Category Archives: Suspense

The Headmaster’s Wager – Vincent Lam

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From Giller Prize winner, internationally acclaimed, and bestselling author Vincent Lam comes a superbly crafted, highly suspenseful, and deeply affecting novel set against the turmoil of the Vietnam War.

Percival Chen is the headmaster of the most respected English school in Saigon. He is also a bon vivant, a compulsive gambler and an incorrigible womanizer. He is well accustomed to bribing a forever-changing list of government officials in order to maintain the elite status of the Chen Academy. He is fiercely proud of his Chinese heritage, and quick to spot the business opportunities rife in a divided country.

He devotedly ignores all news of the fighting that swirls around him, choosing instead to read the faces of his opponents at high-stakes mahjong tables. But when his only son gets in trouble with the Vietnamese authorities, Percival faces the limits of his connections and wealth and is forced to send him away. In the loneliness that follows, Percival finds solace in Jacqueline, a beautiful woman of mixed French and Vietnamese heritage, and Laing Jai, a son born to them on the eve of the Tet offensive.

Percival’s new-found happiness is precarious, and as the complexities of war encroach further and further into his world, he must confront the tragedy of all he has refused to see. Blessed with intriguingly flawed characters moving through a richly drawn historical and physical landscape, The Headmaster’s Wageris a riveting story of love, betrayal and sacrifice. – Publishers Website

I really liked this book ! Percival isn’t only a man who has a business, he also bribes officials and almost always has a solution to everything…Until his son causes trouble and he has to send him away to China so he doesn’t end up in prison.  His son is everything to him, he will do anything for him and his school.  When the loneliness from missing his son becomes too severe, he takes up with a young woman when gambling at one of the houses he goes to .  Later on, she becomes pregnant, and the desire to leave the country in war as well as all of the chaos is even more urgent.

Percival was an interesting man – his past marriage to his son’s mother, the bribes and people he is connected to,  especially his right hand man Mak gives him the solutions he needs until he misses his son so much that it is nearly impossible to have him return to Vietnam from China.  What won’t he do to survive? Who will he bribe next? Will he become bankrupt before he can leave the country, or worse dead?

I really loved Vincent’s narrative.  Although Percival is a man of many things, the one of the many things he loves are his son and his mistresses son, whom he was told it was his son, well, you will just have to read the book to find out. I don’t like giving spoilers !  There are times where it is all fun and games, periods of tumultuous fighting with his own family, and closest friends, but also within himself.  He wages a constant battle of doing right from wrong, and weighing them against the better good.  Does he do these things to get ahead? Of course.  Would he do anything to save his son who was exiled, absolutely.  Is it all about him, most of the time.  Does he have remorse? Of course he does.  And, I’m sure he would change things differently if he could go back in time.  That’s the thing with life, you can’t go back and change anything.  Did he learn from his lessons, yes.  Did he change? I’ll let you decide.

There were obviously good times had in the book as well, all combined into this novel it is about sacrifice, love, war, and greed.  I am sure that Vincent will be back soon with another novel of even more importance even if it is fiction.  He won the Giller Prize in 2006 for Blood-Letting and Miraculous Cures.  He was nominated for the Giller yet again this year, but only made it on the long list.  He was also nominated for the Governor Generals Awards.

Vincent’s Website - Twitter - Facebook  - Browse Inside

Touch – Alexi Zentner

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NOMINEE 2011 – Scotiabank Giller Prize

Touch begins with Stephen, an Anglican priest, returning from Vancouver to the northern BC town of Sawgamet where he grew up, just in time for his mother’s death. Sawgamet was founded by Stephen’s grandfather Jeannot, when he heard a voice in the woods calling his name and his dog, Flaireur, refused to take another step. Back then, as Stephen remembers it from the stories passed down to him, men were giants, or even gods, striving to tame the land. The world of Sawgamet was enchanted, alive with qallupilluit and ijirait, sea-witches and shape-shifters; Jeannot saw caribou covered with gold dust and found gold nuggets the size of boulders. Sometimes winter refused to end, and blizzards buried the whole town in snow for months at a time. Sawgamet was a place where Jeannot had to kill a man twice and then carry the bones around with him, bound in cloth, to make sure he stayed dead.

Years later, with his mother on her deathbed, Stephen tries to piece together the past from myths and stories and memories that he’s not sure he can trust. And not everything is magical: if life in Jeannot’s Sawgamet was richer and brighter than it seems for Stephen now, it was also harder and more brutal, with both fire and ice claiming too many lives before their time. Jeannot never knew his son, Pierre, Stephen’s father, who was himself maimed in a logging accident; Stephen’s childhood was marked by tragic loss, and a lasting pain he must now confront as he considers how to pass Jeannot’s stories on to his own daughters.

A chronicle of the birth of a town and the passing of a way of being in the world, Touch is unique, compelling and full of marvels. But this book captures the most personal moments in life as well as the most dramatic ones – Alexi Zentner conveys three generations of a family’s intimate emotional experience in language that pierces the heart. This beautiful and moving novel is a great story told by a natural storyteller, and to read Touch is to enter an enthralling world that you’ll never want to leave. - Publishers Website

Believe the book’s description.  Touch is one of those books where the writing is fantastic, the story baffling, you can’t really believe what you are reading – fact or fiction, but as you read page after page, it entices you, envelopes you as if you are a person living in this town.  The realization is like being in another world, except you are right there where you are reading it, being brought into another world.  The legends, the stories – real or fabricated makes you feel like you are listening to them from your own grandparent or other family member – your eyes all widened, the look of shock or even mischievous thoughts crossing your mind wondering if it really was weird or just made up. Thoughts of making the story even more out of this world.  Yes, it does happen.

Then as you are caught up in the story telling, it reminds you of other thoughts and feelings possibly of your own mortality, other family members that have passed away, the warmness of their hugs, the food they made, the stories they told.  The stories passed on from earlier generations are as wild as they were when you first heard them.  It’s about a family, much like yours or even mine – the ties that bind, the secrets kept, the hard work, shocking revelations, the things they regret and are telling you to finally let them go.

Truly a novel that needs to be read to be believed.  It has recently been long-listed for the IMPAC Dublin Awards a few days ago, along with the other previous nominations including the Giller Prize.

If you haven’t already picked up this gem, now is the time to see what I have talked about.

Goodreads – Alexi’s Website – Alexi on Twitter – Alexi on Facebook

Listen to Alexi Zentner’s Touch from Dreamscape Media on Vimeo.

The Secret Keeper – Kate Morton

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From the New York Times and internationally bestselling author of The Distant Hours, The Forgotten Garden, and The House at Riverton, a spellbinding new novel filled with mystery, thievery, murder, and enduring love.

During a summer party at the family farm in the English countryside, sixteen-year-old Laurel Nicolson has escaped to her childhood tree house and is happily dreaming of the future. She spies a stranger coming up the long road to the farm and watches as her mother speaks to him. Before the afternoon is over, Laurel will witness a shocking crime. A crime that challenges everything she knows about her family and especially her mother, Dorothy—her vivacious, loving, nearly perfect mother.

Now, fifty years later, Laurel is a successful and well-regarded actress living in London. The family is gathering at Greenacres farm for Dorothy’s ninetieth birthday. Realizing that this may be her last chance, Laurel searches for answers to the questions that still haunt her from that long-ago day, answers that can only be found in Dorothy’s past.

Dorothy’s story takes the reader from pre–WWII England through the blitz, to the ’60s and beyond. It is the secret history of three strangers from vastly different worlds—Dorothy, Vivien, and Jimmy—who meet by chance in wartime London and whose lives are forever entwined. The Secret Keeper explores longings and dreams and the unexpected consequences they sometimes bring. It is an unforgettable story of lovers and friends, deception and passion that is told—in Morton’s signature style—against a backdrop of events that changed the world. – Publishers Website

Wow, just Wow!  I have always enjoyed Kate’s work, but this one has to be the very best yet.  I was hooked from the first chapter. She held me along until the last few chapters until all was revealed, I fell dumbfounded, shocked, shaking my head.  Kate is a very skillful storyteller that If I haven’t read any of her earlier work this would be the book to start from.  I am literally speechless!  And trust me that doesn’t happen often lol

Such a wonderful story about life, love, sacrifice, and the one skeleton in a closet that has sat patiently for so long.  The only one person who knows about it is on their deathbed, wanting to share, but is afraid of the consequences – her family, friends, old friends from the past.  This one will keep you in suspense right until the end and still will have you saying to yourself I didn’t even see it coming…

Wow, Wow, Wow…

Goodreads - Kate’s Website - Facebook - Browse Inside

 

The Red Pole of Macau – Ian Hamilton

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In The Red Pole of Macau, Ava’s half-brother Michael is desperate to pull out of a multi-million-dollar real estate deal in the territory of Macau. The developers are threatening to halt construction unless Michael and his business partner put up another $80 million; the bank is looking for repayment on their loan; and her father is prepared to sell everything to protect his first-born son.

When Ava enlists Uncle for help, she discovers his health is failing and is forced to turn to a former client, the cunning and seductive May Ling Wong. As Ava follows the money trail, she finds herself drawn deeper and deeper into Hong Kong’s dark and deadly world of organized crime.

Will Ava protect her family’s future? Or will this job lead to a violent end . . . – Publishers Website

Fangirl Moment when this arrived in the mail !! The fourth installment of Ian Hamilton’s Ava Lee Series ! I admit, I was engrossed in another book when this one arrived, but it was literally starting me down from the living room table, I had to put down the other book, until this one was read cover to cover, in the middle of reading I’m sending my thoughts to Ava with things like “Get That Sucker!” as well as other expletives that I can’t divulge here.  Tee hee!

I absolutely LOVE Ian’s collection so far, and wont give up on reading them until the last one has been shed, the plots revealed, and Ava has ridden the world of evil and people who are trying – yes, trying to take something away from people who a) don’t deserve it, or b) are being greedy!

I found out something quite interesting (at least to me) Some have commented on Goodreads that the constant name dropping of fashion brands, and of course her Starbucks Via in the books have turned people off the books.  But, when I was at Word on the Street in Toronto, I found out by the publicist that in fact in the Asian culture, that is what they do, they go by designer names, etc.  It is just their culture.  No more no less.   And I realize that here in Canada or anywhere else that sounds a bit much or irritating, but Ian has toned it down so to speak.  You won’t hear as much of it in the books, but you do see some of it.

So, now that I’m done gushing about Ian and his Ava, go and get the books all right?!?  They are FANTASTIC!  Ava comes out with a new book in February, so get caught up would you !!

Browse inside - Ian on Twitter - Ian on Facebook - Goodreads - Ian’s Website

I really wish there were some book trailers for Ava, She would kick some serious ass in them !

Guilt by Degrees – Marcia Clark

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Someone has been watching D.A. Rachel Knight—someone who’s Rachel’s equal in brains, but with more malicious intentions. It began when a near-impossible case fell into Rachel’s lap, the suspectless homicide of a homeless man. In the face of courthouse backbiting and a gauzy web of clues, Rachel is determined to deliver justice.

She’s got back-up: tenacious Detective Bailey Keller. As Rachel and Bailey stir things up, they’re shocked to uncover a connection with the vicious murder of an LAPD cop a year earlier.

Rachel suspects someone knows the truth, someone who’d kill to keep it secret. Harrowing, smart, and riotously entertaining, GUILT BY DEGREES is a thrilling ride through the world of Los Angeles courts with the unforgettable Rachel Knight. – Publishers Website

I am really liking Rachel !  In Marcia’s 2nd fiction book, Rachel is becoming more and more one of those literary characters that won’t be soon forgotten.  With her steely determination to find out who did what, when, where and make them pay has me almost cheering ( in a non fangirl squealing mess). I have to save that for a Canadian Fictional Character, sorry Marcia !!

I’m liking the action, the information Marcia effortlessly passes on as Rachel follows this case to the bitter end…literally.  Bailey her 2nd hand person, definitely gives the bad guys a run for their money.  I wonder if there are really tough female detectives like this in real life.  More than likely!

I have to say, Marcia has definitely hit the genre running and probably won’t give up the fight anytime soon.  The Mass Market comes out in March, but you can still get a hardcover more than likely.  If you liked her first book Guilt by Association, you will definitely like this one.  I’m looking forward to her next installment.

I have had a few instances where I have chatted with Marcia on twitter and on Facebook, she is really quite personable so don’t be shy and say hi.  Just be nice and respectful…

Marcia’s Website – Facebook – Twitter -

 

 

The Deception of Livvy Higgs – Donna Morrissey Blog Tour

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For two traumatic days, Livvy Higgs is besieged by a series of small heart attacks while the ghost of her younger self leads her back through a past devastated by lies and secrets.

The story opens in Halifax in 2009, travels back to the French Shore of Newfoundland during the mid-thirties and the heyday of the Maritime shipping industry, makes its way to wartorn Halifax during the battle of the Atlantic in World War II, then leaps ahead to the bedside of the elder Livvy.

Caught between a troubled past, and her present and worsening living conditions, Livvy is forced to pick apart the lies and secrets told by her greedy, prideful father, Durwin Higgs, who judges her a failure, and her formidable Grandmother Creed, who has mysteriously aligned herself with Livvy’s father, despite their mutual hatred.

Tending to Livvy during her illness is her young next-door neighbour, Gen, a single mother, social-work student, and part-time drug dealer. Overnight, a violent scene embroils the two in each other’s lives in a manner that will entwine them forever. In The Deception of Livvy Higgs, the inimitable Morrissey has written a powerful tale, the Stone Angel of the East Coast. – Publishers Website

What a book !  Not sure what to expect at first when I received the email about this particular book.  I actually had to stop and start a few times, just because of the nature of the book.  I had to get my head right so to speak so that I could delve into Livvy’s mind and her past bringing together past and present into this fantastic piece of literary fiction.

Livvy is having dreams, but in actuality she is having mini heart attacks.  She’s forgetting to go to the grocery store, feeding her cats, among other household chores.  Her younger neighbour who is a student and single mother helps her from time to time, but Livvy doesn’t want to depend on her all the time.  The dreams she is having have to do with her past – as a girl growing up in an upper class family where her father owns the general store – who decides if you are good enough for credit or not through the harsh winter months.  As the past reaches into the present, Livvy and Gen her neighbour come to blows about an incident that happens.  Will Livvy come to terms with her past, deal with it and live a calm existence in her last days? Or will Gen’s drama splinter that fragile relationship they have and drive them both on a path they aren’t meant to be on.

As both women go back and forth, it is almost a mirror image of the two in different times.  Both have made mistakes in their younger years, Both have made sacrifices for the good and bad.  Both have done things they aren’t proud of, but in the moment they did what they had to do to survive.  As we all go through life, I know in my own there are things that I have done that I am not proud of because of circumstances, and things that have happened I didn’t wish on anyone, but I learned from them and the mistakes I have made.  I cannot change any of it, but yet, if I could I don’t think I would.  It gave me things to think about, situations that have made me a better person, and strengthened my reserve to make me a stronger person.  In Livvy’s case, I believe that she needed to make amends for what she did so that she could finally let it go instead of hanging on to it for so long.  In Gen’s case, I think she learns from Livvy and her mistakes in a way that she can avoid them in the future if that makes any sense.  Both women are teaching and learning from one another, in different times if course, but the outcome and the lessons are still the same.  Do you want to be happy or do you want to be right?

Anger, Resentment, and hanging onto feelings for years or even decades isn’t good for you, come clean and be lifted of that weight to be able to be happy and free.  Donna has written a fantastic piece of Literary Fiction that will become a Canadian Classic!

 

Read an Excerpt - Donna on Facebook - Donna’s Website - 49th Shelf - Goodreads

 

For more reviews and commentary, check out the others on tour with Donna’s book!

September 18 Luanne –  http://luanne-abookwormsworld.blogspot.com/
September 19 Marci –  http://serendipitous-readings.com/
September 20 Aislynn –  http://www.stitchreadcook.com/
September 21 Nicole –  http://www.nicoleabouttown.com/
September 24 Allison –  http://bibliomama2.blogspot.com/

Comic-Con Episode IV: A Fan’s Hope – DK Publishing

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Oscar-nominated filmmaker Morgan Spurlock teams up with Joss Whedon and comic book legend Stan Lee to provide an insider look at the unique experience that is the San Diego Comic-Con. An annual four-day event that originally showcased comic books and science fiction, the convention has expanded over the years to include film, horror, anime, manga, animation and video games. The largest event of its kind in the world, Comic-Con is the quintessential center of pop culture today. From what Comic-Con is, what goes on, and how it became what it is today, this illustrated companion to the film offers an unprecedented look at this annual event.

  • Includes interviews with Frank Miller, Matt Groening,Kenneth Branagh, Ellen Page and Seth Rogan

Morgan Spurlock was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Documentary for Super Size Me. He followed up with the well received Where in the World is Osama Bin Laden(2008), and produced three seasons of his acclaimed television series 30 Days. Spurlock also conceived, wrote, and directed The Simpsons’ 20th Anniversary Special in 3-D. His feature-length adaptation of the New York Times Bestseller Freakonomics was released in Fall 2010. He is also the author of Don’t Eat This Book!, based on his documentary Super Size Me.- Publishers Website

I have never been to one of these festivals, but by the looks of it from inside these pages, it would have to be one of those most fantastical places, albeit, for a week or two.

The fans, the costumes, the panels, and of course the sneak peeks into movies or anything else you wanted to know about is all there.  It would be one of those one moments in time, where you would experience everything at once.  What a whirlwind!

I really loved the enthusiasm that the fans have for their most loved comic, movies, graphic novels and so much more.  What would you want to do there ? I think I would want to experience a little of everything.  That is if I had time to do so! Below, check out some of the costumes, fans, celebrities, and more inside the book.

Comic-Con Site – Comic-Con Twitter – Facebook – YouTube

#24 – The Confession – Charles Todd

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Scotland Yard’s best detective, Inspector Ian Rutledge, must solve a dangerous case that reaches far into the past in this superb mystery in the acclaimed series

Declaring he needs to clear his conscience, a dying man walks into Scotland Yard and confesses that he killed his cousin five years earlier during the Great War. When Inspector Ian Rutledge presses for details, the man evades his questions, revealing only that he hails from a village east of London. With little information and no body to open an official inquiry, Rutledge begins to look into the case on his own.

Less than two weeks later, the alleged killer’s body is found floating in the Thames, a bullet in the back of his head. Searching for answers, Rutledge discovers that the dead man was not who he claimed to be. What was his real name—and who put a bullet in his head? Were the “confession” and his own death related? Or was there something else in the victim’s past that led to his murder?

The inspector’s only clue is a gold locket, found around the dead man’s neck, that leads back to Essex and an insular village whose occupants will do anything to protect themselves from notoriety. For notoriety brings the curious, and with the curious come change and an unwelcome spotlight on a centuries-old act of evil that even now can damn them all. – Publishers Website

This was my first foray into Inspectors Ian’s world and I wasn’t disappointed.  Continuing on after Ian has come back from the War, he’s back at Scotland Yard when he talks to someone who says  a murder has happened.  Yes, someone comes forward to tell him of a murder that has happened – 5 years earlier.   When this  person passes away suddenly and floating in the river, Ian takes a trip to rural village outside London to see if he can find any clues about who this person was who came to him, when a whole can of worms opens up that Ian isn’t so sure of.  Through the bends of the narrative, Ian sleuths out the people involved, the lies, the deceit, and what is behind it all in a historical mystery that will have you hooked until the end.

Then of course there is Ian himself – shattered and broken from the War and the nightmares that never seem to go away…

Charles’ Website – Facebook – Excerpt – Fun Stuff

#22 – Sidney Sheldon’s Angel of the Dark – Tilly Bagshawe

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It was his first big murder case—and one of the bloodiest and most violent crimes LAPD detective Danny McGuire would ever encounter. Andrew Jakes, an elderly multimillionaire art dealer, had been brutally murdered in his Hollywood home, his lifeless body tied to his naked young wife. Raped and beaten, the lovely Angela Jakes had barely survived the attack herself. Gazing into her deep, soulful eyes, Danny swore that he’d find the psychopath behind this barbarous act. But the investigation didn’t turn up a single solid lead, and within days of Angela’s release from the hospital, the stunning young widow—Danny’s only witness—had vanished.

For ten years Danny McGuire could not forget the sweet face of Angela Jakes and the terrible crime that had shattered her life; his obsession with her nearly cost him his sanity. Now in France, thousands of miles from the past—with a new life, a new job with Interpol, and a ravishing new wife—he’s happier than he’s ever been . . . until he meets Andrew Jakes’s estranged son, Matt Daley.

Curious about his father’s murder, Matt has been digging into the cold case—and made some shocking discoveries. Three killings nearly identical to his father’s have taken place across the globe. The victims were elderly, newlywed millionaires, their young wives assaulted. And in each case the widow, the sole beneficiary of the will, donated her newfound wealth to children’s charities and then vanished. Could it be true? Had the Jakes killer struck again? If so, Danny knows he must tread carefully or risk losing everything for good.

The evidence points to a single killer—a brilliant and ruthless criminal who travels across the globe under a string of assumed identities, cleverly keeping one step ahead of the law. Joining forces, Danny and Matt pursue this intriguing shadow from Los Angeles to London, New York to Italy and the French Riviera, in a tantalizing game of cat and mouse filled with promising leads and frustrating dead ends. When another murder fitting the profile occurs, Matt heads to Hong Kong, hoping to get answers from the latest widow, Lisa Baring, and perhaps uncover the hard evidence they need.

But Matt becomes besotted with the irresistible beauty, nearly derailing the investigation, and Danny wonders whether Lisa is truly a victim or something more sinister. When a break in the case sends Danny to Mumbai, he knows he must act quickly, for the clever killer is poised to strike again.

A fast-paced story full of mystery, glamour, excitement, and spectacular twists that build to a stunning ending, Sidney Sheldon’s Angel of the Dark is quintessential Sheldon from first page to last. – Publishers Website

I was looking forward to this book, since Sidney Sheldon or rather the genre that he had meticulously made into a best-selling series had been great.  I was a bit disappointed with this one.  Tilly Bagshawe has taken over the series from the master after his passing, and I have to say it was a great premise, but for me, it fell short in its delivery.  Smaller than the earlier books, I just kind of thought it a bit rushed in its delivery, some things weren’t described in detail as much as it had been before.  I think that fans of Sidney and his work may find it a bit different, but Tilly does a grand job of attempting to integrate his style of writing and hers into one cohesive style.  For me, I’m divided.  Although, I was excited to have a chance of reading some Sidney Sheldon style mystery/thriller/detective type book, for me it just left me going huh?at the end of it.

Tilly’s Website – Sidney’s Website – Browse Inside

 

#21 – Stray Bullets – Robert Rotenberg

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In The Guilty Plea and Old City Hall, critically-acclaimed Canadian author Robert Rotenberg created gripping page-turners that captured audiences in Canada and around the world.

Rotenberg’s bestsellers do for Toronto what Ian Rankin has done for Edinburgh and Michael Connolly for Los Angeles.

In Stray Bullets, Rotenberg takes the reader to a snowy November night. Outside a busy downtown doughnut shop, gunshots ring out and a young boy is critically hurt. Soon Detective Ari Greene is on scene. How many shots were fired? How many guns? How many witnesses?

With grieving parents and a city hungry for justice, the pressure is on to convict the man accused of this horrible crime. Against this tidal-wave of indignation, defence counsel Nancy Parish finds herself defending her oldest, and most difficult, client.

But does anyone know the whole story?

Stray Bullets is Robert Rotenberg’s third intricate mystery set on the streets and, in the courtrooms, of Toronto. – Publishers Website

I have to say Robert’s newest novel set in busy Toronto is another winner !!  It doesn’t let up, it keeps amping up, by the time you have finished the book it’s like you have gotten off a runaway train plus or minus a few details.  With Robert’s busy legal practice, I cannot fathom how he can churn out a book every year with all the edits and re-writes !! I was introduced to his work last year when The Guilty Plea came out for a blog tour along with a mini Q and A , he just keeps going and going.  His narrative is set just perfect along the storyline he is creating.  There are no awkward jumps or starts -  it is a smooth sailing as much as a murder case whodunit can be right?

I am looking forward to much more from this Canadian who continues to get my read on !! I hope you will discover him and say yes, you are a new and excited fan!!  It doesn’t hurt either that he is being compared to Ian Rankin from Scotland and Michael Connelly from California!!

Robert’s Website – Facebook – Twitter – Goodreads – Read an Excerpt

 

#12 – The Look of Love – Mary Jane Clark

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A Piper Donovan Mystery – Book Two

Piper Donovan accepts when the owner of Elysium, an exclusive spa and plastic surgery center, offers her an all-expenses-paid trip to Los Angeles to create a dazzling and unique wedding cake. The job also gives Piper the time and distance she needs to sort out her feelings for handsome FBI agent Jack Lombardi.

The ultra-luxurious spa caters to the rich and famous in need of a little “refreshing”—a nip here, a tuck there, a little Botox, a little detox. Nestled in the Hollywood Hills, Elysium seems picture-perfect: the grounds, the staff, even the guests. But no sooner does Piper arrive than a guest is brutally murdered in one of the private bungalows. Someone, it seems, wants to make sure Elysium’s beautiful director, Jillian Abernathy, never gets to walk down the aisle. Piper soon discovers that beneath the glamorous surface of this idyllic oasis lies an ugly truth—and a cold-blooded plan for murder. – Publishers Website

Mary Jane does it again!  With her new series, Piper is invited to create a wedding cake for Jillian Abernathy who is just as famous as her parents in the Hollywood realm.  But when someone is murdered, everyone knows they are out for Jillian, and not anyone else.  But Why?!?

I really enjoyed Mary Jane’s latest novel.  It was a quick, entertaining read with that pizzazz that she uses to keep you engrossed and entertained.  It will appeal to those who don’t like those real gritty mystery, suspense novels.  It is geared more to the younger generation of women, but male readers may enjoy, as well as the older woman who have enjoyed Mary Jane’s earlier novels.  I look forward to reading more from Mary Jane in the future!

Goodreads – Book Tour – I Interview MJC – HC Interview – Mary Jane’s Website – Facebook – Piper Donovan Facebook – Read an Excerpt

 

 

#11 – The Face Thief – Eli Gottlieb

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Gottlieb introduces the mystery of the charismatic Margot, a promising journalist who morphs—with stunning panache—from a high-achieving affluent twentysomething into a grifter making her living preying on the weaknesses of men.

Having studied the ancient Chinese art of face reading, she becomes an expert at reading people and is also able to rearrange her look and persona with uncanny skill to fit any social situation. She is an avenging angel, shattering marriages and draining bank accounts.

What drives her quest to deceive and disarm? Exploring this question, The Face Thief moves fluidly forward and back in time, drawing vivid portraits of Margot’s rocky childhood and her adult victims: an amiable, newly married man enticed into a catastrophic fraud; an esteemed teacher outwitted by his most dangerous student; and a well-meaning New York City cop tripped up by his belief in redemption.

Ingeniously constructed and exquisitely written, The Face Thief swirls a hypnotic dance of predator and prey, creating a contemporary landscape where the educated are violent, the beautiful ugly, and the well-intentioned hapless. And yet we never give way to despair, because the protagonists of the book push back against the maelstrom and attempt tirelessly to right their toppled lives. Rich in suspense, psychological depth, and nuance, The Face Thief confirms Gottlieb’s standing as “a master” (Denver Post) and, in the words of essayist Phillip Lopate, “an enthralling stylist who[se] . . . characters are shockingly, electrically alive.” – Publishers Website

I was looking forward to digging into this book,  heard so many good things about it online and from the publishers.  I was a bit disappointed, I will explain in a bit.

Opening the book is the story of an unknown woman in the hospital regaining consciousness.  Her name isn’t known at the time, but as you read further, she has this uncanny ability to deceive people to get what she wants.  It was cryptic, getting you deeper and deeper into the novel.  At one point, I thought that it was going to be a really good ending, the suspense was adding up getting bigger and bigger as the end neared.  Just at the point where the plot was going to show itself, at least for me, it fell flat on its face on page 211.  I did finish the book, but was a bit disappointed at how the author had or hadn’t made the ending with more of a bang so to speak.  If you read the novel, I think you may agree with me…It would have been a far better book if the ending was more thought out.

Goodreads – Eli’s Website – Browse Inside – Reading Group Guide

#10 – The Wild Beasts of Wuhan – Ian Hamilton

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The Third installment in the wildly popular Ava Lee series, The Wild Beast of Wuhan uncovers the secret world of art fraud.

In The Wild Beasts of Wuhan, Uncle and Ava are summoned by Wong Changxing, “The Emperor of Hubei” and one of the most powerful men in China, when he discovers that the Fauvist paintings he recently acquired are in fact forgeries.

Ava uncovers a ring of fraudulent art dealers and follows their twisted trail to the Netherlands, the Faeroe Islands, Dublin, London, and New York. But the job is further complicated by Wong’s second wife, the cunning and seductive May Ling, who threaten to interfere in Ava’s investigation.

Will Ava find the perpetrators and get the Wongs’ money back? Or will May Ling get to them first… – Publishers Website

Oh Ava, how I have missed you !! You are smart, sexy, agile in more ways than one, you always manage to get things done no matter the consequences, the difficulty hunting down the bad guys, making all right with the world until the next situation comes up.  Ian surely has hit his stride with the series and his main character Ava.  This time it is about forged art, and although she isn’t sure she can produce results, you hang on while reading to see what happens next.  When I received this book I believe I actually squealed (possibly even jumped up and down a bit, but shhh don’t let anyone  know ok?)

There is also something new in the book or in her world – Ava has a love interest, which changes it a bit, but it is a good change.  I’m not sure how this will affect future books, we will just have to wait and see.  AS a matter of fact, Ian has just signed a new contract with House of Anansi – Spiderline to a new deal which will have 3 new books in the mix after the Fall release of The Red Pole of Macau.  So, I am just as excited  and honoured to be allowed to read these before anyone else when it hits the stores.

So, if you haven’t already read my reviews of Ian’s earlier novels in this series they are Book 1 – The Water Rat of Wanchai – Book 2 – The Disciple of Las Vegas and this one of course.  So, I cannot get enough of Ian’s series so far, what about you?I just wish that I could get all of the books at once and read them from start to finish ! Ian?!?  House of Anansi ?!? are you listening …hint hint ha!

Ian’s Website – Facebook – Twitter – GoodReads - Reading Guide – Read an Excerpt

#9 – The Inquisitor – Mark Allen Smith

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A spectacularly original thriller about a professional torturer who has a strict code, a mysterious past, and a dangerous conviction that he can save the life of an innocent child

Geiger has a gift: he knows a lie the instant he hears it. And in his business—called “information retrieval” by its practitioners—that gift is invaluable, because truth is the hottest thing on the market.

Geiger’s clients count on him to extract the truth from even the most reluctant subjects. Unlike most of his competitors, Geiger rarely sheds blood, but he does use a variety of techniques—some physical, many psychological—to push his subjects to a point where pain takes a backseat to fear. Because only then will they finally stop lying.

One of Geiger’s rules is that he never works with children. So when his partner, former journalist Harry Boddicker, unwittingly brings in a client who demands that Geiger interrogate a twelve-year-old boy, Geiger responds instinctively. He rescues the boy from his captor, removes him to the safety of his New York City loft, and promises to protect him from further harm. But if Geiger and Harry cannot quickly discover why the client is so desperate to learn the boy’s secret, they themselves will become the victims of an utterly ruthless adversary.

Mesmerizing and heart-in-your-throat compelling, The Inquisitor is a completely unique thriller that introduces both an unforgettable protagonist and a major new talent in Mark Allen Smith. – Publishers Website

When I received this book, I was really excited when I opened the envelope and read the back immediately.  A lump had formed in my throat when I did read the back.  It nearly had sounded like a very similar book I had read before, almost too mush the same.

As I opened the pages and started reading, I soon found out, it was nothing like the earlier book I had read.  Completely different.  I was so relieved, and dug into it as fast as I could read, and found it to be a really great read.  I believe it had taken me a day or 2 to read it from start to finish, the plot and characters were interesting, the premise intriguing, and hopefully, we will have another book soon, because I want to know what happens to Geiger.  Does he come back to exact revenge, or goes back to doing what he has been – exacting the truth from people.

On the back of the galley I received, it states that it was to be released sometime in January, but when I went to their website, it stated sometime in April.  So, I contacted the person who sent it to me because I wanted to double-check if there was an embargo on the book and not to publish my review too early, but since there wasn’t here it is.  If you are a fan of the thriller/action/adventure genre I believe that you will like this book when it is released, so go out and get it.  It is also known as The Truth Hurts

Excerpt – Read – Audio – Goodreads – Facebook Page – Website – Twitter

#8 – The Beggar’s Opera – Peggy Blair

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In beautiful, crumbling Old Havana, Canadian detective Mike Ellis hopes the sun and sand will help save his troubled marriage.

He doesn’t yet know that it’s dead in the water—much like the little Cuban boy last seen begging the Canadian couple for a few pesos on the world famous Malecon.

For Inspector Ricardo Ramirez, head of the Major Crimes Unit of the Cuban National Revolutionary Police, finding his prime suspect isn’t a problem—Cuban law is.

He has only seventy-two hours to secure an indictment and prevent a vicious killer from leaving the island. But Ramirez also has his own troubles to worry about. He’s dying of the same dementia that killed his grandmother, an incurable disease that makes him see the ghosts of victims of unsolved murders. As he races against time, the dead haunt his every step … – Publishers Website

What a breath of fresh air ! I loved Peggy’s tale of Cuba, intrigue, suspense, action and adventure.  She kept me guessing all through the novel, just when I thought I knew who the bad guy was, I was so totally wrong!   She had woven a tale that I am almost sad that I got to read the first book of three, because now I want to read them all at once ! Oh well, we will just have to wait until Peggy is finished writing those book don’t we?  Peggy, I just hope that I am one of the first on that list to be able to get a sneak peek before everyone else (I love my job reviewing) I think just because of that, I get a sneak peek at books that I loved and gush about before any of the public does! Too bad the pay isn’t better ! ha ha !!

So, if you are a fan of the thriller, action, adventure genre, then this new to you and me author will have you glued to wherever you’re reading this and will have you there until you have read the last word on the page.  Then you will think to yourself, Peggy!! Hurry Up!! I want more please !!

Stay tuned, I have a Q and A with Peggy that I have done recently with her, as well as a list of other blogs that are on her Blog Tour so you can see what they had to say about Peggy’s first book of three.  It will be posted immediately here after I am done this post.

Beggars Opera Site – Peggy on Twitter – Goodreads – Peggy’s Website – Facebook – Peggy’s Blog – Read an Excerpt

 

#6 – The Placebo Effect – David Rotenberg

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Decker Roberts has the dangerous gift of detecting the truth. For years this talent proved to be a lucrative sideline to his acting teaching. Only his closest friends know, and he keeps his identity secret from the companies that pay him to tell them if the people they are planning to hire are lying.

But Decker’s carefully compartmentalized life starts to fall apart. His house burns down, his credit cards are cancelled, his bank loan is called and his studio is condemned.

He realizes that he must have heard something in one of his truth telling sessions that someone didn’t want him to know.

Decker has to go on the run and figure out why he’s been targeted. There’s also a government agent hunting him who seems to know absolutely everything about Decker Roberts’ identities, real and false—and other people of “his kind.” How will Decker find out which truth is endangering his life?

Who betrayed him and revealed all his secrets? Decker needs to find answers quickly, before knowing the truth turns from a gift into a deadly curse.- Publishers Website

I really enjoyed the angle of this book.  Synesthesia is an actual phenomenon if you will, it does exist, if you happen to do a google search as I did.  My main question would be would you want to have this sort of magical super-power?  I guess it would have to be said I would love to have one, but not one that would get me into trouble for one, after all I am an angel…tee hee!  David’s writing was engrossing, informative, entertaining, and a terrific waste of time.  Just remember that this is the first in a series I believe of three books, with David giving me a bit of a scoop on the next one in a Q and A I did with him over email recently.   He just so happens to be a fellow Canadian, this isn’t his first book either.  He’s written 5 mysteries set in Modern China, as well as a best-selling historical fiction novel.  I don’t think I will have any resistance in grabbing his next novel, regardless of the setting, he sure can write !

Facebook – David’s Website – Excerpt – Reading Group Questions

Stay tuned, as I have done a Q and A with David, it will be posted right after I am done posting this review !!

#63 – The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer – Michelle Hodkin

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Mara Dyer doesn’t think life can get any stranger than waking up in a hospital with no memory of how she got there.

It can.

She believes there must be more to the accident she can’t remember that killed her friends and left her mysteriously unharmed.

There is.

She doesn’t believe that after everything she’s been through, she can fall in love.

She’s wrong. – Publishers Website

I loved this book !! Even from the description on the back page, it is THAT intriguing !! After reading it, I am speechless, it was that darn good.

Since it is a young adult title from Simon and Schuster, it will appeal to an older audience as well.  We have a teenager who is coming to terms with the death of 2 of her good friends, she moves away, and more incidents of odd happenings follow her.  She has no memory of the accident, but, as time goes by, she begins to piece things together…She is shocked, scared and doesn’t know what to do.  Until she meets a boy in her new high school who she falls for, but he has his secrets as well.

As time goes by, they are inseparable.  At the end of this book (I believe there are 2 other books being written in the series) There are more questions than answers.  Some of the answers have been taken care of,  the most serious ones…haven’t.

Michelle is a supremely talented writer, I hope that when book 2 comes out, that talent is still here ready and waiting to thrill me like the first book did.  I do get overly critical of young adult books, because of the content.  However, with this book, I threw that out with abandon and absolutely loved this book !! It has all the facets of a thrill ride you will not soon forget.  So, go and get this book !!Make sure you check out the books trailer below – AMAZING !

Michelle’s Website – Michelle’s Blog – Twitter – GoodReads – Browse Inside

#52 – The Witch of Babylon – D. J. McIntosh

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Out of the searing heat and sandstorms of the infamous summer of 2003 in Baghdad comes The Witch of Babylon, a gripping story rooted in ancient Assyrian lore and its little-known but profound significance for the world.

John Madison is a Turkish-American art dealer raised by his much older brother, Samuel, a mover and shaker in New York’s art world. Caught between his brother’s obsession with saving a priceless relic looted from Iraq’s National Museum and a deadly game of revenge staged by his childhood friend, John must solve a puzzle to find the link between a modern-day witch and an ancient one.

Aided by Tomas, an archaeologist, and Ari, an Iraqi photojournalist—two men with their own secrets to hide—John races against time to unearth the dark history behind the old science of alchemy: Is the notion of turning lead into gold possible after all?

Against his will John is taken back to Iraq. Awaiting him is a fabulous underground treasure trove and the truth behind a famous story the world believes is only a myth. - Publishers Website

I have to admit, I really loved the suspense, the adventure, and the narrative in this book ! I literally devoured it in one sitting, one night, I could not put this book down for a moment ! This happens to be book 1 of a three book series.  I just realized that and it answers so many questions I had about the book, so I won’t bore you with them, because they will probably show up in book 2 or three of the series.  It had nagged me for a long time, now I can let it go and see if it appears in the next book, which I cannot wait to read and devour maybe just as fast as I did this one.  D.J. sends you on a thrill ride you won’t soon forget.  This book has been compared to some of Dan Brown’s work, but I wouldn’t believe it for a second.  It is much better !

The Babylon Trilogy Website – D.J. McIntosh on Facebook – Twitter