Home » Posts tagged 'baby'
Tag Archives: baby
Baby Protection Mission–kidnapping rescue
Baby Protection Mission
by Laura Scott
Jump right into the action as Cade, owner of the McNeal Four Ranch, arrives at the Elk Valley Park in Wyoming to meet his sister Melissa. He is puzzled by her text request as he has been taking care of her one month old baby Danny while she gets caught up on her sleep. Enter a masked assailant and Cade’s sister desperately screaming for him to protect Danny, followed on the scene by police officer Ashley Hanson and her K-9 partner Ozzy, a black lab.
Ashley is there as part of a larger investigation by the FBI and other law enforcement agencies into a cold case that has been revived when two new murders seem to be similar to the five previous murders. She is a rookie with a lot to prove as her father is a top official in the F.B.I. in D.C. Ashley has good instincts, a kind heart, and excellent rapport with her tracking dog.
The kidnapping of Melissa is confusing because it seems she might not have been the intended victim. Ashley, with help from her team’s support group, investigates the many possible perpetrators and their motives. While she does her job of detecting and protecting, she also tries to help out Cade by doing a little cooking and caring for Danny so he can perform the essentials of feeding the livestock twice a day. As there continue to be more life threatening events, Ashley stays at the ranch and alternates guard duty with Cade. Their physical proximity leads to feelings they know they need to keep a lid on.
Cade is a Christian and he prays with Ashley before every meal, a practice that is not part her life. She appreciates, however, that he gives thanks to God for the food and His protection. He also asks God to protect Ashley and the others involved in the search for his sister as well as for the safety of Melissa and Danny.
I enjoyed this story, especially the efforts of several K-9 officers. Watching them work has encouraged Cade to get another dog when everything settles down. Ashley and Cade each have past issues they need to work through before they act on the attraction they have for each other. The other officers in the story are respectful, hard working, and supportive of each other. Surprisingly, there are none of the power plays between different agencies as is often depicted in the movies. I liked the conclusion of the kidnapping thread in Baby Protection Mission. The wider search for the murderer in the cold case was not resolved, and I assume it is a continuing thread in future books in this series.
I received a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.
Rating: 4/5
Category: Christian, Romance, Suspense, Mystery
Notes: #1 in the Mountain Country K-9 Unit Series, part of Harlequin’s Love Inspired Suspense (Inspirational Romance)
Publication: March 26, 2024—Harlequin
Memorable Lines:
Like most people, she didn’t realize many ranches were resource rich, meaning plenty of cattle and other livestock, but cash poor.
“Yet there’s no denying there’s just something about a big strong man holding a baby that makes me melt inside.”
He had to admit, a baby was more work than a dog. Well, maybe not more than a puppy.
A Small Town Memory–looking for a past and a future
A Small Town Memory
by Melinda Curtis
Jess shows up in Harmony Valley looking for her past. Specifically her husband or boyfriend. She is pregnant and had been in a car accident and lost her memory—retrograde amnesia. Seeing a newspaper clipping of the staff at the winery in Harmony Valley stirs her memory when she sees a familiar looking man. She meets him and discovers that he is not the baby’s father, Greg, but is his twin, Duffy.
Jess spent her childhood in a variety of homeless situations before her mother abandoned her to foster care, a loveless situation that left Jess longing for family and averse to anything that smacked of charity.
Harmony Valley could use a good bakery and coffee shop and Jess is a talented baker. Quitting her job and relocating to a new town when she is seven months pregnant, however, is a huge step to even consider.
I don’t want to include the many complications to the story that would be spoilers. Author Melinda Curtis does a great job of creating the scenarios and characters in A Small Town Memory. Duffy has good reasons for not wanting to have anything to do with Jess as do his parents. The elderly residents of Harmony Valley range from a curmudgeon with a shotgun to some sweet, nosy women who don’t mind encouraging romance while trying to save their town.
There are valuable lessons about giving and receiving kindness, forgiveness, and strength of character. Trust and family are also prominent themes. The protagonists, Jess and Duffy, are likable characters with hurts in their pasts. Goldie is a cute, spunky little dog that Duffy fosters. She teaches him that there are positives to responsibilities. The ever present silent character is “Baby,” as Jess refers to her unborn little one, saying things like “Baby doesn’t like spicy food.” The author describes the little one’s movements: “Baby bounced eagerly in her belly, ready for a sugar fix.” Duffy even learns to accept his neighbor Eunice with her gifts of odd foods and nosiness.
I received a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.
Rating: 5/5
Category: Women’s Fiction, Romance
Notes: 1. #6 in the Love in Harmony Valley Series. It could be a standalone because the focus is on the new characters introduced in the series with previous characters just forming a background
2. This book is Jess and Duffy’s story.
Publication: June 20, 2023—Franny Beth Books
Memorable Lines:
Jessica’s heart wrenched. She would have loved to have been a part of a large family with a business like this one. She longed for such history. For family traditions and favorite recipes. For the simple state of belonging.
They drove to the vet’s office. Goldie rode on the truck’s center console as if she’d been riding in trucks all her life. For such a froufrou-looking dog, she had chutzpah.
Rose had rejection in her tone before the rejection ever came. “We’re so old, we don’t even buy green bananas. Taking in a pet at this point in our lives wouldn’t be wise.”
Striking Range–another winner from Mizushima
Striking Range
by Margaret Mizushima
Striking Range is one of those books that can not be tidily put in a box with a label. It is a police procedural as the reader gets to see law enforcement, federal, state, and local, at work. It is a K-9 mystery, a who-dun-it where Deputy Mattie Cobb shares the limelight with K-9 officer Robo. He is her buddy and she is his handler; they look out for each other. Watching Robo’s skills is fascinating. This book has enough suspenseful action and danger that it is also a thriller.
The plot is quite involved as Mattie is reviving a thirty year old cold case of the murder of her biological father. Was he a dirty cop? There seems to be only one person alive who knows the truth. He is the same evil man who tried to kill Mattie, but in her determination to find justice for her father, she visits him in a Colorado state prison.
Another thread in the plot is the discovery of the body of a young girl. Only the day before, she was pregnant. What happened to the baby? Why would someone kill the baby? How does fentanyl keep tying into this mystery?
Cole, Mattie’s boyfriend, is a veterinarian and is active in the sheriff’s posse. He plays a prominent role in this story, and there are also a number of kids who figure strongly into the plot.
There are many suspects to sort through. Although I had guessed the motive from a number of reasonable possibilities, the identity of the murderer was a surprise. Complications to solving this crime keep adding up and weather conditions in the rural setting don’t help. Author Margaret Mizushima is a talented writer with descriptions that put you at the scene and let you experience the emotions of the characters. This series is my favorite K-9 series. I have happily read all of the published books in the series and am looking forward to the next one.
I received a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.
Rating: 5/5
Category: Mystery
Notes: 1. #6 in the Timber Creek K-9 Mystery Series. Although the characters continue from one book to the next, it would be excellent as a standalone as the author includes background information as needed.
2. It has a few instances of swearing, but no sex.
Publication: September 7, 2021—Crooked Lane Books
Memorable Lines:
Getting the kids ready for school each morning before he hurried off to work was like lining up horses at the gate before a race—everyone wanted to run off in a different direction, and sometimes someone balked at going anywhere.
Narcan reversed the effects of opiates such as fentanyl, one of the street drugs most dangerous to narcotics detection dogs. It saved the lives of dogs, their handlers, and even addicts after accidental exposure or overdose. Nowadays K-9 officers carried two doses, one for their dog and one for themselves.
Always a sporty dresser, he straightened his bow tie, which was lime green with yellow polka dots, a cheerful addition that conflicted with the lines of fatigue on his face.
Seeing Red–who’s in the freezer?
Seeing Red
by Dana Dratch
Living right across the street from a four story Victorian turned into a B&B and run by a handsome, blue-eyed British gent could be a real plus for Alex who is currently single and a freelance writer. In Seeing Red by Dana Dratch, there are an abundance of interesting characters, lots of twists and turns, and an adorable pup named Lucy. Alex ends up with a full house of temporarily upended friends as she tries to discover the identity of a baby as well as several frozen bodies. Throw in some art fraud and a vengeful health inspector and you have an engaging plot with lots of twists and turns. I enjoyed the book but was a little let down at the end as things just got tidied up a little too quickly and easily with few apparent consequences. I do want to read the next in the series to follow the characters and look for improvement in the resolution of the next plot line in Red Hot.
I would like to extend my thanks to netgalley.com and to Kensington Books for giving me the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.
Rating: 4/5
Category: Mystery
Notes: #2 in the Red Herring Mystery Series, but could be read as a standalone
Publication: May 28, 2019—Kensington
Memorable Lines:
“She’s been looking at that poor innkeeper the way a hungry freshman looks at a vending machine.”
Baba, our dads mother, was ninety pounds of Russian dynamite. Not quite five feet tall and who knows how old, she was a strike force of one. Literally. She’d recently saved me from a psycho killer armed with nothing but common sense and a cast-iron frying pan.
“Mom can’t stay here,” Nick said, quietly. “Not with Baba here. Those two are like garlic and chocolate. You can have one or the other, but never both.”
The One Saving Grace–love or lust?
The One Saving Grace
by Julie Houston
As I went through each one of three books I chose to read as an introduction to author Julie Houston, I watched her develop as a writer. Her plots have become more complex, her characters have more depth, and she has found a balance that uses less vulgar language.
The One Saving Grace is the second book about Harriet and her long-time friend Grace. They did everything together as children, adored and hated “Little Miss Goodness” Amanda in unison as teenagers, and now they find themselves torqued around as adults by Amanda again. But Amanda is the least of their worries as the past becomes enmeshed in the future with unpredictable romances popping up and Harriet’s husband’s ex-girlfriend lurking the the background with revenge on her mind.
In the first book about Harriet and Grace, Harriet is confronted with an unplanned pregnancy she can not cope with on many levels. In this book, her moral dilemma is an affair. As I read the book, the author led me to somewhat understand Harriet’s temptation. As I stand back, book finished, and look at her predicament, however, I have a hard time reconciling the Harriet who was devastated by the suspicion of her husband having an affair with the the Harriet who is willing to lose her family to temporarily satisfy her carnal desires. Sex is a major theme in the book, but is never described in detail.
The best part of The One Saving Grace is the surprises that reveal motivation and the resolution of conflicts. The theme of postnatal depression is also important in this book and one not to be overlooked as it affects not only Grace, who desperately wanted a baby, but also her family and friends.
I would like to extend my thanks to netgalley.com and to Aria for giving me the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.
Rating: 5/5
Category: General Fiction (Adult), Romance
Notes: This is the second book about Harriet and Grace, but works great as a standalone as Houston inserts background information as needed.
Publication: February 19, 2019—Aria
Memorable Lines:
I actually felt a bit miffed that someone else was after Mrs. Doubtfire…like when you were a teenager, you might not fancy that spotty, tongue tied guy with the bum fluff on his top lip who’s been drooling over you for months, but you certainly don’t want him going off with anyone else.
I’d make my way up to the gym machines to face Tina Trainer, who had obviously taken her instructions at the same place Dante got his inspiration for the Inferno.
Envy I’d always reckoned to be the most corrosive of all emotions, eating into one’s soul like a particularly pernicious acid….Envy is a mere novice, a total non-starter compared to her grown-up sister, Guilt.
education pathways 