5+ Stars!!!!!! Do-Or-Die Bridesmaid by Julie Miller

Do-Or-Die Bridesmaid by Julie Miller

Thank you, Julie Miller. "Do-Or-Die Bridesmaid" made my year and it's only February 2nd. We met Conor Wildman in "The Precinct: Bachelors in Blue" series but he and Laura Karr (with a K) totally rock together...and apart. She's no damsel-in-distress while he's got a few kinks in his shining armor but they are so perfect together.

Back of the Book:

"Always the bridesmaid,never a killer’s target…until now.

Back in his hometown for a wedding, Detective Conor Wildman reunites with his ex-girlfriend’s sister, Laura Karr, once the tomboy next door. Now Laura is a beautiful woman…and someone wants her dead. Conor is the man to protect her and catch the killer, but will one heated kiss jeopardize their precious friendship? Or will it prove that he can trust her with his wounded heart?"

Two things Julie Miller writes well: Strong, successful, REAL women who are afraid to go after what they want and flawed but honest heroes with the integrity to know right from wrong AND make sure justice is served. "Do-Or-Die Bridesmaid" is the latest of MANY stories Julie Miller has written in her career but she doesn't crank out the same formulaic storylines over and over. From the "WITSEC Dating Program" to sting using an old historic location and cutting edge technology, she produces a BLOCKBUSTER level novel with characters you come to know and love.

Laura is an educational travel consultant. Some who arranges the travel itinerary for school trips. Who knew you could make a career at doing that but I googled it. There are nearly 3,000 educational travel consultant positions currently available on Indeed.com! It's something that fits well with the character as well as the storyline and so original! She had a major teenage crush on Conor but he only saw her as his ex-girlfriend's tomboy kid sister. That is until he comes back to town for her sister's wedding to another guy and sees how much she's grown up. Fighting the new attraction, Conor (ex-US Marshal) tries to help when she's targeted by men who killed her friend but soon discovers she's more than just his mother's best friend's daughter. And he's not as alone as he thought he was in protecting her.

Bonus: I always image various actors as characters in the stories I read. Eric Martsolf and Katharine McPhee got cast in this one

but the roles from Brothers in Blue were also cast when I read them.

AJ Buckley (Sonny, SEAL Team) was Duff

Jay Harrington (Deacon Kay, SWAT) was Thomas

Jesse Spencer (Matt Casey, Chicago Fire) was Keir

David Boreanaz (Seeley Booth, BONES) was Niall

All of them were included in Conor and Laura's story in an OH SO SPECTACULAR WAY!!! Not giving away spoilers but I swear I saw Shemar Moore, Alex Russell, Max Thieriot, and even Gary Sinise in that last scene. Amazingly descriptive! Wonderfully written! Fabulously executed! Thank you.

BTW, Vanessa Owen needs her own redemption story. Kansas City Secrets would have been a good title but used already (oops). An intentional or accidental throwback to Rosie and Max? So love the connections because it makes me want to go back and read previous stories, but love how each is stand alone so I don't have to remember all the details from one story to read the next.

Now...what to read next.....

4 Star Review - Saving Justice by Susan Crawford

Saving Justice by Susan Crawford
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I had the pleasure of receiving an Advanced Read Copy (ARC) of Susan Crawford’s “Saving Justice” published through Redbud Press. Unfortunately, a death in the family means I’m late getting this review out but the book is still available in print and electronic format so it’s not too late to pick up your own copy, something I recommend you do if you are a fan of clean contemporary Christian romance with an underlying inner city theme.

The story revolves around elementary school teacher Kinley Reid who lost her brother to gang-related violence and now struggles to help her students who are at-risk for the same outcome. Self-made real estate entrepreneur Nash McGuire, however, wants nothing to do with the neighborhood or poverty he grew up in. Kinley and Nash meet when one of her students, fourth grader Justice, vandalizes his Nash’s expensive car. As a form of punishment to the child rather than jail time, Kinley gets Nash to agree to let Justice repay some of the costs for repairing his car by doing ‘community service’ at the house Nash is trying to renovate and sell.

Ms. Crawford did a superb job showing how one must often step outside of their comfort zone to truly meet the needs of God’s people. A true Jesus-follower cannot expect to always sit at home or within the four walls of their church building to share God’s message. Kinley exhibits this through her willingness to work in a rough area of Oklahoma City to provide quality education opportunities for the disadvantaged children in the area, but it doesn’t just stop there. She worries when one of her students fails to show up at school and goes to his house to ask about him, stepping in when he gets caught vandalizing a car and convincing the owner not to press charges. Instead, she persuades Nash to allow the juvenile delinquent to work off the cost of the damages by helping out at the house Nash is renovating in the neighborhood.

But not everything is wine and roses. Nash just wants to finish the renovations and get out of the neighborhood, which only brings up bad memories of his own troubled childhood but he can’t seem to say ‘No’ to the persistent teacher. Justice finds himself torn between family loyalty to help bring in much needed money despite the actual method being illegal or following his teacher’s guidance and getting an education so he can live a better life without having to sacrifice his morals. Brilliant writing details the struggle between doing what’s right and what’s comfortable while adding depth to the characters that make you feel like you’ve known them all your life or could be them rather just reading about them for a few hours.

A few small details prevent me from giving a perfect 5 stars for this book but it is close. At one point, Kinley and Nash follow Justice with one of his family members who is known to be a drug dealer and all around bad dude. Nash, quite logically, points out how dangerous following this guy might be and, even though I personally am a Jesus follower, the tirade Kinley goes into about how she had to do it and is basically obligated as a Christian to do so totally turned me off. I get we have to step out on faith and take risks at times but to put yourself into danger when you don’t have to can’t be what God wants. If I had been Nash at this point in the story, I would have told her to stop and let me out of the car, but it may just be a person thing for me. It just seemed very unlikely that someone who wasn’t a follower, like Nash, would have continued to help her when she seemed bent on putting herself into danger. For a new follower or someone just getting their feet wet in Christian fiction might feel alienated by this but fortunately the tirade is only a short portion of the one page, so it can be skipped.

The second thing that bothered me somewhat was how contrived some of the situations putting Nash and Kinley together seemed. First, he’s a successful real estate professional. I’m sure he has contractors that help him with his other properties so it didn’t make sense to me that he would work on this one by himself, especially since it caused so much emotional turmoil. Also, it didn’t so much bother me that he parked his fancy car in front of the house while he worked in this bad neighborhood because I’ve seen it with some of the house flipping shows on TV. However, this nice fancy car caused a problem when you think about the tools he needed to carry for the work on the house. He could have had the material delivered but leaving tools inside this house that didn’t have any security seemed very foolish. In addition, after working all day with drywall, wood dust, etc., he just gets into the plush car and drives home? I think it would have made more sense if he had just stopped by the job site in this car when it was vandalized instead of actually working on the house. Then he could have brought a work truck back to work, which would have stood out less in the neighborhood as well.

Overall, Ms. Crawford weaves a very entertaining romance that presents a strong inner city theme. With just a few tweaks, it would have been a 5 star book for me.


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Music Monday: "I'm Not Who I Was" by Brandon Heath

Week 2 of Music Monday and the next song that I found that inspires me is Brandon Heath's "I'm Not Who I Was". A few years back I allowed myself to be led by my ego and away from the Christian life I'd been raised to follow. I hurt a lot of people but most significantly I hit bottom where my choice was either to end it or renew my faith and move forward toward the life God wanted for me. As you can see, I chose the latter and found a church family where I was able to rededicate my life to Christ and His work. Now when I get thanked for doing something, I know it's not me. I'm just a vessel and blessed to make the impact on others' lives as I work to share God's love for us all. Some people may feel that a cheater, a liar, a thief, etc. never change and I used to feel that way, but today I can actually faithfully and honestly say "I'm Not Who I Was". While I know through His blood, Christ has forgiven me but one day I hope that I can earn forgiveness from those I've hurt in my past. Songwriter: Brandon Heath I wish you could see me now I wish I could show you how I'm not who I was I used to be mad at you A little on the hurt side too But I'm not who I was I found my way around To forgiving you Some time ago But I never got to tell you so I found us in a photograph I saw me and I had to laugh You know, I'm not who I was You were there, you were right above me And I wonder if you ever loved me Just for who I was When the pain came back again Like a bitter friend It was all that I could do To keep myself from blaming you I reckon it's a funny thing I figured out I can sing Now I'm not who I was I write about love and such Maybe 'cause I want it so much I'm not who I was I was thinking maybe I I should let you know I am not the same But I never did forget your name Hello Well the thing I find most amazing In amazing grace Is the chance to give it out Maybe that's what love is all about I wish you could see me now I wish I could show you how I'm not who I was

Music Monday - "Why Can't We" by the Isaacs

In the first of my new series of "Music Monday" I'm starting with a powerful song by The Isaacs that has really touched my heart. The song takes a meaningful look at forgiveness, not just of others but of ourselves, asking if God can let go of all our mistakes...why can't we?

Throughout my life, I've struggled with past mistakes, wishing I could take them back, wishing I could start over. I can't go back, but through God's grace, I can start over knowing that despite my mistakes, He still loves me even when others have abandoned me. He hasn't given up on me even though my human failings don't make me worthy. He makes me worthy. So though I will always be plagued by those past demons, I can learn to forgive myself.




Written by Jimmy Yeary, Sonya, Isaacs, and Rebecca Isaacs Bowman, the lyrics to "Why Can't We" are:

"He lies awake there all alone most every night

Looking back on all of his mistakes
Wishing through the tears that he could just go back
'Cause there's a lot of things he'd like to change
He just can't forgive himself and forget
Even though God already did

If He can love someone and find the good within
In spite of what they've done, no matter where they've been
If He can let it go and set the debtor free
If He can keep forgiving you and me
Why can't we

There've been times I've been so hurt by someone else
I didn't wanna give a second chance
I let all the bitterness take control
And took grace into my own hands
But even Jesus said, "Whoever's done no wrong
Let him throw the first stone"

If He can love someone and find the good within
In spite of what they've done, no matter where they've been
If He can let it go and set the debtor free
If He can keep forgiving you and me
Why can't we

He was hated and rejected, betrayed by those He trusted
Even hanging on the cross, He said, "Father, please forgive them"

If He can love someone and find the good within
In spite of what they've done, no matter where they've been
If He can let it go and set the debtor free
If He can keep forgiving you and me
Why can't we

Why can't we"

Book Review - Out of Hiding by Rachel Dylan (5 Stars)

Out of Hiding by Rachel Dylan
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Actually I was going to grade this a 4 ½ stars out of 5 but can’t decide if what’s bothering me is just a pet peeve or really a plot hole so I gave the author the benefit of the doubt and rounded it to 5 stars.

Before we get to that issue, let’s talk a little about the plot. PI Sadie comes across a missing teenager who just might be a victim of a human-trafficking ring run by the man who killed Sadie’s parents resulting in her being put into WitSec for the last twenty years. She teams up with FBI agent Kip Moore who is working the human-trafficking ring but doesn’t know of Sadie’s connection to the ring leader. Yup, lots of tension here.

First, we’re praying for the missing teenager’s rescue before something bad can happen. Then, the author has us worried about how the ring leader’s family feud will impact our hero/heroine. Then, we find out the DEA has been running its own investigation on the family without the FBI’s knowledge. Then to top it all off, the ring leader finds out who Sadie really is. Yikes!

If I didn’t have an ulcer before then I would now. Geez, talk about putting the couple through the ringer.

Now back to the issue I had. Several times a foster care group home was mentioned as possibly a place that the human-trafficking ring was getting its girls but there was no resolution to this. Maybe I was supposed to imply with the rounding up of the ring in Mexico that the group home was also taken care of, but it just felt like a plot hole that wasn’t resolved. Maybe the author plans to use this for a sequel. *grin* That sure would make me happy.

I have to admit I had to keep reminding myself Ms. Dylan was a debut author. Not the normal “It’s a debut author, so I need to...” whatever concession I come up with. This author writes like a long-term author and I had to keep telling myself to slow down and enjoy it because she didn’t have any other works out there for me yet. (Hopefully, it won’t be long *wink wink*)

I can’t remember another debut author that automatically made it to my auto-buy list after the first book. Yes, several debut authors may have gotten a “I might try them again” out of me but Ms. Dylan has found herself a fan for life.


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Book Review: The Doctor's Devotion (Eagle Point Emergency, #1) by Cheryl Wyatt

The Doctor's Devotion by Cheryl Wyatt
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Cover Blurb:  When he fled Eagle Point years ago, former air force trauma surgeon Mitch Wellington left only broken dreams behind. Now he's back with a new dream—opening a trauma center in the rural area and saving lives. He hopes to hire the quick-thinking nurse who impressed him during an emergency. But Lauren Bates lost her faith and doesn't believe she deserves to help anyone. Mitch knows firsthand what loss feels like. And it'll take all his devotion to show Lauren that sometimes the best medicine is a combination of faith, community—and love.

After losing a patient and becoming disenchanted with her former profession as a nurse, Lauren Bates decides to open a sewing shop with a friend in Texas. But when her aging grandfather needs her, she rushes home to Illinois for the summer.

Enter former Air Force trauma surgeon Mitch Wellington, who has returned to rural Eagle Point with the dream of opening a trauma center and saving lives. Mitch has heard a lot about Lauren from her grandfather but she’s not comfortable with how close the two men have gotten in her absence.

When Lauren accompanies her grandfather and Mitch to the ribbon cutting for the trauma center, she learns just how important this center is to the area when a major emergency occurs. Short staffed, she must put aside her fears and step up to help those in need. Despite her low self-esteem due to the past tragedy, Lauren’s skills as a nurse totally blow Mitch away and he starts pursuing her as a nurse for his trauma center.

Of course, things don’t stay strictly professional and attraction develops between the two as the summer progresses. But things aren’t all wine and roses for the couple. Lauren’s commitment to her friend in Texas and Mitch’s dedication to his new trauma center mean they could torn apart before they truly get a chance to explore this relationship.

Ms. Wyatt’s has an uncanny ability to convey the growth of these characters, both spiritually and emotionally, makes this book very hard to put down. Her characters endure realistic struggles of loss, broken promises, money issues, etc. and make them all the more relatable to the reader. She puts them through situations that test their faith and make them set up to the plate just like we have to do every day of our lives. The plot is well thought out with multi-dimensional characters that will keep you engaged and intrigued.

P.S. There is a specific part of the story where I could almost hear Kenny Chesney singing in the background about his tractor. It’s a very amusing scene and just more evidence of how Ms. Wyatt can draw her readers into the story. Well done!

For more on Cheryl Wyatt and her books, check out her site at http://www.cherylwyatt.com

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Book Review: Police Business by Julie Miller (Book #2 in the Precinct Series)

Police Business by Julie Miller
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

From Ms. Miller's website: "Police Business Book #2 in the Precinct

Cop in Shining Armor

While investigating a reported crime, Detective A.J. Rodriguez discovered there wasn't a trace of any murder having been committed! But hearing-impaired heiress Claire Winthrop insisted she'd stumbled upon a slain employee in her father's high-rise building and claimed she could ID the hit man. Although the lack of evidence pointed to an open-and-shut case of a pampered socialite clamoring for attention, A.J. sniffed a deadly cover-up. Powerfully drawn together, the street-tough lawman soothed the shell-shocked princess with a tantalizing kiss that bewitched both their hearts. However, when A.J. pulled Claire into his dark, dangerous world, he knew he'd better stick to police business---or the killer could permanently silence his beloved witness . . ."

Ms. Miller penned a great mystery here that had you guessing until the end. Her ability to take the little things we (as hearing individuals) take for granted and spin it into a comprehensive, complex story was just amazing. And the players involved – the father, the uncle, the security chief, the secretary, the temp – they all had me second guessing myself at every turn about what happened and whodunit.

If you’ve been reading the Taylor Clan/Precinct series from the beginning, you’ll recognize A.J. as youngest Taylor brother Josh’s partner from The Rookie. I had pegged A.J. as sort of the serious workaholic compared to Josh’s more laid back temperament but I didn’t realize until this story just how far it went. You get to see who Josh and A.J. work together in the Prologue for this story if you didn’t get to read the other.

His father had been trying to tell A.J. something was going on at the company where his father worked as a janitor but it didn’t weigh high enough on rebellious teen A.J.’s list of priorities at the time for him to be concerned. Then his father is murdered and his whole life is flipped on its axis.

A.J. straightens out his life and becomes a cop but he hasn’t been able to bring his father’s killer to justice. When the Fourth Precinct receives a call from the very company his father used to work for, he figures this might be his chance.

When he gets there, he finds the owner’s daughter, Claire, claiming she witnessed a murder. Only there’s no body. No blood. No evidence at all that a crime has been committed. Even when the woman Claire thought was murdered calls from vacation to say she’s fine, the seemingly pampered socialite doesn’t change her story. Only there seems to be too many people in her social circle trying to pressure her to do just that.

Did she or didn’t she see someone murdered? Is this murder related to what happened to his father? What would the killer do to Claire when he realized he’d left a witness?

If I told you the answers, you wouldn’t read the book. And if you like ultimate suspense and mystery with a healthy dose of tender romance and awe-inspiring love, this is definitely one you’d want to tag for your TBR pile. Pick it up now at Amazon and check out Ms. Miller’s site for more information on these books and more.


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