Re-read challenge The Bride Finder

9/30/2009 06:28:00 AM / Posted by Kris / comments (7)

The Bride FinderThe Bride Finder (Book 1) by Susan Carroll
Chosen by the Bride Finder, a man blessed with amazing insight, Madeline Breton has come to Cornwall to meet her new husband, the enigmatic Anatole St. Leger. But her dream of happiness soon diffuses in his overpowering shadow. Anatole knows only too well the legacies that to him have been more curses than gifts. But as Madeline embarks on an odyssey both otherworldly and undeniably real, she and her husband fall hopelessly in love--until she sees a haunting vision of murder and a terrifying enemy emerges to threaten both their lives. . . .

I saw this book on my shelf (mine is the old cover) and it has been one that I have been wanting ot re-read for a while so I grabbed it before I could change my mind. I have only read this book once and it was about 5 years ago. But I kept it for a reason and could not remember why until I read it again. This book brought tears to my eyes at least once. I think I am just that sappy but it did. Them both trying so hard in their own way to make things work and it missing over and over for a while was hard to watch. But reading about how his mother treated him and how he was raised made me cry. Anatole was a great tortured hero. Madeline, of course, was a perfect foil for him.
Anatole's family has psychic powers passed on to them by a sorcerous ancestor. Anatole's gifts (or curse as he sees it) are to see glimpses of hte future but he always ends up seing bad things and cannot change them no matter how he tries, and telekenesis, moving things with his mind. but within his family there are many legends and one of those says that St. Legers can only marry the woman chosen for them by The Bride Finder. If they marry someone else then disaster will occur for them. Anatole reluctantly sends the bridefinder out to find his bride for him, but gives the finder a list of attributes he wants in a woman thinking to pick someone he could live with but not fall in love with. the Finder comes back with a very disillusioned madeline who is not at all what he had in mind for a wife. But then he is definitely not what she had in mind either.
This was written in 1999 and in some ways shows that but not too much, I thought it was a great book and am glad that I finally re-read it. There are two more books about the St. Legers. the next one is Night-drifter and then Midnight Bride. I have Night-drifer and plan to re-read that one too.

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Gentle Rain

9/28/2009 04:28:00 PM / Posted by Kris / comments (2)


A Gentle Rain by Deborah Smith

A Connecticut heiress. A Florida cowboy.

Her secret. His heart.

And the very special family she's come home to find.

I won this a while ago from LibraryThing and never got around to reading it. I started it yesterday and finished it up today and really enjoyed it. It takes place in South Florida on a ranch. Now with me being raised in FL I loved the history and the backwoods (Cracker) culture. It took me a little bit to get hooked but once I was I had a hard time putting it down.
The story is told First person but switches back and forth between Ben and Kara, but it tells you at every section who is POV it is from. I am not a big fan of 1st person but I had no problem reading this one.
Ben is a poor Florida cowboy with a little brother with Down syndrome who he has been taking care of by himself since he was 16. Kara is a wealthy environmentalist who is now set adrift when her parents die and she finds out that she was adopted.
Ben has a unique little ranch that he has built unintentionally around a group of misfits. Most of the people at his ranch have some sort of disability (most mental) and he has made them a home. They all contribute and earn their keep and are productive on the ranch.
Kara has grown up following her wealthy parents around the world as they try to better the environment and learn from various native tribes in South America. She speaks many languages and has a great boarding school education, but dreads the limelight and wants a simple life. When her parents die and she find out that she was adopted, she wants to find her birth parents. When they turn out to be not exactly what she expected she stays to learn more about them. Under a pseudonym, which you know always bites you in the butt later.
The characters were great. Ben and Kara were very believable and the secondary characters were awesome and a lot of fun. I would definitely recommend this to any romance reader.
4 out of 5 stars from me

PS, the bedroom door was closed, so you could also let teenagers read it as well.


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Pride and life

9/26/2009 07:46:00 PM / Posted by Kris / comments (0)

Well, school is going well as is home, just busy so have not been around much online. I have a fine on my library account and cannot pay it until we have more money so cannot check out any library books. It is killing me, but on the bright side it is forcing me to read from my tbr pile. I spent about four days this week picking up books and putting them back down until I got to this one. Apparently it was what I was in the mood to read.

Pride (Shifter series Book 3) by Rachel Vincent

Here's hoping cats do have nine lives... I’m on trial for my life. Accused of infecting my human ex-boyfriend—and killing him to cover up the crime. Infecting a human is one of three capital offenses recognized by the Pride—along with murder and disclosure of our existence to a human. I’m two for three. A goner. Now we've discovered a rogue stray terrorizing the mountainside, hunting a wild teenage tabbycat. It's up to us to find and stop him. With my lover Marc's help, I think I can protect the vulnerable tabby from both the ambitious rogue and the scheming of the territorial council. If I survive my own trial…

This book picks up where the last one left off. Faythe is on trial by a three person Tribunal to decide if she is guilty of murder or if it was self-defense. One of hte guys on the Tribunal has it out for her and even though they have never killed a tabby before he is pushing for it saying that she is not planning on getting married and having children so she should be treated as a male would be. then things get interrupted by a new tabby showing up that no one has ever heard of and Faythe is the only one that she will talk to.

Good story, definitely looking forward to the next book. good addition to the series.

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The Marquis and The Duke

9/12/2009 10:10:00 PM / Posted by Kris / comments (4)

I read these last month and wanted to post about them and just got the chance so I am :)
Well, I was looking for new books in my library's catalog and seeing if they had any new Samhain books and came across these two. I do not read historicals often but these two were very good I would recommend them as nice reads, they are not light and fluffy but not really dark either.

Gypsy Legacy: The Marquis PRINTThe Marquis (Gypsy Legacy Book 1) by Denise Patrick

One promise, two pendants…love that was destined to be.

Lady Christina Kenton’s life is turned upside down when her gypsy great-grandmother gives her a pendant, along with a deathbed request—Tina must promise to marry only the man wearing its mate. But Tina cannot bring herself to make the promise, for her late stepfather has already pledged her hand to his long-absent heir.

Jay Collings, now the Marquis of Thanet, returns to England after an eighteen-year absence to honor a promise to a gypsy who once aided him, only to discover he must break his vow in order to secure his inheritance. The last thing he wants is a wife chosen by the father he despised.

Tina’s gentle strength touches Jay in ways no other woman has. And, unknown to them both, she holds the key to Jay’s promise and his inheritance. But just as their fragile relationship begins to take root, the legacy of her gypsy blood brings danger to their doorstep.

Jay and Tina’s destinies may be entwined—but will they live long enough to fulfill them?

I liked the characters they were engaging and the storyline kept me interested. I liked the mystical element in these, it appeals to my love of paranormal. Enjoyed this very much so I rushed to the second one.



Gypsy Legacy: The Duke PRINTThe Duke (Gypsy Legacy Book 2) by Denise Patrick

He doesn’t need a wife. She doesn’t want a husband. Destiny’s not listening.

As children, Brand Waring, heir to the Duke of Warringham, and his brother were kidnapped and sold to a plantation in the West Indies. Now Brand is back to wreak vengeance on those responsible for his brother’s subsequent death. The last thing he wants, or needs, is to be distracted by an instant attraction to a flighty Society belle.

Felicia Collings has found it easy to refuse every marriage proposal, thanks to a ring left to her by her gypsy great-grandmother. Reportedly it will lead her to the man whom she is destined to marry. To her relief, the ring has been blessedly silent on this issue. Until Brand recognizes it, and sparks fly.

In spite of himself, Brand finds himself drawn to the beauty, and to the wounded soul reflected in her eyes. At his gentle hands, Felicia begins to learn what it means to be cherished and loved.

Then the past rears its head to threaten their fragile happiness. As Brand begins to doubt whether vengeance is as sweet as a lifetime with Felicia, he finds himself racing to save them both from not one cold-blooded killer—but two.

You meet Brand in the first book but he quickly sails off again so you do not see much of him. i liked this book better than the first, it had more suspense in it and Felicia had issues that brand had to deal with and i love watching a strong hero be gentle with his lady. Very good stories. There is one more book still to come in the series, her brother, the Earl.

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August reads

9/03/2009 10:46:00 PM / Posted by Kris / comments (7)

Sorry i have not been around, school and kids are running me ragged so I have not been online. And I racked up a fine on my library account so I cannot check out books from the library which totally sucks (no money to pay the fine at the moment). But on the bright side, I forces me to read from my tbr pile, which is a good thing. The thing that just irks me is the waiting lists that I have been on where I was like 110thin line for the book and now i am 10th and am probably gong to have to re-request it once I get my fine paid and start over on the list. oh well. I have plenty to read.
Moviewise, Hubby and I have been making our way through the Robin Hood BBC series, and really enjoying it. We watched a strange movie last night called Blueberry Nights. It was slow but interesting. Good cast, Jude law, Norah Jones, Natalie Portman and Rachel Weisz. I was expecting a movie kind of like Elizabethtown, but this one was kind of like that but not as good. Norah Jones met Jude Law in a cafe that he runs and they become friends. she leaves to travel and "find herself" and meets Natalie Portman and Rachel Weisz along the way, who teach each her a different lesson and then she ends up back in NY with Jude Law and more of a solid person instead of the basket case she started out as. interesting but a little slow. 3 out of 5

Well, here is my reading list for this month, 25 books for August.


Hot Pursuit (Troubleshooters Book 14) by Suzanne Brockmann
Inferno (Tales of the Were book 2) by Bianca D'Arc
Animal Instincts by Gena Showalter
Outcast (Cat Star Chronicles Book 4) by Cheryl Brooks
The Marquis (Gypsy legacy Book 1) by Denise Patrick
The Duke (Gypsy legacy Book 2) by Denise Patrick
Obsidian Prey by Jayne Castle (review for Book Binge)
Huntress anthology (reviewed for Book Binge)
Kill For Me (series book 9) by Karen Rose
Demons Not Included by Cheyenne McCray (review for Book Binge)
Vision in White (Brides Book 1) by Nora Roberts
Out of the Dark by JoAnn Smith Ainsworth
Don't Tell (series book 1) by Karen Rose
Ghostland by Jory Strong
Not Another Bad Date by Rachel Gibson
Salt and Silver by Anna Katherine
Hara's Legacy (Resonance Mates Book 1) by Bianca D'Arc (re-read)
Davin's Quest (Resonance Mates Book 2) by Bianca D'Arc (re-read)
Jaci's Experiment (Resonance Mates Book 3) by Bianca D'Arc (re-read)
Bending the Rules by Susan Andersen
I Can See You (series book 10) by Karen Rose
Branded by Fire (Psy-Changeling Book 6) by Nalini Singh
Laid Bare by Lauren Dane
At Love's Command (Brothers in Arms book 3) by Samantha Kane
Love Under Seige (Brothers in Arms book 2) by Samantha Kane (re-read)

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