What's On Your Nightstand - March

5minutesforbooks hosts "What's On Your Nightstand?" every month on the fourth Tuesday. For more information click on the graphic above. This is my first post for this and I'm looking forward to doing this every month!

So for the month of March so far I have read:

1. Lifelines by C.J. Lyons - Romantic suspense in a medical setting. Loved this and loved getting to know the four main women. I'm looking forward to reading Warning Signs the second in the series very soon. Got this from PBS last year and just finally decided to read it.
   
2. Run for Your Life by James Patterson and Michael Ledwidge - what can I say it's another James Patterson book - for some reason I read them all - they are quick reads and definitely hook me. This was another good one to me. From the library before the computer system died and now I can't reserve books from home waaaaaa.....
   
3. Rites of Spring (Break) by Diana Peterfreund - the third in the Secret Society Girl series and this was a good one. I enjoyed it a lot. Liked the suspense, the usual humor and the romance outcome. Can't wait to read the final one in the series out later this spring. From Booksfree since I started my membership again.
   
4. Hot Six by Janet Evanovich - what can you say about these - they are laugh out loud funny. Poor Stephanie with all that happens to her, but she keeps on going. Love her and I love her friends and I love the men too. I still can't decide if I'm a Morelli or a Ranger girl but I'll try and make up my mind soon. Audiobook from the library - just continuing along with the series.
   
5. Thigh High by Christina Dodd - third installment in the Fortune Hunters series, a fun romantic suspense that takes place in New Orleans. Great characters and several LOL moments. Another one from booksfree.
   
6. Triple Cross by Mark T. Sullivan - wow what a book - could hardly put it down! Review can be found here. I received this from Library Thing Early Reviewers. I read the back and started it the very next day because I just had to - the back copy interested me so much!
7. See No Evil by Allison Brennan - review found here. I got this when it came out two years ago. Read the first in the series and then never started this one. Decided I wanted to get back to the series and I'm glad I did.
8. Story of a Girl by Sara Zarr - review here. Great Young Adult book got it on booksfree after reading about it on another blog.
9. Marked by P.C. and Kristen Cast. Wow wow wow! Review will be forthcoming. Another book I heard about while cruising blogs.
10. 14 by J.T. Ellison - 2nd in Taylor Jackson series, great suspense book. Review will be coming shortly. This was mine - it's been on my tbr since it came out and the new one in the series is out so I decided it was time to read.
11. Against Medical Advice by James Patterson and Hal Friedman - Non-fiction - review soon. Great audiobook of the struggles of a boy with Tourrette's syndrome.

Currently Reading:

• Handle with Care by Jodi Picoult - audiobook - it's her new one and I love her books - love the way they make me think about and issue and see it from all sides - no agenda in her books at least to me.
• Cold Hearted by Beverly Barton - romantic suspense - this has grabbed me from page 1!

Next Up:

• Seven Up by Janet Evanovich (library)
  
• The Apprentice by Tess Gerrittsen (library)
  
• Fear No Evil by Allison Brennan (my tbr)
  
• What Looks Like Crazy by Charlotte Hughes (booksfree)
• The Sorority: Eve by Tamara Thorne (booksfree)
• At the Edge by Cait London (booksfree)
• Who By Fire by Diana Spechler (booksfree)
• What Matters Most by Stef Ann Holm (my tbr)
  
• That's Amore by Wendy Markham (my tbr)

That's it for this go round - I hope to read more in the next month and be better about posting reviews!

Tuesday Teaser - March 24th

TEASER TUESDAYS asks you to:

• Grab your current read.
• Let the book fall open to a random page.
• Share with us two (2) “teaser” sentences from that page, somewhere between lines 7 and 12.
• You also need to share the title of the book that you’re getting your “teaser” from … that way people can have some great book recommendations if they like the teaser you’ve given!
• Please avoid spoilers!

My teaser:

"Ignore them," Rene told her. "D*** bunch of busybodies!"
"I suppose I should have expected it," Jordan said. "I've been trying to ignore them but I don't think that's possible."

From Cold Hearted by Beverly Barton

Great book so far - I started it yesterday and it has already sucked me in.

Story of a Girl by Sarah Zarr

I read about this book on a blog and I'm sorry to say I can't remember which one. I wish I could because I would go and thank the person who did the review because it made me want to read this book and I'm glad I did.

The book's central question seems to be - can you change your life even though you have made mistakes in the past. As adults we know we can though it can be difficult. As a teenager, Deanna Lambert is struggling with this question. After being caught in an indescetion as a 13-year-old with her brother's best friend by her father, Deanna has had to live with being "that" girl. She's now in high school and even though she is not like "that" anymore, she still lives with it daily. As summer comes she starts to explore more of who she is and how what she has done affects everyone. There is her family - her brother who is her best friend, his girlfriend and their baby daughter. She longs to be a family with them. There is her mother who tries hard to keep the peace in the family but works so much she's hardly there and there is her father who has not really looked at Deanna since that fateful night. Deanna also has two good friends. As the summer progresses Deanna learns a lot of things - about her family, her friends and especially herself. It's a wonderful and quick story to read and I highly recommend it to all - from teenagers to adults.


Author's website

On Sale Date: February 1, 2008
Date Started: 03-19-09
Date Finished: 03-19-09
From: Booksfree
Publisher: Little Brown Young Readers
Rating: 4.0/5.0
Genre: Young Adult
Setting: small town outside San Francisco, CA
Characters: Deanna Lambert, Darren Lambert
Pages: 192

Other Reviews:

Natasha @ Mawbooks

What Are You Reading?

It's my first What are you reading on Mondays? post and I'm looking forward to joining in weekly. For more information see J.Kaye's Book Blog and join in!

Books Completed Last Week:

Thigh High by Christina Dodd - Romantic Suspense - 3rd in the Fortune Hunter series - fun book, amazing and charming characters set against the backdrop of New Orleans. Good suspense, pretty good romance, just a fun book. Looking forward to reading Danger in a Red Dress to finish off the series.
Triple Cross by Mark T. Sullivan - Suspense/Thriller - Library Thing Early Reviewers book - great book - review is a little further down in my blog
See No Evil by Allison Brennan - Romantic Suspense - 2nd in the "Evil" series - great book - reviewed in my blog
Story of A Girl by Sara Zarr - Young Adult - great book - will be reviewed in future blog post
Marked by P.C. and Kristen Cast - Young Adult Paranormal - another great one - can't wait to read the second book in the series - book review coming soon.
14 by J.T. Ellison - Romantic Suspense - 2nd in the Taylor Jackson series and I can't wait to read the 3rd - Judas Kiss. Review coming soon
Against Medical Advice by James Patterson and Hal Friedman - non-fiction - audiobook. Wonderful read.

Reading Now:

Cold Hearted by Beverly Barton - Romantic Suspense
Handle With Care by Jodi Picoult - Fiction - audiobook
What Looks Like Crazy by Charlotte Hughes - Mystery

Next:

All That Matters by Stef Ann Holm - Romance
At the Edge by Cait London - Romantic Suspense
Who by Fire by Diana Spechler - Fiction
Seven up by Janet Evanovich - Mystery

I've been in a major reading mood lately - we'll see how much more I get read this week. It's looking to be a busy weekend so I'm not sure I'll get as much read this week as I did last week. Have a great week everyone!

Spring Reading Thing 2009 Challenge

I'm joining in on my first official reading challenge:



This challenge is hosted by Katrina at Callapidder Days

For this challenge you put together a list of books you want to read between March 20 and June 20 and then simply read them. There are giveaways and prizes throughout the challenge at Callapidder Days.

So I'm thinking in 3 months I'll read 35 books - this is moving into my "I like to lay out in the sun while the boys play in the yard and read" time of year - or it would be if it would hurry up and warm up :) so I think I can accomplish that. Here are the books that I am planning to read:

1. Marked by P.C. Cast - finished
2. 14 by J.T. Ellison - finished
3. Cold Hearted by Beverly Barton - finished
4. The Sorority: Eve by Tamara Thorne - finished
5. What Looks Like Crazy by Charlotte Hughes - finished
6. Good Neighbor by Sharon Mignerey - finished
7. Who By Fire by Diana Spechler - finished
   
8. The Tenth Case - Joseph Teller - finished
9. The Sorority: Merilynn by Tamara Thorne - finished
10. The Sorority: Samantha by Tamara Thorne - finished
11. Isolation by Travis Thrasher - finished
12. Handle With Care by Jodi Picoult - finished
13. Threshold by Bonnie Kozek - finished
14. Betrayed by P.C. Cast - finished
15. There Goes the Bride by Lori Wilde - finished
    
16. Gossip Girl by Cecily Von Ziegesar - finished
17. The Boyfriend List by E. Lockhart - finished
18. Chosen by P.C. Cast -finished
19. Wuthering High by Cara Lockwood - finished
    
20. Mending Places by Denise Hunter - finished
21. You Know You Love Me by Cecily Von Ziegesar - finished
22. Dead Until Dark by Charlaine Harris - finished
23. Wind Dancer by Jamie Carie
24. Untamed by P.C. Cast - finished
25. Deadfall by Robert Liparulo - finished
26. The Scarlet Letterman by Cara Lockwood - finished
    
27. Amorous Liasons by Sarah Mayberry - finished
28. Ghostwriter by Travis Thrasher - finished
29. The Devil's Footprints by Amanda Stevens - finished
30. Gun Lake by Travis Thrasher - finished
31. Flawless by Joshua Spanogle - finished
32. All I Want is Everything by Cecily Von Ziegesar - finished
33. Because I'm Worth It by Cecily Von Ziegesar - finished
34. Trial by Fire by Jo Davis - finished
35. Sweethearts by Sara Zarr - finished
36. Look Again by Lisa Scottoline - finished
37. Strange Angels by Lili St. Crow - finished
38. Admission by Jean Hanff Korelitz - finished
39. Under His Skin by Susan Mallery - finished
40. Montana Sky by Nora Roberts - finished
41. A Little Light Magic by Joy Nash - finished
42. The 8th Confession by James Patterson - finished
43. Missing Pieces by Joy Fielding - finished
44. A Morning Like This by Deborah Bedford - finished
45. I Like It Like That by Cecily Von Ziegesar - finished
46. Flirting With Temptation by Kelley St. John - finished
47. The Actor and The Housewife by Shannon Hale - finished
48. You're The One I Want by Cecily Von Ziegesar - finished
49. Once Smitten, Twice Shy by Lori Wilde -finished
50. Fragment by Warren Fahy - finished
51. The Disappearance of Irene Dos Santos by Margaret Mascarenhas - finished
52. The Texas Billionaire's Bride by Crystal Green - finished
53. The Neighbor by Lisa Gardner - finished
54. Avalon High by Meg Cabot - finished
55. Ms. Taken Identity by Dan Begley - finished
56. Wake by Lisa McMann - finished

So there it is - in black and white. Some others may be added if my reading allows. This doesn't have any new releases that I'm used to getting because my library's computer system is down and I can't request from home. If they get that up, some things may be moved around a bit. I'll try not to take away because I want to do this right, but hopefully can add. I'm a bit behind on my reading this year due to a reading slump but this would help me out a bunch!

See No Evil by Allison Brennan

I picked this one up as it was requested at PBS. Usually if I have it listed, I have decided I probably won't read it, but for some reason this one was calling to me. I had read her first series and the first one in this series back when it came out, but for some reason could not get into this one. That was not a problem this time and as soon as I get a couple more books read I'm moving on to Fear No Evil and then I plan to start last year's trilogy.

This installment in the "Evil" trilogy (Speak No Evil, See No Evil, Fear No Evil) centers around Julia Chandler an assistant district attorney and Conner Kincaid, brother to Carina Kincaid and former police officer. Julia and Chandler have a history and it's not a happy one since it centers on the time when he resigned from the police force. But Julia's niece, Emily, is in trouble and Conner has helped out before as a private eye to help find Emily and Julia needs him now since Emily's stepfather has been murdered and Emily looks like the prime suspect.

Julia, Conner and Conner's brother Dillon work together to sort out some strange happenings in their area and track down the killers to help prove Emily's innocence. On the way to that end, Julia and Conner have to work through their feelings from the past and the feelings that they are currently feeling.

Loaded with suspense with a side of romance, plus characters you really like, See No Evil is a great read from start to finish. EAch time I set this book down, I couldn't wait until I could pick it up next and see what Julia and Conner would do. The mystery is intricately woven and very enjoyable to try and figure out. The crimes and the subject matter are dark and handled very realistically but you don't feel bogged down by the whole plot. These characters will stay with you for awhile as well as the circumstances in which the crimes were committed. Ms. Brennan has another winner on her hands and I'm only sorry I didn't read this earlier!

Purchase through Amazon

Author's website

On Sale Date: February 27, 2007
Date Started: 03-17-09
Date Finished: 03-19-09
From: My bookshelf
Publisher: Ballantine Books
Rating: 4.5/5.0
Genre: Romantic Suspense
Setting: San Diego, CA
Characters: Julia Chandler, Conner Kincaid, Dillon Kincaid
Pages: 413

Triple Cross by Mark Sullivan

I received this book through Library Thing's Early Reviewers Group and one look and I had to read it. I've been in a bit of a reading slump and this book has definitely ended that.

Mickey Hennessey is the head of security for the exclusive Jefferson Club in rural Montana. A ski-playground and exclusive resort for the rich is hosting a New Year's Eve party that a who's who of the wealthiest men of the world. All is going wonderful until the party is interrupted by a group of men and women bent on punishing the world's wealthiest. From the storming of the club to the trials the group puts on you will be enthralled. Add in Mickey who escapes the club and his teenager triplets who are trapped in the club and you won't be able to put this book down!

A fast-paced thrill ride. This book captured me from the description on the back of the book and held me through the end. Likable but not-perfect characters and well-paced suspense and action. The one thing I really liked about this book was I never really had to suspend belief to read this - sometimes during books you think that this could never happen that way and granted it's fiction - that means it's not real, but this book never made me feel like this. I was enthralled and enjoyed every second.

My first read from this author and it won't be my last.

Purchase the book from amazon

Author's website

On Sale Date: April 14, 2009
Date Started: 03-15-09
Date Finished: 03-17-09
From: Early Reviewers Group - Library Thing
Publisher: St. Martin's Press
Rating: 4.5/5.0
Genre: Suspese/Thriller
Setting: Jefferson Club - Rural Montana
Characters: Mickey, Bridger, Conner and Hailey Hennessey, Cheyenne O'Neil
Pages: 390