She's Gotta Be Mine

Sorry guys...today's winner is another "chick" book. Although it does have a mystery element I admit it also does have romance. However, since the romance is well sprinkled with sex (and this author's 'day job' is writing erotic romance, so she knows her stuff) you might still enjoy it.

Jennifer Skully/Jasmine Hayes hit another one out of the park with this one. She's Gotta Be Mine was a very fun read. Most reviews I've seen give it a middle-of-the-road review for just being "entertaining" but I would have to give it a star higher for being so well-written. (It has a four-star rating on Amazon, and a four-and-a-half on Goodreads, which means it had to have an awful lot of five stars in the mix).

The Amazon description is way too short in my opinion:

Click HERE to order

Dumped? For her husband’s high school sweetheart he hasn’t seen in twenty years? Roberta Jones Spivey isn’t going to lay down for that. Instead, she reinvents herself and the new Bobbie Jones—new haircut, new name, new attitude—follows her soon-to-be ex to the small Northern California town of Cottonmouth.

What better way to show him—and his sweetheart—what he’s missing in the brand new Bobbie Jones than taking up with the town’s local bad boy—who’s also reputed to be a serial killer. Nick Angel is devilishly handsome and sexy as all get-out. In a word, perfect.

It’s all going exactly according to plan...until a real murder rocks the little town of Cottonmouth. Of course, Nick didn’t do it...did he?

Previously published as "Sex and the Serial Killer" I found myself rooting for the "serial killer." It was also nice to find out that the "pretty blonde from high school" was lying about more than her dark roots and although I won't give anything else away, just let me say that I always like a happy ending. This was a pretty much a "cookie cutter" plot, but the situations, the dialogue and the well-fleshed-out characters made it very enjoyable quick light read. Excellent choice for reading at the beach or in the hammock with a big glass of iced tea with mint.

All That Jazz (Tremaine)

It's really tough these days to come up with a premise for a paranormal book that will be a "fresh breath" among all of the Twilight-wannabes. Linda Wilson has proven that her lungs are in great working condition as she continues to provide readers with 'fresh breaths' in every book.

50 Ways to Hex Your Lover was the first of the books I'd read by Wilson featuring the main character of Jazz Tremaine, a witch with an attitude. Jazz lives with three other witches who were tossed out of the witchy world because of transgressions some 300 years ago. As they continue to get in trouble and get called on the carpet, their exile appears to be permanent. Since I read 50 Ways to Hex Your Lover I've rollicked through Hex Appeal, Hex in High Heels and am anxiously awaiting another. No, they're not great literature, but they do exactly what they're meant to do. Entertain me. And they do. (The story starts slow, so give it a chance.)

Amazon's description of 50 Ways to Hex Your Lover:

Click HERE to order

Jazz can't decide whether to scorch him with a fireball or jump into bed with him. Jasmine Tremaine, a witch who can't stay out of trouble. Nikolai Gregorivich, a drop-dead gorgeous vampire cop on the trail of a serial killer.

The sizzling love affair between Jazz and Nick has been off-again, on-again-for about 300 years. Mostly off, lately. But now Nick needs Jazz's help, and while Jazz and Nick try to figure out their own hearts and resist their ever-increasing attraction, they must steer clear of a maniacal killer with super-supernatural powers. They are surrounded by a hilarious cast of oddball paranormal characters, including Irma, the chain-smoking ghost who haunts Jazz's sports car, Dweezil, her ghoul of a boss, and Fluff and Puff, a pair of bunny slippers with sharp teeth and short tempers (watch your ankles)!

Most readers agree that Fluff and Puff, the monster bunny slippers, are the cutest characters in the book. Although they have a nasty temper, they're easily cowed when Jazz simply lifts her foot (they're afraid of heights). Personally, I think I liked Irma the ghost the best; destined to haunt Jazz's car forever with cigarette smoke and backtalk. Since Jazz is in her car frequently for her job removing hexes from her clients, Irma and Jazz's conversations fill up quite a bit of the book. Of course her conversations (and romantic interludes) with Nick take up quite a few too.

The title was misleading. Jazz never hexes anybody. Much less Nick. And although there's a cat on the cover, there wasn't one in the book. If you're up for a fun read without a lot of brain cell involvement pick up a copy!

Brainstorm ------ almost gave me a brain freeze

A chilling premise. Good characters. Twist ending (which I won't spoil for you, although I sure would like to talk about it right now!) Starts off fast and doesn't slow down. I've been told I've reviewed too many "chick lit" books and not any "guy books." So, if by "guy books" you mean those with bombs, boobs, sex, fighter jets, assault rifles, Marines, POWs, matrix trips, a gerbil and a psychic threat...then my last read was just for you!

In Brainstorm, author Gordon Kessler touches a nerve that we weren't aware was raw. But, once twanged that nerve will never be the same again.

Amazon describes it as:



Click HERE to purchase

What if a small American town is secretly replicated, populated with kidnapped scientists and psychically talented civilians, and then used as a proving ground while training psychic assassins? Political and military leaders of the Free World are the targets of these psychic warriors, and Project Brainstorm's goal is world domination.

Gold Rush seems to be just another sleepy little Colorado community full of friendly, caring citizens, quaint cottages, and a sort of quiet peace, held gently by the picturesque mountains that surround it. However, something isn't right in Gold Rush, and early on a Monday morning Robert Weller awakens with a cautioning and insuppressible voice inside his head. He soon finds a secret behind every door, a motive with every glance, and a lie beneath every spoken word. After meeting a strange but beautiful woman named Sunny who insists they were once lovers, people begin dropping dead around him without apparent cause. The world he thought he knew twists upside down as paramilitary teams hunt him, and his own wife and the people he considers friends turn against him.

Weller is thrown into the middle of a military mission to rescue thousands of the town's citizens from a plot to destroy the free world. In time, Weller discovers he was once the CIA's top remote viewer, and it's not just the bad guys who will lose if he survives another day.

BRAINSTORM goes beyond the bounds of ordinary reason. It blends the past (the CIA's "Project Stargate," a twenty-year exploration into remote viewing and psychic powers as background) with the present (incredible new developments in nonlethal weapons such as acoustic cannons, sticky foam, anti-traction substances, electromagnetic pulse devices, and infrared lasers). And it throws in a very sobering reminder; that there are still thousands of American MIAs from the Korean and Vietnam Wars.

It didn't come as much of a shock to me to find out that Mr. Kessler is a former US Marine parachutist, recon scout and Super Squad team leader. His writing proves an amazing knowledge of all things military (good and bad). With his history as a published, well-received writer, with a degree in creative writing, I can't help but wonder how on earth so many silly mistakes made it through even the first edit, much less the last one! Using "saw" instead of "seen" (loc. 1202), "pealed" instead of "peeled" (loc. 2107), the improper use of possessive "hello's" (loc. 2181), an extra o in "loosing" (loc. 4858), and in loc. 5000 a phrase that I couldn't make heads of tails of...with Robert posing Sunny on the table "as if she were in her finally resting." Sadly, there were a lot more. Especially a shame in such an otherwise amazing book.

I personally did not like the way the book ended. I thought the story should have ended several pages earlier and the last few pages were too "Twilight Zone-ish," in my opinion taking away from what was otherwise an absolutely magnificent tale that had me on the edge of my seat, having to slow down my reading so I wouldn't finish it too quickly. I look forward to reading more of Mr. Kessler's work....when I'm asked to review another "guy book" I'll be ready!

Somebody Tell Aunt Tillie She's Dead

I obviously can't resist a fun title. It's always such a rush when the book shows as much creativity as the title...and this one didn't disappoint me! After a somewhat slow start, the downhill ride to the final page was full of funny one-liners, eye-rolling situations and enough tense moments and unanswered questions to keep me turning the pages (and, yes, there were quite a few editing errors too but I still kept flipping those pages). Author Christine Miller definitely is a name of which to make note if you're into paranormal romance/cozy mysteries with a side order of humor.

Amazon describes the book this way: A little magic can go a long way -- to really screwing up a girl's life!

Click HERE to order

Mara is having the worst month of her life. At least, that's what her cards tell her and they've never been wrong. She's evicted from her apartment, loses her job and is banned from Beverly Hills. So when the tarot cards predict her imminent demise, she uses a little magic to make her world right.

Suddenly, an aunt she's never met dies, leaving Mara as her sole heir. But when Mara moves into her inherited home, she discovers Aunt Tillie never moved out. She's still one pissed-off old lady, even post-mortem, and she blames Mara's magical meddling for her death.

When Mara accidentally releases a demon and awakens the spirit of the most powerful witch in history, Tillie's ready to kill her -- literally. It's the only way she can think of to save the girl from herself. The witch and the demon, however, have other plans for Mara's body!

I think perhaps the synopsis should include the fact that the house that Mara inherited is truly a haunted cottage...by more than just Aunt Tillie's ghost. Possibly mentioning Mara's best friend, the flamboyantly flaming Gus (also a witch) could have added a little zest to the description. Of course, if you add all that you shouldn't leave out Lord Grundleshanks the poison toad or ... well, maybe you'd just better read the book.

NOTE: Personally, I find the religion of Wicca to be very interesting and intriguing although, sadly, very misunderstood by our society. This book did make the very valid point that the Wiccan faith is one of peace and love and tolerance. Not one of black magic and evil. It also allowed for a couple of quotable quotes about tolerance: "You'd think that church of his would teach him tolerance. Whatever happened to love thy neighbor?" (Kindle location 3851) and "Did you miss the Crusades? The Inquisition? Since when has any fundamentalist religion taught religious tolerance?" (Kindle location 3853) It is my opinion that our world today needs a good dose of tolerance. Failing that, maybe everyone should just read about Aunt Tillie and relax!

The Lust Lizard of Melancholy Cove

I swear I didn't make up that title. I wish I had. Author Christopher Moore definitely has cornered the market on "intriguing book titles" with this one, (running neck and neck with Island of the Sequined Love Nun in the race for my personal all time "Best Title" award).

I bought the book simply because the title not only made me raise an eyebrow, but crack a smile. It's a bit pricier than a lot of other Kindle books, but, how do you put a price on a grin?  I don't show a lot of emotion while I'm reading. It's a rare book that makes me smile as I flip pages much less before I even flip the first one. I started smiling at the title...and didn't stop until I finished. There were even, wait for it, yes, a few not only chuckle-moments but a couple of actual LOLs. Yep. Me, laughing out loud while reading a book. I couldn't believe it either. Carl Hiassen describes Chris Moore as "A very sick man, in the very best sense of the word." I couldn't have said that better either.

Click HERE to purchase

Amazon describes the book like this: The town psychiatrist has decided to switch everybody in Pine Cove, California, from their normal antidepressants to placebos, so naturally—well, to be accurate, artificially—business is booming at the local blues bar. Trouble is, those lonely slide-guitar notes have also attracted a colossal sea beast named Steve with, shall we say, a thing for explosive oil tanker trucks. Suddenly, morose Pine Cove turns libidinous and is hit by a mysterious crime wave, and a beleaguered constable has to fight off his own gonzo appetites to find out what's wrong and what, if anything, to do about it.

I could wax poetic about all sorts of metaphors and imagery and other literary goop phrases, but to cut to the chase ... I highly recommend this book. I enjoyed reading it more than any other book I've cracked open (or turned on) in a very long time. Moore has an excellent writing style, he came up with yet another outrageous premise and once again unforgettable characters. There's a monster, people getting eaten by said monster, there's stuff blowing up, there's people getting shot, quite a bit of weed smokin' and a heck of a lot of people finding what they didn't know they've been looking for their whole lives.

All in all, it truly fits the time-worn phrase of "rollicking tale." Pure enjoyment. The reason I read.

Maggie For Hire

First, let me ask you...(and no, the question isn't "are you feeling lucky, punk") have you read and did you like The Dresden Files series by Jim Butcher? If the answer is yes to both of those, well whether you're feeling it or not, you're in luck! Maggie For Hire has very much the same tone and feel of Jim Butcher's Dresden Files and is just as intriguing. (If you haven't read either Dresden OR Maggie then you're too far behind for me to help you right now. Go buy two copies and call me in the morning.)

As soon as I read the synopsis I figured I was going to like it. When I also read the "WARNING: This book contains cussing, brawling, and unladylike behavior. Proceed with caution" I knew absolutely sure that Kate Danley and I were gonna be buds (in my head at least). 

I love strong women. Not stringent "butch stalking in army boots, ima kick your butt" type strong, but women who can handle themselves in any situation AND both wear army boots and use them for pretty swift butt-kickin'. In a perfect world, they look really good while they're doing it too. In my head, I have the potential to be that kind of woman. In this book, Maggie MacKay is definitely the type. She is my hero. Or maybe Kate Danley is for creating Maggie? Either way, I loved the book.

Yeah, some of it coulda been fleshed out more. And there were the usual ebook tendencies for formatting and other errors. But, when you're really engrossed in a book you don't notice so much. And I was. And I didn't.


Click HERE to order

Amazon.com says about Maggie For Hire:



When monsters appear in Los Angeles, Maggie MacKay is on the job. No one is better at hauling the creepy crawlies back where they belong. No one, that is, except her dad, who disappeared without a trace in the middle of an assignment.

Now an elf named Killian has shown up with a gig. Seems Maggie's uncle is working with the forces of dark to turn Earth into a vampire convenience store, serving bottomless refills on humans.

The only hope for survival lies in tracking down two magical objects and a secret that vanished with Maggie's father.

I'm usually up for giving a chance to any book with action, good character development and paranormal elements. In Maggie For Hire I found the paranormal elements in the form of fairies, ghouls, vampires and other things that go bump in the night. I found the action in a very good story line carried out by well-developed characters that I'd love to invite over for dinner and a movie one night. So long as Killian agrees to carry Maggie's back up gun.

Although as I might have mentioned, I'm a little burned out on the whole idea of "series"...I can't wait to have the second in the series come up in my queue.

Sadly, there was no main dog character (not even a cat...that I recall) but there was a sexy drop-dead gorgeous male elf named Killian. I can forgive the lack of a pet in this case.

The Goddess of Fried Okra

Wow! I thought to myself when I read the title. Someone wrote a book about my Grandma? Or one of my aunts, Lucille or Leo? Of course I knew they hadn't, but the title immediately made my mouth water for one of our long-table-down-the-dogtrot-hallway family dinners. My family had several Goddess of Fried Okra-s, so I was intrigued to find out what someone else thought the title should fit. Obviously I had to purchase the book, even though the description sounded like one of those "finding herself" books that I usually find somewhat drawn-out and boring and to be avoided at all costs unles I'm having to look for a reason to sniffle into my tissues.  If the word "poignant" is used in a description, I usually just move along. Glad I didn't this time! Thanks to author Jean Brashear for creating such an enjoyable journey. I have likened it to Eudora Welty's writing (one of the best compliments I can give).

Although this wasn't something I should have liked at any point, considering that I was in the middle of a fluff-paranormal extravaganza of reading it was even less likely something that was going to entrap me. But, I absolutely couldn't put it down. I tried. I tried to sleep. And couldn't. So I read just one more page. And then one more after that. And I finished it in one reading (who needs to sleep when one has no work schedule?)

I have read a lot of reviews of this book, and strangely, the people who purchased it because of its description were disappointed. The ones that purchased it despite the description were blown away. Number reviews were all over the board from a 1 to a 5. I gave it 4 stars. (To be a little brutal here, if the author hadn't seemed to want to impress readers with her own literary knowledge, I might have gone to a five star rating. I tended to skim over parts such as the indepth reasoning behind naming a kitten after an Egyptian goddess.)

All in all, this was a charming read. I will probably re-read it someday...something I rarely say any more because of the avalanche of indie books available for the Kindle. If I made a deal with God that I could live until I finished the last book currently on my Amazon Cloud, I'd be able to watch my great-great-every-so-many-great nieces and nephews graduate and start families!

From the Amazon page:

Grief. Hope. Love. Sword fights. And the crisp glory of fried okra. Ex-cocktail waitress and "convenience store professional" Eudora "Pea" O'Brien is filled with grief and regret, low on cash and all alone. Headed down the hot, dusty back roads of central Texas, Pea is convinced she'll find a sign leading her to the reincarnated soul of the sister who raised her. A sign that she's found her place in the world of the living again. At least that's what the psychic promised. In an unforgettably funny and poignant journey, Pea collects an unlikely family of strays-a starving kitten, a pregnant teenager, a sexy con man trying to go straight, and a ferocious gun dealer named Glory, who introduces Pea to the amazing, sword-wielding warrior goddesses of Texas author Robert E. Howard-creator of the Conan the Barbarian novels-and celebrated in festival every year. Six foot tall, red-headed Pea looks good with a sword in her hand. Glory, the goddesses, and a grandmotherly café owner become Pea's unlikely gurus as she struggles to learn swordplay and the art of perfect fried okra. She'll have to master both if she's going to find what matters most-her own lost soul.