Tag: mystery series

Featured

Blog Tour: Lost Angels

On By carryabigbookIn Blog Tours, Book Reviews1 Comment

Buy Links

Synopsis

On her hands and knees, Nikki moved to the other side of the body. She couldn’t stop her fingers from trembling as she brushed the dark hair off the victim’s face. She couldn’t look away. “I know her…”

When Special Agent Nikki Hunt is called to the Boundary Waters near Stillwater, Minnesota, it’s not just the cold that shocks her to her core: the body of a young woman has been found frozen beside a remote lake. Nikki is devastated to see the victim is her childhood friend Annmarie, and she recognizes the velvet ribbon tied in her hair as the hallmark of a serial killer who she has been hunting for years.

Desperate for justice, Nikki throws herself into the case. But she is shaken by what she finds at Annmarie’s home: a dead-bolt on her front door and a map in the spare room, with the locations of murdered women circled in thick, red marker. Did Annmarie know she was next? Then Nikki finds out that the killer has left a clue in Annmarie’s bedroom: a photo of Nikki’s mother that no one has ever seen. Has the murderer at large been in Nikki’s life since she was a child?

Nikki soon realizes that the key to unlocking this case is in her own family, but digging up the past could put her own daughter in danger. She has spent her whole life protecting the ones she loves, but to find this killer Nikki might have to risk everything…

Fans of Karin Slaughter, Lisa Gardner and Robert Dugoni will be completely addicted to this heart-pounding thriller. Once you start reading, the twists and turns will have you racing towards the end.

Review

Lost Angels is an action-packed, adrenaline-fueled, roller coaster ride that will have you holding fast to your seat until the very last page. Once again our heroine Special Agent Nikki Hunt comes up against the diabolical serial killer nicknamed Frost. Except now he seems to be moving in closer to her home and family. His latest victim is her childhood best friend Ann Marie. And while she is investigating, the clues suggest that Frost knows something about her family’s secret past. Is Nikki his ultimate target or does he simply like playing cat and mouse with her? What is his connection to Nikki and Stillwater? Will Nikki find Frost before he adds to his body count? Who is next on his list?

Although Lost Angels is the third book in the Nikki Hunt series I feel that new readers will get sucked right into the plot. There is an advantage to reading the other books though in that you have a better understanding of the dynamics between the characters that will allow you to see why Nikki was hesitant to react under different circumstances. Yes, her pride did get in the way but so did her regret over past errors. Don’t get me wrong – Nikki Hunt is tough as steel. But Stacy Green reminds us that she is human too. Love her character and her team. I’ve gotten to the point where I jump as soon as I see books in this series. Looking forward to the next installment.

Meet the Author

Stacy Green is the bestselling author of more than 10 award-winning novels and nonfiction short stories. The ERIN PRINCE SERIES has been optioned for television by a major production team. ALL GOOD DEEDS (Lucy Kendall #1) won a bronze medal for mystery and thriller at the 2015 IPPY Awards. TIN GOD (Delta Crossroads #1) was runner-up for best mystery/thriller at the 2013 Kindle Book Awards. Stacy started her career in journalism before becoming a stay at home mother and rediscovering her love of writing.

Where You Can Find Her

Check out these other stops on the Lost Angels Blog Tour!

Featured

Blog Tour: Little Boy Lost

On By carryabigbookIn Blog Tours, Book Reviews2 Comments

Rating: 5 out of 5.

Synopsis

The clear sky burst into flames of peach and gold, illuminating the small body leaning against the rocks. He looked even smaller than he had in the photos, purple marks blemishing his neck. His eyes were open, staring ahead at the vastness of the still water.

When three nine-year-old boys go missing on a field trip to Lakemore’s annual spring festival, panic tears through the small town. Detective Mackenzie Price and her partner Nick Blackwood lead the search, but no trace of the boys is found—until one of them is found murdered, a note stuffed down his throat.

“Find Johnny’s killer, or they all die.”

Johnny was supposedly a victim of Jeremiah, a serial killer Nick helped put behind bars nearly a decade ago for the murder of ten young boys. But when Mack and Nick pay him a visit, he claims that he knows nothing—and that he remains innocent of Johnny’s murder.

Then a second boy is found, another clue left on his body, leaving just one left alive. Desperate to save the last boy’s life, Mackenzie and Nick comb over Jeremiah’s case, only to discover proof of a shocking cover-up—and a killer who will stop at nothing to right the wrongs of the past.

Packed full of shocking twists and nail-biting suspense, Little Boy Lost is a truly unputdownable crime thriller, perfect for fans of Karin Slaughter, Lisa Regan and Angela Marsons.

Review

Little Boy Lost was a captivating thriller full of delicious little twists. In this third installment to the Mackenzie Price series we are brought back to the majestic scenery of Washington state. But evil abounds here as the disappearance of three 9 year old boys forces Nick to confront one of the most diabolical killers from his past. Did Nick make a mistake charging Jeremiah Wozniak with little Johnny’s murder? Has a killer been walking amongst them all these years? He is certain beyond belief that Wozniak is a psychopath who will kill again if given the chance. But his soul wrestles with the fact that he might have let another killer go free. Meanwhile Mackenzie is dealing with skeletons from her own past. Her father’s murder investigation has been reopened and a zealous cop is on the case. Will he uncover Mack’s secret? Is Charles’s killer after her too? Mackenzie does not know whether her need for self preservation will land her harm’s way. Does she reveal her truth and risk her reputation? Or does she guard her secret and risk her life?

Meet the Author

Ruhi Choudhary discovered her passion for writing when she was seven years old and wrote her first Star Trek episode. Being a fan of the dark and twisted, she found her calling in crime thriller.

She likes to write stories that make you a little uncomfortable and characters that you struggle to make up your mind about but stay with you.

She lives in Toronto and spends her days training to be a scientist and wishing it rained more often!

Where You Can Find Ruhi

Stop by and visit these awesome blogs on the Little Boy Lost Tour!

Blog Tour: The Woman Inside

On By carryabigbookIn Blog Tours, Book Reviews3 Comments

Buy Links:

Synopsis

Daisey Garrett wakes up in a hospital bed. She remembers her boyfriend has left her for another woman but she doesn’t remember what happened to her. The night she was attacked in her own home.

Daisey shouldn’t be alive but against all odds, she’s survived an ordeal most would never recover from. And her new friend and roommate Iris will help her get back on her feet.

But Daisey’s mind is broken. She’s on edge, drinking too much and as she sits across from her cheating ex, Luke, in the beautiful home they once shared together, she can’t shake the feeling that she is being watched.

Yet tiny fragments of Daisey’s memory are starting to come back to her.

The missing pieces of that fateful summer night are beginning to surface…

The lies she told the police.

The lies Luke told her.

Iris will help her find the truth, won’t she?

A tense, twisty, addictive page-turner, The Woman Inside takes you within the tangled mess of people’s lives and the dark secrets they hold close. Perfect for fans of Gone Girl, Before I Go to Sleep and The Wife Between Us.

Review

The Woman Inside is the fourth book in the DI Dan Riley series. I instantly took to Detective Inspector Riley. I did not feel as if I lost anything coming into the series midway. The book definitely stands alone and is well written so that you have enough context to get the backstory on Dan, our victim Daisey and the killer. The book does goes through flashbacks showing critical scenes in the past that affected our killer better known to the press as “The Rose Petal Ripper”. This name is earned by the serial killer’s MO of leaving fresh roses on the bodies of the victims.

Daisey Garrett is our killer’s third victim but she is the first to survive leaving DI Dan Riley with his only witness. The problem: she suffers from traumatic amnesia and cannot remember most of the events of that night. And what she can remember she does not want to tell out of embarrassment and misplaced loyalty. These lies and half truths color the evidence. Will DI Riley be able to discern the facts in the case before the killer comes back to finish what they started?

One way that I rate my mysteries is to see if I can solve the case before the big reveal. In this case I was partially right though Weatherly did throw in a few curveballs.

One thing that I noticed was that Daisey’s memory loss was attributed to trauma to the prefrontal cortex. This part of the brain is primarily involved with rational thought, decision making and impulse control*. It’s the justification for setting the drinking age at 21 because this part of the brain is still developing through your teenage years. Basically, it’s that part of the brain that keeps us from doing stupid stuff. Lawyers have used damage to the prefrontal cortex to explain away the depraved behavior of their clients as it plays a critical role in governing personality and emotions.

Why do I say all of this? Because this type of injury is more in tune with the killer than the victim. We also don’t see too many unexplained behaviors with Daisey after the attack. Her personality seems to stay pretty much the same. Understandably, she has a greater sense of fear but at her core she is a good person. To her detriment, she still wants to believe in the goodness of the next person.

Despite my little quibble, (I’m a Biology teacher. No one else is going to care.) I enjoyed the book and read it over 2 days. For the most part the medical aspects made the mystery more interesting. Great police procedural! And DI Riley is as good as they come.

Meet the Author

Anna-Lou began her career as a dancer but a moped accident in Ibiza put paid to those aspirations and so she went back to her first and one true love – writing! She re-trained as a journalist, specialising mainly in women’s interest and celebrity, becoming the Editor of J-17 and Smash Hits as well as writing for a host of women’s magazines.

Anna-Lou has written three Adult Fiction titles – Vengeful Wives and Wicked Wives, both published by Avon in the UK and Bookouture in the US and Canada and Pleasure Island published by Bookouture.

Where You Can Find Her

*The prefrontal cortex controls what is known as semantic memory; things like colors, shapes and other basic facts not tied to personal events or emotions. The limbic system of the brain connects emotions to memory. It’s not so much a physical part of the brain as it is a functional part. If one had to pinpoint Daisey’s memory loss from that night most likely the amygdala would have been damaged as it controls memories based in fear.

Blog Tour: Their Frozen Graves

On By carryabigbookIn Blog Tours, Book Reviews, Reading Challenges1 Comment

Buy Links

Synopsis

Two women are dead. They both look like you.

The giant stretch of frozen river was melting and the light made the lake glitter like crystals. The women lay side by side on the shore, eyes open and glassy. Their long, dark hair was like tangled rope, their faces a reflection of each other…

When two bodies are found dumped in one of the vast lakes in Lakemore, Washington, Detective Mackenzie Price is first on the scene. She identifies one of the victims as Katy Becker, a local known for her work helping the community. The other victim looks strikingly similar.

Still grappling with a shocking revelation from her past, Mack is only too happy to throw herself into the case. But when she goes to break the news to Katy’s husband, the investigation takes an unexpected turn: Katy is very much alive, and has never met the women who resemble her so closely.

Now the race is on to find the killer before Katy becomes the next victim. But when Mack unearths a disturbing connection to a sixteen-year-old suicide, she realizes they could be hunting someone whose crimes span decades – and there are more lives than just Katy’s at stake.

Addictive, pulse-pounding and packed full of jaw-dropping twists, fans of Lisa Regan, Angela Marsons and Karin Slaughter will love Their Frozen Graves.

Review

Their Frozen Graves opens up with three murders. That’s right – you saw that correctly. Three murders within the first three chapters. The first of which is Detective Mackenzie’s father 20 years ago. Was it a dream or a mirage? Because somehow he is standing before her in the flesh right now. This one storyline would have been enough to keep me hooked but Choudhary turns up the heat by dropping two more bodies on the shore. The two women are almost identical in appearance. Mackenzie is sure that one is local activist Katy Becker until she and her partner Nick go to Becker’s home to give the notification of death. In front of them is Katy Becker alive and well. How could this be? Who are these other women and why do all three look so much alike? One thing is clear. Katy Becker is not safe.

This second book in the Mackenzie Price series was fast paced and gripping. There were a few twists that caught me off guard, but they were realistic and believable. Even though this is my first time reading this series I instantly took to Mackenzie Price’s character. She’s been through some things but she’s come through the fire burnished with determination. I was as fascinated by her backstory as I was with the case. I certainly am curious to see her life unfold in future installments of this series.

Meet the Author

Ruhi Choudhary discovered her passion for writing when she was seven years old and wrote her first Star Trek episode. Being a fan of the dark and twisted, she found her calling in crime thriller.

She likes to write stories that make you a little uncomfortable and characters that you struggle to make up your mind about but stay with you.

She lives in Toronto and spends her days training to be a scientist and wishing it rained more often!

Where You Can Find Her