Novel Spotlight: Winter at Death’s Hotel by Kenneth Cameron
Blurb: New York, January 1896. Arthur Conan Doyle, the renowned created of Sherlock Holmes, arrives with his wife Louisa at the Britannic Hotel in New…
Book Review: All My Restless Life to Live by Dee …
I received a copy of All My Life to Live by Dee DeTarsio in exchange for an honest review.
Summary:
Life is a soap opera, especially for Elle Miller, who writes for one. (Ellen dropped the “n” in her name in hopes of finding a better ending for herself.) When her laptop crashes, she borrows her recently deceased dad’s computer and gets way more than she bargained for.
Elle unravels mysterious communications from his computer, while her mom decides to give Internet dating a try. As Elle tries to save her career at I’d Rather Be Loved with a storyline featuring a trip through Atlantis, she takes a trip to the Emmys, and finds herself in the middle of a romance between a real doctor and a hunk who just plays one on TV. Friends, family, and clues from “the other side” all help Elle figure out the difference between living the good life and living a good life.
Fans of Marian Keyes and Jennifer Weiner will delight in Dee DeTarsio’s sparkling prose and lively dialogue as she takes readers into the heart of women’s lives. Filled with friendship, love, loss, betrayal, and challenges that force her characters to find their place in the universe, Dee’s novels give us that hopefully-ever-after we’re searching for.
Review:
I have been a big fan of DeTarsio’s for a while now, and I’m always excited to read her books. I love the fantasy aspect that she brings to each one, and this was no different. Elle, a writer for a soap opera, is still struggling with the death of her dad. When she “borrows” his computer from her mother, she starts to see signs from the beyond. She thinks her dad is trying to help her through her complicated love life and trials from her job. I enjoy opening my mind to new ideas, such as getting these signs from the other side. It was fun to read her story, and the supporting cast was really a hoot. From her mother and her boyfriend to her best friend to her boss, all the characters were interesting and really pretty comical. I liked the romance aspect and the sort of tug a war she gets into between a doctor and the actor who plays a doctor. The ending was very sweet and a good way to wrap up the mystery of her father. If you haven’t read any of her books yet, I highly recommend you start!
4 stars
Blog Tour Sign Up: Hijack in Abstract by Larissa Reinhart
Cherry Tucker’s love life has shifted into neutral. And her siblings, Grandpa, and sort-of-ex-husband have flipped her personal life to greasy side up. But life in Halo, Georgia, isn’t all bad for the sassy, Southern artist. Her career has pushed into full throttle. A classical series sold. A portrait commissioned. Then Uncle Will, Forks County Sheriff, calls in a favor to have Cherry draw a composite sketch of a hijacker. Suddenly, life takes a hairpin when the composite leads to a related murder, her local card sharking buddy Max Avtaikin becomes bear bait, and her Amazonian nemesis labels the classical series “pervert art,” causing Cherry to be shunned by the town.
Cherry’s jamming gears between trailer parks, Atlanta mansions, and trucker bars searching for the hijacker who left a widow and orphan destitute and Max Avtaikin in legal jeopardy. While she seeks to help the misfortunate and save her local reputation, Cherry’s hammer down attitude has her facing the headlights of an oncoming killer, ready to grind her gears for good.
Future Tour: Killer Image by Wendy Tyson
Wendy will be on tour September 30-October 21 with her mystery novel Killer Image Philadelphia image consultant Allison Campbell is not your typical detective. She’s…
CLP Blog Tours Book Review: Thirty-Two Going on Spinster by …
Becky Monson is now on tour with CLP Blog Tours and Thirty-Two Going on Spinster
Summary:
Julia Dorning is in a rut. She has lived in her parent’s basement for ten years, been at the same mundane boring job for ten years and she has no self confidence.
When handsome hunky Jared Moody is hired in HR at her company, her life begins to change in ways she never saw coming. Is Jared the catapult to get her moving again?
Review:
Oh my gosh, what a hilarious book! The cover drew me in right away (I am not one to resist anything pink!) and the story flew by in a fit of giggles and smacking of my lips. Julia is hysterical, so concerned about becoming a spinster because she’s single and living in her parent’s basement. I love how she gets it – she understands that she needs to make a change, shake things up a little, but she just can’t pull the trigger. It made her human. I love all the baking talk though I was constantly hungry while reading, and I thought the relationship between Julia and her sister Anna really added a depth to the story. Of course the romance is there as well – and how mysterious it was! I knew something was off about Jared when he was first introduced, and I enjoyed all the intrigue around him. This really is not a chick lit book to miss!
4.5 stars
On Tour: Masterpiece of Murder by Evelyn Cullet
Evelyn will be on tour August 12-19 with her novel Masterpiece of Murder Heartbroken American art student Charlotte Ross is so intent on locating her…
Author Profile: Samaire Provost
Author Name: Samaire Provost
Website: http://samaireprovost.tumblr.com/
Bio: Born naked. Clothed and fed shortly thereafter by adoring parents who looked on in bemusement as their daughter became a reading, writing, free-spirited, feral, animal loving, bleeding-heart chocolate lover who laughs easily. Samaire Provost is a California writer of Young Adult novels. Her love of paranormal stories, odd plots, and unique tales as well as C.S. Lewis, J.R.R. Tolkien, E.A.Poe, Neil Gaiman, Terry Pratchett, and Stephen King has deeply influenced her writing.
Titles: Mad World: Epidemic, Mad World: Sanctuary
See my 5 star review for Mad World: Epidemic
See my 5 star review for Mad World: Sanctuary
Connect with Samaire!
Facebook – https://www.facebook.com/samairep
Twitter – https://twitter.com/samaireherself
Goodreads – http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6453849.Samaire_Provost
Amazon author page – http://www.amazon.com/Samaire-Provost/e/B008PVTXMW
Amazon book page – http://www.amazon.com/Mad-World-Epidemic-1-ebook/dp/B008PO969O/
Blog – http://samaireprovost.tumblr.com/
Book Review: Shake Down the Stars by Renee Swindle
I received a copy of Shake Down the Stars by Renee Swindle in exchange for an honest review.
Summary:
When you’re in trouble and sinking fast, whom do you call?
Piper Nelson is stuck. She can’t quite stay away from the husband she divorced. She isn’t always attentive to the high school students she teaches. And even she admits that she’s been drinking too much and seeking out unsuitable men. Piper’s mother, married to a celebrity evangelist, and her sister, who’s immersed in plans to wed a professional football player and star in a reality TV show, are both too self-absorbed to sympathize with Piper’s angst. They tell her to get a grip. But how can Piper ever really recover from the blow she suffered five years ago, when a car accident took the life of her young daughter?
When Piper’s ex-husband announces that his new girlfriend is pregnant, Piper is forced to take stock. Realizing that it’s time for a change is one thing, but actually making it happen is quite another. And despite what she thinks, Piper can’t do it alone Lucky for her, a couple of crazy, funny new friends are ready to step in when she needs them most and show her how to live and laugh again.
Review:
Whew, this book is quite the read! When I first started reading I didn’t realize how deep and intense Piper’s journey would be. Losing her daughter in a car accident has clearly scarred her, her divorce from her husband took an emotional toll, and not being able to connect with her mother and sister really impacts her life. We see Piper turn to alcohol and men to fill the void, and the story only becomes more absorbing as it continues. It is easy to empathize with Piper, easy to see how she fell into such a self-destructive path, and it’s impossible not to cheer once she finally realizes how she has been destroying her life and works to make it better. The love interest is a great angle because he seems to be such an unlikely candidate (and unlikely love story really) and I thought that made the story even more fresh and relatable. One I highly recommend.
4 stars
Blog Tour Sign Up: The Mountain’s Shadow by Cecilia …
First it was ADD. Then pediatric bipolar. Now the hot behavioral disorder in children is CLS, or Chronic Lycanthropy Syndrome. Public health researcher Joanie Fisher was closing in on the cause in hopes of finding a treatment until a lab fire and an affair with her boss left her without a job.
When her grandfather leaves her his multimillion-dollar estate in the Ozarks, though, she figures her luck is turning around. Except her inheritance comes with complications: town children who disappear during full moons, an irresistible butler, and a pack of werewolves who can’t seem to decide whether to frighten her or flirt with her.
Joanie’s research is the key to unraveling the mysteries of Wolfsbane Manor. However, resuming her work means facing painful truths about her childhood, which could result in the loss of love, friendship, and the only true family she has left.
