Wednesday Reads and My 1000th Post

That’s right! This is my 1000th post!! I started blogging the day after Thanksgiving of 2009. Who knew I’d be sticking around this long?

Here’s what I read the past week:

November 2: “You Belong to Me” by Karen Rose, #1 in the Baltimore series, a romantic suspense at 494 pages. Blurb from book: Baltimore homicide detective J.D. Fitzpatrick has seen a lot of horrific violence both as a cop and during his deployment in Afghanistan, but nothing like the trail of tortured bodies turning up throughout the city. He’s up against a brutal killer with a very personal vendetta, and J.D. is beginning to suspect that his medical examiner may be shielding some crucial evidence linked to the case. Medical examiner Dr. Lucy Trask is intrigued by J.D.’s compassion, but she isn’t about to mix work with pleasure. Not while there’s a ruthless killer on the loose. And definitely not while she’s keeping a dark secret that could connect her to these vicious killings—and put her next on the killer’s hit list… Wow. If you love romantic suspense and haven’t read any of her books, go out and read one. I’ve got two more in my TBR stack and I have a feeling I’ll be buying the rest. Yep, that good. And there wasn’t even any paranormal stuff in it! Haha!

November 7: “Pairing Off” by Elizabeth Harmon, a contemporary romance at 380 pages. Blurb from book: American figure skater Carrie Parker’s Winter Games dreams were dashed when her philandering partner caused one of the greatest scandals in skating history. Blacklisted for competing in the United States, her career is over…until she receives a mysterious invitation and is paired with the most infuriating, talented—and handsome—skater she’s ever met. Russian champion Anton Belikov knows sacrifice. He gave up a normal life and any hope of a meaningful relationship to pursue his dream. And he’s come close—with a silver medal already under his belt, the next stop is the gold. All he needs is a partner. While he’s never forgotten the young American skater he seduced one long-ago night in Amsterdam, he never expected to be confronted with their past…never mind share the ice with her. When what starts as a publicity stunt grows into something real, Carrie and Anton’s partnership will test their loyalties to family, country and each other. With only a few months to train for the competition of a lifetime, can they master technique and their emotions, or will they lose their footing and fall victim to the heartaches of their pasts? This book was a Rita (RWA) finalist and I can see why. I thoroughly enjoyed reading about these figure skaters. Heck, I’m a fan of the sport. But I have to admit, I won this book and wasn’t sure I’d read it, until I saw it was situated in Russia (I’ve got this fascination with that country because one of my vampire characters is from there). So glad I wasn’t disappointed.

I tried commenting on Monday’s post, via my iPhone, but it wouldn’t post because Blogger said I entered the wrong password (I hadn’t). I tried another account and got the same message (but in that case I had entered the wrong password). Finally got around to commenting when I posted this, via my laptop. Just know I’m able to READ your comments, even if I can’t comment right away. Thanks, too. I love comments.

Cruise activities (so far):

• Monday: Sailed to Freeport. Wrote some. Read a lot. J
• Tuesday: Docked at Freeport (a boring port), so I stayed on ship and had a massage (they’re cheaper when ship is docked). My first one. Loved it!
• Today: Docked at Nassau. Hope to walk along the beach.

Overall, the weather has been BEAUTIFUL. And I’m getting a lot of REST. It’s been great.

So… What was the last book you read? Was it your favorite genre or something different that caught your eye? Good or disappointing?

Happy Reading!

Stacy