Ryder by Nick Pengelley…Blog tour stop & review

Ryder cover

Synopsis:

Ayesha Ryder bears the scars of strife in the Middle East. Now her past is catching up to her as she races to unravel a mystery that spans centuries—and threatens to change the course of history.

As Israeli and Palestinian leaders prepare to make a joint announcement at the Tower of London, an influential scholar is tortured and murdered in his well-appointed home in St. John’s Wood. Academic researcher Ayesha Ryder believes the killing is no coincidence. Sir Evelyn Montagu had unearthed shocking revelations about T. E. Lawrence—the famed Lawrence of Arabia. Could Montagu have been targeted because of his discoveries?

Ryder’s search for answers takes her back to her old life in the Middle East and into a lion’s den of killers and traitors. As she draws the attention of agents from both sides of the conflict, including detectives from Scotland Yard and MI5, Ryder stumbles deeper into Lawrence’s secrets, an astounding case of royal blackmail, even the search for the Bible’s lost Ark of the Covenant.

Every step of the way, the endgame grows more terrifying. But when an attack rocks London, the real players show their hand—and Ayesha Ryder is left holding the final piece of the puzzle.

 

My Review:

Ryder is the debut work from author Nick Pengelley and was a wild ride from start to finish filled with history, mystery, riddles, murder, and intrigue.

Academic researcher Ayesha Ryder finds herself in the middle of an intense search for truths surrounding a mystery her recently murdered colleague, and former lover, had apparently stumbled upon. Mystery involving the potential of political secrets that have been kept hidden for decades and secrets that someone is desperately trying to keep hidden. It’s this quest for truth that will lead Ryder on one hell of a dangerous treasure hunt with the treasure in sight being an incredible and most important one that could potentially change the face of history for a dueling Palestine and Israel. Will she find this long-buried secret or will she die in her attempt?

While this isn’t my typical go-to genre, there was something about this story that called to me and I was really glad I picked it up. Yes, there is a lot of history and political aspects to this story but beyond that there was a ton of action that had me hooked from chapter to chapter. Ryder has an Angelina Jolie-esque quality about her, with a heart breaking past and a hardened resolve to never again live through the pain she once did. She is strong, both mentally and physically, and she was an amazing character to read. Along with Ryder there were a couple of characters that really stood out and brought a much-appreciated softer layer to this intense story. One such character being a wonderful woman in her later years who has one hell of an interesting past and drinks martinis at all hours of the day. My kind of gal!

Along with the great cast of characters was the feeling that we, the reader, were along on an Indian Jones type adventure. Trying to figure out riddles from the past, only to find another riddle waiting when that one was solved. It had me anxious and hyped while reading and a drive to continue reading non-stop and once and for all solve this puzzle. It was truly exciting!

I will undoubtedly be looking forward to the next installments in this series and cannot wait to see what author Pengelley has in store for Ryder. Thank you, Mr. Pengelley, for a literary roller coaster ride I truly appreciated!

4LovesRLBFour Loves

 

Book links:

 Amazon  |  B&N 

About the author:

Nick Pengelley cites many influences on his writing. Readers of “Ryder” will not be surprised that authors like H. Rider Haggard, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, John Buchan and Peter O’Donnell figure prominently. He is a fan of the ripping yarns of the inter-war years – by writers such as Sapper, Dornford Yates, Edgar Wallace and Leslie Charteris. His more modern favourites include Umberto Eco (particularly “The Name of the Rose”), Alan Furst, Douglas Adams, Terry Pratchett, Neil Gaiman and Elizabeth Kostova (“The Historian”). Nicholas reads a “book or so” a week (and is horrified to think that, if he lives to be 200, he may only get to read 10,000). These days, although he still reads fiction, he is mainly interested in modern European and Middle Eastern history, and biography, having discovered some years ago that truth really is stranger than fiction. He lists his heroes, literary adventurers all, as Winston Churchill, T.E. Lawrence, Gertrude Bell and Teddy Roosevelt.

Website  |  Twitter 

Animal Welfare Week & Animal Shelter and Rescue Appreciation Week Celebration with Doghouse by L.A. Kornetsky & Giveaway

Pawlease help us celebrate Animal Welfare Week (October 5-11) and National Animal Shelter and Rescue Appreciation Week (November 2-8) with DOGHOUSE and the Gin & Tonic Mystery Series by L.A. Kornetsky!


Doghouse

Praise for the third Gin & Tonic Mystery, Doghouse:
“Infamously nosy Ginny Mallard may be unlicensed as an investigator, but she has begun to make a name for herself as the unofficial champion of the tongue-tied. In the third installment of L.A. Kornetsky’s Gin & Tonic Mystery series, Doghouse finds Ginny getting herself tied up in a possible underground dogfighting ring. With help from her bartender friend Teddy Tonica, his tabby cat and Ginny’s Shar Pei puppy, they have to figure out what’s going on before someone else gets hurt.”
—Cat Fancy Magazine, November 2014 issue

“Human and animal characters are equally appealing. A thoroughly enjoyable read.” I Love a Mystery

“Doghouse is a crafty mystery with engaging characters and countless unknowns…L.A. Kornetsky makes mysteries inventively delightful, and Doghouse entertains with wit and cleverness.” Single Titles

“I recommend it to those that really like animals and cozy mysteries.” Books and Things

“The third Gin & Tonic “researchtigations” is an appealing anthropomorphist amateur sleuth enhanced by life in a cheerful neighborhood bar. The lead humans and their animal owners remain fresh leads while the case proves bloody in the ring and the bar.” The Mystery Gazette

“Sniffing out clues…L.A. Kornetsky brings back Ginny Mallard and her bartender friend Teddy Tonica, along with Ginny’s pet shar-pei puppy and Teddy’s tabby cat, for their third outing in Doghouse.” Library Journal

Fixed

Praise for the second Gin & Tonic Mystery, Fixed:
“[Fixed] is the second foray into the lives of a very unlikely pair of investigators; unlikely and a whole lot of fun…Collared was the first title that introduced this extremely fun ‘family and friends’ grouping, and the author has come back with a sequel that will truly make Gin & Tonic a well-known duo! Very light-hearted, this is a great book. Any reader who likes the ‘cozy’ avenue will love this mystery, with a little bit of cat and dog language thrown in for fun.” Suspense Magazine

Collared
Praise for the first Gin & Tonic Mystery, Collared:
“The plot moves quickly, enhanced by smart dialog and good characterizations…Recommended for purchase where pet mysteries are popular.” Library Journal

Summary of Doghouse:

Amateur sleuths Ginny Mallard and Teddy Tonica and their furry partners prove in L.A. Kornetsky’s DOGHOUSE (Pocket Books; July 22, 2014; $7.99) that twelve legs are better than four when it comes to solving a risky new case in the third novel from the “entertaining” (Library Journal) Gin & Tonic mystery series. At her favorite Seattle bar, professional concierge Ginny Mallard can always count on a perfectly mixed gimlet and a friendly welcome for her shar-pei, Georgie, from resident cat, Penny. On this visit, Ginny gets an unexpected bonus. One of the regulars asks her and her sometime partner, bartender Teddy Tonica, to save an old friend who’s facing eviction. This is no simple landlord spat. Rumors abound of an underground dogfighting ring on the premises—a crime guaranteed to get Gin’s hackles up. Gin and Teddy want to believe the old man is innocent of all charges, thought a new piece of evidence suggests otherwise. Penny and Georgie keep their noses to the ground as they help their humans investigate the vicious animal rights case. But the truth is buried deep, and digging it up will unearth dangerous complications for owners and animals alike.

Excerpt from Doghouse:

Theodore—Teddy to nearly everyone not related by blood—Tonica was king of his domain. Or maybe ringleader was a better description, he thought with a grin, snapping the bar towel in his hand at a patron who tried to reach over the bar and change the music. “Hands off the dial, Joel.” The radio was set to a local jazz station, and it didn’t get turned up any higher than could be heard at the bar itself. Those were the rules, and everyone knew it.

The joint was jumping—well, jumping for a relatively quiet part of Seattle early on a Thursday evening, anyway. The eleven bar stools were in use, and most of the chairs were taken, too, people settling in to stay for a while. It wasn’t the crazed rush of a weekend, but there was enough work to keep both hands busy. Teddy set up two beers and pushed them across the bar with a professional flourish, then paused to check on his waitress.

Stacy was working the floor, moving around the tables with economy, unloading her tray, taking orders, and swiping empties. He’d been worried that once she was boosted up to off-shift bartender she’d not want to waitress anymore, but Stacy seemed to slip between the two roles without hesitation or ego. He suspected that she made more money in tips as a waitress, anyway. The regulars here weren’t stingy. You couldn’t be, if you wanted to keep coming back week after week. And people did.

The phone in his pocket vibrated slightly, and instinct moved his hand toward it, even though he knew better. The motion was checked when the guy leaning against the bar held up a hand with several bills folded between his fingers. Teddy nodded in the guy’s direction, holding up his index finger to say he’d be right there. He fished the phone out of his pocket and checked the number, even though he was pretty sure who was calling. “Not now, people, not now,” he muttered, tapping the button to refuse the call, and shoving the phone back into his pocket. His sisters and cousins seemed to think that he needed to be dragged into the latest family flap. He disagreed, vehemently.

This was why he’d left the East Coast.

“What can I do for ya?” he asked, finally turning to the new customer. The guy ordered a winter ale and a Pink Squirrel. Because Teddy was a professional, he didn’t roll his eyes at the order, even though he wanted to. It embarrassed him that he actually knew how to make a Pink Squirrel. Mary’s was a respectable neighborhood bar, a place for draft beers and classy drinks, not foofy sugar-bombs. But the customer was always right, so long as they were sober.

He supposed it could have been worse. After a local newspaper did a puff piece on the “crime-solving bartender” and the exotic cat smuggling case they’d worked last year, Patrick, the owner of the bar, had suggested that they create a specialty drink, something cat-related. Teddy had managed to avoid doing it long enough that he hoped that idea had died a natural death. He was a bartender, not a mixologist, or whatever the trendy title was these days. Patrick could run specials like that at his new place when it opened, not here.

“Besides,” Teddy said now, lifting his head to look at the top of the shelves behind him, “you’re the only cat that this bar needs.”

Only the tip of her tail and the edge of one white-dipped paw were visible, but he was pretty sure Penny’s whiskers twitched in agreement. Not that an animal could understand the words, but the fact that the little tabby considered Mary’s her domain—and Teddy her human—was a fact among the regulars of the bar. Even he’d come to accept it. He laughed at himself now. Who knew letting a bedraggled kitten come in out of the rain would turn him into . . . well, a pet person was overstating the matter, but a specific animal person, anyway.

The front door opened, a burst of wet air rushing in, and someone yelled out a complaint before the door was quickly shut again. Even without looking up, Teddy knew who had come in, because Penny leaped down from her perch, landing gracefully on the back counter. She only ever reacted like that for one visitor.

“One gimlet, just like the lady likes,” he said, pulling up the ingredients even as Ginny slid up to the bar. As crowded as it had been, a stool suddenly opened for her, and she took it like a queen accepting her throne.

“One of these days,” the blonde said, “I’m going to come in here and order a beer, just to mess with you.”

“No you won’t.”

Ginny laughed. “No, I probably won’t. But I might.”

She might, he thought, especially if she thought she could catch him out. Ginny Mallard had a streak of mischief a mile wide for all that she looked like butter wouldn’t melt in her mouth just then. Either she’d had a good day at the office, or he was about to get hit with the worst joke he’d ever heard. Or, possibly, both.

“And hello to you, too, Mistress Penny,” she said to the cat, who gave her a delicate sniff and then leaped down to the floor to visit with the newcomer she was actually interested in, Ginny’s shar-pei, Georgie, who was happily settling at her mistress’s feet.

Until recently, Georgie, like all other canines whose owners frequented Mary’s, had been relegated to the sidewalk outside. There was an unofficial tie-up next to the bike rack where dogs could rest in the shade, out of the way of foot traffic. Since Teddy had become manager, those rules had been loosened, until Georgie now took it as much her right to come inside as it was Ginny’s.

One cat and one dog. That was as far as he’d let himself slip.

“Try not to get stepped on,” Ginny said to both animals, and then turned her attention back to the human across the bar. “Busy, for a Thursday. Did every other bar in town close?”

“Hah. And actually, yeah. The Fish is having renovations done, so their space is about half the usual.” Teddy made a face. “I think we’re getting the overflow, based on the level of hipster tonight.”

Like most neighborhoods in Seattle, Ballard had an assortment of drinking establishments, each with its own atmosphere and clientele. The nearest competitor, Fish, was upscale, while Nickles, across the avenue, attracted college students. Mary’s had intentionally cultivated a “neighborhood joint” feel. It was the place you went to talk your best friend out of a bad idea, or took a date when you were finally ready to introduce her to your friends. There was no jukebox or band, no pool table or dance floor, and only a small bar menu with just enough choices to soak up your beer, not to replace dinner. The only time outsiders showed up in any number was for Trivia Night, which had the reputation as being one of the toughest, most fiercely contested competitions in all of Seattle. The rest of the time, Teddy could identify 90 percent of his customers by name.

He’d worked flavor-of-the-month clubs before. He much preferred this.

He’d met Ginny the first week he’d started here. The curvy blonde had walked in that first Trivia Night, sat down with her team, and helped dismember every opponent—including his own newly joined team—with a combination of razor-sharp mind and good-natured snark. The two of them hadn’t clicked so much as clacked, and it had taken another year for that to ease into a comfortable rivalry.

In fact, it was only in the past year that he could really say that they had become friends, and most of that probably had to do with Georgie. Penny had taken to the shar-pei puppy the very first time they’d met, which gave the two humans more reason to converse. That friendship had only deepened, much to both their surprise, when she’d talked him into working with her. Ginny had taken her real job—personal concierge services—and used it to start a sideline of private investigations, or what she called “researchtigations.” It had been against his better judgment, helping her out, and he was still amazed that he had agreed.

Still, he admitted that the challenge of these side jobs had intrigued him enough that he’d said yes not just once, but four times.

And that challenge had also gotten him shot at, attacked by a big cat, padlocked to a walk-in freezer, and his family name bandied about. That last had probably bothered him more than anything else, he admitted.

Teddy squinted at her suspiciously now. If she had a new gig, she was on her own. He wasn’t going to let her talk him into anything more. But saying that up front would only challenge her.

“You here to drink away your cares, or celebrate your brilliance?” he asked instead, setting a napkin down and placing her drink on top of it with a flourish.

“Neither. Or both. To celebrate my brilliant cares?” She shrugged, and took a sip of her drink. “I made one client deliriously happy with me today, and have two new clients waiting for me to send them contracts, so Georgie gets to keep in kibble for another few months. Life is good.” She picked up the wedge of lime and sucked at it delicately.

Every time he saw her do that, he cringed. “Jesus, what’re you, at risk for scurvy? At least have the decency to drink tequila if you’re going to do that.”

“Wuss.” She left the rind in her mouth, pressed up against her teeth, and gave him a green smile, making him roll his eyes. Ginny Mallard looked like a classy dame, but some days she had the sophistication of a fifth grader.

“If I can interrupt this group hug?” Stacy came up behind Ginny, sliding her tray onto the bar and ducking quickly to make her greetings to Georgie, who responded with an enthusiastic face-licking, if Stacy’s giggle was any guide. The waitress resurfaced, grinning. “Boss, I need three Black and Tans with back, and a glass of the Cabernet. Hi, Ginny. Still up for bowling next weekend?”

Ginny flinched, dropping the lime wedge onto her napkin. “I really agreed to that?”

“You did. And bring the man. I can’t believe you’ve been dating for months and we haven’t met him yet.”

They hadn’t even learned the guy’s name yet, for that matter. “She’s afraid to bring him here,” Teddy said, pulling the first of the beers. “That’s assuming he even exists, anyway.”

“Don’t start,” Ginny warned them. “I adhere to the six-month rule for relationships. Let them get comfortable before you throw them to your friends.”

“Yeah, but we’re not friends, we’re Mary’s,” Stacy protested.

“Yeah, well I don’t live here like some people . . .”

“Ginny, you’re in four days a week,” Teddy said, finishing with the beers and pouring the wine. “If you actually drank worth a damn, we’d engrave your name on one of the stools.”

“And on that note, I’m gone.” Stacy loaded her tray and disappeared back into the crowd.

“So,” he said, leaning forward and waggling his eyebrows like a cut-rate Groucho Marx. “It’s almost been six months. . . .”

“Don’t start,” she repeated, her eyes narrowing in clear warning, and he backed off. He could tease her about Georgie, about her endless love of her technology, of her impatience and her lack of schmoozing skills, but not about her personal life. Fair enough. He had no desire to open up about his, either. That thought made him look guiltily at his phone, then he went back to work, leaving her to her drink.

“G’night, Gin,” someone called out, and she raised a hand in farewell, even though she hadn’t actually talked to him tonight. It had been pretty crackling when she walked in at seven thirty, but the bar was starting to clear out by ten—apparently the overflow from Fish were early-to-bed types. Ginny had switched to ginger ale about an hour ago, as usual, but sitting at the bar people-watching was preferable to going home and trying to do more work, or staring at the television. Rob—the boyfriend of speculation—was heading out on a business trip first thing tomorrow, so she was on her own for the weekend.

Georgie clearly didn’t mind hanging out here: the dog was snoring happily at Ginny’s feet, Penny curled up between oversized canine paws, also asleep. Ginny looked at the two of them, and shook her head fondly, then pulled out her tablet and snapped a picture and posted it to the bar’s Facebook page. Then, unable to help herself, she checked her email. One message was from her mother, which she ignored. The other . . . “Oh, are you kidding me?” She sighed. So much for not working anymore tonight, but if she left it until the morning the client would work himself into a frenzy—and she wouldn’t be able to sleep well for worrying.

Grumbling, she started pulling up the information she’d need to put out this particular fire. Fortunately, she’d developed the ability to shut out the ambient noise and movement of the bar around her, and lose herself in the work.

Sometime around ten thirty, an older man wearing cargo pants and a gray sweatshirt under a mostly clean apron came out from the back and sat down next to her, glaring at the thirtysomething couple who had been leaning against the bar waiting for service, until they made room for him. Ginny turned her head and gave him a curious look. A former boxer, Seth was in his sixties, balding and wrinkled, but his body was still strong enough to give would-be troublemakers pause. The older man ran Mary’s kitchen, if you could call the galley space behind the bar anything that grand, and he wasn’t a fan of Ginny, or Georgie, or Penny, for that matter. In fact, Ginny wasn’t sure he was a fan of anything, although Tonica said that he was actually a good guy. For a professional grouch.

When he sat there and didn’t say anything, Ginny decided to return the favor. It seemed only polite. After a while, though, it got to be weird, of the creepy-weird variety, and she swiveled around on her stool to look directly at him.

“Kitchen’s closed?”

“Stacy knows where to find me, anyone wants to put an order in.” He was staring at the mug of coffee in his hands—at least, she thought it was coffee. She’d never actually seen Seth drink alcohol. Not that she spent much time watching him, or anything.

“Uh-huh.” She might not have Tonica’s people-sense, but something was definitely weird. She looked up, trying to find Tonica, catching his eye and tilting her head to let him know that he was needed down here. Whatever was up, she didn’t want to get hit with it alone.

The bartender worked his way back down the bar to the two of them, taking the situation in with a brief glance and absolutely no change of expression. “Top that off for you?” he offered, reaching for the coffeepot, but Seth covered the mug with one hand. “I’m good.”

It was coffee, then, or Tonica was hiding something high-test in the pot. That wasn’t in character for either one of them, though.

Tonica waited, and Ginny waited, and Seth stared into his coffee mug, his face set in stone. The silence was starting to get to really awkward when he grunted, and finally spoke.

“I gotta talk to you two.”

Them, not her. Even in Ginny’s relief, she was amused at how those words seemed to move Tonica into “sympathetic bartender” mode without his even noticing. He leaned forward, resting his elbows on the bar top, left hand folding into his right, his expression open and attentive. It worked wonders on the drunks who unburdened themselves to him on a regular basis, but Seth didn’t seem to notice.

“Me, too?” Ginny asked, just to make sure.

“Yeah, you, too, Blondie,” Seth growled. Whatever it was he wanted to talk about, he wasn’t happy about it. “I want to hire you.”

It took a lot, at this point in his life, to leave Theodore Johan Tonica dumbfounded. Seth had just managed it. “You want to what?”

The old man growled slightly. “You heard what I said.”

“I heard, I just wanted to make sure I heard right. I might have been hallucinating.” Teddy realized, even as the words came out of his mouth, that joking wasn’t the way to go. The old man looked as unhappy—and as uncomfortable—as he’d ever seen him, and that was saying something. Even Ginny had picked up on it, her professional “I’m trained, I can help you” expression firmly in place, but her hazel eyes widened with shock.

“You mean, as investigators?”

“No, as a bartender. Of course as an investigator.” Seth might be uncomfortable, but he wasn’t at a loss for snark. “I need the two of you to look into something for me.”

“Ah. Um.” Bartenders learned to roll with the punches, verbal or otherwise, but this had caught him off guard. Seth, asking for their help? “You know we’re not licensed, or anything like that, right? I mean, maybe . . .”

“If I wanted to go to someone else—if I could go to someone else—I would’ve. You in, or not?”

“Tell us what this is about, and we can tell you if we can help you.”

Teddy noted with relief that Ginny had learned that much at least: she no longer leaped in with a promise to make everything better before she learned what “everything” was. That was good, because while every instinct Teddy had was telling him to say yes, that anything that made Seth ask a favor had to be serious, the reality was that anything that drove Seth to ask a favor had to be serious. He’d already said—several times—that he wasn’t interested in continuing this “researchtigations” thing Ginny had dragged him into, much less get involved in a friend’s problems that required such help. . . .

“I’m asking for a friend,” Seth started, and then shot them both a glare. “Shut it. I am.”

Both of them kept their expressions serious and intent, although Ginny’s lips twitched slightly with repressed laughter, her shock fading to interest.

“And?” she asked.

“A friend of mine, old friend from my boxing days. He’s getting screwed over by his landlord. Bastard’s throwing him out of the house he was renting, claims he’s doing something illegal and that invalidates the lease. Bullshit accusations, but he’s . . . Deke’s a good guy but he took a few too many hits and not enough mat, if you know what I mean.”

“Punch drunk?”

“Whatever they’re calling it now. He’s a little slow, but he’s a good guy, good heart, probably doesn’t even jaywalk ’cause he knows it’s wrong. But you don’t want to put him up against some suit of a lawyer, someone’d make him look like a fool. Deke’d come out badly. And the thing is,” Seth hesitated a moment. “Deke needs to stay in this house. He’s been there for years, it’s familiar, and he needs that familiarity. You understand?”

Teddy thought maybe he did. An older man, not entirely there, suddenly homeless? That was a recipe for a fast decline and a bad ending.

“What do you want us to do?” he asked, resigning himself to the inevitable.

“Hell if I know, whatever it is you do. I just want proof the landlord’s a lying sack of scum, so we can make him back down.”

“What are they accusing him of?” Ginny asked. “The illegal part, I mean.”

“Bein’ part of a dogfighting ring.” Seth blew out a heavy gust of air, smelling slightly of pickles and cigarettes, and his shoulders slumped, just a little. “Of all the hare-assed ideas ever. Deke might’ve hit a few guys in his time, but he wouldn’t ever do that to an animal. And dogfighting? He’s not a brainiac, but even he’s not that dumb, and he sure as hell isn’t that mean.”

Before the whole scandal with the sports figure and dogfighting a few years back, Teddy had never given it a thought, never known that that was a thing people did. Once he’d seen the photos in the news, he’d been horrified and disgusted, if not terribly surprised: people did horrible and disgusting things, especially to creatures that couldn’t fight back. But it was ugly stuff. His first, instinctive reaction was to back away, fast, even as Seth insisted his friend was innocent.

“If you two are half as good as you say you are, should be a piece of cake, right?”

Ginny started to bristle, but Teddy lifted a hand, calming her—for the moment. Seth was even more wound up about this than he’d thought, at first. Whatever was going on, it was important.

“Is there any chance that your friend could be involved—even if by, I don’t know, accident?” Teddy held up a hand again when Seth glared at him. “We need to know. People stumble into all kinds of stupid things, especially if they’re . . . not the sharpest knives in the drawer.”

Seth glared at him some more, then shrugged. “Maybe. I don’t know. But he swears he didn’t do anything wrong, didn’t do anything illegal. And I believe him.”

“Why?” Ginny asked. “Why do you believe him? I mean, you know people do dumb things if they need the money, and you said he wasn’t, well . . .”

Seth pushed his hands against the bar, but didn’t move away. “I can’t doubt him,” he said quietly, all the anger gone. “You let someone down once, it’s human nature. You let ’em down again . . .

“It’s not in him. Not that. You gotta trust me on that.” Seth normally looked young for his age, but just then, he was an old man.

Ginny looked at Teddy and shrugged, just the slightest lift of one shoulder.

“Is there anything else going on?” Teddy asked. “Maybe a score being settled, he got on the wrong side of his landlord, somehow?”

“Deke swears he didn’t do anything to piss the guy off, but, well, he wouldn’t mean to, but the guy’s got no filter, you know? He thinks it, he says it. Sometimes he says it before he thinks it.”

“So what do you want us to do, specifically?” Ginny asked, turning her drink an exact quarter turn, then looking directly at Seth. He’d given her enough shit in the past few years. Teddy couldn’t blame her for pushing him, now.

Seth met her gaze squarely. “I want you to prove he didn’t do anything wrong. Save his dumb ass, before he’s homeless, before this breaks him so bad I can’t put the pieces back together again. He’s only got a couple more days before he has to get out. He sure as hell can’t stay with me, I barely got room to turn around myself, and who’d rent a place to him, in this market, without references? He was barely making ends meet in that piece of shit house, as it was.”

Ginny exhaled, a tiny breath through pursed lips. Unlike Teddy, she was a dog person. He could only imagine her reaction to the accusation. But—not for the first time—she surprised him. When she looked at Teddy, her gaze told him that this was his call; that she’d go with whatever he decided.

He’d said no to jobs before, especially after the walk-in freezer incident. He had a full-time job—hell, he had a more-than-full-time job. So did Ginny. Neither of them needed more stress, and it wasn’t as though Seth was going to be able to pay them much, considering he knew exactly how much the old man earned. . . . But Seth was a stand-up guy, for a grouch, and he’d asked them for help.

And it sounded like Deke needed somebody on his side.

“All right,” Teddy said, like there had ever been any doubt. “We’ll look into it for you. But”—he held up a finger when Seth started to mutter what might have been a thank-you—“if there’s even the slightest hint that your friend is guilty, we’re done and you drop it. All right?”

“He’s not guilty.”

“All right?”

“All right.”

“Finally!” At Ginny’s feet, Penny let out a satisfied grunt. Her eyes were half lidded as though she were still asleep, but she had been listening to the humans talking above them. Georgie’s wuffling snore rumbled underneath her, and there were other people talking, so she couldn’t hear all the words, but she knew the tone in her human’s voice, and Georgie’s human, too. They were sniffing something new out. Something that needed doing, or fixing. And that meant that things were about to get interesting again.

Penny yawned, her tongue curling against her teeth, and stretched her body out lazily, slowly waking all the way up. She wanted to wake Georgie up, too, but the dog would get too excited and distract the humans. For now, Penny would do what she did best: listen, watch, and learn

 

Author Guest Post:

I’m getting ready for a move, and part of that is decluttering. Getting rid of things – objects, old paperwork – that I don’t need to haul with me any more.

But in a folder of otherwise no-longer-needed papers, there’s a sheet I’m keeping. It’s from the ASPCA, and it documents my adoption of the kitten once known as Minna, who became my beloved Pandora, gone now a little over a year.

There’s no point to keeping the sheet of paper. All it does is say that I paid x amount for a 4 month old female tiger kitten, spayed. But throwing it out isn’t an option, either. Because this was the first connection I had to Pandora, the first contract we made with each other: I would give her food, shelter, care, and a lap when she wanted it. I would give her a home. And in return, she gave me such love and companionship, letting her go at the end was no less a pain than losing a human friend.

I don’t have documentation from Indy-J, who was found on the street as a weeks-old kitten, and lived a long and adventurous life before cancer took her in 2000. But Pandora’s adoption paper will go in the current file, along with the papers for our current residents, Boomerang (aka Boomer you idiot), and Castiel the Kitten of Thursday (aka DamnitCas).

Because you keep the important moments, the documents that say “this is how you changed my life.”

(and some of you may note that I invite disaster in the renaming of my cats. You would not be wrong. But where’s the fun of living with Sir Napsalot?)

 

Comment on this blog post to be entered to win a paperback copy of Doghouse! (US entires only, please)

 

About the author:
L. A. Kornetsky is the author of two previous Gin & Tonic mysteries. She lives in New York City with two cats and a time-share dog, and also writes fantasy under the name Laura Anne Gilman. She welcomes visitors to www.lauraannegilman.net, @LAGilman and Facebook L-A-Kornetsky.

Review…Caught in the Act by Sara Jane Stone

Caught in the Act cover

 

 

Synopsis:

Falling for his rivals’ little sister could cost him everything…

For Liam Trulane, failure is not an option. He is determined to win a place in Katie Summers’ life before she leaves Independence Falls for good. But first, he needs to make amends for the last time they got down and dirty.

Only problem?

His professional success hinges on striking a deal to buy Katie’s family business. And after Liam’s relationship with their Katie went south years ago, the Summers brothers are more enemy than friend. If both parties agree to set the past aside, they can reach an understanding. But when Katie welcomes him back into her bed, Liam risks everything to make her.

After Liam betrayed her trust, Katie Summers will do anything to keep him from walking away with the family business. She decides to seduce him, knowing that when her brothers find out, they will back off from the deal. And she’ll finally have her revenge. But when her plan spirals out of control, Katie learns that payback may come at too high a price.

 

My Review:

Caught in the Act is the second book in author Sara Jane Stone’s Independence Falls Series. I loved the first installment, Full Exposure, and was so excited to read Liam and Katie’s story…and oh my, it was all that I had hoped for!

The history between Katie Summers and Liam Trulane is a bit of a sore spot for both of them…although, as it turns out, not for the same reasons.

Liam is Katie’s best friend’s older brother and for one summer after high school graduation they shared a steamy, albeit secret, affair…meeting under the stars and exploring all of the emotions and touches young lovers share. But it all changed when her brothers found out and took the role of concerned siblings a bit too far. That’s when it all ended. That’s when Katie’s heart was broken and when she realized Liam obviously didn’t feel the way she did. In truth she couldn’t have been more wrong and the reasons he gave her up so easily had more to do with him not feeling worthy of her rather than anything else.  She’s spent the last seven years trying to forget him…

Fast forward to today, seven years later, and to a chance of a business merger with Katie’s family’s trucking company and the logging company Liam now helps run. Certainly there was no way her brothers, who have hated Liam for seven years, would sell to Moore Timber….or would they? Things have been rough for all of them and this may be a great opportunity for her entire family. It could give her the chance to pursue her dreams of working at an animal sanctuary and leaving Independence Falls. What she’s always dreamed of.

But things get a bit more complicated than they already are when she and Liam start to rekindle the old flame that never truly died out and soon Katie realizes maybe she was wrong about all the reasons Liam broke things off with her seven years earlier. Could he still want her? Would she be giving up her dreams if she stayed in Independence Falls to be with him?

I think one of the things I loved most about Katie and Liam’s story was that they had a back story and their feelings were already there when I started reading. The chemistry was already hot and heavy and just got hotter as the story progressed. Beyond that, seeing a softer side of Liam, especially when it came to Katie, was fantastic. Sorting thorough all of the emotions from the past and clarifying the untrue assumptions brought another layer to Katie and Liam’s relationship that I really enjoyed. Both Katie and Liam are wonderfully developed characters and have multi-faceted personalities with a loyalty to their family and friends that I adore.

Adding to this story was the family business aspect, which is a huge part in both of their lives. My husband works in a 3rd generation family owned business so I totally got the ties both Katie and Liam have to their careers.

Overall this is a great sophomore novel in author Stone’s series and is packed with plenty of heat and emotion with relationships that are strong and ties that run deep. I will continue to look forward to this series and cannot wait to see what’s in store for the Independence Falls crew!

4LovesRLBFour Loves

 

About the author:

After several years on the other side of the publishing industry, Sara Jane Stone bid goodbye to her sales career to pursue her dream–writing romance novels. Sara Jane currently resides in Brooklyn, New York with her very supportive real-life hero, two lively young children and a lazy Burmese cat. Visit her online at www.sarajanestone.com or find her on Facebook or Twitter.

 

 

 

Left Behind by Vi Keeland & Dylan Scott….Sneak Peek Event

LEFT BEHIND

Sneak Peek Event

A New Adult Romance novel

New York Times Bestselling Author Vi Keeland and Dylan Scott

Release date 10/16/2014

left behind excerpt reveal

left behind cover

Blurb

Two stories so deeply intertwined, you’ll think you know how they intersect…but you’ll be wrong….

Zack Martin

The day I met Emily Bennett my whole world changed. Sure, we were just kids, but I was old enough to know my life would never be the same. She was my best friend. My destiny. My fate. I wasn’t wrong…I just didn’t know how twisted fate could be.

Nikki Fallon

After the death of my mother, moving from my dark and dreary trailer park to sunny California, I was focused on one thing – finding a sister I’d only just learned existed. Falling in love with him wasn’t part of the plan. But he filled a void I never knew was possible to fill. He had to be my fate. My destiny. Until the day I finally found out who my sister was…and how twisted fate could be.

Pre-order available at:

iTunes Preorder –http://bit.ly/1q28KyN

Kobo Preorder- http://bit.ly/1peODgS

Google Play Preorder – http://bit.ly/1vbD7aL

Add Left Behind to your TBR list on Goodreads! https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/22438116-left-behind

Want to read the first few chapters? Sign up for Vi’s mailing list now and get a sneak peek! http://eepurl.com/0ABfr

left behind coming 10.16

Sneak Peek Excerpt

He looks up and I watch his eyes take me in. Slowly. They rake over me, dropping from my eyes to my glossed lips down to my exposed shoulders. Taking his time, he follows the neckline of my simple, yet body contouring sundress, lingering when he reaches my full breasts. I’m sufficiently covered, but I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t aware that the dress showed off my assets well. Tight around my chest, gathering snuggly at the waist, with a scant amount of cleavage. Just enough coverage to still leave something for him to imagine. And I watch his face change as his imagination takes off running.

His eyes drift down my legs, tanned now from the eternal California sun. Momentarily he’s lost in what he sees and doesn’t even notice I’m watching him leer. Totally worth the extra effort getting ready tonight, I couldn’t be happier at the reaction I get. Eventually, his eyes make their way back up to mine and I arch one eyebrow, letting him know he’s been caught. A normal reaction might be to look embarrassed or perhaps even flustered a little. But not Zack. Instead, he flashes me a wicked grin. “You look incredible.” He’s the one doing the leering, yet I’m the one who ends up blushing.

Watch the trailer at: http://youtu.be/cy7W_QO34y0

left behind teaser

a Rafflecopter giveaway

About the Authors:

Vi Keeland

Vi Keeland is a native New Yorker with three children that occupy most of her free time, which she complains about often, but wouldn’t change for the world. She is a bookworm and has been known to read her kindle at stop lights, while styling her hair, cleaning, walking, during sporting events, and frequently while pretending to work. She is a boring attorney by day, and an exciting smut author by night!

Stalk Her: Website | Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads

 

Dylan Scott

Dylan Scott is a New York trial attorney, wife and mother of four. She believes her job as a trial attorney is a subcategory to the field of entertainment more than law.   With a Bachelor’s Degree in English Literature she believed teaching English was a destined career choice until she realized her life long talent of “argument” could actually be her job.   A recent, fairly boring, midlife crisis resulted in a brief stint as a middle school English teacher which confirmed that she wasn’t ready to give up the law.   Dylan has also taught legal courses at the college level and worked with at-risk inner city youth in the roles of mentor and coach. She is co-author Vi Keeland’s biggest fan.

Facebook (1) | Facebook | Goodreads

Cover Reveal…Dare to Touch by Carly Phillips

 COVER REVEAL

 

RELEASE DATE: January 13th, 2015
Olivia Dare, executive director of the Miami Thunder, and team travel director Dylan Rhodes share more
than just a passion for football. Their chemistry is explosive — their
feelings for each other intense. Yet Olivia has ended things for reasons he
still can’t fathom and she won’t explain.
Unwilling to let something special go so easily, Dylan has been pursuing Olivia ever since. When
the Pro-Bowl takes them to the tropical paradise of Hawaii, Dylan is determined
to make sure their time together isn’t all business. What happens in paradise
is life altering but once Olivia admits her deepest secret and fear, will Dylan
still want the forever he’s been pushing for?

iBooks Preorder – http://bit.ly/DTTiBooks

Other preorder links coming soon!

Please check www.carlyphillips.com for updates

EXCERPT

Ian glanced around the now empty room before speaking. “I realize I’m in no position to
judge relationships in the work place.”

Hell no, considering Ian had pursed his now-wife, Riley, brought her into the business,
and promoted her, Dylan thought.

As for Olivia … “There is no relationship.”

“But you want there to be one. And my sister isn’t cooperating. Am I right?”

When Dylan didn’t reply, Ian continued. “I saw you two in the hallway. At the party.”

Dylan blew out a long breath. “Not that I owe you an explanation but nothing happened.” He
ran a hand over his goatee, buying time.

“Bullshit. I saw the kiss.”

Dylan inclined his head. “Fine.”

He knew Ian was overprotective of his sisters. He even understood the man’s reasons. For
that reason alone, Dylan wouldn’t lose his temper now.

“Look, you’re my friend. More than that, I respect you as my boss. But whatever is or
isn’t going on with me and Olivia … that’s none of your business.”

Ian eyed him through his infamous narrowed gaze, assessing him, causing Dylan to
straighten his shoulders and meet his stare head on.

Ian cleared his throat. “My sister is tough on the outside but she’s … more fragile
inside,” he said, clearly considering his words carefully.

“Your point?” Dylan asked the other man.

“Don’t play with her head or her heart.”

Dylan inclined his head. Unknowingly, Ian had just reaffirmed that whatever kept
Olivia at arms length, it had nothing to do with business. If anything, she
felt too much or she wouldn’t have run.

“We good?” Ian asked.

“Always.”

“Then good luck in Hawaii,” Ian said, turned and walked out the door, leaving Dylan alone
to strategize his next step.

Dylan wasn’t the type to give up on something he wanted. He’d been too soft with Olivia,
giving her space, figuring she’d give in to chemistry eventually. Obviously
that wasn’t going to happen. He needed to take control and should have done it
sooner. Where better than the tropical paradise of Hawaii to make his
intentions crystal clear.

Yes they were going to Hawaii on business, but she was interested in enjoying the
island. They were staying in the same hotel and attending the same events. That
added up to opportunity and Dylan wasn’t above taking advantage if it meant
getting what he wanted. And he wanted Olivia.

New York Times and USA Today
Bestselling Author Carly Phillips N.Y. Times and USA Today
Bestselling Author Carly Phillips has written over 40 sexy contemporary romance
novels that today’s readers identify with and enjoy. After a successful 15 year
career with various New York publishing houses, Carly is making the leap to
Indie author, with the goal of giving her readers more books at a faster pace
at a better price. Her Serendipity books will still finish up in
January/February 2014 via Berkley as planned. Carly lives in Purchase, NY with
her family, two nearly adult daughters and two crazy dogs who star on her
Facebook Fan Page and website. She’s a writer, a knitter of sorts, a wife, and
a mom. In addition, she’s a Twitter and Internet junkie and is always around to
interact with her readers.

AMAZON AUTHOR PAGE

When it comes to family, Ian Dare gives his all but in relationships he offers the bare minimum. Until one glimpse of sensual Riley Taylor arouses his dominant and protective instincts. He will do anything to possess her … and does. But any future with Riley must include him dealing his half-brother who is a constant reminder of the pain he’d rather forget.
Riley Taylor believes herself immune to domineering men – until charismatic Ian Dare turns a simple kiss into an all out assault on her senses and she discovers she likes his brand of control in the bedroom. As their affair heats up, they soon realize they complete each other in ways neither imagined. But Riley’s past is closer than she cares to remember, and her struggles with Ian’s dominance might just cost her everything. (love story, contemporary romance, alpha heroes, beach reads, sports heroes, bad boys, billionaire)
Quarterback Alex Dare, had it all — an all-star football career and his choice of willing women — until a severe injury forces him into early retirement. Social worker Madison Evans grew up in foster homes and knows what it means to have-not. She isn’t impressed by Alex Dare’s wealth or charm. Not since she fell hard for him once before, only to discover she was just one of his too-easy conquests.
This time around Madison refuses to succumb to Alex so easily. But Alex wants Madison. And if there is one thing Alex does well, it’s to get what he wants. Can he convince Madison to take a risk and dare to love?

After ending a relationship to a cheating, domineering man, Isabelle Masters takes off in her leased Mercedes, only to be arrested for grand theft and hauled to a local police station. To her surprise, she is rescued by the most unlikely person possible, Gabriel Dare, a man she’s been attracted to for far too long. Gabe offers Isabelle freedom along with an invitation to Eden, an exclusive island resort where everything and anything is possible.



Although Gabe yearns to possess Isabelle, he knows all too well he must fight his primitive need to bind her to him, and instead help bring out the independent woman she yearns to become – or risk losing her for good.

A woman who needs to run her own life. A man who needs to exert control. Can she surrender to his erotic demands without losing her sense of self once more?

Decklan Dare knows about the unexpected loss of loved ones and for this reason, he values control in all areas of his life. Amanda Collins enjoys the freedom she finds in casual encounters without the emotional connection a relationship brings. They meet and their physical attraction is mutual but both experience feelings that could run deeper – if they drop their guard and let each other in. Decklan is first to trust, but when he discovers the secret Amanda’s been hiding, will he forgive? Or will he rebuild every wall before she has a chance to explain?
BUY LINKS:

Baby, It’s Cold Outside….Your chance to interview authors Jennifer Probst, Emma Chase, Kristen Proby, Melody Anne, & Kate Meader

Happy October, everyone!

It’a my all-time fave time of year and besides all of the wonderful season changes and fun holidays we have the release of the BABY, IT’S COLD OUTSIDE anthology from authors Jennifer Probst, Emma Chase, Kristen Proby, Melody Anne, and newbie Kate Meader coming October 28!

In honor of that release, I’ve been given the chance to have an author interview with all FIVE authors…and this is where you all come in…

I need your questions!  

So, feel free to comment on this blog post, hop over to Facebook or twitter to post there or you can email me whatever questions you have for any of the five authors.

We have until October 4th to gather the questions and then I will post all of the answers from the chosen questions along with a giveaway of copies of Baby, It’s Cold Outside during the week of  October 15th.

How much fun is this?!

so….

Ready?

Set?

GO!

21412502

About Baby, It’s Cold Outside:

New York Times and USA TODAY bestselling indie authors Jennifer Probst, Emma Chase, Kristen Proby, Melody Anne, and debut author Kate Meader come together to write a sizzling romance anthology.

Outside it may be frosty, so turn the heat way up with these stories of desire!

Can a determined woman executive and a playboy billionaire survive being stranded together in a snowstorm? Jennifer Probst depicts an encounter almost too hot to handle…

Drew and Kate play an encore to Tangled in this sexy take on a “Christmas Carol” by Emma Chase. When a Christmas Eve argument condemns Drew to a troubled night, three dream women teach him that no gift could be more tantalizing than Kate…

With Kristen Proby, ski slopes are quite delightful. Grace Douglas is sure she’ll never learn to ski, but instructor Jacob Baxter could teach her lessons of a different kind…

Can a southern California transplant survive Montana’s deep snows? Melody Anne, author of the bestselling Andersons series, melts the icy drifts completely away with the heat between sexy Hawk Winchester and brand-new teacher Natalie Duncan…

What could be hotter than a firefighter? Kate Meader shows how, as Brett Farraday and heiress-turned-tattoo-artist Lucy Cochrane discover, nothing ignites holiday flames like rekindling a lost love…

 

 

 

Cover Reveal….Furious Fire by Shiloh Walker

COVER REVEAL

Holy smokes!

We are so excited to bring you the cover reveal for Shiloh Walker’s FURIOUS FIRE! FURIOUS FIRE is the eighth novel in her Grimm’s Circle Series published by Samhain Publishing.

What’s even more amazing than this cover!? The first 7 books in the series are on sale for $.99 for a limited time to celebrate FURIOUS FIRE’s upcoming release on November 11th!

Furious Fire

 

FURIOUS FIRE Goodreads

About FURIOUS FIRE:

November 2014

The Grimm are coming to an end…the second to last book

He is the love of all her lives…

 

Grimm’s Circle, Book 8

Thomas Finn, troublemaker, gunslinger, guardian angel…loner. More than a hundred and fifty years ago, he was shot in the back then brought back to life just in time to watch a demon masquerading as his best friend kill the love of his life.

Now, as a Grimm, he satisfies his need for vengeance hunting down demons like the ones that took Rebecca from him. His mission: kill as many as he can, then, when the time comes, go down in a blaze of glory. But with each kill, he comes closer to a line no angel should cross.

Her name was Rebecca. Then it was Tilly. Then Ada. Now, Kallypso. She’s lived so many lives, she can’t even remember when or why it started. All she knows is, she’s always searching for a man with golden eyes that make her burn. And when she finds him—as she always does—she knows that spark of joy means she’s only seconds away from death…again.

This time will be no different…unless something breaks the cycle once and for all.

Warning: Contains the Groundhog Day of star-crossed lovers, a pissed-off guardian angel, a demon-hunter with an axe to grind, and the battle to end all battles. Be warned…there’s pain ahead in this book. Oh, and that HEA finally happens. For these two, anyway.

This will be the second to the last in the Grimm series…make sure you read it…want to see how it all comes down…

Grimm Sale Promo Final

CANDY HOUSES, Book 1

NO PRINCE CHARMING, Book 2

I THOUGHT IT WAS YOU, Book 2.5-Grimm’s Circle Novella

CRAZED HEARTS, Book 3

TARNISHED KNIGHT, Book 4

LOCKED IN SILENCE, Book 5

GRIMM TIDINGS, Book 6

BLIND DESTINY, Book 7

Author PhotoAbout Shiloh Walker:

Shiloh Walker is an award-winning writer…yes, really! She’s also a mom, a wife, a reader and she pretends to be an amateur photographer. She published her first book in 2003. Her newest series, Secrets and Shadows, launched in April 2014. Look for the newest book Deeper than Need, to be followed by Sweeter than Sin and Darker than Desire.

She writes romantic suspense, contemporary and paranormal romance, and urban fantasy under the name J.C. Daniels.

 

 

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