#23. This was a great book. I loved that it told the different perspectives of the main characters. It's about a troubled girl who finds out after her father passed that she is not who she thought she was; that her parents weren't actually her parents. As she's learning to deal with her emotions, more biological family pop up, adding to her already confused state of mind. There is kidnapping and r@pe of young girls, lies, murder, fraud, comedy, and simplicity in these pages. I'm also hoping that, by how this ended, that there is a sequel. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5

In this thrilling novel, FBI code breaker Salem Wiley investigates a mysterious miniature Stonehenge in Ireland. When a child named Mercy is kidnapped, Salem must crack the unbreakable code of Stonehenge to save her. A suspenseful read with intriguing puzzles.

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I read Mercy's Chase in one day, I just couldn't stop reading it! The story is rich in historic details, it has beautiful descriptions of celebrated landmarks as Stonehenge, and is action packed with likeable characters. It also depicts the importance of women through times and their contribution in diverse areas as different as medicine or agriculture. Mercy's Chase is also full of conspiracies that does not enable Salem to trust anyone as nothing is as it seems. Her major power is her capacity to decipher codes, ciphers, and apply her analytical mind to analyse what goes on in the world, therefore, bringing power and knowledge to those with whom she works. I will now start to read the next book in the series.
I thank Ms. Lourey, her publisher, and NetGalley for this ARC.

4/5 stars: This is the second book in Salem’s series and it was better than the first! I fell in love with Salem & Mercy in the first book, so I was able to jump right into this captivating story.

Very House of Cards and National Treasure vibes with a child’s life on the line. Just when you think you have the twist at the end figured out, Jess throws another curveball! I would definitely recommend reading Salem’s Cipher before diving into Mercy’s Chase.

Thank you NetGalley, Thomas & Mercer and Jess Lourey for the e-ARC of this book. I would absolutely read another book with these characters in the future!

Mercy's Chase by J. Lourey, published by Thomas & Mercer is the second book in the Salem's Cipher Mystery Series.
A fantastic, unputdownable next adventure for Salem and was so beautifully written. The characters were absolute solid and the storyline was intriguing. The story was mysterious in and of self, And it was based on these characters trying to solve ancient mystery that were hidden. This was a bit different than her typical book - it was more of a mystery than a thriller. She still delivers a bit of the odd "something-isn't-right-here" feeling that occur in all her books, and I really did enjoy it.

3.5-3.75⭐️ which I’ve rounded up

It’s imperative that you read this series in order. These books are very different to the author’s better known psychological thrillers. They are based around code breaking.

This book sees Salem in London and Ireland which was nice to see.

I found I settled quicker into the second book. The characters are mostly the same as the first book so the reader knows the background of them. I found the information on Stonehenge interesting although still heavy going in places. You can tell that the author has done a lot of research.

I found this mystery/ action thriller much more enjoyable than the first book. However they aren’t in the same league for me as the authors psychological thrillers.

This is the second book os the Salem’s Cipher series. I wasn’t a huge fan of the first one, however, I requested these at the same time. The writing is more elementary compared to The Taken Ones, which I loved! I am sure this is just growth on the writers part. Which is fine.

Salem Wiley is a cryptanalysis for government. She works with the country’s national security programs. She broke a code and saved her mother’s life in the first book.

Mercy, a seven year old has been kidnapped by The Order, a secret society. She is being forced to figure out the secret codes of Stonehenge for Mercy’s life.

This was just an okay read for me. Some of it is confusing for sure. I felt this was somewhat slow as well. I do enjoy Jess Lourey’s later works and will definitely read more by her, I’m just not a huge fan of secret code books, example…. The Da Vinci Code. If you are fan of those types, this might be one to check out!

I’d like to thank Thomas& Mercer, NetGalley and Jess Lourey for the opportunity. All opinions are my own. Publication date for the kindle edition is March 26, 2024.
3 ⭐️

Just like the first book in this series, I felt like the story was missing an element. I enjoyed this one slightly better than the first, but just didn't love it as I had hoped to. Jess Lourey is a good author though, and I would try some of her other titles in the future.

While this one was better and more interesting to me than the first book, I still can't say that I enjoyed it. I want to love the code breaking vibe of this series, but it just is not my speed. I will say, I would recommend this book to some of my more "analytical" reader type friends, but again that is just not me. Overall not bad, but just not for me.

Thanks @netgalley and Thomas & Mercer for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. This was the second book in the series, and I couldn’t put it down. Some returning characters, interesting historical facts, and a cliff hanger at the end of every chapter. I did guess the twist, but I wasn’t sure if I was right. Definitely check this one out when it’s released at the end of the month. A ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫 read. #avivaandfriendsrecos

They said the code was unbreakable, but they hadn’t met Salem Wiley! It took me a while to read this book because I wanted to research the historical places and objects as they were mentioned. It was about 75% fiction and 25% history lesson. The characters are entertaining and well-drawn. There are plenty of surprises and plot twists. I didn’t identify the villain before the reveal, and I was stunned. I enjoyed this book and am looking forward to more by this author. I received a complimentary copy of this book and chose to write a voluntary, unbiased review.

This was a great book. I loved every paragraph, every sentence and every word of this masterpiece! I read it in 12 hours, which is a lot for me to do! It had everything and more laid out in the novel! I sure hope There is more to come from this author! I am totally hooked!

Mercy’s Chase continues Salem’s story from Salem’s Cipher, do read in order! Salem is once again trying to crack the codes to protect the world from the ancient secret conspiracy, working with government and visiting the UK.

It’s interesting to see an author’s previous styles, but I much prefer Jess Lourey’s small town secrets and empathetically written dark crime thrillers.

I enjoyed this more than Salem’s Cipher, the scene was set, I knew the characters and the framework so it was less of a shock to my system. That being said I’m looking forward to getting back to Jess Lourey’s newer works.

Curiosity it’s got me reading these two books, if you enjoy Da Vinci Code-esque quests with centuries of secret history then then these might be the books for you.

Thanks to Netgalley and Thomas & Mercer

Just as Jess Lourey always does, she DELIVERED! This duo of books keep me so engaged I read them in a rush over a weekend. They were so good I felt like I was watching a movie!

Book 2 in the series, and I enjoyed it just as much as the first. I do think you need to start with the first book to know what’s going on. Loved the multiple points of view and fast-paced action. Definitely a fun read!

My thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this book.

I read both Salem Wiley books consecutively and am glad I did. I think I would have been confused or not have understood the full story and relationships reading them independently.

Mercy's Chase continues Salem Wiley's work on behalf of The Underground, an organization of women that has been racing to uncover the key to a long-held secret that will reveal a world-changing truth. While Salem worked side-by-side with her best friend, Bel Odegaard, in the first book, the people close to her in Mercy's Chase are a mystery in and of themselves, which makes the book an even more interesting read. It was also interesting to see Salem's personal growth between the two novels; she seems stronger and more self-reliant, more in control of the anxiety that plagued her through the first book. As with Salem's Cipher, this book has DaVinci Code elements that require Salem to use her cryptanalyst skills, but she also faces more physical challenges. I figured out an important piece of the puzzle well before the end of the book but kept reading, because the author slips in quite a few red herrings across the board. This was an exciting, fast-paced read for me, well-researched and suspenseful.

Edgar Award nominated Jess Lourey has recently written acclaimed thrillers mostly set in small town Minnesota locales, but she also has a backlog worth investigating. “Mercy’s Chase” is a sequel to “Salem’s Cipher” a thriller featuring witches, a secret world overlord organization, and a lot of codes and ciphers akin to a Dan Brown novel. The same characters return in the second novel and although you could read this as a standalone, I think it’ll be easier if you’ve “Salem’s Cipher” and enjoy the continuing ride with “Mercy’s Chase.” Both of them are being re-released in March 2024, through Thomas and Mercer, part of Amazon Publishing.

Most of the well-written characters return (they really did get rid of a few villains the first time around). This isn’t an immediate follow up to the timeline, so Salem has moved to a new position working within the government in the highly secretive cryptanalysis unit “Black Chamber.”

Lourey has an action-packed story with plenty of secrets to solve and codes to decipher along the way, including the mystery of Stonehenge. I loved the follow up to the first book and there’s room to bring back the major characters in the future. 5 stars!

Literary Pet Peeve Checklist:
Green Eyes (only 2% of the real world, yet it seems like 90% of all fictional females): NO “Five Eyes,” yes; green eyes, no.
Horticultural Faux Pas (plants out of season or growing zones, like daffodils in autumn or bougainvillea in Alaska): NO But I loved when talking about the fact that roses have been around for 35 million years and seem to be just a fancy for women, there’s this quote “Men build towers and walls. Women plant flowers. You see which stands the test of time.”

Thank you to Thomas & Mercer and NetGalley for a free advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review!

Salem just survived her cross country trek to solve cyphers and find her mother and now she has been recruited by the FBI and is in England as a cryptologist. ARC from NetGalley.

Having surived her last adventure, Salem finds herself working for a secret US government group breaking codes and working on a crypto program she has designed. Set in England, Salem is once again tasked with deciphering hidden messages and finding clues that are older than Stonehenge in an attempt to find and rescue Mercy. Mercy is a young girl who we are introduced to in Salem's Cipher and seems to have a vital role in the secret societies.

As Salem treks through England, Scotland, and Ireland, the reader is left wondering if time will again be on her side and who is actually on her side versus who is a hidden mole.

Overall, I enjoyed this story, but felt it fell a little short in comparison to Salem's Cipher. I really liked the points that touched on Stonehenge and liked that it was set in countries I hope to one day explore.

I like this one ok but her newer books are so much better. She does have a way of crafting plot and characters that draw you in and keep you guessing