The Star Attraction by Alison Sweeney

The Star Attraction by Alison Sweeney
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

From Amazon:
"Can you blame a publicist for blurring the lines between what's real and what's a dream, when her client is a gorgeous actor?" --Jodi Picoult 
Sophie is a Hollywood publicist who has a fabulous job, a fabulous boyfriend, and a fabulous life. She even scores her PR firm's most important actor client and every woman's dream—Billy Fox. 

But will a steamy make-out session in a restaurant alley with her big-name client cost Sophie her job? And does she really want an escape from her life and her loving, if imperfect, relationship with her investment banker boyfriend? The Star Attraction takes us on a wild ride through one woman's daytime soap come to life. "Alison Sweeney's novel is an entertaining, backstage glimpse at those who organize the lives of the Hollywood elite. It's great fun for any reader who secretly sneaks peeks at People magazine in the checkout line at the grocery store, and wonders, What if . . . ?" --Jodi Picoult, New York Times bestselling author of Lone Wolf and The Storyteller 


My Review: 
Quick witted dialog and an entertaining triangle- 
taken from the pages of US weekly - allowing the reader a unique and entertaining peek into behind the scenes Hollywood.

Sophie Atwater- entertaining and heartfelt makes for a perfect beach read- Alison Sweeney's debut novel hits it out of the park!!
I really enjoyed the layers to Sophie on a personal journey of self-discovery as she comes into her own and realizes where her priorities lie and what really matters.

The nod to the fans of Days as Sophie's favorite soap shows where Alison's heart lives, and I especially smiled when Alison told Al Roker that the men of Star Attraction were based on her Day's co-stars.

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One Good Earl Deserves a Lover by Sarah MacLean

One Good Earl Deserves a Lover by Sarah MacLean
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

From Amazon: One Good Earl Deserves a Lover, the second book in New York Times bestselling author Sarah MacLean’s award-winning Rules of Scoundrels series, is a lively, romantic adventure, starring a lovable, sometimes bumbling heroine and a sexy, leading man who offer up plenty of steamy sexual tension.

Nearly engaged to Lord Castleton, the always proper and logical Lady Philippa “Pippa” Marbury wants to learn about London’s dark side before she happily heads off to the country and embraces married life. But it’s in London’s shadowy corners where she meets Cross, the brooding, mysterious bookkeeper of The Fallen Angel, London’s most notorious and coveted gaming hell. He’s a rogue in every sense of the word. Or is he?

My Review: 
Nothing smells so forbidden as the scent of a woman begging for ruination- This author with her creative plot devises - complex and intriguing character and delicious talent for intrigue has ruined me...

I am forever under the spell that is Sarah Maclean-

The story of Cross and Pippa did not disappoint-

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A Hope Undaunted by Julie Lessman

A Hope Undaunted by Julie Lessman
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

From Amazon: The 1920s are drawing to a close, and feisty Katie O'Connor is the epitome of the new woman--smart and sassy with goals for her future that include the perfect husband and a challenging career in law. Her boyfriend Jack fits all of her criteria for a husband--good-looking, well-connected, wealthy, and head-over-heels in love with her. But when she is forced to spend the summer of 1929 with Cluny McGee, the bane of her childhood existence, Katie comes face to face with a choice. Will she follow her well-laid plans to marry Jack? Or will she fall for the man she swore to despise forever?

A Hope Undaunted is the engrossing first book in the WINDS OF CHANGE series from popular author Julie Lessman. Readers will thrill at the highly charged romance in this passionate story.


My Review: 
Everything Julie writes is pure gold- this book is no exception.

With tears streaming down my face both in grief and is triumph for the O'Conner family I feel in love with another one of the sisters.
Strong defiant Katie who radiated strength from the pages I was unable to put this novel down into the late hours- finally finishing the last word at 4am.


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One Naughty Night (The Scandalous St. Claires, #1) by Laurel McKee

One Naughty Night by Laurel McKee
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

From Amazon:
A hundred years has passed since the bitter rivalry between the St. Claires and the Huntingtons began. But in London, the feud goes on . . . 

UNDER THE COVER OF NIGHT, NOTHING IS FORBIDDEN
Lily St. Claire will do anything for the family that saved her from the streets. With their support, the young widow has become the hostess of The Devil's Fancy, London's most exclusive gaming den. She's determined to restore the St. Claire family fortune, lost a century before to the despised Huntington clan. But a ghost from her past may be her ultimate undoing . . . 
Lord Aidan Huntington is handsome and wealthy, with a taste for adventure and a reputation for wickedness. A gambler and a rake, Aidan can't resist a seductive woman with secrets - but one naughty night with Lily leaves him wanting more. As Lily is drawn into London's dark underworld by an old enemy, Aidan will risk everything to save the woman who has awakened his deepest desires. 


My Review: 
While my homework does reveal that the F' word would have been used during the Victorian era I did find the usage of the word frequent and frustrating as its glaring presence pulled me from the story.

" the origins and usage of the “F” word, making it likely that the words was know in the 1820’s, but not used in polite conversation...."

"F--- has a multitude of slang synonyms such as screw, poke, plow, ride, sex, jazz ... with the rise of the middle class, and reached its zenith during the Victorian age, ..."

Ultimately I enjoyed this novel- the characters were compelling and likable, the sexytime a little over the top and yet believable in the context of the story.

I am looking forward to the next installment into the St'Claire saga, the setup and the end of book one was delicious and thought provoking- and I have already added it to my Christmas Wish-List!

Overall I liked it- three sparkly stars!



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Yarn: Remembering the Way Home, by Kyoko Mori

Yarn: Remembering the Way Home by Kyoko Mori
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

From Amazon: A memoir of crossing cultures, losing love, and finding home by a New York Times notable author. As steadily and quietly as her marriage falls apart, so Kyoko Mori's understanding of knitting deepens. From flawed school mittens to beautiful unmatched patterns of cardigans, hats and shawls, Kyoko draws the connection between knitting and the new life she tried to establish in the U.S. Interspersed with the story of knitting throughout, the narrative contemplates the nature of love, loss, and what holds a marriage together.

My Review:
Such an honest and heart warming/breaking story- 
I struggled to push thru this one but glad I did finish-

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Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

From Amazon:
The Hunger Games (2008) is a young-adult science fiction novel written bySuzanne Collins. It was originally published on September 14, 2008 by Scolastic It is the first book of the Hunger Games Trilogy it introduces sixteen-year-old Katniss Everdeen, who lives in a post-apocalyptic world in the country of Panem where North America once stood. This is where a powerful government working in a central city called the
Capital holds power. In the book, the Hunger Games are an annual televised event where the Capitol chooses one boy and one girl from each district to fight to the death. The Hunger Games exist to demonstrate not even children are above the Capitol's power .





My Review: 
WOW, this book far exceeded my expectations-I was absolutely riveted!!
This book has stayed with me. I found myself haunted by the imagery, my dreams were saturated with the characters, and every conversation over the past few weeks have started with have you read the Hunger Games.

Taking place in world that revolves around the ultimate reality television show- 24 enter, only one can be the victor, there is nothing light and fluffy about this book.
I found myself rooting for Katniss, and though her naivety started to get on my nerves, her genuine heart redeemed her in my eyes.

Without wanted to spoil it for you, trust me when I say this is a page turner, and that it will leave you questioning our own society, and wondering how far we will go before we too will have Hunger Games....

The Firstborn by Conlan Brown

From Amazon: The Firstborn, those gifted with Foresight, Hindsight, and Insight at the time of Christ's death are divided between themselves. And when an Islamic holy man is murdered outside of his mosque it becomes apparent that one of the Firstborn was to blame. Now, with the threat of a terrorist attack on an unspeakable target the Firstborn are spiraling out of control. Leaders are dying, members are being kidnapped, and unity is being forced. Three heroes, differently gifted and divided must work together to thwart those who would go too far.

Their breakneck race against time plunges them into a world of danger and through a gauntlet across the United States. From the River-walk of San Antonio, where Devin Bathurst, John Temple, and Hannah Rice must protect one another from assassination, to the gritty streets of Washington DC, a paramilitary compound in West Virginia, and ultimately back to our nation's Capital, the Firstborn must unite to prevent an impending atrocity from becoming reality.

My review:
This is a great book by new author Conlan Brown.
From the very first page I was pulled in to the story and could barely put the book down to sleep.
The Firstborn is populated by characters that you learn to love and to hate for all their depth and flaws. The action is fast paced and keeps you wanting to know what will happen next as Devin, John and Hannah must learn to put aside their differences and learn to work together to stop terrorists whose only goal is to kill as many people as possible. Filled with amazing details and depth about the human character, this book reminds us that uniformity isn't always the best for us, or for eachother.