To Read, or Not To Read

Title: Son of Set (Descendants of Isis #2) Author:  Kelsey Ketch Published: May 2, 2014 ISBN13: 9781499137149 Paperback, 304 pages Genre: Fantasy Source: Bought Summary: Seth O'keefe has broken the laws of his god.  He never thought he would sacrifice his own future to protect a Daughter of Isis.  But when the Sons of Set discover discover Natti is the Secret Keeper, he had no choice.  Now, Seth and Natti are on the run from his father, who wants nothing more than to see his son dead.  With no allies, Seth turns to the Daughters off Isis for help, hoping they would protect Natti.  But when they meet the Daughters, he discovers a secret that puts both their lives in more danger.  Low on options, Seth sees only one possibility for survival.  He must solve an ancient puzzle and find the secret name of Ra. My Thoughts: Kelsey Ketch has delivered a great continuation in the second book of the Descendants of Isis series.  Quick paced, edge of your seat

Title: A Question of Death: An Illustrated Phryne Fisher Treasury Author: Kerry Greenwood Publisher: Poison Ink Press Published: December 2, 2014 Paperback, 254 pages ISBN: 978-1-4642-0362-6 Genre: Mystery Source: Publisher Goodreads Summary: The Honorable Phryne Fisher--she of the Lulu bob, green eyes, cupid's bow lips, and diamante garters--is the 1920's most elegant sleuth. This sparkling collection of Phryne short stories and other Phryne miscellany is lavishly illustrated with divine color illustrations by Beth Norling. My Thoughts: I was first introduced to Phryne Fisher through Netflix. I stumbled across a series, Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries and fell immediately in love. Phyrne is a lady detective in the 1920's living in Australia. She's a very modern, sassy, sexy kind of woman. So imagine my excitement when I learned that the series is based off a book series by Kerry Greenwood. A Question of Death is a collection of thirteen s

After a day filled with deadlines, traffic, and demands at the office and at home, you need to find ways to unwind. Whether your method of choice is a warm bubble bath, listening to your favorite music or sipping a hot cup of tea, studies show nothing relaxes you faster and or longer than reading a novel. And what could be more soothing than getting sucked into a story of blooming love, with charismatic characters that make you forget all your troubles? With more than 800 romance books hitting the shelves each month, no one writes more prescriptions for relaxation than Harlequin. ·           NEVER TRUST A COWBOY   by   Kathleen Eagle  –  The New York Times  bestselling author of more than 40 romance novels gives us the sweet-talking, rugged cowboy we’ve been craving in her latest Midwestern romance. ·           SNOWED IN WITH HER EX   by   Andrea Laurence  –   The award-winning author mixes the magic of a blizzard, remote mountain cabin and a charming ex to create th

Title: Zodiac (Zodiac #1) Author: Romina Russell Publisher: Razor Bill Published: December 9, 2014 Hardcover, 336 pages ISBN: 978-1-59514-740-0 Genre: Science Fiction/Fantasy Source: Publisher Goodreads Summary: Rhoma Grace is a 16-year-old student from House Cancer with an unusual way of reading the stars. While her classmates use measurements to make accurate astrological predictions, Rho can’t solve for ‘x’ to save her life—so instead, she looks up at the night sky and makes up stories. When a violent blast strikes the moons of Cancer, sending its ocean planet off-kilter and killing thousands of citizens—including its beloved Guardian—Rho is more surprised than anyone when she is named the House’s new leader. But, a true Cancerian who loves her home fiercely and will protect her people no matter what, Rho accepts. Then, when more Houses fall victim to freak weather catastrophes, Rho starts seeing a pattern in the stars. She suspects Ophiuchus—the exiled 13th Guardia

TRUSTING LIAM  by Molly McAdams On-sale    6/4/2015 When Kennedy Ryan moves to California, she never expects to come face-to-face with Liam Taylor-the intriguing man she hasn’t been able to forget. Somehow Liam managed to get Kennedy to let down her guard for a single night of passion that ended up meaning more than it was ever supposed to. Accustomed to disastrous experiences with men, Kennedy shields herself before he can break down more of the carefully built control she’s clung to for the last four years. But every time she sees Liam, she feels her resolve weakening. Liam Taylor has been asked to befriend his boss’s nieces. But what starts out as a reluctant favor ends up leading Liam to the only girl who ever slipped away before morning-a girl he thought he’d never find again. And now that she’s within reach, Liam’s determined to never let her go. When a secret from her past tests their relationship, will they be able to cling to the trust Liam has worked so hard t

Title: The Thursday Night Club: A Tale of Christmas Spirit Author: Steven Manchester Publisher: The Story Plant Published: November 18, 2014 ebook Genre: Fiction Source: Author Goodreads Summary: Five college friends, three men and two women, have been getting together every Thursday night to share humble meals and an abundance of laughter. But when tragedy takes one of them, leaving the others to question the fairness of life, the Thursday Night Club decides to embark on a contest in the memory of the generous spirit of their fallen brother. The objective of the contest is simple: whoever performs the kindest deed by Christmas night wins the pot – four quarters. And there are only two conditions: the benevolent deed must be anonymous, and it cannot cost a single penny to pull off. As the four friends undertake the contest, the healing begins and they become inspired beyond their expectations. There might be a winner in this competition, but it is very clear there will

In anticipation of Frost's latest book, BOUND BY FLAMES ,   HALFWAY TO THE GRAVE ( Night Huntress  #1) and  ONCE BURNED   ( Night Prince  #1) are both on sale in e-book for $1.99 for a limited time! Experience Cat and Bones and Vlad and Leila’s first meetings all over again!   About BOUND BY FLAMES Leila’s years on the carnie circuit were certainly an education. What she didn’t learn: how to be a vampire, or how to be married to the most famous vampire of them all. Adjusting to both has Leila teetering on a knife edge between passion and peril, and now the real danger is about to begin... Vlad must battle with a centuries-old enemy whose reach stretches across continents and whose strength equals his own. It isn’t like Vlad to feel fear, but he does...for Leila, because his enemy knows she is Vlad’s greatest weakness. As friend and foe alike align against him-and his protectiveness drives Leila away-Vlad’s love for his new bride could be the very thing that dooms th

What would you do if you lived through the apocalypse? The real fight to survive comes after everyone else is gone. A plague of epic proportion sweeps the globe, leaving less than one percent of the world’s population immune. Among the living is Autumn Winters, the teenage daughter of a famous actress. When Autumn’s parents don’t come home and the city is overtaken by a dangerous faction, she goes into hiding with a small group of underground survivors. They’re led by a mysterious young man who harbors an unearthly secret, and with whom Autumn feels a deep connection. Autumn in the City of Angels is the first novel in a series, followed by Autumn in the Dark Meadows and Autumn in the City of Lights. 1. What would you do if you lived through the apocalypse? Well, first off, we’d take a cue from the bad guys in our book and go to bulk warehouse stores and stock up on non-perishables and fluids.  Then, we’d probably hole up in a library.  What better place to keep yourse

SYNOPSIS Nearly a decade ago, accountant Kari Parker shed 220 pounds of dead weight — her hulking, abusive college boyfriend. The last thing she wants in her life is another man — especially one as tall as a Windy City high rise. Yet when her best friend enters her in Romance TV’s “Get a Love Life” contest, another man is exactly what she gets. As much as she'd love to just say no, she can't turn down the prize money that will allow her to help her parents save the restaurant they've run all her life. Sparks fly between Kari and her bogus groom, and as she and Damien share close quarters, intimate meals and—gulp—his bed, Kari doesn’t stand a chance of resisting his considerable charms. Even worse? She might not want to. But building a real future out of their sham marriage will be tougher than baking a wedding cake from scratch … with no flour … in a broken oven. PURCHASE BLIND DATE BRIDE Amazon - Kindle Amazon Paperback B & N - N

So far this year, I have been addicted to two shows which are essentially the same show. Gracepoint  aired on Fox in the fall of 2014. It's a ten episode mini-series based on the UK show Broadchurch . If you're not familiar with either show let me summarize what it's about: Two detectives investigate a murder of a boy in a small town. I mostly wanted to watch this because of David Tennant. Though I liked both series, I prefer David Tennant with his Scottish accent. If you've not had an opportunity to watch Gracepoint , it's available on Hulu. It took watching a few episodes before I was able to get invested in the series. It's also a little difficult to watch. After all it's about the murder of a young boy. I have a hard time watching/reading anything where children are harmed in any way. With each episode, secrets are uncovered and neighbors are suspected. I was completely surprised when the murderer was revealed.  Unfortunately because of low ratin

What advice do you have for aspiring authors? I get this question a lot, and while I’d like to say I have a one-sentence answer that would sum it all up, the truth is that becoming an author takes a lot of steps. Here are the five main things that I believe writers need to do if they’d like to be published one day. 1. Read. Imagine if you wanted to play for the NFL but you’d never seen a football game, or you wanted to be a movie star but you’d never watched a movie. It wouldn’t work very well, would it? The same is true for books. In order to know the field you’re getting into, you have to read widely and often. 2. Keep asking “What if?” You never know where inspiration will come from. With my Dirt Diary series, for example, the idea for the first book came from a story I heard on the radio about a girl who had to clean houses with her mom. I wondered: “What if you had to scrub the toilets of the most popular kids in school?”  That single “what if?” inspired a whole t

Publication Date: January 6, 2015 Minotaur Books Formats: eBook, Hardcover Genre: Historical Mystery Lady Montfort has been planning her annual summer costume ball for months, and with scrupulous care. Pulling together the food, flowers and a thousand other details for one of the most significant social occasions of the year is her happily accepted responsibility. But when her husband’s degenerate nephew is found murdered, it’s more than the ball that is ruined. In fact, Lady Montfort fears that the official police enquiry, driven by petty snobbery and class prejudice, is pointing towards her son as a potential suspect. Taking matters into her own hands, the rather over-imaginative countess enlists the help of her pragmatic housekeeper, Mrs. Jackson, to investigate the case, track down the women that vanished the night of the murder, and clear her son’s name. As the two women search for a runaway housemaid and a headstrong young woman, they unearth the hi