Review: The Fix (Amos Decker, #3) by David Baldacci (Goodreads Author)

The Fix by David Baldacci
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

The Fix is the 3rd book in the Amos Decker series by David Baldacci.
Amos Decker and his team are faced with a baffling new case. Walking past the FBI's Hoover Building, Decker witnesses a man shooting a woman dead right in front of the building's entrance before killing himself.

Investigations seem to be leading nowhere...at first, there seems to be no connection between the two people but soon Decker, with his memory talents, discovers a plot filled with betrayals, family secrets and a lot more than span over a lifetime.

The story did start becoming a bit slow and drawn out towards the middle but it draws to the most unexpected and shocking ending that made it worthwhile finishing.

Although you can read this book as a standalone, I recommend you read the first two books....Memory Man and The Last Mile....you can read my reviews here ... https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2...
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2... ....to get a better understanding of how Amos Decker began his new career.

A good an solid addition to the series but not as good as the 1st two.

View all my reviews

Review: Dreaming of the Bones (Duncan Kincaid & Gemma James, #5)

Dreaming of the Bones by Deborah Crombie
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

I struggled to get into the 5th book in the series, Dreaming of the Bones.

Victoria McClellan, Duncan's ex-wife, has remarried and has a son. Now living in Cambridge, she's writing a biography of Lydia Brooke, a Cambridge poet whose death five years earlier was ruled as suicide. But reading her poetry and letters, Victoria believes that she didn't kill herself but may have been murdered.

She asks Duncan Kincaid to look into the poet's death. At first he's not convinced about the allegations and also Gemma, his partner both professionally and personally is not too happy about his involvement with his ex-wife, who had treated him rather shabbily 12 years ago.

But Victoria's findings seem to have some cause for him to look into the case. And when Victoria is murdered in her home, he's not only devastated but determined to bringing her killer to justice.

The investigation leads to the Cambridge literary world of the 60's and Lydia's circle of friends then. These were the characters I just couldn't engage with. They were so fickle and vacant, so self-absorbed. I couldn't find anything about them that could redeem them. In fact, they could have all been bumped off and I wouldn't give a toss...

I just wanted to get to the end to find out who the killer/s were and turn the last page.

The only redeeming factor in this story as seeing the growing relationship between Kincaid and Gemma and her son Toby. I am also keen to discovering more about Victoria's son, Kit.

View all my reviews

Review: Mourn Not Your Dead (Duncan Kincaid & Gemma James, #4) by Deborah Crombie (Goodreads Author)

Mourn Not Your Dead by Deborah Crombie
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

3,5 stars

In the 4th book, Mourn Not Your Dead, Sergeant Gemma James and Superintendent Duncan Kincaid are asked to help with the investigation of the murder of a high ranking police officer, Alastair Gilbert, at his home in Holmbury St Mary, who is disliked intensely by everyone in the village.

The life in the tiny village is very well depicted and the characters are so well-drawn..from the widow, Claire Gilbert and her daughter, Lucy to the locals - the local doctor, vicar, the pub keeper and his kleptomaniac son and even the local and likeable psychic. Of course, the outcome of the investigation was a total surprise.

In between travelling from London to the village, Kincaid and Gemma are trying to come to terms with the development in their relationship, which moved in a new direction when the two slept together at the end of the last book, Leave the Grave Green.

An enjoyable mystery filled with suspense and loads of twists and turns and many unexpected surprises.

View all my reviews

Review: Leave the Grave Green (Duncan Kincaid & Gemma James, #3) by Deborah Crombie (Goodreads Author)

Leave the Grave Green by Deborah Crombie
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Scotland Yard Superintendent Duncan Kincaid and his sergeant Gemma Jones are back in Leave the Grave Green, the 3rd book Deborah Crombie's Series.

Investigating the suspicious drowning of the son-in-law of Sir Gerald and Dame Caroline Asherton, renowned figures in the music world, they discover that the family secrets of the past are linked to the murder.

The Asherton family, which includes their daughter, a famous painter, are a very strange lot. The parents seem to have favoured their son, who tragically drowned twenty years before, to Julia.

I so enjoy seeing Kincaid and Gemma follow the clues to solving the mystery. Kincaid uses his friendly manner to the hilt...intelligent and appealing but sometimes he loses sight of his objectives...in fact, I was a bit puzzled about the reason for the author to write a scene that I felt was a bit weird...(view spoiler)[Kincaid actually has a one night stand with Julia Asherton...okay, so he's attracted to her...the reason why I cannot understand...she's cold, unemotional, unfeeling...why would he want to sleep with he...but worst of all........when the relationship between him and Gemma seems to be going somewhere.......flip, I would give the guy a kick in the butt!!! (hide spoiler)]

Great character development. I am getting to know the two main characters more and enjoy not only seeing them at work but at home as well.

This was actually a rather sad and compelling story.

And once again, I never expected the revelation at the end.

View all my reviews

Review: All Shall Be Well (Duncan Kincaid & Gemma James, #2) by Deborah Crombie (Goodreads Author)

All Shall Be Well by Deborah Crombie
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I discovered this series by chance and I am so happy to have found yet another British mystery/thriller/police procedural series - yes, I have spent the last month or two totally immersed in this genre.

All Shall be Well, the 2nd book in Deborah Crombie's Duncan Kincaid & Gemma James Series is even better than the 1st, All Shall Be Well.

Something about Scotland Yard Supt. Duncan Kincaid's friend and neighbour's apparent suicide makes him feel uneasy and when a post-mortem reveals an overdose of morphine, he and his sergeant, Gemma James begin an investigation into the possibility that someone may have a motive to murder Jasmine Dent.

There are a lot of suspects - Jasmine's weak and useless brother, Theo, her downstairs neighbour, Major Keith, who served in the army in India where she had lived. The home nurse, Felicity Howarth, her friend Meg and her horrible boyfriend, Roger Leveson-Gower - all seem to have some ulterior motive for Jasmine's untimely death.

Following clues and the entries in Jasmine's journal, Kincaid and Gemma uncover a reason for the murder that they never expected.

The more I get to know the two main characters, the more I like them. I am beginning to get a feel for the characters - who they are and what makes them "tick."

I just have this "feel" that I am going to love this series the more I get into it.

View all my reviews

Review: A Share in Death (Duncan Kincaid & Gemma James, #1) by Deborah Crombie (Goodreads Author)

A Share in Death by Deborah Crombie
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Deborah Crombie's mystery series features Scotland Yard's Det. Superintendant Duncan Kincaid & his partner, Sergeant Gemma James.

A Share in Death is the 1st novel in the series, which currently contains 16 books. I do feel that the books are best read in order.

Kincaid is on long-earned vacation at a Yorkshire time-share but his holiday is anything but relaxing. Within a few hours of his arrival, bodies start piling up both staff and guests.

Helping the local police, Kincaid uses his experience and charm to discover who the killer is before more people are murdered.

At times, this felt like an Agatha Christie book......Kincaid a modern and good looking Poirot, using his "grey" cells to solving the mystery by cracking the clues he finds. The characters are so quintessentially British...I really liked that.

I enjoyed the connection and interaction between Kincaid and James and I can't wait to finding out more about these two's history.

The feel of "place"...here in the Yorkshire moors, was vividly written that I almost felt I was part of the story.

I am really looking forward to the next book.

View all my reviews

Review: The Ultimatum (The Guardian, #1) by Karen Robards (Goodreads Author)

The Ultimatum by Karen Robards
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

Karen Robards's latest book, The Ultimatum, which looks like the 1st book in The Guardian Series was one of the most excruciating books I have read by this author.

I had such high hopes after reading Chapter 1......the story started with a bang.......it certainly got my attention.........I couldn't wait to turn to the next chapter!!!

And what happened after turning the 1st page of Chapter 2?? Nothing!!! What follows are loooong and repetitive scenes after scenes. Nothing made any sense...not the characters...not the story......

By page 200.......the plot just "plodded" along!!! I was still not sure where the story was going........

I am not sure what the plot was suppose to be.........okay, the mc, heroine, Bianca St Ives, is pretty awesome..in the beginning...but how many times did I have to be told what she has hidden in her garter!!!! Is this a romantic suspense...well, romance...was there any...maybe I missed it...suspense.......think I missed that too!!!! Thriller...okay, lots of bad guys, killers and kidnappers, etc etc........oh man.........even the cliff-hanger at the very end of the book didn't make me want to continue the story, which I presume is book #2........

So, final thoughts about this story!!!!!Let the face tell you what they are....

Oh yes, why the 1,5 stars???? Because the only character I liked was Bianca St Ives!!!!

View all my reviews

Review: The Secret Place (Dublin Murder Squad, #5) by Tana French (Goodreads Author)

The Secret Place by Tana French
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

1,5 STARS

I had hopes of continuing the "high" after reading Tana French's previous book, Broken Harbor, https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1... which I really liked...but sadly no......The Secret Place, 5th in her Dublin Murder Squad Series...was a total not hit but a total MISS...

This was a cold case....the Murder Square had not been able to solve the murder of a boy, whose body had been found in the grounds of an all girl's private school.
A year later, new evidence comes up in the form of a card with the boy's foto and message "I know who killed him."

Detective Stephen Moran from Cold Cases teams up with Dublin Murder Squad's Detective Antoinette Conway to open up the investigation again.

Despite me liking Tana French's writing and the two main characters, I just could not get into this book.

Slow, tedious and far too many flashbacks....and far too much information and descriptions that felt had no added value to the story.

I mentioned before that I liked Detective Stephen Moran and Detective Antoinette Conway...but the rest of the sooooooooo toooooooooo many characters were beyond boring and irritating...

“Alison’s mum has had a lot of plastic surgery and she wears fake eyelashes the size of hairbrushes. She looks sort of like a person but not really, like someone explained to aliens what a person is and they did their best to make one of their own.”

After a while, reading more and more about the annoying and empty schoolgirls...I was like..... .I don't give a toss who killed the boy...in fact, kill all the girls as well.... just kidding!!! But most if not all of them were so on the surface...

“ “If I've learned one thing today, it's that teenage girls make Moriarty look like a babe in the woods."

Not my favorite in this series.

View all my reviews

Review: Broken Harbour (Dublin Murder Squad, #4) by Tana French (Goodreads Author)

Broken Harbour by Tana French
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

After playing a minor role in Faithful Place, Mike 'Scorcher' Kennedy is able to steal the spotlight and prove readers why he is the Squad's star detective. Assigned to work with, Kennedy picks up a brutal assault/murder over in Brianstown, colloquially known as Broken Harbour.

In Broken Harbour, Tana French's 4th novel in her Dublin Murder Squad Series, Mike ("Scorcher") Kennedy, who played a minor role in the previous book, Faithful Place, https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/7... has been assigned a new partner, rookie Detective Richie Curran and given a new case to solve.

Patrick & Jenny Spain and their two small children had been brutally attacked in their home, in a decaying and unfinished housing development in Brianstown, formerly known as Broken Harbor, just outside Dublin The husband had been stabbed to death and the two children suffocated whilst the wife left barely alive.

There are two storylines - the present murder and the connection to Sorcher. It was the place that he use to spend his family holidays in the past and where his mother had committed suicide when he was a teenager.

Kennedy is a complex and complicated character. At first, I just couldn't connect with this guy. But as the story develops, you get to see under his "skin"....how his childhood shaped the person he became.

“It doesn't matter where you come from. There's nothing you can do about it, so don't waste your energy thinking about it. What matters is where you're going. And that, mate, is something you can control.”

You see his dedication and loyalty to his family, especially his mentally ill sister,. and the strong work ethics and sense of duty he has. He's a by-the-books detective and for him there is no such thing as the colour grey...it's black and white and he makes sure that his rookie partner knows that from the beginning...

“If you think you’re a success, you will be a success; if you think you deserve nothing but crap, you’ll get nothing but crap. Your inner reality shapes your outer one, every day of your life.”

Kennedy, as mentor to the rookie, is a things are black and white detective trying to educate Richie on his personal rules of investigation and interrogation.

by the end of the book, I actually liked him....felt as if I knew him really well...well, I thought I did until the author surprises me with a twisty cliff-hanger!!!

This is a character driven story, where the police procedures, the forensics, the investigation helps the character development. It's a story of family relationships, the yearning to belong.

“ “I remember this country back when I was growing up. We went to church, we ate family suppers around the table, and it would never even have crossed a kid’s mind to tell an adult to fuck off. There was plenty of bad there, I don’t forget that, but we all knew exactly where we stood and we didn’t break the rules lightly. If that sounds like small stuff to you, if it sounds boring or old-fashioned or uncool, think about this: people smiled at strangers, people said hello to neighbours, people left their doors unlocked and helped old women with their shopping bags, and the murder rate was scraping zero.”

A deep exploration of human emotions, loss, sadness, madness, fate..... set in a place that fits in with the crime and mystery....Brianstown is not a pretty place...it is isolated, bleak, barren, desolate where the wind blows relentlessly over the town and roiling waves that crash into the sand.

There is no sunshine or light here....the resolution to the murder mystery is gut-wrenching and heartbreaking.

After the disappointment in her previous book, Faithful Place, I was unsure if I wanted to continue with the series...but I am glad I did....because this was really a good addition.

And after 4 books, I have reached this conclusion.......Tana French's writing is absolutely brilliant....

“I have always been caught by the pull of the unremarkable, by the easily missed, infinitely nourishing beauty of the mundane.”

Her prose is brilliant, evocative and her characters and place are so vividly descriptive.

I am definetly going to continue with this series.

View all my reviews

Review: Earthly Remains: A Commissario Guido Brunetti Mystery (Commissario Guido Brunetti Mysteries) by Donna Leon

Earthly Remains: A Commissario Guido Brunetti Mystery by Donna Leon
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

Earthly Remains, the 26th novel in Donna Leon's Commissario Guido Brunetti Series, was a bit of a disappointment.

I have been a fan of this series since I read the 1st book years ago and Commissario Guido Brunetti has become one of my favorite book characters and of course the way that the author portrays the everyday life of Venice.

The story starts off really slow...nothing really happens for the first 100 or so pages. Brunetti has taken leave and is staying at his wife's family villa in one of the many islands in the laguna. He spends his days eating, sleeping, reading and rowing.

Davide Casati, the caretaker of the villa, who also happens to have been a rowing friend of Brunetti's father goes missing during a storm. His body is recovered and it becomes apparent that there is something sinister what seems like he had committed suicide.

Brunetti then spends his supposedly rest time trying to find out the mystery of his friend's death.

Corruption, poisoning of the Venice waters, secrets and of course Brunetti's quest for finding the truth and justice for the crimes committed.

The ending was so abrupt - I was left thinking...........is that it!!!!

I think I may just take a break from this series. The last two or three books have lacked the lustre I found in the start of the series.

However, if you are a fan of this series, then I suppose you should read this one.

View all my reviews

Review: Snapped (Tracers #4) by Laura Griffin (Goodreads Author)

Snapped by Laura Griffin
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Snapped is the 4th book in Laura Griffin's Tracers Series and so far the one I have liked the most.

I've always had a soft spot for Sophie Barrett since she was introduced in Untraceable, the 1st book in the series. She's gorgeous, likeable and kicks ass....love the small gun she carries around when she goes off to one of her singing gigs.

In the previous book, Unforgivable, was the set up for Sophie's book and we know that, after the sizzling chemistry between her and the San Marcos detective, Jonah Macon, that these two would be the main characters for the next book.

The story starts off with a "bang" right from the first chapter. A sniper kills people randomly in a college campus. The scenes involving the senseless carnage is filled with tension and suspense.

It soon becomes apparent that the killings were not random and Sophie is in danger from unknown killers who believe she knows more than she actually does. And Jonah Macon goes all full out to keep Sophie safe.

I liked these two together. They have some really humorous and tender moments.....Sophie is an absolutely fabulous heroine....she's funny, independent, vulnerable, strong with some really good lines....

“I showered, shaved my legs, put on makeup, and returned two text messages in the time it took you to snoop around my kitchen. I’d say that’s pretty good.”

Great dialogue.

A good balance between romance, action and suspense, keeping you guessing who the baddies are until almost at the end.

Characters from previous books make an appearance and we are introduced to some interesting new ones....I wonder if the two characters, Gretchen and Sean will be paired off in future books.

This is so far, an interesting and enjoyable series.

View all my reviews

Review: Unforgivable (Tracers #3) by Laura Griffin (Goodreads Author)

Unforgivable by Laura Griffin
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

I have been looking forward to the smart DNA Tracer at the Adelphi Centre, Mia Voss's book since she first made her appearance in Untraceable, the 1st book in Laura Griffin's Tracers Series.

This is her and Detective Ric Santos', who we met in the 2nd book, Unspeakable, story.

I had high expectations but unfortunately they were not quite met. There were a few issues that left me feeling very disappointed.

Mia becomes a totally different character to what she has been previously portrayed. She's like this insecure person who does the most stupid things possible - the most stupid??? How she lets herself be manipulated by everyone around her...never mind manipulation...but hey, to allow Ric to treat her the way he does.....and how she deals with being blackmailed by the bad guy who supposedly has kidnapped her nephew..........Ric........I just couldn't get this guy!!! He blows hot and cold towards Mia. One minute he ignores her than he wants her. He feels nothing...then he worries about her safety..........come on................he acts beyond an idiot...Most of the time - my feelings were that Ric was not really into her...in fact I would have liked her to have been coupled with someone more interesting...........actually, I wanted to tell her on numerous occasions............Chemistry!! What chemistry???????

Then there's the plot..............talk about absurd!!! The reason for Mia being in danger.........really!!!! Didn't feel real.....and the bad guys!!!! No, totally not exciting at all.

I was so sorry that I couldn't engage with Mia in this book............to be honest, I liked some of the secondary characters more..........especially Mia's work colleague at the Delphi Centre, Sophie. Now that character's story I am so looking forward to.

So, let me end this by saying...........it's not a horrible book........just an okay one.

View all my reviews

Review: Eyes to the Soul (Psychic Visions, #7) by Dale Mayer (Goodreads Author)

Eyes to the Soul by Dale Mayer
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

3,5 stars

Eyes to the Soul is Book #7 in Dale Mayer's Psychic Visions Series and we finally get Stefan Kronos (my favorite character in this series) story. We finally get to find out more about his past and who he has been in love with for a long time.

I have mixed feelings about this book - that's not saying that I didn't like the story - I did - it's just that there were a couple of things that bugged me a bit.

The storyline was fresh and unique and kept me at the edge of my seat a few times.

I liked the bit we get of Stefan's back-story but just thought it was not enough. The same with Celina's back-story. There are a lot of questions about their pasts

I admired Celina for the way she lived and how she looked at life - but at times she did drive me a bit batty with some of the things she did.

Previous characters that I have come to like are woven into this story and I loved how the characters interact with each other.

The twists and the identity of the bad guy were pretty well done...I never had an inkling on who it was....surprised surprised!!!

I liked the cover.

I certainly can recommend this series to anyone who loves suspense, romance, paranormal and some great and memorable characters.

View all my reviews

Review: Rare Find (Psychic Visions, #6) by Dale Mayer (Goodreads Author)

Rare Find by Dale Mayer
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Rare Find, book #6 in Dale Mayer's Psychic Visions Series.

Tabitha's psychic gift is her ability to communicate with animals. She runs Exotic Landscape, where she tends to animals in need.

She was introduced in Knock Knock, the previous book in this series and this is her story. Something bad happens when she helped someone and Detective Ronin Chandler helps her uncover the danger she's facing.

The psychic phenomena does become a bit confusing at times but it doesn't detract anything major from the storyline.
I do enjoy characters from the previous books interacting in the story....

Oh - my favourite character in this book?? Without a doubt - the green-eyed Tiger

And the cover - stunningly gorgeous!!

I didn't love this one as much as I did book #1, Tuesday's Child but it was still a good addition to a series that I am becoming something like addicted to the stories and characters.

View all my reviews

Review: Knock, Knock… (Psychic Visions, #5) by Dale Mayer (Goodreads Author)

Knock, Knock… by Dale Mayer
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I've read 3 books in Dale Mayer's Psychic Visions Series so far and I must admit I am kind of hooked. I like how the romance, suspense and psychic/paranormal genres merge in the stories.
Knock, Knock is the 5th book in the series.

I liked the storyline and there was enough suspense (though a bit slow at times) to keep my interested and though I liked the hero I did find the heroine a bit irritating at times. I also felt a lack of chemistry between the heroine, wealthy and beautiful Shay Lassiter, who uses her money to run the non-profit Lassiter Foundation and ex-cop and computer genius Roman Chandler.

I enjoyed meeting up with Maddy, from Maddy's Floor, the 3rd book and Stefan, introduced in Tuesday's Child, the 1st book in the Series. Now, he's an interesting character and I can't wait for his book.

A quick and enjoyable read.

View all my reviews

Review: Dirty Souls (Sins Duet, #2) by Karina Halle (Goodreads Author)

This summary is not available. Please click here to view the post.

Review: The Devil's Triangle (A Brit in the FBI, #4) by Catherine Coulter (Goodreads Author), J.T. Ellison (Goodreads Author)

The Devil's Triangle by Catherine Coulter
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

1,5 stars

I have been reading books by Catherine Coulter for years and years and must say that I have liked most of them. I have also read the first 3 books in her A Brit in the FBI Series that she has co-written with J.T. Ellison.

This series started off pretty good with the first book but by the time I finished book 3, I was feeling a bit up in the "air" about it. However, I couldn't resist when the latest and 4th book, The Devil's Triangle came out.

Was I surprised...and not in a ever good way!!! Talk about lacklustre feels!!! I struggled to finish this book but I kept on in the hope that something would happen...something good that would uplift this story!!

Sadly..it didn't!!! Not even all the action scenes and meeting up with Nicholas Drummond, my favourite FBI Brit and feisty American cop, Michaela aka Mike Caine and even my favourite thief, Kitsune, who was introduced in the first book, The Final Cut, could throw some interest my way!!!

Let me just say the following:

The plot - Beyond Ridiculous!!! Some evil people trying to control the world's weather, throw in a bit of the paranormal, the long search for the so called Ark of the Covenant, stealing Moses, yes, the old Bible Moses' staff from the Topkapi Museum, vanishing islands in the Bermuda Triangle, evil twins.........hell, I lost the plot so many times that after a while I just kept skimming.

a couple of pages here and there....because there was so much repetition..........

The characters - Now, let's talk about the many and many and may one-dimensional characters!!! Everyone has their own POV!!!! Which was beyond irritating!!!
Absurd.........the way the Italian cops are portrayed....I had to laugh otherwise I would be crying about how stupid and inept they are!!! Naturally the Brits/Americans are the only characters that are honest, intelligent and kick ass without a second thought.
Nicholas and Mike spend more time debating about Kitusune and having the most outrages escapades ever!!!! They even get to ride a huge bike in a tunnel underneath a palazzo in Perugia (geez, now I want to go back to Perugia and check out which palazzo it is so I can also go for a ride!!)

The dialogue- No, No, No. Stilted! Unnatural!! Wooden! And I lost count of how many times we are told about Kitsune being a thief, should she be imprisoned......and how clever so and so is...and so on and so on...........

The Epilogue-

But let me not discourage you to reading this addition to the series. There are a lot of others who loved it, so you may as well do.........the fact that I didn't enjoy it...well, that's just me!!!!

PS.........The reason for 1/2 star - because I liked the settings of the book, especially Italy!!!!!

View all my reviews

Review: Throne of Truth (Truth and Lies Duet, #2) by Pepper Winters (Goodreads Author)

Throne of Truth by Pepper Winters
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

1,5 stars


Okay...I'm going to be a bit....not more than a bit...unpopular here!!!! Now, before you all LOVERS of Pepper Winters follow up to the amazing Crown of Lies (which I more than loved....see my review here ... https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/3... ).....try to "diss" me or even think of doing worse than that...like ...

.......let me quickly explain why I was beyond DISAPPOINTED in Throne of Truth!!!

PS....There may be a few minor spoilers...but nothing major!!

Now, I loved Noelle "Elle" Charleston and Penn Everett in the first b0ok. There was something charming about these two together and when we were left with the cliff-hanger.....I just wanted to "dive" in!!!!

No, No, No!!!! Talk about rolling my eyes.........

Not only did I have to put up with one third of the story about the stupid and implausible Elle's kidnapping.....which after a chapter or two.....I found myself .........

YES, THERE WAS A LOT OF EYE ROLLING AROUND WHILST I WAS TURNING THE PAGES...........

Oh, yes, where was I....okay, so the kidnapping is over..........thank heavens!!! On with something exciting next...but NO!!!! I had to put up with even more UNBELIEVABLE stuff re: US LAWS ............now, I am not totally in the know about the laws in America...but even so....I know for a fact that what happens to Penn after Elle is rescued, could not possible happen!!!! MORE EYE ROLLING!!!! All the drama whilst Penn is jailed for not a day, not two days...but more like weeks...or months!!! Can't remember....but .......

And what happened to feisty and interesting Elle???? She morphed into someone that's totally unrecognisable from the 1st book.........and Penn.........let me not even go there!!!

Let me conclude this rant........I lost interest in the characters and what happens to them....before the end...I couldn't give a toss!!!!

PS......The reason for 1/2 star..........I actually like the author's writing style!!!

I certainly wasn't expecting the way the story went!!! But hey, I'm in the minority here...so if you want to give this book a try...no, if you've read book 1, then you should probably give this a try..me....no, Throne of Truth ain't gonna be a reread or a keeper for me!!

View all my reviews

Review: Brighter than the Sun (KGI, #11) by Maya Banks (Goodreads Author)

Brighter than the Sun by Maya Banks
My rating: 1 of 5 stars

I can't believe I finished this book!!!!

Brighter than the Sun is the 11th book in Maya Banks' KGI Series..........why I even bothered reading this one after the last two books being so MEH MEH MEH.....I have no idea!!

I liked the first couple of books in the series but I am just so ready to give up on continuing!!!
Let me note down some of the things that really really drove me to drink!!!!!!

* This is supposed to be Joe Kelly's story...but what we get here!!! We get pages and pages and more pages of the whole Kelly Clan.......the men, their wives, their kids, how much they love each other......

By Chapter 4.....I'm so like..........

But, I continued!!!!

* Everyone in the Kelly world is wonderful...nice....kind....loving.....beautiful..........

By Chapter 7.....I'm now beyond....

So, do I continue with this weird story???? Yes....I know, I'm a sucker for punishment!!

* INSTA-LOVE............JOE, the wannabe bachelor forever sees Zoe aka Stella for the first time....and ZAP............It's love love love.......he thinks she's wonderful...beautiful......

He takes her fishing and what happens....yes, he thinks she's more than just beautiful....

Yes, after two or three days....Joe is beyond smitten!!! He's found his soul mate!!! So what if he knows nothing about her life !!! Yes, folks, it's that inner feeling he has about perfection.......

And now we have ZOE aka STELLA running away from her very evil and criminal father and her boyfriend...who she discovers wants to do very nefarious deeds with her...and I don't mean lovemaking!!!! So, she runs away with the help of her best friend, Rusty Kelly and meets the Kelly clan and falls in love...not only with Joe but with all of THEM!!!

But, wait, there's a catch!!!

She doesn't think she's good enough for either Joe or his family!!!! Ooooh...so many tears......it was a total TEARFEST!!!

* And then there's the most absurd plot ever!!! Let's just say that we get nothing about the bad guys...who they are...how they find Zoe, despite the disguise...yes, the baddies find her but the Kelly guys and all their "tools" never ever guess that she's in hiding!!! And if you think that's the most absurd thing...it's not!!! When the Kelly men come to Zoe's rescue...we never get to find out what they do or did to the bad guys!!! The baddies just POOF off the pages!!!

I can't continue with my "rant" anymore!!!! Just let me show you how I felt when I turned the last page...........

So, if you're a fan of this series.....and you want to read this latest addition....and you're not bothered by having a total...........

..........then go ahead!!! At your own risk!!! ME......I AM DEFINETLY GIVING UP ON THE KGI WORLD FOREVER!!!

What, not going to read Rusty Kelly and Sean, the local sheriff's story!!!! I DON'T THINK I AM GOING TO PUT MYSELF THROUGH ANOTHER PURGATORY MOMENT!!!!!

View all my reviews

Review: Black Hearts (Sins Duet, #1) by Karina Halle (Goodreads Author)

Black Hearts by Karina Halle
My rating: 1 of 5 stars


After reading the last book by this author, Dirty Promises, which was the only one I have totally disliked by Karina Halle, I had extremely high hopes for Black Hearts, which is part of a duet and a spinoff of the other 3 Trilogies.

Well, to be honest - I more than disliked this book!!!!

I'm going to keep this short......why did I hate it!!

The main characters:

Vincent Bernal:
Javier Bernal's son. What a horrible creature. So, his life has been pretty so not amazing.....living as the son of a drug cartel boss has certainly not been easy! But seriously...is that reason enough for his cruelty, deviousness and disregard for human life! Did he not learn anything good from his mother and father??? Well, certainly not!! He kills the two men who his father sent to keep an eye on him in San Francisco, without batting an eyelid!! The lack of respect and the violence he displays towards Violet, the heroine's mother, is absolutely unacceptable. He has no compunction of lying, cheating and deceiving people.

Violet McQueen:
Ellie and Camden's daughter. Okay, she has reason to be angry at her parents for lying about their past but is it right for her to behave the way she does in retaliation. Forget the love they have shown her all her life...suddenly, she meets this guy and he becomes more important than her family??? She allows him to turn her against the very people who love her!!!

The Plot:
I found the story a bit too unbelievable!!!!
I also could not believe that Violet, who is supposedly innocent and sheltered, suddenly allows a man she meets a day or two before, to blindfold, tie her and photograph her nude!!!! Really!!!!
And please...............Javier is still holding a grudge against Ellie for choosing Camden over him.........20 years ago!!!! Get a life!!! I really hated Javier in this story!! And his wife, Luiza......where is the gutsy woman I first met in Dirty Angels!!!


Okay, so I will probably read the next book, Dirty Souls, because I want to know where the author takes the story to............but honestly, I am just hoping that I am going to be pleasantly surprised by the story!!!

PS.........I know I am in the minority here about this book!!! So, let me just add.........it's me!!! I didn't get it...but don't let me stop you from making up your own mind to read it or not!!

But let me say.........do it at your own PERIL!!!!

View all my reviews