How do you measure love? Is it by the way he laughs with you? The way he makes you laugh with him? The way he handles all those little things in life that you don't want to be bothered with? Or could it be measured by the sacrifice one is willing to make to be with the one that they love? I like that last one, myself. This is the question posed in Rosemary Kaenel's short It’s Called Love.
 
Pamela Moore is plagued with her daughter's complaints about the inconveniences Pamela endures living on a farm with her second husband, Edward. Shelley just can't understand what could possibly keep her mother in a place with no modern conveniences, not even indoor plumbing. Pamela suffers a fall that renders her helpless when her back is injured. Now Shelley feels justified in asking her mother to move to town. Although Pamela doesn't want to be a burden to Edward, she's not ready to leave the man she loves, even though he has begun to spend more and more time out in the barn, instead of inside with her. Doubts plague Pamela until…

My mother would have loved LIFELINES even more than I did. As a nurse, she would have enjoyed the detailed and real hospital scenes and medical procedures. As someone who became ill when someone else oozed blood or vomited, I grimaced but kept on reading. The story kept my attention, and I had to know what happened next.

CJ Lyons brought her knowledge as a pediatric emergency room physician to her book. The plot deals with Doctor Lydia Fiore arriving for a new position at a hospital across the country from the streets of Los Angeles, where she grew up, lived, and trained. Angels of Mercy Medical Center doesn’t welcome her with open arms, but associate her with the mysterious death of the head of surgery’s son.

Ever wondered what it would be like to be truly swept off your feet? Your eyes meet across a bloody battle scene, birds sing and bell rings letting you know he’s the man, except he’s not really a man, but a creature who lives on blood. Just maybe, it’s not one unnatural creature that speeds up your heart, but two. Oh, there is the issue that you happen to be married to a petty king. Doesn’t sound like your typical love story, but when you’re ready for something different there’s Charlotte Boyett-Campo’s latest novel, WyndRaider.

Is your fantasy life better than your real life? Who hasn’t imagined being queen or a sex symbol? Images of limousines, bowing servants and gorgeous specimens of beefcake anxious to grant your every wish: sounds like the perfect life. The only problem is eventually waking up and finding out you’re not the star of your own erotic fantasy. Instead you’re a working drudge without much more to look forward to than a foamy latte. Sound familiar? It certainly does to Rhiannon, the heroine of Gwen William’s debut novel, Fantasy Daze.

It has been almost three years since the last Horsemen book Highland Stallion and it has been a long, long wait. So long that there have been times I have imagined what I would have written for a sequel. I created my own characters and stories but when Winter Stallion was released I grabbed it up. The wait was over. And I was right -- Winter Stallion is a book well worth waiting for and we now have the privilege to revisiting all our old friends from the previous books and discovering a new story set in this creative world.

Do you find that your reading tastes change over time; that you go from one genre to another like romance to suspense? Or you find a book of a genre that you haven’t read for awhile interests you? I have always been a very eclectic reader; science fiction, fantasy, westerns, mysteries, suspense/thrillers, even true crime/serial killer books. I remember when I received my first paycheck my first book purchase was Tolkien’s The Hobbit and Asimov’s I’ Robot. I have always loved both science fiction and fantasy, even though I have drifted away from both genres in the last couple of years. The blurb for Rachel Caine’s Ill Wind stirred up that love of both sci-fi and fantasy genres.

True towns where normal people still live: there are still patches of them left, but it takes a fierce sort of pride and determination to keep what's there alive. In Homecoming you have a young woman, completely under the thumb of her only living relative, her uncle. Everyday of her life is regulated to the Mansions Hotels business. More time is spent in hotels and in the air than in her own company-owned home--until she goes to Carson’s Bluff or “Harry’s Folly”, the small Northern California town that has a chunk of property the Mansions are keen to buy. Their only interest is to build a hotel resort in that area.

Siena, Italy: the land of wine, sun, and romance. Only for Faith Murphy, such things are too lucky for her. It's more like, "Fleeing four thousand miles from one Rossi only to find another Rossi and a dead man was perfect Murphy luck, Faith thought as she walked on the herringbone brick walkway.“ Well aware of her family name’s tendency towards such things, she knows all the Murphy’s Laws by heart and had added quite a few of her own.

If I were given a second chance at a past love because of the hurt I suffered I don’t know that I would want to risk that kind of hurt again. Would you? That is question that Rachel faces in Dahlia Rose’s Love and Lights.

For the first time in three years Rachel has come home to New York at the request of her parents. When she arrives a couple of days before Christmas she finds that her parents have taken off on a last minute cruise and none other than her ex-lover Victor Cantrell house sitting. When she decides to return to Atlanta, she finds that the airport has been closed because of the blizzard hitting the city. The situation leaves her no choice but to stay in her parent’s home with the man who broke her heart that Christmas Eve so many years before. Even though Rachel wants nothing to do with Victor, she can’t stand to see him suffer

Ah, Love. How does one describe it? In a multitude of ways, of course. Love means something different to each individual. It cannot be categorized in a general sense. It must be free to take the form best suited to each person who finds themselves falling into… well, Love. Love An Anthology gives a wide selection of situations and characters, from the first love to the true love to the love found later in life. It is a smorgasbord from which one may pick and choose the pleasing delicacies to tantalize the senses and leave one satisfied, with many other treats for a later snack.

Revenge Gifts is a first for me by Cindy Cruciger, though not my first Tor Book. (I have enjoyed all Tor Books that I have read, as they are all unique and different in some way). Revenge Gifts appears to be a stand alone tale, though there is certainly room to develop a series from this one story. Currently Cindy’s only fiction novel, Revenge Gifts is sure to not be her one and only.

Unfortunately, the romance genre does not tend to be taken seriously. I myself admit to being self conscious when reading in public; I hate it when I feel someone’s presence at my back, constantly wondering if they’re reading over my shoulder and feeling uncomfortable the whole time (especially if I am reading an intimate scene). I doubt I would feel thus if I were reading an academic text, or a mystery, or a thriller but alas, romance is what draws me. It is my passion, my escape. It pains me that there are people in the world with Rick’s attitude and even worse, that I am affected by this. I should not care what others think of me, but I am a sensitive person and cannot change this aspect of my character. But that doesn’t stop me from taking a book with me everywhere I go, every time I leave the house (and I do mean every time; drives my family crazy). It’s sad, but true. The latest romance I've read--despite self-consciousness--is Heaven And Lace. It is not hard to comprehend why Linda Bleser is an award winning author, with many more nominations to her name – including an Eppie, a Sapphire and a Treble Heart.

Most often – well, all of the time, to be honest – when I pick up an historical romance to read it is set in the regency period. Never before have I read a historical romance from a different time setting and ordinarily I would not have chosen to read Vanquished. I have not read anything by Hope Tarr before, but having read Vanquished I am left with great respect for the amount of research Ms Tarr has put in to produce this story. Set in late 1800s London, the suffragist movement is a cornerstone of this tale and whilst, until now, I have known little about this movement even though I reside in the UK, thanks to Ms Tarr I have learnt some fabulous and intriguing history though I am aware that some artistic license has been used.

Maya Banks writes with a style and flair that I adore and which ensure I will be returning for more of her tales. With Seducing Simon, Ms Banks has turned me into a devoted fan, but doubtless I am only one of many. I guarantee I will reread this book many times over, and will derive as much pleasure as I did in the first reading each and every subsequent time. I believe it would be a sure bet to say you would, too.

This is my first book by Ashley Ladd, but I can guarantee it won't be my last! I don't know how I have gone so long without picking up one of her books before, but I will never go so long again. Purrfect Justice has me hooked! The contemporary romantic comedy genre is one of my favorites, and Purrfect Justice fits this category like a glove. I laughed so hard; I had tears streaming down my face. I can't wait to read more of Ms Ladd's works, and will soon be on the prowl for my next Ladd read.