Finished Reading “Keep Me Close” and I Think It’s Back!

What’s back, you ask? My writing mojo. At least it seems that way. I’ve been doing a lot of writing on this cruise. Something I haven’t done in a long time. Heck, I even wrote over 1000 words on one of the days! Wish I could do that every day, but my system seems to usually peter out after 500 words (which is the goal I try for anyways). As long as I can keep that up, I’ll get The Alien’s Change of Heart finished in no time!

Well, I can dream, anyway.

Here’s what I read since my last update:

Book 4

Dates read: February 21 – March 3, 2026
Title: Keep Me Close
Year of publication: 2017
Author: Cynthia Eden
Genre: Paranormal romantic suspense
Series: Lazarus Rising, Book 2
# of Pages: 194
Paper or plastic: Nook
How obtained: Purchased at B&N
Blurb from book: Flynn Haddox is a dead man. Literally
    As a highly trained Navy SEAL, Flynn once worked covert missions for the U.S. government, but then his life was stolen away. Killed and placed in a secretive “Lazarus” program, Flynn was brought back from the dead and turned into a super-soldier. Now he has increased strength, enhanced senses, and a few psychic bonuses that he fights hard to keep hidden from the rest of the world. He also has no memory of his past…and a new, twisting darkness seems to be growing inside of Flynn.
    Cecelia Gregory escaped death once. Can she do it again?
    Dr. Cecelia Gregory was supposed to help the Lazarus test subjects. They didn’t have control of their emotions after the experiment, and her job as a psychiatrist was to break through the walls that the men had created. Too late, Cecelia realized that the Lazarus subjects were far more dangerous than she could ever imagine. The men came back from the dead, but some of them came back…wrong. Now one of the subjects has a dark obsessions with Cecelia. The man known as Subject Five is hunting her. And he wants her dead.
    One man want to kill her, but another just…wants her.
    Flynn feels a connection to Cecelia that he can’t deny. Not some sweet, innocent attraction—a consuming lust that makes him crave her all the time. Flynn knows that his feelings aren’t normal, but protecting her is his mission now. The man hunting Cecelia is just like Flynn—all the same enhancement, all the same strengths. And no weaknesses. One big difference, though—Flynn doesn’t plan to lose Cecelia. And he’ll fight his own darkness to prove his worth to her.
Recommend: Yes
My thoughts: This is turning out to be a good series. I had it in my wish list at B&N forever (it seems) and bought it to read on the cruise. Now I want the others, but I’ll have to wait until I get home (can’t get the internet on my Nook, or rather can’t figure out HOW to get it). I marked this paranormal, but there aren’t any vampires or ghosts. Just enhanced people. They’re fun to read about, too. At least for me. If you like romantic suspense, you’ll probably enjoy this.

In case you’re interested, you can find My Sunny Vampire and Ghostly Liaison for free in the Smashwords sale (which ends on March 7, I believe). You can also get Alien Desires for $1.49. Don’t know if it’ll do any good, but it certainly can’t hurt. Right? You can find the links in each of their book tabs above (I'm still on a cruise and adding links is not something I want to mess around with--I feel I'm lucky to be able to post this at all!).

Happy Reading!

Finished Reading “Dead of Winter” and Getting Away…Again

I’m sitting in a hotel in Gainesville a little pissed because the TV in this hotel doesn’t have an NBC station so I could watch the Olympics. Last night, the hotel we were at showed the Olympics, but it was so pixelated, it was hard to watch. Guess I wasn’t meant to watch the last couple of days. Doesn’t make me feel any better, though. I was kind of looking forward to watching the ice skating gala.

Tomorrow Hubby and I will take off on another cruise (14 days long), which is why we’re in Gainesville tonight. We’ve spent the last couple of days visiting some National Parks on our way down here. The three we saw yesterday had to do with the Revolutionary War (Kings Mountain, Cowpens, and Ninety Six, all in South Carolina). Today we visited the Ocmulgee Mounds (Macon, GA), Andersonville, GA (Civil War prisoner camp), and Plains, GA to see Jimmy Carter’s National Historic Site (which was in the old High School). Planned to see the grave of him and Roselyn, but it was raining so bad, I stayed in the car while Hubby went to take pictures.

After the cruise, we plan on hitting more National Parks in North Carolina and Virginia as we drive home.

But right now I’m looking forward to this cruise and some warm (and hopefully dry) weather (although the temps in SC and GA have been pretty nice, it’s been raining a lot, too). It’s supposed to snow again back home and I’m sooooo not missing that!

Here’s what I read since my last update:

Book 3

Dates read: January 26 – February 20, 2026
Title: Dead of Winter
Year of publication: 2025
Author: Rebecca Zanetti
Genre: Romantic suspense
Series: Knife’s Edge, Alaska – Book 1
# of Pages: 330
Paper or plastic: Trade paperback
How obtained: Purchased at B&N
Blurb from book: Brock Osprey has spent years in the rugged Alaskan wilderness, far from civilization and even farther from his past. A former Navy SEAL, Brock is now the unwilling protector of Knife’s Edge, a remote town with more secrets than residents. But when FBI Special Agent Ophelia Spilazi arrives to investigate the unsolved murder of Brock’s guardian—and recent unexplained disappearances in the area—Brock’s carefully guarded world is thrown into chaos.
    Agent Ophelia Spilazi has one last chance to save her career, and Knife’s Edge is her shot. The isolated town is full of secrets, and she’s certain Brock knows more than he’s letting on. The town’s recent string of mysterious disappearances only heightens her suspicion, but the more time she spends with the brooding Alaskan, the harder it becomes to ignore the dangerous chemistry between them.
    As a brutal storm traps them in the isolated wilderness, Brock and Ophelia’s growing attraction ignites, even as shadows from their pasts threaten to tear them apart. But with a dangerous conspiracy and powerful enemies lurking in the shadows, their only hope is to trust each other—before the wilderness consumes them both.
Recommend: Yes
My thoughts: I love Zanetti’s books (her paranormal and romantic suspense) and this new series piqued my interest in that it is set in Alaska (and I used to live there way back when). Plus, with all the snow on the ground at home, it just felt like the right time to read something set in winter. Haha! Anyway, I enjoyed this first book in the series and look forward to reading the others (once they’re released).

So… Did you watch the Olympics this year? What was your favorite event? I always like watching the ice skating, but I also enjoy the hockey. So happy the USA women won gold. Hoping for the same for the USA men! Will check the score when we get to Port Canaveral in the morning.

Happy Reading!

Stacy

Finished Reading “Sweet Revenge” and Digging Out

So… it snowed here this past weekend. Record breaking snow (for our area). There’s about 14” of the white stuff on our driveway and we still haven’t removed enough of it to get a car out. The frigid temps aren’t helping with the removal, either.

Some “kids” (they were in their late teens/early twenties) offered to shovel it for 60 bucks. Hubby is wishing now that he took them up on their offer. It’s not that it’s heavy (nope, fluffy stuff fell this time around), but just that there is so much of it! I don’t know where to put it all. Our piles are almost as tall as me (and I’m 5’6”) and we’re nowhere near finished.

Thankfully we’re in no hurry to get anywhere.

Here’s what I read since my last update:

Book 2

Dates read: January 10-25, 2026
Title: Sweet Revenge
Year of publication: 2022
Author: Aedyn Brooks
Genre: Paranormal romance
Series: Grave Intentions #4
# of Pages: 284
Paper or plastic: Nook
How obtained: Purchased at B&N
Blurb from Goodreads: Wyatt “Viper” Raine is two weeks from tapping out of his fifteen-year military career when he’s offered an easy assignment that could net him half-a-million-dollars. All he has to do is provide protection detail for K.M. O’Conner on a reality show. Once the mission was complete, he would be financially set to fulfill a promise he never forgot. When he meets the tantalizing and extremely talented contestant, Wyatt can’t help but wonder if he has bitten off more than he can chew.
    Keller O’Connor’s dreams were about to come true—she’d been selected to be on Hometown Advantage, a reality TV show where contestants compete in physical and cooking challenges. Her chances of winning are good—that is, if an escaped serial killer who’s hellbent on eliminating her permanently doesn’t get to her first. She isn’t happy when the show’s director assigns her a hard-as-nails Navy SEAL bodyguard/partner. Her plans didn’t include splitting the million-dollar winnings, nor getting unexpectedly married in Vegas. Of course, the idea of being chopped in real-life by a killer focused on revenge wasn’t appetizing either.
    As the chemistry heats up between Keller and Wyatt, so do the threats. Can he keep her alive long enough to make both of their dreams come true, or will a deadly killer exact his own brand of sweet revenge in front of the world?
Recommend: Yes
My thoughts: Very entertaining. Kind of like reading about a contestant from the Amazing Race (which is the only reality show I watch). I found it interesting that there is now a culinary reality show coming soon to TV (forget which channel), which is what the reality show in this book is portraying. Still, lots of action and suspense in this, along with some ghosts and other paranormal stuff, made for a fun read.  

I know we don’t have it as bad as those places that got ice. I know what ice is like and I’m glad it didn’t happen here. Still, I wish the weather would at least cooperate and melt some of this snow, but that’s not gonna happen anytime soon. The highest it will get all week is 19 and that is on Friday. We got several below zero mornings to get through first. Ugh.

Happy Reading!

Stacy

Finished Reading “Devil’s Due” and Doing Nothing

Well, I’m not actually doing nothing. It just feels that way. I’m currently on cruise 2 of 2 (which ends this Saturday) and I’m not writing. I’m barely reading! I just don’t feel like doing much of anything except chill out. I play Royal Match on my phone more than anything (until I run out of lives and have to wait for them to regenerate—I refuse to pay for any plays). I blame most of my doing nothing feeling on the fact I feel like I royally messed up my current WIP. I was hoping to talk to some writer friends for a little brainstorming help before we left, but with the holidays, that just wasn’t possible. So… no writing. Only because I don’t know how (or if) I should fix what I have.

It's frustrating when you realize that maybe the plot of the book you’re writing isn’t working.

I could work on my vampire story (that I started years ago), but even that has its problems.

I just need to talk to other writers. I need help. And, unfortunately, Hubby can’t give it.

So I’m chilling. Trying to read a little. Trying to work on my crochet project. But mostly playing that stupid game.

I’m pathetic, aren’t I?

Well, at least the weather is warmer than back home. Not warm. Low seventies is not exactly warm, but a heck of a lot better than the thirties.

Here’s what I read since my last update:

Book 1

Dates read: December 26, 2025 – January 9, 2026
Title: Devil’s Due
Year of publication: 2021
Author: Aedyn Brooks
Genre: Paranormal romance
Series: Grave Intentions #3
# of Pages: 269
Paper or plastic: Nook
How obtained: Purchased at B&N
Blurb from Goodreads: Where there is evil… Michaela Herald is half human/half angel and she sealed her fate when she signed a contract with Satan in exchange for saving her life. She doesn’t mind being his assassin because ridding the world of evil serves mankind. What she doesn’t understand is why Satan needs her to do it. Her next assignment is to kill a doctor experimenting on children. This time, she’s going to find out what Satan’s hiding.
    There is deception… Widower and fishing guide Brock Dalgaard has lost most of his family and now leukemia is endangering his young daughter. When a group of guys hire him for a weekend fishing trip, Brock discovers they’re not who they say they are. They’ve come to find an angel. She’s the same person he hired to help handle tackle for the weekend. An angel who is hellbent on killing his daughter’s doctor.
    And time is running out… Brock insists on helping Michaela investigate the doctor. They’ll need to rely on strangers in order to put the pieces together quickly. But will it be in time to save his little girl’s life?
Recommend: Yes
My thoughts: I’m enjoying this series. The author says it can be read as a stand-alone, but I think it would be better to read them in order since the couples in books 1 & 2 are in this one.  

Today we docked at Celebration Key. I’ve never been there before. Doubt I return. If you like going to a water park and don’t mind paying for a lot of things, then you’ll probably enjoy it. Tomorrow we dock at Bimini. Never been there before, either. This cruise is showing us lots of new stuff. Which is kind of a miracle at this point!

Happy Reading!

Stacy

Finished Reading “The Running Man” and Merry Christmas!

Well… I started writing this on Christmas, since that’s when I finished my book, but then something drew me away (don’t remember what), and family came over, and then there was a movie to see (we went out to see Song Sung Blue), dinner to cook, and more movies at home (Lethal Weapon 2 & 3—we saw 1 on Christmas Eve), well, you get the picture. Anyway, hope you had a good Christmas (if you celebrate, that is).

Here’s what I read since my last update:

Book 31

Dates read: December 21-25, 2025
Title: The Running Man
Year of publication: 1982
Author: Stephen King writing as Richard Bachman
Genre: Horror
Series: N/A
# of Pages: 212
Paper or plastic: Paperback
How obtained: In a collection I THINK I got at a yard sale between 1992-1997
Blurb from book: In the year 2025, the best men don’t run for president, they run for their lives…
Recommend: Yes
My thoughts: The latest movie came out and I vaguely remember the first one coming out and then realizing it is a Stephen King/Richard Bachman story. I have The Bachman Books (which is in a pretty bad shape) and recognized three of the four stories. For some reason, I did NOT remember The Running Man. So I decided to read it. Turns out I had NEVER read that particular story. Have no idea why, either. The other stories are more disturbing than this one. Anyway, it was kind of cool to see how Stephen King pictured 2025 way back in 1982. Some of it was way off. Other stuff…not so much!

It’s foggy this morning and laundry day for me. Being retired has its perks (like not having to wait until the weekend to wash clothes!). But I do like my routines, so laundry day just moved from Sunday to Friday.

What weekly chores would you move to a weekday if you didn’t have to work during the week?

Happy Reading!

Stacy