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Review: Hard Time by Cara McKenna

Jennifer Lane

Hard TimeHard Time by Cara McKenna
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Hot for Prisoner

Since Shawshank Redemption and the time I met hero Michael Scofield from the TV show Prison Break, I’ve been fascinated by prison stories. While this novel captured some of the thrill of a forbidden prison romance, Eric Collier is no Michael Scofield.

Annie Goodhouse is woman in her mid-twenties who recently moved from her hometown of Charleston to a town near Detroit. There are two reasons for her move: 1) a new job as a librarian in Michigan and 2) an ex-boyfriend who abused her in South Carolina.

“I’d needed a change of scenery. A place with snowy winters, where the men spoke in honest, sharp-edged Northern accents, incapable of glazing their empty promises in sweet Southern honey.”

One day a week, librarian Annie teaches and mentors at a local prison. There she meets tall, handsome, and quiet inmate Eric. When she helps him with his learning disability, he practices how to write better by penning her the most beautiful love letters, like:

“I like to watch your mouth when you read from that book. I can’t tell you what the story’s even about but I’ve got your lips memorized. I shut my eyes sometimes and just listen to how you talk. I’ve never been with a southern girl but it’s like every word you say comes out rolled in sugar. I think about kissing you. Real deep and slow with our eyes closed. Maybe feel your hands on my chest or my back. As I hold your face or your hair. As I got to see if you taste like sugar to match how you sound.”

Isn’t that so sweet and sexy?

This book had a fantastic beginning. I felt Annie’s fear and excitement about helping the inmates, and I swooned over Eric’s letters. But the rest of the story didn’t enthrall me as much. The author did a great job with the authentic characterization of Eric, a simple man from an impoverished, dysfunctional background, but I just didn’t find him very appealing. Perhaps I need a more intellectual hero to turn me on. The sex scenes seemed almost crude at points. This is all a very personal reaction to one character, and some readers may fall for Eric head over handcuffs.

I definitely did enjoy the growth of both Annie and Eric over the course of the story. And the writing was excellent, like this passage:

“His hand closed around mine, strong and possessive. The hand that’d done unspeakable things in the name of brotherly love. A hand capable of the tenderest acts of intimacy and affection. The hand that had penned the most breathtaking letters, for my eyes alone.
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Questions for Romance Readers

1. How much does your individual preference affect your enjoyment of the story?
2. How much erotica do you like in a story?
3. How much “dirty talk” do you like in romance novels? 

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Review: The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt

Jennifer Lane

The GoldfinchThe Goldfinch by Donna Tartt
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

The Development of a Criminal…The Development of a Good Man?

What a fascinating psychological study! This epic story begins when Theo Decker is 13 years old and ends when he’s twice that age. Wow, does the author torture him in this story. What does not kill us, makes us stronger? I’m not so sure that’s true in this case. Tragic events weaken Theo and it’s unclear if he will ever regain his strength.

Theo lives with his mother in New York City after his alcoholic father abandoned them. His beautiful, fun mother has to take him to a late morning disciplinary meeting at school, so they stop in an art museum on the way. Then a terrorist’s bomb explodes. The blast rips Theo’s life apart when it kills his mother. In the ensuing surreal melee, a dying man insists Theo take “The Goldfinch”: a famous painting.

The painting haunts Theo for the rest of the story just like the story has haunted me.

The characterization is raw, real, and detailed, and the author made me care deeply for Theo. Every time he suffers a post-traumatic symptom, I wanted to hug him. Every time he veers into drug use, I wanted to smack his neglectful father. Here’s a vivid description of Las Vegas Dad, who has shifted from abusing booze to pills:

From his genial cursing, his infrequent shaving, the relaxed way he talked around the cigarette in the corner of his mouth, it was almost as if he were playing a character: some cool guy from a fifties noir or maybe Ocean’s Eleven, a lazy, sated gangster with not much to lose.

Thank goodness for quality mentors like furniture-restorer Hobie, who is connected to the dying man from the museum.

Theo’s Ukranian friend Boris is simultaneously endearing and infuriating. Boris is the saving grace to a lonely boy, and the loving shove to a boy perched on the precipice of a deviant, criminal life. I freaking love how Boris nicknames Popper the dog “Popchik”.

The writing is exquisite. I dog-eared so many pages with impressive passages, like these:

Tormented by what was happening, yet unable to stop it, I hovered around and watched the apartment vanishing piece by piece, like a bee watching its hive being destroyed.

When I got off the phone, I felt sick — like someone had just reached a hand in my chest and wrenched loose a lot of ugly wet stuff around my heart.

Spring in New York was always a poisoned time for me, a seasonal echo of my mother’s death blowing in with the daffodils, budding trees and blood splashes, a thin spray of hallucination and horror. (What a vivid description of PTSD)

My moods were a slingshot; after being locked-down and anesthetized for years my heart was zinging and slamming itself around like a bee under a glass, everything bright, sharp, confusing, wrong — but it was clear pain as opposed to the dull misery that had plagued me for years under the drugs like a rotten tooth, the sick dirty ache of something spoiled.

Speaking of pain, Theo pines for a girl who also survived the museum bomb: Pippa. But she doesn’t seem to requite his love.

“Well, girls always love assholes,” said Platt, not bothering to dispute this.
No, I thought bleakly, untrue. Else why didn’t Pippa love me?

Aww, Theo. You are quite lovable!

One of the reasons I became so involved in the characters is the impressive length of the book: 770 pages. Unlike some readers, I didn’t find the story unfocused, though the end did drag just a little. I’m glad I invested the time to read this moving drama.

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Review: Sometimes Never by Cheryl McIntyre

Jennifer Lane

I haven’t been keeping up with my blog lately. Those who are doing the A to Z Challenge really impress me!

Reading, writing, and my day job have filled my days so I wanted to share a review for an excellent mental health read: Sometimes Never. 

Sometimes Never (Sometimes Never, #1)Sometimes Never by Cheryl McIntyre
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Putting the Fun in Dysfunction

When I participated in the Mental Health Giveaway Hop, I asked for recommendations of favorite psychological reads. Blogger VanillaOrchid recommended this series, and I’m so glad she did! I hadn’t heard of this author but I plan on gobbling up the series based on my love for this first book. (Bookworm Brandee also recommended Reason to Breathe which I plan to review soon).

While Sometimes Never touches on sad issues like parent abandonment, parent death, sexual abuse, and self-injury, the characters address these issues in such a lighthearted manner that I often found myself cracking up. It’s rare that I love both the heroine and the hero as much as I fell for Hope and Mason.

Hope Love (yes, that’s really her name) is a high school foster kid who doesn’t believe in relationships or love (despite her last name). She’s a candy addict who plays drums for a band. She’s spunky and irreverent. Here she is typing away in an internet chat room:

ASL flashed on the computer screen. Age, sex, and location. I sat back and thought, Who do I want to be today? I never tell the truth. Seventeen, female, living in a house with seven other kids in Ohio. Like a fucked up, twenty-first century version of The Brady Bunch.
Usually when the first question has to do with your age and sex, it’s a horny, middle aged man looking to cyber. When I’m in a mood, like I was last night — sick of the world and all its bullshit — I like to put on my Fergus persona. Fergus is a fifteen year old boy, recently discovering his gay sexuality.

Priceless.

Mason is an eighteen-year-old who just moved to Hope’s town and of course he notices her right away. His dark hair and green eyes sound delicious, but what most attracted me is his personality. He also has a wonderful sense of humor:

Hope Love. What kind of name is that?
“I think I’m in love,” I say to my mom. And then I laugh because I hear some kind of pun in my statement. I play around with the words in my head. I Hope I can get in Love. I’d Love to have some Hope.
“Mason, don’t play with me,” Mom says, but I hear that little sliver of hope in her voice. Ha, I’d Love a little sliver of Hope. I could do this all day.

Hope and Mason seem to bring out the best in each other. They’re both sarcastic individuals who have been through tough times, but they actually feel happy in each other’s presence. Unfortunately, Hope is sort of dating the lead singer in her band (Park–love his name) and she has a dark secret that makes her feel unworthy of being happy. But Mason doesn’t scare away easily. Each time he unwittingly pushes Hope too hard, he gently apologizes until her panic settles down.

I like how Mason realizes he can’t “save” Hope, as much as he wants to. I love the quirky realness of the characters. The only aspects I didn’t love are the title and the reason Mason’s father died, which seemed a tad overdramatic to me.

I hear the next books in this series deal with side characters from this novel, and I can’t wait to see what this author has in store for me next! I highly recommend this series.

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LISETTE BRODEY: Review and Interview

Jennifer Lane

Today I’m stoked to have author Lisette Brodey to the blog. I loved her spunky story Molly Hacker Is Too Picky! And I look forward to reading more from her. First is my review, then an interview.

Molly Hacker Is Too Picky!Molly Hacker Is Too Picky! by Lisette Brodey
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Molly Hacker is Too Appealing!

As a single woman in a couples world, I was drawn to this novel. But it wasn’t until I cyber-met the lovely Lisette Brodey when she interviewed me at her Author Chateau that I bumped this story to the top of my list. And what a funny, clever story it is.

Molly Hacker is a 32-year-old newspaper reporter whose single status seems to be of great concern to her friends and family. “Just settle down with a husband!” they say. “Stop being too picky!”

But Molly doesn’t want just anyone to be her partner for life. (Smart woman!) She’s looking for a guy who’s cute, interesting, and funny. A guy just like her ex, Leo. Their breakup broke her heart and her trust, and now her mantra is “I must, I must, I must begin to trust.”

I REALLY relate to Molly. She is an independent writer, won’t settle for just any guy, likes Coldplay and Maroon 5, has a hilarious gay BFF and a misbehaving cat, and even wishes she could’ve been a psychologist (my career). However, she’s more neurotic than I am (I hope). And I’m so thankful people don’t get on my case about being single. Poor Molly has to endure meddling friends and family.

When my aunt Pauline asked me why a pretty girl like me couldn’t have brought a man to the wedding who wasn’t attached to someone else, I asked the thrice-divorced sister of my mother to explain to me how settling for three Mr. Wrongs had enhanced her life.

She’s certainly not a shrinking violet! Molly is a lot funnier than me, too. Her insights crack me up, like:

I was feeling like the rock star’s girlfriend. I liked that, but then my lips started forming the word “groupie”, and I didn’t want to be considered one or to fend off their overzealous affection for my man. My man? I needed to regroup. Or did I need to regroupie?

“What does ‘cute as a button’ mean, anyway?” I asked. “I mean, how did buttons ever become the poster children for cuteness?”

But her coworker friend Randy steals the show with his cleverness:

I just stared at Randy, noticing his face had a strange orange glow to it. “And your face is orange because … ?”
“Okay. Self-tanner. Put on too much for too long. Tried to impress. What a mess. I confess. Now I digress. What’s up with you, or should I guess?”
“Give it a rest,” I chimed in…
“I hate men,” I said, glaring at him. “ALL of them.”
“Molly Rose, how irrational. What has gotten into you? Why so blue?”
“If you can be orange, I can be blue!” I said.
“Such colorful banter,” he said.

Ha ha! Then, when invasive socialite Naomi shows up unannounced at Molly’s office, Randy has some fun:

To complicate my ever-complicated life, nothing ever got past Randy, who had taken from his desk drawer a Scream mask (derived from the famous Edvard Munch painting), put it on his face, and proceeded to stand three feet away from the threshold of my office door, mocking every move Naomi made behind her back.

Molly encounters quite a few suitors throughout the story, including a rock star painter, her high school crush (who’s now getting a divorce), an older man who’s wealthy and suave, and an awkward yet endearing man. If she decides to choose one of these men, which one will it be? This mystery match-making element kept me turning the pages.

It’s clear that Molly Hacker is well-deserving of a wonderful man who matches her wit and style.

~*~


And now I have the pleasure of interviewing Lisette:

Jennifer Lane (JL): Welcome to the blog, Lisette. As you can see from my review, I loved Molly Hacker Is Too Picky! This was your first foray into chick lit, correct? What made you take the plunge?

Lisette Brodey (LB): Hi, Jen. Thanks so much for having me here today. First, I just want to tell your readers how much I loved the first book in The Conduct Series, With Good Behavior. I’m excited to read the next two. The characters are wonderful, and I’m dying to know what happens to them. Great job!
To answer your question, I really loved writing Molly Hacker Is Too Picky!, but quite honestly, at heart, I’m not a chick lit author. Before it was really viable to be an indie author, I was trying to get an agent for my first two novels, Squalor, New Mexico and Crooked Moon. I came very close many times, but it was frustrating. When I went to bookstores, it seemed to me that many of new books being featured were chick lit /women’s fiction, so I decided I would write one because it seemed to be what the market demanded.
After I wrote 65K words, it became feasible to publish independently, and I put Molly aside and went to work on publishing my first two novels. I then returned to Molly about a year later. It wasn’t easy to reimmerse myself in the nuances of her complicated life, but I did it. I even blogged for a year as the character (www.mollyhackercom).
So, just because chick lit isn’t my chosen genre, it sure as heck didn’t mean I didn’t have a good story to write. My muse introduced me to Molly, and the rest, as they say, is history.

JL: My favorite character is Randy, Molly’s flamboyant coworker. He’s a riot! Have you been blessed with humorous gay friends like Randy in your life? Certainly I’ve met funny heterosexual men, but some of my gay friends constantly make me laugh. What do you think makes him and some gay men so hilarious?
LB: Randy is one of my favorite characters ever. In fact, when I was done writing the book, I really wished I could bring him to life because he’s not only funny, he’s a loyal friend. Yes, I have known many gay men, hilarious and not so hilarious, but Randy is not based on any one person.
Gay men are as diverse as any other “group” of people. Randy, unlike some gay men, never had a problem accepting his sexual preference, nor did he have trouble being comfortable in society as an openly gay man. I believe it is this comfort that gives him the freedom to be hilarious whenever the mood strikes him. But there’s a lot more to him. He’s a caring friend, a compassionate listener, and has relationship insecurities like the rest of us.

JL: I also loved the feline character of Captain Jack. You captured the essence of disdain and mischief possessed by cats. Tell us about your experience with cats.
LB: I’ve had cats since I was 19. The cat I have now is my third. My second cat, Saki, was a very complex creature. I was always sure that she was meant to be mine. Just as I observe human behavior, I observe feline behavior. I’ve never had a cat that has willingly gone to strangers for any kind of attention. Ever. Captain Jack is very protective of his mom, Molly, and he doesn’t let things like good looks and hot bodies get in the way of sussing people out. And he is never shy about letting his feelings be known. I can’t think of any cat that is shy about that.
JL: You recently published a Young Adult paranormal novel Mystical High, the first in The Desert Series. What are your plans for the series?

LB: Thanks for asking. Mystical High centers on the lives of two teen girls, Jessie and Jinxsy, who live in a dying desert town in Southern California. Each has very real family problems, and their lives get very complicated when paranormal activity begins to escalate not only at their school, but also in their town, Mystekal.
My favorite character in Mystical High is River, Jessie’s 14-year-old brother. River is very smart, loves to use his extended vocabulary and says pretty much whatever he is thinking. But in other ways, such as in showing his feelings, he is shy and reserved.
In Book 2, River will be a senior, and the book will focus on him and another teen boy, Larsen. Again, the story will concentrate on real-life problems, such as bullying, but there will be new paranormal twists. Although each novel will work as a standalone book, there will be a whole lot in Book 2 that will give shocking insight into the story told in Mystical High. The final book of the trilogy will be the most romantic of the three, and the main character will be a girl readers will meet in Book 2.
JL: You’ve written in other genres too. What’s it like to genre hop? What are some common themes in your novels?
LB: I never really planned to genre hop. It just happened that the stories I wanted to tell all had different labels on them. My novel Crooked Moon is probably the closest to my true identity as a writer.
There are many common themes in my novels. Friendship is a strong theme in every story because I believe that friends are a huge part of most people’s lives. I know they are in mine. They are the family that we choose.
All of my novels have multiple story arcs, and people come together in ways you might not expect. I write this way because I believe that it mirrors real life. Our personal stories are not straight lines. Every one of us has sub-plots. I can’t write a linear story because I don’t see life that way. As we move through life, we meet people whose stories intersect with our own.
The keeping of secrets is another common theme. What you see is not always what is really there, and secrets have a way of coming out, often in explosive ways, and changing (and explaining) a lot.


How to stalk Lisette Brodey:

www.lisettebrodey.com
www.twitter.com/lisettebrodey
www.facebook.com/BrodeyAuthor
http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/2774659.Lisette_Brodey
https://www.amazon.com/author/lisettebrodey
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Hydraulic Level Five by Sarah Latchaw: Review, Interview, #Giveaway

Jennifer Lane

I love a book I can sink my teeth into, and Hydraulic Level Five is such a book. Check out my review, then hang around for my interview with Sarah Lachtaw, followed by a giveaway!

Hydraulic Level FiveHydraulic Level Five by Sarah Latchaw
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Ride the Churning, Restless Rapids of a Second Chance at Love

What a rich and deep adult contemporary romance!

Kaye is in her late twenties and still in love with her childhood friend / ex-husband Samuel (even though it’s hard for “stubborn as super glue” Kaye to admit she still holds the candle for him). Kaye is an extreme sports enthusiast, and she and her friend run a PR firm in Colorado. Meanwhile, since the divorce, Samuel has shot up the bestseller charts as a famous author.

Samuel comes from a boisterous Hispanic family, and his sister Danita is about to get married. Naturally, Kaye is Danita’s maid of honor, and naturally, Samuel will be in town for the big wedding. Though Kaye and Samuel divorced six years ago, is it possible for them to rekindle a beautiful childhood love?

Kaye is quite a quirky character, and I wonder if the author is equally quirky. There’s also much sadness to the story about two broken people trying to mend themselves and each other.

I am so not a fantasy fan and at first I had trouble getting into the snippets from Samuel’s wildly successful fantasy series Water Sirens. But when Samuel explains why he wanted to write faerie tales for his little “firecracker” Kaye (cutest nickname ever), I fell for the fantasy completely.

Having finished his fantasy series, Samuel moves on to writing a memoir of his childhood love of Kaye, and excerpts from this story alternate with present events. It makes for interesting reading.

There are some humorous moments in the story, like the time Kaye’s attorney pretends to be her lesbian lover in order to make Samuel jealous, as well as:

The morning had been spent calmly arguing over the phone with a ski rental client about why “Going down with you since 1973” was not a family-oriented business slogan.

When we exited the theater after seeing Titanic, Hector shouted, “Hurry up, Kaye! There’s only enough cars in the parking lot for half of us!”

Kaye describing a spat between Samuel and his posh editor Caroline: There was tension in Versaceville

The characters develop in a gradual, satisfying way. Both Kaye and Samuel were young when they married, and have made plenty mistakes. Samuel comes from a troubled background that makes you want to hug him.

“I don’t need your pity,” he said gently, firmly. “I’m a grown man, Kaye — not that little boy anymore.”

“But it doesn’t mean I can’t feel pain for that little boy. Or that I love him any less,” I quietly added.

I like when Kaye says:

“Samuel, you have to get it into your head that when you shield people — me, Danita — from the big, bad world, you cause more harm than good.”

This was a touching story and I’m excited there will be a sequel titled Skygods.

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And now I welcome Sarah Lachtaw to the blog!

Jennifer Lane (JL): Welcome to the blog, Sarah! I found your debut novel to be a masterpiece. Please share your inspiration for the story.

Sarah Latchaw (SL): Wow, high praise, thanks! I believe in setting the bar high, then falling into the pits of despair when I can’t live up to expectations, like your average tortured writer (ha).

Inspiration is always a tough question to answer, because, as you know Ms. Lane, we find ideas in all sorts of places, from current events to life experience, to pure imagination. I wanted to accomplish several things with Hydraulic Level Five. One, to give readers a narrator and heroine they could connect with emotionally—feel her triumphs and hurts. Second, I wanted a love interest grounded in reality—a man with real flaws, but whom Kaye loves anyway. Third, I needed an epic love story that would resonate with readers long after they finished the final sentence. If readers can see something of their own love stories in Kaye and Samuel, then the characters find a home in their minds and hearts, and imaginations.

JL: Including excerpts from Samuel’s “work in progress”–a memoir about his childhood with Kaye–is definitely unique. What made you decide to write the story this way?

SL: Samuel’s betrayal of Kaye was so gut-wrenching, I knew he would be despised by readers if we didn’t get a glimpse into his mind. However, if I’d dipped into his mind via a third-person narration, we would have lost the mystery element that keeps readers flipping the pages—what is he thinking? How could such an epic love go so wrong? If I’d told the present-day story through both Kaye and Samuel, we also would have lost the first-person connection to Kaye, which would have killed the story.

I also wanted to weave Kaye and Samuel’s history throughout the story, but do it without a pile of flashbacks. Samuel is a writer, so why not have him write their story? As the mysteries of their past unfold through Samuel’s book like a sad little flower, the present-day tale becomes more poignant and dire.

JL: How involved are you in extreme sports?

SL: Ha! Not so much. I’ve kayaked and canoed here and there, even in some mildly treacherous whitewater. I even vowed to skydive for my thirtieth birthday, only to pass on it because I was expecting dear son. So while I find extreme sports fascinating, I have to rely on my Colorado contacts’ experiences when it comes to crazy backcountry skiing or class five whitewater rafting. I love being outside, just not risking my life while doing so.

JL: You are obviously familiar with Hispanic culture. What is your background?

SL: I don’t have a Hispanic background in my family. Several years ago, I spent some time in Ciudad Victoria, Mexico, and wanted to learn more about their incredible heritage. Hispanic culture is everywhere, but I knew woefully little about my neighbors. In my opinion, it’s kind of underrepresented in fiction and when it is featured, its often as a punchline for cheap laughs. In my writing, I wanted to stretch beyond those tacky stereotypes we find in pop culture and show their beautiful traditions, emphasis on family, and accomplishments as truthfully as I could. So I used my experiences, researched and read my tail off, in order to portray the Cabral familia as accurately as possible.

JL: Have you pranked or been pranked anything like the characters in this story?

SL: Yes…

I was well-educated in the art of the prank thanks to ten years of summer camp and four years of dorm life. The powdered milk thing is nasty and cruel, and please Lord don’t ever do it to anybody. That’s all I’m saying.

JL: There’s a sequel coming: Skygods (!) At what point did you know there would be a sequel? How is it coming along?

SL: Well, Hydraulic Level Five and Skygods were written as one big long story, then split into two parts. So the sequel was basically completed before Hydraulic was even published. Skygods is with Omnific editors right now, and I’m glad this came up because I need to ask them when we’re planning to release it.

Also, there is a possibility of a third book looming on the horizon…wink wink wink. I have my story maps done and am diving into the actual writing. Lyons, Colorado lends itself beautifully to the Hydraulic Series, and I really need to bring the story home for one more book.

JL: Oh, goody. *bounces* I love to hear it’s already written!


Now YOU can win an ebook of Hydraulic Level Five. Just enter on the Rafflecopter.

a Rafflecopter giveaway
 

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Daughter of Isis by Kelsey Ketch: Review

Jennifer Lane

It’s time for the Daughter of Isis Blog Tour, hosted by YA Bound! Check out the full tour schedule HERE.

Daughter of Isis (Descendants of Isis, #1)Daughter of Isis by Kelsey Ketch
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

The Son of Set Is a Son of a B*tch

Kelsey Ketch is one of the sweetest authors around! When I discovered the opportunity to read and review her debut novel, I snatched it. I rarely stray from my preferred genre of contemporary romance, and the fact that I enjoyed this Egyptian YA paranormal romance so much speaks volumes for the entertainment value of this story.

Natara “Nattie” Stone has the unenviable task of starting twelfth grade not only in a new school but in a new country. Her mother died when she was five, and her father moves Nattie from London to the Californian desert following the murder of her beloved Egyptian grandmother.

“Brit-Chick” Nattie encounters some kind friends at her new high school:

”Well, how else do you explain Seth’s weirdness?” Jen snapped. “Every girl drools over that guy, and no mortal human can look that good.”
“I’m mortal,” Kevin pointed out.
Jen’s eyes wandered over him. “Case in point,” Jen concluded. “So, Seth has to be supernatural.”

But the classmate who really stands out in Natti’s mind is the one who has slept with about half the female class: Seth. The other half wishes they were so lucky. He’s definitely a charmer…except to Nattie. She gets an intense headache every time he’s around (LOL) which definitely intrigues stalker Seth.

Nattie is a likable character, earnest and intelligent. I would prefer Natara’s nickname to be Tara or Nata because Nattie seems more reminiscent of a southern maid than a British daughter of Isis. But my favorite character is Seth. His behavior is despicable at first, which is understandable given his slimeball father. Seth is a son of Set—a descendent of an Egyptian god who’s all about lust, destruction, and chaos. (I love the idea of one’s sole purpose in life being to create chaos.) From these evil beginnings, Seth really matures in this story. There’s a reason Nattie’s feelings evolve for him over time.

At first the plot seemed too similar to Twilight, but then it found its own rhythm. The pace continued building to the exciting conclusion, which leaves room for a sequel. One mystery yet to be revealed is why Nattie’s father moved them to this small town in California, with its Egyptian symbols. And what is up with the book her father is writing? How much does he know about her mother’s and grandmother’s death? I’m guessing we’ll learn more in the next book. *claps*

Great job, Kelsey Ketch!

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#Review and #Giveaway: Chasing Hope by Kathryn Cushman

Jennifer Lane

Chasing HopeChasing Hope by Kathryn Cushman
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Inspiring and Corny

When I saw the blurb for this new release, I loved the NA/YA sports angle and signed up to review it on my blog. This is a poignant story demonstrating the adage “When God closes a door, He opens a window.”

Sabrina is a college senior whose dream to run for Team USA in the Olympics fell short due to an autoimmune illness attacking her body. She is bitter about her loss, and angry with God for crashing her vaunted goal of becoming a missionary who spreads God’s word based on her running success.

Sabrina lives with her grandmother, who seems to disapprove of Sabrina’s revised plan to begin a competitive business internship. But Sabrina doesn’t want to hear it and continues with her busy life of classes and work, despite feeling tired and sick most of the time.

They encounter a family friend whose teenaged grand-daughter Brandy has fallen in with the wrong crowd. Brandy gets arrested for using drugs, and the only way for her to avoid juvenile detention is for Sabrina to coach her as a runner. Sabrina’s not thrilled about working with this sullen, disrespectful teenager, but reluctantly agrees to help out her grandmother and her friend. Coaching Brandy brings on nightmares of races Sabrina no longer can run.

Brandy has natural talent but doesn’t seem to care about using it. Sabrina would give anything to run again. It’s a fiery mix of personalities that keeps the story interesting.

I haven’t read many Christian novels, so if this is your preferred genre then you may love this story. Overall I enjoyed it, but I did have some quibbles. At times I found the characterization cheesy. My biggest struggle was that the characters’ voices didn’t sound authentic for their age. I work with college students, and I can’t imagine them saying something like:

”Bless your heart, I’ll just bet she has.”

“Perhaps it is time for some new ones.”

“Sabrina Rice, would you do me the honor of accompanying me on a date this Saturday evening?”

I also found it difficult to understand why Sabrina felt so ashamed of her illness ending her running career. It was frustrating when she wouldn’t tell a potential boyfriend Koen about her background. I wonder if she felt shame because she believed God caused her illness for some reason. I disagree with that notion — my beliefs align more with the message of When Bad Things Happen to Good People : God can’t stop natural phenomena like gravity or disease, but God can be there for us to heal and recover.

ARCs are not polished copies but the formatting was so jumbled that I had difficulty following who was speaking at times. And for some reason all the “ff”s were deleted, which was off-putting, or o-putting.

I do have a fondness for Brandy’s grandmother, who was there for her no matter what. Despite some aspects I didn’t enjoy, this story did bring tears to my eyes a few times — a sign of a good read, in my opinion.

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***

This blog tour is hosted by I Am a Reader.

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IWSG: Nicki Elson’s Divine Temptation

Jennifer Lane

The more insecure you are, the more you the devil can tempt you (or something like that).

Welcome to June’s Insecure Writer’s Support Group, started by Alex Cavanaugh! Author Nicki Elson introduced me to IWSG and has helped me with quite a few of my own insecurities through her warmth and support.

When I discovered Nicki wrote a paranormal romance, I was nervous. One of my insecurities is that I seem to be one of the few readers who’s not into paranormal.

But happily, I LOVED Nicki’s book Divine Temptation! A book about angels and demons seems more spiritual and less paranormal to me, I guess. And I do enjoy romance novels.

Hop over to Nicki’s BLOG where I interview her about her insecurities, and stick around to read my review of her fantastic novel!

Divine TemptationDivine Temptation by Nicki Elson
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Deep and Affirming

Nicki Elson, author of the fun and flirty college romp Three Daves, heads in a different direction for this adult spiritual romance. I loved the realistic characters, the suspense, and the deep questions this novel provokes.

Maggie Brock is reeling after her husband Carl divorced her. Together they have a daughter Kirsten and a son Liam, and Maggie has to figure out how to proceed as a single mother. She takes a job as administrative assistant at her Catholic church, and tries to tolerate Carl’s new girlfriend establishing a relationship with her children.

Nightly dreams of an angel visiting her bedroom intrigue her, until she awakes one night and realizes this male angel is real. Quiet, lean, and handsome, he invites Maggie to give him a name: Evan. It’s not clear why God sent Evan to protect Maggie, but it is clear she is in some sort of danger. Eek!

Complicating matters is the arrival of a prissy, suspicious priest to oversee the workings of the church, aka the Monsignor. Maggie gets bad vibes from him. Is he the malevolent force Evan is supposed to thwart? When Maggie runs into the monsignor and he questions her, she keeps Evan secret.

For all she knew, the monsignor would attempt to incarcerate Evan E.T. style to study him.

Ha! Maggie struggles with her attraction to Evan, knowing God would disapprove of her getting it on with one of His angels. I have a little crush on Evan too, I must admit. Poor Maggie!

Evan provides this heavenly advice: “Stop trying to control what you feel and just feel it. Trust.”

Meanwhile, ex-husband Carl woos Maggie back into bed. I wonder how common it is for divorced couples to sneak sex again? That happened in a recent read Blue Shoe but I enjoyed Divine Temptation far more than Blue Shoe. Maggie and Carl’s sexy reunion leads her to think that maybe they can make it work again, until Carl bursts her bubble. Their ensuing argument is painful to read:

“You know what?” Maggie fumed. “Thank you, Carl. Thank you for reminding me of all the reasons we didn’t work. You’re absolutely right—we’re so much better apart. Because you never ever did anything wrong. Ever. I t was just mean old Maggie telling you things were wrong. I just made it up in my crazy, little mind, but really, you were perfect in every way.”

I love the shades of grey in the characters. Maggie’s no saint–she’s just trying to do her best–which makes her imminently likable. I’m impressed how Evan comes across as both sweet and powerful, matching my view of divinity. Kirsten is a whiny pre-teen who pushes the limits like a teenager but needs those limits like a child, and Liam adores video games like Mario Bros. Maggie’s friend Sharon is direct and funny. Even Father Tom and the Monsignor have their obvious faults.

The plot twists and turns, leading to a creepy showdown between good and evil. This is one of my favorite quotes from the story:

“You might not believe in the devil, but do you believe evil lurks in this world?”

Wow, that gets to me. I view God as a loving force, and at times I question the presence of hell and the devil. But I have witnessed evil in this world–no question.

You can tell how much this angel story affected me. I encourage you to let Maggie and Evan into your heart as well!

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Streamline Birthday Day Four

Jennifer Lane

Streamline‘s book birthday party has been rocking due to awesome hosts and book-themed treats like Olive Garden breadsticks (carbo-loading for swimmers), grape juice (this is Young Adult/New Adult after all), and oxycontin (but who said teenagers follow the law?)

Would you like to see the actors I envision as the main characters? Check out my Streamline Pinterest board HERE.

Make sure to stop by these blogs to keep the party going today!

Thursday 3/28
Author Carol Oates’ blog
Book Nerds Anonymous blog
Author Hannah Downing’s blog
Author Kyra Lennon’s Write Here, Write Now blog

The giveaway has three days left–get on it if you haven’t entered yet. 😉

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Nicki Elson’s Divine Temptation

Jennifer Lane

It’s a special day for my pub sister and friend Nicki Elson–the release of her novel Divine Temptation!

Isn’t that cover divine? I loved Nicki’s first novel, Three Daves, a sexy 80’s college romp (see my review).  Check out the blurb for Divine Temptation:

Maggie Brock has everything under control. Even her divorce, though painful at the time, only registers as a minor blip in her carefully constructed universe. Her life in Prairie Oaks has once again returned to a smooth, predictable pace…until an angel shows up in her bedroom.


The angel is just as bewildered as Maggie about why he’s been sent to her, but their unsuccessful efforts to gain understanding of the mystery fade to the background as their relationship grows. Soon, Maggie’s biggest problem becomes the angel himself, as her feelings for him develop into something less than saintly.


While Maggie struggles to keep her desires pure, a nefarious being lurks in the shadows of Prairie Oaks, watching and waiting for the opportunity to fulfill his ambiguous purpose. Preying on her conflicted emotions, the demon manipulates her at every opportunity, but the one to deliver Maggie directly into his hands is the last person she’d expect.



Get it HERE.

It’s also Day Two of the Streamline Book Birthday Bash. Head over to these blogs for reviews, interviews, and giveaways.

Tuesday 3/26
Paulette’s Papers blog
Author Cherie Colyer’s blog
Mich’s Book Reviews blog 
Author Kelsey Ketch’s Book Nook blog