Truly, Madly by Heather Webber

Truly, Madly by Heather Webber is a mystery with a twist. My favorite kind! Not only are there two mysteries involved, but a great supporting cast of characters to frame the heroine. While I wouldn’t classify this a straight cozy, I do think of it as a more updated one.

Lucy Valentine has renounced her place in her families business, along with her trust fund, because she feels she can’t help with her family’s matchmaking business since she can’t see the aura’s of the couples seeking love. Without the ability, that was “zapped” away when Lucy was fourteen by a freak occurrence, Lucy doesn’t feel qualified to help others seek relationships. And a family curse against a lasting marriage doesn’t help. However, Lucy may not be able to see aura’s, but she can see lost items. A talent she feels is useless until she is coerced into taking over the family business while her parents take a sabbatical and turn the company over to her. Lucy finds her unusual talent may come in handy. On her first day there is a client, seeking love, after losing his first love. Lucy feels he will be more receptive to making a match if he reaches closure with his old girlfriend. However, when Lucy attempts to use her gift to find her, instead she finds a dead body wearing her clients family heirloom ring. Now she has to solve the mystery of who the body is, along with whether her client is guilty of murder. Add a Zany matchmaking grandmother, a chauffeur who is like family, close friends and a very sexy private eye and Lucy has her hands full.

Truly, Madly has that touch of paranormal that keeps this mystery from being an ordinary cozy along with well thought out characters and situations that are at times sweet, scary and silly. There is a slight romance for the main character in the book, along with two botched dates and a steamy stake-out. While there is no absolute HEA as if this were a romance (for the relationship hinted at), there is a sense of well-being at the end, along with a very nice excerpt for the next in this bright new series. Heather Webber has a hit on her hands, well, in my estimation anyway. So, grab a copy of the book, sit back and be prepared because you won’t put it down until it’s finished.

More information can be found on this author at: www.heatherwebber.com

*This review was written with a purchased copy of the book. Purchased by me, the reviewer. I received no compensation for this review.

Fat Cat by Robin Brande

Fat Cat by Robin Brande is a compelling YA read. The lead character is sympathetic and understandable to those who may have once been in her overweight shoes. Her humor, friends, and experiences after beginning her experiment show a young woman learning to understand herself and evolve.

Cat Lowe is overweight. She knows it, everyone knows it. She has good friends and is quite smart and nice. She is taking a science course that could help her gain entry to any college she wishes to attend, but first she has to pass. And to pass, she must submit a science experiment. One that takes 7 months to fulfillment. After choosing a picture, like every other student in her class, from a stack of pictures used as topic starters, she is horrified at first to discover her picture is of  Homo erectus. And then she takes a closer look at the picture and her eyes keep going back to the female in the picture. She is strong, she is lithe, she is not fat. And so begins Cat’s quest. She decides to follow the lifestyle and diet of the Homo erectus, with a few safety precautions thrown in, and few concessions for our current time period. Meaning no tv, no iPOd, no phone (except in strict emergencies) and she begins walking everywhere. Her diet cuts out caffeine (And the withdrawal is painful, especially for this reader who needs her caffeine first thing in the morning!), sugar and as few processed foods as possible. And so a change begins. Not just outside, but in. She learns to try and let heartbreak go. She learns that to trust again she must face someone from her past. But, most of all, she learns how to forgive.

The interactions with the other characters help make this book so strong and true to life. Cat has a wonderful support system of her best friend and her best friends boyfriend. Her parents, though not shown with much interaction with the lead character, are supportive and creative in their support. Even her little brother steps in to steal a small portion of this readers heart. There are three possible love interests for Cat. There’s Greg, who invokes a physical response in Cat that is hilarious in a way, there is Nick, who also invokes a physical response (and one understandable to hormone driven teens) and then there’s Matt. The boy who broke Cat’s hear almost four years earlier. Cat must navigate through these relationships and still achieve her goal, though it turns out not to be as scientific as she thought it would be.

I’ll be honest, this book? Was cute. I applauded Cat and her friends, felt badly when things went badly for her and cheered when the last chapter started to close. For Cat. There’s just something that brings the character to your heart, or at least mine. And I was so glad that she had her HEA. What? You thought I’d read a book without one? HA! So, if you’re looking for a light, fun and cute YA read/romance-then Fat Cat should entertain you nicely.

More info can be found about this author on her website: www.robinbrande.com

*****Disclaimer: This reviewer did not receive this book for review from the author or publisher. This book was obtained through the public library system.*****

I have been remiss.

It has been brought to my attention that I have remiss in posting reviews here. Please forgive me. Life intruded in the form of my two homeschoolers and a hectic schedule. Rest assured I will post again, and hopefully sooner rather than later! *g* In the meantime, while my reading has also suffered I have been reading. Just a few of my recommendations: The Kate Daniels series by Ilona Andrews, ANYTHING by Shelly Laurenston (she also writes as G.A.Aken), The Esther Diamond books (two so far) by Laura Resnick and the latest J.D. Robb. Happy Reading!

B.

On The Edge by Ilona Andrews

On The Edge by Ilona Andrews is fantastical look at a world that is like ours, but not. There are three parallel worlds described within the book, where magic doesn’t exist, The Broken, where our heroine works and sometimes shops at a local Wal-Mart. Another is The Weird, where aristocrats who wield powerful magic live and rule, but where there are similarities (though warped) of the The Broken. And last, The Edge, a place that inhabits the space between the two, where our heroine lives with her two younger brothers and where others of their kind live as well, those who can wield magic, but not strongly-straddling both worlds.

In On The Edge, Rose Drayton is doing her best to care for her two younger brothers, one a changling and the other a necromancer. She works a hard job in The Broken, but believes it’s honest work. She’s had many disappointments in her life, believing her power would have opened many doors for her. Instead it brought heartache and treachery to her instead. Now, with battle lines drawn between her, her family and the rest of the world, she is unprepared for the horrible monsters that are invading her home, The Edge. Unprepared for dealing with them and their lust for power she is surprised and even more unprepared for the powerful aristocrat, Declan Camarine, who has come to The Edge seeking the evil that is manufacturing the horrible creatures. Before everything is said and done, he’ll do his best to defeat the evil and possess Rose.

The author(s) draw this reader in with a complexity and yet fascinating look at the different worlds and the magic within them. Rose is a sympathetic and strong woman who has closed her heart off in order to protect herself and her family. She is determined her brothers will have the chance she never had, at a future she no longer allows herself to dream of. Delcan is at first rather boorish, but the author(s) draw out his reasoning, making his character slightly more charitable, even as his protectiveness and gentleness with Rose’s brothers touches your heart, and hers. The evil and it’s malevolent presence is described with somewhat sinister detail allowing a vivid picture of insanity within pure evil. The secondary characters are fleshed out and sympathetic. One character in particular caught my attention and I am hopeful the next Edge book will feature him. Pretty please? There is some discussion as to whether this book is Fantasy or Paranormal. I place it firmly in Fantasy with it’s tale of magic and monsters. This was my first book by the husband/wife team comprising Ilona Andrews, but it won’t be my last. I think I’ll try (and most likely enjoy) a book from their other series, a Kate Daniels book. *G*

The next Edge book is due to be released September 2010 and is yet un-titled.

You may find more about the author(s) and their books here: www.ilona-andrews.com

Soulless by Gail Carriger

Soulless by Gail Carriger is my first foray into the Steampunk genre and I now know that I’ll be seeking out more to try. This isn’t going to be my usual review. Mostly because as this WAS my first Steampunk read I am unsure how to approach a review. The alternate history, Victorian Era, romance, early machines such as the Dirigible and even the characters themselves were a wonderful mix of ideas and ideals.

Miss Alexia Tarabotti is not the normal Victorian Bluestocking. She is also a spinster and a preternatural. Meaning she has no soul and has the ability to negate other supernatural creatures, making her able to turn werewolves and vampires human as long as they remain within her touch. At a Ball she is accosted by a newly made Vampire who has no idea of the social niceties he has broken, nor exactly WHAT Alexia is. When Alexia accidentally kills him before gaining any information on the creature, she is swept into a mystery with the very handsome, quite eligible, Investigator of all things supernatural, Lord Conall Maccon. Never the mind that he is a werewolf himself and that he and Alexia share verbal barbs that may hide an attraction that soon comes forward. Lord Maccon is determined that Alexia is not only in danger, but a danger to herself because she insists on interfering in his investigation. And he happens to be correct! The two must not only solve the mystery of the disappearing vampires and werewolves, but what to do of the attraction neither is able to deny any longer and bring both to a satisfying conclusion. Do not be deterred, there is, of course with all the books I choose to read, a HEA. Getting there is not only fun, but a fantastic tale!

I adore the character of Alexia, she is a strong, opinionated woman whose intelligence and wit is a a burst of brightness in the coldness of London Society. Lord Maccon plays the Alpha with gruffness and seems genuinely befuddled in his handling of his attraction to Alexia. The secondary characters are charming -Ivy , Professor Lyall, Lord Akeldama and even the silent Floote. Alexia’s family seem a necessary foil to her intelligence and give credence to her long suffering delusions that she is nothing but an unwanted Spinster among her family. I wanted to smack her mother, the author brought her foolishness to life so well. I look forward to the next book in this delightful series titled Changeless, due for publication May 2010.

You may find more information about this book and it’s author at: http://www.gailcarriger.com

Mischief in Mudbug by Jana DeLeon

Mischief in Mudbug by Jana DeLeon is a another visit to Mudbug and it’s inhabitants. This time the story is featured on Sabine Leveche, the local self proclaimed (but not really) psychic. When she starts to hear Helena Henry, a local Matriarch recently dead and thought to be murdered, she knows that no good can come of her new “ability”.  And she’s right. From the start trouble ensues. Sabine, reeling from the news of her cancer diagnosis pushes forward on her search for her parent’s families. There are no living relatives on her mother’s side, but her father’s, well, things become quite interesting and more than she expected when she hired Private Investigator Beau Villeneuve.  Her family is located, but all is not as it seems in the polite high society family that Sabine finds herself meeting. Already suspicious, when accidents and burglary attempts begin to shadow Sabine and those she loves, she knows there is a troubling mystery ahead. With Helena’s antics and binge eating (Who knew ghosts could eat!) Sabine has no choice but to hold on to a wild ride of a time, while trying desperately to ignore the feelings Beau ignites in her. She’s so scared of dying, that she’s forgetting to live. Good thing Helena, and Beau are there to keep things wild and interesting.

I absolutely love this series. I find myself liking the prickly Helena who is no closer to finding her believed murderer. Her hijinks and crazy fashion experiments are at once hilarious and project moments where you realize that Helena is not all bad. Sabine is a likable character who is going through a horrible time and dealing well with it when she meets Beau. Instantly attracted she fights it believing that it wouldn’t be fair to Beau for him to care for her when she doesn’t have a secure future. There are also lovely visits with character from the first books in the series, Maryse and Mildred. It’s going to be very hard to wait for the next installment in this series, where some mysteries may have been solved, but a few more have been discovered. Please write quickly Ms. DeLeon!

More about this book (and others) and author may be found at: www.janadeleon.com

Trick of the Light by Rob Thurman

Trick of the Light by Rob Thurman is an alluring look at the battle between good and evil and whether there is a middle ground. Set in the bright lights of Las Vegas things aren’t always as they seem in the city of illusions and tricks.

Trixa Iktomi seems like a normal bar keep. One who sells information, and seeks it. She has taken a few strays in under her protection over the years and still has an eye on them and sometimes helps as they hunt and kill demons. But Trixa is searching, for her brother’s killer and the Light of Life, an artifact both Heaven and Hell will fight and kill to own. Trixa finds a lead and is threatened, by Angels and Demons to give one of them the Light of Life. However, Trixa has a few “tricks” up her sleeve, and family to avenge and protect. After all, this is Las Vegas, where almost everything has a price and illusions abound.

I truly enjoyed this book. Trixa is an unlikely heroine, with her grey view of the world. She is bad and good and very protective of those she considers her “family”. She is also a smart capable woman and I enjoyed her dark humor and self-depreciating vanity. I hope there are more books to come featuring Trixa, or even another like her.

*This review was based on an ARC of Trick of the Light by Rob Thurman.

*You may find more about this author and  books at: www.robthurman.net

My Soul To Take by Rachel Vincent

My Soul To Take by Rachel Vincent is a fresh new addition to YA Paranormal. With an off-beat heroine in a reluctant Bean Sidhe, a Banshee, named Kaylee Cavanaugh who accidentally discovers what she is while still a teenager in High School. The only person willing to listen to her, and help her discover the truth, and the only person who can keep her calm, when she has the urge to scream,is  her new boyfriend Nash Hudson. While Kaylee just wants to be a normal teenage girl, with a cute new boyfriend,  she’s glad to know she’s not crazy!

However, she is curious as to why several teenage girls are dropping dead around town with no apparent cause of death. With Nash’s help, she’ll tackle talking to a Reaper (news flash- the sickle and scythe are bogus) and try to find an answer to the mystery of who is killing them, and why the girls were killed and their souls stolen. Add in her absentee father who shows up to answer questions from her past, she’ll need all the help she can get to not only find the answers she seeks, but for her family to survive.

I absolutely loved reading a book with a non-traditional paranormal story-line. Who needs witches, werewolves and vampires when you can read a story with a Banshee heroine! Rachel Vincent breathes new life into the paranormal genre with this fresh idea and brilliant and cheeky heroine. I am eagerly looking forward to the next book in her Soul Screamers series, My Soul To Save, due for release January 1, 2010. I can only hope the rest of the Paranormal genre perks up and takes up new ideas such as this enjoyable read.

You can find more about this series and the author on her website: www.rachelvincent.com

Highway to Hell by Rosemary Clement-Moore

Highway to Hell by Rosemary Clement-Moore is the third book by the author featuring Maggie Quinn. Maggie and Lisa are on there way to experience a “normal” Spring Break at the beach when Maggie accidentally runs over a dead cow in the middle of the night on a deserted highway in the middle of no where and no cell phone service. While waiting for the jeep to be repaired the girls find that though the town may be small, the amount of trouble brewing is not. There is something supernatural afoot in Dulcina Texas and Maggie and Lisa may be all that is standing between the residents and an evil not seen for generations. With help from a Brujo`, another Seer connected to a local ranching family, an unexpected visit from  Maggie’s boyfriend and his seminarian friend they must  fight evil for the town’s survival.

Mystery and magic compound the adventure in this fun novel. Maggie is a likable character with her inquisitive nature, references to movies and witty banter. She seems at once both young and wise for her years, willing to accept supernatural explanation for the town’s rising animal death rate and injured cowboys. The supporting cast of Lisa-the best friend, evil genius and sorcerer is somewhat fearful in her sarcasm and frustrating in her belief that she is connected to evil and may not ever be able to atone for her past mistakes. I wanted to tell her she was wrong.*g* Justin, the boyfriend is charming in his belief in Maggie. He wants above all to protect her and let her be who she is; what she is. The rest of the books cast is filled with memorable characters who not only help the story along, but also give a believability factor (like a straight man is a comic duo) to the unbelievable evil that is stalking the town. I thoroughly enjoyed the book and can only hope this isn’t the last we’ll see of Maggie.

This book is a YA.

More on the author and her books can be found at: www.rosemaryclementmoore.com/Home/Home.html

Dying Bites by DD Barant

Dying Bites by DD Barant is a Fantasy thrill ride packed with adventure and biting humor. FBI Behaviorist Jace Valchek is suddenly pulled from what she thinks is a nightmare into another universe where the Earth as she knows it doesn’t exist. In this world Vampires, Lycanthropes  and Golems make up most of this Earth’s population. Humans are rare, numbering less than 1% of the population and they are still used by some, as food; as a means to progeny. This world, and specifically her new Boss NSA Head Cassius,  needs Jace’s help, for on this world mental illness doesn’t exist among the ‘Vampires, Lycanthropes and Golems. A Human has begun murdering the Vampire’s and Lycanthropes, using barbaric and tortuous rituals that have officials puzzled and worried. Now Jace must race against time to stop a madman with a Just Cause from murdering everyone and possibly destroying the Earth Jace has been summoned to help protect.

The character of Jace Valchek is full of biting wit, intelligence and a deep sense of honor. She is also a kick-butt heroine, often letting her mouth get her into more trouble than is advisable. Her new co-workers quickly come up with a new nickname for her, The Bloodhound. It all adds up to a non-stop journey until the end, leaving this reader clamoring for more. I can’t wait for the next book in The Bloodhound Files.

More can be found on this author at: www.ddbarant.com