“The Guardian of Lies” brings us back to 1953 in the South of France, a time when the peace between the West and the Soviet Russia was fragile and volatile. This is the story of one family torn apart by secrets and conflicting allegiances.
It is hard not to be spellbound by the sense of place and times that utterly take us at the heart of Camargue during the Cold War. In the 50’s the south of France had become a battleground between the Americans and the Soviets. By establishing a nuclear airbase with the intent on stopping the spread of Communism, the Americans turned the small town of Arles upside down and caused conflict within its residents.
The author has taken writers privilege in her fiction and has placed the airbase in the south of France rather than in the north where the tactical air units where located during that time. Having said this, although the actual area may have been changed the story nevertheless reflects the challenges those affected had to go through.
The main character is Eloise Caussade, a courageous young Frenchwoman raised on a bull farm who followed her brother André to Paris after he became an intelligence office working for the CIA. Her dream was also to become a CIA operative but instead worked at a PI Agency. When her life was thrown into turmoil she headed back home only to find a town in a state of unrest. What happens in the town is a wonderful tale of courage, subterfuge, love, betrayal and murder.
The story maintains a steady pace and the author keeps it jogging throughout the entire novel. The narrative is as deceiving as the spies who played roles. Who are the good guys and who are the bad guys, it is easy to get fooled ……eventually, what is slowly revealed is a twisty plot full of switches and a scheme Eloise is drawn into.
This is an enjoyable read
I received this ARC from Simon &Schuster Canada via NetGalleys for my thoughts
Ivy Nash Thriller book #3
Redemption Thriller #9
Although “In Doubt” can be read on its own, you really should read the previous books in this series in order to better understand why the characters are the way they are.
Following the events of the previous book Ivy is paranoid, jumpy and has no desire to take on new cases until Christina (recurring character) gets her the perfect job…..Ivy is asked to protect an adorable little girl from a wealthy egomaniac hell-bent on revenge.
Mr. Mefford has a way of drawing his readers into the story and making you feel like you are a part of it. He writes seamlessly jumping between characters without hesitation. The drama is told with confidence and is very descriptive. It is just like watching a movie. The characters display a wide range of behaviour from good to bad, from manipulative to abusive and they have to deals with all sorts of situations. This plot is on the dark side, complex and has multiple threads that slowly builds tension till we reach the thrilling climax. If you need a break and enjoy being entertained without the need of a dictionary Mr. Mefford provides clear and concise phrases in all his mysteries. The story moves at a steady pace and at times gives you the shivers but it is not as thrilling as in the Alex Trout series.
“In Doubt” is good but it is not my preferred in this series having said this I still was a pleasure to read. Next book to read “Break In” book #4
What a story, if I could give this book 10 star rating I would. Once again Mr. Miller confirms why he is one of my favourite authors.
New Orleans, 1926
August Chevalier, a ruthless businessman with questionable morals is found murdered, investigative reporters Justice Harper and Remy Moral are determined to flush out the killer. Working alongside the police, they narrowed down the list of suspects to three:
The Sinner, Blaze Barbeau, a real estate magnate with a checkered past
The Saint, Lucinda Boyd, a pillar of New Orleans society
The Serpent, Belladonna Dede, a well-known voodoo queen
One potential suspect:
A mafia gangster: Nicky the Knife
This is a story rich in content written with a cinematic perspective approach. It is vividly told through rich dialogue. The narrative is incredibly fast-paced and the prose sails smoothly throughout making this one of those stories next to impossible to put down. It is so filled with tension I was trying so hard to figure who may be the killer. Justice and Remy did such a good job interrogating each one of the suspect that it was hard to pin point the guilty. They all had a reason to do the deed. Mr. Miller is definitely a master of plot twists and he threw some doozies to surprise us. I was on the edge of my seat from page one and so captivated trying hard to figure where the author was going with his story. Would we finally have the killer identified….or would we be kept guessing. By the epilogue Mr. Miller give us the most mammoth twists of all and what an ending….I never saw it coming.
The author created sub-plots for the other characters what essentially happens in their life when they are not part of the main plot. Serenity Dupree, a sultry jazz singer is one of the secondary players along with Barbeau, Boyd, DeDe and Knife’s contribution all make a delightful reading adventure. Of course we also have the police investigators trying to solve the case.
A special note as for the main characters:
Justice is a man of deep morals, very diplomatic hard not to like him. Remy is a complete darling, she is one to speak her mind with absolutely no filter whatsoever. At times Justice wanted to strangling her….Their interaction makes an excellent read.
I love this mystery it provided all the entertainment one can wish for. What a page turner you provided Mr. Miller, well-done.
I received a ARC from Lume Books via Netgalleys for my thoughts
If you were caught up in a con game and lost all of your money, how far would you go to get revenge on the person who did this to you?
Investigative journalist, Jessica Williams, becomes an unwitting victim of identity theft after being caught in a grifter’s game. Her instinct kicks in and she soon discovers there are other victims with the identical names and birthday that also have fallen into the scammer’s paws. In number, it is time for gather strength and fight. The crusade begins….
I have mixed feeling about this story although original in parts it is so farfetched and unrealistic that it was hard to be invested in such a plotline. Yes, there’s a lot of Jessica (2,3,4) all of them with the same twisted story. While we follow them in their quest, we have the hunt being intercepted with Jessica‘s reliving her life as a cult member in the Land of Todd. The portrayal of the cult life, although sobering is the most interesting part in this novel. Back and forth we go from memory to plotting revenge and the drama flows this way till the two threads come together and we reach the climax. A plus for this story: I really didn’t see the ending coming…
The characters are definitely not likeable but they are well portrayed in their roles. As the pacing drags a lot, it was easy for my mind to wander but thank goodness for the dramatic scenes in Jackson, Wyoming and the description of the beautiful landscape of Grand Teton that added another dimension to what could have been a bummer read. This story has great parts but in some way too stretched out to have made it a terrific read.
Good but I read better stories from Ms. McKenzie
Thank you Simon& Schuster and Netgalleys for this ARC
“Coming Home” is a moving romantic drama about building a new life after the Second World War - and about searching for love, stability and happiness.
After the victory the boys are coming home…..
We have two main protagonists: Megan and Steven who play wonderful and touching roles in this beautifully written story. The secondary characters help this drama to move forward.
A short synopsis:
After a long correspondence with Steven during his time away Megan has been anxiously waiting for his return. She has deep affection for him and only hopes her feelings are mutual.
Once home, Steven’s desire is to have his own farm. Bad blood between brothers is raging so Steven has to go on his own but the road ahead is not an easy one. With Megan off to college to finish her degree in teaching Steven struggles to build a home for both of them. Poor Steven has to jump one hurdle after the other but with the help of family, friends and neighbours he is on the right track to success. As all romantic stories unfold the hard work pays off and everything turns out all right. AWE….
My thoughts:
What a nice and heartwarming story this turned out to be. The story depicts the struggles of the time and the hardships the men returning home had to face along with their love ones. The book is easy to read although I found the tempo to be very slow moving but what it does well is to vividly bring to life the reality of post war rural Scotland. In this type of soft romance you can see how everything will end, from the get-go it was a given that Steven and Megan would end up together….no secrets there…..
“Coming Home “is a cute classic story of love and hope.
Full disclosure: I did not finish reading this book and this is why: Pointless mundane day to day activity and beyond repetitive.
“Boys for Men” is the true story of two soldiers separated by 100 years. Taken from excerpts from the journal of Sylvester Waltz, an infantryman during the Great Sioux War (1876) and of Derrick Wolf’s tour of duty during the Vietnam (1970) conflict, their memoirs are told in alternate paragraphs as their day to day monotonous life moves on. Over and over we have paragraphs saying the same thing. I wanted to skipped the Sylvester Waltz part and simply read Wolf experiences but that didn’t last long I simply couldn’t take another chapter of all the minor details such as heating coffee and other mundane tasks that were constancy repeated. This is written as a daily journal and is very boring to read. I rarely give up on a book but I couldn’t take it, ¼ into it, enough was enough.
Not having served in the military I may not have appreciated what the book was trying to tell us but to those who came back home after their tour of duty, reading it may trigger fond memories. So don’t take my words for it… judge for yourself.
Mercy Harbor Thriller book #3
“Catch the Girl” as the same heart-pounding suspense as its predecessors and by far does not disappoint. It continues the exciting story of Willow Bay and of the wonderful players that make this series an exciting read. It can easily be read on its own, the author provides enough explanations of past events that if you pick up at this point you will not have problems but I must say it is a plus to have read “The River Girls” and “Girl Eight” first since much of the characters have evolved with time.
In “Catch the Girl” we have a young woman seeking refuge in a Florida commune but when two of her friends go missing she suspects the community is not what she thought it was and discovers that she may be the next target of a ruthless killer. As the story unfolds, the dedicated teams of WBPD Nessa, Janhowski and Baker and the long-time heroes Eden, Reggie, Leo, Frankie and Duke which have never in the past hesitated when a woman`s life was at stake to risk all, even their own safety, they are not about to start now…. So they spring into action and following their every moves I couldn`t help flipping pages and be very captivated by what was going on.
This story is a mystery but this time the plot contains more about the character’s personal relationships that in the previous installments. Knowing a little more about them simply helps us to love them more. Baker is looking for his run-away daughter, turns to Nessa and Eden for help and with the WBPD they are looking into a secretive commune……and possibly the source of multiple murders….Of course we have Eden and Leo friendships gaining strength. Awe romance is in the air…
The plotline is filled with mystery and is very suspenseful, quite a page-turner. We have Ruth who needed help and ends up at Mercy Harbor traumatized. She soon disappears and is found dead hanging under a bridge, on her forehead is a carving similar to an earlier discovery of a lifeless woman at a gas station. It doesn’t stop there we have various threads of intrigue woven throughout and many twists to surprise us…Eventually the strands come together to a satisfying climax….. This is a nicely penned storyline with warm characters to play out the scenes.
I received a copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily. Opinions expressed are my own
