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Eliza Kingston #1
Pride of Lions
A dead cheerleader. A town with a violent past. You can run from your demons, but you can't escape evil.
Eliza Kingston moved away from Silver Lake twenty years ago after a tragedy rocked the town. She never expected to move back and she certainly never expected to find herself in the middle of a murderer's deadly games.
Evan Harding hung up his detective badge 18 months ago and moved back to his hometown to start over. He was just beginning to rebuild his life when he walked into a cafe and right into Eliza Kingston. Evan and Eliza have a complicated history and it isn't long before they both realize that those complications aren't going to stay in the past.
After stumbling upon a murdered cheerleader, Eliza and Evan are determined to find her killer. While working the case, they also must navigate the dangerous terrain of their unresolved feelings. Just as they start to find a way back to each other, another girl is murdered and no one in Silver Lake is safe. Can Eliza and Evan catch the killer before another victim loses her life?
Eliza Kingston moved away from Silver Lake twenty years ago after a tragedy rocked the town. She never expected to move back and she certainly never expected to find herself in the middle of a murderer's deadly games.
Evan Harding hung up his detective badge 18 months ago and moved back to his hometown to start over. He was just beginning to rebuild his life when he walked into a cafe and right into Eliza Kingston. Evan and Eliza have a complicated history and it isn't long before they both realize that those complications aren't going to stay in the past.
After stumbling upon a murdered cheerleader, Eliza and Evan are determined to find her killer. While working the case, they also must navigate the dangerous terrain of their unresolved feelings. Just as they start to find a way back to each other, another girl is murdered and no one in Silver Lake is safe. Can Eliza and Evan catch the killer before another victim loses her life?
Kindle Edition
First published April 12, 2020
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 42 reviews
July 23, 2020
I’m confused how this got good reviews. From the very beginning I was distractingly annoyed by the fact that this author rarely uses pronouns. Every single sentence said “Eliza did this...Eliza thought that...Eliza wanted...Eliza, Eliza, Eliza.” How about using SHE. And HE in place of Evan every now and then?! The lack of pronouns was so bizarre I couldn’t get into it! That drove me nuts!! I felt like I was reading a school essay.
Then there’s the issue of the romance...Eliza leads Evan on constantly but then pulls back. In real life any person would get sick of that real quick! This literally went on for the entire book, people!!
I only finished this book because I had nothing else on hand to read.
Then there’s the issue of the romance...Eliza leads Evan on constantly but then pulls back. In real life any person would get sick of that real quick! This literally went on for the entire book, people!!
I only finished this book because I had nothing else on hand to read.
October 14, 2021
I don't like giving books such a low rating, and this one is barely a 2. Actually it's more a 1.75 star book, and I don't revel in saying that.
This book is poorly written. It starts out okay. I'd say the fist 1/3 of the book is well thought out. It was planned and outlined for the most part and then it just lost it's thread. They stick with a tired repeatitive kind of predictable and tame romance and forget that they have a more interesting story to tell.
So Eliza and Evan have know each other for years. They dated in high school. Evan was even Eliza's first. That's not a spoiler by the way it's in the first few chapters.
Evan returned to their hometown first because Eliza rejected him a year and a half ago and Eliza has returned home because I think she wants to feel safe. Though that doesn't make a lot of sense because her brother is a school shooter in the town.
I think that's as far as Scott got in her planning and then knew she wanted 3 murders. So from the time Eliza and Evan find the first body onward it gets extremely repetitive and very thrown together.
From this point onward there are spoilers I will space so you can avoid if you'd like.
Evan and Eliza's relationship started as teenagers. Eliza was skipped a couple of grades and Evan was her brother Michael's best friend, and they are now all in the same grade now. They have sex on Prom night, Michael shoots Eliza, and they spend the summer bloinking like bunny's before college. To give even more time, and is thrown in in the last 1/3 of the book, Evan joined the military after college, not before like usual for teens who want structure and aren't going in for life as an officer, which he would have been because he had a BA, but they reconnect in Chicago and are still friends.
So they have the same conversation 6 times. Seriously, probably more. It's the "I don't want to hurt you." "I'll wait until you're ready conversation." 6 times, but each time after Eliza is aaaaaallllll flirty with Evan promising things that she just said she may never be ready for.
Eliza's character is so hot and cold it's cruel. And it's repeatitive in the story.
Then the sex scenes are written in a way that makes it seem like a virgin who has only been told the bare minimum on how sex works wrote them.
Like the first time Eliza let's Evan touch her, she says "I want you to make love to me." And Evan is okay and he fingers her (Just so you know, I had to read the sentence which is all that's written 3 times before figuring out he fingers her) and that's it.
It's fine, but I was so confused because they are talking like they just had sex. It's a short sentence and Eliza's like " OMG, My first orgasm in 18 months, thank you." And as I said the way it's written it's like someone doesn't know how fingering works or intercourse or foreplay
And then of course, she's back to "I don't want to hurt you territory."
Now, I don't know if this is a duology or a trilogy, but it's as if Scott was trying to leave a large amount of information on the mystery portion for the second book and just padded out the love story and really poorly written sex scenes. There's a shower scene too which I didn't even rereading the paragraph because it didn't matter.
So in the last 1/3 of the book there's a random and unresolved break in at Eliza's house and we're supposed to believe she didn't go into the pool house at all when she returned knowing that it's a big house in a town where the teens would know of the empty home with a pool? They find condoms and underwear. Also, she's supposed to have a cleaning crew come in weekly and they didn't mention that some of the local teens might be sneaking into the empty house to have sex? Anyway, I digress.
There's suddenly another guy they went to high school with who is jealous and is not mentioned until the last 30 pages or so, and the first murder that occurred that goes no where.
And the Miki's murder isn't reasonably solved either. Brody Miki's ex-boyfriend says he watched Miki have sex with their English teacher and Miki knew he was watching and got off on it, but there's signs of sexual assault. I know it's probably going to come out in the sequel, but if they didn't repeat the same conversation 6 time in the relationship they could have brought the murder mystery into the story more and made it more satisfying and make me actually want to ready the second book. I won't be. I'm not that interested and it was obvious from the beginning there was going to be the twist of "Michael isn't the shooter." So I don't need to read the second book.
This book is poorly written. It starts out okay. I'd say the fist 1/3 of the book is well thought out. It was planned and outlined for the most part and then it just lost it's thread. They stick with a tired repeatitive kind of predictable and tame romance and forget that they have a more interesting story to tell.
So Eliza and Evan have know each other for years. They dated in high school. Evan was even Eliza's first. That's not a spoiler by the way it's in the first few chapters.
Evan returned to their hometown first because Eliza rejected him a year and a half ago and Eliza has returned home because I think she wants to feel safe. Though that doesn't make a lot of sense because her brother is a school shooter in the town.
I think that's as far as Scott got in her planning and then knew she wanted 3 murders. So from the time Eliza and Evan find the first body onward it gets extremely repetitive and very thrown together.
From this point onward there are spoilers I will space so you can avoid if you'd like.
Evan and Eliza's relationship started as teenagers. Eliza was skipped a couple of grades and Evan was her brother Michael's best friend, and they are now all in the same grade now. They have sex on Prom night, Michael shoots Eliza, and they spend the summer bloinking like bunny's before college. To give even more time, and is thrown in in the last 1/3 of the book, Evan joined the military after college, not before like usual for teens who want structure and aren't going in for life as an officer, which he would have been because he had a BA, but they reconnect in Chicago and are still friends.
So they have the same conversation 6 times. Seriously, probably more. It's the "I don't want to hurt you." "I'll wait until you're ready conversation." 6 times, but each time after Eliza is aaaaaallllll flirty with Evan promising things that she just said she may never be ready for.
Eliza's character is so hot and cold it's cruel. And it's repeatitive in the story.
Then the sex scenes are written in a way that makes it seem like a virgin who has only been told the bare minimum on how sex works wrote them.
Like the first time Eliza let's Evan touch her, she says "I want you to make love to me." And Evan is okay and he fingers her (Just so you know, I had to read the sentence which is all that's written 3 times before figuring out he fingers her) and that's it.
It's fine, but I was so confused because they are talking like they just had sex. It's a short sentence and Eliza's like " OMG, My first orgasm in 18 months, thank you." And as I said the way it's written it's like someone doesn't know how fingering works or intercourse or foreplay
And then of course, she's back to "I don't want to hurt you territory."
Now, I don't know if this is a duology or a trilogy, but it's as if Scott was trying to leave a large amount of information on the mystery portion for the second book and just padded out the love story and really poorly written sex scenes. There's a shower scene too which I didn't even rereading the paragraph because it didn't matter.
So in the last 1/3 of the book there's a random and unresolved break in at Eliza's house and we're supposed to believe she didn't go into the pool house at all when she returned knowing that it's a big house in a town where the teens would know of the empty home with a pool? They find condoms and underwear. Also, she's supposed to have a cleaning crew come in weekly and they didn't mention that some of the local teens might be sneaking into the empty house to have sex? Anyway, I digress.
There's suddenly another guy they went to high school with who is jealous and is not mentioned until the last 30 pages or so, and the first murder that occurred that goes no where.
And the Miki's murder isn't reasonably solved either. Brody Miki's ex-boyfriend says he watched Miki have sex with their English teacher and Miki knew he was watching and got off on it, but there's signs of sexual assault. I know it's probably going to come out in the sequel, but if they didn't repeat the same conversation 6 time in the relationship they could have brought the murder mystery into the story more and made it more satisfying and make me actually want to ready the second book. I won't be. I'm not that interested and it was obvious from the beginning there was going to be the twist of "Michael isn't the shooter." So I don't need to read the second book.
August 24, 2025
great book
I really enjoyed this book it was a page turner couldn’t put it down can’t wait to read book 2
I really enjoyed this book it was a page turner couldn’t put it down can’t wait to read book 2
August 6, 2020
Be prepared to buy the next one too
A little bit more romance than I like but nothing tacky, thankfully. We have Eliza, a hard nosed prosecuting attorney that worked in Chicago before returning home after a brutal attack. Seems her prom date Evan left Chicago too and they are both back in Silver Lake. Lots of talk about not wanting to rush things, she’s not ready for a relationship. In the meantime, young high school girls are being murdered. Evan works with his brother Will, the chief of police and he allows Eliza to help investigate too. In the background is her brother Michael, in prison for shooting 5 of his fellow students during school. This book has so much promise, if Julian would just stick to the mystery and a little less on the minutia of Elle and Ev’s relationship.
A little bit more romance than I like but nothing tacky, thankfully. We have Eliza, a hard nosed prosecuting attorney that worked in Chicago before returning home after a brutal attack. Seems her prom date Evan left Chicago too and they are both back in Silver Lake. Lots of talk about not wanting to rush things, she’s not ready for a relationship. In the meantime, young high school girls are being murdered. Evan works with his brother Will, the chief of police and he allows Eliza to help investigate too. In the background is her brother Michael, in prison for shooting 5 of his fellow students during school. This book has so much promise, if Julian would just stick to the mystery and a little less on the minutia of Elle and Ev’s relationship.
August 20, 2020
Another Smirk
The book wasn’t bad at all, but it had some distracting grammatical errors. The worst being the incorrect use of the word “smirk” and repeating that mistake over and over. Even if the word had been used correctly it was used too frequently.
This is the fourth Kindle author I’ve read recently who make the
same mistake (Scott James being the worst offender.). They use smirk as interchangeable with smile or grin. A smirk is a smile but it is a smile given in an smug, irritating way. So there would be no such thing as a “sexy smirk.” These authors use smirk in positive situations with friends or loved ones you would want to be nice to and give a smile or a grin - not a nasty smirk.
The book wasn’t bad at all, but it had some distracting grammatical errors. The worst being the incorrect use of the word “smirk” and repeating that mistake over and over. Even if the word had been used correctly it was used too frequently.
This is the fourth Kindle author I’ve read recently who make the
same mistake (Scott James being the worst offender.). They use smirk as interchangeable with smile or grin. A smirk is a smile but it is a smile given in an smug, irritating way. So there would be no such thing as a “sexy smirk.” These authors use smirk in positive situations with friends or loved ones you would want to be nice to and give a smile or a grin - not a nasty smirk.
February 2, 2021
Almost explicit sex
I really don't care for books with explicit sex and normally don't end up reading them, if I happen to end up reading a book I was unaware would have a lot of Descriptive Sex scenes I just skip over the pages. This one has sex but not quite As descriptive as The truly explicit romance books I will read the second book , I want to know what happens next in regards to her brother.
I really don't care for books with explicit sex and normally don't end up reading them, if I happen to end up reading a book I was unaware would have a lot of Descriptive Sex scenes I just skip over the pages. This one has sex but not quite As descriptive as The truly explicit romance books I will read the second book , I want to know what happens next in regards to her brother.
May 12, 2022
Shallow and verbose
I never expect much from free books so it wasn't a big surprise this wasn't well done.
Necessary information needed to understand the plot didn't happen, in fact it never happened! Conversations were stilted, editing would have improved but a complete rewrite would be better.
Worst of all, after reading the book in its entirety, nothing was explained or finished. You need to read the next book.
I think not.
I never expect much from free books so it wasn't a big surprise this wasn't well done.
Necessary information needed to understand the plot didn't happen, in fact it never happened! Conversations were stilted, editing would have improved but a complete rewrite would be better.
Worst of all, after reading the book in its entirety, nothing was explained or finished. You need to read the next book.
I think not.
April 4, 2024
Bad ending!
I somewhat enjoyed the book although it was a little redundant...but it ends with a cliffhanger so there's no end to the 2 main stories in the book. In other words it just leads the reader on meaning you have to keep buying more books in hopes of learning the final outcomes.
I HATE books like that!!!
I somewhat enjoyed the book although it was a little redundant...but it ends with a cliffhanger so there's no end to the 2 main stories in the book. In other words it just leads the reader on meaning you have to keep buying more books in hopes of learning the final outcomes.
I HATE books like that!!!
July 14, 2023
Just barely got through this. It was hard to do but I managed. This book has probably seen better days.
September 25, 2024
Eliza Kingston, a former Illinois state’s attorney and Evan Harding, a former detective, have a complicated backstory going back to childhood. When they were in high school, her brother allegedly shot up the school, killing five people and wounding Eliza. Harding carried her out of the school to get help. Fast forward 20 years and he saved her again, from a rapist/murderer who left her to die on her office floor. Two years after that, unbeknownst to each other, they both return to their hometown of Silver Lake, IL, to start over. A chance meeting at the local coffee shop gets them both pulled into a couple of murders with threads that reach back to that long-ago school shooting.
Another book I wanted to like but just didn’t. Intriguing plot (the resonating after effects of a school shooting, how the ripples of violence reach out through a generation, the effects of trauma on victims and those close to them), decent writing, interesting characters, but this veered well over the line of romance novel dressed up in mystery clothing.
I also found the author’s reliance on “smirk” or some variation thereof really annoying. The characters spent so much time smirking at each other that it’s a wonder the crime ever got solved. I counted 18 appearances by the end of the book, and that was after I let a half dozen or so go by unremarked. Plus, there were surprisingly detailed sex scenes that I don’t think benefitted the overall story line. For me, it’s enough to know that people are getting busy, that’s real. I just don’t need to know how many times and ways Tab A goes into Slot B. Don’t think I’ll be reading any more in this series.
Another book I wanted to like but just didn’t. Intriguing plot (the resonating after effects of a school shooting, how the ripples of violence reach out through a generation, the effects of trauma on victims and those close to them), decent writing, interesting characters, but this veered well over the line of romance novel dressed up in mystery clothing.
I also found the author’s reliance on “smirk” or some variation thereof really annoying. The characters spent so much time smirking at each other that it’s a wonder the crime ever got solved. I counted 18 appearances by the end of the book, and that was after I let a half dozen or so go by unremarked. Plus, there were surprisingly detailed sex scenes that I don’t think benefitted the overall story line. For me, it’s enough to know that people are getting busy, that’s real. I just don’t need to know how many times and ways Tab A goes into Slot B. Don’t think I’ll be reading any more in this series.
September 19, 2020
Eliza and Evan had a twenty year history too bad it wasn’t together
Eliza Kingston and Evan Hardy had a history that went back to child hood. But it had some bumps that tore it apart in places that were having problems mending the holes. They had loved each other for twenty years and could not stay together long enough to make it work. They need to fix the now to to solve the past. The now is the murder of two 15 yeqr old girls. How can that have any thing to do with the past? Theres the problem?
This is a keeper from the first. Catches your attention and holds on till you can’t let let go. Another night I didn’t sleep like I should. Had to finish the story. Did sleep before writing review have learned that lessen.. would have given. Extra stars if could. Oh lots of sex, murder, so 16 and over
Eliza Kingston and Evan Hardy had a history that went back to child hood. But it had some bumps that tore it apart in places that were having problems mending the holes. They had loved each other for twenty years and could not stay together long enough to make it work. They need to fix the now to to solve the past. The now is the murder of two 15 yeqr old girls. How can that have any thing to do with the past? Theres the problem?
This is a keeper from the first. Catches your attention and holds on till you can’t let let go. Another night I didn’t sleep like I should. Had to finish the story. Did sleep before writing review have learned that lessen.. would have given. Extra stars if could. Oh lots of sex, murder, so 16 and over
April 12, 2024
2.5 stars...A 3 star review for me is nothing special, nothing remarkable, just a book to pass time. This one annoyed me to no end so that I often had to put it down. The actual mystery part of the story is decent. The rest- which is probably 70% of the story- is Eliza and Eva having/not having sex or flirting with each other...gag me. I don't like romance stories and this one is more of that genre than mystery. Eliza is alternately teasing Evan and pushing him away, and Evan is crazy to want to put up with that behaviour in my opinion. The "bad guy" is also way too stereotypical and I can't see how he ever attracted anyone with his attitude toward women. The big bombshell at the end fell flat because I had already guessed that early on. Suffice to say I won't be looking for the next book.
June 24, 2024
Not a lot of Pride
This book seemed okay when I started it but the more I read the worse it got. There were misspellings, incorrect references to he/she, and remarks made by the main characters that repeated ad nauseum. If that's is all the attention a police department made in the death of 3 people, I would have to move. No woman deserves to be raped, but 20 years is a long healing time and we were suppose to believe this woman was a bad-ass prosecutor???? It just didn't make any sense for a woman to be so apologetic for everything she said, did and thought. She was supposed to be around 36ish and acted like a teenager. I could go on but I have to go and talk to someone about my prom night again.
This book seemed okay when I started it but the more I read the worse it got. There were misspellings, incorrect references to he/she, and remarks made by the main characters that repeated ad nauseum. If that's is all the attention a police department made in the death of 3 people, I would have to move. No woman deserves to be raped, but 20 years is a long healing time and we were suppose to believe this woman was a bad-ass prosecutor???? It just didn't make any sense for a woman to be so apologetic for everything she said, did and thought. She was supposed to be around 36ish and acted like a teenager. I could go on but I have to go and talk to someone about my prom night again.
July 28, 2020
Eliza is returning to her hometown of Silver Lake, where she runs into an old crush, Evan. Through this whole boring song-and-dance between them, she feels she can’t move past the tragedy in her life. We get a slow pace as the two go on this awkward date filled with monotonous and trite dialogue. The only exciting part of the whole night was when they found the dead body. Geez, it’s really slow!
September 2, 2021
Dull
A traumatized woman returns to her family's palatial home. She meets up with a former cop and love interest. They both have difficulty combating their attraction. But a devious murder interrupts their plans.
Can't say I was too impressed by this tiresome story. The dialogue was inane and even the murders were dull. There is no sense of danger or suspense. The characters were neither interesting nor likable. Pass.
A traumatized woman returns to her family's palatial home. She meets up with a former cop and love interest. They both have difficulty combating their attraction. But a devious murder interrupts their plans.
Can't say I was too impressed by this tiresome story. The dialogue was inane and even the murders were dull. There is no sense of danger or suspense. The characters were neither interesting nor likable. Pass.
April 14, 2024
A very good read.
A gripping mystery book, with characters who spring from the pages, adding to the suspense and the enigma of who the murderer is. Eliza is a traumatised woman, while Evan is trying to help her. The twists and turns are shocking at times, especially when they have unexpected effects on people.
A gripping mystery book, with characters who spring from the pages, adding to the suspense and the enigma of who the murderer is. Eliza is a traumatised woman, while Evan is trying to help her. The twists and turns are shocking at times, especially when they have unexpected effects on people.
April 16, 2024
THROUGH THE WHOLE BOOK THE TWO MAIN CHARACTRS KEPT SAYING THE SAME THING TO EACH OTHER. THEY WOULD SAY IT IN DIFFERENT WAYS BUT IT WAS THE SAME THING. THEY WOULD SAY IT FOR ABOUT 12 TO 15 PAGES THEN START THE MESSAGE ALL OVER AGAIN. THIS WAS SUPER REPETATIVE. THE MURDER PART OF THE BOOK WAS MINIMUM. MEH! ;<
August 25, 2025
Interesting whodunit taking its protagonists back to high school. Evan and Eliza are older and more bruised than before. Returning to their affluent hometown, they step into a mystery that connects back to an incident from their high school years. The repercussions still continue and there's more to come in the next book.
September 1, 2025
Not enough Mystery
If you want to read a book with 80% sex talk and 20% mystery, this is your book. I got so tired of the back & forth (will we have sex, I really love you, I love you too, why don’t you want me, I’ll wait for you as long as it takes). Then, one mystery was solved but the other wasn’t. They want you to read another book. I just don’t care.
If you want to read a book with 80% sex talk and 20% mystery, this is your book. I got so tired of the back & forth (will we have sex, I really love you, I love you too, why don’t you want me, I’ll wait for you as long as it takes). Then, one mystery was solved but the other wasn’t. They want you to read another book. I just don’t care.
August 4, 2020
I really enjoyed Pride of Lions. A young woman who has been through hell and back comes home and one of the first people she sees is her long lost boyfriend. They are soon involved in the town's murders and each other. I am looking forward to reading #2.
January 7, 2021
I really enjoyed this book when I started it didn't have high hopes. It was more of a romance with a few murders plus a historical High school shooting sub plot which I cannot wait to read more about in the next books
February 7, 2021
Wow another good book.
This was a good mystery and love story. There is a lot of suspense and I did pick out the murderer of one murder but was surprised by the other one. Very good writer.
This was a good mystery and love story. There is a lot of suspense and I did pick out the murderer of one murder but was surprised by the other one. Very good writer.
February 19, 2022
A real thriller romance!!!5 stars
Ok I'm about to grab the next book in this series! Its that good 5 stars even more a true thriller romance!! Great read, great characters!!! I'm so hooked!!!
Ok I'm about to grab the next book in this series! Its that good 5 stars even more a true thriller romance!! Great read, great characters!!! I'm so hooked!!!
October 3, 2022
Great police thriller
This story kept you on your toes until the end. Lots of intrigue and suspense. Loved the twist at the end. Loved the romantic theme between E v and Eliza. Can't wait to read the next book and see what happens.
This story kept you on your toes until the end. Lots of intrigue and suspense. Loved the twist at the end. Loved the romantic theme between E v and Eliza. Can't wait to read the next book and see what happens.
August 29, 2025
Pride of Lions
This book ends on a cliffhanger.
I am sorry to say that the story was not riveting enough for me to read book 2. There was too much back and forth between the two main characters.
This book ends on a cliffhanger.
I am sorry to say that the story was not riveting enough for me to read book 2. There was too much back and forth between the two main characters.
September 27, 2025
You can miss this one. The author is trying to write a sexy murder mystery, and it falls flat. It's more high school than adult. Characters are conflicted but not in a good way. And the title makes no sense.
Want to read
August 8, 2021🎁 FREE on Amazon today (8/8/2021)! 🎁
November 24, 2021
Going Back Home.
This was a very good book and I was in suspense from start to finish. I will read more of this author’s books.
This was a very good book and I was in suspense from start to finish. I will read more of this author’s books.
February 21, 2022
Good read
I liked that it kept me wanting to read more,I was picking it up not even realizing it. Thank you Ed D
I liked that it kept me wanting to read more,I was picking it up not even realizing it. Thank you Ed D
March 21, 2023
Keeps you asking questions right till the last pages.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 42 reviews