Unpunished (Gardiner and Renner #2) by Lisa Black

It begins with the kind of bizarre death that makes headlines literally. A copy editor at theCleveland Heraldis found hanging above the grinding wheels of the newspaper assembly line, a wide strap wrapped around his throat. Forensic investigator Maggie Gardiner has her suspicions about this apparent suicide inside the tsunami of tensions that is the news industry today and when the evidence suggests murder, Maggie has no choice but to place her trust in the one person she doesn t trust at all . . .
Jack Renner is a killer with a conscience, a vigilante with his own code of honor. In the past, Jack has used his skills and connections as a homicide detective to take the law into his own hands, all in the name of justice. He has only one problem: Maggie knows his secret. She insists he enforce the law, not subvert it. But when more newspaper employees are slain, Jack may be the only person who can help Maggie unmask the killer-- even if Jack is still checking names off his own private murder list."

Review: Thank you NetGalley for the ARC of Unpunished by Lisa Black that I read and reviewed.
The first thing that I am going to do is suggest that you read the first book in the series because it will help you understand Jack and Maggie's deal that is talked about a lot in this book. Things that took place in the first book also are still being dealt with in this book so in order to have a full understanding of what is going on, reading the first book will help.
As for Unpunished, I found it fascinating. I loved how Black looked at the newspaper business and how it is dying. Her unique way of having a killer use that industry to show his or her displeasure about what was going on I found very interesting because I use to work in that industry and how she described it brought back so many memories. The irony in the strap the killer used hang the victims was something a journalist would love reading and absolutely get.
This was the second book that we, as readers, get to see the pairing of Maggie Gardiner and Jack Renner who I love together even though they are polar opposites. Maggie is the by the book forensic expert and Jack is a cop by day and serial killer at night who have been forced to make a truce and work together and are now trying to find out who is killing people who work at the local newspaper. The chemistry between these two I can't decide if it is a love hate relationship because Maggie hates what Jack does in his spare time or if there is a small sliver of attraction there because you know what they say about love and hate? I guess we will have to see where as the series goes.
I kept jumping around guessing who the killer was in Unpunished. Black is a master a leaving hints but making you second or even third guess about what you think is right. Then you pick a suspect and the next thing you know he or she us hanging up by a strap. Guess that one was wrong. On to the next one. This was one of those books.
I can't wait to see what Black has planned next for Maggie and Jack in her next book. This is one of those series with a cop as a serial killer you have to ask yourself how long before he gets caught?
Unpunished gets five out of five stars.

Right Behind You (Quincy & Rainie #7) by Lisa Gardner

Is he a hero? 
Eight years ago, Sharlah May Nash’s older brother beat their drunken father to death with a baseball bat in order to save both of their lives. Now thirteen years old, Sharlah has finally moved on. About to be adopted by retired FBI profiler Pierce Quincy and his partner, Rainie Conner, Sharlah loves one thing best about her new family: They are all experts on monsters. 
Is he a killer?Then the call comes in. A double murder at a local gas station, followed by reports of an armed suspect shooting his way through the wilds of Oregon. As Quincy and Rainie race to assist, they are forced to confront mounting evidence: The shooter may very well be Sharlah’s older brother, Telly Ray Nash, and it appears his killing spree has only just begun.
 All she knows for sure: He’s back.
 As the clock winds down on a massive hunt for Telly, Quincy and Rainie must answer two critical questions: Why after eight years has this young man started killing again? And what does this mean for Sharlah? Once upon a time, Sharlah’s big brother saved her life. Now, she has two questions of her own: Is her brother a hero or a killer? And how much will it cost her new family before they learn the final, shattering truth? Because as Sharlah knows all too well, the biggest danger is the one standing right behind you.

Review:  Thank you NetGalley for the ARC of Right Behind You by Lisa Gardner that I read and reviewed.
I really enjoyed this book. I loved that Gardner kept the reader guessing until the very end to find out what was really going on and why the crime took place. Telly was one of those "criminals" that you really did not want to be bad so throughout the entire book I found myself cheering for him and wanting him to be a good guy. He grabbed at your heart stings because of the relationship he had with his sister and the relationship he seemed to have had with his foster parents that it was hard to fathom how he could snap and become a spree shooter so I wanted Quincy and Rainie to bring him in unharmed at the very least. I never felt myself cheer for the "bad guy" as much as I did for Telly in this book not only because I wanted him to be able to get to see his sister again but because I really believe in him.
This book had a great story and it was nice to revisit Quincy and Rainie again. As I stated before the book keeps you guessing until the end and throws and number of surprises your way. Telly is a very special character that you can't help but root for.
Right Behind You gets five out of five stars from me.

At Close Range (Tracers #11) by Laura Griffin

When a lakeside tryst ends in a double murder, police detective Daniele Harper arrives on the scene determined to get answers. Clues are everywhere, but nothing adds up. Dani turns to the Delphi Center crime lab for help, but soon regrets it when her secret attraction to their chief firearms examiner threatens to distract her from the most important case of her career.As a ballistics expert and former Navy SEAL, Scott Black knows firearms, and he knows he can help Dani unravel her case. Scott has managed to hide his interest in his best friend’s younger sister for years, but when her investigation brings them together, the sparks between them quickly get out of control. Scott resolves to keep his hands off Dani and his eyes on the goal—identifying a killer. But when that killer zeroes in on Dani, all bets are off. There isn’t a line Scott won’t cross to convince Dani to trust him so that he can help her take down a ruthless murderer who has her in his sights.

Review:  Thank you NetGalley and Laura Griffin for the ARC of At Close Range by Laura Griffin that I read and reviewed.
The eleventh book in the Tracers series keeps the action coming and the members of the Delphi Center busy helping solve crime. In this book the stakes are even higher for the Center because their very own ballistics expert and former Navy SEAL, Scott Black is at the center of a double homicide and his fingerprints are all over the murder weapon. It is up to his best friend's sister, police detective Dani Harper, to find out who is behind the killings and why Scott was framed. As the body count grows so does the heat between Dani and Scott even though they both know going for a relationship with each other could ruin a great friendship but they can't help themselves. Will they be able to find out who is after Dani and who framed Scott or will a crazed killer win a high stakes game?
This book was great because it has so many old characters from past books in it so it was like a family reunion in a way. I loved how everything just flows so nicely in Griffin's books. You meet Dani and Scott in an earlier book and they pick right up in this books and the sparks keep flying. These two were a great match and they were hot hot hot together. 
The story had me bit twisted because I was not sure what was going on and why those guys were getting killed. To be honest I was not even guessing for a change and when it came out in the end I was going that idea never even crossed my mind so it was very well written. 
This was one of those books I just went with the flow and enjoyed the banter between all the characters. I was so happy we got to see Mia and Ric's part in this book. If you are a fan of this series you will truly love the part they had in this book because as I said before this series has become like a family and parts of this was like a family reunion with some of the charters that made appearances in this book and that made this book all that more special.
I am giving At Close Range five out of five stars.

Gone (Deadly Secrets #2) by Elisabeth Naughton

Three years ago, Alec and Raegan McClane lived every parent’s worst nightmare: their one-year-old daughter, Emma, was abducted from a park when Alec turned his back for just a moment. Emma was never found, and presumed dead. The crushing trauma, plus Alec’s unbearable guilt, ended the couple’s marriage.
Now a four-year-old girl matching Emma’s profile is found wandering a local park. Alec and Raegan are heartbroken to discover she’s not their daughter but are newly motivated to find closure…and each secretly feels desperate to be in the other’s presence again.
Alec suspects his vengeful biological father is behind Emma’s disappearance. But as Raegan investigates other abductions in the area, she sees a pattern—and begins to wonder if Emma’s kidnapping is actually linked to something more sinister.
As Alec and Raegan race to uncover the truth, a long-burning spark rekindles into smoldering passion, and they realize they need each other now more than ever.

Review: Thank you NetGalley for the copy of Gone by Elisabeth Naughton that I read and reviewed.
This book was off the charts excellent. I loved Gone the second book in the Deadly Secrets series from the first page.
This book centered around the disappearance of Emma, a one year old little girl, and how her parents Alec and Reagan are dealing with life three years later when they are now divorced but still believe their little girl is out there. This book takes you on their journey as they look into cases that could be related to Emma's and into Alec having to deal with his father who he believes was behind her abduction.
If you love emotional books that suck you in and pull at your heart this is a book for you. As a reader you start cheering for Alec and Reagan to work things and overcome all their problems and somehow beat all the statistics and find Emma alive so they can have another chance at their family. This is an excellent book you can't put down until you know exactly what happens.
I am giving Gone five out of five stars.

A Merciful Death (Mercy Kilpatrick #1) by Kendra Elliot

FBI special agent Mercy Kilpatrick has been waiting her whole life for disaster to strike. A prepper since childhood, Mercy grew up living off the land—and off the grid—in rural Eagle’s Nest, Oregon. Until a shocking tragedy tore her family apart and forced her to leave home. Now a predator known as the cave man is targeting the survivalists in her hometown, murdering them in their homes, stealing huge numbers of weapons, and creating federal suspicion of a possible domestic terrorism event. But the crime scene details are eerily familiar to an unsolved mystery from Mercy’s past.
Sent by the FBI to assist local law enforcement, Mercy returns to Eagle’s Nest to face the family who shunned her while maintaining the facade of a law-abiding citizen. There, she meets police chief Truman Daly, whose uncle was the cave man’s latest victim. He sees the survivalist side of her that she desperately tries to hide, but if she lets him get close enough to learn her secret, she might not survive the fallout…

Review: Thank you NetGalley for the ARC of A Merciful Death by Kendra Elliot that I was able to read and review.
I really enjoyed this book that was the first book a new series by Kendra Elliot. Mercy Kilpatrick returns to hometown for the first time in fifteen years to investigate the deaths of a number of preppers in Eagle's Nest. Mercy grew up as a survivalists but was kicked out of her family at the age of eighteen and became an FBi agent and has not spoken to her family since. Now that she is back home to try to find out who is killing men who are living life that she knows so well and why this is her chance to try to fix things with her family and reconnect.
While looking into the deaths she notices something in the crimes that is linked to crimes that took place eighteen years ago and also played a role in Mercy's past. Are things not what they seem? Is there more to the crime then Mercy and the FBI are looking for?
With the help of the local Sheriff who Mercy is growing closer to everyday will she be able to catch a killer who is after these preppers and also after her or will he end getting away with murder again?
This was an excellent start to the series and I can't wait to see where it goes. I loved the how the chemistry between Mercy and Truman kept building up throughout the book and I can't wait to see where the two of them end up going in the series. I also liked how the story built and how you had no idea who the killer was until the end.
Mercy is such a complex character that you are not sure how to feel about her because you as a reader really can't get to know her except a little by little and that part of the book is also really cool. She has so many layers with her being a prepper it was almost like she was hiding it from the reader to so there is a wall there between her and the reader that is slowly coming down as the book moves on and I like that part of her as well. I can't wait for the next book!
I am giving A Merciful Death five out of five stars.

No Darker Place (Shades of Death #1) by Debra Webb

Detective Bobbie Gentry has one objective: to stop the serial killer who robbed her of her husband, her child and her life. Nick Shade understands Bobbie's pain—and her desire for vengeance. He's on a mission of his own, and the murderer known as the Storyteller is next on his list. Nick knows that the best way to find his target is to stick close to Bobbie. But as she becomes more and more reckless in her attempts to lure the Storyteller out of hiding, he has to make a choice. Will he protect her from herself even if it means passing up the chance to take out one more monster? As for Bobbie, she's forced to decide just how much she can trust this stranger who knows so much about her. And both of them are about to learn whether or not two broken people can save each other.

Review: I was given an ARC copy of No Darker Place by Debra Webb the author so I could review the book.
The first thing I am going to tell you to do is to read the prequel, The Blackest Crimson, so you have the background to this book so you know what is going on or else you will feel like you are starting in the middle of the story and you will be lost and it will take you forever if you ever figure out what is going on in the book.
As for this book the Storyteller is back to finish Bobbie's story and Bobbie is ready to let him but at what cost? Nick Shade is a man on a mission to hunt and take down serial killers and he plans on taking down the Storyteller. Can Bobbie and Nick stop this mad man before he finishes Bobbie's story?
I found this book twisted on many levels. The things the Storyteller does to his victims and to mess with Bobbie are off the charts crazy and some of them bothered me on levels that I am not use too reading
in Webb's work. This book is definitely not for someone who likes light reading. Some of the things that happened in this book I walked away going "Why did she add that?" Then after thinking about it I realized Webb was making this book real and man did she.
No Darker Place is a look in the mind of a crazy serial killer obsessed with finishing off the one that got away and also the dark places a mind goes when it feel like it has lost everything and has nothing left to fight for except for revenge. This is a deep psychological thriller that you know who the killer is and you know his every move but you are not sure if Bobbie and Nick Shade will be strong enough to save all the people the Storyteller puts in danger to punish Bobbie and Bobbie herself.
I am giving No Darker Place four out of five stars.