What you are reading...Let's talk about it.

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February 07, 2012, 08:46:10 PM

The Mystic Castle

So many books, so little time.

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What you are reading...Let's talk about it.

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	Adair Goddess Karma: 14 Offline Posts: 912

What you are reading...Let's talk about it. ( on: February 01, 2010, 10:35:34 PM)

Maybe this is just me being an absolute witch with a b. However I'm seldom going into What are you reading thread anymore. Reason. One poster just keeps saying the title of two or three books and makes no comments about the books. That's fine...however I came aboard to talk about the books we are reading, maybe get some insight and perspective and that thread has been ruined for me. SO I suggest we start a new thread...Talk about the Book you are reading.

So I'll give an idea of what I mean. "Most of the books I've seen in the bookstore have looked anywhere from ho-hum to dull as a dishrag to I wouldn't read it if it was free so the other day I picked Anna Campbell's Claiming the Courtesan from my "keepers" bookshelf and started rereading it. Forgot what great story it is, how wonderfully dark with a tinge of light to it. Such a great throwback to the novels of the 80's and early 90's. Someone described as Romance Noir and boy I can certainly see and applaud that about this book. Funny as it sounds it is a toss up between this and Sandra Schwab's The Lily Brand as to which is the darker and more wonderfully sensual."

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	Princess Poopy Pants Society Administrator King Shoz! Karma: 8 Offline Gender: Posts: 719

Re: What you are reading...Let's talk about it. ( Reply #1 on: February 06, 2010, 09:28:32 AM)

Oops, I don't think I've ever read that one!

I read PRIVATE ARRANGEMENTS and DELICIOUS by Sherry Thomas. What I really appreciated about the books is the simplicity of the storytelling, and how, to me, it somehow made the stories more compelling

The bad thing about reading these two is that the next few books I started couldn't seem to measure up

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	Adair Goddess Karma: 14 Offline Posts: 912

Re: What you are reading...Let's talk about it. ( Reply #2 on: February 06, 2010, 06:20:59 PM)

Quote from: Princess Poopy Pants on February 06, 2010, 09:28:32 AM

LOL I felt the same way about Sherry Thomas last two books. Private Arrangements was a wonderful read...heck it's on the keeper shelf and I may pick it up next to reread. And Delicious...well it was a tasty read. Than came the ones I couldn't read, gave up one and gave resale store.

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	Princess Poopy Pants Society Administrator King Shoz! Karma: 8 Offline Gender: Posts: 719

Re: What you are reading...Let's talk about it. ( Reply #3 on: February 06, 2010, 08:16:26 PM)

Quote from: Adair on February 06, 2010, 06:20:59 PM

Haha, I picked up THE SECRET by Julie Garwood after Sherry, but I stopped. It was so ABC in comparison that I got bored!

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	Adair Goddess Karma: 14 Offline Posts: 912

Re: What you are reading...Let's talk about it. ( Reply #4 on: February 06, 2010, 09:38:42 PM)

In keeping with re-reading the books on my keepers shelf...I took down After Innocence by Brenda Joyce and started reading it today. Forgot how dark the beginning of the book was. It's always been one of my favorites by her so I find it surprising that a book I've re-read several times still has a new discovery in it.

I notice that you said you hadn't read Anna Campbell Claiming the Courtesan...my advice, go buy that book. It is well worth a read or two. Even if you can only find it in a second hand bookstore. It is an eye opener.

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	january Society Reviewers Karma: 10 Offline Posts: 176

Re: What you are reading...Let's talk about it. ( Reply #5 on: February 07, 2010, 12:18:17 AM)

I just reread private arrangements as well love that book, I have the others I need to read them 2. I just finished nauti deceptions by lora leigh and flirt by laurell k hamilton can't wait for the next books by each of these authors

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	Adair Goddess Karma: 14 Offline Posts: 912

Re: What you are reading...Let's talk about it. ( Reply #6 on: February 07, 2010, 05:28:30 PM)

Quote from: january on February 07, 2010, 12:18:17 AM

I've never read either of these authors. If they aren't into time trave or paranormal, I'll give them a try. Flirt sounds like it could have been written about me.

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	january Society Reviewers Karma: 10 Offline Posts: 176

Re: What you are reading...Let's talk about it. ( Reply #7 on: February 07, 2010, 10:56:05 PM)

laurell k hamilton is paranormal and lora leighs is contemp she does a lil of everything she has some seal/ops books that are good and some about shifters that are good she writes some good bad boys

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	Princess Poopy Pants Society Administrator King Shoz! Karma: 8 Offline Gender: Posts: 719

Re: What you are reading...Let's talk about it. ( Reply #8 on: February 07, 2010, 11:09:58 PM)

I'm reading NAUTI DECEPTIONS now, too! It's entertaining, with some wicked bits thrown in

Adair, I'm surprised you're not reading Lora! You'll love how she blends romance and the naughty bits into one edible package.

Wink

Before Lora, I reread THE DEVIL YOU KNOW by Liz Carlyle again. Still great!

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	january Society Reviewers Karma: 10 Offline Posts: 176

Re: What you are reading...Let's talk about it. ( Reply #9 on: February 08, 2010, 08:57:44 AM)

I know that Zeke is yumyum, and I can't wait to get my hands on JOnas's book and its drivin me crazy she hasn't posted an excerpt yet for that book

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	Mystic Witchy Society Administrator Karma: 12 Offline Gender: Posts: 545

Re: What you are reading...Let's talk about it. ( Reply #10 on: February 12, 2010, 08:46:17 AM)

Quote from: Adair on February 06, 2010, 09:38:42 PM

This book is my very first romance book and is still is my all time favorite romance. I just love this story. Both characters are so compelling and interesting with multiple layers. I just finished rereading this a month or so ago.

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	Adair Goddess Karma: 14 Offline Posts: 912

Re: What you are reading...Let's talk about it. ( Reply #11 on: February 12, 2010, 08:50:23 PM)

Quote from: Mystic Witchy on February 12, 2010, 08:46:17 AM

I finished After Innocence today....it's really among Brenda's best work. However she left a story untold in the book that want to read...Lisa and the Marquis (Julian). Any chance that Brenda would revisit those two characters and provide us with a 90's style romance novel. You know long, complex, arrogant hero, secrets and wounded characters...Ahh to read a novel like that again.

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	Helen Nobility Smile...the fresh air is good for your teeth. Karma: 9 Offline Gender: Posts: 377

Re: What you are reading...Let's talk about it. ( Reply #12 on: February 13, 2010, 09:01:13 AM)

Quote

However I'm seldom going into What are you reading thread anymore. Reason. One poster just keeps saying the title of two or three books and makes no comments about the books

Adair that thread drove me NUTS. Damn she was a reading machine!! Roll Eyes

Regarding Anna Campbell...I finished reading 'Captive of Sin' and loved it. Why because this featured on of my favorite plots "the tortured hero" Wink

Now Sherry Thomas's....what can I say about that book Undecided

Three time I attempted to read the novel and both the hero and heroine irritated me to no end. Never finished the book and it is in box of books for the next trip to the UBS.

Has any read Judith James 'Broken Wing' and Julia London's 'The Secret Lover'....I keep moving those two novels to the bottom of my TBR pile.

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	Helen Nobility Smile...the fresh air is good for your teeth. Karma: 9 Offline Gender: Posts: 377

Re: What you are reading...Let's talk about it. ( Reply #13 on: February 13, 2010, 09:27:39 AM)

Adair I posted this in the 'What are you Reading' thread and apparently you never saw it...because like me that thread was becoming an irritation.

Here is the post:

Quote

Has anyone read this book? Broken Wing by Judith James. I ordered this book and now wondering if I made a mistake. How can two review sites give complete opposite reveiw?? I am really scratching my head over this one! Sad Because I was at the Mrs. Giggles website and she really murdered this novel. Shocked http://www.mrsgiggles.com/books/james_wing.html and AAR gave it an A http://www.likesbooks.com/cgi-bin/bookReview.pl?BookReviewId=7128

Adair.....now I realize why the title of this book was so familiar. Did some searching and find that you posted about this novel back in October of 2009. Well if you loved it, then I am back on track and will read the novel when it arrives.

But I haven't started it yet. Undecided

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	Adair Goddess Karma: 14 Offline Posts: 912

Re: What you are reading...Let's talk about it. ( Reply #14 on: February 13, 2010, 05:49:42 PM)

Helen...I've missed the discussions about books. And yes that person is a reading machine..my complaint plus to read her reviews you have to go to her website an their there is no mention of the Mystic castle...a lot of other romance website but not the one she is using to get traffice. Plus, it's her reviews not a talk about the good and bad of the book and how it affected you.

Now to Broken Wings...I loved that book, however I can see why some would give it a negative review. The hero had been sexually abused as a child and thought it was his fault...that would be a heck of a problem to overcome. And in the end he does over come it. However some don't really understand psychological scars and moving beyond them...and some just don't want in their romance novels. Me, I like the tortured hero. And I like the exploration of how unwanted sex to early can scar a person. Nancy Richard-Akers (one of the my favorite romance authors in the 90's...she was murdered by her soon to be ex-husband in 96 if I remember correctly) dealt with this topic in the Heart of the Rose. Her heroine .. a young girl called a whore by all was kept by her uncle as his mistress. A very horrifying situations and you really felt the hopelessness that the heroine felt.

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	Persephone Global Moderator Karma: 15 Offline Gender: Posts: 611

Re: What you are reading...Let's talk about it. ( Reply #15 on: February 14, 2010, 09:45:03 AM)

I really love you two!

In her defense, she does have a link to this forum at her site, and she will talk about books when asked directly, but yeah, I get that the way she posts about them can be a bit frustrating (she does the same thing at other forums).

(chiming in about PA)

Although I enjoyed Private Arrangements, it did have it's flaws. I find Sherry's writing very intellectual and a bit lacking in the emotional area. In fact, the heroine in PA came off as very cold at times, while the hero was more likable (for me). Their non-relationship was not always enjoyable to read, and at one point I wondered if they would ever be able to work through their issues at all. I did like that the heroine was strong (mostly) but she did come off as very desperate as well. I haven't read another of her books, and it may be because of my conflicting feelings about Private Arrangements. I do think it was a very impressive debut novel though.

I notice that many romance authors seem to have issues with their heroines. They can range from ice-princesses to prudes all the way to the hated too stupid to live. They can be irritating, overly obnoxious know-it-alls, and milksops. On the other hand, the heroes can be almost painfully perfect in comparison. I don't know if it's because the authors are women and they (naturally) find the heroes more appealing, or if they think that those types of heroines are more interesting to write. What do you all think?

I wish I had a book to discuss, but I haven't read anything spectacular lately. I have quite a few books in my tbr pile that look promising, so I'll make sure to discuss it in this thread after I've read them. Great thread by the way, I've missed actual discussions.

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	Mystic Witchy Society Administrator Karma: 12 Offline Gender: Posts: 545

Re: What you are reading...Let's talk about it. ( Reply #16 on: February 14, 2010, 11:00:06 AM)

Quote from: Adair on February 12, 2010, 08:50:23 PM

She did write it. It's called "The Miracle" and can be found in one of two anthology novels. The Gift Of Joy and um oh Five Holden Rings.

It's a novella. Pretty good one too. I have both Anthology novels. The Gift of Joy has stories in it from Virginia Henley, Fern Michaels and Jo Goodman,

The other anthology novel is with Kat Martin, Katherine Sutcliffe and Jo Beverly.

Here is a very brief excerpt.

http://www.brendajoyce.com/novels/excerpts/the_miracle.htm

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	Princess Poopy Pants Society Administrator King Shoz! Karma: 8 Offline Gender: Posts: 719

Re: What you are reading...Let's talk about it. ( Reply #17 on: February 15, 2010, 10:42:46 AM)

Quote from: Mystic Witchy on February 14, 2010, 11:00:06 AM

Was going to point it out, too! Wink

The part that I would have dearly loved to know about is at the end of AFTER INNOCENCE, where they auction the painting. It all seemed so mysterious t

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	Princess Poopy Pants Society Administrator King Shoz! Karma: 8 Offline Gender: Posts: 719

Re: What you are reading...Let's talk about it. ( Reply #18 on: February 15, 2010, 10:52:19 AM)

Quote from: Persephone on February 14, 2010, 09:45:03 AM

I really love you two!
(chiming in about PA)

Although I enjoyed Private Arrangements, it did have it's flaws. I find Sherry's writing very intellectual and a bit lacking in the emotional area. In fact, the heroine in PA came off as very cold at times, while the hero was more likable (for me). Their non-relationship was not always enjoyable to read, and at one point I wondered if they would ever be able to work through their issues at all. I did like that the heroine was strong (mostly) but she did come off as very desperate as well. I haven't read another of her books, and it may be because of my conflicting feelings about Private Arrangements. I do think it was a very impressive debut novel though.

I rather enjoyed the heroine's unashamed tactics to buy her way into the aristocracy. She knew what she wanted and she went after it! Wished she had used the same tenacity in roping her wandering husband back, though, but it probably would have made the book more traditional

I've read all of her books now, and so far, I love NOT QUITE A HUSBAND best of all! (I stayed up until 4 AM reading this one).

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	Persephone Global Moderator Karma: 15 Offline Gender: Posts: 611

Re: What you are reading...Let's talk about it. ( Reply #19 on: February 15, 2010, 02:36:51 PM)

Quote from: Princess Poopy Pants on February 15, 2010, 10:52:19 AM

I've read all of her books now, and so far, I love NOT QUITE A HUSBAND best of all! (I stayed up until 4 AM reading this one).

The plot of Not Quite A Husband piqued my interest, but I'm not sure if that's enough incentive to buy another one of her books. Maybe if I find it at a ubs, I might give her another try. Is it less frustrating than Private Arrangements? Grin

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	Adair Goddess Karma: 14 Offline Posts: 912

Re: What you are reading...Let's talk about it. ( Reply #20 on: February 16, 2010, 11:03:09 PM)

Quote from: Princess Poopy Pants on February 15, 2010, 10:42:46 AM

Was going to point it out, too! Wink

The part that I would have dearly loved to know about is at the end of AFTER INNOCENCE, where they auction the painting. It all seemed so mysterious t

I know what you mean...I always thought that Brenda was going to write a novel about the characters at the auction...especially the granddaughter and something derailed her from doing it. Too bad because I would have liked to have to know Sophie and Edward as grandparents. They are among Brenda's best characters....

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	Helen Nobility Smile...the fresh air is good for your teeth. Karma: 9 Offline Gender: Posts: 377

Re: What you are reading...Let's talk about it. ( Reply #21 on: February 17, 2010, 10:54:42 AM)

Curiosity always drives me to check out reviews on books that I look forward to reading. One of them is Virginia Henley's The Irish Duke. But honestly.... reading the review of this book is definitely off-putting for me. http://www.likesbooks.com/cgi-bin/bookReview.pl?BookReviewId=7694 Usually I never rely on AAR for determining whether I purchase a book But lately I have agreed with their reviews of books that l have read. And that is sad, because I mostly disagree with their reviews.
Laurel you know that VH has always been a favorite of mine, but thinking twice about buying this novel and maybe will wait till it hits our local library to read The Irish Duke.

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	Adair Goddess Karma: 14 Offline Posts: 912

Re: What you are reading...Let's talk about it. ( Reply #22 on: February 17, 2010, 08:15:54 PM)

Quote from: Helen on February 17, 2010, 10:54:42 AM

Romantic Times gave the Irish Duke 4 and 1/2 stars and a great review. I was thinking about picking it up and reading it because they liked it so much. So I guess I'll check out some other review sites first. I have to say though...I seldom agree with AAR reviews and often buy books that they give bad reviews too and enjoy them thoroughly.

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	january Society Reviewers Karma: 10 Offline Posts: 176

Re: What you are reading...Let's talk about it. ( Reply #23 on: February 19, 2010, 03:05:27 PM)

I have preordered the irish duke by henley and read the review in the romantic times magazine it sounds good and I'm looking forward to getting it. I've almost always loved her books theres only been a couple that were ok for me I do have to say I love her older historicals better like tempted and pirate and the pagan etc.

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	Adair Goddess Karma: 14 Offline Posts: 912

Re: What you are reading...Let's talk about it. ( Reply #24 on: February 22, 2010, 02:06:31 AM)

Finally found Lessons in French by Laura Kinsale....been looking forward to this book for a long long time now. Hope it lives up to being one of her best.

I'll start it as soon as I finish the Last Helloin by Loretta Chase. Still one of her best books...love the heroine and the hero. Something so very real about them. And they are funny...a very endearing couple. Not a heavy read..just a fun read with a good romantic element to it. (oh in case you can't tell...this is a re-read for me.)

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