Monday, July 20

chick lit mystery series - reviews

They say all English Majors will end up reading mysteries and I thought no way too scarey, not interesting and here I am...addicted. I read or listen on my ipod to the following mystery series, I tend to go for chick lit mysteries that are funny, romantic and not too gorey. Here are some of my favorite protaganists and writers enjoy.

Stephanie Plum Series- by Janet Evanovich ex. One for the Money, Two for the Dough etc...
These are the ones that started it all for me. My mother, sisters and now a few friends have all gotten bitten by the Plum bug. Stephanie is a bailbonds woman from Trenton New Jersey and has a cast of hysterical characters who help her bring in her perps. She just released book 15 Finger Lickin Fifteen...http://www.evanovich.com/

Sophie Katz Series - by Kyra Davis ex. Sex, Murder and a Double Latte....
These are probably my favorite and the minute she writes a new one I'm reading it. Sophie is half black, half jewish native San Franciscan. Her friends are true San Franciscan's; one owns an adult sex store similar to Good Vibrations, one is a gay hair dresser, her boyfriend is a russian private eye and all the stories feature San Francisco locations and has a San Franciscan air. Love her! She's just released book number four... http://www.kyradavis.com/


Charlotte Wren Series - by Stephanie Bond ex. Body Movers, 3 Men and a Body...
This is my newest find and I'm addicted! Charlotte lives in Atlanta Georgia and when she was 18 and her brother only 8 her parents left them and skipped town to evade criminal charges against her dad. So she's raised her brother by working at Neiman Marcus and now he's 18 and gets into lots of trouble etc. I like it becuase she has sex with more than one person, she has real problems and the people around her are not perfect by any means. Every book leaves you hanging to get to the next one. There are 6 books so far and I'm on number four, can't wait to read the rest... http://www.stephaniebond.com/

Sofie Metropolis Series - by Tori Carrington ex. Dirty Laundry, Foul Play...
Sofie Metropolis is a Greek- American living in Queens next to her huge Greek family. She has a lot of greek food in these books that sounds amazing. There are four books in the series now. http://www.sofiemetro.com/

Heather Wells Series - by Meg Cabot ex. Size 12 is Not Fat, Big Boned...
Love Heather Wells, she is an ex mall pop star who now works at a NYC University as an assistant dorm director. She writes little songs to start her chapters which are funny and she has the usual interesting cast of characters. Meg Cabot is the author of the Princess Diary series and other young adult books so the releases of Heather Wells novels are unfortunately few and far between. There are only three in the series right now.
http://www.megcabot.com/size12/size12isnotfat.php

Hannah Swensen Series- by Joanne Fluke ex. Chocolate Chip Murder, Strawberry Shortcake Murder
Hannah Swensen owns a cookie store in Minnesota and solves mysteries. These are as light as you can get, fluff novels that harken back in time as Hannah is dating two men but does not do more than kiss either. It's a little to precious at times but I like the people she writes about in the area. http://www.murdershebaked.com/books.htm

Lt. Eve Dallas in Death Series- by JD Robb ex. Glory in Death, Ceremony in Death...
The fun part of these novels is the setting is 2060 and cancer has been cured, people live till 150 or more, people vacation off planet etc. I enjoy what the future looks like but the characters are a bit tortured by their inner demons and I sometimes want to shake them. It was surprising at first to find that JD Robb is actually Nora Roberts and I'm reading Nora Roberts books but I like her now. I've read about 6 and there are 25! in the series..... not sure how many more I'll read.
http://www.noraroberts.com/jdrobb/

Sookie Stackhouse Series - by Charlaine Harris ex. Dead until Dark, Club Dead etc...
This is the inspiratin for the True Blood series on HBO. The storylines in the show are very different than the books but a lot of the same characters and that very cool sourthern vibe. Sookie is a mind reader who lives in Louisianna and dates a Vampire. Vampires have "come out" of the coffin and can live off synthetic 'true blood'. These are fun and a bit more gorey than I usually go for but the she loves him she loves him not is getting a bit old and I stopped on book 5 and there are nine in the series.
http://www.charlaineharris.com/bibliography/bibliog-sookie.html

Enjoy reading...

Saturday, July 18

getting rid of stuff

Okay my friend Susie H is going to be delighted to hear I finally cleaned my closet (which is actually a little room) and got rid of all the shoes that hurt my feet, or had worn down heels, or it's impossible to walk in. I got rid of them even if they were only worn once. I got rid of purses that I hand't used in the last year and got rid of every t-shirt or tank top that had a stain on it!

I'm pretty obsessed with organization magazines, shows, books. Here's what I've picked up from all this research.

1. Don't organize and clean at the same time, you'll never finish cleaning. To tackles a big mess start but straightening it up and making it look clean, even if that means making a box of stuff you'll go through to organize. Once the room looks better you'll have a lot more energy to organize and de-clutter.

2. Go with what feels natural. I once read that if you naturally put the mail on the table everyday although you've made a space for it in the office, put a basket on the diningroom table for mail, you won't retrain yourself most often.

3.If you haven't used it in a year you don't need it.

4.Sentimental things aren't really doing much for you in a closet or box, make a small part of that object. Although this one doesn't apply to me much, I'm much more about does it please aesthetically than if it's sentimental.

5. Read or review things only once! This is my favorite, why look at mail once then again to decide what to do with it. Look once and make an action, recycle or put in a bill pile. Same with email, answer immediately if you can then you won't waste time reviewing again.

That's all i know folks!

Sunday, July 12

oh so raunchy i'm laughing my head off

Okay i'm supposed to be cleaning my closet which is strewn with clothes...really bad..something needing Clean House help...but instead i'm watching Kathy Griffin's "My Life on the D-List". She's shopping with Paris and.....

Kathy says something about her mouth looks like "Hey do you want a blow job?"

Paris "Oh I never do that. My mom taught me only ugly girls have to get on their knees and do that. I'd never give a blow job."

Kathy "Me neither and I'm not taking it up the butt again either now."

Later Kathy says to the camera, "Wow I'm off the hook forever! I'm never giving a blow job again. In fact from now on they'll blow me. Next time I have sex I'll strap on and say 'Hey Blow Me'."

She's freakin' hysterical. Oh and Kathy's mom in charge of her facebook page... peeing my pants!

This is not the exact part but this was funny too...

Thursday, July 9

great wedding vows!

Well it's a long story but I found this today and thought it was beautiful.

Paul Newman and Joanne Woodward's wedding vows:

Happiness in marriage is not something that just happens. A good marriage must be created. In the Art of Marriage: The little things are the big things. It is never being too old to hold hands. It is remembering to say 'I love you' at least once a day. It is never going to sleep angry. It is at no time taking the other for granted; the courtship should not end with the honeymoon, it should continue through all the years. It is having a mutual sense of values and common objectives. It is standing together facing the world. It is forming a circle of love that gathers in the whole family. It is doing things for each other, not in the attitude of duty or sacrifice, but in the spirit of joy. It is speaking words of appreciation and demonstrating gratitude in thoughtful ways. It is not expecting the husband to wear a halo or the wife to have wings of an angel. It is not looking for perfection in each other. It is cultivating flexibility, patience, understanding and a sense of humor. It is having the capacity to forgive and forget. It is giving each other an atmosphere in which each can grow. It is finding room for the things of the spirit. It is a common search for the good and the beautiful. It is establishing a relationship in which the independence is equal, dependence is mutual and the obligation is reciprocal. It is not only marrying the right partner, it is being the right partner.