Country Roads

My Mission: Where The Road Ends by Tara Taylor Quinn

Harlequin Connection: Published under the Mira imprint

Publication Date: 2003

How Long It's Been In My TBR: Since 2003. I was hot to trot to get this book because a huge chunk of the story takes place in Southwest Michigan, otherwise known as Where The Super Librarian Is From.

Plot: Amelia Wainscoat is the powerful business woman behind Wainscoat Construction in Chicago. After her father died, she took over the family business, leaving her young son, Charles, to be raised by his father and a doting nanny. Then her husband dies in a boating accident, and the nanny becomes strangely possessive. Shortly after Amelia fires her, Charles is abducted from an amusement part. Convinced that the jilted nanny took her son, Amelia hires private investigator, Brad Dorchester. When a lead turns up in Michigan, Amelia adopts the alias Amy Wayne and hits the road.

My Verdict: I really wish the author and Mira hadn't tried to make this a romance, because it really doesn't work as one. As a suspense novel it's not bad. Amelia/Amy was a hands-off mother until Charles kidnapping changes everything. This woman becomes frantic, desperate, and a better mother with each passing chapter. I think some readers will have trouble with her character at first, but she really goes through a metamorphosis as the tension continues to build.

The romance is extremely tacked on. I mean, how does one even think about love, sex, and naughty bits when your child is missing? Brad is largely off-screen for the majority of the book, communicating with Amelia/Amy through phone calls. There's also an aborted relationship Amelia/Amy has with a single father while passing through one of the numerous small towns she winds up in. It just doesn't work. I'm happy to report though that the author does keep the ending, as far as the romance is concerned, a little vague. No wedding bells or pregnant heroine, just a promise of a fresh start. That did work for me.

The writing here is pretty good and Quinn drips the pages with desperation. However, there's some repetition (especially in the early chapters) and with all the aliases flying around I think the editor and author could have buttoned them up better. The name "Amy" pops up in the prologue but Amelia isn't officially going by that name until chapter one. There's also a loose thread towards the end involving a threat Amy receives at her house in Chicago that isn't tied up at all. That was kind of annoying, as was the fact that I had the suspense angle figured out long before Amelia/Amy did.

The setting made me a little homesick. Neither here nor there, but I used to buy the adult fiction books for the library in one of the little towns Amelia/Amy finds herself in. I also was slightly bemused to read this description of Paw Paw by one of the characters, "Not much there except a few rich people who want to live out in the country and commute to Kalamazoo. And some white trash." Ha! Not the most flattering picture even if it is true (and before any Paw Paw-ians get het up, everyone's got their fair share of white trash regardless of where they live). That said, it's unforgivable that she didn't mention the winery.

Final Grade = C+

Training Wheels

My Mission: A Man For The Night by Miranda Lee

Harlequin Connection: #64 in the Harlequin Blaze line.

Publication Date: November 2002

How Long It's Been In My TBR: A long time. So long I can't remember where or when I actually purchased it. It looks new, but that doesn't mean anything.

Plot: Josie Williams has just found out her new boyfriend likes guys just as much as she does. This is a deal breaker, so she has no choice but to dump the guy on the eve of her high school reunion. This is a real pickle for Josie, since she so wanted to show up at the reunion with a gorgeous hunk on her arm and show up her nemesis, Amber, who is now married to a gazillionaire. No sweat! Josie's friend and business partner tells her about an exclusive escort service. She has just the hunk in mind, a gorgeous struggling actor. The actor in question is Callum McCloud's baby brother. His brother has agreed to Josie's job, only to get the opportunity to attend a party hosted by some Hollywood big wigs. Could Callum please step in and bail him out? Certainly! What are brothers for?

Of course one thing leads to another, with Callum and Josie agreeing to a "fling" until Callum has to leave for a business trip. Can they keep it strictly an affair without falling in love?

My Verdict: I would recommend this story to anybody who thinks the Blaze line is "all sex with no plot." This story actually reads like a Harlequin Temptation with a longer word count.

I'm a sucker for the high school reunion storyline, mainly because I think it's an accessible and believable scenario. That said, I did find Josie to run hot and cold for the entire story. One moment I thought she was a prude, the next I thought "You go girl!" Then I allowed myself to remember what it was like to be single and dating ::shudder:: and the "hot and cold" behavior started working better for me. Callum is one of those no-commitment types and I liked that he was up front with Josie and that his Big Secret (taking his baby brother's place) is out in the open by the time the second half rolls around.

What doesn't work so well? We get a Big Commitment in the final chapter which frankly didn't work for me. The story takes place in one week and I'm sorry - a Mr. No Committment Leopard doesn't change his spots that quickly. I don't care how fantastic the sex is.

Final Grade = B-. Besides the rush to commitment, I also thought this story was a bit slow to get moving. We don't actually get to the high school reunion until Chapter 7. Less on the beginning and more on the middle and end would have been good.

Classic Nora: Episode II

My Mission: Her Mother's Keeper by Nora Roberts, part of the 2-in-1 reprint With Open Arms.

Harlequin Connection: Published under the Silhouette Romance banner, it was Nora's 8th published title.

Publication Date: Originally 1983, my reprint edition was published in 2004.

How Long It's Been In My TBR: A couple of years? I do remember that it was an impulse buy.

Plot: Gwen Lacrosse is 23 and making her way in New York City when she starts getting disturbing letters from her mother. Mom's letters are filled with chatter about bestselling novelist and notorious playboy Luke Powers, who is now renting a room in her mother's spacious New Orleans home. Disturbed that her 47-year-old mother is having an affair with a man 12-years her junior, Gwen rushes home with plans to send him packing.

My Verdict: Oh dear Lord in heaven, my eyes were bleeding before the end of the second chapter. First off, Gwen's freaked by the 12-year age difference between mummy and Luke. Never mind that Luke is 35 and Gwen is 23. That's right. 12-year age difference. I hate hypocrites.

But that's not the worst of it.

Oh no.

Because Gwen then proceeds to make out with Luke before we even get to the end of chapter two. Never mind that she still thinks her mother (yes, her mother!) is having an affair with this guy. She's going to merrily let him shove his tongue down her throat. I mean, what's the quickest way to break up a supposed relationship? All Gwen would have to say is, "Hey Mom? You know that hot guy you're having an affair with. Well he's been groping my goodies and I have first hand knowledge he can do fantastic things with his tongue." But does Gwen do this? Of course not! Why would she want to talk to your mother? And Luke? He knows that Gwen thinks he's boinking mama and he lets her believe it to "teach her a lesson." I can sort of see his point on that because Gwen is so uppity it's amazing she's not crapping diamonds.

But wait, there's more.

Amazing I know, but honestly, the best is yet to come.

This Big Misunderstanding goes on for the entire story! That's right. Gwen doesn't find out until the last chapter what a stupid-ass moron she is. That instead of having the sense that God gave a sack of blonde hair she should have, oh I don't know, talked to her damn mother about the supposedly hot-ass affair she was having! The whole set-up gave me a major case of the skeeves.

On the bright side, from a technical stand-point you can really see the growth in Nora's writing.

Final Grade = DNF. I only read the first 60 pages, skipped the middle and read the last chapter. I just couldn't handle it. No more memory lane for me, I'm sticking with Nora's single titles.

Classic Nora: Part I

My Mission: Song Of The West by Nora Roberts, part of the 2-in-1 reprint With Open Arms (confused yet?)

Harlequin Connection: Originally published under the Silhouette Romance banner, it is Nora's third published book. She has since gone on to publish something like a gajillion. I don't think she sleeps.

Publication Date: First appeared in 1982, my reprint edition has a 2004 publication date.

How Long It's Been In My TBR: A couple of years? I do remember that it was an impulse buy.

Plot: Former Olympic gymnast, Samantha Evans, has left Philadelphia for Wyoming to care for her ailing twin sister. Sabrina is having a rough pregnancy and the doctor has ordered her off her feet. Sam thinks nothing of quitting her job, packing up her life, and temporarily moving to help her sister out. She quickly falls under the spell of Jake Tanner, a neighboring rancher and ladies' man whose determined to charm her out of her panties and good sense.

My Verdict: The problem with genre fiction (and I'm not just talking romance) is that most of it has a short shelf life. Time is not always kind. Cliches get tired and worn out, writers get better, references get dated, etc. etc. etc. Such is the case with Song Of The West. It reads like a 25 year old category romance. The hero has all the subtlety of a sledgehammer and is the type who likes to steamroll over the heroine. The heroine is likable enough, except she's determined to assume the worst about the hero - not that I entirely blame her since he basically comes out and says, "I will have you, so you might as well stop running chickie" (OK so I'm paraphrasing a bit). There's The Other Woman who is tall, chic, cool and makes cracks about the heroine being athletic (a definite sign of datedness, as "athletic" is largely seen as attractive nowadays). And to top it off we have a Big Misunderstanding in the final chapter.

As far as the writing goes, it's very apparent that this is one of Nora's earliest works. It's readable, but the characterization is kinda thin, there's some purple prose (it's not hideous, but it's there) and the conflict is weak. So weak there isn't any for the longest time. It's not until about the halfway point that we get The Other Woman, and even then there's a little smoke, but no real fire.

Final Grade = C-. I'll be honest, there's a grading curve here. It's a 25 year old book written very early on in a writer's career. Nora is a good writer, and like all good writers she's learned a few tricks over the years. This wasn't god-awful, but I wouldn't recommend it to casual readers and certainly not to those who have never read her before. Strictly for the die-hard fans who want to follow her evolution.

Coming Soon: Part II of this 2-in-1 reprint edition, Her Mother's Keeper.

Tis The Season

My Mission: Stay For Christmas by Judith Stacy, Victoria Bylin and Elizabeth Lane

Harlequin Connection: I don't know what number it is, but it's part of the Harlequin Historical line.

Publication Date: October 2006.

How Long It's Been In My TBR: A little under a year. I can't believe it, what with me being a ho for Christmas books, but I didn't buy this in October. I waited a few months and picked it up through eHarlequin.

Plot: "A Place To Stay" by Judith Stacy features Maggie Hudson, a young woman desperate to make the church's Christmas program a smashing success. Having fallen out of favor with many town residents, she's sure if the program is the "best ever" she'll be welcomed back into the fold, scandal or no scandal. The problem is that she needs Emmett Frazier to make her plan work and the infuriatingly handsome sheriff, Jack Crawford, has thrown the man in jail! Now all she needs to do is figure out a way the sweet talk the sheriff into letting Emmett out of jail a few days early.

"A Son Is Given" by Victoria Bylin is a marriage in trouble story. Katherine Merritt is married to the town preacher, who also happens to be an alcoholic. She was seven months pregnant with their second child when a drunken William came home and there was an accident. Their baby was born prematurely and died. Kath is grieving for her baby, and can no longer stand to look at her husband. She's determined to take their young daughter and move home to Philadelphia. The episode scared William sober, and more than anything he doesn't want his wife to leave him. But how can she possibly learn to trust him again?

"Angels in the Snow" by Elizabeth Lane features a former prostitute as the heroine. Della Brown is trying to make her way to Oregon and to the only family she has left, her sister. When the party she's traveling with finds out she's a whore, she doesn't exactly get a warm reception, and circumstances cause her to run away. She's trying to make it to a cabin she saw in the woods, only she gets lost in the snow. Hunter McCall rescues her and takes her back to his place where he and is young son nurse her back to health. Della is shocked when Joey asks her "What's Christmas?" and in return for their kindness she decides to teach the boy all about the holiday.

My Verdict: An enjoyable anthology. Stacy is an author who falls under my "hit or miss" category and this story was mostly a hit. I liked how the author kept the scandal surrounding her heroine a bit of a mystery for the first few chapters. It helped build momentum and it peaks the reader's curiosity. That said, my main quibbles involved the inclusion of the heroine's father as a character, as he served no real purpose. The author must have agreed because she eventually writes him out the story altogether, but it leaves some unresolved baggage. There's also a love scene towards the end that felt tacked on, which just seals the deal for yours truly. If it's a historical anthology, and it's not billed as "erotic," I want 'em sex-free. It just feels rushed and jarring otherwise.

The Bylin story is truly heartbreaking, and one I think will resonate with a lot of readers. It is linked to her debut novel, Of Men And Angels, but stands alone very well. However at times I couldn't help thinking this needed to be a full-length novel. The conflict is huge, and some readers might have a problem with Kath forgiving William in less than 100 pages.

The Lane story was probably my favorite. The main source of conflict is, naturally, Della's past. She doesn't get the best reception when people find out what she used to do for a living, but she hasn't let her past jade her outlook on life. She wants to start over and move on. Hunter lost his wife to consumption on Christmas Eve, and since then hasn't felt like celebrating much of anything, but agrees to let Della make the day special for his excited son. Again, I felt this could easily have been a full-length novel given the conflict, but it does work well as a short story.

Final Grade(s): Stacy = B-, Bylin = B and Lane = B. All the way around? A B. A very nice holiday read.

Old Geezer

My Mission: Kiss & Makeup by Alison Kent

Harlequin Connection: #197 in Harlequin Blaze line

Publication Date: August 2005

How Long It's Been In My TBR: Just under a year. I won this in a contest over at the Oxygen Network.

Plot: Shandi Fossey left behind Nowhereville, Oklahoma for the bright lights of Manhattan. By day she attends the Fashion Institute of Technology and dreams of making it big as a make-up artist. Her nights are spent tending bar at the exclusive Hush hotel, the sort of place that provides sex toys in the rooms (le sigh). It's on the job that she meets hunky music producer Quentin Marks. He's in town for meetings, with immediate plans to set up his own studio in his hometown of Austin, Texas. He's burnt out on the high life and just wants to feel normal again. Then he meets sexy Shandi and he wonders why he's in such a hurry to leave New York.

My Verdict: There were parts of this story I really liked. Shandi and Quentin are both nice people, driven to succeed. I especially liked how Shandi was determined to make her dreams come true and defy her family, who thought she was due to return to Oklahoma at any minute to lick her wounds. I also liked the chemistry these two had and the sex scenes were very well done. Seriously, after slogging through some mind-numbing stuff thanks to the recent erotica boom, the encounters these two have come off as sexy and fresh.

That said, there were times that I felt I was already too old to read this book. It's the kind of story I probably would have loved when I was in my early 20s. The secondary romance is mainly to blame here. The spoiled little rich girl who won't stand up to her old money family even though she's madly in love with Shandi's roommate. A couple of times I wanted to smack these two and just tell them to "Grow Up Already!" That said, they do behave like your typical 20-somethings, still in college, so-in-lurve couple - so I can hardly find fault with that.

I also wasn't entirely wild about the ending. Without giving too much away, I would have loved to have seen Kent pull a little role reversal with the happily-ever-after. She could have done it with this story, and well - let's just say I thought it was an opportunity missed.

Completely Unrelated To Anything: I really dig this cover.

Final Grade = B-. At times I found this book uneven, but the parts I liked, I really liked. And have I mentioned the sex scenes were really good? Hot without being sleazy. Not that there's anything wrong with sleazy....

Brown-Eyed Handsome Devil

My Mission: The Company You Keep by Angela Henry

Harlequin Connection: Published under the Kimani Sepia banner.

Publication Date: 2005

How Long It's Been In My TBR: Less than a year. The author was featured over at Karen's blog, and I followed the link to her web site. I thought her series sounded good and bought the first book off eHarlequin.

Plot: Kendra Clayton is part-time GED instructor, part-time hostess at her uncle's restaurant in Willow, Ohio. A friend of hers from work, Bernie, is dating a worthless, useless man. Jordan Wallace is the kind of smooth operator who charms woman out of their money and good sense. Well Praise The Lord, Bernie acts as if she's finally seen the light! Certainly doesn't hurt matters that she's finally figured out that Jordan is dallying with another woman. Then Jordan ends up dead, and the whole affair gets very sticky. Bernie begs Kendra to withhold a seemingly useless piece of information from the police. Bernie's her friend, and Kendra knows she didn't do it - so what's the harm? Naturally Kendra's good intentions blow up in her face, which lead to her doing a bit of amateur sleuthing on the side.

My Verdict: Just as I hoped, I ended up really liking this book. Henry writes in what I call "chatty" first person. Kendra is your best friend, your favorite coworker and your brother's nice girlfriend all rolled into one. The suspense is also very good, and the author takes her time setting the stage (although we do get the dead body by Chapter 2) and introducing all the players. The writing does occasionally veer towards "info-dumping" when it comes to character back-story, but mercifully it's only for a paragraph or two and the author reins herself in rather quickly. The setting was spot on - I really felt like I knew Willow, Ohio. Right down to her Uncle's restaurant, the local seedy bar and the beauty shop where all the gossip flies.

I will say though that I did figure out the identity of the bad guy about 50 pages before Kendra. That said - I only had about one tenth of the motive figured out. It's pretty involved, and gotta say I was impressed. Also, kudos to the author for wrapping up all her loose ends and red herrings. There were more than a few.

File Under Nitpicky: Is it just me? I tend to get annoyed when authors just don't come out and tell me when the story takes place. Although this was published in 2005, the story takes place sometime during the 1990s. One of Kendra's friends sets her up on a blind date and describes the guy as a "man of the 90s." Kendra also mentions that she hasn't gotten around to buying a CD player yet because cassettes are still readily available and the girls in the beauty shop are watching a trashy talk show that has Kendra fearing for the state of society "in the 90s." Why not just come out and say "May 1993" or whatever. I'll admit, this is way beyond nitpicky. It just happens to be one of my quirks.

Final Grade = B. So much for cleaning out my TBR. Now I have to buy the next two books in this series. Damn.

Off A Cliff

My Mission: Drive Me Wild by Vicki Lewis Thompson

Harlequin Connection: #921 in the now-sadly-defunct Harlequin Temptation line.

Publication Date: April 2003

How Long It's Been In The TBR: A long while. I can't remember when I bought it, but I do remember why I bought it. I had read and loved an earlier Thompson Temptation, The Nights Before Christmas.

Plot: Molly Drake is the daughter of a famous Hollywood director and infamous actress. She lives in Connecticut and has been making a living ghostwriting cozy mysteries for an actress friend of hers. She's getting antsy though and wants to see her name on the bestseller lists. Plus, she's sick of cozies. So she writes a hot erotic novel only to have her agent tell her that it sucks. It ain't hot. It ain't erotic. Face it Molly, you're a shy, little introvert who doesn't know what sexy is. Frustrated, and wanting to conduct a little research, Molly propositions Alec Masterson, her regular driver from the car service she employs. A scorching affair begins.

My Verdict: Gotta admit here that this book largely didn't work for me. It's readable and the s-e-x is hot, hot stuff but the conflict? It's pretty darn weak. The big stumbling blocks? Molly dithers about whether or not she should tell Alec about her ghostwriting gig. Um, excuse me but why would he bloody care? And Alec? Well he's a bit of a flake. 31 years old and a professional college student who has changed majors more times than he's changed his underwear. His latest career path involves getting his law degree, which he honestly doesn't want to do (he's a blue collar guy through and through) but family expectations are weighing him down (call me crazy, but at 31 you should be old enough to tell your parents to eff-off). I also thought this story would have benefited from less s-e-x (shocking, I know) and more good, old fashioned non-sexual dialogue. But I'm wacky like that.

Oh, and file these under nitpicky:

• A Hollywood actress who has a ghostwriter writing cozies? Hollywood actresses do not put their names on cozies. They "write" trashy, tell-all, celebrity-name-dropping books. But that's the librarian in me rearing her ugly head.
  

• Molly was raised in California but doesn't know how to drive? L.A. is not N.Y. Everybody drives out here. Californians are car obsessed. Even famous people with suspended licenses drive cars out here.
  

• The word starlet. Nobody uses it anymore and certainly men don't use it. Alec asks Molly if she's a "starlet." Why not just ask her if she's Jean Harlow? Cuz, I'm pretty sure that was the last time that term was in vogue.
  

Final Grade = C-. This just didn't work all that well for me. It wasn't horrible, but it really didn't hold my interest and I pretty much skimmed the second half. Not a good thing when the book is only 200 pages long to begin with.

Bloody Knees

My Mission: High Plains Wife by Jillian Hart

Harlequin Connection: #670 in Harlequin Historical line.

Publication Date: August 2003

How Long It's Been In The TBR: Probably since 2003. I can't recall the circumstances, but given the condition of the book I'm sure I purchased it new. It certainly looks new.

Plot: Mariah Scott is the town spinster nursing a serious case of unrequited love. As a girl she had a crush on Nick Gray, but her emotionally abusive father got in the way. Now well past the blush of youth, with spinster stamped all over her, she's occupying herself with charity work and her laundry business. Then Nick Gray proposes a marriage of convenience.

Nick's wife, Lida, committed suicide, leaving behind a fractured marriage and two grief-stricken children. Nick is trying to run his ranch, and even though he has no desire to, he realizes he has to marry for the sake of the kids. The last thing he wants is some moon-eyed young miss with delusions of happily-ever-after. How about hardworking, dependable and practical Mariah?

My Verdict: This story just about ripped my heart out! Mariah is desperately in love with Nick, and he's desperately in love with her. The problem is he's too much of an idiot to do anything about it. His first wife betrayed him, and for him love means nothing but heartache and sorrow. He doesn't treat Mariah poorly, until the end - when after they have sex (naturally) he pushes her away in a very cruel manner. Naturally it all ends right as rain, but frankly I wanted Nick to grovel. I wanted him to grovel a lot. I wanted bloody knees dagnabit. And instead it's Mariah who apologizes for her impulsive behavior, and Nick telling her she's his "one true love." I guess that's nice and all, but Grovel damn you! Grovel!

Final Grade = B-. This easily would have been a keeper for me with some groveling. As is, it kinda ticked me off because dang, Nick says some pretty hurtful things to Mariah towards the climactic finish and he needed to pay. That said, this is a seriously emotional read. I recommend it with a box of Kleenex on the side.

Lordy How I Miss This Line

My Mission: All Wrapped Up by Jennifer Drew

Harlequin Connection: #956 in the now-sadly-defunct Harlequin Temptation line

Publication Date: December 2003

How Long It's Been In The TBR: Probably since December 2003. I'm sure I bought it brand-spankin' new from eHarlequin, being the ho for Christmas-themed books that I am. Don't ask why I remember this, I just do. Chalk it up to having no life.

Plot: Olivia "Liv" Kearns is under a lot of stress. The new CEO of the PR firm she works for is determined to attract a younger, hipper clientèle. Liv, while being good at her job, is young (in her late 20s) but wouldn't know hip if it smacked her in the face. Needless to say, her job is anything but stable. On top of that, her parents have announced they're divorcing on the eve of their 30th anniversary and her younger sister is getting married. Into this chaos waltzes Nick Matheson, a Chicago sports writer trying to get a scoop. He needs an "in" with a reluctant interviewee, who just happens to be a client of Liv's firm. Liv and Nick had a relationship that fizzled in college. She fell head over heels in love, he wasn't looking for commitment. In a nutshell? He got spooked and unceremoniously dumped her. But that's all water under the bridge now, right?

My Verdict: Lordy, how I miss the Temptation line! This story is everything I love about category romance. The conflict, characters and story are believable. We're talking real life here. Two college kids who were crazy about each other, but the timing was all wrong. He never forgets her, and she does her best to forget him. Better still? The author never panders to her readers by using cliches. Liv has just broken up with a boyfriend who told her she was frigid. Does she now think she's "bad" at sex? Of course not! She tells herself that he was the problem. She knows what "good" sex is and she wasn't having it with that loser! And the ending? What an ending!

He expected her to ask for particulars. Should they live together? Get engaged? Get married? Instead, she only smiled.

Oh thank you baby Jesus! No sped up courtship! No heroine squirting out triplets in the epilogue! Could my life possibly get any better?

Final Grade = B+. If you see this one lying around that the UBS, snap it up. It's very, very good.

Final Note: Anyone know what the heck happened to Jennifer Drew? They're actually a mother and daughter writing team whose backlist is largely populated with Harlequin Duets (a line that never did much for me - sorry!). I'd love to know if they're both still writing, together or separately.

Who Doesn't Love Gimmicks?

If you head over to my Library Thing account you'll see my TBR in it's entirety. Yes, I own all those books. No, I haven't read any of them yet.

I need serious help.

So in an effort to delude myself, I'm instituting something I'm calling The Harlequin Reading Challenge. I, Wendy The Super Librarian, will read nothing but books published by Harlequin until I leave for my Thanksgiving travel plans on November 17. That's four weeks on the button.

Any book published by Harlequin is fit for the challenge. That means all the category and single title lines. Will I read a Mira romantic suspense? An HQN contemporary? A Harlequin Historical western? Or simply gorge myself on Harlequin SuperRomances? Time, and my fickle reading mood, will tell.