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Showing posts from March, 2016

Conversations With Myself (& Hopefully You): Unreliable Narrators

So if you read my Monday Musts from a few weeks ago, you saw me post about the following segment on NPR regarding unreliable narrators, comparing books written by women and the 'girl' in the title phenomenon of recent thrillers/mysteries.  This segment was also inspired by this really interesting article by Megan Abbott .  I've been thinking about this a lot since I heard this segment so listen to it and read Megan's article then we can discuss: Unreliable Narrators: YAY or NAY? There is nothing I dislike more than a book becoming super popular and then every book that may be even tangentially similar being compared to that book.  First, it was Twilight , and when that was an international phenomenon, there was a drove of YA fantasy love triangles written and released, all of which were touted as the next Twilight .  And then it was Fifty Shades of Gray , and I'm sure we all remember all sorts of erotica being published once that book took off, an

Waiting on Wednesday: Dancing with the Tiger by Lili Wright

  "Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Breaking the Spine , that spotlights upcoming releases that you are eagerly anticipating. Today, I am waiting on:   Dancing with the Tiger by Lili Wright From Goodreads : When 30-year-old Anna Ramsey learns that a meth-addicted looter has dug up what might be the funerary mask of Montezuma, she books the next flight to Oaxaca. Determined to redeem her father, a discredited art collector, and to one-up her unfaithful fiancé, a museum curator, Anna hurls herself headlong into Mexico’s underground art world. But others are chasing the treasure as well: the shape-shifting drug lord no one can really describe; the enigmatic American expat, who keeps his art collection locked in a chapel; the former museum director who traffics stolen works, and his housekeeper—deeply religious, a gay woman in a culture of machismo, dependent on a patron she loathes; the painter Salvador on his motorcycle, complex, sensual

Review: Midnight Marked (Chicagoland Vampires #12) by Chloe Neill

Midnight Marked (Chicagoland Vampires #12) by Chloe Neill Blurb from Goodreads : As the Chicagoland Vampires series continues, Merit and Ethan find themselves in a deadly game of cat-and-mouse, where winning may require the ultimate sacrifice... A vampire’s grudges don’t stay dead long... Merit is one of Chicago's most skilled vampire warriors; these days, she doesn't scare easily. But she and Master vampire Ethan have made a new and powerful enemy, and he won't give up until he owns the Windy City. With his last plan thwarted, he's more determined than ever to watch Cadogan burn. Ethan has put the House's vampires on high alert, but their enemy will stop at nothing, including pitting vampire against vampire... In this deadly game of cat-and-mouse, the stakes are life or death—and winning might mean sacrificing everything... . My Review: I can't believe that there is only one book left.  I

Monday Musts: The Study of Seduction, RIP Phife Dawg & Favorite Bookish Posts

Monday Musts is a weekly event, started and hosted by Jessica @ Lovin' Los Libros , which asks you to highlight your must read, must listen and must see! MUST READ! The Study of Seduction (Sinful Suitors #2)  by Sabrina Jeffries From Goodreads : A marriage of convenience ignites into a passionate love affair in the hotly anticipated second novel in New York Times and USA TODAY bestselling author Sabrina Jeffries’s addictive Sinful Suitors series! When Edwin Barlow, the Earl of Blakeborough, agrees to help his best friend’s impetuous ward, Lady Clarissa Lindsey, in her time of need, he knows he’s in for trouble. He’s been hunting for someone to wed, and she’ll just get in the way. Although captivated by the whip-smart, free-spirited beauty, he fears she’d be all wrong as a wife ... if she would even take such a gruff cynic for her husband. Too bad he wants nothing more than to have her for his own. Clarissa has no intention of marrying anyone—not Edwin

Review: Relief Map by Rosalie Knecht

Relief Map by Rosalie Knecht Blurb from Goodreads : In the heat of a stifling summer in her sixteenth year, Livy Marko spends her days in the rust-belt town of Lomath, Pennsylvania, babysitting, hanging out with her best friend, Nelson, and waiting for a bigger life to begin. These simple routines are disrupted when the electricity is cut off and the bridges are closed by a horde of police and FBI agents. A fugitive from the Republic of Georgia, on the run from an extradition order, has taken refuge in nearby hills and no one is able to leave or enter Lomath until he is found.As the police fail to find the wanted man and hours stretch into days, the town of Lomath begins to buckle under the strain. Like Russian dolls, each hostage seems to be harboring a captive of their own. Even Livy’s parents may have something to conceal, and Livy must learn that the source of danger is not always what it appears. Rosalie Knecht’s wise and suspense

Spotlight, Excerpt and Giveaway: The One You Really Want by Jill Mansell

The One You Really Want  by Jill Mansell ISBN: 9781492604471 Release date: April 5, 2016 Genre: Women’s Fiction Publisher: Sourcebooks Landmark About the Book: When it comes to love, never say never   When Nancy discovers the expensive jewelry her husband’s been buying isn’t for her, she decamps from the Scottish countryside to her best friend Carmen’s posh Chelsea town house to sort things out.   Nancy finds herself in a surprising new world, where rock stars are nicer than you thought, social workers are not necessarily to be trusted, and the filthy rich are folks with problems just like you. Everybody falls in love with the wrong people, and the path to true love twists and turns before you discover who you really want. Buy THE ONE YOU REALLY WANT by Jill  Mansell:   Amazon  |  B&N  |  BAM  |  IndieBound With over 9 million copies sold,  New York Times  and  USA Today  bestselling author  Jill Mansell  writes irresistible and funny romantic tal

Waiting on Wednesday: Paper Princess (Royal #1) by Erin Watt

  "Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Breaking the Spine , that spotlights upcoming releases that you are eagerly anticipating. Today, I am waiting on:   Paper Princess (Royal #1) by Erin Watt From Goodreads : From strip clubs and truck stops to southern coast mansions and prep schools, one girl tries to stay true to herself. These Royals will ruin you… Ella Harper is a survivor—a pragmatic optimist. She’s spent her whole life moving from town to town with her flighty mother, struggling to make ends meet and believing that someday she’ll climb out of the gutter. After her mother’s death, Ella is truly alone. Until Callum Royal appears, plucking Ella out of poverty and tossing her into his posh mansion among his five sons who all hate her. Each Royal boy is more magnetic than the last, but none as captivating as Reed Royal, the boy who is determined to send her back to the slums she came from. Reed doesn’t want her. He says she do

Mini Reviews: Little Beach Street Bakery series by Jenny Colgan

Little Beach Street Bakery (Little Beach Street Bakery #1) by Jenny Colgan Blurb from Goodreads : Polly Waterford is recovering from a toxic relationship. Unable to afford their flat, she has to move miles away from everyone, to a sleepy little seaside resort in Cornwall, where she lives alone above an abandoned shop. And so Polly takes out her frustrations on her favourite hobby: making bread. But what was previously a weekend diversion suddenly becomes far more important as she pours her emotions into kneading and pounding the dough, and each loaf becomes better and better. With nuts and seeds, olives and chorizo, with local honey (courtesy of local bee keeper, Huckle), and with reserves of determination and creativity Polly never knew she had, she bakes and bakes and bakes.... And people start to hear about it. Sometimes, bread really is life...and Polly is about to reclaim hers. My Review:   This was a cute read --

Monday Musts: Back to You by Priscilla Glenn, Elle King & Favorite Posts of the Week

Monday Musts is a weekly event, started and hosted by Jessica @ Lovin' Los Libros , which asks you to highlight your must read, must listen and must see! MUST READ! Back To You by Priscilla Glenn From Goodreads : When Lauren Monroe first laid eyes on Michael Delaney back in high school, she had every reason to stay away from him; within minutes of their first encounter, his volatile actions confirmed his notorious reputation. But Lauren saw something in him that caused her to question his bad-boy persona, and against her better judgment, she took a chance. She had no way of knowing that the unlikely friendship they formed would become so important to her. Or that it would end so painfully. Eight years later, when Lauren begins her new job at Learn and Grow Day Care, Michael is the last person she expects to see. Refusing to revisit the hurt and confusion of their past, Lauren vows to keep her distance from him. But staying away from Michael proves to