Voice of Fear by Heather Graham

 Book Review of a new Krewe of Hunters Novel

This reviewer previously gave you book reviews of Heather Graham's Krewe of Hunters series, along with her Harrison Investigations series and the Bone Island Trilogy.

Readers of these reviews may remember that the Krewe of Hunters are a group of unusual FBI agents who are called upon when something complex (and usually paranormal) is going on. In that series, Graham was up to book #37. Voice of Fear is the latest, Number 38, in the series that involves a murder mystery, a ghost story, a history lesson, and a love story. 

Synopsis of Voice of Fear

This novel takes place in Washington, DC (headquarters of the Krewe of Hunters) and surrounding Virginia countryside. It involves one of the newer members of the Krewe team, FBI Agent Jordan Wallace. Jordan is close to solving a human trafficking case she has been working on undercover. She somehow makes a rookie mistake, letting her guard down, and the mission is almost botched. Then, Patrick Law, criminal psychologist, rescues her and several collage girls about to be abducted, but most of the kidnappers get away.

Jordan feels she couldn't have made a worst first impression, especially when she is then partnered with Patrick as the case moves forward. 

Patrick Law has the ability to get inside a criminal's head and has been an asset for the Krewe of Hunters team, even though he is not an FBI agent. Patrick is one of triplets. One sister works for the Krewe of Hunters team. The other one is a book editor who also has the ability to decipher the criminal mind through words and 'consults' with this special team. All three have the same strange ability to 'see' and 'talk to' ghosts. 

One of the girls who had been abducted by this group of criminals who kidnap, then sell to the highest bidder, gorgeous girls, is a girl named Susie whom Law Enforcement officer 'Alfie' had been helping. Alfie is killed in the line of duty while on a previous raid before Susie can be found. Now a ghost, and friends with several Krewe members who can see and talk to him, Alfie helps with solving this human trafficking ring while also searching for Susie.

We find several scenes in the book taking place in and around cemeteries, including the one where Alfie is buried; a cemetery specific for law enforcement personnel killed in the line of duty. An interesting factoid in the story tells us the difference between a graveyard and a cemetery.  A graveyard grows up around a church and a cemetery is freestanding, a place specifically for the dead. 

Summary

It is quite obvious that the 'love story' part of this book will occur between Jordan and Patrick as they are partnered together to solve the case. And the 'ghost' part with Alfie is fun and fascinating. It makes you wish you too could be friends with ghosts. 

I liked all the characters in Voice of Fear, many of whom will be familiar to previous readers of this book series. As the newest book in the Krewe of Hunters series, it was a fun book to read and I highly recommend it to readers of this genre. 

Links to Previous Reviews of Books by Heather Graham:

• The Krewe of Hunters Book Series Review
• Review of Harrison Investigations
• The Bone Island Trilogy – Book Reviews

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*Book Review of Voice of Fear written by

~Wednesday Elf

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Book Review of A Forgiving Heart (Seasons of Change Book 2)

Seasons of Change is a historical Christian romance book series that is written by multiple authors.  The books do not share the same characters.  They simply share the same theme.

A Forgiving Heart by Kasey Stockton could easily be read as a stand alone book and is one I would recommend even if you do not wish to commit to the entire series.  The main character is quite believable.  She does, indeed, possess a forgiving heart, but not in a way that seems beyond reason.  While she has forgiven childhood mistreatment by other children, it is clear she still struggles with the memories of the selfish adult who was filled with anger and took it out on her.

This is a book that has stayed with me for days.  I realize it is fiction, but the injustices are all too real.  Children can be cruel, and people who should be looking out for you, often take advantage of their power.  Even if our own lives have been easy, comparatively speaking, I think we all need the opportunity to consider how others may well have very painful pasts.  Just telling someone they need to forgive someone seems trite and unsympathetic.  Giving them time and room to work through something step by step is a more thoughtfully considered response.  That is the reminder this book offered me, while also entertaining me with a romantic story.

I will warn you in advance.  This is not a light reading romance.  There is a pervasive evil throughout the story, starting with the uncle and continuing with someone viewed as a friend.  Perhaps, that is another life lesson we should all be reminded of.  People are not always who or what they seem.

 

A Forgiving Heart Synopsis

 A Forgiving Heart
(Seasons of Change Series)Check PriceKate Kingston is now an adult, content with her life as a teacher.  When an attorney arrives one day at the school to inform her of her uncle's death and her inheritance, she is thrown back into her past.  A past she would prefer to leave behind. 

When she was 4, her parents were killed.  Her uncle moved into the ancestral home in Larkfield and sent her to live with strangers.  When she returned to Split Tree Manor at the age of 9, he treated her as a house servant and would not let her go outside.  When she was not working in the house, she had to remain in a room with a hired woman.  The one day she did manage to slip out, she was assaulted by two male neighbors while trying to defend a smaller boy.  When she returned home, she was switched by her uncle for disobedience.  Finally, at 12, she was sent off to school, which turned out to be a much needed reprieve.

Kate returns to Split Tree Manor, where her only real memories are dominated by her cruel uncle.  She was simply too young when her parents died to remember Split Tree Manor as anything other than an unhappy place.  But, this was her father's home.  As the older brother, her father had inherited Split Tree Manor.  Unbeknownst to her, Uncle Bartholomew was only managing her inheritance until she reached the age of 20.  She had been 20 for six months, yet her uncle did not contact her or inform her of her inheritance.  Had he not died, she would not have known that she was the rightful heir of Split Tree Manor in Larkfield.

Kate doesn't return alone.  She takes an ally with her.  Alice James, the cook from the school, is thrilled with the opportunity to become Larkfield's cook.  She is also joined by another married friend, Emily Nielsen, whose husband is away at war.  Her hope is that these two friends can help her establish a home and re-enter society, a place where she belonged by birth, but was previously denied.

Shortly after her arrival, she meets Martin Evans who reveals that he is the younger boy from that day long ago and how he has always remembered her as his valiant defender.  He wishes to repay her kindness, but he also expresses his interest in courting her.

One afternoon, when Emily doesn't return home from horseback riding, Kate and the house staff set out to find her.  Kate is not the only person who finds Emily unconscious.  Sir Peter Evans is there and he is carrying Emily to his own horse.  Kate does not recognize Peter as one of the boys from years ago, nor does she realize he is the owner of Evanslea, but she had seen him several times recently.  She acquiesces to his plans and allows him to carry Emily away while she tends to Emily's horse.   

As the days pass, Kate finds unexpected friendship with one of the brothers and isn't quite sure why she is hesitant to get too close to the other one.  There is something there that she doesn't quite understand or trust.

 

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Once I started reading this book, I could not put it down. I stayed up late into the night reading. After a few hours sleep, I awoke ready to start reading again, forgetting any work I was supposed to do that day. It is an excellent book that I would recommend to anyone who enjoys a combination of romance and mystery.

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Reviewing Quail Ridge Park - Visit Missouri

 

Gazebo at Quail Ridge Park

I love exploring new parks and the St. Charles County Park system has a lot to offer.  On a beautiful day in mid-August, I was able to explore Quail Ridge Park with a photography group.  We had a great time exploring the park and taking a lot of nature photography.

Quail Ridge Park

Quail Ridge Park is located in Wentzville Missouri at 560 Interstate Drive.  Although it is only about 20 minutes from my house it is a park I had never visited before.  This park has many trails that can be used to explore the park.  There are over seven miles of both paved and natural trails throughout the park.  

The park features fishing lakes, ponds, playgrounds and shelters.  It also has a wonderful dog park where you can unleash your dog and let them run.  The park has an eighteen-hole disc golf course and is also home to the National Horseshoe Pitchers Hall of Fame.

Lodge and Gazebo

My group met in the parking lot of the lodge and then proceeded down the paved path for a walk around one of the lakes.  

Lodge at Quail Ridge

The lodge, pictured above, is a rustic cedar banquet facility that is often used for weddings and other events.  It will hold 180 people.  The gazebo, which is pictured in the opening photo is the first stop on the path leading down from the lodge.  One of the photographers that was with our group said it is a popular place for the bride and groom to have their photo taken for the wedding.

Walking the Paved Trail

From the lodge there is a paved trail that curves around past the gazebo, and then around the lake.  It was a beautiful day, and we took a leisurely stroll along this path stopping to take photos along the way.  Here are some of the photos I took.

Path Around Lake

Fishing Lake

Fishing Lake

 Blossoms, Butterflies and Moths

As we walked along the path, we stopped to photograph the wildflowers and butterflies that made their homes in the woods around the lake.  I also captured a moth on a wildflower across the path from the lake.

Missouri Wildflower

Lavender Wildflower

Swallowtail Butterflies

Butterflies

Flower on Edge of Prairie

Moth on Blossom

Purple Wildflower

Learn More About Missouri Butterflies and Wildflowers

Here are a couple of books where you can learn more about butterflies and wildflowers.

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Summertime and the Reading is Easy ~ A Book Review

Summertime is a great time to catch up on reading material that has been stacking up and this past week I found myself in need of an easy read while waiting for x-rays to be done in the hospital waiting room.

As luck would have it I happened to download a book called The Waiting Room by Joan S. Peck, that I was waiting to read.  I did not quite expect to be reading it while I was doing my own waiting in the Waiting Room, but that is exactly what happened.

As I am writing this review for you, I am nursing a broken shoulder!  That is making my life a little more difficult than Allison's, Bella's and Marianne's.

These three women met while undergoing their yearly Mammograms.  Every woman knows how wonderful these tests are (not) and how they can bring you to your lowest common denominator!  But it's a great way for three very diffferent women to meet.  Allison the most outgoing of the three asks the other two if they would like to go out for a coffee after their mammograms are done.  

Bella and Marianne had not made any other plans for that day, so going out for a nice brew after a stressful test seemed like a great idea.

For the first little while these three are testing the waters of friendship.  They are learning a little bit about each other and after a few awkward moments, laughter is sounding around the table.

Each of these women knew that they had found something that they needed from each other.  Nothing was more important than having someone to share life's moments (good ones and bad) with.  Someone who understood what life was like from a woman's perspective.  Who knows, this could be the start of a great friendship.

After that first girl's coffee date, they all decide that they will do this again in a weeks time.  After all, they would be meeting back at the Waiting Room to get the results of their mammograms. 

The Waiting Room is a lovely book that I'm sure many women could immediately relate to.  There are crazy things happening in each of their lives and a good observation from an outside party is sometimes what is needed so badly.  These three become sounding boards for each other and yes, they become the best of friends.

I really enjoyed this book as a summertime read, it's not heavy in details that you need to remember to make sense of the story line, but there are details in there that I'm sure most women could understand and have an  opinion about.

Sit back, grab a good cup of coffee or lemonade and open this book.  You will find yourself transported to another time in your life when you wish you had a really great friend to share your problems with, while finding solutions that work for everyone.

I'm sure you won't be disappointed!  

HAPPY SUMMERTIME READING

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Reviewing The Myrtlewood Mysteries Omnibus

 After her grandmother passed away a series of events led Rosemary Thorn and her teenage daughter Athena to the delightful village of Myrtlewood in Cornwall. As things started happening they ended up being unable to leave the town under police orders. By the time they were allowed to leave, they had both realised that Myrtlewood was home.

Now Myrtlewood is no ordinary West Country village, its inhabitants are magical from members of the Fae world to witches, vampires, shapeshifters and even a werewolf. It seems that Rosemary's bad memory is in part due to the fact that her late grandmother bound her magic and now that she's deceased it's time for Rosemary to both learn to grow and master her magical abilities as a powerful witch.

Image by Lou16 using Canva

They also discover that her daughter Athena is part witch and part Fae through her deadbeat dad (who ends up being something completely different).

I really enjoyed the humour with a dollop of magic in this book and the idea of a self-cleaning house and a refrigerator that re-stocks itself is one that has me putting my hands up to move to Myrtewood and become a witch!

I don't want to give away too much but I decided to read book 1 (I didn't know there was an omnibus so I got the books separately but as I have Kindle Unlimited (KU) I wasn't worried, if you don't have KU then you really should purchase as an omnibus), four days later and I am part way through the fourth book in the series.

If you're unsure whether you want to read a paranormal/supernatural book then let me assure you the biggest thing about this book is the characters. It's a lovely cast of people and the author herself wrote it as a Gilmore Girls style of book with a magical bent. Instead of all of the festivities that Stars Hollow celebrated in the Gilmore Girls you get introduced to a lot of old English festivities. There's also a character (his name is Ferg and I think he's great) who refers to Saturday as Saturn's Day as he doesn't want to disrespect the gods by using the short version!

There's some romance, but the books are G-rated. This is refreshing as I have delved into a couple of series in this genre and they both have had a lot of sexual content which didn't add to the storylines at all.

Each book in this omnibus is based on a different festival and they each pick up where the other one finished.

The first book, Accidental Magic, is based on the Imbolc festival. You may have heard of this by the name of Saint Brigid's Day, Saint Brigid is actually Myrtlewood's saint and does make an appearance in the third book to talk to her grandfather Belenus.

The second book, Experimental Magic, is based on Ostara otherwise known as the Spring Equinox. This is a time when the veil between worlds is the thinnest which is why we also get a peek into the Fae realm.

The third book, Combustible Magic, is based on the Beltane festival complete with fire sprites and the god Belenus making an appearance.

Have you read any of these books by Iris Bealehole and if so what did you think of them?

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