Mourning for Lorne

No!

My friend Heather emailed me this morning with the incredibly sad news that Andy Hallett, who played Lorne on Angel passed away of heart failure at age 33.

Lorne was always one of my favorite non-gay, gay guys on TV. He brought the subtle flirtation with Angel, the Elton John references, and the shiny fabric suit funny to Angel.

I'm so sad to see him go.

Is it me...

Is Clay Aiken wearing a little "guy-shadow" in this photo??

Look, I love lavender eye shadow as much as the next girl.
But I think only girls with brown eyes should wear it, Miss Aiken.

Paradise Valley by Robyn Carr - A Review(-ish)

This.

This is the book I hoped Robyn Carr would write when I'd heard that her next three books were coming out. I don't think we can talk about the book without introducing the back cover blurb first:

Marine corporal Rick Sudder is home early from Iraq-his tour ended abruptly on the battlefield. The carefree boy is gone, replaced by a man who believes his future is as bleak as his mirror image. But can the passion and commitment of a young woman who has never given up on him mend his broken body and shattered heart?

As the people of Virgin River rally around Rick, another recent arrival tests the tightly knit mountain town's famous welcoming spirit. Dan Brady has a questionable past, and he's looking for a place to start over. He'd like it to be Virgin River....if he can find a way in. But he never expects to find it in the arms of a woman who was as much an outcast as himself.

For a favorite son returned from war and an outsider looking for home, Virgin River offers them a chance tomake peace with the men they once were...and to find the dreams they thought they lost.

When we met Rick in book one of the Virgin River series, he was 15. In the time we've known him, he's been growing from a sweet, young boy into a man of honor. He's had it rough. Him mom and dad died, leaving him to be raised by his grandma, who is mostly infirm. He also is raised by Jack Sheridan, the hero of book 1, who loves him like a father and supports him through some awful experiences. During that time, Rick managed to meet and fall for Liz, a girl two years younger than him. In one moment of teenage passion, he got her pregnant. And then they went through every parent's worst nightmare. Through it all, Rick has been strong, and responsible and steadfast. So, even though his loved ones don't want him to, he joins the Marines,just as Jack did and is immediately deployed to Iraq.

It's not a spoiler to tell you that while Rick is in Iraq, he witnesses all of the horrors of war. And then he experiences one of the worst parts of it. He is badly injured in combat and is rushed to Germany for surgery. Jack and Liz (Rick's girlfriend) rush to Germany to be by his bed side, but they find Rick much changed. Gone is the sweet and steadfast young man they knew. In his place is a hardened, bitter man who has myriad regrets and is quite sure that everything bad that has happened is his fault. He is at turns surly, cantankerous, nasty and devastated. Jack and Liz finally leave Germany unsure of how to deal with Rick's injuries, much less his attitude.

During this same time, a man known to some in Virgin River, Dan Brady, returns. He's done time in prison for growing pot, and is now looking to start a new life now that his debt to society is paid. Dan and Jack have a history, not a good one. And Jack is not pleased to find Dan interrupting the quiet of his town. But Dan has done his time, and is entitled to a fresh start, which he is given by Paul Haggerty, the owner of a local construction company. Dan tells Paul that he sustained some injuries during his time in Iraq, and that he shouldn't be up on any ladders, but that he can work on the ground. His work is exemplary and Paul decides to take a chance. Meanwhile, Dan perseveres with the town, and with Jack, trying his best to start anew.

As Rick comes home to Virgin River, he's resolved to push away Liz, knowing that everything he touches goes bad -- despite the fact that she's stood by him, and loved him for years. She's naturally devastated and fights him at first, but soon discovers that he really wants her out of his life. Rick begins physical therapy to help him recover from his wounds. Jack's wife, Mel, insists that he begin psychological therapy as well, knowing that he needs to find a way to cope with what he survived and saw in Iraq. As Rick's physical recovery advances, he meets Dan, who has nothing to lose by poking at Rick, and helping him to see things differently and to maybe understand how to live with his past and be optimistic about the future.

Paradise Valley is what I've come to expect from Robyn Carr. An emotional roller coaster which exposes the readers to some hard truths about the reality of what faces our combat wounded veterans when they come home. I don't come from a military family, and in fact, don't really know any folks in the military, so the book was shocking to me in its starkness. Whether or not you agree with the politics of the war in Iraq, you have to respect those who are willing to put their lives on the line for our country. The kids are just that, babies, and yet they go and they fight and they are sometimes critically wounded. Paradise Valley offers a look into what happens when they come home. Ms. Carr pulls absolutely no punches with Rick's recovery. There were moments in the book where I just wanted to smack him one for his behavior, even as I knew that it was the horrors of what he'd survived driving his actions. When Rick hits rock bottom, it is truly shocking, and he behaves so badly, I cried. But, in the end this is a romance novel, and a Robyn Carr one at that, so it ends on a hopeful note.

Paradise Valley isn't an easy read, but it's a worthwhile one, and is the book that I've come to expect from Robyn Carr. I'm so glad she ended this trilogy with this book, which is as powerful as I've read from her.

Final grade: B+

As a reference:
Book 1 - Virgin River - A
Book 2- Shelter Mountain - A
Book 3 - Whispering Rock - B-
Book 4 - A Virgin River Christmas - C
Book 5- Second Chance Pass - C-
Book 6 - Temptation Ridge - C
Book 7 - Paradise Valley - B+

JRM = HRM

Oh yeah, The Tudors are back baby!

If you asked me to list my guilty pleasures, this would absolutely be at the top of the list. Jonathon Rhys-Myers as Henry VIII. A full on historical costume drama full of deceit, lies, sex, intrigue, murder, back stabbing, and costume porn. Even if we didn't get every premium channel under the sun, I'd want us to subscribe to Showtime just so that I could watch the show. It's *that* trashy. And yummy!

I realize that very little about the story other than the characters is true to how it happened, but oh, man is it good trashy fun. I watched episode 1 of season 3 today, and it's just as over the top and entertaining as ever.

Do you watch the Tudors? If so, do you love it?

The Plot Thickens...

I could be working today. Instead, I'm doing this.

As you guys know, I've had adult acne on my mind lately. So I did a bit of digging around on the internet today. And I found something that might be the culprit to my recent issues. I think I mentioned that I'd switched to a mineral makeup about six or seven months ago because I haven't been great about washing my face at night, and I wanted a makeup that didn't clog my pores.

I chose to go with Prescriptives mineral makeup because I've used Prescriptives' liquid foundation for years. But in doing my research, I found that Prescriptives actually contains: Bismuth Oxychloride, which I'd never heard of. Turns out that Bismuth Oxychloride can cause skin to look "red, irritated, itching, having small bumps or pustules, burning or looking swollen". Hm, well, I don't have the swollen thing, but the bumps or pustules thing is a definite match, and my face does sometimes itch mildly when I apply the makeup, but I associated that with the brush tickling. In doing even more research, I found that Bismuth can be found in liquid makeups too and it's definitely in Prescriptives. Since I do have some of the symptoms associated with Bismuth, I think it's worth trying makeup that's Bismuth-free.

So, today I ordered a different kind of mineral makeup that doesn't contain Bismuth Oxychloride. It was actually quite hard to track down, but I ended up ordering "Sheer Miracle Makeup". We'll see what happens.

Weekend Round-Up

Hey everyone! I hope you had a terrific weekend! I really did. I had a delicious dinner to finish off "Birthday Week" last night with 13 friends at Bonefish Grill. Yummy!

Today I got up and met my friend Tracy for the 10:30am showing of Duplicity. I believe word might have gotten out about my early matinee thing because the theater was surprisingly crowded. To top it off, the woman next to me had stuffed her humongous purse with the entire contents of her refrigerator, all packaged in little sandwich bags. She snacked for the ENTIRE two hours, and talked out loud to herself saying things like "GASP. Oh no he didn't" or "You're screwed now, buddy" or just repeating back the lines, as if none of the rest of us heard them the first time. But the piece de resistance was the last item she pulled out of her purse, an orange sliced into quarters which she audibly sucked from for the last (and most interesting) 20 minutes of the movie. Oh yeah. It was...awesome.

Duplicity itself was a TON of fun. I read somewhere that Julia Roberts filmed it about 6 weeks after giving birth to her youngest child. She looked AMAZING! Seriously. Clive Owen was also ridiculously handsome throughout the movie, at one point walking around in just a low slung towel -- which made the movie worth the price of admission. But honestly, the story was incredibly smart and funny and paced perfectly. The movie was written and directed by Tony Gilroy (he wrote and directed Michael Clayton as well), and even if I didn't know this, I'd have targeted him as a disciple of Stephen Soderburgh, who is one of my favorite directors. It was a thoroughly entertaining two hours, and I couldn't have called the ending if you'd put a gun to my head. I highly recommend it.


I totally put off writing my review for Smooth Talking Stranger because I knew once I did, I have to send the ARC off to Marisa. But it could be put off no longer and I emailed the review yesterday. I gave it (no surprise) 5 stars. I can't imagine another book knocking it off of my number one spot, and even more, I can't imagine another hero this year beating out Jack Travis for utter dreamy deliciousness. But alas, now it's written so the book gets sent to Marisa this week.

Now I'm reading Nora Roberts' May release Vision in White, which I'm adoring. Mostly because the book is set within a wedding planning business. You guys know I'm an event planner, and the level of detailed perfection that Nora goes to is fantastic. I remember a senior executive once saying to me, "How hard can it be? It's not like it's ROCKET SCIENCE" to which I replied, "You don't think it's rocket science because WE'RE THAT GOOD AT IT." Jackass.

Anyway, I'd imagine there might be some readers who won't love it, but me? I'm gleeful at the idea that there are going to be three more of these. I'm in absolute heaven with the event planning stuff. And the hero is one of my favorites of Nora's style, the socially awkward and yet surprisingly hot hero. Yum! One of my total faves.

Oh! And then one of the highlights of my weekend, a cute guy on a motorcycle tried to pick me up today at the gas station. I admired his bike (a Harley), and he said, "Wanna go for a ride? I have an extra helmet." I was all, "Um, no, but thanks for asking." He says, "But, this could be the start of a beautiful relationship." Me: "Yeah, I don't see me telling my kids their father picked me up at a gas station." He laughed and wished me a good afternoon. Oh well, he could have been the one that got away. :wink:

How was your weekend? What did you do? What are you reading? See any good movies?

Coming to a Head

So, I turned 38 earlier this week. I'm getting older, which honestly, doesn't seem to be fazing me like I thought it would. I remember being totally traumatized by turning 26, thinking I was no longer a young 20. I think in part because of how beautifully my sister is aging, I don't experience a lot of anxiety over getting older. But the side effects of aging are strange ones.

I have to work a whole lot harder to stay in shape. I have crows feet next to my eyes and the lines around my mouth are deepening some. I have "commas" -- you know, the lines between your eyes? I have them mostly because I'm practically blind, so I squint a lot when I'm trying read something far away. But far and away the thing that I hate most about getting older is adult acne.

I was one of those horrible teenagers who really never got zits. If I did they were tiny, and never lasted long. But in the last five years or so, my complexion has gotten much worse. Deep zits and tons of black heads. To make matters worse, I'm a picker. I don't leave my face alone and will pick and make things worse on a regular basis. It's rare that I don't have some sort of a zit going on. I switched foundations about six months ago, from a creamy foundation to a powder one., which I quite like because it covers and doesn't sweat off. But also because I'm not great about washing my face every night, and I wanted a foundation that was more natural. I've now started washing my face twice a day, to basically no avail.

I recently began doing some research about what kinds of treatments I could find to help with the situation. I ended up settling on a product called Hope in a Bottle by Philosophy. It's a moisturizer that also uses a minute amount of salicylic acid which is supposed to help pores shed skin without the irritation and also helps deal with rosacea, which is something I have a very mild case of around my nose. It has gotten really good reviews in a couple of beauty magazines and the user reviews on different sites are overwhelmingly positive. It's ridiculously expensive, but I'm really hopeful that it'll help. My order shipped yesterday so hopefully I'll have it in a couple of days. Not a moment too soon.

Don'tcha just love getting older? It's so weird!

What do you love or hate about getting older? Do you have adult acne? And if so, what products do you use to combat it?

I LOVE this song!

I think Jason Mraz has such an incredible sense of music. And the harmonies in this song are just lovely.

I'm Blogging at RNTV Today

It's Bad Boys Week at RNTV. My blog is a spoiler free account of Jack Travis, Lisa Kleypas's newest hero from Smooth Talking Stranger. Why I think the Reformed Bad Boy might be the most fun there is.

Come by and join the fun!

That's SO not hot...

Fair Warning - This post is about...strange sexin' in romance novels.

I recently finished reading Hard and Fast, Erin McCarthy's newest NASCAR romance. I loved it because the hero is a dirty talker and the sex is lush and very, very hot. The heroine is adventurous and in the beginning, quite clinical about sex. But she quickly begins going places with the hero she hadn't thought of before. I love writing like this and overall the book scored very highly with me.

But there were two particular scenes that gave me pause. Mostly because I don't find the idea of them hot. There were two occasions where the hero asked the heroine to position herself over his face while he performed oral sex. Now look, I think oral sex is hot. But, well, no one looks good from that angle, you know?? I'm not sure that even Gisele Bundchen looks good at that angle. And I guess I'm way too self conscious to find that erotice. The whole time I kept thinking, "Isn't she self conscious? Is that uncomfortable for her?" and in the end, I found the scenes made me uncomfortable and drew me away from the, ehem, action.

The book also had some 69 in it. Not that I find that shocking, just that you very rarely see 69 any more in mainstream romance. I'm not sure why, but I hadn't come across a scene like that in ages. I wonder why that is? And it made me wonder, did it become passe to write about 69? Or is it that readers don't like reading it?

My discomfort got me to thinking about why the scenes didn't work for me. I think part of it is definitely my own hang-ups. But I have to say, that there are a ton of things that don't bother me at all in erotic romance. I'm not a fan of spanking, but that's mostly because I don't associate good sex and pain (I know there are many who do and I totally respect that). But most other things, bondage, toys, anal play, etc. don't bother me.

It's not that the scene squicked me in any way, I just, don't find the idea of "Com'ere baby and sit on my face" to be remotely sexy.

When you're reading erotic romance, erotica, or heck, just super hot romance, do you bring your baggage to the table? Or are you totally open to wherever the author takes you?

Kicking McDreamy's Ass

I loves me some Derek Shepherd, Neurosurgeon extraordinaire. But I'm sorry, Doug Ross, Pediatric Trauma doctor kicks his ass all over the block.

I'll take Doug Ross for sensitive and sweet every time over Shepherd's lately quite whiny self.


What did you think? Did you watch Clooney on ER? Wasn't it awesome to see Doug and Carole again?

Getcha Popcorn Ready...

Clooney is on ER tonight.

Or, as USA Today puts it: "Eriq La Salle and Julianna Margulies return to the fold tonight on ER (NBC, 10 ET/PT). The actor who played Margulies' boyfriend also is slated to return, although whether that happens tonight is a secret."

SWEET!
George. In scrubs.
Again.

First Comes Marriage - A Review (-ish)

I love Mary Balogh. She is one of those incredibly consistent historical authors who has a very distinct style and an incredibly light hand with building a credible romance between the leads. Which is why I was so shocked to be 10 chapters into her newest novel First Comes Marriage and still feel disengaged from the lead couple.

The Huxtable family is living in rural England in genteel poverty. Their parents passed on a few years ago, leaving three daughters, Meg (the eldest), Vanessa, Katherine and one son, Stephen. Imagine their shock when Elliott Wallace, Viscount Lyngate arrives in their small village to inform Stephen that he is now, through convoluted family ties, Earl of Merton and heir to a tremendous fortune. The Huxtables are a very close knit family, and Meg has taken over the raising of the family. She categorically refuses to allow Stephen to go to London with Elliot in order to "become a gentleman." Stephen decides that the family should all move to London, and his sisters should have their societal debut. Elliot is most put out with the idea of having to deal with not just Stephen, to whom is now guardian, but also dealing with his three sisters who do not have the poise and polish they'll need to be successful in London. His mother will be occupied with his youngest sister's debut, so he is in a quandry about how to manage the sisters' debut. Approaching 30 himself, Elliot has decided to marry, and he realizes that perhaps it would be best for him to marry one of the sisters and she can manage the debut of the other two.

Meg and Kate Huxtable are both blessed with striking beauty. However, Vanessa, the middle sister, a widow, is not beautiful. In fact, her father used to joke that they should have named her Jane, since she really is quite plain. Vanessa makes up for her lack of beauty with a sweetness of nature and a really jovial countenance. She immediately sees the humor in almost any moment and has a knack for living in the moment, which she acquired after losing her husband to an illness early in their marriage. She actually married her first husband knowing he was dying. He loved her and she wanted to make his last days on Earth as happy as possible. She is definitely a cup half full kind of girl. After a visit with Elliot's mother, Vanessa realizes that his intention is to propose to Meg, her elder sister. She intercepts him on his way to propose, and instead offers herself in her sister's place. You see, Meg is holding a candle for another gentleman, and Vanessa wants Meg's hand to still be available, should he come around. Elliot, who has been rubbed quite wrong by Vanessa, (she has challenged him multiple times on different issues) really dislikes her and does not want to marry her. But after she purports to be really quite experienced in the bedroom, he decides to kiss her and if he feels aroused, he'll marry her. He does, and finds that although she's not as experienced as she claims, he's quite physically aroused by the kiss. And he agrees to marry her.

So, that's a quick synopsis of the events leading up to the action beginning in the story. What strikes me about this book is how "Mr. Darcy-ish" Elliot is. He's a man with a lot of responsibilities, who inherited his power quite young, and who has stepped up and taken on each challenge with dignity and honor. He's quite impatient with how impulsive and rapturous Vanessa seems. He just wants a marriage that will make him comfortable as he grows old. The combination of all of this made for a man who I found quite difficult to warm up to. Vanessa is this wonderful, open, likeable heroine, and she seems to constantly be battling to try to make Elliot feel things for her, to warm up to her, to find something about him that she likes. Because she is such a sweet and happy person, I was confounded by how cold and distant he could be with her. He holds a grudge occassionally and can be quite cold to her. I felt genuinely sorry for her because it seemed like no matter how she tried, he remained distant and difficult to like. It wasn't until Chapter 14 (!) that I finally began to like him and find him someone who I could root for. Once he began to loosen up, he became easier to like. But up until that time, I kept thinking, "This guy is a prig." So while the book features Balogh's wonderful light hand, it was ultimately less of a success for me. Mostly because of the hero.

I'll definitely pick up the next in the series, Then Comes Seduction, which is Katherine's story, even though I find her to be the least interesting of the Huxtables. I'm optimistic that with a different kind of hero, I'll find the next book much more enjoyable. I am kind of ticked that the first three are PB and then the fourth, Stephen's story is HC. Frustrating! But oh well, I'll just wait 'til it comes out in PB.

Final grade: C

Getting "Carrie'd" Away

Almost every night I fall asleep with the TV on. Usually I stick in a DVD and watch/listen to a movie as I fall asleep. My faves are Pride & Prejudice and Shakespeare in Love. But Grey's Anatomy, Season 2 and the first two seasons of The West Wing get a pretty good work out too.

Last night I made a mistake. I put in the Sex and the City movie. Which I've seen about 100 times. And yet, again, I was mesmerized by it and ended up being up well past midnight watch a movie that I OWN!

I loved SatC when it came out on HBO. It was appointment television for me without a doubt. I was FURIOUS with Carrie when she cheated on Aiden, and heartbroken when they broke up. I alternated between lusting after Mr. Big and hating him. I really didn't like Alexander Petrovsky and hated that storyline (he was standoffish and presumptive, I thought -- plus Carrie abandoned pretty much everything to be with him. Granted, it was Paris, but still).

And wouldn't you have *loved* to explore her closet??

And when the movie came out last May, I was in absolute heaven. I loved every moment of it. The drama, the friendship, Samantha's incredibly hot neighbor (who I hear is on Dancing w/the Stars now), and of course, the fashion porn. But mostly, I loved the ending. It was pitch-perfect, and frankly, exactly how I'd wanted the show to end.

So now I hear-tell they are making another movie. I just...don't know. How can they improve upon the ending of the movie? Please dear-God don't let Carrie be pregnant! What amazed me last night was the fact that the movie totally drew me in again. I'm as invested in these characters as I've ever been. I never got tired of SatC when it was on TV, and apparently, I still can't get enough.

Are you a fan of Sex and the City? Which of Carrie's boyfriends did you like best? Did you love or hate the movie?

Back in the Saddle

Hi Everyone! I hope you're doing well. I haven't done one of these Bloggity-blog-blog posts in a while. So here we go:

1-Carolina beat Duke yesterday on Senior Day. Tyler Hansborough had a good game and looked like what he is, the hardest working kid in college ball today. I can't wait for the NCAA tournie to start. I'm keeping my fingers crossed for George Mason to score an invite too. It would be a ton of fun to watch them go a ways again in the tournament.

2-I'm really, really struggling with Mary Balogh's newest Then Comes Marriage. It kills me to say that, since I usually love her stuff. But geez, I'm easily a third of the way through and the hero STILL hates the heroine. Anytime now I'd like for him to soften up a bit. But so far he's just a prig, and it's starting to really irritate me.

3-So, when I was in Denver, they put me up in the Presidential Suite of the hotel I was staying in. Seriously swank digs, I'm telling ya. But the coolest part? I had one of those mirrors in the bathroom that had a TV in it. Pretty damn amazing! I watched Sports Center every morning while getting ready. The other thing was the shower, which had eight shower heads. It was like a car wash. Honestly, I tried it out the first day I was there, but after that, the guilt of wasting that much water wasn't worth turning all the shower heads on. The stupid thing had to blow through about 20 gallons of water in five minutes.


4-I had a slow enough weekend that I caught up on all of my TV viewing except for Dollhouse. I've now accumulated 3 episodes, and for the life of me, I can't decide why it is that I'm so hesitant to watch. Oh well, maybe this week I'll get to it. So far my favorite shows of this TV season are LOST and Brothers & Sisters, which is just so trashy and soapy. I love it. LOST continues to utterly blow my mind, especially last week's episode, which was Sawyer-centric (meaning lots of Josh Holloway, which can only be a good thing).

5-I DVR'd and watched Dangerous Liaisons yesterday. I'd kind of forgotten how much I ADORE this movie. The costumes are amazing, the actors are top notch, and watching Glenn Close and John Malkovich match wits and chomp scenery is just as entertaining as it was the first time I watched it. It's truly a brilliant story and is one of my favorite costume dramas ever. I certainly don't fall into the "There's something about John Malkovich" club, but he's just so smarmy and scoundrelly in this movie, it's an utter delight to watch.

6- I think we should all take a moment to appreciate my LACK of talking football for the last couple of weeks, but as the free agency dust settles, let's just say that I'm trying very hard not to be super optimistic about the Redskins signing Albert Haynesworth. I'm practicing "cautious optimism." Since the 'Skins free agent signings rarely work well, this will probably be a bust. But it's hard not to get excited about having another player on defense that teams honestly have to game plan around. We were the 4th ranked defense in the NFL last season without him, it makes me wonder how we'll be next year.

7- I'm getting ready to turn 38 next Tuesday. It amazes me that I'm nowhere near where I thought I'd be at this time in my life. I don't say that regretfully, since I really am blessed with a good life. The biggest thing is that if I had a biological clock, it doesn't seem to be ticking anymore. It's not that I don't want kids per se, I just don't expect to have them, and more and more, I'm finding that I'm OK with it. Part of it might be because I'm single, with no prospects on the horizon, so there's no reason for my clock to be ticking. But I think I've finally made peace with the idea that I'm probably not going to be a mom. I'm SO lucky to have 8 nieces and nephews who have brought me immeasurable joy in my life, and now my best friend Amy's son, Jack is doing the same. I dunno, I just don't seem to hear the ticking like I did when I was in my late 20's and early 30's. I don't know exactly what that says about me.

8- When I got home on Friday, I went to turn on my laptop and found that the LED light for my monitor had burned out. I wish you could have seen my face when the techno-child at Best Buy informed me that it would be at least 2 weeks until I get my laptop back. ::sob::

9- We had really lovely weather this past weekend in DC. I'm officially yearning for Spring now. Although, I'm not looking forward to the allergies part. But I love how everything looks when it's in bloom and I'm about done with wearing coats to work.

10- I'm still keeping my fingers crossed that Friday Night Lights will get renewed. I can't begin to tell you how much I've enjoyed this season of it. It remains easily the smartest, best written teen show I've ever seen. And that's saying something, considering my adoration of My So Called Life. Ah, well, we'll find out in May. If it doesn't get renewed, it'll be yet another travesty, but an unsurprising one.

What are you thinking about this week? Reading anything good? Seen any good movies? TV shows?

This isn't a political post...

Whether you voted for President Obama or not, I think that this story from The Washington Post really tells the story of the *kind* of people I perceive the Obamas to be. And more than that, I think Michelle Obama is single-handedly redefining the role of the First Lady.

I can honestly say, I can't imagine Hilary Clinton or Laura Bush doing something like this. Maybe they did, and I just don't recall it. I think she's serving up more than risotto, she's serving up the message that even those in the highest positions can remember those of us who aren't. And it's a message that certainly hits home for me in these times.

Dreaming in Death

Mmmkay, so I just finished Promises in Death.

On of the things that has been a trademark of the In Death series are the dreams that Eve has. She's a vivid dreamer, who often suffers from nightmares that feature horrifying images and almost always come back to the death of her father when she was a child.

But in Promises in Death, Eve's dreaming went in another direction. She began to talk to the victim. Strange conversations that often elucidated some point that Eve was trying nail down in the investigation. I'm not sure how I feel about it.

We're more than 30 books into the series, and Eve's dreams have always been scary, and often give us glimpses into Eve's psyche or illustrate her reaction to something that is happening with the case she is investigating. These dreams were not that.

They were interactions with the victim, almost as if she were alive. And frankly, the did not ring true for me. I'm not really sure what the point was. I mean, Eve already has this crack team of investigators around her, I didn't understand the purpose of the dreams, or mostly, why all of a sudden, Eve could all of a sudden interact with a victim. I found it a questionable choice and one that I really hope Roberts is going to continue.

There is very little that I don't adore about this series, and this was a choice that I really questioned and came back to me after I'd finished the book as an issue I've had.

Overall, the story had ALL of the elements I love about the series, with the possible exception of Eve and Roarke fighting (which I always love), but it had all the wonderful secondaries, and it featured my favorite In Death situation, a cameo by Trina, which always sends Eve into a panic.

But the dreaming thing is a definite niggle with me.

Have you read Promises in Death? What did you think about the dreaming issue? Did it even register with you? Or am I just being nitpicky?

In Which Kati Finds a New Hero

OK, so it's truth telling time. About six months ago, I began an all out campaign to be the RNTV reviewer to read and review Lisa Kleypas's Smooth Talking Stranger. Marisa and Maria I think took the path of least resistance and finally just sent it to me with the caveat that I absolutely could not keep it and would have to send it back when I was done reading it and reviewing it.

I received the book last week and have spent the last week staring at it longingly and wanting desperately to crack the cover. Here's the thing, I knew I had a four hour flight to Denver coming and I really wanted to save it for the flight. So this morning, when I finally arrived at Gate D-1 at Dulles Airport, I dug into my bag and pulled it out. Within less than a chapter, I was engaged, fascinated, and totally wishing I could be girlfriends with Ella, the narrator of the story.

Within two chapters, I had a chance to revisit Jack Travis.

Now, Jack and I had met before. Fleetingly in Sugar Daddy at a gala event where his date was shopping for safari tickets while he looked on indulgently. Jack and I got to know each other a little better in Blue Eyed Devil, where he helped rescue his baby sister from an abusive husband, and helped her get her self confidence back by giving her a job. And I figured he was probably going to be an intriguing hero.

I didn't know the half of it.

You know how sometimes you read a book and a character just jumps off the page? Yeah, that's Jack Travis. Big, brash, and charming as all get out, he is probably my new favorite Kleypas hero. He's all Texas charm and confident alpha male. And yet, when he meets Ella, he completely engages, heart and soul. And even though the story is told from Ella's view point, it's Jack who jumps off the page. And we know, even if Ella doesn't, what Jack feels in his heart, and why he makes the decisions he does.

It is a moving, all together captivating story, and Jack Travis is Lisa Kleypas at her absolute best.

Oh, the book was pretty good too. ;o)

Off To Denver

You kids be good, y'hear?

Practice Makes Perfect - A Review (-ish)

Julie James made great waves last year with her debut novel Just the Sexiest Man Alive. I found absolutely no evidence of a sophomore slump in her second outing, Practice Makes Perfect.

Payton Kendall is on the fast track, an employment attorney at a prestigious law firm, she expects to made partner in the next month or so. She's hard working, smart, well respected and ambitious. Everything is as it should be in her life. Except for one thing -- JD Jameson. JD is all of the things that Payton is, and is in the same attorney class as her, meaning he's up for the same partnership as she is. JD also comes from a well respected family of attorneys, where Payton is from "the wrong sides of the track." Both have toiled tirelessly toward this point. They also have what can only be described as an ongoing professional war. They've been lobbing verbal slingshots at each other constantly for the entire eight years they've known each other. And yet each is undeniably attracted to the other. Both know the others' comings and goings, and both seem to take a better then normal interest what the other is doing.

About a month before the partnership announcement, JD and Payton are called to their boss Ben's office. They are told that they will be responsible for landing the representation of Gibson's Drug Stores, a company about to be embroiled a $200 million class action suit. Naturally, both are pretty horrified. They actively don't like each other, and neither has been above a little professional sabotage to win their individual skirmishes. But they suck it up and begin to figure out how to woo the client. Their boss, Ben asks JD to take the client to the Butler club for a round of golf. Payton is unhappy with the plan because she doesn't play golf, but she sucks it up and decides she'll go along. Imagine how she feels when JD informs her that Butler is an exclusive"men only" club and she can't join them. But she takes the news with grace and meets the group for dinner. As they woo the client, both end up revealing their professional respect for each other, which softens their attitudes about each other. They have one moment where they almost kiss, but the moment ends before anything can get started.

Payton and JD end up in Palm Springs trying to seal the deal with the client, and that's where things come to a head. Will they be able to put aside their differences? Will the feelings both have always had about each other finally overtake their professional rivalry?

Practice Makes Perfect is another pitch perfect romance. Ms. James does a terrific job of building the sexual tension between the leads even as each engages in some regrettable behavior. As readers, we can see the attraction between the two although neither will acknowledge it. It makes you root deeply for them to get together. Both characters are eminently likable (although definitely a bit "A-type") and you root for them to finally get it together and talk about their issues with the other. My one (minor) complaint about Ms. James' first entry, Just the Sexiest Man Alive, was that it took a really long time for the characters to get together. While I'd have loved for JD and Payton to jump in the sack earlier, it happened at the natural time in the story's timeline. And the sexual tension between the two builds and builds so that as a reader, you're just desperate for the two of them to finally act on their feelings. The book is sharply written and sparkles with smart and witty characters and dialogue. Practice Makes Perfect will immediately go to my keeper shelf as a fun and entertaining romance pick-me-up.

Final Grade: A