Missing Pieces by Heather Gudenkauf- 4 1/2 *

Title: Missing Pieces

Author: Heather Gudenkauf
Genre: Suspense Thriller

Rating: * * * * 1/2

Publishers: MIRA

(Feb 2, 2016)

Hardback: 288 pages

ISBN: 978-0778318651

FTC Disclosure: ARC provided by the publisher via Netgalley

A woman uncovers earth-shattering secrets about her husband's family in this chilling page-turner from New York Times bestselling author Heather Gudenkauf 

Sarah Quinlan's husband, Jack, has been haunted for decades by the untimely death of his mother when he was just a teenager, her body found in the cellar of their family farm, the circumstances a mystery. The case rocked the small farm town of Penny Gate, Iowa, where Jack was raised, and for years Jack avoided returning home. But when his beloved aunt Julia is in an accident, hospitalized in a coma, Jack and Sarah are forced to confront the past that they have long evaded. 

Upon arriving in Penny Gate, Sarah and Jack are welcomed by the family Jack left behind all those years ago—barely a trace of the wounds that had once devastated them all. But as facts about Julia's accident begin to surface, Sarah realizes that nothing about the Quinlans is what it seems. Caught in a flurry of unanswered questions, Sarah dives deep into the puzzling rabbit hole of Jack's past. But the farther in she climbs, the harder it is for her to get out. And soon she is faced with a deadly truth she may not be prepared for.

I finished this book more than a month ago but held off on writing a review as it was rather thought provoking. I kept wondering how I'd have felt if the man I'd been married to for 20 years had hidden the  
secrets that Jack did from Sarah. While I can see that you might not want to discuss your Mom's murder in depth, even with your wife, ultimately I don't think you could ever feel the love and trust again that was destroyed by the opening of this can of worms. 
The mystery and suspense was overwhelming and kept me up all night flipping pages till finally (only a few short pages from the end) I realized the who and why.  I'm not real sure I bought the actions and help of the sheriff's secretary (it's a small town but still, I don't know) but the story sure kept me clutching the book so tight I thought my fingers were going to break my Kindle. It was kind of like driving on ice. I couldn't let go in case of a spin out and crash. I'm sure I sighed a breathe of release once it was over and had to get out of bed for awhile before going to sleep. Definitely, going to check out more books by Gudenkauf in the hopes there  are more mysteries of this caliber on her 
shelf.

Almost Midnight by C. C. Hunter- 5*

Title: Almost Midnight
Series: Shadow Falls
Author: C C Hunter
Genre: YA Paranormal

Rating:  * * * * * 

Publishers: St Martin's Griffin 

(Feb 2, 2016)

Paperback: 416  pages

ISBN: 978-1250081001  

FTC Disclosure: ARC provided by the publisher via Netgalley

A vampire and a werewolf who never fit in. A witch whose spells don't always work as planned. And a mysterious new guy who's hiding something. Together they will discover who they're meant to be...

Hidden from the human world, Shadow Falls is a secret camp for teens with supernatural powers. But for four very different teens, it's much more than just a camp-it's where their destinies will unfold.

Independent and strong-willed Della Tsang didn't believe in vampires...until she became one. Chase Tallman is the newest member of Shadow Falls, but what made him into the sexy, mysterious vampire he is today? And what led him to Della Tsang? For Miranda Kane, magic has always been something she's struggled with-until she finally has a chance to prove herself a witch to be reckoned with. And for Fredericka Lakota, the one guy who challenges her the most will lead her to the life she's always wanted.

C. C. Hunter's New York Times bestselling Shadow Falls series captured hearts all over the world. Now available in print for the first time, these enchanting novellas will reveal a side of the camp that you've never seen before...and live in your heart forever.

Series

Shadow Falls

0.5. Turned at Dark (2011)

1. Born At Midnight (2011)

2. Awake at Dawn (2011)

3. Taken at Dusk (2012)

4. Whispers at Moonrise (2012)

4.5. Saved at Sunrise (2013)

5. Chosen at Nightfall (2013)

Spellbinder (2015)

Shadow Falls: After Dark

0.5. Unbreakable (2014)

1. Reborn (2014)

2. Eternal (2014)

3. Unspoken (2015)

Almost Midnight (2016)

I've been thinking about reading this series

 for awhile so when I got a chance to read this 

collection of novellas from the series, I jumped 

at it as I thought it would be a good chance to get 

a quick feel for the series. I'm always looking for a 

good YA series that I can recommend for 

my daughter to keep in her classroom library.

While I'm primarily a  vampire lover, you get 

werewolves, fae, witches and vampires in 

this series. I like that you get a peek behind the 

curtain to see what's going on at the camp. 

An excellent addition to a series that over 75% 

of the readers have rated 5 stars and fascinating 

enough to send me to my TBR shelf to dig out 

my copies so I can indulge in the rest  of the series 

and pass on my copies to my daughter's classroom.

Early Review!! Tycoon by Joanna Shupe- 4* (OMG love this cover!)

Title: Tycoon

Series: Knickerbocker Club

Author: Joanna Shupe

Genre: Historical Romance

Rating: * * * *

Publishers: Zebra

(Feb 23, 2016)

Ebook

ASIN: B00Y6RB2TQ

FTC Disclosure: ARC provided by the publisher via Netgalley

Sometimes the journey is more pleasurable than the destination . . .
In Gilded Age New York City, the bachelors of the Knickerbocker Club spend their days rubbing elbows with Manhattan's most elite citizens--and their nights with its most intoxicating women . . . 
Standing on the platform at Grand Central Station, Ted Harper is surprised by a fiery kiss from an undeniably gorgeous damsel in distress. He's certain she's a swindler who's only after his money, but he's never met a woman so passionate and sure of herself. Disarmed, he invites her to spend the journey to St. Louis in his private car--perhaps against his better judgment . . . 
Clara Dawson has long known how to take care of herself, but the savvy shop girl is at a loss when she witnesses--and becomes entangled in--a terrible crime. Desperation propels her into a stranger's arms at the train station, but she hadn't expected Ted to offer her the protection she so badly needs--nor did she expect their chemistry to develop more steam than the engine of the train. He's everything she never thought she could have, and she's everything he didn't know he wanted. But as her secrets begin to unfurl, their fledgling romance could be in danger of derailing before they arrive at the next station . . . 

First of all (and I'm not usually one that drools over a book cover, butttt) this cover model reminds me so much of two of my fav
Western actors, James Garner as Maverick, but with Robert Mitchum's cleft chin (with what "we" now apparently are calling "butt chins" -seriously! why not just call them "Kardashian chins"). A total waste of an awesome cover model on an ebook cause he was so hot! You see the cover one time! One time! Well maybe two- once when you purchase it and once when you start the book. One of the reasons, I still fav the printed word over the e-book.  Sorry, to get back to the job at hand--the book-the book!
This was a book and a series that I really wanted to love. Not that it was bad just not as great as I was expecting. I went into the book expecting more historical history than I got. This is my favorite time in history and I was really looking forward to "seeing" the fascinating scenes of Old New York. If I could go back in time to visit (not live mind you as I do love my creature comforts) the era from the 1890's to the 1920's in New York would be it.  My disappointment is my  fault as I had googled "The Gilded Age" and checked out Shupe's Pinterest site where she has some awesome dresses from this time (I probably spent near an hour looking at the outfits from this era and pictures from old New York before reading this book). And this was a novella so length may have precluded these marvelous details from being added.
I'm willing to give Shupe a pass and I already have pre-ordered Magnate based on the characters, Ted and Clara. I loved the thoroughly modern Clara who works for a living (OMG!) and is pretty independent and definitely a talker. Even though originally Ted suspected that Clara was a con-artist, I loved how protective he was to her. I wish she had told Ted earlier why she was being chased as  I think her hiding this was not beneficial to the story but just a plotline. Ted could just as well have helped and protected her without this lie between them. I would have loved seeing them work together to sort out the mystery. I know that there "must" be conflict and they "must" overcome it to have a HEA plotline but I'm kinda burned out on that boring predictability. 

Knickerbocker Club Series

.5 Prequel- Tycoon (2016)
1. Magnate (Apr 26, 2016)

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Winterblaze by Kristen Callihan---- 4 *

Title: Winterblaze
Series: Darkest London #3
Author: Kristen Callihan
Genre: Historical Paranormal Romance

Rating: * * * * 

Publishers: Forever 

(Feb 26, 2013)

Paperback: 448 pages

ISBN: 978-1455520794

• FTC Disclosure: ARC provided by the publisher via Netgalley

Once blissfully in love . . . Poppy Lane is keeping secrets. Her powerful gift has earned her membership in the Society for the Suppression of Supernaturals, but she must keep both her ability and her alliance with the Society from her husband, Winston. Yet when Winston is brutally attacked by a werewolf, Poppy's secrets are revealed, leaving Winston's trust in her as broken as his body. Now Poppy will do anything to win back his affections . . . 

Their relationship is now put to the ultimate test.Winston Lane soon regains his physical strength but his face and heart still bear the scars of the vicious attack. Drawn into the darkest depths of London, Winston must fight an evil demon that wants to take away the last hope of reconciliation with his wife. As a former police inspector, Winston has intelligence and logic on his side. But it will take the strength of Poppy's love for him to defeat the forces that threaten to tear them apart.

This book was a bit harder to get into than the others in this series. It seemed to drag on and there was a lot more drama in it. I did enjoy seeing Poppy and Winston try to mend their marriage of 14 years after Winston discovers the supernatural world when he  is bitten by a werewolf. He is not a happy camper when he discovers his wife is up to her ears in this and has been lying to him their whole marriage. I so love a second chance at love and Callihan does an excellent job with this. One of the biggest treats was the secondary characters which gets their own book next. All in all another great read.

Darkest London Series

0.5. Ember (2012)

1. Firelight (2012)

2. Moonglow (2012)

3. Winterblaze (2013)

3.5. Entwined (2013)

4. Shadowdance (2013)

5. Evernight (2014)

6. Soulbound (2015)

7. Forevermore (Jun 28, 2016)

Getting Rough (Monkey Business Trio) by C. L. Parker- 4*

Title: Getting Rough
Series: Monkey Business Trio #2
Author: C. L. Parker
Genre: Mature Romance
Rating: * * * *
Publishers: Bantam
(Jan 26, 2016)
Paperback: 304 pages
ISBN: 978-1101882962
FTC Disclosure: ARC provided by the publisher via Netgalley

The next sizzling novel of C. L. Parker’s Monkey Business Trio—perfect for fans of Bared to You and Beautiful Bastard

Hotshot San Diego sports agent Shaw Matthews and his sexy professional adversary Cassidy Whalen have gone head-to-head in the boardroom—and the bedroom. Now Shaw has scored a big promotion—but only because Cassidy turned it down and ran off. There are many things he wants when it comes to Cassidy—just not her pity. So Shaw rushes to a small town in Maine to retrieve his dignity—and maybe the woman he’s hungry to claim once more.

Cassidy has pushed herself to the max to realize her career dreams—until a family crisis brings her home. But Shaw isn’t letting Cassidy go that easily. Neither is gorgeous heartthrob Casey Michaels, the childhood sweetheart she left behind—and who now wants to win her back. As the rivalry between the two alpha males intensifies, and Shaw’s seductive moves reach a whole new level of heat, Cassidy has to make a choice. And this time, it’s for the highest stakes of all.

Getting Rough is intended for mature audiences.

I love a story where the secondary characters are as likeable as the main characters. This was an awesome followup to book 1, taking up right where "Playing Dirty" left off. This is a hot, sexy, fun read and I can't wait for "Coming Clean" in September.