#Blog Tour #Book Review of Overland by Ramcy Diek #Giveaway @Xpresso Book Tours

Thank you to Giselle from Xpresso Book Tours for inviting me to participate in the blog tour for Overland, a new thriller by Ramcy Diek.

Book details:

Overland
by Ramcy Diek
Published by: Acorn Publishing
Publication date: November 10th 2020
Genres: Adult, Romance, Thriller

Synopsis:

Skyla Overland is proud to work for Overland Insurance, the company founded by her grandfather. She enjoys sharing an apartment with her best friend, Pauline, and is in love with Edmond. Besides one nerve-wracking insurance fraud case in the past, her sheltered life is uneventful and just the way she likes it.

Until one day, everything changes…

Skyla and Troy, the manager at Overland Insurance, are the last ones to leave the office. In the empty parking lot, Troy takes her in his arms. Why would he ruin their easy-going friendship by kissing her, especially since he knows she’s dating Edmond?
Left alone, Skyla hurries to her car, puts on her seatbelt, and glances in her rearview mirror.
The face of a stranger grins at her from the backseat. “How nice to see you again,” he hisses close to her ear.
Regaining consciousness, Skyla finds herself on the backseat of her own car, with her hands tied behind her back.

Is she getting kidnapped? Who is he? And where is he taking her?

Goodreads

Purchase
Amazon / B&N

My thoughts:

Content warnings: sexual violence, mental abuse, exploitation, child abuse

This was a surprisingly quick read, asI felt compelled to keep turning the pages until I got to the end of Skyla Overland’s terrifying ordeal. Skyla has been working for her father’s insurance company for six years. In this time she  has had to deal with a lot of claims. Most of them are genuine. Others are fraudulent and they are the ones Skyla would much rather not work with. Luckily for her, her co-manager Troy is always ready to support and help her. Although Skyla has a boyfriend, handsome, self-assured, almost perfect Edmond, deep down she knows there are some unaddressed feelings between her and Troy. Just before the Thanksgiving, Skyla gets abducted by a stranger  who drives her to a log cabin in woods. To her surprise and utter dismay, the abductor has three young children who have been severely neglected for years. You see the man intended Skyla to become a substitute mother /wife/ domestic help. WhileSkyla may try to fight back or escape, what about the three innocent children. She might be their own hope for salvation and life without abuse. Meanwhile, Skyla’s family keep on searching for and we know it’s only a matter of time she is going to be found.

This is obviously a plot driven novel. Straight from the beginning we get the sense of foreboding that Skyla is in danger and that she isn’t a random victim. Once she is taken to the cabin, we are horrified at what she has to endure to survive these long months. I also appreciated that the author included a part of what happens afterwards. There is also a bit of romance to counterbalance the focus on the kidnapping and survival, although I felt it wasn’t entirely necessary for the story or character development.

Skyla is such a resilient character, strong and independent. She might not have entirely clear ideas about her romantic life, but she’ll get there with time. What I liked the most about her is how she took care of the children and her sense of responsibility. The abductor’s character is more difficult to understand, but, then again, perhaps it is just my mind that refuses to comrehend how a human being, whatever their circumstances and past mistakes are, can do such things to other people, including the most fragile and innocent of them all- children.

The author herself included a few content triggers at the beginning of the book and I really appreciated her thoughtfulness. The story includes some dark moments and it is important to beware of them. If you like fast-paced, plot-driven thrillers with just a touch of romance, try Overland.

Thank you to NetGalley, Acorn Publishing and Xpresso Book Tours for the complimentary copy, provided with no expectation of a favourable review. All opinions are my own and were not influenced in any way.

AUTHOR BIO:

A long time ago, I fell in love with the United States while traveling around in an Oldsmobile station-wagon with my husband. We are both born and raised in the Netherlands.
Together, we eventually found our way to the Pacific Northwest, built up a business, and raised our two boys into amazing young adults with their own careers. During this time, I also made a slow transition from reader to writer of many different stories.

My multiple award winning debut novel “Storm at Keizer Manor” sets the bar high for my second novel, Eagles in Flight.
All my books are stand alone novels in different genres. You might be in for a surprise, or a disappointment.

Author links:
https://www.ramcydiek.com/
https://www.bookbub.com/authors/ramcy-diek
https://landing.mailerlite.com/webforms/landing/c0f3o0
https://www.facebook.com/RamcyDiek/
https://twitter.com/RamcyDiekAuthor
https://www.instagram.com/ramcydiekauthor/
https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/16967126.Ramcy_Diek

Giveaway:
Tour-wide giveaway (INT)

• $20 Amazon gift card

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Thank you for reading the post! If you would like to know what other bloggers thought of Overland, here is the full blog tour schedule:

January 18th
–breen.rb >> Review
–Why I Can’t Stop Reading >> Review
–Movies, Shows, & Books >> Excerpt
–Iron Canuck Reviews & More >> Review
January 19th
–Rockin’ Book Reviews >> Guest post
–The Eclectic Review >> Review
–Rajiv’s Reviews >> Review
–Adventures in Writing >> Excerpt
January 20th
–Sara In Bookland >> Interview
–I’m Into Books >> Excerpt
–Mrs Pope’s Bookshelf  >> Review
–The Phantom Paragrapher >> Review
January 21st
–Cocktails & Fairytales  >> Review
–Reading tonic >> Review
–What Is That Book About >> Excerpt
January 22nd
–Jessica Belmont >> Review
–Valerie Ullmer | Romance Author >> Excerpt
–The Avid Reader >> Review
–underneath the covers >> Excerpt
–Radioactive Book Reviews >> Excerpt
–Live Through Books Blog >> Excerpt