Blue Moon Mystery Saloon

At Close Range

A Tracers Novel (Book 11) by Laura Griffin, Pocket Books/Simon & Schuster, January 2017.

An e-galley was provided by Pocket Books/Simon & Schuster and Edelweiss for an honest review.

 

At Close Range by Laura Griffin
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

AT CLOSE RANGE is the eleventh book in the TRACER SERIES by Laura Griffin. A fitting sequel to the previous book in the series, its action-packed suspense is guaranteed to pull you into the story and keep you riveted to the very end. The characters are multidimensional and relatable, and the plot and its parts are believable. Both main characters learn a lot about themselves and each other as they track down and follow clues they hope will lead them to the actual murderer(s).

San Marcos PD Detective Danielle “Dani” Harper is the reluctant lead on a two-person homicide case. It's complicated and definitely political. The District Attorney is up for reelection and needs these murders to be solved as soon as possible, so Dani has a lot of pressure to succeed. She barely survives on gallons of coffee and little sleep as she strives to come up with a motive and a list of suspects. She fears she's not ready to lead a case, especially one where persons of interest begin to die, and she questions if she can solve the murders quickly.

Former Navy Seal Scott Black, a ballistic expert, is the chief firearms examiner for the Delphi Center, the nation's largest private forensics lab. He's also the best friend of one of Dani's older brothers and has known Dani for more than 15 years. Scott is called into the homicide case to find and process any bullets and shells found at the crime scene. He becomes the lead suspect when a 9 mm Glock is discovered fairly close to the murder site, with only his fingerprints found on the gun. Though he's never owned or borrowed a Glock, he doesn't have an air-tight alibi and can't prove he wasn't the killer. He's put on administrative leave and starts investigating the homicide case to find the real murderer(s). Dani's always had a thing for Scott and doesn't want to believe he killed the two victims. So she goes against police department policy and her own ethics to work with him.

Griffin knows how to write heightened tension and heart-pounding action scenes. The prose is never boring or repetitive, and explanation of technical information is well-written and easy to understand. This fast-paced story includes lots of twists and turns, too. So if you're looking for an exciting mystery filled with strong characters and an interesting storyline, the AT CLOSE RANGE is the perfect book for you.

If You Like This, You May Like: Other books in the TRACER SERIES by Laura Griffin, CINCINNATI SERIES by Karen Rose, LUCY KINCAID NOVELS by Allison Brennan, MERCY KILPATRICK SERIES by Kendra Elliot, BOSS, INC. by Kat Martin, BODY ARMOR NOVELS by Lori Foster

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First Step Forward

Grand Valley Series (Book One) by Liora Blake, Pocket Books, November 2017.

* An e-galley was provided by Pocket Books and Edelweiss for an honest review.

 

First Step Forward by Liora Blake
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

FIRST STEP FORWARD , the first book in Liora Blake's new GRAND VALLEY SERIES, is a witty, lighthearted, feel-good romance guaranteed to brighten your day. The stars of the story are Whitney Reed, a free-spirited sprite of a woman who's fighting foreclosure on her apple farm, and Cooper Lowry, an injured wide-receiver for an NFL team in Denver who's fighting retirement from the game he's loved all his life. They meet at a twenty-four hour pharmacy near his condo. He's suffering from a concussion he received on the field that day and can't reach the Epsom salts on a bottom shelf, and she's run across the street from her hotel to buy bottled water at a reasonable price and ends up retrieving the bag for him. The next day, Cooper is walking near the store and sees Whitney getting ready to leave the hotel. He walks over to thank her again, she gives him a jar of apple butter she's made, and they say goodbye. When Cooper's coach makes him take a few days off to let his head heal, Cooper remembers the apple butter and decides to go visit Whitney and see her apple farm. Thus begins the charming romance that, after some highs and lows, finally ends in their HEA.

Though the story is lighthearted, both Whitney and Cooper struggle to accept the end of something they hold dear. Whitney does everything she can to prevent the loss of her farm without involving the few close friends she has. But she only receives rejection letters from bank after bank. She's put all her money, three rough years, and loads of hope into building a successful apple business, but Mother Nature has fought her all the way. Cooper's facing the end of his football career, something that's defined him almost his whole life. He's getting more injuries that heal slower, and his body is racked with pain. Whitney and Cooper are both in limbo and scared, since neither one of them knows what the future holds.

FIRST STEP FORWARD has witty dialogue, great pacing, lots of amusing sections (sprinkled with a few sad moments), and fun, fully-developed main and secondary characters. It's a really cute romantic comedy, perfect for the beach or just chilling at home.

The next story in the series, SECOND CHANCE SEASON, will be released in May 2017.

If You Like This, You Might Like: THE TRUE SERIES by Liora Blake, THE GETAWAY SERIES by Jay Crownover, AFTER WE FALL by Melanie Harlow, OUT OF BOUNDS and THE SEXY ONE by Lauren Blakely, CHICAGO STARS SERIES by Susan Elizabeth Phillips, SEX, LOVE, AND STILETTOS SERIES by Lauren Layne

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Her Every Fear

A Novel by Peter Swanson, William Morrow, January 2017

* An e-galley was provided by William Morrow and Edelweiss for an honest review.

 

Her Every Fear by Peter Swanson
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

HER EVERY FEAR by Peter Swanson is a riveting and suspenseful mystery which may make you suspicious of everyone you meet. Set in both Boston and London, it weaves the lives of the main characters into a web of anxiety, fear and distrust. The story takes place over a few days and starts out in Kate Priddy's point of view (POV), adding other characters' POVs as it goes along.

Kate has just arrived in Boston to spend six months experiencing life in a new place and taking design classes. She's agreed to a house switch with her second cousin, Corbin Dell, who she's never met, as he's been transferred to London for the six months. Kate has been anxiety ridden since she was a little girl but now has PTSD from a horrific attack by her ex-boyfriend five years ago. As she walks down the hallway toward her cousin's condo door, she encounters a girl who pounds on a neighbor's door. That girl believes something bad has happened to her friend. Later on, Kate finds out that the neighbor, Audrey Marshall, was killed. Then strange things start happening to Kate in her cousin's condo--slight changes to things around her, cat left inside when she knows she let it out into the hallway--enough to where she questions her sanity. This makes the reader wonder if Kate is an unreliable narrator or if something odd is really going on.

Corbin Dell first visited London as a student. Though he was a bit of a loner, he began dating a bartender at a local pub. He didn't really gel with the other American students but partied with them on occasion. He left town when his studies ended, with a big secret and a regret that follows him daily. Corbin arrives in London to work his six months at about the same time that Kate arrives in Boston. He emails her to thank her for the switch in homes and the detailed info she left him about the neighborhood. He also sends an email to Audrey, even though he knows she won't answer him.

Alan Cherney has lived in the condo building for about a year. He moved in with his heiress girlfriend, but since she's left him, he has to move out again within the month. He has been obsessed with Audrey for a long while, almost to the point of being a stalker.

Henry Wood was the life of the party in London. Every person he met was a friend, and the other American students tended to gravitate toward him. Corbin saw him around school, but didn't really interact with Henry until near the end of their studies in London. Though they parted under unusual circumstances, they renewed their acquaintance back in the USA and became bosom buddies. Eventually they parted ways and Corbin moved on with his life. But he still remembers Henry, and apparently, Henry has never forgotten Corbin.

All the characters have strengths and weaknesses, and no two are alike. By using the various POVs, the author reveals a bit of each character's personality and the reason behind their current actions. I'm giving the book 4.5 stars because with every new POV, I had to figure out where it began in the timeline of Kate's experiences. The pace of the novel would've benefitted from giving the time, day and city at the beginning of each change in POV.

Even though I felt that the killer was inferred before the final traumatic scene, the interplay between the characters and the intensity of the plot kept me captivated throughout the story. The author is a master in writing suspense and creating tense scenes, and readers will be engrossed in this novel to the very end.

If You Liked This, You May Also Like: THE KIND WORTH KILLING and THE GIRL WITH A CLOCK FOR A HEART by Peter Swanson, EVERYTHING YOU WANT ME TO BE by Windy Mejia, I SEE YOU by Clare Mackintosh, THE DRY by Jane Harper, THE SLEEPWALKER by Chris Bohjalian View all my reviews