Murder in Belgravia by Lynn Brittney

Murder in Belgravia by Lynn Brittney ISBN-13: 9781907324826 Paperback: 211 pages Publisher: Mirror Books Released: March 15, 2018

Source: ebook review copy from the publisher through NetGalley.

Book Description from NetGalley:
Set against the backdrop of WW1, Mayfair 100 is the telephone number for a small specially-formed crimebusting team based in a house in Mayfair. London, 1915. Just 10 months into the First World War, the City is flooded with women taking over the work vacated by men in the Armed Services.

Chief Inspector Peter Beech, a young man invalided out of the war in one of the first battles, is faced with investigating the murder of an aristocrat and the man’s wife, a key witness and suspect, will only speak to a woman about the unpleasant details of the case. After persuading the Chief Commissioner to allow him to set up a clandestine team to deal with such situations, Beech puts together a small motley crew of well-educated women and professional policemen.

As Beech, Victoria, Caroline, Rigsby and Tollman investigate the murder, they delve into the seedier parts of WWI London, taking them from criminal gangs to brothels and underground drug rings supplying heroin to the upper classes. Will the Mayfair 100 team solve the murder? And if they do, will they be allowed to continue working as a team?


My Review:
Murder in Belgravia is a mystery set in 1915 in London. Chief Inspector Peter Beech is confronted with a suspect who refuses to see a male doctor for her life-threatening injuries or to talk to a male policeman about the murder of her husband. Happily, he's good friends with a woman doctor and with a high-born woman who trained as a lawyer. They help him with the suspect but doubt she killed her husband even though she confesses to it. But who is she protecting?

Beech gets permission to form a secret team to deal with this crime and future serious crimes involving women. The team includes these two women and two other men. They each have skills that the others don't, work well together, and share a desire to find justice for victims. The characters were likable, compassionate people. The author worked the changes that occurred due to WWI into the murder investigation.

The mystery was clue-based. The team asked questions and followed up leads until they finally uncovered the truth. They were smart and had good hunches, but it took some work as they had to track down some of the witnesses. There were no sex scenes. There was some bad language. I enjoyed the characters and the mystery kept me engaged, so I'd recommend this novel.


If you've read this book, what do you think about it? I'd be honored if you wrote your own opinion of the book in the comments.

A Chance at Forever by Melissa Jagears

A Chance at Forever by Melissa Jagears ISBN-13: 9780764217531 Paperback: 352 pages Publisher: Bethany House Released: March 6, 2018

Source: ebook review copy from the publisher through NetGalley.

Book Description, Modified from Goodreads:
Mercy McClain joined the school board to protect the children of Teaville, Kansas, from the bullying she experienced as a child. When the worst offender from her school days applies for a teaching position, she is dead set against it. Yet Aaron Firebrook claims to be a changed man. Can he earn Mercy's trust--and her support for the challenges to come?


My Review:
A Chance at Forever is a Christian romance set in 1909 in Kansas. It's the third book in a series. This book wrapped up two side romances that have been building throughout the series, but it still worked fine as a stand-alone novel. Each romance was prevented from moving forward due to events in the past that need to be forgiven.

The main romance was between Mercy and the man who bullied her when they were children. He was abused by someone and in turn bullied others. Now he has returned to make things right after accepting Christ. He's trying to earn forgiveness from those he wronged and change his behavior through willpower. With Mercy's help, he realizes he needs to allow God to transform him from the inside and to accept the gift of forgiveness. We only see him as an honest, hardworking man, just one struggling with guilt and discouragement because he can see the damage his bullying did to Mercy and others. He encouraged Mercy to see her value and not believe the hurtful things he said in the past.

The author dealt with complex issues in a natural way that drove the events of the story. The changed people showed that change in their lives even though they still made mistakes. Other characters struggled to trust that those people had really changed or to decide how to deal with those who weren't interested in changing. The characters acted realistically and were complex and likable.

There were no sex scenes or bad language. Overall, I'd recommend this well-developed, engaging book.


If you've read this book, what do you think about it? I'd be honored if you wrote your own opinion of the book in the comments.


Excerpt: Read an excerpt using Google Preview.

Night Stalker by Shirlee McCoy

Night Stalker by Shirlee McCoy ISBN-13: 9781335490223 Mass Market Paperback: 224 pages Publisher: Love Inspired Suspense Released: March 6, 2018

Source: ebook review copy from the publisher through NetGalley.

Book Description, Modified from NetGalley:
After Special Agent Adam Whitfield’s ex-wife is nearly killed when she stops an abduction, the serial killer that Adam’s been hunting turns his focus on Charlotte Murray for getting in his way. Now, as the Night Stalker closes in, Adam has two missions: bring the murderer to justice and save Charlotte—because failure isn’t an option.


My Review:
Night Stalker is a Christian suspense novel. Charlotte stops a serial killer from kidnapping his intended target but gets hurt in the process. Since the killer's target is out of reach, he takes his anger out on Charlotte. Special Agent Adam left Charlotte after the loss of their young son because he couldn't deal with her grief. But he still loves her and regrets what he did. He's a profiler with the group tasked with stopping this serial killer. He's determine to protect his ex-wife and stop the killer once and for all.

The characters were nice people who care about others. I liked that Charlotte was courageous enough to help others and kept her promises. She worried that Adam would win her heart again only to leave her when the case was over. The suspense came from the attacks on various people while the FBI tried to figure out the killer's identity and capture him. The Christian theme was that God is there even in our darkest times. There was no sex or bad language. Overall, I'd recommend this enjoyable suspense novel.


If you've read this book, what do you think about it? I'd be honored if you wrote your own opinion of the book in the comments.


Excerpt: Read an excerpt using Google Preview.

Beneath the Surface by Lynn H. Blackburn

Beneath the Surface by Lynn H. Blackburn ISBN-13: 9780800729387 Paperback: 336 pages Publisher: Revell Released: March 6, 2018

Source: ebook review copy from the publisher through NetGalley.

Book Description from NetGalley:
After a harrowing experience with an obsessed patient, oncology nurse practitioner Leigh Weston needed a change. She thought she'd left her troubles behind when she moved home to Carrington, North Carolina, and took a job in the emergency department of the local hospital. But when someone tampers with her brakes, she fears the past has chased her into the present. She reaches out to her high school friend turned homicide investigator, Ryan Parker, for help.

Ryan finds satisfaction in his career, but his favorite way to use his skills is as a volunteer underwater investigator with the Carrington County Sheriff's Office dive team. When the body of a wealthy businessman is discovered in Lake Porter, the investigation uncovers a possible serial killer--one with a terrifying connection to Leigh Weston and deadly implications for them all.


My Review:
Beneath the Surface is a Christian romantic suspense novel. The cops find the body while doing a training dive session. The rest of the investigation occurs above water. The hero asked the heroine if he can use her dock to access the lake. Though the victims of the serial killer are middle-aged men, the heroine is suddenly the target of someone and it seems connected with the search for the serial killer.

The suspense comes from the the repeated attacks on the heroine and some exciting scenes in the hospital, where the heroine worked in the emergency department. The main characters were caring people who reacted realistically to the situations. I cared about what happened to them. The hero and heroine had been attracted to each other since they were young, but the situation brought them together romantically.

The hero and heroine struggled with the question of why God allowed bad things to happen to one person but not another. The hero was a Christian, but the heroine wasn't sure if she trusted God even though her adoptive parents had. There was no sex or bad language. Overall, I would recommend this enjoyable, exciting suspense novel.


If you've read this book, what do you think about it? I'd be honored if you wrote your own opinion of the book in the comments.


Excerpt: Read an excerpt using Google Preview.

A Most Noble Heir by Susan Anne Mason

A Most Noble Heir by Susan Anne Mason ISBN-13: 9780764230875 Paperback: 368 pages Publisher: Bethany House Publishers Released: March 6, 2018

Source: ebook review copy from the publisher through NetGalley.

Book Description, Modified from Back Cover:
When stable hand Nolan Price learns from his dying mother that he is actually the son of the Earl of Stainsby, his plans for a future with kitchen maid Hannah Burnham are shattered. Once he is officially acknowledged as the earl's heir, Nolan will be forbidden to marry beneath his station.

Unwilling to give up the girl he loves, he devises a plan to elope--believing that once their marriage is sanctioned by God, Lord Stainsby will be forced to accept their union. However, as Nolan struggles to learn the ways of the aristocracy, he finds himself caught between pleasing Hannah and living up to his father's demanding expectations.


My Review:
A Most Noble Heir is a Christian historical romance set in 1884 in England. The historical and setting backdrop details were basically correct, though the main characters had some modern attitudes. The main characters acted realistically and were fairly complex.

Hannah was very insecure. Nothing her husband did could prove his love for her. She would tell him to spend time getting to know his father, secretly hoping he would spend his full attention on her instead. She made no attempt to learn how to be a lady while agreeing that Nolan learn to become a noble. Essentially, she sabotaged her relationship because she didn't feel lovable and was sure her husband would abandon her. She had to work through the roots of these feelings of insecurity.

Nolan was proud and had a quick temper, like his father, so their relationship was very stormy. They had to build a relationship while struggling over Nolan's marriage, which his father did not approve of even though he had done a similar thing with Nolan's mother when he was young.

The minor amount of bad language was written in a "he cussed" style rather than the actual words. There were no graphic sex scenes, though the newly married couple were shown passionately kissing. Overall, I would recommend this enjoyable romance.


If you've read this book, what do you think about it? I'd be honored if you wrote your own opinion of the book in the comments.


Excerpt: Read an excerpt using Google Preview.

Tess of the Road by Rachel Hartman

Tess of the Road by Rachel Hartman ISBN-13: 9781101931288 Hardcover: 544 pages Publisher: Random House Children's Released: Feb. 27, 2018

Source: ebook review copy from the publisher through NetGalley.

Book Description, Modified from NetGalley:
In the medieval kingdom of Goredd, women are expected to be ladies. Tess, stubbornly, is a troublemaker. You can't make a drunken scene at your sister's wedding, nearly destroy her marriage before it starts, break a relative's nose and not suffer the consequences. As her family plans to send her to a nunnery, Tess desperately sets out on a journey across the Southlands, pretending to be a boy.

Where Tess is headed is a mystery, even to her. So when she runs into an old friend, it's a stroke of luck. This friend is a quigutl--a subspecies of dragon--who gives her both a purpose and protection on the road. But Tess's tumultuous past is a heavy burden to carry, and the memories she's tried to forget threaten to destroy her.


My Review:
Tess of the Road is a YA philosophical fantasy. It's not humorous. It's set in the same world as the author's previous novels and involved characters from those novels. The world-building depended largely on calling common fantasy elements by weird names, though the quigutl were unique. Also, the author assumed the reader had read the previous novels so didn't bother to give much background on things and events described in those books. Unfortunately, I haven't read those books.

Tess was curious about sex even as a child, and reading novels inspired her to want romantic love. Bad decisions, naivety, and romantic ideas led to her "ruin" (though that was not her intent), and she's no longer allowed to marry. She's utterly miserable and determined to stay miserable. She finally runs away and takes on a male identity (or two). Still, she considers suicide to end the pain. Then she comes across an old friend with a quest. Her new traveling companion is a dragon-like creature that was female when Tess first met her but is now male. He has an ongoing guilt/hate relationship with his daughter from a rape.

Tess describes her journey as "I’m just walking the road, looking for reasons to keep walking" and feels that "It matters less where you go than that you keep moving." Her mother's religion is very harsh and Tess had "never seen any divine plan, unless the plan was to saddle her with guilt and self-loathing." However, when her companion's quest leads to an awe-inspiring religious moment, she feels like "nothing." "For someone who was nothing, anything was possible. The pressure was off" and "She had permission to let her body do and be and have what it wanted." Which, apparently, is sex. But actions still have consequences. Anyway, this book ended with Tess starting a more traditional fantasy adventure.

The sex scenes were described in vague terms (rather than graphically). There was occasional use of bad language.


If you've read this book, what do you think about it? I'd be honored if you wrote your own opinion of the book in the comments.

The Fast and the Furriest by Sofie Ryan

The Fast and the Furriest by Sofie Ryan ISBN-13: 9781101991220 Mass Market Paperback: 304 pages Publisher: Berkley Prime Crime Released: Feb. 6, 2018

Source: Review copy from the publisher.

Book Description from Goodreads:
Sarah Grayson owns Second Chance, a shop that sells lovingly refurbished items, in the charming town of North Harbor, Maine. But she couldn't run the store without the help of her right-hand man, Mac--or her dashing rescue cat, Elvis.

Mac's life before North Harbor has always been a little bit mysterious, but it becomes a lot more intriguing when a woman from his past shows up in town, and then turns up dead. Suspicion falls on Mac, but Sarah--and Elvis--know he can't be the killer, and they hope they can prove his innocence quick as a whisker.


My Review:
The Fast and the Furriest is a cozy mystery. It is the fifth book in the series, but you don't need to read the previous books to understand this one. This book did not spoil any of the previous mysteries.

The main characters were nice, engaging people. The amateur detectives asked questions and looked into various alibis. They solved the mystery more by the process of elimination than by building a case against someone. I felt like there was a lot of filler in the story. They seemed to put off asking the most pertinent questions even when the person they needed to ask was right there. While I did guess whodunit before the main characters, they didn't uncover the critical clue until nearly the end.

There were no sex scenes. There was occasional use of bad language. Overall, I'd recommend this enjoyable mystery.


If you've read this book, what do you think about it? I'd be honored if you wrote your own opinion of the book in the comments.


Excerpt: Read an excerpt using Google Preview.