Trust Me by Nora LeDuc - Book Review and Giveaway

(Romantic Suspense)

This review is in conjunction with a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. Nora will be awarding a $40 Starbucks GC to a randomly drawn commenter during the tour. Click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour.

Ela Danforth seeks sanctuary in the small town of Rockypoint, New Hampshire, where she believes her days will return to normal, until a mysterious stalker threatens her refuge, just as a charming lawyer, Nash McCain, enters her life.

My Review:

I fell in love with Nash in the first few lines -- it's obvious he's a good guy, caring and fun and interesting. Nora LeDuc should be commended for her skilled character creation. From the moment we meet each character, we get to know them well, without having descriptions shoved down our throats.

The story starts up with a bang... a car being forced off the road and down an embankment.  From that moment on, it's a page turner.  It's not that the action is constant, but there's this edge of worry that seasons all the interactions in the story.  Ela is a good woman in difficult circumstances who's been betrayed by the people she trusted and loved, and she's trying her best to take care of her flighty (and occasionally annoying) younger sister, Suz, all the while having someone stalking and threatening her.

She wants to trust Nash.  And I want her to, too.  I really fell for him and his daughter. They're such a great team.  But I also understood why she struggled with believing he was who he appeared to be.  Nash falls a bit more quickly, and when he understands she's being threatened, he's determined to protect her.

I admit I struggled to like Suz. I think I was supposed to, but she felt so incredibly selfish and thoughtless and it made her a character I couldn't enjoy. Still, as things progress, and I wondered what Suz was involved in and whether she had something to do with Ela's troubles, it certainly made her a believable suspect (along with many others).  Honestly, just like Ela, we don't know who to trust.

The romance was sweet and really touched my heart. They both have suffered loss in the past, so their relationship was that much sweeter.  And the author did a great job weaving the romance into the suspense. Neither is lacking and it's an exciting, sweet, fast-paced book.

4.5 flowers - This was a very good book! I'd recommend it to my friends.


Enjoy an excerpt:

As for Nash, she’d experienced gratitude mixed with a touch of infatuation since he’d saved Suz’s life. He’d been the hero of the evening. His hazel eyes surfaced in her mind and refused to leave. They had been different. They were full of curiosity, compassion and—

Her phone rang. Splitting her concentration between her musings and the incoming call, she dug out the cell from her pocket.

“The Lord will punish the world for their evil, and the wicked for their iniquity. You must repent and forgive or you will suffer—”

She hit the off button. Her body shook. If her mind hadn’t been in overdrive, she’d never have answered without checking the caller ID. What should she do now? What would he do next?

About the Author: Nora LeDuc lives in New England with her family. TRUST ME is her 12th published book. She loves to watch the daily Headline News Channel with all the latest on crimes. Currently she is working away on her next novel of murder and love. Please visit her website NoraLeDuc.com or visit her on Facebook. She loves to meet new friends.

Buy the book at Amazon.

Dead Women Tell No Lies by Nora LeDuc - review tour and giveaway

(Contemporary Romantic Suspense)

This review is done in conjunction with the author's virtual book tour with Goddess Fish Promotions. Nora will be awarding a $25 Amazon GC to a randomly drawn commenter during the tour, so comment here today for your chance to win! Click the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour to increase your chances of winning!



Two months after her disappearance, a young woman's body turns up on a New Hampshire riverbank hundreds of miles from home. Now the murder victim’s identical twin, Rose Blue, tries to use her flawed psychic connection to her sister to solve the tragic case.

Homicide Detective Luke Lennox is skeptical of her abilities and finds the mysterious newcomer a distraction. As the department’s latest hire, he has a lot to prove, and he’s learned from past experiences a personal involvement with Rose will only end in disaster. When a threatening message alerts Rose the murderer dreams of them together, Lennox must stay close to Miss Blue. With the clock ticking and a cunning killer always one step ahead, Luke reluctantly allows her close to him during his investigation. But can he protect her from the danger that lies ahead, or lose his heart and career in this deadly game of doubles?



I started getting tense on the very first page of this story, and it didn’t stop until the very end. It was fascinating, frightening and unique. This is the story of twin sisters who have a strong bond between them. Rose Blue always seemed to know when something was wrong with her sister Dahlia Blue. This last time she was devastated when Dahlia was murdered.

Rose travels to Ledgeview, NH from her home in Vermont because she has to find out what happened and why and who did it. She meets up with the head detective, Luke Lennox, and together they began looking for answers. Luke was not altogether happy with her joining him, but she was determined to find her sister's killer.

Following them was an absolute delight, step by step as they followed every clue they could think of. Sometimes they found a lead, but more often they reached a dead end. They relationship between the two was touching and sensitive, and I really loved the way the author included this so cleverly, that it was a necessary part of the story. Having the spirit of her sister visiting her was exciting and made this story even more interesting.

Throwing in occasional thoughts of the unknown killer only heightened the tension and many times I had to put the book down just to catch my breath. Still, I had to know how it ended so I would pick it up again and turn another page.

Several times I thought I had figured out the identity of the killer and I was always wrong. I like the fact that I couldn’t figure it out until the very end when it was given to me. Then I thought, “of course, I should have known,”. But I hadn't.

This author writes an outstanding romantic suspense. One of the best I have read in a long time. I would absolutely recommend highly.

5 Flowers - I loved this book! It's on my keeper shelf! I highly recommend it.



Now enjoy an excerpt:

A chill seeped into Rose Blue’s hands, through her jeans and stocking feet on the wooden kitchen floor. She paused over her unmade sandwich and stretched the cuffs of her navy turtleneck downward.

The rip of duct tape echoed in her ears. Footsteps crunched against the stones. Closer. Closer.

The granite counter blurred and warped into a granite ledge overhanging a river.

The vision sucked her in.

A shadowy figure hovered over a petite woman wearing a pink parka and lying on the ridge. Clammy strands of blond hair clung to a heart-shaped face, a face the mirror image of her own.

“Dahlia!”

Oh, God! Gooseflesh rippled up Rose’s spine. The shadow bound Dahlia’s hands and feet with gray tape, round and round. Terror flooded Rose’s chest. Goose flesh ripped across her arms.

“Help!” she screamed before the duct tape silenced her sister’s last cry.

Rose gasped and turned over. She was lying on the planked floor in her one bedroom apartment. What happened? The hum of the furnace kicking on followed by a flash of heat filled the first floor apartment.

Her head ached like someone had slugged her. Near her hand, she spotted the butter knife. She grabbed the weapon and crawled toward the granite counter. Gripping the edge, she hauled herself to her feet. She held the blade in striking position while she tossed frantic glances over her shoulder to search the area.

Was she suffering a migraine, going crazy? She listened for the creep of a footstep, the sound of breathing, any noise in her apartment. “Who’s there?”

Nora LeDuc lives in New England with husband, two children, cat, Scaredy and dog, Winter.

Dead Women Tell No Lies is her tenth published book. She loves to hear from her readers.

Visit her website at http://www.noraleduc.com/

Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Dead-Women-Tell-Lies-ebook/dp/B00CY1L0M0/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1369936905&sr=8-1&keywords=dead+women+tell+no+lies