Review: Once Smitten, Twice Shy by Lori Wilde (Wedding Veil Wishes #2)

Once Smitten, Twice Shy by Lori Wilde

rating: 4 of 5 stars


From amazon.com:

Wedding videographer Tish Gallagher is at the end of her rope. Her business is about to go bust. She's just spent her last buck on nonreturnable (but oh so fabulous) shoes. And her most sustainable relationship is with a pint of Haagen Dazs. So she makes a wish on the lucky wedding veil to get out of debt...and sees the man she never stopped loving, her ex-husband, secret service agent Shane Tremont. Sure, their chemistry was off-the-charts sizzling hot, but their clashes were legendary, and no amount of longing will change that.

When her dream job of recording the first daughter's wedding appears out of the blue, Tish knows it's her only shot to get out of the red. Just one teensy glitch: Shane is the groom. From the moment they see each other, she knows nothing's changed--the same old black magic is still between them, as irresistible and potent as ever. But he's promised to another and Tish has been burned before. Will she always be...ONCE SMITTEN, TWICE SHY?

This is the second installment in the Wedding Veil Wishes series involving four friends and a mysterious wedding veil that seems to grant a wish to the holder.

In this installment we learn more about Tish, who is divorced yet still in love with her ex-husband Shane. I didn't know much about either one at the beginning but Ms. Wilde slowly clues you in to both of them throughout the book and you learn more about their courtship, marriage and divorce as the story moves along. And that is really where the love story is since a lot of the book Shane is actually engaged to someone else. But it really works. You always knew they would get together in the end, so I liked the added twist of someone else being involved.

Both Tish and Shane are very likeable characters. I have a little of Tish in me and a lot of other women would agree. Shane is an amazing hero - and really a hero you find out reading the book. Both learn a lot about each other and themselves as you read through the book and that learning process is another thing that is central to the plot of the book.

There is a small suspense plot involved and I didn't really see what happened coming so that was very well done also.

All-in-all this was a very enjoyable read and I will definitely keep reading this series. Ms. Wilde has put together a very fun set of characters and the wedding veil link is fun also. So if you like romance and want to get caught up in a book, I highly suggest Once Smitten, Twice Shy.

Publisher: Forever (Warner Books)
# Pages: 320
Genre: Contemporary Romance (humor too)
Binding: Paperback
Series: Wedding Veil Wishes #2 (There Goes the Bride is book #1 - review here)

Waiting on Wednesday - June 10

Jill at Breaking the Spine hosts Waiting On" Wednesday where everyone posts what new not-yet-published books we are anxiously awaiting. I'm new to this one also but I am looking forward to being a part of it and seeing all the wonderful new releases out there (and hoping my library will get the online card catalog back up so I can reserve books again).

My Entry for this week is:

From Amazon.com:

Two years ago, Neil Banks walked into a bathroom in the Pacific Fertility Center to provide his former college girlfriend, Jenny Callahan, with the biological material needed to conceive a child. Becoming a father was not part of the deal: adrift in his postmodern Los Angeles lifestyle, he signed away all paternity rights. But on the day of the baby’s christening, Neil turns up at the church. His unexpected—and unauthorized—return to Jenny’s privileged East Coast world sends a shockwave through the families of Jenny and her two college roommates—and sets off this deeply funny and keenly observed novel about fertility, love, and American excess.

This book will be released August 3, 2009. So what are you waiting on this week?

Teaser Tuesday - June 9

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

• Grab your current read
• Open to a random page
• Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
• BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
• Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

"No, you don't. Let's try this. What are you doing in my studio--or what were you doing here before you concussed yourself over my boobs?"
"Ah. I have an appointment? Or Sherry does. Sherry Maguire?" He thought her smiled dimmed a little, and the dimples disappeared.

From Vision in White by Nora Roberts - the scene where Carter and Mackensie meet each other. I just thought it was such a funny line - the usual wit from a Nora Roberts heroine.

Winner: Admission by Jean Hanff Korelitz

Random.org gave me #2 which is Mary - TheGhostBlogger. I have emailed her and received her address so Admission will be going out to her in the next few days.

To all others who entered - thank you very much and check out my current giveaways over in my sidebar and stay tuned for more giveaways coming soon. I have more ARCs and other books received from publishers plus a few others I plan on giving away!

To those who could not enter - I have fixed my comments and you don't have to have a blogger id to enter - it's now open to everyone. Sorry about that mistake - I didn't realize that was an option or it was a problem for anyone to enter.

What Are You Reading Monday - June 8

Come post weekly and see what others are reading too just so you can add to your tbr - I always do! For more information see J.Kaye's Book Blog and join in!

Books Completed Last Week:

Missing Pieces by Joy Fielding - Suspense - I'm reading her backlist from the library and this was a nail biter. Great book and great twists and turns. Review soon.

A Morning Like This by Deborah Bedford - Romance, Christian Fiction - I received this from the publisher (Faithwords) and it was a great read. I couldn't put it down. Review and giveaway here.

I Like it Like That by Cecily Von Ziegesar - Young Adult - Book #5 of the Gossip Girl series. This was a so-so entry - it didn't catch my interest as much as some of the others, but it was still enjoyable and I will keep reading the series. Review to come.

Flirting with Temptation by Kelley St. John - Romance - What can I say - this was a fun read. I laughed throughout the book and just can't say enough about this fun and flirty read. Review here.

The Actor and The Housewife by Shannon Hale - Fiction - I receved this from the publisher and it is a wonderful read, I finished it Saturday and it is still sticking with me - I find myself thinking about various aspects of the book out of the blue - that makes a good book! Review and giveaway here.

You're the One that I Want by Cecily Von Ziegesar - Young Adult - Book #6 in the Gossip Girl series. I can't seem to get enough of these - they are quick easy reads and enjoyable for me to keep up with the world of Serena, Blair, Nate, Chuck, Jenny, Dan and Vanessa. Review will be posted later today.

Reading Now:

Once Smitten, Twice Shy by Lori Wilde - book 2 in Wedding Veil wishes series (review of book 1: There Goes the Bride here.)
Vision in White by Nora Roberts - book 1 in the Bride Quartet

Next:
Gifts of War by Mackenzie Ford - arc from publisher
Something Borrowed by Emily Giffin - Goodreads giveaway
I Apolgize by Bradley Booth - Librarything member giveaway from author

Summary - 6 books read this week and 3 reviews written. I'm going to work hard this week on my reading (I have several ARCs to read) and getting my reviews caught up.

Mailbox Monday - June 8th

Mailbox Monday is hosted by Marcia at The Printed Page. To see this weeks list of participants go here.

Another good week. First the ARCs I received this week:

Homer's Odyssey: A Fearless Feline Tale, or How I Learned About Love and Life with a Blind Wonder Cat - by Gwen Cooper - Delacorte Press - Publish Date: 8/25/09 - I must admit I don't read much non-fiction, but I can't wait to dive into this. It helps that the cat on the cover looks like our baby cat! Just from flipping through the chapter names are clever and it makes me antsy to read this.







I Apologize by Bradley Booth - Affluent Publishing - June 1, 2009 - I received this through the reader giveaways on Library Thing from the author. I love what the author wrote on the blank page where he signed the book for me - "Love is the elixir that makes life worth living" - This looks to be a very good book and is close to the top of my tbr review pile. This is also based on what the author went through after losing his fiancee to a rare form of leukemia.











Gifts of War by Mackenzie Ford - Nan A. Talese/Doubleday Publishing - Publish Date: 6/23/09 - Set during World War I - this sounds like a wonderful book and love story. It is written by a well-known historian (Mackenzie Ford is his nom de plume) so it should be rather factual and I look forward to the story and learning more about this period of time that I know little about (we never seemed to get that far in any of my history classes in high school).






I also made a library trip with my sweetie to get more books (like I need them), but sweetie is taking good care of me while I am awaiting my surgery so he indulges me by taking me to the library (not like he didn't come out with about 8 books). Here is what I got:

• Black Cross by Greg Iles - I've read most of his books
• The Bay at Midnight by Diane Chamberlain
• Grand Avenue by Joy Fielding - I'm working my way through her backlist
• The Genesis Code by John Case
• The Second Opinion by Michael Palmer - love his books
• The Apprentice by Tess Gerritsen
• Highland Fling by Katie Fforde
• Improbably by Adam Fawer
• The Romanov Prophecy by Steve Berry - working my way through his backlist also - read all of the Cotton Malone books and love them
• Sailing to Capri by Elizabeth Adler

From Paperbackswap:

• Dead Before Dark by Wendy Corsi Staub
• Dressmaking: A Step-by-Step Course by Leila Aitken - I'm a sewer and it looks to be a good book
• Club Dead by Charlaine Harris

48HBC Post #5 - Wrap Up

Well I didn't get to participate near as much as I had hoped to, but the participating I did was fun. I've been at my parents today and did manage a little reading to add to my final total but did not make 12 hours boo hoo :) Well there is always next time. Now I'm going to finish up my Gossip Girl book and cruise around the blogs for the challenge, but first I will wrap up with my totals:

48-hour book reading challenge wrap-up:
Books completed: 2
Reviews completed: 2
Hours spent so far: 10:38
Pages Read: 575
Fun had: THIS MUCH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I can't wait to do it again and hopefully have more time! My hats off to all of you who really put the time into this. I think I could have done better but I heard about it on Twitter on Friday afternoon so I didn't have any planning going into it. But I will know more next time and the great thing - I have more tweeters and blogs to follow - oh the fun!!! Which means more books and what is better than more books. :)