Shades of Love: An Assortment of Love Stories

loveThe love stories in these books run the gamut from sweet to sinister and everything in between!

Unlikely Love Stories:

Major Pettigrew’s Last Stand by Helen Simonson

The Beginner’s Goodbye by Anne Tyler

The Devil In Winter by Lisa Kleypas

The Madness of Lord Ian by Jennifer Ashley

First Love:

The Fault In Our Stars by John Green

Eleanor & Park by Rainbow Rowell

The Interestings by Meg Wolitzer

First Love by James Patterson

Dangerous Love

Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn

The Secret History by Donna Tartt

The Silent Wife by A.S.A. Harrison

Before I Go To Sleep by S.J. Watson

Love Overseas

Beautiful Ruins by Jess Walter

The Art of Hearing Heartbeats by Jan Philipp Sendker

That Part Was True by Deborah McKinlay

I Always Loved You by Robin Oliveira

Star Crossed Love

Me Before You by Jojo Moyes

Dark Witch by Nora Roberts

The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern

Bel Canto by Ann Patchett

True Love

The Pioneer Woman: Black Heels to Tractor Wheels by Ree Drummond

Just Kids by Patti Smith

Love & War: Twenty Years, three presidents, two daughters & one Louisiana home by James Carville

Furious Love: Elizabeth Taylor, Richard Burton, and the marriage of the centuryby Sam Kashner

Source: Amazon

Romance Books – Fall In Love With A Series

happyA little romance is just the ticket to get you through this winter.  Settle in with a romantic series and enjoy some  “happily ever after”.  (A great thing about all of these series is that you don’t have to read them in order.   They are great as stand alones!)

1.   Blackberry Island  by Susan Mallery.  A real place located near Olga, Washington.  On historic Blackberry Island, Washington, visitors discover what locals know: Life Is Sweet.  Book one – Barefoot Season Book two – Three Sisters.  Book three (due to be released in March) – Evening Stars 

2.  Bad Boys of Crystal Lake by Julianna Stone.  Realistic and edgy, with a large-world perspective as well as warm characters and an appealing small-town feeling.  Book one –  The Summer He Came Home.  Book two – The Christmas He Loved Her.  Book three (due to be released in April) The Day He Kissed Her.

3.  Black Knights, Inc. by Julie Ann Walker.  As tough and unique as their custom-made Harleys, the men of Black Knights Inc. will steal your breath and your heart.  Book one – Hell On Wheels. Book two – In Rides Trouble.  Book three – RevIt Up. Book four – Thrill Ride.  Book five – Born Wild.

4.  Whiskey Creek by Brenda Novak.  A small-town romance series with a twist – all the characters are significantly different from each other.  Engaging, full of heart and humor.    Book one – When Lightning Strikes Book two – When Snow Falls.  Book three – When Summer Comes.  Book four – Home to Whiskey Creek.  Book five – Take Me Home For Christmas.  

5.  Thunder Point by Robyn Carr.  Share the joys, heartbreaks, challenges and triumphs of the people who inhabit the small Oregon town of Thunder Point.  Book one The Wanderer Book two – The Newcomer Book three – The Hero.  Book four – (coming in March) The Chance.

6.  Bride Quartet by Nora Roberts.  Meet childhood friends Parker, Emma, Laurel, and Mac—the founders of Vows, one of Connecticut’s premier wedding planning companies.   Book one – Vision in White Book two – Bed of Roses.  Book three – Savor the Moment.  Book four – Happy Ever After.

7.  Bachelor Firemen by Jennifer Bernard – For the men and women of San Gabriel’s Station 1, the road to romance takes some wild and hilarious curves. But true love is always worth it.  Book one – The Fireman Who Loved Me.  Book two – Hot For Fireman. Book three – Sex and the Single Fireman.  Book four – How To Tame A Wild Fireman.  Book five – Four Weddings and A Fireman.

8.  The Destiny Series by Toni Blake – Welcome to Destiny, Ohio, a quaint small town brimming with heart-stopping romance, searing passion, good friends, laughter, a sense of community, and even a few dark secrets.  Book one – One Reckless Summer.  Book two – Sugar Creek.  Book three – Whisper FallsBook four – Holly Lane.  Book five – Willow Springs. Book six – Half Moon Hill.

9.  Ocean Breeze Trilogy by Sherryl Woods –  The stories of three sisters’ quests for love and family in a North Carolina beach community ravaged by a hurricane.   Book one – Sand Castle Bay.  Book two – Wind Chime Point. Book three – Sea Glass Island.

10.  Simply Quartet by Mary Balogh.  These are the stories of four teachers at Miss Martin’s School for Girls in Bath, England.  Book one – Simply Unforgettable.  Book two – Simply Love.  Book three – Simply Magic.  Book four – Simply Perfect.

On Our Shelves: New Romance Paperbacks

New Romance paperbacks for January and February:

Going Twice by Sharon Sala     Contemporary Romantic Suspense

Home to Seaview Key by Sherryl Woods    Contemporary Romance

At River’s Edge by Mariah Stewart  Contemporary Romance

All You Need Is Love by Marie Force   Contemporary Romance

Perfect Together by Carly Phillips   Contemporary Romance

Had to be You by Robin Kaye   Contemporary Romance

Winter At Mustang Ridge by Jesse Hayworth   Contemporary Romance

Cider Brook by Carla Neggers   Contemporary Romance

High Seduction by Vivian Arend   Romantic Suspense

Nothing Sweeter By Laura Drake    Contemporary Cowboy Romance

Texas Hold ‘Em by Christie Craig   Contemporary Cowboy Romance

The Cowboy of Valentine Valley by Emma Cane   Contemporary Cowboy Romance

Why Earls Fall In Loveby Manda Collins   Historical Romance

When The Rogue Returns by Sabrina Jeffries    Historical Romance

Lord of the Rakes by Darcie Wilde   Historical Romance

Romancing the Duke by Tessa Dare   Historical Romance

Walking On Air by Catherine Anderson   Historical Western Romance

Top Audiobook Picks Around the World

Do they even HAVE audiobooks in other countries?  They most certainly do!  Here are the number-one audiobook requests from iTunes around the world, so grab your earphones and go global with these best sellers. Can’t find it? Request it!  We’d be happy to get it for you!

UK Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy – Helen Fielding   Bridget Jones has hit middle age, facing the challenges of single parenthood and re-entering the dating world with all its technological traps in this funny and enjoyable sequel.

FranceInferno   Brown takes on Dante Alighieri and his Divine Comedy as Robert Langdon races through Italy to solve the clues and save the world from a terrorist plot to infect the world in his latest mystery thriller.

CanadaWinners – Danielle Steele    Steele weaves together a tale of loneliness and companionship as a surgeon and her patient’s father are faced with grief and tragedy, and learn to live again.

Ireland The Garden Party and Other Stories – Maeve Binchy.     A collection of short stories by best-selling author Maeve Binchy. Stories included are: The Garden Party read by Niamh Cusack; The Special Sale read by Dervla Kirwan; The Sensible Celebration read by Doreen Hepburn and Dollys Mother read by Stella McCusker.

Portugal The Blood Crows Simon Scarrow    Two thousand years ago, Prefect Cato fights with native tribes to maintain Roman control over Londinium and England. Back in Rome, Emperor Claudius struggles to maintain his empire with or without England.

SwedenThe Alchemist – Paulo Coelho     Santiago, a simple Andalusian shepherd boy, dreams of  finding the greatest worldly treasure ever discovered. From Spain he travels to the markets of Tangiers, across the Egyptian desert,  to a fateful encounter with the mysterious alchemist.

NetherlandsThe Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time – Mark Haddon    A moderately autistic boy witnesses a crime, and struggles to make understanding of what he saw.

Greece Jonathan Livingston Seagull – Richard Bach    The 197o best-seller about the spiritual journey of a seagull, who thinks soaring is a loftier goal in life than eating. A short book of few words, it packs a powerful punch as the seagull learns to realize that sometimes personal goals may not be popular with those around you, but the journey of self-discovery is sometimes the loftiest goal of all.

GermanyThe 100 Year Old Man Who Climbed Out the Window and Disappeared by Jonas Jonasson.    In order to avoid his 100th birthday party, Allan Karlsson climbs out the window of his room at the nursing home, heads to the bus stop, steals a suitcase from a fellow passenger and winds up on a strange and sometimes dangerous adventure, which is nothing new to a man with a lot of history under his belt.

DenmarkThe Preacher by Camilla Lackberg     A child stumbles upon the body of a murdered woman.  Soon two more bodies are discovered, and another girl disappears.  Can the constable find the murderer and find the missing girl before it’s too late?

Linda Reads: Let Me Be The One by Bella Andre

let meLet Me Be The One  is book six in The Sullivans series.  All of the books in this series can be read alone.   This series of books is beautifully written and a joy to read.

Ryan and Vicki were best friends in high school, but have long since gone their separate ways – Vicki to Europe as a sculptor and Ryan as a star baseball pitcher in San Francisco.   After a failed marriage, Vicki finds herself in San Francisco applying for a prestigious position in the art community and finds herself in an awkward position with one of the judges.   Even though she hasn’t seen him in years, her first thought is to call Ryan for help.

Ryan volunteers to be Vicki’s “pretend boyfriend”  to protect her from the unwanted advances of an influential judge.  But both Vicki and Ryan have trouble with the “pretend” part.  Neither wants to ruin their friendship by becoming lovers, but that’s proving to be quite difficult.  No matter how hard they try, their “love” for each other overtakes their “friendship”.

Touching, sweet, romantic and sexy, with likeable characters, this book is my favorite so far of the series.