Prestige: a thrilling suspense story with a hint of romance

Prestige by Marci Bolden is the suspenseful thriller with twists and turns that will keep readers guessing. Troy Buchanan is a Lochlin Private Security team lead. He has never lost a client until now. When Richard Bantam and his wife Sharon are discovered brutally murdered in a safe house, Troy takes their son and runs, fearing for the young boy's life. Meri Osborne left Lochlin and started fresh at Prestige Security and Investigation Services. When Troy, her former teammate, shows up unannounced and asks for her help, she jumps into action. Together, they do all they can to keep the boy safe and discover who killed his parents. Is the killer someone they know? Can they trust anyone, even each other? 

I have been a reader of Marci Bolden’s books for a long time and Prestige is a change of genre for me. However, this story was filled with twists and turns with suspense that kept me glued to the page. It is a gritty, dark story filled with danger behind every corner. There were surprises at every turn and even the culprit was a complete surprise. The characters were great. I enjoyed Troy and Meri and their supportive characters. There is a bit of history and romance between Troy and Meri which adds to the suspense of who can trust whom. If you enjoy a suspenseful thriller with a hint of romance, I recommend Prestige. 

Prestige is available in paperback and eBook

The Selling Point: when even the best of intentions can have harmful results

The Selling Point by Marci Bolden is the second book in the Chammont Point series. In this story, we see the unique Darby Zamora take center stage. She has marched to a different drum. First as an outcast in high school to the brightly dressed free spirit adult, Darby has always worked jobs that suited her unique way of life. Success hasn’t been a sure thing. With many different failed ventures under her belt, she is always looking for and willing to do the next job to reinvent herself. A former bridal seamstress, Darby gave up making custom gowns as her heart was always too big for her pocketbook. Until she comes up with an idea that would make the old new again: The Un-Do Wedding Boutique with the tagline of Her bad luck is Your great deal. Selling dresses online in her bridal consignment shop has been a success. People are lining up to buy the dresses as well as desperate brides are trying to sell their unused wedding items. It is such a success that she is featured on a popular podcast. But Darby is about to pay a steep price as someone takes offense with Darby’s use of her story to sell dresses. She must face the harsh realities of life and business. With the help of her friends, Jade and Taylor, will Darby be able to reassess her business, herself, and find her selling point? 

I loved Darby with her willingness to be so vibrant in a subdued world. But that vibrantness covers a deeply hurt and wounded soul. I related to her story as she tries to justify her actions, insisting she never intended to hurt anyone before realizing that her intentions may have been good, the results still caused pain. Throughout the story, I wanted to reach through the pages and hug Darby and fight by her side as she tries to save her business and ultimately herself. We often think of bullying as a schoolyard problem but adults still suffer from bullying known today as cancel culture. I understood the outrage against her use of the brides’ embarrassing and heartbreaking stories, I didn’t understand the argument against Darby selling the dresses she made for these weddings. But when someone has been so deeply hurt, they will take their pain out on anyone, regardless if they deserve it or not. I also loved the friendship between the three unlikely friends: Jade, the straightlaced, motherly type who is still reeling from her own heartbreak (featured in book 1) and the gruff Taylor, who has had her own share of heartbreak and disappointment (her story will hopefully be featured in the upcoming book 3). Overall, I enjoyed the story of being true to yourself, friendship and finding your purpose. I highly recommend The Selling Point. 

The Selling Point is available in eBook

The Chammont Point series

The Restarting Point, book 1, is available in paperback, eBook and audiobook

The Breaking Point, book 3, coming soon

A Life Without Water: a story of love, loss and forgiveness

A Life Without Water by Marci Bolden is the first book in the A Life Without Water trilogy. It is a story of love, loss and forgiveness. Carol Denman divorced her husband, John, over twenty years ago, remarried and never looked back. But on the eve of what would have been their daughter’s 30th birthday, John comes back into her life with a request that threatens the life she has built. Still dealing with the sudden death of her late husband, she soon finds out that John is sick, very sick. While he still can, he wants to make amends, fulfill promises made and make peace within himself before he dies. To do this, he needs Carol’s help. With the past hovering between like a ghost, Carol and John take a road trip that is decades overdue. Carol must confront the past, the pain and the demons she has spent 20 years ignoring. Will she be able to forgive John before it’s too late? Will the healing they both need finally begin? 

A Life Without Water is my second book by Marci Bolden and with the rave reviews I’ve seen, I was excited to read it. It is a story that I found hard to relate to, although I have experienced child loss but not in the same circumstances that Carol and John did. Carol and John are both characters that are hard to like at times. However, their grief and pain felt very real and so palpable that it lept off the page. I tried to put myself in their shoes and wondered, would I have reacted and behaved that same way? My favorite part was late in the book when Carol and John stop by her mother-in-law’s house . It was there that I cried, smiled and laughed. The ending was a nice wrap up to the story and leads into the next book. Overall, I did enjoy the story despite being hard to relate to and I look forward to reading the other two books in the trilogy. I recommend A Life Without Water. 

A Life Without Water is available in paperback, eBook, and audiobook. 

The Restarting Point: friendships, adventures and starting over

The Restarting Point by Marci Bolden is the first book in her new Chammont Point series. Jade Kelly is an accomplished woman. As a wife, mother of 2 and successful marketing executive, she can now add cancer survivor to her life. While everything seems great in appearances, she realizes that she and her family need to reconnect after the stress of her treatments left Jade and her husband, Nick, basically housemates and her children are almost strangers. Jade is determined to start over, to start fresh with her new chance at life. She schedules a family vacation at a lakefront carbon. When her kids bail and Nick stays home to handle a work crisis, Jade heads to Chammont Point alone. Her vacation turns into a life-altering moment as secrets, lies and old wounds open new adventures and new relationships for Jade. With the help of family and her new found friends, Jade learns that starting over isn’t always what you thought it would be. 

The Restarting Point is my first Marci Bolden book, although I have two of her books from the Life Without Water series on my To-Be-Read list. It is a great story with plenty of drama and humor. Jade was a hard character to care for as she is very blunt and rough, almost that there is no softness to her. I felt for her as she faced certain death and survived, only to be dealt a devastating blow. However, she is surrounded by a wonderful cast of colorful characters that start to soften her rough edges, especially the flashy and outgoing Darby and the flirty Liam Cunningham. She begins to see where she sacrificed too much and the price she paid for those sacrifices. Overall, I enjoyed The Restarting Point and I am looking forward to reading more in the Chammont Point series to find out what new adventures the residents of Chammont Point can get into. I recommend The Restarting Point. 

The Restarting Point is available in paperback and eBook.