A Brutal Trade by Faith Mortimer

A Brutal Trade by Faith Mortimer
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Time taken to read - 3 days (on and off)

Pages - 207

Publisher - Topsails Charter

Blurb from Goodreads

Even on a small island the darkest secrets can’t stay buried forever…

It began like any normal day in Cyprus…except it wasn’t…the body of a woman brutally murdered and discovered in a shallow grave changes all that.

It is only days later when amateur sleuth, Diana Rivers and old flame, Chief Superintendent Adam Lovell discover a second female victim…only this time the discovery is even more chilling and shocks the island inhabitants.

Joining forces with local policeman, Sergeant Yiannis Loukiades, the three embark on a journey which takes them on the fringes of humanity. Disturbing secrets are unearthed. They are on the hunt for killers who will stop at nothing in their hunt for one vital woman.

As the bodies mount up, the detectives ask themselves one question. What is the reason for the women’s’ deaths and their horrific mutilations?

With the investigation quickly gathering momentum, Diana finds herself exposed to great danger…in the sights of a lethal individual who’ll put a stop to her meddling. Each move could be deadly… vicious in its outcome…can the team bring a halt to this brutal trade?


My Review

Set on a small island in Cyprus, a mutilated body of a female is discovered with some body parts missing. Diana & former lover Chief Superintendent Adam Lovell discover a second body, realizing someone is targeting these girls and for a specific reason. As the tale goes on and bodies start piling up, Diana is drawn further into the investigation and danger is closer to home than she could have imagined.

Diana is a writer and also a private investigator, long since has she moved on from Adam however he is visiting the island with his partner Clare, who is psychic and recovering from surgery. Together with the local police they dig into the case and discover a dark and dangerous motive for these killings.

This is the 7th book in a series, the Diana Rivers mysteries however, I can say you don't need to have read the previous to start here, as I have done. The book is a bit brutal in that it covers rape, torture, murder and mutilation to highlight some of the themes. You are drawn in to this dark tale and see the darker side of humanity, were human life is expendable and these people will stop at nothing to achieve their goals.

Diana reminded me of a modern day Jessica Fletcher in Murder She Wrote, a lovely lady who gets caught up and involved in all manners of skulduggery. I would love to read more or even a spin off tale of Clare, I absolutely love psychics in stories and would like to see her feature more. This was a really well done fictional portrayal of a horrific crime trade, despite the brutal content I think it was handled very well. This is my first time reading this author and it certainly won't be the last. 4/5 for me this time, thanks so much to the author for sending me an ARC in exchange for an honest review. At the time of posting you can get this on the kindle for £0.99 and it is also available in paperback for £8.99, from Amazon. You can find Faith on Twitter @FaithMortimer and Facebook.

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A.R.R - Fire Baptized by Kenya Wright

Fire Baptized by Kenya Wright

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


Blurb From Goodreads

Since the 1970s humans have forced supernaturals to live in caged cities. Silver brands embedded in their foreheads identify them by species: a full moon for Vampires, a crescent moon for Shifters, a pair of wings for Fairies, and the list goes on, for each supernatural species has been tagged and categorized by humans.

Lanore Vesta is marked with a silver X, the brand of Mixbreeds, second-class citizens shunned by society. She stays to herself, revealing her ability to create fire only during emergencies. All she wants to do is graduate college and stop having to steal to survive. But when she stumbles upon a murder in progress, she catches the attention of a supernatural killer. Now all she wants is to stop finding dead bodies in her apartment.

Enlisting help from her Were-cheetah ex-boyfriend MeShack and a new mysterious friend named Zulu, she is steered through the habitat’s raunchy nightlife. But their presence sometimes proves to be more burden than help, as they fight for her attention.

While the corpses pile up, and the scent of blood fills the air, Lanore is left wondering: will she find the psycho or die trying?

My Review

Lanore is our main character, a mixie (like a half breed between a demon and fairy) who stumbles across a murder on her way home and becomes the target of the murderer who leaves her "items" at her home. Lanore has a whole host of issues going on, wanting to rescue every helpless being, better herself with education and deal with MeShack who she grew up with but also has romantic unresolved issues with and Zulu who is super hot and stirs up emotions in herself she would rather not have to deal with.

It is a pretty busy book! There is all the different breeds going on, Supes, were-dogs, were-jaguar, were-leopard, habbies, purebloods. As much as I liked this story I often found it confusing as there were so many breeds to try and contend with and some of them change into something else. I think what would make it better (for me personally) is the next book(s) that follow or any updates on this maybe an index with all the different breeds and terms and a short description of them so you can keep yourself right. There were also a few terms that had me puzzled, motherpounder being one as in context I thought it could be motherf**cker but there is plenty of swearing so I am not sure if I have picked it up wrong or this is just a new word being tried out.

The story has the main murder but also lots of other stories wound into it, Meshack and Lanores background and growing up (touched on briefly), their love affair (again briefly referred to), Zulu's story with Lanore - I could go on and on. It certainly makes for an interesting read and there is always something going on. The story isn't for the easily offended or light hearted as there is lots of sex, drugs, violence, murder and thats just the beginning. I found this writers style nice and good to read it was just all the new species and terms I struggled with and think this could be easily sorted and would certainly add to my enjoyment of the series. 3/5 for me and I would read the next installment. I would like to thank the author for introducing me to their work and giving me the chance to read it. These views are entirely my own.

This book is available in print from Amazon.co.uk for £8.50 or £1.96 on the kindle.

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A.R.R - The O'Leary Enigma by Bob Purcell

The O'Leary Enigma by Bob Purssell

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


Blurb From Goodreads

Secrets pervade Navy Lt. Barbara O'Leary's life. Who is her biological father? What caused her beautiful and troubled birth mother's death? How did Barbara help her mentor outmaneuver a corporate rival? Why did she accept the assignment to Chad and that dangerous journey through a civil war?These personal and professional secrets, buried throughout her life, collide as Barbara moves between her quests for personal fulfillment and success in her professional career. Powerful psychological forces are difficult to keep in check, and they threaten to ruin what she wants to accomplish. In her personal life-the one her superiors must not learn of-Barbara continually battles her secret urges. Accomplished, gutsy, and intelligent, she is drawn into an ever-widening vortex of secrets that culminates in a secret mission executed during a civil war in Chad. It tests not only the young officer's cunning, but her raw courage. In her war between undercover triumphs and under-the-covers transgressions, Barbara must step gingerly to save her career, her reputation, and possibly her life.

My Review

Well I thought this was going to be about O'Leary's career in later life and all the war side of it, however it was totally different. The story starts with papers handed over with a legal side to it that to be honest I got quite lost in. Howeve as the story went on we are introduced to Barbara's life and start at a very young and innocent age to adult hood. The family dynamics, teenage years, sexuality, spirituality and eventually her adult working life.

I think the book is aptly titled "enigma" as it totally is. One minute we are following a young girl who is having problems dealing with how she looks and her sexual maturity and needs, to a strong minded woman in the prime of her career caught up in politics and a war.

I enjoyed the relationship side of the book with her parents and trying to come to terms with her biological background and the secret(s) that surrounded it but personally felt we could have had much more detail and exploration there. There is a lot of underlying issues in this book I felt with the emotional struggling through teenage years (which YA readers may identify with) and on a deeper level how her relationship with her mother changes as she does.

The latter part of the story deals with her career and some of it is quite graphic but by then I was more interested in her personal development and couldn't quite get on with this side of the story however I am sure some people will be delighted with the change in pace of the story. Overall 3/5 for me.

I would like to thank the author for the opportunity to review their work.

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A.R.R - Shereen Travels Cheap by Shereen Rayle

Shereen Travels Cheap by Shereen Rayle

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Blurb from Amazon

Are there places you want to go but never do because you think you can’t afford the travel costs? Do you plan your vacations on a budget, but find that your budget doesn’t get you very far from home? Shereen Travels Cheap was written for you!

This entertaining book will teach you how to plan the vacations you have always dreamed of taking, but for a lot less money than you ever thought you would spend. Using a combination of proven tips and techniques and the best the Internet has to offer, Shereen shows you how a little effort can reap big savings and allows you to do more on your trips!

My Review

What a fab wee book. Shereen has written a book based upon common sense and her personal experience planning trips and coming up with ways to save, make your money go that little bit further and give you more for your money or free up your budget for either another trip or one you didn't think you could make as it was too expensive.

The chapters don't drag on forever which means you can dip in and out as and when you like. This is how I recommend you read the book unless you love organizing then you could devour it in one sitting. There is an abundance of links and great websites for you to check out and whilst I haven't checked every single one - the ones I have are great.

The only thing is obviously it is all outside of the UK sites/flights etc but there is still a lot I can use as a UK resident and I look forward to Shereen's next book based on the UK side of tips and trips.

This is one of the first ever review books I will be keeping and going back to, lots of great tips to work with and I look forward to putting it to use on my next trip. 4/5 for me and thanks so much to Shereen for the opportunity to read her work.

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A.R.R - Questing For Uberjoy by Konrad Ventana

Questing for Berjoy: Book Three of the Post-Lux Trilogy by Konrad Ventana

My rating: 2 of 5 stars


Blurb From Goodreads

They called her " berjoy," but her real name was Joycelyn Eberhard. She was a finalist in the Miss Teen Idaho beauty pageant, but now she's gone missing-in China, no less. Her fianc, Orion, worried when she signed up for the Peace Corps, but he never expected something like this. Her disappearance is shattering to him, so he has no choice but to head overseas and search for the woman he loves.

His search takes him to the remote Himalaya Mountains in Nepal and Tibet, where getting help from local authorities is not as easy as he would have hoped. He is forced to seek assistance elsewhere, from intrepid special operations mercenaries and unorthodox mountaineering guides. Soon, Orion's search targets not only his fianc, but the meaning of life itself.

Set in the mountains of China-where earth meets sky in more ways than one-Questing for berjoy is a quest for love. It is also a quest for meaning, as Eastern culture surrounds heroic Orion and teaches him more about himself than any experience in America. One moment philosophical and the next filled with danger, it is a story that could change your life and send you on your own quest for mountaintop enlightenment.

My Review

I wasn't sure if not reading the first two books would be an issue but after reading it I think you could easily pick this up without the previous two. Orion is our main character and sets out to rescue his beloved Joycelyn (Uberjoy) who has been taken along with other teachers and children by some "soldiers" whilst caught in the middle of a political war. During his journey to find her he gets some help from some unusual characters along the way and embarks on a journey of self discovery and personal depths.

I was on the fence with this one as I tend to find it difficult to get on with books that are set out of my comfort zone but the story sounded really good. For me there was too much on a philosophical level then mixed with pretty graphic murders, brutality and war casualties and I know for some this can go together and make for good reading but it just doesn't do it for me. I did find the personal recall of a young boys trauma and fight for life quite touching but otherwise it just wasn't for me.

I also had an issue with our hero when he began his journey and there was an incident with himself and an item of his beloveds undergarment, that put him off on a bad sted with me although some people may be able to identify with it I found it weird and really had no place in the start of Orions journey.

I was also left with some questions and puzzled about how some of the characters came into touch with Orion and knew about the situation but had little to do with the actual rescue mission. Then there is how the story came to end and had I loved and got on with all the philosophical stuff I wouldn't have been happy with the ending but I do know that some people love that kind of ending so I would say if you like a mixed bag give it a shot. 2/5 for me, thanks to the author for the chance to read this and review it. Available on Amazon in all formats (paperback, hardback and kindle).

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