Monday, January 18, 2021

The Burden of Hate Book Review & Book Tour Giveaway

I love mysteries--and have been working through a new series on my reading list over the past couple of weeks!  I recently had the opportunity to read and review books from the Annie Collins Mystery series by Helen Starbuck.  I shared my reviews of The Mad Hatter's Son and of No Pity in Death earlier this week--and took advantage of some downtime this weekend to read The Burden of Hate.  Check out the books, read my thoughts, learn about the author & enter for a chance to win a prize in the book tour giveaway at the end of this post!


Book Title: The Burden of Hate (An Annie Collins Mystery) by Helen Starbuck
Category Adult Fiction (18+), 216 pages
Genre Mystery
Publisher Routt Street Press
Release date March 2020
Content Rating: R. Several explicit sex scenes, profanity, medical scenes
 

 
About the Book


How far would you go for someone you love? How much hate would you need to commit murder? Revenge. Hate. Fear. Not exactly traditional wedding gifts. But when convicted killer Ian Patterson escapes from prison, operating room nurse Annie Collins and fiancé assistant district attorney Angel Cisneros are forced to confront these realities head on. Will Ian Patterson’s quest for revenge toward the two people responsible for sending him to prison—Annie Collins and Angel Cisneros—bring them face to face to settle the score once and for all? Find out why Kirkus Reviews calls The Burden of Hate, “A thriller that offers a master class in suspense.”

My Review

The Burden of Hate Pulls from Earlier Books in the Series. If you read my review of The Mad Hatter's Son, you know I struggled a bit to get into the story--then enjoyed the story line. In No Pity in Death, the author picked up where the first book left us and kept a nice pace as she introduced her new mystery and entwined some subplots and side stories. Each novel is a standalone story--but, because the characters and events of previous books revisit either directly or as subplots and memories--it really is necessary to read the previous books in order.  The Burden of Hate is also standalone novel--but it pulls from both books as the main characters face some old threats while encountering their latest mystery.

 

The Burden of Hate Was My Favorite in the Series.  I didn't like Annie much during the first book--but, I enjoyed the author's settings and storytelling style.  The second book continued Starbuck's storytelling and seemed to even-out Annie's shortcomings through her relationship with Angel--and the challenges she faced through the novel.  This book seemed to balance everything well for me.  The pace of the novel flowed well, I enjoyed the author's method of tying the past together and continuing to move her characters forward--and, once again, there was just enough light suspense to  keep me interested from cover to cover.   

 

Would I Recommend The Burden of Hate by Helen Starbuck? After the first book, I wasn't sure about the series--but that has certainly changed as the series progressed.  I enjoy the author's scenes and character interactions--and I look forward to reading more of Annie's adventures.   The mysteries of the series are not overly complex--but they are believable and the author keeps readers interested in the characters' lives beyond the mystery at hand.  Readers should read the books in order as there are many details from past books that play into the current book's story.  If you enjoy light mystery/psychological suspense novels this is proving to be a great series for the reading list!


Buy the Book 

Amazon ~ Audible
B&N ~ BAM 

 

You May Also Enjoy 

Book Title: The Mad Hatter's Son (An Annie Collins Mystery #1) by Helen Starbuck
Category Adult Fiction (18+), 285 pages
Genre Mystery
Publisher Routt Street Press
Release date 2018
Format available for review:  ebook (Gifted Kinde, PDF), audiobook (audible download)
Tour dates:  Jan 13 to Feb 9, 2021
Content Rating: R. Two explicit sex scenes, profanity, medical scenes.


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About the Book

Curiosity killed the cat, so the saying goes, and it may end up killing operating room nurse Annie Collins. Annie’s estranged friend Libby Matheisen needs Annie’s help to discover what is causing her vague, puzzling symptoms. Unwillingly drawn into her friend’s life, Annie must discover whether Libby is really ill or if there is a hidden agenda. Faced with Libby’s apparent suicide, Annie is unable to stop asking questions to uncover the truth about her illness and death. The answers to these questions don’t come without a price, and pursuing the mystery of Libby’s death threatens to end her life as well. Friends change, love betrays, and the end results are never what you anticipate. Find out why the BookLife Prize called The Mad Hatter’s Son “An outstanding debut,” and it was the winner of The National Indie Excellence Book Awards mystery category.

  

 Buy the Book 

Amazon ~ Audible
B&N ~ BAM

 

Book Title: No Pity in Death (An Annie Collins Mystery #2) by Helen Starbuck
Category Adult Fiction (18+), 249 pages
Genre Mystery
Publisher Routt Street Press
Release date 2019
Format available for review:  ebook (Gifted Kinde, PDF), audiobook (audible download)
Tour dates:  Jan 13 to Feb 9, 2021
Content Rating: R. Two explicit sex scenes, profanity, medical scenes.

 

About the Book


Struggling to put her life back together after almost being murdered, operating room nurse Annie Collins agrees to help homicide Detective Alex Frost investigate a troubling number of patient deaths in the ICU step down unit at her hospital. Are the patients succumbing to life threatening illnesses or is someone helping them die? Assistant district attorney and close friend, Angel Cisneros, worries about Annie’s involvement with Frost’s investigation, and his concern escalates after a person from her past contacts her. His feelings for her, which have grown deeper, complicate everything. Dangerous enemies are something Annie and Angel have in common. As they quickly discover, paybacks can be hell.

 
Buy the Book 

Amazon ~ Audible
BAM  

  


Meet the Author

Helen Starbuck is a Colorado native, former OR nurse, and award-winning author of the standalone romantic suspense novel Legacy of Secrets, and the Annie Collins Mystery Series. She loves mysteries, suspense, romance, and any book that is well written. She’s a huge fan of books with independent, strong, women characters and, as Neil Gaiman says, “…stories where women save themselves.”

Connect with the author:
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1 comment:

  1. Angela, thank you for the review of The Burden of Hate and the other books! Helen Starbuck

    ReplyDelete