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Along Came a Stork by Marisa Mackle

Diana Kay has landed her dream job- being an on-air dating guru. At thirty years old and still living with her parents, Diana thinks it is her time to finally shine. Instead, she finds out she is pregnant. Her boyfriend, Roger, lets her know that he is leaving her for another woman, and Diana is convinced she will be fired from her posh new job. Who wants to get dating advice from an un-wed pregnant lady? Too embarrassed to face her family, Diana hightails to West of Ireland to try to sort out her thoughts. She never meant to uncover a dark family secret, but that is exactly what she does. Keeping up with her pregnancy, trying to win Roger back, and now trying to solve the case on a family mystery keeps Diana entertained while she tries not to focus on losing her job and her sanity. But what will happen when she finally gets back to the real world?
Along Came a Stork by Marisa Mackle has a super cute cover, and the synopsis immediately caught my attention. It actually states that Diana is a glamorous socialite, but I didn’t think either of those descriptions matched her. She is thirty, living at home, and not rolling in dough. So that was a bit confusing from the start. When I hear socialite, I think Paris Hilton and red carpets. The story is written in journal entries from Diana, and very easy to get to know her and all her thoughts. The problem I had with this was that I didn’t really get to know any of the other characters. There was some dialogue that Diana wrote every now and then, but it was tough to form a connection with anyone else. The family secret she uncovered really helped the story for me, I became more invested in my reading once that was revealed, and I’m glad it was there. I did like this book and it kept my attention, but every once in a while I would become frustrated with Diana. She wouldn’t tell her family that she was pregnant, instead she wanted them to realize it, and then got mad when they didn’t. It was a little confusing. Also confusing why she still lived at home when she didn’t really get along with her mother or sister. The tension in the house made me uncomfortable while I was reading. But I think Diana redeems herself in the end, and helps bring her family closer together while doing so. This wasn’t my favorite book, but I would recommend to chick lit fans, especially if you enjoy the topic of mommyhood and all the goes with it.
[Rating: 3.5]

In My Mailbox: April 13

In My Mailbox: April 13

Title: Slow Dancing on Price’s Pier
Author: Lisa Dale
Received: Erin Galloway @ Penguin Group
Synopsis: Fifteen years ago, Garret Sorensen’s family, trust, and heart were destroyed when Thea Celik betrayed him and married his brother. Now that her marriage is ending in divorce, Garret finally feels free to mend his relationship with his brother and put the past behind him. But the quaint streets and bustling piers of Newport, Rhode Island, trigger a lot of memories—all leading back to Thea.
Navigating through the divorce, Thea struggles to keep things as peaceful as possible for her daughter. And she’s not ready to let go of the Sorensens—the only family she has—even if it means being around Garret again and risking the return of her feelings for him. As they cautiously circle around each other—drawing together and moving apart—they both realize that if they follow their hearts, their already fragile family ties could be irreparably severed—casting them both adrift…

Title: Along Came a Stork
Author: Marisa Mackle
Received: From Marisa Mackle
Synopsis: Every young girl dreams of meeting Prince Charming. But what if the prince turns into the frog instead of the other way around? Diana Kay is thirty years old, single and pregnant. A glamorous socialite, she has just landed her dream job on TV as a dating guru. But how can she advise women on their struggling love lives when she’s hiding a secret pregnancy? And why has the baby’s father, who swore he’d love her forever, decided instead to vanish off the face of the earth? Terrified of losing her television job, Diana watches her bump grow bigger by the day. How long can she keep pretending she’s developed a sudden fondness for jam doughnuts? When it all becomes too much she flees to the West of Ireland in search of peace and privacy. Instead she stumbles on a dark family secret. Diana soon forgets her own personal turmoil as she delves into the past. But is it really a good idea to resurrect a shocking scandal that has been so firmly swept under the family carpet?

Title: Risk It All
Author: Stan Stamper
Received: From Stan Stamper
Synopsis: Pitting billionaire terrorist thugs against a rookie CIA agent
would normally be the prelude to a hasty funeral. But Carissa
Johnson defied the odds to survive not one, but two years before
she had to play a trump card…a 9 mm bullet.

What not even the CIA saw coming was Tanner Stone,
the gorgeous hunk who would steal her heart. Special Agent
Carissa Johnson was stunned to learn the West Point grad
was a Special Forces Commander on direct assignment by
the President—to identify the woman who was laundering the
dirty money from power-crazed Sheiks on the Arabian Peninsula—
HER!

When the entire plan comes unraveled, Carissa chooses to
put her life on the line for a politician she despises, to save the
only man who ever touched her heart.