Apr 24, 2022

Sunday Salon: ARCs Reviewed

 



The Lost: A Mace Reid K-9 Mystery by Jeffrey B. Burton
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
NetGalley ARC

I like K-9 mysteries and novels with dog partners for PIs. This series is new to me and I was pleasantly surprised at how much I liked the dog trainer Mace and his motley crew of dogs, including his main cadaver dog, Vira.

The dogs were personalized, individualized by their owner Mace, and dog lovers will enjoy them. The plot was spectacular in its twists and surprises and its cast of characters, a motley group of the good, the bad, and the ugly, interacting in amazing ways.

The Lost is an excellent K-9 mystery/thriller that I enjoyed tremendously.


View all my reviews



The Wild Girls by Phoebe Morgan, April 26, 2022, William Morrow
Genre: thriller, suspense, adventure set in Botswana
NetGalley ARC
Rating: five stars

The four "wild girls" were very close as adolescents, always sharing each other's secrets while they partied and had a good time. Two years later, leading separate lives without ever contacting each other after a feud, they are invited by one of the girls, Felicia, to her birthday party to be held in far off Botswana, all expenses paid. Who could resist?

Three of the girls fly in together and are dropped off by limousine at a remote and lonely safari resort in the plains, by the Limpopo River. But Felicia, their supposed host, doesn't appear. And the luxury resort seems deserted. The next suspenseful few days has surprises waiting for the girls at every turn, and ends with one of the three women fleeing for her life along the banks of the river, not knowing how to find other people or even a nearby town.

Plot, character delineation, setting and atmosphere, and excellent writing combine to make this a suspenseful thriller, with several surprises and twists at the end.




What's Coming To Me by Francesca Padilla
Seventeen-year-old Minerva is strangled by her mom's diagnosis of a failing heart that could take her at any time. She longs to get out of her small town and even perhaps finish school. The idea of taking revenge on her predatory boss at the ice cream stand where she works, has her thinking of ways to "take the cash and run". When she hears rumors of money  hidden in or near the ice cream stand, she and her friend CeCe try to find it.

A coming-of-age novel of a teen who has to live hand-to-mouth in straitened economic circumstances, cutting her schooling short to get a job and take care of herself and her mom, who is now in a home.

How she gets through this problem is the crux of this YA novel, but one for older adults as well, the story is moving and has its suspenseful moments, as Minerva and CeCe carry out their plan to find the hidden treasure. A very worthwhile novel of the struggles of young immigrant women to survive and thrive while on the low end of the economic and social scale.

What are you reading this week? 

Memes: The Sunday Post hosted by The Caffeinated BookreviewerAlso,  It's Monday: What Are You Readingand Sunday SalonStacking the ShelvesMailbox Monday

40 comments:

  1. I've a library copy of Wild Girls. Can't wait to read it! The other two books sound interesting too!

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  2. Thanks for sharing interesting books I hadn't heard of. I would probably like The Lost as an animal lover. I guess you didn't have difficulty starting in the middle of the series. And Wild Girls, I might have given it a pass as sounding truly creepy but the part about being on a safari caught my eye, as well as Botswana, the setting for my No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency series I've been reading lately.

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    1. The setting in Botswana in The Wild Girls adds a lot to the book.

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  3. All of these are new to me; thanks for sharing - the K-9 mystery series sounds good.

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  4. I haven’t heard of any of these books before, but I love a K-9 mystery! Thanks for sharing and have a wonderful week ahead.

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  5. I am curious about The Wild Girls. Enjoy your books and your week, and here are my WEEKLY UPDATES

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  6. That looks like a good mix of genres, I'm glad they were all winners for you!

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  7. All your books, but especially The Lost seems really good! I hope your upcoming week will be just as good on the reading front.

    Have a good one and thanks for visiting us!

    Elza Reads

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  8. Glad you had a great reading week! I hope this week is just as good for you.

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  9. The wild Girls sounds like a good one. I love a good suspenseful read, and the Botswana setting sounds fabulous.

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    1. The setting helped with the eerie atmosphere in the deserted resort.

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  10. Nice haul! I'm a dog lover so I know I'll enjoy The Lost: A Mace Reid K-9 Mystery

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  11. The books sound good. Although I'm a cat person, I have been interested in different K9 mysteries. I'll have to check this one out.

    Have a great week!

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    1. Hope you like the K-9 mystery. Dog books are so different from cat mysteries!

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  12. I'm glad you've been enjoying these books so much. I'll have to check out The Wild Girls.
    Have a great week and happy reading.

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    1. I was lucky to get some I enjoyed reading.

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  13. I've read one of Burton's K-9 mysteries and really liked Mace and his dogs, too. They make for a fun team. :)

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  14. This is what is so cool about visiting peoplpe for Sunday Salon, I get so many book suggestions!

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  15. Looks like you read some great books this week. I'm glad you enjoyed these books. I've never heard of any of them. Maybe when they release, I'll have to check them out.

    My Sunday Post

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  16. I love dogs so the first book looks good to me, anything with a K-9 unit! But then the Botswana book seems pretty unsettling .... oh my what a birthday trip.

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    1. The second book was a bit of an eye opener.

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  17. I'm glad to hear that you loved The Lost: A Mace Reid K-9 Mystery so much. Who doesn't love dog books?!

    The Wild Girls sounds promising, too.

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    1. It was quite an action packed thriller, but the dogs carried the book!

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  18. The Lost sounds like a good read. I love K-9 mysteries also.

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  19. LOVE the cover on THE WILD GIRLS.

    Have a wonderful week.

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  20. I love K-9 mysteries. I'll have to check out The Lost! Happy reading! :)

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