"Buying Love" by Toni Shiloh

A few months ago, I had the opportunity to review Toni Shiloh's Buying Love. I passed on it, as I've started getting very selective about the books I accept for review (for my own sanity). But with my recent unintentional Kindle Unlimited subscription, I've been borrowing books that piqued my interest, and this is one of them. It turned out to be a really engaging book that I read in a couple hours.

"Beauty" by Robin McKinley

With the release of Disney's new live-action Beauty and the Beast (which I loved), other retellings of the fairy tale are all the rage. I wasn't aware of Robin McKinley's Beauty until it showed up in Modern Mrs. Darcy's Kindle deals list the other day, but as soon as I saw it, I knew I needed to read it!

(Also. If you're not already subscribed to MMD's deals, do it! She's responsible for 90% of my ebook purchases.)

It's Monday! What Are You Reading? (3-27-17)

Hosted by The Book Date

Happy Monday! I'm working on this much earlier in the day that usual—I normally throw this together at the last minute on Monday evening. But I'm taking a half vacation day today because I'm going to meet with a guy from the city about my trees. (Turns out, all of my trees but one or two actually belong to the city, so they decide whether a tree can be removed.) So while I'm waiting, I'm blogging :-)

"When Tides Turn" by Sarah Sundin

Lately, I've been in a bit of a reading slump. It's not that I haven't read enjoyable books, but I've only had three 5-star reads so far this year, and I finished the last one (For Love & Honor) at the end of February. I was absolutely ready for another "I love this book so much and I can't put it down and I wish it wouldn't end" kind of read ... and, happily, that's exactly what I found with When Tides Turn.

"The Healer's Apprentice" by Melanie Dickerson

The Healer's Apprentice begins Melanie Dickerson's excellent Fairy Tale Romance series. These books can be read in any order; I didn't start until The Princess Spy, book five in the series, so now I've decided to go back and read the ones I missed!

It's Monday! What Are You Reading? (3-20-17)

Hosted by The Book Date

Happy Monday!!! Or maybe I should say, HAPPY MARCH MADNESS!

It's true—I go a little crazy during March Madness. I pay zero attention to college basketball until the tournament begins, and then it's all basketball, all the time. Every single year, I pick Kansas to win it all. Most years, I'm horribly disappointed. But things are looking good so far! (My bracket is still in remarkably good shape. I did have Duke in the Final Four, but my other three teams are still in it!)

"The Elusive Miss Ellison" by Carolyn Miller

When I first heard of The Elusive Miss Ellison, it was being promoted for fans of Georgette Heyer, Lori Wick, and Julie Klassen. While I had to look up Heyer, Wick was my favorite inspirational romance author for many years, and Klassen is currently one of my favorite writers.

That was enough to get me to check out the book.

"Open Hands" by Laura Story + Giveaway

Let me tell you a little story ... last Monday, I got home from work and found Laura Story's new album Open Hands in my mailbox. I went inside and proceeded to spend an incredibly frustrating hour on the phone with the company that manufactured my now-broken television and the company I purchased an extended warranty from. Both phone calls ended unsatisfactorily (you can see my Facebook rant here if you're interested), and once I hung up the phone, I knew I needed to do something to lower my blood pressure. So I popped in the CD. Immediately, I felt myself beginning to calm down. And then I was captivated by the music I heard.

It's Monday! What Are You Reading? (3-13-17)

Happy Monday! I'm back from a long (but good) day of judging district speech. Tomorrow, I go out again. Went 50 miles east today; i'll go 90 miles west tomorrow. It makes for long days, but I enjoy it ... and the pay's not bad, either :-)

I ended up reading quite a bit last week ... and I also finally caught up on This Is Us (no spoilers here, but oh, the tears!) and watched the first couple episodes of Time after Time. It's a time travel show ... so of course I'll like it :-) It is a little violent for me—I end up covering my eyes often—but I suppose you'd expect that in a show about Jack the Ripper.

"Restoring Love" by Jennifer Slattery

If you like to read books about people who seem like they could be your neighbors, the Restoring Love is the book for you!

"Still Life" by Dani Pettrey

Fans of romantic suspense will enjoy this continuation of Dani Pettrey's Chesapeake Valor series.

"Then Came You" by Becky Wade

The first book in Becky Wade's new contemporary romance series doesn't release until May, but this prequel novella—which is free for Kindle—will tide you over in the meantime!

It's Monday! What Are You Reading? (3-6-17)

Happy Monday ... or not. I've actually had a frustrating Monday as I tried to deal with customer service at two companies—the manufacturer and the extended warranty company—regarding a broken TV. (Seriously. If a product is defective, I should not have to pay to ship it to you.) No resolution yet, but I'm now listening to my new Laura Story CD, which is helping to lower my blood pressure. Hammond is helping, too :-)

"For Love and Honor" by Jody Hedlund

Jody Hedlund delivers the third (and presumably final) book in her medieval YA romance series with For Love and Honor, and it's her best yet.

Best Books of 2016: Top Ten (Plus Two!)

So ... I'm a little embarrassed to even post this now. It's March 1. I have never been so late with my "best of" list before. I don't even have an excuse; I just kept procrastinating!