Onyx Webb Book 8

Are you reading the Onyx Webb series? I highly recommend it if you like ghosts, serial killers, lifestyles of the rich and famous, different timelines and suspense.



Book 8 is like a ride on the Italian Bobs (see Book 1).

Here is what the series and Book 8 is about:

"The timelines - the web - is more tightened than ever. Although the connections are clear, suspense reigns as always.

Onyx Webb is a complex multi-genre mash-up that combines elements of supernatural suspense, crime, horror, romance, and more. The Onyx Webb series follows the unusual life of Onyx Webb along with a central group of characters in various locations and times.
The billionaire Mulvaney family, piano prodigy Juniper Cole and her brother Quinn, paranormal show hosts Cryer and Fudge, and a few others make up the core of the series. Written like a book version of your favorite tv series (think: supernatural soap opera like American Horror Story) each character’s story moves forward with most every episode. It may appear that the characters are entirely unrelated and yet episode by episode, the connections will become clearer. Like being an inch away from a spider web, with each book, the web will move further and further away revealing the full story of character and most importantly, the stunning conclusion for Onyx Webb herself.  
Onyx and Alistar's grandson Noah grow close as they create a "life" together with exciting new projects. The Mulvaney mansion is crawling with ghosts as a big event looms. Stan Lee continues to make mistakes without consequences, for now."

Here is my favorite part of Book 8:

One (that's right, one of a few) of the ghosts sharing with Declan, the Mulvaney patriarch;

"You don't know, do you? Her name is Juniper. In fact you have quite a menagerie of the dead hanging around the mansion. Let's see: There's Juniper and the one in the bowler hat (Declan's limo driver no less) and the black man with the blind woman. That makes three right there. Oh and now me - four. It's almost as if you're running a bed and breakfast  for the deceased-a dead and breakfast, if you will."

In Book 8, we have some humor and we are led to believe everything is going to alright. The bad guys are going to get theirs' and the good guys will prevail. All of the sudden the roller coaster takes a big dip and our hearts are in our throats. Oh my. 

I will hate for Book 10 to come around and end the story, really.  I could see HBO or Netflix picking the series up. I like it better than the Sookie Stackhouse/True Blood series. (I love Charlaine Harris' Aurora Teagarden series though).

Book 9 soon....

Poisoned Pen Press

What do you get when you have 15+ mystery book enthusiasts all read different books? You get a long list of great books to read.
 
For our March Mystery Book Club (MBC), we read books featured by the Poisoned Pen Press, an independent publisher of mystery novels. The Poisoned Pen Press was founded by Barbara G. Peters and her husband, Robert Rosenwald. Barbara Peters also owns The Poisoned Pen Bookstore in Scottsdale Arizona.
https://poisonedpenpress.com/
https://poisonedpen.com/

One featured series that I find interesting is The British Library Crime Classics. At a glance, it looks like they are books published anywhere from the mid 1800's thru the early 1900's. Here is the cover of one that one of the MBC members read. I love these vintage pictures.



Following, is the list of the books we all read. I felt like Scarlett O'Hara when Rhett took her on the riverboat in New Orleans and she kept grabbing the pastries as the pastry cart went by, while her mouth was full. (Did I mention we also had a pot luck? This is the scene where he tells her she will get fat, or in my case, I will have too many books.) I heard many authors and titles of books I want to read.



There are a few books at the end of the list that are not from the Poisoned Pen Press list. Some of the MBC members read some other books and shared them, so I am including them.

Deadly Descent – Lottie Albright Mystery #1 by Charlotte Hinger

 

Constable Molly Smith Mysteries by Vicki Delany

In The Shadow of the Glacier – Constable Molly Smith Mystery #1
Negative Image – Constable Molly Smith Mystery #4
Unreasonable Doubt – Constable Molly Smith Mystery #8

Alafair Tucker Mysteries by Donis Casey

The Old Buzzard Had It Coming – Alafair Tucker Mystery #1
All Men Fear Me – Alafair Tucker Mystery #8
The Return of the Raven Mocker – Alafair Tucker Tucker #9 Mystery
 

Brooklyn Bones – Erica Donato Mystery #1 by Triss Stein

The Female Detective by Andrew Forrester ( From the British Library Crimes Classics list, originally published in 1864, first detective novel to feature a professional female detective)
Mary Russell’s War and Other Stories of Suspense by Laurie R. King (Mary Russell is Sherlock Holmes wife in this the series by this other. This book has 10 short stories)
The Dead Hand by Michael Kahn
Liar Liar by K.J. Larsen (debut novel)
 

Phryne Fisher novels and Corinna Chapman Mysteries by Kerry Greenwood

Cocaine Blues – Phryne Fisher novel #1
Queen of the Flowers – Phryne Fisher novel #14
Dead Man’s Chest – Phryne Fisher novel #18
Murder and Mendelssohn – Phryne Fisher novel #20
Earthly Delights Corinna Chapman Mystery #1
Cooking the Books – Corinna Chapman Mystery #6
(Did you know that Phryne Fisher is a television series offered on Netflix? Yep I am going to add that to my watchlist.)

Santorini Caesars – Chief Inspector Kaldis Mystery #8 by Jeffrey Siger

Murder Most Unfortunate – Rick Montoya Italian Mystery #3 by David P. Wagner
Dead Weight – The Posadas County Mysteries #8 by Steven F. Havill
The Coffin Trail - A Lake District Mystery #1 by Martin Edwards
 

Kate Turner, DVM Mysteries by Eileen Brady

Muzzled - A Kate Turner, DVM Mystery #1 (2013 Discover Mystery Award Winner)
Unleashed - A Kate Turner, DVM Mystery #1
 

Caught Dead – Rick Van Lam Mystery #1 by Andrew Lanh

 

Books other than from Poisoned Pen Press

Lilac Girls: A Novel by Martha Hall Kelly (a debut novel)
A Beautiful Place to Die – Martha’s Vineyard Mystery #1 by Phillip Craig
Norwegian by Night by Derek B. Miller
Restless in the Grave by Dana Stabenow (some of her books are featured with Poison Pen Press)

Check out the Poisoned Press' websites. They have lots of really good books featured.

 

The Second Path - Selkie Moon Mystery #2

The Second Path is book #2 in the Selkie Moon Mystery series by Virginia King.



(Book #1 is The First Lie. I read it last year and wrote about it.)

Here's what The Second Path is about:

"A rock ripped from the soil, a message scrawled in lipstick on the floor, a torn photo, a silver spoon… What do they all mean?

Only her subconscious knows.

When we last left Selkie Moon, she was running towards the source of her deepest primal fear: the sea. Now she finds herself naked on the beach, stunned that she has no memory of the past two weeks.

Recovering at a friend’s house, Selkie wakes up to discover a bizarre collection of items scattered across the floor. Items she apparently gathered in her sleep. Finding the ho'ohihi – the interconnectedness – between them will carry her around the globe, from Honolulu to Sydney to Paris. A dark fairy tale journey filled with fear and despair, laughter and hope, The Second Path has Selkie searching for her place in the world, in her relationships, and in herself."

I am drawn to this series because of the mystique surrounding the mystery. The books mix mythology with real life and Selkie's journey to leave her past behind and start a new life.

We follow Selkie from Honolulu to Paris to Tours, France to continue her journey into her struggle to leave her haunting past and begin anew. With the help (?) of her intuitive, sometimes psychic friends, she searches the beach where she disappeared and caves in France to find answers. Meanwhile Selkie tries to make a living with her seminars, Being Sleek. All while having strange dreams, writing messages in her sleep, and trying her hand at art to help her bring her answers. Then there is Alister, who seems to be the perfect person to be in her new life, but she keeps pushing away. The writing of the story is magical; lots of great descriptions of not only the landscapes, and tangible things, but of the quirky people Selkie continues to meet and her own thoughts and the process of making sense of everything. Surprise ending. At least to me.

I always like a book with a little mystique in it.

Here's a little bit about the author Virginia King and how she came to write about Selkie Moon that is also has some mystique to it.

"When a voice wakes you up in the middle of the night and tells you to write a mystery series, what’s a writer to do? That’s how Virginia King came to create Selkie Moon, after a massage from a strange woman with gifted hands was followed by this nocturnal message. Virginia sat down at the keyboard until Selkie Moon turned up. All she had to do was jump, the first sentence said. Soon Virginia was hooked, exploring far-flung places full of secrets where Selkie delves into psychological clues tangled up in the local mythology.

Before Selkie Moon invaded her life, Virginia had been a teacher, an unemployed ex-teacher, the author of over 50 children’s books, an audio-book producer, a workshop presenter and a prize-winning publisher. These days she lives in the Blue Mountains west of Sydney with her husband, where she disappears each day into Selkie Moon’s latest mystery. Bliss.

You can read about how the series evolved here: here: http://www.selkiemoon.com/behind-the-...), taking on a life of its own through several versions, guided by readers and editors and agents and publishers. The First Lie has won a BRAG Medallion and Book Two in the series, The Second Path, has now been published with Book Three well underway."

Mystery Thriller Week February 12-22 2017

Just found out about this event on author Barbara Venkataraman's blog A Trip to the Mobius Strip.
She writes the Jamie Quinn series that I mentioned in a post.



Anyhow it starts today so I am quickly posting this so you can get signed up too. I just did.

https://mysterythrillerweek.com/fans-readers-sign-up-here-for-contests-mystery-thriller-week-updates/

Here is some of what it is about.

"You will receive access to all the events scheduled.  You will be invited to meet some of these award-winning and best-selling writers on various digital platforms. Ask them questions, get tips and see what they are up to now. Find your new favorite author.
You will also have free passes to giveaways, Facebook chats, free books, interview links and more. All these treats will be provided to super fans like yourself. "

Have you tried any of these events? I am currently participating in a Murder Mystery Scavenger Hunt hosted by Kathi Daley - author of the Zoe Donovan series.  I have done a couple of these. Lots of fun. You find out about other authors and series they write and you may win a book!
http://cozy-mysteries-unlimited.com/zoe-donovan-mystery-series


I won 5 books in the first one I did about a year and half. That is how I was introduced to Virginia King and her Selkie Moon series. I talked about that in a post also. I am on the second in the series, The Second Path, having read the prequel and the first in the series, The First Lie.

http://www.selkiemoon.com/

Fun fun fun.

Redemption Road by John Hary

Our February Mystery Book Club selection was Redemption Road by John Hart.



"Imagine:

A boy with a gun waits for the man who killed his mother.

A troubled detective confronts her past in the aftermath of a brutal shooting.

After thirteen years in prison, a good cop walks free. But for how long?

And deep in the forest, on the altar of an abandoned church, the unthinkable has just happened…

This is a town on the brink. This is a road with no mercy."

Have you read any of John Hart's books? This was the first one I have read.
Of note: "Since his debut bestseller, The King of Lies, reviewers across the country have heaped praise on John Hart, comparing his writing to that of Pat Conroy, Cormac McCarthy and Scott Turow. Each novel has taken Hart higher on the New York Times Bestseller list as his masterful writing and assured evocation of place have won readers around the world and earned history's only consecutive Edgar Awards for Best Novel with Down River and The Last Child.'

So the story has some gritty, icky parts. But...his writing is so good, I really got wrapped up in the story and couldn't put it down. It seems like there are several separate stories going on but they are connected. I liked it and would read other books by John Hart. His previous books are stand alones but he is writing a sequel to The Last Child."

What did the book club members think? Most liked it and agreed the writing was really good, but most didn't like the gruesome parts. So be warned but it was really good.

Here's the authors website: http://www.johnhartfiction.com/

Exective by Leslie Wolfe

This is the second book by Leslie Wolfe that I read, although the first, Dawn Girl, is unrelated to  Executive. This is the first Alex Hoffman book.




About the book:
"A friendly fire incident in Afghanistan takes a serious toll.
A drone, out of control, brings death and wreaks havoc on a Florida highway.
An apparently successful corporation comes under scrutiny.

A memorable incursion behind corporate closed doors, led by an up-and-coming executive on a mission to find the truth about the lives lost to the very technology that was mandated to protect them.

Our skies aren't safe anymore.

A thought-provoking page turner, Executive sizzles with plausible scenarios, conveyed in technical and business terminology at an unrelenting pace.

Exploring the controversial territory of toxic leadership and its long term consequences, Executive delivers an insightful analysis spiced with cutting-edge technology and science, in an exciting, masterful political technothriller.

Fans of Jack Ryan, Jason Bourne, James Bond, and Jack Reacher will be intrigued by Alex Hoffmann."

This book hooked me in the first couple of pages. A sneak peek was at the end of Dawn Girl and I couldn't put it down. But the sneak peek ended so I quickly downloaded the book.

Alex Hoffman is recruited by The Agency. Their clients are, as in this case, companies that have concerning issues they cannot get to the bottom of. Alex's assignment is to be hired as an Executive for NanoLance. NanoLance manufactures drones that the military has purchased. A few of the drones have gone rogue and killed people.  Alex is to insert herself into NanoLance and basically spy.

It is fast paced. Lots of surprises and near misses for Alex as she tries to find out who is behind all the corruption in the company. And there are plenty of candidates.

I look forward to more books about Alex and The Agency.

Breaking Point by C.T. Mitchell

I have a love/hate relationship with technology. I curse it at least once a day.

On the other hand, you can find some great authors and books on the internet. I think I found C.T. Mitchell by entering a "win 35 books" deals on FB. I can't say I won the grand prize but did get on several email lists and subsequently emails offering free or almost free books. As a bookaholic, I can't resist.  He resides in Australia and has books on Goodreads and Amazon. Another great author from "down under".

In the first email I got from C.T., I was sent a free novella; Rejection - A Jack Creed Novella.

From the website:

"In this mystery thriller short story, UK born Nicholas Weatherby is about to ‘wake up’ the sleepy, country village of Lismore, NSW, Australia with a very sick, bitter and twisted plan of revenge. Communicating only through YouTube, this recluse has attracted a friend; a sympathizer who together wants to deliver Australia’s first University mass shooting.

But they never planned on Australian detective Jack Creed to be on the case. Always seeking criminal justice Jack is up to his armpits with a myriad of suspects including Nicholas’s dumbfounded parents, a taunting ex-girlfriend and a sympathizer with deep childhood scars – all with secrets to hide – making this crime fiction more mysterious."

O.K. I am not a fan of mass shooting stories since we hear about that a lot lately here. But the Jack Creed character was intriguing. So when I saw the first full Jack Creed novel - Breaking Point I grabbed it.



From the website:

"The criminal investigation is over budget. It’s in danger of being closed down. Creed’s ‘new’ murder squad team have exhausted all leads. Cabarita Beach residents are petrified; they want answers.

Then ex UK resident Sam Thompson’s charred remains are discovered. This victim is different. A small crack appears giving this police procedural case hope. The serial killer has slipped up.

From the bestselling Australian author of the Detective Jack Creed Box Set, C T Mitchell serves up his best fast paced, maximum action, psychological pulp thriller novel with a tsunami of twists and turns that will keep you guessing right to the last page in this latest mystery, thriller and suspense series. You won’t pick the ending."

I loved the book. Couldn't stop reading it. The story was good with a strong build up of suspense and sense of urgency to catch the killer. All clues pointed to Talbot yet enough things didn't add up to keep us looking and thinking - did he or didn't he. Jack Creed is a likeable character with lots of gut experience. Jo is a young, smart police officer with a fair amount of common sense although we had to holler at her a few times. She shows lots of promise and I look forward to reading more cases in their partnership.

There are actually 6 other Jack Creed short stories before this novel.  C.T. also writes a cozy series that I have acquired but have not had a chance to read yet. I love the covers of the books in the series with Lady Margaret Turnbull. Here is the first one.



Here is C. T.'s website if you want to check it out. He also writes some interesting short articles on his site. For example " Four Things James Patterson Told Me About Writing Over Lunch" and most recently, "Naming a Murder Victim-You Choose". He will also send you two of his bestsellers, free.

http://ctmitchell.com/

Check it out!