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

Under Cover by MaryJanice Davidson

Sweet Strangers – Renee Jardin’s job is to protect the secrets of her employer not steal them. One day she learns that someone planted an experimental medicine worth a billion dollars on her and her employer is willing to do anything to get it back. But when she turns around and kisses one of the men after her prize, she realizes she’s in a lot more trouble than she thought.

Lovely Lies – Peter Random loses his job when his employer goes bankrupt after Renee turns over the medicine to the government. But his life takes an unusual spin when he finds a drunk girl curled up in the backseat of his car. His protective skills take over when someone attacks her and soon he finds himself with a temporary job as her bodyguard. But then he begins to wonder who is going to protect him from her.

Delightful Deception – despite her brilliant mind, Thea Foster never realized how many problems would come from sneaking the experimental medicine she created into Renee’s bag. But her biggest problem is dealing with the new owner of the company and soon after their first kiss she realizes that his plans have nothing to do with her research skills.

The three short stories are cute and somewhat connected. While not as extreme as some of her stories, all three feature MaryJanice’s quirky brand of humor and sensuality. If you love her other stories, I’m sure you love these too.

Details: Kensington, October 2003

Excellence Rating: Very Good

Steaminess Factor: yummy

Hello Gorgeous! by MaryJanice Davidson

Caitlyn James wakes up figuring she partied a little too much with her sorority sisters, but then she slowly remembers the terrible accident and learns that someone injected her with nanobytes which turned her into a modern version of the bionic woman. Soon she meets the man who paid for her upgrades, and who new wants her to work for him as his special agent. While Caitlyn resists, her boss soon convinces her to go after the most dangerous man in the world. When they meet she learns two things, first he’s an absolute hunk and second, he’s the only other person who possesses her nanobyte enhancements. Now she’s forced to choose between her boss who controls her future and her new friend who’s the only person in the world that can understand her.

This book is part chick-lit and part romance, but mostly it’s an absolute riot. The only bad thing about this book is that the story it’s too short. To give the book a little more length, MaryJanice added a cute little story called Ten Little Idiots. While it was an okay story, Hello Gorgeous more than makes up for it. If you like slightly offbeat stories, then this one is for you.

Details: Dorchester, May 2007

Excellence Rating: Great

Steaminess Factor: Yummy

Valentine’s Day is Killing Me by MaryJanice Davidson, Leslie Esdaile, Susanna Carr

Cuffs and Coffee Breaks by MaryJanice Davidson: Julie Kay About learns the pitfalls of a Valentine’s Day blind date when she shows up at the restaurant, only to find her date being lead away in handcuffs and a dead body lying next to the table.

A “No Drama” Valentine’s by Leslie Esdaile: After a string of bad dates, Jocelyn Jefferson arranges a Valentine’s party for her friends, where no men were allowed. But when her friends choose dates over her company, Jocelyn goes through with her party anyway, only to watch it spin completely out of control landing her in jail.

Valentine Survivor by Susanna Carr: Last year, Shanna Murphy decided she can’t rely on a man to give her what she needs on Valentine’s Day, so she arranges everything herself, just in case she finds the right man before the appointed day.

Valentine’s Day isn’t killing me, this book is (okay, I couldn’t resist). None of the three stories really worked for me. Each story had a different set of problems, either lame characters, incoherent story or just poor writing. Even though the book did have problems, I do plan to give the authors a second chance in the future, as it’s quite possible that they had trouble meeting the theme for this book. But if you haven’t read this book by now, I’d save it for next Valentine’s Day where it may be totally forgotten in your to-be-read pile.

Details: Kensington, January 2007

Excellence Rating: Good

Steaminess Factor: Yummy

The Secret Life of Mrs. Claus by Carly Alexander

In the Nutcracker, Olivia Todd returns to Baltimore to recover after breaking her ankle. Forced to quit dancing with the Rockettes, she takes a job as Mrs. Claus in Rossman’s Department Store. Then she learns that her ex-boyfriend also returned to Baltimore and is filming film a new TV show, who’s lead character is obnoxious and nasty and also just happens to be based on Olivia. Everywhere she goes, people treat her the same way that her TV character treats others. Now can Olivia survive her ex and the problems he caused and return to her dream job of dancing with the Rockettes?

In Christmas Mouse, Cassie Derringer deals with single motherhood as she tries to provide the best possible life for her son after leaving the child’s father. Leaving the child’s father meant giving up her job as a set designer for his TV show. Forced to look elsewhere for employment, she takes a job at Rossman’s Department Store as a window dresser. However, cutbacks in the store means that she also has to take on the job of Mrs. Claus. Now can Cassie and her son survive their first Christmas season without a man in their lives?

In Miracle on the Magnificent Mile, Meredith tries to assert her right to take her parents place on Rossman’s board of directors. However, the board feels that she’s too young and thinks she needs more hands-on retail experience. So Meredith finds herself in the toy department playing Mrs. Claus, while trying to earn the board’s respect. Unfortunately Meredith hasn’t believed in Christmas, since her parents died on Christmas Day, two years ago. Now can Meredith overcome her parent’s deaths to find the true meaning of Christmas?

While the cover leads to you to believe that this is a single story, it is really three short stories that revolve around three different women who play Mrs. Claus in a department store. The heroines eventually connect with a guy in all three stories, but the guy generally plays a minor role in the story so it’s hard for me to think of these stories as true romances. Not realizing that the book contains three stories, hurt the first story as I was just starting to like Olivia, when the story abruptly ended. But I have to admire the extreme level of detail Carly used when painting the picture of Baltimore City. Cassie’s story is cute, but mostly because of her son. My favorite story of the three is Meredith’s because it was closer to a romance story than the other two. If you love Carly Alexander, I think you’ll love this book. But if you’re looking for a more typical romance novel, I think you should look elsewhere.

Details: Kensington, October 06

Bottom line: A pretty good book