Sally J. Smith & Jean Steffens - Stealing the Moon & Stars - Review & Giveaway

About the Book

Jordan Welsh and Eddie Marino, Scottsdale private eyes, are hired to find out who’s stealing from the Moon and Stars Children’s Foundation. Foundation employees are suspected, but just as the pieces start falling into place, Jordan discovers a hidden agenda that puts her in the crosshairs of a crime lord. Who can she trust?

Everyone has a dangerous secret, and the bodies are piling up. Even her partner, Eddie Marino, has a dark and mysterious past. Does she dare act on their attraction? Will it destroy their partnership?

The two have landed in a hornets’ nest. Nothing to do now but stir it up.

Book one in a new series featuring Jordan Welsh and Eddie Marino.


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My Review

Let me tell you. It was a treat reading about warm and sunny Arizona while toiling through an extremely long and cold winter. Between the desert heat and the sparks flying off of Jordan and Eddie, this book definitely made me feel all tingly inside. It was nice getting a visual of Eddie shirtless out on the patio soaking up the morning rays. It certainly warmed me up in a hurry!

The author duo really did a great job in setting the scene. Jordan's obsession with air conditioning was a nice touch to keep the reader immersed in the arid climate. And I liked how whenever Jordan and Eddie went on their nighttime missions, they always made sure to include a shiver here and there, indicative of how cold it can get in a desert region after dark. These little details added up to form a complete picture, making everything seem so much more authentic and downright real.

I also enjoyed the descriptions of the breathtaking landscape from the beauty of the bordering Superstition Mountains (what a great name!) to being reminded just how dry Arizona can be when Jordan related how the TV weathermen were hoping for some rain but weren't optimistic. Even in October, Jordan was still sweltering while driving around town, tracking down her next lead. The tension crackles right along with the Southwestern heat, a nice device the authors used to establish the mood.

And the way they showed the different rungs of the Scottsdale social ladder was brilliant. The community leaders and criminal kingpins sharing the same real estate for their opulent (and sometimes extravagant) mansions. Nothing demonstrated the duality of this environment like Eddie's character. He's a blue collar guy who drives a Porsche. He splurges taking Jordan out to dinner at a restaurant with a maitre d' and valet parking but he's just as happy sharing a bratwurst sandwich with her from an outdoor vendor. He straddles both worlds, opening up new horizons for Jordan, showing her every facet of society.

It's good training for a girl who went from being a trust fund baby in Chicago to a fine artist in Paris to hacking computers, breaking into safes and picking locks for a living. With Eddie, Jordan gets a true taste of the Arizona lifestyle from the top of the food chain to the bottom and everyone in between. The contrast certainly makes for a page turner of a read, holding your interest right to the very end.

***

Stealing the Moon and Stars can be purchased at:
Amazon

Price/Format: $13.95 paperback
Pages: 242
Genre: Romance, Suspense
Release: May 15, 2014
Publisher: Camel Press
ISBN: 9781603819831
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About the Authors

Arizona native Sally J. Smith lives in Scottsdale with her husband. The rarest of breeds, an adult who was born in Arizona, she has been a writer since she could spell. These days she stays busy at her chosen professions of writing (novels, short stories, and articles) and freelance editing. When a free moment appears on the horizon, she’s out the door to a attend a play, a movie, a concert, or just take a long walk in the desert—if the temperature’s under a hundred. Other works include The Ghost Wore Polyester.

Jean Steffens also lives in Scottsdale with her family. She’s a mother, reader, movie fan, and the Steffens’ family chauffeur. She’s also active in church activities. Like Jordan Welsh, PI, Jean grew up in Chicago near Lake Forest. Jean’s mother, however, was nurturing—baking cookies, carpooling kids to school, kissing boo-boos—unlike Jordan’s mother, who’s allergic to the kitchen and thinks a carpool is a hot tub in a limo. Jean’s published work includes “The Night Before Christmas” in the Desert Sleuths Sisters in Crime Anthology, How Not to Survive the Holidays.

Work sessions between these two ladies generally result in a lot of laughter, noshing, and Internet surfing. Both authors are members of Romance Writers of America and Sisters in Crime.

Links to connect with Sally and Jean:
Web Site
Blog
Facebook
Twitter
Goodreads
YouTube
Blog Tour Site


About the Giveaway

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