Category Archives: Cotton Candy for the Brain

Hex in High Heels

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Jake’s past is finally catching up to him.  His former pack has moved into the resort next door to town.  His mother has set eyes up on the two witches who have lived there for at least a hundred years, Stasi and Blair.  Of course, Blair is a more interesting prey as she seems to have encouraged an interest in Jake which his mother does not approve of at all.

51o-XgMfVIL._SL160_ Now Jake hasn’t wanted anything to do with his pack for quite some time.  He left them, and believed they left him as he is not like the rest of them.  (Saying what that is, would be telling.)  He is the family black sheep, or so it seemed.  He smells trouble on the wind and wants to keep his favorite witch, Blair, out of the way.

Blair, of course, has different intentions.  Matters are not helped when the town starts creating more magical trouble by hiring elves for their winter festival from the most disreputable supernatural temp agency around.  The elves that show up are not as advertised, but Agnes, the town busybody, seems determined to bring the supernatural forces to heel much to the chagrin of Blair and Stasi.

Did I mention those loveable bunny slippers, Fluff and Puff are spending some quality time with Blair?  This adds a whole new dimension of trouble with weres, elves, and witches running around.

Hex in High Heels by Linda Wisdom is a wonderful summer read.  Nothing too serious or taxing, a number of grins, and a good time for the reader.  Wisdom’s books really do keep improving and I am anxious for the next book after reading the tantalizing teaser at the end. 

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Sucker for Love

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Lil Marchette continues to attract all sorts of trouble.  Somehow she ends up in Texas with her human and pregnant sister-in-law, mother, and best friend.  Her mother is, of course, trying to rid herself of her human daughter-in-law, her best friend is trying to hide from true love with Lil’s brother, and her sister-in-law is clueless as to what is going on.

41FGD9KsNjL._SL160_Did I mention that Lil is trying to track down her missing client, Esther?  It seems that there is a rogue warlock who wants to use Esther in some nefarious plot that hell – and Merlin, yes that Merlin – know all about but won’t let Lil stop! 

Does Lil care that hell says no to getting involved? She wouldn’t be Lil Marchette if she did. And between staying alive, she even finds new clients.

Sucker for Love: A Dead-End Dating Novel (Dead-End Dating Novels) by Kimberly Raye is a great beach read.  No brain cells need apply while reading.  I really enjoy the misadventures of Lil as she tries to escape her father’s copying and office supply business with her own venture.  She really is a likeable, if a dense character.

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Nice Girls Don’t Date Dead Men

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51BKak9y4oLNice Girls Don’t Date Dead Men (Jane Jameson, Book 2) by Molly Harper is a delightful read about an (ex-) children’s librarian who finds herself dealing with her best friend’s wedding to a werewolf maiden. Of course, the fact that she is a vampire makes things a bit more complicated.

Molly Harper has created a very likeable character in Jane Jameson. She is a sweet and innocent girl. She can’t, however, seem to say no to anyone’s request for her to do things she would just rather not do.

Nice Girls Don’t Date Dead Men (Jane Jameson, Book 2) is a bit of a “day in the life” type of novel – except it covers much more time. If you are looking for a light romp through the life of an innocent vampire, this is a good place to look.

Wicked by Any Other Name

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51dqq8jXj0LWicked by Any Other Name by Linda Wisdom centers around Jazz’s friends Stasi and Blair. Stasi finds herself being summoned to Wizard’s Court by fellow townie Carrie who blames Stasi for her husband leaving her.

Now Carrie is no sympathetic figure but she manages to get one Trevor Barnes to represent her in Wizard’s Court. The Wizard Lawyer has no idea what has hit him when stars appear above Stasi once he lays eyes on her.

Stasi can’t believe Cupid is serious with this particular arrangement. A witch does not fall in love with a wizard – they just don’t mix. Of course, she has been being wooed by the new bakery’s owner, Reed. For some reason he just will not be rebuffed. Whose bed does she find herself in?

Blair has been finding herself allowing her heart to allow a stray collie to share her bed and steal her covers while she is trying to capture one Jake, the handyman. Of course, her talents don’t fall in line with capturing a man’s heart as she sends all sorts of mixed signals. Of course, Jake is keeping secrets of his own.

Linda Wisdom’s Wicked by Any Other Name is a wonderful read for a leisurely late summer afternoon. Witches and wizards as you would never expect to see them. As light as this romance is, it is still a pretty well written and well-imagined world that can pull you in and keep your attention.

Wanted

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51NJzRsP4CLWanted (Single-Disc Widescreen Edition) is an adult live-action cartoon.

According to DH, a fan of the original graphic novel which this is very loosely based on, the divergence makes it nothing like the original graphic novel. There was much commentary during the movie about this – between comments on Fox (Jolie) being a danger junkie.

This is one to watch with absolutely no brain cells engaged whatsoever. There is no logic, no science, no sense in the story. It is just cartoon violence. People survive impossible injuries. Cars make fantastic jumps. And, finally, bullets do the impossible by the laws of physics. (Even non-physics savvy me got that!)

All this being said, with Morgan Freeman as Sloan, the mentor to the assassin’s league, Jolie being nuts, and James McEvoy just delivering from clueless to master this is a fun ride for an evening in for grown-ups.

The Immortal Hunter

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41mgtByvFMLThe Immortal Hunter: A Rogue Hunter Novel (Argeneau Vampires) is the latest novel in Lynsay Sands Argeneau Vampires series. Decker Argeneau/Pimms has been roped into working during his supposed vacation. It seems they have found clues to a rogue vampire who has given them the slip for decades – Nicholas Argeneau. Or, did Nicholas leave those clues to be found?

Decker and the younger vampire, Justin follow Nicholas into a den of kidnappers and torturers who are feeding off unsuspecting mortals. Danielle McGill and her sister, Stephanie, are being held captive by the brutes and Decker rushes in to save them. Of course, Decker finds that he cannot read Dr. Dani McGill – much to Justin’s amusement.

The story is formulaic, but perfect for a beach read. It also has a darker undertone than many of Sands’ earlier novels. It was amusing seeing Decker muck up his meet-up with his lifemate. Especially remembering how he swore he would not be that bad as he watched older and more staid vampires / immortals fail to be their normal suave selves when they met their lifemates.

There, was, of course, as is becoming increasingly common, a number of loose ends where the ending should be. The reader knows more than the protagonists because memories are erased. Just how will Stephanie and Danielle adapt to being involved with the vampire / immortal world?

The Immortal Hunter: A Rogue Hunter Novel (Argeneau Vampires) is worth reading. It felt like Sands, who had lost some of her footing in some of her more recent Argeneau books, finally found it once again. I cared what happened to the characters and rooted for them. Something that was missing in some of her more recent entries in the Argeneau series.

Bookworm (Games)

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Ok, I have fallen from grace and once again have been sucked into the fun time eater known as Bookworm.

Bookworm is a Flash game from PopCap games that has you spelling out words from tiles. You keep spelling until a burning tile hits the bottom of your screen. This game will suck you in and steal many hours. I have used this to teach my mother to use a mouse. She found herself looking up and seeing it is 2 AM.

Bookworm also has a series of titles from Lexicographer to Encyclopedia Salesman for rankings. (I think the highest is Bookworm, but only DH has gotten that far.) Various tiles and letters give you more points.

Luckily, the letter “Q” never shows up alone. It always has “u”, as in “Qu” to make your life easier. (Of course, there are words that use “q” without a “u”, but I have to favor the programmers favor in the game.)

This game is well worth its price! But, please, don’t blame me when you find yourself engaged in this particular time sink.

*Bookworm and PopCap are a trademarks of PopCap games.

Over the Moon

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Over the Moon is a collection of short stories that are set in the universes of respective authors. That is both its strength and its weakness.

Angela Knight presents us with Moon Dance, a story of a cop turned Direkind – or werewolf. He finds himself in the middle of a power struggle between those who inherited their werewolfdom from Merlin, himself. A fun little story that does work as a standalone.

51B2Z30VGPLVirginia Kantra takes us to Appalachia and the world of the Fey who came with the Celts who settled there. Her story, Between the Mountain and the Moon, is reminiscent of the tales told to children of nefarious strangers who are not as they seem. Will the heroine succeed in her quest through the Appalachian Trail?

MaryJanice Davidson returns to Betsy the Vampire Queen’s universe and the Wyndham werewolves in Driftwood. There is a werewolf who hates kids and a grumpy vampire. Who would think that was a match made in, well, maybe not heaven.

Mona Lisa Three by Sunny is a story that starts in the middle. Seemingly, there has been some great battle within a group called the Monere because a queen has emerged from a hybrid – half-human, half-Monere. This queen has also attracted the attentions of a demon king. I am intrigued by the concept, and, the story worked alright as a standalone to someone who had never heard of Monere before.

Get this from the library or secondhand. It may be worth keeping on the guest room shelf for a light and quick read.

Kiss of a Demon King

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Kresley Cole is a guilty pleasure. Normally, her books have a level of plot to at least make the sex less central. In Kiss of a Demon King (The Immortals After Dark, Book 6), the sex overshadows the story.

Sabine is deathless, sort of. She can die – but her sister, another sorceress can pull her back. Each and every time she is pulled back from the quiet of death. Her half-brother, Omort, the ultimate in evil sorcerer holds her and her sister captive in the demon kingdom formerly ruled by Rydstrom Woede.

51Xz190RlTLRydstrom Woede has lost his kingdom through the irresponsibility of his younger brother. He is determined to not let anyone or anything stop him from retrieving his crown. As his brother speeds to retrieve the sword that will ensure Omort’s death – for he is unkillable – Rydstrom finds his way into Tornin, his lost kingdom. Therein he is captured by the beautiful and alluring Sabine.

Sabine is his true mate. The one female of all the Lore that can bring him to orgasm. She has plans for him – and those plans include lots of indulgences – all documented within the covers of Kiss of a Demon King (The Immortals After Dark, Book 6).

I admit that I did read this book in two sittings. So, it was not a bad book, but it was not up to the standards I would normally expect from Kresley Cole. If you have enjoyed the Lore series, I would pick it up, but, be warned it does not have the same kind of fun appeal of the previous books.

Hex Appeal

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Linda Wisdom’s Hex Appeal is another romp through the underbelly of Los Angeles’ paranormal community.

Jazz Tremaine is finding life challenging with nightmares of the perfect suburban life sans her witchy powers with no Nick in site. Are they just nigtmares? Or is there something more sinister going on?

Her hunky vampire boyfriend, Nick, has his past catching up with them both. Changes in his former employer’s power structure is not boding well for Jazz or Nick’s future.

51ZzbCKT+tLFluff and Puff, her vorpal bunny slippers have managed to be accused of eating a wereweasel. Of course, Jazz has to depend on her own wits and the belief that the slippers would never eat a were creature of any kind. The bunny slippers, of course, deny it all.

To add to the zany mix, a pair of alligator shoes are introduced and start pining after Jazz’s mortal roommate who has secrets of his own.

What is a red-headed, Celtic witch to do? Hex Appeal is one of those nice, fluffy reads when life is getting to be too much. Ms. Wisdom has created a delightful cast – including a mention of a werepekingese near the end. (Somehow, a werepekingese fails to inspire any fear in me.)