Can a disillusioned former cop track down a missing girl before it’s too late?

Seven years ago, criminologist Ben Ames thought he’d change a big city police force from the inside. He failed. Now he’s a private detective trailing insurance frauds and cheating spouses through the foothills of the Rocky Mountains. Like police work, the job would be easier if he didn’t have a conscience.

When university student Kimberly Moy goes missing, her sister begs Ben to take the case. But before Ben can follow up on any leads—What does the Fibonacci series have to do with Kim’s disappearance? What do her disaffected friends know? And where is her car?—chance and bad timing drop his unexpected ex, Jesse, into the mix.

Ben doesn’t have time to train Jesse into the junior PI he seems determined to become. Amateur sleuths are always trouble. Unfortunately, this is turning out to be the kind of case that requires backup, and his intuition is telling him Kim’s story may not have a happy ending….

Review:

Dear Gayleen Froese,

I got this book on Kindle Unlimited and it worked really well for me. Partially because I am the kind of m/m reader who prefers to read not *pure* romance. Oh I really like a romance storyline if it’s well done, but I can easily get bored if the main characters spent all their time on page mooning over each other and they have no jobs and no other interests to spend their time doing.

The bottom line is, for me this book achieved a happy medium – the mystery which is investigated by the main character, a PI and our narrator, Ben Amos and a second chance romance with his ex Jesse.

Of course I also think that this book was really well written, to me Ben and Jesse came alive on page and I found their second chance romance to be believable, because too often when two exes reunite after many years I roll my eyes when apparently all they were secretly doing for a couple of decades was to see each other again. Seven years in this book for me was I guess a shorter period of time to buy that their feelings for each other were still strong enough, and regardless it was just shown convincingly for me. I do wonder though what Jess being a rock star will do to their romance.

I also thought that Ben made a believable private investigator, although of course I don’t have first hand knowledge of what it means to be a PI, but going around talking to people sounds more real than constantly getting into trouble while chasing bad guys.

As the blurb tells you in this book, Ben is trying to find a missing young woman. I cannot tell you what came out of this search, but I liked how it was done, even if I thought the answer to who was the villain was both straightforward and a little out of nowhere. Isn’t it how it supposed to be though? If you keep trying to find the answer and investigating and putting aside the possibilities you will eventually run into the correct one.

I am looking forward to the next books in the series.

Grade:B/B+

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It’s the worst news that a person can get about someone they love.

Derek Hough revealed in December 2023 that his beloved wife was hospitalized. Hayley Erbert was experiencing some scary symptoms while on their Symphony of Dance tour and required emergency brain surgery!

But what exactly happened to Derek Hough’s wife? And how is she doing now? The answer is very positive, we’re happy to say!

Derek Hough’s Wife Hayley Rushed To The Hospital After Show For Emergency Surgery

On Thursday December 7, the Dancing with the Stars judge, 38, announced on his Instagram that his wife was rushed into emergency surgery and was being treated for a cranial hematoma.

“At the end of last night’s tour performance in Washington, D.C., my wife Hayley became disoriented and was taken to the hospital,” he wrote. “She was diagnosed with a cranial hematoma from a burst blood vessel and required an emergency craniectomy. She is in stable condition.”

A cranial hematoma is when blood collects in the skull and although we don’t know how the condition developed for Derek’s beloved, it’s good news indeed to hear that she’s stable under terrifying circumstances.

“I want to thank the first responders and medical personnel who have cared for and continue to care for her. I ask for your prayers and positivity during this time,” he added.

A trying moment for the newlyweds, who just this summer got married on August 26, just before their tour kicked off in late September. Shortly after posting about the news, fellow DWTS fam members like Jenna Johnson, Peta Murgatroyd, and Ariana Madix were sending their love to the pair. 

Hayley’s Recovery

Giving fans an update on the Wednesday before Christmas, Derek took to his Instagram to share that his beloved was going back under the knife. “She is going in for surgery this morning to replace a large portion of her skull that was removed during her craniotomy,” he shared.

While all of this sounds incredibly terrifying, Derek assured his fans that their love and support for them was doing wonders. “I strongly believe all the prayers that have been sent with the intention and love of Hayley’s recover has helped so much,” he posted. “I can’t thank you all enough.  Please keep her in your prayers as I believe the collective energy helped her through these past few weeks.”

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In a video he posted earlier in the week, Derek is seen walking arm-in-arm with his love Hayley along the National Mall in Washington, D.C. While you can’t see Hayley’s face, you can see she’s wearing protective headgear. Hopefully, this surgery will mean she no longer has to wear the helmet. Still, Derek explained that they are being realistic.

“Her recovery process has been nothing short of a miracle,” he explained. “She still has a ways to go with another surgery, hopefully in a few weeks, to insert a skull implant to replace the piece that was removed during the craniectomy. It will restore the skull to its natural shape and protect the brain from injury.

How Is Derek Hough’s Wife Doing Now?

See for yourself!

In February 2024, Hayley and Derek took to Instagram for the first time together to give a positive update on her progress. Hayley showed off her short hair and the surgery scar on the top of her head in the video.

“It’s been wild going from the highest of highs to the lowest of lows. But I have to say, throughout this experience this woman has been unbelievable and her perseverance and her acceptance of the whole situation, her strength, it’s been remarkable to witness firsthand,” Derek gushed.

“She really is a miracle and it’s been miraculous and it’s still a journey.”

A journey that Derek’s wife admits has been grueling at times, but worth it all the same.

“To this day, I still have really good days and I have really bad days — emotionally and physically sometimes — but I’m doing so much better every single day,” Hayley explained.

“Truly there is so much progress every day and I’m so grateful for that.”

What Happened To Derek Hough’s Wife Hayley Erbert, Explained was originally published on The Hollywood Gossip.

Tom Bergeron is no longer holding back.

The former Dancing with the Stars host, who left the competition back in 2020, was a guest this week on Cheryl Burke’s podcast, Sex, Lies and Spray Tans.

For really the first time during this discussion, Bergeron delved into what transpired behind the scenes between himself and ABC producers, specifically how he asked four years ago for the show NOT to cast anyone from the world of politics.

Not with the country heading into a contentious election season.

Bergeron says now that he and executives came to an agreement on this topic… only for him to then get a “phone call from the showrunner and another producer,” both of whom ran down the list of the celebrities and public figures set to compete on the program.

“And this former showrunner says to me, ‘You might want to sit down for this last one.’ I said ‘Why?’ And then they told me who it was,” Bergeron told Burke.

It was ex-White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer, a man with a reputation for lying to American citizens on numerous occasions while filling this role.

Bergeron recalled that “I said, ‘Guys, this is exactly what we said we wouldn’t do. Don’t go there. This is, you know, not the right time, play to our strengths, be the show that gives people a break from all this bullsh-t.”

Alas, Spicer was cast that season.

Hoping to compromise, Bergeron said on the podcast that he volunteered to “take the season off,” which prompted the showrunner and the producer offered to “let you out of your contract if you want.”

And, with that, both Bergeron and co-host Erin Andrews were let go from Dancing with the Stars.

“That’s how strongly they felt,” Bergeron said, adding that it “really pissed me off.”

In October 2021, Bergeron was also a guest on the late Bob Saget’s podcast, opening up at that time as well about his departure from the series that made him famous.

“In all candor, the show that I left was not the show that I loved,” Bergeron said plainly during this revealing interview, adding back then:

“I took everything out of my dressing room that I really wanted … It was kind of obvious that we were kind of butting heads.”

In August 2019, while was still hosting Dancing with the Stars, Bergeron admitted that he wasn’t pleased with the casting of Spicer.

“My hope [was] that DWTS, in its return following an unprecedented year-long hiatus, would be a joyful respite from our exhausting political climate and free of inevitably divisive bookings from ANY party affiliations,” Bergeron said at the time, citing producers again and stating:

“We can agree to disagree, as we do now, but ultimately it’s their call. I’ll leave it to them to answer any further questions about those decisions.”

Bergeron told Burke that he tried to remain neutral after this disagreement (like “Switzerland”), but the decided to issue a statement to “let people know that they f—ing lied to me.”

He recounted:

“So I wrote the statement that I wrote, that did not name anybody, that did not name a political party.

“It merely said, ‘I was told certain things when I was asked my opinion, they agreed, and now they’ve thrown a curveball.’ I even went so far as to say it’s their right to do that.

“They’re the producers of the show, if that’s what they want to do they are entitled to do that. We will have to agree to disagree.”

When Spicer was announced on Good Morning America, Bergeron received numerous messages, while the public was outraged by the decision.

“So at that moment, I knew this is probably my last season, because of that one betrayal,” he says now. “Up until that point, there were people of character there.”

Tom Bergeron GOES OFF on Dancing with the Stars: They Betrayed Me, Screwed Me!!! was originally published on The Hollywood Gossip.

From the start of Season 32 of Dancing With The Stars, Britney Spears fans condemned Jamie Lynn’s role on the competition.

It had less to do with her dancing and more to do with her reputation. The world at large feels that she took advantage of Britney and Britney’s fame.

That’s standard. Every contestant brings baggage. They’re famous, after all. And that’s what makes it so interesting.

This week, Jamie Lynn went home. But there’s a piece of bad news that, frankly, makes us actually wish that she’d stayed.

Judges and audiences alike watched Jamie Lynn Spears and Alan Bersten perform a cha cha this week.

The dance earned respectable scores from the judges. And they observed that Jamie Lynn had clearly improved over their first week.

Nonetheless, she ended up in the bottom two. And, ultimately, host Alfonso Ribeiro announced that she was out of the running.

Judge Derek Hough blurted out: “Honestly, it’s quite surprising.”

Clearly, he felt blindsided by Jamie Lynn’s elimination. Especially after she’d improved so quickly.

“Jamie Lynn you were fantastic,” Hough assured her. “It’s just, wow. It’s a shocker, honestly.”

During her pre-dance interview on Tuesday, Jamie Lynn reflected upon how the judges perceived her during the first night.

“The judges could tell I was doubting myself,” she shared.

“I can do better,” Jamie Lynn affirmed. And, clearly, she could — because she did.

Jamie Lynn also admitted to worrying that the alluring dance might be too much for her to sell.

“Being a softball mom is not sexy,” she characterized.

“I beg to differ, I think softball moms are hot,” Hough countered, praising her cha cha as “a big improvement from last week.”

Hough was not the only judge to sing Jamie Lynn’s praises this week.

Bruno Tonioli raved that she was only just beginning to “come out of your shell” as a dancer.

It’s likely that miniscule changes to her dance last week and this week would have meant that she’d stay. But that’s how a dance competition works.

The stage interview was downright awkward. And what exit interview isn’t?

But this as all in front of the live studio audience. They were, if anything, looking more stunned than Jamie Lynn herself.

She repeatedly apologized to Alan Bersten, and admitted: “I hate it for him the most, thank you Alan.” Oh no, that’s actually very sweet!

We mentioned that there is a downside to this.

Obviously, hating Jamie Lynn is sort of a meme — even though there is genuine wrongdoing behind it.

But one of her competitors is Adrian Peterson, one of the most vile people to ever appear on Dancing With The Stars. And yes, we’re including Sean Spicer in the ranking.

We need to make sure that a recurring joke doesn’t make us lose perspective.

Jamie Lynn certainly could and should have been a better sister to Britney. But she’s not evil. There is no reason to believe that she is a monster.

She and Adrian were in the bottom two this week, and she went home. It should have been him. Actually, he should never have been on the show to begin with.

Jamie Lynn Spears Eliminated on DWTS, But There’s Bad News … was originally published on The Hollywood Gossip.