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In My Mailbox: Week of June 3

In My Mailbox: Week of June 3, 2012

In Samantha’s Mailbox:

Title: What a Texas Girl Wants
Author: Kristina Knight
Received: Via CLP Blog Tours
Synopsis: Kathleen Witte is a down-to-earth girl. She has to be, with the family ranch on the verge of success. After seven months of keeping it all together by swearing off men, however, Kathleen needs a bit of fun in the sun. Waking up with a husband she can’t remember isn’t how she planned to blow off steam.
The last thing Jackson Taylor wants in his life is a down-to-earth girl. He has four weeks of freedom in which to find his birth mother. He’s done well avoiding commitment until now, so when he wakes up on a Mexican beach with Kathleen his first reaction is curiosity. When he spies the matching wedding rings on their left hands curiosity turns to concern.
Neither Jackson nor Kathleen want to stay married, but when her family shows up, they have no choice. Once back in Texas, however, can they keep this all-business marriage from turning into an all-consuming love?
Title: Paula Takes a Risk
Author: Randi M. Sherman
Received: Via CLP Blog Tours
Synopsis: After thirty-four years of just letting life happen to her, Paula Tenenbaum’s mundane existence was suddenly interrupted. It was bad enough to be fired from her job because she was “average”, but on that same day, her boyfriend also dumped her for being “un-dynamic.” Somehow, someway Paula needed to make a change. But before she could figure out what her first step should be, her scheming neighbor Larry tapped into her silent desperation and dreams and challenged everything that she believed about herself. At first Paula was skeptical and scared, but quickly, she realized that she had nothing to lose, as she donned the persona of the successful, and vibrant individual that she had always dreamed of being, navigating thru business, colorful personalities and the people that she had idolized from afar. Written with sharp humor, and huge personality, Paula Takes A Risk is the hilarious story about the metamorphosis of Paula Tenenbaum, who naively enters into an adventure that changes her life. This is a story certain to strike a chord in anyone who secretly desires change, but is afraid to make it.

Title: Chelsea Wives
Author: Anna-Lou Weatherley
Received: Unsolicited, Avon Books
Synopsis: This is Desperate Housewives meets First Wives Club set in the glamorous borough of Chelsea.
‘A fun, romp of a read, the perfect poolside companion’ Grazia
They are the ultimate ladies who lunch: Imogen, the beautiful ex-model, Calgary, the glamorous, former fashion editor, and Yasmin, the feisty ex-party girl.
But life isn’t all champagne and canapés. Plagued by personal tragedy and united by failing marriages, they mastermind a shocking plan to turn the tables on their husbands.
Set against a backdrop of exotic locations, designer boutiques and London’s high society scene, these Chelsea Wives are about to join forces and risk it all for the ultimate revenge…

In Sara’s Mailbox:

Title: Sorority Sisters
Author: Claudia Welch
Received: Kayleigh @ Penguin Group
Synopsis: In 1975, trying to find a place to belong, four young women found each other in the same sorority pledge class. Through parties and pranks; finals and skipped classes; boyfriends and break-ups, they forge a bond that takes them by surprise. No one expected it to last beyond college graduation. But some bonds are too strong to break. Now they’re sisters. And with sisters, it’s not about what happens. It’s about no matter what happens.

Title: Sometimes Ya Gotta Laugh
Author: Timothe Davis
Received: Timothe Davis
Synopsis: When our friends make choices we don’t like, what do we do? And when those choices threaten our friendships, how far will we go to protect our friends? Jordan Spencer is thirty-six and hasn’t had a relationships that’s lasted more than six months. He’s fine with that, though. He’s got space issues. And what difference does it make anyway? He has his two best friends – Gabby and Chris – for happy hours, clubs, and weekend hangouts. But Gabby is falling for a guy that Jordan doesn’t like and Chris-the-sex-machine is having a phallic-crisis.
Jordan thought that their friendship would last forever. But with each day, they drift further apart. Should he fight for the friends who have become his family? Or has the season of their friendship past?
Set to the soundtrack of his life, Jordan Spencer will learn that in a world full of sex, lies, and drag queens, that even the best of friends occasionally lie to each other. Sometimes they cry for each other. But in the end, sometimes ya just gotta laugh

Title: A Moment Like This
Author: Anita Notaro
Received: Unsolicited
Synopsis: Be careful what you wish for…Antonia has always put everyone else before herself. Shy and quiet, her life in a small village in Wicklow has been devoted to her invalid mother and singing in the local church choir. Somehow, it’s easier that way. But when she is left alone her friends encourage her to audition for a television talent show. Blessed with a glorious singing voice, she is suddenly thrust into the limelight and enters the world of celebrity and glamour. She’s the Girl from Nowhere, but can she cope with this startling new life? Antonia discovers that this business is tougher than she ever thought possible, but also that she’s stronger than she thought she was. And she finds that help can come from the most unexpected places…This title comes from the number one bestselling author of “Take A Look At Me Now”, winner of the Galaxy Irish Popular Fiction Book of the Year.

Title: Christina Courtenay
Author: The Silent Touch of Shadows
Received: Jane @ Choc Lit Team
Synopsis: Professional genealogist Melissa Grantham receives an invitation to visit her family’s ancestral home, Ashleigh Manor. From the moment she arrives, life-like dreams and visions haunt her. The spiritual connection to a medieval young woman and her forbidden lover have her questioning her sanity, but Melissa is determined to solve the mystery.
Jake Precy, owner of a nearby cottage, has disturbing dreams too, but it’s not until he meets Melissa that they begin to make sense. He hires her to research his family’s history, unaware their lives are already entwined. Is the mutual attraction real or the result of ghostly interference?
A haunting love story set partly in the present and partly in fifteenth century Kent.

Challenge 2012:Post Reviews:June

June Reviews See past reviews January Reviews February Reviews March Reviews April Reviews May Reviews  Please note this is not the sign up page. To…

Novel Spotlight: Rum Punch Regrets by Anne Kemp

Debut Romance Novel Rum Punch Regrets by Women’s Fiction Author, Columnist and Blogger Anne Kemp Launches From Premier Digital Publishing Available for Amazon Kindle, Barnes…

Dog Days by Elsa Watson

Sometimes, I get so excited about a cover of a book that I don’t bother to read the synopsis. This was the case in Dog Days by Elsa Watson. I saw a cover with a dog on it, saw a title with the word “dog” and knew I had to read it. I am slightly obsessed with dogs – and I’m not even a dog owner. So when I sat down to read, I started as usual with the back cover blurb and learned the story is about a human (Jessica) and a dog (Zoe) that get struck by lightning and change places, Freaky Friday style. Hmmm. I wasn’t so sure about it at that moment. BUT – I loved it! I could not put this down for anything, and had it completed within two days. A 5 star book and a new addition to my Favorites List!
Jessica, a café co-owner, is deathly afraid of dogs. Which is a bit of trouble since the town she lives in loves their canines. They even host an annual event, Woofinstock, a festival celebrating all things dogs. When Jessica switches bodies with Zoe, an abandoned dog, she learns more about the creatures she feared for so long. It doesn’t take much for Jessica and Zoe to become fast friends, but they really need to switch bodies. Zoe can’t stop eating dog food in front of people, and Jessica has a business to run – and a sexy vet to date.
I laughed so hard throughout this entire book. My favorite line: “I guess I should have gone outside and looked for a dead bird to put on top, like I thought about doing.” This is from Zoe’s POV (in Jessica’s human body) after she mixes a raw steak with peanut butter, eggs, cheese and honey, and presents it as a gift to Jessica’s best friend and partner Kerrie. So hilarious. Most definitely one for your to-read list!
[Rating: 5]

Must Love Dogs by Claire Cook

Must Love Dogs by Claire Cook follows forty-year-old Sarah Hurlihy, a recently divorced preschool teacher who struggles with getting back out there into the dating market. Her sister sets up a personal ad for her and soon enough, Sarah is forced into the world of first time dating and awkward messages on her phone. Sarah is joined in the book by her hilarious cast of family, many of whom struggle as well in the dating world, as well as a few significant men in her new dating world.

Warm and charming, I found Must Love Dogs to be a must read and I’m glad that I finally had the opportunity to sink my teeth into it. I found Sarah’s journey post-divorce to be an honest portrayal of someone who hasn’t completely lost hope but is taking it incredibly cautious. The book is filled with witty observations about men and marriage and the heartache of dating. Honest and often times humorous, this book is an absolute must read.

[Rating 4.5-5]

Future Tour: What a Texas Girl Wants by Kristina Knight

Kathleen Witte is a down-to-earth girl. She has to be, with the family ranch on the verge of success. After seven months of keeping it all together by swearing off men, however, Kathleen needs a bit of fun in the sun. Waking up with a husband she can’t remember isn’t how she planned to blow off steam.

The last thing Jackson Taylor wants in his life is a down-to-earth girl. He has four weeks of freedom in which to find his birth mother. He’s done well avoiding commitment until now, so when he wakes up on a Mexican beach with Kathleen his first reaction is curiosity. When he spies the matching wedding rings on their left hands curiosity turns to concern.

Neither Jackson nor Kathleen want to stay married, but when her family shows up, they have no choice. Once back in Texas, however, can they keep this all-business marriage from turning into an all-consuming love?

Beauty Review: Neutrogena Pink Grapefruit Foaming Scrub

I admit – I am a girl, and I like pink. When I started looking for a new exfoliating scrub, the Pink Grapefruit Foaming Scrub…

On Tour: BaSatai Outside In by Suzan Battah

Suzan will be on tour June 4-25 with her novel BaSatai: Outside In Seventeen year old, Armani Radnelaq a full blooded BaSatai is plagued by…

Willow Pond by Carol Tibaldi

Carol Tibaldi is currently on tour with CLP Blog Tours and Willow Pond. I was really curious about this book as it is set just after the Roaring Twenties, an era that I am in love with. Seriously, I can’t tell you how many times I have dressed up as a flapper for Halloween or costume parties. I love it! The story revolves around the kidnapping of Laura’s infant son, Todd. Snatched out from under the nanny’s nose, Todd’s kidnapping makes headline news because his father is a famous movie star and Laura is a popular author. Laura’s Aunt Virginia is also infamous as one of New York’s toughest and most successful speakeasy owners, and is known to be flourishing in the bootlegging business. After Todd is taken, eyes turn to Virginia, who may know more about the abduction than she is letting on. A new romance in Laura’s life also shakes things up in her world, but her most important quest is getting Todd back. Will she ever be reunited with her son?
The story started off a bit slow for me. There was a lot of changing of POV’s, which threw me for a loop. I think a few could have been eliminated, and it could have been much easier to follow. I did really enjoy the ending though. A lot of action started happening and I found myself flipping pages quickly to try to keep up with the storyline. I think the writing could have been a bit tighter as a whole, and there were a few scenarios that could have been cut out completely, letting the story move along quickly throughout, but a good debut novel nonetheless.
[Rating: 3.5]