Today’s book was written by Amanda Usen. As her website notes, this is along the foodie-romance vein and it was spectacular! Definitely an author I will check out again and one that I will recommend. The story is a fun one involving a small restaurant, an owner husband/wife duo with issues, a pastry chef, and a scrumptious substitute chef during the couples’ disputes. Similar in style to Louisa Edwards, this story was fun, light-hearted, but also had some great characters. It’s clear that Usen is writing from experience in the kitchen. Her descriptions of food will have your mouth watering and her kitchen knowledge was spot-on. But the heroine, Marlene, will really having you cheering. She’s the girl that really gets this story cooking. Her mutual attraction to the hero, Joe, keep the story interesting right up until the last page.
The thing I liked most about this book was that Marly was an unapologetic flirt. She went after (and got) what she wanted in life and in love. Many contemporary romances seem to still have the heroine be squeaky clean, including her sexual experience. Marly doesn’t try to hide the fact that she knows what she wants and how to get it. The hero, Joe, is similar in this regard, but this behavior never seems to be a problem for heros. The other thing that I really liked about Marly was her history of pulling herself up by her bootstraps. Working in a professional kitchen is tough work for anyone, but significantly harder on women. Marly was a great model, while she stayed true to the issues that professional kitchens run into. Usen will have a second book, Luscious, out in July and it is one that I will make sure that I download ASAP.
I am thoroughly enjoying my time off from school with a number of great books. A blog I follow, Romance Around the Corner, recommended this book as a “best of” for 2011, and after reading this book I can certainly see why. I am a staunch romance reader. I believe in the power of a happily ever after, women going after (and getting) what they want, and the freedom to choose their own destiny; these are the themes of a good romance in my book. Every now and then I’ll pick up a more traditional novel and give it a go. This was one of those books that wasn’t quite a romance, but was excellent fiction. This is definitely a book I’d recommend to anyone looking for something great to read.
Susanna Kearsley wrote this novel and it’s not a book that can easily fit into one category or another. There’s some romance, there’s a little suspense, there’s time travel, there’s unrequited love, there’s tea. What more could you want? I must admit, I was very skeptical when I first started reading it–Time travel? Are you kidding me?!–but trust me, this book was hard to put down once the story got cooking. I’m not sure if Kearsley’s other books are along the same vein, but this book was a refreshing change. Highly recommend this book to anyone looking for something fun to read.
As a masters library student, I’m always looking for new or different types of libraries to explore. As part of a project for school, I came upon a journal filled with articles written about prison libraries. After discussing this a little with a professor in my program, I was directed to this book, written by Avi Steinberg. This book was quite the read and it gave me a lot to ponder as someone interested in this type of work.
Steinberg’s book takes us through the laughs, the tears, the inadequacies, and the triumphs of working in a city prison library. Steinberg’s experience is that of a non-MLS librarian (he makes a few comments in the book that would probably not be made with the degree), but the experience he shares is truly inspiring. Reading the book the full way through (I won’t spoil anything), you know where things are going. At times, the stories are a kin to watching a car accident in slow motion. My experience working with former inmates in a library setting definitely helped me understand Steinberg’s perspective a little better. It’s tough to watch those you care about or see promise in make poor decisions. Overall, a great read and one that I would recommend as both recreational reading and those interested in our prison system.
This was a FABULOUS book by Inez Kelley, an author I’m really starting to get into. She writes these great stories with fun heros and heroines. The stories are a little different than traditional romance in that some of the issues are a little more private. This book, for example, dealt with PTSD and child abuse, as well as a host of other issues requiring some treatment. While these aren’t necessarily themes that make a good romance, it made the characters a little more human.
In this story, we meet author John Murphy and his next door neighbor, Livvy. John, we find out through the course of events, is an author of a Harry Potter-like young adult book series. He’s having a touch of writer’s block until he gets to know his sassy neighbor a little better. Livvy, the owner of a bakery called “The Sugar Shack” is trying to make ends meet and get her sister off and married. This story was fun, had some interesting themes and characters, and definitely kept me turning the page to see what was going to happen next. Since reading this book, I’ve downloaded all the Kindle books by this author. She’s fabulous and a new author that I would definitely recommend.
This past week I was enthralled by Victoria Dahl’s latest, Good Girls Don’t, Bad Boys Do, and Real Men Will. These books are all part of her latest series on the Donovan Brothers Brewery, which follows Tessa, Jamie, and Eric Donovan. The series is actually stems from a short story by Dahl in The Guy Next Door, an anthology she shares with Lori Foster and Susan Donovan. That story introduces us to the stoic older brother, Eric, as he participates in an expo directed at local businesses where he meets the manager of the White Orchid, Beth Cantrell. The White Orchid is the classy little sex shop in town, so Eric tries to play it cool with his one-night-stand by using his brother Jamie’s name. Obviously, not a good idea, especially when Jamie is pretty well-known with the ladies around the area.
Suffice it to say that these books were a fun, quick read. I needed something to get my mind off of school and night-time feedings with my daughter, and these books fit the bill. Dahl has a fun and witty writing style that makes her books difficult to put down. Can’t wait for the next series, although I can see many opportunities for off-shoots based on this series alone.
That’s a great question and I’m really glad I asked it. I started Library School in September of this year and have been busily reading through the million articles for both of my classes at the University of Illinois’s online LEEP program. So far, the program has been great, but very intense. My “fun” reading has been majorly cut down, but not taken away completely. So what have I found time to read for fun, you ask? Well, my pretties, let me tell you…
I finished the Susan Mallery trilogy on the Hendrix Sisters (Only Mine, Only His, Only Yours), which were fantastic. If you’ve kept up with this series, you know that the Hendrix sisters are triplets who live in Fool’s Gold, which is Mallery’s little HEA town. These stories were a lot of fun, and I love series where you can keep up with a family or group of friends. Mallery introduced us to many new characters who will have their own stories, I’m sure, including the holiday short novella Only Us starring the latest veterinarian Cameron McKenzie which came out today. Can’t wait to read it, even if it is short.
Last week I also have time to read the latest by Susan Donovan, another fav of mine. I read Cheri on Top, which is the first in a new series about two friends who lost a lot of money in the real estate crash and are forced to move back home to get their lives back together. In true Donovan fashion, this book had a little bit of mystery/suspense to it, but nothing too intense. Characters were funny and a great distraction for me while we were driving cross-country to attend class.
Today’s book was Turn It Up by Inez Kelley. This is my first time reading her work, but I really liked it. The story was about two friends who are, unknowingly, in love with each other. Circumstances and relationships have stopped their friendship from becoming more, but now, both single, they are ready to give it a try. What I loved about this story, in addition to the fun “bets” that these two had with each other, was the banter while they were on the air. The two of them hosted a show called “Dr. Hot and the Honeypot” where they answered sex questions. The dialogue was priceless and made me laugh out loud at times. Definitely something I needed!
These books save my sanity, folks, so don’t knock romance until you try it. I’ll try to do a better job of keeping track of my “fun” reading. I happens more sporadically now, but it’s something I make time for just the same.
Today’s book is the first in a sporty series by Jill Shalvis. More to come…
This is the latest book by Kieran Kramer in her Impossible Bachelor series. Very funny regency romance and another book I’d highly recommend.
I’m getting into this series, the Impossible Bachelors, by Kieran Kramer. These books are witty regencies with some great characters. I highly recommend this book and series. Very well written and good choices if you are looking for romances without a lot of tension, but not overly graphic.
OK, so I admit that my previous aversion to historical romance really had more to do with not finding the right authors than not liking the books. Case and point: Kieran Kramer’s first book in the Impossible Bachelors series was seriously one of the best books I’ve read all year. This book was funny, light, but had an interesting enough plot and lovable characters that I literally had trouble putting it down and was genuinely sad when the book was finished. Luckily for me, though, there are a few other books in this series already published. Yeah!
So why did I think it was so good? First off, I loved the heroine. She was feisty and original. We initially meet her as she’s off to marry a man very ill-suited for her, but she’s too old to have a “season” in London and her father’s not a major player in her life. As with many of these stories, the mother has died long ago, thus not giving the heroine enough guidance during her formative years in the ways of love and romance. But Molly is left at the inn where she and Cedric have stopped to have a snack because he runs off with a tart. The tart was the mistress of Harry Traemore, arch nemesis of our fair heroine. But now without an escort and far away from home, Molly has no choice but to go with Harry and pretend to be his mistress for a week at a competition Harry is part of–the Most Desirable Companion.
Harry was a riot and these two had some amazing chemistry. Unlike many romance novels I read, I really felt like these two were suited for each other and that their feelings were genuine. I laughed out loud, and cried a little, because this book was just too good! If you like regency romance, you need to give this author a shot. She’s fabulous and I cannot wait to read the other books in this series!
