Trouble in Paradise by Jennifer Greene

Griff Anderson wasn't Susan's ideal man - he was 11 years older, and father to 3 children (2 boys 10 an 17, and a girl 14) - but, after one somewhat blotched date, they fell into bed together and fell in love. After just a few months of knowing each other, they decided to get married.

The first few weeks of their marriage are filled with honeymoon-ish bliss, as they put together their new house. But then a crisis forces Griff and Susan to forget their plain of slowly introduce Susan to the kids' lives, and they have to bring them to live with them.

Tom isn't much of a problem, he likes Susan and it's all good, except when Susan tries to mediate between Tom and Griff, much to her husband's annoyance. Barbara wears too much make up and is constantly testing her boundaries, and hating Susan just because her neglectful mother hates her. Tiger, the youngest, is sweet but demanding, taking up most of Susan's time.

Susan struggles to find balance between wife and step-mother, and tries to figure out her place in Griff's family...

Okay, I'm going to be as gentle as possible and start by saying that Trouble in Paradise is a book of it's time. I believe Jennifer Green first wrote it during the early 80's, and it shows, even though the author tried to give it an updating, it's just a bit staid in this day and age.

I had big issues with both Griff and Susan. Susan has a martyr's spirit, that might have sounded more true 20 years ago. Due to personal beliefs, I found her I need to be the perfect mother/perfect wife/perfect business owner more than annoying. Griff always wanted to 'have a talk' with Susan but mostly they ended up having sex. And it was one of those books where I went "What, no grovel?"

That being said, it's not bad a story, but it has to be your type of story. I have to say the summary provided is a bit misleading - I expected something very different from it - but over all, there were parts that were quite compelling.

2011 Contemporary Romance Reading Challenge

Well, since I'm doing the Historical Challenge, I decided to enter this one as well. This challenge is hosted by the Romance Book Maven. And I'm very excited for it

The goal is to read at least 10 contemporaries between Jan 1 and Dec 31 (My birthday!!) of 2011.  By Contemporary it means, straight contemporary without paranormal, fantasy or time-travel elements. (


Since the challenges can cross-over, I'm going to set up a page for all the books I read in 2011 and just mark there which books belong to each challenge. But I will also try to make a list of the titles here, much like I'll be doing for the Historical Romance Challenge and the Aussie YA Challenge in their respective posts.

Anyway! Let the reading begin!!
1. Nothing But Trouble by Rachel Gibson 
2. My One and Only by Kristan Higgins
3. Any Man of Mine by Rachel Gibson
4. Call Me Irresistible by Susan Elizabeth Phillips
5. Something Borrowed by Emily Giffin
6. Something Blue by Emily Giffin
7. She Went All the Way by Meg Cabot 
8. The Boy Next Door by Meg Cabot
9. Boy Meets Girl by Meg Cabot
10. A Lot Like Love by Julie James

This challenge is DONE as of June 6th, 2011

100+ Reading Challenge (2011)

This year the 100+ Challenge will be hosted by My Over Stuffed Bookshelf, and I'm participating, again. Only that this time I'm including everything I read, even re-reads, to see how it turns out. I'm curious to know just how much I re-read.

DETAILS:n (as shown in My Over Stuffed Bookshelf)

1. The goal is to read 100 or more books. Anyone can join. You don't need a blog to participate. Posting on GoodReads or wherever you post your reviews is good enough.

2. Audio, Re-reads, eBooks, YA, Manga, Graphic Novels, Library books, Novellas, Young Reader, Nonfiction – as long as the book has an ISBN or equivalent or can be purchased as such, the book counts.

What doesn't count: Individual short stories or individual books in the Bible.

3. No need to list your books in advance. You may select books as you go. Even if you list them now, you can change the list if needed.

4. Crossovers from other reading challenges count.

5. Challenge begins January 1st thru December, 2011. Books started before the 1st do not count. You can join at anytime.

6. When you sign up under Mr. Linky, put the direct link to your post where your books will be listed. Include the URL to this post so that other viewers can find this fun challenge. If you’d prefer to put your list in the sidebar of your blog, please leave your viewers the link to the sign up page. Again, so viewers can join the challenge too.

I'm going to be setting up a page for books read in 2011, but also do monthly updates which I'll be linking to in this page. I hope to really out-do myself this year (I'm also doing that challenge).

And Let the Reading Begin!

2011 Out-do Yourself Challenge

Outdo Yourself Reading Challenge
hosted by The Book Vixen

Details:

• Runs January 1, 2011 through December 31, 2011(books read prior to 1/1/11 do not count towards the challenge). You can join at anytime. You can sign up on The Book Vixen’s blog.
• The goal is to outdo yourself by reading more books in 2011 than you did in 2010. See the different levels below and pick the one that works best for you. Nothing is set in stone; you can change levels at any time during the challenge.
• Books can be any format (bound, eBook, audio).
• Re-reads and crossovers from other reading challenges are fine.
• You can list your books in advance or list them as you read them. It is not required that you review the books you read for this challenge but feel free to do so.
• Post this reading challenge on your blog so you can keep a list of the books you’ve read for this challenge. Please include a link back to this post so readers can join the challenge too.
• You do not have to be a book blogger to participate. You can keep tabs on books you’ve read for this challenge on Goodreads or LibraryThing if you’d like (maybe make a shelf for “Outdo Yourself Reading Challenge”). If you are not on either of those sites then you can list the books you read for this challenge in the comments on my wrap-up post, which will be up at the end of 2011.

Levels:

Getting my heart rate up – Read 1–5 more books
Out of breath – Read 6–10 more books
Breaking a sweat – Read 11–15 more books
I’m on fire! – Read 16+ more books

I think I'm going to try for Breaking a Sweat. I'm going to be setting up a Page for books read in 2011, but also do monthly updates saying how many books I've read and where I stand in relation to the previous year.

List Maniac #12 - Favorite Books of 2010

Okay, here is my second list!! (there are two more coming!) and this time I'm talking about the books I loved during this year - it doesn't necessarily mean they were published this year, just that I discovered them during 2010. So, here we go with the books I loved the most out of the ones I read in 2010 (In no particular order):

Jane by April Lindner - Basically, a re-telling of Jane Eyre, Jane was fast paced and approachable. I liked the way Ms Lindner handled the modernization of this well known/well loved story. She made 'Rochester' a rock star (which was just so hot) and Jane a nanny rather than a governess, but the core of their relationship was still there and I loved it for it. Also, in an odd way, it introduced me to Bruce Springsteen's song Cover Me, which I totally love.

Insatiable by Meg Cabot - Oh, there is a reason why Meg Cabot is in my all-time favorite list, and that's because her writing is so funny, so entertaining and yet is so far from being dumb. There is heart and soul to all her heroines, and Meena Harper wasn't the exception. This twist on Dracula was witty and so damn funny. I think Alaric Wulf is one of my favorite vampire hunters ever (he's in good company with Buffy!).

You Wish by Mandy Hubbard - I kept thinking about this book for a long time after I read it. There was something in Kayla that I instantly connected with. I loved her honesty and her loyalty and her wishes! Because as far fetched as they were, they rang so completely true. Plus, I loved the hot pink and cupcake cover.


Married by Morning by Lisa Kleypas - When I got this book I promptly wrote in my twitter: Spending the day in bed with Leo Hathaway. And that's all I have to say about it.

Paranormalcy by Kiersten White - Evie, you're my home girl. Sassy and kick butt, Evie is a such a normal teenager for someone who spends her days hunting for supernaturals of all kinds. Her own origins are surrounded by mystery, but that doesn't keep her from making the best of her circumstances, making friends with a mermaid and finding love.

Sun and Moon, Ice and Snow by Jessica Day George - I don't know what it was about this book that captivated me so much, but it did. Maybe because it had that fairy-tale feeling that I love, maybe because it reminded me of one of my favorite childhood tales. I don't know, but I was charmed by this fairly simple story of good and evil, magic and love.


All I Ever Wanted by Kristan Higgins - I'm the first one to admit I have a love-hate relationship with Higgins, sometimes I lover her books, sometimes I wonder what kind of twisted childhood she had because I hate ALL the mothers she writes. But I loved All I Ever Wanted, such a nice story about regular people living regular lives and falling in love. I would love to see more stories like this more often.

Into the Wild Nerd Yonder by Julie Halpern - This book was a complete, but completely pleasant surprise to me. I loved Jessie from page one, I loved her interactions with her family and the way she digs into herself to find the courage to be friends with openly nerd-y people (no matter what age you are, that ALWAYS takes a brand of courage that not everyone has). I loved that she got along with her brother and with her parents (I loved that her parents weren't standard-issue-clueless YA parents). It was one of those books that as soon as I finished it, I wanted to read it again.

Only the Good Spy Young by Ally Carter - Oh. My. Oz. This book rocked my socks off. I have liked the Gallagher Girls since the beginning, I began to love them with book three (Don't Judge a Girl by Her Cover), but this book (book 4) made a fan girl out of me. Things are starting to happen, starting to make sense, starting to get completely out of control! But Cammie goes forward, as only a Gallagher Girl can - with the help of her sisterhood - and tries to make sense of the danger she's in. I loved every page of it!

Special mentions go to Persephone the Phony by Joan Holub and Suzanne Williams because Persephone is my Goddess Girl Gal Pal, and to The Reckoning by Kelley Armstrong, because I totally loved the series as a whole and I love Derek.

So, that's me, what about you?