Jump to ratings and reviews
Rate this book

Blackmoore Sisters #5

Deadly Intentions

Rate this book
What really happened to Johanna Blackmoore seven years ago? Jolene Blackmoore has been asking that question about her mother’s mysterious death for a long time ... and now she’s determined to get an answer. Little does she know, her quest will change the course of her and her three sisters' lives forever. A magical locket, a long-estranged aunt that shows up out of the blue, and a diabolical bad guy all play a part in pulling the girls into the heat of danger, and they are forced to put their newly-found paranormal skills to the test in a battle where losing could be deadly. Before it's all over, friends might turn out to be enemies, enemies might turn out to be friends and a long hidden secret about the girls' ancestry will come to light. Will they finally discover the shocking truth of what really happened to their mother?

290 pages, Kindle Edition

First published June 7, 2014

440 people are currently reading
696 people want to read

About the author

Leighann Dobbs

135 books1,862 followers
USA Today bestselling author, Leighann Dobbs, discovered her passion for writing after a twenty year career as a software engineer. She lives in New Hampshire with her husband Bruce, their trusty Chihuahua mix Mojo and beautiful rescue cat, Kitty.

Her book "Dead Wrong" won the "Best Mystery Romance" award at the 2014 Indie Romance Convention.

Her book "Ghostly Paws" was the 2015 Chanticleer Mystery & Mayhem First Place category winner in the Animal Mystery category.

Ratings & Reviews

What do you think?
Rate this book

Friends & Following

Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!

Community Reviews

5 stars
977 (46%)
4 stars
716 (34%)
3 stars
326 (15%)
2 stars
53 (2%)
1 star
9 (<1%)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 109 reviews
Profile Image for Djilan.
161 reviews9 followers
May 10, 2020
3,5
I really like Jolene. Stubborn :)
So nice to read this from her pov. And this was a very different story from the previous ones.

But I'm still not over it > sheriff and Belladonna?? What the.. So 3,5 and not 4. But if it gets explained in one of the next books I will probably go to the full 4 stars.
2,346 reviews
October 13, 2021
4.5 stars

This was my favorite that I have read of the series thus far. For one, it dealt more with the paranormal elements than the others. Two, it focused on the family history and secrets of the Blackmoore family, which was very interesting and intriguing. Third, the twist and turns in this one was incredible and kept me on my toes. I was so much more invested in this arc than the other ones that were presented. The stuff with Belladonna was amazing. I loved the character of Jolene. Some of the questions I had about Matteo were answered in this one, though I am intrigued to learn more. It was just so good and very highly enjoyable. This makes me want to read the rest of the books in the series.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
1,701 reviews35 followers
November 18, 2018
When Jolene Blackmoore decides she's had enough, and goes looking for answers to her moms mysterious death. The girls find themselves in more danger than they could have imagined. And also have a couple of family reunions in the process.

Another fun story from Leighann Dobbs. I think this is probably the best one in the series, and not just because it's the latest one I read.
Profile Image for Nola Arganbright.
1,592 reviews32 followers
November 15, 2020
Exciting and intense

Each book of the series gets more and more intense. There are people intent on capturing the sisters paranormal gifts.
Profile Image for Amanda.
162 reviews
January 10, 2024
Finally, back on track with a plot. But man, is Jo annoying. Her ego is childish, but a 21 year old can still be childish. The number of times she says she's fine alone because she's an adult and a trained detective made me roll my eyes so many times. She thinks she's a great detective, too. But she, like her sisters, is an idiot. One minute, she's exclaiming how she can do it all alone. The next we're told she doesn't know how to cook, her sisters cook for her. Uhh... girl. Come on. She keeps getting in trouble and then gets mad that no one trusts that she can take care of herself. She takes no accountability for her actions. And. she brushes off her idiocy and is going to keep doing what she does because character development does not exist in these books.

Like the other books, this one tells over showing, which is a type of writing I often don't enjoy. The characters remain lackluster. There is no character development and so much conflicting information. We're told the sisters have gotten so good at their abilities, and they practice. Then that they don't really practice at all. They all at once are so egotistical and high and mighty about having abilities but also ignore them, don't really work on them, and ignore clues right in front of them.

The plot, the story, has a lot of potential and isn't bad. There are things in the book that have so much potential to be good. It's the character writing that makes these books so bad. No character development. Stupid idiots for characters that are hard to root for. When Jo got taken, I felt like she deserved it and did not care what happened to her. She's been so annoying and such an egotistical idiot. Honestly, all the sisters could die, and that would be fine.

They talk about loving their mother, but most of them believe a corrupt cop they know is corrupt, and don't stop to consider that he'd come after them. They just believe what he said in the investigation. Then they accepted the info and thought they knew something was up but never followed up. Are you serious?


We are being fed another forced relationship.  "She thought they were friends. Sometimes more than friends." What? They've said three words to each other and visibly seen each other twice before the scene where this comes up. This is the lack of written chemistry between characters that bungles things up. None of the couples have chemistry. The sisters lack sisterly chemistry.

The repetition! Characters are told something several times, and every time, they act like it's brand new information. Sometimes, they don't accept it, then do later when the same info is fed to them by someone else.

Confusion with powers:
We're told early on that they are practicing, and we even see how some sisters use their power daily, which should equal practice. As the book progresses, we're told again and again they've messed up royally on practicing, and they know it. This is expressed several times between several characters.

There is a lot of repeated information, either for the reader or character. The information is delivered in slightly different ways. It feels like the author forgot she already talked about these things, and reactions had already happened regarding the information, only to happen again and again. I hope the author learned how to keep information about her books so she knows what's already happened and what her characters look like.

A good editor and ghostwriter could have done wonders.

Like all the other books, the "twists" are very easy to figure out immediately. "There's a mysterious old woman in this cell." Knew exactly who it was and wasn't at all surprised by the reveal. It was one of those typical kind of decisions, like all the rest. These books are extremely easy to figure out. The questions for me come from why there's no character growth and why these girls are so very stupid.

For example: X was held hostage for x amount of years. Why on earth did x never contact us!?

We never told you x because you weren't ready.
Why did no one tell us?!
You weren't ready.
Oh, okay.

Then, a wrap-up at the end where everyone already knows everything, and it feels like they're just repeating the info they already know because the author thinks her readers are too stupid to have known what happened.

Why am I still reading these terrible books? I should stop. It's so bad.
Profile Image for Trish.
2,826 reviews40 followers
January 28, 2016
This seems to be the start of a new "arc" in the Blackmoore series. This time around, it feels more urban fantasy conspiracy theory than cozy mystery treasure hunting, and we get to meet more of the paranormal forces - good and bad. It also ties up one or two of the remaining loose ends from the earlier books. It'll be interesting to see where it goes next.
Profile Image for Kymm.
1,024 reviews52 followers
May 31, 2021
The sisters are thrown into another mystery when their estranged Aunt Eliza comes to visit in Deadly Intentions, the 5th book in the Blackmoore Sisters mystery series by Leighann Dobbs. What they don't expect is answers to questions they've been asking for years.

Jolene Blackmoore is curious about her mother's suspected suicide 7 years ago, but with no real leads her questions have never really been answered. She was young at the time and now wants to find out what really happened to the woman who meant so much. When their Aunt Eliza shows up, out of the blue, they're all happy to see her, but when she starts acting suspiciously they wonder why she's really back in town. The sisters, along with the usual gang of friends and of course their "magical" abilities will discover what they were led to believe at the time of their mother's death is not at all what really happened. Between fighting off the bad guys, taking clues from their paranormal cat, Belladonna and all the help they get from Aunt Eliza they will be shocked at what they uncover! Their lives will be changed forever, this time in a good way, but it won't come easily and someone will have to die to save the rest!

This has been such a great series, so far. I've been following it on audible and the narrator is great! The stories are well written and you can't beat Leighann Dobbs for wonderful characters, she's got a knack for penning the perfect people for her stories. I've been a fan for quite some time. The best part about these is the hint of "magic" the girls possess and how they're able to use it for good, and the cat Belladonna who always seems to know exactly where to look or what to look for when they're stumped. Then there's the mysterious Mateo who always shows up to help the girls, but no one knows who he works for or where he's from. Hmmm... another mystery for the girls to solve? I have a feeling I'm going to learn more about Mateo in books to come, which I'll definitely be reading! I say you should too! Happy Reading!
Profile Image for Heidi Bourbeau.
515 reviews4 followers
April 16, 2022
This series so far is cute and I think for someone just getting into cozy mysteries its a good series. But I have read some (in my humble opinion) outstanding series and this one is good in comparison but not great. The sisters are interesting enough, the town is a bit flat in description, the mysteries have been decent. The ending of this one felt rushed and some of the ending conversation was a bit unrealistic. It is hard to say anything without giving away the twist. But lets just say I would have been more invested emotionally if the twist happened to me. There are more books in the series and I will probably read those at a later date just to see how it goes.

I will say one thing that I love. And this is just a personal thing. In stories where there is any kind of romance, the two that fall for each other usually end up getting married right away (because they just can't wait) and having a family. And that is just not the 2022 reality of the world today. I completely love the fact that theses sisters have been dating their partners for years, but none of them are married or have children. NOW before you come for me, I don't hate the the stories that end in matrimony and a family, its just a tired tale and I am here for an updated realistic version of the happily ever after!
Profile Image for Mary Cokenour.
476 reviews6 followers
January 23, 2021
Only 3 stars for the novel, as I'm not really sure if I liked it for itself, or disliked it for the cheesy bits.
An arch villain makes an appearance this time, and he even has henchmen. As I'm reading, all I can picture is Dr. Evil, from the Austin Powers movies, and wondering if a "mini-me" will show up as well. The sisters' powers have intensified to the point of the Hollywood effects on the original Charmed series, including balls of energy being thrown about.

Eliza, Johanna's sister, shows up suddenly, and it takes a long while for the reader to find out if she is concerned for the welfare of the sisters, or part of another plot against them. Jolene is still doing investigating, but the supposed suicide of their mother, Johanna, is more on her mind then usual. Seems she hacked into the police office's records and found a photo showing man-sized prints at the cliff's edge, where Johanna had supposedly jumped from. No body was ever found, and former, and missing, Sheriff Overton, kept very shoddy records.

This #5 of the series does have action packed moments, but I think I could have done without the cheese.
Profile Image for Susan.
1,485 reviews
July 14, 2019
I've enjoyed this series enough to actually pay extra for some of the books. This fifth book in the series was no exception. The girls are beginning to understand their paranormal powers, but haven't been working on honing them as much as they should. When their Aunt Eliza shows up, whom they haven't seen in years, mysterious things start happening - is Eliza really what she seems to be? Why did she leave town so many years ago and never came back until now? A strange old woman drops off an amulet at their gem shop; an amulet that seems to enhance their paranormal energy. Meanwhile, Jolene is now partnering with Jake in his private detective business. She is working on a surveillance case and begins to wonder about her mother's death so many years ago - did Johanna really commit suicide, or was she pushed off the cliff? No body was ever found. The twists and turns keep coming, the girls fall in and out of danger, and the final solution is quite satisfying.
Still seeing lots of typos - are these things created by using voice recognition? The one that made my hair stand up was "vile" for "vial" of potion. One or two other egregious ones, but not too bad for a self-published e-book.
Profile Image for Kimberly Gordon-Bercich.
1,859 reviews5 followers
March 25, 2023
Resources

You don’t always need to do everything on your own. In fact it’s often a sign of weakness or stupidity caused by pride to do everything yourself. Jolene is young and prideful making her susceptible to stupidity. Fate will take its opportunity to knock you down in these moments while providing you an opportunity to soar or sink. Those who learn from their mistakes and look for resources, especially those people who are positive, helpful and loving influences can help you soar. Jolene gets knocked down. And then she gets up again to reach out the resources reaching down to her. One who will lay her life down for the youngest Blackmore and many more who will help Jolene escape the prison if a mad man. Some for selfish reasons, some for altruistic reasons and some for love. Who is the old lady and where did the black cat come from?
Profile Image for Anita.
697 reviews2 followers
October 8, 2024
With each book,the writing in this series gets better. Although they try to catch the reader up on the connections between the characters, this book focused more on the plot, which I enjoyed. The magic is fun and the relationships are sweet. Calling the criminals bad guys feels so silly to me, but then this series is the cleanest mystery I’ve read in a while. The pace was fast, but I wish we could have tarried a little longer with the ghosts. Each of the sister has magical gifts and has to defend themselves and their home in each book of the series. For a fun and quick read, I recommend this book.
54 reviews22 followers
June 27, 2021
This was so much better! Honestly, when I started the series, I wasn't impressed with the cheesy writing, loose ends, and insta-love. But, as the books went on, loose ends were tied up, plots were trailed through and linked together, and the magic element was peeking out. But this one, the magic really came out. I had a great time with this book. I would still classify it as "cozy", but I am really happy with how much better the series has gotten through the first five books. I definitely plan on looking into more of the series.
Profile Image for Darla Taylor.
1,856 reviews
September 3, 2019
Jolene Blackmoore, the youngest of four sisters, has always questioned her mother's supposed suicide and is looking into the investigation which she finds lacking. In addition, it seems that the sisters are in danger due to their paranormal abilities as there's a man who wants to kidnap and use them for nefarious reasons.

This was a quick read. I really enjoyed it and am looking forward to the next book in the series.
Profile Image for Marji Morris.
652 reviews5 followers
June 27, 2021
As Alice said, "Curiouser and curiouser." This is book 5 as a series. While each could be read as a stand alone, it's best to read the others before you read this one. If you're not a paranormal fan, skip this one, as the paranormal is almost a character in this book.

The book tied up a few loose ends from previous books as we see the good guys battling the evil ones. Here we have a long lost aunt who shows up out of the blue and seems very mysterious. And Belladonna, it appears, isn't the only cat with ice blue eyes on the the good guy team.
Profile Image for Kat Green.
1,147 reviews19 followers
March 28, 2022
It’s always great to be able to be able to get a box set of a series especially when you’re able to get the audiobooks as a set for 1 credit. So far,having gone through book 5 , I’m really enjoying the characters and their mystery solving abilities with a touch of the paranormal thrown in. In my opinion, the books keep getting better and better with each book as they discover their gifts and learn how to harness them as their characters begin to evolve. Recommend for Cozy Mystery fans! 😍
Profile Image for Avalon.
618 reviews3 followers
November 2, 2019
Deadly intentions

Book 5 in the Blackmoore sisters series and another page turner. The characters are so familiar now they are like old friends and you find yourself giving them instructions as you read so they won't get caught. Really enjoying this light hearted series and looking forward to reading the next instalment
Profile Image for Myra Ball.
649 reviews
Read
January 21, 2020
Some questions answered in another great book

These books finish up nicely with conclusions to plot. The underlying theme continues but each book reveals more about the overall series. Excellent writing and I especially enjoyed Deadly Intentions. This series has lots of adventure with a unique mystery.
88 reviews
October 15, 2020
Blackmore Sisters

Another great read. I do like the way she writes, it’s not overly descriptive which is good. The mystery of their mother was solved & the sisters gifts are getting so much better. Looking forward to the next book in this series & also checking out some of her other series.
Profile Image for Bonnie Dale Keck.
4,677 reviews58 followers
April 17, 2017
Kindle Unlimited, Leighann Dobbs writes under Leighann Dobbs, Annie Dobbs and (soon) L.A. Dobbs but her real name {not sure if she writes under that one} is Lee Dobbins, Hazel Martin Mysteries only one I found for this type with her, she has not made sure that terms used match the British terms as well as in other areas for that period of architecture and assorted styles.

The Notch Cozy Mystery Series {5 out as of this writing} and the Blackbore Sisters Cozy Mysteries are not on Kindle Unlimited which as said before about 1 & 7 {the only ones given free, sure would not have bought them} and ditto for Ghostly Paws which is 1 of 5 at this time but did get others free over time.

While some of her other books are Kindle Unlimited none of the Blackmoore Sisters Cozy Mysteries are which doesn't matter to me as read #1 and #7 and was way underwhelmed. Leighann Dobbs writes under Leighann Dobbs, Annie Dobbs and (soon) L.A. Dobbs but her real name {not sure if she writes under that one} is Lee Dobbins, Hazel Martin Mysteries only one I found for this type with her, she has not made sure that terms used match the British terms as well as in other areas for that period of architecture and assorted styles. By the way, bakeries and other food service places don't run like that. Badly needs to proof things, it's messing up the flow of the book, which my computer reads to me, so that's bad. As for these, it's not that the situations couldn't happen, it's in the telling of the story, with unlikable unbelievable characters and situations, again.

Yet another goodreads won't hide it don't want to see the badly proofed badly plotted poor excuse for bad soft core porn crap. The 'historical' ones are like that and so are the some of the non cozy mysteries and some of the sorta but not really mysteries because can't write, etc ad nauseum. The most any of them got was 2 changed to 1 for crap cozy, some get a 1 which means basically crappy soft porn 'romance' etc.

3 in Silver Hollow Paranormal Cozy Mystery Series so far which are on kindle unlimited, 3 in the Moosamuck Island Mysteries , 5 in the Mystic Notch Cozy Mysteries so far {not ku}, Blackmore Sisters has 7 {not ku}, Hazel Martin Mysteries only has 1 so far, Lexy Baker Cozy Mystery series 12 so far is on ku. Others.including Scandals and Spies Book series so far 4 which are basically romance soft core porn dreck but hey you can get them on ku. Witches of Hawthorne Grove 1 so far,Cevonne Bride of Oklahoma, Unexpected Series 4 so far ku.

The Lexy Baker Cozy Mystery Series By the way, bakeries and other food service places don't run like that. Badly needs to proof things, it's messing up the flow of the book, which my computer reads to me, so that's bad. As for these, it's not that the situations couldn't happen, it's in the telling of the story, with unlikable unbelievable characters and situations, again.

Copy/paste fill in the blank seems to be pretty much what she is doing in her books, which wouldn't be half as bad if the plots and ploys and actions were believable at all.Just change the name for a book and maybe change the series list under, and you are right back to copy paste same old same old.

NOTE: I specifically mentioned certain of the 'books'/series were achieving soft core crap status, and specifically said which ones those were, reference AGAIN the above quoted review, and did not specifically mention the blackmore ones as that, BUT and had not mentioned that had went back and rated all no talent no plot cardboard charactered 'stories' listed above as 1 as well. I will change the original review to reflect that, but it is still a 1, and MY review of the crap stands.
Profile Image for Krystyna.
5,134 reviews55 followers
June 14, 2018
Did she jump or was she pushed?

Wow! What really happened to their mother? Did she really commit suicide? The girls have to find out. Will it open their eyes to who is really friend? A great read and love the way the paranormal is used to enhance the plot. Great series.
4,417 reviews43 followers
June 22, 2018
I had to find out what happened to their mother seven years ago, so I skipped from Book 1 to Book 5. I missed a lot in between and don’t recommend that you do that. I was sure that I had figured out who did it, but I was wrong!!! In spite of that I did enjoy it and recommend it.
Profile Image for Monica.
1,111 reviews
October 10, 2018
Lots of action and mysterious characters. The sisters' abilities develop even more and I like that their aunt came to help. Lots of surprises and we learn a lot of the family history. Love the characters.
Profile Image for Rhonda Jones.
2,794 reviews17 followers
March 6, 2021
Mystery and Suspense

I needed to go to bed hours ago. But I could not make myself stop reading until I finished this book! Now I fear I will not be able to sleep because my heart is beating too fast. Wow.
Profile Image for Brenda Allen.
1,551 reviews4 followers
July 26, 2021
I came across Leighann Dobbs when looking for more of the magic and mystery books. This is a great series. I love the way they were able to work through the problems and still found love. I didn't like that none of them got married, they just dated for years then it ended.
Profile Image for Jessica.
312 reviews35 followers
August 23, 2021
This is such a great story...I really appreciated learning a bit about the sisters mom and her story.

I'm so excited to continue with this series and tagging along as Belladonna continues to enchant my heart.
Profile Image for Steve Thomas.
728 reviews5 followers
November 21, 2021
The Blackmore Sisters are getting more powerful

In this story the paranormal aspects are critical to the progress of the story. They fight evil using their powers and Karate skills. This is a good read.
339 reviews2 followers
February 24, 2022
Blackmore Sisters

I always get a giddy feeling when I find another book by Leighann Dobbs that I haven't read. Somehow I missed this one until now, so I've doubly enjoyed it! Hope you will too!
Profile Image for Samantha.
338 reviews7 followers
March 30, 2022
Synopsis: Jolene Blackmoore had been 14 when her mother Johanna died now 7 years later she felt ready to investigate the circumstances and is convinced there was a foul play.

Review: The Blackmoore sisters are it again using their paranormal abilities to fight for justice but this time the stakes are even higher and they have a visitor staying at their cliff top home their Aunt Eliza but she is a friend or foe? I do enjoy a visit with the sisters they always have each other’s backs and have the unerring ability to get into trouble but they are self-sufficient and fight their own battleship the guys are just along for the ride and a little back up when needed. However it does get a bit crowded with 4 sisters and their significant others plus extra characters 🤣 and I guessed the twist long before it happened but I still enjoyed the journey.

⭐️⭐️⭐️
290 pages (3,159 pages)
Profile Image for Julie.
53 reviews1 follower
November 9, 2024
I struggled with this story because it was very similar to the previous books in the series. I am not sure I will continue with the series.

I was glad there was an answer for the sisters about their family history.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 109 reviews

Can't find what you're looking for?

Get help and learn more about the design.