Review: Sins of the Past by Dee Henderson, Dani Pettrey and Lynette Eason

5 Stars!

When I first heard that this novella collection was going to be happening only one thought went through my mind, my three all time favorite romantic suspense authors together in one book? Yes, please! Needless to say Sins of the Past was my most anticipated read of 2016!

Missing by Dee Henderson-4.5 Stars!-

This story got the collection off to a great start! As a huge fan of Dee's O'Malley family series, I am happy to say that I feel like this one was a lot closer to her earlier books than her more recent ones. While the suspense wasn't quite the same as in the O'Malley books, Missing was still very suspenseful, I had no clue whether John's mother would survive. And I totally didn't guess the reason for her disappearance until right before it was revealed! I also really enjoyed the romance between John and Sharon, it was very fun and I felt that it was very well developed for a story this short! Overall, while this novella wasn't my favorite of the collection, I still really loved it!

Shadowed by Dani Pettrey-5 Stars!-

If you know me at all then you probably know what a huge fan I am of Dani's books! I absolutely adored every page of her Alaskan Courage series and I was over the moon excited when I found out that Dani's contribution to this collection would feature the parents of our beloved McKenna clan! Words truly cannot express how happy it made me to finally be introduced to Ben and Libby, I was completely enthralled with every single word of their adventure! I don't know how Dani does it but every time I think one of her books has reached the absolute pinnacle of awesomeness, the next ups the awesome factor tenfold. Such was the case with Shadowed, forgive me but I just can't seem to stop gushing, it was just SO perfect! The suspense was off the charts crazy, I loved it! One of the things I thought was so cool about this story was all the references to pop culture and things of the time, I'm only twenty four years old but those details helped to paint such a vivid picture that while I was reading the story I felt like I was really living in 1979! I could go on for days about how much I loved this book but for the sake of everyone reading this review and for fear of spoiling something I'll draw this gush-fest to a close! Let me end by saying that the ending of this book caused me to feel giddy tingles of pure happiness and I had the biggest grin on my face when I read the last few sentences! This was my favorite of the three novellas and as soon as I finished it I found myself wanting to read it all over again, and I plan to make sure I leave room in my schedule to re-read it many times in the future!

Blackout by Lynette Eason-5 Stars!-

Lynette Eason is another one of my favorite authors, I always love her stories and Blackout was no exception! Macey and Chad were both such great characters and I loved their story. This was such a unique take on a suspense storyline and I loved it! I really had no clue who the villain was and I was totally surprised when their identity was revealed! I was absolutely blown away by the intensity as well as the sheer number of suspenseful scenes that Lynette was able to squeeze into a story this short, I never had a chance to catch my breath and I loved it! This story also contains one of the most crazy suspenseful climax's that I have ever read, I was literally on the edge of my seat wanting to know what would happen next! I loved every minute of Blackout and I anticipate re-reading it many times in the future!

Sins of the Past is a novella collection that not only has a permanent spot on my keeper shelf but that all fans of romantic suspense NEED to read, you will not be sorry! This book will totally make my favorite books of 2016 list! 

I was honored to receive a complimentary copy of this amazing book from Author Dani Pettrey and Bethany House publishers in exchange for helping to promote it! Thank you! 

All thoughts and opinions are one hundred percent my own.

Review: Her One and Only by Becky Wade

5 Stars!!!

What an amazingly perfect, yet very bittersweet (For all us fans!) ending to the Porter family series! I have been so looking forward to Dru's story ever since book one and I was not disappointed in the slightest! I loved both Dru and Gray (Becky Wade has crafted yet another utterly swoon-worthy hero!) I liked how God used Dru to help strengthen His relationship with Gray, and vice versa, always such a wonderful thing to see in a romance novel! I loved the banter between Dru and Gray, as well as between Dru and her family so much, that has been one of my favorite things about this family since book one. I love that I can always count on Becky Wade to tug at my heart strings, make me smile and keep me chuckling from beginning to end and this book was no different! Words truly cannot express my depth of love for this book as well for the entire series! It was so awesome that this book provided closure in several different areas, I especially loved the conclusion of Meg and Bo's story! It's funny but I guess I felt about the Porter family similar to the way Mrs. Bennet (From Pride and Prejudice) felt about her children, that I wouldn't be truly happy until each sibling had found the love of their life. LOL! :D

As that is now the case, then, while I am sad to say goodbye to this fictional family that I love so much, I am completely and perfectly and incandescently happy that they are each living their happily ever after's and I can revisit them and their adventures any time I want to! 

I highly recommend Her One and Only to fans of contemporary romance with a suspense element (oh yes, how could I have forgotten about the suspense, it was sooo good! I absolutely loved that part of the story, and let me just say that I am usually able to figure out the identity of the villain(s) pretty early on but with this one there were so many possible suspects that my guess kept changing and until the ID was made I had no clue for sure who the guilty party was!)

While I think the books can definitely stand alone I would recommend reading them in order! Fans of the Porter family series are not going to want to miss this final installment! 

I cannot wait to see what else Becky Wade has in store for us!

 

Thank you to the author and publisher for providing me with a free copy of this book in exchange for helping to promote it!

Review: Silence in the Dark by Patricia Bradley

4 Stars!

I fell in love with Patricia Bradley's writing when I read the first book in this series! I also fell in love with the characters and the town of Logan Point Mississippi, which really is another character! Even though I don't think I had 'met' Bailey prior to this book, I really enjoyed her and Danny's story! When I realized that unlike the three previous books neither of the main characters had a direct connection with law enforcement I must admit that I was nervous that the book might be lacking in suspense, I am absolutely delighted to say that that was most definitely not the case, the suspense was so crazy and good, it kept me turning the pages! I have to say that I found myself relating to Bailey quite a lot and I thought she was a great character! Danny was great too! I loved little Maria, as well as the sub plot that centered around Angel and Solana! I loved that in a way the plot of this book was actually a continuation of the plot from the second book, I loved that and I was so happy to finally see that mystery solved! Overall, while this isn't my favorite of the series I still really loved it. There are two reasons why I am giving it four stars instead of five, first of all, even though we got to see Ben (The hero from the second book) quite a lot and we saw a couple of other characters from the previous books once or twice, I guess since it was the last book I was hoping for some kind of reunion type of scene where we saw all the characters get together for some kind of celebration or something and I guess I was just a little bit disappointed that that didn't happen. The other reason is that the very ending felt a little unfinished to me, I would have really liked an epilogue just because I wanted to keep reading! I highly recommend this book and the entire series, each book can standalone but I would recommend reading them in order! 

Patricia Bradley has a permanent spot on my list of all time favorite suspense authors and I can't wait to read anything and everything that she writes in the future!

I was honored to receive a review copy of this amazing book from Revell publishers in exchange for my honest review! 

Bout of Books 16 Sign Up!

The Bout of Books read-a-thon is organized by Amanda @ On a Book Bender and Kelly @ Reading the Paranormal. It is a week long read-a-thon that begins 12:01am Monday, May 9th and runs through Sunday, May 15th in whatever time zone you are in. Bout of Books is low-pressure. There are challenges, giveaways, and a grand prize, but all of these are completely optional. For all Bout of Books 16 information and updates, be sure to visit the Bout of Books blog. - From the Bout of Books team

I cannot wait to participate yet again in this super fun read-a-thon! Will post my book list and goals on  the first day of the read-a-thon!

Review: After the Thaw by Therese Heckenkamp

5 Stars!

I absolutely loved Frozen Footprints when I read it a few years ago, and I have been very much looking forward to reading this sequel! Needless to say that when I was offered the opportunity to review it I jumped at the chance. I was not disappointed, After the Thaw was so worth the wait! I loved getting reacquainted with Charlene, Max, and Clay, especially since I'd always wondered what happened next after Frozen Footprints ended! Therese Heckenkamp is fast beginning one of my favorite authors, she really knows how to write an awesome story with characters you love, villains you despise, a spiritual message that uplifts you and makes you think, and incredible suspense. Oh my gosh the suspense in this book was so crazy good, for most of the book I felt like the characters and myself barely had time to catch our breath before we plunged into yet another suspenseful moment! Love that! 

I don't want to risk spoiling anything so I will finish by saying that I absolutely loved After the Thaw and highly recommend it, though I think it would be best to read Frozen Footprints first. These books are so worth reading! Seriously, go buy them now, you won't be sorry!

A big thank you to the author for providing me with a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. Which I have done , my review was not required to be positive. All thoughts and opinions are one hundred percent my own

Review: Season of Glory by Lisa T. Bergren

4 Stars!

I love Lisa T. Bergren's books and after absolutely loving the first installment in this series and really liking the second I was very much looking forward to seeing how things would end! I have to admit that this is a difficult review for me to write because I really have mixed feelings about this book, while there were several moments of Season of Glory that I absolutely loved, I have to be honest, I found myself feeling bored many times while reading this book. But as I was in a bit of a reading slump at the time I read this book, I don't think I can put all the blame on the book itself. It just felt there were a lot of planning times where not much was really going on.

I continued to love Ronan and Andriana's romance and I was thrilled to read their happy ending. Without giving away too much I will just say that I found myself continuously questioning the true motive of the villain (And by that I mean that I had hard time believing him) 

I really enjoyed getting to meet back up with this incredibly fun cast of characters, and overall I am so glad that I read this book. Even though Season of Wonder will always be my favorite of the series I feel like Season of Glory was a great ending to the series and that the entire series is absolutely a must read! 

Buy it, you won't be sorry!

I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher through the BookLook bloggers review program in exchange for my honest review, which I have done. All thoughts and opinions are one hundred percent my own.

Review: Like Never Before by Melissa Tagg

5 Stars!!!

If you know me at all then you probably know just how much I LOVE Melissa Tagg's books! Like Never Before was no exception! I was so excited to read this book, having fallen completely in love with the Walker family and the entire town of Maple Valley, Iowa! As soon as I turned the first page I found myself sighing in happiness, and thinking "Wow it feels like forever since I've gotten to visit this town and these characters." 

While I liked Logan in book one of the series I didn't fall in love until this book! I mean, come on, a gorgeous guy who will ILL a book as a surprise for you! What's not to love? I was glad to learn his story, even though the sadness of his past did bring tears to my eyes at times! It's really interesting because I actually found myself relating to Logan quite a lot, I too have a tendency to blame myself and feel guilt for everything that goes wrong, so the message in this book impacted me personally more than any non-fiction book ever could! I really liked Amelia too,(I especially loved that she loved in a barn!)and I thought she and Logan were a perfect match! Whenever I read one of Melissa's books I know I will end up laughing my head off all the way From the Start (Yes, pun based off the title of the first book in this series most definitely intended!) and that was exactly the case with Like Never Before, the banter was so witty and engaging that as soon as I finished laughing about one line I would wind up in stitches once again! Overall I absolutely loved Like Never Before, I feel like my review isn't even coming close to doing this amazing book justice, but for fear of spoiling something I will finish by saying this, Melissa's books are some of the most funny, entertaining, engaging, romantic, and yet incredibly deep and well rounded books that I have ever read! Folks, I'm serious you NEED to read her books NOW! :) 

All fans of Melissa's books will not be disappointed with Like Never Before, my only complaint is the miserable year long wait that I will have to endure until the release of the next book! I can't wait to read Beckett's story when it releases next year but I have to admit that I am most excited for Raegan and Bear's story whenever it finally releases!!!!!!

I was honored to receive a review copy of this amazing book from Bethany House publishers in exchange for my honest review!