Happy July!
Well, half of the year is officially over – what have I accomplished? Not a whole hell of a lot. lol I should feel bad about that but really, I SO don’t. 🙂
Let’s see, nothing much exciting happened in my neck of the woods last week. My new boss started TODAY. It was a pretty exhausting day just filled with information sharing and the grand tour and ya know, the info about where we keep shit. It was a good day so hopefully they will continue that way.
DFRAT is over! It was a great month and I loved participating in the Read-a-Thon. There are still giveaways going on, at least here at Tracy’s Place (I’m not sure about the other 3 blogs), so be sure and check those out if you’re interested. The ones that are still open are as follows:
Cathryn Cade is giving away 5 books! 1 copy of Tyger, Tyger, Burning Bryght, 1 copy of Her Commander, 1 copy of Prince of Dragons, 1 copy of Deep Indigo, 1 copy of Walking in Fire. (contest ends 7/2/12 at 7:00pm)
Leslie Dicken is giving away 1 book from her backlist (contest ends 7/3/12 at 7:00pm)
Nathan M. Farrugia is giving away 3 copies of The Chimera Vector (contests ends 7/4/12 at 7:00pm)
Yolanda Sfetsos is giving away 1 copy of A Patch of Darkness (contest ends 7/5/12 at 7:00pm)
On to what I read this past week:
My first book for the week was A Scandalous Affair by Karen Erickson. This story was about a woman who is immediately intrigued by a man that everyone thinks is a hardhearted bastard. The real truth is that he is hiding an embarrassing affliction and feels it’s just better to keep his mouth shut than to be thought a fool. Lady Pomeroy isn’t bothered by what other people say and since she’s a widow makes a move on the man she wants. It was a good story and I enjoyed it. I’ll be reviewing this later in the month. 3.75 out of 5
Next up was Lucky in Love by Jill Shalvis. I’m slowly making my way through the couples of Lucky Harbor and am thrilled to say that this one was just as good as I’d hoped it would be. The book gave us Mallory who is the town good girl and Ty who is in Lucky Harbor to recuperate after a knee injury. Ty has no plans on staying but that doesn’t stop Mallory from trying a few bad girl moves on him. Cute, fun, funny, sexy – just a very good book. 4.5 out of 5
Next was Crux by Moira Rogers. This is book 1 in the Southern Arcana series and it follows Mackenzie Brooks as she starts a new job. Her boss, Nicole, has a feeling she’s on the run so she enlists her best friend, Jackson Holt to follow her. He finds that Mackenzie is rolled up in a huge plan by a cougar shifter to make MORE cougar shifters in order to then take over ALL the shifter. The story has great paranormal elements and a great suspense story. I liked the book and will definitely be reading more in this series. 4 out of 5
The Only Gold by Tamara Allen is such a good book. Jonah is an assistant cashier back in 1888 and expects to be promoted to head cashier as he’s been doing the job for the past year. When he walks into work, however, he gets introduced to Reid who has been given the job of head cashier. Jonah is crushed and more than pissed when Reid starts changing things at the bank immediately without even knowing how they’ve ALWAYS done it. Jonah and Reid have a contentious relationship but that doesn’t stop Jonah from lusting after Reid. The men eventually get together but then Jonah uncovers a plot to rob the bank and Reid’s smack dab in the middle of it all. I just adore Tamara Allen’s writing. Since I read Downtime I’ve been hooked on her. I normally don’t like historical m/m stories but she is really exception to the rule as she’s such a great author. The book is definitely worth the read. I don’t want to tell you anything about the story as it definitely needs to unfold as your reading but it was so good. 4.5 out of 5
Another Lucky Harbor book was next – At Last by Jill Shalvis. This story was about Mallory’s friend Amy who is the town bad girl and Mallory is trying to give Amy tips on how to be a good girl as Mallory wants Amy and Ranger Matt Bowers to get together. I’ll be reviewing this later this week so keep your eyes open.
Rules of Engagement by LA Witt has Dustin Walker meeting Brandon Stewart in a bar while playing pool. Dustin has NEVER been attracted to a man before but he can’t help but be attracted to Brandon. The two start a relationship but Dustin still has his doubts about why he’s with a man – not Brandon – just a man in general. When his family finds out and all hell breaks loose Dustin can’t figure out which way is up. Unfortunately both men get hurt in the process. Good story – loved both guys but especially Brandon as he just seemed the stronger emotionally and his character just worked for me. The end felt a bit rushed but it was good overall. 4 out of 5
Rain by LA Witt is a novella follow up with Dustin and Brandon. This takes place two years later and deals with family members from both Dustin’s family and Brandon’s family who have alienated the men due to their sexual preferences. Some things get worked out – some don’t, but it was great catching up with the guys and seeing them in the future. 4 out of 5
Last for the week was a book I read for Book Binge called Missing Daughter, Shattered Family by Liz Strange. The story is about a private investigator who gets hired to find a missing girl. He uncovers a boatload of information and of course not all parties involved are thrilled at having that info uncovered. He also deals with his partner of 5 years who is still in the closet. The beginning was very slow for me but it all picked up and ended up being a good book. If you like your mystery/suspense with a little m/m romance involved this would be perfect for you. 3.75 out of 5
My Book Binge reviews that posted last week:
*crickets chirping*
Happy Reading!!
Yay for uneventful weeks! 😀
I have that Tamara Allen book… I should really get around to reading it. 🙂 I much enjoyed Rules of Engagement and its sequel – RoE was my introduction to LA Witt!
And I just finished the next book in the David Lloyd Investigations mysteries. 😀
@Tracy – uneventful weeks can be good. All the best with the new boss and him/her settling in!
I do like the sound of the LA Witt books…
@Chris – The Only Gold is amazing!
Chris – I know! They don't happen often so those uneventful ones are so wonderful. 🙂
The Allen is really good. I love her writing.
How did you like the 2nd David Lloyd novel?
Orannia – Well I've only spent 2 days with the new boss (a her btw) and it's been ok so far. It's been slow because of the holiday in the middle of the week so we'll see what happens when it's busy. I think it will be good then too. 🙂
The Witt books are good.