legal thriller

Book Review: Spider Hunting by K.J. McGillick

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It’s never what it seems.

A murder of a high-profile law partner on a Manhattan street should have made the front page of the news. And yet it didn’t. Drew Bradley’s murder was treated as just another senseless crime and relegated to page four of the evening edition. But what if the press had been privy to the fact that the murder was actually an assassination?

As the partners at Lannister and Stewart scramble to fill the vacuum left by Drew Bradley’s sudden death, Asia Blythe, a rising star in the firm is offered his coveted position. But this golden opportunity that brings with it power, prestige, and unlimited financial rewards demands adherence to a code. A code of allegiance to the firm with no exceptions. Catapulted into the world of genetically modified designer babies and state-sponsored espionage, is Asia prepared to deal with the intrigues of a world that will threaten her life and shatter her illusions?

Purchase Links

US – https://www.amazon.com/SPIDER-HUNTING-Conspiracy-Betrayal-Book-ebook/dp/B08GJY14W2

UK – https://www.amazon.co.uk/SPIDER-HUNTING-Conspiracy-Betrayal-Book-ebook/dp/B08GJY14W2

My Review

I chose to read this book after receiving a free e-copy. All opinions in this review are my own and completely unbiased.

Asia is a lawyer who is driven to work hard toward her goal of becoming a partner. She is beyond excited when she’s given the opportunity to apply to become an equity partner. What’s disappointing is that as soon as she’s given this opportunity, everything seems to fall apart.

It took me a little bit to get into Spider Hunting even though it starts with the murder of Asia’s boss, Drew. When Asia starts working on Drew’s files, there’s a lot of confusing information that was difficult to muddle through. But when meets she meets Drew’s clients, things start to take off. By the time I was halfway through, it was difficult to put down.

I like Asia. She’s strong and knows what she wants. Even when she isn’t sure what she wants to do, she figures it out and makes the moral decision. Her boyfriend, Sam, is my favorite character. He’s supportive and caring and his love for Asia is obvious. They make a good couple.

I definitely recommend Spider Hunting if you like a murder mystery with a little bit of everything.

About the Author

K. J. McGillick was born in New York and once she started to walk she never stopped running. But that’s what New Yorker’s do. Right? A Registered Nurse, a lawyer now author.

As she evolved so did her career choices. After completing her graduate degree in nursing, she spent many years in the university setting sharing the dreams of the enthusiastic nursing students she taught. After twenty rewarding years in the medical field she attended law school and has spent the last twenty-four years as an attorney helping people navigate the turbulent waters of the legal system. Not an easy feat. And now? Now she is sharing the characters she loves with readers hoping they are intrigued by her twisting and turning plots and entertained by her writing

Social Media Links –

https://www.facebook.com/KJMcGillickauthor/

Kathleen McGillick

@KJMcGillickAuth

http://www.kjmcgillick.com/

Book Review & Giveaway: Necessities by Boyd Taylor

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Book #4 in the Donnie Ray Cuinn series

Category: Adult Fiction, 225 pages
Genre: Suspense Crime Fiction
Publisher: Katherine Brown Press
Release date: December 5, 2017
Tour dates: Jan 3 to Feb 28, 2017
Content Rating: PG-13 + M (There is a murder and elusions to sex. Some mild cursing)

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Book Description

Donnie Ray Cuinn returns to Austin to defend a war hero accused of murder. David Lewis lost both legs in Iraq, but he has overcome his nightmares and his disabilities by sheer willpower. He has learned to run and to box and is a successful newspaperman with a beautiful wife and son. Now the nightmares have returned and he must stand trial for murder. With twists that never seem to end, this gripping legal thriller is filled with suspense and indelibly drawn characters dealing with love and betrayal.

 

To read reviews, please visit Boyd Taylor’s page on iRead Book Tours.

 
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My Review

I chose to read this book after receiving a free copy. All opinions in this review are my own and completely unbiased.

I read the first three books in this series (Hero, The Antelope Play, and The Monkey House) over the past couple of weeks and I’ve enjoyed them but Necessities is my favorite Donnie Ray Cuinn book so far. 

What’s interesting is that Donnie Ray Cuinn doesn’t appear in Necessities until about halfway through the book. The first half is the journal of David Lewis and it describes how he got to where he is right now: on trial for the murder of his wife’s lover. 

Donnie has made a good life for himself in the panhandle of Texas. He’s turned out to be a good lawyer and ends up defending David Lewis even though Lewis could afford any lawyer he wanted. 

The characters are interesting. Donnie has matured since the first book and isn’t the jerk he was. David Lewis is a war hero and double amputee. He gets involved with Cordelia Lehrer, whose father is very rich and rather quirky. David passes muster with Cordelia’s father and they end up getting married. But he has some surprises ahead of him.

I read this book in one sitting because it was difficult to put down. I had to find out what happens. It has a couple twists that I didn’t see coming and the ending is perfect. I definitely recommend Necessities and it does stand on its own.

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Meet the Author

 

BOYD TAYLOR lives in Austin, Texas with his wife and their Havanese dog Toby. Necessities is the fourth novel in the Donnie Ray Cuinn series. In a former life, Boyd was a lawyer and a corporate officer. A native of Temple, Texas, he graduated from the University of Texas at Austin with a B.A. in government and an LL.B. from the law school.

Boyd’s first novel “Hero” was prescient in its story about fake news. His second novel, “The Antelope Play,” dealt with drug trafficking in the Texas Panhandle, an unfortunately accurate forecast. The third, “The Monkey House”, involved commercial development of a large green space in the center of Austin, all too familiar to Austin residents. Whether his upcoming novel “Necessities” predicts future events with the accuracy of the earlier books remains to be seen.

Connect with the Author: Website ~ Facebook

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Ends March 7, 2018

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Book Review & Giveaway: The Monkey House by Boyd Taylor

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Book #3 in the Donnie Ray Cuinn series

Category: Adult Fiction, 212 pages
Genre: Political Suspense
Publisher: Katherine Brown Press
Release date: May 29, 2015
Tour dates: Jan 3 to Feb 28, 2017
Content Rating: PG-13 + M (Some adult language and elusion to sex)

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Book Description

This, the third Donnie Ray Cuinn book, pits Donnie against the old friends and new enemies guilty of land fraud and corporate greed. Donnie returns to Austin from his law practice in the Texas Panhandle to confront All-American football player Wesley Bird, his former best friend. In the company of beautiful, athletic Anna Kaye Nordstrom, Donnie experiences the “new” Austin of glitzy condos, trendy restaurants and social media. He also revisits the “old” Austin of barbecue, power politics and greens versus developers. Donnie finds that not much has changed.

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To read reviews, please visit Boyd Taylor’s page on iRead Book Tours.
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Buy the Books:
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My Review

I chose to read this book after receiving a free copy. All opinions in this review are my own and completely unbiased. This is the third book I’ve read in the Donnie Cuinn series. I read Hero and The Antelope Play in the past couple of weeks and I have liked them all but they are getting a little better each time.

 Donnie enjoys living and practicing law in a small town in the panhandle of Texas. When he finds out that his former best friend, Wesley, has talked his mom and foster father, Papa, into investing in a big development, Donnie decides to return to Austin. He needs to check things out himself because he doesn’t trust Wesley. Donnie has missed his best friend and gives him another chance. I cringed when he made that decision. It’s obvious that Wesley will never change. 

At the same time, Papa is leading the fight against developers who want to turn the Monkey House and its land into condos and stores. The land is across from the retirement center he and Donnie’s mom live in and many people believe it would make a wonderful park.

This book, like the first two, was difficult to put down once I started it. Not only was there a lot going on, but I had to know if Donnie was going to be able to help Papa and other members of the retirement center. And would they have to live across from modern condos or would they get their park?

I enjoyed getting to know Donnie better in this book and liked that Papa was back. I’m definitely looking forward to reading book four.

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Book trailer for Necessities
(Book #4 in the Donnie Ray Cuinn Series)
 
 
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About the Author 


 

BOYD TAYLOR lives in Austin, Texas with his wife and their Havanese dog Toby. Necessities is the fourth novel in the Donnie Ray Cuinn series. In a former life, Boyd was a lawyer and a corporate officer. A native of Temple, Texas, he graduated from the University of Texas at Austin with a B.A. in government and an LL.B. from the law school.

Boyd’s first novel “Hero” was prescient in its story about fake news. His second novel, “The Antelope Play,” dealt with drug trafficking in the Texas Panhandle, an unfortunately accurate forecast. The third, “The Monkey House”, involved commercial development of a large green space in the center of Austin, all too familiar to Austin residents. Whether his upcoming novel “Necessities” predicts future events with the accuracy of the earlier books remains to be seen.

Connect with the Author: Website ~ Facebook

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Enter the Giveaway!

Ends March 7, 2018

a Rafflecopter giveaway 

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Book Review & Giveaway: The Antelope Play by Boyd Taylor

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Book #2 in the Donnie Ray Cuinn series

Category: Adult Fiction, 260 pages
Genre: Political Suspense
Publisher: Katherine Brown Press
Release date: July 25, 2015
Tour dates: Jan 3 to Feb 28, 2017
Content Rating: PG-13 + M (Some minor cursing)

 

Book Description

When Austin native Donnie Cuinn accepts a job as an associate in a Texas Panhandle law firm, his boredom and disdain for Velda, a sleepy Texas town, is forgotten when he gets caught up in a struggle over water rights, possible radioactive contamination of the nation’s largest underground fresh water supply, and the violence of an invading Mexican drug cartel. Along the way, Donnie learns to respect the local rancher, whose brother is at the center of the troubles, and to come to terms with the violent death of his young Mexican wife.

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My Review

 I chose to read this book after receiving a free copy. All opinions in this review are my own and completely unbiased. This is the second book I’ve read in the Donnie Cuinn series. I read Hero, the first book in the series, about a week ago. The first book was pretty good but I liked The Antelope Play a lot more. 

 

Donnie got a law degree and is now living in the small town of Velda in the panhandle of Texas. He’s grieving after losing his wife, Cecilia, and he doesn’t care what anyone thinks. In some ways he’s easy to like but he can be a jerk sometimes. I’m hoping that his character will be a little nicer in the next book now that he might possibly be starting to get over losing Cecilia.

 

There is corruption and questionable things going on in the small town of Velda. Donnie ends up in the middle of companies vying to gain water rights in the area. He thinks something fishy is going on and is determined to find out why the water rights are suddenly so important.

 

There’s a lot going on in Velda and Donnie ends up with a lot on his plate but he has a lot of help from his new assistant Maye and some of his clients and new friends. It was difficult to put this book down once I started it. I’m looking forward to reading the next one in the series!

 

To read other reviews, please visit Boyd Taylor’s page on iRead Book Tours.

Buy the Books:
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Watch the book trailer for Necessities (Book #4 in the Donnie Ray Cuinn Series):
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 x

Meet the Author

BOYD TAYLOR lives in Austin, Texas with his wife and their Havanese dog Toby. Necessities is the fourth novel in the Donnie Ray Cuinn series. In a former life, Boyd was a lawyer and a corporate officer. A native of Temple, Texas, he graduated from the University of Texas at Austin with a B.A. in government and an LL.B. from the law school.

Boyd’s first novel “Hero” was prescient in its story about fake news. His second novel, “The Antelope Play,” dealt with drug trafficking in the Texas Panhandle, an unfortunately accurate forecast. The third, “The Monkey House”, involved commercial development of a large green space in the center of Austin, all too familiar to Austin residents. Whether his upcoming novel “Necessities” predicts future events with the accuracy of the earlier books remains to be seen.

Connect with the Author: Website ~ Facebook

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x

Enter the Giveaway!

Ends March 7, 2018

a Rafflecopter giveaway 

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x

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