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December 2013 New Releases

December New Releases
Yes, holiday season is upon us once again. Books are the gift that keeps on giving, and there are plenty of good ones to pick from this month. So make your list (and check it twice), before heading out to your local bookseller this December.
Morning Glory by Sarah Jio – November 26th. Ada leaves New York City after a tragedy, moving to a house boat on Seattle’s Lake Union. It’s there that Ada discovers the trunk of a former resident, Penny Wentworth. Penny was a young newlywed in 1959 and Ada is determined to learn her fate. The mysteries of the past get tangled in Ada’s questions about her future. I love the way Sarah Jio writes because she’s great at weaving together story lines of the present with those of the past, seamlessly transporting the readers to different times and places. I can’t wait to escape into this story.
Out to Lunch by Stacey Ballis – December 3, 2013. Jenna and Aimee were best friends and business partners in an events and catering company until Aimee’s untimely death at the young age of forty-one. Jenna is grief stricken and lost without her friend. She also has to deal with Wayne, Aimee’s Star Wars-obsessed widower. Complicating matters is the fact that Aimee left Jenna in charge of all her finances, which means Jenna gets to referee Wayne’s get-rich-quick schemes. What was her friend thinking? I haven’t read the book, but I think I might know the answer to that question. This book sounds charming and early reviews suggest that the food descriptions are Pinterest worthy, so you may want to read on a full stomach.
Undressing Mr. Darcy by Karen Doornebos – December 3, 2013. This book is another modern day twist on Jane Austen and it sounds like a hoot. Vanessa is a public relations executive who’s a master at social media. Julian is an Englishman who has written a book, My Year as Mr. Darcy, as a means to save his faltering estate. Along with the book, Julian hosts a Darcy themed talk show that features him, well, undressing. Did I mention that “Mr. Darcy” is hot? Throw in Austen fan festivals, a pirate encounter and a trip to merry ole England and I think we have ourselves a fun ride!
Hard Hats and Doormats by Laura Chapman – December 11, 2013. What a cute title. Lexi is a girl who likes to follow the rules, which is probably a good thing, since she’s the HR manager at a chemical company! After she gets passed over on a big promotion, Lexi begins to wonder if maybe rules are meant to be broken, especially the rules on interoffice dating. I enjoy stories based in the work place, because office politics and romance can be so complicated. I also love a story in which nice girls don’t finish last.
The Redhead Plays Her Hand by Alice Clayton – December 17, 2013. Actress Grace Sheridan has it all, a gorgeous British movie star boyfriend, Jack, and the lead role on a hit television show. When her curvaceous figure ignites an industry debate over thinness, producers order Grace to drop 15 pounds. While Grace is eating rabbit food and suffering through boot camp, Jack is hitting the Hollywood party scene. Jack’s fans don’t want him in a relationship, so when he shows up at her events late and drunk, Grace wonders if he loves his fans more than her. Forget playing her hand, I’m thinking she needs to re-deal the cards. I love Hollywood insider stories and this one sounds juicy.

Book Review: Undressing Mr. Darcy by Karen Doornebos

Reviewer: Terry I was given this book in exchange for an honest review. Jane Austen Fans are going to love this tribute book!  Undressing Mr.…

In My Mailbox: Week of November 17

Title: The Hole in the Middle
Author: Kate Hilton
Received: CLP Blog Tours
Synopsis: I Don’t Know How She Does It for the This Is 40 generation.

Sophie Whelan is the epitome of the modern super woman. When she operates at peak performance, she can cajole balky employees, soothe her cranky children, trouble-shoot career disasters, throw a dinner party for 10, and draft an upbeat Christmas letter—all in the same day.

But as Sophie’s 40th birthday looms, her seamless life reveals disturbing web-like fractures. Conflict with her boss, blossoming jealousy of her husband’s femme fatale business partner, and her feelings of hopeless inadequacy as a mother and daughter, are cracking the edifice of her life.

Rescue may be at hand when Lillian Parker, a wealthy widow who befriended Sophie during her university days, makes Sophie an irresistible offer. Why, then, does Sophie hesitate? The answer is the reappearance of Lillian’s nephew, Will Shannon, the great unresolved love of Sophie’s life. As she remembers the vivid drama of their college romance, Sophie confronts the choices she has made in life and in love and looks for the one answer that has always eluded her: what does she really want?

The Hole in the Middle is a heartbreaking love story, a laugh-out-loud portrayal of the twin demands of work and family, and a fresh take on the hot debate about having it all. It is not to be missed.

Title: Just For Christmas
Author: Scarlett Bailey
Received: Unsolicited
Synopsis: Her best friend’s wedding…
When Alex Munro learns that the love of her life is getting married to another girl, all she wants is to be alone – and as far away from Edinburgh as possible.
Moving to a Cornish cottage, which comes complete with the world’s scruffiest dog, Alex finds that her new neighbours are determined to involve her in their madcap Christmas festivities.
Then she meets her sexy neighbour Ruan – and somehow Alex doesn’t want to be alone this Christmas after all. But having lost one fiancé, Ruan has no intention of letting anyone get close to him again…
Title: Fallen
Author: Traci L Slatton
Received: Traci L Slatton
Synopsis: As chaos descends on a crippled Earth, survivors are tormented by strange psychic gifts. In this time of apocalyptic despair, love is put to the test. One woman with mysterious healing power guides seven children to safety. Charismatic Arthur offers her a haven. Slowly Emma falls for him. But at the moment of their sweetest love, his devastating secret is revealed, and they are lost to each other.
Title: There’s More to Life Than Cupcakes
Author: Poppy Dolan
Received: Novelicious Books
Synopsis: A romantic and deliciously witty bestseller, perfect for fans of Mhairi McFarlane, Jenny Colgan and, of course, The Great British Bake Off.

Ellie Redford has a husband, a job and a home. According to the rest of the world, it’s baby o’clock already. Shame life doesn’t come with a recipe…

Ellie knows that starting a family with lovely husband Pete would be an amazing adventure. Pete would make a brilliant dad and she’d have an excuse to eat shed loads of Cherry Bakewell. But Ellie’s bestie would rather she was up at 3 a.m. with a bottle of Malibu, not formula. And with redundancies looming, Ellie’s boss isn’t exactly going to throw her a shower if she disappears for a year, with pay.

While Ellie juggles her feelings (and everyone else’s) as competently as a drunken clown, she finds herself signing up for a baking class, alongside the young, free and sizzling hot Joe. As they work buns and shape tarts, is there more to their friendship than a shared appreciation of Paul Hollywood?

Ellie’s soufflés may be rising, but her personal life is one big soggy mess. If she doesn’t make a decision soon, she may just lose everything that matters to her. Maybe it’s time to take off the pinny and face up to the truth: there’s more to life than cupcakes…
Title: Undressing Mr. Darcy
Author: Karen Doornebos
Received: Penguin Group
Synopsis: Taking it off in the name of history…

Thirty-five-year-old American social media master Vanessa Roberts lives her thoroughly modern life with aplomb. So when her elderly Jane Austen–centric aunt needs her to take on the public relations for Julian Chancellor, a very private man from England who’s written a book called My Year as Mr. Darcy, Vanessa agrees. But she’s not “excessively diverted,” as Jane Austen would say.

Hardbound books, teacups, and quill pens fly in the face of her e-reader, coffee, and smartphone…

…Until she sees Julian take his tight breeches off for his Undressing Mr. Darcy show, an educational “striptease” down to his drawers to promote his book and help save his crumbling estate. The public relations expert suddenly realizes things have gotten…personal. But can this old-fashioned man claim her heart without so much as a GPS? It will take three festivals filled with Austen fans, a trip to England, an old frenemy, and a flirtatious pirate re-enactor to find out…