On Tour: Dancing Naked in Dixie by Lauren Clark
Lauren will be on tour June 11-July 2 with her novel Dancing Naked in Dixie Travel writer Julia Sullivan lives life in fast-forward. She jet…
Come Fly With Me by Sandi Perry
I received a copy of Come Fly With Me from Sandi Perry in exchange for an honest review. The main character is Allison Ross, a twenty nine year old gallery owner in Chelsea. Everything in her life is planned and detailed, until a curveball is thrown – her Dad’s premature death that could possibly be a murder. Her father owned and operated RossAir, a luxury jet company, and Allison finds herself suddenly the interim CEO in the wake of his death. Trying to juggle too many things at once while also trying to grieve her loss of a parent, Allison finds herself at the end of her rope. When the handsome Alex Coventry enters her life, Allison is wary at first, but the attraction is too hard to ignore.
I really struggled with Come Fly With Me out of the gate. I think it was the dialogue that was too hard for me to get past. I found it too stiff and too explanatory. The romance between Allison and Alex didn’t do much for me, I was often confused on if they liked each other at all and wondered how the attraction was there. I did enjoy the mystery aspect surrounding the death of Allison’s father. That kept my interest for a while, but I eventually I started to skim pages, and by the time the culprit was figured out, I actually didn’t know who it was. Not a book for me, but I’ve seen a few other great reviews for it so I would still check it out if it sounds like something you might enjoy. I was pretty surprised I didn’t connect with the book honestly, I really thought it would be right up my alley.
[Rating: 2.5]
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…
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]
Blog Tour Sign Up: Last Minute Love by Romi Moondi
Romi will be on tour in September with her chick lit novel Last Minute Love, the sequel to Year of the Chick! Please use the…
Future Tour: Showbiz by Ruby Preston
Ruby will be on tour August 20-September 3 with her chick lit novel Showbiz Set amid the twinkling marquees of modern day Times Square, Showbiz,…
Better Off Without Him by Dee Ernst
Mona Berman, a best-selling romance author, knows how to write a fabulous happily-ever-after story. But her own world gets an unwelcome rewrite when her husband of twenty years leaves her for a much younger, thinner and French….girl. Her three teenagers daughters convince Mona she needs to give dating another shot, and spending the summer down at the Jersey Shore seems to be the perfect place for her to get back in the swing of things. But can Mona concentrate on her dates (the majority being blazing failures) when she can only think of Ben – the sexy plumber back at home that inspires her steamiest love scenes? Mona gets the idea for a new novel that features the heroine finding true happiness after being dumped. But will her writing reflect her own life?
I thought Better Off Without Him by Dee Ernst was a perfectly pleasant novel. I really connected with Mona regardless of our age difference, and I loved the romance between her and Ben. I thought some of the dates she went on while at the Shore were hilarious, and the cast of supporting characters really helped this book give it that extra oomph. I love books that feature atypical characters, and I definitely think that is where Better Off Without Him falls. A very enjoyable read that I would recommend to chick lit fans.
[Rating: 4]
Blog Tour Sign Up: Breaking the Rules by Cat Lavoie
When twenty-seven year old Roxy Rule’s best friend and roommate accepts a glamorous new job overseas, she expects their relationship to continue as it’s always been—carefree and easy—until they share a heart-stopping kiss.
While Ollie escapes to jolly ole England to live out his dream and save the planet with green architecture, Roxy is stuck in New York City working for a boss who makes her want to stab herself with a letter opener. She can’t bear to think about her own big-city dream of being a chef anymore. Over the years, her passion for food has only resulted in extra pounds and a staggering credit card balance for fancy kitchen equipment that she barely has time to use. Still, Roxy’s sure that nothing can come between two lifelong best friends—not even mild jealousy over a thriving career or a silly little kiss that meant nothing. In fact, it was such a meaningless and forgettable kiss that it’s not worth mentioning to her fiancé, not that he would even listen—all they do these days is argue about their upcoming wedding.
Roxy is faced with an unexpected family reunion when her younger sister Steffi arrives on her doorstep, six months into a pregnancy she refuses to discuss. When older sister Izzie—in the throes of a premature midlife crisis—joins them, she’s determined to crack the case of Steffi’s impending motherhood. With the Rule sisters living under the same roof again, Roxy’s quiet little apartment in the city is about to be anything but peaceful.
Roxy soon discovers that her seemingly idyllic relationship with Ollie started getting complicated way before he left for London. She must come to terms with her feelings for him, learn to stand up for herself and go after what she really wants.
Breaking the Rules is the story of what happens when you have to redefine the rules of love, friendship and family in order to find yourself.
