Short and Sweet

I've noticed that my posts are getting entirely too long lately. (Here's who I actually envy--people who craft perfectly witty little blog posts on a daily basis that are funny, relevant, and free of awkward transitions like "anyway" or "sooooo." But I digress. As usual.) Here's my best attempt at a short one:

Paula is celebrating the release of her first Intrigue today, Forbidden Territory. Go to her blog for a chance to win a free copy! (Or just buy one--it's worth it.)

And here's a quick update on Books by Friends month: I finished Ann Voss Peterson's Serial Bride, which was quintessential Ann--dark, creepy, and most excellent. Note that I am not saying that Ann herself is dark and creepy. She is not, though her books definitely are....) Dryden Kane, the serial killer from her 2002 book Accessory to Marriage, reappears in this book as well as the other two upcoming entries in her "Wedding Mission" series, and he still manages to be both charming and wholly evil.

Also finished Dorien Kelly's Off the Map, which centers on Tessa and Kate, two friends-with-baggage who, after being let go from their jobs at the same bank, go to a rich friend's house in Costa Rica to heal and find their respective blisses. Tessa, meanwhile, is also recovering from her husband's infidelity and the dissolution of their marriage, and Kate carries a secret that causes her resentment of Tessa to build to a blow-up confrontation. How these two deal with their life crises, tiptoe around the issues eating away at their friendship, and, yes, find their bliss sounds like it would be a heartwarming tale. And it is. But it wouldn't be a book by Dorien without multiple laugh-out-loud moments (Seriously! My husband kept telling me to put the book down and go to sleep because I was loud.), a dash of hilarious snark, and several fascinatingly drawn characters. Love it!