Lisa Henson

I’ll preface my review by saying I’m not a devoted student of history. That’s my husband’s area of interest and expertise. But I know Preston Lewis to be an excellent writer, I enjoy good historical fiction, and I always like the opportunity to learn about things I’m unfamiliar with. So I gladly picked up his latest book.

Too Much the Lion tells the story of the five days leading up to the Battle of Franklin, fought on November 30, 1864. The battle itself was brutal, bloody, and a devastating blow to the Confederacy. The period shortly before it wasn’t much better, at least not for the Southern forces.

John Bell Hood, the recently appointed commander of the Army of Tennessee, was convinced that only his brilliant tactical maneuvering would drive the Yankees out of Tennessee and turn the tide of war for the Confederacy. But he was pretty much universally disliked by the forces of which he was given command, and so full of himself it’s a wonder he could fit his head inside a doorway.

And bless his heart, he was a legend only in his own mind. He may have had courage (as attested to by the injuries he suffered and his continuing to serve even though those injuries could have easily given him reason to sit on the sidelines), but it was courage at moving his forces on the board of war. He never put himself in harm’s way, but he led from the back. Waaaaaaay back. As the Battle of Franklin raged and the men for whom he was responsible slogged it out in the equivalent of hell on earth, General Hood watched from a mile and a half away, and “consumed two cigars before the dropping temperatures forced him inside to the warmth of the widow’s home and another featherbed for the night.” He slept in comfort and ate at table, taking food from the mouths of women and children, while his soldiers slogged through muck and mud, with inadequate shoes and clothing for the cold weather and almost no provisions, doing their best to win a fight against a better supplied force based on the ever-changing whims of their commander. I wanted to reach inside the story and whap John Bell Hood upside the head. If he made his men as angry as he made me, I’m not sure how no one assassinated him before the battle ever took place.

The impact of Hood’s strategic decisions brought harm to almost everyone but himself, and Lewis gives us an unflinching look at Hood’s hubris and its effect on those in his sphere of influence. I don’t know if these are direct quotes from historical sources or authorial creations, but they clearly reflect the ever-lower opinion people held of Hood:

“I’m not talking about his physical injuries. General Hood’s a mental cripple, stunted by his own pride. ‘When pride cometh, then cometh shame; but with the lowly is wisdom,’ so says Proverbs eleven-two. The lowliest soldier in my brigade marching to do Hood’s bidding possesses more wisdom than our leader.”

“I heard one Georgian describe General Hood as a man with the heart of a lion and the head of a cigar store Indian.”

And my favorite:

“General Hood thinks he’s smarter than a tree full of owls, but we all know he’s dumber than a barn full of jackasses.”

In addition to soldiers of both high and low rank, Preston Lewis draws from varied sources to give us viewpoints of Southern homeowners like Fount Carter and his daughter Mary Alice Carter McPhail, trying to keep some semblance of normality in their lives and sheltering in their home as the battle raged around them; Reverend Charles Quintard, a chaplain with the Confederate forces; and even a teenager like Hardin Fuguers. These different perspectives make it clear that the war was a hardship on everyone in the South, not just the fighting men. General Hood took advantage of both to his benefit.

I’ve seen some reviews commenting about the antebellum speech patterns of Black characters in particular. Is it painful to read from a modern perspective? Absolutely. Henry B. Free, manservant to Reverend Quintard, was clearly intelligent, and his dialect, written out, hurt my heart. He was a character who was so much more than the circumstances into which he was born and in which he remained with no say in the matter. Is it historically accurate? Yes, at least as far as we can know without being there. And Henry had some of the best, most thought-provoking lines in the story. His questions often drove Quintard to contemplate whether the version of Christianity he served was the one Christ intended. When Henry asks Quintard what the Bible says about slaves, he quotes 1 Timothy 6:1: “Let as many servants as are under the yoke count their own masters worthy of all honor, that the name of God and his doctrine be not blasphemed.” Later, when Henry tells Quintard that he is the top rail, and Henry is the bottom rail, “de one folks steps on first when dey climb de fence,” Quintard is confounded:

“The passage from First Timothy did not ring as true now as when he had first recited it to Henry. The slave youth had a knack for lancing his conscience. Quintard wondered how an unlearned darkie could stump a lettered man such as himself, but then David had beaten Goliath. The clergyman questioned if God was trying to speak to him . . .”

Lewis also includes notes of what happened to the main characters in the aftermath of the battle and the war. Of Hood, it was said, “Throughout his career and even after his death in his posthumous autobiography, he always found reason to blame others for his shortcomings and failures.” Of Captain Samuel T. Foster, it was said, “when his brigade commander was re-buried the final time in Granbury, Foster chose not to attend the ceremony because he did not care to set foot in a county named for John Bell Hood.” That says a lot about the low esteem in which people held him.

I’ve seen some comparisons of Lewis’s work to Michael Shaara’s Killer Angels, with Lewis often coming up short next to Shaara’s masterwork. Never having read Killer Angels myself, I can’t agree or disagree with those statements. I can say that, to my reading, Too Much the Lion is well-researched and well-written, and offered me insight into a part of the Civil War about which I know virtually nothing. It engaged me, enraged me, brought tears to my eyes, and educated me about a part of our nation’s history.

What would you do if you knew the end of the world was coming, and when? In The Calendar, WM Gunn tackles this classic sci-fi trope. Gunn has been on my list of authors to keep up with since I read The Two Terrors of Tulelake, and I was excited to see how he handled this subject. I was not disappointed!

The book opens with the unsettling discovery that a catastrophically large asteroid is on a collision course with Earth, ETA about nine months out. There’s the best case scenario, the worst case scenario, and the middle ground, and none of them are particularly good, unless the science is wrong and the asteroid misses Earth entirely. But no one believes that will happen (okay, almost no one).

The asteroid’s approach is the overarching story, and beneath it, like beads, Gunn strings together vignettes of the choices people make in the face of impending doom. The powers that be must decide whether to tell the world what they know, and if they do, how and when. And when word gets out (because it does), Gunn tells us the stories of people from all walks of life deciding how they want to spend the time they have left.

Some people think only of themselves. Some think, first and always, of others. Some rage. Some mourn. Some scrabble for safety, or at least the illusion of it. Some throw caution to the wind. Some party like it’s 1999. Some turn to faith, or cling ever more tightly to the faith they already had. From journalists to world leaders, from college students to scientists to everyday people, Gunn examines the thought processes people go through, the actions they take, and it’s a deeply thought-provoking experience to read it.

I had a couple of favorites – Mario the pizza maker, who made pizzas and gave them away as long as he could. The only daughter of the president of the United States, whose life turned out to be as good as it could be, for as long as it could be. The president himself and the first lady. And one that really broke my heart was someone who fled a poor choice only to make a choice he might have regretted even more in the end.

Gunn doesn’t go for cheap grace and spring a surprise ending on us where somehow, through human ingenuity or divine intervention, the planet is spared and the day is saved. No, the calendar does indeed roll down to the last day of the Late Great Planet Earth. But in taking us on this introspective, haunting journey that’s somehow heartbreaking and uplifting at the same time, Gunn gives us something much better. It’s pretty sobering to think about – how WOULD you spend your last days, weeks, months if you knew the unavoidable end was near? Leave a comment and let me know.

WM Gunn is now a must-read author for me. If he writes it, I’m reading it.

Disclaimer: I received an advance copy of the book from Lone Star Literary Life. I was not required to leave a review. All opinions here are mine, and I don’t say nice things about books I don’t actually like.

It took me a minute to sort out the main characters of Shadowless and what roles they played in the story. But once I got into it, it was off to the races!

Rowena Faye has never left her home. She’s grown up hidden from the world for…reasons. In Wyre, the kingdom where she and her father live, everyone has a Shadow, a magical animal they’re bound to. Everyone but Rowena, that is. Her Shadow isn’t an animal at all. It’s a stunted, weird, ghostlike thing that she can’t communicate with as others can their Shadows, and it’s got absolutely no magic. Rowena hasn’t let that stop her from creating, though, from learning as much as she can about the physical and mechanical world and how things work. But as things go, she can’t stay hidden forever, and her existence becomes known. People’s reactions to her and her freakish Shadow vary, with most coming down on the side of shock and horror.

But not Penalynn Graft. She is a Scholastic, a researcher for the Crown. She has magic, but refuses to use it. She is banished to the city where Rowena lives, pretty much the farthest reaches of Wyre. And when Rowena – magicless Rowena, with the barest runt of a Shadow – comes to her attention, Penalynn recruits her as her Scholastic Assistant almost immediately. Many try to advise her against it, but Penalynn has her reasons.

This book, y’all. I was stunned to learn that it’s Robinson’s debut novel. It doesn’t read like a debut novel. It’s a compelling fantasy tale, with characters you quickly come to care about (or not, in some cases). Penalynn seems like the perfect fit for Rowena, offering her the protection of her office and giving her a purpose that doesn’t require magic. Irritatingly for Rowena, though, Penalynn doesn’t feel the need to enlighten her as to what those reasons are, or as to the true nature of her research.

The stakes are high for Rowena – there are those in high places who would see her dead because they’re so frightened of what she could represent. But as it turns out, perhaps her lack of magic isn’t really a bad thing at all. There’s a twist to people’s unfettered use of magic. You know how the stories say magic always has a price? So it does here, but it wasn’t one I expected.

The romantic storyline isn’t the main focus of the story. Rather, it gives Rowena a reason to engage with the outside world, to care about someone other than her father and herself. It’s nice to see clean romance in a fantasy setting, and shows that on-page spice isn’t essential to telling an engrossing story.

And if you don’t like cliffhangers, well, this book ends on a doozy. Waiting on more of the story is going to be positively torturous!

Shadowless gets five stars from me. Highly recommended for anyone who loves a well-written fantasy with an undercurrent of clean romance. It’s one of those books I enjoyed so much, I wish I could go back and read it for the first time again! It’s in the running to be a favorite of 2025, and Alison Robinson is on my list of authors to watch.

Disclaimer: I received a complimentary copy of the book from JustRead Publicity Tours. I was not required to leave a review. All opinions are mine, and I don’t say nice things about books I don’t actually like.

I was a kid growing up in Louisiana when the events at the heart of The Scientist and the Serial Killer took place. Houston was barely a blip on my radar, and I never heard of Dean Corll or all the boys who went missing in that part of the work. This book was, in a word, mind-boggling.

Dean Corll was a familiar figure in parts of Houston. He was the “Candy Man,” the owner of a local candy store. But the Candy Man had a darker side. Boys – teens and young adults – went missing. Reports were made, some sooner, some later. But the police didn’t put much effort into looking for the boys, assuming they’d run away. When one of his teen accomplices murdered Corll, then the killings came to light. By that time, bodies had decomposed, and with the technology of the day, identification simply wasn’t possible. Remains were dug up, boxed up, shelved away, and eventually pretty well forgotten. But forensic anthropologist Sharon Derrick brought them back into the light.

The science in this book is fascinating, and Lise Olsen describes it not only in detail but also in a way that’s accessible to those who might not be forensic scientists themselves. Between the times of the murders and Derrick’s dogged effort to identify Houston’s Lost Boys, forensic technology made tremendous advances. I took a Law and Medicine class in law school, and it included a visit to the Southwest Institute of Forensic Sciences in Dallas. Reading this book had me wishing I’d given more consideration to forensic science as a career. It was amazing how Derrick could take what seemed like a tiny clue and use tools to ferret out details from that little piece of information. And I can only imagine the relief for families to get closure on their loved ones after so many years of not really knowing what happened to them. Sharon Derrick’s tireless work on behalf of Corll’s victims was truly a labor of love and the product of a deep desire to see justice finally served.

Olsen doesn’t just look at the hard science of the investigation, but includes details of Derrick’s conversations with the men who helped Corll commit his crimes. The fact that Corll involved other teens in his murder spree and the offhand way these men seem to discuss their participation in the torture and killing of boys roughly their age (and sometimes boys they knew) brings an undercurrent of horror to the scientific details.

The book includes photos and diagrams that enhance the reading experience. It’s one thing to read words on a page about multiple bodies found buried in one place, sometimes more than one in a single grave, but when you see a diagram of where they were found, that really gives the words a lot more punch. The depth of Olsen’s research is further demonstrated in the included bibliography. If you’d like to know even more about the facts and people involved in these cases, look up some of the sources Olsen consulted.

True crime aficionados and Texas history buffs, this one’s for you. Pick up a copy of The Scientist and the Serial Killer.

This was the first of the Vargas Ranch series that I've read. I was able to read the book as a stand-alone just fine, but I'd like to see how things developed up to this point.

Adan Franco has retired from the bull riding circuit, but the past is reaching out to find him. When a lawyer shows up with 12-year-old Jet Garrison and tells Adan that he and a friend from his rodeo days are the boy's parents, it's quite a surprise to Adan. He made some less than stellar life choices before he became a Christian, but surely he would have remembered fathering a child. Right? He can't fathom such a thing happening with someone he viewed as a good friend, but he won't let Jet down now that his mother is dead. If she said Adan is Jet's father, then a father is what he's going to be.

Solana Vargas is Adan's best friend's cousin. She's secretly loved him for a long time, but she fears the difference in their ages keeps him seeing her as the little cousin, never as the woman she's grown up to be. When Adan and Jet plan to travel to clean out Jet's mother's house, Solana says she'll go along to help them, hoping that time together outside their usual routine will open Adan's eyes to her feelings for him.

This is such a sweet, wonderful book! Adan and Solana are both thoroughly likable characters. I sometimes wanted to shake them just a little because they kept thinking there was something between them, and then one or the other would find a reason to retreat. But they both wanted to do what was best for Jet. Adan could have begged off taking on the role of single dad to a preteen boy who'd just had his entire world yanked out from under him. He didn't, and he was willing to take hits to his own reputation just to protect Jet. He was a good guy trying to do the right thing. Solana connected with Jet even better than Adan did, I think. She could talk to Jet when he was at his lowest, and as Adan started to build a life that included his son, Solana had a hard time not envisioning them together as a family!

Baney gently weaves faith throughout the story. Both Adan and Solana are Christians, as is all of the Vargas clan. I love the Vargas motto, "We do not deviate from the Lord's plan," so much, I'm going to put it on a sticky note by my mirror so I'll see it every day. Their faith isn't preachy and it isn't goody two-shoes. Adan acknowledges he made some poor choices before he followed Christ, and they both wrestle with God's timing and God's plan.

With her lovely Christian romances, Karen Baney is fast becoming one of my must-read authors. Her books are like a hug - warm and comforting when life is hard, something you can sink into and sigh with relief because you know it will make your heart happy. Recommended for anyone who likes friends to more, secret crush, age gap romances that are clean and give you that good happily ever after!

Disclaimer: I received a review copy from JustRead Publicity Tours. All opinions here are mine, and I don't say nice things about books I don't actually like.

When forester Jodee Trevaine travels to El Hueso in hopes of saving an old tree, she doesn’t expect to run into her old flame Blue Sunday. She also didn’t plan on stepping into a mess of trouble, but that’s what happens when she witnesses a young boy’s abduction. After the attack, she finds herself struggling to remember what happened, and she also finds herself struggling to keep Blue at a distance. Meanwhile, Blue has his own agenda, one that he’s trying to keep hidden from Jodee even as he hopes to draw closer to her.

The titular oak is more than just a tree. It carries secrets borne of a brutal act, an act that irrevocably connected the Charidy, DeGroot, and Sunday families. And like the rest of El Hueso, the tree gives up its secrets reluctantly.

Lori Altebaumer gives us an engaging dual timeline mystery, with clues that unfold and intertwine in chapters that alternate between past and present. There were moments that had me holding my breath, and moments that had me wanting to just shake either Jodee or Blue for putting themselves in a really tight spot. I understood why they did it – they both had powerful motivation to do the right thing. But there were some nail-biters!

The story also offers a pretty slow-burn romance, as Jodee is hesitant to believe Blue has changed. They both have some things to unpack if they want any future relationship to be successful, with Jodee in particular having to come to terms with her fears of abandonment. I love it when a relationship isn’t an insta-romance. Jodee and Blue’s reconnection developed at a pace where we could see their concerns and see how those were handled.

Faith underpins the story, but it’s not necessarily a picture-perfect faith of someone who Has It All Together. Jodee in particular wrestles with faith, wrestles with the idea that God cares about her or hears her. I really enjoyed the mysterious cowboy who appeared to serve as her guardian angel, her compass pointing her toward the right choice, and the fact that a certain scent seemed to alert her to his presence.

If you enjoy a twisty, compelling mystery that weaves through past and present, you’ll love Beneath the Broken Oak.

Preston Colter broke Hetty Clark's heart when he disappeared to chase his other love, alcohol and wild living. He also left her pregnant, and now she's raising her son as a single mother. She's doing okay, though - at least until her father is killed saving a stranger from a fire. She inherits the ranch, and she needs help. So when Preston shows up, she is persuaded to hire him, but only if he adheres to her strict "no drinking" requirements. Hetty soon realizes her heart wants what it wants, and what it wants is Preston. Preston realizes he has feelings for her, too. Can Hetty trust the man who's let her down before? Will Preston abide by his resolution to stay sober?

This was a delightful read! Karen Baney plays on the biblical story of the prodigal son with Preston's story. He's the fifth Colter son, and he feels like he's always been a disappointment to his family. That's why he's been drinking and carousing and steering clear of home. He fears his welcome won't be a positive one. Baney did an excellent job of making him a very sympathetic character. He owned up to his shortcomings. He didn't pretend to be better than he was or that he didn't deserve the consequences for his actions, and he tried his best to make amends.

If you like strong female characters, Hetty is a good one. She's running a ranch, raising her son, handling a crew, hiring help when she needs it, and practicing to win a bronc riding competition. But she doesn't cross the line into being a character that has no need of or desire for a good man in her life. She just isn't sure Preston can be that good man. But when a greedy neighbor comes proposing marriage to get his hands on her ranch, Hetty has to figure out how to turn down his advances. Is Preston the answer to that problem?

The secondary characters are also well written. The posse of men that takes Preston in as one of their own is a fantastic group. They support each other and kick each other in the pants when needed, and isn't that what good friends do? They're drawn together by their common interest in staying sober, and they really become family to each other.

It tickled me that both Hetty and Preston were competing in the bronc riding contest. Neither of them was interested in being better than the other. They were both cheering each other on wholeheartedly. I loved that Hetty didn't feel like she had to diminish herself to attract Preston, and Preston wasn't ashamed of rooting for his love to do her very best. That was refreshing!

The thread of faith woven through the story made me happy. This is why I love Christian fiction. The world is hard. Life is hard. Living by my faith is hard. Reading stories of other folks living out their faith makes my day a little brighter and encourages me.

This is the fifth book in the Colter Sons series, but I read it as a standalone with no problem. I want to read the others, though, so I can get to know the brothers Preston felt like he couldn't compete with!

<i>Thanks to JustRead Publicity Tours and the author for a complimentary copy of this book. It was a matchmaker book tour, so the book was a surprise when I opened the envelope. All opinions here are mine, and I don't say nice things about books I don't actually like.</i>

Oh, Amber Royer. Your books are like a box of chocolates, except I always know what I’m going to get – a story with familiar characters I love and new characters that hold my attention, humor, twists and turns, and always, chocolate. You never disappoint!

Greetings and Felicitations is garnering some international attention, and Felicity and friends are off to Japan to take part in a chocolate festival! (I would absolutely travel to Japan for a chocolate festival.) Felicity will have a booth selling chocolates and will also be teaching a class on chocolate making. She’s hoping that this can just be an enjoyable experience. But someone presents her with a murder mystery, and y’all know what happens next! The murder magnet strikes again, and Felicity finds herself smack dab in the middle of an investigation.

This was an exciting read! There were a couple of story lines that Royer wove together nicely. First, the mystery. Felicity gets a little more adventure in her life than she planned on when she tries to catch the thief who stole her phone shortly after their arrival in Tokyo. That same phone thief ends up dead, but the body goes missing while Felicity is waiting on the police to get there. And Chloe, the young YouTuber who’s part of the group, may be the prime suspect for the murder. So we’ve got the whodunnit going on.

Then another exhibitor accuses Felicity of cheating and tries to get her removed from the festival. She’s downright ugly, making claims that Felicity knows can’t be true, and time and effort have to be expended in disproving those claims. Will Felicity make it to the end of the festival, and why is this person saying such terrible things? What’s their story? Read on and find out.

And then there are the connections between characters. Felicity has never felt that Logan’s sister Dawn likes her much, but they get a chance to spend more time together on this trip. I do believe it’s a positive step in their relationship. There are connections between various people associated with the monster movie being filmed, and it takes a little time for Royer to lay down the trail that we follow to sort those out. Some characters make you shake your head, and some may have you wiping away a little tear.

Bless her heart, though, Felicity still finds things to worry about with Logan. I thought I was a world-class worrier. I think she has me beat. The trip brings to light things she didn’t know about him, and she worries that she isn’t a good fiancée because she doesn’t know all these things. I alternated between wanting to talk sense into her and wanting to tell her that I’ve been married double digits of years and still learn things about my husband, that she and Logan will be just fine.

Just like a good chocolate bar, Amber Royer’s books are sweet to read and always satisfying. Vanishing into the 100% Dark continues the tradition and keeps her squarely on my list of must-read authors. I know the story isn’t finished yet, so I’ll eagerly anticipate the next in the series!

Laurel Rumbroom is the last of her line after her father's untimely demise. She is also the sole living resident of the Underhallow, a sanctuary for ghosts not quite ready to fully shuffle off this mortal coil, and its last Guardian. The ghosts there tend to her needs and do their best to take care of her, and in return, she tries to take care of them. But deliveries of dead moths are telling her something isn't quite right. With her questionable mind and unwillingness to leave the grounds of Underhallow, what can she do to unravel the mystery and preserve the Underhallow?

Erin Larson-Burnett has given us an eerily whimsical world, populated with ghosts who can be kind, pompous, shy, rude, and frightening. Lauren is an unreliable narrator, by turns clear as a bell and lost in the fog of her own mind. She's struggling to take in the education Master Godwin tries to impress upon her, but she just can't quite hang onto the knowledge. I wanted to reach into the pages and hug her.

The author covers a lot in this book: mental health, political machinations, intrigue, found family, coming into one's own. It's all beautifully done, and I am so glad there's more to come in the second book of the duology! I can hardly wait to get my hands on the second one.

There are some of the Comfort books I’ve missed (they’re on my TBR – I just need more hours in the day!), but with Home to Comfort, I’ve now read all of Kimberly Fish’s Comfort and Joy trilogy. I have absolutely loved them.

We’ve heard about Patsy, Mason’s not-quite-so-dead-as-they-thought first wife, in the first two books in the trilogy. Now Gloria has a chance to help the law get up close and personal with Patsy and bring her to justice for her crimes and misdeeds. She and Mason travel to a Mexican resort, ostensibly vacationing, to lure Patsy out into the open. Let’s just say shenanigans ensue, along with some nail-bitingly tense moments.

But that’s not the only adventure in the story! Once they return to Comfort (and oh, what a hardship, leaving the sunny Mexican coast for a chilly Texas winter!), Gloria has to focus on getting a big order of Sweeties’ truffles ready for their debut at the White House. She is determined that everything will go smoothly, and so it does – until Gardner Rogers shows up like a bad penny.

Unsurprisingly, I adored this book! With wit and wisdom, Gloria navigates both the good and bad in her life using wisdom and skills she’s learned through her experiences. She’s comfortable in her own skin (even if she doesn’t mind losing a few extra pounds before she and Mason finally say “I do”), and she isn’t afraid to call things as she sees them. Fish also uses her seasoned heroine to clearly demonstrate that women should never be discounted as too old, too dull, too anything to make a difference. And they should never, ever be underestimated. I really loved that, as I’m getting to that age myself!

And for all the joy the book brought me, I was so sad to see it end. I’ve said before that turning the final page of a book felt like saying goodbye to friends, and that really hit hard here. I have so enjoyed getting to know Gloria and all the wonderful people in Comfort, I hated to bid them adieu.

This isn’t a story where everything goes perfectly, or where all the loose ends are tidied up in the final chapter. Gloria’s efforts to bring Patsy out in the open didn’t always go according to plan. The truffles’ trip to the White House might have hit a few bumps along the way. The course of true love doesn’t always run smooth, and friendships can be irreparably broken. But the ending is satisfactory. The right things fall into the right places, and I sighed contentedly when I finished the book, even if I did sniffle a time or two. Just like real life, we won’t always know what happens with the characters we’ve come to love. I like to imagine that Gloria and Mason find new projects and adventures to share, and that they settle into their marriage and live as close to happily ever after as anyone can on this earth.

If you want to read a book – verily, an entire trilogy – that feels like a hug in story form, pick up Home to Comfort and the rest of the Comfort and Joy trilogy. It’ll make you smile, and maybe make you crave chocolate and Mexican food, too. And with life being what it is these days, I reckon we can all use a little Comfort in our lives.

Teri M. Brown has taken us on several historical adventures, and I have loved them all. Now, in her latest, 10 Little Rules for a Double-Butted Adventure, she takes us on the real-life road trip she took with her husband, Bruce, journeying across the United States on a tandem bike.

The title makes sense for a tandem bike ride, yes? Two butts on bike seats. But Brown provides an additional explanation for the title that I wouldn’t have known. I love books where I learn things!

A cross-country bike ride had long been on the bucket list of Bruce, Brown’s new husband. But a tandem bike ride was a different adventure entirely. Brown was a novice bike rider, still struggling with feelings of insecurity and self-doubt from her first marriage. Her husband, Bruce, had health issues and had to adjust his customary style of riding to his wife’s different style. And no amount of preparation and practice can truly prepare a person for this kind of undertaking. There’s no telling what will really happen until you’re living it.

With wit, gentle humor, and personal anecdotes from their travels, Brown shares the challenges she and Bruce faces and the things they learned. From hills, hills, and more hills, to weather, to physical and mental fatigue, they dealt with obstacles on each leg of the journey. She also offers insight into how the things she learned on the trip can apply to the reader’s daily life, too. Even if I’m not biking across the entire country, “Never quit on a bad day” is always a good rule to follow.

The book is divided into ten sections, with each section representing a rule from Brown’s experience, and she includes questions for self-reflection and space for journaling after each rule. I read a digital review copy, so I didn’t take advantage of the self-reflection part of the book on this read. I will, however, get myself a hard copy so I can reread it and do just that!

If you want a book that will encourage and inspire you, pick up 10 Little Rules for a Double-Butted Adventure. You might find some wisdom to start you off on your own adventure!

Nona Taylor is a private investigator carrying a load of personal guilt. Every year she attends the New Year’s service at church (not “her” church, mind you, just the one she’s decided to go to once a year). Every year she begs God for the forgiveness she doesn’t think she deserves. Every year she leaves feeling like her prayer has gone unheard. But this year will not be like every other year. When Pastor Grant asks for her help in figuring out whether a letter he received about an unexpected inheritance is legitimate, Nona is thrown into a mystery, a fake engagement, and the path of someone willing to kill to achieve their ends.

From the opening lines of this book, I loved Nona. I’ve had those times where it felt like my prayers bounced off the ceiling, where I had that stack of bills howling for payment, where I had no idea how THIS mountain would be moved. I have felt that pain, and I wanted to reach into the book and hug her. Bonus that she’s strong with the snark.

And DeMarcus first came off as one of those smooth, I’m-sexy-and-I-know-it sort of guys. High-dollar lawyer, snappy dresser – if I were in Nona’s shoes, I’d have been skeptical, too. But underneath that high-gloss exterior was a good man. And I love that, even if it wasn’t the traditional “good churchgoing girl and good churchgoing boy meet at a service and fall in love,” they still met in church. They both had, not really ulterior motives for being there, but reasons that didn’t have a whole lot to do with worship, and yet from that questionable seed something beautiful grew. I’d say that’s an example of God using all things for good!

Nona is well-written as an investigator, and DeMarcus is wonderfully written as a lawyer. They were both very believable in their roles. I should have known Breyna Leigh had some legal background before I even read her bio. She writes things she’s had experience with, and it shows.

This story hit on all cylinders and kept me turning pages. The moment Nona and DeMarcus fell into a fake engagement just cracked me up. Nona would probably have rather eaten rocks than even pretended to be romantically involved with someone, and yet here she is, “engaged,” with people who are just so excited about it and want to be all up in their business! There was plenty of tension, too, with the bad guys bent on cheating Pastor Grant out of his inheritance for their own financial gain and doing whatever it took – WHATEVER – to achieve their goals.

The secondary characters were just as good as our main protagonists. DeMarcus’ grandmother, G Mama – oh my gosh, y’all, she was a hoot and a half. She is a woman of God, she has lived her life, and she is going to share her wisdom with her grandchildren and love them and pray them the right way, whether they like it or not. I want to be like G Mama when I grow up. She is chock full of surprises! Pastor Grant struck just the right notes as a humble man of God who genuinely wanted what was best for Nona. Zeke and Calloway were deliciously, skeevily evil as they worked to carry out their rotten plans. None of the characters felt like they were throwaways. Each had a role to play and did it well.

The mystery, and the tension, and the nail-biting moments when I wasn’t sure what was coming next – I loved it! I enjoyed the unraveling of Pastor Grant’s family mystery, and when the full story came to light when they visited the town of Burnt Water, Alabama, I’ll own to tearing up a little. Good stuff. (Also, Burnt Water, Alabama is totally how small towns are. I grew up in a small town in Louisiana. I know some folks like Breigh describes.)

And the best part? Even though their initial church attendance isn’t for the “right” reasons, Nona and DeMarcus are still drawn to God as they are reminded that He is faithful, that they can trust Him with their hurts and issues. And in drawing closer to God, they draw closer to each other.

I can’t think of anything to nitpick about this book. It’s got everything I most love in a story – action, a good mystery, wonderful characters, interesting backstory, and romance that’s wonderfully sweet without being overly gushy or too spicy. If this is Jayna Breigh’s debut novel, I’m here for all the novels she might write in the future. This one was that good. Highly recommended! And I know it’s only January, but I’m going to say it: This book is in the running to be a favorite of 2025.

Forensic genealogist RaeJean Hunter is tapped to search for the missing heir to a deceased woman's considerable estate. Interestingly, RaeJean knew the deceased woman, Jill Hamilton, and had taken in her corgi when it was in need of a good home. Other than the apparently coincidental connection, though, this seems like it should be a pretty straightforward case. Find the heir, collect a substantial paycheck. Easy, right? The only hitch would seem to be the time limit. If the heir isn't found within a year of the woman's death, her estate would pass to Columbia University - and six months of that year has already elapsed.

The search for a missing heir takes RaeJean on a winding journey. From Jill's New York apartment to the Pacific Northwest to the wilds of New Zealand, she chases leads, digs through records, and tries to interpret the clues that a doll belonging to Jill seems to try to communicate with its eyes. And once again, she finds herself in danger, because someone does not want that missing heir found.

ML Condike gives us another smart, well-written mystery. I love the relationship between RaeJean and her husband Sam. They're clearly crazy about each other, but the romance doesn't get in the way of the mystery. And I like that they don't have to be joined at the hip constantly. Their respective jobs sometimes take them in different directions, but a little physical separation doesn't diminish their emotional connection.

The story also ties into an actual cold case, the 1910 disappearance of Dorothy Arnold. Condike gives us a believable scenario tying the missing heiress to Jill Hamilton, and in so doing, handles some challenging issues such as the treatment of mental health in the early twentieth century and the treatment of children in group homes.

Condike also addresses issues of fertility and adoption. Jill was adopted, and RaeJean and Sam face the possibility that they cannot have children of their own. I was adopted myself, so I'm glad to see they're considering that option.

The historical background was fascinating. The mystery, engrossing. The paranormal element, a delicious touch. The unexpected twists, well, unexpected! ML Condike is rapidly establishing herself as one of my favorite authors. If you love mysteries that blend history and present day, I highly recommend The Doll from Dunedin.

Lady Eleanor Swift was hoping to spend a festive, romantic Christmas at home with her sweetie, Detective Inspector Hugh Seldon. But her plans are upended when she receives a call from Mr. Porritt, secretary to the reclusive Duke of Auldwyke, insisting that she and Hugh attend the Duke’s annual shooting competition. Mr. Porritt will not take no for an answer, and Ellie finds herself off to the wilds of Yorkshire.

But she’s barely made Porritt’s acquaintance in person before she finds him dead in the storehouse where the shooting clays are kept. Hugh is quickly made the lead detective on the case – nearly the only detective, as the Duke insists no more outside policemen be brought in. A blizzard shuts down the roads, so getting in or out is a moot point. Thankfully, Danby of the local constabulary made it to the scene, so he’s there to assist Hugh, along with Ellie, Clifford, and the ladies of Henley Hall. This is not at all the romantic Christmas Ellie dreamed about!

I have thoroughly enjoyed all the Verity Bright mysteries I’ve read. And I probably say this about each successive one, but I do believe I’ve liked this one the most of them all! Here, Bright gives us, not quite a locked-room mystery, but a contained scene with a limited number of suspects. Hugh feels almost as if the Duke is actively trying to hamper the investigation, but he can’t get a face to face meeting with the Duke to find out why, because the man hasn’t left his chambers or admitted anyone other than his secretary for a decade now – since his wife died. And the more Hugh and Ellie dig, the more questions they have. There’s no shortage of suspects once they all stop lying. But who had reason to kill Porritt? Was he even the intended suspect? Or was the Duke the real target? And who in the world could want to kill a man who’d isolated himself for ten years?

As alwas, Verity Bright gives us clue after clue that unravels, and then points us somewhere else entirely. They create a vivid picture of life in the Golden Age, and I simply love Ellie and all her people. Clifford, with his mindfulness of etiquette and propriety, and a surprising number of unexpected skills, is a perfect foil to often impulsive, frequently indecorous Ellie. The ladies are a treat. The Christmas they and Clifford create for Ellie and Hugh and themselves is just magical. I don’t even want to be anyplace where there are blizzards, but that Christmas shindig they had might tempt me!

Does Ellie ever actually meet the Duke? Will there be any romance in her Christmas? Can they solve the mystery of Porritt’s death before the killer strikes again? And what kind of outfits did the ladies make for Gladstone and Tompkins this time?

If you love a good, comfy, cozy mystery that feels like going on an adventure with friends, you really should get to know Lady Eleanor. You can start with this one, but I recommend you start at the beginning and get to know her whole story. A Midwinter Murder is a perfect book to read on a chilly day, curled up with a soft blanket, a warm drink, and a cat. I loved it!

Disclaimer: I received an advance copy of this book from Bookouture. I was not required to leave a review. All opinions here are mine, and I don’t say nice things about books I don’t actually like.

This is the first of Tessa Afshar’s books I’ve read. It definitely won’t be the last! Here she gives us a fascinating look at the life of Queen Esther through the eyes of a young Persian woman.

Roxannah’s father, Lord Fravartish, has mired their once-proud family in debt and lost himself in drink, but still thinks he deserves better things. When he is unwell, he demands that Roxannah get him a physician, but not just any physician. He wants a Jewish physician for King Xerxes’ court to come and tend to him. So Roxannah fetches Adin to take care of her father’s needs. Adin is a believer in the One God. Roxannah is not. Still, they find common ground enough to strike up a friendship.

When Xerxes passes a royal decree that will allow all Jews to be killed, Lord Fravartish sees this as his golden opportunity. He can kill Adin, seize his property, and be restored to his former glory. Roxannah fears for her father’s safety, but knows she must warn Adin of his evil intent. In the course of things, Lord Fravartish meets his end, and Roxannah must now find a way to support herself and her mother. Adin knows Roxannah to have no small talent at cooking, and he helps her find a position as an assistant in Queen Esther’s kitchen.

Palace life is a whole new world for Roxannah. She finds herself facing prejudice and resentment when the cook sees her potential and elevates her much faster than is normal. She and Adin also find themselves unexpectedly caught up in intrigue when a plot to kill Amestris, one of the king’s wives and no friend to Esther, is uncovered. She worries about her mother, struggles with guilt over what she sees as her betrayal of her father, and wonders more about this God of Adin’s every time she hears Adin talk about Him.

Tessa Afshar made me feel like I was right there with Roxannah. She’s got a true gift for writing historical fiction that puts you in the heart of the story, and she undergirds it with a strong current of faith. I won’t call this Christian fiction, because it’s set in the Old Testament, before Christ took on flesh and became a man. But it is scripturally based fiction, and faith in God is an important component of the story. The characters find strength in their faith, wrestle with their faith, and in Roxannah’s case, question whether God can love non-Jews just as much as He loves His chosen people.

I loved Afshar’s creation of the Secret Scrolls of Esther. There is no such historical document, but her vision of it lent a new depth to Queen Esther. It made me think of things that don’t always pop off the page in Scripture. And it’s a good story that makes you think and consider and learn and grow. I now want to go dig into the book of Esther and reread the historical story!

I am so glad this book is part of a series. I can’t wait to read the next one. If you love clean fiction, with wonderfully written characters, clean romance, and meticulous historical detail, you need to read The Queen’s Cook.

Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book from JustRead Publicity Tours. I was not required to leave a review. All opinions here are mine, and I don’t say nice things about books I don’t actually like.

Lady Laura Tamlow doesn’t have a splendid estate in Grandview, but it’s hers. Her surroundings may not be luxurious, but she finds happiness there. Her orderly routine is upended when an elderly woman shows up unexpectedly and seems to know more about Grandview, and indeed, Laura’s family, than a stranger should.

Jonathan Canfield’s family is also in straitened circumstances, and there are men clamoring for payment he can’t provide. There is one last, desperate option available to him, and it involves Laura. Will she agree to help him reclaim family treasure, stolen from them by a man so powerful he’s almost untouchable?

This was the first of Ann Elizabeth Fryer’s books I’ve read, and I really enjoyed it. I’ve long been a fan of Tolkien’s work, so when I saw this was billed as a Regency Hobbit retelling, I had to pick it up.

The characters are well written. Laura is everything a lady should be – kind, thoughtful, gentle. But there’s more to her than meets the eye. Jonathan is a gentleman of character, even when his finances are tight. And oh, I can relate to financial difficulties. This common thread between the characters and me made it easy to like them and cheer for them. Jonathan’s grandmother alternately made me want to hug her and ask her what in the actual heck she was doing, and his sister Melissa, well, let’s just say she made some choices she’s going to have to live with.

Lord Herrington, the dragon of a man who will demand more than anyone dreams, is deliciously creepy. I picture him in my mind almost like Jabba the Hutt – grotesque, but so powerful that no one (well, almost no one) dares cross him. I found myself wondering more than once how in the world Laura and Jonathan could possibly get ahead of his game.

And of course, the romance is just lovely. Is there a touch of insta-love about it? Yes. But shared difficulties can often cause an initial attraction to bloom into so much more, and so it happens here. Jonathan and Laura realize that some things are more important than worldly treasure and must not be sacrificed for financial gain.

My one little quibble was that Fryer’s writing style, at least here, had a noticeable number of sentences beginning with verbs rather than subjects. “Was a strange emotion, this.” “Would bring grief upon grief.” “Was a rich one of the like I’d never tasted.” Had it been occasional, it wouldn’t have bothered me. But it was frequent enough that it caught my attention and pulled me out of my enjoyment of the story. This is the only one of her books I’ve read, so I don’t know if this is the norm, or if it’s an effect peculiar to Regency romances. I don’t like to take off stars for grammatical/stylistic concerns, but this bothered me enough to take off half a star. Still, 4.5 rounds up to 5! It’s a good story, and if you aren’t a nitpicky word weirdo like I am, you may not even notice.

I enjoyed the story, and I’d like to read more of Fryer’s books. I recommend this for fans of the Hobbit, a good Regency romance, or both.

Disclaimer: I received a copy of the book from JustRead Publicity Tours. I was not required to provide a review. All opinions here are mine, and I don’t say nice things about books I don’t actually like.

Everyone knows that cats have nine lives, and Tito is no exception. The Nine Lives of Tito d’Amelia by Ettore Farrattini Pojani is the tale of the nine times Tito is called into service to aid the Farrattini family and the town of Amelia through the years.

The cat who becomes known as Tito meets the founder of what will become the Farrattini family in a town known as Amer, in pre-historic Umbria. Tito soon becomes a vital part of his master’s life, and indeed, much beloved by the town. He is buried near the walls that his master designed, and over the centuries, Tito reincarnates when a Farrattini descendant has need of his assistance.

Part animal tale, part historical fiction, and based on actual family history, this story is a gem! I’m a cat person, so I was predisposed to love Tito. But just as Tito wins the hearts of everyone he encounters (well, almost everyone), I think you’ll love this story even if you wouldn’t squee at the chance to pet a cat’s fuzzy belly and bring him home with you.

History unfolds through Tito’s eyes, and with his help, the Farrattini line not only survives through the centuries, but thrives. I had to laugh at Tito’s gentle exasperation with the different names each of his humans gave him. (I wonder what my cats think of the fact that they each have five or six different names in this life?) There are some moments of tension in the story, and the Farrattinis face some challenging times, but the story overall is gentle, sometimes almost whimsical in its description of Tito’s thoughts and feelings. It weaves together family fact with creatively imagined fiction to give us a delightful tale with a surprise ending.

If you love history or historical fiction, adorable cats or well-written human characters, pick up The Nine Lives of Tito d’Amelia. Five paws up from my cats Finn and Jake!

Once again, I’ve missed the first book in a series. But that’s okay, because The Darkness Deepens is so good, it makes me want to go grab the first one and then come back and talk about it. I was able to get enough context to really enjoy this book without having read the first one, though.

The story takes place in not-too-distant-future Canada, after several mosques were bombed on 10/10/2053 and an ostensibly Christian group, the Horsemen, has taken credit for the attack. Because of that, the government is dropping the hammer on Christians, marking their businesses, compelling them to wear bracelets identifying them as believers, banning Bibles, fencing them in with laws and restrictions.

Jesse Christensen is a soldier, and through his relationship with Meryn O’Reilly and her family, he’s become a believer, too. As a member of the military, he can’t let it be known that he’s fraternizing with Meryn. It would mean trouble for them both. His superior officer knows of the relationship and approves, as he’s also a Christian. They’ve both chosen to keep serving, doing good within the system when they can. But that isn’t always easy, especially with another officer really hating Christians and wanting to root them out. And keeping his relationship with Meryn under wraps isn’t easy, either.

Sara Davison is one of the best writers I’ve had the pleasure to read recently. Her books are consistently good, always enthralling, and this one meets that mark. The story is one you could see happening. It’s believable enough to give you pause and make you think – if I were in Meryn’s position, Jesse’s shoes, what would I do? Would I stand for my beliefs or would I cave? Chewy stuff.

The story kept me engaged and sometimes on the edge of my seat. But there were flashes of humor, too. Some of Jesse’s interactions with Meryn’s brothers were pretty hilarious! And Meryn and Jesse are both very sympathetic characters. They feel so strongly toward each other, but they each have fears and issues from the past that they have to work through.

Can Jesse and Meryn sort out their feelings? Can they keep clear of those who wish Christians harm? Those questions may be answered (read the book and find out), but the book ends on a cliffhanger that has me chomping at the bit to read the third book in the series!

Five stars, and I highly recommend it for fans of dystopia, clean romance, and nail-biting suspense.

Disclaimer: I received a review copy of this book from JustRead Publicity Tours. I was not required to leave a review. All opinions here are mine, and I don’t say nice things about books I don’t actually like.

The Paris Portrait is the third in Heidi Eljarbo’s Fabiola Bennett series, and I think it’s the best yet!

Fabiola and her two dearest friends, Cary and Pippa, are taking a vacation to visit Fabiola’s brother Eivind in France. But even on vacation, intrigue finds them. Eivind shows Fabiola an old recipe book he picked up at auction and asks for her help interpreting the old handwriting in the book. Fabiola realizes the writer of the mysterious notes was painter Élisabeth Louise Vigée Le Brun. And the notes refer to a lost painting by Le Brun of Queen Marie Antoinette. Well, you know when there’s an art mystery to be solved, Fabiola is off and running.

What a fascinating story! I don’t know much about art, and y’all know I love books where I learn things. Heidi Eljarbo gave me an education on Le Brun and Marie Antoinette and some of the history of the French Revolution, and it was marvelous. And it didn’t come across all lecture-ish, but rather felt like I was getting a bird’s-eye view of history.

The action moves easily between 1973 (sort of modern day, at least in my mind!) and the late eighteenth century, and Eljarbo gives us some interesting characters and a most engaging mystery. With every clue Fabiola and friends track down, more questions arise, and before the tale is told, danger comes closer than any of them would like.

It was fun getting to know Fabiola’s family a little better. I love that Eivind and his wife run a bakery. The descriptions were so wonderful, I could almost smell the pastries! And getting to see Auntie Fabsi interact with her niece and nephew was just delightful. For those of you hoping for more on the romance front, you’ll be glad to know there are several little glimmers of hope for a future of more than just friendship for Fabiola and Cary. That made me smile!

The Paris Portrait is another winner from Heidi Eljarbo, highly recommended for fans of art, history, mystery, and a good dual-timeline story!

Disclaimer: I received a complimentary copy of this book from JustRead Publicity Tours. I was not required to leave a review. All opinions here are mine, and I don’t say nice things about books I don’t actually like.

Guess what? I haven’t read the first two of Lisa E. Betz’s Livia Aemilia mysteries. Guess what else? I’m going to read them now!

In An Ode to Poison, Livia Aemilia attends a poetry gathering at the behest of her sister-in-law Hortensia. She writes a poem that she really hopes will get her disinvited to future gatherings, but she is pleasantly surprised to meet two women, sisters Calida and Salvia, with whom she thinks she might could be friends. Salvia is married to Gracchus, the bitter enemy of Livia’s husband Avitus, and she offers to feed Livia information on what Gracchus is up to. But when she suddenly ends up dead, Calida beseeches Livia to help her find justice for her sister.

This is a humdinger of a good story! While trying to prove Salvia was murdered and figure out who did it, Livia is also trying to stay in Avitus’ good graces (because he fears Gracchus will do something to harm her, and he really, REALLY doesn’t like her putting herself in precarious situations), juggle ill-tempered servants, adjust to having a dog around, and generally keep her household running smoothly. No problem, right? Well, she does manage to keep things going with the help of her maid, Roxana.

Betz gives us a good picture of the Rome of antiquity, and she makes it clear which characters are likable and which aren’t (although people can change, you know). This is Christian fiction, but it isn’t a whack-you-upside-the-head-with-the-King-James-Version kind of story. Livia is growing stronger in her faith, and she has the support of a community of believers. It is her fervent prayer that Avitus come to share her faith. He doesn’t, but he isn’t going to keep her from something that is clearly important to her. She just lives her life and prays for her husband, and gradually he is drawn to the God who is so important to Livia. It’s really how we should live, not making a big deal out of being Christian, but living in such a way that others want to know why we are the way we are.

The story is plenty twisty and turny, and Betz kept me guessing as to who the guilty party was. All in all, an absolutely delightful historical mystery that has me wanting to read more stories in Livia’s world!

Disclaimer: I voluntarily reviewed a copy of the book provided by JustRead Publicity Tours. All opinions here are mine, and I don’t say nice things about books I don’t actually like.

I’m a Louisiana girl. When I think of shrimp, I think of Cajun waders and boats on the water. I think of the blessing of the fleet, where the trawlers are prayed over and blessed for a good year. (It’s a party. Most everything in Louisiana is an excuse for a party.) What I don’t think of is landlocked ponds, dry desert heat, and the middle of West Texas. But that’s exactly what you’ll find in Shrimping West Texas.

You might think nonfiction books are a drag. Admittedly, some of them are. Shrimping West Texas is not one of those. Bart Reid writes in a conversational style that’s easy to read, and he clearly knows a lot on his topic. He’s one of those folks who can communicate a lot of very technical information about something he’s passionate about to where someone not familiar with the subject can understand (most of) what he’s talking about.

And I could grasp a lot of the details he gives about shrimp farming. I learned a lot from the book. I figured it was hard work. My dad was a farmer in the traditional sense – soybeans, cotton, corn. I know agriculture of any stripe is hard work. But I’ll tell you what, shrimp farming sounds like a whole different level of backbreaking and exhausting. I figure you’ve got to feel strongly about it to push through and get it done.

Reid describes the people who worked with him (and sometimes against him) with such feeling and detail, I came away feeling almost like I know them, too. It’s mind-boggling to think how many people were willing to work against what must have felt like pretty stiff odds to make the West Texas shrimp farms a reality. It was also an eye-opener to realize how hard some people would work against something new and different, and how cutthroat the agriculture industry can be. And God bless Patsy, Reid’s wife, for being willing to pull up stakes and head out with him to chase his dream! I wonder how crazy she thought he was when he first hit on this idea.

And I never expected this, but this book has recipes! In addition to the shrimp farm, Reid and his wife also ran the Shrimp Store. Recipes from that endeavor are included in the book, and they sound delicious. I can’t wait to try them. Honestly, I’m disappointed I didn’t know about these West Texas shrimp when the farm was a going concern. I lived in Texas then, and I might could have gotten my hands on some to try. It sounds like they were top-notch.

If you like reading about somewhat quirky topics and learning something as you do, if you like a book that feels almost like a discussion with a friend, pick up Shrimping West Texas. You may love it as much as I did! This is definitely one of the surprises of the year for me, and may be in the running for my favorites of 2024 list.

Wren has been in hiding her whole life, it seems. Elodie, the woman who has raised her, has always encouraged her to reach for the light and admonished her never to let the darkness in. But the darkness has always beckoned to Wren, even as she has tried to resist it, to keep her magic hidden. This is sometimes challenging, as she and Elodie live apart from everyone in a forest where remnants of dark magic – the Nox – are known to linger. When the small village they call home is invaded by Ilanthian knights clearly looking for something, and their tower is aflame, Wren flees into the dark forest. A knight of Asteroth, Finn, seeks to protect her and in so doing, is attacked by dark forces himself. Wren does the thing she’s been told not to do and saves Finn, but at what cost to her and to him? Now they’re somehow bound together, and drawn almost irresistibly to each other.

This is a pretty good fantasy read, although it doesn’t quite live up to The Bookbinder’s Daughter (which I loved). We’ve got a pretty clear matchup of good versus evil in Asteroth and Ilanthia. Asteroth, the kingdom of light, with an eternal flame that supports their magic system that now kind of exists in limbo, not really active, but still existing. Ilanthia, seeking to restore the Nox to its former glory and use it for their ends, sounds like a truly awful place. But Wren and Finn seem to be some combination of both light and dark (at least sometimes, although sometimes Wren seems to be full dark and she's trying real hard not to be), and this feels like it’s laying the groundwork for the two of them to somehow bring the two kingdoms together and restore balance. That, or they’ll burn each other to a crisp with forbidden dark magic and everything will go down in flames, I’m not sure which.

Thorne gives us a strong character in Elodie. She is clearly more than the hedge witch she presents herself as, and I hope she was somewhat in the background in this story because we’ll see much more of her in other books in the series. She isn’t invisible, but I get the feeling we haven’t nearly seen her tap the depths of her power yet.

The attraction between Wren and Finn felt a lot like insta-romance to me, and that really isn’t my favorite. I prefer enemies to lovers that takes time to grow. But given the spark that lit the romantic flame, I can see why their relationship unfolded in the way it did. I hope we see something deeper blossoming between them in later books. There was some explicit on-page spice – not a main focus of the book, but it is there, so be mindful if that’s a deal-breaker for you.

The story kept me interested, but it felt a bit underdeveloped. I know it’s the first of a trilogy, and I’m engaged enough to keep reading. We’ll see how the next book goes!

The Bookbinder’s Daughter is still my favorite Thorne book, but I’m hopeful this series will get better with each successive book, and by the end of it, I’ll love this story almost as much!

Disclaimer: I received an advance copy from Second Sky Books and Netgalley. All opinions here are mine, and I don’t say nice things about books I don’t actually like.

I love a good work of historical fiction. I was especially interested to read Darkness Calls the Tiger because I’ve never read a story that focuses on World War II in Burma. When you think of the Japanese involvement in World War II, you think of Pearl Harbor, the Bataan Death March. But their efforts to conquer Burma with an eye to taking over all of mainland Asia were no less atrocious.

Kailyn Moran, or Kai, has grown up in the village of Tingrabum, on the mountain. The Kachin people call her father, John, the Jungle Light, because he shares the light of the Gospel with them, pointing the way to Karai Kasang, the supreme God. But all Kai sees of her father is unrelenting harshness. Since her mother died, he has all but turned away from Kai unless he’s criticizing her, and she feels like nothing she ever does is good enough to earn his praise or his love.

When the Japanese start encroaching on Burmese territory, John sees no need to flee. He confidently states that God will protect them, and he goes on his usual routine visits to other villages, leaving Kai and the new missionary, Ryan, in charge of their village. But war finds them, and Kai and Ryan must try to get the villagers to safety.

This was not an easy read. Tromp doesn’t flinch at describing the brutality of the Japanese soldiers to anyone who stood in their way, and there are some pretty stout descriptions of battles and injuries suffered. She also doesn’t pull back from the very real emotional challenges her characters faced. Her characters don’t have a touchy-feely, “God loves us all and everything is going to be just fine” kind of faith on display. Kai and Ryan wrestle hard with their faith, and that struggle is writ large on the page. Kai wonders how she can trust Karai Kasang when He has let people she loves be hurt or killed, when her father has basically walked away from her. Ryan questions how he can carry on when his efforts seem to go for naught, when every choice he makes seems to be the wrong one and evil seems to be winning the day.

But this is a compelling, beautiful story, well worth the reading of it. Our characters struggle, yes. When they open their eyes and pay attention, though, they can see God’s hand at work. And when they learn to trust that He is working all things, even the hard and ugly ones, together for good, they can find peace, healing of hearts and minds and old emotional wounds, and the ability to forgive even the most loathed of enemies.

If you’ve read and enjoyed The Long March Home by Tosca Lee and Marcus Brotherton, you’ll love Darkness Calls the Tiger.

Starting off, this sounds like a romance with an AI twist. Julia Walden is Josh LaSala’s perfect woman. Why? She was created that way. She’s a Synth, one of three in the world. Her designer, Andy, made her specifically to win Josh’s heart on The Proposal, a reality TV show where women compete for a man’s affection. What Julia isn’t expecting is how hard she’ll fall for Josh. So when he proposes to her, she’s overjoyed.

But it doesn’t take long before the bloom is off the rose, and the story takes a turn. They’ve moved to Josh’s small hometown in Indiana, and the reception Julia receives as a Synth is…well, not always neighborly. They now have an infant daughter (Julia is the first Synth with the ability to have children), and some cracks are starting to show in the marriage. Then Josh disappears, and Julia’s world is turned upside down. Things get even worse when she becomes the number one suspect in his murder. She doesn’t know who she can trust. Andy, her designer? Eve, the wonderful babysitter who lives nearby? Her creepy neighbor Bob? When the small-minded sheriff turns his focus on her, Julia goes on the run.

This book starts out as the reality TV romance and then turns into a murder mystery, and it’s a lot of fun! Julia is a fascinating character. Sure, she was knit together in a lab rather than her mother’s womb. But she has so many distinctly human characteristics. She may have been designed as Josh’s perfect woman, but like many of us, she has a lot of days where she feels less than perfect. Like so many women, she finds herself apologizing to Josh for things that aren’t her fault. She doubts herself. She questions what her purpose in life will be if she’s no longer married. She loves her daughter with every fiber of her being.

And so many characters in this story are not what they seem to be. Everyone has secrets – Andy, Eve, the lady in town who really, really does NOT like Synths, even creepy neighbor Bob. As the story unfolds, alternating between events on the TV show and events in the present day, each new revelation brought a shift in perspective and made Julia rethink things she thought she knew.

The final reveal of the killer’s identity wasn’t a big surprise, but how everything played out was fascinating and made for really compelling reading. The book has a little bit of everything – sci-fi, romance, mystery, thriller, all in one big, happy mash-up. And it hits on some pretty heavy topics – what makes a person a person, domestic violence, trust, discrimination. Makes you think.

If you’re looking for something that’s a cut above your average summer read, pick up Made for You.

Disclaimer: Thanks to Netgalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing for an advance copy of the book. I was not required to leave a review. All opinions here are mine, and I don’t say nice things about books I don’t actually like.

Beau "Danger" Maddox has been left scarred, both physically and mentally, during his time spent in captivity after a mission took an unexpected and deadly turn. He blames himself for the death of his team during that mission, and he struggles with the aftereffects of the trauma. He's working to get himself declared fit for operational status so he can wreak vengeance on those responsible, but his ghosts are hard to shake.

Paisley Reyna has suffered her own trauma at the hands of the Guerreros, a vicious South American cartel. But she was rescued, and now she's a counselor, helping others who've been pulled out of trafficking situations. When her cousin Jordi dies and leaves her his home and his retired military working dog, Riot, she thinks that life in a small Texas town might be nice. But Riot lives up to his name, causing mayhem and destruction, and the only one he responds to is her new neighbor -Danger.

This is another fantastic book in the A Breed Apart: Legacy series. Paisley is about ready to give up on Riot, but Danger helps her learn how to handle him. They're thrown into a more dangerous situation when Danger's niece Lyric is kidnapped by the same cartel that took Paisley. Nothing will keep Danger from getting Lyric back, and Paisley is determined to go because she knows how the cartel treats women, and she wants to help both Lyric and any other trafficked girls they might find. And it is off to the races with the tension and the action and the adrenaline rush!

Both Danger and Paisley are fighting to throw off the effects of their past. Paisley sees God's hand at work, but Danger is sure God has abandoned him. Paisley has faith enough for them both, though, and she gently shares that faith with Danger. Even when she is in mortal peril herself, when the world in the form of her captor gives Paisley the opportunity to save Danger's life, she trusts God's plan more than what her captor offers. She does the right thing even when it must have felt nearly impossible. I was on the edge of my seat waiting to see how things unfolded!

JJ Samie Myles writes a wonderful team dynamic. The team going after Lyric may be in harm's way, but they won't let Danger go it alone no matter how rough things get. And they're there for the fun stuff, too! Danger gets a little ribbing over his feelings for Paisley even when they're in the middle of the jungle, and the happily ever after scene (come on, you knew there was going to be one) is a hoot.

If you love a book with a marvelous K-9 character, two flawed people working through to redemption, clean romance, and a boatload of suspense, you will love RIOT. Highly recommend!

I received a copy of the book from JustRead Publicity Tours. I was not required to leave a review. All opinions here are mine, and I don't say nice things about books I don't actually like.