“His and Hers” by Alice Feeney

Narrated by Richard Armitage and Stephanie Racine

His and Hers is a great listen! Richard Armitage and Stephanie Racine did and excellent job of bringing the characters to life and allowing the suspense of the mystery to build gradually. I found that the back and forth flowed very smoothly and added to the drama of the story.

Anna Andrews and Jack Harper have a unique history which is not immediately apparent. There are mysteries within mysteries throughout the storyline and I found it to be very engaging from the start. The characters are multi-faceted which makes them more relatable and fascinating in my opinion. The conclusion rolled out easily and fit with the events that had transpired.

If you’re looking for your next audiobook, I would definitely recommend this one.

Happy Reading!

Find it on Amazon!

“Missing Persons” by Michael Brandman

LAPD homicide detective Buddy Steel finds himself detoured from his own life when his ailing father, Sheriff Burton Steel, calls him home to Freedom to take over as deputy. Though relations between father and son have always been strained, and Buddy reluctantly agrees to the arrangement.

When he begins investigating the possible disappearance of a famous local televangelist’s wife, he is met with outright antagonism. While the highly-secured husband insists that his wife is simply visiting a relative, the housekeeper who reported her missing fears she may have been murdered. And no one, from family members to ministry security and staff to the prosecutor’s office seems inclined to help Buddy in his investigation. In fact, many go out of their way to stop him.

But the more he pokes and prods, the more he realizes that the Bible-thumping family and their television empire may be an elaborate cover for a less-than-holy enterprise. This is far more than a typical missing person case. But how far up does the corruption reach—and will Buddy pay the ultimate price for refusing to look the other way?

Michael Brandman is a new-to-me author and he captured my attention with this story right away and kept me glued to the page till the end. Set in a small town on the coast of California, I instantly felt at home. Also, if you’ve been around for a while, you know I have a particular interest in stories with a cult connection.

Buddy Steel had me a little flummoxed at first because he is so conflicted about his new role as Sheriff. He did grow on me quickly though. I really enjoyed the interplay between him and his deputies. The author did a great job of incorporating Buddy’s personal conflicts into the story so that you can relate to him as a complete person not just a stereotype.

The story itself was original and had some great twists before the end. I enjoyed the author’s direct writing style which gave the narrative an added punch. I was surprised by how much I enjoyed this first in a series book and will definitely pick up more books in this series.

Happy Reading!

Find it on Amazon!

“The Nothing Man” by Catherine Ryan Howard

Narrated by Alana Kerr-Collins and John Keating

At the age of twelve, Eve Black was the only member of her family to survive an encounter with serial attacker the Nothing Man. Now an adult, she is obsessed with identifying the man who destroyed her life.

Supermarket security guard Jim Doyle has just started reading The Nothing Man—the true-crime memoir Eve has written about her efforts to track down her family’s killer. As he turns each page, his rage grows. Because Jim’s not just interested in reading about the Nothing Man. He is the Nothing Man.

Jim soon beings to realize how dangerously close Eve is getting to the truth. He knows she won’t give up until she finds him. He has no choice but to stop her first …

Narration:

I enjoyed the narration of this book. The transitions between the 2 narrators were smooth and suited the story well. The audio quality was excellent. I think the narrator’s voices were good matches to the characters they are portraying.

Story:

The story is an interesting concept but it didn’t draw me in the way I wanted it to. Some places seemed to drag. I did enjoy that the narrative went back and forth between Eve’s perspective of events and the murderer’s perspective. I found Eve’s method of coping with the events of her life to be fascinating. The murderer seemed to want me to feel sorry for him but I just couldn’t see him as the wounded party in any of the events.

I’m giving this book

4 stars

because I did enjoy the narration, maybe a little more than the story itself.

Find it on Amazon!

“The Secret Mother” by Shalini Boland

Narrated by Katie Villa

Tessa Markham comes home to find a little boy in her kitchen. He thinks she’s his mother. But Tessa doesn’t have any children. 

Not anymore.

She doesn’t know who the child is or how he got there.

After contacting the police, Tessa comes under suspicion for snatching the boy. She must fight to prove her innocence. But how can she convince everyone she’s not guilty when even those closest to her are questioning the truth? And when Tessa doesn’t even trust herself…

This story had me intrigued from the opening chapter. Tessa comes home to find a child claiming to be her son in her kitchen. She is thrown for a loop. Now she can’t help but want to unravel the mystery of this child. The process will force her to confront her own history and even question her sanity. I couldn’t help but hope for the best even when everything seemed to be working against her.

This story has some surprising twists. I liked the pace of the story, it kept moving forward without dragging but also didn’t feel rushed. The story is well narrated by Katie Villa. She adds the right amount of drama to her narration to make the story come alive without overdoing it. I thoroughly enjoyed this listen.

Happy Listening!

Find it on Amazon!

 

 

Audible Original: “Second Skin” by Christian White

Narrated by Ellen Archer

Stan Weir is mourning a tragic loss when he meets a mysterious nine-year-old girl, who claims to be the reincarnated spirit of his late wife. Marcy Keef is a single mother trying to make ends meet when her daughter Erin starts describing ‘past life memories’. Neither wants to believe Erin, but as violent secrets are revealed, the truth becomes harder to deny.

So, I don’t delve into the paranormal much and I really wasn’t quite sure what to expect when I downloaded this Audible Original. I mean, a nine-year-old with the reincarnated spirit of a grown woman. What was that going to be like? I was in for a very intriguing surprise of a story. Turns out that Erin is a very charming little girl, but the secrets in this story are not charming at all.

I found the story to be filled with twists that I wasn’t expecting and Stan, who is in serious need of help. The story is also excellently narrated by Ellen Archer with just the right amount of drama to draw the listener in and breath life into the characters. I found this to be an excellent listen and well worth the 4 1/2 hours.

Happy Listening!

Find it on Amazon!

Flash Review: “A Curious Beginning” by Deanna Raybourn

Narrated by Angele Masters

Plot Summary: London, 1887. As the city prepares to celebrate Queen Victoria’s golden jubilee, Veronica Speedwell is marking a milestone of her own. After burying her spinster aunt, the orphaned Veronica is free to resume her world travels in pursuit of scientific inquiry – and the occasional romantic dalliance. As familiar with hunting butterflies as she is fending off admirers, Veronica wields her butterfly net and a sharpened hatpin with equal aplomb, and with her last connection to England now gone, she intends to embark upon the journey of a lifetime. But fate has other plans, as Veronica discovers when she thwarts her own abduction with the help of an enigmatic German baron with ties to her mysterious past. Promising to reveal in time what he knows of the plot against her, the baron offers her temporary sanctuary in the care of his friend Stoker – a reclusive natural historian as intriguing as he is bad-tempered. But before the baron can deliver on his tantalizing vow to reveal the secrets he has concealed for decades, he is found murdered. Suddenly Veronica and Stoker are forced to go on the run from an elusive assailant, wary partners in search of the villainous truth.

What I liked about it: Veronica Speedwell. She’s a gutsy young lady, an adventurer, who suddenly finds herself alone in the world with somebody out to get her. Very enjoyable characters in this book and an engaging plotline.

What I didn’t like: The first couple of chapters took a little time to get going but once the preliminaries were over it was full speed ahead. This is the first book in a series so there is some groundwork that has to be laid. I’ve also read one of the books further into the series and there is not as much background in subsequent installments.

Quality of narration:  Excellent!

Would I recommend:  Yes!!

Rating:  

Happy Reading!

Find it on Amazon!

 

 

Flash Review!: “Die Trying” by Lee Child

Narrated by Jonathan McClain

Series:     Jack Reacher Book 2

What I Like:   Well, it’s Jack Reacher, handsome, ex-military guy who lives by his own      rules. Great characters. Complex, twisty story. Fantastic narration.

What I Don’t Like:  It leans a little bit too much to organized crime for my taste and lost me a bit at times.

Would I Recommend: Yes, but not my favorite in the series.

Rating:  

Happy Reading!

Find it on Amazon!

“Robert Parker’s Grudge Match” by Mike Lupica

Sunny Randall Book 8

When Sunny’s long-time gangster associate Tony Marcus comes to her for help, Sunny is surprised–after all, she double crossed him on a recent deal, and their relationship is on shakier ground than ever. But the way Tony figures it, Sunny owes him, and Sunny’s willing to consider his case if it will clear the slate.

Tony’s trusted girlfriend and business partner has vanished, appears to have left in a hurry, and he has no idea why. He just wants to talk to her, he says, but first he needs Sunny to track her down. While Sunny isn’t willing to trust his good intentions, the missing woman intrigues her–against all odds, she’s risen to a position of power in Tony’s criminal enterprise. Sunny can’t help but admire her, and if this woman’s in a jam, Sunny would like to help.

But when a witness is murdered hours after speaking to Sunny, it’s clear there’s more at stake than just Tony’s love life. Someone–maybe even Tony himself–doesn’t want this woman on the loose…and will go to any lengths to make sure she stays silent.

Sunny Randall is up in my Top 10 of female detectives so I was very pleased to be granted a review copy of this latest release. This actually turned out to be a quick read from me because I just couldn’t put it down. Sunny’s got a bad history with Tony Marcus but now he needs her help and is willing to let bygones be bygones, or so he says. While Sunny is looking for his missing girlfriend, the competition is trying to move in on Tony and is not afraid of using Sunny as a part of their takeover attempt. Then she is suddenly confronted with the re-appearance of her ex-husband’s son in their lives.

There are a lot of moving parts in this story but the author expertly wove them together into a story that keeps you guessing. Sunny is brash and ballsy on the job, but finds herself getting more and more wrapped up with the little boy. I love that these stories are set in Boston, a city I have visited but don’t really have a good knowledge of. A lot of the enjoyment for me in reading is getting to visit places I don’t know much about. Sunny is a character that has developed over the course of the series into a tough and loyal detective, with a enough of a feminine side to be relatable for us ordinary folk. As for the mob guys, well, I like the uniqueness of their characters but as people I wouldn’t want to get anywhere near them. That Sunny can hold her own in their presence amazes me.

I am recommending this book because I really enjoy the writing and pacing of the story, I love the character of Sunny, and the location is on that intrigues me. If you haven’t discovered Sunny Randall yet that you need to, plain and simple.

Alinefromabook’s rating:  

Happy Reading!

Find it on Amazon:

“In Her Shadow” by Kristin Miller

When secretary Colleen Roper becomes pregnant by her boss, Michael, he whisks her away to Ravenwood, his opulent estate. Abruptly thrust into a life of luxury she’s never known, Colleen finds the immense house suffused with the memory of Michael’s wife, Joanna, who left months ago and haunts her imagination. With rooms she’s prohibited from entering and a staff that greets her with hostility, there is little room for a new mistress of Ravenwood.

It’s not long before bones are unearthed in the grove across the street and Michael falls under the suspicion of detectives. The soon-to-be mother of his child finds herself hurled deeper into her lover’s dark past, a past filled with unfaithfulness and deception. Making a claim to her new life is harder than it seems—especially since she’s walking in the shadow of the hauntingly beautiful Joanna. As Colleen untangles truth from lies, she discovers that nothing is what it seems, and that some people will kill to keep their secrets as quiet as the dead.

This mystery is inspired by “Rebecca” by Daphne du Maurier and the first chapter feels very reminiscent of “Rebecca”. But the story’s originality quickly becomes apparent after the first chapter. I was drawn in by the characters immediately. Colleen is a lovely young lady who appears very naive. While Michael comes across as very much taking advantage of Colleen. Don’t be deceived though, these characters are much more complex than they at first appear. Motives shift from one person to another and you will have to get to the end in order to fully understand what has been happening throughout.

This book is loaded with murder, deception, ulterior motives and betrayal, all wrapped up in a mysterious modern setting. I enjoyed this story much more than I expected to and highly recommend it.

Alinefromabook’s rating:

Happy Reading!

Find it on Amazon!

 

“A Cold Trail” by Robert Dugoni

Tracy Crosswhite, Book 7

The last time homicide detective Tracy Crosswhite was in Cedar Grove, it was to see her sister’s killer put behind bars. Now she’s returned for a respite and the chance to put her life back in order for herself, her attorney husband, Dan, and their new daughter. But tragic memories soon prove impossible to escape.

Dan is drawn into representing a local merchant whose business is jeopardized by the town’s revitalization. And Tracy is urged by the local PD to put her own skills to work on a new case: the brutal murder of a police officer’s wife and local reporter who was investigating a cold-case slaying of a young woman. As Tracy’s and Dan’s cases crisscross, Tracy’s trail becomes dangerous. It’s stirring up her own haunted past and a decades-old conspiracy in Cedar Grove that has erupted in murder. Getting to the truth is all that matters. But what’s Tracy willing to risk as a killer gets closer to her and threatens everyone she loves?

I always forget how much I enjoy Tracy Crosswhite until I pick up the next book and can’t bear to put it down. This one was especially interesting because Tracy has become a mother and I was very curious to see how this was going to impact her work. I think the author did a very good job of exploring that through Tracy’s inner dialogue as she investigates the case and in her interactions with Dan. This story also has some very intricate plotting, complicated by the fact that it takes place in Cedar Grove, where Tracy grew up and where her sister was also murdered. I think the setting of the story also gave some insight into how Tracy became the person she is as the reader gets to see her through the eyes of the townspeople, many of whom remember her from her childhood.

I particularly enjoy a series where you get to see the character develop, change and mature with time and the situations that they find themselves in. This is one of those series. I really enjoyed this installment and look forward to many more books in this series.

Alinefromabook’s rating:

Happy Reading!

Find Tracy on Amazon!

Tracy Crosswhite Book 1