May 13th, 2025
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The books of May are here—fresh, fierce, and full of feels.

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Wedding season includes searching for a missing bride�and a killer . . .


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Sometimes the path forward begins with a step back.


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One island. Three generations. A summer that changes everything.


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A snapshot made them legends. What it didn�t show could tear them apart.


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This life coach will give you a lift!


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A twisty, "addictive," mystery about jealousy and bad intentions


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Trapped by magic, haunted by muses�she must master the cards before they�re lost to darkness.


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Masquerades, secrets, and a forbidden romance stitched into every seam.


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A vanished manuscript. A murdered expert. A castle full of secrets�and one sharp-witted sleuth.


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Two warrior angels. First friends, now lovers. Their future? A WILD UNKNOWN.


The Murder Machine

The Murder Machine, May 2025
by Heather Graham

MIRA
Featuring: Victoria Tennant; Jude Mackenzie
320 pages
ISBN: 0778387410
EAN: 9780778387411
Kindle: B0D33KM8SZ
Hardcover / e-Book / audiobook
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"A new AI thriller!"

Fresh Fiction Review

The Murder Machine
Heather Graham

Reviewed by Annetta Sweetko
Posted May 11, 2025

Mystery Police Procedural | Science Fiction Suspense/Thriller | Thriller

A cybercrimes specialist Victoria Tennant and her new F.B.I. partner agent Jude Mackenzie have the task of solving the murder of a woman who was killed in her own home. Or should it be said by her own house? THE MURDER MACHINE is her own home with all its modern systems and AI controlling everything.
 
The truth of the matter is that any of these machines can only do whatever they are directed to do. Someone out there had a reason, the ability and the desire to program the perfect murder. How safe will you feel when death is right at your own fingertips – your phone, your laptop or your iPad?
 
THE MURDER MACHINE is a rather frightening read especially about seeing how much we all depend on gadgets in our everyday life. In fact, with the modern turn to everything AI it is not unrealistic to see THE MURDER MACHINE as scarily possible.
 
Victoria and Jude must dive deep into the cyber world before they meet with a gory death themselves. Not completely comfortable with one another these teammates work to solve these impossible (but scarily probable) deaths.
 
I personally found some of the pages were filled with a lot of technical jargon that did slow the pace, but the storyline itself is intriguing. The working relationship between Victoria and Jude begins rocky and turns romantic and is well-written and believable. Though there were a lot of times that Jude was a bit of a jerk and somewhat unlikeable, luckily for him Victoria let that go. The supporting characters include co-workers in the law field, a dog with an amazing nose for bad guys, and bad guys that you won’t suspect at first though you might dislike them from the beginning.
 
As far as the bad guys in THE MURDER MACHINE, there are varying degrees of bad. Some are just those who think so much of themselves that they are above others – smarter, richer, better than anyone else. The real culprit will take readers by surprise. I even went back and re-read to make sure I didn’t miss a clue or two as I pride myself on my detective ability, but this time I was totally taken unaware.
 
THE MURDER MACHINE is a futuristic thriller that will give readers a scary look into the possibility of where the cyber world could go. The action starts with the first page and ends with the surprising ending.

Learn more about The Murder Machine

SUMMARY

Artificial intelligence meets genuine murderous intent.

This state-of-the-art smart home has everything: a next-generation entertainment system, an ultramodern kitchen where every appliance is online and even a personal AI to control it all. Standing above its owner\'s lifeless body, FBI agent Jude Mackenzie is faced with the daunting task of discovering how the woman was killed by her own home. How do you catch a murderer that doesn\'t leave any fingerprints?

Enter Special Agent Victoria Tennant, whose familiarity with cybercrime reveals the stark truth: a machine can only do what it\'s been directed to. As the number of grisly \"accidents\" begins to rise, the pair must race to uncover the perpetrator even as they find themselves caught in their digital crosshairs! There\'s nowhere to hide when danger may be as close as the very phones in their pockets.


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