What I'm Reading Now...

Between all the writing deadlines, I try to also keep reading. (After all, that's what drew me to the world of books in the first place.)

For paranormal fans: I just discovered new-to-me author KERI ARTHUR and read Full Moon Rising and Kissing Sin (the next two in the same Riley Jenson series will be out in March and April.) These books feature interesting characters, especially the heroine/ first-person narrator Riley, some good banter, steamy scenes and enough suspense/gore that in some stores, I've found the books shelved in the horror section. Half werewolf-half vampire Riley has numerous ongoing relationships (and I certainly hope that she and Quinn the vampire end up together the same way I hope Steph and Morelli eventually end up together) but a possible future doesn't stop Riley from hooking up with several different not exactly human men in the meantime. These aren't for the squeamish, but they're fast paced and I'm enjoying the ongoing mystery (and the fact that, for now at least, the publisher is releasing them close enough together that I don't have to wait months and months--or worse, years--for the next installment).

For women's fiction/romance fans who like their characters on the edgy side, you've got to read ISABEL SHARPE's Women on the Edge of a Nervous Breakthrough!!! Now, I like sassy-but-flawed heroines who have a lot to overcome and can sometimes be their own worst enemies (like Susan Elizabeth Phillips' Sugar Beth in Ain't She Sweet) and Sharpe's cenral heroine Vivian Harcourt more than fits the bill. Vivian is hiding out in the tiny town of Kettle, Wisconsin while she waits for the scandal of her recent murder trial to blow over (Vivian was accused of murdering her rich lover.) Vivian at her worst can be self-destructive and bitchy; Vivian at her best is nurturing and whether she means to or not, she befriends abused wife Erin Hall and teenage Amber--rebellious daughter of Vivian's holier-than-thou nemesis, Sarah. Except that even seemingly perfect people like Sarah have issues to overcome. This is a tart book that makes some contraversial twists and turns, but I cheered for the characters and completely fell for Vivian's next door neighbor, hunky Mike. It's not a romance novel, but each character does find her own version of a Happy Ending.

I've only recently started Jane Austen in Scarsdale (or Love, Death and the SATs) by PAULA MARANTZ COHEN, a contemporary novel inspired by Austen's Persuasion and featuring a high school guidance counselor heroine. So far, it's a light, witty read and I think you'll particularly enjoy it if you're raising or have already raised teenagers.

Next on my to-read list is Silent in the Grave, a historical suspense (as you can see, my reading tastes are all over the map) by debut author DEANNA RAYBOURN. This book came highly recommended and I can't wait to start it!

What about you guys--read a good book lately or have one you're particularly looking forward to?