Weekly Reading Wrap Up (SP/IMWAYR?)

The Dime by Kathleen Kent

Betty is a transplanted New York cop.  She is on a drug task force in Texas hunting a powerful drug lord.  They have been working hard on a take down, but then their sting goes sideways, and Betty finds herself the subject of someones attention.  Whose? The drug cartel? Some other player? When she is kidnapped she has to use her tough street smarts to survive while waiting for rescue. The story takes a total twist that delivers! Tough, independent, kick-butt Betty is a great character.  I hope she will appear in more books. 

Devil In Winter by Lisa Kleypas (#3)

Evie is the last of her three wallflower friends to find a husband.  She is desperate to get out from under her Uncle and be with her father in his final days.  She approaches the worst scoundrel Sebastian with a proposal.  If he will marry her in order for her to be with her father at his place of business, her inheritance is his.  They will then live separate lives. He agrees, and they take off to Gretna Green for a quickie marriage and then return to her father's gambling establishment. While Evie is taking care of her dying father, Sebastian finds himself beginning to care about something more than himself.  A great story of redemption and second chances by a favorite author.

Roman Crazy by Alice Clayton and Nina Bocci (audio)

Avery surprises her husband at his office and find him in a compromising position. She decides a visit to her friend in Italy is in order. Once there she runs into her college intern fling and finds herself reinventing the life she imagined. Marcello is just as handsome and swoon worthy as he was nine years ago, and seems willing to forgive her for disappearing from his life.   Randi Geddens narrated a fun, laugh out-loud, happy ending story. 

*Thanks to Simon and Schuster Audio for this review copy*




Up Next:
A Darkness Absolute by Kelly Armstrong
Under Pressure by Lori Foster
Into The Fire by Jeanine Frost

Book Thoughts Posted:
Black and Blue by Candice Fox
Come and Get Me by Shan Serafin

The week got off to a great start on the reading front then came to a screeching halt when a water line broke in our upstairs bathroom.  We've spent the days since in clean-up mode with huge fans blowing, dehumidifiers and extractors going. The noise is overwhelming. Now I've got to pick out new flooring, paint and carpet, but it will have to wait as I left town for a few days.

Linking to these memes:

Kathryn at Book Date hosts IMWAYR?, a place to  meet up and share what you have been, are and about to be reading over the week.  It's a great opportunity to organize yourself, visit, comment, and add to that every growing TBR pile.

The Sunday Post is a weekly meme hosted by Kimba @Caffeinated Book Reviewer. It’s a chance to share news~ A post to recap the past week on your blog and showcase books and things we have received.

The Mistletoe Inn (audio)

At thirty-two Kimberly Rossi, a finance officer at a Lexus car dealership, has had her heart broken more times than she wants to remember. With two failed engagements, a divorce and again alone with no prospects, she hardly seems the type to dream of being a published romance author. Dreading another holiday alone, she signs up for The Mistletoe Retreat, a nine-day writing retreat in Burlington, VT. Deep inside Kimberly knows she’s at a junction in her life and it’s time to either fulfill her dream or let it go. The other reason she decides to attend the conference is because famed romance writer, H.T. Cowell, once the bestselling romance writer in America, and the author whose books instilled in her the desire to be a writer, will be speaking in public for the first time in more than a decade.

In one of her breakout sessions Kimberly meets another aspiring writer, and one of the few men at the conference, Zeke, an intelligent man with a wry wit who seems as interested in Kimberly as he is in the retreat. As Kimberly begins to open up to him about her stories and dreams, she inadvertently reveals her own troubled past. As Zeke helps her to discover why her books fail to live up to their potential she begins to wonder if he’s really talking more about her life than her literature. But as she grows closer to him, she realizes that Zeke has his own darkness, a past he’s unwilling to talk about.

I chose this audio based on the  narrator alone as I have not read this author. I am so glad I did or I would have missed this gem of a story. Kim is one of the unluckiest in love people ever!  As her story is told you will realize why. She really wants to publish her "perfect" romance, and figures this conference is her last chance.  She befriends two people at the conference, Samantha and Zeke, both fellow writers. She opens up to Zeke, but not totally and you figure out the secret he is keeping (at least I did). Zeke offers to read her book and give her an honest critique. When it is not what she wants to hear she bails and returns home which is the best thing she could have done as this is where the real healing begins. Great story with wounded characters that give love a chance. Madeline Maby always delivers a pitch perfect read no matter the plot or characters. A story that can be read/listened to anytime of the year. 

*Thanks to Lauren and Simon and Schuster Audio for this review copy*