4.5 stars raised to 5

Get ready for sleepless nights! This suspenseful triple packed novella collection kept me on pins and needles! It’s the perfect blend of action, suspense, and even some romance. All three novellas are clean with mild descriptions of violence and a few kisses. It’s a great way to read these favorite suspense authors or get a good introduction to them..

Secrets of St. Augustine by Traci Abramson (5 stars) This was my favorite story of the three. It was jam packed from start to finish with plenty of action, suspense, and a great plot. It’s always scarier when kids are involved and this story doesn’t disappoint. Thirteen-year-old Layla’s life is thrown upside down when she borrows her friend’s phone to call her grandmother from her French boarding school. What she finds shocks her, and when she overhears a plot to kill her, she tries to run away as fast as she can. Fortunately, FBI agent Doug Valdez is there undercover investigating a money laundering scheme. When Layla escapes by stowing away in his car, they soon become targets of these ruthless thieves who will stop at nothing. There’s non-stop action as Layla, Doug, and his family try to stay a few steps ahead of the criminals. With wild chases and cat and mouse games all over France and Switzerland, this was so hard to put down. Layla is an intelligent young woman and I loved her interactions with Doug and his family. (Traci fans will happily recognize Doug from previous books.)

In Plain Sight by Paige Edwards (5 stars) This was another favorite and comes in a close second. From start to finish, I was interested in Jaclyn and Cody and hoping their brief encounter at a coffee shop would turn into something more. Jaclyn Gerard happens to be in the wrong place at the wrong time when she comes across a drug deal with handsome FBI agent Cody Ackert posing undercover. She’s thrown into a whirlwind situation when she witnesses too many things that make her a target of not only a vicious drug cartel, but a dirty FBI agent. With a bit of humor, romance, and unyielding suspense, this novella had me hurriedly turning the pages.

Hounded by Clair M. Paulson (3.5 stars) Ex-Army Ranger and newly hired detective Renn Huitt didn’t realize his first day on the job would prove so eventful! Someone is out to kill his boss, Detective Bob Lyman. On top of this, the detectives are trying to help attorney Kimberly Cantor prove her client is innocent, and that’s just the beginning. Renn and Kimberly are definitely likable, but with so many things happening at once and several characters to keep track of, I felt like I didn’t get to know these characters as well and feel as strong a connection to them. Their romance was an unexpected bonus. With an ample amount of action, dirty cops, a creepy mine, some nasty killers, and a hint of romance, this story definitely has a lot packed into it.

All in all, a great suspenseful collection for old and new fans alike. Definitely one anthology you’ll want to put on your TBR list! I received a complimentary copy from the publisher through NetGalley. All opinions are my own and I was not required to provide a positive review.

While these three authors are so unique in writing style- they are all fantastic storytellers. Each story is different but all have suspense that starts right from the beginning and drew me in. From Traci Abramson's with a teenage girl running for her life to Paige Edwards's where there is FBI and DEA all involved. Each of these authors make it possible for you to jump into the story and see a little snapshot into the lives of these characters. The intrigue, adventure, and love-familial or romantic-makes this set of stories sing.

SECRETS OF ST. AUGUSTINE by TRACI HUNTER ABRAMSON takes place in Europe between Marseilles in France and the shores of Lake Geneva in Switzerland.
FBI special agent DougValdez takes his wife and daughter on a holiday to Europe while he is investigating money laundering at a prestigious school and arrives just in time to save Layla de Felice from certain death and uncover some sinister secrets…..
The charcters are believable and the plot is good. I really enjoyed this story.

HUNTED by CLAIR M POULSEN is an exciting thriller in which former army ranger, Renn Huitt, joins private detective Bob Layman to help him find out who wants him dead. Kimberly Cantor is an attractive lawyer who needs him to find out who really killed Tamar Gaffey in order to get her client out of jail.
There are drug lords, kidnappings, crooked cops and murders, together with some romance.

IN PLAIN SIGHT by PAIGE EDWARDS takes place in Quantico with FBI special agent CodyAckert going underground to flush out a notorious drug gang. There is also some romance.
I was given a free copy of the book by NetGalley from Covenant Communications. The opinions in this review are completely my own.

With reading Sinister Secrets you get not just one story but 3 short stories by 3 different authors.
My favorite story was Secrets of St. Augustine by Traci Hunter Ambramson. It kept me engaged and intrigued throughout the story. I was not ready for it to end and wanted more.
I enjoyed reading the three action packed stories.
If you are in the mood for short mystery reads, this is a good collection of authors to pick from.
Many thanks to NetGalley, the publisher and author for the opportunity to read this book for my honest review. All opinions expressed are my own.

Sinister Secrets has the perfect triple threat of suspense authors to make up this collection of novellas!

Each novella was fast paced, full of twists and turns and plenty of plot twists to keep you wondering what would happen next-and if everyone would make it out alive!

If you're looking to ramp up your suspense reads this fall be sure to pick this one up!

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the copy. All thoughts in this review are my own.

Honestly you can never go wrong with any of these authors. My favorite was Traci’s, she crafted a story that left me on edge and I couldn’t put the book down.

Sinister Secrets includes three suspense novellas. Each is well written and keeps the reader on the edge of their seat.
Traci Hunter Abramson - Secrets of St. Augustine takes the reader to France. Doug Valdez, an FBI agent who appears from time to time in the Guardian series, gets an adventure that includes his wife and daughter and a young woman who goes to school at St. Augustine. Family relationships rather than new love features in this novella.
As a novella the solution to the problems faced is only shown in an abbreviated fashion.

Clair Poulson - Hounded introduces the reader to Renn, an army ranger turned private detective. There is barely a moment when dangerous action isn’t happening.

Paige Edwards - In Plain Sight acquaints us with special agent Cody and Jaclyn. Jaclyn’s mother is a hoot. Love the action of this story and the relationship that develops between Cody and Jaclyn.

All three novellas were excellent and act as a lovely introduction to these authors if you’ve never read them before.

Three suspense novellas from Covenant Communications authors. By far my favorite is Traci Hunter Abramson’s story Secrets of St. Augustine ( 5 stars). It is action packed and I thought would be a very good read for YA audience (and up) as the heroine is only 15. I am a fan of Abramson’s writing and have read the majority of her books.

Hounded (3 stars) by Clair Poulson was interesting but there is a lot going on. Old enemies, corrupt cops, murder cover-up, kidnapping, lawyer, P.I.s, etc. I thought it was a little ridiculous that the bad guys drive almost over 3 hours to find a mine to get rid of some bodies. Idaho is remote enough. But I did learn there is an Atlanta, Idaho.

In Plain Sight (4 stars) by Paige Edwards involves an FBI agent going into training and undercover. I appreciated that Edwards did duel POV and a spark of romance. I was disappointed that two of the books involved corrupt officers, although the situations were different.

All in all a fun read. There is a lot of story packed in all three novellas. They are clean for language and steaminess. Thank you to NetGalley and Covenant Communications for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

I enjoyed this suspense collection! This anthology is a great way to discover new authors and get familiar with their writing styles. The title and cover for this collection fits it perfectly!

I loved Traci Hunter Abramson's story Secrets of St. Augustine. Long-time readers will love seeing the return of FBI Agent Doug Valdez! It was a fast-paced read balanced with a sweet subplot.

I was also happy to be introduced to the writing of authors, Clair M Poulson and Paige Edwards!

All in all, I would recommend this collection to anyone willing to sample the genre or try new authors of suspense.

Thank you to the publisher for proving me with a complimentary e-book version of Sinister Secrets! The opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

Sinister Secrets is a collection of 3 suspense novellas written buy 3 accomplished authors, Traci Hunter Abramson, Clair Poulsen, and Paige Edwards. All 3 stories were are fast paced and full of danger and mystery.

My favorite of the three is Secrets of St Augustine by Abramson. It was fun to be reintroduced to a much loved character from some of Traci’ s other books, Doug Valdez. I was excited to get to read more of his story.

While Abramson’s story is my favorite, I really enjoyed the other two stories as well. All 3 authors did a great job pulling you immediately into the story and keeping you there! This is a collection you do not want to miss!

Sinister Secrets

Secrets of St. Augustine
Traci Hunter Abramson
5/5

So much action packed into a short story, I only wish this could’ve been longer.
While it did break my heart reading about Layla’s family situation, it was great to see a story that had a realistic “happily ever after.” The presence, or lack, of family was a great part of the plot that I really enjoyed. And the suspense had me reading this book in one sitting, it was great.


Hounded
Clair M. Poulson
3/5

While this book did have some good action scenes, I didn’t love it. A few times it was confusing to me with the threats agains Bob and all the things going on with Alex. This story had a lot of potential, but personally I didn’t enjoy it as much as other books I’ve read by Clair; it does always impress me the knowledge he has in regards to police work so that was a positive in this novella.


In Plain Sight
Paige Edwards
5/5

I loved that even though this was a novella, Paige still took the time to do dual point of view. Dual is my absolute favorite and just adds so much more to the story. And even though this was a short story, I felt completely happy with how the story unfolded, and then ended. It was just the perfect length, and a nice quick read that’s easy to enjoy. In fact, this is probably my favorite of the three novellas included in this book.

Traci's short stories are "the bomb." In this case, the story takes place after the bomb from Not Dead Yet. One of our favorite FBI agents, Doug, is in France and goes out for another quick assignment before vacation. Doug, however, ends up in the right place at the right time. He gets more than he bargained on and his life will never be the same.

Anna-Lise is alone and has no one to turn to. Can she trust Doug and his family to help her?

Fast paced, adventures, figuring things out, beautiful scenery. Such a fun read!

Clair's story about an army lieutenant turned detective was pretty gripping. It kind of just jumps right into the middle of the action so it took me a minute to figure things out. Felt like I had missed some random backstory somewhere. But the action never stopped right up until the end.

Paige's story was down right awesome! Jaclyn is trying to overcome some hard things, working several jobs to move. Cody is finally getting over his ex. And Cody is a Special Agent. They meet at coffee, but then they meet professionally. Sparks fly! Then, Jaclyn gets tangled up in something. Will Cody be able to save her in time?! Action and attraction. This story did not disappoint!!

Thanks to netgalley for an eARC.

Sinister Secrets has 3 suspense novellas by three amazing authors. All 3 of these stories were well written and thrilling reads. I didn't want to stop reading each of these great tales. If you are a fan of suspense, I definitely recommend Sinister Secrets!
#SinisterSecrets #NetGalley

"Sinister Secrets" is 3 novellas by 3 different authors. All of the stories are quick, easy read with a good bit of suspense and mystery. All of these stories are also very clean reads. My favorite was the first one by Traci Hunter Abramson. I definitely recommend this book.

I received this book from the publisher through NetGalley. All opinions are my own. (less)

This is a great, easy way to get your fill of suspense with some intense short stories! Each of these authors has extensive experience getting you hooked from the first page! I enjoyed having this available and will share it with others!

4.5* rounded up!

~Traci Hunter Abramson: Secrets of St. Augustine ~5*~

FBI Special Agent Doug Valdez is in the house!!! I loved that he got his own story. I loved seeing more into his background and his family life. This novella was quick and full of great suspense. I couldn't set the book down until I'd read it all. Wowsers! I loved all of the quick thinking on Doug's part and Layla's ability to navigate all that was thrown at her. I couldn't even imagine the shock that she faced from all the different surprises coming her way. This was really fun to read after reading this author's recent release, Not Dead Yet, as Agent Valdez was in several scenes. I'm a fan of Valdez and hope that we'll see more of him in the next Guardian books!!!

~Paige Edwards: In Plain Sight~5*~

Talk about suspense! Jaclyn and Cody were great characters. Their interactions from their initial meeting were full of spunk and chemistry. Jaclyn finds herself in the middle of some serious trouble when she comes across Agent Cody at one point. This leads them on a crazy, intense adventure. Thank heavens Cody was level headed. But the adventure doesn't stop there! Action-packed from beginning to end. I didn't want it to end and would love to see more with these two characters. I would not want to come across certain characters in this novella, no thank you!

~Clair M. Poulson: Hounded~4*

Renn is ready to start his new job with Bob the private investigator. And it sure starts with a bang! Literally!!! This one was full of surprises. I'd sure like to have Renn on my side if anything went wrong in my life. And Kimberly is a very spunky, get things done, lawyer who was awesome to watch whenever she had a scene! Old grudges surface and add another layer of suspense and danger to the story while new concerns and dangers loom ever closer to all involved. Watch your back, your front and your sides because you never know who is coming to get you. But With Renn, Bob and Kimberly on the case, you might just fare more than ok.


Content: All of the novellas I would consider clean. There is suspense and murder, fighting, guns, car chases, danger and such. But all three authors did a great job of writing about them not overly graphic. There is no explicit content, just some clean kisses if any in the stories. I'd recommend this to anyone who enjoys suspense/mystery/thriller but wants it to be clean. I'd even let my teens read this.

I received a copy from the publisher, Covenant Communications, via NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions in the review are my own.

Happy Reading!!!

I like short stories! These are quick, easy reads with lots of action and excitement. It's a great way to read favorite authors and try out new ones.

Three fast paced suspense novellas! All of these authors are autobuy authors for me and this collection was fantastic!

I received an ARC through Netgalley and all opinions are my own.

I enjoyed this collection of suspense novellas. While they were as different as can be, they all had a common theme of secrets. I enjoyed all of them, but I will say my favorite was Secrets of St. Augustine by Traci Hunter Abramson. The story followed a young girl who has lost everything and the vacationing FBI agent who happened to be at her boarding school looking for clues to a money laundering operation when he discovers more horrific secrets. While this one was my favorite, all three authors are amazing and their novellas are well written.

This is a collection of three novellas by three amazing authors. Traci Hunter Abramson, Clair Poulsen and Paige Edwards serve up thrilling mysteries. Each novella has great characters and interesting plots. I loved all of them. My only criticism is that I wanted each novella to be a novel that would allow for more. Obviously in a collection you can't do that. I would highly recommend this book.
I love that different areas of law enforcement are involved in the stories. From special agents to police officers to military to private detectives, these stories have it all.