Tag Archives: A Hope Sze Medical Crime Novel

White Lightning: Prohibition and Predators: A Mystery Across the Centuries with a White Knuckle Finish You Won’t Believe (Hope Sze medical mystery Book 9) by Melissa Yi Review

Leave a reply

I received a free copy of this book in exchange for a fair and honest review. All opinions are my own. 

Doctor and mystery investigator extraordinaire Hope Sze finds herself investigating a century-old mystery as a weekend trip to an old prohibition era inn hosting a fictional villain convention leads to the discovery of bones, and a threat to those staying in the inn in author Melissa Yi’s “White Lightning: Prohibition and Predators: A Mystery Across the Centuries with a White Knuckle Finish You Won’t Believe (Hope Sze medical mystery Book 9)”.

The Synopsis

FROM HOOCH HIGHWAY TO HOMICIDE

Hope Sze escapes for a romantic weekend away at the Rumrunner’s Rest, a Roaring Twenties inn once celebrated both for Prohibition’s best alcohol and the smoothest jazz bands north of the Detroit River.

Then a convention of fictional villains overrun the tavern, her friend glimpses a ghost, and Hope uncovers a grisly surprise in the fireplace that may be related to Al Capone, the infamous gangster.

At least two people disappeared from this very inn, and one soul will not rest in peace.

Tonight, unless Hope unravels a century’s worth of clues, death will collect several more lives. Including the one, she holds most dear.

Advertisements

The Review

This was a perfect mystery read! The author continues to enthrall and entertain readers with the perfect balance of mystery, history, and engaging character-driven narrative to really entice and bring readers to the edge of their seats. The inclusion of prohibition-era history, from the prohibition bars that were so popular a century ago, to Al Capone and a character’s possible relation to him, really elevated the actual mystery that this story held. 

What stood out to me though was the character development. It was incredible to see these characters evolve and grow as the story progressed, especially going into the 9th story in this growing mystery series. From the medical aspect of the character’s perspective on the mystery of these grisly findings inside of the inn’s chimney to the sudden appearance of an old flame who turned Hope’s world upside down years ago to the question of whether or not history and our ancestry can have any sort of impact on our world today, each character really exhibited chemistry and balance with one another, as did the growing shroud of shocks and thrills to the novel. 

The Verdict

A masterful, heart-pounding, and brilliant medical thriller and mystery read, author Melissa Yi’s “White Lightning” is a must-read novel of 2021 and the perfect next installment in Hope’s growing mystery series. The historical nature of the character’s in the flashbacks and how they relate to the modern-day mystery really add extra depth to the novel, making this a thrilling fall and winter read. If you haven’t yet, be sure to grab your copy today!

Rating: 10/10

Advertisements
Scorpion Scheme Review

About the Author

Melissa Yi is an emergency physician and award-winning writer. In her newest crime novel, SCORPION SCHEME, Dr. Hope Sze lands in Cairo and discovers a man with a nail through his skull who might hold the key to millions in buried gold. Previous Hope Sze thrillers were recommended by The Globe and Mail, CBC Books, and The Next Chapter as one of the best Canadian suspense novels. Yi was shortlisted for the Derringer Award for the world’s best short mystery fiction. Under the name Melissa Yuan-Innes, she also writes medical humor and has won speculative fiction awards. http://www.melissayuaninnes.com/

Advertisement

Scorpion Scheme: Death and Danger on the Nile (Hope Sze Medical Mystery Book 8) by Melissa Yi Review

1 Reply

I received a free copy of this book in exchange for a fair and honest review. All opinions are my own. 

A chance at studying the ancient history and culture of the Egyptians leads Dr. Hope Sze and her fiancé to Egypt, where they become embroiled in a shocking mystery as they search for fabled treasure and must outwit a dangerous criminal mastermind in author Melissa Yi’s “Scorpion Scheme: Death and Danger on the Nile”, the eighth book in the Hope Sze Medical Mystery series. 

Advertisements

The Synopsis

PHARAOHS’ TOMBS. ANCIENT MYTHS. MODERN-DAY MURDER

Dr. Hope Sze doesn’t need a free trip to Egypt.

She can’t afford the flight to Cairo, or the cruise down the Nile, so she’d keep studying in Canada—except her fiancé, Dr. John Tucker, yearns to patrol the pyramids and confront the curse on King Tutankhamun’s tomb.

So when a company offers them both a free stay in Cairo in exchange for a month’s work in an emergency department, Tucker lobbies for a pre-honeymoon in the Valley of Kings and Queens, investigating the windswept temple of Hatshepsut, or scuba diving in the Red Sea.

Instead, within 90 minutes of arrival, Hope drops to her knees outside the Grand Egyptian Museum, desperate to save a now-comatose 87-year-old Johannesburg man who’d raved about Kruger and treasure after receiving a nail through his skull.

Tucker fixates on their one chance at the legendary Kruger Millions, a rumored fortune that many believe lies secretly stowed somewhere in South Africa.

Since their combined student debt load totals half a million dollars, Tucker can’t pass up the possibility of a treasure trove in buried gold.

Hope launches into her first mystery based in a birthplace of human civilization.

Where the evil god Set battled righteous Horus and Isis in an 80-year war.

Where wealth and power clash with political revolution.

Where Antony fell in love with Cleopatra.

Where Hope and Tucker must outwit, or fall prey, to a ruthless criminal mastermind.

The Review

A fantastic blend of medical drama and an action-packed mystery like no other, this novel was a massive draw for this reader, especially as a fan of Indiana Jones and his films. The author does a great job of bringing their own authenticity to Hope’s character as the author is also a medical doctor, and from the book’s first chapters readers are treated to the protagonist’s heroic call to action to help others with her skills.

The big draw of course is the amazing historical mystery and action-packed heroics against this criminal mastermind. The author does a fantastic job of not only making this book accessible to both newcomers and fans of the series alike, but of crafting a character that feels authentic and brings history and its many mysteries to life, especially in such a short read.

The Verdict

A masterful, entertaining and engaging medical drama and action & adventure novel, author Melissa Yi’s “Scorpion Scheme” is a must-read novel! The motivations behind the characters are very reminiscent of classic mystery adventure novels, while the action keeps readers on the edge of their seats as the thrilling conclusion comes full circle. Be sure to grab your copy of this wonderful read today!

Rating: 10/10

Advertisements

About the Author

I read, therefore I am. I’ve been reading since my parents used to abandon me at the library.

When I was ten years old, we moved to Frankfurt, Germany, to a relative dearth of English books, and I started writing stories instead.

We moved back to Canada, and I started reading voraciously again, abandoning my pen and word processor for a few years before picking them up again. Nowadays, I read and write whenever I can, although my day/night jobs of emergency medicine and motherhood whisk me away regularly. 

http://melissayuaninnes.com/