This Just In!! (#4)

Like I've said before, I don't buy very many books. With the recent sale at Smashwords, however, not to mention the oodles of freebies in the Kindle Store on Amazon, I've stocked up on some interesting titles. Here are just a few of my more recent purchases. 

Just Purchased: 

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The Duke and I with Bonus Material by Julia Quinn. 

Product Description:

Simon Basset, the irresistible Duke of Hastings, has hatched a plan to keep himself free from the town's marriage-minded society mothers. He pretends to be engaged to the lovely Daphne Bridgerton. After all, it isn't as if the brooding rogue has any real plans to marry - though there is something about the alluring Miss Bridgerton that sets Simon's heart beating a bit faster. And as for Daphne, surely the clever debutante will attract some very worthy suitors now that it seems a duke has declared her desirable. But as Daphne waltzes across ballroom after ballroom with Simon, she soon forgets that their courtship is a complete sham. And now she has to do the impossible and keep herself from losing her heart and soul completely to the handsome hell-raiser who has sworn off marriage forever! 

For a limited time, discover Julia Quinn for only $1.99! Plus, dip into excerpts from new releases by Julia, Elizabeth Boyle, and Caroline Linden. 

This book is on sale for a limited time in the Kindle Store ($1.99). I enjoyed the other Bridgerton novels and this was one I've never read, so naturally, I bought it. The Duke and I is book 1 in the Bridgerton family series.

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A Proper Companion by Candice Hern

Product Description:

Fans of the traditional Regency Romances of Georgette Heyer, Jo Beverley, and Carla Kelly will enjoy this witty romance from New York Times bestselling author Candice Hern. Robert, Lord Bradleigh, is a rakish earl with a recently arranged betrothal to a lovely young girl he barely knows. Emily Townsend is an impoverished spinster employed as a companion to his grandmother, the formidable dowager countess. Robert agrees to help his grandmother find a husband for the beautiful Emily, but how is he to bear the thought of her in another man's arms? This sparkling tale will take you from the Pump Room at Bath to the ballrooms of London as the unexpected and undeniable attraction between Robert and Emily blossoms into something more … something that could put one of them in danger. 

"Candice Hern is a striking talent of superior merit, one whose intelligence, wit, and craftsmanship are as impressive as her elegant romantic sensibility." --Romantic Times 

Now, unless I'm much mistaken, this is a re-release of one of Ms. Hern's older, traditional titles. Best of all, this title is FREE!*

*Any time a Kindle book is mentioned as being free, make sure it is in the Kindle Store BEFORE you push the Buy now with 1-click button.

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And from the local used book store...
I acquired paperback copies of Brighter than the Sun and On the Way to the Wedding (both by Julia Quinn) for $1 each.

Brighter than the Sun is book 2 in the Lyndon Sisters series. I wonder if I should box this one up until I acquire book 1? 

On the Way to the Wedding is the final installment of the Bridgerton series (book 8), all about the youngest Bridgerton male, Gregory. Since I just today purchased the Kindle edition of The Duke and I, I believe I'm only missing one from this series now, Romancing Mr Bridgerton.

On a slightly different note (but still book related), I'm working on a book giveaway. Something similar to the mystery collection (not actual mysteries, I just don't reveal the titles) I gave away several months ago on my author blog. Click HERE if you're dying of curiosity and just HAVE TO KNOW what I'm talking about. :O)

Happy reading!! 

This Just In!! (Part 3)

I don't do these posts very often, I know. Truth is, I don't buy many books anymore. However, I've gotten three new ones in the last week so I thought I'd share. 

First, I got my dear friend Terrie's book, A Robe of Feathers: And Other Stories.

From Amazon: 

In Japan, the line that divides myth from reality is not merely blurred, it is nonexistent. Superstitions, legends, and folk myths are passed down through generations and pervade daily living.

When a child playing near a river fails to return home, it is whispered that she was swept away by an adzuki arai, or Bean Washer. When a man boarding a ship hears the ringing of an unseen insect, it is announced that a funadama (Boat Spirit) is present and so the auspicious harbinger of smooth seas and abundant catch is celebrated. Even something as innocuous as waking up to find your pillow at the foot of your bed is thought to be the trick of a makura gaeshi, otherwise known as a Pillow Turner. Nothing is as simple as it seems. Your neighbor isn’t merely an eccentric old woman—she might very well be a shape-shifting, grudge-harboring Water Sprite.

The Japanese examine life and living with the keenest eyes and the most vivid of imaginations. Thersa Matsuura has captured that essence in this darkly insightful collection illuminating the place where reality falters and slips into the strange and fantastical.

I also got Lark Rise to Candleford: A Trilogy by Flora Thompson. (I bought season 4 on DVD too, but this blog's about the books, lol.)

From Amazon:
Flora Thompson (1876-1947) wrote what may be the quintessential distillation of English country life at the turn of the twentieth century. In 1945, the three books - Lark Rise (1939), Over to Candleford (1941), and Candleford Green (1943), were published together in one elegant volume, and this new omnibus Nonpareil edition, complete with charming wood engravings, should be a cause for real rejoicing.

This is the story of three closely-related Oxfordshire communities -- a hamlet, a village, and a town -- and the memorable cast of characters who people them. Based on Thompson's own experiences as a child and young woman, it is keenly observed and beautifully narrated, quiet and evocative.

The books have inspired two plays that ran in London, and the trilogy has been adapted into a multi-part, long-running television drama series by the BBC. The first series of ten episodes is scheduled to be syndicated on various PBS stations throughout the Unites States.

And last but not least, I got Kate Quinn's new book, Daughters of Rome. I ADORED her first book, Mistress of Rome so I'm sure I'll love the prequel just as much.

From Amazon:
A.D. 69. The Roman Empire is up for the taking. The Year of Four Emperors will change everything-especially the lives of two sisters with a very personal stake in the outcome. Elegant and ambitious, Cornelia embodies the essence of the perfect Roman wife. She lives to one day see her loyal husband as Emperor. Her sister Marcella is more aloof, content to witness history rather than make it. But when a bloody coup turns their world upside-down, both women must maneuver carefully just to stay alive. As Cornelia tries to pick up the pieces of her shattered dreams, Marcella discovers a hidden talent for influencing the most powerful men in Rome. In the end, though, there can only be one Emperor...and one Empress.

So that's what's new in my book world. What's new in yours? 

This Just In!! (Part 2)

It's always sooooo exciting to get new books in the mail. Today, the lovely UPS man left a largish package at my door and this is what I found in inside:

First, The Maze Runner by James Dashner. I ordered this for a group read in one of my Goodreads groups, Wild Things: YA Grown-Up. Of the two books selected for this month's read, I selected Dashner's Maze Runner because...well, let's be honest. I picked this one because a writer friend of mine got to meet Mr Dashner and pick his brain. I know that's a rather superficial reason but there it is. Oh, the blurb sounds interesting, too. ;o) 

From the flap: 

When Thomas wakes up in the lift, the only thing he can remember is his first name. He has no recollection of his parents, his home, or how he got where he is. His memory is blank.

But he’s not alone. When the lift’s doors open, Thomas finds himself surrounded by kids who welcome him to the Glade, a large expanse enclosed by stone walls.

Just like Thomas, the Gladers don’t know why or how they got to the Glade. All they know is that every morning, for as long as they could remember, the stone doors to the maze that surrounds them have opened. Every night, they’ve closed tight. Every thirty days a new boy is delivered in the lift. And no one wants to be stuck in the maze after dark.

The Gladers were expecting Thomas’s arrival. But the next day, a girl springs up—the first girl ever to arrive in the Glade. And more surprising yet is the message she delivers. The Gladers have always been convinced that if they can solve the maze that surrounds the Glade, they might be able to find their way home . . . wherever that may be. But it’s looking more and more as if the maze is unsolvable.

And something about the girl’s arrival is starting to make Thomas feel different. Something is telling him that he just might have some answers—if he can only find a way to retrieve the dark secrets locked within his own mind.

The second book is The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins. I have heard much praise of this YA novel but I am still slightly leery. Some have said it is rather violent, especially for a YA book. I will give this first in the series a shot, however.

From the flap:

Could you survive on your own, in the wild, with every one out to make sure you don't live to see the morning?

In the ruins of a place once known as North America lies the nation of Panem, a shining Capitol surrounded by twelve outlying districts. The Capitol is harsh and cruel and keeps the districts in line by forcing them all to send one boy and one girl between the ages of twelve and eighteen to participate in the annual Hunger Games, a fight to the death on live TV.

Sixteen-year-old Katniss Everdeen, who lives alone with her mother and younger sister, regards it as a death sentence when she steps forward to take her sister's place in the Games. But Katniss has been close to dead before—and survival, for her, is second nature. Without really meaning to, she becomes a contender. But if she is to win, she will have to start making choices that will weigh survival against humanity and life against love.

Third in the stack is probably only of interest to a few but it holds a world of fascination for me. The Intolerable Hulks by Charles Campbell is about shipboard confinement in Britain, 1776-1857. I have a Regency WIP (work-in-progress) that revolves around the hulks of the time.

From the back:

From the time of Queen Anne's reign until the American Revolution, Great Britain followed the practice of transporting as many as a thousand convicts each year to Maryland and Virginia. "Out of sight, out of mind" was an apt adage for this policy. It was a policy that worked well enough until 1776, when the rebellious North American colonies declared their independence and closed their ports to reception of British prison ships. A crisis for the British criminal justice system ensued, leading to a policy of converting old merchantman and, later, deactivated naval vessels, into floating prisons. Thus began the era of the Hulks, a "temporary expedient" that lasted for eighty years. Hardly less feared by the British criminal class than were the gallows, assignment to these deplorable dungeons at anchor became a dreaded purgatory, to be endured for months—sometimes even years—by prisoners destined for eventual transportation to Australia.

This Just In!!

I received three new books in the mail today. The best part about these books is the fact that each of these authors is a goodreads author. I'm excited to support my fellow goodreads authors!

1. Mr Malcolm's List by Suzanne Allain. I have enjoyed the quirkiness of the author in her blog and on goodreads so I'm sure to enjoy her take on the Regency era. With influences like Jane Austen and Georgette Heyer, how can I not?

The blurb (as taken from goodreads):

The Honorable Mr. Malcolm has a secret. This elusive matrimonial prize, long the target of desperate debutantes and their matchmaking mothers, is well known for his fastidiousness. What is not well known is that he has a list of qualifications for his future bride.

Can any woman hope to win the heart of such a hardened critic? Selina Dalton can only try her best. And when she begins to succeed, Jeremy Malcolm is not sure whether he has discovered the perfect woman...

Or the perfect hoax.

2. The Importance of Almack's by Denise Patrick. I've wanted to read this ever since I read a particular review on Amazon. The reviewer was upset that this story lacks graphic love scenes. I immediately added it to my wishlist. It's so hard to find clean romance from current authors!

The blurb (as taken from goodreads):

Banished and disowned for saving a stranger's life...

In Regency England, lineage and vouchers to Almack's are everything, but Pamela Clarkdale has neither. After her father casts her out, she considers herself fortunate to have obtained a position as a companion to an elderly widow.

Kitt Covington has sworn off Almack's and marriage. Why attend one when he has no interest in the other? Guilt, however, is a powerful motivator. Knowing he caused Pamela to be thrown out of her home, he proposes a sham betrothal between them to ease his conscience.

Kitt's offer is tempting and Pamela agrees, with the caveat that the betrothal will disappear at the end of the season. But not only is Pamela refused vouchers to Almack's, her family is scheming to destroy her to protect a secret she doesn't realize she knows. When the twenty-year-old web of lies and deceit begins to unravel, will Pamela and Kitt discover that Almack's isn't really that important after all?

3. Mistress of Rome by Kate Quinn. This book promises excitement, adventure, passion, and intrigue in ancient Rome. I am also warned that it can be quite graphic in these areas. Still, I'm looking forward to the read.

This book's official release date was April 6. Amazon shipped me a copy on the 5th and it arrived today, the 7th. How's that for competence? Yeah, Amazon and the USPS!!

The blurb (as taken from goodreads):

First century Rome: a world of depravity, blood, and secrets. The enigmatic Emperor Domitian watches over all, fearing murder from every side . . . except from the woman who fascinates him most.

Thea is a slave girl from Judaea; musical, wary, and passionate. Purchased as a toy for the spiteful heiress Lepida Pollia, Thea and her mistress will become rivals for the love of Arius the Barbarian, Rome’s newest and most savage gladiator. His love brings Thea the first happiness of her life – quickly ended when a jealous Lepida tears them apart.

As Lepida goes on to wreak havoc in the life of a new husband and his family, Thea remakes herself as a polished singer for Rome’s aristocrats. Unwittingly, she attracts another admirer in the charismatic Emperor of Rome. But Domitian’s games have a darker side, and Thea finds herself fighting for both soul and sanity. Many have tried to destroy the Emperor: a vengeful gladiator, an upright senator, a tormented soldier, a streetwise child, a Vestal Virgin. But in the end, the life of the brilliant and ruthless Domitian lies in the hands of one woman: a slave girl who has come to be called the Mistress of Rome . . .

Based on the life and death of one of Rome’s most depraved Emperors.