Killman Creek by Rachel Caine

Killman Creek is the conclusion to the story of a mom desperate to protect her two children from their murderous father and the internet trolls who want to harm them. Their fake identities have been exposed to their small community of Stillhouse Lake. Now that Melvin Royal is escaped from prison, Gwen must decide just how far she’ll go to protect her kids from their father.

Who is Absalom? Just how far into the dark web does Absalom reach?

Melvin Royal shouldn’t have such a handle on Gwen’s life and location, yet thanks to his connection with Absalom he always finds her on her disposable phones. The FBI wants to catch Royal and Absalom but they’re burdened with too many cases. Gwen and Sam find themselves on a rough and highly dangerous mission to catch Royal themselves.

The lives of two innocent children really pulls at your heart strings in Killman Creek. Rachel Caine takes us inside the minds of Gwen, Sam and each of the kids. Each chapter changes characters and their individual experiences give the reader a stronger connection to the story.

Naturally, if you read Stillhouse Lake you MUST complete the story with Killman Creek.

Rachel Caine provides emotional connections that feel very real to the reader. At one point Gwen is reflecting on her need to be with her children that she carried in her womb and those words transferred me into the bond I feel with my own kids. This carried me into the story and made me feel what Gwen was feeling.

I leave you with this warning, no one is completely safe from harm in Killman Creek. Some authors spare their favorite characters from true harm with a couple close calls and near misses. Caine tells stories that are much riskier. This story will have you clutching the book tightly as you worry about the kids and every other good person. It’s worth it.

  

Once Upon a Time Travel by Sariah Wilson

When Emma wakes up in 1816 with her smartphone in her jeans pocket, she doesn’t believe she’s truly traveled in time. She tells herself that she must be dreaming. She amuses herself with silly responses to the questions she is asked by the house staff and the handsome Earl Hartley. Soon Emma is taken to a place where she can rest and reorient her confused mind. She peacefully dozes off expecting to wake from her bizarre dream. When she wakes in the same room in 1816, she quickly realizes she must have truly traveld in time. She must play the part of a lady who belongs in this time period. If she were discovered, where would she go?

The ability to breathe is way overrated. 

I don’t know what would feel more torturous, the loss of regular breathing from having to wear a corset, or possessing a smartphone I could no longer utilize. Imagine, holding your phone that could instantly find anything you could ever want and yet you’ll never again have service, internet, nor a cord to keep it charged. It’s going to die forever!

Needless to say, Once Upon a Time Travel is the telling of a girl forced to learn to adjust to the time period. It’s more difficult than it sounds. Simple things we are accustomed to saying don’t make sense to the people around her. She doesn’t know the etiquette required for the different classes of people, she hasn’t learned the dances of the time period, and she must remember that she can’t be in the presence of Hartley without her chaperone. It would compromise her and they'd be forced to wed.

According to Emma, Hartley is hot. When he’s told this he is confused by Emma’s reference to the temperature. I enjoyed all of their conversations because of the innocent misunderstandings due to their differences in speech. A lot of what Emma says and does gets blamed on the quirkiness of Americans. Including how differently we dance which sparks a bit of desire in the Earl.

Emma & Hartley kept me up most of the night

Hartley is desperate to stop thinking about Emma romantically and marry her off to his brother, while Emma is torn between her love for Harley and her desperation to find her way back to 2017. If Hartley could admit to her and himself that he wants Emma to himself, would his love be enough to keep her happy in 1816?

The idea of leaving my life in 2017 for the love of a man in 1816 seems so baffling. This is mostly why I couldn’t stop reading about Emma and Hartley. Don’t get me wrong, I’m madly in love with my own husband. I’m just wondering if I could stand the loss of modern technology and the advancement of women’s rights to be with him. Then again, we are an interracial couple so our story of love would be MUCH different and quite illegal. I’ll stick to 2017! :)