Fans of Eloisa James & Julia Quinn discussion

I'm still reading A Summer in Sonoma by Robyn Carr. It's okay, but I'm not loving it.

I'm just about finished with "MacGowan's Ghost" by Cindy Miles. I just love her books!

I finished The Temptation of Savannah O'Neill over the weekend. Really good category romance set in Louisiana. Loved it. Here's my review:
http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/...

Sorry about Summer in Sonoma, Cindy. I'm not much on women's fiction so I knew better than to try it. Hope it picks up for you.

I'm starting the week with The Gardner by S.A. Bodeen.

Ok, I ended up putting The Gardner down and picked up Twilight Hunger by Maggie Shayne. It kept staring at me so I really didn't have a choice ;)

I did love Summer in Sonoma, Cindy. When I reviewed it, I wrote "I know when I pick up a book with Robyn Carr’s name on the cover that I’m going to get an emotionally intense story in which characters, who will be presented within the context of a community of family and friends, will experience problems that mirror real life problems. With the help of their community, the characters will overcome these problems in credible ways. The psychically and physically wounded will be healed, the lonely will find love, and the embattled lovers will reconcile." I like some of her books better than others, but I'm always glad I read the book. And Walt is one of my favorite characters of 2010.

I finished Midnight Kiss, and my reactions were mixed. I'll post a review of it later. I also read Anne Gracie's The Accidental Wedding, which I loved. I'm reading Kate Moore's To Save a Devil now, and I've also started Maeve Haran's The Lady and the Poet, historical fiction but also a love story about Ann More and the 17th-century poet John Donne.

I did love Summer in Sonoma, Cindy.

I've loved a lot of her books, Grace Valley and the first 3 Virgin River books are some of my favorite novels. I'm just having a hard time liking some of the characters in this book. Some of the women seem a bit shallow. But, the book has turned around some, and I'm enjoying some of the stories more. It's good, just not one of my favorites.

I finished MacGowan's Ghost last night. I liked it, but it could have ended a couple of chapters before it actually did. I found myself skimming those last chapters...

Today at lunch I started The Survivors by Dinah McCall, and OMG!!! I only had a chance to read the first chapter (Dancing With The Stars talk interrupted!) Normally I don't read the dedication page, I just go straight to the story; however I stopped to read this one and it was so touching. She dedicated the book to her fiance that passed away in such a way that it brought tears to my eyes and chills to my skin.

I am reading I KISSED AN EARL by JAL.

I'm slogging through Libertine's Kiss by Julia James. Up to page 120 now but I can't get into it. I'll finish it though, because I have found flashes of brilliance among all that boring King Charles stuff (I just don't like him.)

I'm reading Jo Beverley's Malloren series. I loved the first book, the second wasn't my favorite. I'm on the third book and enjoying it.

I just finished Saving Sophie by Elle Amery.

Really good read!

I've been rereading a lot of Jo Goodman--I can't wait for her December release.
I too was disappointed in Summer in Sonoma even though I really liked Walk. I think partly its hard to tell 4 stories in depth in one book. And partly, I really didn't like one of the couples: the woman who considered going back to her cheating former boyfriend when her husband turned into a total slob.

I guess I will have to try Libertine's Kiss again. I felt like that about her first book--flashes of brillaince among a lot of mediocre stuff. This is one writer who may have an interesting learning curve.

Just started A Hellion in Her Bed by Sabrina Jeffries. So far, so good.

I'm really looking forward to Tuesday - lots of great new releases I've been waiting for.

I loved Summer in Sonoma too Cindy, but agree it wasn't her best. IMHO, nothing she's done since her first 3 Virgin River novels has really measured up. Yeah, Marty I think her name was, drove me a little crazy too, DLS :)

I can't wait to read Hellion in her bed. I love Sabrina Jeffries. I preordered my copy from borders, and it's on back order :(

Dls wrote: I too was disappointed in Summer in Sonoma even though I really liked Walt. I think partly its hard to tell 4 storie..."

Some spoilers ahead...

Yeah, I had a hard time liking Marty. I could have forgiven her more easily if she hadn't found out that her ex was still playing her, and then decided to work on her marriage. I wasn't liking Julie at first either, she was constantly nagging at her husband, who was working two jobs to keep things going. I kind of liked Cassie, but I wanted her to quit seeing Walt as just a biker and not husband material. And the last main character, Beth, wasn't around enough for me to connect with her. There were parts of the book where it turned around a bit, and I would get into it, but I need characters I can root for. Overall, this book was a miss for me.

I'm reading Warrior by Zoe Archer. It is great so far.

I just posted my review of Midnight Kiss here. Some of you expressed an interest in it earlier.

http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/84...

I'm reading Tyler O'Neill's Redemption by Molly O'Keefe. I loved the first one in the series and so far I like this one a lot. Next up is Jenny Crusie's Maybe This Time, followed by A Hellion in Her Bed.

EJFan, Summer in Sonoma is women's fiction, as are some others such as The House on Olive Street. But the Virgin River books are classified as romances. There is something of a woman's journey motif in some of the books, but the focus is clearly on the H/H relationship within the contexts of the Virgin River community. One warning though VR is an amazingly fertile community, so there are lots of pregnancies and babies. :)

BTW, there are, I just saw, three new VR books coming out in January, February and March.

I saw that when I was working on a 2011 book calendar last week. Promise Canyon on December 28 followed by Wild Man Creek in January and Harvest Moon in February.

What I am most interested in is any news about the three Lisa kleypas books scheduled for next year. Anybody heard anything?

Wylene wrote: What I am most interested in is any news about the three Lisa kleypas books scheduled for next year. Anybody heard anything? "

I haven't heard anything, but I'm always interested in her upcoming books.

Don't know anything about the upcoming Kleypas books. Though the covers are pretty. Surely they'll give up some info on them before too long.

I'm about 1/2 way through BODY HEAT by Brenda Novak. I am liking it much better than WHITE HEAT which came before it. I think b/c WH was about a cult. Cults creep me out.

Hey everyone! Mrs.ColinBridgerton from the EJ &JQ forum here.
Reading The Last Time I was Me by Cathy Lamb

Mrs.ColinBridgerton wrote: "Hey everyone! Mrs.ColinBridgerton from the EJ &JQ forum here.

I'm so glad you're here!

Ok, I know this isn't what I'm reading this week, but I have to congratulate you, Manda, on your fantastic news! You must be floating!

What I AM reading this week is Georgette Heyer's Regency World by Jennifer Kloester. A research-y but fun book. I got bogged down in some of the canal discussion in Miss Wonderful, so I still haven't finished that. But I will soon, because Mr. Impossible is next in the TBR pile and everyone tells me it's great!

Thanks bunches, Theresa! (FYI, yall, I just got a three book deal with St. Martin's Press for my Regency Trilogy. Therefore, I am over the moon!)

Theresa, a little backstory about Miss Wonderful. This was LC's first book after she took a longish hiatus from romance writing. So at the time it came out I think most of us were willing to cut her major slack for the canal stuff. Though I still love the characters in that one.

Mr. Impossible, on the other hand, was STELLAR. It was her first book after her hiatus where I thought "She is BACK! The LC of Lord of Scoundrels is Back!"

I still need to read the Kloster book. Thanks for the reminder. And the congrats.

Aha, thanks for the explanation, Manda. MW definitely has that trademark Chase humor and fantastic characters, so there is still a lot to enjoy. It cracked me up when Alistair decided to save his dignity by thinking of Mirabel as a piece of furniture. So much for good intentions... :)

The Kloester book is really enjoyable. I think it was published first in England and was hard to get hold of/very expensive here for a long time. Now it's in trade PB from Sourcebooks, and the price is right.

Congrats again!

Ohhh, congrats Manda!!!

Thanks again, Theresa! I remember that about Alistair:) And cool about the Kloester:) I'll check it out.

Thanks, Monica!

Congrats Manda! Thats such awesome news!

Thank you, Calila!

Woo-hoo! Congratulations, Manda!

Thank you, Cindy!

Thank you, EJ Fan!

Three days later and I'm still celebrating Manda's news. :)

I'm also rereading Madeline Hunter's Ravishing in Red and Provocative in Pearls in anticipation of Sinful in Satin, which will be released Tuesday. I love this series!

Ooh, I love both of those, Janga!

I'm still working slowly but surely through Brenda Novak's BODY HEAT. It's just hard to focus on reading these past couple of days...

I have bought Brenda Novak's first two books in that trilogy, but want to get the third book (tuesday) before I start to read them.

EJFan, JAL's bext book, What I Did for a Duke (Pennyroyal Green Book #5) is scheduled to be released February 22. It's one of my most anticipated books of 2011. :)