The Alibi Man by Tami Hoag

Elena Estes is trying to forget why she had to leave the police. But it all comes back when she finds her friend Irina dead in a canal in a most gruesome way. Now she not only has James Landry at her heels but she is trying to stay out of the awful spotlight she dealt with twenty years ago. Yet she has to know what happened to her friend and finds her ex-fiancé Bennet Walker knew Irina. She assumes he did it but needs to find out the truth no matter what.

This is my first book by Tami Hoag and I was impressed! She keeps you spell bound and turning pages so that you can find out what happens. I do not know a lot about Russians but I found those characters fascinating. She is able to tell a well-written story. I am looking forward to reading her other books.

Elena had been through a lot and I felt awful for her. She only had a couple people to support her but she still seemed to push people away. James Landry was a sweetie but just could not touch Elena no matter how hard he tried. Irina’s best friend Lizbeth was a complex woman trying to make her way in the world. If this portrays any part of the area that it takes place in, it is not a place I want to be. But then I am not rich so would not be accepted anyways.

I was bummed to find out on Tami Hoag’s website that I read this book out of order. Dark Horse is the first book that mentions this character so now I will have to read it. Oh, well. I am sure I will still enjoy it.

351 pages/ Suspense/ New Author/ 4 out of 5

Okay did not mean to post so much today. But I could not post Dead Connection till today. For some odd known reason Blogger won't let me put in titles. Go figure! So there you go. Off to start A Nail Through The Heart by Timothy Hallinan.

Yours Truly, Goldilocks by Alma Flor Ada

This picture book is a series of letters between Peter Rabbit, The Big Bad Wolf, The Wolf’s cousin, Little Red Riding Hood, Goldilocks, and The Three Little Pigs. The Three little Pigs are having a house warming party for their new house. The wolves decide to crash the party and ruin all the fun.

This is my first book by Alma Flor Ada but it certainly won’t be my last. The way she weaves her story through letters keeps this book moving. The pictures by Leslie Tyron were fantastic! They really helped you get a picture of what was going on.

The pages were not numbered so I counted the pages as best I could. Knowing the stories of The Three Little Pigs, Little Red Riding Hood, Goldilocks and Peter Rabbit. It was a wonderful expansion on these stories and I am going to have to look for Dear Peter Rabbit done by the same author and illustrator. It is a great book and fun to read with kids of all ages. My son is still too young but this is one I would love to own.

27 pages/ Children’s book/ New Author/ 5 out of 5

Dead Connection by Alafair Burke

Ellie Hatcher’s father was a cop while he got killed even though the Wichita police never confirmed it. That led her to become a cop herself and onto a high profile case. The two women killed lead by to FirstDate.com, a very successful dating website. What really gets her is when the killer mimics the man who killed her father. She has to work hard to catch him before he kills his next victim. But at the same time puts her in harms way to take the fall.

Alafair Burke is a wonderful composed author. I found her characters to be determined and her story full of twists and turns. There are so many ways people can get your information and it is sad to see them put in this book. The reality of it is that it could happen to anyone at anytime for any grudge that is held.

Ellie had some tough stuff to work through but I could see a real progression. She was a sweet woman who had her heart broken as a child. Her brother Jess was trying to find his way in life and not getting too far.

This book kept me on the edge of my seat. I had no clue who the killer was and was rather shocked at that. Ellie truly had a lot to go through and I was rooting for her to find someone. I can’t say enough about how much this book was so good. Once they started to put the pieces together, I was able to follow along but it took me awhile. I just don’t figure out thrillers or whodunit type books very well. But that is why I keep coming back to see if I can figure it out. Now I want to go back and her other series.

336 pages/New Author/Thriller/5 out of 5


I am now reading The Alibi Man by Tami Hoag. My review would have been longer but I poked the under the nail of my left thumb with a fork prong and it is still sore. lol