Book Details:

Book Title: Crimes Past by Lauren Carr
Series: A Mac Faraday Mystery (Volume 13)
Category: Adult fiction, 322 pages
Genre: Murder Mystery
Publisher: Acorn Book Services
Release date: October 16, 2018
Tour dates: Nov 12 to Dec 14, 2018
Content Rating: PG (mild violence and sexual suggestion)

Book Description:

It’s a bittersweet reunion for Mac Faraday when members of his former homicide squad arrive at the Spencer Inn. While it is sweet to attend the wedding of a former colleague’s daughter, it is a bitter reminder that the mother of the bride had been the victim of a double homicide on her own wedding night.

The brutal slaying weighing heavy on his mind, Mac is anxious to explore every possibility for a break in the cold case—even a suggestion from disgraced former detective Louis Gannon that one of their former friends was the killer.
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When the investigator is brutally slain, Mac Faraday rips open the cold case with a ruthless determination to reveal which of his friends was a cold-blooded murderer.


I am now a big fan of Lauren Carr and enjoy all the books in her four series, but the series I like the most is the Mac Faraday series (although her newest Chris Matheson series is also my favorite). I think it has to do with Mac being the long-lost son of a bestselling and legendary murder mystery writer. And of course, there's Gnarly, ah Gnarly... Mac's beloved German Shephard with a law enforcement history who is now the Mayor of Spencer. How did THAT happen? You'll just have to read Candidate for Murder, which was a hoot to read.

Carr's whodunit mysteries include a great cast of characters (including pet characters), a fast-paced action-packed story that takes place over three days with a complex plot that comes together seamlessly by the end of the novel, and a good dose of humor throughout. Crimes Past, the latest in the Mac Faraday series, has all of this and was another fun book to read. So entertaining!

Mac Faraday is hosting a wedding at his 5-star Spencer Inn as a gift to the daughter of a former colleague who had been murdered sixteen years ago. A murder Mac has yet to solve. Among the guests are all those who were present when the murder took place and Mac is hoping to flush out the killer. There are a few surprises along the way that includes a nasty neighbor, a long-lost love and a character from another series making a brief appearance.

I'm always amazed at how Carr keeps all the different plot threads straight and then brings it all together in the end. I did guess who one of the killers was and I enjoyed trying to figure it all out. There were also some laugh-out-loud moments for me. If you like murder mysteries with an entertaining cast, I suggest you pick up one of Lauren Carr's books. They are all stand-alone novels but are addictive so that you will want to read the next book, and the next, and the next after that...

Books I've read in the Mac Faraday Series:

Three Days to Forever (Book #9)
Cancelled Vows (Book #11)
Candidate for Murder (Book #12)
Crimes Past (Book #13)
Twofer Murder (includes characters from 3 series)

Books I've read in the Lovers in Crime Mystery Series:

Dead on Ice (Book #1)
Real Murder (Book #2)
Killer in the Band (Book #3)
Books I've read in the Thorny Rose Mystery Series:


Kill and Run (Book #1)
A Fine Year for Murder (Book #2)
Murder by Perfection (Book #3)

Books I've read in the Chris Matheson Cold Case Mystery Series:

ICE (Book #1)
Spring Thaw (Book #1.5)




“Lauren Carr is a master storyteller who combines the humor of Janet Evanovich and the investigative skills of Patricia Cornwell. She is always at the top of my reading list."
- Sherry Fundin, Fundinmental

"Lauren Carr could give Agatha Christie a run for her money!"
- Charlene Mabie-Gamble, Literary R&R

"Lauren Carr's books are never boring, that's for sure. They entertain, give us a good mystery to dig into, keep the reader guessing, give us a few good laughs and make us eager for the next book. Warning: Lauren Carr's series are addictive, so be ready to read more than just one book!"
- Laura Fabiani, Library of Clean Reads

"She is an amazing author that draws you into the story, makes you fall in love with the characters (they feel like family!) and keeps you guessing right to the very end."
- Working Mommy Journal

"Lauren Carr does a good job of moving the quirky storyline along nicely with an abundance of witty dialogue. And you have no idea who the good guys are and who the bad guys are until the end."
- Every Free Chance Book Reviews

To read reviews, please visit Lauren Carr's page on iRead Book Tours.


Lauren Carr is the international best-selling author of the Mac Faraday, Lovers in Crime, and Thorny Rose Mysteries—over twenty titles across three fast-paced mystery series filled with twists and turns!

Now, Lauren has added one more hit series to her list with the Chris Matheson Cold Case Mysteries. Set in the quaint West Virginia town of Harpers Ferry, Ice introduces Chris Matheson, a retired FBI agent, who joins forces with other law enforcement retirees to heat up those cold cases that keep them up at night.

Book reviewers and readers alike rave about how Lauren Carr’s seamlessly crosses genres to include mystery, suspense, crime fiction, police procedurals, romance, and humor.

Lauren is a popular speaker who has made appearances at schools, youth groups, and on author panels at conventions. She lives with her husband, and three dogs on a mountain in Harpers Ferry, WV.

​Connect with the author: Website ~ Twitter ~ Facebook ~ Instagram
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Book Details:

Book Title: The Consultant by Tj O'Connor
Category: Adult Fiction; 432 pages
Genre: Thriller & Suspense
Publisher: Oceanview Publishing
Release date: May 15, 2018
Tour dates: Nov 5 to 16, 2018
Content Rating: R (The story deals with terrorism and describes some scenes of violence. Some harsh language.)

Book Description:

When a rogue CIA consultant goes AWOL from his Middle Eastern post in response to his brother’s plea for help, he arrives just in time to witness his brother’s murder. For years, Jonathan Hunter and his brother Kevin Mallory had not spoken―until Kevin’s final words, “… Khalifah … Not Them … Maya.”

Pursuing his brother’s killer, Hunter stumbles into a nest of horrifying terrorist activity by Middle Eastern refugees, which sparks a backlash across America. In the shadows, Hunter’s mentor, the omnipotent Oscar LaRue, is playing a dangerous game with Russian Intelligence. Neither Hunter nor LaRue realizes that a new threat―the Iranian threat―has entered the game. Stakes rise as two shadowy players are one step ahead of Hunter and LaRue―Khalifah, a terrorist mastermind, and Caine, a nomadic assassin who dances with the highest bidder.

As attacks escalate and the country drifts toward another Middle East conflict, innocent refugees become trapped between the terrorists and the terrorized. Prejudice, hate, and fear vent everywhere. Is this who we’ve become? Before the country explodes, Hunter must find Khalifah, learn the next terror target, and pray he’s in time to stop further annihilation.

The Consultant is a fast-paced non-stop action-packed thriller that took me for a ride. Jonathan Hunter is a CIA consultant who returns home to Virginia from his Middle Eastern post to help his brother who he hasn't seen in almost 20 years. But his brother is shot just as he arrives at their meeting rendez-vous and dies in his arms. Jonathan is now on the hunt for the killer as he tries to figure out why his brother was killed. He gets caught up in a terrifying terrorist plot as he tries to deal with his brother's death and the family he left behind.

The story takes place in the span of seven days with enough action to make one's head spin. It's a race to try to find not only a ruthless killer but also to stop a terrorist plan that will kill thousands of innocent people. The last few chapters were nerve-racking in a Mission-Impossible style of stunts and revelations as Jonathan risks everything to stop what seems like an inevitable disaster and tragedy.

Most of the book is written in Jonathan's first-person POV with a few chapters in third person. Through Hunter's internal dialogue we see he's got emotional baggage like most action heroes, but there are plenty of humorous moments, which are a welcome relief from the intensity of the brutality of terrorist acts. For a while, I did not know where Jonathan's new relationship with Noor, his late brother's estranged wife was leading. I found her clingy, with a "damsel in distress" persona, and was glad there was no romantic entanglement, although I suspect she will be present in future instalments.

The Consultant is the first book in Tj O'Connor's Jonathan Hunter Thriller series, a classic true thriller, with a unique likable main character, and a well-executed plot from an author whose expertise in international anti-terrorism is evident throughout the pages. I'm a new fan and look forward to reading more!

To read more reviews, please visit Tj O'Connor's page on iRead Book Tours.

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Today, I'm kicking off the tour for Correna R. Barzey's new book. You could win a paperback copy too.

Sunday Post is a weekly meme hosted by Kimba at Caffeinated Book Reviewer. It’s a chance to share news. A post to recap the past week on your blog and showcase books and things we have received. Share news about what is coming up on our blog for the week ahead.

So I'm suffering from another eye infection, this one different from the ones I've had in the past. It's affected my lower lid and caused swelling to my lid and undereye. I look like someone sucker punched me. And it looks like it got worse from all the crying I did from watching The Hate U Give. What a powerful movie! We were three families who went to see it (we all have teen kids who came with us) and even the dads had red eyes after the movie ended. Has anyone seen the movie?

I like stories about small communities caught in a struggle to survive a sudden catastrophe or event. This was a good read. Check out my review and enter to win a copy! Book Details:

Book Title: Storm Taken by William Michael Davidson
Category: Adult fiction, 268 pages
Genre: Thriller, Sci-fi
Publisher: Clean Reads
Release date: July 16, 2018
Tour dates: Oct 15 to Nov 9, 2018
Content Rating: PG-13 + M (There's a few graphic scenes with violence, alluded to adult situations as far as sex is concerned. But no real profanity and anything explicit.)

Book Description:

Trapped on Naples Island, Eddie Dees does everything he can to hold his family together. A supernatural storm is feeding on people’s fear and paranoia. The more people turn on each other, the stronger it becomes.

Believing there are small, systematic breaks in the storm, he plans to make his way off the island with as many residents as possible. But he must first deal with the crazed gunman roaming the streets as well as another growing threat: Klutch, a violent army vet suffering PTSD, has recruited a band of followers who believe the storm is a weaponized weather experiment gone awry. Klutch plans on stopping anyone from leaving the island, and one of his followers is Eddie’s own teenage son.


I wasn't sure what to expect when I first picked up Storm Taken, but I was pulled in by the book's description and curious as to how the author would play out the storyline. It was an interesting premise and I like stories about small communities caught in a struggle to survive a sudden catastrophe or event.

The story is narrated by Eddie Dees, a best-selling author who had recently moved to Naples Island with his wife and two sons. I had never heard of Naples Island and looked it up online. I wasn't aware of this Italian-inspired place in California with its canals and bridges. I thought it made a great setting for this book. This thriller starts out at a leisurely pace for the first half of the story as we are introduced to a set of characters with Eddie peppering the narrative with retrospective comments that foreshadowed what was to come, which in all honesty, I did not expect.

All of a sudden, the story takes a different course and turns violent and at times gory when a shooter lets loose at a 4th of July celebration, killing many. From then on the story is one of suspense as Eddie, his family and neighbours band together. They have to deal with this tragedy and try to figure out what is going on with the storm intensifying daily and attacking anyone who tries to leave the island.

The best part of this story for me was Eddie's inner dialogue and view point of the events through his eyes as a husband, father and neighbour. I could easily relate to him as his family dynamics closely resembled mine, and I smirked in acknowledgement as he dealt with his teenage son, and struggled with how to handle his women neighbours. There were tense suspenseful moments, of course, but they were quickly relieved through humour and a simplified plot. The whole thing with Klutch was not as conflicting as the description led me to believe.

With the exception of a few violent scenes, this was a clean read with no profanity or explicit sex scenes which is a welcome relief for a book of this genre. Readers of thrillers that include a supernatural element will enjoy this one. In addition, the themes of fatherhood, neighbourhood, and family come through beautifully. This was a different read for me that I enjoyed.


To read reviews, please visit William Michael Davidson's page on iRead Book Tours.

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Sunday Post is a weekly meme hosted by Kimba at Caffeinated Book Reviewer. It’s a chance to share news. A post to recap the past week on your blog and showcase books and things we have received. Share news about what is coming up on our blog for the week ahead.

The past dreary rainy week ended with a sunny Sunday, flooding my house with sunlight that I sorely missed. November is a dark month and as much as I dislike winter, the snow that will be here soon will help to lighten up the dark evenings. Mornings are hard this time of year so I'm happy when Daylight Savings Time gives us that extra hour of sleep! 


Lullaby Road by James Anderson (Review and Giveaway!) One of the best books I've read this year...

I'll say straight off the bat that this is one of the best books I've read this year. I wasn't sure what to expect, but from the minute I started reading it, I was pulled in. See what I thought of this book and then scroll down to enter to win a copy!

Book Details:

Book Title: Lullaby Road by James Anderson
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Murder by Perfection is the third book in the Thorny Rose Mysteries and I was very happy to revisit characters that I've fallen in love with.

Book Details:

Book Title: Murder by Perfection by Lauren Carr
Series: Thorny Rose Mystery Series (Volume 3)
Category: Adult fiction, 322 pages
Genre: Murder Mystery
Publisher: Acorn Book Services
Release date: May 31, 2018
Tour dates: Oct 8 to Nov 2, 2018
Content Rating: PG (mild violence and sexual suggestion)

Book Description:

Perfection can be a fatal endeavor.

Frustrated with their busy schedules, Murphy Thornton and Jessica Faraday attempt to find togetherness by scheduling a weekly date night. The last thing Jessica Faraday expected for her date night was to take a couple’s gourmet cooking course at the Stepford Kitchen Studio, owned by Chef Natalie Stepford―the model of perfection in looks, home, and business.

When Natalie ends up dead and Murphy goes missing, the Thorny Rose detectives must peel back the layers of Natalie Stepford’s life to discover that the pursuit of perfection can be deadly.



Murder by Perfection is the third book in the Thorny Rose Mysteries. I have read the first two: Kill and Run and A Fine Year for Murder and was very happy to revisit characters that I've fallen in love with. This book can be read as a stand-alone, but if you want a great intro to newlyweds Jessica and Murphy Thornton, I suggest you read the first book.

Jessica and Murphy have settled into their first year of marriage. Life is very busy with Jessica studying forensics psychiatry in med school and Murphy on occasional assignments with covert military operations. So when Murphy agrees to take a couple's cooking class to get some inside info for a US Navy doctor friend, little does he know that this will start a series of events in which he goes missing and everyone is scrambling to find him before he ends up as another dead body.

Once again, Lauren Carr brings together her great cast of characters on a crazy ride to solve a few murder mysteries with the usual twists and turns that make her books great page-turners. With all the plot threads she introduces into the story, the reader is kept guessing how everything ties together. And the best part is that there are never any loose threads. Lauren Carr brings it all together smoothly (and almost effortlessly) by the end.

As is her trademark, Carr develops her animal characters just as well. The subtle antics of Newman, Murphy's couch potato Basset hound-mix dog, are hilarious. Spencer, the blue merle, is as cute and adorable as ever. And the virtual butler Nigel? Let's just say I wish I had one. Oh, and Carr introduces a whole new meaning to the expression "what not".

This third instalment in the Thorny Rose Mystery series is another fun book for those days when you just want to revisit book friends and be entertained. Each book always makes me look forward to the next story, in whatever series, as I continue to follow the lives of the families of law enforcers  and their animal friends.

To read reviews, please visit Lauren Carr's page on iRead Book Tours.

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Lauren Carr is the international best-selling author of the Mac Faraday, Lovers in Crime, and Thorny Rose Mysteries—over twenty titles across three fast-paced mystery series filled with twists and turns!

Now, Lauren has added one more hit series to her list with the Chris Matheson Cold Case Mysteries. Set in the quaint West Virginia town of Harpers Ferry, Ice introduces Chris Matheson, a retired FBI agent, who joins forces with other law enforcement retirees to heat up those cold cases that keep them up at night.

Book reviewers and readers alike rave about how Lauren Carr’s seamlessly crosses genres to include mystery, suspense, crime fiction, police procedurals, romance, and humor.

Lauren is a popular speaker who has made appearances at schools, youth groups, and on author panels at conventions. She lives with her husband, and three dogs on a mountain in Harpers Ferry, WV.

Connect with the author: Website ~ Twitter ~ Facebook ~ Instagram
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Book Details:

Book Title: Quantum Success by Christy Whitman
Category: Adult Non-Fiction, pages
Genre: Motivational, Self-Improvement, Happiness, Management & Leadership, Personal Transformation
Publisher: Atria/Enliven Books
Release date: September 25, 2018
Content Rating: G

Christy’s life-changing message reaches over 200,000 people each month and her work has been promoted by and featured alongside esteemed authors and luminaries such as Dr. Wayne Dyer, Louise Hay. Marianne Williamson, Marci Shimoff, Brian Tracy, Neale Donald Walsch, and Abraham-Hicks. She currently lives in Arizona with her husband, Frederic, and their two boys, Alexander and Maxim.

Sunday Post is a weekly meme hosted by Kimba at Caffeinated Book Reviewer. It’s a chance to share news. A post to recap the past week on your blog and showcase books and things we have received. Share news about what is coming up on our blog for the week ahead.

I enjoyed my summer so much this year that I'm still not ready for winter. The cold is here...wet leaves, biting wind, icy rain. Went shopping with my teen kids for winter boots and gear, hoping that if they buy the brand they like, they will actually wear their hat and gloves when the temps plunge. 

My dad gave me several pumpkins from his garden so I've been making soups and baking a lot. I made Pumpkin Spice cake yesterday and my house smelled heavenly! Stay warm.



Lady of a Thousand Treasures by Sandra Byrd (Review and Giveaway! First time I read a book by this author whom I've been wanting to read for a long time