My May reading list:

Finished - 

1. "DARK OF NIGHT" by Suzanne Brockmann (Troubleshooters #14) (A) Taking on the world's deadliest criminals is what the elite security force Troubleshooters Incorporated does best. But now they face a new and powerful threat from their most lethal enemy yet - a shadowy government outfit known only as The Agency. For years, operative James Nash has performed ultra-covert "Black Ops" missions for The Agency, but when he decides to walk away from their dirty work, his corrupt bosses aren't about to let him go. After Nash is nearly assassinated. Troubleshooter team leader Lawrence Decker launches a skillful deception to neutralize the threat and protect his friend. With the FBI's help, Decker fakes Nash's death, then brings him to a safe house with his fiancée, Tess Bailey, to recover from his injuries and strategize their next move. Only a handful of people know that Nash is still alive - and fellow Troubleshooter Dave Malkoff, Sophia Ghaffair, and receptionist Tracy Shapiro aren't among them. Believing that Nash is dead and that Decker has begun a romantic relationship with Tess, Sophia settles for second best and begins a love affair with Dave, who has adored her for years. But Tracy puts two and two together, discovering the truth about Nash - much to Decker's dismay. As passions flare, Decker struggles to keep his scheme afloat, and to keep Nash alive. But when he finds himself targeted for death, the game turns even more perilous, and Sophia, Tracy, and Dave are swept into the deadly play. Under fire and racing to unmask their relentless adversary, the Troubleshooters know that the closer they get, the greater the risks. But sacrifices and consequences come with the territory. Forced to choose between love and loyalty, they are no longer just solving a crime - they're fighting for survival. 
2. "INJUSTICE FOR ALL" by J.A. Jance (J.P. Beaumont Series #2) (Audible Book) (B-) It was a scene from a "slasher flick" -- a beautiful woman's terrified screams piercing the air, a dead body sprawled at her feet, blood staining the pristine sands of a Washington beach. But the blood is real, and the victim won't be rising when a director yells, "Cut!" In one horrific instant, a homicide detective's well-earned holiday has become a waking nightmare. Suddenly a lethal brew of passion, madness, and politics threatens to do more than poison J.P. Beaumont's sleep; it's dragging the dedicated Seattle cop into the path of a killer whose dark hunger is rapidly becoming an obsession.
3. "LED ASTRAY" by Sandra Brown (audio cassette) (A+) Jenny Fletcher had selflessly put her needs and dreams behind those of her fiancé, Hal, a man more committed to a cause than to her. On the eve of his departure for Central America, he gave Jenny what she wanted more than anything - one passionate night. It was his final gift. Cage Hendren was the opposite of his brother, Hal, in every way. The black sheep of the family, he was all rough edges, with a soft spot for just one thing - Jenny. But she'd always thought Cage was too wild and reckless...until he showed her a wildness in herself she hadn't known was there. And now that she's been led astray...she couldn't possibly turn back.
4. "A WHOLE NEW LIGHT" by Sandra Brown (audio CD) (A) Cyn McCall knew she could always count on her late husband's friend and business partner, Worth Lansing. He could make her laugh and forget her problems. She could tease him about his many romantic entanglements. The last thing Cyn expected was to find herself longing for a man who could never settle down. When Worth invites Cyn to a getaway weekend in Acapulco, he doesn't expect to be sharing a room - or to respond to her the way he does to any beautiful woman. While he thinks it's time Cyn stopped mourning and moved forward with her life, he can't escape the feeling he's betraying his friend's memory. But even guilt can't stop the desire that overwhelms him - and ultimately overtakes them both. Cyn wants to believe their night of passion was sparked by the exotic locale and intoxicating scent of hibiscus. But Worth knows they share something deeper, something that will outlast the Mexican sunglow. He knows he's finally ready to stop playing games...if only Cyn would open her heart to new possibilities and the promise of love. 
5. "HOT ICE" by Cherry Adair (Men of T-FLAC #7) (A) The only thing Taylor Kincaid likes more than diamonds is stealing them. But when she snatches the elusive Blue Star diamonds from a murderous terrorist organization - and inadvertently snags the secret security-system codes to a South African diamond mine - this ultra-chic freelance jewel thief becomes a hunted item herself. Also in hot pursuit is top T-FLAC operative Huntington St. John, who Taylor things is just plain hot. The feeling, emotional and otherwise, is very mutual. But since ecstasy is fleeting and diamonds are forever, Taylor soon bolts to reclaim the jewels she stashed overseas. True to his name, Hunt is close behind. If they can survive danger at every turn, they just might get everything they desire.
6. "YOU'VE BEEN WARNED" by James Patterson & Howard Roughan (D) Kristin Burns has lived her life by the philosophy "Don't think, just shoot" - pictures that is. Struggling to make ends meet, she works full-time as the nanny for the fabulously wealthy Turnbull family, looking after their two wonderful children and waiting for her glamorous life as a New York photographer to begin. When her photographs are considered by an elite Manhattan art gallery, it seems she might finally get the chance that will start her career. But Kristin has a major distraction: forbidden love. The man of her dreams is almost hers for keeps. Breathless with an inexhaustible passion and the excitement of being within reach of her goals, Kristin ignores all signs of catastrophe brewing. Fear exists for a reason. And Kristin can dismiss the warnings for just so long. Searching desperately for the truth through the lens of her camera, she can only hope that it's not too late.
7. "THE WIDOW" by Carla Neggers (C) Four days after Abigail Browning's wedding, her life changed unimaginably: her husband was fatally shot along the rocky Mount Desert Island coast. Was it a random act of violence, or could someone have wanted Christopher dead? That's the question that has haunted Abigail, now a homicide detective, for the past seven years. Determined to find her husband's killer, she returns to the foggy Maine island after receiving an anonymous tip. Is it just another false lead, or can she finally prove that Chris was murdered? Owen Garrison, the search-and-rescue worker who located Chris too late to save him, still carries guilt from that fateful night. As he helps Abigail unravel the mystery, they learn that the layers of deceit and lies are even thicker than they could have imagined. Now it's up to Abigail and Owen to keep pushing for the truth - and stop a killer from striking again.
8. "VANISHED" by Karen Robards (unabridged Audio CD) (A+) Seven years ago, Sarah Mason's five-year-old daughter vanished during an outing at a park in Beaufort, South Carolina. Despite a frantic search, little Lexie was never found, and Sarah was left to pick up the pieces of her shattered life and go on the best she could. Then, one hot August night, Sarah comes home to hear the phone ringing. When she picks it up, a child's terrified voice whispers, "mommy, help, come and get me..." The call is cut off, but not before Sarah's heart goes into overdrive: she is sure the voice belonged to Lexie. Five-year-old Lexie. The only person Sarah can count on to help her is Jake Hogan, her closest friend in the world. A former FBI agent, Jake is now a P.I., and though he is skeptical about the authenticity of the call, the attraction he feels for Sarah pushes him to help her. Their long friendship explodes into a romance as they try to find out what happened to Lexie. When the torment escalates to murder, Jake is the only one who can keep Sarah safe. Together, they are caught up in a nightmare search for Lexie that just might end with Sarah's death.
9. "SUMMER BY THE SEA" by Susan Wiggs (A) With a little determination and a lot of charm, Rosa Capoletti took a run-down pizza joint and turned it into an award-winning restaurant that has been voted "best place to propose" three years in a row. For Rosa, though, there has been no real romance since her love affair with Alexander Montgomery ended without explanation a decade ago. But guess who's just come back to town?  Reunited at the beach house where they first fell in love, Rosa and Alexander discover that the secrets of the past are not what they seem. Now, with all that she wants right in front of her, Rosa searches for happiness with the man who once broke her heart - and learns that in love, as in life, there are second chances.
10. "TULAROSA" by Michael McGarrity  (B+) It's been two years since an on-the-job shooting forced ex-Santa Fe chief of detectives Kevin Kerney to retire. He is drawn back into action when Terry Yazzi, his former partner and the man responsible for his wounds, pleads for Kerney's help. Yazzi's son, a soldier, has disappeared in the barren desert surrounding the White Sands Missile Range. Kerney's investigation resurrects the long-forgotten thrill of the hunt - and other emotions surface after meeting the tough-but-beautiful Captain Sara Brannon, the Army's investigating officer. Together, they uncover a crime far greater than an AWOL soldier: a conspiracy of death that snakes from the secretive world of military operations, to the cutthroat alley's of a Mexican border town, leading them to a final, shocking revelation that may cost them both their lives.
11. "A McKETTRICK CHRISTMAS" by Linda Lael Miller (McKettrick #10) (A-) Lizzie McKettrick is coming home for Christmas. And Indian Rock's new schoolteacher has a surprise in store for her family - a special young man, Whitley Carson. He might seem a little too interested in the McKettrick money, but Lizzie's certain Whitley cares for her deep down. Yet fate has a surprise of its own in store for Lizzie: Dr. Morgan Shane. When their homebound train is halted by a massive avalanche, injuring and stranding its passengers, the handsome doctor takes charge - with Lizzie by his side. Despite their growing bond, Lizzie and Morgan know time is running out. With another avalanche looming and the train's food supply dwindling, it's going to be a bleak Christmas Eve. But with faith, hard work and a little extra help from a most unexpected source, they just might find their way home to celebrate a McKettrick family Christmas after all.
12. "SPRINGWATER"  by Linda Lael Miller (Springwater #1) (B+) Evangeline Keating came west because she had to: after her husband's passing, she needed to build a new life for her young daughter, and marrying a stranger from Montana Territory was her best chance. After a difficult winter journey, she arrives at an isolated outpost called Springwater Station. But the handsome man who's come for her is not her husband-to-be, and Evangeline soon finds herself thrust into a most inconvenient - and highly improper - arrangement. Scully Wainwright never intended to be left alone with his ranching partner's fiancée. But his partner's not due back until spring, and he can't leave a defenseless woman and her child unguarded - not with wolves and Indians threatening. Biding his time with the lovely Evangeline begins to feel dangerously close to setting up a real home. But as a reckless passion sparks between them, Scully and Evangeline discover a destiny - and a passion - as boundless as the open frontier.
13. "FAMILY EVER AFTER" by Margaret Daley (Fostered by Love #3) (A-) Three foster kids fell into Noah Maxwell's lap and turned his life upside down. The successful businessman knew nothing about children, so he hired single mom Cara Winters to help care for his new brood. Cara sensed that despite Noah's confident facade, old wounds troubled him. But he refused to discuss his past pain, despite her desire to help him heal. Perhaps her love could inspire Noah to relinquish his independence and give Cara and the children the fairy-tale ending they all deserved.

14. "BLACK ICE" by Anne Stuart (Ice Series #1) (A) Living paycheck to paycheck in Paris, American book translator Chloe Underwood would give anything for some excitement and passion - even a little danger. So when she's offered a lucrative weekend gig translating at a business conference in a remote chateau, she jumps at the chance to shake things up. Then by chance Chloe discovers her employers are anything but the entrepreneurs they appear, and suddenly she knows far too much. Her clients are illegal arms dealers, and one of them is ordered to kill her. But instead, Bastien Toussaint drags Chloe away, and the next thing she knows she's on the run with the most terrifying and seductive man she's ever met. What were his motives - and would she live long enough to find out?

 Currently Reading - 

1. "Final Target" by Iris Johansen
2. "Springwater Seasons - Rachel" by Linda Lael Miller (Springwater #2)
3. "8 Sandpiper Way"  by Debbie Macomber (Cedar Cove #8)

Currently Listening To -

1. "The 8th Confession" by James Patterson (Audible Book) 

 To Be Read - In alphabetical order by author not reading order

1. "Rescue Me" by Cherry Adair, Lora Leigh & Cindy Gerard
2. "White Heat" by Cherry Adair (Men of T-FLAC #11)
3. "Twilight Child" by Warren Adler 
4. "A Royal MIssion" by Elizabeth August (Royally Wed)
5. The Expectant Princess" by Stella Bagwell (Royally Wed)
6. "What We Keep" by Elizabeth Berg
7. "Embraced by Love" by Suzanne Brockmann
8. "Scenes of Passion" by Suzanne Brockmann
9. "Two Alone" by Sandra Brown
10. "Heaven's Price"  by Sandra Brown
11. "The Legend"  by C.J. Carmichael (Cooper's Corners)
12. "Deep In the Valley" by Robyn Carr (Grace Valley #1)
13. "Down by the River" by Robyn Carr (Grace Valley #3)
14. "Temptation Ridge" by Robyn Carr (Virgin River #6)
15. "Just Over the Mountain" by Robyn Carr (Grace Valley #2)
16. "Her Mother's Shadow" by Diane Chamberlain
17. "And Then Came You - Sam's Story" by Maureen Child
18. "A Crazy Kind of Love - Mike's Storm"  by Maureen Child
19. "A Royal Marriage" by Cara Colter (Royally Wed )
20. "Scarpetta" by Patricia Cornwell
21. "SEALed with a Kiss" by Mary Margaret Daughtridge
22. "Prodigal Daughter" by Patricia Davids
23. "Close to You" by Christina Dodd
24. "People of the Plains" by Ken Englade (Tony Hillerman's Frontier)
25. "Show No Mercy" by Cindy Gerard (Black Ops Inc. #1)
26. "Building Dreams" by Ginna Gray
27. "Hannah's Dream: A Novel"  by Diane Hammond
28. "Comfort & Joy" Kristine Hannah
29. "The Dark Wind" by Tony Hillerman
30. "House Calls and Hitching Posts" as told to Dorcas Sharp Hoover
31. "Trial by Fury" by J.A. Jance (J.P. Beaumont Series #5)
32. "Blind Alley" by Iris Johansen (Eve Duncan Forensics Thriller #5)
33. "Countdown" by Iris Johansen (Eve Duncan Forensics Thriller #6)
34. "Quicksand" by Iris Johansen (Eve Duncan Forensics Thriller #7)
35. "The Official Nora Roberts Companion" by Denise Little and Laura Hayden
36. "Double Homicide - Santa Fe/Boston" by Jonathan & Faye Kellerman
37. "The Knot" by Marty Kindall
38. "Dead Irish" by John Lescroart
39. "The Betrayal" by Beverly Lewis (Abrahams Daughters #2)
40. "The Covenant" by Beverly Lewis (Abrahams Daughters #1)
41. "A Cedar Cove Christmas" by Debbie Macomber  (Cedar Cove #9)
42. "Small Town Christmas" by Debbie Macomber
43. "Summer On Blossom Street" by Debbie Macomber (Audible Book)
44. "Chasing Stanley"  by Deirdre Martin
45. "Mexican Hat" by Michael McGarrity (Kevin Kerney #2)
46. "Dylan" by Linda Lael Miller (Montana Creeds #2)
47. "Glory, Glory" by Linda Lael Miller
48. "Logan" by Linda Lael Miller (Montana Creeds #1)
49. "Tyler"  by Linda Lael Miller (Montana Creeds #3)
50. "The Last Chance Cafe" by Linda Lael Miller
51. "Code Name: Prince" by Valerie Parv
52. "Cross Country" by James Patterson
53. "A Man Named Dave" by David Pelzer
54. "A Teenager's Journey" by Richard B. Petzer
55. "Blood Canticle" Anne Rice  (Vampire Chronicles #10)
56. "Merrick" by Anne Rice (Vampire Chronicles #7)
57. "Blue Moon" by Luanne Rice
58. "Firefly Beach" by Luanne Rice
59. "Stone Heart" by Luanne Rice
60. "Summer Light"  by Luanne Rice
61. "Sister's Choice" by Emilie Richards
62. "His Winter Rose" Lois Richter
63. "Suite 606" by J.D. Robb (In Death Series #27)
64. "First Impressions" by Nora Roberts
65. "From The Heart" Nora Roberts
66. "Reflections and Dreams" by Nora Roberts (Stanislaski series #7 & 8)
67. "The Stanislaskis" (Waiting for Nick & Considering Kate) by Nora Roberts (Stanislaski series #5 & 6)
68. "Tribute" by Nora Roberts
69. "Winner Takes All" by Nora Roberts
70. "A Wedding at Cooper's Corner" by Kristine Rolofson, Muriel Jensen, Bobby Hutchinson (Cooper's Corners)
71. "Blue Bayou" by JoAnn Ross (Callahan Brothers trilogy #1)
72. "Magnolia Moon"  by JoAnn Ross (Callahan Brothers trilogy #3)
73. "River Road" by JoAnn Ross (Callahan Brothers trilogy #2)
74. "Sweet Baby" by Sharon Sala
75. "The Lucky One" by Nicholas Sparks
76. "For Her Son's Love" by Kathryn Springer
77. "The Kiss" by Danielle Steel
78. "The Long Road Home" by Danielle Steel
79. "The Other Twin" by Katherine Stone
80. "Cold As Ice " by Anne Stuart (Ice Series #2)
81. "Ice Blue" by Anne Stuart (Ice Series #3)
82. "Ice Storm" by Anne Stuart (Ice Series #4)
83. "Drifter" by Susan Wiggs
84. "Enchanted Afternoon" by Susan Wiggs
85. "Fireside" by Susan Wiggs (Lakeshore Chronicles #5)
86. "Passing Through Paradise" by Susan Wiggs

Currently Reading

1. The American by Andrew Britton
2. Collision  by Jeff Abbott

Finshed

1. Stripped By Brian Freeman
2. Devil My Ride by Wendy Robers
3. The Darker Side by Cody McFadyen
4. The Butterfly Garden by Chip St. Clair (non Fiction) 
5. Cat Nap by Carole Nelson Douglas
6. Anything Goes by Jill Churchill
7. Murder on A Girls Night Out by Anne George

TBR PILE

1. Edwin of the Iron Shoes My Marcia Muller
2. Murder with Peacocks by Donna Andrews
3. Killer Heels by Sheryl J Anderson
4. 7 Deadly Wonders by Matthew Reilly
5. The Villia of Mysteries by  David Hewson
6.  One for the Money  by  Janet Evanoich
7. First Avenue by Lowen Clausen
8. Sun Storm by Asa Larsson
9. Who Killed Marilyn Monroe? by Liz Evans
10. Stolen Innocence by Elissa Wall with Lisa Pulitzer
11. Skin River by Steven Sidor
12. Scent To Her Grave  by India Ink
13. Suspect by Michael Robotham
14. The Descent by Jeff Long
15. Privileged Information by Stephen White
16. The Kill Artist by Daniel Silva
17. Trace Evidence by Elizabeth Becka
18. Missing Witness by Gordan Campbell
19. The Concrete Blonde by Michael Connelly
20. The Last Jihad by Joel C Rosenberg
21. Stalked by Brian Freeman
22. Death At La Fenice by Donna Leon
23. Plea of Insanity by Jilliane Hoffman
24. Cold Granite by Sturart MacBride 
25. Case Histories by Kate Atkinson
26. Biting the Moon by Martha Grimes
27. Dakota by Martha Grimes
28. Step  on a Crack by James Patterson
29. Some Girls Bite  by Chloe Neill 
30. Tilt A Whirl by Chris Grabenstein
31. Run for you Life by James Patterson
32. Missing by Karin Alvtegen
33. The 8th Confesion by James Patterson
34. A Beautiful Place to Die by Malla Nunn
35. Cop Hater  Ed McBain
36. Jury of One Laura Bradford
37. All Shook Up  by Mike Harrison
38. Deep Storm by Lincoln Child
39. Starvation Lake by Bryan Gruley
40. Sunset and Sawdust by Joe R. Lansdale
41. Savage Art by Danielle Girard
42. Forty Words for Sorrow by Giles Blunt
43. Hard Landing by Stephen Leather
44. The Devil's Redhead by David Corbett
45. At Risk By Stella Rimington
46. Ice Trap by Kitty Sewell
47. The Long-Legged Fly by James Sallis
48. The Wooden Leg of Inspector Anders
49. The Moscow Club by Joseph Finder
50. The Spellman Files by Lisa Lutz

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets by J. K. Rowling

Currently Reading:
1. Spook by Mary Roach
2. Those Who Save Us by Jenna Blum

Just Finished:
1. Dead Until Dark by Charlaine Harris
2. The Rapture of Canaan by Sheri Reynolds

TBR pile:
1. Specials by Scott Westerfeld
2. Fat Girl by Judith Moore
3. The Secret Life of CeeCee Wilkes by Diane Chambelain
4. Cage of Stars by Jacquelyn Mitchard
5. Blaze by Stephen King as Richard Bachman
6. Under the Tuscan Sun by Frances Mayes

In no paticular order mind you.

That's some TBR list, Nancy.

I thought I was overwhelmed.

May!

Finished

1. The Ultimate Challenge: Running Ultra Marathons by Walt Esser
2. Running Through the Wall: Personal Encounters with the Ultramarathon
3. A Faint Cold Fear by Karin Slaughter (Grant County #3)
4. Burnt Offerings by Laurell K. Hamilton (Anita Blake #7)
5. The War of the Flowers by Tad WIlliams
6. Blue Moon by Laurell K. Hamilton (Anita Blake #8)
7. A Kiss of Shadows by Laurell K. Hamilton (Merry Gentry #1)
8. Eternity Row by S.L. Viehl (Stardoc #5)
9. Indelible by Karin Slaughter (Grant County #4)

Reading    

1. The Second Summoning by Tanya Huff (Keeper's Chronicles #2) 
2. Rebel Ice by S.L. Viehl (Sardoc #6)
3. City of Golden Shadow by Tad Williams (Otherland #1)
4. Gate of Ivrel by C.J. Cherryh (Morgaine Saga #1)
5. Summer Knight by Jim Butcher (Dresden Files #4)
6. V for Vendetta by Alan Moore
7. Obsidian Butterfly by Laurell K. Hamilon (Anita Blake #9)
8. A Caress of Twilight by Laurell K. Hamilton (Merry Gentry #2)

Up Soon

1. Long Hot Summoning by Tanya Huff (Keeper's Chronicles #3)
2. Faithless by Karin Slaughter (Grant County #5)
3. The Radioactive Redhead by John Zakour (Zach #3)
4. Narcissus in Chains by Laurell K. Hamilton (Anita Blake #10) 
5. River of Blue Fire by Tad Williams (Otherland #2)
6. Hunter of Worlds by C.J. Cherryh (Hanan Rebellion #2)
7. Death Masks by Jim Butcher (Dresden Files #5)
8. Chill Factor by Rachel Caine (Weather Warden #3) 

I'm currently reading The Best Travel Writing of 2005 & a book by the Dalai Lama called An Open Heart.

Here's my TBR list for this month:

1.  A literary journal called Buffalo Carp, I have 1 edition left to read, I think.

2. Artemis Fowl - Eoin Colfer

3.  Across the Nightingale Floor - Lian Hearn

4.  Bitter is the New Black - Jen Lancaster

5. Change Me Into Zeus's Daughter - Barbara Robinette Moss

6.  The Perks of Being a Wallflower - Stephen Chbosky

7.  Expecting Adam - Martha Beck

8.  Tinsel - William Goldman

9.  Let Their Spirits Dance - Stella Pope Duarte

10.  The Stolen - Jason Pinter

11.  Loving Frank - Nancy Horan

12.  Elsewhere - Gabrielle Zevin

13.  Entranced - Nora Roberts

14.  Beneath a Marble Sky - John Shors

15.  I Shouldn't Even Be Doing This! - Bob Newhart

16.  Feast of Fear: Conversations with Stephen King - ed. by Tim Underwood & Chuck Miller

17.  The Kingdom Keepers: Disney After Dark - Ridley Pearson

18.  The Best American Short Stories - ed. by Stephen King 

19.  What on Earth Have I Done? - Robert Fulghum

20.  The Best Women's Travel Writing 2006

21.  Seize the Night - Sherrilyn Kenyon

22.  Beyond the Chocolate War - Robert Cormier

as usual, in no particular order.

Finished in the 14 days or so

Nauti Intensions by Lora Leigh

Here Kitty, Kitty by Shelly Laurenston

Murder of a Royal Pain by Denise Swanson

Death of a Cozy Writer by G. M. Malliet

Phantom Desires by Bianca D'Arc (ebook)

Sins of Their Fathers -  Lara Santiago and Emma Wildes (ebook)

Long Lost by Harlen Coben

Reading

Her Royal Spyness by Rhys Bowen - Finished and was a good period (1930's) cozy

Confessions of a little Black Gown by Elizabeth Boyle (I got bored and put it down)

Tooth and Claw by Annmarie McKenna (ebook) - Finished

Also read:

Wolfen by Madeline Montegue (ebook) - Recommended by Seton and very good

When He Was Bad by Shelly Laurenston and Cynthia Eden - I really enjoyed the Shelly Laurenston story (a prequel to the Mangus Pack) but not the Cyntha Eden one.

The Trouble with Harry by Kate MacAlister - OK, some funny moments

Murder in the Raw byC.S. Challinor - so far, so good - ended up so-so; kind of went episodic around page 100 and the last half was flat

Death and the Lit Chick by G.M. Malliet - no match for her first book, Death of a Cozy Writer - gave it 3.5*

Now Reading: The Club by Sharon Page - feels like a historical Lora Leigh so far

My TBR pile is abut 200 books long.  I do run a book blog with reviews of books and ebooks and some editorials at http://toursbooks.wordpress.com/

My reading includes, romance, erotic romance, romantic suspense, mystery, intrigue, spy and assassin thrillers, action thrillers and paranormal/urban fantasy mystery and romance

And The Hot Zone is one of the best non-fiction books ever.

Only two books this month:

• LOVE WALKED IN by Marisa de los Santos for the Book Nuts discussion group
• THE STORY OF EDGAR SAWTELLE by David Wroblewski

Reading two at a time is a challenge for me. EDGAR SAWTELL is a lo-o-ng book. Haven't received LWI yet.

1. Winner of the National Book Award by Jincy Willett (Currently reading) This is an excellent,  satirical, but disturbing book. Highly recommended.

Synopsis from BN.com:

Winner of the National Book Award, the long-awaited novel from the author of the acclaimed collection, Jenny and the Jaws of Life, is an unusual and wonderful novel that is somehow able to be at once bleak and hilarious, light-hearted and profound.

It's the story of two sisters. Abigail Mather is a woman of enormous appetites, sexual and otherwise. Her fraternal twin Dorcas couldn't be more different: she gave up on sex without once trying it, and she lives a controlled, dignified life of the mind. Though Abigail exasperates Dorcas, the two love each other; in fact, they complete each other. They are an odd pair, set down in an odd Rhode Island town, where everyone has a story to tell, and writers, both published and unpublished, carom off each other like billiard balls.

What is it that makes the two women targets for the new man in town, the charming schlockmeister Conrad Lowe, tall, whippet-thin and predatory? In Abigail and Dorcas he sees a new and tantalizing challenge. Not the mere conquest of Abigail, with her easy reputation, but a longer and more sinister game. A game that will lead to betrayal, shame and, ultimately, murder.

In her darkly comic and unsettling first novel, Jincy Willett proves that she is a true find: that rare writer who can explore the shadowy side of human nature with the lightest of touches.

I just started Phineas Finn, the second Palliser novel.  Reading all of Trollope's Palliser novels before I die is a little reading challenge I've set myself.  I'm just a few chapters in, so far it's really enjoyable.

I just finished "Duty and Desire" by Pamela Aidan and started "These Three Remain", the third book in the Darcy trilogy.

1.  An Open Heart - The Dalai Lama : This is based on a speech he gave in Central Park in the 90's, and is everything that Transform Your Life was not.  A very easy to understand explanation of Buddism and meditation.  Really interesting and inspiring.

I just finished Love on The Lifts by Rachel Hawthorne!!!! It was such a cute book!!! I recommend it!!!

still reading the Kite Runner.  Would have finished it sooner, but I was on vacation all last week and didn't have time to read.

Currently reading:

The Secret of Lost Things by Sheridan Hay

And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie

The Yellow-Lighted Bookshop by Lewis Busbee

The Solitaire Mystery by Jostein Gaarder

Ex Libris, Confessions of a Common Reader by Anne Fadiman

Lost Things is the last one started and will be the first of these five finished, but I keep going back to the other four,  too, as time permits.

Pam

Fished so far in May

The Water Room =  Christopher Fowler
The Accidental Werewold  = Dakota Cassidy
Three Bags Full =   Leonie Swann
One Hex of a Wedding  = Yasmine Galenorn
The House on Tradd Street  = Karen White

Currently reading

Be Still My Vampire Heart  = Kerrelyn Sparks

Preaching to the Corpse = Roberta Isleib

I just finished The Help by Kathryn Stockett.  A great debut novel about maids in Mississippi in the 1960's.

FINISHED READING IN MAY:

• The Magician: Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel by Michael Scott (audio book)
• Monkey Wrench by Liza Cody
• Water Like a Stone by Deborah Crombie
• The Stargazey by Martha Grimes (audio book)

Currently reading:

• The Demon and the City by Liz Williams (Detective Inspector Chen #2)
• Abhorsen by Garth Nix (final book in the Abhorsen trilogy.)
• The Diamond of Darkhold by Jeanne DuPrau (audio book)

Cheryl

Finished in May:

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets by J. K. Rowling

I'm in a Diana Gabaldon re-read challenge on another board in prep for An Echo in the Bone coming out in Sepember. Just finished Outlander yesterday and will likely start Dragonfly in Amber today.

TBR: (in order of author)

1. The Five People You Meet in Heaven by Mitch Albom
2. Nightkeepers by Jessica Andersen
3. Watchers in the Night by Jenna Black
4. After Dark by Jayne Castle
5. After Glow by Jayne Castle
6. Dark Needs at Night's Edge by Kresley Cole (need to find the first 3 to this series before reading this)
7. Jacob by Jacquelyn Frank
8. Gideon by Jacquelyn Frank
9. Dragonfly in Amber by Diana Gabaldon
10. Voyager by Diana Gabaldon
11. Drums of Autumn by Diana Gabaldon
12. The Fiery Cross by Diana Gabaldon
13. A Breath of Snow and Ashes by Dianan Gabaldon
14. The Rest Falls Away by Colleen Gleason
15. A Drop of Scarlet by Jemiah Jefferson
16. On Writing by Stephen King (on request from PBS)
17. Time Hunters: Warrior by Angela Knight
18. Marked by Moonlight by Sharie Kohler
19. When I fall in Love by Lynn Kurland (on request from PBS)
20. Say You Love Me by Johanna Lindsey (on request from PBS)
21. The Present by Johanna Lindsey (on request from PBS)
22.  A Loving Scoundrel by Johanna Lindsey
23. Talyn by Holly Lisle
24. Diplomacy of Wolves by Holly Lisle
25. Vengeance of Dragons by Holly Lisle
26. Freedom's Ransom by Anne McCaffrey
27. Sunshine by Robin McKinley
28. Breath of Magic by Teresa Medeiros
29. Touch of Enchantment by Teresa Medeiros
30. Thief of Hearts by Teresa Medeiros
31. Darkfever by Karen Marie Moning (re-read in prep for Dreamfever due out in August)
32. Bloodfever by Karen Marie Moning (re-read in prep for Dreamfever due out in August)
33. Faefever by Karen Marie Moning (re-read in prep for Dreamfever due out in August)
34. Redeemed in Darkness by Alexis Morgan
35. In Twilight's Shadow by Patti O'Shea
36. Pandora by Anne Rice
37. Blood Canticle by Anne Rice
38. Savor Me Slowly by Gena Showalter (I think there are other books before this one I need to read first)
39. The Ivy Tree by Mary Stewart
40. Thornyhold by Mary Stewart
41. The Prince & the Pilgrim by Mary Stewart (on request from PBS)
42. If Angels Burn by Lynn Viehl
43. Private Demon by Lynn Viehl (on PBS wish list)
44. Dark Need by Lynn Viehl
45. Night Lost by Lynn Viehl
46. Evermore by Lynn Viehl
47. Twilight Fall by Lynn Viehl
48. Stay the Night by Lynn Viehl
49. Lord of the Fading Lands by CL Wilson
50. Lady of Light & Shadows by CL Wilson

Babylon Rising by Tim LaHaye and Gregg Dinallo

"Rise and Shine" by Anna Quindlan and "Battle Cry of Freedom", The Civil War Era by James M. McPherson.  I love books on the Civil War.

I am going to start on Charlaine Harris' Southern Vampire series.