Tag: catherine cowles

ARC/ALC Book Review: Across the Vanishing Sky (Starlight Grove #1) by Catherine Cowles

GoodeyReadsLeave a comment

Rating: ★★★★★
Audience: Romantic Suspense
Length: 498 pages
Author: Catherine Cowles
Publisher: The PageSmith LLC
Release Date: March 3rd, 2026
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

He spent a lifetime trying to escape his dark past…but to save her, he’ll wade back into the shadows.

Braedyn Winslow never expected to return to Starlight Grove—the town that took everything from her. Not after her best friend, the one who’d sacrificed so much for her, vanished without a trace. But with a young son to raise and a past that won’t stay buried, Brae is back…and determined to uncover the truth.

She just didn’t count on the brooding, reclusive mountain man living next door.

Dex Archer is the stuff of local legend—silent, rugged, and surrounded by whispers of his and his brothers’ violent father. But Brae sees through the scowl and his parentage to the man beneath: fiercely loyal, unexpectedly kind…and just dangerous enough to protect her when someone starts warning her off her search.

The closer she gets to the truth, the harder it is to stay away from Dex. And as things get more perilous, Brae realizes the only person she can rely on is the one man who swore never to trust again.

Only someone isn’t happy that Brae has been digging, and they’ll do anything to stop her. But Dex? He’ll do anything to save her, even slip back into the dark…

Thank you to Catherine Cowles for the gifted ARC/ALC.

WHAT A GEM.

I would first like to acknowledge how incredible it is listening to the audiobook. There’s duet narration AND multi-cast so getting all of the different voices throughout made my day. I bounced back and forth between the ebook and audiobook and you can’t go wrong in format choice.

Now to the story!! I adored Dex and Brae. Dex brought a sharper and darker edge to the book that I don’t remember seeing in previous CC books. I loved it. I loved how protective and stoic he is but at the sight of Brae needing him, he is a GONER. I just love men down bad. I loved the trust and communication and how they both learned to let down wall together.

And getting to meet all of the brothers and seeing hints at their future partners?? STOOOOOP IT RIGHT NOW. We are in for an incredible series, full stop. I loved the different personalities they brought to the group and those text chats were some of my favorite moments.

I love seeing how CC has developed her suspense across the 20+ books I’ve read of hers. This one had me eagle eying so many side characters and shouting I KNEEWWWWWWW IT when the real villain showed up. I love the layers to the plot and how easy it is to get lost in this writing. With that epilogue I am going to need book two ASAP.

Overall audience notes:

  • Romantic suspense
  • Language: moderate+
  • Romance: 3 open door
  • Violence: high
  • Content warnings: kidnapping, torture, gun violence, loss of loved ones, grief depiction, mentions of PTSD

Instagram || Goodreads || The StoryGraph

Book Review: Beautifully Broken Redemption (Sutter Lake #5) by Catherine Cowles

GoodeyReadsLeave a comment

Rating: ★★★★
Audience: Romantic Suspense
Length: 304 pages
Author: Catherine Cowles
Publisher: Self Published
Release Date: November 9th, 2021
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

She’s hiding secrets.

For Anna, keeping her deepest scars hidden from the world has always been a necessity—from the bruises of her childhood to the mistake that nearly cost her everything. To keep herself safe, she must keep everyone around her at a distance—especially the man who has tempted her since the moment they met.

His demons are taunting him.

Mason has done his best to bury the past by achieving more than he ever thought possible. But even with all of his success, his life feels empty.

When tragedy strikes, Anna is left fighting to protect the only family she has left. And Mason will do anything to keep her and her loved ones safe—even if that means the ring of wedding bells.

But as a new spark ignites between them, someone is watching.

And they’ll do whatever it takes to snuff out that light for good.

GREAT CONCLUSION.

My Catherine Cowles back list quest continues and I loved this ending. Nobody told me this was marriage of convenience and y’all know how much I love that trope!!! I loved Anna and Mason together. Just another protective, sunshine hero who had me in a chokehold.

I do think this book was trying to do a few too many things. There were a LOT of plot points and if it had been dialed back, more moments would have stood out better.

But, I love this found family and small town. I loved all of the suspense and romance. It’s such a great series and I loved getting the epilogue of seeing everyone!!

Overall audience notes:

  • Romantic suspense
  • Language: moderate
  • Romance: 2-3 open door
  • Violence: high
  • Content warnings: child abuse, suicide, murder

Instagram || Goodreads || The StoryGraph

Book Review: Beautifully Broken Control (Sutter Lake #4) by Catherine Cowles

GoodeyReadsLeave a comment

Rating: ★★★★
Genre: Romantic Suspense
Length: 330 pages
Author: Catherine Cowles
Publisher: The PageSmith LLC
Release Date: February 18th, 2020
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

A woman trying to rebuild her life.

Kennedy is doing all she can to escape, to prove that she’s not the monster her father was. A simple life of peace and service is all she needs.

A man haunted by a past he can’t forget.

Cain has buried his demons under layers of control and success. The only thing he needs is his company and his solitude. Certainly not a woman with captivating green eyes filled with ghosts so similar to his own.

He’s a reminder of the life she’s left behind. And she’s a threat to his tightly guarded control. As sparks fly between them, they discover that what they might need most is each other.

But with pasts like theirs…you never know when darkness might descend.

HIGHLY ENJOYABLE.

What I love about being caught up on CC’s latest two series is diving into her back list and realizing THEY ARE ALL HITS. She does not miss. From the beginning. I needed something fast and heated and romantic and this delivered on all fronts. I love a man who has a protective mindset and a woman determined to find balance and joy in her life.

I loved the suspense aspects of this one and I was surprised by the reveal!! I had my eyes on one person and another showed up and I was like WAIT WHAT. My favorite every dang time.

This is swoony, filled with all the best pieces of a found family, and a bit of drama that will have you listening to it in one day like me.

Overall audience notes:

  • Romantic suspense
  • Language: mild
  • Romance: 2-3 open door
  • Violence: moderate
  • Content Warnings: mentions of suicide, kidnapping, weapons violence

Instagram || Goodreads || The StoryGraph

ARC/ALC Book Review: Secret Haven (Sparrow Falls #6) by Catherine Cowles

GoodeyReadsLeave a comment

Rating: ★★★★★
Audience: Romantic Suspense
Length: 470 pages
Author: Catherine Cowles
Publisher: The PageSmith LLC
Release Date: October 21st, 2025
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

The first time I met Kyler Blackwood, he was a bruised and battered boy with fire in his eyes and nowhere safe to land.

Since the first time he kissed me, he was my best-kept secret, my quiet rebellion, my haven in the storm.

But fate forced us apart, making us pretend to be strangers because it hurt too much to be anything else.

Years later, time hasn’t dulled what we felt, has never erased the way we fit. And when Kye’s past collides with my present, everything shifts.

It’s a choice neither of us expected.
A bond that never really broke.
A line we were never meant to cross.

We tell ourselves it’s only temporary, that the arrangement is just a means to an end. But with each passing day, the lie feels more like the truth. And with each stolen touch, Kye feels more like mine. Because some things were never meant to be pretend.

And some dangers are closer than we ever imagined…

Thank you to the author for a gifted ARC and audiobook.

CAN YOU HEAR ME SCREAMING?

Y’all KNOWWW I have been waiting to get my hands on this book and I went absolutely feral when the ARC copy surprised my doorstep one day. Did I then inhale the book? YES AND IT WAS WORTH IT. My highlighters appreciated dragging across the page over and over again because every moment was memorable.

Kye and Fallon have one of the deepest soulmate level bonds I’ve read in a contemporary romance. They scream WE BELONG TOGETHER and when they finally got a moment to try a true relationship between them??? STOP IT. IT WAS EVERYTHING. All of these soft moments over and over that kept showing the 1000+ ways they have loved each other for yeeeeears. I am a puddle.

And we already know how much I love this family and the group chats will be sorely missed. I love the tight connections and the way everyone looks after each other. There were some beautiful moments woven in that made this book sing all the more.

THE SUSPENSE THOUGH. I was so focused on Kyler and Fallon I did not clock the bad person in any way shape or form. I do not recommend reading in the dark in the middle of the night when the reveal happens because you might need to turn the lights on. BECAUSE WHAT.

Gosh. I’m sad this is over but it was worth every minute spent in Sparrow Falls.

Overall audience notes:

  • Romantic suspense
  • Language: strong
  • Romance: 4ish open door
  • Violence: high
  • Content warnings: child abuse, attempted murder, weapons violence, murder, kidnapping

Instagram || Goodreads || The StoryGraph