The Bachelor (Duke Dynasty #2). By Sabrina Jeffries.

The Bachelor (Duke Dynasty #2). By Sabrina Jeffries. 2020. Zebra Books (ARC eBook).

Jefferies’ lively bunch of step-siblings are back and this time it is Lady Gwyn Drake’s turn at finding love. Days away from her long-delayed debut, Gwyn is approached at the Armitage estate by a former suitor who blackmails her over a past affair she has kept hidden. When the meeting turns threatening and Joshua Wolfe, the family’s gamekeeper, intervenes, Gwen’s twin brother, Thorn, asks Joshua to travel with Gwen to London and act as her bodyguard during her debut season. And from there Jefferies delivers a charming romance with a bit of scandal and sabotage.

In The Duchess Project, there was the beginnings of Joshua and Gwen’s interest in each other. And as elusive and temperamental as Joshua proved to be, Gwen was as equally stubborn and provoking, so I was looking forward to their book. And in The Bachelor, Jeffries is deft at transitioning sweet and playful moments into steamy ones between the two.

288 pages

Project Duchess (Duke Dynasty #1). By Sabrina Jeffries.

Project Duchess (Duke Dynasty #1). By Sabrina Jeffries. 2019. Zebra Books. AISN: B07HVXS62T (Kindle).

This charming duke, turned reluctant amateur detective, keeps losing focus of his investigation when he falls for Beatrice, his mother’s “project” and his suspected murder accomplice.

Jeffries weaves flirty banter, fun family drama, and a bit of mystery into this endearing romance.

Entertaining, Happily Ever After, Page-turner, Romantic, Steamy, Wonderful characters

352 pages

In Her Sights (Rocky Mountain Bounty Hunters #1). By Katie Ruggle, Narrator: Callie Beaulieu.

In Her Sights (Rocky Mountain Bounty Hunters #1). By Katie Ruggle, Narrator: Callie Beaulieu. 2019. Tantor Audio. ISBN-13: 9781494549831 (Unabridged audiobook, 9 hrs, 50 mins).

Bounty hunter Molly Pax has worked hard to turn the bail recovery business she shares with her sisters into a success. But when their suspected jewel-thief-of-a-mother jumps bail and puts the sisters’ home up as collateral, Molly is forced to take on her most dangerous assignment yet, with the hopes of a high enough payout to keep her and her sisters off the street. When rival bounty hunter, the ever-annoying (cheerful), always in the way (helpful), kinda good-looking (gorgeous) John Carmondy enters the fray, Molly finds it’s not such a hardship to keep her frenemy in her sights.

Ruggle starts off this series with a delightful jaunt into the world of bounty hunters and skip tracing. And while there are high stakes in this book, the romance is playful and the suspense element is fairly low key in regards to action. Not a bad thing, but may not appeal to some readers that are looking for more grittiness in this genre. Beaulieu’s narration does a great job of immersing you in this unique family of female bounty hunters.

336 pages

Risk It All (Rocky Mountain Bounty Hunters #2). By Katie Ruggle.

Risk It All (Rocky Mountain Bounty Hunters #2). By Katie Ruggle. 2019. Sourcebooks Casablanca (ARC eBook).

Cara Pax aspires to be a Kindergarten teacher, not a bounty hunter like the rest of her sisters. She’s uncomfortable with confrontation, so she contributes to the family business by doing behind-the-scenes computer research to help trace the skips. But ever since their own mother jumped bail and left the sisters in a jam, she has been feeling like she should do more to help. She probably shouldn’t have chosen to go after Henry Kavenski though. On paper, Kavenski would bring in the most money. Also on paper, Kavenski is a suspected murderer.

What is a man suppose to do when an earnest Cara Pax keeps interrupting his secret rendezvouses in parks and bars? As it turns out, he'll risk it all to keep her out of harm's way.

Cara is so darn nice, and Henry is a man of few words, but there is a clever charm about the pair. If you like Carol Higgins Clark’s Regan Reilly books, you’ll enjoy this series.

352 pages

Wicked Cowboy Wolf (Seven Range Shifters #3). By Kait Ballenger.

Wicked Cowboy Wolf (Seven Range Shifters #3). By Kait Ballenger. 2020. Sourcebooks Casablanca (ARC ebook).

Years ago a young Jared Black was cast from the Grey Wolf pack for a crime he took the fall for. Surviving the years that followed shaped the boy into a hardened criminal. As the leader of misfit wolves, he is known only as Rogue, and he is now offering a solution to the oncoming vampire threat to Maeve Gray, the sister of the Grey Wolf pack's alpha. All she has to do is ally herself with the mysterious wolf with as many scars on his soul as his body.

A new author and series for me, Ballenger delivers a story full of banter, misfits, secrets, chemistry and an ornery pet pig. I will be picking up more books in this series. Fans of paranormal romance and shifters will enjoy the protective alpha hero and feisty heroine in Wicked Cowboy Wolf.

While I think this romance can be read as a standalone, it is important to note that it is the third book in the series and involves an overall threat and story arc to the series’ plot.

352 pages

An Inconvenient Duke (Lords of the Armory #1). By Anna Harrington.

An Inconvenient Duke (Lords of the Armory #1). By Anna Harrington. 2020. Sourcebooks Casablanca (ARC eBook).

Recently returned from war and appointed Duke of Hampton, Marcus Braddock is a man on a mission. He is still mourning the death of his sister, Elise, and believing her death was not an accident, the former general sets his sights on Elise’s best friend, Danielle, to get his answers.

Danielle has secrets of her own she must keep. She is torn between soothing Marcus’s pain over the loss of his sister and keeping her work of helping abused women secret. But once a solider, always a soldier, and Marcus is determined to unravel the secrets that span from the underbelly of London to the ton. 
As the plot thickens Marcus and Elise become loose ends to tie up.

An entertaining read that blends romance, action and mystery. Marcus is a charming hero and I especially enjoyed scenes with him and his young niece and ward, Pippa. Danielle proves to be brave for her dangerous work of helping others, and her headstrong nature is just what is needed to meet Marcus on the battlefield. Together, they share some great chemistry.

384 pages

I Love You Like No Otter. By Rose Rossner, Illustrator: Sydney Hanson.

I Love You Like No Otter. By Rose Rossner, Illustrator: Sydney Hanson. 2020. Sourcebooks Wonderland (ARC eBook).

My special little

SQUEAK-heart.

A Step above the rest.

An adorable children’s board book that combines purrrfect messages for parents to read to their children and beary beautifully illustrated animals.

24 pages

Primary Suspect (Callahan Confidential #5). By Laura Scott

Primary Suspect (Callahan Confidential #5). By Laura Scott. 2018. Love Inspired Suspense. ISBN-13: 9781355081209 (paperback).

When Mitch Callahan, a firefighter turned arson investigator, turns up at the site of a recent fire at the request of his boss, he is broadsided by the dead body he finds, followed quickly by the 2x4 to the side of his face. Realizing he is being set up, Mitch flees the scene, but needs medical attention for the gash in his neck. Showing up at the ER he unwittingly involves the young widowed nurse Dana Petrie and the two quickly find themselves running for their lives from armed pursuit. Can Dana trust Mitch, the man who tried, but failed to save the life of her rookie firefighting husband three years ago? Or will the evidence building up against him prove that she has teamed-up with the bad guy?

Primary Suspect by Laura Scott is a quick read with a satisfying combination of action, suspense and second chances as Dana experiences a rekindling in her heart for her faith, purpose and chance at love. Both Scott’s Callihan Confidential series and Harlequin’s Love Inspired Suspense stories are new to me and while this is book five, the story is easy enough to follow without having started at the beginning of the series. But I am curious about the rest of the Callahan clan.

224 pages

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Bo the Bat. By Alma Hammond, Illustrator: Zuzana Svobodova.

Bo the Bat. By Alma Hammond, Illustrator: Zuzana Svobodova. 2019. Sweet Beet Books. AISN: B07XD62GGQ (Kindle).

Bo the bat wears a top hat, but trick-or-treating is a bit hard when pirates and unicorns flee from him. This extremely cute fella would like to allay children’s fears by teaching them fun facts about bats.

This is an illustrated story set to rhyme and the reading level is 1 to 2.

14 pages

Landry’s Back in Town (Rocky Ridge Romance #1). By Marjery Scott.

Landry’s Back in Town (Rocky Ridge Romance #1). By Marjery Scott. 2016. Margery Scott. ASIN: B01BNNFEXA (Kindle).

The story of Landry Mitchell and Olivia Harding begins when Landry steps in to thwart an attack on Olivia in a dusty alley of Rocky Ridge, a frontier town in Colorado. The two are instantly drawn to each other, but Landry, who has not been warmly welcomed back by the town’s residents after a three-year stint in prison, is hesitant to approach her. Olivia however, who spends her days taking care of children at the orphanage, sees a man who deserves a second chance. As Landry begins to open up to Olivia and the young orphan Daniel, his bank-robbing brother Tobias re-enters his life….and Tobias does not come to Rocky Ridge alone.

Margery Scott tells a hopeful story about three lonely people building a family and a brother’s love and loyalty bringing redemption. This historical western romance is a short, sweet read.

164 pages

The Essential Haiku: Versions of Bashō, Buson, & Issa. Edited and with Verse Translations by Robert Hass.

The Essential Haiku: Versions of Bashō, Buson, & Issa. Edited and with Verse Translations by Robert Hass. 1994. HarperCollins Publishers. ISBN-13 9780880013512 (Paperback).

    A cicada shell;
it sang itself
    utterly away.
- Matsuo Bashō

The Essential Haiku: Versions of Bashō, Buson & Issa presents the essential poems of three masters of the haiku form: Bashō (1644-1694), Buson (1716-1783) and Issa (1763-1827). In addition to haikus (numbering roughly 100 per poet); long poems, diary entries, and Issa’s artwork are also included. American poet and translator, Robert Hass, helps to set the stage for each poet by providing biographical introductions and useful annotated notes to the poems. Whether you are a seasoned reader of haikus or just discovering the form, this book will surely satisfy with its range of inspiring, humorous and somber offerings.

352 pages

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An Event in Autumn (A Kurt Wallander Mystery). By Henning Mankell, English translation by Laurie Thompson.

An Event in Autumn (A Kurt Wallander Mystery). By Henning Mankell, English translation by Laurie Thompson. 2014. Vintage Crime/Black Lizard. ISBN 9780804170642 (paperback).

Yearning for a dog and a place by the sea, the story begins with Ystad police detective Kurt Wallander prospecting a farmhouse in late October, only to stumble upon a skeletal hand protruding from the garden. The discovery turns into a case of two bodies, decades old, and Kurt teams with his colleagues, Lindman and Martinson, to doggedly investigate the property’s history in order to identify the dead.

An Event in Autumn is not a complex mystery plot. Rather, it showcases Kurt’s thoughts on retirement, his relationship with his daughter Linda (now a rookie police officer at the Ystad station), and the societal changes that Kurt has seen over time in southern Sweden.

Translated in 2014, it is the last Wallander mystery to be published in English. Its placement in the series’ timeline however, is as the penultimate, leaving the novel, The Troubled Man, as the bookend for the Swedish police detective. Readers of the series will find this novella a relaxed lead-in for Kurt’s final story.

176 pages.

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Two Kinds of Truth (Harry Bosch Series #20). By Michael Connelly, Narrator: Titus Welliver.

Two Kinds of Truth (Harry Bosch Series #20). By Michael Connelly, Narrator: Titus Welliver. 2017. Hachette Audio. ASIN: B071FJF4S4 (Unabridged audiobook, 9 hrs 54 mins)

When Harry Bosch is asked by the San Fernando Police Department to work an active homicide case involving two murdered pharmacists, he finds himself infiltrating the dangerous world of pill mills. Meanwhile, an old case from Bosch's LAPD days has been resurrected by the newly created Conviction Integrity Unit with the claim that Bosch framed a man who has been on death row for the last 30 years. With his relationship with the LAPD strained, it is up to Harry, with a little help from the Lincoln Lawyer, to clear his name and prevent the release of a killer. By way of the two cases, Bosch discovers that there are two kinds of truths that will forever haunt him. This story can be read as a stand-alone and recommended to readers new to the series.

This engaging thriller is narrated by Titus Welliver, who portrays Bosch in the TV adaptation of Connelly’s series. Not surprisingly, Welliver has no trouble in voicing the hardboiled Harry and setting the tone immediately, but listeners will find he voices the other characters to perfection as well.

417 pages 

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Missouri’s Mad Doctor McDowell: Confederates, Cadavers and Macabre Medicine. By Victoria Cosner & Lorelei Shannon.

Missouri’s Mad Doctor McDowell: Confederates, Cadavers and Macabre Medicine. By Victoria Cosner & Lorelei Shannon. 2015. The History Press. ISBN-13: 9781467118880 (paperback).

Meet St. Louis’ eccentric surgeon, Dr. Joseph Nash McDowell (1805-1868): A man who held undying grudges and took his medical oath seriously. Warm and kind to his students, the doctor inspired such loyalty among them that they gladly accompanied him in his grave robbing escapades; such activities that would generate angry mobs outside of McDowell Medical College. He once sicced his pet bear on one such mob; the bear yawned and the mob fled.

Enhanced with photographs, illustrations and appendices, readers won’t be able to set down this engaging 144-page narrative about a doctor who sought to preserve his dead loved ones by encasing them in copper-lined cylinders filled with alcohol, and who took to wearing body armor in the streets of St. Louis. This was a great find in Barnes & Noble's regional section and can also be found in our Missouriana collection.

144 pages

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