Showing posts with label Suspense. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Suspense. Show all posts

Tuesday, February 2, 2016

He Will Be My Ruin by K.A. Tucker








Title: He Will Be My Ruin
Author: K.A. Tucker









On the surface, Celine Gonzalez had everything a twenty-eight-year-old woman could want: a one-bedroom apartment on Manhattan's Lower East Side, a job that (mostly) paid the bills, and an acceptance letter to the prestigious Hollingsworth Institute of Art, where she would finally live out her dream of becoming an antiques appraiser for a major auction house. All she had worked so hard to achieve was finally within her reach. So why would she kill herself?

A man who was supposed to be her salvation...

Maggie Sparks arrives in New York City to pack up what's left of her best friend's belongings after a suicide that has left everyone stunned. The police have deemed the evidence conclusive: Celine got into bed, downed a lethal cocktail of pills and vodka, and never woke up. But when Maggie discovers a scandalous photograph in a lock box hidden in Celine's apartment, she begins asking questions. Questions about the man Celine fell in love with. The man she never told anyone about, not even Maggie. The man Celine believed would change her life.

Until he became her ruin.

On the hunt for evidence that will force the police to reopen the case, Maggie uncovers more than she bargained for about Celine's private life--and inadvertently puts herself on the radar of a killer. A killer who will stop at nothing to keep his crimes undiscovered.



There is so much I want to gush about when it comes to K.A. Tucker. She is a writer whose talent is in a realm of it's own. I have read each of her works countless times and regardless of their familiarity, every reread still takes me on an emotional journey. When He Will Be My Ruin came to light, I was giddy with anticipation. This novel is unlike anything Tucker has written before, but shines with the same high caliber as her other stories.

It's really hard for me to write this review. Not because the story wasn't incredible, but because everything I want to say might spoil the story for a reader. He Will Be My Ruin will consume you from the first page until the very end. It pained me to have to put this novel down and flooded my thoughts until I could resume reading. The suspense and twists are nothing I could have ever anticipated. This story truly kept me guessing and kept my heart racing. I loved every anxious moment. The characters, the plot, the words all come together in a remarkably written package that is uniquely phenomenal. I was intrigued and ultimately fell in love with this genre that I had only scratched the surface of before He Will Be My Ruin. Tucker stepped outside of where she has found success before to pen a story that flexed her creative muscles and showed her range as a writer.

I commend her for taking a risk on a story that will bring readers nothing but reward. If you're a fan of Tucker's books, He Will Be My Ruin will find a place on your shelf of favorites. For those who have not discovered this gem of an author--what are you waiting for!? He Will Be My Ruin is an Adult Suspense that will leave you stunned but satisfied, so pick up your copy today!






Look, I’m just…” I stare at my reflection in the mirror, my eyes lined with bags, my skin sallow, my hair matted. I look like someone who sat in bed for twenty-four hours, eating cold pizza from the box I had delivered last night and polishing off a bottle of vodka, all while reading the deepest and darkest thoughts from the last fifteen years of Celine Gonzalez’s life. Discovering things that I could have happily gone the rest of my life without knowing.
Which is exactly what I’ve done.
I can barely keep my eyes open and yet I know that sleep will not grant me a reprieve. “I’m dealing with a few private matters.”
“Well, I can’t guarantee that I’ll be able to fit you in when you decide that you’re ready.”
“You will, because your boss wants my money.” I hang up before I hear her snippy answer and stare at the journal in my hands.
I was torn between starting from the latest diary first and easing myself in with the oldest one, afraid that I wasn’t ready for what might lie within those last pages. That I wasn’t ready to witness just how Celine had lost herself.
And then I picked up a pink book with butterflies on it—the earliest dated journal—and read a thirteen-year-old Celine recount her major crush on my boyfriend at the time: a tall, gangly guy named Jordan who kissed her behind our house one day while I was changing into my bathing suit upstairs. She felt so guilty, she couldn’t sleep for a week. Through tears, I laughed—because I hadn’t even given that guy a moment’s thought in years—and I knew then that starting at the beginning of Celine’s story was the only way to do this.
And so I did, living the past fifteen years through Celine’s eyes, since the days she and Rosa still lived with me. It wasn’t hard to follow along. She dated every single entry. Some days she didn’t have a lot to say. Other days she’d fill an entire page, even writing along the margin. She seemed to follow a simple rule as the years progressed: one page per day, no more.
So many days.
So many confessions.
So many things that made my heart swell.
And so many that made my heart bleed with pain.




Born in small-town Ontario, K.A. Tucker published her first book at the age of six with the help of her elementary school librarian and a box of crayons. She currently resides in a quaint town outside of Toronto with her husband, two beautiful girls, and an exhausting brood of four-legged creatures.


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Monday, March 23, 2015

Cover Reveal: Warrior by Nicole Blanchard

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I thought it was just one night.

I knew he was about to leave for a year – no chance for a future. But our one night together would create memories for a lifetime. Our paths crossed again, but I ad lied, kept a secret from him, one he would never forgive me for. But my secret was about to be ripped open. Displayed for the world on national news. And I had only one way to repair the damage. I had to trust the man I lied to. The man I never got the chance to make a life for. The only man who could save what we had created together.



“We should stop,” I whisper, my voice hoarse from the strain.
But she doesn’t. Livvie never does. She pushes me to my absolute limit, testing to see if today will finally be the day when I give into her. God, but it’s hard to resist. Not when I want to finally be as close to her as I possibly can be. But I’m afraid that we’re both rushing it because the day when I leave is finally becoming a reality.
She deserves more. She deserves better. And I want to be the man to give it to her.
She may not understand it now, but she will. I’ll make sure of it.
I trace my lips down the angle of her throat, unable to stop just yet. Soon. Her hands grapple to hold on to me, pulling me back up so that she’s locked against me from hip to lips.
“Don’t,” she murmurs. “I know what you’re thinking and I understand. But don’t pull away yet. I need to feel close to you right now.” Her arms tighten around me until I can feel the thunder of her heart against my own. “Be with me for a while, Ben. Please.”
I grin against her skin, moving to touch her lips against mine. I shift backward until she’s sitting on my lap with her arms wrapped around my neck. It’s raining now, a capricious Florida thunderstorm that’s been threatening to burst free all day, and the drum of it against my truck surrounds us in our own intimate cocoon. For a moment in time nothing can touch what we have. For a moment we’re locked inside a perfect bubble that can’t be marred by the future or distance or uncertainty.
We move in unison, pressing as close together as we can get—as though the physical closeness could bind our metaphorical hearts. I kiss her like I wish that was true—that we’d never be apart. I want her to remember this moment as much as I know I will. I want to burn the memory of this kiss into her lips. I want her dreams to be of me, of this. I want the ghost of my touch to haunt her every day until I comes back.
Everything I don’t have the balls to say is translated into that moment. How much being away from her is going to kill me. Because God, I’m going to miss her. My girl. A fierce possessiveness burns through my chest and I growl into her mouth, one arm wrapping around her little waist to press her even more firmly down on my lap. She gasps and her hips jerk instinctively against me.
I suddenly regret my own chivalry. I want nothing more than to feel her clasp around me right then. To hear her sigh. To know what it’s like to finally make her mine.
I decide to give in, just once, just a little. Just this once. A memory that will last through blood and loss. Loneliness and regret. One perfect night to make through the next year of empty ones.
  
 
Survivor (First to Fight #2) Savior (First to Fight #3)

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Nicole Blanchard lives in Florida with her daughter, and their menagerie of animals. She quit college to chase her own fairy tale that spanned the course of three continents and contained it’s fair share of dragons. Now, she owns her own business and pretends to be an adult. She survives on a diet of too many books and substantial amounts of root beer and slim jims. When not reading, she’s lavishing attention on her family or inhaling every episode of Charmed and Sex in the City.




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Tuesday, March 10, 2015

Tour: Exchange of Fire by P.A. DePaul

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Sandra Walsh was a deadly sniper for the Sweet Briar Group, a covert agency with assassins for hire, until her last mission went horribly wrong, accidentally killing an innocent girl. Knowing she’s a danger to her team, Sandra goes off the grid, becoming a Shade—an agent declared dead but secretly hiding among the living. She intends to honor her vow never to pull another trigger or have contact with the spy world again. Until she meets Casper Grady…

Grady is a former Marine with a troubled past and a debt to pay. His life mission has gone from protecting the nation to helping local children and their families. The moment he meets Sandra, he knows there’s more to her than meets the eye, but he can’t help but be drawn to the mysterious femme fatale. And when Sandra’s past suddenly catches up to her, Grady is determined to protect her at all costs, no matter how dark and dangerous her secrets are. As the danger increases, so does their intense attraction. But when they’re forced to choose between each other and the people they’ve sworn to protect, their growing love might not be enough to keep them together—or alive…

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Exchange of Fire is the first book I've read by P.A. DePaul and it won't be my last. It is an action packed love story and I enjoyed every minute of it! The author kept me on my toes and, at times, had my heart racing. I LOVED it!

I was hooked from the very first page. The Delta Squad is on a mission to take down a sex slave ring. Each member of the team has their area of expertise and Wraith (one of the main characters) is the sniper. She misses her target, accidentally killing a victim, and is plunged into a world of guilt. She is unable to continue with the team and stages her own death to get away. She then becomes Sandra Walsh, a manager at a family fun center.

The center that she works at belongs to a man named Grady. Of course, they are attracted to each other, but Grady soon finds out there is more to Sandra than meets the eye. Though she wants him, she knows that she will have to run at any moment, so she keeps him at a distance. Grady is determined to break through her walls and claim her as his. When her apartment gets broken into and she has to go on the run, Grady is unexpectedly pulled in. While on the run, the sparks between them become too much to resist and they ignite a very passionate night. That is until she is reunited with her team. Of course this throws Grady for a loop and he is thrown off even further when he learns of her past.

While she is trying to survive the SBG that is not on her team, she is also trying to navigate her and Grady's rocky relationship. They try to put their personal feelings aside for the good of the whole and the community. This makes for a very emotionally volatile two people. Not too good to think with your heart when you need to be anticipating the enemy's next move.

The supporting characters in this story were just as important as Grady and Sandra. The group as a whole made the story, and I absolutely loved it. Everyone had a very specific role to play, and the author did it masterfully. I really felt I got to know each of the characters, and cannot wait for more of them. This is the first book of the SBG series and I am confident that it will be a do not miss series.




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Grady had had enough of the bullshit. Too many people were dropping in, and he was tired of being the only one who didn’t know the whole story. He needed to jump-start the explanations, and the best way to do that was to go for the throat. He lifted his chin and locked gazes with Cappy. He held up his fingers and started counting. “Cappy, Wraith, Talon, Romeo, Magician. Not your typical Christian names. Add to that Sandra’s confession that she’s a former sniper and Lethal Fuzzball Boy’s acclamation of her world-famous skill before she ‘died’ and became Jesus with her resurrection . . . I’m going to go out on a limb and say you’re the Commanding Officer of this clandestine team, right? Trained with them in Kansas and now lead everyone on missions? Tell me, does the company you work for start with a big C?” Cappy stiffened, and the reserved expression on his face eclipsed into a thundercloud. “What. The. Fuck?” “Here we go,” Romeo muttered, but everyone heard due to the sudden silence at the man’s bellow. Even the sun seemed to pause its ascent in the sky for a moment. “Someone had better start talking,” Cappy demanded in his gruff voice. “And, yes, I mean you, Wraith.” He spread his weight over his feet and slapped his hands on his hips. Sandra lifted her chin and met the CO’s incensed stare. If her arm hadn’t been touching his, he wouldn’t have known that a tremor raced through her before she opened her mouth. “I made the decision to fill Grady in on details I thought he should know. Especially after an assassin took shots at his head earlier this evening.” “Granger,” Talon inserted, crossing his arms. Cappy’s eyes flashed and his jaw hardened. He dipped his chin once as if to acknowledge Talon’s contribution and began to pace. “So, despite the oaths you took, you decided to compromise this team by talking to an outsider?” “Yes.” “And what else does he know?” Grady hated being talked around. “Not nearly enough,” he stated bluntly, not caring that Sandra now gripped his arm as if to warn him to back off. Grady had this guy’s number. He was completely lethal, no doubt, but he also seemed to be levelheaded and fair. Time to test that theory. “For example, why do you all act like Sandra’s a ghost? Why would a confessed sniper be insinuating herself into my company as an Operations Manager? Why was a gunman shooting at us earlier? Why did Calvin and Hobbes here”—he pointed to Talon and Romeo—“decide it’s better to break in than knock on the door?”


P.A. DePaul is a multi-genre romance author including paranormal fantasy and romantic suspense. She originally hails from Carroll County and Baltimore County, Maryland, but also lived in Macon and Warner Robins, Georgia. She currently resides in a beautiful community just outside Philadelphia. Exchange of Fire is the first novel in the SBG series with the second novel, Shadow of Doubt, releasing April 2015.




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Thursday, February 26, 2015

New Release; Frozen Dreams by Cori Williams

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My life was perfect. I had everything I wanted, including the love of a man that intended to make all of my dreams come true. Until… “…the night my life as I knew it ended.”

In the blink of an eye, all I'd once known was ripped away. Suffering in limbo, full of fear and regret, I had only memories and dreams to comfort me, urging me to fight.

"...marriage is honourable in all, and the bed undefiled..."

But they stole it all.

Awakened to betrayal and pain, I struggle to find a new beginning. Yet the past seeps in, pulling me under. No matter how hard I try to keep my head above water, it threatens to ruin me.

How can I really live with my hopes for the future still frozen? And if the ice thaws, will I have the courage to build new dreams?


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I'm a stay at home mom to three crazy kiddos all under the age of five. I'm married to my high school sweetheart and I like to think we're living our own happily ever after. My contemporary romance's are all about the happy endings but of course there's lots of twists, turns, and a whole lot of drama added in. That's the fun part, right?

**Warning**These are NOT your mama's romance novels.




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Saturday, February 7, 2015

New Release: The Ex File by Alexis D. Craig

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Second Chances Can Be Lethal

Narcotics Officer, Sean O’Leary is bitter after a messy divorce that has reinforced his solitary nature, leaving him only with his dog and a sword collection. He could never imagine that  his former best friend may be the only woman to bring happiness into his lonely life.

Ellie Gardner knows loss; especially after she was banished from her best friend/crush's life by his jealous wife. Although the regret of walking away from the love of her life still stung, a chance encounter with Sean may change everything.

When Ellie and Sean reconnect, they could never expect it'd be in such an explosive way, leaving them both to gain the fulfillment of their 'what if's.

Finding love is hard enough without the past breathing down their necks, especially when said past has no intention of letting go. When Sean's ex, Pia Mastriani returns, Ellie must face her nemesis' relentless tactics to get Sean back, including eliminating Ellie if necessary.

Sean and Ellie’s relationship is put to the test but will they fare well while they go rummaging through The Ex File?
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Retirement parties and funerals have several things in common, the largest of which is they both resemble family reunions, only with infinitely more baggage. Ellie Gardner didn’t particularly enjoy heading to either, but did so out of duty and respect. It was the least she could do.

The party at the police union hall was in full swing by the time she snuck in the back door. Her plan was simple, drop her gift, hug her friends, pay her respects, and bolt. Thirty minutes, tops, at least in her mind. These kinds of things depressed her, even with the cash bar she was leaning against currently.

She’d changed out of her front desk aide clothes as soon as her shift had ended and was now comfortably ensconced in her ‘off-duty’ attire of a Clash t-shirt and jeans, both holdovers from her college days, and a new pair of black Chuck Taylors. If she was going to be emotionally uncomfortable, at least she didn’t have to worry about her appearance.

“Sweet tea vodka, two shots.” She smiled at the bartender and pushed a ten across the counter. She figured fortification was going to get her through the night, though not too much lest the pendulum swing wildly in the opposite direction. It wasn’t often that one of her former lovers was retiring, and was there with his new wife. Though they’d remained friends, the level of impending awkward had surpassed ‘thermonuclear’ the moment she’d opened the car door.

“Make that four,” a gruff and familiar voice behind her told the bartender as he laid a hand on her shoulder. “Hey stranger.”

Fuck. Make that one ex-lover and one unrequited crush. “Hey, Sean.” She smiled over her shoulder and found herself immediately ensnared in the topaz blue eyes that still showed up in her dreams occasionally. Sean O’Leary was six feet, one inch of Irish devilry, in addition to the badge and gun. Black hair that he’d let grow down to his broad shoulders and a smile that inspired in her a desire to fling her panties at him. The old Jack Daniel’s t-shirt and the well-worn jeans were doing nothing to disabuse her of that notion, either. His hand trailed fire from her shoulder and down her arm before he sidled up to the bar on the stool next to her. Being his friend was hard, and being his best friend, for the short while she had been, had been damn near impossible.

He lightly tangled his fingers in her raven curls, sending an involuntary shiver down her spine. Anyone else would have gotten cut for that level of familiarity. “I almost didn’t recognize you with your hair long.”

‘Long’ was a relative term. She’d let her hair grow a couple inches beyond her normal pixie cut for the hell of it, and was still getting reacquainted with the ringlets. “Just trying something different.” Though the last time he’d seen it, she’d been damn near a dead ringer for Halle Berry. This time he just touched one curl, rubbing it between his fingers. “Well I like it, it suits you.”

Ellie was grateful for the darkness of the bar as she felt her cheeks heat in pleasure at the compliment. God, she was pathetic… and damn, how long did it take to fill a shot glass? “Thanks. I’m liking the longer look on you, too.”

His laugh couldn’t be heard over the music as he ran his fingers through his hair. “Yeah, it’s been for work, and I just haven’t felt like getting it cut.” He surveyed the room, filled with uniforms and casual clothes pretty evenly, before turning back to her with a curious look. “I don’t know why it didn’t occur to me, but I didn’t expect to see you here tonight.” It had only been three years since she and Sean had last spoken; since he’d been married and his wife was… not fond of Ellie was the politest way to say it. He slid twenty to the bartender and handed her back her ten.

Ellie gave her ten back to the bartender, “A donation,” she said with a small grin. She then took both her shots in quick succession before turning to face Sean fully. “Of course I’m here. Sarge is one of my favorite people on the planet, and besides,” she patted the expertly wrapped gift on the stool next to her, “his wife commissioned a piece from me.”

In her spare time, Ellie sometimes made shadow boxes for people, because she believed in keeping memories special, even if she wasn’t particularly prepared to revisit them herself. Sean toasted her before tossing back his first shot, “And I’m sure it’s beautiful.”

She blushed again and nodded her thanks as another friend came over. Sean met her eyes with his in silent goodbye before pushing off the bar to evaporate into the crowd. Not that she followed his perfectly jeans-clad ass as he departed or anything.

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