Gigi's Company discussion

Today I finished Fifty Shades of Grey by E.L. James. LOVED IT!!! 5 STAR!!!

Last night I finished Messing Around With Max by Lori Foster. This was a new author for me and I really enjoyed this book. I look forward to reading more books my this author. I gave this book 3 stars.

This morning I finished Say You're One of Them by Uwem Akpan. Sad stories, but a good read. I gave this book 4 stars.

Yesterday, I finished The School of Essential Ingredients by Erica Bauermeister. This was such an enjoyable book. I really enjoyed this book and gave it 4 stars.

Over the past few days I've finished: Guilty Wives by James Patterson. I really enjoyed the suspense and strong characters of this book. I gave this book 4 stars.

Traveling With Pomegranates: A Mother-Daughter Story by Sue Monk Kidd. I thought this book was okay, but have to say this book was not what I thought it would be. I felt this story slow going throughout the entire book. I gave this book 2 stars.

This morning I finished The Next Always by Nora Roberts. Loved It! I am so looking forward to the next book. I gave this book 5 stars.

Today I finished The Witness by Nora Roberts. This was such a awesome suspense/romance book. Just love it! 5 stars!

Over the past two weeks I've managed to finish:
A Red Herring Without Mustard by Alan Bradley. I really enjoy this series and this was another good read. I gave this book 3 stars.
What it Was by George Pelecanos. I thought this book was okay. I gave it 2 stars.
Standoff by Sandra Brown. I enjoyed this book, but have read better by this author. I gave this book 3 stars.
Calling Mr. Lonely Hearts by Laura Benedict. This was such as good suspense novel. I gave this book 5 stars.
Stay Close by Harlan Coben. I found this book really creepy and suspenseful. I gave this book 4 stars.
The Expats: A Novel by Chris Pavone. I have to say I liked this book. I have to say I liked the second part of this book much more then the first part. I gave this book 3 stars.

This morning I finished Defending Jacob. This was such a good book. Great courtroom drama. Love it, 5 stars!

Over the past few days I've finished:
The Christmas Shoppe by Melody Carlson and Wedding Ring (Shenandoah Album) by Emilie Richards (my RaBF). I really enjoyed both these books. Both books were by new authors to me and I look forward to reading more of their books. I gave both books 4 stars.

Today I finished The Replacement Wife by Eileen Goudge. I really enjoyed this book. i was really happy with the ending of this book. I gave this book 4 stars.

Yesterday I finished Hemingway Deadlights: A Mystery by Michael Atkinson. I thought this book was just okay, I couldn't contact with any of the characters in this book. I was surprise I finished this books. I gave this book 2 stars.

I finished the 2nd book in the Troubleshooters series. The Defiant Hero by Suzanne Brockmann. This was another amazing story. I just love this series. 5 stars!

Yesterday I finished two Barbara Delinsky books. I finished More Than Friends and A Woman's Place. I enjoyed both of these books by one of my favourite authors. I gave both books 3 stars.

A few days ago, I completed Under a Vampire Moon (Argeneau, Book 16) by Lynsay Sands.

Vampire Moon was the story of Christian Notte and Carolyn Connor. Marguerite and Julius are on their honeymoon in St. Lucia in the Caribbean when Marguerite discovers Christian's lifemate. She has Julius send for Christian and Christian's band; hilarity and romance ensue. What else when Marguerite and Lynsay Sands are involved!

I would definitely recommend the Argeneau Family Vampire series. In this series the vampires are living near-immortals who marry and have children (One per century in accordance with their law. Parents of twins must wait two centuries before procreating again.) The vast Argeneau family is headed by the matriarch Marguerite, meddler and matchmaker extraordinaire. I would recommend readers start with the first book, A Quick Bite (Argeneau, Book 1). Although the Argeneau family is headquartered in Lynsay Sands' native Canada, there are family members in other countries and on other continents. Locations for the stories vary, although most are set in Canada. Delightful stories of family and love with lots of humor. Great summer escape!!

I just finished Envy (Fallen Angels, Book 3) by J.R. Ward last night. Mind-blowing book that redefines good and evil and gives you a different perspective of heroes with a dark side. Many people won't agree with her depictions, but it sure gives you a lot to consider.

J.R. Ward is not for everyone, but fans of the warden will love this one.

Completed Spell Bound(Hex Hall, Book 3) by Rachel Hawkins, the final book in the Hex Hall trilogy. Thoroughly enjoyed this young adult series written by a high school English teacher. Can't wait to see what Hawkins writes next. Definitely 5 stars!

Finished Bleeding Out (OSI, Book 5) by Jes Battis . This is another imaginative world of which I am reluctant to let go. Hope that Battis' next series features Mia, Patrick, Derrick, even Modred, or another secondary character from this series.

Just finished The September Society by Charles Finch. Loved it! It had such a great twist at the end. I liked it better than the first book and highly recommend it.

Over the past couple of weeks, I've managed to finish:

Big Stone Gap by Adriana Trigiani. I really enjoyed this first book in the Stone Gap series. I loved the small town setting and I'm really looking forward to the next book. 4 stars!

The Cove by Ron Rash. I enjoyed this YA book and also a new author that I'm looking forward to reading books of his. 3 stars!

Fifty Shades Darker by E.L. James. Love It! 5 stars.

Green Heart by Alice Hoffman. I really enjoyed this YA book. 4 stars!

The House of Velvet and Glass by Katherine Howe. I really enjoyed this book. I liked the historical details of that time throughout the book. 4 stars!

Today I finished Fifty Shades Freed by E.L. James. I really enjoyed this book and I loved how this trilogy ended. 5 Stars!

In recent days I have completed the first three books in the Charlie Madigan series by Kelly Gay. Gay is a major new presence in urban fantasy. I waited far too long to pick up the first book, but luckily the first three books were already in print and the fourth book will be out soon. Two thumbs way up and 5 bright shiny stars!

Books in the series are as follows:

The Better Part of Darkness (Book 1)

The Darkest Edge of Dawn (Book 2)

The Hour of Dust and Ashes (Book 3)

Shadows Before the Sun (Book 4) (To be released July 31, 2012)

Leah wrote: "Just finished The September Society by Charles Finch. Loved it! It had such a great twist at the end. I liked it better than the first book and highly recommend it.
"

Sounds good, Leah.

Today I finished Jack & Jill by James Patterson. Another good suspense novel in this series. 4 stars!

In the last few years Rachel Vincent has become one of my favorite authors. I just adored her urban fantasy series Shifters and her young adult Soul Screamers series. Yesterday I completed the second book in her newest urban fantasy series:

Shadow Bound (Unbound, Book 2) . Vincent continues to hone her craft and I have nothing but superlatives about her world-building. Great read!

Today I finished The Good Father: A Novel by Noah Hawley. I really enjoyed this heart wrenching story of one father who totally believes in his son. I gave this book 4.5 stars!

Today I finished The Dressmaker: A Novel by Kate Alcott. I really enjoyed this book. I found that I really got caught up in the story and found it interesting. I gave this book 4.5 stars.

Recently I have completed two nonfiction and two fiction books. My fiction reads were both part of on-going urban fantasy series that I have kept up with in recent years.

Tricked (Iron Druid Chronicles, Book 4) by Kevin Hearne

Wicked Circle (Persephone Alcmedi, Book 5) by Linda Robertson

Both of these books are great reads by newly established authors that I would urge other readers to consider.

I finished Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience and Redemption by Laura Hillenbrand. This was just an unbelievable story. 5 Stars!

Had to stop reading the book I was reading to start Lethal Rider (Lords of Deliverance, Book 3) by Larissa Ione . I inhaled it in one day and then immediately reread bunches of it. Yeppers, that good!! Ione's Lords of Deliverance series is set in the same universe as her Demonica series. There is one more book in this series based on stories of the Four Horseman of the Apocalypse. Hopefully Ione will soon have another series in this same universe.

Last night I finished Seriously...I'm Kidding by Ellen DeGeneres. This book actually made me laugh out loud. I enjoyed this book. 3 Stars!

Tonight I completed A Discovery of Witches (All Souls Trilogy, Book 1) by Deborah Harkness The beginning was slow and I didn't become immersed and buy into this story until Chapter 10. After that, it moved along nicely. Hopefully now that the author has established her plot, the pacing of book two, Shadow of Night , to be released July 2012, will be a little more consistent throughout the story. Four stars because of the slow beginning.

In the past week I've finished.
Banged Up by Jeanne St. James. I liked this book, but there was much suspense but a whole lot of romance. I gave this book 3 stars.

The Silver Boat: A Novel by Luanne Rice. I liked this book, but felt it dragged at times. Wasn't a favourite of mine. I gave this book 3 stars.

Gone Missing by Linda Castillo. I loved this book. The suspense was awesome. 5 stars

This morning I finished Rainshadow Road by Lisa Kleypas. I'm really enjoyed this book. I'm looking forward to the next book in this series. I gave this book 4 stars.

This morning I finished Wallflower in Bloom: A Novel by Claire Cook. I really enjoyed this book. This book was sad but funny as well. I gave this book 4 stars.

I just finished Over the Edge by Suzanne Brockmann. This is just one awesome series. Loved this Book! 5 stars!

Last night I finished One Breath Away by Heather Gudenkauf. What an awesome book. Hurray for Mrs. Oliver! 5 Star!

Last night I finishedThe Last Boyfriend by Nora Roberts. I loved this book and this series. 5 stars!

Today I finished Charade by Sandra Brown. This was another good suspense/romance novel. I gave this book 4 stars!

Last night I finished Betrayal by Fern Michaels. Another really good book by one of my favourite authors. 4 stars!

I finished The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie. Like this book. It was sad but heartwarming as well. I gave this book 3 stars!

Last night I stayed to finish Angela's Ashes by Frank McCourt. This was such a sad story but worth the read. I gave this book 4 stars!

I normally don't post my nonfiction books here, but I've been reading The Spice and Herb Bible: A Cook's Guide by Ian Hemphill on and off for over six months. I've completed all 512 pages. Exhaustive, detailed, needs more drawings/photos of each item being described. I googled many of the less well known spices--zedoary anyone--in order to have a image of the item about which I was reading. Four stars.

I finished Across the Universe by Beth Revis. I liked this book but I'm just not a science fiction reader. I did get through this book and gave it 3 stars.

This afternoon I finished Little Night by Luanne Rice. I loved the mystery this book had and I loved how this book ended. I gave this book 5 stars.

Yesterday I finished The Kill by Allison Brennan. I loved this book. I have to say it was my favourite in this trilogy. I gave this book 5 stars!

I just finished So Much Pretty by Cara Hoffman. I thought this book was okay but I did find it very confusing. I gave this book 2 stars.

In recent days I have completed two books:

Flesh and Fire (Vineart War, Book 1) by Laura Anne Gilman

A Night Like This (Smythe-Smith Quartet, Book 2) by Julia Quinn .

Flesh and Fire is about a world in which wine is used to perform magic. Don't know if this book should be called fantasy or urban fantasy. The world is not Earth which would make the story more fantasy than urban fantasy, but there aren't any of the creatures usually associated with fantasy. Either way I didn't like this world with slaves and little regard for human life, yet I found the story of Jerzy compelling. It did drag a little in the beginning. Four stars.

In A Night Like This, Julia Quinn has written another humorous, heartwarming romance centered on the Smythe-Smith family. Loved it even more than the first book in the series. Five stars.

This morning I finished Come Home by Lisa Scottoline. I really liked this book. There was a lot of twist and turns throughout the whole book. I gave this book 4 stars.

In the last couple of days I've finished Dark Lover by J.R. Ward. I loved this book. I'm really looking forward continuing with this series. I gave this book 5 stars!

I also finished The Crush by Sandra Brown. I enjoyed this book. A good suspense/romance novel. I gave this book 4 stars!

Today I finished The Woman Next Door by Barbara Delinsky. I really enjoyed this book. I gave this book 4 stars!

Since my last post on this thread, I have completed three books:


Con & Conjure (Raine Benares, Book 5) by Lisa Shearin

All Spell Breaks Loose (Raine Benares, Book 6) by Lisa Shearin

Tied with a Bow an anthology by Lora Leigh, Virginia Kantra, Eileen Wilks, and Kimberly Frost

The final books in the Raine Benares fantasy series were just as captivating as the earlier entries. I know that Lisa Shearin plans more books in this universe and hopefully we will see more of Raine and her friends in future novels. Five stars for both books with a strong recommendation that readers begin with the first book in this series, Magic Lost, Trouble Found.

I checked the Tied with a Bow anthology out of the library in order to read Eileen Wilks' novella "Human Error," the World of the Lupi #8.5. Good story and the reason for my four star rating. I was delighted to find two other stories, "Upon a Midnight Clear" by Virginia Kantra and "First Light" by Kimberly Frost that I found equally enjoyable. I read a few pages of the fourth story, "An Inconvenient Mate" by Lora Leigh, but it just wasn't me and I did not complete it.