Reading Snapshot

Currently Reading:

 

I picked this up at RT18 in Reno at a Blind Date with a Book Party. Tables were covered with wrapped books and just the barest hint of the plot.  It was anxiety inducing for quite a few attendees, but this one sounded fun. I mean...librarian on the run? Yes, please!

So far, it's pretty good, although it's been a long, long time since I've read a book by Warren.

 

Currently Listening To:

I've read and listened to this series before, but it's been years since I've listened to more than just Book 1. This is a series that definitely needs to be read in order, but I do enjoy these on audio, too.  Highly re-readable, if you're a re-reader like I am.

Up Next:

I spent last year reading a fairly good amount from MOUNT TBR, mostly older books I got from the many RT Conventions I attended. I'm going to attempt to do the same this year (unintentional gloms notwithstanding).  This is one of the many books I ended up getting signed to me this year instead of signed generically. I had intended to give a bunch away...Oops.

TBR Challenge Review: Triplets for the Texan by Janice Maynard

Format: Mass Market
Pub Date: May 2017
Length: 215 pages
Publisher: Harlequin
POV: 3rd
FTC: Received at RT Booklovers Convention

I fully admit, I'm ignoring the theme for this month. It's Recommended Read, and I can't say this book was recommended by anyone, except perhaps the author who signed it for me at RT. But...I am making an effort to whittle away at the still giant pile of books I brought home from RT the last year or two, and this one was at the top of the pile.

I'm not a category romance reader. I WILL read them, but I don't tend to seek them out, and I'm not one of those people who knows all of the parameters of each individual line. I also, nearly always, feel like authors in category books try to tell too big of a story, so I nearly always feel like stuff was rushed at the end.

Ok...disclaimers out of the way.

I fully admit that the entire premise of this book is kind of...unromantic to me. I'm a mom, and the thought of THREE babies, all at once? NOPE. Then there is the fact that our heroine has Hyperemesis gravidarum aka chronic, debilitating nausea, vomiting, and dehydration. Ewww.
Just...not romantic. Add in the reasons for and methods of getting pregnant, and this is probably one of the least romantic set ups I've ever seen. It's a bold choice, but the author fails to pull the HEA off to my satisfaction, and the sexytimes never felt even in the realm of plausible.

TBR Challenge Review: Taking Care of Business by Kathy Lyons

Format: mass market, ebook
Pub Date: November 2010
Publisher: Harlequin
Length: 215 pages
FTC: Received for free at an RT Convention
Posted as part of the TBR Challenge

 It starts with some anonymous groping in a crowded elevator...

I've never read a Jade Lee/Kathy Lyons book that I can recall. My issues with this one may be just rural, sheltered naivete. Having someone press an erection against me in a crowded elevator would creep me right out, but hey, maybe I'm in the minority?

Review: Hajar's Hidden Legacy by Maisey Yates

Format: ebook
Pub Date: December 1, 2013
Publisher: Harlequin
Length: 190 pages
FTC: Was a free promo on Kindle

Despite interacting with the author on Twitter, this is the very first book of hers that I have read. I was waiting for the book with the heroine named Amber *ahem* but this one happened to be free, so there ya go.

Full disclosure: I'm not normally an HP reader. I'm not normally a category romance reader when it comes down to it. So there are probably things that regular readers of this line would notice that I did not.

Hajar's Hidden Legacy is pretty much a straight forward Beauty and the Beast book. It's even part of the "Beasts of the Desert" series, which means it's not trying to be subtle about it. Since it's been so long since I've read a Harlequin Presents novel, I wasn't sure what to expect. But I was pleasantly surprised by the amount of story Yates manages to squeeze into such a short page count.

TBR Challenge Review: Locked and Loaded by HelenKay Dimon

Format: ebook, mass market
Pub Date: August 2011
Publisher: Harlequin
FTC: Purchased myself

Yes, I'm nearly 2 full weeks late posting again. January was the month that turned my home into La Casa de Plague. Everyone was sick. Strep, ear infections, chest colds... I'm determined to get my groove back, though. 

January's theme was category romances.  I'm not much of a category reader anymore. I think I just got out the habit. Or had a few too many stinkers in a row. But having read and loved HelenKay Dimon's story in Holiday Kisses, I decided to try her category romantic suspense book, Locked and Loaded , that has been languishing, unread, on my digital TBR.

TBR Challenge Review: What the Librarian Did by Karina Bliss

I've had this in my TBR for a while now (having heard good things about this author), but had completely forgotten about it. It's not *that* old of a book, but since it's now a finalist in the DABWAHA book tourney, I figured now was a good time to dig it out of the digital book pile.

Format: ebook
Pub Date: March 2010
Publisher: Harlequin
FTC: Purchased myself

The Blurb:

Is Rachel Robinson the only one on campus who doesn't know who Devin Freedman is? No big deal except that the bad-boy rock star gets a kick out of Rachel's refusal to worship at his feet. And that seems to have provoked his undivided attention. Devin, the guy who gave new meaning to the phrase "sex, drugs and rock 'n' roll." Devin, the guy who somehow becomes wedged between her and the past she's kept hidden for years.

It's up to this librarian to find out firsthand just how "bad" he really is. Because her secret--and her growing feelings for a man who claims he's bent on redemption--depend on his turning out to be as good as he seems. Which is really, really good.

Review: Unveiled by Courtney Milan

Format: Mass Market
Pub Date: January 25, 2011
Publisher: HQN (Harlequin)
FTC: Digital copy received from publisher through Netgalley

This is probably one of my favorite historical reads of the last six months. And Ash Turner is one of my favorite historical heroes—ever.

"You matter. You are important." Who doesn't find that sexy?

Both Ash and Margaret are incredibly self aware. It's something I've noticed in Courtney Milan's writing before. And while some may find it off-putting, I find it fascinating. I like that Ash knows his personality flaws but cannot see beyond his immediate goals to the consequences of his actions. I like that Margaret realizes just what it is about Ash that attracts her. And that she clearly sees to the root of Ash's ability to charm people, but allows him to charm her anyway.

I had a few quibbles about Ash (even though he is swoon-worthy). Sometimes, he seemed just too good to be true. As if Milan was making him so wonderful to counterbalance the havoc he wreaked with his push to become the duke. He is egalitarian, honorable, loyal to his family, gentle with Margaret. All we needed was him rescuing a battered puppy and an unrelated orphan or two to complete the picture. Still... all of those patient, honorable traits are precisely why Margaret falls so deeply for him.