Marching On (ha!)... TBR Challenge: March

Last month I mentioned brightening up this blog with something....more.  More posts, new pictures, something.  Alas, that hasn't happened since I've been spending more time on getting my guestroom/office ready for Mom's arrival next month.  Yes, folks, this time next month -- Mom will be my roommate.  Pray for me. 

However, I have stuck with the promise to myself that I'd stay with the TBR Challenge.  This month I think the theme was to catch up on a series.  Since it's been documented that finding particular books in my own TBR is like finding a pin in the Everglades, I chose to vary on the theme and just catch up on books by a favorite author of mine, Allison Brennan.  The Kill is the third in her Predator Thriller series, and before I read it, I honestly didn't know if I'd read any of the others (The Prey and The Hunt).  Funny thing, though: yesterday, while I was relocating the 2/3 of my TBR that's here in what used to be my office (soon to be Mom's bedroom) to a storage unit, I unearthed the first book, The Prey.  Ah well.

(image from www.barnesandnoble.com)

As the director of the FBI's Trace Evidence and Materials Analysis department, Olivia St. Martin has settled into a life where there are no surprises, no thrills and definitely no room for romance.  She's quite satisfied in her role, if not a bit lonely, which is better than opening up to people who may want to get to know her more.  That can only lead to disaster, especially when they find out that she still subconsciously blames herself for her elder sister's murder when they were kids.  They may have caught Brian Harrison Hall, and Olivia has attended each one of his parole hearings to ensure that he stays locked up, but Olivia still lives with the nightmare of the day Missy was taken in front of her own eyes and subsequently killed.

Olivia's comfort in her work comes to a screeching halt when the evidence against Hall is overturned and he becomes a free man.  As the only witness on the day Missy went missing, could it be possible that Olivia helped to put an innocent man away?

Seattle police detective Zack Travis lives for his job, and he's good at it.  Maybe that's why he's already survived one divorce and there aren't exactly any future Mrs. Travis contestants on the immediate horizon.  He cannot ignore the immense satisfaction of a case closed, but as he stares at the body of a nine-year-old girl who should be home in the care of her family, not being loaded up for transport to the morgue, his hackles raise at the thought that this was only going to get worse.  The obvious pleasure the killer had taken in doing ungodly things to this poor kid all but screamed that it wasn't his first, and there would definitely be more.  As the days go on and another body turns up, Zack knows that sleep is going to become a foreign word.      

Olivia's guilt complex forces her to start looking into other murders, solved and unsolved, who fit the same MO as Missy's, and what she finds is startling.  They span 13 years, across the country, with the most recent happening in Seattle.  Even if she has to give up a job that she loves, she knows what she's gotta do now -- find the real killer.  And so she boards a plane for Seattle, intent on finagling a way into the current investigation any way she can.  Posing as an FBI agent, not just the scientist she really is, Olivia makes Zack's acquaintance as they search for what is apparently the same killer in all of these murders.    

What follows is an oh-my-God-I've-got-to-get-Mom's-room-ready-but-this-just-another-page kinda read.  Yeah, I went there.  The Kill is why I love not only suspense, but romantic suspense, when it's done right.  Ramping the action and thriller aspect up with each page, while remaining true to the characters and letting us bleed just a little with every heartbreak or disappointment.  Olivia may want to come across as subtle, not drawing any attention, but her sense of doing the right thing is nearly her motto.  Ok, so she stretched it a bit about her role in the investigation that's brought her to Zack's doorstep -- but she did have field agent experience, so it wasn't a total lie. Zack may not be a totally by-the-books kinda guy, but he'll do what it takes to close a case.  And that's where Zack and Olivia make a strong couple.  But this killer is going to put them through their paces just a bit, stretch out their limitations, and damnit, they'll work for it.  He's just not ready to be caught yet.

I can't go on anymore.  I'll either wax poetic, or hyperventilate.  Best read of the month for me.  Well, except maybe for the book I finished this morning, but that's another post.         

TBR Challenge: February

This place needs sprucing up.  Or something.  I definitely need to do some updating on the sidebar, not to mention throwing a post or two up for something other than the TBR Challenge reviews I plan on sticking with.  I will do better, I will do better... 

But for now, I'll stick with smaller things -- keeping up-to-date with La Wendy's challenge.  February, our task or suggested reading was a book recommended by someone.  I chose The Taming of the Duke by Eloisa James, because I'm sure someone recommended it back in its heyday ('06) somewhere.  For those keeping score and absolutely MUST read in order, TTOTD is # 3 in the Essex Sisters series and the story of Imogen, a widow who has recently returned to her guardian's house in England.  The fact that aforementioned guardian, Rafe, the Duke of Holbrook, is nothing more than a drunkard does not derail him from his duty of keeping the Essex sisters in line.  His drunkenness has always bothered Imogen though, who can barely stand spirits, let alone dukes who live to drink. 

When she arrives at Holbrook Court however, she finds that Rafe has discovered that he has a half brother, Gabriel, and that they are in the beginning stages of planning a theatrical.  O_o  Of course there's some backstory for their reasons, but honestly they're lost in the deriding Imogen thrives in towards Rafe for wasting his life and physique to the bottle.  It's not long before Rafe gives up the booze for better living, and that's when the obscure theatrical becomes the vehicle for more than just luring Gabe's ex-lover (the mother of his child, and an up-and-coming actress in London) to Holbrook Court.  Honestly, I never did truly understand the reasons for Rafe and his guests desiring to put on a play, other than to lend credo to the weirdness of the aristocracy?

To wrap it all up in a nutshell, Imogen has decided to take a lover and fixates on Gabriel as the perfect candidate.  What Rafe lacks in manners, sex appeal and scintillating conversation, Gabe has in spades.  But that's before Rafe gives up liquor and poses as his brother for various liaisons with Imogen.  Even as Imogen continues seeing Gabe in secret - or so she thinks - it's not long before she starts seeing Rafe as something more than her tiresome guardian and looks at him through a woman's eyes.  Confused much?

And this is when I gave up on the rest of the story and started reading faster just to get it over with.  Don't get me wrong, I loved Rafe, especially the fact that Ms. James cast him as an alcoholic who gives booze up just for the sake of giving it up.  It wasn't so easy to like Imogen though.  She's almost cruel in some aspects, especially in her dealings with Rafe.  Or maybe it's because I look at alcoholism through different eyes.  My husband was an alcoholic, and he died from it.  It's easy to blame the alcoholic who cares nothing for his family and even mistreats them, but Rafe seemed to be a good guy.  He turned to the bottle after his beloved older brother died and didn't look back.  Of course, there is no good reason to drown yourself this way, and there's no excuse to became a boozehound.  Or maybe I have an injured view of the disease, and maybe that's what made me dislike Imogen so much.  Hell if I know.  And I didn't mean to drag all of this out in what's supposed to be a fun review, but it's still there in my opinion of the book.

All of that to say, The Taming of the Duke wasn't my most favorite book by Eloisa James, and that's hard to admit since I'm a fan.  Maybe in 10 years I can read it again and come up with a different opinion, but since I'm seriously needing to offload some books to make way for my mom moving in -- I don't see me doing that.                 

Fighting Back to My Groove, and that TBR Challenge

Yeah, I signed up for it again.  It seems I just totally disappeared off the face of Bloglandia last year.  Kinda just lost my touch for writing about anything and everything, and didn't have much to contribute.  But I did sign up for Wendy's TBR Challenge '13 again, and I'm going to do my best.

This month was an easy one -- short story, quickie, series, what-have-you.  It was so convenient that I was weeding my TBR last week and came across Bridget by Linda Lael Miller.  AND it just so happened to be the first in the Primrose Creek series, or at least that's what the front cover says.

Westerns aren't always the first era I gravitate to, but I'd almost forgotten what a word magician Miller is and why she was one of the authors that hooked me in the romance genre way back when.  Her husband, Mitch's, death in the Civil War had not only left Bridget McQuarry a widow, but now taxes have caused her to lose their home as well.  Having no choice but to move her son and sister to Primrose Creek and claim the land that was left to them by their grandfather.  It would be a hard battle: alone, in the middle of Indian territory, and with no solid roof over their head, but Bridget was determined to rebuild their future and make the land in Primrose Creek thrive.

Enter Trace Qualtrough, Bridget's childhood friend and the man she blames for her husband's death in the War.  He'd grown up with Mitch and Bridget and he'd promised Mitch he'd watch over Bridget and her son.  But she's not willing to capitulate and in less than agreeable to Trace's presence, although it's quite obvious that a man's strength and hard work is needed. But she can't ignore the softening of her heart as she watches Trace day in and day out, putting a roof on their small cabin, mentoring and teaching her son, and just stepping in where a man needed to.  Oh, it would be so easy to fall in love with him, but that'll never happen.

There's no tearing apart and critiquing a short story, or at least it's damned hard for me to do.  And, c'mon, it's Linda Lael Miller, an author I've respected for years.  What else is there to say that I loved this little quickie and am glad I came across it.  It kinda whet my appetite for some more westerns, and since I'm already in the midst of a reading binge -- we'll see what happens.  I still have Wendy's beloved Rock Creek Six to read.  Apparently I knew what I was doing when I bought it way back in 2000, but now I need to go TBR diving and see if I have the rest of the Primrose Creek series.  I think there's four.   

TBR Challenge Review, or One Day Amy Will Get It Right

Whoa.  Two months since I last participated in Le TBR Challenge?  Geez, time does fly when one is having fun, or sweltering in this godforsaken South Carolina heat.  Mother Nature missed the cue cards that it's not even summer yet and decided to dial it up -- spontaneous combustion weather.  Great for the tan, which I actually have this year from all the hours I sit out on the patio to read.  Huh, you think I'd actually go inside and frollic in the air conditioning, eh?  But where's the fun in that?

If I remember right, June was supposed to be the month of the western.  And did I actually read one of those?  Noooo.  Rules, I have to break them.  Of course, Wendy is very lenient in the guidelines and we can read whatever our lil' pea-pickin' hearts want to.  This month, The Mephisto Club by Tess Gerritsen was my vino of choice.  It's been a while since I read a book by this author, one of my faves, but I thought it fitting with the return of the television series, Rizzoli & Isles on TNT, starring Angie Harmon and Sasha Alexander.

Detective Jane Rizzoli and medical examiner Maura Isles latest case is a nightmare come true.  The dismembered body of a young woman is found in her apartment, and if that weren't hair-raising enough, the message on the wall, in blood, is enough to cause many sleepless nights: I Have Sinned.  The artwork along with it does not bode well either, three upside down crosses.  The case gets worse when the only lead is a hang-up call made to Joyce O'Donnell, a psychiatrist whose work makes Jane spit and her ire climb.  Joyce's life calling is working with serial killers and other losers to find out what makes them tick.  Yeah, let's just say that Jane does not care of Joyce at all.  It's surely not dumb luck that on the night of that murder, a quack who loves to talk to killers would get a hang up on her answering machine.  She goes right to Rizzoli's top ten list of persons of interest. 

It doesn't take long to find out that Joyce is a member of The Mephisto Club, a group of people who want to find out more about evil -- in an intellectual way.  They've know a lot about the symbology of various signs in religion and cultures across the world and see this murder for what it is -- evil, in all its glory.  But their beliefs go one step further than calling the Club a hobby, they truly believe there is evil in the world, not just people doing vicious things.  Jane rolls her eyes a lot during the various interviews with the club members, but she can't ignore the fact that they're an excellent resource in possibly finding out what goes on in this killer's head.
But as more bodies pile up, including one right in the backyard of the Club's leader, Jane must keep her opinions to herself and incorporate the Mephisto Club's research into her own investigation.  It's apparent that this killer is just getting started, and only he knows when and where he'll stop.  If ever...

Jane may love her work, but she'd give her left arm for a garden variety armed robbery or an open-and-shut gangbanger case.  It's a little daunting seeing what people can do to others and know that this is the world she's bringing her daughter up in.  What I loved about The Mephisto Club was that it wasn't all Jane, all the time.  We get to see more behind the scenes, if you will, with Maura, and realize that she isn't made of steel, despite what the cops she works with may think.  She is human, after all.

Now there's a lot of books in the Rizzoli and Isles series, and there was a day when I was anal retentive enough to have to read them in order.  If you've seen my TBR, you'd know that is impossible and quite harmful to my health to go spelunking for these books to be read as they should.  That said, The Mephisto Club stands well on its own, and I was able to get caught up in time.  It also helps that I read its predecessor, Vanish, sometime in the past 11 months.

I seriously could gush about this book, but why?  It's a given that I'll probably love everything Gerritsen writes, and the heat has zapped my brain enough that I'm useless in offering a more detailed and witty critique.  Let's just say -- another winner.

Teacher, I Have An Excuse

So, here I am, actually posting ON the date due for this month's TBR Challenge and I DON'T HAVE ANY REVIEW TO POST!  Argh!

Reading this month has been spotty at best, in fact I think I'm clocking in at about 3 books so far for May.  But this week I have a great excuse -- blame it on my sister!  She and her fiancé were here for an extended weekend, so I think I maybe read 3 pages of a review book.  But!  I did shop!  Can you say flatscreen tv, baby??

Anyway, couldn't resist embarrassing the hell out of her and posting a pic of my pregnant sister and her man while we were at the beach.  Great shot of them, if I do say so myself -- with my new Android phone!!  Amy got all techno up in here this spring...

Tsk, Tsk! And a TBR Challenge Review

So, looking back over my posts of the past few months, they've been spotty in regularity -- at best.  I have reasons for that, obviously the biggest one being the biggest soul-sucking, devastating change in my life last summer.  The other being that while I've gotten back up on my reading high horse in a way that I haven't in many years, I've been remiss in tearing myself away from my books (and life and my job, unfortunately, that nasty beast) to get my arse to the computer and actually write about what I've been reading.  It looks like people still check in on me, which I thank them for, but I haven't been using this blog like I initially intended to -- accountability for my reading which will hopefully prompt me to astonish and amaze people with the volume of books I've been tearing through.  Ha!  I am happy to report though, that by the end of March 2012 I totaled 22 reads for the year.  Probably the most I've completed in at least 5 years in such a short time.  Hell, in March alone, I read 10 books, which is an amazing record for me.

That being said -- I mentioned in last month's challenge post that my problem has not been in completing the "assignments" for Wendy's TBR Challenge '12, it's been in posting reviews.  Yeah, I suck.  But at least credit me for getting the posts up at some point, albeit not on the right day.  Rules rules rules, yeah I feel the need to bend them to my whim sometimes.

April's challenge read, for me, was Pamela Callow's Indefensible, a January '11 Mira release, and apparently the second book in the author's ongoing Kate Lange Thriller series.  Lately it seems that reading books in a series in order hasn't been a problem, unless it's the JD Robb series which I swear with my hand on the Bible is best read that way.  Don't ask me where I stopped in that series, though, because it's embarrassing -- and I call myself a nearly devout fan of La Nora.

Indefensible begins with Kate Lange contemplating the long holiday weekend that's about to begin in which she'll get little to no relaxation time with all the work she's bringing home from her job as a laboring teeny tiny lawyer in a big firm of sharks.  She's still recovering, physically and emotionally, from a harrowing run-in with a serial killer on her last case (Damaged, Mira June '10).  Her weekend is wrecked even further by two unforeseeable events -- the tragic death of a vacationer in her neighborhood, and when Kate's boss, Randall Barrett, seeks her help in his own defense.  Seems that that poor woman who died by falling off the balcony of her rental home was his ex-wife, and no one makes a better suspect than the spouse himself, even if he is an ex.

That, in a nutshell, is Indefensible, and rather succinctly put, if I do say so myself.  It seems Kate and Randall have a bit of history, and it's drawn rather well with their hemming and hawing around each other before the weekend is about to start.  Kate had rather thought that their relationship might be a tenuous beginning to something more than boss and employee, but that is shut right down with Barrett's abrupt attitude and dismissive tone as he's about to leave for his extended vacation.  Of course, the vacation is cut short with his ex's death, Elise Vanderzill, and now Randall has to reverse roles and forces him in the role of murder suspect and client to Kate after he requests she take his case.  Kate is nowhere near the realm of criminal defense in her line of work, instead preferring tax law, but she can't see denying Randall's plea for help.

Maybe I missed out by not reading the first book, Damaged, but I never did quite connect with Randall and Kate.  Indefensible is a decent read all in all, but one that allowed me to pass the time instead of tearing through all the way to the end because I just had to find out how it all works out.  Or maybe I'm spoiled by the James Patterson bender I seem to be on and want to compare everything to that mastermind....*shrug*.  That said, the book was enough for me to go out and find Damaged and start over in time for Tattooed, the 3rd book in the series which comes out in June.

The big conflict in Indefensible is not the relationship between Randall and Kate, or even between her and the investigating detective, her ex-fiancé, Ethan Drake.  Instead it's the convoluted one between Randall and his own teenaged son, Nick.  Nick is hellbent on pushing his father away and punishing him.  Their relationship is rocky, to say the least, after Nick had stolen money from his dad and this vacation was to be spent crewing a yacht, where Nick could earn it -- and his dad's trust -- back to repay him.  But Nick doesn't want any part of it, and the death knell to Randall's freedom may be Nick's belief that he'd seen his father throw his mother over the railing that night.  Is the teenager keen on making his dad pay in the worst way, or is there something more at work here?  For me, that was the more suspenseful angle in Indefensible and what kept me coming back.

 

TBR Review: Sudden Death

FINALLY, my TBR Challenge Review!  See, this is my rationale -- I've been TBR'ing all year, so my challenge is in getting the reviews out when they're actually due on the third Wednesday of the month.  Blame it, this time, on the fact that I finally got a Smartphone almost two weeks ago, and I've been fascinated with it.  Love love love my AT&T 4G Vivid! 

Hmph. 

I've been a fan of Allison Brennan for a while now.  Have I read all of her books?  Uh, nope -- but I'm getting there.  In March I closed my eyes, pointed at and picked up Sudden Death, listed as the first book in her FBI Trilogy on Brennan's website.  Whew, maybe it's not 'catching up on a series', but it's catching up on some Allison Brennan reading.  I kinda stayed within the loose guidelines that Wendy set this year!  Sometimes I'm a rules girl, sometimes I make them up as I go.

FBI agent Megan Elliott's latest case takes a turn for the worse when the most recent murder victim she's investigating seems to be part of a killer's serial spree.  Doing some quick fact-checking and after a few calls to her connections in the military and government, Megan realizes that her victim, a former Delta Force soldier, may have known other victims that have wound up dead by similar means -- torture and, ultimately, a bullet to the head as the pièce de résistance.

Jack Kincaid, a soldier-for-hire who conducts rescue missions across the world, returns to Texas for a bit of rest and camaraderie with his team of friends before the next job.  That R&R turns into a nightmare when Scout, a team member and one of Jack's closest friends, is found murdered in his own home.  When the Chief of Police, Art Perez, starts making accusation noises towards Jack, he takes matters into his own hands and begins investigating his friend's murder on his own.  There was never any love lost between Art and Jack, but it seems that Art's got a hard-on for Jack and plans on making his life hell.

Jack and Megan meet when she's called in to investigate the Hamstring Killer's latest victim, Scout.  Megan is proud of her accomplishments and is good at her job.  The fact is she's always been a rules kinda girl, so it goes against her grain when Jack proves that he lives life by the seat of his pants and anyone who protests can go to hell.  Despite Jack's sorrow for his friend and anger at the incompetent police chief, sparks ignite when he first meets Megan.  Even if she, a girl, just rescued his ass from a pummeling after he's thrown in jail by his best enemy, Perez, Megan looks good as a knight in shining armor.  Now they must back burner their growing attraction long enough to hunt down a madman who's not done with his laundry list of murder.

I was on a historical fiction and romance kick for a while before I picked up Sudden Death, so when I started reading, it was like ice water in the face with the violence and immediate level of suspense.  Allison Brennan's good that way -- right out of the gate, the pace is fast and furious and doesn't let up until you've had the hell scared out of you so much that you sleep with the lights on.  Or wet your pants.  She also creates tension in two ways -- sexual and action -- with her characters and plotline and balances them so well.  So even as Megan and Jack are racing against the clock to stop a psycho, it seems almost natural that they trip into bed and scratch an itch they can't ignore.  But that's only after Jack sees the woman Megan is through her big bad FBI persona.  Even though Megan is comfortable as a special agent, she is vulnerable after her judgment is questioned by her mentor, Hans Vigo.  Jack is made of iron at first, but his soft spot shows when his friend is found murdered.  Of course there's a lot of back story to Kincaid and his family, as well as Megan's, so many make appearances and are key to Sudden Death.  Many readers will recognize the name Kincaid with the author's latest series, the Lucy Kincaid series.  Yep, she's Jack's baby sister. 

In my opinion, any book by Allison Brennan is highly recommended if you're not a squeamish sort of reader.  She's one of the few authors who can do romantic suspense and keep the romance aspect realistic while not making the characters seem idiotic for falling in love while they run for their lives, or making it feel like the sex is thrown in there just to keep the 'romantic' part of romantic suspense.

I'd give Sudden Death a solid A rating, hands down.           

A (Lengthy) Look At January and February

It occurred to me that, while I've been doing a ton of reading, I've not been talking much about it.  In fact, in the past two months I think I've read more than I have in many years.  Trust me, it's so much easier to read about fictional characters and their troubles, romances, happiness, or sordid details in life than it is for me to focus on the changes in my life the past seven months.  My counselor says it's more a way of ignoring what I'm going through than anything, but I disagree.  It's been a sort of therapy for me, and it's free since I have a veritable bookstore to choose from in my own house.

While I haven't been truly keeping track of my reads, I have a loose list of the books I've finished.  In February, it seems that I picked up many books by tried and true favorites of mine from past years: Linda Howard and Lisa Gardiner are two that come to mind.

 

v     The Eleventh Victim by Nancy Grace, 2009, Hyperion.  If I’m thinking right, this was the first fictional legal thriller by the popular CNN news personality, and it’s the first in a series, which features lawyer-turned-psychologist Hailey Dean.  In it, Hailey, a burned-out criminal prosecutor flees her high profile career in Atlanta for Manhattan where she opens her own counseling practice to help victims in another way, other than criminals in court.  Unfortunately, her last case as a prosecutor landed her an enemy who is not just intent on repaying her for the justice she won in court, but he won’t stop until she’s dead.  Half-decent thriller, a bit dry here and there, but worth the read if you’re a fan of Nancy Grace.  I’m glad I have the second book, Death On the D-List, because I think this is a promising series if you’re into the whole Law & Order thing.  Fortunately, I am, even if I desperately miss Chris Meloni on L&O: SVU.

v     Mesmerizing Stranger by Jennifer Greene, 2010, Silhouette Romantic Suspense.  No need to wax prosaic since you can read my thoughts on this book right here.

v     The Diamond Slipper by Jane Feather, 1997, Bantam.  I used to adore anything by Jane Feather, and now I remember why.  To borrow one of Wendy’s descriptions of one of her fave authors, Feather writes saga-like romances that are many readers’ favorite lists.  First in the Charm Bracelet trilogy, The Diamond Slipper features Cordelia Brandenburg, a childhood friend of Marie Antoinette, as she adjusts to her arranged marriage with a lesser prince in order to accompany her dear friend to France for her own wedding to the French dauphin.  Unfortunately, the fiesty Cordelia falls for her proxy husband, Viscount Leo Kierston, before even meeting her own husband.  A meaty book with all the bells and whistles that first got me jonesing for romance fiction way back in the day, I read it fairly quickly despite the tiny print and 389 pages.

v     Ready by Lucy Monroe, 2005, Kensington.  Another first-in-a-series by the popular Monroe, this was a first for me as well since I’d never read any of the author’s books.  Author Lise Barton is being stalked and doesn’t know who to trust.  Fortunately, Joshua Watt is available for self-appointed protection and detection detail.  It’s too bad that he wants to get Lise in the sack and work his attraction for her out in a mutually satisfying manner.  Lise’s too gun-shy to indulge, and scared for her life, but reluctantly agrees to Joshua’s methods of nailing the guy who is making her life hell.  Pretty straight forward, nice and steamy, a solid intro to a series that—get this—I have the rest of on my TBR.

v     Killing Time by Linda Howard, 2005, Ballantine.  This book, this book, made me go, WTF?  Very X-Files-ish, but all-in-all, I read it in a day, despite my reaction to throwing time travel into the mix.  I mean, Linda Howard writes some of the best suspense in my opinion (even though I haven’t lurved all of her books), but...time travel???  What the what??  Review coming soon because, seriously, I have to get this out of my system.  Not that the book sucked (it was actually pretty good), but why’d she go and do that??

v     Kiss Me While I Sleep by Linda Howard, 2004, Ballantine.  This is the type of book I’m used to from my girl, Linda.  And I loved it.  Enough said, again—I’ll have to review it soon.

v     Gone by Lisa Gardner, 2006, Bantam.  It must’ve been my month for suspense, and I’m so glad it was.  Because once I finished this one up, I had Gardner’s newest, Catch Me, waiting on me at the library.  Pierce Quincy has to put his knack for criminal profiling when his wife, Rainie Conner, goes missing.  It doesn’t help that Rainie and he had just recently separated, which initially puts him in the hot seat as a possible person of interest in her disappearance.  It’s soon evident that Rainie didn’t go willingly and Quincy must try to best someone with their own agenda.  I used to books in a series in order, but lately it’s become too much for me to go and try to find them in my TBR, so I am satisfied with reading out of order.  Gone is another stellar Gardner book with Kimberly Quincy and her lover, Mac, coming in for the assist on this case, and it reads splendidly on its own.

v   Which leads me to, Catch Me by the same, 2012, Dutton.  This is another series by Gardner that I love, D.D. Warren.  D.D.’s now a new mom, and recently back on the job after her maternity leave.  She loves what she does, but anticipates going home every night to see the new love in her life, baby Jack.  The case she catches her first day back will probably call for lots of nights with little to no sleep, though.  Charlene Rosalind Carter Grant snags D.D.’s attention at a crime scene and calmly states that she will more than likely die on January 21^st, about a week away.  How is D.D. supposed to investigate a case that has no body yet?  After a little bit of research, she sees that Charlie’s dilemma could be substantiated by the fact that her two best friends had died on that same exact date in the past two years.  Could Charlie be the lucky third one?  Excellent book that I read in one day, people, it’s that good.  I also loved that Ms. Gardner brought back several characters from many of her books, including J.T. Dillon from The Perfect Husband, which was the first book I ever read by this author. 

v     A Lady Awakened by Cecilia Grant, 2012, Bantam.  This was a debut, and I’ve been promising myself that I’d start tackling (among many others) some of the newer books.  To date, I’ve actually read three March 2012 books (as well as one or two others)!  Go, me!  Anyway,  A Lady Awakened began of a bit..hmm, I don’t know, darker in tone?  But it’s more than that, what with widow, Martha Russell, realizing that, upon her husband’s death, she may very well lose her home to her brother-in-law if she’s not pregnant with an heir.  Martha’s not only desperate to keep the house but to also continue with her plans to begin a school for the property’s laborers’ children.  She comes up with a harebrained idea to take on her neighbor, Theophilus Mirkwood, as a lover in the hopes that he can give her a baby boy.  Theo would be crazy to say no to an arrangement and he plans on enjoying Martha as long as she’s willing.  However, this is not an affair to Martha, but a serious endeavor and one she will not allow herself to take any pleasure from.  I wasn’t prepared to love this book, but I wound up doing so.  Some say that you can’t change a person in a relationship, but both Martha and Theo bettered themselves each and touched a place in my heart. 

v     To Seduce A Sinner by Elizabeth Hoyt, 2008, Grand Central Publishing.  Second book in The Legend of the Four Soldiers series, To Seduce A Sinner was even better than its predecessor, To Taste Temptation.  Melisande Fleming essentially proposed to Jasper Renshaw, Viscount Vale, when he’s jilted on his wedding day.  And so they’re wed.  While Melisande had nearly worshiped her husband for many years already, it’s a deeper love she feels as she gets to know him.  But he’s hiding something, while at the same time she guards her heart from him to avoid being emotionally hurt.  Another winner from an author who, in the two books I’ve read by her, has rocketed to my fave authors list.

v     Down the Darkest Road by Tami Hoag, 2011, Dutton.  I LOVE this series that is set in California during the 80’s and features Sheriff’s detective Tony Mendez, FBI profiler Vince Leone and his wife, Anne.  It’s a loosely tied series, with the first two books, Secrets to the Grave and Deeper Than the Dead, being more closely related than the third.  In DTDR, Lauren Lawton is still trying to cope with her 16-year-old daughter’s disappearance in Santa Barbara, and she’s not doing a very good job of it.  The cops had gone cold, with one suspect they could never prove, but Lauren still does what she can, desperately, to keep them searching for her daughter, even badgering the detectives and press.  Now she’s moved to Oak Knoll with her younger daughter for a fresh start.  But that ends when she encounters the man the Santa Barbara police had fingered as the main suspect in the Lawton girl’s disappearance.  Step in Tony Mendez.  As a detective in Oak Knoll, he’s seen some pretty gruesome cases, and while Lauren comes across as desperate, he can’t help his concern when she says that the man who took her daughter is in his town.  Fabulous fabulous series!  Enough said.

v     Wedded In Scandal by Jade Lee, 2012, Berkley Sensation.  This is my reintroduction as a reviewer for Romance Reviews Today, so a review will be forthcoming there this month.  I will say this—definitely a great start to a new series!

           

     

  

The Perfect Liar: TBR Challenge/February

Yeah, yeah, I'm late posting my TBR Challenge review again.  I have only my procrastination and ridiculously busy work thing to blame; that's my story and I'm sticking to it.  However, I did have the thing read well before the third Wednesday of the month -- does that count?

I mentioned over on Wendy's blog that the book I chose was one that would be more apt for next month's challenge, 'Catch Up On a Series', but I'm sure Brenda Novak's The Perfect Liar was recommended to me by someone, somewhere, along the way, so...thhhp!  Next month, I'll do the reverse and read a recommended book, possibly Broken Wing by Judith James (a book cherished by KristieJ), or jump on the bandwagon and read a Laura Lee Guhrke classic (what the what was up with that in February?  Like, everyone read Conor's Way!).

The Perfect Liar is the fifth book in the author's Last Stand series, and now that I've completed this one, I have one book left (The Perfect Murder) to finish up the six-book series!  In all honesty, it's been so long since I read the first three that details have fled my brain, but the books all center The Last Stand, a victims' advocate charity run by three friends.  The Perfect Liar features Ava Bixby, a victim's advocate for TLS, and starts off with her taking on victim, Kalyna Harter, after she's been assaulted by her commanding officer, Luke Trussell.  Luke answers his door late one night to two officers and a formal accusation of rape.  Luke might not have been using the right brain the night he slept with Kalyna, and it's something he's not proud of nor wants to relive in the limelight of formal police or military procedure.  'Thinking' and 'alcohol' are two words that do not jive in a sentence, let alone in the way of common sense.  Luke's always felt that Kalyna had more than a passing crush on him, but he could never put his finger on just what made him uneasy about her.  Now he's finding out just how far she'll go to get what she wants.

Cue Ava and her role as Kalyna's advocate as they begin to navigate the emotional devastation of rape in the first degree.  During their first meeting, Ava agrees to take Kalyna's case with the understanding that she'll assist as much as possible given that the Air Force is handling this in their own way, not making it a civilian police case.  Ava would love to take ever single case that walked into her office, and she's having a hard time remaining unbiased as Kalyna relives the night she was raped.  But in all honesty, this one is going to be a bear just for the single fact that she'd be advocating for one of the Air Force's own, and they'll do anything to keep a lid on this.  Things get even dicier once Ava starts investigating Kalyna and Luke and finds that all is not what it seems on the surface.

As a thriller, The Perfect Liar does just that.  I love sick, twisted baddies in my thrillers and romantic suspenses, and Brenda Novak concocted a doozey in this one.  It becomes obvious just how innocent Luke is in all of this pretty early on in the book, and from there a vivid picture of stalking and obsession is painted of just how much Kalyna wants him.  Disturbing, but page-turning.  I thought Ms. Novak had dreamed up sick-o's in The Perfect Couple, but she's a talent for writing deviant characters.  I would've been satisfied without the romance between Luke and Ava which, of course, builds during a time when one wouldn't be out searching for their One True Love.  But of course, that's the definition of romantic suspense (or even Lifetime suspense movies, for that matter), scare the snot out of the reader, and then make 'em feel better with a love story.  *shrug*

Will I chalk TPL up with with my favorite book of all times?  Eh, not so much.  I liked it enough to read it in two days, but it was honestly the suspense that drove this book.  It makes me think that Brenda Novak could easily turn to straight mystery thrillers and not skip a beat.  I could see her pulling a Tami Hoag or Linda Castillo, who both easily stepped from contemporary and category romance to straight suspense and are, in my opinion, better than ever, which is saying a lot since I've loved many of their earlier books.

So, if I were to be asked what stood out for me in this book besides the baddie, it would have to be Ava.  Her life hasn't been the easiest, given that her mother is in jail for attempted murder, but she's gone the distance to get where she is now and loves what she does.  I identified with Ava not for her less-than-picture-perfect family, but for her own self opinion.  Once her attraction for Luke begins to grow, it's her knee jerk reaction to immediately think that he'd never see anything more in her than a way out of his current situation, which, admittedly, sucks right now.  In other words, he's hot, and she's not - or so she thinks.

With Luke, well....he's hot.  And he's honestly a great guy who's lurved by everybodddyy.  He's the knight in shining armor, flies fighter jets, pays his bills on time, has a great relationship with his parents, and acts on most decisions after only heavily weighing the consequences (jury's still out on why he ended up in Kalyna's bed, but then we wouldn't have had a story).  And he's younger than Ava.  For me, that sums him up.  I recognized him as a character, the hero at that, but couldn't get too emotionally invested in him.  Ava rang more true to me, and of course we all now know how I felt about Kalyna.

I'd have to rate this book in two ways -- C+/B- for the romance, but a strong A for the thriller/baddie angle.                 

      

Mesmerizing Stranger: Better Late Than Never TBR Review

I got a little off-track with finishing up January's TBR Challenge book and meant to have this up on Friday, two days late.  Instead, it's Sunday, a lazy one at that, and I'm just now getting around to it.  If I wasn't a champion at procrastination, I don't know what I'd be. 

Mesmerizing Stranger, Jennifer Greene
New Man in Town series, book 2

Harm Connolly wants to leave his bad history with women on terra firma.  Two weeks of business on a cruise would help accomplish that.  First complication: the sexiest woman he's ever met is on board the vessel.  Second complicaiton: a dead body -- one of his associates.

Adventure chef Cate Campbell knows his type -- arrogant corporate hotshot, taking his guys out for some R & R.  No problem.  She'll have Harm eating out of her hand in seconds flat.  No problem ...until a killer on the loose forces her to find safety and comfort in his arms.  Will mayhem at sea throw any chance of romance overboard?

I'm not quite sure how I wound up picking this book, or even adding it to my TBR.  I'm not usually a follower of the formerly titled Silhouette Romantic Suspense (couched now as Harlequin RS) line, but I'm sure the back blurb's description of the heroine (adventure chef) had something to do with it.  I love anything to do with cooking, am a devout subscriber to Food Network and its magazine, and think Tyler Florence is a hottie, so there you go.

I don't have any huge plot dislikes when it comes to my reading, although I typically stay away from secret baby books.  Not sure why, I've never read any that I hated, but I've also not read any that I lurved.  I'm taking a quickie route with this review and, since I've included the back blurb that apparently piqued my interest, I won't even try a plot summary.  The back cover describes the plot succinctly, but I try and provide some filler.   

Mesmerizing Stranger is a neatly written romance, tied up with a pretty little bow.  Almost too neatly.  Maybe it was the length of the book, but I sometimes have a hard time buying into a HEA within just over 200 pages.  Sometimes it just never seems enough time for the hero and heroine to work out all the kinks in a new relationship.  I'm not sure that's the fault of the author, since I did like Harm and Cate - I just think it's one of my many quirks; I like to see fictional folks experience a little more angst and emotional uncertainty.  Harm was almost too froggy to fall head over heels in love with Cate, and she's a bit gun-shy.  Given that she and her sisters (the other two heroines with their own stories in the series, Secretive Stranger and Irresistible Stranger) had grown up in foster homes after their parent died in a fire, I can see why Cate carried her own Samsonite baggage.

The suspense in Mesmerizing Stranger is a bit lukewarm, but enough to have carried me through the end of the book.  There's a very small cast of secondary characters who could all fit the bill for the bad guy, mainly all employees in Harm's newly-inherited pharmaceutical/research company.  The cruise described above is not a pleasure cruise, per se, but a desperate attempt for Harm to reconnect with his employees.  Maybe they can put their heads together and figure out who has stolen and cashed in on the cure for pancreatic cancer Harm's uncle had been so close to before he'd died.  And on a ship, there's not many places the guilty party can hide.

As a whole, if I were going to rate the book, I'd say it's somewhere within B- territory.  What really kept me turning the pages was the sense of dark coziness on an Alaskan small vessel cruise and Cate's love for her work (I'm a culinary suck-up!).  Those both stood out for me almost more than the story and romance.  It's enough for me to look up the other two books in the series which I think in itself is an accomplishment for many authors.  If one book whet your appetite for others written by her, then that's success in and of itself.        

    

 

2011/2012, The Final Countdown

The holidays are finally over -- hallelujah!  A new year has begun -- hell to the yeah!

What would usually be my most favorite time of the year wound up being....well, rough.  Oh, I spent some much needed, and very cherished, time with John's family and my newly-realized chosen family of close friends here in SC, but what I thought would be an easier holiday to go through alone, given that John nearly abhorred Christmas, was an emotional wreck for me.  Everything made me cry.  His birthday, December 19th, was the absolute worst day for me in a while.  I began the day shopping for an adopted family we'd chosen at work who desperately needed help with Christmas gifts, and that part was good; I felt like I was doing something good.  From there it went down hill with the amount of time I spent crying, the torrential headache that resulted from aforementioned crying, and the realization that while I see almost daily that he's still watching over me and remains in my life in a very strong way, John's not coming back.

Amy, meet the big pill you need to swallow.  Big pill, Amy.

So when I went into work this past weekend, it was with baited breath and a mental countdown of the final hours of the Worst Year That Has Ever Happened To Me, when a new leaf could be turned.  I didn't even pack my lunch to take to work.  I had enough baggage already.  And when 12:01 a.m. struck, I saluted 2011 very properly (given that I couldn't take a swig of some hard liquor):  I flipped it off and finally got to tell '11 to kiss my ass.  If I'd been savvy enough, I would've taken my very worn cassette tape of Europe's '80s epic hit, The Final Countdown, in with me and blasted it from whatever player I could find in the hospital.  I'm sure there is a more apropos song that I could've come up with, but trust me, Europe's epic hit (hey, it was epic to me way back when) was racing through my head.  I love mental soundtracks.  

So, yeah, 2011...it's over.  I've always tried to look to each new year on a positive note, but this one was different.  It was like at least 8 pounds being lifted off of my shoulders.  There's still about 92 left sitting there, but progress!  Even while I was waiting for 2012 to arrive, it was glaringly obvious to me that '11 was the final year that I'd known my husband, the last one we spent together even if it was only for half of it.  There's always two sides to every coin, and this one I'm going to have to continue fiddling with.  Everyone's got issues, this is mine.

***************************** 

On a brighter note, I've been reading.  Alot.  I've not thinned out the TBR in great strides, but I've made some dents that I just haven't talked about.  I even read a handful of Christmas-themed historical romances and apologize to the library patron that was in line for delaying her hold on Victoria Alexander's His Mistress By Christmas.  I turned it in a day late and that was after having it over the two-week lending time because I'd gotten ahold of it just two weeks before Christmas, and with the library being closed for the holiday weekend, I had a couple freebie days tacked on due to their closure (I love long, complex sentences too).  Trust me, the library loves me some days.

Now that I've gotten all that off of my chest, I'm going back to the Gator Bowl and some couch-time before I hit Wal-Mart to get my requisite collard greens and black-eyed peas. Even if Ohio State has their collective asses handed to them by the damned Gators,  it's gonna be a good day, Tater.               

 

Micah's A Fashionista!

I've taken to dressing my dog up and channeling her stylish maven.  So far, she's eating it up and, honest-to-God, prissies and preens whenever I put a sweater or outfit on her.  Many people have asked me how John would feel about that, and it's my utter and true belief that he'd hate it.  But I'm sure he's getting a chuckle out of it from wherever he's watching over us from.  Or rolling his eyes...

Doing the catwalk...

Ze bling.  She likes...

Was trying to go for a profile here, but she turned her back on me.

  

Life Is Going On

I'm not going to get all morose and glum today.  That's the mantra I keep saying to myself just about every day - or at least some approximate variation of that statement.  These days I'm focusing on forming a shortish list of things I want to do or that I'd like to try.  Tennis lessons is topping that list lately.  I had another session with the therapist yesterday and found out she's a supporter of the sport, as well as a player.  She once again mentioned a name that's big here in town for adult begginner lessons, so that may be my objective this fall.  Oh, I definitely won't be the next Sam Stosur or even Melanie Oudin, but I'd like to do more than get into the televised matches from the safety of my own couch.  Hell, I don't know what I'm thinking -- 39 years old (not ancient, I know - but definitely not at an age where the WTA is going to discover its next star) and having thoughts of tennis lessons.  Gah!  It's like the perfect conglomeration of the Real Housewives Meets....well, Kathy Bates, except without the extra moulah to buy me the latest fashion in tennis gear.

But that's where my thoughts are these days.

I've also spent a bit of time catching up on some flicks I've borrowed from the library.  Just last night I finally watched The King's Speech and was just amazed at the awesomeness of that movie.  I've never been a huge Colin Firth fan, but I could easily become one.  And I've always had love in my heart for Geoffrey Rush and Helena Bonham Carter.  I love studying and reading about the various British monarchies, so I'm surprised it took me this long to see the film.  Definitely a must-see if you're an Anglophile.  I also borrowed Elizabeth I, starring Helen Mirren and Jeremy Irons.  While I could've done without some of the gorier moments (yeah, the Tudors were sort of known for their apparent blood thirst, but it was a sign of the times, I guess), I thought it was a very well-done movie and Mirren plays a very convincing older Elizabeth I.

Let's see, what else can I add to complete the cycle of boredom of the post?  Oh yeah, I'm reading more these days, which has been a very welcome enjoyment these days.  While I'm not exactly plowing through stacks of books, I'm making a decent dent in my TBR and wishlists via the library.  I do love the electronic library, Overdrive, so it's been a big ease on my wallet to get some of the newest hardbacks for my Nook from that service.  Prey by Linda Howard and The Ideal Man by Julie Garwood are two that I just finished recently, and I'll have to put TIM at the top of that two book list as the better one.  I know many Garwood fans are not so endeared with her suspense voice, but I don't mind it so much.  The Ideal Man was probably one of her better ones, imo.  I liked Prey, but wasn't over the moon about it.  It's termed as a romantic suspense I guess, but I felt that there was a lot more of the "I hate you, but I want you" and "We're running for our lives, so let's have sex!" in there than necessary.  Although, I've got to give Howard credit -- she can write a helluva bear-bent-on-carnage scene.

So there's a look into what I'm doing these days, and how I'm doing it.  I've become a pretty popular person, I guess, and have had a mess of visitors, not least of which was my sister and her boyfriend.  We had a great week and it was good to be able to spend an entire 6 days with her, with nothing to do but decide what store we were hitting first.  I'm looking forward to future visits with her since we'd kinda gotten off track with all the upheaval in her life (a divorce).

Hell, I think my vacuum cleaner is calling me.  It drives me crazy if I don't sweep once a week, or more, nowadays.  I know John's 'up there' rolling his eyes...                    

Where Amy Veers A Little Off the Norm...

I've been talking to a counselor for the past two weeks.  There, I said it -- I'm seeking "professional help".  I've always been a believer in 'talking it out' even though, until now, I've never done so myself.  At first when I started this early last week, I was a bit skeptical.  How in the hell would an unbiased person be able to give me the skills to get through this hellishness?  I'm seeing the light, folks.  While I'm no where near "cured" -- I mean, really, it's been only over a month since John's death -- I do feel like I'm doing something positive and not sitting around home, feeling sorry for myself and Micah, getting shitfaced to block out the pain, and overdosing on cookies and whatever comfort food is at hand.  Before setting up these sessions, I talked to a couple of friends who have seen counselors for various reasons, and for the most part they seriously advocate the importance of it.  The reasons I've heard are mainly that it gives you a "safe place" to talk about what's going on with you and to vent to a person who wasn't or isn't directly involved in whatever personal tragedy you're experiencing now.  My hesitation was that I don't generally like talking about myself a whole lot ( 'it's all about me', holla!), and I abhor crying in front of strangers, let alone close friends and family.  To me, crying is a weakness that I have a hard time showing -- so I tend to do it behind closed doors.  Plus, I usually get a massive headache afterwards, my eyes get all swollen, red, and squinty, and my sinuses sound like I'm trying to breath through swamp muck.  So far, I've burned through 1 1/2 boxes of Kleenex in her office and that's in just 2 sessions.

Today's session really had me talking in a vein that I didn't picture.  Sure, these thoughts have been in my head and I've gnashed my teeth about them once or twice...but I never imagined sharing them with the counselor.  First, if one more person asks how I'm doing -- I may wind up on the 6 o'clock news.  Seriously.  C'mon, people (not bloglandia people, but immediate people I deal with at work and at the store, etc)!  My husband, the love of my life, just died.  How the EFF do you think I'm feeling???  Peachy keen?  Fan-effin'-tabulous?  Seriously, it's a dumb question, but one that I know is heartfelt or, for lack of better words, is filler for those people who don't know what else to say.

The other thing that's getting my goat is -- the Bible thumpers.  Now I am a Christian and I do believe and love God.  But right now I'm pretty pissed off at him.  I tend to couch it in a "I'm not speaking to Him right now" kinda comparison.  Down here in the Bible Belt, there's the Blue Law, BBQ, country music, sweet tea, and church on any given day of the week.  So yeah, God is a big thing down here, and people here feel it's their duty to express to me that John had a higher calling and there was some reason why God felt it necessary for him to go on and seek greener pastures, as it were, or that "he's in a much better place now".  Well, I'm sorry -- I'm not good with that.  I am not thrilled that John died at the young age of 46 years old, less than a year after we had gotten married, and we never got to go to England like we'd always dreamt about, or that I won't be able to grow old with him.  All of that was taken from me.  I won't go off any further about this in this post because I've been thinking about it this evening, and accept that my friends and co-workers mean well with all of this.  Maybe it makes them feel like they're doing something by wanting to have prayer with me, or expound on God's plan for us all.  But when I tell them that I'm pissed off at Him right now, they act as if I've slapped their child.  How dare I?!

But in talking with another friend/co-worker and my mom tonight -- I found out that I'm actually normal; it's ok to get pissed off.  How scary is that?  As a kid, I used to be petrified of the idea of getting mad at God because, uh yeah, he could get mad right back at me and that might not be so pretty.  And what's weird is that when I read that the anger stage of grief is one of the processes, I felt like it meant that I would be angry with John for up and dying on me.  I never knew that the anger would extend to those who are doing nothing more than wanting to see me get better.  People want to help, and sometimes this is the only way they can.

SO...having said all that.  The point of this post, if I ever had one, was...damn, I'm glad I'm on medication right now.                 

One Is A Lonely Number

This morning I logged onto the computer and clicked on the link for my blog.  I looked at the date of my last post and wish I could say, "wow -- weeee, where has the time gone?", desperately wishing that the reason I haven't posted was because I was having a helluva summer.  But honestly, the past two months have gone by in a dazed blur, an 'awake nightmare', if you will.  The past two months, frankly this entire summer, have been hell...not 'helluva'. 


I lost my husband, John, on July 24th, just shy of three weeks ago.  I don't wish to say anything further about that other than it's obviously been the most painful time in my life thus far.

During John's month-long hospitalization, I went a little crazy with trying to stay positive and strong for him, trying to understand what the doctors were/weren't saying and having a hard time with my gnawing fear of losing him.  Now that that has become a reality, I'm trying to get back into life and learn to get along.  Right now it's not easy being "just Amy", instead of half of the dynamo-team, "Amy and John". 

I've tried dipping my toes back into the reading waters and while it's difficult to concentrate at times, it's something that I can use to while away an hour or two.  The shitty part is that I still use my "retail therapy" tactics to pep myself up by buying a couple of ebooks for my Nook.  During the last couple of weeks while my mom was still here (she stayed with me for a month and a half, almost from the beginning of John's stay at the hospital), I've dabbled in housework, trying to stay busy, chores, and the load of legal crap that's involved with someone's death.  My massive TBR collection has been moved around -- seriously, it took four of us to take 2/3 of it and put in the office -- and now I'm at a loss as to how to sort through and weed it.  But it needs to be done.  Now I don't have to worry about the bedroom floor collapsing downstairs onto my neighbors head from the massive weight.

I started this post feeling a bit, I don't know, lost.  And trust me, the sadness and sense of "what do I do now?" can be crippling more often than not -- but now I have a game plan for at least today.  Go through the damned books.  It's not getting done on its own, and I think John is asserting his ghostly self by toppling a couple of stacks over as I've wandered about the house this morning.            

TBR Challenge: The Reluctant Surrender

I can now say that I've read a Harlequin Presents, but the jury's still out on whether or not this is a line for me to continue with.  When I realized that the deadline for June's TBR Challenge was looming and it featured a contemporary theme, I momentarily panicked.  Then I remembered that I'd finished reading The Reluctant Surrender by Penny Jordan just last week.  It's actually one of the books in the stash that a friend of mine at work gave me while I was on leave over the Christmas holidays, but since it sat on my TBR then I'm counting.  Again....my rules, I'll break 'em as I make 'em.  Heh.

The Reluctant Surrender is tagged as "Part One of the Parenti Dynasty", and it looks to be the first in a two-book series.  The second is Giselle's Choice, and I'm dithering about whether or not to hunt that one down.  Judging by the couple of reviews I've read, it's obviously a continuation of The Reluctant Surrender, but don't read them if you don't like spoilers and haven't read the first book.

Saul Parenti comes across to many as a man who takes what he wants and turns it into gold.  If that's their assessment of him, then so be it since it's true.  He's a successful businessman with a comfortable wealth, a member of the royal family of Arezzio, and has the knack to turn even the shakiest deals into raging successes.  His latest project will involve hiring an architectural company that will help in seeing his vision of a luxurious vacation destination become real.  That's what Saul does: brings fantasy to life, in the form of holidays.  He isn't prepared to work alongside the woman who had stolen his parking spot in the garage earlier that morning.

Giselle Freeman's day does not start off well when she nearly comes to blows with a domineering man who claims she's stolen his prime spot in the car park.  Since she was already late for an important meeting to meet the firm's latest client, the delay only makes her that much later.  And does nothing for her mood, to say the least.  When she finds out that the ass she'd had words with earlier is actually her new boss, things can only get worse from there.  Saul Parenti hires Giselle as his personal assistant during this project and expects her to report directly to him for every little thing.

Giselle's reputation as an ice queen at the office is about to be tested when her protective frost melts under Saul's fiery regard.  The tension between them can be cut with a knife, and before long their relationship goes from professional and lands headfirst in the bedroom.  Giselle figures it's safe to have an affair with Saul without messy emotional entanglements since she vows to never love anyone, and he vows to never have a family.  Yeah, there's baggage galore here, folks.   It'd be the perfect relationship if their attraction didn't turn into something deeper, nearing that L-l-love word.

For all intents and purposes, The Reluctant Surrender was an ok read but maybe I got too entangled in the soap opera-y feel that I think this line can dip into.  Seething CEOs, bold businessmen, and hot Arabian princes populate the Presents book, and I know many people enjoy the heck out of them; I'd love to find one that packs a punch so am open to suggestions.  But I just never could get too emotionally invested in Saul and Giselle.  Whether it's the page count, or the characterization itself, The Reluctant Surrender just ended up being an 'eh' read for me.

So, I'm up for any suggestions from this line from anyone out there.  Whose read a Presents book that just blew their socks off?      

     

For Those Following Along At Home

Lest anyone think that I've forgotten or fallen off of the dedication bandwagon, I do have a tally for how much I've walked in the past 8 days.  Have I lost any weight?  Well, I don't know since I don't weigh myself, but my shorts do feel a bit loser on me and I'm getting comments that it looks like I am.  I guess we'll see what the doctor says in August, eh?

The tally in miles (yes, MILES) since last Tuesday morning is ............

*drum roll*

TEN MILES! 

How awesome is that?  And I'm slated to do four more in the next two nights I work since we finally configured out how long four entire laps of the hospital is:  going one way, is 1/4 of a mile.  So four entire laps = 2 miles.  And we try to walk that every night we work.  

And because I'm crazy and have it in my head that I can do this, I'm doing a 5k this Saturday morning at the gym.  Uh, that would be walking, thankyouverymuch....NOT running.  Ha, I say -- simply ha! -- if anyone thinks I'd run it.

Not too shabby, eh? 

Let's Get Physical!

I mentioned here in a post last month that I'm having blood pressure issues, which is sad to say but true.  So I had a follow-up with my GP a couple weeks ago, where my pressure was taken once again (yikes!), and a general physical was done, complete with my husband by my side.  It has been ordered and sanctioned, and all that sounds so official and ceremonious, that I need to go on a diet (and of course, hubby was a witness).  Now, my doc is a good friend of mine and he and his wife and I have taken up a walking regimen at work, but seriously dude, couldn't you have said it a little bit nicer??  Like say, maybe, "Amy, you're gorgeous and I know that you're already blinding guys with your beauty, but, and I'm only offering this as a piece of advice from a guy who admires you from afar, but all that gorgeousness would only be enhanced by, say, shedding about 5 lbs."  See, I would've been happy with that, but...no.  Blunt, straight to the point, and brutally honest -- I need to lose weight (which is the way *I* say it, not that D word, thankyouverymuch).

So the walking has extended out to the gym where I just found out that three laps around the outside track equals about 1.8 miles (one of my other friends was with me this morning, and corrected my earlier math which I thought was stellar, but landed me about a mile shy of the correct answer).  And since there's some construction at the gym, and they've closed off a portion of the main outdoor track and extended it beyond a ways to the local hiking "Beauty" trail, that distance is actually closer to being over 2 miles for 3 laps. I've been doing that frequently about 3 times a week -- the walking, not the math thank God -- for a few weeks now and I'm proud to say that the shorts I bought earlier last year in a smaller size are actually getting a bit too big on me now.

Why am I spewing this all over my blog?  Well, because I need to be held accountable, and I want to brag; but I also want to devise a system beyond the buddy system that will encourage me to keep it up.  I love my husband with my every breath (heaving and all), but he tells me I'm gorgeous no matter what (smart man).  He also has a high sense of survival and would only tell me he thought I was fat from another state via text message or cell phone, or via carrier pigeon.

So I'm thinking of incorporating a journal of sorts here to track my walking or other form of exercise, so that when I miss a day or skip an entire week (more likely), then y'all can call me out and guilt me into doing better.  It'll also make for some blog filler, which is lacking these days since my reading has taken a beating.  I'm a pragmatic glutton, if nothing else...

Any thoughts?  Any words of encouragement?  Anyone else want to enjoy this tiny bit of self torture with me?       

Here Comes the Sun -- Amy Finished a Book!

I was going to start this post with, "I finally finished a book!" but then I realized that as an opening line it lacked originality since I've started many of my posts in the past with the same or similar.  I guess in order to fix that, I'd need to read faster but since this is the first 'fun' book I've done in a while I'll take what I can get and call it a day.

But still....Psst, I finally finished a book!

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I've been ignoring my TBR lately and instead, when I do read, it's either a library book or a review book.  Already Home, by Susan Mallery, was a lend from the library but one that I was interested in when I read that the heroine is a chef.  She doesn't consider herself a head chef, or even the same caliber as Rachael Ray, but she is classically trained.

In Jenna Stevens case, her career as a sous chef is hopefully just temporarily on the back burner when she returns to her hometown of Georgetown, TX.  Aaron, her ex-husband, had done everything in his power to undermine and belittle Jenna and her culinary creations, calling them garbage in front of customers and then bragging about them as his own later when it was evident that people liked them.  While Aaron had done his best to convince people he was a genius chef and a people person, he'd been cheating on Jenna for God knows how long and basically stabbing her in the back.  Now Jenna's back in Texas to regroup, heal, and rediscover her life and self, and to spend time with her parents.  That rebirth results in Jenna's opening a cooking store, despite the fact that she has no business background or acumen, and only a whim of an idea.

Enter Violet, a woman who wants to make a new start for her own reasons and has everything to prove to no one but herself.  Violet turns out to be the perfect business partner and a whiz with ideas and creativity.  Once the two women decide how to make Grate Creations the best it can be -- with Jenna as the food guru/lesson leader, and Violet as the business whiz with numbers and ideas -- the store becomes more successful than Jenna had dared to hope.  Jenna's then thrown for yet another loop when her birth parents enter the picture and declare their desire to become part of her life, despite the fact that it's been 32 years since they gave her up for adoption.  

Jenna's hesitance to connect with Tom and Serenity, her biological parents, is quite understandable and I've got to say that she had more patience than I would have given the circumstances.  I loved Jenna's adoptive parents, Beth and Marshall Stevens, and understand the adage 'can't we all just get along?', but still....  I tried placing myself in the situation inside my head, and just couldn't.  Suspicion, distrust, and dislike were the only things I could come up with, but then I'm not Jenna.

That said -- I loved this book, and I love the author for putting me through my paces as a reader.  If you can run the gamut of emotions and still keep reading, not wanting to stop until "The End", then, in my opinion, that's the hallmark of a great book and a talented writer.  Already Home has it all -- a stirring story, characters who make you take notice, emotional outcomes, complete with a dollop of romance.

Now let's see if I can continue on in that thread and find another winner off of my TBR...         

My Bookstore Missed Me!

I stepped into a bookstore this evening with my wonderful husband, and for the first time in about two months -- I bought books!  Real, paperback books!  It seems that since I bought Veronica, I've been enamored with searching out all the varieties of ebooks out there -- reading few, but definitely buying more than a fair share.  Whether it's the backlists of a favorite author, smaller publication houses, strictly ebookstores, and even my local library, they have so much to offer these days for the ereaders out there.  I've also noticed that my library tends to get more exciting new releases in e-format faster than they do in actual books, so I'm a devout fan of their site. 

My current read, Susan Mallery's latest book, Almost Home, has done a fair job of stoking the reading fires again.  It's been a long time since I read a book by this author, and I'm quickly reminded what I've been missing -- warm characters, rich emotional moments throughout the book, and the sense of place in a town I'd love to visit, Georgetown, TX.  Plus, its heroine, Jenna, is a professionally trained chef and since I'm a Food Network whore, I'll go for anything -- almost -- that features a foodie, a chef, or just food in general.  I need to wrap this one up soon since I've let it linger in my cache too long and the borrow period on it is almost up.  Good thing it's a great book, eh?