edited by Jeff Gelb and Michael Garrett
The blurb on the back promises "sizzling, suspenseful tales by today's most sinister writers of erotic horror." I found the book to be suspenseful (in places) and more horror than anything else, but there was very little either sizzling or erotic about it.
That's not to say there was nothing sizzling about it, Mood Elevator was very sizzling, and there were a couple of good revenge stories as well. But by and large even the horror fell short in this anthology.
It really surprised me to discover that this is volume XIII in a series called Hot Blood. I would have expected more out of a series with that title.
Sunday, September 13, 2009
Friday, September 11, 2009
July/August
This should completely catch me up on the books I read over the summer. I have got to start getting better at reviewing as I read. :-)
Speaking of reading . . . I was reading a blogging buddy’s blog (HA! Try saying that five times fast) and she mentioned that her goal was to read 101 books in 2010. My first thought was, “That doesn’t sound like a lot,” but then I realized that that’s about 2 a week, which more than I do sometimes, although I can read five or six in a week and then nothing for a couple of weeks. Anyway, it got me thinking that I should keep track to see how many books I read in a month.
Again, these are in no particular order, mainly ‘cause I can’t remember what order I read them in!
Sword & Sorceress, Volumes IX through XIV
edited by Marion Zimmer Bradley
This is a series of anthologies created by Marion Zimmer Bradley to showcase strong women characters in the fantasy genre. For anyone looking for quality swords and sorcery fantasy, I highly recommend this series. That is not to say all these stories are about swords women or sorceress’ for that matter, but they are all good fantasy with strong female characters.
Captivated
by Nora Roberts
This is book one in the Donovan Legacy, originally published in 1992. It’s the story of Nash Kirkland, a screen play writer, and Morgana Donovan, a witch, and the magic they create between them. Morgana has led a somewhat charmed life, especially when compared to Nash’s upbringing. When she falls hard for Nash her only hope is that he can learn to trust his feelings so they can share a life together. This book is utterly “captivating” with just the right mix of passion and magic.
Forbidden FantasiesEllora’s Cave Presents
This is an anthology of eight steamy stories, ranging from Regency England to another planet, with shapeshifters, vampires and secret labs in between. Did I say steamy? This book is downright sizzling! Just the thing to warm you up on a chilly autumn night.
Fast Women
by Jennifer Cruise
I actually read this during the summer and it ended up in a pile waiting for shelf space in my permanent collection. I really loved the main character in this, Nell Dysart. She’s a down on her luck divorcee whose brother-in-law gets her a temporary job working for a private detective named Gabe McKenna. I don’t want to give away too much of the plot because this book has a bit of everything: adventure, mystery, action, and above all, romance. But the best part is watching Nell come into her own.
Lost Garden
by Helen Humphreys
This is not just another book about World War II. This is a though provoking account of the war as seen through the eyes of a woman trying to do her part for the war effort. Gwen Davis travels to the Devonshire countryside where she is to take charge of a group of girls for the Land Army. Their task is to cultivate potatoes on a large country estate, a task made more difficult by the girls’ initial resentment of Gwen. The story of how this unlikely group learn to work together, and how Gwen brings a secret garden back to life, is told in a compelling and lyrical style.
The Night Tourist
by Katherine Marsh
Jack Perdu is a loner who usually has his nose in a book, which leads him to a near fatal accident when he crosses a road while reading. After his recovery, his father sends him to a doctor in New York for an examination. On his way home from this appointment, Jack is side-tracked by a mysterious girl named Euri, who leads him to the underworld of New York in search of his dead mother. I picked this book up because it reminded me of Neil Gaiman’s Neverworld, but the Night Tourist is a unique blend of myth and mystery, adventure and action.
Lords of Desire
anthology
This is an anthology of four steamy historical romances. As you know, I’m not a huge fan of historicals, but these four stories were all very different, very well written, and did I mention steamy? We have the story of a Victorian miss who’s swept back in time to a more decadent era; a house party where a lord and his lady who have been living apart for ten years are forced to share a room; an new bride who thinks she’s going mad because of the way she feels about her husband; and a man and woman who have been at odds with one another for years and are brought together by a game of hide and seek.
Speaking of reading . . . I was reading a blogging buddy’s blog (HA! Try saying that five times fast) and she mentioned that her goal was to read 101 books in 2010. My first thought was, “That doesn’t sound like a lot,” but then I realized that that’s about 2 a week, which more than I do sometimes, although I can read five or six in a week and then nothing for a couple of weeks. Anyway, it got me thinking that I should keep track to see how many books I read in a month.
Again, these are in no particular order, mainly ‘cause I can’t remember what order I read them in!
Sword & Sorceress, Volumes IX through XIV
edited by Marion Zimmer Bradley
This is a series of anthologies created by Marion Zimmer Bradley to showcase strong women characters in the fantasy genre. For anyone looking for quality swords and sorcery fantasy, I highly recommend this series. That is not to say all these stories are about swords women or sorceress’ for that matter, but they are all good fantasy with strong female characters.
Captivated
by Nora Roberts
This is book one in the Donovan Legacy, originally published in 1992. It’s the story of Nash Kirkland, a screen play writer, and Morgana Donovan, a witch, and the magic they create between them. Morgana has led a somewhat charmed life, especially when compared to Nash’s upbringing. When she falls hard for Nash her only hope is that he can learn to trust his feelings so they can share a life together. This book is utterly “captivating” with just the right mix of passion and magic.
Forbidden FantasiesEllora’s Cave Presents
This is an anthology of eight steamy stories, ranging from Regency England to another planet, with shapeshifters, vampires and secret labs in between. Did I say steamy? This book is downright sizzling! Just the thing to warm you up on a chilly autumn night.
Fast Women
by Jennifer Cruise
I actually read this during the summer and it ended up in a pile waiting for shelf space in my permanent collection. I really loved the main character in this, Nell Dysart. She’s a down on her luck divorcee whose brother-in-law gets her a temporary job working for a private detective named Gabe McKenna. I don’t want to give away too much of the plot because this book has a bit of everything: adventure, mystery, action, and above all, romance. But the best part is watching Nell come into her own.
Lost Garden
by Helen Humphreys
This is not just another book about World War II. This is a though provoking account of the war as seen through the eyes of a woman trying to do her part for the war effort. Gwen Davis travels to the Devonshire countryside where she is to take charge of a group of girls for the Land Army. Their task is to cultivate potatoes on a large country estate, a task made more difficult by the girls’ initial resentment of Gwen. The story of how this unlikely group learn to work together, and how Gwen brings a secret garden back to life, is told in a compelling and lyrical style.
The Night Tourist
by Katherine Marsh
Jack Perdu is a loner who usually has his nose in a book, which leads him to a near fatal accident when he crosses a road while reading. After his recovery, his father sends him to a doctor in New York for an examination. On his way home from this appointment, Jack is side-tracked by a mysterious girl named Euri, who leads him to the underworld of New York in search of his dead mother. I picked this book up because it reminded me of Neil Gaiman’s Neverworld, but the Night Tourist is a unique blend of myth and mystery, adventure and action.
Lords of Desire
anthology
This is an anthology of four steamy historical romances. As you know, I’m not a huge fan of historicals, but these four stories were all very different, very well written, and did I mention steamy? We have the story of a Victorian miss who’s swept back in time to a more decadent era; a house party where a lord and his lady who have been living apart for ten years are forced to share a room; an new bride who thinks she’s going mad because of the way she feels about her husband; and a man and woman who have been at odds with one another for years and are brought together by a game of hide and seek.
Saturday, August 8, 2009
June/July Part Two
Rachel Gibson
No, that’s not the name of the book, that’s the name of the author of a series of books I read. Early in June the daughter gave me one to read, which I posted about HERE and since then has given me a bunch more to read. The three sequels are: I’m In No Mood For Love , Tangled Up In You, and Not Another Bad Date. She also gave me The Trouble With Valentine’s Day and Simply Irresistible.
I have to admit, I really enjoyed the first book, Sex, Lies and On-Line Dating. The second book was pretty good too. The third in the series was okay, but by the fourth one I was skipping through it. The truth is they were starting to sound all the same. My interest perked up again with Simply Irresistible, but the ending didn’t quite do it for me. The change in the protagonist, John was a little too abrupt and it was never really explained what made him change. I think to really appreciate these books you need to read them one at a time, with some other reading in between. I think the real problem was reading too many of them too fast. Even chocolate will make you sick if you eat too much of it. :-)
The Immortal Hunter
by Lynsay Sands
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again. I love the vampires Lynsay Sands has created. If I was ever going to be bitten, these are the guys I’d want to bite me. The Argeneau Vampires have their roots in Atlantis where their technological advancements in nano technology left them with nanites in their bloodstream that continually repair any damage done by disease, the environment, or time. The downside to this is that the nanites use up the blood in their host to make these repairs, the worse the damage, the more blood is needed to fix it. Which is why the Atlanteans need to drink blood to survive.
These are, for the most part, a very civilized bunch of vampires. They have their own laws and, of course, their own way of enforcing them. Because the nanites give them such long lives, they’re only allowed to have a child once every hundred years and can only turn one person in their lifetime. The other thing I like about these books is that although they’re a series, you can read them in any order and not be totally lost. You’ll just get the urge to look for the stories of some of the other characters you meet along the way. :-)
Since the invention of the blood bank it’s been forbidden to them to feed “off the hoof” (bite someone for blood) unless it’s an emergency or there’s extenuating circumstances. Of course not everyone adheres to this law and that’s where Decker Argeneau comes in. He hunts down these rogue vampires and turns them over to the council to be dealt with. Along the way he rescues a young woman who just may be his lifemate, if only he can convince her of it.
Faeries Gone Wild
anthology
This anthology was sweet, funny, sexy, and gripping in turns. Four very different stories of four very unique faeries. We have Scarlett, a six foot four inch faery with a compulsion to count things. We have Avalina, a healing faery that’s visiting the mortal realm to save a species of fern and in the process saves a man from himself. Then there’s Sidney Tooth, librarian by day and Tooth Faery by night who’s in danger of losing both her job and the man she loves. And finally we have Tia Mayberry, a faery/human hybrid who finds the truth about her father is a little more than she was counting on.
If you like faeries, or are even looking for something a little different in the paranormal field, I highly recommend this book.
Bloodline
by Maggie Shayne
Maggie Shayne has created another unique twist on the vampire. In her world people can be born with a belladonna antigen in their blood, which allows them to become vampires. This is the story of one of these people. Her name is Lilith and she was stolen from her mother just after her birth by a government agency called the DPI. She was raised on “the Farm” with other children like her, and trained to serve the government’s purpose, but with the help of a dying vampire manages to escape, but at the cost of her memory. She’s aided by a mysterious man from her past named Ethan, who was also once a captive of the government. Meanwhile, Lilith’s mother has never given up hope of finding her baby girl, and has joined a sisterhood that’s dedicated to helping all vampires.
Back to Life
by Linda O. Johnston
Silhouette Nocturne Line
Skye Rydell is more than just your average K9 division police officer. She’s also descended from a long line of Valkyries who, like her, have the power to ease a person’s transition into death or bring them back from the brink. When she chooses to save the life of fellow officer Trevor Owens, she inadvertently shares her power with him, with unexpected results. They do a good job of resisting their attraction to each other, but when they end up working together to find a serial killer, they finally give in to the inevitable. The way Trevor uses his gift is unexpected, as is the identity of a copy-cat killer the pair come up against. A really great read.
No, that’s not the name of the book, that’s the name of the author of a series of books I read. Early in June the daughter gave me one to read, which I posted about HERE and since then has given me a bunch more to read. The three sequels are: I’m In No Mood For Love , Tangled Up In You, and Not Another Bad Date. She also gave me The Trouble With Valentine’s Day and Simply Irresistible.
I have to admit, I really enjoyed the first book, Sex, Lies and On-Line Dating. The second book was pretty good too. The third in the series was okay, but by the fourth one I was skipping through it. The truth is they were starting to sound all the same. My interest perked up again with Simply Irresistible, but the ending didn’t quite do it for me. The change in the protagonist, John was a little too abrupt and it was never really explained what made him change. I think to really appreciate these books you need to read them one at a time, with some other reading in between. I think the real problem was reading too many of them too fast. Even chocolate will make you sick if you eat too much of it. :-)
The Immortal Hunter
by Lynsay Sands
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again. I love the vampires Lynsay Sands has created. If I was ever going to be bitten, these are the guys I’d want to bite me. The Argeneau Vampires have their roots in Atlantis where their technological advancements in nano technology left them with nanites in their bloodstream that continually repair any damage done by disease, the environment, or time. The downside to this is that the nanites use up the blood in their host to make these repairs, the worse the damage, the more blood is needed to fix it. Which is why the Atlanteans need to drink blood to survive.
These are, for the most part, a very civilized bunch of vampires. They have their own laws and, of course, their own way of enforcing them. Because the nanites give them such long lives, they’re only allowed to have a child once every hundred years and can only turn one person in their lifetime. The other thing I like about these books is that although they’re a series, you can read them in any order and not be totally lost. You’ll just get the urge to look for the stories of some of the other characters you meet along the way. :-)
Since the invention of the blood bank it’s been forbidden to them to feed “off the hoof” (bite someone for blood) unless it’s an emergency or there’s extenuating circumstances. Of course not everyone adheres to this law and that’s where Decker Argeneau comes in. He hunts down these rogue vampires and turns them over to the council to be dealt with. Along the way he rescues a young woman who just may be his lifemate, if only he can convince her of it.
Faeries Gone Wild
anthology
This anthology was sweet, funny, sexy, and gripping in turns. Four very different stories of four very unique faeries. We have Scarlett, a six foot four inch faery with a compulsion to count things. We have Avalina, a healing faery that’s visiting the mortal realm to save a species of fern and in the process saves a man from himself. Then there’s Sidney Tooth, librarian by day and Tooth Faery by night who’s in danger of losing both her job and the man she loves. And finally we have Tia Mayberry, a faery/human hybrid who finds the truth about her father is a little more than she was counting on.
If you like faeries, or are even looking for something a little different in the paranormal field, I highly recommend this book.
Bloodline
by Maggie Shayne
Maggie Shayne has created another unique twist on the vampire. In her world people can be born with a belladonna antigen in their blood, which allows them to become vampires. This is the story of one of these people. Her name is Lilith and she was stolen from her mother just after her birth by a government agency called the DPI. She was raised on “the Farm” with other children like her, and trained to serve the government’s purpose, but with the help of a dying vampire manages to escape, but at the cost of her memory. She’s aided by a mysterious man from her past named Ethan, who was also once a captive of the government. Meanwhile, Lilith’s mother has never given up hope of finding her baby girl, and has joined a sisterhood that’s dedicated to helping all vampires.
Back to Life
by Linda O. Johnston
Silhouette Nocturne Line
Skye Rydell is more than just your average K9 division police officer. She’s also descended from a long line of Valkyries who, like her, have the power to ease a person’s transition into death or bring them back from the brink. When she chooses to save the life of fellow officer Trevor Owens, she inadvertently shares her power with him, with unexpected results. They do a good job of resisting their attraction to each other, but when they end up working together to find a serial killer, they finally give in to the inevitable. The way Trevor uses his gift is unexpected, as is the identity of a copy-cat killer the pair come up against. A really great read.
Tuesday, August 4, 2009
June/July Part One
One measly post in June and then you’d think I didn’t read anything after that. Sadly, such is not the case. I started a book review post at the end of June, blanched at the number of books I had to review, and gave up. Then I read all through July. Now it’s August and the pile of books I’ve read is threatening to topple over onto me . . . and that many books can do some serious damage!
So I’ve decided to take it a few books a time and post in parts. When I get tired of posting, I’ll stop and continue in the next part. Sound fair to you? Meanwhile, I’ve made some half-assed suggestion on my writing blog that I’ll only read after getting so much written. Yeah, we’ll see how well I stick to that suggestion.
These books are in no particular order, just the way they’re stacked up on the desk.
Too Wild by Jamie Sobrato
This book, from the Harlequin Temptation line, was sent to me by my friend Jamie (anyone who sends me books and tea is a friend indeed! :-) ) I have a soft spot for books with writer protagonists, they never disappoint. This one features Jenna Calvert who’s a journalist looking for a place to hide while she re-creates her story about the beauty pageant circuit. Someone’s trying to kill her when she meets Travis Roth, who makes her an offer she finds hard to refuse, especially after someone trashes her apartment and steals her laptop. She makes him a counter-offer that he’d be a fool to pass up, and Travis may be uptight, but he’s no fool. These two show why opposites attract in the very best way. This book is sexy and funny and fast-paced - the scene where they’re caught in the coat closet by Travis’ father is priceless!
Midnight Cravings
This is a collection of Nocturne Bites. For those of you unfamiliar with Nocturne, it’s a paranormal line from Silhouette. At one time Silhouette had a line called Silhouette Shadows which was one of the first lines to foray into the paranormal realms of romance. Then Harlequin bought them out and shut down the line. A couple of years later they tried to revamp it under the name of Harlequin Dreamscapes, but this line was a dismal failure.
The Nocturne series has been around since 2006 and according to the blurb about it from Silhouette: The promise we are fulfilling to the reader with each Nocturne story is that the book they are reading will be a sensual, dark, atmospheric paranormal story with a strong hero and compelling, sympathetic heroine.
The Nocturne Bites are basically short Nocturne stories, and by short I mean not novel length. You can actually go to the Nocturne Bites Website and download them individually as e-files, but I prefer holding the book in my hand.
Midnight Cravings runs a gamut of paranormal including shapeshifters and vampires, hellhounds and soul-suckers, cops and healers. Six dark and sensuous tales of paranormal passion. Have a bite.
The Queen in Winter
I bought this anthology as one of my “four” in 4 for $10, not really expecting much out of it. Boy do I love it when I’m wrong. This is an anthology of four tales of adventure, filled with both enchantment and love.
There’s a story of the elfin princess held by a dark sorcerer, and the human prince who saves her. Both are without hope, for different reasons, but find A Whisper of Spring in the end. Then we have a story of two sisters and the mystic baby they’re trying to protect, and of the nobleman who drops in out of their lives in When Winter Comes. Next is Kiss of the Snow Queen, which is a new take on an old tale. The story of the Snow Queen with its own twist. And finally we have A Gift of Wings, the story of a man who’s been broken and the woman who loves him enough to try and piece him back together. Four very different fantasy tales, each touched by romance and excellent in their own, unique way.
Kick @$$
Yes, that’s exactly how the title appears. Yet another anthology, this time a little more contemporary. First we have a woman with amnesia who’s preparing for her wedding in the Bride Wore a 44. But is she marrying the wrong man? And where’d she get all those guns? Next is the story of a unique vampire slayer who picks herself up a very unwanted side kick in the Incredible Misadventures of Boo. Another fast-paced story, but laced with humour. Next is Angela Knight’s Warfem, a futuristic story of the lengths a mother will go to to keep her child safe. And finally, we have a supermodel spy wannabe, who turns out to be more of a secret agent than she realized in Painkillers. All four stories have strong female characters who do indeed kick @$$.
So I’ve decided to take it a few books a time and post in parts. When I get tired of posting, I’ll stop and continue in the next part. Sound fair to you? Meanwhile, I’ve made some half-assed suggestion on my writing blog that I’ll only read after getting so much written. Yeah, we’ll see how well I stick to that suggestion.
These books are in no particular order, just the way they’re stacked up on the desk.
Too Wild by Jamie Sobrato
This book, from the Harlequin Temptation line, was sent to me by my friend Jamie (anyone who sends me books and tea is a friend indeed! :-) ) I have a soft spot for books with writer protagonists, they never disappoint. This one features Jenna Calvert who’s a journalist looking for a place to hide while she re-creates her story about the beauty pageant circuit. Someone’s trying to kill her when she meets Travis Roth, who makes her an offer she finds hard to refuse, especially after someone trashes her apartment and steals her laptop. She makes him a counter-offer that he’d be a fool to pass up, and Travis may be uptight, but he’s no fool. These two show why opposites attract in the very best way. This book is sexy and funny and fast-paced - the scene where they’re caught in the coat closet by Travis’ father is priceless!
Midnight Cravings
This is a collection of Nocturne Bites. For those of you unfamiliar with Nocturne, it’s a paranormal line from Silhouette. At one time Silhouette had a line called Silhouette Shadows which was one of the first lines to foray into the paranormal realms of romance. Then Harlequin bought them out and shut down the line. A couple of years later they tried to revamp it under the name of Harlequin Dreamscapes, but this line was a dismal failure.
The Nocturne series has been around since 2006 and according to the blurb about it from Silhouette: The promise we are fulfilling to the reader with each Nocturne story is that the book they are reading will be a sensual, dark, atmospheric paranormal story with a strong hero and compelling, sympathetic heroine.
The Nocturne Bites are basically short Nocturne stories, and by short I mean not novel length. You can actually go to the Nocturne Bites Website and download them individually as e-files, but I prefer holding the book in my hand.
Midnight Cravings runs a gamut of paranormal including shapeshifters and vampires, hellhounds and soul-suckers, cops and healers. Six dark and sensuous tales of paranormal passion. Have a bite.
The Queen in Winter
I bought this anthology as one of my “four” in 4 for $10, not really expecting much out of it. Boy do I love it when I’m wrong. This is an anthology of four tales of adventure, filled with both enchantment and love.
There’s a story of the elfin princess held by a dark sorcerer, and the human prince who saves her. Both are without hope, for different reasons, but find A Whisper of Spring in the end. Then we have a story of two sisters and the mystic baby they’re trying to protect, and of the nobleman who drops in out of their lives in When Winter Comes. Next is Kiss of the Snow Queen, which is a new take on an old tale. The story of the Snow Queen with its own twist. And finally we have A Gift of Wings, the story of a man who’s been broken and the woman who loves him enough to try and piece him back together. Four very different fantasy tales, each touched by romance and excellent in their own, unique way.
Kick @$$
Yes, that’s exactly how the title appears. Yet another anthology, this time a little more contemporary. First we have a woman with amnesia who’s preparing for her wedding in the Bride Wore a 44. But is she marrying the wrong man? And where’d she get all those guns? Next is the story of a unique vampire slayer who picks herself up a very unwanted side kick in the Incredible Misadventures of Boo. Another fast-paced story, but laced with humour. Next is Angela Knight’s Warfem, a futuristic story of the lengths a mother will go to to keep her child safe. And finally, we have a supermodel spy wannabe, who turns out to be more of a secret agent than she realized in Painkillers. All four stories have strong female characters who do indeed kick @$$.
Sunday, June 7, 2009
June (so far)
HOTTER THAN HELL
edited by Kim Harrison
Yummy. What more needs to be said? ;-)
This book has twelve stories of the paranormal, stories that are both seductive and hot. This is actually the fourth in the Hell series, the first three being Holidays Are From Hell, Dates From Hell, and Weddings From Hell. And yes, I have the others, and yes, they’re all just as good as this one. It’s refreshing to see the paranormal branching out in so many different directions. This book is such a keeper that I ended up with two of them.
A REAL HERO
by Jean Brashear
Harlequin SuperRomance
This was amongst some of the books I’d set aside for the daughter (who’s not into the paranormal) to read and when she gave it back to me I read it again. Technically, this isn’t a read, but a re-read book. I still enjoyed it, just as much as the first time around. Roan O’Hara is a woman on the edge, trying to overcome some really daunting obstacles to make it on her own. In steps Zane MacAllister, a Hollywood heartthrob with a knight in shining armour complex who’s hiding out from the paparazzi . They both have secrets that need to be shared, but Roan still has her own battles that she needs to face alone.
SEX, LIES, and ONLINE DATING
by Rachel Gibson
The daughter gave me this one to read, and if she doesn’t want it back it’ll definitely go onto my keeper shelf. I couldn’t believe she bought this book herself, it has S*E*X in it - that was always her big complaint about the books I read, they have to much sex (for her, at least).
Lucy has been checking out the internet dating scene for research. She writes murder mysteries for a living and is looking to use the men she meets up with as victims for her fictional murders. Enter Quinn, the latest in her series of internet dates she’s arranged to meet at a coffee shop. Only Quinn isn’t what he seems to be either. He’s actually an undercover cop who’s searching for a serial killer. A killer whose MO is strikingly similar to the novel Lucy is penning. This book is face paced and funny, as well as sexy in all the right places.
CROUCHING VAMPIRE, HIDDEN FANG
by Katie MacAllister
This is the sequel to Zen and the Art of Vampires, which I’ve posted about previously. In the first book, Pia Thomason is tired of her hum drum life and signs up for a singles tour of Europe. She gets more than her money’s worth of adventure and romance, and ends up married to a vampire.
This volume continues the where the first one left off. Pia is back home in Seattle and has neither seen nor heard from her vampire husband, Kristoff in nearly two months. This is definitely not a stand alone novel, you’re going to end up as confused as Pia and Kristoff if you haven’t read the first one first. This is still a good read, however, as all Katie MacAllister books are. Pia has body issues and Kristoff has trust issues, and the journey they take together is worth the price of the book. I’ll warn you right now though, it looks like there’ll be another volume because there were a lot of loose ends that didn’t get tied up.
edited by Kim Harrison
Yummy. What more needs to be said? ;-)
This book has twelve stories of the paranormal, stories that are both seductive and hot. This is actually the fourth in the Hell series, the first three being Holidays Are From Hell, Dates From Hell, and Weddings From Hell. And yes, I have the others, and yes, they’re all just as good as this one. It’s refreshing to see the paranormal branching out in so many different directions. This book is such a keeper that I ended up with two of them.
A REAL HERO
by Jean Brashear
Harlequin SuperRomance
This was amongst some of the books I’d set aside for the daughter (who’s not into the paranormal) to read and when she gave it back to me I read it again. Technically, this isn’t a read, but a re-read book. I still enjoyed it, just as much as the first time around. Roan O’Hara is a woman on the edge, trying to overcome some really daunting obstacles to make it on her own. In steps Zane MacAllister, a Hollywood heartthrob with a knight in shining armour complex who’s hiding out from the paparazzi . They both have secrets that need to be shared, but Roan still has her own battles that she needs to face alone.
SEX, LIES, and ONLINE DATING
by Rachel Gibson
The daughter gave me this one to read, and if she doesn’t want it back it’ll definitely go onto my keeper shelf. I couldn’t believe she bought this book herself, it has S*E*X in it - that was always her big complaint about the books I read, they have to much sex (for her, at least).
Lucy has been checking out the internet dating scene for research. She writes murder mysteries for a living and is looking to use the men she meets up with as victims for her fictional murders. Enter Quinn, the latest in her series of internet dates she’s arranged to meet at a coffee shop. Only Quinn isn’t what he seems to be either. He’s actually an undercover cop who’s searching for a serial killer. A killer whose MO is strikingly similar to the novel Lucy is penning. This book is face paced and funny, as well as sexy in all the right places.
CROUCHING VAMPIRE, HIDDEN FANG
by Katie MacAllister
This is the sequel to Zen and the Art of Vampires, which I’ve posted about previously. In the first book, Pia Thomason is tired of her hum drum life and signs up for a singles tour of Europe. She gets more than her money’s worth of adventure and romance, and ends up married to a vampire.
This volume continues the where the first one left off. Pia is back home in Seattle and has neither seen nor heard from her vampire husband, Kristoff in nearly two months. This is definitely not a stand alone novel, you’re going to end up as confused as Pia and Kristoff if you haven’t read the first one first. This is still a good read, however, as all Katie MacAllister books are. Pia has body issues and Kristoff has trust issues, and the journey they take together is worth the price of the book. I’ll warn you right now though, it looks like there’ll be another volume because there were a lot of loose ends that didn’t get tied up.
Thursday, May 28, 2009
After the Mammoth book I read two more books quickly, then stopped staying up so late so I haven’t done much reading since, until today. :-)
Star Quality
by Lori Foster, Lucy Monroe, and Dianne Castell
The title is a little deceptive. Instead of Star Quality, it should have had something about the moon in it, because all three stories are set during a full moon. In the small town of Delicious, Ohio, strange things happen during the full moon, but none as strange as what takes place under the light of a rare blue moon. Three enchanting tales of the supernatural, and not a werewolf in sight. It was fast-paced, a little spicy, and refreshingly different. Definitely a keeper!
What A Pirate Desires
by Michelle Beattie
I have to admit I’m a sucker for pirates. I started reading this while going through a pile of books from my undecided pile (undecided as to whether I’d keep them or not) and I kept reading because I liked the two main characters. It centers around a woman whose family was murdered by pirates and her quest for revenge. Along the way she enlists the aid of another pirate and of course the two find themselves attracted to each other. While the book was okay, I’m not a big fan of historicals so now that I’ve finished it, it’s going into the to be donated pile.
the Ratcatcher
by Kate Rothwell - free download from author’s site
I must confess, I already downloaded this book months ago when she first offered it on her site, but I never got around to reading it because, as I said, historicals just aren’t my thing. However, this time I started reading just a little bit and before I knew it I was completely sucked in. This one is about a young woman, gently raised, who's fallen on hard times and the man with no past whom she falls in love with. I read the whole think in one sitting. That should speak volumes about how good it was.
Star Quality
by Lori Foster, Lucy Monroe, and Dianne Castell
The title is a little deceptive. Instead of Star Quality, it should have had something about the moon in it, because all three stories are set during a full moon. In the small town of Delicious, Ohio, strange things happen during the full moon, but none as strange as what takes place under the light of a rare blue moon. Three enchanting tales of the supernatural, and not a werewolf in sight. It was fast-paced, a little spicy, and refreshingly different. Definitely a keeper!
What A Pirate Desires
by Michelle Beattie
I have to admit I’m a sucker for pirates. I started reading this while going through a pile of books from my undecided pile (undecided as to whether I’d keep them or not) and I kept reading because I liked the two main characters. It centers around a woman whose family was murdered by pirates and her quest for revenge. Along the way she enlists the aid of another pirate and of course the two find themselves attracted to each other. While the book was okay, I’m not a big fan of historicals so now that I’ve finished it, it’s going into the to be donated pile.
the Ratcatcher
by Kate Rothwell - free download from author’s site
I must confess, I already downloaded this book months ago when she first offered it on her site, but I never got around to reading it because, as I said, historicals just aren’t my thing. However, this time I started reading just a little bit and before I knew it I was completely sucked in. This one is about a young woman, gently raised, who's fallen on hard times and the man with no past whom she falls in love with. I read the whole think in one sitting. That should speak volumes about how good it was.
Tuesday, May 19, 2009
The Mammoth Book of Paranormal Romance
edited by Trisha Telep
Ghosties and ghoulies and things that go bump in the night. Twenty-four, never before published, short stories of paranormal romance.
Normally, especially in an anthology of this size, there’d be a few stories that stand out and a few that really . . . don’t. That wasn’t the case with this book. Twenty-four stories and not a bad one in the bunch. Pick a favorite? Not possible!
Two things surprised me about this book. First, that I enjoyed it so much despite being familiar with the work of only a paltry four authors. And second, that I didn’t see the same theme repeated over and over. A lot of books claiming to be paranormal seem to think paranormal is limited to vampires and werewolves. Not so with this book. Yes, there was a couple of werewolf stories and a vampire or two, but they were presented in unique ways and as a whole, this book contained an amazing array of paranormal themes.
Go out and buy a copy right now. You won’t be sorry!
Ghosties and ghoulies and things that go bump in the night. Twenty-four, never before published, short stories of paranormal romance.
Normally, especially in an anthology of this size, there’d be a few stories that stand out and a few that really . . . don’t. That wasn’t the case with this book. Twenty-four stories and not a bad one in the bunch. Pick a favorite? Not possible!
Two things surprised me about this book. First, that I enjoyed it so much despite being familiar with the work of only a paltry four authors. And second, that I didn’t see the same theme repeated over and over. A lot of books claiming to be paranormal seem to think paranormal is limited to vampires and werewolves. Not so with this book. Yes, there was a couple of werewolf stories and a vampire or two, but they were presented in unique ways and as a whole, this book contained an amazing array of paranormal themes.
Go out and buy a copy right now. You won’t be sorry!
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