Goodbye to 2011...

I can't believe it has been a year since I've started my blog and frankly, find myself disappointed that I have not posted more reviews on books that I have read. I have conflicting numbers regarding the number of books I read this year. On Goodreads website it says 50 (half of what I originally challenged myself for), and the badge on my blog says 46. Go figure.

I saw Book Vixen's "Outdo Yourself Reading Challenge for 2012." I'm trying to see how many more books I can read than I did for 2011. These are the levels she has posted:

Getting my heart rate up – Read 1–5 more books
Out of breath – Read 6–10 more books
Breaking a sweat – Read 11–15 more books
I’m on fire! – Read 16+ more books


I think I'm going to give myself a realistic challenge and do the "Out of Breath" level. 6-10 more books is definitely a possibility for me this year. I will include audiobooks in my challenge, so definitely do-able for me. I'm not one for sweating or burning up - a little out of breath works for me! LOL!

Some future books I plan on reviewing are:

The Next Best Thing by Kristan Higgins
Lover Unleashed (BDB #9) by J.R. Ward
All Through the Night (Troubleshooters Series #12) by Suzanne Brockmann
It Happened One Autumn (Wallflower Series #2) by Lisa Kleypas
Nocturne by Syrie James
Chasing Fire by Nora Roberts
....and many more books!

Hope everyone has a safe and Happy New Year! May 2012 be the best year yet!

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Review: A Lot Like Love by Julie James

This was another great book by Julie James! I read it in a few days and couldn't put it down.

The story is about Jordan Rhodes and Nick McCall. Jordan is a wine store owner and Nick is a FBI agent. The FBI approaches Jordan to help them get one of their people in a charity event that is very exclusive and for only most of Chicago's "upper crust." Jordan is part of this crowd since her father is very rich and she's very well respected in her field. In exchange for Jordan's help, the FBI would offer releasing Jordan's twin brother from prison. He was in prison for apparently crashing Twitter after a big breakup with his girlfriend. Kyle (Jordan's brother) is a computer genius which was why he was able to crash Twitter.

Jordan agrees to this plan, and Nick, the FBI agent, who is very blue collar to Jordan's high-end upbringing, definitely feels the attraction to Jordan. Jordan is not the snooty socialite like Nick thought she would be.

Xander Eckhart, restaurant and business owner, is the person that the FBI is trying to find out more about as they suspect he is possibly working with the Chicago Mob. Xander is quite attracted to Jordan, and she finds out how unsavory he really is.

Jordan and Nick's relationship is so enjoyable to read and every scene between these two seems to bring smoke from the pages!

I highly recommend this book and to give Julie James a read if you haven't already. She's definitely one of my favorite authors!

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Review: A Vintage Affair by Isabel Wolff

Wow - can't believe how long it's been since my last review! Without further adieu, here is a review on a great book that I read a few months ago that I highly recommend!

I love all things fashion and to be honest, the book cover is what peaked my interest. Then when I read a description of what the book was about, I thought I'd give it a read. The story proved to be not only a great story about love and friendship, but it also gave quite a bit of insight to vintage fashion.

Phoebe Swift opens her own vintage clothing shop after deciding to quit her job with Sotheby's. Geared with the knowledge of all things vintage, her vintage shop opens with mild interest from people around town. The day of her opening, she is interviewed by a reporter who runs the story about her vintage shop and that sparks interest from Mrs. Bell, an elderly woman who wants to sell Phoebe her vintage clothing. Mrs. Bell is interested in selling everything but a blue coat that she seems very possessive of. Mrs. Bell then tells Phoebe what the history of the blue coat is and why it is so important to her.

Phoebe also has a relationship with a man who has a spoiled teenage daughter. It's interesting to see where the relationship goes after a few of their dates and an encounter Phoebe has with his daughter.

Lastly, throughout the story, we are left to wonder the cause of Phoebe's best friend death, and her subsequent broken engagement with her fiancee. Her relationship with her divorced folks is another interesting aspect of the story.

This book was very well written and had me enthralled from beginning to end. If you're into vintage fashion, and love a good story about love and friendship, you will want to read this book!

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Review: A Shore Thing by Nicole "Snooki" Polizzi

Hmmmm...what to say? I am one of those people who started watching Jersey Shore because of all the hype. I got hooked because it was like watching a bad accident. You know you shouldn't watch, but you can't look away. In a way, that is what this book was like for me. I have heard that even though Snooki is listed as the author, someone else actually wrote most of this book. True or not, for me, this book was like reading an episode of Jersey Shore instead of watching it.

I won't go into detail about this book. If you like Jersey Shore, you'll like this book. If not, then you will hate it. It was an entertaining read but not sure I would read another book by Snooki or anything Jersey Shore-related. Just saying...

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Review: Secrets of a Summer Night (Wallflower Series #1) by Lisa Kleypas

I have not read a historical romance in quite some time. Not usually my cup of tea, but I have read contemporary romance stories written by Lisa Kleypas (Sugar Daddy, Blue-Eyed Devil, Smooth Talking Stranger) and thoroughly enjoyed those books. They are what I would call a series since most of the characters in the story repeat themselves in either future books or past books. With that being said, I thought I would give a historical romance a try written by Ms Kleypas and I wasn't disappointed!

Secrets of a Summer Night is book #1 of the Wallflower series. The book is about Annabelle Peyton and Simon Hunt. Annabelle is a beautiful young lady whose family is experiencing financial struggles since Annabelle's father is no longer alive. She gives the pretense that her family is still well-to-do but quite a few people can tell due to her clothes that are looking a little threadbare and a few other clues. Simon enters the picture almost immediately and is instantly attracted to Annabelle and starts pursuing her immediately. Since Simon doesn't come from "old money" he is considered a commoner to London society even though he is a wealthy and successful entrepreneur. Then there are the wallflowers. Two American heiresses who are outcasts because they are American, a stuttering English heiress, and of course, Annabelle. I love the interaction between the wallflowers. It adds another dimension to the story besides that of the relationship between Annabelle and Simon. Simon proves to be a very worthy mate for Annabelle (after much debating, arguing and chasing on Simon's part), and the love scenes between these two hold nothing back. Pretty steamy!

I look forward to reading the next book in the Wallflower Series. If the next book is as interesting as this one, I'll start giving historical romance a try again!

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Review: Healing Luke by Beth Cornelison

After reading a previous book by Beth Cornelison, Under Fire, I knew I had to check out some of her other books. Ms Cornelison has written some contemporary fiction as well as category romance books, and quite frankly, can't understand why we haven't heard more from this talented author. The plots are very original and I love the dialogue between the main characters as well as the secondary characters in her books. This book, Healing Luke, was no exception!

Luke Morgan, who was once a ladies' man, survives a horrific boating accident where he loses an eye, a thumb and has numerous scars (physical and emotional). Enter Abby Stanford, a physical therapist on vacation (actually her honeymoon...she was jilted by her finance) where Luke's father asks for Abby's help once he knows what her occupation is, and also notices how Luke seems to respond to Abby. Luke is under the assumption that his dad hired Abby to help out with the boating business they own. Once he finds out she is actually there to work with him, he is at once infuriated, but then mellows as Abby's therapy and their attraction for each other comes to light.

I enjoyed this story about Abby & Luke. As a therapist, Abby shows so much patience with Luke, and as a man, Luke shows Abby that she can love again.

I'll definitely be looking out for more books by the talented Ms Cornelison! She's a great storyteller!

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Review: Kiss and Tell (Sunrise Key Trilogy #1) by Suzanne Brockmann

I never got around to reading this Suzanne Brockmann book when it was first published in 1996 as a Loveswept category romance. I did finally take the opportunity to read Kiss and Tell (Book 1 in the Sunrise Key Trilogy) and thought it only okay.

The book's heroine, Leila Hunt who is an accountant from New York, comes home to Sunrise Key for a much needed vacation to visit her brother. Marshall Devlin, the hero in the book, is a doctor and also happens to be Lelia's brother's best friend and has always bucked heads with Leila, but in reality, has always had a crush on her. When Leila's brother hosts a New Year's Eve party, Leila gets a bone-melting kiss from a ninja (did I say this was also a costume party?) when the clock strikes midnight then has to promptly leave. Since she has no idea who this mystery man is, she makes it her task to find the man who gave her that wonderful kiss that she couldn't forget. It's a little hard to do since she seems to know almost every man on the island!

I have to say, sometimes these category romance books drive me crazy! Can someone who is supposedly as smart as Leila really not realize who would have given her that kiss? Knowing that the man who she thought she could never consider was actually her masked ninja?

I'm glad Suzanne Brockmann moved the greener pastures and decided to write romantic suspense with her Troubleshooter series. Those books are definitely more enjoyable!

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