Serendipitous Stop-In

Yesterday I had to run errands, a couple of which took me to my old neighbourhood.
I rarely ever go pass the Goodwill without stopping in to see what the had available in the book section and yesterday was no exception.

Talk about lucking out! Even though I haven’t been in a romance reading mood for awhile now, and I rarely read category romances, I pounced on the treasure trove of old--originals not re-issues--series romances from as far back as 1984 (at least for the books I eventually settled on). Looks like someone cleared out their collection. I can't find the camera, the boy took it, or I would've post pics of the books with the original artwork.)

I grabbed all the Linda Howards that I either don't already own or haven't read yet:

The Cutting Edge



Tessa Conway, top accountant at Carter Engineering, is also Brett Rutland's top suspect as he tries to solve a case of internal embezzlement while resisting Conway's indisputable charms.

Come Lie With Me



When Blake Remington temporarily loses the ability to walk, he loses his will to live as well, until Dione Kelly, a woman with a broken soul, arrives to heal both him and herself

White Lies




Nothing could have prepared Jay Granger for the arrival of two FBI agents at her door -- or for the news they brought. Her ex-husband, Steve, had been in a terrible accident that had left him gravely injured. The FBI needed Jay to confirm his identity.
The man Jay finds lying in the hospital bed is almost unrecognizable. Almost. Exhausted and afraid, Jay tentatively declares that he is Steve Crossfield. But the man who awakens from the coma is not at all as Jay remembers her husband. And he remembers nothing of their life together. Suddenly nothing is familiar. Not his appearance, not the intensity of his nature, not the desire that flashes between them. Who is this man? And will the discovery of his identity shatter the passion they share?


I also picked out There and Now by Linda Lael Miller because I haven’t read a time travel in awhile.

Seeking refuge from the pain in her life, Elisabeth McCartney returns to her centuries-old family home, where she suddenly is whisked back in time to the Victorian era and into the arms of the handsome Jonathan




And this Superromance, Blossoms In The Snow:


GUILT WOULD NOT LET HER LOVE

When Laura Adams was offered a teaching job in Japan, she snapped it up -- just what she needed, a new horizon.

Little did she know she would soon meet Geoffrey McDermott, the man who had falsely married and then deserted her sister, Lisa. When she died, Laura was left to raise the son he knew nothing--and cared nothing--about.

Laura had been prepared to hate him. Yet the more she knew him, the less she believed this strong, sensitive man could have been so deceptive. If Lisa were alive, surely she would forgive her for wanting him so much. If only I aura could forgive herself.

The one thing that struck me Superromances were that setting and set-ups were more varied than a lot of the blurbs I run across today. Unfortunately, given I’m not in a romancey mood, a lot of the writing in the other Supers just didn’t appeal to me. Hmm… maybe I should amend that to say I’m not in a romancey language/standard characters, etc, mood.


Lastly, I picked up Julie Garwood’s The Prize. (Yes, yes, this might be as romancey as I could get, but the writing didn’t seem overblown, besides, I’m almost sure this title frequently pops up as a favourite by many readers. Now's my chance to make my own judgement.)


In the resplendence of William the Conqueror's London court, the lovely Saxon captive, Nicholaa was forced to choose a husband from the assembled Norman nobles. She chose Royce, a baron warrior whose fierce demeanor could not conceal his chivalrous and tender heart. Resourceful, rebellious and utterly naive, Nicholaa vowed to bend Royce to her will, despite the whirlwind of feelings he aroused in her. Ferocious in battle, seasoned in passion, Royce was surprised by the depth of his emotion whenever he caressed his charming bride.

In a climate of utmost treachery, where Saxons still intrigued against their Norman invaders, Royce and Nicholaa revelled in their precious new love...a fervent bond soon to be disrupted by the call of blood, kin and country!


There were also a bunch of Nora’s, Suzanne Brockmans categories as well as various other big names who no longer write series or even in the romance genre. I may regret not snapping those books up as well, but see non-romancey commentary above..

My other two buys were George Orwell’s Animal Farm and Elizabeth George’s Deception on His Mind.



Detective Barbara Havers is now on her own. Her partner, the glamorous Lord Lynley, and the even more glamorous Lady Helen are off on their honeymoon and the decidedly less-than-glamorous Havers is to recuperate from extensive wounds suffered in their previous case. She declines an invitation by her neighbor and good friend, eight-year-old Hadiyyah, to join her and her somewhat remote professorial father on a trip to the seaside.

Somewhat to her chagrin, however, Havers finds herself worrying about the ostensibly naive father as she hears disturbing news of murder and racial unrest in the same coastal town. She goes to Balford only to land in the middle of a tangled web woven around the murder of the fiance of the young daughter of a wealthy Pakistani business man. The plot is well developed, the red herrings many and varied, and the social commentary on the racial unease in England is well handled. Havers emerges as a more sympathetic character here, and readers get the feeling she is beginning to "get a life."

I used to inhale EG's books years ago. Can't remember why I stopped reading her.

Also bought a book for Dayan I thought he'd like, so got nine books for $18 including tax. Not bad.

Currently I’m reading The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo and I love (LOVE!) it. Love it even more because I'd just run through a string of meh/dfn books. I’ll be picking up the next in the series for sure. So if you’re one of those last one to the partay types peeps like myself, here an official invite to jump on this book.