The Warrior’s Seal

Series: The Tox Files #0.5

Publisher: Bethany House

Release Date: October 4, 2016

Rating: 5 Stars

Reviewer: Jessica Higgins

All the action of Kendig’s signature military thrillers combined with a little suspense and mystery as well as the likes of Indiana Jones thrown in the mix makes this an upcoming must read series!

Cole “Tox” Russell is a Special Forces operative and is used to being in tight spots full of danger. None of his previous missions will be anything like the one he now faces: a plague taking over villages, an ancient artifact has been stolen, and the president of the United States kidnapped! Tox and his team are sent to find and rescue the president and keep the plague from spreading. Before they are able to make much progress, they are sidelined when the toxin starts affecting the team. The only ones who know anything about this toxin have now been taken. Tox and the team will have to face their toughest challenges to try and save them all.

As the introduction novella to the new series, The Tox Files, Kendig has started things with a bang. The intensity here starts on page one and doesn’t let up till the very end leaving things open for the first full book in the series. I have just recently gotten into Ronie Kendig books and am finding that I enjoy them more as I read them. There was a lot of back and forth dialogue between Tox and his military men as well as Tziva and the archeologist dealing with the missing artifact and the danger it poses with the virus it releases. Fortunately, being a novella didn’t give the action a chance to lighten up any making it an extremely fast read and very enjoyable. Kendig has made a name for herself in the Christian writing world with her fast paced military thrillers and this will surely make the list of to be read. I recommend this to all that enjoy a fast paced thriller with some fun archeological elements mixed in.

Good Behavior

good-behavior Author: Blake Crouch

Publisher: Thomas and Mercer

Release Date: November 15, 2016

Rating: 4 Stars

Reviewer: Jessica Higgins

Unusual protagonist, twisted experiences, and now a new TV show.

Meet Letty Dobesh. She’s fresh out of prison and already thinking about hitting crystal meth again or taking on a new con job. Now she’s pilfering from hotel rooms in Ashville’s Grove Park Inn and making a pretty good job of it, until one of the room’s occupants comes back while she is still in the room. Hiding in the closet, she overhears a contract take place to have a man’s wife killed. Suddenly having an internal struggle with her conscience, she feels that she needs to tell the police, but she only knows the woman’s first name. Not to mention that she would have to implicate herself to save this woman. Is her freedom worth the life of someone she doesn’t even know?

From the mind of Blake Crouch comes the book Good Behavior, which is actually a collection of three short novellas that Blake wrote about the character of Letty Dobesh. If you have ever read any of his work, you know that he can quickly draw you in and take you for a wild ride. This is no exception. These are stories that he has written in the past and Letty manages to get into some pretty screwed up situations that most readers will never see coming. Each story is concluded with a note from Crouch on if the story is picked up as an episode for the TV shows (WHICH STARTS TONIGHT ON TNT) and what modifications were made to it. The way that he introduces Letty to you makes you sympathize with her through all of her escapades even though she is a user and a thief.

This book is definitely for mature readers (as is the TV show from what I’ve seen) as there is quite of bit of harsh language, violence, drug use, and some sex scenes, though not very graphic. I also wanted more. Novellas are great ty-ins, but I was sad when each one was over because I wanted the story to continue. I think having a TV series to continue Letty’s adventures is going to be beneficial so that I can continue to know and understand her more.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher. The views and opinions expressed throughout are mine.

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Night School

night-school Author: Lee Child

Series: Jack Reacher #21

Publisher: Delacorte Press

Release Date: November 7, 2016

Rating: 4 Stars

Reviewer: Jessica Higgins

Ever wonder about Jack Reacher’s military days? Find out in this exciting new book.

It’s 1996 and Jack Reacher is still in the army, finding bad guys and righting wrongs. He has just gotten another medal, but before he has any time to celebrate the army sends him back to school. Not a normal school, he is now off the grid. He is paired with an FBI agent and a CIA analyst, each a specialist in their own right and all wondering what they are going to have to do. It doesn’t take long for them to get their orders. A Jihadist sleeper cell in Hamburg, Germany, has a visit from a Saudi courier needing a safe place to stay. Inside the cell is an undercover CIA agent that overhears the courier send a message, “The American wants a hundred million dollars.” More questions are raised and it is up to Reacher and his team to find the answers.

This is the 21^st Jack Reacher novel out and it is sure to be another hit. This is only my second Reacher book to read but that wasn’t a problem since this one is set in 1996 and doesn’t follow the story line of the previous in the series. While it is still Jack Reacher, it is a little less of the Jack you might have grown to love. He doesn’t have some of the same methods and mannerisms readers have grown accustomed to over the years. Several times throughout the story Child goes into Reacher’s size and how big he is. With the newest movie coming out, fans are probably associating Reacher with Tom Cruise, who does make a good Reacher even though he is much shorter than described in the novels. I read through it quickly and enjoyed the story for the most parts. There was a lot of sitting and talking where I would have preferred more action and tenser scenes. This was especially prevalent in the last few chapters. The problems were all solved but it wasn’t as heated of a moment as I thought it could have been. You have to remember while reading this that it is set in 1996, no super computers and internet to make finding information at the drop of a hat easy.

I have pretty high standards for what I rate as top of the line reads, with that being said I wouldn’t rate this as a top read but it was still very good. Fans of the Reacher series will still enjoy this book and the characters they have grown to love. This isn’t suitable for young readers with a few sex scenes and a few instances of language.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher. The views and opinions expressed within are my own.

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Fatal Frost

fatal-frost Author: Nancy Mehl

Series: Defenders of Justice #1

Publisher: Bethany House

Release Date: November 1, 2016

Rating: 4 Stars

Reviewer: Jessica Higgins

When the marshal agency that is supposed to keep others safe has one of their own in jeopardy, they will stop at nothing to protect each other.

Mercy Brennan’s father might have been a law enforcement officer, just like her, but that is where the similarities end. She is a U.S. Marshal in St. Louis, Missouri and has been working with a joint task force that has put her back in touch with her father. He left her and her family when she was young and she still hasn’t forgiven him for the pain and hardship he caused them. He has been trying to work his way back into her life and she isn’t sure she can trust him. They both are fighting some of the most powerful gangs in the city and unbeknownst to Mercy, her father has incriminating evidence against some of these gang members. The gangs believe he hands this evidence off to Mercy and they come after her. Her boss assigns her to work with Mark St. Laurent, another Marshal who happens to be her ex-boyfriend. Mercy doesn’t know of the danger she is in and feels she is being treated unfairly, especially when she finds out the lengths her boss and Mark have gone to keep her out of the loop. As they leave town in order to stay safe, they are met with a freak ice storm that strands them in a remote location not knowing who they can trust. With the storm worsening and enemies drawing closer, can they make it out alive?

Writing a romantic suspense can be difficult. Depending on what the reader wants, you can easily have too much of one aspect or the other. Luckily, Mehl did a very nice job of keeping the suspense up and not letting the romance over power the story. This may be my favorite Nancy Mehl book so far. Mercy was a strong character even though she had some tough obstacles to overcome. Mark and Tally where good characters to pair with Mercy. There were a lot of characters to follow, especially when the gang members were added to the mix which made it hard to connect and keep up at times. I’m glad that this is the first in a new series. So many of these characters have potential to grow and I am curious as to who the next book will explore. I think the one thing I had a problem with was the pacing. So many of the pages were bogged down with the narrative tied in with the dialogue making it read much slower. If it had been spaced out with more dialogue and less narrative I think it could have been an even faster read than it was. With that being said I still read it quickly and enjoyed the story. Even though it is dealing with gangs and violence, there isn’t much that would make it unsuitable or need any warnings for readers.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher. The views and opinions expressed within are my own.

Wild Montana Skies

wild-montana-skies Author: Susan May Warren

Series: Montana Rescue #1

Publisher: Revell

Release Date: October 18, 2016

Rating: 5 Stars

Reviewer: Jessica Higgins

With romance, broken hearts, and a cowboy on a mission, Wild Montana Skies reads better than a country western song sounds.

Kacey Fairing has decided she needs some time away from the military life she has called home for twelve years. She returns to Montana to help with the Search and Rescue team and tries to avoid a past she has tried hard to forget. During her time in the military, her parents have been raising her now teenage daughter. She has been the ‘fun mom’ seeing her daughter in between being deployed and trying to make up for time away. It doesn’t take long being back to realize she isn’t the only one who has returned to their childhood home. Ben King spent the last decade away from Montana building his life as a Country Music star. He left when Kacey shut him out of his life. His mother has died and his father has been injured and now needs his help to run the local Search and Rescue mission. He comes home to help but has no intention of staying. As soon as he sees Kacey walk back into town and his life, he realizes his father has an agenda beyond wanting to see his son in calling him home. Mercy Falls, Montana has had severe flash floods and Kacey and Ben reluctantly work together to save the lives of those in their hometown. It is going to take all the skills Kacey learned in the military to be able to work with Ben, and he might find new material for his songs working with Kacey, and possibly save a few lives.

Writing a romantic suspense story is a difficult task. You have to find that balance of a good love story but also one that brings the tension to ultimate levels at just the right moments. Susan May Warren has done a tremendous job with Wild Montana Skies. The story grabbed me at the beginning and didn’t let up till the last page. I particularly enjoyed the last few chapters where the suspense was top notch and I couldn’t turn the pages fast enough. Kacey is a tough, no-nonsense kind of gal who didn’t need a man in her life when so many others would have crumbled if they found themselves in her position. When writing Christian fiction, you have to be careful about some of the topics you address, such as sex outside of marriage. With Kacey getting pregnant and not being married, it could have been written many different ways, some good, some not. Warren approached the subject in a way that made it flow and be incredibly believable at the same time. Ben might have been a country singer but played the part of ruggedly handsome cowboy that wanted to do the right thing regardless of what he sang about. I liked the way their relationship played out, nothing felt forced with them, or any of the characters for that matter. I love the fact that this is the first in a series and we will get to dive deeper into the lives of some of the other characters touched on here. A fun read that I think many will enjoy, not just those that love romance novels, it goes much deeper than that.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher. The views and opinions expressed within are my own.

Tangle Webs

tangled-webs Author: Irene Hannon

Series: Men of Valor #3

Publisher: Revell

Release Date: October 4, 2016

Rating: 4 Stars

Reviewer: Jessica Higgins

As the Men of Valor series comes to a close, the last of the McGregor men fall in love in the least likely places with danger surrounding them at every corner!

Finn McGregor needs time to decompress after the disaster he was involved in overseas. He sets out for a peaceful month in the woods to enjoy the solitude and figure out where he wants to go next in his life. He enjoys the peace until he is awoken one night with bloodcurdling screams. He races across the woods and into the closest cabin to his to find Dana Lewis, a publishing executive who has escaped to the woods to deal with her own demons. As they become closer, someone else is trying to not only drive a wedge between them but also drive Dana out of her cabin altogether. Finn and Dana join together to figure out who is behind the pranks bent on pushing her from her safe haven. With danger at every turn, Finn finds himself back in the action sooner than he had planned.

I really enjoyed this series when it started out. In fact, I thought that Buried Secrets was the best book written by Irene Hannon that I had read, which made me look forward to the next book. Thin Ice didn’t hold up to the first in the series, but it was still really good and I kept looking forward to Tangled Webs. After all, the McGregor boys have been some of my favorite characters. Tangled Webs is a really good book, but I felt like it was more of an effort to complete the trilogy. It was a good read but there was a lot less suspense than what I was hoping for. It even had several places it could have been very suspenseful and just petered out. There just wasn’t much to draw me to it. I’ve not written a trilogy before, but am in the process of it and I am finding out how difficult it can be to continue a story along through three books.

I feel that if Dana’s backstory had been explored more as well as her situation that drew her to the woods put in at a different time and played up more it could have really helped the story. She came across more helpless than the typical female lead in a Hannon book, until the end. I did enjoy the way she came out of her shell when it really mattered. The characters themselves were good. The McGregor boys have developed over the series and it is always nice to see how they come out for each other when they need one another. Hannon is a very good romantic suspense writer and has great potential, I just didn’t feel this one lived up to that potential. I will however still be recommending to readers that enjoy romantic suspense as a quick, clean read!

I received a complimentary copy of this book from Baker Publishing Group in exchange for an honest and thorough review. The views and opinions expressed within are my own.