The Ritual Bath

The Ritual Bath by Faye Kellerman

Amazon.com Description:

Detective Peter Decker of the LAPD is stunned when he gets the report. Someone has shattered the sanctuary of a remote yeshiva community in the California hills with an unimaginable crime. One of the women was brutally raped as she returned from the mikvah, the bathhouse where the cleansing ritual is performed. The crime was called in by Rina Lazarus, and Decker is relieved to discover that she is a calm and intelligent witness. She is also the only one in the sheltered community willing to speak of this unspeakable violation. As Rina tries to steer Decker through the maze of religious laws, the two grow closer. But before they get to the bottom of this horrendous crime, revelations come to light that are so shocking, they threaten to come between the hard-nosed cop and the deeply religious woman with whom he has become irrevocably linked.

My Thoughts:

I enjoyed this first in the Peter Decker/Rina Lazarus series. I had a few issues staying with the story, but I’m going to give the next a try.

Living Dead in Dallas

Living Dead in Dallas by Charlaine Harris

This is book two in the Sookie Stackhouse/True Blood series.

Sookie and Bill have agreed to help the vampires by allowing them to use Sookie’s telepathy. She is sent to Dallas to search for a missing vampire. I enjoyed this second installment more than the first. Harris is building the characters and introducing new, interesting ones. Eric is developed more, and he is dark...which I love.

I feel like I need to watch True Blood and see how it measures up. Someday!

On to the next!

Sugar Daddy

Sugar Daddy by Lisa Kleypas

Lisa Kleypas is one of my favorites. There aren’t many of her books that I don’t love, but this is one of them.

This is Kleypas’s first contemporary novel. It lacked her usual character development and strong emotion. The book follows Liberty, the main character, throughout her life. I can’t think of what those types of books are called at the moment…but I don’t like them.

I wouldn’t categorize this as a romance. And if Kleypas hadn’t written it I would have stopped reading after the first few chapters. Not a recommend from her bibliography.

Sex, Lies and Online Dating

Sex, Lies and Online Dating by Rachel Gibson

A fluffy read…

Homicide cop pretending to be a plumber and a writer pretending to be a nurse…basically the plot is far-fetched and silly. However, when I’m reading a romance I don’t always need it to be believable! The characters were cute and their relationship kept me reading.

Real Men Will

Real Men Will by Victoria Dahl

For my friends who like it hot and steamy…

I liked this one but have to mention that the plot is completely ridiculous; the controversy much too contrived. And apparently this is the third in a trilogy...and I didn’t read the first two. Whoops!

Writing...

If you are reading my blog it's a good bet that you love books. Anyone else love to write, as well as read? I recently did a creative writing class and had to respond to "What is writing, to you?" Thought I would share...

Writing, to me, is passion. I have always loved the feel of putting pen to paper in an effort to create something from nothing. As a small child some of my most vivid memories are of books. The smell of them, the feel of the pages in my hand, the vivid colors and equally vivid images the words invoked. Stories were the first thing I ever felt a burning passion about. I couldn't get enough; still cannot. All the genres, even magazines, even catalogs; it didn't matter.

The first story I wrote was in Kindergarten, on Indian Tablet notepaper. It was a simple story, of a man who discovered a treasure chest of gold in a cave. Simple, as a five year old would be expected to create, but I can still remember the jubiliation of getting that story from my mind, onto that paper. A feeling of relief, a feeling of accomplishment. The remainder of my childhood was spent creating more and more stories. The older I become, this never changes. My love for creating words into thoughts, into sentences, into stories--it has only grown stronger.

A blank page is a masterpiece, waiting to be created. The true love of my life. Stolen moments, jotted thoughts, laying bare my soul...the passion never ends.

Say No to Joe

Say No to Joe? by Lori Foster

Foster can truly deliver hotness sometimes! This was one of those times…I enjoyed these characters and their chemistry. The plot is a little over the top…but it worked. The type of romance you can lose yourself in. Joe is the type of character I love, give me that alpha male anytime!

London Bridges

London Bridges by James Patterson

So…every time I post about the next Alex Cross book I cannot decide if I should continue the series or stop. Patterson does just enough to keep me hooked.

London Bridges was good, but not great. I still feel like the characters have gotten lost somewhere.  I’m most likely going to read the next one, even though I think I should just stop!

My One and Only

My One and Only by Kristan Higgins

This was a good book that made me very emotional. Higgins always creates amazing characters. If you haven’t read Higgans definitely give her a try!

Harper is trying to shield herself from love, from feeling too intensely. She is forced into contact with her ex-husband which leads to some friction and a lot of soul searching. At the beginning of the story I found myself not really liking Harper, but as the story progressed everything changed. I saw more than a bit of myself in her character, which is why the book was so emotional for me.