Another Good One by Erin McCarthy

A night of indulgence can feel like an eternity. Gwenna Carrick has a history- 900 years of it. As the vampiress ex-wife of the notorious vampire Roberto Donatelli, she must keep a low profile. Not easy when you're bathed in the neon glow of Las Vegas-especially when there's a whole online group of vampire slayers bent on dealing you your last hand. A wild night with a stranger was not in the cards for Gwenna. But that's what happened when she met the ruggedly handsome detective Nate Thomas. Their passion made her feel alive again. But when Donatelli catches wind of the tryst, he's determined to clean house, with Nate the first on his to-off list. Gwenna knows she hit the jackpot with Nate and won't let anyone stand in the way. But both soon realize they have far more enemies than Donatelli- both on the strip and underground.

Apparently this is book number four in a series called Vegas Vampires. I was unaware of that when I first picked up this book. It didn't really matter though, because it was easy to follow even without having read the others.

I have to say that I was pleasantly surprised by this book. Once again, I loved the way that McCarthy described her characters in vivid details. I loved how Gwenna came into her own in this book. Her ex-husband controlled her for over three hundred years. By the end of this book she was a very powerful and self-efficient woman. I loved seeing her growth.

I also loved how Nate came to love her. He started out thinking she was a ditzy blonde, but then saw her for the wonderful person (vampire) she was. I thought the ending was a bit rushed and would love to have seen more of a bigger ending with Nate and Gwenna. Having said that though, I loved this book and will continue to read more of Erin McCarthy. She is quickly becoming one of my favorite authors!

Finding Me by Darnella Ford

(Book Jacket) Eleven-year-old Blaze James and her twin sister, Aerial know two things beyond a doubt. They're two of the prettiest girls in Shreveport, Louisiana, and they'll always be there for each other. Then, one night, a gas explosion leaves their father dead and Aerial severely burned, changing their lives forever. While Aerial goes with their mother to Baton Rouge for treatment, Blaze stays behind with a neighbor. Free-spirited and unconventional, Felicity Hardaway opens Blaze's eyes to a whole new world, inspiring her to explore her own budding desires...and the answers she finds will bring passion, betrayal, and a love beyond expectations.

This book is nothing like I have ever read before. NO-THING! Ford has done such a tremendous job of creating this smart-mouthed little girl from Louisiana that it just pulled me in and I could not stop reading. I was rooting for Blaze. I was getting angry with Blaze. There were times I was even asking Blaze, "What the hell are you doing?"

The one thing that I loved about this book was how much her life changed from the beginning to the end. The book starts at eleven years old and ends at her being twenty some. The changes she goes through are so amazing that I could not believe it myself. There was even a nice little twist at the end that I had to make sure I had read it correctly.

I will be BRUTALLY honest to those that are reading my post. It is NOTHING like what you will ever read. There is sex. There are lesbians. There are smart-mouthed people who like to swear, smoke, and yell at each other. Having said that, you must read this book! Go out and buy it now. It will change everything that you think about love, life, and how we changed. I am so happy to have picked up this book.

There isn't a score high enough for this book. Just read it!

Calling All Bookworms

I have added a new link to my bookmarks. Welcome PaperSpine!

If you read as much as I do then you definitely need www.paperspine.com This is the NetFlix for books. Right now, I have a membership where I get three books at a time. I keep them for as long as I want to and then I return them in the pre-paid envelope. Surprisingly, there are a lof of people who DON'T know about this site and it is such a crime! I pay 14.95 a month to be the best bookworm that I can be! Also, if you decide that the book you have just read is a keeper, you can have and pay for the price of the book.

I do hope that you will visit this fabulous site! It really is worth the money. They have so many books to choose from and if they do not have a certain book, they can order it for you!

Happy surfing (and reading!)

Broadening My Horizons

Okay, so today I made my trek to the library to check out some more summer reading. Lately, I've been reading a lot more chick books to fulfill my summer. However, I wanted to broaden my scope, read some more interesting authors. Koontz, Gaiman, Cussler, etc. Which posed this question to me: How can ALL of those authors' books be checked out at the same time?

Perplexed and unsure of what to do next, I, ultimately, was forced to go back to the authors that were my safe haven: Crusie, Foster, and McCarthy. Help! I am in desperate need of some reading recommendations!

Thanks!

From the woman who brought you "Must Love Dogs"

Summer Blowout by Claire Cook

(description from Amazon.com) Bella Shaughnessy is addicted to lipstick with names like My Chihuahua Bites and Kiss My Lips, an occupational hazard, since she works as a stylist and makeup artist for her family's small chain of beauty salons in Marshbury, Massachusetts, along with her four half-brothers and -sisters. The owner is her father, Lucky Shaughnessy, a gregarious, three-times-divorced charmer with Donald Trump hair, who is obsessed with all things Italian and still carries a torch for his first wife, Bella's mother. After Bella's own marriage flames out spectacularly when her half-sister runs off with her husband, Bella decides she has seen enough of the damage love can do. She makes a vow: no more men.

Then Bella meets a cute entrepreneur at a college fair, and despite their bickering, they can't seem to stay away from each other. He also gives her a brilliant business idea, one that just might allow her to share her makeup expertise with the world. A small, well-tressed dog finds her way into her life, and her heart, and she decides to chance that, too. When the whole clan heads to Atlanta for a big Southern wedding, sparks fly--in a summer blowout no one will ever forget.

I have to start by saying that I absolutely loved "Must Love Dogs". I had read the book and seen the movie and I loved both. So, naturally, I was very excited to start reading Claire Cook's "Summer Blowout". The characters in this book were absolutely amazing! I could form a vivid picture of the whole Irish (Italian) Shaughnessy clan right down to the many salons and customers that they had.

One of my favorite parts of this book was the dog, Precious. Cook described her so well that I started wishing for my own pocketbook pooch. Later in the book, Precious gets a new name, and I was astounded. To me, the dog would always be Precious.

Also precious, was Sean Ryan. (first name Sean, last name Ryan) Bella was introduced to him as Sean Ryan and throughout the book, was not able to separate the name into two. I loved this man right from the beginning and I could tell he was going to be a great guy! They had a bickering at the beginning that had such chemistry that I was rooting for both of them to come together.

There was so much about this book to love, that I can go on and on. The family dynamics of Bella's husband sleeping with her half-sister, the wonderful and vivid descriptions of the makeup and the job that a makeup artist does, the father's love of his women and never getting over his first wife. There is just so much entertainment wrapped up into this one book. I am definitely becoming a fan of Claire Cook and look forward to reading all of her work. I even hope that this book will be turned into a movie too, because I loved how the first one turned out.

As my summer reading continues, this is one summer blowout that I will never forget.

A++++

You Don't Know Jack by Erin McCarthy

It's summer! And since it is officially summer (to this teacher anyway), I am in full reading mode. I have, therefore, decided to pick up my blog once more (not that anyone reads it anyway) and begin with my second book of the summer. You Don't Know Jack is about a woman, Jamie, who gets her fortune told by a cross-dressing psychic. In her fortune, she will meet her soul mate, involving food, and accident, and a lie. This is basically what happens and in enters Jack. He is Jamie's roommate's brother and she doesn't know this. He's been keeping an eye on her because he's afraid she's in to some illegal activity at her work at Social Services.

I really did love the chemistry of this book. It is more on the "naughty" side than some contemporary romance. I picked up this book because it was reviewed by Lori Foster and I thought, "Well, if she liked it." It was a very hot read and great for anyone who loves romance stories.

My only issue with this book is that it did not touch enough on Jamie's job and the illegal activity going on. It was like, "Oh, here it is...now, back to the sex and lusting." I know that is a big part of romance novels, but I just thought there needed to be some more to the story.

That aside, the story was wonderful. The characters were very captivating and I loved the chemistry between Jamie and Jack. I have never read anything by Ms. McCarthy before and I say Bravo. A delightful book.

B+

One of the Best! The Pleasure Was Mine by Tommy Hays

This book was quite possibly one of the best, emotional books I have ever read. The book is about a man, Prate, who has to take care of her wife after her recent development of Alzheimer's. He decides to put her in a nursing home. His son, Newell, who has recently lost his wife, asks Prate if he can watch Jackson (Newell's son) for the summer. while he attends art school. Prate isn't really sure what to do with his grandson for a whole summer, while going to the nursing home to watch and care for his wife, Irene.

This book was wonderful in so many ways. I loved that with all of Irene's forgetfulness, Prate never stopped loving her. There were two different stories going on here that were tied into one. Newell is trying to forget his wife who died and Prate is trying to get his wife to remember him. The way Tommy Hays wrote this book opens up even the coldest heart. I found tears streaming down my eyes with how Prate described the love for his wife. I have never felt so renewed as when I finished this book. Tommy Hays, the pleasure was mine!

A+ (There aren't enough +'s in the world!)