Today’s Steals and Deals at AAR…..
This came SO close to being a DIK. In our B+ review we wrote:
So starts a fascinating tale of corporate intrigue, mysterious deaths, one family’s strength, and of course love.
As always, Roberts’ ability to spin a tale keeps the reader turning the pages and could result in sleepless nights because you don’t want to put it down. The strong point of the story is of course the relationships between the characters. This book explores the relationships of couples in the thrill of first love and those giving it a second go, as well as the relationship between parents and children, and of course as Roberts does so well friendship.
With those relationships come some of the best dialogue. Roberts allows us to see inside her characters and relate with through their words. One example is the following exchange between Pilar and her best friend Helen:
“But I’m not twenty. And my body sure as hell isn’t twenty. How can I possibly let him see me naked, Helen? My breasts are heading to Mexico.”
“Honey, mine landed in Argentina three years ago. James doesn’t seem to mind.”
It’s on sale for 1.99 here.
Readers love this book. Over 18K have given it 4.3 stars at Amazon. (You can read our review here.) Here’s the blurb:
NATIONAL BESTSELLER • From the bestselling author of The Night Circus, a timeless love story set in a secret underground world—a place of pirates, painters, lovers, liars, and ships that sail upon a starless sea.
Zachary Ezra Rawlins is a graduate student in Vermont when he discovers a mysterious book hidden in the stacks. As he turns the pages, entranced by tales of lovelorn prisoners, key collectors, and nameless acolytes, he reads something strange: a story from his own childhood.Bewildered by this inexplicable book and desperate to make sense of how his own life came to be recorded, Zachary uncovers a series of clues—a bee, a key, and a sword—that lead him to a masquerade party in New York, to a secret club, and through a doorway to an ancient library hidden far below the surface of the earth. What Zachary finds in this curious place is more than just a buried home for books and their guardians—it is a place of lost cities and seas, lovers who pass notes under doors and across time, and of stories whispered by the dead. Zachary learns of those who have sacrificed much to protect this realm, relinquishing their sight and their tongues to preserve this archive, and also of those who are intent on its destruction.Together with Mirabel, a fierce, pink-haired protector of the place, and Dorian, a handsome, barefoot man with shifting alliances, Zachary travels the twisting tunnels, darkened stairwells, crowded ballrooms, and sweetly soaked shores of this magical world, discovering his purpose—in both the mysterious book and in his own life.
It’s on sale for 2.99 here.
We gave this a B+. It’s a very good time! We wrote:
Elizabeth Boyle’s newest release, No Marriage of Convenience, is a fun adventure that grabbed my attention with the prologue and kept it throughout the book. Fans of historical romps and strong heroines will want to check this one out.
Upon his scandalous brother’s death in a boating accident, Mason St. Clair was pulled away from his duties as a dean at Oxford to become the new Earl of Ashlin. Sensible, studious Mason is aghast to discover his brother left behind a barrelful of debts and three hoydenish daughters that Mason despairs of ever marrying off. Mason feels that the only way he can restore his family to its former grandeur is by marrying the brainless but wealthy Cit, Miss Pindar. But then a beautiful stranger bursts into his study and Mason begins thinking like his bawdy brother for the first time in his life.
It’s on sale for 0.99 here.
Looking for historical romance based on, you know, real history? Here you go! In our review, we wrote:
An author faces a great challenge in writing historical romances featuring actual historical figures. When the author isn’t up to meeting that challenge, historical figures can be reduced to one-dimensional props or they can just as easily go too far in the other direction and end up overshadowing the fictional protagonists of the story. In her latest novel, Terri Brisbin strikes a good balance between the two and gives readers an enjoyable romance in which a real-life king plays a rather important role.
As the novel opens, Marguerite of Alencon, the pregnant mistress of Henry II of England, is distraught to learn he has banished her from his Court. Marguerite, who has royal blood and was raised with the assumption that she would marry a king, longs for Henry to put aside his wife and marry her. Instead, after Marguerite has her child, she is given as a bride to Orrick of Silloth, a lord in the north of England….
The romance between Orrick and Marguerite is an interesting one. As the story opens, Orrick is clearly a more sympathetic character than Marguerite, who is still unwilling to resign herself to her fate. However, though Orrick is kind, he is no weakling and the battle of wills between the two is more subtle than the stereotypical Alpha Male Meets Feisty Heroine power struggle. As a result, watching Marguerite and Orrick change in their attitudes toward one another is enjoyable.
Brisbin also does a wonderful job of evoking her setting. Henry II plays an important role in the story, and he is far from a one-dimensional prop. In addition, Brisbin uses a wealth of small details to show what life was like at court, in a monastery, and in a keep without inserting lectures that would distract from the plot, resulting in both an entertaining and informative story.
It’s on sale for 1.99 here.
This is a DIK for us. In her review Shannon wrote:
The Neighbors is one of those books that’s impossible to put down. It’s obvious from pretty near the beginning that things won’t turn out well for these characters, but I kept hoping for some kind of miracle. All of them have gone through a ton of really hard stuff, and I just wanted things to be okay for them. They all felt so real, and I give the author a great deal of credit for crafting characters who felt like real people with real joys and struggles rather than two-dimensional beings….
I was totally blown away by the ending to this story. I’m obviously not going to spoil it for you, but trust me when I say it’s beyond anything you can imagine. There are so many ways I thought things might turn out, but Ms. McKinnon takes things in a totally unexpected direction, and I love the fact that she opted not to just play things safe. The ending won’t appeal to all readers, but I personally can’t imagine a more fitting conclusion to this very complicated novel.
If you love books that explore the secrets married people keep from one another, I strongly urge you to give The Neighbors a try. It’s unlike anything I’ve read in quite a while, and I’m now on a hunt for more like it.
It’s on sale for 1.99 here.
We haven’t reviewed this but it sounds like something many of you will love! Here’s the blurb:
Kitty Talbot needs a fortune. Or rather, she needs a husband who has a fortune. Left with her father’s massive debts, she has only twelve weeks to save her family from ruin.
Kitty has never been one to back down from a challenge, so she leaves home and heads toward the most dangerous battleground in all of England: the London season.
Kitty may be neither accomplished nor especially genteel—but she is utterly single-minded; imbued with cunning and ingenuity, she knows that risk is just part of the game.
The only thing she doesn’t anticipate is Lord Radcliffe. The worldly Radcliffe sees Kitty for the mercenary fortune-hunter that she really is and is determined to scotch her plans at all costs, until their parrying takes a completely different turn….
It’s on sale for 2.99 here.