Book Review: Sanctuary by Nora Roberts

This story is very similar to another fiction that I read years ago, the title of which is "Dead Sleep".  The latter book was extremely impressive to me when I was reading it because what the heroine saw was so terrifying and so mysterious that I thought it was a great eerie idea for a story to begin. Unlike Nora Roberts' book, "Dead Sleep" however doesn't have much romance in it and it is mainly a suspense mystery.  Now fast forward years later when I was reading Nora Robert's "Sanctuary", I was not as excited. It's not because the story was not interesting, it was mainly because the mystery had no shock value to me anymore after I had read something similar and more suspenseful.  I realize  that Nora Roberts' "Sanctuary" was published years before "Dead Sleep" was written.  I probably would have loved "Sanctuary" a lot more if only I hadn't read "Dead Sleep" before.  I'm not sure why, I was beginning to feel bored by Nora Roberts' same old sex scenes and love making pages.  I was so bored that it took me a few months to finish reading the book.  This had never happened to me before when I was reading other Nora Roberts' books.  Despite having the similar eerie idea of a mystery, I feel Nora Robert's version is a lot toned down in the suspense department.  May be because it's a story where romance is the main dish and suspense is only the side dish. I felt that there were too many pages dedicated to tedious girl chats, and the same sex dynamics that had been used many times already in Nora's other books. Yet there was not enough adrenaline draining adventures for the characters; in terms of their journey of falling in love and finding out the real murderer.  May be I'm just growing out of Nora Roberts' style of romance?  I'm sure I would have loved this book very much  if it were the first Nora Roberts book I read.  It's a decent read although it didn't amuse me as much as I was expecting to be amused.

Book Review: With Heart

Written by Dorothy Garlock, this is a satisfying romance novel about a very likable couple during the great depression.  It's an interesting story set in a quiet little town in Oklahoma which I have never visited and am glad to learn about the Native Indian heritage and cowboy culture.   It's an entertaining novel about the good old fashion romance that developed in the midst of an intriguing mystery behind a small mid-western town. For once in a long time, I finished reading a book without cursing myself for wasting time on an illogical and poorly written story that has self-centered,  stupid and confused heorines.   The book's author writes a lot better than a lot of the contemporary romance authors nowadays.  It's interesting how authors from the older generation seem to write better English than younger ones... Why ?

Book Review: Blue Dahlia - Nora Roberts

This story is a picture perfect romance. Nora Roberts had created a beautiful garden of love where romance and friendship bloom in the midst of exotic flowers. Although I prefer the author's earlier works where the characters were always involved in complex and suspenseful plots and dynamic mysteries, I still find this book's typical and old fashioned romance satisfying.  I'm just a little surprised that Nora Roberts somehow reverted back to the more simple and lovie-dovie stories that are often written by other authors like Debbie Macomber.  I would not know this book was written by Nora Roberts if not for the book cover.  This book is not my most favorite Nora Roberts' novel, but it's still an entertaining book for some restful reading.  The story is sweet, if one doesn't mind it to be lacking a little challenge for the characters.

Book Review: Hidden Riches

This story is not as suspenseful as Nora Robert's other stories that I had read.  There isn't as much surprise because the beginning of the story clearly shows who the villain is and what his motive is.  While the suspense is a little lacking, the romance and the intricacy of running an antique store and art collecting keeps the book entertaining.  The fact that Nora Roberts's heroines always have unique and interesting career shows readers that there are always a lot of interesting ways to make money other than being an attorney like many heroines in other novels.

Book Review: Glad Tidings

This is an entertaining book if you want to escape into a world where life is simple and straight forward. This book has two romanctic stories that help us detox our mind from the moral corruption of everyday reality, to venture into a world of old-fashioned romance that advocates innocent love, decency and values of marriage and family.

A Girl's Best Friend By Kristin Billerbeck

This book is like "Sex In The City" without the sex. It's about 3 best friends living in San Francisco, looking for love and dealing with all kinds of problems along the way. This book is focusing on Morgan who is the heiress to a wealthy jeweller. This is a fiction that's meant for Christian women in their 20s and early 30s.

For those of you who don't believe in God and don't have an open mind towards others' faith, you will find this book annoying. I have no problem reading the heorine quoting from the Bible and talking about God a lot. I find the book rather funny cause the characters all have good sense of humor, just like the girls in "Sex in the City". It's good to see that there are still fictions out there that promote good traditional values in love, family and relationships. It's good to see that there are still fictions out there that entertain with healthy humor and not casual or twisted sexual conquests.

This book can be a lot better if the author doesn't try too hard to make Morgan look like a complete dumb blonde. (cause it's very unconvincing for someone who supposedly got a degree from Standford University Business School to be this naive, not even someone who is attending a tier-4 community college can be this naive) Also, the heorine sounds like such a fake heiress who seems to really make-up her wealthy life out of imagination rather than having grown up from one.....When a chararter's background and life experience are so unconvincing, it really hurts the story. According to the Author, having a latte everyday, going to spas regularly and carrying a Coach bag is considered to be wealthy in San Fancisco. Hmmm. I do exactly just that but I am not rich, not even remotely. I think the author needs to know more about famous designers, and more exotic places where the rich really hang , so she can make this story more logical.

Besides the mis-match of the heorine's background and the way she lives, I found the book a fast, easy and entertaining read.

The Holiday Present

This book contains two romantic stories during the Christamas holiday. Both stories use the 1800th England as backdrop. Each story is about the happy ending romance between a rich, aristocratic handsome lord and a woman who comes from inferior social class. If you want to escape into a fairy tale love fantasy, this book is a decent entertaining read. If you are looking for a literary masterpiece that can blow you away with brilliant plots and inspiration of the world, this is a book too predictable and formulated.

I would like to exchange this book with any of the old books you read. Please email me if you are interested in the exchange.

Sugar and Spice

This book has 4 short stories of Christmas romance from 4 different authors. The story line for each is pretty silly and cheesy, none of the stories is impressive to me, and neither are any of the characters. I personally feel all the characters act a little childish. But I have to say I quite enjoy the 13 recipes that the book provides. It is overall a fast and easy read, and it does help set up the mood for Christmas. The recipes are pretty good. I baked a lot of goodies after I read the book. Oh, one of the stories in the book does have one good quote, "True leaders who climb the ladder of success always keep one hand free to help those behind them." That's the only intelligent writing in the entire book!!

The following are the 13 recipes:

1. Chocolate Chip Crunch Cookies

2. Bon-Bon Brownies

3. Lemon Meringue Pie

4. Double Apple Crisp

5. Strawberry Shortcake Swensen

6. Cherry Cheesecake

7. Blue Blueberry Muffins

8. Minnesota Peach Cobbler

9. Fudge Cupcakes

10. Multiple-Choice Cookie Bars

11. Christmas Sugar Cookies

12. Christmas Date Cake

13. White Chocolate Raspberry Thumbprints

I would like to exchange this book with any of the old books you read. Please email me if you are interested in the exchange.