Because of Miss Bridgerton by Julia Quinn

Because of Miss Bridgerton 

Mar 29, 2016 by Julia Quinn

Book Description:

Sometimes you find love in the most unexpected of places...

This is not one of those times.

Everyone expects Billie Bridgerton to marry one of the Rokesby brothers. The two families have been neighbors for centuries, and as a child the tomboyish Billie ran wild with Edward and Andrew. Either one would make a perfect husband... someday.

Sometimes you fall in love with exactly the person you think you should...

Or not.

There is only one Rokesby Billie absolutely cannot tolerate, and that is George. He may be the eldest and heir to the earldom, but he's arrogant, annoying, and she's absolutely certain he detests her. Which is perfectly convenient, as she can't stand the sight of him, either.

But sometimes fate has a wicked sense of humor...

Because when Billie and George are quite literally thrown together, a whole new sort of sparks begins to fly. And when these lifelong adversaries finally kiss, they just might discover that the one person they can't abide is the one person they can't live without...

I had stepped back from Julia Quinn for the last two books, but I have always been a fan of her early Bridgerton books.  I was curious as to how the author was going to eke out another so I took a chance on this one.  In a way I’m a bit sorry I did.

This book did not have the freshness, humor and heat that the earlier books did. Mostly during this book, the characters stand around for pages discussing… essentially nothing.   It wasn’t until the last quarter of this book that anything of consequence happens. 

The romance is subtle (like a ball peen hammer over the head) naturally obvious to e very one except Billie and George, and a little less swoon worthy than in the past.

Color me disappointed with this book that we have waited so long for. 

The One That Got Away b y Leigh Himes

The One That Got Away: A Novel 

May 31, 2016 by Leigh Himes

Book Description:

"In this irresistible debut novel, a freak accident allows a wife and mother to explore the alluring road not taken.

Meet Abbey Lahey . . . 

Overworked mom. Underappreciated publicist. Frazzled wife of an out-of-work landscaper. A woman desperately in need of a vacation from life--and who is about to get one, thanks to an unexpected tumble down a Nordstrom escalator.

Meet Abbey van Holt . . . 

The woman whose life Abbey suddenly finds herself inhabiting when she wakes up. Married to handsome congressional candidate Alex van Holt. Living in a lavish penthouse. Wearing ball gowns and being feted by the crème of Philadelphia society. Luxuriating in the kind of fourteen-karat lifestyle she's only read about in the pages of Town & Country.

The woman Abbey might have been . . . if she had said yes to a date with Alex van Holt all those years ago. 

In the tradition of the romantic comedy Sliding Doors and Lionel Shriver's The Post-Birthday World, Leigh Himes's irresistible debut novel tells the funny and touching story of an ordinary woman offered an extraordinary opportunity to reboot her life, explore the road not taken, and ultimately, find her true self--whoever that may be."

I started reading this book thinking that I wasn’t going to like it.   The synopsis made this book sound so familiar.  I felt as if it was a story that was written one too many times.  I was wrong. 

The author created a story that, frankly to use a trite and tired expression, I just couldn’t put down.  This meant that I finished this in one day. (Make sure if you start reading this that you have the time to finish it! It is a fast read for all that it is almost 400 pages) I just had to see how this odd week in the life Abbey (and Alex) was going to play out, how she would get her old life back…IF she wanted her old life back.

While this is not anything more that light entertainment, it was a fun story and it really did have a message in it, that what you want may not always be what you need.

This was a fun book with humor and hope.  It did have some problems with unnecessary characters and story-lines that should have been further explored, but all in all I was happy I took the time to finish this book. 

An Unattractive Vampire by Jim McDoniel

"Jim McDoniel’s debut novel, An Unattractive Vampire, is a darkly comic urban fantasy of ancient horrors in suburban cities. After three centuries trapped underground, thousand-year-old Yulric Bile—also known as the Curséd One, the Devil’s Apprentice, He Who Worships the Slumbering Horrors—awakens only to find that no one believes he is a vampire. Apparently he’s just too ugly—modern vampires, he soon discovers, are pretty, weak, and, most disturbing of all, good. Determined to reestablish his bloodstained reign, Yulric sets out to correct this disgusting turn of events or, at the very least, murder the person responsible. With the help of pert vampire-wannabe Amanda; Simon, the eight-year-old reincarnation of his greatest foe; and a cadre of ancient and ugly horrors, Yulric prepares to battle the glamorous undead. But who will win the right to determine, once and for all, what it truly means to be a vampire?"






Oh geez, if you are a anti-fan of those OTHER types of vampire novels (especially the ones written for the YA crowd, you know what I mean, the sparkly ones!) then you don't want to read this while drinking anything. If you are like me, some of the humor will catch you so off guard that you might spritz with what you are drinking, whatever is closest to you (Kindle, DTB, cat, husband...) and they will get angry and yell or decide not to work anymore, or scratch you in an unmentionable place.

Wonderfully fun satire,humor, irony, exaggeration, or ridicule -you name it the author used it. 

He did add another interesting and funny aspect : the use of footnotes. Though I do hope that they will be formatted better for the Kindle copies than they were for my ARC.

I received this ARC for reviewing purposes!

The Steel Kiss ( A Lincoln Rhyme Novel )

New York Times bestselling author Jeffery Deaver returns with his next blockbuster thriller featuring forensic detective Lincoln Rhyme.

Amelia Sachs is hot on the trail of a killer. She's chasing him through a department store in Brooklyn when an escalator malfunctions. The stairs give way, with one man horribly mangled by the gears. Sachs is forced to let her quarry escape as she jumps in to try to help save the victim. She and famed forensic detective Lincoln Rhyme soon learn, however, that the incident may not have been an accident at all, but the first in a series of intentional attacks. They find themselves up against one of their most formidable opponents ever: a brilliant killer who turns common products into murder weapons. As the body count threatens to grow, Sachs and Rhyme must race against the clock to unmask his identity--and discover his mission--before more people die.



I has been quite a while since I have read a Lincoln Rhyme novel, so I was a little  worried about trying to pick the story back up in case the  main characters lives had changed.  And boy did they ever change...at least for me they did.

As usual the author sticks with his usual way of telling his story.  He starts off with something good, which leads into a lecture or ten and then the action heats up again.  It gets so exciting that you may get to the point where you would rather pass out than put the book down and go to sleep.  This was an innovative criminal in more ways than because of how he was murdering people.  He had a very unusual personality and an unusual health issue.

There are a few surprises (naturally) but one deals with Amanda's ex-lover.  That was one I didn't see coming!  I liked the introduction of Lincolns new , shall we say intern.  I wasn't quite sure if she was going to be a rival with Amelia or not, but there is a big surprise with her near the end! 

This book makes me look at all the things I have around the house (and thankfully it isn't many) that deal with this sort of technology.  Oddly my  husband designs and install this sort of technology (smart appliances, furnaces, security systems etc.) into homes.  I really need to ask him if any of this can really happen!

All in all this was a very satisfying, suspenseful and horrific read and I now know that Mr. Deaver has not lost his touch.  I think the only reason I had stepped back was that I had gotten tired of the lectures that Lincoln and friends like to give.  But it helped me with this book to understand better what was going on.

Covered Bridge Charm - Dianne C hristner

Covered Bridge Charm

Mar 1, 2016

by Dianne Christner

Carly Blosser may not match the typical description of a conservative Mennonite woman unmarried at 27, living alone, and careening around her Oregon neighborhood on a pink bicycle but she has a soft heart for the elderly Mennonite residents at Sweet Life Assisted Living Facility, where she works as a caregiver. When Carly s plans for a new volunteer program go awry, she shifts her focus to one lonely resident named Martha. Adam Lapp, a wood shop instructor at Sweet Life, joins with Carly to reunite Martha with an old flame before her 85th birthday. Carly and Adam s hunt involves carved initials on covered bridges, digging up the past, and the appearance of a newcomer, who hinders the budding romance between the two. Soon, new clues sweep them all in a harried race to the finish line where love is sure to be the ultimate prize



This was a very sweet novel, however you have to remember that it is set in an Assisted Living Facility and more importantly in the area for Alzheimer's/Dementia patients.  There will be losses. 

The character of Carly is highly annoying, she is opinionated and quick to judge.  I wasn't thrilled with that aspect of her.  

I found it a difficult story to stay engaged in and found myself constantly putting it down to do other things.  There are many character's to keep straight, several story lines going on at the same time and the usage of nick-names was just  cruel to me and not funny at all.

The book description say that  Carly  "may not match the typical description of a conservative Mennonite woman: and as this is my first  novel about Mennonites, I can not tell you what  type of character Carly would fit, but if this is what Mennonite typical or perhaps atypical is a better word behavior is, I think I will take a pass at other novels of this genre.  Actually I think it might be the author since I have read another novel by Dianne and I was not  best pleased.