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Merissa (13950 KP) rated Hers, Unleashed (Hers #3) in Books

Jun 15, 2021 (Updated Jul 18, 2023)  
Hers, Unleashed (Hers #3)
Hers, Unleashed (Hers #3)
Anna Adler | 2020 | Dystopia, Erotica, Romance, Science Fiction/Fantasy
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
HERS, UNLEASHED is the third book in the Hers series and follows on from Hers, Unbroken, with situations arising following actions and situations in that book, so I would definitely recommend you read at least that one first. Of course, my full recommendation would be to read both, but that's because they're both brilliant.

Roth has escaped one prison in exchange for a voluntary one of three months. He knows Selenia has no interest in his past, so if he can just disappear, he'll be fine. His mistress, Kaitlyn, is a Security Office who lives in one of the underground domes, so he figures he'll be even safer. But what happens when convenience turns into something else?

Oh, I do love these books!!! Anna Adler gives you a nicely rounded story with plenty of steamy moments plus action on the streets. Holly and Chase have a small cameo here, which was great to see. Selenia has changed since Book 2, and Kaitlyn hasn't really questioned any of it too deeply. Meeting Roth, and eventually hearing some of his back story, well, it all changed for her and they both realised the world wasn't perfect.

I read this book in one sitting, one sunny afternoon, and I thoroughly enjoyed every single word and scene. I really can't wait to return to Selenia and see what happens next. Absolutely recommended by me.

** same worded review will appear elsewhere **

* A copy of this book was provided to me with no requirements for a review. I voluntarily read this book, and the comments here are my honest opinion. *

Merissa
Archaeolibrarian - I Dig Good Books!
Jun 15, 2021
  
Guarding What's Mine (Men of Maddox Security #3)
Guarding What's Mine (Men of Maddox Security #3)
Logan Chance | 2025 | Contemporary, Crime, Romance
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
a bit slower burn, but very good!
Independent reviewer for BookSirens, I was gifted my copy of this book.

This is book 3 in the Men of Maddox Security series, but I am reading it after book 4. It doesn't matter though, they kind of run concurrently.

Aubree is happy, running her pizza place. But someone is not happy with her. Enter Boone, close protection specialist. Removing Aubree from the danger was always the plan: falling for her was not.

Like I say, book 3 but reading out of order and I am really REALLY enjoying these! Yes, they follow the same vague plot line. Yes there is immediate attraction on both parts. Yes it's got danger and steam and I really don not care. I'm really emjoying BECAUSE I know what's coming, I can see what's coming at me, and ain't a damn thing I can do about it!

There was a duel threat to Aubree, and while I saw one, I did not see the other, so well played there.

I thought this a bit more of a slower burn, than the others but that's not a bad thing, it just makes them different enough to be interesting.

I liked what Dean does for Boone and Aubree! He can really see what's happening between them, as with all his men and I liked that he isn't punishing his men for falling for their charges!

We catch up with all the guys and there is an introduction to a couple more. Whether they will get books or not, remains to be seen but I liked them!

4 very good stars

*same worded review will appear elsewhere
  
Shadows of the Missing ( A Chris Matheson Mystery #5)
Shadows of the Missing ( A Chris Matheson Mystery #5)
Lauren Carr | 2026 | Fiction & Poetry
10
10.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
Lauren Carr does it again. Pulling out all the stops for a hidden secret family disappearance. How the siblings react and what happened years later. This book brought tears to my eyes a few times. I love what a plot. I loved it. The plots, twists, and turns were always a surprise, keeping you guessing to the end.

We met Helen in her 5th-grade classroom as she waited for school to be out and had to go home with her mother and siblings.
We also meet Helen's best friend, Stacey. We know her mother pulled in, but did she return to take Helen and her siblings home?

We get a glance at Chris and a few helpers, including his daughters, by Nikki, who is helping out.
When Chris spots his wife after she pulls in, he is in the barn.

As they review the cold case Doris has received, they are looking up information. Just before dinner is ready. Somebody came up to the house, and it seems that they forgot to close the security gate.
Who could this person in the company be?

Kassie seems to drop by out of nowhere, and why? Why would she bring up her father or think she might have found him? Then bring up her mother's disappearance, and think she was abducted by someone named Pee Wee Herman?

The Geezer Squad gets more info and another cold case. Could Lady in Barrel be connected to two missing parents? Are Helen's parents another cold case unrelated to the one the Geezer Squad is working on? Or is it?
  
Make Them Beg (Pretty Deadly Things #3)
Make Them Beg (Pretty Deadly Things #3)
Logan Chance | 2025 | Contemporary, Romance
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
keep em coming!
Independent reviewer for BookSirens, I was gifted my copy of this book.

This is book 3 in the series, but you don't need to have read the other two books. Helpful, to see how this group work as a unit but not necessary, I don't think. I enjoyed those two books.

And I enjoyed this one too, but for a very different reason.

Lark and Knight have been doing the denial tango (stolen straight out the book!) for a long time. Thrown together in close proximity after a job goes wrong and they get a target on their backs, they finally admit to themselves and each other, just what they really think about the other.

And this, is whay I enjoyed it so much. Both have feelings for the other, but they've been fighting it for so long. And ending up in the murder cabin (again, out the book!) with a possibility this could end very badly, gives them the shove to admit those feelings. But not just about the attraction, about what it might mean for them to be together and how they are both scared and worried and ALL IN! Because these two are all in from the start, and I loved that.

Dean Maddox pops up, as Does Ranger Cole (from Maddox Security) but you don't need to read their books before this. Arrow, Gage, Knight and Ozzy have been recruited by Maddox is all.

The book leads nicely into Ozzy's story and I hope I get to read it!

4 very VERY good stars

*same worded review will appear elsewhere
  
Hide and Seek
Hide and Seek
Desiree Holt | 2017 | Fiction & Poetry
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
Hide and Seek (Vigilance #1) by Desiree Holt
Hide and Seek is the first book by Desiree Holt that I have read, but it won't be the last. We start off with Graham, who has somehow been in bed with a drugs cartel, but didn't realise it. He decides that he needs to escape from it, meticulously planning everything. However, best laid plans and all that... it doesn't quite go according to how he thought it would.

His daughter ends up being smack-dab in the middle of everything, with the drug cartel goonies coming at her from all sides. The only help she has is the town sheriff and her sister who runs a security agency. Luckily for her, that is all the help she needs.

The attraction between Logan and Devon is instantaneous, with some inopportune and poorly timed reactions thrown in for good measure. Devon is a strong character, and doesn't do anything ridiculous because 'she knows best'. Logan has his own secrets, but finds the attraction for Devon to be stronger than his hesitations.

On the whole, I enjoyed this book. There were no editing or grammatical errors that disrupted my reading flow. The pace was smooth and the transition from one scene to the next flowed. I think the only thing for me would be the timing of certain things, but then there is no 'ruling' of when the time is right.

I hope this is the first in a series, and if so, I look forward to reading further along. Definitely recommended by me.

* A copy of this book was provided to me with no requirements for a review. I voluntarily read this book, and the comments here are my honest opinion. *

Merissa
Archaeolibrarian - I Dig Good Books!
  
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Suswatibasu (1703 KP) rated Serial in Podcasts

Jan 4, 2018 (Updated Jan 4, 2018)  
Serial
Serial
News & Politics
8
8.5 (42 Ratings)
Podcast Rating
Gripping first series, second underwhelming
Serial is one of those high-trending true crime phenomena, gripping a nation similar to the likes of @Making A Murderer - Season 1. The first series follows the murder case of a young student Hae Min Lee, allegedly killed by her former boyfriend Adnan Syed and the apparent failings in the investigation. Is he guilty or innocent? Journalist Sarah Koenig tries to retrace the steps of both Adnan and other suspects to get to the bottom of this disturbing story in 12 episodes.

The first series is well-made, each episode carefully crafted to leave you on a cliffhanger. It is easy to binge-listen, but like MAM, there are parts that have been omitted from the case, so not all is what it actually seems. Either way, I fell for it hook, line and sinker.

The second series, unfortunately, is an entirely different ballgame. Unlike its true crime predecessor, Koenig looks at the infamous case of Sergeant Bowe Bergdahl, a US soldier who allegedly defected and was subsequently captured by Taliban insurgents in Afghanistan. The series focuses on his perception and experiences, and eventual vilification, as his release caused much political controversy over whether a deal should have been negotiated or not. The price of his freedom was an exchange for five Taliban-linked inmates held at maximum security prison Guantanamo Bay. The reason he says, for his defection, was that he attempted to become a whistleblower for the apparently mismanaged unit he belonged to.

Sadly, as with most popular media, the change in direction with the podcast came at a price, as many felt the subject was too dry and too heavy. With dense military language, it seem to become too bogged down with the details, losing its edge.

It's not a perfect podcast, but the first series is still worth the listen.
  
Unbelievable: My Front-Row Seat to the Craziest Campaign in American History
Unbelievable: My Front-Row Seat to the Craziest Campaign in American History
Katy Tur | 2017 | Biography, History & Politics
9
8.7 (3 Ratings)
Book Rating
Clear Voice (1 more)
Easy to follow
Trump (0 more)
A fantastic report of a crazy event
This was my pick for the "song lyrics in the title" prompt for the PopSugar 2018 Reading Challenge. I feel a little like "Unbelievable" is a bit of a cop-out for the prompt, but it was already on my to be read list, and it works. And the book is fantastic.

This is the story of Katy Tur's time on the campaign trail as one of the journalists covering Donald Trump's campaign. It is, as she says, unbelievable. When it begins, she thinks it will be very short - as most of the American public thought. No one thought Trump would wind up being the Republican nominee. But as she attends rallies, and watches the vitriol of his supporters - which occasionally gets turned on her, as a member of the "lying, fake media," she begins to realize he could, in fact, win this thing.

We experience Tur's shock as he calls her out by name multiple times, leading to death threats by Trump supporters, and security being assigned to her specifically. Through all of this, Tur continues to do her job as a journalist, reporting on the travel, the rallies, the information from sources within the campaign as they criss-cross the country and promise ridiculous things.

I was worried at first that the book would be a dry rehash of the events, but it is far from it. Tur speaks with a refreshing, absorbing voice. Even knowing the outcome - that Trump is elected president - it's a page-turner that didn't let me go until the last page. Unbelievable is a fast-paced, fascinating book by a first-class journalist.

You can find all my reviews at http://goddessinthestacks.wordpress.com