Biblio Reviews

To the son, Evan is a superhero and to the mother, Evan is a guardian angel.  Evan Manning just knows that he wants to reclaim his career. All that's standing in his way is a lack of a fiancée or wife. No worries, though, because as luck would have it, the mother-son duo who he had rescued from a burning vehicle the year before--which cost him his career as a surgeon--have sought him out to offer their gratitude. What better way than for the mother to pose as Evan's fake fiancée to make him more appealing for a job that will again establish his stature in his profession? In return, the mother (Grace Matheson) gets a Cinderella-like life makeover in picturesque and communal Red River--which Evan desperately wants to escape! Third in the Red River series, The Doctor's Fake Fiancée (2014) is quite charming, particularly because of Grace's four-year-old son, Christopher. Evan, however, is the star of the show (to me). ...

Ravished (1992) is by far my favorite Amanda Quick novel. It might very well be my favorite romance novel since it, along Miranda Lee's  A Weekend to Remember  (1996), is the one I've re-read every year, sometimes multiple times a year. Both guarantee to satisfy my romance novel cravings every.single.time. An Aside: I've read many romance novels, and to be honest, after a while, they all blend into one another: I can't differentiate the details of one from another. Which is why I am in awe of those who can recall the details, titles, and authors of various romances as exemplified by Smart Bitches, Trashy Book's HaBO feature. In any case, of the the books I've read, in addition to the two previously mentioned, the only other romance novel whose details are etched in my memory and I think of fondly is Judith McNaught's Perfect (1994), though I've not read it in quite some time. One of the reasons I was drawn by these romances is their covers. By roma...

Adapted by Ian Edginton from Robert Muchamore’s popular teen-spy series,  The Recruit: The Graphic Novel  (2013) stars James Choke, a preteen on a path to delinquency who is placed in foster care after his obese mother suddenly dies. The opportunity to transform his life comes about when he is recruited to train and become a member of CHERUB, a covert intelligence organization for children. The Recruit  is the first graphic novel I read that was not based on a story already known by me. Marvel's graphic adaptation of  Pride and Prejudice  is the only other graphic novel I had previously read. Familiar with the story, my focus in reading the graphic version was on whether a comprehensive version of the novel was represented. I was less interested (or familiar) with whether the artwork or layout were of good quality and did justice to the characters and story. I imagine that's what comic book/graphic novel aficionados focus on. I went to an NCTE conference a c...