Bea's Reading Den

Going out of town for work tomorrow, so working on blogpost now.

 

I have tried everything and can't seem to figure out how to do it.

 

Any ideas?

This is the first time that I have read something by B.G. Thomas, but I can say that I have enjoyed it immensely.  I was in the mood for no serious conflict and a lot of over the top sweetness.  This fit the bill exactly!

 

Basic Plot:

 

Todd Burton is thrown out of his apartment in the middle of blizzard into Kansas City.  He finds shelter in the lobby of Gabe Richards’ apartment, but he can’t stay as he is mistaken for a prostitute.  Gabe feels bad for this poor soul and shelters him.  Is there anything more than kindness between them, or are they just going to pass in the night?

 

Todd Burton:

 

What I liked about Todd is his pure spirit.  He is someone who just wants to be a chef, but circumstances have conspired against him.  He could be bitter and angry, but instead he is just feeling hopeless.

 

 

Jeez, it’s snowing like a son of a bitch out there. Todd glanced nervously over his shoulder into the lobby of the apartment building. No one seemed to be watching him. What the hell am I going to do?

 

 

I love how we see his come to accept his sexuality, and for the  most part I could believe this.  This is not a case of “gay for you”, but rather a, “ohhh, that makes sense!”

 

Gabe Richards:

 

Poor Gabe.  He has had a rocky life when it comes to romances which has resulted in his lack of trust.  He is handsome and rich, which on the surface sounds great.

 

 

Todd gave the guy a quick look, then a longer one.  The guy was huge.  A good head taller, at least, then Todd’s five foot nine and downright massive: really built.  He obviously worked out.  A lot.  Like the guys in the muscle mags that Todd collected.

 

 

But what you come to realize is that while he seems to have everything, he is just waiting.  For the right one.

 

 

Strong Points:

 

I loved how the author wrote about the food Todd cooked, the details were vivid and gave me a few ideas for my own!

 

 

Gabe nodded and did as he was told.  He paused, then smiled sweetly.

“Is that orange, Todd?”

“Yes,” he answered.  ”It’s not too weird?  I squeezed just a little orange into them while I was mashing them.  I thought it might complement the fruit in the chicken.”

“But there is more,” sang Peter.

“Walnut.  You’ve added tiny, infinitesimal bits of walnut, haven’t you?”

Todd nodded.  ”I was afraid I might have made the potatoes too sweet.”

 

 

I also liked the way that he described the two characters and how they went through conflicts.  I hate when an author gives us angst for angst sake, giving us a false sense of conflict.  Todd and Gabe did a good job of talking to each other (go figure) and when they did have conflicts they sat down and talked about them.  It was nice to see them acting like adults.

 

What could be better?

 

Overall, I enjoyed the novel.  However, toward the end of the novel, the external conflicts seemed to be solved in a rushed manner.  Enter the ex-love, the annoying parents, and the annoying assistant in quick succession showing problems and solving them instantly.  Sure, it made for a smoother ending but it did not seem believable.

 

My other issue is related to the mother’s attitude and accent.  Sure, they are from a rural area, so I give you that the character might lack some sophistication.  However, I do not  believe that for some reason, she has a 1950s “house-wife” mentality.

 

 

“He was the man!” she said.  ”A woman doesn’t argue with her man.”

 

 

I get what the author was attempting to portray here, but all I got was a very unbelievable paper thin character.

 

Conclusions:

 

I loved this book and would certainly recommend it.  The reason that it is not a five star is the rushed final conflict resolutions and the depiction of Todd’s parents.  If you want to just snuggle up on the couch to read a sweet story, then this book is for you.

 

Bea

Getting a head start on tomorrow's blogpost book review.

 

Watching Columbo with my cat laying on my arm.  ;)

Ahhhh yeahhh.  Oh wait, I mean following everyone who is on that Goodreads thread.

 

what were you thinking!

Excuse me while I have a little moment here…WTF did I just read?



I'm sorry but I'm not in the mood to write a synopsis. Shades of Gray did boggle my mind. Irrevocably. I'm extremely, totally, utterly, and highly bummed! 

P.J. Rutherford. She is a woman. I mean the chick's got boobs and a vagina. But after reading her story this word conveys nothing to me anymore. Initially I wanted to label her as a Superwoman. However, I was so way off the mark that she graduated from Superwoman to Superman and then to Rambo and finally she became a female Terminator. Holy crap! I still can't believe what happened in this story. It reads like a very bad B-Movie.

OTT badass speech
OTT badass acts/action
Cheesy writing to the point where it hurt my teeth
The story took a serious turn into Sapsville
Ridicoulous
But first and foremost it was UNREALISTIC AS ALL GET OUT



There are more plot holes in Shades of Gray than in a Swiss cheese. *Sorry, Baba waves at fellow citizens* The plot is extremely ridiculous, and I'm sorry to say it but I was not willing to suspend belief. Everything about it was too far-fetched and incomprehensible. If I wouldn't have been so mad I had laughed my ass off. 

Yeah, Wonder Woman took a [shot to her thigh (the bullet almost hit the bone) and wonders never cease, coz she was running around after having been shot at. (hide spoiler)] I'm stunned. Dunno what to say. Oh, wait a second! The best has yet to come. After being [wounded she has a fight with the baddies.(hide spoiler)] Hey, that's a walk in the park for dear little P.J. *insert major eye roll moment*

Baba, admit it, you are such a jealous b@tch. 

"She's going to be fine," Donovan called back. "She kicked some ass and only has one ???measly???[bullet wound to show for it. It's going to hurt like hell for a while and she's going to be laid up until it heals,(hide spoiler)] but she's good." 

No shit!?! Yeah, our dear P.J. can handle a little bit of [blood and pain. (hide spoiler)] Ugh.

They go back to Cole's house to have a cozy evening instead of[seeing a physician who would have taken care of her injury.(hide spoiler)] That blows my mind.

"You realize how unrealistic this is," P.J. said, an hour into the movie.
"I would have never guessed," Cole said dryly. 

I will refrain from posting a very sarcastic comment here. 

And then there was the final "highlight" in Vienna. As a matter of fact, it was another absurd moment. Cole and P.J. go [in on their own. What happens, huh? Male has been kidnapped, female is out of her mind, female is running to male's rescue. Female has to face off bad guys, is confronted by bad memories, female almost freaks out, pulls her act together and kills the badass baddies. Also, I felt that P.J. stooped down to Brumley's level when she behaved like a predator gone nuts and slashed his neck. In fact, there would have been other options, but she chose to kill him and she has to live with it. (hide spoiler)]Must be such a good feeling, P.J., huh? *pets* In conclusion, a woman--granted, a female Terminator--taking [down several bad guys (hide spoiler)] is beyond any reasonable explanation. Oh, P.J., please spare me your snarling and growling from now on. Thank you. *insert another major eye roll moment*

Let's not forget the cozy little coffee party among the Kelly women. Wow. What an idyllic world. Instead of seeing a shrink, P.J. has a nice conversation with all those lovely ladies. Come on! Get real here! This woman has been [cut up and raped twice.(hide spoiler)] Let's get back to the real world! *rolls eyes*

Honestly, I felt manipulated by the author because everything about this story should have been tear-inducing. Having said this, the author tried way too hard to push my lacrymal glands and it saddens me to say that she failed big-time. 

As a side note
Please, can anyone explain to me why a jaw would bulge? 

Cole's eyes were murderous and his jaw was so tight it bulged. 

Er…I thought the bulging happens in a guy's pants. Hmmm…

She was torturing herself with all the possibilities. By the time they pulled into the compound, P.J. was a wreck. 

I couldn't agree more. Reading Shades of Gray was pure torture and it wrecked me. Bottom line: there are times when we have to let go because it's painful to see a series go down the drain.



Come to think of it, I always wanted to read Steele's story and I will give it a try but then…well, it might be…




What a way to start my new reading year. I'm in dire need of a great book right now!

There are quite a few tutorials on how to change the layout of your BookLikes blog. I figured it's good to have them all in one post, and I'd like to thank all who put a lot of work into making them so others can enjoy BookLikes. 

 

Let's start with the customization blogs posted by BookLikes: 

 

• Edit Your Design Theme With HTML on BookLikes 
• Your Blog on BookLikes - Custom-Made

 

 

Tutorials made by BookLikers for BookLikers: 

 

• Litchick's Easy Tips for Customization
• Litchick's How to Change Your Followers/Following to Something Fun
• AnHeC's How to Move/change your Followers/Following conters
• Jane's How to Customize your BookLikes Blog using CSS
• Jane's Customizing your BookLikes Blog Pt.2
• ThreeRs' Blog about Fonts
• AnHeC's How to change font colour (text, link, comment section)
• AnHeC's Background for Search Bar

 

 

Note: All links open in a new window and take you to the original posts and their creators. Leave comments, likes and reblog the hell out of them so others can see it too :) 

 

Might be over 2500 hours to import my books?  hahahhahahhah lots of books.

This had so much potential. The plot (when we got it) was interesting, the characters (when not having sex) were interesting.The basic story of amnesia and danger was hot and sexy. But the tropes, the typos, and the shortness ruined it for me. And my biggest pet peeve? It ended at 88%! The book said it was 117 pages, which is really too short for my liking, but the story was interesting enough for me to purchase. But if it was done at 88%, the that means the book was really closer to 100 pages, and that is just not enough to develop the story.Anyways, for what I paid, it was worth the price, but I wish I could have had more.

Going to put this in my fav Sterek pile. Magic Stiles..

I really loved this book! True, very sweet, very over the top. But I was I the mood for a sugarfest and I got it!

I really enjoyed this book. Yes, the was no dialogue, it almost read like love letters back and forth, which quite frankly I think was the point.Yes, there was tons of angst and I did cry. But it was such lovely torture.

There is very little that dislike in a Josephine Myles novel. There is usually a lot of passion, humor, British charm, and emotion. I have to say that I found her latest work, Junk to contain all of these. Basic Plot: Jasper, a librarian at a local college realizes that his hoarding of paper and books has gotten out of control. He calls in Wonderland Clutter Clearing, to help him clean up his house and life. When Lewis Miller enters his life, what Jasper discovers is not only a new friend who can help him clean up his house, but possibly a new partner. But can their personal baggage be put behind them to forge a new life together? Jasper Richardson: Early on in the novel, we see a glimpse of how Jasper feels about relationships: I’m fine with being a bachelor. Books are better company than people. They don’t hog the bedclothes or mess with your things.” This quote on the surface illustrates the humor of the novel. Who hasn’t said something like that? But what we come to understand is that there is hidden pain, hidden anger beneath. What we come to find is that humans have hurt him before, deeply and it has left invisible scaring in the form of his books. The conflict then becomes on how he can learn to let that pain and hurt go, along with his hoard.I found Jasper so endearing, his awkwardness something that I could relate: Jasper froze, then patted the big man’s back. That was how you comforted someone, wasn’t it? Hopefully he wasn’t doing it too hard. It wasn’t like Yusef was choking or anything. Lewis Miller: What I like about Lewis the most is that while he is very organized and on the surface seems to have it all, but he has his issues too. I do not want to spoil Lewis’ back story, but we learn that Lewis is not the perfect one either. When I’m tempted by something, I have a set of rules I go through to help me decide whether or not I really need to buy it. Unless I can answer yes to at least five of them, I leave it in the shop. But what I like about Lewis is he is someone we want to emulate, he has his issues, but he confronts them and then comes up with ways to live his life. Strong Points: The scenes where she wrote about how Jasper feels, the compulsions and thought processes brought me right into the mind of the hoarder. I am amazed how descriptive those scenes were: The book. Jasper fondled the cover lovingly. He wasn’t actually planning to read it, of course. He’d already determined that fact back at the library during his tea break. But he couldn’t have left it languishing there on the sale trolley, unwanted and unloved. He knew just the place for it. What could be better? There really is not much more that I would do to improve this book. I loved it! Conclusions: If you are looking for a novel that has heart and heat, then Junk by Josephine Myles is for you. The chemistry between our two characters is hot and the love scenes were smokin’. This has quickly become of my favorite books and will be on the re-read pile for sure!Bea

For full disclosure this novel was given to me for review by the authors, LE Franks and Sara York. However, my review is unbiased and based on my opinion only. Basic Plot: This book is divided into two parts: Angelo and his struggle to get Carlo back into the pack as the new returning Alpha, and the second part Carlo’s beta’s search for lovin’ on the South Carolina Beach. We are introduced to two humans, Kevin and Grady, friends who might be more, but first they have to realize that each one loves the other. Are they ready to settle down and commit to love? Background: Before this book, I had no knowledge of either author, although I did have this book on my Amazon Recommend list, so maybe it was fate. I was in the mood for some for wolfie lovin’, thus the excitement for this book was high! Let’s take a look at what I thought. Angelo: On the surface, Angelo is what we could call the stereotypical Alpha werewolf. He is our warrior leader: tough, rough, and practical. He altered his life for the better of the Pack and for Carlo, even if Carlo does not realize it. We see this responsibility from the beginning of the novel: It would be a relief to walk away from South Carolina and everyone he knew if it also meant leaving this mess behind. The part of his mind hardwired to his inner wolf snarled at that thought. He wasn’t fooling himself. The pack would survive without him but he couldn’t slink away in the night without fixing the current situation. I loved Angelo! I love a character who fights to make things right and take the hard way, knowing that it is the best route, even if it is not the easiest route. Carlo Montefiore: Get ready, when you first meet this character, you’re going to think he is some sort of conceited punk. But we come to understand that how his father died and how Angelo took over the pack deeply scarred young Carlo. Now, he is becoming the man he should become. The time we see him on his own is actually vital to his character development as we can see him journey back to being the Alpha of a pack he was born. I loved the picture that Ted painted of Carlo: He still wondered if one day he’d see Carlo standing on the front steps, his chin high, telling the world he didn’t give a damn, that he was gay and an Alpha. Carlo has more depth than we think and I look forward to seeing him grow. Strong Points:I enjoyed the back story and the cultural descriptions that we get for this werewolf culture exists. We get to learn about how the Montefiore family came over to America and how the family dealt with being werewolves. I enjoyed the time the authors spent letting us get to know them. The tradition of speaking Italian within the Montefiore family had been passed down to Carlo and Angelo, along with the other rights and responsibilities of being an Alpha. The Elders objected to Angelo’s lack of Montefiore blood when Con began training Angelo as Alpha. Eventually Carlo joined him in the lessons. Con’s decision proved to be prophetic at his death. Without that foresight, the pack would have been in shambles. This strength of creativity and complexity is the strength of the novel, the politics of the werewolf culture is what kept me interested. However, in this case, the strength can also lead to the weakness. The entire focus of this book (on the werewolf side) is how the conflicts and misunderstanding of that transition phase has colored both of their future vision. When we got to see Carlo and Angelo together, it was magic and I wanted to find out what happens between them.The authors spent time developing secondary characters Ted and Joey. What we realize is that Ted and Joey are Carlo’s only true friends and they are the only ones he trusts. Once we understand that, it makes the character development time with Ted and Joey more important. While they were interesting, I really could not have cared less for their sex interest in the two humans. What could be better? I have two issues with this book and they connect. The authors spent a great deal of time focusing on the human beach neighbors of Carlo: Kevin and Grady. The only HEA we get is theirs and as far as I know they have no real connection to the two main characters.To be perfectly honest, while Kevin and Grady’s story might be sweet, I had no urge to find their conclusion. It seemed like the filler sex scenes because the authors knew they would not get to Carlo and Angelo’s love life. Which I guess that would be fine, but I would have rather have had no sex and see more of Carlo and Angelo. What I found interesting though is that I actually found Ted an incredibly interesting character. I hope he gets his own book!I hope that we get to focus more on our Carlo and Angelo than any other side characters.While this style is not my favorite, your mileage might vary. In fact, if you like this series, you might like Poppy Dennison’s series, Triad. Conclusions: Overall, I enjoyed the novel. While I gave the book a three star rating, most of that is because this was just the beginning of the story and I was not satisfied with the ending. I would have rather just had the story of the werewolves and kept the main story going. But, I did not write this book, did I? So I will just trust that the authors have a plan and their pace is slower than my impatience.I have a feeling, that as the book(s) continue and we see more of Angelo and Carlo together, I will improve the rating. I think that, if you enjoy reading a story in a serial fashion, you will love this book. We get a great beginning look into the culture and the ending sets us up for the next conflict. I can’t wait for the next book!

Wow! Surprisingly good book! I mean no offense to the author, but rather the publishers normally produces sex filled crap.Now, there was plenty of sex, but I loved the characters and I can't wait for the next one.

I really enjoyed this book. I can't help it, I enjoy the "gay for you" story. Although to be fair, this is not exactly "gay for you".Sweet and fairly fluffy read.