Lightning Reviews

I have no idea whether or not anyone actually looks at my little rating system on my sidebar. I've been adding books for the last couple of weeks but haven't written any reviews. Mostly because there are enough reviews out there to get a good idea about the books. And, hey, it's summer and I'm being lazy :)

First up Me and Mr. Darcy by Alexandra Potter. It's Chick Lit with a twist. I should start by saying I'm not a huge fan of Chick Lit, but do like Alexandra Potter. Simply put Emily is a book geek looking for her Mr. Darcy. So far what she's found are rather pathetic souls who never fit in the Darcy mold. On the spur of the moment, and to avoid a trashy Mexican vacation with her best friend, she decides to spend the week around New Years on a Jane Austen tour of England. She finds herself on a guided tour with a bunch of old ladies and one obnoxious journalist doing a story on "why the fictional Mr. Darcy has earned the title of Man Most Women Would Love to Date." Of course he turns into the love interest. It's fun, it's light and it loosely follows P&P, though I know some have considered it a retelling of P&P, but I found it wasn't that serious about it. What kept it from being very good were regular visits of Darcy as the story unfolds, I'd have preferred to just follow Emily and the group around without the little off shoots of plot.

Next up Nora Roberts' High Noon. MUST read for any Nora fan. I found this very different from many of her books. The heroine, Phoebe, is an incredibly smart, sympathetic, loving, non-bitchy character, sometimes I find her heroines can be too bitchy (at least for me) but Phoebe is really different strong, but never comes across as a bitch. Duncan, our hero, is equally smart, kind, loving and not overly cranky. You know the feeling you get when you're so into a story that you simply sit and read and the next thing you know the book is finished and you want more. Everything about this book is right, the balance of romance to suspense, the relationship building between the h/h, the interaction between the families. You can find good reviews for this at Dear Author and an interesting commentary from Rosie

Last up for this week Linda Howard's Up Close and Dangerous. Hmmm, what to say? Not my favorite Howard but still a good solid read. Bailey is the young widow of a very rich man, she now controls the trust funds for her nasty adult step-children, who obviously hate her because of this. She desperately needs a vacation away from her everyday life and has planned a rafting trip with her brother and SIL. Cam is the pilot called in to fly her from Seattle to Colorado. The plane's been sabotaged and goes down, they survive, fall in love and figure out who's the bad guy. Solid, simple story telling, but not spectacular. Zeek has a good review up and links to another.

Next week it's P&P and a couple of tribute books.

Have a good one and happy reading.

It's going to be a Jane Austin et al and a few other classics summer

Last week while visiting my local B&N I picked up British Chick Lit author Alexandra Potter's Me and Mr. Darcy. I thought I had ordered it through my local bookstore but realized I hadn't and I definitely wanted to read it. Way back when Maili was still part of the romance reading on-line community she recommended Alexandra Potter and she's been a favorite ever since. I'm about half way through the book and am enjoying it immensely.


When my husband left for work this morning I discovered a DHL delivery on my front porch--two books from Source Books that I was asked to review. The first is Old Friends and New Fancies, An Imaginary Sequel to the Novels of Jane Austen originally written in 1913, the cover claims to be "the first Jane Austen sequel ever created" by Sybil G. Brinton. The other book is Letters from Pemberley by Jane Dawkins, this one is written in letter format (which is probably obvious by the title :) I'm looking forward to both.


Thoughts of these "tribute" books got me thinking about the original, which sent me looking for my complete works of Jane Austen, and I've put that on the TBR pile too. I think I'll work my way through the entire book, not just P&P.



While I was looking for my Jane Austen book I found my old worn out copies of Charlotte Bronte's Jane Eyre and Shakespeare's Four Great Comedies. So, I put them on the TBR pile too. I don't think I've reread Jane Eyre in 15+ years and haven't picked up the Shakespeare in 7 or 8 years.

I'm not sure what I want to read next, but it probably wont be something I'll find in RT.

Sometimes it really is chick porn. Okay, that probably wasn't really fair. This was much better than "The Men of August" series which really was icky chick porn. And to be honest, I think her writing is better too.

The review at Dear Author is right on target. The story should have focused on the overall relationship without the suspense plot and local characters thrown in as filler.

Vacation Reads...

I'm not sure what it is, but when I'm on vacation inevitably I enjoy whatever it is I'm reading. Actually I finished the Quinn and Barton after we got back, but my brain is still in vacation mode. I probably wont write full reviews for each, but here are a few thoughts...

• Never Lie to a Lady by Liz Carlyle -- There are a handful of authors that always work for me, Liz Carlyle is one. I am a huge fan of Liz Carlyle's writing style and voice. Once again she delivers a winner, with smart and interesting lead characters and visits from some old favorites. And honestly, is Kemble not one of the best secondary characters in romances today?
• Son of the Morning by Linda Howard -- I reread this one after my husband finished it. He's promised to come up with a review. I think he liked it--he gave his brother a detailed synopsis and made it sound very interesting, so much so it was screaming for a reread. His last comment to me "The ending was predictable." I pointed out it's a romance it's supposed to be predictable.
• The Secret Diaries of Miranda Cheever by Julia Quinn -- I didn't know what to expect when I read this one. I didn't particularly like the last two books in the Bridgerton series. I'm starting to think I was in Bridgerton burn-out, because even though I didn't like the stories themselves, I still thoroughly enjoy her voice and style. This one worked for me.
• Raintree: Sanctuary by Beverly Barton -- This was my first Beverly Barton. I haven't decided whether or not it will be my last. Which may seem odd as I liked the book, but didn't particularly like the hero--a little too alpha for me. Which in and of itself is rather for me as I've not yet met an alpha I didn't like on some level. For those who didn't like Dante in Raintree Inferno you probably wont like Judah either. I'll leave it at that as I'm probably going to write a review/commentary on the entire series.

That's it for now, hoping the hubby will have something to post in the next day or so.

Have a good one and happy reading.

Your Mouth Drives Me Crazy by HelenKay Dimon

If you're a fan of exceptionally good, sparkling dialogue then Your Mouth Drives Me Crazy by HelenKay Dimon is a must read.

From the Publisher:

Her mouth should be a dangerous weapon. So should his—but for different reasons. Thrown together by chance—and a pair of handcuffs—they're about to make Hawaii even steamier.

NEVER LET ME GO

Annie Parks came to Hawaii to gather information and settle a score, not spend time handcuffed to a sexy stranger's bed. Okay, so this particular stranger saved her from drowning after she was pitched overboard by some goons. And he's about six feet of hard, Hawaiian muscle and gorgeous cool that's making forgotten parts of her say, "A—lo—ha!" She needs to stay focused, but a side dish of Kane Travers is awfully tempting.

Kauai Police Chief Kane Travers is not a vacation kind of guy. So it figures that when Internal Affairs suspended him, he'd end up rescuing a sarcastic, dishonest, extremely hot redhead who is clearly hiding something. Amnesia? Yeah, right. Kane's got half a mind to give Miss Whoever She Is something she'll never forget. His cop senses tell him that the lady's in deep and needs his protection. But how can he get her to tell him anything when all he wants is to take her home and do everything?

HelenKay's Viva Las Bad Boys convinced me that not only could she write, but she writes fantastic dialogue. Knowing this I had high expectations for YMDMC. And then I saw "Amnesia" in the blurb and went "Oh! No!" anyone that knows my reading habits knows how much I hate amnesia story lines. But it's evident Kane doesn't buy Annie's story and the fun begins. The attraction and tension between them immediate.

Annie's on a mission--revenge. And she's not talking. Well, that's not really true, she's running her amazingly clever smart mouth, but not explaining how she ended up naked on his beach. But Kane's right there with her with a come back for every one of her smart mouth comments. It's a perfect balance of dialogue--clever, sarcastic with lots of sexual innuendos.

The suspense part of the plot is good, with just enough twists and turns, but I had small issues with how the story unfolds. Annie can come clean as to what she's doing sooner, but this doesn't really take away from the suspense part of the story, and it allows the banter to continue.

Without the dialogue this would have been a good romantic suspense. But the dialogue kicks this up to Very Good and quite possibly a "Keeper".

The hubby is finally reading Son of the Morning. He announced that if it's a "Time Travel" he's not reading it. Not a good sign--LOL.

I told him he had to finish it the Ladies were expecting a review from a man's POV. He didn't say no. So maybe sometime in the next week or so he'll post his thoughts.

One More Try

After coming across numerous posts from readers I trust, I decided to give Lora Leigh one more try. I ordered Forbidden Pleasure. If it's a wallbanger I'm sure you'll hear the bang.

Catch up

So I'm still busy copy and pasting over on Romantic Advances and still neglecting my poor blog. But the site is really coming together nicely. Make sure you check out the "Wish List" feature--love that. Still lurking at all my favorite blogs. I should be more of a social blogger next week.

I've finished two of Deidre Martin's Hockey books, neither were keepers, to be honest, I'm really not that impressed by them. Which is probably rather rude considering I'm not planning on doing reviews for them--oh, well.

I should be writing a review of Desperate Duchesses, but instead I'm watching Eddie and the Cruiserson VH1 Classics.

Am I showing my age by admitting I love that movie and the music?

Have a great weekend, we've got a busy one planned, t-ball, barbecues, fun family stuff.

Demon Moon by Meljean Brook *originally posted May 14, 2007*

I've been putting off reviewing this one, not because I didn't like it, but rather because...

• I'm afraid I wont be able to do it justice--it's that good.
• I was waiting until closer to the release date (June 5th)
• It's almost impossible to write without spoilers

The back blurb:

No one would call vampire Colin Ames-Beaumont kind, but they would call him unnaturally beautiful. For two centuries his tainted blood has kept him isolated from other vampires, sustained only by his beauty and vanity—bitter comforts, since a curse has erased his mirror reflection, replacing it with a terrifying glimpse of Chaos.

Savi Murray's insatiable curiosity had gotten her into trouble before, but she'd always escaped unscathed. Then came Colin. In the midst of Heaven, he gave her a taste of ecstasy—and of Chaos. Deadly creatures from that realm herald the return of an imprisoned nosferatu horde, and Colin and Savi’s bond is their only protection—and their only passion…

Meljean has created a book with two characters that could have been unlikeable, but she creates smart, sympathetic and loving characters instead. After finishing Demon Angel I knew I'd be interested in Colin's story even though he was vain and self-absorbed, but I was less enthralled with Savi, her "insatiable curiosity" isn't the most endearing quality. But I should have realized that if Meljean could make Lilith sympathetic then Savi would be an angel.

One of the things Meljean does well is create levels of fear and horror that I normally find lacking in paranormal romance. The opening scene hits this mark and in the process completely hooks me for the rest of the book. It's hit again with the scenes involving Chaos and in the process we feel Colin anxiety and fear being thrown into that environment.

And while she's created this at times frightening world, the romance never suffers. There is a sexual tension that is palpable. She moves us through their attraction--desire and ultimately love.

Their backstories are told beautifully. We realize how much Colin misses his sister and Anthony. With glimpses into Savi's past we come to understand why her relationship with her grandmother is so important. And why she's willing to pass on love to find someone that would please her grandmother. There's a resigned sadness in Colin when he's willing to stand back and just be friends.

I found myself on the verge of tears as they try to figure out a way to be together.

I've already read it twice, reread the ending several times.

This one's good, it's better than good, it's a keeper.

My poor neglected blog... and a little contest

I decided to take a break from posting books on Romantic Advances and give my poor neglected blog some much needed attention. I spent about an hour this morning blog hopping to all my favorite blogs. I ended up only lurking, for some strange reason blogger was revolting and didn't let me click into comments.

A call from my local bookstore on Thursday sent me scurrying over there yesterday afternoon. Some of my June book order was in:



Desperate Duchesses by Eloisa James--I've read about 1/2 of this already. It's probably safe to say I'm an Eloisa James fangirl. I am thoroughly enjoying this book. Set in the Georgian period there's this fun naughty feel to it. I'm enjoying the h/h, but I can already tell there's a book that's being built to. Two of the secondary characters are married but have been living separate lives. I have a feeling that their relationship will be the series arc and am already looking forward to that one. Now, was that vague enough--LOL.

Abandon by Carla Neggers--I've only recently discovered Carla Neggers, having only read a couple books. I liked her writing voice and style enough to add her to my autobuy list. I'm very picky when it comes RS, so far she works for me.

Lady Beware by Jo Beverley--this one was a no brainer. I've been a Jo Beverley fan for years and how could I possibly pass up a "Rogues" book :D

Wild, Wicked and Wanton by Jaci Burton--I think this was actually a May release, but I hemmed and hawed last month, read a few good reviews and decided to give it a try. If I'm picky about Romantic Suspense, I'm even more so about Erotic Romance, only getting one or two a month. Wild, Wicked and Wanton is this months pick.

A quick little contest:


I discovered I have 2 copies of Nalini Singh's Visions of Heat. Since I'm too tired to come up with something clever I'm going to think of a number between 1 and 100. Make sure you list a number in your comment. Closest wins.

Pretty easy, right?

Guilty Pleasure

The only book I've read in the last week was Susan Mallery's The Marcelli Princess.

Conceptually this book should have annoyed me, the whole plot line is beyond odd. Winery heiress becomes American spy after ex-boyfriend (domestic terrorist) tries to kidnap the President's daughter (her sister-in-law), falls in love with an antiquities thief she's supposed to be covertly watching, who turns out to be a prince from a small European Kingdom. also working undercover. She secretly has his baby after she thinks he's dead. He sees a picture of her and her child in a newspaper and realizes he's got an heir and the little boy's a "Prince". And, to add insult to injury, he plans to take the child away from his poor mother. Far-fetched enough, convoluted enough? **eyes roll repeatedly**

And yet I thoroughly enjoyed it.

Why you ask? Because it feeds one of my reading guilty pleasures--Commoner/Royalty stories. I don't read them very often, but when I do inevitably it's going to be a favorite--LOL.

Nora Robert's Cordina series is on my keeper shelf and it's now itching for a reread.

Creepin' -- Anthology

Creepin' -- An anthology of African American paranormal erotic romance featuring L.A. Bank, Donna Hill, Monica Jackson, J.M. Jeffries and Janice Sims.

I'm going to start by saying I'm not a huge fan of anthologies, normally something doesn't work within each story, whether it's pacing, or amount of story or back story.

But, I absolutely LOVED Creepin'. Each story is unique and different. Each hits different levels of romance, erotica and horror. It's the horror mark that really works for me. Each story deals with revenge and justice, but in a paranormal environment.

Payback is a Bitch by L.A. Banks--Sidney Coleburn-West has a cheating bastard for a husband. And he needs to be dealt with, in comes Mitchell "Brick" Brickland to the rescue. Turns out Brick is a werewolf and decides Sidney's going to be his mate, but first they need to deal with the husband. I particularly liked this one, it was my first L.A. Banks story and I'll be looking for her back list.

The Heat of the Night by Donna Hill--Chris has been in love with her best friend, Melody, for years. Mel has no idea, but Chris now has a nightly visitor, and she is completely hot for whatever it is and loves what it does to her body. And, she's not willing to share, not even with Mel. This is by far my favorite story of the five. It's hot, it's spooky and it has an ending that could rival anything by the favorites within the horror genre. If you like the odd ironies of Stephen King short stories, this one will probably work for you--it did for me.

Vamped by Monica Jackson--another fun story. Joy's fiance, Andre, is a bit of a homebody. Goes to work and comes home, nothing in between. Joy insists he make an appearance at a work related event to prove to her coworkers he actually exists. Well, there's a reason he doesn't go out in public, regular visits from a vampire named Dahlia, she uses him for feeding and sex and he wants no part of it. Somehow (I'm not telling) Joy is infected. I'm stopping here in the story synopsis because I don't want to give anything else away. This one's an erotic romance and the ending is a little convenient, but I liked it and it certainly didn't take away from the overall story. And, I'm not certain if there would have been any other way to reach the HEA--so it works.

Balancing the Scales by J.M. Jeffries--Paloma Alexander is a Superstar with a lying, cheating, thief for a husband. She's willing to give up everything to be free of him even her most prized possession--her voice. Loved this story, not only is it about revenge, it's about the poetic justice that can go with it.

Avenging Angel by Janice Sims--Sarai is a member of the Nephilim group Grigori. The Grigoris are dedicated to God, unlike the Nephilim group The Sons of the Morning Star who are dedicated to Lucifer. It turns out an old boyfriend from The Sons of the Morning Star wants her back, but she's happily married to a human, a professional boxer turned politician, a good man doing good things and Sarai loves her husband and wants no part of the ex. The ex needs to be dealt with--that's it anything else is a spoiler. This was my least favorite of the group and it's still a good story, of course a Good vs. Evil story always works for me.

Be prepared not all the stories are romances, but all are extremely erotic. I read the entire book in one sitting at my computer, anyone who knows me, knows that's saying something about just how good this book is.

A Quickie...

It's been a busy reading month so far, but I haven't had time nor the inclination to write reviews for everything. So I thought I'd post snippets about what I liked/disliked about each one...

Shana Abe's The Smoke Thief completely blew me away. It's been out for a while and to be honest I wasn't all that interested, I picked it up on a whim and it's now a keeper. I had to fight to keep from doing an immediate reread.

I chose not to review this one because I thought it would turn into a gush fest and that wouldn't do the book justice.

I'm heading to the library today in the hope they have The Dream Thief available.

I'm a Susan Squires fan and her Companion series is one of my favorites, though I didn't particularly like The Burning, I did like her new one One With The Night. The heroine is strong and smart, the hero is a bit of a "poor put upon me" vampire, but not enough to put me off the story, and considering his backstory it may be understandable. There's an interesting twist to the Loch Ness Monster(s) in this one that I originally thought was over the top, but the more I think about it the more I like it.

I like that Ms. Squires leaves the HEA on the ambiguous side, it's a series about vampires--forever is a really long time :)

Castle of the Wolf is my first Sandra Schwab book. It's a Gothic--I love Gothics.

I liked the hero and heroine, her brother's pathetic, her SIL's a bitch, his parents are sweet, the servants are loyal, the heroine has an interesting rat killing friend, and his brother's the villain. The gargoyles add a cool twist to the story. The setting is interesting--Germany's Black Forest.

What's not to like? :D

Hmmm, I've been at a loss for words (I know--a loss for words--right :D) regarding Loretta Chase's Not Quite A Lady and it finally hit me, I'm not a huge fan of Loretta Chase's voice, it's why I'm sometimes hit or miss with her stories, because if the story doesn't completely grab me I'm just reading, not really loving it but not hating it either. I also did the comparison thing--Mr. Impossible is one of my favorite books, this one didn't compare for me. Darius isn't half as entertaining as Rupert and Charlotte just seemed immature, at one point near the end she says something about not growing past 16 and that's exactly how I felt as I was reading the book. Good because she's a good writer but it didn't completely work for me.

I'm not a huge "contemporary" reader, because I often find them trying too hard--too funny, too melodramatic. I'm picky about romantic comedies and I've reached a point in my life that too much melodrama is, well, too much. Susan Wiggs' contemporaries are melodramatic, but for some reason they don't bug me. Her The Lakeside Chronicles are set in the Catskills, which is basically my backyard. I find myself nit picking the details of the area, how long it takes to go back and forth to NYC, calling the local government a "city" instead of a "town" or "village". But, not enough to completely pull me out of the story. I liked the hero and heroine (Rourke and Jenny). The Winter Lodge is a nice story,add a little mystery, and truths uncovered--it worked.


Thanks to Wendy I've become a Cheryl St. John fan, slowly collecting her backlist as I come across them. She's a nice storyteller, her books are simple, straightforward and always work. Joe's Wife is a sweet story about a man from the wrong side of the tracks and a widow in need.

I've got 2 or 3 more of her books on my TBR pile, she's become my go to author when I need a western fix.

You know that deja vu feeling you get when you read something that seems familiar but you can't quite figure out why? It's the feeling I got when I started Asking for Trouble by Elizabeth Young. And then it hit me, the plot was the same as that movie that came out a couple of years ago with Debra Messing--The Wedding Date, no kidding, after a quick pop in to B&N and I find out the movie's based on the book. Well, I have to say I loved the first half of the book, found myself smiling at the basic craziness of it, but then the second half disintegrated into a mass of misunderstandings. It could have been better but wasn't horrible.

It really wasn't a quickie, was it? :D

May Contain Spoilers...

Finally, I'm sitting down to review/comment about Lynn Viehl's Night Lost.

Have you ever picked up a book and after reading it realized whoever wrote the back blurb nailed the description? ...

A Noble Prisoner...
Gabriel Seran has fallen into the hands of the fanatical religious order known as the Brethren. Though abandoned by his fellow Kyn, he remains honor bound to protect their secrets from his interrogators. Blinded, nailed to a cross,k and sealed in a chapel cellar beneath a ruined chateau, Gabriel faces an eternity of suffering.

An Obsessed Thief...
Nicola "Nick" Jefferson has been traveling across Europe, looting churches of their precious artwork and fencing the treasures to make her living. At each destination, she liberates the captive vampires, hoping they'll provide her with information leading to the one artifact she so desperately craves: the Golden Madonna.

A Fateful Coupling...
Gabriel and Nick have met before in each other's dreams. Bound together by more than coincidence, their destinies intertwine even as their passions ignite...

Well, there you have a perfect summary. Actually a perfect summary of half the book. Gabriel and Nick's story. Both characters are strong and smart, devoted to their own causes. Once she's saved him from the Brethren it turns into a little bit of a road tale--pulling them toward Ireland and the rest of the story... Alex, Michael and Richard...

If you've been following the series at the end of Dark Need Richard has kidnapped Alex and brought her back to Ireland to help cure him. The King of the Darkyn has a problem. When he was held in captivity by the Brethren he only feed on animals, his system doesn't tolerate human blood. And we also discovered at the end of DN that Kyn who don't feed on human blood slowly become changelings turning into a bizarre version of animal/human. Richard's becoming more animal than human. He desperately needs Alex to save him. Alex wants out, Michael wants Alex out and this slowly builds to a climax that includes Gabriel and Nick and a villain they're all looking for.

Ms. Viehl does an amazing job combining story line and overall series arc--it completely works and flows together beautifully, and yet the overall series arc isn't finished only a part of it, leaving the Brethren, John and other Kyn with interesting story lines that still need to be told--LOVE IT :D

Next up on the TBR pile was Ms. Viehl's Midnight Blues, another great tale. On some level it's a small continuation of DN bringing us back to Sam and Lucan, almost an epilogue with an extra tale for Rafael, Sam's detective partner and also Kyn. Daniela Nieves needs rescuing from an evil Kyn member many have thought long dead. Rafael to the rescue. What makes this novella particularly entertaining is just who the villain is, and I'm not telling :D

So after a reading high I moved on to another "favorite" author. Unfortunately it lead to a little bit of a let down. I like Adele Ashworth's stories, writing style and voice. But The Duke's Indiscretion didn't really work for me. Conceptually it's an interesting story. An Earl's sister living a double life as aristocrat and opera singer attracts the attention of a smart, rakish Duke. She manipulates him into marriage and he's willing because he thinks he's getting the hot opera singer, what he actually gets is the cold aristocrat. He's made to feel the cad and she needs to work through her "feelings" about the whole thing. Throw in a little mystery and that's it.

Basically, I liked Colin, the hero, but didn't like Charlotte/Lottie, the heroine.

And again Ms. Ashworth falls victim to bad proof reading. The opening of one chapter has Charlotte spelled without the "h".

Officially a Lynn Viehl Fangirl

I just finished Lynn Viehl's Night Lost. I am now an official Lynn Viehl fangirl. I knew it was coming. I loved the first book in the Darkyn series, If Angels Burn, even though there were other readers announcing it was too dark, not enough romance, it completely worked for me. The next two, Private Demon and Dark Need were both keepers too. This one may be my favorite, with the main storyline and the overall series story arc working together for a GREAT read.

You know the feeling you get when you close a book and realize the next one wont be out for at least 6 months? I'm devastated, okay not devastated, but really annoyed that this one's done and nothing is on the horizon until January of '08.

Before I can write a review/commentary I'll need to gather my thoughts, this one left me craving more and I'm a little scattered. Why? Because I just realized there's an ebook download for this series that somehow I missed. How? I rarely visit author websites (exceptions--the ones on my sidebar). I'll be adding Paperback Writer. I hate to admit it I've never been there before. So, while I'm there I see a cover I've never seen before, for a story in the series I've never read... Midnight Blues, a Darkyn Novella. "A Darkyn Novella", why don't I remember anyone mentioning this?? Not only does Adobe pop up with 108 pages, there's a huge list of other free downloads. I'm so pathetic I'm sure someone somewhere must have mentioned this. I live in my own world, surrounded by books, rubbernecking at on-line train wrecks, but go no where.

So, you can probably figure out what's up next on the TBR pile, but then I'm bereft, with nothing to read (not--LOL), knowing what I really want is Evermore. I've read the excerpt and already know it's going to be fantastic.

I wonder how hard it would be to get on Signet's ARC list? I somehow managed to get myself on Simon & Schuster's Historical Fiction list. Hmm, I'll have to work on this :D

Last weeks books... This will probably be long :)

Annie Dean emailed me a couple of weeks ago and asked if I'd be interested in reading her new book The Average Girl's Guide to Getting Laid. I'd read a couple of reviews (Dear Author and Mrs. G) and from those reviews I was expecting an average read.

I must say I was pleasantly surprised when it was more than that. I enjoyed this book. I felt comfortable with Ellie, she's sweet and self conscious and at times full of forced bravado, but not in a bad way. Ash is cool.

Sexy and smart, well paced. The dialogue works (though I hated the "babygirl" endearment--but that's mostly because one of my BILs calls his 3 year old "babygirl). Mostly I liked Ellie and Ash, they were good people. A very sexy story about everyday average people falling in love.

It's not perfect, some of the conflict seemed a little forced and there's little side trips within the story that aren't really necessary, but don't really hurt the story.

This one was better than average for me.

I wish Mary Balogh's Simply Magic was better than average. I was disappointed with this story. I'm not going to write a full review or commentary for this one. All I can say about it is BORING. The hero and heroine are both nice people, but the story is a character driven one and it basically goes absolutely no where. I found myself skimming and skipping whole sections. Mary Balogh is still an auto read for me, simply because I like her writing style and voice, but this book didn't work for me.

Count to Ten has put Karen Rose on my autobuy list. This is a non-stop thriller with a great balance between suspense and romance. I'm very picky when it comes to romantic suspense, I usually find the balance doesn't work for me (to heavy on the romance not enough chills and thrills). Smart, well-developed characters (main and secondary), strong story, good dialogue, the pacing was perfect. I tried to find some of her backlist at the UBS today, but there wasn't a single book in stock.

They Call Me Naughty Lola Personal Ads from the LONDON REVIEW OF BOOKS--Edited and with an Introduction by David Rose. Incredibly fun reading. The ads are funny, sarcastic, dry and at times beyond desperate. If you have an opportunity to pick this one up--do, it's worth it. I borrowed it from the library and hate having to give it back. I may have to buy myself a copy.

That's it for last weeks reading.

I've got some good books on the TBR pile, I may come up for air long enough to post about them as I finish them.

Have a good one and happy reading.

Why am I only now discovering Karen Rose??

Started reading Count to Ten over the weekend and honestly if I we weren't doing the "family thing" I'd have the book finished. I'm about half way through and I have no idea who is the arsonist. Absolutely loving this book.

Well, that's all I've got--LOL.

Have a great day and happy reading.

Raintree: Inferno

The middle of the night seemed to be a good time to finally finish Linda Howard's RAINTREE: Inferno. Apparently I'm an oddity in romance blogland. I liked it. :D It had entertainment value. Different from a typical Linda Howard, but not as much as some people are complaining about.

Back blurb:

Two hundred years after the Raintree clan defeated them, the Ansara wizards are rising again to take on their bitterest foes. As king, it's up to Dante Raintree to protect his clan, but his heart--and maybe his loyalties--may be fatally divided when Lorna Clay walks into his life. Suddenly fire, always his to control defeats him taking with it his livelihood. Unsure whether Lorna is to blame yet unable to walk away from her, Dante faces the fight of his lifetime, a fight even his strength and that of the Raintree clan may not be enough to win.

That sounded way more dramatic than the actual telling of the story...contains spoilers...

Lorna Clay is somehow cheating while she's playing blackjack at Dante Raintree's Reno casino. He's not happy. Pulls her into his office and while they're discussing the situation two things happen. 1. He realizes she has some sort of psychic abilities that's why she wins consistently (it's a number thing) and 2. The casino is on fire. Here's where the "brain-rape" comes in. He needs to control the fire and the only way he can is with the help of someone else with strong psychic ability. So he does what he thinks he has to forcibly links with Lorna and controls the fire in order to save lives. Not nice, but certainly explainable and is explained after the fact.

Now he thinks maybe she's Ansara, tears off her clothing to see if she has the "Ansara birthmark". Of course she doesn't and at this point she's really pissed off. He forces her to stay at his home (force field thingy) and she wreaks havoc with little get even tricks.

Dante is over the top and bullyish, but hey he's a king, he's used to getting his way. I'm not horrified by what happened up to this point, everything fits within the context of the story.

There's a turning point near the end of the book right before they have sex for the first time, she basically says no more mind control and they need to be equals or they don't go forward...

Reading him wasn't easy, but she could see he didn't like relinquishing control at all. Intuitively, she grasped his dilemma. On a purely intellectual basis, he understood. On a more primitive level he didn't want to lose her, and he was prepared to be as autocratic and heavy-handed as necessary..."All or nothing."...

If you are a Linda Howard fangirl this book shouldn't shock you. If you're a borderline fan you're not going to like it. And if you're not a fan at all, avoid it completely.

I'll finish the series. The ending of this book is very reminiscent of Jane and Grant's part in Diamond Bay, she's told to stay put and of course she wont. Got to see where it goes.

Finally 3 more books...

It took me 2 weeks to finish Jane Feather's A Wicked Gentleman, which surprises me as I actually liked the story. Lady Cornelia (Nell) Dagenham is a widow with 2 children, her son is the heir to an earldom, her controlling father-in-law is looking for an excuse to take custody of his grandchildren. She and the children escape life under his thumb by going to London for the Season with her are her two best friends--her SIL Aurelia and their friend Liv Lacey. Liv has inherited a falling down town house and small inheritance to repair the building--can you tell this is a three book series??

Viscount Bonham (Harry) is a code breaker for the Crown. Something has been left in the ramshackle old town house that he needs and he befriends the ladies of the house in order to find it. Thus is the set up for the growing relationship between Nell and Harry.

I liked that this is an adult story, not a debutant in sight. All of the characters are interesting and well developed. The story is very character driven. Yet the pace of the story is painfully slow, a little too meandering. I'm not sure her writing style and voice support the slow pace. It reminds me why I like Eloisa James so much, even when her plot is weak the characters are strong and fun enough to carry the story.

Overall I liked it, but would have really preferred to see it cut from 474 pages to 374+/-. (B-)

Anne Stuart!! For some readers that's all you have to say. I'm one of them. I read her books for the heros and if the heroine works too all the better. Ice Blue's heroine worked for me, not as stupidly annoying as Genevieve from Cold as Ice and not as naive as Black Ice's Chloe. Though Summer does have some inconsistencies, mostly having to do with her background (I know I'm being vague, but avoiding spoilers). I like Summer, but this is Takashi O'Brien's story, at least it was for me :)

From the Publisher:

Museum curator Summer Hawthorne considered the exquisite ice-blue ceramic bowl given to her by her beloved Japanese nanny a treasure of sentimental value—until somebody tried to kill her for it.

The priceless relic is about to ignite a global power struggle that must be stopped at all costs. It's a desperate situation, and international operative Takashi O'Brien has received his directive: everybody is expendable. Everybody. Especially the woman who is getting dangerously under his skin as the lethal game crosses the Pacific to the remote and beautiful mountains of Japan, where the truth can be as seductive as it is deadly . . .

The somebody tried to kill her for it part of the story features her La La Land mother's spiritual guru, a phony that believes his destiny is to change the world. The Committee sends Taka to the rescue, should he kill her or save her--what do you think? It's action and adventure and fun. Why else do you read Anne Stuart?

Hmmm, what to say about Kathleen O'Reilly's Beyond Daring? A book that starts with two not so likable characters. Sheldon is the Paris Hilton of the consumer product set, Daddy sells everything from toothpaste to cleaning supplies. She's a useless princess--why, it's never really explained why she behaves so abysmally. Is she acting out to avoid an up coming marriage/merger? No because she's doing this willing or so she says. Her parents are likable, her sister rather sweet, but she's icky. Jeff is a PR dream, can sell "ice to Eskimos" and sleeps with anything remotely interested in his pretty boy looks and demeanor. Jeff's sister is still using her brothers to further her carreer and honestly I think she may be even less likable than these two.

And yet, the darned thing still worked for me. Ultimately I liked where the story took me so it gets a thumbs up or a B- anyway.

My new best friend, by way of Rosario...

Today I discovered a new author. Well, she not new, she's been around a while, but I've never read anything by her. Terri Brisbin.

This morning I read Rosario's review of The King's Mistress. Anyone who knows me knows I'm a huge medieval fan, add to that an unusual story line, an atypical heroine and an interesting hero and I'm going to search for the book ASAP. And then I reached the end of the review to find this...

I'll definitely be reading more by this author. Any recs? My interest was caught by The Duchess' Next Husband, but then I saw that the hero keeps a mistress while he's already married to the heroine, and that's a bit of a deal-breaker for me, so maybe I should start with something else. Suggestions are very welcome!

Then I read Ms. Brisban's comment...

About THE DUCHESS'S NEXT HUSBAND -- I would suggest (trying not to spoil it for you) that you could safely read it even with your concern about a mistress while married. It's loosely based on the old Rock Hudson-Doris Day movie -- Send Me No Flowers -- and you know Doris would never stand for a mistress!

OMG, I love that movie. I knew I'd be hitting the UBS to search out this one in particular. I have a confession of sorts to make. While other's find cheating husbands a deal breaker, I'm absolutely fascinated by historicals featuring couples that are married but not in love.

So instead of spending the afternoon nagging the school's office staff into helping me pick out graphics for the new website, I went to the UBS. Found several of Terri Brisban's backlist including The King's Mistress and The Duchess's Next Husband. And couldn't wait to get home and start reading. And I would have been reading promptly at 3:15 if I hadn't promised to spend the afternoon coloring eggs with 2 five year olds. The kids had a great time, we had pizza for dinner, got home around 6:30, put the child to bed by 7:30 and I started reading by 8:00, by 10:30 I was done (thank God the hubby tapped LOST) and I'm here to tell you....
I LOVED IT

The Duke of Windmere receives word that he’s going to die, and tries to get his affairs in order—which includes finding his wife a new husband!

But as the duke's efforts go awry and he starts to fall in love with the duchess again, dare he hope they will find true happiness together -- before it's too late?

Adrian is the current Duke of Windmere, but when he and Miranda married he was actually the "spare" and she wasn't quite good enough for the then Duke (Adrian's brother), but her dowry certainly made her good enough for the back-up. The unexpected death of his brother turns their lives upside down, a contented marriage turns into a society one and 5 years later, they're basically living separate lives. Add to this Adrian has chronic asthma and it's getting worse. After meeting with his doctor's and eavesdropping on a conversation he's left believing he'll be dead before the year is out. He needs to get all his ducks in a row, and that's what drives the story.

Miranda is an interesting character, after 5 years of being under the Dowager's thumb she's more than ready to ditch the old lady and try to make something of her marriage. She's dumbfounded by Adrian's behavior changes, but wants a happy marriage and a loving husband. Adrian is somehow endearing with how he wants to make sure Miranda will find some sort of happiness without him. First he feels the desperate need for an heir, when he realizes that may not happen, he needs to set her up financially, without an heir she may be left penniless and when he realizes he's in love with her he doesn't want her to be alone and starts introducing her to potential husbands. Doing all of this without ever telling her he's "dieing".

At times humorous, at times sad, even knowing he wasn't "dieing" I still cried when he finally tells her.

My only complaint, the "big misunderstanding" near the end, caused by his evil mother, the conclusion of which is very reminiscent of the one in Judith McNaught's Whitney, My Love.

Character driven, with well developed characters and a nice writing style and voice. I can't wait to read the rest of her backlist.

*edited* to correct "dying" to "dieing", the poor man thought he was near death not changing colors--LOL