Darlene's Digest

The Bromance Book Club by Lyssa Kay Adams My rating: 5 of 5 stars This was such a fun book that I had to give it five stars. Fun, but also very meaningful as it explores the pains and growth of a marriage and the complications that arise when communication goes south. As it says in the blurbs, "The first rule of Book Club is...you don't talk about Book Club." After all, when a bunch of testosterone laden athletes and bros get together, they don't want anyone to know they're reading historical romance to Get A Clue About What Women Want. The H&H seemed very real, as were their problems. I liked how the author dealt with the hero's speech impediment, and what that meant to him in and out of relationships. We got a hint at where Lyssa Kay Adams 's going to go next with the Bromance Book Club and I can't wait! View all my reviews

His mother’s favorite of his pieces was the elaborate Chanukah menorah with the rampant Lion of Judah he’d made when he first started crafting his own designs. The holder for the shammes that lit the oil in the eight other lamps leaned in slightly, but she swore she would have it no other way. “It’s eager to perform its task,” she’d say every year with a smile as his father lit the first light. --[WIP] Untitled Chanukah historical novella Happy Hanukkah! Chanukah Sameach! No matter how you say it (or spell it) the Festival of Lights is a special time around the world. In the Northern Hemisphere the Jews gather at the darkest time of the year to kindle small flames in the cold night, while in the Southern Hemisphere they wait...and wait...and wait for sundown to light the chanukah menorah (and have a cookout at the beach). Regardless of how it's celebrated, the festival commemorates the victory of the weak over the strong, the small against the mighty, and faith i...

A Madness of Sunshine by Nalini Singh My rating: 4 of 5 stars An excellent mystery which kept me guessing "whodunnit" up until the end. At one point I thought I knew who the guilty party was, but I was mistaken. I love it when that happens. The setting of Nalini Singh 's New Zealand was also a treat, where the landscape itself becomes part of the story. The heroine was bright and capable, and didn't make TSTL mistakes, the hero was enigmatic and wounded, and his passion for justice helped push the story forward. I'd definitely read more with these characters, or any future mystery/suspense novels from Ms. Singh. I'm already a fan of her paranormal romances, this adds another level of enjoyment. View all my reviews

Just Watch Me by Jeff Lindsay My rating: 2 of 5 stars I wanted to like this more. When Darkly Dreaming Dexter was released I loved it, and told all my friends to read it. After all, not only was it an excellent suspense story, but Dexter had a moral compass. He'd promised his stepfather that when he got the urge to torture and kill, he'd use it to take out the trash--evil people who prey on the weak, and damage society. Riley Wolfe is missing that moral compass. While I enjoyed the caper aspect of the book, I couldn't feel much for the amoral protagonist who is perfectly willing to murder and harm people who stand in his way. people who would interfere with his heist. Not just bad people, not just the ones who prey on the weak. To his credit, Jeff Lindsay points out this flaw in Wolfe's character, many times. And yet just as one character at the end rejects Wolfe for his sociopathic tendencies, I'm not sure I would want to read ...

My car broke down yesterday, and after the first moments of confusion and panic I thought, "I am so fortunate." This is why I felt that way: It happened in the parking lot of a grocery store less than two miles from my home, meaning I could have walked home if I needed to. I didn't have a trunk full of melting ice cream since I hadn't gone grocery shopping. I'd finished all my appointments for the day. The dog had been walked within the past two hours and could wait a little longer at home. I didn't have a dog or kids in the car. It was a stunningly beautiful day, perfect for hanging around for the tow truck. I had a book with me and I was next to a used book store.  I have a AAA app on my phone to call a tow truck. I can afford a yearly membership to AAA. I had a bottle of water with me.  Most importantly, I knew if my car needed a new starter (the most likely scenario based on the sounds it wasn't making) I could pay for it. I wasn't one car re...

The Widow of Rose House by Diana Biller My rating: 4 of 5 stars A solid debut with a small "woo woo" element (in fact, that was what I liked least about the book, how the ghostly presence contributed to the resolution, but your mileage may vary) that sets up future books with a fascinating family of scientists during the Gilded Age. There's a hunky hero who gives new meaning to "absent minded professor", heroine who discovers her true self, and entertaining secondary characters. I look forward to reading more from Ms. Biller. View all my reviews

When she turned back to him, Dr. Murray had a chest of instruments open and was examining them. “Is that what you will take with you?” He held up a lancet, wiped it on his coat sleeve, then examined its edge in the light. “My chest is the most valuable item I own. If there is time to take any one thing with me, this is what I will take.” He put the blade down and looked at her. “Again, abandoning ship is a last resort and I do not expect that to happen. It is always best to be prepared for the worst situation, though. If it happens, you are ready; if it does not happen, you can count yourself pleasantly surprised.” --CASTAWAY DREAMS I wanted to post some more pictures from the Ships of the Sea Maritime Museum  in Savannah because it had so much cool stuff, or at least cool to someone who writes about scurvy and scabies and surgery below decks. This chest on the right is a surgeon's chest of the kind that would have been used by Alexander Murray in Castaway Dreams or Charley Alc...

The Vagina Bible: The Vulva and the Vagina—Separating the Myth from the Medicine by Jennifer Gunter My rating: 5 of 5 stars To paraphrase the cover blurb, this book is a must-read for anyone who has a vagina or is close to someone who has one. There is so much misinformation about female anatomy (I see all kinds of weird hymen stuff in novels, even in the 21st c.) that it's helpful to have a good reference guide at hand no matter what your age, the status of your sex life, or what you think you know about what's going on down there. If I had a daughter or a sister I'd want them to have and read this book by a well-respected OB/GYN who has a vagina, and knows how much facts matter. View all my reviews

The Ten Thousand Doors of January by Alix E. Harrow My rating: 5 of 5 stars I'm going through book withdrawal. I was so caught up in January Scaller's story and her world(s) that I stayed up long past my bedtime and hated to see the book end. An astoundly good debut novel about a young woman who find magic in books, writing, and storytelling, and what reader and author can't relate to that? It's a special delight when a debut novel stuns the reader with the sheer joy of the storytelling, and The Ten Thousand Doors of January is such a novel. While it can be classified as YA because of the protagonist and her journey, it shouldn't be overlooked by any lover of literary fantasy. View all my reviews

Seduction on a Snowy Night by Madeline Hunter My rating: 3 of 5 stars None of these stories were kind of tear-duct cleansing, ugly crying reads I sometimes find in Christmas collections (and perversely enjoy the most--Mary Balogh and Carla Kelly are especially good at yanking the heartstrings) but these three tales of winter love were enjoyable, and will especially entertain readers familiar with the authors' other books. Characters from previous works make an appearance and it's a pleasant holiday reading break. View all my reviews

She excused herself from the heat of the cane fires and walked to the tables where the women were laying out an array of pumpkin and pecan pies, shortbread oozing with sweet jam, all of it covered with light cloths to keep the insects off. Crocks of preserves and pickled tomatoes, cucumbers, and relishes shone in the sun. Her persimmon cakes were added to the pile. While once Julia might have wondered who could consume so much food at one sitting, she’d seen the Crackers sit down to their victuals and knew the food would be little more than a memory by the time the day was done...The uncooked cane juice in the barrels was pale green, and as it cooked and was stirred it thickened and ripened to a deep amber, becoming the syrup prized for sweetening everything from coffee to pecan pie to biscuits. “It’s a lot of work to get a little sweetness in your life.” Julia looked over her shoulder and favored her husband with an arch smile. “But worth the effort, don’t you think?” She looked bac...

An Unorthodox Match by Naomi Ragen My rating: 5 of 5 stars At a time when Romancelandia is demanding diverse stories we get An Unorthodox Match , a gentle tale of love lost and found in the insular and demanding world of haredi Orthodox Jewish life in enclaves such as Boro Park, NY. Leah (Lola) Howard was born Jewish but always searched for connection to a more spiritual existence. Over her mother's strenuous objections her steps have led her to embrace Orthodox Judaism, but now she struggles to be part of a community known for constantly observing and judging its inhabitants, especially the ones who are not "FFB", not born and raised in its strict confines. (There is a helpful glossary in the book for translating "Yinglish" syntax and phrases.) Yaakov Lehman is a widower struggling with his grief, with raising his five children, with the demands of providing for a family and neglecting his studies. He's finally forced to...

“Judith has told us of your plans, Mrs. Stephenson,”Jacob Kahn said. “As a local businessman myself, I am pleased to see any venture that brings fresh products and dollars into the economy.” He shook his head. “Savannah has suffered greatly in recent years. The fire and the yellow fever epidemic left us reeling, but we are putting ourselves back on course.” “As a businessman, do you think I will have problems with local merchants? My being a woman on her own?” “There will always be those who have prejudices,” he said slowly as he stirred his tea. Pale blue eyes much like his daughter’s studied Amanda from behind his own spectacles. “I encounter it myself, even though I was born in this city. But Savannah is proud of its ‘merchant princes,’ as we call them, and also prides itself on promoting growth and industry. It was only a few years ago we cheered the launch of the Savannah , the first steam-powered vessel to cross the Atlantic all the way to Russia. Your money is good, Mrs. St...

The Awakening of Miss Henley by Julia Justiss My rating: 4 of 5 stars Another delightful Regency from Julia Justiss about independent misses and the men who value them. What I enjoyed about this book was seeing how Theo's rakish life has its own constraints, expectations that color what his future will bring. We read so much about the barriers to women being independent and forget that men too were expected by their families to go into--or avoid--certain professions or lifestyles. Well written and engaging, and I look forward to reading more about the Cinderella Spinsters. View all my reviews

Someone to Remember by Mary Balogh My rating: 4 of 5 stars It's no secret I'm a huge fan of Mary Balogh , both for her stories and for her craft. One of the things I love about her work is how she'll take a stock character like "fussy, aging spinster aunt" and subtly bring her forward until you realize that's a person, someone with dreams and hopes of her own. Enter Matilda Westcott. She was introduced to us in the earlier Westcott stories as, yes, the fussy, aging, spinster aunt, but we had glimpses of her personhood all along. Then in Someone to Honor she emerged as not only a person, but a key character, and I loved it. Now we have her own "second chance at love" story, and it's adorable and sweet and yummy. There's no high drama, no pirates, but the question of "Can a woman approaching 60 find love?" is answered in the best way possible. We're reminded that while we see the package--the n...

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 got 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...

The Art of Theft by Sherry Thomas My rating: 4 of 5 stars I continue to enjoy this series, and the mystery in this one had me flipping my Kindle pages to find out where it was going. The author manages to keep a lot of balls in the air as she juggles characters and relationships, and I especially enjoyed seeing the secondary characters play a larger role. The slow-burning romance between Charlotte and Lord Ingram is still smokin' hot, and I look forward to more Lady Sherlock stories in the future. View all my reviews

Fathers of Conscience: Mixed-Race Inheritance in the Antebellum South by Bernie D. Jones My rating: 4 of 5 stars It's hard to tag a book "really liked it" when the subject matter is so accurately and depressingly focused not on the rights of enslaved people to inherit (not the issue, essentially they had no rights), but on the rights of white men with guilty consciences to leave money and property to blood relatives who were black. This work is geared towards attorneys and researchers, and I found it interesting because even though I am not a lawyer, my husband does estates, wills and trusts in Florida. Land inheritance in the rural south to this day can be quite convoluted, but this book deals in particular with men who wanted to provide for their offspring or their children's mothers. Not surprisingly, white relatives who were not direct descendants fought these distributions and the courts had to deal with cases that could vary f...

The Hound of Justice by Claire O'Dell My rating: 5 of 5 stars Part of what determines whether I give a book four or five stars on Goodreads is if I find myself at odd times of the day wanting to go back to reading it, or when it keeps me up late to finish. The Hound of Justice is one such novel, an excellent follow-up to the first of the Janet Watson Chronicles. Because we are already familiar with the near-future dystopian America from A Study in Honor we can get right into the story, and I especially enjoyed seeing Dr. Watson try to re-establish herself as a successful surgeon. We also learn more about Sara's family, Janet's dating life, Janet's family, and why the Confederacy continues to wreak havoc on society in a divided country. I liked the focus on the characters in this book (even more than the mystery) and it bodes well for further Holmes/Watson stories going forward. View all my reviews

Brazen and the Beast by Sarah MacLean My rating: 4 of 5 stars I love stories about strong women who know what they want and go after it, no matter what era they live in. Hattie may be an earl's daughter but she grew up near the docks (her father's title was a late-in-life reward) and will never be part of the ton . She's too big, too loud, too assertive...too much. So at age 29 she's ready to live life in The Year of Hattie, where she goes after what she wants, starting with a night with a paid companion. Beast and his brother Devil didn't fight their way to the top of their massive smuggling business by playing nice, and when he awakens tied up in Hattie's carriage, his first thought is to get even with whomever put him in this position. Clearly, these two are made for each other and they figure that part out pretty quickly. The drama that's thrown into the mix comes from Hattie's family's involvement with Beast...