Review of The Perfect Rose by Felicia Rogers

Publisher: Astraea Press  

Release Date: February 6, 2011


More Info: Author website  Amazon 

Book Blurb:

 Abandoned by his wife and left to raise a child alone, Caleb Reed falls short of the ideal work-from-home dad. He needs a woman to help him, in every sense of the word. At the suggestion of a friend, Caleb agrees to hire Ariel Lauren on a trial basis.

As an orphan, Ariel has more issues than just how to make it on her on. Yes, she needs the money that Caleb offers her, but more than anything she finds she desires his love. One calamity after another befalls her and jeopardizes her new job and her chance at having a family. But through it all, Caleb is by her side, his gruff exterior threatening to melt in the face of their shared attraction. Will they decide to continue life alone or will the magic of Valentine's Day bring them together?


My Thoughts:

"The Perfect Rose" is a sweet love story about two emotionally damaged people coming together. They learn to trust and to share. Caleb is divorced and a single father. His marriage and divorce left him bitter and wary of getting involved again. Ariel has never been able to be emotionally close with anyone, not family, friends, or significant others.

Ariel goes to work for Caleb as housekeeper and a babysitter for his eight year old son Joshua. Joshua is presented as being special, possibly a genius, and mildly autistic. Unfortunately, Rogers gives out those details and then forgets about them. Granted, this is a romance, not a story about the child, but I'd have liked to see those details be better integrated into the overall story. Though, that may just be the teacher in me reacting and not the reader. I am usually happy to see children, particularly those with special needs, as part of a story. Ok, got off track there, sorry.

Anyway, Ariel works for Caleb, which gives her some qualms. She's not at all certain that getting involved with her boss is smart (I'm inclined to agree) and it doesn't help that he gives mixed signals - kissing her, then avoiding her, etc. They go back and forth and dance around their attraction. I like that the attraction and their involvement built over time; so many books these days have it happen in such a short period of time and too often, that just doesn't work. Towards the end of the book, there's a complication involving the ex-wife. Honestly, I felt it was cliched but overall, the story was enjoyable. It's sweet and tender and worth reading.

A PDF was received from the author for review.

Review of The Language of the Sea by James MacManus

Publisher: St. Martin's Press

Release Date: May 10th, 2011

More Info: Amazon   Book Depository


Book Blurb:

A lyrical and affecting family drama reminiscent of The Shipping News which challenges readers to re-examine their perception of nature. 

A striking blend of realism and contemporary myth-making, this unforgettable novel tells the story of marine biologist Leo Kemp. Having lost his teaching position thanks to outspoken views, Leo decides to go on one last field trip with his students. The outing becomes disastrous when the weather turns and Leo is thrown overboard. The evocative description of Leo’s journey explores what can happen beyond our perceived knowledge of science. James MacManus tests the bounds of reality with his cunning narrative set within the beautiful community of Cape Cod.



My Thoughts:


Leo Kemp is passionate about his work, to the point that his family life has suffered. He loves his daughter and still cares for his wife but he is devoted to his work and to his causes - his push for science to study the language and communication of seals, and his bone-deep belief that science, including his employer, are focused on the wrong things. He is in trouble over the latter with his employer when he gets washed overboard. At times it was hard to connect with Kemp or to understand him, Macmanus's portrayal of him was distant. Yet, that also underscored his distance from those in his life and their reactions to him.

The book is told from multiple third person perspectives - Leo's, his wife's, his friend Sandy,the omniscient narrator, and a few other people. The third person perspective allows MacManus to keep Leo distant so we don't get as connected but it also allows him to step outside of Leo's mind and see his life and the effects of his disappearance in a broader perspective.

I admit, when Kemp gets lost overboard, I expected things to go in a different direction, but I was not disappointed in how MacManus handled it. Kemp is still emotionally distant but his new life suits him very well. The ending of the book took me by surprise, I wasn't expecting it, and yet it made sense once I thought about it. It fit with the overall direction of the story.


One small niggle for me was MacManus's use of British terms and slang. Kemp and his wife are from Scotland so it makes sense that they would use those terms but it was jarring when the American characters used them. I had to stop and doublecheck whose perspective I was reading.

I had trouble at first with the book, I couldn't get interested, but by the time Kemp is swept overboard, on page 76, I was hooked and had to keep reading.

This hardcover was received from the publisher for review.

Plagiarism Update

During the past week, my online time has been devoted to removing reviews, checking reviews, and sending apologies. I am, I believe, nearly done with the latter. I've been relieved? gratified? I'm not sure of the right word, to the responses to my apologies. While some people have chosen not to reply, of the ones who have, all but one person accepted my apology. I had expected it to be the reverse, with most respondents (and I wasn't sure how many people would take time to reply) declining to accept. Even the person who declined to accept my apology was polite and respectful. It may be the politest, nicest refusal of any kind that I've ever received.

I've also been pleasantly surprised and gratified by the support I've received. Friends, strangers, bloggers, even authors have expressed their willingness to stand by me and even offer encouragement while also making it perfectly clear that they in no way condone what I did. Thank you to all of you. I appreciate it more than I can adequately express.

My actions were stupid, careless, and wrong. I am deeply sorry for the harm that I have done.

Review of The Girl Who Disappeared Twice by Andrea Kane

Publisher: Mira Books

Release Date: May 31, 2011

More Info: Amazon Book Depository

Book Blurb:

SHE COULDN'T STOP IT. NOT THEN. NOT NOW.

If she'd only turned her head, she would have seen the car containing her daughter, struggling to get out.

Struggling to escape her kidnapper.

Despite all her years determining the fates of families, veteran family court judge Hope Willis couldn't save her own. Now she's frantically grasping at any hope for Krissy's rescue. Her husband dead-set against it, she calls Casey Woods and her team of renegade investigators, Forensic Instincts.

A behaviorist. A techno-wizard. An intuitive. A former Navy SEAL. Unconventional operatives. All with unique talents and personal reasons for being part of Casey's group, they'll do whatever it takes.
Able to accurately read people after the briefest of encounters, Casey leads her crew to Krissy's home. There, she picks up the signs of a nervous spouse, a guilty conscience, a nanny that hides on her cell. She watches as secrets beg to creep into the open.

Forensic Instincts will dig through each tiny clue and eliminate the clutter. But time is running out, and even working around the clock, the authorities are bound by the legal system. Not so Casey's team. For they know that the difference between Krissy coming back alive and disappearing forever could be as small as a suspect's rapid breathing, or as deep as Hope's dark family history.

My Thoughts:


As I was reading this book I kept thinking it read like the first book in a new series - several info dumps concerning Forensic Instincts, an investigation and security company, and it's employees; lots of explanations for characters behaviors and actions; and in general, lts of time and attention laying out background and parameters. I couldn't find any information about this being the start of a series, perhaps that depends on how well this book does. However, at other times, it felt as if there I started in the middle of a series, particularly with the interactions of the various agencies and investigators.

Despite the attention paid to the employees of Forensic Instincts, it was the family who hired them who actually were detailed and brought to life. This isn't a quick, simple investigation or novel. The investigation into the missing girl is complex and layered; it quickly becomes apparent that the present day investigation is tied into an event from Hope's past. I figured out about 2/3 of the way through who took Krissy but was only partially right on the why.

There's a lot going on this book, and at times it got bogged down with details, particularly all of the abbreviations of various local, state, and federal agencies and their various procedures. Still, it was fascinating and was not easy to put down. If this become a series, I look forward to learning more about all of the various members of Forensic Instincts.

An ARC of this book was received  from the publisher for review.

Reviews and Plagiarism

This blog is temporarily on hiatus. Reviews that I have already committed to will still be published, unless the author or publisher requests otherwise.

I have been notified by a handful of people that some of my reviews contain plagiarized content. ETA: Disputed and problematic reviews as of 6:30Pm EST 6-1-11 have been pulled from here and from goodreads. If you feel that a review of mine is problematic please send me an email so that I can pull it. The email is Bea at beasbooknook AT gmail DOT com.

I am sincerely sorry for the plagiarism that occurred. It was inexcusable. I hope that some of you will be able to forgive me.

In view of some rude and abusive comments that the spam filter caught, I have temporarily disabled commenting. If you have sent me an email, and it wasn't rude or abusive, you will receive a reply, though it might take a while as I do have other responsibilities and obligations and I do not currently have working internet at home. I was offline for about 48 hours, for several reasons, and apparently some people construed that as my ignoring them. There was no intentional ignoring, I simply couldn't be in multiple places at one time.

I have begun emailing apologies to people whose reviews that I did plagiarize. I will email and email only my apologies to the people that I have wronged.

Again, I am sincerely sorry for the plagiarism that occurred. It was inexcusable.

I would like to add, that despite my deserved embarrassment and humiliation, I am in awe of how quick people were to respond and take action. Bravo to you all.


ETA: Update

Review of Spiky, Slimy, Smooth: What Is Texture? by Jane Brocket

Publisher: Millbrook Press

Release date: April 28, 2011

More info: Amazon, The Book Depository

Book Blurb:

Soft, gooey, fluffy, prickly--textures are all around us. What clever words will you use to describe the textures pictured in this book? Jane Brocket's appealing photography and simple, whimsical text give a fresh approach to a topic all young children learn about.

My Thoughts:

This book discusses the rich variety of textures all around us in a fun, colorful, and joyful way. It perfectly combines text and photographs, they balance and complement each other. We are shown the pictures accompanied by simple words describing what that specific texture feels like. Texture is a very tricky subject to talk about sometimes. Words like smooth, hard, and soft are easy to come up with but more descriptive words are not as easily thought of and of course, texture involves touch, not just words.

The book itself has a lack of textures. I wish that some of the pages would have incorporated textures to extend the discussion and allow children to connect the physical texture with the words. I did love the vocabulary that described the textures. There are two or more words for each texture, which is excellent for vocabulary building. Since it is very vocabulary rich and the pictures are so eye-catching, I think the book works for infants up to kindergarten.

The photography is amazing, very crisp and clear, with clear, contrasting colors. The pictures really pop and will capture the attention of the children. As mentioned, after every picture, we're given a description of how the item feels. I really loved that the author did that because not all children are exposed to the things in the book. Some children grow up never knowing what snow feels like, so I appreciated how descriptive the author is. For the most part, it was easy to see the textures. A few of the pictures don't do a very accurate job of showing the texture being described, such as the butterfly page and the watermelon page. However, the book as a whole does a remarkable job and has a good range of textures. The book uses a mix of everyday objects and more unusual objects. I liked that balance and think that most kids could find some object that they were familiar with. They were also close up but you could still identify what it was.

At the end of the book the author challenges the readers to discover the textures of things around them and to creatively come up with words to describe them. This is a great activity to do at home or at school and I think most kids will enjoy the challenge.

This eARC was received from the publisher via NetGalley.

NOTE: This is a revised version of the review that originally appeared.

Armchair BEA and nurturing relationships

Continuing with Armchair BEA, today's topic is nurturing relationships. How, as a blogger and book reviewer, do I do that? To be honest, I think that's an area where I could probably improve. I enjoy, mostly, the socialization part - chatting on twitter or via IM's, exchanging emails, but I'm not a social butterfly and sometimes drop the ball.

Twitter, which I initially resisted joining (Silly Bea!) has been a great medium for me - I've met and connected with other bloggers and reviewers, editors, authors and publishing houses. I've gotten chatty with Moira Rogers, who is really two people, Donna and Bree; it's mostly Bree that I chat with and she's wonderfully silly, plus very, very generous. I've also gotten chatty with authors Sierra Dean and Krista D Ball; we get silly but we also talk about book reviews, blind drunk monkeys, books, and authors who behave badly in public.

Twitter has also led me to read authors that I hadn't been before, and many authors will seek out reviewers by tweeting, which has led me to several ARC's. I follow many publishers on twitter, which I find to be an easy way to keep current on trends, hot topics, new books, etc.

I also chat with other bloggers on twitter, and those conversations are also a blend of book-related and personal.  Has_bookpushers, of the Book Pushers site, was one of the people responsible not only for my joining twitter but also for becoming a revewer and blogger. She is, as I like to call her, the Lady of the Links; she has an almost supernatural knack for links. They range from links for wooden dildos to a TARDIS shaped murphy bed to articles about movie casting and hot new books. She has a wicked sense of humor and is knowledgable, and opinionated, about many things.

Other fun bloggers I chat with sometimes are @BookaliciousPam, one of Armchair BEA's organizers; @jacabur1 who has been supportive, and @Susi_Sunshine, who I work with on the Book Lovers Inc blog, she's just crazy. :D

Building relationships with publishers has been slow going for me but I'm getting there. I've made some contacts through the Book Lovers Inc site and through an awesome book blog collective site, Book Blogs. That is an area I need to focus on and one that will be a goal for me for the remainder of this year.

Review of Pack of Lies by Laura Anne Gilman

Publisher: Luna
Release date: January 18, 2011
Series: #2 in the Paranormal Scene Investigators series
More Info: Amazon


Book Blurb:

My name is Bonita Torres, and eight months ago I was an unemployed college graduate without a plan. Now I'm an investigator with the Private Unaffiliated Paranormal Investigations team of New York. Pretty awesome, right?

The Cosa Nostradamus, the magical community, isn't quick to give up its secrets, though. Not even to fellow members. Not even when it's in their best interests. So we've been busting our tails, perfecting our forensic skills, working to gain acceptance. The team's tight… but we have our quirks, too. And our Big Dog, Benjamin Venec…well, he's a special case, all right.

But we can't give up. We're needed, especially when a case comes along that threatens to pit human against fatae. But one wrong move could cost us everything we've worked for….

My Thoughts:

"Pack of Lies" begins a few months after Hard Magic; the PUPI's are hard at work training and still fighting for recognition in the Talented community. It's action packed right and grabs you from the first paragraph. I had the pleasure of hearing Ms. Gilman read from the first chapter at Arisia in January and I kept hearing her voice in my head, all through the book.

The story moves quickly but doesn't short change character development. It moves fast, there is plenty of drama, but also insight into the characters, and the potential for a soul mate, one of my least fave tropes, but Gilman has a different take on it, and neither character involved is acting as if anything is written in stone.

The job this time is an attempted rape and and the damage that the would-be victim inflicts on her alleged attacker. The rape bothers Bonita on for a couple of reasons: first, she's very open and free about her sexuality, she enjoys sex and is comfortable with herself as a sexual being, and she can't understand how some people can use sex to hurt. In some respects she is a bit sheltered. For a while, she becomes paranoid around men, whether they friends or strangers, and that bothers her too. She finds herself flinching away from even casual contact with a male. By the end of the book, she has mostly worked through it and has regained her confidence. Second, it seems like a simple open-and-shut case, one that could help improve their standing with other Talents, but it quickly becomes increasingly complex. Bonnie has to overcome her natural sympathy for the victim to step back and look at the case objectively. Things start getting ugly between Talent and Fatae and they have to solve the case before things escalate even further. The story line in this book ties in with the Retriever series but it can be read independently.

The book also has some mythological beasts rarely seen in urban fantasy, but more commonly found in traditional fantasy - a unicorn (though called by a different name) and a dragon. They are two of my favorite mythological beings so I was happy that Gilman was able to incorporate them and she did it very smoothly. The unicorn, in fact, and his actions or lack thereof, is a major figure in the story.

Gilman does the unexpected all throughout the story and there are many twists and turns. The story is solid, with snappy dialogue, deft characterization, and some thought provoking looks at racial tensions, sexual assault, and the choices people make.


**This is an edited, revised version of the review that was originally published**

This eARC was provided by NetGalley.