Review: The Darlings by Cristina Alger

The economy is in a downward spiral and no one knows this better than those in the world of high finance. On Wall Street on of the leaders in the world of hedge funds and wealth is billionaire Carter Darling.

The Darling family is well known in the powerful circles of New York City’s elite upper class….a world where a house in the Hamptons, offshore bank accounts, hedge funds, corporate corruption, tabloid gossip, and extra marital affairs are all a common part of the society.  

When attorney Paul Ross married Carter Darling’s daughter, Merrill, he knew what he was getting into but what he didn’t know was he would be caught right in the middle of a red hot scandal.

When Paul loses his job at his current law firm, Carter steps in and offers him a job as general counsel for his hedge fund corporation, Delphic. Though he is a little weary, Paul accepts it anyway.

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Review: Quickies by Ollie Levy (Short Story Collection)

In this collection we meet a wide variety of people from all walks of life….some are married, single, engaged…..some have high flyer careers, and some are average Joe’s, but they all have one thing in common….they all love a good quickie.

Why fuss with a marathon love making session when a quickie will get the job done? That’s the question that Ollie Levy explores in her series of short stories appropriately titled Quickies.

What I loved about this collection was each randevú was short and sweet. There wasn’t a lot of back story and the characters literally got right down to business. It made for a fast and steamy read. It wasn’t overly graphic and the sex scenes were all tastefully done.

Sex scenes are always difficult to write….too much one way and they are raunchy, too much the other way and they are cheesy…Levy got it right in this story collection. They were all written with a practiced hand that shows erotica at it’s finest.

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Review: Me Before You by Jojo Moyes

Will Traynor has everything going for him–he’s rich, good looking, powerful, adventurous, cultured, vibrant, and successful.

Until one day, a tragic accident takes all of that away leaving him with nothing but memories of  a previous life. Will is now a quadriplegic who must rely on others to fulfill his basic needs.

Naturally he is depressed and hates that his once fulfilling, active life is now nothing but a series of doctor appointments and catheter changes. He simply wants to die.

After the accident, Will moved from his posh London residence to his parents house near Stortfold Castle in the English country side. He is miserable.

Louisa “Lou” Clark has known nothing but the small town surrounding Stortfold Castle her whole life. Her life is simple and uncomplicated until she loses her job. Some wouldn’t think of waitressing as a fun job, but Lou likes it. She gets to meets lots of different people and basically live vicariously through them.

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Review: Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn

This book takes fatal attraction to a whole new level.

Nick and Amy Dunne have been married for five years when suddenly she’s gone…..no explanation, no note, nothing.  She is simply gone.

Nick does what any sane man would do when his wife ends up missing….he calls the police. When the police come out, they quickly notice that things aren’t adding up. There are signs of a struggle and there are holes in Nick’s story and timeline.

Suddenly Nick finds himself as the prime suspect in Amy’s disappearance.

The evidence is pretty damning and in the court of public opinion….he’s more than guilty of the disappearance if not murder. But is he really?

Nick maintains his innocents but he does have something to hide…..a secret that if revealed could ruin him. But is the secret motivation enough for murder?

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Review: Stabs at Happiness by Todd Grimson (Short Story Collection)

These are the stories of societies taboo outcasts. The characters that polite society would rather ignore. Degenerative and hopeless, these characters help set the tone and paint this collection of short stories the darkest black.

Many of the characters in this collection are drug users/dealers, prostitutes, killers, and transvestites…..but they all have something in common, they are all looking for a little bit of happiness and hope in their own hopeless lives.

Author Todd Grimson effortlessly blends powerful storytelling with gritty prose to create a new provocative approach to contemporary literature.

Grimson’s style has been described as esoteric, and I would agree….I think his style would appeal to a limited audience, however it is an exciting style that I think literary buffs who don’t mind reading a highly intelligent, gritty, modern gothic style story or two should pick this up.

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