Thursday, January 31, 2013

New Additions To The TBR Pile In January

2013 is off to a pretty good start with the arrivals of these new titles. Unfortunately, 2013 has gotten off to a bumpy start. Two titles I tried to read in January, I ended up giving up on, so that's a little disheartening. Hopefully, this is a temporary hitch.

Title: The Reformed Vampire Support Group by Catherine Jinks

Description: Think vampires are romantic, sexy, and powerful? Think again. Vampires are dead. And unless they want to end up staked, they have to give up fanging people, admit their addiction, join a support group, and reform themselves.

Nina Harrison, fanged at fifteen and still living with her mother, hates the Reformed Vampire Support Group meetings every Tuesday night. Even if she does appreciate Dave, who was in a punk band when he was alive, nothing exciting ever happens. That is, until one of group members is mysteriously destroyed by a silver bullet. With Nina (determined to prove that vamps aren't useless or weak) and Dave (secretly in love with Nina) at the helm, the misfit vampires soon band together to track down the hunter, save a werewolf, and keep the world safe from the likes of themselves.

The perfect anecdote to slick vampire novels, this murder-mystery comedy of errors will thrill fans of Evil Genius.

Title: Heaven Is For Real by Todd Burpo

Description: "Do you remember the hospital, Colton?" Sonja said. "Yes, mommy, I remember," he said. "That's where the angels sang to me."

When Colton Burpo made it through an emergency appendectomy, his family was overjoyed at his miraculous survival. What they weren't expecting, though, was the story that emerged in the months that followed--a story as beautiful as it was extraordinary, detailing their little boy's trip to heaven and back.

Colton, not yet four years old, told his parents he left his body during the surgery-and authenticated that claim by describing exactly what his parents were doing in another part of the hospital while he was being operated on. He talked of visiting heaven and relayed stories told to him by people he met there whom he had never met in life, sharing events that happened even before he was born. He also astonished his parents with descriptions and obscure details about heaven that matched the Bible exactly, though he had not yet learned to read.

With disarming innocence and the plainspoken boldness of a child, Colton tells of meeting long-departed family members. He describes Jesus, the angels, how "really, really big" God is, and how much God loves us. Retold by his father, but using Colton's uniquely simple words, "Heaven Is for Real" offers a glimpse of the world that awaits us, where as Colton says, "Nobody is old and nobody wears glasses."

"Heaven Is for Real" will forever change the way you think of eternity, offering the chance to see, and believe, like a child.

Dead Connection by Alafair Burke

Description: In this electrifying thriller, a rookie detective goes undercover on the Internet dating scene to draw out a serial killer targeting single women in Manhattan

When two young women are murdered on the streets of New York, exactly one year apart, Detective Ellie Hatcher is called up for a special assignment on the homicide task force. The killer has left behind a clue connecting the two cases to First Date, a popular online dating service, and Flann McIlroy, an eccentric, publicity-seeking homicide detective, is convinced that only Ellie can help him pursue his terrifying theory: someone is using the lure of the Internet and the promise of love to launch a killing spree against the women of New York City.

To catch the killer, Ellie must enter a high-tech world of stolen identities where no one is who they appear to be. And for her, the investigation quickly becomes personal: she fits the profile of the victims, and she knows firsthand what pursuing a sociopath can do to a cop--back home in Wichita, Kansas, her father lost his life trying to catch a notorious serial murderer.

When the First Date killer begins to mimic the monster who destroyed her father, Ellie knows the game has become personal for him, too. Both hunter and prey, she must find the killer before he claims his next victim--who could very well be her.

Expertly plotted and perfectly paced, Dead Connection advances Alafair Burke to the front ranks of American thriller writers.

The Wicked Wager by Anya Wylde

Description: The infamous rake, Lord Richard Hamilton, has finally chosen his bride—the very appropriate Miss Emma Grey.

The ton approves, Lord Grey is pleased, Lady Grey delighted, and Emma is over the moon, but her uncle, (the blasted) Duke of Arden opposes the match, and Emma is ordered to move to the duke’s estate to think things over.

Richard Hamilton refuses to take things lying down and concocts a plan. A plan that should have brought the lovers together and had them married within a month. It was a simple matter of masquerading as the duke’s gardener, compromising the lady, and then having the duke rush them off to Gretna Green.

Alas, he underestimates the duke’s intelligence and the tangled situation on the estate—never had he imagined that compromising a lady could be so difficult.

His endeavours lead to a comedy of errors, charades, and knotty love affairs. Yet he forges ahead in spite of pesky house guests, a flea bitten mattress, his lovesick best friend, and a blackmailer.

Just when things seem to be going well, someone is murdered (very inconvenient), and he happens to be one of the suspects (extremely inconvenient).

His simple plan for winning the wager suddenly becomes … a tad complicated.

Sunday, January 20, 2013

REVIEW: Heaven Is For Real by Todd Burpo

Title: Heaven Is For Real: A Little Boy's Astounding Story of His Trip to Heaven and Back
Author: Todd Burpo
Publisher: Thomas Nelson
Publication Date: November, 2010
Genre: Christian Non-Fiction
Rating: 10/10

Description: "Do you remember the hospital, Colton?" Sonja said. "Yes, mommy, I remember," he said. "That's where the angels sang to me."

When Colton Burpo made it through an emergency appendectomy, his family was overjoyed at his miraculous survival. What they weren't expecting, though, was the story that emerged in the months that followed--a story as beautiful as it was extraordinary, detailing their little boy's trip to heaven and back.

Colton, not yet four years old, told his parents he left his body during the surgery-and authenticated that claim by describing exactly what his parents were doing in another part of the hospital while he was being operated on. He talked of visiting heaven and relayed stories told to him by people he met there whom he had never met in life, sharing events that happened even before he was born. He also astonished his parents with descriptions and obscure details about heaven that matched the Bible exactly, though he had not yet learned to read.

With disarming innocence and the plainspoken boldness of a child, Colton tells of meeting long-departed family members. He describes Jesus, the angels, how "really, really big" God is, and how much God loves us. Retold by his father, but using Colton's uniquely simple words, "Heaven Is for Real" offers a glimpse of the world that awaits us, where as Colton says, "Nobody is old and nobody wears glasses."

"Heaven Is for Real" will forever change the way you think of eternity, offering the chance to see, and believe, like a child.

My Thoughts: This book was amazing! The author, a pastor and Colton's father, shares with us his son's amazing journey to Heaven and back. This book doesn't feel preachy or judgmental. Instead, I got a very good sense of the fear and anxiety any parent would feel over their child's serious illness and their frustration at not being able to fix it.

I appreciated Todd Burpo's open and frank retelling of his frustration leading to getting angry at God and yelling at God. We can all relate to him feeling this way as we all tend to want to lash out our anger during situations we cannot control. I felt a lot of empathy for the Burpo family after the numerous medical challenges Todd had already faced, they now had to face the very scary fear that their only son could die.

The feelings of empathy turned to feelings of amazement when Colton makes a miraculous recovery, though his family still does not know the extent of what Colton went through, beyond the medical procedures. It isn't until on a family trip several months later that Colton begins to share with his family the extraordinary experience he had when he went to Heaven, met Jesus, met God, met his great-grandfather who passed away before he was born, met his sister who had been miscarried before Colton was born and even sees Satan. Colton relays these occurrences to his shocked family in a very innocent and guileless matter-of-fact manner only a child could convey.

My favorite passage in the book is when Colton is telling his parents that Jesus asked the angels to sing to him because he was scared and his father asks him what the angels sang to him.

Colton turned his eyes up and to the right, the attitude of remembering. "Well, they sang 'Jesus Loves Me' and 'Joshua Fought The Battle Of Jericho,'" he said earnestly. "I asked them to sing 'We Will, We Will Rock You,' but they wouldn't sing that."

Colton is a brave little boy who touched my heart and will touch yours. His faith and belief is awe inspiring in it's sweet innocence that reminds us to shed our adult cynical thinking and embrace our beliefs with a child-like joy and abandon.

Thursday, January 17, 2013

REVIEW: When Blood Calls by J.K. Beck

Title: When Blood Calls (The Shadow Keepers, #1)
Author: J.K. Beck
Publisher: Bantam
Publication Date: August, 2010
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Rating: 9/10

Description: Attorney Sara Constantine is thrilled with her promotion—until she finds out that she must now prosecute vampires and werewolves. The first defendant she’ll be trying to put away? Lucius Dragos, the sexy stranger with whom she recently shared an explosive night of ecstasy.

When Lucius kisses a beautiful woman sitting next to him at the bar, he’s hoping only to avoid the perceptive gaze of the man he’s planning to kill. But what starts as a simple kiss ignites into an all-consuming passion. Charged with murder, Luke knows that Sara is determined to see him locked away—unless he can convince her that he’s not a monster. And that might mean making the ultimate sacrifice.

My Thoughts: When Blood Calls is the first book in The Shadow Keepers series. This is a little bit darker than what fans of Julie Kenner have come to expect, but writing as J.K. Beck introduces us not only to a more dark side of one of my favorite authors, but also a start to a paranormal series that is more sinister than what I've read before.

I loved the world J.K. Beck creates that Sara Constantine finds herself a part of with her promotion. She will continue to prosecute villains but now those villains are of the paranormal variety. Her first case involves a man she had a one night stand with and with whom she can't stop thinking about. She had no idea he was a vampire who is facing a death sentence for brutally murdering a judge. I thought it was interesting how quickly Sara adjusted to her surroundings, which include not only vampires, but werewolves, trolls, goblins and demons. She is in an unusual predicament when she comes face to face with her first defendant and realizes she already knows him intimately. She quickly decides that she will remain true to herself and seek justice no matter her feelings and even when things get pretty intense between Sara and Lucius, she still wants to fight for justice.

I found Lucius to be a very compelling character. I enjoy reading a book where the hero and heroine are not perfect or are flawed in some way. Lucius is as flawed as a soul can get. He's a vampire and he has murdered and he makes no apologies for it. He's grieving the loss of his daughter centuries ago and is very protective of his ward, Tasha. He finds himself feeling connected to Sara, experiencing emotions he hasn't allowed himself to feel for a very long time.

There are several secondary characters that were introduced that I'm highly curious about and hoping to see in the rest of the series. The best thing about this book for me was that this story isn't predictable in the slightest. I thought I had a pretty good idea what was going on and felt confident with what I believed would happen next and as quick as I turned a page, the story shifts and knocks me over!

Overall, this is a very good start to a series that brings a different twist on the paranormal world. Interesting characters combined with some pretty hot romance and an intriguing story will fit the bill for most any reading preference. I am looking forward to the rest of the series.

Tuesday, January 15, 2013

REVIEW: You Don't Know Jack by Erin McCarthy

Title: You Don't Know Jack (NY Girlfriends #2)
Author: Erin McCarthy
Publisher: Brava
Publication Date: October, 2006
Genre: Chick-Lit
Rating: 9/10

Description: Love. Sex. Destiny. And A Six-Foot-Four Psychic In A Bridesmaid’s Dress? Honey, You Don’t Know Jack

Jamie Peters no longer believes in true love. True idiots, true scumbags, true moochers—these she believes in wholeheartedly, and she’s got the checkered dating history to prove it. So she’s more than a little skeptical when her cross-dressing psychic tells her she’s about to meet her soul mate—during an accident. Yeah, sounds about right. And then it happens. A knight in shining armor steps between her and a mugger on a subway platform. Just a regular, honest, upright Jack. The kind they don’t make anymore…

Jonathon Davidson doesn't believe in destiny—or lying to beautiful women as a rule. But now that Jamie thinks he’s just an ordinary guy, how can he possibly tell her that he’s really, (A) her roommate’s brother, (B) a millionaire to boot, and (C) the jerk who’s investigating her application to his grandfather’s charitable trust because she may be involved in something illegal? Yeah, rhetorical question. He can’t. Not until he knows what’s going on. Besides, it would require being able to resist Jamie’s luscious curves long enough to say, “Hi, my name is Big Liar. Let’s get naked.” Sometimes, destiny sucks…

Somewhere between truth and flat-out-let’s-talk-about-this-waaay-later fiction, between fate and delicious accidental insanity, lies a whole lot of mind-blowing sex, delirious passion, unfortunate sundresses, fighting, deception, big mistakes and small hopes, and two people are about to discover that everything happens for a reason…

My Thoughts: You Don't Know Jack is the second book in the NY Girlfriends series by Erin McCarthy. I read the first book, The Pregnancy Test, almost five years ago and just found it to be OK. Not terrible, but definitely not great. Fortunately, this second book more than makes up for where the first book lacked. It had humor and was filled with some of the most hot and spicy sex scenes I have read in a long time. Some readers may even categorize this as erotica.

I loved these characters. Jamie and Jack make the perfect couple even though they are complete polar opposites. Jamie is a working class girl living in New York City with three roommates to make ends meet. She's a social worker who is helping paroled convicts re-enter the world as free men. She doesn't believe in the happily ever after fairy tale or in love. I thought Jamie's cynical nature would annoy me after a while, but it never did. Jamie lives by an unusual code of ethics and, up until she meets Jack, it has worked for her.

Normally, a man who lies to a woman from the start can't ever be trusted and I applaud the woman who tells these types of men where to go. Unfortunately, Jack isn't truthful with Jamie when they meet. He lies about the circumstances that have placed him on the subway she is on. He keeps his true identity to himself as he knows that Jamie would probably avoid him if she knew because a): he's her roommate, Caroline's brother, and b): he has a lot of money. We're talking about an obscene amount. He comes from money anyway, but we're talking about the kind of money that enables someone to officially retire from the corporate Wall Street career before turning thirty. This is definitely not the kind of lifestyle Jamie lives in or feels comfortable in. Last, but not least, Jack knows that Jamie would have a problem knowing who he really is because he just turned down her employer's request for funding and if she knew he suspected her of embezzling money, she might not react with sunshine and daisies. I totally understand why Jack keeps the truth from Jamie, but it still doesn't make it right and, of course, Jamie finds out and it doesn't look good for them to make a go of it.

The great thing about Jack is that even though he is mega rich, he's very likable, down to earth and very persistent. Jamie finds it extremely difficult to stay angry at him and not like him. In addition, he makes her feel things she has never felt before with any other man. Several times while reading this book, I wished I were Jamie.

My only very small problem with this book was the story left a lot of loose ends that leaves the reader hanging. I had a lot of "what about" questions at the end about Austin, Jack's grandfather, Jamie's father, Jamie's roommates, Caroline, Allison and Mandy. If you are like me when reading a book, specifically a book that is part of a series, you want those loose ends tied up, especially if those loose ends will have no relevance to the rest of the series. Unfortunately, I am unable to determine if there are anymore books in this series.

Even still, I thoroughly enjoyed meeting Jamie and Jack and highly recommend this book if you like smexy (smutty and sexy) hot love scenes and some hilarity to go with it.

Wednesday, January 02, 2013

Honorable Mentions of 2012

For the books that didn't make the top reads list for the year, I want to give an honorable mention to the titles I read in 2012 that didn't make the cut for the best but were still very good reads and highly recommended:

Still Life by Joy Fielding
Seattle Girl by Lucy Kevin
Awakening by Scarlett Valentine
Beach Road by James Patterson
Murder Your Darlings by J.J. Murphy
Millie's Fling by Jill Mansell
Explosive Eighteen by Janet Evanovich
Girl's Guide To Witchcraft by Mindy Klasky
Reality Chick by Lauren Barnholdt
Driving Sideways by Jess Riley
A Piece Of My Heart by Kemberlee Shortland
Killer Summer by Lynda Curnyn
The 9th Judgment by James Patterson
Pretty In Plaid by Jen Lancaster
Vamps And The City by Kerrelyn Sparks
Perfect On Paper by Patty Froese

2012 Reading Review

Another year has come and gone and the best part of the reading year is upon me as I get to look back and evaluate what I read and how my stats measured up. I am happy to report that 2012 found me reading more and giving up on less books than I did in 2011.  I read 46 books and gave up on 3.  My goal was to read 55 books in 2012 and I reached 89% of my goal.

Goal for 2013:  50 books

The biggest change to my reading tastes in 2012 was the addition of Christian fiction and Inspirational romance and the drastic drop in Young Adult.  Historical romance, Romantic Suspense and Memoirs also made an appearance back into my reading year.  I chose to classify the historical romance as I did instead of Erotica because of the time period and setting.  The romance also felt like the primary story instead of just sex, which is how I articulate what the Erotica genre primarily focuses on.   The In Death series by J.D. Robb dominated my reading in 2012 over any other series, which does not surprise me. 

The interesting part of 2012 was the arrival of so many new to me authors than in years past.  In comparison to 2011, Mystery / Suspense / Thriller rose by more than half.  Chick-Lit was slightly down, Cozy Mystery and Paranormal Romance dropped by half.  Contemporary Romance and Other Fiction remained the same. Young Adult is a hard one this year.  The titles I read could also be classified under Chick-Lit and Paranormal Romance, but the protagonists in the stories were young adult so that’s how I classified them.  Unfortunately, Young Adult dropped 84% for me this year.  Here's how 2012 stacked up:

Chick-Lit: 7
Christian Fiction: 1
Contemporary Romance: 3
Cozy Mystery: 2
Historical Romance: 1
Inspirational Romance: 1
Memoir / Biography: 2
Mystery / Suspense / Thriller: 17
Paranormal Romance: 6
Romantic Suspense: 2
Urban Fantasy: 3
Young Adult: 2
Other Fiction / Literature: 2

A big shout out to the authors who were new to me and the authors that made multiple appearances in my reading year:

New To Me Authors In 2012
Lauren Baratz-Logsted
Lauren Barnholdt
Sarah Rees Brennan
Elizabeth Delisi
Rachel Firasek
Gillian Flynn
Patty Froese
Ian Fox
Michele Hauf
Lucy Kevin
Mindy Klasky
Justine Larbalestier
H.P. Mallory
Jill Mansell
Anne Marsh
Stephanie McAfee
Andrew Morton
J.J. Murphy
Ariella Papa
Jesse Petersen
Jennifer Rardin
Jess Riley
Kemberlee Shortland
Sean Slater
Garth Stein
Scarlett Valentine
Wm. Paul Young

Authors Read Multiple Times In 2012
James Patterson
J.D. Robb
Karen Rose
Kemberlee Shortland

My selection for the best reads of 2012 in the order they were read are:

The Shack by Wm. Paul Young
William and Catherine: A Royal Wedding by Andrew Morton
The Survivor by Sean Slater
Married With Zombies by Jesse Petersen
Fantasy In Death by J.D. Robb
Indulgence In Death by J.D. Robb
Possession In Death by J.D. Robb
Count To Ten by Karen Rose
This Side Of The Grave by Jeaniene Frost
Treachery In Death by J.D. Robb
New York To Dallas by J.D. Robb
The Art Of Racing In The Rain by Garth Stein
Chaos In Death by J.D. Robb
Rhythm Of My Heart by Kemberlee Shortland
Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn
A Perfect Blood by Kim Harrison
Die For Me by Karen Rose
Celebrity In Death by J.D. Robb
Hold Tight by Harlan Coben

Here's hoping 2013 will be a more productive year!

New Additions To The TBR Pile In December

Closing out the year with a few new additions...


Title: Girl Missing by Tess Gerritsen
Description: The first body is a mystery. She's young. She's beautiful. And her corpse, laid out in the office of Boston medical examiner Kat Novak, betrays no secrets - except for a notebook clutched in one stiff hand, seven numbers scrawled inside.

The next body is a warning. When a second victim is discovered, Kat begins to fear that a serial killer is stalking the city streets: a shadowy madman without mercy or apparent motive. The police are sceptical. The mayor won't listen. And Kat's chief suspect is one of the city's most prominent citizens.

The final body . . . might be hers. With the death toll rising, Kat races to expose a deadly conspiracy and the brutal killer at its heart - a killer who will stalk her from the dangerous streets of the inner city to the corridors of power. Because he's closer than she ever dreamt. And every move she makes could be her very last.





Title: Perfect On Paper by Patty Froese
Description: Anne Stanborough, a well known mystery writer, inherits her maiden aunt's book store, Perfect on Paper. The lawyer handling her aunt's estate is none other than the handsome Jake Harrison, but despite his attraction to the beautiful author, his painful divorce has made him wary of a marriage between two driven professionals.

Anne can't let go of the career she's worked her entire life towards, and he isn't willing to make a second mistake in marriage. It looks like they should call the whole thing off until Anne discovers that her late maiden aunt might not have been so "maiden" after all… A love story from the past tugs this couple back together again, but will it be enough to prove that a love founded in God really can overcome anything?

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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)