Graveminder by Melissa Marr

Imagine being a den mother to the dead. Your job is to make sure the dead stay dead. The only way to do that is be sure that every single person born in the town is buried there in town. If they don't die in the town, you got to go find them and bring their dead bodies back. If you don't, if they find their own way back, they'll eat people along the way, so you'll have lots of naughty dead children. 


The official name for day care provider for the dead: graveminder.


The job is inherited, and Rebekkah has just found out the task is hers. She joins forces with the Undertaker, a man she loves, but doesn't want to love in a town where the sheriff looks the other way rather than get a migraine with a dead zombie is on the lose eating people.. or is it more than one? I mentioned she and the undertaker, Byron, have a love/hate thing going on...well, they got to get it together cause they are the only two people who can deliver the zombies back to the underworld.


The underworld is the coolest thing about this book. Visualize a town of buildings from all centuries with people dressed from all eras walking around it. Too cool!!!! I loved these scenes and morbid as it sounds, wanted to visit the place... This was a real good, spine tingling read. It was a bit confusing at first, but it was well done as the secrets kept piling up and the suspense about killed me.


The only thing I didn't like was the love/hate, pull him to me/push him away thing going on with Rebekkah and Byron. She began to irritate me. The love/romance was a bit lacking. Can't say I felt it that strongly.


All in all, genius idea! The town of dead, the deal made with the Grim Reaper, basically, and the town founders.... I'm hoping that there is a sequel as well as I was really super intrigued by a character named Alicia. I'm thinking a prequel type thing is in order about her, her life, and why she's chosen to live in Death Town. I found myself picturing Sharon Stone in The Quick and the Dead. 


Great read, four stars, and I received it from the publisher. Thank you, William Morrow. Really. This was a terrific change from my normal reading material. 

Vigil by Cecilia Samartin

Imagine loving a man for twenty years, but not being able to tell him so. Imagine sleeping in a room down the hall from this man you love for twenty years. Imagine having to watch this man interact day after day with his wife and children. Ana watches.. for twenty years before she finally has the opportunity to act on her love.

The story starts in El Salvador during the time of civil war and brutality. Ana loses her entire village and is the only one to walk away. Why was she saved? She was saved not once, but twice. She takes this as sign that she is to have a higher purpose. She believes she is to be a nun. However, many years after escaping to the U.S, a mere 6 months from the time she is supposed to take her vows, she is summoned to the Trellis household. They need a nanny.


Enter an intriguing household full of characters that all need Ana's help. The man rarely leaves his study. The woman is spoiled, indulgent, and a sex addict. Teddy, their child, is spoiled rotten and undisciplined. The cook is an alcoholic widow. Can Ana help this family or will her growing emotions for the man of house make things worse?


The book goes back and forth between past and present, the present being Ana at her beloved's death bed trying to gather his children to his side and the past being the twenty years she has devoted to that family. What sounds like a very simple story became so much more with Samartin's words and prose. It's a very enjoyable book and thought evoking. I was slightly bugged that Ana literally puts her life on hold for twenty years though and doesn't appear to have any kind of life outside of this family. However, the book also explains that.. due to what she went through in El Salvador, Ana likes safety, likes being cocooned. That is what drew her to the rigid, predictable life of the nunnery. I was hoping that Ana would change, I guess, because I was disappointed with the ending.. After being in a box twenty years, I would think that she would want to finally leave the box, to see some of the world, to live outside that selfish family. 


Something else I wondered about... Did Adam really love her or did he just want someone to take care of him in his illness? The timing... It made me stop and ponder. I'm not sure if I was supposed to do this, but I did. And I like books that make me stop and analyze characters and their intentions. 


Four stars and I would like to share two laugh out moments:


"Mama: "what are you going to do if you fall in love with a man who wants to have children? What are going to tell him?" Ana: "I'll tell him that if he really loves me, then I should be enough for him."


'How different from the men in my village who left their women to give birth while they got drunk with the other men in the square. Sometimes it took the new father more time to recover from his hangover than it took the mother to recover from childbirth.'


I received this from the author.

Persuade Me by Juliet Archer

We've all heard the saying, "when you assume, you make an ass of you and me." In this book, there's a LOT of assuming and thus, a lot of people making asses of themselves... and that's part of what makes this book so funny and entertaining.

Quick summary: Rick and Anna loved each other long ago, but her snotty family convinced her to give him up. She lives in England. He lives in Australia. Ten years after their tragic romance, he is right in her backyard doing a book tour. Do they have a second chance?


The characters... my gawd.. the family of Anna. It is like a comedy sitcom. Walter is so full of himself, it is unbelievable. "He felt a huge sense of achievement (looking in a new fancy mirror) now that he could view his appearance from 360 degrees." Walter's daughters are Lisa, Anna, Mona. Anna is the only sane one among them. Mona is a psycho mom who bosses Anna around. Lisa is a feminine version of her dad. And there's Cleo, a slutty masseuse, William the gold digger, James the mad poet, Lou the slut who throws herself (literally!) at men, and a lot of family. 


And all these people try to keep Anna and her true love, Rick apart. Because nobody really knows what is going and that is that Anna loves Rick, NOT William and Rick loves Anna, NOT Leo, but everybody makes assumptions and they're all wrong and Rick and Anna both misunderstand and every single time one plans to tell the other those three simple words (I love you) and fix the relationship that was so damaged years before, someone steps up and gets in the way. Well Rick is only in England for.. 6 weeks? Time is running out.... 


I, the reader, found myself chuckling on numerous occasions and laughed out loud at least twice. (Walter's Little Problem in That Department!!!! LOL) I was also cheering for the hero and heroine and found myself getting angry at times with certain characters. That's a sign that the book has really sucked me in.


However, I found the heroine, Anna, to be ridiculously spineless at times. Even in the end of the book, I still felt she was a bit too submissive and wall flowerish. As I prefer reading about strong, independent women, this grated on my nerves. She constantly lets people boss her around and rarely speaks up for herself. Thus, despite all the laughter on my part, I give this a four instead of a five. 


Favorite quote: "We can all go on as we are, doing nothing different. Whereas 'hop' is an action word - or should be. Something aspirational, like - how did he put it? - living our dream. But, to achieve it, we usually have to come out of our comfort zone and change in some way." 


I received this from the publisher for pre review. 

The Whip by Karen Kondazian

Charley Parkhurst was a stagecoach driver for 30 years. Charley Parkhust was really Charlotte. She started out as an abandoned baby in on an orphanage step and became a drinking, shooting, tobacco spitting, revenge getting stagecoach driver. This is her story.

The orphanage: A cruel headmistress goes too far with her punishments. On one hand, she accidentally introduces Charley to her lifelong love: horses. On the other hand, she turns a kind and caring boy into the makings of a monster. This boy was Charley's protector and will soon become her enemy.


Rhode Island: Charley falls in love, but the rest of society, and namely, her "brother" don't agree with her choice of love interest. The loss of her man and her baby lead to the loss of her femininity as she dons male attire and becomes a stagecoach driver in order to travel to California to hunt down and kill her husband's killer. But will she get her revenge before the man can do her, her life, and her loved ones more damage? Will she be able to do what needs to be done? Life hasn't been good to her as a woman that's for sure. Will it treat her better as a man?


California: Charley becomes one of the best damn stagecoach drivers around, starts a family of sorts, has weekend trysts in San Francisco where for just a few days every now and then she can wear a dress again and lie with a man and just feel like a woman. But all good things must come to an end.


Conclusion: Awesome read, excellent narrative, perfect blend of fact and fiction, and though Charley faces an  incredibly sad amount of misery and misfortune, the book managed to make me laugh at times as well as shake my head in sympathy. Her flirtations with Edmund, Anna's Cleopatra scene, the Wells Fargo Stagecoach rules, numerous things throughout the novel made me chuckle and overall, the book has made a huge impact on me. It's also about a very strong woman, probably one of the strongest women I have ever read about. Life kept beating her down and she kept getting back up, minus one eye or minus a man and a baby, but never without her determination.


Five stars. I received this from the publisher. The book is due out November 1st, 2011. Be sure to mark it as to read.

Tarnished Beauty by Cecilia Samartin

Once again, I am left amazed and reeling by the writing of Cecilia Samartin. When I read her work (and this is my 2nd one) I find myself pulling on my hair and muttering to myself, "Now this is a real writer, the kind of writer I only dream of being. My work sucks compared to this."

In Tarnished Beauty, there are two stories, the first one being about Jamilet. The time is... 1950s? (I assumed this because of the reference to Elvis music.) The setting is Mexico. Jamilet has a huge birthmark that covers her back, butt, and the backs of her thighs and upper arms. As a result, the suspicious and unkind people in her Mexican village shun her, throw rocks at her, and set her to dreaming of a better life north, in America where she can get her mark removed. Thus, when her mother dies, she dons male attire and crosses the border illegally.


Here now enters Senor Peregrino, a mental patient? (I'm not saying.) Jamilet tends him in the hospital in which she gets a job. Whereas most people cannot stand the Senor, Jamilet must tolerate him when he holds something over her head. And she listens to his story and she comes to like him. His story involves a love triangle, a jealousy, a pilgrimage in Spain.. He had originally thought he was to lead a religious life, but instead discovered himself drawn to a woman.


Meanwhile, Jamilet is having a love triangle of her own. She has a thing for Eddie, but Eddie is with Pearly... and besides, Jamilet is so determined to hide her mark from him and the world that she may be hiding a huge piece of herself and her heart. 


Extremely well written, just a bit too descriptive and drawn out in Senor Peregrino's parts. (That's how he chose to tell it, however, and it suited his personality.) Aunt Carmen is hilarious!!! I related to Jamilet very well as in a way, her birthmark is a handicap to her (as long as she chooses to let it be.) The ending...I had to force myself to slow down and read it word for word as I was so anxious to find out how it unfolded..


There was a laugh out loud moment: 


"I feel like a piece of sh*t," she said, tears running into her mouth. "No, sh*t is too good for me, too real...you can still see it and touch it. I'm more like a fart, a big silent killer of a fart, a smelly ghost." (This was the aunt.)


Favorite quote: "People who don't drink coffee are weak and feeble-minded; they usually don't have opinions about anything, but if they do, they're afraid to formulate them into words and speak out."


Four stars and I received this from the author. 

The Whole Package by Cynthia Ellingsen

What a great idea... and one that many of us women would whole heartily endorse: a "Hooters" for women, a restaurant where women can go and be served delectable dishes by scantily dressed men and see a strip show every 15 minutes.

And that is what Jackie, Cheryl, and Doris set out to do. The BFFs start a restaurant together, The Whole Package. Whether their business survives or fails is up to them. And while interviewing sexy models, shopping with gay men, and dealing with picketers, each woman is dealing with turmoil and betrayal in her personal life. Cheryl is dealing with job loss, a potential new love affair that betrays her all in the name of advancing his own career, and possibly a more personal surprise. Jackie has lived like a pampered princess for so long that she doesn't know how to really work for anything and besides coming to terms with that, she must also deal with her guilt over her growing friendship with her dead husband's best bud. Doris is dealing with a teenage daughter, her weight and self esteem, and well, her husband has decided he wants to be like the guy's in the movie, Wild Hogs.


I love this. I was thoroughly entertained and laughed out loud A LOT. The women aren't perfect and they are easy to relate to. They face everyday problems that we all face (except Jackie.. Not many of us can say we were married to a very wealthy man and spent all his money in Paris..) My only quibble: I didn't like the ending for Doris. I don't wish to reveal too much of the story so I'm just going to say, "I would so not have taken him back." 


Nevertheless, five stars. Really enjoyed this one, breezed through it despite the fact that I was traveling, visiting family, and it is 400 pages. 


I received this as part of a blog tour. 

Broken Paradise by Cecilia Samartin

This is one of those books that I don't even feel worthy enough to write a review for.. It's just too beautiful and too well written.

The setting is Cuba, pre Castro.. two cousins and best friends are growing up together. Nora looks at Alicia and thinks she has it all, the looks, the boys... but things change after the revolution and Castro. Nora goes to the states and she has the "charmed" life. Alicia chooses to stay and her life is not what anyone thought it would be.

And Alicia.. does all that she does for love. Kinda stupid, but kinda beautiful too. Imagine selling your body just to make sure your husband gets oranges and soap while he is in prison for speaking his mind, for revolting against a dictator.. Imagine wasting away to nothing in hopes that you can buy his passage to freedom. That's some strong love.

And there's a beautiful blind girl too. There's the rise and fall of communism. When does it become a dictatorship? There's interracial relations and the heated arguments it raises. There's hunger, thirst, and drifting at sea while sharks thump against the boat.There's two women who realize they can't wait for hope to find them, but must seek it themselves.

The descriptions: Superbly done. Not over done. The characters: wonderfully developed. The history: very thought evoking. The book overall: Terrific. 


Five stars and I bought this on Amazon.

Thieves Get Rich, Saints Get Shot by Jodi Compton

This is a sequel to Hailey's War. Hailey was once a West Point cadet with high aspirations, but the discovery of a brain tumor got her kicked out of the military and a sequence of really mucked up life events has led to Hailey being a gang banger with a missing finger and no capacity for fear... that last bit is due to the brain tumor. The scrapes Hailey gets into, such as locking herself in the trunk of the car of the guy who cut her finger off could be considered brave... but Hailey wonders if she can't feel fear, how can she be brave? Deep thoughts there.

Why I love this chick: 1. She rides a motorcycle. 2. She's fights and shoots better than a dude. 3. She's friendly with the Latin community. 4. She's about duty and honor despite the fact she runs with a tough playas and hijacks pharmacy trucks.  She's just a very angry woman. I mean, how many of us ladies have been filled and rage and hit the point where we are sick of it all.... Hailey's sick of it all and it's no wonder why as this latest installment has an impostor running around killing cops and pinning the blame on Hailey..
Hailey must clear her name, confront a man who did her great harm, and rethink the path she is on. And another chick plays a huge role in this book, bad ass gang banger and head of the female thug life: Serena.

And.. is there a potential new love interest???

Five stars. No lack of excitement and a very strong heroine. There was nothing to not like about this one.

Grip: A Memoir of Fierce Attractions by Nina Hamberg

This is a memoir.. of a woman who chooses one wrong man after another. By wrong man, I don't mean men that leave the toilet seat up, have chronic bad breath, little peckers, or incredibly annoying habits, but men with violent tendencies. 

Ever heard the saying about how women choose husbands like their dads? The memoir starts with telling readers a bit about Nina's parents and their failed marriage. It goes on to chronicle an attack she received from a potential rapist at the age of 18... and how no one in her family wanted to talk about it, to defend her... This is a huge turning point and I'm not a psychologist, but I think it determined a lot of choices that Nina goes on to make.


There's the feminist movement and arguments about art. There's a film class full of sexist pigs, an angry cop, a decent but boring boyfriend, and then there's bad relationship number one, Stephen. Stephen ends up in jail and not a moment too soon. Though he doesn't attack Nina, he attacks another woman. Why is Nina drawn to these men? After Stephen, comes Lee. Lee and her meet in martial arts, something the author excels at. She'll never be beaten again.


There are warning signs with Lee. In the beginning stages of their relationship, he decides to leave her for an old girlfriend after spending just one more weekend with Nina and he says during lovemaking, "I wish Irene could see how we make love. So she'd know how to do it." OMG!!!!! Dump his ass!


For reasons I'm sure a shrink would have heyday with, she doesn't dump his ass. She marries him later. And I gotta insert this cause it shocked the hell out of me and it also explains a lot about the author's choices.. at her own wedding, her mother says, "I'm sick of it.. All I've heard, all day long, is how pretty your gown is. Why is everyone talking about you? Why doesn't anyone say something about my dress?" Holy crap! It's your daughter's wedding, lady! It's not about you!


You can see there were many parts of this book that evoked some feeling in me, either of outrage, pity, hope... Nina grows throughout the book, told more like a novel than a memoir.. she learns to defend herself both physically and emotionally and in the end, she finds happiness and learns to leave abusive relationships behind. It's not an easy road to get there, but it shows that with time, all women can get there.


I loved this memoir. Well narrated, entertaining, and insightful. My only problem, the only moments I found myself frowning were with the dogs. The first dog, she leaves outside to the point it runs away. The second dog is lost in a fire. A third dog is ran over by her car while she's driving and she doesn't stop. Being a huge dog lover, I was upset by this, but it is a memoir and I appreciate that the author is truthful and doesn't paint herself to be better than she is. She's a woman who has made mistakes. I found it pretty admirable that she is so honest throughout the book.


Laugh out loud moment: A friend of Nina's mother is too dumb for words. Love this remark from her: "I love to shop for bridal gowns. Wore one at each of my weddings."


Five stars and this is an ARC that I received from the author. It's my true and honest thoughts about the book. I recommend it for women everywhere. Ladies, you CAN get past abuse. You CAN find happiness.

Rebel Puritan by JoAnn Butler

Wow. Throughout reading this novel, the first in a series, one thought constantly prevailed: "Is this chick ever gonna get a break?" It's one of those novels in which the reader's jaw just drops at how much the heroine must endure and as it's based an ancestor of the author with documents in the back of the book supporting the story, I was amazed that it's true. Women had it rough back then!!!


The story begins with Herodias as a little girl.. She's always trying to get out work. She just wants to be a child in a time when there was no such thing. It was all work, work, and more work. Her mother is a bit over bearing. Life is bearable, however, until the plague comes to visit, taking her father and brother and leaving with her a bitter mother who wishes to no longer feed the extra mouth. So it's off to London where she has a cruel and evil aunt who works her to death.

From the frying pan into the.. frying pan, Herodias goes when she quickly agrees to marry a man she has only known a matter of days and travel to the colonies (America) with him. It's the only way out of marrying a pimply faced suitor her aunt is forcing upon her. It's either that or sell her body on the streets... She's only 13 years old... and she braves the ocean crossing and enters the "new world." 


Here we come across much religious strife. Enter Anne Hutchinson. She began a "bible study" of sorts and it was frowned upon back then as men didn't like women telling them how to think or interpret this or that.. (they still don't!) And the Puritan higher ups couldn't stand  her. Thus, a witch hunt of sorts begins. Finger pointing, biased trials, and banishment as the Puritan church is divided in two with half the town following whichever staunch Puritan dude is the preacher and the other half following Anne Hutchinson. 
I never knew of Anne Hutchinson till now and I enjoyed this aspect of the novel tremendously. When a book can both educate and entertain me, that's a major plus. 


While Anne has her religious battles, Herodious has finally entered the fire. Her husband is knocking her around and she has three children by the age of 21. How long before his fists move from her to the kids? And when she goes to get a divorce, she is told, "There is no law against a man chastising his wife. There are many verses in the Scripture touching this.. A married woman must learn in quiet and perfect submission. I suffer not a woman to practice teaching or domineering over a husband."


Needless to say, Herodias can get no help... her husband's chastisement extends to false accusations, broken ribs, busted lips.. and still, Herodias is stuck.. and if she finally does break free, she may part with more than an abusive husband... 


At the beginning of the novel, I liked Herodias' spunk though I thought her a bit lazy and she complained too much of having to work. By the middle of the novel, I was frowning at her getting knocked around. I hate chicks that let themselves get beat and especially chicks that take the blame for it themselves... She became weak there for a while and I began yelling at her, "No!!! Don't take that walk.. don't talk to that man.. you know what will happen!! No.. Aw.. there he goes again.. Told you so.. " By the end, however, Herodias had that fire I saw in her in the beginning. She doesn't wish to tie herself to a man.. she defends herself.. makes a pest of herself to the man in charge.. She got back in my good graces. 


The ending left me wanting more. All in all, this was a very well written book with a heroine I want to read more of. I gotta mention on little quibble, however: too many Johns! I got confused about who was John this and who was John that. I respect the author stayed true to historical facts, but some play with the names may make it easier to remember people.


Four stars and I received this from the author. 

Life, Love, and a Polar Bear Tattoo by Heather Wardell

This was one of those kindle freebies that simply caught my eye, partly because of the title. I love tattoos and I think polar bears are cute as hell. And the cover is cute too.. and it was free! However, I didn't expect much from it as my experience with the kindle freebies hasn't always been great.. Boy, was I surprised.

It was one of those weeks in which nothing I picked up held my attention very well.. and I kept coming back to this one. I first read a few pages just to see if it was worth even keeping on my kindle.. and I just kept going. I was hooked by the first person narrative, the honesty, the realness of the heroine, Candice. I also like the writing style, the flow, and I could totally related to what was happening.


Candice has been married to Ian for two years. Like all husbands, Ian occasionally says something hateful to her.. and we all know that once you say it, you can't take it back. Sometimes, we sting from the words for a few days and sometimes.. we never forget. Due to the death of his parents and his blaming Candice for it, Ian crosses that line, says something hateful, and Candice can't get past it. 


To add to an already volatile situation, Ian is leaving for a month... and Candice's ex boyfriend ends up being her latest client in the restaurant business. And this guy.. makes her feel hot, desired, special, wanted... He makes her feel the way all of us wives wish we felt. And the temptation to stray, to break her marriage vows is great.


But, this amazing man wasn't always amazing. He has hurt her before. Can she trust him this time? Or can she forgive Ian and fix her marriage? 


Did I mention this man is also a client? There could be a job loss here if things go too far.


Really, really, really enjoyed this. Candice is real. She has everyday thoughts and problems and desires that all women have. She's not perfect and she makes mistakes. She also adds bits of humor to her narrative.


When at the gym, she loses the chance to use a treadmill, "I decided on the next best thing, a machine that seemed to resemble cross-country skiing..... From the moment I climbed on board, I was like a cat on a hot tin roof. Wearing roller skates. Blindfolded. When I hit myself in the face the first time with the pole, I stunned myself for a second, but that the fifth collision I hardly noticed."


Seriously, fess up, ladies. We've all done that. :)


Quibbles: 1. Her emails to Ian told us a lot about she was feeling.. but where was Ian's emails? I wanted to see what she was responding to. 2. Too much crying at times. Though understandable, it was still irritating at moments.


Four stars and I "bought" this on Amazon Kindle. 

Men, Murder, and Margaritas by Bren Austin

Men, vibrator batteries, pasties, thongs, pole dancing, a sexy sheriff,sin, and psychotic female serial killers that kill unsuspecting rich bachelors are just some of the numerous hilarious topics that the three leading ladies of this novel discuss over their nightly margaritas.

Cari Paris is the blonde and no, she's not dumb. She's actually quite savvy as she slowly uncovers clues leading up to a woman scorned turned serial killer, dubbed the Carnation Killer because she always leaves that particular ugly flower by her victim's dead body.  "When a guy gives you carnations, it means he just wants to get laid and doesn't want to spend too much money to get you on your back." 


Her friends, Tracy and Kathi are assisting her. Tracy steals the show somewhat with her witty comments and brutal honesty about church, sex, food, and boobs. "If men were killed for stupidity, there wouldn't be too many left to choose from." (Can't remember which chick specifically said that, but I love it.)


Kathi is more in the background, but her character is crucial for laughs. She goes home every night and does sexual favors for her husband in order to get an inground pool and a couple of cabana boys installed in her backyard. (Seriously, you gotta read it to understand..)


And I've gotten way off track here. The case: An article talking about the state's most eligible and rich bachelors was published in a magazine. Cari and Tracy work for an advertising agency that is hosting an eligible bachelor auction. Problem is... one by one, their bachelors are winding up dead or married (apparently the men can save their lives by rushing to the altar). If they don't find the killer soon, they won't have any bachelors left to auction! But as the women get closer to figuring out who the killer is, those pesky blue carnations are left at their doors... are they next to die, despite the fact that they are the killer's usual choice of victim?


To make it all juicier, Cari and Tracy both end up dating two of the handsome bachelors! 


I thoroughly enjoyed this one. It was funny, witty, cute, and I laughed my butt off too many times to mention. Especially over the "tamponing a dead body" episode.


Five stars and I received this from the author in exchange for an honest review.

Lady of the English by Elizabeth Chadwick

"If she thought a man was a fool, she said so to his face in front of others, and gave no quarter. She was tall, slender, beautiful, desirable. . "


This is how Empress Mathilda is described. This is the woman this novel is about. She was the daughter and the only surviving heir to Henry I. The men of England got on their knees three times in front of her and three times, swore to uphold her as their queen. When her father died, however, they upheld her cousin Stephen instead. Mathilda was enraged and thus, a battle began to retain her crown and her country for not necessarily herself, but her heirs.


The novel begins in this manner, with Mathilda arriving in England from Germany where he husband, an emperor, has died. She begins her first steps towards inheriting the throne by abiding by her father's wishes and marrying Geoffrey of Anjou. This is not a happy partnership. He is a young, arrogant whelp and her thoughts. . well, here's a quote from the brave and opinionated Mathida, "No more of an abomination than me being made to wed an idiot who is as far beneath me as a pile of dung under the sky. . You may be my husband, but you will never be my lord and master and you will never amount to anything more than a scrawny cockerel on top of your little midden heap!"



I love this woman. Nevertheless, despite her strong words, duty prevails and her and Geoffrey manage to do what they are supposed to do and they breed heirs. This makes Mathilda all the more eager to ensure that she obtains the throne of England. "She gazed down at this child whom she had not wanted to conceive because of fear, because of anger, because her life was a battleground over which she had so little control. Now the field had changed. Her fight was for him now.."


Meanwhile, Stephen takes England and offers favors left and right till the coffers run out of money. Mathilda is just biding her time and waiting for loyalty to shift and then England shall be hers. Adeliza, Henry's former queen, is between a rock and a hard place as her new hubby supports Stephen, but she believes the throne belongs to her stepdaughter, Mathilda. These two experience much love and passion fraught with friction over their opposing sides. I loved their part of tale and in the end, had to blink tears away from my eyes. I won't reveal why.


Also on Mathilda's side is her half brother Robert and and Brian FitzCount. Brian is a doll who will do anything for Mathilda. He loves her as more than a queen. Will anything come of this unspoken passion?

Stephen of Blois

"Picking up his sword, he drew a shaken breath. He had to carry this through, and write his will in blood and fire, because how else was he going to be a leader of men, keep his word to Mathilda and give her a crown?"


But Mathilda can't forget that all these men who swore fealty to her, also swore fealty to Stephen when it most suited them. "She was well aware that men who knelt to her and smiled one day would as likely stab her in the back and abandon her on another." Who can she trust to stay by her side and make her once and for all, the lady of the English?


Towards the end of the novel, readers get a good look at what Henry II has the potential to become. The young Henry is full of vigor, charisma, and spunk. I found myself enamored with his character despite his mere fourteen years of age. 

Henry II

As usual, Chadwick manages to completely immerse the reader in medieval times. After an hour of reading, I would have to shake my head and remind myself I am Tara in Utah, not Mathilda escaping a castle in the middle of a snow drenched night clothed entirely in white, not Adeliza with a belly full of baby, burning letters in the fire. It's not solely drama, however, as Chadwick managed to inject little surprise bits of humor into the novel.
Here is Geoffrey bragging of his sexual prowess,  "I am adept at hunting through forests and finding hidden streams."


A point to ponder from Miles FitzWalter, "Those who walk with their heads in the air usually don't see the shit on the ground until they tread in it."


A LOL moment in the Author's Notes regarding the real Empress, "I also have a notion (that I can't prove) that Mathilda suffered from acute premenstrual tension and this might account for some of her sharp behaviour. A fraught political situation and a certain time of the month may just have combined to create disaster for her."


And not funny, but my favorite quote in the book from the Empress herself, "....it is twice as important that a woman should be educated, and twenty times as difficult for her to be heard."


Five stars and I won this on a blog giveaway.

Sisters of the Sari by Brenda L. Baker

This is one of those books that I just can't recommend enough. It's funny, touching, and has lots of drama that ties in nicely together.

Kiria is a successful American woman who is the CEO of her own company. She's very independent and does what she wants, when she wants, without a man in her life. She travels to India and finds herself touched by Santoshi, a dependent in the Indian shelter system. In a way though, both women though in very different circumstances, have a lot in common. They each take care of themselves. No one else is looking out for them. Kiria simply has the money and means to do it in a more hygienic way.


Kiria wants to help Santoshi better herself and sets about opening a home for independent women in India. She enlists Santoshi's help. The novel goes back and forth from first person POV (Kiria's very humorous and witty viewpoint) to third person POV. 


I LOVE Kiria.. here's why:


"Now, here's some advice if you ever want to take a city bus in India-don't even think about it. The bus that finally came was packed, sardines-in-a-tin packed, resulting in some unavoidable familiarity with my fellow travelers. When a particularly good pothole created a bowling-pin effect among the standing passengers, I learned more about one poor young man's anatomy than either of us really wanted to know. Hopefully, his reproductive abilities were not permanently impaired."


"... getting more flies with honey. Which is a very odd expression when you think about it. Who exactly wants those flies? Entomologists? Any entomologist worth his salt should know that you get the most flies with shit."


"Sari-itis afflicts approximately one in ten Indian women. It is incurable. The disfiguring effects on its sufferers can only be controlled by placing limits on their credit cards. You see the victims on the streets of Chennai every day, pathetic women who have succumbed to the lure of the fabric and bought a sari whose pattern highlights all their figure flaws and even creates some they don't have. A short, fat woman will buy a silver sequined sari that makes passerby break into spontaneous disco dancing."


Nevertheless, while Kiria is establishing this home (which all her Indian friends feel is doomed to fail), the characters around her have their own dramas. Santoshi cannot agree with sharing a home with those of lower caste and sets off on an eye-opening adventure. Laxmi is trying to adjust to being a housewife to a weak man with an evil mother. Mary Elizabeth loves a man that technically, she is not supposed to love. (Again, caste system and all.) All these women aid each other in some way.. and enrich each other's lives.


And... Kiria has a son... and there some drama there, but I don't wish to spoil it so that's all I'm going to say about that.


The book is humorous, well written, and the author obviously knows India very well. The ending was terrific.


Five stars. I received this from the publisher. 

Set in Stone: The Life and Death of Medusa by R.C. Berry

I recommend this to anyone who ever had an interest in Mythology in their school days. I remember being fascinated and when others in school whine and complained, I immersed myself in stories of Apollo, Zeus, and Athena, my favorite.

This is a cross between a historical novel and Mythology. Berry tells a story of Medusa very thoroughly and in an engaging manner. There's so much more to the "monster" than simply snakes for hair and the ability to turn men into stone. What made Medusa?


The novel tells of her birth from two sea monsters and why she was made beautiful and mortal. As a teenager she is as lovely as the goddess, Aphrodite. A trip to Mount Olympus sets her in the gods' sights. Three of them want her and two of them will see her dead before they are denied her. She becomes the latest "plaything."

Athena

Enter Athena, goddess of war and wisdom. She desires the beautiful Medusa just to spite Aphrodite and to have an amorous follower. 
Poseidon, the god of the sea and a known womanizer simply wants to bang her.

Aphrodite, the goddess of love and beauty simply wants her love and affection and sweet kisses.

Poseidon

They all want her, however, and only one can have her or none at all and a war of sorts ensues. Medusa is too naive to save herself. Athena ends up extremely angry thanks to something Poseidon does and Aphrodite attempts to save Medusa, but can undo all of the damage... and Medusa finds herself with snakes in place of her hair and a curse over her head. Every man she looks at will turn to stone. This is all fine and dandy when men begin coming to her exiled island to kill the new "monster," but when she wishes to have love with a young man who will literally follow her the ends of the earth, it's rather inconvenient.


So... Medusa is exiled and alone except for a lover she dare not look at and a surprise on the way... while men keep showing up to kill her... and Athena is still wanting her dead... and that's all I'm saying.

Aphrodite

Minor annoyances: It could be an ebook malfunction, but there were dashes (-) in the middle of words when they had no business being there. This grew irritating at times as it occurred on almost every page. Ex: be-stowed, consort-ing, obvi-ously, ad-mired, and so on...


There was one instance when three young men entered Medusa's cave to kill her and this one fellow had a sword drawn one minute and the next minute was strangling her instead and drawing his sword again. ?


Deep thought: Who's the real monster here?

I received this from Touche Publishing.

Settling by Shelley Workinger

Settling is a sequel to Solid and picks up where the first one left off very well. Even though it’s been MONTHS since I read Solid, I immediately remembered who was who and who had done what and the author didn’t have to detail it all. That’s hard to do. Too often, I pick up a sequel and get play by play detail s of what happened in the previous book. Settling handled this really well.

Summary: A corrupt military doctor installed a special extra chromosome in pregnant women. Their children now have “super powers” and are gathered on a military base to find out more about themselves, their powers, and the whole deal behind it. There are “stealths” (Miranda and Clio), the kids who disappear. There are “stars” (Bliss), kids who literally glow so bright it knocks you senseless. There’s the” jocks” (Garrett)  who are amazingly athletic and fast. There are the “heavies” who seem to have an invisible wall around them (Alexis). And there’s Jack, Clio’s boyfriend whose super power seems to be his ability to observe.

This installment adds two new characters to the group, a girl jock (That’s a first) and a guy named Xavier who is a “heavy” of sorts, but draws people to him instead of pushing of them away..

And as these new kids enter the picture, so does a killer… Two people are stabbed.. and Clio is beginning to feel nervous about it all. On top of searching for the base killer and suspecting her friends, she discovers that she may be a heavy as well as a stealth AND she is sorta having feelings for an Officer… So where does that leave Jack?

Very good story with interesting characters. I actually even liked Miranda a bit this time. The only thing I didn’t like about it was the ending.  The conclusion, the whodunit revelation, didn’t work for me. It seemed to come out of nowhere and part of it didn’t make sense. I can’t say much here without revealing important information. However, one thing I did like about the ending is it brought up the fact that throughout the novel, Clio only talks about her immediate friends. She doesn’t seem to pay attention to anyone else on campus. The ending teaches her a lesson of sorts.  It also left me, the reader, hanging with one huge question: Are these people really her friends after all?

Four stars and I received this in ebook format from the author. 

Chasing Fire by Nora Roberts

Yes, I just finished reading a "romance" book, but this not a damsel in distress romance book. This is a true ball busting heroine. This being a Nora Roberts book, I'm sure 5000 other people have already reviewed it so I'm going to keep the summarization short. Keywords: woman smoke jumper, Missoula, Montana, sexy rookie, hot sex, murder, arson, and throw in a jealous, crazy bitch and you got Chasing Fire.

What I loved: The heroine, Rowan. She takes no crap from anybody. She's brave and tough and when the male smoke jumpers challenge or tease her, she holds her own. The dialogue throughout the novel, the joking, the bantering was terrific. I laughed, chuckled, and nodded my head numerous times.


The smoke jumping was great and Roberts obviously did her research. I learned a LOT about jumping from airplanes and into fires that I certainly did not know before.


What I didn't like: The mystery involving the jealous bitch, Dolly, was kinda lame. I was expecting a bit more substance, less soap opera. I also knew whodunit from the get go and I was disappointed that I knew whodunit. When it was revealed in the book, I declared, "I knew it! Oh why couldn't you surprise me?"



Something else that bothered me.. And I get this is a romance, but the story is contemporary, not historical and you have a woman smoke jumper. This is a male dominated field that consists of fighting fires, extreme physical fitness, jumping out of planes, using a chainsaw, and handling big hoses (he he he) so why is this chick who loves her career above all else risking losing it all by possibly getting knocked up? Not once in this novel when the main players do the horizontal mambo, does it address them using protection. I would think pregnancy would be a huge issue for a female smoke jumper. Hello?

The smoke jumping, the strong heroine, and the entertaining dialog more than made up for those quibbles, however, and overall, the book rates a four and I got it from the library.