My Reading List - MAY 2012

FINISHED - 

1. "MOON AWAKENING" by Lucy Monroe (Children of the Moon #1) (A++) When Emily Hamilton's family is ordered to send a woman to the Scottish Highlands for marriage to the laird of the Sinclairs, Emily volunteers in order to save her younger sister from such a fate. But at her new home, the only friend she finds is the laird's sister - especially after Emily's stubborn streak causes the laird to cancel the marriage. And though her plans have gone awry, she refuses to return home. Lachlan is laird of the Balmoral clan - and leader of his pack. One of the most feared werewolves prowling the Highlands, he is on the march against the hated Sinclairs, who have abducted a Balmoral woman. He kidnaps the sister of the Sinclair laird, planning to marry her off in revenge - but the woman he takes along with her proves to be the greater prize. For Emily feeds a desire he never knew existed. And though Lachlan would not think of marrying a human - an Englishwoman at that - he must know how a mere woman could tame his heart so easily.
2. "A LOT LIKE LOVE" by Julie James (U.S. Attorney #2) (A+++) The FBI wants her cooperation. As the daughter of a billionaire and the owner of the city's top wine store, Jordan Rhodes is invited to the most exclusive parties in Chicago. But there's only one party the FBI wants to crash: the charity fund-raiser of a famous restaurateur, who also happens to launder money for the mob. In exchange for her brother's release from prison, Jordan is going to be there - with a date supplied by the Bureau. Agent McCall just wants her. As the top undercover agent in Chicago, Nick McCall has one rule: never get personal. This "date" with Jordan Rhodes is merely an assignment - one they're both determined to pull off even if they can't be together for five minutes before the sarcasm and sparks begin to fly. But when Nick's investigation is compromised, he and Jordan have no choice but to pretend they're a couple and what starts out as a simple assignment begins to feel a lot like something more.
3. "IN THE AIR TONIGHT" by Stephanie Tyler (Shadow Force #3) (A++) Haunted by a mission he barely survived, Delta Force operative Mace Stevens still carries a soldier's burden. Running a small bar in upstate New York, he remains a stone-cold warrior who guards dangerous secrets and stays ready for anything. Anything except beautiful, vulnerable Paige Grayson, who shows up at his door, demanding answers about her heroic stepbrother's death under his command. Paige bears burdens, too. She's plagued by demons unleashed by an older brother who committed mass murder before her eyes. But here in this snowy haven with Mace, she almost feels safe from the menacing promises of her insane sibling. As a nurse whose hands can read the deepest thoughts of anyone she touches, Paige knows that Mace needs her as desperately as she needs Mace. And when a faceless killer begins unleashing fresh terror, Mace proves just how far he will go to save the woman who means everything to him.
4. "THE COWBOY TAKES A BRIDE" by Lorie Wilde (Jubilee, Texas #1) (A+++) Welcome to Jubilee, Texas. Ex-champion bull rider-turned-cutting-horse cowboy Joe Daniels isn't quite sure how he ended up sleeping in a horse trough wearing nothing but his Stetson and cowboy boots. But now he's wide-awake and a citified woman is glaring down at him. His goal? Get rid of her ASAP. The obstacle? Fighting the attraction he feel toward the blond-haired filly with the big, vulnerable eyes. When out-of-work wedding planner Mariah Callahan learns that her estranged father has left her a rundown ranch in Jubilee, she has no choice but to accept it. Her goal? Redeem her career by planning local weddings. The obstacle? One emotionally wounded, hard-living cowboy who stirs her guilt, her heartstrings and her long-burned cowgirl roots.
5. "JUST DOWN THE ROAD" by Jodi Thomas (Harmony, Texas #6) (A++++) Harmony, Texas is a place where dreams are born. As the townspeople face unexpected endings and new beginnings, they also come face-to-face with themselves - and with what's important in life. When Tinch Turner lost his wife, he gave up on living. Now he spends his nights brooding, boozing and brawling. When one of his escapades lands him in the ER, he finds himself staring up at the beautiful new doctor in town. For the first time in years, he feels a spark, but Addison Spencer wants nothing to do with the unruly rancher - or any man for that matter. She's only going to be in Harmony for four months, long enough for the trouble she left behind to settle down. But then a vulnerable little boy barrels into both their lives, forcing them out of the past - and into a future where love is just down the road. In the meantime, as Reagan Truman grieves for her beloved uncle, she finds comfort in the makeshift family she's made in Harmony - and in a new baby, the first in the Wright Funeral Home in forty-five years, proving that life does go on.
6. "BLOOD GAME" by Iris Johansen (Eve Duncan #8)  (A+) To whet a killer's appetite, she will enter into a web of danger from which there may be no escape. When a Georgia senator's daughter is found dead and drained of blood, Eve enters the world of a twisted psychopath - a man whose name appears on Eve's short list of killers connected to her own missing daughter, Bonnie. Then Eve receives a terrifying trophy - and the games have begun. Soon she must enlist the help of those she loves and trusts the most - Joe Quinn and Jane MacGuire - even if it means putting them in the path of someone whose thirts for blood is only growing stronger. Eve believes this psychotic mind holds the answers to the questions that have tormented her for years. But like a spider hunting its prey, he is waiting for the perfect moment to strike - when Eve least expects it. And when she has the most to lose.
7. "DEEP IN THE HEART" by Sharon Sala (A++++) Samantha Carlyle knows someone is watching her - someone who wants her dead. So she runs to the safety of her tiny Texas hometown and to the sweet, haunting memories of John Thomas Knight. A dedicated small-town sheriff as tender as he is tough, John Thomas was Samantha's best friend, her first love - and now he is her only chance. Fate has carried them down different roads, but the fire has never died - and the passion flares white-hot the moment their eyes meet again. But this time Samantha must trust the proud, strong, devastatingly handsome lawman with more than her heart - she must trust him with her life. Because there is another man who wants her and he waiting for the right time to strike. And the next sweet, sensuous kiss she and John Thomas share could well be Samantha's last.
8. "TEMPTING FAITH" by Susan Mallery (Safe Haven) (A+++) The heart is a lonely hunter. Sleek. Powerful. Proud. Agent Cort Hollenbeck moved with the grace of a predator on the prowl. And he always walked alone. In "fighting the good fight," he never got too close - to anyone. Until terrifying blanks in his memory forced him to face his deepest fears...and trust a woman who walked on the wild side. Strong. Gutsy. Full of surprises. Faith Newlin had what it took to tend all things wild and wonderful. Many a wounded being came her way, but she refused to care too deeply. For she'd long ago learned that even a heart carefully given could be savagely broken. Faith's hands could calm the fiercest animal, but would her touch be able to soothe Cort's soul?
9. "TALL, DARK AND LETHAL" by Dana Marton (A+) A dangerous past forced him to lie low...until a beautiful target landed in his arms. With only seconds to spare, Cade Palmer had rescued feisty Bailey Preston from the grenade that demolished her home. The sexy ex-soldier had no doubt the explosion was payback for his own dangerous past in special ops, but before long, Cade realized Bailey was the true target - thanks to her connection to some very powerful and very deadly weapons Now, to protect her from the assassins, Cade was taking Bailey on the run. He knew she hated relying on anyone to keep her safe, but as a trained-to-kill soldier, Cade wasn't about to let the enemies get their hands on her. That was his job.
10. "HARD TO HANDLE" by Lori Foster (SBC Fighters #3) (A++) Extreme fighter Harley Handleman has an outlook on life as hard as his muscular body. Fate has dealt him a sucker punch and a low blow, at that. First, there were his failed attempts at the title belt. Then, Harley's mother lost her fight with breast cancer, leaving him with no family but his trainer, Uncle Stach. Taking a break in the mountains seemed like a good idea. But his vacation isn't nearly as restful as he expected - thanks to his landlady, Anastasia Bradley. Their verbal sparring keeps him on his toes and the sensusal sparks that fly between them would knock out a lesser man. The last thing Harley wants is more complications in his life, so he's determined to keep his distance from the alluring Stasia. But someone else has also noticed Stasia - someone who is putting her life in danger. To protect Stasia, Harley must stay close, but his growing feelings for her may be a bit hard to handle.
11. "HOT UNDER PRESSURE" by Louisa Edwards (Rising Star Chef #3) (A+++++) Loaded with the hottest dishes and sexiest chefs, the Rising Star Chef Competition is about to boil over for one pair of all-star cooks who can't stand the heat - of working so close together. She's the one he left behind. Henry Beck thought he'd already faced the toughest kitchen challenge of his life. After all, what could top sweating it out as a Navy cook on a submarine? But when he learns his competition for the title of Rising Star Chef is the sweet hippie girl he married...and left...ten years ago, the heat is on. He's the one she can't forget. Now Beck and Skye Cladwell are going head to head in the finals...and sparking up old flames every time they touch. But Skye wants more than a win over the man who abandoned her when she needed him most - she wants a divorce! Then her sexy almost-ex makes a deliciously dangerous proposition. He'll give in to her demands, but if his team wins the RSC, he has a demand of his own...one last taste of the only woman he ever loved.
12. "STRONG, SLEEK AND SINFUL" by Lorie O'Clare (FBI Sex Crimes #3) (A+++) Sometimes the only man you want...is the one you shouldn't trust. Special Agent Kylie Donovan knows the evil that men do. After her sister's murder went unsolved, she decided to work undercover for the FBI. Now, posing as a college student, she hopes to track down an internet predator who is murdering teenage girls. Using herself as bait, Kylie is sure she can lure the killer out of the shadows...until her fascination with a drop-dead gorgeous cop threatens to blow her whole case. With a rock-hard body and seductive smile, Lieutenant Perry Flynn is a hard man to ignore. He makes it very clear that Kylie's fierce attraction is mutual. But Kylie can't afford to let Perry cloud her judgment, especially when she begins to suspect that his dark obsession with the case runs deeper than it should. Then, when disturbing new evidence points to a cop, Kylie wonders if her sinful thoughts about Perry have thrust her into the strong, sleek arms of a killer.
13. "A SINGLE THREAD" by Marie Bostwick (Cobbled Court #1) (A+++) It's a long way from Fort Worth, Texas, to New Bern, Connecticut, yet it only takes a day in the charming Yankee town to make Evelyn Dixon realize she's found her new home. The abrupt end of her marriage was Evelyn's wake-up call to get busy chasing her dream of opening a quilt shop. Finding a storefront is easy enough; starting a new life isn't. Little does Evelyn imagine it will bring a trio like Abigail Burgess, her niece Liza and Margot Matthews through her door. Troubled and angry after her mother's death, Liza threatens to embarrass her Aunt Abigail all over town unless she joins her for quilting classes. A victim of downsizing at the peak of her career, Margot hopes an event hosted by the quilt shop could be a great chance to net work - and keep from dying of boredom. As they stitch their unique creations, Evelyn, Abigail, Liza and Margot form a sisterhood they never sought - but one that they'll be grateful for when the unexpected provides a poignant reminder of the single thread that binds us all.
14. "GIVE HIM THE SLIP" by Geralyn Dawson (Holy Terrors #1) (A+) She's a woman on the run. Maddie Kincaid thought she'd left trouble behind when she settled in peaceful Brazos Bend. She started her own business. She lived a simple live. She never dreamed that helping a gentle old man would land her in the middle of an attempted murder - her own. Now she's running for her life, right into the arms of the infamous Luke "Sin" Callahan. He does his best work undercover. DEA agent Luke Callahan has just settled into his much needed fishing vacation and the last thing he needs on his line is a long-legged redheaded stowaway with secrets in her heart and killers on her tail. Lucky for her, he's deadlier than the guys who are chasing her. Unfortunately for him, she's gorgeous, smart and determined to make it on her own. When the secrets start spilling and the nights heat up, Luke faces a new sort of danger - losing the woman he loves. Can he win the battle for her heart? Or will she give him the slip?
15. "TRIAL BY FIRE" by Jo Davis (Firefighters of Station Five #1) (A++++) (I found I'd read this book before but couldn't put it down and it was as good the second time around) Harold may love being a fireman and riding his Harley, but there's nothing he values more than his bachelorhood - until a feisty, curvaceous teacher named Kat McKenna falls into his arms at the scene of a blaze and melts the sixi-foot-six tower of bronzed muscle. But just as passion ignites between them and they begin to explore new heights of sexual ecstasy, a ruthless arsonist with a deadly secret and a thirst for vengeance becomes their worst nightmare.
16. "WINTER GARDEN" by Kristin Hannah (unabridged Audio CD) (A++++++) (what a beautiful, sad, mesmerizing story) Meredith and Nina Whitson are as different as sisters can be. One stayed at home to raise her children and manage the family business; the other followed a dream and traveled the world to become a famous photojournalist. But when their beloved father falls ill, these two estranged sisters will find themselves together again, standing alongside their disapproving mother, Anya, who even now offers no comfort to her daughters. On his deathbed, their father extracts a promise: Anya will tell her daughters a fairy tale; it is one she began years ago and never finished. This time she will tell it all the way to the end. The tale their mother tells them is unlike anything they've heard before - a captivating, mysterious love story that spans more than sixty years and moves from frozen, war-torn Leningrad to modern-day Alaska. Nina's obsession to uncover the truth will send them all on an unexpected journey into their mother's past, where they will discover a secret so shocking, it shakes the foundation of their family and changes who they believe they are.
17. "STREET GAME" by Christine Feehan (GhostWalkers #8) (A++++) For Mack McKinley and his team of GhostWalker killing machines, urban warfare is an art form. But despite a hard-won knowledge of the San Francisco streets, Mack knows from experience that too many things can still go wrong. Danger is just another part of the game - and he's come face-to-face with a woman who can play just as tough. She's Jaimie, a woman with a sapphire stare so potent it can destroy a man. Years ago she and Mack had a connection - volatile, erotic and electric. Then she vanished. Now she's walked back into Mack's life as a spy with too many secrets for her own good. Against all odds, she's hooking up with Mack one more time to take on an enemy that could destroy them both or bring them together again in one hot, no-holds-barred adrenaline rush.
18. "A GAME OF CHANCE" by Linda Howard (Mackenzies #5) (A+) On the trail of a vicious criminal, agent Chance Mackenzie found the perfect bait for his trip: Sunny Miller. So Chance made himself the only man she could trust - and then arranged for her long-missing father to find out about them. What Chance hadn't forseen was that Sunny had reasons of her own for hiding from her father - and now Chance's deception had brought them both one step closer to the end of everything they held dear.
19. "SWORN TO SILENCE" by Linda Castillo (Kate Burkholder #1) (A+++) Sixteen years ago, a series of brutal murders shattered a peaceful farming community. A young Amish girl named Kate Burkholder survived the terror of the Slaughterhouse Killer...but fled to the safety of a big city. Years later, Kate returns to Painters Mill, Ohio as Chief of Police. She's come to terms with her past - until the first body is discovered in a snowy field. Kate vows to stop the killer before he strikes again. But will she betray both her family and her Amish past - and expose the dark secret that could destroy her?
20. "THE WALK" by Richard Paul Evans (The Walk #1) (A+) What would you do if you lost everything? When Seattle ad executive Alan Christoffersen loses his job, his home and the love of his life - all at the same time - he's tempted by his darkest thoughts. Then, as he sits with a bottle of pills in his hand, he hears a voice telling him to live. That's when he decides to go on a walk, but no ordinary walk. Taking with him only the barest of essentials, Alan leaves behind all that he's known and heads for the farthest point on his map: Key West, Florida. The people he encounters along the way and the lessons they share with him, will save his life - and inspire yours.
21. "HOT WHEELS AND HIGH HEELS" by Jane Graves (#1) (A++) She has caviar dreams on a SPAM budget. Trophy wife Darcy McDaniel has just discovered that, thanks to her embezzling husband, her posh, upper-class life is gone for good. Now she's trading her suburban palace for a trailer park and her weekly salon appointments for a job. Darcy needs a new man - fast - one who'll keep her in the manner she darn well deserves. Problem is, the hottest prospect around is the my-way-or-the-highway hunk who's making off  with her beloved Mercedes! He doesn't want trouble...until she saunters in wearing high heels. Ex-cop turned repo man John Stark is sure that hiring the furious woman in his headlights is a colossal mistake. He knows Darcy's high-maintenance, designer-labels-only type - after all, he's used to taking their cars. But he never expected this hellion to have the smarts and the spunk to go from receptionist to repo agent in record time...or to drive him insane with desire. She's the last thing this tall, dark and dangerous loner needs...and everything he never knew he wanted.
22. "THE MAGIC HOUR" by Susan Isaacs (abridged Audio Cassette) (B) The Hamptons: a sunny stretch of beach shimmering on Long Island. Summer home of Manhattan's glitterati, it is the perfect place to shoot films and live the beautiful life. Both of which Sy Spencer does in aces. Until somebody shoots the suave movie mogul dead, right next to his glorious, olympic-sized pool. Enter Detective Steve Brady. Local bad boy, ex-drunk, ex-druggie and tough cop. Brady knows just who hated Sy Spencer and who might have killed him. What he doesn't know is that even a tough cop can fall in love with a tender suspect. And when that happens, will Brady risk everything for the right woman - at the wrong time?
23. "BLACK TIES AND LULLABIES" by Jane Graves (#3) (A+++) A good girl can be bad for one night...but can a bad boy be good for a lifetime? Bernadette Hogan doesn't make mistakes. Not when it comes to caring for her mother and not at her job protecting Texas's most eligible - and infuriating - bachelor. Maybe that's why she's overcome with guilt after one tiny indiscretion: a passionate fling with him that's left her confused, intrigued...and pregnant. To self-made millionaire Jeremy Bridges, women are like fine wine: if held for too long, they sour. But one wild night with Bernadette changed all that. She makes him laugh, she makes him think and soon she's going to make him a father. For the first time, Jeremy wants to be a one-woman man. So how can he convince the fiercely independent Bernadette he's ready to change from partying playboy to dependable dad - and become the loving husband she deserves?
24. "HOW TO KNIT A LOVE SONG" by Rachael Herron (Cypress Hollow Yarn #1) (A+++) Abigail is more than ready for a change when she inherits a cottage from her beloved mentor, knitting guru Eliza Carpenter. Leaving the oppressive city for the greener pastures of a small California beach town, she intends to turn her cozy little windfall into a knitting shop and spend her days spinning, designing and purling. But she's not going to be welcomed with open arms by her neighbor. Eliza's disgruntled nephew, the gorgeous Cade, now owns everything surrounding Abigail's ramshackle new home and he views this sexy city girl as an unwanted interloper. But chemistry working overtime is drawing two very different people closer than they ever thought possible. And when the past that Abigail thought she'd left behind comes calling, she'll have to somehow learn to trust her handsome adversary with much more than just her heart. 
25. "DYLAN" by D.H. Admirand (The Secret Life of Cowboys #2) (A) Dylan Garahan might be an old hand at lassoing fillies, but one night at the Lucky Star club and he ends up wrapping his rope around someone that even his formidable strength can't tame. She's wily and beautiful...and she's his new boss. Dylan's had his heart broken before, but even an honest cowpoke has to wrestle with temptation. Ronnie DelVecchio might be fresh off the bus from New Jersey, but she's a hard-edged businesswoman and has had her fill of men she can't resist - although she might consider getting off her high horse for that big, handsome rancher with a Texas drawl.
26. "TEA AND DESTINY" "TEA AND DESTINY" by Sherryl Woods (A++++) Does she have anything left to give? Ann Davies was always giving away her heart - to her therapy patients and to the dolphins she used to help them. For any stray kid that needed a home, she opened her arms in welcome. She never hesitated to give herself to anyone who asked. Until Hank Riley. The big contractor demanded everything - her body, her heart, her life. Part of her wanted to give it all to him. She craved being desired, being cared for - after all, what had she ever done for herself? But another part feared everything he stood for - losing control, throwing away logic, living for the moment, surrendering. If she allowed herself to do that, what would be left when he walked away? "LIGHT THE STARS" by RaeAnne Thayne (Cowboys of Cold Creek #1) (A++++) Wade Dalton was having a very bad day - his five-year-old had accidentally set the kitchen on file. His daughter was surly, as usual. The baby hadn't been fed yet. And his mother - aka "The Childminder" - had eloped with a scam artist. Could it get any worse? Turned out it could. Because the annoyingly beautiful daughter of said scam artist was now at the door, batting her doe eyes at him and proposing that she be his temporary nanny while awaiting the newlyweds return. Could he trust her to be under his roof? Could he trust himself with her under his roof?
27. "THE REVELATION" by Beverly Lewis (Abram's Daughters #5) (A+) Jonas Mast's return from Apple Creek, Ohio, has given Leah Ebersol reason to hope again. Yet she endures an unexplained silence that makes her fear Peter Mast and stern Bishop Bontrager are conspiring to once again keep her Jonas and her apart. Impulsive Jake Mast pines for his first love. But if he follows his brother Jonas back home to Gobbler's Knob, Leah and Sadie will be forced to reveal their closely guarded secret - a secret with the power to split the Mast and Ebersol families even further apart, maybe forever.
28. "A VOW TO LOVE" by Sherryl Woods (Men in Uniform - Vows #6) (A) The first time Penny Hayden and Sam Roberts met as teenagers, she stormed off in an outraged huff. The second time, nine years later, she hauled off and kicked him in the shin! It was then that Penny's grandfather knew they were a match made in heaven. Oh, sure, Penny said that Sam was an insensitive jerk. And Sam insisted that he didn't need anyone in his perfectly solitary life. But her grandfather could read between the denials. And even if it was the last thing he accomplished, he vowed they would fall in love!
29. "DIVING IN DEEP" by K.A. Mitchell (A+) You never forget your first time. Cameron Lewis loves his job as an instructor/trainer for a water safety firm that inspects water parks. He gets to travel from March through September, always moving on to something different. When a strange emptiness starts plaguing him, he chalks it up to turning thirty. He manages to shake off the feeling - until he walks into a classroom and discovers that the eye candy in the front row is actually a grown up version of his best friend's kid brother. Noah Winthrop never forgot his first time. Scary, painful and then absolutely amazing - and with Cameron, the guy he'd always wanted. He's had a crush on his brother's best friend since puberty and now nothing will keep him from finally getting Cameron Lewis to notice him. Even though Cameron once rejected him, Noah is determined to get it right this time.
30. "DELANEY'S DESERT SHEIKH" by Brenda Jackson (Westmoreland #1) (A) Lovemaking 101...Delaney Westmoreland refused to let a mix-up in her vacation plans postpone the R and R she craved. But when she reluctantly agreed to share a secluded cabin with an arrogant sheikh bent on seduction, she found herself enrolled in a crash course in human sexuality. Unfortunately, commitment and love were misplaced pages in her darkly handsome mentor's manual. A prince of a teacher...Jamal Ari Yassir had intended to school Delaney in sensuality for his pleasure, but his plan backfired. Instead of loving and leaving her, he became engulfed by an irresistible passion for his sexy-as-sin cabin mate. Could his convenient summer lover be the woman he was destined to share his life with?
31. "THE NEGOTIATOR" by Dee Henderson (O'Malley #1) (A+++) Failure is not an option...FBI special agent Dave Richman has spent his life protecting people: failure is not in his vocabulary. He'll figure out a way to protect Kate even if she is determined to make it difficult. Failure means somebody dies...Kate O'Malley's specialty is hostage situations - defusing human time bombs before they go off. She will walk into the middle of a crisis if that's what is necessary to settle a situation. She's learned to let others see what she wants them to see. She's learned to depend on herself. Only herself. People die if she fails. Failure is what someone wants...Kate is a target. Someone's been sending her black roses. Maybe the same person who just blew up an airplane...and blamed Kate. Then the investigation brings up the one name Kate hoped never to hear again...and she's faced with the shocking evidence that the bomber may be someone she knows. Now she has to decide if Dave - and the God he trusts so implicitly - is all he's supposed to be. And Dave is about to discover that loving a hostage negotiator is one thing, but keeping her safe is another matter entirely.
32. "LYING IN WAIT" by J.A. Jance (J.P. Beaumont #12) (A+++) A Seattle fisherman has died badly - bound, tortured and set ablaze aboard his boat on the Puget Sound. And with his death comes disturbing questions...and the key to a Pandora's Box of evil that has remained tightly closed for over half a century. Else Didriksen is no longer the beautiful, troubled teenager who disappeared from detective J.P. Beaumont's life thirty years earlier. Now she is a homicide victim's widow - frightened, desperate and trapped in a web of murderous greed that reaches out from a time of unrelenting terror. And the dark. deadly secrets that hold Else prisoner threaten to ensnare Beau and new partner SWue Danielson as well - and to rock their world in ways they never dreamed possible.
33. "WICKED NIGHT GAMES" by Kathleen Lawless (B+) Welcome aboard the Fantasy Cruise Line, where luxurious private cabins use virtual reality to create any fantasy you've ever dreamed of - and a few you've never imagined. Cassidy Ferrill's fantasy is to get revenge on her teen crush, Sloan Hardt, who broke her heart when he rejected her long ago. She wants to seduce the man, then leave while he's panting for more. When she discovers they'll both be guests on a Fantasy wedding cruise, Cassidy knows she's found the perfect opportunity. If she can just keep from losing her heart all over again. Sloan doesn't immediately recognize the curvy auburn-haired beauty as his long-ago "pity date" to the prom, but he certainly recognizes what he's feeling: pure, unadulterated lust. The fantasy-themed cabins are a perfect opportunity for some truly wicked night games with this new, grown-up Cassidy. But while Sloan has always been a love-'em-and-leave-'em kind of guy, this fling somehow seems different. Why does he find himself fantasizing about a life with Cassidy after the cruise is over?
34. "MIND TRYST" by Robyn Carr (A++) Dear Jackie, I'm the one who's been in your house. I love lying there, in your bed, fantasizing about our life together. Jackie Sheppard thought she left the fears of the city behind when she moved to the small town in the Colorado Rockies. She's about to learn what terror really is. Dear Jackie, I'm still here. You know how badly I want you. Soon, we'll be back together...forever. No matter how many locks she puts on the door, Jackie Sheppard will never feel safe again.
35. "RUN FOR YOUR LIFE" by James Patterson & Michael Ledwidge (Michael Bennett #2) (unabridged Audio CD) (A++) A spree killer passes brutal judgment. A calculating murderer who calls himself the Teacher is taking on New York City, slaughtering the powerful and the arrogant. Everyone is his potential student - from the loudmouthed girl on her cell phone to the city's snooty upper crust. His message is clear: remember your manners or suffer the consequences! For some, it seems the rich are finally getting what they deserve. For New York's elite, it is a call to terror. No chance for redemption. There is only one man in the NYPD who can tackle such a high-profile case: Detective Michael Bennett. For anyone else, the pressure would be overwhelming, but Mike is ready to step up - taking care of his ten children has prepared him for the job. One man struggles to save a city. A secret pattern emerges in the Teacher's lessons, leaving Detective Bennett just a few precious hours to save New York from the greatest disaster in its history.
36. "NORTHERN LIGHTS" by Michelle Cary (A+) (Kindle) Ten years after her world was shattered by rape, Brooke Hague has finally picked up the pieces of her life. She worked hard to put that horrible night behind her, until the man who hurt her is paroled. Now stalked by the man who raped her, Brooke's life is in danger. Crab fishing captain Nathan Lowery has suffered his fair share of tragedy over the years. He swears he's given up on love, despite the feelings he has for the shy, petite redhead. Learning her life may be in danger, Nathan does the one thing he can to help protect her - he takes her with him to Alaska during king crab season. Cooking for six men on a boat in the middle of the Bering sea presents more of a challenge than Brooke bargained for. It's also the last place she expected to fall in love, but when the season ends and the stalker is still at large, Brooke's fear for her well being is overshadowed by her need to save her new love's life. She knows, in the end, if necessary, she'll give her own life to save his.
37. "IT HAD TO BE YOU" by Susan Elizabeth Phillips (Chicago Stars #1) (A+++) The Windy City isn't quite ready for Phoebe Somervilole - the outrageous, curvaceous New York knockout who has just inherited the Chicago Stars football team. And Phoebe is definitely not ready for the Stars' head coach, former gridiron legend Dan Calebow, a sexy jock taskmaster with a one track mind. Calebow is everything Phoebe abhors. And the sultry new boss is everything Dan despises - a meddling bimbo who doesn't know a pigskin from a pitcher's mound. So why is Dan drawn to the shameless sexpot like a heat-seeking missle? And why does the coach's good ol' boy claim leave cosmopolitan Phoebe feeling awkward, tongue-tied...and ready to fight?

Currently Reading -

1. "Certain Girls" by Jennifer Weiner (Cannie Shapiro #2)
2. "Eight Days to Live" by Iris Johansen (Eve Duncan #9)
3. "Track of the Cat" by Nevada Barr (Anna Pigeon #1)

Currently Listening to -

1. "Love's Encore" by Sandra Brown (abridged Audio CD)

Finished

• The Whistling Season by Ivan Doig 
• My Only Sunshine by Lou Dischler
• Postcards from the Dead Girl by Kirk Farber
• The Flight of Gemma Hardy by Margot Livesey
• A Land More Kind than Home by Wiley Cash
• Waiting for Sunrise by William Boyd

Currently Reading

• Lifeboat by Charlotte Rogan

Listening To

• Say Her Name by Francisco Goldman

Currently Reading

Red-Headed Step Child by Jaye Wells

Listening To

The Cabinet of Curiosities by Preston & Child

Finished

Lethal by Sandra Brown 

Zero Day by David Baldacci

Blood Stains by Sharon Sala

To Fetch a Thief by Spencer Quinn

The Tommyknockers by Stephen King

The Lincoln Lawyer by Michael Connelly

Blood Ties by Sharon Sala

Don't hate me.  I'm reading "If I did It" by The Goldman Family.  No, not by O.J., this is "The Ron Goldman Foundation For Justice Authorized Version".  It contains an exact replication of the O.J. book,  but with a forward and prologue by the Goldman Family explaining why they fought so hard to publish it themselves--so O.J. wouldn't profit from it, and so his "confession" would become published and not disappear should he have had second thoughts.  It's fascinating.   I haven't gotten to the murders yet and of course am squeamish about how detailed the narrative might be, but I am admittedly hooked.   

Double post......?

I am reading:

Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children

Finished:

Virgin and Martyr Andrew Greeley

Something Beginning With Sarah Salway

Cross Roads Fern Michaels

Model Home Eric Puchner

Hot Lights, Cold Steel, Michael Collins MD

The Prairie Hedge Murders Patricia Stoltey

Mistress of Nothing Kate Pullinger

The Good Doctor Damon Galgut

The Coldman Cometh Bob Durr

Finished

The Natural Superiority of the Left Hander by James deKay - I'm not left handed but my sister is, I got it for her as a joke book but she already had it. So I read it. It's just a bunch of stuff about being lefthanded told in cartoon form. 

The Fifth Woman by Henning Mankell - Excellent Wallender book. I am biased towards Scandinavian crime fiction but this one really had me, I read it in 2 days. Couldn't put it down. It wasn't quite as complicated as some of these books can be and it was a little easier to unravel but it was still a complex and detailed story. There was a little weird bit where they had some connecting male characters pegged as unlikely homosexuals and it turned out they were but that was never shown to matter to the story or their connection to the victim so I wasn't sure what it's purpose was. They kind of hinted at one person being a lesbian, her physical description was very stereotypical lesbian and she obviously hated men, but that didn't really go anywhere either. It wasn't a big part of the story but seemed like a loose end to me. Still a great book. 

Evolution of Man: Or How I Ate My Father by Roy Lewis - Cute satirical story told by cave men who speak as though they read English at Cambridge. Pretty funny how they discovered fire. 

Unbearable Lightness by Portia de Rossi - Story of Portia's battle with anorexia. It was pretty incredible, it's hard to believe anyone could feel so bad about themselves. It begins and ends with her anorexia, ending before she gets together with Ellen but she does talk about their relationship in an epilog. It is very focused on just her weight issues. 

Goodbye Jumbo...Hello Cruel World - Memoir about Louie's weight issues and his mother's death. 

Famous For 15 Minutes: My Life With Andy Warhol by Ultra Violet - Excellent account from one of the few people there who remembers what happened. Since she didn't drink or do drugs Ultra has an advantage over her Factory friends, she can remember her past! Very interesting insight into the Factory and Salvador Dali. Talk about being envious of someone's life, she was close friends with both of them, plus many other interesting people. 

The Historian by Elizabeth Kostova - Reading club book I would have never chosen otherwise but I really enjoyed it. The ending was a bit of a let down, after a 900 page build up it should take more than one page to do the ending, but it wasn't terrible. I'm glad I read it even though I'm not exactly a vampire fan. Well written and very descri[tive of parts of the world I know little about. It had surprisingly few slow parts for a book of 909 pages. It kept my interest almost completely. 

Uncle Remus : His Songs and His Sayings by Joel Chandler Harris - I remembered these stories from childhood books and wanted to revisit them. I'm not sure I agree with the racist claims, if it actually happened it's not racist to write it down. Just because the author was white doesn't make it wrong. He grew up with people who were freed slaves and he heard these tales from them in their vernacular as a child. I can't see the issue with writing them down that way and I believe he did so only as a tribute to the tales and the tellers. 

Finished:  Halfway to Heaven by Susan Wiggs-- Wiggs at her romantic best,  I needed a break from my regular reads of mysteries.

Monsieur Pamplemousse by Michael Bond -- A fun little mystery by the author of the childrens' Paddington Bear stories.

Beach Girls by Luanne Rice  --  A continuation of the Hubbard's Point series,  a story about people who find love when they're not looking for it.

 Once A Spy by Keith Thomson -- Undoubtably one of the best books I've read in a long time!!  This is Thomson's first book and I can't wait to read the second in this series.  A completely different premise for a plot, an ex-spy with Alzheimer's who holds the key to some top secret information [when he's lucid] and his race-track loving son, who have to battle CIA, NSA, and all the other government intelligence departments who are trying to silence them.  A rip-roaring, page-turning story that keeps the reader up late at night!! Highly recommended!!   

Cold Pursuit by Carla Neggers  --- First of the Black Falls series, A good read by Neggers, interesting characters and plot, well developed.

Murder at the National Cathedral by Margaret Truman  --- I always enjoy Truman's mysteries.  She brings in facts about Washington, DC not known by most people because of her intimate knowledge while living there with her father, Harry Truman. Her mysteries are well-plotted and keep the reader guessing to the very last page. 

Girls of Summer by Barbara Bretton  --- A wonderful book about sisters, their relationships and how they come to terms with each other. For all women who have sisters, this book will ring true.

The Dead Cat Bounce by Sarah Graves  -- Sarah Graves first book and it's a winner. I'd never read any of her books before, hadn't even heard of her until I choose this from another member's shelf because it sounded interesting. It was written in 1998 and there's at least one sequel to the series about Jacobia Tiptree and Ellie White.  I intend to see if it's posted and order it. Love Graves' style of writing, a well-developed plot, good mystery and I really like the characters...well, at least most of them.

Reading now: ,  

Up next: I haven't decided yet, probably a mix of favorite authors and new-to-me authors.

Reading The Historian by Elizabeth Kostova

Uglies by Scott Westerfield

Life As We Knew it by Susan Beth Pfeffer

Finished:
The Holy Kabbalah - A.E. Waite
A lot of what's in this book I was already familiar with due to reading The Mystical Shape of the Godhead by Gershom Scholem a few years ago.  However, some of the less popular contributors to Kabbalah were in here, so it was a very interesting read.  There were a few books that I'd like to read, but as far as I know they are only available in their original languages still.

Obsessive Compulsive Disorder Demystified: An Essential Guide for Understanding and Living with OCD - Eric Storch, Anne Coulter
Very informative.  Great advice and guidance on how to help yourself or somebody you know on the road to recovery.  It helped me understand OCD better, but it didn't really have much to offer as far as helping people "live" with OCD (like the title suggests). 

Will finish Five Quarters of the Orange by Joanne Harris in a day or so.

Next up is The Historian - will probably take the whole month to read!

Finished:  Girl, Interrupted by S. Kaysen

Reading:  

This Charming Man by Marian Keyes

Z is for Zombies by Adam-Troy Castro (fun little book with great illustrations!)

Barb, I just finished THE FIFTH WOMAN, by Henning Mankell in April. His are always great reads. Well, except DANIEL. I tried to listen to audio version and could not get involved with the book. Now I am reading another Mankell, ONE STEP BEHIND. If I had the time, I could read it cover to cover with only slight breaks. Unfortunately, I must work!!!

 In audio, I am finishing today THE CRUELEST MONTH by Louise Penny. This one started out very slowly, but when Chief  Inspector Gamache enters the mystery in Three Pines , Southern Quebec , Canada I was trapped in the story. Later today, I will start another Louise Penny, A FATAL GRACE. Sounds like I am in a rut with authors, but I find one I like and reserve them at the library. Actually, if I am really "into" the writing, I want to continue with another so it is like the book never ended. I messed up and read Cruelest Month before Fatal Grace, but maybe it will not matter much.

I need to start paying attention to my challenges and matching books to categories. So I will probably move to a "new" author next.

Mary 

Finished

1. Why Darwin Matters by Michael Shermer (2006, 161 pages 2/5 stars)

Reading

1. Did Jesus Exist? by Bart Ehrman
2. Yellow Dog by Martin Amis
3. Skeleton Crew by Stephen King
4. Sons and Lovers by D.H. Lawrence

Up Soon

1. Just After Sunset by Stephen King
2. Top Secret by Robert M. Price

Currently reading "The Tiger's Wife" but can't seem to get into it although it's supposed to be wonderful.

Before that, I read "State of Wonder" by Ann Patchett, which I loved and can't stop thinking about.

In between books right now but I just finished House Rules by Jodi Picoult and 29 Gifts: How a Month of Giving Can Change Your Life by Cami Walker.

Re-runs from last month

The Lonely Polygamist~Barry Udall: this is about 600 pages so it's gonna take me some more time but I am committed

Also:

Ragtime~E.L.Doctorow/ Glass Castle~Jeanette Walls

Trying to get back into Snow Falling on Cedars and The Tigers Wife~both very interesting and a good narrative flow but I keep getting interrupted.

Started

The Outlander~ Gil Adamson: Really like it so far, been waiting and wanting to read this for a long time, so glad I found it at the library!

The Factory Girls~ LeslieT.Chang: Borrowed this from a co-worker, haven't read any NF lately except for magazine articles so I am looking forward to getting into this.

Next:

NF: Columbine~Dave Cullen

Voluntary Madness~Nora Vincent

I just finished Aunt Dimity and the Next of Kin, this is the 10th in the series but the first I read. I don't know why I haven't read these before, I loved the book and will start with the first now. How nice to have a wonderful new series to read!

I am listening to The Case of the man Who Died Laughing the second in this series and starting to read Old Haunts the third in a series I really like also.

Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs

Friday bumping

Wednesday bumping