Hello, and welcome back! My bread machine is going at the moment, making some yummy sage and onion bread to stuff in my turkey in a few days, and in a little while more, I'll be working on some of that delicious creamy potato soup. And in between, I'm reading.

If you're not visiting us in the forum, you're missing out on all the book giveaways. So hurry on over, get registered, and start talking books with other romance fans! And be ready when I post the next giveaway.

With Thanksgiving just a couple days away, the official start to the holiday season is here, which means shopping. I really hate shopping--fighting the crowds in the mall, hunting for a parking place. Blech. Catalogs and websites are my favorite ways to shop, so for those of you who feel the same way, our Holiday Shop should be a big help. I've gathered together lots of good gift ideas, no matter which winter holiday you celebrate, and there'll be no fighting for a parking space here.

Okay, first up this time is Nicole Jordan's latest,
Lord of Seduction (Ballantine). Viscount Thorne has no intention of giving in to his father's demand that he marry. And when Diana Sheridan interrupts his skinny-dipping with news relating to his brother, he comes up with a plan to help them both--pretending to be betrothed while he hunts for his brother's killer and his ward/her cousin gets her Season untainted by Diana's scandalous past. All in all, a pleasant way to while away a cold fall evening, and with all the steam one expects from Ms. Jordan. It's earned three and a half of Cupid's five arrows.

The other book I want to share with you this time out is Maggie Osborne's
Foxfire Bride (Ballantine Ivy). Eugenia Fox is the best tracker in the area. But when Matthew Tanner comes looking for Fox, he's not expecting to find a woman to lead him on his way. Nor is he expecting to learn that the woman he's falling for on the long trek to Denver is holding a grudge, one that jeopardizes any future they might have--providing they can overcome lots of other things along the way. As always, Ms. Osborne's characters make you believe. They make you expect to see them outside of the book in your hand, and they make you cry along with them when things look as if they can't possibly turn out well, and cheer when it turns out, they can. This one is a definite keeper and has earned four and a half arrows.

Until next time, happy reading!