The Jewel of St. Petersburg

If you love beautiful historical romances, you'll love this one set in Russia in 1911. This is the time the Russian revolution strikes the country, when the poor strike again the rich. Valentina Ivanov is the finance minister's eldest daughter. When her younger sister Katya is crippled in a horse accident, she wants to be a nurse, while taking care of her. Nonetheless, she plays the piano well and falls in love with Jens Friis, a Danish printer, who bewitches her. When she's set up in an arranged marriage, she doesn't like it one bit, when jealous strikes the couple, and a spy plots against the family. Not only that, there's cholera in the air. When Valentina gets married to Jens, he gives her father something he needs to make it work. Years past, it's World War One, when the Friis family is on the run from a new rule to China. But it's not easy, when a rival reveals himself and makes an even plot against them. What a delightful story, which continues with the Russian Concubine.

Dirt

If you love a great thriller, you'll love the Stone Barrington series. In the second installment, Stone Barrington is assigned the case for Amanda Dart. Someone's been spying on them and spreading rumors by fax. It's up to Stone to find out who, while wining and dining some interesting women along the way. When it gets too close to comfort, a cop's get killed, Stone gets injured twice, and they're on the run. When Amanda finds out the source of the rumor, it's up to her to squash it, while someone's after her for good. Keep your  friends close and your friends closer, and be careful on who you trust in this novel. Lots of twists and turns in this one.

A Trace of Smoke

If you love historical fiction and mysteries, you'll love the Hannah Vogel series by Rebecca Cantrell. In a Trace of Smoke, it's the 1930s in Germany. Hannah Vogel is a crime reporter under the guide of Peter Weill. Her brother Ernst is missing. She's looking for clues to finding him. Everywhere she looks, there's danger. There's people after him. She also falls in love with Boris Kreuse and comes across surprises that her brother left behind, while her friend Sarah borrows her passport to get to America. Without giving it away, she comes across Anton, a small boy who claims Hannah's his mother and her brother her father, according to the birth certificate. While protecting him and finding out her brother's dead, dangers closes in on her, when the Nazis after her and the truth from Ernst Rohm's secret identity. What an adrenalin rush, as Hannah plans to escape everyone behind in Germany and freedom to the UK.

NightKeepers

If you love great paranormal romances, you'll love the Keeper series by Jessica Andersen. Leah Daniels is a Miami cop, who's after a cult who've killed her brother. Striking-Jaguar (Strike) is one of the last of his kind, a Mayan god and NightKeeper, who have magical powers of their own to fight evil. Since the moment they met, it's tense between Strike and  Leah, when he saved her from Zipacna's clutches, when she did the job. Since that moment on, when the worlds of New Mexico and Florida collide, Leah's stuck in the middle of this war and joined forces with Strike's Night Keepers, if they like it or not. Clearly, Leah and Strike are meant for each other, whether it's from dreams or from the gods themselves, since they have great sexual chemistry. In the end, they fight the odds to be together and to become as one. Lots of drama and adventure with hints of romance.

Murder with Puffins

If you love great mysteries with a side of humor, you'll enjoy the Meg Langslow series. Last year I've read #1 and #3. Now I'm going to the second one of the series. When Meg and her boyfriend head to the Monhegan Island for a romantic getaway, it was anything but romantic. First, there's the hurricane, second her family showed up. Not only that, there's the birders who's scouting for puffins and an angry artist named Victor Resnick, who didn't like trespassers. When they've reported his shooting to Jeb Barnes, they have to report to the police. Later on, they witness an argument between Resnick and someone else. During the storm, Resnick ended up dead. It's up to find out who, when there's an island of people who hate his guts, including Rhapsody, a children's book writer on puffins, while they discover some family secrets in Meg's family closet. When they've got it all figured out, they're trapped by the murder, who tried to burn them in flames. What a great humorous mystery.

Justice

If you love great mysteries, you'll enjoy Justice, another great book in the Lazarus/Decker series. Peter Decker is worried on his eldest daughter Cindy, who's at college, when a rapist hits their campus. While he's investigating the case, you'll get to see the story between Terry, a nerdish tutor to Chris Whitman, the nephew of a mob boss, and their obsessive love affair, when a murder happens on Prom Night, and this couple is torn apart. It's up to Decker to nail the killer and put away the bad guy. But due to Whitman's good eye and story, he does get locked up for a crime he doesn't commit, and he tries to tie up loose ends, which puts a strain to his career. In the end, things took a wicked turn for Terry and for Decker. A great compelling read.

Kill Zone

If you love great romantic suspense, you'll love Kill Zone by Vicki Hinze. Dr. Morgan Cabot is one of the members of the S.A.S.S. team, a trio of women with special abilities, when she's on a mission to take down Thomas Kunz and his G.R.I.D. team. When she tranquilized Captain Jackson Stern, things heat up between them, when he discovers that his brother's arrested for his sister-in-law's murder. it's up to Stern and Cabot to find out how and why, when there's a mutual attraction between them, that heats things up. When things get complicated, as Kunz's GRID are after them, as they discover the connection between Kunz and her murder, until it gets too close for comfort, as he got away. Lots of military drama in this one. You'll love it.

Animal Appetite

If you love great mysteries, you'll love the next installment in the Holly Winter Dog Lovers series. In this one, Holly's researching Hannah Duston, a 40-year-woman who have been an Indian captive and scalped 10 Indian children. She learned about her family history and her captivity, while she's on a cold case of Jack Andrews, who have been murdered 18 years ago, and his dog, Chip. From there, she learned about his family and the people who associated it, even with the murder of Shaun McGrath. Pretty soon, Holly learns a parallel between Hannah and Jack, when there's a connection between them, that someone wanted to kill them for it, and even for Holly herself.  But can Holly find out who done it, when before she's nex t in line? A great quick read.

Final Approach

If you love good mysteries, you'll love the Emily Locke series. Emily Locke is a widow who've lost her husband and her baby daughter, a few years ago, from a boating accident. When Richard Cole comes to see her in Cleveland, he told her about a missing  child case and a skydiving ticket. Since Emily used to skydive, she took an unplanned leave from work and hits Houston to find Casey Lyons. This case is similar to another one, which had changed her life, and are parallel. As she investigates this, she meets an eclectic array  of characters, including Vince Townsend. As she gets closer to the truth, she's in danger, when she realizes the truth that her daughter was alive and possibly adopted by another family. On a plane, she risks life and limb, including helping the FBI in the process, when her life's on the life, and she's reunited with her daughter after all. A great mystery!

The Devil Who Tamed Her

Ophelia Reid has been known as the "ice queen", who has no friends, and has a bad relationship with her father. She doesn't know why people pretend to be nice to her, even after she broke up her engagement with Duncan MacTavish. When she meets Raphael Locke, he's the one who has to set her on her ways, tames her wild side, and made a bet. Things gets heated up between Ophelia and Rafe, even after they kiss, when they realize what's going on between them. Even after she changed her ways, he beds her, and slowly falls in love with her, defying the odds. He understands her better. When Ophelia finds out about the bet, she's angry at him and puts a gap between them, when she's fallen for him. When everyone realizes the "new" Ophelia, they're shocked at her turnabout, even when she finds out she's pregnant and gets hit by a carriage. Things change, when they confess from their heart, they're meant to be with each other. What a beautiful story.