Here’s what I read from January 1, 2007 to December 31, 2007, organized by category and mostly alphabetical by author within category.
Non-Fiction, General:
A Perfect Mess, Eric Abrahamson and David H. Freedman
I liked this one so much, I wrote a whole entry inspired by it.
Fun Home, Aliison Bechdel (BC)
I liked this graphic autobiography a lot. It was funny and touching and real.
Kitchen Confidential, Anthony Bourdain
I keep reading books about chefs when I am no cook and don’t aspire to be one because they take me out of my world and into someone else’s. This one did that nicely.
The Mythical Man-Month, Frederick P. Brooks
Since one of the later chapters in this anniversary edition summarizes the original chapters point by point, I think I could have gotten almost as much out of this by just reading the last three or four chapters as the whole thing. I’d hoped I might learn something I could apply to my job but can’t say that I did, other than getting a warm fuzzy that we mostly do it right at Purple Systems. This is more a historical document, from a time when all programmers were men and batch processing was the rule. I’m glad that time has passed.
The Year of Magical Thinking, Joan Didion
I resisted reading this, in fact checked it out from the library and returned it unopened earlier this year. I try to avoid tragedy in my leisure time, and how could a book about a woman’s husband of 40 years dying as their only child was critically ill not be tragic? I checked it out again and figured I’d at least start it this time. It took a chapter or two for me to engage with the book but once I did I was hooked. The events are tragic, yes, but the book isn’t. I found it beautiful.
The Writing Life, Annie Dillard
I liked this best when she told stories, least when she got into metaphor (maybe I just didn’t grasp what she was going for). I don’t think I learned much about writing, which is okay since I don’t plan to be a writer.
Eat, Pray, Love, Elizabeth Gilbert
Now that I’ve read it, I can see why this is so popular. I got some good laughs and a couple of ideas to ponder, though I didn’t find the author an entirely sympathetic character.
The Awakening of a Surgeon, David H. Janda
I got the impression that the author is a decent, earnest guy. I’m sure he’s a good doctor, and a caring father and husband. None of that makes me want to read any more of his books, though. Maybe I’m too cynical (or too child-free) to get stirred up about some of the issues he raised. Whole chapters read like an award acceptance speech rather than containing information that might make me think.
The Family That Couldn’t Sleep, D. T. Max
This book about prions was interesting and a little scary.
My Secret Life on the McJob, Jerry Newman
The closest I’ve come to working fast food was staffing the concession stand at my brother’s Little League game one day, so I read this mostly to get a view of what goes on behind the scenes. I got that. I was annoyed by the way some anecdotes were put in boxes out of the main flow of the text (some spread across two pages); it seemed those could have been integrated into the text without a problem.
Blood Makes the Grass Grow Green, Johnny Rico
I picked this up because I was curious to see what an infantry soldier had to say about serving in Afghanistan. I felt like I got a sense of what it was like to be there.
A Three Dog Life, Abigail Thomas
I didn’t realize when I picked this up that I’d already read bits of it in O magazine. I almost put it back down when I read the blurbs on the cover—a memoir by a woman whose husband had a traumatic brain injury, described as “a punch to the heart”? That seems a bit depressing. But I liked it.
About Alice, Calvin Trillin
A sweet little book that made me cry at the end.
Non-Fiction, Crafting:
Knitticisms, Kari A. Cornell
A wee little book with a few essays on knitting interspersed with many colorful and mockable pictures from knitting books past. Fun and fast.
Mason-Dixon Knitting, Kay Gardiner & Ann Shayne
I zipped through this the same day I checked it out of the library. It’s chatty and fun and some of the patterns are pretty enticing. (I later bought my own copy.)
At Knit’s End: Meditations for Women Who Knit Too Much, Stephanie Pearl-McPhee
This is best read in small doses, lest the little bites of observations start to blur together.
Stephanie Pearl-McPhee Casts Off, Stephanie Pearl-McPhee
I didn’t like this as well as her Knitting Rules!; it’s not the kind of book I see myself revisiting anytime soon, though I did like the section about gauge swatches. Some of the pages were hard to read: dark olive background, anyone? how about small handwriting set at an angle with shadows to simulate folds in the paper? I spend enough time squinting at my knitting; I don’t need knitting books that make me do the same.
Knit Lit the Third, Linda Roghaar and Molly Wolf, editors
If they do a fourth one, I’d appreciate it if they left out the stories that make me cry. I guess I’m saying it wasn’t fluffy enough for me, but it’s a knitting book—fluffy would not be out of place.
Fiction, General:
The Cat Who Dropped a Bombshell, Lilian Jackson Braun, read by George Guidall (A)
I really need to stop reading these books now that the author-bot has taken over writing the series. The main character can’t be bothered to actually investigate murders anymore, but just waits to get a letter from a friend of a friend explaining who done it and when and how. No letter, the murder goes unsolved. Despite the very short length, lots of points got repeated, and not even important ones.
Murder Unprompted, Simon Brett, read by Simon Prebble (A)
For a murder mystery, I thought it took rather a long time for someone to turn up dead, but the way things unfolded after someone did was pretty satisfying so I guess that’s alright.
The Brief History of the Dead, Kevin Brockmeier, read by Richard Poe (A)
I loved the premise of this but didn’t love how it played out. I really wished for more explanation of one of the settings, or at least an acknowledgement that things didn’t make sense there. A couple of the sections were quite tedious; perhaps this was intentional but if so I think the point could have been made another way. Still, I didn’t hate it, and it gave me stuff to think about, so on balance I’m glad I read it.
Alice Alone, Amanda Brookfield, read by Gerri Halligan (A)
I was so disappointed in the main character. I kept listening because I kept hoping the story was going to end up in a good place (the main character thought it did but I do not agree with her).
The Perks of Being a Wallflower, Stephen Chbosky
I hate to use my age as an excuse, but I think I might be too old for this book. If I’d read it even ten years ago, the big reveal might have resonated more. It wasn’t a bad book, not at all, just not one I found myself racing through or wanting to read again.
The Good Nanny, Benjamin Cheever, read by George Wilson
I wish I’d given up on this book early on, when the female half of the couple got hysterical for no good reason. That way I wouldn’t have been around at the end when the male half did the same damn thing, to even more appalling result. Bah.
For Matrimonial Purposes, Kavita Daswani, read by Anne Flosnik (A)
I keep forgetting that I hate these Brilliance Audios with the special effects for phone conversations; it’s very distracting. At least there weren’t many in this book. I found the heroine rather pathetic, and because most of this is told in flashback, it’s clear when things aren’t going to work out well for her so there was a real lack of surprises.
Then We Came to the End, Joshua Ferris
At first, I found this a bit annoying—all the “we” this and “we” that. Then I got sucked in and started to feel part of the world it’s set in. Then something happened that pissed me off and I didn’t like it again, except it turned out that what I thought was happening wasn’t and I calmed down. It felt real–I have worked in office where people count the ceiling tiles to see whose space is bigger, for instance—with a touch of crazy. After I finished I read some reviews in which people complained it wasn’t funny; it is funny, in spots, but it’s dark humor.
Play to the End, Robert Goddard, read by Gordon Griffin (A)
Much of the plot was frustrating and tedious. I understand there wouldn’t be much of a book if the characters called the police instead of doing their own investigation but I really wished they’d had better reasons for not doing so. Near the end, I got so angry with the stupid stuff the main character did I could barely stand it but hung in hoping it would somehow be explained so it all made sense. It was not. Quite a bummer, this one.
Grave Sight, Charlaine Harris, read by Alyssa Bresnahan (A)
I liked the premise of a young woman with a special talent for finding dead bodies (and listening to ones that aren’t lost). I wish the premise had been used in a better plot. The wrap up of who did what and why was very unsatisfying. That many people got killed because of that? Really?
murder@maggody.com, Joan Hess, read by C. J. Critt (A)
I’m surprised I managed to finish this. The main characters ignorance about computers and the internet was really, really hard to swallow. This woman had lived in Manhattan! Surely they had computers in Manhattan in the late 1990s (the book was published in 2000). And the explanation for something that was going on with people’s e-mail made no sense, either. I did get a couple of laughs out of it, though.
Two-Faced Death, Roderick Jeffries, read by Patrick Tull
I had some trouble keeping a few of the characters separate in my head—one English couple living in Majorca seemed quite like the other—and was a bit impatient for the death to happen so things could start moving along. I liked that didn’t see the ending coming, and I don’t just mean the whodunit part.
Angels, Marian Keyes, read by Gerri Halligan (A)
I picked this up at the library because I recognized the author from a collection of nonfiction essays I’d listened to last year. I sometimes got distracted by the narrator’s rendering of American accents, and some of the characters did things I wasn’t thrilled with, but overall I liked it enough to finish it.
Anybody Out There?, Marian Keyes, read by Terry Donnelly (A)
The first third of this was so gloomy that I almost gave up. It was obvious that something bad had happened, something worse than what was being talked about, and I hated that feeling of something lurking and casting a pall. But I’m glad I persevered, as I got some really good laughs out of the latter part of the book. The accents from this reader were not distracting like the narrator for the last Marian Keyes I listened to, so that was nice.
The Art of Detection, Laurie R. King, read by Alyssa Bresnahan and Robert Ian Mackenzie
I liked this a lot. There’s a story within the story and often I don’t appreciate having the main narrative interrupted like that, but here it worked because the other story was interesting. I appreciated that the cast of characters was inclusive.
The Pleasing Hour, Lily King, read by Suzanne Toren (A)
I’m ambivalent about the main character but really liked one of the secondary characters and wished for more of her. It sort of felt like two books jammed into one—the contemporary story and the generation’s before. This didn’t so much end as trail off.
The History of Love, Nicole Krauss
I really, really liked it. Not quite loved, because of the mother, but really, really liked.
The God of Animals, Aryn Kyle, read by Lillian Rabe (A)
Mostly, this made me sad. Sad for the people and really sad for the horses.
The Hot Kid, Elmore Leonard, read by Arliss Howard (A)
This reminded me of a comic book, but not in a bad way. I could see the main character as a romance novel hero, too.
Darkly Dreaming Dexter, Jeffry Lindsay, read by Nick Landrum (A)
This started out creepy and stayed that way ’til the end, though there was a lot of humor for a book about a sociopath. I’m still not sure exactly what happened between the climactic scene and the epilogue.
Love Life, Bobbie Ann Mason
I pulled this off my “to be read” pile after I got back from the AQS show and was tickled when the first story involved quilts and the second mentioned Paducah (later ones did, too). Overall, though, this collection seemed very melancholy. There were a couple stories I really liked, but I had to take this book in small doses because larger ones brought me down.
The Fandom of the Operatorbert Rankin, read by the author (A)
This was an odd one. I liked it, but felt vaguely troubled by it. The main character wasn’t who I thought he was, but by the time that was clear, I liked him too much to stop listening.
The Westing Game, Ellen Raskin (BC)
This is a child’s book best read when one is a child. I couldn’t find a sympathetic character in the bunch, perhaps because I am old enough to find precocious ten year olds who kick people annoying. The mystery was okay, but I never got curious enough to try and figure it out myself.
Harry Potter & the Sorcerer’s Stone, J. K. Rowling (RR)
Like so many other people, I’m trying to re-read the first six Harry Potters before the last one comes out this summer. I only listened to the first five, so this time I’m doing it the old-fashioned way: on paper. Biggest surprise: Ron’s Weasley sweater didn’t have his initial on it.
Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, J. K. Rowling (RR)
No surprises here, other than I didn’t realize how well I knew this book.
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, J. K. Rowling (RR)
Hate the rat. Hate ‘im.
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, J. K. Rowling (RR)
Despite the major plot problem, this is still my favorite Harry Potter book.
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, J. K. Rowling (RR)
It took me approximately five times longer to re-read this Harry Potter than any of the earlier ones, not so much because it’s so long but because I hate it so much. All the angst, all the shouting, all the bad (and stupid) stuff going on–bah.
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, J. K. Rowling (RR)
After OotP, it was a relief to sink into this one.
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, J. K. Rowling
While I wished some things had been different, overall I’m pleased with how things turned out.
Fiction, Paranormal:
The Turning, Jennifer Armintrout
I can’t remember why I bought this first book in a new to me vampire series. I wish I did remember, because I then I could stop choosing books that way. There was too much blood and gore and too many innocent victims for my taste. I know, I know—I should expect that of vampires, but I’ve gotten used to reading vamp books that aren’t so graphic (or, if graphic, go over the top enough that I can view them as a comic book and not get squicked out). I kept reading hoping there’d be a twist at the end to redeem things or at least make me want to give the series another try, but I didn’t find that.
Full Moon Rising, Keri Arthur
This should have been right up my alley–vampires and werewolves and sexin’, oh my–but it didn’t quite click for me. I think a little more world building and a little less peril would have helped, but I’m not sure. This may not be the world for me, with the moon fever and the auras and the bloodlust. I’ll probably give the second book in this series a try before I decide.
A Hunger Like No Other, Kresley Cole
A few chapters in, I was thinking this was not a series for me, what with the hero pursuing the heroine because he scented her as his fated eternal life mate and most of the vampires being of the red-eyed evil variety, but then I got sucked in. The hero was doing his best to temper his alpha-ness (not easy for a werewolf), there were some kick ass women warriors, there were some hot if sometimes frustrating sex scenes, and the two things that bothered me early were addressed later, so now I’m on board. Bring on the Valkyries and Lykae!
No Rest for the Wicked, Kresley Cole
Oh lord, we’ve got time travel. Fortunately not much of it, but still, I’m not a big fan of time travel. I think this book could have been just as effective without it. I loved the hero in this one, the heroine less so.
Wicked Deeds on a Winter’s Night, Kresley Cole
I liked this third installment in the series as much as the first one, even though there were hardly any vampires in it at all, probably because the heroine could really hold her own. Yes, there was a bit too much drama at times, but that fits with the genre.
Playing Easy to Get, Sherrilyn Kenyon, Jaid Black, and Kresley Cole
I got this because of the story by Kresley Cole which features two of the secondary characters from A Hunger Like No Other, and that story was my favorite of the three in this collection. Kenyon’s tale was my least favorite, with an oddly paced plot and a heroine whose transformation from meek to aggressive made no sense. Jaid Black’s story was forgettable, but I do recall that I didn’t care for key parts of the premise.
Sleeping with the Fishes, MaryJanice Davidson
I picked this up at the airport because I recognized the author from the Undead series and figured this would be some nice light vacation reading. It was. It’s also evidently the first book in a new series (about a mermaid), which means it’s rather unsatisfying as a stand alone read, as a major question is left unresolved. The copy I have contains an excerpt from the next Undead book that didn’t exactly make me pant with anticipation, which is too bad.
Undead and Uneasy, MaryJanice Davidson
Not good. There’s a spoiler in the acknowledgements and another (less specific, though about a more important plot point) in the letter to readers, both of which come before the text. I expect to find spoilers in Amazon reviews but not in prefaces in the actual book. Color me disappointed before I even really got started. I remain disappointed now that I’ve finished. There’s way too much Betsy in this. I know she’s the main character in the series, but she tends to be annoying, shallow, whining, self-centered, and stupid; she needs to be balanced by the characters that are not, and they’re not much in evidence. Some werewolves do show up, and I got the impression that I would have enjoyed their parts more if I’d read Derik’s Bane, but I have not. Also, like the last book, this one is not hot, which means I definitely won’t be buying my own copy when it comes out in paperback.
Night Life, Elizabeth Guest
The author obviously researched ancient Egypt; I would have liked the book better if that information had been less obviously presented. Maybe the problem is my lack of experience with experts in the field; perhaps Egyptologists do go around saying things like “… take the five elements of his existence from him: his akh, his ba, his ka, his name, and his shadow.” I was not happy with the vampire aspects of this world, either; there was too much repetition of the phrase “Eater of Blood and Breaker of Bones” and not enough explanation of how these creatures came to be and why there were no good alternatives to them being evil monsters.
Best New Paranormal Romance, Paula Guran, editor
Like most anthologies, this one was uneven. I thought some of the stories were more sci fi than paranormal (though I liked a couple of those ones quite a lot), and some were not at all romantic, and the one involving an Iraq war veteran started out entirely too realistic for my taste. But there were a few that have stuck with me, so I’d say it was worth it to read this.
All Together Dead, Charlaine Harris
I was happy that this seventh book in the Southern Vampire Mysteries series had more Eric in it (I really like Eric) than the last one did but was troubled by how dark it was, darker than the last book even. Real news events are intruding on this fictional world, and I mostly don’t like it. I’m hoping for happier times in the next book.
Night’s Edge, Maggie Shayne, Barbara Hambly, Charlaine Harris
I bought this for the Charlaine Harris vampire tale, which I enjoyed. The other two stories are ghost stories; both had similar plots and I didn’t really care for either one. For whatever reason, I have an easier time suspending disbelief for vampires than for a ghosts.
The Good, the Bad, and the Undead, Kim Harrison
Second in the series. I read the first some time ago so was fuzzy on the details of this world. There’s a lot going on, so much that I had to read this in small chunks. I finished feeling confused about whether the author wanted me to feel sympathetic toward a couple of the bad guys. The heroine sure doesn’t like them, but I don’t share her feelings even though the book is told in the first person.
Hot Blooded, Christine Feehan, Maggie Shayne, Emma Holly, and Angela Knight
The Feehan story confirmed my feelings that Carpathians are not for me. The Maggie Shayne werewolf tale had some good points but also some cringe-worthy stereotypes. Emma Holly’s upyr story was my favorite of the bunch, despite a credulity-stretched-to-the-breaking-point first encounter between the hero and heroine. Angela Knight’s contribution had some eye-rollingly annoying aspects but a very interesting premise; I want to see what else she’s written.
Fantasy, Christine Feehan, Emma Holly, Sabrina Jeffries, and Elda Minger
A collection of four romantic novellas. The historical by Sabrina Jeffries was fun. The vampire tale by Emma Holly was the reason I bought this book, as I like Emma Holly and I like vampires; I liked the story though I don’t understand why the solution to the heroine’s problem works. The contemporary by Elda Minger was okay but I wished for something hotter and less formulaic. The shapeshifting paranormal by Christine Feehan was my least favorite, as it seemed to have too much explanation and not enough romance.
Twilight, Stephenie Meyer
I loved this vampire novel even though I’m a couple-three decades older than its young adult target market. Yes, it had flaws, but I got so caught up in this fictional world that I barely noticed them. No sooner had I finished than I went back to re-read my favorite sections.
New Moon, Stephenie Meyer
This is the sequel to Twilight, the YA vampire novel I liked so much. When it became clear that this book was going to have much less vampire content than the first, I was worried I wouldn’t enjoy it as much. In fact, I liked one of the non-vamp characters so much I was sad when he got shunted aside when the first person narrator stopped hanging out with him. Reading this was like sinking into a comforting alternate reality, which is odd, because a lot of what goes on is far from warm and fuzzy. It does suffer from a touch of second act syndrome, where things are left open for the third book, but that didn’t bother me too much since I’m already on the hold list for that book and it comes out next week.
Eclipse, Stephenie Meyer
Third in the series, and I didn’t get as good a feeling from it as the first two. I spent a big chunk of the book not nearly as in love with the hero as the heroine is and not seeing how that relationship was going to work out long term. One of my main concerns was later mentioned but not exactly addressed to my satisfaction. I’m disappointed that the heroine didn’t make the choice I think I would faced with her situation and feel really bad for one of the secondary characters. I guess that means it’s a good book, since I care about what happens to these people.
Dead End Dating, Kimberly Raye
I heard about this one and thought, “hey a humorous vamp series I haven’t tried–yay!” I started reading and thought, “this chick is more annoying than Betsy (of the Undead series)–yuck!” I liked it somewhat better as the chapters unfolded (though I’m still not overly fond of Lil, the heroine, who seems really immature for being 500 years old), but when I finished, I felt let down. This book is a big tease, with lots of talk and almost no action.
Bite Me If You Can, Lynsay Sands
This is the latest in the Argeneau vampire series, and I think it’s my favorite. It did have a few episodes that made me impatient–the family meddling, the amount of time spent on the dog with garbage bag incident–and the character motivations were a bit pat and over-explained, but I liked the hero and heroine and the overall plot and enjoyed their story.
Slave to Sensation, Nalini Singh
I bought this one because Bam liked it, and she did not steer me wrong. This is a paranormal with no vampires whatsoever, yet I still loved it. The world building is there, but it’s woven into the story so well I never felt my eyes glaze over. I can’t think of any particularly stupid things done by the characters in service of the plot; perhaps those elements were there but I overlooked them because I was so into the book. I even cried a time or two (though that may have been because I was reading at five a.m. thanks to a bout of insomnia).
Visions of Heat, Nalini Singh
Second in her Psy-Changeling series. This one didn’t grab me quite as hard as the first one, probably because the world was not new to me so I didn’t get that extra boost of novelty. Still, since I loved the first one, I liked the one quite a lot on the overall scale. I found I enjoyed the non-romance parts of the plot quite a bit and have a lot of hope for this series.
Caressed by Ice, Nalini Singh
Third in the series. I liked it enough to read it quickly. I did have some problems with it, though. It felt like there was too much going on that distracted from the main plot, and the central romance was too troubled for my taste. Give me a damaged hero or a damaged heroine, but not both; that’s too much like real life.
An Enchanted Season, Maggie Shayne, Erin McCarthy, Nalini Singh, and Jean Johnson
This book is like a cup of hot chocolate, warm and sweet. I was hoping for something a little spicier. The best of the stories was from Nalini Singh, but it was not as hot as her novels set in the same world, and the hero was a bit too stubborn to be believed. My least favorite was Maggie Shayne’s tale; I was so distracted by plot points not making sense that I never connected with any of the characters. Erin McCarthy’s tale of witches was better, but the heroine was way too passive for my taste. Jean Johnson’s story got a bit preachy.
Lover Revealed, J. R. Ward
The fourth installment in the Black Dagger Brotherhood series. I’m sad that this one (like the one before) didn’t grab me the way the first two did. My main problem was character transformations that didn’t make sense. Sure, they were convenient for the plot of this book but didn’t fit what I’d come to know of those characters and the world they inhabit and weren’t explained so I could readily accept them. I do wonder how much my reaction to these later books has been colored by the bad experience I had at the author’s forum (which I found after reading the second book). Would I like these recent books more if there weren’t a link in my head between the Brotherhood and that awful board? I still like them enough to read them, silly names and annoying slang (“compy” for computer? rilly?) and brand name dropping and all, but I miss the buzz I got from the first two.
Lover Unbound, J. R. Ward
Fifth in the Black Dagger Brotherhood series and my least favorite so far. On the plus side, there was mercifully little about the bad guys in this one; those sections have always dragged for me in previous installments. On the minus side, there’s at least one subplot too many, the heroine’s voice didn’t ring true, the hero’s transformation was entirely too quick, the product placements are getting really annoying, and I am so unsatisfied with the ending I think I need to go back and re-read the first book to try and recapture some of my previous love for this series.
Fiction, Historicals and Other Romances:
My Lady Notorious, Jo Beverly
Far fetched (yeah, I know that’s something coming from the chick who reads vamp books) but mostly enjoyable. I could have done without the historical exposition but I guess it was needed for the plot.
Tempting Fortune, Jo Beverley
Second in the Malloren series. I didn’t like it as well as the first one. The heroine gets more annoying as the book goes on. I never got why the hero was so into her.
Strange Attractions, Emma Holly
My first venture into erotic fiction, and thus my first opportunity to ask myself questions while reading like “what happened to the remote control vibrator thingy he had up his butt in the last chapter?” There were parts that made me say “oh, please” and roll my eyes, but there were plenty of other parts that made me say “oh, please, more please”. I liked that the heroine had a lot of control over who and what and when. I really liked the author’s bio at the back, which said she thinks if you’re breathing hard you’re running fast—a woman after my own heart there.
The Golden Leopard, Lynn Kerstan
I picked this up when the library had put most of the romances in boxes while the area where they’re usually shelved was being painted; this was at the top of a box and the rest of the trilogy it starts was there too, so I grabbed them all. I don’t think I’ll be reading the other two, at least not right now. I didn’t hate this, not by a long shot, but it took a while to get going.
Someone to Watch Over Me, Lisa Kleypas
With this book, I feel like a crossed a line. It’s a historical romance, a Regency at that. No longer am I limiting myself to vampires or even paranormal romances. I’m a bit worried about what this means. It’s Bam’s fault, really; I bought this because she gave it an A. I shouldn’t have enjoyed this as much as I did. It’s chock full of romance clichés, including an amnesiac heroine, and I was able to guess at much of the plot from very early on, but I wanted to keep reading.
Lady Sophia’s Lover, Lisa Kleypas
I liked Someone to Watch Over Me so much that I sought out this sequel (there’s also a third one, and I’ve got my name on the hold list at the library for that, too). This one was better. I don’t believe the characters belong in the time period they’re plopped down in, but that doesn’t bother me; I’m not reading for the history but for the sizzle, and there was plenty of that, with a minimum of too stupid to live moments on the part of the heroine.
Suddenly You, Lisa Kleypas
While waiting for my name to come up on the hold list for the third in the Bow Street Runners series, I picked up this other Kleypas historical romance. As with the others, it engaged me despite myself. Also, hot, with a refreshing lack of peril.
Worth Any Price, Lisa Kleypas
When late in the book the heroine reassured herself that no one could have seen a certain plot twist coming, I just had to laugh. Honey, I saw it coming chapters and chapters ago. But I don’t read romance novels to be surprised, so that’s okay.
Dreaming of You, Lisa Kleypas
I think I need a break from Ms. Kleypas after this one, which had too much angst for my taste (plus a plot detour and some late, unnecessary peril). And the last love scene? Not my cup of tea at all.
Then Came You, Lisa Kleypas
Back to Lisa Kleypas after a break and darned if she didn’t suck me right back in. Sure, there were parts of this which stretched believability, and there was no doubt about how it would end (I already read the sequel, not that I had to to know) yet I go so involved I brought it to work to read during lunch.
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