romance

Why must movie trailers be so misleading? There have been many a movie where the finished product seems completely different from what the trailer hyped it to be. Like a comedy that is not that funny because the trailer gave away the only two humorous parts of the entire film.

After viewing the trailer of Table 19, I popped in the DVD expecting a romantic comedy. A girl meets a guy while at the wedding of her ex-boyfriend’s sister. She’s seated at the worst table but it’s filled with quirky characters who have laugh out loud hijinks. That’s not the movie I got.

Anna Kendrick’s Eloise has

Let’s get this out of the way first: while Circling the Sun is about Beryl Markham, famed aviator of the 1920’s, there are barely two chapters about her adventures as a pilot. What happens between the passages about flying is a compelling historical novel about a young English girl who is abandoned by her mother in Kenya and who eventually wins respect in the male-dominated worlds of horse training and aviation. 

The Spring Hill book discussion group found the love triangle exhausting, but Markham's escapades in the Kenyan bush involving lions, elephants, and colonial politics make it a

Bodine Longbow is a fourth-generation Montana rancher and operator of the Bodine Resort. The ranch and resort are definitely a family affair with her great-grandmother, grandmother, mother, father and brothers all working together. Callen Skinner has returned home to Montana to reconnect with his family, both biological and honorary. Growing up, Callen spent a lot of time on the Bodine ranch and never imagined he'd end up finding love with the girl next door.

The mystery and suspense develop as the past and present collide. Alice Bodine, the aunt Bodine never knew, ran away from home over 20

My Boyfriends’ Dogs begins with Bailey Daley running through the rain in a wedding dress. She’s drenched and has three dogs in tow. Hoping to get out of the rain she ducks into a diner, where she meets the restaurant owners, Louis and Nikki. She then spends the evening explaining to them how she acquired each pup.

Adam, a typically charming golden retriever; Eve, a shih tzu; and Shirley, a dalmatian, are special. Each has been adopted from an ex-boyfriend and each mirrors the man who had owned them.

With a new job teaching high school literature, and new dream home, Bailey has been looking

I am a re-reader. Whether I’m in a reading funk, or waiting for an author’s new release, I would rather pick up a book I’ve read before than take a chance on something new. I don’t know if it’s the comfort of knowing what’s going to happen or the chance to revisit favorite characters that appeals to me, but this habit tends to get me in trouble when I’m trying to weed my book collection.

I recently read an article on re-reading that suggested listening to the audio version of a book you previously read. I’ve never been a big audio listener, especially in fiction, so I decided to give it a try

Don’t let Twenty-eight and a Half Wishes mystery classification fool you. This book is a perfect blend of mystery and romance with just a touch of fantasy.

Rose Gardner has had the gift of second sight her whole life, although her mother has convinced her it’s proof that she’s evil. When she sees her first ever vision of herself, and she’s dead to boot, her reaction sets a chain of events in motion that she’s powerless to stop. Just as she’s powerless to stop the advances of her handsome, but secretive, neighbor Joe.

When Rose’ mother takes her place in the vision, and she becomes a suspect

If you love dogs (and I sincerely hope you do), you'll love this heart warming story of a woman finding her place in the world and a dog finding a home. Gina Bellamy suddenly finds herself trying to figure it all out on her own after her recent divorce. As she struggles to find herself in all the clutter of life she decides to keep only one hundred essential things. Little does she know, she will find that Buzz, a neglected and anxious greyhound, fits perfectly in her new life and happy moments.

More on Lucy Dillon:

I have read all three books by Lucy Dillon that Johnson County Library

Much is expected of Alexander, the only son of Alexander the Great, but he's more than ready for the task. His skills on the battlefield are well known, and he's charming, yet cautious when it comes to social and political affairs. His search for a wife worthy of the noble lineage of his family finds him engaged to Princess Mereret, the daughter of the Egyptian King Ptolemy. While waiting for the wedding date to arrive, a slave girl named Kiara is sent to entertain him. Although Alexander is stunned and enchanted by her beauty, his responsibility is clear. 

When evil events begin to unfold

This movie is crazysauce, that’s all I can say. Crazysauce poured over an amazing sci-fi spectacular with a generous dose of cheese and a side of over-the-top drama, and those with a healthy sense of the ridiculous will eat it up with glee. If you are not a fan of campy fun, it may not be your cuppa. But if you enjoy stylish space opera with a capital O, cult classics like Labyrinth and Dune, or fangirl over broody heroes, this movie will be your catnip. The Wachowski siblings have created a true extravaganza of beautifully designed worlds, costumes, aliens, human hybrid breeds, gadgets and

Heart of Fire is the perfect summer read if you like movies like Indiana Jones, Romancing the Stone, or Six Days Seven Nights. Linda Howard takes us deep into the Brazilian rainforest on an exhilarating adventure up the Amazon River, as an archaeologist on a mission and a guide with no attachments butt heads while leading an expedition in search of a lost civilization and ancient treasure. It has a very cinematic feel that would make for a great movie, with the lush setting, perilous adventure, and steamy romance. It not only brings the jungle alive, it makes you want to pack up and go!

Archa

Deception is one of my favorite Amanda Quick books (along with Reckless, Desire and Mystique) and I have read it countless times. Therefore I thought it would make a good introduction to her works on audio, most of which are read by Anne Flosnik. I will admit that it took me a while to get used to Flosnik’s voice and style of reading, but by the end I was thoroughly convinced by her characterizations and wry humor that fit very well with the text. Quick’s early works really shine with fresh enthusiasm and a madcap sense of fun with the scholarly characters and witty banter that have become her

Penelope, Ephraim and Audrey have been friends forever, an inseparable threesome. But now that they are juniors in high school, things are changing. Penelope is devastated when for the first time ever, Eph and Audrey both ditch out on the fall festival. She is the only one of the three who has never been kissed, never had a romantic involvement. Audrey is expanding her social circle and encouraging Penelope to do the same, but Penelope doesn't want to. Change is hard. But it is also inevitable. As Penelope grudgingly begins to accept this, a new world opens up with new friends, a romantic

It's the summer of 1938 and Layla Beck is a well-off, young Senator's daughter who has just had the rug pulled out from under her. Because she won't marry her father's choice of a husband, she is forced to find work for the first time in her life. Her uncle sends her to Macedonia, West Virginia through the Federal Writer's Project to help the local government write their town's history for their sesquicentennial celebration. Shocked and horrified, Layla tries desperately to get out of it to no avail. She can't possibly imagine living in West Virginia and what on earth will they have to talk

Deadpool finally gets his due. A far cry from his last portrayal in the dreadfully off-mark X-Men Origins: Wolverine, this Deadpool is the "Merc with a Mouth."

For those unfamiliar with Deadpool, this is the story of a mercenary, Wade Wilson, who falls in love, is diagnosed with cancer, and goes off the deep end, not necessarily in that order. When his experimental "cure" leaves him looking like leftover roadkill he goes hunting for the man responsible with gleeful enthusiasm and a lot of murder.

For those familiar with Deadpool, there's a lot of little details that aren't accurate (it's not

I really wasn’t expecting to like this book, but there I sat, reading page after page, anxious to find out what happens next. It has a bit of a Bridget Jones likeness. Louisa Clark is in her mid-twenties and still floundering through life, living with her quirky parents, comparing herself to her intellectually superior sister, and in a long term relationship that seems to be going nowhere.  She also has an unconventional sense of style. However, she is happy and optimistic which are valuable qualities needed to assist Will Traynor, a young, wealthy quadriplegic who wishes to end his life.

Alt

Romance readers across the world jumped for joy when Lisa Kleypas announced the hero for the third book in the Ravenel series, Devil in Spring. Don't believe me, check out the amount of SQUEE! and OMG! on this site alone. The hero is Gabriel, Lord St. Vincent, son of Evie and Sebastian, the hero and heroine from one of my most favorite books, Devil in Winter.

Devil in Winter is book three in the Wallflower series, following Secrets of a Summer Night and It Happened One Autumn and preceding Scandal in Spring. The series centers on four women who, for some reason, are considered wallflowers by

Director Ritesh Batra’s The Lunchbox is a must-see movie for food enthusiasts. Ila, played by the stunningly beautiful Nimrat Kaur, is a lonely housewife in Mumbai, India who desperately wants to please and attract her emotionally distant husband. Every day she takes great efforts to prepare his lunch in a unique (at least in our western culture) stacked tin lunchbox which is picked up by a local delivery system and brought to him at work. Our story opens with this lunchbox being delivered to the wrong person, a Mr. Saajan Fernandez, played by Irrfan Khan. Saajan is an equally lonesome man on

I have been a fan of Stephanie Laurens ever since I picked up Devil's Bride, the start of her her long, long running Cynster series. While I enjoy following that series, after book 23, it's nice to be able to take a break. The heroine of The Lady's Command is Lady Edwina Delbraith. Lady Edwina and the Delbraith family were first introduced in The Lady Risks All. While it's not necessary, I suggest reading or re-reading The Lady Risks All first for background on Lady Edwina. The hero, Declan Frobisher, is part of a respected sea-faring family which will feature prominently in the next books of

A beautiful love story set in the jazz age of Seattle. For centuries, humans have been the pawns in the game between Love and Death. You may be familiar with a few of the challenges, Antony and Cleopatra, Helen of Troy and Paris, Romeo and Juliet. And Death always wins…always.

A new game is afoot and Love and Death have chosen the players.

Flora is an African-American girl who is truly at home in the sky. A plane mechanic by day and a jazz singer by night, Flora lives with her grandmother and is trying to save up enough money to finance a flight around the world!

Henry works at the

Former Marine Jake Porter has PTSD symptoms, and the scar on his face is a constant reminder of his time at war. And one big reason he avoids any type of relationship. But along comes his childhood best friend, Lyndie James, with a heart as big as the sky. She is fiercely determined, and her experience with horses gives her an edge, but she has a tender heart.

Despite being leery about hiring Lyndie on at his horse ranch in Holley, Texas, Jake does. He pairs her with Silverleaf, a horse that has great potential but is lacking in motivation. Lyndie is eager to take the job head-on and solve

Anna Gordan manages the Value Lodge in the small town where she grew up and dreams of bigger things.   When her best friend from high school, Marley Ferris, tells her about a new boutique hotel opening up in New York City, Anna sends in her resume hoping this could be the opportunity she’s been waiting for.

Sheltered and naive. That's the narrator of this book. She's always lived a protected, easy life, and doesn't have much to be anxious about. Of course, she lives in a world without poverty. Where there has never been a murder in her lifetime. Where crime, accidents, and disease are minimal, and almost everyone lives happily and safely to old age. (As far as she knows, anyway.) So life is good and there's no reason to question anything.

Except that she's a human. A human teen, at that. There might be no reason to question anything, but it's human nature and impossible to avoid. Morgan worries

Jory Dean is the youngest of the Dean brothers, a family created by the Commander and genetically-enhanced to be super soldiers. They are also scheduled for termination in just a few days. Jory has been missing for two years and his brothers thought he was dead. However, he is being held by the Commander at a secret lab where his team is trying to disable the chip that was implanted by the Commander in Jory's spine five years ago and damaged during his capture. The Commander does not want to lose Jory's super soldier skills and believes that he can gain Jory's compliance by promising to save

Young Rachelle was trained to protect her people from the dark creatures that surround them, which she has always been determined to do. But she hasn't wanted to simply defend, she wants to boldly attack them. She learned the hard way that, unfortunately, sometimes the only effective way to attack the darkness is to embrace it. Now she clings desperately to her soul as one of those creatures, trying to hold off the darkness within herself while still protecting the people. And her work has moved her from a woodland village to the court of the king.

Hodge has meshed a nice array of elements

Fourteen year old Charlie Simmons is enjoying the summer before starting at a new school in Thunder Point. His very protective mom, Lin Su, is working in Thunder Point as a home nurse for Winnie who has ALS. This is the best job Lin Su has had in a long time and it gives Charlie the opportunity to change schools and get away from the bullies that had been taunting him at his old school. Winnie and Charlie have become good friends as he has been spending a lot of time there over the summer. And now there is new next door neighbor Blake Smiley. Blake is a professional tri-athlete and

Facing hard moments is not easy for anyone, especially Jean Perdu, the self-proclaimed literary apothecary who prescribes books to people based on their emotional state. He has essentially shut himself off, emotionally and physically, from the world since he was left by his lover over twenty years ago. Now fate has led him back to that very moment of heartbreak when he is forced to open a door, again emotionally and physically, and give away some of his last few possessions to a friend in need. Amongst those items is a letter his lover wrote to him on that fateful day. After reading it, he is

Nicki Price has just arrived in the Big Easy with her newly minted private detective's license and the desire to get to work right away, hopefully with her cousin Nate Price who has his own detective agency. Nicki plans to use her investigative skills to not only help Nate and make some money but to solve her father's murder from years ago. Nate tries to put Nicki off but she won't be deterred and follows Nate to a client meeting and manages to insinuate herself into the investigation of a recent murder.

Hunter Galen has a big problem. His business partner and friend has been found murdered

Evelyn Wolfe, black ops CIA intelligence officer, is looking for her kidnapped sister.  When the van supposedly holding her sister explodes, Evelyn is knocked out and scooped up by ex-CIA agent and current Ageis Security agent (and former lover) Zane Archer.  Archer is out to get Eve for something that happened on their last mission together.  Now both are implicated in the bombing that injured several innocent bystanders. When Eve wakes up, she and Archer must set aside their differences while they clear their names and find Eve's sister. Who can they trust? Each other? No one? What really

Viann Rossignol is a loving mother and wife who lives in a small, country town. She has a best-friend who has a daughter the same age as hers and even though she has experienced loss with multiple miscarriages, she still remains content with her life. Her younger sister Isabelle is a rambunctious young woman living in Paris. She always looks for a battle and is not afraid to stand up for herself. Since she and Viann were given up as children by her distant father, Isabelle has always gotten herself thrown into and out of boarding schools across France. Unable to think of anything further to do

Vanessa Kelly returns to the Renegade Royals with her fourth book (sixth book if you count the two digital novellas) in the series, How to Marry a Royal Highlander.  We were introduced to the Whitney twins and their family in book three, How to Plan a Wedding for a Royal Spy, and this novel follows up with the romance of Edie Whitney and former spy, Alasdair Gilbride. 

Gilbride is actually heir to a Scottish earldom but has been avoiding his responsibilities to both the earldom and his arranged marriage since he was 16 years old.  Unfortunately, his time has run out.  With his grandfathers’