Fantasy at its best: An untested mage, a new queen, an old evil.

Posted on by May 14, 2018
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Deb’s Dozen: An untested mage, a new queen, an old evil. Survival in jeopardy.

The Golden Vial, the third book in Thomas Locke’s Legends of the Realm fantasy series demonstrates Locke has his groove back. The first book, Emissary, I loved; the second book, Merchant of Alyss, I hated; this third book, I love.

Evil is still abroad in the land. Hyam is mourning the death of his wife, Noelle, and seems to be afflicted with a wasting sickness. The new queen, Shona, has arrived at the Three Valleys where a dog whisperer, Dally, lives. But Dally is more than that—she is a far-seerer and has spoken with Shona several times in her dreams. In fact, Dally is a powerful mage—but woefully untrained.

In this epic fantasy, book three, Dally and her dogs are able to draw out the beasts of evil, and Shona’s army with the aid of the dogs is able to combat them—this time. How Dally is freed from her servitude with the mayor of Honor and his termagant of a wife is the stuff that keeps me reading fantasy.

Locke’s wonderful fantasy world and adventures come alive in The Golden Vial. Jump from one to three—you’ll catch up quickly and be entranced by Dally’s adventures as I was. Five stars.

fantasy, LockeThomas Locke is the pseudonym for Davis Bunn, a much-celebrated and much-awarded author. Name the prize in Christian literature and Davis has won it or finaled. He is the writer in residence at Oxford University in England six months of the year and lives in Florida the balance of the time. He is a frequent and edifying speaker at many writers’ conferences.

Revell, a division of Baker Books, gave me a copy of The Golden Vial, but I was in no way obligated to write a review.

Romantic Suspense with a Forecast of Stormy Weather Ahead

Posted on by May 10, 2018
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To purchase this book, click on the blue links or the cover picture. Positive Grace receives a small amount from each book purchased.

Deb’s Dozen: A chance collision while running leads to a dangerous happily ever after.

I love good romantic suspense, and H. L. Wegley never disappoints. No Safe Place, a newly published, “old” novel is no exception.

Matt Mathieson is running for his life. While hiding out from a dangerous drug cartel in the Pacific Northwest, he hears rapid footsteps coming up behind him and assumes they’ve found him, even here. Hidden along the path, he jumps out and tackles the runner just hard enough to knock her on her backside in the mud. From this abrupt beginning flows the often bumpy romance of Matt and Randi Richards, a young meteorologist, who also happens to be a middle-distance runner.

This novel has everything you want in a book—good guys, evil villains, heroic cops, suspense, danger, love, beautiful setting, Grand Jury, Witness Protection Program. What more could a romantic suspense lover want? Wegley says he wrote this story during NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month) in 2013. In between then and now, he’s published his outstanding Against All Enemies series. No Safe Place is book number one in his new Witness Protection series.

You’ll want to catch up on Wegley if you’ve not read him yet. He writes believable suspense with strong male and female protagonists. The novels are the kind you need to start early in the day or you’ll be up all night reading. I would rate No Safe Place a strong four stars!

Romantic SuspenseH. L. Wegley is a retired Air Force intelligence analyst and a weather officer. He also worked as a research scientist and wrote computing systems for Boeing. He “retired” with his wife near Seattle. Wegley is an award-winning writer of high-action, romantic-suspense novels and inspirational thrillers.

The author gifted me with a copy of No Safe Place, but I was in no way obligated to write a review.

Storm Front: Storm Chasers or Running from Storms?

Posted on by May 7, 2018
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To purchase the contemporary romance, Storm Front, click on the links or the picture. Positive Grace will receive a small amount from each sale.

Deb’s Dozen: Storm chasers or running from storms? Will Brette and Ty survive theirs?

Storm Front is the fifth book in Susan May Warren’s Montana Rescue contemporary romance series that has taken us to the Caribbean and now to Minnesota. Country music star, Benjamin King, arranged a trip to Minnesota for the love of his life, Kacey Fairling, and her daughter, Audrey, to hear him perform. In reality, he’s planned a surprise elopement, with Audrey’s permission and has even roped in his father, PEAK Rescue team leader, Chet, to help with the details. But Kacey and Audrey’s flight was canceled due to weather.

In the meantime, Brette Arnold, photographer and blogger, and her Vortex Storm Chasers crew are in hot pursuit of a dangerous storm system that portends to spawn tornados. After they’re almost killed in a chase, Jonas Marshall, the leader of the team decides to take a break at home in Minnesota. He invites Brette to join him for the respite.

While they’re on the way, a tornado hits Duck Lake. Jonas’s brother Creed is missing along with Chet King and a high school cross country team. Kacey, along with Ty Remington and the rest of the PEAK Rescue team fly their helicopter to Duck Lake to aid in the rescue efforts. So, Montana has come to Minnesota, and the chaos/conflict/conversations begin. Ty’s in love with Brette, but both of them have heavy burdens to overcome. Ben wants to marry Kacey, but she thinks he wants to break up with her. Tensions are high due to the missing family members as rescue efforts drag out.

You will love Storm Front. Warren does a great job of bringing in the backstory, so you can keep track of the characters without being obtrusive. You’ll remember the people you met and loved in the previous books in the series and will definitely want to add this one if you’re a fan of contemporary romance. Four stars.

Contemporary RomanceSusan May Warren is the award-winning author of over sixty novels with over a million books sold. She’s the winner of a RITA Award and multiple Christy and Carol Awards. She’s a USA Today, ECPA, and CPA best-selling author. You can find her on Facebook at Susan May Warren Fiction or on her website, susanmaywarren.com

Revell, a division of Baker Publishing Group, gave me a copy of Storm Front, but I was in no way obligated to write a review.