Quote of the Day

"A room without books is like a body without a soul."
Cicero (106 BC - 43 BC)

Quote of the Day

"Women want men, careers, money, children, friends, luxury, comfort, independence, freedom, respect, love, and three dollar pantyhose that won't run."

Phyllis Diller (as quoted in Woman's Almanac, 1977)

There's Something About Mary....

Another installment of the dark vampire series, Black Dagger Brotherhood by J.R. Ward.

Here's the blurb for Lover Eternal:

In the shadows of the night in Caldwell, New York, there’s a deadly war raging between vampires and their slayers. And there exists a secret band of brothers like no other - six vampire warriors, defenders of their race. Possessed by a deadly beast, Rhage is the most dangerous of the Black Dagger Brotherhood...

Within the brotherhood, Rhage is the vampire with the strongest appetites. He’s the best fighter, the quickest to act on his impulses, and the most voracious lover—for inside him burns a ferocious curse cast by the Scribe Virgin. Possessed by this dark side, Rhage fears the times when his inner dragon is unleashed, making him a danger to everyone around him.

Mary Luce, a survivor of many hardships, is unwittingly thrown into the vampire world and reliant on Rhage’s protection. With a life-threatening curse of her own, Mary is not looking for love. Her faith in miracles was lost years ago. But when Rhage’s intense animal attraction turns into something more emotional, he knows that he must make Mary his alone. And while their enemies close in, Mary fights desperately to gain life eternal with the one she loves…

You've already heard my spiel on how these books feel dark, gothic like, and something out of a Robert Rodriguez movie. OMGosh, I'm amazed on how addicting it can be... I really enjoyed this book, probably a little more than the first book of the series Dark Lover. The setting is dark (of course!), the characters are dark (of course!, they're Vampires) and main two, Rhage and Mary are great together.. Rhage is willing to do whatever it takes to keep her safe and well, and Mary is able to soothe him, something that no one else is able to do. We're also introduced to a few more characters: Bella, a female Vampire that has a thing for Z.; John Matthew a boy that is mute, who hasn't "turned" yet; O, a lesser that truly is a mental case, he just gives me the creeps.

Over all it was a great read, but I do have one complaint... At times I found the dialog repetitive. I really cannot stand "Do you feel me?", and I believe there were few in the book. Just a minor complaint...


Rate: 4.5/5, Keeper Shelf

August - Month In Review

Best of the Month:

Austenland by Shannon Hale (4.5/5) General Fiction; Regency Reenactment; New Author; Library Book;

Her Royal Spyness by Rhys Bowen (4.5/5) Historical Mystery; set in post WWI England; Series: # 1, Her Royal Spyness; Library Book; Added to shopping list;

Me And Mr. Darcy by Alexandra Potter (4/5) General Fiction; set in New York and England; New Author; Library Book;

Dark Lover by J.R. Ward (4/5) Contemporary Romance; Paranormal: Vampire; set in Caldwell, New York; Series: # 1, Black Dagger Brotherhood; Keeper Shelf;

Darcy's Story by Janet Aylmer (4/5) Historical Fiction; set in England; New Author; Library Book;

Tangled Up In You by Rachel Gibson (4/5) Contemporary Romance; set in Truly, Idaho;


Honorable Mentions:


Morning Comes Softly by Debbie Macomber (3/5) Contemporary Romance; Mail Order Bride; set in Montana; Library Book;

Death at Sandringham House by C.C. Benison (2.5/5) Contemporary Mystery; set in England; New Author; Series: # 2, Her Majesty Investigates; Library Book;

The Guy Not Taken by Jennifer Weiner (2.5/5) General Fiction; Short Stories; Library Book;

Quote of the Day

"Carry out a random act of kindness, with no expectation of reward, safe in the knowledge that one day someone might do the same for you."

Princess Diana (1961-1997)

Quote of the Day

"All the world's a stage, and all the men and women merely players: they have their exits and their entrances; and one man in his time plays many parts, his acts being seven ages."

William Shakespeare (1564-1616)

New Author (To Me!) Contest

I saw this over at Ana's blog, and it looked like fun, so I decided to take the quiz, too.

Which Psy-Changeling Hero Is For You?

Your Psy/Changeling Hero: Lucas

Tough, dangerous and highly intelligent, the alpha of the DarkRiver leopard pack is a man who will demand everything from his mate. But he will give the same in return. And he will never let go.Find out more about Lucas and the series at www.nalinisingh.com
Take this quiz!








Quizilla |
Join

| Make A Quiz | More Quizzes | Grab Code

Tangled Up In You

Rachel Gibson is a must read author for me, I have read all her books. Some I enjoyed, some I didn't care for and there others that I loved, but I have read them all.

Tangled Up In You by Rachel Gibson.

Here's the blurb:

Maddie is determined to uncover the untold story about the town's sordid past—her past. As a child, Maddie lost everything, and now she's back at the scene of the scandal—a local establishment that's always belonged to the Hennessys—determined to uncover the truth, and nothing is going to stand in her way. Especially not a black-haired, blue-eyed Hennessy.

Everyone in Truly knows that the Hennessy men are irresistible, and the current owner, Mick, is no exception. His late father was a skirt-chasing heartbreaker who ended up causing disaster for two families. So far, Mick's managed to keep the ladies in line, but when he claps eyes on Maddie, with her luscious curves and tempting lips, he can't resist getting tangled up with her.

But Maddie is keeping secrets, not the least of which is her true reason for being in town. And when Mick discovers what‘s really going on, there is going to be a whole lot of trouble in Truly.

Going back to what I said earlier, about either liking or disliking the authors books. The last three books haven't been my favorites, I didn't care for the plot or even the characters, so my reading Tangled Up In You was met with some skepticism.

I was pleasantly surprised! I enjoyed it! Really!

Maddie is a true crime author and she goes back to the small town where "she lost everything". I don't want to get into it, too much, because I don't want to ruin the experience for you. The first night that she's there she meets Mick, there's an instant attraction between them both. Soon after they start seeing each other and their feelings grow, but the secrets that Maddie is hiding from Mick, may destroy their relationship. The characters are great, some are old favorites from previous books and others new, there was one character that I didn't care for, and that was Mick's sister. Meg, well, is unstable to say the least. One complaint: it seemed that the whole "secret/lies/misunderstanding" was resolved way too quickly.

Rate: 4/5

Quote of the Day

"The secret of life is honesty and fair dealing. If you can fake that, you've got it made."

Groucho Marx (1890-1977)

Darcy's Story

Darcy's Story by Janet Aylmer.

And the obsession continues... I'm not complaining, I'm quite enjoying it, and it has gotten to a point that my husband is asking me if he should leave me alone with my Mr. Darcy. Yep, he's one funny man.

Anyway, this book is a bit different, it retells Pride and Prejudice from a different perspective, Mr. Darcy's. We learn more about this character, we see him interact with people that he cares the most, his sister, his cousin and his friend Bingley. We also see the inner turmoil that he's going through, the turmoil caused by the feelings that he has for Miss Elizabeth Bennet.

I really enjoyed reading book, mainly because of the different perspective. It was fast paced and true to Pride and Prejudice, but it gave me more. And I really liked that.

Rate: 4/5, Library book

Morning Comes Softly

Morning Comes Softly by Debbie Macomber.
On my last trip to the library I grabbed this one up, hoping that it would bring a smile to my face. Debbie Macomber is my comfort read, I love to read her books when I'm feeling a little down, her books lift me up.

Here's the blurb:

A shy Louisiana librarian, Mary Warner fears she'll always be alone—so she answers a personals ad from a rancher in Montana. Never before has she done anything so reckless, casting the only life she knows aside to travel to a strange place and marry a man she's never met. But something about this man calls to her—and she knows this may be her very last chance at happiness.

Tragedy made Travis Thompson the guardian of three orphaned children—and determination leads him to do whatever it takes to keep the kids out of foster homes. When he decides to take a long shot on a personals ad, the results are surprising, and before he knows it, he has agreed to marry a mysterious Southern woman sight unseen.

It could be the mistake of a lifetime. But Mary Warner may be exactly what this broken family needs. And with a little faith, a little trust, and a lot of love, two lonely hearts might just discover the true meaning of miracles.

Let me start off by mentioning that I'm not a fan of Mail Order Bride theme, but that didn't turn me off. I started reading this book late last night and I had to force myself to put it down, it was about 1:30 am when my husband told me (rather harshly) to turn off the light. So I was really looking forward to my alone time this afternoon to finishing the book. I was not disappointed, as usual I got the heart wrenching story (yes, hanky alert) and hoping that all would end well. I enjoyed the characters, although I had a couple complaints about Mary, she initially was portrayed as shy, but she got outspoken quite quickly, and I didn't really get her reason for accepting Travis's marriage proposal. Alright, that last point may be my whole problem with Mail Order Brides, I can understand the reasons for doing it a hundred years ago, but at the present time, I just don't get it.

Rate: 3/5, Library Book

Quote of the Day

"You know, Neil Young is singing Rock n' roll will never die, and Neil never rocked and rolled in his life. I mean, he rocked, but he didn't roll. He has got no swing in him."

Joni Mitchell