The amazing Ellis Vidler is one of my featured authors this month. Each Wednesday, I’ll be reviewing one of her fabulous books. There will be giveaways and guest posts, a whole lot of fun!
First, I reviewed Time of Death, her newest release.
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While visiting near Charleston, South Carolina, an artist draws scenes of murder she can’t explain. Alex. The artist. After a tree falls on her house, she joins her aunt on an unspoiled island, but something wakens her family psychic streak. She draws eerily accurate scenes of violence, but she knows nothing about them.
Connor. The prosecutor. He’s building a case against a drug lord one piece of evidence at a time. For him it’s personal, and he can’t risk a relationship with a witness, especially a psychic who’ll blow his case out of the water.
Rollins. The killer. He’s a cog in a much bigger wheel, and the witness to his acts of violence threatens his operation and his life. He’ll do anything to see that doesn’t happen.
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Ooh, there are some really great characters in Time of Death. I think my favorite is Alex, no, Jax, no, Jelly. Oh, I love them all! Can’t wait for you to meet them. Go here to read my review.
Next, I reviewed Cold Comfort.
The giveaway ends Jan. 29th. Still time to enter here.
After being dumped by her faithless fiancé, Claire Spencer has abandoned her dreams of a family of her own tucked neatly inside a picket fence. Instead, she’s plotting her solo course and settling for a quiet life as an independent Williamsburg shop owner. So how does she become a killer’s target?
Sometime security consultant Riley, burned out, disillusioned, and haunted by a young girl he couldn’t save, vows never to work with women again. But when a thug tries to kill the friend of a friend, the woman winds up in his arms, and all Riley’s plans go to hell. Knowing she’s in danger, he can’t walk away.
While dodging speeding cars, ducking bullets, and escaping through murky swamp waters, conventional Claire and freewheeling Riley struggle against their powerful chemistry—if she’s picket fences, he’s barbed wire.
Opposites do attract.
Now I’m reviewing Haunting Refrain.
There’s also a giveaway. Read on to learn more.
I just love the cover art for this book. The choice of blue is perfect and the scene evokes the same feelings I got from reading the story.
She doesn’t want to touch it again. But she has to. Kate can’t ignore what she’s seen.
Hands, cold and hard, tightened around her throat, choking her. Long fingers encircled her neck, and fingernails cut into her flesh. Strong thumbs pressed into her windpipe, forced her head back. She clawed at them, tried to free herself. Blinded by the rain and the curtain of hair that covered her eyes, she couldn’t see the face above her. She fought, desperate for air. Those powerful fingers squeezed harder. The world around her dimmed. She was dying.
Kate’s always been good at finding things, seeing glimpses of where something was. She never dreamed she’d see a murder.
At the urging of her friend, Venice, she joins a parapsychology study. She needs to learn more about her gift anyway. She picks up an item and the vision takes hold.
Now she’s a witness to murder. She refuses to go to the police. They wouldn’t take her seriously. When Venice suggests they tell a friend, she reluctantly agrees, never dreaming he was a reporter.
John Gerrard smells a good story. He meets with the two women and subsequently prints his story, including Kate’s name in the article.
When the killer reads the paper, he’s stunned. After the panic subsides, he begin’s to make his plans.
He began thinking of ways to get to the women. First he would watch them, learn their habits. He wouldn’t mind watching Kate. She had a tight, sexy little body that had always appealed to him. And that hair – he bet she was a tiger.
Having no way of knowing how much Kate’s seen, he sets his plan in motion.
I really like Kate. She’s not wishy-washy and has a good head on her shoulders. She’s not like the femme fatale in the movies who ignore the warnings and go blithely on their merry way. She heeds the warnings and takes precautions. She’d better if she wants to keep that pretty head,
Her friend Venice is a riot. She’s clutzy and forgetful but she’s also caring and quirky. Though they are years apart, her and Kate are good together. It’s like they fill each others gaps. The author made Venice authentic for me. I’d like to meet her.
The suspense builds, you know it’s going to get worse, and you brace for the final confrontation. Ellis is a master at this. I found myself leaning forward towards my Kindle, like I could see ahead. I kept checking the battery to make sure there was enough juice left to finish the story.
Haunting Refrain is suspenseful, fraught with danger, and races to the finale.
4 Stars
Giveaway
I have two e-books to offer for the giveaway.
Entry is easy peasy. Just leave your email address and answer this question, “Have you ever had a psychic experience?”
This is an International Giveaway. Everyone can enter.
Contest ends Feb. 2nd.
Thank You and Good Luck!
About the author and where to find her.
Ellis Vidler is a writer and editor. She and her guests talk about whatever comes to mind at her blog, http://theunpredictablemuse.blogspot.com Ellis’s new suspense novel, Time of Death, will be released November 18th. Artist Alex Jenrette shares the psychic streak that runs through the McGuire family. Just as it does her cousin Kate (Haunting Refrain), that ability gets her into trouble when she draws a scene she never imagined–murder. The killer she can’t identify wants to eliminate her, but maybe help from unlikely sources will come in time. Cold Comfort, suspense with romantic elements, is set in December during the long nights before the winter solstice. Claire Spencer owns a Christmas shop in the charming town of Williamsburg, VA. Her quiet life is turned upside down when she becomes a killer’s target. Everything she believed is a lie, but the truth is cold comfort. Her first novel was Haunting Refrain, a romantic mystery set in South Carolina, now out on Kindle. It has a touch of paranormal, and reviewers described the characters as “delightful.” Ellis published The Peeper with Jim Christopher, a retired law enforcement officer. The Peeper is a police procedural/suspense novel set in the South Carolina upstate. Tea in the Afternoon is a collection of three short Southern stories, not her usual suspense stories. Ellis is a member of Sisters in Crime. Her home is in the South Carolina piedmont with her husband, two dogs, and a collection of wildlife that shows up for breakfast.
Links
Website. http://www.ellisvidler.com
Blog. http://theunpredictablemuse.blogspot.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/EllisVidler
Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4054785.Ellis_Vidler
Click on the covers to purchase her books.
E-book: BrazGirl
