A new feature I’m adding to the blog is profiling the book I’m reading. I’d like to say hold on to your hats, except I’m not quite as prolific a reader as I’d like to be. What I’m currently reading is Hollywood Prisoner by M.Z. Kelly.
Disclosure: this post includes affiliate links, and ff you click on the book title or photo you will be taken to Amazon. If you purchase one of the books, I’ll receive a small commission for the sale.
A few years ago I wouldn’t have thought of replacing my books, the kind you hold in your hands to read and turn real pages. I have a lot of books. After moving a few times, those boxes of books get heavy. A few years ago I got an iPad and I use it almost exclusively for reading using the Kindle app or iBooks.
For the past 3 years I’ve been reading a series written by M.Z. Kelly, the Hollywood Alphabet Series Thriller. Each novel begins with a letter of the alphabet. The first book in the series is Hollywood Assassin, next is Hollywood Blood, then Hollywood Crazy, then Hollywood Dirty, and so on. You get the picture.
I like to read the books in the Hollywood Alphabet series two at a time, a few months apart. I finished reading Hollywood Outlaw a few days ago and I’m now about 25% of the way through Hollywood Prisoner.
The Hollywood Alphabet Series Thrillers follow LAPD homicide detective Kate Sexton as she solves some very violent, high profile murders. It’s a little unusual that I’ve become captivated by this series because police and crime novels aren’t my first choice. I’m more of a cozy mystery reader where there’s less violence, and the heroine stumbles across the dead body without a lot of description on how the body came to be dead.
The first book Hollywood Assassin was extremely violent with many deaths. If this was a stand alone book, I’m not sure if I’d read anything else by author M.Z. Kelly. What brings me back is the relationships Kate has with her police dog, Bernie, best friends Natalie and Mo, and her other friends and co-workers. And of course the very complex crimes she’s involved in.
M.Z. Kelly is a former cop, and he’s the type of guy I’d like to sit down and get to know better. Like how does he think up with these twisted crimes.
If you’re interested in reading the series, Hollywood Assassin is almost always offered for free. Keep checking back with Amazon in case it’s not. Many series authors will offer their first book for free in hopes of keeping readers back to buy the rest of the series. Worked for me!
Although the author might disagree, the Hollywood Alphabet series really should be read in alphabetical order due to recurring themes and characters. For example, Kate is trying to find out who her biological father is, and there’s a terrorist group called The Swarm that keeps popping up. Almost always the author ends the book on a cliffhanger, which is one of the reasons I read two at a time.
I usually wait a few months between readings. The next two in the series are Hollywood Quest and Hollywood Rage. The next in the series will start with S but it’s not finished and up for sale yet. I believe it’s going to be called Hollywood Star. I receive the author’s newsletter, but I don’t remember when the new book will be out. I’m waiting until Hollywood T is released, or date is announced, before I read the next two in the series. As you can tell, he’s running out of the alphabet!
I have a few other books that I’ve purchased and are waiting in the wings for me to read. My reading time is limited. I bring my iPad to the farm when I feed my horses, and read while they eat. I also read when I go to bed to help me fall asleep. The problem is sometimes when I read these crime thrillers I can’t sleep. I have to keep reading to see what happens!
What will I be reading soon? Next up are other books in series that I follow. I’m looking forward to reading All you Need is Fudge, written by Nancy Coco and part of the Candy Coated Mystery series. I recently grabbed it when I noticed it for sale at 99¢ but I’ve been reading other books in my Kindle library first.
What will I be reading after that? Gone Daddy Gone by Cheryl Bradshaw is coming up too. It’s part of the Sloane Monroe Mystery series, and I recently grabbed it when I saw it was on sale for 99¢.
Believe it or not I have more books that are lining up. Some books in the Cookies and Chance Mysteries series that I bought when I noticed them on sale.
What can I say? I’m frugal and love a good deal and a good read!
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Hope you enjoy my recommendations. Happy reading!
Never heard of the book series. I might check it out. I’m currently reading Sycamore Row by John Grisham which is a sequel. I found it in a thrift shop in Glasgow and l’m so glad to have an actual book in my hand again. I love my ibook but l sometimes miss holding a book. That being said..it took valuable space in my handbag :-).
I like John Grisham but I don’t go out of the way to read his novels. I’m more into cozy mysteries but I also like thrillers. You might like the Hollywood Alphabet Mysteries because you lived in that part of the world, but you’ll find it more violent than Grisham. I like holding a book in my hand too, but the iBooks have gotten more convenient and lighter. I hope you write more about your stay in Glasgow. That’s where my mother was born and I’ve visited there a couple of times.
[…] finished reading Hollywood Prisoner a few days ago and now what I’m reading is All You Need is Fudge by Nancy […]