The Admiral's Penniless Bride by Carla Kelly

What an excellent book for a monthly Harlequin! This is a very sweet, tender story of Admiral Sir Charles Bright and his desire to marry quickly to get his hen picking sisters off his back. After almost his whole life at sea, he is a bit unused to what all happens back on land but when he glances up from his table at the hotel and sees the obviously down to her last penny, Sally Paul, he knows that they can help each other. After an initial refusal to his proposal, Sophia, as Charles calls her, accepts and they move to his newly purchased home...which basically used to be a whore house for the old lord and there are um, detailed paintings and statues and books everywhere. Charles is sure she will run out at this point, but Sophia surprises him and believes that they can just change the decor.

There was so much realness to this book which I very much enjoyed. I loved how these two didn't just fall into bed, but their attraction slowly built up as did their respect and love. I loved how Charles and Sophia both hired down on their luck people to help in their home, him some old sailors that otherwise would have a tough time finding work, and her, the governess she meet on the mail coach and some young girls that need a safe place. I loved the relationship between their new neighbors and how delighted they were to feel welcome. The only thing that kept this from being a five star read for me was....the big misunderstanding. I'm not a fan of them to begin with and I was bummed it was thrown in here. Sophia has some secrets that she does not want to reveal and when they finally are, Charles blows up and leaves no room for clarification. Thankfully, we get out HEA but I would have liked an epilogue, just a short one but other than that, this is a really heartwarming book! I will definitely be checking out more books by Carla Kelly! 4 stars

Swimsuit by James Patterson

Another excellent page turner from Patterson. You are probably wondering where is the romance books I normally read? Well, I picked up one of Pattersons earlier novels, Along Came a Spider years ago and I became hooked. If you have never read him, I suggest you start with the above book. The chapters are short, like three pages normally and you find yourself just racing through the book saying "just one more chapter" over and over again. Swimsuit fits right in with all his previous novels as an enjoyable, suspenseful thriller. Has a few twists and turns, as expected and it had an ending I did not expect and almost leaves an opening for another novel featuring the lead male of Ben, who is a cop turned reporter and novelist.
This book was an easy four stars for me and I would recommend it to anyone looking for something exciting to read in an afternoon or night, because thats how long it will take. You get hooked very quickly. (I'm not going to really say much about plots and whatnot on Pattersons novels because there are usually so many characters that it is hard to do so. I'll just let you know if I liked it or not....and well, I've liked almost every novel he has written so....)

Redneck Cinderella by LuAnn McLane

Apparently I am on a new author kick as this yet another new author for me and she is being added to my growing list of favorites!! This book follows along the Cinderella theme with a rags to riches storyline. Jolie and her Daddy sell their farm to Jolies high school sweetheart, Cody, for a cool $3.5 million and are set up in the new Copper Creek Estates. Needless to say...these country folk do not really fit it. Cody takes it upon himself to talk to Jolie about the "situation" and gradually sparks start to fly.
There are wonderful supporting characters from Jolies Daddy to the etiquette coach Miss Abigail and her PA Carletta plus Codys brother Brett and the wanna be girlfriend, Marissa. I breezed through this book in an afternoon and was snickering to myself quite a bit. It hooked me right away and I absolutely loved the Cinderella reference at the end (Jolie must hurry to the ball right before midnight and leaves her boots at the ball and, well, I think you can guess the rest!). The only thing I didn't really like was the heroines name. Jolie. Made me thing of Angelina Jolie the whole book, and there is no way I could see her being a southern redneck! Also, it is written in first person which took a bit to get used to but it worked for me.

This rates a solid four stars for me and I am looking forward to the new release, He's No Prince Charming and reading some of McLanes earlier works. I highly recommend this book!!

How to Score by Robin Wells

This was also a new author for me. However, I found myself having a hard time getting into the book. I actually skimmed the middle chunk of the book. We meet Chase, who is stepping in for his brother, Luke who has to go into the Witness Protection Program due to being in the wrong place at the wrong time. Now Luke is a life coach who talks to people over the phone so Chase thinks he can handle this. Then he talks to Sammi. Sammi is a klutz and having a rough time with men....she always injures all the men she is interested in after her ex dumped her. So begins the roller coaster of talking on the phone as "Luke" and being himself (Chase) since he decides to "accidentally" bump into her while jogging.
Overall, this isn't a bad story....I just could not get hooked. Their is a great subplot with Sammis boss (she works as a museum curator) and landlord that is fun to read. Also, there is a bit of suspense drama near the end that I did not expect but liked. I give this three stars. I also have another of Robin Wells' novels, Between the Sheets on my TBR pile but I think I will hold off on it a bit and hope I enjoy it more than I did this one.

Twenties Girl by Sophie Kinsella

This is another delightful, lighthearted novel with a hilarious spin on it from Sophie Kinsella. We meet Lara, who is a bit idealistic and ditzy (as most of Kinsellas heroines tend to be), at the funeral for her Great Aunt Sadie (age 105). During the ceremony, Lara hears a voice and finally actually sees Sadie and stops the funeral as Sadie needs her beautiful dragonfly necklace to have peace in the afterlife (I guess you could say). I know this sounds far fetched and odd, but somehow it really works. Lara and Sadie balance each other very well and have funny chats and it all just makes Lara look a bit more odd (you know, she looks as if she is talking to herself all the time) and therefore, enduring. As they start forth on their journey to find the missing necklace, they have plenty of bumps along the way (business partner takes off, getting over ex-boyfriends) and sparring matches (Sadie can yell into peoples ear, like an "inner voice" and basically make them say whatever she wants them too) which lead to quite a few embarrassing, funny and disastrous moments all on the path to discovery and true love.

I would rate this story a solid four stars and it is something I would definitely reread someday in the future. It is a wonderful story about family, friends, loyalty, and values. If this is your first novel by Kinsella, I would please give her a try. I do not think you will be disappointed...of course, I love all her books....but this one is a great stand alone.

Black Hills by Nora Roberts

Ahh, Nora Roberts. One of my all time favorite authors -- although, her stand alone novels are always a hit or a miss for me. This one was definitely a hit. I have come to notice that as long as I have some sort of interest in the plot (for example, this was all about wildlife rescue which I find fascinating) that the book is so much better. On to the story...

The book centers around Lil and Cooper, two people that meet as kids and drift apart for years and reconnect. I liked how the beginning of the story started out with them both as children and continued on into the teenage love. It made me appreciate their background more. They both have wonderful families, Lil with her mom, dad, and friends Farley and Tansy and Cooper with his grandparents. Cooper had a falling out with his parents and even though it is addressed I felt it could have been resolved a bit more in the present. That was a slight issue for me. Also, if you do not have any interest in wildlife refuge/rescue you may have a hard time enjoying this book as that is so much of the story. Lil has a very special relationship with a cougar and it carries through the entire book. She opens up her own wildlife refuge abode for old, injured and mistreated animals and has gone on many adventures around the world and loves her work. Cooper was a police officer and then PI so his work comes in handy to protect Lil as the killer is waiting to get Lil.
Another issue for me was that I felt the ending was a bit rushed. This book is long...472 pages as a hardcover and I just felt like I needed just one more chapter and surely they could have lost a few other pages to make that happen. SPOILER: I was extremely disappointed that the storyline around Tansy and Farley's love, engagement, and wedding planning did not include the actual wedding. So much time was dedicated to them that I wanted to have a wedding!

That being said, this book rates a solid four and a half stars. If the ending had just been a touch different I would have given it five stars.