Archive for the ‘suspense’ Category

tag you're it photo: Tag! You\'re It! AnyOccasion-TagYoureIt-May2007.jpg

This is a Tag Team Event hosted by myself and Sherry.

 I have some exciting news to share with you about Dinosaur lake III.  Read on to learn how you can win some books!

After reading my review, head on over to Sherry’s blog at fundinmental for more and check out her review. Two chances to win!

~~~

Dinosaur Lake III

Infestation

by Kathryn Meyer Griffith

24284668

c8df8-add2bto2bgoodreads2bblack

My Review

The first book in this series had me on the edge of my seat. The action was intense and the scares were awesome.

The second book was just as, if not more, intense. And the bodies piled up.

Between those first two books, you lose some beloved characters and some not so loved.

So, now for the third book in the Dinosaur Lake series.

I started this book feeling a bit worried. After the first two, I wondered if the author could keep up the intense action and suspense. She didn’t disappoint. In fact, this may be the most nail biting of them all.

The dinosaurs are rampant with a capital R! They are everywhere, in many shapes and sizes. And, of course, they are very hungry.

Chief Park Ranger Henry Shore and his wife, Ann, have made it through many dangerous encounters with these monsters over several years, losing friends and hope. They managed to triumph, but this time they might not be so lucky.

Dinosaurs are emerging again. So many, so hungry, so unstoppable. It’s not just the park and their town in danger anymore. The dinosaurs are popping up all over the US and Canada and who knows whether this will become a worldwide phenomenon. It may be the beginning of the age of dinosaurs again.

I have to applaud Kathryn. She gave me more dinosaurs. Bigger, meaner ones, and sneaky, littler ones. The scenes of carnage were bloody wild and so many of them. I got all the action I could ever want.

And the characters. Well, there are my favorites, mentions of loved ones lost, and some new ones. I was crossing fingers and toes that my favorites would survive. You never know with this author.

I sure hope there are more books coming in this series. Please let there be more!

While this is the third book in the series, you could easily pick up the story here. But, if you are a fan of action, intense suspense, and monsters, you’ll want to, need to, go back and read the other books.

5 Dynobite Stars

~~~~~

Synopsis

Chief Park Ranger Henry Shore has dealt with and fought real live dinosaurs at his beloved Crater Lake National Park for over six years. With the help of his rangers, a few brave FBI friends and army soldiers he’d been victorious over a prehistoric lake creature and years later some particularly fiendish, and clever, specimens of the flying variety. He and his newspaper publisher wife, Ann, thought their park was finally rid of the monsters and they could reclaim their tranquil life in a place they cherished. Not so. For suddenly across the park new and even more malevolent mutant species of dinosaur begin to appear and create havoc, attacking the park’s visitors and threatening its peace. And this time the primeval scourge isn’t confined to just their park. The creatures have moved into the nearby towns, across the western United States and up into Canada. They are so much more aggressive, smarter and hungrier than any that have come before and the infestation is spreading further and faster than Henry and Ann can even imagine. This time there’s no easy way to defeat the dinosaurs. There’s too many of them and they’re too devious. This time it’s full out war and the victor will someday claim Earth.

~~~

Dinosaur Lake II

Dinosaurs Arising

by Kathryn Meyer Griffith

22017707

1771e-addtogoodreadsblack

My Review

Here we go again. Chief Park Ranger Henry Shore thinks its over. They killed the dinosaur and he’s pretty sure they destroyed all of the eggs. But when strange things start happening in the park, when another ranger has to fight off a large creature to save some visitor’s, it looks like it’s not over.

Things go from bad, to horrific when one of the trolleys, full of tourists, is attacked by something huge, like the thing in the park, yet larger, and it has wings.

It looks like Henry will have to do battle with dinosaurs again, and he’ll have help from his rangers, along with some soldiers and his son-in-law.

Winged gargoyles, that’s what they look like, but much larger.

They are breeding. They fly and are no longer confined to Henry’s beloved park. They are hungry and they need food for their offspring. The park and surrounding towns become their feeding ground.

No one is safe.

I couldn’t wait to read this after finishing the first book. I love books and movies about dinosaurs, especially when they appear in modern times.

There’s so many things Kathryn does really well in her stories. Let me explain.

She gives you authentic characters. They have their flaws, foibles. You like them or you don’t.

When the town sheriff scoffed at the idea of dinosaurs, refused to believe they exist even after the town gets attacked, I could picture him. Standing there, shaking his head, a sneer on his lips, a posture of superiority. I figured he’d get eaten.

And this is my favorite thing she does. She kills off her characters. You don’t want to become too fond of them, but with some you will. And just because they may survive a first encounter, don’t count on them surviving a second one. I’m not saying the sheriff died. I’m not saying they all die. But I wouldn’t want to be in any of their shoes when the dust settles.

The author also doesn’t waste any time getting the carnage going. She quickly drops you in the middle of the mayhem and scares the bejesus out of you. The story never slows down. The suspense and dread builds and builds, and knocks you on your butt. You’ll want to look away, but you won’t be able to. You’ll have to keep reading, find out what happens.

Let’s get to the monsters now. They are just that, monsters. They may be dinosaurs, but they’re unlike the ones from history. They’ve evolved, are very different. I like that Kathryn chose to liken these dinosaurs to gargoyles. The first thing you think of when flying dinosaurs are mentioned is Pterodactyl’s. But not these. They are giant gargoyle like things. And they are blood thirsty, cunning, and relentless. They never stop coming for you.

Every book Kathryn writes is like this. She never lets you down. All of her characters, strong or weak, are genuinely written. We may scoff at their actions, but they are theirs not ours. It’s important to remember that.

And the action and suspense are almost immediate and it’s always a mad dash to the end. Usually with lots of people screaming. LOL

I loved this every bit as much as the first book. I missed some characters that didn’t survive the first one. Loved some of the new ones. I know I shouldn’t have. Lots of people die. But that’s what made this so good. It was unpredictable and the idea of where the creatures came from was plausible. That’s what really creeped me out.

This is everything I hoped for from the author and now I’ve just finished the third book. Holy hell, it’s awesome too!

5 Stars

~~~~

Synopsis

Prehistoric creatures have again invaded Crater Lake National Park
…and this time there’s more than one.

DINOSAUR LAKE II: Dinosaurs Arising
by Kathryn Meyer Griffith
Henry Shore has been Chief Park Ranger at Crater Lake National Park for thirteen years now and thought the days when he’d had to fight a rogue dinosaur that lived in the caves below the lake were long over.
Until one of his park rangers, to save a visitor’s life, is in a deadly struggle out in the woods with a new breed of dinosaur worse than the last one. It’s as big as a man, but this one is a young one. And growing.
Then more of the creatures begin to show up everywhere, threatening people and destroying the tranquility and safety of his beloved park.
A tourist trolley filled with fifteen people is snatched up off the crater’s rim by another version of the younger one…but this one has grown into a giant with fangs, claws and a deadly tail.
And this one has wings.
Ugly Gargoyles, Henry calls them.
For this one isn’t alone.
They’re flying beyond the park’s boundaries into the neighboring towns.
So Henry, with the help of his son-in-law, a paleontologist named Justin, and a band of brave park rangers, and a few good soldiers, must not only protect his park and his people from monsters once more but find their lair and destroy it and them before the creatures kill again.

~~~~

 Dinosaur Lake

by Kathryn Meyer Griffith.

This book is free on Amazon right now! Click on the cover to grab a copy!

DL EPIC LOGO photo DinosaurLake_Kindle_zps34916f7c.jpg

1771e-addtogoodreadsblack

My Review

Enter at your own risk. There be a huge freakin dinosaur here.

I love books with creatures in them. This one has a dinosaur. A dinosaur that tasted humans and put them at the top of its list. We may be noisy, what with all the screamin, but we’re oh so tasty.

Chief Ranger Henry Shore likes to get out from behind his desk. He enjoys taking out tours now and then. The park is his love and he jumps at any chance to get out there.

The threat of an earthquake has him concerned. It’s predicted they’ll be hit with a major one, and if the tremors he feels are any indication, it could be soon. The rumors of a giant creature seen in Crater Lake make him pause. Maybe the earlier earthquake released something from the caverns under the lake.

When a couple of the boat captains from the lake tours go missing and all that’s recovered are their shattered boats, Henry begins to believe in the rumors. And when a group of campers are attacked, people are missing, blood and bits of gore are strewn around, and a trail of shattered trees leaves a huge trail to the lake, Henry has no choice but to believe the witnesses testimonies of a gigantic monster, a dinosaur, that attacked and ate their friends.

The creature has come on land and is ranging further and further from the lake to find the tasty morsels he craves and needs. No one is safe and Henry wonders how far the evacuation should go.

Henry has big problems. Will it go into the towns? Where is its lair? When will it strike again and how the hell can he stop it? He wants his park back. With the help of fellow rangers and one strange ex- FBI agent who deals in the unusual, he takes the fight to the monster and many die.

Dinosaur Lake starts out tranquil and quickly becomes a nightmare. When the creature discovers how tasty we are, it wants more. It’s intelligent and cunning and likes to play with its food.

I can’t imagine what is scarier, knowing it’s going to eat you, or having it play cat and mouse with you before crunching you between its giant teeth. A couple of the munching scenes had me squirming, feeling so sad for the victims. I knew they were goners.

The author slowly builds the terror, lulling you and then springing out at you, just like the creature.

Some characters I liked got killed off. Some survived. I kept fearing the worst as the pages flew by. I know the author has to kill off some of the characters, but I wish I could’ve saved a couple. This definitely makes for emotional and suspenseful reading.

Great writing, an awesome creature, likeable and diverse characters, chaos and terror. Everything I require in a creature feature.

Five Stars for Dinosaur Lake

~~~

About Author Kathryn Meyer Griffith

Photo_black_capSince childhood I’ve been an artist and worked as a graphic designer in the corporate world and for newspapers for twenty-three years before I quit to write full time. But I’d already begun writing novels at 21, over forty-three years ago now, and have had twenty-two (nine romantic horror, two horror novels, two romantic SF horror, one romantic suspense, one romantic time travel, one historical romance, two thrillers, and three murder mysteries) previous novels, two novellas and twelve short stories published from Zebra Books, Leisure Books, Avalon Books, The Wild Rose Press, Damnation Books/Eternal Press; and I’ve self-published my last six novels with Amazon Kindle Direct and my dinosaur novels and Spookie Town Mysteries are my best-sellers.

I’ve been married to Russell for thirty-six years; have a son, James, and two grandchildren, Joshua and Caitlyn, and I live in a small quaint town in Illinois, which is right across the JB Bridge from St. Louis, Mo. We have three quirky cats, ghost cat Sasha and Cleo and live cat Sasha (Too), and the five of us live happily in an old house in the heart of town. Though I’ve been an artist, and a folk singer in my youth with my brother Jim, writing has always been my greatest passion, my butterfly stage, and I’ll probably write stories until the day I die…or until my memory goes.

2012 EPIC EBOOK AWARDS *FINALIST* for my horror novel The Last VampireRevised Author’s Edition ~ 2014 EPIC EBOOK AWARDS *FINALIST* for her thriller novel Dinosaur Lake.

*Click here to check out Kathryn Meyer Griffith’s.

Novels and short stories from Kathryn Meyer Griffith:

Evil Stalks the Night, The Heart of the Rose, Blood Forge, Vampire Blood, The Last Vampire,

Witches, The Nameless One short story, The Calling, All Things Slip Away, Egyptian Heart,

Winter’s Journey, The Ice Bridge, Don’t Look Back, Agnes, Before the End: A Time of Demons, The Woman in Crimson, Human No Longer, Four Spooky Short Stories Collection, Scraps of Paper, Dinosaur Lake, Dinosaur Lake II: Dinosaurs Arising and the just released Dinosaur Lake III: Infestation.

Kathryn’s Links

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Kathryn-Meyer-Griffith/579206748758534  

http://www.authorsden.com/kathrynmeyergriffith

http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/889499.Kathryn_Meyer_Griffith

 

~~~~

giveaway photo: Giveaway Banner for 42nd giveaway.png

I have 3 eBook copies  of Dinosaur lake III to give away thanks to Kathryn!

This can be read without having read the first two books.

To enter, please leave your email address so I can contact you if you win and answer this question:

“Which dinosaurs scare you the most, the huge ones who can squash you like a bug, or the sneaky little ones who can mass attack and devour you like a piranha?”

Giveaway ends September 21st .

This is a Tag Team Event hosted by myself and Sherry at fundinmental.

Now hop on over to fundinmental, check out Sherry’s review, and enter for another chance to win  HERE.

tag you're it photo: You're awesome tag-game-awesome-friends_zpscce89964.jpg

~~~~

Thanks so much for visiting fuonlyknew and Good Luck!

To see all of my giveaways click on the lucky horseshoe below!

horseshoe photo: Horseshoe horseshoe.jpg

Partners In Crime Tours

Flesh And Blood

A Scarpetta Novel

by Patricia Cornwell

My Review

I’ve been reading this series for years and finished reading the last two books, Bone Bed and Dust, just in time for Flesh And Blood.

This is one of those series that never gets old. Some people might see that there are 22 books and not want to start them. Don’t let that number turn you off. You’ll be wanting more new ones after you taste these.

It’s a beautiful morning. The charcoal is almost ready for Kay to start grilling, Benton is reading the newspaper, and in just a few hours they’ll be flying to Florida for her birthday. Until…

Good thing these two understand that their jobs aren’t 5 to 9. They’re always on call. So when the phone rings, Kay packs her crime scene bag and heads off to a murder. Benton, in the meantime, has a few things to take care of too. First is what’s up with the copper coins on their patio wall? Who left them? What do they mean? And the reflection he spotted in the woods, could it be a sniper?

Looks like Florida will have to wait.

If I was asked what I liked most about this book, I’d be stumped. The plot is filled with suspense. Copper coins, a terrorist, a serial sniper, and a possible stalker. Lots to keep you guessing.

Then there’s the characters. I love Kay and Benton. From the very first book, I wanted these two to be together. Lots of cases and lots of secrets kept them apart for a long time. Even though they’re married now, they still have a spicy relationship. There’s never a dull moment with them, whether working or just being together.

About Detective Pete Merino. Pete’s one of those surly, my way or the highway guys. He worked with Kay until he was lured back to police work. He still acts like they’re working together. He’ll call and say he’s got a case and he’s on his way, so be ready when he gets there. It works, since Kay usually gets called to the same crime scenes he does. It’s fun to see them fall into the comfortable working relationship. She anticipates him, kind of knows what he’s going to do or say before he does it. And ditto for Pete.

And last but certainly not least is Lucy, Kay’s niece. She’s a technical geek, one of the best, likes to drive fast cars, and flies a helicopter. Kay and Lucy are like mother and daughter, or siblings. They squabble, they worry, they rely on each other. And they always have each others back.

All of these characters are dear to my heart. I cross my fingers when I read each new book, hoping they get through it in one piece. All of them have went to the dark side, and some barely made it out.

So, what did I like best? Everything.

5 Stars

~~~~~

It’s Dr. Kay Scarpetta’s birthday, and she’s about to head to Miami for a vacation with Benton Wesley, her FBI profiler husband, when she notices seven pennies on a wall behind their Cambridge house. Is this a kids’ game? If so, why are all of the coins dated 1981 and so shiny they could be newly minted? Her cellphone rings, and Detective Pete Marino tells her there’s been a homicide five minutes away. A high school music teacher has been shot with uncanny precision as he unloaded groceries from his car. No one has heard or seen a thing.

In this 22nd Scarpetta novel, the master forensic sleuth finds herself in the unsettling pursuit of a serial sniper who leaves no incriminating evidence except fragments of copper. The shots seem impossible, yet they are so perfect they cause instant death. The victims appear to have had nothing in common, and there is no pattern to indicate where the killer will strike next. First New Jersey, then Massachusetts, and then the murky depths off the coast of South Florida, where Scarpetta investigates a shipwreck, looking for answers that only she can discover and analyze. And it is there that she comes face to face with shocking evidence that implicates her techno genius niece, Lucy, Scarpetta’s own flesh and blood.

Book Details:

Genre: Women Sleuths | Crime | Suspense

Published by: William Morrow

Publication Date: 06/30/2015

Number of Pages: 512

ISBN: 9780062325358

Purchase Links: Amazon Barnes & Noble Goodreads

 ~~~~~

Read the excerpt

~~~~~

ABOUT PATRICIA CORNWELL

Patricia CornwellPatricia Cornwell is recognized as one of the world’s top bestselling crime authors with novels translated into thirty-six languages in more than 120 countries. Her novels have won numerous prestigious awards including the Edgar, the Creasey, the Anthony, the Macavity, and the Prix du Roman d’Aventure. Beyond the Scarpetta series, she has written a definitive book about Jack the Ripper, a biography, and two more fiction series. Cornwell, a licensed helicopter pilot and scuba diver, actively researches the cutting-edge forensic technologies that inform her work. She was born in Miami, grew up in Montreat, North Carolina, and now lives and works in Boston.

Patricia Cornwell's website Patricia Cornwell's twitter Patricia Cornwell's facebook

 

Tour Participants

~~~~~~~~~~~~

Until the next time…..

Thanks so much for visiting fuonlyknew!

scary elves photo: scary 035.jpg

Welcome to my Saturday Screams!

I figured I’d give you three scary reviews today and knock a few books off my TBR.

Two of these are horror and one, Fing, is a fun children’s story about a monster in the closet.

Get your scare on!

~~~

The Gatherers

Harvesting #.5

by Ashley Ehlers

20574832

c8df8-add2bto2bgoodreads2bblack

My Review

I read The Harvesters, the first book in this series, and had an idea what I’d get with this one. Yep, a twisted story that had me looking over my shoulder, wondering who might be creeping up on me.

Coleen isn’t thrilled when her dad gets remarried. Not too crazy about her step-mother. And not too crazy about her step-sister, Virginia either. Or so the parents think. The two girls have grown close, very close. When Coleen is sent outside to find the missing family dog, the nice family getaway in the woods takes a chilling turn.

I enjoy scary stories. The scarier the better. And it doesn’t matter if I figure out the plot a bit early. The fun is what happens along the way.

I thought I had this all figured out, but I didn’t. There’s this twist, see.

Talk about your wicked step-mother tales.

And what’s waiting in the woods. I thought back to the first book, and no way would I go in there.

Another creepy tale that lingers, making you think about the evil that lurks just out of sight.

4 Stars

~~~

Synopsis

Ashley and Jason weren’t the only ones to have an encounter with The Harvesters that day….

Coleen hasn’t been the happiest with her father remarrying, especially to the mother that gave birth to her enemy, Virginia. Bleach blonde bimbo as Coleen thought the moment they started high school. But since they’ve graduated, their parents married for a year now, Coleen has seen a whole new side of Virginia and the girls have gotten closer than ever. However the parents don’t see it, as the girls put up a front, so they plan a getaway to the family’s cabin before the girls go off to college.

Being away from the city is exactly what the girls wanted. Virginia even has something special planned for Coleen on this holiday and being out in the woods is the perfect setting for it. Though things get put on hold when their family dog Trudy runs away and Coleen’s step mother insists she goes out and find her. So as Coleen walks into the woods she gets a chilling sign from her step mother, Tori, which starts a domino effect of bloody unforgettable events.

You can read my review of The Harvesters by clicking on the cover below.

16194122

~~~

Fing

by Papa G.

16137725

c8df8-add2bto2bgoodreads2bblack

My Review

What a fun little story.

Ulrich gets some really bad news. While his parents were in Africa, they were taken by some cannibals. Missing, and presumed eaten, he now has to live with Mrs. Lipstick, the families mean, chain smoking relative.

She says he’s a nasty, smelly boy and must stay in the cold, dark attic, only allowed out to eat once a day.

Alone and heart broken, Ulrich remembers his mother’s advice. Always stay positive and good things will come.

That’s hard for Ulrich when the strange noises in his closet reveal themselves to be a sock sniffing monster.

Ulrich is such a sweet boy. I forgot to mention he has a special disability. It’s very unusual but he stays positive and learns to adjust.

The nasty Mrs. Lipstick reminds me of Cruella DeVille from 101 Dalmatians. Just a loathsome woman and up to no good.

As for the monster, Fing, he grows on ya.

The moral of this story is maintaining good thoughts, staying positive despite the hard blows. The author had me chuckling at Ulrich’s problem solving and booing at Mrs. Lipstick’s evil doing.

A story to delight young readers with a worthy hero, or two.

4 Stars

~~~

Synopsis

Ulrich Von Strudel has got no knees, but this is the least of his problems. Awful, terrible, despicable things are going to happen to this poor boy. And just when he thinks things couldn’t possibly get any worse. He discovers there’s a monster hiding in his closet. FING is a heart warming modern fairytale about the benefits of staying positive even when faced with the vile Mrs Lipstick!

~~~

The Depot

When Life And Death Cross Tracks

by Carmen DeSousa

22914464

c8df8-add2bto2bgoodreads2bblack

My Review

A haunted tale of echoes.

Detective Mark Waters doesn’t believe the claim that The Depot is haunted. He’s eaten at the restaurant many times and never witnessed anything unusual.

So when he’s called there to investigate a suicide, it’s just another case. Or so he thinks.

The past meets the present and now Mark knows different.

Not a long story, but it has a lot of ghostly atmosphere.  You go back in time, then forward to the present, as the story is revealed.

Tragedy, betrayal, and a thirst for revenge, this a good one for a dark and stormy night.

3 Stars

~~~

Synopsis

The Depot (When Life and Death Cross Tracks) is a thirteen-thousand-word mini mystery with a ghostly edge by bestselling romantic-suspense author Carmen DeSousa. If you are looking for her full-length novels, please check out her Amazon author page.

They say The Depot is haunted. But in all the years homicide detective Mark Waters has visited the ancient train station turned restaurant, he’s never seen proof. Until now.

As he investigates a supposed suicide by train, he learns secrets of a murder that took place eighty years ago may directly affect his case.

~~~

Until the next time…..

Thanks so much for visiting fuonlyknew.

FrictionTourBanner

I have a new book by Sandra Brown to share with you today.

I’ve read many of her books and never found one I didn’t enjoy, so I know this is going to be a good one too!

Check out Friction!

And don’t forget to enter the giveaway!

Friction
by Sandra Brown
.
Friction cover
.
Published by: Grand Central
Publication date: August 18th 2015
Genres: Adult, Romance, Suspense
.
goodreads-badge-add-plus
.
Synopsis:

From #1 New York Times bestselling author Sandra Brown comes a gripping story of family ties and forbidden attraction.

A Texas Ranger, relegated to deskwork due to past recklessness, petitions to regain custody of his five-year-old daughter, and his case is assigned to a family court judge who is as attractive as she is ambitious. When a masked gunman barges in during the custody hearing with his sights on the judge, the Ranger reacts instinctually and goes after him. But authorities apprehend the wrong man, and the real gunman remains unknown, at large, and a threat. Will this take-charge lawman jeopardize his chances of custody by going after the would-be assassin? And will this unlikely pair be able to deny the forbidden attraction building between them?

Purchase:
.
.
~~~~~
Author Sandra Brown
Sandra_
Sandra Brown is the author of more than sixty New York Times bestsellers, including DEADLINE(2013), LOW PRESSURE (2012), LETHAL (2011), TOUGH CUSTOMER (2010), SMASH CUT (2009), SMOKE SCREEN (2008), PLAY DIRTY (2007), RICOCHET (2006), CHILL FACTOR (2005), WHITE HOT (2004), & HELLO, DARKNESS (2003).Brown began her writing career in 1981 and since then has published over seventy novels, bringing the number of copies of her books in print worldwide to upwards of eighty million. Her work has been translated into over thirty languages.A lifelong Texan, Sandra Brown was born in Waco, grew up in Fort Worth and attended Texas Christian University, majoring in English. Before embarking on her writing career, she worked as a model at the Dallas Apparel Mart, and in television, including weathercasting for WFAA-TV in Dallas, and feature reporting on the nationally syndicated program “PM Magazine.”In 2009 Brown detoured from her thrillers to write, Rainwater, a much acclaimed, powerfully moving story about honor and sacrifice during the Great Depression.Brown recently was given an honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters from Texas Christian University. She was named Thriller Master for 2008, the top award given by the International Thriller Writer’s Association. Other awards and commendations include the 2007 Texas Medal of Arts Award for Literature and the Romance Writers of America’s Lifetime Achievement Award.
Author links:
.
.

~~~~~

giveaway photo: Giveaway Banner for 42nd giveaway.png

a Rafflecopter giveaway

~~~~~

Click on the image below to follow the tour for more fun posts!

ButtonXBT

~~~~~

Thanks so much for visiting fuonlyknew and Good Luck!

To see all of my giveaways click on the lucky horseshoe below!

horseshoe photo: Horseshoe horseshoe.jpg

I admit it. I’ve picked a book up just because of it’s cover. I would have grabbed The Toy Taker because of that. Well, that and the title, and the blurb….

Check out this chilling suspense thriller!

The Toy Taker
by Luke Delaney
.
 19360781
.
Publisher:  Harper
Genre: Thriller/Suspense
Format: Kindle/Paperback
.
 goodreads-badge-add-plus
.
Synopsis
.
Outside the house, it’s cold and dark.
.
Inside, where it’s warm, children are sleeping.
.
D.I. Sean Corrigan might have a tiny new office at Scotland Yard and a huge newbeat—all of London—but the job is the same. His team has aknack for catching the sickest criminals on either side of the Thames, thanks in large part toCorrigan’s uncanny ability to place himself inside the mind of a predator.
.
But he just can’t get a read on this new case. Four-year-old George Bridgemanwent to sleep in his bedroom in a leafy London suburb . . . and wasn’t there in the morning. No tripped alarms. No broken windows. No sign of forced entry or struggle.
.
As his investigation zeroes in on a suspect, Corrigan’s gut tells him it doesn’t addup. Then another child is taken. Now someone’s toying with Corrigan. And thegame is about to turn deadly.
.
The Toy Taker is available for order at  
HarperCollins
amazon
BN
kobo
google play

 

~~~~~

The Toy Taker Chapter 1:

 

The street was quiet, empty of the noise of living people, with only the sound of a million leaves hissing in the strong breeze that intensified as it blew in over Hampstead Heath in north-west London. Smart Georgian houses lined either side of the deserted Courthope Road, all gently washed in the pale yellow of the streetlights, their warming appearance giving lie to the increasingly bitter cold that late autumn brought with it. Some of the shallow porches added their own light to the yellow, left on by security-conscious occupiers and those too exhausted to remember to switch them off before heading for bed. But these were the homes of London’s affluent, who had little to fear from the streets outside—the hugely inflated house prices ensuring the entire area was a sanctuary for the rich and privileged. Constant highly visible police patrols, private security firms, and state-of-the-art burglar alarms meant the people within slept soundly and contentedly.

His gloved fingers worked quickly and nimbly as he crouched by the front door, the small, powerful torch—the type used by spelunkers, strapped to his forehead by an elasticized band—provided him with more than enough light to see inside the locks on the door: two deadlocks, top and bottom, and a combined deadlock and latch in the center. His warm breath turned to plumes of mist that swirled in the tubular light of the torch before disappearing into the night, making way for the next calmly expelled breath. He’d already unlocked the top and bottom deadlocks easily enough—a thousand hours of practice making the task simple—but the center locks were new and more sophisticated. Still he remained totally calm as he gently and precisely worked the two miniature tools together, each of which looked similar to the type of instruments a dentist would use—the thin wrench with its slightly hooked end holding the first of the lock’s pins down as the pick silently slid quickly back and forth until eventually it aligned all the pins in the barrel of the lock and it clicked open. It was a tiny sound, but one that in the emptiness of the street made him freeze, holding his breath as he waited for any reaction in the night that surrounded him. When his lungs began to burn he exhaled the dead air, taking a second to look at his watch. It was just gone 3 a.m. The family inside would be in the deepest part of their sleep—at their least likely to react to any slight sound or change in the atmosphere.

He inserted the slim hook wrench into the last remaining lock and once more slid the pick through the lock’s barrel until within only a few seconds he felt the pins drop into their holes and allow him to turn the barrel and open the lock, the door falling open just a few millimeters. He replaced the tools in their suede case along with the other dozen or so lock-picking items, rolled it up and put it into the small plastic sports holdall he’d brought with him. He added the head-torch, then paused for a second before taking out the item that he knew was so precious to the little boy who waited inside—the one thing that would virtually guarantee the boy’s cooperation—even his happiness.

He eased the door open and stepped inside, closing it behind him and silently returning the latch to its locked position. He waited for the sounds of an intruder alarm to begin its countdown to the wailing of sirens, but there was none, just as he all but knew there wouldn’t be.

The house was warm inside, the cold of outside quickly fading in his mind as he stepped deeper into the family’s home, heading for the staircase, his way lit by the street light pouring through the windows. Their curtains had been left open and lights strategically left on in case little feet went wandering in the night. He felt safe in the house, almost like a child himself once more—no longer alone and unloved. As he walked slowly toward the stairs that would lead him to the boy, he noted the order of the things within—neat and tidy, everything in its place except for the occasional toy on the hallway floor, abandoned by the children of the house and left by parents too tired to care anymore. He breathed in the smells of the family—the food they had had for dinner mixing with the mother’s perfume and bathtime creams and soaps, air fresheners and polish.

He listened to the sounds of the house—the bubbling of a fish-tank filter coming from the children’s playroom and the ticking of electronic devices that seemed to inhabit every modern family’s home, accompanied by blinking green and red lights. All the time he thought of the parents rushing the children to their beds, too preoccupied with making it to that first glass of wine to even read them a bedtime story or stroke their hair until sleep took them. Parents who had children as a matter of course—to keep them as possessions and a sign of wealth, mere extensions of the expensive houses they lived in and exotic cars they drove. Children they would educate privately as another show of wealth and influence—bought educations that minimized the need for parental input while guaranteeing they never had to step out of their own social confines—even at the school gate.

More discarded toys lay on the occasional step as he began to climb toward the boy’s room, careful not to step on the floorboards that he already knew would creak, his gloved hands carrying the bag and the thing so precious to the boy. His footsteps were silent on the carpet as he glided past the parents’ bedroom on the first floor, the door almost wide open in case of a child in distress. He could sense only the mother in the room—no odors or sounds of a man. He left her sleeping in the semidarkness and climbed the next flight of stairs to where the children slept—George and his older sister Sophia, each in their own bedrooms. If they hadn’t been, he wouldn’t be here.

He reached the second-floor landing and stood still for a few seconds, looking above to the third floor, where he knew the guest bedrooms were, listening for any faint sounds of life, unsure whether the family had a late-arriving guest staying. He only moved forward along the hallway when he was sure the floor above held nothing but emptiness.

Pink and blue light from the children’s night-lights seeped through their partially opened doors—the blueness guiding him toward George, his grip on the special thing tightening. He was only seconds away from what he’d come for. He passed the girl’s room without looking inside and moved slowly, carefully, silently to the boy’s room, easing the door open, knowing the hinges wouldn’t make a noise. He crossed the room to the boy’s bed, which was pushed up under the window, momentarily stopping to look around at the blue wallpaper with white clouds, periodically broken up by childish paintings in the boy’s own hand; the mobile of trains with smiling faces above the boy’s head, and the seemingly dozens of teddy bears of all kinds spread across his bed and beyond. He felt both tears of joy and sadness rising from deep inside himself and swelling behind his eyes, but he knew he had to do what he’d come to do: a greater power than he or any man had guided him this far and would protect him the rest of the way.

He knelt next to the boy’s bed and placed the bag on the floor, his face only inches away from the child’s, their breath intertwining in the space between them and becoming one as he gently began to whisper. “George . . . sssh . . . George.” The boy stirred under his duvet, his slight four-year- old body wriggling as it fought to stay asleep. “George . . . sssh . . . open your eyes, George. There’s nothing to be afraid of. I have something for you, George. Something very precious.” The boy rolled over slowly, blinking sleep from his narrow eyes—eyes that suddenly grew large with excitement and confusion, a smile spreading across his face, his green eyes sparkling with joy as he saw what the man had brought him—reaching out for the precious gift as the man’s still gloved hand stroked his straight blond hair. “Do you want to come to a magic place with me, George? A special place with special things?” he whispered. “If you do, we need to go now and we need to be very, very quiet. Do you understand?” he asked, smiling.

“A magic place?” the boy asked, yawning and stretching in his pale blue pajamas, making the pictures of dinosaurs printed on them come to life.

“Yes,” the man assured him. “A place just for the best, nicest children to see.”

“Do we have to go now?” the boy asked.

“Yes, George,” the man told him, taking him by the hand and lifting his bag at the same time. “We have to go now. We have to go right now.”

~~~~~

About Author Luke Delaney

.

.

Luke Delaney joined the Metropolitan Police Service in the late 1980s and his first posting was to an inner city area of South East London notorious for high levels of crime and extreme violence. He later joined CID where he investigated murders ranging from those committed by fledgling serial killers to ganglandassassinations…
.
For More Information
.
Visit Luke’s website.
Connect with Luke
Social-Network-Facebook Social-Network-Twitter

~~~

Until the next time….

Thanks so much for visiting fuonlyknew!

Spyder Blast

Looking for some good suspense to keep you reading late into the night?

I have a good one to share with you.

Come on in and check it out!

 Spyder

By David Fingerman

Genre- Suspense

Pageflex Persona [document: PRS0000035_00026]

Blurb

Meet Spyder-a street-wise antihero of inner city society. Experience his strange wisdom, and his twisted sense of humor.Thirty-year-old Spyder doesn’t waste time thinking how much lower he can sink. When he finds his girlfriend dead as the result of drugs he supplied, Spyder contemplates his life and decides it’s time to do what he’s avoided most of his days-join mainstream society. All he needs to do is kick the drug habit, find a job, a place to live, and earn some money. Easy. He’s done it hundreds of times, but never all at once. As always, Fate steps in and knees him in the groin. All the dregs he’s ever known want their say. George won’t stop his pestering, Sal needs a huge favor, Coon is hunting for a certain arachnid, and Spyder’s dealer doesn’t want to lose one of his best customers. As things spiral out of control, Spyder tangles himself in a web so tight that even he might never be able to escape.

Purchase Links

Goodreads / Amazon / B&N

 

About the Author

David Fingerman

During the summer months when the sun is shining and birds are singing, David is perfectly content to sit in his office, with blinds drawn, typing away at the computer. His favorite day of the year is the first day toward the end of summer that’s cool enough to pull a flannel shirt from the closet.

As a student at the University of Minnesota, David realized that if he switched his major from journalism to speech, he could graduate that quarter. It was a no-brainer. After 24 years of working in the court system, he walked away to write full time – another no-brainer.

Two Degrees Closer to Hell will be his second collection of short stories. He has also written three other novels.

David is married and lives in Minneapolis.

Links

Goodreads / Publisher / Amazon / Facebook / Twitter / Website

~~~~

Until the next time….

Thanks so much for visiting fuonlyknew!

Island Bluffs banner

Title: Island Bluffs
Author: Alan A. Winter
Publisher: KBPublishing
Genre: Thriller/Suspense
Format: Kindle/Paperback

goodreads-badge-add-plus

My Review

You’d never know it by the lovely cover, but this is a story that delves into the dark side.

And the title is an excellent choice as it can be construed different ways in the book.

Carly can’t conceive and she’s desperate to carry and deliver a child. She and her husband Gabe go above and beyond to have their baby, seeking help from a fertility specialist.

The doctor is supposed to work miracles and he does. Carly is now in her third trimester and it’s time to move.

When they first met with the doctor, he had some peculiar ideas. One deal breaker was, they had to move somewhere during the last trimester that was within a 30 minute drive of the clinic.

The other thing, the strange thing, is Carly must carry two embryos. One is from her and Gabe, the other is unknown. She will never see this other child. It belongs to the doctor.

Gabe is a boat nut. He never passes up a chance to be on the water. One day he spies a house on the peninsula of Island Bluffs. He’s inexplicably drawn to it. Despite Carly’s misgivings about the long empty and fixer upper, they buy it and move in.

So many angles in this book.

The strange doctor with his odd stipulations and deeply troubled past. What’s with the children? Why does he only want boys? My mind played havoc with the scenarios.

Megan, Gabe’s 17 year old daughter from his previous marriage. She’s still not over her mothers death and she’s playing the role of step-mother hate to the hilt. I had hopes she’d come around to Carly eventually. And her adoration and respect for her grandfather, Yehuda, is heartwarming.

You’ll like Yehuda. He’s a survivor of the holocaust, yet still sees good in people. He forms a friendship with Buck, the local eccentric and handy man. I loved their friendship.

Buck has his own story that ties into Carly and Gabe’s new house. Can’t tell you why though. Buck went off to war and had to leave his true love many years ago. When he returned he learned she’d gone missing and was never found. To this day, he still loves and misses her, and the police keep her yellowed missing poster up at the station in deference to him.

Then the house has a story. One that will surprise and chill you. Music is heard in the house when there’s no radio on. Voices are heard in the walls.

The town of Island Bluffs is shrouded in mystery. The people that live there are insular. They take time to warm up and accept the new family. And they keep many secrets.

This sounds like a horror thriller doesn’t it? You could call it that. But there’s mysteries in mysteries, darkness and light, and some very surprising revelations.

I was drawn in quickly and felt a connection to the characters. They each had their own flaws, which made them more genuine. I like strong characters and found plenty in this story.

Set aside some reading time when you start this. You won’t want any interruptions.

4 Stars

~~~~~

Synopsis

Island Bluffs is a story of love, forgiveness, and understanding the dark side of the human spirit. It explores the age-old question: are children accountable for the sins of their parents and grandparents?

Carly Mason is a successful New York City forensic dentist. She and her widower husband, Gabe Berk, are trying to start a family. Thinking they had exhausted the options by consulting with all of Manhattan’s fertility experts, Carly and Gabe learn of an eccentric scientist who runs an exclusive clinic.

The doctor commits to helping the couple conceive the baby they so desperately want, but only if they agree to what seems like an outrageous stipulation; Carly must carry twins, one biological and one that she is a surrogate for. Once the twins are born Carly has to surrender the non-biological twin to the doctor at birth, no questions asked. Further, should the old doctor die before Carly gives birth, she has to agree to give the baby the name chosen by the doctor.

As required for treatment, Carly and Gabe move into a new house, which is within thirty minutes of the clinic. They soon discover that their new home and town, Island Bluffs, are far from ordinary. Carly and Gabe feel eyes spying on them at every turn. Gabe’s father, Yehuda, hears strange noises that only he can hear. Megan, Gabe’s rebellious sixteen-year-old daughter from a previous marriage, is attracted to the son of a Neo-Nazi.

The mysteries continue to deepen as a scavenger ship appears on nearby waters searching for sunken treasure along with glimpses of a lone swimmer lumbering through the waves of Barnegat Bay. Island Bluffs is a present-day town bound to the past by horrible secrets and pacts made long ago. Keeping secrets buried as some had hoped was no longer an option for the Berks. Their new and some thought long-forgotten home made that impossible by putting them squarely in the middle of it all. When the truths are revealed, the shocking twists and turns will challenge the very notions of what is right and wrong.

Purchase Links

Amazon / B&N

~~~~~

Author Alan A. Winter

Alan Winter

At first blush, Alan is quick to say that he never intended to be a writer. But when he thinks about it, he’s been writing in one form or another, for his entire adult life. In college, he wrote paper after paper for his history and literature courses. Professionally, he edited a dental journal and wrote more than twenty
scientific papers. That still doesn’t explain how a dentist came to write fiction!

It started in 1982 when Alan made small talk with a patient about a sci-fi idea he had. She thought the idea was so terrific, she urged him to write a movie treatment about it. Alan dismissed her offhand. What did he know about writing movies?

The patient persisted. Each time she would visit his office, she would demand to see the finished movie treatment. Seeing she was serious and relentless, Alan agreed to hand her a treatment. But how? He had no clue where to start. Asking other patients for guidance, Alan was introduced to a young screenwriter who agreed – for a fee – to write the treatment. They worked together, produced a treatment, and shopped it around to a number of studios. One studio took the idea (without permission or payment) and turned Alan’s treatment into a movie.

Alan experienced two revelations at the time:

  1. Rather than waste energy being litigious, be flattered that a studio felt Alan’s idea was worthy of turning it into a movie. Knowing a stranger valued his creativity supported all of his future projects.
  2. 2. Collaborating with the screenwriter gave Alan the validation he needed that if and when he chose to write a book, it wouldn’t be foolhardy…not that it really mattered what others thought!

3. Still, Alan had no desire to write fiction. That changed in 1985. That was the year that Alan began writing his first novel, “Someone Else’s Son,” which was eventually published by MasterMedia, Ltd.

What prompted Alan to write “Someone Else’s Son” is a story in itself. When Alan completed his periodontal training at Columbia, he joined a prestigious Fifth Avenue periodontal practice. Day after day, the well-to-do, prominent patients asked Alan if he was old enough to be a dentist. (He looked that much younger than the two senior partners). Trying to convince the patients that he was old enough to be a dentist and, therefore, experienced enough to treat them, Alan put his two sons’ pictures on the treatment room wall. When his third son was born, he added that one, too. Every few months, he updated the photos.

But a curious thing happened on a daily basis. The patients kept asking why Alan had pictures of children on the wall. When he replied, “They’re not just any children; those are my sons,” no one believed him. They claimed the boys looked too dissimilar to be brothers. They joked that he must have taken the wrong one home from the hospital. Though this was not the case (at least he didn’t think so), Alan wondered what he would’ve done had he discovered, years later, that he and his wife had brought the wrong child home from the hospital. The result was “Someone Else’s Son.”

While maintaining his periodontal practice, Alan has continued to write since he first took up pen to paper, although now he is very appreciative that his mother forced him to take typing in summer school after his sophomore year of high school. Boys just didn’t do that back in the ’60s, but it has been an invaluable skill over the years.

In 1999, “Snowflakes in the Sahara” was published by iUniverse. “Savior’s Day,” also published by iUniverse, was published in 2013 to critical acclaim. It was selected by Kirkus Reviews as a Best Book of 2013.

“Island Bluffs,” Alan’s newest novel, is published by KB Publishing to excellent reviews. He is at work on his next novel, “The Legacy of Izaak Wolf,” about an adolescent with Asperger’s Syndrome achieves the near impossible to save his family from a surefire calamity.

Alan and Lori live in his native New Jersey. They have five children and five grandchildren.

For More Information

Visit Alan’s website.

Twitter / Facebook

~~~~~

Follow the tour

July 6

Book featured at Undercover Book Reviews

July 7

Book featured at My Life, Loves and Passions

July 8

Book featured at The Literary Nook

July 9

Interviewed at The Writer’s Life

July 13

Interviewed at C.A. Milson

July 14

Guest blogging at Mythical Books

July 15

Book featured at Mary’s Cup of Tea

July 16

Guest blogging at Mom with a Kindle

July 17

Interviewed at Review from Here

July 20

Book featured at Chosen by You Book Club

July 21

Interviewed at As the Page Turns

July 22

Book featured at Confessions of a Reader

July 23

Interviewed at I’m Shelf-ish

July 24

Book featured at Celticlady’s Reviews

July 27

Guest blogging at Bent Over Bookwords

July 28

Book featured at Voodoo Princess

July 29

Book reviewed at FUOnlyKnew

July 30

Book reviewed at A Room Without Books is Empty

July 31

Book featured at Lover of Literature

~~~~~

Until the next time…..

Thanks so much for visiting fuonlyknew!

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of A Daily Rhythm.

TeaserTuesdays2014e

Anyone can play along! Just do the following:
• Grab your current read
• Open to a random page.
•Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
• Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

~~~

My Teaser for this week is from

Onyx Webb

Book #1 – Episodes 1 thru 3

by Richard Fenton & Andrea Waltz

25414725

c8df8-add2bto2bgoodreads2bblack

My Teaser from page 36 in the Paperback.

Living people eat food and drink wine. The living can experience fun and joy and happiness. The living can cry real tears and have human hearts that beat.

And they feel love. Fpr a ghost, none of this is possible. To make my existence even worse, there is som ething I must do… something ugly, something inherently evil.

To maintain my existence in the living plane, I must…

KILL

~~~~

Synopsis

Best-Selling Authors Fenton & Waltz Welcome You to the World of Onyx Webb. This is Book One. (Episodes 1, 2, and 3)
One reviewer says, “Fabulous. Different. Odd. Crazy. Wonderful. I’ve never read anything like it. You’ve created the weirdest, coolest new genre of fiction and I love it.”
– It’s June, 1980 and piano prodigy, Juniper Cole is on the way to her senior prom.

– It’s January 2010, and Koda Mulvaney has blown through his 20 million dollar trust fund and is told by his father to return home and get to work.

– It’s August, 1904 and little Onyx Webb is on her way to the famous World’s Fair in St. Louis with her father, Catfish.

Two of the three will see a ghost, one will become a ghost and everyone will learn that life is hard to let go of even when you’re dead. And that’s just Book One. Designed to read like a supernatural soap opera, Onyx Webb is a paranormal suspense series, with supernatural romance, as well as a dash of historical fiction. The stories may haunt you, the darkness may disturb you, but ultimately you’ll be reminded to treasure every moment of your life because… If you think life is precious now? Just wait until you’re dead.

~~~~

Thanks so much for visiting fuonlyknew!

How about you? Got a tease? Tell me!

stick out tongue photo: rr-sticking-out-tongue roadrunner-stick-out-tongue.gif

Have I got some great news for you!

Kristine Mason has a fantastic sale going on starting today.

All three books in her CORE Shadow Trilogy in a box set for only 99 pennies!

How cool is that?!

Come on in and check out these books.

Gaze on her awesome covers.

Closer….

Closer…

And click on the links provided in the post to get yours now!

~~~~~

C.O.R.E. SHADOW TRILOGY

by Kristine Mason

CORE Shadow BoxSet-Amazon

 

For a limited time…three romantic suspense novels—now for one low price!

 

SHADOW OF DANGER — Book 1

She sees too much…

Four women have been found dead in the outskirts of a small Wisconsin town. The only witness, clairvoyant Celeste Risinski, observes these brutal murders through her psychic visions. Called in by the local sheriff to help stop the killer, John Kain, former FBI agent turned investigator for the private agency, CORE, has no use for psychics. But as more dead bodies are discovered, the criminalist reluctantly turns to Celeste for help. Yet with each step closer to finding the killer, John finds himself one step closer to losing his heart.

My Reveiw

There’s nothing like a good suspense thriller to get the old endorphins pumping and Kristine delivers. I read this some time ago and recently realized I’d not written a review. I reread this in one night and it’s just as exciting the second time around.

Celeste Risinski is a clairvoyant. It’s not something she wants. It just is. She’d be perfectly happy to skip the horrific visions and nightmares that jolt her, screaming, from her sleep.

She senses something different about these dreams. A deeper, more personal connection.

The sheriff calls on an old friend from CORE,  a private investigation agency, to assist and apprehend the killer before he kills again. Ian, as owner, distances himself from Celeste because of a mysterious family history, and sends John Kain, an FBI agent, to help with the investigation.

That’s about all I can tell you without spoilers.

Let’s get to the good stuff.

The characters. The two main ones are Celeste and John.

John is wounded and bitter. He needs this case to get him back in the game. What he doesn’t need is some chick who thinks she has visions.

Celeste is learning to better control her visions. To interpret and use them more efficiently. This also paints a target on her back. What she doesn’t need is some sexy know it all FBI guy scoffing at her. Brushing aside her visions as ridiculous.

So you see what’s coming, don’t ya? Yep. These two meet. Sparks ignite. Even though they don’t much care about each other when they first meet, the chemistry is firing on both burners.

I had as much fun following this reluctant yet burning romance as I did with the murder investigation.

About that. Kristine leaves a trail of breadcrumbs for you to follow. The opening scenes are about a murder. But that doesn’t reveal who’s doing it or why.

Trying to solve the crime is like following a trail. It moves forward, sidesteps, backtracks to cover it’s steps, and jumps forward again.

There are some strong secondary characters that I’m sure will have larger roles in other books in this series. And there are some surprises and a huge secret that will be revealed.

Looking for something to keep you up into the wee hours, reluctant to stop until you reach the end? This oughta do it!

5 Stars

*****

SHADOW OF PERCEPTION — Book 2

What happens when negligent plastic surgeons get a taste of their own medicine…?

When investigative reporter Eden Risk receives an unmarked envelope containing a postcard ordering her to watch the enclosed DVD or someone else dies, she turns to CORE for help. But that help comes with a catch. Her former lover Hudson Patterson is assigned to the case. And as more DVDs arrive, they not only find themselves knee-deep in a twisted investigation, but forced to deal with their past and the love they’d tried to deny.

*****

SHADOW OF VENGEANCE — Book 3

Welcome to Hell Week. You have seven days to find him…

At Wexman University male students will do anything to join a top fraternity. They’ll prove their worth during Hell Week by participating in a variety of pranks. But those shenanigans aren’t so funny when pledges start disappearing. CORE agents Rachel Davis and Owen Malcolm are on the hunt for a killer who’s kidnapping and murdering pledges. Time is ticking. They have only seven days to find the latest missing pledge and catch a killer. Seven days before the body count rises with another victim. Seven days to fight their attraction for each other before one of them ends up hurt.

C.O.R.E. — Criminal Observance Resolution Evidence

When having the best is a matter of life and death…

~~~~~

This is a wicked good deal for a killer series!

Click on your preferred link below to get yours now!

Amazon / Nook / iBooks / Kobo / Google

~~~~~

Author Kristine Mason

Kristine Mason

Kristine Mason is the bestselling author of the popular romantic suspense trilogies C.O.R.E. Shadow and Ultimate C.O.R.E. She is currently working on her next trilogy, C.O.R.E. Above the Law, along with a series of Psychic C.O.R.E. novellas—all to be released in 2015.

Although Kristine has published a few contemporary romance novels, she focuses most of her energy on her romantic suspense stories, which she loves for their blend of dark mystery/suspense and sexy romance. She is fascinated with what makes people afraid, and is famous for her depraved villains whose crimes present massive obstacles for her heroes and heroines to overcome.

Kristine has a degree in journalism from Ohio State University and lives in Northeast Ohio with her husband, four kids, and two dogs. If she’s not writing, she’s chauffeuring kids, gardening, or collecting gnomes. Oh, and she makes a mean chocolate chip cookie!

Connect with Kristine on Facebook, Twitter or Goodreads. Or sign up for her newsletter at www.kristinemason.net.

~~~~~

Thanks so much for this wonderful sale Kristine.

I got mine!

~~~~~

Until the next time….

Thanks so much for visiting fuonlyknew!

Malevolent Twin Banner 851 x 315

The Malevolent Twin

Book One

Mary Sage Nguyen

25337672

goodreads-badge-add-plus for awaken

Genre: Young Adult, Suspense, Thriller,

Mystery, and a little bit of science fiction.

Date of Publication: April 2015

Ebook: 123 pages / Word Count: 37,560

Cover Artist: www.ebooklaunch.com

~~~~~

My Review

The beginning of this book is chilling. I had to go back and check that it wasn’t listed as a horror story. Then I read on and discovered it was Avery having a nightmare.

Avery has had an imaginary friend, Venice, since she was a young girl. Now she’s a young woman, working with her mother in a nail salon, being a good girl and dreaming of something better. Venice still keeps coming around.

As their wills class, as Avery wishes Venice would just go away, Venice turns evil.

Just who is Venice? What does she want? What will she make Avery do next?

Avery must find answers and seeks the help of an old exorcist and a psychic. She fears her time is running out.

I was having such a good time, I read this from start to finish in less than a couple of hours.

It starts with a very creepy scene, then introduces you to Avery and Venice.

Avery is a dutiful daughter and never gets in trouble. Then Venice starts messing with her. She’s forced to do things she’d never consider doing. I felt for her. How do you fight something you don’t understand?

As for Venice, she’s bad to the bone. Such a wicked, malignant villain.

I’ve seen movies and read books with a similar plot and possession and evil entities always give me goose bumps. I know a book is good when I startle at strange noises and see things move out of the corner of my eye.

The Malevolent Twin creeped me out. And I loved that. It’s not easy to spook me anymore. I’ve seen too many scary movies and read too many scary books.

I didn’t know this was going to be a series when I started it. But after I read the end, I knew there had to be. It’s not a cliff hanger, more of a hint of things to come. Evil things. Bad things. I can’t wait.

4 Stars

~~~~~

Flyer

Synopsis

A murderous wicked twin.

An innocent, law abiding, and oblivious girl.

The ultimate brawl between contrasting sisters!

Murder, mystery, suspense and more

In The Malevolent Twin

Avery is a normal teenager, except for Venice. Venice is Avery’s imaginary friend or so she thinks. When the two begin to fight. Avery starts her investigation, to figure out what Venice really is. She encounters a wise old exorcist, and an albino psychic who assist her, with attempting to remove Venice. Which comes too late as Venice goes on a murdering rampage using Avery’s body. Does Avery survive the Wrath of Venice?

Find out in… The Malevolent Twin

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KdscPo2LMbM&feature=youtu.be

 

Available at BN   Amazon

~~~~~

Check out the excerpt from Chapter Four!

Venice Revealed

            Avery closed her laptop. It was getting hot from being overworked. She laid back and immersed herself in the soft covers. She dreamed again that night.

She was six years old. Her father had left fresh bruises all over her body. Avery was in her room crying. Her siblings had been lucky not to be sick that day. Avery wiped the tears off her face with her blanket. She knew better. She knew she should have kept out of his way. Avery was hungry and wanted something to eat. This was why she woke him up. Her dad was upset and still drunk from the whiskey.

            “Are you okay?” she heard a voice say behind her. Avery looked over to see Venice. The Asian girl walked over to Avery and started to stroke her back. Her touch was cold as usual. This girl wouldn’t leave Avery alone.

            “No…” Avery said, suppressing tears.

            “It’s okay. Everything is going to be okay,” Venice whispered.

            “How do you know? You aren’t even real.” Avery could feel the excruciating pain in her back. The fever came back. She had managed to make this girl angry once again.

            “I am real!” Venice screamed at the top of her lungs. Avery could feel Venice’s cold hands grasp her around the throat.

            “Please… Let go…” Avery managed to say. Venice continued to stifle her windpipe.

            “Say I am real! Say you will be my friend.”

            “Alright… I will be your friend.” Avery felt Venice’s grasp weaken.

Avery looked up to see Venice staring at her. She looked malevolent. She flashed Avery an evil smile.

            “Why do you want me to be your friend so bad Venice?

            “Why?” Avery asked.

“You are all I have. I don’t have anyone else to talk to,” Venice replied. She didn’t seem as malevolent now.

            “I am really all you have?” Avery asked.

            “Yes, I have no one else to talk to…” For the first time Venice looked vulnerable and harmless.

            “So, friends?” Venice asked extending her hand to Avery. She shook Venice’s cold hand and made her a promise to be friends forever.

            Avery woke up from the dream. It was a memory she had suppressed some time ago. She had forgotten all about their deal. Avery was beginning to wonder why Venice had stuck around all these years. If she was truly an imaginary friend, wouldn’t she have left years ago? Avery was beginning to think Venice was something else. Something more than just a figment of her imagination.

            “Hey there!” a voice interrupted her thoughts. Avery glanced up to see Venice. She was dressed in a provocative tight dark blue dress. It had lacy sleeves. The dress made every angle on her body pop. This time she materialized with heavy blue eye shadow. On her feet were suede blue booties.

            “Wow…” Venice smiled.

            “I know, don’t you love this dress and my hair.” Venice’ hair was curly and tied up in loose ponytail which she pulled forward.

            “You look great!” “Yes, I know.”

            “I have a question Venice.” Avery pushed her covers off and turned on the fan.

           “Go ahead and ask me.” Venice replied. She snapped her fingers and a long white cigarette appeared. She took a deep breath and inhaled the cigarette.

            “Why are you still here?” Venice did her best not to look startled.

            “I am here because I am part of you.”

            “What do you mean?” Avery asked. The room was starting to feel chilly. Avery started to feel the old Venice emerging again.

            “I am your sister.” Avery coughed.

            “What do you mean my sister?” Venice’s face began to dis- tort.

           “I mean your sister. We are twins.” Avery began getting a splitting headache.

            “Twins? Twins? What do you mean twins?” Her headache did not subside. In fact it grew worse. The room was a blur.. “Tell me Venice, tell me what you really are?”

            “I just told you. Accept it. You are part of me and I am part of you.” Avery started to feel dizzy.

~~~~~

Author Mary Sage Nguyen

Mary Sage Nguyen

Mary Sage Nguyen is the youngest daughter of Vietnamese and Chinese immigrants. Vietnamese was the language spoken at home, so the only way she was able to learn English was through the public school system. Even though English was not spoken at home, Mary became an avid reader as a young child and always dreamed of being a writer someday.

Website / Blog / Facebook / Twitter / The Malevolent Twin on Facebook

~~~~~

giveaway photo: Giveaway Banner for 42nd giveaway.png

a Rafflecopter giveaway

~~~~~

Thanks so much for visiting fuonlyknew and Good Luck!

To see all of my giveaways click on the lucky horseshoe below!

horseshoe photo: Horseshoe horseshoe.jpg