Reading
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Review: A Magical New York Christmas by Anita Hughes
I adore Anita Hughes. I have been a big fan for a while though I have only really read her holiday romances, I have enjoyed each one for a number of different reasons. I think the biggest thing that I have loved about her romances are the locations! Every time I crack open a Christmas romance by Hughes, I am automatically transported to some where cozy and even a bit magical. Her novels have been set in London and Paris at Christmas as well as other more ‘local’ locations for me like Vermont. Each location gets a heavy holiday makeover and I always find myself wondering why I don’t go…
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Special Feature: Eight Perfect Hours by Lia Louis
Is it really time for Christmas books? The answer is apparently yes. I normally don’t break out my Christmas reads until at least November but I do have a couple of holiday books I wanted to get on your radar before the season got into full swing and this right here is one of them. While this book has a distinctive winter vibe, I am not exactly sure that’s it qualifies as a Christmas book officially. The summary indicates that this story will explore the romance between two strangers who are stranded together in a blizzard—-in March. So it sounds like this might not be the Christmas romance you were…
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Review: The Collector’s Daughter by Gill Paul
Like so many people, ancient Egypt is a source of endless fascination for me. When I saw this one was coming out, it was a no brainer—I had to read this one. I actually listened to the audio version on my commutes in Arizona. The narrator had a pleasant voice and made the book interesting while I was stuck in the desert traffic. Not to mention the story was equally interesting. A few years ago I read a non fiction novel on the Countess of Carnarvon and I had a deep affection for Lady Almina when I finished it. This book does not portray the Countess in a favorable light…
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Review: On Location by Sarah Smith
This summer was the summer of National Parks for me! I explored quite a bit of Arizona this summer including The Grand Canyon NP and Saguaro NP along with a number of National Monuments. Then I came home to Oregon and visited Crater Lake NP and am heading the Mt Rainier NP and Olympic NP in Washington later this fall. So when I saw a book that was a travel/work place/vacation romance with National Parks, I was absolutely on board! This book sounded so promising and I just adore travel romances. Sarah Smith has written a few other romances which I haven’t read but it sounds like the general consensus…
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Review: When Sparks Fly by Helena Hunting
I have been on a major romance kick lately but most of the romances I have been reading are of the historical variety. There is something so romantic about historical romances in a way that modern contemporary romances just don’t have. I think it’s the constraints of society and class in the historical romances that make them compelling but at the same time I am a modern woman and as a modern woman, I want to also read about modern women like me, not just the lone countess trapped in a marriage of convenience. Enter this book. I decided it was time to take a bit of a break from…
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Special Feature: A Song of Flight (Warrior Bards #3) by Juliet Marillier
I read the first book in this series but then as sometimes happens, other book series prevented me from getting back to this one and now here we are with the third book coming out this fall! Marillier is a fine folklore storyteller and I really enjoyed the first book in this promising series and I have no doubt it has continued with her trademark lyrical prose. As this is the last book in the trilogy, it no doubt has a lot to wrap up. Marillier writes with such lovely gentle story telling and I love how rich her world feels without feeling overly long. As this book is more…
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Special Feature: A Darker Reality (Elena Standish #3) by Anne Perry
There can be little denying that Anne Perry is a prolific storyteller and mystery writer. She has written a number of beloved mystery series and Elena Standish is just the latest series of hers which has quickly gained in popularity. I had purposely not read this series out of order. I have the first book queued up in my TBR list for October so I can devour the series in order! I can’t believe the third book is already coming out and the cover is gorgeous not to mention the story sounds captivating. The main character’s grandfather is at the heart of a murder investigation and Elena Standish herself works…
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Special Feature: Other People’s Things by Kerry Anne King
Its been a while since I have read a great women’s fiction novel. Don’t get me wrong I have read some amazing ones but in the last few months I haven’t picked up many women’s fiction novels as I normally do in the summer. I am a really big season reader. I like reading mysteries in the fall, romances in the winter, fantasies in the spring and women’s fiction in the summer however I changed things up a bit this year. While I might be reading out of my usual preferences during the seasons this year, that doesn’t mean that I have missed some upcoming great titles! I haven’t read…
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Cover Reveal: West Side Love Story by Priscilla Oliveras
Holy cover reveal! I am absolutely in love with this stunning cover! I literally cannot stop staring at this cover and I can’t believe I have to wait until May to read this book! I am still holding out hope for an ARC though because this cover literally makes me want to read this book like right now. Not only do I love everything about this cover but the story sounds delicious and fully worth devouring! Priscilla Oliveras has written some best selling love stories with Latin flair. I am married to a Hispanic man so naturally this kind of love story appeals to me on a number of levels.…
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Review: First Comes Scandal (Rokesbys #4) by Julia Quinn
After finishing a couple of other books in this series, I was primed to wrap the series up with this final installment. Nicholas was the brother I knew the least about as he was the youngest and I don’t know that I was looking forward to this one perhaps as much as the others simply because I didn’t know enough about his character from the previous books to really be interested in him. But as I have said before, Julia Quinn is the master at historical romances so I was happy to see what Nicholas Rokesby got up to in this one. Not to mention this one was a marriage…