Murder in Unsound Mind by Anne Cleeland

On By BarbaraIn Barb's Reviews, Contemporary, MysteryLeave a comment

Murder in Unsound Mind (Doyle & Acton, #13)
Barbara’s rating: 4 of 5 stars

Series: Doyle and Acton 13
Publication Date: 2/28/21
Number of Pages: 240

In 2013, when the first book of this series came out, I thought it was a wonderful, entertaining, and quirky book, but I thought it might not have longevity because not everybody appreciates quirky as much as I do. Eight years and thirteen books have proven me very, very wrong on that front. This latest addition to the series just adds more and more to the wonderfully quirky Doyle and Acton duo. I think it would be hard to jump into the middle of the series and really appreciate it for what it is. If you haven’t read any of the previous books, I’d suggest reading at least the first one or two books so you can better understand both Acton and Doyle. However, realistically I think you should read the entire series in order because each book builds on the previous book in character development, case backgrounds, etc.

If you read the last book, Murder in Revelation, you will remember that Doyle ended up in a fight for her life as well as their son’s – in their own home. Thanks to Acton, their home is better guarded and fortified than the palace, but still, their security was breached. Although she doesn’t realize it, Doyle is suffering a bit of PTSD from that earlier altercation and she has a good bit of pregnancy brain-fog. Those two things make her a bit slower to pick up on the clues about what is going on – especially what Acton is up to.

Acton is being hyper-vigilant in assuring his wife is safe and snug while she’s carrying their second child. You see, Acton absolutely adores Doyle and will go to any lengths to assure her comfort and safety – even if she isn’t exactly thrilled with his machinations. Somehow, she manages to stumble onto a case that will cause them nothing but trouble even though he’s tried to keep her assigned to the most benign things. As soon as she is at the crime scene, her Spidey-senses begin to tingle and they continue until she has all of the answers and manages to curb Acton’s revenge plot as well.

The case to which Doyle is called is the murder of the office manager at a medical clinic. The only reason Doyle is there is to see if this murder relates to the events in a previous case – Doyle thinks it might – but the perpetrator is quickly arrested and it turns out to be unrelated. Or is it? The office manager was a cooperating witness in that previous case and Doyle learns, by accident, that yet another cooperating witness in that same case has also been recently murdered.

While Doyle is quietly investigating all of that, she learns that Lady Abby, who has appeared as a not-so-nice person previously, is in London and she was trying to harass Mary who is the nanny to Edward, Doyle and Acton’s small son. When Lady Abby is found drowned in the Thames, was it an accident, suicide, or murder?

Acton is his usual enigmatic, manipulative self, but Doyle knows he is up to something and she knows she needs to figure it all out fast and put a stop to it.

All of our favorite characters make an appearance and we learn some surprising things about some of them. What will that portend for future books? Who knows? We’ll only find out with each entrancing book in the series is released. We do get a nice hint about the subject for the next book in the series. Can’t wait.

I definitely recommend this book if you love quirky, flawed characters and an excellent mystery.

The Warrior’s Innocent Captive by Ella Matthews

On By TracyIn Blog Tour, Medieval (1066-1540), Middle Ages / Medieval (476-1454), Tracy's ReviewsLeave a comment

The Warriors Innocent Captive

UKWIC

The Warrior’s Innocent Captive

An impossible choice:
His family or love
As steward to the Earl of Borwyn, Erik Ward had only admired sheltered noblewoman Linota Leofric from afar – until he has to escort her on a dangerous journey. When she’s kidnapped, he rescues the courageous beauty, revelling in finally having her in his arms. But Erik has a secret plan to reunite his family – now he’s forced to choose between that and his growing feelings for Linota…

Purchase Links:

UK ~ US

The Warriors Ella Matthews photo
Author Bio:

Ella Matthews lives and works in beautiful South Wales. When not thinking about handsome heroes she can be found walking along the coast with her husband and their two children (probably still thinking about heroes but at least pretending to be interested in everyone else).

Social Media Links:

Twitter ~ Website ~ Facebook

Tracy’s Review:

The Warrior's Innocent CaptiveThe Warrior’s Innocent Captive by Ella Matthews

Tracy’s rating: 4 of 5 stars

Series: N/A – but this is the 3rd book about the Leofric Siblings

Release Date: March 30, 2021

Erik Ward first sees Linota Leofric at the Ogmore fortress when he attends the wedding of her brother to Ogmore’s daughter and is immediately smitten, he even thinks that due to her unfortunate circumstances, she might consider his suit. But when the earl requests a meeting with Erik’s best friend and liege Jarin Ashdown, the Earl of Borwyn, Erik’s hopes of the wedding of the lovely Linota are dashed. Jarin was supposed to wed Ogmore’s daughter and Ogmore has offered Jarin an olive branch – by asking him to escort Braedan’s sisters to Castle Swein. Ogmore tells Jarin that he has given both sisters a dowry equal to his daughter’s and since he considers the girls’ family, will also be an ally to anyone that weds them. Jardin needs the money and the support of Ogmore, so he agrees and Erik is sure that Jardin will choose Linota, the younger, more beautiful sister. Later that night, Erik is approached by the steward to one of Jardin’s enemies and asked to betray Jardin – at first, he is opposed but when Simon de Bevoir tells him that his beloved sister Mary is dead and that de Bevoir has her daughter Isabel and he will only return her to Erik if he helps him, Erik is given an impossible choice and agrees to give him the names of men who would be open to bribes and will ensure the journey to Swein takes as long as possible. But when Linota is abducted – Erik can’t stand by and do anything.

Linota Leofric has spent the last eight years as a virtual prisoner in Ogmore’s home – Ogmore offered them a home after they were left homeless when her father was executed for treason. She is looking forward to a new future now that she and her sister Katherine are finally free of their abusive mother. She has no idea that Ogmore has given her a dowry, but she is aware that her sister wants her to marry well and thinks that Jardin is perfect for her – Linota likes Jardin, but it is Erik that makes her heart beat faster and makes her dream of a future. However, Erik is rumored to be illegitimate and unacknowledged, so she doesn’t think her family will approve and resigns herself to a loveless marriage. But when she is abducted and Erik saves her, she wonders if HEA is now a possibility, that is until she learns of his lies and betrayal – will she be able to forgive him, or is their’s a love that is not meant to be?

This story runs pretty much concurrently with the previous book in the series, but unlike the previous book, the author gives the reader many more details about the sister’s past and honestly, it made a huge difference to me – in the last story I felt lost and befuddled, but now that I know how they came to be at Ogmore and why – the sisters’ actions and decisions made so much more sense and I was able to connect with Linota’s character in a way I couldn’t with Katherine. This book was a much more enjoyable read and even though it has the same timeline, it is a totally different story than the previous book. I loved Erik and my heart broke for the choices he had to make and the guilt that weighed on him. I also enjoyed seeing Linota’s character grow and mature as the story progressed. The book has a lot to offer a reader, betrayal, secrets, action, lies, mild love scenes, heartbreak, surprises, and finally a HEA. My only qualm with this book would be that I wish the epilogue had been set a bit later in time and given a glimpse of all the siblings’ HEAs. This is the final book in the trilogy and in my opinion the best of the series, I enjoyed this story and am happy to recommend it.

*I am voluntarily leaving a review for an eARC that I requested and was provided to me by the publisher. All opinions in this review are my own. *