name your characters or find the perfect title to represent your book?

The Insecure Writer's Support Group is a community of writers who share ideas and encourage each other. It's a great place to express doubts and concerns as well as offer and receive tribulations and guidance from other writers. IWSG posts the first Wednesday of every month. I know you'll find it to be a great writer's resource that's well worth your time. Be sure to stop by and visit with some of the other IWSG writers/bloggers at IWSG Members.

Please join me in thanking June's awesome co-hosts:

Beverly Stowe McClure, Tyrean Martinson, and Ellen @ The Cynical Sailor!  Be sure to stop by to visit and thank them personally!  And keep on writing!

     

Bring Me Back Review

Title:  Bring Me Back
Author:  B.A. Paris
Genre:  Thriller, Suspense
Publisher:  HQ
Publishing Date:  June 12, 2018 (1st publ. Mar. 1, 2018)
Purchase Link:  Amazon

My Rating:  3 Compelling Hearts

*Many thanks to HQ for a copy of this arc via Netgally.



Synopsis:
A young British couple are driving through France on holiday when they stop for gas. He runs in to pay, she stays in the car. When he returns her car door has been left open, but she's not inside. No one ever sees her again.

Ten years later he's engaged to be married; he's happy, and his past is only a tiny part his life now. Until he comes home from work and finds his new wife-to-be is sitting on their sofa. She's turning something over in her fingers, holding it up to the light. Something that would have no worth to anyone else, something only he and she would know about because his wife is the sister of his missing first love.

As more and more questions are raised, their marriage becomes strained. Has his first love somehow come back to him after all this time? Or is the person who took her playing games with his mind?

Review:

Bring Me Back is an edge-of-your-seat psychological thriller that begins with the mysterious disappearance of a woman, Layla, at a restroom stop in France.  Finn, her boyfriend, is frantic when he discovers her gone.  After months of searching, he gives up and returns home.  Fast forward twelve years and Finn is engaged to marry Ellen, Layla's sister, and yet Layla is never far from his mind.  After Finn and Ellen's engagement announcement appears in a local paper, an omen in the form of a tiny Russian doll appears on the wall in front of their house.  The relevance and implications are monumental as it's a link to Ellen's childhood.  Only she, Layla, and Finn know the significance of the Russian doll.  From this point, events spiral out of control as Finn begins receiving sinister and threatening correspondence from someone claiming to be "Layla".  Is it possible Layla has returned to reclaim her life . . . and man?  Or is someone playing cruel, obsessive mind games? 

Through alternating chapters of past and present, Bring Me Back unfolds through two points of view.  I was quickly drawn into this thriller and found my heart racing as the story and Finn's state of mind spiral out of control.  The first half is addictive as the dark and ominous tone, frantic pace, and urgent sense of time running out escalates.  I burned through pages looking for answers along with Finn.  The author does a great job setting up the characters, scenes, and plotline leading to an explosive first half.  As the story progresses, secrets and lies surface clueing readers into the fact that all is not as it seems.  A little more than halfway, I realized what was happening, but still felt a sense of urgency and trepidation as I read on to see how the author would weave it all together.  Approaching the end, events occurred that had me thinking back over the story, and I just wasn't quite able to accept things as plausible.  As a result, a story that began with great promise fell short of the mark in my opinion.  Bring Me Back is a compelling story that I admittedly read nonstop, but the direction the author chose to take the plot line didn't work for me in the end.  I think psychological thriller fans will be evenly split on this one.  Give it a shot and decide for yourself!

My Rating:  3 Compelling Hearts . . . And that's the truth!

Cross My Heart . . . xxx

Sandra

    

Jar Of Hearts Review

Title:  Jar of Hearts
Author:  Jennifer Hillier
Genre:  Mystery, Suspense
Publisher:  Minotaur Books, St. Martin's Press
Release Date:  June 12, 2018
Purchase Link:  Amazon

My Rating:  5 Shattered Hearts

*Many thanks to Minotaur Books of St. Martin's Press for an arc of this book via Netgally.

Synopsis:

A compelling story of murder, betrayal, and the secrets of the past…

Georgina, known as Geo, is a 30-year-old rising executive when her world comes crashing down. Her high school boyfriend has been identified and arrested for a series of serial murders, including Angela, Geo's best friend in high school. Angela disappeared without a trace at 16 and her body has just been found. Now Geo is under arrest for helping her then-boyfriend cover it up. And it's one of her other close friends from high school, Kaiser Brody, who arrests her.

While Geo is sent to prison for her part, Calvin escapes from custody and is on the run. Geo, now thirty-five, is about to be released from prison to try and start over. But someone has started killing people and dumping their bodies in her old neighborhood, with some of the markers of the missing Sweetbay Strangler—her old boyfriend Calvin. Is these killings some kind of message from Calvin? Are they some of revenge? Is she herself now in danger?

Everything turns on what really happened that tragic night back when Geo and Angela were high schoolers. Everyone thinks they know the truth, but there are dark secrets buried deep within other secrets, and it may be too late for anyone to survive the truth.

Review:

The cover and title of Jar of Hearts seduced me into taking a closer look, and the gripping, heart-stopping story held me captive until the shocking end . . . and beyond.  It's been several days since I finished this dark, chilling story, and I still can't let it go.  Hillier's writing is magnetic.  It sucked me in and held me in a trance as I burned through page after page - in fear of what was to come and yet helpless to stop reading.  For me, that's the mark of a great author and book.

At the age of thirty, executive Georgina (Geo) Shaw is arrested while in the midst of conducting a boardroom meeting.  After years of looking over her shoulder, the past comes calling.  It took fourteen years for her lies and deadly secrets to be discovered and five more for her to pay her dues to society.  Everyone believes they finally know the truth of what happened that fateful night when Geo's sixteen-year-old best friend disappeared.  Do they?  Or does the tragic truth remain hidden in the chaos of Geo's mind?  Can she keep the past buried and make a fresh start?  I'm not going to risk spoilers by going deeper into this story.  As intriguing as the synopsis is, it doesn't prepare you for the horrendous madness to come.  My advice is to dive in blind and swim for your life.  It's one hell of a ride. 

Hillier does an amazing job with the pacing and execution of the overall story arc in Jar of Hearts.  Brilliantly written, a frantic, sinister tone of impending doom heightens, page by page, from beginning to shocking end.  For me, the strength of the story is in the heart-breaking details of lives forever shattered and altered by an appalling split-second betrayal that can't be undone, and in the slow unmasking of broken characters - their splintered hearts and souls stripped bare as ghosts of the past overpower them, demanding to be set free.  This gut-wrenching, heart-stopping story is dark, graphic, and at times, a little too real.

Through twists & turns, Hiller takes readers on a journey that is unapologetically raw, gritty, and tragic.  While I did foresee one of the plot twists, I was in no way prepared for the shocking ending.  I've reread it three times now, trying to determine in my own mind if Geo's state of mind and circumstances at the time justify her actions in the final heartbreaking scene.  While the ending is jarring, brutal, and abrupt, it's clear now that it's also predestined.  I greatly appreciated the addition of an epilogue which gives readers some closure and hope.  Jar of Hearts is a stunning, gutsy story that will haunt me for some time.  A Page-Burning, Must Read!

My Rating:  5 Shattered Hearts . . . And that's the truth!
Cross My Heart . . . xxx

Sandra

The Girl In The Moss Review

Title:  The Girl In The Moss
Series:  Angie Pallorino #3
Author:  Loreth Anne White
Publisher:  Montlake Romance
Release Date:  June 12, 2018
Purchase Link:  Amazon

My Rating:  5 Up-All-Night-Reading Hearts

*Many thanks to the publisher for an arc of this book via Netgally.

Synopsis:

A shallow grave exposes deadly secrets as bestselling author Loreth Anne White brings her thrilling series of romantic suspense to its shocking conclusion…

Disgraced ex-cop Angie Pallorino is determined to make a new start for herself as a private investigator. But first, she and her lover, newly promoted homicide detective James Maddocks, attempt a quiet getaway to rekindle a romance struggling in the shadows of their careers. The peace doesn’t last long when human skeletal remains are found in a nearby mossy grove.

This decades-old mystery is just what Angie needs to establish her new career—even as it thrusts her and Maddocks back into the media spotlight, once again endangering their tenuous relationship.

Then, when Angie’s inquiry into the old crime intersects with a cold case from her own policing past—one that a detective on Maddocks’s new team is working—the investigation takes a startling twist. It puts more than Angie’s last shot at redemption and a future with Maddocks at risk. The mystery of the girl in the moss could kill her.

Review:

The book gods were smiling on me when I was pointed toward the Angie Pallorino series and author Loreth Anne White.  After receiving an arc of The Girl In The Moss, I picked up the first two books in the series and fell down the rabbit hole on a thrilling binge read - only finding my way out after finishing all three books.  My only regret . . . there isn't a book four. 

Ex-cop Angie Pallorino is struggling with her distressing new reality.  Even her lover Det. Maddox has given her an ultimatum, drawing a line in the sand that leaves the future of their relationship in her hands.  Angie's at loose ends, floundering to keep her head above water and desperately searching for anything that will give her life purpose again.  Just when she thinks there's no hope, a phone call lures her into looking at a cold case in a small town harboring deadly secrets.  In her search for the truth, Angie risks everything . . . her future, her relationship, even her life.  What she eventually discovers kept me turning pages long into the night. 

Readers should avoid all spoilers and prepare to be sucked into this complex thriller where lies, secrets, jealousy, and deceit abound and any one of several devious characters may be a killer.  White's vibrant, descriptive writing style sets the stage with an ominous atmosphere, heavily layered with impending doom.  With heart racing, I burned through the pages and, like Angie, just when I thought I had all the answers, I realized all the puzzle pieces didn't quite fit.  The story and danger wasn't over yet.

Once in awhile, you read a book with just the right combination of plot, setting, characters, and edge-of-your-seat suspense.  You know what I mean - a stunning, riveting thriller that grips you by the throat, makes your heart pound in your ears, and keeps you up all night reading . . . one that carries you on a killer roller coaster ride, refusing to let you off until you reach the final page.  The Girl In The Moss is one of those books.  It held me in its clutches through twists and turns and loops and just when I thought I had all the answers, it kicked into another gear and drove me even higher.  What?!!  Are you kidding me?  Needless to say, I loved this book!  It goes on my 2018 Favorites Shelf just as White shoots up my list of must-read authors.  An intense, shocking thriller that is an absolute Must Read!

My Rating:  5 Up-All-Night-Reading Hearts . . . And that's the truth!

Cross My Heart . . . xxx

Sandra

IWSG: Spring . . . Season of Possibilities!

Spring has finally Sprung - at least here in the south.  Winter held on to the bitter end, but we're finally enjoying springtime temperatures and planting weather.  Trees are green, new life surrounds us, and anything seems possible.  No other season fills me with hope & promise the way spring does.  And that leads me to May's IWSG Question of the Month:  It's spring! Does this season inspire you to write more than others, or not?

My question is:  How can you NOT be inspired by spring?  Everything is new and fresh and so alive.  It's a time of new beginnings.  Hope springs eternal.  The land blossoms and so does life.  O Spring . . . How I love thee!  You are indeed my favorite time of year.  

So, my answer is yes, spring inspires me to write as story ideas are everywhere, vying for space to sprout like seeds (& weeds) in new ground.  My only issue this fertile time of year is finding time to nurture my ideas into my next first draft.  As spring struts her stuff, I'm usually found in my yard and gardens.  It's the beginning of the growing season in the south - one of the busiest times of year for us.  While spring inspires me to write, it's not my most productive writing season.  However, I've learned the hard way to always have a notebook & pen on me for jotting down those fleeting ideas as they occur.  They are, unfortunately, fickle things and once gone, they're often gone forever (unlike Cadbury Eggs that return next year).  I guess I could blame it on "getting older", but let's not go there.  Whatever the reason, if it's not in writing, it ain't so . . . and quite possibly will never be remembered again!  lol  

So - while I'm influenced and inspired by spring in all her glory, it's not my best writing season.  How about you?

The Insecure Writer's Support Group is a community of writers who share ideas and encourage each other. It's a great place to express doubts and concerns as well as offer and receive tribulations and guidance from other writers. IWSG posts the first Wednesday of every month. I know you'll find it to be a great writer's resource that's well worth your time. Be sure to stop by and visit with some of the other IWSG writers/bloggers at IWSG Members.

A big thank you to Angie Hodapp for the great article titled  "Declutter Your Query".  It's really good information to have!

Also, please join me in thanking our awesome May Co-Hosts:
JQ Rose, C. Lee McKenzie, Raimey Gallant, & E.M.A Timar!

The Scarecrow Review

Title:  The Scarecrow
Series: Jack McEvoy #2 (Harry Bosch Universe #19)
Author:  Michael Connelly
Genre: Mystery/Suspense/Thriller
Release Date:  May 26, 2009
Purchase Link:  Amazon

Main Characters: Jack McEvoy & Rachel Walling

My Rating:  4.5 Blood Red Hearts

Synopsis:

For Jack McEvoy, the killer named The Poet was the last word in evil. 
Think again, Jack.
Jack McEvoy is at the end of the line as a crime reporter. Forced to take a buy-out from the Los Angeles Times as the newspaper grapples with dwindling revenues, he's got only a few days left on the job. His last assignment? Training his replacement, a low-cost reporter just out of journalism school. But Jack has other plans for his exit. He is going to go out with a bang — a final story that will win the newspaper journalism's highest honor — a Pulitzer prize.
Jack focuses on Alonzo Winslow, a 16-year-old drug dealer from the projects who has confessed to police that he brutally raped and strangled one of his crack clients. Jack convinces Alonzo's mother to cooperate with his investigation into the possibility of her son's innocence. But she has fallen for the oldest reporter's trick in the book. Jack's real intention is to use his access to report and write a story that explains how societal dysfunction and neglect created a 16-year-old killer.
But as Jack delves into the story he soon realizes that Alonzo's so-called confession is bogus, and Jack is soon off and running on the biggest story he's had since The Poet crossed his path years before. He reunites with FBI Agent Rachel Walling to go after a killer who has worked completely below police and FBI radar—and with perfect knowledge of any move against him.
What Jack doesn't know is that his investigation has inadvertently set off a digital tripwire. The killer knows Jack is coming—and he's ready.

Review:

Jack McEvoy is a seasoned L.A. Times reporter known as the reporter who brought about the demise of a serial killer called The Poet.  Unfortunately, the Times is being forced to trim their budget, and Jack's being replaced by a young, cost-effective, social media savvy reporter and worse yet - he's forced to train her in his last two weeks on the job.  In the course of doing so, Jack receives information that leads him to investigate a "trunk murder" in which a sixteen-year old supposedly confessed to the crime.  Jack knows this could be his last hurrah - a chance to go out in a blaze of glory while sticking it to the newspaper that is letting him go.  Jack stirs the pot, uncovers some stones, and soon finds himself isolated and in the bullseye of a tech-savvy serial killer - one thus far unknown to the FBI.  When things escalate, Jack calls his ex-lover FBI Agent Rachel Walling for back-up, and unintentionally draws the killer's attention to her also.  The story that unfolds is intense and chilling.

I decided to read The Scarecrow because it's part of the Harry Bosch Universe, and I'm reading all the books in order according to the Universe.  While Harry Bosch does not appear in this book, there's a connection that avid fans will recognize.  While my love affair with Harry continues, I've also come to greatly appreciate the other main characters in books that are part of this world like Mickey Haller & Jack McEvoy.  Each character is unique, intriguing, and flawed in some way, some more than others.

The Scarecrow is a chilling story in which the identity of the cold-blooded, cunning serial killer is known early on through his own pov.  This in no way lessened my reading experience as I stayed glued to the pages with my heart racing until the very end.  As always, Connelly is meticulous with details, all of which bear noting as all will prove important by the end.  While I wasn't surprised in this one, I was kept on the edge of my seat all the way.  Connelly's expertise as a writer and storyteller continues to amaze and delight me.  Another Must Read in the Bosch Universe!  I'm so happy I didn't skip this one!

My Rating:  4.5 Blood-Red Hearts . . . And that's the truth!

Cross My Heart . . . xxx

Sandra