Dragon Fall Jul 28, 2015 by Katie MacAlister

Dragon Fall

Jul 28, 2015

by Katie MacAlister

YOU FLIRT WITH FIRE...
For Aoife Dakar, seeing is believing-and she's seen some extraordinary things. It's too bad no one else believes that she witnessed a supernatural murder at an outdoor fair. Returning to the scene for proof, Aoife encounters a wise-cracking demon dog-and a gloriously naked man who can shift into a dragon and kiss like a god. Now thrust into a fantastical world that's both exhilarating and terrifying, Aoife is about to learn just how hot a dragon's fire burns.

I can't say that I hated this book, but I cannot say that I loved it either.  I loved the fact that we got to visit with so many of our old friends (I had stopped reading this series, so seeing people like Aisling, Drake, Rene and Jim again was fun for me).  On the other hand, to end this book with a cliff-hanger?  This is not like the Katie I remember from so long ago when this series first started.  But, maybe her writing style has changed in this series?

Yes the romance was well established, but the ending of this book ...well let me put it this way, I was reading and quite happy and then all of a sudden the screen to rate the book came up.  Shocked the heck out of me.  I really don't like what could be construed as an almost blatant maneuver to get us to by the next book.

Yes, I know we need more books in which to get the old bad guy, but the ending still seemed very abrupt.  And THAT I did not like.

Thrill Me by Susan Mallery

Thrill Me (Fool's Gold) Mass Market Paperback – July 28, 2015

by Susan Mallery (Author)

Book Description:
 Meet the Mitchell brothers of Fool's Gold, California—five gorgeous men who've left a trail of broken hearts in their wake… 

Maya Farlow learned the hard way to depend only on herself, so when she fell too deeply for the bad-boy charms of Del Mitchell, she did the only thing she could—she ran. Stunned, Del left Fool's Gold to make his name and fortune in extreme sports. 

Now ten years later, Maya's been hired to promote her hometown's new slogan, The Destination for Romance. The celebrity spokesman is none other than Del, the man she dumped but never forgot. Awkward! 

Although Del's not the type to hold a grudge, he's determined to avoid falling a second time for the woman who broke his heart. He's a daredevil, not an idiot. Trouble is, in all his adventures, he never found a rush as exhilarating as Maya's kiss. Maybe risking his heart will prove to be the biggest thrill of all…

I think that it might be time that I stop reading the Fool's Gold books. When a reader can see the formula coming a mile away...it is not a good thing. In this book the author make's me feel very little for Maya and Del. I very nearly didn't care whether they got back together or not. 

I cared more for Elaine and her issues than anything else.

Eddy and Gladys are starting to remind me of Lula and Grandma in the Stephanie Plum series...not a good thing.

I actually learned more about documentary and commercial producing, than I learned about the couple. And I liked it.

*ARC supplied by publisher

Lorie's Heart

Welcome back to Wells Landing, Oklahoma, the tranquil Amish community where still waters run deep and a brave young woman sets out to discover her faith, her family, and herself…
 
Lorie Kauffman is grief-stricken when her father passes away unexpectedly. But her heartache quickly turns to bewilderment when she discovers he’d been leading two lives—one of simplicity and hard work in Wells Landing, and one fraught with painful ordeals in Tulsa. As she starts digging into her family’s past, Lorie finds herself torn between the Amish world and the Englisch world—and she’s no longer certain where she belongs…

Lorie knows that if she leaves Wells Landing, she may never be able to return. But what if her destiny lies in the outside world—the world her father knew so well? Change is never easy, but with a bit of courage and the help of a handsome and kind-hearted Englischer, she just may find the peace, acceptance, and love she’s been longing for… (less)

Lorie's Heart (A Wells Landing Romance)

Jul 28, 2015

by Amy Lillard

Perhaps if I had read any of the other books by this author, I might have been prepared for this book. Without doing so I have no clue whether or not this author writes her other books about breaking ones faith for love. A very romantic notion.

I felt that this book was written more for the YA market and I have to wonder if that is the author's style or if this is in truth, a fact. 

The characters seemed really immature (even for an Amish person) and the constant introspection, lying and sneaking around by Lorie got a little annoying after a while. It led to me skimming a lot of this novel just to see what happened to her father. And that was a big let down. Perhaps the author should have allowed us more time with Lorie's other Grandmother and other relatives?

I don't know -everything just cam to easily to Lorie and I would have been as unhappy if this had been a non-Amish romance.

*ARC supplied by publisher

Bennington Girl's are Easy - Charlotte Silver

Bennington Girls Are Easy: A Novel by Charlotte Silver Edition: Hardcover Price: $13.07

Weird Al Yankovic is More Subtle, July 14, 2015

Book Description :

Bennington College, founded in 1932 as a suitable refuge for the wayward daughters of good families, maintains its saucy reputation for attracting free spirits. There, acres outnumber students, the faculty is composed of fading hippie and clothing is largely optional. Or, as J. D. Salinger put it in Franny and Zooey: a Bennington-type "looked like she'd spent the whole train ride in the john, sculpting or painting or something, or as though she had a leotard on under her dress."     Cassandra Puffin and Sylvie Furst met in high school but cement what they ardently believe will be everlasting friendship on Bennington's idyllic Vermont campus. Graduation sees Sylvie moving to New York City, where, later on their twenties, Cassandra joins her. These early, delirious years are spent decorating their Fort Greene apartment with flea market gems, dating "artists", and trying to figure out what they're doing with their lives.     The girls are acutely and caustically observant of the unique rhythms of the city but tone deaf to their own imperfections, which eventually drives a wedge between them. Equal parts heartfelt and hilarious, Bennington Girls Are Easy is a novel about female friendships—how with one word from a confidante can lift you up or tear you down—and how difficult it is to balance someone else's devastatingly funny lapses in judgment with your own professional and personal missteps.

This review is from: Bennington Girls Are Easy: A Novel (Hardcover)

I tried....I truly tried. I confess, I only made it halfway through before the compulsion to slit my throat or to pull out my eyeballs to end this pain became nearly overwhelming.

If I had to read the childish conversations one more time, I think I would have done something unmentionable. (the use of the word "like" was enough to out me over the edge.)

I can understand that this was supposed to be satyr, but all I could think while trying to read this was Weird Al Yankovic. Except that Weird Al is a bit more subtle!

If anyone has read or watched the book/movie Mame -I think that you might see the similarities between this book and this school and the scene when Mame is defending her choice of school for Patrick.

*ARC Supplied by publisher for reviewing purposes.

Sight: The Delta Girls - Book One Jul 14, 2015 by Juliet Madison

Kindle Edition
$4.99

Available for Pre-order. This item will be released on July 14, 2015.

Book Description:

“I spent my birthday fast asleep. In a coma to be exact.”
When Savannah wakes up after two months in the hospital, she sees a whole lot more than expected, things that could put those close to her at risk.
The five Delcarta sisters have never believed in the paranormal, not like their woo-woo mother. Instead they believe in the power of sisterhood, of romance, and rebuilding their lives after their father’s mysterious disappearance nine years earlier. Starting anew in the small town of Iris Harbor, they see potential in all.
But Savannah’s awakening after having surgery on a life-threatening aneurysm brings a unique ability to the Delcarta sisters–together, each can predict the future with one of the five senses. And Savannah has the gift of sight.
A serial arsonist has been terrorizing the tight-knit community, and the Delcarta sisters have their suspicions on who could be to blame, including a boy who starts as an adversary to Savannah and then very quickly becomes her whole world. Investigating these crimes, trying to stop them before the next flame is sparked will call upon Savannah to use her newfound abilities with the help of her sisters, and will put each of their lives in danger.
This stunning new paranormal series blends the sweetest of romances with breathless suspense, and introduces five young women who share a haunted past, an extraordinary gift, and an uncertain future. 

 I sometimes like reading young adult books as they sometimes surprise me very much and be more like a cleaner version of an Adult novel.  This book is very good, with an interesting and   unique story-line/twist, likable characters and a good mystery to go along with the speculative fiction bent.

However this book is exactly as advertised –a YA novel and I mean for younger audiences –perhaps in the 12 to 16 year old range.

When Savannah one of five sisters awakes from a comma, it seems that the sister’s reality shifts one step to the right.  Now they have visions (for lack of a better word) and each sister ‘sees’ things (future things/ past things) with a different sense.  Five senses, five sisters.  One sees things visually, one via smell, touch, taste and sound. This makes for a very interesting new life for these teens.

Along with this dilemma, normal teen angst abounds what with the girls moving to a new town and going to a new school…getting your new boyfriend to believe you really aren’t a nut-case and that you really can see his dead father.

There is also a mystery involving arson to add some spice to this story.

All in all a good read for any age.

The Summer of Good Intentions: A Novel by Wendy Francis

		The Summer of Good Intentions: A Novel by Wendy Francis Edition: Paperback Price: $7.86
Possible Mild Spoilers, July 7, 2015 Book Description: "Cape Cod summers are supposed to remain reassuringly the same, but everything falls apart when three sisters and their families come together for their annual summer vacation—and they are carrying more secrets than suitcases. Maggie is the oldest. She feels responsible for managing the summer house and making sure everything is as it always has been. But she’s hurt that her parents’ recent divorce has destroyed the family’s comfortable summer routines, and her own kids seem to be growing up at high speed. Is it too late to have another baby? Jess is the middle sister. She loves her job but isn’t as passionate about her marriage. She’s not sure she can find the courage to tell Maggie what she’s done—much less talk to her husband about it. Virgie is the youngest, her dad’s favorite. She’s always been the career girl, but now there’s a man in her life. Her television job on the west coast is beyond stressful, and it’s taking its toll on her—emotionally and physically. She’s counting on this vacation to erase the symptoms she’s not talking about. The Herington girls are together again, with their husbands and kids, for another summer in the family’s old Cape Cod house. When their mother, Gloria, announces she’s coming for an unscheduled visit—with her new boyfriend—no one is more surprised than their father, Arthur, who has not quite gotten over his divorce. Still, everyone manages to navigate the challenges of living grown-up lives in close quarters, until an accident reveals a new secret that brings everyone together in heartbreak…and then healing. Poignant, compelling, and so real that you could shake the sand out of the pages,The Summer of Good Intentions is by a rising star who aims her fiction square at the heart of readers who love Elin Hilderbrand, Dorothea Benton Frank, and Mary Kay Andrews." This review is from: The Summer of Good Intentions: A Novel (Paperback) I can't rant about this book nor can I rave about it. All I can say is that it was more depressing than I would have liked to have read over the Fourth of July weekend. Three grown up sisters, a set of divorced parents (mother with her "boy" toy!) and a beach house...naturally each family is having some sort of crisis/issues and hopefully a month/two weeks/week at the family beach house should put things into perspective. Discussions with your sisters over copious glasses of wine or fruity drinks should help you figure out what you want to do -no this doesn't happen though. this book is filled with nothing you have come to expect for a summer beach read. I could not connect with any of the characters. They were too cliched for my tastes. I felt that too many tragedies befell this family over the space of a couple of weeks. I was depressed reading this. Frankly, to be honest I could not finish this book - how could things get better when one of the main characters is diagnosed with a fatal disease? *ARC supplied by publisher.

Grumpy Old Wizards by John O'Riley

		Grumpy Old Wizards Price: $0.00
Boring, Predictable, Childish, July 4, 2015 Fifty years after the Disaster, the world is vastly different from days of old. Wizardry is the norm and magical talent is categorized. Josephine O'Connor, an eighty-four-year-old with a penchant for off-beat antics, is a category six, which means she possesses magical powers as rare as they are unsettling and a talent for psychometry that is so strong and acute that she can read the psychic impressions in a room without touching anything.  With her unique physiology, she’s over 80 years of age and still gets carded at R-rated movies. Most of the time it’s flattering but it can sometimes be a nuisance. For the most part, Josephine spends her days like any other retirement community member. She plays cards with friends, attends get-togethers, and occasionally visits the beach until she is called upon by the police to investigate a crime scene left behind by a suspect with powers equal to her own.  Now the race is on. Can an out-of-practice wizard marshal her abilities and catch a menace before he becomes so powerful even she can’t stop him?  This review is from: Grumpy Old Wizards (Kindle Edition) I rarely write one star reviews, but I just had to let my thoughts and feeling out. The cover, book description and some of the reviews I read, led me to believe that this book was going to be right up my alley. It was not what I was led to believe it was going to be. Had I been told that this book was written by a junior high school child I would have stood up and cheered. But this was written by an adult; and to add insult to injury this adult has won awards. Most likely NOT on this book though. Choppy, repetitive writing. One dimensional characters. Childish characters. Stark, bland interactions between characters. Unemotional dialogue and characters. The glowing reviews dumbfound me, the negative votes on any critical reviews, no matter how blandly and nicely written is a crime and a mark against the ethics of the editor or the aut...well I'll just leave it there

The Highlander Takes a Bride by Lynsay Sands

   

   The Highlander Takes a Bride

Jul 28, 2015

by Lynsay Sands

The Highlander Takes A Bride by Lynsay Sands
A bold, seductive laird meets his passionate match in a scintillating Highland romance from New York Times bestselling author Lynsay SandsSword fighting, swearing, and riding astride come naturally to Saidh Buchanan. Simpering and holding her tongue— definitely not. Raised alongside seven boisterous brothers, Saidh has little interest in saddling herself with a husband . . . until she glimpses the new Laird MacDonnell bathing naked in the loch. Though she's far from a proper lady, the brawny Highlander makes Saidh feel every inch a woman.She has an angel's looks, a warrior's temper, and seeks out his kisses with wanton eagerness. Little wonder that Greer is intrigued by his comely guest. When reckless desire overtakes them, he's more than willing to make an honest woman of her. But Saidh is the target of a hidden enemy, and Greer faces the battle of his life to safeguard the woman he wants above all others.

Just where the heck is my very own kilted hero…not that the heroine couldn’t take care of herself!

This book was funny, fresh, a great romance AND a great mystery. I loved Saidh and the fact that she really was literally a kick butt heroine (just look at all the brothers she had to grow up with!)

The mystery is just how did cousin Fenella’s husband all die? She has had 4 already. We find out right quick who and what killed the first one, and most importantly for lovers of romance –the why of it.  Vengeance is a dish best served cold…except for this one!  Now with the fourth husband (the perfect one!) out of the way…so to speak, Saidh feels a wee bit of guilt in the matter and has come to help Fenella.

Of course Saidh soon meets the new Laird and he is a doozy…now her time is spent fending off the feeling that one minute she wants to hit him upside the head and the next minute she wants to see what is under his plaid!  Well at least until someone starts trying to kill her.

Interesting characters, action - though not too much, and a mystery that is quite tangled but not too difficult to figure out (if you really want to).  But I suggest you just let the story unwind and let the mystery play out for you without you worrying about who-dun-it!

Great fun read.

The Undying Legion by Clay Griffith and Susan Griffith (Jun 30, 2015)

  The Undying Legion: Crown & Key by Clay Griffith and Susan Griffith (Jun 30, 2015)

Book Description:

"A thrilling new Victorian-era urban fantasy for fans of Kevin Hearne’s Iron Druid Chronicles, the Showtime series Penny Dreadful, and the Sherlock Holmes movies featuring Robert Downey, Jr. With a flood of dark magic about to engulf Victorian London, can a handful of heroes vanquish a legion of the undead? When monster-hunter Malcolm MacFarlane comes across the gruesome aftermath of a ritual murder in a London church, he enlists the help of magician-scribe Simon Archer and alchemist extraordinaire Kate Anstruther. Studying the macabre scene, they struggle to understand obscure clues in the ancient Egyptian hieroglyphics carved into the victim’s heart—as well as bizarre mystical allusions to the romantic poetry of William Blake. One thing is clear: Some very potent black magic is at work. But this human sacrifice is only the first in a series of ritualized slayings. Desperate to save lives while there is still time, Simon, Kate, and Malcolm—along with gadget geek Penny Carter and Charlotte, an adolescent werewolf—track down a necromancer who is reanimating the deceased. As the team battles an unrelenting army of undead, a powerful Egyptian mummy, and serpentine demons, the necromancer proves an elusive quarry. And when the true purpose of the ritual is revealed, the gifted allies must confront a destructive force that is positively apocalyptic."

  The Undying Legion

 I tried I really tried to love this book.  It is everything a wonderful book should be, but for some reason this book isn’t.  This is the second book in The Crown and Key trilogy and I expected much, much more from this book. There is magic galore, steampunk, a ton of blood and gore and it is set in the Victorian era –except that most of the time they talk like it was much earlier in the 1800’s or even late 1700’s.  The dialogue sort of switches back and forth from those era’s. There is so much history (alternate though it may be) in this book, so many unfamiliar words and such, that I spent more time looking things up rather than simply enjoying the story. Some things are resolved from the last book, but believe me this is a whole new ball of evil! What I did love was Charlotte and the fact that she can use her werewolfishness for good. Of course everything sort of works out in the end leaving us hanging for the next and final book. This book was at times plodding and at other times out of control and making no sense I’m glad that so many others like this book.  It just may not be my particular cup of tea.  However, I have read the first book and really thought that this trilogy had a lot of potential.  I thought it had enough potential, to even make a full series out of it.  Unfortunately for me this particular book just really doesn’t move much along. So much was the same as in the first book –it just seems like names of the villains had been changed. *ARC supplied for review by publisher.