So, there it was a week before Christmas and all through the Pit of Hell, not a sound could be heard. Bliss.... Silence... Not even that annoying Hippopatamus song that sets my teeth on edge like nails to a chalkboard.
Throat begins to feel a little scratchy. I'm at the Mall, so a stop to Hot Dog On A Stick for a cherry lemonade is in order. Get home and spray the throat with the Chloraseptic spray for immediate negative results. Sore Throat: 1 Sherri: 0
Next morning, throat is feeling much worse. Hurts like hell to swallow and I have my office Christmas party tonight. I'm cooking for God's sake! What if I'm contagious? I can't go to the party and get anyone sick. Sore Throat: 2 Sherri: 0
Friday morning, Christmas is less than a week away. Husband is inviting his workmates over for a pizza and XBox party tonight. Several times throughout the night last night, my throat felt like it was closing up. Ice cream doesn't help. Hot beverages help slightly. Could it be strep? I go to urgent care. Nay, says the knows nothing, sees nothing medical professional. "People with strep look much more toxic than you." I guess I didn't try hard enough to look like shit. Here's an inhaler (huh? for a sore throat?) and some antibiotics. Sore Throat: 2 Sherri: 1
Saturday, I can barely get out of bed and am running a fever. Confined myself to my bedroom so as not to scare hubby's guests last night. Supposed to work half a day today. That's not gonna happen. Have to eat something to take these pills that are the size of a small Chevy. Hurts so bad to swallow any food, I'm in tears. Sore Throat: 3 Sherri: 1
Sunday I go to work for half a day, mostly out of guilt but lack the energy to do much. Hurts like a mother when I sneeze. Employees are holding up crucifixes and making the signs of the cross in my presence. Smell of garlic in the air. Guess this is how Dracula felt upon arriving in town. Have forgotten what solid food tastes like. Sore Throat: 4 Sherri: 1
Monday back to work. No voice. Using a whiteboard to communicate with my coworkers. Whoever said verbal communication is overrated has their head up their ass. Why aren't these friggin antibiotics working???? Sore Throat: 5 Sherri: 1
Tuesday, some voice. Razor blades in my throat. Ready to take hostages and Christmas can take a flying leap as far as I'm concerned. Sore Throat: 6 Sherri: 1
Wednesday, I go to the Ear Nose Throat specialist. Antiobiotics are supposed to be some of the strongest out there and should have had an improvement within 72 hours of taking them. Yeah, right. Now taking a steroid for the diagnosed condition of "acute tonsilitis." Could be worse. It could be "anugly tonsilitis." Sore Throat: 7 Sherri: 1
Thursday, Merry Christmas. Throat is no longer sore though still feels strange. Can swallow without pain! Yes! Sore Throat: 7 Sherri: 2
Now if the cough would go away, I'm ready for the New Year!
Sunday, December 28, 2008
Tuesday, December 02, 2008
November Reading Review
Some decent reads this month
The Pact by Jennifer Sturman
My Rating: 8 *'s
My Thoughts: Not a riveting start to the series but I enjoyed it and am looking forward to more. I enjoyed that the reader is left with hope of a future for Rachel and Peter. I'm curious to see how it will play out.
Portrait In Death by J.D. Robb
My Rating: 10 *'s
My Thoughts: I feel like I'm beginning to sound like a broken record with this series, but I can't help it. Another great installment of Eve and Roark. I loved the side story of Roark meeting his mother's family and Somerset's injury and vacation plans. As with the other stories, I was again way off base with the identity of the killer...
Lean Mean Thirteen by Janet Evanovich
My Rating: 10 *'s
My Thoughts: The story was complete fluff but had a lot more Ranger in it this time around and that's just fine with me. Got to see more of Dickie and Joyce too, which wasn't so great but more a necessity to the storyline so I can overlook it (hahaha). A surprise revelation about Tank and Grandma Mazur was entertaining as usual. This series is a lot of fun and I am looking forward to #14!
Don't Tell by Karen Rose
My Rating: 8 *'s
My Thoughts: First time reading this author and this story did a great job of keeping me on the edge of my seat between anxiety and hope that Caroline outwits the villain. Really liked the characters and the inner tormoil both Max and Caroline have to overcome. I enjoyed the ending and the closure it brought.
Cheating At Solitaire by Ally Carter
My Rating: 9 *'s
My Thoughts: Very cute story and a fast read. Enjoyed all of the characters except for Lance's agent. Thought he was a slimeball. Looking forward to the sequel.
The Pact by Jennifer Sturman
My Rating: 8 *'s
My Thoughts: Not a riveting start to the series but I enjoyed it and am looking forward to more. I enjoyed that the reader is left with hope of a future for Rachel and Peter. I'm curious to see how it will play out.
Portrait In Death by J.D. RobbMy Rating: 10 *'s
My Thoughts: I feel like I'm beginning to sound like a broken record with this series, but I can't help it. Another great installment of Eve and Roark. I loved the side story of Roark meeting his mother's family and Somerset's injury and vacation plans. As with the other stories, I was again way off base with the identity of the killer...
Lean Mean Thirteen by Janet EvanovichMy Rating: 10 *'s
My Thoughts: The story was complete fluff but had a lot more Ranger in it this time around and that's just fine with me. Got to see more of Dickie and Joyce too, which wasn't so great but more a necessity to the storyline so I can overlook it (hahaha). A surprise revelation about Tank and Grandma Mazur was entertaining as usual. This series is a lot of fun and I am looking forward to #14!
Don't Tell by Karen RoseMy Rating: 8 *'s
My Thoughts: First time reading this author and this story did a great job of keeping me on the edge of my seat between anxiety and hope that Caroline outwits the villain. Really liked the characters and the inner tormoil both Max and Caroline have to overcome. I enjoyed the ending and the closure it brought.
Cheating At Solitaire by Ally Carter
My Rating: 9 *'s
My Thoughts: Very cute story and a fast read. Enjoyed all of the characters except for Lance's agent. Thought he was a slimeball. Looking forward to the sequel.
Monday, December 01, 2008
New Additions To The TBR Pile In November
Quite a variety of genres made their way into the TBR pile last month...
Vamps And The City by Kerrelyn Sparks
Un-Veiled by Eileen Rendahl
The Sleeping Beauty Proposal by Sarah Strohmeyer
The Ghost And The Femme Fatale by Alice Kimberly
The Best Day Of Someone Else's Life by Kerry Reichs
Murder Is Binding by Lorna Barrett
Exes And Ohs by Beth Kendrick
Charmed & Deadly by Candace Havens
7th Heaven by James Patterson
Vamps And The City by Kerrelyn SparksCan the Undead find real love on reality TV?
Who says a vamp can't have it all?
Darcy Newhart thought it was a stroke of genius --- the first-ever reality TV show where mortals vie with vampires for the title of The Sexiest Man on Earth. As the show's director, Darcy's career would be on track again. And she can finally have a life apart from the vampire harem. Okay, so she's still technically dead, but two out of three's not bad. Now she just has to make sure that a mortal doesn't win. If only she wasn't so distracted by a super–sexy and live contestant named Austin...
But Darcy doesn't know the worst of it. Austin Erickson is actually a vampire slayer! And he's got his eye on the show's leggy blond director. Only problem is, he's never wanted any woman – living or dead – as badly. But if he wins her heart, will he lose his soul? And if it means an eternity of hot, passionate loving with Darcy, does that really matter anyway?
Un-Veiled by Eileen RendahlWelcome to the Do It Up salon, where secrets are always in style...
Rumor has it. . .
. . . that the Zimmerman twins, Ginger and Cinnamon, are the hot hair-stylists in Santa Bonita. Their Do It Up salon has been swamped ever since hometown-Hollywood-star Courtney Day had her wedding hair done there. Now the sisters know every secret of every bride-to-be that crosses their threshold: does she or doesn't she, will she or won't she, how often, and with whom?
What happens at Do It Up stays at Do It Up --- until Craig Esposito strolls into the salon with the latest wedding party. Cinnamon's dazed reaction suggests there's something only she knows about this handsome cousin to the groom --- making Ginger wonder if he's the mystery father of Cinnamon's young daughter (which should kill her attraction to him, but doesn't). Now the sisters' own secrets are the subject of small-town gossip ... and Ginger is about to tease out some surprising truths about her family, her town --- and herself.
The Sleeping Beauty Proposal by Sarah StrohmeyerAt thirty-six, Genie Michaels feels like she has hit the snooze button on her life one too many times. When her “commitment-phobic” boyfriend Hugh proposes on national television—not to Genie, but to an unknown mystery woman—Genie’s wisecracking friend Patty doesn’t hesitate to give her some tough love: “You remind me of that idiot Sleeping Beauty, lying around waiting for your prince. Well, guess what, he rode right past your castle and now you have a choice—you can either go back to bed or you can wake up!”
Genie chooses to wake up. After some questionable advice, her first step is to allow every to believe she’s Hugh’s real fiancée. (She’ll let him to be the one to explain the mistake.) Naturally the good news travels fast and, in a heartbeat, Genie’s parents are booking a reception hall while friends are showering her with gifts, Genie feels bad about the deception, but at least everyone is dancing to her tune, and she can’t help but enjoy it. Particularly when a too-handsome-for-his-own-good Greek carpenter shows up on the scene thinking he’s hotter than Tabasco.
Genie realizes that she never needed a man to start her life—to buy a home, to get a better job, or even to wear a diamond ring. And if Prince Charming wants to show up while she’s at it, she just might teach him a thing or two.
The Ghost And The Femme Fatale by Alice KimberlyHaunted by her past…
The Movie Town Theater is holding its first ever Film Noir Festival, with Penelope Thornton-McClure handling book sales for the guest speakers, including screen actress Hedda Geist. The legendary femme fatale has been out of the spotlight for decades. Unfortunately, the moment she steps back into it, she’s nearly killed. Then other guests start to die, and Penelope wants to know why her little town’s film noir weekend has taken a truly dark turn.
With local police on the wrong track, Penelope enlists the help of Jack Shepard, PI. Okay, so Jack hasn’t had a heartbeat since 1949, when he was gunned down in what is now Pen’s store. But the hard-boiled ghost actually remembers Hedda’s dark past and Penelope is sure he can help solve this case --- even if he and his license did expire more than fifty years ago…
The Best Day Of Someone Else's Life by Kerry ReichsThe story of a serial bridesmaid who discovers everything she never wanted to know about weddings --- and more than she ever imagined about love.
Thirteen Very Humiliating Moments…
Eleven trips down the aisle…
Nine one-wear-only dresses…
Seven insincere congratulations…
Six seriously regretted hook-ups…
Four allergic reactions…
Too many hangovers…
And
One reality check about the meaning of it all ... all setting her back a mere Fifty Grand!
Despite being cursed with a boy's name, Kevin "Vi" Connelly is seriously female and a committed romantic. The affliction hit at the tender age of six when she was handed a basket of flower petals and ensnared by the "marry-tale." The thrill, the attention, the big white dress - it's the Best Day of Your Life, and it's seriously addictive. But at twenty-seven, with a closetful of pricey bridesmaid dresses she'll never wear again, a trunkful of embarrassing memories, and an empty bank account from paying for it all, the illusion of matrimony as the Answer to Everything begins to fray. As her friends' choices don't provide answers, and her family confuses her more, Vi faces off against her eminently untrustworthy boyfriend and the veracity of the BDOYL.
Eleven weddings in eighteen months would send any sane woman either over the edge or scurrying for the altar. But as reality separates from illusion, Vi learns that letting go of someone else's story to write your own may be harder than buying the myth, but just might help her make the right choices for herself.
Murder Is Binding by Lorna BarrettStoneham, New Hampshire, was a dying town until community leaders invited booksellers to open up shop. Now, its streets are lined with bookstores---and paved with murder...
When she moved to Stoneham, city slicker Tricia Miles was met with friendly faces. And when she opened her mystery bookstore, she was met with friendly competition. But when she finds Doris Gleason dead in her own cookbook store, killed with a kitchen knife, the atmosphere seems more cutthroat than cordial. Someone wanted to get their hands on the rare cookbook that Doris had recently purchased---and the locals think that someone is Tricia. To clear her name, Tricia will have to take a page out of one oh her own mysteries---and hunt down someone who isn't killing by the book...
Exes And Ohs by Beth KendrickMr. Perfect's just about to ruin her future.
EXIT THE GROOM...
Child psychologist Gwen Traynor has learned the hard way that "perfect" men aren't always what they seem. After being dumped the night before her wedding, she's understandably wary of diving back into the dating pool. But when she meets Alex Coughlin, she's convinced her luck is changing. He's smart, handsome, funny -- an ideal rebound guy. She doesn't intend to fall in love with him, but scintillating dates and mind-blowing physical chemistry have a way of winning a girl over.
ENTER THE EX...
Just as things are heating up with Alex, Gwen meets her newest patient -- a precocious preschooler whose chaotic soap opera-actress of a mother, Harmony, sounds an awful lot like one of Alex's crazy ex-girlfriends. Mostly because she is one of Alex's crazy ex-girlfriends. Unfortunately for Gwen, Harmony has a secret that plunges them all into a real-life daytime drama, complete with sex, lies, and Vegas elopements. With Harmony determined to reunite with Alex and Gwen's ex-fiancé begging for a second chance, only one thing is certain:
New loves and old flames are an explosive combination.
Charmed & Deadly by Candace HavensPayback is a witch.
Saturday, 3 A.M.
Paris … for the moment
Spells: 15
Dead guys: too many to count
Pissed-off, stressed-out witch: 1
Look: The last five years of my life have been dedicated to ridding the world of evil magic dudes and dudettes --- with a little time off with my sweetie for good behavior. Sure, I’ve made a few enemies along the way, who wouldn’t? So when I realized that an attempted hit on the prime minister was really meant for me, I was like, “same spell, different day.”
But then I realized that something about this hex reminded me a lot of my ex. Jason Gladstone was my college sweetheart --- until he tied me up and tried to drain me of my powers. I knew I should have killed that jerk when I had the chance…
It figures that this would happen just when things between me and Dr. Sam are finally back on track --- lately, we’ve even come up with a new dessert: Bronwyn a la mode. But I’ve got to put the whipped cream on ice for now, because it turns out that Jason’s no one-hit wonder. Having bad guys trying to kill me is nothing new. But now Jason’s messing with my nearest and dearest … so this time, it’s personal.
7th Heaven by James PattersonA VERY PUBLIC DISAPPEARANCE
California's "Boy With A Broken Heart," the teenage son of a recent governor, has disappeared under mysterious circumstances. Michael Campion, born with an incurable heart defect, has grown up under the watchful eye of an adoring public. The pressure on detective Lindsay Boxer to learn what happened to Michael is overwhelming. When she finally does get a lead, it's devastating --- and for Assistant District Attorney Yuki Castellano it leads to the biggest trial of her life.
A DEADLY RASH OF ARSONS
While working on the Campion case, Lindsay and her partner, Rich Conklin, also try to catch whoever is setting fire to some of the most beautiful homes in San Francisco, leaving their owners to perish in the flames. Lindsay enlists her friends in the Women's Murder Club to help her find the arsonist --- and suddenly the fires start raging much too close to home.
A CHANCE AT 7TH HEAVEN
These two intense cases bring Lindsay and Rich closer together than ever --- and put Lindsay on the brink. Torn between two men and close to an emotional meltdown, she has to draw on every resource to keep from being pulled under.
Love The One You're With by Emily Giffin
Love The One You're With by Emily GiffinEllen and Andy's marriage doesn't just seem perfect, it is perfect. There is no question how deep their devotion is, and how naturally they bring out the best in each other. But one fateful afternoon, Ellen runs into Leo for the first time in eight years. Leo, the one who brought out the worst in her. Leo, the one who left her heartbroken with no explanation. Leo, the one she could never quite forget. When his reappearance ignites long-dormant emotions, Ellen begins to question whether the life she’s living is the one she's meant to live. LOVE THE ONE YOU'RE WITH is a powerful story about one woman at the crossroads of true love and real life.
Tuesday, November 04, 2008
October Reading Review
A more productive month in October than in months past with some really good reads!
Wednesday Night Witches by Lee Nichols
My Rating: 6*'s
My Thoughts: The story was OK and I liked the characters but it just seemed to take too long for the gaps to fill in. Not sure if the demon plot device was even necessary as it seemed to be more of an afterthought in the plot. I really like this author's work and will continue reading her books.
The Trouble With Magic by Madelyn Alt
My Rating: 6 *'s
My Thoughts: A sign of a good mystery is the outcome and revelation of the villain comes as a surprise to the reader, while still making sense and following the storyline. The author is able to pull this off in this story. Though I found Maggie to be lacking in many areas, she has the potential to become a very strong character and hopefully will in future books. I thought Felicity and Marcus were fabulous characters though the full extent of their relationship remains a mystery to me. Tom remains in limbo as far as whether or not his character will return to this series and in what capacity and I haven't decided if I would enjoy he and Maggie pairing up. Maggie's friend, Steff was very likable and I enjoyed their obsession with Magnum, P.I., as well as the "What Would Magnum Do" thoughts Maggie has in her mind.
Overall, this story wasn't top notch but it wasn't so bad to justify not checking out the next book in the series.
Purity In Death by J.D. Robb 
N Is For Noose by Sue Grafton 
Demons Are Forever: Confessions Of A Demon-Hunting Soccer Mom by Julie Kenner 
Better Read Than Dead by Victoria Laurie
Wednesday Night Witches by Lee NicholsMy Rating: 6*'s
My Thoughts: The story was OK and I liked the characters but it just seemed to take too long for the gaps to fill in. Not sure if the demon plot device was even necessary as it seemed to be more of an afterthought in the plot. I really like this author's work and will continue reading her books.
The Trouble With Magic by Madelyn AltMy Rating: 6 *'s
My Thoughts: A sign of a good mystery is the outcome and revelation of the villain comes as a surprise to the reader, while still making sense and following the storyline. The author is able to pull this off in this story. Though I found Maggie to be lacking in many areas, she has the potential to become a very strong character and hopefully will in future books. I thought Felicity and Marcus were fabulous characters though the full extent of their relationship remains a mystery to me. Tom remains in limbo as far as whether or not his character will return to this series and in what capacity and I haven't decided if I would enjoy he and Maggie pairing up. Maggie's friend, Steff was very likable and I enjoyed their obsession with Magnum, P.I., as well as the "What Would Magnum Do" thoughts Maggie has in her mind.
Overall, this story wasn't top notch but it wasn't so bad to justify not checking out the next book in the series.
Purity In Death by J.D. RobbMy Rating: 10 *'s
My Thoughts: This series gets better and better and harder to put down. Criminals are targeted by a vigilante group in a matter that brought chills up my spine. This story is more intense as the villains are harder to nail down but Eve and Roarke manage to put the clues together and bring them down. Eve faces some personal demons of past failures on her job but still performs under pressure to get the job done. Feeney, McNabb and Peabody also face on the job trauma as well. Some great scenes with Mavis and her news of pregnancy. I will enjoy seeing how Mavis and Eve deal with a baby.
N Is For Noose by Sue GraftonMy Rating: 9 *'s
My Thoughts: I really like this series. Kinsey is a great character full of attitude and spunk. This story was a little convoluted and had me guessing all the way to the end. I enjoy how Kinsey doesn't let herself get hung up in the details of the drama going on around her and remains focused on the case. Looking forward to the next story. I will be curious to see where Sue Grafton takes this series when she reaches the end of the alphabet...
Demons Are Forever: Confessions Of A Demon-Hunting Soccer Mom by Julie KennerMy Rating: 9 *'s
My Thoughts: This series keeps getting better and better! Lots of intense action as Kate deals with telling Allie the truth about her demon hunting and keeping Stuart in the dark and facing some hard truths about David and Eric.
Can't wait for the next installment!
Better Read Than Dead by Victoria LaurieMy Rating: 9 *'s
My Thoughts: A much darker story than I recall the last book having as Abby finds herself trying to stay one step ahead of the Mob and a serial rapist. One thing that annoyed me was Dutch's attitude towards Abby's gift. I really thought that had been resolved in the last book and I hope this is not a plot device that keeps getting revisited as it's already worn thin for me. I really enjoy this series and the characters.
Thursday, October 30, 2008
New Additions to the TBR pile in October
An eclectic variety of new arrivals to Mount OhMyGodWhenWillIGetAllTheseDamnBooksRead this month...
You Had Me At Halo by Amanda Ashby
Heaven can wait, but not for long.
She’s halfway to heaven…and she’s just been pulled over.
Holly Evans has just seen her own body laid to rest, and if it had been up to her, she wouldn’t have chosen that particular polyester dress for the event. Still, she could live with that (so to speak), if it guaranteed a quick jump to Level 3 of the afterlife, which she hopes will feature both reruns of Friends and reunions with long-lost loved ones.
But Holly has some mortal baggage to unload first, starting with the matter of how she died. Yes, she drowned in her bathtub under suspicious circumstances, but she did not kill herself. Holly had too much to live for, from her recent promotion to taking the next big step in her relationship. OK, her life had a few loose ends, but whose doesn’t? Holly’s heavenly shrink isn’t buying it. He says she has to return to Earth to straighten things out. The problem is, she’ll need to borrow someone’s body to do so, and the body in question belongs to none other than computer geek Vince Murphy. Oh, and although Vince was supposed to have vacated the premises, he apparently never got the memo.
Now Holly has forty-eight hours to resolve her issues while sharing arms, legs, and … other things with a guy she barely noticed while she was alive. But the real surprise is what life has to offer when you have only two days to live it.
The Zygote Chronicles by Suzanne Finnamore
A riotous and poignant novel in journal form that takes us from conception to delivery room...
Suzanne Finnamore’s universally applauded Otherwise Engaged followed one woman’s whirlwind ride from diamond ring to altar. The Zygote Chronicles is Finnamore’s singular take on the next leg of the journey. Through the voice of a whip-smart, sass-talking everywoman, Zygote reveals the unsettling and uproarious truth about pregnancy and the prospect of motherhood, from wicked cravings to homicidal-rampage-inducing pregnancy guides.
When she finds out she's pregnant with her first child, the narrator of The Zygote Chronicles is closer to forty years old than to twenty-two (the latter, she is informed by a homicidal-rampage-inducing pregnancy guide, being the ideal age to have a baby). What unfolds from her very first wry yet heartfelt memo to her unborn child is like a series of x-rays into a pregnant woman's soul, mind, and appetites. Suddenly she is attuned to everything around and inside her and she doles out observations and words of wisdom to her unborn baby accordingly: how a pregnant woman's body becomes public property; the way everyone on the street fancies himself part of the jury when it comes to choosing a name. She captures the many sensory changes her body goes through with uncanny precision and crackling wit, and ponders why her once storybook marriage to the man she waited for all her life, suddenly undergoes an alchemical transformation every time he eats garlic or onions.
The Zygote Chronicles "deserves real praise for having brought the emotional roller-coaster of new motherhood to life with such dignity and style" (The Washington Post). The strange purgatory of pregnancy has been a fact of life since Eve ate the apple, but never has it been recounted in such brilliant, hilarious detail.
The Remains Of The Dead by Wendy Roberts
Sadie Novak has got the kind of job that kills coctail chatter dead: She owns Scene-2-Clean, a crime scene cleaning company. And if wiping up after murders weren't spooky enough, she can also see and talk to the ghosts of the victims.
When a grieving relative hires Sadie and her employee, ex-cop Zack Bowman, to clean up after the murder-suicide of Trudy and Grant Toth, Sadie figures she's bound to encounter at least one chatty ghost. But instead she finds herself talking to Kent, a man she meets at the scene who is very much alive --- so much so that Sadie agrees to go on a date with him.
When a ghost does appear --- the oddly silent Trudy --- the spirit seems determined to prove her husband's innocence, and inspires Sadie to track down the real killer. But as Sadie scours the crime scene, she quickly realizes that she's in way over her head, that Kent has a strange connection to the dead couple, and that someone wants her to give up the ghost ... for good.
The Men I Didn't Marry by Janice Kaplan & Lynn Schnurnberger
Hallie’s husband doesn’t even wait until they get home from dropping off their youngest daughter at Yale to announce that he’s leaving her --- for fitness trainer Ashlee and her perky breasts. After first succumbing to a cookie-induced coma, Hallie is determined to get her life back. Her plan begins with a question: Whatever happened to all those men she didn’t marry? Eric, now one of Forbes’s “Richest People in the World,” wants to renew the investment in their relationship; Hallie’s reunion with Rav Jon Yoma Maharishi --- formerly known as Barry --- might go more smoothly if he weren’t in the midst of a silent meditation; and Kevin, the sexiest man she ever met, is now a scuba-diving photographer. But the biggest surprise of all still awaits Hallie when she confronts the great love she swore she’d never see again.
Slightly Suburban by Wendy Markham
A whole lot scarier than the Big City…
She’s so over the City … but so dreading life without takeout.
It seemed exciting at first, but after two and a half years in New York, Tracey has to admit her life … well, sucks. Sure, she makes a decent living as a copywriter, but Blaire Barnett Advertising is a cutthroat world that basically swallows her life. If she does manage to get home before nine, she’s usually greeted by husband Jack’s best bud, an almost-permanent fixture in their tiny, unaffordable apartment. Add the circus freaks stomping around upstairs, and Tracey decides it’s time to move.
No sooner do she and Jack take the plunge into the nearby suburbs of Westchester than Tracey loses her job. And now they’re in way over their heads. Their fixer-upper is unfixable, the stay-at-home yoga moms are a bore and Tracey yearns for her old friends --- she even misses work!
So which life does she really want? Other than Jack’s wife, who is she? If Tracey merely has to find her own Slightly Suburban niche, it had better be just around the corner, because there are no subways here!
N Is For Noose by Sue Grafton
Kinsey Millhone should have done something else -- she should have turned the car in the direction of home. Instead, she was about to put herself in the gravest jeopardy of her career.
Tom Newquist had been a detective in the Nota Lake sheriff's office -- a tough, honest cop respected by everyone. When he died suddenly, the townsfolk were saddened but not surprised: Just shy of sixty-five, Newquist worked too hard, smoked too much, and exercised too little. That plus an appetite for junk food made him a poster boy for an American Heart Association campaign.
Newquist's widow didn't doubt the coroner's report. But what Selma couldn't accept was not knowing what had so bothered Tom in the last six weeks of his life. What was it that had made him prowl restlessly at night, that had him brooding constantly? Selma Newquist wanted closure, and the only way she'd get it was if she found out what it was that had so bedeviled her husband.
Kinsey should have dumped the case. It was vague and hopeless, like looking for a needle in a haystack. Instead, she set up shop in Nota Lake, where she found that looking for a needle in a haystack can draw blood. Very likely, her own.
"N" Is for Noose: a novel in which Kinsey Millhone becomes the target and an entire town seems in for the kill.
Like A Charm by Candace Havens
Kira Smythe never thought she'd end up back in her hometown of Sweet, Texas. But now that her high-powered job, along with her five-year plan, have gone right out the window, she's back where she started, staying with her hippie, tofu-obsessed parents-except that somehow she's inherited the local library. At least there's a gorgeous guy in town who seems quite smitten with her. So what if he's got a few secrets up his sleeve? After all, Kira's got her own secrets. Like the dead people who won't stop talking to her. Or the magical books on the shelves. Or the fact that someone who's very much alive seems determined to push her over to the other side.
Lean Mean Thirteen by Janet Evanovich
MISTAKE #1
Dickie Orr. Stephanie was married to him for about fifteen minutes before she caught him cheating on her with her arch-nemesis Joyce Barnhardt. Another fifteen minutes after that Stephanie filed for divorce, hoping to never see either one of them again.
MISTAKE #2
Doing favors for super bounty hunter Carlos Manoso (a.k.a. Ranger). Ranger needs her to meet with Dickie and find out if he's doing something shady. Turns out, he is. Turns out, he's also back to doing Joyce Barnhardt. And it turns out Ranger's favors always come with a price...
MISTAKE #3
Going completely nutso while doing the favor for Ranger, and trying to apply bodily injury to Dickie in front of the entire office. Now Dickie has disappeared and Stephanie is the natural suspect in his disappearance. Is Dickie dead? Can he be found? And can Stephanie Plum stay one step ahead in this new, dangerous game? Joe Morelli, the hottest cop in Trenton, NJ is also keeping Stephanie on her toes-and he may know more than he's saying about many things in Stephanie's life. It's a cat-and-mouse game for Stephanie Plum, where the ultimate prize might be her life.
Breaking Dawn by Stephenie Meyer
When you loved the one who was killing you, it left you no options. How could you run, how could you fight, when doing so would hurt that beloved one? If your life was all you had to give, how could you not give it? If it was someone you truly loved?
To be irrevocably in love with a vampire is both fantasy and nightmare woven into a dangerously heightened reality for Bella Swan. Pulled in one direction by her intense passion for Edward Cullen, and in another by her profound connection to werewolf Jacob Black, a tumultuous year of temptation, loss, and strife have led her to the ultimate turning point. Her imminent choice to either join the dark but seductive world of immortals or to pursue a fully human life has become the thread from which the fates of two tribes hangs.
Now that Bella has made her decision, a startling chain of unprecedented events is about to unfold with potentially devastating, and unfathomable, consequences. Just when the frayed strands of Bella's life-first discovered in Twilight, then scattered and torn in New Moon and Eclipse-seem ready to heal and knit together, could they be destroyed... forever?
Bit The Jackpot by Erin McCarthy
Falling for a vampire isn’t the weirdest thing that can happen in Vegas --- not by a long shot…
Politics makes strange coffinfellows. Vampire Seamus Fox is supposed to be the campaign manager for a Vampire Nation presidential candidate. But instead, he finds himself running around Vegas, keeping tabs on the candidate’s wife and female entourage.
Seamus has had his fill of women. A disastrous and deadly love affair has haunted him for over two centuries. Talk about baggage. But suddenly he finds himself obsessed by a mysterious stripper who dances behind a screen. The sultry --- yet shy --- Cara Kim whets his appetite for more. But leave it to Seamus to fall fangs over feet for that rarest of Vegas attractions … a good girl.
After a sudden run-in on the street, though, they may soon have a lot more in common…
Anatomy Of A Boyfriend by Daria Snadowsky
Before this all happened, the closest I'd ever come to getting physical with a guy was playing the board game Operation. Okay, so maybe that sounds pathetic, but it's not like there were any guys at my high school who I cared to share more than three words with, let alone my body.
Then I met Wes, a track star senior from across town. Maybe it was his soulful blue eyes, or maybe my hormones just started raging. Either way, I was hooked. And after a while, he was too. I couldn't believe how intense my feelings became, or the fact that I was seeing—and touching—parts of the body I'd only read about in my Gray's Anatomy textbook. You could say Wes and I experienced a lot of firsts together that spring. It was scary. It was fun. It was love.
And then came the fall.
You Had Me At Halo by Amanda Ashby
Heaven can wait, but not for long.
She’s halfway to heaven…and she’s just been pulled over.
Holly Evans has just seen her own body laid to rest, and if it had been up to her, she wouldn’t have chosen that particular polyester dress for the event. Still, she could live with that (so to speak), if it guaranteed a quick jump to Level 3 of the afterlife, which she hopes will feature both reruns of Friends and reunions with long-lost loved ones.
But Holly has some mortal baggage to unload first, starting with the matter of how she died. Yes, she drowned in her bathtub under suspicious circumstances, but she did not kill herself. Holly had too much to live for, from her recent promotion to taking the next big step in her relationship. OK, her life had a few loose ends, but whose doesn’t? Holly’s heavenly shrink isn’t buying it. He says she has to return to Earth to straighten things out. The problem is, she’ll need to borrow someone’s body to do so, and the body in question belongs to none other than computer geek Vince Murphy. Oh, and although Vince was supposed to have vacated the premises, he apparently never got the memo.
Now Holly has forty-eight hours to resolve her issues while sharing arms, legs, and … other things with a guy she barely noticed while she was alive. But the real surprise is what life has to offer when you have only two days to live it.
The Zygote Chronicles by Suzanne FinnamoreA riotous and poignant novel in journal form that takes us from conception to delivery room...
Suzanne Finnamore’s universally applauded Otherwise Engaged followed one woman’s whirlwind ride from diamond ring to altar. The Zygote Chronicles is Finnamore’s singular take on the next leg of the journey. Through the voice of a whip-smart, sass-talking everywoman, Zygote reveals the unsettling and uproarious truth about pregnancy and the prospect of motherhood, from wicked cravings to homicidal-rampage-inducing pregnancy guides.
When she finds out she's pregnant with her first child, the narrator of The Zygote Chronicles is closer to forty years old than to twenty-two (the latter, she is informed by a homicidal-rampage-inducing pregnancy guide, being the ideal age to have a baby). What unfolds from her very first wry yet heartfelt memo to her unborn child is like a series of x-rays into a pregnant woman's soul, mind, and appetites. Suddenly she is attuned to everything around and inside her and she doles out observations and words of wisdom to her unborn baby accordingly: how a pregnant woman's body becomes public property; the way everyone on the street fancies himself part of the jury when it comes to choosing a name. She captures the many sensory changes her body goes through with uncanny precision and crackling wit, and ponders why her once storybook marriage to the man she waited for all her life, suddenly undergoes an alchemical transformation every time he eats garlic or onions.
The Zygote Chronicles "deserves real praise for having brought the emotional roller-coaster of new motherhood to life with such dignity and style" (The Washington Post). The strange purgatory of pregnancy has been a fact of life since Eve ate the apple, but never has it been recounted in such brilliant, hilarious detail.
The Remains Of The Dead by Wendy RobertsSadie Novak has got the kind of job that kills coctail chatter dead: She owns Scene-2-Clean, a crime scene cleaning company. And if wiping up after murders weren't spooky enough, she can also see and talk to the ghosts of the victims.
When a grieving relative hires Sadie and her employee, ex-cop Zack Bowman, to clean up after the murder-suicide of Trudy and Grant Toth, Sadie figures she's bound to encounter at least one chatty ghost. But instead she finds herself talking to Kent, a man she meets at the scene who is very much alive --- so much so that Sadie agrees to go on a date with him.
When a ghost does appear --- the oddly silent Trudy --- the spirit seems determined to prove her husband's innocence, and inspires Sadie to track down the real killer. But as Sadie scours the crime scene, she quickly realizes that she's in way over her head, that Kent has a strange connection to the dead couple, and that someone wants her to give up the ghost ... for good.
The Men I Didn't Marry by Janice Kaplan & Lynn SchnurnbergerHallie’s husband doesn’t even wait until they get home from dropping off their youngest daughter at Yale to announce that he’s leaving her --- for fitness trainer Ashlee and her perky breasts. After first succumbing to a cookie-induced coma, Hallie is determined to get her life back. Her plan begins with a question: Whatever happened to all those men she didn’t marry? Eric, now one of Forbes’s “Richest People in the World,” wants to renew the investment in their relationship; Hallie’s reunion with Rav Jon Yoma Maharishi --- formerly known as Barry --- might go more smoothly if he weren’t in the midst of a silent meditation; and Kevin, the sexiest man she ever met, is now a scuba-diving photographer. But the biggest surprise of all still awaits Hallie when she confronts the great love she swore she’d never see again.
Slightly Suburban by Wendy MarkhamA whole lot scarier than the Big City…
She’s so over the City … but so dreading life without takeout.
It seemed exciting at first, but after two and a half years in New York, Tracey has to admit her life … well, sucks. Sure, she makes a decent living as a copywriter, but Blaire Barnett Advertising is a cutthroat world that basically swallows her life. If she does manage to get home before nine, she’s usually greeted by husband Jack’s best bud, an almost-permanent fixture in their tiny, unaffordable apartment. Add the circus freaks stomping around upstairs, and Tracey decides it’s time to move.
No sooner do she and Jack take the plunge into the nearby suburbs of Westchester than Tracey loses her job. And now they’re in way over their heads. Their fixer-upper is unfixable, the stay-at-home yoga moms are a bore and Tracey yearns for her old friends --- she even misses work!
So which life does she really want? Other than Jack’s wife, who is she? If Tracey merely has to find her own Slightly Suburban niche, it had better be just around the corner, because there are no subways here!
N Is For Noose by Sue GraftonKinsey Millhone should have done something else -- she should have turned the car in the direction of home. Instead, she was about to put herself in the gravest jeopardy of her career.
Tom Newquist had been a detective in the Nota Lake sheriff's office -- a tough, honest cop respected by everyone. When he died suddenly, the townsfolk were saddened but not surprised: Just shy of sixty-five, Newquist worked too hard, smoked too much, and exercised too little. That plus an appetite for junk food made him a poster boy for an American Heart Association campaign.
Newquist's widow didn't doubt the coroner's report. But what Selma couldn't accept was not knowing what had so bothered Tom in the last six weeks of his life. What was it that had made him prowl restlessly at night, that had him brooding constantly? Selma Newquist wanted closure, and the only way she'd get it was if she found out what it was that had so bedeviled her husband.
Kinsey should have dumped the case. It was vague and hopeless, like looking for a needle in a haystack. Instead, she set up shop in Nota Lake, where she found that looking for a needle in a haystack can draw blood. Very likely, her own.
"N" Is for Noose: a novel in which Kinsey Millhone becomes the target and an entire town seems in for the kill.
Like A Charm by Candace HavensKira Smythe never thought she'd end up back in her hometown of Sweet, Texas. But now that her high-powered job, along with her five-year plan, have gone right out the window, she's back where she started, staying with her hippie, tofu-obsessed parents-except that somehow she's inherited the local library. At least there's a gorgeous guy in town who seems quite smitten with her. So what if he's got a few secrets up his sleeve? After all, Kira's got her own secrets. Like the dead people who won't stop talking to her. Or the magical books on the shelves. Or the fact that someone who's very much alive seems determined to push her over to the other side.
Lean Mean Thirteen by Janet EvanovichMISTAKE #1
Dickie Orr. Stephanie was married to him for about fifteen minutes before she caught him cheating on her with her arch-nemesis Joyce Barnhardt. Another fifteen minutes after that Stephanie filed for divorce, hoping to never see either one of them again.
MISTAKE #2
Doing favors for super bounty hunter Carlos Manoso (a.k.a. Ranger). Ranger needs her to meet with Dickie and find out if he's doing something shady. Turns out, he is. Turns out, he's also back to doing Joyce Barnhardt. And it turns out Ranger's favors always come with a price...
MISTAKE #3
Going completely nutso while doing the favor for Ranger, and trying to apply bodily injury to Dickie in front of the entire office. Now Dickie has disappeared and Stephanie is the natural suspect in his disappearance. Is Dickie dead? Can he be found? And can Stephanie Plum stay one step ahead in this new, dangerous game? Joe Morelli, the hottest cop in Trenton, NJ is also keeping Stephanie on her toes-and he may know more than he's saying about many things in Stephanie's life. It's a cat-and-mouse game for Stephanie Plum, where the ultimate prize might be her life.
Breaking Dawn by Stephenie MeyerWhen you loved the one who was killing you, it left you no options. How could you run, how could you fight, when doing so would hurt that beloved one? If your life was all you had to give, how could you not give it? If it was someone you truly loved?
To be irrevocably in love with a vampire is both fantasy and nightmare woven into a dangerously heightened reality for Bella Swan. Pulled in one direction by her intense passion for Edward Cullen, and in another by her profound connection to werewolf Jacob Black, a tumultuous year of temptation, loss, and strife have led her to the ultimate turning point. Her imminent choice to either join the dark but seductive world of immortals or to pursue a fully human life has become the thread from which the fates of two tribes hangs.
Now that Bella has made her decision, a startling chain of unprecedented events is about to unfold with potentially devastating, and unfathomable, consequences. Just when the frayed strands of Bella's life-first discovered in Twilight, then scattered and torn in New Moon and Eclipse-seem ready to heal and knit together, could they be destroyed... forever?
Bit The Jackpot by Erin McCarthyFalling for a vampire isn’t the weirdest thing that can happen in Vegas --- not by a long shot…
Politics makes strange coffinfellows. Vampire Seamus Fox is supposed to be the campaign manager for a Vampire Nation presidential candidate. But instead, he finds himself running around Vegas, keeping tabs on the candidate’s wife and female entourage.
Seamus has had his fill of women. A disastrous and deadly love affair has haunted him for over two centuries. Talk about baggage. But suddenly he finds himself obsessed by a mysterious stripper who dances behind a screen. The sultry --- yet shy --- Cara Kim whets his appetite for more. But leave it to Seamus to fall fangs over feet for that rarest of Vegas attractions … a good girl.
After a sudden run-in on the street, though, they may soon have a lot more in common…
Anatomy Of A Boyfriend by Daria SnadowskyBefore this all happened, the closest I'd ever come to getting physical with a guy was playing the board game Operation. Okay, so maybe that sounds pathetic, but it's not like there were any guys at my high school who I cared to share more than three words with, let alone my body.
Then I met Wes, a track star senior from across town. Maybe it was his soulful blue eyes, or maybe my hormones just started raging. Either way, I was hooked. And after a while, he was too. I couldn't believe how intense my feelings became, or the fact that I was seeing—and touching—parts of the body I'd only read about in my Gray's Anatomy textbook. You could say Wes and I experienced a lot of firsts together that spring. It was scary. It was fun. It was love.
And then came the fall.
Wednesday, October 01, 2008
September Reading Review
Not very productive in volume but very enjoyable reading...
Sex, Murder And A Double Latte by Kyra Davis
My Rating: 9 *'s
My Thoughts: I have had this book for a few years now and cannot figure out what has taken me so long to read it! Very fun and fast paced story that I couldn't put down. I started reading it for a book group discussion and would get so engrossed in the story and the characters that I would forget to think of any discussion questions.
Though Sophie exercises very poor judgment in a lot of the decisions she makes in this book, you can't help but like her. I could see myself going along with her and getting knee deep in doo-doo as she does. The ending was a surprise though a little bit rushed. I am looking forward to reading more from this author and hope she continues writing stories with Sophie and Anatoly in them.
Twilight by Stephenie Meyer
My Rating: 10 *'s
My Thoughts: Well, I can definitely understand the buzz around this series now that I've read TWILIGHT. I couldn't put the book down. At nearly 500 pages, some people would be intimidated to read such a book and many, like me, would take quite a while to get through it. Surprisingly, the 500 pages flew so quickly, I was amazed.
I really enjoyed this story and all the characters. I related to Bella very quickly especially to her adapting to her new home and new school and making friends as I experienced that so much growing up in the military. The vampires surprised me. Not your typical creature of the night variety we see in other books or in the movies. I really liked them too, though I'm still on the fence about Rosalie. I thought it was interesting that Bella refers to her dad as Charlie to people and I'm curious to see where their relationship heads in the series. Obviously Bella's mom doesn't have a central role in this story but she seems OK. I wish there had been more involving James however. The story's pace radically increased once James arrived and it was a little overwhelming. It seemed like everything was going along at a nice rate, vampires playing baseball and then BOOM all of a sudden, Edward and the Cullens are going a hundred miles an hour to get Bella out of town.
Overall, fantastic story and I'm really looking forward to seeing the movie in November. I'm hoping to get book 2 read before the movie comes out.
Welcome To The Real World by Carole Matthews
My Rating: 9 *'s
My Thoughts: A modern day rags-to-riches Cinderella story. I loved Fern's feisty tenacity to muddle through life even when everything seems its worst. Fern's compassion for everyone in her life makes her the type of character you can easily relate to and like. I liked Carl's quirkiness & Evan's vulnerability. Fern's parents were funny and Fern's brother and nephew were great. I didn't care for Rupert at first but he redeemed himself.
Sex, Murder And A Double Latte by Kyra DavisMy Rating: 9 *'s
My Thoughts: I have had this book for a few years now and cannot figure out what has taken me so long to read it! Very fun and fast paced story that I couldn't put down. I started reading it for a book group discussion and would get so engrossed in the story and the characters that I would forget to think of any discussion questions.
Though Sophie exercises very poor judgment in a lot of the decisions she makes in this book, you can't help but like her. I could see myself going along with her and getting knee deep in doo-doo as she does. The ending was a surprise though a little bit rushed. I am looking forward to reading more from this author and hope she continues writing stories with Sophie and Anatoly in them.
Twilight by Stephenie MeyerMy Rating: 10 *'s
My Thoughts: Well, I can definitely understand the buzz around this series now that I've read TWILIGHT. I couldn't put the book down. At nearly 500 pages, some people would be intimidated to read such a book and many, like me, would take quite a while to get through it. Surprisingly, the 500 pages flew so quickly, I was amazed.
I really enjoyed this story and all the characters. I related to Bella very quickly especially to her adapting to her new home and new school and making friends as I experienced that so much growing up in the military. The vampires surprised me. Not your typical creature of the night variety we see in other books or in the movies. I really liked them too, though I'm still on the fence about Rosalie. I thought it was interesting that Bella refers to her dad as Charlie to people and I'm curious to see where their relationship heads in the series. Obviously Bella's mom doesn't have a central role in this story but she seems OK. I wish there had been more involving James however. The story's pace radically increased once James arrived and it was a little overwhelming. It seemed like everything was going along at a nice rate, vampires playing baseball and then BOOM all of a sudden, Edward and the Cullens are going a hundred miles an hour to get Bella out of town.
Overall, fantastic story and I'm really looking forward to seeing the movie in November. I'm hoping to get book 2 read before the movie comes out.
Welcome To The Real World by Carole MatthewsMy Rating: 9 *'s
My Thoughts: A modern day rags-to-riches Cinderella story. I loved Fern's feisty tenacity to muddle through life even when everything seems its worst. Fern's compassion for everyone in her life makes her the type of character you can easily relate to and like. I liked Carl's quirkiness & Evan's vulnerability. Fern's parents were funny and Fern's brother and nephew were great. I didn't care for Rupert at first but he redeemed himself.
New Additions to the TBR pile in September
Acquired some books that look really good.
Twilight by Stephenie Meyer
"About three things I was absolutely positive. First, Edward was a vampire. Second, there was a part of him--and I didn't know how dominant that part might be--that thirsted for my blood. And third, I was unconditionally and irrevocably in love with him. I’d never given much thought to how I would die. I’d had reason enough in the last few months but even if I had, I would not have imagined it like this... Surely it was a good way to die, in the place of something else, someone I loved. Noble, even. That ought to count for something.”
When Isabella Swan moves to the gloomy town of Forks and meets the mysterious, alluring Edward Cullen, her life takes a thrilling and terrifying turn. With his porcelain skin, golden eyes, mesmerizing voice, and supernatural gifts, Edward is both irresistible and impenetrable. Up until now, he has managed to keep his true identity hidden, but Bella is determined to uncover his dark secret.What Bella doesn’t realize is the closer she gets to him, the more she is putting herself and those around her at risk. And, it might be too late to turn back...
New Moon by Stephenie Meyer
I FELT LIKE I WAS TRAPPED IN ONE OF THOSE TERRIFYING NIGHTMARES...the one where you have to run, run till your lungs burst, but you can't make your body move fast enough...But this was no dream, and, unlike the nightmare, I wasn't running for my life; I was racing to save something infinitely more precious. My own life meant little to me today.
For Bella Swan, there is one thing more important than life itself: Edward Cullen. But being in love with a vampire is even more dangerous than Bella ever could have imagined. Edward has already rescued Bella from the clutches of one evil vampire, but now, as their daring relationship threatens all that is near and dear to them, they realize their troubles may be just beginning...
Questions To Ask Before Marrying by Melissa Senate
A New York Times article lists fifteen questions couples should ask before marrying
Ruby Miller and her fiancé, Tom Truby, have questions 1 to 14 almost covered. It's question 15 that has the Maine schoolteacher stumped: Is their relationship strong enough to withstand challenges?
Challenges like…Ruby's twin sister, Stella. The professional muse, flirt and face reader thinks Ruby is playing it safe. And that the future Mrs. Ruby Truby will die of boredom before her first anniversary or her thirtieth birthday, whichever comes first.
Challenges like…sexy maverick teacher Nick McDermott, Ruby's secret longtime crush, who confesses his feelings for her at her own engagement party.
But before Ruby can plan the wedding that may never be, Stella announces she's pregnant by a one-night stand whose name might be Jake (or James? Maybe Jason?) and who lives somewhere under the glittering lights of Las Vegas. Ruby and Stella hit the road to find him—with a lot more than fifteen questions.
And after three thousand miles, a stowaway relative and hitchhiking teen lovebirds bound for an Elvis wedding chapel, the Miller sisters might get some answers.
Something Good by Fiona Gibson
What are best friends for?
If only her mother had a clue.
Shy and insecure all her life, fifteen-year-old Hannah finally feels as if she belongs. She acts in the theater club production and hangs out with a super-kissable boy, and her new best friend, Zoë, has turned her on to clothes, makeup and nicking lipsticks for fun. It's great. Of course, her unbearable mother, Jane, is unimpressed with all this behavior…especially the night she has to bail Hannah out of serious trouble.
But who's behaving badly? On a trip to a remote Scottish isle the tables are turned when Hannah discovers her mom's hiding a startling secret. With everything up in the air—even the self-proclaimed rebel Zoë is having strange episodes of conscience—something good surely must be lurking in the chaos.
Such a Pretty Fat: One Narcissist's Quest To Discover if Her Life Makes Her Ass Look Big, Or Why Pie is Not The Answer by Jen Lancaster
New from the author of Bitter Is the New Black, and Bright Lights, Big Ass.
It's possible that my high self-esteem is bad for my health.
"To whom the fat rolls...I'm tired of books where a self-loathing heroine is teased to the point where she starves herself skinny in hopes of a fabulous new life. And I hate the message that women can't possibly be happy until we all fit into our skinny jeans. I don't find these stories uplifting; they make me want to hug these women and take them out for fizzy champagne drinks and cheesecake and explain to them that until they figure out their insides, their outsides don't matter. Unfortunately, being overweight isn't simply a societal issue that can be fixed with a healthy dose of positive self-esteem. It's a health matter, and here on the eve of my fortieth year, I've learned I have to make changes so I don't, you know, die. Because what good is finally being able to afford a pedicure if I lose a foot to adult-onset diabetes?"
The Hunt by Jennifer Sturman
Meeting the in-laws was the least of her problems...
There's nothing like being the guest of honor at an engagement party to remind a person she has commitment issues, but Rachel Benjamin has finally put her neuroses behind her. A weekend with her fiance, Peter, and his parents will put her skills to the test, but she's confident they'll never guess how new she is to normal relationships.
Then Rachel receives a cryptic message: her friend Hilary is missing. Hilary was last seen in the company of Igor "Iggie" Behrenz, a budding internet tycoon with strange fashion sense and even stranger secrets. Someone is orchestrating an elaborate scavenger hunt across San Francisco, dangling Hilary as the prize.
Now Rachel has to track down her friend, which would be enough of a challenge if she weren't already busy proving how normal she is to her future in-laws. And when Rachel stumbles upon secrets all Peter's own, she wonders if maybe she declared victory over her neuroses too soon.
A Date On Cloud Nine by Jenna McKnight
Once is never enough!
Lilly Marquette doesn't need angels to tell her it's not her time. After all, she's not even thirty. But while checking out the incredibly hot guy behind the counter of an adults-only toy shop, the furnace blows, and poof, Lilly is headed for the pearly gates! But instead of St. Peter, she's greeted by ... John and Elizabeth? These guardian angels are giving Lilly one last chance to get it right ... and to finally choose the right man.
Jake Murdoch is hot, sexy, and may even be the right man, but he wants nothing to do with Lilly. He believes she stole three million dollars from him in an insurance scam, and now she's talking to angels and giving away his money! His mind should be on revenge, but when she bats those long, sexy lashes at him, it suddenly doesn't seem so important anymore ... not when he gets one last chance to prove he is the right man.
Dating Can Be Deadly by Wendy Roberts
2 guys, a girl and 1 dead body
Single Clairvoyant Seeks Partner in Crime
Some gifts are easy to return-like the parrot earrings from Aunt Ruth-but when your gift is clairvoyance, Tabitha Emery finds there is a definite No Refund Policy. Now she's having visions of black magic rituals and dismembered bodies, and she's not sure what to do. She didn't ask for this talent and certainly doesn't want it, but it clings to her like a thong and is just as uncomfortable. Tabitha's goals are simple ones: A) to rise above law office receptionist B) to spend Friday nights uncovering the mysteries of butterscotch schnapps with her comrades, and C) to procure more than a passing glance from Clay Sanderson (Greek-god-type lawyer).
But her second sight has turned her life upside down-and now she finds herself in the middle of a murder investigation where the only clues are in her persistent premonitions-making her not only the key to solving the mystery but perhaps a suspect, as well. (On the plus side: she could use some legal advice, so now she and Clay have something to talk about.)
And somewhere in the middle of all this is the real culprit, the mystery man, who wants this clairvoyant dead. . .
A charmingly clever chick-lit novel for whodunit fans everywhere!
Do Me, Do My Roots by Eileen Rendahl
It's about healing.
After a couple of rough years, Emily is finally getting things back together. She doesn't need to re-do everything at work three times, her young daughter's soccer uniform is almost always clean the day of a game, and meals are pretty darn reliable, too. But hey, becoming a widow at thirty-three kind of knocks the starch out of you.
It's about family.
Then Emily's dad has an Event (only her mom would call a minor heart attack that -- what is it, a bar mitzvah?). Next, her sister Claudia's ex-husband starts stealing their kids' Ritalin for the high -- and wouldn't you replace it with The Pill to teach him a lesson? (His unexpected, uh, frontal development was just a howlingly funny bonus -- honest.) And then Emily's relentlessly sensible oldest sister, Leah, dumps her businessman fiancé for a rock musician.
It's about never letting them see your gray.
Now Jake, Emily's best friend, seems to be spending a lot of time at her house. Which she likes way too much. Which is kind of confusing. So what's a girl to do, but call an emergency meeting of the sisters' monthly hair-color-and-gossip session, to make the world seem sane again?
Jack With A Twist by Brenda Janowitz
Planning a wedding can be a trying experience...
A little prewedding anxiety is normal for every bride, and Manhattan attorney Brooke Miller isn't worried. She's got the loving support of the world's greatest guy, so planning her nuptials should be a piece of cake.
But that was yesterday.
Today, Brooke's landed her first big case and has just discovered that the opposing attorney is none other than her fiancé, Jack. But that's okay. These two professionals aren't going to let a little courtroom sparring get their legal briefs in a bunch... Right? Wrong! Now Jack's pulling every dirty trick in the law books, and Brooke's starting to suspect that maybe he isn't the man she thought he was. Warring with her fiancé at work and at home, Brooke realizes that she'll have to choose between the case of her life, or actually having a life.
Knock Off by Rhonda Pollero
Meet Finley Anderson Tanner. FAT to her enemies. A West Palm Beach paralegal who hates the gym, still rents her condo and loves two hour lunches with her friends. But what really gets Finley hot is hunting down deeply discounted designer goods she can wear at her upscale law firm.
Too bad work isn't all about fashion. Especially when a grieving widow is sitting in your office, convinced that her husband's accidental death wasn't. Investigating murder isn't really Finley's bag (that would be Prada, 75% off), but the deeper Finley digs, the stranger things get, and this discount shopper knows slightly irregular when she sees it. Kind of like sexy Liam McGarrity. Everything about the hot, hunky P.I. screams, "Get out while you still have your underwear!"
For a girl whose biggest ambition is take-out Moo Shu at 5:01, life is taking some exciting, unpredictable, and decidedly dangerous turns. Someone doesn't like Finley's new work ethic. And if this paralegal wants to bring home the real gods, she'll have to keep from becoming a killer's total knock off...
Twilight by Stephenie Meyer"About three things I was absolutely positive. First, Edward was a vampire. Second, there was a part of him--and I didn't know how dominant that part might be--that thirsted for my blood. And third, I was unconditionally and irrevocably in love with him. I’d never given much thought to how I would die. I’d had reason enough in the last few months but even if I had, I would not have imagined it like this... Surely it was a good way to die, in the place of something else, someone I loved. Noble, even. That ought to count for something.”
When Isabella Swan moves to the gloomy town of Forks and meets the mysterious, alluring Edward Cullen, her life takes a thrilling and terrifying turn. With his porcelain skin, golden eyes, mesmerizing voice, and supernatural gifts, Edward is both irresistible and impenetrable. Up until now, he has managed to keep his true identity hidden, but Bella is determined to uncover his dark secret.What Bella doesn’t realize is the closer she gets to him, the more she is putting herself and those around her at risk. And, it might be too late to turn back...
New Moon by Stephenie MeyerI FELT LIKE I WAS TRAPPED IN ONE OF THOSE TERRIFYING NIGHTMARES...the one where you have to run, run till your lungs burst, but you can't make your body move fast enough...But this was no dream, and, unlike the nightmare, I wasn't running for my life; I was racing to save something infinitely more precious. My own life meant little to me today.
For Bella Swan, there is one thing more important than life itself: Edward Cullen. But being in love with a vampire is even more dangerous than Bella ever could have imagined. Edward has already rescued Bella from the clutches of one evil vampire, but now, as their daring relationship threatens all that is near and dear to them, they realize their troubles may be just beginning...
Questions To Ask Before Marrying by Melissa Senate
A New York Times article lists fifteen questions couples should ask before marrying
Ruby Miller and her fiancé, Tom Truby, have questions 1 to 14 almost covered. It's question 15 that has the Maine schoolteacher stumped: Is their relationship strong enough to withstand challenges?
Challenges like…Ruby's twin sister, Stella. The professional muse, flirt and face reader thinks Ruby is playing it safe. And that the future Mrs. Ruby Truby will die of boredom before her first anniversary or her thirtieth birthday, whichever comes first.
Challenges like…sexy maverick teacher Nick McDermott, Ruby's secret longtime crush, who confesses his feelings for her at her own engagement party.
But before Ruby can plan the wedding that may never be, Stella announces she's pregnant by a one-night stand whose name might be Jake (or James? Maybe Jason?) and who lives somewhere under the glittering lights of Las Vegas. Ruby and Stella hit the road to find him—with a lot more than fifteen questions.
And after three thousand miles, a stowaway relative and hitchhiking teen lovebirds bound for an Elvis wedding chapel, the Miller sisters might get some answers.
Something Good by Fiona GibsonWhat are best friends for?
If only her mother had a clue.
Shy and insecure all her life, fifteen-year-old Hannah finally feels as if she belongs. She acts in the theater club production and hangs out with a super-kissable boy, and her new best friend, Zoë, has turned her on to clothes, makeup and nicking lipsticks for fun. It's great. Of course, her unbearable mother, Jane, is unimpressed with all this behavior…especially the night she has to bail Hannah out of serious trouble.
But who's behaving badly? On a trip to a remote Scottish isle the tables are turned when Hannah discovers her mom's hiding a startling secret. With everything up in the air—even the self-proclaimed rebel Zoë is having strange episodes of conscience—something good surely must be lurking in the chaos.
Such a Pretty Fat: One Narcissist's Quest To Discover if Her Life Makes Her Ass Look Big, Or Why Pie is Not The Answer by Jen LancasterNew from the author of Bitter Is the New Black, and Bright Lights, Big Ass.
It's possible that my high self-esteem is bad for my health.
"To whom the fat rolls...I'm tired of books where a self-loathing heroine is teased to the point where she starves herself skinny in hopes of a fabulous new life. And I hate the message that women can't possibly be happy until we all fit into our skinny jeans. I don't find these stories uplifting; they make me want to hug these women and take them out for fizzy champagne drinks and cheesecake and explain to them that until they figure out their insides, their outsides don't matter. Unfortunately, being overweight isn't simply a societal issue that can be fixed with a healthy dose of positive self-esteem. It's a health matter, and here on the eve of my fortieth year, I've learned I have to make changes so I don't, you know, die. Because what good is finally being able to afford a pedicure if I lose a foot to adult-onset diabetes?"
The Hunt by Jennifer SturmanMeeting the in-laws was the least of her problems...
There's nothing like being the guest of honor at an engagement party to remind a person she has commitment issues, but Rachel Benjamin has finally put her neuroses behind her. A weekend with her fiance, Peter, and his parents will put her skills to the test, but she's confident they'll never guess how new she is to normal relationships.
Then Rachel receives a cryptic message: her friend Hilary is missing. Hilary was last seen in the company of Igor "Iggie" Behrenz, a budding internet tycoon with strange fashion sense and even stranger secrets. Someone is orchestrating an elaborate scavenger hunt across San Francisco, dangling Hilary as the prize.
Now Rachel has to track down her friend, which would be enough of a challenge if she weren't already busy proving how normal she is to her future in-laws. And when Rachel stumbles upon secrets all Peter's own, she wonders if maybe she declared victory over her neuroses too soon.
A Date On Cloud Nine by Jenna McKnightOnce is never enough!
Lilly Marquette doesn't need angels to tell her it's not her time. After all, she's not even thirty. But while checking out the incredibly hot guy behind the counter of an adults-only toy shop, the furnace blows, and poof, Lilly is headed for the pearly gates! But instead of St. Peter, she's greeted by ... John and Elizabeth? These guardian angels are giving Lilly one last chance to get it right ... and to finally choose the right man.
Jake Murdoch is hot, sexy, and may even be the right man, but he wants nothing to do with Lilly. He believes she stole three million dollars from him in an insurance scam, and now she's talking to angels and giving away his money! His mind should be on revenge, but when she bats those long, sexy lashes at him, it suddenly doesn't seem so important anymore ... not when he gets one last chance to prove he is the right man.
Dating Can Be Deadly by Wendy Roberts2 guys, a girl and 1 dead body
Single Clairvoyant Seeks Partner in Crime
Some gifts are easy to return-like the parrot earrings from Aunt Ruth-but when your gift is clairvoyance, Tabitha Emery finds there is a definite No Refund Policy. Now she's having visions of black magic rituals and dismembered bodies, and she's not sure what to do. She didn't ask for this talent and certainly doesn't want it, but it clings to her like a thong and is just as uncomfortable. Tabitha's goals are simple ones: A) to rise above law office receptionist B) to spend Friday nights uncovering the mysteries of butterscotch schnapps with her comrades, and C) to procure more than a passing glance from Clay Sanderson (Greek-god-type lawyer).
But her second sight has turned her life upside down-and now she finds herself in the middle of a murder investigation where the only clues are in her persistent premonitions-making her not only the key to solving the mystery but perhaps a suspect, as well. (On the plus side: she could use some legal advice, so now she and Clay have something to talk about.)
And somewhere in the middle of all this is the real culprit, the mystery man, who wants this clairvoyant dead. . .
A charmingly clever chick-lit novel for whodunit fans everywhere!
Do Me, Do My Roots by Eileen RendahlIt's about healing.
After a couple of rough years, Emily is finally getting things back together. She doesn't need to re-do everything at work three times, her young daughter's soccer uniform is almost always clean the day of a game, and meals are pretty darn reliable, too. But hey, becoming a widow at thirty-three kind of knocks the starch out of you.
It's about family.
Then Emily's dad has an Event (only her mom would call a minor heart attack that -- what is it, a bar mitzvah?). Next, her sister Claudia's ex-husband starts stealing their kids' Ritalin for the high -- and wouldn't you replace it with The Pill to teach him a lesson? (His unexpected, uh, frontal development was just a howlingly funny bonus -- honest.) And then Emily's relentlessly sensible oldest sister, Leah, dumps her businessman fiancé for a rock musician.
It's about never letting them see your gray.
Now Jake, Emily's best friend, seems to be spending a lot of time at her house. Which she likes way too much. Which is kind of confusing. So what's a girl to do, but call an emergency meeting of the sisters' monthly hair-color-and-gossip session, to make the world seem sane again?
Jack With A Twist by Brenda JanowitzPlanning a wedding can be a trying experience...
A little prewedding anxiety is normal for every bride, and Manhattan attorney Brooke Miller isn't worried. She's got the loving support of the world's greatest guy, so planning her nuptials should be a piece of cake.
But that was yesterday.
Today, Brooke's landed her first big case and has just discovered that the opposing attorney is none other than her fiancé, Jack. But that's okay. These two professionals aren't going to let a little courtroom sparring get their legal briefs in a bunch... Right? Wrong! Now Jack's pulling every dirty trick in the law books, and Brooke's starting to suspect that maybe he isn't the man she thought he was. Warring with her fiancé at work and at home, Brooke realizes that she'll have to choose between the case of her life, or actually having a life.
Knock Off by Rhonda PolleroMeet Finley Anderson Tanner. FAT to her enemies. A West Palm Beach paralegal who hates the gym, still rents her condo and loves two hour lunches with her friends. But what really gets Finley hot is hunting down deeply discounted designer goods she can wear at her upscale law firm.
Too bad work isn't all about fashion. Especially when a grieving widow is sitting in your office, convinced that her husband's accidental death wasn't. Investigating murder isn't really Finley's bag (that would be Prada, 75% off), but the deeper Finley digs, the stranger things get, and this discount shopper knows slightly irregular when she sees it. Kind of like sexy Liam McGarrity. Everything about the hot, hunky P.I. screams, "Get out while you still have your underwear!"
For a girl whose biggest ambition is take-out Moo Shu at 5:01, life is taking some exciting, unpredictable, and decidedly dangerous turns. Someone doesn't like Finley's new work ethic. And if this paralegal wants to bring home the real gods, she'll have to keep from becoming a killer's total knock off...
Friday, September 05, 2008
August Reading Review
Living in the Pit Of Hell sure hasn't inspired me to stay indoors and read during the hot days of summer... I wish I knew why my reading volume has decreased so drastically so I could find a way to improve it.
Nights Edge by Maggie Shayne, Barbara Hambly & Charlaine Harris
My Rating: 6*'s
My Thoughts: Not bad. My favorite was Maggie Shayne's story, Her Best Enemy, which involved ghosts and a 30 year old murder mystery.
Reunion In Death by J.D. Robb
My Rating: 10*'s
My Thoughts: No surprise here. Once again, this series delivers on many levels. Very interesting story and I thoroughly enjoyed the ending fight scene showing Eve kicking some serious criminal behind. In this story, the reader is introduced to Peabody's parents and are shown first hand the skills and gifts these characters possess. I enjoyed the interactions between Eve and Peabody's father. I also enjoyed seeing the more protective side of Eve and the softer side of her humanity when she lowers her shields.
Upon The Midnight Clear by Sherrilyn Kenyon
My Rating: 5*'s
My Thoughts: Not as good as the first Dream-Hunter book, though I did like the characters. Kenyon writes excellent injured hero characters, though I thought Zarek and especially Vane were better.
Hoping September will be much better in the reading department!
Nights Edge by Maggie Shayne, Barbara Hambly & Charlaine HarrisMy Rating: 6*'s
My Thoughts: Not bad. My favorite was Maggie Shayne's story, Her Best Enemy, which involved ghosts and a 30 year old murder mystery.
Reunion In Death by J.D. RobbMy Rating: 10*'s
My Thoughts: No surprise here. Once again, this series delivers on many levels. Very interesting story and I thoroughly enjoyed the ending fight scene showing Eve kicking some serious criminal behind. In this story, the reader is introduced to Peabody's parents and are shown first hand the skills and gifts these characters possess. I enjoyed the interactions between Eve and Peabody's father. I also enjoyed seeing the more protective side of Eve and the softer side of her humanity when she lowers her shields.
Upon The Midnight Clear by Sherrilyn KenyonMy Rating: 5*'s
My Thoughts: Not as good as the first Dream-Hunter book, though I did like the characters. Kenyon writes excellent injured hero characters, though I thought Zarek and especially Vane were better.
Hoping September will be much better in the reading department!
Wednesday, September 03, 2008
New Additions to the TBR pile in August
Took in several titles this month that I can't wait to read!
The Ghost And The Dead Man's Library by Alice Kimberly
Sleuth, Nevermore…?
Bookshop owner Penelope Thornton McClure has just received an extremely rare collection of Edgar Allan Poe’s complete works. Rumor has it a secret code, trapped within the books’ leather-bound pages, leads to buried treasure. Well, it looks like they got the buried part right, because as Pen sells off the valuable volumes, everyone who buys…dies.
Once these books go missing from their owners’ cold hands, Pen will need resident ghost and hard-boiled PI Jack Shepard to help crack the case. The police are skeptical that the deaths involved foul play --- so it’s up to Pen and Jack to unravel these shocking endings…
The Good Ghoul's Guide To Getting Even by Julie Kenner
High school totally sucks. Especially if you’re a vampire.
"If he wasn’t already dead, I swear I’d kill Stephen Wills."
Beth Frasier's ticked off. Her junior year of high school was going fine. Amazing grades. Early admission to college. And a date with the star quarterback. But no. Thanks to a bunch of jerkwad vampire jocks, she ended up dead. Or rather, undead, and with a thirst that a thousand Diet Cokes couldn't quench.
Now she's out for blood--and revenge. She knows exactly what to do. Beth's read Salem's Lot. Just wipe out the crowd that did her in. But with so many creeps in high school it's hard to separate the good vamps from the bad. On top of that, she's got to figure out how to be mortal again. Unless universities start accepting dead girls....
There's No Place Like Here by Cecelia Ahern
Sometimes it takes losing everything to truly find yourself...
Since Sandy Shortt's childhood classmate disappeared twenty years ago, Sandy has been obsessed with missing things. Finding what is lost becomes her single-minded goal--from the lone sock that vanishes in the washing machine to the car keys she misplaced. It's no surprise, then, that Sandy's life's work becomes finding people who have vanished from their loved ones. Sandy's family is baffled and concerned by her increasing preoccupation. Her parents can't understand her compulsion, and she pushes them away further by losing herself in the work of tracking down these missing people. She gives up her life in order to offer a flicker of hope to devastated families...and escape the disappointments of her own.
Jack Ruttle is one of those devastated people. It's been a year since his brother Donal vanished into thin air, and he has enlisted Sandy Shortt to find him. But before she is able to offer Jack the information he so desperately needs, Sandy goes missing too...and Jack now finds himself searching for his brother and the one woman who understood his pain.
One minute Sandy is jogging through the park, the next, she can't figure out where she is. The path is obscured. Nothing is familiar. A clearing up ahead reveals a camp site, and it's there that Sandy discovers the impossible: she has inadvertently stumbled upon the place-- and people--she's been looking for all her life, a land where all the missing people go. A world away from her loved ones and the home she ran from for so long, Sandy soon resorts to her old habit again, searching. Though this time, she is desperately trying to find her way home...
Return To Summerhouse by Jude Deveraux
Magic most definitely resides in the Maine summerhouse where the mysterious Madame Zoya has granted the innermost wishes of its visitors.
Now, three women have come to this special place with one thing in common: a painful past they would each like to rewrite. Amy, who hides a heartbreaking loss behind her seemingly perfect marriage and family... Faith, a widow in her thirties whose deepest grief is for a man from years ago... and Zoe, an artist shunned by her hometown for reasons she doesn't know, after a traumatic night erased her memory. With their mystical powers, Madame Zoya and her sister Primrose are about to transport the trio to eighteenth-century England to alter Amy's ancestry. But although surprises await each of them, will stepping back in time bring the women the happy endings they seek?
Scottish Girls About Town by Jenny Colgan, Isla Dewar, Muriel Gray, et al
Get ready for a Highland fling...
Meet the Clanswomen...
International bestselling authors Jenny Colgan, Isla Dewar, and Muriel Gray lead off this dazzling collection of stories by popular and rising Scottish women authors. A sometimes wild, sometimes poignant romp through the lives of Scotswomen, Scottish Girls About Town revels in the universal hilarity and strife of being a girl!
They're looking for something moor.
In Jenny Colgan's "The Fringes," a hapless heroine heads to the Edinburgh "Fringe" -- a massive theatrical and musical festival -- for a night of her own disastrous drama. Isla Dewar offers up "In the Garden of Mrs. Pink," one woman's look back at her girlhood and the life lessons she learned from an eccentric neighbor. In Muriel Gray's "School-Gate Mums," a single mother with killer instincts settles the score with one of the mothers at her son's school. Whether they're racing their flatmates in a weight-loss contest, reconnecting with long-lost friends, or grappling with the men in their lives, these daughters of Scotland prove that no one can top their audacious spirit and Highland charm.
Seeing Me Naked by Liza Palmer
Elisabeth Page is the daughter of Ben Page, yes, that's right, THE world famous novelist. And yes, she's also the sister of Rascal Page, world famous novelist in his own right. So what does Elisabeth do? Much to her family's disappointment, Elisabeth is a pastry chef. And a pretty damn good one, at Beverly, the hottest restaurant in LA. The last relationship Elisabeth had was with Will, a man she grew up with and whose family ran in the same social circles as her family. But Will's constant jaunts around the world have left her lonely and brokenhearted in L.A. That is until Daniel Sullivan bids on one of Elisabeth's pastry tutorials at a charity auction. Daniel is everything her family is not: a basketball coach, a non-intellectual, his family doesn't summer on Martha's Vineyard, and the only metaphors he uses are about passing the ball and being a team player. But somehow they fit. Between her family, Will, and the new cooking show that Elisabeth is recruited to star in, Elisabeth's life is suddenly incredibly new and different--the question is, can she embrace being happy or has her family conditioned her to think she's just not good enough? Liza Palmer expertly depicts a woman trying to come to terms with professional success, personal success, and finally dealing with a family that might love her from the bottom of their heart but doesn't necessarily have her best interest always at heart.
She Woke Up Married by Suzanne MacPherson
Paris James has come to Las Vegas to take the sting off turning the dreaded "Three-O." But one glass of bubbly leads to another -- and when the redhead wakes up the next morning, she finds to her astonishment she's in bed with ... Elvis! The good news is it's the young, sexy Elvis. The bad news is there's a diamond ring on her finger. Sometime during the evening she actually married The King of Rock 'n' Roll! Well, what happened in Vegas better stay in Vegas, right?
But not if Turner Pruitt has anything to say about it. Because years before he put on his first pair of blue suede shoes, Turner knew the real Paris ... She's running away, as usual, but he knows her deepest secrets, and as much as she struggles against love, Paris is going to need him by her side as she faces her demons head-on.
Because this time, Paris James has met her match.
Sleeping With Ward Cleaver by Jenny Gardiner
Cleavered...
Wham, bam, no-thank-you, ma'am.
That about sums up the sex life of Claire Doolittle. Not-so-happily married to Jack --- once the man of her dreams but now a modern-day version of the bossy, dull Ward Cleaver of '50's sitcom fame --- Claire is at the end of her rope. Gone are the glorious days of flings in elevators and broom closets. Jack? All he needs is a cardigan and a billowing pipe to become the domineering father figure Claire never wanted. And looking at her body in the mirror, Claire would cast herself as Lumpy. They'd once had a world of color, of wanton frivolity. Now, life's black and white: a sitcom in reruns. A not-very-funny sitcom. Cue an old boyfriend --- the "one that got away" --- throw in a predatory hottie who's set her sights on our leading man, and watch Claire's world spiral out of control.
In the old TV show, the Beaver always got a happy ending.
Stay tuned.
Boys That Bite by Mari Mancusi
This is not your typical boy-bites-girl love story.
Technically Sunshine can't get killed-because she's immortal. Well, not quite yet. Due to the worst case of mistaken identity with her dark-side-loving twin sister at a Goth club called Club Fang, Magnus, a vampire hottie, went for Sunshine's innocent neck. Now if she doesn't reverse it in time, Magnus will be her blood mate forever and she's doomed to be a blood-gulping, pasty, daylight-hating vampire. That would seriously bite.
And now, after the unfortunate slaying of the vampire leader, Sunshine, her sister Rayne, and Magnus must find the one thing that can solve her problem: the Holy Grail. They wish it were a joke but it's not. It's absolutely necessary that Sunshine gets out of this in time, because somehow she scored the hottest prom date in her school, the mouth-watering Jake Wilder. So she just can't be a vampire for the prom-let alone the rest of eternity.
Forget About It by Caprice Crane
For twenty-five years, Jordan Landau's life has been eminently forgettable. From her combatively critical mother to her cheating boyfriend to her idea-stealing boss --- there's almost no one in Jordan's life who hasn't taken advantage of her near-pathological desire to avoid conflict.
Everyone's about to find out.
After a freak accident leaves Jordan in a hospital with a head injury, inspiration strikes. What's the best way to get out of a bad life? Pretend you can't remember it! Faking amnesia makes it easy to dump the boyfriend, trump the boss, and turn the tables on a family that never appreciated her. The Great Jordan Life Makeover is looking pretty good, until things take a surprising turn. Forced to start over for real, Jordan must soon figure out how to create a truly unforgettable life...and how far she's willing to go to do so.
I Only Have Fangs For You by Kathy Love
He's finally met his type...
BITE ME
One thing you have to know about my brother Sebastian: he loves being a vampire. After all, what's not to love? He's eternally twenty-five. He's single, and frankly, he's a chick magnet. Yeah, undeath is good. The only thing he's serious about is his nightclub, Carfax Abbey. It's the sort of dark, happening spot where vampires can really let their fangs down. You know, hiding in the shadows, feeding, giving pleasure to unsuspecting mortals, being all cool and vampirey. Whatever. My brother Rhys and I have tried to get Sebastian to clean up his bad-boy ways like we did, but then he went and called us "fang-whipped." Okay, Bite Boy, chew on this...
The ultimate righteous reformer, Wilhelmina Weiss, is on a mission to shut down Carfax Abbey. She doesn't approve of my bro's biting ways. It seems the spirited, sexy-without-knowing-it vampire is working undercover as a cocktail waitress in his bar while waging a secret war to bring him down. Sebastian's A-positive he can convince Miss Goddy-Vampire-Two-Fangs that nothing beats the ecstasy of a good vampire bite. She's certain she can resist him for as long as it takes to reform him. I gotta tell you, the suspense would kill me--if I weren't already undead.
Now, Mr. "Has anyone ever told you you've got a beautiful neck?" is in way over his. He's finally met a girl who may not be his type, but she's way more than his match. Not that he's (cough) fang-whipped (cough) or anything. No, not my baby bro. One thing's for sure, I've never seen Sebastian so completely at someone's mercy in my life. And frankly, I'm enjoying every minute of it...
Latte Lessons by Linda Lenhoff
Lesson #1: Never settle for less than the perfect blend...
SINGLE LIFE IS FULL OF QUESTIONS
......imponderables such as: "Is it possible to transform an addiction to reality dating shows into a substitute for actual dating?" and "Is scanning demographic lists of available men with nice (read: British-sounding) names and upscale addresses more dignified if one does it in the privacy of one's apartment with a bottle of wine and an equally romance-challenged friend?" Not having all the answers doesn't keep thirty-year-old Claire Duncan up at night. She loves her job as a copywriter at a small Venice Beach advertising and promotion agency --- even though it's not making her much money. She loves her hemp drawstring capris --- even though they're not getting her any dates. And she loves her mother --- who in turn despairs of ever having grandchildren.
But Claire's comfortable, moderately caffeinated routine gets a double-espresso jolt when she's given the assignment of promoting an up-and-coming pop band. Heartthrob needs a change of image. And lead guitarist Brendan Baker has Claire rethinking her don't-date-the-clients-no-matter-how-hot-they-are rule. His earnest brown-eyed gaze makes her feel like an underwear-throwing groupie. Which is quite below her, if you ask her co-worker Dennis --- whose own revived love life leaves something to be desired, if you ask Claire.
Suddenly --- and quite accidentally --- Claire has become someone to whom cute twenty-something boys (as well as guy pals and ex-boyfriends) are attracted, and everything has become just a tad more complicated than before. Not to mention a hell of a lot more fun...
Hurricane Bay by Heather Graham
Dane Whitelaw knows something about Sheila Warren that no one else does. Dane knows Sheila's dead.
The private investigator found a photo under his door -- a picture of Sheila, strangled with his tie and posed on the beach of his private island in he Florida keys. The crime appears to be the handiwork of a serial killer currently terrorizing the Miami area. Now Dane knows he is being set up to take the fall for the killings. He just doesn't know why.
When Kelsey Cunningham's bet friend goes missing, she confronts the one person she thinks will have information -- Dane, Sheila's former lover and a man from Kelsey's own past. Kelsey follows Sheila's track into a dangerous world of sex, violence and drugs, with Dane right behind her. But the tentative trust between them shatters when Sheila's body is discovered -- and Kelsey recognizes Dane's tie.
Now Kelsey doesn't dare trust anyone. Especially a man she can no longer deny she has always loved. Because here on Hurricane Bay, a devastating storm can hit without warning and whether it's a tempest of unbridled passion or the desperate fury of a killer, nothing -- and no one -- is safe.
The Ghost And The Dead Man's Library by Alice Kimberly
Sleuth, Nevermore…?
Bookshop owner Penelope Thornton McClure has just received an extremely rare collection of Edgar Allan Poe’s complete works. Rumor has it a secret code, trapped within the books’ leather-bound pages, leads to buried treasure. Well, it looks like they got the buried part right, because as Pen sells off the valuable volumes, everyone who buys…dies.
Once these books go missing from their owners’ cold hands, Pen will need resident ghost and hard-boiled PI Jack Shepard to help crack the case. The police are skeptical that the deaths involved foul play --- so it’s up to Pen and Jack to unravel these shocking endings…
The Good Ghoul's Guide To Getting Even by Julie KennerHigh school totally sucks. Especially if you’re a vampire.
"If he wasn’t already dead, I swear I’d kill Stephen Wills."
Beth Frasier's ticked off. Her junior year of high school was going fine. Amazing grades. Early admission to college. And a date with the star quarterback. But no. Thanks to a bunch of jerkwad vampire jocks, she ended up dead. Or rather, undead, and with a thirst that a thousand Diet Cokes couldn't quench.
Now she's out for blood--and revenge. She knows exactly what to do. Beth's read Salem's Lot. Just wipe out the crowd that did her in. But with so many creeps in high school it's hard to separate the good vamps from the bad. On top of that, she's got to figure out how to be mortal again. Unless universities start accepting dead girls....
There's No Place Like Here by Cecelia AhernSometimes it takes losing everything to truly find yourself...
Since Sandy Shortt's childhood classmate disappeared twenty years ago, Sandy has been obsessed with missing things. Finding what is lost becomes her single-minded goal--from the lone sock that vanishes in the washing machine to the car keys she misplaced. It's no surprise, then, that Sandy's life's work becomes finding people who have vanished from their loved ones. Sandy's family is baffled and concerned by her increasing preoccupation. Her parents can't understand her compulsion, and she pushes them away further by losing herself in the work of tracking down these missing people. She gives up her life in order to offer a flicker of hope to devastated families...and escape the disappointments of her own.
Jack Ruttle is one of those devastated people. It's been a year since his brother Donal vanished into thin air, and he has enlisted Sandy Shortt to find him. But before she is able to offer Jack the information he so desperately needs, Sandy goes missing too...and Jack now finds himself searching for his brother and the one woman who understood his pain.
One minute Sandy is jogging through the park, the next, she can't figure out where she is. The path is obscured. Nothing is familiar. A clearing up ahead reveals a camp site, and it's there that Sandy discovers the impossible: she has inadvertently stumbled upon the place-- and people--she's been looking for all her life, a land where all the missing people go. A world away from her loved ones and the home she ran from for so long, Sandy soon resorts to her old habit again, searching. Though this time, she is desperately trying to find her way home...
Return To Summerhouse by Jude DeverauxMagic most definitely resides in the Maine summerhouse where the mysterious Madame Zoya has granted the innermost wishes of its visitors.
Now, three women have come to this special place with one thing in common: a painful past they would each like to rewrite. Amy, who hides a heartbreaking loss behind her seemingly perfect marriage and family... Faith, a widow in her thirties whose deepest grief is for a man from years ago... and Zoe, an artist shunned by her hometown for reasons she doesn't know, after a traumatic night erased her memory. With their mystical powers, Madame Zoya and her sister Primrose are about to transport the trio to eighteenth-century England to alter Amy's ancestry. But although surprises await each of them, will stepping back in time bring the women the happy endings they seek?
Scottish Girls About Town by Jenny Colgan, Isla Dewar, Muriel Gray, et alGet ready for a Highland fling...
Meet the Clanswomen...
International bestselling authors Jenny Colgan, Isla Dewar, and Muriel Gray lead off this dazzling collection of stories by popular and rising Scottish women authors. A sometimes wild, sometimes poignant romp through the lives of Scotswomen, Scottish Girls About Town revels in the universal hilarity and strife of being a girl!
They're looking for something moor.
In Jenny Colgan's "The Fringes," a hapless heroine heads to the Edinburgh "Fringe" -- a massive theatrical and musical festival -- for a night of her own disastrous drama. Isla Dewar offers up "In the Garden of Mrs. Pink," one woman's look back at her girlhood and the life lessons she learned from an eccentric neighbor. In Muriel Gray's "School-Gate Mums," a single mother with killer instincts settles the score with one of the mothers at her son's school. Whether they're racing their flatmates in a weight-loss contest, reconnecting with long-lost friends, or grappling with the men in their lives, these daughters of Scotland prove that no one can top their audacious spirit and Highland charm.
Seeing Me Naked by Liza PalmerElisabeth Page is the daughter of Ben Page, yes, that's right, THE world famous novelist. And yes, she's also the sister of Rascal Page, world famous novelist in his own right. So what does Elisabeth do? Much to her family's disappointment, Elisabeth is a pastry chef. And a pretty damn good one, at Beverly, the hottest restaurant in LA. The last relationship Elisabeth had was with Will, a man she grew up with and whose family ran in the same social circles as her family. But Will's constant jaunts around the world have left her lonely and brokenhearted in L.A. That is until Daniel Sullivan bids on one of Elisabeth's pastry tutorials at a charity auction. Daniel is everything her family is not: a basketball coach, a non-intellectual, his family doesn't summer on Martha's Vineyard, and the only metaphors he uses are about passing the ball and being a team player. But somehow they fit. Between her family, Will, and the new cooking show that Elisabeth is recruited to star in, Elisabeth's life is suddenly incredibly new and different--the question is, can she embrace being happy or has her family conditioned her to think she's just not good enough? Liza Palmer expertly depicts a woman trying to come to terms with professional success, personal success, and finally dealing with a family that might love her from the bottom of their heart but doesn't necessarily have her best interest always at heart.
She Woke Up Married by Suzanne MacPhersonParis James has come to Las Vegas to take the sting off turning the dreaded "Three-O." But one glass of bubbly leads to another -- and when the redhead wakes up the next morning, she finds to her astonishment she's in bed with ... Elvis! The good news is it's the young, sexy Elvis. The bad news is there's a diamond ring on her finger. Sometime during the evening she actually married The King of Rock 'n' Roll! Well, what happened in Vegas better stay in Vegas, right?
But not if Turner Pruitt has anything to say about it. Because years before he put on his first pair of blue suede shoes, Turner knew the real Paris ... She's running away, as usual, but he knows her deepest secrets, and as much as she struggles against love, Paris is going to need him by her side as she faces her demons head-on.
Because this time, Paris James has met her match.
Sleeping With Ward Cleaver by Jenny GardinerCleavered...
Wham, bam, no-thank-you, ma'am.
That about sums up the sex life of Claire Doolittle. Not-so-happily married to Jack --- once the man of her dreams but now a modern-day version of the bossy, dull Ward Cleaver of '50's sitcom fame --- Claire is at the end of her rope. Gone are the glorious days of flings in elevators and broom closets. Jack? All he needs is a cardigan and a billowing pipe to become the domineering father figure Claire never wanted. And looking at her body in the mirror, Claire would cast herself as Lumpy. They'd once had a world of color, of wanton frivolity. Now, life's black and white: a sitcom in reruns. A not-very-funny sitcom. Cue an old boyfriend --- the "one that got away" --- throw in a predatory hottie who's set her sights on our leading man, and watch Claire's world spiral out of control.
In the old TV show, the Beaver always got a happy ending.
Stay tuned.
Boys That Bite by Mari MancusiThis is not your typical boy-bites-girl love story.
Technically Sunshine can't get killed-because she's immortal. Well, not quite yet. Due to the worst case of mistaken identity with her dark-side-loving twin sister at a Goth club called Club Fang, Magnus, a vampire hottie, went for Sunshine's innocent neck. Now if she doesn't reverse it in time, Magnus will be her blood mate forever and she's doomed to be a blood-gulping, pasty, daylight-hating vampire. That would seriously bite.
And now, after the unfortunate slaying of the vampire leader, Sunshine, her sister Rayne, and Magnus must find the one thing that can solve her problem: the Holy Grail. They wish it were a joke but it's not. It's absolutely necessary that Sunshine gets out of this in time, because somehow she scored the hottest prom date in her school, the mouth-watering Jake Wilder. So she just can't be a vampire for the prom-let alone the rest of eternity.
Forget About It by Caprice CraneHow hard is it to knock down a pushover?
For twenty-five years, Jordan Landau's life has been eminently forgettable. From her combatively critical mother to her cheating boyfriend to her idea-stealing boss --- there's almost no one in Jordan's life who hasn't taken advantage of her near-pathological desire to avoid conflict.
Everyone's about to find out.
After a freak accident leaves Jordan in a hospital with a head injury, inspiration strikes. What's the best way to get out of a bad life? Pretend you can't remember it! Faking amnesia makes it easy to dump the boyfriend, trump the boss, and turn the tables on a family that never appreciated her. The Great Jordan Life Makeover is looking pretty good, until things take a surprising turn. Forced to start over for real, Jordan must soon figure out how to create a truly unforgettable life...and how far she's willing to go to do so.
I Only Have Fangs For You by Kathy LoveHe's finally met his type...
BITE ME
One thing you have to know about my brother Sebastian: he loves being a vampire. After all, what's not to love? He's eternally twenty-five. He's single, and frankly, he's a chick magnet. Yeah, undeath is good. The only thing he's serious about is his nightclub, Carfax Abbey. It's the sort of dark, happening spot where vampires can really let their fangs down. You know, hiding in the shadows, feeding, giving pleasure to unsuspecting mortals, being all cool and vampirey. Whatever. My brother Rhys and I have tried to get Sebastian to clean up his bad-boy ways like we did, but then he went and called us "fang-whipped." Okay, Bite Boy, chew on this...
The ultimate righteous reformer, Wilhelmina Weiss, is on a mission to shut down Carfax Abbey. She doesn't approve of my bro's biting ways. It seems the spirited, sexy-without-knowing-it vampire is working undercover as a cocktail waitress in his bar while waging a secret war to bring him down. Sebastian's A-positive he can convince Miss Goddy-Vampire-Two-Fangs that nothing beats the ecstasy of a good vampire bite. She's certain she can resist him for as long as it takes to reform him. I gotta tell you, the suspense would kill me--if I weren't already undead.
Now, Mr. "Has anyone ever told you you've got a beautiful neck?" is in way over his. He's finally met a girl who may not be his type, but she's way more than his match. Not that he's (cough) fang-whipped (cough) or anything. No, not my baby bro. One thing's for sure, I've never seen Sebastian so completely at someone's mercy in my life. And frankly, I'm enjoying every minute of it...
Latte Lessons by Linda LenhoffLesson #1: Never settle for less than the perfect blend...
SINGLE LIFE IS FULL OF QUESTIONS
......imponderables such as: "Is it possible to transform an addiction to reality dating shows into a substitute for actual dating?" and "Is scanning demographic lists of available men with nice (read: British-sounding) names and upscale addresses more dignified if one does it in the privacy of one's apartment with a bottle of wine and an equally romance-challenged friend?" Not having all the answers doesn't keep thirty-year-old Claire Duncan up at night. She loves her job as a copywriter at a small Venice Beach advertising and promotion agency --- even though it's not making her much money. She loves her hemp drawstring capris --- even though they're not getting her any dates. And she loves her mother --- who in turn despairs of ever having grandchildren.
But Claire's comfortable, moderately caffeinated routine gets a double-espresso jolt when she's given the assignment of promoting an up-and-coming pop band. Heartthrob needs a change of image. And lead guitarist Brendan Baker has Claire rethinking her don't-date-the-clients-no-matter-how-hot-they-are rule. His earnest brown-eyed gaze makes her feel like an underwear-throwing groupie. Which is quite below her, if you ask her co-worker Dennis --- whose own revived love life leaves something to be desired, if you ask Claire.
Suddenly --- and quite accidentally --- Claire has become someone to whom cute twenty-something boys (as well as guy pals and ex-boyfriends) are attracted, and everything has become just a tad more complicated than before. Not to mention a hell of a lot more fun...
Hurricane Bay by Heather GrahamDane Whitelaw knows something about Sheila Warren that no one else does. Dane knows Sheila's dead.
The private investigator found a photo under his door -- a picture of Sheila, strangled with his tie and posed on the beach of his private island in he Florida keys. The crime appears to be the handiwork of a serial killer currently terrorizing the Miami area. Now Dane knows he is being set up to take the fall for the killings. He just doesn't know why.
When Kelsey Cunningham's bet friend goes missing, she confronts the one person she thinks will have information -- Dane, Sheila's former lover and a man from Kelsey's own past. Kelsey follows Sheila's track into a dangerous world of sex, violence and drugs, with Dane right behind her. But the tentative trust between them shatters when Sheila's body is discovered -- and Kelsey recognizes Dane's tie.
Now Kelsey doesn't dare trust anyone. Especially a man she can no longer deny she has always loved. Because here on Hurricane Bay, a devastating storm can hit without warning and whether it's a tempest of unbridled passion or the desperate fury of a killer, nothing -- and no one -- is safe.
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About Me
- Sherri
- I am not a professional reviewer, but I love to read and share my opinions on my reading with others who are interested. I work full time but my ideal perfect day would be to curl up with a good book. The majority of the books I review here are from my private collection and my reviews are provided purely for entertainment purposes. I receive no compensation whatsoever for sharing my thoughts and review on any book. If you would like me to review your book, please email me at sharalsbooks@yahoo.com Happy Reading! :o)