The Crawling Darkness by J.L. Bryan

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Category: Adult
Genre: Ghost Story, Paranormal, Mystery
Content: Clean

 
Ghost removal specialist Ellie Jordan must face a dangerous, shape-shifting entity that she and Calvin have encountered once before, with tragic results. The spirit has the power to reach into the minds of living and feed on their fears, taking the shape of their worst nightmares, and it has awoken in search of new victims.

Now Ellie must try to succeed where she and her mentor failed before, and try to defeat the twisted and powerful old ghost before it can claim another soul for its collection.

Ok so I went from reading something light and humorous to something dark and creepy. I do this a lot actually, even with TV. I'll go from Hallmark channel to Discovery ID all the time! For this dark and creepy read I decided to go with Ellie Jordan because the reviews promised that this addition of the series was an improvement over the first two books, not that those two books were bad, but I felt like they were lacking some depth and character development.

I'm happy to report that this book was indeed an improvement. There was a bit of character development here, although not loads of it. There was also the addition of a love interest for Ellie, and I liked that a lot. Ellie needs a personal life. I want to know what she does when she isn't hunting ghosts.

As for the ghost in this story, it was a real creepy one. There were certain parts of this that creeped me out while I was reading in bed at night, and I didn't see the twist coming which was great. I would say this is the creepiest book of the series so far. I liked this one enough to keep reading the series. Hopefully we keep getting more character development.

Swamp Team 3 by Jana Deleon

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Category: Adult
Genre: Mystery
Content: Strong Language


 
Undercover CIA agent Fortune Redding spent her first three weeks in Sinful, Louisiana dodging insults, makeup advice, guard dogs, bullets, and Deputy Carter LeBlanc, both professionally and personally. But just when she thinks things are going to settle down in the small bayou town, someone sets her friend Ally’s house on fire.

Has it really only been three weeks since Fortune arrived in Sinful, Louisiana? It feels like three years. Ok, that may be because I've been reading these for the last three years. That's one book a year, with the exception of year one when I read two of them. That should tell you how uncompelling (Is that a word?) this series is to me. I pick one up occasionally when I want something that will make me laugh. Unfortunately I always end up being disappointed. These books don't make me laugh nearly as much as I'm hoping they will, but yet I keep coming back for more. WHY? I wish I knew the answer to that question. My best guess is that these books are filling some home sickness that I have for Louisiana.

There were a couple of things I liked about this book, the little touch of romance, and the friendship between Fortune and Ally. Other than that I thought this was a bit lack luster. Nothing in the story made me really laugh at all, and there is usually one thing that does in these books. I also felt like there were too many things going on in this mystery. The addition of the stalker was just too much.

Now that I've read this fourth book in the series and it was the least humorous one of the bunch, I'm going to force myself to give up this series. I really don't need to waste my time on it any more. I would much rather spend that time on something that really makes me laugh. I'm going to try reading more of Molly Harper's books but if anyone has any suggestions I would love them!

After the Storm by Linda Castillo

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Category: Adult
Genre: Mystery
Content: Strong Language



When a tornado tears through Painters Mill and unearths human remains, Chief of Police Kate Burkholder finds herself tasked with the responsibility of identifying the bones--Kate digs deep into the case only to discover proof of an unimaginable atrocity, a plethora of family secrets and the lengths to which people will go to protect their own.

Talk about horrific deaths. I thought I had read just about every kind of horrible death there could be, but nope, this book included yet another one. Let's just say I will never look at pigs the same way again. It seems as if the Amish community as a whole is getting darker in this series. There are just so many individuals from that community at this point in the series that have been involved in or done something terrible. I had to laugh when I got to a part where Kate states that she is the chief of police in a small town and that her job is relatively safe compared to other places. Who is she kidding? All those murders in that tiny little town make Painters Mill the most dangerous town in the US!

The mystery in this one was ok. It was pretty obvious who had been involved in the decades old murder, but I was surprised a little by the second killer and also a little sad that it went that way. The best thing about this book was the personal drama between Kate and John Tomasetti. For a little while there I thought I was going to end up despising Tomasetti, but he pulled though eventually. I did think his reaction to something felt a little manufactured just to add drama, especially considering what I've come to know about him as a character. It just didn't quite fit.

Overall I liked this book a lot and I'm surprised at how quickly I've been going through the books in this series. What started out as a slow progression has turned into a marathon read. I plan on getting caught up on this series this year so I'll keep reading, but because this series is so heavy on the dark and sinister, I do think I need to take a breather for a little while and read something lighter.

The Dead Will Tell by Linda Castillo

My rating: 3.5 of 5 stars

Category: Adult
Genre: Mystery
Content: Strong Language, Implied Sex



Everyone in Painters Mill knows the abandoned Hochstetler farm is haunted. But only a handful of the residents remember the terrible secrets lost in the muted/hushed whispers of time—and now death is stalking them, seemingly from the grave.

After reading the last book, and with the way it ended I was expecting Kate to still be worried about that secret from her past to be discovered, but there wasn't any mention of it at all in this book. Instead, it's Tomasetti who has something from his past come up. It has to do with what happened to his family 3 years ago, and it really throws him. I can't say that I completely agree with how he ends up dealing with it, but I also can't blame him either. Let's just say he uses the Burn Notice method on someone. If you've ever seen that TV show then you know how they deal with criminals in it, and you will know what I mean.

The mystery this time around was pretty good. The thing that happened to the family that lived on the farm was very sad. It wasn't hard to figure out who the "ghost" was that was going around murdering people, but that twist at the end did surprise me a bit. One of the best things about this book is that Kate actually got backup this time before she rushed into a dangerous situation. Of course that didn't go real well, but at least she tried. One thing that didn't make sense to me though, was why the killer shot at them instead of just continuing to hide until they left.

The only thing that I really didn't like about this book was the repetition of different phrases that the author would use. For some reason the author really seemed to favor the phrase "he wrapped his hands around my biceps" or some variation of that phrase. It was repeated four times in this one book and one time in the last book. A few of those times it was used when characters were about to get romantic, and I didn't think it was a very good phrase to use in that situation.

Overall this book was a good addition to the series, and like the book before, it left me wanting to immediately pick up the next one and read it.

Her Last Breath by Linda Castillo

My rating: 3.5 of 5 stars

Category: Adult
Genre: Mystery
Content: Strong Language, Off page sex 


A rainy night, an Amish father returning home with his three children, a speeding car hurtling toward them out of nowhere.

What at first seems like a tragic, but routine car accident suddenly takes on a more sinister cast as evidence emerges that nothing about the crash is accidental. But who would want to kill an Amish deacon and two of his children?

First off I have to say that if you want to be surprised about anything in this book DO NOT read the book description! I added a very abbreviated one to my review because I was able to figure out the whole book easily after reading the whole description.

Going into this book we are introduced to an Amish family, a father and his three kids, who are on their way home. Of course from the small description I added to my review you can tell this doesn't end well. The author didn't pull any punches here, and it was brutal. After getting to know these adorable kids it was hard to read about their deaths, but it also made me keep reading.

This is the fifth book in the series and I'm slowly making my way through the books. It was nice to be back in Painter's Mill with Kate even though some of the things that happened in the book annoyed me. I seriously doubt anyone would still be able to rescue themselves from the situation Kate finds herself in near the end of this book. There were several things that happened that didn't seem very realistic, and after everything that happens I doubt Kate would be able to stand, much less everything else she manages to do.

I also really, really hope Kate stops doing stupidly reckless things. Imagine you are investigating a murder and you find evidence outside a house that you've just left. You realize this person may have done it and decide you need to investigate the out buildings at this house. This person has stated that they will be leaving the house in about 20 minutes or so. What would you do? My first thought was to leave. Then wait until the other person leaves and call backup. Then go check out the out buildings. That seems like the smart thing to do right? Well that is not what Kate does. I'm not going to go into what she does, you will have to read the book to find out, but I don't think it's very plausible that Kate became a police chief when she does these kinds of stupid things.

So that stuff almost ruined this book for me. What ended up saving it was Tomasetti. He has grown leaps and bounds as a character and I've come to like him more than Kate. I especially enjoyed that Tomasetti has bought himself a house and sets out to fix it up himself. And of course he is hoping Kate will approve. He makes great strides in his relationship with Kate, who is slower at coming around. I honestly wanted to knock some sense into Kate, but I'm happy with the way things end.

Besides the main mystery, this book also brings back into play the big secret from Kate's past that we learned about in book one, and she is left worrying that it will be exposed. There is no resolution there so I guess I'll be biting my nails waiting to find out how that ends up.

Cold Shadows by J.L. Bryan

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Category: Adult
Genre: Ghost Story, Paranormal, Mystery
Content: Clean


Footsteps in the attic. Toys that play by themselves. A dark presence in an upstairs room.

It's been almost two years since I read the first book in this series. I liked it a lot, but for some reason I didn't find myself wanting to return to Ellie's world right away. I did finally decide to pick this one up though, and it was enjoyable. I love ghost stories and this one had its creepy moments, but there is just something lacking in this series for me. I think the main thing is that there is next to no story besides the job they are on. I would very much like to see more character development and more story away from the job. Who are these characters besides ghost hunters? We have been told some background on Ellie, but I need to see more. I've read a few reviews for the third book in the series and it seems like that may be coming. I'm enjoying this series, and even though I don't think it's spectacular, it has potential so I'm willing to give it at least one more try.

Courting Scandal by Jaima Fixsen

My rating: 3.5 of 5 stars

Category: Adult
Genre: Historical Romance
Content: Clean


Laura Edwards, a French émigré fallen on hard times, took to the stage to support her brother's medical career. Now that he's established, he wants her to turn respectable, landing her in the country hiding in plain sight from one of her biggest admirers, Jasper Rushford, the care-for-nothing son of the local viscount.

Jasper Rushford doesn’t want drama—when visiting a sister who’s about to give birth, the more placid the event, the better. But when he recognizes the doctor’s mousy sister as the darling of London’s stage, theatrics are inevitable.

I enjoyed this last book in the Fairchild trilogy, but not quite as much as the two previous ones. I liked Jasper a lot in the previous books, and I was happy that he got a book dedicated to him this time around, but as it happens, this is my least favorite story line out of the trilogy. I didn't care for Laura too much in the beginning, but she eventually grew on me. Also, the acting thing wasn't as interesting to me in the first place and I thought the drama surrounding Laura and her uncle was a bit overblown.

All that being said, I still liked this book quite a lot, and if I wasn't comparing it to Fairchild, and Incognita I might have given it 4 stars instead of 3.5.