Darlene's Digest

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