I had good intentions this year to post at least twice a week….well that worked for the first few weeks of the year and then I don’t know what happened.  Actually I can’t believe it is February already, where did January go? 

So my teaser that I should have posted on Tuesday made it to Thursday, but it is still a day that begins with the letter T! 

Today’s teaser is a new series by author Diane Kelly called Death, Taxes and a French Manicure.  The main character is Tara Holloway, an IRS special agent (in Dallas!) out taking down those tax evaders, like Capone.  She is in Texas and grew up in East Texas (Nacogdoches to be specific) and is a take charge woman that can shoot her way out of a situation if necessary.  But heaven forbid it should mess up her manicure!

This book is a romantic mystery with a LOT of witty dialogue.  Heck the first sentence of the book had me laughing and I knew I was in for a treat.  If you are looking for a new series, definitely check this one out.  The second book in the series Death, Taxes and a Skinny No-Whip Latte is due out March 1st and the 3rd book, Death, Taxes and Extra-Hold Hairspray will be out in July.  I cannot wait!  Oh and I just saw on her website that she will be signing copies of that second book on March 10th in Arlington, I’m planning to be there!

So I’m going to offer 2 teasers – the first is the first sentence in the book.  The other will chosen at random.

Chapter One – Some People Just need shooting

When I was nine, I formed a Silly Putty pecker for my Ken doll knowing he’d have no chance of fulfilling Barbie’s needs given the permanent state of erectile dysfunction with which the toy designers of Mattel had cursed him.

from page 61:

Her eyes moved from my face to the pink Cadillac visible through the glass front of the clinic.  “What is it this time?  Makeover gone horribly awry?”

Wow, I cannot believe it has been 2 weeks since I posted anything.  Bad me!  I have been reading but just haven’t felt like writing.  Have you ever had those days weeks?

Today’s Teaser book is one that I am reading for my bookclub.  It is Just One of the Guys by Kristan Higgens

From the back of the book: 

So when journalist Chastity O’Neill returns to her hometown, she decides it’s time to start working on some of those feminine wiles.  Two tiny problems: #1 – she’s five feet eleven inches of rock-solid girl power, and #2 – she’s cursed with four alpha male older brothers.

While doing a story on local heroes, she meets a hunky doctor and things start to look up.  Now there’s only one problem: Trevor Meade, her first love and the one man she’s never quite gotten over – although he seems to have gotten over her just fine.

Yet the more time she spends with Dr. Perfect, the better Trevor looks. But even with the in-your-face competition, the irresistible Trevor just can’t seem to see Chastity as anything more than just one of the guys….

Today’s teaser comes from page 282:

“Could you tell?  That he was, you know….gay?”

I haven’t gotten to this page yet but now I’m curious as to who they are referring to in the cast of characters.  I don’t think it is a major character though.

Happy Reading and I have a book review and interview with the author coming up very soon!

Gloria Schumann is originally from Detroit but attended college in TN where she met her husband, Paul.  They moved to Minnesota before ending up in Austin where they still reside.  I learned from her site that she was never much of a reader growing up (oh the horror!) but quickly delved into reading whenver she could once she found her passion, stories about relationships. 

Author Gloria Schumann was kind enough to send me a PDF copy of her book, Called Home Two Hearts Answer.

Synopsis:

Emma Benson’s view of life was crafted as a child by the death of her brother, the abandonment by her father and later, the man she trusted she would marry. A teacher by training, she forgoes her chosen path to save the Wisconsin farm she calls home from financial ruin.

A tornado threatens damage, but David Schlosser—back in town after years in New York writing best-selling novels—could ruin her neatly tended life. He’s looking for the charms of the small town he once rejected and finds more than he bargained for. He risks everything to get what he wants.

The storms of life throw Emma and David together and into the world of a criminal determined to ruin their plans by any means necessary. Robbery and near death connect Emma and David to their nemesis and during the throes of securing life and limb they make every effort to resist falling for one another.

My Review:

 I enjoyed this book because it combined two of my favorite genres – romance and mystery/suspense.  Ok so the mystery/suspense part was mild but it was still there and I found myself wondering who was doing everything.  Yes it was obvious who was harrassing Emma, but then there is a twist in the story and you have to start looking elsewhere for someone else.  That I was not expecting.  I did find the character of Emma very hard headed and wondered if she really wanted to be happy or if she was going to let the past control her future.  Emma did learn to move on with her life and realized that past experiences are not always repeated but it took her quite some time to come to that understanding!

All in all I would give this 3 1/2 stars.  Definitely worth a read.  So pick up a copy at your local library or nearest bookstore.

Lori Wilde is the author of over forty-five books for three major New York publishers. Recently, she received a two-book contract from Warner Books based solely on a 25 word ‘high concept’ pitch. When the sale—along with the pitch—was announced on Publisher’s Marketplace, she was approached by eight film production companies interested in optioning her completed novel for a movie. She has been nominated for Romance Writers of America prestigious RITA award and is a four time nominee of the Romantic Times Reviewers’ Choice Award.

Summary:

“On Christmas Eve, if you sleep with kismet cookies under your pillow and dream of your one true love, he will be your destiny.”

The towns folk of Twilight, Texas, believe the legend, but not Sarah Collier—not since she was a pudgy teenager, running down the church aisle on Christmas Day in a jingle bell sweater and reindeer antlers, trying to stop Travis Walker from marrying someone else. She may be grown up, slimmed down, bestselling children’s book author “Sadie Cool” now, but Sarah will never forget that day. And she’ll never fall foolishly in love again!

But when a letter from a sick fan brings Sarah back to Twilight, she’s shocked to discover that Travis is the little girl’s father—unattached and hotter than ever. His movie-star smile still makes her melt, but Sarah knows that ship has sailed. Travis, however, might have different ideas.

And just because you don’t believe in fairy tales doesn’t mean they won’t come true…

My Review:

This is the second book by Lori Wilde I have read.  The first was Addicted to Love which I also reviewed.  Since I live in Texas I always enjoy books that are set in this state since I tend to recognize characteristics of the towns or state as truly Texas.  Of course it doesn’t hurt that Lori lives here too.

Sarah was embarrassed as a child…but then who wasn’t when they were a teenager?  However she told Travis that she was his destiny…at his wedding…in front of the whole town.  I don’t think it can get any worse than that.

Fast forward about 10 years.  Sarah’s publicist sets her up on a goodwill tour with the clincher being a letter from a little girl in the town of Twilight who is deathly ill but Sarah’s biggest fan.  How can she disappoint this little girl? Of course the kicker is that she doesn’t know that the little girl is Travis’ daughter until it is too late and she is thrown directly into Travis’ path and the memory of what she did at his wedding.  Of course Travis hasn’t remained unscathed over the last 10 years and will his love for his daughter prevent him from finding his true love?

I really enjoyed this book.  It was very lighthearted with a few serious moments and it was nice to see where the male lead had issues he was dealing with in life that were of a serious nature.  Of course it doesn’t hurt that he is sexy and the descriptions Lori uses allow you to conjure him up in your mind.

Definitely check out this book if you like romance set in Texas…or just romance period!  It is a fairly quick read and I had a hard time putting the book down.

Teryl Cartwright is a relatively new author having written one other romance novel and two plays along with news articles and childrens curriculum.  Teryl states on her website that it is important for her to write about what she knows—relationships, family and faith.  This way even though the story and characters were fictional, many of the emotions and thoughts were not.

I was lucky enough to receive a copy of this book from the author and will be giving it away here on my blog.  I also asked Teryl if she would answer a few questions and she was glad to oblige.

SBR:  When and Why did you begin writing?

TC: I’ve been writing on and off since third grade, but only got serious about writing novels in 2002.  A friend had convinced me to try the online National Novel Writing in a Month Contest and that book was the first completed novel I had ever done.  (It also turned out to be my first published novel, A Sensible Match, after many, many edits!)

I had written short stories, articles, plays and such before that, but there is such a difference to hold a complete book, imperfect as it was.   Over the years I had so many half done books sitting around and I found out that I needed to actually finish a book in order to go to the next steps of editing and sending it out.

I began writing to have some control over my life.  I mean, I always think of the perfect thing to say or do in real life after the fact, so for me, it’s great that in a story, the characters can do and say what I want, when I want.  It is such a wonderful outlet for my imagination too.  I get paid for daydreaming or making movies in my head.  Ironically when I write, sometimes the words and story come out so differently than when I started that I am the one surprised as if I’m the reader.  So the reason I started to write, to have more control, is actually not the end result.

SBR:  If you had to choose, what writer would you consider a mentor?

TC: I haven’t met too many other writers yet, so my mentoring has come through the words in other authors’ books.  I should also explain that mentors to me are the cheerleaders of our lives.  They don’t criticize, coach or edit, they just get you excited to keep working on your stuff.  If I had to choose, my mentor then is a nonfiction writer named Roger Von Oech.  He writes about how to be creative.  If I need to get a different perspective on my writing, if I have writer’s block or if I have a sudden lack of confidence, I dive into his books, A Whack on the Side of the Head and A Kick in the Seat of the Pants.  The titles say more than I can!  Don’t get me wrong, I need critics, coaches and editors too, but I get inspired by those writers and their books after I have a first draft done, not before.

SBR: What book(s) are on your nightstand?

TC: M.C. Beaton’s Death of A Witch, Georgette Heyer’s Cotillion and Talisman Ring and Scottish Customs by Margaret Bennett are all currently stacked on the nightstand.

SBR: Do you have a favorite author?

TC: Georgette Heyer and Louis L’Amour are my favorite historical fiction writers.  They pay attention to the time period and make it a character of the story without overshadowing it.  I just can’t read authors that put every single research detail into their books because I want to get to the story. And these two also really know story and pacing–and have a sense of humor.

I’ll just share an inside joke in Courting Constance—two characters’ names are tributes to my favorite authors—Harriet Guyer (the quiet girl) is named after the more wordy Georgette Heyer while man hungry Marianne Beaton is a fun accolade to M.C. Beaton, who always has several of those desperate women chasing after her hero, Hamish MacBeth, in her books.

SBR:  If you had to do it all over again, would you change anything in Courting Constance?

TC: I wish I could have also added another “flashback” to the beginning of the courtship and I might have added a scene with Edwin (Abby’s husband) and Geoffrey talking about the sisters they love, Abby and Constance respectively.  I also think it would have been fun to have Constance try one or two more things—but I felt it would be padding the story and bog it down.  I call Courting Constance my “kitchen sink” book because I threw in about everything but the kitchen sink.  You might not think that a writer can read a story she’s written and feel surprised, but I can still leaf through pages and have something jump out at me that I forgot I put in or find something new to laugh at.  Basically, I’m pretty happy with the book though and even the small changes the editor wanted are starting to grow on me.

SBR:  What are you working on for your next novel?

TC:  I would love to do a Scottish novel set in the same time frame (early 1800s) as Courting Constance and A Sensible Match.  There was so much happening in Scotland then in terms of advancements (culturally and technologically) and in light of events such as the Highland Clearances.  The problem is that research resources seem much more limited than those for Regency England.  I understand now why Highland romances are generally set in Medieval times, because it’s so much harder to find references for the time I want to research. Until I can find what I need, I am working on books in other genres such as western and sci-fi.  But I will write a Scottish romance soon–even if the first one can’t be the one I want to do right now.

Thank you so much for letting me share some thoughts and time together with you!  Teryl Cartwright

Book Synopsis & Review:

Courting Constance is a historical romance novel.  Constance was engaged to Geoffrey but he called off the engagement after seeing her flirt with another man just weeks before the wedding.  Constance decides that she wants him back and follows him to Bath in order to court him secretly.  She isn’t going to do it with flowers and candy as most men would do to court women, instead she decides to use music and food.  What follows can be described as a comedy of errors or as the author shared the tagline with me – If you had to win a guy in 10 days in Regency England, how would you do it?

I will admit that I’m not usually a huge historical romance fan but Courting Constance had me chuckling from the first chapter.  Between her antics in trying to court Geoffrey and Geoffrey trying to get revenge on Constance for the flirting had me in stitches.  Constance is definitely a “modern” woman for her time and isn’t afraid to go for what she wants in life.  And what makes the story more comical is when society thinks that she is courting Geoffrey’s best friend (and next door neighbor) Lord Robert Fenway…who wants to help Geoffrey but has also taken a liking to Harriet.

Oh what a tangled web Constance weaves in the name of love!   But along the way she realizes that sometimes you have to let love go so that others can be happy.  However, even this realization causes problems for headstrong Constance.  In the end she learns to open her ears and close her mouth and listen.

I definitely recommend this book and give it 4 stars.  Next time you are in the mood for a little historical romance, pick up this book, you won’t be disappointed.

Giveaway:

I am giving away the copy of this book that Teryl sent me.  The contest is open to all US and Canadian residents.  Just leave a comment and I will draw a name on September 11th.

Delphi Brent is a self assured young woman who has the opportunity to travel to Colorado for the summer before starting a job in Maine.  However, her parents are not keen on this idea because of an accident nine years previously that left Delphi with a large scar on her leg and the death of a son of long time friends, Robert & Annie Laughlin.  What no one knows is who was driving the car and what really happened….or at least they are not saying.  What Delphi doesn’t expect is to fall in love with one of the Laughlin boys and for her world to turn upside down and will the secrets cause her to lose out on a chance of love and happily ever after.  

I read this book in about 3 days (at night) and could not put it down.  I really enjoyed the wit of Delphi and her reactions to Noreen, the fiancee of Bobby Laughlin, who thinks that Delphi is there to make good on a crush from 11 years ago when she was 15. I liked how she stood up for herself and didn’t let anyone get her down.  However, in the same respect, Delphi didn’t give others a chance to break down the walls around her heart.  That is until several people mentioned to her that Tam Laughlin looks at her like there is no one else in the world.  The power of suggestion!  Despite her reservations, she finds herself enjoying Tam’s company and getting closer to him until it finally ends in a kiss…but what a kiss!

Delphi also makes friends with Dave the vet, who has a secret of his own that surprisingly no one else figures out.

And then there is Bobby, the oldest brother who is engaged to Noreen and is it really for love or to join their ranches?  And is his heavy drinking masking anything else?

This was a very enjoyable read and I highly recommend it!

Author – Linda Masemore Pirrung
iUniverse
978-1440140747, April 2009
Right always wins out over wrong in the end
4 out of 5 stars

Linda Masemore Pirrung is the author of several romantic suspense novels including “Cracked Hearts” and “I Will Wait for You”.

“Explosion in Paris” is the newest romantic suspense novel from this author. Angie has been married to Mitch for seven years and of those seven, only the first year was a good one. Mitch has a very controlling personality and subtly forced Angie to resign from her job as a teacher stating that he needed her at home to maintain their home and assist him with his career as an architect. Eventually his actions over the years become those of an abuser, both emotionally and physically. Angie knows she needs to get out but doesn’t have the confidence any more to know that she can make it on her own. That is until a chance meeting with Ross. It started with Ross accidently wandering onto their property from the woods behind their home to a chance meeting at a local restaurant. From that moment on, Angie feels a kinship with Ross and they start spending more time together as friends which eventually turns into more.

During this time Angie thinks that Mitch doesn’t know about her friendship with Ross but she later finds out she is wrong. Mitch has a business trip to Paris and Angie must go along with him. Mitch has other plans for this trip besides business which include killing his wife in a boat explosion. What Mitch doesn’t realize is that Angie wasn’t on the boat when it exploded, that she managed to get off before that happened. The up side to this is that she is able to start a new life in Paris without Mitch, but this also means a life without Ross.

The story continues with her experiences in France, the messages she is sending Ross without him realizing it and how she confronts her past without having to forfeit her future. I don’t want to spoil the rest of the story so you will have to read the book for the rest of the details!

When I first started reading this book I wasn’t sure what to expect. At first I didn’t like the storyline because I saw that Mitch was an abuser and that didn’t sit well with me. But as I continued reading I saw that Angie blossomed from her friendship with Ross and that it was most likely that she would have left Mitch if he hadn’t tried to kill her. I was glad to see that Mitch didn’t escape punishment from his actions. There were times when I felt that the descriptive language could have been trimmed back and nothing would have been lost from the story or the imagery that the author created.

Overall I would recommend this book. The description on the back of the book does not do this storyline justice and I think you will be pleasantly surprised at all of the storylines come together. I also found it to be a fairly fast read and it was hard for me to put down because while I guessed what happened next in many places, there were also parts of the story that I didn’t see coming and it surprised and delighted me to read those chapters.

Reviewed for RebeccasReads (6/09)

Amanda Hamm was born in Ohio and now lives in North Carolina with her husband and children. Writing has been a life long dream for Amanda and has written several books including Dear Jane Letters and Zero Station: A Science Fiction Novella.


“Tightening the Knot” begins with Meredith Donnor sitting in an attorney’s office contemplating filing for divorce. At some point she realizes that she doesn’t want to be there and walks out before getting very far with the process. Meredith has been married to Greg for six years, but at some point over the last year they stopped really talking to each other due to a sensitive subject, fertility and her inability to get pregnant. As the months go by, the communication decreases and Meredith is frustrated because Greg is not interpreting her hints at restarting communication. Then Greg signs them up for a Tightening the Knot marriage seminar through church, could this be the help they need to get back on track and rekindle their marriage?


This is not a very long book at all, but it does a good job of reflecting how many relationships sour and what causes the decline and what could turn the relationship around. Meredith’s “hints” and Greg’s inability to read between the lines is typical of many male-female relationships. Too many women don’t say what they think or want or need and men just can’t figure it out without the direct approach.


As I was reading the book, I was reminded of the movie “Fireproof” in small ways. When Greg started doing nice things for Meredith I immediately thought of the principals of that movie. However, the book changed direction and I was glad that it would be different.


When Greg and Meredith decide to attend the marriage seminar, I wondered if it would help their relationship. The description of the exercises they did together did seem strange but they were good principals that every married couple should remember in their day to day relationship with their spouse. As it turns out, the seminar has a positive effect on Greg and Meredith and was what their relationship needed to turn it around.


Along with Greg and Meredith’s story line is Meredith’s friendship with Jenna. There is also Tom and Ellie – Meredith’s brother and future sister-in-law. Greg’s mother, Judy, also arrives for a visit and creates some tension. These are all minor story lines but play an intricate part to the story as a whole and add sufficient background to give the reader a larger picture of why Greg and Meredith are in this situation.

Author – Lori Wilde

Third time’s the charm

Rachel Henderson is fed up with romance especially after being dumped at the altar, not once but twice! She blames it on her hometown of Valentine Texas and is determined to punish the town for putting the idea of romance in her head from when she was a young girl. On top of being left at the altar, she finds out that her parents are divorcing on her wedding day. Definitely not one of her better days.

Rachel is angry and drives the 400 miles from Houston to Valentine to seek her revenge on Valentine Texas. She decides that the way to do this is paint over the billboard entering town with black paint. Unfortunately the town’s mayor catches her in the act and has her arrested by non other than the hunky Sherriff Brody Carlton. It urns out that Brody was Rachel’s first love until he moved away at the age of 12.

Rachel is stuck in Valentine until she finishes her community service. This gives her time to start Romanceaholics Anonymous (a 12 step program for those addicted to romance), plot revenge against the fiancé that dumped her at the altar and get to know Brody as a friend. After all, she is done with romance and only wants either friendship or hot sex. But what does Brody want? Does he just want her as a friend or will he want more? And who knew that Romanceaholics Anonymous would become so popular? Rachel has to set up chapters in nearby towns to handle the interest that her YouTube video garnered.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book and it is the first one by Lori Wilde that I have read but it won’t be the last. ‘Addicted to Love’ is a romance book but there are several underlying stories that keep it from being pure fluff. There is the story of her parents, Michael and Selina, who still truly love each other but Selina can’t get past an indiscretion from 30 years ago. There is also Mayor Wentworth and Giada Vito. She is originally from Italy but has been a citizen for 15 years and has decided that Mayor Wentworth needs a reality check in regards to the town and his position as mayor, which is why she decides to run against him. But what is this spark that they feel when they are around each other? And of course there is the story of Rachel and Brody, her addiction to romance and can she learn to the separate the two or does she really need to?

Lori Wilde began writing at the age of 8 and hasn’t stopped yet. She has written many books including ‘Charmed and Dangerous’, ‘My Secret Life’ and ‘Lethal Exposure’. She also writes under the pen name Laura Anthony.

Reviewed for RebeccasReads.com 3/09

Written by Lani Diane Rich
Published 11/08 by Forever, Hachette Book Group USA
ISBN: 978-0446618250

You don’t have to be in the big city to find love
4 out of 5 stars

Lani Diane Rich is a best-selling author, with titles such as: Crazy in Love, The Comeback Kiss, Maybe Baby, Ex and the Single Girl, and Time Off for Good Behavior. She resides in New York with her family.

“Wish You Were Here” starts off with Freya Daly traveling from Boston to Deer Creek Idaho in an attempt to purchase a run down camp for her father and his business. The owner is Nate Broday, who is a chef and father of a 12 year old daughter, Piper. He inherited the camp when his father died and all he knows is that he isn’t supposed to sell the camp until he finds a purple tackle box. He doesn’t know what is in it or why it is so important, but he feels he must honor his father’s wishes.

What Nate doesn’t know is that while Freya may appear to be a hardened business woman, she is so much more than that. He especially discovers this when her cabin is on fire and when she is being held hostage by his crazy Uncle Malcolm who would think nothing of shooting her to further his own agenda.

As most romance type novels go, this does end with the boy getting the girl but only after she leaves him in Idaho to go home and a few other mishaps along the way.

I had never read anything by Lani Diane Rich and wasn’t sure what to expect. I thoroughly enjoyed the book and considered it lighter reading than say a mystery or thriller novel. The characters seemed more real than other books with real problems and lives that I could understand and relate to even though my life may not be exactly the same. I could also relate to Freya’s life as a corporate executive and how that can impact your personal life. I liked the interaction with her father especially when she found out that she was passed over for a promotion within the family business.

I think most anyone would enjoy this book and if they can’t relate to the story line at least understand it and appreciate the situations that the characters are in at this junction of their life.

Reviewed by Leslie Storey for RebeccasReads (1/09)