Book Review - Rescued Hearts by Hope Toler Dougherty

Photo Credit - Amazon

Mary Wade Kimball was looking for a quiet retreat from the demands of her everyday life. While picking up supplies and returning home, she sees a kitten stuck in a thorny bush in front of an abandoned house. She decides to help the kitten when she is taken hostage by two criminals.  Mary  Wade is worried when a third criminal returns with supplies for the storm.  However, the third criminal is actually an undercover agent, Brett Davis. Deciding the woman's safety was more important than his three month investigation, he risks his mission to help Mary Wade escape. Will Mary Wade and Brett be able to escape the criminals?

The novel had an interesting premise, but it failed to keep me interested. I found myself glazing over portions of the book because the plot was predictable and the dialogue felt stilted. I found bits of the story on the topic and quite silly, like Brett who managed to calmly think through things to rush into a known ambush and Mary Wade seducing one of the criminals. The mini story about Brett's stalker was also very predictable and could have been left out. It didn't really add anything to the story other than making the book longer.

**Disclosure - I received a free copy of the book in exchange for an honest opinion**

Book Review - Murder in Disguise (A Preston Barclay Mystery Book 3) by Donn Taylor

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When news of Preston Barclay's beloved friend committed suicide, Preston is unable to believe the news. However, when the evidence points to an open and close suicide case, he decides to let sleeping dogs lie. The victim's wife, Grace, doesn't believe it is a suicide and pleads with Preston to investigate her husband's death. Preston begins to question the suicide, when details are emerging that don't quite add up including the anonymous threats. Will Preston be able to figure out the truth behind his friend's death?

This was the third novel in the Preston Barclay series, but each book looks like it can be read as a standalone. The book was an easy read but a few pages in, the number of musical references was a bit overwhelming to the point of annoyance. I found my eyes glazing over paragraphs with the music reference and found myself too lazy to search what each song was. I also found the dynamic between Mara and Preston to be boring, petty, and unauthentic. Mara is jealous when Preston talking to another female, but she purposely needles him about other men without Preston is saying or doing much. I felt like Mara and Preston made a poor investigator and they seem to be more like, "Let's kick the hornet's nest and see what happens". The author keeps mentioning Preston's Special Ops training, but not once I made it seem like he actually puts any of that to use. If anything, when I think of Preston Barclay, I think of a frumpy grandpa with his pants mid chest along with a pair of oversized glasses.

**Disclosure - I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest opinion**