Carries Book Reviews

The Gilded Cage
Sherry D. Ficklin
(A Canary Club Novella)
Publication date: December 1st 2016
Genres: Historical, Young Adult

Masie, the flaxen-haired daughter of notorious boot-legger Dutch Schultz, returns home from boarding school to find her family in crisis. Her mother is dangerously unstable, her father’s empire is on the brink of ruin, and the boy she once loved has become a ruthless killer for hire. To keep her family’s dangerous secrets Masie is forced into a lie that will change the course of her future—and leave her trapped in a gilded cage of her own making. As she watches her world fall apart, Masie must decide whether to take her place in the hierarchy, or spread her wings, leaving the people she loves, and the life she despises, far behind her.

Two worlds collide in Gatsby era New York, in a time of dazzling speakeasies and vicious shoot-outs, of gritty gangsters and iridescent ingénues, where not everything that sparkles is gold.

*This is the first of the Canary Club series and is a short story introduction into the forthcoming novels.

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Author Bio:

Sherry is a full time writer from Colorado and the author of over a dozen novels for teens and young adults including the best selling Stolen Empire series. She can often be found browsing her local bookstore with a large white hot chocolate in one hand and a towering stack of books in the other. That is, unless she’s on deadline at which time she, like the Loch Ness monster, is only seen in blurry photographs.

Sherry also writes New Adult fiction under the pen name Ranae Glass and is a contributing writer for fangirlish.com. You can find her at her official website, http://www.sherryficklin.com, or stalk her on her Facebook page http://www.facebook.com/sherry.ficklin.

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Love You To Death by Caroline Mitchell
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Detective Ruby Preston and her team are trying to solve the case of a new serial killer on the loose. Young women who had given a child up for adoption are being targeted and murdered by a young girl who claims she is the baby that they gave up years before. Ruby however has her own secrets that may end up tying into the investigation.

Love You to Death is the first book in the new Detective Ruby Preston series by Caroline Mitchell. I’ve read a few other books by this author before and they seem to be a bit hit or miss with my tastes. For me this first book wasn’t necessarily a miss but I didn’t love it quite as much as other reviewers seem to.

My main problem with this story really seemed to be that things just happened to sort of fall into place all throughout the book. It just seemed awfully convenient to have the main character have the back story that she had in the book. And I also didn’t fully become a fan of this detective, she has a sort of sordid past that she’s clinging to and while I enjoy a strong lead that will go off the books to solve a case I don’t care for one that is toeing the line of right and wrong just for personal reasons as much.

Overall, this one was just an OK read to me but I seem to be in the minority as most reviewers seem to love this one so if you enjoy a good police procedural then this one might be right up your alley.

I received an advance copy from the publisher via NetGalley.

The Trouble With Ghosts
A.L. Kessler
Publication date: November 7th 2016
Genres: New Adult, Urban Fantasy

Poltergeists, severed thumbs, and lies…

PIB agents Abigail Collins and Nick Averin are rattled when a handful of severed thumbs are found at an abandoned house, but neither of them expected it to link to a decades old murder with strange ties to the paranormal world. When Abby’s greatest enemy seems to be helping her from afar, it’s clear that there’s more to this case than the duo first believed.

Past cases come back to life…

Levi is avoiding questions and being even more vague than normal when a new vampire comes to town claiming to be on the case involving blood starved vampires. It’s a fight against time and lies for the two agents.

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EXCERPT:

“I’ll give you a lift.” Mason glanced at me. “And you can fill me in on everything I’ve missed.”

I nodded. “Deal. I want to walk around the house first and see if I can find anything else that indicates where the basements or the entrances were.” I looked at the crumpled papers in my hand. “There’s something about this house that isn’t right.”

“You mean other than the multiple ghosts?” Mason shook his head. “Have you heard anything back on the thumbs?”

“Nope, I think our lab and system are still back logged.” I looked over at the group getting back to work searching for bones. “I think this case takes the cake for strangest one in a while.”

“We have multiple crimes, and PIB has nothing to go off of. Should you call back up in?” He glanced at me.

I knew what he meant, I didn’t meet his gaze. “Maybe. It’s possible my contact could shed some light on one of the biggest mysteries so far in this house.” I pressed my lips together. “Assuming all my contacts synced to my new phone, I can call him today. I don’t know if he’s in town, but the number he gave me is a U.S. number, not an international one.”

“Meaning?”

“Meaning, he’s not in Egypt where the Cult’s base is.” I started walking towards my car.

Mason walked with me. “And just where do you think you’re going?”

“To get my bag out of the wreckage. It currently has everything I own in it. I’d like to keep it.”

Mason walked with me in silence until we finally reached the car. We both slid down into the small crater towards the crunched up mess. My gaze went over the twisted metal and the shattered glass. Gray showed through where the paint had been scrapped off by debris and being banged into things. The wheels stuck up in the air reminding me of a helpless turtle that’d been flipped over. Mason was the one who finally reached in the car and pulled out my bag.

I shook off the glass that I could and wondered how much more I was going to be able to take. The meltdown last night had helped, but I hadn’t expected it to be followed up by my car being destroyed. “I’m going to need a new bag, nothing clings to fabric like auto glass.”

“Throw it in my truck for now and let’s walk the perimeter of the house.” He motioned back to the house and I stopped for a moment to take in the full picture of the house. It looked like any other farmhouse, with bits and pieces on the outside that didn’t match up due to add-ons as time went by. From this distance it didn’t look like it had a basement anywhere, but the codes were different then. Massive windows wouldn’t have been required, just small ones. Ones that could easily be boarded up and sealed.

“Come on, Abby.” Mason called over his shoulder, pulling me out of my zone. I trudged back to the house and threw my bag in the back of his truck. Mason met me by one of the corners by the house. “Ready?”

I nodded and started walking slowly along the edge of the house. Cracks marred part of the foundation, moving in a spider web pattern up to the siding. I took another step and the world rushed by me. Air flew over me as I fell and my body hit the ground.

“Aw fuck!” I sat up and flexed my fingers and wrists to make sure nothing broke. Stretched my arms and then slowly stood and looked up. I was going to feel the bruises tomorrow, but right now I was happy that nothing was broken from the eight foot fall.

“Abby?” Mason’s voice called down the small hole I’d made. “You okay?”

“Nothing’s broken, but toss me a flash light and watch your step.” I called back up. The stream of sunlight that came through the hole barely touched anything where I was. I batted dirt off my body, hoping no creepy crawler had decided to stick to me. I heard him calling out to people above me.

“Help’s on the way. Flash light coming down.” Mason dropped a flashlight in the hole. It landed with a thunk by my foot and I bent down to pick it up. I clicked it on and swallowed a scream.

Author Bio:

A.L. Kessler is a paranormal romance author residing in beautiful Colorado Springs, Co. Since she was a teenager she has loved spinning tales. She can easily be won over with gifts of coffee or chocolate.

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The Christmas Challenge by Sinclair Jayne
My rating: 3.5 of 5 stars

Tucker McTavish has returned to her hometown of Marietta, Montana just in time to help her twin sister plan her Christmas wedding. There’s only one problem for Tucker, her sister plans to marry the man that Tucker thinks may be the one that got away for her. Tucker had a wild side back when she was dating him and managed to mess things up and push him away only for her sister to begin a relationship later.

Before confronting her sister and trying to put their differences aside Tucker decides to visit Miracle Lake hoping it brings her own miracle for the holiday. What Tucker finds is Laird Hunter who is hoping for his own miracle since he’s traveled to Marietta hoping to find his birth family.

The Christmas Challenge is the third book in the Wilder Brothers series. It can be read as a standalone but being set in the small town of Marietta, Montana during the holiday season there is again mentions of other characters and events from the small town that is featured in quite a few series.

With the Christmas Challenge I won’t hesitate to say that as usual with one of these lovely small town Christmas reads there was great writing and I did enjoy the relationship developing between Tucker and Laird. But my main concern with this one came as soon as I read that Tucker’s twin sister is marrying Tucker’s ex-boyfriend, that just seems like all kinds of wrong to make Tucker seem the bad sister in the story. Sure Tucker had her wild ways but what sister dates an ex….especially a twin?

Overall, 3.5 stars for this edition of the Wilder Brothers series. I still love the holiday Marietta books and the couples involved just found a bit of the back story in this one a tad weird for my tastes.

I received an advance copy from the publisher via NetGalley.

Hello Readers! Welcome to the Release Day Celebration for

Immortal (Dragonrider Chronicles #4)

by Nicole Conway

presented by Month9Books!

Don’t miss out on the next book in this series,

and be sure to enter the giveaway found at the end of the post!

Happy Book Birthday, Nicole!

Destiny has called.

With Jaevid Broadfeather forever lost to the depths of Luntharda, Felix Farrow struggles to stand on his own. He begins a violent downward spiral which causes him to abandon his post as a dragonrider, hiding in the halls of his family estate. His one hope for redemption lies within the heart of someone from his past—and the very last person he ever wanted to see again.

And now the time has finally come.

Hovrid, who has ruled Maldobar as a tyrannical imposter, is preparing to make a decisive assault against Luntharda that will destroy what remains of the elven race. Only Jaevid, Felix, and their trusted friends are able to stand in his way. They have only one chance to end the war, and only one hope to absolve the curse that threatens to destroy their world. The stage is set. The plan is in motion.

What began as one boy’s adventure will now end in blood.

Immortal (Dragonrider Chronicles #4)

by Nicole Conway

Publication Date: November 8, 2016

Publisher: Month9Books

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Nicole is the author of the children’s fantasy series, THE DRAGONRIDER CHRONICLES, about a young boy’s journey into manhood as he trains to become a dragonrider. She has completed the first two books in the series, and is now working on the third and final book.

Originally from a small town in North Alabama, Nicole moves frequently due to her husband’s career as a pilot for the United States Air Force. She received a B.A. in English with a concentration in Classics from Auburn University, and will soon attend graduate school.

She has previously worked as a freelance and graphic artist for promotional companies, but has now embraced writing as a full-time occupation.

Nicole enjoys hiking, camping, shopping, cooking, and spending time with her family and friends. She also loves watching children’s movies and collecting books. She lives at home with her husband, two cats, and dog.

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