TBR Day: BEAU CRUSOE by Carla Kelly

Beau Crusoe by Carla Kelly. Published March 2007. Harlequin Historical Regency.

Keishon's TBR Challenge really has me on a roll reading some older stuff. Also, I figure it's incentive to keep things going if I have to read another book from the tower of tubs that is my tbr. How's that for some right thinking, huh?

Secondly, and more importantly, I really enjoyed this book and I love sharing that sort of news. Why I waited to read this gem I don't know. I remember buying the book, my first Carla Kelly, because there was a lot of buzz about it when it came out.

Our hero James Trevenen was stranded on an island for seven years after a storm shipwrecks the vessel he serves on. Desperately lonely, James studies crabs on the island and writes a treatise of sorts about them. James has come to London to receive a special medal and recognition for his scientific studies and observations.

James ends up staying at the family home of Susannah Park a widow with a young son. Susannah's father has been asked by a family friend, Susannah's godfather, to have James stay with them a couple of weeks before the ceremony. This is all under the guise that James will have someone to show him around London and not have to stay alone in a hotel.

The meeting of these two people is so tender and poignant. James is intelligent, honorable, and lonely. He's a man who has gone through this incredible experience and while he's aware that the experience has marked him believes he's handling the aftermath fairly well. On the other side we have isolated, lonely and devoted mother Susannah. Susannah believes she's had her great love and has no expectations of ever having those sorts of feelings again.

Ms. Kelly does a wonderful job of giving us a peek into the lives of these two seemingly ordinary people who are both struggling with extraordinary circumstances. I enjoyed the book very much for the subtle and skillful way Ms. Kelley reveals that there's much more to know about what happened to James on the island just as there is to understanding Susannah's reason for isolated servitude on her family's estate.

This is a wonderful story told well with a lot of character and charm. Needless to say I'm going to start looking for Ms. Kelley's back list.

B+ for me on this one.

I'm Saved!

Look at this!

The Rules Copyright dates are from 2007 and back. No 2008 titles. The older the title the better. You may review your books early if you like and spotlight them on the designated Wed of every month. There is an incentive as I am being generous and the rules are as follows for the $100 Amazon gift certificate: 1) you must read and review a book from your TBR pile with a copyright date of 2007 and older. 2) You must do this continuously without skipping a month until Dec 2008. 3) If more than one reader qualifies, then there will be a drawing. 4) Entering into this contest you are held up to the honor code (or whatever they call it in college), no quickie reviews of I liked it, or didn’t like it as they will be discounted (I’ve revised things a bit because I can do that).

Thank you Angela James for linking to Keishon's TBR Rules in your review today. I couldn't resist and I posted the pertinent part up above. Woo-freakin' Hoo! I can re-post my review of BEAU CRUSOE and highlight it for TBR Day. Praise be. This way the other Carla Kelly book I'm almost done with MRS. DREW PLAYS HER HAND can be used for the next month's TBR Day. You can be sure I'm going to go ahead and write the review over the weekend and have it saved for next month.

Whew! I feel so much better. It's actually pathetic how much better I feel. It's not about winning Keishon's challenge, though that would be nice, it's about meeting a goal. And, yes, though I'm squinting and panting I do believe that's the finish line I see up ahead.

The review will be up in a separate post.

The Challenge & The Finish Line

Today Keishon's TBR Challenge book review is due. I'm still reading my tbr book. I'm sprinting for the finish line. Sprinting I tell you. Don't look at the runner and ignore the panting.

I've been asking myself and wondering why oh why didn't I just save the Carla Kelly review of BEAU CRUSOE? Why? WHY? I'll tell you why. Because I arrogantly thought I had sooooo much month left to read one or two more books from my tbr stockpile. I was on a roll. I was in a reading groove.

I think we can bank on me not making that ASSumption again.

So here I am in the wee hours of the morning suffering from a case of "I'm not going to be sleeping any time soon". I'm panting for the finish line. Dead line. Whatever. Hey, didn't I say not to look at the runner?

Since I'm up reading (or will be), I'm thinking I have a fighting chance of finishing my book, writing the review and posting it tomorrow. Not the optimum circumstances or choice you understand, but still doable.

I'm betting you have your review done, don't you... I knew it! If I called in sick for work I could get mine done too. For sure. However, that would set a terrible precedent. Terrible. Precedent. It might start a regrettable trend. I might start calling out TBR Wednesday every month for the rest of the year. I could end up unemployed. Or...check, check...1...2...1...2... Can you hear me in the back? I could embrace ree-al-it-tee. *shudder* *stumble*

In the real world, I wouldn't worry about the TBR Challenge. I'd get the sleep I desperately need to function like a normal human being, and just go to bed. Heh. Heh. Lucky me. I live in Rosie World. Here in my world we embrace things like deadlines and goals and lists. Oh, and insomnia. We embrace the sleep deprived too. Yes. That's right. It's all about give and take here at NOBODY ASKED ME...er, uh...Rosie World. It's all about you and me and the Luh-ove. We don't need no stinkin' ree-al-it-tee.

Please, for the last time, don't look at the runner. *pant* *pant* *wheeze*

In the meantime, I'm going to click on 'Publish Post'. After that I'm probably going to read. Shortly thereafter I should finally fall asleep. One can hope.

Anyway, I've always preferred walking to any sort of running. Sprinting for crying out loud. What was I thinking? Anybody got some water? *THUD*

I warned you not to look at the runner. Now look what you did.

AT LAST... APRIL READS

As you know I had a wonderful reading weekend LAST weekend. Even so I didn't think I'd read that much in April. Turns out I read 18 books. Wow! Who knew?

OUTLAW'S BRIDE by Maureen McKade. This was a good solid western, but not an exceptional read like I've come to expect from Ms. McKade. Another one bites the dust from ye olde tbr.

COUGAR'S CAPTIVE by Vonna Harper. A Loose-Id release. My grade was 'meh' and frankly aside from remembering it as a sort of a fantasy read I don't remember much about it.

GRIMSPACE by Ann Aguirre. I reviewed this one. It's futuristic, first person and I liked it.

GETTING RID OF BRADLEY by Jennifer Crusie. I'm listing this as a re-read because I have it on my keeper shelf. This was very entertaining and I have no idea why I didn't remember it except the book on my keeper shelf is from the original from 1994. I guess 14 years can leave the details a little vague. However, if you are looking for a few laughs about a woman, a divorce, a dye job gone wrong and a sexy cop with an attitude problem then you should read this book. . Oh, and did I mention 'dead dog' ? Very cute and funny. Oh, and a bonus for all you Crusie fans. It's Jennifer Crusie month over at Book Binge. Go check it out.

DEMON'S FIRE by Emma Holly. This is the third full book set in Holly's quasi-Victorian England and futuristic/fantasy demon world. This story involves a menage. Normally this is something Holly does well, but I felt the 'couple' was a little young in this one. This just didn't capture my attention as the earlier books in this world did.

RIDE THE FIRE by Pamela Clare. This was a very good frontier saga. The genuine historical feel and details about everyday life added an excellent backdrop to the story without being tedious. This is the third in the Kenleigh/Blakewell series. I read this out of order and without reading the previous two books and had no problem.

HUNTER:SALVATION by Shiloh Walker. This is another book I enjoyed and reviewed in April.

FALLEN STAR by Morgan Hawke. This is a part of her space series. Ms. Hawke's books are not for the faint hearted but this erotic other world she's created fascinates me. Her world building is very layered and detailed, something I think that just adds to the story. This was a re-read. A side note: as far as I know this is only available as an e-book. I read the copy I have had for some time, but I think it's still available from Extasy Books.

WILD FRONTIER by Sienna Black. Another Loose-Id release. Last month it was EC this month Loose-Id for my erotic fix. This was a DNF for me.

SHIFTER anthology by Angela Knight, Lora Leigh, Alyssa Day and Virginia Kantra. Surprisingly I liked the Angela Knight and the Lora Leigh breed story pretty well. Anthologies have been a bit of a bust for me lately so that was a happy surprise. I've enjoyed other books by Ms. Kantra but gave the story a pass because it had 'sea' in the title. I made the leap mer-people were involved which happens to be yet another category of romance that doesn't float my boat. My apologies to she and Ms. Day since I only read half of this book I cannot really comment on their stories.

MARRIAGE BED by Claudia Dain. This is from the tbr too. She's an heiress promised to his brother. He's a monk. Sort of. Prior to taking his final vows the brother dies and she goes to the abbey to marry him. He's a bit of a knot head about things, meaning it took longer than it should have for him to see the light. All in all though this was an entertaining historical.

BEAU CRUSOE by Carla Kelly. I enjoyed this one very much. It was also from my tbr. In case you missed it you can go here and read my review. I'm sold on Carla Kelly and I'm going to be looking for her back list.

SEALed WITH A KISS by Mary Margret Daughtridge. I can't believe my good fortune in winning this one. I was going to give it a try after reading Holly's review and then won a copy at Book Binge. I reviewed it with Beau Crusoe. Here's the link again.

LAST WOLF HUNTING by Rhyannon Byrd. This is the 2nd book in her Blood Runner series. This is a category romance and part of the Silhouette Nocturne line. The Blood Runner trilogy has been published in three successive months, March, April and May 2008. There's not a lot of depth here but the story premise interested me and I did buy (and read) the third book this past weekend. If I was grading them I'd probably give them a 'C' overall. Oh and FYI, the Blood Runners are a mixed breed were wolf that hunts the rogue weres gone bad.

FIRE & ICE by Anne Stuart. I was anxious to read this after reading the excerpt and realizing that these were two secondary characters from previous 'Ice' books getting their own story. This is Reno and Jilly's book for those of you who have been following the series. Reno is the younger cousin of Tak in ICE BLUE and Jilly is Summer's (also ICE BLUE) younger sister. As I mentioned when I talked about ICE BLUE I'm partial to the books because the Japanese culture is one that fascinates me. I lived in Japan for three years from ages 11-13 and absolutely loved it there. This story takes place entirely in Japan and that combined with Ms. Stuart's inimitable style, I enjoyed the book very much.

NIGHTCAP by Kathleen O'Reilly. The final in the O'Sullivan Brothers trilogy and a May Harlequin Blaze I was able to pick up early. This was a decent contemporary romance with two very strong characters, but I think the second book of the trilogy will always be my favorite. While Sean and Cleo are strong, smart, and savy I don't think they were always very likable.

DARK NEEDS AT NIGHTS EDGE by Kresley Cole. This one I did a buddy review with Nath over at Breezing Through.

ICON by Louisa Trent. Another Loose-Id release. I've enjoyed many of Ms. Trent's more contemporary e-books and her historicals. This on was difficult to get into and is a sort of erotic fantasy. It was only okay for me.

There 'tis. April's reads. Whew! One more thing off my 'To Do' list. Now to catch up on everything else...

Talk about books...

This is actually a post I started a week ago before I was felled by whatever it was that felled me. Anyway, I wanted to tell you about a couple of good books I read.




Beau Crusoe by Carla Kelly. This is from my tbr and I guess I could have written a review and saved it for next month's TBR Day, but it just didn't seem like the right thing to do.

First of all there's still a whole month before the next TBR Day. Keishon's challenge really has me on a roll reading some older stuff. Also, I figure it's incentive to keep things going if I have to read another book from the tower of tubs that is my tbr. How's that for some right thinking, huh?

Secondly, and more importantly, I really enjoyed the book and I love sharing that sort of news. Why I waited to read this gem I don't know. I remember buying the book, my first Carla Kelley, because there was a lot of buzz about it when it came out.

Our hero James Trevenen was stranded on an island for seven years after a storm shipwrecks the vessel he serves on. Desperately lonely, James studies crabs on the island and writes a treatise of sorts about them. James has come to London to receive a special medal and recognition for his scientific studies and observations.

James ends up staying at the family home of Susannah Park a widow with a young son. Susannah's father has been asked by a family friend to have James stay with them a couple of weeks before the ceremony so he won't have to stay alone in a hotel in London.

The meeting of this tender, intelligent, lonely man who has gone through this incredible experience and the isolated, lonely and devoted Susannah is a wonderful tale about regular people. While they suffer from the worries and moral strictures of the times, these aren't the titled and super wealthy.

I enjoyed the book very much for the subtle and skillful way Ms. Kelley reveals that there's much more to know about what happened to James on the island as there is to Susannah's reason for isolated servitude on her family's estate.

This is a good story told well with a lot of character and charm. Needless to say I'm going to start looking for Ms. Kelley's back list.





The second book I devoured read, which I won recently from the awesome chicks over at BOOK BINGE, is SEALed with a Kiss by Mary Margret Daughtridge. I have to admit I was ready to buy this book after reading Holly's review. As you might imagine winning a copy was pretty freaking cool.

This book also has exceptionally well drawn characters. Yes, it is a book with a Navy SEAL as the hero. I hope that won't stop you from reading it. However, Ms. Daughtridge takes pains throughout the book to draw a realistic picture of the life of a Navy SEAL and more importantly the life of the families of a Navy SEAL. Ms. Daughtridge points out the drawbacks amidst the glamorous misconceptions.

Jax Graham's ex-wife dies unexpectedly leaving Jax with the dilemma of how to care for his young son. Family therapist Pickett Sessums happens on father and son while they are vacationing at the beach.

This isn't a story about a manly alpha hero rescuing the damsel in distress. In fact it's pretty much the opposite. Pickett's experience as a family therapist is helping Jax reconnect with his son. Once again we have two regular people who have problems just like the rest of us. Upon meeting they strike sparks but also find solace, support and help from one another.

It was refreshing to have two characters satisfied with their lives before they meet each other. A pivotal plot point turns on how Jax and Pickett could manage to make a life together work without either one of them having to give up the life and career they love.

For those of you groaning about the kids in both of these books let me just say that in neither one of the books are the kids an annoyance or obstruction to the story. Both little boys are realistically written.

Stole this...

This was posted on WEB PETALS Marjorie M. Liu's blog early this morning:

I found a gold mine of a website - the Academy of Achievement - which has fantastic interviews with a host of incredible people, from Rosa Parks to Benazir Bhutto, Olivia de Havilland to Richard Leakey.

Here's a 1996 interview with Elie Wiesel:

I read a lot. I teach my students, not creative writing, but creative reading and it is still from my childhood. You take a text, you explore it, you enter it with all your heart and all your mind. And then you find clues that were left for you, really foredestined to be received by you from centuries ago. Generation after generation there were people who left clues, and you are there to collect them and, at one point, you understand something that you hadn't understood before. That is a reward, and as a teacher I do the same thing. When I realize there is a student there, in the corner, who understands, there is a flicker in the eye. That is the greatest reward that a teacher can receive.

That quote just rocks my boat.

Top 100 Romances

I saw this list first on Rosario's site (Aug 14, 2006, post) then on KarenS and Let's Gab sites the last couple of days. It was originated by AAR in 2004.

I was curious to check out how many of the books I had read especially since I've started a reading list in July of this year. I've been reading romances for 20 years so as you can imagine, I haven't kept all the books I've read, but was curious to see if I could remember them just by title and author.

At first glance there was 60 I knew for sure I'd read, then I actually starting verifying the list against books I still own. Many of these books are on my keeper shelves. Anyway I was able to verify a few more. There were still a few I wasn't sure about but felt I had read them since I'd purchased many of that particular author's books in the past.

In my list I've highlighted the books I can verify I've read, (because I still have them) in BOLD (64); books in my TBR in red (2), and those I think I've read in blue (7).

That covers 73 of the books on this list. Wow!! I was sort of surprised I had read that many. This was fun because just looking at the titles and remembering the books was nostalgic and a trip down memory lane. It made me anxious to give a couple of them a re-read. I'm wondering why I can't remember about the Brockway books because I used to read all her books and I can't remember which ones I've read or why I quit reading her books. I was (am) a huge Regency fan and wonder why I've never tried Carla Kelly. All food for thought and some good reading.

1. Lord of Scoundrels by Loretta Chase (just ordered it)
2. Flowers From the Storm by Laura Kinsale
3. Welcome to Temptation by Jennifer Crusie
4. As You Desire by Connie Brockway
5. Bet Me by Jennifer Crusie
6. Dreaming of You by Lisa Kleypas
7. Outlander by Diana Gabaldon
8. Over the Edge by Suzanne Brockmann
9. All Through the Night by Connie Brockway
10. Sea Swept by Nora Roberts
11. It Had to be You by Susan Elizabeth Phillips
12. A Summer to Remember by Mary Balogh
13. Morning Glory by LaVyrle Spencer
14. The Proposition by Judith Ivory
15. A Kingdom of Dreams by Judith McNaught
16. Ravished by Amanda Quick
17. Frederica by Georgette Heyer
18. Mrs. Drew Plays Her Hand by Carla Kelly
19. MacKenzie's Mountain by Linda Howard
20. Mr. Perfect by Linda Howard
21. The Grand Sophy by Georgette Heyer
22. Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen
23. The Bride by Julie Garwood
24. Devil's Bride by Stephanie Laurens
25. To Have and to Hold by Patricia Gaffney
26. Born in Fire by Nora Roberts
27. Winter Garden by Adele Ashworth
28. Gone Too Far by Suzanne Brockmann
29. The Viscount Who Loved Me by Julia Quinn
30. Saving Grace by Julie Garwood
31. My Dearest Enemy by Connie Brockway
32. In the Midnight Rain by Barbara Samuel
33. The Windflower by Laura London
34. Naked in Death by J.D. Robb
35. Whitney, My Love by Judith McNaught
36. Nobody's Baby but Mine by Susan Elizabeth Phillips
37. A Knight in Shining Armor by Jude Deveraux
38. Paradise by Judith McNaught
39. The Shadow and the Star by Laura Kinsale
40. Dream Man by Linda Howard
41. Out of Control by Suzanne Brockmann
42. Silk and Shadows by Mary Jo Putney
43. See Jane Score by Rachel Gibson
44. Shattered Rainbows by Mary Jo Putney
45. Thunder and Roses by Mary Jo Putney
46. The Duke and I by Julia Quinn
47. Heart Throb by Suzanne Brockmann
48. For My Lady's Heart by Laura Kinsale
49. Honor's Splendor by Julie Garwood
50. Lord Carew's Bride by Mary Balogh
51. Untie my Heart by Judith Ivory
52. Dream a Little Dream by Susan Elizabeth Phillips
53. The Secret by Julie Garwood
54. This is All I Ask by Lynn Kurland
55. Slightly Dangerous by Mary Balogh
56. One Perfect Rose by Mary Jo Putney
57. To Love and to Cherish by Patricia Gaffney
58. Kiss an Angel by Susan Elizabeth Phillips
59. Heaven, Texas by Susan Elizabeth Phillips
60. Venetia by Georgette Heyer
61. Daughter of the Game by Tracy Grant
62. The Prize by Julie Garwood
63. Reforming Lord Ragsdale by Carla Kelly
64. Prince Joe by Suzanne Brockmann
65. The Notorious Rake by Mary Balogh
66. Heartless by Mary Balogh
67. Son of the Morning by Linda Howard
68. Sleeping Beauty by Judith Ivory
69. Where Dreams Begin by Lisa Kleypas
70. The Devil's Cub by Georgette Heyer
71. The Bronze Horseman by Paullina Simons
72. The Time Traveler's Wife by Audrey Niffenegar
73. With This Ring by Carla Kelly
74. The Lion's Lady by Julie Garwood
75. The Rake by Mary Jo Putney
76. Fallen from Grace by Laura Leone
77. Always to Remember by Lorraine Heath
78. Castles by Julie Garwood
79. One Good Turn by Carla Kelly
80. Chesapeake Blue by Nora Roberts (been in my TBR forever)
81. By Arrangement by Madeline Hunter
82. Perfect by Judith McNaught
83. My Darling Caroline by Adele Ashworth
84. The Defiant Hero by Suzanne Brockmann
85. The Unsung Hero by Suzanne Brockmann
86. Guilty Pleasures by Laura Lee Guhrke
87. Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte
88. Kill and Tell by Linda Howard
89. After the Night by Linda Howard
90. More than a Mistress by Mary Balogh
91. Born in Ice by Nora Roberts
92. Miss Wonderful by Loretta Chase
93. The Charm School by Susan Wiggs
94. Scoundrel by Elizabeth Elliott
95. How to Marry a Marquis by Julia Quinn
96. Angel Rogue by Mary Jo Putney
97. Trust Me by Jayne Ann Krentz
98. Dancing on the Wind by Mary Jo Putney
99. Once and Always by Judith McNaught
100. This Heart of Mine by Susan Elizabeth Phillips