Book and Product Reviews by Roundtable Reviews

Released September 2010 www.kristinariggle.com www.harpercollins.com The Life You've Imagined revolves around the lives of four women. Maeve Geneva settled in Haven with her husband and remained there, even after he abandoned her and their young daughter. Decades later, he wants to be part of their lives again and Maeve is delighted with the turn of events. Anna Geneva spent years as a busy Chicago attorney, but now she's back in Haven for some much needed R&R and isn't sure she wants to return to her Chicago lifestyle. When she learns her mom is about to lose the family store and her dad is suddenly back in the picture, she decides her mom might need more help than she's willing to admit to. Cami Drayton spent years as Anna's best friend and also happens to return to Haven. Cami's father is an abusive alcoholic who's been hiding a secret. Cami's going to need her friends when the truth is revealed. Finally, Amy Rickart went

Released November 2009 www.penguin.com Things have been hectic around here. I have an aunt in the final stages of end-stage liver disease and she's still months away from being put on a transplant list. Meanwhile, my uncle's doctor seems happy prescribing him every medication under the sun. With that, I dug out my Complete Guide to Prescription and Non-Prescription Drugs to read up on contraindications and side effects. Sadly, I found a few medications that should not be taken together and immediately warned my uncle to question why he was using that medication with his doctor. I learned long ago that doctors make mistakes and pharmacists are not always going to catch them. My son's ear infections were persistent in childhood so they were always prescribing a new antibiotic for him. The dosage on the last antibiotics he used seemed high to me, so I looked the Sulfa drug up in the book and found that they'd given him a dosage for a 260 pound man rath

Released September 2010 http://charlestodd.com Bess Crawford is bouncing between her home in London and her duties as a nurse during WWI in France. Transporting a badly wounded soldier back to London, she spies a young woman seeing a soldier off. The woman is crying hysterically and Bess feels bad for her until the woman turns around. This crying woman is the same woman found in the picture the wounded solider's been clutching--his wife. When that woman is found stabbed to death, Bess comes forward to Scotland Yard to share what she knows. Determined to learn the mystery soldier's identity, Bess begins getting to know the victim's family and friends and learning their deepest secrets. An Impartial Witness aptly portrays life during WWI. Or, at least, I'm expecting this is a realistic portrayal of life when you worried about food, your loved ones heading off to war and the effects of the war on family and friendships. I'm not fond of history, a

Released April 2009 www.hatchettebookgroup.com After her mentor District Attorney Blake Townsend dies suddenly, Jillian Samuels finds herself without a job. Her career as the assistant D.A. is over because she refuses to work alongside a man who broke her heart. Finding out her significant other was devastating and having him state he wants to reunite now that he's her boss is too much for Jillian. She leaves her job, life and friends behind when she decides to start anew in Salvation, Colorado. Tuck Manning's life seemed to end when his wife died of cancer. The only thing he has going for him is the cabin his former father-in-law deeded to him. Tuck's shocked when the woman of his dreams appears in his cabin stating she inherited the cabin from her mentor and the battle is on to see who really owns the cabin now that Blake is dead. While Jillian searches for Tuck's missing deed, she and Tuck agree to share the cabin. However, it's not easy wh

Released February 2008 www.penguin.com www.barbarabretton.com As yesterday was completely gorgeous with a steady cool breeze and plenty of sun, I curled up on my freshly stained back deck to enjoy the weather. Two books in hand, I got started with Barbara Bretton's Just Desserts. Set in New Jersey, Hayley Goldstein owns a charming bakery where she whips up creative cakes. She's a little shocked when she's hired to make a cake for rock star Tommy Stiles, but she's eager to gain the publicity. Little does Hayley know that Tommy has ulterior motives. Finn Rafferty has been Tommy's personal lawyer for years. In fact, Tommy's been like a father to him throughout the years. When Tommy learns that Hayley may be the daughter he never knew he had, Finn agrees to bring Hayley into Tommy's life by having her create a cake for Tommy's upcoming concert in Atlantic City. As he spends more time getting to know her, Finn realizes he's fallin

Released April 2008 www.penguin.com www.jodithomas.com Good and bad come from Twisted Creek . First, the good. This book is incredible. It's a richly written, dynamic, mesmerizing contemporary romance. The bad... It ended. That's it. The book had the audacity to end right when I was dying to see more of the different characters. Realistically, I'm surprised I liked it so much. I'm not a fan of novels written in first-person. The author has to be on the ball to pen a novel in this manner. Tie this in with the constant switch from first-person (Allie) to third-person (Luke) and I was sure I'd hate the frequent switches. Instead, I found the change up worked. Allie Daniel's doesn't believe good luck exists. Her mother walked out of her life when Allie was three. She's been raised by her grandparents. When her grandfather died, they came home from the funeral to find an eviction notice. Allie had to quit college to provide for both her

Released May 2010 www.hatchettebookgroup.com www.ryanlangan.com Book two in R. C. Ryan's Fool's Gold series peeks into Wyatt McCord's life. He's back at the McCord Ranch and realizing he's really home. EMT Marilee Trainer captures his attention and he's not willing to back away. Marilee grew up an Army brat moving from location to location. She's not used to lasting friendships, let alone relationships. However, she's now the EMT in Gold Fever, Montana, and finds herself falling head over heels for Wyatt. Little do Marilee and Wyatt know there's danger lurking around every corner. When Marilee finds another piece of the McCord gold mystery, she brings it to the family's attention. It also captures the attention of someone determined to keep her quiet, at any cost. Montana Destiny continues the mystery involving the legendary hidden gold while bringing Wyatt and Marilee together. The blend of romance and intrigue is wel

Released March 2010 www.theelevatorgroup.com The basic idea behind Dining with the Dollar Diva is that all recipe ingredients cost a dollar or less. The book is packed with recipes for appetizers, meals and more. Recipes range from Oyster Stromboli to Espresso Brownies. In this tight economy, cooking on a budget is a necessity. As much as I'd like to recommend this book, the simple truth is that the premise of the book -- all ingredients cost a dollar or less -- is not going to work for everyone. The author states her grocery store often sells many of the ingredients through 10 for $10 sales. Never have I see frozen meatballs sell for $1 a bag here. Our area discount store may offer yearly garage sales where I can get things like tofu or muenster cheese for a dollar a pound, but that's very rare, and it's been years since I've seen more than mozzarella sell for that little. I'm not sure where the author lives, but I want her grocery store! Ar

Released August 3, 2010 www.cookingforgeeks.com/book Alton Brown fans take note! You need a copy of Cooking for Geeks: Real Science, Great Hacks and Good Food . Seriously, this book takes everything I enjoy about Alton's shows and combines them into a book for the beginner, novice and pro alike. Sure some recipes may seem basic. Extremely basic actually. It may seem weird to some that there are people who cannot even scramble an egg, but I've learned from experience that these people do exist. When my neighbor came flying out her house with a smoking pan, it had simply contained olive oil and water for boiling pasta but she'd turned on her stove and forgotten all about it. It became apparent that people can even burn water if given the opportunity. Everything you need to know about cooking is in this book. From kitchen set-up and equipment to simple tips like reading a recipe completely before getting started, Cooking for Geeks has everything you need

Released September 2010 http://melodycarlson.com/ Childhood friends are now all back in their hometown of Clifden, Oregon, becoming reunited with one another and dealing with the problems facing them in their middle years. Hometown Ties focuses on each friend, but it is Caroline who features prominently in the second Four Linda's novel. All heroines in this novel are in their fifties and moving into a new stage of life.  Caroline's back from California to care for her mother, who's in the latter stages of Alzheimer's. Caroline's stressed to the max but determined to meet her mother's wishes about living the remainder of her life at home and not in a facility. Janie is a widowed lawyer who wants to move forward, but isn't sure how to do it. She was married for so long that dating seems foreign. Marley's done with her abusive marriage and is moving on. Her recent bout with painter's block is less than pleasing. As she throws

Released September 2010 www.hatchettebookgroup.com Detective Dani Cole finds herself investigating the murder of a former prostitute, a young girl Dani had personally helped get off the streets.  Dani's been dealt one blow after another. Her father, a dirty cop, shot himself just feet away from Dani's room, and this murder case is Dani's return to the force. Things don't go exactly as planned when the killer targets Dani and she's pulled from duty once more. Photojournalist Mitch Sheridan and Dani share a romantic past. When Mitch's business associate disappears, Mitch comes back to town. While police suspect the partner may have killed the former prostitute, Mitch knows there is no way. He's determined to reunite with Dani and get her help solving this case, as well as keeping the woman he once loved safe. I do love a gripping romantic suspense. Kate Brady delivers just that with the right amount of sexual tension and a cunning, psych

Cold Hands, Warm Hearts Released August 24, 2010 www.avalonbooks.com Cold Hands, Warm Hearts shares the story of Char Simmons. Char's ex-husband disappeared and police have been sniffing around thinking she might know something about his criminal activities. Worse, her ex-husband disappeared right after she announced their daughter had been diagnosed with cancer. With mounting bills, Char sells their home, packs up and moves to a remote lakeside cabin she's inherited. Max Wilson is a federal agent and happens to own the cabin next door. His boss presses him to discover all he can about Char. Before he knows it, he's falling for her and despite her situation, he knows she has nothing to do with her former husband's crimes. Proving it becomes his goal. Jenny Jacob's sophomore attempt is an enjoyable romance with a little action tossed in. I found some of the story line regarding Char's ex-husband to be pretty predictable though. Her daughter is charming

When the Snow Flies Released August 24, 2010 www.avalonbooks.com Audrey Sinclair Vanderleyden is a fully trained and licensed doctor, but the town of Marysville isn't having any of it. She and her late husband bought the medical practice planning to run it as a team, but now he's dead. It doesn't matter that the drunken aging Doctor Hornsby sold his practice to A.S. Vanderleyden or that she has a written contract, he's not about to turn over his practice to a woman leaving Audrey to battle for her rights. Doctor Nathan Maxwell can't practice following a gunshot wound to the head that robbed him of his sight. He'd always intended to take over the town practice, but now he's torn between his long-term friendship with Doctor Hornsby and his growing attraction to Audrey. As much as he'd like to help Audrey, he must help his friend keep his practice, even if that means hurting the woman he's come to love. When the Snow Flies is a charming histo