Feb 1 2013
Dear Ms. Stein: Addicted is the third work of yours I’ve read. (The other two are Sheltered (reviewed here by Jane and January) and Restraint.) I’ve enjoyed all three works–Restraint is my favorite–but, after I finish each book, I think, who the hell were those people? That’s not a bad thing–in fact, I like it.(…)
Jan 31 2013
Dear Ms. Atlee: Janine actually turned me on to this, your debut novel. I now owe her a big present, because I hate to think that this story would otherwise have escaped my attention. The book is marketed as historical fiction rather than romance, but I will go out on a limb and say that(…)
Jan 30 2013
Dear Ms. Knox, Your 30,000 word novella, How to Misbehave, charmed me to my toes. How to Misbehave takes place in the college town of Camelot, Ohio, in the year 1999. This then is Amber’s opportunity to flirt with Tony and see if he’s interested in her. Amber knows it, but she is as afraid(…)
Jan 28 2013
Dear Ms. Morgan: You’ve taken a number of standard fairy-tale and romance ingredients and turned them into something fresh and original in this book. I’ve always enjoyed your disadvantaged, yet plucky and intelligent, heroines, and in Selene Antaxos you’ve created a character that ranks for me with the heroines of Doukakis’ Apprentice, Twelve Nights of(…)
Jan 16 2013
Dear Ms. Hartman, Your debut YA fantasy, Seraphina, set in a world based Renaissance Europe, is both a coming of age story and a tale of a clash between two species. Sixteen year old Seraphina Dombegh, the heroine of the novel, is the child of a human father and a dragon mother. The secret of(…)
Jan 12 2013
Brie says: I am recommending this book because I recommend this book because the hero is a prostitute, which happens to be my favorite type of hero, closely followed by virgin heroes (I also love everything in between *grins*). If that’s not enough, I should say that the story is touching and has the right(…)
Jan 7 2013
It is a slow start to the new year for the DA reviewers. Hopefully this doesn’t mean the entire year is going to be bare of great books. The Chocolate Kiss by Laura Florand, recommended by Sunita. Review to come. Unforgivable by Joanna Chambers, recommended by Jennie. Review to come on Jan 15 (the release(…)
Dec 31 2012
I struggled to come up with my list this year, and that is my excuse for being pathetically late (is it still 2012?). A few books went on automatically as soon as I read them, while others took more agonizing over. Slightly more than half are by authors I’ve read and admired in the past,(…)
Dec 28 2012
Dear Ms. Milan, I hope you are having a lovely holiday season. This year, as in 2011, you enriched my December by releasing a stellar Christmas tale. A Kiss for Midwinter is not quite as brilliant as This Wicked Gift (mentioned here in my list of favorite holiday stories) but it’s still wonderful. Thank you. The heroine of your novella, Miss Lydia(…)
Dec 21 2012
There are books that I felt were exceptional this year and books that I thought were good. A best of list, though, should be about exceptional books. Some of my picks are controversial and I expect to hear about it in the comments! One I put on the list and took off three times, ultimately(…)
Dec 20 2012
A Gentleman Undone, Cecilia Grant, A Reviews by Dabney here and Janet here. Sublime, gorgeous tale of an honorable but emotionally scarred soldier and an even more scarred ex-prostitute who is another man’s mistress. I love Grant’s characterization, her prose and the way her stories unfold. A Lady Awakened, Cecilia Grant, A Review by Jane. I knew this book was(…)
Dec 14 2012
When Jane asked for our Best of 2012 lists, I knew mine would probably be short but I had no idea how short. I started with 3 books. Three. Books. Total. “WTF?,” I thought. Had I turned into that much of a h8ter? Well, it turns out that I had plenty of B grade reads(…)
Dec 13 2012
Dear Ms. Knox, Ms. O’Keefe, and Ms. Sloan: I suspect a conspiracy. Every anthology I’ve read this year, composed of three novellas, contains one novella much weaker than the other two. I can’t figure out if the point is to get the writer of the lesser work to be considered a writer on par with(…)
Dec 12 2012
My top ten favorite books published in 2012, ranked (that part was haaaard) and described: Bitterblue by Kristin Cashore Review by me. This intricately plotted YA fantasy about a young queen’s heroic determination to uncover buried truths about her father and nation was an almost flawless read. Beloved characters from Graceling return and new ones(…)
Dec 11 2012
Given that this is the holiday season, I thought it would be fun to gather a list of holiday recommended reads. Unfortunately the list is largely Christmas oriented, in part because there are so few non Christmas holiday stories out there. Leave your own recommendations in the comments so readers can refer to this list(…)
JOINT REVIEW: Kiss of Snow by Nalini Singh (and Giveaway)
Mockingjay 13 District Blog Tour: District 5, Our Giveaway
Something is very wrong with us, and it’s not bad reviews
Berkley Fall Giveaway
Author DeborahAnne MacGillivray Harasses Amazon Reader
Recent Comments