MIRACLE AT THE HIGHER GROUNDS CAFE by Max Lucado

Chelsea Champers inherited the Higher Grounds Cafe when her mom died. She has great memories of the place - and a significant need of somewhere to put her energy - so she decides to run it on her own. But she discovers she owns a crazy amount of back taxes on it. How will she ever make that kind of money? Enter The God Blog. It's the only website her router gets and customers come from miles around to have a chance to ask one question and have God respond. What will The God Blog do for Chelsea's business? For her family? For herself?

This is a touching story of faith and family. Glimpses of angels and dark forces at work give this a little different tone at times. I enjoy stories which touch me emotionally and this did that. It's a fairly typical relationship story ("Can the main characters work out their history and problems?") with angels thrown in. The build up was a little slow, but once The God Blog became a factor, the story really got interesting.

4 out of 5 stars

* I received an electronic copy of this book from the publisher for free in the hope that I would review it honestly on my blog. Regardless, I only review books I enjoyed. I don’t believe in passing on negative reviews. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.

LIFE IS SWEET by Elizabeth Bass

Becca is trying to make a fresh start, owning her own bakery after a childhood career in Hollywood.
Matthew is staying with his girlfriend's daughter, Olyvia, while his girlfriend is away on business. The hopes and dreams of these three folks are about to collide.

The full plot is a lot more complicated than that, but I don't want to give too much away. This is a contemporary romance (nothing real steamy). It is a story of friendship. It is a story of adult relationships. It is a story about parenting. To me, the ending felt a little like it came out of left field, but all the threads were tied up at the end, and I enjoyed following the story all the way through.

4 out of 5 stars
(There is a little swearing in this book)

* I received an electronic copy of this book from the publisher for free in the hope that I would review it honestly on my blog. Regardless, I only review books I enjoyed. I don’t believe in passing on negative reviews. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.

ATTACHMENTS by Rainbow Rowell

Lincoln is the guy who screens emails for inappropriate content. And he's not proud of it. But it's just a job - a means to an end. Then he gets drawn into the email exchanges between two women at the newspaper where he works. He should send them the warning email or report them, but he can't bring himself to do it because he's got a crush on one of the emailers, even though he has never met her. He starts to feel creepy about the voyeuristic nature of his interest in this email exchange, but he can't tear himself away, either.

This felt mostly like a character study with a tinge of romance thrown in, and I really enjoyed it. Lincoln is a great character - almost thirty but still trying to figure out who he wants to be. Living at home, working a less-than-satisfying job, recovering from a years-in-the-past break up. The author does a great job telling stories of the three primary characters considering they barely ever meet in person. The book takes place in the midst of the newspaper preparing for Y2K which was amusing. Some language.

4 out of 5 stars

ALIEN RESEARCH by Gini Koch

Kitty receives a warning call from her chief of security that gets cut off mid-sentence. Walter is away at a mandatory security training session - along with most of Kitty's usual butt-kicking team. And no one can reach them. This would be bad enough, but the evil overlords like to run multiple plans at once, so Kitty's also getting threatening phone calls from the new head of Club Fifty-One and surprise visits from the leaders of various corporations doling out the evil plans. ACE is still off the grid, so Kitty's going to have to keep "thinking right" on her own if she hopes to foil the bad guys and save her team.

Wow! This was an emotional roller coaster! I read this after re-reading the entire series. I decided during the re-read that Alien in the House is my new favorite (along with Alien Tango) because it is so funny and sassy - Kitty at her best. And this book starts the same way. I was laughing out loud at some moments. And because so many folks are tied up with the security training that goes awry, Jeff and Christopher leap into action just like the good old days from books 1, 2 and 3. I was really in the groove with this book. And then the evil plots started to coalesce and the good guys started to take some losses and my feel-good, funny story took an emotional turn. These stories are so intricate, you really have to take more than one pass through them to take it all in. I think that's why I love this series so much - there's a lot of depth in the plotting in each one. A fast read through because you want to know what happens means you'll miss some things. I've already taken a second read through and it was just as good the second time.

5 out of 5 stars

Kitty is as sassy as ever in this story and I still love her! Alien Collective releases on May 6th. I've already pre-ordered my copy!

Cautions - as with the other books in the series, there is some language and detailed romantic scenes.

KISS AND SPELL by Shanna Swendson

Katie and Owen are back! Owen has his magic powers back - and Katie now has some, too! This has the potential to change her role at MSI - just what she was looking for - except that they have to keep the magic a secret. If the powers that be in the wizarding world knew that Owen had his magic back, he would probably be arrested as a danger to the world, even though Katie knows Owen could never be evil, no matter who his biological parents were. Before they have too much time to develop a plan for this recent change in both of their statuses, elves start disappearing and Katie and Owen start sleuthing. What they find could destroy their relationship... since they don't even remember they have one.

I was tickled to find there was a new book in this series! You can read about the other books by this author here. It's no secret to folks who read the blog regularly that I enjoy fantasy and science fiction. I have loved this series from the beginning because it contains the magic and fantasy pieces I enjoy without going too dark and creepy, which I don't. The middle was a little frustrating. For a few pages I started to wonder if the e-book folks had made a mistake! Nothing in the book felt right - the setting, the way the main character was acting.... Hang with it, and it will all start to make sense. This was a fun adventure with characters I already love and a great love story. As soon as I finished, I was online looking to see if there was another book on the way. Looks like this could be the last in the series.... I will hold out hope for a new story some day, but until then, I'll just keep reading these and enjoying them time and time again.

4.5 out of 5 stars

NO PLACE LIKE HOME by Linda Lael Miller, Kat Martin, Mary Carter and Laura Florand

Samplers like this are a great way to enjoy holiday stories! Four stories in one volume means if one doesn't click for a reader, the others might - and you can discover new authors along the way!

I really connected with two of the stories in this volume - "The Christmas Carousel" by Mary Carter and "The 24 Days of Christmas" by Laura Lael Miller. In "The Christmas Carousel," Georgia is fighting to keep her home and her business as a group tries to buy her out. Georgia's past with one of the investors - a memory she holds dear, but doesn't connect with the handsome stranger right away - complicates the business transaction. Will Georgia be able to trust Adam and reconcile his place in her past and present - and maybe a future?

In "24 Days," two adults and two kids are sharing space and memories and hopes for the holidays. Frank and Addie had been engaged, once upon a time, but they went their separate ways. Now Frank is a widower with a daughter to raise on his own. Addie has come home to lick her wounds after a divorce and she finds her beloved step-son has been dumped on a bus to head her way for the holidays. She doesn't want to get too attached to having him around because she knows his father is fickle and manipulative. Can these two adults find love and create a stable home for the children in their lives?

I found both of these stories absolutely delightful - just the sort of holiday reading I am always looking for this time of year. I didn't care for either of the other stories enough to read more than a chapter or two, but I would read these two stories over again. 4.5 stars for each. Check them out if you are looking for sweet holiday romances this month!

* I received an Advance Reader Copy of this book from the publisher for free in the hope that I would review it honestly on my blog. Regardless, I only review books I enjoyed. I don’t believe in passing on negative reviews. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.

A TIME FOR ME TO COME HOME by Dorothy Shackleford with Travis Thrasher

Heath Sawyer is a country music star trying to get home to Oklahoma for Christmas. In the airport, he meets Cara who is also heading to Oklahoma. They get stranded in Chicago when a blizzard hits the Midwest and their flight is canceled. They decide to try to get home together. Through a variety of travel joys and disasters, they learn about eachother and about themselves.

I tried a couple chapters of this for free at Barnes and Noble, a perk they provide for Nook readers in the story. I liked the writing and the character of Heath enough to buy the whole story so I could find out what happens. A nice mild romance with an emphasis on family relationships. Heath tells the story, so his journey and growth is the one readers get the best feel for. The main message is the importance of family and home at the holidays - and any other time we need to be anchored and loved and be ourselves.

4 out of 5 stars

FICTION for ADULTS: Enchanted Inc Series by Shanna Swendson

    

A few weeks ago I posted a review of the first book in this series, Enchanted, Inc. I have posted about this series before as I read it a few years ago. At the time, there were only four books in the series and the publisher had decided not to publish anymore. But I found out recently that there are now two more books in the series. So I re-read these, on my Nook, and I have the next two downloaded and ready to read next.

As I mentioned with book one, this is a series about a regular woman caught up in a magical world of wizards and gargoyles and fairies. Katie is a "magical immune." Magic doesn't work on her; she sees through the illusions and magical deceptions, which makes her an asset at her magical corporation.

In Once Upon Stilettos, Katie starts to lose her magical immunity just as she's trying to track down a spy in the company, which makes her vulnerable to the spells of their enemies.

In Damsel Under Stress, an inept fairy godmother does NOT help Katie and her crush get together, and she complicates their efforts to find out what their enemy is up to in the magical world.

In Don't Hex with Texas, Katie has gone home to protect Owen from having to choose between fighting their enemies or protecting her. But in what Katie thought was the least magical place on earth, magical things start happening and Katie needs her magical friends to help her sort things out before her family discovers everything.

I have enjoyed the series as much in my re-read as I did the first time through. And I'm even more excited this time because I have two more volumes to enjoy (and #5 is considerably longer than these - so more great story yet to come!!)

4 out of 5 stars for books two through four.

Recommended for: fans of "light" paranormal romance. There's a little language in books three and four, but the story line is not violent or "dark" in any way.

FICTION for ADULTS: Enchanted, Inc. by Shanna Swendson

Katie Chandler is one of those rare folks in the world without an ounce of magic in her, making her a perfect person to work for a magical company. Katie can see concealed clauses in contracts or people masking themselves to change how they look. These skills come in handy when a rogue wizard decides he doesn't want to play nicely with the magical community any more.

When this book was first published, paranormal romance/mystery stories were not as prevalent as they are today. Some places shelved this book with general fiction while others tried to categorize it as "urban fantasy." Can you imagine this cover in the Science Fiction/Fantasy section of the book store? Me neither. It's much lighter fare than what people call urban fantasy these days. And I like it that way!

I reviewed this book several years ago, but I recently discovered that the author had two more books in the series available for my Nook, so I downloaded the whole lot of them and started reading again. When I first reviewed this, my blog was only a few months old and I didn't give ratings and such. I would give this book 4 stars. I'm really looking forward to re-reading the next three books and then diving into the new material! If you like paranormal stories, but not the darker ones with vampires and demons and zombies and such, take a look at Enchanted, Inc. and the rest of the series!

TEENS: The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight by Jennifer E. Smith

Hadley is on her way to London for her father's wedding to the woman he met and fell in love with when he taught for a semester abroad... while his wife and daughter stayed behind in the States. At 17, Hadley's a little too old to throw a kicking-and-screaming tantrum, but on the inside, that's exactly what she's doing. The stress and tension she's had since the divorce has led to panic attacks. When one starts to build at the airport while waiting for her flight, Hadley meets Oliver, a Brit studying in America, but heading back to London on the same flight. He provides a great distraction to Hadley with his funny comments and questions. Something starts to stir between them, but before they can really examine that, their plane lands, they get separated at customs, and Hadley is forced to face her father and his new life alone. But a passing comment at the wedding gives Hadley new insight into Oliver's reasons for being in London. Is what they had together on the plane reason enough for Hadley to track Oliver down in a strange city by herself?

REVIEW : This was a great love story. I first read about this book in a review magazine, and I was completely captivted by the plot line. While I couldn't remember the title, I kept scouting shelves in the teen section of book stores hoping something would ring a bell. It was worth it - I read it in one sitting, even staying up late in a school night because I wanted to know how it worked out. Hadley's angst is well conveyed without getting old for the reader. The whole story takes place in a 24 hour-ish period, with flashbacks to fill in the back story.

4.5 out of 5 stars. I'd recommend this to teens who are ready for a romantic tale. I only noticed one swear word, and the European teen (18 years old) drinks alcohol.

FRIDAY: Deep Trouble by Mary Connealy

Summary
Shannon's father believed in the city of gold until his dying day. And Shannon is determined to prove him right. So, she leaves her high-society city life in St. Louis to travel west with some hired guides. But her hired guides decide they'd rather steal her map and leave her for dead. Gabe, traveling alone on his way to visit family, hears the gunfire and Shannon's scream and rescues her. Shannon insists on finishing her quest and Gabe feels obligated to go along to keep her safe. But nothing about this journey is going to be safe.

Review
I received a review copy of this book from the author. It's been sitting on my shelf for awhile. Frankly, at first glance I thought it wasn't my kind of book. I am more of a sci-fi/fantasy reader. But Deep Trouble was one of the books I committed to reading this year, and I was pleasantly surprised. Shannon and Gabe are likeable characters and the villains are truly creepy, making the reader want to hang with the story to find out how Gabe and Shannon will survive to the end. It's a fun love story with great supporting characters. Good faith message also, without being preachy.

3.5 out of 5 stars

Recommended for: fans of western romances and/or Christian fiction

Cautions: None.

FRIDAY: The First Love Cookie Club by Lori Wilde

Summary
Sarah fled Twilight, Texas as soon as she could after embarrassing herself as a teenager in front of the man she had hoped would be her soul mate. She made a name for herself as a children's author by the name of Sadie Cool. She is summoned back to Twilight for a Christmas celebration and to meet a sick fan who wishes to meet her favorite author. Little does Sarah know, the girl is the daughter of her soul mate, Travis Walker, now a single father, who remembers Sarah and her teenage declaration of love.


Review
What a fun holiday romance! The author tells a great story in the acknowledgments about the inspiration for the story. While Travis doesn't know that Sarah is Sadie, he figures it out soon enough. I appreciated the author not drawing that out too long. Jazzy, the sick child, is delightful. Plenty of side plots and road blocks will keep readers turning pages. One road block toward the end seemed to come out of nowhere, but it was compelling enough to keep me reading.


4 out of 5 stars


Recommended for: fans of holiday romance stories


Cautions: some language and detailed romantic moments might bother more sensitive readers.

WEDNESDAY: The Nine Lives of Christmas by Sheila Roberts

Yes, it's another non-WAITING Wednesday. With Christmas coming, I wanted to get this review in now.


Summary
Ambrose the cat is in HUGE trouble. He is on his ninth life and barely hanging onto a thin tree branch in a storm, staring into the huge teeth of a hungry dog. Ambrose promises the powers-that-be that if he is rescued, he will use the rest of his final life to do something good for someone else. Who better to help, then, than the man who scares away the dog, saving Ambrose. It takes awhile to get the man, Zach, to let Ambrose into his home. And then Zach insists on calling him "Tom." How ordinary! And that woman Zach calls "Baby" is absolutely hideous. Ambrose must convince Zach to keep him and to find a much nicer lady-friend to spend his life with so Ambrose can enjoy the rest of his ninth and final life.


Review
This was a cute holiday story. Ambrose's perspective on the things and people in Zach's life gave a fun "voice" to parts of the story. The single adults in the story seemed a little over-focused on the physical parts of their relationships, rather than looking for a more well-rounded relationship, but the main characters are fun to read about. My favorite part was when one character goes shopping with her sisters. Their relationship was refreshing and their interactions were fun to read. The ending came together really quickly, but I enjoyed how it all came together.


4 out of 5 stars.


Recommended for: readers looking for a fun, light holiday story; readers who enjoy animal stories


Cautions: references to Ambrose's previous lives - and the ways he died in each one -- might weird out some more sensitive readers.

WEDNESDAY: Alien Proliferation by Gini Koch

Usually I post a "waiting" book on Wednesday, but I didn't want to wait to review this one.


Summary
Kitty and Martini are back, and baby makes three. You would think the happy little family could enjoy a little quiet together, but "quiet" is probably not going to be in the cards for them any time soon. After a traumatic delivery, Kitty discovers a plot to take out Chuckie and Kitty's mom. At least, that seems to be the plot. But there are more layers to this situation than meets the eye. There's a mole - or is there? Kitty's high school friends are in danger - or are they part of the plotting? At the root of everything is Kitty's baby. The bad guys want the baby and, like any good momma, Kitty will fight tooth and nail to protect her.


Review
This is a hard book to summarize because sooooo many things are going on and I don't want to give any of the good stuff away. I have been a big fan of this series since I read the first book. I re-read them just for fun even though I have tons of new and yet-unread books laying around. Alien Proliferation is a perfect addition to the series. I didn't want to put the book down. I laughed out loud often as I zoomed through this 400+ page non-stop thrill. It was a delight to dig into such a meaty book that wasn't filled with a lot of unnecessary fluff. Plenty of great twists and turns. New dynamics between characters as Kitty gets a new partner to work with and other new characters are introduced (or familiar characters are developed more fully). While motherhood changes Kitty in some ways, it doesn't change any of the things I love about her - her sarcasm, her intuition, her kick-butt-and-take-names attitude. She continues to be a great, strong character.


This is not a story for the faint of heart. Kitty is in a life-and-death battle and there are casualties. Everything that happens is appropriate to the story, though. I enjoyed this so much, I am looking for time when I can carve out a few days to read through the whole series to date from start to finish. The next book, Alien Diplomacy, releases in April, 2012.


5 out of 5 stars


Recommended for: fans of the series, science fiction/fantasy fans who like an element of romance in their stories


Cautions: My personal feeling is that new readers will be lost if they jump in here. Do yourself a favor and start at the beginning and enjoy the whole series. Otherwise, there's some violence, and some romantic moments are described in detail. Those sections can be skipped over by sensitive readers. There might also be some language (honestly, I was reading so fast to find out what was going on, I didn't really pay that close of attention).

THURSDAY: Spirited Away by Cindy Miles

Summary
Dr. Andi Monroe has always been fascinated by Dreadmoor Castle. Once, she snuck onto the grounds and was saved by a handsome and mysterious man. Now she has the chance to examine the grounds first hand when she goes in to examine skeletal remains found when a tree is unearthed. But things at the castle aren't as the appear. The castle is owned by Tristan de Barre who happens to be the ghost of a legendary knight murdered and betrayed centuries before. Tristan wants to keep his secret from Andi, but he is drawn to her. She can't understand why Tristan is so friendly in one moment and abrasive and distant in another. They will have to learn how to trust one another when then face an evil Tristan thought was long gone.


Review
Great chemistry between Andi and Tristan, and the premise was great. I enjoyed the secondary characters, too. There was a destined-for-tragedy feel to much of it, so I was pleased that the author worked out a happy ending. 


3.5 out of 5 stars


Recommended for: paranormal romance fans who are tired of the whole vampire/werewolf craze - and even those who aren't tired of that craze!


Cautions: some language, although it is tempered by Tristan's time-warped expressions; adult relationship details may bother some readers.

FRIDAY: Heartless by Gail Carriger

Summary
Alexia is very pregnant and very tired of being targeted for murder because of her child. A plan to end the assassination attempts seems to be working when Alexia hears from a discombobulated ghost that the queen is in danger. Alexia decides she must put her personal drama aside and stop the plot against the queen - if only she can figure the plot out in time.

Review
If you are new to Alexia's story, you should know she lives in a world where vampires and werewolves roam free, and Alexia, who is the only person who can return a supernatural person to their human form just by a touch, works closely with the queen and the leadership of the two supernatural groups to keep everyone in line. But Alexia's "gift" makes some of the supernaturals very nervous - not to mention their fears about any child she might have. In this particular part of the story, Alexia is as spunky as ever. She is a great character - she tries to follow the rules for someone in her station, but reality and practicality often push her to take things into her own hands.



4 out of 5 stars

Recommended for: fans of supernatural fiction or "steampunk." The series is often shelved in the science fiction/fantasy section of bookstores, so if you like that sort of story with a strong female protagonist, give Alexia a try. The first book in the series was Soulless. You can read about the series here.



Cautions: Romantic relationships described in some detail as well as references to alternate lifestyles.

FRIDAY: Alien in the Family

Summary 
Kitty and Martini are engaged. The wedding is (slowly) being planned. But signs of an incoming invasion are making it very hard to focus on pre-wedded bliss. Looks like Kitty will have to pass some serious tests if she wants to marry into the royal family of Alpha Centauri, because Martini is in line for the throne.


Review
My summaries are getting shorter and shorter because I don't want to give anything away from book to book. Really enjoyed this one. There's a chess analogy that is brilliant (and I don't even play chess, but I could follow along without trouble). Great new characters, plenty of interesting family dynamics for both Kitty and Martini, and some religious references and insights in this volume that I thought really added great detail to the story. Terrifically intricate plot pulls the reader from page to page. So many "people" and circumstances in this one are not what they seem to be, making for a great stay-up-all-night-to-finish story.
4.5 out of 5 stars

Recommended for: Readers who like paranormal/science-fiction stories with romance and great characters.

Cautions: Adult romantic relationships described in detail.


[I am an Amazon Associate. If you link to Amazon from one of my blogs and buy something, I receive a small portion of the purchase price.]

FRIDAY: Alien Tango

Summary 
Kitty, Martini and the rest of the Alpha team are on their way to Kennedy Space Center to investigate a strange incident with three astronauts who had been on a mission. By the time Kitty figures out what's going on and gets her team out of Kennedy, she will face an obsessive ex-boyfriend, an anti-alien plot to kill her team, bombs (plural), a psycho stalker, and an alien intelligence far more powerful than anything they have ever encountered. And those challenges are nothing compared to meeting Martini's family.




Review
Another winner from Gini Koch. There were whole chapters I read twice because they were so perfect. Kitty continues to be one of my favorite characters ever. She is strong, intuitive, sarcastic and loyal. Great secondary (?) story line about alien and human relationships in this volume. This is a chunky story. There is a lot packed into these pages. Just when you think things are wrapping up, you realize how much more book you have to go. As I mentioned in the review for book one, adult romantic relationships are detailed, but easily skipped for readers who want to get back to the story.


4.5 out of 5 stars

Recommended for: Readers who like paranormal/science-fiction stories with romance and great characters.

Cautions: Some language. Adult romantic relationships described in detail.


[I am an Amazon Associate. If you link to Amazon from one of my blogs and buy something, I receive a small portion of the purchase price.]

FRIDAY: Touched by an Alien

Summary 
Kitty is just minding her own business, relieved to be done with jury duty and ready to go back to work when the fender bender happens. It's all pretty standard traffic stuff... until one driver sprouts wings, turns into a monster, and starts destroying people and buildings in the immediate area.


Rather than running away, Kitty instinctively runs into the chaos, destroying the monster and attracting the attention of some extremely handsome men in Armani suits. Those men happen to be part of an alien group on Earth to help with the monsters. And that's only the beginning of what Kitty will discover - about herself, her family, her new friends and the universe.





Review
I thoroughly enjoyed this story (first in a series - book 3 came out in April). Kitty is sassy, funny, and courageous. Kitty's love interest is flirty, persistent and protective. The storyline deals with prejudice, exile and persecution in a paranormal/otherworldly sort of way. The author does a fantastic job of world building without doing a "data dump" in the beginning of the book. I found the "voice" of the story to be completely delightful. Kitty is relate-able, believable, and engaging. The banter during one of the big battle scenes made me laugh out loud. I kept reading sections to my husband because I thought they were so funny and well-written. Romantic scenes are detailed, but easily skipped over if a reader isn't interested. As soon as I finished this book, I picked up the next in the series. These are library books, but I will be buying my own set very soon!


5 out of 5 stars

Recommended for: Readers who like paranormal/science-fiction stories with romance and great characters.

Cautions: Adult romantic relationships described in detail.


[I am an Amazon Associate. If you link to Amazon from one of my blogs and buy something, I receive a small portion of the purchase price.]

FRIDAY: The Sons of Destiny series

Four sets of twin boys, powerful mages, prophesied to bring destruction to a nation, are exiled to an island where they are attacked by dangerous beasts, scorned by their former countrymen, and forced to live alone.

Through the course of the series, the brothers fight their foes, find their brides, and establish a nation. I thoroughly enjoyed the paranormal/magical elements of the stories. The brothers and their brides are great characters. The details of their relationships are definitely for grown up readers - and often they can be a distraction from the great over-arching story of the books. Those sections are easily skipped over so you can get back to finding out how everything is going to work out for these 8 couples.

[I am an Amazon Affiliate. If you click to Amazon from one of my blogs and buy something, I receive a percentage of the purchase price.]