Rowan Pendragon and her cousin Davin have found themselves in a bit of a sticky situation, as usual, they have been caught trying to smuggle a few bottles of vodka from the neighbouring realm of Socaria into their homeland of Lochlann after their only way back was blocked and they resorted to travelling through a tunnel for days with nothing but the vodka, only to wake up in a Socarian dungeon. As they slowly wake up and come to the realisation that their predicament is worse than just waking up with a hangover, their captor comes to inform them of the crimes they have permitted and the sentence that they carry, the penalty of death, however, when Rowan reveals their identities, they are moved into more suitable accommodation and invited to join the clan leader and his brother for dinner later on that evening.
It is during the conversation that Rowan learns that the women here are to be seen and not heard and when she agrees to have her future decided by a Summit of the Clans, she makes the case that they should be lenient with her cousin as he is her guard and not actually high in the ranking of their society, they agree, but on the principle that she behaves like a proper Socarian princess would. The only point which rankles Rowan is that she will not be able to create and read a statement of reasoning for what she did and put it before the Summit herself, only a male and one of the ruling party of a Clan can do that, much to her disappointment.
As they leave for the Summit, Rowan reluctantly leaves her cousin behind at the palace where they were being held, at least she knows that one of them will return to their family and tell them the truth of what happened so that they can get closure whatever the decision of the Summit may be. Davin is not in the least happy about the situation and wishes that he could go with her like always and watch her back, however, Rowan insists on it and he acquiesces in the end. As they travel, Rowan gets to know her captors and their family more, as well as the customs, rules and laws which she will have to obey on her journey, however, as she does this, something changes between her and her captor.
Will Rowan be able to face the Summit and take their decision and see it through, what will their decision be and how will it affect her and her captor, will they have to fight for a future they want, or will it become too much of a barrier to them? This is a historical romance with rivalry, hierarchical challenges and family feuds galore which will pull you along as the story progresses as you fight for their future along with them.
https://itsybitsybookbits.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/IBBB_2020_logo_sq.png00Roxsanne Lesieurhttps://itsybitsybookbits.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/IBBB_2020_logo_sq.pngRoxsanne Lesieur2021-10-06 01:26:402021-10-06 07:55:47Scarlet Princess (The Lochlann Feuds Book 1) by Robin D. Mahle & Elle Madison – Review by Roxsanne Lesieur.
It is the year 1883 and Emma Evans is getting ready for work while she reminisces about some of the cases she has worked in the last year as an amateur sleuth, as she checks that she has everything and looking at her split skirt, specifically designed so she can cycle around Chicago with ease, she thinks about the events which started her on this path in life. From the happy occasion of her sister getting married to the opposite of when she was attacked, she looks through the old notebooks she has written her case notes in and how they changed her life forever, as well as those around her.
This included finding out that her Mama was involved in a couple of the cases she was looking at, thefts and smuggling operations mainly and that someone she worked with was also the head of a criminal organisation with fingers in many pies in the city and she stopped some of them in their tracks, this made her a target, but they weren’t the only ones, she also witnessed an attack, which when she tried to stop it, was when she was attacked herself, but later on the culprit returned to try again, however, only succeeded up getting caught and sent down for their crimes. This did lead to Emma helping a local charitable organisation and making a friend for life in the process, while helping them to remain anonymous at the same time.
In the present day, Emma has a job agency after finishing her degree in Business School and is helping other to gain the same qualifications and jobs, as well as being a courier and typist during the day, as well as investigating multiple cases and bringing more specialists onto the team. These include a photographer and a master of disguise whom all extend her original team and help to bring her the professional recognition she deserves, however, her personal life is not as easy, she is struggling to define her feelings for two men she is close to and trying to work out if her past and present are going to collide and rip the team apart at the seams. This is a cozy mystery with clean romantic elements within where tangled threads are smoothed out, secrets revealed and crimes solved with a dash of humour and self discovery thrown in for good measure which will keep you hooked throughout.
Ciaran Donnelley and Caitlin O’Connell are back a year after Ciaran woke up from his entombment and the pair are in Ireland to visit the archaeological dig and try to get some of Ciaran’s memory back as part of his recovery from the amnesia he is using as a cover story, however, nothing is how it used to be and Ciaran is feeling homesick, even though he is home. As they drive through the countryside, Caitlin is suggesting places to visit to try and jog his memory, but all she is really doing is annoying Ciaran who just wants to deal with his feelings and how the changes he is seeing that happened between the fifth and twentieth centuries have altered the country.
After a couple of hours driving and awkward silences, Ciaran asks if they can go to Dublin and see the last monk they have on display there, although he can’t tell Caitlin that it is his brother Aodhan as yet, he says that it will help him when he gets to the dig, she reluctantly agrees, even though it is hours out of their way. Once they get to the museum and they go and see Aodhan, they also run into a couple of colleagues of Caitlin’s who she introduces to Ciaran, he asks if they can take a closer look at he exhibit before they leave and his request is granted, but mainly only because of Catlin’s presence there. The face that Ciaran cannot spend as much time as he wanted there, frustrates him and the drive to the dig site is silent and full of tension and this lasts until they get to the rooms which have been prepared for them in the B&B where everyone is staying.
The awkwardness only lasts until the next day when Ciaran has been out for a walk in the local countryside to clear his head and look for the sacred grove the priesthood used to use for their worship and rituals, however, he instead finds some young children who live in the area who tell him about a find of their brothers, which turns out to be his dead wife’s ring. Ciaran is determined to find her and suggests looking in the lake to the dig team and the professor leading it, however, all does not go to plan and more mishaps and a mystery serial killer moving into the area lead to his carefully crafted secret is revealed, but will Ciaran be able to free his brother from his endless sleep and stop the serial killer the only way he knows how to and will he be able to find the fabled Book of Carraig in order for this to happen? This is a paranormal adventure which will keep you on the edge of you seat throughout and the twists and turns will keep you guessing what happens until right at the end.
https://itsybitsybookbits.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/IBBB_2020_logo_sq.png00Roxsanne Lesieurhttps://itsybitsybookbits.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/IBBB_2020_logo_sq.pngRoxsanne Lesieur2021-10-06 00:43:572021-10-06 07:55:07The Book of Carraig (The Cross of Ciaran 2) by Andrea Matthews – Review by Roxsanne Lesieur.
Vanessa Maan, Grey, Raef and Aroz are back in this story of one woman and her immortals where she is rudely awakened by being pulled out of bed, away from Grey and straight into a place which smells of brimstone. When she has realised just where she has been whisked to, she also realises that she is butt naked, thankfully her modestly is covered thanks to a comforting presence and she needs all the comfort possible when she comes face to face to the Queen of the Underworld in her throne room and surrounded by guards with scythes. It is here that Vanessa is given a mission and 24 hours to complete it, she is being sent back up the Overworld where she is tasked to retrieve a sample of water from a Waterfall Of Youth at the top of the tower block belonging to Raef, so away she goes, propelled upward in the lift with words of warning of what is awaiting her if she fails.
When Vanessa is dropped off at the tower, she is determined to get this mission over and done with as soon as possible, but as usual, nothing really goes to plan and instead of worrying about running into Raef, she runs into Aroz instead, that is after crashing into a member of staff first as she is looking through a door at her target. As soon as he sees her, Aroz distracts her by dragging her through the Betwixt, away from her waterfall, mission and the only thing keeping her in one piece, straight into the arms of her gentleman Raef and away from a danger she hadn’t anticipated. This leads to the three of them making and executing a plan to get the necessary sample, but again things go awry and again Aroz grabs her and takes her away, but this time it is to his invisible palace in the Upperworld.
As Vanessa’s predicament becomes apparent and Aroz refuses to let her free, she becomes the trapped beauty to his beast, however, as she explores the palace and attempts to find her way around to the rooms Aroz has supposedly prepared for her, she runs into a soul in need. This soul asks for her help, but is it something Vanessa can give willingly, or will it spell even more trouble for her? Will she ever be rescued from her gilded cage and what will happen if she does, will she still remain in one piece, or will the Queen dish out the punishment she believes Vanessa deserves? This is another mythological and paranormal romance with Gods, mortals, the dead and everything in between as another race against time ensues and dangers are all around with more riddles to solve and secrets to be revealed as this fast paced adventure flows across the realms to its conclusion while pulling you along in the current.
https://itsybitsybookbits.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/IBBB_2020_logo_sq.png00Roxsanne Lesieurhttps://itsybitsybookbits.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/IBBB_2020_logo_sq.pngRoxsanne Lesieur2021-10-04 12:59:452021-10-05 07:21:54The Bow (Her Three Immortals Book 3) by Hazel Storm – Review by Roxsanne Lesieur.
Lawyer Donovan Trait and Judge Shirley Magnusen are back and it is the day before their wedding, Donovan is doing his usual as he pursues a case for those who cannot represent themselves and is filling the courtroom with his usual pizazz, so as he has an early finish, he decides to visit his bride to be while she is on a break. He asks her why she hasn’t taken the day off to prepare for the wedding, she responds that his mother has helped with it all, but that the minister is flapping a bit and that he should call him, but soon Donovan is his usual irresistible self and she is totally swayed by it, at least until she is called away.
As the day of the wedding dawns, Shirley is getting ready and is thinking about her turning, about what it will mean for her future and how happy she is with the whole situation, apart from maybe the press and paparazzi who will be waiting outside. They next head to meet with the Vampire Council so that they can give their final blessing to their union, but Shirley is feeling a little light headed and nauseous, but she just puts it down to wedding jitters, what with all the pomp and ceremony, however, she has to have a health appointment just in case it is to do with her turning, but what the results reveal to Donovan is about to change their lives again. It turns out that Shirley is pregnant and as much as they want to shout it from the rooftops, they decide to keep the news quiet until after the ceremony, which they immediately regret when they are called before the Council for a trial.
The opening statements are made, the evidence is presented, as well as the reasoning behind why this isn’t a breach of the marital agreement they made, however, the Council has other ideas and they deem the Traits as guilty of breaching their marital agreement and as such drastic punishment must be meted out, instead, the Traits flee and make their way to an island run by Vampire Nuns, but will they be able to keep out of reach of the Vampire Council, or will their growing family be torn apart before they even have a chance to live? This is a paranormal romance with an edge of danger and rebellion as you travel along the path the Traits are forging to reach calm waters and the safety they crave.
https://itsybitsybookbits.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/IBBB_2020_logo_sq.png00Roxsanne Lesieurhttps://itsybitsybookbits.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/IBBB_2020_logo_sq.pngRoxsanne Lesieur2021-09-28 15:31:282021-09-29 07:40:38Ye Gods! The Law is an Ass! (Donovan Trait Book 2) by Seelie Kay – Review by Roxsanne Lesieur.
Aishling Glasby is the daughter who has been left behind and who lives with her stepmother and stepsisters where she wiles away her days wishing her father would come back while also looking out for the things he taught her to see when nobody else would. Prince Callum is the only son of the King of but this brings responsibilities he and his husband would rather forget as it will impact on their future relationship as much as the kingdom that they will someday rule and it revolves around an heir.
It is just another day for Aishling catering to the whims of her step sisters as they order her around while she is trying to complete her chores, but today is not just any day, it is the day of the ball Prince Callum and his husband are throwing to celebrate their anniversary and all the women and girls from across the kingdom have been invited. As she is collecting something from the garden, she spots something by the arc barrier which shouldn’t be there, but she is soon distracted by her sisters again and thinks no more of it. Meanwhile, Prince Callum and his husband are preparing for the ball until their passion for each other wins out as usual, but once they are sated, they are ready to face the music despite how much it hurts the other.
As her family leave the house, Aishling is looking a the dress she had made wishing that she could attend too, however, she is distracted again when she looks outside and sees two creatures. They are testing the barrier and when one of the creatures passes through, she realises that the promise she swore to her father she would keep is about to become reality. Since her father left their homestead to chase the nightmare creatures which exist outside the barrier and whom drove him to madness, she has kept the belongings he created to fight them, so when she overhears them talking about attacking the palace, she knows what she must do. As Aishling makes her way there, Prince Callum is dancing with the guests and trying to comfort his husband, but when he sees Aishling he is intrigued and this continues as he speaks and dances with her, however when midnight strikes, so do the creatures.
Will Aishling and Prince Callum be able to defeat the creatures, or will they be torn apart before they can see what the future holds? This is a fairy-tale with a twist which keep you reading and engaged until the end as good fights evil to protect the lives of those around them.
https://itsybitsybookbits.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/IBBB_2020_logo_sq.png00Roxsanne Lesieurhttps://itsybitsybookbits.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/IBBB_2020_logo_sq.pngRoxsanne Lesieur2021-09-27 10:40:252021-09-27 14:05:33Entwined: A Cinderella Retelling (Stone and Cinder Book 1) by A.L. Morrow – Review by Roxsanne Lesieur.
Danielle is a curator for the Brandian Arts Museum, a job which she loves, but she also misses being out on the ground where she can dig in the dirt and put the pieces of a puzzle together, but on this night, she is at an auction and about to bid for a relic which she knows more about than she should, thanks to an old friend who has just passed away. As she is preparing to bid on this relic, she is in her element and cannot wait to finally have this in her possession, despite the fact that the auction was a last minute affair and the listing were not posted beforehand like they usually are, however, soon she is outbid by a man with a gravelly voice whom she has never seen before and who disappears immediately after he has won the prize. A couple of weeks later on and she is at her office at the museum where her best friend is telling her to snap out of the mood she has been in since this stranger waltzed into her life and took something she wanted right out from under her feet, so that when they go for a meal and a few drinks later on, she enjoys herself until she falls asleep in the taxi home.
Vulture is a brother in the Order of the Condor and a Pureblood Vampyr, he is a ghost with only a code name to identify him by and he is the most dangerous predator out there by miles, so when he is given a contract to retrieve a relic and a museum curator, he thinks no more of it until they collide at the auction. Vulture is dangerously captivated by her angelic looks and fierce personality, but the information he has to retrieve from her is not as forthcoming as he had hoped. Meanwhile, Danielle is coming to terms with the huge adjustment she will need to make to being in a cage and having to spill her darkest secrets to the man who she can’t deny she is attracted to, but as her containment continues, she realises that she will not be able to hide one of her secrets, but that she must hide the other in order to survive.
As Vulture tries to fulfil his contract and realises that something is amiss and when a last minute change of plans tests his patience to the limits, he realises just how much Danielle means to him and what he could lose if something happens to her, but will they be able to keep each other safe so they can explore the connection neither of them can deny, or will the worst come to the worst and their bond be broken? This is a dark paranormal romance with danger round every corner as fated mates struggle to stay by the others side as they solve a mystery eons old together, this fast paced and entertaining tale will keep you on your toes right up until the end.
https://itsybitsybookbits.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/IBBB_2020_logo_sq.png00Roxsanne Lesieurhttps://itsybitsybookbits.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/IBBB_2020_logo_sq.pngRoxsanne Lesieur2021-09-17 16:37:392021-09-18 09:10:55Code Name: Vulture: Dark Vampire Romance (The Order of the Condor Series Book 1) by Maya Daniels & Sylvia Black – Review by Roxsanne Lesieur.
Anne Fremont is back in this new gardening tale, where she is giving a talk to the specialist interest group of the local gardening club where she will be talking about how to grow a good forest with a mix of flowers, fruit, vegetables and herbs on one place with little to no tending needed. She is happy to be there and has been looking for a gardening group to join and this one seems right up her street. The next day she has agreed to go and see the president of the club and discuss the designs she has in mind for her garden, so she gets ready for the day and sets off over in her car.
When she arrives, she knocks on the door, however, when she doesn’t get an answer after the third try, she decides to go and look in a window to see if they are home, however, when she sees the owner is unable to answer the door, she rushes in only to find that she is dead. Anne phones the authorities and reports what has happened and to all intensive purposes it looks like an accident, but the more she thinks about it, the more something doesn’t ring true for Anne.
She decides to ask around about what happened that morning and how people feel about it, but the more questions she asks, the more secrets are uncovered leading to more possible suspects. There are rumours and accusations flying of extra marital affairs and the possibility that someone has silenced the woman who has died, but will Anne be able to discover the culprits identity before she is the next victim? This is a lovely cozy mystery where secrets and ulterior motives abound, all while gardens are being created and tended to by the close knit gardening group.
https://itsybitsybookbits.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/IBBB_2020_logo_sq.png00Roxsanne Lesieurhttps://itsybitsybookbits.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/IBBB_2020_logo_sq.pngRoxsanne Lesieur2021-09-16 17:01:272021-09-17 08:48:34Potager Plot: A witty cozy mystery with a hint of romance. (A Backyard Farming Mystery Book 5) by Vikki Walton – Review by Roxsanne Lesieur.
Rocky and his girlfriend Olive are back and Rocky is awoken one day by a smell which can only mean a special breakfast is being prepared, but he is not sure why, that is until his mum announces that she is going to get married to a guy called Ted, this is news to Rocky, but it is not welcome news in the slightest. His mind is whirling as he thinks about this momentous news, he has seen Ted around the house a lot, with his eyebrows which are constantly on the move, a beard that looks more like it should be on the devil himself and black beady eyes which scream suspicious behaviour, but he thought it was just work related and as if that isn’t enough, she announces that he is coming to watch Rocky’s football game that day too. Rocky is stunned and upset by this turn of events and believes that one big life change is enough for one kid and he has already had that, so why has he got to have another one?
Rocky immediately talks to Olive about the situation and what he can do to stop it, she gives him some ideas and Rocky starts working on his sleuthing prowess immediately, well, after he has played in the football game anyway. As they head to the game, Ted peppers Rocky with questions about football as he knows nothing about it, but as he plays, Ted shouts something from the bleachers and then it comes true, but this makes Rocky even more suspicious and angry that it causes them to lose the game. As the next few days progress, things keep happening to Rocky which coordinate with Ted saying something related to it before it happens, it is after one of these events during an award assembly as school, his teacher mentions that there is a letter for his mum in with his award, it turns out that it is an invitation to attend a creative writing camp over summer, but it is at the same time as soccer camp, which is way more important, unfortunately, Rocky is unable to attend the soccer camp and ends up going to the creative writing one in the end anyway and he is now convinced that it is Ted causing all the issues with his evil magical powers.
When Rocky’s mum tells him that although she is proud, she will miss Rocky terribly, so arranges to go with him, as does Ted, but plans change and it is only Ted and Rocky who go, but things do not go smoothly and Rocky is again in trouble, but will he be able to prove his innocence and convince everyone that he didn’t steal anything from anyone, or will things just go from bad to worse when he bumps into an old hermit living alone in the woods near the summer camp and will Rocky and Olive be able to prove his suspicions about Ted and stop the marriage between him and his mum? This is another fast paced mystery for all ages where suspicions are raised and secrets are all around, as events play out and things are uncertain for everyone involved.
https://itsybitsybookbits.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/IBBB_2020_logo_sq.png00Roxsanne Lesieurhttps://itsybitsybookbits.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/IBBB_2020_logo_sq.pngRoxsanne Lesieur2021-09-14 08:15:592021-09-16 08:33:10Spooked by a Suspicion by Risa Nyman – Review by Roxsanne Lesieur.
Rocky is your typical twelve year old kid, but he has had a string of unfortunate life changes recently, his dad died and he and his mum have moved away from his childhood home in Whitman, to live with his grandpa in Tucker. They moved straight after the funeral, away from everything that he knew, where all his memories were made and he couldn’t understand why and whenever he asked about it, instead of answering him, his mum would just shut down and ignore the question.
As if it isn’t bad enough that Rocky is trying to come to terms with his dads death, he also has to start a new school mid way through the school year and so has to go and meet with the new school counsellor, but he doesn’t engage as much as she wants him to, his mind is too filled of memories to concentrate, especially a specific memory where he overheard his and his best friend’s mum talking about what to tell him about the way he passed away which makes Rocky determined to find out what that secret is. However, his day doesn’t go smoothly when he suddenly hears a vey familiar voice as he is walking to his first class of the day, it is his dad’s voice, he runs into the nearest bathroom to try and calm his racing heart and has a conversation with the voice in his head, but should he be doing that and is it even possible?
He eventually gets to his class and after finding out how behind he is in this subject, he is paired up with a girl called Olive to help him catch up, she is a force of nature and completely steamrolls with a confidence Rocky wishes he had and he agrees to swap numbers and meet with her later. At lunch he comes across a kid who is rude and leaves him alone at his table before finding another and is joined by Olive, as they get to know each other and agree to meet up after school, they develop a study plan, but when they start really talking, Rocky opens up about the mystery he is trying to solve and Olive is more than happy to help him along the way. Will Rocky and Olive be able to reveal the secret haunting his past, or will they be stumped at every turn and how does his dad’s disembodied voice come into it, will it be a help, or a hindrance? This is a cozy mystery for all ages which deals with a lot of themes in an easy to read way which keeps you entertained while engaged throughout in this fantastic story of a young boys life changing after a very sad event.
https://itsybitsybookbits.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/IBBB_2020_logo_sq.png00Roxsanne Lesieurhttps://itsybitsybookbits.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/IBBB_2020_logo_sq.pngRoxsanne Lesieur2021-09-14 07:38:392021-09-16 08:32:47Swallowed By A Secret by Risa Nyman – Review by Roxsanne Lesieur.
Jake the Growling Dog is back in another adventure where he is enjoying life and part of that is walking on the trail he loves to go down everyday, it helps him to relax and enjoy the sights and sounds of life in the woods near where he lives. He likes to see what new sights and sounds are around, especially when his best friend Neet is with him, but one day he is walking down his trail when something doesn’t look or smell right and it makes them worry that it is something he might not want to share his trail with.
As Jake and Neet try to figure out what has made the strange tracks on the ground and whether whatever made the tracks is dangerous, their legs start to shake and their minds go spinning until they hear something start to pass by and they get scared and so they go and hide. When they are safe and alone they come out and go home, but the experience has made Jake’s head hurt and when he tried to get to sleep, he had bad dreams, but when his friends Bodhi and Luna come to visit, Jake tells them what happened and how he might not want to share his trail and how it is making him feel when he thinks about it.
Will Bodhi, Luna, Jake and Neet be able to work together to figure out the mystery of the new tracks and smell on the trail, or will their fears get the better of them? This is a beautifully written story about sharing, facing fears and not being afraid of something new and different which can be enjoyed by adults and children alike with some excellent activities at the end around the themes contained in the story.
https://itsybitsybookbits.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/IBBB_2020_logo_sq.png00Roxsanne Lesieurhttps://itsybitsybookbits.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/IBBB_2020_logo_sq.pngRoxsanne Lesieur2021-09-12 16:06:482021-09-15 08:39:55Jake the Growling Dog Shares His Trail: A Touching Tale of Sharing, Disability Awareness, Kindness, and Overcoming Fears by Samantha Shannon – Review by Roxsanne Lesieur.
The three young students on Earth are back in their next journeys through space and time in which they are drawn into the ways of ancient wisdom, mystical energies and entities. They leave their place of safety to travel across the globe and hike on foot to a hidden place in the Himalayas, on this journey they make friends with those guiding them, face dangers and uncertainties, but it is all worth it when they arrive. Meanwhile another reptilian species is making its way to a planet in another system to find an ancient relic which will aid them in powering their ultimate weapon to use in their fight for domination, but it isn’t all smooth sailing as they encounter traps and dangers of their own.
As the students begin to learn what their masters are teaching them and using the techniques to explore the vastness of the past and future of Earth so that they are able to retrieve and use the ancient aero facts and knowledge they are sent to retrieve. However, in New York, another past enemy is intending to thwart their plans with some of their own and when a new master joins them, it is a race against time to find the ones they are looking for.
As time passes and plans develop and change, these three groups of people race against time to find the important elements they need to complete their mission, but who will come out victorious, the reptilian humanoids, the three students or the other mysterious group plotting against them all? This is a thrilling journey across space and time which will keep you hooked into the adventure as mysteries are revealed and the players in the multiverses come together at last.
https://itsybitsybookbits.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/IBBB_2020_logo_sq.png00Roxsanne Lesieurhttps://itsybitsybookbits.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/IBBB_2020_logo_sq.pngRoxsanne Lesieur2021-09-02 02:05:452021-09-02 09:29:53Journeys Through TimeSpace (Journeys Through Book 2) by James Talisman – Review by Roxsanne Lesieur.
Sarah Danger is an assistant investigator while also working towards her doctorate in comparative mythology and counselling, she enjoys all the parts of her life, however, this trip to Hawai’i with her boss to investigate his latest case is a once in a lifetime opportunity, although the reason they are investigating is less than happy. The client who has hired them has asked them to investigate a mysterious illness which is currently affecting one of their family members, it is an illness which causes the affected person to have a progressive nausea, a headache, a fever which cannot be treated and which raises until the person’s organs fail and someone has already perished.
As they prepare to arrive in Hawai’i, Sarah’s boss asks her to come up with a plan for when they land, she decides to conduct the interviews with the patient and their family members first, followed by the doctor treating them and finally the family of the person who died, they agree that it is the best course of action before going for a meal and settling in so that they can get an early start the next day. As the investigation progresses, Sarah has to call on her clairempathy during the interview to try and find out about the emotions the interviewee is feeling and how it corresponds with the answers they were giving, however, things don’t quite go as planned when one of the team ends up in hospital and another has to be brought in and Sarah is thrust into a leadership role she is not sure she is comfortable with.
As more information is found and more cases are found, a pattern emerges and t is looking more likely to be a supernatural rather than a biological nature, this is where Sarah’s expertise really comes to the fore as she researches into the new possibilities with her team. Will they be able to figure out who and what is behind the mysterious illness and how they can remedy it before those affected succumb to its affects? This is a cozy mystery with a supernatural element, which will draw you in and keep you reading through the twists and turns until the conclusion.
https://itsybitsybookbits.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/IBBB_2020_logo_sq.png00Roxsanne Lesieurhttps://itsybitsybookbits.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/IBBB_2020_logo_sq.pngRoxsanne Lesieur2021-08-31 17:27:072021-09-01 09:27:17Hazard in Hawaii (A Doctor Danger Mystery Book 1) by Heather Silvio – Review by Roxsanne Lesieur.
It is ten years after Tyler Trout was sent to psychiatric rehab after his mental illness caused a psychotic break and his family are still reeling from the murder of their next door neighbour Sally Hubbard and to help with their grief, they moved to the small resort town of Lake George Village and bought the Blue Palm Motel where they now live and work. Hen has grown up into a handsome young man and helps out doing the domestic work in the rooms while his mum, Marcella and Bernie, her partner handle the finances and the odd jobs, meanwhile Tyler has just returned and is living in one of the cabins as he starts to work towards some sort of independence.
As they are all settling into a routine, Tyler is managing to hold down a job at a local store, but his mental health takes a dive when someone from his past turns up and sets back the progress he has made, meanwhile, Hen is taking on more responsibility as the busy summer season starts and preparing for the transition to adulthood in just one short year when he will have to make some serious decisions about his future, whether that involves college or continuing to work at the motel, as well as deciding what to do with his inheritance money once he comes of the age to take ownership of it, all while trying to support his mum and keep up some semblance of normality by spending time with his friends.
All this comes crashing down around the Trout’s when Marcella is attacked at the office and Tyler is the only witness to the altercation, however, the information is locked inside his mind and the turmoil in which it constantly spins, however, when he approaches the office after the attack happens and incriminating himself in the process, his family have to confront Tyler’s illness all over again. Will Tyler be able to make anyone understand the information he holds in his mind and how important it is, or will they believe that he is capable of hurting his family and keep him in detention? Can his family overcome their own personal views of Tyler and help him to reintegrate into society, or will they fail to see beyond his diagnosis? This is a heart rending tale of mental illness and how it can affect those around them, as well as being an emotional rollercoaster of emotions as you become invested in the lives and trials of a family many can relate to.
https://itsybitsybookbits.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/IBBB_2020_logo_sq.png00Roxsanne Lesieurhttps://itsybitsybookbits.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/IBBB_2020_logo_sq.pngRoxsanne Lesieur2021-08-31 14:16:592021-08-31 22:44:13Boy Released by J.D. Spero – Review by Roxsanne Lesieur.
Tasha the Vampire and Levi the Lycan return as they continue to fight for their survival, the Hellspawn are back after a few months of precious respite and now are back to attacking them on a nightly basis, but they are evolving and the way that they attack them is changing too, meanwhile, the two forbidden lovers and mates continue in their fated romance as they swap between being fearless leaders in front of their fellow warriors to being able to show each other their true feelings behind closed doors.
Meanwhile, they are trying to study history of the two races, as well as their genetics and see what they will reveal about their origins and therefore the Hellspawn, but whenever they think that they have found something it just reveals more questions than answers. They are all just trying to use their skills to keep their heads above water and out of the mess created by their enemies, but with each step forwards, they are starting to feel like they are going two steps backward and the tentative and slightly unstable alliance takes just as much work to maintain as hiding the some critical truths from those around them.
Cant the two fated mates find out what is hiding behind the wall of secrets and think of a way to keep the Hellspawn and others who want to destroy what they have at arms length, or will things come between them and rip them apart for good? This paranormal romance is filled with tension and excitement from the get go and keeps you reading as the story unravels before you, it is a rollercoaster of ups and downs which keep you off balance and always guessing what is around the next bend.
https://itsybitsybookbits.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/IBBB_2020_logo_sq.png00Roxsanne Lesieurhttps://itsybitsybookbits.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/IBBB_2020_logo_sq.pngRoxsanne Lesieur2021-08-31 08:52:162021-08-31 09:51:25Forbidden Mate (The Shadow Chronicles Book 2) by CR Robertson – Review by Roxsanne Lesieur.
Cole Westbay is a man living in a digital society with a neural interface the same as everybody else, in fact, he was the one who designed and created it, Vitasync received such a positive reception that now everyone has one and it is connected to a worldwide neural network where every citizen uploads their every thought, feeling and action into a lifelog. This neural chip has been integrated so seamlessly into everyday life that as the US Government reorganised and recognised this, they chipped away at the freedoms and liberties the general population had and they accepted it and as time progressed the lifelog became a necessity instead of a luxury, this is something that Cole didn’t agree with at all, but he couldn’t do anything about it. As Cole settles into his work at BioNarratus, he is called into his boss’s office where he is given a promotion and even though it is taking him away from the lab work he loves, he accepts it, but when the work becomes extremely demanding, especially as a file to do with untoward deaths which have been suggested that the Vitasync may have been dysfunctional and the causes of the deaths, so he finishes his most important work and them works on boards to try and find links between the deaths and what he finds is the opposite of what he wanted.
One day Cole wakes up with a splitting headache and none of his usual visual overlays are active, in fact, none of his technological advances are active and he has lost his most recent memory, he has no idea how the blood in the back of his head got there, or why when he sits up, his house is a complete mess, it has been ransacked and he fears he has been robbed. He feels so disconnected from everything that it takes some time for him to process his new situation, it also means that he can’t call anyone to check in with them, so in order to call the police, he has to visit his neighbour in person, it is awkward, but is a means to an end. As he waits for the police to arrive, Cole thinks about how different the world around him looks without his neural interface chip, he feels extremely disconnected and his anxiety is through the roof, but when the Officer eventually makes his presence known, it isn’t in a way that Cole expects and the fact that his lifelog isn’t active lands him in hot water and he is arrested.
As Cole starts to try and figure out what has happened to him and why, he ends up feeling like he can’t trust those around him, so after having to see a doctor about the wound on the back of his head, he goes into work to figure out what he was working on and see if he can pin down a timeline for the last couple of days. It isn’t until he manages to become somewhat connected thanks to a second hand interface system that he realises how being disconnected may not be such a bad thing after all, especially when he is mobbed by reporters until help arrives from a group of people who prefer to remain off the grid. Will Cole be able to figure out who was behind his attack and work out who he can trust out of those he is surrounding himself with, or will he end up more permanently disconnected in the process? This is a dystopian sci-fi adventure which creates a world that doesn’t feel too distant from the one we are living in now while discussing the pitfalls of technology in such a way that it really makes you think and keeps you intrigued all the way until the end when the conclusion is revealed.
Charlotte Claybrooke is a woman with a career as a life coach, but she feels like she is drowning in the all consuming grief resulting from a tragedy ten years in her past which she still has not gotten over, she feels like an imposter in her own life and that the lies she feeds to those around her and those who look to her for advice and counsel are starting to pile up around her and all she wants to do is escape, so she fills in the forms and packs, ready to go on an adventure with the Dire’s Club. Jimmy Dire is the founder of the Dire’s Club, it is a place where the terminally ill and dying can have a last adventure before their light leaves the world, it is a passion and Jimmy knows it is also the right thing to do, it is something that can make the biggest difference to someone and help them to remember that they are more than just a diagnosis, but like all things it is expensive.
As he is preparing for his latest group of Diers, he pushes all that to the back of his mind and greets the group after his assistant has introduced him and let them all get settled, it is a mixed bag of an ageing Rockstar, a young genius, an older mother figure, an actress and telenovela star and last to arrive is Charlotte, the group generate mixed feelings in Jimmy, but all he sees are five people ready for the last big adventure in their lives. They have all chosen their last wish and he has created an itinerary which will take them on a three week tour round the world to accomplish it, as the group gets to know each other and the last of the paperwork is filled in and filed, they are all sent to get some rest before the first adventure starts. There is a mix of excitement, trepidation, worry and happiness as the travellers support each other and band together as they share the experiences organised for them, it is in the midst of this that things take an unexpected turn and they all have to band together to solve a problem, that is until tragedy strikes and the foundations they have built together start to crumble and fall apart.
A few days later, one of the group lands themselves in hot water and despite best efforts, things take another turn for the worse and it looks like there is only way that this can end and the Diers have to try and band together again to help, but can they all get past their differences and help, or will lies and fraud rip them further apart? This is an emotional rollercoaster which will whisk you away on a beautiful adventure and keeps you absorbed in the story and feeling everything the characters are feeling, all while making you ask yourself all the hard questions which occur to you while reading.
https://itsybitsybookbits.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/IBBB_2020_logo_sq.png00Roxsanne Lesieurhttps://itsybitsybookbits.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/IBBB_2020_logo_sq.pngRoxsanne Lesieur2021-08-29 16:37:082021-08-31 08:49:16Dire’s Club by Kimberly Packard – Review by Roxsanne Lesieur.
Master Christian Tuscano is the head of the Tuscano house and he has a score to settle, someone kidnapped the woman he wants to be his mate, Delilah and he wants answers as to the who and why, so he goes to the only source they currently have and treats them the same way they treated the woman he loves and it was shamefully and a way that nobody should ever be treated. As he gets the answers he wants, he thinks about Delilah and how her experience has changed her, how the light has gone from her eyes and she is just a muted version of her once bubbly self, however, when he returns home to find that she has gone and only left him a letter, he is enraged and worried that something else will happen to her.
Meanwhile, Delilah is making her way to find the person responsible for her kidnapping and degradation, however she wants to keep herself and her whereabouts from Christian so that she can do something by herself for once, but this plan backfires when despite her best efforts. He is going out of his mind with worry, so Christian has called in some help and found where Delilah is and just in the nick of time when someone else bursts in on the same scene to take the person she is meeting out and she has been caught in the crossfire, so just before her life ebbs away, permission is granted to turn her and allow her to become a vampire and not just be with one.
While the attack left Delilah in a precarious situation, the person they are all after manages to escape, so the hunt is on again, however, keeping Delilah safe and secure is harder than ever when she transitions and her new powers come to the fore and some shifters come after her and while a precarious deal is struck with the syndicate to take the bounty off of their heads in return for them being given the troublemaker once the Consulate have gleaned all the information they can out of them. The shifters are not the only ones after her though and new information comes to light which casts a shadow on everything Delilah knows and trusts involving a coven of witches, but will she be able to do what she needs to do and also be accepted by the rest of the Consulate, or will she have to leave everything she wants behind to protect the one she loves? Will Christian be able to help Delilah to overcome her trauma and teach her to accept her new life, or will one of the groups after them get to their target before they do? This is a rollercoaster ride of ups and downs with a romantic twist throughout, where secrets and lies abound to weave a twisted tapestry of truths which will hook you in from start to finish.
https://itsybitsybookbits.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/IBBB_2020_logo_sq.png00Roxsanne Lesieurhttps://itsybitsybookbits.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/IBBB_2020_logo_sq.pngRoxsanne Lesieur2021-08-28 16:56:512021-08-30 14:22:00Master Tuscano: Dark Vampire Romance (Masters of the Consulate Book 2) by Sylvia Black – Review by Roxsanne Lesieur.
Sunshine Baker work in the Bryce Beach Public Library as a YA and she has been working with the Friends of the Library Committee to organise and throw their yearly Gala to raise funds for the library, as well as her role at the library itself and has been enjoying every minute of it and as the night of the gala arrives, she is hoping that everything will go well and that the invitees will enjoy the evening. From the start it looks like everyone is having fun and the catering, magician act and music are keeping everyone entertained, when the food is served and she finds out that she has to make the first speech and introductions, she is terrified, but manages to get through it and the rest of the evening inscathed, that is until after they have counted the donations and are presenting the total to the audience when there is a crashing of glass and a scream where the crowd is shocked into panic. The Founding Fathers Bible, a priceless artifact has been stolen and when Sunshine goes to check on the donations in the locked room, she is devastated to find out that they have been stolen too.
The police are called and statements are made, but when she arrives at work on the Monday morning, the Chief of Police is there to see her and ask her some questions, however, she is surprised to find out that they suspect one of the employees and that they need the information of all who had access to the room that the donations were being kept in, whether they were at the Gala or not. This has Sunshine worrying and this is increased even more when she goes to see the head of the Library and is asked for her opinion and then to look into it in her own time as well. This spurs her onto asking questions of her friends Evangeline and Molly, drawing up a list of attendees and talking through the events of the night again, but all this does is throw suspicion around with no strong leads bar one, so the next day Molly and Sunshine make plans to talk to them, but in a non-threatening way to try and glean some more information from them about that night. As these conversations take place, more tidbits and accusations are thrown around which are making Sunshine feel even more uncomfortable as they are mostly pointing towards one of her friends and another colleague as the police appear to be less than interested.
As the stakes are raised and jobs are on the line, will Sunshine and her amateur sleuthing skills solve the mystery before jobs and a priceless artefact are lost forever? This is a cozy mystery which will keep you guessing through to the end as the hunt for answers throws light upon a small community with secrets and stories to tell.
Mystery at the Marina.
Sunshine Baker is back and she is still the full YA librarian at the Bryce Beach Public Library and she is still coming down from all the excitement around the founders bible and the theft of the donations a month ago, but she is happy and is spending time with her family, friends and God. As her summer programmes at the library are starting up and the teenagers are actually attending and not falling asleep during them, she counts that as an achievement, so when she closes up for the day, she is ready for an evening of fun with her friends, they are going to a new restaurant which hasn’t long opened and she is really excited, however, she is not sure how she has managed to get there before her friends, even though they left the same place at the same time!
While she is waiting outside the restaurant, she is people watching and happens to hear a conversation between two gentlemen clad in business suits and heading out of the restaurant, she thinks the subject is a bit odd, but thinks no more about it until a couple of days later when she goes for a walk on the beach with one of her friends and their new puppy. As the are walking and chatting away while the puppy explores the area near the lighthouse, they suddenly come across some dead fish washed up on the beach, but they soon find out that it isn’t just near there, it happened over at the Marina side of the cove as well and there are other sea creatures involved this time too. Sunshine cannot help but be curious about the reasoning behind it, so she starts asking questions, however, the police aren’t being helpful, so again, Sunshine takes matters into her own hands.
Sunshine’s investigative tendencies turn up a gear when she starts to see more Coast Guard boats patrolling the area than normal and does her best to see what is happening close up, but as she starts to put things together and the pieces of the puzzle start to fall into place, will she be able to figure out why the sea creatures are dying and who is behind it all? This is a cozy mystery where there are twists, turns, secrets and revelations which you will want hook you in and keep you enthralled until it is solved.
Shooting at the Shore.
Sunshine Baker returns and her library programme is taking off, she even hosted an awards ceremony for the attendees where local people and businesses donated prizes to the winners and everyone had a whale of a time, so she is enjoying life. As she is leaving the library after closing up, she spots a neighbour who donated and prize and funds to the library, so Sunshine wanted to thank her personally, but when she goes to see her, she is surprised by what she is talking about, apparently an outside company is bidding on a piece of land to open some shops, condo’s and restaurants, however, one of them is something which in her eyes, is not family friendly, so she is vehemently opposed to it and intends on outbidding the big city developers. Meanwhile, the ladies witness a crime in progress across the road where Sunshine spots a police officer on a bike and sends them after the criminal before heading home for a girls night where they catch up on the latest gossip and events in each others lives.
At work the next day, another crime is committed in the library of all places and Sunshine quickly gives chase, but fortunately, the police arrive to apprehend the criminal instead, however, when a call comes in over the radio, Sunshine immediately gets the feeling that she needs to be there, so she follows the police on their way over and observes them pulling a body onto a stretcher and it is someone she knows. When she finds out the circumstances of their death, she knows something isn’t quite adding up, especially when she starts to do some research.
As the days pass and Sunshine investigates more while sharing what she has found with the chief of police, she cannot help but think that they are on the wrong track with their investigation and as she digs deeper, this gut feeling becomes stronger and stronger. Will Sunshine be able to solve the mystery and figure out the who, what, where and why of this crime, or the leads she is hoping to follow lead to dead ends? This is another cozy mystery where secrets are revealed and tangled pasts are brought into the present as this small town reels from the death within its borders, while you try and figure out the conclusion to the mystery at the same time as this amateur sleuth.
Isra is a young witch with big plans, she is seventeen and wants to enrol in the Wingdom’s Academy of Ancient Magics to learn more magic, however, when she arrives the building is unassuming, apart from the very realistic gargoyles and the classes are boring, but she takes solace in the nature surrounding it. It is during one of these times that she meets a fellow witch with whom she thinks she will get on with, Everilda, another young witch but she seems to be more interested in romance and boys than she is in the craft, but they hit it off despite this.
On another day, Isra is waiting for Everilda in a meadow so that they can spend some time together, but instead of Everilda turning up, it is a mysterious young man, he isn’t showing any signs of magic, but he is attractive and captivating and because she is quite naïve and inexperienced, the fact that he is paying attention to her is a bit of a novelty. She keeps distant yet polite with him and he introduces himself as Jonathan, but is also wary because of the rules of the college, however, she contemplates spending more time with him and she cannot wait to tell Everilda all about it when she gets back to the Academy. This is where Everilda starts to drift away from Isra because it turns out that she also has intentions towards this man, but Isra has come to the attention of a light bringer named Samuel who sends his right hand raven Astrid to observe and report on her actions after hearing of her future.
As time passes and Isra’s relationships with Everilda and James develop, they become more complicated and when Isra finds out that she is involved in a love triangle, she is devastated and cannot believe it, but will she be able to forgive and forget and will Astrid and the light bringers be able to keep her on the path of light, or will the darkness prevail? This is a fantastic story with twists, turns and magic galore which will draw you in to a magical world, while explaining beginnings and the consequences of interfering with the emotions and lives of others until you reach its conclusion.
https://itsybitsybookbits.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/IBBB_2020_logo_sq.png00Roxsanne Lesieurhttps://itsybitsybookbits.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/IBBB_2020_logo_sq.pngRoxsanne Lesieur2021-08-23 16:45:082021-08-25 09:49:16Her Dark Love (Dark Spell Series Book 4) by Isra Sravenheart – Review by Roxsanne Lesieur.
Alex Rokosz is a fifteen year old girl who lives in Raleigh, North Carolina where she lives with her sister and her mother, that is until a tragic accident took the life of their mother and started a series of events, culminating in leaving everything behind to go and live with their grandmother, Matilda in straight after the funeral. All Alex ever wanted was a loving family, but that is the one thing she has never had, but she hopes that this grandmother whom she has never met or heard of is going to be just that, however, when she pulls up in a hearse and is short in stature and shorter in temper, Alex believes that her hopes are dashed, even her sister is unusually quiet, even for her, so it is a long and lonely car ride to their new home while her thoughts about her current situation and what she might find out from this new relative about her father and his side of the family.
When they pull up to the house, it is pitch black and freezing cold, so the light and warmth are inviting and Alex runs inside to see their new home, however, the tour is short and sharp as they are shown to their rooms, but before she can settle in for the night, she checks on her sister as she tries to keep her routine as close to normal as possible. The next morning, as Alex is getting ready to start her day in the bathroom with bleary eyes and a headache, suddenly there is a knocking on the door, but when it isn’t her sister, she panics, grabs her sister from her room and flies down the stairs shouting for her grandma because there is a young man upstairs and Alex thinks that he is breaking in. When her grandma announces that it is just Kacper, her seventeen year old housemate, Alex is shocked and when she asks why Matilda didn’t tell her, she just shrugs and says she would find out anyway, so she didn’t think it was important.
When her sister asks to go into the local town, Kacper agrees to take them, this is where they go into a couple of the stores and meet some townspeople, some are nice and others not so much, but when she tries to talk to anyone about them, she is shot down and discouraged from seeing them again. As the time passes and Alex finds everything about her new place odd, but as the events of the last few days turn over in her head and she starts to think that what she feels are normal for her family, are not necessarily normal for others, this is compounded when she follows Matilda and Kacper when they go out at night as she is intrigued by what they are doing, but when she sees them fighting a nightmare, she immediately wants to know more. Will Alex be able to make sense of the new world of magic, dreams and nightmares and her place in it, or will it all be too much and sweep her away on a course she doesn’t want? This is a fantasy adventure where nothing is as it seems and dreams and reality intermix to pull you into their world until you are so engrossed that you have to read until the end.
https://itsybitsybookbits.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/IBBB_2020_logo_sq.png00Roxsanne Lesieurhttps://itsybitsybookbits.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/IBBB_2020_logo_sq.pngRoxsanne Lesieur2021-08-22 16:22:392021-08-25 08:55:47Sweet Nightmares: The Dream World Chronicles Book 1 by Chynna Pace – Review by Roxsanne Lesieur.
Lucy Walker is back and her life is still settling down between her near death experiences and finding out she is half-witch and half-demon and dating a Gargoyle, how much more interesting does it need to be? However, one morning when she is rudely awoken in the early hours of the morning by her best friend texting her and telling her that she is the luckiest girl alive, she is in no mood for games in her sleep deprived state, but she is hoping that she didn’t see her and Marcus on the rooftop the night before, or how he returned her fast asleep to her bedroom later on. However, what she sees after reading it is even more disturbing, her father, Jude is standing in her room and demanding to meet her great-uncles and basically stonewalling her attempts to discourage it, but it is only when and her uncles ask about the car parked outside the house that her brain eventually catches up with what is going on, Jude has planned this all along and so she has no choice but to invite him in and when Marcus turns up at the same time, she has no choice but to have everyone there.
As breakfast is served and conversation haltingly proceeds, Marcus struggles to control his inner gargoyle and Jude tries to hypnotise her uncles, Lucy is torn between the two and tries to get the event over and done with as quickly as possible so they can continue with their days as normal, but when Marcus explains his real reason for coming, Lucy is disgusted and terrified at the prospect of what it means. A few days after the visit, Lucy is trying to convince her uncles that she is happy living with them and their current lives, what she can tell them of it all at least and that they have no worries about her running off with Jude any time soon, meanwhile, between her combat sessions with her dad, witchcraft lessons with her neighbour and babysitting for her friends siblings, Lucy and Marcus haven’t had much time to spend together and when Marcus’s mother suddenly turns up on their doorstep looking for him, Lucy is shocked to say the least.
When he asks Lucy to meet him on the roof later on, he looks miserable and Lucy has a feeling it is something to do with his mother and she was right, it turns out that she wants to reconnect, as does his father and they want him to go back to their home to meet the rest of the clan, so when he agrees to meet his father and wants Lucy to go with him, nervous as they both were, what happens while they are there and the truth behind their reason for visiting becomes clear, Marcus’s father want to kill Lucy’s and he will stop at nothing to do it, but the kicker is that if Jude dies, so will Lucy. Will they be able to keep both Jude and Lucy alive in between everything else, how will they do it and who can they call upon to help? As it becomes clear that danger is lurking around the corner, Lucy isn’t sure whether she can trust Marcus’s family knowing what she does and what would she do if he decides to go with them to visit the clan? This fantasy adventure is a rollercoaster of emotions and filled with action which will keep you hanging on until the end to find out what happens.
https://itsybitsybookbits.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/IBBB_2020_logo_sq.png00Roxsanne Lesieurhttps://itsybitsybookbits.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/IBBB_2020_logo_sq.pngRoxsanne Lesieur2021-08-20 15:34:332021-08-23 10:27:41The Girl and the Gargoyle: YA Paranormal Romance (The Girl and the Raven Book 2) by Pauline Gruber – Review by Roxsanne Lesieur.
Nick Larson is a Detective in the Sixteenth Precinct in Manhattan, New York where he is overworked thanks to the flu epidemic ripping its way through the entire PD, because of this, he and his partner Detective Victor Sacco are drowning in cases, some more easily solved than others, but all as harrowing as the other, it is in the midst of their sixteen plus hour days with little sleep that they are handed a case of a suicide, it beings back dark memories for Nick, but he knows that he has to keep the reactions to them under control. As they approach the crime scene, it looks like a typical suicide by hanging, but when they look deeper into the scene, they see that some things appear a little off, the suicide note is badly written with spelling mistakes and the victim looks too peaceful for the choice of method, there are no last minute attempts to live and the chair below them isn’t tipped over. As they continue looking at the crime scene, they notice other things that don’t quite tally, but there is nothing more that they can do for the moment, so they leave the scene and head into the precinct to write up their notes and get a start on the tedious amount of paperwork awaiting them, as well as dealing with another case which was thrust at them after attending the scene.
While the detectives are rushed off their feet, Laura Howard is preparing yet another piece of artwork for her bakery Les Gateaux Riches, she is doing her best to concentrate on this new creation, but her mind keeps wandering to a certain Detective Larson who helped to catch and put behind bars her twin sister whom up until a year ago, she knew nothing about, but who is now trying her best to ruin her life, work, reputation and everything else from behind bars despite having multiple sanctions and restrictions put on her. It is putting a strain on her and not to mention delaying her attempts at romance with Nick, albeit he is as bad as her for dancing around the edges and not fully saying yay or nay.
As the Detective pry deeper into the life of the suicide victim, more questions than answers surface during the interviews they conduct with her friends and others who know her, to all intensive purposes, she was an angel who didn’t put a foot wrong or keep many close relationships with those around her, apart from a select few and as they haven’t much to go on, things slow down and they look into their other cases, but after a gut feeling, Nick decides to look at similar cases in the New York area and this leads him on another trail where he fears that this is more wide reaching than he originally thought, especially when another suicide is called in which has too many similarities to be a coincidence. Will Nick and Victor be able to solve the crime before any more victims appear, or will they lose the race against time to catch the one responsible? This is a thrilling crime novel with a hint of romance to keep things interesting, it will draw you into the life and work of a New York Detective while you try and figure out the culprit along with the Detectives, it will reel you in hook, line and sinker until you reach its conclusion.
https://itsybitsybookbits.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/IBBB_2020_logo_sq.png00Roxsanne Lesieurhttps://itsybitsybookbits.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/IBBB_2020_logo_sq.pngRoxsanne Lesieur2021-08-19 16:46:052021-08-22 01:08:12Hanging Softly in the Night: A Detective Nick Larson Novel by Maria Elena Alonso-Sierra – Review by Roxsanne Lesieur.
Carter Broderick is a man who can heal, he has been doing it for years both as a doctor in the human world and the magical world as well, as a young man, he felt like an alien and like he never fit in, but he is thankful for it now. Vanessa Rayne is a woman with her own jewellery business and shop where she sells it, she is also very independent and full of fire.
One day, Vanessa is coming home after a long day when she hears grunting coming from nearby, however, when she realises that it isn’t her neighbour’s nightly antics and that it is actually another of her neighbours trying to get up the stairs in pain that she rushes to help him, he says that it is a dog bite, but his leg is covered in blood and he is barely conscious, but she manages to get him back down the stairs and into her car so that she can take him to the ER. When she arrives there and he starts convulsing, she rushes inside and shouts her need for help, fortunately, there is a doctor at the front desk who comes to help her. Carter hears her cries for help and rushes to the car and starts healing the man in his arms after asking the woman with him to wait outside, when he gets to the stage when he can hand over to another person for treatment, Carter escapes to the bathroom to recover from the drain on his magic, which means that it wasn’t just a normal dog bite.
The next day Vanessa is trying to figure out what happened with her neighbour and the mysterious doctor, she doesn’t believe that it was just top notch medical care, but something else entirely, it isn’t the first time, she has seen something unusual and when she goes to check up on him, she sees something else and keeps seeing things, but when she mentions it to her friends, they look at her like she is crazy. A few days pass and she runs into the mysterious doctor again, this time they even exchange names and numbers, but someone else has been looking for her too, but this person isn’t going to let her escape that easily, she has been poking around in something she shouldn’t have and it is now coming back to haunt her.
As they start to spend more time together, Vanessa and Carter cannot deny their attraction to each other, but when strange things keep happening to Vanessa, Carter realises that he will do anything to protect her, but will she let him, or will her independent nature stop her from accepting his help, but as secrets and revelations pile up, will they be buried, or can they dig themselves out from underneath them all? This is a romance with a hint of danger and a sprinkle of magic throughout which will keep you completely engaged with the story all the way up to the end.
https://itsybitsybookbits.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/IBBB_2020_logo_sq.png00Roxsanne Lesieurhttps://itsybitsybookbits.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/IBBB_2020_logo_sq.pngRoxsanne Lesieur2021-08-16 13:55:032021-08-16 22:26:16Cursed Touch (Broderick Coven Book 4) by AJ Renee – Review by Roxsanne Lesieur.
Niran and Saffie are back and they are in more trouble than ever, Saffie has been found by her husband and the minute they broke down the door to her apartment, Niran knows things will get ugly, but when they hurt Saffie and another right in front of his eyes, it takes all his willpower to act as if it is something he enjoys seeing. He lies and plays the part of a biker who is about to turn tail on his MC and look for something more to his taste, despite the colour of his skin and the person he is trying to convince believes him, the only problem is that Saffie believes him too. After this conversation, they are bundled into their transport and taken to the Crazy Wolves MC Clubhouse, but as Niran keeps playing the part and harming Saffie in the process, he feels physically sick but cannot show it on the outside as he knows that keeping up this pretence in the only chance he has to keep them both safe.
As the next day approaches, Niran is being missed at his usual workplace and nobody has seen or heard hide nor hair from them and this isn’t in their character at all, so when they realise that something is wrong they start to plan a way to make it right and hope that they are not too late. Meanwhile, Saffie has been locked back in her old room she hoped she would never see again and is again being severely beaten and interrogated about why she terminated the pregnancy, all while not being able to utter a single word, but when she does the answer is not accepted and her future is laid out before her in all its depraved glory. Saffie cannot believe what she is hearing or what it all means in the end, she also realises that her life has been a sham from the beginning and when reality hits, she is both angry and despairing at the same time as she thinks about the torture she is about to start enduring.
As Niran is considering his own future and how it may now be an extremely short one, he makes peace with himself by choosing to protect Saffie in the only way he can and if that includes giving his own life up for her, then he is more than willing to do that and when he is ordered to become Saffie’s guard, he isn’t going to let the opportunity pass him by. Will Niran be able to keep up with the charade of being someone his complete opposite, or will the cracks start to show and his life be on the chopping block and will Saffie be able to live with the life which has been lain out for her, will she give in or keep fighting back? This is a rollercoaster of emotion as you live through the very trying times with Saffie and Niran as they fight for survival in more ways than one until this second part is concluded.
https://itsybitsybookbits.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/IBBB_2020_logo_sq.png00Roxsanne Lesieurhttps://itsybitsybookbits.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/IBBB_2020_logo_sq.pngRoxsanne Lesieur2021-08-14 01:24:052021-08-15 21:33:50Avenging Devil Part 2: Satan’s Devils MC San Diego by Manda Mellett – Review by Roxsanne Lesieur.
Sam Sarkhan is a man shrouded in darkness, his past and his present are dragging him down and all he wants is to end the constant tiredness and the void of despair he is being sucked into, but it is New Years Eve and he wants to leave his brother one last message before he takes the plunge, but instead he misdials and calls a unknown woman instead. Ellie is a woman who is at her breaking point, all her life she has tried to save others, but now she is about to lose herself, she is numb to life and all she can think about is ending it all as well, until a mysterious male caller pulls her back from the edge.
As Sam is talking to the woman on the other end of the phone, he can tell that she is a kindred spirit and is suffering as well, so when he asks for help finding her, he gets the information he needs and goes to look for her hoping that he is not too late, however, when a stroke of luck enables him to get closer to her while still being anonymous, he jumps at the chance. Meanwhile, Ellie is still in her state of not caring and the only thing she has to pull her through day to day life is taken away from her, until she feels that again, there is nothing left, but she receives another well timed phone call which again, leads her away from the edge, it is not until the next day when she hears a bang and swearing coming from the apartment next door that she goes round to check on them and this is where it is revealed that her mystery neighbour is the man from the phone.
As this information soaks in, she realises that she has inadvertently placed herself in danger going round at a very inopportune moment, however, Sam is all guilt that he has led trouble straight to Ellie’s doorstep and that he is determined to keep her safe at all costs, so when they escape their apartments and head to one of safety, Ellie is determined to find out why and after a tense conversation on a rooftop, an attraction appears which will not be denied, leading to a fiery burst of passion. However, when they return downstairs and safety is being discussed again, what she hears and the reaction Sam has all but pushes her out of the door, however, when she goes out, all she sees is a bright flash and hears ringing in her ears before everything goes black.
As Sam chases after Ellie once he realises what has happened, he is determined to rescue her and keep her safe, however, the kidnapper has other ideas and instead brokers a deal, Sam will stay with him and learn what he wants to teach him and bonding with him, while Ellie will stay as his entertainment. Will Sam and Ellie be able to escape the gilded cage they are trapped in, or will this deal with the devil end up bringing them down among their demons for the last time? This is a romantic suspense with a twist where past, present and future blur together as a race against time to save their sanity ensues, it is an emotional rollercoaster where you feel all the ups and downs along with them as the conclusion plays out.
https://itsybitsybookbits.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/IBBB_2020_logo_sq.png00Roxsanne Lesieurhttps://itsybitsybookbits.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/IBBB_2020_logo_sq.pngRoxsanne Lesieur2021-08-11 20:21:212021-08-12 22:40:42Dark Bastard (Dark Sparrow Novel Book 5) by India Kells – Review by Roxsanne Lesieur.
Liam Harker is a cop with the Chicago PD and is on semi-leave thanks to an injury he sustained while on duty, he is loyal to a fault and is always trying to tread the straight and narrow, but sometimes he knows that he has to cross it, even if it sticks in his craw. Catriona Walsh is a novitiate in a convent of nuns, she is a stunning woman with a head for numbers which her talent for seeing patterns and finding their source is what has led her to leave her old life and find this one, but is she about to take on a job which is more than she is capable of?
As Liam goes to sit in his usual café and look over the case files of what he is currently working on, he is distracted by a woman at the counter, but when she is introduced to him as Sister Catriona Walsh, he is completely thrown for a loop. Catriona meanwhile, is trying to convince him that she is the person for the job of digging into the financials he is struggling with so that she can use her skills for good, she is the light to his darkness and that is something he cannot understand.
Things start of on a competitive front with Catriona not backing down over Liam trying to take control of keeping her safe while not keeping himself in the same manner, to the point that she is annoying him so much he eventually backs down, but not without resentment and a bit of pride in how she handles herself, she is not the angelic being first impressions conveyed. Things go from annoying to rocky as things start to happen to them which lead them to becoming suspicious that someone is following them, their suspicion turn out to be right when after a night of digging, Catriona finds something she was not expecting and cannot compute, so she goes to somewhere she thinks is a sanctuary only to find out that it is the complete opposite.
Will Catriona be able to find the strength to protect those around her while continuing her mission to untangle the web of financial strands to figure out how to cut the money off completely, or will the web ensnare her and those around her? This is another romantic suspense which will hook you in and drag you along as the ups and downs of this rollercoaster ride keep you hanging on until the end.
https://itsybitsybookbits.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/IBBB_2020_logo_sq.png00Roxsanne Lesieurhttps://itsybitsybookbits.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/IBBB_2020_logo_sq.pngRoxsanne Lesieur2021-08-11 20:00:252021-08-12 22:37:42True Bastard: A Dark Sparrow Novel: 4 by India Kells – Review by Roxsanne Lesieur.
Isabel Osborne is a woman entrepreneur extraordinaire, she runs her own PR crisis management business and it is a tight ship, but she is always busy and that doesn’t leave much time for anything else and Kai Jones is a blast from the past she would rather not ever see again, not for a bad reason, but because of the past she escaped from after he knew her. Kai is a former Delta Force operative who has seen and done his fair share of bad things, but nothing affected him more than the one who got away, but when he comes face to face with her again, it is the last thing in the world that he wants.
As Isabel listens to the outline of what they want from her, mainly her knowledge and connections within the Chicago movers and shakers, to keep an eye one in particular, what they didn’t expect was for them to meet so quickly, as the man in question had already made an appointment to meet with her about working with him, this is an opportunity nobody can pass up, so they make the necessary arrangements and put them into place more quickly than she could have veer imagined.
When she comes face to face with the man in question, she realises that appearances can be quite deceiving, but she is determined to see it through to the end and so states that she will be in touch through her lawyers once they have looked through the contract and given their opinion. Meanwhile, Kai is trying to get to grips with his feelings for Isabel since she crashed back into his life, but he is struggling to keep a lid on them and cannot resist her, just like the time they spent together in the past, but they are both so different now that it may be an obstacle.
As Zoe is drawn into working more closely with the man they want to being down, attacks begin and other unsavoury things start to happen, so when Kai ends up being her appointed bodyguard, they struggle with the feelings it digs up as well as the questionable motives and moves her new partner is trying to pull on her makes everyone uneasy. Will they be able to dog out the information they need to being him down, or will their digging just lead them further into the rabbit hole? Can they all stay safe and protect each other as the stakes rise and the danger increases, or will they becomes the next victims of the plot? This is another romantic suspense which will keep you on the edge of your seat throughout as you read along the path they all travel to get to the conclusion of the story.
https://itsybitsybookbits.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/IBBB_2020_logo_sq.png00Roxsanne Lesieurhttps://itsybitsybookbits.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/IBBB_2020_logo_sq.pngRoxsanne Lesieur2021-08-11 19:44:122021-08-12 22:32:29Wild Bastard: A Dark Sparrow Novel: 3 by India Kells. – Review by Roxsanne Lesieur.
Zoe Somersby is an intelligent woman with a talent for languages and cracking codes, but she has a wicked sense of humour and a love for superheroes too and this is what makes her a dark sparrow, her past life of cracking codes, even when it was the last thing she wanted to do. Archer Blackwood is a British billionaire who is a cold and ruthless businessman who runs a tight ship and has no time for idiots or time wasters, so when Zoe is asked to go undercover into his business to watch over and protect him, she has no idea what she is getting herself into.
Zoe Somersby is starting another day working in Washington DC when a surprise meeting is called with a name from her past, instead of it being their usual weekly meeting, so when she sees the name, she is more than excited at the prospect of seeing her friend again. As she listens to the task she is being set and why, she is even more determined to see it through, apart from having to be stuck in an office again, which is the current bane of her existence, but with her skills and experience, she knows she will do a blinding job.
When Monday morning arrives and Zoe is about to have the interview for her new position, she warms to the woman completing it immediately, however, when Archer Blackwood himself enters the room, Zoe is speechless, but whatever she manages to say gets her the job and the day swiftly gets underway. As the days pass and Zoe is settling into her routine, she cannot deny that Archer is a temptation she is trying her best to resist, but between the work and the long hours in her office translating and drafting, she is exhausted, but every day, something seems to happen to her to annoy her boss even more, he has to deal with some of the consequences.
It is on the third day when the office is attacked and Zoe completely ignores Archers commands and goes out to protect the others working in the office, this is when the attraction between them nearly ignites, until they are interrupted, but later when Archer check in on her at home, things get a little heated and this makes things even more complicated than before, especially when Zoe becomes embroiled in a plot she can’t escape from. Will Zoe be able to protect all those around her while still keeping her sanity and stay alive, or will the players in this twisted game play it better? This a suspenseful romance with twists and turns throughout which lead you down a path you will not want to step off of until you have reached the final destination of the end of the book.
https://itsybitsybookbits.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/IBBB_2020_logo_sq.png00Roxsanne Lesieurhttps://itsybitsybookbits.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/IBBB_2020_logo_sq.pngRoxsanne Lesieur2021-08-11 19:24:412021-08-12 22:28:55Cold Bastard: (Dark Sparrow Novel Book 2) by India Kells – Review by Roxsanne Lesieur,
Deva Landry is a woman with a dark past, she ran away from it and barely survived, but she had some help, in return for a favour which could be called upon any time and now the person who helped her has come calling, but it isn’t all as straight forward as it seems. Aleksei Voronov is a man covered in tattoos who is an MMA fighter with a dark past as well, but he is the one that Deva is sent to watch over, much to her annoyance.
Deva has found a place in a rehab centre for veterans as a physiotherapist and is finally feeling settled when out of the blue an old friend comes calling and asking to call in a favour, she wants her to use her skills as a physiotherapist and knowledge gained from her days as an MC Princess in Chicago to move back there to where it all started and try to observe and protect a man. As they discuss the mission and she meets the man in charge who explains the situation and as soon as she agrees to help, she is put up in an apartment in the north side of Chicago. Her neighbours are lovely, albeit an odd couple and very eccentric but whom endear themselves to Deva pretty quickly and a couple of days of settling in later, she heads over to the gym she will be working in as the new physiotherapist with a mission to keep the MMA fighters who train there fit and ready to fight. However, when she arrives there on her first day, she is surprised to see that the gym is filled with who normally wouldn’t be seen dead around each other, but when she eyeballs the one she is looking for, she is taken aback and that reaction is not normal for her in the slightest.
As Deva becomes part of the furniture at the Gym, she hasn’t officially run into Aleksei and she is worried that she won’t be able to fulfil her mission or her promise, that is until one night when he sneaks into the gym after hours asking for a treatment, but when things get heated between them while Deva is treating him, things get a little spicy, but once Deva cottons on to what is happening, she stops what she is doing and leaves, it is when she realises that it isn’t the kind of treatment he was after. The next day the gym owner is not himself and when she asks what is wrong, it turns out that Aleksei was injured in a fight and needs to get better for his next one in a few days and he asks Deva if she knows anyone who can help, thankfully she does and her mission truly starts when she ends up staying at his apartment to treat him.
This triggers more than a professional relationship when neither of them can deny the burning attraction between them and as they get to know each other more, things get complicated and Deva and Aleksei are thrown together on a mission to protect more than just each other. Will Deva be able to keep her past and present separate, or will it come back to haunt her again? This is a romantic suspense with more action than you can throw a stick at which will dig in its claws and keep you reading until the end.
https://itsybitsybookbits.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/IBBB_2020_logo_sq.png00Roxsanne Lesieurhttps://itsybitsybookbits.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/IBBB_2020_logo_sq.pngRoxsanne Lesieur2021-08-11 18:56:042021-08-12 21:51:27Lost Bastard: A Dark Sparrow Novel by India Kells – Review by Roxsanne Lesieur.
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Scarlet Princess by Robin D. Mahle
