Earthly Pleasures

Earthly Pleasures

Karen Neches

5 out of 5

Multiply storylines in this totally fun chick-lit version of Heaven. Who would have thought that God is a woman who sounds just like Bette Midler. Where all of life's lessons can be found in the lyrics of 5 Beatles songs and where you can watch the lives of earthlings on TV including hot Hollywood actors in the shower. I didn't know that Heaven could be such a hoot, but with Skye Sebring as a greeter in the Hospitality Department of Heaven you just never know what she and her friends will be up to next. Skye is summoned to her cubicle one day to meet Ryan Blaine, known to his friends and ex-presidential father as Bad Boy Blaine for his handsome playboy ways. When Ryan is whisked back out of Skye's office as quickly as he appeared Skye uses the Early Pleasures TV channel, think Reality TV - Heaven style, to see what is going on with Ryan. This fun romp takes a couple of twists, mostly involving Ryan's wife Susan who herself had a brush with death, and looks surprisingly like Skye. But with Susan's strange behavior after her accident and Ryan's memories of Skye, things turn on a dime when the Hot Dog Hag makes a startling discovery. Sounds confusing, but Neches weaves the multiple storylines, some that I haven't even mentioned here, in a delightful way that keeps you turning the pages and laughing way into the night.

#23 The Killer's Wife

#23 The Killer's Wife
Bill Floyd
Fiction
4 out of 5

Except for the bad parts, this is a really good book. This debut bogs down in places where Floyd seems more interested in his thesaurus than in moving the story forward. And is quite choppy between the present and the past – almost as if there were two separate authors.

Six years after Nina Mosley’s ex-husband is found guilty in the serial killings of many across the country – thanks to Mosley herself finding the evidence – Randy is now on death row in California. But if only life were so simple and she could change her name and forget her past. Except that isn’t possible when the father of one of Randy’s victims tracks her down and is making life unbearable for Leigh (what she now calls herself) and her son Hayden. Their new life in Cary, North Carolina is shattered when they are publicly revealed and another vicious murdered wants to copy what he learned from his mentor.

Amazon Review: http://tinyurl.com/32khqb

Nancy

#22 The Church of 80% Sincerity

#22 The Church of 80% Sincerity
David Roche
Memoir
5 out of 5

The Church of 80% Sincerity shares the moving, laugh out loud funny, and sometimes heartbreaking stories of motivational speaker David Roche's life. Told through antidotes and life lessons you see his life from shame to self-acceptance. Born with a severe facial deformity, David has traveled through life with grace, humor and ok, a wee bit of sarcasm. Over time and with the love of his life, he has learned to accept his gifts as well as his flaws.

Being unable to live up to the rules of the Catholic Church that he was raised in David decided to make up a church that is quite real to him. In the Church of 80% Sincerity, 80% is as good as it gets. You can be 80% Sincere 100% of the time or 100% Sincere 80% of the time. It’s in the 20% area that you can get some slack and be yourself. There are on ideals. You do not try to change people by having them conform. Try to accept people as they are and adjust beliefs and practices to conform to the reality of being human.

I rarely call a book a gem, but this truly, to me, is one. There are so many wonderful lines and stories that each time you go back and reread it you get something different. Very much a keeper.

Amazon Review: http://tinyurl.com/22to7f

#21 Stalked

#21
Stalked
Brian Freeman
2008
357
Thriller
5 out of 5
Library

Brian Freeman has never let me down. In this 3rd outing, Jonathan Stride returns from a Las Vegas with Serena to take back his job with the Duluth Minnesota Police Department. Jonathan receives an urgent call from Maggie, his former partner when she awakes to find that her semi-estranged husband is found dead in their home. Of course, Maggie is the prime suspect, spouses always are. Stride and Serena set out to find the truth only to find themselves in much deeper then either would have suspected. Serena’s background is put to the test when not only does it come back to haunt her, but to literally bite her. You have to pay attention in this book because nothing is quite as it seems. Who is after whom and why gets a bit twisted but in a way that Freeman is famous for and will keep you turning the pages. I highly recommend this author. His foray’s into the underbelly always make for a fascinating read. Amazon Review: http://tinyurl.com/2abj7u

#20 Demon's are a Ghoul's Best Friend

#20
Demon's are a Ghoul's Best Friend
Victoria Laurie
2008
304
Fiction
4 out of 5
TBR

Victoria Laurie is hitting her stride with this book. Not as hokey as her first in the Ghost Hunter Series, What's a Ghoul to Do ( http://tinyurl.com/2qj6ke ). In this outing, the same cast of characters are hot on the trail of Hatchet Jack who is terrorizing Northelm Boarding School on Lake Placid. The headmaster is thwarting their attempt to rid this ghost because he can’t risk the bad publicity, but with Teeko’s persuasive ways, he soon opens up the school,: maybe there is more to hide than what he told them – but what is a ghost hunter to do when children need her. Very funny moments, but still reminds me a bit of the Scooby-Do cartoon. Amazon Review: http://tinyurl.com/3529hj

#19 Ashes to Ashes

#19
Ashes to Ashes
Tami Hoag
1999
593
Thriller
2 out of 5
TBR
Enough already with the metaphors, similes and idioms. I get it. In this laborious story, Kate Conlon, a former FBI agent and currently a child advocate is brought in to help a young witness identify a man, the Cremator, whom she saw in a park late at night setting a body on fire. As this very long story goes, it gets quite twisted as to who are the good guys, who are the bad guys and which characters are brought in to confuse the story even more. When the third victim of the Cremator is identified as the damaged daughter of a billionaire the big guns are called in, in the form of Special Agent John Quinn, who just happened to be the ex-lover of Kate. One more twist. And of course, now Kate’s life is in danger. The only thing that kept me reading was that I couldn't figure out who the Cremator was; too many major and minor characters were thrown at you in hopes that something would stick and lead you down the wrong path and yet again you would be bouncing back and forth with possibilities.I don’t think I will be reading this author again since about one-third of this book could have been removed and the story would have flowed much better and as an experienced author, for me, she just couldn’t keep up the momentum. Amazon Review: http://tinyurl.com/yoqha9