I'm Obsessed with "Deadly Obsession"

“Deadly Obsession” by April Hunt

I obtained a copy of this book from my friends at Net Galley and the publisher. I have not read any books by this author before and this is the first novel that I have read from her. I have to say that I found the description to catch my attention right off the hop. Action, serial killer and romance… sounds like a promising plot if I ever heard one. The cover was also eye catching and although it had a strapping young specimen on the cover, it was not just a man with no clothes on.  This review does contain spoilers!

I appreciate the split perspectives of Knox and Zoey. I always find that having a novel written these way allows us to see both sides and really relate to the characters. The plot is also action packed and full of great openings to develop other minor characters. I honestly loved this book. From start to finish, it captured my attention. Zoey is relatable and I admire the strength and perseverance of her character. Often we see female characters fall into needing the strong hero to save her. Unfortunately for Knox and her brother, Cade, Zoey had other things in mind. Zoey has felt as though she has been placed in a bubble since she was a child due to her heart problems and has started to feel suffocated by her friends and family handling her with kid gloves. She is done with being afraid to grab life by the reins when Knox re-enters her life.

Knox, a former Army Ranger and best friend to Zoey's brother, Cade, returns to DC after two years of radio silence. His whole thought process around feeling as though it was better for him to stay away, could have been explained a bit more, but I got the idea. His brothers and family aren’t happy to have him return without any explanation for his absence. Eventually, they all mend fences, with his relationship to his younger brother, Roman still requiring some work.

The pair fight their attraction to one another for different reasons. Zoey doesn’t want to get attached to a man who is only going to break her heart when he leaves, and he has made clear his intentions to leave. Knox doesn’t want to betray his best friend and start something that he can’t finish. But… eventually they come to agreement on “no strings” sex. Considering how intertwined their lives are with each others, I
suspected that would not be the case. Great idea - Incorrect outcome.

I love a good complex plot and this story did not fail to meet all my expectations. There is a serial killer element, which lends to some serious suspense throughout the novel. I always got the suspicion that the killer was her cardiologist *SPOILER ALERT*. There is also the surprise of Cade and Zoey’s father showing up. I did not see that coming. At. All.

Overall, I would give this book a five star rating. It was a great read and held my attention throughout the whole book. I did not roll my eyes once… well, maybe once. The whole no strings agreement was a bit ridiculous and I could already tell where that was headed. The publisher and editor did a great job finishing the product. I found minimal grammar and spelling errors. It is a well written book and it has me anticipating the next one that April will grace us with. Fantastic read for anyone looking for something more complex than the contemporary romance.

"Under the Scrubs" left me underwhelmed!

“Under the Scrubs” by Katerina Baker

I received this book from Net Galley to review and I have not read any previous works by Katerina Baker to compare. Reading the description, I thought this could be a great book filled with action and well developed characters. I was wrong. I made it to chapter 8 before I eventually gave up trying to be interested. 

By chapter eight, I expected to have some connection to the main characters and some details as to the plot. I knew little to nothing about Kai and I found the relationship between him and Emilia was odd. First of all, she knows nothing about this man. Absolutely nothing besides his name. He randomly shows up after tracing her phone and has killed three people but she never questions him on this. I know that he is an FBI agent from the description of the book, but there is no reference to his occupation or who he is and I’m eight chapters in. 

So, this apparently smart but somehow incredibly stupid and lacking common sense, ends up having sex with a man she barely knows and allowing him to tell her what to do. I really.. really struggled with this plot. I could not relate to the Emilia if you gave her my name and my background. And Kai.. I don’t know anything about him so feeling anything for that character was a moot point. 

At about 38% through the book, Emilia tries to withhold sex in order to get answers about Kai’s history with Taylor Moore (who btw, seems to have more character than kai, which again defeats the purpose). Emilia says that Kai would not have sex with her without her consent, but somehow he strips her naked and preforms sexual acts without her consent. Then, when he lets a little snippet of information out about his previous partnership with Taylor, he just takes what he wants from her. I’d also like to note that he says partnership and not FBI agent. So, who knows what kind of partnership they had. Maybe they were partners running a drug syndicate… who the hell knows. 

I would give this book a 1 star and that’s simply because the author actually took the effort to write the thing. I would not purchase this book with hard earned money. It would be pointless and disappointing. Sorry Katerina, but you could do better. 

AG

Rebel Cowboy - 4 Stars!

“Rebel Cowboy” by Carolyn Brown

I got a copy of this book from my friends at Net Galley in order to review this novel in advance. I will say that I have never read a book by Carolyn Brown, but have read my fair share of Western Contemporary Romance. 

The story is set in Texas where Taggart Baker and his twin brother, Hudson have returned to their home town after purchasing a ranch. They purchased a ranch adjacent to their newly married sister - Emily-who plays a significant role in this book. Tag has a history of being wild and getting himself in trouble and in the first chapter we see him get into some trouble of his own at a bar, which lands him in the ER. Where local nurse, Nikki Grady runs into him. Nikki is Emily’s best friend and has been the only woman to turn down Tag’s advances, claiming that his wild ways were too much for her to handle. 

The pair had a fun and flirtatious banter throughout the novel. Both are struggling with their own issues of their past. Tag struggles to put behind his bad boy ways and cope with the loss of his friend, Duke, in a motorcycle accident. Eventually, Tag’s past comes back to bite him in the arse and throws Nikki into the middle of chaos. 

Nikki also has her own struggles and we are exposed to her mother Wilma throughout the course of the novel. Nikki is a complex character and I believe that the numerous traumas she has faced added to the story and kept my attention throughout the course of the book. At time, I felt like she should just put her mother behind her because the relationship was toxic for her. But I got a clear understanding of her thoughts about her relationship with her mother. For both Nikki and Tag, grief and loss is a common theme that binds them at pivotal  points throughout the book. 

I have to say, the reference to all the country songs in the book wasn’t really my cup of tea and I thought it to be a bit immature. I will admit there were times where I physically rolled my eyes. However, there was definitely some juxtaposition between the immature banter and the serious topics that Tag and Nikki faced. 

Overall, the plot and characters were well developed and there was definite leeway for more books in this series. I would continue on with the series as there are several other characters, such as Hud and the Callan boys that I would like to see more of. It was a well written book and an entertaining read. I gave this book 4 stars! 

AG

"Mixed Signal" Mia Heintzelman

“Mixed Signals” by Mia Heintzelman

I’ll start by acknowledging that I have never read a book by this author and had no prior knowledge of this book before I selected it on Net Galley for review. I wasn’t sure what to expect, but found the read to be enjoyable. 

Julie is the main character in this novel and she has experienced some serious break up heart attack. She feels lost and betrayed by her ex-fiancee Patrick who described her as boring. Forgive me if I’m wrong, but ladies… would that not be a reason to drown your sorrows in a couple pints of cookie dough ice cream. Maybe throw in a couple bottles of a good red to stay hydrated. It comes as no surprise that this was what happened to Julie. With the badass best friend, Liz, she plans to get back at Patrick with her “revenge body” (enter Khole Kardashian stage left). Certain that the new Julie will be able to convince Patrick that he made a huge mistake, Julie commits to returning to the gym and a new make over. 

From the very beginning of this novel, the chemistry between Nico and Julie is evident. And I’ll be honest, the guy tolerated so much crap in order for us to get the happy ending. After two bad experiences that included Nico, Julie has already made up her mind that he isn’t worth her time. That is until fate steps in, with some assistance from Liz, and sets them up on a double date. The date probably would have gone okay had Liz’s boyfriend proposed causing a series of unfortunate events. 

But for some reason, fate isn’t done yet and she is ready to put Nico through the trials of wooing Julie. Let’s face it, the girl is a walking talking time bomb for embarrassing moments. Holding up traffic to check out the hot guy — check. Splitting the arse of her skirt trying to get into the hot guys truck — check. Humiliate herself by taking a tumble off the treadmill resulting in a gash to the head, which the above hot guy helps her with — check. And then finally, throwing up mid kiss with the hot guy after punching poor old Carl in the family jewels. 

Let’s move on to some of the scenes that I felt lacked some details or clarity. There is a scene when Nico and Julie are at the cemetery visiting Nico’s father. Julie overhears / ease drops on the conversation whereby Nico is asking his father for a sign that Julie is the right girl for him. Nico’s last name is associated with the English word butterfly and when Julie comforts him at his father’s grave, a white butterfly sits on her shoulder. I feel like there should have been more details in that part. Did Nico notice the butterfly? Did he take it as his sign from his father? So many unanswered questions. 

There is also a scene, with scumbag Patrick and Celeste (I commend Mia on the name choice here. I can totally picture this character with that name) at the movie theatre. Julie is starting to understand, as her relationship with Nico grows, how horrible Patrick was to her. We can outline those reasons as a) calling her boring (what a douch canoe) b) cheating on her with some evil stalker c) conceiving a child with the evil stalker d) believing he had ownership of her. Julie is slowly developing a back bone and some self confidence. She has no trouble shutting down Patrick and his lame attempts at rekindling any relationship. So, while they are having a brief and uncomfortable encounter outside the theatre, Nico has gone inside to get the keys for the car. Upon his return he identifies Julie as his girlfriend (WHOA, relationship status change) and finds out that Patrick visited her at work a couple days before. Julie had not told Nico about the exchange, but it was clear at the end of the chapter that her and Nico had an argument after they left. But this scene is missing. I would have loved to have read a heated exchange between the two of them. 

Overall, the novel was a solid read. It was entertaining and the characters had distinct chemistry which kept us on the end of our seat. As noted above the plot could use some additional information to keep bring forth a better picture of how things came to happen. I would recommend this book to friends if they are looking for a romantic comedy with a happy ending. I will definitely be reading more novels from this author. 

-AG 

A Stack Above The Rest.