Drums of Autumn (Outlander #4) by Diana Gabaldon

Author: Diana Gabaldon
Publish Date: August 28, 2001
Website: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/3617.Diana_Gabaldon
ISBN: 9780385335980
List Price: $15.34
My Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

Jacket Synopsis: 
It began at an ancient Scottish stone circle. There, a doorway, open to a select few, leads into the past—or the grave. Dr. Claire Randall survived the extraordinary passage, not once but twice.

Her first trip swept her into the arms of Jamie Fraser, an eighteenth-century Scot whose love for her became a legend—a tale of tragic passion that ended with her return to the present to bear his child. Her second journey, two decades later, brought them together again in the American colonies. But Claire had left someone behind in the twentieth century—their daughter, Brianna....

Now Brianna has made a disturbing discovery that sends her to the circle of stones and a terrifying leap into the unknown. In search of her mother and the father she has never met, she is risking her own future to try to change history ... and to save their lives. But as Brianna plunges into an uncharted wilderness, a heartbreaking encounter may strand her forever in the past ... or root her in the place she should be, where her heart and soul belong....

My Comments:
Another good book in the series. This book now involves several more characters and more depth to these characters as we learn more about who they are and how crucial their role in the time travel events is. We learn more about who Brianna is and what she discovers about her mother and father. How she accepts and loves both her fathers as well as reasons she needs to get to her mother.

The historical fiction genre is just my cup of tea (no pun intended). I love the historical facts that are shared in this series along with the love story and drama that unfolds. Claire, Jamie, Brianna and Roger are all main characters at this point. The vivid writing continues throughout the series thus far and I have enjoyed traveling with these characters basically around the world.

Looking forward to the next book of adventures and Jamie & Claire!

The Fiery Cross (Outlander #5) by Diana Gabaldon

Author: Diana Gabaldon
Publish Date: August 30, 2005
Website: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/3617.Diana_Gabaldon
ISBN: 9780440221661
List Price: $7.85
My Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

Jacket Synopsis: 

The year is 1771, and war is coming. Jamie Fraser’s wife tells him so. Little as he wishes to, he must believe it, for hers is a gift of dreadful prophecy—a time-traveler’s certain knowledge. Claire’s unique view of the future has brought him both danger and deliverance in the past; her knowledge of the oncoming revolution is a flickering torch that may light his way through the perilous years ahead—or ignite a conflagration that will leave their lives in ashes.

My Comments:
We are thoroughly involved in the life and families of Fraser's Ridge. Just as you think the American life on the Ridge is going to slow down and let the family have happy times, it is not meant to be. Almost every major character is involved in some major drama in this book of the series. The American Revolution is looming in the near future. Claire and Jamie are doing their best to prepare. Does it mean the family stays together or should some time travel to be safe?

What can Brianna and Roger share with Jamie to help him better understand what is coming and how to best prepare the families on the Ridge? Should they try to change history again in any way shape or form? Or should they focus on making sure their family is safe with the changes coming?

Another vivid adventure for our main characters and all that we continue to discover about the past with family history of Culloden.

Undead and Unworthy (Undead #7) by MaryJanice Davidson

Author: MaryJanice Davidson
Publish Date: June 24, 2008
Website: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/1429808.MaryJanice_Davidson
ISBN: 9780425221624
List Price: $7.99
My Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

Jacket Synopsis: 
Betsy Taylor thought entering the world of the undead was a big adjustment. Being a new bride isn't much easier. The blush has only been on for two months, and Betsy has a lot to do: set up the new house, finish writing thank-you notes, and raise BabyJon, her half brother and legal ward. Just another happy American family adjusting to marital bliss.

Betsy's husband, Sinclair, has been perusing the Book of the Dead, and Betsy's visited by a ghost who's even more insufferable, stubborn, and annoying in death than she was in life. She not only blames Betsy for her condition but insists she fix it. It's all just a prelude to the fun and games awaiting Betsy and Sinclair when a pack of formerly feral vampires, hungry for blood and power, pays a visit to the happy couple.

My Comments:
Another great book in the series...although sad when part of her eclectic crew appears to have been done in and sent to the great beyond. More drama for the Vampire Queen and as exciting as the first six... I cannot wait for book 8 and 9!

Voyager (Outlander, #3) by Diana Gabaldon

Author: Diana Gabaldon
Publish Date: August 7, 2001
Website: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/3617.Diana_Gabaldon
ISBN: 9780385335997
List Price: $7.99
My Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

Jacket Synopsis: 
Their passionate encounter happened long ago by whatever measurement Claire Randall took. Two decades before, she had traveled back in time and into the arms of a gallant eighteenth-century Scot named Jamie Fraser. Then she returned to her own century to bear his child, believing him dead in the tragic battle of Culloden. Yet his memory has never lessened its hold on her... and her body still cries out for him in her dreams.

Then Claire discovers that Jamie survived. Torn between returning to him and staying with their daughter in her own era, Claire must choose her destiny. And as time and space come full circle, she must find the courage to face the passion and pain awaiting her...the deadly intrigues raging in a divided Scotland... and the daring voyage into the dark unknown that can reunite or forever doom her timeless love.

My Comments:
I love historical fiction and book #3 is another great book in this series. Claire must decide between her daughter's time and Jamie's time now that she has discovered he survived Culloden. Again, the writing in this series continues to draw the reader into a different time and place. You can see the castles, villages, and scenery that is being created in this book. It is always vivid enough that the reader can hear, smell and feel the world being created.

The characters continue to develop in this book along with Claire learning what has happened in the time she has been gone.

I don't know what decision I would make in having to choose to leave my child and have the chance to return to the love of my life. It seems Claire made the decision pretty easily, but I know I would have had a much harder time making that choice.

I am a history nut, so reading this series is just a huge adventure for my imagination in how things really were. I love the way that Claire uses her 20th century medical knowledge to help her in the past. It is always interesting to see how she brings future knowledge to help in the past.

A Breath of Snow and Ashes (Outlander #6) by Diana Gabaldon

Author: Diana Gabaldon
Publish Date: August 29, 2006
Website: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/3617.Diana_Gabaldon
ISBN: 9780385340397
List Price: $15.13
My Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

Jacket Synopsis: 
Since the initial publication of Outlander fifteen years ago, Diana Gabaldon’s New York Times bestselling saga has won the hearts of readers the world over — and sold more than twelve million books. Now, A Breath of Snow and Ashes continues the extraordinary story of 18th-century Scotsman Jamie Fraser and his 20th-century wife, Claire.

The year is 1772, and on the eve of the American Revolution, the long fuse of rebellion has already been lit. Men lie dead in the streets of Boston, and in the backwoods of North Carolina, isolated cabins burn in the forest.

With chaos brewing, the governor calls upon Jamie Fraser to unite the backcountry and safeguard the colony for King and Crown. But from his wife Jamie knows that three years hence the shot heard round the world will be fired, and the result will be independence — with those loyal to the King either dead or in exile. And there is also the matter of a tiny clipping from The Wilmington Gazette, dated 1776, which reports Jamie’s death, along with his kin. For once, he hopes, his time-traveling family may be wrong about the future.

My Comments:
Another great addition to the series. This book keeps the Fraser family in Colonial America and the family events that occur are again like the previous books exciting, heart wrenching, and it continues to be a book I cannot put down. The adventure in this book shows that their time traveling can change historical events to a degree.

As the story continues, we see events unfolding that dramatically change the ability of the family to stay together and certain family members must move or travel for their own safety.

Warning: Tissues, tissues, tissues for the last part of the book.

I thought this book in the series was better than books 4 and 5. Here's to hoping that An Echo in the Bone (Book 7) is just as good!

Dragonfly in Amber (Outlander, #2) by Diana Gabaldon

Author: Diana Gabaldon
Publish Date: August 7, 2001
Website: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/3617.Diana_Gabaldon
ISBN: 9780385335973
List Price: $7.99
My Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

Jacket Synopsis: 
For twenty years Claire Randall has kept her secrets. But now she is returning with her grown daughter to Scotland’s majestic mist-shrouded hills. Here Claire plans to reveal a truth as stunning as the events that gave it birth: about the mystery of an ancient circle of standing stones ... about a love that transcends the boundaries of time ... and about James Fraser, a Scottish warrior whose gallantry once drew a young Claire from the security of her century to the dangers of his....

Now a legacy of blood and desire will test her beautiful copper-haired daughter, Brianna, as Claire’s spellbinding journey of self-discovery continues in the intrigue-ridden Paris court of Charles Stuart ... in a race to thwart a doomed Highlands uprising ... and in a desperate fight to save both the child and the man she loves...

My Comments:
I had no idea the book would go where it went. Wow! I am a fan of time traveling and the super-natural. Book #2 in the series did not disappoint. We learn so much about what Claire has done in 20 years and now her return to Scotland is more than interesting. We wonder what she is about to discover coming back from America after all this time with her college age daughter, Brianna. This is the time she decides she has to reveal the truth about her daughter's past and origins. We also learn a great deal more about Roger and his history, origins, and ties to the family.

When Claire discovers Jaime survives Culloden, what will she do? Will she return to his time and leave her daughter in her own time? What happens when Brianna reads the history of her family? Is the ability to time travel genetic?

I am blazing through these books because the story is just so vividly written and exciting. As the reader, you are completely placed in the character's time and time traveling with them. I love the way Diana Gabaldon writes. She gives her character such unique voices.

Now on to book #3!

Undead and Unwelcome (Undead #8) by MaryJanice Davidson

Author: MaryJanice Davidson
Publish Date: June 2, 2009
Website: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/1429808.MaryJanice_Davidson
ISBN: 9780425227732
List Price: Varies depending on format
My Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

Jacket Synopsis: 
Betsy Taylor has problems that only a vampire queen/suburban wife could possibly understand...such as fifty thousand angry werewolves. That's what Betsy is facing when she takes her werewolf friend Antonia's body to Cape Cod, where the Pack resides at Wyndham Mansion. Because Antonia died in her service, Betsy is alive and well - and wracked with guilt. She has no idea if the Wyndham werewolves will welcome her with fangs or friendship. While Betsy and her husband Sinclair try to make nice, their legal ward BabyJon is freaking out every werewolf he comes in contact with. Meanwhile, Betsy's posse back at the St Paul mansion are not happy. Increasingly frantic emails alert Betsy to her half-sister's increasingly erratic behavior. Looks like the devil's daughter is coming into her own - and raising hell. All in the name of making Betsy's life easier, of course.

My Comments:
Another awesome continuation of the Queen Betsy series. Betsy is non-stop excitement with her crew of crazies, but she certainly keeps things in perspective when werewolves and other evil forces come into play. BabyJohn makes an interesting new character addition as he becomes something that we didn't expect. Good luck Betsy with that "baby". Of course Laura is influenced by her mother again unbeknownst to her and does some really, really bad things. Betsy has to visit the werewolves after Antonia dies and genuinely doesn't know what they are going to do to her... Of course Eric (Sinclair) is her constant support and defender... ah Love! Waiting for book #9 that comes out in July-2010...

Undead and Uneasy (Undead #6) by MaryJanice Davidson

Author: MaryJanice Davidson
Publish Date: June 5, 21007
Website: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/1429808.MaryJanice_Davidson
ISBN: 9780425213766
List Price: $7.99
My Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

Jacket Synopsis: 
Weddings are never easy. But when you're Vampire Queen Betsy Taylor, they can become downright deadly...

In the days leading up to The Big Day, Vampire Queen Betsy Taylor seems to have a full house - and the wedding guests have yet to arrive. Along with her human buddies, there's a ghost, a werewolf, and a Fiend crashing at her place. And though her fiancé, Vampire King Eric Sinclair, conveniently disappears when the conversation turns to seating charts and flower arrangements, he does manage to make his oh-so-sexy presence known at other moments.

Betsy knows the next few weeks won't be smooth sailing - but she never expects just what's in store for her. Cold feet are no surprise, especially with an undead groom. But when Sinclair truly goes missing - and not just to avoid wedding preparations - along with most of her friends and loved ones, Betsy is frantic. Alone and afraid for the fate of everyone she loves, Betsy can't trust anyone as she tries to find them and whoever is behind all the disappearances. And what happens next will shake the foundation of the vampire world forever.

My Comments:
I picked this book up because it was on a bargain stand at the book store, not knowing it was part of a series...by the second page I was hooked and laughing my butt off! I immediately went looking for books 1-5. I found this book hilarious and I can't wait to begin reading from the beginning. Betsy is such a character. She is strong, but naive and so matter-of-fact. If you want a hilarious, mildly sexual vampire series you have got to pick this series up!

Undead and Unpopular (Undead #5) by MaryJanice Davidson

Author: MaryJanice Davidson
Publish Date: May 1, 2007
Website: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/1429808.MaryJanice_Davidson
ISBN: 9780425215999
List Price: $7.99
My Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

Jacket Synopsis: 
With her birthday coming up, Betsy isn't in the best frame of mind to face the powerful European vampires who have finally come to pay their respects. Playing politics is not her strong suit, especially when she finds out her best friend Jessica may have a life-threatening illness. Sure Betsy can save her life by taking it-isn't that what friends are for?-but the choice isn't in her hands.

With her fiancé Eric dodging all the wedding plans, Betsy's plate is full-and not with birthday cake. But who has time to pout? Not even a reluctant vampire queen, who is taking it one high-heeled step at a time in MaryJanice Davidson's creative, sophisticated, sexy, and wonderfully witty series.

My Comments: 
I completely love this series. Betsy is the most entertaining character and her band of misfits is hilarious. How can the following situation not be funny? She lives with her Vampire King, her best human friend, a human doctor, a werewolf, a Fiend, a Ghost who won't leave, and a Zombie has come to visit or attack her... too funny. If you love vampire stories, you have to pick up this series...

Undead and Unreturnable (Undead #4) by MaryJanice Davidson

Author: MaryJanice Davidson
Publish Date: May 30, 2006
Website: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/1429808.MaryJanice_Davidson
ISBN: 9780425210819
List Price: $7.99
My Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

Jacket Synopsis: 
As if she needed yet another reason to shop, Queen of the Vampires Betsy Taylor is in the middle of planning the perfect wedding to drop-dead gorgeous vamp Eric Sinclair. And she’s not about to let little things like death and blood-drinking get in her way.

But all is not bouquets and bridal showers—Betsy is plagued by ghosts who demand her help in rectifying their past mistakes, and a serial killer is on the loose. With his victims all being tall, blond women, Betsy fits the profile exactly…

My Comments:
I love Betsy! She is one of the most down-to-earth, hilarious characters you will ever find as the Queen of the Vampires. She has not yet fully accepted her queenly presence so she still goes about her normal life like when she was alive, but her brood at home is slowly growing to not only include her best alive-human friend, her vampire king/consort, his vampire body guard Tina, her half sister who is the daughter of the devil, a retired vampire slayer, a vampire fiend, and now a ghost... what next zombies... oh yes, zombies! Betsy helps you find the humor in any situation... I love her take on life or death...which ever way you look at it.

If I Stay by Gayle Forman

Author: Gayle Forman
Publish Date: April 2, 2009
Website: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/295178.Gayle_Forman
ISBN: 0525421033
List Price: $9.99
My Rating: 3 out of 5 stars

Jacket Synopsis:
Just listen, Adam says with a voice that sounds like shrapnel.

I open my eyes wide now.
I sit up as much as I can.
And I listen.

Stay, he says.

Choices. Seventeen-year-old Mia is faced with some tough ones: Stay true to her first love—music—even if it means losing her boyfriend and leaving her family and friends behind?

Then one February morning Mia goes for a drive with her family, and in an instant, everything changes. Suddenly, all the choices are gone, except one. And it's the only one that matters.

If I Stay is a heartachingly beautiful book about the power of love, the true meaning of family, and the choices we all make.

My Comments:
This is a cute, quick read. A range of emotions is experienced in her whole 24 hour period to decide to live or die in her purgatory type state. I really liked the story and the idea that we have a choice under certain circumstances to choose life or death from a third party view, contemplating, evaluating and checking the pros and cons of our choice. It was exciting and a book I couldn't put down ... but ... the end was a let down ... not in the inevitable decision Mia makes but in that it was so uneventful and abruptly ends without any emotion (happy or sad)... it just ends. It just seemed to be so much build... memories, decisions, visitors opinions, etc. and then done. I am not interested in picking up the second book to this one. I read the first chapter and "boring"... on to a new book and author.

I liked the writing style of Gayle Forman, but I just wish the ending was more fulfilling ... some kind of closure rather than it seeming that you "have" to go to book two to get that closure... Nope, not doing it.

I am interested in seeing the movie being made about the story to see which way Hardwicke takes it in (same director as Twilight). She always has an interesting interpretations of the book.

Undead and Unappreciated (Betsy Taylor Series #3) by MaryJanice Davidson

Author: MaryJanice Davidson
Publish Date: July 5, 2005
Website: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/1429808.MaryJanice_Davidson
ISBN: 9780425204337
List Price: $7.99 (Paperback)
My Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

Jacket Synopsis:
Fans can't get enough of author MaryJanice Davidson and her topsy-turvy world of the undead with its newly-crowned queen, Betsy Taylor. Now, Betsy continues her reluctant reign while being bedeviled by family secrets...

Most women would love to live as royalty, but Betsy has found that being vampire queen has more problems than perks, except for always being awake for Midnight Madness sales. It may be easy to find blood (yuck) in the dark of night, but try finding a strawberry smoothie. And employees at her nightclub Scratch have been giving her nothing but grief since she killed their former boss. Some people...

But Betsy's "life" takes an interesting turn at a shower for her wicked stepmother, who lets it slip that Betsy has a long-lost half sister. Now twenty years old, this woman just so happens to be the devil's daughter - and destined to rule the world...

My Comments:

Another hilarious adventure of Queen Betsy of the Vampires... I love this series... This is the book she finds out about her long lost (half) sister, who happens to be the daughter of the Devil, but finds that her sister is the #1 Goody-Goody to rebel against her Mother from Hell (lol). She also learns that her step mother is pregnant with a (half) brother and causes her to think of all the human things she is missing out on like being a Mom. However, soon enough more vampire crises emerge and beckon her to save the world again, with help!! Love it!

Undead and Unemployed (Betsy Taylor Series #2) by MaryJanice Davidson

Author: MaryJanice Davidson

Publish Date: August 3, 2004
Website: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/1429808.MaryJanice_Davidson
ISBN: 9780425197486
List Price: $7.99 (Paperback)
My Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

Jacket Synopsis:
Nothing can make Betsy Taylor give up her shoe fetish - even dying and rising as the new Queen of the Vampires. Being royally undead isn't all it's cracked up to be - there are still bills to be paid. And Betsy is determined to live as normally as possible, even if it means getting a job. A "feet" she accomplishes with panache, landing her dream job selling designer shoes at Macy's.

Things couldn't be better - except for her new friends, who keep pestering her while she's on the clock. As if she has time to socialize when there are deliciously sinful shoes to try on - and buy at a discount. It seems that vampires are being murdered in St. Paul, and they're all clamoring for Betsy to do something about it. The worse part is she's going to have to enlist the help of the one vamp who makes her blood boil: the oh-so-sexy Sinclair. Now, she's really treading on dangerous ground - high heels and all...

My Comments:
I totally love this series. Betsy has got to be the most sassy and hilarious character I have read in a long time. She knows she isn't the smartest, but her quips and come-backs are to die for hilarious! In this book, Betsy is now queen of the vampires and has a hard time adjusting to her new "dead life". She sees to it that she maintains a normal life like she would have if she were living. She is desperate to have a job, but unfortunately it is difficult to find a good night job when you are a vampire. So... she stumbles upon a shoe clerks job at Macy's, which by the way is her dream job. She is so into designer shoes like we are into breathing. In the midst of all this she is being stalked by a vampire killer... someone who wants to usurp the thrown?? Hmmm... As Eric and her new entourage of vamps seek to worship her...she wants no part. She just wants to be normal. Sorry Betsy, normal is no more. She is no drama queen and won't put up with it either. However, she continues to encounter some unnatural situations, ie. ghosts, vamp hierarchies! This series is too good to pass up. If you like a strong main character, comedy, romance, and disaster... this series is for you!! On to book 3...

Undead and Unwed (Betsy Taylor Series #1) by MaryJanice Davidson

Author: MaryJanice Davidson
Publish Date: 3/2/2004
Website: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/1429808.MaryJanice_Davidson
ISBN: 9780425194850
List Price: $7.99 (Paperback)
My Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

Jacket Synopsis:

First Betsy Taylor loses her job, then she's killed in a car accident.  But what really bites is that she can't seem to stay dead.  And now her new friends have the ridiculous idea that Betsy is the prophesied vampire queen, and they want her help in overthrowing the most obnoxious power-hungry vampire in five centuries.

My Comments:

This is the most hilarious, edgy, and entertaining book. I had picked up book #6 by accident not knowing it was part of a series and thought it was one of the most hilarious characters I have encountered. I had to start at book #1. Here we are... Betsy is a character unlike I have ever read. She is smart, sassy, comedic, and so sarcastic. I love her quips and sassiness. One of my favorites being that she refers to most morons as "asshats!" She can't seem to grasp her importance now that she is dead being the Queen of the Vampires when she was so insignificant (in her mind) when she was alive. Her journey through this book is nothing but exciting, funny, and sexy! You will fall in love with Betsy and her band of characters! I love the way MaryJanice writes. It is smooth and completely fun!! On to book #2!! If you like the Sookie Stackhouse series, you will love these just as much, if not more!!!

Blue Moon by Alyson Noel

Author: Alyson Noel
Publish Date: July 7, 2009
Website: http://www.alysonnoel.com
ISBN: 9780312532765
List Price: $9.99
My Rating: 4 of 5
Jacket Synopsis:  Eager to learn everything she can about her new abilities as an Immortal, Ever turns to her beloved Damen to show her the way. But just as her powers are increasing, Damen’s are waning.  In an attempt to save him, Ever travels to the magical dimension of Summerland, where she learns the secrets of Damen’s tortured past; a past which he has always kept hidden from her. But in her quest to cure Damen, Ever discovers an ancient text that details the workings of time. Now Ever must chose between turning back the past and saving her family from the accident that claimed their lives—or staying in the present and saving Damen, who grows sicker every day...

My Comments:
In this continuation, Ever struggles with the desire to return to her life before that accident that claimed her family while trying to find a cure to save Damen. She believes her life would be more fulfilled if she were to go back to a moment before the accident and prevent it. However, she knows that her eventual meeting of Damen would not happen in that alternate life path.  Ever has to use Summerland and the knowledge library to seek the information she needs all the while encountering the not-so-trustful twin souls that appear to want to guide her to the right path. She still wishes that she had her ghostly sister, Riley, around, but she is not able to locate her or determine if she made it to the "other side" safely.

Ever spends most of her time trying to figure out Damen's long lost friend Roman and what he wants. Once he transfers to their school, the whole social structure of the school changes and that is when Damen becomes ill. Ever is convinced Roman has something to do with it, but how & why?

The author, Alyson Noel, has a fantastic writing style. She has developed great characters that will cause each reader to seek the next book in this series without a doubt! Shadowland is already here! The mystery that she builds around Damen and the constant page turning to find out what he is and how Ever can now exist in the immortal world. Ever struggles with changing the past and whether it would be the right thing to do. This is a great YA read!!

The Many Deaths of the Firefly Brothers by Thomas Mullen

Author:  Thomas Mullen
Publish Date: January 26, 2010
Website: http://www.thomasmullen.net
ISBN: 9781400067534
List Price: $26.00
My Rating: 4 out of 5

Trailer: Firefly Brothers Trailer

I thought this was an intriguing read about mobsters in the '30s Depression era. It is a story about fictional mobsters known as the Firefly Brothers, Jason and Whit Fireson, who defy the law of "death." They are fairly well known criminals and adored by the public for their heroic deeds of tearing up past due debts of destitute Americans when robbing banks. Unfortunately, they are caught in a wild shoot out and killed, we think! Once I started this read, I could not turn the pages fast enough.

The story starts in 1934 and is action packed with robberies, shootouts, kidnappings, close calls, and wild adventures of being on the run. The Depression is looming and America glorifies mobster figures. When the brothers are caught in a fire fight and are killed, for the first time, the media is on a race to cover the story. As other mobsters like Dillinger and Pretty Boy Floyd are becoming "Public Enemies." The FBI is making mobsters priority #1. After the media gets a look at the bodies of the Firefly Brothers and publishes their demise, somehow they disappear from the morgue without a trace until reports of appearances crop up about the Firefly Brothers showing up in banks and speakeasies again.

The brothers cannot explain how they are still alive and law enforcement cannot explain why and where they are either, so the brothers are on the run. The FBI attempts to cover up the public blunder while searching for them and explain the growing mystery now surrounding the brothers. The brother's fear their new found apparent invincibility, but as old habits and family obligations emerge they can't help but make new plans for bank robberies.

The story gives the reader a great fictional but historical view of the Depression and the impact it had on the American worker, creating Hoovervilles, and the family strife the Fireson's endured.  The author also intertwines the FBI's true misgivings of the time into the Firefly Brothers's story along with references to real mobsters of the day (Dillinger, Baby Face Nelson, Pretty Boy Floyd, etc.). The reader not only follows the escapades of the Firefly Brothers, but how their family members and sweethearts are effected throughout the story. The story weaves in the concurrent stories of the assigned agent to the Fireson's Investigation Team and even J. Edger Hoover.

Mr. Mullen's writing style is thrilling and intriguing. He keeps the reader completely engaged while sustaining the mystery and action throughout the story. I recommend this book to anyone who is interested in '30's Mobster era or even just an action packed, suspenseful read.