Her One Mistake by Heidi Perks Book Review

It would appear I now have another go-to author on my growing list of favorite authors. This is the first book I’ve read by this author and I’m sure it won’t be my last. I devoured most of this one in one sitting. I was that intrigued and invested in the story of Harriet and Charlotte.

Charlotte is the best friend of Harriet, in fact the only friend of Harriet. Harriet moved to Dorset at her husband Brian’s insistence. It all started when Charlotte was tasked with taking Alice, Harriet and Brian’s daughter, to a school fair. How wrong that went! Charlotte herself had some issues that she also kept buried.

Harriet asked Charlotte to take Alice to the fair because she was enrolled in a bookkeeping class. These two things, leaving Alice with someone else and the class, were different for Harriet being somewhat of a recluse. Why did Harriet ask Charlotte to watch Alice when she had never left Alice with anyone before? Harriet also found out a truth that she was least expecting.

Brian … the husband. He certainly gives off some vibes that are none too pleasant.

Angela … the police liaison. I think she was picking up more going on in Brian and Harriet’s relationship than she actually admitted to.

Detective Rawlings … she sure had some eyerolling moments trying to get to the truth.

This tale is told in the voice of Charlotte and the voice of Harriet, and I was impressed with the differences in the two voices but the same storyline as to what happened. This is the kind of book I like to read – one that keeps you guessing until the end. I thought I had this one figured out, wrong. Then, I thought I had it figured out again, wrong.

I will add that this tale of master manipulation may be triggering to some readers who have ‘been there, done that.’ I found myself relating to Harriet regarding being manipulated by Brian with words alone, not many books have affected me on that level. Please know if you have experienced anything like that you are seen, you are heard, you are valued.

What's Left Unsaid by Emily Bleeker Book Review

 

Hannah … I had to admire this journalist’s persistence and resilience. She found herself without a job, without a boyfriend, without a steady place to be. Off she goes to Senatobia to take care of her mamaw (grandmother). Along the way, she finds a new job, a few new friends, and a story she cannot let go.

Hannah was ‘banished’ to the basement to put all the old files into a computer system. In the boringness of doing this task, she ran across a letter from a woman named Evelyn. To say it piqued her interest is mild. This was it! This was her chance to redeem herself.

Senatobia is a town in Mississippi, and Evelyn’s story was from the 1930s. Way back then … well, let’s just say some folks haven’t changed their minds in today’s world about certain things, so when Hannah forms a friendship with Guy, the local schoolteacher, some folks didn’t approve. I, personally, was rooting for them! I enjoyed reading about the attraction these two had for each other, yet they didn’t know what to do about it. Their budding relationship was full of ups and downs.

Hannah also was dealing with a lot of self-doubt which would throw her mind into a bunch of chaos.

But, chasing Evelyn’s story gave her purpose, gave her something to cling to, gave her someone she could relate to (granted Evelyn was long-since gone).

I had no idea that this story was actually based on a true story from the author’s own family tree until I read the Acknowledgements. That made it, to me at least, more interesting. What happened to Evelyn way back then, or to anyone, should not have happened. I was actually shocked when the big reveal of what happened to her was revealed.

In this story, you’ll find politics, broken relationships, healing relationships, major family dynamics, an attraction between two people who didn’t know what to do with that attraction, healing for Hannah, personal growth for Hannah, the closing of the newspaper the Record which was kind of healing in a sense, and a perseverance to find a truth that no one wanted exposed.

Murder in the Appalachians by Susan Furlong New Release and Book Review

 

Help me congratulate Susan on her newest release! Here’s the blurb:

On the run in the mountains…

with a killer on their trail.

After unearthing secrets from her late brother’s police notebook, journalist Emma Hayes discovers his death was no accident—he was murdered. Only someone doesn’t want Emma to find out the connection to the cold case her brother was investigating…and they’ll kill to keep it that way. Now Emma must rely on local ER doctor Logan Greer to help her stay alive and follow a trail of elusive evidence. But as they unravel a conspiracy, they realize that the killer could be anyone hiding in the mountains…

 

My Review:

This book started out like I like mysteries to start … with Emma getting right into the heart of matters. Her twin brother, Daniel, has left her some clues in a notebook in one of their childhood hiding spots and someone decided they wanted the information contained within said notebook.

Following her brother’s clues, Emma finds herself in all kinds of trouble and meets the handsome Logan Greer, the local ER doctor, but Logan has his own set of issues and wasn’t expecting to meet anyone as captivating to him as Emma.

I enjoyed reading about how Emma and Logan went in search of clues, how Sheriff Pruitt was getting exasperated with these two amateur detectives, how some of the local characters were involved, and finally who the whodunnit turned out to be. I liked all the intertwining backstories and how each of these characters battled with their faith, coming full circle to an ending that was satisfying to me as a reader. Emma and Logan have just the right amount of attraction for my particular reading taste, the right amount of inner struggles with their faith. I also liked the pacing of this tale and all the ‘smaller’ characters that helped bring color to the telling of this tale.

Tempest of Annabel's Lighthouse by Jaime Jo Wright New Release

 

Help me congratulate Jaime on her newest release! Here’s the blurb:

Where the lighthouse no longer illuminates, ghostly lore and legends emerge . . .

1874
A battered woman awakens atop a forgotten gravesite by Lake Superior's southern shore. Identified only by the locket around her neck inscribed with the name Rebecca, she seeks refuge with an elderly lighthouse keeper. But as Rebecca struggles to remember who she is, she finds herself haunted by the lingering memories of Annabel, a mysterious woman who perished in the lake's unforgiving waves years earlier. With the spirit of Annabel seemingly reawakened, and an unknown adversary on the hunt to silence Rebecca once and for all, more is at stake than reclaiming her own memories. Rebecca must reclaim Annabel's as well.

Present Day
Author and researcher Shea Radclyffe escapes to the lighthouse outside a historic Michigan mining town to seek clarity about her failing marriage. Instantly drawn to the lighthouse's landlord, Shea contends with the legend of Annabel's vengeful ghost and a superstitious community that has buried the truth about a current murder. As the secrets harbored around Annabel's lighthouse unravel, Shea must navigate a fight between torn loyalty, self-discovery, and the haunting forces of love.

. . . demanding vengeance for secrets that should have drowned a century before.

No Rest for the Wicked by Wes Blalock New Release

 

Help me congratulate Wes on his new release! Here are the details:

National Parks are thought of as places of safety, right before people disappear into the woods, run off the edge of a cliff, or find themselves impaled on the wrong end of an elk. But while tourists may view parks as nothing more than playgrounds or theme parks with more mosquitoes, the wilderness offers ample shadows where motives can be hidden, evidence can be lost, and dangerous people can conduct their nefarious affairs. Accompany Cary Valley National Park Law Enforcement Park Ranger Huittsuu “Birdie” McLaren as she protects visitors to California’s Sierra Nevada Mountains and:

• Rescues CalFire Firefighters cut off—accidentally or by design—by a raging wildfire.
• Hangs off the side of a mountain after the rescue of a climber goes horribly wrong.
• Recovers the body of a woman who died in a suspicious fall.
• Finds footprints in the snow that lead to a deeper, darker secret.
• Tracks a mysterious, deadly animal loose in the park, its presence already responsible for one visitor death.
• Moonlights as a dishwasher following a traumatic event, only to discover a newer, uglier truth.
• Finds a special young woman searching for answers to a century old mystery.
• Leads a posse of deputies into the burning wilderness to capture a group of runaway prisoners.
• Is snatched by sadistic killers and must fight to find a way out.
• Learns the depths of love and loss while investigating the death of a family in the park.
• Assists in tracking a kidnapper and his victim in a desperate race to save a young girl.

Plus, join some of Birdie’s allies, acquaintances, and friends as they feature in their own stories included in this collection.