The Husband List by Janet Evanovich and Dorien Kelly FIC

Caroline Maxwell, 21-year-old heiress and oldest daughter of a wealthy New York family, is shamefully past the peak marrying age for a woman of her social stature. She is also one independent and nearly-uncontrollable young woman who strains against the social mandates of the East Coast elite in 1894.

As the family migrates to Newport for the height of the summer social season, news comes that Lord Bremerton, future Duke of Endsleigh, will be making the rounds in hopes of finding a suitable bride. This is just the sort of match Agnes Maxwell has dreamed of for her eldest daughter. Caroline, however, would prefer a husband who loves her, and she’s clever enough to find a way to get what she wants.

With a mother and a potential husband determined to make this match work, Caroline faces formidable odds. But she is not alone. After a polo match results in a broken leg for Caroline’s older brother, he wises up to the Bremerton’s true nature and sends his best friend, Jack Culhane, is his stead to keep an eye on Caroline during a voyage to England to see what lies in store for the future Lady Bremerton. Jack is happy to oblige, as he finds Caroline attractive and intriguing – and the feeling is mutual. However, Jack is first-generation American born to Irish immigrants and owns, of all things, a string of breweries! He’s hardly a suitable match, in Mrs. Maxwell’s opinion, for a daughter of fourth-generation American wealth.

An historical novel is definitely a departure for Janet Evanovich and her writing partner, Dorien Kelly. However, some things remain the same: a strong, spunky female main character, romance, and an addiction to fattening foods. This was an entertaining, quick read but nothing that will set new literary standards. While the ending is very predictable, it’s fun to immerse oneself in the wealthy lifestyle of the rich and somewhat famous from 120 years ago, and to boo the bad guys and cheer for the good ones.

The Prophet by Michael Koryta FIC Kor

      This is the story of two brothers, Adam and Kent.  They haven't spoken in years.  Adam's life is not terrific. He is a bail bondsman, so he doesn't hang out with the nicest of people.  The only real relationship he has is with a woman who is married to a prisoner.  Kent is at the other extreme.  He is married with children, he has found religion and most importantly (to the town) he is the outstanding, upstanding football coach. He has done very well and this year his team has a good chance at the state championship.  Adam comes to every game but he does it because his sister would have thought that was the right thing to do.  When they were teenagers their sister was taken and murdered - and the family never recovered.  Even twenty years later neither brother has completely moved past the awful event. Adam has bought the family home and has restored his sister's room to the way it was when she died.  When another teenage girl is murdered Adam and Kent are both horrified to realize that they were connected to what happened - and the killer likes it that way.  The Prophet is a great mystery.  One warning  - there is a lot of football talk in the book!  I like football so it was okay. 

husband and wife by Leah Stewart FIC Ste

       Sarah has been with Nathan, her husband, for many years.  He writes fiction and she writes poetry. Well, at least she used to.  It has been pushed to the side while she works full-time and deals with her two young children.  Although Nathan takes care of the children during the week, Sarah takes over on the weekends so that he can write.  Sarah is just dealing with her life.  When the book begins Sarah is very agitated.  They are going to the wedding of good friends. Nathan is running late (as usual).  He gets distracted and he also can't find his shoes.  She is nagging him to hurry when  he blurts out that he needs to tell her something about the book.  Sarah knows that he is referring to his latest book. That day he received the advanced copies in the mail.  Nathan tells her that the book is not all fiction.......and that's not good because the name of the book is Infidelity.  I have told you about the first few pages.  The rest of the book is how Sarah deals with this devastating revelation.  The characters seemed true-to-life.

The Ex-Boyfriend's Handbook

Edward Middleton has just been dumped via Dear John letter. His girlfriend, Jane (or perhaps now ex-girlfriend), of 10 years has packed and moved to Tibet for 3 months. The gist of the letter: "I would say it's not you, it's me. But the truth is, it's you. You've let yourself go, so I'm letting you go." Edward is heartbroken, but with the help of his womanizing friend Dan, he comes up with a plan to get Jane back. Edward has just three shorts month to get himself into shape and win back Jane.
The whole process is completely hilarious. Edward was completely oblivious to how Jane felt, and couldn't understand why she left him. His friends, Dan and Wendy give him a huge wake-up call. Suddenly, Edward is questioning his entire existence, and what is that existence without Jane? His only thought is that he must become the man Jane wants and win her back, but how to go about doing that is a bit tricky.
Dan, a guy who uses women like tissues, analyzes Edward's flaws, both physical and personal, and draws up a plan to make Edward attract women again. His process is a little flawed, as Dan seems to be doing most of the attracting.
Though Dan is helping him learn personal skills, and how to talk to and treat women, he decides he needs some professional help for the physical part. So, he hires a personal trainer, Sam. Sam isn't quite what Edward expected; for one thing, she's a woman, and second, she is tough as nails. The first session has Edward close to death.
     Things aren't going so well with Edward's "make-over". It's so much harder than he thought it would be, and he wonders if he can really do this... if he can actually transform himself. And if not, is he prepared to lose Jane forever.
     Edward is a very endearing character, and really enjoyed watching his personal evolution. Dan is just horrible, but in a hysterical way. He's blunt and crude, and he and Wendy are constantly fighting back and forth, verbally beating one another. Having such opposing characters really made the book enjoyable. The whole book was just hilarious, and I really got invested in what was going to happen to Edward, but I got a little sick of him whining about Jane. What was so great about her anyway? She sounded kind of awful to me. Some of my favorite parts are of Edward fumbling around trying to talk to other women, or pick them up. It was like watching a car crash; you wanted to stop looking, but you couldn't. I would consider this a chick lit type of novel, but from the male perspective, which is kind of cool and different. The story is set in Brighton, so be prepared for a lot of Brit-speak. In general,the whole feel of the book reminded me of the movie "Forgetting Sara Marshall", which I loved, and that made it hard to put down.

Standing in Another Man's Grave by Ian Rankin (MYS)

John Rebus is back!

After reaching the mandatory police retirement age in 2008's Exit Music, Rankin wrote a stand-alone novel or two and started a new series featuring Malcolm Fox from the Edinburgh Complaints Department (known to us as Internal Affairs).  Not a  word from John Rebus.  Until now...

Now working as a retired civilian, Rebus is reviewing long inactive case files.  One day the mother of a young woman missing since 1999 appears.  She is convinced that her daughter was the first in a line of disappearances which all happened along the same road (the A9 to Inverness)- and the most recent one is only three weeks old.

Skeptical at first, it doesn't take Rebus long to think she is right.  And with only his gut instincts and his uncanny ability to annoy absolutely everyone, he jumps back into the fray and is off and running to solve the disappearances.  It should not surprise anyone that justice comes in a typically "Rebus" way.

I don't usually like anti-hero main characters.  Or characters who drink and smoke so much that I feel as though I'm hungover, too.  Or characters who are intentionally rude or rule-breakers.  But I like John Rebus and was delighted to dive back into this novel.  I also got to catch up with Siobhan Clark - and Malcolm Fox made several appearances, too.

I was first exposed to Ian Rankin and John Rebus during a trip to Scotland in 2005.  Every book is like making a return visit.  Not to the romantic Highlands of history and novels but to the gritty reality of everyday, modern life.

These aren't for everyone but just as Rebus can't give up his whiskey, I can't give up Rebus!

The Playdate by Louise Millar FIC Mil

       When I checked out this book I was expecting a story that would entertain me even if it was rather trite. The front of the book has this teaser - "You leave your kids with a friend. Everyone does it. Until the day it goes wrong."  I've read several books like that (many have been made into Lifetime Movies!).  This was a real psychological thriller.  It is told from the point of view of three women.  The main character is Callie.  She is a single mom living in London with her daughter, Rae.  Because of some health issues when Rae was young, Callie spends all of her time making sure she is okay.  Now Rae has begun school and Callie is spending more time with Suzy - the American mom of three who lives nearby and is the only one who was welcoming to Callie.  When a woman named Debs moves in next to Suzy, Callie reaches out to her as a welcome but quickly decides that something is very, very strange in that household.  A great read!  I look forward to next summer when Ms. Millar's second book will be out.