Summer Reads & Writes

Hey, Blog Buds, school's out!  I've been spending almost all my computer time on Sweet Bytes, the next full length novel in the Ophelia Dawson Chronicles.  Now that school's out, I can do more.
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Writing must always come first now.  I was hoping to have Sweet Bytes read to send to Decadent by the first week of May.  Um...okay, so then I set my goal for the last week in May.  Well...then in my story analysis I came up TWELVE chapters short of my wordcount.  Yeah, I spewed coffee on my computer screen.  Good thing I have Save the Cat! by Blake Snyder or that would have taken me months to figure out and then months more to figure out what to do about it.  As it is, it took just a few minutes.  But, it will take a solid week to make up those chapters.
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Anyway...I reckon my editors would rather receive a story that's as complete and good as I can make it all by myself. 
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Once that's done, I'm going to be spending time on blogosphere-wide events, like Decadent's YA Blog Tour in July.  I'll be guest blogging all over the place and such.  Stay tuned to this station for more details.
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Besides that and a massive amount of end-of-the-homeschool-housecleaning, I also plan to READ!  Yes, read!  Haven't had time to do that in such a long time.  I really do miss being a book reviewer.  With the last Harry Potter movie coming out, I want to read the whole series again.  My children and I are planning to read Harry Potter and the Sorceror's Stone out loud together.
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I also want to reread Nefertiti by Michelle Moran again.  It's one of those books I like to read once a year.  I want to read Lottery by Patricia Wood, but I gave my copy to my mother and made her swear to take excellent care of it.  Signed by the author, you know!  I'll check out a copy from the library.  Other rereads will be Down Home Zombie Blues by Linnea Sinclair and Apocalypse Blues by Walter Greatshell. 
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For first time reads, I want to squeeze in some Steampunk, like Boneshaker by Cherie Priest and a few swoony Historical Romances set in World War II and the Old West.  Any recommendations?
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Ahhh, summer!  I can't wait to go camping! 
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You know what I can't figure out about camping these days?  Why in tarnation do people even go if they have to take all their modern junk with them?  When I go camping, goshdarnit, I wanna get dirty!

Review: Her Reluctant Bodyguard by Jennette Green

Her Reluctant Bodyguard
by Jennette Green

Genre: Contemporary Inspirational Romance
Publisher: Diamond Press
Cost: $3.99 for Kindle

What I Liked:
When I received a copy of "Her Reluctant Bodyguard" to review, I was skeptical. In my experience, contemporary Christian romance can be overly saccharine, with an extreme evangelical bent that often supersedes any real artistry in the romantic relationship. But after reading only the first few pages of the book, I knew this book was going to be different.

I know it's tempting, when you see books with rave reviews, to assume that it's the author's friend trying to drum up support. In fact, I've accused other authors of the same thing when the book didn't live up to the hype in reviews and on Amazon. But let me tell you. Seriously. This book is the real thing. In fact, when I finished the book, I immediately thought, this book could easily have been released as a major single title with a big NY house. The quality of writing is stellar, the character development is reasonable and engaging, the story is touching, and the resolution is satisfying.

And to say a word about the Christian element, I have to give Jennette Green the highest praise. I've been hoping to find a Christian novel to read that doesn't shy away from the reality of life. When you're a woman/man in your late twenties who is still unmarried, chances are, you're going to struggle a little bit more with your past and past relationships than when you're a fresh young thing in college, meeting the wo/man of your dreams. It's a different experience, both from a spiritual perspective, and a physical/emotional one. She treated this story beautifully, along with being realistic about the physical and emotional attraction between two people and how that manifests.

After I read the book the first time and raved about it to everyone in a viable wireless radius, I gave it some time to sink in to my psyche, and then I read it again, just to make sure that the first time wasn't a fluke. It wasn't. The writing and the story and the reality were really as good as I thought they were. This is a book that will go on my favorites shelf. I plan to buy copies of it to give out to my friends. In fact, after receiving a copy to review, I've already bought the paperback for myself, so I can literally keep it on my shelf of favorite books.

Really, as a book reviewer, I rarely say "you have to buy this book". But I'm going to say it. If you've come here, you're obviously looking for a romance that will speak to your heart, through real characters who have real struggles. If you've also come here looking for some project that could treat the Christian religion and sexual attraction with equal dignity and reality (or for a good "edgy Christian romance"), you've found it in this book. I don't get any kind of profit from saying this. All I get is the satisfaction of knowing that I get to promote an author who really deserves it. I sincerely hope that you enjoy it as much as I did. If you do read it, please let the author know that you found it here. And please let us know that you enjoyed it. I look forward to hearing from you!

Book Blurb:
Alexa's dream job becomes a threat to her life...

Successful biographer Alexa Kaplan never expected to meet her favorite pop star on the Today Show set. When Colin asks her to write his biography and tour with him in Europe , she's thrilled. It all seems like a fairy tale come true—until she begins to receive death threats.

To her dismay, Colin puts her under the 24/7 protection of his chief bodyguard, Jamison Constanzo—a man with whom she’s clashed from day one. If only she could spend more time with her perfect man, Colin, rather than spending all of her days with this black-hearted thorn in her side! Alexa struggles to control her flip attitude toward Jamison. Why does opening up her heart to him feel almost as dangerous as dealing with the stalker’s threats? But when the killer strikes, Jamison is the only one she can turn to…

An excerpt is available at the author's website, and the first chapter is available to read here.

Reviewed by Rebecca Lynn.

Review: Touching the Clouds by Bonnie Leon

Touching the Clouds
by Bonnie Leon

Genre: Inspirational Historical Fiction
Publisher: Revell
Cost: $9.99 (Kindle)

What I Liked:
First of all, the time period is my absolute favorite. I love Depression-era books. WWI and II books. Adore. I'm hopiong that the following books in this series will stay in this time period. I'm so glad to see that big publishers are taking chances on less familiar time periods. I hope to see more books in the early 20th century written about American history. That's definitely my favorite historical period. SO well done on that front, for certain sure.

Now, for the story. Amazing! I absolutely adored this hero. He reminded me a little of Michael Hosea from Redeeming Love in his rugged, backwoodsy, tender-hearted way. Kate, the heroine, was nothing like the heroine from RL, but for some reason, this book had that flavor. An excellent writing style, rich historical detail, a poignant love story with as difficult a path to its resolution as I could really tolerate. Both characters had such difficult pasts, and such hard presents, but not in a way that made the book unreadable. It's just not your typical fluffy historical romance book. This was a book that had to work hard for its hope, in a lot of ways.

But the writing was just so excellent. I found myself halfway through the book before I even knew what was happening. I can just imagine being the first editor to read this. Golden would have been my first thought. It's really an excellently crafted plot, the characters seem real to me, and I care about what happens to them. When I would put the book down, I was always looking forward to coming back to it. And I find myself, even now, wondering if I should re-read it before I get to RWA Nationals, just so I can read it again before I pass it along to someone else.

This is the first in a series of books, and like Jill Eileen Smith's Wives of David saga, I definitely have my opinions about whom I hope gets featured in upcoming books. I think I've become a Bonnie Leon fan for life. As long as her other books live up to this quality, she won't be rid of me anytime soon.

Book Blurb:
Kate Evans is an adventurous and independent young woman with a pioneering spirit. She pilots a mail-delivery plane in the forbidding Alaskan wilderness, the lone woman in a male profession. But even that seems easy compared to finding true love. She likes a fellow pilot and would even consider marrying him--if it weren't for Paul, a mysterious man on her mail route with a gentle spirit and a past to hide. Can Kate break through the walls Paul has put up around his heart? And will her quest for adventure be her demise? Book 1 in the Alaskan Skies series, Touching the Clouds will draw readers in with raw emotion and suspense, all against the stunning backdrop of the Alaskan wilds.