The murderer had gone on a spree and racked up a total of ten kills as the story opens. The protagonist is tracking him. He always uses the same MO. She knows his name and background. She's just waiting for him to make a mistake. Her name is Jamaica Wild and she works for the Bureau of Land Management in New Mexico. Her creator is Sandi Ault who has written a series of mystery novels about Jamaica Wild. "Wild Justice" is a short story that originally appeared in Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine in 2013, but I purchased the 2014 e-book version from Amazon.
In this story, wolf advocate Sandi Ault has a chance to deal directly with the hatred and mass murder of this species. If you would like to know more about Sandi Ault and wolves, see this page on her website. As a lover of wolves myself, I consider this story an important one. Wolves just want to be left alone to raise their families. They aren't really savage or vindictive. They are also a species that help to keep the ecosystem in balance. A Chinese author showed this very dramatically in an influential novel which takes place in Mongolia called Wolf Totem written under the pseudonym Jiang Rong. I read it in English translation, and it increased my understanding of why wolves are environmentally significant. A Chinese film based on this novel is set to be released in 2015.
Animal lovers could find "Wild Justice" disturbing because truly terrible things happen to both dogs and wolves in this story. Many people hate wolves, but love dogs. The killer in this story apparently hates all canines equally. Given the background about him revealed in the story, I tend to think that he's a psychopath. This is a term that is used in the criminal justice system, but is not an official diagnosis. See the Wikipedia article Psychopathy.
Because the identity of the perpetrator is known, this story is more of a thriller than a mystery. How will Jamaica Wild locate this ruthless human predator and end his killing spree? I learned a great deal about the techniques that Bureau of Land Management agents use in their pursuit of those who commit crimes against animals. The story also highlights the tremendous dangers involved in stopping these criminals. In "Wild Justice" Jamaica Wild reveals herself as a true hero in her efforts to protect the wild animals she loves.
Holiday Kisses includes 11 short stories all
with a holiday twist.
Lose yourself in the romance, holiday cheer, and unexpected
surprises!
Positively
Holly
by Pepper Anthony
When
Holly and Evan run into each other at the Toy Palace the week before Christmas,
the last thing on their minds is rekindling their failed love affair. After
all, Holly is one of those wide-eyed optimists, and Evan is a man who deals in
practicalities. Things would never work out between them. But two cups of coffee,
a pair of shopping bags, and a touch of sexy Christmas magic just might help
them find their common ground.
Hometown
Miracles by
Patricia Bates
The holidays hold
little interest for Leanne Wilson, a single mother who receives devastating
news mere days before heading home. Once she arrives, she runs into the one man
who holds her heart. But she can’t reach out to him now...after all, this may
be her very last Christmas. Jay Locke has loved Leanne for years. When she left
town, he forced himself to move on, but now she’s back with a darling little
girl and a Christmas wish he just can’t say no to.
Leona Sharp and Ryan Lee have been friends
forever, it seems. Although there’s an attraction between them, they’ve never
acted on it. On New Year’s Eve, Leona finally allows herself to give into the
temptation, but she vows that it will only be for one night and as soon as the
clock strikes midnight they will put it in the past and go on as if it never
happened. Ryan, however, has other plans…
His
Holiday Lifesaver
by Hazel Gower
Brad
isn’t looking forward to Christmas dinner with his family as they are always
trying to set him up with women. This year he has a plan involving Hailey, a
female tourist he rescued at the beach, posing as his girlfriend for the next
couple of weeks. The only problem with the plan is he didn’t expect to fall in
love with her.
Drawn
To You
by Tara Mills
If a picture’s worth a thousand words, what does that make a
series of sketches? Drawn to the same beach over and over again to
secretly sketch this quiet, contemplative man, Rachel is about to find out.
Reunion by Ashlynn Monroe
Years ago, Shayla left her small hometown to
pursue her dream. When she did, her family turned their back on her. Leaving
also meant she had to forget about the boy she loved. When her mother dies,
Shayla realizes that while some things change, other things are doomed to remain
the same. She returns home, but doesn’t feel very welcome until the boy who
haunts her memories steps into her present. Luc is no longer the farm boy she’d
fallen for—he’s grown up, and quite nicely too. Can Shayla rekindle what she
lost with the man she never stopped loving?
Winter
Break
by Kaylie Newell
Harper Smith is a horrible skier. She can’t
stand it almost as much as she can’t stand her irritatingly sexy ex-boyfriend,
who also happens to be a member of the ski patrol. So when she finds herself in
a life-or-death situation on a cold, dark mountain, she has mixed feelings when
Justin Noble shows up to rescue her. Part of her would rather freeze to death
than accept his help. The other part can’t help but warm up at the sight of his
messy, sun-bleached hair and cocky grin. Without her consent, Harper’s heart
tips dangerously close to falling for him again. But will this time be any
different?
Mistletoe
& Holly
by Tamaria Soana
Zoey is going through the normal Christmas Eve
ritual with her three-year-old twins. The only difference is that her husband
Preston isn’t there to share it with them. He’s been deployed overseas and
won’t be home for the holidays. After Zoey tucks the kids in for the night, she
places the gifts under the tree, snuggles on the sofa to watch It's a
Wonderful Life, and falls asleep. She’s startled awake by a loud noise. Is
she dreaming, or is her Christmas wish standing under the mistletoe?
Katrina's
Christmas
by Sidda Lee Tate
Christmas
has always been just another day to Katrina Bryant. She works hard and expects
her employees to do the same. When her sexy assistant, Grant Ward, quits on
Christmas Eve she becomes worried she will never see him again, and she wonders
why that bothers her so much. To her surprise, he arrives at her home hours
later and whisks her away for a Christmas she will never forget.
Merry
Christmas, Mrs. Todd by
Elise Whyles
Recently
widowed, Mary Todd isn’t looking forward to spending Christmas alone. She’s
determined to keep a low profile during the madness—that is, until she meets
her sexy neighbor, Walter. He seems intent on helping her get into the holiday
spirit, and she just might let him.
The
Gift Beneath the Tree
by Lacey Wolfe
Tara won’t be spending Christmas with her
family this year, but she’s not entirely alone. Her roommate, Brad, who’s
currently single, is also at home with her. Tara goes to bed Christmas Eve with
hopes Santa might bring her what she most desires. After hearing a loud crash,
she goes to investigate, and underneath the tree, she finds the present she’s
been dying to unwrap.
I've been writing ebooks for over a year now, and many people, family included, have said to me, "I'm just not ready for an ereader," "Is this going to be in print?," "I don't want to read on the computer." I listened, and I understood, and now I'm pleased to announce a print book is available with five different Tara titles in it. The blurb speaks for itself. The book can be bought on Amazon and Create Space. To all my followers, friends, family, and fans that have encouraged me to do this: Thank you.
In Strong is Sexy, it’s exactly that. Strong is sexy. No simpering damsels here, not in the end anyway. Travel back to 1820s Los Angeles and swordfight with Catalina and her dashing Ricardo. Ricardo believes his wife is having an affair with a masked crusader. What will he do when he finds out his wife is the Maiden Behind the Mask? The right to vote for women was not easily won. Elizabeth and Margaret fight for that right in Votes for Vixens. There’s a riot not only on the streets of New York City, 1919, but in their hearts as well. U.S.A.F. fighter pilot, Captain Janet Kerrigan, is in for a huge surprise when she takes to the Iraqi skies on Christmas day. Can she save Christmas? Or will Operation: Enduring Santa cost her her career? Author, Tara Chevrestt shares her own story of strength. Hear Through My Ears is a tale straight from the heart that takes you on a journey of hearing impairment and the struggles that go with having a disability. If she overcame them, you can too. And last, but not least, a bonus story is included, a story inspired by three humorous little dogs—all female. And though, one could argue and say, “Dogs aren’t sexy,” the author’s Pekingese begs to differ. Join Lola, Pudgy, and Jazzy in three humorous canine capers, Dog Tails.
I came across this author on a blog today, and was so excited and inspired by her words about strong women characters, I immediately sought out her work. To my great pleasure, two pieces were free on smashwords. I was terribly excited by this because this allowed me to sample her style before buying the big book.
I am not disappointed. This was a powerful short story with a terrific message. You can do it!! You can get away. Reach deep within yourself and find it. It's there: courage.
The story is about a woman who is trapped in an abusive relationship in a horrible family. A search for her birth certificate leads to a surprising discovery and possibly a new identity: if she wants.
Like many women caught in controlling relationships, she's found herself making excuses and trapped in a vicious cycle. Just when you think she's going to do it, she does something else, and then something else. The ending artfully took a shocking twist and had me on the edge of my seat.
Very well done. Five bikes. I downloaded this from smashwords.
This is an anthology of three short stories just in time for Valentine's Day.
First up, is The 14 Days of Valentines by Maggie Devine.
A woman lawyer suddenly gets a secret admirer who sends her expensive gifts everyday starting Feb 1 till Valentine's Day when she's supposed to don her new dress, earrings, and bracelet and meet her potential suitor for a fancy dinner. Who is the man? Is her boss, John, who has been trying to convince her for some time that they would be good together? Or is it HIS boss whose she's had HER eyes on, but is otherwise taken? Or is it that man upstairs who just wants to bed her?
Liked: I honestly didn't know who it was till it was revealed. Common sense kept telling me it was the guy she wanted it to be, BUT there were enough doubts in the story to keep me on my toes. I started questioning the happily ever after and who it may be with.
Didn't like: The abrupt ending. And no, it has nothing to do with it being a shortie. I love shorties. I just didn't feel the connection required btw these two, who have never dated before, but are suddenly planning to have sex and live together. Relationships don't build to that level without some dating.
Second up, Love's Fortune by Nicole Zoltack.
Woman loses job, is walking the street, when she's offered another job...at the circus! That's pretty cool! So she takes the job as a fortune teller, meets a shape shifting lion, and kinda learns some stuff from her new job: such as, she needs to practice what she preaches.
Liked: The way she makes a widowed woman feel better about moving on.. the way she tells a man that the only reason he hasn't found love is because he's shut himself off, basically. He's preventing himself from finding love. In the process, the heroine realizes she's doing the same thing. Real sweet moral there.
Didn't like: Fail to see how the shape shifting really moved anything along. Or them wanting her to be a witch. The shape shifting, except for him saving her life, didn't mean anything.
Third, The Designer's Bride by W. Lynn Chantale.
Story contains both sensual content and suspense. The sensual is hot, sexy sex between the heroine and the man she loves and wants to marry. The suspense plays into the story when her father keeps barging into her life demanding she marry a man she hates, said man in tow with him everywhere. He's a real jerk. I didn't like him at all.
Liked: The sex. Also loved Jordan, the hero, and how he makes everything just perfect from the ring to the dress to the plans. I thought that was just awesome. Except for the dad, this story was like a fantasy come true. It also had me reeling for a minute there toward the end as I seriously worried things were ruined. Also, Chantale injects the perfect amount of description into her story, not too much, not too little.
Didn't like: I would have liked things to end better btw the heroine and her dad. I got kind of sad by the way things panned out there. I would hate for my dad and I to be on the outs like that. This was my favorite story, however due to the sensual elements and just OMG hero.
Conclusion: Four stars for this anthology. :) I receive this from an author who wanted my honest opinion.
At first, one may look at this and think, "Bah, an overdone fairy tale.. Sleeping Beauty just wakes up on Christmas." Not so. Ms. Townsend has taken a classic fairy tale and added more than just a Holiday twist.
The prince, Orlando, can't just kiss her and wake her up and then live happily ever after with all her money. In this case, the prince must WORK for the princess, Rosie, to wake up. His kiss is not enough.
In this short story, the arrogant prince who is in it all for the glory and fame and wealth has no choice but to come to care for the princess, really care for her, or she will not wake up. He learns that she loves Christmas and burns yule logs and nuts. He builds her a sled to show her a good time.. and still she doesn't wake.
It's not till he comes to truly CARE about her and her family, that the princess will wake. However, he only has three days to accomplish this.
A very touching short story that can be read year round. It's not one of those "only at Christmas time reads." The holiday theme was no so dominant, that you would feel funny reading it in July.
Four stars. I received this from the author in exchange for an honest review.
This is a very short, cute read. It's simply 13 full pages of a girl, Effie, and how she feels about her older sister getting married, her awful pink dress, and how she ends up locked in the bathroom at her sister's wedding. Effie has a weight problem, no boyfriend, and loves making little lists in her head. Was it hysterical as the blurb promised? No. I didn't laugh out loud or fall on the floor or held get a stomach ache from laughing, but I did think it was cute.
The #1 reason Effie feels her sister should not marry George: "I will never be able to bring a boyfriend home without him also being a good-looking well-mannered doctor. Which means that I am going to be single for the rest of my life, while my sister and her husband make lots of good-looking doctor babies. I will have lots of cats."
Ms. Marchini has a good writer's voice I think Effie has the potential to become a cute YA novel. Four stars.
Having been a military wife myself, I am blown away by well the author has captured military life on paper. I shouldn't be surprised, really, as the author is the wife of an Army Major and lived on Fort Hood herself, but I'm impressed by her writing style as well as her ability to turn the everyday worries of both soldiers and spouses into entertaining and thought evoking short stories.
There's a story about a woman who escapes loneliness in Russia just to face loneliness on an Army base while her soldier husband is gone for a year. Can she handle it? There's a solider in Iraq debating whether or not Army life is for him who has trouble adjusting outside of Iraq and his responsibilities. There's a woman left at home who deals with the growing fear her husband may be having an affair. Does getting shot at everyday justify his possible relapse into the arms of another woman? There are the women who cannot handle a year of separation. Some ask for divorces and some have affairs. The soldiers come home to the repercussions, leaving one war for another, more personal war.
And of course, there is loss and grief. Some of the stories are related or refer to people mentioned in previous stories. It's a short read, not necessarily due to short length, but to the fact that it's hard to put down. I read it in one evening. I enjoyed it immensely. 5 stars.
