So, I have noticed something about Griffins books. One, when it comes to the romance, Griffin does keep her characters realistic. What I mean by that is, damn if they don't make stupid decisions when it comes to romance. Usually, in a romance novel, once the guy and girl have established their attraction to each other, no one else matters. Not so much in this book. Both guy and girl have a moment where they think to go to bed with their exes. Just think it, as a way to get out some frustration and because neither are sure if they are going to get with the other but....still! Two! Griffin doesn't give the inner thoughts on motivation from some of these characters at points when those thoughts would do a lot to make the story flow well. THAT BEING SAID, I still enjoyed myself and liked the book.
So this book is about Alex and Nathan. Alex is a PI who usually helps battered women hide from their partners. She does other PI work as well but that is where her passion is. One of her clients hasn't checked in and she is worried about. When goes to look for her, she finds blood in the mobile her client is staying in. While she looks around the property, someone blows it up. Now Alex is certain something is wrong and needs help. She turns to Nathan. He is a detective for the Austin Police Department. He is also the guy that has been on Alex's thoughts, which is nice since she has been on his mind as well. Nathan has a hard time believing Alex because it would mean a fellow police officer, and someone he knows, would be a crook and he has a hard time accepting that without evidence. But time is running out and Alex needs to find out what happened to her client before things get bad. SO! When I say there are times when getting that inner monologue about motivation would be nice, it is very much those transition from scene to scene that they are needed. One chapter ends with Alex mad at realizing that Nathan doesn't believe her theory of what happened to her client. The next chapter opens with her at his house first thing in the morning trying to convince him to go with her somewhere. Ummmm, how about a paragraph or two giving us the reason Alex is there and why. I don't want to try to put together the motivation based on dialouge. It doesn't always happen. Sometimes there is enough exposition between the scenes that they flow nicely but its jaring when there isn't one and it takes away from the flow of the book. I hope this getting better as the series continues. The mystery is pretty interesting but since we don't get a lot of the technical stuff of the investigation, it is hard to try to piece together who is a killer and who isn't, or who is corrupt and who isn't. I am used to Karen Rose, who gives so much detail, so this is a change of pace. It isn't horrible and there is nothing wrong with it, it is just different. Also, Griffin doesn't stack the body count like in the Karen Rose books, so that makes it more realistic in my opinion. Not every killer is going to have almost a dozen kills before they are caught. Just a couple is more realistic. I understand that more kills tends to make for more tension and suspense but its nice not to have that. OH, and you don't get the killer's or bad guy's perspective at all and I like that because I could care less about the killer. I want to concentrate on the two main characters. All in all, I will continue this series. I have noticed, from what I can see with other character and the synopsis of future books, that these characters are not going to exactly be strangers when they first meet in their book. Seems they get introduced in previous books. I don't know how I like that as I like to see the initial meet cute that throws the two main characters into their dance to a realationship. I don't know if that is true for every book but it seems to be true for a lot of them. That is all for this book. See you next read!
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So this my favorite Drake sister book by Christine Feehan and I decide to re-read this book because it ties in with the Sisters of Heart series that I have decided to read. How does it tie in? Well Joley, the heroine of this book, is marked by Ilya. Ilya, a Russian bodyguard, has special abilites like Joley and her sisters. He marked Joley in a previous book and now he has come to claim her.
Joley is a super star singer. She can enchant anyone with her voice. The book starts out with her going to a party to find her bandmates. The party is being hosted by the Russian mob boss that is a fan of Joley and is Ilya's boss. That starts off their going back and forth. At the same time, Joley sees a crew member with some underage girls but isn't able to do anything at the moment. This leads to a problem as one of the girls goes missing and Joley wants her found. So, there is Joley and Ilya trying to figure out the mark that he has put on her and Joely, mostly, accepting him in her life (she is scared of him taking her over as he is an alpha personality). Ilya has already accepted that Joley is his true partner and destined for him. At the same time, there is this undercurrent of Russian mafia and human trafficking being hinted at. Now, this leads into the Sisters of Heart series because Ilya is the seventh son of the seventh son. In the Drake family line, the seventh child holds all the abilities to pass on to seven children. It is the same in Ilya's family. He holds all the gifts and it is his destiny to pass on the gifts to his seven sons. That mean there are six more brothers in Ilya's family and they are to find their partners. That is how this next series is going to tie in with the Drake sisters. Those brothers are going to show up in Sea Haven. So, this is a typical paranormal romance novel. Lots of sexual tension and miscommunication. The danger that happens adds to the development of the relationship, making Joley to put her guard down every once and awhile and letting the romance progress. All in all, a nice little romance by a favorite paranormal romance writer of mine. I enjoyed reading it, again, and think it sets up the Sisters of Heart series that I am going to read. That is all I have for this book. See you next read! This is a re-read for me. I first read it in high school and then read it several times after in college. At first I didn't remember the story but once I started reading it, it all came flooding back.
So this book is about Irene and Luke. Luke is an ex-Marine who owns the Lodge that Irene is staying at. He is trying to figure out what to do with his life after an embarassing episode with his family. His family is worried about him, as well. Irene is back in her old hometown because of an email that came from her best friend from the worst summer of her life. When Irene was in high school, her friend Pamela had kept her out past curfew. When Irene finally came home, she found both her parents dead. The official story was that her dad killed her mother and then himself but Irene never believed that. The email from Pamela implied that she knew what happened so Irene returns to the old town that she hates. Luke, intrigued by Irene and the mystery she presents, gets involved. When Irene goes to talk to Pamela in the middle of the night, Luke follows. They both find her dead body. The police say it was a drug and alcohol overdoes but Irene believes differently. So, this book is interesting. I like that there isn't just the mystery but also all the drama with Luke's family. Kind of makes it seems a little more interesting. The mystery behind Pamela's death is kind of interesting but, since neither of the people looking into it are part of the police force, it didn't have the same feel of the suspense novels I have been reading. That being said, that didn't mean it was bad, just felt like connections were made super easily compared to some of the long and more complex suspense novels I have read recently. I still enjoyed Irene and Luke. Their chemistry was interesting. They both had their own issues but, instead of it preventing them from trying to connect with each other, it actually helped them bond some. It was cute. Like I said, this was a re-read for me so I knew how things were going to go in the beginning. I still enjoyed myself and this book does have one of the best comedic scenes I have ever read in a romance novel. I laughed the whole time. Anyways, that is all for this book. See you after the next read! This is definitely an interesting book. It is not on the same level of mystery as with the Karen Rose books that I usually read for romantic suspense but it was still interesting. I was hoping for a twist and there was one. I honestly wasn't expecting it, just hoping for it, but it did make for some good drama.
So this is about Brynn and Erik. Brynn is a defense attorney who used to work for the prosecutor's office. One of the killers that she had put away has escaped from prison and is on a revenge spree, killing those he blamed for putting him away. Brynn's boss hires a security firm to protect her and her co-chair while they take on a huge case. Erik is the lead in this job and his main directive is to make sure nothing happens to Brynn. But neither of them were prepared for their attraction to each other. Like I said, there is a twist in the end but it is subtle on how the author hints to it. See the killer believes that he was wrongly convicted for his crime. Brynn believes that everything was on the up and up when it came to her case she doesn't want to believe that there was a way they wrongly convicted this guy. That being said, a detective does decide to see if there is any truth to the frame job. While the detective is doing that, Erik is making sure that Brynn is not hurt while she is defending her client. There are a couple of issues with when the killer tries to get close, which causes some vulnerability between Erik and Brynn, letting the sparks fly. All in all, I enjoyed the book. I was entertained and I think that is all that needs to happen to enjoy a book. See you after the next read! (I made this post several days after I finished the book. I ended up reading a couple of other books after this book and before I did the review) First and foremost, I am soooo excited that we get to see a character from the very first book of this series by Karen Rose. Tom Hunter is all grown up and a FBI agent. No, this is not his book, that comes out later this year, but he does have a small role in this book.
So, this book is about Gideon and Daisy. Daisy is connected to the Baltimore series. Her step sister was the lost daughter to one of the characters there. Anyways, Daisy is attacked while she is walking with her friend but she is able to get away. In the process of the struggle, she grabs a necklace off the perp that hold some significance. That is where Gideon comes in. Gideon escaped from a cult when he was a preteen and has been trying to find them ever since so he could rescue all the other children that were trapped there. The necklace that Daisy pulled off her attacker was the locket that all the girls were given in the cult and could have a clue to where they are. So, this is probably the easiest serial killer book that Rose has written so far. I usually love the serial killer novels because there is usually a twist to who is doing the killing but this time there wasn't. There wasn't a connection to either main characters. The necklace was from one of the serial killer's victims and the serial killer wanted to kill Daisy because she got away from him and could potentially recognize him. There wasn't really a mystery to figure out. On top of that, usually both characters have some trauma or something that happened is usually kept secret but this book lays out all the information in the beginning, only keep a couple things back to be reveal, very easily, later. Usually the characters have some tension because they keep things from each other but not in this book. Daisy and Gideon just understand each other and they just share things when asked. Though I want characters to communicate with each other, if there is not tension it can become a little boring. I just don't connect with the characters as much because they don't give that inner turmoil or dialouge. All in all, it is not a bad book but not my favoritie when it came to the her books. I was hoping for more tension but didn't get it. I do like the new cast of characters as this book is set in Sacremento. I will be going back to the Cincinnati books but I wanted to read this one because of the serial killer element. Wasn't as good as some of the others in previous books. That is all for this book. See you next read! (I finished this book a week before this post. I had read three other books before I did the reviews.) So, two things first. One, I think I am burning out on Karen Rose books a little. They are so good and I have been reading so many of them lately that I think I am needing a change of pace soon. Two, this has got to be the longest book Karen Rose has written that I have read. It is over 700 pages and, damn, is there a lot. So, this book is about Scarlett and Marcus. Marcus is Faith’s cousin from the last book and Scarlet is Deacon’s partner from the last book. Marcus and Scarlet are pulled into a human trafficking case when Marcus sees a girl in the park that looks like she needs help. He meets her to help her but she ends up dead but not before she tells Marcus that “they” own her family. Marcus calls Scarlet because of a connection they made from the previous book.
So, I like Marcus and Scarlet from the previous books and I liked seeing them get their own story. Both have some pretty sad background stories but, damn, Marcus’s family is so messed up. In the last book, his uncle ends up being the serial killer everyone is looking forward and had been trying to kill his cousin Faith. On top of that, the serial killer had also killed Marcus’s younger brother while trying to kill Faith. NOW, we learn there was another sibling who died when they were young because of a kidnapping gone wrong. On top of that, Marcus had a hand in his own father’s death. GEEZ, this poor family. The one thing I didn’t like about this book was how much time was spent with the bad guys. I know that it was done for a purpose, like setting up the next book. I just didn’t like having to read so much from the bad guy’s point of view. Because we get so much from the bad guys, it makes the book seem longer. I, at one point, just wanted the climax to happen because it was just dragging on, in that department, for me. The romance between Marcus and Scarlet is really nice and I like the characters. Scarlet has a big heart and cares so much about all the victims. She worries that one day she will break and do something drastic. Marcus tries to do the right thing. He knows there is so much evil out there and he wants to do what he can to stop it. They are two peas in a pod, these two. So, that is all for this book. I have read it before but I didn’t remember anything from it. I think it is mostly because it had been 6 years since I had read it and that it was a book I had read without reading any of the other books connected to it (I had mostly read just the Chicago series) so I probably didn’t keep up with all the names and people. It is still a good book, though not my favorite. I have stated in another reading post for another Karen Rose book that I like it better when she does serial killers because it’s more fun trying to figure out who the killer is. It isn’t as interesting when you know who the killer is but the main characters don’t. I like trying to piece together the pieces at the same time as the people investigating. See you next read! Closer than You Think is the first book in Karen Rose’s Cincinnati series. I know that last time I updated, we were just book 2 into the Baltimore books but I got bored with the series. I will most likely go back and read those books but they just didn’t excite me. There is a reason why. I like it when one of the people who become our couple in the book are newly introduced. That way we get to see when the couple first meets and how they react to each other. By the time you finish book 2 in the Baltimore book, all of the couples have met who they are going to end up with and all that, soooo yeah.
This book is about Faith and Deacon. Deacon is both from the trilogy in North Caroline, and from the Baltimore books, so he is the connection with the other series. Faith is a therapist who is trying to disappear because she is being stalked and the Miami police are not doing anything to help keep her safe (and there is a reason behind that). So, Faith returns to Cincinnati to her grandmother’s house that she just inherited, intending to hide. Unfortunately, this puts her in the crosshairs of a serial killer and under the eye of Deacon. This book is LONG. Almost 700 pages. It is a good story and has all the elements that Karen Rose puts in her serial killer books. I will say, I did figure out who the killer was before it was revealed in the book BUT it wasn’t because I was super smart and looked all the clues, but because I miss read something, assumed, and it just made sense so I kept the assumption and was right. Why the killer was killing was interesting and how they were able to hide who they were was also interesting as well. I really liked the mystery. The characters are pretty cool in the book. I related with Faith because she is a bit of a nerd. She plays video games and likes comic books, which is something that Deacon likes as well. LOVED THAT! I think most people assume that once you become an adult, gaming and comic books are not as big of a deal and I liked that Karen Rose just made it a natural thing. I hope she does this more in future books. On top of the main characters, the supporting characters are interesting as well. Deacon has a brother and sister, the sister we will see as the main character in another book, and Faith has two cousins that also add to the cast of characters and who we will see in other books as well. That is all for this book. I am really liking the Cincinnati series so far and it seems like we will get a great cast of characters for the other books in this series. I am sad that I am getting closer to the newest books because that means I have to wait for more stories but I can’t slow down. I love Karen Rose’s books. See you next read! Back to my safe stories....
So this story is about Paige and Grayson. Grayson is the DA in the Baltimore series by Karen Rose. Paige is our connection to another of the series. See Karen Rose does this thing where all the characters connect somehow and are all in the same "universe". So Paige is a PI working with Clay, a character we originally met in the Chicago series book 3 (His original partner was Ethan, who married Dana, who was the person who helped abused women get away from their spouses like Caroline from the first book....see they connect). Paige is working a pro bono case to help prove someone who was convicted of murder was innocent. The story starts off with the wife of the client being killed in front of Paige as she tries to give her information to help her husband. Grayson was the one who convicted Paige's client but the information that the wife gives Paige give no indication that Grayson knew what was going on. The only thing the client's wife said was that cops were the ones who were trying to kill her. Now Paige has to figure out what is going on so she turns to Grayson for help. The suspense! This book was interesting in the fact that you don't know who is doing what and who is in who's pocket. This is one of the stories where there are bad cops and bad people in the DA office who put innocent people away. The scenes where they show the "killer" or bad guy's point of view shows many different things so it's hard to follow along. Honestly, for half of the story, I didn't know if there was just one person doing all the controling or if there were more than one. There is also a storyline of a woman who thinks she is being threatened by someone because of something in her past. She is scared and doesn't say anything to her husband, who starts to think that she is having an affair. So, yeah, that connects but it took a little time for me to understand how. There is a twist but it's not something you really see coming because, I just don't think the set up was there. See, I think twists are fun when the author lets us see the clues and gives us just a little to try to figure out who the bad guy was. The twist reveal didn't give me the satisfaction because he didn't get to see the person around our heroes. It is someone from their past that we haven't met before so....it just didn't hit as well as other books and their twist reveal. All in all, another good book from Karen Rose. Started off interesting for the Baltimore series but I am not sure how I like it compared the Chicago series, which was the longest one of the series so far. There was the Daniel trilogy (set in Philly and North Carolina) and the Minneapolis duology that was okay. Chicago has the best and strongest stories so far, specifically the two serial killer ones. But I will read the others and see how they are. I know there are two other city series after Baltimore and one of them is the newer one so we shall see how they go. That is all for this book. See you next read! Okay, sooooo I thought I was going to like this book and I enjoyed it for the first part of the story BUT then it got too uncomfortable for me. So this is about Absinthe and Scarlett. Absinthe has a psychic ability to read people and so he tries to find a place to quiet the voices around him. He finds this in a library where Scarlet works. What he realizes is that she is the one quieting the voices for him. But Scarlet has a plan she has to carry out and she can't let a sexy guy like Absinthe distract her.
I like the beginning. I thought it was doing a good job of showing someone from Torpedo Ink trying to be a little normal. The members of Torpedo Ink were tortured growing up in all the ways a child can be tortured (some of the uncomfort that I felt while reading this book is how detailed we got on some of the torture). What I came to realize is that it seems that Christine Feehan has given some unorthodox kink to each member of the Torpedo Ink club and Absinthe's kink was.....uncomfortable for me. Especially given his history that we learn and why its a thing for him. Plus, you learn more about another member of the group, Savage, AND his kink is WORSE. This book has some descriptions that I would classify borderline torture porn. I also realized something else when it came to this book. It seems, except for Anya in the first book, that all the girls, after they start being intimate with the guys, just lose their personalities and become, basically, play things for the guys. I don't know if it is just this book specifically or if it is all of the books but I can't say there is anything that makes the girls different from each other. I have no idea if I am going to read any more of these books. I really feel like I have to cleanse my mind from the dark imagry this book brings up when I was reading it, so I don't think I will be revisiting it any time soon. Back to my romantic suspense novels with normal relationships and people with something that isn't torture in their past. That is all for this book. See you next read! |
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