Contract Snatch: by Ty Hutchinson

I read this book as part of a double-book by Ty Hutchinson - one Abby Kane book and one Sei Assassin book.

Sei is an ex-assassin, having given up the trade when she found she was pregnant. After suffering the loss of her child, she lives in seclusion away from the rest of the world.  One day she is found by a friend who encourages her to start accepting contracts again, and the first one she sees shatters her world - her daughter is alive.  In exchange for the whereabouts of her daughter, Sei must successfully accomplish one last mission.

The blurb for Contract: Snatch says:

They used her daughter as bait. They messed with the wrong mother. 

Sei abandoned her life as an assassin to try to find peace—but when contacted by a source claiming to have information about the daughter she thought she’d lost, Sei finds herself taking on one last mission. Can she unravel the truth before time runs out?

Though this book took me longer than a day to read, it was mainly because I was no longer on holiday so didn't have as much time.  I tried to grab minutes to read when I could, as this was another can't-put-down novel by Ty Hutchinson.  A thriller with lots of gore and plenty of killings (as you would expect in a book where the main character is an assassin), this book keeps you on the edge of your seat as you hope that Sei can achieve her mission and finally get her child back.  There is even a twist at the end that I didn't see coming (until the story led up to that point) which, when invested in a story as much as I was with this one, is a good surprise.

I would recommend this book and rather than just adding the sequels to my wishlist, I have actually bought the next two books to read immediately (because at time of writing, they are currently free on the Kindle).

Weekly Update No37

If you saw my post last Friday, you will see that I hit my lowest weight for over a year!

My weight has gone up slightly since then, as I always put on weight over the weekend, but it is still lower than this time next week.  It is in my nature to celebrate using food, so I am fighting against myself, as half my head is saying that I deserve to eat a shed-load of cake because I have lost some weight, and the more sensible half knows that is a sure-fire way to go up in weight again.

I am managing to not eat too much for tea.  I need to buy more fruit so I can have that as snacks, instead of sugary cereal bars, but overall I don't think I'm eating too badly atm.

Russian Hill by Ty Hutchinson

I read this book as part of a double-book by Ty Hutchinson - one Abby Kane book and one Sei Assassin book.

Russian Hill is an absorbing book about a murderous game that FBI Agent Abby Kane needs to join in order to solve. It is part 1 of the CC Trilogy and Book 3 in the Abby Kane Thriller Series.

The blurb says:

A killer is loose in San Francisco, and he’s collecting body parts. FBI Agent Abby Kane believes a dead hiker found ten miles north of the city is the key to solving those crimes.

The more Abby digs, the more she begins to think the killer is playing an elaborate game and there’s an audience cheering him on. But to catch the monster, she’ll have to join in his twisted game.

This book is definitely a thriller.  It is gruesome in places and there are sex scenes, so not suitable for younger readers, but as an adult reading this I couldn't put it down.  The plot is believable that it could actually happen, and you always want to try and solve the clues to see if you can predict and prevent the next murder from happening.  As I was reading, I imagined the killers to be like an older version of Christian Slater and Patricia Arquette in True Romance.

Ty Hutchinson certainly knows how to write to keep you involved and invested in the book.  The sequel went straight on my wishlist, as did the first two books in the series, and I couldn't wait to read the Sei Assassin book.

I've hit a new low

No, not like that!

My weight is the lowest for over a year! Yey! 

As I've said recently, the things that I'm doing differently are 1. drinking [flavoured] coffee [with syrup] in the morning; 2. having a breakfast of porridge [with syrup] in the morning; and 3. not eating dinner in the evening if I'm not hungry.  Last night I came home from tutoring at 9:30pm and had a breakfast bar before taking the girls to bed.  I didn't need to eat anything more.

Yesterday I managed to tidy the living room, with DD2's help, because we had a prayer meeting here during the day, and everyone else's homes are always so tidy.  But, now that it is tidy, I actually have space to start doing Body Groove again.  I do enjoy dancing - even just around my living room, so hopefully next week I can start fitting that into my days again.  I don't want to do it today because we have an electrician coming round to fit a smart meter, though if he arrives early, maybe I'll be able to do some afterwards.

So yes, my weight is the lowest for a year.  When I announce my weightloss, it is less impressive - I am only down 3 kilos since October 1st last year, but that is just short of half a stone, and it's all progress.

Against the Odds by Mara Jacobs

Anna Dawson is a professional gambler.  She has bought her own home, a vehicle and gifts for friends from her winnings.  Unfortunately she also has a gambling problem and often gets into debt, causing her to bring back her alter-ego JoJo to pay off the debt quickly by less-than-legal means. Then one friend is murdered, and she has to team up with Detective Jack to try and find the killer, whilst keeping JoJo a secret.

The synopsis of Against the Odds says:

My name is Anna Dawson, and I'm a gambler.

And like any gambler will tell you, sometimes that's good, and sometimes...not so much. And sometimes it's an outright problem.

I love Vegas, and I love the life I've built, but when one of my friends is murdered, and another one shot at, I know I need to take a serious look at myself. And I need to call in the big guns. Even if that means teaming up with Detective Jack Schiller, a man who's dealing with his own demons.

Right now I'm just trying to juggle protecting my friends, helping Jack while not letting him get too close, and finding a murderer. And, oh yeah, no one can learn about my gambling.

Or this will be the last hand I'm dealt.

I quite liked this book.  Anna isn't some super sleuth, she is not a goody-two-shoes, and she is not a card counting geek.  Rather she is a normal girl who discovers she has a good poker face, and with the help of a bunch of friends, learns how to bet comprehensively on various sporting events.  As someone who is good at maths, I do wish I had learned to play poker when younger, though it is probably better for my bank balance that I didn't.  I often wonder how people become professional gamblers. 

The book is well written and moves at a good pace.  Another book I couldn't put down and read in a day.  I have again, added the sequel to my wishlist.

Agent with a History by Guy Stanton III

This book is really enjoyable.  It has NYPD, ritualistic killings, mafia, and an Indiana Jones-esque treasure trail seeking Biblical gold. 

Cop Lisa has to investigate an unusual murder, where it is clear the perpetrator has access to much money in order to pull it off in the fashion he has. As she delves deeper into the investigation, it is clear that she cannot get free of her past which has finally caught up with her.

The blurb says:

It’s been one long day for Lisa and her headache is living proof of it. Most of it she blamed on the full moon outside. Things always got crazy this time of the month, but this month was exceptional. She needed sleep bad and only hoped the nightmares that haunted her would leave her alone for at least one night. They don’t. She wakes up as usual screaming only to find out that her nightmare has just begun, because she’s not alone in her room.

One man has been gruesomely tortured to death in a ritualistic killing. An entire police precinct has been reconstructed down to the smallest detail in an abandoned warehouse and a mysterious stranger known only as Flint seems to be the cause of it all. It’s a case that is fast turning into one big headache for Lisa Tauranto a detective for the NYPD, but it gets much worse when her past, that she’s tried so hard to bury, rises up to engulf her in its golden grip once again. Lisa is ripped from the existence that she so pain stakingly built for herself into a mixed up world of intrigue, where nothing is as it seems. It’s a fight to survive and to protect what she is sworn to, but will love conquer all? Will she betray her oath to be happy? Does she even have a choice anymore or does a several thousand year old mystery hold enough weight in treasure to drag her down with it? Everyone wants her dead, everyone that is but for one man who is the cause of all her upheaval in the first place. He’s an agent working for someone, but she doesn’t know who. She only hopes he’s as good as his kisses make her believe him to be.

This book wasn't predictable (or at least the main bits of the plot weren't.  All books are somewhat predictable), and took many twists and turns as Lisa moved through the investigation.   Being a Christian I liked the references to the Old Testament, even though this is clearly fiction.  It is fast-paced, and keeps you on your toes.  There is also a romance with the mystery man who helps her.

I'd recommend this book, and have added the next in the series to my wishlist.

All the Way to Heaven by Becky Doughty

This is another of the books that I read in a day whilst camping.

All the Way to Heaven is a standalone book and the first in the Fallout Series. It features Ani, a business student, who finds out that her boyfriend (and professor) is already married with kids.  She travels to Italy to take her mind off him, however a bike accident forces her to stay in one place and she finds herself torn between two beaus.

The blurb says:

Anica Tomlin, business major, has just learned that the man she's been planning her future around, her Global Finance professor, already has a beautiful wife and family. Ani cashes in her graduation gift to herself a little early 'a trip to Tuscany' but from the moment she boards the wrong train in Pisa, her plans for solitude and self-indulgence begin to unravel around her. When a bicycle accident thrusts Ani into the skilled hands of the dashing Dr. Cosimo Lazzaro, she reluctantly accepts his invitation to recover in his family's country villa, perched on a hilltop surrounded by the Lazzaro olive groves. But it's been a black year for olive growers all over Italy, and generations of tradition are being put to the test like never before. Ani is swept up in the drama of life in Tuscany, the convergence of old and new, and the passions that drive people to pursue the desires of their hearts. Just as Ani begins to get her feet under her again, an unexpected turn of events leaves her doubting the very existence of happily-ever-after, unless she can learn to trust the desires of her own heart. Although All the Way to Heaven is a stand-alone novel, it is the first book in The Fallout Series, a collection of sweet contemporary romances that follow characters featured in the first book.

I did enjoy this book.  It's a sweet romance, so is suitable for all ages. The book was well written and had a steady pace to the plot.  It's not action-packed and fast, but very descriptive and makes you feel like you're in the Italian countryside, living a relaxing life as part of the Italian community.  The love story is predictable, but I enjoyed it nonetheless.  A good holiday read.