Phyl's 5 Phaves from June

OK, in an effort to discipline myself to blog more, I'm going to try a monthly feature where I'll let you know what my favorite books of the previous month were and why. Some I'll have blogged about, others not. In order, least to most:

5. Rock Star by Roslyn Hardy Holcomb. Ms. Holcomb left some comments in a discussion at SBTB about AA romances which led me to seek out this book. I found it at the library and thoroughly enjoyed this contemporary IR romance. I believe this is Ms. Holcomb's debut novel. I found the characters interesting and their story really drew me in. There's a nice little "mini-sequel" available as a free download on the author's web site.

4. One with the Shadows by Susan Squires. Ms. Squires' first book in this paranormal series about vampires who are created because of a symbiotic parasite in the blood is one of my favorite paranormal books. The book previous to this one was disappointing and I almost decided not to read further in the series. I'm glad I gave this one a try as it was much better and I was thoroughly engaged by it. The heroine in particular is someone who has been beaten down by life, but chooses again and again to act courageously. I really liked her.

3. Your Scandalous Ways by Loretta Chase. All those good things other reviewers have said about this one? True. There's an interesting post about the symbolism of jewelry in this book here. I found this story of courtesan turned romance heroine thoroughly believable and I loved the way genre conventions were turned upside down.

2. With Every Breath by Lynn Kurland. I already raved about this one.

1. Lifelines by CJ Lyons. Hands down, best book I read last month. I was tempted to blog about it when I read it, but that was a very busy week and I never got to it. Written by a pediatric ER doctor, this is a medical suspense novel with strong romantic elements. I believe this is intended to be the first of 4 books about 4 women who work in a busy Pittsburgh ER. We are treated to the POV of all 4 women, although heroine Dr. Lydia Fiore receives the bulk of our attention. This is just first-rate romantic suspense with strong characterization and terrific pacing. The medical information is presented easily without making us non-medical types feel lost or overwhelmed. Book 2, Warning Signs isn't due until January 27, 2009, according to Amazon. ARRRGGGHH!!

Comments

  1. CJ LyonsJuly 2, 2008 at 8:16 AM

    Phyl,
    Thank you so very much for your kind words about LIFELINES! I'm so excited that you enjoyed it!

    And also, thank you for helping to spread the word--the hardest thing for a new author, especially since my books are filed in the general fiction/literature section (yep, right beside Moby Dick, lol!)

    Take care and Happy Reading--and Quilting!
    CJ

    ReplyDelete
  2. roslynholcombJuly 2, 2008 at 10:32 PM

    Thanks so much for reading Rock Star. I'm delighted you liked it. BTW, I'm a fanatical quilter too. I've been writing so much I haven't had time for it lately, but I think I'll get back to it soon.

    ReplyDelete
  3. JaceJuly 10, 2008 at 3:05 AM

    Lifelines sounds really good - I'm going to check it out.

    ReplyDelete
  4. PhylJuly 10, 2008 at 8:31 AM

    I thought all 5 of these were great, but if you like romantic suspense I cannot say enough good things about Lifelines.

    ReplyDelete

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