Adrift on St. John (A Mystery in the Islands)

No one knows better than resort manager Pen Hoffstra that the idea of a tropical paradise is an illusion. So when a young woman named Hannah Sheridan disappears and a water taxi sinks mysteriously off the island of St. John, she is not surprised that all is not what it seems to be.

Pointing out Hannah's resemblance to the Amina Slave Princess from the 1733 Slave Revolt on St. John- whose ghost is rumored to haunt the island-the local community quickly latches on to the belief that her spirit is behind the sinking and the disappearence.

Only one person on the island knows the whole truth, an it's not what anyone suspects...

I really wanted to like it...

I could only get about 3/4th's of the way through this book. I felt like it had a lot of potential, however it just let me down. I'm not particularly crazy on books that I read the ending before the beginning either, so that's one of the other reasons this book and I got off on the wrong foot. I also wasn't too fond of the characters. I had a really hard time connecting with the main character , she seemed a bit lazy and too sardonic for my liking. I'd like to say that I will go back and reread this some day but I doubt that will happen. I will keep the series in mind though and remain hopeful with book # 2 in the series, I just will probably try to barrow from the library first before I buy next time.

Jekel Loves Hyde

Jill Jekel has always obeyed her parent's rules especially the one about never opening the mysterious old box in her father's office. But when her dad is murdered and her college savings disappear, she's tempted to peek inside, because the contents just might be a key to winning a lucrative chemistry scholarship.
To better her odds, Jill enlists the help of gorgeous, brooding Tristen Hyde, who has his own dark secrets locked away. As the team of Jekel and Hyde, they recreate experiments based o not only ton the classic novel , hoping not only to win a prize but to save Tristen's sanity. Maybe his life. As things heat up in the lab, though, Jill's accidental taste of a formula unleashes her darkest nature and will compel her to risk everything-even Tristen's love just for the thrill of being...bad.

Not quite what I expected... I was hoping for a little more of the original book to make a bigger impact in this semi-romantic thriller. I also found the lead characters lacking a bit of romance and originality. It was just not that interesting for me, the only thing I found scary about this book was the writing. :(

Mockingjay

Katniss Everdeen, girl on fire, has survived, even though her home has been destroyed. Gale has escaped. Katniss's family is safe. Peeta has been captured by the Capitol. District 13 really does exist. There are rebels. There are new leaders. A revolution is unfolding.

It is by design that Katniss was rescued from the arena in the cruel and haunting Quarter Quell, and it is by design that she has long been part of the revolution without knowing it. District 13 has come out of the shadows and is plotting to overthrow the Capitol. Everyone, it seems, has had a hand in the carefully laid plans- except Katniss.

the success of the rebellion hinges on Katniss's willingness to be a pawn, to accept responsibility for countless lives, and to change the course of the future for Panem. To do this, she must put aside her feelings of anger and distrust. She must become the rebels' mockingjay-no matter what the personal cost.

Wow! I am completely blown away! What a great book this turned out to be; in fact... what a great trilogy! I still can't believe I'm reading a "meant for teen's" book, because it's so much more than just that. The fight for freedom and a world with peace is indescribable within this book. Katniss is one of my amazing characters I think I've ever read about, what a great heroine! I honestly couldn't put it down, then again I was like that with the whole lot of them. Personally I believe these are great tales and will be cherished for years to come by many, I put them right on the same shelf of hype as Harry Potter and Twilight. :)

I'm also a little sad, that I've come to the end... then again, I could just start at the beginning again right?

-- My favorite line of this book?.. "You love me, Real or Not real?"

The boy with the bread will always have my heart :)

Cake on a Hot Tin Roof (A Piece of Cake Mystery)

It's carnival season in New Orleans, and pastry chef Rita Lucero has a lot on her place. Filling orders for king cakes is becoming a royal pain. Her second-in-command at Zydeco Cakes- the bakery she inherited from her ex-husband- is hounding her to write a blog for the bakery's new website. And now Rita is expected to host a Mardi Gras party for hundreds of her ex-husband's closest friends. A surprise visit from her aunt Yolanda and uncle Nestor is almost more than she can handle.

But when local car salesman and minor celebrity Big Daddy Boudreaux turns up dead at Rita's Mardi Gras party after a public fight with her uncle, Rita has no choice but to find room in her busy schedule to prove the killer isn't her Uncle Nestor. And there's a whole parade of suspects- but not much time to find out which one really wanted Big Daddy in a big coffin...

Great follow up to a first in a series! I loved the story and glad to see all my favorite characters are back! I was also pleased to learn a bit more about Rita, where she comes from and who raised her (Uncle Nestor and Aunt Yolanda). I'm also happy to see Rita making a name for herself and picking up the pieces to Zydeco. Miss Frankie is charming as ever of course and I was trilled to see that this one not only takes place down in the Big Easy, but also takes place during Mardi Gras! This book is exciting, fun and keeps you guessing "who did it" the whole time! Bravo Jacklyn Brady!

A Shore Thing

It's a summer to remember at the Jersey Shore! Giovanna "Gia" Spumanti and her cousin Isabella "Bella" Rizzoli are soaking up all that Seaside Heights, New Jersey, has to offer: hot guidos, cool clubs, fried Oreos, and lots of tequila. So far, the summer is on fire. Between nearly burning down their rented bungalow, inventing the popular "tan-tags" at the Tantastic Salon where she works, and rescuing a shark on the beach, Gia's a local celebrity. Bella meanwhile, has one goal in mind: hooking up with a sexy gorilla for a no-strings attached summer fling.

In no time, the cousins are scooped up by a couple of superhot guys, but they soon realize that for every friend they make on the boardwalk, there are also rivals, slummers, and frenemies who will do anything to ruin their summer-and try their relationship. Before July ends, the bonds of family and friendship will be stretched to the breaking point. Will the haters prevail, or will Gia and Bella find love at the Shore?

CAAAAABS HERE! If you love watching Jersey Shore then your gonna love reading this "fresh to death" book! It's officially summer time and Gia and her cousin Bella hit the shore hard in this fist pumping, pouf loving tale of two hilarious girls with "guidette problems"! Sun, fun, a drink in hand and gorillas on the beach...what more could a Jersey girl ask for? The book was a funny, easy read and I enjoyed all the little Shore anecdotes throughout the book. I even want to try to make a "snookie sandwich" (Neutella and Peanut Butter between two chocolate chip cookies, then deep fried) It's what Gia orders for herself on the boardwalk while out on her hot date with a guido that sounds a awful lot like a "situation" (if you know what I mean...). It's no Jane Austen novel, but it sure is a cute and entertaining read while hanging out on the beach this summer.

The Berlin Boxing Club

Fourteen-year-old Karl Stern has never thought of himself as a Jew. But to the bullies at his school in the Nazi-era Berlin, it doesn't matter that Karl has never set foot in a synagogue or that his family doesn't practice religion. Demoralized by relentless attacks on a heritage he doesn't accept as his own, Karl longs to prove his worth to everyone around him.

So when Max Schmeling, champion boxer and German national hero, makes a deal with Karl's father to give Karl boxing lessons, Karl sees it as the perfect chance to reinvent himself. A skilled cartoonist, Karl has never had an interest in boxing, but as Max becomes the mentor Karl never had, Karl soon finds both his boxing skills and his art flourishing.

But when Nazi violence against the Jews escalates, Karl must take on a new role: protector of his family. Karl longs to ask his new mentor for help, but with Max's fame growing, he is forced to associate with Hitler and other Nazi elites, leaving Karl to wonder where his hero's sympathies truly lie. Can Karl balance his dreams of boxing greatness with his obligations to keep his family out of harm's way?

If there is two things Karl Stern loves its; boxing and comics! The book is a great coming of age tale, that tells the story of Karl Stern, a Jewish teenage boy growing up in Nazi Germany during the 1930's. With a country that is on the brink of war and terror aimed at the Jews in Berlin, Karl starts to take boxing lessons from the famous heavyweight champ Max Schmeling. He soon learns however that the fight within and the fight for freedom is worth so much more than any fight he could ever win in the ring. The book was both thrilling and humorous, and it even had some funny comics "drawn" by Karl in the book as well. All in all, I liked it very much!

Scots on the Rocks (A Bed and Breakfast Mystery)

Hoping to dispel the late winter gloom, inn-keeper Judith McMonigal Flynn flies off for a much-needed vacation to Scotland. Instead, she and prickly Cousin Renie find themselves marooned in an ancient castle perched high above the North Sea while their husbands go off on a fishing trip with a local police inspector. But when an explosion rocks Grimlock Castle, leaving a dead body in its fiery wake, an ever curious Judith is once again up to her neck in a murder investigation. The victim is a young man who seemed to have it all: marriage to a bonnie oil heiress, a baby son and a stately mansion. His lovely widow has an abysmal track record with men, all of whom have met with untimely ends. But is she merely unlucky in love... or adept at dealing with death.? The cousins have plenty of other suspects, not to mention some less than earthy voices that reverberate around the castle, lending credibility to spooky tales of a restless ghost sharing their royal quarters. Then there's Chuckie, a distillery owner's oddball son and heir, who's more interested in the castles dungeon and torture chamber than he is in his whiskey. The situation grows even murkier when the husbands and their Scotland Yard buddy go missing... The hunt is on for a killer through the bonnie braes and sea green glens of Scotland. And if Judith and Renie aren't careful, this could turn out to be their most dangerous and last Highland fling.

I'm pretty disappointed in this one. I don't know if its because this is my first time reading a "Bed and Breakfast" Mystery and I jumped right into the middle of the series or if it's the actual book itself?! I found it kinda boring and dull. I also had a hard time focusing on all the characters and what they mean to each other and how they relate to the plot. I was also kind of appalled to find that the main character makes her mother live in a converted tool shed! I mean... honestly... who does that?! It also became pretty predictable about half way through the book as well.