authentic reviews and insightful interviews for inquisitive readers
Title: Sunrise Crossing Author: Jodi Thomas Series: Ransom Canyon #4 A good, solid addition to the Ransom Canyon series As far as I can tell, Jodi Thomas is one of the few authors making a go of the romances that tell the stories of not one couple at a time, but several couples living within the same town/county/area, and she does it well. The writing in Sunrise Crossing was excellent. The main pair: Yancy Grey, a character we met way …
Title: First Star I See Tonight Author: Susan Elizabeth Phillips Series: Chicago Stars #8 first half is SEP at her best. tone and agenda change in second Piper Dove owns a struggling detective agency. She becomes involved with Cooper Graham, freshly retired quarterback of the Chicago Stars, when she’s hired to investigate him. Not long after they meet, he’s hiring her himself for a whole list of reasons, one of which happens to be figuring out who is mugging him …
Title: Curious Minds Authors: Janet Evanovich and Phoef Sutton Series: Knight and Moon #1 a fun romp with an intriguing plot but leaves one wanting something more This book seemed to come out of nowhere; Janet and her co-authors are all in the middle of series already, so the last thing I expected was a new one. Maybe the Lizzie and Diesel series isn’t selling like they hoped. Regardless, it’s an Evanovich book, so I was game. And overall, it …
Title: Lost Among the Living Author: Simone St. James Series: n/a Not as spooky or creative as previous work, but I enjoyed it 🙂 I would give this a solid four stars, except Alex wins that entire fifth star himself. I loved Alex. He was a complicated guy, torn between his duty, his pride, and his love for his wife. This book wasn’t as spooky as some of her other books–not nearly as spooky as An Inquiry Into Love and …
Title: Darkness Author: Karen Robards Series: n/a Interesting original story, lots of beautiful detail, a solid win for Robards This book was fantastic! I have only three or four-ish problems with it, and honestly, they’re nitpicking, because it was overall a solid piece of work, in my opinion. I may reveal a few spoilers. First and most inconsequential, the cover design. It’s beautiful, I absolutely love it–hot pink is my favorite color!–but it 100% clashes with the content and the …
Title: Built Author: Jay Crownover Series: Saints of Denver #1 Three-dimentional, complex but relatable heroine; smart, sexy, mature hero; and a seriously cute kid 🙂 I discovered Jay Crownover last summer and listened to all her books on audiobook in quick succession. I loved them, I thought they were absolutely sensational, and I was sooo excited for Zeb and Sayer’s story! But Built is the first of her books I’ve read in print form, and never before did I realize …
Title: New Leaf Author: Catherine Anderson Series: Mystic Creek #2 Charming, cozy, and heartwarming–the perfect book to read curled up by the fire What a charming story! I was impressed. I can’t give a very authoritative review of her last book a year ago, Silver Thaw–the one that started this new series–but I remember thinking that the writing seemed a bit sloppy, just not as spectacular as I had come to expect from an author whose work I’ve collected for …
Title: Obsession Falls Author: Christina Dodd Series: Virtue Falls #2 good kind of weird. more thriller than romance. pain and insanity in many forms… Where. To. Start. Before Virtue Falls last year, I hadn’t read a Dodd novel for several years. She had a period where she published novellas that weren’t printed and reissues of old books that I already own and have read, and since I don’t have an ereader and don’t really like sitting at my computer for …
Title: The Scam Authors: Janet Evanovich and Lee Goldberg Series: Fox and O’Hare #4 Intelligent, fast-paced, hilarious, intriguing–what more could you want? 🙂 Evanovich at the top of her game Evanovich is on a role so far this year, in my opinion. I loved Wicked Charms, the third fun and mostly silly installment in her Lizzie and Diesel series, and I loved this fast-paced, intriguing installment in the Kate O’Hare and Nick Fox series. Last but not least this year …
Title: An Inquiry into Love and Death Author: Simone St. James Series: n/a What a wonderful—and chilling—surprise! So, I loaned this audiobook from the library for the promise of romance. The synopsis didn’t make it sound particularly terrifying, more intriguing, and I love a good mystery with my romance–as well as a dose of history–and England–so I thought, sure, I’m due for a non-mainstream, non-mass-market-paperback romance and downloaded it. I needed a break from my own writing last night and …