Accomplished In Murder by Dara England

I thought this was a thoroughly enjoyable little mystery. My only quibble is at times, except for the arranged marriages and transportation, it didn't feel historical, but that's me being nit picky.

Drucilla's bff has a quickie wedding and then send Drucilla a letter implying that she's scared of something. So Drucilla head off to her friend's to find out what troubles her only to discover her friend is dead.


With snooping, uncomfortable questions, and a tour of the house, she manages to figure out whodunit, but almost too late. Just when it seemed she has the entire thing solved, it turns out to be only half solved and she's at the killer's grasp. 


I liked it. I also thought it a perfect length, but then I'm not one of those people who wants a 600 page novel full of lengthy, pompous descriptions. It worked for me.


Four stars and I got this on Amazon Kindle as a freebie.

Cruising Attitude by Heather Poole

What a great book!! Though it's a memoir, it's well done. The narrator SHOWS us and transports the reader into the airplane, crashpad, terminal, bar. There's no telling here. I was thoroughly entertained and I was laughing so hard during much of it that my husband demanded to know what was so funny, and I had to read passages aloud to him.


Just some of the content: her early days as a flight attendant with an airline that actually used duct tape on the seats, flight attendant training, skirt lengths and what they symbolize, why you shouldn't date pilots, her own dating experiences with pilots, flying standby (been there!!!), flight attendant breakdowns, problem passengers, finding a place to live in NYC, the horrors of flying the Miami/New York or the Vail flight full of fur coats, and last but not least, working and living with her mother. 


Really loved this. It was honest, entertaining, and told in a humorous manner. 


Laugh out loud moments for me:


"I could have kissed each and every one of my instructors at that very moment, calling to mind a psychological response known as Stockholme syndrome. Stockholme syndrome happens when abducted hostages (flight attendant trainees), begin to show signs of loyalty to the hostage-taker (flight instructors) regardless of the danger, risk, or torture in which they have been placed.....This is the only possible explanation for why I actually thanked my instructors when we learned that the navy blue polyester getup, all $2000 of it, would be deducted from our first couple of paychecks."


And when she works with her mom who also becomes a flight attendant and hollers out "mom" in the middle of business class when she needs her mom to hand her a bottle of wine.. Nice!!! LOL


And this bit here: "Bob, the stylish pilot, actually saves his standby passes for people he hates. Then he can gleefully relish when they get stranded in Senegal for ten days..."


Too many great and funny moments to list. Nevertheless, a well written and humorous memoir. I highly recommend it to anyone who has ever contemplated being a flight attendant. I wonder how many of you can figure out who the celebrities are she talks about but doesn't name?


Five stars. 

Under Her Brass Corset by Brenda Williamson

This is a romance/steam punk/fantasy novel. Confession: Steam punk isn't one of my strong genres. I keep trying it because the characters/blurbs appeal to me, but except for Dark Vow (sorta steam punk, but not heavy on it), I find myself confused more often than not as I try to visualize everything.


Thankfully, the steam punk stuff in here wasn't too ridiculous. A ship that flies. Cool. Showers. (common now, but weren't then.)

The fantasy stuff was a bit weird, however. Enter a strange octopus. That had my eye brows reaching up.

The romance was more lust at first. Realistic. None of that love at first sight, more lust and it grows into love.

The plot was intriguing, involving a map, a snow globe, the fountain of youth, immortality, a rogue cousin/pirate.... but I felt it got over shadowed at times by the sex/gadgets.

It doesn't lack suspense as I kept wondering how the characters would end up, what with him being immortal and her not...

Not bad. Not a favorite of mine, but it wasn't horrible. I think those more into the steam  punk will love it more. As I confessed above, I keep trying the genre and keep struggling with it. Not the author's fault.

Ride for Rights is on Amazon

Blurb: 

In the summer of 1916 women do not have the right to vote, let alone be motorcycle dispatch riders. Two sisters, Angeline and Adelaide Hanson are determined to prove to the world that not only are women capable of riding motorbikes, but they can ride motorbikes across the United States. Alone. 

From a dance hall in Chicago to a jail cell in Dodge City, love and trouble both follow Angeline and Adelaide on the dirt roads across the United States. The sisters shout their triumph from Pike’s Peak only to end up lost in the Salt Lake desert. 

Will they make it to their goal of Los Angeles or will too many mishaps prevent them from reaching their destination and thus, hinder their desire to prove that women can do it?

Besides being on MuseItUp Publishing Website, Ride for Rights is also available on Amazon today. Just letting you all know. :)

Valentine Delights: Kiss Me Anthology from Still Moments Publishing

This is an anthology of three short stories just in time for Valentine's Day.

First up, is The 14 Days of Valentines by Maggie Devine.

A woman lawyer suddenly gets a secret admirer who sends her expensive gifts everyday starting Feb 1 till Valentine's Day when she's supposed to don her new dress, earrings, and bracelet and meet her potential suitor for a fancy dinner. Who is the man? Is her boss, John, who has been trying to convince her for some time that they would be good together? Or is it HIS boss whose she's had HER eyes on, but is otherwise taken? Or is it that man upstairs who just wants to bed her?


Liked: I honestly didn't know who it was till it was revealed. Common sense kept telling me it was the guy she wanted it to be, BUT there were enough doubts in the story to keep me on my toes. I started questioning the happily ever after and who it may be with.


Didn't like: The abrupt ending. And no, it has nothing to do with it being a shortie. I love shorties. I just didn't feel the connection required btw these two, who have never dated before, but are suddenly planning to have sex and live together. Relationships don't build to that level without some dating.


Second up, Love's Fortune by Nicole Zoltack.
Woman loses job, is walking the street, when she's offered another job...at the circus! That's pretty cool! So she takes the job as a fortune teller, meets a shape shifting lion, and kinda learns some stuff from her new job: such as, she needs to practice what she preaches.


Liked: The way she makes a widowed woman feel better about moving on.. the way she tells a man that the only reason he hasn't found love is because he's shut himself off, basically. He's preventing himself from finding love. In the process, the heroine realizes she's doing the same thing. Real sweet moral there.


Didn't like: Fail to see how the shape shifting really moved anything along. Or them wanting her to be a witch. The shape shifting, except for him saving her life, didn't mean anything.


Third, The Designer's Bride by W. Lynn Chantale.
Story contains both sensual content and suspense. The sensual is hot, sexy sex between the heroine and the man she loves and wants to marry. The suspense plays into the story when her father keeps barging into her life demanding she marry a man she hates, said man in tow with him everywhere. He's a real jerk. I didn't like him at all.


Liked: The sex. Also loved Jordan, the hero, and how he makes everything just perfect from the ring to the dress to the plans. I thought that was just awesome. Except for the dad, this story was like a fantasy come true. It also had me reeling for a minute there toward the end as I seriously worried things were ruined. Also, Chantale injects the perfect amount of description into her story, not too much, not too little.


Didn't like: I would have liked things to end better btw the heroine and her dad. I got kind of sad by the way things panned out there. I would hate for my dad and I to be on the outs like that. This was my favorite story, however due to the sensual elements and just OMG hero.


Conclusion: Four stars for this anthology. :) I receive this from an author who wanted my honest opinion.


Buy here: http://www.stillmomentspublishing.com/p/ebook-store.html

Manu by Christopher Nicole

This is a historical fiction that educates the reader about Indian  history. Told from the POV of an Englishwoman, widowed from her missionary husband, it tells of the British occupation of India and a strong woman who dared to rule, Manu.

The story begins with Emma in England, caught for thieving and accused of murder. Her only way out is to marry a missionary who is traveling to India. She is not allowed back in England for ten years. Little does she know that that ten years will actually become a much longer period due to her own desires.


Presented with an opportunity to be a governess to an Indian princess, she takes it. And she "goes native." At first, things are rough. The prince is a homosexual, the princess thinks she is a warrior and threatens to place Emma naked on an anthill-something to that effect. And of course, the British rule with a condescending attitude.


The big guy finally dies, no heir in sight except for an adopted child that the British refuse to acknowledge. Manu, the princess takes over and leads her men into battle. I liked this:


"I will throw their heads at your feet," Risaldar promised. (a soldier)
"I will throw their heads at my own feet," Manu declared. (hell, yea)


Emma discovers that despite the fact she loves Manu, hates what the British has done, has an Indian husband, is now wearing saris, and has a half Indian child, she somewhat ponders going back to England. Now it may be too late. She's also very busy playing go-between as the English don't believe Manu is fit to rule and attempt to control her in every way they can.


Well told, but seriously lacking emotional depth. Also lots of long dialogue bits. Thought told from Emma's POV, she really doesn't have much emotion. That surprised me. Also found her surprisingly agreeable to just about anything and that didn't fit in with the character we were first introduced to.


I liked it, however. Three stars. I received this from the publisher.

Dog Tails: Three Humorous Short Stories for Dog Lovers is getting a makeover

I published my first book last year...a book of short stories based on my pampered pooches. Well, sales didn't skyrocket. Tons of people came to me saying, "Oh, I'll buy it for my kids." 


*sigh*


It's not a children's book, and obviously, I need the cover portray that better. So...it's going off the market for a few days because it's getting a makeover! And a price change!!!!!


It will no longer be available on Kobo, Nook, Sony, or in the ibookstore anymore. It will be an Amazon only book. Sorry!


Meanwhile, here's the new cover. :)