True Deception by Patricia Waddell

Kala Char’ari wants nothing more than freedom for her world from the Conglomerate, while Aedon Rawn’s own world collapsed when his wife and children were killed by Conglomerate pirates. Now fighting together, can Kala shake the Conglomerate’s iron grip on her world or will she be sidetracked by the handsome agent bent on revenge?

I loved how Patricia fashioned an interesting world of oppression and created a couple with the ability to shake it lose. Add in a complex collection of characters to deepen the mystery and suspense you’ll find you can’t put this book down.

Details: Tor, December 2007

Excellence Rating: Very Good

Unlucky by Jana DeLeon

Mallory Devereaux is the unluckiest woman in the world. The smallest touch from her is enough to cause a waiter to dump your lobster tail on your lap complete with melted butter and a kiss could leave you crippled for life. Her uncle decides to take advantage of this tragedy by cooling the cards of hot players during a poker tournament. Unfortunately, the poker tournament is filled with the lowest scum of the earth, and the worst of the bunch is being investigated by Jake Randall, undercover FBI agent who is dealing the cards at her table. Jake teams up with Mallory when he finds he can’t lose no matter how badly he plays and soon they find themselves attracted to each other. Now can Mallory and Jake find a way to overcome her curse, or will the criminals at the tournament decide to change Mallory’s luck permanently?

This story features a nice collection of unique characters along with a good adventure story. There’s also enough humor to make you laugh out loud several times along the way. A good read.

Details: Love Spell, December 2007

Excellence Rating: Very Good

NASCAR Holiday 2 by Pamela Britton, Gina Wilkins, Ken Casper, Abby Gains

This book features four short stories by four authors of the NASCAR themed books. A worthwhile read for any fans of the NASCAR books.

Details: Harper, November 2007

Excellence Rating: Very Good

Sex and the Immortal Bad Boy by Stephanie Rowe

Freed from her job as Satan’s Rivka, Paige Darlington now finds herself about to lose her soul. The only way to save herself is to take a sip in one of Heaven’s cleansing moats, but Heaven doesn’t permit visits from Hell spawn. Jed Buchanan, Satan Jr.’s favorite assassin agrees to help Paige sneak past Heaven’s defenses, but will she let him sneak past her own?

This appears to be the final story in the Date Me, Baby, One More Time series of books. In a way, I’m kinda disappointed as I wanted to see Satan finally land the girl of his dreams. But this is an interesting tale and one that many paranormal loves will enjoy.

Details: Grand Central, November 2007

Excellence Rating: Very Good

Holy Smokes by Katie MacAlister

Asling Grey returns in Katie’s latest Guardian novel to finally Drake Vireo the wyvern of the green dragons. But the road to the wedding is cluttered with missing grooms, missing brides, warring dragons, angry demon lords, and just about every other type of otherworldly creature with a grudge. Will she make it this time or just end up damned to Hell for the rest of eternity.

This story is very satisfying in that most of the unresolved conflicts spanning the last several books reach satisfying conclusions. If you’ve read her previous stories in this stories, this is definitely a must read book.

Details: Signet, November 2007

Excellence Rating: Very Good

Big Girls Don’t Cry by Cathie Linz

After plus size model Leena Riley’s career takes a nosedive, she returns home with her tail in desperate need of a job. So she takes the only job she can find, receptionist at Cole Flannigan’s veterinarian’s office, even though Cole spent his youth taunting her. Now that Cole is grown up, taunting her is the last thing on his mind.

This is a hot spicy book that delivers. I love the humor and the fact that the heroine is not Twiggy thin, which is something I suffer from myself. If you liked her earlier books, Good Girls Do and Bad Girls Don’t, I think you’ll enjoy this one too.

Details: Berkley Sensation, November 2007

Excellence Rating: Very Good

Wife For Hire by Janet Evanovich

This is a cute story about a farmer with big ideas but can’t secure a loan because he’s single, so he hires a school teacher to help secure his loan. His contracted wife is a writer who wants privacy write stories about her aunt’s scandalous tales and the farm gives her what she needs. Together they get more than they bargained for.

While I love comedy books like this, it also demonstrates how far romance stories have evolved over the years. I recommend this book for Evanovich fans and for lovers of romantic comedy everywhere.

Details: Harper, November 2007 (originally released in 1990)

Excellence Rating: Very Good

Electric Blue by Nancy Bush

Jane Kelly is back and begins looking into a case of adultery. This case soon leads her to an eccentric old lady (who’s obviously rich, otherwise she’d be just a crazy old lady) who turns up dead and her family is scrambling over her money. But when Jane finds a second body, the mystery just starts getting weirder and weirder. Now it’s up to Jane to figure out the mystery and solve the crime.

I loved the mystery and how the story unfolded and I’m looking forward to reading Nancy’s next book, Ultra Violet.

Details: Kensington, September 2007

Excellence Rating: Very Good

Candy Apple Red by Nancy Bush

Jane Kelly left her old boyfriend in Southern California and is now living the good life in Lake Chinook Oregon, if you consider barely eeking out a living by tending bar and serving processes good. Then her PI hobby takes a turn for the better when she lands a real case paying real money. But the case turns serious when a dead body turns up and now it looks like Jane’s ex-boyfriend is the killer. Now can Jane find the body before she decided to get back with her ex- or will Jane end up the killer’s next victim.

A complex plot combined with the right amount of humor and wacky characters are a great way to catch my interest. You definitely should give this one a try.

Details: Kensington, September 2006

Excellence Rating: Very Good

Calamity Jayne Heads West by Kathleen Bacus

The fifth volume in the Calamity Jayne series takes Tressa Jayne Turner on the road to the Grand Canyon where her grandmother wants to get married. Unfortunately an ugly fertility figurine she picked up from a road side vendor proves to be hazardous to everyone around her. Now it’s up to Tressa and the sexy Ranger Rick to unravel the mystery before someone winds up dead.

This story is better than some of the past ones, but I think I’d like to see Kathleen try a new set of characters.

Details: Love Spell, October 2007

Excellence Rating: Very Good

A Date with the Other Side by Erin McCarthy

While Shelby Tucker makes a living by giving tours of haunted houses, she’s never actually seen a ghost – at least until the Boston Macnamara rents one of the houses. Boston is in town to inspect the plastics plant, which is the town’s major employer for possible shutdown. Now a batch of random accidents is pushing the two together. But are the accidents random or is someone or something’s magic at work.

I liked this story enough to check out some of Erin’s other stories. I enjoyed the humor and wish more writers would incorporate it into their stories.

Keywords: Details: Berkley, January 2007

Excellence Rating: Very Good

Undercover in High Heels by Gemma Halliday

Set on the set of Magnolia Lane, TV’s newest hit, Maddie finds herself in the middle of a real life story as she investigates a young starlet’s death. Each star seems to have a motive and too much publicity complicates everything.

A cute mystery story with a good sense of humor is always bound to catch my attention.

Details: Making It, September 2007

Excellence Rating: Very Good

Killer in High Heels by Gemma Halliday

The sequel to Spying In High Heels features Maddie Springer wrapped up in the middle of a big mystery. This time her father who ran off a long time ago to Vegas, makes a desperate call for help. So she hits the road in search of her father. Combining a good mystery with a nice batch of wacky characters and this book is sure to bring a smile to your face.

Details: Making It, March 2007

Excellence Rating: Very Good

Witch in the House by Jenna McKnight

I enjoyed this story about a witch who casts a spell to find the perfect man. But the spell backfires and brings her a man that she can’t love. Now she has to work hard to get rid of him before he becomes too suspicious about her powers. A must read for Jenna McKnight fans.


Details: Bantam, March 2007

Excellence Rating: Very Good

Careful What You Wish For by Lucy Finn

This is a cute story about a single mom, who finds an attractive genie in her kitchen. But after her third wish the genie will be returned to when he was originally bottled. It’s bound to bring a few smiles to your face.

Details: Signet Eclipse, June 2007

Excellence Rating: Very Good

Beg for Mercy by Toni Andrews

Mercy Hollings doesn’t consider herself human because she has the psychic ability to “press” people into doing whatever she wants. But what she really wants is to be alone. Unfortunately the one person she calls friend disappears and Mercy feels responsible. Soon she finds herself collecting a wacky group of people to help, but will Mercy find her friend in time to save her.

I liked this story and since the story leaves open room for a sequel, I’ll purchase when it comes out.

Details: Mira, September 2007

Excellence Rating: Very Good

The Life of Reilly by Sue Civil-Brown

This book is set in the same world as her previous HQN novel, Hurricane Hanna. Treasure Island’s school teacher, Lynn Reilly is haunted by her aunt Delphine who seems to be pushing her toward her neighbor Reverend Jack Marks. While I was concerned that a relationship between the heroine and a preacher would be a little boring, Sue seems to find plenty of humor in this story.

Details: HQN, September 2007

Excellence Rating: Very Good

Twice the Temptation by Suzanne Enoch

I have a lot of mixed feelings about this book. While I love the Samantha Jellicoe stories, this one is half historical and half modern with a common thread that links the two time periods. The reason this book rates a very good is that the quality of the first story doesn’t compare to the second, so I picked something in between. I guess a true fan of historical novels might feel differently, but for me it was extremely difficult to sympathize with the characters and why the did the things they did. I felt that Suzanne should have spent some time explaining things to contemporary readers rather than assuming they understood the historical context of the story. If you really enjoy reading about the cat burglar and the billionaire, then you probably should read this story. But I have a hard time recommending it otherwise.

Details: Avon, August 2007

Excellence Rating: Very Good

Heiress for Hire by Erin McCarthy

This cute story about the rich girl who’s cut off from her father’s money falling in love with a small town farmer will bring smiles to your face while you read it.

Details: Bantam, July 2007

Excellence Rating: Very Good

Dead Girls Are Easy by Terri Garey

Suppose you were dying and heading toward the light and you’re refused entrance. After a near death experience, Nicki Styx returns to her body, remembering everything, plus she has a new talent. A talent that let’s her talk with dead people or rather let’s dead people whine at her. Fortunately, the hunky Dr. Joe Bascombe who saved your life also wants to hear all of the details about your new talents. But when a murder victim wants Nicki to find her killer, she finds herself wrapped up in something much more complex than a mere murder. Now can Nicki and Dr. Joe manage to unravel the mystery or will Nicki have another chance to head toward the light?

This is a cute story and Terri manages to inject quite a bit of humor into the characters. I love Nicki’s personality and the way she manages to attract lots of dead people with problems to solve. If you’re looking for a fresh approach to a paranormal story, check out this book.

Details: Avon, September 2007

Excellence Rating: Very Good

Steaminess Factor: Yummy