Sandy's Spotlight
2 Audio Book Reviews
Blood Ties: The Bonds Are Permanent
and
Empty Shell
By
Ashley Fontainne
Rating: 5 Stars
Title: Blood Ties: The Bonds Are Permanent
Series: The Magnolia Series – Book 1
Author: Ashley Fontainne & Lillian Hansen
Genre: Mystery/Thriller/a touch of Romance
Audio: 11 Hours 39 Minutes
Length: 446 Pages
I’d like to start this review out with the fact that this was my very first audio book. I’ve heard people talk about them before, but never really had an interest in listening to them. Hearing the author’s words come to life was really amazing. I’m hooked.
BLOOD TIES: THE BONDS ARE PERMANENT by ASHLEY FONTAINNE and LILLIAN HANSEN takes organized crime to an all new high. This book has a little bit of everything in it from loving mother/daughter relationship, friendships – both new and old, broken hearts, healing hearts and crazy knock-you-on-your-butt plot twists that you’ll never see coming.
This is a book that both men and women will enjoy. I know this for a fact because my husband is not a reader, but as soon as I started playing the audio version of BLOOD TIES while we were on a cross-country trip, he was hooked. The only thing I would have changed when it came to listening to BLOOD TIES on this trip was: I would have started listening to the book as soon as we turned the truck on to leave.
Listening to this book made the endless hours in the truck enjoyable for both of us. So much so that at the end of the travel day, rather than going to a nice restaurant and relaxing after thirteen hours cooped up in a truck, we picked up burgers and ate in the truck so we could continue listening. We had so much fun discussing BLOOD TIES as it was playing, trying to figure out what the next move was going to be and who was going to be the next victim in the twisted plot.
I highly recommend this book to anyone that enjoys adult thrillers and mysteries. BLOOD TIES is an excellent read and I can’t wait for Book 2 in this series to come out!
BLURB:
LiAnn Tuck and her daughter, Karina Summers, are settling into their new life, enjoying the small farming community of Sheridan, Arkansas. The slower pace, compared to the craziness of Los Angeles, is a welcome distraction for them both. Taking care of her aging parents and their small farm is just what LiAnn needs to forget her 25-year career as a detective. And Karina's new love interest brings back the smile she lost from years of undercover work and her cheating ex-boyfriend.
The bonds...
Their idyllic lifestyle changes the minute a family friend, Cecil Pickard, pays a visit. He lives at The Magnolia, an independent living facility in Hot Springs, and believes someone is stealing from him. LiAnn and Karina offer to investigate, and they suddenly find themselves inside a living nightmare.
...are permanent.
Theft isn't the only criminal activity taking place inside the historic, stately walls of The Magnolia. Organized crime has infiltrated Hot Springs, and what they're after is not only money but life itself. As LiAnn and Karina dig deeper, they might just be digging their own graves.
PURCHASE LINKS:
Audible.com
Rating: 4 Stars
Title: Empty Shell
Author: Ashley Fontainne
Genre: Mystery/Thriller/Suspense
Audio: 12 Hours 45 Minutes
Length: 385 Pages
Who killed the perky, little rich trollop? Melody’s husband of twenty years, Jack, is caught with his pants down and evidence is piling up against him so fast that he’s arrested for the murder scant hours after her body is found. ASHLEY FONTAINNE spins another solid suspenseful tale in EMPTY SHELL.
My husband and I listened to EMPTY SHELL in the audio version when on a cross country trip. I have to admit that there were events in the book that had us looking at each other with our mouths hanging open, never expecting some of the twists in this book. EMPTY SHELL is a great story, has great characters, and great unexpected twists and turns.
The only criticism I have in this book is the main character, Melody. I’m still not sure if I liked her or not. Ms. Fontainne’s female characters are always strong which I enjoy tremendously, but she seemed weak to me, placing blame on others for their actions and then in a complete reversal taking it on herself, which didn’t sit well with me considering the circumstances. This happened a couple of times in the book and it just didn’t come off as something that would actually happen in real life.
If you like mysteries, thrillers and suspenseful reading with strong plots and many surprises, pick this one up. You won’t be disappointed!
BLURB:
A pair of pink, silk underwear…
The quiet world of Melody and Jack Dickinson is about to be turned upside down. Twenty years of marriage hangs in the balance when Melody finds out about Jack’s infidelity. The betrayal is made worse when Melody discovers his lover is Serena Rowland, a young woman who works at Melody’s law firm.
A receipt from an overpriced hotel…
Harsh words are exchanged before Melody storms off to work, determined to have Serena fired. But when Melody hears Serena was murdered over the weekend, everything changes. Serena’s body is found beaten and strangled with a pair of pink, silk panties, in the same hotel that Jack had admitted staying at over the weekend. Within seconds of hearing the news, Melody’s life spins out of control when Jack calls in a panic. The police are at their home to arrest him for Serena’s murder.
Pictures of a young woman’s scantily clad torso on a cell phone…
Was she married to a monster? One who beat and strangled the young woman to death, or was Jack set up? Did Melody’s own dark secret, hidden inside her heart for years, have something to do with the nightmare they suddenly find themselves in?
Melody and Jack are about to discover that one fateful mistake will destroy many.
PURCHASE LINKS:
Audible.com