Dark Witch by Nora Roberts (thoughts)

Iona Sheehan comes to Ireland looking for both family and something more.  She has lived her life up until now feeling vaguely dissatisfied as if she was missing out on something important.  It isn't until she meets her cousins Branna and Connor O' Dwyer that she realizes the missing piece might by her heritage and recently discovered powers.  It will be up to Iona though to really find herself and let her powers as a witch awaken before she comes to battle a centuries old evil named Cabhan.  Because if she isn't able to do this, it may destroy her new found love and family.

As soon as I heard that Nora Roberts was coming out with a new paranormal trilogy, I wanted to read it.  Simple as that to be honest.  I loved her Key trilogy and Three Sisters trilogy enough that I have read them multiple times each.  And although I hate to make comparisons, this first book was very reminiscent at times of some of those books.  For me, I went into this book expecting something similar because what she writes works.  I literally gobbled up all of those other books in a matter of days.  Couldn't get enough.  This one was good but not as good as those other two trilogies and I'm not honestly sure what the difference was.  I think for me it was a slight lack of connection to both of the characters.  I am huge on connecting with a book and for me this is why I liked but didn't love this one. 

Iona comes into the book looking for family as her own family never really cared for her the way that she needed them to.  She doesn't realize it but she is looking for love.  Enter Boyle, her new gruff boss that doesn't really share his feelings with anyone.  From those descriptions, you would think that their chemistry would really click but for me it just didn't quite do it.  I wanted to see them get over all of their emotional obstacles to find a happy ever after, but I wasn't connected enough to the story to really want it.  It is hard to explain other than that.  This book sets everything up perfectly for what is to come in the next two books but it didn't do it in a way that left me emotionally invested.  I just needed a little bit more to make this book a great read.  All of that being said, I did find this one to be a page turner.  The storyline may be a bit similar to others that she has written but it was different enough that I was intrigued.  I really liked both of her cousin's characters.  I'm eager to see if I click with their stories more than I did with this one.  And I have to reiterate that I liked this book.  I just feel like I expected a bit more and was  harder on it since I have loved some of her other books so much.

Overall, this was a good beginning to a new trilogy even if I had a few issues connecting to the characters.  I have high hopes that I will enjoy the next two books even more as they will be focusing on her cousins Branna and Connor.  It was an easy book to sink into and I found myself flying through the pages.  I just wanted a bit more so maybe I will get that with the next book.  Recommended but with a few hesitations as there are other of her books that are better and I enjoyed more (if interested definitely try the Three Sisters and Key trilogies). 

Bottom Line:  A good read but one that just left me on the edge of finding it to be a great read.

Disclosure:  I checked this one out from my local library.  Thoughts are my own.

August Reading Plans

 

I haven't made up a reading pile to choose from in a couple of months.  I always enjoy making up these posts and coming up with lists of books that I want to read.  I usually end up straying off track but that's okay.  Especially as pretty darn soon one of my very favorite reading challenges will be beginning and then all bets are off.  The majority of these books will fit in with this challenge too which just goes to show you how ready I am for some scary reading :)  Here are the books that I am hoping to read in August:

• Don of the Dead by Casey Daniels - 1st in a paranormal cozy mystery series and off of my own shelves.  I've been wanting to begin this series for some time, and I am in the mood for a good mystery.  I am looking forward to giving it a try!
• Grave Peril by Jim Butcher -  Reread and library copy.  I have been trying (with trying being the key word) to reread these earlier books before continuing on with this series.  Instead I have been distracted with other books, but now I am really craving some Harry Dresden so I am guessing I will read this one sooner rather than later.
• Shadow Spell by Nora Roberts - This is my current read and a library copy.  I had this one on hold since it released and because it finally came in for me I couldn't resist beginning it.  I'm enjoying this one even more than the first in this trilogy and should be finishing it up in the next day or two.  
• H is for Homicide by Sue Grafton - Off on my own shelves and part of one of my favorite mystery series.  It has been far too long since I last read G is for Gumshoe so it is time to get back to this series that I love. 
• Fool Me Twice by Meredith Duran - Library copy and a book that is just pulling at me to read.  It has been entirely too long since I last read a historical romance.....and I am just in the mood to read this one!  I have only read one other book by this author but I really enjoyed it so I have high hopes for this one as well!
• Elizabeth is Missing by Emma Healey - Review copy and a book that I have been seeing some really good reviews for!  I completely skipped reading review copies in July so it is time to play catch up in August.  I am looking forward to seeing what the buzz is all about with this one!
• Bound by Night by Larissa Ione - Beginning of a new paranormal romance series and also review copy.  I have yet to try anything by this author but I have heard lots of great things.  Looking forward to giving her a try!
• The Butcher by Jennifer Hillier - Another review copy and book that I am eager to read thanks to all of the great reviews I have seen.  Are you guys seeing a trend here?  LOL!  This book sounds like it will be creepy so it is perfect for my current reading mood.
• Getting Life: An Innocent Man's 25-Year Journey from Prison to Peace by Michael Morton - I am currently reading this book as well and it is a review copy.  When I was pitched this one I couldn't help being intrigued by it so I had to say yes.  Plus, I have been in the mood for some nonfiction lately.  I've just barely begun it but I will be sharing my thoughts in a review when I finish.

Lots of great reading ahead of me if I stick to this pile.  And I am sure that I will still have some great reading ahead of me if I end up going completely off pile.  I've already finished one book this month (Remains of Innocence by J.A. Jance) so I am off to a pretty great start to my reading month.  Let's hope that I am able to to keep it up amid the craziness that August is sure to be. 

What books are you hoping to read in August??  Feel free to share!  Happy Reading!

July Reading Wrap-Up (2014)

(Yet another Disney picture since I can't seem to take time to share an entire post.)

July....yet another one of those months that was jam packed which meant that for me the month flew by.  I ended up taking a step back from blogging as we just had SO MUCH going on every weekend that I couldn't keep up.  Combine that with a desire to lose myself in some good books and you had a very absent blogger.  It was much needed though as I needed the break to prepare myself for the going back to school craziness that begins in August.  This I am not ready for and neither are the kiddos :)  Actually that isn't quite true.  They are ready but to varying degrees when it comes to going back to school. The oldest is ready for football to start but not ready to go back to early mornings (I swear he thinks he is a teenager already the way he sleeps) and my daughter is super excited to go back but also nervous (apparently first grade is tough...LOL!).  Before all the chaos begins though, let me tell you about my reading month in July.

July was apparently meant to be the month of comfort reads and rereading.  I only read books from series that I love and I didn't crack open a single review copy.  o.O (I can't remember the last time that happened!)  It was an amazingly satisfying month of reading.  I felt like I read more when I looked at the numbers but really each book in the Grant trilogy is 500+ pages so I really did read a ton this month.  Here are the books that I managed to finish:

• Conspiracy in Death by J.D. Robb (reread)
• Magic Bleeds by Ilona Andrews
• Magic Slays by Ilona Andrews
• Feed by Mira Grant (reread)
• Deadline by Mira Grant (reread)
• Blackout by Mira Grant (reread)

 

Favorite read of the month??  I am honestly not even sure how to answer this as I LOVED each book that I read this month.   Every book in the Newsflesh trilogy is excellent/fantastic for their own reasons.  The Kate Daniel's series has become one of my very favorite urban fantasy series.  And you all know how much I love me some J.D. Robb.  These earlier books in the Robb series are just such great reads!  When it comes down to it though, Blackout ends my very favorite zombie trilogy leaving me satisfied but sad as I don't want it all to end so it gets top honors for the month.  Best zombie books ever!!!  And definitely worth an epic reread!

August reading plans are forthcoming.  I'm starting to get excited for fall and the upcoming R.I.P. challenge so my reading pile will probably reflect that.  As I have all three of my children participating in sports (football for the oldest and soccer for the younger two), I am just going to work on finding lots of time to read hopefully.  I am tired just thinking about it.  Ha!

What books are you hoping to read in August?  What was your favorite read in the month of July?  Please share as I am a nosy reader and love to hear about books that you loved :)

Excuse Me...

as this has been ALL that I have been doing.  Reading, reading, and more reading means I have been immersed in Mira Grant's Newsflesh trilogy yet once again.  I'll be back next week when I can think about things other than government conspiracies and zombies...

River Road by Jayne Ann Krentz (thoughts)

River Road was one of those books that I wanted to read almost as soon as I heard about it.  I am a sucker for a good romantic suspense but I will admit that I don't read enough from this genre.  I enjoyed this book enough as I was reading it, but didn't end up really loving it.  For me it ended up being one of those books that you can describe as good but not great. 

In River Road, Lucy Sheridan is returning to her aunt's home for the first time in years due to her aunt's death.  Although she spent many summers with her aunt, the last time that she visited Lucy found herself in over her head at a teenage party.  She was sent back home and never ended up returning to Summer River.  Until now.  Unfortunately, it seems that all of those ghosts from the past are determined to resurface thanks to her aunt's will leaving Lucy everything.  Lucy soon finds herself in danger and turns to Mason Fletcher (her former crush/protector from the past).  Will Mason be able to protect Lucy yet again?  Or will the past come back to haunt her?

This book was easy to sink into from the very beginning.  I found myself steadily pulled into the mystery of Lucy's aunt's death but especially pulled into the mystery of what happened the night that Lucy left Summer River.  I was curious from the very beginning and couldn't help but try to figure out who the killer might be.  That being said, even though this book was able to draw me into it, I never was able to connect to the characters like I usually do.  I liked Mason and Lucy, was hoping to see them end up together, but wasn't really pulling for them.  I don't know what it is but I just found myself very disconnected from the book as a whole.  I'm not even sure that I can explain why.  It just felt a bit formulaic and there was nothing that really hooked me in completely.  I wanted to like this book more than I did.  And I did like it to a certain extent but there was just something that held me back.  I wish I could explain more but it is hard to describe other than I found it to be predictable.  Sometimes predicable is completely okay if you are fully invested in the characters but this time I wasn't. 

One of the things that I really did enjoy about this book was the ending.  Like I mentioned earlier, I instantly started off trying to figure out who the killer was on my own.  Happily enough, I was completely wrong and this author threw me for a complete loop by the end.  In fact this book would have been great rather than just good, if I had connected more based off of this ending.  That is how surprised I was!

Overall, I liked it but didn't love it.  That is the easiest way to explain my reading experience with this book.  I will be open to reading more by this author (I actually already have more of her books on my shelves) but this just wasn't quite the book for me.  I think that fans of Sandra Brown and Nora Roberts will enjoy this book as there are some similarities in their writing styles.  For me, I would recommend it but with a few hesitations.  Maybe check it out from the library like I did?

Bottom Line:  A book that I just couldn't quite connect to but with a really great ending.  Is that confusing enough for you?

Disclosure:  I checked this book out from my local library.  Thoughts are my own.

Fans of this author:  Please tell me which books of hers are MUST reads!  She is a very prolific author and I would love to know which of her books are your favorites.  I feel like she is an author that I will enjoy, I just need to find the right book of hers (and there are so many to choose from).

The Sunday Salon - A Bookish Update

Good morning everyone!  I've been enjoying a relaxed weekend at home which means I am just sitting here this morning drinking coffee while writing up this post.  Perfect way to start my Sunday!  There is a Harry Potter marathon going on this weekend so I've been watching that off and on since Friday.  Such fun!  It makes me want to reread these books yet again though which I just may do.  We also began season 5 of Breaking Bad last night.  This show just gets crazier and crazier!  At this point I am basically rooting for Jesse and that is about it.  I said to my husband that they could have ended everything with season 4 (and I would have been satisfied) but now I'm realizing they left more open than I thought.  What a crazy show!

My reading is trucking along even though I have been feeling very indecisive when it comes to what I want to read next.  I almost need something to focus on to help me pick my next read.  A random generator?  A pile of books to choose from?  I don't know but I will tell you that I am gravitating towards favorites.  Right now I am binge reading a favorite urban fantasy series and I'm leaning towards rereading a favorite zombie trilogy next.  Last year I reread the first two books in Mira Grant's Newsflesh trilogy so that I could finally read the last book.  Then I never shared by thoughts on Blackout.  Yesterday I was at the library grabbing the next Kate Daniel's book (Magic Rises) when I saw Grant's books just sitting there.  I could not resist bringing Blackout home with me.  The question is do I read all three of them again or just the last one??  I can't seem to decide!  Anyways, here are the books that I have recently finished:

Conspiracy in Death by J.D. Robb-  Reread and one of the better books in this series by far.  We really see Eve struggle in this one, and I had forgotten just how good this book was.  I flew through it!

Magic Bleeds by Ilona Andrews- Kate and Curran!  Sigh!  I am loving this series so much!  I finished this one in a matter of days and was instantly wishing for more.  So I went to the library and grabbed the next one which I couldn't help but begin.

That's why I am currently only reading the following:

I've basically set everything else that I was reading (The Wicked Girls and The Stone Bull) aside to just read this one.  Honestly, I should be able to finish this one today at some point.  I'm getting close to the end and usually there comes a time in these books where you just HAVE to finish.  There is no setting them down.  I'm pretty sure that I am at the point.  Good stuff!

Coming up next??  One of my countless review books.  Going back to one of the books that I have already started?  Or the entire Newsflesh trilogy.  Or the next Kate Daniels book.  I can't seem to decide but I will worry about that later.  This week I am hoping to knock out a few reviews and hopefully a garden update.  You guys would not believe how much it has grown since the last time that I shared!  I'm off to get my day started.  I hope everyone has a great Sunday and rest of the week!

Happy Reading!

Reasons I love My Library #2

Because sometimes nothing sounds good beside binge reading a new favorite urban fantasy series....thanks to my library I can catch up on this series and read to my heart's content! 

Dirty Magic by Jaye Wells (thoughts)

Dirty Magic was one of those books that I wanted to read purely because I have adored this author's books before.  New urban fantasy series?  Sign me up!  It also didn't hurt that this book has a gorgeous cover which made me want to read it even more.  Happily enough, this was a great beginning to a gritty new urban fantasy series and I want more!

In this book, magic isn't always a good thing and potions brewed are very similar to drugs.  Kate is a cop trying to rid the streets of these dirty potions when she gets pulled into a case that is bigger than she expects.  Now she has a new team to work with and a chance to really make a difference.  Everything seems to be working in her favor until the investigation she is working on shows her that you can never really leave the past behind you.  It will be up to Kate to try and figure out who is behind this newest dirty potion before it hurts those that she loves most.

I will fully admit that I went into this book with high expectations.  I love, love, love her Sabina Kane series so I expected this book to be good.  What I didn't expect was how different this book would be from her other series.  I loved it!  This book had a dark, intense feel to it that I couldn't get enough of.  I'm watching Breaking Bad right now and I couldn't help but compare the two.  Dirty Magic is similar to the show but with potions/magic instead of drugs.  They both have similar vibes where you aren't sure that everything is going to end well.  I found that this feeling really made the intensity level of the story go up a notch.  This isn't a pretty world that Wells has created but it is one that I couldn't get enough of.  I found myself swept away in Kate's world watching as she tried to balance her two lives.  The life of a cop committed to taking down the bad guys who were creating and distributing these potions, and the life of a caregiver as she tries to take care of her brother and make a better life for him.  These two different paths pulled at her constantly in different directions but the author managed to connect the storylines in a way that knocked me off my feet.  By that time I wasn't putting the book down for anything!  I should have known that there were some surprises in store.  I loved that there was a really solid ending to this book even though it is the beginning to a series.  There are questions left unanswered but the author left them open just enough to make me want to read the second book sooner rather than later.  In other words, no cliff hanger ending that makes me want to scream.  I was happy about that!

Overall, I really enjoyed this book just as I hoped that I would.  This author has a knack for creating worlds that I can't get enough of.  I'm super excited that the second book will be releasing soon as I don't want to have to wait long to see what happens to Kate next.  The dark atmosphere of this book kept me reading long after I should have gone to bed.  It all comes down to this: this is exactly how I like my urban fantasy-  gritty, compelling, and unique!  Books like this are what keep me coming back for more.  Highly recommended but especially to other urban fantasy fans!

Bottom Line:  A fascinating beginning to this new series....I can't wait for more!

Disclosure:  I received a copy of this book for review thanks to the publisher and NetGalley.  Thoughts are my own.

June Reading Wrap-Up 2014

(I finally uploaded my pictures from Disney on to my computer!  Woohoo!)

The summer months just seem to fly by, don't they?  I feel like I just wrote up my reading wrap-up for May and yet here I am working on the one for June.  June was a month filled with t-ball and baseball games.  I felt like we were on the go all of the time during the week but it has been such a joy to watch my kids play.  My daughter especially has really begun to enjoy playing and hits the ball when her coach pitches to her rather than on the tee.  This is quite the accomplishment in my opinion.  My son continues to pitch which is a nail biting experience.  You just want your kids to have fun while doing well at the same time!  Next year the craziness will really begin as all three kids plan on playing.  Yikes!

I didn't read as many books as I had hoped to this month but I did get lots of quality reading in.  I'm still ahead on my Goodreads goal but only by two books now instead of the five book buffer that I had going.  Maybe in July I will be able to get ahead a bit more!  Here are the books that I managed to finish this past month:

• Curse of the Spellmans by Lisa Lutz
• The Girl Who Disappeared Twice by Andrea Kane
• The Mummy Case by Elizabeth Peters
• Holiday in Death by J.D. Robb (reread)
• Nine Coaches Waiting by Mary Stewart

My favorite read of this month was a tough decision because I just loved The Mummy Case so much but ended up being:

I just loved this one so much!  Filled with suspense, I found myself skimming ahead just so that I could know that everything would be okay.  Afterwards, I went back and reread so that I didn't miss a single thing.  I am so glad that I finally took the time to read this one.  Mary Stewart will be another one of those authors where I read anything and everything that she has written.

Plans for July are mainly just getting back to working out.  Now that the baseball seasons are starting to wind down, I'm not going to have any valid excuses for not working out.  (I didn't really have any before but....)  I'm hoping to get back into the swing of running, I have a planks challenge that I am participating in, and I would like to get back to the 30 day shred.  No excuses next month.  That should be my motto!

What are your goals for July?  What books did you read in June that just knocked your socks off?  And have you read Mary Stewart as well?  What other books of  hers are not to be missed?

The Sunday Salon: Beginning Books

Good morning everyone!  This past week has been a quiet one for me on the blogging front which is sometimes needed.  It was also a quiet week in our every day life with just work and ball games for the majority of it.  The garden continues to grow and also continues to be a very rewarding experience.  So far we have eaten fresh lettuce from it, radishes, and cherry tomatoes.  My daughter loves to point out the new things that she discovers growing each day.  I will definitely be doing this again for years to come!

I don't have a lot more to share other than the books that I've been reading.  This weekend I was in a finicky mood and kept starting books.  Seriously, I started three before I finally settled on one.  As I plan on reading them all, I have lots of reading ahead of me.  But that isn't different from any other day :)  I have a bunch of books that I have finished since I last posted a reading update.  Here are the books that I have finished since then:

The Girl Who Disappeared Twice by Andrea Kane was just as good as the other book that I read in this series.  I liked seeing how Forensic Instincts began but especially enjoyed seeing the beginnings of some of the relationships between the main characters.  This is an author that I will be reading more of!

The Mummy Case by Elizabeth Peters was a delightful read!  This series just keeps getting better and I am only on the third book!  This one had me laughing out loud at times and turning the pages as fast as I could at others.  I adore this series and cannot wait to get my hands on the fourth book :)  I cannot sing the praises of these books enough!

Holiday in Death by J.D. Robb was a reread for me but still oh so good!  I love the earlier books in Robb's series where we are still getting to know some of the main characters.  I flew through the pages of this one in a matter of days, and was instantly ready to start on the next one.  This series are comfort reads for me that I turn to whenever I am feeling a reading slump coming on.  I probably won't end up reviewing this book as these are rereads and there is only so much you can say about a series without giving something away.

Nine Coaches Waiting by Mary Stewart was oh so good!  So, soooo, good!  It instantly put me into a gothic romance mood and I've been scouring the internet for more authors just like this.  The first book by Stewart I liked (a lot!) but this book I just loved!  I cannot wait to share my thoughts on this one!

I'm currently reading one too many books including the following:

I started The Wicked Girls because I was in the mood for a good thriller and Stephen King recommended this author.  Seriously?  How could I not want to read it after that?  But then I realized that I was still craving something gothic and older so I downloaded The Stone Bull for free onto my ipad thanks to Open Library.  Both were moving along well for me until I stopped in at the library yesterday to return some books and grabbed Conspiracy in Death to take home with me.  This promptly meant that I dropped everything to crack this one open.  I'm shaking my head at myself even as I type this.  So now I somehow have three books that I am currently attempting to read all at once.  Wow.

This week is probably going to fly by thanks to the upcoming holiday weekend.  I have family coming in town so it might continue to be quiet here on the blog.  Or not as I am in the mood to write up a couple of blog posts.  It just all depends on how much I get accomplished today.  I hope that everyone has a great week filled with a couple of good books.

Happy Reading!