Wolfhunter River by Rachel Caine

Note to all of my readers: WOLFHUNTER RIVER is not the genre of book that I normally review on my blog. I became familiar with this author's writing through her Morganville Vampire series for young adults. This series(Stillhouse Lake), is adult fiction. It is secular as opposed to my normal reviewing of Christian fiction. Therefore I feel like I need to give a disclaimer: there are adult themes in this series, there is foul language and references to sexual situations. I read all genre's of books including non-Christian and will occasionally review those on my blog. 

Gwen has decided she is no longer running from the people that hate her for having been married to serial killer Melvin Royal. Trying to tell her story, unfortunately Gwen chooses the wrong outlet. The woman who hates her the most is out to destroy Gwen and her family. She will stop at nothing to make Gwen pay for what Melvin did to her daughter.

Over the years Gwen has gotten calls from people seeking her help. When someone calls from Wolfhunter Gwen has no interest in going there, but things are heating up in Stillhouse and it is best that she gets away for awhile. Women are disappearing in Wolfhunter and Gwen has no choice but to help the woman who calls.

There is something wrong in Wolfhunter. Gwen is determined to help a young woman when law-enforcement seem to be railroading her to the death penalty. Gwen and boyfriend Sam want to get out of Wolfhunter as fast as possible, but it seems that someone wants them dead instead. Is Gwen's past catching up with her again?  Are the locals hiding something? Who can Gwen and Sam trust?

Oh. My. Word! This book kept me on the edge of my seat. I read it in two days! I didn't want to put it down! It was fast-paced, it was scary, it had twists and turns that kept me wondering what in the world was going on. It was dark! I honestly don't know if someone like Gwen, Sam and Gwen's kids could go through as much as they do if they were real-life people! The stress on them would be too great I imagine. Melvin's evilness is still touching their lives and it is horrifying. What comes next for Gwen and Sam? There were some pretty intense secrets that were let out of the bag in this installment. If you like darkly intense thrillers then I would say that author Rachel Caine hit the nose on this one.

Other books in the series:

Stillhouse Lake
Killman Creek

Dead Ringer by Susan Sleeman

When a woman goes missing Sheriff Blake Jenkins knows he only has hours to be able to follow her trail. To expedite getting DNA results Blake takes the samples gathered to the Veritas group. When he sees Emory Steele coming out of her office Blake is totally ticked because she is a dead ringer for the abducted woman. Quickly learning that Emory had no idea that she was adopted, let alone a twin, she agrees to use all of the Veritas teams resources to help find her abducted sister. Why were they given up at birth and why did her parents never tell her that she was adopted, and can they find her twin before she is murdered and before they find out what happened in the past?

Blake has no interest in getting involved with a woman. In fact he cannot allow himself to get involved with a woman. He failed his sister many years before and he has no intention of failing another woman in his life. But Emory's combination of vulnerability and tenacity slip under his radar and touch his heart before he knows what has hit him! Will he once again be able to put his trust in God to help him solve this crime and protect the woman that he has come to care deeply for?

This is the first in the Truth Seekers series and in perfect Susan Sleeman fashion starts off capturing the readers attention and gathering momentum as the pages turn! If you've read the COLD HARBOR series then you know we have met Blake before. He's the Sheriff from those books. In fact the Blackwell Tactical Team also make an appearance in the Truth Seekers series. We also met Emory Steele in the last COLD HARBOR book COLD DAWN. So DEAD RINGER sort of picks up where the COLD HARBOR series left off. I love Blake and Emory. Both have had experiences in their backgrounds that cause them to shy away from any relationship, yet both, of course, are inexplicably drawn to each other. Emory frustrated me a couple of times at the beginning of the book when she rushed in to situations after Blake had told her to stay put. She was a mixture of frayed nerves because of her past and a strong independent woman wanting to exert herself and her skills. Admirable, but dangerous. Blake of course was a character of contrasts as well. He was decisive in his job and single-minded as well, but he could also turn on the charm and warmth that caught Emory off guard. The mystery of why the girls were given up for adoption and why they were separated was interesting and kept the reader wondering what was in the past and what could happen next. DEAD RINGER was a great introduction to the TRUTH SEEKERS series and I am definitely looking forward to reading the next book in the series!

Deadly Encounter by Diann Mills

When veterinarian Stacy Broussard is on her volunteer patrol she encounters a dead man on the trail. Next thing she knows the FBI are questioning her. Special Agent Alex LeBlanc does not agree with volunteers patrolling the airport trails so that makes him skeptical of Stacy's innocence in the crime. It also doesn't help that the last relationship Alex was involved in he was duped into believing that the woman was innocent when she was not. So when Alex arrives at the scene Stacy already has a mark against her in his book. Standing guard over the dead body is an injured dog. Stacy takes the dog in to care for it while the investigation is going on.

Stacy has a lot going on in her life at the moment. She is currently trying to get custody of her neighbors son Whitt. Living in a less than desirable neighborhood Stacy sees all kinds of crime. She has been taking care of Whitt for years. As the investigation begins Stacy is confronted with a developer who wants to buy up property in the area, a notice that the water in their community is unsafe to use, a looming court date for she and Whitt, threats against she and Whitt, and an FBI agent that is trying to make up for his rude behavior when they first met. When people begin to have flu-like symptoms it seems that everyone is ready to sell their properties. But Stacy refuses to be bullied into leaving. Are she and Whitt safe, or will the person making the threats follow through?

I really enjoyed this book. I especially loved Whitt! He is a 12 year old genius who has been forced to live life beyond his years. He takes care of Stacy just as she takes care of him. I love the way he is protective of her. Alex was the typical FBI agent at first. Pushy and annoying, but he eventually softened and ended up being the perfect match for Stacy. I admired Stacy for her desire to take on Whitt as her own child. She did frustrate me in that she made some careless decisions I felt, but everything worked out in the end. There was an element of faith questioning throughout the book for each character that tugged at the heart. This is book 1 in the FBI Task Force series. I read books 2 and then 3 first and then came back to 1. I don't know how I always manage to do that, but there you go, I do! If you are a suspense fan then I definitely recommend this book to you!

My reviews:
Deep Extraction
High Treason