November Acquisitions

Leaves were falling outside and books were falling from their piles inside, but more came in. I just can't say no to a book!

More Jeaniene Frost courtesy of Book Crossing (I'm signed up for a spiral, which is where you read each book as it comes to you and then mail them to the next participant on the list).

Eternal Kiss of Darkness, This Side of the Grave, and One Grave at a Time. I'm sad to be coming to the end (so far) of this series and will be eagerly awaiting the release of the next book.

From Amazon:



P.S. I Love You, by Cecelia Ahern; Kiss at Your Own Risk, by Stephanie Rowe; and Enemy Overnight, by Robin L. Rotham



Dead Over Heels, by MaryJanice Davidson; Tapestry, by Lynn Kurland, Madeline Hunter, Karen Marie Moning, and Sherrilyn Kenyon; Checkmate, by Malorie Blackman - a young adult series that should be required reading in schools.

From Book Mooch:



Miranda's Big Mistake, by Jill Mansell; Mystic Isle, by Joanna Wayne

  

The Third Twin, by Dani Sinclair; Small Island, by Andrea Levy

From Harlequin Reader Service:



The General's Secretary, by Debby Giusti; Narrow Escape, by Camy Tang; Midnight Shadows, by Carol J. Post

 

Tracking Justice, by Shirlee McCoy; Falling for the Forest Ranger, by Leigh Bale; Small-Town Dad, by Jean C. Gordon

 

Doctor to the Rescue, by Cheryl Wyatt; Cowboy at Midnight, by Ann Major; A Daughter's Redemption, by Georgiana Daniels

 

Rancher's Refuge, by Linda Goodnight (one of my favorite authors, who got me hooked on Love Inspired in the first place!); Homecoming Reunion, by Carolyne Aarsen

A shopping spree at Half Price Books (I love that store!):



Kiss of Midnight, by Lara Adrian; Ship of Magic, by Robin Hobb; Once More With Feeling, by Cynthia Blair

 

Sizzle, by Julie Garwood; Abby Cooper: Psychic Eye and Doom With a View, by Victoria Laurie - numbers 1 and 8 (!) of a series - didn't realize that when I bought them.



Crazy as Chocolate/The Abortionist's Daughter, by Elisabeth Hyde; What Was I Thinking: 58 Bad Boyfriend Stories, edited by Barbara Davilman and Liz Dubelman; Seven Years to Sin, by Sylvia Day

 

Autobiography of a Fat Bride: True Tales of a Pretend Adulthood, and I Love Everybody (and Other Atrocious Lies): True Tales of a Loudmouth Girl, by Laurie Notaro; How To Teach Filthy Rich Girls, by Zoey Dean (I really enjoyed "Privileged", the short-lived TV show based on this book)

 

Wicked Game, by Jeri Smith-Ready; Sweetwater, Oklahoma, by Stanley W. Beesley; Cold Streets, by P.N. Elrod

 

The Stepmother, by Carrie Adams

And a fruitful trip to the thrift store:



Mackenzie's Legacy, and Mackenzie's Heroes, by Linda Howard; Any Woman's Blues, by Erica Jong

 

Kiss of the Night, and Sins of the Night, by Sherrilyn Kenyon; Rose in Bloom, by Louisa May Alcott

 

Rosie Dunne, by Cecelia Aherne; Bite, by Laurell K. Hamilton, Charlaine Harris, MaryJanice Davidson, Angela Knight, and Vickie Taylor; This Time Together: Laughter and Reflection, by Carol Burnett

 

The Very Virile Viking, and The Red-Hot Cajun, by Sandra Hill

Whew! A lot of books in November - too many!

Enemy Overnight

ROBIN L. ROTHAM

Synopsis: The last time Jasmine King was aboard the Heptoral, she escaped by the skin of her teeth. This time she won't be so lucky. Trapped on a ship full of sex-starved aliens and out of the pheromone blocker that holds off her physical transition, Jasmine makes a desperate escape attempt...and fails. The consequences are disastrous – she's mated to three horny warriors, and one has a huge bone to pick with her. What's a girl to do but fall in love?

The last time Shauss saw Jasmine, the deceitful little Terran stole his bondmate from under his nose. This time he won't be so trusting. Finally master of his own bond, Shauss names secondary mates Jasmine feels safe with...and lives to regret it. One can't stop puking long enough to claim her. The other challenges Shauss' supremacy by digging into his psyche at every turn. What's a Dom to do but bed them all into submission?

He sets out to do just that, but his domination takes a brutal turn when he discovers Jasmine's deadly secret...

Stats for my copy: Trade paperback, published by Ellora's Cave, 2010; purchased new from Amazon.

My thoughts: I had read a post on a blog somewhere about this author and her new release, Frankendom, and it just sounded so interesting and out there that I searched for it on Amazon. It's a Kindle only however, and since I prefer actual books to ebooks, I purchased at random one of her other books that was available in bound format. Thus, I read ENEMY OVERNIGHT, which is actually the sequel to ALIEN OVERNIGHT. I don't normally read series books out of order (other than category romances), but while the book references events from the first book it's still a basically stand alone story.

And it was definitely interesting and out there. Not to mention just plain fucked up weird. Not to mention highly hot and entertaining.

I did have a little trouble in the beginning with Shauss being the hero, because he was so incredibly cruel to Jasmine at first (and again later though at that time he believed she was a traitor and had betrayed him). I gathered that in the first book Jasmine played a rather large role in the storyline, having made a huge mess of things for the other characters and caused some problems. Okay, so I do sort of wish I'd read the first book first.

I've read quite a bit of erotica, and I'm not easily shocked when reading, but this was new territory for me. I mean at one point my jaw dropped and I could not believe what I was reading. So, you know, it's not for the chaste or faint of heart...all those Fifty Shades of Gray fans would probably have a heart attack.

The characters are well drawn. If you know me, you know I like stories that are character driven over plot driven. I like to get to know the characters, be inside their heads, and the author does a good job at making them seem real. I've not read much that dealt with aliens, and despite the physical descriptions I still had a little trouble picturing how Shauss and the others looked. I kind of got this picture in my head of creatures similar to Planet of the Apes – I don't really know why or how and at first I had to keep concentrating and thinking about how they were described to get that picture out of my head.

The storyline was interesting and integral to the plot, and not just back story to weave the sex scenes together. In fact, while there were some sexual situations, there was no actual sex until about halfway through the book. But once the sex started, it was scorching.

The last quarter of the book, I could not put it down and sat up past my bedtime to finish it. This author is now on my list of authors who's entire backlist I must now track down and read.

Moment of Truth (Silhouette Intimate Moments, No. 1143)

MAGGIE PRICE

Synopsis: Called to Mission Creek to help find the Lone Star Country Club bomber, Chicago Police bomb tech Hart O'Brien never imagined he'd walk straight into the arms of his first – and only – love. Body Perfect spa manager Joan Cooper had become a cool brunette with a touch-me-not attitude. But Hart HAD touched her one hot summer night ten years ago, then unexpectedly walked away, leaving Joan to deal with the consequences. When anger turns to passion for Joan and Hart, will Joan reveal her ten-year-old secret? Will Hart uncover the identity of the Lone Star bomber?

First line: What the hell am I doing here?

Stats for my copy: Mass market paperback, published by Harlequin Books, 2002; purchased at a library book sale.

My thoughts: I love category romances, but some of the covers make me cringe. This is one of those covers. She looks like she's trying to feel him up through his pocket. And he doesn't look especially impressed with her effort.

Cover photo aside, the characters are much more likable than they appear. Ten years ago Joan was the spoiled little rich girl, while Hart was a groundskeeper at the country club. After a summer of her pursuing him, they finally had their perfect night together (even though she was a virgin – I never did get how the first time could ever be perfect but maybe my first time was an anomaly?), and then they never saw each other again. Hart was accused of stealing money from the club and threatened with his mother being arrested on an old warrant, and so he and his mother blew out of town to start over elsewhere. By the time they were settled and he was ready to get back in touch with Joan, he learned from one of his friends that she had gone off to Dallas and married a hotshot attorney.

Now Hart is back in town to investigate a bombing at the country club, and Joan is working and living in close proximity. He's still angry that after their night together she just forgot about him and married someone else. She's still angry that after their night together he just took off and disappeared. She has a daughter, Helena, who everyone believes is a product of her quick marriage, and she's determined that Hart not find out the truth. Because she's afraid he'll tell Helena he loves her, like he told Joan, and then up and disappear again, breaking Helena's heart, like he did Joan's.

I liked Joan, and I really liked Hart, and I loved Helena. She takes to her mom's “old friend” like a duck to water, following him around the club and pestering him with questions, which he patiently answers.

In the meantime, while Hart and Joan realize they're still hung up on each other (not that they admit that to each other), his investigation is in full swing. There is also a rival for his affections, and plenty of bad guys. In fact, everyone seems to be a potential bad guy. And the action/suspense ramps up in the last quarter of the book to the point that I sat up in bed until midnight, even though I had to be up at six the next morning, because I didn't want to stop reading. I value my sleep, and when a book draws me in enough to make me forego sleep, it's a winner.