Carries Book Reviews

Mission Hill by Pamela Wechsler
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Abby Endicott is a prosecutor that is the chief of the District Attorney’s homicide unit in Boston. When she gets a call of a homicide she arrives at the scene to find that the victim is fellow prosecutor Tim Mooney. Abby and Tim have been close for years, close enough that the two had been having a secret affair even after Tim had married.

Finding that Tim’s latest case that the trial was about to start for was for a man that had been involved in Abby’s best friend from high school being murdered Abby insists that she be put on the case to finally get a conviction. Sure that the defendant is also involved in Tim’s murder Abby puts everything into the case so the defendant will not get away with murder again.

Mission HIll seems to be the first book in a new series by Pamela Wechsler featuring Abby Endicott.
Abby is one of those somewhat flawed characters as she has all kinds of hangs up herself but she is a strong person when it comes to her job and making sure justice is served.

I was a bit back and forth on whether I liked Abby herself or not. She’s from a rich family and regularly listing how much she spends on this or that. She has affairs with married men all the while having a loving boyfriend that she doesn’t seem too attached to. And she’s a bit closed off citing things like anxiety and trust issues but the saving grace was she was good with her job and working at this low paying position against the wishes of her rich family which made her a bit more likable in my opinion.

At the end of this read Abby had grown on me and being a sucker for a good legal/courtroom thriller I’d definitely check out where this series heads in any future books.

I received an advance copy from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Holding Smoke by Elle Cosimano
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

John “Smoke” Conlan is serving time at a juvenile rehabilitation center in Denver, Colorado, known as the Y. He was convicted of two murders, that of his English teacher and another boy but he wasn’t the one that had actually killed his teacher and hadn’t meant to kill the boy either.

Smoke has one thing different about himself that the others in the center don’t have. He is not always locked up, he has the ability to do what is known as astral projection or have an out of body experience and move around freely outside of his cell and outside of the Y.

Smoke has spent his time traveling outside of his body doing favors and tasks for other inmates to ease his own time in lock up. One day though he meets Pink who can actually see him and who wants to help Smoke clear his name.

Reading the synopsis of Holding Smoke I was really quite intrigued but a little hesitant on whether I’d enjoy this story or not. I’m not a big fan of the character being locked up type of story but with the use of astral projection being thrown into the mix I was wondering how the story would turn out if he wasn’t quite locked up the whole read. In the end I’m glad I picked this one up as it’s certainly different from your normal type of fantasy/paranormal read but also easily falls into the mystery/thriller genre.

Smoke’s ability to be able to travel despite his incarceration led so much life into the story of someone being innocent but convicted and behind bars. Smoke’s able to get outside and investigate what had happened to himself but also his prison life adds in a lot of twists and turns and things mixed into the plot that a reader should find themselves completely engaged.

Overall, certainly a bit different and interesting read that mixes genres which I usually quite enjoy.

I received an advance copy from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Glass Sword by Victoria Aveyard
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

Glass Sword is the second book in the Red Queen series by Victoria Aveyard. The action in this book picks up right after the explosive ending of Red Queen. Mare Barrow is now on the run from Maven who has become the Silver King after betraying everyone. Mare is making it a mission to hunt down other “new bloods” like herself before the King kills them all off or captures and controls them as they had with her when it was discovered she had Silver abilities.

For me when I was finished with Red Queen I think the explosive ending and betrayal in the first book really made the whole story and raised my rating and interest in the series. The story had a slow pace to it but while learning of the world and abilities I found myself intrigued enough to want to keep reading and then the ending was one of the shocking oh my what’s going to happen now ones that really gets you.

Unfortunately with Glass Sword the story is still an incredibly slow paced read that I struggled all throughout to even want to continue reading. The start of the book was a bit exciting picking up where we’d left off and a faster pace but it didn’t take too long to slow down and start losing my interest. Now that I know the world I would just sit reading and waiting for something amazing and I just never found it in this second book.

There are several parts throughout the read that I would perk up and think oh now we are getting somewhere but then they just seem to fizzle out and not amount to much. The whole Maven is bad now and we need to gather the troops to defend against him dragged on and on and while I hoped for another great ending I just didn’t get that either. The end of this one is just kind of depressing and blah in my opinion.

Overall, I’m sure some will love this series but for me I just felt it wasn’t bringing anything new or exciting to the table in this second book and found myself rather bored throughout.

Blown Away by Brenda Rothert
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Drew McGovern was all ready to start her new life with her fiancee when she gets the devastating news that Colby was killed while helping someone stranded change their tire on the way home from his storm chasing job. Picking herself up after the tragic loss she’s now trying to find herself and learn to live without Colby.

When Drew runs into one of Colby’s old storm chasing buddies and he invites Drew along she thinks it’s just what she needs to get out of the slump she feels she’s been in the past year since the loss of Colby. What Drew didn’t expect was to find herself extremely attracted to Aiden who was Colby’s best friend and also on the storm chasing team.

I have to admit when I read the synopsis for this book I already knew I’d be hooked just due to the setting. Forget any kind of romance going on but I’m one that is always fascinated with movies and books with the whole natural disaster story line. Blown Away doesn’t disappointed as the characters travel around chasing after tornadoes and putting themselves in danger throughout.

However, even without the setting I think I would have enjoyed the relationship developing between Drew and Aiden. There was already a history there between them and obviously both having lost someone close to them it was completely logical for the two to end up with each other.

Overall, a nice romance with likable characters and a great setting.

I received an advance copy from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

It’s Always Complicated
Julia Kent
Publication date: April 27th 2016
Genres: Adult, Contemporary

Take two men, one woman, three children. Stir in one best friend and her fiancé doctor. Whisk one best friend’s niece, her two rock star boyfriends, and add a grizzled old octogenarian diner owner with a naughty mouth and her eighty-something boyfriend who loves every minute of her.

Put them all in a campground in northern Maine where the owners’ daughter has two special men of her own. Bake for 400 pages.

It’s Always Complicated is the sprawling saga of how Laura, Mike and Dylan (Her Billionaires) and Josie and Alex (It’s Complicated) have the wedding of a lifetime at Escape Shores Campground (the Obedient series) while Darla, Trevor and Joe (the Random series) make an appearance with a cast of characters that includes cameos from the Warlock Waitress and maybe…just maybe…Mavis the Chicken.

This book combines three of Julia Kent’s series in a madcap spectacle that yields one universal truth: love is a journey and not a destination, but people will drive you crazy along the way.

Enjoy the ride.

—

Read the series in order:

Her Billionaires (New York Times bestseller)

It’s Complicated

Completely Complicated

It’s Always Complicated

Goodreads / Amazon / Barnes & Noble / iBooks / Kobo

EXCERPT:

A small crowd of men wearing gun holsters ran past Josie and Alex, followed by three uniformed TSA agents.

“I wonder what that’s about?” Alex marveled, his eyes tracking the fracas. He and Josie had come to the Portland, Maine airport to pick up her mother, Marlene, and Aunt Cathy, Uncle Mike and her new Uncle Calvin. All the Ohio relatives were here for her and Alex’s wedding.

A cold wave of dread washed over her. They were running toward the baggage claim for the airline her entire family was on.

“I’ll bet it’s my mother,” she groaned, leaning against him for support. His strong arm wrapped around her shoulders and gave her the comfort she needed. Too bad he couldn’t give her a second backbone made of steel.

If he could, she knew, he would. The thought made her smile.

“I’m sure it’s nothing,” he said, giving her a squeeze. She looked up at him. Way up, given the enormous height difference between the two of them. His warm, brown eyes met hers and for an instant, she wondered if he might be right. That eternally positive outlook he had was a bit infectious.

Maybe she needed to stop assuming the worst of every situation.

A rotund security guard huffed and puffed, running past them, holding what looked like a spare uniform. He was talking into a walkie-talkie.

“Naked?” Huff huff. “She’s naked? What size?” Huff huff.

Alex’s kind eyes filled with alarm. It was both charming and horrifying. Josie couldn’t quite decide which impression she enjoyed more. There was a kind of schadenfreude in realizing she was right. His idealism was sweet, but sometimes she needed him to be more of a realist.

And Marlene served up an entire buffet of realism.

“Mile High Club again?” the guard asked, pausing to catch his breath. Josie watched him with a morbid fascination.

“You don’t really think it’s your mom in there, Josie,” Alex said. He caressed her shoulder absent-mindedly, watching the guard. “I mean—”

“Two men in one bathroom with a naked woman?” the guard barked into his walkie-talkie, eyebrows hitting the brim of his hat.

Josie snorted, the sense of dread spreading.

“How could it be anyone else?”

“That sounds more like something Darla would do,” Alex said. “You sure she’s still in Boston and not on this flight?”

Just as Josie was about to reply, the commotion got louder.

“MARLENE!” Josie heard the sense of outrage in her Aunt Cathy’s voice. The airport was small, but not that small. Cathy’s voice could carry. “WHAT IN THE HELL HAPPENED TO YOUR CLOTHES?”

Author Bio:

New York Times and USA Today Bestselling Author Julia Kent writes romantic comedy with an edge, and new adult books that push contemporary boundaries. From billionaires to BBWs to rock stars, Julia finds a sensual, goofy joy in every book she writes, but unlike Trevor from Random Acts of Crazy, she has never kissed a chicken.

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