3.5 Stars Shadow of Regret by Barbara Goss

September 7, 2021August 6, 2021 Julie Gilbert Audiobooks, Christian, romance, Western Barbara Goss, Christian romance, Tom Jordan

Series: The Shadow Series Book 3

Narrated by Tom Jordan

Run Time: 3 hrs and 29 mins

Genre: Christian Romance

Summary:

Rose has been hopelessly in love with Quinn. He’s suddenly on the marriage market but he’s broken, so she has to put humpty dumpty back together again.

Additional Comments:

For a clean book, this Christian western talks an awful lot about sex. I’m not even sure it’s named once, but about 80% of the book is some sort of reference to Quinn’s messed up life or the problems that gives his new marriage.
For a womanizer, this dude gets tricked an awful lot.
There’s some excitement and danger in the middle and end of the book.
I would not have picked it up based on the cover. It fits the genre right, but that’s about it. The title doesn’t mean much either, except that it ticks a box for the series.
Narration was fine. I like the narrator. He does a credible job with male and female characters. He also fits westerns reasonably well.
I did like the amount of action in this book compared to some of the author’s other works.
There was conflict, but most of the characters came in 1 of 2 shades: saintly or drunk good-for-nothings.
I like Rose’s side business.
The fix to Quinn’s marriage was a bit of a cop out, but it worked.
Rose’s attempt to be more seductive was hilarious.

Conclusion:

This series can be read in any order. You pretty much know what you’re going to get with this author. She’s pretty reliable for clean, Christian romance set in the west.

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Many of my 50 audible titles are listed on Audiobooks Unleashed.
Whether you’re looking for mystery or suspense or fantasy, I’ve got a title for you. Free codes are probably on audiobooks unleashed.
Normal links go to audible. *The Amazon labeled links are affiliate links. That means I get a very small payment from Amazon if you go through with a purchase.*
Note: Filter by US if you’re looking for those codes as many titles are out.
Ones I think may still have US codes: Reshner’s Royal Ranger, Never Again, Innova, The Golden City Captives, The Holy War, Reclaim the Darklands, Eagle Eyes, Treachery Makes it Tense, Ashlynn’s Dreams Shorts, The Dark Side of Science, Ashlynn’s Dreams, Nadia’s Tears, Malia’s Miracles, and Varick’s Quest
There are plenty of UK codes, but not many US ones left.

Redeemer Chronicles (Fantasy)

Awakening – Redeemer Chronicles Book 1, MG fantasy (Amazon) (free codes)
The Holy War – Redeemer Chronicles Book 2, MG fantasy (Amazon) (free codes)
Reclaim the Darklands – Redeemer Chronicles Book 3, MG fantasy (Amazon) (free codes)
River’s Edge Ransom – Prequel to Redeemer Chronicles (Amazon) (email devyaschildren @ gmail.com for free codes)

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Devya’s Children Series Links:

Ashlynn’s Dreams Shorts – short stories featuring Jillian. (Amazon) (free codes)
The Dark Side of Science – official prequel to Devya’s Children; Genetically altered kids fight for the right to live. (Amazon) (Please email devyaschildren @ gmail.com for free codes)
Ashlynn’s Dreams – Genetically altered Dream Shaper learns her gift. (Amazon) (free codes)
Nadia’s Tears – Jillian tries to awaken her sister, Nadia, from a coma. (Amazon) (free codes)
Malia’s Miracles – Jillian and her siblings try to save a friend’s mother. (Amazon) (free codes)
Varick’s Quest – Jillian and Danielle get kidnapped. Nadia’s also in trouble. (Amazon) (free codes)
More Scifi:
Reshner’s Royal Ranger (epic sci-fi) just made it there. (Amazon) (free codes)

Guardian Angel Files:

Spirit’s Bane – Allister and Mina are training to be Guardians. Satan’s out to get them. (Amazon) (free codes)
Kindred Spirits – Mina’s exiled to Earth. Allister’s stuck in the Heavens. (Amazon) (free codes)

4/5 Stars Trespasses by Anne Patrick

September 6, 2021August 23, 2021 Julie Gilbert Audiobooks, Christian, mystery Anne Patrick, Leonor A Woodworth, wounded heroes

Wounded Heroes 2

Narrated by Leonor A Woodworth

Run Time: 5 hrs and 55 mins

Summary:

When the bodies of 3 women show up in a US senator’s back yard, FBI Special Agent Gabe Sullivan crosses paths with Mackayla Kensington, a freelance forensic sketch artist.

Additional Comments:

Of course, Gabe and Mackayla are attracted to each other. And of course, there’s a killer out there trying to kill the lady. The book fits the formula perfectly and still works.
Seems everybody in the book has a tragic past, except the bad guy.
It’s not quite money and power = evil, but it’s pretty darn close.
The PI side was a bit of a stretch in that it relied upon a few convenient things, but that’s fine.
Characters are likable. They’re not super memorable, but they’re likeable.
Performance fell in the decent realm.
Clean book. Christian themes were reasonably well handled. There’s one questionable use of God’s name, but I don’t think the character meant it that way.
There’s not much suspense. Things happen, but one never really gets the feeling Mackayla could be in real danger.
It’s a fine story. I would read more by the author.
The title doesn’t make much sense to the story. It fits the genre okay though.

Conclusion:

If you enjoy Christian romantic suspense and have a free afternoon, this is a light one. Go for it.

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Redeemer Chronicles (Fantasy)

Devya’s Children Series Links:

Guardian Angel Files:

4.5/5 Stars Charlotte Redbird, Ghost Coach by Sharon Buchbinder

September 4, 2021August 23, 2021 Julie Gilbert Audiobooks, cozyish, Paranormal, romance Rebecca Winder, Sharon Buchbinder

Series: Cat’s Paw Cove 12

Narrated by Rebecca Winder

Summary:

Charly Redbird moves to Florida after her business as a life coach hits a speedbump in the form of a put-out customer.

Additional Comments:

Moving to FL brings her close to a handsome real estate broker who happens to be an empath.
Thankfully, there wasn’t too much dancing around the point with the romance angle. He fell for her pretty quickly, and she did the same.
What makes or breaks a cozy is the side characters and setting. Cat’s Paw Cove sounds like a hopping weird place to be.
Charly’s ability to chat with ghosts and cats is amusing. There’s even a mini-mystery of sorts for her to solve.
Charly freaking out that she’s adopted was dumb, but she got over it quickly.
Content Comments: some cursing. Some skirting around adult situations.
Narrator fit the main character well.
Novella length isn’t exactly a great amount of time to get to know characters, but the cast of characters sounds amusing, especially grandma and the old folks home people.
As with most in its genre, you don’t have to think too hard with this story, just enjoy the oddities.

Conclusion:

Charming short tale of a woman who likes puns, can chat up ghosts and cats, and lands a boyfriend in about .5 seconds.

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Redeemer Chronicles (Fantasy)

Devya’s Children Series Links:

Guardian Angel Files:

3.75 West Texas by Al Sarrantonio

September 3, 2021August 11, 2021 Julie Gilbert Audiobooks, Western Al Sarrantonio, Jay F. Ward

Narrated by Jay F. Ward

Run Time: 3 hrs and 50 mins

Summary:

Former Lieutenant Thomas Mullin is retired (unwillingly) from the US army just after the Civil War. He still has excellent tracking skills, so when a senator’s son goes missing, he’s asked to find out what happened to the boy.

Additional Comments:

The title fits! It’s not very imaginative, and I can think of about a dozen that would suit the story better, but eh, it’s functional.
This is a period piece, so there are language and attitudes concerning race relations that may offend some sensitive souls. of the characters, especially the villains, are blatantly racist. That’s pretty much the crux of the entire plot. If you think such a thing may give you heart palpitations, avoid this book. If that won’t bother you, give the book a shot.
It’s classic Western, though (thankfully) not a wagon train romance.
It features a deranged serial killer, so expect some violence.
Performance is good. I found the voice used for the killer especially irksome, but that’s a personal preference thing. The majority of the book was spoken in deep cowboy mode of voice, which worked out well.
The side sections about Reeves’ mini adventures were exciting. Mullin’s obsession with Sherlock Holmes was fun to witness.
Fairly clean, but expect some violence.

Conclusion:

If you’re in the mood for a Western rough and tumble kind of story, this should work for you.

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Redeemer Chronicles (Fantasy)

Devya’s Children Series Links:

Guardian Angel Files:

3.5/5 Stars Sherlock Holmes and the Rune Stone Mystery by Larry Millet

September 2, 2021August 23, 2021 Julie Gilbert Audiobooks, classic, mystery Larry Millett, Sherlock Holmes, Steve Hendrickson

Narrated by Steve Hendrickson

Series: Minnesota Mysteries 3

Run Time: 9 hrs and 56 mins

Genre: Mystery

Summary:

Sherlock Holmes and Watson travel to Minnesota to check out a small-town mystery. A strange rune stone shows up on a farm. It could be the archaeological find of the century or an elaborate hoax.

Additional Comments:

It’s a typical mystery that wanders all over this small town.
Almost seems beneath Holmes to investigate.
The inclusion of the evil chick from previous volumes was quite the stretch. The author seems bent on making her out to be the next Moriarity, but she just doesn’t live up to the reputation. Oh, she’s clever, but not quite truly heartless, cunning, and conniving.
The drinking contest was amusing.
As with most mysteries of this sort, there’s a long-winded infodumping session, but for some reason, it comes off charming when Holmes does the infodumping.
The kid’s obsession with taking pictures was cute. Rafferty’s interactions with Moonie turned out to be excellent. They almost stole the show.

Conclusion:

This wasn’t the best of the series, but it’s a decent series overall. These tales are always good for a clean read.

*Found on Audible plus.

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Redeemer Chronicles (Fantasy)

Devya’s Children Series Links:

Guardian Angel Files:

2.45/5 stars 31 Drōmfrangil by Cynthia McDonald

September 1, 2021August 23, 2021 Julie Gilbert Audiobooks, Fantasy Andre Santana, Cynthia McDonald

Narrated by Andre Santana

Run Time: 10 hrs and 42 mins

*spoilers in discussion

Summary:

Marcus gets swept into a fantasy world on a quest to find his father. Of course, his best friend and his new friend come along for the ride. The world is basically a utopia that’s been upset by the presence of humans.

Additional Comments:

It’s about 8 hours too long for the story being told here. The main character spent the first 7.5 hours wandering around this world going from point A to B to C sticking his foot in his mouth and asking “what?” repeatedly.
Was very preachy for a secular book. Main message: humans screw up whatever they touch. Oh, and we’re going to get through this on the power of friendship. The perfect people don’t have a system of money, they just trade for whatever they need. People do what needs doing just because it needs doing. That’s the surface anyway. Underneath, there’s still a system of torture used on those who would lead the masses away from party lines. Ironically, the main character wins the day by exerting his will over the bad guys, but this is okay since he has good intentions in mind and just wants to set things right.
1/5 stars The “bad guy” was lame. Big, great power, and defeated by a thought.
Main character 2/5 stars: The MC was crazy overpowered. He can basically change anything he wants to about the world. The disability angle was interesting at first, but then, he learns he has this cool power and decides to keep his disabilities because they have made him who he is. He gets asked on 3 separate occasions about this. Repeatedly looking a plot hole in the eyes doesn’t make it less a plot hole. Every other human only gets 1 power, except the MC, he gets however many he wants/needs/ the plot needs. Technically, he only has the power to change whatever he wants about the world, but it still boils down to he can basically do anything: heal, catch rockslides, teleport people and objects, etc.
Side characters 2/5 stars: literally just there so the kid can have conversations without talking to himself. 0 value.
Plot 2/5 stars: Pretty sure we got 4 separate descriptions of the kid bathing. Took about 8 of 10 hours for there to be any sort of meaningful confrontation with the bad guys.
Worldbuilding 3/5 stars: There’s a lot here. Rock/dragon-like people, tree-like people, merpeople, etc. The author certainly has a rich imagination. The main trouble to me was the same knit I have with a lot of fantasy stories. Every other word was something new. So, we have hours upon hours of the kids wandering around meeting new people and learning what mundane things are in that world.
Content Comments: fairly clean. Some cursing.
Performance 4/5 stars: The narrator distinguished between the characters nicely, but he still had to work with what he was given.
I would listen to the narrator again, but I doubt I’d seek out anything else by the author unless it’s a completely different genre.

Conclusion:

There’s a lot of fluff in here. If you chopped all that out, it’d be a decent story. As is, it was just a really long meandering tale to nowhere.

*I received a free copy of the audiobook. This is my honest evaluation of the story. I have freely chosen to review the book.

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