Tunnel Vision

In Gary Braver's Tunnel Vision, he asked the age old question about life and death, and if there was an afterlife. In the first part, it dealt with Zack Kashian's bicycle accident. For months, he was in a coma and then woke up to speak in Aramaic. People believed he was a miracle and to heal like Jesus. In the second part, we were introduced to some religious-crazed heinous people who experiment on near-death experiences. But there was a hit man out there on a religious bent. Although there were some religious overtones over here, it asked about the boundaries of religion and science, no matter what your religion was. When Zack's suspension grew deeper and darker, it freaked him out. With Sarah as his close ally, it made him wonder and to step away. And when truth became reality before it settled in, it made him want to dig deep the truth to a shocking ending, where all roads lead to a divine intervention and a satisfying conclusion. A nice crossover with science fiction/religion inserted into this pulse-racing medical thriller.

This thriler enthralled me with religious and scientific elements. From the start, I cared about Zack, since he had a bicycle accident and went into the coma. I didn't care for much who preyed on his vulnerability with that secret medical society. I loved the connection between Sarah and Zack.  They had great chemistry together. I also cared for Zack, when he went to search for his long-lost father, until he died. That was moving and touching as I cried tears. This explored the phenomenon of miracles of a religious nature.

Ready to talk to God? Give this one a go today!

Dead Scared

If you love dark thrillers, you'll enjoy this one from SJ Bolton.  Dead Scared is the second book in the Lacey Flint series. When DC Lacey Flint went undercover in Cambridge University from her SO, she learned about the darkness and the rash happenings of student suicides. Or was it? Lacey posed as Laura Farrow and witnessed a brutal treatment. We followed Lacey's undercover investigation in the college, while Dr. Evi Oliver helped her out with her own findings. Someone played a dark game of bringing out the fears from them and used it to their advantage. The closer they came to the truth, the more they found out who messed with their minds and how they did it by picking out their victims. Through their eyes, they uncovered the hidden patterns and the dark history behind it.  It was pretty dark, shocking, and a lightning fast thrill ride on one cold winter in Cambridge, England.

I loved how we learn about Lacey's and Evi's background and their secrets fears. I became concerned and scared myself for Evi, when she suffered from PTSD as someone close to them preyed on their emotions. The gripping hook in the beginning and the intense conclusion in the end makes you want to hold onto your hates like a plunging roller coaster ride. The backdrop of the English countryside made for picturesque scenery. I hated the college students and the evil people they hooked up in their own secret society on torturing young and vulnerable people. This would give you goosebumps and accelerate your heart rate, when we experienced what Lacey and Evi did in this dark thriller that would leave you with chills and breathless in Dead Scared. 


 Check out this British thriller and leave the lights on today!

Bungalow 2

If you love timeless and beautiful romances, this one is one for you from Danielle Steel. In Bungalow 2, we're introduced to Tanya Harris and her family in Marin, California. When she received an offer from her agent to write a script, it was an once-and-a-lifetime deal for her. For the first part of the story, we witnessed her first shot in making it in Hollywood, while it caused friction with her family and a strain in her marriage. Behind the scenes, she learned the hidden truth, while she was hard at work. Halfway through making the movie, she discovered deceit and heartache from her husband and best friend. When she was hooked on Hollywood, she feared she might've outgrown her former lifestyle. But we watched the only thing she latched onto was her children and her dreams. The second half was focused on life after divorce, when she championed for her dreams to come true and the men she met to give her a new profound layer of happiness. This pulled the heart strings, when I read Tanya's story, and cried along with her. She later learned, she would have to kiss a lot of ugly frogs and toads to find her new Prince Charming, and some small sacrifices to make it work. A beautiful romance of life, love and making dreams come true.

The Cat, the Wife and the Weapon

If you love a cat-friendly cozy, this new cozy series from Leann Sweeney is a real treat.  In The Cat, the Wife and the Weapon, the 4th book in the Cats in Trouble series, Jillian Hart was a widow who created quilts for cats and lived with three of her own. But when she was tangled up into another murder mystery, it was messy like a runaway ball of knotted yarn. It all started with a car crash, when her boyfriend Tom ended up injured and his stepson from his previous marriage had gotten concussed from the same crash. Out of the woodwork, Tom's half-brother was lurking around and other surprises were in store for them, like his estranged ex-wife and secrets about her first marriage. Jillian and her cats were stuck in the middle, when they needed to separate the lies from the truth and fact from fiction. Before she knew it, they were trapped until the real motive comes out in the end. This is an enjoyable read.

I always enjoyed a cozy featuring cats and other family-friendly pets. Cats are amazing creatures of habit and loving family members. I became intrigued with Jillian's quilting and became fascinated with her caring nature to Tom's step-son. I think I see a relationship  blooming in the future between the two of them. I didn't like his half-brother or ex-wife either. They rubbed me the wrong way and left me feeling cold and empty. But you did feel genuinely real, when you were gripped from the first page to the shocking ending.

If you love cats, you'll love this purr-fect cozy! Check it out today!

Forbidden Magic

Cheyenne McCray took us to a whole new world in her paranormal romance series. Forbidden Magic is the first book in the Magic series. Take urban fantasy and mesh it up with paranormal romance and a hint of eroticism and romanticism. Silver Ashcroft was a good witch who abided by the Wiccan ways. She'd been the chosen one to lead the fight against evil. Estranged from her father and her sister  who had gone missing, she had been taught not to use grey or black magic. But this was a force to be reckoned with. There was an eclectic ray of fantasy creatures here of good and bad. Besides her witch clan in San Francisco, she fell for Hawk of the D'Danannan warriors from the Otherworld, which is reminiscent of angels from Heaven. There was the Demons from the Underworld, which were the devils from Hell. Both worlds clashed in this battle royale. She fought the pull of Darkwolf's lure to join the dark side and never experienced love and pleasure from Hawk to take it a whole new level. Lots of suspense, drama, romance, and experience, when we go above and beyond and back to Earth in this magical and delightful series.

I really enjoyed the book and the descriptive settings of both heaven and hell. The Wiccan magic gave this novel a fantastic twist. We learned a lot about Silver's backstory and how close she was to her family. I loved the transformations of Hawk and his fellow friends when they flew in the sky. I most certainly laughed and cried at every page turn. You'll be hooked and gripped in the beginning to be taken on a wonderful reader's journey. I didn't like Darkwolf and his fellow minions. They gave me creepy chills and a bad state of my mouth.

Ready to explore new magic territories? Check out this book today!

Kidnap & Ransom

Michelle Gagnon brings up a shocking conclusion to the Kelly Jones thriller series in Kidnap & Ransom. It continues where it left off in the Gatekeeper. More drama and tension were in the air as Kelly dealt with the loss of her leg and wearing a prosthetic ankle, while she was on leave. There was friction with her relationship with Jake, while it took a backseat for the while. When his brother Mark was missing in action in Mexico, he brought his K&R team along to help rescue Cesar Calderon and his brother. We saw how Kelly felt about the situation, when she felt useless and unwanted, and considered a hindrance. She set off on her own mission with her former FBI partner, Danny Rodriguez, to find Stefan Gunderson from the Tunnels. There was plenty drama and shocking twists and turns over here and a surprise ending I won't give away. From California to Mexico, we could really feel for Kelly and Jake and despise Syd Clement and the bad guys in this explosive finale.

This was a bittersweet end to the thriller series. I really felt bad for Kelly, who had to endure a loss of her leg from the explosion, and worked her way with a prosthetic leg. I didn't like Syd Clement, Jake's partner, who was nothing but rotten and jealous of Kelly. I did feel bad for Jake, when he wanted to go save his brother's life. This was intense and deep as it gets. In the end, I cried. What a way to end the series.

Ready to head down south? Get ready to go deep undercover right now!

The Long Quiche Goodbye

If you're a big fan of cheese and wine pairings, you're in for a treat in this new cozy series. This new cozy had everything you want and more. The Long Quiche Goodbye is the first book in the Cheese Shop Mystery series. Charlotte Bessette had a lot going on with her grandmother's re-election campaign for mayor, and someone buying the building her cheese shop was  located in Providence, Ohio--a small town near the Amish community. When her grandmother was accused of murder, things took a quick turn for the worse. It was now up to Charlotte to find out who was behind it--and she wouldn't stop for nothing. With her grandmother's rival up to no good and stirred up trouble, and troubles with her cousin's twins, she had a full plate on her hands and a business to run. There's something for everybody in this series--romance, drama, and plenty of intrigue. There's an interesting love triangle between Charlotte, Chief Umberto Urso, and Jordan Pace, a farmer with a past.

I love culinary cozies because they have delicious recipes to try at home that were featured in the series, whether in the middle or at the end of the book. I loved how Charlotte's family came together as a community to help bail her grandmother out and outrun the competition in the political nature. I didn't care for much for those who picked on Charlotte and preyed on her vulnerability. I enjoyed a sliver of good-natured backstory on her upbringing.  In this cozy, you'll root for Charlotte and her friends, and learned a lot about wine and cheese pairings and their delectable varieties to try at home in the Long Quiche Goodbye. I'll be reading more in the future.

If you're hungry for new culinary cozies to try, give this book a try today!