Deanna Raybourn: Silent In the Grave

Silent in the Grave: A
Lady Julia Grey & Nicholas Brisbane
Victorian-era mystery, romance


"Let the wicked be ashamed, and let them be silent in the grave."

These ominous words, slashed from the pages of a book of Psalms, are the last threat that the darling of London society, Sir Edward Grey, receives from his killer. Before he can show them to Nicholas Brisbane, the private inquiry agent he has retained for his protection, Sir Edward collapses and dies at his London home, in the presence of his wife, Julia, and a roomful of dinner guests.

Prepared to accept that Edward's death was due to a longstanding physical infirmity, Julia is outraged when Brisbane visits and suggests that Sir Edward has been murdered. It is a reaction she comes to regret when she discovers the damning paper for herself, and realizes the truth.

Determined to bring her husband's murderer to justice, Julia engages the enigmatic Brisbane to help her investigate Edward's demise. Dismissing his warnings that the investigation will be difficult, if not impossible, Julia presses forward, following a trail of clues that lead her to even more unpleasant truths, and ever closer to a killer who waits expectantly for her arrival.

I've decided to start off on a happy note and decided to have my first review from my (slackingness) vacation be a read I enjoyed immensely. I cannot take credit for having "found" the book since I heard of it through a fellow reader friend in Book Club (thanks MeganB!).

Having only mediocre thoughts of the book from last month's Book Club (What Happens in London by Julia Quinn), I wasn't particularly desperate to read Silent in the Grave. My only consolation was that I was told it was a mystery, a genre I am also a fan of.

It's a good thing I'm so open-minded about bookstuffs (LOL) because this one was wonderful to read.

Julia Grey's husband convulses and dies before Julia and a dark, mysterious stranger (hehe!). Later, it is suggested to her that husband's death is not a natural death as they all presumed and suddenly, Nicholas Brisbane is talking of murder and dark motives. He is dismissed, but then Julia finds reason to suspect Brisbane is in fact, telling the truth. Soon enough, Julia and Brisbane are working to discover the truth of the matter.


I loved this book for several reasons, the first being Ms. Raybourn's writing style. The book is written in the first person - Julia's - but unlike other horrible, poorly written, undeserving first person POV books *cough*theTWILIGHTseries*cough*, this one is beautifully crafted with wit and descriptive observations. Though you only get Julia's thoughts, you pretty much get to know all of the other characters in-depth (including her nine brothers and sisters). You do not get Brisbane's anything at all... that man is an enigma.. which brings me to my second point...

The chemistry between Julia and Brisbane is delicious. Unlike regular mass market paperbacks where the hero and heroine must end up together at the end of the short three-hundred pages, this story is the first of the Julia Grey mystery series. This means interactions between Julia and Brisbane are spread out and realistic, doing wonders to build tension between the two characters. The romance is there, but it is budding and in the baby stages, unlike a fast track meet-love-have sex-be happy romance. Granted, there were times when I wanted to throttle Brisbane for not being cliched like the other heroes ("JUST KISS HER, you dolt!), but you will come to appreciate their relationship.

Third, the characters. Julia's family - the March family - is. so. weird. !! In the most amusing and insightful way, that is.
The characters are real characters, from her batty aunts and uncles, to her Shakespeare-quoting father; from her once-married-turned-lesbian older sister to her gypsy laundress... it's so much fun to read about all of them and get to know their stories.

And, of course, the mystery is compelling to read. Very twisty and turny.
Think In Death series by JD Robb (Nora Roberts) ... and actually, most mass paperback "suspense" novels but 100x better.


Verdict: Read! Read! Then tell me about it. I don't bite.
Well, for the most part... (unless you have H1N1. Then I definitely won't bite.)



Naturally, you shouldn't be surprised to discover that I read this book in practically one sitting - despite having had to work all Thursday morning. When I finished two nights ago, I went to the library ten minutes before closing time to borrow the sequel, Silent in the Sanctuary.

I'm happy to say that I had the sequel in my grubby, little hands and after reading it all day (minus the working thing again), I've finished it. No hoorays for me yet: I am trying to get a hold of the third, Silent in the Moor... SILM, donde estas?? Public library of my city, why are you failing me so?!


Read an excerpt of Silent in the Grave here or below:
(I hope I'm not infringing on copyright laws by posting here for your convenience. Retrieved from Deanna Raybourn's website.)

La~ enjoy!

To say that I met Nicholas Brisbane over my husband’s dead body is not entirely accurate. Edward, it should be noted, was still twitching upon the floor.

I stared at him, not quite taking in the fact that he had just collapsed at my feet. He lay, curled like a question mark, his evening suit ink-black against the white marble of the floor. He was writhing; his fingers knotted.

I leaned as close to him as my corset would permit.

“Edward, we have guests. Do get up. If this is some sort of silly prank—”

“He is not jesting, my lady. He is convulsing.”

An impatient figure in black pushed past me to kneel at Edward’s side. He busied himself for a few brisk moments, palpating and pulse-taking, while I bobbed a bit, trying to see over his shoulder. Behind me the guests were murmuring, buzzing, pushing closer to get a look of their own. There was a little thrill of excitement in the air. After all, it was not every evening that a baronet collapsed senseless in his own music room. And Edward was proving rather better entertainment than the soprano we had engaged.

Through the press, Aquinas, our butler, managed to squeeze in next to my elbow.

“My lady?”

I looked at him, grateful to have an excuse to turn away from the spectacle on the floor.

“Aquinas, Sir Edward has had an attack.”

“And would be better served in his own bed,” said the gentleman from the floor. He rose, lifting Edward into his arms with a good deal of care and very little effort, it seemed. But Edward had grown thin in the past months. I doubted he weighed much more than I.

“Follow me,” I instructed; although, Aquinas actually led the way out of the music room. People moved slowly out of our path, as though they regretted the little drama ending so quickly. There were some polite murmurs, some mournful clucking. I heard snatches as I passed through them.

“The curse of the Greys, it is—”

“So young. But of course his father never saw thirty-five.”

“Never make old bones—”

“Feeble heart. Pity, he was always such a pleasant fellow.” I moved faster, staring straight ahead so that I did not have to meet their eyes. I kept my gaze fixed on Aquinas’ broad, black-wool back, but all the time I was conscious of those voices and the sound of footsteps behind me, the footsteps of the gentleman who was carrying my husband. Edward groaned softly as we reached the stairs, and I turned. The gentleman’s face was grim.

“Aquinas, help the gentleman—”

“I have him,” he interrupted, brushing past me. Aquinas obediently led him to Edward’s bedchamber. Together they settled Edward onto the bed, and the gentleman began to loosen his clothes. He flicked a glance toward Aquinas.

“Has he a doctor?”

“Yes, sir. Doctor Griggs, Golden Square.”

“Send for him. Although, I dare say it will be too late.”

Aquinas turned to me where I stood, hovering on the threshold. I never went into Edward’s room. I did not like to do so now. It felt like an intrusion, a trespass on his privacy.

“Shall I send for Lord March as well, my lady?”

I blinked at Aquinas. “Why should Father come? He is no doctor.”

But Aquinas was quicker than I. I had thought the gentleman meant that Edward would have recovered from his attack by the time Doctor Griggs arrived. Aquinas, who had seen more of the world than I, knew better.

He looked at me, his eyes carefully correct, and then I understood why he wanted to send for Father. As head of the family he would have certain responsibilities.

I nodded slowly. “Yes, send for him.” I moved into the room on reluctant legs. I knew I should be there, doing whatever little bit that I could for Edward. But I stopped at the side of the bed. I did not touch him.

“And Lord Bellmont?” Aquinas queried.

I thought for a moment. “No, it is Friday. Parliament is sitting late.”

That much was a mercy. Father I could cope with, but not my eldest brother as well. “And I suppose you ought to call for the carriages. Send everyone home. Make my apologies.”

He left us alone then, the stranger and I. We stood on opposite sides of the bed, Edward convulsing between us. He stopped after a moment, and the gentleman placed a finger at his throat.

“His pulse is very weak,” he said finally. “You should prepare yourself.”

I did not look at him. I kept my eyes fixed on Edward’s pale face. It shone with sweat, its surface etched with lines of pain. This was not how I wanted to remember him.

“I have known him for more than twenty years,” I said finally, my voice tight and strange. “We were children together. We used to play pirates and knights of the Round Table. Even then, I knew his heart was not sound. He used to go quite blue sometimes when he was overtired. This is not unexpected.”

I looked up then to find the stranger’s eyes on me. They were the darkest eyes I had ever seen, witch-black and watchful. His gaze was not friendly. He was regarding me coldly, as a merchant will appraise a piece of goods to determine its worth. I dropped my eyes at once.

“Thank you for your concern for my husband’s health, sir. You have been most helpful. Are you a friend of Edward’s?”

He did not reply at once. Edward made a noise in the back of his throat, and the stranger moved swiftly, rolling him onto his side and thrusting a basin beneath his mouth. Edward retched, horribly, groaning. When he finished, the gentleman put the basin to the side and wiped his mouth with his handkerchief. Edward gave a little whimper and began to shiver. The gentleman watched him closely.

“Not a friend, no. A business associate,” he said finally. “My name is Nicholas Brisbane.”

“I am—”

“I know who you are, my lady.”

Startled at his rudeness, I looked up, only to find those eyes again, fixed on me with naked hostility. I opened my mouth to reproach him, but Aquinas appeared then. I turned to him, relieved.

“Aquinas?”

“The carriages are being brought round now, my lady. I have sent Henry for Doctor Griggs and Desmond for his lordship. Lady Otterbourne and Mr. Phillips both asked me to convey their concern and their willingness to help should you have need of them.”

“Lady Otterbourne is a meddlesome old gossip and Mr. Phillips would be no use whatsoever. Send them home.”

I was conscious of Mr. Brisbane behind me, listening to every word. I did not care. For some unaccountable reason, the man thought ill of me already. I did not mind if he thought worse.

Aquinas left again, but I did not resume my post by the bed. I took a chair next to the door and remained there, saying nothing and wondering what was going to happen to all of the food. We had ordered far too much in any event. Edward never liked to run short. I could always tell Cook to serve it in the servants’ hall, but after a few days even the staff would tire of it. Before I could decide what to do with the lobster patties and salad molds, Aquinas entered again, leading Doctor Griggs. The elderly man was perspiring freely, patting his ruddy face with a handkerchief and gasping. He had taken the stairs too quickly. I rose and he took my hand.

“I was afraid of this,” he murmured. “The curse of the Greys, it is. All snatched before their time. My poor girl.” I smiled feebly at him. Doctor Griggs had attended my mother at my birth, as well as her nine other confinements. We had known each other too long to stand on ceremony. He patted my hand and moved to the bed. He felt for Edward's pulse, shaking his head as he did so. Edward vomited again, and Doctor Griggs watched him carefully, examining the contents of the basin. I turned away.

I tried not to hear the sounds coming from the bed, the groans and the rattling breaths. I would have stopped my ears with my hands, but I knew it would look childish and cowardly. Griggs continued his examination, but before he finished Aquinas stepped into the room.

“Lord March, my lady.” He moved aside and Father entered.

“Julia,” he said, opening his arms. I went into them, burying my face against his waistcoat. He smelled of tobacco and book leather. He kept one arm tucked firmly around me as he looked over my head.

“Griggs, you damned fool. Julia should have been sent away.”

The doctor made some reply, but I did not hear it. My father was pushing me gently out the door. I tried to look past him, to see what they were doing to Edward, but Father moved his body and prevented me. He gave me a sad, gentle smile. Anyone else might have mistaken that smile, but I did not. I knew he expected obedience. I nodded.

“I shall wait in my room.”

“That would be best. I will come when there is something to tell.”

My maid, Morag, was waiting for me. She helped me out of my silk gown and into something more suitable. She offered me warm milk or brandy, but I knew I would never be able to hold anything down. I only wanted to sit, watching the clock on the mantel as it ticked away the minutes left.

Morag continued to fuss, poking at the fire and muttering complaints about the work to come. She was right about that. There would be much work for her when I put on widow’s weeds. It was unlucky to keep crepe in the house, I reminded myself. It would have to be sent for after Edward passed. I thought about such things—crepe for the mirrors, black plumes for the horses—because then I did not have to think about what was happening in Edward’s room. It was rather like waiting for a birth, these long, tense minutes of sitting, straining one’s ears on tiptoe for the slightest sound. I expected to hear something, but the walls were thick and I heard nothing. Even when the clock struck midnight, the little voice on my mantel chiming twelve times, I could not hear the tall case clock in the hall. I started to mention the peculiarity of it to Morag, because one could always hear the case clock from any room in the house, when I realized what it meant.

“Morag, the clocks have stopped.”

She looked at me, her lips parted to speak, but she said nothing. Instead she bowed her head and began to pray. A moment later, the door opened. It was Father. He said nothing. I went to him and his hand cradled my head like a benediction. He held me for a very long time, as he had not done since . . .

Elizabeth Adler: Meet Me In Venice

Meet Me In Venice: F
Unimportant people. (Okay, fine.)

Precious "Preshy" Rafferty
fiction (with a love story)

In this globe-spanning, intrigue-filled thriller from veteran bestseller Adler (Hotel Riviera), an American antiques dealer working in Paris, 38-year-old Precious Preshy Rafferty, is drawn into a scheme that also ensnares a cousin she's never met in person, Shanghai antique dealer Lily Song. Lily owns a fabulous, superexpensive necklace that Lily's business associate, Mary-Lou Chen, is out to steal. It's the job of Mary-Lou's paramour, American businessman Bennett Yuan, to find a buyer. As the suspense builds, Lily and Preshy must travel to Venice to meet and, among other things, protect the fortune Preshy is due to inherit from her Aunt Grizelda. Adler remains as adept as ever at making her various locales come to life and doesn't disappoint in keeping the mystery surrounding the necklace, and the two cousins, swirling. (amazon)


Doesn't this book sound really great?
Full of exotic locations, intrigue, and a hint of romance, this book could have been great.

Except that sadly, it sucked.

Ms. Adler, just 'cuz you've written a bajillion books doesn't mean you get to publish a book that is complete shit really bad. It got so bad, the name "Preshy" grated my nerves and made me grit my teeth.

Preshy is 38. She falls in love with whom she believes to be a charming man, but gets stood up.
Then all of a sudden, her long-lost cousin contacts her regarding some piece of jewelry that is so great many think it's a legend. Then people start getting killed and things start to happen and then she realizes some stuff in the end (that turns out to be really anticlimactic, anyway).

Beef #1: Writing style: Short, choppy, un-eloquent... was she going for that? Maybe she was aiming for fast and adventurous, but in short, it came out to be... choppy and in-cohesive.
(are un-eloquent and incohesive words or have I just ingeniously created two fabulous words?)

Beef #2: Plot: Uninteresting. Not a very thrilling thriller.

Beef #3: Characters: Unrelatable.

Beef #4: Dumb.
Beef #5: Waste of my time.
Beef #6: Hey, how'd she get this one published?

If you haven't caught my train of thought: don't read this.
If you do, I say: "Bad, huh? I told you so."

This book review is somewhat of a downer. I hate to be a Debbie Downer.
But fear not! I will be back with reviews of books worth reading.

Have a happy Wednesday.

Lisa Jackson: Lost Souls

Lost Souls: C+
Kristi Bentz & Jay McKnight

New Orleans

Twenty-seven year old Kristi Bentz is lucky to be alive. Not many people her age have nearly died twice at the hands of a serial killer, and lived to tell about it. Her dad, New Orleans detective, Rick Bentz, wants Kristi to stay in New Orleans and out of danger. But, if anything, Kristi’s experiences have made her even more fascinated by the mind of the serial killer. She hasn’t given up exploring the darkest recesses of evil – and now she just may get her chance.

Four girls have disappeared at All Saints College in less than two years. All four were “lost souls” – troubled, vulnerable girls with no one to care about them, no one to come looking if they disappeared. The police think they’re runaways, but Kristi senses there’s something that links them, something terrifying. She decides to enroll, following their steps… there are whispers of a dark cult on campus whose members wear vials of blood around their necks and meet in secret chambers – rituals to which only the elite have access. To find the truth, Kristi will need to become part of the cult’s inner circle, to learn their secrets, and play the part of lost soul without losing herself in the process. It’s a dangerous path and Kristi is skating on knife-thin edge.

And comes another romantic suspense (romantic thriller?) from Lisa Jackson. Though I think that she is a great storyteller, her stories are often outta the world outrageous. I tried reading the first to her New Orleans series Hot Blooded, only to find the heroine doing some idiotic things (oh, fine, since you’re curious, I’ll vent write about it later. J)

I also read Twice Kissed and Final Scream, both intriguing reads but was a bit incestuous for my liking.

So… I don’t know what possessed me to pick up this novel. I guess it was done out of boredom, and I figured, oh why the hell not? I was, afterall, in a library.

Lost Souls is Jackson’s latest installment to her New Orleans series. Apparently, a bunch of shady murders have been happening down there because Jackson has written seven books about it, all probably being about psychopathic anti-social killers. (Oh wait, that’s what all these suspense books are about, huh?)

Kristi Bentz is the daughter to a homicide police detective, Rick Bentz (hero of Cold Blooded, book numero dos). She has, apparently, lived through multiple life-traumatizing experiences. She feels stifled living with her father, so she decides to move out, go back and finish her undergraduate degree at All Saints College. And whaddya know, there have been four missing girls at the college in the past year. The local police have shrugged off on the case, thinking that the troubled girls most likely ran away from college with a floozy boy. However, Kristi’s gut feeling tells her that these girls have met a very fatal end. She is on a mission to track down their ‘killer.’

Meanwhile, she is shocked when her high-school sweetheart is teaching a class… her class on forensics. Jay McKnight has come a long way from the boy Kristi used to know. He works for a police department as a crime lab detective and agrees to sub for a class when his friend has an emergency come up.

It is when Kristi goes to Jay for help that they are faced with each other, and both try to hold their feelings at bay. Meanwhile, there are more girls disappearing from the college – all freakishly interested in a vampirism class…

In all honesty, the read was better than I expected: no weird sisters going after the same boy, unexpected pregnancies from nowhere, and all that jazz. Instead it was just a somewhat decent, kind of rushed story that didn’t really focus on the romance aspect, as these thrillers usually don’t. The outcome of the story was predictable and the vampirism cult aspect was mildly interesting.

Skip this one unless you’re trapped on an unchartered island with only this to keep you company.

Linda Howard: Cry No More

Cry No More: A+
Milla Edge & James Diaz

You might not know this about me, but I am, in fact, a huge ass crybaby. I’m like a leaking faucet; it takes very little to get me started. As expected, I’m very emotional, and I love authors who can evoke emotions in me.

However, I find that this particular expectation is lost in a many romance novels. For one thing, it’s a given that romance novels must must must have a happily-ever-after. Therefore, when the hero or heroine falls sick near the end of the novel …who cares? I know that within a flip of a few pages, that the hero/heroine will become un-sick and everything will be peachy. Perhaps that’s why it’s so easy to become jaded with romance novels – it can get very mundane – and very formulaic.

If you can sympathetize with this, worry not! Cry No More is an intensely emotional and passionate read about a mother’s love. In fact, I find that the mother-child love is more explained than the normal hero-heroine love relationship.

Milla Edge is twenty-three, married of one year to a genius doctor, and is in Mexico with their newborn child. Then the unthinkable happens and her baby, Justin, is snatched from her arms. However, Milla refuses to give up and makes it her personal goal to find her child.

I was exasperated for the first half of this book, but I fear it is out of ignorance and naivety, more than anything. I’m not a mother and I’ve never had a child. I don’t know the love a mother has for a child – I just know that it is something intense and wholly consuming.

So, reading through Milla’s pain, her gritty determinance to find Justin, was something I understood but didn’t. The pain that she must have felt – I don’t know for sure, but I shallowly empathize. It must be a heartwrenching, soul-scarring pain and hurt. However, one question always stayed with me – when is it appropriate to move on? And is moving on synonymous with giving up?

Because Milla could have given up – and nobody would have faulted her for it. She looked for ten long years – gave up ten long years, grueled, grieved, and continuously thought of the could-haves and what-ifs. When is it enough to simply… stop?

Maybe never.

In understanding Milla’s pain, I know why she chose to keep fighting, yet a part of me wanted to rattle her – to shake her and tell her, life’s not fair. Move on with your life – rebuild it!

But really, who am I to say? And how can I so callously tell someone to move on regarding a situation that has to do with another person? Her child??

That was dilemma number one, and the most thought-provoking reaction/ question/ confusion…

The second question is a little harder to ask without giving the story away, but to say very vaguely (if you’re a spoiler-HATIST like me, skip the next paragraph please):

Is it ever all right to kill someone, even if it is done in the name of justice, of retribution? After all, there’s karma, right? But is it ever justified in taking someone’s life for even the most heinous crime (deaths of millions of people, child rape…)?

As for the relationship between Diaz and Milla – I can’t help but to wonder if there are males out there who are so cold and so… cold. Diaz is supposed to be an assassin, I understand, but from what I’ve heard, the personality/ heart of a sniper or an assassin is a huge dichotomy, in that the most kind-hearted person can have the succinct ability to kill with precision and without emotion.

Nevertheless, Diaz is practically an amphibian with cold blood running through him, who basically has no huge communication needs and with eyes that are so cold, it would, apparently, freeze your toes.

But the things he does for Milla when she is grieving… the love and affection he shows for her, and the clear love that he has for her (though unable to really verbalize until later) is so heartwarming and utterly charming. It’s like, he understood Milla – knew her better than she knew herself – and catered to her when she needed him most.

I’m totally up for that kind of love – the kind of love where the other person knows you inside-and-out, and can comfort you in your troubles, tickle your toes when you want to laugh, and one who will simply take care of you because… that’s what love does.

Boy, was I in for the shock of my life when after two hundred pages, Cry No More became an intensely intense read. And then, I wasn’t too shocked when I started to bawl my eyes out… and then continued to cry continuously the last thirty-something pages of the book. (Oh jeepers, I’m a dork.)

The ending is absolutely wonderful and so great, I think I might have actually sighed in content (while nastily blowing my nose and wiping tears away)

If you’re not afraid of thinking while reading – and feeling something other than “aw, that’s cuddly,” please give this a try.

A+ for emotion, writing skill, and characterization. Bravo, Ms. Howards!

Oh gosh, that was a long ass review. Sorry, I had a lot to say. But basically it all boils down to: read the damn book!

Penny McCall: Tag You're It!

Wow, it's been a while. I won't lie to you, life in general has been kicking my ass and to my dismay, I've got like 5 books read in the past two and a half months. It was pretty miserable existence.

I'm back with a review... and unfortunately, the book sucked.





Tag, You're It! : D
Alexandra Scott & FBI Agent Tag Donovan


FBI Agent Tag Donovan isn't your typical hero – oh, he has a bit of a tortured past, and despite his sarcastic wit and laid-back attitude he's making no secret of the fact that his number one priority is finding the man who killed his partner and left Tag fighting for his life. And he'll do whatever it takes to get justice, including using a completely innocent woman.

Alexandra Scott was just minding her own business, studying mountain lions in the Colorado Rockies and keeping her distance from the rest of humanity. It's not that she has anything against other people, she just likes being alone more. What she doesn't like is having an FBI agent tossed out of a low-flying plane and into her life. She’s really not thrilled that he's trying to charm – or trick - her into looking for an infamous buried treasure left over from Colorado's gold rush days. In fact, she’s not too fond of Tag at all – and he’s equally wary of her, because, after all, he wasn’t dropped on her by accident..



Look carefully. That :D is not a smiley face. It's a colon, then the grade that I chose to give this book.

It's just too bad because the title of the book was what caught my eye. The hero's name is Tag - hence the "Tag, you're it!" pun-ish statement (would that be a pun?...hm..). The heroine's name is sexy and flows well.

But other than the names of the h/h, what are some other attributes that make for a good read?

I'd say, plot, suspense (if it is a "romantic suspense"), chemistry, and all-around readability...and I'd say that this books fails in just about all of the categories. I did get through the book and didn't want to write hate mail to the author for wasting a good three hours of my life, but I did have that bitter aftertaste in my mouth. More of, 'What a shitty read. If this can get published, I'm sure I can write type something up blindfolded with my toes and have that get published too.'

The plot wasn’t interesting – something to do with a treasure hunt, which of course, has the potential to be interesting and exciting, however, this story was convoluted with the various motives of characters getting in the way of the main plot, whether it be the romance or the suspense (and it ended up focusing on neither.)

In short, Alexandra and Tag are on a wild goose chase to look for a chest of gold somewhere in the Rocky Mountains. Tag is searching for it because the person he is working for (who doesn’t know Tag is an FBI Agent) wants him to; Tag is going along with the plan because he thinks that his “boss” has the answers to who killed his partner during an operation.

Tag is ordered to bring Alexandra into the hunt, but is unsure as to why. There is another team who is searching for the treasure: this team is the “enemy” of Tag and Alex, but have been sent by Tag’s boss as well (confused yet?)

Tag realizes that this treasure holds deep significance when he realizes his boss sent out two separate teams to search for it and when he finds out that his boss has also sent guards to watch Tag and Alex.

It turns out that the treasure hunt is a scheme formulated by Alexandra’s ex-fiance, Bennet Harper. Furious that he was spurned by Alex, he brings her into the hunt. Harper had been investing large amounts of money of the wealthy (Alex’s former social circle). However, he has been steadily losing his investor’s money and building a bad reputation. In order to remedy this, he tells his investors that there is hidden treasure, gets money for investments, sends search teams to “search” for the treasure, and later, planned to tell them that Tag and Alex ran off with the money.

By the time I reached the real plot of the story, I was uninterested and bored, just about skimming pages to finish.

There was an aspect I did like: I liked that the ending mirrored the very beginning; clever way to show closure.

However, the story isn’t worth reading just for that. No romance, no suspense. Just three hundred and twenty-six pages of boredom.

Catherine Anderson: Sun Kissed

Sun Kissed: C-
Kendrick/ Coulter series #7
Samantha Harrigan and Tucker Coulter


One need not be an equine lover to appreciate Anderson's sweet contemporary romance centering on fiercely honest horse rancher Samantha Harrigan and handsome neophyte veterinarian Tucker Coulter, who meet while trying to protect a horse from its abusive owner. Samantha has always cared deeply for her horses, so when they suddenly fall ill, she's distraught; when it turns out they've been poisoned, she's horrified, immediately suspecting that her violent and vindictive ex-husband is the culprit.

Unfortunately, the authorities are pointing fingers at Samantha, alleging that she plans to defraud her insurance company. Wary of letting a new man into her life, Samantha nevertheless recognizes that she must call on Tucker to nurse her horses back to health. As he tends to the horses and grows closer to Samantha, Tucker becomes her confidante and champion, realizing that the only way for Samantha to save herself is to catch the offender before the police arrest her. In Samantha, Anderson has created a strong and gentle heroine, and a cast of family and friends proves charming throughout. This smart, wholesome tale should appeal to any fan of traditional romance. (amazon)


Haven’t I read this story before? Something happening to the horses? Falling ill and trying to find the culprit… oh wait, I think I have. It kind of sounds like the other Kendrick/ Coulter books… but not as good.

All of the heroines of Ms. Anderson’s books are broken people and it’s the love of the steady, handsome, understanding heroes that they find out the strength that is in them. However, I feel that the heroine-under-the-clutches-of-the-evil-ex-husband-and-divorces-him-only-to-have-him-come-after-her plot is becoming a little redundant. And the obsession with the horses, too.

This story wasn’t as good as some of the others because of the lack of chemistry between the two characters. The love that Samantha had for her horse was admirable, heroic, even, however, she spent all of her time and all her energy worrying about her horse, praying for her horse, crying for her horse, and I thought, ‘how about Tucker? What’s going on with him? You’re supposed to be falling in love with him!’

Tucker is falling in love with Samantha. He sees her love for her horse (that damned horse again!) wonderful, and seeing that he and his brothers are veterinarians (who love animals, horses included) he likes that Samantha is loyal to her horse.

But really, the romance falls short between these two: they just don’t spend time to really be falling in love… and she’s so burnt from her ex-marriage that she is super wary around men. I don’t know how they did manage to find a babysitter for the horses and spend some time together, but they did minimally – just enough to be in love (which I totally don’t buy).

There were the introduction of Samantha’s brothers (I see books for them in the near future! Jeepers, more horse books?!), but the heroines and heroes are all starting to sound the same. They have the same traits, same jobs, same families… same everything, and it’s getting to be repetitive.

I’m not sure if I would pick up Ms. Anderson’s latest book quite yet. I’m a bit horsed-out.

Sandra Brown: Mirror Image

Mirror Image: A-
Avery Daniels/ Carole Rutledge and Tate Rutledge

A jet crash handed Avery Daniels a golden opportunity. Mistaken for Carole Rutledge, the badly injured Avery has found that plastic surgery has given her Carole's face, the famous senatorial candidate for a husband, and a powerful Texas dynasty for in-laws. She makes the shattering discovery that someone close to the senator plans to assassinate him. Now to save the life of the man she loves, Avery must live another woman's life-and risk her own. (amazon)

Let me start out by saying that I don’t particularly like politicians. I don’t particularly like salesmen or lawyers or any person whose profession is to vie for others’ votes, money, assets, whatever. (Okay, so I guess I can only marry an artist and a hippie piano player…)

A strong part of this book is Tate’s political campaign and his fight to become a Senator. It’s intense. A lot of kissing up, a lot of speech-making. A lot of “looking good in front of others” type deal. However, Tate wasn’t one of those politicians – he was real and down-to-earth, which as a romance hero, he’d better be.

I really enjoyed the premise and plot of this story. Avery is in a plane crash and when she regains consciousness, she finds that she has been mistaken for Tate’s selfish-bitch-of-a-wife. However, due to medical circumstances, she’s unable to tell Tate and the doctors the truth. She gets knocked out from medication and assuming that she is indeed Carole, Tate’s family sends a plastic surgeon and surgery is done on her face.

She awakens to find that she really looks like Carole – her face has been reconstructed to look like her.

Before she can tell anyone the truth, she discovers there is a scheme to kill Tate. As a former journalist, she sniffs a huge story and chooses to stay silent. Also, she finds herself falling in love with Tate more and more everyday.

The thing is, Carole was a manipulative, selfish person – Tate saw the real Carole after they were wed. (Before, he apparently thought with that part of the male anatomy that males usually make decisions with.) Tate can’t believe the change that he sees in “Carole” after the accident – it’s almost as if she’s a different person! (Oh, if he only knew…)

Avery’s struggle to convince Tate of the complete change in character is an interesting journey; so is reading of how they fall in love with each other.

I didn't completely love Ms. Brown's writing style; I felt it was a little choppy and course, but the book itself was published a long time ago (I want to say a good fifteen years? Late 80s/ early 90s), so I'd assume it is one of her earlier works.

Nevertheless, it’s a good, refreshing read – one of Ms. Brown’s better works. (yay!)

Sandra Brown: Ricochet

Ricochet C-

Elise Laird and Detective Duncan Hatcher

Hunky yet sensitive Detective Duncan Hatcher is called to investigate the gorgeous and wildly manipulative Elise Laird when she kills a burglar in her elegant home, supposedly in self-defense. Complicating the case is that Mrs. Laird is the trophy wife of a patrician judge who dislikes our hero. Worse, her account of the murder is somewhere between sketchy and laughable.

Hatcher finds himself falling for the mysterious Mrs. Laird, even as he uncovers each new fact that seems to suggest that the murder was intentional and the burglar, Gary Ray Trotter, no stranger. Hatcher doubts Mrs. Laird's increasingly weak explanations, but he still can't help thinking about her body...

How to say this in the most kind of ways?

Don’t read this book because it’s not worth your time. You’d probably have more fun weeding all of your acquaintances’ backyards for the next twenty weekends.

Ricochet was another downer, whish is even more disappointing because I know Ms. Brown is capable of writing captivating stories, dangit!

Duncan Hatcher is a detective. He is a good man, working for justice and liberty. He dislikes a judge named something Laird because Laird is making foolish judgment calls. Judge Laird is married to Elise, someone Duncan is highly attracted to.

When there is a murder at her house, everyone agrees that Elise shot the burglar out of self defense. But she comes to Duncan, saying that she is scared that the judge is trying to kill her, a preposterous statement since the judge seems wholly in love and infatuated with his young, hot wife.

Duncan struggles with his feelings for the already married Elise. He is wary of her motives – she may be a cold-blooded killer who is playing the detective on case, or she might be telling him the truth. It is a problem that plagues Duncan and the unthinkable happens when he agrees to meet her at an abandoned house in the middle of the night. This event is predictable – from the start of the book, your eyes itch for Duncan and Elise to get together (after all, Duncan is the hero and Elise is clearly the heroine. They have to end up together, right?). But when the scene came, I was in a mixed frenzy – partially excited that they were together, but still superbly distressed because she’s married.

I figured out what would happen in the end for Elise and Duncan to be redeemed of this adulterous act, but the fact that the honorable Duncan wasn’t able to resist Elise is something that stayed on my mind. On the one hand, he sure was overcome by lust for Elise, only showing how much he was risking to be with her. On the other hand, he was foolish since he himself knew that there was a good chance Elise was counting on him to think with his whoo-hoo.

There was also the interesting tidbit of Duncan being the good son of a pastor. (Do pastor’s son act in such ways?) I know that it is a grossly huge stereotype to think that the children of pastors ought to be goody-goods, but at the same time, I don’t recall pastors raising their children to be promiscuous…(not saying that Duncan was unspeakably promiscuous, but….)

As you can see, this book had me in titters, really over nothing.

But this isn’t the reason for the less than pleasant grade. The romance was not believable to be love, but it was clear that the characters had full lust for each other. So when they told each other that they loved each other, I thought, “bullocks!” The suspense was good – I was confused as to whether Elise was evil or not, but there were times when I desperately wanted to skip ahead to the parts with Elise and Duncan… parts that weren’t really even that romantic.

Read, if you must, but have low expectations. Then maybe, you won’t be a sorely disappointed.

Connie Brockway: All Through the Night

All Through the Night: A
Anne Wilder & Colonel Jack Seward

My goodness, Ms. Brockway! Bravo!

It is believed that the thief known as Wrexhall's Wraith has stolen a jewel box containing a damaging letter that has to do with a murder, and the king. It is Jack Seward's job to apprehend the thief and recover the letter before it falls into the wrong hands.

The danger and thrill of stealing intoxicates the thief, yet there is a purpose behind this dangerous madness. Though well trained and an expert, the thief is caught unaware when the Whitehall Hound makes his presence known. The thief thinks it is rather extreme that the Hound was set on Wrexhall's Wraith just because some aristocrat's jewels and treasures are being stolen. The only thing the Wraith has going is the element of surprise - the thief is a 'she.'

Everyone knows Jack by his reputation as Whitehall's Hound; he is feared and respected. And they know the circumstances of his low birth and deprived childhood, yet he is tolerated by the ton as he circulates in their social circle looking for the thief. He has narrowed the suspects down to four women and when he crosses paths with one woman in particular, he feels the same sexual excitement that he felt when he surprised the thief and she kissed him.

Jack is told to get the letter and kill the thief, but his suspicion about her identity will not allow him to carry out his orders because he is drawn to her like a moth to a flame. And later, when he confronts her, she tells him there was no letter in the box. He believes her, but knowing she will be killed regardless, he marries her to protect her. Unless or until the letter is found, her life is in danger.

And it takes the old king himself, George III, to put an end to this madness.

Though there is no secret as to the thief's identity, the cat and mouse games played are titillating and delicious. The missing letter, the question of it's contents, who has it and the hunt for it make this book quite a thriller... (amazon)

Reading All Through the Night was a gem and a wonderful journey. It was a little difficult for me at first because of Brockway’s style of writing – complex, realistic (how the British ton would have truly spoken among themselves), and advanced – therefore, making it more than a light and easy read.

However, once you get into the rhythm of the characters’ dialogue and her fluid descriptions, you notice that the characterization of both Anna Wilder and Colonel Jack Seward is beautiful. Brockway takes the reader deep inside both characters’ minds and their struggles, which are also complex and original. (Moreso than problems other fictional characters deal with.)

The obsession and attraction that Anne and Jack feel for each other is so thick, you can almost taste it. The want is so strong, you sometimes wonder if either character has a problem with obsession. But quickly, you learn that the initial attraction and obsession (continued desire of wanting to be with the other person) leads to something substantial and deep.

Jack’s task of trying to find his thief is also engaging and equally amusing, since the reader is aware that Anne is in fact the thief. And you fear for her when Jack discovers her covert identity.

This story was psychological and emotional – something that I cannot say for many of the books in the romance genre.

Catherine Anderson: My Sunshine

My Sunshine: A-
Kendrick/ Coulter series #6

Laura Townsend & Isaiah Coulter

Veterinarian Isaiah Coulter agrees to hire Laura Townsend as a kennel keeper at his clinic despite her speech impediment, the result of brain damage she sustained after a diving accident five years earlier. With her sparkling personality and love of animals, Laura is the perfect addition to Isaiah's clinic. But when errors are committed on Laura's shift, naturally she's blamed, and she begins to suspect that someone is framing her in the hope of getting her fired. Isaiah remains her stalwart defender as attraction sparks between them, developing into a romance that is both sweet and sensual. While the identity of the individual framing Laura will come as no surprise to the savvy reader, the uniqueness of the relationship between the successful veterinarian and the woman whose handicaps are overshadowed by her ability to love more than compensates.

This was a story that was more than the regular romance, as usual, and it was a great read.

Laura Townsend was an environmental scientist who, after an accident, is unable to speak properly due to the damage in the language area of her brain. After being brilliant, she is reduced to having to work miscellaneous jobs for money and eventually takes on the job as a kennel keeper (unglamorous work such as cleaning kennels, feeding the puppies, etc). Isaiah notices her, is attracted, but is intrigued by her sunny disposition and her ability to make him see what life is like when one is appreciating it.

More than anything else, I loved Laura. I was so drawn to her because of her strength; I cannot imagine having to live with a speech impediment that affects your life on so many different levels and the way that Laura fought to support herself, refusing help from her family and friends, is a trait that I find amazingly admirable.

I also loved Isaiah and his determination to stick with Laura despite her “he’s-too-good-for-me-and-deserves-better” syndrome. He is hunky, as are all the Coulters apparently, and he is courts her well.

They work well together – she pays attention to the miniscule details and feeds him. He has the money and has the ability to bring fulfillment in Laura’s life.

There were some aspects of the story I wasn’t too terribly fond of; I love animals, but probably not to the extent that Laura did, so I didn’t particularly care for the fact that she was so tender with them. However, the reason that she cared so much for them was apparent and completely understandable since she, herself, experienced the feeling of abandonment from her acquaintances after her head injury. Isaiah is also a vet, which makes their love for animals a large aspect of the story…

I also didn’t like her love for shopping. Call me a dork, but she reminded me of a typical consumer – buying little, useless nitnacks for her home. It was something that Isaiah loved since she was able to transform a place into a home, but to me, all I am able to envision is clutter. Everywhere. (The shopping-for-Christmas scene had me cringing. Shopping for forty/ fifty people? Are you freaking kidding me? That would suck…and he’d be poor by the end of the Holiday seasons.)

There was also a slight “suspense” tint to the story, which brought more substance, but not too much more. The romance is the most important element, something that Ms. Anderson brought wonderfully.

Sandra Brown: The Switch

Sandra Brown: The Switch C-
Gillian & Chief Hart

Identical twins are fair game for a thriller writer, and in The Switch, queen of suspense Sandra Brown (The Alibi, Standoff, Fat Tuesday) makes the most of an intricate setup involving Gillian and Melina Lloyd, a pair of thirtysomething Dallas beauties. When Gillian hears her biological clock ticking, she puts herself in the hands of the world-famous Waters Clinic and is artificially inseminated (as described in a somewhat plodding first chapter that omits no detail of the procedure). The action picks up when Gillian switches places with her twin, a media escort, and chauffeurs sexy astronaut Chief Hart around town. It turns out to be a fatal attraction, and suspicion falls on Chief when Gillian's mutilated body is found the next day.

The dead woman's smarmy and enigmatic boyfriend, Jem Hennings, has a vested interest in focusing police efforts on Hart, but Melina has her own reasons for thinking him wrong. Jem's connection with a charismatic preacher known as Brother Gabriel is at the heart of this mildly creepy mystery, in which the plucky Melina tracks Brother Gabriel to his lair and uncovers his diabolical plot while simultaneously revealing her own dark secret. The ending is telegraphed well in advance… (amazon.com)

After being impressed with Sandra Brown’s Envy and Mirror Image, I prayed that The Switch would be as equally excellent.

I was wrong. (This is where I start sobbing uncontrollably.)

While the premise of the story was exciting, I couldn’t help but to have problems with the characters.

Gillian, wanting to be a mother, is artificially inseminated at a famous clinic because her longtime boyfriend, Jem, has had a vasectomy. That night, she and her twin switch places and she takes Melina’s place as a media escort to handsome astronaut “Chief” Hart.

It is no surprise that the attraction between Chief and Gillian is thick. One thing led to another, I suppose, and they sleep together. Disconnect 1: Gillian doesn’t seem to be the type of person to sleep with strangers on first dates – especially because she has a loving boyfriend. Even though she is pretending to be Melina, I feel that this is a very out-of-character deed for Gillian and something that I don’t understand because she loves Jem – and has told Melina repeatedly of how wonderful Jem is.

Gillian, you cheater and liar! I don’t care if it’s suggested for couples to sleep together on the night of the insemination (so that if the woman gets pregnant, then there is a possibility that the child was from the hanky panky and not the insemination) and that you couldn’t sleep with Jem because he’s sterile – what a way to betray your boyfriend’s trust. Creep.

So then Gillian is found dead the next morning, to Chief’s chagrin, because amazingly, he’s fallen in love with Gillian. (“love at first sight” is another disconnect for me, but it’s believed by many and common, so I let it pass). He spends many hours with Melina to track down Gillian’s killer – Melina and Chief both want revenge and the police are doing a crappy job of everything, so they decide to work together to bring about justice.

But the more time he spends with Melina, the more lustful thoughts lurk in his head. Furthermore, he questions his feelings for Melina – was he falling in love with her too? Of course, Melina has fallen in love with the lameface.

When Melina and Chief do the hanky panky, I can’t help but to think that Melina got used. Chief may be falling in love with Melina, but he’s already lost it to Gillian. Don’t tell me crap about falling in love with two people – that’s a pickle as is; the fact that the two women Chief is in love with are twins makes it incestuous and gross. Ew, imagine sharing your twin sister’s lover – the twin sister that you love and adore dearly, the sister who is so close to your heart that she is a part of you…

To add to this slightly disturbing procession of events, when Chief is in the throes of passion with Melina, he yells someone’s name. I’ll let you guess whose name he yelled.

…yea, what a douchebag. Way to satisfy your lust by hooking up with the identical carbon-copy twin of the woman you fell in love with.

While the ending might bring everything together, the premise in which the characters acted is disturbing. To me, it doesn’t matter if Captain Hook ends up being the good guy in the very end; if Wendy thought that Hook was the bad guy BUT does the hanky panky with him anyway, that is a breach of moral goodness for Wendy, in my book.

It’s like that. It doesn’t matter for the ending, really, because we all know that somehow, things work out because they’re romances and HEAs are necessary. It’s the idea that the characters have of each other that determine motivations and drives – that is crucial. Both Gillian and Chief breached the line of moral goodness.

Because of this, I find the book merely amusing.

Sandra Brown: Envy

Envy: A


The prologue of a novel arrives in the Manhattan offices of a book editor, who's intrigued enough to chase its mysterious author, identified only by his initials, to his decrepit plantation on an island off the Georgia Coast. That's the first clue that fiction is stranger than fact; few publishers (if any) would go to that sort of trouble for anything less than a new J.D. Salinger novel. But bestselling author Sandra Brown makes the most of her far-fetched premise, setting up a convoluted plot that keeps the reader engrossed despite its flaws and foibles. Maris Matherly-Reed is more than an editor. She's also the beloved daughter of the publishing house's highly respected and successful leader, and the wife of Matherly Press's second-in-command, the smooth, suave, double-dealing Noah Reed. Reed, it develops, is the real target of the literary scam set up by the reclusive writer of the novel whose opening pages so captivate Reed's spouse. P.M.E., the writer, has a score to settle...


Envy was my first Sandra Brown and came to me recommended by fellow book-lovers; I was not disappointed.

Maris Matherly-Reed is a high-profile editor and the daughter of a publishing house mogul. When she is sent an anonymous manuscript – a prologue to a story, she is intrigued and set upon finding the author. Little does she know the adventure she is about to embark on when she sets out to meet the mysterious “P.M.E.”

Brown deftly weaves in the story that P.M.E. has written along with the journey that Maris sets. She also reveals, little by little, who P.M.E. is and what he is trying to do. Envy is charged with intrigue – just as Maris is intrigued by P.M.E., readers are intrigued by the tangle of the real story. It’s not until the end that everything comes together, quite cleverly.

I’m not intentionally trying to be vague, but it’s also not my desire to reveal the twists and the “Oh!”s of the story. It is a satisfying read charged with sexual tension and suspsense; I didn’t want to put it down. Highly recommended.