The Tulip Eaters by Antoinette van Heugten (+ giveaway)

Photo Credit: Goodreads

This book was sent to Traveling With T in exchange for a fair and honest review.

The Tulip Eaters

It’s a regular day for Nora. Work and then going home to see her mother and her sweet baby, Rose. Until Nora gets home to the worst nightmare she’s ever experienced. Her mother, shot in the head. And a strange man, dead. Both of those incidents are alarming enough- but even more- where is the baby? Did someone kidnap the baby while her mother was being killed? Are the 2 incidents connected?

Nora, frantic with worry about her baby, only knows that she must find her child. Her life is not worth living if she cannot find her child. As Nora is packing some things of her mother’s away- she finds a metal box. And the box changes everything that Nora knows about her parents. Nora finds out a deep secret- a secret that she never wanted to know. Slowly, Nora begins to realize that the murder of her mother and the kidnapping of her daughter are linked- and have to do with the past, with a life before Nora.

Nora boards a plane to Amsterdam, to find answers to the questions she found in Houston, TX in a metal box. To find out if her parents were what the secrets in the box suggest. Once in Amsterdam- Nora finds out that there are people there- people in high places- who will go to incredible lengths to keep Nora from her daughter- all in part of a payback for the acts Nora’s parents committed against them. Can Nora find out what happened in Amsterdam years ago? Can Nora find her daughter? And will Nora’s former lover, Nico, help her or break her heart again?

Secrets, lies, and betrayal- Amsterdam is filled with those 3 things. Nora must solve the mystery to find out why her daughter was kidnapped, to even have a chance of finding Rose.

Traveling With T’s Thoughts

This is my first Antoinette V. Heugten book and I enjoyed this story. The reader knows pretty quickly why Nora’s mother was murdered- what her secret is. But, as the reader joins Nora- the reader finds that while some fairly key information was revealed in the first 100+ pages- not all was revealed- and that’s why you keep turning the pages.

There are a few twists- some are slightly predictable, some are not. There are a few things about this book that the reader can nitpick- timing of some scenes- but for the most part- enjoyable.

Some of the characters are not as well-drawn out as the others or perhaps the characters that are more memorable to me had evil personalities which added an extra layer.

This story has themes of betrayal, secrets and lies- but wove throughout is a theme of forgiveness. Forgiveness and understanding for yourself, for others.

*This book was sent to Traveling With T from a publicist in exchange for a fair and honest review. Above thoughts and opinions are mine alone.

Giveaway details:

Check the Rafflecopter Link for 1 copy of The Tulip Eaters (US only!) Giveaway runs from 1-8/1-14.

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Buried Leads by LynDee Walker (EWD 2.A)

Photo Credit: Escape W/ Dollycas

Nichelle is back! Wearing her fabulous designer high heels (size 9, by the way) One night, Nichelle hears some news about a dead body on her police scanner. Never one to let a scoop pass her by, she grabs her fancy Manolo’s and heads to the scene of the crime! When Nichelle gets there, she sees the body in an Armani suit and wonders how and why this man arrived at his fate. Poking around the crime scene- she finds something that the crime scene techs missed- and wonders how important the clue is.

The dead man is a tobacco lobbyist- which in the land of tobacco and politics is making Nichelle see a potential big story in her future. Good for Nichelle because there is a copy-editor wanting her courtroom beat and a TV reporter trying to out-scoop her. In the land of politics- where Nichelle is fiercely longing to be- Nichelle begins to investigate Senator Grayson, a local politician who might be up to his eyeballs in dirty politics. Nichelle has a hard time deciphering what a tobacco lobbyist and politician who is against tobacco have in common- but she discovers a link, a link that appears innocent at first, which leads to a whole set of other questions.

When Nichelle’s sexy Mafia boss friend, Joey, stops by to warn her off the search into Grayson’s background- Nichelle does not want to listen. She wants to get the political scoop of the year- so she can move up in the world of news. Nichelle gets deeper and deeper into the world of politics and tobacco- and just to complicate matters further- her ex-boyfriend, Kyle, is now living in Virginia being a hottie ATF agent. Kyle wouldn’t mind heating things up again with Nichelle, but the sexy Mafia boss might prove to be a crimp in his plans.

Politics, tobacco, gambling and call girls- how do those things go together? Will Nichelle get the scoop? Or will she get scooped? Read Buried Leads to find out!

Traveling With T’s Thoughts

This is the 2nd book in the Headlines in High Heels mystery series- but my first to read. Nichelle is delightful- fun, entertaining, cute, drinks Midori Sours and Moscato (my kind of girl!) and has some funny one-liners. Cute and fun- a good mystery with enough red herrings to keep the reader guessing. Plus, enough romance- Nichelle has 2 very fine men in her life- one a sexy Mafia boss, the other a hottie ATF agent. While this is not exactly like Lacey Smithsonian’s Crimes of Fashion series written by Ellen Byerrum- there are some similarities- which I think is one reason I enjoyed Nichelle (I adore Lacey!)

This is not a cozy mystery- although it does has cozy elements. The language is bit spicier, the mystery has a bit of a harder edge. Enjoyable, entertaining, and definitely worth a read!

To see other reviews, giveaways, interviews and more- please visit the Buried Leads Tour Page!

The Stranger You Know (Forensic Instincts) by Andrea Kane

Someone is murdering red headed women in New York City. Someone who has an axe to grind against a particular red-headed woman. Can the Forensic Instincts team find the murderer? Before he attacks the target of his obsession, their leader, Casey?

Casey has assembled a team of the best of the best. Some might call it a dream team of investigators. Casey calls it Forensic Instincts. With each person on the team having a specific set of skills, collectively- they solve cases others can’t. But there is one case, Casey has never been able to solve. A case that haunts her to this day. The case of her missing friend, Holly.

When Forensic Instincts is hired by a man searching for his missing daughter, Casey knows it’s a long shot to find the daughter. The case is 15 years old, and cold cases are tough to solve. However the man is dying and Casey wants to try to give him peace of mind. Casey also has an ulterior motive- the details from the missing girl Jan’s case are eerily similar to Holly’s case. Casey wonders if the two could be linked.

While the team is searching for clues about Jan’s disappearance, a man is setting other plans in motion. From his jail cell, he is keeping tabs on the case and making plans. And he has plans for Casey- plans that involve pain and torture.

At Columbia, a young petite red-head is raped and killed. Right after, Casey gets a call taunting her about the murder and the plans for her. Casey knows of 1 man who wants to torture and kill her- but he’s in jail serving a 30 year sentence- so it can’t be him. Can it? And if it’s not- does he have something to do with the phone call? As more red-heads are being killed, Casey gets calls from the killer- taunting her, letting her know he’s getting closer.

With each call, Casey knows he’s getting closer to his ultimate goal- and she’s ready. Casey refuses to change her life, refuses to be a victim. Instead she puts herself in the hot seat and goes to the prison to visit the man in jail. There, Casey finds a tie between the killings happening and the man in prison. She wonders how things are tied together- but does not have to wonder long- as the master plan becomes apparent quickly.

Will Casey and the Forensic Instincts team be able to solve the case? Will Casey ever get peace about Holly? And will the plan, the plan of evil, torture, and pain beyond all measure happen to Casey? And if so- who’s the person inflicting the pain- the man that Casey thinks or a stranger she knows?

Traveling With T’s Thoughts

This is a series (although this is the first I’ve read). Casey and her team set out to solve crimes that the police cannot solve- due to limited resources. The team is a merry band of folks- with each person having a skill that comes in handy. Twists and turns throughout the novel, but the ending is not quite as good as earlier in the book. Some red-herrings, some misdirection to throw the reader off the scent of who is the mastermind- but, some readers will be able to guess. Still enjoyable and worth a read.

*This book was requested through Netgalley. All thoughts and opinions expressed are mine alone.