Book Club

[Stargazer77]

Happy New Year! The Nook Free Friday selection for January 3rd is Descent into the Void by Steve P. Vincent.

Sergeant Talon Stiler thought he'd been through hell. Then he got sent to Baker V.

Stiler thought he was out - discharged from the Terran Union Marines with all four limbs and a gold watch - until a devastating attack by the hated alien Dioscuri drags him right back in again. In a flash, a war fought on the frontier of human-controlled space comes close to home, pushing humanity to the brink.

Now responsible for the development of the Union's most secretive weapon system, Stiler and his ragtag crew of Marines have one chance to turn the tide of the war. Their mission: rescue a stranded scientist who might have discovered the key to winning the war from an occupied planet deep behind enemy lines.

And that's the easy bit...

[Stargazer77]

The Nook Free Friday selection for January 10th is Hidden Legends Starter Collection by Megan Linski and Alicia Rades.

Enter a dark world where magic wages war and romance is deadly. Attend mystical colleges, indulge in forbidden romances, tend to fantastic creatures, and cast incredible spells in this four-book omnibus. These stories depict themes of found family, disability representation, and love that creates miracles. Contains the following novels:

The Fire Prophecy: After Sophia conjures fire magic, she bonds with a magical creature at a school for elementals, where a deadly prophecy declares she will control the fate of her tribe. But Fire and Water don't mix, and she's fallen for the one man she can't have— the son of the Water chief, who was born to be her enemy.

The Wolven Mark: When Emma discovers she's a sorceress, she's stolen away to a magical fae kingdom of shifters, swordplay, and deception, where a disgraced wolf prince seeks to claim her as his mate.

The Coven's Secret: Nadine is the last witch in her coven to inherit curse-breaking powers. She'll have to prove herself to her goddess before her magic awakens—and under no circumstances can she fall for the gorgeous reaper whose love could kill her.

The Villain Institute: Inmates Charlie and Ava-Marie find themselves enemies— and lovers— at a paranormal prison where staying alive is as dangerous as discovering the warden's plans for magical chaos.

This bundle contains the first book from the Academy of Magical Creatures series, the University of Sorcery series, the College of Witchcraft series, and the Prison for Supernatural Offenders series, all of which are interconnected within the Hidden Legends Universe. Each Hidden Legends series takes place within the same world, but in separate and unique magical societies. Every series stands on its own and can be read in any order. Recommended reading age 18+

[Stargazer77]

The Nook Free Friday selection for January 17th is Man Down by Kate Meader.

I've been texting the wife I lost, the woman I loved beyond measure . . . Now someone else has answered back.

Gunnar Bond is broken.

Three years ago, he lived through the car crash that took his wife and twins away from him—though "lived" barely describes his current state. Giving up professional hockey, going off grid, and drinking himself into oblivion are his coping mechanisms. Another is texting his dead wife about his days without her. Therapeutic? Doubtful. Crazy? Definitely. But those messages into the ether are virtually the only thing stopping him from spiraling to even darker places.

Until someone texts back ...

Sadie Yates is losing it.

Suddenly guardian to a little sister she doesn't know and a misbehaving hound she'd rather not know at all, she's had to upend her (sort of) glamorous life in LA and move back to Chicago. The nanny has quit, the money's running out, and her job is on the line. The last thing she needs is her sister's hockey camp counselor, a judgmental Viking type, telling her she sucks at this parenting lark. Thank the goddess for her sweet, sensitive, and—fingers crossed—sexy text buddy who always knows the right thing to say. In the same city at last, they can finally see if their online chemistry is mirrored in real life. She just needs to set up a meeting ...

A ruined man who claims to have used up all his love is surely a bad bet, but Sadie's never been afraid of a challenge ... even if it might shatter her heart into a million pieces.

[Stargazer77]

The Nook Free Friday selection for January 24th is A Smiley and McBlythe Mystery Collection Books 0 - 2 by Bruce Hammack.  

The case that started it all for Smiley and McBlythe's partnership (prequel novella), PLUS books one and two — all in one collection!

Books Included: Exercise Is Murder (prequel), Jingle Bells, Rifle Shells (book one), Pistols And Poinsettias (book two). Each book is a complete whodunit mystery.

Exercise Is Murder

Blind PI Steve Smiley and his partner set out to find his friend's killer. When a bullet whizzes by, he knows he's on the right trail. But will his sleuthing lead them to the killer, or get them both killed?

Jingle Bells, Rifle Shells

When blind PI Steve Smiley and his partner rescue a teen whose adopted father is murdered, the girl has one passionate request: find her birth parents.

Their investigation uncovers a host of murder suspects and a shocking secret. Will this be the best Christmas ever, or will death and destruction be the only gifts under the tree?

Pistols And Poinsettias

Teaching at a mystery writers' conference was supposed to be an escape from Christmas for blind PI Steve Smiley and his partner. Not one, but two, bodies turn it into a working holiday.

The partners make a plan to expose the murderer, but the killer has a plan too. Steve's not worried about enduring another lonely Christmas... this year he just wants to survive it.


Free up your weekend and binge the first three cases for Smiley and McBlythe! All are stand-alone complete mysteries and all are free of graphic violence, foul language and sex scenes.

[Tinkrbl44]

I'm not familiar with this author ... thanks!  

[Stargazer77]

The Nook Free Friday selection for January 31st is Windswept by Annabelle McCormack.

A British nurse in WWI Egypt races to deliver explosive intelligence that could decimate the Allied war effort in this novel of suspense, adventure, and love.

1917. When British nurse Ginger Whitman finds a wounded enemy soldier hiding in her hospital camp in Palestine, she knows she should turn him in. But he's desperate and dying—and he claims he's a spy with a message about a critical plot against British forces.

Then the arrival of mysterious intelligence officer Major Noah Benson offers a chance of help. But Noah is as charming as he is dangerous, and Ginger's heart is at risk. With a deadly enemy hunting her, Ginger is caught in a crossfire of secrets and lies. Trusting the wrong person could do more than cost her life: it could change the course of the war.