The Littlest Cowboy (The Texas Brands #1) by Maggie Shayne

The Littlest Cowboy (The Texas Brands #1)
By: Maggie Shayne

Published: July, 2014 (Originally Published: May 1996)

Published By: Thunderfoot Publishing 

Format Read: eBook, Kindle for PC

Genre: Contemporary Romance

Rating: 1.5/5

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Sheriff Garrett Brand and his siblings are awoken one night to find an abandoned baby on their doorstep.

Chelsea Brennan arrives in Texas to identify the body of her deceased sister, but learns that her 6 month old nephew is missing.

Meanwhile baby Ethan’s father a well-known criminal will stop at nothing to find his son. Even murder. 

The concept of this story with the orphaned baby, the family who take him and the aunt who comes to find him caught my interest. It had been quite a while since I read a cute contemporary romance. Or at least that is what I thought I was in for when I started reading The Littlest Cowboy. And there were parts that fit that bill, however Maggie Shayne threw in some elements of mystery and suspense as well. In some cases these elements work well together, but unfortunately this instance wasn’t one of them.

Although Garrett seemed like a very attractive man (who doesn’t enjoy a hot cowboy?) I felt like he was portrayed as too perfect. The main female character Chelsea was quite traumatized by her abusive childhood. This added depth to her story, however I felt that her personality traits and opinions were very inconsistent. She started out as a fierce woman, but became more of a damsel in distress. It was almost like she was two different characters. As I read along I began to dislike Chelsea and Garret more and more. Readers will discover the baby will take a backseat to strange relationship that would bud between his aunt and the man who took him in. 

I hung on and read to the end of this story, but unfortunately it never did capture me. The ending sealed the deal for me, earning The Littlest Cowboy a 1.5 star rating. 

No Safe Harbor (Edge of Freedom, #1) by Elizabeth Ludwig

No Safe Harbor (Edge of Freedom, #1)

By: Elizabeth Ludwig

Published: October, 2012

Published By: Bethany House Publishers 

Format Read: Kindle for PC, eBook

Genre: Christian Fiction, Historical Fiction, Historical Romance

Rating: 3.5/5 

Cara Hamilton thought her twin brother Eoghan was dead, but when a cryptic letter confirms that he is alive, she risks it all and boards a ship to America. Cara is warned to be cautious and not trust anyone until she is safely reunited with him. However she accepts the help of a fellow passenger aboard the ship who directs her towards a boarding-house and an irresistible young man named Rourke. While Cara searches for her brother, she finds her own life at risk. But can she figure out how this relates to her his disappearance and can she really trust those who she has befriended?

Back in 2013, I won my first Goodreads giveaway which was a copy of Elizabeth Ludwig’s Dark Road Home, the second book in the Edge of Freedom series. However I had yet to read this first book until now.

No Safe Harbor is set in 1897, New York, a time period and city that I enjoy reading about. The story moved at a good pace throughout and held my attention. The main characters had detailed backstories that played into the events that transpired.

Unfortunately I didn’t love No Safe Harbor as much as I did Dark Road Home. I found Cara to be very naive and careless. I tend to enjoy stronger female protagonists and felt she was the typical damsel in distress.

I liked how the author switched narrative perspectives throughout however I wish it was more consistent. There were some characters that was only featured once or twice and left me wanting to learn more about them.

No Safe Harbor was a good story, despite those minor things I mentioned. I would recommend it to those who enjoy historical Christian fiction.  

Edge of Freedom Series 

1. No Safe Harbor 
2. Dark Road Home

The Empress Holds the Key (Jack Rogan Mysteries, #2) by Gabriel Farago

The Empress Holds the Key
(Jack Rogan Mysteries, #2)
By: Gabriel Farago

Published: May 2016

Published By: Bear & King Publishing 

Format Read: Kindle for PC

Genre: Suspense, Mystery, Thriller

Rating: 4/5

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I was sent a copy of The Empress Holds the Key (Jack Rogan Mysteries, #2) by Gabriel Farago, from the author in exchange for an honest review.

An old war-time picture is discovered in a burned down cabin depicting a Nazi officer uncovers a trail connecting a violin to a Vatican cover-up that could change the fate of Christianity. Due to the immense details of this books description, I will refer to the Goodreads synopsis as I believe it will give a better understanding to what the story is about:

Journalist Jack Rogan knows a great story when he finds one. A charred old photograph found in the ruins of a burnt-out Blue Mountains cottage hints at dark secrets and unwittingly reignites an ancient and deadly quest for a holy relic mysteriously erased from the pages of history.
Federal Police officer Jana Gonski in pursuit of a suspected Nazi war criminal joins forces with Rogan, barrister and amateur archaeologist Marcus Carrington QC, and celebrated composer Benjamin Krakowski. Together they uncover a murky web of intrigue and greed, hoards of Nazi gold and hidden Swiss bank accounts. All implicate wealthy banker Sir Eric Newman. When Newman goes on trial, unexpected clues are discovered pointing the way to a mystery that has haunted the Catholic Church for centuries.
On a dangerous journey to find the relic, Rogan and his companions trace links back as far as the reign of Akhenaten, the heretic pharaoh of ancient Egypt, and King Solomon and the Queen of Sheba. What is this dark secret guarded by the Knights Templar, and so feared by the Vatican? Will religious fanatics foil the quest which could destroy the very foundations of their Church and challenge Christianity itself? 

The Empress Holds the Key is a very faced paced suspense-thriller that keeps the reader intrigued from start to finish. The amount of research that must have gone into the writing of this novel is quite impressive. To be able to tie in so many different time periods (from biblical times, ancient Egypt, to the Knights of the Templar, World War II and finally present day) shows the true dedication and knowledge of the author.

Even though this is said to be the second book in the Jack Rogan Mysteries, it can be read as a standalone novel. In fact the plot follows other characters more than it does investigative journalist Jack Rogan. Most specifically Officer Jana Gonski and lawyer Marcus Carrington. However Jack does play an important role in uncovering the mystery.

Apart from the World War II era storyline, I must admit that the other time periods aren’t something I would generally read about. However I became so drawn into this story and the suspense of it all, that I often had a hard time putting it down.

I would recommend Gabriel Farago’s The Empress Holds the Key to fans of Dan Brown’s Robert Langdon series and those who enjoy suspense novels. 

Skeletons in the Attic (A Marketville Mystery, #1) by Judy Penz Sheluk

Skeletons in the Attic
(A Marketville Mystery, #1)
By: Judy Penz Sheluk

Published: August 2016
Published By: Imajin Books
Format Read: Kindle for PC
Genre: Mystery

Rating: 3.5/5
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I was sent a copy of Skeletons in the Attic (A Marketville Mystery Book 1) by Judy Penz Sheluk, from the author in exchange for an honest review.

Valentines Day, 1986 was the last day Calamity “Callie” Barnstable ever saw her mother. She never knew what had become of her, all those years being raised by a single father and time blurred the few memories she had of the woman. Did she just up and leave behind her husband and small child? Callie’s father suspected something far more sinister. However it wasn’t until his untimely death, 30 years later that Callie would begin to uncover the truth about what happened all those years ago. Her inheritance would take her back to the town of Marketville and the house they had lived in during the time of her mother’s disappearance. Skeletons in the Attic follows Callie as she works to fulfill her father’s last wish of solving the mystery, while renovating the family home.

Skeletons in the Attic is the second book I have read by local author Judy Penz Sheluk. Even though her first book The Hanged Man’s Noose is from a different series, I was pleasantly surprised to see one of its characters make a guest appearance in this book. Another similarity I appreciated was that the settings are loosely based on locations in Southern Ontario that I am familiar with. This made it so easy for me to imagine them in my mind.

If one were to judge a book by it’s over they may think that this first book in the Marketville Mystery series is a cozy mystery. However there is definitely more meat to Judy Penz Sheluk’s writing than that. I find that her stories have tended to be a bit darker than those in that genre and with a lot more backstory.

It was interesting to follow along as more and more skeletons came out of the attic, so to speak. And there were certainly plenty to uncover, from just about everyone relating to the mystery of Abby Barnstable’s disappearance.

Unfortunately I had trouble warming up to our main character Callie. I felt her to be quite detached on a personal level and lacked compassion. However I do understand that this was a product of how she was raised. I never quite understood why her father chose to have her investigate  the way he did. Surely a man who loved his daughter as much as the story claimed would have found a less cruel way to approach her mother’s disappearance.

All in all I found Skeletons in the Attic to be an interesting mystery that kept my attention throughout. I can’t help but wonder what direction the author will take the second book in this series, as there are plenty of shady characters from this book who could be expanded on. 

The Munich Girl: A Novel of Legacies that Outlast the War by Phyllis Edgerly Ring

Title: The Munich Girl: A Novel of Legacies that Outlast the War
Author: Phyllis Edgerly Ring
Published: January 7, 2016
Published By: Whole Sky Books
Format Read: Kindle for PC
Genre: Historical Fiction
Date Read: April 23, 2015
Rating: 5/5

I was sent a copy of The Munich Girl by Phyllis Edgerly Ring from the author in exchange for an honest review. 

Anna grew up with a portrait hanging in her family’s dining room of Adolf Hitler’s famous mistress (and eventual wife) Eva Braun. She always believed that her father had brought it back as World War II loot. After the death of her mother Peggy, Anna uncovers information about her guarded past, most specifically her life in Germany during the war. She would also uncover a connection between the two women (Peggy and Eva) that will take Anna on a journey of discovery.

When I first read the synopsis for The Munich Girl, I knew I had to read this book. As a lover of historical fiction, I have read from a variety of different perspectives of World War II, however this was the first time I had read about German citizens who lived “freely” in the presence of the Third Reich. I use the word “freely” loosely as regular German citizens were far from free during Hitler’s reign. 

Phyllis Edgerly Ring did a wonderful job of portraying Eva Braun’s life through the eyes of Peggy and as a result of Anna’s tireless research. She got straight to the point of the story without dragging on an introduction and the plot line moved steadily throughout. Although I read this in Kindle format, this book was nicely put together. Each section began with a photo and each chapter was marked with Eva Bruan’s initials in a Kleeblatt.   

I found it interesting how the author created similarities between Anna’s relationship with her husband Lowell and that of Eva and Hitler. It was clever in that it allows readers to build compassion about the situations both women were in. Eva was portrayed not in a cruel anti-Semitic way, but as a woman who was caring, absolutely devoted and very intelligent.

 I was pleased that this book wasn’t centered around, or bogged down with the politics of World War II. Instead it was more of a tale about friendship, sacrifices and legacies. 

The Munich Girl is a heartbreaking story with revelations from start to finish. I would highly recommend it to lovers of historical fiction. This would be especially of interest of those who enjoy reading about different perspectives during World War II.