Review: The Red Death by Brigitte Märgen

Cases start emerging in NYC where the victims are dying of a bacteria similar to the Black Death of the Middle Ages.  Only this pathogen is 100% fatal.  The CDC investigates and find an ancient bacteria that one professor's career had been destroyed over when no one believed his findings.  A search for a natural cure takes the Professor and a CDC researcher to the Amazon while the plague starts spreading quickly throughout the world. 

The story is told by multiple POVs including some of the first patients, showing the method of the spread.  It is a story that is chilling because of how easily we could see this happening today. 

Excellent read

Review: 13 Stolen Girls by Gil Reavill

After an earthquake in LA, Detective Layla Remington finds a large broken barrel with a body inside.  It turns out to be a missing actress and a HUGE missing persons case.  Only she sees connections to other missing girls' cases that none of the powers that be see.  As she investigates, she treads on some powerful toes in the Motion Picture Industry and gets in deeper than she expects.  

The story contains some really vile men based on a deep BDSM subculture where slaves asked to be killed.  Not for those who don't like their books DARK.

The interesting thing about the "Cor" series in this book is that it clearly is a nod to the old Gor books.  Nothing I ever liked, but I had a friend WAY back when (30ish years ago) who LOVED them and she started writing one of her own.  Early fan fiction I guess.I had forgotten all about that until reading this book.

Very suspenseful and interesting.  I really enjoyed it

Guest Blogger - Alice Duncan

February 2019 Mercy sakes, January’s over. That happened fast, didn’t it? The coming month will feature the eleventh birthday of my great-granddaughter, Kasumi. That happened fast, too. I remember visiting my grandson and his family shortly after Sumi’s birth, when they lived in Kansas. And now Sumi’s turning eleven. Worse, Andrew, her older brother, is going to be fourteen in May! Well, I don’t mean worse precisely, but I have almost-grown great-grandchildren, and that makes me feel old, which is only right since I am old. So I’m trying to remember my age in order to minimize falls, etc. I’m not used to being old, and I don’t like it. Too bad. So sad. Sigh. But enough of that. SHAKEN SPIRITS was released in January, which made me happy. People seem to appreciate the addition of Lou Prophet to Daisy and her gang. Old Lou is extremely fun to write, so I hope Peter Brandvold (who created him and writes about Lou when he was in his salad days) lets me keep him. So please go out and buy several copies! You know. For gifts and stuff. Here’s the cover and the Kindle link:  Shaken Spirits link Also, if you want to read about Lou Prophet when he was a young, vigorous, womanizing, hard-drinking bounty hunter (and still had two legs), please go and buy several copies of BLOOD AT SUNDOWN, too. It’s a great read, in my not-awfully-humble opinion. Here’s the cover and Kindle link for BLOOD, too. Hmm. That title doesn’t shorten awfully well, does it? But it’s a good book! Blood at Sundown amazon link My Daisy publisher, ePublishing Works, has also set up a pre-order page on Amazon.com for SCARLET SPIRITS, the next Daisy book, which I just finished writing. Yay, me! Haven’t a clue what the cover will look like, but here’s the Kindle link if you have a burning desire to pre-order it: Scarlet Spirits amazon link Two extremely good things regarding what I laughingly call my writing career happened in January, although I’m afraid I’ll jinx myself if I write about them here. But what the heck. If I’m jinxed, I’m jinxed. The first extremely good thing was that Five Star finally relinquished the rights to Daisy’s seventh adventure, SPIRITS REVIVED. Therefore, ePublishing Works (run by the fabulous Nina and Brian Paules) are going to reprint the whole series and number them correctly! That means the books will follow one another in a logical sequence, SPIRITS REVIVED will be #7, and the rest of the books will be numbered accordingly. I’m so happy about this I could squeal, but I don’t want to scare the dogs. The second extremely good thing to happen is that a person who hates to be thanked for anything and whose name I won’t mention here (Peter Brandvold. Okay, so I lied) told me about a publisher called Wolfpack run by a fellow named Mike Bray. Mean Pete suggested I send an email to Mike Bray with “Mean Pete Sent Me” in the subject line. So I did, and I included a list of all the books I’ve written (around 60-something). Mike Bray got back to me and said he’s extremely interested in re-packaging and re-publishing my entire back-list except the Daisy books (the ones to which I own the rights, I mean)! Wow. It would be spectacularly nice to make some money on books I wrote way back when, and I’m super-excited about this possibility. Wolfpack will probably begin by re-publishing either the Pecos Valley historical cozy mystery series (beginning with PECOS VALLEY DIAMOND, and going on through PECOS VALLEY REVIVAL and PECOS VALLEY RAINBOW) and starring Annabelle Blue; or my post-Titanic-disaster series, featuring three women who survived the sinking of Titanic. The books in order are A PERFECT STRANGER, A PERFECT ROMANCE (my personal favorite), and A PERFECT WEDDING. All three books feature Loretta Linden, a fabulously wealthy San Francisco woman who is bound and determined to help everyone around her, whether they want her help or not. The bitter truth about the Titanic series is that I loathed writing the first book (A PERFECT WEDDING). That’s because I thought Daisy Gumm Majesty was dead and floating belly-up in the goldfish bowl of publishing, and I only wanted to write more Daisy books. I got over it and enjoyed writing the second and third books. It probably helped a whole lot that Daisy got a new lease on life, thanks to Five Star. And now ePublishing Works has done a totally fabulous job on the entire Daisy series. In fact (this is embarrassing to admit, but what the heck), ePW is the very first publisher I’ve ever had (and my books have been published by most of them) that has ever made any money for me. I love Nina and Brian! Very well then, let’s get to the important stuff. The people who won copies of SHAKEN SPIRITS are: Meredith Hillenbrand, Tammy Corcoran (who lives in Minnesota, poor frozen thing), and Teena Stambaugh (who lives in Ohio. Not sure what the weather’s like there). I’ll get your books to you as soon as I can get to the post office, ladies. As for books I’ll be giving away at the end of February, lemme think for a minute. Okay, I’ll give away a copy of  PECOS VALLEY REVIVAL, a copy of FALLEN ANGELS and a copy of SIERRA RANSOM. SIERRA is an historical romance novel, but it’s pretty good anyway. Due to the high cost of postage, I’ll only be able to send physical books to people residing in the USA. However, if you live in a far-off place and win, I’ll be happy to send you an ebook (Kindle or Nook). Iris Evans and Leon Fundenberger founded a Facebook page called DAISY DAZE just for posting stuff from the 1920s that Daisy Gumm Majesty and her family might have used or seen or gone to or shopped at. It’s fun, and if you’d like to be a member, check it out here: https://www.facebook.com/groups/905100189878318/ . If you’d like to visit my web page, here’s the link: http://aliceduncan.net/ . And if you’d like to be Facebook friends, please go here: https://www.facebook.com/alice.duncan.925 I think that’s it! Thank you!

Review: Sister of the Mist by Eric Wilder

Interesting book.  Sort of two different mysteries in one.  Both set in New Orleans amidst its craziness.  One mystery is the story of men investigating the murder of a jockey and a racehorse.  Another is a group of very different people on a magical quest to save a woman who joined a convent after the death of her twin sister.  Only the convent was a front for a very evil priest and nun who were human trafficking.  Throw in some vampires, Swamp monsters and a Scottish warrior and it is very dramatic and intriguing.  I am honestly not sure why the two divergent mysteries in the same book though.

That said, it is an amped-up New Orleans Halloween blast!

Review: Little Black Lies by Sharon Bolton

In the Falkland Islands, tragedy is entwined in the lives of Catrin, Rachel and Callum. Each tells their own version in different sections of the book. A horrible accident that destroys multiple lives, missing children and a lot of pain, anger and false beliefs. 

So many dead or missing children.  So many questions.  Three people with many of the answers.  The anger of a small community.

When the truth finally unravels, it is surprising. Very enjoyable

The only thing that I was frustrated with was the final reveal -- I felt like there were no clues anywhere to lead to it.  A good reveal, but leading to more questions and a sense of no resolution.

Review: The Crocodile Hunter by Steve and Terri Irwin

When Steve and Terri Irwin started their filming, I am sure they had no idea how influential they would become in the word of conservation and just educating and entertaining people.  After Steve's tragic death, I missed the shows a lot.  Steve's enthusiasm for the animals always made me enthusiastic as well.  I cannot watch him and NOT smile.  It always makes me happy.  So, this book was so nostalgic as well and educational for me.  Between the wonderful pictures,  and personal insights, it gives you just want you want and expect.  I also love that Steve's work continues at Australia zoo and I continue to be amazed at how powerful his message has been.  Basically a trip to Australia Zoo is one of my bucket list items. 

Review: Die Again by Tess Gerritsen

Rizzoli and Isles are investigating the brutal death of a big game hunter/taxidermist and the stolen snow leopard pelt taken from him.  In their investigation, they find a very unusual killer who may have been active for years throughout the country, preying on hikers and isolated people.  Then they find that it may be connected to a 6 year old Interpol case where an entire tourist party was massacred  except for one lone survivor.

Millie is the survivor from Botswana, and she has been brought to Boston to help them catch the killer.

I really enjoyed this book.  It shifts from first person POV (Millie's account of the Botswana expedition) and 3rd person POV - the current investigation.  I know some people don't like that sort of thing, but I don't mind it.  In this case particularly, I like the story told from Millie's POV, because it feels more real.

Additionally, I liked the narrator as well