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The Lost Concerto

Maggie O’Shea Romantic Suspense, #1

by

Helaine Mario

 

Thrilling mystery and romantic suspense novel featuring a missing child and a classical music theme!

 

The Lost Concerto is the first book in author Helaine Mario’s thrilling Maggie O’Shea Romantic Suspense series and features a grieving classical pianist searching for her godson, the child of her best friend, who went missing at the time of her murder. With its compelling plot, immersive settings, and well-drawn characters, I couldn’t put this book down. 

Life has often dealt Maggie O’Shea a tough hand, but the past year has been devastating with the murder of her best friend, former US diplomat Sofia Orsini on a remote island off the coast of France and the disappearance of Sofia’s young son, followed by the accidental death of her husband in a boating accident as he searched for clues to the child’s location. But when Special Agent Simon Sugarman approaches her with a clue to the child’s whereabouts out of Maggie’s own past, she knows she must go to France and follow it up herself even if it means reuniting with her first love and the father of her only son who’s been MIA/Presumed Dead for over 30 years. 

Maggie is an engaging and sympathetic heroine who, as the story opens, is barely keeping it together after the events of the previous year. She’s sunk deeply into her depression over her beloved husband’s death, steeped in guilt for having involved Jimmy, an experienced investigative reporter, in the search for the missing Tommy and Sofia’s murderer. Due to her grief, Maggie, an acclaimed concert pianist, no longer has the will to play, but she’s determined to do anything she can to find Tommy, including traveling to France under the guise of performing at their upcoming musical events. She’s convinced the boy’s father, a man suspected of heading up and financing a deadly international terror organization, is responsible for his mother’s death. Sugarman teams her up with a retired government operative who’s facing his own demons, and their initial meeting is anything but positive. I loved watching their relationship turn into something completely different. 

Told from multiple points of view as our protagonists follow their meager clues and travel across the pond to France. The descriptions of the various settings are vivid and authentic, making you feel you are viewing the action from inside the scenes themselves. Throughout the book, the questions of who they can trust and what clues will bring them the answers they need to rescue the missing boy from his own father remain key to their success. 

I recommend THE LOST CONCERTO to readers of mysteries, thrillers, and romantic suspense, especially those with an interest in classical music. 

I voluntarily reviewed this after receiving an Advance Review Copy from the author through Partners in Crime Virtual Book Tours.

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Funerals and Familiars

Willowmere Mystery, #1

by

Carmen Radtke

 

A fun, paranormal, cozy mystery with a mature sleuth, witchcraft, books, and a cat familiar.

 

Funerals and Familiars is the first book in author Carmen Radtke’s new paranormal cozy series, Willowmere Mysteries, featuring a mature and relatable amateur sleuth, witchcraft, books, and a cat familiar named Cosmo. This book was the perfect way to end a long day, leaving me with a smile on my face. 

Bex Merriweather is going through a lot: a divorce, menopause, and the death of her Aunt Violet, an elderly relative with a secret or two up her sleeve, and a talking cat. (I loved the relationship between Bex and Cosmo so much!) The little town of Willowmere is the perfect small town for this paranormal cozy series, with rumors and interested parties everywhere. 

The story moves at a good pace without getting bogged down as the author introduces the characters, their backstories, and the setting. When Aunt Violet’s neighbor is murdered, Bex and her friends take on the investigation. For Bex, her new magic depends on her success. 

I recommend FUNERALS AND FAMILIARS to readers of paranormal cozy mysteries. 

I voluntarily reviewed this after receiving an Advance Review Copy from the author through Great Escapes Virtual Book Tours.

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Shadowed Skies

by

Haley Cavanagh

 

Exciting YA dystopian tale with a sweet romance.

 

Shadowed Skies by Haley Cavanagh is an exciting young adult dystopian tale of a horrifying future, where the human population has been decimated by deadly viruses while leaving an enhanced, winged human hybrid race untouched. The surviving humans hunt the Evol-humans almost to extinction for their blood, whose properties can reverse the virus, saving its victims. 

Told from the alternating points of view of the last two Evol-humans, River and Delene, the story grabbed my attention from the start, with both protagonists in dire situations. As they struggle to escape their human captors, the author deftly inserts the backstories of the two and how the world came to its current state. 

The romantic subplot develops slowly and sweetly, making it suitable for most ages. I was relieved that there were at least two of their kind left and rooted for this sweet relationship from the beginning. The harsh settings and evil characters are well-drawn, providing real struggles for the characters to overcome. The compelling yet easy-to-read story made this one of my favorites in this genre. 

I recommend SHADOWED SKIES to readers of young adult dystopian stories. 

I voluntarily reviewed this after receiving an Advance Review Copy from the author through Goddess Fish Promotions Book Tours.

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The Last Train Out of Hell

by

Julie Price Carpenter

 

An atmospheric setting, engaging characters, fun dialogue, and a puzzling mystery combine to create an entertaining and memorable story.

 

When a distracted Liz Martin stepped off a curb into the path of a bus, she never expected to find herself on a one-way train trip to Hell, but there she was. And Hell wasn’t at all what she had been led to envision; it was more of an overcrowded, soot-showered, demon-infested version of “Up Top,” all run by the overwhelmed, under-budgeted Manager of Hell named Brian. 

Readers are thrust immediately into the confusion and chaos of the setting as the latest train disgorges Hell’s newest arrivals to the afterlife at Perdition City Station. The freshly disembodied are met with the nightmare of Hell’s woefully inadequate infrastructure and rigid, red-tape-ridden governmental bureaucracy comprised of endless queues and stacks of incomprehensible forms, where the smallest mistake sends the bearer to the back of the line. I love the full spectrum of creatures found there (ranked demons, devils, succubi, etc.) and their demonic names, as well as the inclusion of biblically well-known figures such as Beelzebub and Lilith, and the well-known adjacent entities like “Sam” Azrael. The cute yet hellish business and brand names were also fun (i.e., Dante’s Café, Taco Torchiere, and Ghoulies breakfast cereal). 

A rule-follower by nature, Liz passively accepts her adjudication to Hell but lies awake nights searching her memories of her past for just cause and still coming up clueless. She shares her eternal life in damnation with a personally assigned demon, a catlike creature named Dennis, who upchucks or otherwise evacuates everything he ingests onto her shoes, bed, or underwear drawer. Joining her in perdition (and Perdition City) are two other recent arrivals and neighbors in her apartment building, Ellie and Theo, along with their own tiny tormentors, the little dragon, Greg, who sleeps a good 20 hours per day, and Theo’s troublesome companion, Alberta, a manic marmoset. They, too, are genuinely puzzled that their former lives merited their current situation, and together they question the more Purgatory-like nature of their existence in Perdition City. Their confusion is accompanied by the mystery of the boarded-up ticket counters at Perdition City Station, and the appearance that it wasn’t always the terminus of this Stygian railway. 

On her arrival in Hell, an accidental meeting with the Manager of Hell and a sympathetic comment garners Liz, a former librarian in life, the least coveted position of Brian’s administrative assistant. However, their shared struggles to control the chaos lead to a slow-burn attraction between the two, which was a delight to watch and raised the stakes in Liz’s and her friend’s covert investigation into the history of Hell, the railway, and Satan’s contractual responsibilities. With the implied additional train routes from the station, maybe Perdition City isn’t the final destination for everyone. 

With its vivid, atmospheric setting, well-drawn, engaging, and sympathetic characters, sparkling dialogue, and hopeful ramifications of the mystery of the train, I recommend THE LAST TRAIN OUT OF HELL to readers of humorous fiction and mystery. 

I voluntarily reviewed this after receiving an Advance Review Copy from Reedsy Discovery.

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Strike the Death Note

Octavia Fields Mystery, #2

by

Rebecca McKinnon

 

A summer violin shop owner looking to revitalize her slowing business finds a dead body instead.

 

Pursuing a possible answer to the continuing future of her summer music camp violin shop, Octavia Fields is strolling near the grounds of the university’s administration building, killing time before she meets with the director when she comes across a man kneeling over the body of a dead woman with a conductor’s baton sticking out of her chest. Immediately calling in the police, she is reunited with the same team who investigated an earlier death at the music camp, including Detective Jack Price. Although determined to avoid getting involved in the investigation, Octavia is nevertheless drawn in as people seek her out for information and to share their thoughts. Strike the Death Note is the second book in author Rebecca McKinnon’s fresh and fun Octavia Fields Mystery series. With its quirky main character, fun music-themed setting, and slow-burn romance, I was all in for this well-paced, cozy mystery. 

The heart of this series is the main character, Octavia Fields, a woman who definitely marches to the sound of a different drummer. Sans shoes and cellphone, she’s a woman more in tune with simpler living and the natural world. Since their last meeting, she and Jack have drifted apart, but there is still a spark between the two, and it is a joy to watch it slowly gain in intensity as they are, once again, thrown together. 

The plot gets underway immediately with Octavia’s accountant’s concerns about her violin shop’s financial future. With more going out than coming in this summer. He suggests that Octavia will need to make some cuts and hard choices to remain viable next summer. Soon after, she discovers the body of the dead cellist, and the case is immediately opened. Throughout the book, I enjoyed Octavia’s relationships with her friends involved in the orchestra or camp, as well as her staff members who took complete charge of the store despite her well-meaning ideas for displays. The musical theme is delightful, and I enjoyed the many musical references and activities. With a number of people to cross off the list of suspects and red herrings to eliminate, there is a lot of interesting detecting to follow on the way to a plausible resolution to the case. 

I recommend STRIKE THE DEATH NOTE to cozy mystery readers, especially those who enjoy stories with a musical theme, a Rocky Mountains setting, or a free-spirited protagonist. 

I voluntarily reviewed this after receiving an Advance Review Copy from the author through Great Escapes Virtual Book Tours.

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Bazaar

by

Miles Joyner

 

Exciting and fresh with an unpredictable new young assassin.

 

BAZAAR by Miles Joyner is a thrilling, unpredictable story of a deadly game of murder for hire. Ultra-skilled executive protection firms are on the alert! A new online, high-stakes app combines gambling with a murder-for-hire bidding system that anyone with the guts can join, and the first hit on the son of a Nigerian diplomat, accomplished in the middle of Washington, D.C., is a tragic success. Now, the fledgling protection firm, Raptor, with founders and siblings Yemi and Karen Uzunma, are in a cat-and-mouse game against a surprising new foe as he goes after their new make-it-or-break-it client: the diplomat himself. 

I enjoyed this book immensely, and I was torn between rooting for the characters on both sides of the target: Raptor and their crew and Aaron Williams, the surprisingly adept young killer. I wanted Karen and Yemi’s group to excel while at the same time hoping for Aaron’s success and a way out of the situation caused by his father’s shocking death at his own hands. 

The plot is fast-paced, with a shocking murder occurring soon after the story begins. I was caught completely off guard by the unexpected opening, and I was hooked for the duration of the tale. The death pool with a twist was riveting and unique, and Aaron Williams is a surprisingly relatable antagonist, displaying a genius and aptitude for the horrific work. His backstory is compelling, and he was easy to get behind, even with his actions being murder. 

I recommend BAZAAR to thriller and mystery readers. 

I voluntarily reviewed this after receiving an Advance Review Copy from the author through Partners in Crime Virtual Book Tours.

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Time Traveler's Playlist: A Classic Rock Time Travel AdventureTime Traveler's Playlist: A Classic Rock Time Travel Adventure by David Homick
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

An exciting, suspenseful, and, ultimately, heartwarming story of finding one’s self and one’s soulmate.

Time Traveler’s Playlist by David Homick is an exciting, suspenseful, and, ultimately, heartwarming story of a young man’s pursuit of his one true love (and classic 70s rock and roll music.) I was honestly captivated by this tale from start to finish.

The hunt for legendary Aztec gold on his family’s farm leads 22-year-old Angus Walker to a hidden cave with a mysterious portal to the past. Mustering his courage, he passes through the portal and finds himself in Denver, Colorado, in the year 1978, where the muscle cars and land yachts of his dreams proudly cruise the city streets, and the classic rock music that he collected in his time period are new releases here. He also falls head over heels for the dynamic female lead vocalist and bass player of a rising local band, who knows more than she’s letting on about Angus’s unconventional mode of transportation to the 70s.

Angus is the wonderful protagonist of the story, a sad-sack, self-prophesying loser in his own time of 2024; he seems to fit in with life in 1978, coming close to being one of the cool kids. In his time, he has a good ‘ride or die’ friend in Walter ‘Waldo’ Hastings, a fellow misfit in high school due to his high IQ and dedication to academics, and Ozzy, a lovable stray black lab named after the infamous, original frontman for Black Sabbath. Both Waldo and Ozzy are endearing, and each time Angus returned home to 2024, I worried whether his actions in the past would negatively affect either of these characters – because changes occurred!

While Angus may have succumbed to the negative talk and bullying in his formative years, he regularly shows perseverance and courage throughout the story. He stands up to the bullies. He confronts Lars and Sam head-on when necessary. He talked himself into entering the portal. He pursued his soulmate and then sacrificed everything for love.

The plot is fast-paced, and the transitions between time periods are clear and easy to follow. The descriptions of the rugged and remote Utah farm and 1978 Denver are vivid, creating the perfect backdrops for the ensuing action. I thoroughly enjoyed the song title chapter headings, which not only foreshadowed the coming direction of the story but were tunes contemporary to the time. The selections were so perfect that I compiled them, along with additional songs mentioned in the narrative, into a fun, nostalgic new playlist.

I recommend TIME TRAVELER’S PLAYLIST to fiction readers who enjoy time travel tales of romance.

I voluntarily reviewed this after receiving an Advance Review Copy from Reedsy Discovery.

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Higher Love

by

Joanne Kukanza Easley

 

Emotionally evocative and character-driven dive into what makes and takes a family.

 

Higher Love, a sequel to author Joanne Kukanza Easley’s I’ll Be Seeing You, continues the story of Lauren Eaton, where the results of her past actions suddenly thrust themselves into her present. However, the skillful and steady insertion of background information brought me up to date and prevented me from feeling like I’d missed out. Readers who have not read the previous book will easily be able to read and enjoy this one as a standalone. 

At 62 years of age, Lauren Eaton, with her porcelain skin and vibrant head of mahogany curls, could readily pass for a much younger woman. She absolutely doesn’t look or feel her age, that is until her biological granddaughter shows up on her doorstep looking for her ‘real’ granny. Faced with the evidence of an almost forgotten past, it was like looking into a mirror, and there was no denying the relationship whatsoever. 

Recently orphaned Stephanie Babcock Kingston had run away from her haughty and insular Boston grandmother’s home when threatened with boarding school. It was only after her mother’s death that she discovered that Evelyn Cabot Babcock wasn’t her biological grandmother and had kept the truth from her and her mother their entire lives. Fleeing to Austin and Lauren, she hoped to build a new, fresh life in Texas. 

Told from the dual, alternating points of view of Lauren and Stephanie, the plot is deeply emotional and expressed in such a compelling manner that time seemed to melt away for me. Both Lauren and her granddaughter have a lot of catching up to do, clarifications to make, and trust to build. Both are struggling with their own demons. Lauren is 25 years sober, and readers gain an authentic glimpse into her struggle to maintain sobriety, serving as a poignant reminder that the fight is a lifelong one. Her new-found granddaughter has a recent history of self-harm to overcome. Stephanie is finally able to grieve her father’s earlier passing and her mother’s sudden death from a tragic accident while vacationing in Belize. Together with Lauren’s new husband and truly great guy, Brett, they slowly come to terms with the past, overcome new challenges, and focus on creating a new future as a family. 

With its strong and, I suspect, lasting emotional impact, this story is for readers seeking character-driven tales of tragedy, pain, self-determination, and the healing power of love. 

I voluntarily reviewed this after receiving an Advance Review Copy from the author through Lone Star Literary Life Book Campaigns.

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Too Much the Lion

A Novel of the Battle of Franklin

by

Preston Lewis

 

The life and times, as well as the horrors and realities of the Civil War, are encapsulated in this fictional account of the Battle of Franklin, Tennessee.

 

Too Much the Lion by Preston Lewis is a compelling historical novel of the days leading up to, the results, and aftermath of this tragic battle during the closing days of the American Civil War at Franklin, Tennessee. A battle that shouldn’t have been fought; it cemented the Confederate loss and changed the course of life for thousands. 

The novel presents the stories of generals, soldiers, and the residents of the area as they prepare for the fateful clash between an exhausted and undersized Confederate army against an entrenched Union force many times its size. Lewis gives readers an insider’s view into every angle of the tragic events, and it is an emotional and draining vision, with all the inevitability of watching a train wreck unfold. What sets this recounting apart from others of its kind is the portrayal of the participants; the author brings these people to life. 

I recommend TOO MUCH THE LION to readers of historical fiction and Civil War stories. 

I voluntarily reviewed this after receiving an Advance Review Copy from the author through Lone Star Literary Life Book Campaigns.

 

For this and other reviews and the occasional GIVEAWAY, visit my blog, Boys' Mom Reads!, HERE!

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Homemaker

Prairie Nightingale Mystery, #1

by

Ruthie Knox and Annie Mare

 

A Green Bay housewife becomes involved in the investigation of a missing woman from her former mothers' group.

 

Homemaker is the first book in authors Ruthie Knox and Annie Mare amazing new series, Prairie Nightingale Mysteries, and is one of the most entertaining books I've read this year. Prairie Nightingale notices things, and she knows something is off in the elementary school moms' group she used to be a part of, even before the news that Lisa Ratcliffe was missing. As she talks to the missing woman's closest friends, many of whom were involved in the same multilevel marketing business, Kitty Blue, she starts gathering important pieces of information that, when combined, could be critical to law enforcement in solving the baffling disappearance. Of course, the local FBI agent on the case wants her to back off and leave the investigation to the professionals while showing her a more personal side that could work out to something interesting for her Thursday night date nights. However, they both have access to resources that the other does not, with her having insider knowledge about the missing woman and an uncanny ability to see connections in the clues that others don't. 

Prairie Nightingale is a fun and relatable yet complex character with a unique backstory and an unusual post-divorce, co-parenting situation with her ex-husband. She's smart and witty, and her interactions with Special Agent Foster Rosemare are delightful as long as they are not discussing "his" case. I enjoyed how she developed some remarkably intricate theories about what happened to Lisa based on her observations and interviews with the woman's friends. 

The plot leaps off to a good start with the mystery introduced early in the story. The story unfolds from Prairie's point of view, so readers have full access to her thought processes and motives as he pursues her private inquiries. There are plenty of relatable moments with Prairie, the mother, and Prairie, the newly single woman, to enjoy as she slowly makes her way to the truth behind what happened to Lisa Ratcliffe. 

I recommend HOMEMAKER to readers who enjoy mysteries, cozies, and domestic thrillers.

 

For this and other book reviews and the occasional GIVEAWAY, visit Boys' Mom Reads!