Monday, January 30, 2023

"Deadly Deceit" by Natalie Walters

About this book:

  “Welcome back to Walton, Georgia, where everyone knows your name—but no one knows your secret.
    Independent and tenacious journalist Vivian DeMarco is back in Walton, Georgia, for one reason -- to do her job and get out. When her boss suddenly dies under suspicious circumstances, Vivian's only hope for finding the truth -- and the next big story -- is small-town law enforcement's lanky poster boy, Deputy Ryan Frost. But the deeper they dig, the more twisted the truth becomes. False leads, incriminating emails, and someone called the Watcher force Vivian to fight for answers -- and her life.”


Series: Book #2 in the “Harbored Secrets” trilogy. Review of Book #1 Here!


Spiritual Content- The villain of this novel uses a Scripture in one of his blackmail messages; A few prayers & a blessing over food; Talks about God, trusting Him, being love by Him, & forgiveness; 'H's are not capital when referring to God; At the beginning, Vivian cuts her mom off when she tries to talk about God & forgiveness; Vivian feels like God disappeared from her life about the same time her father did and that all of her prayers when she was little went unanswered (she thinks that whatever she did to push her dad away must of pushed God away too); Ryan cuts himself off from thinking that he hasn’t been blessed due to how his life has turned out (this makes him pause and think about if he’s only looking at the complications in his life and missing the blessings); Vivian thinks more about God, forgiveness, and not putting the sins of her earthly father on God towards the end; A side-character feels like God had somehow forgiven him for cheating on tests and was being blessed due to receiving good news; A pastor’s daughter feels guilt and sinful due to her actions (see Sexual Content section) and doesn’t want to go to church because she’ll have to pretend that she’s the same virtuous pastor’s daughter and hear her father preaching about the destruction of sin “when he couldn’t even keep his own daughter from it”; Mentions of God & forgiveness; Mentions of prayers, praying, & a blessing over food; Mentions of churches, church going, services, a pastor, & sermons; A few mentions of blessings & being Blessed; A few mentions of the Pope sprinkling people & baptism; A few mentions of sins & sinners; A mention of a Bible study; A mention of a devotional; A mention of a Sunday school class; A mention of a mission trip; A mention of an angel;
             *Note: A couple mentions of Norse mythology; A mention of Ryan feeling uncomfortable after hearing a sermon about the Song of Solomon and unable to stop thinking about Vivian; A mention of Vivian thinking of Ryan’s transformation as “Samson-like”; A mention of a young man saying a bully made his life hell.
 

Negative Content- Minor cussing including: a ‘blah blah blah’, a ‘dang’, a ‘darn’, a ‘drat’, a ‘gah’, a ‘sheesh’, a ‘screwd up’, a ‘shut up’, a ‘what in tarnation’, three ‘dumb’s, four ‘idiot’s, and nine forms of ‘stupid’; Vivian fights not to curse in a phone call with her mother (it’s added that “She wasn’t prone to cursing, but sometimes thinking those horrible, awful words made her feel better, at least temporarily.”); Mentions of curses (said, not written); Eye rolling & Sarcasm; Seeing someone have an allergic reaction & their death (up to semi-detailed); A fire, smoke, & passing out (up to semi-detailed); Being held at knife-point, being held at gun-point, being kidnapped, & Threatened (up to semi-detailed); Screams, Pain, Injuries, & Blood/Bleeding (up to semi-detailed); Knocking others out, Gunshots, & Seeing someone shot (up to semi-detailed): Hitting someone (up to semi-detailed): A boat chase, nearly drowning, doing CPR, & pain (semi-detailed); Throwing up (barely-above-not-detailed); Some lying & half-lies (most due to being undercover or trying to find out information); A side-character wants to get drunk to try to erase the guilt he feels & another side-character grabs a beer after work; All about many mentions of blackmail, an extortion ring, threats, hacking, parties, drugs, snorting drugs, drinking (including underaged drinking), getting drunk, & drunks (up to semi-detailed); Many mentions of allergic reactions, deaths, & someone who killed another with what they’re allergic to (peanuts, border-line barely-above-not-detailed // semi-detailed); Mentions of Book #1’s murder; Mentions of a drunk husband beating his wife to death; Mentions of wars, veterans, & those who come back different (mentally and physically); Mentions of gunshots; Mentions of a fire, smoke, & arsonist; Mentions of a boat chase & someone possibly being tossed overboard (barely-above-not-detailed); Mentions of break-ins, thugs/burglars, crime scenes, criminals, stealing, & stolen items; Mentions of jails/prisons; Mentions of pain, injuries, blood/bleeding (barely-above-not-detailed); Mentions of cheating on tests; Mentions of grief (a close friend); Mentions of nightmares (including ones of someone’s death, barely-above-not-detailed); Mentions of lies, lying, & liars; Mentions of rumors; Mentions of alcohol, drinking, underage drinking, getting drunk, & a father who drank a lot (including champagne at a charity event & the bar); Mentions of tobacco, cigarettes, cigars, & smoking; A few mentions of throwing up; A mention of some journalists being insulted, assaulted and sometimes killed for pursuing a story; A mention of drunk drivers; A mention of the mafia; A mention of bullies; A mention of graffiti; A mention of the lottery; A mention of burping & fart jokes from young boys; A mention of animal droppings; A mention of a sister being on husband number four; 
             *Note: After Ryan’s father walked out on their family, Ryan has been the man of the house since he was twelve and struggles at the beginning of this book when he learns his mom is dating; Vivian feels betrayed by her biological father & resents him; Both Ryan & Vivian feel like they did something to cause their fathers to leave & Vivian particularly feels like she’s not enough; Many mentions of movies, TV shows, actors/actresses, superheroes (Marvel & DC), Star Wars characters, & other fictional characters; Mentions of cancer & someone fighting it; Mentions of car brands; Mentions of brand names & items (Aqua Net hairspray, a Lilly Pulitzer dress, Tiffany’s, Cartier, iPhone, Diet Coke, Keurig coffee maker, Axe body spray/cologne, Harley motorcycles, and Kool-Aid); A handful of mentions of newspaper companies (Times, Atlanta Tribune, People, National Enqurier); A few mentions of Prince Harry; A couple mentions of Boy Scouts; A couple mentions of social media (Facebook & Snapchat); A couple mentions of Hallmark movies & The Weather Channel; A mention of Mark Twain; A mention of a hacker motel from an Alfred Hitchcock movie; A mention of the Oscars; A mention of Costco. 
 
 
Sexual Content- Four hand/finger kisses, a cheek kiss, a jaw kiss, five head/forehead kisses, two not-detailed kisses, two barely-above-not-detailed kisses, three borderline barely-above-not-detailed // semi-detailed kisses, and two border-line semi-detailed // detailed kisses; Wanting to kiss (up to semi-detailed); Staring at someone’s lips & mentions of it happening; Touches, Embraces, Hand holding, Butterflies, Electricity, Nearness, & Smelling (up to semi-detailed); Wanting to touch & embrace; Blushes & Winks; Noticing (including Vivian noticing his muscles and chest, up to semi-detailed); Vivian’s parents weren’t married when she was born (said to be an affair that went on for more than a decade; *Spoiler* Her father is a famous actor and after gaining popularity (after Vivian was born), his publicist said his personal life needed to be like the characters he played, so he got married to another woman and had children *End of Spoiler*); An underaged teen girl is blackmailed with a video of her seducing guys at a party (the only details given are that the video shows a guy took off her clothing and the act only lasted a few minutes before the next guy came into the hotel room) and her being forced to engage in “moral depravity” by the blackmailer (being sent to motel rooms to be a “companion” to men who have paid to be with her); Vivian is grabbed by a man (who is high) and he wants he to come with him for a “good time”; Vivian gets a creepy vibe from a man and doesn’t want to be left alone with him; a ‘hot’, a ‘hunky’, a ‘sexy’; Many mentions of affairs (including one that was a “slip” when a married man was drinking and he says it was a one-time thing), a video of a man and woman getting very close, & a child born out of wedlock from an affair; Mentions of kisses, kissing, & making out; Mentions of dating, dates, boyfriends/girlfriends, & break-ups; Mentions of cute guys & a couple teen girls being boy-crazy and having “hot dates”; Mentions of flirting; Mentions of jealousy; Mentions of blushes, winks, & whistles; A few mentions of a man becoming obsessed with his ex-girlfriend & harassing her; A couple mentions of young girls being taken advantage of at parties & not wanting to report anything due to their shame and feeling responsible; A couple mentions of a man being caught with an underage girlfriend & the media calling him a rapist and ending his career; A couple mentions of couples kissing; A mention of a man saying that his girlfriend slept around and made him look like a fool; A mention of Vivian being hit on by guys at a bar who want a “sleepover where sleep wasn’t the main goal”; A mention of women lusting over an actor; A mention of a teen girl saying that she liked guys with “sexy abs”; A mention of Ryan suffering from many black eyes as he caught guys saying inappropriate things about his younger sister; A mention of a teen having “super strict” parents and not being allowed to date; Love, falling in love, & the emotions;
             *Note: When watching the blackmail videos, Ryan thinks that he feels like a peeping tom and wants to scrub his eye balls clean; Vivian recalls when she used to strive for approving glances from men by taking very good care of her appearance, but now the idea of using her looks to manipulate makes her feel cold; Ryan says that another woman (who he went to school with) has “nothing special about her” (she’s been trying to get his attention all of a sudden after he become attractive); A few mentions of a woman saying she’s never been “able to resist a man in uniform” & puts her hands on Ryan’s vest (she then giggles and apologizes); A mention of a teen girl’s parents being in an open-door policy, meaning that “if the door was open, trouble was less likely to happen”; A mention of Ryan’s teenage sister’s cropped t-shirt revealing more skin that he is comfortable with her showing; A mention of a thought of a guy ripping off his shirt like Hulk to protect the one he loves; A mention of a woman saying she makes all the first moves with her husband; A mention that it would have been disturbing if a set of siblings had said “I love you” in the Star Wars franchise; A mention of college-aged boys looking at Vivian differently after hearing she’s not a teacher; A mention of a college student having his hair in a bun.
 
-Vivian DeMarco
-Ryan Frost
       P.O.V. switches between them, The Watcher (x3), Preston (x1), Blasie (x1), Bethany (x1)  
                                                        322 pages


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Pre Teens- 

New Teens- 

Early High School Teens- 

Older High School Teens- 

My personal Rating- 

After reading the first book in this trilogy, I wasn’t sure what to expect with this sequel. I’m definitely not a fan of how heavy the instant attraction was between Ryan & Vivian, though, I thought it was…interesting (not the word I’m looking for, but we’ll go with it) how it was more of her noticing his muscles and such than him noticing her physical attributes. The first book had a lot of that couple’s physically noticing and I was quickly over it. I was over the insta-love in this book pretty quick as well, but there were other parts that took over my attention that I enjoyed. 

There’s a few different things/parts that I did enjoy, so let’s discuss those for a minute. 

I wasn’t expecting the humor this book had at all and I actually laughed out loud quite a few times. The banter between Ryan & Vivian and then them with their friends were so unexpected, but I really liked those parts. 

I liked the small-town vibes, which were much more apparent in this story than the first book (perhaps due to Vivian not being from there but learning to appreciate the charm of small-town living). 

Something that might be an odd thing to note, but I also liked how unique the villain was. No spoilers here, but that person wasn’t the typical Christian Fiction Suspense villain I’m used to seeing (i.e. religious motivation which is very common in CF) and it was a unique feature of this book among a few other suspense elements that I haven’t seen before or rarely see. 

And speaking of the villain, the parts I wasn’t thrilled with understandably includes that person due all the blackmail that affects the villain’s victims’ lives. This included a high school girl being blackmailed into being a “companion” to men for money after a video is captured of her sleeping with other guys, and while the words prostitute or human trafficking is never used, it’s very obviously known what’s happening. 

On a lighter note that still affected my ratings, Vivian and Ryan were super-duper insta-attracted to each other. I already said that, I know, but it needs to be mentioned again. Sure, they were pretty cute together. However, it was a bit much in my opinion of how quick they were interested in and fell for each other. Because of both of their pasts and their fathers not being great men, it’s affected how they let others get close to them and that’s totally understandable, but I wished they had communicated more and didn’t let a misunderstanding happen for so long. 

All of those many thoughts said, I do plan on continuing the trilogy by reading the third book. We’re introduced to Pecca and she was a hoot, so I’m looking forward to learning her story.  

 

 

See y’all on Friday with a new review! 




*BFCG may (Read the review to see) recommend this book by this author. It does not mean I recommend all the books by this author.


Monday, January 9, 2023

"Shadows of Swanford Abbey" by Julie Klassen

About this book:

  “News of her brother's worrisome behavior spurs Miss Rebecca Lane to return home to her village. Upon her arrival, he begs her to go to nearby Swanford Abbey, a medieval monastery turned grand hotel rumored to be haunted. Feeling responsible for her brother's desperate state, she reluctantly agrees to stay at the abbey until she can deliver his manuscript to a fellow guest who might help him get published--an author who once betrayed them.
    Soon, Rebecca starts seeing strange things, including a figure in a hooded black gown gliding silently through the abbey's cloisters at night. For all its renovations and veneer of luxury, the ancient foundations seem to echo with whispers of the past--including her own. For there she encounters Sir Frederick--baronet, magistrate, and former neighbor--who long ago broke her heart. Now a handsome widower of thirty-five, he is trying to overcome a past betrayal of his own.
    When the famous author is found dead, Sir Frederick makes inquiries and quickly discovers that several people held grudges against the author, including Miss Lane and her brother. As Sir Frederick searches for answers, he is torn between his growing feelings for Rebecca and his pursuit of the truth. For Miss Lane is clearly hiding something. . . .”


Series: No, a stand-alone novel. 


Spiritual Content- 2 Timothy 1:7 at the beginning; Scriptures are remembered, quoted, & prayed; Prayers & Thanking God; Rebecca stays at an old abbey-turned-hotel; After she has lied, Rebecca feels troubled and prays for forgiveness for her sin (which she feels like her prayers are unheard and unanswered); Going to Churches & Chapels; Talks about God; 'H's are capital when referring to God & Jesus; Many mentions of the abbey, nuns, & religious persecution; Mentions of God & forgiveness; Mentions of prayers, praying, & Thanking God; Mentions of those in the Bible; Mentions of a painting of Christ on The Cross & thinking about it; Mentions of churches, chapels, church going, vicars, services, & sermons; A few mentions of Bibles; A few mentions of stained glass depicting The Cross; A few mentions of Easter; A few mentions of hymn books & prayer books; A couple mentions of a crucifix; A couple mentions of monks; A mention of being Blessed; A mention of wishing someone Godspeed; A mention of an asylum/hospital trying to help the patients restore mental, emotional, and spiritual health (the staff and doctors there encourage to battle their fears with “prayer…and a reliance on God’s strength”); A mention of a difference in religion being a reason why some people were put into an asylum; 
             *Note: The phrase “devilishly” or a form of it is used a handful of times as an adjective (‘devilishly angry’, ‘devilishly vain’, ‘devilish smile’, etc.); Rebecca knows there are no ghosts besides the Holy Ghost, but there are sightings of a “ghost” around the abbey (*Spoiler* It is not actually a ghost, but two real-life people *End of Spoiler*); Many mentions of Swanford Abbey being haunted by the spirits of nuns (including the abbess being called evil by someone once), ghosts, & children being scared and dared to go in there; A mention of someone being called a “devil”; A mention of most people being somewhere in between pure and evil; A mention of statues of Greek gods; A mention of rabbits being a symbol of the resurrection in Christian art & fertility in secular art (the latter which is in turn based off of a pagan god). 
 

Negative Content- Minor cussing including: a ‘balderdash’, a ‘blasted’, a ‘drat’, a ‘pah!’, a ‘what the deuce’, a ‘what the devil’, two forms of ‘stupid’, three ‘bah!’s, three ‘dash it’s, three forms of ‘idiot’, four ‘dashed’s, and four ‘thunder and turf’s; A bit of eye rolling; A bit of pain, injuries, & blood/bleeding (up to semi-detailed); Rebecca is concerned that someone very close to her is the murderer; Rebecca lies to protect her brother (which she prays for forgiveness for, but feels like God isn’t hearing her now, and later confesses her lies to Frederick, who says he knows she had compelling reasons); Rebecca’s brother hasn’t been the same since a childhood head injury & has “deep depression of spirits” (there are also a few mentions of the possibility of him threatening to and possibly harm himself or others);  Frederick feels guilt about how his late wife died (*Spoiler* She fell down a flight of stairs *End of Spoiler*, it is recalled, border-line barely-above-not-detailed // semi-detailed); Many mentions of a murder, how it happened, & the murderer (barely-above-not-detailed); Many mentions of lies, lying, & liars; Mentions of poisons, drugs, a plan to poison someone, & someone possibly being poisoned (barely-above-not-detailed); Mentions of injuries & blood/bleeding (barely-above-not-detailed); Mentions of stealing, stolen items, thefts, thieves, robberies, & a possible break-in; Mentions of gambling; Mentions of alcohol, drinking, & bars; Mentions of opium; Mentions of rumors & gossip; A few mentions of a war & deaths; A few mentions of prison & arrests; A few mentions of those at an asylum who have pose a threat to themselves or others; A few mentions of those at an asylum being forced to endure barbaric practices; A few mentions of a child falling out of a tree & his injury (Rebecca recalls it, barely-above-not-detailed); A few mentions of tobacco & cigars; A few mentions of hatred (including someone hating himself); A few mentions of jealousy; A couple mentions of criminals being hung; A couple mentions of bullies; A couple mentions of nightmares; A mention of suicide; A mention of a threat against someone; A mention of a drunken brawl; A mention of hunting; 
             *Note: Mentions of books & authors.
 
 
Sexual Content- A hand/fingers kiss, a cheek kiss, an almost (semi-detailed) kiss, a barely-above-not-detailed kiss, a semi-detailed kiss, and a semi-detailed // detailed kiss; Recalling an almost kiss (up to semi-detailed); Wanting to kiss (barely-above-not-detailed); Touches, Embraces, Nearness, & Smelling (up to semi-detailed); Wanting to touch & embrace (up to semi-detailed); Blushes; Noticing (barely-above-not-detailed); Rebecca has had a crush on Frederick since she was young (he’s about ten years older than her); At one point, Rebecca has to stay the night in Frederick’s room (he sleeps elsewhere) and she gets a giddy feeling of sleeping in his bed (thinking that her childhood imagination always wanted to be his bride and kiss him, though those thoughts had never ventured to the bedroom); Many mentions of a man liking any woman (not having a type), him “bothering” other women (including when they’re unwilling), & him trying to suggest Rebecca to be with him (which she will not do); Mentions of a man taking advantage of a young woman (16-years-old) & her becoming with child (out-of-wedlock); Mentions of lovers, affairs, & unfaithful wives (including a fictional one and *Spoiler* Frederick’s late wife *End of Spoiler*); Mentions of flirting & flirts (including a married woman flirting with her husband’s brother); Mentions of touches & a couple embracing (with the woman not wanting it); Mentions of reputations & chaperones; Mentions of jealousy; A few mentions of elopements, young couples running away together, & a young man leaving multiple women (one with a child); A couple mentions of kisses; A couple mentions of a man helping teach a woman to bowl while touching her waist; A couple mentions of guests of a hotel bothering the maids; A mention of a young man trying to kiss a young Rebecca (she pushed him away); A mention of a brothel; A mention of a man possibly arranging to meet a woman alone at a hotel; Love, falling/being in love, & the emotions;
             *Note: Mentions of a wife not wanting to be a mother (because she doesn’t want to lose her figure and says she has no maternal instincts) & her possibly taking “measures to destroy the child” (and whether by her hand or God’s, the pregnancy ends in a miscarriage, *Spoiler* Frederick’s late wife, who after seeing his tears, tells him that the baby wasn’t his *End of Spoiler*); Mentions of women’s figures & tight clothing (barely-above-not-detailed); A few mentions of mothers and children dying in childbirth (barely-above-not-detailed); A couple mentions of a woman who’s name was ironically “Modesty” (implying later that she has a large chest); A mention of the assumption that most actresses are “a light-skirt” (a prostitute); A mention of an actress saying that she would “get little else done” if she tried to kill every man who tried to take advantage of her; A mention of an actress saying men have tried to sneak into her room; A mention of an actress implying that Rebecca (a vicar’s daughter) might want to move away from her [due to her profession]; A mention of seducing someone; A mention of a man wanting to have an “illicit liaison” with a woman, but she is a lady and won’t do that; A mention of a couple remaining childless “despite [their] best efforts”; A mention of a man calling another a “poor fool” for getting married; A mention of rabbits representing fertility (which causes Rebecca to blush at that word). 
 
-Rebecca Lane
-Frederick Wilford, age 35 (?)
                                P.O.V. switches between them 
                                           Set in 1820
                                                     410 pages


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Pre Teens- 

New Teens- 

Early High School Teens- 

Older High School Teens- 

My personal Rating- 


One thing I’ve noticed with reading some of Julie Klassen’ answer books is that it feels like a journey. Not necessarily because of a plot involving travel (lack thereof would be a better example) or because the book is set over a long period of time, but perhaps because of the length of the novel and the writing style. Not a bad thing, but I typically always end up dwelling on the story for a while after reading it. 


I found this plot very fascinating with the murder (that didn’t happen till over 150+ in, mind you), the location, the historical jury details, and the descriptions of different regency elements. I can’t say that I ever connected with Rebecca or Frederick, though, especially after Rebecca lied (to protect her brother, but I still wasn’t a fan of how she handled it, personally). They were both fine, but I wasn’t enthralled with them or became a big fan of these main characters. There are a few flashbacks sprinkled in at different points that added background about certain characters or events. They were short and not super frequent, so those parts didn’t bother me. 


I did really enjoy the writing style and how events were described and played out within this book, which is why my attention was easily kept throughout these 400-pages.  


For my recent reads by this author, I would put this one above “The Bridge to Belle Island” and just below “A Castaway of Cornwall”.



 

See y’all on Friday with a new review! 




*BFCG may (Read the review to see) recommend this book by this author. It does not mean I recommend all the books by this author.

Friday, January 6, 2023

"Plan to Fail" by Perry Elisabeth Kirkpatrick

About this book:

  “She's just a coffee barista low on grocery money... does she have what it takes to go undercover?
    When Brent asks Emily to be his date, she knows it doesn't mean anything. He has a mission requiring him to go undercover at a charity gala. After getting a makeover at his spy agency headquarters, she's ready to assume the role of an opinionated book reviewer from New York.
    The Gremlin is planning to steal and sell top-secret blueprints from the aerospace company for which he works. When Emily literally bumps into him at the gala, she is able to plant an ICS tracking chip on his glasses. But the Gremlin is smarter than they thought, and ICS finds themselves in the dark about his buyer. With time running out, and the sale imminent, Emily must rely on instinct and quick thinking to save the day.”


Series: Book #2 in “The Accidental Cases of Emily Abbott”. Review of Book #1 Here!


Spiritual Content- A Prayer (that also references Scripture); A talk about being a Christian and a spy; A few mentions of God, Jesus, Christians, & loving others; A couple mentions of church going & a Bible study; A mention of a blessing over food; A mention of Noah’s Ark; 
             *Note: A mention of someone saying that “everything evolves” (“life, societies, even the very clothes people wear”). 
 

Negative Content- Minor cussing including: a ‘blah’, a ‘dumb’, a ‘kicking backside’, and a ‘kick the rear end (of a bad guy)’; Eye rolling; A light mention that Emily feels second to her father compared to his job; Mentions of treason; Mentions of injuries & blood/bleeding; A handful of mentions of weapons & guns being aimed at a bad guy; A few mentions of a car chase; A couple mentions of a car being wrecked (Book #1); A mention of not wanting to lie; 
             *Note: A few mentions of car brands; A couple mentions of a children’s book (Charlotte’s Web); A mention of a social media site (Instagram).
 
 
Sexual Content- Emily & Brent act like a couple at the gala; A few mentions of dates & dating; 
             *Note: A couple mentions of strapless dresses (& how it’s a “tactically unsound style” for undercover agents/spies). 
 
-Emily Abbott, age 19
                                P.O.V. of Emily 
                                                   87 pages


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Pre Teens- 


New Teens- 

Early High School Teens- 

Older High School Teens- 

My personal Rating- 

There’s something just so charming—and fun—about this series! It might not be the most realistic at times, but it’s fun to image being an ordinary girl and then being roped into a spy mission—or two or more missions. 

 

 

See y’all on Friday with a new review! 



*BFCG may (Read the review to see) recommend this book by this author. It does not mean I recommend all the books by this author.

Monday, January 2, 2023

"Critical Threat" by Lynette Eason

About this book:

  “FBI Special Agent Grace Billingsley tracks serial killers, using her skills as a psychiatrist and behavioral analyst to get dangerous people off the street and safely behind bars. But prison psychiatrist Sam Monroe knows that just because a killer is incarcerated doesn't mean they're not a threat. His own father, Peter, is a serial killer--in prison but certainly not out of Sam's life, as much as he wishes he was.
   When bodies start showing up with Peter's MO, Sam and Grace are both called in to consult. They've met before--and though Grace thought they'd made a real connection, Sam ghosted her. They'll have to get past the awkwardness and mistrust to solve this case--especially because it's about to get personal.”


Series: Book #3 in the “Extreme Measures” series. Reviews of Book #1 Here! And Book #2 Here!


Spiritual Content- John 3:16-17 at the beginning; The killer leaves a Scripture with each victim (Proverbs 10:31); Prayers; Going to a hospital chapel; Talks about God, witnessing, faiths, & how Grace and Sam’s faiths seep into their work; A discussion about the very beginning of time where there was good vs evil (the serpent in Eden), people’s choices, & if they’re truly remorseful over their actions, God will forgive them; 'H's are not capital when referring to God; Mentions of God; Mentions of prayers, praying, & blessings over food; Mentions of those & events in the Bible; Mentions of witnessing, faiths, & how it influences Grace & Sam’s jobs and how they interact with others; Mentions of churches & church going; A few mentions of Christians/believers; A couple mentions of a cross tattoo with a Scripture; A mention of thanking God; A mention of being Blessed; A mention of God not calling someone to be a nun; 
             *Note: Mentions of evil; Mentions of people believing in reincarnation & New Age things; A couple mentions of a brother elevating his sister to goddess status and worshiping her; A mention of the killer thinking that the “gods are smiling” on him; A mention of Sam wanting to find out what his father was lacking in his brain to become a serial killer (wondering if it was a chemical thing, a spiritual thing, or something else); A mention of the killer saying family members tried to turn him into a “religious nut” like them.
 

Negative Content- Minor cussing including: a ‘wimp’, two ‘duh’s, two ‘gah’s, two ‘idiot’s, three ‘heck’s, four ‘shut up’s, eight ‘dumb’s, and thirteen ‘stupid’s; A few mentions of curses (said, not written); Eye rolling & Sarcasm; Seeing a death happen & dead bodies (up to semi-detailed); Almost being hit by a car, almost drowning, being locked in a car underwater, being kidnapped (x2), being held at gun-point and knife-point, gunfire, being threatened, being hit, fighting, pain, & injuries (up to semi-detailed); Being threatened, shooting (in self-defense), & a break-in/intruder (up to semi-detailed); Seeing a hostage situation, someone stabbed, injuries, & blood/bleeding (up to semi-detailed); The killer starts to stalk Grace; In the opening chapter, we see the killer’s POV and him thinking that killing isn’t a game, but a very serious business to him (only kills those that he deems “weren’t innocent” and “the ones who deserved what they had coming”, and that he chooses how they die to because he wants the innocent to be protected); Grace has to put herself in the perspective of the serial killer & try to figure out details about him and his motives by doing that (up to semi-detailed); Sam’s father is in prison for being a serial killer & because of it, Sam and his kids took his ex-wife’s last name; Grace has a panic attack (lasts a few sentences and not detailed); All about many, many mentions of sociopaths, serial killers, some not thinking that what they are doing is wrong (but doing justice and protecting innocent people), deaths, murders, how they happened (shooting, stabbing, etc.), victims (including teen girls and older women), the victims fighting, kidnappings and the killer locking the them up, bodies, finding bodies (including ones missing an organ and body parts), crimes, crime scenes, criminals, arrests, prisons, & prisoners (up to semi-detailed to bluntly detailed); Many mentions of copycat serial killers, them looking up to other killers, & their MOs (up to semi-detailed); Many mentions of divorces (Sam is divorced, has during the week custody of his 17- and 12-year-old children, and not the best relationship with his ex-wife but does not bash their mother (a mention of them screaming at each other prior to the divorce)); Mentions of a lot of serial killers having mental illnesses; Mentions of the killer handcuffing someone to a car & then driving off a dock leaving them to possibly drown (*Spoiler* Grace *End of Spoiler*, semi-detailed); Mentions of others being shot, injuries, pain, & blood/bleeding (up to semi-detailed); Mentions of hostage situations, threatening to kill someone, holding someone at knife-point, a stabbing, blood/bleeding, injuries, & a death (up to semi-detailed); Mentions of autopsies (barely-above-not-detailed); Mentions of the victims and others kidnapped being drugged; Mentions of stealing & stolen cars and items; Mentions of a break-in & intruder; Mentions of juvie *Spoiler* Grace went to juvie twice, once for truancy and the second time was for smoking weed *End of Spoiler*; Mentions of child abuse and neglect, domestic abuse, abusers, someone being abused by a relative (not said what kind of abuse), & CPS taking the kids away; Mentions of bars, smoking weed, drugs, rehab, addictions, drug addicts, getting high, hallucinating, & people overdosing (quite a bit of slang/phrases are used when referring to all of this, *Spoiler* Grace’s brother and he overdoses, but Grace administers Narcan; Their parents blame Grace for his addiction because she gave him his first joint when he was fifteen *End of Spoiler*); Mentions of brainwashing; Mentions of lies, lying, & liars; Mentions of hatred; Mentions of throwing up & vomit; A few mentions of parents arguing & the husband pulling a gun on his wife and her dying from a gunshot; A few mentions of inmates killing guards, orderlies, & other inmates; A few mentions of nightmares; A couple mentions of a car accident & deaths; A couple mentions of a suicide; A couple mentions of a mentally ill man killing an orderly that made a pass at his sister; A couple mentions of PTSD; A couple mentions of a movie about robbing a bank; A couple mentions of alcohol & drinking; A couple mentions of gossip; A mention of blackmail; A mention of someone having a good childhood (not abandoned by his mother or abused like a lot of other serial killers); 
             *Note: Mentions of Apple products (iPad, AirPods, FaceTime); A few mentions of Uber; A couple mentions of a movie (Going in Style); A couple mentions of IKEA; A couple mentions of Harley motorcycles; A couple mentions of a car brand; A mention of a brand item (K-Cup).
 
 
Sexual Content- Two forehead/head kisses, a cheek kiss, a semi-detailed kiss, and border-line semi-detailed // detailed kiss; Recalling/remembering kisses (barely-above-not-detailed); Wanting to kiss someone (barely-above-not-detailed); Touches, Warmth, (barely-above-not-detailed); A couple Blushes; Noticing; Mentions of wives leaving their husbands & affairs (*Spoiler* one being that Sam was told over the years that his mother left their family & another being Sam’s wife leaving him for another man and Sam not telling their children that that was the reason for their divorce (the wife felt no guilt for sleeping with his best friend and the children noticed the other man being around a lot) *End of Spoiler*); Mentions of dating, dates, boyfriends, & being interested in someone; A few mentions of a kiss; A couple mentions of an abusive boyfriend (said to be “in the brainwashing way”); A mention of jealousy; Love, falling in love, & the emotions;
             *Note: Mentions of female puberty & emotions; A mention of a young woman’s shirt showing her midsection; A mention of a father setting parental controls are set on his daughter’s phone so that she doesn’t “access certain things that can be harmful for girls [her age]”.
 
-Grace Billingsley
-Sam Monroe, age 39 (?)
                                P.O.V. switches between them & the killer (x6)
                                                        304 pages


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Pre Teens- 

New Teens- 

Early High School Teens- 

Older High School Teens- 

My personal Rating- 

{Add a full star for older girls interested in this field}

After really enjoying the prior book in this series, “Crossfire”, I was hopeful that I would enjoy this one as well due to Grace’s job with the FBI. I think this maybe my first suspense book with a main character being a behavioral analyst and those parts were really interesting. Grace was super level-headed and because of her education and personality, she views situations different than most Romantic Suspense Female Leads I’ve read and it was really refreshing. I know she should be level-headed in her career, but it was nice to see that and also how she didn’t get offended by anything. I liked her a lot, especially with her discussion about how everyone has choices since The Fall and how that correlates to the criminals and killers she analyses. 

I don’t really have many thoughts on Sam, he was fine. Both him and Grace were very fleshed-out characters with very distinct personalities. I will say that the timing of the first kiss really annoyed me. Annoyed me to pieces, actually. Especially since when he snapped out of it, he realized how it was terrible timing. But elsewise, the romance was fine, in my opinion for me. 

I did had a nagging feeling about who the killer was and ended up being correct. Which makes me wonder if I should work in this field or was it just a bit too obvious? Hmm. Things to ponder. 

Overall, I didn’t enjoy this book as much as the second book, but that was because Julianna was just the best. I did like it more than the first and also found it to be much less creepier than that book. Probably still not the best read for those sensitive to serial killer plots or such topics, though. ;)

 

 

See y’all on Friday with a new review! 



*BFCG may (Read the review to see) recommend this book by this author. It does not mean I recommend all the books by this author.

*I received this book for free from the Publisher (Revell) for this honest review.