DEATH IN THE STOCKS by Georgette Heyer–A review

DEATH IN THE STOCKS Georgette Heyer Pub. Date: October 2009 Publisher: Sourcebooks, Incorporated ISBN-13: 9781402217975 ISBN: 1402217978 A bobby on his night rounds discovers a corpse in evening dress locked in the stocks on the village green. Inspector Hannasyde is called in, but sorting out the suspects proves a challenge. Anyone in the eccentric, exceedingly uncooperative Vereker family had the motive and means to kill Andrew Vereker, who seemed to have been universally disliked. One cousin allies himself with the inspector, while the victim’s half-brother and sister, each of whom suspects the other, markedly try to set him off the scent. To readers’ delight, the killer is so cunning (not to mention the author), that the mystery remains until the very end…  DEATH IN THE STOCKS by Georgette Heyer   This is a fiction/mystery. It is a who done it with twists and turns. The plot is well written. The characters are witty, rude to each other and the police. The story leaves you guessing who is the murderer and why. This is a good murder/mystery with a little romance mixed into the plot.This is a classic English style murder mystery. If you like Agatha Christie mysteries who will certainly enjoy this book.   Reviewed by AAR Rating:4  *For more information on this title and others by Georgette Heyer please visit  Sourcebooks.com.* *This book was recieved for review from Sourcebooks, however recieving the book had no influence on the reviewer’s thoughts.*

THE NOTORIOUS BRIDEGROOM by Kit Donner—a review

THE NOTORIOUS BRIDEGROOM Kit Donner Pub. Date: August 2009 Publisher: Kensington Publishing Corporation ISBN:9781420108460     From the Publisher   In the bedroom of a spy. . . Ever since the horrible day her brother was accused of treason, Patience Mandeley hasn’t recognized her own behavior. Under normal circumstances she would never be disguised as a maid, skulking around a earl’s estate for secrets she isn’t meant to find. But now the situation is desperate, and Patience will do whatever it takes to spare her beloved brother the noose, even if it means finding the true spy herself. To do that, she’ll have to gain access to the estate of Lord Londringham, the most desired bachelor in all of England—without him knowing who she really is. But even in her maid’s uniform, she can’t miss the looks of unsuppressed desire she receives from her employer, and she finds to her dismay that the attraction is quite mutual. Though she knows she must ignore her feelings for this dark-haired rogue to save her family and escape ruin, his close proximity is making all reason impossible. . .and Patience may find that the real traitor is her own body. . . THE NOTORIOUS BRIDEGROOM by Kit Donner   This is a wonderful debut Regency Historical Romance by this author. The plot is filled with mystery, intrigue, danger,and romance.It’s characters are witty, loving, sexy, charming,and they keep you wanting for more.There is a lot of sexy sparks flying between the hero and heroine. They both have different agendas. The secondary characters are charming and have depth. It has vivid period detail with a strong atmosphere, she pulls you into the story, makes you almost believe you are there. What a great story. I would highly recommend this book. Be fore warned it does have sex and love in bundles and will leave you to know more. Get a cup of tea, coffee, or whatever you drink and curl up for a very good read. Reviewed by AAR Rating: 4.5 *Please visit Kit Donner’s website for more information on her or this title.*   *This was a personal buy for review*

A HIGHLANDER CHRISTMAS by Janet Chapman—-a giveaway

A HIGHLANDER CHRISTMAS

by Janet Chapman

• Pub. Date: October 2009
• Publisher: Simon & Schuster Adult Publishing Group
• ISBN-13: 9781416595458
• ISBN: 1416595457

From the Publisher

Camry MacKeage has absolutely no intention of telling her parents that she left her job as a NASA physicist for the small-town life of a dog-sitter — which is why she’s spending the holidays alone in coastal Maine with her furry friends Tigger and Max. Unfortunately, her irresistibly handsome rival, scientist Luke Pascal, accidentally spilled the beans. Now he’s on a mission from her mother to tempt Camry home for the family’s annual winter solstice celebration. But Luke is hiding his own secret, and he’ll need a little bit of magic to earn Camry’s trust…and a whole lot of mistletoe to seduce his way into her heart.
 

*It is my great pleasure and honor to be able to offer 3copies of Janet Chapman’s  A HIGHLANDER CHRISTMAS to my readers. No P.O. boxes please. Giveaway is open to US and Canada residents only. Giveaway will run from today until December 27th. In order to win you must post here or at the review post. You must come back to see if you’ve won. Winners will have 72hrs to contact me before new winners will be chosen. Good luck to everyone!*

This giveaway is possible because of the great people at S&S.

A HIGHLANDER CHRISTMAS by Janet Chapman—review

A HIGHLANDER CHRISTMAS

by Janet Chapman

• Pub. Date: October 2009
• Publisher: Simon & Schuster Adult Publishing Group
• ISBN-13: 9781416595458
• ISBN: 1416595457

From the Publisher

Camry MacKeage has absolutely no intention of telling her parents that she left her job as a NASA physicist for the small-town life of a dog-sitter — which is why she’s spending the holidays alone in coastal Maine with her furry friends Tigger and Max. Unfortunately, her irresistibly handsome rival, scientist Luke Pascal, accidentally spilled the beans. Now he’s on a mission from her mother to tempt Camry home for the family’s annual winter solstice celebration. But Luke is hiding his own secret, and he’ll need a little bit of magic to earn Camry’s trust…and a whole lot of mistletoe to seduce his way into her heart.

A HIGHLANDER CHRISTMAS BY JANET CHAPMAN is a romance. If you believe in miracles and magic this is the book for you, if not you need to read this book. What a delightful story. It has mystery, romance, miracles, warmth,an enduring love, family  and magic. The plot is well written and easy to follow. The characters are wonderful and very realistic. The secondary characters are enchanting. This is a fast paced, page turning story. You won’t want to put it down. What a magical story. I would highly recommend this book.  

Reviewed by AAR

Rating:  4.5

*This book was recieved for review from the publisher. However that did not effect the reviewers thoughts on the book.*

A BLUE AND GRAY CHRISTMAS by Joan Medlicott—-a review & giveaway

A BLUE AND GRAY CHRISTMAS

Joan Medlicott

• Pub. Date: November 2009
• Publisher: Simon & Schuster Adult Publishing Group
• Series: Ladies of Covington Series  book 9
• ISBN-13: 9781416597353
• ISBN: 1416597352

Author’s Website:

Joan Medlicott.com

From the Publisher

 

When a rusty old tin box is unearthed at the Covington Homestead, longtime housemates Grace, Amelia, and Hannah discover that it contains letters and diaries written by two Civil War soldiers, one Union and one Confederate.

The friends are captivated by the drama revealed. The soldiers were found dying on a nearby battlefi eld by an old woman. She nursed them back to health, hiding them from bounty hunters seeking deserters. At the end of the war the men chose to stay in Covington, caring for their rescuer as she grew frail. But while their lives were rich, they still felt homesick and guilty for never contacting the families they’d left behind.

Christmas is coming, and the letters inspire Amelia with a generous impulse. What if she and her friends were to fi nd the two soldiers’ descendants and invite them to Covington to meet? What better holiday gift could there be than the truth about these two heroic men and their dramatic shared fate? With little time left, the ladies spring into action to track down the men’s families in Connecticut and the Carolinas, and to make preparations in Covington for their most memorable, most historic Christmas yet.

A BLUE AND GRAY CHRISTMAS by Joan Medlicott is a fiction title. This book is full of Civil Was history and shows the atrocities the soldiers, as in any war faced, through their diaries and letters. It shows the connections to ones past and their genelogical connections. Although, this book was not to my taste it is an interesting story. A little slow for me and I had trouble getting into the story and the characters. If you like this kind of story it would be great. There is really know romance, but two of the secondary characters connect.   Reviewed by AAR Rating:  3   *As a note this book is not marketed as a romance and is part of a series.*

This book was recieved for review from the publisher.

*We are offering one copy of A BLUE AND GRAY CHRISTMAS to one lucky commenter. To win just comment to this post, if you’ve read this author in the past what book did you read? Was it good? If not, what makes you most interested in reading this title?

This giveaway is open to the US only. Winners will be picked on December 30th. Good luck!*

 

In this stunning holiday story, a cache of Civil War-era letters and diaries sweeps the ladies of Covington up into a dramatic and heartwarming historical saga that inspires them to plan an unforgettable Christmas for two families forever changed by war.

A Christmas Giveaway?

Okay so who’s up for a Christmas Giveaway? You say you are? Well here’s what I need you all to tell me, I need 3/4 books that fit with Christmas, I have some in mind but I want to know if your ideas match mine, so what 3/4 books are you just dying to read this Christmas with a Christmas theme?

I’ll let you know more details on the giveaway tomorrow<G>.

See gotta make you wait.

Just a quick note……

I’ m so sorry. I’ve been overly busy with DH’s business and Christmas things, take this to mean wrapping presents……but tomorrow I will be updating the blog and will new posts for the next few days/weeks, as well as a few new giveaways, and some winners to annouce.

I also have a giveaway for Christmas I am doing myself that will feature a the anniversary tote Harlequin has, and some books………..so please bare with me and stay tuned.

I hope you all are having a wonderful Christmas Season and enjoying this time of year.

hugs,

WendyK

An interview with Summer Wine Lee by Kathryne Kennedy

 

Kathryne Kennedy Guest Blog, author of My Unfair Lady

My Book Addiction & More; December 8, 2009

 

Interview with Summer Wine Lee, heroine of My Unfair Lady

 

The streets of London are busy, the clatter of hooves and the rumble of carriages over cobblestone mingling with the calls of costermongers and flower girls. I knock on the door of a tidy little brownstone that smacks of new wealth with none of the sophistication of the landed aristocracy. A girl with wild green eyes and black hair, Maria, dressed in a gown of clashing colors that makes me think she’s half gypsy, opens the door.

Maria: Well, what do ya’ want?

Kathryne Kennedy: Er, I have an appointment with Miss Summer Lee.

The girl’s eyes narrow as she studies my modern clothing suspiciously, but before she can say another word, a voice calls from the parlor.

Summer Wine Lee: Oh, do stop being so tiresome, Maria. Let the lady in and bring us some tea.

The black haired girl humphs, but allows me inside, and I try not to gawk too much at the antiques that surround me as she leads me into a smallish room with dark green velvet drapes heavy enough to feel oppressive. I blink while my eyes adjust to the light, and study the girl sitting on the chaise. While Maria had made me think gypsy, Summer Lee made me think of a forest fairy, with her diminutive stature and golden coloring. I had to remind myself that although I knew Summer well, I was a complete stranger to her, so I resisted the urge to hug her, and instead sat on a lovely velvet wingback chair.

KK: You asked to see me?

SWL, nods eagerly: Oh, yes. I need your help.

KK, smiling: I think you can manage whatever life throws your way, Summer. You don’t need me.

SWL: But I do. I’m terribly confused, you see, and it’s all your fault.

KK, squirms a little, but refuses to feel too guilty: You’re in a bit of trouble. But I have every confidence you’ll figure everything out.

SWL: Tarnation, if it weren’t for that man, I’d agree with you.

KK: I assume you mean the duke?

SWL, throws her arms up in the air: Who else? Not that I’m complaining about hiring him, mind. He managed to turn the outside of me into a lady, leastways.

She did look charming. Her hair had been swept up in an elegant back bun, with perfect spiral curls falling across her cheeks, a fringe of hair on her forehead softening her elfin features. She wore a dress of ivory satin, edged with lace around the neck and hem, with a full bustle swelling behind her. Embroidered slippers peeked from beneath the lace of her gown, and a stunning pearl choker circled her throat. I sighed as I looked down at my worn tennis shoes and denim-clad legs.

KK: You’re now as lovely outside as you are on the inside.

SWL, scowling: Ha. You know darn well what terrible thing I did—

Fortunately, Maria chose that moment to enter the parlor, bearing a tea tray glittering with silver and china, which she set down with a clatter. The hem of her purple and green striped skirt lifted, and out ran the tiniest Chihuahua I’d ever seen. The little dog barked at me once, then cocked her head at my shoelaces, a wicked gleam in her eyes, and promptly bounced over and settled herself at my feet, chewing on the ends of the strings gleefully. At the same time, the bundle of fur on Maria’s shoulder uncurled itself to reveal a little monkey, gazing at me curiously.

KK, smiling in pure delight: Chi-chi!  India, you little scamp. You’re both even cuter than I imagined.

M, frowning in confusion, and then shrugging: Summer, the duke is waiting in his carriage for ya’. And ya’ know how he hates to be kept waiting.

SWL: He’s more than an hour early. She huffs. Oh, botheration, tell him I’ll be right there.  Looks at the tea tray and me regretfully.  Do you think you can come back so we can have a proper talk?

KK: I’m sorry, Summer, but I don’t think I can manage this again. It’s…difficult to come to you. I start feeling woozy, and kinda hazy around the edges.

Summer bounds to her feet, silk skirts swishing, and grasps my hand.

SWL: But wait. You have to tell me what happens. What am I going to do?

KK: I wish I could, Summer. But the truth is, I just don’t know.

SWL, brown eyes flashing gold: Tarnation, how can you not know?

KK: Because my characters always take over the story, Summer. I have no idea what you’re going to do next. The room shimmers and fades and Chi-chi lets go of my shoelaces with a startled yelp. But don’t worry. I promise you’ll have a happily-ever-after. I write romances, after all.

Dear Readers:

I hope you enjoyed the character interview. I’ll be checking in all day today for your comments, so please take a moment to say hello.

 

And thanks a million, My Book Addiction and More, for having me here today!

 

All My Best,

Kathryne

My Unfair Lady by Kathryne Kennedy—in stores December 2009!

He created the perfect woman…
The impoverished Duke of Monchester despises the rich Americans who flock to London, seeking to buy their way into the ranks of the British peerage. So when railroad heiress Summer Wine Lee offers him a king’s ransom if he’ll teach her to become a proper lady, he’s prepared to rebuff her. But when he meets the petite beauty with the knife in her boot, it’s not her fortune he finds impossible to resist…

For the arms of another man
Frontier-bred Summer Wine Lee has no interest in winning over London society—it’s the New York bluebloods and her future mother-in-law she’s determined to impress. She knows the cost of smoothing her rough-and-tumble frontier edges will be high. But she never imagined it might cost her heart…

About the Author

Kathryne Kennedy is the author of the Relics of Merlin series, acclaimed for her world-building and best known for her historical paranormal romances. She has also written a fantasy romance and this Victorian historical romance. She has also published nearly a dozen short stories in the SFF/Romance genre, receiving Honorable Mention twice in the “Writers of the Future” contest. She has traveled a great deal and has lived in Guam, Okinawa, and several states in the U.S. She is a business owner and currently lives in Arizona with her husband and two sons. For more information, please visit http://www.kathrynekennedy.com/

*Thanks to the Danielle at Sourcebooks I am thrilled to let you all know that Sourcebooks is giving away 1, yes that’s ONE copy of MY UNFAIR LADY to a lucky commenter. Giveaway is open the US and Canada only, no P.O. boxes please. If you’d like to win a copy of this truly great book please leave a comment to this post. Winners will be annouced at the end of the week. Good luck!*

MY UNFAIR LADY by Kathryne Kennedy—-a review

MY UNFAIR LADY

by Kathryne Kennedy

Product ISBN: 9781402229909
Publication Date: December 2009 A wild west heiress, Summer Wine Lee knows that she’s not an acceptable bride for her fiance’s knickerbocker family. She grew up in an Arizona mining town, cares more for critters than people, carries a knife under her skirts, and, worst of all, she has a highly improper secret from her past. But she also has high hopes that a real English Duke can teach her how to be a lady… Were it not for his father’s gambling debts, the Duke of Monchester would never have stooped to civilize Summer. But the more time he spends with her, and the more social scrapes he has to rescue her from, the more he finds it impossible to change her into a proper lady. How could he, when he’s falling in love with her just the way she is? MY UNFAIR LADY BY KATHRYNE KENNEDY is a romance. This author has done a wonderful job. This story is delightful, witty, full of suspense, mystery, adventure and romance.  This is a country bumpkin meets an aristocrat. What a wonderful story .The characters are very entertaining and charming. The story is well written with depth and character. This is a fast paced, page turning, truly delightful story. It is sensual, but very entertaining. I would highly recommend this book. Reviewed by AAR Rating 4.5 This book is a bit rare as it will get two reviews. For those who may not know, my mother is the AAR who writes reviews for this blog. So while the above is her review let me give you my thoughts on this great book as well. See we both read it, and read it close to the same time, often I’ll read a book weeks prior to her reading it, or she’ll read weeks/mths before I get a chance to. So our reviews don’t work to be together, but this one…… MY UNFAIR LADY by Kathryne Kennedy is a great story. There is romance, but more than that there is laughter. I can still “see” scenes from this story. The hero is so fun to watch as he watchs Summer. Summer is so great a character. She’s realistic, and she’s cute. This is one of those rare historicals that will make it to your keeper shelf, but not stay there long! You’ll be rereading it, and telling others to read it. Fans of fun, witty, deeply engaging stories will find MY UNFAIR LADY a prize! Reviewed by Wendy Keel Rating 4.5 I hope you’ll stop by Sourcebooks to get your own copy of this great story. Please be sure to check out Kathryne’s blog post, where she interviews Summer. It’s awesome and you have a chance to win a copy of this book for yourself. The post goes live tomorrow, December 8th, 2009. *This book was recieved for review from Sourcebooks. Recieving the book did NOT influence our words or thoughts of this book, it really is a great story.*

A visit with Mary Lydon Simonsen…

It is my great pleasure and honor to welcome Mary Lydon Simonsen to My Book Addiction and More. Please join me in welcoming Ms. Simonsen.

 

Mary Lydon Simonsen Guest Blog, author of Searching for Pemberley

  

My Book Addiction and More; December 4, 2009

Thank you, Wendy, for inviting me to write a guest blog!

If you are a fan of Jane Austen’s novels, you probably have seen some of the screen and television adaptations of her work. Most of them are filmed at gorgeous country manor houses with lush gardens and parkland. The actresses are always outfitted in lovely A-line silk dresses with an Empire waist, while the men are dressed in clothes made popular by Beau Brummell: jacket, waistcoat, elaborate neckcloth, breeches, and knee-high boots.  As a result, we associate Jane Austen with the Regency Era, but many people may not realize that Jane lived most of her life in the Georgian Era, the setting for my story. So I had to do extensive research on that earlier period of British history, a time when a sane George III was on the throne, the future George IV was the Prince of Wales and not the Prince Regent, and the French Terror had caused an exodus of aristocrats to England’s shores. As for Jane, she would have been wearing the flowing dresses modeled on Greek statuary ,and the men she danced with would have worn powdered wigs and makeup. (That may be historically accurate, but no admirer of Mr. Darcy would ever have him wearing a wig, including me.)

In my novel, Maggie Joyce, a young American who is working in post World War II England, is a fan of Pride and Prejudice, and when she learns that Elizabeth Bennet and Fitzwilliam Darcy may have been based on the real Elizabeth Garrison and William Lacey, she heads north to Derbyshire and Montclair, Austen’s storied Pemberley. After looking at dozens of books containing pictures of Georgian Era manor houses, I was able to design Pemberley and its gardens from the ground up. My Pemberley is of Palladian design with an emphasis on symmetry and the classical temple architecture of Classical Greece. When Maggie arrives at Montclair she finds an elegant Georgian mansion with Robert Adam interiors and a garden designed by Humphry Repton, the premier landscape planner of the day.

As for the lives of those who lived at Pemberley, Maggie learns of their history from stories told to her by Beth and Jack Crowell, a couple who live in a nearby village and who know if the legend of a real Lizzy and Darcy is true. They share letters written by the Laceys, as well as a diary that had belonged to Elizabeth Lacey, in which she writes of her courtship with Mr. Lacey and the early years of their marriage. Through these documents, the events which took place at Pemberley 150 years earlier are shared with the reader.

I chose to write about Pride and Prejudice because I have loved the novel ever since I first read it many years ago in my high school English class. But when you take events out of a novel and bring them into the real world, as I did in Searching for Pemberley, some things have to change. For example, would Lizzy really have talked back to Lady Catherine?  Probably not. But relying on Darcy’s love for her, she understood that she could still prevail despite Her Ladyship’s objections. And what of Mrs. Bennet? A real mother of five daughters, who lived in fear of losing their home upon her husband’s death, would have been much more circumspect than Lizzy’s loud, unfiltered mother. A silly Mrs. Bennet in P&P is amusing and acceptable, but in real life, people would have asked “What was she thinking?”

But the heart of the novel, whether Regency, Georgian, or modern, is a love story of two people who bridge class differences to be together because they are in love and well suited to each other. It is a Cinderella story, with Caroline Bingley and Louisa Hurst as the stepsisters, and one where the pumpkin coach has the Darcy crest emblazoned on its doors and the castle is Pemberley.

If my readers are like me, I use an author’s description of the characters and its settings as a starting point. If I disagree with the writer, I just change the image. If you could visit Pemberley, what would it look like? Would it be as large as Chatsworth, the home of the Dukes of Devonshire, or a mansion from the Elizabethan Era with ivy-covered walls, or a true Georgian mansion with it Ionic or Corinthian capitals? I’d be interested to hear your comments.

SEARCHING FOR PEMBERLEY—IN STORES DECEMBER 2009

Set against Regency England, World Wars I and II, and postwar England, three love stories intertwine in surprising and fateful ways

American Maggie Joyce, touring Derbyshire in 1947, visits, Montclair, an 18th century Georgian country house, that she is told was the model for Jane Austen’s Pemberley. More amazingly, the former residents of the mansion, William Lacey and Elizabeth Garrison, were the inspiration for the characters of Fitzwilliam Darcy and Elizabeth Bennet in Pride and Prejudice.

Through letters, diary entries, and oral history, Beth and Jack Crowell, a couple who lives in the nearby village of Crofton, share stories of the people they say inspired Jane Austen. They also tell their own love story, made difficult by their vastly different backgrounds—she was one of the social elite while he was the son of a servant. When their son, Michael, travels home from his RAF station in Malta, Maggie may have just found her very own Mr. Darcy.

About the Author

Mary Simonsen grew up in North Jersey with the exciting venues of New York City easily accessible. She is largely self-educated and is especially interested in American and European history and 19th Century novels. In Searching for Pemberley she was able to combine her love of history (World War II and postwar England) with Austen’s characters, Miss Elizabeth Bennet and Fitzwilliam Darcy, and being a romantic, the novel includes three love stories from three different time periods, all thanks to Jane Austen. She lives in Peoria, Arizona. For more information, please visit

http://searchingforpemberley.weebly.com/

*There is a giveaway with this book today! Thanks to Danielle at Sourcebooks I am thrilled to be able to offer 2 copies of this wonderful book to readers. This giveaway is open to US and Canada residents only. If you’d like to recieve a copy of this great book, just post a comment to this post. Winners will be picked on Sat. December 5th. Good luck!!!*