Hello, and welcome back! I swear, I'm going to stop listening to our local weather forecasters--we were supposed to get snow last week that never came, then they said a few inches Saturday night before changing over to ice; instead, we got a coating of snow, then sleet, then more snow. At least I have plenty of reading material here on my desk to keep me occupied and warm me up after rounds of shoveling out the driveway.

I've got two new books to share with you this time out, and the first is the latest from Karen Rose Smith,
Their Baby Bond (Silhouette Special Edition #1588). Tori Phillips returned to her hometown after her divorce to build a new life for herself, and very shortly, she'll have a newly-adopted baby to share that life with. In the meantime, she needs some work done on her house, which brings Jake Galeno back into her life. Ex-cop Jake is her high-school best friend's brother, and he was always way out of her league no matter how much she may have wished otherwise. Now he's back in their hometown, too, with issues of his own to work out, with no help from anyone. Yet it's more difficult than either of them expect to resist temptation, meaning that at least one of them will end up heartbroken. This is a lovely, believable story, with just the right amount of heartstring tugging and some steam to keep you warm in this wintry month. Of Cupid's five arrows, this one earns four and a half. A definite keeper.

The other book I have to share with you this week is Deirdre Martin's
Fair Play (Berkley), with the next of her hockey-playing heroes. Theresa Falconetti, partner to Janna from the first book, is working hard at expanding her fledgling P.R. business, and hey, if that means she has to work with a hockey-playing restaurant owner, well, whatever works. That doesn't mean, however, that she's going to date the persistent Michael Dante. Theresa's set on a man with money, and not one from her old neighborhood. This is a woman with issues. A lot of issues. I can't imagine any man sticking around as long as Michael does, especially with the way she treats him. Again, I'm not a hockey fan, so that part of the story I find distasteful. As for the romance, well, I didn't buy it. Theresa has so many issues she needs a good therapist before she should even look at a man, and Michael looks more than a little desperate, trying to win a woman who spurns him more than once. I'm giving this one only one arrow.

Just a reminder: our February book club selection is Linda Howard's Dream Man. Join our discussion!

Until next time, happy reading!