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Showing posts from April, 2024

Review: The Upper Crush

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    He wasn’t banking on someone else taking the reins…   Lady Estelle  Foxbrooke  is done cleaning up the mess left by her wild parents. She’s got a plan: take the reins and save the family estate  her  way. But then she’s saddled with a business partner she’s hated all her life. He’s her twin brother’s worst enemy and looms in her path like a six-foot-four hurdle. After a catastrophic business failure, rich and successful James Hunter-Savage has watched his dream life in London crash and burn. Forced to ditch the city for the Somerset countryside, he’s now living with his parents and expected to work with the infuriatingly attractive Estelle. She’s sharper than a whip, pushes all his buttons, and seems determined to break him. As Estelle and James jockey for position, their explosive personalities combust into passion, sending Estelle’s plans to the edge of ruin. With James’s flimsy reputation in tatters, and the biggest event on the  Foxbrooke  calendar on the brink of collapse, wil

Book Promo: The Unspeakable Acts of Zina Pavlou

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THEY HAVE TOLD SO MANY LIES ABOUT ME. London, 1954. Zina Pavlou, a Cypriot grandmother, waits quietly in the custody of the Metropolitan police. She can't speak their language, but she understands what their wary looks mean: she has been accused of the brutal murder of her daughter-in-law. Eva Georgiou, Greek interpreter for the Met, knows how it feels to be voiceless as an immigrant woman. While she works as Zina’s translator, her obsession with the case deepens, and so too does her bond with the accused murderer. Zina can’t speak for herself. She can’t clear her own name. All she can do is wait for the world to decide... IS SHE A VICTIM? OR IS SHE A KILLER? A compelling historical crime novel set in the Greek diaspora of 1950s London – that's inspired by a true story – The Unspeakable Acts of Zina Pavlou is perfect for fans of Erin Kelly, Sara Collins, and Jessie Burton. Purchase Link -  https://geni.us/TUAOZPRRR Author Bio –  Eleni Kyriacou  is an award-winning editor and jo

Book Review: The Maiden of Florence

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  The Maiden of Florence 'My defloration was talked about in all the courts of Europe. The  Prince  boasted of his prowess, even as preparations were being made for his wedding, as boldly as if he had ridden across that causeway with bloodstained sheet tied to his lance.' 1584, Italy: Twenty-year-old Giulia expects she will live and die incarcerated as a silk weaver within the walls of her Florentine orphanage, where she has never so much as glimpsed her own face. This all changes with the visit of the Medici family's most trusted advisor, promising her a generous dowry and a husband if she agrees to a small sacrifice that will bring honour and glory to her native city.  Vincenzo Gonzaga, libertine heir to the dukedom of Mantua, wants to marry the Grand-Duke of Tuscany's eldest daughter, but the rumours around his unconsummated first marriage must be silenced first. Eager for a dynastic alliance that will be a bulwark against the threat of Protestant heresy beyond the A

Book Revew: Shadow of the Witch

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  Shadow of the Witch London, 1677. A house with a dark secret. A lawyer in pursuit of  magick . A witch, dead for fifty years. Israel Cutler, dealer in second-hand goods, discovers the journals of Doctor Winter. Detailing the doctor’s relationship with a hanged witch, he recognises an opportunity. Seeking out a lawyer he knows with an interest in the occult, Cutler tries to sell the journals, but soon finds himself involved in a terrifying ritual—one that could bring black witch Lizzie  Pickin  back from the dead. Again. Forced into a dangerous partnership, the witch leads Cutler on a trail of murder and revenge. In this horror series set in London,  Shadow of the Witch  is book #2 in the  Black Witch Saga.   Review This was an intriguing work of horror. It’s written in 3rd person present, common in this genre, which helped with the sense of urgency. The plot is fairly obvious but really well done. I didn’t find it too gory (as horror can be) and there were some really good moments th

Book Review: Floored

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  FLOORED is a charming romantic comedy guaranteed to give you a lift.   Hannah and Drew work in the same office. Hannah and Drew use the same elevator. Hannah and Drew aren’t looking for love. They haven’t even met. Yet something is happening… Amiable TV production accountant Drew has turned his back on love after the death of his fiancée, an incident which cemented his longstanding  elevatophobia . When Drew moves towns and jobs for a fresh start, he hears a voice in the office lift telling him to “be careful”. Is it his fevered imagination, the ghost of his fiancée, or someone playing a cruel prank? Quickly, he becomes desperate, foolish… and unexpectedly smitten. Sweet and sassy Hannah wouldn’t mind finding  love, but  keeps choosing the wrong boyfriends. Her innate social anxiety, deepened by bad experiences with a preying boss, is a huge barrier to dating anyone new. Yet, to expose her boss’ antics, she needs to be lucky as well as smart. However, talking to a sweet but hapless c

Review: Lost Solace

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  Lost Solace They’re called the Lost Ships … but sometimes they come back. And when they do the crews are missing, while the ships have been strangely altered, rumoured to be full of horrors. Opal Imbiana has been seeking something her whole life. It’s a secret so precious she’s willing to risk her life recovering it from a recently discovered Lost Ship, in a lonely nebula far from colonised space. She’s just one woman, entering an alien and lethal environment. But with the aid of an amazing AI companion and experimental armoured suit, Opal might just stand a chance. This blast of a book kickstarted the much-loved Lost Solace series, about an unlikely friendship between two women who keep hope alive in the darkest of times. Review In Lost Solace, Karl Drinkwater brings us an intriguing future world where humanity has blurred all the lines. AI can be so real that it’s mastered humor and cruelty. Humans feel like pampered royalty who only think they’re in charge. Both groups are well-wr