Phyl's quilts & books

Holiday Candle

2009-12-15T00:30:00.000-05:00

One of my UFOs was this holiday candle pattern called Candles Aglow by Castilleja Cotton designs. I'd purchased a yard of a beautiful gold star fabric for the border when I bought the pattern. Even though the guild UFO challenge for 2009 officially ended last month I decided to work on this anyway because I wanted something new to hang on my front door as part of my Christmas decorating. The hard part was selecting the fabric. Believe it or not, I do not have an extensive collection of Christmas fabric. But once I got past that it took no time to trace and iron on the applique pieces. There are only 9 of them. So I got the top made and quilted the background and candles. I used a gold metallic thread to quilt flames in the background. I had to fool around with needle sizes to prevent the thread from shredding and then it was pretty smooth.

This is how far I got by Saturday afternoon:

But when I went back to work on it on Sunday I looked at my leftover gold fabric and realized I had enough to make a second one, or even a couple of small versions. And here's what I came up with:

The "big" one measures 14" x 24". This smaller version is only 10" x 13.5" and does not have the heavy background quilting. I made 2 of them and finished them up tonight. One will be a gift for a friend. The other will be my very first blog giveaway! So, if you read all the way to the end of this post, be sure to leave a comment by 0500 GMT Saturday morning (midnight Friday night U.S.--EST) and you'll be entered in a random drawing to win. I will ship outside the U.S. Last I looked I only have a couple dozen readers of this blog. So the odds of winning are excellent. Good luck!

Phyl's 5 Phaves from August

2008-09-01T22:36:00.005-04:00

I read quite a few good ones last month and it was hard to narrow it down to just 5. So as a bonus here 3 honorable mentions that didn't make the cut: The Last Rake in London by Nicola Cornick, Flashpoint by Jill Shalvis, and Your Mouth Drives Me Crazy by HelenKay Dimon. Fun reads all. But the 5 best of the month were:

5. Never Lie to a Lady by Liz Carlyle. This one came out last year, but I waited for all 3 books in the trilogy to be published before starting in on it. It was worth the wait. I liked this story of two people who felt very much on the outside of the society in which they lived. They had much in common and their story was very believable. The plot involves some interesting intrigue that pits the hero and heroine against one another at first and I enjoyed the way it was resolved. And I swear, Liz Carlyle gets the best covers.

4. The Duke of Shadows by Meredith Duran. This is the author's first book. It was the winner in a first chapter contest held by gather.com. It is set against the fascinating history of the 1857 Sepoy rebellion in India. I confess I know little of this era or area of the world, and that made the story all the more fascinating. For a first book, it is very well written, although some of the pacing could have been improved. Nonetheless, I sure hope Ms. Duran will be published again.

3. Letters to a Secret Lover by Toni Blake. This contemporary has an unusual setting--a small town in Montana. Having been to a few small Montana towns, it was easy to imagine the setting and some of the quirky characters who lived there. This was an extremely entertaining read with a handful of twists that kept it interesting. The dialogue is smart and funny and I had a great time reading it. I'll be looking for more books by this author.

2. Bet Me by Jennifer Crusie. This book seems to be iconic among online romance readers. I frequently see references to this book and when I ran across it at the library I figured I really should read it. What a brilliant book. Really. The dialogue is snappy and funny. The heroine is overweight and cannot believe the gorgeous hero is really interested in her. I love the way Cal breaks down her defenses, almost against his own will. The secondary characters are equally brilliant. It's excellently plotted and paced. Now I get why this book is so popular.

1. Tapestry by Karen Ranney. Well, I think I already said enough.

TBR Day. Tapestry / Karen Ranney. 1995

2008-08-20T17:09:00.007-04:00

There are times when I read a book and I marvel at the mind behind the words. A mind that’s able to evoke so many different ideas and emotions that I continue to think about the book long after I finished reading it. I am left unwilling to start another book because I want to continue to enjoy what I just read, by thinking about it or going back to re-read various sections. This is what happened to me after I read this month’s TBR installment, Tapestry by Karen Ranney.

I’ve gushed over Ranney’s books before. And it is worth noting that she has a new book out on Tuesday. I am so all over that one. It’s already available to pre-order on Fictionwise. But back to Tapestry. Here’s the blurb:

Tapestry is the story of first love/only love. Laura Blake has been in love with her next door neighbor, Alex Weston, ever since she was a child. The Seven Years War separated them, however, and in the intervening years, Alex lost his youthful enthusiasm for life while Laura grew into a woman--more certain than ever of her feelings. Alex returned home from the war horribly scarred, and it is his attitude about his disfigurement and his resultant reclusive life that poses the greatest threat to their happiness. Laura manages to convince Alex of the power of love. But then, fate steps in and separates them once again.

A blurb like that simply cannot do this book justice. It’s a historical set in the early 1760s in England--a time that appears to have been full of political upheaval. Prime Minister William Pitt plays a role in the story and Ranney makes the period come alive, even if you aren’t very familiar with the history and politics of 18th century England. And frankly this is what a good historical should do—give you a sense of time and place without requiring you to know a whole lot in advance. In fact I became interested enough to go read a few Wikipedia entries about Pitt, Frederick of Prussia, and the naval battles Alex was in.

I think the easiest way to describe this book is that it is two stories. Laura had loved Alex as a little girl and made up her mind way back then that when she grew up she would have him. Alex goes off to war while she is still young and when he returns she’s now 18, but he refuses to see her or any of their neighbors. Due to his disfigurement, he’s cut himself off from everyone and lives a very lonely life shut up in his estate. In the “first” story Laura hatches a plan to worm her way into his life and eventually succeeds, although not without some bumps along the way. The story is told with humor and has overtones of a fairy tale as everything becomes so perfect. It is a lovely romance as Laura teaches Alex that he’s lovable and that their life together is worth fighting for. Only just as perfection is reached you realize that there is still nearly half of the book to go! Obviously the book is about to take a turn.

And turn it does. In the “second” story Alex, who had been doing some work for Pitt, agrees to go in person on a mission for Pitt. While on this trip, Alex is caught up in another naval battle and this time the ship he was thought to be on is destroyed with all hands lost at sea. With no one the wiser that Alex has been captured by the French, Laura suffers the worst imaginable tragedy and descends into a profound grief that makes her a shadow of the young, vibrant, happy girl she’d been. The reader realizes that Laura had really been a rather protected, one-dimensional girl whose life had revolved around Alex. She exists, but no longer lives--until she is befriended by another widow who gives Laura something to live for. Laura grows up and becomes a woman who learns how to deal with life on a whole new level, with maturity and determination, even if it must be without the kind of happiness she’d known with Alex.

This part of the book deals with profound grief and how people are changed by it. The grief and its consequences is beautifully and tenderly written. Ranney doesn’t make us wallow in it with Laura, but we are given a chance to understand and experience what Laura must go through in order to learn to live again. At some point she needs to actually make the choice that she will live (not just exist) and she will do it without Alex. And it’s this part of the book that made a good book great. This is a fine and realistic portrayal of grief. And because it's less than half (or even less than a third) of the book, the romance and happy ending are not overshadowed by it. I never felt that I needed to call this a "dark" book.

So, when we all finally learn that Alex actually survived, we see that Alex has to deal with the fact that Laura is not the same woman that he left behind. In the 2 years he’s been gone, Laura and their life together was frozen in time—but only in his mind. He comes back expecting things to be just like they were. But how can they be? She thought he was dead. She had no choice but to move on. Alex has to adjust his thinking as well. Alex has to love the woman Laura's become, not the girl he knew before. While brilliantly done, I do wish this part of the book had been just a little longer. But that’s the ONLY tiny complaint I have about the book.

After I read this, I went to Ranney’s website to see if she has anything there to say about the book. It appears that Tapestry was her first published book, although not the first one she wrote. In response to a compliment about Tapestry, Ranney says (#7) this:

I was in such pain when writing Tapestry that trying to mask it was foolish - it came out anyway. There is one scene in the book where I couldn't stop crying. Not mild tears, but great huge, gulping sobs. My keyboard stopped working, and I couldn't help but think I shorted it out by crying so much. The book helped me walk through my pain, helped me heal, and although I've never been able to read Tapestry through again, I'll always look on it with great fondness.

Isn’t that interesting? I cried my way through more than one scene in this book. I’d love to know which one she sobbed through, although it’s probably none of my business.

While Tapestry is out of print, it is available for only $3.20 if you’re lucky enough to own a Kindle. Online, used print copies are going for over $7.00 each. Tammy & Ali, if you are nice to me and don’t bug me about my two (two!) unfinished summer projects I’ll let you borrow my copy.

Go forth and read it. Highly, highly recommended. 5 stars. A+. Whatever.

Veiled Passions / Tracy MacNish. 2008

2009-01-16T00:35:00.003-05:00

I finished this book a week ago and have been meaning to write this ever since. But I consider it a good sign that I still remember the book well enough to write about it. Unlike some books that I forget within days, if not hours.

Veiled Passions by Tracy MacNish is the 3rd book in a series. I did not read the others first and while I might go back and do that someday, I didn’t feel I was missing anything regarding this story by not having read them. VP is a historical set in 1777 Venice and England. The time period and setting alone were enough to make me interested in this. This blurb describes a traumatized heroine and had me eager to find out more:

Three years ago, Kieran Mullen was a carefree, confident beauty. One fateful night, everything changed, and she became solitary and aloof, reluctant to leave her London home even when her brother, Rogan, insists she accompany him on holiday to Venice. There, amid the wild revelries of Carnivale, Kieran is attacked by a masked villain and rescued by a charismatic stranger who offers her the one thing that might free her from her haunting past: revenge...Matteo de Gama is a study in contradiction - a gambler and a philosopher, a reckless libertine and a most unlikely saviour. When he pulls Kieran from a canal's watery depths and learns her secrets, he resolves to help her exact justice. But soon he has another mission in mind - to release the unmistakable fire buried beneath her icy beauty, and teach her the bliss that comes with trusting in her own desires, and in their fierce, abiding love...

Three years before the book’s opening, Kieran was the victim of a crime which left her ashamed, humiliated, and horrified. She buried herself behind an aloof, cold façade that no one could break through—not even her loving brother. She runs into the villain of this crime while in Venice. A clumsy attempt to get Samuel out of her life fails and she ends up being rescued by a Venetian who senses the depth of her despair and offers her an alternative. At first she ignores him, but when circumstances have Matteo traveling back to England with Kieran, she begins to listen and consider taking back her life by exacting revenge. Kieran is fascinated by and attracted to Matteo, but she has an awful lot of garbage to wade through.

I really appreciated how the author slowly brought Kieran along. Details of Kieran’s trauma are brought to light a little at a time until she tells it all to Matteo. The crime is not quite (although close to) what you might think it to be. Instead the crime is actually a bit more complex and Kieran’s shame much deeper. As Kieran makes a decision about how to handle Samuel we’re given a lot to think about including the nature of revenge and justice. Can these things be achieved without losing a piece of our souls?

Matteo was a wonderful hero, even too good to be true. He is the illegitimate son of a prostitute who manages to escape that cycle of life and death and become an educated, charismatic charmer. He sees Kieran’s wounded spirit and for the first time in his life meets someone he wants to take care of. He wants to help her right the wrongs that were done and takes it upon himself to do so. He feels deeply the social chasm that is between them. He recognizes his love for her rather soon, and even confesses to it, but continually tells Kieran that he’ll go back to Venice as there can be nothing between them.

I found this to be a really meaty book with a lot to consider as I read it. I liked the unusual settings and while I’m no expert, I think many of the actions, including those of the villain, were consistent with the time and place. The late 18th century was a decadent time; men of high rank had unquestioned power and while that’s no excuse for Samuel’s actions, I could understand why he thought his behavior was not out of line.

As much as I did like this book, I was disappointed in the last 20-30 pages. Kieran has a confrontation with Matteo’s ex-mistress. Now, over the course of a rather lengthy book, Kieran has learned to trust Matteo with just about everything. So why does she suddenly allow herself to believe Carina’s lies? To me this became a contrivance to set up a dramatic ending. It just didn’t ring true that after all of the changes Kieran has been through she still needs to hang onto her pride, especially since Matteo continually makes himself vulnerable to her.

Nonetheless, I do recommend this book. It was a nice long read that I stretched out over several days and enjoyed coming back to. While a couple of other reviews have said they didn’t like the heroine, I found her actions pretty believable (until the end as I just said). And Matteo was a great hero--much different than your typical historical romance hero.

One question though, for some reason I kept waiting for a mention of people and their powdered hair. It was the 1770s. What a gross custom that was. But I don’t recall seeing it mentioned once in this book. Seems like it should have been. Did I miss it?

Phyl's 5 Phaves from December

2009-01-17T23:33:00.004-05:00

Heh. Bet you thought I forgot. No, just been lazy.

December was a good reading month. That's because I spent 2 weeks at my in-laws where I had quite a bit of time to read. Those long plane flights helped too...

5. Faking It by Jennifer Crusie. This description from JC's web site is a good one: She has a history of forgery she's trying to forget. He has a knack for scamming he's trying to resist. But one fateful night, their good intentions go bad, and what they get up to is downright immoral, illegal, and irresistible. This book has a huge cast of characters, but JC has a knack for helping you keep them straight and as usual this was fun and funny. I think it's only the 3rd JC book I've read and I eventually want to read her whole back list and then move on to her collaborations.

4. Divorced Desperate and Dating by Christie Craig. Another very funny book, this is also a romantic suspense as the heroine is a mystery author who is the subject of death threats. Her hero is a police detective who grew up in foster care and has abandonment issues. This book manages to be poignant as well as charming. And I was guessing about the mystery up to the end. As I was getting the link for this entry I just saw that there's an epilogue on CC's web site. I was right--Jason loves Christmas.

3. Dark Champion by Jo Beverley. This was my December TBR entry. I am now reading its sequel, Lord of Midnight. Just started it while doing my time on the treadmill tonight.

2. Dead Silence by Brenda Novak. This is the first book I've read by BN. It's part of The Stillwater Trilogy, 3 books connected by the story of a 19-year old missing (murdered?) reverend. In this book, the reverend was the step-father of heroine Grace who returns to Stillwater to put the past behind her and in the process also finds the love of her life. I found this to be an absorbing story with very well-drawn characters. I like how the mystery is revealed and that there is still more to learn in the next two books.

I have all 3 books in the trilogy which I won last year in BN's annual auction to raise funds for diabetes research. BN and I each have type-1 diabetic sons who are the same age. I was thrilled to win these (autographed!) copies and it was about time I started reading them. Book 2 is next up after I do my January TBR.

1. Marrying the Captain by Carla Kelly. I blogged about this when I read it. It has continued to receive lots of good reviews on other sites as well. I'm thrilled to know there will be two more books in this series later this year.

TBR Day. Déjà You / Lynda Sandoval. 2007

2009-01-21T00:30:00.005-05:00

Keishon's 2009 TBR Challenge kicks off today. This year we've been challenged to read specific types of books each month and this month's theme is category romances. I admit that not so long ago I looked down my nose on categories, but I have come to appreciate how difficult it must be to craft a good read with such a limited word count. I've been fortunate to read dozens of good categories over the last few years and I do like the fact that they're easy on the pocketbook. At any point in time I have 6-10 of them on my PDA and this month's selection is one that's been there for over a year now.

Déjà You is the second in Lynda Sandoval's "Troublesome Gulch" miniseries, published in the Silhoutte Special Edition line from Harlequin. Troublesome Gulch is a ficticious Colorado mountain town where 12 years ago, on prom night, a horrible accident occured, leaving broken lives and broken hearts. The survivors all chose careers in emergency services (police, firefighting, etc.) and eventually find faith, hope, and love. Each book in the series is about one of the survivors of the prom night tragedy.

I first saw the series on Fictionwise last January, when the 3rd book, You and No Other was released. I bought all three, read (and enjoyed) the first one, The Other Sister, but never got around to reading the other two. Until this week.

From the blurb: When a deadly apartment blaze sparked memories of the prom night accident that took her fiancé and unborn baby, firefighter Erin DeLuca ran...and lost herself for just one night. Erin was left pregnant, and the stranger who'd offered solace was nowhere to be found. Until he showed up in Troublesome Gulch. And irony of ironies, Nate Walker was a pyrotechnics engineer—and when he saw the mystery woman who got away, now very pregnant, his entire being lit up. For Erin, it was a déjà vu moment brighter than any fireworks display—not about reliving pain, but about the joy of being in the arms of a loving man....

Erin became a firefighter after the prom night accident. Her prom gown caught fire that night and she was left with burn scars over a large portion of her torso. She's had no other significant relationship with a man since her fiancé died. The book opens with her fighting a fire in which a young man dies, leaving behind a pregnant wife. The memory strikes too close to home and Erin hops in her car, drives to Denver and ends up having a one-night stand with Nate. All she knows is Nate's first name, so when she winds up pregnant she has no way to contact him. Fortunately, Nate shows up in town as he's been hired to engineer the town's July 4 fireworks and Erin's on a task force to make sure no wildfires ensue. Both are haunted by memories of the other and both are shocked to see one another again.

The book is mostly about Erin and Nate getting to know one another, agreeing to be parents together, and eventually falling in love with one another. There was a lot to like in this book. First, when they end up sleeping together they actually have a talk about protection. Erin's convinced she can't have children because of all of the scar tissue and she hasn't been with anyone since prom night. Second, when Erin and Nate meet again, Erin apologizes for running out on Nate and making it impossible for either one to contact the other. She acknowledges her mistakes. Third, Erin realizes that in order to have a future with Nate, she has to put her past behind her once and for all.

For the most part, this book seemed very real to me. There was one section near the end where Erin has a dream that was a little too other-worldly for my taste, but I could see how it would appeal to many. Nate was a typical beta hero--all around nice guy who insists on being there to help raise his child, but doesn't come across like an HP Greek tycoon insisting upon marriage. The book is nicely paced and the action and dialogue move it along well. Other characters from the town who have been, or will be, featured in the other books are there, but don't detract from Erin and Nate. There's just enough information so that you could read this on its own. I really enjoyed reading it and definitely recommend it to you if you're looking for a good category read.

Phyl's 5 Phaves from January

2009-02-04T20:49:00.003-05:00

It was actually rather difficult to pick my 5 favorite books from last month. Only a couple stood out as being fabulous reads. Most were just average. They were enjoyable, but not so compelling that I dropped everything to finish them. Maybe that's why I got so much quilting done. I wasn't held captive by my reading. It's interesting to note that 4 of the 5 are historicals, but not a Regency-set in sight. One medieval and 3 Georgians. I came this close to putting Sylvia Day's Don't Tempt Me on the list, which is set in pre-Terror Paris. It deserves an honorable mention for the setting alone.

5. What a Scoundrel Wants by Carrie Lofty. This book took me over a week to read. Like Christine I found this book very slow going to start. I spent a week reading the first half. I finished the last half over a two-day period. I really enjoyed how different it was from more traditional romance. Even though I wasn't loving it, I kept at it because there's been so much positive buzz on the 'Net. I found myself confused by who was allied with who. I kept wondering if I was supposed to know more about the Robin Hood mythology than I do. I understood why Meg & Will had their first passionate encounter, but nothing from that encounter and their respective subsequent behavior meshed *for me* with their ongoing lust for one another. It just didn't compute. Also, it seemed to take way too long to explain the essential conflict in the story. Once that finally began to make sense to me, I became more and more engaged. Enough so that I did reach the point where I didn't want to put the book down. There's a moment when Will actively seeks in his own mind to put himself in Meg's shoes and imagine going through life blind. When he does that, I finally believed in his attraction to her. And we finally understand enough about Meg to know why she had trust issues. Then I could believe in her attraction to him. All in all I'm glad I read it and I will be watching for Ada's book.

4. Veiled Passions by Tracy MacNish. I blogged about this one here. This book stuck with me for days. I really found the theme of revenge very compelling.

3. A Lady's Secret by Jo Beverley. I used to be a member of JB's Yahoo group and when she was writing this she called it her "nun on the run" book. It does have a humorous beginning as Petra, dressed like a nun, receives help from Robin to escape from some nasty people. JB's books are always good and this one, connected to her Malloren series, was no exception. I also read Lord of Midnight this month, one of her medievals. I liked that one, but found the heroine to be a tad annoying--enough so to keep the book from being a Phave.

2. Flat-out Sexy by Erin McCarthy. I am an anti-NASCAR snob, for sure. I've avoided the Harlequin NASCAR books, even if they have great reviews. But I'm a big Erin McCarthy fan and I wasn't going to miss this. I found Tamara to be a well-written character who, as a widow with serious responsibilities toward her children, must decide whether to take a chance on a relationship with another driver. It means living with the risk that she could be widowed again. She's also slightly older than your typical heroine and I found her insecurities about her body (that bore those 2 children) to be honest and realistic. Elec (strange name) also seemed realistic and not too-good-to-be-true. I raced through this one and am eagerly awaiting the next title in the series, Hard and Fast (May 2009).

1. To Seduce a Sinner by Elizabeth Hoyt. I've yet to read an Elizabeth Hoyt book that I did not absolutely love. Honestly, she delivers consistently well-crafted books with characters that are just out of the ordinary. Some of the best parts of the book concern Lord Vale's PTSD and the way that Melisande deals with it (of course it's not identified in the book as PTSD). There are some traumas that one cannot fully recover from. The reality of this enhances the book. Melisande is a heroine who is not physically beautiful, but she displays an inner beauty that Vale recognizes and falls in love with. It's heart-stopping the way he shows her that. I read this book while on a cross-country flight and the 4.5 hours felt like 2. I was entranced.

TBR Day -- A Rose at Midnight / Anne Stuart. 1993

2009-02-18T02:00:00.005-05:00

This month's theme in Keishon's 2009 TBR Challenge is to read a book that we bought because of a DIK (i.e. Desert Isle Keeper) review over at AAR. I discovered that I don't have very many unread AAR DIK's lying (laying?--I never know) around. There's Outlander, but that sucker would have taken too long to read. Sigh. One day. Anyhow, I found that I had this book stashed away. I bought it used off Amazon's Marketplace almost exactly 5 years ago. The DIK review is by an AAR reader and may be found here.

If anyone ever wrote the quintessential “tortured hero,” I’m guessing it would be Anne Stuart. Her heroes have been discarded by their families, have made the worst possible choices, and most importantly, seem to thoroughly hate themselves. Usually they are redeemed by innocent (yet feisty!) heroines who teach them how to love (think Chloe & Bastien from Black Ice). In this book Nicholas is about as tortured as any hero can be. What's different this time is so is the heroine, Ghislaine.

This historical takes place in 1803 during the tenuous and short-lived Peace of Amiens. Ghislaine is living quietly in England, serving as a chef to her friend, Lady Ellen Fitzwater. Ghislaine is the daughter of French aristos who were beheaded during the Terror. Shortly before Ghislaine's world was torn apart at the age of 15, she met and developed an infatuation for Nicholas Blackthorne, a carefree young man of 22 who was visiting her family. Ghislaine's father, seeing the unrest caused by the Revolution, asks Nicholas to marry Ghislaine and take her safely to England. The father will then get his wife and son to England separately. Nicholas, however, being young and selfish refuses. The Comte is unable to save his family. He and his wife are captured and beheaded; Ghislaine and her little brother escape and are left to fend for themselves on the streets of Paris where Ghislaine's life descends to hell. Ghislaine manages to pull herself up and make a life for herself, but not until after she's been brutalized and permanently separated from her brother. She meets Lady Ellen 9-10 years later and accepts Ellen's offer of a job in England. She is with Ellen when the book opens.

Meanwhile, Nicholas has been living a dissolute life. He is the unwanted second son, left to inherit nothing but debt when his older brother and father die. Nicholas is infamous for the 7 duels he's fought and the 2 men he's killed. He's also a cousin of Lady Ellen. He arrives at Ellen's after his latest duel. He's hiding out until it's determined he either has to flee England for awhile, or it's safe to return to London.

For the last 10 years, all Ghislaine has wanted is revenge upon Nicholas--the target she blames for all of the misery she has had to endure. When he shows up at the estate where she is working, she decides her chance for revenge has come and she poisons Nicholas. While she makes Nicholas very sick, she doesn't manage to kill him. Nicholas realizes he's been poisoned by the cook and he ends up recognizing Ghislaine as the young woman he left behind all those years ago. He had actually been attracted to her back then, but he was not willing to act upon those feelings. So, he decides to kidnap Ghislaine and take her to his property in Scotland where he can seduce her and extract some revenge in return.

When Ellen discovers that Ghislaine has been taken by Nicholas, she goes after them, under the escort of her brother's best friend, Tony. There is a wonderful, very funny romance between these two that we see along with the main story of Nicholas and Ghislaine. Tony and Ellen are an interesting light counterpoint to the dark and tortuous road that Nicholas and Ghislaine have to go down together.

This book is a road story, taking place as they travel first to Scotland, then to Holland, then to Venice, and finally to France. Nicholas and Ghislaine are together constantly, as are Tony and Ellen. However, the four don't get together until the end when they are all in Venice. Ghislaine's story of what she endured after Nicholas "betrayed" her is slowly revealed. Ghislaine is a wonderfully constructed character who is deeply conflicted by her old feelings for Nicholas, by her hatred of him for his betrayal and now his control over her, and by the feelings (attraction) she has for him now. This is also a story of forced seduction that many readers will believe crosses that line over to rape. When Nicholas finally has his way with her, Ghislaine is just as angry with herself as with him because she admits to herself that she loves him. This scene makes sense to me because Nicholas is so full of self-hatred, he only sees himself as destructive. But he finally begins to change and both of them deal with their respective pasts.

I found myself pulled into the story almost immediately and I loved the way Anne Stuart gradually revealled Ghislaine's past. Once I started, I had a hard time putting it down. I'd definely recommend this book, although if books with "forced seduction" turn you off, you might want to avoid it.

Scandal / Carolyn Jewel. 2009

2009-02-24T20:52:00.003-05:00

I learned a new word reading this book. That's always fun. It's also great to see another historical from the author of Lord Ruin, a book I really liked. Scandal, by Carolyn Jewel, has received quite a few positive reviews around the web since its release this month and I'm happy to add my voice to the chorus.

I don't have time to write a full review, but let me say that I found this book to be quite fascinating. I had a hard time putting it down once I started. This story of the Earl of Banallt's dedicated, persistent pursuit of Sophie Evans, the widow of Banallt's one-time friend, is moving and emotional. It is told against the backdrop of Napolean's final 100 days--after his escape from Elba, but just before Waterloo. There are reminders in this book, both overt and subtle, that life is precious. The concern about impending war is understated, but I think it serves as an important part of the landscape as we watch Sophie decide whether she's willing to risk her heart, even if she can't be certain it won't be broken yet again.

It's a cleverly crafted book. Banallt & Sophie first met while they were each still married to others. Now each is widowed, but Sophie has no desire to be tied to another man after the disaster of her first marriage. Sophie had not only been a victim of her first husband's careless negligence and infidelity, but also a victim of her powerlessness as a woman in that society. She will not be powerless like that again. Sophie is a strong woman and a very likeable heroine. There are a handful of flashbacks that not only tell the tale of their early relationship, but illustrate how much Banallt has changed by the time he meets Sophie again.

This is also a book about impressions, reputation, and the power of gossip. Banallt is really not the man the gossips like to portray. And even Sophie, who knows him better than most, has a hard time putting the gossip aside. Some of this is due to her own lack of self-worth. But if she can convince herself that the gossip is true, she doesn't have to risk her heart again. I could totally believe her need for self-preservation.

At any rate, well done. Believe the buzz. This is a good book and I happily recommend it.

Today First Comes Marriage by Mary Balogh and Promises in Death by J.D. Robb were released. I have them both in my hot little hands. What to read, what to read....

Phyl's 5 Phaves from February

2009-03-05T23:27:00.004-05:00

February was not only a productive sewing month, it was also a good reading month. And so far, March hasn't been too bad either! Finally, here are my Phaves:

5. Instant Attraction by Jill Shalvis. Told with lots of humor and genuine emotion, we have the story of Katie who craves adventure and Cameron who has had so much adventure he's burned out. This book has some great secondary characters as well and left me eager for the next book in the series. I should add that I'm a regular reader of Jill's blog and this book, set in the Sierra's in the middle of winter seemed to have many elements of the area Jill describes every day. I enjoyed the connection between the two.

4. A Rose at Midnight by Anne Stuart. This was my TBR Challenge book for February. I thought this was just a marvelously constructed book and it stuck with me for days afterwards.

3. Scandal by Carolyn Jewel. Another book I reviewed and one that has been well received around the 'net. This, too, was well written and emotional. I loved the backdrop of Napolean's final 100 days--as the showdown nears between France and the rest of the world, so does the showdown between Banallt and Sophie. Terrific book.

2. Hot Night by Shannon McKenna. I'm working my way through SM's backlist and found this while browsing at the library. Abby and Zan are caught in the middle as a manipulative sadist attempts to rob the museum where Abby works. Zan comes across at first as an under-achiever, but he's a very smart man who has pulled his life together despite some unfair set-backs. This is a tightly written suspense novel that moves quickly. I had it with me on the retreat and took several treadmill breaks so I could read it. Zan had some brothers who could use books, but SM seems to be focused on the McCloud brothers, which is just peachy by me.

1. First Comes Marriage by Mary Balogh. This is the first new book by MB since A Summer to Remember was published in 2002 that doesn't have a Bedwyn in it. Not that I minded the Bedwyn's all that much, but frankly, it was nice to read some new characters. I loved this marriage of convenience story that gently tells the story of Elliott & Vanessa falling in love. It was my discovery of Mary Balogh that drew me into reading romance and I celebrate still every time a new book of hers is released. The next 3 months means there will be much to celebrate!

TBR Day. Regency compare and contrast : Truly Yours & The Bride Price

2009-03-18T03:15:00.004-04:00

Today's post was supposed to be about this month's TBR read which turned out to be Barbara Metzger's Truly Yours. I no sooner finished reading TY when this review prompted me to dash over to the library on Monday and give Anne Mallory's The Bride Price a try.
I found it interesting to read these two very different Regency historicals back-to-back and found myself comparing and contrasting the two. So rather than try and write a traditional review of Truly Yours I'm going to talk a little about RegencyWorld as it is used in each book.
Like many romance readers of a certain age, I was introduced to the Regency era by reading Georgette Heyer in my teens. I have a small collection of her books and over the years I have re-read my favorites many times over, such as The Grand Sophy or Frederica. There was a part of my life when I didn't read much romance (although I loved when books in other genres had romantic elements in them) until I discovered Mary Balogh. From there I found other authors (like Barbara Metzger) and for several years I'd say that 90% of the romance I read was set in the Regency era.

There's a certain comfort in returning to this world again and again. Authors don't have to do a whole lot of world-building--in a way that's been done already by other authors writing in this subgenre before them. Names like Sally Jersey or Prinny; places like Almack's, Grosvener Square, and the Rotten Row are the same from one book to the next. And thanks to readers' groups on the Internet I learned who out-ranks an Earl, how an entail works, and what a young society girl really would or wouldn't do. All of these things were mysteries to me as a 17-year old American girl, but that didn't stop me from enjoying Heyer's books. Now I like to think that I "get" it when I'm reading Regencies and it does matter to me how well the author uses the Regency world for her story. FOR ME, the Regency world has to be more than a backdrop for the story; the Regency world has to govern the way the characters act. If the author doesn't get that, then it's a major fail in my eyes. I guess that makes me a bit of a snob, but there you have it.

Barbara Metzger has been writing Regencies successfully for over 20 years. She has a unique voice and a wonderful sense of humor. I continue to seek out her backlist and I'm delighted that more and more of them are now available as ebooks. From time to time her books have even had a small touch of the paranormal--before it became fashionable to do so. In Truly Yours, the hero comes from a family where all of the males are able to discern whether someone is telling the truth. This book is the first in a series of 3; each hero is one of the males in this family. At the request of his mother, Viscount Rexford goes to the aid of Amanda Carville who has been accused of a murder she did not commit. When Rex is able to talk to her, he knows right away that she is indeed innocent and he sets about finding the real murderer. As the story opens, Amanda is in prison, living in appalling conditions. Rex uses his rank and status to remove her from prison and take her to the family home. Unfortunately, his mother is in Bath and with no respectable female currently residing in the house, there is no one to chaperone Amanda. Even though she's sick, all of the characters (except Rex of course!) insist that he'll have to marry Amanda because she's been compromised. This becomes an important plot point--because such a circumstance would have really been important in that era. Metzger uses the mores of the time as a significant part of the conflict in the book.

In a similar way, I think relative newcomer Anne Mallory also uses the mores of that time quite successfully in her latest book. In this book, part of the conflict revolves around the place in society that illigitimate sons had/didn't have. This book has the hero, Sebastian, taking part in a competition that frankly reminded me a bit of many reality TV shows, like Survivor. Obviously, reality TV would be anachronistic for any historical, but Mallory takes this mythical contest she created and gives us realistic characters who are fully aware that power and status are held by those who are not only wealthy, but titled. Sebastian is offered an opportunity to receive wealth, a title, and an aristocratic bride if he wins the competition. There are several other contestants, who, like Sebastian, are the bastard sons of the men arranging the competition. The rest of the contestants are younger sons who, as "spares" are often beneath the notice of their own fathers. One of those spares is Sebastian's half brother, Benedict. Their father, a duke, is a rather dispicable figure, who manipulates his sons by pitting them against one another. Throughout the book, we are given opportunities to see how society operated in that era. Society's dictates help drive the plot and I think Mallory did a fabulous job of using the era to drive her story. Near the end, Sebastian has a conversation with the heroine, Caroline, where she points out that for a woman, being a bastard daughter is a great deal different than being a bastard son. I loved it.

These are really two very different books. TY is much lighter in the sensuality than TBP. The plot of TY revolves around the murder mystery while the plot of TBP revolves around the contest and Sebastian's drive to win the things he's always been denied. TY is much lighter period and a fairly typical Metzger book. This is only the 3rd Mallory book I've read and had Gwen not been so enthusiastic, I probably would have skipped it. I'm glad I didn't.

When I read TY, I was in comfort zone with an author who is tried and true. When I read TBP I was in that comfortable Regency world, but reading something that was much more subtle, was full of sexual tension, and much more emotional. Both were highly enjoyable, as different as night and day, yet as familiar as can be, because I still love Regency World.

Phyl's 5 Phaves from March

2009-04-01T05:00:00.002-04:00

5. Glitter Baby by Susan Elizabeth Phillips. This is an SEP "classic" as it was originally published in 1987 and republished to coincide with the release of her latest book, What I Did for Love. The new book is set a generation later and one of the characters is a daughter of the h/h in GB. GB is more of a women's fiction book with strong romantic elements than a straightforward romance. I've noticed that some bloggers/commenters really do not like GB. I, however, found it to be quite a page-turner and loved the story of Fleur as she comes into her own and learns to stand up for herself. For a "contemporary" that's over 20 years old, it wears very well.

4. Fragile by Shiloh Walker. This is the first book I've read by Ms. Walker. This was a really interesting romantic suspense about a social worker with a brutal past and an ER doctor who gets to know her when she has to bring clients (abused children) into the hospital. Devon is attracted to Luke but has so many issues to deal with (the title "Fragile" is apt). Luke has problems of his own to deal with, including a twin brother who is on the edge. Ms. Walker does a great job of blending the suspense with the ups and downs of a developing relationship. I thought it very realistic. They have to deal with stress--from their pasts, their jobs, and the outside threat that is very real. I'd love to see a book about Luke's twin, but the website gives no hint that one is forthcoming.

3. The Bride Price by Anne Mallory. I blogged about this back on TBR Day because I thought this was such an effective look at Regency society and a rather unusual story from many angles. I loved the subtle way it was told and how much was unsaid, yet clear to the discerning reader. It was just a well-written story with characters I fully enjoyed. Through Caroline and Sebastian we see just how society operated, how much power the wealthy and titled had, and the importance of legitimacy. I will definitely be reading more by this author.

2. Promises in Death by J.D. Robb. This is installment number 34 in Nora Robert's crime series and the series shows no signs of going stale in this book. The case this time involves the murder of a cop who just happens to be the girlfriend of Chief Medical Examiner Morris, and this makes the case personal for the whole cast of characters. The fact that it was personal gave the book some poignancy. And there are also lighthearted moments as Eve continues to grow into her friendships--she hosts a bridal shower for Louise in the middle of the investigation. It's a "life must go on" moment and shows how far Eve has come since book 1.

1. Kill for Me by Karen Rose. I have become an absolutely huge, huge Karen Rose fan. Her books are taut, finely crafted, and suspenseful. They are NOT for the squeamish! This was book 3 in her Vartanian family trilogy. While I think on the one hand this book can stand alone, I do think it's a case of being a much "fuller" read if you've read the previous two books. There's a large story arc involving the small Georgia town where the Vartanians are from and many of its citizens. In this story it's a race against time to break up a human trafficking ring and Susannah Vartanian holds the key to doing so. Working with special agent Luke Papadopoulos, they track down the bad guys and save some young girls who are in trouble. KR writes books that take place over very short periods of time (e.g. 1-2 weeks) and are extremely intense. I have really come to appreciate how talented a writer she is to keep up the tension and bring all of the threads together. Great, great read.

TBR Day. To Love a Thief / Julie Anne Long. 2005

2009-04-15T20:45:00.001-04:00

Today is TBR Day and the theme of the month is urban fantasy, paranormal, SFR, fantasy. But I honestly don't have any of that in my TBR pile. I like some of those once in a while, but I'm pretty much a historical junkie and when I went to the shelf, that's all I found. Interestingly, as I was composing this review in my head, I was thinking that this book has a bit of a fairy tale quality to it. The AAR review called it a Pygmalian story. So we'll pretend this book qualifies for this month's theme because it skirts the very edge of fantasy with an engaging, but rather predictable plot involving a girl living in the slums who is rescued by a hero who just happens to need rescuing himself. Sound familiar?Here is the blurb from the publisher:
Lily Masters has a gift for picking pockets and telling stories—skills that come in handy for surviving London’s slums. She’s proud of providing for herself and her lively young sister, Alice, and she’s never been caught. Well, there’s always a first time. Gideon Cole is a brilliant barrister with an unfortunate weakness for clients who can’t pay. His latest charitable misstep: buying the freedom of a daring, beautiful thief. To repay the debt, Lily agrees to his proposition: pose as the object of his desire and help him snare a wealthy bride. All he has to do is transform the impudent Lily into a diamond of the first water. But the education of Lily could cost Gideon his carefully planned future. While she plays cards with his invalid uncle and Alice charms the servants, the honorable Gideon is harboring less than honorable thoughts. For sweet, stubborn, and sensual Lily has a way of slipping past a gentleman’s defenses—especially when she’s stealing his heart!
That's actually a pretty accurate description of the book. Lily lives a hand-to-mouth existence in St. Giles although she and her young sister were being raised to be gentlewomen when their parents died. Left with nothing, Lily has no other choice (short of prostitution) but to resort to theft in order to buy food and shelter. There's a well-written scene between Lily and Gideon when he questions her morals and she asks him what he wouldn't do for his own sister. Lily is a character who has had to make some hard choices. They may not be "right" ones, but they've allowed Lily and her sister to stay together and survive day-to-day.
As I said above, this really is a familiar plot. Gabriel catches Lily in the act of picking his pocket. She escapes, but is caught again by someone else a day later. Gabriel happens to be nearby and in exchange for the last 30 pounds he has in his pocket, he takes charge of her. He discovers that she'd been educated and so he makes a bargain with Lily. She will help him snare the wealthy bride he's interested in and she will regain her freedom. Lily and her sister Alice go with Gabriel to his uncle's home in the country where Lily learns how to navigate in society. While there she falls in love with Gabriel. Then they go back to London where Lily triumphantly enters society only now Gabriel has to decide what it is he really wants out of life and who he wants to spend it with.
If you're a Regency purist, you'd hate this book. There are some title usage errors that even I noticed. It's a little too easy to introduce Lily to society. A house party is planned and the chaperone seems an after-thought. Stuff like that was bothersome. But while I did note these things, I still found myself really enjoying this. I accidentally left it at work the other afternoon and nearly talked myself into turning around and going back for it--I was very upset with myself. Truth is, Ms. Long has an engaging voice. She lets her characters' dialogue and actions move the story forward so the book doesn't get bogged down with too much introspection. Also, I really liked the depth of Lily's feelings for Gabriel: she loves him and continues with the plan to help him win the bride of his choice because she wants him to have what HE wants, even if it may not be the best thing for him. Gabriel thinks of things much like a man of his era would have--why can't he have both his bride and his Lily as a mistress? It's certainly the example he grew up with. So that part felt true.
In the end I do recommend this book. The fairy tale feel and entertaining voice made it an enjoyable read.

Phyl's 5 Phaves from May

2009-06-01T00:30:00.005-04:00

I had a hard time leaving Smooth Talking Stranger off the list this month; it was one of several books that nearly made the cut. I also need to give props to two Harlequin Blazes: Anything for You by Sarah Mayberry and His Expectant Ex by Catherine Mann. I don't read Blazes very often, but I saw a good review for Anything for You and I was intrigued by the storyline in His Expectant Ex. The heroines in both of these books make a stand for what they want out of their relationships with the heroes and I really appreciated that. Strong characters made these engaging, fun reads. I also found Anna Campbell's Tempt the Devil extremely compelling. I applaud Campbell for tackling difficult storylines and I think her writing is improving. Still, that book isn't for everyone and I'm not sure I'd call it a "favorite." But I think I would read it again some day. Always a Scoundrel by Suzanne Enoch almost made this list. It was a darn close call. But, well, I just love Carla Kelly....

5. The Surgeon's Lady by Carla Kelly. This is the second in her trilogy about the illegitimate daughters of a rather nasty aristocrat, Lord Ratliff. Laura had been sold into marriage by her father and is now widowed and possessor of a decent fortune. She had not known she has half-sisters and when she finally decides to visit Nana (heroine of Marrying the Captain) she finds herself coming to the assistance of one of the surgeons at the nearby Naval hospital and going to work there. The surgeon, Philemon Brittle has to get past the walls Laura has built after the way she was mistreated by her father and husband. As their romance blooms, we also get another fascinating look at 19th century naval life. Kelly's books are always a treat and this was no exception. I bought this as an ebook May 1. It goes on sale in paper today.

4. Whisper of Warning by Laura Griffin. This is the sequel to Thread of Fear and tells the story of Courtney Glass, sister to Fiona in TOF. Courtney is framed for a murder she didn't commit and it's up to Detective Will Hodges to follow his gut and prove she didn't do it. Courtney is a very different character than her sister and I liked her flamboyant nature. The romance between Courtney and Will unfolds gradually even though they are immediately attracted to one another. There were some details here, such as the fact that Will has a job that requires him to juggle multiple cases that made this book very realistic-sounding. I'm looking forward to reading more by this author.

3. Untamed by Pamela Clare. I have had this one forever, it seems. It was released last November. Ms. Clare's books have been consistent winners for me. The hero and heroine are an unlikely pair. Morgan Mackinnon is a Scot raised in America with a well-developed dislike of the British. He's forced to fight against the French, but is captured by them and tended by the recently orphaned half French/half Indian daughter of a French commander who was recently killed by Morgan's band of Rangers. On the surface it all seems convoluted. And the French and Indian Wars were very brutal. So this might not sound like an inviting read. But if you enjoy history even a little bit, this book was fascinating and the history was clearly presented. The romance develops slowly and naturally and it's possible to believe that Amelie would be able to fall in love with Morgan. One thing that I really, really appreciated about this book is that the French commander who replaces Amelie's father is a decent man and Morgan is genuinely conflicted about being forced to treat him as an enemy. Things are never black and white in war and Clare does an excellent job of reminding us of that fact.

2. Seducing an Angel by Mary Balogh. You know what? I did not expect to like this book. The previous 3 books in the series painted Stephen as an almost perfect young man. Good-looking, good-humored, good-[whatever] just sounded to me as if that could only spell b-o-r-i-n-g. And, well, Stephen is actually pretty perfect in this book. But it turns out that the real interesting character here is Cassandra, a disgraced and destitute widow who comes to London to hire herself out as a courtesan in order to provide for herself and 2 retainers. She puts on a very cold mask, but Stephen is able to see beyond it and he insists on getting to know the real Cassandra. Their story develops over a very short period of time. Almost too short, but at least the author acknowledges the short time span through some of Stephen's inner dialogue. Balogh reveals Cassandra's back story in stages and I liked how it was done. Another thing that made this book different is that it had far less sexual content than her books usually do. It was an interesting experiment by her publisher to release 4 books in quick succession like this. I have some things to say about that, so I'll leave it for a future blog post. Meanwhile, I did end up liking this very much indeed.

1. Not Quite a Husband by Sherry Thomas. Gosh, did I love this book. I had to keep putting it down to google stuff, though. Like maps of Pakistan and India. (I do wish a map could have been printed in book!) And to look up the 3 new words I learned: concupiscence, pellucid, and deodar. But the best part was watching two people put a very broken relationship back together. I love that kind of story and this was done very well. The past was brought into the story in stages. It took a while to get to understand just what had happened and then Bryony and Leo have to work their way through the hurt to get back together. Meanwhile there's a threat to their lives in the form of an uprising, there's hundreds of miles of hostile terrain to traverse, and the walls of their past to break down. This book was on my mind for days after I finished it. Loved it.

Phyl's 5 Phaves for June. Sorta'

2009-07-10T18:57:00.003-04:00

June 2009 was probably my lightest reading month since I began this blog. I read 11 books. Normally I read at least 20. I just ended up getting busy with stuff, not to mention I had to finish a quilt for the wedding I'm attending tomorrow. (Picture to come.) As I look at the list of what I read, I will say that I enjoyed them all, but really, only 3 deserve the status of "phave." They are:

3. Gotcha! by Christie Craig. I continue to thoroughly enjoy these funny books with their witty dialogue by Ms. Craig. Can I call them light-hearted romantic suspense? That seems an oxymoron. There's definitely tension as the heroine is being stalked by a seriously bad dude. But her attitude, her relationship with the hero, as well as her relationships with her family members are wonderfully depicted. The secondary characters are lively, not dull wallpaper background for the hero/heroine. There's snappy pacing and it was truly hard to put this one down.

2. Don't Tell by Karen Rose. I've been working my way through Ms. Rose's backlist and this is one of her earlier books. By reading it now I can see how much tighter her writing and pacing have become since this was published. This one takes place over a lengthier time period and is a fascinating look at how a previously abused woman has totally re-made her life after running with her son from her abusive husband. I found it totally believable and there was plenty of tension. It was a great warm-up for her next release due in just a few weeks. Ms. Rose cannot write fast enough!

1. A Hint of Wicked by Jennifer Haymore. Usually it's pretty easy for me to finish one book and then move on to the next. But this one was unusual enough that I found it darn hard to pick up another book for a few days after. I see from other reviews that this is a book readers either love or hate. There's been some criticism about the realism of the history portrayed here. Indeed, I questioned that any Duke not named Wellington was that close to the front lines at Waterloo (although I was too lazy to actually research the question). But all that aside, I found this to be a well-written, compelling triangle story that stands a few standard romance conventions on end. For example, normally a book will tell the story of the h/h falling in love. Instead we have a heroine who was truly in love with her (presumed) dead husband and now years later has found love again with her second husband. This is how the book begins. And when the first husband turns up alive, Sophie has to make a choice between two men she still loves. (BTW, was the name "Sophie" a deliberate reference to the most devastating book I ever read, "Sophie's Choice"?) I found all three characters sympathetic. In a typical triangle story, one expects to dislike at least one member, but not in this case. In the end, I thought this was an amazing book and I hope Ms. Haymore continues to surprise us and twist the genre for us once in awhile.

Phyl's 5 Phaves from July, Pt. 1

2009-08-06T18:30:00.001-04:00

In June I could not muster enough enthusiasm to select 5 favorite books from what I read. Not a problem for July! Of course, with all those miles to spend reading, I had much to choose from. So as a bonus I have 5 honorable mentions to go along with my 5 phaves. Aren't you all so lucky!?
My biases are definitely showing with this group of 10. Seven of the 10 are historicals (6 of those Regency-set). Only 1 book was a new-to-me author; the other 9 authors I count among my favorites and I try (when the budget allows) to purchase rather than borrow books by these authors.
So in this post, in no particular order, are my Honorable Mentions. Tomorrow I'll post the top 5.
Jade Lee's The Dragon Earl was a fascinating tale of a lost peer who has come home to take his rightful place as Earl. In this case, hero Jacob Cato was left for dead in China when he was still quite young. He had been promised to Evelyn Stanton when they were small children. Jacob returns to England just as Evelyn is about to marry Jacob's cousin, the man who had assumed the Earldom in Jacob's stead. Jacob has to learn to deal with being English, with his anger at having been left all alone in China, and his growing attraction for Evelyn. Evelyn, meanwhile, having been raised to be Countess, struggles over just what (and who) it is she really wants. The plot concerning why Jacob's family was killed is left unresolved. This screams sequel to me, but there's no indication on Lee's website that a sequel is in the works. Meanwhile, I can appreciate why many bloggers are fans of Lee's books and I'll be seeking out more of her backlist.
Jill Shalvis' books always make me laugh. Her blog is the best author blog in the business. She has two new books out right now. I recently finished Instant Gratification, book 2 in her Wilder brothers trilogy. Snappy dialogue and great chemistry made this a very entertaining read. Oooh and look! Her other new book is a baseball book: Double Play. I can't wait to get my hands on that one.
As I continue to read my way through Shannon McKenna's backlist, I found Return to Me at the library. Not quite as heavy on the suspense, this earlier book by McKenna is a fine story about high school best friends who get back together after 17 years apart. Emma now owns a successful B&B in their home town and Simon is back after traveling the world as a photojournalist. They have to deal with their history and the menace that hovers over them. This isn't nearly as tightly written as McKenna's more recent books, but still a thoroughly engaging book. And hey! Taking Heat is out now.
Book 5, This Duchess of Mine in the Desperate Duchesses series by Eloisa James was released in May. The 6th and final book was released last week. That's a long series! I have found James' books to be consistently witty and entertaining. This was no exception as we finally get Jemma's story. Jemma & Elijah are master chess players and the game of chess takes center stage as Jemma and Elijah engage in a chess match both literally and figuratively as they work to put their marriage back together after a long estrangement. I love stories of people finding their way back together; forgiveness is a powerful theme.
My final honorable mention has turned into a far more interesting choice than I originally anticipated. Loretta Chase is probably one of the best historical romance authors out there. Her books are often unusual in setting and her heroines are smart, self-aware, and assertive. I love the way she uses dialogue to advance the story and demonstrate the deepening relationship between hero and heroine. So, do you smell the "but?" Don't Tempt Me, her latest release, is the story of Zoe and Lucien. They were childhood friends who were separated when Zoe was kidnapped at the age of 12 while her family was visiting Egypt. Zoe was sold into a harem and after many years of slavery she manages to escape and find her way back to England and her family. This book gripped me from the first page because Chase can write. When I finished it I could honestly say that I liked it, but didn't love it. Zoe's re-adjustment seemed too easy; the secondary characters read more like caricatures; one particular secondary character could have been fleshed out and made into an interesting counterpoint to Zoe. Then I read this. My repressed inner feminist had to admit that Jessica makes a compelling critical argument about this book and its mysoginistic attitude. Wow. And then yesterday I read this. Candy does a way better job of reviewing this book than I could and her reactions closely mirror my own. I still highly recommend this book. The writing alone is worth it. And it's good to read a book that makes us ask some serious questions.

Phyl's 5 Phaves from July, Pt. 2

2009-08-07T18:28:00.003-04:00

Many of us readers have particular authors that we gravitate toward. Their writing and their stories have that certain "something." It was no surprise as I compiled this list to realize that the 5 authors represented here are among the ones I most look forward to reading. I have gushed over a few of them in this blog previously. Without further ado, last month's Phaves:

5. Loving a Lost Lord by Mary Jo Putney. When I started reading romance again about 6-7 years ago, Putney was one of the first authors I discovered. Her Shattered Rainbows is one of my top 10 reads of all time. Putney took a detour into the paranormal (with mixed results in my opinion) and then a publisher switch meant a two-year gap between books. It was with a great deal of anticipation that I read her first straight historical in some 5 years. The hero of this story is the victim of an accident that leaves him with amnesia. He suddenly appears in Mariah's life just when she's in the need of a protector. She tells him that he's her husband and nurses him back to health. I was prepared to dislike this because their relationship begins based on a pretty serious lie. Fortunately the reveal comes well before the end of the book. There is, naturally, a bit of a mystery to solve and the need for Adam to recall who he really is. Adam's amnesia is a convenient plot device, but I think Putney handles it well. While not as emotional as some of her previous books, this is still an entertaining read by an excellent author. I'm so glad she's "back!"

4. A Scotsman in Love by Karen Ranney. This is a Victorian-era romance with a most unusual heroine. Margaret is a woman from a poor and common background. Her artistic talent was discovered by accident when she was a young girl. A patron made it possible for her to receive training and eventually she becomes a renowned portrait artist serving in the Russian court. As the book opens we find her living alone, almost hermit-like, unable to paint and apparently barely hanging on to her sanity. She is renting a cottage on the estate of an Earl who's been away for several years. The Earl has neglected his home and property, living over in France grieving the accidental and tragic deaths of his much-loved wife and daughter. When Margaret and McDermott meet they are angry, hurting people. What follows, of course, is how their relationship brings healing to each of them. This is a rather dark book, but deeply emotional--just the way I like it.

3. Till There Was You by Lynn Kurland. This is Kurland's latest entry in her MacLeod/De Piaget time travel/historical series. Full of familiar characters, this time it's Zachary Smith who finds himself "sent" back in time to Robin De Piaget's castle where he meets Robin's daughter Mary. Mary is trying to escape an unwanted betrothal and Zachary just wants to get back to the 21st century. Naturally there are a few obstacles to overcome. And as Mary and Zachary fall in love, their relationship complicates things even further. This is a nicely plotted book with a hefty word count (you can tell because the font is small and there's not a lot of white space). I found myself deeply engaged in this story and was glad for the length that let me enjoy it longer. I have to say, though, that I needed that genealogy in the back of the book to keep track of all of the secondary characters at first. And I do not think I would have enjoyed this half as much if I hadn't read all of the preceding books in the series.

2. His Captive Lady by Anne Gracie. Gracie has become a real favorite of mine. Her books are so well-written and she has the relatively rare ability to write a book that makes you both laugh and cry. Lady Helen (Nell) is a young woman who has been badly beaten down by life, but she is determined to reclaim something very special to her. Meanwhile Harry is back in England after many years at war; he is weary and just wants to start his horse farm. He falls for Nell instantly and senses that she needs his help. I love how Nell's story is gradually revealed to us as she gradually opens up to Harry. This is just a gem of a story. It was released late last year; I'm sorry I waited so long to read it. Her next book, To Catch a Bride is due in September.

1. What Happens in London by Julia Quinn. This is a rather light-hearted book full of Quinn's trademark humor. Sir Harry is Lady Olivia's new neighbor. Harry spends all day translating Russian documents for the government. Olivia's bedroom window overlooks Harry's office and she begins to spend time spying on him, especially when she hears the rumor that he's a murderer. Harry catches Olivia spying on him and when they finally meet they find themselves attracted to one another despite the initial negative impression each has about the other. They get to know one another and that journey is just delightful. There are several laugh-out-loud moments, especially over some lurid popular fiction and the Russian delegation. The scene where Harry proposes formally to Olivia is original and priceless. This is Quinn on top of her game. I wouldn't call it her best, but it is what I've come to expect from her.

Phyl's 5 Phaves from April

2009-05-07T20:45:00.002-04:00

Late again!

5. Scandal by Amanda Quick. This is considered a classic Amanda Quick and I gave it a quickie review here back when I read it. I really liked the heroine in this book as well as the quick-witted dialogue between her and Simon. I read a copy from the library, but I wouldn't mind buying it if were ever issued as an ebook.

4. Vision in White by Nora Roberts. I just reviewed this here. It was so nice to read a Nora Roberts book that was a straight romance. She does all things well, but I do love a character-driven story and this was it in spades.

3. Never Resist Temptation by Miranda Neville. This also got a mini review. I was pleasantly surprised by how much I liked this book. This was an interesting story of a young French woman hiding herself from her nasty guardian by working as a pastry chef. On the surface, the story seemed unlikely, which is why I was initially reluctant to read it. But Ms. Neville made it plausible and the well-written dialogue moved the story along at a nice pace. I would like to read more by this author.

2. Practice Makes Perfect by Julie James. I knew this would make my 5 phave list when I read it. This story stuck with me for several days afterwards. It's always the mark of a strong book when it's a little harder to pick up the next book to read. I liked the equality between the hero and heroine and the power setting of a high stakes law firm. This book was engaging on all kinds of levels. And it was a hard choice not to make this number 1 for the month. Julie James has quickly emerged as an incredibly talented writer. I can't wait for more.

1. The Madness of Lord Ian Mackenzie by Jennifer Ashley. What could I possibly say about this book that hasn't been said on numerous other blogs around romanceland? This is hands down one of the most compelling books I've read in ages. Writing a hero with Aspergers Syndrome set in an era well before AS was recognized or defined had to be one heck of a challenge. Ian may not be normal in our world, but he is capable of love and worthy of being loved. Beth is wonderful heroine as she learns to appreciate Ian for who he is. This book has deserved all of the hype it has received. Once I started it I couldn't put it down until it was finished.

Vision in White / Nora Roberts. 2009

2009-04-30T13:56:00.003-04:00

This week romance readers have been treated to an embarassment of riches with all of the new releases from favorite authors. We have new ones from Mary Balogh, Karen Ranney, and Elizabeth Hoyt, just to name a few. There's also the highly anticipated The Madness of Lord Ian MacKenzie from Jennifer Ashley featuring a hero with Asperger's Syndrome. (I'm in the middle of this one right now and am just fascinated by it.) While browsing at Border's I saw (and had to buy) Lynn Kurland's newest. At last, Zach's story. How did this one fly under my radar? Bad, bad Phyl. But at least I have it. And tomorrow? Carla Kelly's sequel to Marrying the Captain will be available as an ebook at eharlequin. Can I just go without sleep for the next week?
Oh, and let's not forget that the first book in a new quartet from Nora Roberts was also released on Tuesday. This is a return to straight romance with no paranormal elements. Yea! I managed to get my name in early at the library so I was first on the reserve list. I picked it up Tuesday and stayed up well past midnight to finish it that day. So yeah, it was good. Pretty cover, too.
Blurb: Wedding photographer Mackensie "Mac" Elliot is most at home behind the camera, but her focus is shattered moments before an important wedding rehearsal when she bumps into the bride-to-be's brother . . . an encounter that has them both seeing stars.
A stable, safe English teacher, Carter Maguire is definitely not Mac's type. But a casual fling might be just what she needs to take her mind off bridezillas. Of course, casual flings can turn into something more when you least expect it. And Mac will have to turn to her three best friends--and business partners--to see her way to her own happy ending.
This new series revolves around 4 women who have been life-long friends. As little girls they often played "wedding" and so it was natural for them to go into the wedding business as adults. Mac (heroine of this one) is the photographer, Laurel the baker, Emma does the flowers, and Parker seems to run everything and everyone. Mac and Parker are more fully developed characters in this book, but all four women feature prominently. It was enjoyable to see how they worked together as a team to make weddings happen as smoothly as possible. Ms. Roberts wrote their friendship with a deft hand and there were lots of humorous moments as well as serious ones.
Carter is a slightly shy, nerdy hero which makes him quite different from the usual alpha-male type heroes in most romances. He knew Mac briefly back in high school and had had a crush on her then. He's honest enough to admit it to her now, but it's charming how he stumbles through the admission. Carter makes up his mind pretty quickly that Mac is the woman for him, but Mac has commitment issues that she needs to work through that stem from her absent father and self-centered mother.
This is a purely character-driven story. The conflict comes primarily from the baggage Mac carries and has to work through. We see a lot more of Mac than we do Carter; Mac has more "issues" to deal with, although Carter has a couple of his own, too. An awful lot of the story devoted to Mac's craft as a photographer and how she does her work. I found it interesting and it didn't come across as an info dump. But it was beginning to seem like too much about photography and not enough about Mac and Carter. There is a scene involving a photo shoot of a former bride who is now pregnant and wants a pregnancy portrait. It was interesting and a little emotional in and of itself, but afterwards I'm not sure how much it advanced the story. For me the first half of the book was a little slow, but when the second half begins to focus more on Mac and Carter I found the book impossible to put down. Part of that includes Mac learning to stand up to her manipulative mother which lets us see Mac grow and become more self-confident.
As usual, Ms. Roberts provides a satisfying romance that I can easily recommend. I think I'm going to enjoy reading about the other 3 women when their stories appear. From the excerpt in the back of the book, Emma is next (Dec. 2009). The excerpt doesn't give a glimpse of her hero, but if I read a couple of sentences right in VIW, I think I know who he is.

TBR Day. As You Desire / Connie Brockway. 1997

2009-05-20T23:18:00.003-04:00

This month's theme is friends to lovers or unrequited love and this book fits in the latter category. I've had it for years now, having picked it up somewhere when I was trying to get my hands on Connie Brockway's backlist. Interesting timing to read it now, too. Having just had a hero with Asperger's, now I have a hero with Dyslexia. And sitting on the TBR pile is the brand new Erin McCarthy, another with a dyslexic hero. Of course in a contemporary, we "get" dyslexia. But in a historical no one understands dyslexia, so our hero Harry Braxton, an otherwise brilliant man, has suffered the stigma of being labelled retarded because he cannot read and write.

From an intellectual point of view, this is quite an interesting book because of how it treats Harry's condition. Added to that, Harry is paired with an equally brilliant heroine who can read a dozen languages, but can only speak English. (Lest you scoff, as a former linguistics major I assure you this is possible.) The setting is Egypt in 1890. Harry finds it much easier to hide his condition and make his fortune during an era when people were collecting (i.e. stealing) Egyptian artifacts. He's in love with Desdemona Carlisle, but doesn't want her to know it. He's hiding his "word blindness" from her. Meanwhile, she's in love with him, but since he rejected her once when she threw herself at him, she's convinced he doesn't want her.

I've got to say I really liked the story and both Harry & Desdemona. I could feel Harry's anguish over his condition and his frustration that he couldn't explain it. Given the kind of treatment he'd received at the hands of a rigid school system, it's no wonder he doesn't want anyone to know the truth. Nor is it any wonder he doesn't feel worthy. Meanwhile, Desdemona is a bit of a freak herself because of her linguistic ability. She thinks that all she wants is to be a "normal" Englishwoman. Harry can't give her that because he cannot/will not go back to England. A significant source of conflict in the story is Harry's cousin Blake who has come to Egypt because he needs financial help from Harry. Blake was once one of Harry's tormentors and still can only see Harry's "defect" despite the fact that Harry has clearly been successful while in Egypt.

But when all was said and done, there were some things about this book that were rather irritating. I found some of the writing abrupt and disjointed. The book was peppered with several secondary characters who seemed unnecessary. There's also a subplot involving one of Harry's enemies and this subplot seemed to get in the way of what was already an intriguing story. The kidnapping and rescue at the end happens quickly; that part of the story seemed rushed. These things were disappointing because they took the focus away from characters I liked, an unusual setting, and a pretty decent triangle between Harry, Blake, and Desdemona.

Ultimately, I would recommend this book just because it is unusual. But I do so with reservations.

Phyl's 5 Phaves from November

2009-12-01T02:00:00.004-05:00

All-in-all, November was a pretty good month. Thanksgiving weekend was extremely quiet with only 3 of us here at home. I left the house for no more than 20 minutes on Black Friday, just long enough to pick up my Daily Diet Coke. Bring on Christmas. I'm ready!

5.5. I have to give a shout-out to "Christmas Promise," a novella by Carla Kelly appearing in the anthology A Regency Christmas (2009). Another wonderful story by the awesome Carla Kelly. Not everyone can pull off the format of telling a complete story in 100 pages, but Kelly can. A war-weary naval captain reunites with a woman he had always loved and never thought to have.

5. Broken Hero by Anne Whitfield. I started the month reading this ebook that I'd had on my PDA for ages. The book is set along the Yorkshire coast of England during WWII and involves a family that is allowing their home to be used by the British Army as a convalescent home for soldiers suffering from what we would probably now label as PTSD. One of the daughters of the family, Audrey, falls in love with the psychiatrist who has been sent to treat the patients. Jake, a doctor and Army Captain, has a tragic past of his own and is resistant at first to Audrey's overtures. Of course, love eventually wins out, but not without some bumps along the way. I especially appreciated reading a historical with this setting and would love to see more authors use it. I see that Whitfield has written several books with a variety of settings and I'd like to see if I can find more.

4. Bed of Roses by Nora Roberts. Book 2 of Roberts' Bride quartet was another winner, this time featuring florist Emma and long-time friend, architect Jack. It's clear that Roberts had a lot of fun writing about the bridal business. The book is humorous as Emma and her partners deal with Bridezilla and continues to celebrate the life-long friendship between the women. Jack & Emma are challenged by their own friends-to-lovers story, because their relationship with one another impacts the other people in their lives. It seems very realistic. The only quibble I have with this book is near the end when Emma goes off the deep end when Jack doesn't seem as committed as she is. Her tirade seemed out of character from what had gone before. Fortunately, this is a relatively short digression, and the make-up scene is touching and romantic. I'm loving this series.

3. Kindred in Death by J.R. Robb (a.k.a. Nora Roberts).This was another satisfying entry in Robb's In Death series. As others have pointed out, there's great comfort returning to this cast of characters again and again. I think that's the main appeal of this book. The murder is rather gruesome and personal and exemplifies why I typically steer clear of mysteries. But the relationships in this book trump the gross stuff and I am firmly along for the ride. Once I began this one I had a hard time putting it down.

2. Sold to a Laird by Karen Ranney. If you've read this blog for any length of time, it's no secret I'm a big Karen Ranney fangirl. I love her work. It's emotional and there's usually a plot twist I never see coming. This book is no different. Lady Sarah is the daughter of an autocratic, ruthless duke. The duke insists that Sarah marry a wealthy inventor, Douglas Eston, and Sarah is left with no choice but to obey. Douglas goes along with it because he falls in love with her the moment he sees her. (I love these kinds of stories.) Soon after they are married, tragedy strikes and as Douglas cares for Sarah through the tragedy she, in turn, grows to love him. With Douglas' help, Sarah learns more about herself and her family, and finds an inner strength that she didn't know she had, although Douglas sees it from the first.

1. Marry in Haste by Lynn Kerstan. This was my TBR read for November, so I already wrote about it.

TBR Day. Marry in Haste / Lynn Kerstan. 1998.

2009-11-18T00:20:00.000-05:00

This month's theme in Keishon's TBR Challenge is "thanksgiving." I carefully looked through my inventory of books and I couldn't find one that matched the theme. But with Thanksgiving around the corner here in the US, I wanted to do something that would at least acknowledge the theme. So I chose this book and I'll explain my thinking at the end of the review.

I first read Lynn Kerstan back in 2003 when I began reading romance again. I loved The Golden Leopard so much that I even briefly considered putting it in my Winsor List last month. Anyhow, back in the day I ordered a bunch of her old Regency traditionals and they ended up stashed away in the closet all this time. It was time to bring them out.

Marry in Haste is the story of Diana Whitney, a young woman and substantial heiress living with her chaperone at an old manor in the country. With the assistance of the Earl of Kendal (hero of an earlier book), she is in hiding from her uncle (and legal guardian) who is determined to see her wed to a nasty man she doesn't want to marry. The manor actually belongs to Alex Valliant, the Earl's younger brother who is in the army and presumed to be out of the country. In fact, Alex has returned to England and when he winds up at his manor a minor scandal ensues and Alex offers to marry Diana. She doesn't want to marry someone she barely knows even though she's attracted to him and she turns him down. But when the evil uncle shows up to force Diana to come home she ends up accepting Alex's offer.

Let me just say up front that this is a lovely, lovely story of two people forced by circumstance to marry and then learn to live with and love one another. I loved both characters. They are, in their own way, rather shy people, so neither of them express their feelings well. But they are also strong and determined. Diana in particular works hard to overcome her fears and stand up for herself. They quickly fall in love with one another, but because they don't know how to talk to each other only the reader knows how they feel. Meanwhile, they settle into a chaste marriage. Alex doesn't want to touch Diana until she's "ready" and she doesn't know how to tell Alex that she is ready.

We watch Diana and Alex get to know one another as Diana becomes involved with a group of poor women in the area near their home who are barely making a living. She needs Alex's help as she finds a way for them to earn money for their families and Alex teaches her leadership principles he learned in the army. The ladies become "Diana's Regiment" and through this work Diana and Alex learn to appreciate one another's strengths and gifts. Kerstan writes beautifully...there were moments that made me laugh out loud and moments that made me weepy. There's great emotion in this little book.

For a traditional Regency, this is a pretty atypical book. Only the last 7 pages take place in London; the bulk of it takes place in Lancashire, with a brief trip to Gretna Green. And while Alex is a character who saw plenty of military action, it is Diana who bears a disfiguring scar. That scar is part of what makes her so timid. While Alex initially comes across as autocratic and arbitrary, he ends up deferring to Diana's wishes in the face of her determination to help the abandoned and widowed women around her. Making Diana happy quickly becomes very important to Alex.

After last month's TBR disappointment, I'm happy to say that I highly recommend this one. It was republished as a Signet two-fer in 2005 and you may be able to get your hands on it. Do so if you can. Hopefully Kerstan's backlist will make it into ebook form one of these days.

Kerstan's last book was published in 2005. According to her website, she was in the middle of a trilogy when her publisher decided not to print the last book in the series. Kerstan participates in a group blog with 5 other authors called Story Broads. It was there I learned earlier this year that Kerstan has recently survived a very close call with cancer. She has blogged about it some and so I decided to express my thankfulness that she is still with us and continuing to get better. I don't know if she is still writing or trying to get published again. Selfishly, I hope she is. But mostly I hope she has many more years to live life on her terms, whatever those may be. And if we don't get any new books from Lynn, well, I am very thankful to have a couple more of her backlist in my TBR pile, including the 1996 RITA award-winner, Gwen's Christmas Ghost, co-written with Alicia Rasley.

Happy Thanksgiving, all!

25 Years of Quilting -- Baby Quilts

2009-11-16T00:30:00.002-05:00

I was in my late 20s when I started quilting, and not surprisingly, many of my friends & relatives were busy popping out babies. Naturally, as a quilter I wanted to supply baby quilts. But back in those days I only worked by hand and it took me about 6 months to crank out a quilt. I wish I could have gifted more of my friends and family with baby quilts, but it simply wasn't possible. Here are 3 of the half dozen I made between 1986 and 1990. (Sorry if the images are fuzzy; these are scanned photos.)

But by 1995 I had a new sewing machine and I was putting tops together within a matter of weeks and learning how to use my walking foot to machine quilt straight lines across a quilt. When a co-worker and very close friend found herself pregnant with twins I actually managed to crank out 2 quilts AND finish them within weeks of the twins' birth.
Check out the Elvis fabric in this first one. My friend is a huge Elvis fan. The old world map fabric in the 2nd quilt was to celebrate her husband's Peace Corps experience. I had such fun with these. And I know they were well-loved.

While working on the twins' quilts I unexpectedly became pregnant myself. That was such a shocker, not only to me, but to my friends & family. And my generous quilting friends saw to it that we were ourselves gifted with 4 quilts. That was a good thing because my job & an infant kept me so busy that for the first 2 years I did very little quilting and then I eased back in very slowly as I finally learned to carve out time for myself.

And these days when I want to provide a baby quilt, I know how to make it quick and simple, yet still have fun with the design. This is from April of 2008.

Phyl's 5 Phaves from August

2009-09-06T16:56:00.001-04:00

I was going to write this up on Tuesday, but then I started reading Jo Goodman's Never Love a Lawman and, well, I just had to finish that first!

5. Never Romance a Rake by Liz Carlyle. This was one from my TBR pile that I've had for a year now. The hero, Rothewell, is one of those heroes who is about as dark as they come. A horrific childhood combined with a boatload of guilt over the circumstances of his older brother's death have filled him with a lot of self-hatred. He gambles with some very disreputable people and finds himself agreeing to a wager that, should he win, commits him to marry the illegitimate daughter of his gambling partner. Camille is desperate to be married, period, and makes it clear she supports this wager. The two are drawn to one another immediately, and must learn to make their marriage work, despite their secrets and their pasts. This was another beautifully drawn book by Carlyle that focused on the relationship between Rothewell and Camille. Camille tells Rothewell her secrets from the start, but Rothewell needs to learn to both trust and hope.

4. The Edge of Impropriety by Pam Rosenthal. Despite the fact that this book received numerous excellent reviews when it was released last year, I wasn't too interested in reading it. For some reason the plot description didn't excite me. However, it won the RITA in July and then I saw it at the library, so I decided to give it a try. I'm happy to say I'm glad to have read it. Marina & Jasper's relationship begins as a purely sexual one and they are committed to not being committed. But as that resolve begins to fade, they face problems based on the secrets they've been keeping. I thought the writing was just lovely and I think it's quite evident why this book won the RITA.

3. A Duke of Her Own by Eloisa James. This was the final book in James' "Desperate Duchesses" series and well worth the wait. I did enjoy all 6 books in the series, especially this one and When the Duke Returns. And while I think this book could be read on its own, I do not recommend it. The hero, Villiers, was a strong secondary character throughout the preceding books. He had a story arc that was important to understanding his character in this book and his choices. I simply do not think he would have been as interesting a character if I had not known him better. Nell, the heroine, is a practical, down to earth woman and the perfect foil for the heretofore selfish, aloof Duke. As always, James tells her stories with plenty of humor; I laughed out loud more than once.

2. My Wicked Fantasy by Karen Ranney. This is an older book by Ranney that I found on Fictionwise last month. (How nice to find out-of-print books republished as ebooks!) The story includes a ghost. Considering that it was originally published in 1998, before paranormals became big, it was probably unusual for its time. It's being re-published in 2010, so if you don't read ebooks, keep your eyes peeled for this. In a nutshell, heroine Mary Kate is injured in a carriage accident involving hero, the Earl of Sandhurst. When she awakes, she has visions and hears a voice telling her to protect the Earl. While she doesn't understand what she's seeing and hearing, the Earl recognizes things only his long-missing wife, Alice, would know. Being a logical male, he assumes Mary Kate is conspiring with his missing wife and he carries Mary Kate home to force her to tell him where Alice is. Mary Kate does not understand the source of her visions, but she cannot ignore what she sees and hears. I found the first half of the book fairly slow going, but as the tension of the mystery of Alice ratcheted up, and the tension between St. John & Mary Kate grew, I was more and more engrossed. What really fascinated me about this was the counterpoint between St. John's logic and Mary Kate's faith. St. John is a straightforward logical male. I could sympathize with his inability to believe that there's a supernatural explanation for what Mary Kate knew even though he really wanted to believe it. This is a book about faith, and hope, and trust, and well worth seeking out.

1. I Can See You by Karen Rose. The heroine of this book, Evie, was a secondary character in one of Rose's early books, Don't Tell, that I read back in June. So quite a few of the secondary characters were familiar, although their roles were small enough that it's not necessary to have read Don't Tell before reading this one. There is an extremely sick serial killer on the loose in Minneapolis. Evie is a psychology graduate student who notices that some women involved in her research project have become the killer's victims. Her research is a key and she approaches the Minneapolis detectives with what she knows. One of the detectives is the very tired, but determined Noah Webster. Together they race the clock to find him. Meanwhile, Noah is having problems with his partner and Evie herself becomes a target. And of course, Noah & Evie fall in love. This is the first book in a new series and we get a nice introduction to the other detectives in Noah's squad who will be having their own books. Another tightly plotted and engrossing read by Rose. A bit gruesome, though, so reader beware!

Phyl's 5 Phaves for September

2009-10-02T09:49:00.003-04:00

Is is October already? Don't know what it's like by you, but already it feels like November here. Yuk. I need to escape into some good books. So here are some I enjoyed in case you want to escape, too!

5. Fade to Black by Leslie Parrish. This is the first in Parrish's "Black CATs" series. The "CATs" are FBI "Cyber Action Teams" working on Internet-related crimes. This was a suspenseful, entertaining read as the team investigating a serial killer find their way to a small Virginia town because a missing girl from that town may be one of the killer's victims. The team is led by agent Dean Taggert and he works with town sheriff Stacey Rhodes to catch the killer before he strikes again. I liked Stacey because she was smart and capable, not a TSTL bone in her body. Dean is trying to juggle his job and his relationship with his young son (Dean is divorced). The characters seemed realistic and the plot was sufficiently gruesome to keep me glued to the book. I have the next 2 books in the series checked out from the library and will be reading those soon.

4. The Virgin River trilogy by Robyn Carr. There are actually at least 7 books now in this series and I believe 3 more to come in 2010. But the first three books are: Virgin River, Shelter Mountain, and Whispering Rock. These books are set in the very small town of Virgin River in the northern California mountains. It's the kind of territory that is occasionally featured in the news as being popular with marijuana growers. In fact, the growers are a small part of these stories, so it felt rather realistic as I read it. These books are about home, family, marriage, and babies. Carr's heroines have been through the wringer--the first three books feature a widow, an abused spouse, and a rape victim. A look ahead shows at least one other widow. The heroes are former marines who once served together and come to Virgin River to find peace and healing. These books are the quintessential comfort read and I found them quite engrossing. I was very caught up in the world Carr has created and am looking forward to reading more of the series. I will say that you really should read them in order from the first book. Recurring characters are featured heavily as the books move forward.

3. To Catch a Bride by Anne Gracie. This is the 3rd book in Gracie's "Devil Riders" series, but it stands very well alone. The bulk of the book takes place in Cairo when the hero Rafe decides to go there to look for a young Englishwoman who was orphaned some years previously. The girl's grandmother had believed her dead, but now has reason to believe she's alive. I totally enjoyed the unusual setting and once again Gracie gives us a book laced with humor and emotion. This wasn't quite as compelling as the previous book in the series, His Captive Lady, which was my #2 phave in July. But it was darn close. Rafe manages to find Ayisha rather quickly, but soon learns she is resistant to going with him to England to be reunited with her Grandmother. There is more to Ayisha than he realizes and the slow unraveling of the truth was an unexpected plot twist.

2. Summer of Two Wishes by Julia London. I just reviewed this a couple of weeks ago in my previous blog post. This is a very unusual romance and perhaps even rather risky. It deserves a look.

1. Never Love a Lawman by Jo Goodman. This was the first of Jo Goodman's westerns that I've ever read. I should try and find her old ones someday (or maybe they'll be released as ebooks--hint, hint!). I guess you could call this a marriage of convenience/forced marriage story. Rachel has inherited control of a rail spur that leads to the small Colorado town of Reidsville. The will giving her control of the rail line specifies that she marry Sheriff Wyatt Cooper and she agrees to make it a marriage in name early. But when Wyatt falls ill and the truth comes out it becomes a real marriage. Wyatt and Rachel deal with their growing feelings for one another, Rachel's hidden past, and the threat of those who would wrest control of the rail line from Rachel. I loved the setting of this book and once again Goodman uses dialogue to great effect to advance the story and help us get to know these two great characters. Goodman's website indicates there will be more books set in Reidsville and I look forward to them.