#BlogTour Saving Grace by Jess B. Moore

Today it's a pleasure to take part in the BlogTour Saving Grace by Jess B. Moore.

About the Author
Jess B. Moore is a writer of love stories. When she’s not writing, she’s busy mothering her accomplished and headstrong children, reading obscene numbers of books, and knitting scarves she’ll likely never finish.

Jess lives in small town North Carolina with her bluegrass obsessed family. She takes too many pictures of her cats, thinking the Internet loves them as much as she does. She is a firm believer of swapping stories over coffee or wine, and that there should always be dark chocolate involved.

The Guilt of a Sparrow is her debut novel combining her interests in family, music, and small towns into a thoughtful tale of growing up and falling in love. Her second book, Fierce Grace, follows similar themes in a whole new way, and can be read as a tie-in or stand-alone. The Worth of a Penny (sequel or stand-alone) released March 2019. Look forward to more books from Jess in the Fox River Romance series.

Follow @authorjessb on Twitter, on Goodreads, on Amazon, on Instagram, on Facebook,Visit jessbmoore.com, Buy Saving Grace

About the book
Brandt Grace is trouble no matter what he says or does, always getting in his own way, and trying to prove he can do better and be better only to fall on his face. Saving Grace follows Brandt's unintentional fall for Lola Donovan, the previously friendly girl turned quiet ghost of a girl. They connect at rock bottom, finding an unexpected source of strength in each other. Can they find a way to leave the past behind and build a future together?

Review
This is the fourth book in the Fox River Romance series. The books can be read as standalone novels.

I really enjoyed the way the friendship and romance blossomed slowly between Lola and Brandt in the form of giving each other space and safety almost simultaneously. The simple gestures of kindness and comfort without expecting any kind of reciprocation.

The fact they both find themselves in the same situation in regards to their reputations and the way they think people perceive them just helps to create a tighter bond between them. Two loners on the outskirts of society seeking a little solace and a place without condemnation.

Kudos to Moore for Lola's story and the way the character confronts what she believes to be her greatest mistake and sin. The guilt, doubt and lack of understanding about her experience is well-written and deserving of its own platform.

I think there is this misconception about how easy it is to write romance. It's not that easy. You have to be able, even when it is a just a feel good story without a huge underbelly of depth, to create characters that evoke some kind of reaction from the reader.

Moore can do that. She knows how to create the tension, the moments of breathless desire, the uncertainty of butterfly feelings and the electricity of physical attraction. Those would be but moments without connection if she weren't also capable of capturing the emotional capital you need to write a good romance.

It's a romance with an emphasis on emotional space and boundaries.

Buy Saving Grace at Amazon Uk or go to Goodreads for any other retailer. Buy at Amazon com.

#BlogTour Violet by S.J. Holliday

Today it's a pleasure to take part in the BlogTour Violet by S.J.I. Holliday. It's a noirish psychological thriller.

About the Author
S.J.I. (Susi) Holliday is a scientist, writing coach and the bestselling author of five crime novels, including the Banktoun Trilogy (Black Wood, Willow Walk and The Damselfly), the festive chiller The Deaths of December and her creepy Gothic psychological thriller The Lingering. Her short story ‘Home From Home’ was published in Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine and shortlisted for the CWA Margery Allingham Prize.

Encapsulating her love of travel and claustrophobic settings, her latest novel, Violet, explores toxic friendships and the perils of talking to strangers, as well as drawing on her own journey on the Trans-Siberian Express over 10 years ago. All of her novels have been UK ebook number-one bestsellers. Susi was born and raised in Scotland and now divides her time between Edinburgh, London and as many other exciting places that she can fit in.

Follow @SJIHolliday @OrendaBooks on Twitter, on Amazon, on Goodreads,Visit sjiholliday.com, Buy Violet

About the book
Carrie’s best friend has an accident and can no longer make the round-the-world trip they’d planned together, so Carrie decides to go it alone.

Violet is also travelling alone, after splitting up with her boyfriend in Thailand. She is desperate for a ticket on the Trans-Siberian Express, but there is nothing available.When the two women meet in a Beijing Hotel, Carrie makes the impulsive decision to invite Violet to take her best friend’s place.

Thrown together in a strange country, and the cramped cabin of the train, the women soon form a bond. But as the journey continues, through Mongolia and into Russia, things start to unravel –because one of these women is not who she claims to be…

Review
This is going to sound strange, but it's nice to see or read a story with a woman as the stone cold psychopath. She may not be as quick-witted and sassy as Villanelle, however she sure does try hard to be right up there with the worst of them. Okay, that's a lie she doesn't try very hard, because death and violence come quite easily to her.

Is this a story about trust? Or is it a story about someone who really just wants to love and be loved? A lonely soul in search of human contact, warmth and affection.She may get a wee bit testy when things don't go her way or the object of her obsession doesn't want to be obsessed over. Granted, she may leave her path littered with corpses, but hey her heart is in the right place.

Or is this a story about a criminal mind, someone who is very adept at finding the right mark, perhaps we should call them prey instead. Finding the right person at the right time. Someone to leech off of and yet simultaneously fill a gaping void with.

It's a noirish psychological thriller with a Mr Ripley vibe, but with less class and on a backpacking budget. Holliday steps it up a notch with this relentlessly dark and brutal read. There is no time or space for pity, fear or remorse. It just is.

It will probably make you look twice at the kind stranger you feel such an instant connection with, especially if you like escaping into the wilds of the world with just a backpack and a thirst for new experiences. Pay attention - are they friend or foe. Do they care if you live or die?

Buy Violet at Amazon Uk or go to Goodreads for any other retailer. Publisher: Orenda Books, Publication date: 14 November 2019 | Paperback Original | £8.99. Buy at Amazon com. Buy at Orenda Books

Read my review of The Lingering by S.J.I. Holliday.

#PublicationDayPush Christmas at Ladywell by Nicola Slade

Today it's the Publication Day Push for Christmas at Ladywell by Nicola Slade.

Enter the Giveaway below to Win a .mobi or PDF of The Convalescent Corpse by Nicola Slade (Open INT)

About the Author
Nicola Slade is an award-winning, bestselling author of historical and contemporary mysteries and romantic fiction, all set in and around Winchester and Romsey in Hampshire – which is where she lives. The House at Ladywell – a contemporary romantic novel with historical echoes – won the Chatelaine Grand Prize for Romantic Fiction at the CIBA awards in April 2019.

She is the author of the mid-Victorian Charlotte Richmond mysteries and the contemporary Harriet Quigley mysteries and The Convalescent Corpse, published November 2018, is the first in a new series, The Fyttleton Mysteries, set in 1918.

Follow @nicolasladeuk on Twitter, on Facebook, on Pinterest, on Goodreads, on Amazon, nicolaslade.com, nicolaslade.wordpress.com, Buy Christmas at Ladywell

About the book
A time for spilling secrets…

Having refurbished her inherited house and upcycled her whole life in the process, Freya – now happily married to Patrick, and with a small child –  has to transform her tiny stone barn into a romantic hideaway for a mystery guest who is also looking for change. With Christmas only a week away, things don’t go according to plan…

In the past old uncertainties are resolved when an elderly woman seeks the truth of a legend on Christmas Eve and confesses to a deception; a Tudor wife listens to a story that must never be repeated and is given a precious relic that must never be displayed; and in the early nineteenth century an old woman tells a younger one the story of the hares at Ladywell.

Past and present are only a whisper apart when Freya learns of an astonishing discovery that will make Ladywell famous, but meanwhile her house is full of unexpected visitors, she has a turkey to cook – and a very special secret of her own that must be told.

Review

This is a novella length read. If you want to find out how the main character in the present, Freya, found her way to Lady's Well then I suggest reading The House at Ladywell by Slade. Both can absolutely be read as standalone books though.

Perhaps it is wrong to say Freya is the main character, because that isn't really correct. The main character will always be Ladywell or the Lady's Well. The stories take place here - just in different periods of time and history. They are told mainly by the women who are empowered by the strength and earthly magic of Lady's Well.

Each one of them, and often also the men of the Wellman family, have a story to tell about survival and belief. How their resilience and determination to keep their family and Ladywell safe is the main factor throughout time.

It's magical realism and historical fiction combined with the story in the present. What's really intriguing is the way each snippet of the past constitutes its own story and all within the same setting. Then each tale and the characters are strengthened by the essence of faith or belief in the power of an almost ritualistic pagan magic. Be kind to the earth and creatures and that kindness will returned to you and yours tenfold. It's an important message in our day and age.

Slade takes an interesting element of earth or natural magic and the power of women, which is cemented in the soul and base of Mother Earth. It gives the story an aura of magic, but without wandering into the realm of magic.

Buy Christmas at Ladywell at Amazon Uk or go to Goodreads for any other retailer. Publisher: Crooked Cat Books; pub date 4 Nov. 2019. Buy at Amazon com.

Enter the Giveaway to Win a .mobi or PDF of The Convalescent Corpse by Nicola Slade (Open INT)

a Rafflecopter giveaway *Terms and Conditions –Worldwide entries welcome.  Please enter using the Rafflecopter box below.  The winner will be selected at random via Rafflecopter from all valid entries and will be notified by Twitter and/or email. If no response is received within 7 days then Rachel’s Random Resources reserves the right to select an alternative winner. Open to all entrants aged 18 or over.  Any personal data given as part of the competition entry is used for this purpose only and will not be shared with third parties, with the exception of the winners’ information. This will passed to the giveaway organiser and used only for fulfilment of the prize, after which time Rachel’s Random Resources will delete the data.  I am not responsible for despatch or delivery of the prize*

Murder by the Minster by Helen Cox

This weekend we are celebrating the Paperback Publication of Murder by the Minster by Helen Cox.

About the Author
Helen Cox is a Yorkshire-born novelist and poet.. After completing her MA in creative writing at the University of York St. John Helen wrote for a range of magazines and websites as well as for TV and radio news. Helen has edited her own independent film magazine and penned three non-fiction books. She currently hosts The Poetrygram podcast and works for City Lit, London.

Follow @Helenography on Twitter, on Goodreads, on Amazon, Visit helencoxbooks.com, Buy Murder by the Minster

About the book
Meet Kitt Hartley: librarian, trilby-wearer, Lady Grey tea-drinker, talker of no nonsense... detective?

It's a perfectly normal day for Kitt Hartley at her job at the University of the Vale of York library, until Detective Inspector Halloran arrives at her desk to tell hr that her best friend, Evie Bowes, is under suspicion of murder. Evie's ex-boyfried Owen has been found dead - with a fountain pen stabbed through his heart - and all the evidence points to her.

Kitt knows there is no way Evie could murder anyone - let alone Owen, who she adored. Horrified that the police could have got it so wrong, Kitt decides there's only one thing to do:: she's going to investigate Owen's murder herself. She's read hundreds of mystery novels - how hard can it be?
With the help of her assistant Grace, and the occasional hindrance o the library's eccentric regulars, Ktt summons up all her investigative powers ( absorbed over years of reading everything from Agatha Christie to Ian Rankin) and gets to work.

She soon discovers that down the quaint streets and snickelways of York lie darker doings than she'd ever dreamed, but she needs to watch her step: the murderer is watching her. And they haven't finished killing yet...

Review
Kitt is emboldened by her friends, her fictional companions. She becomes the feisty detective searching for the truth and seeking the real murderer regardless of how much trouble she may get herself into.

How dare anyone accuse her friend Evie of murder? Evie's ex-boyfriend has plenty of enemies to choose from. There are probably quite a few who wanted to see him dead. The list of suspects, and let's be honest the list is kinda pushing it a bit when it comes to some of them, isn't exactly short.

It reminded me of the kind of murder mysteries you can watch on the Hallmark channel, a bit like the Aurora Teagarden Mysteries. A combination of humour, awkward and stumbling sleuthing, a plot that draws the reader in and plays with them a little, and a main character who just can't help herself and stays in trouble the majority of the time.

It's a cosy murder mystery with an audacious main character. Kitt isn't bothered with boundaries or rules, and certainly not by any dangerous situations which may arise. This is what makes her such a bold fighter when it comes to fighting to clear her friends name.

Cox writes with enthusiasm, especially when it comes to Kitt, and despite all the murders it is the kind of read cosy crime lovers will enjoy. With a beautiful setting and quirky set of companions to accompany her I am sure Kitt will be back again soon with another mystery.

Buy Murder by the Minister at Amazon Uk or go to Goodreads for any other retailer. Publisher: Quercus; pub date 31 Oct. 2019. Buy at Amazon com. Buy at Quercus Books. Buy at Waterstones.

#BlogTour Hunter's Force by Val Penny

Today it's my turn on the Blogtour Hunter's Force by Val Penny.
Enter the Giveaway below to Win a mobi or PDF of Hunter’s Force by Val Penny (Open INT)

About the Author
Val Penny is an American author living in SW Scotland. She has two adult daughters of whom she is justly proud and lives with her husband and two cats. She has a Law degree from Edinburgh University and her MSc from Napier University.

She has had many jobs including hairdresser, waitress, lawyer, banker, azalea farmer and lecturer. However she has not yet achieved either of her childhood dreams of being a ballerina or owning a candy store. Until those dreams come true, she has turned her hand to writing poetry, short stories and novels. Her crime novels, 'Hunter's Chase' Hunter's Revenge and Hunter's Force are set in Edinburgh, Scotland, published by Crooked Cat Books. The fourth book in the series, Hunter's Blood, follows shortly.

Follow @valeriepenny on Twitter, on Facebook, on Amazon, on Goodreads, Follow the Friends of Hunter Wilson and Edinburgh Crime Mysteries,Visit authorvalpenny.com

About the book
Hunter by name – Hunter by nature.

Can DI Hunter Wilson keep Edinburgh safe when he is the hunted?

Detective Inspector Hunter Wilson is woken in the early hours of the morning by a call from his son. Cameron’s flatmate was murdered. Why would anybody want to kill a young woman recently arrived in the city?

Hunter must call in the new Major Incident Team (MIT) to lead the investigation due to the reorganisation of police services. Hunter's ability to be involved, however, is put in severe doubt when someone from his past decides to take revenge on him. He goes missing, and his team have no idea where to look for him. Who would want to stop Hunter in his tracks?

Meanwhile, Hunter's team must work closely with the MIT, with or without him, to solve the murder in this taut crime thriller.

Review
What would you do if you came home and found your roommate, albeit one you never agreed to have in your apartment in the first place, brutally murdered? Common sense would dictate the need to call the police, right? Or would you call your father Detective Inspector Hunter? Well, you can guess what Cameron decides to do.

Everything points towards him having something to with her murder. She is in his apartment, he was the last one to see her, and yet the person who said she could live there somehow has no recollection of doing so. That's quite a conundrum.

Simultaneously someone has their sights set on getting rid of Hunter, which of course begs the question whether putting Cameron in the frame for a vicious murder has anything to do with a personal vendetta.

I think without intending to Penny actually creates a kind of locked room scenario, but without the locked room. When the least likely suspect is actually the most guilty person in the room.

It's a police procedural with a mob vibe, crime solved by an almost vigilante force, Hunter's Force. Penny keeps it moving, sometimes so fast you have to retrace your own reading footprint. It's violent, gritty and the motive is brutal.

Buy Hunter's Force (The Edinburgh Crime Mysteries #3) at Amazon Uk or go to Goodreads for any other retailer. Publisher: Crooked Cat Books; pub date 3 Mar. 2019. Buy at Amazon com.

Buy Hunter's Chase (The Edinburgh Crime Mysteries #1) at Amazon Uk or Amazon com
Buy Hunter's Revenge (The Edinburgh Crime Mysteries #2) at Amazon Uk or Amazon com

Enter the Giveaway to Win a mobi or PDF of Hunter’s Force by Val Penny (Open INT)

a Rafflecopter giveaway *Terms and Conditions –Worldwide entries welcome.  Please enter using the Rafflecopter box below.  The winner will be selected at random via Rafflecopter from all valid entries and will be notified by Twitter and/or email. If no response is received within 7 days then Rachel’s Random Resources reserves the right to select an alternative winner. Open to all entrants aged 18 or over.  Any personal data given as part of the competition entry is used for this purpose only and will not be shared with third parties, with the exception of the winners’ information. This will passed to the giveaway organiser and used only for fulfilment of the prize, after which time Rachel’s Random Resources will delete the data.  I am not responsible for despatch or delivery of the prize*

#BlogTour To Snare a Witch: Bell, Book and Candle by Jay Raven

Today it's my turn on the BlogTour To Snare a Witch: Bell, Book and Candle by Jay Raven.

About the Author
Jay Raven is the author of Gothic chillers and historical horror reminding readers that the past is a dangerous place to venture, full of monsters and murderous men. He blames his fascination with vampires, witches and werewolves on the Hammer Horror films he watched as a teenager, but living in a creepy old house on the edge of a 500-acre wood may have something to do with it.

If you would like to be informed of new releases, enjoy free short stories and access exclusive giveways and competitions, please subscribe to Jay's monthly newsletter on his website at www.jayraven.co.uk

Follow @JayRavenAuthor on Twitter, on Goodreads, on Amazon, on Facebook,
Buy To Snare a Witch: Bell, Book and Candle

About the book

A Chilling historical tale of lust, sorcery and devastating revenge
No female dares spurn the lecherous advances of Sir Henry Cruttendon, 17th Century England’s most reviled nobleman. To do so risks a retribution that would terrify the Devil himself.
But Elizabeth Fiennes is no ordinary woman, blessed with stunning beauty,  intelligence and guile. Coming from an influential family, she believes she is safe.

What she doesn’t understand is that the Earl is determined to satisfy his lust and plans to use the wave of witch trials, fear and superstition  sweeping the countryside to force her into his clutches.
And as he springs his malicious trap it triggers a chain of unholy events plunging hunter and prey into a maelstrom of deceit, terror and depravity – leaving them both staring into the face of true evil...

Review

This is a novella length read and I have to say Raven uses every single page to draw readers in with this flipped on its lid take on the historical witch purges.

Imagine, if you will, the witch purges from a purely economical point of view. If riling up the crowds and executing innocent people after torturing them was a profitable business venture, then that would put an entirely different slant on the whole thing, right?

When the disgusting Sir Cruttendon decides to get what he wants by using the ploy of naming, shaming and killing a witch he doesn't realise he might be messing with the wrong person. The kind of person who is willing to do absolutely anything to get revenge and save a loved one.

It's historical paranormal fantasy. The first in the To Snare a Witch series. It's a quick read and a turbulent one, despite the length Raven manages to fit everything in from sexual encounters to the most potent of potions. It can get a wee bit lecherous at times, but then again Crittendon is a lech.

It's a short entertaining venture into the world of witchcraft.

Buy To Snare a Witch: Bell, Book and Candle at Amazon Uk or go to Goodreads for any other retailer. Publisher: Jay Raven Books; pub date 15 May 2019. Buy at Amazon com.

#HalloweenTakeover The Lost Ones by Anita Frank

Welcome to the #HalloweenTakeover for The Lost Ones by Anita Frank. You don't want to miss this fantastic ghost story!

About the Author
Anita Frank was born in Shropshire and studied English and American History at the University of East Anglia. She lives in Berkshire with her husband and three children and is now a full-time carer for her disabled son. This is her first novel.

Follow @Ajes74 on Twitter, on Goodreads, on Amazon, Buy The Lost Ones

About the book
England 1917
Reeling from the death of her fiance, Stella Marcham welcomes the opportunity to stay with her pregnant sister, Madeleine, at her imposing country mansion Greyswick - but she arrives to discover a house of unease and her sister gripped by gear and suspicion.

Before long strange incidents begin to trouble Stella - sobbing in the night, little footsteps on the stairs - and as events escalate, she finds herself drawn to the tragic history of the house.

Aided by a wounded war veteran, Stella sets about uncovering Greyswick's dark and terrible secrets - secrets the dead whisper from the other side...

Review
This is how you write a good ol' ghost story.
Set in 1917 in England, during one of the most devastating periods the world has gone through - the era of the Lost Generation. Husbands, sons, brothers and fathers struck down, whilst protecting their country. In an era where PTSD, shellshock were not recognised as genuine health conditions and trauma considered a weak personality trait, it's no surprise that grief is waved away as inconsiderate and inconsequential nonsense.

This is where the story starts with Stella. A brave young woman who has served her country and is drowning in grief since the loss of her childhood sweetheart. Grief that has driven her to attempt the last resort and in doing so has placed her firmly in the bracket of unstable.

To escape the prying eyes of her parents and the local head shrink she volunteers to keep her pregnant sister Madeleine company in Greyswick, the ancestral home of Madeleine's husband. She brings a maid called Annie with her - a young woman who has her own secrets.

The two of them find a distraught Madeleine, who is convinced she is being taunted or haunted by someone, which her mother-in-law and her companion find ridiculous. Is the hysteria catching or is there really something wrong at Greyswick?

That's as much information as I am willing to give, because readers should experience the read for themselves, both the creepy, the insidious and the moments that are guaranteed to make you angry at certain characters.

The story is set around the First World War, which plays a pivotal part in the characters lives and the storytelling, but for me it was also the only element of the book that was off-key in a way. Why, because it is written with the spellbinding magic of a slightly older era. The skirt-swishing Victorian era, the gothic atmosphere and sense of being taken back into time. I had to remind myself of the year it was actually set in.

It's an absolutely captivating ghost story, it's historical fiction, a plot written with a Christie crime vibe and executed with the same kind of precision. I very much hope this is the first of many stories by Frank - she is an excellent writer.

Buy The Lost Ones at Amazon Uk or go to Goodreads for any other retailer. Publisher: HQ; pub date  31 Oct. 2019. Hardback £12.99 - eBook £9.99 - Audio Download £12.99. Buy at Amazon com. Buy at Waterstones.