Wow, Kendra Elliot can write a great book. Loved it. Great mystery in fascinating setting. I will be reading the rest of the series and I recommend that you do too.

I've read several of the author's works, but none of the ones that she's "co-wrote" with Melinda Leigh. That leaves me feeling a little lost sometimes when reading their works, but this book did a good job of filling in some blanks for me!

My biggest complaint was that it was too short! Some of the investigation felt very rushed and I felt that the mysteries in the story suffered for it a bit, as did the characterization. That's not to say that this isn't a complete story, because it very much is, just that some parts of it felt incomplete. While I know that a degree of it was intentional, I believe that some of it is not.

Moving past all that, we get a great first look at the new setting and have a great feel for the inhabitants of the town. There's some great local history mentioned that makes the story very unique. The plot didn't falter at all, and was engaging throughout. I'm eager to see where things go from here!

I enjoyed the book temedously. I look forward to reading more with the characters of this series. This book kept me guessing most of the way through and I was surprised at the twist at the end. Definitely worth the read and will pass along the author to family and friends!

This was a fun novella.  I've not read anything by Kendra Elliott before but I really enjoyed the mix of suspense; a little light romance and mystery/action.  It's a quick read that makes for a tasty diversion from the real world.  I'm looking forward to more of this series and will be checking out her other books.

Close to the Bone – Kendra Elliot 

This is the first novella in the Widow’s Island Novella series. This book follows Cate Wilde, special agent of the FBI. She has come back to the island she grew up on to heal from a gunshot wound she received on the job. While here to heal, there is a skeleton found on a neighboring island and she is the only agent close enough to secure the scene and start investigating before the storm hits the island. There is some speculation on who the victim could be, as there have been two teenagers over the past years that have disappeared on the island – one being Cate’s friend that disappeared when they were fourteen. 
This book was surprising to me. I typically don’t particularly like novellas as sometimes it feels like too much story is crammed into too few pages, and so stories can feel rushed at times. This book does not do this, I feel like the story moved along at a good pace and didn’t gloss over important ideas or background information. I like how with this novella, that there are 2 mysteries interwoven, and how one gets solved by the end and the other will seemingly get addressed in the next books in the series. 

          ** I received a copy of this book from Netgalley for an unbiased review**

Wow. Just WOW! Another fantastic story by Kendra Elliot. Creepy, thrilling, suspenseful, imaginative...I may need to break out the dictionary to come up with more adjectives. 

As with her other novels, the author creates a setting that seems real, complete with a cast of supporting characters who seem real, too. I can't wait to read more of this series.

Who would think about a group of islands named Widow’s Island, population 5,000, Ruby’s Island, population one, Elias’ Island, and Camilla’s Island.

The story involves discovery of human bones on Ruby’s Island, Rex Conan, a top ten author of mystery novels whose only child, Becca, has been missing two years and who owns and lives on Ruby’s Island, Dr. Henry Powers, new doctor for the island group who just learned he had inherited the title of coroner, Logan Wilde the new Park Service Ranger, and Cate Wilde, an FBI agent who is currently staying on Widow’s Island, and Tessa Black, a deputy sheriff and Cate’s best friend since childhood. While the Sheriff is on leave, Tessa is the resident sheriff’s deputy to be involved in trying to determine to whom the skeleton belongs. Since this is the second teenaged girl to go missing on the islands the FBI is contacted and Cate is reactivated to assist in solving the crime.

Rex is fearful the bones are those of his daughter, Cate and Tessa want to know if the bones are those of Samantha Bishop, the third person in their tight group of friends who disappeared when the girls were fourteen years old. The jaw of the skeleton has braces on the teeth and both girls had braces when they disappeared.

Logan Wilde, brother of Cate Wilde, returned to Widow’s Island, taking the job of park ranger after he left the Army, and Cate Wilde who received a gunshot wound in her shoulder while on duty on the mainland is recuperating on Widow’s Island. They are both living with their grandmother, Jane Sutton, who raised them on the island.

People and vehicles are transported by ferry from the island to the mainland and from the mainland to the island Unfortunately, it is non-operational almost as much as it is operational.

Two teenagers trespassing on Ruby’s Island which is wholly owned by Rex Conan, come across human bones, and call the discovery in to the Sheriff’s office. Since it appears the skeleton belongs to a minor, the Sheriff’s office calls the FBI to investigate. The FBI calls on Cate, even though she is on sick leave, because they cannot get an agent from the mainland to the island.

Can you see what’s about to happen to the young adult residents of Widow’s Island? If not, you’ll have to read the book to find out about Logan, Cate, Tessa, and Dr. Powers and to see how their joint efforts solved the mystery of the skeleton found on Ruby’s Island.

I loved this book, but then I haven’t read anything by Kendra Elliot or Melinda Leigh, her writing partner, that I did not love. They are great authors and I highly recommend you read all of their works.

Thanks Netgalley and the Publisher.  This is the first book I have read by this author and have to say I enjoyed it a lot.  The description of Widows Island is great.

The cover of this book hooked me immediately, dark and mysterious with the bold orange print, I knew I wanted more immediately.  I do judge a book by the cover when browsing. From the first page I was full in on this series. Fast paced and just enough detail to keep you wanting more without getting dull or giving it all away. I read this in one day and was eager to start the next book. 
Cate is an FBI agent on leave recovering from a gunshot wound. She returns to her childhood home on an island outside of Seattle. When the ferry goes down she is called to duty to help investigate human remains found on the island. Reuniting her with her best friend from childhood as the sheriff and introducing the new doctor/coroner Henry, Cate tries to determine if the remains are those of her childhood friend or the island celebrity author’s daughter. Both girls mysteriously disappeared in their teens, decades apart. 
The book starts quickly which I personally prefer, I don’t want the backstory before the mystery. Delving just a bit into Cate’s history and touching slightly on romantic possibilities, the investigation is the forefront in this story. Nothing feels too fake or forced to fit theories or time lines. I don’t think it gives too much away too early either that you know for sure what happened before it all unravels. If you like suspense, mystery and a little romance definitely grab this book!

It’s a Page turner. Love this book. I can’t wait to read the read of this series. Please continue to write this series

Great start to the series. Really easy to read. Will be following the series. Thank you for the chance to read this series Netgalley

Close to the Bone is Book 1 in the Romantic Suspense Series Widows Island.
This Novella introduces us to Tessa Black and FBI Special Agent Cate Wilde in the remove Pacific Northwest Island. They are investigating a tennagers remains that have been found on a close by island.

This is a great story and do not let the "Novella" scare you away, its very well thought out with complex characters. I really enjoyed this book..

Close to the Bone by Kendra Elliot is the first book in the new romantic suspense Widow’s Island series. This is a series written by Kendra Elliot and Melinda Leigh, with them alternating books. They are all novellas, yet read like a full length story. 

This book introduces the reader to FBI Special Agent Cate Wilde. She was suffering from a gun shot injury and came home to Widow Island to recuperate. Her recuperation is cut short when a skeleton is found on a nearby island and she is the only agent close enough to respond. Cate teams up with her old friend Tessa Black, who is a deputy. When Cate and Tessa were 15, a friend disappeared, so they are wondering if this skeleton could be her, or is the local girl who went missing two years earlier. We also meet Henry, the new doctor to the island, who did not know that meant he was also the coroner. There are some sparks between Henry and Cate that I hope will come to fruition in future books.

Close to the Bone was a great start to this series. It is surprising that even with the short novella length story, the plot is well done with all the elements of a good mystery. The characters were fleshed out enough that I got to know them well enough to be looking forward to what will come next in their lives. Well done Kendra Elliot.

Close to the Bone was my first time with Elliot. And, oh, yall, I enjoyed it! I picked it up because I have been loving Melinda Leigh. They co-write this series and Leigh writes book 2. So a new author to try. And she was fun!

The Gist: Cate's been sent home to the island she grew up on to recuperate after being shot on the job. But during her down time...bones are found and with no one able to travel to the island she's called up to work the case. One that might be quite personal depending on who's bones they turn out to be.

I enjoyed Cate. She's steady and intelligent. A touch stubborn but not in a bad way. And Henry--the new doctor in town-- is a nice guy, too. He's definitely the newbie to the island and they're giving him a bit of a hard time but he's toughing it out and is quite likable. Things are kept PG and just a taste of their relationship starting up. They were nice together.

The mystery was good, too, and caught me by surprise. There's a lot of island history, a lot of possible outcomes to the case-- two girls disappearing 20 years apart and neither having been found. The town is quirky and provides a nice mix of intrigue to go with the action.

Overall, Close to the Bone was a great introduction to both the author and a new series. I'm curious to see what other secrets this island holds.

Close To The Bone is the first novella in a new series by Kendra Elliot and Melinda Leigh .

FBI Special Agent Cate Wilde is back home on Widow's Island recovering from a gunshot injury when she is called out to the site of a discovery of skeletal remains . Only two young women have gone missing on the island in recent times ………… one being her best friend Samantha , the other the daughter of a reclusive writer .
Cate , her old friend , Sheriff's Deputy Tessa Black and the town's new Doctor , Henry Powers must work together to solve the mystery of the bones and bring to justice the murderer .

I found the length of this novella a little too short ……. the who done it element of the story felt rushed .

That being said I enjoyed this first book in the new Widow's Island series and will look forward to the next in line .

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Close To The Bone is the first novella in a new series by Kendra Elliot and Melinda Leigh. These authors will alternately be writing all the books which are all novella-length. This is their second collaboration after the Rouge River series which I hear had a few characters from this new series. I might check that out.

I am of the opinion that short lengths only do favors to a suspense genre. You get a faster pace and a tighter story-line. So, I had high expectations from this novella. But, I think, in this case that the length was the main problem with this book. It could've used a little more time for the plot and the mystery to build up and unfold.

To be fair, I think the characters were fleshed out pretty well, even in the short span of time. I liked the focus on the friendship between Cate and Tessa. I am curious about what's ahead for the gang. Having said that, the potential romance between Cate and Henry failed to engage me. I found there to be a shortage of sparks between the main characters, something that I always eagerly look forward to in a romance.

My favorite part about the book was the setting. I loved the idea of Widow's island with it's fascinated history and background. An island where married men have a record of dying young? Color me intrigued! If nothing else, I'll read the next book just to return to this fascinating island.

Love the author and I’m excited to start a new series with a new cast of characters. Close to the Bone is a great kick start novella into the series and I can’t wait to get more! Kendra Elliot will be tag teaming with author Melina Leigh in this series and I’m looking forward to the interaction between the authors and how the series will be written between the two. I enjoy both of their writing styles and have no doubt I’m going to have a great time immersing my self in this world.

I was so very excited to meet all of these new characters and get to experience this new place! Cate and Tessa are wonderful, strong female leads, with Henry bringing his own experiences to the mix. Jane is another strong women with her finger on the pulse of Widow’s Island.

This book was a great start to another collaborative series between Kendra Elliot and Melinda Leigh and I can’t wait to read what’s next!

A short novel by one of my favorite mystery authors.  Cate, an FBI agent, returns to her family home on an isolated island in Puget Sound to recover from a gunshot wound.  She's almost immediately brought in to consult on a case where bones are found on a nearby island.  Could they be the bones of her childhood friend who disappeared?  Or, the bones of the daughter of a reclusive author?  Also on the case is the island's new doctor and her other friend from childhood who is now a sheriff's deputy.  

Because this is a shorter novel, there's not a lot of time to add depth to characters.  Still, the story line was very interesting and managed to have some twists.  In particular, the author is able to capture the sense of isolation and the unique nature of island-dwellers.  I also live on an island near Puget Sound, so feel qualified to comment on that aspect.  This looks like it could be a new series.

An excellent new series by Kendra Elliott about Cat Wilde, an FBI agent who has returned to her island home to heal after suffering a gunshot wound and finds herself investigating a murder. I really enjoyed this fast-paced, suspenseful story and I look forward to the next book in this series.