Clang, Clang, Clang went the trolley...

Yeah, I don't know why I titled this post that...I was trying to think of something that would sum up the crazy busy I've been lately and that's what popped into my mind. Posting is going to be intermittent the rest of this month, June is just a beehive!!

Here's a couple of quickies about some books I've read.


Jory Strong - ROPING SAVANNAH I'm a big fan of Ms. Strong's books. They are usually fast paced and intense. She has a couple of different series going on. This particular book is part of the FALLON MATES series. It is futuristic and the least of my favorites. This book was only okay for me. I didn't really like Savannah that much. I couldn't figure out why these two guys would like her either...DNA matched mate or not. This book gets a 'MEH' from me.

The new Sherrilyn Kenyon - THE DARK SIDE OF THE MOON which is her hard cover debut for the Dark Hunters I believe. Okay, I'm a fan and was soooo looking forward to this book. My biggest interest in this book was the information Ms. Kenyon gave us that progressed the Dark Hunter lore. Changing locations to Seattle did nothing for the story line, IMHO.

I was not invested in Ravyn or his story much at all. For such a hard ass who is supposed to be so mean and difficult to get along with he seemed pretty tame to me. He was a sort of "metro" DH if you will. This would have been okay, not all DH's have to be the same, but Ravyn just seemed sort of confused and without focus. I do have to say I am curious to read Nick's story, which has been set up with bits and pieces in three different books now and also, Savitar looks like he would make an interesting book. We already know he just kills the people who irritate him. How do you make that guy redeemable?

Lynn Viehl - DARK NEED. Now this book I loved! I couldn't put it down. While I must admit it took me the first couple of chapters to get reacquainted with the Darkyn world, I still enjoyed every page. I'm already a big fan of the series and I think this is the best book yet. I was hooked trying to figure Lucan out. We know he has a story, but Ms. Viehl, without frustrating the reader, slowly unveils his past as the current day story progresses.

There is a whole Darkyn world that has been created with these books which touches on the dark side of the Catholic Church. This book differs dramatically from the Kenyon book because we are not only interested in the progression of the story of the Darkyn kind, but get engrossed in this individual story of Samantha and Lucan. Ms. Viehl does well here with the characters creating in-depth people we care about. Both Samantha Brown, homicide cop and Lucan the Darkyn assassin are flawed, misunderstood, and lonely individuals. I found this to be a tightly written and compact story that moves briskly and takes for granted the reader's intelligence to keep up with the interwoven story lines and characters. I love that there is an overall continuing saga here while you can easily read each of the three books in the series as stand alones. Kudos, this is a standout book in an already interesting series. I can't wait to see what she does next.

Iris Johnsen - KILLER DREAMS This is another long-time favorite author. I've been reading her books since she wrote for Bantam and did little serial Loveswepts. Her books are somewhat formulaic but I just can't seem to resist them. I really like her writing voice. One of the other things I've always admired about her is that while she frequently has children in her books as pivotal characters she doesn't dumb down the conversation or the child's intelligence.

This particular story has to do with what would happen if sleep research and the power of the sleep therapist were corrupted to give "suggestions" to people while they are sleeping. Let me just say...some really bad stuff could happen! Duh!

I guess most people would call Ms. Johansen's books romantic suspense. That doesn't quite describe them to me because they always have that touch of mystery and espionage in them as well. Characters from previous books such as COUNTDOWN and the Eve Duncan books also appear in this novel. This is a hard cover, but large print and is a very quick read. I mention it because spending the money for a hardcover and getting a "quickie" sort of book may turn some people off.

While my work days have been long and busy, it's been nice to escape into a book and relax in the evenings. I'm looking forward to a summer filled with good books.