I read Dear Mr. Knightley by Katherine Reay for the Jane Austen card. It seemed appropriate since the book has quite a few Jane Austen references (including the name itself). The book is a romance.

Oft expectation fails, and most oft there where most it promises."
William Shakespeare, All's Well That Ends Well.

I had really high hopes for this book, it started out as a promising mystery. Set in a charming Shakespearean-themed village, it had a great plot; an odious and unpleasant theater critic is murdered (always enjoyable when that happens!) and lots of suspects to muddy the waters. It really kept me guessing (and turning pages) and I didn't suspect the murderer at all.

But that's pretty much all the book has going for it. I really wish I could've rated this higher than 2 stars because the plot was a lot better than 2 stars but it came down to the unlikable characters. I thought Nick was an obnoxious bull's pizzle (Thank the bard himself for that one!) and Maggie's not much better. I really wanted more out of her character - she had a lot of potential in her back story but ended up a two-dimensional chatterbox with poor judgment skills.

Sigh.

The Return by Erin Knightley, Foreword by James Patterson is a very quick read, perfect for those with limited time for reading.  Ms Knightley has delivered a well written book.  Mack and Ashley's story is a fast paced read that held my attention from start to finish.  I adore the characters Ms Knightley has penned for this story.  Add in the drama, humor and sizzle and you have yourself an entertaining, enjoyable read.  I enjoyed reading The Return and look forward to reading more from Erin Knightley in the future.  The Return is book 2 of the Sunnybell Series but can easily be read as a standalone.  This is a complete book, not a cliff-hanger.

When the real world becomes too much, or if the real world starts taking things that you love away from you what do you do? Fight against it? Go with the flow? Or would you retreat and hid in a shell? Sometimes it helps when you’re down to have someone there to talk to. To be able to release some of the tension that builds up from too much stress. For some there just isn’t anybody to talk to, like Samantha Moore in the book “Dear. Mr. Knightley” who didn’t have anybody to talk to. No family, hardly any friends, except her fictional characters from her favorite Jane Austin, Charles Dickens books. To Samantha, Elizabeth Bennett, Emma Woodhouse and Fitzwilliam Darcy (or Mr. Darcy) they were her heroes. These characters that have faced tough times in a tough world always had something to say, some type of advice that became the voice for Samantha. But it gets kind of boring when the conversation is one sided.

So when an opportunity of a life-time comes along to go to one of the greatest Journalism colleges with Full Tuition all paid for with one perk: write letters to the anonymous benefactor who calls himself “Mr. Knightley” about Samantha’s progress. To be honest, Samantha was quite skeptical about writing letters to a complete stranger plus she is to never receive letters back. At the start, Samantha almost doesn’t go through with it. But once she found that writing to someone, voicing her days and progresses in school, actually helps her release her tension about school and about life as well seems to bring her out of her shell and be able to face the real world with her OWN voice. Not Elizabeth Bennett’s voice or Mr. Darcy’s voice speaking for her, for this time she’s speaking from her own experience, her own voice and Samantha has found that her voice has something special to say to those around her.

Only question is, is the world ready to hear Samantha’s voice?

A wonderful story about a young woman who all her life lived through tragedy found comfort in her books and stayed hidden for so long she forgot how it feels and mean to live in the real world until an unknown benefactor helps her find her voice through actual letters. Not email, not instant text messages, not even Facebook was what she needed. The actual form of writing letters, mailing them day after day is what helped Samantha come out of her shell. When I was little, my hero at that time was my big brother, Rich. He was always ready for whatever the world tossed at him and always curious of what the world could offer him. He was super excited that his little sister was just as curious as he was, so what does a big brother to do? Send advice, give encouragement and since he lives in another state, letters is how we stayed connected. And we still do to this day. A little Postcard, or a quick letter here or there and that’s how we helped each other get through the hardships that life brought us. If you find that someone who could help you, or haven’t seen/talked to for a while, write a letter to them. You never know, they (or even you) might be living like Samantha Moore, hiding in their shell. You never know. Check out “Dear Mr. Knightley” at your local library.

Learning to Ride - Erin Knightley,James ...

This was a really fun and quick read. Madeline was a great character that I could easily relate to. She's career driven and love is the furthest thing from her mind. She's in town for one reason only, to make the deal that will send her back to the big city and cement her promotion into her dream job. But this little town seems to like having her around.

Before she knows it, she's in a reading group, making friends, and has caught the eye of the town's most eligible bachelor, Tanner Callen. Tanner isn't looking for love either, and when he runs into Madeline the first time he's just looking for a good time. His reaction to finding out she was going to be in town for more than a vacation was priceless.

I think one of the things I enjoyed most was the depth of emotion that both characters felt. It was all so genuine and real that it really made both of them pop off the pages and come to life. It showed in every page and their interactions were incredible. And their interactions weren't all sexual in nature, but each one highlighted the sexual tension between them.

This was actually a pretty tame romance in terms of sexual context, but it didn't skimp on the chemistry. A great quick read that lived up to its expectations.

*This book was received in exchange for an honest review*