Utterly Charming by Kristine Grayson - utterly skippable IMO.  Kind of a fractured fairytale in contemporary times. Only finished it because the title starts with a 'U'.  (A to Z)

Tangled Up In You by Rachel Gibson - this, on the other hand, was funny, romantic, hot and a lot of fun to read. A true crime writer goes back to her childhood home to write a book about a small town love triangle that went bad. The twist is one of the deceased was her mother.  She meets the hot guy - he's the son of the man her mother was having an affair with. They click big time - until he finally finds out her real identity.
Small town secrets, fiery sparks, witty banter - and a kitten!  :)

Night Echoes by Holly Lisle -   A haunted house/past lives thriller. Artist Emma Beck leaves her Wisconsin home and heads to Benina, SC - where her biological mother is from. She buys a house - one she's seen in her mind/artwork ever since she was a child. She also clicks with the handyman - their attraction is hot, immediate, and scarily familiar. Creepy sounds and a phantom cat are almost nothing, though, when she tries to find out about her mother. Two women are murdered. And the feelings of familiarity and possession are growing. I enjoyed this,  even though I'm not a big paranormal fan. I read this for the Southern Reading Challenge (and because I like Holly LIsle), but other than the Civil War stuff in the past lives, I didn't really get a huge Southern feel - more of just a small town, 'everyone knows everybody's business' kind of feel (and I'm from SC :>  )

Charley's Web by Joy Fielding - another good one from Joy Fielding. Charlotte "Charley" Webb, a columnist who writes a kind of shallow 'slice of life' column gets a letter from a female convicted murderer, who wants Charley to write a book about the murders. Charley, a single mom of two, is conflicted about the offer and about the killer, who is alternately sweet  and shy and hardnosed and petty. Her life is further complicated by threatening emails, problems with her neighbors, and a severely dysfunctional family that she's trying to save. Enjoyed this, but didn't actually like Charley all that much.


both:100 books

again, all authors I've read before - and ::sigh:: again not their best.
Deep Dish by Mary Kay Andrews - delightful Southern chicklit with a foodie edge. Gina Foxton's health conscious cooking show gets canceled when the sponsor finds his wife in bed with Gina's producer/boyfriend. But the producer/now ex-boyfriend finds them a chance for a new show. But the Cooking Channel is also interested in another local area show with a male chef, called Vittles. Sparks fly between Gina and Tate - and the show sponsor dreams up a way to drum up interest in the new show - a Top Chef Survivor kind of reality show, where Gina and Tate will compete to find ingredients and cook for judges. But things really start cooking between Gina and Tate :)   Fun, flirty, and hungry making, but her other novels were better. Go to the library or wait on the paperback.

The Third Circle by Amanda Quick - newest book in the Arcane Society series - chronologically the second, fourth written. Leona Hewitt has the paranormal power to work with crystals, meets up with Thaddeus Ware, a formidable hypnotist, while both are trying to steal the same crystal from a antiquities collector. A murdered prostitute and a poisonous vapor complicate things, as does the attraction between them. Amanda Quick/Jayne Ann Krentz - frothy fun. This series is written under both names, Victorian times under Quick, current time frame under Krentz - so far, two each.  (A to Z)

The Secret Between Us by Barbara Delinsky -  On a rainy night, Deborah Monroe and her daughter Grace are driving home, when a man comes out of nowhere and the car hits him. The man turns out to be Grace's history teacher and later dies. Grace was driving, but Deborah sends her home to look after her younger brother, who's alone, and never mentions that fact to the police, who assume she was the driver.  It's a interesting premise, but most of the characters felt very flat and cliched - angsty teen, stern father, black sheep sister, etc. I did like the sister, but the best part was the relationship between Deborah and Tom, the victim's estranged brother. *That* felt more like the Delinsky stories I've read and enjoyed. Readable, but forgettable. (EMAH, BAM - the Book A Month theme was mothers, so I chose Mother's Day as the holiday for Every Month a Holiday)

all books: 100 books (currently at 85)

Sizzling by Susan Mallery -  3rd in th Buchanan series. Fun fluff. (A to Z)

Getting Rid Of Bradley by Jennifer Crusie - more fun fluff - hardcover reprint of older paperback original.

Tempting by Susan Mallery - 4th in the Buchanan series. More fun fluff.

all: 100 books

edited 2/28/08 to add third book.

Pretties by Scott Westerfeld - Second in the Uglies trilogy. Tally has become a pretty and has forgotten much of her time in the Smoke. But a party crasher leads her to a hidden stash: 2 pills and a letter from herself, written while still ugly. She and new boyfriend Zane each take a pill and then try to get the other pretties in their group to remember and to challenge the status quo. Definitely have to read in order, but a very good follow-up - now I have to get Specials and Extras. (challenge: YAC)

Sizzle and Burn by Jayne Ann Krentz - Paranormal romantic thriller. Raine is settling her late aunt Vella's estate when psychic sensibilites lead her to find a bound, kidnapped young woman in a padlocked room in the basement. Entering her life immediately after is P.I. Zack Jones, also a sensitive, who asks for her assistance. They have an immediate connection, but there is a huge complication - he works for the Arcane Society, the group she blames for her father's death. And his offer of letting her have copies of her father's case file are enhanced by the idea of working with someone who understands and shares her abilities. I love Krentz (and her alter ego Amanda Quick) - zippy dialogue, quick action, speedy plots - she'd fall into the guilty pleasures category, except that I don't feel guilty about reading :)   (challenge: Pub)

Heartsick by Chelsea Cain - With shades of Silence of the Lambs, Cain's detective Archie Sheridan is in charge of a regrouped task force charged with finding the killer of several local teen girls. His investigation is complicated by the addition of a reporter and  his weekly visits to Gretchen Lowell, an incarcerated serial killer with whom he has an intense personal connection - he was to be one of her victims, but instead she let him live and torments him with the prospect of more bodies. Cool :)  Archie is a great protagonist and Lowell is one serious deranged individual.

The 47th Samurai by Stephen Hunter - Bob Lee Swagger finds himself in Japan, delivering a sword taken as a prize of war during WWII, to the son of the man his father fought during battle. Bob Lee really likes Philip Yano and his family and is stunned to find out that they've all (except the youngest girl) been slaughtered soon after he left. Bob Lee immerses himself into the world of the samurai, determined to  avenge the Yano family. I agree with reviews that Bob Lee's swordsmanship requires total destruction of believeability, but I thought the passion of the man believeable and the samurai and sword lore was excellent.

(challenges all books: 100 books, A to Z)

Romance:  Doing It RIght by MaryJanice Davidson - smut is always fun

Fantasy: Fortune's Fool by Mercedes Lackey - a Five Hundred Kingdoms fairy tale - I like this series.

Teen: Undercover by Beth Kephart - a female Cyrano de Bergerac with a teen slant - very good.

Nonfiction: The Big Book of Cross-Stitch Design by the Reader's Digest Association - lots of nice designs
Betty Crocker's Soups and Stews - I'm trying to get back into cooking good things :)
Southern Living Slow-cooker Cookbook - and into using the crockpot     -   I copied some recipes, now I just have to try them :)




a very slow reading month - only 11 books, but raises my total to 243 for the year.

Romance/Chicklit:

Natural Born Charmer by Susan Elizabeth Phillips - starts out with the guy picking up a girl in a headless beaver suit. That's a heck of a start :)

Up Close and Personal by Fern Michaels
Out of This World by Jill Shalvis
Sleeping With the Fishes by mary Janice Davidson