Selling over half a million books worldwide, Lauren Carr is the international best-selling author of the Mac Faraday, Lovers in Crime, Thorny Rose, Chris Matheson Cold Case Mysteries, and Nikki Bryant Cozy Mysteries—thirty titles across five fast-paced mystery series filled with twists and turns!

Selling over half a million books worldwide, Lauren Carr is the international best-selling author of the Mac Faraday, Lovers in Crime, Thorny Rose, Chris Matheson Cold Case Mysteries, and Nikki Bryant Cozy Mysteries—thirty titles across five fast-paced mystery series filled with twists and turns!

Book Details:

Book Title: A Spying Eye: A Henrietta and Inspector Howard Novel by Michelle Cox
Category: Adult Fiction, 365 pages
Genre: Historical Mystery
Publisher: She Writes Press
Release dates: Oct 25, 2022
Content Rating: R: There are some swear words peppered throughout (not many) and 2 explicit sex scenes (tasteful, but more than a PG-13 scene)


Book Description:

In A Spying Eye, Clive and Henrietta return to Europe in an attempt to resurrect their failed honeymoon. While in London, they are approached by their old friend, Inspector John Hartle, who convinces them to search for the missing panel of the Ghent Altarpiece, a famous Renaissance painting, of which Hitler’s top men are also in pursuit.

Meanwhile, back in Chicago, Oldrich Exley threatens to cut off financial support for the entire Von Harmon brood if Elsie continues with her plan to marry Gunther―a situation made worse by the sudden appearance of one Heinrich Meyer, who claims to be little Anna’s father and threatens to take her away. Desperate, Elsie seeks the help of Clive’s sister, Julia, who is herself the victim of domestic abuse and who has fallen under the spell of a handsome Texas millionaire bent on acquiring a rare painting from the Howard collection.

​Clive and Henrietta’s search takes them to Chateau du Freudeneck in Strasbourg, France―the ancient seat of the Von Harmons and home to three eccentric distant relatives. What begins as a wild goose chase turns decidedly more deadly when several Nazi officers also arrive at the chateau in search of a “valuable item.” When Henrietta and Clive attempt to flee after Henrietta uncovers a shocking truth, they are forced to trust themselves to a suspicious French servant who seems all-too willing to help . . .

I have been a fan of the Henrietta and Inspector Howard series since I opened the pages of the first book A Girl Like You. I was eagerly anticipating this 6th book, and once again, I enjoyed being totally immersed in the 1930s with one of my favorite couples. Although these books can be read as stand-alone, I think it's better to read them in order since the stories continue from where the previous books ended. Also, these characters have become so familiar to me because I have been following their stories and character development throughout, but a new reader may not get that without reading the rich history of these characters.

Clive and Henrietta return to Europe and this time visit Chateau du Freudeneck to meet Henrietta's long-lost relatives on her father's side, the Von Harmons. While in Europe, they are also asked to investigate the whereabouts of a missing agent who was searching for a lost painting. Of course, not being able to resist getting involved in a mystery case, Clive and Henrietta accept and become embroiled in far more than they expect with the Nazis in hot pursuit. As is her trademark, Cox revs up the danger and action, as we try to figure out who the villain is. I loved that the plot revolved around a famous missing Renaissance altarpiece painting with a fascinating history. I appreciated the author's notes at the end of the book giving the reader information and additional reading on this topic.

Interspersed in Clive and Henrietta's story is also the continuation of Elsie's (Henrietta's sister) and Julia's (Clive's sister) stories. I have to admit, both these secondary characters' own personal dilemmas caught my attention, especially Julia's. But this book was a tad shorter than the previous books and by the end of the novel there were several loose plot threads...so I'm guessing book 7 will resolve that. I have to admit I was disappointed not to have everything resolved in this book.

As in all her other books, the author includes references to past events and gives the backstory from the previous books so they were fresh in my mind and added to my enjoyment of the series. I read so many books that it's easy to forget details when reading books in a series, but Cox skillfully adds these past details without bogging the story down, making her series a pleasure to read.

Cox has become one of my favorite authors and I look forward to her next book in this series...or any other novel she writes. With vivid scenes, unforgettable characters, and twisty plots, this book, and this well-written series are a must for historical mystery lovers.

From acclaimed author and registered nurse Amanda Skenandore, The Alienist meets The Light of Luna Park in a fascinating historical novel based on the little-known story of America’s first nursing school, as a young female grifter in 1880s New York evades the police by conning her way into Bellevue Hospital’s training school for nurses…

In the slums of 1880s New York, Una Kelly has grown up to be a rough-and-tumble grifter, able to filch a pocketbook in five seconds flat. But when another con-woman pins her for a murder she didn’t commit, Una is forced to flee. Running from the police, Una lies her way into an unlikely refuge: the nursing school at Bellevue Hospital.

Based on Florence Nightingale’s nursing principles, Bellevue is the first school of its kind in the country. Where once nurses were assumed to be ignorant and unskilled, Bellevue prizes discipline, intellect, and moral character, and only young women of good breeding need apply. At first, Una balks at her prim classmates and the doctors’ endless commands. Yet life on the streets has prepared her for the horrors of injury and disease found on the wards, and she slowly gains friendship and self-respect.

Just as she finds her footing, Una’s suspicions about a patient’s death put her at risk of exposure and will force her to choose between her instinct for self-preservation, and exposing her identity in order to save others.

Amanda Skenandore brings her medical expertise to a page-turning story that explores the evolution of modern nursing—including the grisly realities of nineteenth-century medicine—as seen through the eyes of an intriguing and dynamic heroine.

“A spellbinding story, a vividly drawn setting, and characters that leap off the pages. This is historical fiction at its finest!” – Sara Ackerman, USA Today bestselling author of The Codebreaker’s Secret

Reviewed by Laura Fabiani

I love it when I find a new author that captivates me, that knows how to spin a good story with flawed realistic characters and a good historical setting. This is the first book I read by Amanda Skenandore and it won't be the last.

Una Kelly is a young woman who had a rough childhood and who now survives as a con woman, pickpocketing and selling the stolen goods as a means of living. But one night, an encounter goes terribly wrong and she partially witnesses a murder that later she is accused of having committed. Una manages to escape and hide. Using all the skills and knowledge she acquired from the years of studying people and conning them, she succeeds in passing the interview to get into the nursing school at Bellevue Hospital. Although she never dreamed of being a nurse, the slums of New York City in the late 1800s became the school of hard knocks, that in some way paved the way and led her to a vocation that would build her character and heal the pain from her past.

I was captivated from the first page down to the last. Una was a multi-layered character, hardened by life's brutal lessons that she carried like a shield. She was quick-witted, resourceful, and a survivor. This made her partly selfish and able to spring back from failed attempts. But it also made for a lonesome life without honesty, love and altruism. Nursing helped Una understand responsibility, teamwork, and discipline. I loved how friendship and love were the positive forces for change in Una's life.

The Nurse's Secret had a good plot, great secondary characters, a bit of romance, a murder mystery, an excellent setting of a nursing school in 1880 NYC with its limited understanding of medicine, and a spunky heroine. I was engaged and entertained throughout. As a woman, I bristled at the disrespectful and insulting manner of doctors toward women's intellect. The pandemic has made my respect for the nursing profession increase a hundredfold. This book seamlessly exposes the beginnings of nursing as a respected profession, and how difficult it was to practice it among a dominant male-only mentality in the world of medicine. Kudos to the women who trumped these men!

Fans of historical fiction will be very pleased with this latest novel from Amanda Skenandore.

Amanda is the author of Between Earth and Sky, winner of the American Library Association’s 2019 Reading List Award for Best Historical Fiction, and The Undertaker’s Assistant, released from Kensington in July 2019.

She grew up in the mountains of Colorado and sang and danced her way through 68 cities on both sides of the Atlantic with the service organization Up with People before starting college. Her love of historical fiction started early with the stories of Kenneth Thomasma, Mark Twain, and Laura Ingalls Wilder.

When she’s not writing, Amanda works as an infection prevention nurse. She lives in Las Vegas with her husband and their pet turtle Lenore.

Amanda Skenandore is a historical fiction writer and registered nurse. Between Earth and Sky was her first novel. She lives in Las Vegas, Nevada. Readers can visit her website at

www.amandaskenandore.com. You can also find her on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, BookBub, and Goodreads.

Ends on July 22, 2022

Carolyn Miller is an inspirational romance author who lives in the beautiful Southern Highlands of New South Wales, Australia, with her husband and four children.

A longtime lover of romance, especially that of Jane Austen and Georgette Heyer’s Regency era, Carolyn holds a BA in English literature and loves drawing readers into fictional worlds that show the truth of God’s grace in our lives. She enjoys music, films, gardens, art, travel, and food.

Miller’s novels have won a number of RWA and ACFW contests. She is a member of American Christian Fiction Writers and Australasian Christian Writers.

Learn more about Carolyn at www.carolynmillerauthor.com, or find her on Facebook (Carolyn Miller Author), Instagram (@CarolynMillerAuthor), and Twitter (@CarolynMAuthor).

Ends June 28, 2022

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Reviewed by Laura Fabiani

Lilly is a young woman who is a feminist at heart. She is an accountant in an era when women were not considered to be capable of entering the workforce reserved primarily for men. Much to her surprise and that of all the other family members, Lilly is the sole heiress of her great-aunt's beautiful estate and logging business. But along with the property, Lilly gains her aunt's friends as she accepts her position and discovers secrets of her aunt Agatha's past.

This is a warm and light-hearted read with a little bit of mystery, intrigue, and just a smidgen of romance. It's the first book in a series and it introduces the characters and how the Modern Ladies’ Society begins. I like that it is historical fiction set in Norway.

I liked Lilly as a character. She is smart, kind, and courageous. Some of the characters were a little too villainous without the balance of other traits. It seemed characters fell into two characters: good or bad.

Apart from this, Secrets of Rosenli Manor is entertaining and a pleasure to read. However, I did not find it as exciting as Of Darkness and Light, a book by the same author. You can read my review of that book here.

Ends April 29, 2022