Hey,
lovelies! It gives me great pleasure
today to host Audrey J. Cole and her new book, “Viable Hostage”! For other stops on her Goddess Fish
Promotions Book Tour, please click on the banner above or any of the images in
this post.
Be
sure to make it to the end of this post to enter to win a $15 Amazon or Barnes
and Noble Gift Card!! Also, come back
daily to interact with Audrey and to increase your chances of winning!
Thanks
for stopping by! Wishing you lots of
luck in this fabulous giveaway!
Viable Hostage
by Audrey J. Cole
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GENRE: Thriller
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BLURB:
Malorie’s
best friend is missing, but no one seems concerned about the wayward medical
student's mysterious disappearance—until another student's partial remains wash
ashore a Seattle beach...
When
Malorie witnesses her best friend and roommate leave a campus bar with a
mystery date driving a silver Mercedes, she suspects foul play, especially when
Lani fails to return home the next day. Both women, med students in their final
year at Elliott Bay University, have a lot riding on the line, but due to Lani’s
wild past, no one in her family is worried. When Malorie’s fears for her
roommate deepen, she turns to her Uncle Wade, a Sergeant at Seattle Homicide.
Within
48 hours after Lani goes missing, the partial remains of a brutally murdered
young woman wash up on Alki Beach, and a human hand is found in a crab pot off
Bainbridge Island. When one of the bodies is identified as a pregnant,
fourth-year medical student, Wade believes there’s a connection with Lani’s
disappearance. And, that they might be looking for a serial killer.
Malorie
suspects Lani’s kidnapper is someone they know, possibly even one of their
professors at the university, a prominent Seattle anesthesiologist whose wife
is the president of EBU. But when Detective Blake Stephenson discovers evidence
that links another suspect to the professor’s Mercedes, he and Wade must act
fast to attempt a wild rescue in the middle of Puget Sound.
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EXCERPT TWO:
There
was something evil in the way he had looked at her. He was dangerous.
Psychotic. Malorie could see it in his eyes. Those cold, dark eyes. He was
chasing her.
Malorie
ran faster, with so much adrenaline she didn’t feel the ache in her legs or the
burn in her lungs as she gasped for air. She could feel him getting closer.
Hear the sound of his boots scrape against the pavement behind her. He’s going
to kill me.
She
felt him close in behind her. A sharp pain ripped through her arm as he grabbed
her and drew her close to him with tremendous strength. Malorie opened her
mouth to scream as she was awakened by the sound of her alarm.
She
wasn’t being chased. She was in Lani’s room. She sat up in her roommate’s bed,
sweating through her t-shirt and breathing hard.
She
silenced her alarm, flooded simultaneously with relief that it was just a dream
and the familiar dread that her best friend was missing and possibly never
coming back.
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MY BOOK REVIEW:
This book was such an incredible, suspenseful, engaging,
entertaining, realistic crime thriller read!!!
This book is full of lies, secrets, betrayal,
obsession, blackmail, and of course… Murder!!!
This is one of the top books I’ve read and reviewed this year!!!
This
is the second book I’ve read from the very talented writer, Audrey J. Cole. About two years ago I read, reviewed, and
blogged about her book, “The Recipient,” which is Book One in the
Emerald City Book Series and I absolutely loved it!! So, I was thrilled to get the chance to read
her latest work, “Viable Hostage,” which is Book Four of the same book
series.
I am
a huge mystery book fan and my favorite thing about Audrey’s book’s is that she
ALWAYS keeps me on the edge of my seat guessing whodunit and she is one
of the few authors who actually surprises me on the killer!!! I am really, really good at guessing the
killer in books, TV shows, movies, games, etc. – but Audrey can definitely beat
me and shock me with her endings – and that takes skill!!!
This
book is about Malorie and her best friend Lani.
Malorie and Lani go out to a campus bar, Harry’s, Malorie
steps away to use the restroom, and when she returns Lani is nowhere to be
found. Malorie calls Lani to find out
where she went, and when she answers she tells her a guy she is secretly dating
is picking her up out front and not to worry or wait up. Malorie runs outside the bar and sees a silver
Mercedes quickly driving off and Lani’s cell phone on the ground. Feeling annoyed about being ditched and
uneasy about the circumstances Malorie decides to just head home for the night.
Unfortunately,
when Lani doesn’t return home or show up for her mom’s big award event the next
day, Malorie is very concerned something bad has happened to her friend. However, she seems to be the only one
worried. Lani’s parents seem less bothered
and figure it’s Lani just being Lani as she has a history of just disappearing
for days and not letting anyone know. Heck
– just six months ago she missed her brother’s college graduation because she
was too drunk and too stoned. She had
been gone for multiple days and her parents had even filed a police
report. But not this time, if Lani was
going to continue to be inconsiderate and irresponsible, they were not going to
waste their time worrying about her when she was probably off doing her own
thing. Malorie tries to insist that Lani
had changed, she was no longer drinking or partying, she was attending her
classes, and actually being accountable and turning her life around. But, Lani’s parents weren’t buying it.
Malorie
decides to reach out to her Uncle Wade, a Sergeant at Seattle Police in the
Homicide Department. He agrees to help
her file a missing person’s report and put her in touch with the Missing Person’s
Team. Unfortunately, the detectives also
see that this isn’t the first time Lani has gone missing and that last time she
was just out partying. With nothing to contradict
Lani’s repeat behavior and that she hasn’t been missing that long the police
don’t seem to take the case that seriously.
It isn’t until body parts wash up on the beach that match that of a
missing 4th year med student who also attended the same university
as Lani, was in the same med program, has a striking physical resemblance, and a similar missing person’s report
that the police began to see a pattern and start to think Lani may have been abducted
by the same person that killed the victim on the beach. Could Lani have been taken by a serial
killer? Or is Lani back to her old ways
and just out having a good time? No
spoilers here!! But you definitely will
want to read this book and find out what happens!!
There
is so much going on in this book!! This
book has so many different layers with several plot points that are well
executed and structurally sound!! I thoroughly
enjoyed pulling back each layer and seeing where it took me… I thought this book was going to be a
straight-forward serial killer book, but it also had deeper, intricate,
complex, and elaborate story lines as well.
Audrey’s writing only continues to improve, grow, and expand
with each book! I know she will be an
author I will continue to read over the years!
So many exciting, intriguing, suspenseful, and thrilling moments
in this book!!! I literally couldn't
turn the pages fast enough!!!
I really enjoyed
reading this book and could not wait to solve the case and find out who the
killer was!!
I
really enjoyed all the main characters (the bad and the good), Malorie, her Uncle Sergeant Wade, her Best
Friend Lani, Detectives: Stephenson, Adams, Richards, Dr. Delaney, Luke Paulson,
and Lani’s family. I liked that Malorie
was smart, sweet, persistent, kind, determined, caring, tenacious, and stubborn. I remember Wade from book one, so it was
great catching back up with him. Book
one was a bit emotional for him, so it was nice seeing him in a good place, happily
married, and about to be a dad. He was
strong-willed, relentless, benevolent, understanding, and sympathetic. I liked Lani, and I totally felt for
her. We’ve all done things and then had
a hard time coming back from that not being judged or labeled for them. People can change. I was so sad when her parents dismissed any
thought of foul play or danger and just chalked it up to her partying. It would be heartbreaking if my family didn’t
take my being missing seriously. I also
really liked the detectives and was impressed with their professionalism and
legal accuracy. Also, I was very
interested in Detective Tess Richards. Throughout
the book it hinted about her brother being murdered and his killer going to trial
soon. I was curious if this case had already
been part of the book series or was going to be featured in an upcoming
book. Regardless, I really liked the
character as she seemed very smart, tough, compassionate, caring, and also a
bit stubborn.
I think the author did a fantastic job on her character
development as these characters were so real and personal on many levels!
This
book has quite a bit of medical jargon as the main characters are 4th
year med students and the killer is thought to have had medical training as
well. Thankfully the author doesn’t totally
overwhelm the reader by dumping long medical terminology passages, but she presents
it in an easy to understand and comprehend manner, while not sugar-coating or
dumbing it down.
I
love the in-depth amount of research the author did while constructing this
book. It is clear she is very familiar
and well-versed in the medical and criminal procedural practices. The author
provided so much detail and such vivid descriptions it made the scenes easy to
picture. These particulars were so well-described
they felt both realistic and authentic.
This book has exceptional mystery crime solving structure with
enough clues and excitement to keep you guessing, but still practical and
realistic.
I also enjoyed the style of writing and that there were several,
but short chapters. It really helped
keep the story on point, provide smooth scene transitions, and allow for the
overall story line to flow.
This book had a very satisfying and an extremely
realistic ending. I was pleased with the
author’s take and her decision to end it the way she did.
This book has a creative story line with well executed plot
points, excellent mystery thriller structured scenarios, fantastic writing
style with detailed scenes, relatable characters, is fast paced, and keeps you
fully engaged and entertained.
There were a few predictable scenes. However, there are still many unexpected
twists and turns and misdirection’s that you won’t see coming!
This book is book four in the Emerald City Thriller Book
Series. It can be read as a standalone. However, there seems to be character and
story line overlaps.
All in all, I really enjoyed reading this book and would
absolutely recommend it! I think all thriller,
mystery, suspense readers will like this book too! So, add it to your TBR List and get to
reading - you won't be disappointed!
Did you find this review helpful?
If so, please, please, please mark it as
helpful on Amazon here:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/review/R1189GLX1JRE9E
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AUTHOR BIO:
Audrey J. Cole is a registered nurse and a USA Today bestselling author of thrillers set in
Seattle. Audrey lives in the Pacific Northwest with her husband and two
children.
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BOOK BUY LINKS:
Amazon Kindle eBook:
Amazon Paperback:
Amazon Audiobook:
The Book Depository Paperback:
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GIVEAWAY INFO:
Audrey will be awarding a $15 Amazon or B/N GC
to a randomly drawn winner via Rafflecopter during the tour.
**This post contains affiliate links and if clicked and a
purchase is made, I may receive a small commission to help support this
blog. This does not cost you anything,
it just helps pay for all those awesome giveaways on here.**
This contest is sponsored
by a third party. Fabulous and Brunette is a registered host of Goddess Fish
Promotions. Prizes are given away by the
sponsors and not Fabulous and Brunette. The featured author and Goddess Fish
Promotions are solely responsible for the giveaway prize.
Audrey ~ Good morning! Welcome back! It is always a pleasure to have you here! Congrats on your new book and good luck on the book tour! I really enjoyed reading and reviewing your book, thanks for providing the copy! :)
ReplyDeleteAlly, thank you so much! Wow, this is such an awesome review, I'm glad you enjoyed Viable Hostage and thanks for the glowing review!!
DeleteThanks for hosting!
ReplyDeleteSounds like a good book.
ReplyDeleteMy family loves reading so hearing about another great book I appreciate. Thanks for sharing and also for the giveaway.
ReplyDeleteWho was your favorite character to write in your book?
ReplyDeleteI would love to read your book.
ReplyDelete