Lion On Fire by Ted Galdi

"Something just doesn't feel right about it. Kip got into this mess by selling drugs, by veering into the underworld. And now I, the good brother who never broke a rule in his life, am supposed to veer into the underworld myself to get him out of this mess."....

Brian is living the way he should be. Smart, reliable and moving up in life. A life with a plan. Until his younger brother, Kip, does something so stupid Brian almost has no choice but to step in. The money he owes a drug dealer will probably cost him his life. If Brian can’t figure out a way to help him get the money, more than Kips life will be at stake.

Brian is a limo driver. Trusted to do a little extra side work for the boss. Driving high rollers to an underground casino. When he gets with a friend and decides the quick fix is to rob the casino, everything quickly becomes a tangled mess.

You could feel the characters desperation, and the brothers desire to fix this as quick as they can. Can they get the money in time to save Kip’s life? Will Brian make it out of this in one piece? Brian will have to make a big choice to save his family. Did I mention dad is a state trooper? Getting this by him, without raising suspicions, isn’t going to be easy. He knows Brian is acting off. If dad interferes they could all end up dead.

This was a quick read. Well rounded characters. Immediately draws you in. Plenty of heart stopping moments, the kind that you can’t stop reading until you find out who makes it and who doesn’t, or if Brian can pull this off and save Kip. Brian is good at a lot of things, but he never planned to be a criminal.

Thank you, Ted Galdi.

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"Player's Game" by Desirae Clark

                                                                                             

"A part of me couldn't believe that three months already passed. I lived here for three months, and it only hit me now. The second part also acknowledged that Parker didn't stop trying to play me-whether his game was to annoy me, flirt with me, or befriend me. Each time, he failed. If anything his attempts became more frequent, yet I brushed them all off."......

Samantha Valentine and Parker Brady were once best friends. Life intervened and she moved away with her family. Now she’s returned, only to find Parker is not the same boy she left behind.

While Samantha was gone, Parker felt betrayed and alone. He took that out on as many girls as he could. Is his life about to change now that Sam is back? Can he get over his resentment at being left behind?

Is there a “happily ever after” for these two? They were childhood friends, but now they’re 18 and everything has changed. Or has it? A little predictable, but nothing too dramatic. Great ending with no cliff hanger.

This is first in the series of the “Valentine Sisters.” Sam has twin 14 year old sisters, so as they grow up, I can see a lot of possible story lines involving all three. This young adult story was a nice weekend read.

Thank you Desirae Clark, Netgalley, and BLVNP Incorporated

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"Minetta Lane" (Slavery and Beyond Book 3)

                                                                                             

"I learned a lot about myself with the thing with Nellie, Grandma, and I was ready to act. Uncle Marcus taught me what it takes to get what you want. He said part of winning is physical, but lots of it is strategy and what's in your head. What's been in my head has been bad for a long time, but not anymore. If I'm supposed to be protecting people and if this is what my dream is all about, I'll do my part-not afraid no more.".....

Bodee Rivers has gone to stay with his grandmother. The year is 1904. It brings him to the toughest neighborhood in the city. He isn’t used to this kind of life. Can he adapt? Will he change? His grandmother, Juba, is respected there. He has a lot to learn from her. He’s protected to some degree from the criminal element because of Juba, but first he will need a job.

Juba has a special gift and it appears it’s been passed onto Bodee. His dream, if he can understand it, may save or costs lives. The time will come when Bodee will need to make a choice.

He meets someone that he’d like to keep in his life. There are gangs, street thugs, and people to watch out for. Then there are people that you’ll least expect to be allies. I loved the mix of characters and how each played into Bodee’s story.

There is an understory of a young boy left to fend for himself. Eventually you see how he becomes a part of Bodee’s dream. This historical fiction did in fact contain some actual places, people, and events. The characters were well written. I found them to be interesting, and the story rather unique. I try to step outside my normal reading preferences occasionally. I’m never disappointed. Reading is the key to understanding ourselves and others in this world.

Thank you A. Robert Allen

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"The Whisperer" by A. Ireland King

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“I’m a whisperer,’ he says. “I speak to the living: in their thoughts, in their hearts, and in their dreams. “It’s like a whisper to them, so quiet it’s easily missed.”

This story is told in six parts. You could read each part separately, or all together as I did. Either way you will get the most from this new novel by reading all the parts. I loved it. I loved the way it was told. I thought I was reading one story, but then another emerged. Brilliant and cleverly woven. I wrote my review in an unusual way, in parts, the way the book was written. What follows were my thoughts and ideas as I read the book.

Part 1- Deaths Door
A murdered girl, a suicide. What do they have in common? A guardian angel perhaps? A ghost walking the earth with her escort, “The Whisperer,” Michael. What has Meredith's suicide done to her mother? What about Stan, the train conductor, she involved in her suicide? Maybe she too can be a whisperer in her next life.

Part 2: The Suicide Notes
We find how Stan is doing. Is his life moving forward? Is Meredith finding her place and strengthening her power to affect the living world? Fixing some wrongs? She’s watching over several people now. Whispering what she can to help them along in their life, help them to be happier.

Part 3: The Shadow Falls
Meredith is still honing her skills at being a "Whisperer." Trying to help family and friends. In this part we get a little deeper into everyone’s back story. We learn why Meredith’s mother was so hard on her. What happened to Titch? (read the short story entitled “Titch” by the same author) Is Meredith sorry she killed herself? People and connections are starting to be made. Now it has me wondering how everyone is connected to Meredith. Are they mostly strangers, or is there a closer tie? Onto the next section.

Part 4: Box of Secrets
Meredith continues her education in "Whispering." She makes a few mistakes, and meets a new friend. Her mother’s grief is coming along. I am beginning to suspect that people are more tied together then I first thought. Not everyone is as innocent as they appear.

Part 5: Seeds of Change

Meredith watches as secrets yet to be shared are discovered. People change, or try to. A funeral, and a long ago secret. The ties that bind these people together are being slowly unraveled to Meredith and us, the reader. She’s beginning to get a feel for what she is capable of in death, and what she can do for the living. Everything is changing for all those that Meredith watches over.

Part 6: The Whisperer
Wow! As everything comes together, I found this final part the most exciting. I didn’t realize in the beginning where the story was going. Surprise! I would have never guessed the final part. I had some suspicions in the last part that some weren’t as they appeared to be. Meredith’s life wasn’t what it should have been. Maybe in death she can find the things she’d been looking for.

I found the entire story line unique and fascinating. What if? What if this is what happens to us when we leave our life? What if this is the next place? The back story of the peoples lives that Meredith watched over, played an important part overall, but I’m still intrigued with the thought of “The Whisperer.”

Thank you A. Ireland King

"The Great Alone" by Kristin Hannah

                                                                                             

"Tenderfoot, Alaska isn't about who you were when you headed this way. It's about who you become. You are out here in the wild, girls. That isn't some fable or fairy tale. It's real. Hard. Winter will be here soon, and believe me, it's not like any winter you've ever experienced."......

Ernt is a former POW. Home from Vietnam, struggling to find his place in society again. Fighting the nightmares that make up his existence. Ernt has the love of his wife Cora and daughter Leni. Cora is willing to do whatever it takes to help keep Ernt stable, including his idea to leave the world behind and move to Alaska. Leni is thirteen and been in school after school, always the new girl and never fitting in. She never gives up on the hope her parents will find a way for them to all be happy again. That one day she will get her dad back.

Ernt moves them to an obsolete area, acreage and a run down cabin left to him by a soldier he served with. Without electricity, indoor plumbing, or any amenities, their lifestyle is about to make a drastic change.

Can Cora and Leni survive this hardship? Living off the land may be the answer that Ernt thinks will solve his problems, but what will it do to his family?

From the very beginning this book drew me in. A reminder of the past, and a time when our soldiers came home and we looked the other way, or worse disrespected them.

What they aren’t prepared for is the reality of the wild Alaskan lifestyle. The hours of darkness, and the cold and snow. Lack of resources, lack of outside contact. It can weaken an already weakened mind. Can Cora and Leni help Ernt, and help themselves? This is a place where one would experience the true meaning of being alone. You can either find yourself or lose yourself completely.

I loved the descriptive story. I felt like I was there. Kristin Hannah has a way of pulling you into her books. A few surprises, unexpected outcomes, and an ending I hoped for.

Thank you Kristin Hannah, Netgalley, and St. Martins Press

Buy "The Great Alone" on Amazon Feb. 6th: click here