Memories of the Blue Door by Neil Davis

Allow us if you will to transport you back to a wonderful carefree time, where lifelong boyhood memories were made and adventure was abundant!
Back in Newcastle Upon Tyne in the 1980s close-knit relationships and unshakeable combined imaginations ruled. Remembering friendships forged together more than three decades ago, long before and out of reach of today’s busy modern world, of reality bites and virtual Xbox adventures, Paul and Neil will take you back to the notorious Cowgate Estate. Cowgate, which lies in their city's west end, was a place so barren and devoid of both hope and dreams that it seemed excitement and an overwhelming sense of brotherhood were never quite meant to happen!
Turn a page if you will and take the road back to an era we all just might remember, to that time and place where we had the greatest adventures of our lives! From Goodreads.


This was okay but I think you have to have grown up in that kind of British neighbourhood to really appreciate the stories.

This book qualifies for:
Goodreads Reading Challenge 2015
Romance Readers Reading Challenges: Yahtzee Challenge
Wacky Reading Challenges: Word Search 2015
The Challenge Factory: Scavenger Hunt Part XVI
Rawk-A-Tiers: Scavenger Hunt
Rawk-A-Tiers: Reading by the Numbers
Rawk-A-Tiers: Twelve Days of Christmas
A Million More Pages: Scavenger 2015 
A Million More Pages Hogwarts: Backpacking Around The Globe
A Million More Pages Hogwarts: Hogwarts Scavenger Hunt
Wacky Reading Challenges: Character Names, A-Z

The Return of Gabe McLeod by Joanne Hill

Veterinarian Tessa Callaghan is on a mission to save her home town. The bay has just been voted one of the dullest small towns in the country and she’s determined to do her bit to make it great again. She just hasn’t counted on brother-in-law Gabe McLeod coming back on to the scene – nor her growing feelings for the man who abandoned her when she needed him most.
An SOS call from the small town's mayor has brought Gabe back home for the shortest time possible but it also brings him face-to-face with the secret he’s kept all these years. That he is in love with Tessa - and that she is the one woman he can never have. But when life in the Bay takes some unexpected turns, it becomes clear that he’s not going anywhere… and neither are his feelings for Tessa.
Set in a small New Zealand town, The Return of Gabe McLeod is a cosy romance that will make you laugh - and warm your heart. From Goodreads.



I enjoyed this one. A nice romance of second chances. I also liked the serious story about Gabe's father and (step)mother and what sorrow can do to a person. It is of course all settled in the end.

This book qualifies for:
Goodreads Reading Challenge 2015
Romance Readers Reading Challenges: Yahtzee Challenge
Romance Readers Reading Challenges: Word Hunt 2015
The Challenge Factory: Scavenger Hunt Part XV
Rawk-A-Tiers: Summer At The Beach
Rawk-A-Tiers: Pack Your Picnic Basket
Rawk-A-Tiers: Words With ... Myself!
Rawk-A-Tiers: Troupe Theme Challenges
Rawk-A-Tiers: Getting Acquainted
Rawk-A-Tiers: Scavenger Hunt
A Million More Pages: Reading Under The Stars
A Million More Pages Hogwarts: Hogwarts Scavenger Hunt
Crazy Challenge Connection: Scrabble, anyone?

The Little Christmas Kitchen by Jenny Oliver

Christmas at the Davenports’ house was always about one thing: food!
But when sisters Ella and Maddy were split up, Ella to live in London with their Dad, and Maddy staying in Greece with their Mum, mince pies lost their magic.
Now, a cheating husband has thrown Ella a curved snowball…and for the first time in years, all she wants is her mum. So she heads back to Greece, where her family’s taverna holds all the promise of home. Meanwhile, waitress Maddy’s dreams of a white Christmas lead her back to London…and her Dad.
But a big fat festive life-swap isn’t as easy as it sounds! And as the sisters trade one kitchen for another, it suddenly seems that among the cinnamon, cranberries and icing sugar, their recipes for a perfect Christmas might be missing a crucial ingredient: each other. From Goodreads.



Ella and Maddy are two sisters that got split up when their parents divorced. They both resent the parent they didn't live with as they felt discarded.
Now many years later Ella, after her marriage breaks up, comes to Greece to stay with her mum and Maddy goes to London hoping not to meet her dad. The girls used to be close but they both felt the other has a better life than they themselves do, but as is often the case looks can be deceiving and not everything is as it seems.
It is a Christmas story and a romance so of course all ends well.

This book qualifies for:
2014 Ebook challenge
You Read How Many Books? Reading Challenge 2014
Romance Readers Reading Challenges: Yahtzee Challenge
Goodreads Reading Challenge 2014
The Challenge Factory - R4: Team Challenge SS
The Challenge Factory - R5: Team Challenge SSS
Nothing but Reading Challenges - Spell it Out - Animal Alphabet (O-zorilla)
Crazy Challenge Connection Monopoly
Novel Books & Reading Challenges Tower Teams III
A Million More Pages Hogwarts Challenge
Christmas Spirit Reading Challenge 2014

Redwall by Brian Jacques

When Redwall was published in 1987 it catipulted author Brian Jacques to international stardom. And small wonder! This enthralling tale is jam-packed with the things we long for in a great adventure: danger, laughter, hairbreath excapes, tragedy, mystery, a touch of wonder, a truly despicable villain, and a hero we can take to heart.
That hero is Matthias, a young mouse who must rise above his fears and failures to save his friends at Redwall Abbey. The villain is Cluny the Scourage, one of the most deliciously despicable rats of all time. The unforgettable cast of supporting characters includes the stalwart badger Constance, an irrepressible hare named Basil Stag Hare, and the elderly wisemouse Brother Methuselah.
But most of all there is Matthias, seeking his true destiny in a journey that will lead through danger and despair to true wisdom. From Goodreads.



This was way better than I expected. I just didn't like the idea of mice and rats as main characters but it worked. I really liked Matthias, a clumsy but very brave mouse and it was a very good description of the horrible warlord Cluny the Scourage. I have the next two books and will definitely continue the series as some point.

This book qualifies for:
Color Coded Reading Challenge 2014
You Read How Many Books? Reading Challenge 2014
Romance Readers Reading Challenges: Yahtzee Challenge
Goodreads Reading Challenge 2014
Novel Books & Reading Challenges Tower Teams III

Color My Horse by Bev Pettersen

A disillusioned heiress swaps her credit cards for a pitchfork and shovel in a desperate attempt to escape her grandfather’s iron-fisted control. However, at the track she must earn the respect of an uncompromising horse trainer who has little tolerance for greenhorns, especially one he’s been forced to hire.
Mark Russell never expected his rookie groom to have the spunk or savvy to last at his demanding race barn. Or that his reluctant respect would turn to desire. But as the forbidden attraction between them sizzles, manipulation and murder threaten not only his horses but also their lives. And suddenly a Breeders’ Cup win is the very least of his worries. From Goodreads.

This was an okay romance but it is their relationship with the horses I like more and I am not even a horse person. Jessica is okay but she is quite manipulative at the same time as she is trying to be independent. Mark doesn't want pretty females working at his stables but is pressured by Jessica's grandfather to do so.
It is a romance so of course it has a happy ending.

This book qualifies for:
2014 Ebook challenge
You Read How Many Books? Reading Challenge 2014
Romance Readers Reading Challenges: Yahtzee Challenge
Crazy Challenge Connection - Oktoberfest
The Challenge Factory - R4: Team Challenge SSS
Goodreads Reading Challenge 2014 
Crazy Challenge Connection 2014 RaT #9
FrightFall Read-a-Thon 2014

Arcane Magic by Camilla Chafer

All is well in Stella’s world. For the first time in a very long time she feels safe and secure in the knowledge that she’s put the Brotherhood behind her. However, she’s desperately searching for an answer that will set her ex-boyfriend free from a dangerous pact he agreed to in order to protect her, and ensure the survival of the witches. So when her old friend Etoile asks her to run a few secret errands prior to the swearing in of the High Council, Stella cautiously agrees. However finding a dead man on her doorstep, clutching a torn note bearing only her name, doesn't figure into any of her plans. Who is he and what does he want?
With neighbour and old flame Gage in tow, they head north to discover more about the dead man. There they are plunged into a mystery that appears to span every faction of the supernatural world, and more danger than they could possibly imagine. Just what is it that the werewolves, demons, and witches are searching for and how far will they go to gain the ultimate prize?
With the High Council inauguration drawing close, Stella must race against time to save what could be their only hope of peace, draw out the enemies in their midst, and find the answers she is so desperately searching for.  From Goodreads.

Another really good book in the Stella Mayweather series. It all starts nice and cosy but that quickly changes and the book is full of intrigues and secrets. I knew from another reader that this book would end in a cliffhanger, I just didn't realise how big a cliffhanger. I will definitely get the last book in the series as soon as it gets published in December.

This book qualifies for:
2014 Ebook challenge
You Read How Many Books? Reading Challenge 2014
Romance Readers Reading Challenges: Yahtzee Challenge
The Challenge Factory - September 2014 Creature ~ Witches!
Crazy Challenge Connection - Oktoberfest
Goodreads Reading Challenge 2014 
Nothing but Reading Challenges - Spell it Out - Animal Alphabet (E-vulture)
Crazy Challenge Connection 2014 RaT #9
FrightFall Read-a-Thon 2014

Magic Rising by Camilla Chafer

For Stella, the Witches’ Council Summit is supposed to be about getting to know her fellow witches but instead she finds herself on trial for murder. The accusations may be evidence of a sinister plot at work or they may be a ruse to draw attention away from the mounting tensions as the witches vie for supremacy. Reaching out to her boyfriend Evan for help would be reassuring… if he wasn’t oddly unreachable, working a case even his closest friend doesn't know anything about
As the ominous reasons behind the trial come to light, an assassin unleashes a terrifying campaign against the Council candidates. With tensions running high and accusations flying faster than a backfiring spell, the witches are forced to gather together for safety, but that might just lead to an implosion as the culprit is sought.
Plus there’s the small matter of an ancient talisman the werewolves want, a talisman that they say was stolen, but the more she investigates, the more it appears that it isn’t the simple artefact they claim it to be.
With Evan still missing and her world more complicated than ever, the choices Stella must make might confirm her place as a formidable witch in her new world or leave her excommunicated… forever. From Goodreads.

I am totally into this series at the moment and I am going to read the next one right away. In this one Stella finally starts acting more independently and I am looking forward to the next book.

This book qualifies for:
2014 Ebook challenge
You Read How Many Books? Reading Challenge 2014
Romance Readers Reading Challenges: Yahtzee Challenge
The Challenge Factory - September 2014 Creature ~ Witches!
Crazy Challenge Connection - Oktoberfest
Goodreads Reading Challenge 2014 
Nothing but Reading Challenges - Spell it Out - Animal Alphabet (E-Umbrellabird)
Crazy Challenge Connection 2014 RaT #9

Devious magic by Camilla Chafer

Witch hunters who will stop at nothing.
A deadly foe who wants to harness witches’ power.
A secret supernatural world that is in danger of revealing itself.
When the recent surge of supernatural activity in the secretive town of Wilding apparently draws the fearsome Brotherhood, Stella knows she could be risking her life to give in to their demand to return to England.
But defying them sees her world fall apart as her best friend is kidnapped. Lured home to her birthplace, Stella’s powers are tested to the limit as she battles magic and trickery at the heart of the Brotherhood’s operations. But flight across the world brings as many questions as it does answers, and Stella can never be sure who is on her side and who will betray her. From Goodreads.






I am enjoying this series about the witch Stella Mayweather. She is now living in the US and still practising how to do magic. She is being forced back to the UK. Here she finds more than she expects within The Brotherhood, the group that has hunted her for quite a while. luckily she has good friends to help her. I am continuing this series.

This book qualifies for:
2014 Ebook challenge
You Read How Many Books? Reading Challenge 2014
Romance Readers Reading Challenges: Yahtzee Challenge
The Challenge Factory - September 2014 Creature ~ Witches!
The Challenge Factory - R4: Team Challenge SSS
Goodreads Reading Challenge 2014
Nothing but Reading Challenges - Spell it Out - Animal Alphabet (D-umbrillabird)
Crazy Challenge Connection Monopoly
Crazy Challenge Connection Bard of Avon

Hot Summer by Judy Powell

A hot-tempered spitfire and a sexy, arrogant man - put them together and sparks fly!
After her first embarrassing encounter Summer Jones vows to stay away from suave record producer, Lance Munroe. But then she ends up working for the man. Her quick temper and sharp tongue keep landing her in hot water with him but no matter how hard she tries she can't deny her growing attraction for him. Then they go on a business trip to Jamaica - and her world is turned upside down.
Lance is intrigued by the feisty woman who practically tells him off the first time they meet. When they begin working together he realizes how much he enjoys the challenge of taming the little tigress. But, before he knows it, he's the one caught in the snare of passion. The tables are turned - the tigress has tamed the lion.
If you love the sizzle of a romance between two strong-willed individuals, follow Summer and Lance from Chicago to Jamaica and be swept away in the thrill of their hot summer. From Goodreads.

This was an okay romance. Nothing special, predictable but okay. There is a very strong loyalty to family in both main characters.

This book qualifies for:
2014 Ebook challenge
2014 Read Your Freebies! Reading Challenge
You Read How Many Books? Reading Challenge 2014
Romance Readers Reading Challenges: Yahtzee Challenge
Nothing but Reading Challenges Wheel-A-Thon
Goodreads Reading Challenge 2014
Crazy Challenge Connection Bard of Avon

Winter's End by Clarissa Cartharn

When young widow, Emma Winston leaves her life in London with her two children for the quieter Breakish in the Isle of Skye, all she wants is a simple life. And for a while, she thinks she has it.
That is until she meets the mysterious Mrs Kinnaird who suddenly feels that Emma might make the ideal bride for her wealthy playboy grandson, Chris Cameron- a man who holds his own dark secrets.
Further still, when Emma's brother-in-law, Richard Winston follows her to Skye to tell her he loves her, Mrs Kinnaird manipulates all her power to keep Richard away from Emma.
Will Emma finally let go of her past and learn to follow her heart? From Goodreads.

I liked this, it was a quick cosy read. Emma seems to be a bit of a pushover but that could be because of her previous marriage that wasn't that happy. I liked the manipulative Mrs. Kinnaird and her two servants. Neither the brother-in-law Richard or Mrs. Kinnaird's grandson Chris were very nice. Of course it all ends happily. It got the fourth Polar bear because the setting was the Isle of Skye.

This book qualifies for:
2014 Ebook challenge
Read Scotland 2014
2014 Read Your Freebies! Reading Challenge
You Read How Many Books? Reading Challenge 2014
Romance Readers Reading Challenges: Yahtzee Challenge
Nothing but Reading Challenges Wheel-A-Thon
Goodreads Reading Challenge 2014
Crazy Challenge Connection Monopoly
Crazy Challenge Connection Bard of Avon

The Alchemyst by Michael Scott

Nicholas Flamel was born in Paris on 28 September 1330. Nearly seven hundred years later, he is acknowledged as the greatest Alchemyst of his day. It is said that he discovered the secret of eternal life. The records show that he died in 1418. But his tomb is empty and Nicholas Flamel lives. The secret of eternal life is hidden within the book he protects - the Book of Abraham the Mage. It's the most powerful book that has ever existed. In the wrong hands, it will destroy the world. And that's exactly what Dr. John Dee plans to do when he steals it. Humankind won't know what's happening until it's too late. And if the prophecy is right, Sophie and Josh Newman are the only ones with the power to save the world as we know it. Sometimes legends are true. And Sophie and Josh Newman are about to find themselves in the middle of the greatest legend of all time. From Goodreads.




Really good fantasy. I enjoyed this so much I bought the next two books in this series two minutes after finishing this book. As with a lot of fantasy books it is about saving the world from a greater evil, in this book it is Nicholas Flamel and the twins Sophie and Josh.

This book qualifies for:
2014 Ebook challenge
2014 Literary Exploration Reading Challenge
You Read How Many Books? Reading Challenge 2014
Romance Readers Reading Challenges: Yahtzee Challenge
Crazy Challenge Connection: 1000 Member Celebration!
Goodreads Reading Challenge 2014
Crazy Challenge Connection - Sub-Genre Challenge 2014
Nothing but Reading Challenges - Spell it Out - Animal Alphabet (A-toucan)
Crazy Challenge Connection Bard of Avon

It Shouldn't Happen to a Vet by James Herriot

How on earth did James Herriot come to be sitting on a high Yorkshire moor, smelling vaguely of cows? James isn't sure, but he knows that he loves it. This second hilarious volume of memoirs contains more tales of James' unpredictable boss Siegfried Farnon, his charming student brother Tristan, animal mayhem galore and his first encounters with a beautiful girl called Helen. 'He can tell a good story against himself, and his pleasure in the beauty of the countryside in which he works is infectious' - "Daily Telegraph". 'Full of warmth, wisdom and wit' - "The Field". 'It is a pleasure to be in James Herriot's company' - "Observer". From Goodreads.

This is a very humorous book. I remember watching All Creatures Great and Small - the TV-series adapted from the books James Herriot ( pen name for James Alfred Wight).
It was very clearly not an easy job but the stories he tells make it seem worth all the trouble.
I thoroughly enjoyed it and might read more in this series at a later date.

This book qualifies for:
2014 Ebook challenge
Read Scotland 2014
2014 Full House Reading Challenge
2014 TBR Pile Reading Challenge
You Read How Many Books? Reading Challenge 2014
The Challenge Factory Spell It Out - Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious
Romance Readers Reading Challenges: Yahtzee Challenge
Crazy Challenge Connection - Let's Build a House
Goodreads Reading Challenge 2014
Setting Alphabet Reading Challenge
Nothing but Reading Challenges - Spell it Out - Animal Alphabet (I-quail)
CCC-Read your age
Crazy Challenge Connection Bard of Avon
Crazy Challenge Connection 2014 RaT #5

Prince of Hazel and Oak by John Lenahan

Having returned to the real world from Tir Na Nog at the end of the last book, our hero Conor finds himself arrested for the murder of his father.
When he explains to the cops that his dad is safe and well and enjoying life as king of a land of elves, imps and banshees they understandably think he is a nutcase.
That is until he is rescued by Celtic warriors on horseback and taken back to Tir Na Nog, accidentally bringing a policeman with him.
Once safely back in The Land, Conor finds that all is not well. His father is dying, the girl he loves is betrothed to another and a rather confused American cop is wandering around causing havoc.
It falls to our young hero, and his band of friends, to find a cure for the king. On their epic journey they encounter one of the most mystical and dangerous races in The Land, the shapeshifting Pooka, and find their fates linked in ways they could never have imagined.
The Prince of Hazel and Oak is a stunning fantasy adventure that takes fans of Shadowmagic further in to the land and brings back many of the favourite characters from the first book. From Goodreads.

It took me 1½ years from buying Shadowmagic, the first book in the series, before reading it and now another 1½ years later I finally got around to reading the second book.
I really enjoyed this book. Conor has come back to the real world but it is just not the same to him any longer and after being accused of his father's murder and arrested he is saved by his mother and brought back to Tir Na Nog. This time his quest is to find a cure for his father who is dying. Conor is just a teenager and quite often behaves as such but the book is humorous with him also trying to tell jokes that nobody understands.

This book qualifies for:
2014 Ebook challenge
2014 TBR Pile Reading Challenge
You Read How Many Books? Reading Challenge 2014
Romance Readers Reading Challenges: Yahtzee Challenge
Sequel Spring Reading Challenge
The Challenge Factory - R2: Team Challenge SS?
Nothing but Reading Challenges - UnCover It
Goodreads Reading Challenge 2014
Crazy Challenge Connection - Sub-Genre Challenge 2014
Nothing but Reading Challenges - Spell it Out - Animal Alphabet (P-polarbear)
Crazy Challenge Connection Bard of Avon
Crazy Challenge Connection 2014 RaT #5

Death on the Aegean Queen By Maria Hudgins

George Gaskill, a car salesman from Indiana, goes missing from the stern deck of the Aegean Queen leaving only a pool of blood and a strange note behind. Ollie Osgood, the husband of Dotsy Lamb's best friend Lettie, is the last person to have seen him and one of three men who lost a bundle to George in a Texas Hold'em Poker game. Then the ship's photographer turns up murdered on the beautiful island of Mykonos.
Dotsy wants only to unwind and to renew her promising relationship with Marco Quattrocchi, the Carabinieri captain she met in Italy three years ago, but since Ollie is the prime suspect in George's disappearance and Marco is embroiled in the photographer's murder, she can't.
The Aegean Queen is a ship with a theme--archaeology. Dotsy strikes up a friendship with the ship's guest lecturer, famous archaeologist, Dr. Luc Girard, and introduces him to the ship's klutziest dancer, Sophie Antonakos. With the help of Lettie Osgood's amazing powers of observation, Dotsy, Sophie, and Luc discover antiquities in the ship's display cases that have been looted from museums or smuggled from their homelands.
The trails of murder and theft converge on the island of Crete where Dotsy finds herself dodging bullets from the gun of a man she doesn't even know. From Goodreads.

This was a mystery and there was quite a lot going on but it was easy to follow. I like Dotsy's friend Lettie who remembers everything she has seen. It was a cosy, easy read. This was the third book in the series and I have not read the two first ones but it wasn't a problem.

This book qualifies for:
2014 Ebook challenge
2014 Monthly Motif Reading Challenge
2014 Monthly Key Word Reading Challenge
2014 TBR Pile Reading Challenge
What’s In A Name 2014
2014 Read Your Freebies! Reading Challenge
You Read How Many Books? Reading Challenge 2014
Romance Readers Reading Challenges: Yahtzee Challenge
Sequel Spring Reading Challenge
Goodreads Reading Challenge 2014
Nothing but Reading Challenges - Spell it Out - Animal Alphabet (L-eagle)
Crazy Challenge Connection Bard of Avon
Spring into Horror Read-a-Thon 2014

Clean Sweep by Ilona Andrews

On the outside, Dina Demille is the epitome of normal. She runs a quaint Victorian Bed and Breakfast in a small Texas town, owns a Shih Tzu named Beast, and is a perfect neighbor, whose biggest problem should be what to serve her guests for breakfast. But Dina is...different: Her broom is a deadly weapon; her Inn is magic and thinks for itself. Meant to be a lodging for otherworldly visitors, the only permanent guest is a retired Galactic aristocrat who can’t leave the grounds because she’s responsible for the deaths of millions and someone might shoot her on sight. Under the circumstances, "normal" is a bit of a stretch for Dina.
And now, something with wicked claws and deepwater teeth has begun to hunt at night....Feeling responsible for her neighbors, Dina decides to get involved. Before long, she has to juggle dealing with the annoyingly attractive, ex-military, new neighbor, Sean Evans—an alpha-strain werewolf—and the equally arresting cosmic vampire soldier, Arland, while trying to keep her inn and its guests safe. But the enemy she’s facing is unlike anything she’s ever encountered before. It’s smart, vicious, and lethal, and putting herself between this creature and her neighbors might just cost her everything. From goodreads.

I have to admit I really like the books by Ilona Andrews. It is the first in a new series about an innkeeper for paranormal and alien species. It is a brilliant idea and especially the close link between the inn and the innkeeper. I am looking forward to read more about Dina. And of course see how her relationships with Sean, the werewolf and Arland, the vampire pan out.  There is also quite a bit of humour which I like.
This book was written as short episodes on the authors website before being published. They are doing the same with the second book in the series but I don't have the patience to read it bit by bit, I will rather wait and read the whole novel when it is published.

This book qualifies for:
2014 Ebook challenge
2014 Quick fix Challenge (235 pages)
2014 Witches & Witchcraft Reading Challenge
Shifter Challenge 2014
You Read How Many Books? Reading Challenge 2014
The Challenge Factory Spell It Out - Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious (I)
Romance Readers Reading Challenges: Pass The Parcel Team Challenge
Romance Readers Reading Challenges: Yahtzee Challenge
Nothing but Reading Challenges - April Showers (Dina)
Paranormal Addicts & Newbies - Paranormal Creatures Seasonal Challenge
Crazy Challenge Connection - Let's Build a House
Goodreads Reading Challenge 2014
Nothing but Reading Challenges - Spell it Out - Animal Alphabet (A-impala)
Nothing but Reading Challenges - 50 States Challenge
Crazy Challenge Connection Monopoly
Crazy Challenge Connection Bard of Avon

Night Broken by Patricia Briggs

An unexpected phone call heralds a new challenge for Mercy. Her mate Adam’s ex-wife is in trouble, on the run from her new boyfriend. Adam isn’t the kind of man to turn away a person in need—and Mercy knows it. But with Christy holed up in Adam’s house, Mercy can’t shake the feeling that something about the situation isn’t right.
Soon, her suspicions are confirmed when she learns that Christy has the farthest thing from good intentions. She wants Adam back and she’s willing to do whatever it takes to make it happen, including turning Adam’s pack against Mercy.
Mercy isn’t about to step down without a fight, but there’s a more dangerous threat circling. Christy’s ex is more than a bad man—in fact, he may not be human at all. As the bodies start piling up, Mercy must put her personal troubles aside to face a creature with the power to tear her whole world apart. From Goodreads.



It was good to be back with Mercy and the werewolves. Christy, Adam's ex-wife is back and a huge problem for Mercy as she is good at manipulating people. They also have to fight an unknown supernatural and Mercy's "dad" turns up which always makes things more complicated. This is book 8 in the series and I hope Patricia Briggs will keep going.

This book qualifies for:
2014 Ebook challenge
2014 Full House Reading Challenge (published 2014)
Eclectic Reader Challenge 2014 (published 2014)
Shifter Challenge 2014
You Read How Many Books? Reading Challenge 2014
Romance Readers Reading Challenges: Pass The Parcel Team Challenge
Romance Readers Reading Challenges: Yahtzee Challenge
Crazy Challenge Connection Chinese New Year Challenge (#8)
Sequel Spring Reading Challenge
Nothing but Reading Challenges - April Showers (Adam)
Paranormal Addicts & Newbies - Paranormal Creatures Seasonal Challenge
Goodreads Reading Challenge 2014
Nothing but Reading Challenges - Spell it Out - Animal Alphabet (P-impala)
CCC-Read your age (2014)
Nothing but Reading Challenges - 50 States Challenge (Washington)
Crazy Challenge Connection Bard of Avon

Hex Appeal edited by P.N. Elrod

Fall under the intoxicating spell of their hex appeal…
In the magical world that lies hidden beneath our own, witches and conjurers play deadly games. They know just the right spell to kill a man with one kiss—or raise him back again. And they’re not afraid to exact sweet revenge on those who dare to cross them. But what if you’re the unlucky soul who falls victim to a conjurer’s curse? And if you had the power to cast a magic spell of your own, would you use it?
In this bewitching collection, nine of today’s hottest paranormal authors tell all-new, otherworldly tales.  Spellbinding stories featuring bigfoot, albino vampires, professional wizards, resurrected boyfriends and even a sex droid from the twenty- third century named Silicon Lily.  But as our conjurers are about to discover, it’s all fun and games until someone gets hexed.  And sometimes, even the best spun spells can lead to complete and utter mayhem.
Includes Stories From: Ilona Andrews, Jim Butcher, Rachel Caine, Carole Nelson Douglas, P. N. Elrod, Simon R. Green, Lori Handel, and Erica Hayes, Carrie Vaughn. From Goodreads.

I am reading a few anthologies at the moment in order to read some of the short stories that go with the series I am reading. This was much better than the last because I really liked the two stories I was going for.
Retribution Clause by  Ilona Andrews features new characters but it is still extremely good and I hope they will write more with these characters and develop their relationship.
Bigfoot on Campus by Jim Butcher is also really good though I didn't know it was the third in a series of 3 short stories. I will have to get hold of the other two somehow.
The rest were fine but no more.

This book qualifies for:
2014 Audio Book Challenge
You Read How Many Books? Reading Challenge 2014
Romance Readers Reading Challenges: Yahtzee Challenge
Sequel Spring Reading Challenge (The Dresden Files #11,9 - 60 pages)
Goodreads Reading Challenge 2014
Nothing but Reading Challenges - Spell it Out - Animal Alphabet (H-narwhal)
Crazy Challenge Connection Bard of Avon (published 2012)
Crazy Challenge Connection 2014 RaT #3

Hotter Than Hell edited by Kim Harrison

Beyond the boundaries of the everyday is an unseen realm where anything you imagine is possible. Your demon lover is waiting for you in the shadows, ready to fulfill your secret wishes and most dangerous fantasies. Here passion has a face and form both titillating and terrifying--and love has teeth and claws. Get ready to give in to your craving for something exquisitely dark . . . and different.
Hotter Than Hell gathers together a baker's dozen of today's boldest and best authors of supernatural fiction and paranormal romance in a breathtaking anthology that blends black magic with red-hot desire. From the tantalizing tale of a conflicted psychic vampire driven by a powerful, savage love to the strange saga of a Greek warrior woman battling to save the world, these are stories outside the limits, as hypnotic as the full moon . . . and hotter than the sun. From Goodreads.




Unfortunately this was just okay. I read it for the Kim Harrison story but even though it is part of the Hollows series I didn't get the connection. I liked them but they were nothing special.

This book qualifies for:
I Love Library Books Reading Challenge 2014
You Read How Many Books? Reading Challenge 2014
Romance Readers Reading Challenges: 2014 Chubby Chunkster (491 pages)
Romance Readers Reading Challenges: Yahtzee Challenge
Goodreads Reading Challenge 2014
Nothing but Reading Challenges - Spell it Out - Animal Alphabet (H-jellyfish)
Crazy Challenge Connection Bard of Avon (491 pages)
Crazy Challenge Connection 2014 RaT #3

The Rosie Project by Graeme Simsion

An international sensation, this hilarious, feel-good novel is narrated by an oddly charming and socially challenged genetics professor on an unusual quest: to find out if he is capable of true love.
Don Tillman, professor of genetics, has never been on a second date. He is a man who can count all his friends on the fingers of one hand, whose lifelong difficulty with social rituals has convinced him that he is simply not wired for romance. So when an acquaintance informs him that he would make a “wonderful” husband, his first reaction is shock. Yet he must concede to the statistical probability that there is someone for everyone, and he embarks upon The Wife Project. In the orderly, evidence-based manner with which he approaches all things, Don sets out to find the perfect partner. She will be punctual and logical—most definitely not a barmaid, a smoker, a drinker, or a late-arriver.
Yet Rosie Jarman is all these things. She is also beguiling, fiery, intelligent—and on a quest of her own. She is looking for her biological father, a search that a certain DNA expert might be able to help her with. Don's Wife Project takes a back burner to the Father Project and an unlikely relationship blooms, forcing the scientifically minded geneticist to confront the spontaneous whirlwind that is Rosie—and the realization that love is not always what looks good on paper.
The Rosie Project is a moving and hilarious novel for anyone who has ever tenaciously gone after life or love in the face of overwhelming challenges. From Goodreads.

I decided to read this as I have seen a lot of good reviews about it indicating that it should be very humorous. Though there are funny bits in-between, it is not hilarious. A complicated romance with an odd couple.

This book qualifies for:
2014 Quick fix Challenge (298 pages)
I Love Library Books Reading Challenge 2014
2014 Literary Exploration Reading Challenge (humour)
2014 Full House Reading Challenge (reviews persuaded me to read)
You Read How Many Books? Reading Challenge 2014
Romance Readers Reading Challenges: Yahtzee Challenge (298 pages)
Crazy Challenge Connection Chinese New Year Challenge (Chaitra's bookshelf - she is a pig)
Goodreads Reading Challenge 2014
Nothing but Reading Challenges - Spell it Out - Animal Alphabet (D-dragonfly)
Crazy Challenge Connection 2014 RaT #2

Two Weeks with a SEAL by Theresa Marguerite Hewitt

Rhea Griggs has had a hard life. Growing up with an abusive father who's now in jail, her older brother, Randy, was a source of strength, along with his best friend Chad, who Rhea has been in love with since childhood. When her brother and Chad go off in the Navy, eventually becoming SEALs, Rhea thinks she'll never be with Chad. What she doesn't know is that Chad has loved her for just as long, keeping his feelings at bay out of respect and fear of his best friend.
When heartbreak strikes Rhea, Chad knows he has to let her know how he feels or lose her forever to a no good redneck. Can two weeks be enough time to bring their hearts together as they should be? Can Rhea handle what comes with loving a SEAL? From Goodreads.

Unfortunately another just okay romance. Rhea and Chad have loved each other since they were children just never told each other as such. It is rather predictable, of course they get around to saying it. Then there is the "bad guy", Rhea's on-off one night stand who suddenly, but not very convincingly, wants her. It's emotional and is also a lot about loss.

This book qualifies for:
2014 Ebook challenge
2014 Women Challenge
CCC A-Z Book Titles 2014
You Read How Many Books? Reading Challenge 2014
The Challenge Factory Spell It Out - Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious (T)
Romance Readers Reading Challenges: Pass The Parcel Team Challenge
Romance Readers Reading Challenges: Yahtzee Challenge
Crazy Challenge Connection Chinese New Year Challenge (Amy's bookshelf - she is a dog)
Crazy Challenge Connection - Dr. Seuss
Goodreads Reading Challenge 2014
Nothing but Reading Challenges - Spell it Out - Animal Alphabet (T-coyote)
Nothing but Reading Challenges - 50 States Challenge
Crazy Challenge Connection 2014 RaT #2
Dansk Readathon March 2014