In my on-going quest for lighthearted contemporaries I was steered to Shannon Stacey. I had read one of her novellas before, but this was my first novel of hers. It was good. Not great. Not remarkable in any way, but good. And some days you can’t ask for a whole lot more than that. This is the first book in what is apparently a beloved series (the Kowalskis). It is a second chance romance between former high school sweethearts. Keri Daniels and Joe Kowalski were […]
Tricked by the lure of a quick read
Yes. I read another one. No, I’m not proud. I find I end up reading the Kowalski Family books in pairs. I had not intended to read another one so quickly, given my less than happy feelings with All He Ever Dreamed. But, I was out, I didn’t have my current book with me, and I had about 20 minutes to fill. Alone with You to the rescue (darn you, Nook app!) and I had to finish it. This is a very straightforward novella. The […]
A Lackluster Friends to Lovers Romance
Over the past several years I’ve been slowly but surely making my way through the Kowalski Family books by Shannon Stacey. They cover the romantic lives of the Kowalski cousins in New England and the people in their lives. I started reading these because Ms. Stacey writes the kind of straightforward, serviceable romance novels that let the reader slow down, read about some characters who aren’t too far from yourself and people you know, but just far enough to be fiction, and have a little […]
Satisfying Impulse Buy
Sometimes my Nook is a dangerous thing. Heading into this year’s Cannonball Read I had a game plan. I went through my Goodreads to read list, picked the books from the past few cannonballs that I hadn’t gotten around to and really wanted to read. I also looked for books in my to be read that would work for various challenges on Book Riot’s Read Harder Challenge, and made a big list for myself. I then went to my lovely library’s online catalogue and put […]
No Matter How Much This Author Pushes It, I am STILL Not Interested in Four Wheelers
… but I am interested in her characters. There is something truly wonderful about getting just what you are expecting from a book. Take a little time, slow down, read about some characters who aren’t too far from yourself and people you know, but just far enough to be fiction, and have a little happily ever after and steamy times as well. Shannon Stacey uniformly delivers on that promise in each successive work of hers I consume. In some ways, she’s my new Nora Roberts. […]
A Holiday Romance Collection
I’ve got another holiday related collection for you, this time instead of holiday short stories its holiday romance novellas. The Season for Love is a collection of three Shannon Stacey works all tied (loosely) around the holiday season. In another review of Ms. Stacey’s works I’ve commended her ability to ground her characters in the real world, while still letting them play in Romance Novel Land ™. That is still true, and perhaps why when looking for something to download onto my nook before flying […]