eyes.2c Reviews

Gambrelli and the Prosecutor ( Gambrelli and the Prosecutor (Inspector Gambrelli #1) by Laurence Giliotti.                                               Chief Inspector Arthur Gambrelli, of the Metropolitan Police finds himself enmeshed in a murder outside of his jurisdiction. Ordered to investigate, he heads to an island off the coast of France near Toulon, and in the summer heat! Gambrelli is not pleased! Murdered is the attractive young mistress of a senior prosecutor in the Ministry of Justice, Jean Michel Bertrand. Bertrand is the prime suspect, hence the politics. Gambrelli is a wonderful character. Taciturn and talented--all hidden behind a no nonsense exterior, and Yes! I am seeing  Gérard Depardieu! (I love Gambrelli's soliloquies and discussions with his dog, Odin.) Shackled by internal politics, and the occasional incompetent o...

To Seduce a Stranger (The Runaway Desires #3)   by Susanna Craig                               Unfaltering continuation of The Runaway Desires series. I must admit to guessing some of the storyline before things developed but that was fine. This is the story of Tempest Holderin's plantation manager and close friend Edward Cary. Edward returns to England after twenty years absence. A mystery surrounds him and his leaving England, and now that mystery will be revealed. Half French, Charlotte Blakemore, the widowed Duchess of Langerton finds herself the focus of her stepson's anger and sworn enemy. He vows to seize back what his father has bequeathed to her. Charlotte flees the estate and finds herself without funds, alone in the middle of the countryside. Edward appears on the scene enroute to Gloucestershire, takes pity on Charlotte and rescues her. Needing a place of safety, Char...

The Shadow Land: A Novel   by  Elizabeth Kostova                               Vividly descriptive narrative flows across the pages of Kostava's work at once both musical and poetical. The opening pages draw you in. A veneer of haunting melody continues to engage.  Alexandra Boyd has come to Bulgaria as a form of penance and a hope for renewal after her beloved brother Jack's death. Bulgaria was the place he'd always wanted to visit. A place from their childhood dreams and games. An accidental meeting at a taxi ramp in Sofia leads Alexandra to a riveting chase and search across Bulgaria, all the time d ogged by her  personal loss, whilst uncovering the story of the people she seeks.   Finding an funeral urn misplaced with her luggage, shockingly affects Alexandra coming alongside as it does the memory of her own loss. This fuels the impetus for her decision to find the ur...

Lord of Chance (Rogues to Riches #1)   by  Erica Ridley                                 Not quite a rags to riches story, in fact almost the opposite. When two young people in a Scottish border town discover the distinct disadvantage to having a lack of knowledge about the local laws and customs, their lives change unequivocally.  Inveterate gambler Anthony Fairfax is trying to gain enough money to pay his vowels to a London gambling house. A gentlemanly sense of duty to a damsel in distress and the looming certainty of danger to his person has him falsely declaring their marital state within the hearing of others. A young woman, Charlotte Devon, daughter of an infamous London courtesan is seeking her lordly unknown father. Desperation has called for desperate measures. As these two discover each other (well thrown together by chance and mischance really) and each realize...

I Dared the Duke (The Wayward Wallflowers #2)   by  Anna Bennett                                  It seems Alexander Savage, the Duke of Blackshire, is being stalked by someone who is seeking to make an end to him. For starters his carriage accident was no accident. Miss Elizabeth Lacey, Beth, one of those he'd dubbed the Wilting Wallflowers some years ago is his grandmother's companion. The Duke appears to be a confirmed rake. His sexual prowess is talked about by women in hushed tones, he's highhandedness and downright rude, and his a scars add another layer of mystery. He is a man who carries secret burdens, including the truth about his rakish ways. Having been badly burnt as a child his body carries the evidence and his heart carries the memory of the night that dashed his childhood into smithereens. Alex loves his grandmother dearly and wants to protect her....

My One True Highlander: A No Ordinary Hero   by Suzanne Enoch                                  The major part of this novel takes place in the raw Scottish Highlands of 1812. Graeme, Viscount Maxton, is struggling to keep his crofters and land together. His young brothers decide to take things in hand, by kidnapping the sister of their new neighbour,  the Duke of Lattimer,  and coincidentally, the deadly enemy of their clan chief, the Duke of Dunncraigh. A clan chief Graeme constantly bumps up against, a man he doesn't like or trust. A bully of a man who doesn't care for his clan as is his responsibility. Meanwhile in London, Lady Marjorie Forrester's attempts to take her place in society are not going so well. In fact she's failing dismally. So why not hive off from her house in Mayfair and surprise her brother at his coming wedding in the Highlands? At first I tho...

Prussian Blue (A Bernie Gunther Novel #12)   by  Philip Kerr                             Like a rat on a treadmill Bernie Gunther is once more caught up in the games of those from his past. It's 1956 and  Erich Mielke, deputy head of the dreaded Stasi, has invited Gumther to dinner to put a proposition to him. Gunther refuses. That defiance comes at a price--his life. Now Gunther is on the run. Chased from Nice to Germany, pursued by a former Kripo associate, Gunther recalls the last time he saw Friedrich Korsch. 1939 a mountaintop village in Obersalzberg--Hitler's retreat. Bernie is sent to investigate a murder to ensure the safety of 'the leader' when he arrives for his birthday celebrations. The timeline is short and intense. Bernie is in danger from an unknown killer and from those who give him his orders. I vacillated between 4 and 5 stars, but came down on the side of 5 as I've...