Tag: nook

This Chick Read : The Drowned Girls (Angie Pallorino #1) by Loreth Anne White

If you are a fan of Law & Order SVU you will love The Drowned Girls. It is dark and the subject matter is pretty brutal, but the mystery is top notch. There is also a parallel romantic storyline that hooks you right in.  Angie Pallorino, our heroine, is struggling with her mother’s dementia while also trying to make detective in a police department that is a total boys club. Angie and her partner are working a case that has surprising similarities to a girl who has been brutally raped and tortured. Because of the similarities, Angie is asked to work with Homocide to try to solve these crimes. Surprisingly, the detective she is asked to work with was her one night stand from the night before. Awkward! Pallorino and Maddocks decide to put that behind them but as the mystery unwinds the tension between them amps up and when they finally give in their passion is explosive.

Both of these characters are flawed and some of their foibles are psychological in nature. The combination of Angie’s possible hereditary turn towards dementia, the horrifying details of the crime they are trying to solve, and the hallucinations she is having about a young Polish girl gives the story a gritty dark tone. Throw in Maddocks new job, his troubled relationship with his teenaged daughter, and both of their inclinations for control in the bedroom making this a very dark tale. However, the fact that these two troubled people support each other with all of their issues gave me hope and kept me reading until the end, which was really satisfactory.

I saw this title on a best romance list and questioned that choice. Not that it isn’t a good book. It is a very good book. But it’s a mystery first and a romance second. Actually, when I think about this novel as I’m writing, the larger aspects of these characters and the storyline are the sinister, mystery elements. Not the romance, though thank God it had one because those scenes lightened the tone a little. Not much, but a little. Anyway, it is an excellent mystery about the darker aspects of humanity, and also about two people who find each other in their darkest hour and learn to trust and support each other. I liked that angle a lot. ❤️❤️❤️❤️

I was given an ARC of this book by the publisher through NetGalley for my honest review, and it was honest.


Click the link to purchase! The Drowned Girls (Angie Pallorino)

Copyright 2017 Deborah Kehoe The Reading Chick All Rights Reserved

I am a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.

On By deborahkehoeIn A Hot Chick Who Reads4 Comments

This Chicks Sunday Commentary: A Positive Spin on a Negative book Tag… #giveaway

I am normally a very positive person!  Really, I am! (She says very confidently.). But, I’ll admit, there is something I need to get off my chest. I have seen a Tag which puts a negative spin on reading and/or picking out a book and this really bothers me. After seeing this tag a couple times I wrote the questions down, not sure if I ever wanted to put my answers in writing for the world to see. I don’t want to hurt anyone’s feelings by saying I’m just never going to read their book. Not that I think a ton of authors are reading my posts, but you never know! Wouldn’t you hate to have, oh, I don’t know, J.K. Rowling know that you hated Harry Potter? Or never intended to even pick it up? Why, yes, you would! As if! Anyways, I took a glance at those questions today and thought I am not going down that road of negativity!  So, I am choosing to do the Books I Probably Won’t Read Tag, but am re-naming it…

I Have One Month to Live and Can’t Die without Reading These Books… Tag!. Ok this title may be a little over the top but you get my drift. Right? Except for the dying in the next thirty days, this is positive!

1. A really hyped up book you’re dying to read in the next 30 days?

This is a tough one! My backlog of hyped up books is actually quite large because I always get sidetracked by something new, or a review I’ve read of a book I’ve never heard of that I have to get, and the list goes on. YOU of all people know this frustration. Back to the question. Hmmm, hyped up book implies YOU all have talked this one up. Ok, I’m picking an older book that I have on my kindle and have heard a TON of good things. PUCKED, by Helena Hunting. I’m not really sure why I haven’t picked it up? It’s certainly not because the book cover sucks. Umm, ok, stop staring. LOL But now that I have said I would, I will. In the next 30 days, I promise!


If you’re like me and haven’t read this one yet, check out Pucked HERE!

2. A series you absolutely have to start and will promise to finish?

I am a sucker for books about books or libraries. Especially if they are an action adventure mystery and this series sounds like it’s right up my alley.  The first novel in the Great Library series by Rachel Caine is called Ink and Bone and it looks fantastic. I’ve picked it up and thought about reading it several times. But, you know, I got distracted by a different book, and now there are three! I need to get started. Check out Ink and Bone HERE!


3. A classic that you’ve always wanted to read but have never gotten around to?

Ok, I’m going to be honest here. I don’t really want to read any classics. I LOVE the idea of reading a classic, and I was an English major with an American Lit minor so I’ve read my fair share a long time ago. I will say that even though I get caught up in contemporary novels if I were to pick one up I think I’d like to read The Merry Adventures of Robin Hood by Howard Pyle. I did love that classic movie and have often thought a modern day retelling of that story would be awesome. So maybe this will give me a few writing ideas. 


4. What genres are you likely to read?

If one of my favorite urban fantasy authors has a new book out it will jump to the front of my TBR. Ilona Andrews, Charlaine Harris, Patricia Briggs, and the more recently discovered Anne Bishop. Kelley Armstrong is also one of my favorites, which is why I was so ashamed that I hadn’t read her Cainsville series because I thought it was a horror story!  I’m hanging my head in shame again. Sigh.

Other favorite genres are romance (all types though I lean toward sweet unless it’s Kristen Ashley), ya ( I lean more towards fantasy but have read romance. It brings back such sweet memories of those long long long ago days. Lol.)  and mystery (not gory, but has a good hook.) Defintely NO HORROR! Nightmares for days if I read horror.

5. A book on your shelf you haven’t read but will in the next 30 days?

Well, I already said Pucked, which is on my virtual shelf, but what the hell, I’m a fast reader and can get through two in the next thirty days… and start Ink and Bone. Oh Gosh. I will read The Hating Game by Sally Thorne. Here’s the synopsis:

Nemesis 1) An opponent or rival whom a person cannot best or overcome.  2) A person’s undoing.   3) Joshua Templeman – Lucy Hutton and Joshua Templeman hate each other. Not dislike. Not begrudgingly tolerate. Hate. And they have no problem displaying their feelings through a series of ritualistic passive aggressive maneuvers as they sit across from each other, executive assistants to co-CEOs of a publishing company. Lucy can’t understand Joshua’s joyless, uptight, meticulous approach to his job. Joshua is clearly baffled by Lucy’s overly bright clothes, quirkiness, and Pollyanna attitude.

Now up for the same promotion, their battle of wills has come to a head and Lucy refuses to back down when their latest game could cost her her dream job…But the tension between Lucy and Joshua has also reached its boiling point, and Lucy is discovering that maybe she doesn’t hate Joshua. And maybe, he doesn’t hate her either. Or maybe this is just another game.


Looks cute right?
Just to put more pressure on me to read this novel in the next thirty days, I will give it away to one of my followers. Yes, we will share the same book! It will be gently read but it’s FREE.  Of course, you’ll have to wait a month!  Unless I read it this week which isn’t likely because of ARC commitments, sorry! But if you can wait a little bit, I will send it to you. Please enter the Rafflecopter giveaway below. (US only, sorry!)

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Wasn’t this tag so much more fun putting a positive spin on the Books I Probably Won’t Read Tag? Let’s be honest, there are thousands of books I will never get to, but my intentions are always good. We all have our favorite genres and one books come first, which leaves little free time to try others. 

Did you like my tag? Want to join in with your own answers? Great! Consider yourself tagged! Link to my blog so I can see how you would respond.

Until next Sunday,

Deb

On By deborahkehoeIn A Hot Chick Who Reads9 Comments

This Chick Read: How to Kill a Rock Star by Tiffanie DeBartolo

This book was published in 2005 and it somehow landed on my radar this year and boy am I glad it did! Written in a style reminiscent of the movie Almost Famous, it was gritty, emotional, funny and real. The two main characters Eliza and Paul are a perfect match, both neurotic artistic geniuses and totally in love with each other.

Eliza, a music journalist lands the story of the century and gets a gig as a journalist for a fictional Rolling Stone like magazine. She moves to New York for the job, but also to be closer to her brother, Michael who happens to be a guitarist in a band called Bananafish. He has gotten married to her best friend and vacated the apartment they were living in with the lead singer, Paul Hudson. Eliza moves into their room at his place and it isn’t long before she and Paul are a couple and are working together to get Bananafish noticed. When Paul’s star is finally on the rise he is torn between the commercial direction his record label wants him to take and the grass roots direction he feels is more right for his music. Unfortunately, with a band relying on him to make money, he has to compromise on his dream.
The characters in this book had so many issues! It was a struggle for them to deal with everyday life, then you throw these kinds of choices in front of them and there are bound to be mistakes, anger, and heartbreak and this story had plenty of all of that. All of that angst and pain was worth it for the great ending to this story. If you are like me and love rocker romances, you must pick up this book! If only for reading about people who have conversations instead of looking at their phones or conversing via text. So refreshing!

❤️❤️❤️❤️


Click the link to purchase! How to Kill a Rock Star

Copyright 2017 Deborah Kehoe The Reading Chick All Rights Reserved

I am a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.

On By deborahkehoeIn A Hot Chick Who Reads

This Chick Read: Omens (Cainsville #1) by Kelley Armstrong

Have you ever heard the old adage of don’t judge a book by its cover? Well that saying certainly applies to why I hadn’t gobbled up this series yet. I do not like horror novels. I get scared easily, have nightmares and am basically a big chicken. The name Omens took me back to my teenage years of slumber parties and being scared to death watching Halloween and He Knows You’re Alone. Well, I couldn’t have been more wrong! I should’ve known, I am a huge fan of Kelley Armstrongs Otherworld series and love paranormal books. This series, even though set in a town called Cainsville, is NOT like Amityville Horror!  It is a fabulous paranormal mystery series whose protagonist learns a deep dark secret about herself that makes her look deeper into her kind of superficial life and make some abrupt changes.

Olivia Taylor-Jones, a socialite in Chicago, finds out abruptly that she is adopted. That fact is shocking but when she finds out her birth parents were notorious serial killers her life is turned upside down. To escape the press, she runs away to a small town outside Chicago, called Cainsville. It is in Cainsville that she starts to learn about her talent for reading Omens, but when those Omens start to come true, she looks deeper into herself and her background to find out why and how. Part of that discovery is dealing face to face with her birth mother, who is in jail for committing murder on four couples in a ritualistic manner. With the help of her mothers ex lawyer, Gabriel, she starts to investigate one of the murders, the outcome of which changes the path her life had been taking.

Kelley Armstrong has a talent for world building, and Cainsville and its inhabitants are a new world for me to explore. Even though this book isn’t a horror story, it does live up to its name. Omens has its creepy moments, the mystery is paranormal in nature, and the characters are not as they appear. Just the way I like it! Lucky for me, there are four books out in this series, with the fifth and last due out in August. I can’t wait to see the relationship develop between Olivia and Gabriel and learn the other secrets they unearth about themselves and Cainsville.

❤️❤️❤️❤️❣️


Click the link to purchase! Omens (Cainsville)

Copyright 2017 Deborah Kehoe The Reading Chick All Rights Reserved

I am a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.

On By deborahkehoeIn A Hot Chick Who Reads2 Comments

This Chick Read: Beautiful Disaster by Jamie McGuire

Spoiler alert!

I think we’ve all read books whose reviews were so great but once read it we were like ” what was all the fuss about?” This was one of those for me. Not to take anything away from the author because the book was very well written, it just didn’t strike a chord with me. Here’s what I felt were its issues; the characters were too flawed, kind of whiny, and way too tortured. I’ll admit that I might be a little older than this book’s target audience but I read YA and NA books a lot and that doesn’t usually bug me.
Abby Abernathy and Travis Maddox’s best friends were dating. This fact throws them together and while Travis is hot, he is also a slut. So Abby declares him in the friend zone and they stay in that zone getting to know each other. Travis starts to have feelings for Abby, but she’s clueless. Each time someone tries to make her see it, she says he’s just a friend, she’s not attracted to him, etc. He gets mad, gets drunk and has a one night stand with one of the many girls who chase after him. Yeah, that’ll endear you to her Travis. First strike. Travis  also fights in these underground college fight clubs. That’s how he pays for his school and living expenses. Ok I’ll give him this one, a guy has got to pay his way, right? But dating material? Let’s see how this goes.

On to Ms. Abernathy. Abby comes from a dysfunctional family. Her dad is an ex famous poker player who has fallen on bad times and bad luck. Abby has run away from her troubled past and is trying to start fresh. Not a bad thing, true. However, she decides that leaving that life also means she has to act and date a certain way. She wears pearls and cardigans and wants to date guys named Parker. Kind of stereotypical which probably wouldn’t have annoyed me so much if we weren’t getting glimpses into her not so perfect past. Hypocritical? Yes.

So the two of them finally give each other a chance, but they fight all the time and  they are both so insecure that those insecurities start to eat away at them. Abby constantly gets scared of the strength of her or Travis’ feelings that she runs away from him constantly. Why does he like her so much? I just can’t figure that out!  At this point I’m really tired of the back and forth, angst, pain and crying, but I’m almost done so I keep reading.

Abby’s past comes back to haunt her in the form of her father who owes the mob $25k. I’m thinking what?? Where did this plot turn come from? Abby, now a pro poker player who was blamed by her father for making his luck go bad, must go to Vegas to win the money to pay her father’s debt before the mob “teaches him a lesson”. They are short on the cash, Travis has to beat up everyone to save them and then takes the mobster up on his offer of being his “fighter”. This just keeps getting worse, right? The mob tries to kill them yet our boy Travis wants to be the mobsters fighter? That makes no sense! Abby does the first sensible thing in the book and leaves his ass.

Travis cries, begs and pleads, she says no way Jose and they are broken up. Though they still love each other. Months go by. I’ll say that again. Months go by! She goes on a date with Parker, Travis see’s her with him. He’s got an underground fight that night and he asks her to leave her date and go support him. She does! I’m tearing my hair out! The place the fight is being held in  catches fire. He saves her they declare their love and run off to Vegas to get married. Seriously. That one is a divorce waiting to happen. Yet we have our HEA.

As you can tell, I did not like this book. Yet I finished it.  I can only give it  ❤️❤️❣️. Just in case you’re interested in reading the story from Travis’s POV, you can! The book is called Walking Disaster. I kid you not! Lol.


Click the link to purchase! Beautiful Disaster: A Novel (Beautiful Disaster Series)

Copyright 2017 Deborah Kehoe The Reading Chick All Rights Reserved

I am a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.

On By deborahkehoeIn A Hot Chick Who Reads3 Comments

This Chick Read: Frostblood (Frostblood Saga #1) by Elly Blake #giveaway

Ruby and her mom have kept a secret from her village for years…they thought. When Frostblood soldiers show up in town, the villagers hand her over to save themselves. Ruby embraces her heritage to escape and ends up watching her mother die and her village burn down. She is a Fireblood, and her king has persecuted them so that there are very few left. Rescued from prison, Ruby lands in the midst of Fireblood rebel monks who wish to train her to use her flames……and kill the king.

Interesting concept, but somewhat familiar to the Red Queen. In Red Queen the color of your blood determines your societal rank, with silvers having powers. In Frostblood, what you are is determined by your power. Ruby has the gift of fire and heat, hence the Fireblood moniker. Those who have the power over ice and cold are Frostbloods. In both series our heroines are “captured” and trained to use their powers. In Frostblood I did enjoy her Yoda/Luke Skywalker type relationship with Brother Thistle who has determined that she is the “child of light” that is prophesied to save them from their ruthless king. Ruby is skeptical, but not stupid, and takes what training she can get. Smart girl, since she has been only successful at accidentally setting things on fire when she’s angry up to this point!

There is some historical references to Fire and Frost working together in the past, so when Ruby has a love hate relationship with Arcus, a young mysterious Frostblood, it’s no surprise when those feelings turn more to the love side of that equation (Also a similar plotline to Red Queen). Before they can explore those feelings too far, she is captured and comes to the attention of the King. This is when the story really starts moving.

This was a well written ya fantasy tale, but those similarities were a little distracting at first. There were enough differences, especially once she is in the Kings castle and forced to compete in the King’s tournament for her life, that I was able to lose myself in the storyline and enjoy the book. The second book, Fireblood, is out in September so you won’t have long to wait before the next installment. ❤️❤️❤️❣️

Would you like your own copy? Enter the Giveaway below for a signed hardback!

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or click the link to purchase! Frostblood (The Frostblood Saga)

Copyright 2017 Deborah Kehoe The Reading Chick All Rights Reserved

I am a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.

On By deborahkehoeIn A Hot Chick Who Reads2 Comments

This Chick Read : Salt to the Sea by Ruta Sepetys

Salt to the Sea is an emotionally charged WWII epic drama about a group of people who were fleeing Germany and came together out of chance. Told from four viewpoints, three from this group of travelers, and one from a German soldier, we see the different sides to this war. Continue reading “This Chick Read : Salt to the Sea by Ruta Sepetys” →

On By deborahkehoeIn A Hot Chick Who Reads8 Comments

This Chick Read: The Librarian and the Spy by Susan Mann #giveaway

Congratulations to the winner! This Giveaway has ended.

The Librarian and the Spy was a mystery wrapped in intrigue disguised as a romance. In my opinion the cover, although cute, did the novel a disservice. The book was so much more than the cover leads you to believe! This book was clever, it’s heroine was bright and the hero had a James Bond-ish charm. Most important was the fact that it was a light hearted mystery first with a touch of romance second.

The novel gets off to a quick start. Quinn the Librarian, is at work when James, undercover as an insurance agent, requests her help researching some jewelry and pieces of art. There is, of course an immediate connection. They are both attractive after all! However, it was Quinn’s intellect that James was also attracted to. She is so well read that she is a walking Encyclopedia. She comes up with tidbits about useful and useless things that created clever dialog and add depth to the storyline. As she gets drawn into the case James is working on, her research becomes invaluable and she ends up working the case full time, against his better judgement. She was agent 99 to his agent 86 (a Get Smart reference for you youngsters!). James, unlike Max in Get Smart, is actually suave and is not a bumbling fool, so the attraction is much more understandable! LOL.

I really enjoyed the surprise I received when I started reading this book. As an avid reader myself, I loved how Quinn got herself out of predicaments by remembering a scene from a favorite book and then re-enacting it. I wish my memory were that good! I also enjoyed the lighthearted romance, partly because Quinn reacted realistically to James and not as a woman in lust.  ❤️❤️❤️❣️

GIVEAWAY

a Rafflecopter giveaway


Click the link to purchase! The Librarian and the Spy (Librarian/Spy Escapade)

Copyright 2017 Deborah Kehoe The Reading Chick All Rights Reserved

I am a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.

On By deborahkehoeIn A Hot Chick Who Reads1 Comment

This Chick’s Sunday Commentary: My Reading Getaway #sundayblogshare

When I think of summer I think of reading a book on a beach, the sound of surf in my ears and a fruity drink in my hand. Unfortunately I don’t live at the beach, nor am I going on vacation to one. At least this year! I will, however, be cracking open a book or fourteen this summer outside and in, finding a quiet getaway from my family for a few hours lost  in a book. I relish those moments when I can fall in love, solve a mystery, or save a world, even if I am just doing it vicariously.

Sometimes when I’m sitting in my armchair or outside on my front porch I dream of having my own private girly reading getaway. Images flash through my mind of various possibilities.

If I had endless amounts of money, I would build my own cottage in the backyard where I could read and write privately for hours at a time.


Unfortunately, I don’t have those gobs of money to create a getaway that is quite so expansive. But, I could create some that are a lot less expensive.


A secluded daybed bower with an extreme mountain of pillows looks very comfortable! 


Or this little covered bench in the rose garden. I (ok, my husband…) could probably build the bench, but I don’t have a rose garden. Sigh.


A tent is a perfect idea! Set one up in the backyard with a load of pillows and a big pitcher of iced tea. Doable! Although I’d need to buy a tent as I’m not much of a camper. I’ve got the pillows though! Lol.


I love this swinging bed! Especially the chandelier and light hanging over the structure. This could easily be built! However, I lack a tree with a limb to hang the bed from. Looks comfy though!


The picture on the left is a no brainer. Any of us can buy an Adirondack chair and paint it a soothing color! We are getting closer to my budget!


Ah, who am I kidding. As long as the weather is nice I have a perfectly nice front porch to read my book!

Where is your favorite place to read your book? Inside? Outside? I’d love to hear about your reading nook.

Until next Sunday!

Deb

On By deborahkehoeIn A Hot Chick Who Reads11 Comments

This Chick Read: The Ultimatum (The Guardian #1) by Karen Robards

Spoilers ahead!

The Ultimatum starts off quickly as we find our heroine Bianca in the midst of a caper to steal money out of an Arab Prince’s vault. When she discovers somebody beat her team to the money, the robbery turns into an escape for their lives and we get a hint of what is to come in this book; action, romance and danger. Essentially all of the ingredients  I have come to expect from a romantic suspense novel by Karen Robards.

Bianca St. Ives is an interesting heroine. She has been brought up as a con artist. Definitely not your typical upbringing. She was raised in boarding schools with a father who only visited when he needed her for a con, and didn’t show affection.. She has only ever had one friend, not letting people get too close because she has to hide who she really is- someone who isn’t sure of her own identity.

Even though I enjoyed Bianca’s take charge attitude and strength of character, she was a little cold. I could understand her need to keep her livelihood private, but her actions didn’t carry a lot of warmth making it really hard to see her as three demonsional even coming across as a little robotic. When she meets Mickey, who is an undercover agent protecting the Arab Prince’s money from being stolen, he was easily identifiable as her love interest. They had instant chemistry, however, when they came face to face later on in the book they don’t get beyond that surface chemistry again reinacting the same type of scene as their first meeting. I found that a bit frustrating and confusing wanting their relationship to become more established and expecting a romantic suspense novel. You know, with a couple becoming romantic. Unfortunately, the book ended before they established anything other than a flirtation, leaving us and the plot hanging in limbo until the second book is written. Even though the writing was good, the plot interesting, that lack of connection left a bad taste in my mouth. If the next book resolves this plot point, All will be forgiven, but will I want to take the chance and read it? Still undecided.

❤️❤️❤️

I received a copy of this book from NetGalley for my honest review, and it was honest.


Click the link to purchase! The Ultimatum (The Guardian Book 1)

Copyright 2017 Deborah Kehoe The Reading Chick All Rights Reserved

I am a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.

On By deborahkehoeIn A Hot Chick Who Reads