Book 2), Gone to Her Grave (Rogue River Novella

Enjoyed the whole series of Books. I live within 80 miles of the Rogue River and have taken the Jet Boat ride several times. Familar with the surrounding towns they mentioned ! The characters and story line where believable ! Yes I liked them !

The is the second entry in the Rogue River series, featuring a collaboration between two of my favorite writers, Melinda Leigh and Kendra Elliot.

Gone to Her Grave focuses on Carly Taylor, to whom we were introduced in the previous entry. Carly, Stevie's little sister, is a social worker who is currently separated from her husband, investigator Seth Harding. Carly has a soft-spot for the used and abused of the small town of Solitude, OR. The town has recently been infiltrated by a dangerous illegal drug operation. The drug has already claimed the life of a local teen and now another teen is being accused of drug dealing. Carly believes the teen is innocent and sets out to prove it.

Seth is none-too-happy with his estranged wife's calling to help the less fortunate, as it puts her into dangerous situations. He would rather she choose a different line of work or just stay home and be mom to their daughter, Brianna.

Again, it's no surprise that the characters are well-developed. I will say that while I found Carly very likable, I really didn't care that much for Seth at all. I get that he worries about his wife, but he is a police officer - he's in just as much if not more danger everyday. Why is that different? I think that I needed more history on Seth to really get to know him and root for him and Carly to reconcile.

Some favorite moments:

• Small town rule #4: Childhood isn't complete without farm animals and 4-H.
• "But you can't say that you love her while you're trying to change who she is. I think you need to ask yourself if you really love Carly or if you've cast her into a role that you love."

Highly recommend.

© Angela Risner 2014. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from the store or Angela Risner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Angela Risner with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.

The second instalment of the Rogue River Novella series, focuses on Stevie’s sister, Carly. Carly is a spunky social worker for Child Protective Services who is passionate about her work and family.

Kendra Elliot and Melinda Leigh are the co-authors of this series. Kendra’s novellas focus on Stevie and Melinda’s on Carly. Both authors seem to be quite compatible and the writing across the two novellas, so far, flows seamlessly.

The main storyline for Gone to Her Grave pivots around a case of domestic abuse. Carly has to figure out exactly what is going on behind closed doors and decide how best to help. One of the family members potentially plays into the bigger drug mystery and that’s where Seth comes in. During his investigation, he crosses paths with his ex-wife several times.

On the romance front Seth and Carly still love each other and are tied together through their young daughter Brianna. Will Seth be able to accept Carly’s commitment to her job and the danger she’s sometimes in?

For a novella, we get a good glimpse at Seth. We see his strengths and his flaws. His love for Carly is evident and his attempt at changing his mindset is believable.

Concerning the bigger mystery, the investigation into the new drug moves forward with the discovery of new details and the emergence of new suspects. Characters from the first novella are mentioned and considered as well.

My favourite part:

The family interactions in the bigger Taylor family and in the smaller Harding unit.

My least favourite part:

I would have liked a firmer resolution or path forward between Carly and Seth.

Overall, this second instalment was strong. It built on the first part, offered a more complete mini-story and set the excitement of the next in the series.

I received a copy of this novella from the publisher via NetGalley for an honest review.

While I really enjoyed the first installment in this series I thought the lack of conclusion in this book was more pronounced than the former.

The Good: I liked the suspenseful moments where Carly was making home visits to a family in a really bad situation. This smacks of realness and it made me identify with Carly and the fact that she didn't run headlong into danger was a plus. I liked seeing Stevie once again even though she had a very small part in this book.

The Bad: The continuing storyline that connects all four novellas in the Rogue River series didn't really move forward even though the death of Carly and Stevie's dad is being investigated now. If it weren't for the rehashing of the big bad drug craze happening in the small town there wouldn't have been much to connect the two stories.

Also, the romance was problematic because Seth and Carly are married yet separated throughout the entire book. There was huge communication issues between the two because of Seth. I couldn't connect with him because he was a macho-my job is more important than yours is-jerk. I could see how they might be able to work it out but only if Seth does some major soul searching and changes his attitude. A novella just didn't give a warring couple time to work out their differences.

In a Nutshell: I'm invested in Rogue River and will continue reading the next two books.

Recently I read, and reviewed the first in this series of four novellas, On Her Father’s Grave, and really liked it. That one was written by Kendra Elliott, who will also write the third one. This one was written by Melinda Leigh, who will also write the last one. Not only are these romances, but they are also mysteries, or as I like to call them, women in jeopardy books.

Carly is a social worker, and is the sister of Stevie from the first book. That means, she too, has just lost her father a few months before. She is separated from her detective husband, Seth, and lives in the guest cottage near her parents home, with her little girl. She’s an extremely caring person, and drops everything when there is a child in need. Her husband does the same thing, only for crime scenes. With him though, it’s a double standard, and he feels like she should be a stay at home mom, and thinks his job is more important then hers. To be honest, that didn’t endear me to him, in the least.

The premise is pretty similar to the last book. There’s a new deadly drug that’s been introduced into this small town, and more then several teenagers have died in the county. Now a woman is in a coma, due to taking the drug she finds in her son’s things. Not exactly the best mother material here. The son, Peter, blames Russ, the son of the man that was dealing the drug from the last book. Carly doesn’t believe Peter. There’s also another storyline that involves a drunk, that treats his family really bad. Carly gets right in the middle of both cases. Of course, Seth gets involved too.

As before, the novella was a really fast read. Since it has a lot of the same characters, and part of the same premise, it almost felt like just a continuation of the previous book. I know that it is, but even though it was written by a different author, it really didn’t feel like the author had changed, which I guess is a good thing. So that was a plus, as was the very likable characters-not talking about the villains here, of course.

The only problem I had with this novella was the end part, it just reminded me too much of the last book, and I noticed it immediately. Maybe if I hadn’t just read the other novella, it wouldn’t have stuck out as much for me. Certainly, i can’t say this was a big problem for me. Something else, not really a problem, but I don’t understand the title of the book at all. Maybe that’s just me.

I recommend this to romance/mystery fans, probably ages 16 plus, due mainly to violence.(PureTextuality.com)

Well now, book two was much more exciting and riveting. It started with some minor action and escalated from there to some heart stopping “Oh no! Gasp!” action.

The featured characters in this book is social worker Carly Taylor and her estranged husband, county sheriff’s investigator, Seth Harding. Yep! They are having marriage issues, to the point she has moved to the Taylor family ranch with their daughter Brianna.

What I found most interesting about his chapter in the Rogue River Saga, is that the author didn’t focus on the family dynamics to the exclusion of the ongoing story. The dynamics were cleverly woven into the mysteries surrounding this rural community.

This chapter of Rogue River underlines that this a serial, not a series. Everything in the books are related. Nothing is as yet resolved. A few questions have been answered, but even more have been asked and things look even murkier.

Where On Her Father’s Grave was all about the world building and introducing characters, this one brings the reader further into the mystery of what is happening in this once happy little community. The mystery goes much deeper than anyone realized at first and seems to involve unsuspected folks.

I anxiously await the next chapter. How did I get myself wrapped up in a serial? Maybe because I love mysteries and I want to see how this one gets resolved. This second novella has definitely hooked me.

I was provided a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This is the second book in the Rogue River novella series by Kendra Elliott and Melinda Leigh. I don't recommend reading this as a standalone although it is possible to do so. In the first novella, we got the beginning of Stevie's story. This story is the beginning of the story of Stevie's sister, Carly, and her estranged husband, Seth. It almost feels like going back in time since some of the events in this book are occurring at the same time as events from the previous book. We just get to see what was happening in other parts of town and in other people's lives. There were a few new views on mysteries from the first novella and also some new clues. I really liked Seth and admired his dedication to his family even though he was acting a bit caveman. Carly was very stubborn and resistant to Seth even though she obviously still loves him. In the end, however, when the danger is greatest, Carly turns to Seth and trusts he will keep her safe.

I enjoyed this novella and am glad Net Galley provided an opportunity to read and review it.

This second Rogue River novella is action-packed. Carly Taylor is a social worker who is currently separated from her husband Seth who is an investigator for the County Sheriff's office. Their main source of conflict is Seth's desire to protect her and his feeling that his work is more important than hers.

Carly is immensely busy in this story. She is concerned for Tammy Fisher and her four kids because Darren Fisher is a drunk who abuses his family. Carly tries to get Tammy to ask for assistance by Darren has her so cowed that she won't. She is also involved when Russ Warner is arrested for drug dealing and a possible homicide. Russ was introduced in the previous story when his abusive father attempted to kill Zane and Stevie.

Russ is accused by another teen - Peter Rollins - of selling him the same drug that has been plaguing the county and has been responsible for a number of deaths. The one thing about this story I had trouble believing is that Peter's mother would take the drug away from Peter and then take it herself. The fact that she is in a coma and might die is what sets Russ up for a murder charge. Carly believes Russ when he says that Peter is lying and both Zane and Seth think so too after questioning Peter. But Peter is supposed to be a good kid from a good family and Russ's dad was a drug dealer.

Besides the relationship issues, Carly is in real danger when Darren goes out of control. Being rescued by Seth who has had some tough love from Carly's mother may give them the opportunity to rebuild their relationship.

We still don't know who is making and selling the drugs in town. We do learn that Carly's father's death is going to be looked at more carefully. It is possible that it wasn't a heart attack that killed the healthy 59-year-old. I am also still wondering where Roy Krueger disappeared to. He was the police chief briefly after Carly's father died but left town abruptly when Zane took over. I'm also wondering what is going on at the resort Faye O'Rourke is building.

I can't wait to read the third and fourth books in this quartet to finally have my questions answered.

My Review:
The situation between Seth and Carly is painful to read. It's not that they don't love each other anymore...that was never the issue. No, Seth doesn't respect the job Carly does as a social worker. He wants to change her which has put them at an impasse...one that isn't overcome in this particular installment of this interesting series.

What is accomplished in this book is that the reader gets to know both of them better, their jobs within the legal system in Solitude, and there are more clues revealed about the new, very dangerous drug that has made itself into this tiny town.

Although there isn't any resolution for Seth and Carly in this book, it was still a good read. I'm liking the way the authors have put this series together. Carly and Stevie are sisters and are the two main heroines within the four books. There are two couples: Stevie (cop) and Zane (chief of police)- written by Kendra Elliot...and then Seth (cop in charge of the new drug task force) and Carly (social worker)- written by Melinda Leigh. All of them are heavily involved with the effects of this new drug and with the death of Stevie and Carly's father (who was the former chief of police) looking more and more suspicious, things are definitely getting more intense in this little town.

I'm pulling for Seth and Carly. I like them both as individuals and want them to have a future together. I'm definitely anxious to see how Melinda Leigh accomplishes that and to find out more about what's happening in this small town. The books are short, but I don't feel that they are lacking in either the suspense element or the entertainment value. I'm liking the series!

I received a complimentary copy of this book in return for an honest review.

In the second novella in the Rogue River series, author Melinda Leigh takes over from Kendra Elliot. The story revolves are a Carly and Seth, a married couple who have been separated and are about to enter divorce proceedings Carly is a social worker who is working primarily with young people and her husband is with the County Sheriff department on a Drug joint task force. The story is about how these two might possibly be able to work out their differences - which appear enormous and insurmountable.

The mystery of the maker and distributor of a new type of recreational drug is still unknown - but more people have died after ingesting it. There are accusations and arrests. Some of the story involves violence against women and children and is a little tough to read. However, the author does a great job of crafting the second part of this story and moving it forward. I enjoyed it even more than I did the first story - in great part because I already knew the characters and could follow it whereas the first story spend more time introducing the individuals.

I plan to read the third and fourth entries and expect that I will enjoy reading them as much as the first two. I received this advance reader novella from the publisher through Netgalley.

This is the second novella in the series and from page one I was drawn into Carly's world. Working for Social Services has to be one of the hardest, most heart wrenching jobs a person could have. It truly takes someone with a big heart, a strong will power and brass balls (no matter the gender) to step foot into someones life and determine if you can help them. And then to do just that.

Carly's job is not easy. Families depend on her, whether they admit it or not. When she comes across Darren adn Tammy's family after a middle of the night call her world starts to spiral into the unknown. Kids and now adults are dropping like flies all around the county thanks to the new drug now called C-22. Seth, Carly's so to be ex husband is assigned to the new drug task force and is now on the case. Carly and Seth literally can't be around each other without fighting. He's a caveman, she's a stubborn woman and they are like a hot stick of dynamite when together. (Though I think that could change.)

I can't give away all the little goodies of this story so you will have to pick it up and read! Trust me when I say this is so worth the read. It's fascinating, heart throbbing and a well written mystery wrapped in awesome.

This is the 2nd instalment in the Rogue River series and it's Melinda's first offering to the series.

Things are really heating up in Solitude and the Taylor family are once more in the middle of it! Carly Taylor is a social worker who we briefly met in the first book and now it looks like some of her clients may be involved in the sale and distribution of the designer drug that has been causing so many problems for the town and surrounding cities. Carly has the same tenacity as her sister and she keeps digging trying to get to the bottom of the case, trying to figure out exactly what is going on, but she just seems to be getting herself into even more trouble. Seth Harding, is an Investigator and also Carly Taylor's estranged Husband. Can he do his job and keep Carly safe?

Tensions are high and the mystery is deepening, each books gives us more little clues and insights into what is going on and the story is starting to unravel. Kendra and Melinda have complimentary writing styles and I am thoroughly enjoying this series. The next two books are sure to be interesting and I can not wait to find out exactly what is going on in Solitude!

ARC received from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

Enjoyed more time in Solitude with different characters in this ongoing mystery. Of course, now i have to read the next one!

Even thought books are by different authors, you don’t lose the flow or the storyline. I really like that the read and listen kindle unlimited currently applies to this series and several other books by these authors.

Totally can spend the day in Solitude and still get stuff done.

More secrets……darker and deeper……murky waters and evil…..web of evil getting tighter and tighter……

And that is how the second book in the Rogue River Series, “Gone To Her Grave”, embroils us into more questions than answers. Innocent lives seem to be threatened, and an unknown drug has the town of Solitude in a grip of danger and death.

Carly Taylor, a social worker in Solitude goes to the rescue of a teen caught in a vicious grip of murder and drugs. Against her estranged husband’s word, Seth Harding who happens to be running the investigation, Carly gets caught in the crossfire of danger with no resolution to the issue.

Seth Harding loves his wife more than anything in the world, and constantly lives with the fear of losing her. He can’t seem to understand Carly or her desire to protect these troubled children, and this been the bone of contention separating them in marriage. But now with Carly in danger, and the town in the grips of an unknown drug, Seth is going to do his damn best to make sure Carly stays alive, with him forever no matter what.

Co-written by Kendra Elliot and Melinda Leigh, experts of suspense and thrillers, Rogue River Series is a four-part novella, taking us into the dark side of Solitude. With emotions and danger on the rise, passion and relationships tested, and strange deaths and disappearances on the menu, “Gone To Her Grave” leads us into the third book of the series….with more menace and peril.

Received an ARC via Netgalley for an honest review