Tag: paranormal mystery thriller

Review: Over the River & Through the Wood (The House of Graves Series Book 2) by M.M. Crumley

Rating : 4.75 ⭐️

I really don’t know how I missed this author before, she’s astonishing. 

Over the River & Through the Wood makes Tessa Graves’ situation ever more precarious, the horror and ever present danger that the Patron threatens to her mental and physical state, and those around her is increasingly terrifying. And the hidden files of her father brings the truth of exactly how evil and vicious he and the Patron he as well as all the men of her family have become. 

It is a race to uncover who the Patron is, vs the mental pressure and physical force he’s bringing against her, the files she and Ollie and her grandmother are trying to fix and outside forces who have their own issues.

 

The deepest emotional struggle is that of Tessa, who, with help, has come to realize exactly what her father has done to her and her mind since she was 13. The missing memories, the chunks of her life, in fact, her life and consent, that was removed from her, until now. Grief, rage and loss is there  and the fact that she has no idea has to interact with others. And we are with her, in her head each second of every moment of every heinous act of her struggle to regain control of her mind and body . It’s gritty, raw, and utterly heartbreaking 

At the end I found I couldn’t stop, grateful that this was a finished series and kept going. The suspense, the intensity and, frankly, the building heartbreak, as Tessa lets a small circle of people into her life and heart even as the Patron is trying to dig in further for control, well, tissues are something to have around. Be warned.

Darkness is everything here, laughs a minor thing. The characters are brilliant. 

I absolutely love them. Binging is everything.

Connected Universe and crossover series:

The Immortal Doc Holliday Series (21 book series)

The House of Graves Series (6 book series)

Ghost Guy Series (2 book series)

The House of Graves Series (6 book series) :

Three Little Graves & the Big Bad Wolf # 1

Over the River & Through the Wood # 2

FIRE BURN & CAULDRON BUBBLE BOOK 3

A HUNTING, A HUNTING WE WILL GO BOOK 4

AND HE WALKED A CROOKED MILE BOOK 5

HOLIDAY SPECIAL: DECK THE HALLS BOOK 6

Buy link:

        Over the River & Through the Wood (The House of Graves Series Book 2)

    

Blurb 

Tessa Graves’s to-do list: Find her lost memories, kill the Patron, and restore honor to the House of Graves, if such a thing is even possible… 

The Cadwel incident did not go unnoticed, and as a result the Graves gals and Curtis Nash may be up a creek without a paddle. Old clientele are seeking to insure they don’t end up like the Cadwels by removing Graves, Graves, and Graves from the picture, permanently. And the only way to keep the Hidden government off their case is by solving one for the Tetrarch. (Never mind that it’s an unsolvable cold case from before Tessa could tie her own shoes.) If that wasn’t bad enough, Tessa is discovering that her mind is far less her own than she realized and that the most dangerous threat to her family may be her… Can the House of Graves survive as the power of the Patron takes hold? Dive into a hidden world of magic and mayhem to find out now! Available in print, eBook and audiobook formats, OR read FREE with Kindle Unlimited and listen FREE with your Audible Subscription!

The House of Graves is a new series with all the nail-biting-mystery, laugh-out-loud humor, and supernatural action that you’ve come to expect and demand from bestselling author M.M. Crumley. So if you’ve been looking for a fun ride, jump on, because this is the series for you!

Lone Ghost Publishing

Publication date

September 23, 2023

Language

‎English

Print length

326 pages

Book 2 of 6

The House of Graves Series

Review:  Scorched Heart (The Firebrand Series Book 4) by Helen Harper

Rating: 4.25⭐️

Scorched Heart is a terrific story in that the author answers the reader and main female character’s questions about her phoenix origins. Harper’s best elements here are those dealing with Emma’s emotional return to the small village of her parents brutal murdered and the beginnings of her own life of traumatic experiences. 

The small details of that community and how, years later, that tragedy still lingers was so vivid portrayed that it was remarkably raw. 

The investigation and true “evil” character behind the events here was imaginative and horrifying. It would have been better if there had been some foundation laid out for this aspect of the story somewhere in the series but as it was it revealed as a complete surprise twist.

Same goes for exactly how Emma became a Phoenix. New powers, brand new characters that have entered into the story with enormous impact on Emma and her past. But they’re without any magical legs or previous knowledge to make them a real force here. 

Scorched Heart (The Firebrand Series Book 4) by Helen Harper is a terrific read but the writing and character development is beginning to show some strange signs of having issues being solved by “surprise elements “ rather than well written and well conceived aspects of a deeply rooted framework. 

Still recommended but each is a short read which is helps when deciding whether to read or not. 

BOOK COVER DESIGN BY YOCLA DESIGNS

The Firebrand Series 

  • Brimstone Bound
  • Infernal Enchantment
  • Midnight Smoke
  • Scorched Heart
  • Dark Whispers
  • A Killer’s Kiss
  • Fortune’s Ashes

The Wolfbrand Series

  • The Noose Of A New Moon
  • Licence to Howl

Buy link

        Scorched Heart (The Firebrand Series Book 4)

    

Blurb 

My parents were brutally murdered when I was five years old. Their killer has spent the last twenty five years in prison for his terrible crimes – but I still have unanswered questions. After all, I am the phoenix. When I die, I am reborn in fire and brimstone. It happens again and again and again.

I have no idea where my strange ability came from and nobody to ask. Now another shocking murder has been committed in the small village where my parents died and there is evidence which suggests the killer is supernatural. The crime gives me the perfect reason to return to my childhood home. I can offer my expertise as a Supe Squad detective – and seek the truth behind what I really am.

The trouble is that I might not like what I find.

Scorched Heart is the fourth book in the action-packed urban fantasy Firebrand series. Events occur at the same time as The Noose Of A New Moon in the Wolfbrand series, although the books do not have to be read together to be enjoyed.

Review:  Midnight Smoke (Firebrand, #3) by Helen Harper 

Rating: 5⭐️

Well , what an unexpected surprise! Part murder mystery, part Groundhog Day twists, and all around suspense adventure, this was a fantastic read. 

Harper expertly weaves an important element from Infernal Enchantment (book 2) into the narrative here, one that sees Emma racing through time to prevent the worst possible scenario from happening. 

It’s clever, moments of heartbreak, and stupefying humor. New characters make impactful entrances, and Emma’s romantic relationship with her vampire lord moves forward, eventually. 

I was sure that this was my favorite, then I read Scorched Heart. But this is definitely among my top books of the series. Fabulous. 

BOOK COVER DESIGN BY YOCLA DESIGNS

The Firebrand Series 

  • Brimstone Bound
  • Infernal Enchantment
  • Midnight Smoke
  • Scorched Heart
  • Dark Whispers
  • A Killer’s Kiss
  • Fortune’s Ashes

The Wolfbrand Series

  • The Noose Of A New Moon
  • Licence to Howl

Buy link:

        Midnight Smoke (The Firebrand Series Book 3)

    

Blurb 

Supernatural Squad might be small, but we’re growing in power. The vampires and werewolves of London are beginning to respect me more and I feel like I know what I’m doing – even if I don’t yet understand what I truly am. 

Unfortunately, there might be a few snags to deal with. I’m trying to avoid Lord Horvath, the black-eyed vampire leader who seems intent on a more intimate relationship. There’s also Devereau Webb, who runs a small criminal syndicate and has offered me a mysterious gift that I’m certain I don’t want. And across the span of one single day, supernatural hell breaks loose across the city of London.

A suicidal vampire has climbed up the London Eye.

Three werewolves have hijacked a tourist bus.

This might prove to be the longest day of my life.

Midnight Smoke is the third book in the thrilling Firebrand urban fantasy series.

  • Publication date: November 5, 2020
  • Language: English
  • Print length: 289 pages
  • Book 3 of 7: The Firebrand Series

Review:  Kin of the Wolf (Magnetic Magic #3) by by Lindsay Buroker

Rating: 3.5⭐️

If you’re reading a series and notice certain things or elements of a character(s) or storyline that are starting to become a bit predictable or problematic, then you hope that as the series goes forward, the author has a way to use those things in the narrative or character development. 

At least so it’s not an issue that is highly distracting from the plot or character relationship. 

Unfortunately that’s what is happening with the characters here. 

Spoilers for the preceding book. 

Primarily it’s the character of Duncan and the dynamic between Luna and Duncan. It is absolutely disconnecting me from the character of Luna who I found relatable and interesting in her personality and life story. 

But the dynamic between them, especially with her history with Duncan and her ex-husband, as well as her cousin, it’s just making her out to be either a woman with extremely bad judgment or just a nonsensical storyline.  Duncan, a clone of an ancient powerful werewolf, has betrayed Luna in the past. She forgave him. Then he attacked her, under the control of a mage. One he’s still under the influence of when the mage desires.  The logic is to cut him off.

The author, instead, has Luna repeatedly inviting him,(past, current and future threat) back into her life, the pack’s life and now it looks like her son’s. Yes, this will go as well as expected. 

Just when needed, oh look. He’s running away. Cue up the eye roll. 

Buroker was or is building a picture of a divorced woman trying to handle multiple major events/family crises and struggling with them as she would be. But here’s the thing, Luna has been portrayed as tough, extremely realistic and resilient.   Even with the current state of affairs in her life, with the pack politics, mother’s health, and now the Druid family arriving at the housing units, the relationship dynamics the author has playing out is very counter intuitive to the woman Buroker also wants us to believe in. 

How much of patsy or casualty is Luna expected to be of this relationship and the readers too? It’s getting old fast. 

I’m continuing on but with less enthusiasm than when I began. 

For those who enjoy paranormal werewolf fiction and urban fantasy thrillers, check it out. See what you think. 

“Book cover by Deranged Doctor Design”

Magnetic Magic :

Way of the Wolf #1

Relics of the Wolf #2

Kin of the Wolf #3

Quest of the Wolf #4

Curse of the Wolf-July 11,2025

Buy link

        Kin of the Wolf (Magnetic Magic Book 3)

    

Blurb 

Pack politics, adventure, and romance feature in the third installment of Magnetic Magic. 

Luna has recovered priceless werewolf relics from powerful thieves, but they’re still alive—and they can control her new ally, a lone wolf named Duncan. 

She would be wise to have nothing to do with him, but he’s handsome, charming, and keeps coming to her defense. Further, with certain members of the pack gunning for her, she needs his assistance. Her cousin Augustus is holding a grudge, and she’s going to have to find a way to deal with him—before he deals with her.