Kelley Armstrong

As I mentioned in my review for the previous book in this series, I believe this should have been a trilogy. The 5th and final volume to the Cainsville series sees Oliva and Gabriel about to go on a weekend getaway, when they are interrupted by the return of Gabriel's mother Seanna. The start was alright, but it got a bit convoluted in an effort to wrap everything up, introducing a big bad rather late in the game. I'm not a fan how that played out, or how Liv's parents case ended up taking a large back seat in the final two installments. Had this been a trilogy, it may have tied up into a nice, neat bow for me, but with 5 books, it seemed to fizzle out after its natural conclusion.… (mere)

Billed as a “fun romantic comedy,” I found this book less than entertaining: too predictable, with sex scenes that had me rolling my eyes rather than feeling the passion.

The story has two narrators. One is Daphne McFadden, an author who finally finds a publisher for her book by submitting it under a man’s name. The second is Chris Stanton, an accountant (but hot!) who agrees to pose as the book’s alleged author, Zane Remington. Naturally they fall in love, and naturally the exposure of the true authorship of the book is always a threat looming in the background.

While the story addresses some real problems in the publishing industry, such as the preference for publishing work by men rather than women (not to mention whites rather than authors of color), Armstrong treats this issue as just an unusual backdrop for her romance. (In this it differs only slightly from a Hallmark rom-com, since Daphne has not hired her old high school sweetheart with whom “sparks fly.” It also differs by having explicit sex and no Christmas scenes. And no commercials. Otherwise…)

Only occasionally, such as with the Daphne’s publicist Sakura, did Armstrong’s talent for nuanced characterization come into play. Historically, I have loved Armstrong’s books, and in this one I appreciated the insights into some of the concerns (and terrors!) experienced by writers. But I wouldn’t follow her work so religiously (or at all, to be honest) if this had been my only exposure to her.… (mere)

A Rip Through Time is the first novel in Kelley Armstrong's time-travel series of the same name. The third book, Disturbing the Dead, was recently published. Grab all three fantasy books, you will not be disappointed.

While visiting her dying grandmother in Scotland, Mallory Atkinson decides she needs a break and goes for a jog. Being a Vancouver Detective, she thinks she can handle herself, and when she hears a woman's cries down a dark alley, she instinctively goes to investigate. What she finds is a girl in Victorian dress being strangled, when suddenly someone comes up behind her and starts strangling her. The next thing she knows, she wakes up in the woman's body...in 1869 Scotland.

The book is a little slow to start while building the foundation of the time-travel and getting Mallory settled into the life of housemaid Catriona. Once it is established that Mallory is there to stay, the rest of the book is told from her point of view as Catriona. A former thief given a second chance by lady of the house Isla Ballantyne, Catriona hadn't given up her wayward ways, she had only gotten better at hiding them. Now that Mallory has taken over Catriona's body, she can read, write, and is extremely articulate, making the people of the house suspicious of her. When Catriona takes an interest in Dr. Duncan Gray's forensic science experiments, he accepts her help and insights into his case. Not being able to stifle her detective instincts, she investigates on her own, putting herself and others in danger. Can she solve the crime and get back to her own time?

A well-researched and written mystery, seeing the difference between what we now know of forensics and the fledgling ways that Victorian Scotland solved crimes was rather interesting. Seeing how Isla and Gray interacted, knowing that in those times women weren't educated or seen as intelligent people who could handle any type of work, Gray and Detective McCreadie are very open-minded for the times, accepting Catriona and Isla into the investigation.

All in all, a great time-travel mystery filled with suspense and intrigue. The writing really puts you into the environment of Catriona, Isla, and Gray. For anyone who enjoys historical fiction mixed with murder, this was a great beginning to the series.

Thank you to @Minotaur_Books and @NetGalley for a digital copy for review consideration. All opinions are honest and my own.… (mere)

I was very excited to read this book - I love a good horror! I sadly had to force myself to finish it. There were some parts where I enjoyed the writing but overall, I did not like it. I have also not read a book in a long time where I have been less invested in the well-being of the characters. I found some of them confusing and the storyline with the main character and her experiences to be overdone and in the end, it annoyed me. I did enjoy some of the parts when the main character was in the water and some of the descriptions of the island were well-written. The whole ending of the book also came across as a bit ridiculous to me.… (mere)