The Icing on the Cake by Alison Kent

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THE ICING ON THE CAKE
Author: Alison Kent
Source: Gifted

Paperback: 264 pages
Publisher: HCI; 1 edition (August 9, 2010)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0757315356
ISBN-13: 978-0757315350

SUMMARY:



Matchmaker, matchmaker, make me a match . . . dot com!  An on-line dating service is not Michelle Snow’s idea of how to find love but when the Big 3-0 hits, Michelle decides she has nothing to lose since she hasn’t brought a date home in ten years, she’s professionally burned out, and her climb up the corporate ladder has come at the expense of abandoning her sweet dream: to own a boutique cupcakery.

Todd Bracken, early 30s and a successful technology consultant, isn’t exactly a player after being off the market for ten years, and pours himself into his dual passions of martial arts and home-sweet-home renovations. Only there’s no one to come home to so he decides to give Match.com a try. Todd isn’t so sure the Internet dating scene is his thing—until a message pops up in the wee hours on a weekend night: “I like your smile.” Todd likes—a lot—the whole package that glides into a French bistro in Washington, D.C.

It’s serious mojo-at-first-sight but there’s a glitch: Todd and Michelle live in different cities. Will love find its way in the digital age with a You’ve Got Mail courtship when video cam kisses just aren’t enough? And when Todd challenges Michelle to not only go for her dream but let him share it, will they be able to make it happen together despite obstacles more plentiful than a shower of rainbow sprinkles? 

MY THOUGHTS:



When I first ventured into reading this book,  I didn’t realize it was based on a true story.  Yes, the book is part of the True Vows series that is reality based romance, but it never really clicked with me until I looked up the publisher site.  Imagine having your love story written into a book? How amazing is that?


What I loved about Michelle and Todd was the fact that they both were hesitant on starting a full fledged relationship.  Michelle had been hurt in the past, and Todd had never found that special someone to make it click as a true relationship.  When the two meet online under the site Match.com, they are both surprised at the ease of the first date.  They both can’t believe how connected they are after only a few dates.  I also loved Todd and his sense of humor.  It was refreshing and much needed after reading sob filled romances lately.  I loved how he could easily bring a smile to Michelle’s face when she needed it.  I also loved how Michelle never gave up her dream of opening her own bakery.  For someone who clearly loved to bake, it was the perfect life choice for her.  When she gets laid off by her real estate company, I cheered at the fact that now she would be able to continue her dreams of opening a bakery.  


One of the other great points of the book that I fell in love with was the relationship between Michelle’s parents.  They were fun and carefree with a twinkle of love that has made it through the years.  I loved her mother’s support and love of baking she passed on to her daughter and her fathers sense of humor filled the pages with a supportive touch.  Plus the descriptive words of the recipes had my mouth watering and craving sweets the whole time I read this book.


If there was any bad parts of the book that needs to be addressed, it would be the lack of story arc.  While I enjoyed the build of the quick and sweet romance,  I felt there was no real story arc or hurdle for the romance to have.  No secret affairs or secrets that would be found in a regular romance book.  Yet, since this is based on a reality based romance, I was pleased to know that there are still hopes and dreams at a perfect relationship for the singles out there.  


I think the one reason this book was such a great read for me though was because in a round-about sort of way, this is how my husband and I met.  We didn’t sign up through a dating site, but we were friends that flirted online first and blossomed into the relationship that we have now.  Yes, online romances can happen and Todd, Michelle, my husband and I are all proof of that.

To check out their real bakery, check out Michelle and Todd’s site here: Frosting A Cupcakery

MY RATING:


Very Good! I would recommend this book!

Guest Post Featuring Parajunkee!!

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Today on My Overstuffed Bookshelf, I have the great pleasure of handing over the blog post to Parajunkee!  She was kind enough to give us her opinion on the thrilling genre of Urban Fantasy.  If you are a regular blog reader in the book review world, you know who Parajunkee is. Not only is she a great book review blogger, friend and person, but she also does blog design which is featured on many blogs out there! So be sure to stop by her blog as well!  So without further blubbering from me, I give you Parajunkee!

The Lure of Urban Fantasy

Now in the realm of genres I love, Urban Fantasy tends to take top rung. There is just something about the genre that gets my blood pumping. I tend to like anything that is a little off-the-wall, I say “toss it” to anything labeled contemporary or *gasp* non-fiction.  If it doesn’t have fangs, fur, or maybe scales, I’m not reading it. Set in the future? Some apocalypse action? Even better! There is a reason I read – and that is to step away from the ridiculous reality of the world around me. While my husband reads budgeting for dummies and my mom read WWII memoirs I look at them like they are insane. “Don’t you just every want to get away?” 

In steps the Urban Fantasy. It is not mucked up with any particular romance that will get me thinking about how my husband doesn’t hold a candle to the hero (no guy on Earth usually does) and there is usually hardly any political statements or blustering by the author (really, I don’t care that you think the world will end because of subsea bacteria dying off from the oil drilling!). Urban Fantasy tales are just usually a gritty story about a world gone amuck with paranormals galore. Then the icing on the cake is usually the hero or heroine. Usually a heroine, because let’s face it, 90% of Urban Fantasy writers are female and you write what you know – female protagonist. Then these particular major players usually are the most kick-ass group of people you’ve ever met and if they don’t start that way they usually end up that way. I’m sold. 

These main characters are usually the bread & butter of the novel. In one word they are EPIC. Who can deny the awesomeness that is Sookie Stackhouse, a waitress from a little nothing town in Northern Louisiana that can read minds? She sets out to meet a vampire and ends up saving one from two humans. Everyone thinks she’s crazy in the town – everyone except her new friends the vampires. Great series, great characters. Or characters like Mercedes Thompson, a female mechanic who can shape-shift into a coyote, she’s not as tough as the werewolves that she lives next door too but she sure keeps them in line. Then there is the crème de la crème. MacKayla Lane, whom I literally didn’t like in the beginning of the first book – but with her transition into kick-ass heroine she turned into one of the BEST Urban Fantasy characters of all time. Mac’s series, the Fever Series by Karen Marie Moning suck me in hook, line and sinker, much like the majority of Urban Fantasy series tend to do, if they are done right. 

The great characters, paired with rich imaginative worlds and a boat load of otherworldly creatures takes me on a fun adventure that I just can’t pass up. If you haven’t had the pleasure of reading a good Urban Fantasy series, would you like some suggestions? I’ve got a bunch of them! 

Topping my list would be the aforementioned, Fever Series by Karen Marie Moning. There are five in the series and they put me through an emotional roller-coaster in which I would throw books across the room. I might make the suggestion of purchasing all books in the series though, because she leaves you with some crazy cliff-hangers and you’ll want to pick up the next book the moment you finish one. 

Another lovely series is the Rachel Morgan (The Hollows)  series by Kim Harrison. There are a ton of paranormals in this series that is still going strong after nine books (10th expected 2012). Want to go straight for the jugular with some vampire action? The Sookie Stackhouse series is overplayed by the HBO series but really one you don’t want to pass up. Funny, a little sick at times, with a good bit of romantic drama (but nothing that could be construed as a romance) and entanglements, the Sookie Stackhouse series should not be discounted. 

Werewolves I mentioned the Mercy Thompson series earlier and it shouldn’t be forgotten. This is a great series that I don’t think get’s enough hype. Something you should definitely check-out. If you are not feeling the werewolves and want to get a bit winged, another of my ALL-TIME favorites, throw against the wall and send threatening tweets to the author is, the DARK SWAN series by Richelle Mead (you might know her from her Vampire Academy Young Adult series), it really must be something about faerie books. Drives me crazy sometimes. 

Any of these series are a great place to start if you are thinking to expanding your horizons and Urban Fantasy is on that checklist. You can’t go wrong with this genre. It does tend to get a bit bloody, but if you are anything like me, you’re not having fun unless you get a little dirty. 

XO Amy for letting me hijack your blog for a day! I hope I didn’t scare away any of your readers! If you are looking for even more suggestions I have a ton…

Between by Jessica Warman

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BETWEEN
Author: Jessica Warman
Source: Publisher
*I received this ARC copy free of charge in exchange for an honest review*

Reading level: Ages 12-17
Hardcover: 464 pages
Publisher: Walker Childrens (August 2, 2011)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0802721826
ISBN-13: 978-0802721822

SUMMARY:



Elizabeth Valchar–pretty, popular, and rich–wakes up the morning after her eighteenth birthday on the yacht where she’d been celebrating with her closest friends. A persistent thumping noise has roused her. When she goes to investigate, she finds her own drowned body is hitting the side of the boat. Liz is dead.

She has no memory of what happened to her, and can only observe in horror the fallout of her death. She’s also soon joined by Alex Berg, a quiet boy from her high school who was killed by a hit-and-run driver. The two keep each other company, floating in and out of memories and trying to piece together the details of what happened to each of them.

In her regular life, Liz was a runner. It wasn’t abnormal for her to run 8-10 miles per day. But as memories from closer to her death begin to surface, Liz finds that she’d been running much more than normal, and that she’d all but stopped eating. Liz’s mother, who died when Liz was nine, had battled with anorexia as well, and those around her worried Liz was following in her mother’s footsteps. But something more sinister was consuming Liz from the inside out. . . . 

MY THOUGHTS:


Death. Ghosts. Popularity. Intrigue and Mystery. 


These are just a few words to sum up this new book by author Jessica Warman.  When I saw the cover, I was instantly intrigued to find out more.  When I read the summary, I was interested in the story.  I wanted to know more about the characters and the experience the book was going to tell within the pages.


Liz has always been popular and pretty.  She has a great boyfriend and people who love her.  When she discovers a body in the water next to her Father’s boat, she realizes she is looking at herself dead in the water.  She doesn’t remember what has happened and can’t remember much about her life.  Then Alex appears on the scene with her.  He tells her what he knows in small portions at a time.  He tells her that she is on a journey that she needs to complete.  Liz knows she remembers Alex, but she doesn’t remember everything about him until she ventures further into the investigation of her death. Secrets will be revealed, along with self discovery of herself. 


I absolutely loved the writing of this book.  I felt like I was on the journey with Alex and Liz throughout each chapter.  I cried and I cheered for Liz as she tried to figure out the puzzle that has no picture to help her complete it. I wanted to hug Alex and comfort him as well when we were shown glimpse’s of his past and family. 


The ending was beautifully written as well and I couldn’t have asked for a better one.  Now that I have discovered the great writing of this new to me author, I can’t wait to see what else she has to offer to her readers!

MY RATING:
 

Outstanding Book That Will Stay On My Bookshelf
For Rereading! 5 STARS

(ARC Review) One Grave At A Time by Jeaniene Frost

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ONE GRAVE AT A TIME
Night Huntress #6
Author: Jeaniene Frost
Source: Amazon Vine
*I received this ARC free of charge in exchange for an honest review*

Mass Market Paperback: 384 pages
Publisher: Avon (August 30, 2011)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0061783196
ISBN-13: 978-0061783197

SUMMARY:

The grave is one wrong step away.

Having narrowly averted an (under)world war, Cat Crawfield wants nothing more than a little downtime with her vampire husband, Bones. Unfortunately, her gift from New Orleans’ voodoo queen just keeps on giving–leading to a personal favor that sends them into battle once again, this time against a villainous spirit.

Centuries ago, Heinrich Kramer was a witch hunter. Now, every All Hallows Eve, he takes physical form to torture innocent women before burning them alive. This year, however, a determined Cat and Bones must risk all to send him back to the other side of eternity–forever. But how do you kill a killer who’s already long dead?

MY THOUGHTS:


I am a little upset about the cover for this book.  I can understand that the original cover model had to change because the previous one was no longer doing it anymore.  What I can’t understand is the reasoning in using a model that looks to fragile and puny to be our beloved Red Reaper.  She is pretty and such, but she is not fierce looking like the original one used.  Aside from the cover being what it is, the story was still a great read.  So the cover will be overlooked on my part since the story proved to be better than the artwork.


While I loved the action filled story, I felt that this book was more of a filler book.  Something to appease the fans until the next big book.  Yes, there is a plot and story filled with action, but at times it did get to be a little repetitive.  Find the ghost, chase the ghost, ghost gets away, then repeat.  It got a little frustrating for this reader.  Add on top of that only one great sex scene between the two great characters of Bones and Cat.  I needed some more sexiness that I have grown to love between the two.  Yes, I understand they have grown in their relationship and true love is more present between the two in this book, but only Bones can bring out the fierceness of bedroom sexy we crave! Bring it to us Bones!


While some characters from previous books are present in the story, I was a little heartbroken for their brief page time.  Vlad was mentioned once, but never seen and Tate was only shown for a small few pages.  I wanted the author to bring back the witty fierceness and romantic sexiness that we crave when reading a Night Huntress series.


Overall, it was a good book to build the next storyline that the author will reveal.  I am just disappointed that we have to wait yet again for the Cat and Bones we have grown to love.

MY RATING:

 
Okay book, but it left me wanting more! 3 STARS

KINDLE WINNER!!

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Before I get to posting the reviews for the day, I needed to announce a few things in one post.

First of all, the poll for the blog design ended this morning.  Can you believe that the votes were tied??? This makes it even more difficult for me to decide since there was no winner on the poll.  So I believe I am going to leave the design as it is for now.  I might do some minor changes here and there, but otherwise it will be nothing drastic.  As one of you mentioned in the comments, if it isn’t broke why fix it? Well true enough!

Now for the real reason everyone is reading this post! LOL

THE WINNER OF THE KINDLE CONTEST!!

I had a TON of entries for this and I want to thank each and every one of you for joining in the celebration and spreading the word.  Without all of you, this blog wouldn’t be here. So thank you again!

After getting up early this morning and checking the entries and such, the winner is:

Hivequeen53

Congrats on winning your kindle!!! I have your mailing info and I need you to email me at djsfoxylady @ gmail.com so I can forward you the shipping receipt.

Thanks again for sticking with me for 2 years and I can’t wait to share the love of reading for another year!  Now I need to think of what I am going to offer at a 3 year blogoversary! Any ideas? LOL