Book: Strangers She Knows by Christina Dodd

Strangers She Knows by Christina Dodd

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Great way to end the trilogy. The entire family has a renewed sense of appreciation for each other, and there's hope on the horizon.



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Book: Brotherhood in Death by J.D. Robb

Brotherhood in Death by J.D. Robb
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I really enjoy the changes in Eve's life, and the way the books have increased the focus on secondary characters. My only complaint, for the most part, is the sex. It's just...(I can't believe I'm saying this) boring.

I'd be perfectly happy if the inevitable Eve/Roarke sex scenes could be fade to black from now on. I get more fun out of the conversations they have and their references leading up to sex than I do from the smexy scenes themselves. WTF.

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Book: Maine by J. Courtney Sullivan

Maine by J. Courtney Sullivan

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


This book was a slog for me. I started to get more interested toward the end, and the book just ended. I'm not sure if I want to interpret that last line as the woman finally croaking, or just another woman from her group coming over to get her for their meeting.

There were definitely moments, but for the most part, I did not find this book enjoyable. It was not funny. It was painful to watch the hateful way this family interacted with each other.

I couldn't identify with Alice at all, and being the matriarch, she pervaded the book. Reading her life story in bits and pieces was a train wreck, surrounded by the train wreck of her current existence.

It was well-written, and I found few, if any, mistakes, so I can't go lower than three stars, but I really can't recommend this book to anyone I like.



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Books: FBI Trilogy by Allison Brennan

I saw these at the local library, and since I'd enjoyed the Lucy Kincaid books so much, I decided to read these, too. These are set earlier than the Lucy series, and Lucy does not feature in them, to my recollection.

Sudden Death by Allison Brennan

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


This was a helluva start to a trilogy.

The killer was amazingly smart, and had a personal stake in keeping Megan involved in the investigation.

It was great to watch the foundation being built for the family which will surround Lucy Kincaid. And I learned something new about acupuncture!

I did find about a dozen mistakes, and those always pull me out of the story.



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Fatal Secrets by Allison Brennan

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


I enjoyed the slow-burn in this one. The plot featured heavily, and though the romance was present, it wasn't the focus of the story, so the relationship progressed by a series of stages.

Xavier Jones isn't who anyone thinks he is, and finding this dude and taking him down take some serious footwork, cooperation, risks, and thinking outside the box.

Found this one at the local library.



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Cutting Edge by Allison Brennan

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


This one felt familiar almost from the beginning, so I must've read it in the last year or so, and hadn't marked it. It was worth reading again, though.

In this one, Nora survives an off-the-grid early life, finds a way to get out, and manages to take her little sister with her.

She and Duke, along with a sizable team, investigate the arson fire and death of a biotech guy, and find much more than they bargained for. By the time it's all done, Nora's got several surprises in store.

I enjoyed this one, and really liked getting to know Lucy's family, before Lucy is a real character.



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Books: Mythos Academy series by Jennifer Estep

Jennifer Estep was on my wishlist, and though I didn't find the book I was looking for at the library, I did find Touch of Frost and decided to read it. I found all of these at a local library.

Touch of Frost by Jennifer Estep

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Not generally a big fan of first-person pov, but I'm finding this semi-clueless heroine sort of refreshing.



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Kiss of Frost by Jennifer Estep

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Fun twist on mythology. Egregious overuse of "that." Estep is a bit heavy-handed with the info-refreshers, and the main character regularly maims the English language, but I'm enjoying the series anyway.



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Dark Frost by Jennifer Estep

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


I am getting a bit weary of the heavy-handed recaps in each book, but the narrative is still keeping me interested. One of very few YA books/series I'm actually enjoying.



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Crimson Frost by Jennifer Estep

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


The stakes went way up in this one! Gwen is growing, learning more about herself and her powers.

Huge challenges for her to face, resulting from previous actions.



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Midnight Frost by Jennifer Estep

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Midnight Frost was a wee bit predictable. I saw the villain coming the moment we met the person. I knew what would happen when Gwen met the Gryphons. There were a couple of surprises, and knowing what would happen didn't negatively impact my enjoyment of the book any.

I loved learning more about Gwen's extended family, and I look forward to seeing how what she's learned will impact her future actions.

I do enjoy Gwen reaping the fruits of being herself - she's a kind person at heart, and it shows in the way the supernatural world responds to her, Reapers notwithstanding.

Looking forward to Killer Frost.



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Killer Frost by Jennifer Estep

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


As an end to a series, it was pretty good. Gwen muddled along fighting the bad guys until the very end, and her blast of genius made a dramatic difference in the fight.

I'm still so very curious about many of the main characters, so I wish the author would post some shorts or snippets of post-series life on her website for fans to read.

I'll probably be looking for some more Estep to read fairly soon, and I hope her other YA books have the same style. I don't enjoy most YA, but her characters were complex and there was no dreaded love triangle.



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Books: Lucy Kincaid #7-10 by Allison Brennan

All of these books were from local public libraries.

Cold Snap by Allison Brennan

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Cold Snap was fun. The first third of the book was about Lucy's brother Patrick, who had been sent to check on a friend of the family. Except for frequent mentions of the Kincaid name, I pretty much forgot I was supposed to be reading a Lucy Kincaid novel. I enjoyed Patrick and Elle's adventures. They're both compelling characters.

The middle third of the story was set at "home" for the Kincaids, where they'd all been planning to gather for a family Christmas.

A family emergency pushes the timetable forward, and stuff happens, as is wont to do with Lucy around, and almost the entire Kincaid clan is involved in one way or another.

The remainder of the book is wrapping up loose ends, catching a killer, gathering for Christmas, and a surprise visitor.

Anyway, unlike the book which "starred" Sean, I didn't feel a sense of missing something because Lucy wasn't front and center.

Cold Snap was a great addition to the Lucy Kincaid series.

This was one of my wishlist books, and I found it at the local library.



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Dead Heat by Allison Brennan

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Dead Heat is the first of the series set in San Antonio.

So far, other than generic references to local places of interest, I haven't recognized anything. Didn't really expect to, though.

Parts of this one are a bit unbelievable. Lucy's been up before the OPR three times, twice as a recruit, and yet, she's still a special agent? I know Lucy's good, but someone somewhere's got to be pulling strings for her, and I'm left wondering about their intentions, and why no one else (character-wise) wonders.

I really liked Lucy spending so much time with Kane. He's a strong, silent type, and getting to know him through Lucy's eyes is fun. He's actually a nice guy, and I'm looking forward to learning more about him, and to him falling in love. Because, let's be real, this is a romantic suspense series. I think it's in the rule book. :D

Sean has made the adjustment to SA pretty well, and is digging in and networking. He's getting jobs, and because of one, he's only in part of the book. When he gets more involved, he's fairly peripheral, and Lucy works mostly with Kane, not with Sean. I like the division here - Lucy is a competent person and needs to remember that. Sean tends to take care of her a little too much.

Bottom line, I liked this one, and look forward to getting the next one.



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Best Laid Plans by Allison Brennan

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


In this one, Lucy and Sean have some good moments, taking a little time for themselves and spending quality time with family.

Lucy struggles with inner demons relating to her ordeal when she was a teenager, and it wears on her, both at work and at home.

As the trial of Nicole Rollins approaches, everybody shifts into high gear to keep up with current cases and make sure Nicole goes to prison for a long time.

I'm giving this one a four, though bits of it dragged for me. It's a good enough addition to the series, and moves Sean and Lucy's relationship forward, too.



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No Good Deed by Allison Brennan

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


The stakes are raised in this one; so much more is riding on Lucy keeping her cool despite the pokes at her weak spots. The people being hunted know things about her they shouldn't, and Lucy has more than a few moments of doubt about herself and her future as an agent.

She's got interesting insights into the murder investigation and manhunt, and fights to have her opinions heard. On top of everything else, someone she works with just plain doesn't like her, and Lucy can't figure out how to handle that.

This was a great addition, and should be read right after #9, if at all possible, as it follows directly.



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Book: Men Out of Uniform - novella collection

Men Out of Uniform by Sylvia Day

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


The first novella, taking up nearly half the book, was sweet. I enjoyed the heroes' no bull approach to seducing the heroine, and the tension created by the plot twist was compelling. Both heroes were refreshingly honest and forthright, except for their one big misstep, which frankly, I'm not sure how they could have gone the other way.

The second novella started out with a gratuitous and mildly graphic sex scene involving the "hero." It lays the foundation for an unlikeable man with bad intentions for the heroine. Turns out he doesn't, but I still kept expecting him to frak over the heroine and show his true colors. Once emotion entered the story, it flowed better, but I still finished the novella with a vague expectation that something big was going to go wrong.

The third novella was Sylvia Day's contribution. It was a solid novella, and the chemistry between the hero and heroine was understated yet believable.

Two of the three novellas were second-chance romances, so the insta-love had a reason for being. All three had a bit too much focus on anal sex instead of vaginal sex.

It IS possible to have sex in a romance without having anal sex. It's not the be-all and end-all of sexual intimacy. I can deal with it, but too much is too much, for frak's sake.

Despite these three authors being major players, I found the collection as a whole mediocre, though some of that was personal, I think. Your mileage may and probably will vary.

This book was on my "wishlist," and I found it at the library.



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Book: Sea Swept by Nora Roberts

Sea Swept by Nora Roberts

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Loved the found family theme - the idea of these men expanding their family to include a young boy.

I also loved the sexual agency Anna had here - she knew what she wanted and didn't hesitate to go after it.

The love scenes are a little too much like the overly flowery scenes I've been reading in Roberts/Robb's In Death series. They're too...ugh, I don't even know what I'm trying to say.

Anyway, good book. Probably not a repeat read.

I can't be the only person who wants a little more time with a couple after the issues are resolved. It always seems so abrupt - " I can't live without you." "Oh, me too." The end.

I've got two of the other books in the series, but I haven't yet decided if I'm going to read them or not.



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It's odd, but in this case, I'd kind of rather have a bullet-pointed list of what happens, except for how it applies to Seth, because the most interesting developments are in his growth and healing.

Maybe I'm just not a boilerplate romance reader anymore. :/

Books: Magic... by Ilona Andrews

I've been finishing these so fast, I'm just going to throw them all in one update.

Magic Strikes
The mystery of Kate is solved! It wasn't a surprise, but it was quite a doozy.

Saiman is his usual trickster self here, though we get some insight into his backstory, too.

The friendships between Kate and various Pack members are solidified in different ways, and Julie has a cameo.

Nice movement forward as far as Kate goes. I'm already on to the next. lol

Magic Bleeds
Kate faces an ethical dilemma in this one, and I like the way it's resolved. It'll take her in a slightly different but not entirely new direction.

Her big bad is someone closer than she expects, and it's an interesting opponent for her, with some personal consequences.

I'm already on to the next book. Can't wait to see how they up the ante in this one.

Magic Slays
Wow. They really went all out with this one. Kate's firmly ensconced in her new offices, practically bored out of her skull, simultaneously adjusting to her new role as Curran's official mate.

This time, the big bad comes closer than ever, and it takes everything Kate's got and then some to come up with a solution.

I'm definitely enjoying this series, though it's got more errors than I like to see in a professionally published book. I think there's only one left, and I'll have to get that one in print, unfortunately.

Book: Magic Burns by Ilona Andrews

The stakes were bigger in this one, and I liked the way all the pieces fit together to both make this story work and move Kate forward in her own personal arc.

The mystery of Kate's origins will become tedious if it continues to be held out as a carrot for this reader. I want clues or for it not to be the burden Kate believes it will be.

I also want some personal growth. She needs to realize her relationships with others are a strength rather than a weakness.

I'm enjoying the universe/characters enough to keep reading. On to the third, which I've already loaded to my Kindle from the library!

General State of the GrammaGirl

I've been struggling a bit since Dad died. I'm struggling more with a lack of social interaction than directly from grief, which is a little odd. I'm not usually the most social person, but I'm finding more and more I need SOME in-person friendsy stuff to keep me on a more even keel.

I really miss Mrs. Potatohead and Baby Potatohead. Florida's not as far as Italy, but it's still pretty far from Dallas.

The antidepressant is helping, but it's not enough. I'm functioning, but not functioning well. I'm glad I have that little bit, though. It's definitely better than the years I did without any kind of meds at all. I can feel it making a difference, just not enough of a difference. :/

Ten days ago was Dad's birthday, and coincidentally nine months since his death.

I slept through the day. Like nearly forty-eight hours' worth of sleep. I did that again this week. Went to sleep Monday, woke up Wednesday. I'm not sure what that's about, and I'm not thrilled with it. I'm just glad I have the freedom to let my body do its thing.

My editing work is on a bit of a hiatus, as one author has not finished his fourth book yet, and another one is taking her time going through my revisions on book seven. What this amounts to is not having ANY income in February, March, or April, nor thus far in May. That's eating away at my already trying-to-get-blood-from-a-stone budget. I had to ask friends for help last week so I could buy groceries. That wasn't fun - it's not in my nature to be comfortable asking for help, but I'm going to have to get over myself sometime, right? Maybe that's what the universe is waiting for - me to get over myself.

I had another author lined up for December, and that would have been good, but she misunderstood my contract terms and chose to retain her current editor. Life happens. I hope that she'll reconsider in the future, now that I've clarified my contract with her.

I definitely need more editing work, though, so if you know someone who's writing a book, or a paper, or anything with which he or she might need assistance, please let me know. I'm a good editor, and I want to make a living, and my prices are flexible because I work for myself.

For that matter, I can also do transcription, or any number of other things, as long as I can do them from home. I don't travel much to client locations, but I will here in greater DFW.

I'm not getting much writing done lately, either, which is also exacerbating the depression. I use the writing as a coping mechanism, and when I can't write, it just makes things worse. Catch-22.  However, I'm on a bit of a reading kick - finding books at the library which have long been on my wishlist, and I've been reading a LOT. My To Be Read pile never gets any smaller, that's for sure.

Anyway, that's the current State of the Gramma: keeping on keeping on. The Taurus in me plods along well. I'm stubborn for sure.

Book: Magic Bites by Ilona Andrews

It's an interesting world she's created here.

I found Kate's odd way of speaking without contractions annoying, especially since I couldn't figure out if it was intentional or not. When it faded, I'm not sure if I stopped noticing it, or if the writer fixed the dialogue, but I was nearly halfway through the book before that happened.

I've had these books on my Evernote wishlist for quite a while now, so I was pleased to find them available in digital form at my local library. I'm intrigued enough to keep reading, especially since I have the next two already on my Kindle. :D

Book: Holding Out For a Hero by HelenKay Dimon

Holding Out For a Hero had been on my To Read list for well over a year, so when I found it at the local library, I was really looking forward to reading it.

What a disappointment. The plot held promise, but failed to deliver to my satisfaction.

The heroine was bland and boring, though seriously annoying. Should I ever have the misfortune to have someone like her in my personal life, I plan to run, not walk, the other way, and possibly file stalking charges. Really. She hired the man to investigate, then hired someone else to shadow him, so she would always know where he was and she could show up anywhere, including at a friend's house when he was having dinner.

Chemistry between the romantic couple was more fizzle than sizzle. The love scenes were a bit like reading the Wall Street Journal - that is, tedious. About 60% through the book (the first love scene was at about 55%), I started skimming pages and fully reading every third or fourth page. I'm pretty sure I didn't miss anything important.

There were few or no noticeable grammar errors, so at least it had that going for it. I don't plan on reading another HelenKay Dimon book anytime soon, though, even so.

Book: Dark of Night by Suzanne Brockmann

I will confess to being out of reach of a library for a little over a year, so haven't read any of the last few Troubleshooters books. Thus, I have none of the complaints that many of the one-star reviewers have. Other than the already established couples growing relationship-wise, I'm not attached to "super-couples." Watching soaps in the 80s and 90s cured me of that. lol

I was a little confused at the beginning. When I started reading chapter one, it took me a minute to realize that the entire prologue was a dream/escape for Dave. I've been there - had a need to have some elaborate world to go to in order to keep from giving up, so I understood it once I realized that's what it was. However, the segue there was not as smooth as I would have expected.

There were several times while reading that I had to click back to the previous chapter or scene with certain characters to refresh my memory on what was happening when I "turned the page." I like the alternating scenes and multiple locations, I just thought some of the transitions were so long that I couldn't keep straight what was happening where. Maybe I'm getting old.

I felt the Robin-into-rehab story was a little too pat. Those Troubleshooters are smart enough to have come up with a better story than that to explain Robin's sudden disappearance from a movie shoot. Him needing to withdraw from the public eye happens often enough. Homicidal stalker, perhaps? Severe food poisoning?

There was more tell in this book than I thought was necessary, and I inferred that it was there for newcomers to the Troubleshooters series, but some of it could easily have been edited out. Several times, characters explained things to each other for the audience's benefit. I guess if this is the first book you're reading about SEALs or government operatives, you need it, but I thought much of that was also unnecessarily telly rather than showy.

On the other hand, I laughed out loud (in a good way) more than a few times while reading Dark of Night. There were at least half a dozen occasions where I wanted to highlight and share something from the book with friends, though I only ended up sharing one.

What I found in Dark of Night were characters who took some good, hard looks at themselves and came to some difficult realizations about their personal quirks and their interactions with others. In that respect, this book was a joy to read. Characters I've grown to love begin to behave in ways that are not in keeping with the mask they've presented to others, even to others very close to them, even the mask they presented to themselves. Sometimes one learns things about oneself that are extremely uncomfortable and hard to integrate. I empathized with Decker's struggle. I did feel that his acceptance of it, after all that, was a bit rushed, but I guess there's only so much room in a book.

I loved that nearly everybody had a chance to step up to the plate and show some wisdom or strength of character. Oddball things from the past would create opportunities to showcase smarts that aren't necessarily visible on the surface. Tracy and Sophia, in particular, have obviously been heavily underestimated by both their teammates and by long-time Troubleshooters readers. Neither is as fragile as others have made her out to be.

Near as I can tell, everybody on the two teams has a Happily Ever After now, though I personally would quite gladly read more about these characters ongoing struggles and growth, even without the main romantic couple thing that has been Brockmann's stock in trade. I'm planning to reread the entire series in one go at some point, and this one will most definitely be included.  (And there's another story about Jules and Robin coming out this summer!)

Book Review: Born To Darkness by Suzanne Brockmann

Downloaded this one to my Kindle from the local library after quite the wait. lol Born To Darkness is dystopian futuristic paranormal romance, for lack of a better category. Its US is a dark and dreary place; the US in which these events happen is one I can see coming, and hope like hell I'm wrong about.

I loved this! Brockmann's other books about the SEALs had kinda reached a point where the number of people who merited at least a brief mention was getting just a bit unwieldy. I look forward to seeing more about some of the main characters (I do love my military men and my Troubleshooters!), and it still seems like she's reached a pretty decent resting place for now. It might be interesting if at some point in the future of this series, she's able to tie it back in some way to previous characters.

The cast of this book is fairly large, too, with eightish main characters and nearly a dozen secondary/supporting characters. The characters were written in such a way that they interacted with each other frequently enough that getting to know the characters (and not just as couples) was easy and the transitions between events were mostly seamless. The friendships were wonderfully-written.

Establishing the couples as couples was a bit rushed, particularly in the case of Dr. Z and Diaz. That one went from less than zero to eighty in a matter of seconds, it seemed like. Despite this, each of the couples was believable to me, and I want to see where they go from here. The sexual/physical intimacy these couples experienced was a little off for a Brockmann book. Not that the chemistry felt forced, as another reviewer mentioned, but not as hot as I've come to expect. I think this was due more to the need to build this world and these relationships, and I'm willing to be in this for the long haul. I truly believe that the chemistry will build with subsequent stories as the characters deepen their emotional connections with one another.

Brockmann subscribed to the strength-through-adversity school in creating her heroines, as each has faced and triumphed over some dark and scary stuff. Having said that, those women still have ISSUES, which are bound to come up in future books. I like that these women are real for the future in which this is set, not for today's US or today's science; they are not one-note perky pollyannas but complex women.

Fair warning: there is frank sexual abuse, sexual intimacy without emotional connection and male/male sexual interaction. If any of this bothers you, move along. Born To Darkness does not give us a happily ever after. When it's done correctly, I sometimes prefer the happily enough for now which we get in this book.

It's apparent to me that there will be more to this story, and I for one am looking forward to it!      

Quartet of library books

Dog Tags by David Rosenfelt - pretty cute little murder mystery about a soldier-turned-thief (I know, weird premise) who survives on the streets with his former K-9 partner, until he witnesses a murder.  It's written in an easy, friendly style, and is a great beach read.  Not too deep, fun, and dogs.  Thumbs Up.

The Search by Nora Roberts - survivor of a serial killer moves to an island in the US Northeast and makes a living training dogs, for regular owners and for search and rescue teams.  Then, even though the killer is in prison, girls start getting killed using the same signature.  MUCH of the book is taken up with dog training lessons, and I found it interesting, personally.  Such lessons are applicable to my nine-month-old grandson, as well.  lol  It was a good murder mystery, with not many surprises, with an interesting romantic couple as the main characters.  Thumbs Up.

Indulgence in Death by J.D. Robb - another Eve Dallas book, which starts with Eve and Roark on vacation in Ireland, visiting his family.  Of course, there's a murder, and Eve is involved peripherally.  But wait until she gets home!  I really like the In Death series, and have found only a few that did not live up to my expectations.  This one does.  Thumbs Up.

Beyond 2012: The Omega Point by Whitley Streiber.  An interesting take on "post-apocalypse" life as it relates to predicted events in Revelations, or what I remember of Revelations.  The concepts are good, with an enjoyable writing style, though there were a few bits that dragged a wee bit.  There are thirty pages of author's note, which I did not get to finish because the book was due, but I skimmed it thoughtfully and found some really cool information/theories/hypotheses.  Thumbs Up.

Dog Tags
The Search
Indulgence in Death
The Omega PointThe Omega Point 
The Search

Book mini-Reviews: library books

OK, so these last few are library books, and are due in a day or so.  I'll just be giving a thumbs up or thumbs down, mostly, though I may have a comment or two on some of the books.  Obviously, I got all these books at my local library, and received nothing for these reviews, such as they are.

Beguiled by Deeanne Gist and J Mark Bertrand.  A first-time collaborative effort between two authors who met through a critique group.  (now that I'm writing about it, I may have already reviewed this one.  Oh, well).  I loved the character of Rylee Monroe and the character of Charleston.  Some of the old Southern cities have amazing personalities.  Thumbs Up.

The Beast Within by Erin McCarthy, Bianca D'arc and Jennifer Lyon.  This is an anthology of "other" stories.  Werewolves and zombies and magic, oh, my.  In The Howling by McCarthy, a young woman loses her boyfriend, and takes up with his brother.  She dreams frequently of an old wedding party being attacked by wolves.  One surprise is not really a surprise, and the other is only a small one, because the story telegraphs the twists.  It definitely had its good moments, though.  Thumbs Up.  In Smoke on the Water by D'Arc, a couple of federal agents fight zombies on a lake.  Zombies are not my thing.  At all.  Not movies or books or whatever.  Nonetheless, I enjoyed the premise of this short, just not the zombies.  The author has created an interesting near-future for Earth, and if it weren't about zombies, I probably would have enjoyed it a great deal more.  Thumbs Up.  Redeeming the Wizard by Lyon was probably the one I enjoyed most.  A wizard whose job it is to protect a city has issues, and fighting those issues means that his city is not getting all the protection it deserves.  In this universe, people who have no magic at all serve the others who do.  One such sister/niece/etc. drives out to pick up Gram for a party, only to find her missing.  She goes to the wizard for assistance, and they rub each other the wrong way on sight.  Mira insists on having the wizard's help, and together they solve the mystery of Gram's disappearance, as well as the issue Mr Wizard is going to great lengths to hide from his town.  Thumbs Up.

I'll Be Slaying You and Eternal Hunter by Cynthia Eden.  Both books are set in the Other Universe, where Others are people who are not quite what they appear.  Both stories have well-matched male and female leads, and the sex is hot.  The Other Universe is interesting, and one I'll likely look for more of when I hit the library again.  Thumbs Up for both.

Without Mercy by Lisa Jackson.  Jules' little step-sister Shaylee has been sent to an elite boarding school for troubled teens.  On the surface, the school has an amazing record for helping kids and many of those kids come back to the school to help others.  On the other hand, a girl disappeared there not too long ago, and no one seems to think the school holds any responsibility in the matter.  Jules has issues and sees conspiracy theories where there are none, but in the case of the school, something is definitely just a little bit off.  Jules uses the fact that she and Shaylee don't share a last name to apply for a job with the school.  Once she's there, her first surprise is that an old boyfriend is also there, and he seems to be everywhere she is.  The amateur investigation is a source of irritation, and bad guys go to a lot of trouble to shut Jules up.  She's plucky, and keeps on truckin', and takes a little time out to have a little shag with Cooper.  That's when things really heat up.  The final surprise in the story is one I didn't imagine at all.  Then, the epilogue opens the door to a possible sequel or related story, with a sinister twist.  Thumbs Up.

Smooth Talking Stranger by Lisa Kleypas.  Ella Varner's little sister abandons her baby with her and leaves it to Ella to find the baby's daddy.  (I have to say that this is one of the most realistic screwed-up families I've ever had the pleasure to read about.  Kleypas manages to make Ella's family profoundly damaged without going over the edge into caricature.)  Ella's boyfriend refuses to have anything to do with the baby, even for a minute, and so she has to leave her little corner of the universe to go find "daddy."  She narrows down the playing field and visits choice number one.  Jack Travis, of the Houston Travis family, takes her accusations in stride and, for his own personal reasons, takes Ella and baby Luke under his wing.  Ella fights her attraction to Jack, and fights falling in love with her nephew.  Jack Travis turns out to be a very handy ally in the search for Luke's father.  This book hit a lot of personal buttons for me, and I cried tears of sorrow for Ella, then tears of joy.  I hope this book is as good for you.  Thumbs Way Up.

Night of the Vampires by Heather Graham.  This story about vampire fighters set during the Civil War just hit me wrong almost from the moment I started reading.  I liked parts of it, but mostly it just seemed a ridiculous premise.  Thumbs Down.

The Killing Edge by Heather Graham.  Chloe Marin is not just a survivor, she's a survivor with a gift.  Ten years after escaping killers, she's using her past to help other people with their own personal traumas.  Girls have started going missing, and Chloe believes it's related somehow to the killing from which she escaped.  This story is a fairly fast-paced murder mystery, with some romance thrown in.  Thumbs Up.

Book mini-Reviews: Lori Foster

I got all of these books at my local library.  I received nothing in exchange for what reviews I give.

Tempted:  this is a collection of three full-length books from 1999 and 2001, written around a family.  Each story relates in some way to a family member and how his/her happily-ever-after came to be.   Stories are: Little Miss Innocent; Annie, Get Your Guy; and Messing Around With Max.  Personally, I loved this anthology.  Each one included little tidbits of the other family members, and that helped each subsequent story build on the one before.  The family relationships were real and humorous.  The sex was hot.  The plots were fresh.  Thumbs Up.

Bewitched:  this is a collection of two full-length books from 2000, with no common theme.  Stories are: In Too Deep and Married to the Boss.  Perhaps because I'd just finished reading Tempted and enjoyed it so much, I had high expectations, and this book fell short.   Although parts of the books were fresh and engaging, mostly, it was just same-old, same-old, and I didn't really enjoy either one of them.  Thumbs Down.

Yule Be Mine: this is an anthology of short stories published in 2003, 2005, 2006 and 2007, written around the common theme of Christmas, obviously.  Stories are:  He Sees You When You're Sleeping; White Knight Christmas; Do You Hear What I Hear: and The Christmas Present.  I was actually looking for another similarly-themed book when I found this one, and picked it up on a whim, because it was Lori Foster.  Each story is humorous and fun.  Maybe because the stories are short, none of the lead characters seem to be carrying around too much baggage, though there are obstacles to overcome, naturally.  They wouldn't be romances without that.  Thumbs Up.

Back in Black is a full-length story published in 2010.  This book pissed me off.  Seriously.  The heroine is this bad-ass business woman who talks about how she doesn't want to have sex with her client, for several very good reasons, but the second he touches her neck, she gives in and just lets him.  The "hero" doesn't believe no is a good enough answer, because he just knows she wants him.  He doesn't care about the damage to the lady's career, or the fact that she simply wants to get to know him before they have sex.   The cycle repeats, ad nauseum.  Sorry, Lori, but if this one had a positive message, I failed to interpret it, though I did enjoy what little I learned about MMA.  Thumbs Way Down.

Book Review: Midnight Crystal and Burning Lamp

I picked up these two books at my local library.  I received nothing in exchange for this review.

Midnight Crystal and Burning Lamp are books two and three of the Dreamlight Trilogy, written by Jayne Ann Krentz, either as herself, or under one of her pseudonyms.  In this case, Fired Up, which I think I reviewed earlier on, was written as JAK.  Burning Lamp was written as Amanda Quick, her historical romance pen-name, and Midnight Crystal was written as Jayne Castle, her futuristic pen-name.

These books are focused specifically on the Winters legend of the Burning Lamp, which basically states that a Winters male may be burdened with the Winters Curse, whereby he acquires multiple talents, and requires the services of a very powerful dreamlight reader to find and use the Burning Lamp to make his talents manageable, or he goes insane and dies badly.  In the trilogy, the dreamlight reader is always a woman, and the duo find they accomplish much more together than they do separately. 

Both of these books were good installments in the trilogy, and added some to the Jones/Winters universe.  Of the two, I preferred the second book, Burning Lamp, and I'm not sure why.  Perhaps it was because more useful information was revealed in this one, information that added to my knowledge base of this 'verse and set the stage for other Jones and Winters antics.  Maybe I just liked the characters better.  Or maybe it was because it was set on Earth.  Jayne Castle's futuristic stories in the universe are set on Harmony, a Class M planet (in Trek lexicon) where humans explored and expanded.  I have read a few of her stories of Harmony, and for me, they have been hit and miss.  I'm not sure if that's the Harmony backstory or her Castle style of writing.  Maybe this one, despite my enjoyment of the couple's story, just didn't hit me right.

At any rate, these were good reads.  Burning Lamp rates a solid Very Good and Midnight Crystal a solid Good.

Book Review: The Story Sisters

I picked up this book at my local library.  I received nothing in exchange for this review.

Alice Hoffman has written other stories, of which I remember exactly Practical Magic, not because I read it, but because I love the movie.

Anyway, The Story Sisters is about three sisters whose last name is Story.  Their lives, as written, are rich and complex and troubling and captivating, for the most part.  Some parts of the book dragged a bit, though I kept reading, because the story as a whole had me wanting to know what happened.

The story bounces around from their home in a relatively small town in New York, to New York City, to Paris.  The girls' grandmas live in Paris, though one is of Russian descent.  The peripheral characters, most notably the family members are well-drawn and add to the book.  Each girl has her own demons, and since we hit the story running when the oldest is fifteen, we get to know those demons pretty quickly.  In some ways, this story is typical of any three siblings, with internal squabbles, but a united front to any outsider.  Two of the girls are closer because of something in their past.  It doesn't take long for the oldest girl to go off the deep end, and her downward spiral informs the actions of the rest of the family for years to come.

My biggest disappointment with The Story Sisters was the ending.  It would have been a good ending for a less complex tale, but something this intricate deserved a better ending than the one we got.

I would have given this four stars, but the ending lost a star, and this story rates only a solid Good because of it.