A huge thank you to Marlene here at Reading Reality for letting me visit (can I get a huge round of applause for librarians everywhere?)

With my first book coming out, I’ve had the opportunity to reflect on what got me here, and the points that stand out have all dealt with my mentors along the way, so I wanted to talk about the . . .

Importance of Mentors by Jen Greyson

I’m an eclectic. In every aspect of my life. My resume looks like those paintings where the artist throws random splashes of color on a canvas–the end result is passionate and beautiful, but it’s messy in the creating. I used to say my erratic work history made me a journeyman. Once I started writing, I realized it was fodder for my stories.

Because I have such a huge network filled with people from nearly every profession thanks to all those jobs, I’ve also been able to rely on the sea of humanity to give me mentors.

When I think of a mentor, I picture someone who has succeeded, who didn’t quit, who’s gone the extra mile to be exceptional. But when it comes to writing, my mentors aren’t all mega-accomplished writers. They’re also accountants and financial advisors and fiberglassers.

See, mentoring has to encompass every area of my life. I can’t be a writer without learning how to socialize and listen, respect deadlines and be tenacious, devote myself to my work and turn out the best possible product. Having a mentor in each of those areas gives me someone to admire and emulate, but they’ve come from every walk of life. A very blue-collar worker I know is a genius at listening and making a person feel like he’s hanging on their every word. An interaction with him makes me feel very special. I want my readers to feel that way when I meet them, so I watch the nuances of his interactions as he mentors me.

Writing is a solitary profession. I go in a room, talk to my imaginary friends for several hundred hours, and give those ramblings to other people and ask them what they think. It’s all very bizarre, if I really think about it. My daily interactions with people are pretty brief and superficial. (Not because I want them to be, but cashiers tend to want you to move along quickly and don’t care that it’s been 4 days since you’ve had an adult conversation. Since they’re brief, I need them to be impactful and memorable, and not in a bad way. If I can make someone feel special (even in our 2 minute interaction), that’s an awesome day. But I have to work at it because socializing and listening doesn’t come naturally, I’ve had to learn and practice and improve.

Having great mentors means being a great disciple. I have to be someone they want to continue to teach. If I argue their points, or act like a jerk, I don’t imagine the mentoring would last long.

In my new book, Lightning Rider, the main character, Evy, gets bombarded by people who want to mentor her and she must choose wisely. The wrong mentor is often worse than no mentor. While the stakes in most cases aren’t ever saving-the-world-or-die-trying like they are in Evy’s, they are impactful and deserve the right mentor.

I’d love to know, do you have a mentor in your life? Is there one from the past that sticks out? Are you a mentor to others? What’s the most impactful thing you’ve learned from a mentor—or mentored to someone else?

Thanks again to Marlene and all her readers.

~~~~~~GIVEAWAY~~~~~~

Jen is kindly giving away one ebook copy of Lightning Rider. To enter, use the Rafflecopter below:

a Rafflecopter giveaway

About Jen GreysonFrom the moment she decided on a degree in Equestrian Studies, Jen Greyson’s life has been one unscripted adventure after another. Leaving the cowboy state of Wyoming to train show horses in France, Switzerland, and Germany, she’s lived life without much of a plan, but always a book in her suitcase. Now a wife and mom to two young boys, she relies on her adventurous, passionate characters to be the risk- takers.Jen also writes university courses and corporate training material when she’s not enjoying the wilds of the west via wakeboard or snowmobile. Her new adult fantasy, Lightning Rider, comes out May 31 and features a Latina heroine with some serious superpowers.To learn more about Jen, visit her blog or follow her on Twitter, Facebook, or Goodreads.

For Evy Rivera, thunderstorms have always caused her physical pain, but she’s never known why. When a record-setting storm arrives on the same night her father finds ancient ancestral documents, Evy is set aglow with mysterious tiny lightnings she can command.

Even worse, she alerts some people in the universe who’ve been looking for her family for a very long time.

Thrown back into ancient Spain and tasked with killing a Spanish legend, she must train alongside Constantine, a sexy yet obstinate Roman warrior. He teaches her how to wield her lightning as a weapon, through more errors than trials. With a relationship as explosive as their late-night training sessions, Evy and Constantine battle their push-pull relationship while trying to ignore the two-thousand-year difference in their birthdates.

Ilif Rotiart, her quasi-mentor, is appalled at Evy’s skill. He would prefer to train her father and keep Evy on the sidelines—where women belong. Evy has a feeling Ilif is keeping something from them, but she must play nice until she uncovers the truth. And if he’s lying, it will be the worst day of his four-hundred-year life.

Penya Sepadas claims she’s Evy’s rightful trainer, and she has the prophecy to prove it. Penya doesn’t share Ilif’s misogynistic attitude, but she does have her own agenda . . . and her own secrets.

Evy must sort through the lies and find the truth behind her family’s time-traveling past before the wrong history obliterates the future. She’s spent her whole life fighting for her place. Now, as the first female lightning rider, she’ll dedicate her existence to fighting to save the world.

But will Evy learn to manage her lightning and find the truth before it’s too late?

My Review:

Lightning is magic. Haven’t we all believed that when we’ve seen the beauty and power of a storm?

For Evy Rivera, lightning really is magic, magic she can ride like the motorcycles she loves. She rides the lightning, and it takes her forwards and backwards in time. It’s the ultimate trip.

Riding the lightning is a great adventure. But with great power, comes great responsibility. When she arcs to somewhen other, it’s because there is something she needs to do, someone she needs to save.

It’s a responsibility that has been passed through her family for millennia. But only from father to son. There are not supposed to be any female riders.

Back in Roman Spain, 2000 years ago, Penya is waiting for the rider of prophecy. She’s waiting for Evy. Penya is sitting on one of the cruxes of history. Evy is supposed to come back to Penya’s time and assassinate a Spanish rebel leader. It’s happened before, and it’s supposed to happen again.

In the present, there’s a man named Ilif. He says he’s there to guide Evy’s father in becoming a rider, but his motives are much less pure.

Evy’s quest is to save the past, and the future, before it’s too late.

Escape Rating B+: Particularly for a first novel, Lightning Rider was amazingly good.

The start is a teensy bit rocky. Evy’s breakup with her thieving ex-boyfriend, the thing that propels her down the road to her parent’s house in the first chapter still seems slightly random, but once she gets to her “Papi’s”, the action never stops.

Lightning Rider is a “time war” type story. Ilif is manipulating events for some murky purpose, and Penya is trying to stop him. Maybe. We don’t actually know what their motives are, but Ilif is not on the side of the angels.

I love “time war” stories. There’s a hint of Kage Baker’s The Company in this, which is always good, but Evy seems to have more agency than Mendoza did. (Start with In the Garden of Iden, which is still awesome.)

This does have an element of the “needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few” as well. The man in the past who needs to be assassinated was a hero in his time, but history needs to remain unchanged. If it’s changed, our future gets wiped out. It’s a hard lesson.

The ending of Lightning Rider leaves the reader hanging. This story is definitely not over. I just wish I knew when to look for the next part!

***FTC Disclaimer: Most books reviewed on this site have been provided free of charge by the publisher, author or publicist. Some books we have purchased with our own money and will be noted as such. Any links to places to purchase books are provided as a convenience, and do not serve as an endorsement by this blog. All reviews are the true and honest opinion of the blogger reviewing the book. The method of acquiring the book does not have a bearing on the content of the review.

It was only supposed to last one night…

Roxanne Stokes doesn’t believe in love. She does, however, believe in the sexy-as-sin stranger who literally knocks her off her feet in front of a nightclub. The chemistry sparking between them takes her breath away, and she’ll do anything to ease the pain in his eyes…until she realizes the handsome stranger is her best friend’s older brother who’s just come home from war.

Ian Walser had no idea the gorgeous woman he slept with the night of his homecoming party was his little sister’s best friend—or that she’d be gone before morning. Roxanne’s touch soothes him in a way nothing else can, and he’s not ready to walk away from that yet. Not when spending time with her gave Ian a glimpse of everything he’s ever wanted.

When his sister unwittingly pushes them together, he sees his chance. But convincing a woman who doesn’t believe in love that she’s his Mrs. Right might be harder than any mission Ian’s undertaken. Good thing this soldier likes a challenge…

My Review:

Ian and Roxanne are two people with serious issues. He comes home from two military tours with serious PTSD. She has commitment issues to the point that whenever she begins to get close to a man, she hears her mother’s voice in her head telling her how many different ways the man is going to disappoint her.

Needless to say, this is a sex-into-love romance, because that’s the only way that Roxanne could manage a relationship with anyone. She tries to derail any budding romance with sex at every single turn.

And Ian, for some reason that he can’t figure out, just touching her keeps him grounded. Not necessarily sex, but simply holding her hand keeps his panic at bay. It doesn’t calm hers, but it helps his.

She only wants a one-night-stand. That’s all she ever lets herself have. But her BFF is his little sister. It’s not possible for her to walk away from the reaction he sparks in her. And they are combustible, every single time they get near each other.

His problem with Roxanne is keeping that incendiary reaction from burning out of control long enough to forge a real connection, because she’s so scared that she tries to sabotage every attempt he makes to reach her heart.

Are they too damaged to have a chance?

Escape Rating C: This was not a good book to read Mother’s Day weekend. The messages in Roxanne’s head from her mother do not endear the reader to that woman. We do meet Ian’s mother, and his mother is a real piece of work. I wanted to slap her right through my iPad.

The insta-lust was a great way to open the story, but the insta-love connection was never explained. Why did this relationship work outside the bedroom? She didn’t want to need him (or anyone) and he needed her because of an inexplicable connection. Then the loose ends were wrapped up in a huge hurry to make the happy ending.

Ian made progress on his issues through the book, but Roxanne just miraculously seemed to stop having hers because he was so yummy, or because the sex was so good, or something like that. The build up of their relationship didn’t quite work for me.

***FTC Disclaimer: Most books reviewed on this site have been provided free of charge by the publisher, author or publicist. Some books we have purchased with our own money and will be noted as such. Any links to places to purchase books are provided as a convenience, and do not serve as an endorsement by this blog. All reviews are the true and honest opinion of the blogger reviewing the book. The method of acquiring the book does not have a bearing on the content of the review.

Newlywed Grace Monroe doesn’t fit anyone’s expectations of a successful 1950s London socialite, least of all her own. When she receives an unexpected inheritance from a complete stranger, Madame Eva d’Orsey, Grace is drawn to uncover the identity of her mysterious benefactor.

Weaving through the decades, from 1920s New York to Monte Carlo, Paris, and London, the story Grace uncovers is that of an extraordinary women who inspired one of Paris’s greatest perfumers. Immortalized in three evocative perfumes, Eva d’Orsey’s history will transform Grace’s life forever, forcing her to choose between the woman she is expected to be and the person she really is.

My Review:

It’s not just perfume that is being collected in Kathleen Tessaro’s The Perfume Collector; it’s the collection of memories that are the ultimate prize in this interwoven tale of two women’s choices.

It is 1927. And it is 1955. Both are times of heady exuberance. Grace Monroe is summoned from London to Paris in 1955 because she has just inherited a small fortune from Eva D’Orsay.

Eva D’Orsay is a complete stranger. Grace feels compelled to investigate the reasons behind this mysterious bequest. It is a plus that her halting investigation provides her with an excuse to remain in Paris, away from her increasingly distant, and carelessly unfaithful, husband.

Stumbling through a past that Grace was not supposed to uncover, she finds a young woman forced to make her own way in the world. A woman who used the only talents at her disposal; her beauty, her incredible gift for feats of mathematics, and a surprising ability for captivating people.

Eva’s path crossed a great gambler who taught her how to make money at cards, and a great perfume maker, who taught her the essence of his craft. Eva was Charles Lamb’s apprentice, and Andre Valmont’s muse. But what were they to her? And what was she to Grace Munroe?

Why did she make her bequest to Grace with the words “the right to choose?”

Escape Rating B+: It’s been said that the past is another country; 1955 is over 50 years ago, the world was different, especially for women. Grace is expected to be a wife and a mother. She’s uncomfortable with the first and the second has become impossible. Her life is at a crossroads when Eva’s bequest is dropped into her lap.

1927 is an entire world away, and yet both eras were times of not just plenty, but intense joie de vivre: post-war booms, before the world went through fundamental changes; respectively the Great Depression and the upheavals of the 1960s.

Grace has been privileged and sheltered all of her life, Eva starts as a small-town girl who knows very little of life outside her tiny sphere and with very few advantages. In spite of their differences in time, place and background, they have a lot in common. They are both women in times when women are not supposed to have much agency in their world. Eva makes her own path, often at a high cost to herself. She has determined that Grace will have choices that she did not.

As Grace investigates Eva’s life, she takes possession of her own. The slow double-reveal makes for a marvelous story.

This post is part of a TLC book tour. Click on the logo for more reviews.

***FTC Disclaimer: Most books reviewed on this site have been provided free of charge by the publisher, author or publicist. Some books we have purchased with our own money and will be noted as such. Any links to places to purchase books are provided as a convenience, and do not serve as an endorsement by this blog. All reviews are the true and honest opinion of the blogger reviewing the book. The method of acquiring the book does not have a bearing on the content of the review.

The fantastic thing about living in a reading city like Seattle is just how many authors stop by on their tours. It’s not just that Seattle is one of the top 20 cities on Amazon’s annual list of America’s most well-read cities, but it’s also a city that everyone, authors included, love to visit.

Last night we went to a book signing at Third Place Books for The World’s Strongest Librarian. We’d both read the eARC and loved it, so when the opportunity presented itself to see the author in person, we jumped at the chance. Josh Hanagarne was terrific, so if you’re in Seattle and are interested in either books, libraries, strength training or Tourette’s, there’s still a chance to see/hear him tomorrow at the Seattle Central Library.

Tomorrow night we’ll be at the University Book Store listening to John Scalzi talk about The Human Division. And even though we both read (and adored) a review copy, yes, we’ll buy a print copy and get it signed.

Winner Announcements:

Paperback copy of Bare It All by Lori Foster: April P.
Ebook copy of His Southern Temptation by Robin Covington: Amy P.

Blog Recap:

A- Review: The Human Division by John Scalzi
D+ Review: The Right Bride by Jennifer Ryan
B+ Review: The Roots of Betrayal by James Forrester
B Review: Wife in Name Only by Hayson Manning
B+ Review: The World’s Strongest Librarian by Josh Hanagarne
Q&A with Author Josh Hanagarne
Stacking the Shelves (45)

Coming up this week:

Review: The Perfume Collector by Kathleen Tessaro (blog tour)
Review: Chasing Mrs. Right by Katee Robert
Review: Lightning Rider by Jen Greyson (blog tour)
Review: Doctor Who: Festival of Death by Jonathan Morris (blog tour)
Review: Dark Triumph by Robin LaFevers

What’s coming up in your week?

One of the books in this week’s stack (The Spook Lights Affair) is not scheduled to be published until December! I’m not sure whether to be delighted to have so much time to get a round tuit, or appalled that the year is passing by so quickly. <groan>

On another topic, someone asked how I make the graphic of all the book covers. I use GIMP, an open-source graphics program that is available free and supposed to be every bit as powerful as Photoshop. GIMP certainly does everything I need it to. (If you decide to use GIMP, it’s good karma to support the project.)

Photographing the actual books isn’t an option, almost all my books are in the key of “e”.  Only the library book is a print book, and I’m not allowed to keep it more than three weeks.

If I got this many print books every week, our apartment would have sunk down into the one below by now!

For Review:
Allegiance (River of Souls #3) by Beth Bernobich
Bite Me (London Undead #1) by P.J. Schnyder
The Bones of Paris by Laurie R. King
A Clockwork Heart (Chronicles of Light and Shadow #2) by Liesel Schwarz
Hold Me Down Hard by Cathryn Fox
Just What He Wanted (Holloway #4) by HelenKay Dimon
The League of Illusion: Destiny (League of Illusion #3) by Vivi Anna
Opposing Forces (Private Protectors #5) by Adrienne Giordano
The Spook Lights Affair (Carpenter and Quincannon) by Marcia Muller and Bill Pronzini
Star Trek FAQ 2.0 by Mark Clark
Texas Hold ‘Em (Smokin’ ACES #1) by Kay David
The Trouble With Being a Duke (At the Kingsborough Ball #1) by Sophie Barnes
What the Bride Wore (Bridal Favors #3) by Jade Lee
Wicked Beat (Sinners on Tour #4) by Olivia Cunning
Winning a Bride (Bridal Favors #2.5) by Jade Lee

Purchased:
Dating a Silver Fox (Never Too Late #5) by Donna McDonald
The Demon of Synar (Forced to Serve #1) by Donna McDonald

Borrowed from the Library:
The Cursed (League of the Black Swan #1) by Alyssa Day

For those of you in the Seattle area, Josh is going to be in town and talking about his book! Tomorrow, May 18th, he’ll be at Third Place Books, and on Monday, May 20th, he’ll be at the Seattle Central Library.

And now, here’s some Q&A with Josh:

Q: Why did you decide to write this book?

Josh: Everyone loves a good story, including me.  And there’s nothing as messy and chaotic as a human life, which is why memoirs can be so engaging and surprising.  It just so happens that this story was about me and I’d be the one to write about the mess.  I started writing the book because I wanted to see where the story went.  I kept writing because I had to see how it would end.

Q: How has Tourette’s impacted your life?

Josh: Let’s get the negative out of the way: My case of Tourette’s hurts, it’s disruptive, it’s exhausting, it makes it hard to be out in public, it made me a great target for bullies, etc—Tourette’s often steals my chances to make my own first impressions. There’s this weird thing that goes out before me, announcing me, defining me, before I get the chance to explain myself. But it’s not me.

There are positives, though: Tourette’s has made me tough, stubborn, and has given me a low tolerance for whining and inertia. And it’s lead me to a lot of wonderful people in the Tourette’s community, particularly the kids who are having a tough time adjusting to the disorder.

Q: What are some of the ways you have tried to conquer your tics?

Josh: Lots of pills. A nicotine patch. A faith healer/chiropractor in Elko, Nevada, who dressed like Randall Flagg from The Stand and administered to me with ramen noodle crumbs in his scraggly beard. I got botox injections in my vocal cords for three years, which took away my voice, so I couldn’t scream, but I couldn’t really talk either.

Lifting weights helped for a while, because I would train so hard that the pain of the workouts made the tics pale in comparison, but that’s a stupid way to approach a problem. I’ve also tried to stifle the tics through willpower, but that doesn’t work for long.

Ultimately, it’s come down to a grim truce. I’m still convinced I’ll get rid of it entirely, but until then, I’ll be running on pure spite, here in the library, on full display and defiant.

Q: What do libraries mean to you? What do you think is the future of the public library?

Josh: The library is the ultimate symbol of freethinking and curiosity. Its presence in a community is a challenge to the pack mentality and an invitation to ignore ideology and explore your mind. However, it will be tragic if the library gets reduced to nothing but that symbol. The future of public libraries depends on whether people think they need a library or not. Libraries need to prove that they can offer people something they can’t get anywhere else. As long as they’re doing that, they’ll exist in some form. I hope they don’t become museums.

Q: Are you still a Mormon? How has your faith changed throughout your life?

Josh: Not really. I still go to church now and then with my family; it certainly doesn’t hurt me. I’d call myself a “heritage Mormon.” Mormonism is such a fantastic American story that I get a kick out of being from such tough stock. Those pioneers were rough customers.

At this point I’ve got some of the habits, minus the conviction.

The major shift in my lifetime of faith is that now I’m more interested in how I think than in what I think.

Q: Why is strength training important to you?

Josh: Training is the only time I feel like I’m in control of my body. It’s where I can actually see that I’m getting better at something. You’re either stronger than yesterday or you’re not. In any case, there’s no downside to being strong and healthy, so don’t feel like you need to have Tourette’s to take care of your body! It’s a gift you can always give yourself.

Q: How can we get kids to read more?

Josh: They need examples. If you’re a parent who loves books, your kids will probably love books. If you are in a mentor role and kids who emulate you know that you prioritize knowledge, they will too. This sounds very after-school-special-ish, but learning is fun. Kids learn and adapt by watching the adults around them. If you play Angry Birds all day in front of your kid, you don’t get to whine when his reading comprehension lags.

Q: What do you hope readers will get out of this book?

Josh: I hope they’ll laugh, hug their families, use their libraries more, read more books, and ask all of those uncomfortable questions they’ve been avoiding. And then I want them to write to me and recommend a book that I should read. Anyone can send me a recommendation through my website.

Josh Hanagarne couldn’t be invisible if he tried. Although he wouldn’t officially be diagnosed with Tourette Syndrome until his freshman year of high school, Josh was six years old and onstage in a school Thanksgiving play when he first began exhibiting symptoms. By the time he was twenty, the young Mormon had reached his towering adult height of 6’7” when—while serving on a mission for the Church of Latter Day Saints—his Tourette’s tics escalated to nightmarish levels.

Determined to conquer his affliction, Josh underwent everything from quack remedies to lethargy-inducing drug regimes to Botox injections that paralyzed his vocal cords and left him voiceless for three years. Undeterred, Josh persevered to marry and earn a degree in Library Science. At last, an eccentric, autistic strongman—and former Air Force Tech Sergeant and guard at an Iraqi prison—taught Josh how to “throttle” his tics into submission through strength-training.

Today, Josh is a librarian in the main branch of Salt Lake City’s public library and founder of a popular blog about books and weight lifting—and the proud father of four-year-old Max, who has already started to show his own symptoms of Tourette’s.

The World’s Strongest Librarian illuminates the mysteries of this little-understood disorder, as well as the very different worlds of strongman training and modern libraries. With humor and candor, this unlikely hero traces his journey to overcome his disability— and navigate his wavering Mormon faith—to find love and create a life worth living.

My Review:

The first chapter of The World’s Strongest Librarian should be required reading for people who want to become librarians. Especially the ones who have a completely romanticized view of what it is like to actually BE a public librarian on a day-to-day basis. At the end of the chapter, I think they’ll still want to do the job, but they’ll have one hell of a lot better idea of what they’re letting themselves in for.

And I laughed myself silly. On the bus. It’s too bad I wasn’t in the staff room at work. At least, then, I could have shared instead of just sounding like a lunatic.

But all professions have their in-jokes, and that’s not what’s at the heart of this book, or Josh’s story.

Josh does share his profound love of reading in a way that is joyful. He obviously deeply loves reading, but uses it to escape from a world that has often contained it’s share of difficulties. While his memoir covers his struggle with Tourette Syndrome, I think that a lot of us who have become librarians have, in one way or another, found an escape from something in the pages of books that we have loved.

Josh just has a more compelling way of expressing both his love of the books that he is diving into, and the sometimes seemingly overwhelming challenges that he faces, than most of us do.

This is a hard book to review. It feels as if I’m reviewing Josh’s life as well as the way he wrote about it, and that seems like a double-whammy. It’s not quite fair.

Josh writes in a way that makes the reader empathize with his struggles, even when, occasionally, you aren’t able to 100% understand the pain, only that there is a tremendous amount of it. And, like anyone else writing their own story, one suspects that it was probably even worse than Josh writes it, and he’s none too kind to himself at some points.

Although he talks a lot about his physical strength training, it’s Josh’s inner strength that shines through.

Reality Rating B+: The strength in Josh’s writing is his sense of humor. His biggest target (no pun intended, he’s 6’7″) is always himself. He never intentionally aims his wit to laugh AT anyone else. He doesn’t place blame.

And without fail, he credits the support of those around him, particularly his parents and his wife. It’s refreshing to read about someone with any kind of difficulty who isn’t playing the “blame game” and who isn’t going overboard in the other direction, claiming that he’s doing everything all by himself.

For a reader who isn’t into strength training, the details can be a bit eye-glazing, but I wouldn’t be surprised if some readers find the library details somewhat mind-numbing. And vice-versa.

It’s hard to bare your soul as openly and Josh has in this book and make it readable. He writes about seemingly everything; his parents, his doubts about his Mormon faith, his Tourette’s and the problems it causes, his search to find a meaningful career, everything. And he makes the reader want to keep reading.

I’m glad that he went into the reasons why he thinks that books and reading are important, and makes an impassioned plea for the future of libraries. For that, I thank him from the bottom of my library-loving heart.

But most of all, his is an amazing story. You’ll be glad you read it.

***FTC Disclaimer: Most books reviewed on this site have been provided free of charge by the publisher, author or publicist. Some books we have purchased with our own money and will be noted as such. Any links to places to purchase books are provided as a convenience, and do not serve as an endorsement by this blog. All reviews are the true and honest opinion of the blogger reviewing the book. The method of acquiring the book does not have a bearing on the content of the review.

Trapped in a loveless marriage, Zoe Hughes escaped to make a new life for herself on the tiny island of Tonga. Now she runs a successful boutique honeymoon resort. Selling true love is easy. No one needs to know she’s married in name only. At least until America’s premier honeymoon magazine wants to publish a feature on her perfect marriage. Now she must convince her estranged husband to rip himself away from plotting corporate takeovers in LA to save her island paradise.

Rory agrees to come for forty-eight hours, but only because he needs the positive PR. To his surprise, the wife he finds in Tonga isn’t the same woman he married. Now she’s so much more…

When a storm strands Rory in Tonga, will he win back his wife or leave paradise empty-handed?

My Review:

I wanted to read something quick and fun, so I picked Wife in Name Only from my TBR stack, and it definitely filled my need for something light, sexy and with a sweet HEA at the end. There was just the right touch of suspense to add spice to the mix!

Tonga sounds like the perfect place for a romantic getaway. It’s far, far away from everything, and even cell phone service is erratic. Internet, forget about it! The satellite connects, sort of. Sometimes. When it feels like it. On island time.

It’s the perfect place for Zoe Hughes to sell true love in her boutique honeymoon resort.  That is, until the premier honeymoon magazine contacts her wanting to do a feature spread on her perfect resort and her equally perfect marriage.

There’s one “hitch”–Zoe’s marriage is far from perfect. She came to Tonga to escape her “dead” marriage to “Ice Man” Rory Hughes, who had become so enmeshed in his mergers and takeovers business back in Los Angeles that he had forgotten when they used to be enmeshed in each other. She wondered how long it had taken him to notice that she was gone!

Now she needs Rory to come to Tonga for the photo shoot, and it turns out that he needs her. Being the “Ice Man” is having some negative business repercussions. It turns out that no one, not even in cutthroat LA, wants to make deals with a man who can’t even pretend not be a bloodthirsty predator.

So Rory agrees to come to Tonga, just long enough to do the magazine spread. He thinks he can talk her out of her “foolishness” and get her back to LA. Zoe knows that Tonga is her forever home. There is nothing for her back in LA, especially not the Rory that she left.

But it’s hurricane season in the Pacific, and Rory gets stranded in Paradise for 10 whole days (and nights) with the woman that he still desperately wants. A woman who wants the man he used to be, before L.A. turned him into a shark.

Can the islands work their magic, before it’s too late for their marriage? Or will the hurricane do them both in?

Escape Rating B: I liked Zoe a lot. She was a small town girl who married the man she loved and finally put on her big girl panties when she realized that he wasn’t that man anymore. She made her own dreams come true. She still wanted Rory, (he was gorgeous, who wouldn’t?) but she didn’t love the man he had become. So when she recognized that things weren’t going to get better if she stayed, she went.

On the other hand, I wanted to beat Rory with a “clue-by-four”. He was kind of a jerk. I know the point of the story was how hard it was for him to stop being a jerk, but maybe Zoe forgave him a little fast. Or something. I wanted to see him beg a little more.

Zoe and Rory were smoking hot together. Their chemistry was intense, and it was so clear from the beginning that they had serious unfinished business to resolve, not just sexytimes to play.

There was also a bit of a suspense element. While it provided the reason for Rory’s epiphany, I’m not sure it was otherwise explained enough. But I still enjoyed the heck out of Wife in Name Only, and I’ll be looking for more from Hayson Manning.

***FTC Disclaimer: Most books reviewed on this site have been provided free of charge by the publisher, author or publicist. Some books we have purchased with our own money and will be noted as such. Any links to places to purchase books are provided as a convenience, and do not serve as an endorsement by this blog. All reviews are the true and honest opinion of the blogger reviewing the book. The method of acquiring the book does not have a bearing on the content of the review.

Your Choice. Your Faith. Your Fate.

1564: Catholic herald William Harley, known as Clarenceux, guards a highly dangerous document. It’s a manuscript he’d rather not have—destruction and death have followed in its wake. But things get much worse when the document is stolen, and he plunges into a nightmare of suspicion, deception, and conspiracy. As England teeters on the brink of a bloody conflict, Clarenceux knows the fate of the country and countless lives hang in the balance. The roots of betrayal are deep and shocking, and the herald’s journey toward the truth entails not just the discovery of clues and signs, but also of himself.

My Review:

“The roots of betrayal lie in friendship; those of treason lie in loyalty.”

This quote could easily sum up this second volume of the trials and tribulations of William Harley, the Clarenceaux King of Arms. When you read the line, it seems so obvious, as if it should be a common saying.

Imagine my surprise to discover that the fiction author James Forrester was quoting himself (as historian Ian Mortimer) from his book The Greatest Traitor. It doesn’t make the words seem any less self-revealing, or any less “true” in the case in William Harley.

The lesson of Clarenceaux’ story could be taken as “keep your friends close and your enemies closer”, although the man seems to have a difficult time determining which are which.

And, to use our vernacular instead of his, if it wasn’t for bad luck, he wouldn’t have any at all.

History remembers the Elizabethan Age (maybe we should be calling it the First Elizabethan Age) as a Golden Age. England defeated the Spanish Armada. Shakespeare’s career flourished. Elizabeth’s reign was the time of England’s glory.

But we forget that it didn’t begin that way. Elizabeth’s reign had a shaky start. There was a significant amount of religious dispute between Catholics and Protestants. Many wanted a return to Catholicism, and fomented revolts in favor of Mary Queen of Scots, Elizabeth’s putative heir.

The problem with Elizabeth being the “Virgin Queen” was that virgin queens have no children to inherit their thrones.

Into the middle of this we have the roots of William Harley’s betrayal. In Sacred Treason (reviewed at Book Lovers Inc.) Harley is entrusted with a document proving that Queen Elizabeth was illegitimate because her mother, the executed Anne Boleyn, was pre-contracted to Henry Percy. (This was a big deal in the 1500′s)

At Anne’s trial, this was one of the many charges, but there was no documentary evidence.

There are conspirators who demand that Harley use the document to start a pro-Catholic rebellion. Harley, although he is Catholic himself, refuses. He is wise enough to know that rebellions only lead to death and repression.

Then the document is stolen from its hiding place in his house. Harley believes that he has been betrayed. But by whom?

Every single person who has ever known about that document operates on the belief that someone has betrayed their trust. Clarenceaux is certain that the widow Rebecca Machyn, his partner in misfortune in Sacred Treason, has betrayed him. Francis Walsingham, an agent of the crown, is certain that Harley has betrayed the government and is working for towards a Catholic conspiracy.

Harley’s wife Awdrey believes that Harley has betrayed their marriage vows.

Because Harley is certain that his life is forfeit for losing the document, he chases after Rebecca Machyn, believing she has the document. Walsingham chases after Harley.

Where is the document, and why was it stolen? Who is at the heart of what conspiracy? Where is the betrayal? How many betrayals are there?

Escape Rating B+: The Roots of Betrayal was every bit as much of an immersive experience as Sacred Treason. In some ways, it was better. Part of the emotion of Sacred Treason required following along with William Harley’s falling slightly in love with Rebecca Machyn, and that part didn’t work.

The Roots of Betrayal is a story of honor and betrayal. Political conspiracies and political paranoia. Lies and deceit. This time, Harley follows Rebecca because he thinks she’s stolen this document and he’s afraid for his life and the lives of his wife and children. He knows what happened last time. His house was ransacked, his possessions were destroyed, his family had to flee London. He was nearly killed.

He’s also correct that a rebellion will only end in repression and death, not just for the rebels themselves, but anyone who might be thought to be sympathetic. If the rebels are Catholic, then what little tolerance currently exists will be ruthlessly suppressed, probably in blood.

His chase leads him through dark places. He forgets everything but his need to find that document and prevent anyone from using it. He finds more honor, for certain strange definitions of that word, among thieves and pirates, than he does among supposedly ladies and gentlemen.

Sacred Treason fascinated because of the political plotting. The Roots of Betrayal is almost a “road novel”. In his desperation to find the document, Clarenceaux leaves behind his comfortable, middle-class life and finds himself in more and more desperate straits at ever turn.

The people he meets along his journey are what push the story, and the reader, forward. Each time he learns of another link in the chain, he meets a new group of amazing characters. Each person’s agenda layers on top of, or thwarts, his.

The idea that pirates have more honor than supposed gentlemen is one that sticks with you when you’re done.

***FTC Disclaimer: Most books reviewed on this site have been provided free of charge by the publisher, author or publicist. Some books we have purchased with our own money and will be noted as such. Any links to places to purchase books are provided as a convenience, and do not serve as an endorsement by this blog. All reviews are the true and honest opinion of the blogger reviewing the book. The method of acquiring the book does not have a bearing on the content of the review.