Hands up if you, like me, are a bird fan? I haven’t always been as enamoured of our feathered friends. But when my daughter took a liking to birds I somewhat overcame my fear of them and now I love watching them. We often see chickadees, nuthatches, house finches, and sparrows at our feeders. We also get juncos, flickers, woodpeckers, and bluejays, depending on the seasons. Robins in the spring. Partridges year round. The occasional hummingbird flits through too. And the other night we heard an owl in the park area by our house.
There is something very calming about watching the birds. I read somewhere that watching or even hearing a bird can improve your mental health for hours. And it just so happens that my province of Saskatchewan is home to an exceptional number of birds. Whether birds live here seasonally, year round or migrate through the province, Saskatchewan is an excellent choice for a birdwatching holiday.
Saskatchewan Birding Tips from Living Sky Wildlife Rehabilitation organization. You can get advice, book tours and find out what birds are where.
Newly-divorced, almost-empty-nester Celeste is finally seeking adventure and putting herself first, cliches be damned. So when a friend asks Celeste to “partner” with his buddy John for an event, Celeste throws herself into the role of his temporary girlfriend. But quiet cinnamon roll John isn’t looking for love, just birds—he needs a partner for Tucson’s biggest bird-watching contest if he’s ever going to launch his own guiding business. By the time they untangle their crossed signals, they’ve become teammates…and thanks to his meddling friends, a fake couple.
Celeste can’t tell a sparrow from a swallow, but John is a great teacher, and the hours they spend hiking in the Arizona wilderness feed Celeste’s hunger for new adventures while giving John a chance to practice his dream job. As the two spend more time together, they end up watching more than just the birds, and their chemistry becomes undeniable. Since they’re both committed to the single life, Celeste suggests a status upgrade: birders with benefits, just until the contest is done. But as the bird count goes up and their time together ticks down, John and Celeste will have to decide if their benefits can last a lifetime, or if this love affair is for the birds.
Thoughts:
This fake relationship book is a lovely read. And also pretty steamy! I love books were characters’ passions are forefront. That is certainly the case in this book. Birds, birdwatching, and the benefits of it play a large role. Also refreshing, were the ages of the characters. They both are 40ish and starting the next chapter in their lives. Celeste is recently divorced and her daughter is leaving for collage and John, who recently lost his job is at a fork in the road. When they end up as a team in a birding competition, they become friends then lovers but with an expiry date. I did feel like there was a lot of repeating the same internal dialogue, especially with Celeste’s character. But despite this, their path to together is paved with entertaining antics and heartfelt experiences.
I have read a lot of romances in the last several months. A lot. And just like romances do, they helped me through a stressful time. They were an escape from the everyday. They gave me something else to concentrate on instead of worrying. They gave me hope.
These stories did have one thing in common, they were all contemporary romances. My favourites had another thing in common, they all entertained me. I read a lot of sports romances. Who am I even? I loved plenty of plus size heroine romances. These body loving heroines were a shining light. Some of them made me laugh out loud, and they all tugged at my heartstrings. But not too forcefully, which was good because my heartstrings were fragile.
And they gifted me with something else, they helped fill my creative well. The authors’ use of dialogue inspired me. As did their way of turning a setting into a colourful character. The way they worked all the emotion they could into a scene. The creative use of secondary characters. Their description of characters’ careers and how they used the work they did to serve the story. Sometimes in big ways and sometimes in small ones.
So, book recommendation time!
Here are four favourites the come to mind, but I had many.
How is Rose Barnes supposed to build the home (and life) of her dreams when her big, burly contractor keeps scowling at her?
Rose Barnes has got curves for days—and to Angus Drummond, the big, bearded contractor working on her new house, she’s the perfect thorn in his side. Little does she know Angus is perturbed on a daily basis by his attraction to this cheery, smart-ass woman with her sunshiny enthusiasm, her kindness, and her beautiful body.
Angus feels he has a debt to pay to the world and doesn’t deserve love until he pays it. Best to keep his mind on his work and his hands to himself. But the more Rose sees of Angus’s gruff, honorable thoughtfulness, and the more rusty laughter she surprises from him, the more she wants him too.
As their unlikely friendship becomes love, antagonism turns to partnership, and Rose’s house becomes a home. But Rose is keeping a secret that could blow up everything with Angus, and sure enough, it comes to light at the worst possible time…
I love a great plus size heroine. And I mean plus size, and not a size 10. Because, pfff! Also, people of all sizes and body shapes deserve love and adoration. Of course, there is plenty of conflict. Characters will always need to find a better way to navigate the world and improve their circumstances. What’s a book without conflict. Or goals. But they do it without losing weight. Storylines centring around weight loss makeovers are boring.
Curves for Days is far from boring! It’s heartwarming, sexy, and funny, while also tugging on your heartstrings. Rose is keeping a big secret. Because, reasons. So, when she arrives in a new town, Galway, and it strikes a cord with her, she decides to stay and start her life over. Angus would just as soon not have anything to do with Rose. He huffs and he puffs at her but he doesn’t scare her away. Worse, he’s starting to like everything about her.
But what is it Buddha said? Three things can’t remind hidden: the sun, the moon, and the truth. Then it’s up to Rose and Angus to decide if their relationship is worth saving.
A steamy read. Definitely recommend! I just finished reading her second book in the series, What She’s Having, and I loved it.
Those Three Little Words by Meghan Quinn (Book 2 in The Vancouver Agitators Series)
I knocked up my best friend’s sister.
Figured I would get straight to the point, because how it happened is a mere snippet of the story I have to tell. The real meat and potatoes is what happened after.
Let’s start with how she decided to inform me and Pacey the news…together. Imagine that nightmare. I was going into what I thought was a hockey marketing meeting, and then bam! I’m going to be a dad and my best friend/teammate is attempting to imprint my face with his fist.
It wasn’t pretty.
Threats were tossed around, friendships were revoked, and then I was marched up to her apartment, suitcases in hand, and forced to live with her so I could take care of her every need. Given how much I’ve pined for the girl, you would think that wouldn’t be a hardship. Wrong.
This is my one shot to win my teammate back. Pacey is the only family I’ve got, so hooking up with his sister isn’t a mistake I can make twice…despite the fact that she’s pregnant with my child.
But with every mood swing, every pair of pants that doesn’t fit right, and every late night run to find the perfect donut, I’m finding it harder and harder not to fall for my best friend’s little sister.
Especially when she kisses me….
This book is ridiculous. In the best way. As is the whole series. I laughed out loud. In the darkest hours of last winter, I laughed. Something I was very grateful for. Those Three Little Words is sooo funny, it’s also emotional and it’s hot. It’s also Eli’s meddling teammates. Love them and their group chats. It’s Penny. Penny is a one of a kind character, and the antics she puts Eli through? Priceless. I actually ended up feeling kind of sorry for him…when I wasn’t laughing.
I would rate this one as Spicy. Also, language warning. Definitely recommend!
Carter Beckett is the NHL’s best player—both on and off the ice. His career is at its peak, his friends are performing better than ever, and there’s no shortage of women to spend the night with. What more could he want?
Olivia Parker isn’t new to professional hockey players, thanks to her best friend’s boyfriend, but she has no interest in dating one herself—no matter how hot he is. And anyway, she loves working as a teacher and hanging out with her best friend, drama-free. Why would she want to spend her time stroking the ego of an arrogant athlete?
But once Carter meets Olivia, he can’t think of anything else. Too bad for him, Olivia is hellbent on keeping him at arm’s length, with no intention of giving into his charms. Perhaps it’s time for Carter to up his game…after all, nobody said he had to play fair.
Sparks will fly as Carter does whatever it takes for Olivia to consider him.
Consider Me is also ridiculously delicious. And so over the top, especially Carter Beckett’s character. He is…a lot. In a good luck Olivia you’re going to need the patience of saint kind of way. But I loved the heroine, Olivia, a high school PE teacher. She was the perfect foil for Carter as she had experience dealing with horny obnoxious teenagers. Thankfully, Carter’s character grows in a way that has him keeping the charm and losing the swarm. Also, the friend groups in both the hero and heroine’s life are strong and interesting and funny.
Definitely spicy. And definitely recommend giving this first book in the series a try.
Until her cocky best friend and his *ahem* rooster take charge.
Look, I’ve had it bad for the girl with all the curves next door forever. She turned me down in high school and since I’m not a total douchecanoe, I lusted after her all by myself in my shower, and we stayed just friends for years.
Now she’s the adorkable librarian next door and I’m the star quarterback of the best pro football team in the league. So when she asks me to be her fake date to her all-girls school reunion I am totally down to show her off to the mean girls who bullied her back then so they can see just how incredible she is. I’ll be the best boyfriend they’ve ever seen. The best fake boyfriend that is.
Until I find out from her slightly-stalkery classmates that she still has her v-card. I don’t see how that is even possible. Not with how sexy and sweet she is. Could it be because she knows she belongs with me?
It sounds like porn but it couldn’t be sweeter. Except for the sex which is definitely spicy. This book is excellent example of a hero who is a decent guy and a heroine who is confident and sassy and together they are developing a respectful and loving relationship. A lot of the conflict comes from outside the relationship. Not that The Cock Down the Block doesn’t touch on a some pretty serious topics like bullying and workplace harassment, it does. But in a respectful, lighter and often funny way.
Also, this was an audiobook for me and I LOVED the narrators: Stella Hunter and Christian Fox who did an excellent job!
So there you are, four contemporary romance book recommendations that are worth checking out.
March is proving true to character with one foot firmly planted in winter and the other flirting with spring. So wonderful to see the longer days, the return of the Canadian geese and the feel the promise of spring. On the Canadian prairies, spring doesn’t fully show her face until the end of April or beginning of May. But she’s on her way.
1970s, Red River Valley between North Dakota and Minnesota: Renee “Cash” Blackbear is 19 years old and tough as nails. She lives in Fargo, North Dakota, where she drives truck for local farmers, drinks beer, plays pool, and helps solve criminal investigations through the power of her visions. She has one friend, Sheriff Wheaton, her guardian, who helped her out of the broken foster care system.
One Saturday morning, Sheriff Wheaton is called to investigate a pile of rags in a field and finds the body of an Indian man. When Cash dreams about the dead man’s weathered house on the Red Lake Reservation, she knows that’s the place to start looking for answers. Together, Cash and Wheaton work to solve a murder that stretches across cultures in a rural community traumatized by racism, genocide, and oppression.
Thoughts:
First off I want to stress that this is not a cozy mystery. The content of this book deals with the harsh realities Native Americans faced in the 1970s and that makes for some hard reading. You will find racial slurs directed towards Native Americans and Vietnamese people. There is themes of alcoholism and past foster care abuse.
Renee ‘Cash’ Blackbear is one fierce heroine. At the young age of 19, she’s not intimidated by much. She lives a solitary life as a truck driver who spends her off time smoking, drinking and playing pool. Oh… and she also has visions about potential crimes.
There are really two parts to this story: the mystery; and Cash’s story. Marcie Rendon, a member of the White Earth Anishinabe Nation, does a masterful job of weaving these two stories together. Cash’s past experiences lend context to the present and her abilities lead her down a dangerous trail. Her writing is as vivid and it is unflinching. Definitely recommend.
It just so happens that Wednesday was #IReadCanadianDay. So, I’m extra happy to talk about Rachel Reid’s Time to Shine. Rachel Reid is one of my favourite authors and she hails from the lovely province of Nova Scotia.
For Landon Stackhouse, being called up from the Calgary farm team is exciting and terrifying, even if, as the backup goalie, he rarely leaves the bench. A quiet loner by nature, Landon knows he gives off strong “don’t talk to me” vibes. The only player who doesn’t seem to notice is Calgary’s superstar young winger, Casey Hicks.
Casey treats Landon like an old friend, even though they’ve only interacted briefly in the past. He’s endlessly charming and completely laid-back in a way that Landon absolutely can’t relate to. They couldn’t have less in common, but Landon needs a place to live that’s not a hotel room and Casey has just bought a massive house—and hates being alone.
As roommates, Casey refuses to be defeated by Landon’s one-word answers. As friends, Landon comes to notice a few things about Casey, like his wide, easy smile and sparkling green-blue eyes. Spending the holidays together only intensifies their bromance-turned-romance. But as the new year approaches, the countdown to the end of Landon’s time in Calgary is on.
Thoughts:
I love Rachel Reid’s Game Changers m/m hockey romance series! Even though I’m not much into the sports. Her two books featuring Shane and Ilya will find a place on my favourite couples’ list for the rest of time. But the rest of the books in the series are excellent, too.
Time to Shine is not part of the Game Changers series but does feature hockey players. It also takes place over Christmas and there are some Christmas vibes but it’s not the main focus of the story. It’s also sweeter than her Game Changer Books which are spicy. So, so spicy!
Landon and Casey are perfect for each other in an opposites attract kind of way. Casey is laidback goof with no filter and Landon is quiet and intense. Casey is a forward for the Calgary Outlaws (a fictional NHL type team). Landon plays goalie for the Outlaw’s farm team. Landon gets called up to play for the Outlaws when the backup goalie gets hurt. They become roommates.
But playing professional hockey isn’t the only thing these two are managing. Landon is still grieving the loss of a close family member, as well as battling anxiety. Casey is terrified of the dark and being alone in his giant house. They become friends. Each helping the other navigate family and their mental health challenges. Then they become more as they figure out how to be apart when the backup goalie returns and Landon goes back to Saskatoon.
It’s got such sweet vibe. It’s about finding your place and finding your people and being accepted for who you are, quirks and all. Definitely recommend.
Until next time…
Let me know some of your favourite Canadian authors!
October was one fun month with Thanksgiving, our grandson’s first birthday, and plenty of fresh air and outdoor work. And, of course, Halloween, where our grandchildren were dressed as the cutest little Jack Skellington and the most adorable dinosaur around.
Now we’re into November and, even though I’m resisting the coming of the winter months, there’s something about November that signals a slowing down. It’s time for comfy clothes, puzzles and cross stitch. But one of the things I’m most excited about is the start of Globe Theatre season.
The award-winning hit show, Blind Date, comes to Regina’s Globe Theatre after playing off-Broadway, in London’s West End, and all across Canada & the US!
When Mimi’s date for the evening fails to show up, she turns to the audience for someone willing to answer love’s call. What happens next is anybody’s guess, and different each night. This is theatre at its most thrilling, and you will want to see it again and again. Featuring international powerhouse actor and home-grown Saskatchewan talent – Tess Degenstein. Mimi is open to dates of any gender, on any night.
We had a lovely time at this show and I highly recommend it to anyone thinking about going. Tess Degenstein does an excellent job and I was in awe at the command she had of the show. She never knows she’s going to be going on a date with for the show. Her confidence, her timing and her ability to keep things moving while giving the audience plenty of laughs is commendable. In fact, I’m going again on Sunday because each show is different. It was modern and fresh and a joy to watch. Highly recommend.
Until next time…
Have a wonderful weekend! What are you looking forward to doing in November?
I don’t know about the rest of you, but it’s been hard to focus this week. Some many awful things happening in the world. So much suffering. But making a donation to the Red Cross made me feel proactive, like I was able to help in some small way. There are many trusted charities and aid organizations doing the hard work in places torn apart by war or natural disasters. If you are able, any amount helps.
Let’s take a bit of a breather and talk about books. Or one book, in particular. Sarah MacLean’s Knockout, Book 3 in her Hell’s Belles series. If I wasn’t a huge Sarah MacLean fan, I’d have picked this book up for the cover. Isn’t it gorgeous?
With her headful of wild curls and wilder ideas and an unabashed love of experiments and explosives, society has labeled Lady Imogen Loveless peculiar…and doesn’t know she’s one of the Hell’s Belles—a group of vigilantes operating outside the notice of most of London.
Thomas Peck is not most of London. The brilliant detective fought his way off the streets and into a promising career through sheer force of will and a keen ability to see things others miss, like the fact that Imogen isn’t peculiar…she’s pandemonium. If you ask him, she requires a keeper. When her powerful family discovers her late-night activities, they couldn’t agree more…and they know just the man for the task.
Thomas wants nothing to do with guarding Imogen. He is a grown man with a proper job and no time for the lady’s incendiary chaos, no matter how lushly it is packaged. But some assignments are too explosive to pass up, and the gruff detective is soon caught up in Imogen’s world, full of her bold smiles and burning secrets…and a fiery passion that threatens to consume them both.
Thoughts:
I have been waiting for Imogen and Tommy’s book and it did not disappoint. I loved it, as I’ve loved every book in Sarah MacLean’s Hell’s Belle series. An immersive story in a skilled writer’s hand is a grand thing and MacLean has plenty of skill in both storytelling and the writing craft. Imogen likes to blow things up. It’s Tommy’s job to maintain law and order. Too bad the Hell’s Belles are bent on making his life difficult, especially Imogen. Chaos ensues.
The book is a roller coaster. Part of the reason I love MacLean’s books is they read like a historical romantic suspense. And you all know, I love a good romantic suspense. Imogen and her gang are intent on helping women who have nowhere to turn in times of trouble and to keep one step ahead of those trying to stop them. MacLean’s ability to bring a modern perspective to the Regency era is a huge draw. She also brings big action, huge emotion and exquisite detail to this story. Definitely recommend.
Until next time…
Are you finding it hard to focus these days? What are you doing to stay focused? Or escape from it all?
I hope everyone survived Thanksgiving. Our fridge is full of leftovers. I tried a recipe for waffles that used leftover stuffing that was delicious. Definitely recommend trying one of the many recipes out there.
When Joanne Shreve’s former student, Val Masluk, writes the biography of acclaimed novelist Steven Brooks, Val once again becomes part of Joanne’s life. The biography is already raising troubling questions about Brooks’s past, and the wedding of Brooks’s daughter and Joanne’s son is scheduled for the day before the biography is published.
Both Joanne and her former student are haunted by memories of the seminar that led to the deaths of two people and the murder conviction of a third. The publication of the Brooks biography poses a threat not only to the future of the man and woman about to be married but also to the futures of those who love them. Joanne is certain that the threat is rooted in either her past or in that of Steven Brooks. The collateral damage caused by exposing that link will bring pain to both families, but life has taught Joanne that the only thing worse than knowing is not knowing.
Thoughts:
The Legacy by Gail Bowen is a mix of reflection and complex family dynamics. On the cusp of Joanne’s youngest son’s marriage, fans are treated to a look into what’s happening in Joanne and Zack’s personal life. One of the best things about the Joanne Kilbourn mystery series is Bowen’s ability to make Joanne a mature, three-dimensional woman with an active life full of all the activities usually associated with much younger protagonists. The Shreve family’s day to day is intertwined with a slow burn of a mystery involving their future daughter-in-law’s father. What follows is a complex web of past and present happenings that end in a page turning resolution. Definitely recommend.
Thank you to ECW Press and Netgalley for gifting me with an ARC.
Until next time…
What’s everyone reading these days now that the nights are longer and cooler?
For those of you who want the opposite of last week’s book recommendation. Follow the Swallow Home by Annette Bower falls solidly in the gentle romance genre.
Published: 2023 Soulmate Publishing
Categories: Contemporary Romance / Small Town Romance / Gentle Romance
Blurb:
At a crossroads, Keanna Dixon packs her car and hits the road. She stops in the small town of Regina Beach, where she pitches her tent after deciding to stay awhile. At twenty-five she’s ready to put down roots and this little town may be the perfect place to do it.
Keith Campbell, at thirty, is happy with his independent life. Computers are his playground, racquetball his sport, and his thoughts are not concerned about love or family. But with the unexpected responsibility of caring for his five-year-old deaf nephew, he finds himself on a ranch, because of a pony.
Keith knows all about apps and blogs, and he hopes his research will assist him in showing Keanna that he is her home.
My Thoughts:
The story revolves around Gerry, a young boy who has lost his hearing and who is grieving the loss of his father. When his mother is called back into service and sent overseas, his Uncle Keith steps in to look after him. He meets Keanna, who has experience within the deaf and hard of hearing community, when his nephew starts to feel overwhelmed and she offers to help them adjust to new circumstances.
The main characters, Keanna, Keith and Gerry are well developed and you really get to know who they are. Keanna and Keith have different approaches to solving challenges. But they listen to each other and they find a way to work together. The quaint resort town of Regina Beach is the perfect setting and a lovely look at life in a rural Saskatchewan. You are introduced to many examples of this as Keanna and Keith get to know each other.
Follow the Swallow Home fits perfectly into the gentle romance genre. You find tenderness in the timely arrival of a little teddy bear that gives Keanna someone to talk to as she searches for connection within the small town. You find it in sticky notes Keith places around their rooms to help his little nephew. You find it the baking of cakes, and the offering of apples to horses, and in all the little things this community does to take care of each other. It’s what you find within the pages of an Annette Bower book. Gentle stories about real people connecting with each other and their surroundings. Definitely recommend.
Until next time…
It’s the first day of fall! Who’s happy to see the season change? I’m definitely looking forward to slightly cooler temperatures.
I haven’t read many thrillers lately. But I was offered this ARC from Netgalley and St. Martin’s Press and because I’ve been in a bit of a reading slump I decided to mix it up.
*This isn’t my usual book recommendation. This is definitely a thriller/mystery. It involves an investigation into a teenager’s murder. So, if that’s not your thing…
Published: October 31, 2023 by St. Martin’s Press
Categories: Thriller / Suspense / Mystery
Blurb:
One girl murdered…another one missing…and a medical examiner desperate to uncover the truth in When I’m Dead, the latest Black Harbor mystery by acclaimed author Hannah Morrissey.
On a bone-chilling October night, Medical Examiner Rowan Winthorp investigates the death of her daughter’s best friend. Hours later, the tragedy hits even closer to home when she makes a devastating discovery—her daughter, Chloe, is gone. But, not without a trace.
A morbid mosaic of clues forces Rowan and her husband to question how deeply they really knew their daughter. As they work closely to peel back the layers of this case, they begin to unearth disturbing details about Chloe and her secret transgressions…details that threaten to tear them apart.
Amidst the noise of navigating her newfound grief and reconciling the sins of her past, an undeniable fact rings true for Rowan: karma has finally come to collect.
My Thoughts:
I was immediately absorbed by this atmospheric page turner. Holy Moley. Black Harbor reminds me of Gotham City. It has that kind of vibe. The story is told from three points of view: Rowan who’s the medical examiner; Axel, a homicide detective and Rowan’s husband; and Libby, the awkward teenager who lives next door.
The night of the high school play, a teenage girl is found murdered. Rowan and Axel are called to the scene only to find the victim is their daughter’s best friend. Things escalate when they realize their daughter is also missing. What follows is a desperate search along a twisted path for their daughter as well as answers to unexpected revelations that come to light.
This book never lets up. Rowan and Axel are thrown into crisis mode and become unreliable narrators of sorts. That’s where Libby comes in. You never know what’s up with her but her perspective gives you a different take on the action and gives you a break from the turmoil enveloping Rowan and Axel.
Overall, it’s a gripping thriller with lots of dark twists and turns. The setting sets the tone. The well done characterizations bring the drama. It’s the perfect book to read come October 31st. Definitely check it out if it’s your jam.
Until next time…
What is it about fall that makes you want to read something a little more atmospheric?
I’ve actually been in a reading slump lately and I can’t seem to find my way out of it. I don’t think it’s so much the books as it is my ability to concentrate. That’s because the writing is going well and when that happens I don’t really have room in my head for anyone else’s story but mine. Which is a could thing. That’s part of my process. I’ll likely switch from reading romance to something entirely different. Until then I did watch some movie adaptions of romance books in August.
Happiness for Beginners by Katherine Center. I LOVED this book, which means, you guessed it, I did not love the movie. I liked the movie. But compared to the book, it’s just okay. Of course, there was no way to bring all the book had to the screen but they tried. It’s a nice, easy watch. You can find it on Netflix. But definitely pick up a Katherine Center book if you haven’t already. She’s my new auto buy author.
Red, White and Royal Blue by Casey McQuinston. Another very popular book. I knew Amazon Prime was making the movie so I decided to read the book first. Confession: I didn’t finish it. Not because it wasn’t a great book but because it’s very much got a new adult feel to it and that’s just not my jam. But I enjoyed the movie version. Definitely check it out, if you’re interested.
Beautiful Disaster by Jamie McGuire. So…another new adult story. I didn’t bother trying to read the book this time. Also, I remember when it came out in 2011, some had problems with the nature of the main characters’ relationship.Travis was a real jerk and Abby kept forgiving his bad behaviour. I’ve read that the movie version makes significant changes that improve their relationship’s dynamic. I have to say, it worked. I really enjoyed it. Out of the three movies I’ve listed, it’s my favourite when I expected the opposite. Both the main actors did a great job. It was funny. Sometimes, cringingly. But it had some serious moments too. I would recommend it. Amazon Prime.
Here’s to romance book movie adaptions! We need more of them while we wait impatiently for Bridgerton Season 3.
Until next time…
What’s everyone else been watching? I need recommendations!
