Review: It's To Die For

To Die For

Blair Mallory, Book 1

Linda Howard

 

Published 2004

 

Mass Market Paperback, Piatkus, 378p.

ISBN: 0749935294

After a painful divorce, Blair Mallory follows a dream and opens a health club.  But Nicole Goodwin, a troubled member of the club, develops a strange fixation on Blair, imitating her style and dress, even the car she drives.  Then Nicole is gunned down in the club's parking lot.  And Blair is the only witness to the murder...

 

At first the police investigation concentratres on Nicole and her acquaintances, but then someone tampers with Blair's car, and sabotages her home and business.  The police - including Blair's old flame Lieutenant Wyatt Bloodsworth - are baffled because these attempts, while serious, are very different in tone from Nicole's murder.  Is Nicole's killer seeking to remove a troublesome witness?  Or was Blair the intended victim after all?

 

 

 

Hi there!  As promised I'm starting to post my thoughts on the books that I've recently devoured as part of my week long book marathon.  To Die For by Linda Howard was a real surprise for me as I'd only read her wonderful Mackenzie's series, or a historical romance.  So when I picked it up I was a little dubious as I either love it or I don't when it comes to Linda Howard.  Thankfully in this case I loved it.

 

This is the first of two books - Drop Dead Gorgeous being the sequel - and I just couldn't put it down.  In To Die For we are introduced to our protagonist, Blair Mallory.  An independant woman who knows what she wants in life.  As former cheerleader turned successful gym owner, Blair may look like a fluffy and ditzy blonde, but she's got the instincts of a barracuda.  So when Nicole, the copycat, gets dumped from the gym, Blair is delighted.  The copycat psycho is finally out of her life... until closing time that is.  As Blair closes up for the night she sees Nicole and an unknown male waiting for her in the shadows.  When she hears a gun shot and hits the ground, Blair is sure that her life is in danger.  After the police arrive, it is discovered that Nicole is dead.  Could her night get any worse? ... Yep.  

Enter Wyatt Bloodsworth, now a Lieutenant with the local police force. A big man with a forceful personality, he's also the guy who had dumped her 2 years ago - after just 3 dates.  Now he's back.  And much to Blair's annoyance, seems determined to muscle his way back into her life and her bed.  If he can keep her alive long enough to solve the case that is.

 

Blair is such a fun character great fun character.  The book is told from her POV, but I do like the interaction she has with the reader.  Blair and Wyatt have major chemistry (OMG, you could power a small town on the electricity they produce!), and I love the way that Ms. Howard has Blair writing down lists of Wyatt's misdemeanours for him to read.  It's such a novel idea... I may have to try it one of these days.

My only problem with the book was Bloodsworth's constant ability to get the better of Blair.  I know a strong male lead was called for when there is such a strong female character, but her inability to pull him up short when he needs it is a bit frustrating.  Having said that, Wyatt is a great character who is loving and protective of Blair.  He's a guy who knows what he wants and makes it happen.  I know that's a bit of a circular arguement, but tough ;-D

Blair's family are wonderfully vivid.  My take on her mother is just stand back.  She's one scarily together and practical lady.  Her sisters are very loving and protective, and I love Siana with her dimples.  The idenity of the Blair's attacker is a real surprise.  It crossed my mind for like 2 seconds, but I dismissed it because I didn't see the connection.  When it's all explained it does make sense.

For those of you who don't like very graphic books rest easy.  There is little actual violence in this book, no real swearing and no graphic sex scenes - which I found quite refreshing.  I'd recommend you put this book aside until you have time to read it all the way through as it would be such a hard job to put it down. 

So if you like a good murder mystery, romance or books by Nora Roberts, Jayne Ann Krentz, etc., then this is a good book to add to your collection.  I have already ordered Drop Dead Gorgeous so will post an update ASAP. 

I give this book

Happy reading!

It's a Cosy Mystery Week

 

Went back to the coast to visit family this week and got side tracked by all the books.  Now I'd already had a bit of a book-fest over the weekend, but when I saw all the books in the cheap bins at the shopping centre, mum and I dived right in...

 

... and I'm oh so glad that I did.  I managed to find some books that either completed a series, or were titles I'd tried to find for years in some cases.  It's amazing how titles are OOP forever - or so it seems - and yet, there they are.  Right at the bottom of the pile.  So, thanks to my spur of the moment trip, I found the third and final book in Kathryn Lilley's A Fat City Mystery series, Makeovers Can Be Murder.  I have found all three of the books in different cheap sales over the past 3 or so years.  Now I can finally read the series as a whole - and not have to wonder at what happened in the missing book.
 

This time I seemed to go for mostly Cosy Mysteries (Berkley Prime Crime, etc).  I have found the paranormal romance books just aren't hitting the spot lately.  I've raided family bookshelves of older cosy's that are no longer wanted, and now have four piles of books that I really should post reviews on.  I seem to have gone from being stuck in one rut, to jumping feet first into another.  Oh well...

 

Right now I'm very much enjoying Gemma Halliday and her delightfully ditzy, yet headstrong, Maddie Springer in The High Heels series.  I even managed to find the first book of her Hollywood Headline Mystery series too.  Heather Webber is another great author I've stumbled across.  I bought her book Deeply, Desperately as part of last weekend's 'perfect reading' session, and found out that my old library had the first and third books in the series... yeah, me!  Finally there was a real last minute inclusion of a book that nearly got tossed back (I already had 7 books in my hands people!) and I'm so glad that I followed that last minute impulse not to chuck it.  It was Gabriella Herkert's Catnapped.  This was such a great book.  It is the first of a series and I'm heading over to put it on my wishlist after I post this. 

 

So, now that I've spent WAY too much money this week on books I'm off to see what else I can find online ;-D.  Hope your week was as blissfully fabulous as mine was.

 

Happy reading!

A perfect way to spend the day

 

I think I had a nearly perfect day yesterday.  After buying a few necessities (books), I came home and settled down on the couch to dive into the newest residents of my bookcase.  I had a cup of tea, a few chocolates and biscuits for nibblies, a cat by my side and a nice warm lap rug.

 

With the rain coming down, and not a sound to be heard from the neighbours, I was in book heaven.  It's so rare to get the right conditions to really have a great read.  My favourite time, as you have probably figured out by now, is a cool rainy day when I'm not likely to have to stop every 20 minutes because someone is talking too loud, or mowing.  When you can snuggle up on the couch with a nice hot cup of tea and a nibbly, no television or music... ah, nirvana...

 

So, of the 9 books I picked up yesterday I managed to finish 7 yesterday.  I was up until nearly midnight but I just couldn't seem to put them down!  There were a few surprises in the bunch, and I will put up a short review on each as I go back and give them a second read as all the story lines are bleeding into one another in my head at the moment.  As for my favourite.... well, that actually happens to be the last book of the day.  It's actually one my mother has had for years, but I just never really paid attention to it.  It is Linda Howard's To Die For.  I am giving it a second read again today, and have even found the next book, Drop Dead Gorgeous, and have it sitting in my wishlist.

 

Hope your weekend is as book filled as mine.

 

Happy reading!

A 'Sizzling' audiobook find

Every now and then I scour the online bookstore for much wanted audiobooks, and today I found a real steal.  Amazon has Audio CD copies of Sizzling Sixteen by Janet Evanovich for under $7 - and that's for the unabridged version!  It must be my lucky day... now if only I could find unabridged versions of One for the Money, Two for the Dough and Three to Get Deadly I'd be really happy :P

Floodwaters receded, phones down and I cooked!

 

Today the sun is shining - and I've managed to get some washing on the line - and I feel great. However, I've got to tell you that I had more than a few anxious moments watching the floodwaters creep up the road. Thankfully the water didn't get any higher than in some of the photos, but the huge stormwater drain behind me did keep me twitchy.



you could surf in this stuff!

Then yesterday, the day after the flooding, all the cell phone coverage - all networks - went kaput.  So, not only couldn't I get in contact with relatives on the coast who were hunkering down in 100km/h plus winds, but I had no way to check the weather or emergency reports for this area.  Not impressed with the phone companies.

 



So as I anxiously waited for the phones to come back online, I started to cook.  First a chocolate cake, then a lasagna.  I have been re-reading the Stephanie Plum books to pass the time during the storms - and she's a terrible influence on my menu!  The cake is yummy and very dense.  And I am so proud of the lasagna as it is the first ever time I've cooked it!  It's delicious, and the pasta is cooked just right.  However it's not as good as my mothers lasagna.  Isn't your mother's cooking always tastier than your own attempts at family recipes?  Thankfully I don't have any pineapples in the house or it could have been a pineapple upside-down cake as I do have a recipe floating around somewhere.  My only problem is now I have to either eat it all, or freeze some of the lasagna as I went a little bit overboard.  Perhaps I could have Lula come over for a feed? :-)

Flooded in as ex-Cyclone Oswald batters QLD

I'm screwed!  My street is flooded at both ends, totally cutting us off, and the rain is still coming down in sheets.  In the last 24hrs we've had over 300mm.  I don't think it'd take much more before we see flood waters in our block.

 

 

Stephanie Laurens Upcoming Releases!

And Then She Fell

Cynster Sisters Duo (Book 1)

Stephanie Laurens

 

Avon Books, Mass Market Paperback, 384 p.

ISBN: 978-0-06-206864-4

Due for release on 26 March 2013

 

 

The only thing more troublesome than a Cynster man...is a Cynster lady who belives love is not her destiny. Famously known in London society as "The Matchbreaker," Henrietta Cynster's uncanny skill lies in preventing ill-fated nuptials - not in falling victim to Cupid's spell.

 

But then she distrupts one match too many and feels honor-bound to assist dashing James Glossup in finding a suitable bride for a marriage of convenience.

 

A task infernally complicated by the undeniable, unquenchable attraction that flares between James and Henrietta, who continues to believe she will never fall...

 

 

EXCERPT

 

 

Finally, here it is. The first book in the Cynster Sisters Duo, and number 19 in the Cynster family series is the aptly named And Then She Fell.   Continuing on eight years after the last Cynster Sisters Trilogy book, The Capture of the Earl of Glencrae, we now find ourselves following Henrietta Cynster as she reluctantly finds her hero.

 

If you want to read the books in order, so you have some idea of who's who in the Cynster-verse, I'd get started now!  Start with Devil's Bride (or even The Promise of a Kiss if you want to start at the very beginning).  As the stories seems to inter-connect, I'd also recommend reading all the Bastion Club books.  However, if that's a little too much, just read Simon Cynster's story, The Perfect Lover, as ATSF continues about 2 years after this - and it's where we first meet James Glossup.

 

Oh, and for those of you who can't quite remember where Henrietta and Mary (recipient of the second Cynster Sisters Duo book) fit in on the Cynster family tree... they are the youngest sisters of Simon and the twins, Amanda and Amelia.

 

... quickly before I go, I just found out that Mary Cynster's story will be called The Taming of Ryder Cavanaugh, and will be available on the 30 July, 2013!

The year that was 2012

Well my dears, Christmas has been and gone and as we come to the close of 2012 I find myself reflecting on the year that was.

 

So many of my favourite books have come from this year, and I even found a new author - or three - that I will follow in the future.  This year I time travelled my way through Shadow of Night with Diana and Matthew as they rubbed shoulders with Marlowe other Elizabethan celebrities, and mentally helped kick ass with Eve Dallas as she chased a madman with delusions of grandeur around NY.  Got caught up in a battle with Gods and Goddess' as I followed Atticus O'Sullivan, and flew with Jason and Princess Mahiya as they swept across the desert sands of India on angelic wings.  I eagerly awaited the hatching of Kaylin Neya's mysterious egg, and laughed at Stephanie Plum as she got into yet more trouble ... "but it wasn't my fault!".

 

So here's to the year that was, and the bright and shiny year that could be.  May all your books be fabulous in 2013!

Happy New Year to you all.

Christmas Greetings



 

Wishing you all a wonderful Christmas full of magical moments, love and laughter.

Let the Christmas Chaos begin!

Oh God, it's that time of year again!  Wish me luck!

Notorious Nineteen and Wicked Business

Finally!  I just got my hands on the new releases from Janet Evanovich.  So this weekend I will be snuggled up on the couch, catching up with Stephanie Plum and Diesel.  I just hope Stephanie has made a decision when it comes to who is the main honey in her life :-D

Remembrance Day, 2012

In Flanders fields

In Flanders fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses, row on row,
That mark our place: and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.
We are the Dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved and were loved, and now we lie
In Flanders fields.
Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders fields.

John McCrae (1872–1918)

Thank you.

Returning to Middle-Earth

 

Made a quick dash to the shops this morning and happened to come across new companion books for The Hobbit.  I just couldn't resist returning to Middle-Earth for a few hours.  So I bought a copy (Gandalf does look good) and settled in on the couch with a hot cup of tea - and some Tim Tams - to happily reacquaint myself with some long lost friends.

 

Can't wait to see the movies.  Finally looked up the trailers which I had been avoiding (who wants to spend 6 months plus waiting on tenderhooks for the release date!), and am getting jazzed about it.  Was overjoyed when I realised that there will now be three movies.... yippeee!

 

I have already set aside Boxing Day to see The Hobbit at the cinema.  Since I saw each of the LOTR movies on opening day, I see no reason why I should break with tradition ;-D

Return to Rebel Ridge

Don't Cry For Me

Rebel Ridge #2

Sharon Sala

 

Released: September 18, 2012

 

Mass Market Paperback, Harlequin MIRA, 400 p.

ISBN: 9780778313427

 

 

Mariah Conrad has come home. Badly wounded on active duty in Afghanistan and finally released stateside, she has no family to call on and nowhere to go—until Quinn Walker arrives at her bedside. Quinn…her brother-in-arms, ex-lover and now maybe her future.

 

Quinn brings Mariah to his log cabin in the Appalachian Mountains of Kentucky to rest and recuperate both physically and emotionally. While she's incredibly grateful, Mariah is also confused and frustrated. She's always stood on her own two feet, but now even that can literally be torture. She's having flashbacks and blackouts, hearing helicopter noises in the night. She wants to push Quinn away—and hold him closer than ever.

 

But will she get the chance? Those helicopters are more than just post-traumatic stress; they're real—and dangerous. Bad things are happening on the mountain. Suddenly there's a battle to be fought on the home front, and no guarantee of survival.



Having read the first book in the series, Next of Kin, I was looking forward to getting my hands on Don't Cry for Me... and I wasn't disappointed.  Quinn Walker was a character that caught my interest in NoK, and even before Ms. Sala announced a second book, I was hoping that Quinn would get his own story.

 

As a former soldier, Quinn lives a quiet life on Rebel Ridge.  Content to roam the countryside as a forest ranger, he deals with the fall out of his time spent in Afghanistan.  Though still plagued with nightmares, Quinn does not hesitate to offer a place to stay to Mariah, one time lover, who herself is now state side and recovering from wounds she received during battle.

 

Suffering from lingering injuries as well as PTSD, it takes Mariah a while to settle in with Quinn, they man she loved, who she saved, and who left her without a word.  An independent woman, Mariah has trouble dealing with Quinn and his loud and affectionate family in the beginning.  An orphan, she has no idea how to relate to others in a family situation.  However, with the support of Quinn, and his mother, Dolly, and a scrawny red boned hound pup, Mariah slowly comes out of her shell.

 

But when trouble comes to Rebel Ridge - as it always does - it's Quinn who is in the firing line.  With no one to turn to Mariah has to overcome her injuries - and defy the odds - if she wants to bring her man back home again...

 

I loved Quinn and Mariah's relationship.  The building of a life together on a bond forged during war, the friendship and respect that the have for each other is refreshing to see in a contemporary romance.  This book, series, is a homage to family, friendship, loyalty and love.  A great read, and I would highly recommend to anyone who loves not only Sharon Sala, but the joys of a good book.

 

 

ARC Review: Kept

Kept
A Coveted Novel Bk 2
Shawntelle Madison

RELEASE DATE: 27 November 2012
Mass Market Paperback, Ballantine Books, 320p.
ISBN-13: 978-0345529176


A funny and sexy new paranormal romance, perfect for fans of Charlaine Harris and Patricia Briggs, Kept features the charmingly quirky werewolf, Natalya Stravinsky, as she navigates the minefields of love and war in the Garden State.
 
Fresh from defending her pack in battle, Natalya Stravinsky, a whip-smart werewolf with a lovable neurotic streak, wants a little rest and relaxation. Once an outcast, she's now eager to rejoin the ranks of her New Jersey pack, and has even gotten a handle on her obsessive urge to hoard holiday ornaments. Yet Nat barely has time to revel in her progress before the next crisis comes howling at her door.
 
Nat's father has suddenly gone missing, captured by the Russian werewolf mafia. And as Nat steps up to save her dad from a mob boss's deadly game, two men step in to play another round for her heart: her gorgeous alpha ex-boyfriend, Thorn, and her new flame, the sweetly sensitive wizard Nick. With her life growing more harried by the minute, Nat must stay cool, calm, and collected . . . or else risk losing everything.  

IMPORTANT NOTE:  Okay, I just want to make it clear that I am reviewing this title from an uncorrected ebook people.  So somethings I mention may have be slightly altered by the time you read it :-P

 

Yeah, my first ARC!  I was so excited to read Kept that I dumped all my other stuff, and jumped right in.  Then I had to wait until I could post this review.

Natalya is an anal werewolf germaphobe who can't seem to keep out of trouble!  Oh, she never goes looking for it, but trouble seems to find her anyway.  When her father goes missing while repaying a debt, somehow she gets tapped to find him.  So, with a rag-tag bunch of fellow therapy patients as back-up, Natalya goes hunting.

 

This is a quick paced, high energy book and it will have you rooting for Natalya as she not only searches for her father, but also has to deal with a hunky ex-slash-pack alpha from her past - and now engaged to another woman - and a truly nasty great aunt... all while trying to get re-admitted into the pack.  This truly qualifies as a bad week in my book!

 

Her friends are using every trick in the book to help Nat find, and free, her father.  However, it is Nat herself that must assume the debt, and undertake the burden of completing her father's task if she is to have any chance of bringing him home to his beloved wife and family - and with his wife due to go into labour any day, even her brother can't help her.

 

With Nat growing ever closer to Nick, wizard extraordinaire and fellow therapy goer, her feelings for Thorn (the ex) are still so obvious that a scent-blind wolf could pick up on them.  The tension between this threesome is so powerful, that I wondered when the other shoe would drop... and then it did.  Add to the mix a rather possessive and vindictive fiance and you've got a potential powder keg .  Erica.  Said fiance, and major bitch, is another nasty piece of work in Natalya's life that she has to deal with.  Good ol' Erica isn't above rubbing Natalya's nose in the fact that she's with Thorn now.  It's deliciously nasty, but so addictive to read.  You just want to punch Erica in her perfect face.

 

Will Nat stay with Nick, the new guy on the scene?  Or will Thorn's continuing presence in her life get in the way?

 

With the underlying themes of family and loyalty to those you love running through the book, Shawntelle Madison has created characters that are a joy to read. I got invested in Natalya, and totally tuned out the rest of the world while I devoured this book.

 

I won't give away any more of the storyline.  Just do yourselves a favour and find a copy - you won't regret it.

 

A great second book in a new series. 

 

 

A big THANK YOU to Shawntelle Madison for posting me some odds and ends  regarding promotional bookmarks and other extras. They are so beautiful.  I was surprised to see that there are trading cards that can be collected for this series too!