About Me

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I am an avid reader, animal lover, devourer of guacamole, storyteller and the author of An Unexpected Obsession, A Dose of Reality, Witch Way, A Coven by Christmas, Love Spells, Summer Solstice (coming soon), Flirting With Death, Flirting With Murder and the rest of the upcoming Assassins Anonymous series. I attended Arizona State University (go Sun Devils!) and make my home in the Valley of the Sun with my husband and three pampered pets. I like to discuss everything funny, sexy, sassy and absurd. But mostly I like to talk about books... and shoes... and outrageously expensive purses... and Chanel sunglasses ...oooh, and anything sparkly... or fluffy! So, come on in and let's chat!

Monday, February 28, 2011

Talk of the Town by Lisa Wingate- Cute Story, Light Read

In between editing and the final wrap-up of my next book (yippee!!!), I took a break and searched Amazon to see if anything new and free had come out for my Kindle... and stumbled upon Lisa Wingate's Talk of the Town. I was a little leery, seeing as how the past several freebies I've downloaded have been nearly unreadable (IMHO) because they were overwhelmingly written from the viewpoint of serious Christians. I don't have a problem with religious fiction, per se, but warn me if what you're putting out there is 90% direct quotes from the bible.

Anyhow, back to Talk of the Town (which is not preachy in the least). Fun story--lighthearted, fun, sweet and well-written. I read it over the weekend and have to admit to being disappointed when it ended--not because the ending was bad, but because I wanted more. For the current price ($0.00), it is a must-read for romance lovers.

I enjoyed the dual first-person storytelling from the vantage point of the main character and an older/wiser local resident. The dialog was realistic. Everything flowed well and made me want to keep turning the pages. Like I said, for the price, you can't beat it.

Happy reading!

**Disclaimer: I am not a professional literary reviewer. I do not know this author and I am not being paid or otherwise compensated for this review. The opinions stated here are mine alone.

Thursday, February 24, 2011

The Bone Island Trilogy by Heather Graham...So Good!

I always love Heather Graham, and The Bone Island Trilogy did not disappoint. Ghost Shadow is the first in the series and I actually read it back when it was initially released. Since then, I got busy writing my own stories and never found the time to search out the two subsequent novels.

All that changed with the recent three-day weekend and a dibilitating case of writer's block. (Gone now, thank goodness!)

The most memorable character for me (and present through all three books) is Bartholomew, the friendly, helpful ghost who insists he has attached himself to Katie for the purpose of solving a many years' old murder mystery. You really get a feel for the ages old pirate (um...privateer) and can't help but root for him at every turn.

Ghost Night focuses on the unsolved murders and mysterious disappearance of members from a film crew on location on a desolate island in the Bahamas. Intertwining real-life killers and angry ghosts, the story is fun and spine-tingling at the same time.

Of course, Batholomew returns, now attached to another person. His insights into the legends and people assumed to be haunting the island are invaluable and as a side benefit, he actually knew some of the characters involved from his days as a living, breathing person.

The last, and my personal favorite of the series is Ghost Moon.  It probably has something to do with the story being centered around an old mansion sitting on an isolated peninsula in the Florida Keys...and it is reputed to be haunted. I love haunted houses! This one doesn't disappoint with creepy memorabilia scattered throughout and an unknown entity wreaking havoc.

Bartholomew returns again, now seen by many within the tight circle of friends who occupy the small town and consider themselves to be "freshwater conchs." This time another unlikely hero appears in the form of a dolphin. Ghosts and dolphins? Definitely a winner.

Each book is capable of standing on its own, but I had to read all of them in order and was so glad that I did. There is a lot of character development that goes on from one story to the next and it's hard to really get a sense of each personality if you only have a snapshot of what came before. Enjoy! A five-star read in my opinion.

Happy reading!

**Disclaimer: I am not a professional literary reviewer. I do not know this author and I am not being paid or otherwise compensated for this review. The opinions stated here are mine alone.