Darlene's Digest

While We Were Dating by Jasmine Guillory My rating: 4 of 5 stars View all my reviews

Her Smile by Carla Kelly My rating: 4 of 5 stars View all my reviews

Someone Perfect by Mary Balogh My rating: 3 of 5 stars View all my reviews

The Love Hypothesis by Ali Hazelwood My rating: 5 of 5 stars View all my reviews

Go Tell the Bees That I Am Gone by Diana Gabaldon My rating: 5 of 5 stars View all my reviews

The Matzah Ball by Jean Meltzer My rating: 4 of 5 stars View all my reviews

The Heart Principle by Helen Hoang My rating: 4 of 5 stars View all my reviews

Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir My rating: 5 of 5 stars View all my reviews

Indeed, when Captain Doyle returned there was a full report. A peace treaty had been negotiated restoring Great Britain and the United States to their antebellum status. “But what of the prisoners?” Charley asked Captain Doyle. “A Yankee trader from France bound for Charleston put into port a few days back. That is how we learned the news. The governor is not interested in having a gang of Americans roaming through Kingston, and asked if we would ‘host’ them for a while longer until they can ship out with their countrymen.” It was that simple. Men who two days earlier would have run each other through or blown each other to pieces, now were up on deck toasting each other’s countries with carefully rationed grog. Captain Doyle wisely put a limit on the amount of alcohol served, knowing that it wouldn’t take much to re-ignite the conflict on a smaller scale. “Captain Fletcher told me I do not understand men, Mr. Bryant,” Charley said in bemusement later that night. “I have to agree with ...

Last Guard by Nalini Singh My rating: 5 of 5 stars View all my reviews

The Cellist by Daniel Silva My rating: 4 of 5 stars View all my reviews

A Good Day for Chardonnay by Darynda Jones My rating: 4 of 5 stars View all my reviews

Shit, Actually: The Definitive, 100% Objective Guide to Modern Cinema by Lindy West My rating: 4 of 5 stars View all my reviews

It Happened One Summer by Tessa Bailey My rating: 4 of 5 stars View all my reviews

“Well played, Captain. If I’m not about to be shot for your amusement, do you have orders for me?” Oliver asked. Jensen looked at him with interest. “A new pet?” “My cabin boy,” St. Armand purred. “What else he is remains to be seen. But that will have to wait. Do you have information?” Jensen sobered. “I do, but I don’t know if you want to take this one on, Matt. There’s risk.” “Merciful heavens, a day without risk is like a day without coffee. And speaking of that, if you have some to trade I could make room in my hold.” As they turned to go below St. Armand looked over his shoulder. “Your orders, Woodruff, are to assist Green with anything he needs.” Simple enough, and the crews of the two ships appeared to be on good terms. It looked unlikely that he would use his axe today. He could see the benefit of it on a vessel where it could hack through rope, wood, or men, though he shuddered at the last thought. Killing sailors because they stood between the crew of the Prodigal Son and c...

Witch Please by Ann Aguirre My rating: 4 of 5 stars View all my reviews

“Avast, ye scurvy dog! Strike your colors or I’ll…I’ll… What will I do, Mr. Turnbull?” “Say, ‘I’ll scupper your ship and use your guts for garters, ye lily-livered—oh. Captain, sir!” Turnbull knuckled his forehead and said, “Um, I have to be off now, Mattie,” before scurrying below. Mattie looked up then and spotted the governess, her face lighting up. She ran over and Lydia Burke squatted down on the deck to open her arms to Mattie’s embrace. “Miss Burke! Miss Burke! I am so happy to see you again!” “I am happy to see you too, Mathilde. I missed you,” she said fiercely, hugging the child to her chest. Mattie drew back her head and looked at her. “I am not Mathilde anymore, Miss Burke. Now I’m Marauding Mattie, the terror of the West Indies!” “Are you indeed, miss?” --The Pirate's Secret Baby (High Seas #3) Today is my favorite holiday, #ITLAP Day, or International Talk Like A Pirate Day. Every September 19 we all get to channel our inner pirates as we contemplate abandoning our da...

A Dangerous Kind of Lady by Mia Vincy My rating: 5 of 5 stars View all my reviews

Sisters in Arms by Kaia Alderson My rating: 4 of 5 stars View all my reviews

"...Most snakes’ll leave you alone if you leave them alone. The moccasin has a white mouth inside, which is why it’s also called a cottonmouth. And a cottonmouth is just flat-out ornery. It’ll come after you for sheer meanness.” “I’m supposed to wait until I see inside the snake’s mouth to figure out what it is?” “Try using your charmin’ ways on it. Now, the coral snake’s tricky, ’cause he’s got a cousin what looks like him, but ain’t dangerous. There’s a handy little way to remember which is which. If you see a snake that’s got red, black, and yellow bands, say to yourself ‘red on yellow, kill a fellow, red on black, friend of Jack.’” He looked quite pleased with himself for remembering the mnemonic. "If I see a snake I’m unlikely to be thinking of nursery rhymes." "I was just tryin’ to help. You goin’ to eat all that?” --SMUGGLER'S BRIDE   When I went into the kitchen this morning I found a note on the counter from my dear husband, informing me that last night...

The Lady Has a Past by Amanda Quick My rating: 4 of 5 stars View all my reviews

The Midnight Bargain by C.L. Polk My rating: 4 of 5 stars View all my reviews

The Ratline: A Nazi War Criminal on the Run, Family Love, and a Curious Death in the Vatican by Philippe Sands My rating: 5 of 5 stars View all my reviews

Island Queen: A Novel by Vanessa Riley My rating: 5 of 5 stars View all my reviews

The Witness for the Dead by Katherine Addison My rating: 4 of 5 stars View all my reviews

When Stars Collide by Susan Elizabeth Phillips My rating: 4 of 5 stars View all my reviews

Ice Planet Barbarians by Ruby Dixon My rating: 3 of 5 stars View all my reviews

Capture the Crown by Jennifer Estep My rating: 4 of 5 stars View all my reviews

The Bomber Mafia: A Dream, a Temptation, and the Longest Night of the Second World War by Malcolm Gladwell My rating: 3 of 5 stars View all my reviews

Someone to Cherish by Mary Balogh My rating: 5 of 5 stars View all my reviews

A Bad Day for Sunshine by Darynda Jones My rating: 4 of 5 stars View all my reviews

Dial A for Aunties by Jesse Q. Sutanto My rating: 5 of 5 stars View all my reviews

The Splendid and the Vile: A Saga of Churchill, Family, and Defiance During the Blitz by Erik Larson My rating: 5 of 5 stars View all my reviews

Neon Gods by Katee Robert My rating: 4 of 5 stars View all my reviews

Ten Thousand Stitches by Olivia Atwater My rating: 5 of 5 stars View all my reviews

  "...It is for us, the living, rather, to be dedicated here to the unfinished work which they who fought here have thus far so nobly advanced. It is rather for us to be here dedicated to the great task remaining before us—that from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they gave the last full measure of devotion; that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain; that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom; and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth." --President Abraham Lincoln, the Gettysburg Address (November, 1863) When I was a child, Memorial Day meant the start of summer. Now I'm an adult and it means so much more to me. Take a moment this weekend to reflect on the meaning of #MemorialDay. Remember that the freedoms we enjoy this weekend, and all year long, to swim, to gather, to have outdoor concerts, to hike in the na...

Paladin's Grace by T. Kingfisher My rating: 4 of 5 stars View all my reviews

When Rand opened the cabin door he spied Julia up on the center of the table, skirt hiked up in her hand. “Snake!” she whispered, pointing with her shaking free hand to a darkened corner of the cabin. He dropped his bag and fetched the lamp and the broom. When he raised the lamp and peered into the corner, there was a faint susurrus—a sound like sand falling on the floor. Looking closer, he set down the lamp and broom and said, “C’mon outta there, fella.” He crouched down and waved his fingers in front of the snake, and when it coiled to leap he grabbed it behind its head. The snake wrapped itself around his arm, but Rand didn’t let go of the snake’s head. He straightened and turned to Julia, the snake clinging to his arm, tongue darting in and out in agitation. “This ain’t nothin’ but a corn snake, darlin’. He’s likely more scared of you than you are of him.” He held the snake up, admiring the red, gold, and brown stripes and chevrons patterning the reptile’s body as the snake squirme...

Cursed Luck by Kelley Armstrong My rating: 4 of 5 stars View all my reviews

A Stitch in Time by Kelley Armstrong My rating: 4 of 5 stars View all my reviews

The Echo Wife by Sarah Gailey My rating: 4 of 5 stars View all my reviews

"Mr. Washburn, do you like chicken with dumplings so light they float off the plate? Baked turkey with pecan dressing? Rice that doesn’t taste like paste?" She looked at him through her lashes and drawled huskily, "Sweet potato pie?" --Smuggler's Bride   Springtime is blueberry season in North Central Florida and I love to stock up. According to the Florida Blueberry Growers Association, blueberries weren't a huge crop here until some new varieties were developed and commercial growing began to take off in the 1980s. When I go to the weekly farmers market I bring home a quart or two in season, and what doesn’t get snacked on becomes blueberry pies, muffins, and cakes. Today I was on a Zoom call with #RegencyFictionWriters and I mentioned I was in the middle of baking Blueberry Tea Cakes, so naturally, people wanted me to post a recipe. I confess that I don't especially enjoy baking, but I love eating, especially when it's with fresh, local ingredien...

The Devil Comes Courting by Courtney Milan My rating: 5 of 5 stars View all my reviews

Fugitive Telemetry by Martha Wells My rating: 5 of 5 stars View all my reviews

Life's Too Short by Abby Jimenez My rating: 5 of 5 stars View all my reviews

The Intimacy Experiment by Rosie Danan My rating: 5 of 5 stars View all my reviews

No Man's Land: The Trailblazing Women Who Ran Britain’s Most Extraordinary Military Hospital During World War I by Wendy Moore My rating: 5 of 5 stars View all my reviews