Larissa's 5 Loveys Review: Hangman {Absalom Kearney #2} by Stephan Talty

New York Times bestselling author Stephan Talty’s acclaimed fiction debut, Black Irish, won him comparisons to such thriller masters as Jo Nesbø, Karin Slaughter, and Tana French. Now, his chilling new novel brings back intrepid heroine Absalom Kearney, a driven police detective with a haunted past, trying to make a difference in a troubled town.

Hangman, Hangman, what do you see? Four little girls, as cute as can be. The eerie schoolyard chant still sends ripples of horror through North Buffalo. Not so long ago, serial killer Marcus Flynn preyed upon the community’s teenaged daughters—until he was cornered and shot in the head. But Flynn lived, carrying to prison the nickname “Hangman,” along with the secret of his last victim’s fate. Homicide cop Abbie Kearney wasn’t around during Hangman’s reign of terror. She hadn’t yet come home to wear her dad’s old badge in the tough Irish American stronghold known as “the County.” Abbie had never experienced firsthand the horror of Hangman. Until now.

Hangman, Hangman, where do they go? Down on the ground, where the daffodils grow. A corrections officer lies dead, a prison van stands empty . . . and somewhere out there, the monster who condemned innocents to death at the end of a rope watches and waits to strike again. Abbie leads a desperate manhunt through a city driven to its knees by fear, matching wits with a predator as brilliant as he is elusive. But as more victims are claimed, a rising tide of secrecy, paranoia, and politics forces her to realize that stepping beyond the law may be the only way to find justice. Because with each passing hour, the stakes grow higher—and Hangman’s noose gets tighter.

From Goodreads

• Publisher: Ballantine Book
• Release Date: March 13th, 2014
• Series: Absalom Kearney Series  
• Author's Website
• Buy The Book:

I confess, I am utterly obsessed with Mystery/Thriller/Pol. Procedural series. Danielle from ALPHA Reader got me hooked on Karin Slaughter and the rest as they say, was history.

Between paranormal novels and catching up with my beloved series, I find myself in search of new serial killery new series and lo and behold, Netgalley came to the rescue with Hangman. Obviously, I had to read the first book in the Absalom Kearney series, Black Irish, first. Thanks G-d I loved it!

I really enjoy a fish out of water story and Absalom is a fascinating fish to watch while she tries relentlessly to swim against the prejudicial current. Did I go too far with the analogy? Sorry lol

In Hangman Abbie is still that fish, maybe a little less so than in Black Irish, but she is still fighting against the fact that she is not seen as one of them. All this in a little town in yhe state of New York that probably has more Irish people than Ireland :)

I love me a great psychological/serial killer story with heart and this is exactly what Stephan Talty delivers in this this fantastic sequel. Abbie is such a lovable character that I just wanted to grab a beer with her and hear her rant all night.

I absolutely adored Hangman and I really hope Stephan Talty keeps telling Abbie's story. If you love Mystery/Thrillers like I do, this is definitely a series to watch!

Previously On The Night Huntress Series:

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Larissa's Release Day Review: Notorious {Max Revere #1} by Allison Brennan

 Notorious

by Allison Brennan

Maxine Revere has dedicated her life to investigating murders that the police have long since given up any hope of solving. A nationally renowned investigative reporter with her own TV show and a tough-as-nails reputation, Max tackles cold cases from across the country and every walk of life. But the one unsolved murder that still haunts her is a case from her own past.

When Max was a high school senior, one of her best friends was strangled and another, Kevin O’Neal, accused of the crime. To the disgrace of her wealthy family, Max stood by her friend, until she found out he lied about his alibi. Though his guilt was never proven, their relationship crumbled from the strain of too many secrets.

Now Max is home for Kevin’s funeral—after years of drug abuse, he committed suicide. She’s finally prepared to come to terms with the loss of his friendship, but she’s not prepared for Kevin’s sister to stubbornly insist that he didn’t kill himself. Or for an elderly couple to accost her at the airport, begging her to look into another murder at Max’s old high school. Max is more interested in the cold case at her alma mater than in digging around Kevin’s troubled life, but she agrees to do both. As Max uncovers dark secrets, she finds herself caught in a complicated web of lies that hit far too close to home. And it’s becoming increasingly clear that someone will do whatever it takes to make sure the truth stays buried.

• Release Date:  March 25th 2014 by Minotaur Books
• Author

Buy The Book:

**No Spoilers

I love how Allison Brennan does Mystery/Thrillers, so when I realized she was starting a brand new series with a new heroine, I jumped on the chance to read it =)

Brennan writes such great female leading characters and Max is no exception. I enjoyed how she is not really involved directly with the police, but she is actually an investigative reporter, which is more a hindrance than an asset when someone close to her dies unexpectedly and Max has to return to her home town and deal with all the crap she had thought she left behind.

Notorious is a fabulous start to a series that has a lot of great potential. If you enjoy Mystery/Thrillers this is definitely one book you should check out!

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Top 5 Sundays #184 - Favorite Book Covers of 2014 so far!

I Love great book covers!

Results:

Favorite Book Covers of 2014 so far! 75%

Movies/TV Shows that make you LOL! 25%

Total votes: 8

The theme for today is:

Favorite Book Covers of 2014 so far!

But first, a little bit about this feature and the rules to join in…

Every Sunday I will post a TOP 5 list on the blog. It can be about anything and every week I'll have a new theme {You can vote on next week’s theme on my RIGHT sidebar!} and I will ad the Mr.Linky bellow the post so you can do a list with the theme and add you link to it.

Rules:

1. Write a post listing your TOP 5 choices within the theme I chose (or was chosen on a poll) for the week.
2. Mention this Blog on the post and link back to it.
3. Fell free to use the Feature's image (there is a smaller size version of it bellow)
4. After you've finished your post, add you link (of the post, not your blog's main page) to the Mr.Linky at the end of that week's post.
5. If you don’t have a blog to post, just leave your list in the comments =)

*in no particular order

The Undead Pool by Kim Harrison

So cool to have Trent on the cover and the book is awesome too!

Alien Collective by Gini Koch

I love this cover! Dan dos Santos always delivers!

Night Broken by Patricia Briggs

Dan dos Santos can do NO wrong!

Bite Me by Shelly Laurenston

LOVE this cover!

Up From the Grave by Jeaniene Frost

Perfect cover for the end of the series... missing Bones on it though hehe

Attention 

Please HELP, Guys! 

If you have any theme ideas for the next Top 5 Sundays Posts, please leave them in the comments! NEED NEW IDEAS! Your input would be much appreciated!

Now I can’t wait to see who is in YOUR List of 

Favorite Book Covers of 2014 so far!

 Write you post and leave your link so i can check it out!

Hope you guys have fun with it!

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Larissa's 5 Loveys Review: Bite Me {Pride #9} by Shelly Laurenston

Livy Kowalski has no time for idiots. When you shapeshift into a honey badger, getting through life’s irritants is a finely honed skill. Until she gets stuck housing her nutso cousin and dealing with her dad’s untimely and unexplained demise.                       That’s where Vic Barinov comes in—or his house does. Vic can’t step outside without coming back to find Livy devouring his honey stash and getting the TV remote sticky. It gets his animal instincts all riled up. But he’ll have to woo her at high speed: all hell is breaking loose, and Livy is leading the charge…

From Goodreads

• Publisher: Brava
• Release Date: March 25th, 2014
• Series: Pride Series  
• Author's Website
• Buy The Book:

The hilarious and awesome word wizard is back! I love Shelly Laurenston books! She is my not so guilty pleasure, since I am not ashamed to love her books at all. She writes such funny and heartwarming characters that you can't help but fall hopelessly in love with every single one of them.

Yes yes, the character roster is getting fuller by the second, but it doesn't take long to catch up and get lost in the newest couple she is writing about. I for one will always stop whatever I am doing and get lost in Shelly's worlds and words, every time!

In Bite Me we get to see all out favorite previous characters in the background, which always gives me fuzzy feeling, but the main couple, Livy and Vic, is also pretty awesome and their story just as lovable as the others'. Where else can you see a Honey Badger shifter fall for a Hybrid shifter?

Shelly Laurenston thrives in writing any kind of relationship... Family, friends, lovers and that is extremely clear in Bite Me, where we get to see so many different family dynamics and they NEVER feel cookie cutter in the least. Shelly doesn't shy away from the negative either, I mean, not everybody likes everybody and she shows that is a very honest way that doesn't distract from the fun of reading her stories.

If you love Paranormal Romance, this series is a MUST! Right now! Go buy it, I'll wait...

Got it? Good! :)

Now if you are already a fan of Shelly's shifters, Bite Me won't disappoint, AT ALL!

 

Previously On The Pride Series:

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Marina's Review: Empress of the Night: A Novel of Catherine the Great (Catherine #2) by Eva Stachniak

Empress of the Night: A Novel of Catherine the Great (Catherine #2) by Eva Stachniak 


The follow-up to the #1 bestseller The Winter Palace--perfect for the readers of Hilary Mantel and Alison Weir. 
Catherine the Great, the Romanov monarch reflects on her astonishing ascension to the throne, her leadership over the world's greatest power, and the lives sacrificed to make her the most feared woman in the world--lives including her own...
Catherine the Great muses on her life, her relentless battle between love and power, the country she brought into the glorious new century, and the bodies left in her wake. By the end of her life, she had accomplished more than virtually any other woman in history. She built and grew the Romanov empire, amassed a vast fortune of art and land, and controlled an unruly and conniving court. Now, in a voice both indelible and intimate, she reflects on the decisions that gained her the world and brought her enemies to their knees. And before her last breath, shadowed by the bloody French Revolution, she sets up the end game for her last political maneuver, ensuring her successor and the greater glory of Russia.

• Release Date:  March 25th 2014
• Publisher: Doubleday Canada
• Author's web site

* NovSpoilers

Empress of the Night was the first book I read in 2014 and it was a magnificent way to start a new year!


Empress of the Night is a unique and impressive book; the narration puts us within Catherine’s mind, we are privy to her thoughts as we watch her overrule her husband, as she takes total control of the country and as she handles her numerous lovers.


Catherine came to Russia as a young and naïve German Duchess and as the pages of the book pass we watch her transform into an Empress wise and manipulative, into a woman governed by vanity and lust, into a mother trying to balance her children and her grandchildren.


“November 5 1796: Her right arm is dangling, limp, as if it belongs to someone else. Pain shoots up inside her skull. Something is wrong.” 


In her final hours after the stroke that took her life at the age of sixty-seven Catherine had ruled Russia for thirty four years in an era that was later called “ the Golden Age of the Russian Empire ’’.

*Arc provided via Netgalley in exchange for honest review.

                                                      

                       Don’t Forget to Vote for the Theme for

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Top 5 Sundays #183 - Auto-buy Authors!

I ended up with a list full of TV couples hehe

Can't wait to see yours!

Results:

Auto-buy Authors! 66.67%

Fictional Worlds I Wouldn't Like to be a Part of! 33.33%

Total votes: 6

The theme for today is:

Auto-buy Authors!

But first, a little bit about this feature and the rules to join in…

Every Sunday I will post a TOP 5 list on the blog. It can be about anything and every week I'll have a new theme {You can vote on next week’s theme on my RIGHT sidebar!} and I will ad the Mr.Linky bellow the post so you can do a list with the theme and add you link to it.

Rules:

1. Write a post listing your TOP 5 choices within the theme I chose (or was chosen on a poll) for the week.
2. Mention this Blog on the post and link back to it.
3. Fell free to use the Feature's image (there is a smaller size version of it bellow)
4. After you've finished your post, add you link (of the post, not your blog's main page) to the Mr.Linky at the end of that week's post.
5. If you don’t have a blog to post, just leave your list in the comments =)

*in no particular order

Shelly Laurenston

I love everything she writes!

Ilona Andrews

I always looking forward to what they come up with next =)

Gini Koch

I will stop everything to read her newest =)

Molly Harper

Love anything paranormal she writes!

Rachel Caine

From Weather Wardens to Zombies going through Vamps, she can do it all!

Attention 

Please HELP, Guys! 

If you have any theme ideas for the next Top 5 Sundays Posts, please leave them in the comments! NEED NEW IDEAS! Your input would be much appreciated!

Now I can’t wait to see who is in YOUR List of 

Favorite TV/Movie Couples!

 Write you post and leave your link so i can check it out!

Hope you guys have fun with it!

Don’t Forget to Vote for the Theme for

My TOP 5 Sundays Post on the Poll at the RIGHT sidebar!

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