Yak by Lois Cloarec Hart

A Novella

When you live in a small town and you are a lesbian, true love is hard to find. Leni, a blue collar lesbian, is in despair. Even a date appears to be too much to ask for. Love interests or lack of them aside, Leni likes living in the town she was born in and being with her family.

Leni’s life is about to change when she gets a new job as a nightshift chef at the Jester’s Court, a busy roadside truck stop. Leni meets a reclusive woman nicknamed Yak. Leni is in awe of Yak. But despite her best efforts, she can’t find out why Yak is a loner and why everyone is avoiding her like she has the plague. When events take a turn for the worse and Leni learns the truth about Yak, she has to decide whether falling even more in love with Yak will be worth paying the price.

A wonderfully well written story that left me wanting more. I loved the characters of Leni and Yak. They are so vastly different from each other and not only from the class divide aspect, Leni is outgoing, Yak is a loner and has an air of mystery surrounding her. I loved the interaction between the two of them.

For a short book, there is a lot crammed into it. The touch of mystery and suspense throughout kept me turning the pages until all too soon I’d reached the end.

I’ll be watching out for more from Lois Cloarec Hart in the future.

 

Paradox Of Love by JM Dragon and Erin O'Reilly

When Hell Meets Heaven Book 4

Parker Davis’s car gave out just as she arrived in Portsmouth. Parker had been traveling around for a while, but never seemed to settle anywhere. She has no choice now. Her car needs major repairs, so she has to try and get a job with the local police department to pay for it.

Police Officer, Olivia Santos, lives and breathes her job, she’s proudly following in her families footsteps. Only one thing comes before her job, her love for her undercover cop brother.

When Parker and Olivia meet, they are both smitten. The love bug has struck. So begins a hard, fast and passionate love affair. Soon they are inseparable. Partners at work and in love. Then a terrible tragedy occurs which threatens their love and life together. Will their love be strong enough to overcome it? What will happen to them both?

Anyone who has been following this excellent series and read the previous book, will already know the answer to this. Although this is my second time round of reading this series, I can’t see why suddenly the series went back in time at this particular point.

However, this book has cleared up a lot of loose ends about the lives of Parker and Olivia prior to their last meeting. So, maybe I’ve answered my own question.

As always with the previous three books, this has been a well written page turner from the very outset. I loved Olivia in the previous books, it was good to find out what and who has made her the person she is today. It was also good to get to know more about Parker and her previous life before she came back into Olivia’s life again in Echoes of the Past.

The actual story takes the reader on a journey that is full of excitement and surprises throughout. An added bonus is, it’s hot in parts. Red hot and sizzling.

JM Dragon and Erin O’Reilly have written another winner between them. The books in this series are so cheap that it would be a crime not to give them a try.

 

 

 

The Horde by Linda Kay Silva

Second in a series

Dallas and Roper are fighting an endless battle against the man eaters. For every one they annihilate, a dozen or more are created. They come in hordes, dragging their lifeless forms and squelching their way forwards in their quest for fresh human flesh. Dallas, Roper and their small band of survivors have spent a year cooped up in the Bayou. The alligators are their allies and clean up team. But now it’s time to move on. They need to do more than survive, they have to move forward, live their lives and fight back. Fight the hordes, fight the government attacks and protect the new home they’ve found, an ex prison.

Dallas and Roper collect survivors along the way. They eventually begin to build a new life, they survive the military attacks, survive the hordes and survive the barbaric atrocities caused by their fellow mankind.

Will Dallas and Roper win their fight? Can they defeat so many things all at once? Are their efforts too little too late?

This second book in the series follows on from Man Eaters as a standalone book. There is more than enough background without reading Man Eaters. But why miss out on another excellent book? I strongly recommend reading Man Eaters first.

This is a well written, edge of the seat page turner that had me hooked right from the very first page in true Linda Kay Silva fashion.

The characters from Man Eaters are all here as well as new ones added in along the way. All fully developed and well formed, they are seamlessly integrated into the story.

The scenic descriptions are absolutely terrific. I immersed myself fully into the story and didn’t emerge until I’d turned the last page. The book did conclude, but the opening is there for the third in the series, which can’t be published soon enough.

A New Leash On Life by Suzie Carr

Veterinarian, Olivia Clark, owns and runs a no kill animal shelter. After a hurricane causes substantial damage, Olivia is at a loss to know how to fund the repairs. Although she does everything in her power, including public appeals, the whole town is hurting from the devastation the hurricane brought and no one has much to spare.

At last there is hope. Chloe Homestead is Olivia’s ex girlfriend from thirteen years previously. Chloe is now a millionaire. She’s also the only girl Olivia has ever loved. When Chloe offers to help financially, Olivia at first balks at the idea. But she’s in no position to refuse. The animals have to come first.

As Olivia and Chloe begin to work together to re-build the shelter, Olivia finds herself once again under Chloe’s spell. Unfortunately, Chloe is hiding a deep dark secret. A secret she has hidden for thirteen years. If the secret comes out, it could threaten the existence of the shelter and put paid to any chances of any future relationship Olivia and Chloe may have.

I’ve often looked at Suzie Carr’s books and never bought them before. My reason being the DRM on them. I’m pleased to say that Suzie is now offering some of her books DRM free. I’ve sorely been missing out on good books if this book is anything to go by. I loved it. I may be a little biased as I love animals and they play a huge part in this story. But putting the animals aside, I totally enjoyed the whole book.

Both Olivia and Chloe are so different. Well formed and multi-faceted characters, they dance around one another throughout the book. The book goes between the past and the present so that the reader gets to know how their lives previously shaped them into the people they became. The secondary characters are equally as well written and I include the animals in with them as well, as they are essential to the progression of the story.

There is a lot crammed into this book. It is not a simple romance with animals. The story starts out on a slow and meandering path and gradually builds up in it’s intensity. It certainly evoked many emotions in me. Mainly due to Chloe. I have to say, I wasn’t endeared to her at all for most of the book. Although she isn’t my favorite character, I did warm to her in the end.

The story is told throughout in the first person. Suzie Carr has done this very well.

Although this is the first book I’ve read of Suzie’s, it won’t be my last. I hope to read them all if they become available DRM free.

 

Backcountry by Trin Denise

A Novella

Single, stressed and a workaholic, highflying defence attorney, Lyndsey Carlisle is fast burning out. Over the years she’s defended some of the most undesirable, prolific offenders known to mankind and her last case is the straw that broke the camels back. Lyndsey has had enough and is taking time off to go back packing with her faithful dog, Sadie. She intends to re-evaluate her life. Lyndsey and Sadie head off to Natural Bridge, Kentucky.

Brae Colson is a native of Natural Bridge. After her lover of five years, leaves her a Dear Jane letter, Brae goes off for some hiking and rest and relaxation.

After less than one day hiking the trails, Lyndsey makes a terrible mistake and ends up falling twenty feet to the bottom of a cliff. She’s badly sprained her ankle and can’t call for help.

When Brae sees Lyndsey at the bottom of the cliff, she curses her bad luck. The last thing she needs is to get involved with a woman right now. But she can’t leave her stranded.

There is immediate animosity between the two women. Sadie is the peacemaker and gradually that changes. Although there is now an attraction between Lyndsey and Brae, will they allow the flames of love to spark? Neither woman believes in a happy ever after.

Another well written page turner from Trin Denise. I love the characters. There are three main characters, Lyndsey, Brae and Sadie. All are essential to the story and interact well together. The usual Trin Denise touch of humor I’ve come to love and expect is present throughout.

This is the beginning of a new series of novellas and it’s off to a very promising start. We are introduced to the characters and have been told a bit about their backgrounds. The scene is set for the next in the series. The ending has left me wanting the next book sooner, rather than later.

 

Bleeding Hearts by Lindy Cameron

Book two in the Kit O’Malley series

Private Investigator, Kit O’Malley, finds herself once again up to her eyeballs in what appears to be a straight forward investigation. In the beginning, television presenter, Rebecca Jones, hires Kit to investigate who is sending her a spate of threatening poison pen letters. But as Kit’s investigation gets underway, she finds that there are other factors worming their way into her investigation. Looking out for Rebecca and keeping her safe and able to go on air simply isn’t enough. Kit is besieged by one person after another requiring her services. Soon Kit is knee deep in cases, including those thrown up by the vilest criminals she’s ever had the misfortune to meet. Murder, sexual misdeeds, kidnapping. money laundering, political misdemeanours are just some of the things Kit encounters.

Will Kit be able to sort out each case or will it all be too much?

Amongst all the confusion, Alex Cazenove, Kit’s love interest, breezes back into Kit’s life. How can Kit possibly think of love amidst all the murder and mayhem?

Another well written and exciting book that follows directly on from Blood Guilt. Both books are standalones and can be read entirely separately. The one thing I especially liked about this book is that I didn’t have endless pages of repeated ‘catch up’ dialogue from the first book. It wasn’t needed. Personally, I would recommend you read Blood Guilt for the excellent story it is. No point in missing out.

This second book was even more exciting than the first. The many twists, turns, ups and downs kept me feverishly turning the pages until the end. It’s quite a long action packed book and I had a job to put it down.

There is one mystery after another and I was kept guessing at the ending. I never did figure it out. I liked the light heartedness and the humor in the book too between the characters. They interact so well together.

If you are looking for a good intriguing, gruesome, mystery murder, with a nice romance entwined that doesn’t over power the story, with believable characters, in my opinion, you’ll enjoy this book.

 

A Walk Into Darkness by Jade Winters

Detective Sergeant Ashley McCoy’s latest case isn’t going to be easy to solve. Twenty five years previously a young girl went missing in South East England. Almost everyone had given up any hope of solving the mystery of her sudden disappearance. Her family had never given up wanting the closure they were so desperate for though.

When psychic Aaron Davies has a vivid vision of a murder, the cold case of the ‘woodlands killer’ is re-opened and given to Ashley and her team to delve in to.

As Ashley and her work partner Dale begin their investigation, more questions than answers are thrown up.

During the investigation, Ashley meets Tasha through the dog walking agency she contacts to walk her dog, Muffin. Both women are attracted to one another, but struggle against their feelings. Tasha has family commitments that she feels obligated to fulfil. She can’t set herself or Olivia up for the heartbreak of leaving Ashley in the near future. Both women feel that their love could be the real deal. Is there any way for Tasha to stay in England? What will they both decide? The decision may well be taken out of their hands entirely by circumstances beyond their control.

This well written mystery, murder, intrigue, romance had me totally hooked from the very first page through to the last page. To say it is a page turner is an understatement. I couldn’t get through the book fast enough to find out how it ended.

I knew Jade Winters was a talented writer from reading some of her short stories. But, she has really excelled herself in penning this full length book that kept me on the edge of my seat throughout.

This is the first in a series with Ashley McCoy and it’s off to a flying start. The next book can’t be published soon enough.

Ashley McCoy is a well formed and rounded character. She has her faults like anyone else. When she meets Tasha, it is very apparent they are made for one another. But nothing in life and love is simple. Whether they get together or whether they don’t is secondary to the murder mystery. The romance is gently interwoven between the on-going investigation. The balance between both is perfect.

I liked the minor characters too. Dale, Ashley’s work partner and Ashley’s family all integrate into the story enabling it to trickle along in between the gruesome findings.

There is plenty of intrigue and romance to satisfy both mystery and romance lovers.

I’ll be looking out for more from Jade Winters, hopefully very soon.