RECOMMENDED: Exclusively Yours is the Free Book of the Week at the iBookstore, and the series is also discounted at Amazon ($3.82 currently). This is the first book in the Kowalski series. I loved this book (from my review (B+):
I had such a good old time reading this book. There were some flaws to the plot but while reading it, I was charmed and giggly and totally absorbed. This book made me happy. That’s probably the best way to put it: it made me smile. A lot. Books like this are why I read romance.
When Keri Daniels's boss finds out she has previous carnal knowledge of reclusive bestselling author Joe Kowalski, she gives Keri a choice: get an interview or get a new job.
Joe's never forgotten the first girl to break his heart, so he's intrigued to hear Keri's back in town—and looking for him. He proposes an outrageous plan—for every day she survives with his family on their annual camping trip, Keri can ask one question.
The chemistry between Joe and Keri is as potent as the bug spray, but Joe's sister is out to avenge his broken heart, and Keri hasn't ridden an ATV since she was ten. Who knew a little blackmail, a whole lot of family and some sizzling romantic interludes could make Keri reconsider the old dream of Keri & Joe 2gether 4ever?
Amazon ($3.82) | iBooks (Free until 11 Nov 2013)
I featured this before, but since there are two discounted in this series, I'm posting this one again. All He Ever Dreamed is $1.99 right now at Amazon. If you love some Kowalskis like I do, that's a terrific price to build the complete set. I enjoyed this one (and laughed heartily at some parts), the book had some seriously flaws for me at the end. I love this series, and I love visiting all the characters. From my review (C+):
While the Kowalski novels are rapidly becoming comfort re-reads for me, especially the first and third ones, and while I'm always happy to go visit all the characters and see that they retain as much personality as they had in their own novels, this book ended up being more of a visit for the sake of everyone else. I didn't keep reading because I was transfixed and drawn to the lead characters. There wasn't anything wrong with them, and I liked them both just fine, but they didn't have the bursting personality and humor of the other characters in the series. Despite the build-up of Josh's story, the focus on his and Katie's relationship didn't live up to my expectations.
Josh Kowalski is tired of holding down the fort—better known as the Northern Star Lodge—while his siblings are off living their dreams. Now that his oldest brother has returned to Whitford, Maine for good, Josh is free to chase some dreams of his own.
As the daughter of the lodge's longtime housekeeper, Katie Davis grew up alongside the Kowalski kids. Though she's always been “one of the guys”, her feelings for Josh are anything but sisterly. And after a hot late-night encounter in the kitchen, it's clear Josh finally sees her as the woman she is.
Katie's been waiting years for Josh to notice her, but now that he has, she's afraid it's too late. Giving her heart to a man who can't wait to leave town is one sure way to have it broken. But Josh keeps coming up with excuses not to leave—could it be that everything he's ever wanted is closer than he could have imagined?
Thank you to the many people who alerted me about this pre-order deal in the comments and via email.
Fool Me Twice by Meredith Duran comes out in March 2014, but it's discounted for pre-order right now at $1.99. Meredith Duran is a tremendously talented historical romance writer, so I imagine this book will be worth far more than $1.99 (I haven't read it yet). Buy your future self a present, and in March, when the book magically appears, you can thank you past self for being so thoughtful!
Sensible and lonely, Olivia Mather survives by her wits—and her strict policy of avoiding trouble. But when she realizes that the Duke of Marwick might hold the secrets of her family’s past, she does the unthinkable, infiltrating his household as a maid. She’ll clean his study and rifle through his papers looking for information.
Alastair de Grey has a single reason to live: vengeance. More beautiful than Lucifer, twice as feared, and thrice as cunning, he’ll use any weapon to punish those who fooled and betrayed him—even an impertinent maid who doesn’t know her place. But the more fascinated he becomes with the uppity redhead, the more dangerous his carefully designed plot becomes. For the one contingency he forgot to plan for was falling in love…and he cannot survive being fooled again.
Goodreads | Amazon | BN | Sony | Kobo | iBooks
Pie It Forward: Pies, Tarts, Tortes, Galettes and Other Pastries is currently $3.82 at Amazon, and $4.99 elsewhere. In my home, I do a lot of the fall/winter cooking (braising! roasting! crock-potting! Yes! It's a verb!) and so I've been looking for new recipes. I've developed an outsized love for digital cookbooks because I can search the file for ingredients, I can bookmark recipes that I want to re-use, and I can make notes on the pages for future cooking, without adding yet another big hardcover to my cabinet of cookbooks.
“It’s a conundrum I can’t understand. Someone’s hankering for pie; you can see the pie-longing in their eyes. They want a delicious flaky crust, something with buttery overtones. They want fresh fruit—not a vague whisper of berry in a butter cream, but overt chunks of apple, discernible bites of berry. But it’s just not done. You don’t serve pie at special events like fiftieth birthdays, dinner parties, silver anniversaries, or, God forbid, at a wedding. To which I reply, ‘Bullpuckies.’”
And so begins Pie It Forward: Pies, Tarts, Tortes, Galettes, and Other Pastries Reinvented. Pie has always been a popular cookbook topic, yet in Pie It Forward, baker, confectioner, and pastry master Gesine Bullock-Prado unveils an entirely new frontier of pies, redefining what can be done with a piecrust and pastry shell. Expect lattice and cutouts with an entirely modern twist. Homemade puff pastry made easy. Individual pie pops to replace tired cupcakes. Surprising and wildly successful explorations with beer (Chocolate Stout Pudding Pie), exotic fruits (Yuzu-Ginger Rice Pudding Meringue Pie), and candy-making (Earl Grey Truffle Tart).
And there are the classics too—riffing on her German roots, her Hollywood background, and life on her Vermont farm—a Blueberry Brown Butter Tart, an Italian Plum Tart with a yeasted-dough crust, a tiramisu-inspired Espresso Tart, a Vermont Pizza Pie, and more. Including sweet, savory, layered, and miniature pies and tarts, Bullock-Prado presents these recipes with a voice that removes the intimidation factor and inspires readers to break out of the double-crust straitjacket and try her signature creations—and to laugh out loud along the way. For additional information, technique demonstrations, and more, please visit http://www.pieitforwardcookbook.com.
Exclusively Yours was my first Shannon Stacey book and I thought it was adorable, and led to a full Kowalski glom. It was definitely a great book to start a new-to-me author with!
Dark Witch by Nora Roberts (kindle edition) just dropped to 4.79 at Amazon. Which sucks if you bought it last week for 7.99, like most of us big fans. sigh…..
Me, oh my, I like pie! Actually, I wish I was one of those entrepeneurial types because I’d so start some kind of business involving making pie.
So excited. Looks like the Laura London backlist, including The Windflower are coming out on kindle early-ish next year.
@Chris Z: thanks for the alert – but, whoa, that is really annoying. Did you read it? Did you like?
In one of my books, For The Love Of His Life, I have the heroine backing pies all through the novel. Because of that, I’ve put up a “pies” page on my website, and I’ve included my “never-fails” pie crust recipe that I’ve taught to kids as young as 9. In fact, I’ve got a contest on my site for identifying which pies are in the book, and the prize is a copy of the sequel, which is coming out on Nov. 16.
So if you’re jonsing for some good pie recipes, check out my family’s favorites.
http://www.fionamcgier.com
@sbSarah, I read it! Like most of her trilogy/quartets, it’s a pretty fast undemanding read. Likeable characters (although they bond waaay too fast), and the usual snappy dialogue. Me, I thought it need another fifty pages or so, and while I think that about most books I enjoy, honestly, the relationship resolution needed a little more… paper.
@sbSarah: You know how the judges/coaches on music reality shows say “You could sing the phone book and I would love to hear it”? That’s how I feel about NR’s books.
So, yes, I read it. Yes, I liked it. In fact, I liked it quite a bit. I did feel that some of the conflict resolution was very very simple.
I would have to say that her trilogies along the lines of “Born In” are my favorite though. Complete stories that are connected by the core characters rather than a continuing story. This story made such a huge “We will finally defeat the evil on this day” but in my head I knew it was the 1st of the trilogy. I was so surprised that the date of impending doom arrived during this installment. I guess the continuing story line isn’t too bad, I loved the Boonsboro books, I really think the almighty end of evil deadline (and it’s subsequent passing) took me out of the story.
That being said, I’ll pre-order the other 2 just as I always do. Although I should probably wait 8 days (8 DAYS!!!) for the price to drop…..