Review & Excerpt ~ Three Days To Forever by Lauren Carr

[sherry fundin]

 I would like to welcome Lauren Carr and her new mystery novel, Three Days To Forever. I have so much to share, I hope you will take the time to enjoy it all. Pour a cup of coffee, put up your feet, wrap up in your snuggly and let's check it out.

Title: Three Days to Forever Author: Lauren Carr Publisher: Acorn Book Services Pages: 466 Genre: Mystery Format: Paperback/Kindle

MY REVIEW

I am familiar with Mac Faraday and his cohorts, so I was happy to be able to read to review this mystery novel. I felt Lauren Carr would not let me down and was right. I enjoyed the novel and look forward to reading more of her work. I am loving the cover, simple, yet I sense an aura of menace. Mac Faraday and Archie Monday are getting married. It will be the event of the season for the Spencer Inn and Deep Creek Lake, Maryland. Just days before the wedding, Mac receives an envelope, containing a warning. As if that is not enough of a problem, he is attacked by a professional hit squad and the tale is off and running. Someone wants him dead. Or do they? Is he the real target? It seems so obvious, I am suspicious. I read on, getting deeper into the story, more involved with the characters as the danger spreads. Plots within plots. There is so much going on, twisting and, turning, keeping me wondering how this will come together in a completed story. Who's doing what to whom? Is it revenge for a perceived wrong? A terrorist threat from Iraq? There are too many characters to mention, but they all contribute to the story in their own special way. We have met some of them before and will hear about some of them again and again, as we travel through the mystery series with Lauren Carr. An invisible unit: Under the cover of anonymity, a secret unit, that does what no one else can do, what cannot be allowed to reach the light of day. They are cloaked in secrecy and deniability. The politics are dirty, but necessary. This book will expose its biggest weaknesses, at the highest levels. Three Days To Forever by Lauren Carr reads as if it could be true. The good. The bad. The current events. Revenge, murder, terrorism, romance, love, loyalty and a determination to do what is right, regardless of the consequences. Three Days To Forever is not a light read. The mystery and suspense kept me captivated, as I traveled from Iraq to the United States and back again. Lauren kept me guessing and on my toes. I never anticipated all the events that would ensue. I did not sit on the edge of my seat with bated breath, or have to stay up all night until I finished it, but I did read the book, which is 434 pages in this ARC paperback, within a twenty four hour period. I look forward to reading more Mac Faraday mysteries by Lauren Carr, or anything else she chooses to write.

4 Stars

SYNOPSIS

In this latest Mac Faraday Mystery from best-selling mystery author Lauren Carr, readers will embark on a rollercoaster adventure with old friends (including the Lovers in Crime team of Prosecutor Joshua Thornton and Homicide Detective Cameron Gates), but also meet new ones as Mac Faraday’s daughter Jessica Faraday and Joshua Thornton’s son Murphy Thornton join the team in the race to get the love birds to the altar! With three days left to the year, Deep Creek Lake is hopping with holiday vacationers and wedding guests pouring into the Spencer Inn for Mac Faraday and Archie Monday’s huge wedding ceremony which is being touted as the social event of the year. But droopy flowers and guests who failed to RSVP are the least of Mac’s and Archie’s problems when a professional hit squad hits Spencer Manor to send the groom, Joshua Thornton, Archie’s mother, and Gnarly running for their lives. With time running out to the big day, Mac Faraday and Spencer’s small police force have to sort through the clues to figure out not only who has been targeted for assassination, but also who is determined to stop everything … FOREVER!

“Lauren Carr’s mystery novels are indeed one of my go-tos when I’m looking for a good whodunit.” –Reviewer: Shana Benedict, ABookVacation Book Reviews.

“Lauren Carr does a good job of moving the quirky storyline along nicely with an abundance of witty dialogue. And you have no idea who the good guys are and who the bad guys are until the end." - Reviewer: Every Free Chance Book Reviews.

FOR MORE INFORMATION

• Three Days to Forever is available at Amazon.
• Watch the book trailer at YouTube.
• Discuss this book at PUYB Virtual Book Club at Goodreads.

EXCERPT

How many years have I lived here, and I still don’t know where Archie puts the scissors? After closing the drawer in the nightstand on his side of the bed, Mac gave up and twisted around to grasp the designer tag hanging from under his armpit. Hoping to not tear a hole in the new blue sweater that his daughter, Jessica, had given him for Christmas, he gave it a sharp tug. The tag gave way, but the plastic “do-hickey” that kept it attached to the sweater didn’t. Rats! From where he was sprawled out in the center of the bed, Gnarly cocked his head at him. “I don’t suppose you could bite it off without putting a hole in this sweater, huh, Gnarly?” Mac studied the label he had torn off. Dolce & Gabbana. Never heard of them. But if Jessica bought it, it has to be expensive, and she’ll have a fit if I put a hole in it. Mac went into the master bathroom in search of nail clippers. Gnarly’s bark, and then his jump between the bed and the door, prompted Mac to forget the do-hickey hanging under his armpit. After grabbing his gun from the drawer in the nightstand, he followed Gnarly down the stairs to the two-story foyer, out the cut-glass front door, and onto the front porch. Mac clutched his weapon behind his back. When Gnarly, sitting at his side, uttered a low growl, Mac tightened his grip and watched the sedan slowly make its way around the circular driveway before coming to a halt at the bottom of the porch steps. When the elderly driver stepped out of the car, Mac placed her and the car. Agnes Douglas. Archie’s mother. No wonder Gnarly had growled. He never had liked her very much ... and the feeling was mutual. Shoving aside his fears about the safety of Archie, his family, and their friends, Mac forced a wide grin onto his face. After shoving the gun into the back waistband of his pants and covering it up with his sweater, he hurried down the steps to take the white-haired woman into his arms. Like her only daughter, she was petite. She fell two inches short of five feet tall, and Mac had to bend over to hug her. In her heavy dark blue winter coat and thick snow boots, she resembled a blue snow man. Shouldn’t she be with Archie and the bridesmaids getting their hair done at the salon? Oh well, Agnes goes and does what she wants when she wants. Best not to question. “Agnes, I’m so glad to see you.” Mac clasped her arm, slipped his other arm around her waist, and guided her across the slick ice, up the steps, and inside. At the top of the steps, Gnarly backed away. Agnes had made it quite clear to Gnarly that he was only allowed to look at, but not touch, her. “I told her that I had one of my headaches.” At the top of the porch steps, she turned to Mac. She tilted her head back to peer up at him from over the top of her glasses. She paused to look him up and then down, and then she noticed that he was wearing only his bedroom slippers without any socks. “What are you doing outside in two feet of snow and ice without boots on?” “I heard you coming and didn’t want you to slip on the ice.” Agnes’ head bobbed up and down while she chastised him. “Do I look like I need your help? I haven’t broken a hip yet. Archie depends on you. What good are you going to do her dropping dead from pneumonia?” Unable to come up with an answer, Mac shrugged. Willing Gnarly out of her way, she opened the front door. “I hope you have the tea ready.” Grabbing him by the elbow, she ushered him inside. Gnarly was barely able to slip inside before she slammed the door. “Actually,” Mac said as gently as possible, “I was on my way out.” Her head snapped up to glare at him. “What do you mean you were on your way out?” “One of my groomsmen and I have an appointment with the tailor.” Mac looked down at the tiny elderly woman who stood before him in the middle of the living room. She clasped her handbag with both hands in front of her. Like a referee at a boxing match, Gnarly sat between them, looking from one to the other. “Did I do something to upset you, Agnes?” “I think it’s best if we lay out our ground rules before you marry Archie,” she said. Sensing a battle, Mac folded his arms across his chest. He was physically setting up a barrier. “Okay, Agnes. Shoot.” “To be blunt,” Agnes said in a tone devoid of emotion,“I’m giving this marriage five years. Archie refuses to tell me how much you’re paying for this huge three-ring circus, but I hope you’ll think it’s worth it when you only get five years on your investment.” “Five years? Investment?” Mac chuckled. “With all due respect—” Agnes’ hand shot up. She shook her head. “Don’t give me that all-due-respect crap. I’ve had seven children, six boys. Archie’s daddy keeled over with a heart attack when she was only five years old. Since that time, I’ve been ’round the block so much that I wore a rut in it and”—she shook her finger at him—“I learned ages ago that when someone says to me ‘with all due respect,’ they’re not giving me an ounce of it.” “I don’t consider Archie to be an investment,” Mac said through gritted teeth. “And to be blunt, I don’t think you know enough about our relationship to be in a position to make any sort of prediction about the success or lack of success of our marriage.” “Archie has spent the last dozen years of her life hiding out in this mansion, taking care of your mother,” Agnes said. “Then, she’s spent the last few years in your bed. Now,” she glanced him up and down, “you’re a very attractive man, and I’m sure Archie wouldn’t want to marry you if you weren’t good in bed. I’m sure all of that money adds to your appeal, but there’s more to lifelong happiness than sex and money. There’s character, and marriage with a man who has no character—” Mac stepped toward her. “What gives you the right to comment on my character?” As if to voice his agreement, Gnarly barked.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Lauren Carr is the best-selling author of the Mac Faraday Mysteries, which takes place in Deep Creek Lake, Maryland. Three Days to Forever is the ninth installment in the Mac Faraday Mystery series. In addition to her series set on Deep Creek Lake, Lauren Carr has also written the Lovers in Crime Mysteries, which features prosecutor Joshua Thornton with homicide detective Cameron Gates, who were introduced in Shades of Murder, the third book in the Mac Faraday Mysteries. They also make an appearance in The Lady Who Cried Murder. Three Days to Forever introduces Lauren Carr’s latest series, detectives, Murphy Thornton and Jessica Faraday in the Thorny Rose Mysteries. Look for the first installment in this series in Spring 2015. The owner of Acorn Book Services, Lauren is also a publishing manager, consultant, editor, cover and layout designer, and marketing agent for independent authors. This year, several books, over a variety of genre, written by independent authors will be released through the management of Acorn Book Services, which is currently accepting submissions. Visit Acorn Book Services website for more information. Lauren is a popular speaker who has made appearances at schools, youth groups, and on author panels at conventions. She also passes on what she has learned in her years of writing and publishing by conducting workshops and teaching in community education classes. She lives with her husband, son, and three dogs on a mountain in Harpers Ferry, WV.

For More Information

• Visit Lauren Carr’s website.
• Connect with Lauren on Facebook and Twitter.
• Visit Lauren’s Goodreads page to find out more about her books.
• Visit Lauren’s blog.
• Contact Lauren.

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