Lesley Kagen returns with the sequel to her New York Timesbestselling debut, Whistling in the Dark

Lesley’s debut novel, Whistling in the Dark, captivated readers with the story of Sally O’Malley and her sister Troo during Milwaukee’s summer of 1959. A New York Times bestseller and Midwest Honor Award winner, the novel remains a popular selection with book clubs.

In Kagen’s newest, Good Graces, it’s one year later, and a heat wave has everyone in the close-knit Milwaukee neighborhood on edge. None more so than eleven-year-old Sally O’Malley. Deeply traumatized by her daddy’s sudden death, and a near escape from a murderer and molester the previous summer, Sally’s confidence, sense of security and much of her faith have been whittled away. But as a series of disquieting disturbances unfold—a string of home burglaries, the escape from reform school of a nemesis, and the mysterious disappearance of an orphan—Sally is called upon to rise above her inner demons when she becomes certain that her wild younger sister, Troo, is in danger. Sally made a promise to her daddy to keep her sister safe. A promise she can’t break, even if her life depends on it. But when events reach a crisis point, will Sally have the courage to make the right choices? Or will she be overwhelmed by a dilemma that no child should have to deal with?

The author’s gift of imbuing her narrators with compelling authenticity shines as never before in Good Graces, an evocative novel told with the sensitivity, wit, and warmth we’ve come to expect from Lesley Kagen. – FROM THE AUTHOR SITE

• Pub. Date: September 2011
• Publisher: Penguin Group (USA)
• Format: Hardcover , 352pp
• ISBN-13: 9780525952381
• ISBN: 0525952381

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR…Lesley Kagen is the author of the New York Times bestseller Whistling in the Dark, Land of a Hundred Wonders, andTomorrow River. She lives near Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

FROM THE REVIEWER…Kagen’s novel “Good Graces” gives the reader a front row seat to the life of a young girl and a deathbed promise made to her late father.  Sally takes on the responsibility, making sure of the safety of her big sister, who seems to have no conscience.  Regardless of the trauma suffered at the hands of a molester and a murder Sally kept her father’s dying wish.  Her sister, Troo, short for “Trooper” when she was much younger, seems to deal with her own troubles at the expense of others, yet Sally felt the weight of the world was hers to bear.  This alone forces Sally to do something so unthinkable, yet who does she depend on to help her when she needs rescuing?  And could she be sure of the one person she loves so much…

At first I wasn’t so sure I could understand what I was reading.  Could I be sitting on the shoulder of a young girl with such a responsibility that would test the heart of most adults?  Sadly I was and the proverbial aha moment kept me reading.

MEET THE REVIEWER…Kay Burnett is a wife and mother living in Columbus, Georgia.  Her greatest challenge is raising her six year old son with her husband and best friend, Mike.  Being older parents can be a real eye-opener but she finds that living in the moment makes it much easier.

Debonair bachelor Lord Andrew Forest lives for pleasure and offers no apologies. But he receives a dose of his own medicine when his family’s entrancing houseguest beds him, then disappears without so much as a by-your-leave. He’d like to teach the little vixen a thing or two about how to love and man…if he can find her..

AND SHE WON’T SETTLE FOR HEARTBREAK…

After the dashing man of her dreams is revealed as a lying scoundrel, heiress Lana Hilary is ready to seek a match with a respectable gentleman-if only they weren’t so dreadfully boring. Unable to rein in her bold nature for long, Lana flirts with trouble and finds herself entangled with exactly the type of man she’s vowed to avoid.

• Miss Hillary Schools a Scoundrel
• Publisher: Sourcebooks
• Pub Date: February 01, 2012
• ISBN: 9781402258312

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR…Samantha Grace is the author of a witty new regency romance series about four debonair bachelors who have it all: immense wealth, influence, and women swooning at their feet – in the ballroom and out.

Samantha is married to her best friend, strives to stay one step ahead of their two precocious offspring, and lives in Wisconsin. She distracts herself during the bone-chilling months of winter with pilates classes and learning to belly dance.

To learn more about Samantha’s regency bachelors, visit www.samanthagraceauthor.com.

FROM THE BOOK FAERY REVIEWS…I enjoyed the main characters Lana, Andrew, Phoebe, and Richard. What I really liked was how when I thought the story would have ended (and glad it didn’t because I would have felt empty) a new story with mystery and deceit evolves AFTER Lana falls in love with Andrew. When he realizes he may have lost her, that’s when he realizes that the old ways are no longer appetizing. He then must convince her he loves her and isn’t asking  for her hand in marriage out of “obligation” but because of true love. An enjoyable romance for anyone who enjoys a little twist and some sleuthing to tag alongside passion. The only thing I didn’t quite get was how the title fit with the book…

I received a copy of the NetGalley ebook for review from Sourcebooks, Inc in exchange for an honest review.

Inside you’ll find…

Ways to engage your loved one with conversation starters for couples; Fun and creative date and gift ideas for any budget; Heartwarming love stories and poems; Love busters and love boosters to add fun, zing, and zest; Trivia about the history of love and romance; Recipes to fan the heartflames.

Why wait for a special occasion to share the joy of being in love? Opening Everything Romance is like opening a door to romantic adventure—any day, any time!

Any moment is the perfect time for you as a couple to celebrate the beauty and wonder of love, especially when you’re equipped with a treasure trove of creative ways to do so. With a rich array of romantic gems, Everything Romance abounds with all you need to show your adoration, revel in your relationship, and create a legacy of romance to last a lifetime. – FROM THE WEBSITE

• Format: Hardcover
• Other Formats: eBook
• ISBN: 9780307729316

A Marriage Blessing

Most gracious God, we give You thanks for Your tender love in sending Jesus Christ to come among us, to be born of a human mother, and to make the way of the cross to be the way of life.

We thank You, also, for consecrating the union of man and woman in His name. By the power of Your Holy Spirit, pour out the abundance of Your blessing upon this man and this woman. Defend them from every enemy. Lead them into all peace. Let their love for each other be a seal upon their hearts, a mantle about their shoulders, and a crown upon their foreheads. Bless them in their work and in their companionship; in their sleeping and in their waking; in their joys and in their sorrows; in their life and in their death. Finally, in Your mercy, bring them to that table where Your saints feast forever in Your heavenly home; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who with You and the Holy Spirit, lives and reigns, one God, forever and ever.

Amen.
(from The Book of Common Prayer)

PERFECT PAIR PIZZA-PITA SNACKS

2 whole-wheat pita breads
4 teaspoons basil pesto
1 cup cottage cheese
2 tablespoons Roma tomatoes, chopped
2 teaspoons fresh basil, chopped
Fresh Parmesan cheese (optional)

Toast pita breads until they are crispy and firm. Spread half of the pesto on each pita. Next, spread half of the cottage
cheese on each pita. Top with chopped tomato and fresh basil. If desired, sprinkle with fresh grated parmesan cheese. Slice each pita into two or four wedges and enjoy!

Romance Trivia
A team of medical experts in Virginia contends that you’re more likely to catch the common cold virus by shaking hands than by kissing.

{Click here to download the first chapter of Everything Romance now.}

ABOUT THE AUTHORS…David Bordon and Tom Winters are partners in Bordon-Winters, LLC, a book concept and packaging company that produces successful books and gift products. Among their previous titles are the popular “101 Things You Should Do” series. This volume joins another one of their beautiful gift books, Everything Christmas.

FROM THE BOOK FAERY REVIEWS…A truly enjoyable book to go through with or even without your significant other. You’ll read interesting feeds, poems, scripture of love from the BIBLE, get recipes to try out for various occasions of celebration, and tips of course of ways to bring back more romance into your relationship. I recommend this all couples looking to reconnect or even to bring in more ideas to love each other. Keeper for my shelves!

I received a copy as part of the F.I.R.S.T Wildcard Book Tours in exchange for an honest review.

REVENGE SHOULD BE SWEET, BUT IT MAY COST HIM EVERYTHING

Out to avenge the death of his mentor, Bastien discovers himself astonishingly out of his depth when confronted with a beautiful, daring young woman who is out for his blood…

FORGIVENESS IS UNTHINKABLE BUT IT MAY BE HER ONLY HOPE…

British Admiral’s daughter Raeven Russell believes Bastien responsible for her fiancé’s death. But once the fiery beauty crosses swords with Bastien, she’s not so sure she really wants him to change his wicked ways…

• Mass Market Paperback: 352 pages
• Publisher: Sourcebooks Casablanca (February 7, 2012)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1402265557
• ISBN-13: 978-1402265556

ABOUT THE AUTHOR…Shana Galen is the author of numerous adventurous, romantic Regency historicals, including the Rita-nominated Blackthorne’s Bride. Her books have been sold in Brazil, Russia, and the Netherlands and featured in the Rhapsody and Doubleday Book Clubs. She taught English at the middle and high school level off and on for eleven years. Most of those years were spent working in Houston’s inner city.

Now she writes full time. She’s happily married to an incredibly supportive man she likes to call Ultimate Sportsfan, and she has a beautiful daughter and a very spoiled cat.

Find Shana on her Website, Facebook or Twitter.

FROM THE BOOK FAERY REVIEWS…Shana Galen does it again and this time it’s filled with even more adrenalin adventure and passion. The Rogue Pirate’s Bride is the third book in the Sons of the Revolution trilogy. Each book was great alone and definitely got better with each story of the brothers. I will say though that I was a tad surprised there was little interaction with the brothers, the mother, and the women. But then again, any setting other than on a boat in battle or in love would not have made much sense for this particular brother. I absolutely LOVED the heroine. She was no sissy, pampered girl for sure! She was strong, independent, determined, sexy, and not afraid to get into action. The hero? Well, I’d do whatever for this man too! Excellent story and excellent trilogy!

WITHOUT HER PASSIONS, SHE HAS NO MAGIC…

It’s unfortunate for Natalie that Nigel Aquarian is so compelling. With his inner demons, his unbridled heat, and his “I will conquer you” looks, he calls to her in exactly the way that nearly killed her.

BUT LOSING CONTROL MEANS LOSING HER LIFE…

That he’s an immortal warrior and that her powers rise from intense passions would seem to make them a match made in heaven, but unless they embrace their greatest fears, they’ll play out their final match in hell.

• Mass Market Paperback: 384 pages
• Publisher: Sourcebooks Casablanca (January 1, 2012)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1402241976
• ISBN-13: 978-1402241970

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR…Stephanie Rowe is the author of more than twenty books for adults and teens, and she is a four-time nominee for the RITA Award. Her books have been sold in Germany, Australia, and France, have been on the B&N bestseller list, and have received starred reviews from Booklist. A former attorney, Stephanie lives in Boston, Massachusetts.

FROM THE BOOK FAERY REVIEWS..I do believe that Stephanie Rowe is now officially a kept paranormal romance author for my shelves! Third book in her Soulfire series and I’m still enjoying them and looking forward to the next. Not only is there passion but LOTS of fighting action where good fights evil even if at some points it is themselves. LOVED it! If you like a good paranormal romance read that will make you laugh, fill you with awe, and of course have you pretending to be in on the “kick-ass” scenes, then you’ll enjoy Rowe’s book Hold Me If You Can in addition to her books Kiss At Your Own Risk and Touch If You Dare in the series.  All books are great even as stand alone stories even though you’ll understand more if you read the previous books since there are references back to them. I’m VERY much looking forward to Christian’s story; assuming it’s next in the series.

I received a copy from Sourcebooks in exchange for an honest review.

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2,000 years later, Father Chris Mognahan is a member of the Hetairia Melchizedek, a secret society within the Catholic Church that studies Biblical omens. The society asks Chris to investigate an unusually grotesque crime – a murder on a college campus where the killer’s hand literally burned off the victim’s face. While the killing seems isolated at first, the society ties the murder to the final Biblical prophecy and a terrifying omen that the order of the prophecies is about to be disrupted. The final battle is coming too soon – long before humanity is prepared to win it.

Suddenly, Chris finds himself fighting against time and hell to keep the prophecies in order and stop an early Armageddon. He is joined by a band of unlikely allies, and together they find themselves in Rome above the Vatican Necropolis – the city of the dead – where the future is revealed to them in ancient texts.

They are not alone, however; an evil as old as time itself hunts them. As they travel across continents on their mission, the demonic force follows relentlessly, waiting in every shadowed corner, and every dark place.

As Armageddon descends, Father Chris finds that his only hope lies in a young woman within the group who has a secret gift – and their belief that God Himself may have sent her to keep the final angelic trumpet from sounding out the early end of the Earth.

• Paperback: 478 pages
• Publisher: 23 House (September 23, 2011)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0982477767
• ISBN-13: 978-0982477762

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR…Carrie Salo is a dark storyteller and emerging author of supernatural thrillers. Classically trained at an Ivy League university, she studied the works of master storytellers seven stories underground in the muffled heart of one of the world ‘s largest libraries.

Carrie seeks to wield unrelenting suspense in her own exploration of all things (especially true things) that keep us awake at night.   She has written under the guidance of two bestselling and national prize-winning authors.   Her extensive travels have taken her to many haunted places, including the private catacombs of the Vatican.   The Sounding is Carrie’s debut novel.

Carrie enjoys the smell of old books, New York riesling, late night jogging and thunderstorms, though not in that order.   Storytelling is Carrie’s secret life.   While she looks into all the dark corners by night, by day she is an advertising copywriter and account manager.

FROM THE BOOK FAERY REVIEWS…The Sounding was both exciting and scary;  a heart beating kind of read that couldn’t be put down. So real feeling that it made me wonder if it could really happen.

I received a copy from Planned Television Arts in exchange for an honest review.

HE’S EXACTLY WHAT SHE’S ALWAYS WANTED,
AND SHE UNLEASHES HIM LIKE A FORCE OF NATURE…

Lucy was once the beloved Goddess of the Moon, and she could have any man she wanted. But these days, the goddesses of the Etruscan pantheon are all but forgotten. The only rituals she enjoys now are the local hockey games, where one ferociously handsome player still inflames her divine blood…

Brandon Stevenson is one hundred percent focused on the game, until he looks up and sees a celestial beauty sitting in the third row. A man could surely fall hard for a distraction like that…

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR…Stephanie Julian is the author of the Magical Seduction, Lucani Lovers, Darkly Enchanted and the Forgotten Goddess series, as well as The Fringe series. A former reporter for a daily newspaper, she enjoys making up stories much more than writing about real life. She’s happily married to a Springsteen fanatic and is the mother of two sons who love her even when they don’t have any clean clothes and dinner is a bowl of cereal.

Julian’s erotic romances have a paranormal bent reviewers have called “fascinating,” “truly fantastic,” “intoxicating,” “highly imaginative” and “hot enough to peel paint.”

FROM THE BOOK FAERY REVIEWS…What do you get when you get a bear suppressed man and a moon goddess to lock gazes? LOTS of raw, intense, animalistic sex that will have your heart racing literally from beginning to end. Not for the prim and proper for sure. Personally I felt this book to be more about the Hockey player and his discovery of what he really is than the battle Lucy is supposed to face. I would have also liked to have seen more action of evil versus bad rather than for the most part just sexual action. We end this book with only having been through a minor fight with a demon in the bedroom for a brief moment and then a semi-major fight in the end when to rescue her son. Not enough to really in my opinion. Do I still recommend this book? Sure, to someone who enjoys LOTS and LOTS of sex mixed with some paranormal shift shaping and a little fighting.

I received a Netgalley copy from Sourcebooks in exchange for an honest review.

• Paperback: 304 pages
• Publisher: Allergy Adapt, Inc. (March 1, 2011)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1887624198
• ISBN-13: 978-1887624190

ABOUT THE AUTHOR…Nickie Dumke enjoys helping people with food allergies and gluten intolerance find solutions to their health and weight problems. She began writing books to help others with multiple food allergies over 20 years ago and the process culminated in The Ultimate Food Allergy Cookbook and Survival Guide. She says, “This book contains everything I know to help with food allergies,” and it has helped many people come back from near-starvation. Her other books address issues such as how to deal with time and money pressures on special diets, keeping allergic children happy on their diets, and more. A few years ago, while listening to the struggles of an allergic friend on the Weight Watchers™ diet, she remembered her own weight struggles* many years ago and thought, “There has to be a better way.” This was the beginning of a new quest, and she is now helping those who are overweight due to inflammation (often due to unsuspected food allergies) or high-in-rice gluten-free diets, as well as those who are not food sensitive but want to lose weight permanently, healthily, and without feeling hungry and deprived. Her unique approach to weight and health presented in Food Allergy and Gluten-Free Weight Loss is based on body physiology and reveals why conventional weight-loss diets work against rather than with our bodies and therefore rarely result in permanent weight loss. *

(Nickie’s weight loss story, briefly, is that in her early 20s she could not lose on a calorie-counting diet in spite of repeatedly further reducing the number of calories she ate and swimming vigorously and often. Then she found a diet based on blood sugar control, lost weight without being hungry, and still weighs what she did in her mid-20s). Nickie has had multiple food allergies for 30 years and has been cooking for special diets for family members and friends for even longer. Regardless of how complex your dietary needs are or how much or little cooking you have done, she has the books and recipes you need. Her books present the science behind multiple food allergies and weight control in an easily-understood manner. She has BS degrees in medical technology and microbiology. She and her husband live in Louisville, Colorado and have two grown sons.

You can visit Nickie’s websites at http://www.foodallergyandglutenfreeweightloss.com and http://www.food-allergy.org.

FROM THE BOOK FAERY REVIEWS…I will admit, this book took me some time to get into, HOWEVER, I’m glad I finally took the time to read it.  As a food allergy suffferer and one who’s become more and more sensitive to foods over the years, I needed this book to better understand my pain as well as make me feel not alone. Whenever I’d mention a food allergy to someone and they ask what happens to me, I’d say, “Well, I will instantly swell like I’m 5 months pregnant, gain weight on the scale, and be in pain for hours, sometimes days before I get back to normal again.” They’d just stare at me and say, “well don’t eat so much”. My response? “But I’m NOT overeating.” Again, the stare from them. You know the one that says “OK…whatever you say…” Interestingly enough I went to my doctor Monday to discuss my stomach issues and FINALLY someone else along with Nicolette understands and I’m now working on re-balancing my own body chemistry.

So now back to the book itself…Nicolette Dumke does an excellent job in explaining the science behind it all and provides additional references for more. She touches up on your bodies hormones (cortisol, adrenaline, insulin, leptin, etc) and how they affect your hunger and weight. There’s a chapter on carbohydrates and the glycemic index. She also discusses fats and how the right fats are essential to our diets. Overall she stresses to LISTEN to how our body feels and “do it your body’s way”. In addition to helping us understand why our body reacts a certain way to different types of food, she provides 9 principles to a healthy eating plan, food recipes, cooking tips, more information on the glycemic index, a list of super foods to moderate inflammation, and lists multiple resources for further understanding and where to get special types of foods.   Even though the book does not appear “exciting” in terms of presentation (there are no pictures at all throughout the entire book), I do believe, this will be my new food “Bible” as I learn my own body’s chemistry. To those who have food allergies or sensitivities, I’d say grab a copy.

BTW…if you missed Nicolette’s post here last month, be sure to read her guest post: 10 Things You Didn’t Know About Weight Loss.

MY BOOK RATING

I received a copy in exchange for an honest review.

• Paperback: 384 pages
• Publisher: Sourcebooks Casablanca; Reprint edition (August 1, 2011)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1402238495
• ISBN-13: 978-1402238499

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR…Jennifer Blake has been called a “pioneer of the romance genre”, and an “icon of the romance industry.” A New York Times and international best selling author since 1977, she is a charter member of Romance Writers of America, member of the RWA Hall of Fame, and recipient of the RWA Lifetime Achievement Rita. She holds numerous other honors, including two “Maggies”, two Holt Medallions, multiple Reviewer’s Choice Awards, the Career Achievement Award from Romantic Times BookReviews Magazine, and the Frank Waters Award for literary excellence. She has written over 60 books with translations in 20 languages and more than 30 million copies in print worldwide.

Jennifer and her husband reside in a lakeside Caribbean-style retreat in North Louisiana where they often entertain family and friends. Always a gardener, she spends much of her time encouraging her garden to bloom with her favorite daylilies and antique roses. She also enjoys walking her two dogs, Buffy and Lucky, and indulging in needlework, painting, and travel.

FROM THE BOOK FAERY REVIEWS…This title was originally released in 1984 and re-released last year in 2011. In Midnight Waltz I had a feeling Julian was a “Molly” pretending to be straight from the beginning but I wasn’t 100% sure. The signs were there but you just never really know, right? Back then it was likely very common for gay men to marry for family (men needed heirs) and society sake.

Midnight Waltz like other Blake books was very detailed in land and architecture descriptions. You just can’t miss imagining the scene because she can get quite lengthy; in fact so lengthy, I found myself skimming at times over some of these parts.

I felt sorry for Amalie who was the true victim of the story and even a part of me felt sorry for Robert, Julien’s cousin. As much as I wanted to love this story however, I felt it was lacking something. I needed to see more of her real relationship with Julien and his relationship with others so I could have gotten to know him better but then again the story was more about Amalie and “Julien’s passion” in the late night.

My Book Rating: 2 out of 4 stars

I received a copy from Sourcebooks in exchange for an honest review. No money was given for this review.

Seduced by the hot sun and blinding passions of Renaissance Italy, sixteen-year-old Lucrezia de’ Medici sees a gilded life stretching ahead. Her wealthy new husband handpicked her to be his bride, and his great castle in Ferrara will be her playground. But Alfonso d’Este, Duke of Ferrara quickly proves to be just as dangerous and mysterious as he is dark and handsome, and the stone walls of the castle seem to trap Lucrezia like a prison.

Only the duke’s lover Francesca seems able to tame his increasing fury, as his desperate need to produce an heir drives him deep into precarious obsession. With her head full of heartbroken dreams, Lucrezia flees from him down a dangerous path that may cost her everything.

Step into the elegant world of the Robert Browning poem “My Last Duchess,” as imagined by Gabrielle Kimm, where she brings to life the passions and people of sixteenth-century Tuscany and Ferrara. It is a chilling story of forbidden love and dark decadence that will haunt you.

• Paperback: 416 pages
• Publisher: Sourcebooks Landmark; Original edition (October 1, 2011)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1402261519
• ISBN-13: 978-1402261510

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR…Gabrielle Kimm is a graduate of the creative writing master’s program at the University of Chichester. She is writing her second novel, The Courtesan’s Lover, which features one of the characters of His Last Duchess as the heroine. www.gabriellekimm.co.uk

FROM THE BOOK FAERY REVIEWS…Excellent historical fiction about Lucrezia di Medici and her husband Alfonso II, the Duke of Ferrara. Their marriage was twisted; more that HE was twisted and she loved another who she later left for. Kimm does an excellent job making the reader feel as if they themselves are there and writes the story in such a way that you keep turning the pages as fast as you can read. I definitely recommend this to those who enjoy a good historical fiction novel about someone in history.

My Book Rating:

I received a copy for review in exchange for an honest review from Sourcebooks.