And the kidnapped bride is English, isn't she? Thanks so much for posting this, pjpuppymom. I've heard great things and it's good to know that all the buzz is worth it.
My heartfelt first recommendation in our new thread is Eloisa James' A Kiss at Midnight. Yes, Eloisa is a big friend to us, and yes, I repeatedly crow about her books, but there's a great reason for both of those things and that reason is that Ms. James can bascially do no wrong. This is a terrific to try her if she's a new-to-you author. It's a standalone tale and while it very clearly seems to be a historical it's actually quite timeless. It's a reworking of the Cinderella tale, complete with handsome Prince and backstabbing stepmother. It's an absolutely charming read, and as I always do after a James, I felt a wee bit smarter after I finished it.
First of all, thank you everybody for utilizing this thread. It's shaping up to be exactly as I'd envisioned it. I did not expect that there'd be books I'd have to add to my TBR though, and of course now there are...Sigh. Ruthless and Reckless, moved right to the front of the digital queue.
And now to what I read last week, and highly recommend!
Kate Brady first came onto my radar when the RITA nominations were announced last spring; her debut title, One Scream Away, won BEST FIRST BOOK in July and so when the new one came out I wanted to see whether it was any good or not.
It's good. Really good. It's called Last to Die and has a terrific, bone-chilling cover. And the story hooked me from the very beginning. It's a suspense thriller about a serial killer who's targetting a specific group of women and killing them in a particularly gruesome way. The cop on the case, Dani Cole, has a personal connection with one of the victims and a romantic past with a rich photojournalist who's tangled up with the case due to circumstances beyond his control. What I liked best about this book was the way Kate Brady tells the story; there are great secondary characters and the hero and heroine are scarred without being overwhelmed by their difficult pasts. And I'm a sucker for teenaged lovers who've been torn apart and thrown back together as adults!
I suggest this one to anybody who's looking for a new suspense go-to author. I'll be begging for a copy of the first one now and looking out for her future books.
Melanie_Murray wrote:
First of all, thank you everybody for utilizing this thread. It's shaping up to be exactly as I'd envisioned it. I did not expect that there'd be books I'd have to add to my TBR though, and of course now there are...Sigh. Ruthless and Reckless, moved right to the front of the digital queue.
And now to what I read last week, and highly recommend!
Kate Brady first came onto my radar when the RITA nominations were announced last spring; her debut title, One Scream Away, won BEST FIRST BOOK in July and so when the new one came out I wanted to see whether it was any good or not.
It's good. Really good. It's called Last to Die and has a terrific, bone-chilling cover. And the story hooked me from the very beginning. It's a suspense thriller about a serial killer who's targetting a specific group of women and killing them in a particularly gruesome way. The cop on the case, Dani Cole, has a personal connection with one of the victims and a romantic past with a rich photojournalist who's tangled up with the case due to circumstances beyond his control. What I liked best about this book was the way Kate Brady tells the story; there are great secondary characters and the hero and heroine are scarred without being overwhelmed by their difficult pasts. And I'm a sucker for teenaged lovers who've been torn apart and thrown back together as adults!
I suggest this one to anybody who's looking for a new suspense go-to author. I'll be begging for a copy of the first one now and looking out for her future books.
This one is really good, too! Kate visited with us at Mystery last month - if you search her name, you can access the thread.
I just finished reading this and it was excellent! Sword fighting, time traveling, magic, and romance, where could it go wrong? Oh, and did I mention Camelot? I've always liked the different stories of King Arthur and his Knights. This one featured around Gawain with a completely different spin on the original tale.
I've just read the new Maya Banks book - The Darkest Hour and loved it! It's very different from her other books. Suspense, action, romance and family. It's the first book in her KGI series about 6 brothers whose family buisness is The Kelly Group International (KGI), which just happens to be a top secrect black ops group. The best part of this book, and I suspect the series as a whole, is that it is more than just a romantic suspense novel, it's about this amazing family and the love they have for each other. I was hooked and I can't wait for the next book in the series. It was a great read and highly recommend it.
Marisa-ONeill wrote:
That does look good and reminds me a little of Lora Leigh's special ops books. Plus the cover is yummy!
I've been thinking that the historicals that resonate with me are those that really examine the role of women in the time period. This is one of the reasons I loved the Joanna Bourne book so much; Maggie was powerful and able to use her position to help her cause, but she was still bound by society's rules. I think Shana Abe does this heroine conflict better than anybody. The story of the women in her drakon series seems to follow a similar path: they have a unique ability that sets them apart from the other females of thier tribe while at the same time their special status dooms them to a certain future at the hands of their Alphas.
I'm making this book sound rather dreary, no? It's not. It's incredibly lush and romantic, and also very clever in that the heroine and villain are the same person at different moments in time. Also, Zane and Lia (from The Dream Thief) are major, major, plot-causing characters in the book.
I don't want to give too much away. I will say that this is a rich read on its own, but is made all the more enjoyable if you've read the other books in the series.
My only complaint is that I was still waiting for Rue and Kit to show up! I'll settle for the poignant mention Rue gets in the middle of the story...
The Haunted is the second book in The Hollow Trilogy
Spoiler Alert
Its about a teenage girl (Abbey) who lives in Sleepy Hollow and loves to make perfumes. 
In The Hollow she lost her best friend (Kristen) and she wants to know how she really died which the story then continues on in The Haunted. In The Hollow she meets Caspian (love interest) after Kristens funeral and as the story progresses she meets some other people (The Legend of Sleepy Hollow Characters). But she doesn't know that Caspian and the other people (The Legend of Sleepy Hollow Characters) are not alive anymore. 
At the end of The Hollow Abbey finds out they're dead and thinks she's crazy so she leaves Sleepy Hollow. But don't worry she came back for The Haunted.
The books are wonderful
So please don't judge the books by my little summary of The Hollow
I'm sorry I really suck at telling descriptions of stories. 
