Last Day at Access Romance Readers Gab...

Some of you may have heard that Access Romance is closing at the end of the month. So today is my last post there. Please come by and find out all the reasons us readers get each other.

Access Romance Day ...

So late getting this up but I was happy just to get the post up over at the Access Romance Readers Gab. Luckily, I had most of it written last week. I'm over there talking about why I read YA. Come on over and let us know if you read YA and if so why.

It's been a really long week. I've got a bunch of reviews to write for some really good books but I'm only online for short periods. I got sick this past Saturday and end up in the ER with pneumonia. Spent a few days in the hospital (not fun) and now I'm home resting and trying to get rid of this before going to Denver next month. The transplant was put off until next month because my brother still had signs of cancer so he's going through another round of chemo. Right now I'm looking forward to July. My goal for July is a nice, calm, stress-free month. Please.

So, what have you all been up to? Read any good books lately?

Lori - I hope your mom is doing better. :)

Nath - Did your vertigo go away? Hope so. :)

Miss you guys!

Access Romance Day...

It's that time again. Come on over and join me at Access Romance Readers Gab where I'm talking about Best Seller Lists. How much, if any, importance do you place on the best seller lists? Do those lists influence your reading choices?

Access Romance Day ...

Today I'm at Access Romance Readers Gab talking about the giant, massively overwhelming TBR Pile and what to do about it. Come on over and share your advice on what to do when books take over your home.

Review: Deeply, Desperately

Deeply, Desperately
Heather Webber
Contemporary Mystery/Romance
Lucy Valentine/Book 2
St. Martin's/August 3, 2010

From the back cover ~

The irrepressible star of "Truly, Madly, " is back in business. This time, Lucy Valentine will go to the ends of the earth to find true love for her clients...and maybe even herself.

Lucy wants to breathe new life into her family’s Boston-based matchmaking company. But how? Even though she comes from a long line of ancestors blessed by Cupid with psychic abilities, a freak accident left Lucy with only one special skill: finding things. Car keys, socks in the dryer, needles in haystacks...and now, in a stroke of professional genius, lost loves

It’s not long before Lucy’s on a winning streak, helping old flames reunite and create new sparks. Business is booming. But when Lucy finds herself involved in a possible case of murder, she realizes she’s in too deep. Enter Sean Donahue. Lucy’s handsome fire-fighter turned private-eye neighbor, Sean is just the man she needs to help her on the job. Could he also be the man she’s been looking for all along? When it comes to Valentine, Inc., falling in love is always serious business…

And... she's back! My goodness but I'm so happy I got past the cutesy covers and started this reading this series. Lucy is one of those characters if she were real, I'd love to be friends. She has this wacky, crazy life where sometimes it seems like she's the only sane one in the bunch. Which is funny because Lucy isn't exactly normal.

Lucy is now gainfully employed in her family's business but she not into the traditional match-making. She uses her 'gift' to find lost loves which gets complicated when she also finds a dead body. Things are never simple with Lucy; she's trying to solve a murder, search for a missing person, get some alone time with Sean and possibly stop her best friend from marrying the wrong guy. The subplot of Lucy and her friend Marisol trying to get the goods on their friend Em's fiancé was comical and with help from an unlikely source only adding to the fun. I love the dynamics of the three friends, even with their busy lives, they stay close.

Reporter Preston Bailey is still around, much to Lucy's irritation. She was hounding Lucy for a story in the first book and is now back, with Oscar Valentine's blessing, tagging along with Lucy. Preston adds another dimension to Lucy's crazy life and while there is tension between the two women, there is also an odd affection developing. Odd because they are often arguing with each other. At first I wasn't thrilled with Preston still being around but she's grown on me.

Lucy has a highly functioning dysfunctional family. Her parents are married but live like they're divorced, still friends but leading separate lives. Her grandma, Dovie, is active in protesting for causes and desperate for grandkids. And now Lucy may have stumbled into a family secret that could change her family dynamics.

Lucy and Sean can't get a break when it comes to making some times under the covers or on the couch or even on the kitchen table. Fate or Cupid's Curse seem to be conspiring to keep these two would be lovers apart. Sean's ex is back in the picture and man, did I feel sorry for Lucy and everything she had to go through. I thought she was very mature and while I understood why Sean acted how he did, it was still hard to see how it affected Lucy. This was a surprisingly emotional part of the story. Lucy and Sean finally get that break and boy do they make the most of it! I really like these two together. Webber makes the most of the characters strengths and weaknesses to create a believable couple of Lucy and Sean.

This is a fairly short read at just over 300 pages and with a lot going on but Webber does a great job keeping the different threads from becoming jumbled. There really isn't any down time. It's a fast read, keeping you reading well into the night. Don't start this thinking you'll just read a chapter or two, because the next thing you know, you'll be half-way through.

The only minor problem I had was how things were resolved with Sean's ex. It all happened rather quickly. I would have like to see more dialogue on the part of Sean and Lucy concerning what happened and how they dealt with it. Other than that, I loved this book! If you haven't started this series, what are you waiting for?!

Rating: A-

Books in this series ~

Truly, Madly
Deeply, Desperately
Absolutely, Positively

Access Romance Day ...

Happy President's Day to those of you in the US. It's George Washington's birthday and a holiday here in the states. Speaking of historical figures, today I'm at Access Romance's Readers Gab talking about real people in romances. Do you like when a historical figure shows up in your romance novel? Come on by and let us know.

Access Romance Day. . .

Today's my day at the Access Romance Readers Gab and I'm talking about category romances and why I finally started reading them. Come on over and tell me what you think about these shorter format romance novels. Do you read them?

Access Romance Day. . .

Today is my day over at the Readers Gab Blog at Access Romance. I'm talking about reading guilt and how we should let go of it. Come on over and confess. :)

What Are You Thankful For?

Hey All ~

I'm over at Access Romance's Readers Gab today talking about - yep, what I'm thankful for. Come on over and chime in on the discussion. I'll bet you can guess my answer. :)

And Happy Thanksgiving to those of you that celebrate turkey day. If you're traveling over this holiday weekend, may your trip be safe.

Access Romance Day. . .

Guess where I am today? Yep, Access Romance Readers Gab talking about kids. Not my kids but kids in romance novels. Do you like to read about them? Would rather your hero or heroine didn't have little ones under foot? Come on over and let us know what you think.

Access Romance Day...

Hey there! Today's my day over at Access Romance Readers Gab so come on over and let me know what you think about book review grades. How much importance to you put on review grades? Do you find it easy to give grades? Do you prefer stars, numbers, letters or maybe cookies? The chewy chocolate chip kind. ; ) Come on over and let us know!

How Many at One Time?

I'm over at Access Romance today blogging about reading habits and how I usually find myself reading more than one book at a time. Come on over and join in and let us know what your reading habits are. Are you a one at a time reader or do you like reading more than one book at a time?

And while you're there check out the Author's Blog and the great contests going on.

I'm Not Here...

Today is my day at Access Romance Reader's Gab. So come on over and see what I'm gabbing about. I'll give you a hint - I'm confessing my deepest, darkest secrets. Okay, not really but I am making a confession about my reading. Stop by and make you're own confessions. :)

I'm Not Here, I'm There...

Today is my first post at Access Romance's Readers Gab.

Come on over and talk about names in romance. Names you like, don't like. Gotta a character name you wish authors would use? Or maybe stop using? I'm talking about character names at Access Romance.