Book Review: Girl Last Seen

Two missing girls. Thirteen years apart.
Olivia Shaw has been missing since last Tuesday. She was last seen outside the entrance of her elementary school in Hunts Point wearing a white spring jacket, blue jeans, and pink boots.

I force myself to look at the face in the photo, into her slightly smudged features, and I can't bring myself to move. Olivia Shaw could be my mirror image, rewound to thirteen years ago.

If you have any knowledge of Olivia Shaw's whereabouts or any relevant information, please contact...

I've spent a long time peering into the faces of girls on missing posters, wondering which one replaced me in that basement. But they were never quite the right age, the right look, the right circumstances. Until Olivia Shaw, missing for one week tomorrow.

Whoever stole me was never found. But since I was taken, there hasn't been another girl.

And now there is.

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There are times when you want to escape reality where all the rough edges are smoothed and there are other times when you want those edges.  GIRL LAST SEEN is a mystery where all the rough edges were left in place.  

Set in Seattle where gray skies and drizzle are the norm, this gritty mystery will keep you entranced.  The main character is an addict who had been kidnapped and held by a pedophile when she was just a child.  Lainey managed to escape but now she feels responsible for Olivia who had just been kidnapped.  

I really enjoyed this book.  It's gritty and does a wonderful job of showing the life of an addict without the rose colored glasses that we so often reach for.   While I have never been an addict, I have had friends and family members who have struggled with that disease and I appreciated being able to see through their eyes for a bit.

I really think that my readers who enjoy gritty mysteries will enjoy GIRL LAST SEEN.  I probably wouldn't recommend it for younger readers because there are scenes of drug use, violence as well as using sex to pay for drugs.

*** I received this book at no charge from NetGalley in exchange for a fair and honest review.  All opinions expressed within are my own.

Book Review: Playing with Trouble

Recently divorced, Laura Baughman is taking her life back. After a decade away, she’s returning to Yachats, Oregon—the small town she couldn’t wait to leave after graduation—to take over her late mother’s beloved flower shop. Yet once she arrives, Laura discovers the store has been neglected and her father has partnered in construction with Jake Lock. The once-scrawny high school band geek is now successful—and irresistibly sexy—and set to inherit her family’s business. That is, unless Laura can prove in the next thirty days that she has what it takes to run the company.

Despite the heat between Jake and Laura, romance is out of the question. After her last disastrous relationship, Laura has sworn off men—especially one bent on crushing her dreams. That’s just fine with Jake, who thinks the gorgeous blonde is a pain in the neck…though admittedly one he’d like to put his lips all over.

Jake has a proposal to mix business with pleasure. But when a deal goes south, Laura is ready to pack up and skip town all over again. Does he have what it takes to convince her to stay?

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I do have a tendency to avoid books with a lot of explicit sex because all too often I have found that as more sex that is added plot is removed.  I am so happy to say that this wasn't the case with PLAYING WITH TROUBLE.  It has a solid story line that will keep the reader interested along with some sex scenes which really heat up the pages.

I really enjoyed the characters especially some of the secondary ones such as Roberta, Laura's father's girlfriend.  She's a down to earth, big hearted woman with good advice who just happens to run a lingerie shop and a dirty book club.  I would also like to see a book about Hannah who is Laura's best friend.

All in all, I would give this book a thumbs up because it has a solid plot line, good pacing, great characters and witty dialogue.  I think that any of my readers who enjoy contemporary romance with some heat would enjoy this book.  There are some graphic scenes though so perhaps not appropriate for the younger generation.

*** I received this book at no charge from NetGalley in exchange for a fair and honest review.  All opinions expressed within are my own.

Book Review: Take Me Back

Hallie Cavanaugh’s late father just left her millions of reasons to stay away from Jim Lawson, deputy sheriff of Paradise, Idaho, and the man who broke her heart fourteen years ago. Hallie has worked hard for independence, but she can’t dismiss a massive inheritance, even if she has to follow her father’s manipulative terms to get it. How hard can it be to spend six months back in Paradise—and not sleep with her old flame?

Former Army Ranger Jim just wants to do his job, raise his daughter…and resist the gorgeous, redheaded reminder of his bad-boy past. Their one unforgettably hot night together had major consequences, and now there’s a fortune and a family legacy at stake. But when Hallie is threatened amid a storm of uncovered secrets and conflicted loyalties, protecting her becomes more than a duty: it’s a deeply personal fight Jim’s heart won’t let him lose.

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I really liked the characters in this book.  They are all so realistic with their faults and strengths that they almost jump right off the pages.  Hallie is a really good person which is a testament to her strength of will since her mother was absent even when she was right there and her father was a real piece of work.  Jim has grown into a wonderful man who is open to learn from his experiences.

The unfortunate part is that someone is determined to see that Hallie doesn't meet the requirements of her father's will and won't stop at anything to ensure her failure.  It made for a great story to see how Hallie, Jim and their friends work together to ensure her safety and to ensure that she is able to inherit the money her father left to her.

I really enjoyed this book.  The villain in this story really worked behind the scenes up until the very end which made for a surprising finish.  I think that my readers who enjoy a contemporary romance with a bit of danger tossed in would really like this book.

*** I received this book at no charge from NetGalley in exchange for a fair and honest review.  All opinions expressed within are my own.