Waiting On Wednesday(05/18/11)

Word has leaked to Anita Blake that hit men are headed for St. Louis- and that she, Jean-Claude, and Richard are the targets.

Publishing Details

Publisher: Penguin Group (USA) Incorporated

Date: June 07, 2011

ISBN13: 9780425241134

ISBN: 0425241130

BINC: 3266068





I know that I've said that I have issues (and skipping) most of the s-e-x scenes the later books have had. I've heard that Hit List is close to LKH's earlier writing (but with the sex included). So, I look forward to reading Hit List and seeing for myself if the reviews I've read hold true!

Audiobooks...do you listen?

Recently, I've began listening to audiobooks. I've tried on various occasions, but always found them hard to follow for some reason. A month ago, I bought a bike and thought I would get a book on CD from the library and listen while I ride. It's FABULOUS! I love listening to someone read the book! I listen while I clean house, garden and of course ride my bike! In the last month, I've listened to Halfway To The Grave, Naked In Death, Glory In Death and I just finished Ceremony In Death! (I know, I've already read these books!) I'm addicted, I think! So my questions to you... do YOU listen to audiobooks? Do you count it as 'reading' a book?

Teaser Tuesday (05/17/11)

Teaser Tuesday is weekly meme hosted by Miz B of Should Be Reading! It's a great way to check out what your fellow bloggers are reading. Anyone can play! Here are the rules:

• Grab your current read
• Open to a random page
• Share two (2) "teaser" sentences from the page. PLEASE DON'T INCLUDE SPOILERS!
• Share the author and title of the book so that others can add it to their TBR list if they want.

my teaser~

Relaxed Ra.ul was a whole different guy. Like somebody you'd want to go bowling with, because between frames you knew he'd have you rolling with stories about when he and his buddies had once hung a gigantic sign lined with old-lady bloomers from the high school roof that said NOW WE KNOW WHY NOBODY BAKES LIKE GRANDMA!

Bitten In Two by Jennifer Rardin
page 79

In My Mailbox05/15/11

audiobooks from the library~
Glory In Death by J.D. Robb
The first victim was found lying on a sidewalk in the rain. The second was murdered in her own apartment building. Police Lieutenant Eve Dallas had no problem finding connections between the two crimes. Both victims were beautiful and highly successful women. Their glamorous lives and loves were the talk of the city. And their intimate relations with men of great power and wealth provided Eve with a long list of suspects--including her own lover, Roarke. As a woman, Eve was compelled to trust the man who shared her bed. But as a cop, it was her job to follow every lead...to explore every secret passion, no matter how dark. Or how dangerous.

Immortal In Death by J.D. Robb

It is 2058, New York City. Lieutenant Eve Dallas uncovers a world where technology can create beauty and youth, but passion and greed can destroy them.She was one of the most sought-after women in the world. A top model who would stop at nothing to get what she wanted -even another woman's man. And now she's dead, the victim of a brutal murder.Police lieutenant Eve Dallas puts her life on the line to take the case when suspicion falls on her best friend, the other woman in the fatal love triangle. Beneath the facade of glamor, Eve finds that the world of high fashion thrives on an all-consuming obsession with youth and fame-one that leads her from the lights of the runway to the dark underworld of New York City, where drugs can fulfill any desire, for a price
Rapture In Death by J.D. Robb
When the autopsies of three suspicious suicides reveal small burns on the brains of the victims, Eve's investigation turns to the provocative world of virtual reality games--where the same techniques used to create joy and desire could also prompt the mind to become the weapon of its own destruction.

Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater
the cold.
Grace has spent years watching the wolves in the woods behind her house. One yellow-eyed wolf—her wolf—watches back. He feels deeply familiar to her, but she doesn't know why.
the heat.
Sam has lived two lives. As a wolf, he keeps the silent company of the girl he loves. And then, for a short time each year, he is human, never daring to talk to Grace...until now.
the shiver.
For Grace and Sam, love has always been kept at a distance. But once it's spoken, it cannot be denied. Sam must fight to stay human—and Grace must fight to keep him—even if it means taking on the scars of the past, the fragility of the present, and the impossibility of the future.

Lover Enshrined by J.R. Ward
Fiercely loyal to the Black Dagger Brotherhood, Phury has sacrificed himself for the good of the race, becoming the male responsible for keeping the Brotherhood's bloodlines alive. As Primale of the Chosen, he is obligated to father the sons and daughters who will ensure that the traditions of the race survive, and that there are warriors to fight those who want all vampires extinguished. As his first mate, the Chosen Cormia wants to win not only his body, but his heart for herself. She is drawn to the noble responsibility behind the emotionally scarred male. But Phury has never allowed himself to know pleasure or joy. As the war with the Lessening Society grows grim, tragedy looms over the Brotherhood's mansion, and Phury must decide between duty and love....

reviews

Termination Orders: Code Name Cobra

posts

Teaser Tuesday

Waiting On Wednesday

my week

Oh my! The weather this week has been FABULOUS! I am loving it! Sunday was Mothers Day and this is what my wonderful kids gifted me with!

From Matt~ A delicious Cookie Cake!

And from Brittni~These beautiful flowers!

The rest of the week I spent riding my bike (19.9 miles!) and getting my few tomato plants in. I haven't read much, mostly listened to audiobooks while I'm riding or working outside! How was your week?

Termination Orders: Code Name Cobra By Leo Maloney

Leo Maloney, former Black Ops contractor, penned this action thriller novel as a quasi-memoir about the dark but arguably necessary side of intelligence that the government officially denies. The book spans the late 1960's through 2001 depicting events witnessed first-hand by the author embodied in the hero, Dan Morgan. It is a masterly blend of Black Ops intrigue interwoven with imaginative sequences of fiction. The reader must guess which accounts are real and which are merely storytelling.

Termination Orders: Code Name Cobra races the reader through a twisting plotline, populated by memorable characters who make their way through a tangled web of ethical questions, personal priorities, and suspense. The storyline is comprised of counterterrorism, hostage rescue, and target reconnaissance, in a crescendo of events set across three continents from a fireside ambush at a Kandahar village pig roast, to the vast inner halls of the CIA, to a window-ledge view through a sniper scope aimed at Gaddafi in Libya.


My thoughts:

I really liked this book. From page one, it kept me on the edge of my seat, wondering what was going to happen next. The characters were believable and easy to like or hate, depending on whether or not they were the good guys. I would love to see this book made into a movie. It was an easy read with chapters that weren't too long, and written so that someone who doesn't know a lot of "military speak" could understand.

Waiting On Wednesday(05/11/11)

the forces of Light and Dark collide as their epic struggle focuses on Tulsa's House of Night.  Zoey is home where she belongs, safe with her Guardian Warrior, Stark, by her side – and preparing to face off against Neferet. Kalona has released his hold on Rephaim, and, through Nyx's gift of a human form, he and Stevie Rae are finally able to be together – if Rephaim can truly walk the path of the Goddess and stay free of his father's shadow.But is Zoey really safe?  Does she truly know those who are closest to her? And will love win when it is tested by the very soul of Darkness? Find out what’s destined in the next thrilling chapter of the House of Night series.

Product Details

• Reading level: Young Adult
• Hardcover: 336 pages
• Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin; First Edition edition (November 8, 2011)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0312650256

Teaser Tuesday (05/10/11)

Teaser Tuesday is weekly meme hosted by Miz B of Should Be Reading! It's a great way to check out what your fellow bloggers are reading. Anyone can play! Here are the rules:

• Grab your current read
• Open to a random page
• Share two (2) "teaser" sentences from the page. PLEASE DON'T INCLUDE SPOILERS!
• Share the author and title of the book so that others can add it to their TBR list if they want.

my teaser~
Devlin's gaze met mine again and I felt a deep shudder go through me. "Then we'll have to let her lead us to the killer." 
"Her?"
"The victim. The dead have a lot to say if you're willing to listen."


The Restorer by Amanda Stevens
pg 57 (eBook)

reviews

Recovery

Touching Silver

posts

Prom 2011

Waiting On Wednesday

In My Mailbox

giveaways

The Guardian

my week

Finally on the mend! That was a wicked cold or whatever the heck it was that I had! I still have the occasional cough until I'm gasping cough but not as often, thank goodness! I'm hoping that this coming week will see us back on track here with the weekly meme's & reviews! While I was sick, the majority of books that I read (like all of them!) were books that I'd read before & love. You've heard of comfort food? I comfort read. Seriously. I find that if I'm sick or terribly stressed about something, I turn to my favorite books. Usually the Mercy Thompson series, anything from Nora Roberts / J.D. Robb, those authors that I just love. I have also started listening to audiobooks and I love them! Of course they have all been books that I have & love, but I find it incredibly soothing to hear them. Right now I'm listening to Halfway to the Grave by Jeaniene Frost & I'm loving it! Do you listen to audiobooks? How was your week?

Recovery By Alexandrea Weis

Still devestated two years after the mysterious murder of her beloved David Alexander, Nicci Beauvoir surprises everyone in the Big Easy by returning to her hometown with a new admirer: the cool and contentious Dallas August. But the attractive stranger is asking a lot of questions about David's death, making Nicci's family and friends speculate about his true intentions. Only Nicci knows that Dallas, a high-priced corporate spy, has come to New Orleans to flush out David Alexander's killer. Playing the part of her lover, Dallas escorts Nicci around town hoping to get closer to his possible suspects. But hiding amid the city's elite is a jealous maniac waiting to make Nicci suffer.
As the days pass and the danger grows, Nicci's relationship with the handsome spy turns from adversarial to amorous. Desperate to unearth the identity of David's murderer, Nicci and Dallas decide to lure the killer out of the city for one final showdown. It is a deadly decision that could cost Nicci everything. But it may be her only chance for....Recovery.

Recovery is the second novel in the Nicci Beauvoir series by Alexandrea Weis.

This book is a romantic thriller set in post-Katrina New Orleans. I was a little concerned about reading this book since it is part of a series. I haven't read "To My Senses" but I was still able to keep up with the story line in "Recovery" fairly easily.

I found the book a little hard to get into in the beginning, but by the end of the first chapter I wanted to see where things were going to go between Nicci and Dallas. I was also lured in by the setting of the book being in New Orleans since I have visited there.

The author kept me hooked as to who could possibly be David's killer. The scenes where Nicci and Dallas were alone and fighting their feelings for each other were very good. The ending actually surprised me and I look forward to the next book in the series.

Touching Silverby Jamie Craig

Everything always comes back to the Silver Maiden.
Six girls are missing and cold-case detective Olivia Wright is determined to find them. A lone survivor names gang leader Gabriel de los Rios as the culprit-and points Olivia to Isaac McGuire, the force's foremost authority on Gabriel. Isaac is stubborn, domineering and believes in strange things like time travel and a mystical coin called the Silver Maiden that Gabriel wants. Yet the longer they work together, the more Olivia is drawn to him.
Isaac shares Olivia's desire to bring Gabriel to justice. He usually works alone, but the beautiful detective quickly fills his thoughts more than the case-and reminding himself that she's off limits only makes him want her more.
As Isaac and Olivia grow closer, so do their enemies. While they hunt Gabriel, a stalker targets Isaac and the missing half of the Silver Maiden reappears-with frightening effects on Olivia...

my thoughts~
 When I agreed to read Touching Silver, I didn't realize it was book #2 in the Silver Maiden trilogy. And I think you definitely have to read the first book before reading the second. There were just so many references that reading the first book would have been beneficial.
This is the story of Isaac & Olivia, 2 cops drawn together with the same need to take the bad guy down. Throw in a time traveling coin & you have a great book! My one complaint is the ending. I was left yelling "oh come on, seriously?"  Really. It was like someone just picked that spot and said ok that's it, the rest of this with be book #3. But even with the ending not to my liking, I can't wait until the 3rd book comes out!

Prom 2011

Prom was last Saturday and I can't believe that my YOUNGEST is graduating from High School on June 8th! Wow! It seems like just the other day I was graduating!

This is my son Matt

who is a big goober

who also thinks he's Zoolander Jr.

 

Matt & his wonderful girl Mattie

yes, Matt & Mattie

they seem to be perfect for each other!

 

Isn't this a sweet picture?

That boys Mama (haha me!) raised him

right!

And now they are getting ready to head out!

From now until June it's all about graduation,

& the parties!

Waiting On Wednesday(05/4/11)

Idle hands are the devil's workshop Temptation and seduction are the tricks of the Devil's trade, and when offered the chance to regain his wings by playing guardian angel, he's hell-bent on doing things his way . . .
Faith McFarland is in need of a miracle. So desperate to save her sick child, she's willing to make a deal with the Devil: steal a ring worn by Finn Payne, the bad-boy rockstar who long ago sold his soul for rock 'n roll. Temptation and seduction become necessary evils, yet Faith's salvation means Finn's damnation . . . because the ring is all that stands between him and Hell. Falling in love was never part of the bargain, but now that they've tasted heaven in each other's arms, can they convince the Devil to give up his due?

Product Details

• Pub. Date: May 2011
• Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers
• Format: Mass Market Paperback , 384pp

Hmmm...Check out those abs! That picture alone would be worth picking this book up at the store! 

In My Mailbox(5/1/11)

books to review:

Termination Orders: Code Name Cobra by Leo Maloney with Caio Camargo
Buddy's Tail by K. Anne Russell

And The Winners Are...

I am feeling so much better! Thanks everyone for the get well wishes! I appreciate it! So, here are the winners that I am behind in announcing! Winners have already been notified via email!

$50 Winner: tmmkl~ Amazon

$25 winner: Japril~ Barnes & Noble

$10 Winner: Liz T.~Amazon

The Sweetest Thing giveaway:

Marjorie R.

Julie H.

Donna S. 

Eternal Rider giveaway:

Theresa

Donnas

Julie H

Ascension by Sable Grace

The gates of hell have opened, and one woman will stand in the crossfire as the Dark Breed -- vampyre, demons, shape shifters -- and mankind fight their last battle for survival.

Kyana is half Vampyre, half Lychen... and the last of her kind. Determined, dangerous, and damned, she has no love for the mortals who have imprisoned and misused her. But when the Order of Ancients entrusts her with a mission -- to find the key that will send the Dark Breed back into Hell for eternity -- Kyana has no choice but to accept.

She is furious to learn her assignment comes with an escort... Ryker, a demigod and fierce warrior who long ago found a way under her skin and stayed there. In a shaky alliance, they discover an ancient cult with dangerous motive and a god who seeks to destroy all others. And as Kyana begins to feel the heat that threatens to bind her to Ryker, she knows she has to resist. For it could only mean the undoing of them both...

about the author~

Sable Grace is the writing team of Heather Waters & Laura Barone, long time critique partners and friends who came together by fluke to discover their voices fit together quite nicely during an experiment of "I'll write the first sentence, you write the next." It was meant to be nothing more than a warm up exercise for each of them to get started on their own projects, but soon, the story became far more interesting than what they were supposed to be working on and Sable Grace was born.

Both Heather and Laura reside in Florida, are happily married, and are, well, complete opposites. (Think the Odd Couple on crack here.) Still, there's enough common ground for them to weave their words together in the voice of Sable Grace.Heather also writes medieval romances under her real name, which you can find at www.heatherwaters.net, and Laura is a Golden Heart finalist for her highly sensual manuscript, Mr. Right Now.

You can reach them both at sablegrace(AT)ymail.com

my thoughts~
Loved it! Ok, it did take me a minute to really get into it, but once I did! Woo! Kyana is an a*s kicking Vampyre/Lychen who I just wanted to win! And Ryker, well who doesn't like a 'surfer boy' warrior/ Demi-God? Yeah. They make a heck of a team that makes me glad that this is book #1 in the Dark Breed series and anxious to read the second! I always wonder how an author (or in the case authors) come up with some of these ideas? I bow to their great imaginations and hope that the rest of the series will be as great as Ascension is.

Still Sick...

I know, I'm falling way behind, I have giveaway winners to announce, books to read & review, and I've posted no weekly meme's for the last 2 weeks. When I am reading, it's books that I've read before. Nothing that I need to think to much about. Consider all giveaways open until winners are announced.

Driftwood Cottageby Sherryl Woods

Single mom Heather Donovan's dreams of home and family are tantalizingly within reach when she settles in Chesapeake Shores. The welcoming arms of the boisterous, loving O'Brien clan embrace her and her son. But accepting their support seems to further alienate her son's father, Connor O'Brien. His parents' divorce and his career as a high-powered divorce attorney have left him jaded about marriage.

Then everything changes. Will the possibility of a future without Heather make Connor look at love and his career differently? Heather's just about given up on her old dreams - of love, of family and especially of Driftwood Cottage, the home she secretly wishes were hers. It's going to take a lot of persuasion - and some help from the O'Brien family - to make Heather believe that some dreams are worth fighting for.

my thoughts~
This was my first visit to Chesapeake Bay, but this isn't going to be my last! I loved Heather & Conner's story! I know that issues from your parents divorce can effect a person for a long time and Conner sure is having a difficult time with his parents divorce and the fact that they have gotten back together after all these years has not help Conner at all! Conner & his family are at odds, Heather & her family aren't on the best of terms, but as with any good romance, with a little hard work & love in your heart, all things are possible.  I found the story to be heartwarming and insightful and I'm glad that  Ms. Woods has given me a book that I will read again & again!

My Ramblings On...The Black Dagger Brotherhood Seriesby J.R. Ward

There might be some spoilers below. If you haven't read all of the books, don't read any further!

You've been warned!

While I've been sick this week, I took the opportunity to finish reading (again!) the Black Dagger Brotherhood series. Call me smitten, but they are are still as good the 4th time I read them as the first! Zsadist is still my favorite but really, there isn't a brother I don't like!

I know that it's already been announced that Tohr's book is next, and I think she will have him with No 'One, but I can't help but wonder, HOW? I mean he was devastated when Wellsie was killed. And he was definitely bonded with her. I mean come on, he freaking disappeared for 8 months and was living off of deer blood. And about No 'One. She died, then was given the ok to stay on the other side and help care for the Chosen and is now back on this side, with Payne (& Xhex). Is she alive? Or would that be living? And if the Virgin Scribe can give her human form again so she lives, why couldn't she do that with Doc Jane? I mean Doc Jane is her Daughter-In-Law. Hmmm...

On her Facebook page she mentions 'And now it's time to finish Rhage and Mary's slice of life :D *shares Tootsie Pops*' I'm assuming it's a novella. Could it be that they will soon be adopting a child? I would love to see that happen! I've kind of missed Rhage's beast in the last few books, too. 

In Love Mine, Lash (the bastard) thinks how he has Quinn's brother in deep freeze. Did I cough my way through what became of him? For the life of me, I can't remember! 

I look forward to more of Payne & Manny in the future. And I'm glad that so far Manny isn't having to change. I think it's great that Butch & Manny are half brothers and that they've found each other! Which opens up the possibility of Manny becoming a Vampire, since both he & Butch are descended from Wrath!

I'm still hoping for a Quinn & Blay book. Color me confused, I'm not sure where the WARDen is going with this whole Layla thing. I will  be very disappointed if she has Quinn end up with Layla. I mean he's already thrown off his bonding scent with Blay. I wish I could just tell her: don't follow the NORM with these two. Let Quinn & Blay have their romance, please don't make them follow what society considers 'normal' romance.

Well those are just some of my ramblings about the BDB series. I have more, but I think those will be posted later! Have a fabulous Saturday!

Sorry...

Sorry I haven't posted anything this week. I've been terribly sick, and still am really. This morning I woke up a little bit better so I will try to get back on track next week!

Altamont Augie by Richard Barager

With Vietnam looming like a scythe over an entire generation, University of Minnesota sophomore David Noble bolts from an anti-war teach-in his girlfriend coaxes him to and enlists in the marines. Her pride wounded by his rush to war, Jackie Lundquist ignores David's letters from Vietnam, where he serves out his enlistment burrowed into the blood-red clay of Khe Sanh, surviving a brutal siege before returning home to find Jackie immersed in a counterculture world of drugs and militancy.

To Jackie, the faltering war in Vietnam is a failure of national conscience; to David it is a failure of national honor. But neither her rise to fame as the growing anti-war movement's alluring Radical Queen nor David's defiant counter-protest activities in support of the war can extinguist their passion for one another. Both their tumultuous affair and the Age of Aquarius itself cartwheel into the decade's last great rock festival: Altamont, the death rattle of the Sixties, where shame and honor collide, and tragedy awaits redemption.

To me, this book got a little boring at times. It started off a little slow, but gradually hooked me into the love story between two of the characters. I feel that the author goes into too much detail about racial issues in the book and at times uses words that have to be looked up in a dictionary to understand what is being said. The chapters about the Vietnam War were interesting, but I was disappointed in the book as a whole.

Friendly Fireby Megan Hart

After Agent Kendall Frasier's partner is shot in "friendly fire" during a drug bust, she agrees to take a week's vacation on a tropical island as part of her psychiatric evaluation. Sand, sun, sea—what could be better to help her work through her guilt? Even if the presence of the man responsible for the shooting, Agent Zane Vincent, seems counterproductive to her mental health. As Kendall gets to know Zane, and realizes he feels worse about what happened than she does, it becomes impossible to hate him. And their mutual attraction becomes impossible to deny.
Kendall and Zane soon agree to put the event that brought them together in the past—and spend the present exploring their most erotic desires. Do they have a future in the real world when their week in paradise is over?

my thoughts~ Take a look at that cover! Smoking HOT! This novella (I guess you would call it a novella since it is only about 55 pages long) is not a book that you will find hard to read! Anyone who has read Megan Hart knows that she packs a big punch in these books! I was laughing out loud during the fake "O" scenes! Think When Harry Met Sally, only in reverse! The love scenes were steamy, the conversations believable and the main characters were likable.

In My Mailbox04/17/11)

Now that the weather has improved, I will not be reading quite as much. 

This week, I didn't not buy, receive or check out any books!

Unbelievable I know! But true all the same! I will continue reading, just at a slower pace!