In New York Times bestselling author Jennifer McQuiston's enticing new Seduction Diaries entry, a mysterious journal may provide a potential spinster with instruction—or lead her to her heart's desire

Free-spirited Lucy Westmore isn't yet a spinster, although she fully intends to be. Fortunately, an eccentric aunt has left her both a diary detailing the secrets to spinsterhood and a cottage in Cornwall. Unfortunately, an insufferable marquess is angling for her prize! Turning Lord Thomas Branston down flat should be easy. So why does this man who won't take no for an answer make Lucy's body and soul sigh yes?

Thomas knows the real value of Heathmore Cottage, and he has no intention of letting some silly Society miss get her hands on it. He'll simply have to charm Lucy into selling. But the clever young woman he encounters, first in London, then en route to Cornwall, stands stubbornly on her own two (quite lovely) feet. And now, Thomas can think only of sweeping her off them.

He nodded stiffly. “Good night, Miss Channing. Sleep well.” As the door closed and he heard the sound of the key in the lock, he leaned his forehead against the door, trying to wrestle his emotions under control. He’d long imagined they would be a combustible mix when they finally found a way to do more than spar, and tonight had proven his suspicions true. What were they doing, pursuing this strange, dangerous folly?

It's amazing what insomnia can do for your reading. I finished this book at 1 am.

This is the story of Clare, a shallow, immature, snobbish, spoiled viscount's daughter and Daniel, a doctor who should have stayed the hell away from her and her awful family. That wouldn't be much of a romance, but it would've made a lot more sense. The big conflict was the difference in class between Clare and Daniel, with a little racism thrown in (Daniel is half Roma, but the term Gyspy is thrown around a lot). Daniel was just too perfect, and all the women wanted to be bed by him! - I hate that characterization. Daniel was being a doctor and aspiring inventor (his invention was a medical device for regulating chloroform in gaseous forms for surgeries).

All the side characters were just awful: Clare's father leaves his family for long lengths of time every day; Clare's mother is an alcoholic and spends her days in a booze fueled shopping sprees; Lucy and Geoffrey are Clare's younger siblings who must have been raised in zoos since they don't seem to have one iota of common sense or manners; Lady Sophie and Rose are Clare's society "friends" that turn the book into a re-hash of high school; and Lady Austerly, Daniel's patient who plays matchmaker to Clare and Daniel and was the only decent character in the book.

The plot line was decent but the characters sucked and the writing was too modern at times (the book is set in Victorian England).

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Read for BL-opoly

334 pages $4

Once COYER starts on the 17th, I will be reading mostly from the reading list I created. I am going to try my hardest to use the books from the list for my BL-oploy plays.

The base library starts its summer reading program on the 19th. The theme this year is Reading by Design, with STEM being the focus on weekly activities and books read at the various story times. The kids have their own accounts for this program. Son wants to read more beginner reader books (he will be a first grader at the end of August); daughter wants more fantasy and fairy tales retellings.

I want to regain my BL-opoly mojo get to $100 bank balance by the end of the month (a $32 increase). I seem to put the game on the back burner in May with RT con and the big read. I still need to read Diary of an Accidental Wallflower by Jennifer McQuiston, a BL-opoly book from the end of May.

There are a couple of books that I want to read that are not related to BL-opoly or COYER. Those books are to keep me progressing on the Pop Sugar Challenge. Not My Father's Son by Alan Cummings (prompt - family member term in the title), In the Midst of Life by Jennifer Worth (prompt - Interesting Woman), Bloom by Kelly Hampton (Pop Sugar prompt - by/about a person with a disability). 

I feel like it has been a long time since I did a Friday Reads post. I hope all my fellow US'ians have a safe holiday weekend. I hope my British neighbors have a safe bank holiday weekend. We got caught in a heat wave (in the 80s come afternoon time) so I broke out the kiddie pool; forecast states we have one more beautiful summer day, then the rain and lower temps are coming by the end of the weekend. I am spending most of my weekend with books and a long walk in the Thetford Forest with the family before the rain comes.

Here is what I hope to read over the weekend/the final week in May.

1. After the Storm by Linda Castillo

2. Her Last Breath by Linda Castillo 

3. Among the Wicked by Linda Castillo

      I picked these three books from the library. They're from the Kate Burkholder series (Amish police procedurals). I've wanted to try this series for a while now. These books are from later in the series.

4. Death by Tiara by Laura Levine

5. Egg Drop Dead by Laura Childs

6. Purl Up and Die by Maggie Sefton

        Another bunch from the library, this time in really cute cozy mystery flavor. The first is from the Jaine Austen series, and the name of the series was enough for me to take it off the shelf. I tried one book from Laura Childs before (from that tea shop mystery series) and DNF'ed it, so I don't have much expectation for this one (from the Cackleberry Club series). The last one's titled just made me laugh.

7. Nothing But Trouble by Susan May Warren

           Borrowed this one from OverDrive because I kept getting recommended it (OD has the first three books in the series). I'm at the 62% mark and really liking it; PJ is not one of those perfect model of a Christian, but she is a Christian with good intentions and a good heart. The writing is different from a lot of Christian fiction without being profane. I am looking forward to book two and three.

8. Diary of an Accidental Wallflower by Jennifer McQuinston

          My BL-opoly pick which makes it a priority. New to me author, but I loved the interviews she did for the Smart Podcast, Trashy Books podcast - she talked about her work at the CDC in general and her work in Africa dealing with Ebola outbreak specifically....along with her weekend job writing historical romances.