Category: Literary Criticism

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Review: The Sisters of Sea View (On Devonshire Shores #1) by Julie Klassen

by The Lit BitchLeave a Comment on Review: The Sisters of Sea View (On Devonshire Shores #1) by Julie Klassen

After reading just one of Julie Klassen’s books, I was absolutely hooked! She reminds me of a contemporary Victoria Holt in many ways. She has t his great story telling style with romance and a little bit of Gothic and mystery added on (to some of her books). Typically when something comes up for review by Klassen, I am fully on board! I was pleasantly surprised to see that this book kicks off a new series for Klassen, most of her books are standalone so this made me extra excited to check it out!

Klassen is a Christian fiction author, which I know isn’t necessarily for everyone. But with that said, I personally feel like her books are really more historical fiction. They do have some elements of Christian fiction but for me the dominant theme is more historical fiction and romance than anything else. In this book in particular I felt like it almost ran more to Women’s fiction with the sister element of this one but in a Jane Austen, Sense and Sensibility kind of way if that makes sense.

At any rate, I took a break from my murder mystery thriller series that I have been burning through, to read this one. And now I am dying to read all of Klassen’s books! As soon as I am done with the Tracers Series, I am moving right on to another Klassen book. She always writes such well developed characters and a lovely story so I can honestly say I am never disappointed in anything that she writes.

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Review: The Wedding Ranch by Nancy Naigle

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Nancy Naigle is a very prolific writer! She has written a number of beloved romance novels and series as well as many with a holiday flare! I have especially enjoyed her holiday books, which have been my main exposure to her books. I finally decided it was time to branch out and try some of her other books that weren’t necessarily holiday related. I have loved her holiday books so I figure it was a no brainer to try this one out and I am so glad I did!

I love the cover of this book and it just stood out to me as something I would enjoy! I have been knee deep in reading murder mystery thrillers and I think it was time for me to take a break and change things up a bit with something more lighthearted with some romance. I read this one pretty quickly so if you are looking for something to change up your reading this holiday season—-this would be a great option for you—-plus it has a sweet mastiff in it I mean how can you go wrong with dogs?!

Naigle is a proven writer with a large fan following and for good reason! She does a great job bringing her characters to life and telling their stories. Not to mention she is a master at small town romances and stories! I am so glad I picked this book up because it was just what I needed to read right now—something quick, easy, and happy with a guaranteed HEA! If you love small town romances you need to check this one out! It will warm you up on a cold winter night!

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Review: Unforgivable (Tracers #3) by Laura Griffin

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This book about Mia was the one I wanted to read the most. Mia has been on the periphery of the books in this series since the first book and in book two we meet her potential love interest, Ric. So I was super excited to check this one out as soon as I was done with the last book. I read this book in about 12 hours for the record. I devoured it and the suspense was intense in this one!

While this is a series, there is no need to read the books in order. Sure Mia meets Ric in the book before this one but there isn’t much else that happens other than that. So if you are thinking about reading the books out of order you can absolutely do that and not be lost at all. In the series so far I would have to say this is probably my favorite. The mystery in book 2 was intense and so good but as far as all around story telling—-romance and mystery—-this is a more balanced book.

This book had it all. Sex, money, power, kidnapping, murder for hire, prostitutes, elected officials, romance, forensic science, cold cases. ALL THE THINGS. I loved how this one unfolded and left me wanting more in each chapter. Ric sometimes got on my nerves but ultimately I loved him and Mia together and loved seeing how this one came together and HOW it came together is so worth it! Suspense and thriller fans will be fully invested in this one and looking over their shoulders.

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Review: A Class Reunited (A Matter of Class #5) by Susie Murphy

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When I first started out book blogging (what feels like ages ago by the way!), I read a lot more self published novels or novels that were published by smaller publishing house. As I have grown as a blogger, I now mostly work with larger publishing houses but I have a few self published novelists and smaller publishing houses that I continue to work with and Susie Murphy is one such author! Over the years I have read her A Matter of Class series and honestly it grew so much more than I was expecting when I read the first novel, but more on that soon!

The commitment to writing, editing, and publishing your own novel seems incredibly daunting. Same with smaller publishing houses that also do it all—editing, promotion etc. It’s got to be exhausting so in my mind you must be incredibly dedicated to the novel you are promoting. It must be something that we absolutely believe in to work so long and hard on. That is evident in Murphy’s case! She has done an incredible job writing a nuanced and sweeping historical saga which could not have been easy! And she isn’t stopping at five books!

I am always on the lookout for off the beaten path historical fiction and if you are like me, on the hunt for something you can sink your teeth into then this might be a good option for you! After reading the Outlander series, I really wanted to find something that felt more sweeping and saga like in terms of historical fiction, and this book delivered that for me (minus the time travel!).

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Review: Unspeakable (Tracers #2) by Laura Griffin

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Raise your hand if you have turned on Law and Order SVU while folding laundry in the morning on a Saturday, only to look up and find it’s 10:00 pm and you literally have no idea where the time went? I love binge watching Law and Order SVU. If I start an episode though (even if I’ve seen it already!) I’m done for and nothing gets done except a binge session of my favorite on screen detectives. I think one of the things that really appeals to me about LO SVU is the hints of personal life of the detectives and the fast paced twisted mystery. Reading Griffin’s books is like binge watching LO SVU!

Griffin’s books all have that glimpse into the personal lives of the characters while still having the focus on the mystery. This mystery is extremely complex and dark. I was fully creeped out and couldn’t WAIT to read it at every opportunity! I loved the mystery so much. I had no idea where it was going but I was fully on board with it. Female readers—-I was so creeped out that I was checking my locks and making sure no one was following me every time I went to the grocery store! LOL. I was so invested in this one for that reason alone—-its relatability for female readers. This book was every woman worst nightmare—-some one slipping you a date rape drug, peeping in your windows, following you home. Yeah I checked my door A LOT!

I will say the romance in this one sort of took a back seat which was surprising. In the previous book we meet Troy who is kind of billed as this man whore in the first book, so in this book I was surprised at how quickly his character fell for Elaina. I expected a bit more romance in this one but then at the same time, I found that the mystery was so complex and had so many layers that I was really focused on that and didn’t care if the romance was more scant in this one.

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