LEANN'S REVIEW: The Cutting (James Hayman) McCabe and Savage #1

Title: The Cutting

Author: James Hayman

Genre: Crime/Thriller/Mystery

Publish Date: June 3, 2014

Publisher: Witness Impulse an imprint of HarperCollins

Event organized by: Literati Author Services, Inc.

Summer is the perfect time for a good thriller. This summer we are hosting a read-along of James Hayman's McCabe and Savage series. We’re inviting a few select blogs to join along in the McCabe and Savage Read-along and read all three books in the series, at no cost to you of course! We are hosting the read-along on our Witness Goodreads page and would ask that you pop in to Goodreads from time to time to join the discussion.

https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/1868761-the-cutting-read-along-with-author-james-hayman)

TIMELINE OF READ-ALONG

June 20 - Start reading THE CUTTING, the first book in the series

July 18 - Discussion with James Hayman on Goodreads

July 21 - Start reading CHILL OF NIGHT, the second book in the series

August 15 - Discussion with James Hayman on Goodreads

August 18 - Finish up with DARKNESS FIRST

September 12 – Discussion with James Hayman on Goodreads

We’re using the hashtag, #savagereads, to accompany discussions about the read-along. Feel free to tweet about it as well. Also feel free to tag the Witness Facebook Page in any Facebook messages you may right about the read-along: https://www.facebook.com/WitnessImpulse Hope you join our #SavageRead Along for a summer of chills and thrills.

~ Book Synopsis ~

The first novel in the nationally bestselling McCabe and Savage series—perfect for fans of John Sandford and CJ Box.

Someone is stealing the hearts of beautiful women...

Detective Mike McCabe moved from a top homicide job with the NYPD to Portland, Maine to leave his failed marriage and suspicions of wrongdoing behind, and to find a more peaceful life for himself and his 13 year old daughter.

But the small New England city is not nearly as safe as he thought.

On a warm September night, a missing high-school athlete is found dead in a scrap metal yard, her heart removed from her body with surgical precision.As outrage over the killingspreads, a young business woman disappears while out on a morning jog.

McCabe is certain both crimes are the work of one man—a murderer skilled in cardiac surgery who is using his scalpel to target young women. With the clock ticking, McCabe and his partner Maggie Savage find themselves in a desperate race against time to find and rescue the missing woman before she becomes the next victim of the sadistic killer's blade.

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Purchase Links

Amazon | Books A Million | Barnes and Noble | IndieBound

Review:

It is no secret that I love a good mystery. The kind that has me so wrapped up in the pages that I can't put it down. Mysteries are what got me into the reading and will continue to stay close to my heart. Hayman writes a thriller that has you on the edge of your seat. 

I love McCabe and Savage! Although this is Hayman's first in the series I read the books a bit out of order. So for me I had already met my new favorite leading detective team. Like Hayman's other books you are hooked from page one. This book features one of the cruelest of evils. You will have to read to find out, but it is definitely one of the best thrillers out there. 

Why do I love McCabe and Savage so much? They are real. Real people with real problems. No super strength or special abilities, just good detectives with real emotions and reactions. Truly a wonderful read that will have you on the edge of your seat the entire read. If you love a good mystery then you will adore this read! 

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About the Author

JAMES HAYMAN, formerly creative director at one of New York’s largest advertising agencies, is the author of the acclaimed Mike McCabe series: The Cutting, The Chill of Night, and Darkness First.

Connect with the Author

Facebook | Goodreads

Giveaway

Entry-Form

DOUBLE FEATURE: LEANN'S REVIEW: Jeremy Fisk #1 & #2 (Dick Wolf)

WILLIAM MORROW

An Imprint of HarperCollinsPublishers

Publicity Contact: Danielle Bartlett

Publicity Director

212.207.7011/ Danielle.Bartlett@harpercollins.com

 

Acclaimed Law & Order creator and bestselling author Dick Wolf 
raises the stakes in his highly anticipated second novel
 featuring the NYPD’s secret weapon against terrorism—

 Detective Jeremy Fisk
 

THE EXECUTION

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Review:

Wow! I this book is just as amazing as the first in the series. I hate to compare it to Law & Order but I honestly feel like I am in a movie or TV show each time I read Wolf's work. I love Fisk's character. While the story is about Fisk's adventures, the points of view change. One minute we are NYPD and the next we are terrorist plotting the next demise. 

A thrilling read that kept me on the edge of my seat! I couldn't wait to see what happened next but I didn't want it to end either. Action and suspense! A true adrenaline read the last few chapters. And a twist I didn't see coming! Well a couple of twist at the end. I did like this ending much better than the first books ending. 

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(keep reading below for an excerpt!) 

Praise for last year’s series debut THE INTERCEPT:

Review:

I was blown away by this read! I love all the Law and Order series and to find out that the creator is writing a book I almost flipped. Then I dive into the pages and can't stop reading. I love Fisk. The characters, story line, mystery... They are all captivating. 

As you read you feel like you are wrapped up in this story right along with the characters. The twist this book took caught me by surprise! I hated the ending. It was devastating. At least the good guys won, if you could say that. I love how real it all seemed. When there are acts of terror I guess there are really no winners and Wolf portrayed that wonderfully. 

Very well written. A true page turner. I can't wait to jump into the next book. I hope Fisk's adventures aren't as devastating as this one, but I am sure Wolf will captivate this reader again! 

Rating:

  

“Wolf’s ‘The Intercept,’ wherein al-Qaeda attempts another major attack on New York, is a smart, suspenseful, highly professional piece of work that should rank with the best of this year’s thrillers.”  

 — Washington Post

“Part police procedural and part ticking-bomb thriller.”   — New York Times

“A can-they-stop-him thriller in the manner of Day of the Jackal.”   — Miami Herald

“Wolf makes it look like he’s been writing novels his entire life. The tight prose, great characters and the intense twists are all signs of a master at work. . . . Readers will be clamoring for more adventures with Jeremy Fisk.”   — Associated Press

“Dick Wolf extends his brand masterfully in The Intercept . . . Wolf, who turned formula into high art in Law & Order, uses many of the same devices he deploys so effectively on TV: crosscutting, scene-shifting, manipulating points of view. That’s how he builds suspense.”   — Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

“Like Law & Order, this book unfolds crisply and intelligently, with a nice mixture of suspense and social observation. . . . Wolf does a shrewd job of setting the stage for his protagonist’s next appearance. Storytelling pro Wolf knows how to ratchet up tension and sustain it.”   — Kirkus Reviews

“A spectacular fiction debut . . . A pulsating plotline. Clever characters. Dramatic dialogue. Surprising twists. All make for an edge-of-your-seat read that will have thriller fans eagerly awaiting the next series installment.”   — Library Journal (starred review)

“Stunning, heart-stopping fiction. . . . [A] fabulous new book . . . it’s un-put-downable, full of good and bad guys and lots of surprises. . . . If you are a thrill seeker, don’t miss this novel.”  

— Liz Smith, Huffington Post

“The first novel by the creator of Law & Order feels like a Law & Orderepisode. Thank goodness. . . . Like Law & Order, The Intercept works as well as it does because of its pacing; it’s a fast read with a satisfying arc. . . . Its supporting cast members are drawn sharply enough to imagine them being inhabited by New York character actors.”   — Slate

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Last year Law & Order creator Dick Wolf burst onto the literary scene with his bestselling debut thriller, The Intercept.  The Associated Press declared, “…tight prose, great characters and the intense twists are all signs of a master at work,” and the Washington Post exclaimed, “[The Intercept] should rank with the best of this year’s thrillers.”

Now Wolf delivers his follow-up, THE EXECUTION (William Morrow; On-Sale: January 7, 2014; One Day Laydown; ISBN: 9780062064851; Price: $27.99/ $33.99 Can.), in which Jeremy Fisk—detective with the NYPD’s  Intelligence Division of the Joint Terrorism Task Force—is out to stop an assassin let loose in New York City by a shadowy business cartel.

Ten days after the Mexican presidential election, twenty-three bodies are discovered beheaded on the border between the U.S. and Mexico. Leading the investigation for the Mexican intelligence agency is 35-year-old Cecilia Garza, a raven-haired beauty who’s notorious for her intensity and take-no-prisoners demeanor. Garza has learned the hard way that a forgiving nature can be an officer’s worst enemy.

Upon the bodies of the cartel’s victims she finds a carved symbol—a Hummingbird—and recognizes it as the mark of an assassin known only as Chuparosa, a man both feared and celebrated for his brutality. Even Garza, who has been pursuing him for years, knows almost nothing about him. Except that he’s now headed to New York.

Meanwhile, it is United Nations week in Manhattan and a grieving Jeremy Fisk is dealing with the loss of his partner and lover and the trial of the Swedish terrorist responsible for her death. There’s no time for grief, though, when you’re responsible for the safety and security of the world’s most powerful leaders. Complicating matters is the startling news of a mass murder in nearby Rockaway, where a dozen people have been found dead.

Fisk may not like Garza, the pushy new arrival from Mexico, but they’re going to need each other if they stand a chance of finding and stopping Chuparosa. Soon they both realize that there’s more to this threat than meets the eye—and Fisk will have to learn the hard way that justice is not always blind.

Filled with electrifying plot twists, high-wire drama, and even a little romance—THE EXECUTION is an adrenaline pumping story that could have been ripped from the headlines, yet is enticing and entertaining enough to keep readers wanting more. As the mastermind behind one of the most successful and prolific television brands of all time—NBC’s Law & Order—Dick Wolf uses his dynamic storytelling skills to captivate audiences with his Jeremy Fisk series.

Wolf explains, “The NYPD Intelligence Unit provides a goldmine of story possibilities for Fisk. As much as the threats—narco-terrorists in The Executionand Muslim fundamentalists in The Intercept — what also attracts me about these stories is the possibility of exploring the things that drive the people involved in counter-terrorism on a daily basis. And the psychological toll they face when they know that the only good days are the ones in which nothing happens. Coupled with constant anxiety about the cost of failure against enemies who are often unknown. This makes Fisk an idiosyncratic, yet totally disciplined investigator.”

THE EXECUTION: A Jeremy Fisk Novel By Dick Wolf

William Morrow an Imprint of HarperCollins Publishers

On-Sale: January 7, 2014

ISBN: 9780062068491; E-Book ISBN:9780062064851

Price: $27.99

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WANT A PEEK AT THE EXECUTION?

CLICK HERE FOR AN EXCERPT!

LISA'S REVIEW: Deadly Deceit (Mari Hannah) DCI Kate Daniels #3

Title: Deadly Deceit

Author : Mari Hannah

Series: DCI Kate Daniels

ISBN: 9780062323545

Format: ARC

Published December 17th 2013 by Witness Impulse

Summary:

Four a.m. on a wet stretch of the highway: a driver skids out of control. Quickly arriving on the scene, detective Kate Daniels and her partner, Hank Gormley, witness a horrifying display of carnage and mayhem that proves to be one of the worst traffic accidents in Northumberland’s history. But as the casualties mount, they soon realize that not all of the deaths occurred as a result of the accident …

At the same time, on the other side of town, a house goes up in flames and its two inhabitants become charred corpses. Except for the timing, there is no evidence to connect this incident with the traffic accident. But it soon becomes apparent that all is not what it seems, and that Kate and her colleagues are always one step behind a ruthless killer who will stop at nothing to get what he wants.


(Image and information courtesy of Goodreads; Summary lifted from actual book)

Review:

I love this series! It is one of my favorite crime series. Kate Daniels is a great character. I also love all the other characters too.

Hank cracks me up and I love his protective ways with Kate. I love how Hannah starts the books with either the victims or Killer's or witness Point of Views. It really sets up the story. I also like her changes in point of view, it allows us to see the whole picture and try to piece together the mystery.

This one is a great example of that and one of Hannah's fines works so far. I highly recommend this to crime lovers everywhere!

Rating:

 

 

 

Check it out on

Amazon

LISA'S REVIEW: The Nature of the Beast (Francis Fyfield)

Title: The Nature of the Beast

Author: Frances Fyfield

Format: ARC

Source Witness Impulse (abovethetree.com)

ISBN13: 9780062301222

Summary:

Different people react to disasters in different ways. But why would Amy Petty want the world to presume her dead?
Fate is not alone in deciding who lives and who dies after the crash of a train travelling from Kent to London. One passenger uses the opportunity to commit a murder. Another — the blonde and beautiful Amy Petty — uses the accident as an opportunity to leave her life behind....

Is it because Amy’s husband is currently embroiled in a libel action against a national newspaper? Douglas Petty, a former barrister, is rich, charismatic and evil tempered: he runs a dog sanctuary in a brutally eccentric manner. Amy is his star witness: without her, his reputation faces ruin. Or maybe it isn’t the present that Amy is running from. Maybe it is the past....

The Nature of the Beast is mesmerizing. A brooding thriller of truth, betrayal and human instinct, it is Frances Fyfield at her most thrilling best.



(Image and information courtesy of Goodreads; Summary lifted from actual book)


Review:

This is one of those books that is not good and not bad, its interesting though. A mystery with a little action and a good plot. All Fyfields books are well written, she is an amazing author but this book is kinda strange.

The characters are odd and the way she described the Petty house, well let's just say I could have done without that visual. Overall I would say its an OK read, but not great. I didn't find myself lost or unable to put it down and it just was not that memorable. But I wouldn't call it a waste either because it is very well written.

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Check it out on Amazon

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

LEANN'S REVIEW: Hit for Freedom- Anna's Battle (Margaret Mcheyzer) Hit #2

 

 

Title:   HiT for Freedom ~ Anna’s Battle (HiT #2)

Author:  Margaret McHeyzer

Genre:  Chick Lit with Edge 18+

Publication Date:  December 18, 2013

Cover Designed By: Sprowt Graphic Design

Event organized by: Literati Author Services, Inc.

 

Synopsis



Anna Brookes also known by her Professional name 15, did what she had never done before.

She didn’t kill her target, HiT 149.

HiT 149 better known as Ben Pearson did something he had never done before.

He fell in love with Anna Brookes.

In Hit for Freedom, the sequel to HiT 149, a nemesis so powerful, terrifying and frightening is threatening the safety of Anna’s love, Ben and his hometown, St Cloud.

15 must deal with a force that may be too dangerous even for her skilled ways. With limited information on her new HiT, she willingly infiltrates his trust to acquire the knowledge she needs to implode the operations of the deadly man.

"What you saw earlier must be playing around in your head. But you didn’t scream or freak out which tells me you are either very strong or very broken. Either way, the information I give you from here on in, you must understand that I will kill you if you choose to repeat it to anyone." I’ll let him believe that. ~ Anna Brookes

 

Add to Goodreads:  https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18195503-hit-for-freedom---anna-s-battle

Purchase Links:  Not available at this time. Amazon   Tour Page

 

About the Author

 

I love to read. I'm a huge fan of books and when I start reading anything, I usually forgo doing everything else, I mean the housework will still be there in the morning (right?). When I love a story or book that I've downloaded, I usually refrain from sleep and am crabby the next day - but only until I pick my iPad up and start reading again!

I was recently described by a reviewer as my writing style is Chick-Lit with an Edge. I liked that so much that that's the way I describe the genre I write.

My goal when writing is just to take people away from whatever is going on in their lives, even if it's only for a split second.

I'm a go with the flow sort of person and don't really take a course of action to get where I am going. I live in the moment and don't usually worry about tomorrow because whatever life is due to bring me, I'll be happy to accept.

I love my family and friends and will help anyway I can if someone needs it. Every Friday I spend it with my girlfriends where we have 'cake day', which usually consists of a yummy yet nutritious lunch, quickly destroyed by a delicious and devilishly good cake and a caramel latte.

I really don't like people that are nasty just because they can be, I don't believe that's necessary, I mean life is hard enough as it is!

Three things you need to know about me; 1 - I'm fiercely loyal and will bend over backwards to help. 2 - I love chocolate, like A LOT and 3 - I have a huge crush on David Gandy at the moment! (I mean, who hasn't, have you seen the man????)

 

Connect with the Author:  Facebook | Goodreads

           

 

 

Tour-Wide Giveaway 

Tour-Wide Giveaway

 

 

Tour Schedule (link to the tour banner)

 

http://literatiauthorservices.com/2013/10/31/book-tour-invite-hit-for-freedom-annas-battle-by-margaret-mcheyzer-1216-1222/

 

 

Rating:

 

Oh my goodness, this story is just as amazing as the first! I'm so hooked on this series! I can't describe how I truly feel. It was a great read.

 

Ben... I knew it! (I wont give it away but I KNEW IT!) That might have been a little predictable on that front but other wise I was completely immersed and shocked.  I still love Anna's Kick assness... (That so isn't a word.)

 

I really enjoyed how the story line developed in this book. It was truly unexpected and left me on the edge of my seat. The characters have so much depth to them. It is hard not to get caught up in their lives. And this book had a few shockers for me. Some things I didn't see coming.

 

 I was really left hanging with the ending.  I wanted more... More like needed. I need to know what happens next. I loved this story line. I was wondering how this series would continue. I love Anna and Ben and want a future for them.  I can't wait to see where this story leads...

 

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