Every day from now through the end of the year (and even a few days into 2019), we’ll be sharing our reviewers’ favorite reads of 2018. A different genre will be featured every day! We’ll share why these books were some of our favorites and what made them so special. We hope you’ll share yours in the comments, too! Up first, our favorite mysteries, of all kinds – thriller, psychological, romantic suspense… Check back next week for cozy mysteries, though! Below they are listed in no particular order: NO PLACE FOR WOLVERINES by Dave Butler Jenny Willson 2 REVIEWER: Clare I recently read this and knew straight away it was my thriller of the year. A Canadian national park and nearby town try to fend off a big-money ski resort proposal. We learn so much about the get rich quick types behind this, the activists are driven to protect their park, the geology, and nature of the wilderness area, the work of police and journalists. Mystery Woman Sleuth | Thriller Crime [Dundurn, On Sale: October 13, 2018, Paperback / e-Book, ISBN: 978145973983 / ] An intelligent web of money, threats, townsfolk, and wilderness… Buy NO PLACE FOR WOLVERINES: Amazon.com |…

Serial killers are often the stuff of a good suspense novel. My book, A MATTER OF GRAVE CONCERN, includes them, too. But when we think of serial killers, we often associate them with contemporary stories. Or, if we don’t, we focus primarily on Jack the Ripper. The dark mystery behind Jack the Ripper’s crimes keep the memory of his poor victims ever-present. I’ve always been intrigued by Jack the Ripper, but when I was looking for ideas for my next historical romantic suspense novel, I ran across a different type of serial killer that intrigued me just as much—not someone who murdered for lust or the thrill of it. William Burke and William Hare teamed up to murder for money. Granted, that isn’t unheard of (then or now), but the circumstances surrounding their crimes were bizarre, especially to a modern reader. And when I learned that conditions in the late 17th century and early 18th century were rife for the same type of thing to happen again, over and over, I knew I’d hit upon the perfect spine-tingling backdrop for my story. Burke and Hare were Irishmen living in Edinburgh when they murdered sixteen people. Oddly enough, they didn’t have…

When I launched my first online auction for diabetes research in 2005, I had no idea I would still be running the fundraiser ten years later. I started it because I wanted to make a difference to my son, who was diagnosed at five years old, and everyone else suffering from this terrible disease (over 350 million people have diabetes worldwide). So far, we’ve raised over $2 million, but I honestly thought we’d have a cure by now. Ever since we first learned that Thad faced this challenge, I’ve been hearing that a cure is right around the corner. And when you slug away at something for a long time, and it doesn’t feel as if you’re making enough of an impact, it can be tempting to give up. In those moments of discouragement, however, something always happens to keep me going. Many times it’s an episode of insulin shock and another jolt of that terrible fear that grips every parent of a child with diabetes. But it can also be something positive, like having my son put his arms around my neck and tell me how much he appreciates what I’m doing. Or another author, friend or supporter emailing…

When I launched my first online auction for diabetes research in 2005, I had no idea I would still be running the fundraiser ten years later. I started it because I wanted to make a difference to my son, who was diagnosed at five years old, and everyone else suffering from this terrible disease (over 350 million people have diabetes worldwide). So far, we’ve raised over $2 million, but I honestly thought we’d have a cure by now. Ever since we first learned that Thad faced this challenge, I’ve been hearing that a cure is right around the corner. And when you slug away at something for a long time, and it doesn’t feel as if you’re making enough of an impact, it can be tempting to give up. In those moments of discouragement, however, something always happens to keep me going. Many times it’s an episode of insulin shock and another jolt of that terrible fear that grips every parent of a child with diabetes. But it can also be something positive, like having my son put his arms around my neck and tell me how much he appreciates what I’m doing. Or another author, friend or supporter emailing…

My birthday falls at the end of August. When I was a kid I hated the fact that my birthday was during summer break because I never got to celebrate with cupcakes or cookies in class. Now that I work at a University, I find that my birthday falls on, or shortly after, the first day of school which means birthday celebrations come second to the start-of-semester madness. This year my birthday falls on a Sunday so I’ll have the day off. I think I’ll make it a “lazy day” and spend the day reading some romantic suspense. August has some great selections, which book should I choose? Hmmm. DESPERATE DEEDS Dee Davis A-Tac #3 Grand Central Publishing; $6.99 A-Tac, an elite CIA unit masquerading as faculty at an Ivy League college, is back. When a thieves steal a shipment of thermonuclear detonators, Commander Solomon has reason to suspect that information from inside A-Tac facilitated the heist. He instructs his team to set up a sting to recover the detonators and to trap the traitor. Operative Tyler Hanson is skeptical when Solomon appoints renowned physicist and Nobel Prize winner Owen Wakefield to head the team. Sparks fly as they work…

I’m sure we’ve all had weeks full of ups and downs, because after all isn’t that part of life? This week has been full of them for me, both in my family life, and in my reading life. I was fortunately enough to read The Perfect Couple and The Perfect Liar by Brenda Novak . I totally enjoyed both books in the series, and was truly satisfied when I had turned the last page. The new trilogy is an extension of last year’s trilogy featuring The Last Stand. Do not however despair if you have not read last year’s books. This year’s books are in my opinion totally independent not only of those, but of each other as well. Previous characters do have cameo appearances, but each story is written as to truly stand alone quite nicely. So as you see the books I was able to read were a definite up for me. So, you may ask what did you read or hear that caused a downturn in the reading side of your life. I discovered that two authors I have read and enjoyed will no longer be under contract. Want to know more… read the rest by clicking…

Want to read more books, write more pages, lose weight, exercise daily or achieve some other goal? Do it by boosting your willpower! Boost Your Willpower Spring is on its way and with it warmer weather. When those layers come off, we’re faced with the pounds we’ve gained over the winter, which prompts many of us to attempt a “just in time for summer” diet. But chocolate cake is now and summer is later and far too often “now” wins over “later.” Or…we’ve always dreamed of completing a manuscript, but instead of sitting at the computer and pushing through to “The End,” we allow an email addiction to thwart us. Or…we’ve heard about the health benefits of regular exercise but we procrastinate each day and never get around to engaging in it. How do we conjure enough willpower to overcome these and other self-defeating behaviors? I don’t have all the answers, but I did run across an interesting article on this subject written by Tara Parker Pope in The New York Times. Her tips, combined with my own experience, form the following five-step plan: 1. Eat several small meals a day. Studies show that lower blood glucose levels coincide with…