Book Description:
When Annie leaves the safety of her old bank job to become the full-time manager of her boyfriend’s restaurant, what’s meant to be the first day of the rest of her life might be the last day of someone else’s.
My Thoughts:
Oh la la! This one is all about Monsieur and the life he lived before he became a chef. Let's just say Annie figures it all out. Good cozy mystery and light fluffy romance to boot.
Book Description:
Taking a break from her job at Enchantments, Stony Mill's finest mystical antique shop, Maggie O'Neill visits a carnival where she senses some bad spirits. And when a construction worker is suspected of killing a young woman, it's up to Maggie and the N.I.G.H.T.S. ghosthunting team to uncover the dark spiritual energy leaking into their town before it spoils everyone's fun.
My Thoughts:
Things are really starting to fall apart in Stony Mills and they want to play the town witch. But she's helping get rid of the bad spirits. The people of the town are stuck in their Christian "thou shall not suffer a witch" ways.
On a up note, Maggie has finally chosen which man she wants to be with, now will she stick with this choice, who knows...
Book Description:
As the North reels under a series of unexpected defeats during the dark first year of the Civil War, one man leaves behind his family to aid the Union cause. His experience will utterly change his marriage and challenge his most ardently held beliefs. From Louisa May Alcott's beloved classic Little Women, Geraldine Brooks has take the character of the absent father, Mr. March, who has gone off to war, leaving his wife and daughters to make do in mean times. From vibrant New England to the sensuous antebellum South, March adds adult resonance to Alcott's optimistic children's novel. A lushly written, wholly original tale steeped in the details of another time. March secures Geraldine Brook's place as a renowned author of historical fiction.
My Thoughts:
It did take a while to get into it but I'm glad I did read it. Not my favorite of the 3 fiction books she's written. My favorite is Year of Wonders although People of the Book was pretty darn good too.
Book Description:
The Horror Writers Association Presents
BLOOD LITE
...a collection of entertaining tales that puts the fun back into dark fiction, with ironic twists and tongue-in-cheek wit to temper the jagged edge.
Charlaine Harris reveals the dark side of going green, when a quartet of die-hard environmentalists hosts a fundraiser with a gory twist in "An Evening with Al Gore"...In an all-new Dresden Files story from Jim Butcher, when it comes to tracking deadly paranormal doings, there's no such thing as a "Day Off" for the Chicago P.D.'s wizard detective, Harry Dresden...Sherrilyn Kenyon turns a cubicle-dwelling MBA with no life into a demon-fighting seraph with one hell of an afterlife in "Where Angels Fear to Tread"...Celebrity necromancer Jaime Vegas is headlining a sold-out séance tour, but behind the scenes, a disgruntled ghost has a bone to pick, in Kelley Armstrong's "The Ungrateful Dead." Plus tales guaranteed to get under your skin -- in a good way -- from
Janet Berliner Don D'Ammassa Nancy Holder Nancy Kilpatrick J. A. Konrath and F. Paul Wilson Joe R. Lansdale Will Ludwigsen Sharyn McCrumb Mark Onspaugh Mike Resnick Steven Savile D. L. Snell Eric James Stone Jeff Strand Lucien Soulban Matt Venne Christopher Welch
So let the blood flow and laughter reign -- because when it comes to facing our deepest, darkest fears, a little humor goes a long way!
My Thoughts:
Great anthology. I enjoyed all the stories. The funniest was Mr. Bear by Joe R. Lansdale. It was just so wrong. LOL Hell in a Handbasket by Lucien Soulban was hilarious too. Another funny one was High Kicks and Misdemeanors by Lucien Soulban. And yet another funny was Bitches of the Night by Nancy Kilpatrick. My favorite was Day Off by Jim Butcher but I am a bit biased to Harry Dresden.
Book Description:
The Demo Tapes: Year 1 introduced the reading public to ShapeShifter and the two men behind this fictional band: Trevor Wolff and Mitchell Voss. The Demo Tapes: Year 2 brings you more of the short fiction that brings these people to life.
Year 2 delves more deeply into love, friendships, and the inside workings of ShapeShifter. New faces have arrived as the band tours and climbs the ladder of success, but most of all, Year 2 puts you square in the lives of Mitchell and Trevor, just where you like to be. Vive la Trevolition!
My Thoughts:
Nice to visit Trevor and the gang. My favorite of the outtakes has to be The First Two Drawings. Ah young love! :)
Book Description:
Their love would never be the same.
Colquitt and Walter Kennedy enjoyed a life of lazy weekends, gathering with the neighbors on their quiet, manicured street and sipping drinks on their patios. But when construction of a beautiful new home begins in the empty lot next door, their easy friendship and relaxed get-togethers are marred by strange accidents and inexplicable happenings.
Though Colquitt's rational mind balks at the idea of a "haunted" house, she cannot ignore the tragedies associated with it. It is as if the house preys on its inhabitants' weaknesses and slowly destroys the goodness in them -- ultimately driving them to disgrace, madness and even death.
Anne Rivers Siddons transports you deep into the heart of a neighborhood torn apart by a mysterious force that threatens their friendship, their happiness and, for some, their very existence.
My Thoughts:
While this was well written it just didn't come off as a horror novel at all. The house wasn't sinister or creepy. We just assumed it done all these things because there were too many coincidences. It definitely comes more off as a Southern Gothic novel which in the forward by Stephen King points this out also.
By the way, this book was written in 1978!
Book Description:
When the supernatural world spins out of control, when the police can’t handle what goes bump in the night, when monsters come screaming out of nightmares and into the mean streets, there’s just one man to call: Harry Dresden, the only professional wizard in the Chicago phone book. A police consultant and private investigator, Dresden has to walk the dangerous line between the world of night and the light of day.
Now Harry Dresden is investigating a brutal mauling at the Lincoln Park Zoo that has left a security guard dead and many questions unanswered. As an investigator of the supernatural, he senses that there’s more to this case than a simple animal attack, and as Dresden searches for clues to figure out who is really behind the crime, he finds himself next on the victim list, and being hunted by creatures that won’t leave much more than a stain if they catch him.
Written exclusively for comics by Jim Butcher, The Dresden Files: Welcome to the Jungle is a brand-new story that’s sure to enchant readers with a blend of gripping mystery and fantastic adventure.
My Thoughts:
Great Dresden story but the illustrations where the best. I think I love this book! :D
Book Description:
Something very strange starts happening in Nightshade the summer that the eldest Giordano sister, Rose, gets a job working at Dr. Franken's research laboratory. People are starting to see double. Doppelgängers of Nightshade residents are popping up all over town. Daisy, Rose and Poppy think it's a coincidence, until the rumors start that their father, who disappeared several years ago, has been spotted in town. Meanwhile, Daisy's beau, Ryan is spending all of his time training for football, and like the other guys on the team, he's grown enormous almost overnight. Samantha Devereux's boyfriend's neck has doubled in size since school ended. Could the football players be resorting to extreme measures to win? Between summer jobs, sugar rushes, and beach parties, the Giordano girls get to the bottom of these mysteries and more.
My Thoughts:
I didn't figure out for sure who done it this time. But that's because the characters tricked me. lol Looks like there will be at least 2 more books in this series. There had better be at least one more because this one ended in a cliffhanger!
Book Description:
A creepy, campy new mystery series
Welcome to Nightshade, California—a small town full of secrets. It’s home to the psychic Giordano sisters, who have a way of getting mixed up in mysteries. During their investigations, they run across everything from pom-pom- shaking vampires to shape-shifting boyfriends to a clue-spewing jukebox. With their psychic powers and some sisterly support, they can crack any case!
There’s a gorgeous new guy at Nightshade High: Duke Sherrad, a fortune-teller claiming to have descended from Gypsies. Even though she’s psychic herself, Daisy is skeptical of Duke’s powers. But when a teacher who was the subject of one of his predictions ends up dead, she begins to wonder if Duke is the real deal after all.
Maybe if Daisy can track down the teacher’s killer, she can find out the truth. The only trouble is, all signs point to the murderer being of the furry persuasion. Is Daisy any match for a werewolf? Maybe she is . . . in more ways than she bargained for!
My Thoughts:
I figured out what was going on with Ryan pretty quick. Too bad it took Daisy till the end of the book. I also knew who was behind the death of the teacher. It's still a fun read and something easy to read when you don't want to tax your brain.
Book Description:
Welcome to Nightshade, California—a small town full of secrets. It’s home to the psychic Giordano sisters, who have a way of getting mixed up in mysteries. During their investigations, they run across everything from pom-pom-shaking vampires to shape-shifting boyfriends to a clue-spewing jukebox. With their psychic powers and some sisterly support, they can crack any case!
Teenage girls are being mysteriously attacked all over town, including at Nightshade High School, where Daisy Giordano is a junior. When Daisy discovers that a vampire may be the culprit, she can’t help but suspect head cheerleader Samantha Devereaux, who returned from summer break with a new “look.” Samantha appears a little . . . well, dead, and all the most popular kids at school are copying her style.
Is looking dead just another fashion trend for Samantha, or is there something more sinister going on? To find out, Daisy joins the cheerleading squad.
My Thoughts:
Very cute, fun paranormal teen mystery. It was a fast read too. I like Daisy and her sisters. Samantha isn't that bad either. Glad they figured out who the soul sucker was.
Book Description:
The Cookie Jar's busiest time of the year also happens to be the most wonderful time...for Christmas cookies, Hannah's own special plum pudding - and romance! Holiday orders are high, and Hannah's slated to provide dessert at the Reverend Knudsen's upcoming nuptials. She's busy as can be and loving it. She also gets a kick out of 'Lunatic Larry Jaeger's Crazy Elf Christmas Tree Lot', a kitschy carnival taking place smack-dab in the middle of the village green. Larry thinks he's crazy like a fox with his wild business schemes, but this time, the entrepreneur may have bitten off more than he can chew. Rumour has it that Larry's in the red - an idea that takes a sinister turn when Hannah discovers the man himself dead as a doornail in his own office...It seems quite a few people would have liked to fill Larry's stocking with coal and then bash him with it - including his bitter ex-wife, his ex-partner's daughter, a woman he was wooing, and the Crazy Elf Tree lot's extremely exasperated investors...Now, with so many suspects to investigate and the twelve days of Christmas ticking away, Hannah's running out of time to nab a murderous Scrooge who doesn't want her to see the New Year.
My Thoughts:
Another good one in the series. A little too easy to figure out what done it this time though. I do want to smack Hannah up side the head and tell her to choose Norman already. What good is Mike but window dressing and a good kisser? Norman is perfect for her and she for him.
I love all the recipes! I read on Joanne's website that in a Oct of 2011 that a cookbook of ALL of Hannah's published recipes, the ones on her website list, plus a generous sprinkling of new never-before-published recipes willing be coming out. Yay!
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