The Truth About Love by Sheila Athens - Review

The Truth About Love
by Sheila Athens
Published: October 14, 2014
Montlake Romance

Strong Convictions
After her testimony sent an innocent man to prison, law student Gina Blanchard vowed to spend her life righting that wrong. She passed up more prestigious opportunities to intern at a Tallahassee nonprofit dedicated to overturning wrongful convictions. But when she catches the eye of sexy green-eyed hunk Landon Vista, she realizes there’s room in her hardworking life for a little fun. Then she learns her newest case involves the man accused of murdering Landon’s mother…and possibly setting him free.

Stronger Passions
The people of Tallahassee still see Landon Vista as their golden boy and football hero…and as the man who tragically lost his mother. Yet Landon hides his emotional scars behind his handsome smile. While working for a senator who’s tough on crime, he finds himself keeping an eye on gorgeous redheaded Gina in more ways than one. But as their passion simmers, their secrets build…until Gina’s latest case collides with Landon’s heartbreaking past, threatening to tear them apart forever.

Goodreads * Amazon

My review:

After Gina and Landon meet by chance and have an instant attraction, they realize that they are on opposite sides of a very important issue. Gina is convinced that the man in prison for killing Landon's mother is innocent, and she is working to free him. Landon is sure the right man is behind bars because his eyewitness testimony when he was 9 years old is what sent him there. Landon is, of course, very upset when he finds out Gina is trying to get the man released, but he decides to stay in touch with her in case he can get to the information she has about his mother's murder. As the relationship and the investigation progress, Landon starts to have doubts about what he really saw that day.

I chose to read this book because of the plot of someone working to overturn a wrongful conviction. For the most part, I thought this was done very well in this book. Throughout the entire book, you are wondering if he did it or not and if they will be successful in getting answers. Trying to not give any spoilers, I have to say that the wheels of justice never turn so quickly in any case but especially not when the person has already been convicted. But I understand this was necessary for this story, and it didn't hurt my enjoyment of this book. Speaking of things that bothered me, I am going to point out that Key Biscayne is not part of "the Keys." No big deal, but it irked me.

Overall, I did really enjoy this book. I really liked how Gina and Landon's relationship progressed. As Landon started having doubts about what really happened with his mother's murder, Gina was there for him. She understood what he was going through because she had testified against someone and then found out she was wrong. I liked both characters and thought they were well developed. Gina was determined to help others wrongly convicted because of her mistake even though she hated going into the prisons. Landon was still just a little boy inside, feeling all alone even though he was a celebrity to most of the town, and still looking for love from his father. This story was well-written and had a great mix of romance and mystery. I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys a sweet falling-in-love story with a lot of suspense thrown in.

Copy was provided for an honest review.

About the author:

SHEILA ATHENS writes contemporary romance set inside modern day dilemmas (think Jodi Picoult, but with a central love story, lots of sexual tension and a happily ever after). After a fair amount of success in regional writing contests, Sheila finaled in the Romance Writers of America’s Golden Heart award in 2013. That entry, retitled THE TRUTH ABOUT LOVE, sold to Montlake Romance for publication in the fall of 2014. She hopes you enjoy her stories, which explore the complications of modern-day life, illustrate the quiet dignity of mankind and celebrate the power of love.

Sheila grew up in the Ozarks, vacillating between climbing trees, reading books and neurotically working toward straight A’s. Many years later—after marriage, a couple of careers, and a Master’s Degree—she discovered her first romance novel in the gift shop of a hotel when she was supposed to be networking with fellow conventioneers. Now, some years later, she’s got a bright red study filled with romance novels, though the testosterone from her all-male household often encroaches upon her little feminine enclave. She’s a creative lefty who loves quiet spaces and eccentric people. She uses solitude to refill her writing well. Though she’s lived in the coastal south for more than twenty-five years, she looks forward to one day moving to the serene mountaintop cabin she and her husband have built at the edge of a national forest in the Blue Ridge Mountains.  

Find out more at SheilaAthens.com.     

Breathe by Elena Dillon - Review

Breathe by Elena Dillon
Published: December 2012

Jasmine’s life wasn’t normal for a 16 year old girl. It hadn’t been normal since the murder of her older sister, Daisy, two years ago. Her life had been changed forever. The monster that murdered Daisy was never caught. That was the reason her family decided to move away from their hometown in Southern California, to start over. Hopefully in a place where the last name Rourke wouldn’t bring on staring or judgment or morbid curiosity.

In Lafayette, Louisiana things are quite a bit different but in a good way. Good manners, Cajun accents and a whole lot of Southern Hospitality all make her think things are going in the right direction. On top of that the most gorgeous boy she has ever met is interested in her. Her new friends are better than she could have hoped for even if she is worried about what they might think when they find out who she is. Life would be perfect if odd things didn’t keep happening. Creepy phone calls, texts, and flowers in her locker start adding up quickly to something terrifying. Could the Monster have followed them to Lafayette? Was he coming after her this time? Maybe she was just worrying unnecessarily…or not.

Goodreads * Amazon

My review:

Jasmine, her mom, and her younger siblings have to move away from California so that they can have a shot at a somewhat normal life. They know nothing will ever ease the pain of losing Daisy, but they need to move away from the sympathy and the prying eyes and start over where everyone doesn't know what happened. And, they think, they are moving away from the murderer, who was never caught. When they arrive in Lafayette, Jasmine quickly makes good friends and catches the eye of charming, handsome Easton. Breathe is mostly focused on the love story between Jasmine and Easton, while always present is Jasmine's daily struggle to have a normal life, put everything into "compartments" so that she can cope with the stress, and the knowledge that the murderer is out there and may even be in Lafayette.

"Most days I can almost forget someone murdered my sister. I try to go through every day like a normal sixteen-year-old. I can eat breakfast, go to school, do homework, but then something will remind me that my family will never be the same." This was the amazing beginning to Breathe, and I was immediately hooked and interested in the story and in Jasmine.

As someone raised in Arkansas, I was tickled to see Smackover as the place Jasmine's brother, Caedan, picked as his choice of where to move. I also lived in Louisiana for several years, and that was one of the reasons I so readily agreed to review this book. I wish the Louisiana vibe had come through more. Unfortunately, I felt like this story could have taken place anywhere, and I was only reminded it was set in Louisiana when Ms. Dillon pointed it out. Instead of the author just referring to their strong accent, I would have liked for there to have been at least a few times where that accent was actually portrayed with the words used and the way those words would have been pronounced. I also really would have liked to see a few times when common words that are used in Southern Louisiana had been added into the dialogue. 

Besides the Louisiana feel not coming through for me, I really enjoyed Breathe. Jasmine was a well developed character that a reader can easily empathize with even if you don't agree with or understand her way of coping with things. Overall, this is a good, solid, sweet young adult romance with a lot of suspense mixed in. I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys romantic suspense.

A copy was provided for review.

About the author:

Elena lives and writes in a suburb North of Los Angeles.  She has never lived anywhere besides California which is probably a good thing since she hates being cold and is terrified to drive in the snow. She loves being a wife and a mother to her three kids and three dogs, although really the bulldog is the fourth child who has never matured beyond the toddler stage.

A self-proclaimed nerd, she has been writing since she was a child. She has only recently, however, come out of the closet about this to her family and friends.  They now understand better, but not completely, why she talks about characters in stories as if they are real people.

Find out more at ElenaDillon.com.

     

Scent of the Roses by P.G. Forte - Guest Post & Kindle Fire Giveaway

Scent of the Roses

Oberon, book 1

by P.G. Forte

For years, Scout Patterson has tried to run from the mistakes in her past. Now Scout is going home to face the ghosts she has never laid to rest, and find the love she thought she d lost forever. 

Add on Goodreads, and buy on Amazon. 

A Sense of Place

Guest Post by P.G. Forte 

It seems like I’ve been in love with California for most of my life. Something about the sun-drenched mystique of it appealed to me from a very young age.  It’s not perfect, of course. No place is. But that’s one of the nice things about writing fiction. It gives you the opportunity to improve on reality and create a world that’s better than real life.

I’d been living in California for about thirteen years when I first got the idea for the Oberon series. Northern California, Southern California, Central Coast—I’d lived in and loved them all; and so I had a very clear idea about what kind of atmosphere I wanted for Oberon. 

I wanted it to have the laid-back, beachy feel of the South combined with the new age inventiveness of the North tempered by the slightly-buzzed, wine country charm of the Central Coast. I wanted to give it cool foggy mornings, warm sunny days and bright starry nights. I wanted rolling hills and winding roads all leading to a quaint little village perched atop sheer, coastal cliffs.  And above all else I wanted it to have a hint of magic—or maybe more than a hint.

See, I knew the town itself would play a very important part in the series, and that was never just because of its physical location. There’s a paranormal component to the series that needed to be made manifest in the town of Oberon as well. 

I did have a bit of an advantage going in.  After all, the west has always had certain, rather specific, mystic properties in most mythic traditions—going all the way back to the ancient Egyptians who placed the “land of the dead” on the western banks of the Nile. In Celtic mythology, Tírna nÓg, the ‘land of the young’ was said to be located on a series of islands in the western sea. So by simply locating Oberon on the West Coast, I figured I was already ahead of the game, already tapping into the Collective Unconscious.

I didn’t just leave it at that, however. I also added in elements of Earth Magic and drew from a wide range of spiritual traditions, both old and new, to create a location that was steeped in mysticism. Not that everyone in Oberon believes in that kind of nonsense. Yes, I populated the town with witches and wizards, empaths and channels, psychics, and shamans, even a ghost or three; but there are also quite a few “normal” folks thrown into the mix, as well as a healthy group of skeptics. The town needs them. They provide grounding.

The Oberon I ended up creating is a very special place. It’s reminiscent of many of the towns I’ve lived in or visited, but it’s also taken on a life of its own.  Every now and then I’ll pass a place in real life that reminds me so strongly of some feature that exists in Oberon that I’ll be amazed by the resemblance.  Until I remember why it seems so familiar.  That’s usually because it’s a place I’d borrowed and improved on for my own vision of the perfect, quintessential California town. Somehow, my make-believe version has become so real to me that it often seems like life is imitating art, rather than the other way around.  I guess that’s the real magic of fiction. 

Find out more at PGForte.com, on Twitter, and Facebook.

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Collecting Innocents by CK Webb and DJ Weaver - Review

Collecting Innocents 
(The 911 Abduction series)

by CK Webb and DJ Weaver

Published: October 2011 by Suspense Publishing

Highway travel can be lonely and treacherous. Broken down vehicles litter the Emergency Lane like corpses on a battlefield. What if you were alone with no one to call when you found yourself stranded? Your only companion; your small child sleeping in the back seat. What would you do?

On I-10 in Louisiana the answer is simple… you use the Emergency Call Box. But while you sigh a breath of relief in the knowledge that help is on its way, a much more sinister listener has heard your 911 call.

Calls for help are coming in from Emergency Call Boxes along I-10 in Louisiana. But, when the State Trooper or wrecker service arrives to assist, there is no sign of the vehicle. Days later, the driver is found savagely murdered with no trace of their tiny passenger in sight.

When a police officer, formerly of the Aberdeen Police Department sees a twisted pattern of murder and child abduction arising from 911 calls, he contacts Sloanne Kelly, now known for her work with child abduction cases. Together, Sloanne, Shawn Tyler and Mac Mackenzie, with the help of reporter Birney Sullivan, go on the hunt for a killer and the innocent children he is collecting.

Darian's Review:

Along I-10 people and children are disappearing. The parents are turning up savagely murdered, but there’s no sign of the children. Someone is keeping them, but why? No one sees the connection between the disappearances, except Detective Mac Mackenzie, and he enlists the help of Saving Angels, the countries leading agency for finding missing children. Sloanne and her crew immediately see the connections, connections all too familiar to them. But with the resistance of other Police Departments, will they be able to find and bring these children home? Or will the killer keep collecting innocents?

Collecting Innocents is the second book in this series. Nothing can kill the flow in a story quicker than too much back-story, and that’s a common issue when reading books in a series. A majority of the first few chapters is riddled with information from the previous book, and a reader can’t help wondering when the heck they’re going to get to THIS story. But the authors did a wonderful job weaving the background of the first book into this story. Not having read the first book, I was able to jump right into this one, getting enough knowledge along the way of the characters history without the flow being bogged down by too much back-story.

The authors waste no time pulling you into this story, and being a mother myself, right from the start I felt the fear; being stranded with my child in the car, then the momentary relief that help has arrived is quickly smothered by terror. And from there I was hooked.

The plot moves and a wonderful pace, fast enough to keep my heart rate soaring, yet with enough breaks that I could stop and catch my breath before they were on the hunt again. It’s in the flawless pace you feel the author’s experience in the genre, particularly as the story really heats up. The cliffhangers and the end of each chapter feed into the desire to keep reading, regardless of how late it is, how tired you are, or what you’re supposed to be doing other than reading.

I really enjoyed the characters in this book as well. All of them you’ll find have their own distinct voice, mannerisms, and personalities. The crew from Saving Angels have their own strengths and weaknesses, and together they form the perfect team, making them the ideal group to help find the children.

The ending for me was slightly predictable. However, I have spent many, many years reading this genre, so most books in this genre have a somewhat predictable ending to me. That would be my main issue with this genre (which by the way is still one of my favorite genres), you’re really only left with two options for an ending; catch the bad guy, or they don’t catch the bad guy. I won’t spoil it with which way this ending went. I will say though that the authors did a wonderful job wrapping up all the loose ends. It wasn’t the dry, run-of-the-mill, blurting out the facts manner that many other authors tend to use.

Overall this was a good read for me, one of the better ones I’ve read in a while. I felt a connection with the characters, the urgency of needing to find the children, the fear that they wouldn’t find them, they pulled me into the rush of the chase. I would recommend this book to anyone who is a fan of the genre. And I would gladly read the first book in this series and the upcoming book as well. The authors have spent a lot of time learning their craft, and their efforts show in their work.

About the authors:

CK WEBB was born and raised in Mississippi, and dreamed of writing like the greats; Emily Bronte, Edgar Allen Poe, and Stephen King, to name a few. CK joined the US Navy and traveled the world, but eventually returned to settle down in the tiny town of Millport, Alabama. A self-proclaimed ‘reformed bad girl’, this thirty-something writer now shares her life with her husband and two beautiful children. CK also enjoys spending time with her friends, family, and book club. Although CK delights in preying on the fears of others and enjoys killing people…thankfully she does it the legal way; in her novels. She has just completed the first two novels in the 'Innocents' series which she co-wrote with her best-friend and mother, DJ Weaver. CK writes in a variety of other genres and also writes articles and book reviews for Suspense Magazine.

DJ WEAVER originally hails from Pascagoula Mississippi, but relocated to north Mississippi in 1980. She took courses at Mississippi University for Woman and Mississippi State University, studying paralegalism and Human Resources Management and has worked in the clerical field for twenty-five years. DJ, along with her daughter and best friend, CK Webb, recently completed the first two in the three-novel Innocents series. She also writes in a variety of other genres. When she isn‘t writing, DJ develops and maintains WebbWeaver Review blog, where she reviews books and interviews published authors regularly. She serves as co-chairwoman of WebbWeaver Book Club and also writes book reviews for Suspense Magazine.DJ is a 50-something year old mother and grandmother who now works part-time and makes her home in Millport Alabama. 

You can find them on The Innocents series website. Also find CK Webb and DJ Weaver on Twitter.

Interview with Chris Redding

Chris Redding is the author of several books, including two new books, Blonde Demolition and A View to a Kilt.

About the Author:
Chris Redding lives in New Jersey with her husband, two kids, one dog and three rabbits. She graduated from Penn State with a degree in journalism with an English Minor. When she isn't writing she works part time for her local hospital teaching CPR and running the CPR training center.

How long have you been writing?
I’ve been writing since I was ten, but writing for publication about 13 years.

How did you pick the genre you write in?
The genre picked me. I started out as a romance writer, but I always seemed to end up with a crime in it. I also tend to like stories with more than one plot so thriller and suspense lends itself to that.

What was the best writing advice someone gave you?
This applies to any dream. Every day do at least one thing to work towards your goal.

What was the worst?
An early critique partner told me to write for Harlequin. Nothing wrong with Harlequin, my stories wouldn’t fit there.

What advice would you give to aspiring writers?
Do one thing every single day to get closer to your goal.

What was your favorite book when you were a child?
A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L'Engle. That may seem an odd choice, as it is middle grade, but I was reading 3 grades ahead of my age.

What’s your favorite quote?
From a John Lennon song called Beautiful Boy. Life is what happens when you’re busy making other plans.

What is your favorite word?
Potential

Tell me one thing about yourself that very few people know?
I’m not fearless.

What are your other interests and hobbies?
I wish I had more time for other things, but writing is very time-consuming. What I used to like to do was cross stitch. The rhythm of it is very relaxing. I also like to hike.

Blonde Demolition
(Available soon in print at Amazon.)

Mallory Sage lives in a small, idyllic town where nothing ever happens. Just the kind of life she has always wanted. No one, not even her fellow volunteer firefighters, knows about her past life as an agent for Homeland Security.

Former partner and lover, Trey McCrane, comes back into Mallory's life. He believes they made a great team once, and that they can do so again. Besides, they don't have much choice. Paul Stanley, a twisted killer and their old nemesis, is back.

Framed for a bombing and drawn together by necessity, Mallory and Trey go on the run and must learn to trust each other again―if they hope to survive. But Mallory has been hiding another secret, one that could destroy their relationship. And time is running out.

A View to a Kilt
(Now available in print at Amazon.)

Waking up next to a dead guy can ruin your whole day.

When a wise-cracking interior decorator wants to put her past behind her, the dead body of the mayor’s son makes it pretty clear that won’t happen too easily.

A conservative former computer geek for the FBI is holding on too tightly to his past. His wife died under suspicious circumstances and he believes the decorator has the information to solve the case. Unfortunately for him, she isn’t talking… until a series of events convinces her she needs protection especially when her biggest secret threatens to destroy both their lives.

You can find out more about Chris Redding at her website and her blog.