Gone Girl is $7.99 at Amazon and Google: Play right now – which isn't quite a sale, I know. And obviously, this isn't a romance. However, the price for the book has stayed close to $10 otherwise, and I know that many people are awaiting their turn for the library copy, so if you've been thinking of reading this book before the movie comes out, that's not a horrific price. This was one of the biggest recent bestsellers, and I think there was a point in time where everyone I knew was talking about it.
Also of note: there is a boxed set of three of her novels, The Complete Gillian Flynn, on sale for $12.79 at Amazon and Google:Play as well. That's about $4.25 per book.
On a warm summer morning in North Carthage, Missouri, it is Nick and Amy Dunne’s fifth wedding anniversary. Presents are being wrapped and reservations are being made when Nick’s clever and beautiful wife disappears.
Husband-of-the-Year Nick isn’t doing himself any favors with cringe-worthy daydreams about the slope and shape of his wife’s head, but passages from Amy's diary reveal the alpha-girl perfectionist could have put anyone dangerously on edge. Under mounting pressure from the police and the media—as well as Amy’s fiercely doting parents—the town golden boy parades an endless series of lies, deceits, and inappropriate behavior.
Nick is oddly evasive, and he’s definitely bitter—but is he really a killer?
Goodreads | Amazon | Google:Play
Not Quite Dating by Catherine Bybee is $1.99 right now – as are the sequels in this series, Not Quite Mine and Not Quite Enough. This is an Amazon-published book from Montlake so it's only available there. This book, and the others in the series, have 3.5+ star review averages. Readers loved the banter between the hero and heroine, and the fun, lighthearted plot. Have you read this series?
Waitress and single mom Jessica “Jessie” Mann is practical to a fault. Even if she had time to date, which she doesn’t, she’d be determined to provide her son with a more secure upbringing than the one she had—and that would mean a husband with big bucks.
When Jack Morrison—a sexy-as-sin, seemingly broke customer with a cowboy hat and a seductive grin—tries to flirt with her, she shoots him down. She doubts a carefree dreamer like Jack can provide the financial stability she needs. Yet with Christmas just weeks away, and Jessie not wanting to spend it alone, the charming Texan is proving hard to resist.
As the heir to the Morrison luxury hotel empire, Jack is used to being fawned over. But Jack needs someone who will fall in love with him—not his wealth. He’s set his sights on Jessie, though her hardened heart just might get in the way…
To be sure, he conceals his true identity and offers to help Jessie find the rich husband she seeks. But Jack’s daring charade may rob him of the holiday wish he wants most of all…
Falling for Max by Shannon Stacey is still $1.99 at Amazon and that price has been matched at Google:Play (yay!). This is the ninth book in the Kowalski series, but features main characters who are not Kowalskis (they're in the background plenty, though). The hero, Max, is a recurring character from earlier books, and is shy, somewhat reclusive, and aware that he is socially awkward and uncomfortable in new situations. The heroine, Tori, works at the Trailside Diner, and, when she learns he is trying to find a date/girlfriend/wife, she decides to help.
Microreview: I struggled a LOT with Tori's “Let's go on a Pretend Date! So you can practice!” enthusiasm as a plot device, and with what I thought were unrealistic developments that kept the story loosely following a My Fair Lady gender-flip plot. But once the MFL parts disappeared and Tori and Max had to figure one another out it got a LOT better. The dialogue is terrific, as usual, and though I had a few issues with Tori's motivation to not be in a relationship, Max's determination to find someone he can care about and be with was incredibly sweet.
Max Crawford has reached the point in life where he's starting to think about settling down. Unfortunately, he's always been a little awkward when it comes to social interactions, and working from home doesn't help. He spends so much time alone, painting beautiful, historically accurate model trains that half of Whitford has begun to joke that he may be a serial killer. Not exactly prime husband material.
Tori Burns has found happiness in Maine, thanks in large part to her shifts at the Trailside Diner. She likes the work, and she loves the local gossip. When shy, geeky Max Crawford becomes a regular, she's intrigued. When she finds out he's in the market for a wife, she's fascinated…and determined to help.
Molding Max into every woman's dream turns out to be much easier than expected. But has Tori's plan worked a little too well? As she turns his comfortable life all sorts of upside down, she'll have to find a way to show just how she's fallen for him…the real him
I’m about 50% into Gone Girl and I don’t like it very much up to this point. Nothing happy or positive so far. Unhappy wife, unhappy husband, shitty father, dying mother, unhappy city. Cringe worthy is a word to describe some of my reactions so far. Luckily I borrowed this from the library after a long wait but I think I will stick to romances from here on. I am going to need something frothy and funny with a hunky alpha hero after this.