Tag Archives: Patricia Bradley

Read A Romance Month — Romantic Suspense

15 Aug

Happy Tuesday! I, along with quite a few other bloggers, had trouble coming up with books for this week’s TTT topic — characters that should team up. With all that I have had going on in the past couple of weeks, my brain just couldn’t handle the challenge. 😉 So I am continuing my Read A Romance series for TTT today.

August is read a romance month (like we need a reminder), and today I am focusing on my favorite romantic suspense authors. I love a good mystery/suspense, and I love trying to figure out just whodunit with engaging characters. The books listed are the first book of the authors’ most recent series. Hope you find one to love.

For bloggers who stayed on topic, check out That Artsy Reader Girl.

Read A Romance Month — Top Romantic Suspense

Unknown Threat by Lynn Blackburn

Counter Attack by Patricia Bradley

End Game by Rachel Dylan

Life Flight by Lynette Eason

Cold Light of Day by Elizabeth Goddard

Point of Danger by Irene Hannon

The Killing Tide by Dani Pettrey

Lights Out by Natalie Walters

Top Ten Tuesday — One Word Titles (The Series Edition)

18 Jul

Happy Tuesday! Today’s Top 10 Tuesday topic is One Word Book Titles. I thought I would take it one step further and share series in which all the books’ titles are one word! My choices run the gamut of genres, so there should be something for every taste. And because I’ve listed all the titles in each series, there are many more than 10 books to add to your TBR. You’re welcome! 😉 Added bonus: If you have a Kindle Unlimited subscription, the first book in each series is free to read!

For more Top Ten Tuesday fun, check out That Artsy Reader Girl.

Top Books with One Word Titles — The Series Edition

Age of Conquest series by Tamara Leigh

Merciless

THE WULFRITHS. IT ALL BEGAN WITH A WOMAN.
A battle. A crown. The conqueror. The conquered. Medieval England—forever changed by the Battle of Hastings. And the rise of the formidable Wulfriths.

AN HONORABLE NORMAN 
Chevalier Cyr D’Argent convinced himself he joined Duke William’s invasion of England to reform its church and place its rightful king on the throne. But after a decisive Norman victory, the truth of his quest is revealed when his search for fallen kin leads to a Saxon grieving a boy slain by one of his own. Certain the defiant young woman will become the pick of the plunder, he forces her off the battlefield. Following a pilgrimage of penance, Cyr returns to England to seek his missing brother and claim the barony awarded by King William who stipulates he end the rebellion on his lands. He agrees, only to discover the woman he cannot forget is among those he must vanquish—and may even be their leader.

A REBELLIOUS SAXON 
On a fateful autumn day in 1066, Aelfled of Wulfen’s mistake leads to the death of her lady’s son. Unforgivable—as is the silver-haired warrior who tempts her to put a blade in his back then does the unthinkable in protecting her from his fellow Normans. Now under the usurper’s rule, faith crippled by her people’s suffering, she finds her sanctuary threatened when she becomes a pawn of the rebel leader—and destroyed when betrayal delivers her into the hands of the man who haunts her dreams. As the fires of unrest scorch lives and lands, Aelfled struggles to shield her heart as well as her people. But perhaps love can unite Normans and Saxons. Perhaps she is meant to be here…with him…for such a time as this.

Other books in the series: Fearless, Nameless, Heartless, Reckless, Boundless, Lawless, Dauntless

Alaskan Courage series by Dani Pettrey

Submerged

A sabotaged plane. Two dead deep-water divers.

Yancey, Alaska was a quiet town…until the truth of what was hidden in the depths off the coast began to appear.

Bailey Craig vowed never to set foot in Yancey again. She has a past, and a reputation–and Yancey’s a small town. She’s returned to bury a loved one killed in the plane crash and is determined not to stay even an hour more than necessary. But then dark evidence emerges and Bailey’s own expertise becomes invaluable for the case.

Cole McKenna can handle the deep-sea dives and helping the police recover evidence. He can even handle the fact that a murderer has settled in his town and doesn’t appear to be moving on. But dealing with the reality of Bailey’s reappearance is a tougher challenge. She broke his heart, but she is not the same girl who left Yancey. He let her down, but he’s not the same guy she left behind. Can they move beyond the hurts of their pasts and find a future together?

Other books in the series: Shattered, Stranded, Silenced, Sabotaged

Books of The Infinite series by R. J. Larson

Prophet

Ela Roeh of Parne doesn’t understand why her beloved Creator, the Infinite, wants her to become His prophet. She’s undignified and bad-tempered, and at age seventeen she’s much too young. In addition, no prophet of Parne has ever been a girl. Worst of all, as Parne’s elders often warn, if she agrees to become the Infinite’s prophet, Ela knows she will die young.

Yet she can’t imagine living without Him. Determined to hear the Infinite’s voice, Ela accepts the sacred vinewood branch and is sent to bring the Infinite’s word to a nation torn apart by war. There she meets a young ambassador determined to bring his own justice for his oppressed people. As they form an unlikely partnership, Ela battles how to balance the leading of her heart with the leading of the Infinite.

Other books in the series: Judge, King

The Circle series by Ted Dekker

Black

Enter the adrenaline-laced story that started it all: the fate of two worlds hangs in the balance of one man’s choices as dreams and reality collide.

Thomas Hunter narrowly escapes mysterious assailants only to encounter a silent bullet that clips his head . . . and his world goes black. He awakens in an alternate reality and soon finds himself pulled between two worlds. In one, Thomas is an average guy working in a coffeehouse. In the other, he’s a battle-scarred general leading a band of warriors known as the Circle.Every time Thomas falls asleep in one reality, he wakes in the other—and both worlds are facing catastrophic disaster. In one world, he must race to outwit sadistic terrorists intent on creating a global pandemic by releasing an unstoppable virus. In the other, far into the future, a forbidden love could forever destroy the Circle’s ragtag resistance.Thomas can bridge both worlds, but he quickly realizes that he may not be able to save either. In this mind-bending adventure, the fate of both worlds now rests on his ability to shift realities through his dreams—and somehow find a way to change history.

Other books in the series: Red, White

Natchez Trace Park Rangers series by Patricia Bradley

Standoff

The Natchez Trace National Parkway stretches 444 miles from Nashville to Natchez, the oldest town on the Mississippi River. It’s the perfect road for a relaxed pleasure drive. Unfortunately for park ranger Luke Fereday, lately it’s being used to move drugs. Sent to Natchez to infiltrate the organization at the center of the drug ring, Luke arrives too late to a stakeout and discovers the body of his friend, park ranger John Danvers.

John’s daughter Brooke is determined to investigate her father’s murder, but things are more complicated than they first appear, and Brooke soon finds herself the target of a killer who will do anything to silence her. Luke will have his hands full keeping her safe. But who’s going to keep him safe when he realizes he’s falling–hard–for the daughter of the man he failed to save?

Award-winning author Patricia Bradley introduces you to a new series set in the sultry South that will have you wiping your brow and looking over your shoulder.

Other books in the series: Obsession, Crosshairs, Deception

The Sugar Baron’s Daughters series by Lisa T. Bergren

Keturah

In 1773 England, Lady Keturah Banning Tomlinson and her sisters find themselves the heiresses of their father’s estates and know they have one option: Go to the West Indies to save what is left of their heritage.

Although it flies against all the conventions for women of the time, they’re determined to make their own way in the world. But once they arrive in the Caribbean, proper gender roles are the least of their concerns. On the infamous island of Nevis, the sisters discover the legacy of the legendary sugar barons has vastly declined–and that’s just the start of what their eyes are opened to in this unfamiliar world. 

Keturah never intends to put herself at the mercy of a man again, but every man on the island seems to be trying to win her hand and, with it, the ownership of her plantation. She could desperately use an ally, but even an unexpected reunion with a childhood friend leaves her questioning his motives. 

Set on keeping her family together and saving her father’s plantation, can Keturah ever surrender her stubbornness and guarded heart to God and find the healing and love awaiting her?

Other books in the series: Verity, Selah

If You Liked . . . Finding Me

1 May

My book club read Finding Me by Kathryn Cushman in April. We haven’t discussed it yet, but I am sure we will have a good conversation. The novel involves a runaway dad and how his deception affected his family. Main character, Kelly, struggles with the memories of a loving father and the very real evidence that her life has been based on a lie. Finding Me is women’s fiction, but I have a few recommendations for further reading that span several genres. All three reading recs involve a main character who discovers that what she has always known may not be the truth. I hope you find another book to love.

Deception by Patricia Bradley

After being forced to kill an FBI agent gone rogue in self-defense while working in the violent crimes unit for the Investigative Services Branch, ranger Madison Thorn is comfortable with her move to the fraud and cyber division. At least numbers don’t lie. So she’s less than thrilled when a white-collar crime investigation in Natchez, Mississippi, turns violent. She could also do without being forced to work with former-childhood-enemy-turned-infuriatingly-handsome park ranger Clayton Bradshaw.

When a woman who looks just like Madison is attacked on the same night Madison’s grandfather is shot, it becomes clear that there is something much bigger going on here and that Madison herself is in danger. Madison and Clayton will have to work together–and suppress their growing feelings for one another–if they are to discover the truth before it’s too late.

The Edge of Belonging by Amanda Cox

When Ivy Rose returns to her hometown to oversee an estate sale, she soon discovers that her grandmother left behind more than trinkets and photo frames–she provided a path to the truth behind Ivy’s adoption. Shocked, Ivy seeks clues to her past, but a key piece to the mystery is missing.

Twenty-four years earlier, Harvey James finds an abandoned newborn who gives him a sense of human connection for the first time in his life. His desire to care for the baby runs up against the stark fact that he is homeless. When he becomes entwined with two people seeking to help him find his way, Harvey knows he must keep the baby a secret or risk losing the only person he’s ever loved.

In this dual-time story from debut novelist Amanda Cox, the truth–both the search for it and the desire to keep it from others–takes center stage as Ivy and Harvey grapple with love, loss, and letting go.

Let It Be Me by Becky Wade

Former foster kid Sebastian Grant has leveraged his intelligence and hard work to become a pediatric heart surgeon. But not even his career success can erase the void he’s tried so hard to fill. Then he meets high school teacher Leah Montgomery and his fast-spinning world comes to a sudden stop. He falls hard, only to make a devastating discovery–Leah is the woman his best friend set his heart on months before.

Leah’s a math prodigy who’s only ever had one big dream–to earn her PhD. Raising her little brother put that dream on hold. Now that her brother will soon be college bound, she’s not going to let anything stand in her way. Especially romance . . . which is far less dependable than algebra.

When Leah receives surprising results from the DNA test she submitted to a genealogy site, she solicits Sebastian’s help. Together, they comb through hospital records to uncover the secrets of her history. The more powerfully they’re drawn to each other, the more strongly Sebastian must resist, and the more Leah must admit that some things in life–like love–can’t be explained with numbers.

Top 10 Tuesday — If You Like …

28 Mar

Happy Tuesday! I regularly include an If You Liked . . . post on my blog with suggestions for further reading if you like my book club’s monthly selection. I love connecting readers to new-to-them authors. For today’s TTT prompt I decided to pull from those list to compile a If You Like X Author, Then Try … . While many of these authors will already be on your radar, I hope you find a new favorite!

For more fun, check out That Artsy Reader Girl.

Top Authors To Try If You Like . . .

If you like Lynette Eason, especially her Danger Never Sleeps series, then try Hallee Bridgeman.

Captain Rick Norton and his Army Special Forces are on a mission to subdue Chukuwereije, a warlord terrorizing the villages in the jungles of Katangela, Africa, when their mission is interrupted to extract the daughter of America’s vice president.

Dr. Cynthia Myers has used her medical mission in a remote village in Katangela to escape a shallow life of unearned wealth, a philandering fiancé, and a father now square in the public eye. At least here she knows her work and life have meaning. But all that is thrown into chaos when she fails to save the life of Chukuwereije’s mortally wounded son and becomes a target for the warlord’s revenge.

Rick is compelled to use deadly force to save Cynthia’s life. Enraged at the violence she witnessed and riddled with guilt that men died because of her, Cynthia tries to hang on to her anger–but an unexpected attraction is taking hold.

With two members of his team badly injured and rebels in hot pursuit, Rick will have to draw upon all his strength and cunning to get her out alive . . . because he’s beginning to think they just might overcome their differences and be able to make a life together.

If you like Elizabeth Goddard, then try Melissa Koslin.

Former CIA sniper Kadance Tolle possesses a special set of skills and a rare pedigree. She comes from a family of assassins, and by saving Lyndon Vaile’s life she risks being found by them. Despite the danger, Kadance feels compelled to help Lyndon discover who is after him–and his research that seems to prove that the Ebola virus was manmade and is about to be weaponized.

With shadowy figures pursuing them and a Mastermind watching their every move, Kadance and Lyndon must scramble to stop an impending bioattack at the State of the Union address. But their warnings fall on deaf ears, and it becomes increasingly clear that there’s no one they can trust — except perhaps each other.

Strap in for a breakneck story that will have you up all night, hurtling toward the last page as the clock ticks and time runs out.

If You like Patricia Bradley, especially her Natchez Trace Park Rangers series, then try Janice Cantore.

As a police officer in Table Rock, Oregon, Leah Radcliff puts her life on the line to help others every day. But at home, Leah’s battling her own personal nightmare: Brad, her abusive husband, a fellow officer, celebrated hero, and beloved son of a powerful prominent family. Brad’s violent outbursts and suspicious activities have left Leah physically and emotionally scarred, until one desperate action to put a stop to his abuse results in deadly consequences.

Though public opinion seems ready to convict Leah, Officer Clint Tanner is one of the few to believe she acted in self-defense. As he works with Leah’s attorney to produce the evidence they need, new truths about Brad’s dark side come to light—and reveal a deep-rooted problem in Table Rock. There are some who have breached their sworn duty to serve and protect . . . and they’ll do anything to keep their secret safe.

If you like Sarah Sundin‘s WWII fiction, then try Mario Escobar.

Saint-Malo, France: August 1938. Jocelyn and Antoine are childhood sweethearts, but just after they marry and are hoping for a child, Antoine is called up to fight against Germany. As the war rages, Jocelyn focuses on comforting and encouraging the local population by recommending books from her beloved library in Saint-Malo. She herself finds hope in her letters to a famous author.

After the French capitulation, the s occupy the town and turn it into a fortress to control the north of French Brittany. Residents try passive resistance, but the German commander ruthlessly purges part of the city’s libraries to destroy any potentially subversive writings. At great risk to herself, Jocelyn manages to hide some of the books while waiting to receive news from Antoine, who has been taken to a German prison camp.

What unfolds in her letters is Jocelyn’s description of her mission: to protect the people of Saint-Malo and the books they hold so dear. With prose both sweeping and romantic, Mario Escobar brings to life the occupied city and re-creates the history of those who sacrificed all to care for the people they loved.

If you like Nancy Mehl, especially her creepier novels 😉 , then try Tom Threadgill.

Catherine Mae Blackston is missing. She is not the first.

While investigating Blackston’s recent activities, FBI Agent Jeremy Winter stumbles upon a string of missing persons within state parks. Unable to convince his boss that Blackston’s disappearance is anything other than a lost hiker, Winter joins forces with a local police officer to continue the search. 

As the clues mount, a dark figure from Jeremy’s past emerges with an ultimatum — one that could force him out of the Bureau. Afraid that his girlfriend, fellow agent Maggie Keeley, will be dragged into a high-stakes political game, he delays his decision. But as the tally of missing persons increases, Winter closes in on the unlikeliest of suspects. 

The bodies are out there. 

He just has to find them before his past catches up with him.

If You like Amanda Cox, then try Susie Finkbeiner.

In 1975, three thousand children were airlifted out of Saigon to be adopted into Western homes. When Mindy, one of those children, announces her plans to return to Vietnam to find her birth mother, her loving adopted family is suddenly thrown back to the events surrounding her unconventional arrival in their lives.

Though her father supports Mindy’s desire to meet her family of origin, he struggles privately with an unsettling fear that he’ll lose the daughter he’s poured his heart into. Mindy’s mother undergoes the emotional rollercoaster inherent in the adoption of a child from a war-torn country, discovering the joy hidden amid the difficulties. And Mindy’s sister helps her sort through relics that whisper of the effect the trauma of war has had on their family–but also speak of the beauty of overcoming.

Told through three strong voices in three compelling timelines, The Nature of Small Birds is a hopeful story that explores the meaning of family far beyond genetic code.

If you like Courtney Walsh, then try Janet W. Ferguson.

Animals always made more sense than humans did to marine biologist Skye Youngblood. After her mother’s tragic death, she left Alabama and never looked back. These days, she pours her heart into protecting nature’s sea creatures. When she returns to Dauphin Island, Alabama, for a temporary manatee migration study, her dark past is much too close. She can’t let her guard down. But how can she keep her heart hidden when a kind man with a genuine smile makes her want a fresh start?

Charter fishing pays the bills for widower Pete Thompson and his little girl, but like his father, a pastor, Pete can’t help but fish for men. Only, after growing up under constant scrutiny as a preacher’s kid, Pete’s ways are a bit more unconventional. And the bulk of his life revolves around raising his precious daughter.

When he witnesses the car wreck of a new marine biologist on the island, it doesn’t take a genius to see that more than just her physical pain needs tending. Pete feels called to help Skye find true healing, but he’s navigating dangerous waters. And he’s not at all sure he’ll walk away unscathed.

If you like Lisa Harris, then try Susan Sleeman.

When cybercriminals hack into the US Marshals’ Witness Protection database and auction off witnesses’ personal details to the highest bidders, the RED Team led by FBI Agent Sean Nichols begins a high-stakes chase to find the hacker. But before he can even get started, the first witness is targeted and barely escapes with her life. Sean believes Phantom, an obsessed hacker who previously outwitted the top minds in the field, is behind the attack, and Sean needs this witness’s help, as she’s the person who has come closest to discovering Phantom’s identity. 

Trouble is, she’s a witness under the care of US Marshal Taylor Mills, and Sean is reluctant to work with the captivating marshal who knows his deepest secrets. But Phantom claims he knows where the witness is hiding and will kill her, so to stop the hacker, Sean and Taylor must work through their personal pain and learn to trust each other . . . . The seconds are ticking down before someone dies.

If you like Lynn H. Blackburn, then try Lisa Carter.

Secrets and danger hide deep in the canyons and arroyos of the Navajo Nation When federal agent Aaron Yazzie is assigned to protect the only witness to a drug cartel execution, he hides Kailyn Eudailey in the safest place he knows . . . the vast, untamed wilderness of the Navajo Reservation. Transporting Kailyn to New Mexico may not be as easy as Aaron would like. Kailyn is a high-maintenance Southern belle who is determined to assert her independence at every step. Though Aaron works to protect her from the dangers that could get them both killed, Kailyn is getting to him. Although, she doesn’t know the real him. As an undercover agent, Aaron has grown adept at playing many roles. But will he be able to embrace his true identity and God’s plan for his life in order to keep Kailyn alive?

If you like Erin Bartels, then try Catherine West.

Sometimes we’re allowed to glimpse the beauty within the brokenness . . .

Savannah Barrington has always found solace at her parents’ lake house in the Berkshires, and it’s the place that she runs to when her husband of over twenty years leaves her. Though her world is shaken, and the future uncertain, she finds hope through an old woman’s wisdom, a little girl’s laughter, and a man who’s willing to risk his own heart to prove to Savannah that she is worthy of love.

But soon Savannah is given a challenge she can’t run away from: Forgiving the unforgivable. Amidst the ancient gardens and musty bookstores of the small town she’s sought refuge in, she must reconcile with the grief that haunts her, the God pursuing her, and the wounds of the past that might be healed after all.

Where Hope Begins is the story of grace in the midst of brokenness, pointing us to the miracles that await when we look beyond our own expectations.

Top 10 Tuesday — 2023 New Series

7 Feb

Happy Tuesday! Today’s TTT topic is 2023 Debuts. I really didn’t have the energy to track those down, so I am going first books in a new series. Most of these are from favorite authors who have a lot of books to their credit, so the only thing my list has in common with the original topic is that they will be published in 2023. LOL!

For bloggers who diligently stick to the topic, check out That Artsy Read Girl.

Top First Books in New 2023 Series

The Broken Hearts Bakery (Haven Ridge) by Carla Laureano

Cold Light of Day (Missing in Alaska) by Elizabeth Goddard

Cold Pursuit (Ryland and St. Clair) by Nancy Mehl

Counter Attack (Pearl River) by Patricia Bradley

The Lies We Believe (Shadow Stalkers) by Lisa Harris

Memory Lane (Sons of Scandal) by Becky Wade

The Metropolitan Affair (On Central Park) by Jocelyn Green

The Woman from Lydia (Emissaries) by Angela Hunt

Top 10 Tuesday — Dear Santa, Load Me Up With Pre-Orders

20 Dec

This week bloggers are talking about the books on their Christmas Wishlists. This year I would love for Santa to load me up with pre-orders. Sort of like a fruit of the month club, but way better! A brand new book arriving in my mailbox or on my Kindle over the next few months would warm my bookish heart! My list includes my favorite authors across genres. I hope there’s one you’d like to include in your letter to Santa.

For more bloggers’ Christmas hopes and dream, visit That Artsy Reader Girl.

Top 10 Pre-Orders I Would Love From Santa

The All-American by Susie Finkbeiner

Counter Attack by Patricia Bradley

He Should Have Told The Bees by Amanda Cox

In This Moment by Gabrielle Meyer

The Lies We Believe by Lisa Harris

Under Fire by Lynn H. Blackburn

The Vanishing at Castle Moreau by Jaime Jo Wright

The Weight of Air by Kimberly Duffy

Windswept Way by Irene Hannon

The Words We Lost by Nicole Deese

Top 10 Tuesday — Series Finished And Unfinished

8 Nov

Happy Tuesday! This week’s TTT topic is book series we need to finish. Unfortunately, I have more than a few and have featured this topic on more than one occasion. So, I decided along with the remaining books in series that deserve to be read, I would feature a couple of series that I completed recently. Not sure which is better — to have the satisfaction of finally reading that last book or to have one more to look forward to. 😉 As an aside, don’t you love how the book covers within each series coordinate?

For more from other bloggers, please visit That Artsy Reader Girl.

Top Series Finished And Unfinished

Recently Finished

A Murder in The Mountains by Heather Day Gilbert

I finished False Pretense on the last day of my UK vacation in September. It was a fun book to take along on the planes, trains and automobiles in England and Scotland.

Natchez Park Rangers by Patricia Bradley.

Deception was the last book in this series, and it provided a lot of twists and turns. It definitely was a good finish to an excellent series.

Unfinished

Triple Threat by Irene Hannon

I have the last book of this series, Body of Evidence, yet to read. Hannon is one of my favorites, and I hope to get to it in the next few weeks.

The Snap Agency by Natalie Walters

I am actually up to date with this series — Blind Trust is set to release in April of 2023. I feel good about myself with this one. LOL!

Extreme Measures by Lynette Eason

I am only one book down in this series, since Critical Threat won’t release until January 2023. I better get a move on! Crossfire is in my Audible queue.

Missing in Alaska by Elizabeth Goddard

With this series I am in really good stead because book one doesn’t release until February 2023. So I haven’t finished yet, because it hasn’t started! 🙂 Seriously, I never want to miss a book by Elizabeth Goddard!

Book Review: Deception

2 Nov

The Natchez Trace Park Rangers series by Patricia Bradley has come to an end with the 4th installment, Deception. If you thought the other books in this series were filled with twists and turns, hold on to your seat with this one. Recommended!

After being forced to kill an FBI agent gone rogue in self-defense while working in the violent crimes unit for the Investigative Services Branch, ranger Madison Thorn is comfortable with her move to the fraud and cyber division. At least numbers don’t lie. So she’s less than thrilled when a white-collar crime investigation in Natchez, Mississippi, turns violent. She could also do without being forced to work with former-childhood-enemy-turned-infuriatingly-handsome park ranger Clayton Bradshaw.

When a woman who looks just like Madison is attacked on the same night Madison’s grandfather is shot, it becomes clear that there is something much bigger going on here and that Madison herself is in danger. Madison and Clayton will have to work together–and suppress their growing feelings for one another–if they are to discover the truth before it’s too late.

USA Today best-selling author, Patricia Bradley is the recipient numerous awards, including an Inspirational Readers’ Choice Award in suspense, a Selah winner, was a Carol and a Daphne du Maurier finalist. Her romantic suspense novels include the Logan Pointseries, the Memphis Cold Case Novels, and the Natchez Trace Park Rangers. She is now hard at work on the second book in her new Pearl River series set in the Cumberland Plateau area above Chattanooga. The first book in the series, Counter Attack will release in mid-2023.

She has conducted writing workshops for American Christian Fiction Writers, the Mid-South Christian Writer’s Conference, the KenTen and Scrivener retreats (where she was the keynote), the Memphis American Christian Fiction Writer group, and the Bartlett Christian Writers group. 

She and her two cats call Northeast Mississippi home–the South is also where she sets most of her books, and when she has time, she likes to throw mud on a wheel and see what happens.

My Impressions:

Deception, the 4th and final book in Patricia Bradley’s Natchez Trace Park Rangers series, marks the end of a great reading run. I enjoyed the previous 3 books, but this novel outdid them with its twisting, turning plot. I won’t spoil it for you, but hold on to your seat. You will not guess what is coming for the characters. This romantic suspense features main characters Madison Thorn and Clayton Bradshaw, both law enforcement agents with the National Park Service. I really liked the glimpse the series gave the reader into the workings of law enforcement at our national parks and historic sites. I didn’t realize all the that it could entail. Madison investigates white color crime, and that is what brings her to Natchez. There is interagency cooperation, but subsequent events become very personal and Madison and Clayton join forces to find out whodunit. There are several plot threads that seem disconnected, but a savvy suspense reader knows that most things intersect, or in this case become incredibly tangled. The mysteries, yes there are more than one, keep the characters and the reader on their toes. I liked these main characters and cheered them on as they sped from one crime scene to another. I also cheered as they moved their relationship forward. Both are Christians, as are others in the book, but on differing faith journeys. I found the support from other believers to be a great addition to the narrative. Themes such as identity, guilt, and loss are explored. The varying reactions of different characters in similar situations was interesting. The question arises why do some become bitter or turn from God, while others embrace Him?

Since Deception is the final book in the series, now is a good opportunity for some serious binge-reading. I recommend the entire series for fans of romantic suspense.

Recommended.

Audience: Adults.

(I received a complimentary copy of Deception through NetGalley. All opinions expressed are mine alone.)

Top 10 Tuesday — Seriously Bad Bad Guys

1 Nov

This week’s TTT topic, bad guys you love to hate, was a no-go for me. I read a lot of suspense, and I usually cheer when the bad guys die or at least get put in jail. 😉 These books generally feature serial killers, terrorists, drug/human traffickers — basically seriously bad bad guys. I did a search of my posts with bad guys and creep-factor as the search terms. Yikes! I found a few that won’t give you nightmares, but some need a nightlight on as you read. I hope you find a book with bad guys to love.

For more bloggers’ bad guy vibes, check out That Artsy Reader Girl.

Top Books Featuring Seriously Bad Bad Guys

Chasing The White Lion by James R. Hannibal

Coming of Winter by Tom Threadgill

The Deadly Shallows by Dani Pettrey

Fatal Code by Natalie Walters

Legacy of Lies by Christy Barritt

Life Flight by Lynette Eason

Night Fall by Nancy Mehl

Obsession by Patricia Bradley

Over The Line by Kelly Irvin

Present Danger by Elizabeth Goddard

First Line Friday — Deception

21 Oct

Happy Friday! This weekend I am relaxing! I’m looking forward to some time around the fire pit or in front of the fireplace with a hot beverage (Swiss Miss Dark Chocolate Cocoa is my guilty pleasure), and a book in my hand! I’ve got nothing on the agenda except watching the leaves change color and hopefully seeing some frolicking deer. I have taken along Deception by Patricia Bradley, a must-read author of romantic suspense. I am about 25% into the book and really enjoying the many twists she has set forth so far.

Here’s the first line:

Today was not a good day to die.

After being forced to kill an FBI agent gone rogue in self-defense while working in the violent crimes unit for the Investigative Services Branch, ranger Madison Thorn is comfortable with her move to the fraud and cyber division. At least numbers don’t lie. So she’s less than thrilled when a white-collar crime investigation in Natchez, Mississippi, turns violent. She could also do without being forced to work with former-childhood-enemy-turned-infuriatingly-handsome park ranger Clayton Bradshaw.

When a woman who looks just like Madison is attacked on the same night Madison’s grandfather is shot, it becomes clear that there is something much bigger going on here and that Madison herself is in danger. Madison and Clayton will have to work together—and suppress their growing feelings for one another-if they are to discover the truth before it’s too late.

USA Today bestselling and award-winning author Patricia Bradley closes out her popular Natchez Trace Park Rangers series with this complex story of family secrets, mixed motives, and learning to trust.

USA Today best-selling author, Patricia Bradley is the recipient numerous awards, including an Inspirational Readers’ Choice Award in suspense, a Selah winner, was a Carol and a Daphne du Maurier finalist. Her romantic suspense novels include the Logan Point series, the Memphis Cold Case Novels, and the Natchez Trace Park Rangers. She is now hard at work on the second book in her new Pearl River series set in the Cumberland Plateau area above Chattanooga. The first book in the series, Counter Attack will release in mid-2023.

She has conducted writing workshops for American Christian Fiction Writers, the Mid-South Christian Writer’s Conference, the KenTen and Scrivener retreats (where she was the keynote), the Memphis American Christian Fiction Writer group, and the Bartlett Christian Writers group. 

She and her two cats call Northeast Mississippi home–the South is also where she sets most of her books, and when she has time, she likes to throw mud on a wheel and see what happens.