Challenge Roundup

So I'm not so great with the willpower thing. Same reason I don't do diets. Also the same reason (during college) I would find myself swearing up and down that I'd never drink again, only to get stinky that very night. I read a grand total of 4 books out of the 20 on my list. Two others were DNFs, although I would not completely rule out attempting them again. In addition to that, I read three books that were not on the list (my bad), and bought 12 others (my very bad). Ah well, I think the act of listing them will help to keep them on my radar. I think I will be getting to some sooner rather than later though, in particular the Hoyt and Stacey books.

Man, summer is a busy time. I feel very behind on blog-hopping, as well as reading. Alas, lounging by the pool with a fun read is not an option for me. I glance at the other moms enviously as I chase the Destroyer. I think the lifeguard on duty at the kiddie pool cries inside when he sees us coming. No more staring into space, wondering which 7-11 parking lot he's going to hang out at tonight. The Destroyer is going to make him work for his pay as she throws herself under the water, flailing and choking and insisting that she can swim all by herself.

I'm getting excited for Harry Potter time. Both Book #7 and Movie #5. I have to see if my "Republicans for Voldemort" T-shirt still fits. We're doing a program at work, and I got drafted to help run it, since I'm such a geek since I'm full of brilliant ideas. There was a fun article in the local paper about the various theories and what has been debunked and not. Plus, a little crash course for those who don't care (although I can't possibly understand why you wouldn't).

For the past couple of days, Sybil has had the Shomi launch authors guest blogging. I think this line looks very promising. BUT, gotta admit I'm not feeling the covers. I'm not one for anime/manga. Don't have anything against it, but I don't have anything for it, either. The covers are too cutesy, to me. I hope it finds its intended audience, because the blurbs are pretty good. I particularly like the sound of Driven by Eve Kenin, who also writes historical Gothics as Eve Silver. Anybody out there read any of them? I haven't read a good Gothic in a long time. Anyway, go check it out. Sounds different.

Lightening my Load! (Part A)

This will be here awhile. Scroll down for new reviews and stuff.

Recently, I've gotten into the habit of continually increasing my TBR pile. I'm constantly checking out books, buying from the UBS and library Friends shelves, buying new, then surfing the net and seeing e-books I want to. Meanwhile, books that I was excited to read get tossed into the milk crate while I go on looking for bigger and better things. Then I'm like, hey, didn't I want to read that? So, taking a cue from Ames (and I think someone else too), I'm setting myself a challenge. I'm not going to read anything new until I read these twenty books. Or at least give it the old College Try. If it just ain't happening I'll put it aside, but no more amassing until I'm done. This is gonna be tough, so let me see what happens in a month or so.

So here's the list:

1. Beyond the Edge by Susan Kearney
2. Cast in Shadow by Michelle Sagara
3. The Power of Two by Patti O'Shea
4. Claiming the Courtesan by Anna Campbell
5. 72 Hours by Shannon Stacey
6. The Leopard Prince by Elizabeth Hoyt
7. Warrior or Wife by Lyn Randal
8. Double Trouble by Claire Cross
9. Third Time Lucky by Claire Cross
10. One More Time by Claire Cross
11. All or Nothing by Claire Cross
12. The Dream Hunter by Sherrilyn Kenyon
13. The Revenge of the Second Son by Sara Orwig
14. Twilight Magic by Shari Anton
15. Mistress For a Weekend by Susan Napier
16. Midnight Eyes by Sarah Brophy
17. Summer Light by Jude O'Neill
18. Down the Garden Path by Dorothy Cannell
19. Love at First Bite by Sherrilyn Kenyon et. al.
20. Divine By Mistake by P.C. Cast


Purple means that I tried to read it at some point, then put it aside for whatever reason. Green means that these are old, old loves that I've been meaning to re-read to see how they stand the test of time.
I'm almost finished with No Humans Involved by Kelley Armstrong. I'm really enjoying it. I'm not going to read in any particular order, just whatever grabs me. But it must be off of this list. I do think I'm going to try the Susan Kearney next. I tried one by her before and it didn't quite work for me. But I thought she was worth trying again, and I'm curious about what an "Extreme Blaze" is. Extreme in what way?

Any thoughts, votes, comments? I wonder how many I'll read before the B&N gift card burning a hole in my backpack gets put to use.

two down, eighteen to go...

Double Trouble by Claire Cross

ETA: an actual review. Oops! I accidentally published.

Two sisters. One disaster.


First things first: I’m the bad twin. While my sister, Marcia, has the perfect family in the perfect suburb, I’ve been making my living as an Internet advice columnist and designing Web sites in my downtown loft. I always thought I had the right answer - and hair color - for any occasion. That is, until Marcia ran up loads of debt and ran out on her husband and kids, and I was left helping to pick up the pieces.


Her husband, James, is a lawyer who I hate on principle alone. But for a guy who’s just lost his job, his marriage, and his expensive toys, he’s keeping it together - and making me rethink my feelings toward him. It’s not that he’s traded in his conservative suits for sexy jeans. It’s that he’s not giving up what’s important to him, and oh baby, I’m a sucker for a guy who hangs tough.


That doesn’t mean I’m ready to step into Marcia’s designer shoes now that she’s gone AWOL. And it doesn’t mean I’m going to fall for James’s easy charm...not again, anyhow. Besides, I’ve had a lifelong policy of not being mistaken for my twin and I’m not backing down on that one now - no matter how convenient it might be for a certain sexy (and persuasive) man...

I'm not up to summarizing. DT was, for me, a book which had flaws, but worked very well in spite of it. Every problem or question I had was adequately explained or solved, and the few issues that remained didn't really matter, because it was such an involving and enjoyable read.

The basic premise of the free-spirited heroine and the uptight hero is one that I am always drawn to. It always seems like it could be exciting and sexy and a nice twist on the bad boy/good girl plot. Unfortunately, in romanceland, an independent or idiosyncratic woman is often characterized as self-centered, bitchy and judgmental. At first I thought that Maralys O'Reilly was going to be a heroine in this vein. The Boston computer programmer grated on me with her insistence on independence and her "unconventional" lifestyle, meaning she dyes her hair a lot. But as the book unfolds , the reader gets to know Maralys a lot better (it's from her p.o.v.). How she would like to see herself, and how she really is, are two different things. And they are also very different from how her family sees her. She ends up being very likable and sympathetic. She is someone who has had to build a hard shell around her because of events and treatment in her past, but underneath she is a very caring person. I was so pleased to see her get her HEA.

I was also concerned that the hero was actually her twin's husband. I thought it had some squick potential. James was a great hero though, and given what happens to him, i.e. the fact that his self-centered bitch of wife took off after practically bankrupting him, I got over it quickly. James is strong, kind, empathetic and intelligent. Totally dreamy, and the chemistry between James and Maralys was great. I would've liked to see some flashbacks or something, to better illustrate the dislike that was supposed to have existed between them over the years. But there was some great tension between them. It's clear from the start that Maralys' distaste for her brother-in-law is not what it seems. There is a surprising twist that really upped the emotional ante for me. I don't want to give it away, but it was painful and revealed a lot about the two of them, as well as the missing wife, Marcia.

The supporting cast of characters was interesting and sometimes surprising as well: Maralys' crochety Dad, James' not-annoying children, her group of girlfriends, even her twin sister. This book was about family and familial expections: how they shape a person, how they shape a person's self-image, and how hard it can be to subvert them. It takes awhile for things to develop (the characters, the backstory), which gave me a feeling of disjointedness at first. When the full picture became clear, that feeling went away. I found this to be a sweet and emotional read.

Hmmm...other things. I wasn't thrilled by some of the netspeak, which I found a bit forced and cutesy. This book was originally published in 2002, so at that point it may have been a bit different, but I found it unnecessary. The sex scenes were very brief, just barely getting through the bedroom door, which is bad or good depending on your preferences. I'm going to give this a B, and I'm keeping it. I recommend it for someone looking for a straight-up contemporary that is a bit different, and bit surprising, and more focused on emotion than sex.