The Magic of Ordinary Days by Ann Howard Creel

Rating: 5 ♥

Olivia Dunne, a studious minister's daughter who dreams of being an archaeologist, never thought that the drama of World War II would affect her quiet life in Denver. An exhilarating flirtation reshapes her life, though, and she finds herself banished to a rural Colorado outpost, married to a man she hardly knows. Overwhelmed by loneliness, Olivia tentatively tries to establish a new life, finding much-needed friendship and solace in two Japanese American sisters who are living at a nearby internment camp. When Olivia unwittingly becomes an accomplice to a crime and is faced with betrayal, she finally confronts her own desires.

Review: One Sunday evening I caught the movie form of this book on Hallmark. I loved it. A few days later my good friend emailed me very excited about a book and insisted I had to read it. She was already on her third reading of it. When it occurred to me that it was the same as the movie, I was intrigued!! I wasn't so sure I was going to like the book -- I thought it might be kind of Janette Oke-ish in book form, and I outgrew Janette Oke by my 16th birthday. But despite my misgivings, I checked it out from the library and dived in. It was one of those books that you're going along reading and thinking, 'hm it's good, but not great', and then before you know it your completely enamored.

It was amazing. There are so many layers and so much emotion and heart in this story, it just blew me away. Way better than the movie. I think the screenwriter for the movie missed the whole point of the book -- literally. Part of the story was totally different in the movie and was inconsistent with what the book is saying.

In life we make choices. Sometimes things work out better than we thought they ever could, and sometimes they don't. But not matter what choices we make there are ALWAYS consequences. We need to think about our choices and reactions and actions and think about what might happen as a result. And who we might hurt and effect with our actions.

I also appreciated the message that it's OK to live an ordinary life! There is NOTHING wrong with that! We can't all be destined to wander the globe and have adventures.

I just can't say enough good things about this book -- it's a must read and I am going to have to get a copy to keep.

The Red Diary by Toni Blake

Rating: 4

HE’S UNCOVERING HER SECRET DESIRES

TO FULFILL HER EVERY FANTASY

When Nick Armstrong finds the red diary, he’s shocked…and aroused. Here, in intimate detail, prim and proper Lauren Ash records her most secret fantasies. He knows he should never read it again, but the temptation is too hard to resist. Never before has he come across anything so private-or so sensual. Never before has he found such a potent weapon for righting an old wrong.

His strategy: seduce her, make her fall in love, then break her heart. He’ll be her dream lover in the flesh, weaving an erotic spell to free the passionate woman inside her. But Lauren is casting her own tantalizing magic, forcing him to let go of the past and surrender to her, body and soul.

Review: Fun, sexy and steamy! This isn't very heavy but it doesn't try to be -- just a fun easy read!! Enjoyed it.

Lover Revealed by J.R. Ward

Rating: 4 1/2 ♥

Butch O'Neal is a fighter by nature. A hard-living ex-homicide cop, he's the only human ever to be allowed in the inner circle of the Black Dagger Brotherhood. And he wants to go even deeper into the vampire world-to engage in the turf war with the lessers. His heart belongs to a female vampire, Marissa, an aristocratic beauty who's way out of his league. And if he can't have her, then at least he can fight side by side with the Brothers.

But fate curses him with the very thing he wants. When Butch sacrifices himself to save a civilian vampire from the slayers, he falls prey to the darkest force in the war. Left for dead, he's found by a miracle, and the Brotherhood calls on Marissa to bring him back, though even her love may not be enough to save him.

Review: I thought this book was amazing!! So many new developments in the story! I didn't really feel like this book was much about the romance though. Maybe because much of the romance was developed in previous books between the two, Ward felt freer to go into other aspects of the story -- and what stunning ones they are. The romance was there and it was good, but it took more of a backseat than it has in any of the other books so far. Very, very much looking forward to Vhishous's story next!

Through a Dark Mist by Marsha Canham

Rating: 5 ♥

In the dark forests of medieval England, En route to her wedding, Lady Servanne's party is attacked by notorious Black Wolf and his band. Her kingdom's future is changed forever when she and Black Wolf submit to their growing passion, and he claims to be the true heir to her future husband's title.

This book was amazing and wonderful. It was a sweeping epic ride from start to finish with lots of swash buckling, adventure, romance, and intrigue. Very much a re-telling sort of Robin Hood story, I was thoroughly swept up in the story from start to finish -- Marsha Canham is a masterful story teller!!

Then Came You by Lisa Kleypas

Rating: 4 1/2 ♥

She thought her heart was safe, but . . .

Reckless, wild, and beautiful, Lily Lawson delights in shocking proper London society — and now she is determined to rescue her sister from an unwanted impending marriage to the notorious Alex, Lord Raiford, by fair means or foul. But while she succeeds outrageously, Alex is a master gamesman who is not to be undone.

Alex has lost one bride, yet he is enchanted by this remarkable lady who is willing to break any rule to flaunt her independence. When Lily offers him only scorn, he counters with kindness, and he parries her blistering barbs with gentle words and a soft, tender touch. The spirited miss will pay dearly for her interference — with her body, her soul, and her stubborn, unyielding heart. But will Alex's own heart be the prize to be won in this sensuous game of love?

Review: Oh this was just lovely. I enjoyed this one immensely!!! Lily is a mass of contradictions -- I love heroines who have a public persona and a private one. I think it gives them real interest -- it makes the hero want to figure out what makes her tick, and I find that whole process enjoyable to 'watch'. Lily is a feisty heroine without being immature or shrewish. I love Alex and Lily.

Firestorm by Brenda Joyce

Rating: 3

Storm Bragg could outshoot and outride any man, but her family decided it was time she traded in her buckskins for a ballgown and made her debut in San Francisco society.Quickly pursued by every eligible gentleman in town, the young hellcat from Texas had eyes for only one, and he was no gentleman. Brett D'Archand was a self-made success -- arrogant, impossibly attractive, blatantly sensual -- and looking for a wife who would give him respectability.

Storm was completely bewitched by him, but she made him lose his head as well as his heart. And, threatened by scandal and ruin, they are forced to wed -- a tempestuous union of free spirits, shackled only by the irrepressible bonds of love.

Review: Oh for heavens sake. Storm made me just batty. What a shrew!! Their constant fighting was not only not sexy or romantic, it was boring as heck. If memory serves, they are still fighting in the last chapter of the book. It was just a little mentally exhausting. Why did I keep reading this book? I'm not really sure.

Highland Outlaw by Monica McCarty

Handsome and dangerous, Patrick MacGregor is a wanted man, possessing the tough, tenacious spirit of his outlawed clan. He will stop at nothing to save his people from destruction, even if it means marrying Elizabeth Campbell, the daughter of his worst enemy. Yet the flaxen-haired beauty disarms him from the start. Her sweet, unspoiled softness touches the cold depths of his ravaged soul–and makes him want much more than revenge.

Inside the shy and dutiful Lizzie is a passionate woman longing to emerge, a woman ready for love. So when the piercing emerald eyes and searing kiss of a stranger spark in her a desperate hunger, she surrenders to Patrick’s glorious seduction–unaware that his daring deception has just found its one and only chance for redemption: a love more powerful than hate.

Review: Good and enjoyable, but I found the plot somewhat forgettable.... For example: I read this 3 months ago and I am sitting here having trouble remembering what happened in the story that I loved. I thought their first meeting was fabulous and sweet, but over all I didn't find it a keeper.....

As You Desire by Connie Brockway

Rating: 4

He galloped across the midnight-shrouded landscape, racing toward her on his pure white steed. Her destiny...In her wildest fantasies Desdemona Carlisle could not have conjured a more dashing savior, and this was real. But an unlikelier hero was hard to find. Harry Braxton was a rouge, a scoundrel, and a born opportunist who had already broken her heart once. How could she ever trust a notorious rake who came with a warning: lover, beware...

With her bronze-gold hair and quicksilver grace, the sloe-eyed beauty was every man's desire and one man's sole passion. But the secret that had made Harry an exile also made it impossible for him to offer Desdemona more that friendship. Until his aristocratic cousin laid siege to Desdemona's heart and Harry, damning the consequences, vowed to do anything, give anything, to claim her for him own...

Review: I had high expectations for this book having adored "My Dearest Enemy", and while this was a good solid read, I wanted more. I was loving it until Harry seemed to lose his back bone. I felt like he didn't fight for Desdemona enough. The setting was unusual (India) and interesting, and the characters were good, they just didn't befriend me.