Baby Jane Doe by Julie Miller (The Precinct Series Book 4)

Reopening the murder case of an infant media dubbed Baby Jane Doe didn't exactly stir up any favor with KCPD Police Commissioner Shauna Cartwright's critics, but she couldn't let a questionable confession slide. After witnessing hard-nosed Internal Affairs detective Eli Masterson in action during a botch bank robbery, the knew he was just the man to get the job done and unearth the truth. 

Still living with a tainted reputation due to his corrupt former partner ("In the Blink of an Eye"), Eli doesn't have any problem stirring the proverbial pot but when a stalker begins targeting Shauna his protective instincts take over. 

Unfortunately, the sexual attraction between the two might result in the most scandalous part of the endeavor. While there is an age difference between the two (she's older), giving in to temptation breaks some serious rules within the department. 

Briefly introduced in "Search and Seizure", Shauna is a mature career woman with two grown children in their twenties and an ex with a gambling addiction. She's juggling dues as the top brass and most public face of the department as well as a grisly murder and a possible saboteur on the force. 

Eli has some skeletons including a corrupt former partner (See "In the Blink of an Eye") and a kid sister who's an addict. Not exactly the pristine background needed to associate with a police commissioner let alone make something more permanent. But despite his younger age, his maturity is exampled by taking custody of his two younger sisters while a college student levels the playing field a bit for the two. 

These character traits make them relatable to the average reader. We may not be able to associate with their roles as commissioner or detective -- or hopefully the stalking. But for most of us, we can relate to having someone depend on us, either as a parent, sibling, child, or even employee; knowing someone else relies on us to do our job. This makes these characters some of my favorite in the series. 

The heat level is a little stronger than most as the temperature rises in the room from mere looks between the characters. Shauna finds it hard to understand why this younger hunk can't seem to keep his hands off her. Even her kids see the chemistry between them but the romance remains on the mild side of hot. 

Overall a really great story. While Ms. Miller kept you guessing who was responsible for all the issues, the culprit was easy to figure out, though his motivations and methods were certainly unique. On a side note, it should be noted that while the storyline was born in the imagination of the author, it was inspired by true events. Hopefully, it serves as a reminder of just some of the evil our police departments face every day, often without positive outcomes to their nightmares. For this I thank them. 

COVID - 19 Projects

On March 18, 2020, it was announced by my employer that we'd be going to a skeleton staff of essential employees only for the next month (at least) in response to the ever-increasing dangers of COVID-19 in our area. It's going to be an interesting time since we're in the middle of an annual audit and implementing new financial/personnel management software with a 'Go-Live" date of June 1st. Working part-time (essentially 20 hours per week) to get just the essential duties completed like cutting checks to vendors would be hard enough but keeping up with the audit and the new implementation was going to make this an adventure.

Even so, with the extra time COVID-19 has provided since we are pretty much stuck at home and the reduced hours at work, I decided to work on some craft projects that have been needing my attention as well as getting some books reviewed. My craft projects can be found at https://kristalsingletaryartprojects.blogspot.com/ while the book reviews will be posted here at The Review Room. The following list of projects/reviewed will be updated as I post. ENJOY!

March 20, 2020 - "No Safe Place" By Sherri Shackelford (5 Star Book Review)

March 23, 2020 - "Killer Amnesia" by Sherri Shackelford (5 Star Book Review)

March 25, 2020 - 1965 Chevy Stepside Truck (Model)

March 28, 2020 - Hope Flowers (Truth Be Told Art) Painting

April 2, 2020 - Lantern (Diamond Gem Painting)

April 8, 2020 - My COVID-10 Model Truck Fleet

April 12, 2020 - Fear Not Painting

April 15, 2020 - Topiary (Truth Be Told Art) Painting

April 22, 2020 - The Last Supper (Diamond Gem Painting)

April 26, 2020 - Butterfly, Lotus Flower, and Dragonfly Paintings

April 28, 2020 - Faith over Fear (Truth Be Told Art) Painting

May 24, 2020 - Coffee Cups (Truth Be Told Art) Painting

July 26, 2020 - Kobe, Michael & LeBron (Diamond Gem Painting)

Killer Amnesia by Sherri Shackelford (Released October 2019) 5 Star Review

 Create in me a clean heart, O God: and renew a right spirit within me. ~ Psalms 51:10

Deputy Liam McCallister's undercover work in the Gang Unit of the Dallas Police Department has him directing traffic in small-town Redbird, Texas as Deputy McCourt. Then a seemingly random but potentially fatal car accident puts him back into investigative mode. 

Journalist Emma Lyons awakens after the accident with no memory of who she is or what happened. Was it a disgruntled ex or someone she's investigating for her next book? When the old man Emma had talked to shortly before her accident turns up dead, the threats against her ratchets up considerably and keeps you turning pages long after you should be.

Tossed from foster home to foster home as a child and failing a friend resulting in her death, Liam feels undeserving of a normal life. Lying about who he is, keeps him distant but his hang-ups and insecurities make him just flawed enough to be relatable. Emma's emotional (and physical) journey to remember her past was written so skillfully you could almost feel her pain. The romance seemed a little rushed but the suspense came from trying to solve what happened to Emma -- as well as the potential for Liam to be called away to testify in Dallas. 

The overarching dilemma revolves around the frequent question of why God sometimes allows bad things to happen, stressing the need to trust in God when life seems out of control. The who and why of the story keeps you hooked from the beginning but the characters really drive the story. I highly recommend this story and the author is quickly becoming a must-read for romantic suspense.

Bonus: Supporting character Blanche Slattery is the owner of Blanche's B&B as well as Liam's landlady while in Redbird. She is an absolute hoot. Someone I'd love to spend an afternoon sitting on the porch sipping tea and listening to her stories. 

Definite 5 Stars!

Author's Page: Sherri Shackelford

Purchase Page:   Amazon   |   Apple iBooks  |   Harlequin

"No Safe Place" By Sherri Shackelford (Released January 2019) 5 Star Review

For what shall it profit a man if he shall gain the whole world and lose his own soul? ~ Mark 8:36

Raised by a cop, Beth knows she has to do something when she finds suspicious financial activity involving an offshore bank account. This isn't the first time she's encountered the name Cayman Holdings Limited. When she shared information about the company with her mentor, Timothy Swan, he ended up dead. She knows the only way to report the illegal activity without encountering the same fate she has to use the three-day weekend to disappear. Only things don't go as planned when she's attacked and nearly kidnapped in the parking garage on her way out. Co-worker Corbin rescues her from the assailants but his appearance itself brings up concerns for Beth. She's been burned before by an audit client who romanced her with the expectations she wouldn't turn him in for fraud. Could he be working for Cayman and trying to find out what she knows? 

Undercover for homeland security, Corbin has been watching Beth for weeks. She may seem innocent but her name keeps showing up in connection with other investigations and the evidence keeps stacking up against her. He'd been the case agent for Tim Swan before he was killed and worried his judgment has been clouded by his attraction for the pretty accountant. 

Ms. Shackelford's "No Safe Place" provides a compelling moral dilemma for Beth. She learns that the company she's working for is engaged in illegal activity but coming forward as a whistleblower might cost her life as well as her job. She's put into an almost no-win situation. She can't let the company get away with what they've been doing but in bringing them to justice, she's going to have to go on the run for the rest of her life. Even for someone without family, like Beth, that's not an easy decision. She's going to have to give up every friend she has, every relationship she's built as well as be wary of anyone she meets in the future. What if they recognize her? What if she accidentally reveals part of her past and it gets her (or someone else) killed? She's already lost her mentor Timothy. 

When the bullets start flying, Beth starts to second guess her decision, having to rely on her faith to stay the course. Then she finds out the one person she's gotten close to while dodging those bullets (Corbin) has been lying to her and maybe even believes she's at fault. 

Ms. Shackelford is no stranger to romance having written several historical romance novels but her contemporary romantic suspense debut takes you for a wild ride from the start and you better hold on tight.

5 STARS!!!

Author's Page: Sherri Shackelford

Purchase Page:   Amazon   |   Apple iBooks  |   Harlequin

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.


View all my reviews

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