Virginia Vaughan did a fabulous job of keeping the suspense high and raising the stakes at every turn. This novel packs a punch when FBI Agent Lucy Sanderson, a profiler, arrives in town in search of the Backroads Killer. The role takes an unexpected turn when the murderer snatches her while she’s out jogging, and throws her into his trunk. She barely escapes with her life, but the killer doesn’t give up. Bryce Tippet, an old Marine friend of Danny’s, her deceased fiancé, and a single dad, finds Lucy standing in the road, battered and bruised. He rescues her from…
Deadly Deceit by Natalie Walters
This suspense-filled novel is a nice balance between romance and suspense. Journalist Vivian DeMarco will take you on a roller coaster ride as she faces danger, emotional heartbreaks, and an unexpected relationship with the handsome Deputy Ryan Frost. After years of trying to measure up to what she thinks others expect from her, Vivian must discover her true self-worth. Ryan Frost finds himself indecisive about staying in his small home town to watch over his mom and sister or accepting a job offer with the FBI Cyber Crimes Division in Washington, DC. An added complication pops up when he encounters…
God is Not Our Virtual Assistant by DiAnn Mills
Recently, I heard a speaker state God was a virtual assistant. The claim didn’t resonate with me. In fact, it irritated me, so I dug deeper for a definition and the qualifications for a virtual assistant. A virtual assistant is self-employed and generally works from home to assist a client or clients with professional, technical, communication, and creative advice. Nothing spiritual in that definition. The need for a virtual assistant is basic: reduce our work load, give us more time personally and professionally, and flexibility. Nothing spiritual there either. To be among the five-star virtual assistants, one must: Express him/herself…
Light from Distant Stars by Shawn Smucker
When I began reading this novel, I kept questioning what I’d missed in the first chapter, so I went back and reread the chapter. Questions remained unanswered until the end. The toss-up between what was real and unreal and whether Cohen Marah actually killed his father kept me turning the page. In some sense, the context had me wondering if the novel was along the lines of a Frank Peretti thriller or was Smucker walking the reader through Cohen’s imaginary past or maybe his nightmares? Were the dark shadows Cohen saw symbolizing demons or was he simply afraid of the…
Keep You Close by Karen Cleveland
FBI Official, Stephanie Maddox comes face-to-face with right and wrong when her son is accused of being involved with an extremist group that’s plotting against high ranking government officials. Like any mother, she believes her son Zachary is innocent. She searches his closet and finds a loaded gun tucked away in a sack in his closet. When she questions him about the weapon, his response and body language convince her he’s clueless. What does she do with the gun? Her actions and reasoning must remain above board and yet she if she turns the pistol into the authorities, her son…
Justice Delivered by Patricia Bradley
This riveting suspense kept me up all night! A definite page-turner. Carly Smith was fighting for her life and I had to help her escape her captors as she fought to stay alive. Carly attempts to rebuild her life after years of captivity, but her past returns with a vengeance. She returns to Memphis where the life as she’d know as a seventeen-year-old ended. She’d never forget going to a party with a friend where a man posing as a modeling agent offered her a job. He had talked her into leaving with him that night. A decision that changed…
Never Let Go By Elizabeth Goddard
Whatever you do, don’t bypass the prologue. The prologue thrusts you into the middle of the action and builds immediate suspense. The tension doesn’t let up until the end of the book. A crime is committed when the unthinkable happens. A newborn is abducted from the hospital. That alone should pique your interest. Years pass and none of the investigators the mother hired produced any results. The mother refuses to believe her daughter is dead. She never stops searching for her baby. Willow Anderson works as a Forensic Genealogist with her grandfather’s business, Anderson Consulting. Her grandfather was murdered after…
The Line Between by Tosca Lee
Wynter Roth, the survivor of an apocalyptic cult, is forced to leave the confines of the so-called New Earth, leaving her sister and niece behind. She must face a world that she’s been taught was evil. Her anxiety builds as she is exposed to the reality of life outside those once protective walls. When news of deadly disease from the melting permafrost resurfaces and threatens human minds, ultimately driving people insane, Wynter is certain the world is coming to an end as the cult leader warned. Her sister appears on her doorstep with a container she’d stolen from the cult…
Writing – Keep on Keeping On
Congratulations to DiAnn Mills on her new release Burden of Proof! I’m especially excited to have DiAnn as a guest on my blog today. It’s a very special occasion – Launch Day for Burden of Proof! Here’s DiAnn… Writing is a series of keep on keeping on. Our minds are geared toward the latest project while balancing social media and staying up to date on the craft and changes in the publishing industry. We waken at 3 a.m. with a forgotten deadline looming over us like a bad case of flu. Yikes! How did I miss that! We bolt from…
