Hounds of Autumn

I recently subscribed to a new site where I could get free e-books to read and review. This book peaked my interest because it reminded me of The Hound of the Baskervilles, my favorite Sherlock Holmes story. ( I am reviewing this book free of charge for an honest review.)

Chloe and Ambrose Sullivan are an unusual couple for the 1890's, with 24 years between them. Chloe is a scientist, she builds and invents mechanicals, her mechanical cat being her favorite creation. Ambrose is a naturalist and is looking forward to staying with his estranged family while he researches his latest book. They take an airship to Dartmoor and are immediately confronted with the death of a local resident, Camille, with whom Chloe had been in contact with via letters as she is also a mechanical inventor. Chloe is thrown into a murder mystery and is unaware of how deeply this tragedy will affect her.

A woman who is does not subscribe to the social norms for a woman of the time. A husband who allows her to be herself and a family that has deep, dark secrets. This is the first steampunk book that I have read. I have to say I really enjoyed it. The mystery part of the story was perfect. It had twists and turns and kept me guessing until the very end. It wrapped up quite nicely and even had a happy ending with the possibility for more stories. I very much look forward to more from this author.

Posies and Poison: A Sweetfern Harbor Mystery #1

I received this book free of charge from Freebooksy for an honest review.

I love cozy mysteries and this did not disappoint. It was a quick read, maybe 2 hours.

Brenda Sheffield is needing a change in her life. She's been working as an assistant to a private investigator, even aiding him in cracking some cases. However, he doesn't really see her an asset so when she received a letter from her uncles lawyer saying she's inherited his bed and breakfast, she jumps at the chance. Sweetfern Harbor is a quaint town in New England. 

The town is cute and close knit, however, most of the town, with the exception of the bed and breakfast, is owned by a woman named Lady Pendleton. Lady Pendelton is a rich, tyrant who keeps raising the rent on the shops and insists on filing lawsuits against many of the towns residents. When she is found murdered one afternoon outside the bed and breakfast, the whole town is suddenly a suspect. Can Brenda and the police detective Mac Rivers figure out who the perpetrator before someone else falls victim? 

I really enjoyed this story. Quick pacing and each character created in such a way, that I can definitely see more stories where Brenda is sleuthing. I had my suspicions and to who might be the killer but was still surprised by who it actually way. It wasn't an intense "gotcha" moment, but I still really enjoyed reading this one. I will definitely be looking for more books from this series.

Behind the Veil

I received an advanced copy free from Booksirens for an honest review.

Behind the veil.....what lies beyond death?

I love the era of the early 1900's . So when I read the description on this one I knew I had to give it  a whirl.

Set in 1920's Los Angeles, a young woman by the name of Letitia Hawking has come over from England hoping to escape her past. She is a medium who offers closure to those who have lost loved ones. A man, Alasdair Driscoll, comes to see her seeking help with his niece who has been overtaken by a malicious phantom. At first, Letitia says no, knowing that she could be overtaken by the spirit, however, she comes to realize she is her only hope. 

Around this story, is a secondary story. Young girls have gone missing, several over the last two years but two have gone missing within months of each other, and now Alasdair's niece is one of them. She is tasked with discovering if one of them is still alive and when she finally sees what is at the core of this horror it may be too late. Can she find the entity doing such vile things to young girls and save Alasdair's niece before its too late?

This story.....wow. I really enjoyed the story. Such intricacy with the characters, the descriptions of, not only the settings but what was happening "behind the veil." Letitia herself is a complex person with flaws and insecurities, about her past and her abilities. Alasdair starts out a rude and seemingly demanding man, yet over the chapters turns out to be more than that. 

The ending is just as I wanted it to be. I wont give too much away but I will say, I love a happy ending.  This is labeled as a horror story and in such, there are horrors here. But more of the real kinds of horrors. Although there are not graphic descriptions of the horrors, the suggestions (rape, suicide, possession) are there. The book does come with a warning so those who are more sensitive to such topics, should avoid reading this. 

The Dead Zone

This is my first time reading this book. I have been a King fan for as long as I can remember. I mostly have seen the movies or tv shows of his more popular books. Once I saw something, Id pick up the book, other times it was the other way around.

I remember watching The Dead Zone tv show with Anthony Michael Hall so while reading this, his is the face that I imagined. I like the tv show, although I never watched it all the way through. 

What can I say about this book that hasn't already been said? Its been around a long time and most people who are King fans know the premise. John Smith, Johnny, is an average man, who is in a terrible car accident, in which he loses 4 years of his life while in a coma. The girl he is love with before the accident is now married to someone else and hes pretty much got nothing else. He starts having visions when he touches someone or something and he at times is able to help some people with his "gift."

There were parts of the book I felt that were a bit dry. The big bad guy in the story is a con man turned politician (gee big surprise there), named Greg Stillson. Johnny has visions of him doing some really bad things, bad enough that Johnny makes the ultimate sacrifice to change the future. If I'm being honest, I much rather preferred the story of the serial killer that was hunting women and killing them. I get enough of B.S. politics in my every day life. 

So, I give it 4 stars because it was harder to get through than I anticipated. As a King fan, I find that there are some of his stories that I just cannot get through, just because I'm a fan, doesn't mean I have to love everything, does it? I did enjoy the last little bit "Notes from the Dead Zone", it kind of wrapped things up nicely. All in all, a good read, but most likely one I'll only read once.  

Bleed More, Bodymore

I received this book free from Booksirens for a free and honest review.

This book was nothing like I expected it to be. So in truth, I initially chose the book because of the cover and because it reminded me of Poe. Once I clicked on it, the description sounded interesting too. A whodunit mystery with a little bit of paranormal and mythology mixed in. 

The main character, Joey, is a young mechanic with a hardened attitude, someone who has been handed a hard lot in life and has had to deal with a lot of really bad stuff. One night she is called out to pick up her friends car at a place called Leakin Park, also known as Murder Park, a place where all things dead show up. She tows it back to the shop she works at, Bodymore Body Shop, where they discover a body in the trunk. The friend in question, Wayland, is missing and it is presumed that he killed whoever is in the trunk. The police are all over her, wanting to know her connections, if any, to the body or the fact that her friend is missing.

She starts searching for answers and that's where things really take a turn for the worse. The beginning of the story has solid start. As the characters and the setting are laid before us the riddle of what happened to her friend and the body in the trunk start to take form. Joey keeps digging and what she finds is freaky. Like, freaky weird. I don't mind weird. Weird can turn interesting, weird can be fascinating, but in this case it was just perplexing. I felt the characters weren't fleshed out enough, the plot was left with a lot of unanswered questions and I ended up thinking "what the hell did I just read?" 

I like a happy ending, and I realize that not all stories are going to have that. But I hate unanswered questions. Underneath the title on Goodreads its says "Bodymore Series #1, so I'm hoping that if there are anymore that maybe some of my questions will get answered. All in all its not a terrible book, its just not what I thought it would be. If the story sounds interesting to you, grab a copy, you may discover things I did not.

Behind the Eyes of Dorian Gray

I am a huge fan of the original story, The Picture of Dorian Gray. As a kid, I remember watching the movie from 1945 and I loved it. I finally read the book as an adult, several years ago and discovered an even deeper love of the story.

This book is fantastic. A Gothic romance story that's captivating and has the most wonderful twist ending. The story opens two years after Dorians death, the house and the infamous painting being all packed and stored away, never to be seen again. Until, a hundred or so years later, a woman buys the townhome and the painting of the mysterious man. Rachal Lafferty is a best selling author who has spent a long time restoring the home to its former Victorian glory. Soon after hanging his portrait, she starts to experience strange things around the home. Dorian has been able to exit the portrait and he finds that she can see him. They have a whirlwind romance and I felt it was written well. A few steamy sex scenes thrown in and some drama with a best friend, and it makes for a quick read. I was able to read this in a few hours. 

I have to admit although I loved the twist part of the ending, I was sad about another aspect of it, although I wont spoil it. I really enjoyed this book and will definitely be looking for more from this author.

The Spirit Engineer

I received this book courtesy of NetGalley for a free and honest review.

I initially chose this book based on it description. In the description, Sir Author Conan Doyle is mentioned and I was instantly intrigued, although his role in the story is very small. I have been reading another book which talks about his fascination with the spirit world, and this book drew me in very quickly,

I started this book unsure of what to expect but was not disappointed at all! Set in 1914 Belfast, Ireland, two years after the sinking of the famed ship, the Titanic. Spiritualism has captivated the high society of the time. William Jackson Crawford, a man of science, an engineer, a skeptic. When he follows his wife one night suspecting her of an affair, he is transported into a world of voices and shadows, is it real or is it all just one big con?

After following his wife and discovering what she was up to, he is immersed into the world of spiritualism, even donning the name The Spirit Engineer, his name a marriage of his two sides. The once skeptic is determined to show others the proof he has of the spirit world being real. Can he prove his theories or will he discover more than he bargained for before all is said and done?

This book was beautifully written, immersive with vibrant descriptions that transport you directly to the 1900's. I even found some era appropriate music to stream while reading to complete my immersion. The story flows well and I found that I was dying to see what would happen next. I absolutely did not see the ending coming. I love a good twist ending! I cannot wait to see more from this author!

The Curse of Morton Abbey

I have to admit I do not normally read Gothic romance books. While I do enjoy the Gothic time period, it has not infiltrated my reading as much. However, I do love mysteries. I think besides true crime, mysteries are my favorite. 

Vaughn Springthorpe is an average woman who was trained by her father in the duties of a solicitor (lawyer). She is hired by a man who owns Morton Abbey sight unseen. He does not know she is a woman until she arrives. At first, things seem relatively normal. Then she starts to hear strange things, a gun going off, the crying of a child even though there are no children there and footsteps outside her door in the middle of the night. 

As the mystery unfolds, we discover old secrets and new ones that threaten to ruin the lives of her and those within the abbey. There are so many twists and turns not to mention characters who are not who they say they are. I could not stop reading and could not wait to find out all the secrets enveloped in this story. 

One thing I really liked about it, is that it is rooted in some fact. One of the characters, although brief, Eliza Orme, was the first woman in Britain to obtain a law degree in 1888. A great mystery with a little but of romance thrown in. I'm a sucker for a happy ending and this story did not disappoint. This is the first book I have read by this author but I will definitely be checking out more from her. This book will available October 26, 2021.

Seventeen Skulls

Jennifer Brennan is a social worker that helps run the local homeless shelter in Beaverbrook, Canada. When Buddy, a local homeless man dies, she realizes that he is the 8th homeless man killed in a year and a half or so. Why are these men dying? She suspects they're being murdered, but who would be doing it and why? And even worse, what is the connection between them and the notorious serial killer Eldon Grant? Can they figure it all out, before someone else dies?

When I picked this book, I didn't realize it was a supernatural thriller. I chose it because of the cover to be honest. However, I thoroughly enjoyed the story. I love that it takes place in a real city. Although I don't know Canada very well, I was able to look up the location via maps. The pacing in this story was perfect. I was able to read it relatively quickly. The story itself is really intriguing. Astral projection. I do not know anything about it, not even sure its real, although I have heard things here and there. If it was and an inmate could do it, or just a bad person in general, that is very scary. The only thing I wasn't too sure about was the bad guy not getting his just desserts. But even with that being said, I really didn't see the ending coming. I really enjoyed this and will be looking for more from this author.

Dirty Laundry

I received this book for free from Booksprouts for an honest review.

This was a great story! I wasn't sure what to expect at first but was hooked within the first chapter! Part murder mystery and part journey of an abused woman, you wont be disappointed!

Samantha is a suburban housewife, with two kids and an emotionally abusive husband. As a stay at home mom for over 20 years I can understand some of what she goes through within the story. Sometimes it can be overwhelming, it can be lonely and you need an outlet. I am beyond blessed to have  a husband who is supportive and understanding. If my husband ever spoke to me the way that Samantha's does, Id have left long before the kids were born. If he did it after the kids, Id take my chances and leave. No one deserves the kind of abuse she endured. 

This book is an outstanding view into what goes on behind closed doors. What may seem like your typical perfect suburban life can hide hideous verbal and emotional abuse. This book was fast paced, with short chapters and tons of detail and action. With a twist ending, I never saw coming. I highly recommend this book and will be looking for more from this author.

Scandinavian Myths and Legends

I received this book free from Booksirens for an honest review.

I have always been interested in myths and legends. As a kid I collected porcelain unicorns and I still 

have a few of them. 

This book focuses on Scandinavian Myths and Legends, specifically The Hidden Folk. The author gives an overview of the myths and legends from the Middle Ages in Scandinavia. The stories mixed with facts from the time are entertaining.

If you enjoy folklore then this is definitely a book to pick up.

The Haunting of Leigh Harker

I received this book free from Poisoned Pen Press for a honest review.

I should preface this review with some honesty: I do not typically read horror or ghost stories. I do not like being scared while reading, however as this book was sent to me for a review I decided to give it a go. I have read a book by this author previously and liked it. 

I was not disappointed! Although this book is classified as horror fiction and is about a ghost, I was not scared but rather intrigued and absolutely had to find out the ending. I was so determined to finish it that I read from chapter 8-to the end in 2 hours. 

Leigh Harker has lived in her quaint, two story home for 15 years when she starts experiencing nightmarish hauntings every night that dissipate as morning comes. The home is her sanctuary, and she is alone, as she is estranged from her only sister and only has friends at work. She is what I would label as an introvert and possibly anti-social. Not necessarily bad things just who she is.

I think that is all I will say. This story had such a huge twist that I never saw coming that I was left in shock. This story was sad, creepy, harrowing and in the end, complex. I really identified with Leigh and her estrangement from her sister as I have a similar situation with one of my sisters. I truly enjoyed this story and was surprised because its not my usual genre. And even though its not my usual, this may be one author that I give more time to. This book will be available September 7, 2021.

Terror Town

I received this book free from Booksirens for a fair and honest review.

Anyone who knows me, knows I love true crime. I have been fascinated with the genre since I was a young teen, starting with Ted Bundy.

This is one true crime story I had not heard of. The town of Joliet, Illinois is gripped with fear one summer in 1983 by a crazed serial killer. The killings are random, no one knows who will be next. The body count keeps rising and there seems no end in sight. 

Three months before the spree began, a man named Milton Johnson was released from prison after serving just 13 years for the brutal rape and torture of a young girl. He was released on good behavior and the prison didn't inform his home town, Joliet, of his release. You have to remember this was the mid-80s. There was no sex offender registry and the parole system was not what it is today. 

The author was a child when these murders occurred but even he was not unaffected by these events. Terror town is a well written book with fast pacing. There were a few chapters I felt could have been left out as I felt they just rehashed things that had already been discussed but overall, the book is very good. 

Milton Johnson was sentenced to death, but unfortunately his sentence was commuted to life without parole after a governor got rid of the death penalty. The last chapter of the book discusses the fact that several elderly inmates convicted of horrible crimes were let go when they were deemed "too old" to be incarcerated anymore. Should age be a factor in release? I do not believe so. No matter the age, if someone wants to commit a crime, they will. And it is my belief that someone who could inflict this kind of damage, not only on the town but the people as well, is not able to rehabilitated. 

Thank you to Booksirens for this book. I will definitely be checking out more from this author.