A Laird for All Time by Angeline Fortin

This book is about Dr. Emmy MacKenzie, an obgyn, who finds herself hurled back into time and comes into contact with Connor MacLean who swears that Emmy is his long, lost wife Heather. The author did a great job of transporting the reader back in time, where men wear kilts and woman are slowly coming into a greater role in society. I normally have issues with historical books as one of my majors in colleges was history and I hate when inaccuracies abound. A lot of times historicals end up feeling like modern characters with dialogue in historical garb. I end up wanting to punch something and cannot finish the books. But this author really was able to bring the past to life in a believable and accurate way. I found myself enjoying the past she brought to life on the pages for the readers.

The main characters had a great interaction between the two. I loved how the plot unfolded, there are plenty of twists and turns that leave the reader anxious to see how everything comes to fruition. I really loved that the plot wasn't a normal cookie cutter time traveling book. It had a creative spin that really was enjoyable and I had a difficult time putting the book down. This is the first book I've read from this author and I hope to read many more. I had such a great time getting to see how Emmy's and Connor's love story played out and to see how they came to discover the heart does not know the bounds of time or place. It is always great to see a strong woman character who can appreciate a hot guy in a kilt but also stand her own ground as well. This is truly a 'magical' book for time traveling and historical readers.

~ Darkling

Christmas Dinne by Robyn Neeley

The book is about two news anchors Amanda Turner and Tate Ryan, who have been working together for about a year. When the Christmas season comes around Amanda finds herself having to go home to deal with some personal demons from her past with Tate helping her by her side by pretending to be her boyfriend.

I liked how the two main characters had a ying and yang working and personal relationship. Where Amanda is not a think on the feet type of person, Tate is there to help step in. Where Tate is not the best organizer, Amanda is the one who thrives on it. It was nice to see a guy struggling to find a way to find the right words and emotions. Most guys stumble over their emotions and are just unsure when their heart can be broken and I think the author did a wonderful job in showing that inner and outwards struggle Tate had.

The one thing I didn't like so much was just how much Amanda was clueless about everything. I found it almost wanting to slap her more than once in the book, as for a professional and ambitious woman it was grating to see her so self-absorbed all the time and down right mean at times. I found that Tate really deserved better than someone who wasn't even an ounce curious about him and what made him ticked. It was too much about her and not enough about the world around her, that the character flaw was really hard to over look and to enjoy her at times.

All in all it was a short, fun, 'magical' read. I would highly recommend this Christmas story and I look forward to seeing what other books the author has done.

~ Darkling

Change My Mind By Elley Arden Book Review

This book is about a real estate agent Nel Parker that is trying to establish her company after a messy breakup with her previous real estate broker boyfriend, and baseball center-fielder Grey Kemmons for Nashville. Grey is trying to fix up a house left to him in his father's will for a quick sale, and Nel is trying to convince Grey to let her list the house and help with the renovation process.

I've not read anything by this author before and I was not sure what to expect. But from the first word the last word I was hooked and I'm a bit bereft now that I've finished the book. I honestly laughed, cried, hoped and worried about each to the characters that the author introduced to the readers. I loved Grey and Nel as they were older, not the typical young 20 something hotties who met and fall in love and everything is rosy. There were hardships, there was baggage of the past, and there was messy, quirky flaws that each one had to figure out.

What made the story great was it was real and showed how love actually works. Love blossoms and is based not only on chemistry but respect and the a foundation of mutual admiration for each other. Where Nel was weak Grey was strong, and where Grey was weak Nel was strong. It was great to see a woman who was independent, a business owner and knew what she wanted and went after for it. Finally a book where there heroine is not dreaming about her magical white wedding and how that will complete her finally, but here is a woman who wants to make her mark in the business world and knows how to go after that business dream for herself.

This 'magical' book is one I highly enjoyed and I cannot wait to see what other books the author was written. This book is a series of the Kemmons brothers and I cannot wait to read the rest of the Kemmons brothers stories to find love and happiness.

~ Darkling

Believing Again by Peggy Bird (Book 5 in the Second Chances)

This book is about Detective Danny Hartman, who works for the Portland Police department with her partner Sam and Doctor Jake Abrams, who is a thoracic surgeon, who works with veterans with PTSD at a clinic he works at. The two are put together when someone is targeting vets from Jake's clinic in homeless camps and killing them in drive by shootings. I like romance stories that are more than just girl meets boy, girl and boy fall in love, girl and boy live happily ever after. The backdrop of the book with the police investigation elevated a romance story to a new level.

I enjoy police stories and for the longest loved Milo Sturgis and Alex Delaware in the Kellerman police thriller genre, though at times they took themselves a bit too seriously and I didn't enjoy where the author took some of the core characters, but the relationship between partners Danny and Sam reminded me of that same relationship in Kellerman books. The author was able to keep the readers attention with trying to unravel who is targeting veterans in the homeless camps. What was a bit disappointing was how this plot gets resolved. I felt the author had a good idea that was never fully developed and brought to life. Even with the lacking resolution the writing was top notch and makes me want to see what else the author has done.

The relationship and romance of the story was surprising real and interesting at the same time. It was nice to see people in their 30's with established careers that for various reasons still were not great in the relationship department. This is true to life, relationships take time and it was nice to see this romance develop in a realistic time line and fashion. It was not just hey we meet 5 minutes ago and are now madly in love and moving forward with a wedding and future. This relationship was built on mutual respect, chemistry and two people who enjoyed each others company. I so loved seeing the getting to know each other part of any story. Those little growing closer moments over cooking for someone for the first time, having a couple of dates, asking questions about each other and learning about each other with each weekend and date that passes. Honestly a refreshing and real love story that I truly felt sad when I got to the end. I want to peek more into this story and these two quirky, flawed and such interesting characters the author has brought to life on the page for their readers. No one is perfect and neither is Danny and Jake, but those imperfections made them not perfect people but perfect for each other. I would highly recommend this book and I cannot wait to read more from this author.

~Darkling

Tonight's reading plan

My weekend is winding down to an end and. I have completed my paper that was due for my class. I went to a girls night in and helped to support several woman in their home businesses. Now tonight, my plans are to read Love Birds of Regent's Park, by a very wonderful author friend Ruth Hartman. I highly recommend her books and will be posting a review of the book once I've finished it. So let me know what is on your current reading list? What are you reading right now?
~Darkling

Cover Reveal - Rebecca's Resistance

We are excited to showcase the cover reveal for author Teresa Jones's book, Rebecca's Resistance. Teresa recently signed her first contract with new historical romance publishing house, Parchment & Plume!   Blurb: Every year Bella Plantation comes alive with the Christmas season as the prominent Bellafield family hosts their annual holiday parties. The only thing more famous than the parties at Bella Plantation is the marriages that are arranged during the parties, as well as the one marriage that has never been arranged.   Rebecca Bellafield has been introduced to the finest men that South Carolina can offer and still she has resisted each suitor. Her mother wants a marriage based on name and money, while she is looking for someone to share her life with.   When her mother announces that this year their approach to suitors will be different, Rebecca is sure that the holiday season is going to miserable that is until she gets caught in the eyes of a green-eyed stranger.   Rebecca's Resistance will be available at all ebook retailers on October 3, 2013!                   Author Bio: Teresa Jones is a native from Pennsylvania where she grew up in small coal mining towns and spent her younger years reading everything she could get her hands on.   She has been writing stories almost as long as she has been reading them and used to sit in her closet, writing in her notebooks while her imagination carried her to places far away.   She now resides in Texas with her husband and their "children", a black lab named Maximus and an orange tabby named Princess. When she is not reading or writing she is planning an escape to the coast to be as close to the ocean as possible.

Sunday Classics - Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card

For this Sunday Classic I thought I would review a book that in all honesty I never wanted to read. I had begged, pleaded and pouted and got my husband to join a book club I was a member of years ago. The leader always let each member pick a book from time to time, so that everyone felt they got a voice in what was being read in the group. My husband picked 'Ender's Game', a book I had not heard of before and when I knew more about it, still did not want to read it. But I'm always a good sport with the book club and I read what is picked each month, even those books that don't grab me or interest me. I am of the mindset that every book I read, whether I like it or not, I feel I am better for it. I try and learn something from each book and allow me to grow and develop. So it was a huge surprise to me that when I started to read the book, how powerful I found it to be. The author Orson Scott Card, really used metaphor to his advantage. Card also spoke greatly on the nature of politics, government and people's rights. I was blown away by the book and could not believe that I had not read this Classics before. Truly a book that changed me in a number of ways, how I viewed government's, people, political parties, roles in society and the world. The book and twists and turns that I as a reader did not see coming, from the first page to the last page I was on the edge of my seat to see what was going to happen and how the events would unfold. This was one time I happily admitted that my husband was right, he can pick some interesting and great books. This book was so 'magical' it burst with magic from every page.