KN Magazine: Reviews
Wicked Deeds by Heather Graham / Review by Tim Suddeth
BOOK OF THE DAY
Murders, ghosts, a lot of romance, and Poe, as in Edgar Allan, what more could a mystery reader ask for? Heather Graham hits the sweet spot with her latest, and the twenty-third installment in her Krewe of Hunters series, Wicked Deeds, (MIRA Books). She has written over two hundred novels including suspense, historical romance, occult, and vampire fiction.
An elite group of FBI agents, the Krewe of Hunters is called in when a case includes the paranormal. With a setting like Baltimore and a restaurant with an Edgar Allen Poe theme, it’s a quick call.
Historian Vickie Preston and FBI Agent Griffin Pryce look forward to starting their lives together. Vickie is looking forward to becoming a member of the Krewe when she completes FBI training. They make a quick stop in Baltimore for a weekend getaway. But their rest is cut short when the body of a noted author is found in the basement of the restaurant.
The reader gets more than they bargained for as the couple becomes involved in not one but two cases, the current murders in the restaurant and the murder of Poe, himself.
The author does a great job of introducing us to Baltimore as it is now and taking us to its streets in the mid-1800’s.
An easy reader with likable characters and a gothic feel, it will have you staying up late turning the pages to see who-dun-it.
Tim Suddeth attended the 2017 Killer Nashville Internation Writers’ Conferences as the Jimmy Loftin Memorial Scholarship winner. He has started a series of a young law school graduate starting her career in Charleston, SC. He lives in Greenville, SC with his wife, Vickie, and his 20-year-old autistic son, Madison. He can be reached at timingreenville@gmail.com and is a regular contributor at The Write Conversation and www.timingreenville.com.
Coyote Zone by Kathryn Lane / Review by Sharon Marchisello
COYOTE ZONE
By Kathryn Lane
Pen-L Publishing
$16.95
978-1683131083
September 27, 2017
BOOK OF THE DAY
Killer Nashville 2018 Silver Falchion Nominee
Kathryn Lane, winner of two 2017 Silver Falchion awards, has delivered another engaging thriller. Coyote Zone (Pen-L Publishing, 2017) is a follow-up to her debut novel, Waking Up in Medellin, which was named Best Book of the Year for 2017 and Best Adult Suspense Fiction.
Spunky Mexican-American heroine Nikki Garcia is back, as well as several other characters from Lane's debut novel. When the story opens, Nikki is vacationing in the Yucatan with her fiancé Eduardo, but their lovefest is interrupted by a call from her new boss, Floyd, to investigate a kidnapping in San Miguel de Allende. Nikki is uniquely qualified to handle the job because she is a woman, speaks Spanish fluently, and is already in the country.
Bibiana Lombardi, the 10-year-old daughter of Italian immigrant restaurant owner Sofia Lombardi, disappears in a crowded market when her mother turns her head for a moment. No one can provide any information except for a maligned bag lady, Juana la Marihuana, who claims to have seen the child nabbed by a coyote, i.e., human trafficker.
Sofia assumes her estranged husband, Paolo, and his domineering mother, Chiara, have taken the child, and she refuses to listen to the crazy street woman, but Nikki and Eduardo are determined to follow all leads. Nikki ends up going undercover and walking right into the coyote's den, putting her own life in jeopardy to save Bibiana and other children from a terrible fate.
Not only is this a page-turning thriller with twist after heart-wrenching twist, but it brings awareness to the very real issue of human trafficking. Lane's research is apparent and the reader feels a strong sense of place.
In addition to the two novels in the Nikki Garcia Thriller Series, Kathryn Lane has published a collection of short stories, Backyard Volcano. Originally from Mexico, she has a background in accounting and international finance, which allowed her to travel extensively. She and her husband reside in The Woodlands, Texas, where she serves on the Montgomery County Literary Arts Council. She is a member of Mystery Writers of America, Sisters in Crime, and International Thriller Writers.
Sharon Marchisello (sharonmarchisello.com) is the author of Going Home, (Sunbury Press, 2014) a murder mystery inspired by her mother's battle with Alzheimer's. She earned a Masters in Professional Writing from the University of Southern California and is a member of the Atlanta Chapter of Sisters in Crime. She lives in Peachtree City, GA, with her husband and cat, does volunteer work for the Fayette Humane Society, and writes a blog about personal finance, Countdown to Financial Fitness https://sharonmarchisello.blogspot.com/.
Oath of Honor by Lynette Eason / Review by Tim Suddeth
BOOK OF THE DAY
If you are looking for a story that combines romantic suspense and police procedural, Lynette Eason’s Oath of Honor may be just what you’re looking for. Eason won the 2017 Readers’ Choice Award for Best Fiction Adult Suspense for Always Watching from her Elite Guardians series.
Oath of Honor is the first in her Blue Justice series. Think Castle (if he had been a cop) meets Blue Bloods.
Police officer Isabelle St. John is from a large police family headed by her mother who is the chief of police. But Izzy learns that, sometimes, family can get in the way. Like when your partner is shot to death while staking out a criminal location while off-duty. Or when you don’t know if your family are all on the right side. But when attempts are made on her life, where else can she turn to?
Her dead partner’s brother, homicide detective Ryan Marshall, knows he should stay out of the investigation, but it’s his brother. And, Izzy had always been part of his family. If she’s in danger, he wants to be there to help.
Eason takes the reader on a wild ride with lots of twists and surprises. She has created two real and likable characters. The big question is, will they still be alive at the end?
Tim Suddeth attended the 2017 Killer Nashville Internation Writers’ Conferences as the Jimmy Loftin Memorial Scholarship winner. He has started a series of a young law school graduate starting her career in Charleston, SC. He lives in Greenville, SC with his wife, Vickie, and his 20-year-old autistic son, Madison. He can be reached at timingreenville@gmail.com and is a regular contributor at The Write Conversation and www.timingreenville.com.
The Girl in the Ice by Robert Bryndza / Review by Holly Chaille
THE GIRL IN THE ICE
By Robert Bryndza
Grand Central Publishing
$12.99
978-1538713426
April 24, 2018
BOOK OF THE DAY
A cold night, fog in the air, and moonlight casting unreliable shadows. She’s upset to the point of wandering so far no one will hear her cry for help. This is the kind of prologue with layers of description that create an atmosphere so tense I was instantly transported to the setting of the crime. Even knowing something terrible was gaining on her, I couldn’t look away. And I didn’t until the last page of this sprint-paced story, which lands perfectly at an ending that satisfies the whodunit faithful.
A British crime mystery that hit several bestseller lists, Robert Bryndza’s The Girl in the Ice introduces a strong female protagonist in Detective Erika Foster. A woman with very recent demons still haunting her, Erika expects to be on desk duty for the foreseeable future. But an old friend, feeling she needs to get back in the game, calls her into a high profile murder investigation of a young socialite whose influential parents seem hell-bent on preventing Foster from solving the case.
Navigating her new team—not all of whom are thrilled to bring her on—adds tension to an already stressed out Foster, whose disdain for authority and fragile psyche take a few chapters to figure out. As protagonists go, she’s well-written and believable, giving the reader more than enough personality to connect with.
With the body count rising Detective Foster challenges those around her to dig deeper to find the common denominator. But the closer she gets the more pressure she gets from her higher-ups to reroute her investigation away from the socialite’s famous family. Foster is abruptly removed from the case and, as strong women are wont to do, seizes the opportunity to go even harder toward her goal. She’s a brilliant, fearless strategist with no apologies for her direct approach, and this is why the series has sold millions of copies.
The dialogue is the strongest aspect of the story, giving the minor characters dimension and depth. Bryndza threads the kind of nuance throughout the dialogue that makes everyone seem like a viable suspect. Fans of Elizabeth George and Ruth Rendell will appreciate the uncompromising style and British elegance of his writing and character building.
Though this was Bryndza’s first in the Erika Foster series he’s just released number six so fans are advised to select a good bottle of red and hunker down with a stack of these page-turning thrillers and get to know Detective Erika Foster.
Holly Chaille is a member of Sisters in Crime and the daughter of a librarian. Growing up in the stacks cultivated her lifelong love of suspense and thrillers, and she's currently querying her first mystery and developing her blog at HollyAChaille.com.
A Matter of Chance by Julie Maloney / Review by Sheila Sobel
BOOK OF THE DAY
When it comes to your children, everything has the potential to become your worst nightmare. Like most parents, Maddy Stewart kept those fears locked away until the day Vinni, her eight-year-old daughter, went missing. In her debut novel, A Matter of Chance, Julie Maloney deftly weaves loss, love, terror, and hope together in a story that will keep the reader turning pages.
From the Jersey Shore to Manhattan to Germany, Maddy searches not only for her daughter but for herself. The adjustment from wife and mother to single mom was difficult. But now, as the mother of a missing child, Maddy’s world has capsized. She doesn’t know where her daughter is. She no longer knows who she is, or how she fits into this world. Her faith in humanity is shaken. Everyone Maddy ever trusted failed her, her mother, her ex-husband Steve, her childhood friend Kay. Added to the growing list is the kindly German couple, Hilda and Rudy, who, as chance would have it, lived down the beach from her summer rental. There was no reason for Maddy to suspect that Hilda and Rudy had ulterior motives when they showed interest in her daughter.
As the years pass without news of Vinni, Maddy’s new normal begins to take shape. She finds an ally in Detective John D’Orfini. She takes comfort in a return to her artistic roots through her mentor Evelyn. She rebuilds her once-broken friendship with Kay.
Julie Maloney’s debut is an adult coming of age novel beautifully wrapped in a mystery. A Matter of Chance is a reminder of how fragile our existence is, how life can change instantly from a sunny day at the beach to the depths of despair. It is also the reminder that, like Maddy, we all have untapped inner strength and hope that can carry us through the mysteries of life.
Sheila Sobel’s debut novel Color Blind was the winner of the 2017 Killer Nashville Reader’s Choice Award for Best Tween/YA Fiction and Finalist for the 2017 Silver Falchion Award for Best YA Fiction. She was also nominated for the 2016 Allegra Johnson Prize in Novel Writing through the UCLA Extension Writers’ Program.
As a Senior Auditor for Warner Bros., Sheila oversaw production costs for films including “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone,” the “Matrix” trilogy, “The Dark Knight” and “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.” After working on 70+ Independent and Studio movies, Sheila stepped away from the film business to complete her first YA novel.
Sheila is a member of International Thriller Writers (ITW), Sisters in Crime (SinC), Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators (SCBWI), Children’s Book Writers-LA (CBW-LA) and Women in Film (WIF). She lives in Southern California with her husband, two rescue dogs and one rescue cat.
Forever Young by Henry Hack / Review by Sheila Sobel
BOOK OF THE DAY
Killer Nashville 2018 Silver Falchion Nominee
Together again in book four of the A Danny Boyland Novel series, Detective Danny Boyland and his partner, Virgil “Spider” Webb catch, then solve a murder in record time. When the shooter confesses and pleads guilty, the chief is content to close the case. Add another one to the department’s best closers’ record. Danny and Spider recognize that almost always, murder is messy, and this one is just a little too neat. When FBI Agent Mike Havlek informs the duo that the victim was in witness protection, the fourth protected witness to be murdered, their instincts are validated.
On loan to the FBI, Danny and Spider team up with Agent Havlek and the chase begins before a fifth witness becomes the next victim. Who is leaking the witness list and why? Conspiracy theories and a search for the Fountain of Youth lead the trio, along with the U.S. Marshalls and a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist, pregnant wife of Mike Havlek, from the depths of humanity to the highest offices in the nation. The Fountain of Youth, science fiction or fact? Worth killing for? Definitely. Billions could be made. The rich could control everyone’s lives forever. Power and greed propel this fast-paced police procedural to a satisfying conclusion.
Author Henry Hack’s twenty-two years in the Nassau County, NY Police Department serve him well, as Forever Young possesses an authenticity that keeps the reader turning the pages and hungry for the release of the next book in the A Danny Boyland Novel series.
Danny Boy (2009), the first novel in the series featuring NYMPD Detective Daniel Boyland, was followed by Cases Closed (2012), Mommy, Mommy (2013), and now, Forever Young (2017).
Sheila Sobel’s debut novel Color Blind was the winner of the 2017 Killer Nashville Reader’s Choice Award for Best Tween/YA Fiction and Finalist for the 2017 Silver Falchion Award for Best YA Fiction. She was also nominated for the 2016 Allegra Johnson Prize in Novel Writing through the UCLA Extension Writers’ Program.
As a Senior Auditor for Warner Bros., Sheila oversaw production costs for films including “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone,” the “Matrix” trilogy, “The Dark Knight” and “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.” After working on 70+ Independent and Studio movies, Sheila stepped away from the film business to complete her first YA novel.
Sheila is a member of International Thriller Writers (ITW), Sisters in Crime (SinC), Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators (SCBWI), Children’s Book Writers-LA (CBW-LA) and Women in Film (WIF). She lives in Southern California with her husband, two rescue dogs and one rescue cat.
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