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About Dee

I'm one of those people that no matter how many books I have, I can't turn down a sale or a trip to the bookstore. There are no limits to what I'll read and I hope you enjoy my reviews.

It’s Monday – What are you reading?

19 Sep

its-monday-what-are-you-reading

It’s Monday – What are you reading? is a place to meet up and share what you have been, are and about to be reading over the week. It’s a great post to organise yourself. It’s an opportunity to visit and comment, and er… add to that ever growing TBR pile! So welcome in everyone. This meme started with J Kaye’s Blog and then was taken up by Sheila from Book Journey. Sheila then passed it on to Kathryn at the Book Date.

so I promised at the end of August (jeez, has it been 2 weeks already) – that I was going to try and do better about being more consistent with blog posts – and what better way to do that, than the do a weekly meme about what are you reading? I’ve participated in It’s Monday, what are you reading? on and off through the years – and its always a good way to just capture my thoughts on different books that i have in progress…so without further ado…

Currently Reading:
Like always, I have a variety of books that are currently in progress – some are on my kindle, some are in print and others are in audiobook. I know of describe it as a reader’s version of ADD (also know as multiple book syndrome).

what-are-you-reading-19-sept

I have (at least) 6 books that are currently in reading progress – from a non-fiction about mental endurance when it comes to endurance thoughts – because seriously, my brain decided to screw with me every time I do a long distance race (and my review of the book when I post it will focus more on that); to a cult classic of Peyton Place (also known as the book that shocked the nation); to a new author I discovered via Kindle Unlimited (Alison Kent). Pretty much all of the books that I am currently reading are related to different reading challenges that I am currently participating in – which is probably what makes my reading choices seem so bi-polar at times.

My book ADD is continuing with my audiobook choices – normally, I only have 1 book going at once, but for some reason, while I’m enjoying the books i’m listening to, I have a short attention span right now.

audiobooks-sep-19

I think its safe to say, after listening to the first 2 CD’s (and a bit) of Grunt that I now know more about genital reconstruction than I ever wanted to know – but that honestly doesn’t surprise me because where her brain goes in these books honestly scares me at times. I’m also alternating between book 2 in Margaret Atwood’s MaddAddam trilogy – about a world where corporations reign supreme and genetic engineering is taken for granted; and Dark Skye, book 15 in Kresley Cole’s Immortals After Dark series. It’ll be interesting to see how I balance listening to the three of these over the next week – haha!

What about you – what is on the reading pile for this upcoming week?

 
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Posted by on September 19, 2016 in It's Monday! What are you reading?, Meme

 

Review – Bookish – Olivia Long

08 Sep

bookishBookish
Author: Olivia Long
Rating: ☆ ☆ ☆

Description:
My name is Aubrey Britton. I was your every day average nerdy book blogger, obsessed with the hot guys on the covers but lusting from afar. I knew I’d never meet a guy like the ones in my books, with muscles like that, with eyes like that, with a mouth like that.

I knew I was destined to be an old maid, get a bunch of cats, work at a book store and live in my fantasy world until the day I died.
Hot, steamy sex was something reserved for the girls in my books, not a girl like me.
Until the day I literally fell for Isaac James, the hottest man to grace the cover of any romance novel.

And he wanted a girl like me.
And he had muscles like that.
And eyes like that.
And a mouth like that…and was a filthy talking sex god in the bedroom.

But we both had our secrets and we both had our guarded pasts. When all was revealed, would the nerdy book blogger get the guy?

Or was I destined to be alone forever?

Review:
One of the many things that I love about Goodreads are the friendships that I’ve made and the book recommendations that I get from them. Bookish is just one of those recommendations – it popped up in our August what are you reading thread in one of my romance groups and the mini-review by the member that posted caught my eye. Of course, seeing that it was also available via Kindle Unlimited helped (since I could borrow it as part of my subscription). Double bonus was that it fit into a reading challenge as I needed a book that featured a writer (including book bloggers) as a main character.

I’ll admit that there wasn’t anything in Bookish that blew me away writing or plot wise. In fact, I actually found how the story unfolded to be kind of predictable – there weren’t really any surprises in what happened (and at least to me, much of it was telegraphed through previous actions of the characters). Also, I have to admit that insta-love is one of my least favorite romance tropes.

But don’t get me wrong – just because I found the plot to be fairly predictable, didn’t mean that I didn’t enjoy Bookish and I found Ms Long’s writing to be fluid with few errors – just solid – which is this day and age I find to be a bonus. If you are looking for a cute, but predictable romance with an insta-love trope, then Bookish might be the book for you.

 
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Posted by on September 8, 2016 in Book Review, Review

 

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Audiobook Review – Never Judge a Lady By Her Cover – Sarah MacLean

06 Sep

never judge a lady by her coverNever Judge a Lady By Her Cover
Author: Sarah MacLean
Series: #4 in the Rules of Scoundrels series
Rating: ☆ ☆ ☆ ½

Narrator: Justine Eyre
Run Time: 11hrs 55min
Narration Rating: ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

Review Copy Provided by Audiobook Publisher

Description:
By day, she is Lady Georgiana, sister to a Duke, ruined before her first season in the worst kind of scandal. But the truth is far more shocking—in London’s darkest corners, she is Chase, the mysterious, unknown founder of the city’s most legendary gaming hell. For years, her double identity has gone undiscovered . . . until now.

Brilliant, driven, handsome-as-sin Duncan West is intrigued by the beautiful, ruined woman who is somehow connected to a world of darkness and sin. He knows she is more than she seems and he vows to uncover all of Georgiana’s secrets, laying bare her past, threatening her present, and risking all she holds dear… including her heart.

Review:
Sometimes I just have to laugh at how I end up listening to different audiobooks – specifically, I’ve had the ebook of Never Judge A Lady By Her Cover on my kindle since it was released in 2014 and yet, I hadn’t read it…so it was kind of like fate when it showed up as a nominee for the romance category on the Audies (yeah, I know this review is a little bit late, overcome by events has been a standard term of phrase in my life recently). It seemed like perfect timing because I was in the mood for some historical romance and I’ve been a fan of Justine Eyre’s narration in the past.

If you had been reading (or listening) to the Rules of Scoundrels series then we knew who Chase was (as it been revealed in a previous book) – but even before that, I had wondered who Chase and looking back there were hints that were there but that I had kind of glazed over. And Duncan West…what can I say about him – its hard because I hated him at first, then grew to like him, then hated him again and then liked him again – it was a very love-hate relationship. But that just made the ride to their HEA all the more enjoyable. There were a few times where I just wanted to scream (and it is probably good that no one rides in my car with me while i’m listening to audiobooks)…and other times, where I just wanted to sit and wait to see what happened (causing me to be slightly late to work).

Justine Eyre’s narration fit the story perfectly as it had will the previous books I’d listened to by her – her narration style just fit perfectly with Sarah MacLean’s writing – there is a witty banter style to her narration that just is perfect. As I hadn’t listened to the previous books in the series – I had my own idea of how I thought Chase/Georgina would sound and amazing enough, Justine’s narration was actually pretty close to how I envisioned Chase would sound. Never Judge a Lady By Her Cover was a solid way to close out the series and overall, I gave it 3.5 stars and Justine Eyre’s narration 4 stars.

 
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Posted by on September 6, 2016 in Audiobook Review, Review

 

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Wow…that was a long break…

28 Aug

Sooo….I really didn’t intend to have upwards of 6 weeks of silence here. I know that I’ve had periods like that in the past when real life has gotten in the way of reading and blogging (HOW DARE IT RIGHT?) but I’ve at least tried to check in…but for some reason this time I didn’t.

It wasn’t that I haven’t been reading (I have) or listening to audiobooks (boy have I ever), or even that I haven’t read/listened to any books that deserve reviews (I have several of them half written)…I just…I don’t know…lack of energy and excitement over blogging. The feeling of same ‘ole, same ‘ole – a touch of a reading rut (I’ve definately moved away from my normal heavy romance reading because everything is starting to read the same).

Add to that, a currently insane workload (having to do the work of at least 3 others because we are undermanned) and training for my second Ironman (Louisville on October 9th) and pretty much anything that isn’t work or triathlon related has been moved to the backburner. But never fear – I will be back – I might be a bit sporadic until after October, but I’m going to try and chisel my way into my backlog of books that I have to review…wish me luck!

 
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Posted by on August 28, 2016 in Uncategorized

 

Waiting on Wednesday – 13 July 2016

14 Jul

New WoW

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly feature hosted by Breaking the Spine that spotlights upcoming releases that we’re eagerly anticipating.

I’ve been on a recent 20th century historical fiction kick (which seems kind of weird to say, considering that the 20th century ended only 16 years ago and I was alive during the end of it)…but specifically, books set from World War 1 (inclusive) through the end of world war 2, so i was excited to see the following book pop up in the Publisher’s Weekly upcoming releases list.

secrets of nanreath hallSecrets of Nanreath Hall: A Novel – Alix Rickloff
Release Date: August 2, 2016

Tagline: This incredible debut historical novel—in the tradition of Beatriz Williams and Jennifer Robson—tells the fascinating story of a young mother who flees her home on the rocky cliffs of Cornwall and the daughter who finds her way back, seeking answers.

Why Waiting on Wednesday?
Sometimes when taglines say for fans of certain authors, I’d immediately buy, or I’ll avoid…but in this instance, I’ve had very limited exposure of the 2 authors mentioned in the tagline (Beatriz Williams and Jennifer Robson), but I’ve (unintentionally) been making my way through the different decades of the 20th century (with a WW1 anthology, followed soon after by a book set in the 1920’s) – although, I’ll admit, I still need to find a book set in the 1930’s…but this will likely be my book for the 1940’s when I get there 🙂 (although, it seemed to be a book that tells the story in 2 time periods, which if done right, is a story format that I really enjoy). Plus, I’ll admit there was some total cover lust for this book – its a cover that is just simple and elegant and one that I would totally buy in a store if i was just browsing the shelves.

What about you – what is your “Waiting on Wednesday” book?

 
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Posted by on July 14, 2016 in Wishlist Wednesday

 

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Happy 4th of July

04 Jul

4th of july

 
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Posted by on July 4, 2016 in General

 

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Waiting on Wednesday – 29 June 2016

30 Jun

New WoW

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly feature hosted by Breaking the Spine that spotlights upcoming releases that we’re eagerly anticipating.

Its been a while since i’ve participated in a Waiting on Wednesday – this year has been so busy that i’ve done a really bad job about tracking new releases…or I come across a book that sounds interesting and mean to do a post on it…before promptly forgetting…but since I had some downtime tonight, I figured I would take a quick look at a couple of the websites I use for tracking books to see if anything caught my eye.

don't tell me you're afraid
Don’t Tell Me You’re Afraid – Giuseppe Catozzella and Anne Milano Appel
Release Date: August 2, 2016

Tagline: Based on a remarkable true story, an unforgettable Somali girl risks her life on the migrant journey to Europe to run in the Olympic Games

Why Waiting on Wednesday?
It’s funny – normally, I’m a total cover reader (meaning the vast majority of the books that I pick, I pick because of the cover) and yet there is nothing really eye catching about the cover of Don’t Tell Me You’re Afraid, in fact, its a very tame cover. But as I reading through the August list for Bookreporter, it was the tag line that caught my eye. After reading When the Moon is Low (Nadia Hashimi) a few months ago, I became interested in more immigrant/immigration fiction, especially books that are based around people escaping their war-torn country (like Afghanistan in When the Moon is Low). I’ll be intrigued to see how the fictional version of the true story comes to be and know that I will be asking my library to get me a copy when its released.

 
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Posted by on June 30, 2016 in Wishlist Wednesday

 

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Review – The Girl from the Savoy – Hazel Gaynor

17 Jun

the girl from the savoyThe Girl from the Savoy
Author: Hazel Gaynor
Rating: ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

Review Copy Provided by Publisher

Description:
Sometimes life gives you cotton stockings. Sometimes it gives you a Chanel gown …

Dolly Lane is a dreamer; a downtrodden maid who longs to dance on the London stage, but her life has been fractured by the Great War. Memories of the soldier she loved, of secret shame and profound loss, by turns pull her back and spur her on to make a better life.

When she finds employment as a chambermaid at London’s grandest hotel, The Savoy, Dolly takes a step closer to the glittering lives of the Bright Young Things who thrive on champagne, jazz and rebellion. Right now, she must exist on the fringes of power, wealth and glamor—she must remain invisible and unimportant.

But her fortunes take an unexpected turn when she responds to a struggling songwriter’s advertisement for a ‘muse’ and finds herself thrust into London’s exhilarating theatre scene and into the lives of celebrated actress, Loretta May, and her brother, Perry. Loretta and Perry may have the life Dolly aspires to, but they too are searching for something.

Now, at the precipice of the life she has and the one she longs for, the girl from The Savoy must make difficult choices: between two men; between two classes, between everything she knows and everything she dreams of. A brighter future is tantalizingly close—but can a girl like Dolly ever truly leave her past behind?

Review:
sometimes i have to wonder if my desires in book settings is like published somewhere…so funny(ish) story, maybe a month or so ago, I was talking some book-ish friends on facebook and mentioned that I would love to see more books that were set in the post-WW1 era, but pre-WW2 (so the 1920’s and 30’s). And then not long after, I got an email asking me if I would be interested in reviewing Hazel Gaynor’s newest book, The Girl from the Savoy. I’d first read Gaynor when I picked up her “The Girl Who Came Home” when it was on sale one day (which told the story of a Titanic survivor, interspersed with a modern day story). And who doesn’t love this cover, like I have serious cover envy right now!

The first thing that sucked me into Gaynor’s story-telling, was how I felt like I was in London during the 1920’s. I felt like I was walking into the Savoy for the first time, seeing its opulence and having Dolly (or one of her friends) being my maid. Reading the vivid descriptions of the clothes and their trips to see Loretta May perform on stage. Dolly was just a character that you could fall in love with because she was so relateable – a girl who just wants to live her dreams, but one that also has a past that she is trying to reconcile with. It took me a few chapters to realize that while the majority of the book was set in the 1920’s, that there were a few portions that were set 1919 and more immediately post WW1 (yeah, I know, sometimes, I’m a bit slow on the uptake).

There was such a cast of characters included in The Girl from Savoy – Dolly and her fellow maids, several customers of the Savoy (there was one who really gave me the heebie-jeebies) so you could see the types of people who stayed at the Savoy, to Loretta and her brother, Percy and then there was Dolly’s long-lost love, who while he came back physically from the war, was never the same. His portion of the story was probably the most gut-wrenching off all the parts in the story (I know that it was supposed to be, but maybe its because I am in the military, that it hit home even closer)…

The Girl from the Savoy makes 2 books in a row by Gaynor that I have really enjoyed and I can’t wait to see what she comes up with next. I’d recommend both the Girl from the Savoy (and the Girl Who Came home) to people who like historical fiction that has been extremely well-researched and just draws you in. A solid 4 stars for The Girl from Savoy and one step closer to Gaynor being added to my auto-buy list.

 
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Posted by on June 17, 2016 in Book Review, Review

 

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Review – The Angel Wore Fangs – Sandra Hill

15 Jun

the angel wore fangsThe Angel Wore Fangs
Author: Sandra Hill
Series: #7 in the Deadly Angels series
Rating: ☆ ☆ ☆

Review Copy Provided by Publisher

Description:
Once guilty of the deadly sin of gluttony, thousand-year-old Viking vampire angel Cnut Sigurdsson is now a lean, mean, vampire-devil fighting machine. His new side-job? No biggie: just ridding the world of a threat called ISIS while keeping the evil Lucipires (demon vampires) at bay. So when chef Andrea Stewart hires him to rescue her sister from a cult recruiting terrorists at a Montana dude ranch, vangel turns cowboy. Yeehaw!

The too-tempting mortal insists on accompanying him, surprising Cnut with her bravery at every turn. But with terrorists stalking the ranch in demonoid form, Cnut teletransports Andrea and himself out of danger—accidentally into the tenth-century Norselands. Suddenly, they have to find their way back to the future to save her family and the world . . . and to satisfy their insatiable attraction.

Review:
Sandra Hill is an author who has been on my to-read pile for a while, in fact, i’d heard about her vikings series quite often (since there are very few authors who write in that romance sub-genre), so when I was approached by her publicist to review the newest book in her Deadly Angels series, I was intrigued (even if it is book 7 in a series, which made my OCD eyeball twitch just a bit)…based on the description, I was intrigued with how the author was going to try and merge the historical world of vikings with a paranormal world with demons and vampires (or rather Lucipires aka demon vampires).

But i got to be honest, I was more intrigued with the viking world that Cnut (funnily enough, I have a co-worker with a similar name) and Andrea ended up in rather than the paranormal undertones of the book. Maybe because to me that part of the story just sucked me in and i haven’t read the previous books in the series to understand the paranormal background. I’ll also say that I had a few issues with the ISIS storyline that the author chose to use, mostly because a whole secret compound in the US isn’t typically how these middle eastern terrorist groups recruit people. It was also like she tried to work in an element of romantic suspense as well with Cnut helping Andrea to find her sister. I don’t know, in general, I think if I were going to read Ms Hill’s stuff again, then i might stick to the straight historicals, like her Vikings series, rather than her paranormals, since this one just didn’t really work for me. Don’t get me wrong, fundamentally, there was nothing wrong with her writing style, it is just a personal preference. Overall, I gave The Angel Wore Fangs 3 stars, because while it didn’t necessarily work for me, it was a solid paranormal romance.

sandra hillAbout the Author
Sandra Hill is a graduate of Penn State and worked for more than 10 years as a features writer and education editor for publications in New Jersey and Pennsylvania. Writing about serious issues taught her the merits of seeking the lighter side of even the darkest stories. She is the wife of a stockbroker and the mother of four sons

Connect with Sandra
Website – https://www.sandrahill.net/
Twitter – https://twitter.com/sandrahillauth
Facebook – https://www.facebook.com/SandraHillAuthor/
Goodreads – https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/177305.Sandra_Hill

Purchase Links
Direct from Publisher
Amazon – Mass Market Paperback
Amazon – Kindle

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Posted by on June 15, 2016 in Book Review, Review

 

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Audiobook Review – Opening Up – Lauren Dane

14 Jun

opening upOpening Up
Author: Lauren Dane
Series: #1 in the Ink & Chrome series
Rating: ☆ ☆ ☆ ½

Narrator: Sasha Dunbrooke
Audiobook Length: 9hrs, 55min
Narration Rating: ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

Review Copy Provided by Hachette Audio

Description:
The men of the Twisted Steel custom motorcycle shop are great with their hands… and they’re not afraid to get dirty.

PJ is exactly the kind of woman Twisted Steel owner Asa Barrons doesn’t need. The last thing he wants to do is mix business with pleasure, and PJ has some of the best custom detailing he’s ever seen. But the chemistry between them won’t be denied, and soon he’s introducing her to a whole new world in the bedroom, pushing her far beyond anything she’s ever experienced. PJ finds she can’t get enough, but how far is too far before he consumes her completely?

Review:
I’ve lost track of how many Lauren Dane books i’ve read over the years, but in all that time, I’ve never actually listened to one (that actually surprises me because of the amount of audiobooks that i’ve listened to over the years). Typically, I know when I pick up a book of hers, i’ll be immediately sucked it – that it will be hot and steamy at times (and oh wow, was it!), that will likely be a quick read (mostly because once I start reading, I can’t stop!).

In Opening Up, we meet Asa Barrons, one of the owners of Twisted Steel – a custom car business – he is the kind of tough guy with a soft interior that Dane does really well as a character – he’s all tough and business, but that right woman, just makes him fall to his knees. And that right woman, is PJ…I’ll admit that having a woman go by her initials isn’t necessarily a common occurance, in real life or in books, but she countered Asa’s hardness in all the right ways. its hard for me to describe what I liked and didn’t like about PJ – I think for the most part it was how she continued to face shit (for lack of a better word) from her family (specifically her father) and yet, didn’t let that deter her from her dreams/wishes of doing custom paint work on cars (which is just perfect considering the business that Asa owns). she also wasn’t a dainty flower, as seems to be the common character in romance novels – she wasn’t a virgin and knew exactly what she wanted from men and in bed. While there were a few times that I wanted to scream in fustration about how her family treated her, I loved seeing PJ grow and overcome their objections and find her way towards Asa.

Sasha Dunbrooke is a new to me narrator, but i can guarantee it won’t be the last time that I listen to her. She managed to hit all my emotional buttons at various times during Opening Up – I both laughed and cried in several places, sucked into the storyline that I was. I was so glad that I had a substantial amount of time that I was out and running and errands because i got to essentially binge listen a good half of the book in the space of a couple of days, rather than just getting to listen in fits and starts. I honestly have no real complaints about Sasha’s narration – its hard to pick if there is anything that I disliked about her narration…she had a good range of voices for the various characters, her men sounded like men (and not like women with a really bad falsetto)…overall, just a solid and enjoyable listen.

Overall, I gave the book itself 3.5 stars and the narration 4 stars. Fans of Lauren Dane will enjoy Opening Up and I recommend to people who like hot, sexy romance with a bad boy and slightly bad girl.

 
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Posted by on June 14, 2016 in Audiobook Review, Review

 

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