Book Thoughts ~ What Doesn't Kill Her

What Doesn't Kill Her (Cape Charade #2)

by Christina Dodd
published by HQN
release date: January 29, 2019
genre: Adult, Mystery, Thriller

**Received an e-copy from NetGalley/publisher in exchange for an honest review.

Summary (Goodreads): One secret, one nightmare, one lie. You guess which is which.
1. I have the scar of a gunshot on my forehead.
2. I have willfully misrepresented my identity to the US military.
3. I'm the new mother of a seven-year-old girl.
Kellen Adams suffers from a yearlong gap in her memory. A bullet to the brain will cause that. But she's discovering the truth, and what she learns changes her life, her confidence, her very self. She finds herself in the wilderness, on the run, unprepared, her enemies unknown--and she is carrying a priceless burden she must protect at all costs. The consequences of failure would break her. And Kellen Adams does not break.
What doesn't kill her...had better start running.

My Thoughts: I enjoyed most of this book so I'll talk about those things first. When this book starts Kellen is trying to figure out how to be a mom and not faring well. Hiding in bushes and feeling like a failure because she can not bond with her daughter Rae. Looking for a way out Kellen takes a job running an artifact up the mountain. Of course nothing works out. Terror and mayhem ensue. Kellen manages the job and gets every priceless thing up the mountain.
While I didn't have a problem with it, it was slightly jarring going from all of that to event planning at the winery. This was just as frantic and came with its own set of problems. It's also where we find out who is trying to kill Kellen and why. This is where my personal problem comes in. Even in a thriller I like to be able to try and figure things out. The answer made sense to Kellen's life but caught me off guard trying to figure out if I had ever heard of the person before.
Overall, even with not having a clue on who, I really enjoyed this book. Christina Dodd does a great job setting a scene and bringing the characters and dialogue to life. I'm looking forward to finding out what happens next with Kellen and her new found (refound) life.

Rating: 4

New Releases ~ week of 01/28/2019

A Curse So Dark and Lonely by Brigid Kemmerer (#1 A Curse So Dark and Lonely)

A Murderous Marriage by Alyssa Maxwell (#4 Lady and Ladies Maid)
All About That Kiss by Susan Hatler (#6 Kissed by the Bay)
Before He Lapses by Blake Pierce (#11 Mackenzie White)
Cast in Oblivion by Michelle Sagara (#14 The Chronicles of Elantra)
Crooked Street by Brian Freeman (#3 Frost Easton)
Dark Burning by Lori Ryan (#6 Dark Falls)
Dead as a Door Knocker by Diane Kelly (#1 House-Flipper Mystery)
Death by Chocolate Malted Milkshake by Sarah Graves (#2 Death by Chocolate)
Death by Committee by Alexis Morgan (#1 Abbey McCree Mystery)
Dragon Betrayal by Charlene Hartnady (#4 Water Dragons)
Drawn Into Love by Aurora Rose Reynolds (#4 Fluke My Life)
Escaping His Grace by Kristin Vayden (#2 Gentlemen of Temptation)

Flare Up by Shannon Stacey (#6 Boston Fire)
Governess Gone Rogue by Laura Lee Guhrke (#3 Dear Lady Truelove)
Grand Slam Murders by R J Lee (#1 Bridge to Death Mystery)
Hot Fudge Murder by Cynthia Baxter (#2 Lickety Splits Mystery)
King of Scars by Leigh Bardugo (#1 Nikolai Duology)
Lavender Blue by Donna Kauffman (#3 Blue Hollow Falls)
Moonlight Scandals by Jennifer L Armentrout (#3 de Vincent)
Murder, She Meowed by Liz Mugavero (#7 Pawsitively Organic Mysteries)
Mystic by Cheryl Brooks (#2 Cat Star Legacy)
No Escape Claws by Sofie Ryan (#6 Second Chance Cat Mystery)
Not a Hero by Cherise Sinclair (#1 Sons of the Survivalist)
One Tough Cowboy by Lora Leigh (#1 Moving Violations)
Out of the Dark by Gregg Hurwitz (#4 Orphan X)

Pruning the Dead by Julia Henry (#1 Garden Squad Mystery)
Ransacker by Emmy Laybourne (#2 Berserker)
Reckoning of Fallen Gods by R. A. Salvatore (#2 Coven)
Tained Forever by Terri Anne Browning (#5 Tainted Knights)
Tempt Me With Diamonds by Jane Feather (#1 London Jewels Trilogy)
The Cerulean by Amy Ewing
The Gun Also Rises by Sherry Harris (#6 Sarah Winston Garage Sale Mystery)
The Havana Game by John Lutz (#2 Thomas Laker)
The Shadowlands by Katrina Charman (#5 The Last Firehawk)
The Sheikh's Inherited Bride by Clare Connelly (#5 Evermore)
The Way You Love Me by Miranda Liasson (#2 Angel Falls)

The Whole Package by Marie Harte (#1 Movin' On)
The Wrong Highlander by Lynsay Sands (#7 Highlander)
Three Little Words by Jenny Holiday (#3 Bridesmaids Behaving Badly)
Vengeance Road by Christine Feehan (#2 Torpedo Ink)
What Doesn't Kill Her by Christina Dodd (#2 Cape Charade)
You Will Suffer by Alexandra Ivy (#3 The Agency)

This Week's Reads

Star Drop
by Jade Merien (DeviantArt)

A couple of NetGalley books this week

Ghosts of Gotham by Craig Schaefer
(Goodreads)
**Based on the blurb I thought this book was going to be going in one direction, then looking it up on Goodreads, it seems to go into a very different direction. One that I enjoy (witches) just not sure how it's all going to work out.

What Doesn't Kill Her by  Christina Dodd
Cape Charade #2 (Goodreads)
**Didn't realize when I requested this that it was the 2nd in the series so had to hurry and read Dead Girl Running. I really enjoyed both and they started the 2019 reading year off on the right note.

Mirror Gate by Jeff Wheeler
Harbinger #2 (Goodreads)
**Picked this up at the library. Storm Glass was one of my favorite reads in 2018 and I've been looking forward to reading more in this series.

This Week's Reads

I requested these three books from the library to end the year with. I went with the next book in series that I know I like. Trying to end the year on a high reading note.

Because I'm Watching by Christina Dodd
Virtue Falls #3 (Goodreads)
**I started this series as a break from UF/PNR, but did not want a plain mystery or plain romance. I like how the romance is there but there is enough suspense, action, and a good mystery with great characters to keep me reading.

Age of Swords by Michael J Sullivan
The Legends of The First Empire #2 (Goodreads)
**This series takes place 3000 years before the Riyria chronicles (series). I had never heard of either series or author before I requested book 1 from netgalley. I ended up really liking Age of Myth and could not wait to continue the adventure. I also like the fact that all five books of this series are already finished they just need to be published.

Magic Binds by Ilona Andrews
Kate Daniels #9 (Goodreads)
**Still not sure why I took so long to start this series but now I cannot stop reading them. I just started this summer and am ready to read book 9. Kate's path to someday kill her father, her relationship with Curran, and the adventures that come with trying to save Atlanta have kept me entertained, engaged, and unable to put them down until I get to the end.

This Week's Reads

Obsession Falls by Christina Dodd
Virtue Falls #2 (Goodreads)
**I really enjoyed reading the first book in this series. This one takes place in the same place but with a different lead. Since it is a smaller town I'm sure we will see a lot of characters from book one.

Three Dark Crowns by Kendare Blake
Three Dark Crowns #1 (Goodreads)
**This is one I think I've gotten from the library before but didn't end up reading at the time. I saw book two while there this week and wanted to grab it but realised I needed to still read this one.

This Week's Reads

Fantasy Landscape
by WiredHuman (DeviantArt)

Between Two Thorns by Emma Newman
The Split Worlds #1 (Goodreads)
**This showed up on some fantasy list (cannot remember where  I saw it) and looked like an interesting series.

Virtue Falls by Christina Dodd
Virtue Falls #1 (Goodreads)
**Decided to switch it up a bit and go for a romantic suspense. I've liked other books by this author and have heard good things about this series.