Tag Archives: Elizabeth Goddard

Perilous Tides by Elizabeth Goddard – Mystery and Intrigue

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Perilous Tides by Elizabeth Goddard is the second book in her Hidden Bay series.  This book tells the story of Jo Cattrel, who readers met in the first book, Storm Warning. 

Jo Cattrel works with her friend Remi Grant at the Cedar Trails Lodge in Hidden Bay along the Washington coastline.  Something both ladies had in common is that they were in hiding because of danger in their past.  Danger that threatened their present and future.  In Perilous Tides we learn about Jo’s past and why she’s been in hiding for three years. 

Three years ago, Jo’s mother was murdered and Jo went into hiding.  She continues look for answers and for justice.  The story gets off to a gripping start when Jo is trying to find her father who left a cryptic note and disappeared.  When her search fails, Jo gets on the ferry to go across Puget Sound and head home.  But the crossing may turn deadly when Jo witnesses something she shouldn’t have.  It’s a good thing that her ex-boyfriend, Cole Mercer, was back in town.  Will Cole be able to help Jo get the answers she’s looking for?  Will he be able to help keep her alive in the face of an unrelenting enemy?  Can their relationship be restored? 

Perilous Tides has a lot of mystery and suspense.  I was about seventy percent into the story when the various clues and puzzle pieces started to come together.  The premise was interesting.  I liked the Pacific Northwest setting and enjoyed the friendship between Jo and Remi, and Cole’s relationship with his brother Hawk.  I liked Jo’s commitment to find out who killed her mom and her quest for justice.  One of the characters that I grew to like was Detective Sanders.  I hope he appears in the third book in the Hidden Bay series and his character is further developed. 

There were a few things I struggled with.  The biggest one was Jo Cattrel.  Her character came across as very self-absorbed and indulging in self-pity throughout most of the book.  It got old.  The non-stop suspense and unrelenting enemy attacks were almost too much.  It stretched the imagination. 

Faith was a very small part of the story.  Especially considering the various crises that Jo and the others were going through, it would have been a good opportunity to include elements of faith.  In conversations and prayer or thoughts. 

If you are an Elizabeth Goddard fan and enjoy mystery and intrigue with some romance, you may enjoy reading Perilous Tides by Elizabeth Goddard.  This is the second book in the Hidden Bay series, but it works as a stand alone novel too.

I would like to thank Revell Publishers and NetGalley for the opportunity to read a complimentary copy of Perilous Tides by Elizabeth Goddard.  I was under no obligation to give a favorable review. 

Storm Warning by Elizabeth Goddard – Filled with Mystery, Intrigue, Suspense – May keep you up at night

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Storm Warning by Elizabeth Goddard is the first book in her Hidden Bay series.  This book is action packed from the get go, filled with mystery, intrigue, and suspense. 

Remi Grant first came to Cedar Trails Lodge when she was searching for a safe haven where she could escape from those trying to find her.  These days Remi works as the manager of the lodge.  The lodge is fully booked with guests who are here to watch the storm of the decade come ashore with winds and waves battering the Pacific Northwest coastline.

If it was up to her, Remi would not be on the beach with the storm coming in.  But she was trying to find a guest’s tiny yorkie.  Time is running out and Remi is reminded she can go up a rope ladder.  A few feet from the top Remi notices the rungs of the ladder are broken and the rope is shredded.  As she considers her options, she hears a voice, “Grab my hands now before it’s too late.”  The stranger, Hawk Beckett, caught her wrist as Remi is paralyzed in fear, and he pulls her to the top.

Former Night Stalker and military helicopter pilot Hawk Beckett was able to book the last cabin before the storm came in.  A friend had told him that he might find the answers he was looking for at the Cedar Trails Lodge.  Remi would like to remember what happened two years ago.  Hawk would like to forget the painful memories of the past couple of years.  Despite feeling leery of Hawk, it seems Remi will need to trust him to help protect her from whoever has finally tracked her down. 

Hawk Beckett was my favorite characters.  I like that he was ready, willing, and able to do whatever he had to do to protect Remi.  With all his military and security training he was the right man for the job.  With the resources that Hawk has available, he is not the average Joe.  In that sense, realism is a bit of a stretch.  Sometimes that is okay and why I am reading fiction.  There was no shortage of potential bad guys, with suspects at every turn.  I had inkling who the bad guy may be and it seems as though not everyone is who they first seem to be.  Faith was a small part of the story and I would have liked to have had that play a bigger part in the character’s lives.  Overall, I liked the book and enjoyed the mystery and suspense.  It kept me up late on more than one night. 

From page one, Storm Warning is action packed and filled with mystery, intrigue, and suspense.  It is fast paced and may keep you up at night until you unravel the mysteries.  If you like intrigue, mystery, and suspense you may want to read Elizabeth’s Goddard’s newest book Storm Warning. 

I would like to thank Revell Publishers and NetGalley for the opportunity to read a complimentary copy of Storm Warning by Elizabeth Goddard.  I was under no obligation to give a favorable review. 

Shadows at Dusk by Elizabeth Goddard – Not Believable, Convoluted, and Stretched the Imagination

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Shadows at Dusk is Elizabeth’s Goddard newest book.  I have read several of her books and looked forward to reading her latest mystery.

Shadows at Dusk tells the story of Detective Trevor West who is searching in Alaska for his sister Jennifer Warren who disappeared over a year ago.  Trevor is a former US Marshal and knows how to track people.  But will he be able to solve the case that is most important to him?  He enlists the help of Alaskan bush pilot Carrie James to help him follow Jennifer’s trail.  Reluctantly, Carrie agrees to help him.  Not long into their journey it appears that someone does not want them to continue their search and will do whatever it takes to stop them.  But who exactly is the target?  Is it Trevor or is it Carrie? 

Let me start with the things I liked about this book.  I enjoyed learning about beauty of this vast, remote, and treacherous terrain.  I liked the character Trevor, he seemed like caring, determined, and faithful friend.  I liked Rip who was willing to help them on their mission, even at great risk to himself. 

I struggled greatly with this book for several reasons.  I hate it when characters do something stupid and illogical that puts them at risk and in danger.  Both Trevor and Carrie did that repeatedly throughout this story.  At times even acknowledging that they made a bad decision or calculation.  But they never seemed to learn from their mistakes.  Things like not making copies or photographs of key pieces of evidence.  Not giving that evidence to the police.

The storyline did not seem plausible.  From the bad guy behind it all and those who were helping him try to stop Trevor and Carrie.  It appears that someone from Carrie’s past might also be targeting Trevor.  Speaking of Carrie, I did not like or connect with her character.  This story stretched the imagination, not in a good way.  The story was not believable.  Because the characters continued to make unwise and illogical decisions, over and over again, I stopped caring about them.  I did not understand why a trained law enforcement officer would make some of the irrational decisions he did. 

There was very little about God or faith mentioned in the book.

From my perspective, I did not like Shadows at Dusk by Elizabeth Goddard.  The storyline was not believable.  Characters made illogical decisions that put them at risk throughout the story.  The story drug on and on.  It was too complicated and convoluted. 

I have read other stories by Elizabeth Goddard and enjoyed them and would like to read more in the future.  But Shadows at Dusk missed the mark and I would not recommend it. 

I would like to thank Revell Publishers and NetGalley for the opportunity to read a complimentary copy of Shadows at Dusk by Elizabeth Goddard.  I was under no obligations to give a favorable review. 

Critical Alliance by Elizabeth Goddard – Focus is on Action and Intrigue Over Character Development

Posted in Baker Publishing Group, Critical Alliance, Cybersecurity, Elizabeth Goddard, Intrigue, Mystery, NetGalley, Rocky Mountain Courage Series by

Critical Alliance is Elizabeth Goddard’s third book in the, Rocky Mountain Courage series.  I’ve read the first two books, Present Danger and Deadly Target, enjoyed them and was excited to read her newest novel.

The story centers on two main characters, Mackenzie Hanson and Alex Knight.  Mackenzie has been doing well in her cybersecurity career at a university in Michigan.  Yet it seems like she can’t get away from her youthful criminal past when she receives a warning about cybersecurity issues with her family’s business.  Though she’s been estranged for many years, Mackenzie feels compelled to go home and try to help with the hope of redeeming her past mistakes.  Mackenzie’s path will once again cross with Alex Knight a Special Agent with the Diplomatic Security Services.  Alex has come home to Montana to get some rest following an assignment that went wrong.  But cases seem to find him even when he’s on vacation. 

There were some elements that I liked about this book.  Cybersecurity is an interesting theme for a mystery novel.  I liked Alex and his friends in Montana that were carried over from the earlier novels.  The backdrop in Montana was a beautiful setting, the descriptions were well written so the reader could imagine what the settings were like.

Where I struggled with this book was the main character, Mackenzie.  I found her to be arrogant with delusions of grandeur to the point of irritating.  I couldn’t see why Alex was attracted to Mackenzie, much less why he would risk her career for her or go along with her schemes.  The characters were shallow and the focus was on action and intrigue.  The characters were not well developed.  I enjoy reading Christian fiction, especially when faith is included in the characters’ lives.  But this book didn’t include much regarding faith.

Not sure if I recommend Critical Alliance because the characters were not well developed.  It’s shallow and relies on action and intrigue over a richer and deeper story.  The book focused on lots of details about cyber security instead of characters.  I will read more books by Elizabeth Goddard because I’ve enjoyed her earlier novels. 

I would like to thank Baker Publishing Group and NetGalley for the opportunity to read a complimentary copy of Critical Alliance by Elizabeth Goddard.  I was under no obligation to give a favorable review. 

Deadly Target by Elizabeth Goddard – Too Many Twists and Turns, Not Believable

Posted in Action, Deadly Target, Elizabeth Goddard, NetGalley, Revell Publishers, Romance, Suspense by

Deadly Target is Elizabeth Goddard’s second book in the Rocky Mountain Courage series.  I looked forward to reading it because I’ve enjoyed Elizabeth’s novels in the past. 

Erin Larson is a criminal psychologist and crime podcaster.  Erin and her friend are kayaking on Puget Sound when out-of-nowhere, a large yacht is speeding towards them and tries to mow them down.  They narrowly escape by abandoning their kayaks.  After being rescued Erin, receives a phone call from her former boyfriend, Detective Nathan Campbell, in Montana.  She is filled with dread as he tells her that her mom tried to commit suicide and is in the hospital.  This is just the beginning of the action in chapter one.  The rest of the book is filled with twists and turns, attempts to kill either Erin or Nathan and their family members and others caught in the crossfire.  It stretched from Washington to Montana and Boston.

Deadly Target is action-packed and filled with many twists and turns.  Nearly everyone was suspect and couldn’t be trusted.  It took me a while to get into the story because the tension continued to build and build and build with multiple incidents.  I didn’t connect with the character Erin because I found her off-putting.  I liked Nathan but didn’t understand what he saw in Erin. 

As much as I wanted to like Deadly Target, I didn’t enjoy it.  The story had too many twists and turns and too many characters.  It was hard to follow, and stretched the imagination.  The plotline with its endless action just wasn’t believable, especially towards the end.  Added to those negatives, the main character wasn’t very likable.  That’s why I don’t recommend Deadly Target by Elizabeth Goddard.

I would like to thank Revell Publishers and NetGalley for the opportunity to read a complimentary copy of Deadly Target by Elizabeth Goddard.  I was under no obligation to give a favorable review. 

Present Danger by Elizabeth Goddard – Lots of Intrigue, But Too Many Characters and Details Took Away from the Storyline

Posted in Elizabeth Goddard, Intrigue, Mystery, NetGalley, Present Danger, Rocky Mountain Courage Series, Suspense by

Since I had enjoyed Elizabeth Goddard’s earlier mysteries, I was excited to read her newest book, Present Danger the first book in the Rocky Mountain Courage series. 

Present Danger is filled with suspense, mystery, and intrigue from the get-go.  Private pilot Chance Carter is taking off with a package containing something illegal and headed to a small airstrip in Montana.  He should have listened to that nagging uneasy feeling.  But when his airplane is about to crash, he’s just trying to survive.  The next two chapters seem disjointed from the first chapter.  We are introduced to Sheriff’s Detective Jack Tanner and US Forest Service Special Agent Terra Connors.  They will be joining forces to investigate the questionable death of a local citizen, Jim Raymond, found in the forest.  Jack and Terra’s relationship goes way back, but they haven’t seen each other in years.  Their relationship didn’t end on a good note however they will strive to put their personal feelings aside and solve this case.

Parts of the book I found interesting, like learning about different aspects of law enforcement in remote forested areas and the illegal sale of Native American artifacts.  However, I thought the book had issues that took away from the storyline and characters.

Present Danger very convoluted and packed with details that did not contribute to the story.  There were too many characters, it was hard to keep track of all of them.  While Jack and Terra had a history, there didn’t seem to be much romance between them.  I kind of liked Jack, but his insecurities that he had carried with him all these years (not based on his own failings or history) got kind of old.  It seemed like an unnecessary element and focus of the story.  I can’t recall if Jack ever told Terra why years before he left town without saying goodbye.  He didn’t come clean and explain what he had overheard her grandfather say.  It bothers me when things in the storyline don’t make sense, like when a character does something illogical that puts themself in danger.  Also, there came a point when Terra should have been removed from the case but she wasn’t.  One of the biggest surprises at the end came out of nowhere and didn’t seem believable.

Elizabeth Goddard describes scenery really well so that the reader can imagine what the place looks like or the characters are experiencing.  She’s done her research and knows jobs and locations well.  But I don’t recommend this book because of the negatives in the story: too many characters; too many unnecessary details that distract instead of moving the story forward; and not making the characters compelling enough to care about them.

While this book has been published by a Christian publisher there wasn’t much concerning the Christian faith in the book. 

I would like to thank Revell Publishing and NetGalley for the opportunity to read a complimentary copy of Present Danger by Elizabeth Goddard.  I was under no obligation to give a favorable review.

Don’t Keep Silent by Elizabeth Goddard – Beautiful Setting, Filled with Intrigue and Suspense

Posted in Book Review, Elizabeth Goddard, Intrigue, Mystery, Revell Publishing, Suspense, Uncommon Justice by

Don’t Keep Silent by Elizabeth Goddard is the third book in her Uncommon Justice series.  I had read the second book, Always Look Twice, and was excited to read her new book.

When Rae Burke’s brother Alan asks her to search for his missing wife Zoey she agrees and uses her tenacious and keen investigative skills to try and find her sister-in-law and friend.  As she heads up to Jackson Hole, Wyoming she hopes to enlist help from former DEA agent Liam McKade, but since they part ways last time she’s not confident that he will be willing to join forces and help find Zoey.

Don’t Keep Silent grabbed my attention from the get-go.  It was filled with lots of suspense and twists and turns.  There were some likable characters, but my favorite was Liam.  He seemed like a faithful friend, brave and willing to put himself on the line to protect Rae, try and find Zoey and expose the bad guys and bring them to justice.

Author, Elizabeth Goddard did a good job of describing the scenic area of Jackson Hole, Wyoming during the wintertime.  Made me want to go there on vacation.  The reader is left guessing as to whether some of the characters are good guys or bad guys, and there were some surprises.  The faith aspect of the novel was minimal and confined to mostly one-sentence prayers for protection or help.  I wish the characters’ faith had been more developed, especially with Liam.  I think the book would have been richer if the author had done that.

What I struggled with is the main character, Rae.  Something that really bugs me is when characters do things that don’t make a lot of sense or aren’t logical.  Rae seemed to do that repeatedly, she was emotionally driven and had a high estimation of her own abilities.  Why Liam stuck by her I don’t know.  Rae seemed to have no issue with putting her life on the line, not only hers but Liam’s too.  Not just once but on multiple occasions.  That got old and I found Rae less likable.

I won’t give away the ending, but the ending and reason why Zoey was kidnapped kind of stretched the imagination.  Towards the end, the story kind of dragged and was very convoluted.

There were things I liked about the book, the character Liam, the setting, and the suspense and intrigue, but there were some things I wasn’t too keen on.  I would recommend Don’t Keep Silent if you are a fan of Elizabeth Goddard or you like suspense, mystery, and intrigue.

I would like to thank Revell Publishing for the opportunity to read Don’t Keep Silent by Elizabeth Goddard.  I was provided a complimentary copy of the book but was under no obligation to give a favorable review.

 

Always Look Twice – by author Elizabeth Goddard – Filled with Mystery, Intrigue and Action

Posted in Action, Always Look Twice, Book Review, Elizabeth Goddard, Intrigue, Mystery, NetGalley, Revell Publishing, Uncommon Justice by

As someone who loves to read mysteries, I really liked reading Elizabeth Goddard’s newest book Always Look Twice the second book in her Uncommon Justice series.  There was so much to like about this book, starting with the characters.  But what first drew me in to Always Looks Twice was the opening scene.

Crime scene photographer, Harper Reynolds, has taken a much need break because of the toll that her work has taken on her.  She and her sister Emily have been traveling to National Parks and are finishing up their travels in Jackson Hole, Wyoming where they lived as children.  Harper has been photographing the beauty found in nature only to have that beauty marred by witnessing a murder through her camera lens.  In her quest to escape she lost her camera, a memory card, her phone and was injured.  So, when Harper reports the crime she witnessed, there’s no corroborating evidence to be found.  Will the Sheriff believe Harper?  Will law enforcement diligently investigate the crime she witnessed?  What will happen when she is reunited with her childhood friend Heath McKade?

I really liked the main characters in this book.  They are interesting, kind and caring and people and because of that I was invested in their story.  Harper and Emily carried emotional scars from trauma in their childhood and they dealt with its lingering effects quite differently.  I especially like the friendship between Harper and Heath.  They were friends in a pivotal time in their lives and now they are reunited.

One of the things I liked best about Elizabeth Goddard’s writing is her ability to write a scene so the reader can imagine it in their head.  She does it without being too wordy.  Reading the story was almost like watching a movie.  I appreciated that the story was clean, there was no profanity or sexual immorality.  There was some mention of the character’s faith.  I would like to have seen even more the faith aspect of the character’s lives.

If you like mystery, intrigue, and action I would encourage you to read Elizabeth Goddard’s new book Always Look Twice.  This one kept me guessing until the end.  This is the first book I’ve read by Elizabeth and I look forward to reading more of her books.

I would like to thank Revell Publishing for the opportunity to read Always Look Twice by Elizabeth Goddard.  I was provided a complimentary copy of the eBook through NetGalley.  I was under no obligation to give a favorable review.

#AlwaysLookTwice #UncommonJustice