This is my favorite book of hers. The geography is correct about Pittsburgh. I loved it! I thoroughly enjoyed this book. It is fun and funny! I could not put it down and read it in two days (I had to sleep.) Mr. Darcy is in it and there are twists and turns that keep it lively and rollicking.

Flip gets a massage and is told to think of any book she wants. She tells the masseuse one book but thinks of Pride and Prejudice and ends up there where things go topsy-turvy. Now she must correct her mistake and she takes a visiting professor of Jane Austen with her, to help her talk sense into the characters back then. Add her ex-husband and his current girlfriend and what more could go wrong?

I enjoyed the characters both modern and Austen time. I loved the time travel. The story was so much fun! I also liked Flip's revenge. Could not have happened to a better man. Flip is funny and her interactions with Magnus are a delight. She's not sure whether to kill him or love him.

Let's just say this is a keeper so I don't ruin it for others.

Serefina was critical about males after being with her ex fiance Edward. Serefina had  grown up on a ship and had no sisters or brothers. Now that she was grown she had a few friends. One was Abby who was a chieftess to her clan and engaged to Duncan although her clan did not know that. Undine was another friend. Edward had gained control of Serefina’s business left to her by her father. Edward had almost bankrupted the business except for a cargo coming in that night. It was Serefina’s but didn’t have her name on it.

I don’t like time travel stories and this one kinda confused me so I read about one third of the story and just didn’t seem to get into the story. The story didn’t hold my attention so i stopped reading it.

I received an ARC of this story for an honest review.

I haven't done one of these posts in a while, but I figure I'd try to highlight some of the potential reads I'm looking forward to perusing in the coming weeks/months as I've been approved for them on NetGalley.  Granted, I think I might do something a bit differently than what I've been doing in the past because at one point, this was just a showcase of covers and just the mention of the titles and such that I'm going to read.

 

But I want to be a little more involved than that.  Maybe add some commentary?  Tell people why I requested it?  Feature the premise and react to it?  There are probably a number of things that I can do, but I'm going to limit the list to ten, and then maybe to give myself a bit more of a goal, give an ETA of when exactly I'll be reading them.  That should also give a gauge when I'll be posting a review for them.

 

Part of the reason for this is because I have so many ARCs now it's something I want to start paring down and set a goal to get somewhere close to 100% (Right now, that's kind of a far cry and not something I'll be able to accomplish by the end of the year, but I do read fast - I mentioned I can read a 250 page book in an hour and a half or two, but that's if I'm focused and I'm not dead tired by the end of the day from doing other things - like the day job, like writing on my WIPs - which I'm still trying to get just one project finished despite the three I planned for this year, like marathoning shows on Netflix or Hulu - heh. :) )  I mean, I'll be very lucky to get close to 70% by the end of the year.  I don't know if it'll happen, but I can do my best.  And I've got NaNoWriMo to think about in the scheme of that.

 

That said, here's the haul for this week's ten featured titles, 7 of them are newer approvals, and the rest are ones that have been archived for a while - I think I might keep to that system.  So as to not clutter up anyone's feed, I'll do this once a week. However many books I finish in a week will vary (some weeks I finish a book or two a day on average, some I'm lucky just to get a book or two in for the week if I'm listening to them on audio).

 

 

 

Sounds Like Me: My Life (So Far) In Song by Sara Bareilles

Publisher: Simon and Schuester

Release Date: October 6th, 2015

Rose's Read Date: Week of September 14th

 

I love Sara Bareilles.  I think I knew from the moment I heard her album "Little Voice" that it would be one that made an impact (and later my sister told me "How the heck do you know/hear this stuff so far ahead of time?"  Comes with being somewhat passionate about media in general, whether it's books, movies, music or otherwise.)  I attended my first concert of hers last year just before my 30th birthday during her Little Black Dress tour. (Best birthday present ever!)  So I'm definitely interested in hearing about her musical journey and life thus far.  I'm not sure what to expect, but then again, she's full of surprises, and a fun personality at that. :)

 

When snobbish book critic Ellery Sharpe screws up at Vanity Place magazine, her boss assigns her the ultimate punishment: write an ode to romance novels, a genre she considers the literary equivalent of word search puzzles. To make matters worse, he hires her former party-boy ex, Axel Mackenzie, to shoot the photos. Axel knows the magazine will double his fee if he convinces strong-willed Ellery to make the story positive. But getting Ellery to fall for romance novels might be just the push she needs to believe people can change . . . even him. At his sister's advice, Axel gives Ellery a copy of Kiltlander, a much-adored romance whose warrior hero is utterly irresistible. To her dismay, Ellery finds herself secretly falling in love with the story -- and with Axel, who's drawing his own lessons from the book's compelling hero. With her carefully crafted image crumbling and her dream job on the line, will Ellery risk it all to make the leap from tight-lipped literati to happily-ever-after heroine?

 

What a fun book. Ellery is the book critic we all love to hate - the one who puts down romance novels and those who read them. At the start of the book, she has written a scathing review of the memoir of a romance publisher. Unknown to her, her boss is sleeping with said romance publisher and he is not happy with what she wrote, as it has put him in an awkward spot with his lover. He decides that the only way to fix it is to have Ellery write another story, this one from the other side of the issue. 

 

Ellery is not happy about this assignment. She had other plans for her next article, one that would put her on the top of the list for a new job. This one is liable to make her a laughingstock in the business. To top it all off, her boss has assigned Ellery's ex as the photographer for the job. Alex really needs this job to work out. If he can get Ellery to do the job right, he'll get a bonus that will enable him to make a move into his own dream job. So he gets some advice from his sister and a bookstore clerk on books that will convert Ellery to a romance lover.

 

This is where it really gets fun. The books he picks are a Regency style historical romance, a Twilight style vampire novel published by the maligned memoir writer, and a wildly popular book called Kiltlander. Ellery starts out with her nose stuck firmly in the air, but thanks to Axel and some location work, her opinion slowly begins to change. Axel also takes the opportunity to show Ellery that their feelings for each other are still there. There are some flashbacks to their previous relationship, showing what was right and what eventually went wrong. Parts of the story told from Axel's point of view show that he's changed and wants another chance with her.

 

Their trip starts with a visit to a bar set up like a location from the vampire novel. Ellery has read some of it with her prejudices still firmly in place. Thanks to a little too much to drink, she finds herself slipping into the story, and behaving in a very uncharacteristic manner. Ellery's inhibitions get crushed by the alcohol and a need to show Axel that she can still have fun. I loved seeing Axel try to take care of her while at the same time trying to make his own dream come true. The attraction between them starts to flare back to life, but Ellery resists.

 

From there, they travel to London, setting of the historical romance. Ellery has read some of this one also, and surprises herself when she begins to enjoy it. They hit up some of the locations, one of which brings up some dark memories for Ellery. She's stunned by the depth of the emotions it has brought forth, and Axel's attempts to comfort her. There are some guilty feelings that also come out, having to do with something from their past, and she has to decide how to deal with them. There's a really funny scene in the hotel room as she and Axel "discuss" some of the descriptions of lovemaking in the book. That evening she has a meeting with a romance book club, another eye opening experience for her attitude toward romances. Kiltlander is the book under discussion, and the similarities to Outlander are obvious. I loved seeing Ellery's responses to the things she's reading and hearing, but she's still fighting hard to keep her original attitude. It is here that Ellery's future and Axel's past collide, in the person of Ellery's competition for the new job. Axel's feelings being what they are, he tries to protect Ellery, and ends up getting himself into trouble with her because of it.

 

Their final destination is Scotland, to speak with a sociologist about romance novels. This lady also lives near one of the iconic locations for Kiltlander, giving Axel and Ellery more chances to connect with the story. Her conversation with the sociologist batters away at her prejudices. In spite of her growing appreciation for romances, Ellery is still fighting against writing the required article because of the effect it could have on her job opportunity. Her attempt at a compromise article is a disaster and causes problems with her boss, Axel and the potential new boss. I loved seeing how Ellery finally sees the light and what she does about it.

 

I loved the resurrection of the relationship between Axel and Ellery. Through the flashbacks we saw that they were not really ready for the strength of their feelings. Axel is older than Ellery and set in his bachelor party animal ways. He cares for her, but he's not prepared to change his lifestyle. Ellery is still fairly young and idealistic. She has her plans for her future and wants Axel to be part of it. But something happens that shows her that maybe he doesn't feel the same way and she starts to pull away, eventually breaking off the relationship. Six years later, forced to work together, they will also have to face their pasts. Axel has had a life changing event that shows him that it is time to make major changes. He knows what he wants them to be, he just has to find a way to make it happen. His work with Ellery could be part of it. He also wants Ellery back in his life, but he's not sure how to make it happen. I loved seeing him reading the romances and trying to use the heroes as role models, though he is also confused by some of the things he sees as contradictions. It looks like he's making good progress until something happens that makes him question whether he knows her at all. Ellery is fighting her feelings for Axel from the beginning. The attraction is still there, but she doesn't want to risk her heart again. She isn't convinced that he has changed. But the more time they are together, the more she wants to give in. She starts to think that she hadn't been fair to him all those years ago, and when he steps up to help her with a problem with her sister, she finally admits her feelings. I loved the ending and how everything worked out for them.

I received a digital copy in exchange for an honest review from Sourcebooks Casablanca.

Dude, how flipping hot is this cover? Seriously. The cover is the first thing that bought me when I came across Just in Time- I'd totally buy a poster of this cover. Its hot!
That being said, you can't take this book seriously at all. Its effin hilarious. I felt it was more like a comedic romance than anything else because the entire thing felt like it was a long written joke with quite a few stomach punch giggle scenes, snorts and grunts included for its reader.
Although much of it wasn't quite believable I decided not to look too deeply into the whys and hows and just went with it instead and rather enjoyed it for the simple entertainment of it.
Many of the characters have quite of bit of personality that allow them to stand out as strong willed individuals even without the others to accompany them. Just in Time for a Highlander is a fun read I enjoyed all the way through.