Review: NAKED IN DEATH by J.D. Robb

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GOODREADS | AMAZON | BOOK DEPOSITORY

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TRIGGER WARNING (HIGHLIGHT BELOW):
Rape. Pedophilia. Incest.

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NAKED IN DEATH
J.D. Robb

Series: In Death #1
Genre: Mystery, Romance
Publisher: Berkley Publishing Group
Pages: 306
Release date: July 1st 1995

It is the year 2058, and technology now completely rules the world. But New York City Detective Eve Dallas knows that the irresistible impulses of the human heart are still ruled by just one thing: passion.

When a senator’s daughter is killed, the secret life of prostitution she’d been leading is revealed. The high-profile case takes Lieutenant Eve Dallas into the rarefied circles of Washington politics and society. Further complicating matters is Eve’s growing attraction to Roarke, who is one of the wealthiest and most influential men on the planet, devilishly handsome… and the leading suspect in the investigation.

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“I want to see you again.”

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Naked in Death is a fast paced and intense futuristic Mystery novel with quite a bit of romance and action going on. The characters are intriguing and the plot is well developed and engrossing, although the romance is all kinds of instalove and rushed. The novel deals with some triggering subjects, which are a bit hard to get through, but the impressive twists and steamy scenes serve to balance that out.

J.D. Robb’s writing in engaging and easy to get into, although some shifts in POV are a bit abrupt. The set up of tension around the mystery and even between the two main characters, Eve and Roarke, is very well done and executed. This is a great introduction to the series that leaves along some curious threads to be explored later on.

WWW Wednesday: Read, Reading, Will Read (68)

Welcome to WWW Wednesday, a meme currently being hosted by Sam @ Taking On A World of Words. It’s a place for you to do a little update on what your reading plans are.

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The Three W’s are:

• What are you currently reading?
• What did you recently finish reading?
• What do you think you’ll read next?

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What are you currently reading?

 

1. Cut and Run by Mary Burton

Mystery! Really enjoying this one so far. The Mystery is engaging and pretty interesting, and I like how Burton is developing the plot. The romance is also well done, although the steamy scenes are a bit off place. Curious to see how this all gets solved.

2. How to Break an Undead Heart by Hailey Edwards

Urban Fantasy! I’m having such a good time reading this series. It’s still cheery, but I’m loving the somber tone of this novel. From the title, I do hope this means Boaz will finally let go of Tori. #TeamLinus all the way!

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What did you recently finish reading?

1. 1. The Darkest Star by Jennifer L. Armentrout: YA Sci-Fi! This feels stuck in the early 2000s when creepy dudes were written as girls’ One True Love.
   2. How to Save an Undead Life by Hailey Edwards: Urban Fantasy! Super charming with a cool world-building. The romance kinda sucks, though.
   3. Stalking Jack the Ripper by Kerri Maniscalco: YA Historical! Entirely predictable and not at all spooky like it promises to be.
   4. The Way of Kings by Brandon Sanderson: Epic Fantasy! Hella slow paced, but HOLY SHIT! Amazing world-building and plot development.
   5. Three Mages and a Margarita by Annette Marie: Urban Fantasy! Really fun, creative world-building, and sooo much flirting.
   6. How to Claim an Undead Soul by Hailey Edwards: Urban Fantasy! Slightly more serious tone, but still delightful. Romance didn’t get better.

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What do you think you’ll read next?

Song of Susannah by Stephen King

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I’m dreading this so much, but one of my goals is to finish this series, so…

Susannah Dean has now been possessed, her body usurped as a living vessel for the demon-mother Mia, and catapulted into the strange world of New York City in 1999. Something is growing inside Susannah, something terrible … for soon she will give birth to Mia’s “chap.” But three unlikely allies–the boy Jake, the billy-bumbler Oy, and the fallen priest Donald Callahan–are following them, hoping to prevent the unthinkable. Meanwhile, gunslingers Roland of Gilead and Eddie Dean have ended up violently tumbling into another place and time–the state of Maine in 1977–where the author of a popular novel with mysterious connections to the Dark Tower is about to meet his destiny….

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What books did you recently finish reading? What do you plan on reading next?
Tell me in the comments!

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FIND ME:
GOODREADS | INSTAGRAM | TWITTER | BLOGLOVIN’

Book Tag: Fall 🍂

Saw this one over Destiny @ Howling Libraries and couldn’t resist!
Tag and cute graphics created by Bionic Bookworm!

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A Ferry of Bones & Gold is such a delightful and refreshing read! The world-building is so unlike anything else I’ve seen in Urban Fantasy, even more so as it features a queer couple. The story is so complex and intriguing, with a heavy focus on mystery, and the characters are really well developed.

I’m still trying to process the ending of The Haunting of Hill House. This turned out to be suuuch a spooky book to me, and the open ending works so well with the overall atmosphere of the story. It’s the kind of tragedy and creepiness that stays with you even after you’ve finished reading the book.

Review: WILD HUNGER by Chloe Neill

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GOODREADS | AMAZON | BOOK DEPOSITORY

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WILD HUNGER
Chloe Neill

Series: Heirs of Chicagoland #1
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Publisher: Berkley
Pages: 352
Release date: August 14th 2018

As the only vampire child ever born, some believed Elisa Sullivan had all the luck. But the magic that helped bring her into the world left her with a dark secret. Shifter Connor Keene, the only son of North American Central Pack Apex Gabriel Keene, is the only one she trusts with it. But she’s a vampire and the daughter of a Master and a Sentinel, and he’s prince of the Pack and its future king.

When the assassination of a diplomat brings old feuds to the fore again, Elisa and Connor must choose between love and family, between honor and obligation, before Chicago disappears forever.

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“You are exactly who you should be.”

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Wild Hunger is an action packed and fast paced novel, as well as a charming spin-off from the Chicagoland Vampires series. The book is not a standalone by any means, but it does bring a fresh new set of characters and quite a lot of humor with its intense plot. There is a little romance to balance out the danger, but the main focus is on the mystery and development of Elisa as a main character.

Chloe Neill’s writing is engaging and very easy to get into. The narrative is a little clumsy and rushed at times, especially at the end, but the story is overall engrossing and interesting. There is little world-building development as the story borrows heavily from the previous series, but it still manages to be a unique novel in its own right.

Review: ONE-EYED ROYALS by Cordelia Kingsbridge

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GOODREADS | AMAZON | RIPTIDE PUBLISHING

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ONE-EYED ROYALS
Cordelia Kingsbridge

Series: Seven of Spades #4
Genre: LGBTQ+, Mystery
Publisher: Riptide Publishing
Pages: 366
Release date: September 10th 2018

Spoiler Alert! The following blurb contains spoilers for Cash Plays, book three of Seven of Spades.

Shattered by their devastating breakup, Detective Levi Abrams and PI Dominic Russo find themselves at war right when they need each other most. While Dominic is trapped in a vicious cycle of addiction, Levi despairs of ever catching the Seven of Spades. The ruthless vigilante’s body count continues to climb, and it’s all Levi can do to keep up with the carnage.

When Levi’s and Dominic’s paths keep crossing in the investigation of a kidnapping ring with a taste for mutilation, it feels like history repeating itself. Thrown together by fate once again, they reluctantly join forces in their hunt for the mastermind behind the abductions.

But the Seven of Spades hates sharing the spotlight, and they have an ace in the hole: a new batch of victims with a special connection to Levi. Their murders send shockwaves through Las Vegas and change the rules of the game forever.

The Seven of Spades has upped the ante. If Levi and Dominic don’t play their cards right, they’ll end up losing everything.

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If you back the wrong horse, you may lose everything.

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One-Eyed Royals is another wonderful addition to the series, with an intense plot filled with many twists and quite a bit of action and gore. The stakes keep getting higher and higher, and the darkness that surrounds the story and characters reflects that narration progress. This novel still has the charm is embed in the Seven of Spades series, but with an added bit of dramatics and angst.

Cordelia Kingsbridge’s writing is still absolutely amazing. The character development is one of the highlights of the novel, as well as the reveals that make this overall plot arc so intriguing and engrossing. The way Kingsbridge deals with addiction and recovery is done extremely well, and it means breakthroughs are sweeter than ever and failures tug even harder at your strings.

Review: THE CARROW HAUNT by Darcy Coates

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GOODREADS | AMAZON | BOOK DEPOSITORY

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THE CARROW HAUNT
Darcy Coates

Genre: Horror
Publisher: Black Owl Books
Pages: 370
Release date: March 26th 2018

Remy is a tour guide for Carrow House, a notoriously haunted building. When she’s asked to host seven guests for a week-long stay to research Carrow’s phenomena, she hopes to finally experience some of the sightings that made the house famous.

At first, it’s everything they hoped for. Then a storm moves in, cutting off their contact with the outside world, and things quickly become twisted. Doors open on their own. Seances go disastrously wrong. Red liquid seeps from behind the wallpaper. Their spirit medium wanders through the house during the night, seemingly in a trance.

Then one of the guests dies under strange circumstances, and Remy is forced to consider the possibility that the ghost of the house’s original owner, a twisted serial killer, still walks the halls.

But by then it’s too late to escape.

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No one is up here. No one living, at least.

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The Carrow Haunt is a fast-moving and creepy novel with wonderful characters and a fascinating setting. The plot is engrossing and rather complex, with many shocking twists and scary reveals along the way. There is some very light romance, but the overall atmosphere of the novel is eerie and filled with terrible secrets.

Darcy Coates delivers an engaging story that offers an unique take on the premise of haunted houses. The writing is great and very easy to get into, especially when narrated through Remy’s perspective. The plot set up is also very well executed, which makes this an equal parts intriguing and unsettling read.

WWW Wednesday: Read, Reading, Will Read (67)

Welcome to WWW Wednesday, a meme currently being hosted by Sam @ Taking On A World of Words. It’s a place for you to do a little update on what your reading plans are.

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The Three W’s are:

• What are you currently reading?
• What did you recently finish reading?
• What do you think you’ll read next?

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What are you currently reading?

   

1. The Way of Kings by Brandon Sanderson

Fantasy! Finally broke through the first half, and I’m enjoying the plot. The pace is a little too slow for me, but I do love most of the shifting POVs. This is such a huge world to immerse myself in and I quite like what I’ve seen so far.

2. Stalking Jack the Ripper by Kerri Maniscalco

YA Historical with a little bit of Horror! Part of my Halloween TBR for this month. I really enjoy the humor and looove the gorey bits so far! I’m halfway through and the pace has slowed down some, but I’m having lots of fun reading this.

3. The Darkest Star by Jennifer L. Armentrout

YA Sci-Fi ARC! I’m having flashbacks with this Lux spin-off, omg. I love the banter between the characters and how Armentrout sets up an intriguing plot, but… I’ve grown as a person and reader, so there are quite a few points in the narrative that are supposed to be cute but are just really creepy instead. We’ll see what happens.

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What did you recently finish reading?

1. 1. Exit Strategy by Martha Wells: Sci-Fi! I love Murderbot and this is a great set up to his first full length novel. Review to come.
   2. The Carrow Haunt by Darcy Coates: Horror! Really nice and spooky read on haunted houses with a great set of characters. Review to come.
   3. A Ferry of Bones & Gold by Hailey Turned: M/M Urban Fantasy! I loved this so much!!! The characters, the world-building, the writing. Review to come.
   4. The Retreat by Mark Edwards: Mystery Horror! Eh. Nice mystery, but everything was pretty lukewarm. Review to come.
   5. Something Wicked This Way Comes by Ray Bradbury: Classic Horror! It was nice! The writing is a bit meh, but the plot is super eerie and fun.

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What do you think you’ll read next?

Death on the Nile by Agatha Christie

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Mystery! This is part of my Halloween TBR and my Owned TBR, so two checks in one go. 😀

The tranquility of a cruise along the Nile is shattered by the discovery that Linnet Ridgeway has been shot through the head. She was young, stylish and beautiful, a girl who had everything – until she lost her life. Hercule Poirot recalls an earlier outburst by a fellow passenger: ‘I’d like to put my dear little pistol against her head and just press the trigger.’ Yet in this exotic setting’ nothing is ever quite what it seems…

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What books did you recently finish reading? What do you plan on reading next?
Tell me in the comments!

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FIND ME:
GOODREADS | INSTAGRAM | TWITTER | BLOGLOVIN’