- Esther’s Gift by Bette Lee Crosby
- Mortal Showdown by Nik Krasno
- Rise of an Oligarch by Carlito Sofer, Nik Krasno
| Esther’s Gift by Bette Lee Crosby
Posted: 31 Dec 2015 04:41 PM PST
Esther’s Gift: The Lei Crime Series
by Bette Lee Crosby
My rating: 5 stars
Series: The Lei Crime Series
Publisher: Kindle Worlds (November 23, 2015)
Publication Date: November 23, 2015
Genre: Contemporary Fiction | Romance
Print Length: 83 pages
Available from: Amazon
In the days before hurricane Iniki hit the island of Kauai the forecasters predicted it would stay south of Hilo. But Esther Ka’awai, a psychic and gifted wise woman of the ancient culture has seen the future. She knows of the devastation that will come to the island. She has warned those she loves; now all she can do is pray.
As she struggles to accept this gift of knowing, Esther discovers that even the most wonderful gift can sometimes break your heart.
A story of love, faith and a belief in the future.
Esther’s Gift by Bette Lee Crosby
 Sometimes you just need a sweet tale of life, respect, love and second chances after heartbreak. When Esther married, the blush of youth and a beautiful future lay ahead on the tropical paradise of Hawaii. Esther is special, she is gifted with the ability to see the future and is careful never to abuse it, respecting its power. When a horrific hurricane plows through her island home, she has time to warn those she loves, but a foolish new resort owner ignores the warnings and both his dreams and the lives of many are gone while his resort becomes a place to fear for the gods were angered.
Years later, older now and widowed, Esther is to be given a second chance at love and life when John, a retired widower purchases the ruined resort and is determined to give it new life, while honoring the customs of the island. Their relationship is one of respect and warmth as John becomes a willing pupil to Esther’s island knowledge and giving heart. What unfolds is something of modern day fairytales and happily ever afters.
Bette Lee Crosby has created a warm and glowing tale of family, love and the belief in honoring traditions instead of bulldozing over them. A quick read,Esther’s Gift is a wonderful break from the stress of the day.
I received this copy from Bette Lee Crosby in exchange for my honest review.
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| Mortal Showdown by Nik Krasno
Posted: 31 Dec 2015 01:43 PM PST
Mortal Showdown
by Nik Krasno
My rating: 4 stars
Publication Date: June 1, 2015
Publisher: Nik Krasno
Genre: Mystery | Thriller
Print Length: 254 pages
Available from: Amazon | Barnes & Noble
Mortal Showdown is an action packed thriller sending the reader on a kaleidoscopic race through violence, sex, scamming and anti-scamming, political upheaval and murder.
Michael (Misha) – a Ukrainian oligarch who was rapidly climbing the Forbes rich list, wakes from a coma caused by an assassination attempt and realizes that he’s in the thick of a multilayered attack on him and his business empire. Making things even worse – among his numerous adversaries is one of Russia’s most influential strongmen. From rich and powerful, Michael very quickly becomes a fugitive, struggling for survival. Counting on his wits and a handful of loyal associates, he searches for a way to even the score with each of his adversaries and to save his country from the Russian bear’s grasp. In order to have the slightest chance in a face-off with his prime nemesis, Michael needs to attack head on, undertaking the greatest risk of his entire life. Unfortunately, the dangerous mission goes wrong from the very beginning… 
Mortal Showdown by Nik Krasno
 He awoke from a bullet-induced coma to find his world in chaos and his life still up for grabs from the sharpest shooter. Mikhail’s fall from grace and financial power is like a freefall from the top of the Empire State Building and now is his time to play catch up and to plan his retaliation, one brutal step at a time. In his world, Mikhail is used to powerful enemies, but nothing prepared him to have to take down a powerful Russian strongman with little to no backing. The life’s breath of his beloved Ukraine hangs in the balance, as does the life of Mikhail’s empire and his kidnapped brother. The Puppet Master seems to be pulling all of the strings, will Mikhail be able to strike faster enough to cut them without becoming another statistic in the battle for power, control and untold wealth?
Once again, politics, greed and the quest for absolute control devalue human life and take us to the seedier side of life.
Mortal Showdown by Nik Krasno continues Misha’s tale with more grit, more danger and more cold-hearted machinations. Mr. Krasno knows how to weave a tale filled with high tension and evil intent. Once again, the lines are blurred between good and evil as flawed characters fight to divide and conquer or to survive and regroup as old politics attempt to overpower the new warriors in industry in a small country still adjusting to its freedom.
I received this copy from Nik Krasno in exchange for my honest review.
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| Rise of an Oligarch by Carlito Sofer, Nik Krasno
Posted: 31 Dec 2015 11:25 AM PST
Rise of an Oligarch
by Carlito Sofer & Nik Krasno
My rating: 4.5 stars
Publication Date: September 30, 2014
Publisher: Neplokho Publishing
ISBN-13: 9780993082719
Genre: Thriller | Suspense
Print Length: 348 pages
Available from: Amazon | Barnes & Noble
When Ukrainian oligarch Mikhail Vorotavich is close to achieving his ambition of topping the Forbes rich list, an assassination attempt leaves him in a coma and his vast business empire rapidly descends into turmoil.
Laying in a hospital bed, Mikhail’s uncensored life story from a poor Jewish boy in communist USSR to disgustingly rich businessman in independent Ukraine, full of corruption, scheming, sex, drugs and violence, flashes in his mind’s eye. He has done it all: racketeering protection, drug trafficking, arms dealing, raiding privatised factories, dodgy infrastructure projects and money laundering.
Aspiring to get legit he moves to London, but behind his new pretended façade nothing really changes. And the higher Mikhail climbs the wider is the circle of enemies that want him dead.
Meanwhile, his partners, in a quest to discover who is behind the attack, stumble upon a conspiracy that, if realised, would change the world order. The mighty adversaries will stop at nothing.
Conspiracies, old scores, powerful enemies and the blurred lines between decency and corruption all surface.
Packed with remarkable characters and exotic scenes, humorous and philosophical at times, Rise of an Oligarch is a thriller set against the background of a young Ukrainian state striving to embrace capitalist democracy.
Rise of an Oligarch is the book that oligarchs do not want you to read.
Rise of an Oligarch by Carlito Sofer, Nik Krasno
 Oligarch: a politically powerful group or person, involving great wealth, wielding great influence and power.
Mikhail was a poor Jewish boy in the communist USSR. He vowed that one day he hold the power so ruthlessly hung over his head. With the demise of the USSR, he grew to become a corrupt and extremely wealthy power in the new Ukraine, a land where money bought alliances from the highest bidders, drugs, arms dealing and money laundering were rampant. At the top of the heap stood Mikhail, but it is a dangerous world, and the top dog was always a target for takeover and death. Would becoming a legitimate businessman change that or would it increase his vulnerability to attack?
An unknown assassin’s bullet nearly ended Mikhail’s dreams, and has left him in a coma, his loyal partners on the hunt to find and destroy the perpetrator uncover a vicious conspiracy against Mikhail, one that must be stopped at any cost as they continue to believe he will awaken and take the reins back for his empire.
Follow Misha’s life from the past to the present and back again as the dark path he followed to the hospital bed he now lies in unfolds in all of its sometimes gruesome, sometimes light-hearted but always intense glory. Have past sins come back to haunt him and deal the death blow of revenge? His story is not a pretty one, but he is not the monster that many fear. Join the trip through a struggling young country as it attempts to embrace democracy in a dark and twisted way. Ukraine’s story is Misha’s story. The question is, how will they both end?
Full of grit and a raw edginess, Rise of an Oligarch by Nik Krasno and Carlito Sofer details one man’s rise from poverty as it details his country’s birth and floundering existence where honor can be purchased, graft runs rampant and guns takeovers are part of the landscape. A fascinating piece of suspense in a world we know little about, prepare to be drawn in as the lines between good and evil are blurred to become the lesser of two evils. Powerful writing, sharp and bold, a definite page turner from start to finish!
I received this copy from Nik Krasno in exchange for my honest review.
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