Minis: Sidecar by Amy Lane + Don't Say A Word by Beverly Barton

I hope everyone had a great Labor Day weekend. I'm late with my wishes since I haven't had a chance to really chat lately. Mine was quite nice! Nath, her sister Emilie and a couple of their friends came all the way from Canada and stayed over for a couple of days, and that's always fun for me. :) Then we had the opportunity to meet Christine and Mariana for dinner on Saturday evening and that rounded up the goodness of it all! We had a great time! Talked and ate, ate and talked! Of course I don't have any pictures! Nath and Christine took pictures because, unlike me, they are good at that. Maybe they can share those with you all later. :D

Anyway, I didn't really make the time for blogging, preparing my reviews for the week, or reading much during the weekend. However, here are a couple of mini-reviews about two books that I read recently.

Sidecar by Amy Lane (Click on title to read summary)

Sidecar by Amy Lane is a good story spanning a 25 year period of time. I really like the way Lane captured the time period (80's and on) by incorporating music, fashion and attitudes without overdoing it. The relationship between Casey and Joe was wonderful. I like that Lane features a bisexual character with some of the conflicts that present themselves along the way for a man like Joe who doesn't like to be labeled and who has needs that are different from Casey's. There are emotional moments galore in this story. Some of the conflicts are dramatic and a bit over the top at times, and the story is a tad over long. However, all in all an emotional and enjoyable read with great characters. (Dreamspinner Press, June 2012): Grade B-


Don't Say A Word by Beverly Barton (Click on title to read summary)

Don't Say a Word is Beverly Barton's last book, as sadly she passed away earlier this year. A romance suspense, it is part of a series, but as I found out it can easily be read as a stand-alone.

What impressed me the most about this story is how Barton had me guessing until the end as to whom the serial killer turned out to be in this piece. There are multiple murders to be investigated and the murders are gruesome! The story is told from three points of view, the heroine who just moved to town as a policewoman, the hero who is a member of the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation (TBI) and a few chapters as seen from the killer's perspective. There are clues along the way, but there are also red herrings and they are good ones. So watch out for those!

I found that the romance was incorporated unevenly. It had a good beginning, a tough middle with little to no forward momentum, and then it moved rapidly toward the last third of the book with good results, although not with great sizzling moments. Overall, I enjoyed this book and consider it a solid read that I enjoyed on both fronts, but leaning more toward the suspense.  (ARC Kensington - Zebra, July 31, 2012) Grade: B


That's it for this Thursday. Ohhh, wait! Since I'm catching up, I'll let you all know what I'm reading. I'm all excited because I'm reading the latest western by Jo Goodman, The Last Renegade. I'm really enjoying it so far, but then I love my westerns and Jo Goodman is one of those authors that does it for me. Review to come! :)