"The Flirt" by Kathleen Tessaro

"I'm going to seduce you." Tantalizing words written on an ivory card. It is the first clue that will lead an intrigued and intriguing London lady on an odyssey of sensual experience designed to awaken her romantic nature. Out-of-work actor Hughie Venable-Smythe has found a profitable new outlet for his talents. He is hired, often by distraught husbands, to flirt with wives who are feeling neglected in their relationships. His current seductive campaign is focused on Olivia, the spouse of a narcissistic billionaire, and the lady is responding quite nicely to the cream-colored missives he secretly leaves for her. So nicely, in fact, that Hughie decides to employ a similar technique - and shockingly similar messages - in his pursuit of his own heart's desire: the aloof and charming lingerie designer, Leticia. But the canny, professional flirt's brazen anonymous intrusions into the lives of two women are about to set in motion a series of remarkable events that no one could have anticipated - setting the stage for shocking revelations about love, friendship, and domestic bliss.

Tessaro is the author of two previous books, "Elegance" and "Innocence", both of which I thoroughly enjoyed. This one sounded good, too, so I finally got around to reserving it a few weeks ago. And it is good, but it's not exactly what the back of the book leads you to believe...

Hugie is an out-of-work actor, but when we first meet him, he's looking for a job. He's also flirting with a coffee-shop waitress, trying to get her to put his coffee on account, seeing as how he's left his AMEX card at home (a very old line that he's worked to death, but the waitress has a soft spot in her heart for him, usually paying for his coffee herself). He answers an ad in the paper, and thus is hired on to learn the art of flirting. We follow him on this journey, and at no time would I really call him a "professional" at this new endeavor; he fails much more than he succeeds, and indeed, it's these failures that cause the "series of remarkable events".

There's a rather large cast of characters, but Tessaro does an excellent job of developing each one. I never felt like anyone got slighted as far as their story went, and the different plot lines dovetailed nicely. The only complaint I really have is the twist that occurs close to the end of the book involving Hughie; I can't say any more for fear of giving it away, but I found myself thinking it was a little too staged and preposterous. Still, this is a nice work, a little more serious than your usual Chick Lit offering.

Look for Tessaro's next book, "The Debutante", in stores this October.

"Pleasure of a Dark Prince" by Kresley Cole

Cole is now up to Book 7 in her Immortals After Dark series, and I suppose it's a lucky number for her. There's nothing really new here, but then again, if it ain't broke, don't fix it - right? The usual sort of plot awaits the reader of this book, but damned if you won't find yourself turning the page for more, and more, and more....

Lucia the Huntress is the heroine of our story. She's one of the Valkyrie, having made a deal with a goddess long ago for her archery abilities. She's the best archer on the planet, having agreed to stay celibate in exchange for her life; she's also struck with excruciating pain any time she misses a shot.

Garreth MacRieve, aka "the dark prince", is our grumpy Scottish lykae hero. While playing rugby, he catches the scent of his mate, and starts to chase after her. Of course, that woman is Lucia - the one woman who cannot be with him under any circumstances for fear of losing her goddess-given gift (and possibly her life). It's going to take all the Scot's cunning and manly wiles to woo her to his bed.

And what good is an old-fashioned wooing without the elements of danger and deception? After the two would-be mates meet, we fast-forward an entire year with the Ascension quickly nearing (a sort of supernatural free-for-all, with a few winners and lots of losers). Lucia must keep Crom Cruach, the Broken Bloody One, from escaping his prison and wreaking havoc on humans. She needs MacRieve's help to locate the prison this time around, but she also needs him to stay away when the actual fight ensues; turns out old BBO can infect others to make them kill the ones they love they most, and by this time, of course Garreth and Lucia love each other, even if they won't admit it. Why is Lucia immune? Well, it turns out that she's BBOs wife...

It's the usual cast of characters from Cresley, especially the Valkyries. I was happy as always to see Nix, the crazy but adorable seer of the bunch. Someday she's going to get her own story, and that's the one I'm really waiting for! The plot isn't bad, the action is well-written, and the romance - well, the romance may be the only thing that I had a problem with. I loved MacRieve, but Lucia was a bit too "I am woman, hear me roar" for me. I don't want the damsel in distress who can't do anything for herself, but there is such a thing as protesting too much, and Lucia protested in spades. Also, the sex scenes started off nicely, but by the end of the book I found myself skimming over them, never a good sign. I'm not sure if there were too many of them or if the writing took a nose-dive; judge for yourself.

Look for Book 8 in this series, "Demon from the Dark", late next month (August 2010).

"What Would Satan Do? Cartoons about right, wrong, and very, very wrong" by Pat Byrnes

I wasn't very familiar with Pat Byrnes before I picked up this wondeful collection of his cartoons. He's evidently done a lot of work for The New Yorker, which is why he's well-known (to certain people - certainly not to me). I picked this up because I loved the title, not to mention the subtitle.

According to the introduction by the author, this book came about as a direct reaction to the phrase "What Would Jesus Do?" - something the author now believes is very overused. And really, how helpful is it to ask what Jesus would do in any given situation? Wouldn't it be more helpful to ask what Satan would do, and then do the exact opposite? Sure it would! Thus, the cartoons included in the book.

The humor runs the gamut here, from overt to subtle, from hilarious to groan-inducing. The artwork is great, with a mix of black & white and color 'toons. And I thought they were all quite funny. For example, one of my favorites shows two older, obviously rich, gentleman sitting in front of a fireplace. They have on their smoking jackets and slippers, and each has a glass of what appears to be brandy. The thinner of the two is looking at his companion and says "Release the hounds! That's your answer to everything." Too funny!

This won't take you long to read, maybe a half hour tops, so my advice is to see if your local library has it. Unless you really, really enjoy it, in which case you could certainly afford to buy it at the very reasonal rate of $14.95.

"Sizzling Sixteen" by Janet Evanovich

Have you ever made one of your favorite recipes, anticipated the mouth-watering goodness of the dish, only to dig in and find you've somehow screwed it up? This is exactly how the latest Stephanie Plum book feels to me - like all the ingredients are there but somehow not put together correctly.

Stephanie's latest caper involves rescuing her sleazy boss, cousin Vinnie. Turns out he's been kidnapped by some goons over possible gambling debts. There's a ransom demand of some $700,000+, and of course no one in the bond office has that sort of dough. They can't go to the cops, either, as Vinnie has had his fingers in some rather illegal pies. What can the gang do? Well, maybe they can use the lucky bottle that Steph's Uncle Pip left her. Looks like a fancy beer bottle, might have something in it, might just be a complete dud. Lula truly believes the bottle will bring them luck, and it does seem to work a little.

And, of course, there are the two men in Stephanie's life, Ranger and Joe Morelli. Both men are present and accounted for, and Stephanie still can't make up her mind which guy to really go with. There are doughnuts, chicken from Cluck-in-a-Bucket, and a pot roast dinner at Stephanie's parents' house. Grandma Mazur demands to see the body at one of the viewings at the funeral home - she hates a closed casket (she does have a point when she asks how can she know the person is really in there? But I still think open casket viewing is creepy, myself).

So what's missing? Good question. As I said, it would seem that all the usual ingredients are here, just not blended well or in the right order. "Sizzling" is a complete misnomer, as well; there's very little heat of any type in this book. More importantly, I think the humor is missing, too. I wondered if I was starting to find Evanovich boring, but then I remembered how much I had liked "Finger Lickin' Fifteen"; I laughed out loud a lot, and so hard during the barbecue scene, that I thought I might pee my pants. Sadly, that type of humor is missing here. There are some cute scenes, and I might have giggled once or twice, but nothing of the usual hilarity can be found in this installment.

What interests me more are some of the reviews on Amazon. There were at least two people who threw out the theory that Evanovich herself did not write this book, that there's a ghostwriter at work, someone who was given all the "facts" and an outline to work from. I'm not sure I believe that myself, but it would be curious to know if they're on the right track. Also, it would appear that Evanovich is publishing her first graphic novel with her daughter, Alex - could Alex be the mystery writer here? It's a good conspiracy theory to work from, especially for those of us disappointed by this book.

Overall, this is probably a solid C rating. It's not horrible, but it's not what I've come to expect from Evanovich. Luckily, I can pick up the next one here at the library, so I'm not out any money!

"Godmother: The Secret Cinderella Story" by Carolyn Turgeon

What if Cinderella never made it to the ball? What if her fairy godmother had gone in her place? Would the world still be the same? Or would everything change? This is the premise of "Godmother", an interesting if somewhat ultimately disappointing book by Carolyn Turgeon.

Lillian ("Lil"), an older woman in her 60s,  is employed at Daedulus Books. She loves going to work early and putting the store right, dusting shelves, processing books and checking up on her employer, George, a newly divorced man who spends more time with his books than with people. Lil is a devoted employee, even though she doesn't make much money working for George; she often talks about being hungry and needing to watch her pennies. She's lived in the same apartment for decades, walked the same streets, ate in the same restaurants. And she desperately wants to go home - back to Fairyland. You see, Lil is no ordinary human...

Once upon a time, Lil was a fairy, along with her sister Maybeth and their friends Gladys and Lucibell. She lived a perfect life, flying through the air, popping in on humans, and generally influencing the path of several lives. Then she learns that she has been given the most important assignment ever given to a fairy - she must ensure that Cinderella attends the ball, thus falling in love with the prince and marrying him. Cinderella's mother had some fairy blood in her, and the elders want the tradition to continue. It's a very big job for a young fairy, and Lil immediately starts feeling the pressure. To help her in her quest, she convinces her sister to fly to the palace with her; she wants to see what all the fuss is about regarding the handsome prince. What she doesn't expect is for the prince to fall in love with her - he sees her, something most humans can't do. When she takes on her human form, Cinderella's destiny hangs in the balance, as Lil now wants to be the one dancing with the prince.

Back in the human world, Lil thinks she's found a way to make everything right again. Tired of binding her wings daily, tired of being bound to the earth as well, she's struck by a new customer, Veronica. The girl reminds her so much of Cinderella, she can't help but believe that she's been giving a chance to set things right, thus earning her place back in the world of Fairy. She learns that George has to attend a charity ball and doesn't have a date - perfect! She sets up the two young potential lovers, and all seems to be headed in the right direction. But at the last minute, Lil forgets an important item and has to rush off to the ball. Will she reach Veronica in time? Will she be able to fulfill her own destiny?

Most of the book is great. The chapters tend to jump between present day Lil and Cinderella-time fairy Lillian. You feel Lil's pain of being banished from everything she knew and loved, and you root for her to find her way back. I liked George and Veronica, although I didn't necessarily believe they were "right" for each other. I did believe that they both truly cared about Lil, though. The biggest problem I have with this book is the "twist" at the end. If you're paying attention, and I was, you'll see it coming a mile off; I caught on about half-way through the book. It was interesting to read the reviews on Amazon; most loved the book until the end, then felt they'd been had (one reviewer even went so far as to claim "bait and switch" - a bit harsh IMHO). I can't say that I'm that opposed to the ending, but I do admit that I was disappointed. Guess I was hoping that I would be wrong about the direction things ultimately took.

Overall, not a bad book, but not exactly what I expected.

"I See Rude People" by Amy Alkon

I love this book! The subtitle is "One woman's battle to beat some manners into impolite society." Yeah, I've felt that way quite a lot as I get older; I find myself wanting to go up to people and say "Didn't your mother teach you any better?" Seems like rude people are everywhere you turn around, making one wonder why we ever walk out our front doors in the first place.

No one is safe from Alkon: lax parents, internet bullies, rude drivers, negligent businesses, telemarketers, car thieves, and cell phone "yakkers" all bear the brunt of her displeasure, and her attention. What's more interesting to me is that she takes on what really is a serious subject, injects it with enough humor to keep you reading, and gives you some history/anthropology lessons to boot.

See, we've always been rude, us humans. We're just noticing it more in today's modern world. Way back when, say during the Stone Age (OK, you could even go as far forward as Hunter-Gatherer societies), we wanted to act out - but we caved (pardon the pun) to peer pressure. Basically, if you were the snottiest one of the small group, you could and would be left behind by your fellow cavemen if you misbehaved; you needed them to survive. Alkon points out that there are still "nice" societies in our complex world today, but they tend to have no more than 150 people in them. Anything above that and you start to lose the peer pressure, thus resulting in boorish behavior.

Perhaps the most novel advent in the war on manners is the Internet. While there are several cases of cyber-bullying in the news these days, there are also people like Alkon who have taken to "blogslapping" - outing people via the blogs regarding bad behavior. Think of all the viral videos you see about cops beating suspects, teachers freaking out on kids, etc, and you know what I'm talking about. Alkon theorizes that this is the new way in which we will exert peer pressure, a way that will hopefully make people more aware of their actions - or at least more aware that there are people out there watching them.

The stories are too funny, from Alkon tracking down the home address and phone number of telemarketing execs (and yes, she calls them during dinner!) to her quest to track down the man who stole her beloved Pink Rambler - and her subsequent harassment of said thief. She's not shy about what she wants, and she's a journalist who knows how to get it. My advice? Mind your P's and Q's because there's a very good chance that someone out there is watching you.

"The Enchantment Emporium" by Tanya Huff

Alysha "Allie" Gale has just lost her position as a research assistant at a museum. She's moved home with her extended family (mostly aunts and female cousins) when she gets a letter from her grandmother, a letter that says if Allie is reading it, then her grandmother is dead. As such, she is passing on her junk shop, The Enchantment Emporium, to Allie; she tells her that it is an important fixture in the community and that the people there need her.

Naturally, Allie doesn't want to believe that something has happened to her grandmother. And there are signs that all is not as it seems; for one thing, where's the body? For another, Allie comes from a family of witches, and none of them have felt the passing of her grandmother. So what gives? Being at loose ends, Allie decides to make the journey west to Calgary and investigate.

When she arrives at the shop, she immediately finds out what "community" her gran was talking about, and it's not the human one. Joe, a rather tall leprechaun, shows up and tells Allie that her gran was a friend to the Fey and others, acting as a sort of post office and supply store. Not long after arriving, Allie notices a huge shadow doing a fly-by during the wee hours of the morning; not a good sign to have dragons in town. Even worse? There's a sorcerer in Calgary as well, one who her gran had to know about but didn't turn in to her relatives. Yes, the witches (or "aunties" as they're referred to) do not take kindly to sorcerers, favoring a scorched-earth policy.

Allie decides to keep her aunties out of matters as well, relying on Joe, her cousin Charlie, her ex-love (who happens to be decidedly gay), and a few others to help her solve the mystery. What really happened to Gran? (general consensus favors death by dragon, as in eaten by one) What keeps pushing Charlie out of the Woods? (a great way to travel, the metaphysical Woods, but only if you can go where you intend to go) What is the great evil that the sorcerer keeps talking about, the one that only he can handle? (it's totally not what you think) Will Allie go to the dark side and keep time with the sorcerer's yummy assistant, Graham? (um, sort of....)

I really, really liked this book, even though there's a lot that's not entirely explained. Huff leaves a lot to the reader's imagination (or deciphering, as the case may be). And some of the actions of the Gale family will not appeal to certain readers. Let's just say they give a whole new meaning to the phrase "one big happy family". But those are piddly details, and certainly not enough to keep me from recommending this work. In fact, I liked it so much I'm hoping that Huff has plans for this to be a series, a trilogy at the very least. There's enough left open-ended that she certainly could write about Allie and her family again. I sure hope so!