Book Review: A Lady of the West

We're back from our mini-vacation! We went to the Wisconsin Dells to Great Wolf Lodge again just for a couple of days and it was just really nice. I'll have pictures and a wrap up of that next week. In the meantime I have another Linda Howard book review and now I only have four books left in my pile. I still need to buy eleven more of her books to complete my collection but that might have to wait because of bills and grown up stuff. Sigh.

A Lady of the West - Linda Howard

Victoria Waverly, noble daughter of the war-ruined South, is sold in marriage to a ruthless rancher. Honor and pride help her endure life as a wife in name only but nothing can quench her forbidden desire for hired gunman Jake Roper. His gaze is hard, but tenderness he can't hide promises to unveil to Victoria the mysteries of love.

Only true love can destroy....

Jake curses his burning need for Victoria, for he wants nothing to stand in the way of his drive to reclaim Sarratt's Kingdom -- the ranch that is his legacy and obsession. But ancient wrongs and blazing passions will bind together the aristocratic beauty and the powerful cowboy. In a bloody land war, they will fight for Jake's birthright...and seize at all costs the love that is their destiny.

I have to be upfront and tell you that a western romance generally is not my cup of tea. Give me a western romance set when the United States was still divided into territories and I'm even less interested. But this is a Linda Howard, I'm determined to read (and own) all of her books so this one made it to the top of my pile so I gave it a chance.

And I unexpectedly loved it. I absolutely could not get enough and I kept thinking about this characters long after I had finished!

This book centers around Victoria, who was sold by her family to wed Major McLain, and Jake, who is sneaking around in order to take back Sarratt's Kingdom from McLain. Jake is working as a hired gun for the ranch and as soon as he sees Victoria he knows that his carefully laid out plans now have a wrinkle. Victoria has brought her sister Celia and cousin Emma to the ranch as well and the three aristocratic ladies band together to make the best of a not so great situation. Soon Victoria begins to feel an attraction to Jake and she feels disloyal to her new husband but it's clear he doesn't actually care about her, he just wants the status of having married a real lady.

The book is divided into two stories, kind of. We have the before, where Jake is trying to get the ranch back, and the after, where Jake has the ranch- a whole new set of drama plays out.

I totally loved this book. It was a bit of a slow start for me but by the time I was a quarter of the way in I was sold and hooked, I couldn't put it down. I kept thinking about these characters and the story long after I had finished and I wanted more. The characters are great and full of angst and misunderstandings, probably a common thing back then, and I just really enjoyed it. It's different than what Linda Howard normally writes and I appreciated that.

   

Book Review: Rancher's Dream

I've been steadily reading the Montana Cahills series so I was super excited to see this one released. I can't wait for Cyrus's story next but this one? This one is Hawk's.

Rancher's Dream - B.J. Daniels

Tragedy sent Deidre “Drey” Hunter running from rancher Hawk Cahill and into the arms of a sleek businessman who promised her a new life. But dreams of Manhattan days and cosmopolitan nights shatter when he brings her back to an ultramodern paradise in her hometown of Gilt Edge—and vanishes on their wedding night.

Taunted by seclusion and silence, Drey starts to doubt everything…including her sanity. Only Hawk, the stubborn cowboy from her school days, believes the threats are real and that someone is ready to kill. But is he willing to forgive the past if it means ending her nightmare?

In this book we have Drey newly married to Ethan Baxter, a wealthy businessman from New York City. She married him in the hopes she could leave Gilt Edge, and Hawk Cahill behind. Her groom has other plans and tells her on their wedding night that they'll be living in Gilt Edge after all in this garish mansion he's built that fits more in a neighborhood of skyscrapers than it does in Montana ranch country.

Disappointed, Drey is determined to make the best of her new life. The dream doesn't last long though because as she goes to bed for the night, waiting for Ethan to come upstairs, she finds herself in the morning hours of the next day and no husband. Wandering the house she realizes he never came to their room and it's like he actually vanished. Soon she meets his brother Jet, that she had no idea existed, under the guise he was late for the wedding but here for a visit. Nothing seems right and soon she finds herself to be a victim of gaslighting. She turns to Hawk Cahill for help, even though they parted under awful terms years ago because she knows of anyone else in town, she can trust him no matter what.

Soon they begin to untangle the mess Drey finds herself in but as they get closer to figuring out what's happening, Drey has to ask herself what is she going to do if Ethan is alive? Does she stay with him despite all of this or does she divorce him and go back to Hawk? None of that matters unless she can get out of the situation alive.

I'm rating this one a 4 star because I flew through it simply because I wanted to know what the heck is even going on! I'll warn you that Drey is easily the most naive, stupid character I have read in a long time. She's like the blond girl in every horror movie who does exactly the wrong thing at every turn and you almost hope she does die so you're done with the character. Honestly, if Drey wasn't so dumb I'd give this 5 stars but man.. she's tough to like. It's classified as a romance novel but there's really almost no romance to be honest, there are a couple of spots where it might happen but it doesn't so if you're looking for a book that has assumed romance but no sex, this is going to be your book.

Book Review: Midnight Rainbow

We are on our last day of our mini-vacation and will be coming home today so hopefully I have some photos to share with you soon! In the meantime, I steadily continue to work through my Linda Howard pile.

Midnight Rainbow - Linda Howard

Grant Sullivan had been one of the government's most effective agents, and he's agreed to rescue Jane Hamilton Greer, a wealthy socialite possibly engaged in espionage. In the time they spent together, questions of guilt and innocence began to fade against the undeniable reality that two people from such different worlds should never have met.

You guys, this is everything that I love about Linda Howard. It has a super tough, ex-military hero, a woman in trouble who isn't quite a damsel in distress, a hasty getaway and danger. It's cheese in all the best ways. I could not have asked for more of this book, I really couldn't.

So we have Grant who is technically retired but has an itch for danger and can't quite walk away. He gets handed a case to rescue and return Jane from the hands of a bad guy. All he has to do is slip in, grab her, get her home to her parents. Easy peasy.

Except it isn't because just as he goes to get her, turns out Jane was going to bust out on her own. They tussle and he comes out ahead and ends up hauling her ass out of there himself. They begin their dangerous journey through the jungle with limited rations at a blistering pace, with a woman who won't stop asking questions. Fortunately for Grant, Jane can hold her own and she isn't some princess scared of danger but she is scared of the dark and snakes, as it turns out. Danger is high, drama is abound, and romance is in the air. Can she tame the all consuming bad boy? Time will tell, but only if they can get out of the jungle in one piece.

I totally loved this. It reminded me a little of her book Heart of Fire because she's reusing the jungle setting but you can tell she had grown as a writer from her early books, the woman is on a more even playing field with the guy and I love it.

   

When the wheels fall off.

I haven't done a health update in awhile and that's not because it's been quiet, but because I've been lazy. So let's recap my health status as we approach the two year anniversary of the AFE.

Auto Immune Stuff: So I've been seeing a Rheumatologist for awhile and we steadily do labs and right now my daily pain is being managed with a once a week dose of Methotrexate, which is really a common thing with people in this group. It works fine enough, I'm not pain free but I'm realistic enough to realize that's probably not an attainable goal. Instead I'm learning to move slower, I don't push myself like I want to because I'll be immobile the next day and I can't manage that. Curiously, one of the things they check regularly is my inflammation in my body, it gives them an idea of where I'm at with my dose of medicine. I continue to be high and they are stumped on what to do with me. That's always a fun thing.

Stomach Pain: I think I mentioned that I was going to have an endoscopy but I don't know if I reported back about that. The procedure itself was fine, I guess. It was the waiting before that was horrific. I ended up waiting 37 minutes in the procedure room, totally ready to go because they were running behind. I just laid there and cried because I felt panicky and I kept having flashbacks from my emergency c-section. Except I can't possibly know if it was a true flashback because I can't remember anything but I just kept seeing a slide show of images in my head that were like ceiling tiles, equipment, something being put on my face/nose, stuff like that. The nurse and anesthesiology tech in there kept asking if I was OK and all I could do was shake my head no and told them I was just really scared. Afterwards I was really nauseous and weepy but I think it was an adrenaline crash combined with not taking any of my mental health medication before. I took just the stuff I need to keep me from crashing because I didn't understand any of the paperwork they sent me.

Anyways. So the procedure showed that I likely have a hiatal hernia, GERD, Barrett's esophagus and a stomach polyp. Thankfully the polyp was benign so that's just going to hang out there. Barrett's esophagus is a "change in the lining of the esophagus due to chronic acid reflux". Which is nuts because I don't have heartburn. Except when I'm pregnant. So.. go figure. I was put on an over the counter med for that and I need to do the EGD annually (which is just fantastic) because there is a chance the Barrett's esophagus can progress to esophageal cancer. So we're watching my esophagus but also my liver because I've got a lesion there and that could turn cancerous. Are we sensing a theme? Who wants to bet I die from some weird cancer?! From my limited Google searching, cancers in your gut/abdominal area are sometimes hard to find, often found late, and are really awful to die from. So that's super exciting.

And to boot, that stupid medication isn't working because my stomach hurts every day still. Bright side? I'm hardly eating so hopefully I start losing weight!

Mental Health: Sigh, so I saw my psychiatrist again because the last two medications that are supposed to level me out gave me tremors that rivaled Parkinson's disease. That's not really awesome so I stopped taking them. Instead I'm stitched to Trileptal which is alright so far. I don't really feel any different except I haven't raged and almost broken a door so I guess that's a plus. I got back later this fall to report back on this med. I really hope this one works because I'm just so damn weary of it all.

Overall: I continue to be sick of doctors. Thankfully I haven't had as many appointments as of late so that's been really nice. This entire journey just reaffirms that we need to continue advocating and supporting the research of Amniotic Fluid Embolism. I absolutely believe that my AFE was the catalyst for all of this. I was 100% healthy, with no issues, before my AFE and suddenly I have a massive list of problems. It's just absurd. If you want to help the cause, learn more about AFE and donate HERE. Seriously, even a $1 helps. The Foundation is doing some really great things and they are financing the research being done, so every dollar goes to the cause. I hate to think another mom will go down this road, I refuse to believe it's a freak occurrence.

Book Review: Against The Rules

Alright, alright, alright. THIS is the Linda Howard I know and love. FINALLY.

Against the Rules - Linda Howard

SHE WAS THE PRIZE HE HAD ALWAYS SOUGHT...

At seventeen Cathryn Ashe had fought Rule Jackson and lost her innocence, then fled to the anonymity of the city. At twenty-five she was back, sure of herself and her newfound independence and ready to challenge him again.

But Rule had raised the stakes, and if she lost now the penalty would be high: her heart, the heart that she finally knew had always been his for the taking.

Someone pass the cheese because my plate is empty. Y'all- this book is completely cheesy in all of the best ways. I loved every second of it I really did.

So we have Cathryn, who goes by Cat, who ran off to the big city when she could, mostly to get away from Rule Jackson, the man who took her virginity on a river bank when she was 17. But now the time has come for her to take over the ranch except when she comes back she learns that the ranch is bigger and better than ever because Rule Jackson is kind of amazing at ranching and has been running it this whole time.

They start butting heads because she doesn't know the first thing about how the ranch is run and Rule is a "my way or the highway" kind of guy. He's trustworthy and great, but she realizes her attraction to him  hasn't dissipated no matter how long she's been gone. But before she can give into it she has to figure out if he wants her for her or does he want her to get his hands on the ranch?

I loved this. I read it in a day because this is what a classic Linda Howard book is, it's totally cheesy characters thrown into what a classic romance novel gives you. It's alpha male going up against a wannabe alpha female. Love it. I'm giving this one a 4 star.

   

Book Review: When We Found Home

Honestly, does Susan Mallery ever write a dud? Let's be honest- she's amazing so it's no wonder her latest is great.

When We Found Home - Susan Mallery

Life is meant to be savored, but that's not easy with no family, limited prospects and a past you'd rather not talk about. Still, Callie Smith doesn't know how to feel when she discovers she has a brother and a sister--Malcolm, who grew up with affection, wealth and privilege, and Keira, a streetwise twelve-year-old. 

Callie doesn't love being alone, but at least it's safe. Despite her trepidation, she moves into the grand family home with her siblings and grandfather on the shores of Lake Washington, hoping just maybe this will be the start of a whole new life.

But starting over can be messy. Callie and Keira fit in with each other, but not with their posh new lifestyle, leaving Malcolm feeling like the odd man out in his own home. He was clever enough to turn a sleepy Seattle mail-order food catalog into an online gourmet powerhouse, yet he can't figure out how to help his new sisters feel secure. Becoming a family will take patience, humor, a little bit of wine and a whole lot of love. 

But love isn't Malcolm's strong suit... until a beautiful barista teaches him that an open heart, like the family table, can always make room for more.

I know I'm biased because I am such a fan of Susan Mallery but I absolutely loved this book. It's such a great summer read, you'll find yourself flying through it like me!

Alright, so in this book we have Malcolm (who is running the family business, older brother), Callie (convicted felon, trying to turn her life around but she's Malcolm's half sister he never knew about), and Keira (the youngest and Malcolm's half sister but she's 12 and has a life time of abandonment issues) and the story circles around the three of them learning what a family is and how to be one despite their differences.

Side plots is Malcolm learning to love again with Delaney and Delaney figuring out how to move on from a tragedy. We also have Santiago changing his ways once he meets Callie and deems her the love of his life but also convincing Callie she's worthy of goodness in her life despite past mistakes. We also have Keira learning how to love her family and understand that people aren't always going to run out on her.

This books gets a lot of things right, the interpersonal relationships throughout the book are managed well and you never feel like you're being jerked from one story line to the next, it is a smooth transition back and forth. I loved all of the characters except Delaney- she really bugged me all the way to the end because I kept wanting her to get over herself. She isn't all that and a bag of chips, she felt very self-absorbed and I didn't like it. Keira was a little over the top for me too but I kept reminding myself she was 12, turning 13, and having one of those kids myself I know how they can be.

Overall I'm giving this one a solid 4 stars. Susan Mallery can do no wrong for me and I thoroughly enjoyed this from start to finish. (I also am crushing hard on Malcolm, FYI). This is worthy of a splurge, I promise. Also below check out a fun giveaway for a fabulous prize package, you can enter every day!

   

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We R Who We R

It feels like forever ago already but at the end of June we joined one of my friends and her pretty amazing daughter and we all went to a Kesha concert. It was outdoors, the weather was perfect, and it was so nice to get away with just Olivia. 

If you've never been to Mystic Lake Casino in Minnesota, they have a huge outdoor amphitheater which was really well maintained so the grounds were super nice. The hotel was really great too and we were surprised at how fast the lines for everything were. 

Anyways, we went for a Kesha concert. 

I had to buy the girls shirts because you can't go to a concert and not buy a shirt. You have to have proof you were there.  

 The show itself was pretty good. The opening act was some guy called CVBZ and he was alright. He wasn't terrible but he wasn't great either and he looked like he needed a shower. He had a couple of songs that I bopped along to but not enough for me to go out of my way to buy them, if that makes sense. 

Then we waited some more for Kesha. 

By the time Kesha came on it was fairly dark but not dark enough that you couldn't see the people around you. If you are in need of interesting people watching, a Kesha concert is where you want to be. Hands down. Nothing can even come close to it. We saw a six foot papermache gold penis, someone was hauling that thing around, which eventually got carried to stage for Kesha to sign. A lot of panties and bras were removed and tossed. A lot of people with much too small clothing on. Some were wearing actual underwear and calling it an outfit. One woman had a "skirt" made of dildos. It was basically a belt with dildos attached and she was calling it a skirt. Poor Olivia had never seen any of this and I had to explain why someone would wear fake penises and what a fake penis was used for. 

So that was fun. 

Her concert was alright. I wish she had played more from her current album but "Praying" was definitely the encore. She attempted to sing Dolly Parton's "Jolene" but no, the only person who has any business covering that is Miley Cyrus, Kesha's version was terrible. I'm going to say it, it was terrible. I also wish Kesha didn't talk so much. You don't actually have to introduce every song, we are capable of figuring out what you're singing, fans definitely don't need to be told. If she hadn't talked so much she could have sang more songs, which is what the people wanted .The other odd thing is that the songs she sang from her back catalog were remixed, or had a new twist to make it just enough different from the original that it wasn't great. Maybe that was some kind of shade to Dr. Luke after the court case, I'm not sure but I wish she had just left them as they were because they were great. 

I was pleasantly surprised that the girl can sing. She can actually sing live and it's so refreshing because so many artists sing to a back track and that's just awful but she is 100% for real singing so that was nice. Tons of outfit changes which weren't needed and there was a totally bizarre/useless interlude that we could have skipped all together. She was clearly changing her outfit and taking a drink but let's maybe stick with two outfits or something. 

Overall? It was good. Olivia and I had a fun time and I'm glad we had a little getaway. It was awesome catching up with my friend and getting to know her daughter. My friend Sarah is someone I knew in high school but got to know better in college and she was the one who organized the GoFundMe when I had Lucy. She's a pretty fantastic person in general and I'm so glad we got to hang out. I legit want to be her when I grow up, that's how great she is.