Rod Pennington

Review of eBook

Lieutenant Cassandra Morse, USN is a top combat pilot, a top-of-her-class Annapolis graduate who came from Navy royalty: her great-grandfather, grandfather, and father all wore admiral stars on their shoulders. Tonight, she’s testing a prototype, a million-dollar fighter jet that she’ll land on the deck of the aircraft carrier USS Ronald Reagan . . . in the “storm of the century” and on rough seas. And with her retired admiral grandfather along for the ride.

But while show more on target to intercept an unidentified object headed toward the aircraft carrier, the mysterious sphere explodes, engulfing the SV-1 and destroying it.

Plucked from the sea [thanks to a distress beacon] some three weeks later, Cassandra soon finds herself hospitalized; when she awakens from a coma, she doesn’t remember some things, but she sees her grandfather and talks to him. Only Admiral Morse died in the crash.

Forced to resign her commission, Cassandra begins having dreams of horrific events . . . dreams that come true. Arson. A double homicide. She tries to warn the police, but finds herself regarded as a crank . . . and a media darling.

But someone is watching Cassandra and it isn’t long before she gets some unexpected [but welcome] answers about the cause of her strangely prophetic dreams. Soon she finds herself working with the National Intelligence Agency in an effort to thwart the machinations of some smarmy businessmen and political demagogues. But when eco-terrorists set out to create a nuclear disaster, will Cassandra be able to convince anyone to help her stop them in time?

Strong, well-drawn characters populate this inventive narrative filled with tension and non-stop action. Several unexpected twists keep things a bit off-balance, delivering surprises and continually ratcheting up the suspense.

A well-defined sense of place adds to the ever-building suspense in this propulsive read filled with foreboding and mystery. Apprehension and distrust combine with mystery and some cloak-and-dagger doings to create a disquieting narrative. Readers will find it difficult to set this one aside before turning the final page.

I received a free copy of this eBook from Integration Press LLC/Author Buzz and NetGalley
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Review of eBook

The murder of graduate student Nick Blake in the subterranean laboratory of the GAIA Institute leads to a puzzling discovery: according to the surveillance video, no one left the facility following the murder and there’s no sign of the murderer anywhere in the Institute. But Nick Blake, shot once in the chest, is most definitely dead.

Homicide detective Albert Pryor and his new partner, rookie police officer Kevin Cummings, find themselves embroiled in the mystery. Plato show more Vane, Ph.D., a renowned scientist whose claim to fame is the ability to predict earthquakes, established the GAIA Institute to further his research. Now the egotistical researcher, who is married to Pryor’s ex-wife, is about to open a larger laboratory facility in Hawaii.

He’s also the man Pryor once tossed through a plate glass window. Now, despite an ironclad alibi, Vane is also Pryor’s number one suspect in Nick Blake's murder.

When Detective Pryor’s daughter, Brooke, turns out to be a friend of the victim . . . and an acquaintance of Officer Cummings, might there be a bit of a conflict of interest? As they investigate, Pryor and Cummings find more questions than answers and, with pressure from both the department and the FBI agents assigned to the case, will they find the culprit?

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This locked-room mystery is both intriguing and delightfully witty. As Pryor imparts his years of on-the-job wisdom to rookie Cummings, he gets some technological enlightenment from the young officer. With the clever subtitle channeling the Greek mythological personification of the Earth and offering readers a hint, they may surmise something about the unfolding narrative. However, surprising revelations keep the reader guessing.

With well-developed characters, a compelling mystery, and a bit of sarcasm and witty banter, readers are in for quite a treat. The plot twists and turns, often in unexpected directions, keeping those pages turning. There’s a bit of character stereotyping, but each character [likable or not] is nuanced and believable.

This unputdownable murder mystery story includes some science fiction elements, explores some family dynamics, and includes a bit of politicking. Nevertheless, the denouement ties up the plot points quite nicely and is eminently satisfying.

The backstory for Detective Pryor is fascinating; the interplay between the characters is a highlight in the telling of the tale.

And then there is Blitz . . . .

Highly recommended.

I received a free copy of this eBook from Integration Press LLC, ePubPress.com and NetGalley
#Pryor&Cummings #NetGalley show less

Better Choices by Rod Pennington and Jeffery A. Martin
Source: NetGalley and Integration Press
Rating: 5/5 stars

Allison Clark previously believed she had her life and her sh*t together. Now, facing a divorce, the eighteenth birthday of her secretive twins, and a mother ready to drop bombshells now that her husband is dead, Allison isn’t at all sure about anything. In fact, Allison is on the verge of facing up to her bad choices and making significant changes in her life.

Like many parents, show more Allison is having a hard time seeing her twins as near-adults. Though her divorce is relatively amicable, Allison believes her twins know nothing about it; of course, her twins know all about the divorce and are on board with her decision. What’s more, in recent months, the twins have been secretive about their movements and activities. Though they have been careful, the jig is up when the high school calls Allison to report them absent without cause. When Allison tracks down the twins, she is blown away by what she discovers, and it takes everything in her and a stern talking to from her best friend (and lawyer!) not to lose her mind.

Up next on the agenda, Allison’s mother is in critical condition and the writing is on the wall with regards to the end of her life. As is typical, Allison’s mother has no interest in going quietly into the night and fully intends to live out her remaining days in any damn way she sees fit. To accommodate her mother, Allison, her aunt, and her aunt’s life partner all move in and then the fun really begins. Allison’s aunt’s life partner suffers from Alzheimer’s though she still has many wonderfully lucid hours each day. Between the bouts of memory loss, Allison’s coming to grips with the figurative loss of her twins, and the actual loss of her mother, Allison isn’t certain she can handle much more.

The Universe cares not for your emotional state.

On top of everything else, Allison’s ex is throwing a hissy fit about finances which forces the hand of Allison’s mother. When Allison’s mother finally spills the beans, the entire family is impacted and so many things from the past begin to fall neatly into place. With the future of her family radically altered, Allison does everything in her power to keep her sh*t together and not lose her damn mind.

The Bottom Line: Yet again, I find myself befuddled by the Goodreads star rating for a book! I found this book to be refreshingly light and rather wonderful despite all the crazy that occurs. In fact, it is all that crazy that occurs that makes this such an interesting and completely entertaining read. To get through the madness, Allison has to change her mindset and that opens up a whole new world for her. Her relationship with her mother and her twins greatly improves, she learns to be more open and accepting of life and its possibilities, and she finally finds her own voice and begins to use it, forcefully. There isn’t a character in this book I didn’t like, to one degree or another, and I found the blending of the sometimes wildly different personalities to be well-written and beautifully combined. In all, I found Better Choices to be an excellent read with a whirlwind of scenes, secrets, and clever maneuvering. This was a one-sitting and highly recommended read for me! show less

Book source ~ NetGalley

Someone snooping where they shouldn’t be gets killed. With high security and survellience video it’s a head scratcher how the murderer got in and back out without leaving evidence. But there’s always evidence if you know where to look.

This started out pretty good. A locked room murder is always fun to try to figure out. However, it soon became a ho-hum mystery with over-the-top characters trying to outdo how awesome they each are, so much so that they miss clues. show more The detective’s daughter in particular is supremely eye rolling. Could she be more perfect and awesome at every single thing she does? Conveniently and neatly wrapped up with a fast track romance tossed in for good measure. Rich people with money to burn grease the plot along but don’t make it any more interesting. Overall, a very meh read. show less