Unwrapping: Review of FIRST DO NO EVIL by Carey Baldwin

I opened my email one day and discovered a wonderful treat from debut author Carey Baldwin. She had sent me an eARC of her debut novel, FIRST DO NO EVIL, Blood Secrets Book 1 from Samhain Publishing, releasing June 26, 2012. It seems I was the first person to enter her first contest on her brand new website - love being in the right place at the right time. Added bonus, she's a debut author and you know how I love debut authors.

Blurb for FIRST DO NO EVIL:

One killer is in her blood. The other is in her house.

There’s a killer lurking in Dr. Skylar Novak’s family tree: the gene for breast cancer. That’s why her brilliant brother invented the Bella vaccine. But even if the miracle drug protects her from the cancer that took her mother’s life, it can’t save Sky from the flesh and bone evil stalking her in secret.
When the killer strikes, detective Daniel Benson finds himself in the wrong place at the right time. The bold detective manages to save Sky’s life…just in time for her to return the favor. Survival leads to seduction, and Danny risks everything—his career, even his life, to keep Sky safe. But will the buried sins they uncover cost him her heart?
Danny’s strong arms may hold her close, but only Sky can stop the terror that’s coming next…

Product Warnings
Contents include: One heart-melting hero—good luck getting this delicious detective out of your head. One reluctant heroine—wielding a Glock was never on her to-do list. One crazed villain—an entire flock of baa baa black sheep won’t be enough to put you to sleep. And a lifesaving vaccine with one deadly side effect—murder.

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Dr. Sky Novak is no stranger to crime or the aftermath but when months later she is confronted with the idea that she may be next or her brother, Garth, she turns to the one man she hopes can help her make sense of things.

Detective Danny Benson puts his life on the line all the time as a cop but when he entered Jolene's diner that cold morning he hadn't expected to meet Sky Novak or come quite so close to death. In the aftermath, while rehabilitating, Danny starts questioning the events of that day. That day that Jack Spurlock robbed Jolene's, held Neveah Flores at gun point and threatened to kill Sky if her brother didn't sit down and shut up. For a robbery, it was all so atypical that Danny couldn't let it go.

It isn't difficult for Danny to convince Sky that this was no ordinary robbery for she had already started to question the coincidences between the Halloween night that her father was killed and this Halloween robbery that left her fiance and the criminal dead, Danny severely injured and Neveah too frightened to return to work at the diner. There was one thing that tied both events together - Skylar Novak. Was there a serial killer behind both events? Was Sky the target or only those around her? As Sky begins to examine her world and the world of those around her, more questions are raised than answered. As Sky begins to worry for the safety of others around her, her own feelings for Danny begin to go far beyond trust and safety. When she asks him to teach her to shoot a gun, he gladly agrees on the condition that she tell him the truth about everything. It's this truth that pulls them closer and opens the door to things that might be best left unknown.

I wish I could tell you more but if I do, I'll ruin the read for you. FIRST DO NO EVIL by Carey Baldwin is an action-packed, grab you by the throat and not let you go until the very end, story! This being her debut novel, Carey Baldwin has hit an A+ grade. She's created great characters and a plot that twists and turns so many times that when you start to see it come together, you'll smack your forehead and say, "why didn't I see that coming?" I am a little disappointed, Carey, that you actually used the word snuck ... sorry, English major in me that makes me cringe at such slang.

FIRST DO NO EVIL, Blood Secrets Book 1 by Carey Baldwin is a romantic suspense that will have you gripping your ereader while worrying if you're going to be able to sleep after turning off the light. There's nothing like a well-plotted serial killer on the lose story to give you chills and heighten your senses. Throw in a hot sexy detective and a doctor heroine whose no shrinking violet and you've got yourself one excellent, steamy romance filled spine tingling suspense that you won't soon forget.

I highly recommend FIRST DO NO EVIL by Carey Baldwin for anyone who loves suspense, a killer on the loose who when revealed makes your blood run cold and a heroine who will have you cheering when she shows her true iron self. I am looking forward to seeing what comes next in the Blood Secrets series and Carey Baldwin is definitely now on my list of authors I read.

Happy Reading Everyone!
(Don't forget there's still time to win a signed e-copy of THE WHITE SWAN AFFAIR by Elyse Mady at the Wacky Wednesday post and I'll be choosing 2 new winners in the A WARRIOR'S PROMISE by Donna Fletcher giveaway since 2 past winners never responded. All will be announced in a special post on Saturday - stay tuned.)

FIRST DO NO EVIL, Blood Secrets Book 1 by Carey Baldwin, Samhain Publishing, release date - June 26, 2012 in ebood format.

                                                                

Unwrapping: Review of SIMON SAYS DIE by Lena Diaz

I have been a fan of books and movies that center around seriel killers forever. One of my all time favorite series is the books about Hannibal Lechter by Thomas Harris. I love to scare myself so imagine my delight when I opened an eARC from AVON of SIMON SAYS DIE by Lena Diaz and read the prologue which had the hair standing up on my arms and the back of my neck before I even turned the page to Chapter One.

SIMON SAYS DIE by Lena Diaz is her second Avon Impulse release coming March 27, 2012.


Blurb for SIMON SAYS DIE:
Simon says…I’m watching.
Madison McKinley knows someone is watching her, following her, hiding in the shadows. But her clever stalker never leaves proof. The police are too busy trying to find the ‘Simon Says’ killer to waste time chasing a stalker they believe exists only in Madison’s mind. With no one to turn to, Madison must handle her problems on her own–even when her former lover shows up to help. Madison knows Pierce means well, but she can’t risk her heart–or his life–any more than she already has.
Simon says…I’m coming.
From the moment FBI Special Agent Pierce Buchanan knocks on Madison’s door, he’s drawn into a deadly game of deception and danger. He should have expected all this turmoil–after all, Madison’s nickname is ‘trouble’. But when people start dying and the evidence mounts, the police begin to suspect Madison is behind everything. Was Pierce a fool for following his heart and trusting her again, or are they both caught in a game so complex it will be a miracle if they come out alive?
Simon says…DIE.

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FBI Special Agent Pierce Buchanan is not thrilled about promising his buddy, Logan Richards, that he will check on Logan's sister, Madison McKinley because he had hoped to never see her again after she broke his heart. The last time he'd seen her, he was about to propose but before he had the chance she told him that she was bored and wanted to move on. A promise is a promise, however, and since Logan is on his honeymoon, Pierce agrees to make sure Madison is all right. Imagine his surprise when he arrives at her home to find her chasing after a strange man. Pierce follows and ends up getting shot for his good deed.

Someone has been watching Madison in her new home in Savannah. Mysterious notes and phone calls have her very nervous and the worst part about it is that she suspects the man stalking her is her dead husband. Yes, you read that right, her dead husband. The same husband that died in a fiery automobile accident after she shot him trying to get him to leave her alone. Yes, she shot her husband only no bullet was recovered during the autopsy and no one but she and her dead husband know that she shot him.

Madison has secrets. Secrets that she can't tell her brother or Pierce. The police don't believe her reports of a stalker and the police don't trust her. Pierce is having a hard time believing or trusting her either. Pierce is still in love with Madison but because of the way they ended things, he's suspicious of her intentions. Madison, after having been married to a man she thinks of as evil, evil enough that she is armed to the teeth in case he isn't dead and intends her harm, trusts no man. So what's a girl to do? No one believes her and the police don't want to expend any more attention to her problem because they have a greater threat to the community, a seriel killer they call SIMON.

I'm not going to tell you any more because this is a mystery thriller that needs to be read to be appreciated. SIMON SAYS DIE by Lena Diaz is a gripping romance thriller that will have you hooked from the first words. The suspense-filled yet reaffirming romance that emerges from a tension-filled beginning will easily carry you through to the climactic end of SIMON and then make you smile with a touching and sweet epilogue. I highly recommend reading SIMON SAYS DIE by Lena Diaz and I fully intend to read her first Avon Impulse, HE KILLS ME, HE KILLS ME NOT, as soon as I can find the time.

Happy Reading Everyone!

Also, don't forget my poll, ARE ROMANCE NOVELS EQUIVALENT TO MEN'S PORN?, is still open, so feel free to vote and make your opinion count. Click HERE to go to the Poll post.

SIMON SAYS DIE by Lena Diaz, published by Avon Impulse, is available March 27, 2012, ASIN: B0078XFIQS, ebook format.
You can learn more about Lena Diaz and her other book as well as read an excerpt from SIMON SAYS DIE at her website.