No Way Out by Tower Lowe
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

A Well-Crafted Suspenseful Mystery Romance...

NO WAY OUT by Tower Lowe is a wonderfully written and richly descriptive novel with brilliantly drawn characters and settings. The author weaves a well-crafted suspenseful mystery with a generous sprinkling of romance. Intriguing twists and turns also ensures that this book will captivate the reader from the first page to the last. The story unfurls in small acts, at first feeling slight to touch, then building in emotional substance. Into the spaces between the words, the author breathes a pulsating intensity that rolls like a camera in the film noir genre.

The book description gives a sneak preview: ‘If anything happens to me… That phrase from Gloria’s email haunts Molly as she bounces around half-conscious in a dark space. Later, she opens her eyes in a small house with all the windows bricked shut and the door boarded from the outside. Her kidnapper has taken her keys, her cell phone, and her purse. Molly scrambles through the house, looking for any sign of life, any hope of escape, but the house is abandoned, and she sees no way out. The kidnapping of former fraud investigator Molly Donovan follows Gloria’s murder, an event witnessed by Molly and PI Miguel Alvarez. Gloria’s mysterious email throws the two investigators together in a frantic search for the perp. A stranger traps Molly inside the abandoned house while an old friend sucks Miguel into his troubled past. Molly trusts Miguel until a series of notes incriminates him and leaves Molly on her own to investigate a sex cult, missing money, and jaded love.’

Now, if that’s not enough to grab your attention, I don’t know what will. But if you want to find out what happens, you’ll just have to turn the pages for yourself! However, I will say it was well worth the read. I’ve read this author several times before and she delivers every time.

The story had every element a good story should have. A solid plot, attention to detail, but best of all fleshed out, well-written and well-rounded character development. There’s an abundance of well-illustrated scenes that make you feel like you are right there in the story, and that’s something I look for in a good book.

I enjoyed the story, character development, and dialogue. There were plenty of plot twists that I didn’t see coming and that added to the book’s mystique. When I stopped reading to work, I found myself wondering what happened in the book, and replaying parts of the novel in my head to see if I could figure more out. It has been a while since I enjoyed a book this much. It’s a first-class murder, mystery and suspense with perfect pacing.

The contrast between tone and content is a characteristic talent of only a few authors. Lowe pays as much attention to her sentences as she does to her plots, shifting or consolidating meaning with the use of a single word. Her writing is impeccably honed, full of juxtapositions and qualifications that help to create an emotional atmosphere that will have you spellbound.

This was a fascinating and captivating read that had me immersed from the beginning. The story flowed from scene to scene with ease, and the author shows exceptional ability when it comes to storytelling. There are plenty of attention-grabbing moments in this page turner that will take the reader on a truly mesmerizing journey.

Highly recommended reading and a well-deserved five stars from me.

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January River by Bernard Jan
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

A masterclass in storytelling...

January River by Bernard Jan is a wonderfully written and richly descriptive novel with brilliantly drawn characters and settings. It’s a unique work that will captivate the reader from the opening chapter. Skillfully constructed, this well-written life affirming tale will have you turning the pages from beginning to end. There’s also plenty of imagery in the writing style that makes you feel you are right there in the story, and that’s something I look for in a good book.

This was a captivating read that had me immersed from the beginning. The story flowed from scene to scene with ease, and the author shows exceptional ability when it comes to storytelling. I enjoyed the story, character development, and dialogue. There were plenty of interesting moments that I didn’t see coming and that added to the book’s mystique. When I stopped reading to work, I found myself wondering what happened in the book, and replaying parts of the novel in my head to see if I could figure more out. It has been a while since I enjoyed a book this much.

There’s no doubt that January River is an exceptionally well written book. The contrast between tone and content is a characteristic talent of only a few authors. The author pays as much attention to his sentences as he does to his plots, shifting or consolidating meaning with the use of a single word. His writing is impeccably honed, full of juxtapositions and qualifications that help to create an allegory about fears and anxiety, about the place of the sensitive person, the thinker, the human, within society’s social order, in a world in which human beings are the only animals who despair of their lives.

It’s one of those books that come along occasionally that makes you want to read it non-stop until you get to the end. I’m giving nothing further away here. And this, I hope, will only add to the mystery and enjoyment for the reader. I’ll be looking forward to reading more from Bernard Jan in the future. I would highly recommend this book and would add that it has a distinctly cinematic feel to it. A well-deserved five stars from me.

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Girl With A Rose by Leslie Wolfe
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

A first-class thriller with perfect pacing...

Girl With A Rose by Leslie Wolfe is a wonderfully written and richly descriptive novella with brilliantly drawn characters driven by the need for justice. The author weaves a well-crafted Serial Killer Thriller with intriguing twists and turns that will captivate the reader from the first page to the last.

The story had every element a good story should have. A solid plot, attention to detail, but best of all fleshed out, well-written and well-rounded character development. There’s an abundance of well-illustrated scenes that make you feel like you are right there in the story, and that’s something I look for in a good book.

I enjoyed the story, character development, and dialogue. There were plenty of plot twists that I didn’t see coming and that added to the book’s mystique. When I stopped reading to work, I found myself wondering what happened in the book, and replaying parts of the novel in my head to see if I could figure more out. It has been a while since I enjoyed a book this much. It’s a first-class thriller with perfect pacing.

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The Sheep Rise Up by Mitchell Graye
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

A well-written mystery, thriller and suspense with perfect pacing...

The Sheep Rise Up by Mitchell Graye is a wonderfully written and richly descriptive novel with brilliantly drawn characters and settings. The author weaves a well-crafted mystery and suspense set in the greedy world of Corporate America. With intriguing twists and turns, this is a book that will captivate the reader from the first page to the last. Skillfully constructed and set against the backdrop of greedy Corporate America, this book will have you on the edge of your seat!

I enjoyed the story, character development, and dialogue. There were plenty of plot twists that I didn’t see coming and that added to the book’s mystique. When I stopped reading to work, I found myself wondering what happened in the book, and replaying parts of the novel in my head to see if I could figure more out. It has been a while since I enjoyed a book this much. It’s a well-written mystery thriller with perfect pacing. Not much is as it appears here, which is just the way fans of the Mystery, Thriller, and Suspense will want it.

Highly recommended reading and a well-deserved five stars from me.

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The Res: An American Love Story by G. Michael Madison
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

An authentic and emotional contemporary novel...

The Rez: An American Love Story by G. Michael Madison is a wonderfully written and richly descriptive novel with brilliantly drawn settings and characters. The author weaves a well-crafted coming of age story that will captivate the reader’s attention from the start. Skillfully constructed, this coming of age saga will have you turning the pages from beginning to end. There’s plenty of imagery in the writing style that makes you feel you are right there in the story, and that’s something I look for in a good book.

This for me was a phenomenal read. It’s one of those stories that stayed with me for several days after I finished reading it. The vivid descriptions of the settings, situations, and the people were stunning. The author’s use of genuine dialogue further added to the overall atmosphere of authenticity.

The contrast between tone and content is a characteristic talent of only a few authors. Madison pays as much attention to his sentences as he does to his plots, shifting or consolidating meaning with the use of a single word. His writing is impeccably honed, full of juxtapositions and qualifications that help to create an authentic and emotional contemporary novel.

I’ll be looking forward to reading more from G. Michael Madison in the future. I would recommend this book and also add that it has a distinctly cinematic feel to it. Highly recommended reading and a well-deserved five stars from me.

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Hard Rain by Irma Venter
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

A first-class mystery with perfect pacing...

Hard Rain (Rogue Book 1) had every element a good story should have. An intriguing plot, attention to detail, but best of all fleshed out, well-written and well-rounded character development. There’s an abundance of well-illustrated scenes that make you feel like you are right there in the story, and that’s something I look for in a good book.

I enjoyed the story, character development, and dialogue. There were plenty of plot twists that I didn’t see coming and that added to the book’s mystique. When I stopped reading to work, I found myself wondering what happened in the book, and replaying parts of the novel in my head to see if I could figure more out. It has been a while since I enjoyed a book this much. It’s a first-class mystery with perfect pacing. Not much is as it appears here, which is just the way fans of mystery and suspense will want it.

I’ll be looking forward to reading more from Irma Venter the future. I would recommend this book. Five stars from me.

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Preparing for a Lockdown by Silvergum Publishing
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

"By failing to prepare, you are preparing to fail." - Benjamin Franklin

Now more than ever we must learn important skills that will help us survive and overcome potential problems that will (and do) occur. Then practice what we have learned to the point of becoming proficient. Be able to carry out our new skills immediately, should it become necessary.

PREPARING FOR A LOCKDOWN is a family guide to staying safe in a world of uncertainty. It’s a short quick read that’s packed to the rafters with practical common-sense advice. Every household should have a copy of this guide. Highly recommended.

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