Time Off for Good Behavior by Lani Diane Rich

"I want to sue the city of Hastings, Hastings General Hospital, and Channel 8. Oh, and my ex-husband."

Walter's eyebrows lifted. "Your ex-husband? What did he do?"

"He's alive. I want you to sue him for not being dead yet."

Walter sat back, his white dress shirt sticking a bit to his skin. It's possible the Fireside had been named for the fact that it was always hot as hell in there. "You can't sue for that."

"Why not? He's supposed to be dead by now. Doctor's orders."

Walter laughed, a cue for me to join in and say I was joking. I kept quiet. He stopped laughing. "You can't sue a guy for not being dead."

"Can we sue the doctor who told me he'd croak, then?"

He stared at me for a moment, sizing me up, an unsure smile tugging at his face. "You're serious?"

"Dead serious."


***

Wanda Lane has had a string of bad luck! Loses touch with her parents when she got married to an abusive man, divorced him and now lives in Alaska, but he finds time to call her up to either profess his undying love for her or threatens her life...

After striking an obnoxious 'pencil faced' lawyer, Wanda ends up with a head injury and in a coma. What else could go wrong? Well, in the result of the accident, she's now hearing this phantom music in her head which comes and goes as it pleases and loses her job!

Wanda is the type of woman who does not think before she opens her mouth, she curses like a sailor, and drinks bottles of Chivas Regal which she names 'Albert.'

After meeting a sexy attorney, Walter Briggs, she also meets a therapist friend who insists that she covers her walls with sticky notes listing ways to become a brand-new Wanda.

**

I absolutely loved this book. It's short; I think I must have read it in a day, but it was entertaining the whole way through and I laughed out loud a few times, which is a plus. The author created a fun book with lots of humor. I loved how Wanda's character is very flawed - every character can't be perfect!

I'd recommend it!


5 stars for the humor
5 stars for the touching moments
5 stars for the tough, edgy, and hilarious main character
and 5 stars for the novel being unique.

The Perfect Family by Carla Cassidy

Marissa's husband, a fireman, was killed...and not in the line of duty. It's been about a year and for the first time, she feels like everything will be all right. And when a high school flame moves back into town, she even begins to think that maybe she can find happiness again.

But, someone has other plans. He wants Marissa for himself. She would be the perfect wife. And her small children would be his perfect son and daughter. Since he's been watching them for quite some time now, he knows everything there is to know about them. They were the family he was supposed to have, the family he deserved. And it was only a matter of time before he claimed them as his own.

***

I was very pleased with this romantic-suspense book. Every page was interesting and felt real...it wasn't a load of crap spilled onto paper. You could feel the emotion and the heartbreak, the desire. All the characters had likable factors, including the kids :-).

The ending made is seem like there would be a sequel...Bring on the second book! If it's not out already...I'm clueless. But if there isn't, oh well... I can only imagine how that one would be. But, back to the ending, I liked it. It showed how sometimes the 'bad' guys are just plain insane and nothing will ever change that... Sooo maybe there isn't a second.....

5 stars :-)

No Time For Goodbye by Linwood Barclay

Cynthia Bigge, a rebellious fourteen-year-old, wakes up one morning to find that her entire family has vanished without a trace.

What do you do when there is no evidence, no note left behind, no witnesses?

All Cynthia wants is some closure.

Twenty-five years later, she'll finally learn the truth...

Throughout the book, there are strange things that begin to happen. Phone calls, notes, e-mails...information that leads to so many more questions than answers.

**

Great book. This is another author I would like to keep following. It's a great suspense story that you can't help but get caught up in it. So many twists and turns, it'll have you on the edge of your seat...well, for me it did. I couldn't put it down.

I loved how it was written. He did a nice job at building the background of each character. From the devastating situation that Cynthia had to go through as a child, you can definitely understand why she does the things she does. For example, being extra cautious when it comes to her daughter because she is aware that the world is sometimes a cruel place.

Her husband understands her frustrations and is by her side 100%, but later starts to wonder if she's having a nervous breakdown after all those years.

I personally loved the ending of the book; I wouldn't have had it any other way.

Tough Luck by Jason Starr

Mickey Prada is a guy who lacks confidence and self-esteem. He's a smart kid, but hangs out with the wrong people, and eventually makes all the wrong choices and they all have consequences.

He works at a seafood market in Brooklyn and has delayed college to help take care of his sick father instead of putting him into a 'home.'

His life seems normal, until he meets, Angelo Santoro, at the market. Angelo keeps asking Mickey to place bets for him and because he's a nice kid, he agrees. The problem is, Angelo is losing every single time and Mickey's life seems to get complicated.

Mickey is reluctant and furious when he needs to dip into his savings account because Angelo won't pay up. He's in dire need of money, so when his best friend, asks to join him in a can't-lose plan, he goes along.

But it backfires and everything else seems to be going wrong.

**

Well, I was disappointed in the book. Did I expect it to be good?? I think I was hoping it would...but it was a waste of time. I could have easily put it down, but it got me curious as to what would happen and how it would end. I thought it would get better.

I can't even begin to tell you what was wrong with it, because I'm not exactly sure. It just was awful.

I'm definitely not reading this author again.