A Kiss at Midnight by Eloisa James


My rating: 5 of 5 stars


Eloisa James is amazing. I didn't think that she could have done better than A Duke of Her Own (Duchess in Love series) but she proved that she has chops. A Kiss at Midnight is a story based on the Cinderella fairy tale, wicked step-mother, well meaning servants, and a real life prince, to boot. The brilliance in this story comes from both Katherine and Gabriel as they wade through their impossible romance. Katherine is no simpering miss and Gabriel is no self-absorbed dandy (ok, maybe a bit self-absorbed).

The affair starts because Gabriel is made to fulfill obligations to his odd, rag-tag family and Katherine is made to attend a house party because her sister gets herself injured, in the most impossible way, and cannot not attend. The wicked stepmother crafts some crazy scheme to have Katherine take Victoria's (the sister) place. Add in a crazy relatives, a very-knowing majordomo, and a menagerie of abandoned animals and this turns out to be the best historical romance I've read in a long, long time.

Eloisa James has been a favorite of mine since Potent Pleasures and I continue to be a devoted fan.



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 So far....AWESOME! I'm reading this book and it's great. Eloisa James is really showing off with this one; only she can take the Cinderella story and make it into something new. Gabriel and Kate are the best sparring partners and romantic fiction right now.

Lost In a Stallion's Arms

So while I should have been working on the pile of books already at my disposal, I went out and bought yet another book. I couldn't help it---I remember the last Stallion brother that I read about and boy! it was real nice. Blame it on Deborah Fletcher Mello and Wally World because I had no intention of buying a new book, considering the daunting project that I already set myself up for.

Give me a few hours and I'll tell you (whomever YOU are) all about it.

2 down, 2 to go...

   In my quest to read four books in five days, it's Thursday and my progresss is not so great. I still have to get started on Johanna Lindsey's new novel and finish Shadow of the Wind by Zafon. Oh, well . Since I set the deadline, I guess I can give myself an extension.

NOW READING (or trying to)....

            

In a completly ambitious effort, I have put myself up to reading these four books  by the end of the week . Let's see how well this goes....

Seduce Me at Sunrise by Lisa Kleypas


My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Loved it again. I remember reading this book but I read it out of order , so I had to go back and re-read before ending the series out with Bea's story. Since I haven't read Love in the Afternoon, I can't say that this is the best one of the series though I really want to. Kev and Win's story is so typically romantic that you can't help but to love these two people who seem to be destined to be apart. From the beginning of the series, you can tell that Kev lives for Win's pleasure and when his story is told, you want to fall a little bit more in love with this guy. He truly is tall, dark, and handsome. Win is his physical and social opposite though she does match him for sheer stubbornness. She is as determined to have him as he is to deny her.



Kleypas really knows how to take a simple story and make it complete with passion, laughter, and just the hint of scandal to round things out a bit. Delightful read.



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Seduce Me at Midnight

In anticipation of getting around to reading Love in the Afternoon by Lisa Kleypas, I have been reading and re-reading the Hathaway series. I find that I have thoroughly enjoyed the Hathaway family, the governess, and the ferret; even liked the visiting Wallflower neighbors. I'll hope to finidsh Merripen and Win's story tonight and download Love in the Afternoon to my Blackberry Kindle app.

Speaking of Kindle---now that the price has dropped I should be able to afford one now. On second thought, if I had saved the money that I've spent on books in the last few months, I supposed I could have purchased one already.

Been struggling this week with my reading. This is one of those times when you just can't concentrate on anything besides Frontierville on FB. I have several books on hold, on the table and those that I keep carrying around in my bag everyday. I'm gonna get to them soon. I think....

Eternal Hunter by Cynthia Eden


My rating: 4 of 5 stars


One of the best urbanfiction/paranormal books I've read in a long time. Looking forward to reading the next ones in the series. Gonna be paying a lot more attention to Cynthia Eden from now on.



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Twice Tempted by a Rouge by Tessa Dare

  Courtesty of Tessa Dare and the good people at Fresh Fiction, I will be recieving this second installement of the Stud Club novels shortly. Go to http://www.freshfiction.com/ to find your favorite authors, read their bios, and find out what's new.

Can't Get Enough of You by Bette Ford

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Finished this book in record time. I always enjoy Ms. Ford's novels and this one is just as good as the other's, save for When a Man Loves a Woman (because that's the best of them all). I remember Scott and Lenna from previous books; I love that she has brought these minor characters to the fore front and allowed them to have their own unique story.

Scott has come back home to keep his promise of completing college after retiring from the NBA and can't seem to get his life together. When Lenna returns to Detroit to teach at a local university, Scott suddenly knows why he's been at odds with his new life. Lenna is on a quest to find her lost family and Scott is on one of his own...to get Lenna back. Lots of family drama (something we all know something about).

Good book and worth the gritty eyes the morning after.

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Make U Sweat by Amie Stuart

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


The Cavanaugh Brother's Moving company is about to make some changes and not all of them are good. Carla Cavanaugh wants out and expects Reece and Robbi Jo to pay for her half of the business. In the meantime, some seriously sexy men show up to make the transition that mush easier. I won't spoil it but you're in for a treat with this one. Stuart developes the story of the Cavanaugh cousins really well but I was a bit surprised about why Carla wanted out of the family business (Carla is not the most likeable character). Though I would have like a little bit more of finished ending, I still liked it because Stuart really made this book about the women and their relationships with each other. Great book.

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Update: Make U Sweat

Make U Sweat by Amie Stuart


I keep turning the pages waiting to what else is going on in the Cavanaugh's lives. This book is super sexy without being obvious; there's this slow build up of tension that guarantees to deliver. Half way through and I can't wait to seee what the third part yields.

Goodreads review: Hittin It by Amie Stuart

Hittin' It by Amie Stuart


My rating: 3 of 5 stars
Will and Sabrina are okay but it's the second half of the book with John and Tish that are the stars. The Collier boys work in the family business---hit men. They both take their jobs pretty serious but something happens on the way to making their hits.

Will meets Sabrina and for the first time in his life, he wants to play the Good Samartian. Too bad for Sabrina because her already twisted life is just about to get worse. With another killer on their trail, Will and Sabrina have a lot of issues to overcome before they become targets themselves.

John is on a mission to finish off the guy who was out to kill his brother, Will. Funny thing happens, he ends up playing escort/bodyguard to the guy's cousin, Tish, for a wedding weekend. Tish wants to teach John to loosen up but her plan backfires and John teaches her a thing or three. This story is cute, funny, and sexy (really sexy).

Pretty good read. Those Collier boys are dangerous but sexy enough to risk a little trouble.

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Book courtesy of www.goodreads.com

Mine Til Midnight by Lisa Kleypas

Finished the first book of The Hathaway's series and I loved it. I've been reading them out of order but it has all turned out quite well. The last book of the series is Love in the Afternoon (Hathaways, Book 5). I'll be starting in on that after I get my other reading projects finished. (Wishful thinking).

On Deck....

Just received books by Amie Stuart courtesy of Goodreads.com.  With two days off I should be able to make some progress with the two of these. And if I can judge by the covers.....



Amie Stuart currently writes out of Fort Worth, Texas. Her profile can be found at  http://www.goodreads.com/.

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Review: Like No One Else

 Detective Paolo Sanchez is on a mission to find a murderer and get Tommie Purnell off his mind and catching the murderer is the more sure of the two. Tommie Purnell is a dancer making a name for herself as an instructor in Houston but she has an admirer who will do anything to get close to her. Paolo and Tommie have met before and have never been able to forget each other and now due to a murder and family connections, they can't stay away from one another. This is one sexy book. Paolo is good looking, funny, and protective in a way that makes him a perfect hero. In typical cop fashion, he's been divorced and is a womanizer. He' s wanted Tommie since the first time he laid eyes on her and lets her know it at every opportunity. Tommie wants to be able to resist what Paolo is offering without falling completely under his spell but it might not work.

There is a real mystery going on here and you won't get it until the end and you'll wonder how you missed the clues. But there are no clues. Ms. Smith really keeps her murderer under wraps until the very end, so that means everyone is a suspect---even Paolo. But of course, good wins in the end but what a ride getting there. This is a very good, page-turning read.

P.S. There are some connections to previous novels by Maureen Smith (Weapon of Seduction and Whisper My Name) in this book, my suggestion is to read those books as well. Eventhough this book can be read as a stand alone, the other books are just as hot and mysterious.

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Happiest place on earth.

Dangerous by Diana Palmer



I wonder why we continue to read books where we already know the whys and wherefore's. Every time I read a Long, Tall Texan novel by Diana Palmer, I feel as if I've read the the book before. Palmer has a definite formula for her work: gruff, dangerous older man paired with a naive young woman. He needs to protect her from himself and remains the aloof hero until the end. While the damsel in distress cries her heart out wondering what she done wrong and how she can get him to admit his love for her. However the cliche---it works.
Diana Palmer has written more books than most people will read in their entire lives and ends up on the bestsellers list every time she publishes. Why? Because for all the progression in romance and women's literature, we all love a man's man and good rescue and as a card carrying romantic, I'm okay with that. And that's why we continue to purchase Long, Tall Texan novel by the case and make Ms. Palmer one of the most prolific authors in modern romantic literature.

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