Born In Ice by Nora Roberts

Description courtesy of Paperbackswap.com....When the harsh storms of winter descended upon western Ireland, the locals stayed indoors - and visitors stayed away. Brianna Concannon's bed-and-breakfast became a cold and empty place. But that was fine with Brianna. She enjoyed the peace and quiet, even when the icy winds howled at her window. But this year she's expecting an unusual guest - myster writer Grayson Thane of America. A restless wanderer with a painful past, he plans to spend the cold winter alone. But sometimes fate has a plan of its own. Sometimes a fire can be born in ice...

The story of modern-day Ireland's Concannon sisters continues with the tale of Brianna--whose cool beauty hides a heart of fiery passion.

My Thoughts....After reading the first in this trilogy I knew that I was in for a treat with the next two books. I am happy to say Roberts delivered an excellent continuation of the Concannon sisters' stories. Sometimes the second book of a trilogy tends to be fluff and filler but I did not get that at all with Bri's story.

I thought that Brianna might be a little mousy and timid to hold her own in a full length book but her character developed nicely into a woman to recon with. Her interaction with her sister Maggie and her mother was wonderful. I was really able to connect with her even though I have nothing in common with her.

Grayson was a very interesting character also. I really enjoyed the process he took while writing his book. From the walks through the Irish countryside to him locking himself in his room for a week at a time to write....all were fascinating to me.

I thought that this book was better then the first probably because we got to see a little more about what made Bri and Maggies mother tick. I even found myself not hating her as much toward the end of the book. I wouldn't have thought that was possible since after reading the first book I found her to be a horrible person and glad she was fictitious and no one really had to deal with her.

I really liked how Roberts helped me "see" what Ireland was like in the first book and in Born In Ice she now showed me what an Irish Winter was like. It sounded bone cold and wet and not at all charming but she somehow still made me want to visit.

I would recommend that anyone who has not read this book/trilogy do so, sooner rather then later.

Tempting by Susan Mallery

Synopsis compliments of Shelfari....

After three romantic flame-outs in a year and a restaurant career going nowhere, Dani Buchanan needs a fresh start. She goes looking for her biological father, but never expects to find a senator running for president. As his long-lost 'love child,' Dani could seriously derail the election— something his handsome campaign manager Alex Canfield isn't going to let happen. Dani isn't about to let Alex run her life, no matter how tempting she finds him—and Alex isn't going to allow Dani to melt his cynicism, no matter how close he has to get. The last thing either of them wants is love, especially with scandals brewing and family trouble on the way. But Dani and Alex are forced to trust each other, and when trust turns to passion, the potential for disaster is only a tabloid scandal away.

My thoughts....

I am finding myself becoming more and more of a fan of Susan Mallery after every book I read by her. This is the second Buchanan book that I have read and one of my favorites. Although I couldn't identify with Dani's struggles to find her true place with a different family while maintaining her connection with the family she was raised in, Mallery does an excellent job of helping the reader empathize with the situation. I found this to be true with the other books I read by her also.

The Buchanan family has a wonderful dynamic and it makes one wish to be a part of it. Even though this is Dani's story we get a special treat to get back in touch with the other Buchanan's from previous books. This included Gloria, Dani's wicked witch of a grandmother. Susan Mallery once again proves that she can take a character that a reader can dislike and somehow redeem them and make them likable.

The romance of the book is good but I think what I like best was Dani's "new" family. The Canfields have created a family that I admire greatly. All the children are adopted and all have either been labled unadoptable or not "normal". We get to meet Bailey, Alex's 15 year old sister with down syndrome, Ian who has a brilliant mind but who's body struggles with CP and Sasha, the youngest of the bunch who happens to have HIV. This is just a few of them and I absolutely loved reading about them. After working for over a decade with people with special needs they definitely found a spot in my heart.

Katherine Canfield, Alex's mother, is another character that you just identify with. You feel her struggles to accept Dani into their home and lives with the knowledge that the husband she loves more then the moon had a biological daughter with someone else. Even though there was no cheating involved that resulted in Dani's conception, you can just feel that she is torn between taking Dani under her wing and being jealous of the fact that another woman gave her husband something she never could.

Over all I would give this book a 4.5 Stars.

Lost Calling by Evelyn Vaughn

Having only read a couple Silhouette Bombshell books and very much liking them I found that this book did share the same good qualities that those did. Almost 300 pages this book felt whole and complete with good character development. Catrina (Cat for short) is a strong independent woman who's love of history has made her passionate in her quest to preserve it. Finding artifacts seem to be her calling and during an extremely rare and unusual event finds herself in a hole in the middle of a Paris street surrounded by decapitated bodies that appear to be over 200 years old. Her first thought was to preserve the sight as a historical landmark but as she touches a small key that looked as if one of the deceased women had swallowed it, she finds herself in the middle of a psychic vision of a group of women who died during the French Revolution.

This is the first book in the Madonna Key mini-series out of seven.

The book has a Da Vinci Code feel to it with a twist of the paranormal. The action will keep you on the edge of your seat and if you enjoy history, peeks into the French Revolution and it's bloody history should keep your interest.

What I personally liked about this book was that the action was enough to keep my attention, Cat was a strong kick butt woman but still only human and didn't necessarily have mass skills, like, a black belt in karate. She did beat off an attacker with her stiletto heels though. Her love interest, Rhys, was also a nice addition to the book. Once a man of God, he left his calling and the priesthood behind long before Cat. Their conflict between each other was compelling. Both characters were very real in their emotions. Both struggled with his faith. Even though he was no longer a priest, many of his decisions were still based on his religious beliefs. Not a bad way to live your life except that Cat couldn't help but feel she was somehow still involved with a priest and not just a man.

I also loved the first line of this book...."That first earthquake was not my fault."

What I didn't like about this book was that I am not a big fan of books that are centered around religion. Past or present. As fascinating as I thought the history of it all was I found myself skipping some paragraphs just to get through it faster and then finding myself a little lost.

Also even though I thought the development of the characters was excellent I just didn't care much for them. I thought Cat was a bit of a bitch and Rhys was, well, attracted to her. Another thing was that there were many references throughout the book about Cat being a thief. It confused me a bit but then I found out after I read this book that there was another mini-series among the Bombshell books called The Grail Keepers which I am pretty sure Cat made an appearance in and her theft was probably in one of them.

Many of the things I found that I didn't like about this book are completely based on personal taste and should not dictate whether you should read this book or not. Even though I didn't rate this book that high I really would recommend this book to those who liked books like The Da Vinci Code.

I gave this book 2 Stars.

If You Dare by Kresley Cole

The first in the MacCarrick brothers trilogy this book centers around Courtland MacCarrick and a sassy somewhat royal Andorrian named Annalia. When Annalia was out riding one day she finds a Scot who appears beaten to death by the river. With much struggle her and her horse drag him back to her home where she nurses him back to health despite that he is a Scot and probably a mercenary hired by the man who is trying to take over everthing including her home and land.
Both characters argue and bait each other throughout the first half of the book. Annalia has relied on stories and tainted opinions to cloud her judgement of Scots and Court in particular. Some may find her predjudice ways to be intollerable but I didn't have a problem reading about her at all.

When Anna comes to realize that her thoughts and behavior towards Court are incorrect and ignorant she finds that he isn't quite the brute she thought. After a while she think she may want to keep him even.

Court has known the life a mercenary for most of his life. He appears uncaring and uncivilized. He often thought that he would never take a wife and couldn't because of a curse that has been hanging over the family for generations.

I honestly can't do this book justice. I thought it was a simply wonderful romance. I often pausing while reading it just to reflect on something that Court said to Anna. The book made me smile and occasionally laugh. It also reminded me how much I really want my very own Highlander.

I have read a few of Kresley Cole's paranormal books and I even gave them 5 stars, still they were not keepers for me. This one, however, is staying in my keeper bookshelf forever where I can reread Court and Anna's story and feel my romantic soul sigh with pleasure. 

Tiger Eye by Marjorie M. Liu

The first book in the Dirk & Steele series by Marjorie M. Liu is a wonderful book. Delilah Reese is a special woman with special psychic abilities who is on vacation in Beijing. During a shopping expedition to the local Dirt Market she is sold a riddle box by a persistent old woman. Once back to her hotel room she works to open the box. To her surprise out pops Hari.

To some this might seem like a cheesy attempt at a twisted genie in a bottle story but it truly isn't. Hari has been cursed to the box for over 2000 years having to do the bidding of whomever owns the box. His life is nothing but that of a slave to do whatever tasks he is commanded to do. He has been a killer for kings and a concubine for women over the millennia never doing what he would like but only things that his masters want.

Dela and Hari find that breaking his curse isn't the only thing going on. Dela's life is also in jeopardy. On the day that Hari is released from the box Dela is attacked twice. By two different parties even. Hari means to use all his years as a trained warrior to keep her safe.

I found this book very enjoyable enough to forgo sleep in order to read every word. The book takes place in only a matter of days but somehow Liu manages to weave her tale of romance into an extremely believable story. Well, if you believe in shapeshifters and wizards that is.

I normally take issue with books that have a relationship bloom so quickly. The thought of "love at first sight" makes me roll my eyes and want to throw the book against a wall. Dela and Hari do fall in love and happen to do it within a very short time period and somehow Ms. Liu made me a believer of their love.

My Serial Challenge Listing

So I decided that I really needed to actually start listing some of the books I have or am reading for this challenge so I can link them to CarPoolQueen's blog and get credit for them. So here is my current list as of January 1, 2009. If the title is listed it means that I have read them this year. If I didn't read them this year I will just list a generic title like "books 1-4 read previously".

The Buchanans--Susan Mallery
Delicious #1
Tempting #4

The Bakery Sisters--Susan Mallery (fully completed in 09)
Sweet Talk #1
Sweet Spot #2
Sweet Trouble #3

The Marcelli Sisters of Pleasure Road--Susan Mallery

The Marcelli Princess #5

The Mackenzies--Linda Howard
Game of Chance #5

Love At Stake--Kerrilyn Sparks
books 3 and 4 read previously
All I Want for Christmas is a Vampire#6
Secret Life of a Vampire #7
Forbidden Nights With a Vampire #8


The Argeneau Family--Lynsay Sands
books 1-10 read previously
The Immortal Hunter #11

The Chandler Brothers--Carly Phillips
The Playboy #2

Sign of the Seven trilogy--Nora Roberts
Blood Brothers #1

The Bridgerton Family--Julia Quinn (completed)
books 1-5 read previously
When He Was Wicked #6
It's In His Kiss #7
On the Way to the Wedding #8

Prince trilogy--Elizabeth Hoyt
The Leopard Prince #2

Night Huntress--Jeaniene Frost
Halfway to the Grave #1
One Foot in the Grave #2

Chicago Stars--Susan Elizabeth Phillips
Natural Born Charmer #7

Sex, Lies and Online Dating series--Rachel Gibson
Sex, Lies and Online Dating#1
Not Another Bad Date #4

The Murray Family--Hannah Howell
Highland Knight #5
Highland Bride #6

Mercy Thompson--Patricia Briggs
Moon Called #1

Malory Family--Johanna Lindsey (completed)
books 1-8 read previously
No Choice But Seduction #9

Buchanan/Renard--Julie Garwood
books 1-5 read previously
Shadow Dance #6

Psy/changelings--Naline Singh
Slave to Sensation #1

Mageverse--Angela Knight (completed)
book 3 read previously
Master of the Night #1
Master of the Moon #2
Master of Swords #4

Dirk & Steele--Marjorie M. Liu
books 2 and 4 read previously
Tiger Eye #1

Westmoreland--Judith McNaught
A Kingdom of Dreams #1

Bow Street Runners--Lisa Kleypas
Someone to Watch Over Me #1

The Others--Christine Warren
Wolf at the Door #1

Darkyn--Lynn Viehl
books 1 and 2 read previously
Dark Need #3
Night Lost #4

McKettrick--Linda Lael Miller
book 1 read previously
McKettrick's Pride #7

The MacCarrick Brothers--Kresley Cole
If You Dare #1

Nerd Series--Vicki Lewis Thompson
Nerd in Shining Armor #1

De Piaget series--Lynn Kurland
Dreams of Stardust #3

The Concannon Sisters -- Nora Roberts(fully completed in 09)
Born in Fire #1
Born in Ice #2
Born in Shame #3

SBC Fighters --Lori Foster
My Man Michael #4

Akoran series--Josie Litton
Fountain of Dreams #1

Drakon series--Shana Abe
The Smoke Thief #1

Travis series--Lisa Kleypas
Sugar Daddy #1

Wallflower series--Lisa Kleypas
Scandal in Spring #4

Taggert Family--Jude Deveraux
Holly #6

The Vanza series--Amanda Quick
Lie By Moonlight #4

Moon Called (Mercy Thompson, Book 1) by Patricia Briggs

I loved this book. Mercy Thompson is an excellent heroine. Her strengths are not defined by her mystical powers as a walker but as an adaptable person with special abilities. Raised by werewolves she understands the inner workings of being part of a pack without the bother of actually having to conform and be pack. It is the readers priviledge to get an inside look at Mercy's knowledge of "others" and things that go bump in the night.

Mercy is an auto mechanic who finds herself deep into a mystery which involves newbie werewolves invading the local alpha's territory, kidnapping, and a handful of vampires (everyone knows vampires cannot be trusted.) So what is a young headstrong woman to do? Get involved. Of course.

What I found completely fasinating about this book was that Briggs created a world that ties together basic "knowledge" of werewolves and vampires and her vision of the otherworld seemlessly. As a reader we get history 101 on werewolves without feeling like we just sat through a boring 8 hour lecture.

The other characters in the book are just as wonderful as Mercy. I can't wait to read more about them in future books.

Natural Born Charmer by Susan Elizabeth Phillips

This book is part of the Chicago Stars series made popular by Susan Elizabeth Phillips and to date the only one I have read of this series. The book is about an extremely good looking football player who finds a down on her luck woman wearing a beaver costume on the side of the road and offers her a lift. From there a relationship blooms but don't call it a relationship because neither character are the settle down with a house, white picket fence, dog and 2.5 children type.

I really wanted to love this book. I just couldn't. I didn't fall in love with either Dean or Blue Bailey (the beaver costume wearing woman). I liked them but couldn't love them. I did like that both Dean and Blue had massive baggage concerning family and Phillips did a great job weaving the ins and outs and whys of it all.

The characters (including the secondary characters) were completely flawed and I liked them all. Together they made themselves into a dysfunctional family that was fun to read about but the family interaction was not necessarily what I was supposed to enjoy the most about this book. I suppose I was to be more interested in the romance of Blue and Dean but it really took a back burner to in your face characters like Nita (a beyond cranky woman who bullied herself into Blue's life).

So what started out as a funny opening sequence of events didn't quite pan out to be a humorous emotion producing rollercoaster that one would expect from a great book. Overall, this was an OK book. Nothing spectacular but not bad either. I would recommend that you borrow this one from the library or get it from a used book store.

Halfway to the Grave (Night Huntress, Book 1) by Jeaniene Frost

I loved this book. I have no idea why it took me so long to pick it up. Thankfully I have the next one in the series sitting waiting for me to dive into it.

What I enjoyed so much about this book was the two main characters Cat and Bones. Cat is a 22 year old half vampire/half human. She is one of a kind. No one has ever heard of someone who is technically half dead. When at age 16 she finds out how she came about she takes matters in her own hands and decided to take out as many blood suckers as she can.

Bones is a two hundred something master vampire who finds himself at the wrong end of Cat's stake. As kick butt as Cat is...she is still fairly new at killing vampires and is no match for a Master one like Bones. When Bones figures out what she is he decides to use her to his advantage...which is also killing vampires. Cat has no idea why a vampire would kill other vampires. In Cat's book all vampires are evil. What takes her by surprise is that not all vampires are bad.

This is a basic summary of the plot but don't think that is all there is to this book. It is also a very good love story. Cat must come to terms with who and what she is in addition to understanding her complex feelings towards Bones who she should hate but finds herself unable to. How can she have feelings for someone she has sworn to kill first and ask questions later?

One Foot in the Grave (Night Huntress, Book 2) by Jeaniene Frost

After reading the first book in the series and loving it I couldn't wait to pick up the second to continue my adventures with Cat. This book is a continuation of Cat's life where the first book stopped almost 4 years later. She is still using all of what Bones taught her to kill vampires but now she gets paid for it. She still has daddy issues and longs for the time she can meet him and stake him.

Honestly through the book I was thinking this was rather good book but not necessarily a 5 Cup of Coffee kind of book until the end. The end was what put the book into that category for me. I won't give anything away but just know that if you enjoy PNR/UF you absolutely have to pick these books up. Be warned that although many might tell you that you can read series books out of order you will want to read these in the order that Frost published them. There are a few things that might become spoilers should you read them backwards.

When He Was Wicked by Julia Quinn

This is the 6th book in Julia Quinn's beloved Bridgerton series and a decent addition to the series it is. I really liked Michael Stirling's character. He finds himself completely and totally in love with Francesca from their first meeting. Unfortunately for him, the meeting took place at the festivities of Francesca's marriage to Michael's cousin John. I thought this approach to a romance book was very interesting. First off, it seems the pattern for romances is that the women fall first then the man follows when it comes to love. It was a nice change of pace that in this book it was the other way around. Secondly, the reader has to wonder how can a man fall in love with his cousin's wife and the book have a happy ending. This approach keeps the reader (at least this one) reading full into the dark of night to find the happy ending.

I have to admit that as far as likability, Francesca, is just OK. I didn't find her nearly as interesting as her sisters Daphne or Eloise. However, if you have read the Bridgerton books in order you will know how Francesca becomes available to Michael even after being married to John which the back blurb of the book also hints about.

This part will contain some spoilers so for those who have yet to read the Bridgerton books you might want to discontinue reading at this point.

Spoilers..........................................

What I found so compelling about this book was that I could identify with Francesca and Michael's struggles to thier attraction and the memory of John. If you have ever lost love, finding the courage to move on is a difficult task and Quinn did an excellent job of portraying the heartbreak of it all. I was glad that although she did introduce the reader to all the characters in the beginning she didn't make us fall in love with John and then take him away from us. I think that would have been difficult to write and even more difficult for a reader to read. It would have made the love of Michael and Francesca somewhat tainted I think.

Although I couldn't give this book an honest 5 star rating (I firmly believe that it isn't nearly as good as her first couple Bridgerton books) it is a strong 4 stars. It sends a little message out to those who have found love and lost it. When a loved one dies, love really doesn't die with them. It can and will find you again if you just open yourself up and let it.

On the Way to the Wedding by Julia Quinn

Synopsis: A funny thing happened... — Unlike most men of his acquaintance, Gregory Bridgerton believes in true love. And he is convinced that when he finds the woman of his dreams, he will know in an instant that she is the one. And that is exactly what happened. — Except... She wasn't the one. In fact, the ravishing Miss Hermione Watson is in love with another. But her best friend, the ever-practical Lady Lucinda Abernathy, wants to save Hermione from a disastrous alliance, so she offers to help Gregory win her over. But in the process, Lucy falls in love. With Gregory!

Except... Lucy is engaged. And her uncle is not inclined to let her back out of the betrothal, even once Gregory comes to his senses and realizes that it is Lucy, with her sharp wit and sunny smile, who makes his heart sing. And now, on the way to the wedding, Gregory must risk everything to ensure that when it comes time to kiss the bride, he is the only man standing at the altar.

My Thoughts: The 8th and last installment of the Bridgerton books written by Julia Quinn was a wonderful story of Gregory who always knew true love existed. A romantic at heart he has watched all 7 of his siblings fall in love and marry knowing that he too would one day fall in love. And he did. While attending a week of festivities that his sister-in-law puts together. With the help of beautiful Hermoine Watson's best friend she will soon be his. Only love doesn't quite work out the way Gregory expects it to. It appears that when love comes calling it tends to make things quite difficult actually.

Overall I very much enjoyed this book. It felt a tad bit long especially through the middle when both hero and heroine profess their love for one another. I mean, once I love Yous are in place it is only a matter of pages before the happily ever afters get there. But this book was different. It shows that some times what you think you long for isn't always what you actually want.

This is definitely a book you should read if you have enjoyed the other Bridgerton books.

Blood Brothers by Nora Roberts

The first in the latest formulaic trilogies from Nora Roberts. I for one am a fan of her trilogies, however, I felt this one was not as good as the others. I enjoy that she has men once again as her leading characters and I find all three men facinating. I thought the build up towards the climactic end was very good but then found the ending to be a little disappointing.

After 21 years of battling this big bad evil Cal and his blood brothers know this is the last year for the battle. They either will finish off the evil or die trying. This time is a little different because now they are not alone. 3 women have wandered into their town of Hawkins Hallow and are somehow involved in the fight.

The romance part of the story was, well, not very romantic. There was very little time for romance as the two main characters Cal and Quinn are trying to research the history of the big bad evil. The history of The Hallow and the battle between the good and the evil is very interesting. The setting of the town, The Pegan Stone and Hester's Pool are some place I would like to visit.

I thought Roberts could have done a little better with making a complete book with this first installment. Typically her trilogies are made of 3 books with complete stories that, although, when read together make one large story, each book can stand alone making the reader want to read the other books but not feel they have to read them. I was disappointed in the left hanging feeling I got when I finished this book. Don't get me wrong there was a minor to-do at the end but the confrontation of the 6 characters with the big bad evil was almost humorous and not as suspenseful as I think it was supposed to be.

Overall I would have given this book 2.5 stars but as Nora Roberts is one of my favorites I bumped it up to a 3. I will read the rest of the trilogy.

Serial Readers Challenge 2009

I have found another cool challenge being hosted by Carpoolqueen. This is what she had to say about this challenge on her blog.

I love trilogies, series, or even just related books by an author. I enjoy the continuity, and getting glimpses of the "Happily Ever Afters" from the previous title. So, in this spirit, I offer you the Serial Readers Challenge 2009. It’s really simple! And for the purpose of this challenge a series is defined as at least 3 related books. I typically read romance but for this challenge any genre is welcome. So this can be done in conjunction with any other challenge. AllAboutRomance.com and Fantasticfiction.com are good resources for finding series!

1. Read books in series/trilogies/related by author. (Julie Garwood’s Lion’s Lady, Castles, The Gift are related.) For a series to count you must read each book in that series during this calendar year. (Rereads and audio books welcome!) If you previously started a series and do not wish to re-read, then only the titles read after 01/01/09 will count towards your total books read. You will not however get "credit" for total series read. Only series started and finished in 09 will count toward the prize for # of series read. For example I started Lynsay Sands Argeneau series this fall. For me to get credit for all 9 books I will need to re-read the first 3 sometime in 09. The series does not have to be read in order, or in succession to "count"! (so if I read #4-9 this spring and next fall re-read #1-3 then I get full credit. Otherwise ...I only get credit for the 5 books read, but not for reading the entire series.) I think I just made that about as clear as mud.

2. The Challenge will begin January 1st and last until December 31st 2009.

3. Post your list on your blog and link it back to this post. Please comment to this post when your link is up. Your list is not something, you need to decide in advance. Please add as you go!

4. Please rate and review each title on your blog. When you do so, please label it SRC or Serial Readers Challenge so we can all read your reviews and maybe be inspired to try a new series for ourselves.

5. There will be prizes! Woo Hoo! Some of the prizes may be simple online trophies, and some will be book give-aways. (Titles to be determined) Prizes will be given for most books read, most # series read, most pages read, and some maybe at random! (my favorite kind!! Yay!)6. To wrap up the challenge next winter, comment to this post linking your wrap-up post by December 31! Prizes will be awarded January 2010!I'm going to post my list as I go.....