Watcha Readin' Wednesday

This week's review title is Once a Cowboy, by Linda Warren. ** I read it on the Sony Reader, **and guess how much I paid for it? Nada. Zip. Zilch. It was a freebie in Harlequin's big anniversary giveway. And hey, let me be totally honest. I wasn't expecting much from "free" books. In the past, I've read a few stinkers pubbed by the big house that starts with an H with a Q in the middle. In part, I think the shorter length novel isn't my thing because I have a hard time connecting deeply with characters in so few pages. This wasn't a problem with Once a Cowboy, though.

PI Alex is hired to determine whether rodeo champ-gone-rancher is the son of a family whose baby was stolen when just two days old. To say her intrusion is unwelcome in his life would be an understatement. Their chemistry is great, though, and the story is fully developed, complete with well rounded secondary characters. Alex deals with everyday family problems of her own, while feeling a realistic compulsion to help Brodie cope with bigger issues.

Thanks to this nicely written and well-edited novel, I'll give that Harlequin rack a second glance the next time I'm shopping for something new to read. When we don't have many dollars to spend, it's nice to know we have affordable options. And I won't forget that Harlequin titles are all available as ebooks now, too.

This novel is a Nice Bang for Your Entertainment Buck. Worth your time and money, but not necessarily worth a re-read. Pass it on to someone who’ll enjoy it and keep the author on your radar.

Just finishing up: Mine Till Midnight, by Lisa Kleypas

Autumn
Got romance?

Watcha Readin' Wednesday

This week's review subject: Hot Wheels and High Heels, by Jane Graves. **I read it on the Sony Reader.**

I first heard of this book from Dearreader.com and promptly moved it to my To Read List. If you haven't heard of dearreader.com, it's a neato service where you sign up for certain genres and every week day a small excerpt comes to your Inbox - one book per week - for you to sample. I've found several gems through this service. And the beauty is, if the novel just isn't "ringing your bell", you can simply delete the rest of the messages for the week. But I digress.

Hot Wheels is a fun story about a well-kept woman whose husband sends her on vacation and sells everything out from under her, then disappears before she returns. The repo man who comes to take her precious Mercedes is an unlikely candidate for next sugar daddy, while a mega-rich tycoon has everything she could want. When Darcy goes to work for John in the repo business, all sorts of problems arise. The premise is different, characters original, and the writing is clean.

I'd rate this a Nice Bang for Your Entertainment Buck. Well worth your time and money, but not necessarily worth a re-read. Pass it on to someone who’ll enjoy it and keep Jane Graves on your radar.

On the nightstand: Mine Till Midnight, by Lisa Kleypas

Autumn
Got romance?

Watcha Readin' Wednesday - all 3B's

This week I'm happy to review Welcome to Temptation, by Jennifer Crusie.

Welcome to Temptation is a fun, fast read. It starts off with a bang (sisters Sophie and Amy are cruising into small town Temptation, Ohio to make a short film when they have a fender-bender with a local socialite couple), provides plenty of belly-laughs when we get to watch local city council meetings (our Hero, Phin, is a fourth-generation mayor and expected to keep winning elections to preserve the family name but sees the silliness in trivial town politics) and with all the flirting around the movie set, we get plenty of badda-bing (including more than one scorcher between Sophie and Phin). Mysteries abound: Who offed the starlet’s scummy despised-by-all ex husband? Who’s threatening Sophie and trying to kill her? Who attempted to frame her for the murder? Is Phin’s mother a really nasty piece of work who’ll end up Bad Guy #1, or is she just an overprotective mom with her own plans for his love life?

The characters totally pulled me in and the story kept me entertained. This was one of those books that really interrupted my life. I had a hard time putting it down to do anything (including sending Jennifer Crusie an email to tell her how awesome it is, which totally delayed my race to the finish, but I think is important. Surely even a successful author still loves to hear when readers enjoy her work!).

This book is a borderline Keeper - (I’ll probably send it along to very trusted friends who I know will return it, but I’ll make sure to get it back. Or else.) / Get Your Own Copy! - A book you love so much, no way are you loaning it out. Worthy of high praise and frequent recommendations – but trust us, if you let someone borrow this one, they’ll “forget” to return it. Don’t miss the next title by this author.

Piper Denna

Romance is sexy!

Now reading: Hot Wheels and High Heels by Jane Graves, on the Reader

Next week's review: What the Lady Wants by Jennifer Crusie