THE GIRL FROM VENICE by Martin Cruz Smith

November 5, 2016 / drbethnolan / 3 Comments

This historical mystery was an intriguing and thrilling read. Taking place during WWII in Venice, the novel focuses on a young fisherman and his attempt to aid a young Jewish girl who is in hiding.

Description

The highly anticipated new standalone novel from Martin Cruz Smith, whom The Washington Post has declared “that uncommon phenomenon: a popular and well-regarded crime novelist who is also a writer of real distinction,” The Girl from Venice is a suspenseful World War II love story set against the beauty, mystery, and danger of occupied Venice.

Venice, 1945. The war may be waning, but the city known as La Serenissima is still occupied and the people of Italy fear the power of the Third Reich. One night, under a canopy of stars, a fisherman named Cenzo comes across a young woman’s body floating in the lagoon and soon discovers that she is still alive and in trouble.

Born to a wealthy Jewish family, Giulia is on the run from the Wehrmacht SS. Cenzo chooses to protect Giulia rather than hand her over to the Nazis. This act of kindness leads them into the world of Partisans, random executions, the arts of forgery and high explosives, Mussolini’s broken promises, the black market and gold, and, everywhere, the enigmatic maze of the Venice Lagoon.

The Girl from Venice is a thriller, a mystery, and a retelling of Italian history that will take your breath away. Most of all it is a love story.

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I loved this one!

Thank you to Net Galley and Simon and Schuster for my e-copy to review!

WHAT SHE KNEW by Gilly Macmillan

September 18, 2016September 17, 2016 / drbethnolan / Leave a comment

You all know that I can’t stay away from these suspense novels! Here’s another one that I recently found on sale on Amazon for my kindle:

THE NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER

In her enthralling debut, Gilly Macmillan explores a mother’s search for her missing son, weaving a taut psychological thriller as gripping and skillful as The Girl on the Train and The Guilty One.

In a heartbeat, everything changes…

Rachel Jenner is walking in a Bristol park with her eight-year-old son, Ben, when he asks if he can run ahead. It’s an ordinary request on an ordinary Sunday afternoon, and Rachel has no reason to worry—until Ben vanishes.

Police are called, search parties go out, and Rachel, already insecure after her recent divorce, feels herself coming undone. As hours and then days pass without a sign of Ben, everyone who knew him is called into question, from Rachel’s newly married ex-husband to her mother-of-the-year sister. Inevitably, media attention focuses on Rachel too, and the public’s attitude toward her begins to shift from sympathy to suspicion.

As she desperately pieces together the threadbare clues, Rachel realizes that nothing is quite as she imagined it to be, not even her own judgment. And the greatest dangers may lie not in the anonymous strangers of every parent’s nightmares, but behind the familiar smiles of those she trusts the most.

Where is Ben? The clock is ticking…

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Yep – it was another “read all night until it’s over” event. I have to say that I thought this novel did an excellent job portraying how this poor woman was vilified on social media after her son went missing. Everyone is an expert these days and no one waits to throw the first stone.

Pick it up and enjoy it!

I LET YOU GO by Clare Mackintosh

September 17, 2016September 17, 2016 / drbethnolan / Leave a comment

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I grabbed this off Amazon a few weeks ago when it was on sale. I was late to the party on this one, but many of my friends loved it and said it was suspenseful (sounded good to me!).

Here’s the Amazon overview:

The next blockbuster thriller for those who loved The Girl on the Train and Gone Girl... “a finely crafted novel with a killer twist.” (Paula Hawkins, #1 New York Timesbestselling author of The Girl on the Train)

On a rainy afternoon, a mother’s life is shattered as her son slips from her grip and runs into the street . . .

I Let You Go follows Jenna Gray as she moves to a ramshackle cottage on the remote Welsh coast, trying to escape the memory of the car accident that plays again and again in her mind and desperate to heal from the loss of her child and the rest of her painful past.

At the same time, the novel tracks the pair of Bristol police investigators trying to get to the bottom of this hit-and-run. As they chase down one hopeless lead after another, they find themselves as drawn to each other as they are to the frustrating, twist-filled case before them. Elizabeth Haynes, author of Into the Darkest Corner, says, “I read I Let You Go in two sittings; it made me cry (at least twice), made me gasp out loud (once), and above all made me wish I’d written it . . . a stellar achievement.”

*Peter James, author of Want You Dead
From the Hardcover edition.

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Couldn’t. Stop. Reading.

I really enjoyed this book. Poor Jenna – I felt for her and could understand why she would want to just disappear into the countryside! I can’t say too much without giving it all away, but if you enjoy books like Girl on the Train, etc. you would probably enjoy this one! I hope they make this into a movie.

A DARKER SKY by Mari Jungstedt and Ruben Eliassen

September 11, 2016September 11, 2016 / drbethnolan / Leave a comment

I love Mari Jungstedt’s writing, and was thrilled to find this title on Net Galley. Swedish crime is a genre I’ve come to rely on for well-plotted mysteries with multi-dimensional characters.

Here’s the overview:

Murder is killing the mood at a yoga tourist destination.

As dawn breaks on the Canary Islands, a fishing boat discovers a woman lying dead on the rocks nearby, her body arranged like a piece of art. To solve the case, Chief Inspector Diego Quintana gets unexpected help from Swedish journalist Sara Moberg, who runs the Scandinavian newspaper on the island, as well as from handsome former investigator Kristian Wede. But not even that can stop the killer from striking again.

As the death toll rises, the mood darkens, and Sara and Kristian race to find the killer before another tourist falls prey. But who is the culprit—an island local with a grudge against the tourists, a visitor on the run from trouble in her home country, the womanizing local yoga instructor, or the person they least suspect?

A Note From the Publisher

Bestselling author Mari Jungstedt and award-winning author Ruben Eliassen are the duo behind the dark and dramatic Canary Islands Series. Jungstedt is one of Sweden’s most beloved authors. She has published twelve books in her popular Gotland series, which is available in more than twenty countries and has been filmed for German television. Eliassen has published seven books in the award-winning Phenomena series, whose movie rights have been sold to an American film company.

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Yep, I couldn’t put it down.

Make a movie of this, please! (Preferably via the BBC so the acting will be stellar).

If you like crime novels, check out this title. Thanks for my e-copy!

TIME AND REGRET by M.K. Tod

August 31, 2016August 27, 2016 / drbethnolan / Leave a comment

Description (via Net Galley)

When Grace Hansen finds a box belonging to her beloved grandfather, she has no idea it holds the key to his past—and to long-buried family secrets. In the box are his World War I diaries and a cryptic note addressed to her. Determined to solve her grandfather’s puzzle, Grace follows his diary entries across towns and battle sites in northern France, where she becomes increasingly drawn to a charming French man—and suddenly aware that someone is following her…

Through her grandfather’s vivid writing and Grace’s own travels, a picture emerges of a man very unlike the one who raised her: one who watched countless friends and loved ones die horrifically in battle; one who lived a life of regret. But her grandfather wasn’t the only one harboring secrets, and the more Grace learns about her family, the less she thinks she can trust them.

A Note From the Publisher

Time and Regret is M.K. Tod’s third novel. She began writing in 2005 while living as an expat in Hong Kong. What started as an interest in her grandparents’ lives turned into a full-time occupation writing historical fiction. Her novel Unravelled was awarded Indie Editor’s Choice by the Historical Novel Society. In addition to writing historical novels, she blogs about reading and writing historical fiction on http://www.awriterofhistory.com, reviews books for the Historical Novel Society and the Washington Independent Review of Books, and has conducted three highly respected reader surveys. She lives in Toronto, Canada, with her husband and is the mother of two adult children.

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I first heard about this book when it featured on Historical Fiction Virtual Book Tours. I was able to get it through Net Galley (I was late to the party!) as it sounded like something I would like to read.

I really enjoyed this story and liked the mix of historical fiction and mystery. I feel like I read a lot of WWII but not as much WWI stories. This novel also raises the issue of PTSD, which was so prevalent for soldiers returning from Europe, but very much misunderstood.

While I found Grace sometimes a tad self-centered, and I was sorry that she never resolved her relationship with her grandmother, I did like her character for her tenacity and spirit.

Recommended if you enjoy this genre – a blend of history and mystery with a touch of romance!

Thank you for my e-copy!

FORGIVE ME by Daniel Palmer

August 28, 2016August 25, 2016 / drbethnolan / 1 Comment

Description (via Net Galley)

In a heart-pounding thriller from one of the most innovative voices in contemporary suspense, a woman unravels the shocking truth about her parents, her past, and a life built upon an unthinkable lie.

At DeRose & Associates Private Investigators in Virginia, Angie DeRose strives to find and rescue endangered runaways–work that stands in stark contrast to her own safe, idyllic childhood. But in the wake of her mother’s sudden death, Angie makes a life-altering discovery. Hidden among the mementos in her parents’ attic is a photograph of a little girl, with a code and a hand-written message on the back: “May God forgive me.”

Angie has no idea what it means or how to explain other questionable items among her mother’s possessions. Her father claims to know nothing. Could Angie have a sister or other relative she was never told about? Bryce Taggart, the US Marshal working with her agency, agrees to help Angie learn the fate of the girl in the photograph. But the lies she and Bryce unearth will bring her past and present together with terrifying force. And everything she cherishes will be threatened by the repercussions of one long-ago choice–and an enemy who will kill to keep a secret hidden forever.

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I love a good mystery! This one had me guessing right up unto the very end. It was cleverly plotted, though I will admit to needing to postpone by disbelief for the last few chapters.

However, I always give praise to a mystery that I haven’t solved by the midpoint.

If you love this genre, give this one a try!

Thank you for my review c-copy.

THAT DARKNESS by Lisa Black

August 27, 2016August 25, 2016 / drbethnolan / Leave a comment

Description (via Net Galley)

In this tour de force of psychological suspense, bestselling author Lisa Black draws from her experience as a forensic investigator to create two of the most fascinating characters in crime fiction: a killer with a unique sense of justice and a woman in a lifelong relationship with death…

That Darkness

As a forensic investigator for the Cleveland Police Department, Maggie Gardiner has seen her share of Jane Does. The latest is an unidentified female in her early teens, discovered in a local cemetery. More shocking than the girl’s injuries–for Maggie at least–is the fact that no one has reported her missing. She and the detectives assigned to the case (including her cop ex-husband) are determined to follow every lead, run down every scrap of evidence. But the monster they seek is watching every move, closer to them than they could possibly imagine.

Jack Renner is a killer. He doesn’t murder because he enjoys it, or because he believes himself omnipotent, or for any reason other than to make the world a safer place. When he follows the trail of this Jane Doe to a locked room in a small apartment where eighteen teenaged girls are anything but safe, he knows something must be done. But his pursuit of their captor takes an unexpected turn.

Maggie Gardiner finds another body waiting for her in the autopsy room–and a host of questions that will challenge everything she believes about justice, morality, and the true nature of evil …

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Wow! I could NOT put this book down. I just loved the idea of a vigilante cop and I loved the character of super sharp Maggie Gardiner. Can someone make this one into a movie? Please??

If you like mysteries and cop stories, this is a pick for you!

Thank you for my review e-copy!

HFVBTour for Susan Spann’s THE NINJA’S DAUGHTER

August 24, 2016August 15, 2016 / drbethnolan / Leave a comment

04_The Ninja's Daughter_Blog Tour Banner_FINAL.png

I am very excited to be part of the blog tour for Susan Spann’s latest installment in her Hiro Hattori mysteries: THE NINJA’S DAUGHTER. I had recently read THE FLASK OF THE DRUNKEN MASTER and really enjoyed it. I love cozy series and this time and setting is unique for my reading: 1500’s Japan, with a Jesuit priest and his bodyguard Ninja master as the main characters. Susan Spann is a master at plotting and a fantastic writer. The mystery moved along at a solid pace, with lots of actions and twists, but what I love most is how much the culture and daily life of Japan in those long ago days are imbued in these books. I feel like I’m learning as I’m reading – which is why I love HF!

Here’s the overview from HFVBT:

02_The Ninja's Daughter

The Ninja’s Daughter: A Hiro Hattori Novel by Susan Spann

Publication Date: August 2, 2016
Seventh Street Books
eBook & Paperback; 230 Pages

Series: Hiro Hattori Novels/Shinobi Mysteries
Genre: Historical Mystery

Autumn, 1565: When an actor’s daughter is murdered on the banks of Kyoto’s Kamo River, master ninja Hiro Hattori and Portuguese Jesuit Father Mateo are the victim’s only hope for justice.

As political tensions rise in the wake of the shogun’s recent death, and rival warlords threaten war, the Kyoto police forbid an investigation of the killing, to keep the peace–but Hiro has a personal connection to the girl, and must avenge her. The secret investigation leads Hiro and Father Mateo deep into the exclusive world of Kyoto’s theater guilds, where they quickly learn that nothing, and no one, is as it seems. With only a mysterious golden coin to guide them, the investigators uncover a forbidden love affair, a missing mask, and a dangerous link to corruption within the Kyoto police department that leaves Hiro and Father Mateo running for their lives.

“In The Ninja’s Daughter, Susan Spann’s poetic voice brilliantly captures the societal disparities, political intrigues, and martial conflicts of sixteenth-century Japan through the persevering efforts of ninja detective Hiro Hattori to solve a murder authorities consider of no consequence.” -JEFFREY SIGER, International Bestselling Author

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Book Depository | iTunes | Indiebound | Kobo

About the Author

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Susan Spann is the author of three previous novels in the Shinobi Mystery series: Claws of the Cat, Blade of the Samurai, and Flask of the Drunken Master. She has a degree in Asian Studies and a lifelong love of Japanese history and culture. . When not writing, she works as a transactional attorney focusing on publishing and business law, and raises seahorses and rare corals in her marine aquarium.

For more information please visit Susan Spann’s website. You can also follow her on Facebook, Twitter, andGoodreads.

Follow the tour and discover a new blog!

Blog Tour Schedule

Monday, July 25
Review at The Readers Hollow
Review & Giveaway at Lampshade Reader

Tuesday, July 26
Review at Reading the Past

Wednesday, July 27
Review at Nerd in New York

Thursday, July 28
Spotlight at Cafinated Reads
Spotlight at Susan Heim on Writing

Friday, July 29
Giveaway at Passages to the Past

Monday, August 1
Review at Oh, for the Hook of a Book!

Tuesday, August 2
Review at Jorie Loves a Story
Review at Booklover Book Reviews

Wednesday, August 3
Guest Post at Diana’s Book Reviews

Friday, August 5
Spotlight at The Bookaholic Swede

Sunday, August 7
Review at Carole’s Ramblings

Monday, August 8
Spotlight at What Is That Book About

Tuesday, August 9
Spotlight at Just One More Chapter
Interview at Oh, for the Hook of a Book!

Wednesday, August 10
Review at Svetlana’s Reads and Views

Friday, August 12
Spotlight at Laura’s Interests
Spotlight at Life of a Female Bibliophile

Monday, August 15
Review at A Chick Who Reads

Tuesday, August 16
Review at Writing the Renaissance
Guest Post at Oh, for the Hook of a Book!

Wednesday, August 17
Review at Book Nerd
Interview at Writing the Renaissance

Thursday, August 18
Review at Layered Pages

Friday, August 19
Spotlight at Christy’s Cozy Corners

Monday, August 22
Review at Queen of All She Reads
Guest Post & Giveaway at Teddy Rose Book Reviews Plus More

Tuesday, August 23
Spotlight at CelticLady’s Reviews

Wednesday, August 24
Review at Beth’s Book Nook Blog

Thursday, August 25
Spotlight at The Recipe Fairy

Friday, August 26
Review & Giveaway at The True Book Addict
Interview at Jorie Loves a Story

THANK YOU FOR MAKING ME PART OF THE TOUR AND FOR MY E-COPY TO REVIEW!

Litfuse Blog Tour for WHEN DEATH DRAWS NEAR by Carrie Stuart Parks

August 18, 2016August 15, 2016 / drbethnolan / Leave a comment

I’m happy today to be part of the blog tour for WHEN DEATH DRAWS NEAR by Carrie Stuart Parks, through Litfuse Publicity.

Here’s an overview of the novel:

When Death Draws Near (Thomas Nelson, August 2016)

Death has always been part of Gwen Marcey’s job. But when faced with her own mortality, everything takes on a different hue.

Forensic artist Gwen Marcey is between jobs and homes when she accepts temporary work in Pikeville, Kentucky. The Eastern Kentucky town, located deep in the heart of the Appalachian Mountains, has been plagued by a serial rapist and a series of unexplained deaths. Before Gwen can develop a composite drawing, the latest witness vanishes, just like all the previous victims.

Turning her attention to sketching the face of an unidentified body, she discovers a link between his death and a Pentecostal serpent-handling church. Serpent-handling is illegal in Kentucky, and the churches have gone underground to avoid the authorities and continue to worship as they believe. Gwen is offered a handsome reward to infiltrate the renegade members, a reward she desperately needs as it seems her breast cancer has returned.

Joined by her digitally-obsessed, Generation Z daughter, Gwen goes undercover to a nineteenth century revival, planning to draw the faces of the snake handlers so they can be identified and arrested. Instead she uncovers a murderous plot and a festering evil.

Purchase a copy: http://bit.ly/2auSB8Y

About the author:

Carrie Stuart Parks is a Christy finalist as well as a Carol award-winning author. She has won numerous awards for her fine art as well. An internationally known forensic artist, she travels with her husband, Rick, across the US and Canada teaching courses in forensic art to law enforcement professionals. The author/illustrator of numerous books on drawing and painting, Carrie continues to create dramatic watercolors from her studio in the mountains of Idaho.

Website | Facebook | Twitter | Pinterest

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This story was a little different than I expected, but I enjoyed it. (I was thinking it might be very “noir”). It is number three in a series, but it is a stand-alone title (I hadn’t read the previous books and didn’t realize they they existed until after I was done with this one).

Gwen is a strong female character, struggling with numerous personal issues (divorce, parenting, health, general self-esteem, etc.). I liked how her emotions and feelings were realistic; what I struggled with was that some of her actions required me to suspend my belief (would you take your teenage daughter along if you knew you were in danger? I wouldn’t). I liked the story, though, and found it fast-paced.

This is under the Thomas Nelson imprint, which is a Christian imprint line, however, this story didn’t seem like the typical Christian novel I receive. I have readers who do not pick up books classed as “Christian” as they feel they don’t relate (basically because they aren’t Christian), however I think this book would appeal to a wide range of readers. One thing I did like about this story line and the character of Gwen was the underlying theme of accepting yourself for who you are and accepting your challenges in life with grace, and knowing that you aren’t alone.

I will look for other books by Carrie Stuart Parks – including those in this series!

Thank you for making me part of the tour and for my review e-copy!

But wait, there’s more!!

A Giveaway!

For an “Undercover Artist Starter Set” ==

Plunge into forensic artist Gwen Marcey’s world, full of cold-case murders, shady politics, and a den of venomous suspects. Add Carrie Stuart Parks’ new Gwen Marcey novel, When Death Draws Near, to the top of your must-read list. Gwen accepts temporary work in Pikeville, Kentucky—a small town facing big-city crime. But before she can finish her first drawing of the serial rapist who is on the loose, the latest witness vanishes. Just like all the others. Can Gwen uncover the truth—and convince anyone to believe her—before she becomes a victim herself?

Join Carrie in celebrating the release of When Death Draws Near by entering to win an Undercover Artist Starter Set.

One grand prize winner will receive:

A copy of When Death Draws Near
A $30 Michael’s or Hobby Lobby gift card (winner’s choice)
Colored pencils
A sharpener
A pencil case
An eraser
A coloring prayer book
A coloring notecard set
A lap desk

Enter today by clicking the icon below, but hurry! The giveaway ends on August 22. The winner will be announced August 23 on the Litfuse blog.

BEHIND CLOSED DOORS by B.A. Paris

August 16, 2016 / drbethnolan / 1 Comment

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This book was sent to me by the publisher as part of a campaign celebrating its publication this month.

Here’s the overview from Amazon:

The perfect marriage? Or the perfect lie?

The debut psychological thriller you can’t miss!

“A hair-raising debut, both unsettling and addictive…A chilling thriller that will keep you reading long into the night.” ―Mary Kubica, New York Times and USA Todaybestselling author of The Good Girl

“This is one readers won’t be able to put down.” ―Booklist (starred review)

“This debut is guaranteed to haunt you…Warning: brace yourself.” ―Bustle (10 New Thrillers to Read This Summer)

“The sense of believably and terror that engulfs Behind Closed Doors doesn’t waver.” ―The Associated Press, picked up by The Washington Post

“This was one of the best and most terrifying psychological thrillers I have ever read.” ―San Francisco Book Review

Everyone knows a couple like Jack and Grace. He has looks and wealth; she has charm and elegance. He’s a dedicated attorney who has never lost a case; she is a flawless homemaker, a masterful gardener and cook, and dotes on her disabled younger sister. Though they are still newlyweds, they seem to have it all. You might not want to like them, but you do. You’re hopelessly charmed by the ease and comfort of their home, by the graciousness of the dinner parties they throw. You’d like to get to know Grace better.

But it’s difficult, because you realize Jack and Grace are inseparable.

Some might call this true love. Others might wonder why Grace never answers the phone. Or why she can never meet for coffee, even though she doesn’t work. How she can cook such elaborate meals but remain so slim. Or why she never seems to take anything with her when she leaves the house, not even a pen. Or why there are such high-security metal shutters on all the downstairs windows.

Some might wonder what’s really going on once the dinner party is over, and the front door has closed.

From bestselling author B. A. Paris comes the gripping thriller and international phenomenon Behind Closed Doors.

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Me again!

Can I just say that I got this book and started reading and then read it all night long until I finished. It had that “Girl on the Train” or “Gone Girl” quality that you just don’t want to put it down and leave it. I’m not going to give away the details here as that would spoil the read, but it had the creepy suspense of “what is going on here??” leading to “what will she do??” to “what is going to happen???” It actually gave me nightmares.

Added to all this was a brilliant marketing campaign where I actually received LETTERS IN THE MAIL from the main character, beseeching me to help her. My kids saw one of those and got a little freaked out when I glibly responded to their horrified, “Mom, WHO is this from??” with “Oh don’t worry – it’s just a character from a book I was reading”. My husband referred to them as “mail from Beth’s imaginary friend”.

If you like suspense and one of those “read it til 4 am even if you have to get up and go to work” titles – this is one for you!!

Here’s a You Tube video for you: