Bethany House; 320 pages; $14.99; Amazon

Probably like most reader, I do enjoy reading an old fashioned mystery; you know, the kind that have an Agatha Christie's plot and Sherlock Holmes-like detective.

The closest books that I have found that resemble the old classic mysteries is the Drew Farthering Mystery series by author Julianne Deering. With an early 1900's stylish cover art on every title, I have been intrigued with every new entry in the series.

The fourth installment, titled Dressed for Death, was released last year by Bethany House. Sadly my review copy somehow got on the bottom of my to-be-read pile on my desk and I'm just now getting around to reviewing it.

Set in December 1932, the novel centers on Drew Farthering, a man who always happens to be at the right place at the wrong time. This time up, Drew and his wife Madeline are attending a Regency-ear house part at the Winteroak House, where he plans on reuniting with an old Oxford classmate, Talbot Cummins. However, it seems death is always following Drew, as someone dies at the party - Alice Henley, who happens to be Talbot's fiancee.

After the police arrest a possible suspect, Drew takes it upon himself to unravel the mystery behind Alice's death.

Revell; 350 pages; $14.99; Amazon

With a mixture of coffee and protein snacks this week, I have managed to reread the first two books in the Elite Guardian series by author Lynette Eason. (You can read my review for the book here!).

Published last fall through Revell, a division of Baker Publishing Group, Without Warning centers on a bodyguard company called the Elite Guardians Protection Agency.

While the first novel followed the agency's owner, the second installment centers on Katie Singleton, who had a brief part in book one. Instead of being assigned a new assignment, she stumbles upon one; well, she more or less accidentally finds a deadly plot to harm Daniel Matthews, a restaurant owner.

Abingdon Press; 320 pages; $14.99; Buy Link; Blog Tour

It's not a secret that I love to read a good mystery now and then. From a Sherlock Holmes classic to a James Patterson crime novel, pretty much all mysteries appeal to me.

Now available to own in paperback is the medical suspense novel Medical Judgement by Richard L. Mabry, M.D., the author of the Prescription for Trouble Series.

Medical Judgment centers on Dr. Sarah Gordon, a woman who is still grieving the deaths of her husband, Harry, and their two-year-old daughter, Jenny. It's been over eight months since the accident occurred that destroyed her life, and now another tragic event happens - her house catches on fire.

Well, to be more precise, somebody sets her garage on fire. Why who would somebody want to kill Sarah?

This is where Bill Larson comes into the picture. He is a recovering alcoholic, and he's also the detective assigned to investigate the arson case. It doesn't take him long to realizes that someone is targeting Sarah. With the help of attorney Kyle Anderson (who was also the best friend of Sarah's husband), they try to unravel the mystery.

Petals on the Wind
by V.C. Andrews
Publisher: Pocket Books
Pub. Date: May 20, 2014
Retail: $7.99
ISBN: 978-1476789552
Pages: 448
Buy Link: Paperback

From Fiction to Film: Pick up Petals on the Wind May 20^th and watch the movie May 26^th!

Petals on the Wind cast: 
Heather Graham as Corrine
Ellen Burstyn as Olivia
Dylan Bruce as Bart
Rose McIver as Young Cathy (played by Kiernan Shipka in Flowers in the Attic)
Wyatt Nash as Christopher (played by Mason Dye in Flowers in the Attic)


Watch the movie trailer below, and tune in to Lifetime on  Monday, May 26^th, 9:00 pm ET to watch the World Premier of Petals on the Wind!




Enter To Win: Go to the Pocket Books Facebook page beginning May 20^th to enter the sweepstakes for a prize pack of Flowers in the Attic and Petals on the Wind, and the Flowers in the Attic DVD.  Visit right before tuning into Petals on the Wind late May for the sweepstakes giveaway (date to be announced)!

Review:

Despite some heavy-duty controversy due to the incest plot of Flowers in the Attic written by V.C. Andrews, the book was a huge success; spawning three sequels and one prequel. Book two in the series, titled Petals on the Wind, was released in 1980, picking up shortly after the first novel left off and covers over fifteen years, from November 1960 to the fall of 1975.

Christopher, Cathy and Carrie Dollanganger barely escaped from their grandparents' attic; leaving their money-craving mother far behind, whom had been putting poison in their powdered donuts, resulting in the death of Carrie's twin brother, Cory. They stole enough money to buy three bus tickets to Florida, but their journey took an unexpected turn with Carrie becomes too ill to travel. Luckily, a mute housekeeper, Henrietta Beech, was on the bus and directs them to her boss, a doctor by the name of Dr. Paul Sheffield.

Last Light
A Restoration Novel, Book One
By Terri Blackstock
Publisher: Zondervan
Pub. Date: September 3, 2013 (Reprint)
ISBN: 978-0310337782
Pages: 400

Review:

First published in 2005, the first book in the Restoration series, Last Light, was re-released last month. In a cross between the Left Behind book series and the television series Revolution, author Terri Blackstock brings her own take on the "end of the world" plot when Birmingham, Alabama loses all power, jamming the streets with vehicles because the engines won't start. Airplanes shut down and fall from the sky. All technology no longer works, as cell phones, computers, televisions and radios go completely silent.

Has an alien invasion occurred? Is terrorist responsible? 

The people who depended on high-technology are now facing the most dangerous crises the planet has ever had - darkness.

Damascus Countdown
By Joel C. Rosenberg
Publisher: Tyndale Fiction
Pub. Date: March 5, 2013
ISBN: 978-1414319704
ASIN: B008PX1XHI
Pages: 480

Review:

Picking up where the Tehran Initiative left off, CIA operative David Shirazi returns in the international thriller in a plot that actually could take place in real life with Israel launching a strike against Iran, destroying all of their nuclear capabilities. The current United States president, William Jackson is considering agreeing with the U.N. Security Counsel about taking action against Israel for their aggressive strike against Iran.

David Shirazi is caught between two worlds as he is a follower of the Twelfth Imam, but he is a devoted CIA agent. David and his team learn that a few Iran nuclear warheads have survived. Now they must race against time to find the missing warheads before they are launched at Israel.

Broken Build
By Rachelle Ayala
Publisher: CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform
ISBN: 978-1480010512
ASIN: B0099MLND8
Pub. Date: October 5, 2012
Pages: 330

Review: 

From the author of Michal's Window comes a new suspenseful thriller titled Broken Build, set in the high-tech world with backstabbing and deception around every corner. The author, Rachelle Ayala, had sent me a free copy to review after I had previously reviewed her biblical romantic tale, Michal's Window. Honestly, I had no idea what to expect since this book is set in modern times.

The main character, or should I saw heroine, is Jennifer Cruz, a woman with a rocky criminal past, who has now gone to great manners (plastic surgery, etc) to disguise herself into a new identity, Jen Jones. She takes a job as a computer techno whiz for David Jewell, a software CEO, a man she deeply hurt six years ago in her past life. Of course he doesn't recognize her now. As she spends time with David, their old romantic feelings start to resurface, but she can never erase her past.

Roan
BY: Jennifer Blake
PUBLISHED BY: Severn House
ISBN: 978-0-7278-8124-3
RELEASED DATE: 2012 (Original copyright in 2000)
PAGES: 380

 After one of the suspects jumps out of a moving van and rolls down a hill, Sheriff Roan Benedict pulls out his gun and fires, only to realize that he had just shot a woman. He takes her to the hospital with the intention to charge her for robbing a local grocery store. When Tory awakens, she claims that she was a kidnapping victim, but does not know the names of the men that were in the van. Roan does not want to believe her, but he cannot exactly arrest her either.

    Two unknown men try to break into the hospital. Roan knows that Tory is no longer safe there and invites her to stay at his house until she can identify the kidnappers. Of course, Tory is not exactly telling the truth. She is running away from her evil ex-fiancée and her stepfather, who are both after her inheritance. As a romance blossoms between Roan and Tory, she wonders if she can tell him the truth. However, she may not have a choice as her ex arrives in town for her.

The Thirteen
BY: Susie Moloney
PUBLISHED BY: William Morrow
PUBLISHED IN: 2011
ISBN: 978-0-06-211766-3
Pages: 330

    After being fired from her waitress job at a strip club, Paula Wittmore is notified that her mother has taken ill. She packs up her bags along with her teenage daughter, Rowan, and returns to her home town, a suburban called Haven Woods. Everything may look normal there, but Haven Woods has dark secrets at every corner, including several strange deaths and apparent suicides.

    Returning home is putting Paula on an emotional rollercoaster as she reunites with some of her childhood friends, not to mention her mother’s strange frenemies - twelve women bound by terrible secrets that requires a thirteen to be sacrificed.