Source: Forge Books

#BookReview Extinction by Douglas Preston @ForgeReads #Extinction #DouglasPreston #ForgeBooks #ForgeReads

#BookReview Extinction by Douglas Preston @ForgeReads #Extinction #DouglasPreston #ForgeBooks #ForgeReads Title: Extinction

Author: Douglas Preston

Published by: Forge Books on Apr. 23, 2024

Genres: Mystery/Thriller, Science Fiction

Pages: 384

Format: ARC, Paperback

Source: Forge Books

Book Rating: 8.5/10

Erebus Resort, occupying a magnificent, hundred-thousand acre valley deep in the Colorado Rockies, offers guests the experience of viewing woolly mammoths, Irish Elk, and giant ground sloths in their native habitat, brought back from extinction through the magic of genetic manipulation. When a billionaire’s son and his new wife are kidnapped and murdered in the Erebus back country by what is assumed to be a gang of eco-terrorists, Colorado Bureau of Investigation Agent Frances Cash partners with county sheriff James Colcord to track down the perpetrators.

As killings mount and the valley is evacuated, Cash and Colcord must confront an ancient, intelligent, and malevolent presence at Erebus, bent not on resurrection—but extinction.


Review:

Menacing, creative, and creepy!

Extinction is a fast-paced, addictive thriller that sees Colorado CBI Agent Frankie Cash heading to the exclusive Erebus Resort to investigate the disappearance of two honeymooners, Mark and Gloria Gunnerson, but while it seems at first glance to be a case of kidnapping and possible murder, it quickly becomes apparent that something a lot more sinister is underway in this speciality facility where science and genome editing have managed to bring some of the most beloved prehistoric mammals back to life.

The writing is crisp and polished. The characters are complex, astute, and tenacious. And the plot is an eerie tale full of twists, turns, secrets, deduction, mayhem, experimentation, power, grandiose delusions, violence, and murder.

Overall, Extinction is an intense, enthralling, disturbing page-turner by Preston that is a scary reminder that advances in science can be good or bad depending on how someone chooses to use them.

 

This book is available now.

Pick up a copy from your favourite retailer or one of the following links.

             

 

 

Thank you to Forge Books for gifting me a copy in exchange for an honest review.

 

About Douglas Preston

DOUGLAS PRESTON has published forty books of both nonfiction and fiction, of which over thirty have been New York Times bestsellers, a half-dozen reaching the #1 position. He is the co-author, with Lincoln Child, of the Pendergast series of thrillers. He also writes nonfiction pieces for the New Yorker Magazine. He worked as an editor at the American Museum of Natural History in New York and taught nonfiction writing at Princeton University. He is president emeritus of the Authors Guild and serves on the Advisory Board of the School for Advanced Research in Santa Fe.

Photo Credit: Deborah Feingold

#BookReview A Good Family by Matt Goldman @ForgeReads #AGoodFamilyNovel #MattGoldman #ForgeBooks #ForgeReads

#BookReview A Good Family by Matt Goldman @ForgeReads #AGoodFamilyNovel #MattGoldman #ForgeBooks #ForgeReads Title: A Good Family

Author: Matt Goldman

Published by: Forge Books on May 30, 2023

Genres: Mystery/Thriller

Pages: 304

Format: ARC, Paperback

Source: Forge Books

Book Rating: 8/10

Katie Kuhlmann’s marriage is falling apart. But she has a secure job, her children are healthy, and her house, a new construction in the prestigious Country Club neighborhood of Edina, Minnesota, is beautiful. She can almost ignore the way her husband, Jack, has been acting — constantly checking his phone, not going to work, disappearing from the house only to show up again without explanation.

Tension in the Kuhlmann house only gets worse when Adam “Bagman” Ross, a mutual friend from college, happens to be in the neighborhood and in need of a place to stay. Jack is quick to welcome him into the sanctity of their home, but Jack’s strange behavior only gets worse, and Katie fears their new guest is also harboring a dark secret. As she begins to uncover the truth, she realizes that something is terribly wrong — and she must race to protect her family as danger closes in.


Review:

Ominous, simmering, and twisty!

A Good Family is a captivating, sinister mystery that takes us into the life of Katie Kuhlmann, a young mother of two who starts to realize everything is not as it seems when her husband randomly disappears and then reappears out of the blue, an acquaintance from the past suddenly shows up and temporarily moves in, rumours of corruption begin to swirl, and seemingly perfect marriages start to show more than just a few little cracks.

The writing is crisp and tight. The characters are consumed, flawed, and overwhelmed. And the plot is a suspenseful, sinister tale of secrets, deception, gossip, tragedy, suspicions, revelations, mayhem, fractured relationships, infidelity, mischief, and murder.

Overall, A Good Family is a devious, tense, entertaining page-turner by Goldman that does a wonderful job of highlighting just how easily people can sometimes allow themselves to be psychologically and emotionally manipulated and reminds us that even the people we think we know so well often have deep, dark secrets they choose to hide.

 

This book is available now.

Pick up a copy from your favourite retailer or one of the following links.

             

 

 

Thank you to Forge Books for gifting me a copy in exchange for an honest review.

 

About Matt Goldman

Matt Goldman is a playwright and Emmy Award-winning television writer for Seinfeld, Ellen, and other shows. He brings his signature storytelling abilities and light touch to his Nils Shapiro series, which begins with Gone to Dust. He lives in Minnesota with his wife, two dogs, two cats, and whichever children happen to be around.

Photo Credit: Leslie Parker

#BookReview Deep Fake by Ward Larsen @wardlarsen @ForgeReads #DeepFake #WardLarsen #ForgeBooks #ForgeReads

#BookReview Deep Fake by Ward Larsen @wardlarsen @ForgeReads #DeepFake #WardLarsen #ForgeBooks #ForgeReads Title: Deep Fake

Author: Ward Larsen

Published by: Forge Books on Mar. 14, 2023

Genres: Mystery/Thriller

Pages: 352

Format: Hardcover

Source: Forge Books

Book Rating: 8/10

Absolute Power meets The Manchurian Candidate in this explosive political thriller from USA Today bestselling author Ward Larsen, Deep Fake.

The Cold War is back—but for some it never ended.

Sarah Ridgeway is living the life she’s always envisioned. She has a devoted husband, a loving daughter, and a comfortable home. The path to reach it, however, has not always been smooth. For twelve years her husband, Bryce, served in the Army, deployed to some of the world’s worst trouble spots. After his service ended with a combat injury, the future had seemed precarious, but with Sarah’s support and that of his wealthy family, combined with his exemplary service record, he is elected to congress.

Then, in a moment, everything changes: at a drab Washington fundraiser, the junior congressman intervenes in a terrorist attack, and narrowly escapes with his life. When videos of his bravery go viral, he quickly becomes a national hero. The timing could not be more fortuitous. The presidential primaries are heating up, and Bryce’s party is desperate for a fresh candidate to challenge the vulnerable incumbent.

Amid the whirlwind, Sarah senses something amiss. Since the attack, Bryce has been forgetful and acting strangely. Could it be the stress? she wonders. Might the recent explosion have aggravated his combat trauma? For the first time ever, she finds herself doubting a man she has always trusted. Confessing her fears to her closest friend, together they quietly search for answers. What they uncover is stunning: the man who might soon be president has a deeply held secret. A secret that will likely destroy Sarah’s life—and certainly lead the nation to ruin.


Review:

Ominous, action-packed, and twisty!

Deep Fake is a well-executed, sinister tale that takes you into the life of Sarah Ridgeway, a mother and congressman’s wife who, after sensing something is just not right, decides to ask her friend for help figuring out what’s really going on with her ex-army husband who hasn’t been acting like himself since surviving a terrorist attack and then quickly announcing he’s running for president.

The prose is brisk and tight. The characters are vulnerable, resourceful, and persistent. And the plot is a thrilling tale full of greed, power, deception, coercion, manipulation, corruption, espionage, politics, and murder.

Overall, Deep Fake is a menacing, edgy, satisfying tale by Larsen that highlights just how easily the line between right and wrong can be blurred and reminds us that sometimes there are no limits to the lengths that people and countries will go for control and power.

 

This book is available now.

Pick up a copy from your favourite retailer or one of the following links.

                

 

 

Thank you to Forge Books for gifting me a copy in exchange for an honest review.

 

About Ward Larsen

Ward Larsen is a USA Today bestselling author and a four-time winner of the Florida Book Award.

His first thriller, The Perfect Assassin, is currently being adapted into a major motion picture by Amber Entertainment.

A former U.S. Air Force fighter pilot, Larsen flew over twenty missions in Operation Desert Storm.

He has also served as a federal law enforcement officer, airline captain, and is a trained aircraft accident investigator.

Photo courtesy of Author's Website.

#BookReview #BecomingBonnie by Jenni L. Walsh #BonnieAndClydeVersary @jennilwalsh @forgereads

#BookReview #BecomingBonnie by Jenni L. Walsh #BonnieAndClydeVersary @jennilwalsh @forgereads Title: Becoming Bonnie

Author: Jenni L. Walsh

Published by: Forge Books on May 9, 2017

Genres: General Fiction, Historical Fiction

Pages: 320

Format: Hardcover

Source: Forge Books

Book Rating: 9/10

From debut historical novelist Jenni L. Walsh, Becoming Bonnie is the untold story of how wholesome Bonnelyn Parker became half of the infamous Bonnie and Clyde duo!

The summer of 1927 might be the height of the Roaring Twenties, but Bonnelyn Parker is more likely to belt out a church hymn than sling drinks at an illicit juice joint. She’s a sharp girl with plans to overcome her family’s poverty, provide for herself, and maybe someday marry her boyfriend, Roy Thornton. But when Roy springs a proposal on her and financial woes jeopardize her ambitions, Bonnelyn finds salvation in an unlikely place: Dallas’s newest speakeasy, Doc’s.

Living the life of a moll at night, Bonnie remains a wholesome girl by day, engaged to Roy, attending school and working toward a steady future. When Roy discovers her secret life, and embraces it—perhaps too much, especially when it comes to booze and gambling—Bonnie tries to make the pieces fit. Maybe she can have it all: the American Dream, the husband, and the intoxicating allure of jazz music. What she doesn’t know is that her life—like her country—is headed for a crash.

She’s about to meet Clyde Barrow.

Few details are known about Bonnie’s life prior to meeting her infamous partner. In Becoming Bonnie, Jenni L. Walsh shows a young woman promised the American dream and given the Great Depression, and offers a compelling account of why she fell so hard for a convicted felon—and turned to crime herself.


Review:

This is a remarkably fascinating interpretation about the life of Bonnelyn Parker, a young, sweet, god-loving girl who became known as one of the most notorious outlaws of the 20th century. She was, ultimately, a victim of the times and longed and strived to help support and protect those she cared for.

It is a story about familial responsibilities, poverty, coming-of-age, survival, friendship, dreams, desire and love.

The prose is precise and fluid. And the story takes us back to the mid-to-late 1920s to a dusty town on the outskirts of Dallas where people worked hard but didn’t always have much, prohibition was in full force and the worst, longest and deepest economic depression was just about to hit.

I can’t tell you how much I enjoyed this story. It is a well written, intriguing, rich story, and even though there is not much known about Bonnelyn’s early life and the events that led up to her close, intimate relationship with the fugitive Clyde Barrow, Walsh has done an exceptional job of taking historical facts and surrounding them with fiction that is both alluring and exceptionally captivating.

 

This novel is available now!

Pick up a copy from your favourite retailer or from one of the following links:

                                          

 

 

Thank you to Jenni L. Walsh and Forge Books for providing me with a copy in an exchange for an honest review.

 

About Jenni L. Walsh

Jenni L. Walsh spent her early years chasing around cats, dogs, and chickens in Philadelphia’s countryside, before dividing time between a soccer field and a classroom at Villanova University. She put her marketing degree to good use as an advertising copywriter, zip-code hopping with her husband to DC, NYC, NJ, and not surprisingly, back to Philly. There, Jenni’s passion for words continued, adding author to her resume. She now balances her laptop with a kid on each hip, and a four-legged child at her feet.