SO NOT HAPPENING By Jenny B. Jones

SO NOT HAPPENING By Jenny B. Jones
Thomas Nelson Publishing
Trade Paperback $12.99

When Bella Kirkwood is transplanted from Manhattan to Truman, Oklahoma, life as she knew it has ended. Not only does she have to deal with side-stepping cow piles and doing without high-price stores, she has an evil step-brother who resents her as much as she does him. And what's up with the handsome editor of the school newspaper? The one who can't seem to stand the sight of Bella? Yet, she stumbles across a diabolical plot to make the high school football team win at all costs. She's determined to do so, or die trying.

SO NOT HAPPENING is one of the most enjoyable YA novels I've read in a long time. Jenny B. Jones has captured the attitude and sass of a high school socialite. Settle into your favorite chair, grab a cold drink, and laugh along with Bella's antics as she learns that home truly is where the heart is.

KATT'S IN THE CRADLE

KATT'S IN THE CRADLE
By Ginger Kolbaba & Christy Scannell
Howard Publishing
Trade Paperback $13.99

In KATT'S IN THE CRADLE, we revisit the pastor wives and Lulu's cafe. Challenges have been met, and new ones risen. A young new wife enters the mix, pointing out to Mimi, Lisa, Felicia, and Jennifer how naive they used to be, and putting a crimp in the Pastor Wives' Fellowship. Can the four friends draw everyong together beneath the umbrella of their faith? Can they support each other when disaster and surprise threaten to bury them beneath a heavy weight?

Ginger Kolbaba & Christy Scannell deliver again a fun story of marriage, friendship, faith, and holding it all together. Through this story we learn the value of strong friendships with other women, and how we can rely on our friends when our faith is tested.

DEADLY CHARM By Claudia Mair Burney

Dr. Amanda Bell Brown is back, and neck deep in trouble. Again! When Evangelist, Ezekiel Thunder's baby is found drowned in the bathtub, Amanda is certain is was no accident and turns her attentions on the little boy's mother. Admidst babies, illness, and trying to repair her own marriage, Amanda goes head-to-head with the woman. When everything Amanda holds dear is threatened, she "steps it up" to solve a murder and save her marriage.

Claudia Mair Burney has done it again! Amanda Bell Brown is back and sassy as ever. I thoroughly enjoyed the first two books in the Amanda Bell Brown mysteries and wasn't disappointed in the third. Burney has the reader, laughing, crying, and gasping through one page-turning escapade after another. Bravo!

BLOOD BAYOU
Howard Books
Trade Paperback

Reviewed by Cynthia Hickey

Camille St. James, advocate for the wrongly accused. When she proves the innocence of a death-row inmate, and a brutal death occurs days after his release, Camille loses her job and finds herself back in Blood Bayou being courted by her ex-husband, and chased by a killer. The last thing she wants is to renew a relationship with her ex-husband, Jack, now a minister with a load of secrets.

I have never read one of Karen Young's books before this one. I'm hooked. Blood Bayou is a page-turning suspense, with a steamy romance between Camille and Jack who struggle with the changes in each other and themselves. Can Jack convince Camille that he really has changed? Can he show her God's character shining through him? Can Camille trust the man who still holds her heart?

A great book! I recommend it to any romantic suspense fan.

CRY IN THE NIGHT By Colleen Coble

CRY IN THE NIGHT By Colleen Coble
A Rock Harbor Mystery
Thomas Nelson
Trade Paperback - $14.99

Reviewed by Cynthia Hickey

Bree Matthews wants a baby more than anything. When she finds one in the snow, it seems like a dream come true, but then her son tells her of the baby being buried by a Windigo, a young woman is found dead, and other newborns are disappearing from the reservation. The only clue Bree has are the sudoku pages from a young autistic man. Then, it seems as if someone has returned from the dead, and Bree's world topples. Can God right the axle of her life?

Colleen Coble has brought us back to Rock Harbor, Bree Matthews, and her search dog, Samson. CRY IN THE NIGHT is a page-turning suspense that leaves the reader asking more questions as answers are discovered. A great read.

DARK PURSUIT BY BRANDILYN COLLINS

DARK PURSUIT By Brandilyn Collins
Zondervan Publishing
Trade Paperback - $15.99

Reviewed by Cynthia Hickey

Darell Brooke, King of Suspense, has writer's block to beat all writer's block. His aging mind refuses to old onto a plot line. When his estranged grandaughter, Kaitlan Sering comes to his aid because she finds a dead woman's body in her apartment, Brooke sees the road to writing appear again. Things escalate when it appears the killer has stolen Brooke's unfinished manuscript and using the fictional killer's method as his own. Brooke and Kaitlan devise a plan to trap and capture the murderer. With devastating results.

Brandilyn has done it again. DARK PURSUIT is a page-turning suspenseful read that will keep you up late at night. When finished, you won't want to turn out the lights! I've been a fan of Brandilyn's for years and DARK PURSUIT doesn't disappoint. Not for the faint of heart, but an incredible read for those brave enough to dive into the pages.

DOG GONE By Eileen Key

DOG GONE, A Feather Duster Mystery by Eileen Key
Barbour Publishing
Mass Market Paperback - $4.97

Reviewed by Cynthia Hickey

What do you do when a prize-winning dog is napped from your friend's boarding business? Find the culprit, of course.

Belle cleans houses by day and solves mysteries in her spare time. At least now that her best friend needs her help. There's no time for romance in her busy schedule. Until a handsome, blue-eyed friend of her son's comes into the picture. What's a woman to do? Accept the man's help in finding the missing dog, of course.

DOG GONE is great fun and takes the reader into the world of show dogs. I look forward to reading the next in the Feather Duster series.