Killing the Story

An accidental death that was no accident…

For the record, Estelle Crane, the gutsy editor of The Observer newspaper, died after a hard fall on ice. But years later, her son discovers a cryptic note hinting her death might not have been an accident after all.

Was Estelle pursuing a big story that put her life in danger?

That’s what Isabel Long — along with her 93-year-old mother, Maria, her ‘Watson’ — agrees to investigate in Dillard, a town whose best days are in the past.

A former journalist, Isabel follows leads and interviews sources, new and familiar. She quickly finds a formidable threat in Police Chief James Hawthorne, who makes it clear Isabel is not welcome in his town — and who warns her against poking her nose into Estelle’s death.

Of course, that’s after Isabel has discovered the chief’s questionable policing and a troubled history with Estelle that goes way back.

Killing the story means dropping it because there aren’t enough facts to back it up. But Isabel won’t make that mistake. She’ll see this one through to the very end.

Can she uncover the plot that led to Estelle’s murder?

Killing the Story is the fourth in the popular Isabel Long Mystery Series. 

Purchase Links

UK – https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B08BDL9KKR

US – https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08BDL9KKR

Author Bio – Joan Livingston is the author of novels for adult and young readers. Killing the Story, published by Darkstroke Books, is the fourth in her Isabel Long Mystery Series, featuring a longtime journalist who becomes an amateur P.I. solving cold cases in rural New England.

She draws upon her own experience as a longtime journalist in Massachusetts and New Mexico to create Isabel Long, a sassy, savvy widow who uses the skills she acquired in the business to solve what appears to be impossible cases. She also relies on her deep knowledge of rural Western Massachusetts, where she lives, to create realistic characters and settings — from country bars (where Isabel works part-time) to a general store’s backroom where gossipy old men meet.

She credits her mother, Algerina — the inspiration for Maria, Isabel Long’s ‘Watson’ — for instilling in her a love of reading and the power of the written word.

Social Media Links –

Website: www.joanlivingston.net. 

Facebook: www.facebook.com/JoanLivingstonAuthor/

Twitter: @joanlivingston 

Instagram: www.Instagram.com/JoanLivingston_Author

Goodreads: www.Goodreads.com/Joan_Livingston

MY REVIEW:

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 5 out of 5

A Dead Editor

A Crooked Cop

What’s the Connection?

Isabel finds herself in danger again, but she will not stop searching or following leads until she is satisfied that she has done all she can for Emerson’s quest to find out the real story behind his mother’s death. Isabel will experience all kinds of characters to get to the bottom of the case, and her mother will be right there with her, maybe not always physically, but she is always asking Isabel for updates.

Killing The Story is fast paced and as all of Ms. Livingston’s books that I’ve read, full of great characters and a lot of danger and crazy situations. Isabel is always up for the adventures that she partakes in to find out the truth behind the cases she takes. She’s even up for the danger that always seems to find her. However, along with the danger comes the friendships, respect and support from the neighbors and community. This story was full of suspense, danger, and action. This case was a close to Isabel because Estelle Crane, Emerson’s mother, was a co-owner and operator of The Observer, and she was as tenacious, determined, and a reporter that didn’t have a problem reporting all of the news. Isabel is finding a kindred spirit with Estelle the more she delves into her death.

I love this story and the characters are always so interesting and entertaining. I love Isabel’s relationships that she makes and has with the towns folk as well as those that she ends up questioning. Ms. Livingston’s stories take place in Western Massachusetts and the description of the characters in the small townships around where Isabel lives as well as Conwell remind me of the small towns and countryside in Vermont. I love the Isabel Long stories. These stories always start off with suspense and adventures and this continues throughout the entire book. I give this story a 5-star review and look forward to more Isabel Long stories in the future.

MY REVIEW:

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 5 out of 5

Bohdan decided to leave the Bratva along with is Pakhan, Konstantin Silvanov to make a better life for himself. Bohdan, Konstantin and Andrius, Konstantin’s friend, have decided to go into a legal business of well-trained security guards. As they are preparing to start up their business, Bohdan has decided that he needs to find a way to get close to Dasha, his first love. Bohdan is convinced that Dasha betrayed him and wants retribution, but when he discovers the danger that Dasha is already in, he decides that he needs to protect her and save her.

Dasha is in a loveless, abusive, domineering marriage and her only escape and joy is when she’s dancing. She is a prima ballerina and her husband is her manager, keeper, and abuser.  The one night that she saw Bohdan backstage keeps popping back up in her mind and she is noticing that when she thinks of him, she feels more alive than usual. She can’t forget how he betrayed her, but her heart doesn’t seem to care.

I loved this story. The characters are full of life, dangerous, loyal to those they care about, and want more out of life than what they’ve had. These stories are action packed from start to finish and the passion these characters have is hot. They love, protect, fight, and care fiercely and they won’t let anyone get in their way when they set their sights on the women that complete them. I am loving this series and cannot wait for Maxim’s story to come out. It looks to be another action packed, deadly, suspenseful story. I give this story a 5-star review and I just have to say that I love Bohdan and the way he accepts his broken nose as a good thing, he’s also pretty sexy.

Title: Within the Shadows
Author: T. L. Mahrt
Genre: Suspense Romance

Target Audience: Target avatar is readers of steamy suspenseful romance novel, mostly woman, ages rom 18-55.

Release Date: Preorders Released: May, 28 2020 and Release Date: August 28, 2020

Trigger Warnings: Mid violence, domestic assault and heavy sexual content. Profanity language used.

Reviews:
Goodreads
https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/19755994.T_L_Mahrt

Within the shadows:

Synopsis

Emma’s world is rocked as the real monster lurking in the shadows is unveiled. 

Emma Andrews’ last memory of her mother is seeing her bleeding to death on the bathroom floor. Several years later, Emma is kidnapped and forced to face the same monster that killed her mother. Quickly, Emma—a daydreamer with an inventive personality—must learn to separate her fantasies from reality in order to differentiate friend or foe.

As secrets unfold and the shadows emerge, Emma wonders if she can endure reliving the trauma of her past. One thing she does know for certain—she can’t do it alone.

Will Emma escape from this monster alive? Will Chance still love her after she reveals her past? Or, will someone new teach Emma the true strength hiding within her?

About the Author:

T. L. Mahrt is a former business owner, where she utilized her education in cosmetology, barbering and massage therapy for several years. She was raised on and is currently living on a farm in Nebraska, where you can find her running barefoot in the country side with her loving husband and inspiring children and massive dogs.

After having her son, who was born with Cerebral Palsy, she made the life altering decision to stay home to care for her two children and pursue her love for writing. She has a love for romance and poetry where, her overactive imagination, along with her adventures and up beat lifestyle drives her inspiration for her writing.

Marketing/Buy Links:

Website,

https://www.tlmahrt.com

(You can find most all things here)

Buy Links at:

Audible,

Coming soon

Amazon,

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Goodreads

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Facebook readers Group

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MY REVIEW:

⭐️ ⭐️⭐️⭐️ 4 out of 5

Emma has four men vying for her attention and love. She was orphaned when she was a young girl and grew up in the system for the most part. One of the men that wants her for his own is twisted and he found a way to keep himself in her life for a time while she was in the Foster System, but then Jarrett Gage lost track of her when he left the job as her counselor. One man wants to marry her and is in love with her, but she believes he is the man that abused her and hurt her when she was a little girl. Her belief that he was the shadow man, was never disputed by Rick. One man is in love with her, but his job is to make sure that nothing happens to her, track down missing people and observe from afar, until she becomes the person he needs to track down to save and protect. Andy is the man that saves Emma in her dreams, can he be the one to save her in real life? Can he save her from the Mr. JD after her memory begins to come back? Then there is the man that loves her and is her bodyguard. She believes she’s in love with Chance, but now that her memory has returned and she realizes everything that she pushed down deep in her psyche, she is no longer the woman that Chance fell in love with and she has realized that she is not in love with him.

This story is was the first book I read in this series by T.L. Mahrt, but it did not distract from the story, nor did I feel lost while reading it. It is full of action, suspense, danger and great characters that have a lot going on. There are some parts of this story that I wanted to read a few lines ahead because I was expecting someone to jump out of the shadows. The author did a great job of keeping me on my seat wondering if and when Jarrett would show up and reclaim Emma. It also had me wondering which character on the team was untrustworthy and questionable in protecting Emma. I give this story a 4-star review and hope to read more from T.L. Mahrt in the near future. More of Emma and the characters in Within The Shadows would be great.

MY REVIEW:

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 5 out of 5. If I could add 5 more, I would!

My favorite so far, no doubt! I love the cover as well.

Skirt is a man that has done things that are not legal, he’s kept secrets from his Prez, and he can be a ruthless man, when need be. However, when it comes to sex and the heart, he is as pure as can be. He does not partake in the club girls he’s waiting to find the one woman that steals his heart and holds it captive. He’s Scottish and sexy. He’s funny, loyal, and deadly when he needs to be.

She’s stumbling through the dessert and falls in the middle of the road causing Skirt to wreck his bike to avoid hitting her. She’s been beaten and made to walk home in the hot dessert sun of Las Vegas by a man that she can’t seem to get away from. Her only thought is to find her son and protect and get him away from a man that would kill him and Dawn if he knew her secret.

I love Skirt. Of all of the Ruthless Kings he is my favorite so far. He has a heart of gold and yet, he can bring on the demon side when he needs to. His boyish like charms are sweet and endearing. He is a bada** biker, but his loyalty to the MC outshines everything. I love the Ruthless Kings the women they find to complete them are just as strong and lovable as they are. I can’t wait to read Pirate’s story he seems so broken. I give this book a 5-star review and if I could give it five more, I would. I could not put this book down and read it in one day. I highly recommend this book and the entire series to readers that love MC, strong women that know how to fight, and the men that will do anything to protect them and take care of them.

MY ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ REVIEW:

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 5 out of 5

He’s been deep undercover for a while now with one goal in mind. Take down the The Black Widows MC, especially the president of the national chapter. Nick Collins is determined to destroy The Black Widows MC because they are a ruthless, dangerous, and twisted MC. After being undercover for so long, he is now the right-hand man of the president of the North Carolina chapter and has gained quite the intel on the MC and the inner workings. He is tired of being in this life and undercover and is ready to regain his life and fix the damage he caused with the woman he can’t seem to get out of his mind or his heart.

Madeline Hughes has been interested in Nick Collins since she first laid eyes on him. She was lucky enough to get one night with him and after the way he left her and ignored her contact after that night, she is trying to move on, but she can’t seem to get past her feelings for him, no matter how hard she tries. She also has a constant reminder of him, so that doesn’t help her moving on either.

I really enjoyed this story. It is action packed and has wonderful characters. These two have a lot of baggage to overcome to find their peace and reconnect to move on together. Nick is constantly in danger and even when he gets out of the undercover assignment, he is still worried about retribution, but he will find that it will come from an unlikely angle. Nick was trying to keep Madeline out of danger from the MC, but in doing so, he missed the danger lurking right in front of both of them.

If you like MC, police procedural, dangerous men, and women with a lot of sass and strength, you will enjoy this story. Madeline has a strength that even she doesn’t realize at times and the men around her are even in awe of her strength and determination. I give this story a 5-star review and look forward to the next book in the Elite Securities Series.

MY REVIEW:

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 5 out of 5

She lost so much that night. Now she’s about to lose herself as well as her freedom. It has been eight years since she heard that voice and saw those eyes, now she has to face him again and she has no idea what is in store for her. Cristina is a pawn in his family’s revenge for their loss the same night that involved her family and theirs.

He is not a nice man; he has done a lot to get to the head of the family and restore his families name. He has to take Cristina as his payment now, but he is finding it hard to do as his father wants him to do for retribution. He has done some things that he is not proud of but restoring his family at the top of the game was needed. Damian is confused by his feelings over Cristina and he has decided that he will do what he needs to but that he will not do what his father expects.

I loved this dark, twisted mafia story. Damian is a haunted soul that is determined to lead his family, but he may have some obstacles to overcome and retain his spot as the leader of the Di Santo family. He is feared by most men and women and gets away with a lot, but there are few that stand in the shadows waiting to take what he has and make it theirs. Cristina could be more of a pawn than Damian thinks she is. Their connection is confusing to Cristina. She was young when their lives first crossed, and she is now eighteen and finds herself as property of Damian DiSanto with no warning or preparation. If you enjoy a dark twisted story of possession and mafia connections this story will not disappoint. I give it a 5-star review and cannot wait for the conclusion of Unholy Union. Cristina’s strong will and instinct to survive could be tested even more in the next book.

MY REVIEW:

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 5 out of 5

He’s now the President of the Houston Defiance MC. One tragedy led to his presidency, and the loss of his family, all in one day. Zero can’t let his younger sister and brother go, but he can’t keep them in Houston either, so he’ll have to compromise and send someone to follow them and protect them. Zero isn’t ready to take the reins from his father. A year later, and he’s ready for his sister and brother to come home. He’ll have to handle it with kid gloves if he wants them back in Houston, and he will also find more than he expected when he goes to reclaim his family.

Rayne is a pawn for her husband to get what he wants. She is being used by her husband against her family, but she believes that their marriage is a marriage of convenience because they both come from wealthy families. However, she has no clue of the real reason Chuck married her. Her life is a living nightmare and a chance meeting one night could change everything for her. She will just have to bide her time and wait for her white knight to show up now to save her.

This story was full of action, suspense, heat, and great characters. I loved it and hated to come to the end. I wanted so much more. There is angst and some twists that are very unexpected. Rayne will find a safe place to be the person she wants to be and Zero will find a way to move on from the pain of his past and the loss of his family. They will both fight to protect themselves but realize that there’s no use in the fighting the inevitable. They have great chemistry and will do anything to protect the other, even if it means putting themselves in danger to do it. Rayne will find a strength that she didn’t know resided in her with the help of Zero and the Houston Defiance MC. She may be trouble waiting to happen, but she will also be a huge asset to the MC, they just don’t know it right away.

I loved this story and give it 5-stars. I look forward to more stories in the Houston Defiance MC books and can’t wait to read Wraith’s story. If you love MC love stories and strong women that have been beaten down and raised back up, you will love Explosive. I did.

MY REVIEW:

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 5 out of 5

Wow, dark, depraved, and twisted. He was set up by his own blood. Sebastian Knight was set up by his own brother to get him out of the way of what Kendrick had planned for the beautiful young woman that he is dating. The first time Sebastian laid eyes on Gabriella, he fell in love with her and wanted her for himself, but Kendrick staked his claim on her first. Sebastian spent five years in prison for a crime he didn’t commit and during that time all he could think about was protecting Gabriella and keeping her away from Kendrick. He had no idea what Kendrick had planned for Gabriella, but Sebastian knew that he needed to find her after he was released from prison, so he spent the next two years searching everywhere for her, with no luck.

Gabriella thought Kendrick was the man that would give her everything she lost when her parents died. When she was eighteen, she started dating him and after a while, she realized that he was not the man she was hoping he was. After she met his younger brother Sebastian, she knew he was the man for her, but now she was trapped with Kendrick and in a marriage that she didn’t want. Sebastian helped her while he was in prison to escape Kendrick and get a divorce, but her seclusion didn’t last long enough and when he found her again, she had to endure so much that most people would not survive.

I loved this story and the characters are great. The men are Alpha, wealthy, dangerous, and loyal and the women are sassy, strong, and just as dangerous as their men. They have no problem with what these men do and in fact are right by their sides all the way. These men made their own family and are loyal to each other. They will put their lives on the line at any moment for their family of choice. I cannot wait to read Grayson, Owen, and Heaven’s stories. All of these men were falsely accused of crimes and imprisoned for them. Now they are out to redeem themselves and to gain back some of what they lost in time they spent behind bars. The guys are so funny to read about. They are like a bunch of teenage girls at times and then other times they are lethal and deadly. I give this story a 5-star review and highly recommend it to readers that enjoy stories that are a bit dark and twisted and characters that you wish were in your corner. Besides, one look at the cover of Cruel Temptation and Cruel Seduction and who wouldn’t want to read these guys’ stories? They are very sexy!