Tag Archives: murder mysteries

A Desperate Cat Lady (The Cat Lady Series Book 2) by D.C. Gomez Review

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

The life Angela has found herself in gets more complex when a body brings more attention from law enforcement, and a gang of elderly people seeks the killer for themselves as the killer sets their sights on Angela and her family in author D.C. Gomez’s “A Desperate Cat Lady”, the second book in the author’s The Cat Lady series.

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The Synopsis

Illegal guns. Dangerous old-ladies. Now a dead body. Angela’s life is getting more complicated by the minute.

A boring life is not in Angela’s future, with her being a black market guns dealer. Tripping over a dead-body is now bringing a lot more attention from law enforcement than she cares to have.

If only she could get control of the Silver Hair Gang, and their quest to find the killer themselves. Angela is running out of time to secure her next arms deal, and save her family from an unknown killer.

* A Desperate Cat Lady is book two in the Contemporary Humorous Fiction series The Cat Lady. Angela’s life drastically changed when she transitioned from depressed cat lady to arms dealer. Now she is willing to take on the world to protect her family and her empire.

The Review

This was the perfect blend of fun and exhilarating crime thriller meets cozy murder mystery drama. The author did a wonderful job of infusing the story with wit and humor through Angela and the Silver Hair Gang’s interactions with one another, showcasing the diverse and gripping action this unassuming group of people get themselves into when the narrative progresses. The tension rises in just the right places and the pacing keeps the reader on the edge of their seats as the story progresses.

The true heart of this narrative rested in the author’s rich narrative. The mystery surrounding the story and the pace in which the protagonist unravels the mystery plays well into the unique position the characters find themselves in with their “day jobs”, and the complex twists in the mystery surrounding the victim’s background and history made this story feel alive and visceral in its approach.

The Verdict

Memorable, heartfelt, and entertaining, author D.C. Gomez’s “A Desperate Cat Lady” is a must-read cozy murder mystery read and a great addition to the author’s growing The Cat Lady Series. The twists and turns in the story showcase the author’s expert handle on the crime thriller genre. If you were looking for a story that brings the unique setting of a Breaking Bad type of show and blended it with the small-town crime storyline found in Fargo, this would be your series. If you haven’t yet, be sure to grab your copy today!

Rating: 10/10

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About the Author

D. C. Gomez is a USA Today Bestselling Author, born in the Dominican Republic and grew up in Salem, Massachusetts. She study film and television at New York University. After college she joined the US Army, and proudly served for four years.

Those experiences shaped her quirky sense of humor. D.C. has a love for those who served and the families that support them. She currently lives in the quaint city of Wake Village, Texas, with her furry roommate, Chincha.

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Spells for Forgetting by Adrienne Young Review

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

Two people haunted by the past on a small island town find dark secrets emerging as strange happenings unearth the magic and folklore that their town has been steeped into for years in author Adrienne Young’s “Spells for Forgetting”.

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The Synopsis

A deeply atmospheric story about ancestral magic, an unsolved murder, and a second chance at true love.

Emery Blackwood’s life changed forever the night her best friend was found dead and the love of her life, August Salt, was accused of murdering her. Years later, she is doing what her teenage self swore she never would: living a quiet existence on the misty, remote shores of Saoirse Island and running the family’s business, Blackwood’s Tea Shoppe Herbal Tonics & Tea Leaf Readings.

But when the island, rooted in folklore and magic, begins to show signs of strange happenings, Emery knows that something is coming. The morning she wakes to find that every single tree on Saoirse has turned color in a single night, August returns for the first time in fourteen years and unearths the past that the town has tried desperately to forget.

August knows he is not welcome on Saiorse, not after the night everything changed. As a fire raged on at the Salt family orchard, Lily Morgan was found dead in the dark woods, shaking the bedrock of their tight-knit community and branding August a murderer. When he returns to bury his mother’s ashes, he must confront the people who turned their backs on him and face the one wound from his past that has never healed—Emery.

The town has more than one reason to want August gone, and the emergence of deep betrayals and hidden promises spanning generations threaten to reveal the truth behind Lily’s mysterious death once and for all.

The Review

This was such a powerful and captivating mystery thriller. The rich character-driven narrative really did an excellent job of elevating the atmosphere and emotional tone of the narrative. The air of suspicion and secrets run deep in this small island town, and the seemingly small-knit community where everyone knows everyone suddenly becomes a bed of deceit in which everyone is a suspect, even those closest to the protagonists. The heated passion and unresolved feelings between both August and Emery add even more tension to this atmospheric thriller and keep readers invested in their divergent stories until they come together in unexpected ways.

For me, the rich and dynamic setting with the subtle yet the natural feeling way the author incorporated magic and fantasy into this narrative felt so alive on the page. The author did an incredible job of showcasing the concept of town secrets, local legends, and the power that secrets and lies can hold over us in life, and blended these themes into a years-long whodunnit that captivated the audience instantly. The atmosphere of this small town played well into the mystery both in the novel and the genre as a whole, as the story elevated the reader’s curiosity factor while also keeping them emotionally invested in these protagonists. 

The Verdict

Haunting, mesmerizing, and entertaining, author Adrienne Young’s “Spells for Forgetting” is a must-read fantasy and murder mystery read. The passionate character development and ideas of destiny and the power of local legends played well with the diverse cast of characters and the sheer volume of twists and turns that will keep readers shocked for days after reading the final pages of this incredible story. If you haven’t yet, be sure to grab your copy today!

Rating: 10/10

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About the Author

Adrienne Young is the New York Times and international bestselling author of the Sky and Sea duology, the Fable series, and Spells for Forgetting. When she’s not writing, you can find Adrienne on her yoga mat, on a walk in the woods, or planning her next travel adventure. She lives and writes in the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina.

For information on release, appearances, ARCs, giveaways, and exclusive content, sign up for the newsletter at https://adrienneyoungbooks.com/

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Only Lies Remain (An Aoife Walsh Thriller Book 2) by Val Collins Review

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

The discovery of a body leads to old family secrets being unearthed, and a hunt for a killer who could very well be amongst Aoife Walsh’s family takes center stage in author Val Collins’s “Only Lies Remain”, the second book in the Aoife Walsh thriller series. 

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The Synopsis

Everyone thought Danny Walsh deserted his family when his sons were young. But when Danny’s body turns up fifteen years later and his wife, Maura, is implicated in his murder, accusations and old rumours surface.

Aoife rushes in to clear her mother-in-law’s name. But why is it that Maura’s story surrounding Danny’s disappearance doesn’t quite add up?

Aoife’s investigation uncovers old secrets, long-held jealousies, and lies upon lies. With every new revelation, Aoife realises she doesn’t know her family at all. Now her new boss is acting strangely, her best friend is more and more distant and her husband is no help at all.

With her support network crumbling and her family threatened, Aoife must race to keep one step ahead of danger before more innocent lives are lost. But how will she uncover the truth when only lies remain?

The Review

This was a captivating and thought-provoking thriller. As a newcomer to the series, I was immediately enthralled with the expansive cast of characters. Protagonist Aoife is such a brilliant presence in the narrative, providing both the determination and strength a thriller’s heroine is meant to have and yet infusing the vulnerability and emotional components that make her character feel well-rounded. The balance of everyday developments in her life, from her tumultuous relationship with her soon-to-be ex-husband and her desire to help her former mother-in-law, to her growing relationship with the lead investigator and the close friendship she has with Orla.

Yet it was the twisted narrative and haunting atmosphere the author built into this story that made the novel so captivating. The rich world-building and stark settings were brought to life brilliantly using powerful imagery and made it feel very cinematic in nature as if it could be turned into the newest BBC murder mystery and thriller series that takes the world by storm much like The Fall or Broadchurch. The chilling nature of the case and the personal connection the protagonist has to it allow the reader to feel the desperation and need to solve the case that drives this story forward.

The Verdict

Brilliantly written, complex yet inviting, and thoroughly entertaining, author Val Collins’s “Only Lies Remains” is a must-read murder mystery thriller. The twists and turns the narrative takes, as well as the shocking reveal of the killer and his or her motives, will have readers hanging off the edge of their seats, and the author’s skills and powerful command over the genre make her future in this industry something that cannot be ignored.  If you haven’t yet, be sure to grab your copy today!

Rating: 10/10

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About the Author

Val Collins is the author of the award-winning psychological thriller GIRL TARGETED and the No. 1 international bestsellers ONLY LIES REMAIN, THE SILENT SPEAK and WHERE LOYALTIES LIE. All four books are stand-alone thrillers and they can be read in any order.

Val has lived in Ireland her entire life, and graduated from University College Dublin. She enjoys chocolate, going for long walks in the countryside, seeing as much of the world as possible, meeting friends, writing, and reading. In fact, she devours books at the rate of one per week, and her favourite authors range from Philippa Gregory and Sophie Kinsella to Lee Child and Linwood Barclay.

https://valcollinsbooks.com/

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The Sorcerer Within by Will Rice Review

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

A young man who works with sorcerers finds himself feeling some sort of connection to the group amidst a murder of a sorcerer, and must give up everything to stop a killer in author Will Rice’s “The Sorcerer Within”.

The Synopsis

How do you solve a murder when the victim and suspects are sorcerers?

Elliot can’t escape the feeling he has a connection to his colleagues at Arthan Associates. Even though they all have supernatural powers while he is just another faceless nobody.

When one of the sorcerers is murdered, the others are all under suspicion. No one seems a likely culprit, but their kind is naturally secretive. Who is not what they seem?

As the investigation continues, Elliot’s sense of unease grows. What is that familiar feeling? Why does he feel the darkness in his dreams and an echo of violence within? When he discovers the truth, he will have to give up everything.

If he is to stop another murder, Elliot needs to find out who he is. 

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The Review

This was a breath of fresh air in the fantasy-thriller genre! The author has crafted a wholly original and unique story set against the backdrop of our modern world, a corporation run by sorcerers, and magical mythology that takes on a whole new twist. The shift in perspective and time that the reader experiences as the author go back and forth between the present-day murders and the buildup of these characters and their relationships months earlier was incredible to read, and gave the tension and pacing as each mystery was revealed slowly but surely even more of an impact. 

The characters themselves were the driving force of this narrative. The mistrust and individual quirks each character has with one another as the story builds up was thoroughly entertaining, as was the mystery surrounding protagonist Elliot and his mysterious connection to the other characters and magic as a whole. The unraveling of his story alone and the facets of his own power was so haunting and awe-inspiring, inspiring me creatively in the process as well.

The Verdict

A remarkable, shocking, and nail-biting fantasy thriller like no other, author Will Rice’s “The Sorcerer Within” is a must-read novel of 2021, and the perfect winter read for fans of the fantasy genre. Heart-pounding action and suspense blend naturally into this world of magic and control these characters try to hold onto so hard, and the fate of several characters will have readers desperate to have more of this author’s amazing work. If you haven’t yet, be sure to grab your copy today!

Rating: 10/10

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About the Author

I’ve always loved escaping into books. When I get inside a character’s head and look through their eyes and think their thoughts, I forget everything else. Getting inside the head of a character I created is the biggest escape of all. 

I often put down a book and find an idea wandering in my head for a book that I want to write myself. The idea I couldn’t resist combining two things I’ve always loved – a fantasy novel, and a page-turning mystery.

Turning an idea into a book was a lot of work but also a lot of escaping, and I enjoyed writing every word. There’s something addictive about reading your own thoughts back after you’ve forgotten exactly what you wrote. It’s like re-discovering a memory. The words kept coming and the story kept living and here we are. The Sorcerer Within is finished. 

My ambition now is for as many people to read it as possible. I’d love for you to be one of those people, and if you do, thank you. Let me know what you think

http://willriceauthor.com/

Murder Across the Ocean by Charlene Wexler Review

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

A woman’s trip to London to visit her granddaughter takes a shocking turn when a run-in with her high school love turns into a murder mystery in author Charlene Wexler’s “Murder Across the Ocean”. 

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The Synopsis

American widow Lori Brill thought she’d have an uneventful vacation in London visiting her Granddaughter, Cate. At the airport she ran into Josh, her high-school boyfriend. This resulted in an unexpected night of passion in a London hotel. Lori was all smiles as she stepped out of the shower the next morning, until she saw Josh’s bloody corpse lying in the bed. Who killed Josh? Find out in Murder Across The Ocean.

The Review

The book immediately takes readers through the wringer, as one minute the protagonist is flying high on a cloud of happiness and pleasure, and the next her world is turned upside down as the man she’d spent the night with is now dead. The author does an amazing job of blending a slow-burn style murder mystery with quirky and engaging characters. The relationships between characters like protagonist Lori and her granddaughter Cate or Cate and FBI agent Jordan Gould was one of the more unique ones of the novel, as their heated arguments and clashing as he investigated her grandmother took some shocking turns that readers will love.

One of the most interesting things about the story was the way American and English cultures clashed within the narrative. The setting of London as the backdrop made this feel like a cozy yet entertaining British Murder Mystery on BBC, and the narrative came to life easily on the page as the twists and turns the narrative took only served to enrich the characters themselves overall. 

The Verdict

An engaging, thoughtful, and entertaining murder mystery, author Charlene Wexler’s “Murder Across the Ocean” is a truly memorable read. The author does an excellent job of hitting the reader fast in the first couple of pages before settling into nice and steady pacing that keeps the mystery alive all the way to the book’s final pages. If you haven’t yet be sure to give this book a read for yourselves and grab your own copy today! 

Rating: 10/10

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About the Author

Charlene Wexler is a graduate of the University of Illinois. She has worked as a teacher and dental office bookkeeper and as “a wife, mom, and grandmother,” she said. In recent years, Wexler’s lifelong passion for writing has led her to create numerous essays as well as fiction.

She is the author of the books Lori, Murder Across the Ocean, Murder on Skid Row, Milk and Oranges, and Elephants In The Room.

Her work has appeared in several publications, including North Shore Magazine; the University of Illinois at Chicago College of Dentistry’s Vision magazine; Alpha Omegan magazine; the book and CD Famous Poets of the Heartland: A Treasury of Beloved Family Poems, Talent, OR: Famous Poets Press, 2014; and the Gazette newspaper of Chicago.

She also has had essays and fiction published on the websites AuthorsDen.com, The Best Short Stories, Cat Stories, Cats and Dogs at Play, End Your Sleep Deprivation.com, Funny Cat Stories, Funny Cats Playing, Funny Passport Stories, How Old is Grandma?, Laughter Is My Medicine, Moral Short Stories-Ethical Tales, One Bright Star.org, Scribd.com, Short Stories for Women, True Cat Stories, and Way Cool Dogs.com.

Wexler’s first novel, Murder on Skid Row, was published in 2010. It is the story of a double-murder on Chicago’s Skid Row in the 1960s. Murder on Skid Row won an international Apex Award of Excellence from Communications Concepts, a writing think tank outside Washington, DC.

Published as an e-book on Smashwords and as a print edition by Central Park Communications in 2012, Milk and Oranges, is a collection of her short fiction and essays examining life, love, and the tragedy and comedy of the human condition. Whether she is tackling fiction or essays, Wexler writes from the heart. With a keen eye for detail and a way of looking at the world a bit sidewasy, wexler’s writings in Milk and Oranges entertain while they make you think.

Milk and Oranges received a Bronze Award in the Women’s Issues category of the eLit Book Awards competition sponsored by the publishing services firm Jenkins Group Inc. of Traverse City, MI, and a rare international Grand Award in the Apex Awards competition by Communications Concepts in 2012.

In 2014, Charlene published two novels as e-books on Smashwords and Amazon Kindle: Lori, a family saga spanning several decades, and Murder Across the Ocean, a murder mystery set in England. Murder Across the Ocean also is available from Amazon as a paperback.

In 2016, Amazon Digital Services published her book Elephants In The Room, Charlene’s latest collection of short fiction and essays examining life, love, and the tragedy and comedy of the human condition.

Her short story Abracadabra Magic received a “Very Highly Commended” rating in the AuthorsDen.com Tom Howard Prose Contest, 2009.

Wexler is active with the Alpha Omega Dental Fraternity, the Authors Marketing Group, the Chicago Writers Association, Children’s Memorial Hospital philanthropy, Lungevity (an organization that fights lung cancer), the McHenry Bicycle Club, the Museum of Science and Industry, the National Council of Jewish Women, the Richmond IL Book Club, the Jewish United Fund, and the University of Illinois Alumni Association.

“I have always used writing as therapy,” Wexler said. “Now I have the time and opportunity to pursue it as a career.”

Her advice for other aspiring writers–even grandmothers like herself–is to “follow your dream. You can do it, and it’s never too late.”

Road To Delano by John DeSimone Review

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

A young man seeking to escape a small town finds his world turned upside down when the truth of his father’s passing leads to more questions than answers, and a tale of corruption that could put him and his friends in the crosshairs of some dangerous individuals in author John DeSimone’s “Road to Delano”. 

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The Synopsis 

Jack Duncan is a high school senior whose dream is to play baseball in college and beyond―as far away from Delano as possible. He longs to escape the political turmoil surrounding the labor struggles of the striking fieldworkers that infests his small ag town. Ever since his father, a grape grower, died under suspicious circumstances ten years earlier, he’s had to be the sole emotional support of his mother, who has kept secrets from him about his father’s involvement in the ongoing labor strife.

With their property on the verge of a tax sale, Jack drives an old combine into town to sell it so he and his mother don’t become homeless. On the road, an old friend of his father’s shows up and hands him the police report indicating Jack’s father was murdered. Jack is compelled to dig deep to discover the entire truth, which throws him into the heart of the corruption endemic in the Central Valley. Everything he has dreamed of is at stake if he can’t control his impulse for revenge.

While Jack’s girlfriend, the intelligent and articulate Ella, warns him not to so anything to jeopardize their plans of moving to L.A., after graduation, Jack turns to his best friend, Adrian, a star player on the team, to help to save his mother’s land. When Jack’s efforts to rescue a stolen piece of farm equipment leaves Adrian―the son of a boycotting fieldworker who works closely with Cesar Chavez―in a catastrophic situation, Jack must bail his friend out of his dilemma before it ruins his future prospects. Jack uses his wits, his acumen at card playing, and his boldness to raise the money to spring his friend, who has been transformed by his jail experience.

The Road to Delano is the path Jack, Ella, and Adrian must take to find their strength, their duty, their destiny.

The Review

This was a fantastic read. A truly engaging story that is driven by a wonderful cast of characters that readers will be able to identify with immediately. A young man trying to keep him and his mother out of poverty as he dreams of a life outside of the small town he’s called home finds himself and his friends drawn into a true murder mystery filled with small-town corrupt politics, and the author does a wonderful job of creating realistic characters that bring honesty and reality to the story being told. 

Showcasing the hard life led by farmers and their families in the wake of the depression all the way through the late 60’s and beyond, this story also infuses cultural experiences that Jack and his family had before and after his father’s death. What really stands out however is the author’s ability to draw readers into the narrative with vivid imagery and a voice that speaks of artistic mindsets and viewpoints, making the setting and characters really come to life off the page. 

The Verdict

This is a must read novel with breathtaking imagery, engaging characters that really connect the reader to the protagonist’s story and an emotional and heart-pounding finale that will have readers hanging off the edge of their seat, this is a truly entertaining and important tale of small town politics and corruption leading to the death of a father and husband, and the struggle of a son to take back what was rightfully his father’s. If you enjoy good historical fiction and drama, then be sure to grab your copy of Road to Delano by John DeSimone today! 

Rating: 10/10

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About the Author

John DeSimone is a published writer, novelist, and teacher. He’s been an adjunct professor and holds an MFA in Creative Writing from Spalding University. His recent co-authored books include Broken Circle: A Memoir of Escaping Afghanistan (Little A Publishers), and Courage to Say No by Dr. Raana Mahmood, about her struggles against sexual exploitation as a female physician in Karachi. His published novel Leonardo’s Chair published in 2005.

In 2012, he won a prestigious Norman Mailer Fellowship to complete his most recent historical novel, Road to Delano. His novels Leonardo’s Chair and No Ordinary Man have received critical recognition.

He works with select clients to write stories of inspiration and determination and with those who have a vital message to bring to the marketplace of ideas in well-written books.

https://www.johndesimone.com/

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A Shattered Lens: A Detective Preach Everson Novel by Layton Green Review

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

A tragic murder brings the past hurtling at detective Preach Everson in author Layton Green’s novel “A Shattered Lens”. 

The Synopsis

A detective investigates the murder of a teenage golden boy that has rocked a small town–and the chief suspect is the victim’s mother.

Annalise Stephens Blue is a Creekville high school student with plans to become a world-famous filmmaker. As she begins filming an exposé of the town called Night Lives, she uncovers more than she bargained for: on the very first night of filming, she stumbles upon a murder in the woods, and flees the scene steps ahead of the killer.

Detective Joe “Preach” Everson is called to investigate the murder. The victim, David Stratton, is the town’s golden boy and high school quarterback. A modern version of what Preach used to be. Not only that, the boy’s mother is Claire Lourdis, a beautiful divorcée who Preach fell for in high school. She is also the main suspect in her son’s murder.

Despite the cloud of suspicion hanging over her, old feelings resurface between Claire and Preach, straining the detective’s relationship with his girlfriend Ari, a prosecutor in nearby Durham. As Preach delves into the secrets lurking beneath the surface of the town and searches for a missing girl who may have witnessed the crime, he must put his own feelings aside and pursue the answer to a terrible question: is a mother capable of murdering her own child? 

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The Review

For anyone who fell in love with the first book in this series, one of the first things readers will notice about this incredible sequel is how personal the story feels in comparison to the first story. Rather than tracking a growing serial killer, the story focuses on the unsettling death of a high school student, and showcases the struggle an investigator feels in a small town setting when the victim’s mother is not only someone Preach knew, but once had deep feelings for. Exploring the personal struggles of the detective and the hardships of finding the motive for the crime makes this a truly engaging story.

On top of the murder mystery angle of the narrative, it was fascinating to explore modern day criminal organizations and shady dealings that go on in rural or small town American cities. Showcasing a growing criminal element in this small town and seeing the chaos and corruption threatening the lives of a young girl who becomes an unwilling witness to a heinous crime, the author does a fantastic job of making this story relatable and more emotionally investing than even the first book, which is not an easy feat for anyone who loved book one in the Preach Everson series. 

The Verdict

This is a phenomenal murder mystery series that continues to both entertain and engage readers on a personal and emotional level. With relatable characters that instantly draw the reader into the story and a truly gripping murder mystery that will draw readers into many different directions until the shocking revelation at the books end, this is a novel that deserves your attention. Be sure to grab your copy of “A Shattered Lens” by Layton Green today. 

Rating: 10/10

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Written in blood review
Interview with author layton green

About the Author

Layton is a bestselling author who writes across multiple genres, including mystery, thriller, suspense, horror, and fantasy. He is the author of the popular Dominic Grey series, as well as other works of fiction. His novels have topped numerous lists (including a #2 overall Amazon bestseller) and have been nominated for major awards, including two finalists for an International Thriller Writers award. Layton is also the co-editor of International Thrills, the online magazine of ITW (International Thriller Writers).

In addition to writing, Layton attended law school in New Orleans and was a practicing attorney for the better part of a decade (even though he still resents having cut his hair for that first interview). He has also been an intern for the United Nations, an ESL teacher in Central America, a bartender in London, a seller of cheap knives on the streets of Brixton, a door-to-door phone book deliverer in Florida, and the list goes downhill from there. Currently based in Durham, North Carolina, Layton has traveled to more than sixty countries, lived in a number of them, and has a burning desire to see every country, city, beach, moor, castle, cemetery, twisted street and far flung dot on the map.

www.laytongreen.com

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Interview with Author Joseph Amiel

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1) Tell us a little bit about yourself. How did you get into writing?

I’ve been a writer since Fourth Grade, when we were required to hand in a story every week.  I loved it. Even while working as a lawyer I continued to write.  An agent read three chapters of my first novel, now titled STALKING THE SKY, and sold it to a top publisher within ten days.  Magic!

2) What inspired you to write your book?

I had an idea for a short story, a murder mystery, and put aside what I was working on to write it.  I found I loved the form: Completing a novel could take a year or two, but I had finished the story in only a few days.  It’s the second in my new collection DEATH CAN DELIGHT: A TRIO OF MYSTERIES.  Almost immediately an intriguing title for a new story popped into my head, THE GIRL WHO SPOKE VENTRILOQUISM, but I had no  story.  While agonizing over possible characters and plot and getting nowhere, inspiration came in the form of a sudden recollection of the trip I and my family had made the year before to Ireland.  I have no idea where that unexpected recollection came from, but instead of dismissing it, I was aware enough to realize my subconscious had just presented me with the structure I had been searching for.  The third story was suggested by an incident involving Donald Trump: He was alerted by his lawyer that the pre-nuptial agreement with his new wife was about to expire and any divorce after that could be far more expensive.  His shocked wife soon received divorce papers. That story, the last of the three, is titled DEADLINE DIVORCE.

3) What theme or message do you hope readers will take away from your book?

I’m a story teller, someone who writes to entertain and perhaps enlighten an audience of readers with an engrossing tale.  I named this collection DEATH CAN DELIGHT: A TRIO OF MYSTERIES because my purpose in writing the stories was to entertain my readers with wit, humor, drama, and surprises; as the title says, to delight them.  Their reaction and the book’s reviews suggest that the stories do that.

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4) What drew you into this particular genre?

The stories in the collection are murder mysteries.  I think almost every fiction writer plants mysteries of some sort in his/her work to keep the reader turning pages.  Murder, the whodunnit or whydunnit of that drastic act, provides the material for the most engaging mysteries with the highest stakes for the characters–and the reader–which is why book-stores shelves are packed with murder mysteries, All of my novels have a mystery at their core, several indeed murder.  My initial idea for JUDGEMENT DAY, about a judge everyone in town would kill if they could, led me to write it and then the other stories in the murder-mystery genre.  I don’t doubt I’ll be writing more stories in the same vein.

5) If you could sit down with any character in your book, what would you ask them and why?

 If I could sit down to converse with any character in the book, it might be Kyra, the sixteen-year-old high school student who narrates JUDGEMENT DAY.  I would want to know if the outcome of her and her family’s action against the judge, whom she had hated for a year, brought her satisfaction.  I have no doubt that what she ultimately did with that narration in the story’s surprise ending had to leave her “delighted.”

6) What social media site has been the most helpful in developing your readership?

Although I’m on Facebook [Joseph Amiel Author] and now Instagram [josephamiel9087], I would have to say that being able to communicate so quickly with my many followers on Twitter has been the most effective of the social media formats [@JoeAmiel].  Also I would guess that being able to get out the word, rather than waiting for people to find what I’ve posted, suits my personality.

7) What advice would you give to aspiring or just starting authors out there?

We live in an age when a neophyte author without an agent or an established publisher can put his/her work on Amazon and hope to develop a readership.  Crucial to continuing to write is believing that your work can be seen and not deposited in a desk drawer.  My advice about the actual writing is to do it, every day if possible.  One friend said he had a novel in him if he could only come up with the right first line.  I told him to start with the second line and just start writing–he would be rewriting everything anyway, probably even his precious first line.

8) What does the future hold in store for you? Any new books/projects on the horizon?

As long as senility doesn’t set in, I’ll continue to write novels and short stories.  Story tellers have to tell stories.

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Death Can delight Review

About the Author

Joseph Amiel is a novelist and screenwriter, as well as a lawyer. His novels include: HAWKS, BIRTHRIGHT, DEEDS, STAR TIME, and A QUESTION OF PROOF, which have been translated into over a dozen languages. His screenplay GAMES has recently been honored at several film festivals, as has his comedy series for the web AIN’T THAT LIFE.

He was graduated from Amherst College, where he studied English and creative writing, and from Yale Law School. He is married and has two children.

http://www.josephamiel.com/

Death Can Delight: A Trio of Mysteries by Joseph Amiel Review

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

A short collection of stories brings about three mysteries that delve into the various motivations behind taking a life in author Joseph Amiel’s Death Can Delight: A Trio of Mysteries. Here is the synopsis:

The Synopsis

3 murderous mysteries! 3 mystifying murders! A trio of stories imbued with the wit, drama, complexity, and surprises that characterize author Joseph Amiel’s novels. 

In “The Girl Who Spoke Ventriloquism”, a U.S. army vet intent on killing a man who committed a vicious crime meets an enchanting violinist performing in a Killarney pub. She can’t speak but, oh, does he get an earful from her talkative friends! Their next stop: Ireland’s Charlie Chaplin Comedy Film Festival. 

“Judgement Day” centers on Kyra and P.B., teenage girls raised by lesbian moms who have been a couple all the girls’ lives—until P.B.’s mom walks out with her to marry a man! And not just any man, the one everyone in town would kill if they could. But some things should be kept within the family. 

In “Deadline Divorce” a billionaire divorces his wife just before the expiration of their pre-nuptial agreement, cutting her off without a cent. When hubby dies without a will and his now ex-wife stands to inherit nothing, her hustling lawyer swings into action. He hasn’t got a clue.

The Review

While a short read, the novel hits readers from the first pages as the character driven stories of murder bring the reader to attention. Exploring the motivations that drive people to murder, themes of passion, love, family and greed take center stage as the reader finds themsleves going back and forth between hating the victim and challenging the killer’s morality. 

The author does a fantastic job of questioning what, if anything, justifies death. While society cannot allow itself to condone murder, are there people in this world who deserve death? The author forces the reader to ask these questions and see the lengths these characters are willing to go to in order to exact their own form of “justice”. The buildup to the deaths is emotional and inviting as it allows readers to get to know the would be killers, and in the aftermath of the crime either readers will find themselves empathizing with the killer or killers, or shouting in frustration and shock as the true motivations are revealed. 

The Verdict

A novel of questioning morality and intense crime thrillers, the author really does a masterful job of creating memorable murder mysteries that will keep readers engaged and talking well after the stories end. An intriguing look into the crimes that often go unreported and the people who take it upon themselves to right wrongs, “Death Can Delight” is a masterful murder mystery short story collection that deserves to be read. Be sure to pick up your copy of Joseph Amiel’s novel today!

Rating: 8/10

About the Author

Joseph Amiel is a novelist and screenwriter, as well as a lawyer. His novels include: HAWKS, BIRTHRIGHT, DEEDS, STAR TIME, and A QUESTION OF PROOF, which have been translated into over a dozen languages. His screenplay GAMES has recently been honored at several film festivals, as has his comedy series for the web AIN’T THAT LIFE.

He was graduated from Amherst College, where he studied English and creative writing, and from Yale Law School. He is married and has two children.

http://www.josephamiel.com/