This blog is the place where I post reviews of the books I have read. I review audiobooks, regular books and eBooks for authors and publishers as well as any other book or audiobook that catches my eye.
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DESCRIPTION:
Tyler Robertson is a music manager. Cary Kingston is the biggest rock star in the world. She’s sworn off dating musicians. And he’s a confirmed bachelor.
But when their working relationship turns into something more, she wonders if she’s falling for the rock star or the person.
You can’t always get what you want… but sometimes you can.
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MY REVIEW:
Hunter Snow’s debut novel ROCK CRUSH AND ROLL is a fabulous read. This book has everything you could hope for in women’s fiction.
What do I mean by that? Well, here is just a small taste of what readers can expect:
* A kick-ass female lead character who is flawed just as much as the rest of us, but despite her flaws, readers will fall for Tyler Robertson and will hope for the best for her
* A sexy rock star
* A cast of characters who are relatable
* An amazing, loyal, and protective family
* A feminist lens
* A world that very few people have penetrated … the music industry
* And so much more …
When a book can take you out of your daily life and transport you into the life of the protagonist, it is the most delicious form of escapism available. This book does exactly that.
I generally do not read a lot of romance-type books, but if I could find more novels that were even half as entertaining and engrossing as ROCK CRUSH AND ROLL this genre might just become my new favorite.
Hunter Snow is at the start of a promising future as a celebrated author. I am looking forward to reading her next book.
ROCK CRUSH AND ROLL is definitely a book worthy of the highest rating I can give: 5 out of 5 Stars ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️
*** Thank you to #HunterSnow for providing me with a free copy of her book. ***
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
After (barely) surviving a career in the music industry, Hunter Snow now lives to tell its tales.
She writes contemporary romances from her home in the Pacific Northwest.
Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.
To learn more about this author visit the following links:
The small town of Harrod’s Reach has seen its fair share of the macabre, especially inside the decrepit old train tunnel around which the town was built. After a young boy, Sully Dupree, is injured in the abandoned tunnel and left in a coma, the townspeople are determined to wall it up. Deputy sheriff Beth Gardner is reluctant to buy into the superstitions until she finds two corpses at the tunnel’s entrance, each left with strange calling cards inscribed with old lullabies. Soon after, Sully Dupree briefly awakens from his coma.
Before falling back into his slumber, Sully manages to give his older brother a message. Sully’s mind, since the accident, has been imprisoned on the other side of the tunnel in Lalaland, a grotesque and unfamiliar world inhabited by evil mythical creatures of sleep. Sully is trapped there with hundreds of other coma patients, all desperately fighting to keep the evils of the dream world from escaping into the waking world.
Elsewhere, a man troubled by his painful youth has for years been hearing a voice in his head he calls Mr. Lullaby, and he has finally started to act on what that voice is telling him—to kill any coma patient he can find, quickly. Something is waking up in the tunnel—something is trying to get through. And Mr. Lullaby is coming.
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BARNES AND NOBLE IS PUBLISHING AN EXCLUSIVE PAPERBACK EDITION OF MISTER LULLABY – Click to see it here …
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MY REVIEW:
J.H. MARKERT is one twisted Son of a Gun. Don’t mistake that as criticism, instead, it is actually 100% a compliment.
This is the second horror novel from this author I’ve read and I am quickly becoming a huge fan. In December of 2022 I posted a 5 Star review of THE NIGHTMARE MAN and MISTER LULLABY is just as amazing as that first book.
One of the best things about this book is the character-building. J.H. Markert has an uncanny knack for creating believable characters.
Although this is a horror story, the author doesn’t rely on cheap tactics such as bloody gore to keep the readers attention, instead, he carefully crafts the entire world his characters inhabit. This world-building is one of the reasons his stories are so terrifying… they come across to the reader as entirely possible. That is absolutely terrifying.
With so many books on the market, and so many authors writing ‘horror’ novels, it takes a truly talented and exceptional author to create more than one book that warrants a rating of 5+ out of 5 Stars, J.H. Markert is that one in a million author and I will buy every book he writes.
I rate MISTER LULLABY with the highest rating possible. If I could give this book a rating of more than 5 out of 5 Stars, I would definitely do so.
DAVID BENDENA and LAUREN EZZO were the perfect choices to narrate the audiobook version of MR. LULLABY. Their voices compliment each other and both have an incredible sense of pacing. Not only that, but it seems to me they were invested in creating not just narration, but an experience for the listener.
I HIGHLY RECOMMEND to anyone and everyone who enjoys the genres of horror and/or thrillers, need to buy not only MISTER LULLABY, but also THE NIGHTMARE MAN. I guarantee that you will become as big of a fan as I am.
5+ out of 5 Stars ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️
*** Thank you to #NetGalley #Dreamscape and #JHMarkert for providing me with a free copy of this audiobook. ***
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
J.H. Markertis the pen name for writer James Markert, an award-winning novelist, produced screenwriter, husband, and father of two from Louisville, Kentucky, where he was also a tennis pro for 25 years, before hanging up the racquets for good in 2020.
He graduated with a degree in History from the University of Louisville in 1997 and has been writing ever since.
James Markert: (Copied from his website) James was raised in a household where creativity thrived, paintings and stained-glass windows beautified the walls, and the arts were as regular as the seasons. This upbringing will forever be his muse. James has a history degree from the University of Louisville, where, in his senior year, he was awarded a scholarship as the school’s most outstanding history major. He won an IPPY Award for The Requiem Rose, which was later published by Sourcebooks as A White Wind Blew.
James has ideas for future novels that run the gamut of history from time periods and topics like Charles Dickens, Jekyll and Hyde, Prohibition, the Dust Bowl, the Sixties, both World Wars, the Golden Age of Magicians, and a series on Medieval Cathedral building.
James is the writer and co-producer of the feature film/tennis comedy 2nd Serve, starring several actors from popular television shows like Scandal, The Big Bang Theory, Gotham, Cougar Town, Shameless, and Ray Donovan.
James is also a USPTA tennis pro, and has coached dozens of kids who’ve gone on to play college tennis in top conferences like the Big 10, the Big East, and the ACC. He lives with his wife and two children in Louisville, KY.
Favorite Authors: Stephen King, John Irving, Ken Follett, Pat Conroy, Wally Lamb, George R.R. Martin, Elizabeth Strout, Dennis Lehane, Greg Iles, Anne Rice, Hillary Mantel, Carlos Ruiz Zafon.
Favorite Books: The Stand, The Cider House Rules, The Alienist, Pillars of the Earth, Beach Music, I know This Much is True, The Burgess Boys, The Shadow of the Wind, A Song of Ice and Fire Series.
Favorite Music: U2, Pearl Jam, Cold Play, REM, Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd, The Killers, Mozart, Muse, Dave Matthews.
Favorite Shows: Game of Thrones, Justified, Deadwood, Rome, Peaky Blinders, Boardwalk Empire, Breaking Bad, Band of Brothers, The Tudors.
Favorite Movies: Shawshank Redemption, Good Will Hunting, Dead Poets Society, Signs, A Very Long Engagement, Amadeus, Gangs of New York, Sleepers, Saving Private Ryan, Gladiator, Kingdom of Heaven, Seven
To learn more about this author visit the following links:
Dreamscape Media has published hundreds of bestselling audiobooks that range from motivational self-help to suspenseful mysteries – swoon worthy romance to captivating non-fiction, Dreamscape has something for every listener!
To learn more about this Publisher visit the following links:
Bestselling author, co-host of the hit podcast The Murder Squad, and true-crime investigative journalist Billy Jensen goes to Columbus, Ohio, where he examines the unsolved cases of eighteen dead and missing women, whom he suspects were the victims of serial killers on the loose and operating under cover of the opioid epidemic in America’s heartland.
In Chase Darkness with Me, readers and listeners learned Billy Jensen’s journalist origin story, his struggles, his call to adventure, and his first successes in solving murders.
In Killers Amidst Killers, readers will ride shotgun with Jensen as he takes on serial killers who are walking among us and planning their next moves in real time. The facts are not in old police reports and faded photos. They unfold before our eyes on the page.
Our story begins in 2017, when two young women, best friends Danielle and Lindsey go missing in Columbus, Ohio, within weeks of each other, and their bodies are found soon thereafter.
As Jensen investigates Danielle and Lindsey’s cases, he comes across other missing and murdered women, and before long, he uncovers eighteen of them. All unsolved. And no one was talking about it.
These are not women who were raised in the street. They got hooked on pills. The pills were taken away. They get hooked on heroin. And when the money is gone, they have to sell themselves. It happens very quick.
Through his investigations and the help of experts, Jensen identifies serial killers in Cleveland and Columbus. Why there? Because it’s easy. Sharks go where the swimmers are. Serial killers go where the easy prey are: Ground zero of the opioid epidemic. The heart of America.
That is what happened to Danielle and Lindsey. But serial killers murdering sex workers in the 21st century will get 45 seconds on the local news, and page 3 in the local paper, and then can disappear in the wind.
Jensen hunts these predators to bring peace to the victims’ suffering families while putting a spotlight on a system that is leaving hundreds of thousands of bodies in its wake.
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SHORT REVIEW:
Billy Jensen’s new book KILLERS AMIDST KILLERS: Hunting Serial Killers Operating Under The Cloak of America’s Opiod Epidemic is truly eye-opening. Every law enforcement officer, and every politician should be required to read this book.
“All these women, missing and murdered within a span of a handful of years and a few highways between them, with the state capital of Columbus at its center. Why was this not a national story? You hear ‘serial killer,’ the public’s ears prick up. You hear ‘heroin’ and ‘sex work,’ they come back down.”
This is inexcusable.
Billy Jensen’s dedication to finding out what happened to: Danielle Greene and Lindsey Maccabee is laudable. At the beginning of his search for the killer of the two women he had absolutely no idea that he would come to learn about so many missing and murdered women in such a small area and that he would discover multiple serial killers all “working” in the same state and during the same time period. Even worse is the fact that no law enforcement agency seemed to notice or care. “… with their inaction, police were ringing the dinner bell for these predators.“
Written in the first person, although this is a true crime book, it is also a memoir. I love the way Billy thinks and the fact that he says exactly what he feels. For example, he writes:
“The men who are murdering these women? … For the most part, they are morons. They are fucked-up little narcissistic men-children.”
Well said Billy. Well said.
KILLERS AMIDST KILLERS is not just a typical “True Crime” book. It is an eye-opening, must read.
I rate this book as 5 out of 5 Stars.
⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️
Billy Jensen is a journalist and author at the top of his game and I am 100 percent a fan of his work.
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MY FULL LENGTH REVIEW:
Duh! I can’t believe I hadn’t thought of the correlation between missing and murdered women and the opioid crisis. Of course I knew that people, especially women, who were addicted to drugs often turned to sex work to survive, which in turn put them at a greater risk of being abducted and/or murdered. But, I hadn’t thought it through to the, now obvious, conclusion that serial killers were able to hide their crimes easier because police were more apt to write off these women due to their addictions. What a horrifying revelation!
Billy Jensen’s new book KILLERS AMIDST KILLERS: Hunting Serial Killers Operating Under The Cloak of America’s Opiod Epidemic is truly eye-opening. Every law enforcement officer, and every politician should be required to read this book.
“All these women, missing and murdered within a span of a handful of years and a few highways between them, with the state capital of Columbus at its center. Why was this not a national story? You hear ‘serial killer,’ the public’s ears prick up. You hear ‘heroin’ and ‘sex work,’ they come back down.”
It is inexcusable that the disappearances of the women highlighted in this book have received barely any publicity. This needs to change.
Billy Jensen’s dedication to finding out what happened to: Danielle Greene and Lindsey Maccabee is laudable. At the beginning of his search for the killer of the two women he had absolutely no idea that he would come to learn about so many missing and murdered women in such a small area and that he would discover multiple serial killers all “working” in the same state and during the same time period. What a terrifying truth. And, even worse, is the fact that no law enforcement agency seemed to notice or care.
“I was not looking for one serial killer stalking the streets of Columbus and Middletown and Dayton. No. But it was three or four or five. Getting the urge every now and then. It was systemic. And with their inaction, police were ringing the dinner bell for these predators.“
Written in the first person, although this is a True Crime book, it is also a memoir. I love the way Billy thinks. I am impressed that he makes sure readers know not to romanticize the killers. He writes:
“The men who are murdering these women? … For the most part, they are morons. They are fucked-up little narcissistic men-children.”
KILLERS AMIDST KILLERS is not just a typical “True Crime” book. It is an eye-opening, must read. The fact is that even though this is a book about serial killers who are currently operating in Ohio, it could just as easily have been about the exact same thing happening in any other state. That is not only terrifying, it is unacceptable.
I rate this book as 5 out of 5 Stars. ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️
Billy Jensen is a journalist and author at the top of his game.
What comes through quite clearly in his writing is the fact he actually cares about missing and murdered women. He doesn’t see the victims as being worth any more or any less due to their addictions or their occupation of survival sex work. More people, especially law enforcement and journalists need to follow in Billy Jensen’s footsteps. They need to care, and they need to do everything in their power to identify the perpetrators and arrest them as soon as possible.
I truly hope this book opens people’s eyes to the horrific epidemic of missing and murdered women. I hope Billy keeps reporting and working on solving these cases. Now, if we could just clone him and put a clone in every major city, maybe we could get through to the police and force them to care and to do their jobs.
Billy Jensen has solved or helped solve more than a ten homicides.
His true crime memoir, Chase Darkness with Me: How One True Crime Writer Started Solving Murders, was a New York Times bestseller, and he has written crime stories for Rolling Stone, Los Angeles Magazine, Boston Magazine, and Miami New Times, and was a crime stringer for the New York Times.
After his friend Michelle McNamara suddenly passed away, he, her husband, and her researcher helped finish her book, I’ll Be Gone in the Dark, about the hunt for the Golden State Killer, which became a New York Times #1 bestseller, and he was co-executive producer of the subsequent HBO docuseries.
He produced and costarred in the Investigation Discovery series Unraveled, the first season of which focused on the investigation into the Long Island Serial Killer.
To learn more about this author visit the following links:
Founded in 2013 by a team of seasoned entrepreneurs and book industry professionals, Post Hill Press has successfully published a wide spectrum of books, with a focus on the categories of pop culture, business, self-help, health, current events, memoirs, and political books. Our entrepreneurial spirit makes Post Hill Press a nimble publisher, willing and able to move quickly and take advantage of opportunities in the marketplace.
Our books have appeared on The New York Times, USA Today,The Wall Street Journal, and Publishers Weekly bestseller lists. A number of our authors have appeared on national media such as CNN, Fox News, Good Morning America, CBS Saturday Morning, notable podcasts including The Joe Rogan Experience, and many others as well as national radio and print outlets.
We publish across all formats and platforms, including eBooks, audiobooks, and print books, which are distributed by Simon and Schuster and available worldwide. We have ongoing collaborative relationships with national television networks as well as a strategic alliance with an innovative global literary agency.
Post Hill Press prides itself on partnering with authors. Publishing with us is a collaborative experience, where an author is included in decision-making throughout the process. We believe this is a key component to their ongoing success.
To learn more about this Publisher visit the following links:
When Elisabeth London travels back in time to the 14th century, she is transported to a world straight out of the pages of a fairy-tale. Swept away by the adventure and romance, Elisabeth follows her heart—and Aquarius—into this whole new world. But Elisabeth soon learns her father has discovered where (or rather when) she is. He’s sent a bounty-hunter to bring her home. Although a million questions buzz through her mind, there’s one thing she’s certain of—her parents will never let her hang out in the 14th century with a guy she met in Ancient Rome. With her heart at stake, can Elisabeth avoid the bounty-hunter and find a way to stay in this fairy-tale world? Or is her love-life about to take a rather grim twist? Find out in Elisabeth London’s timeless story of love, danger, and adventure.
An adventurer at heart, Tammy has explored ruins in Rome, Pompeii, and Istanbul (Constantinople) with historians and archaeologists.
She’s slept in the tower of a 15th century castle in Scotland, climbed down the cramped tunnels of Egyptian pyramids, scaled the Sydney Harbour Bridge, sailed on a tiny raft down the Yulong River in rural China, dined at a Bedouin camp in the Arabian Desert, and escaped from head-hunters in the South Pacific.
I suppose one could say her own childhood wish of time traveling adventures came true…in a roundabout way.
When Crooked Nose punched, David blocked. Then, with a quick elbow movement, he smacked the man’s face with the end of the rope before stepping back. The effect was rather comical.
Crooked threw another punch.
David pounced, wrapping the rope around the man’s wrist. Yanking the tied arm back made him double over. His eyes turned cold and hard. “Who sent you?”
The man’s breath sawed in and out. “You’ve no idea whose daughter you’ve run away with, do you?”
He pulled Crooked’s arm straight back some more. “Enlighten me.”
“Make her tell you,” he hissed.
David swallowed a lump in his throat. “She hides nothing from me.” He then snapped the man’s arm at the elbow, and grabbed Elisabeth’s hand, pulling her to a run.
Her breath hitched, and the colorful bouquet of wildflowers dropped.
“By the gods!” David led the way through a field of grazing sheep, toward a grove of trees. “Your father is here?”
“No…” She shook her head in denial. “No, he can’t be…can he?”
“You tell me!”
Elisabeth let out an uncontrollable whimper.
If Dad found out she was time-traveling—she was so grounded.
Have you experienced true terror? For three criminals, they’re about to face it head-on!
Fresh out of prison, Jeremy vows to steer clear of a life of crime and clean up his act. But he quickly realizes that to the world, he will always be an ex-con and plunges back into his old ways. The perfect opportunity presents itself in the form of his best friend, Stephen, and his spunky girlfriend, Natalie.
After a failed bank robbery, Jeremy and his accomplices’ identities are made. So, they find refuge in the home of a typical Christian family. Their getaway should have been smooth sailing…after all it was three armed criminals against the wholesome Boyd family.
But the Boyds are hiding dark secrets of their own…
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Aidan Lucid began his author journey after a spiritual experience in 2002. Two years later, he sent several short stories, articles and poems to magazines and was published seven times that year.
Having successfully completed courses in creative writing, writing for TV and radio, and freelance journalism, Lucid went on to have even more poems, articles and short stories appear in national and international magazines and anthologies over the years.
Between 2019 and 2023, he published five books. Aidan is the author of a YA horror series titled, “The Hopps Town Series” and also a YA epic fantasy novel, – The Lost Son (Second Edition), the first in a YA fantasy quadrology – The Zargothian Saga. A few stand-alone stories have been released also.
In his spare time, Aidan likes to listen to music (being a huge Elvis and Shakin’ Stevens fan!), read, go for walks and see the latest cinema releases with his wife, Claire.
To learn more about this author visit the following links:
Malcolm looked in his rear-view mirror at the car and its driver growing smaller by the second. “I feel bad about leaving him there.” He slowed to a stop, then shifted the stick into reverse.
“What are you doing? This is insane!” Helena protested as he reversed the Wagoneer.
“Yeah, but if anything happened to him, I’d never forgive myself. Besides, I can’t just drive past him.”
“Course you can. Just press the accelerator and go.”
He brought the Wagoneer to a halt a few feet from the Buick and yanked up the handbrake. “I won’t be long.”
“Malcolm. Malcolm!” Helena hissed as he got out.
The stranger stood staring at the front left wheel, not acknowledging Malcolm’s presence.
“Howdy, sir. Having car trouble?” he asked the chubby driver who appeared to be in his fifties.
“Got a flat. Can’t change it with my back.”
“I can do that if you like? Got a spare?”
“That’s mighty kind of you, fella. Uh . . . yeah, in the trunk.”
“Let me get my wrenching nut.” Malcolm opened his own trunk and took out the tool. He kneeled down and began unscrewing the nuts. “You from around here?”
“The next town a few miles ahead. You?”
“We live about three hours away. Hartford Town. Ever heard of it?”
“Never, sir. Thanks for doing this. I’m starvin’, I’m just waiting for my brother-in-law to come. Lazy bastard probably hasn’t even left the house yet.”
Malcolm chuckled. “Got one of those myself. Just don’t tell her I said that.”
“Yeah, God I’m hungry. Good thing you came along.”
As Malcolm continued to unscrew the nuts on the flat tire, he noticed the driver walk a short distance away from him. Next, he heard the cracking of bones and popping sounds, as if joints were being dislocated. Low grunts soon transformed into growls.
Malcolm turned to look at the man but stood up, his jaw hung in terror.
“What…the…fu—” he uttered while retreating slowly to the Wagoneer.
The stranger’s shoulders grew wider as his shirt tore. Black fur replaced the man’s chubby stomach.
“Holy crap!” Malcolm exclaimed.
The only reply he received was a quick snarl as the man turned around, no longer bearing a human face but a wolf’s instead. Sharp, yellowed teeth dripped with saliva.
Helena’s screams confirmed she saw it too.
“Hurry, Dad, get in,” David cried, as tears streamed down his pale face.
Malcolm threw the wrenching nut, hitting the beast on the forehead. It staggered back, shaking its head, momentarily dazed.
Malcolm dashed into the driver’s seat, his trembling hands fumbling for the keys. He jumped when the creature let loose a feral howl.
“Come on, start the damn car! David, honey, lock both doors and get down,” Helena said.
The werewolf started walking towards the driver’s door as the engine roared into life. As Malcolm pulled out onto the road, the beast ran after them, leaping into the air. A thud let them know he was on their roof.
“Oh, Christ. Lose him,” Helena shouted.
Malcolm let loose a few expletives as an enormous paw smashed into his window. He swerved left and right to throw the monster off. Malcolm then slammed the brakes.
The beast rolled forward, digging his claws into the metal to keep himself on the car.
Malcolm feared that they were so sharp, if the werewolf reached the windshield, it would slice or tear off the roof.
“Crap,” cursed Malcolm as he drove again, unable to loosen the monster’s grip and knock it off.
The tormentor crawled up towards the windshield. When it was on the hood, the creature went on all fours. He reached back his arm, ready to smash into the glass.
“Oh no you don’t.” Malcolm slammed on the brakes again, catapulting the beast off the Wagoneer. When it hit the ground, the werewolf tumbled and rolled around before coming to a stop, its left arm bent out of shape.
All the Boyds stared on in disbelief. Helena glanced down at her skirt; shame washed over her face as a circular patch of urine soaked her crotch.
Malcolm gave another quick glance in the mirror. David’s face was whiter than normal, his eyes wide in horror. Malcolm grabbed his own right hand to stop it shaking.
They all jumped when the beast grunted again and raised its head, his bright green eyes locked menacingly on them.
The Withering Trials of Gwendolyn Gray by B.A. Williamson (The Chronicles of Gwendolyn Gray, #3) Publication date: November 18th 2023 Genres: Fantasy, Science Fiction, Young Adult
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Synopsis:
She Saved the City, But Lost Her Life
What would you do if your parents disappeared? How would you live, barely scraping by, lying to everyone in your life?
Two years ago, Gwendolyn Gray saved the City. But The Blackstar stole her parents and took them to another world. She lost her powers, her portals, and even her hair. So while the rest of the City is reveling in its newfound freedom, Gwendolyn has spent two years dodging the clutches of the Childkeeper and the Home for Unclaimed Children. Balancing work and school and impersonating her own parents hasn’t been great for her bipolar disorder, either.
So when a school bully and a vengeful faerie bring her carefully constructed lies crashing down around her, Gwendolyn seizes the chance to travel through the realms of story again, trying to find the world where her stolen parents are hidden. But battling bills is nothing compared to the gothic vampires and eldritch horrors she’ll meet along the way. And on a world of smoke and lightning and metal, a teenage rebel holds the key to saving her parents and getting back the life she lost.
Because growing up isn’t all it’s cracked up to be.
B. A. Williamson is the award winning author of The Chronicles of Gwendolyn Gray. When not mining the unfathomable depths of consciousness for new words to sling, he can be found wandering Indianapolis, directing plays, taming children, and probably singing entirely too loud. Direct all complaints and darkest secrets to @bawrites and bawilliamson.com.
The Doomsday Code Sara Yager Publication date: November 14th 2023 Genres: Adult, Thriller
In an artificial intelligence lab in Shanghai, something has gone terribly wrong. Days after a major breakthrough in machine learning, CyberGen Industries’ lead AI scientist is dead—and their precious prototype has vanished into the ether. An investigation reveals that, against all odds, the lab’s “unhackable” system has been breached.
The discovery, an algorithm mimicking human intelligence, is growing quickly—becoming more cunning and unpredictable with each passing hour. Soon its capabilities will eclipse its creators entirely.
Who stole it? And more troubling, what do they plan to do with it?
Ex-NSA hacker Adrian Pryor may be the only person on the planet capable of reining it in. He spent his career keeping the world safe, a vigilance for which he paid an enormous, personal price. Adrian knows there are people who will stop at nothing to control the powerful technology. He must find a way to do the impossible: to stop them, and to outmaneuver a rival more clever, more powerful, and more alien than anything he has ever seen.
Grounded in real-world science, Sara Yager’s wildly inventive debut brings advanced AI to life, illuminating a frightening, all-too-real truth about the future: we are one breakthrough away from inventing ourselves out of existence.
Adrian expected to see the other agents descend at any moment. Instead, a flash of movement from the top of the stairwell caught his eye. He looked up just in time to see a small metal object clattering down the stairs. A cold rush of panic coursed through him. “Run!”
He took two large strides and then shoved Olivia as hard as he could. They flew sidelong down the hallway, landing hard on stone, his body crushing hers in a protective shield. A second later, his night vision goggles flared painfully, and the entire room erupted in flames.
The grenade was as loud as a sonic boom in the silent chamber. The blast threw everyone to the ground. Shattered stone exploded from the walls and ceiling, followed by the thick pall of smoke and rock dust.
Adrian’s heart hammered in his chest.
Someone is still here.
His gaze shot to Wu. The agent was clearing rubble from around his legs and then proceeded to army-crawl back towards the stairwell, retrieving his CF-05 submachine gun. He pointed at the door. “You two—out, now!”
Before Adrian could react, a crack from overhead stopped him in his tracks. All eyes shot to the stairwell. A dark figure appeared, silhouetted by a hellish inferno behind him. Another gunshot blasted, followed by the whine of the man’s semi-automatic weapon as it unleashed a round past them. The attacker wheeled back from the force of the weapon’s discharge. Bullets rained from the ceiling, sparking, and ricocheting off stone. Adrian’s whole body tensed, pressing down tighter on top of Olivia.
When the bullets finally subsided, Agent Wu burst to his feet, streaking low across the chamber. He ducked into a cross-corridor and skidded to a stop, leaving only the barrel of his weapon visible around the corner.
Taking advantage of the momentary chaos, the assailant leapt from the stairs, charging headlong into the chamber and towards the solitary exit. He passed in a blur, leapfrogging over bodies as he went. He was almost to the door when another round cut the air, this time coming from Wu’s weapon. The fire caught the man on the back of his torso. Within seconds, his bullet-riddled form crumpled to the floor and the temple fell silent again.
Swearing, one of the agents next to Adrian rose to his feet. “You okay?”
“I’ll live.” Adrian’s eyes were on Olivia.
“How about you, ma’am?” the agent said.
“I’ve been better,” Olivia said, rubbing her arm.
“You’re lucky he got you out of the way before the grenade detonated,” the agent said. “If you had been at the bottom of that stairwell . . .”
Agent Wu joined them. “You’re safe now.”
Author Bio:
Sara Yager built a successful ten-year career in the semiconductor industry before leaving to care for her children full time. With a unique perspective as a mother and former tech professional, she brings a fresh and insightful voice to the world of speculative fiction.
A mom of two young boys, Yager came up with some of her best concepts for The Doomsday Code while waiting in the elementary school pickup line. She lives in Scottsdale, Arizona. This is her first novel.
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DESCRIPTION:
Inthis suspenseful YA thriller from debut author Marie Hoy-Kenny, four former friends—each with their own dark secret—must team up to solve a murder.
Calista, Zoe, Holly, and Denise were inseparable best friends when they spent their summers together at sleepaway camp. But after an unexplained tragedy forced the camp to close, the girls drifted apart.
Years later, reunited at their beloved camp counselor Violet’s funeral, the four former best friends quickly realize how much they’ve changed over the years. But despite their differences, they agree on one thing—Violet’s so-called accidental death was actually murder.
Unwilling to leave the case unsolved, they set off to uncover the truth—even if it means revealing the dark secrets of their pasts.
But someone wants them to stop investigating, and the anonymous threats keep coming, leaving them suspicious of everyone.
No one can be trusted, not even the girls from Hush Cabin.
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MY REVIEW:
I had the privilege of attending the Canadian Book Launch for “The Girls From Hush Cabin” which was held in Shelburne, Ontario, Canada.
During that exclusive event, an author reading took place as well as a Q & A session and book signing.
“The Girls From Hush Cabin” will resonate with anyone who has ever attended (or worked at) a kid’s sleepaway summer camp. Experiences like that have a way of forging deep and abiding friendships that often last a lifetime. For something to break that bond, it has to be traumatic in the extreme.
This Young Adult novel centers around a group of four friends – Calista, Zoe, Holly, and Denise – and takes place several years after attending camp together. They had all drifted apart, the reasons for which, is part of the mystery of the story.
Reunited due to the death of the camp counselor they all loved, they gather at her funeral only to discover that her death may not have been an accident – even though they seem to be the only ones who are suspicious.
What follows is a mystery, as well as a mystery within the mystery. Twists and turns abound and everyone’s secrets are exposed. Fans of Pretty Little Liars will love this book.
I rateTHE GIRLS FROM HUSH CABIN as 4 out of 5 Stars ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ and if you have teenagers to buy Christmas presents for, you cannot go wrong with gifting them this book. In fact, it just might end up being their favorite gift.
*** Thank you to #NetGalley for providing me with a free advance copy of this book which I enjoyed enough that I purchased a hardcover copy for myself.
Marie Hoy-Kenny is a writer and theatre enthusiast from Ontario, Canada, where she lives with her guitar-playing husband, two creative and spirited young children, and mischievous bichon poodle.
Marie has a Bachelor of Arts degree in English and a Master of Science in Education.
She writes young adult and middle grade novels and has had several stories and poems published in literary magazines.
Her debut young adult thriller, THE GIRLS FROM HUSH CABIN, was published by Blackstone Publishing in August, 2023.
Her first picture book, PLANTS ARE NOT BORING, will be illustrated by Mike Deas and published by Orca Books in April, 2025.
Marie is represented by Emmy Nordstrom Higdon from Westwood Creative Artists.
To learn more about this author visit the following links:
Publishing great books by talented writers and forging connections with readers for the long-term.
In 1987, in a small garage in Southern Oregon, Blackstone Publish was born.
Founded by Craig and Michelle Black, the early days consisted of a small handful of family members and employees working out of their home, building the business one cassette tape at a time. With a fresh perspective on the reading experience, Craig and Michelle, along with their trusted team, found new and innovative methods to not only produce and distribute audiobooks, but also pioneered creative ways to collaborate with publishers, booksellers, and the audiobook listening community.
2017 marked Blackstone’s 30th anniversary, and the company continues to grow, innovate, and further the ascendancy of the overall audiobook business.
The new publishing venture, launched in 2015, is built upon this foundation. The goal is to publish groundbreaking books (fiction and nonfiction) by talented writers, and to forge long-term connections with readers, booksellers, librarians, and the overall literary community.
Blackstone is thrilled to be working with bestselling authors like P. C. Cast and Kristin Cast, Shelley Shepard Gray, Nicholas Sansbury Smith, Catherine Ryan Howard, and Cory Doctorow to publish print books, e-books, and audiobooks, furthering their commitment to bringing entertaining stories to as many people as possible in the most creative and innovative ways imaginable.
To learn more about this Publisher visit the following links:
FROM WIKIPEDIA: The Highway of Tears is a 719-kilometre (447 mi) corridor of Highway 16 between Prince George and Prince Rupert in British Columbia, Canada, which has been the location of crimes against many Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women (MMIW) beginning in 1970. The phrase was coined during a vigil held in Terrace, British Columbia in 1998, by Florence Naziel, who was thinking of the victims’ families crying over their loved ones. There are a disproportionately high number of Indigenous women on the list of victims.
Unbroken is a remarkable work of memoir and investigative journalism focusing on missing and murdered Indigenous women and girls, written by an award-winning Gitxsan journalist who survived life on the streets against all odds.
As a Gitxsan teenager navigating life on the streets, Angela Sterritt wrote in her journal to help her survive and find her place in the world. Now an acclaimed journalist, she writes for major news outlets to push for justice and to light a path for Indigenous women, girls, and survivors. In her brilliant debut, Sterritt shares her memoir alongside investigative reporting into cases of missing and murdered Indigenous women in Canada, showing how colonialism and racism led to a society where Sterritt struggled to survive as a young person, and where the lives of Indigenous women and girls are ignored and devalued.
Growing up, Sterritt was steeped in the stories of her ancestors: grandparents who carried bentwood boxes of berries, hunted and trapped, and later fought for rights and title to that land. But as a vulnerable young woman, kicked out of the family home and living on the street, Sterritt inhabited places that, today, are infamous for being communities where women have gone missing or been murdered: Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside, and, later on, Northern BC’s Highway of Tears. Sterritt faced darkness: she experienced violence from partners and strangers and saw friends and community members die or go missing. But she navigated the street, group homes, and SROs to finally find her place in journalism and academic excellence at university, relying entirely on her own strength, resilience, and creativity along with the support of her ancestors and community to find her way.
“She could have been me,” Sterritt acknowledges today, and her empathy for victims, survivors, and families drives her present-day investigations into the lives of missing and murdered Indigenous women. In the end, Sterritt steps into a place of power, demanding accountability from the media and the public, exposing racism, and showing that there is much work to do on the path towards understanding the truth.
But most importantly, she proves that the strength and brilliance of Indigenous women is unbroken, and that together, they can build lives of joy and abundance.
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MY REVIEW:
Angela Sterritt has written a book that is important in innumerable ways. She writes with unflinching honesty about the trauma she has endured throughout her life as an Indigenous woman.
It is that shared intergenerational trauma that resonates throughout the stories in her memoir/treatise on the MMIW Crisis.
This book is not only a memoir. It is not just “True Crime.” Instead it is both a wake-up call and a call to action.
People need to know more. They need to see the Missing and Murdered women and girls as living, breathing, loving people who had lives and families and not just as a grim statistics.
However, people do need to be made aware of those grim statistics. I believe that many people are unaware of the facts.
The statistics are shocking and horrifying. For example…
“According to statistics gathered by the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls, Indigenous women are twelve times as likely to be murdered or missing as any other women in Canada and sixteen times as likely to be murdered as white women… Simply being Indigenous and female is a risk.”
So, if being an Indigenous woman is so risky, what can be done? How can we help? What is the first step that people can take to attempt to make a difference?
Well, if you read this book you will have taken the first step … educating yourself about the realities that Indigenous women and girls face on a daily basis.Congratulations on joining the fight to find the many MMIWG.
This book is unlike any other. Even though it does talk about many MMIW victims, it is the story of Angela Sterritt’s life so far as well as that of people she has met or worked with during her life do far. Writing about her years of homelessness as a teen, she states:
“I was sometimes in survival mode as a child. But as a teenager, surviving the circumstances I’d been placed in gave me a better understanding of the world that was sharply divided by privilege and power on one side and disenfranchisement and exclusion on the other.”
I could go on and on about the abuses she, and other Indigenous youth experienced, but I truly believe that this book is an essential read and you MUST READ it for yourself.
I believe that Canadians are ashamed of the way Indigenous women and girls have been (and often still are) treated and it is that shame that allows the treatment to be continued. THIS MUST STOP.
It would be a crying shame if people were to skip reading this book. It is in incredibly important for every Canadian and US citizen to learn the truth about the systemic and widespread racism that continues to be ongoing in our countries.
If we read about, or watched a documentary film about these same injustices happening in other countries, we, as a society, would be appalled. We would raise up our voices and call for the authorities to put an end to such treatment. So, why is it that many seem to turn a blind eye when it happens here in Canada?
Angela Sterritt’s book is a CALL TO ACTION.
Please, please, please read this book. And once you have, pass it on to someone else, and have them pass it on again. It is up to us to recognize the injustices and to raise up our voices. We MUST demand action – NOW.
I am rating UNBROKEN as 5+ out of 5 Stars. ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Angela Sterritt is an award-winning journalist, writer, and artist. Sterritt has worked as a journalist for close to twenty years and has been with the CBC since 2003.
She currently works with CBC Vancouver as a host and television, radio, and digital reporter.
She is a proud member of the Gitxsan Nation and lives on Sḵwx̱wú7mesh, Musqueam and Tsleil-Waututh territories, Vancouver, Canada.
To learn more about this author visit the following links:
Greystone Books is a leading independent publisher of books about nature, science, health, and social issues, with a commitment to environmental stewardship.
We are committed to reducing our environmental footprint in our production and supply chain. We print on paper that meets international standards set by globally recognized organizations that certify paper products sourced with socially responsible and environmentally friendly methods.
Founded in Vancouver in 1993 and named after the greystone commonly used in heritage architecture in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, our name reflects both the prairie roots of founding publisher Rob Sanders and a material grounded in the natural world.
We publish books that provide insight into living with a deep connection to nature: books that show readers how we can respect, protect, and care for the species we share this planet with—and how to create a future with them in mind.
As part of our commitment to protecting the environment, we publish a collection of our books in partnership with the David Suzuki Institute (DSI), a non-profit organization that raises public awareness and advances political action in Canada on the climate and biodiversity crisis and their solutions. Proceeds from the books published in partnership with the DSI help fund their organizing and advocacy initiatives.
To learn more about this Publisher visit the following links:
There’s a princess trapped in a tower. This IS NOT her story.
Meet Toadling. On the day of her birth, she was stolen from her family by the fairies, but she grew up safe and loved in the warm waters of faerieland. Once an adult though, the fae ask a favor of Toadling: return to the human world and offer a blessing of protection to a newborn child. Simple, right?
But nothing with fairies is ever simple.
Centuries later, a knight approaches a towering wall of brambles, where the thorns are as thick as your arm and as sharp as swords. He’s heard there’s a curse here that needs breaking, but it’s a curse Toadling will do anything to uphold…
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“The way Thornhedge turns all the fairy tales inside out is a sharp-edged delight.” —Katherine Addison, author of The Goblin Emperor
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MY REVIEW:
I read a few of the early reviews for THORNHEDGE, and was intrigued. So, thanks to #MacmillanAudio and #Netgalley I was able to receive an advance copy of the Thornhedge” audiobook.
Listening to Jennifer Blom narrate this phenomenal story was an experience not to be missed.
There have been many, many books published over the past few years that are retellings of fairy tales with more modern perspectives and diverse characters which is fantastic. However, none of those other authors have anywhere near the originality or imagination of those written by T. Kingfisher.
T. Kingfisher (a pseudonym for multi award-winning author Ursula Vernon) is my type of woman. Her imagination, creativity, and pure, unadulterated ‘twistedness’ make her books captivating and un-put-down-able.
THORN HEDGE may start out as a Princess-Locked-In-A-Tower story, but readers quickly realize that, for once, rescuing the princess is not what this story is about.
I refuse to ruin even a small part of this book for potential audiobook listeners, so suffice it to say that readers from the age of 8 to 98 will love this listening experience.
I rate THORNHEDGE as 6 out of 5 Stars ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ and cannot recommend this strongly enough – you NEED to pre-order this audiobook and/or the print version asap.
Even though I now own a copy of the audiobook, I want ahead and pre-ordered a copy of the hardcover because of the superb artwork I saw only a small taste of. I am excited to receive my copy.
*** Thank you to #NetGalley for providing me with a free copy of this audiobook. ***
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This is the hardcover version of this book that I Pre-ordered because I most definitely want this book in my collection.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
T. Kingfisher is the vaguely absurd pen-name of Ursula Vernon, an author from North Carolina. In another life, she writes children’s books and weird comics.
She has been nominated for the World Fantasy and the Eisner, and has won the Hugo, Sequoyah, Nebula, Alfie, WSFA, Coyotl and Ursa Major awards, as well as a half-dozen Junior Library Guild selections.
What is coming soon from T. KINGFISHER? Look at the chart above.
I will be posting my review of “What Moves The Dead” in the next few days. You definitely don’t want to miss out on this fabulous book … T. Kingfisher has created another absolute masterpiece.
This is the name she uses when writing things for grown-ups. Her work includes multiple fairy-tale retellings and odd little stories about elves and goblins.
When she is not writing, she is probably out in the garden, trying to make eye contact with butterflies.
To learn more about this author visit the following links:
Download a free audiobook version of T. Kingfisher’s Short Story “ORIGIN STORY” by clicking HERE.
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ABOUT THE NARRATOR:
JENNIFER BLOM is an audiobook narrator and actor living in New York. She has a varied background in many fields but found her passion in the creative pursuits.
Jennifer has been a junior software engineer, a technical support specialist, and is involved in theater both on and offstage. She is also a singer and loves playing her Ukulele.
She has studied 3D animation, game design, true crime and forensic psychology, you know, for fun. She loves knowing about how the world works at a deeper level.
Besides narrating she also runs Reaping Audiobooks where she leads the all female or non-binary crew in the task of post production on audiobooks.
She also coaches others in the art of using Reaper and on efficiency in general. She loves helping people find the magic and joy in technology again.
To learn more about this Narrator visit the following links:
Macmillan Audio was founded in 1987 as Audio Renaissance. With more than twenty years in the business, Macmillan Audio continues to publish audio editions of the best fiction and non-fiction books from our fellow Macmillan trade publishers, as well as many other publishers outside the Macmillan family.
In 2001, the company was acquired by Macmillan, and in 2007 it took on its current name.
That same year, Macmillan Audio launched a children’s imprint, Macmillan Young Listeners, which has been going strong ever since.
To learn more about this Publisher visit the following links:
Amie's Book Reviews 