About the BookJordan Welsh and Eddie Marino, Scottsdale private eyes, are hired to find out who’s stealing from the Moon and Stars Children’s Foundation. Foundation employees are suspected, but just as the pieces start falling into place, Jordan discovers a hidden agenda that puts her in the crosshairs of a crime lord. Who can she trust?
Everyone has a dangerous secret, and the bodies are piling up. Even her partner, Eddie Marino, has a dark and mysterious past. Does she dare act on their attraction? Will it destroy their partnership?
The two have landed in a hornets’ nest. Nothing to do now but stir it up.
Book one in a new series featuring Jordan Welsh and Eddie Marino.
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My Review
The title of this romantic mystery caper is kind of nifty. What immediately came to mind was - if someone 'steals the moon and stars,' they're stealing everything. Your hopes, your dreams, your ideals. And that's exactly what happens in this story when someone starts siphoning funds out of a charity devoted to kids battling cancer, aptly named The Moon & Stars Children's Foundation. It immediately tugs at your heartstrings to think that someone would be depraved enough to steal from an organization similar to St. Jude's and Make a Wish. It's the most heartless kind of criminal activity because it's targeting the weakest among us and kicking them when they're down.
That's why I was glad that Jordan and Eddie were on the case. They're two people you want fighting on the side of sick and dying children. Jordan's from a wealthy Chicago family so she knows a thing or two about philanthropy and how these non-profits work. And Eddie's a pro at delving into the depths of the seedy underworld while keeping his soul in tact. She's the brains behind the charity auctions and fundraisers, and he knows how to spot a staged burglary and work his mafia contacts. He teaches her how to pick a lock, and she gets him to show up at a costume ball. They're the perfect pair.
Throughout the novel, there are a lot of red herrings dangled in front of Jordan and Eddie as they hunt down the source of the leak. Each lead sends them closer to the mastermind behind the operation, as the danger to their safety escalates. It's scary to think that Jordan ends up in the emergency room twice because of what these goons do to her. But she's willing to go everywhere with Eddie from strip clubs to stakeouts, determined to be a equal member of their team and pull her weight. Nothing gets her down for long, until Eddie gives her reason to doubt him.
It's a troubling turn of events as the book concludes. Tired of rebuffing his overtures, she takes Eddie into her bed and into her heart, even though it might make working together a little complicated. She knows better than to mix business with pleasure, but he's way too persistent to ignore. He wants her. She wants him. And after a lot of false starts, they embark on the beginnings of a relationship.
But by the final pages, we're left to wonder: Will it last? After getting so deeply invested in these characters, that's a cliffhanger I can really sink my teeth into. How much longer until the next book? More please!
***
Stealing the Moon and Stars can be purchased at:
Amazon
Price/Format: $13.95 paperback
Pages: 242
Genre: Romance, Suspense
Release: May 15, 2014
Publisher: Camel Press
ISBN: 9781603819831
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About the AuthorsArizona native Sally J. Smith lives in Scottsdale with her husband. The rarest of breeds, an adult who was born in Arizona, she has been a writer since she could spell. These days she stays busy at her chosen professions of writing (novels, short stories, and articles) and freelance editing. When a free moment appears on the horizon, she’s out the door to a attend a play, a movie, a concert, or just take a long walk in the desert—if the temperature’s under a hundred. Other works include The Ghost Wore Polyester.
Jean Steffens also lives in Scottsdale with her family. She’s a mother, reader, movie fan, and the Steffens’ family chauffeur. She’s also active in church activities. Like Jordan Welsh, PI, Jean grew up in Chicago near Lake Forest. Jean’s mother, however, was nurturing—baking cookies, carpooling kids to school, kissing boo-boos—unlike Jordan’s mother, who’s allergic to the kitchen and thinks a carpool is a hot tub in a limo. Jean’s published work includes “The Night Before Christmas” in the Desert Sleuths Sisters in Crime Anthology, How Not to Survive the Holidays.
Work sessions between these two ladies generally result in a lot of laughter, noshing, and Internet surfing. Both authors are members of Romance Writers of America and Sisters in Crime.
Links to connect with Sally and Jean:
Web Site
Blog
Goodreads
YouTube
Blog Tour Site
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