2012 Reading Romances Challenge

The Reading Romances group on Goodreads has a challenge.

The page can be found here.

I've set a goal to read 40 romances this year.

Completed!

1. Manda Collins - How To Dance With A Duke (1/12/2012)
2. Wanda E. Brunstetter - Sarah's Choice
3. Lisa Mondello - The Knight and Maggie's Baby (1/30/2012)
4. B.J. Hoff - Rachel's Secret (2/10/2012)
4. Sarah Morgan - Wish Upon A Star (2/15/2012)
5. Cheryl Douglas - Shameless (3/6/2012)
6. Jennifer Haymore - Secrets Of An Accidental Duchess (3/15/2012)
7. Janet Evanovich & Leanne Banks - Hot Stuff (3/21/2012)
8. Eileen Cook - Do Or Di (3/26/2012)
9. Linda Ford - The Cowboy Father (3/29/2012)
10. Allie Pleiter - Homefront Hero (4/16/2012)
11. Portia Da Costa - In The Flesh (4/20/2012)
12.Jamie Carie - The Forgotten Duke (4/26/2012)
13. Hope Ramsey - Last Chance Beauty Queen (May 1, 2012)
14. Tiffany Reisz - Immersed In Pleasure (May 3. 2012)
15. Lauren Hawkeye - My Wicked Gladiator (May 8, 2012)
16. Kelly Long - Arms Of Love (May 10, 2012)
17. Emma Miller - Leah's Choice (May 14, 2012)
18. Kate Hoffman - Not Just Friends (May, 15, 2012)
19. Renee Hauck - The Wedding Dress (May 24, 2012)
20. Charlotte Featherstone - Temptation and Twilight (7/18/2012)
21. Terry Irene Blain - Kentucky Green (8/3/2012)
22. Terry Irene Blaine - Colorado Silver, Colorado Gold (8/12/2012)
23.Stacey Kennedy - Beg For It (8/16/2012)
24.Shirley Ann Wilder - Too Many Cooks (8/17/2012)
25.Anne Browning Walker - The Booby Trap (8/25/2012)
26 Liz Carlyle - The Bride Wore Pearls (8/31/2012)
27. Tricia Goyer - The Memory Jar (9/3/2012)
28. Stacey Kennedy - Bind Me (9/12/2012)
29. Regan Walker - Racing With The Wind (9/17/2012)
30. Nadia Notariani - A Practical Arrangement (10/3/2012)
31. Jennifer Crusie - Getting Rid Of Bradley (10/6/2012)
32. Jennifer Mullany - Hidden Paradise (10/8/2012)
33. Lorraine Heath - Lord Of Temptaion (10/19/2012)
34. F.J. Wilson - Celestine: The House On Rue Du Maine (10/20/2012)
35. Jill Shalvis - Forever & A Day (10/21/2012)
36. Gaelen Foley - My Scandalous Viscount (10/25/2012)
37. Karen Hawkins - A Belated Bride (10/28/2012)
38. Jane Green - Jemima J (10/31/2012)
39. Elysa Douglas - The Christmas Diary (11/13/2012)
40. Stephanie Laurens - The Lady Risks All (11/14/2012)
41. Anna Schmidt - A Groom For Greta (11/20/2012)
42. Marguerite Kaye - The Lady Who Broke The Rules (11/22/2012)
43. Catherine Bybee - Not Quite Dating (11/27/2012)

Starting Off Slow

It is the 8th of January and I've only read 2 books. The book I started at the end of the week is really slowing me down. It's Jodi Picoult's Plain Truth and I'm just not lovin' it. I'm barely liking it, but I'm more than 100 pages into it, so I'm going to finish the damn thing if it kills me. (And at this point it just might).

I hate abandoning books. I've not done it very often, but this is one book that could inspire me to cast it aside. I don't know what it is about the plot...the characters and Jodi's writing style...but all of it is making me really bored.

I hate the thought that I've wasted good time reading this book so far, but I also hate the thought that I may not finish the book.

Foolish isn't it?

What makes you decided whether to finish a book that's not working for you?

Book Review: Softly & Tenderly

Author: Sara Evans and Rachel Hauck
Title: Softly & Tenderly
Publisher: Thomas Nelson
Publish Date: January 4, 2011
Buy: Amazon
Review Copy Provided By: Booksneeze and the publisher
Book Blurb: Maybe out there in the country she could catch her breath, learn to breathe again.

Happily married and owner of two successful boutiques, Jade longs to begin a family with her husband, Max. But when she discovers that Max has an illegitimate son—who he wants her to help raise—Jade’s life is turned upside down.

She flees to her childhood home, a rambling Iowa farmhouse, with enough room to breathe. There—while her mother’s health grows fragile, and the tug of her first love grows stronger—Jade begins to question everything she thought she knew about family, love, and motherhood. In the wide-open landscape, Jade begins to see a future that doesn’t rest on the power of her past but in the goodness of God's tender mercies.

Review: This is probably one of the most emotionally charged books that I've read in a very long time. If you were to lump it into a genre, it is Christian Chicklit. It is very heavy on "Faith" but never comes across as preachy, which I liked.

This is the second book in the Songbird series. (Oh do I wish I had read the first one..but I'll go back and get that one later). It reads like a soap opera. Jade has her issues, she thinks she's barren, her mother is terminally ill. Her husband Max is addicted to painkillers and has kept a child he had with his ex-fiancee from her. Then there's Max's parents...more secrets and infidelities there.

It really is hard to believe that this is Christian fiction, well, except that they seem to try to work things out, though at the end of the book the two marriages in jeopardy haven't been superglued back together.

The most likable character in the book is actually Jade's mom, Beryl. She's everything you'd expect an aging hippie to be; feisty and lovable, and repentant of some of her wild ways but with no regrets. She's not the mother you want to have, but she's the mother you want one of your friends to have. I found myself wishing she'd hang on, but it was obvious she wasn't going to make it. Her death was truly the climax of this story.

I could understand Jade and June and the way they dealt with things, but at times, Jade came across as a little to sanctimonious.  There was a little "do as I say and not as I do" thing going on with her. But then again..she found her father-in-law with another woman and then learned her own husband had a fling with his ex, at his bachelor weekend that resulted in a pregnancy.

Yeah...can you say drama and angst?

I can really picture Jade, June and Beryl making the trip in the pink Caddy to Iowa..that is until Jade breaks the top! This book really showed how these women started to make peace with themselves and God...and all their past choices.

I really enjoyed Softly & Tenderly...I'm going to pick up the first book, so I can be totally up to speed with the final book in the trilogy comes out this year.

Rating: 4 flowers

The Doctor Reading Challenge

If you'd like to join me, you're more than welcome to read any of the published Doctor Who books, graphic novels, non-fiction, or other material.  And like most challenges, there are a few (ahem) levels to choose from:

First Doctor - read 2 Doctor Who books
Second Doctor - read 5 Doctor Who books
Third Doctor - read 10 Doctor Who books
Fourth Doctor - read 15 Doctor Who books
Fifth Doctor - read 20 Doctor Who books
Sixth Doctor - read 25 Doctor Who books
Seventh Doctor - read 30 Doctor Who books
Eighth Doctor - read 40 Doctor Who books
Ninth Doctor - read 50 Doctor Who books
Tenth Doctor - read 75 Doctor Who books
Eleventh Doctor - read 100+ Doctor Who books

All the usual rules apply...
*challenge runs 1 January to 31 December 2012 - any books must be read in the 2012 calendar year to count
*any format is allowed
*cross-overs between challenges allowed
*link your post/reviews from your blog, goodreads, shelfari, librarything or the comments section (no blog necessary!)
*no list is needed beforehand - you can choose as you go (or change your choices!)

I'm going to go for The Second Doctor because I only have 5 Who books and getting them is a pain in the bippy here in the US. Apparently the BBC doesn't realize there are plenty of Whovians on this side of the pond!!

1. Oli Smith - Doctor Who: Blackout

2012 Tudor Reading Challenge

From  The Musings Of Almybnenr

Details/Rules:

The challenge runs from 1 January 2012 to 31 December 2012 (yes, I had this idea two days into the new year and it is now the third day, but if you started a Tudor related book on the on the 1st or later, it counts).
All book formats are allowed for this challenge as long as they have an ISBN number or the equivalent. Both fiction and non-fiction are allowed as well. Re-reads ARE allowed but your review must be a new one.
All the books read for this challenge must be Tudor related. Books that feature any Tudor from Henry VII to Elizabeth I and any spouses, lovers, close family members, or themes count. There are a lot out there, so no worries!
Each month, I will create a new post dedicated to the challenge where you can link your Tudor reviews for that particular month. You do not need a blog to participate! Posting on Goodreads or wherever you post your reviews is fine.
When you add the link(s) of your review(s), please leave the book title and your name/blog (i.e. The Other Tudors (Amber) or The Other Tudors (The Musings of ALMYBNENR)). Do not add your blog link but rather the link that will take us directly to your review.
There is no need to list the books you will read for this challenge in advance. Feel free to list them as you go. Join the challenge at any time before 31 December 2012. Crossovers from other reading challenges do count.
When you sign up, please post the direct link to the post where your books will be listed. If you are on Twitter or Facebook, post a status of what level you plan to complete and link that! If you are on Goodreads, create a shelf of books you hope to read for this challenge and link that! If you do not have any of those, just leave a comment on this post indicating you are signing up and which level you hope to reach. But it IS important that you leave the direct link. Do not just leave the link to your blog’s homepage or your profile, please!!!
Now, for the levels!

• Henry VII (Creator of a dynasty): 5 books
• Henry VIII (Larger than life): 10 books
• Mary I (The first queen of England): 15 books
• Elizabeth I (Gloriana & the Golden Age): 20 books

I'm going to go for Henry VIII. I have a lot of Tudor books on my TBR pile..but I don't want to overextend myself!

1. Phillipa Gregory - The Queen's Fool (2/28/2012)
2. Phillipa Gregory - The Constant Princess (3/17/2012)
3. Julia Fox - The Sister Queens (4/1/2012)
4. Sandra Byrd - The Secret Keeper (6/6/2012)

The Bookish Snob Promotions Book Review: Taken

Author: L.M. Pruitt
Title: Taken
Publisher: Red Hot Publishing
Publish Date: Oct 28, 2011
Review Copy Provided By: The Bookish Snob Promotions and the author
Buy: Amazon
Book Blurb: Cheating spouse? Stolen jewelry? Missing person?


Call Frances--Frankie--Post. A private detective with a trick of two up her sleeve and a few skeletons of her own.

What starts out as a simple missing person's case dumps Frankie and her lover Jack right in the crosshairs of a dangerous human trafficking organization. With lives on the line, bad blood and old wounds finally see the light of day. And Frankie and Jack are forced to realize: The past always catches up with you.

Always.

Review: I read Shades Of Grey by Pruitt last year and really enjoyed it, so I jumped at a chance to read Taken and I'm glad I did. This is a fantastic PI story with a lot of hot and steamy action going on both in and out of the bedroom.

Yeah. I said hot and steamy.

Like sizzlin' hot and steamy.

Melts ice, hot and steamy.

Have I mentioned hot and steamy?

OK.

Frankie is hired to find the cousin of a lawyer in the DA's office. But this is more than just a missing person's case as they find out through a little sluething. This is something big! Really big. Oh and Frankie has "The Sight." She has an ability to slip into a person's mind, which is how she found Audrey Clark and a whole lot more about her.  I like how this helps set things up in the story but doesn't take over the story. For the most part, this is a good PI story, with lots of sex!

Pruitt has created a fun cast of characters for this series. Jack is super sexy and so is Ian, aka Lawyer Boy...and then there's Casey Lynn and the doggie Monster, not to mention Johnny. One of these characters won't make it to book 2, but I'm not tellin' which..because you really have to read it.

There's one more thing about Jack and Frankie...they have a bit of a criminal past..and Jack and Frankie aren't their real names.

Want to find out more?

Read the book! You won't regret it..this was a good one.

Rating: 5 flowers

To read an excerpt, click here

The Bookish Snob Promotions Book Excerpt: Taken

This summary is not available. Please click here to view the post.