July 31st Releases

Hello Readers! 

Today is a great day, not only because it's new relase day, but also because I've reviewed several things coming out today. 

So check out my reviews of:

• Forever and a Day by Jill Shalvis - A very cute romance!
• The Fifty Shames of Earl Grey by Fanny Merkin (AKA Andrew Schaffer) - Hilarious parody of Fifty Shades of Grey
• Miss Me When I'm Gone by Emily Arsenault - A beautiful litereay mystery

Happy Reading!!!

The Book Girl (AKA SandraDeeC)

Review: Beautiful Disaster by Jamie McGuire

I will begin by stating that fans of the Fifty Shades Trilogy will really enjoy this book.  The characters, the story trajectory, etc. will definitely remind you of why you fell in love with Ana and Christian. 

But then again, I didn't enjoy the time I spent with Ms. Steele and Mr. Grey, so Beautiful Disaster is not something I would recommend.  

For me this book was tedious, because I found myself continually frustrated with Abby for not leaving a man who was borderline abusive.  I understand that some women find the idea of rescuing the tortured man romantic, but Travis?  Really?  Every time we turned around, he was either going off the deep end by beating someone up or manipulating Abby back into his arms.  

The only bright spot in the plot that could have been expanded on really to change the way the book turned out was the a brief section about where Abby must confront her past.  Suddenly we understand why she’s fighting so hard against him, but instead of eliciting a feeling of empathy for our heroine, I just became more angry when she went back to her creepy, jealous and overly possessive boyfriend.

Again, if you are a fan of Fifty Shades, you will love it, but if you shied away from their story I suggest you stay away from this one too.

Quote of the Moment

First of all...I have standards.  I've never been with an ugly woman.  Ever.

 - Travis from Beautiful Disaster by Jamie McGuire.  


I just want to know why anyone would think this was a good idea say out loud.

Review: A Cold Day in Paradise by Steve Hamilton

After being shot on the job as a Detroit police officer, Alex retires and choses to take the road less taken, which entails moving back home to Paradise, Michigan.  He rents out the cabins his father built and eventually begins working as an investigator for a local lawyer.  For fourteen years his life is simple and uninterrupted – that is until a friend needs Alex’s help after he stumbles onto a murder victim. 

As the bodies begin to pile up, the murderer makes contact with our hero and Alex realizes that the past is never as far behind us as we would like it to be.

Okay, I’m a sucker for a strong male hero and Alex is perfect.  Hamilton creates a really believable character in a man who is strong and independent, but yet emotionally vulnerable in that as much as he’s distanced himself from his old life in Detroit, it still haunts him in numerous ways. 

I can’t wait to see what the rest of the series brings!

Highly recommended for fans of Lee Child, Robert Crais or Michael Connolly. 

Review: Miss Me When I'm Gone by Emily Arsenault

Back in college Jamie and Gretchen were inseparable.  As adults, they are still close, but life has gotten in the way – specifically Jamie’s pregnancy and the Gretchen’s work on books about country music. 

When her best friend dies, Jamie is asked to put together a manuscript from the notes and journals that are left behind and as Jamie begins to pour through Gretchen’s writings, she begins to wonder if she ever really knew Gretchen at all.

This book was superb. Emily Arsenault does an incredible job balancing the 3 voices in novel –

·         Gretchen’s professional  articles and drafts for her manuscript

·         Gretchen’s more private writings that discuss her confusion of her life an upbringing

·         Jamie’s reaction to Gretchen and how it affects her life and pending family.

It’s a great book for anyone women who can appreciate the depth of love that can occur between two friends.  Highly recommended for fans of The Jane Austen book Club or The Help!

Review: Deep Down by Lee Child

It's 1986.  The Cold War is still going and our friend Jack Reacher finds himself on a very brief undercover assignment in Washington DC.  The only glitch is he has to wear a suit.  

Out of the two short stories we've this year, this one is good, but I preferred Everyone Talks.  That's not to say it's not worth reading, because I always like to see Jack from different perspectives.  This gives readers a chance to see him pick up some of the moves that will make him such a great hero as he gets older, but mostly it just gets us primed for the new book coming out in September. 

Looking forward to seeing you again, Jack!

Review: Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn

North Carthage, Missouri, a small town with very to little to offer, but Amy and Nick have moved away from their busy lives in New York City to do the right thing - care for Nick's ailing parents, but on the morning of their 5th anniversary, Amy goes missing.    And Nick's world begins to crumble around him.  


Flynn has done a masterful job building and weaving this tale with two completely different and distinct voices as Amy and Nick each describe their own side of the story - Nick's as it occurs the morning of Amy's disappearance and through Amy's diary entries leading up to her final days.  

I started this book on Friday night and finished it ten minutes ago.  My review had to go up with in seconds, because I had to let the world know just how incredible this book is.  

Highly recommended for fans of Ira Levin, Sidney Sheldon's The Other Side of Midnight or any who just wants a good thriller.

I Dream Books: Rotten Tomatoes for Book Lovers

If you didn't know, not only am I an avid reader, but I also a shameless cinephile.  Typically before I see a film, I check the reviews to see if the film in question is worth my time.  Rotten Tomatoes happens to be a favorite website of mine, because they combine the critic’s reviews to give you an overall rating for the film as well as separate score from the audience ratings.  It’s pretty helpful.   

Well book lovers, now we have our own version of Rotten Tomatoes called IDream Books.  It’s very nicely put together little site with the typical publication information, but it supplies links to the original reviews.  All the thoughts are gathered in one spot, so you don’t have to troll the internet looking for answers. 

And don’t worry book bloggers we can even get involved too.  There’s a few restrictions about blog content, etc., but it looks it will be another good avenue to share our opinions and getting ideas on what to read next. 

I have a feeling that I am going to be spending a lot of time on there. 

PS.  Don’t worry Good Reads!  I won’t abandon you.  Who else would keep track of all my book statistics? 

Review: The Fifty Shames of Earl Grey by Andrew Shaffer

This book is about a a clumsy, stupid college girl named Anna Steal who meets a billionaire sexy named Earl Grey and as they start to date and fall in love, Anna learns that Mr. Grey has 50 habits he is ashamed of.  


Sound familiar?  That's because this book is a parody or the 50 Shades Trilogy and it was just the balm my soul needed after reading James novels.  


This poked fun of every aspect of the Christian and Ana Grey's relationship including:

• Lip biting (now nose picking)
• Christian's obsession with buying everything Ana touches
• The helicopter

And for a few extra laughs Schaffer even throws in some references to:

• The Bronies (Male fans of My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic)
• The Twilight books 
• LARP (Live Action Role Playing)

For anyone who truly loved the original series, this may not be the book for you, but if you if you can appreciate a good parody or did not enjoy the 50 Shades, you'll definitely enjoy it!

Review: The Next Best Thing by Jennifer Weiner

Ruth Saunders has only wanted one thing - to write and create her own television show - a sitcom about a young woman, who lives with her grandmother as she tries to break into the food business in Miami.  


It's a story near and dear to her heart, because, it's essentially how Ruthie and her grandmother ended up living in  LA - so she could be a writer.  Unfortunately, now that her dream is happening, our heroine is finding out Hollywood is not all it's cracked up to be.  


At it's core, The Next Best Thing is a story about how a woman deals with her dream as it begins to crumble and it is amazing.   Weiner created such a rich and vulnerable character in Ruthie, that I could not resist falling in love with her.  


Although not perfect, we see Ruth making due with what she has.  She's not an LA perfect 10, but she's made her body strong through swimming and yoga.  A few setbacks derailed her career, but our lady keeps working, even writing college essays and online dating profiles to pay the bills.  So to see her success backfire is heartbreaking, but to see Ruth learning from it and keep swinging is what truly makes this book beautiful.  


Thank you Jennifer Weiner.  I loved every moment of it! 

Movie Review: One for the Money

Another retro review, but this time it's for the movie, One for the Money.

Fans of the Stephanie Plum series will not be disappointed in the movie! Katherine Hiegel is adorable as our heroine, Stephanie, and Jason O’Mara awesome as the sarcastically sexy, Joe Morelli. As usual, the plot was revised a bit to save some time, but all the best events are still in the movie. Definitely go see it!

Besides if enough audiences see it, they might make a sequel….

Review: One for the Money by Janet Evanovich

So I'm watching One for the Money, so I thought I post some of money older reviews from the book and the movie.  Enjoy!

Does anything ever go right for Stephanie Plum? She’s out of work, her car was just repossessed and she’s pawned almost everything she owned in order to stay afloat. Now her only choice is work as a bounty hunter for her cousin Vinnie. To make matters worse, her first bounty is a street smart cop named Joe Morelli - the man who deflowered her back in high school.

Stephanie may not have the skills she needs, but she one thing no one else has - desperation! She will do anything to get her man!

I read this book back in 1999, but I had to reread it in order to prep for the upcoming movie with Katherine Heigel and Jason O’Mara. It was just as good today as it was back then!

Review: Fifty Shades Freed by EL James

Readers, as you know, I do not enjoy writing negative reviews.  I take no pleasure in tearing someone's work apart, so I refuse to write unnecessarily harsh reviews on my blog.

With that said, I'll just tell you that I did not enjoy this trilogy.  I know my first reviews states otherwise, but the further I got into the trilogy the less was able to enjoy any part of the books.

The best thing that happened is that I finally finished the series and I can now sell them to Half Price Books.

Review: God Save the Queen by Kate Locke

Ahhh, 2012 London and Queen Victoria is still reigning over the British Empire.  Wait, what?!?!?!

That’s right.  When the Plague hit in the 1800s, it killed humans, but it turned anyone with Aristocratic blood into an immortal – Goblin, Werewolf, or Vampire.  Instead of dying in 1901, Queen Victoria just kept ruling over a kingdom of humans, immortals and half-bloods (part human, part immortal), including Xandra Vardan, Halvie and member of the Royal Guard, who protects the British Aristocracy.  When her sister DeDe goes missing and days later commit suicide, Xandy, not totally convinced of her sister’s downward spiral choses to investigate only to discover a conspiracy so huge that it may change the world as she knows it.

Anne, the store manager at Murder by the Book recommended this title to me and it was well worth it.  Locke was able to create an incredible with that felt as real to me as my own bedroom without a lot of extemporaneous explanation and description of how we got here.  Also, if when I found myself confused at any point, there was a great glossary of terms in the back along with a medical history of plague that just made my experience so much richer.

Highly recommended for anyone who enjoys the supernatural, steam punk and Gail Carriger!

Trailer Time: Jack Reacher

As we have established from last week's posts, I am a Jack Reacher fan, but as pleased as I am to know that the movie is coming out this December, I'm still as apprehensive as the rest of fans are about the actor chosen to play my favorite hero, Tom Cruise.

Don't get me wrong, I love Tom Cruise.  He's engergetic, talented and committed to every role he plays, but the man is short.  I'm not trying to be critical, but at 6' 5" and roughly 250 pounds, part of the Reacher appeal is that he just looks like a man who should be left alone. 

I'm sorry Tom, but your stature does evoke that feeling from me. 

With that said, the trailer for did give me some hope. 

• I liked the voice over describing Jack, how "he only cares about what's right." 
• The costuming, jeans and a flannel, was spot on, because Reacher is not interested in style - only praticality.  Okay, the leather jacket more than Jack would own, but this is Hollywood. 
• And finally, the last line of the trailer, "Remember, you wanted this."  Cruise is right.  Jack never picks a fight - the fight always picks him.

Yes, Reacher, I did want this.  Let's see if this film is everything I hope it will be.

Review: Emily & Colin's Wedding by Tasha Alexander

So I just stumbled accross this short story and I had to share it with you. 
For those you, dear readers, who disappointed that you did not get to attend the wedding of Lady Emily Ashton and Colin Hagreaves, you don't have to wait any longer!  Tasha Alexander published this charming little short story about private celebration in Santorini, Greece. 
It is as sweet and charming as one would expect a Lady Ashton story to be and one reviewer stated, "...if you haven't fallen in love with Colin by this point in the series, you definitely will after reading this!"
Enjoy!!!!

Review: Shadow of Night by Deborah Harkness

Shadow of Night is wonderful, but if you have not 

read A Discovery of Witches, it is best that you not read this review.  

SPOILER ALERT!!!!!

When last we left Diana and Matthew, they had travelled back in time to 1590.  

As a historian, Diana was thrilled to be there, but the it was not what she expected.  Matthew fails to mention that in 1590 he was working with the School of night - a group of forward thinking men including historical figures Sir Walter Raleigh and Christopher Marlowe.  Diana is overwhelmed to say the least!

While tensions are mounting in Europe over witch craft, the couple must find a witch to teacher Diana how to master her craft as well as find the Ashmole 782 - a magical text that may contain the origins of vampire, demons and witches.  All this without getting discovered so they can return home to stop the supernatural war brewing in their own time.  

This book was as fabulous as the first, but what really caught my attention were Diana's struggle to blend into society.  The author's research capabilities really shined here, because at she paid attention to a lot of detail without ever lecturing the reader about 16th century England.  It was beautifully captured. 

Highly recommended for fans of the first book!!!