Blog Archives
Blood Thinners
Blood Thinners starts with a great first line that immediately hooks readers and throws them right into the storyline. Detective Mina Summers, the daughter of the leader of the organization known as SHAP (Supernatural Human Accountability Partnership), is just one assignment away from becoming Regional Director for the agency. Should she obtain this position, she will be the youngest one in the agency’s history. There is nothing and no one that will stand in her way. That is at least until she receives her one last assignment.
Detective Summers’s final assignment is to look into a celebrity-endorsed retreat that guarantees weight loss permanently. SHAP finds this claim suspicious, especially in light of the increased number of cases involving rogue vampires randomly making attacks. Mina and her partner Jake are anxious to wrap up this case and move on. However, the Vice President and daughter of Thinner CEO, Carma, might have other ideas.
Mina is the leading lady in this story, and even though she is a bit standoffish, you cannot help but love her character and the character she becomes. Novak does an excellent job of character development, not just with Mina but with all the characters in the book. Sebastian is Mina’s ghost roommate who is obsessed with the movie Titanic. Jake is Mina’s SHAP partner and best friend. He is the level-headed one of the two and tries to keep Mina grounded.
While reading Blood Thinners, I was reminded of the writing style of Lauren Weisberger, i.e., The Devil Wears Prada, and shortly into the book, there is a comparison of the CEO to Miranda. This familiar writing style is engaging, draws readers into the action, and builds attachment to the characters.
Blood Thinners is a fast-paced romantic mystery with LGBTIA+ characters. With excellent and robust world-building, readers will be able to escape into the world created and experience a love story that is heartwarming and heartbreaking.
Pages: 303 | ASIN : B09CK8GHTH
Requiem
Requiem is BJ Taylor’s riveting continuation of The Borderland Mysteries, a fantastic crime fiction series portrayed in a unique format. Suspicious activity is occurring yet again around the territorial border. It’s up to U.S. Federal Marshal Gabriella Zamora and her team to investigate and uncover the mystery, protecting the civilians with value and honor.
A series of murders have been recorded: young Mexican women are being viciously murdered by a possible serial killer creeping into the area of the maquiladoras near the border. The industry of the maquiladoras is very important to the U.S.’s economy, bringing a new dimension to the problem at hand. Again, the team is involved in the investigation of a crime that could have relevant political and economical implications. This time the crime seems riskier and poses a real danger to the team: will they find out the truth behind everything without suffering any damage?
One of the most intriguing elements of this book is Gabriella Zamora’s team. They are diverse and unique, each of them bringing something new and different to this enthralling story, thus turning it into a very dynamic and gripping narrative. Through this series, the attachment to the characters continues to grow progressively, showing true potential for future books. The plot presented is a little more complex than in the first book as the crimes become more serious. However, the characters’ charm makes the whole plot an adventure worth following.
There is tension and a true sense of mystery that keeps the reader captivated at all times, flying through every page. This is not your typical mystery series though, there are creative elements in the story that make it stand out from the conventional books of this genre. One of these elements is the connection with spirituality that some of the characters have, each of them remaining faithful to their culture and illustrating in a beautiful manner the spiritual aspect of peoples’ lives on the border. The author has portrayed these spiritual beliefs in a respectful and beautiful manner.
Requiem is a suspenseful mystery novel that will draw readers in from the start. Diversity, culture, family, and strange enigmas are key elements in this stunning book. This is a thrilling crime adventure with a compelling plot that deals with friendship and morals; perfectly balancing the good and the bad of humanity.
Pages: 159 | ASIN : B09VWG44ZT
Hallelujah
Hallelujah by BJ Taylor is the first book of the Borderland Mysteries, a beautifully engaging story surrounding culture, justice, and humanity. U.S. Federal Marshal for Texas, Gabriella Zamora, is needed to find out what really happened in a car accident that caused the death of one Border Patrol Agent and the severe injury of another. Theories and unfounded rumors are spreading as the President of the United States see this event as an opportunity to boost his campaign against illegal Mexican immigrants. Even though no one knows what really happened, people are starting to believe that the agents were purposely killed by immigrants near the border and see this occurrence as a danger to national security that needs to be addressed immediately.
Gabriella Zamora and her team are willing to work on this task and find the truth behind the brutal accident, committed to protecting immigrants from falsehoods exposed on social media by certain political agencies. This realistic book deals quite accurately with the way our current world uses politics and distorts the truth to fit a given agenda. Serious themes such as racism and homophobia are dealt with respect and in a delicate way that exposes how cruel and inhuman it is to declare war on a group of people based solely on who they are or where they come from.
The plot is presented as a mystery that needs to be solved. We follow the assigned crew as they interview people and follow clues, trying to figure out what happened. The characters are diverse and have very distinct personalities. The culture that is part of the borderland territories is an important aspect of this gripping book and is showcased beautifully. Different elements such as spirituality, art, and culture are displayed quite freely, giving the story some uniqueness and creativity. Parts of the book are also centered around the song Hallelujah by Leonard Cohen, which was a unique approach that worked well with the story.
When the world of politics pervades everything, Gabriella Zamora and her team seem to know their job is to remain grounded, staying connected to the natural world and their culture as they devote their lives to protecting humans and fighting for justice.
Hallelujah is a fast-paced short story, easy to read, and leaves readers wanting to figure out what new mysteries will be brought to light in the second book. This political thriller covers realistic situations and relevant topics to the world today.
Pages: 98 | ASIN : B09VC6L3HY
LITERARY TITAN 