The Silver Lining

No, it's not the name of a book. Although maybe I should write that down somewhere . . .

Last week my lap top got a virus and although I do have a desktop computer, it's been sadly neglected the last couple of years and you really have to want to compute bad to get any satisfaction out of using it.

So I found myself with time on my hands, especially in the evening. And so to fill in the time I, you guessed it, started reading more.

First I finished The Cat Who Came In From the Cold, by Jeffrey Moussaieff Masson. It's listed as a fable, but that doesn't mean it's a mere children's book. It's the story of Billi, an Asian leopard cat, and the internal struggle he goes through as he faces the decision of whether or not to become the first cat to live with humans. Billi travels the countryside in ancient India, talking with other animals who already have been living with humans. This book really makes you stop and think about the way we treat animals, both domestic and otherwise.

Next I read The Mammoth Book of Women's Erotic Fantasies, edited by Sonia Florens. This is a collection of erotic fantasies of real women from all over the world. To be totally honest, after a while I found it to be a bit of a bore. Lots of lesbian fantasies, domination fantasies, and exhibitionist fantasies. After a while they all started sounding the same. I guess that's the problem with fantasies, all fluff and no substance.

After this I needed something with a little more story to it, so I started reading some of the Harlequin's I picked up at the book sale.

First was Navajo Justice by Aimee Thurlo, part of the Sign of the Gray Wolf series in the Harlequin Intrigue line. A hot Navajo operative is given an undercover assignment to protect a romance writer (we should all be so lucky) from a danger she doesn't even realize she's in. I loved the way the characters had to keep reminding themselves that it would be a bad idea for them to get together and I really loved the dog. I think there's more to that dog than meets the eye and I'd like to read more in this series.

Next was from the Temptation line, the Sheriff of Devil's Fork, by Regan Forest. I loved this book. Dana French has a life in Dallas but goes to Devil's Fork to check out the house her Great Aunt Maude left to her when she died. Unfortunately, Maude also left her a hefty tax bill which the sheriff presents her with when she arrives. As if that weren't bad enough, she has six ghosts who are depending on her to keep the house intact, a crooked mayor who wants to tear the house down, and a sizzling attraction to the taciturn sheriff. A really good read!

I'm also about halfway through the Mammoth Book of Paranormal Romance, but that will be a post for another day. ;-)