What I'm Reading: Hearts and Glowers (K.M. Gillis)

This is a cute little Valentine's Day story, very low angst. I didn't expect to like it as much as I did. 

Hearts and Glowers
K.M. Gillis

https://www.amazon.com/Hearts-Glowers-Grumpy-Sunshine-Office-ebook/dp/B0CNMX54FP/

Meet Noel: a workaholic on track to become the youngest partner in his accounting firm’s history. He sees the world in black and white, but when a doe-eyed new hire at the firm starts wasting company time, he’s suddenly seeing red.

Enter Candy: She’s determined to prove to herself and her family that she can thrive in a new city on her terms. A hopeless romantic, her eternal optimism is put to the test by her gorgeous yet grumpy coworker.

She’s sweet, he’s sour. But these two opposites definitely attract. Tempers and passions will flare, but can they fight the fire between them without getting burned?

Hearts And Glowers is a spicy office romance romp. 

Mug Shot: Port Aransas Mug

Yes, it's another ocean-themed mug, brought to you by Pisces-R-Us. I got this on my last trip to Port A, as it's called. This is where some of the closest beaches to me are located. It's an amazingly relaxing place with a surprising amount of wildlife. 

I like the look of this mug. I like the colors, the design, the textures, the glaze choices. It's a good size, though not huge. It's a good addition to our two-toned, sea-colored, beach-themed mug collection. 

What I'm Reading: The Wickeds (Gayle Forman)

The So, this is a story about several fairy tale villains--told from their perspectives. I was particularly intrigued because I've signed on to write a story for an anthology that's centered around the descendants of fairy tale villains. 

Anyway, it's cute. I liked it. Now, I guess I'll have to pick up the rest of the series. I think they're all available via Prime. 

Hilariously, my initial cover for my story was very similar to this one. But I've gone in another direction with it. 

The Wickeds (Faraway Collection)
Gayle Forman

https://www.amazon.com/Wickeds-Faraway-collection-Gayle-Forman-ebook/dp/B08L61SCT2/

The reviled villainesses of Snow White, Cinderella, and Rapunzel team up to set the record straight in a subversively funny short story by the number one New York Times bestselling author of If I Stay.

Envious queen? Evil stepmother? Kidnapping hag? Elsinora, Gwendolyn, and Marguerite are through with warts-and-all tabloids, ugly lies, and the three ungrateful brats who pitted them against each other and the world. But maybe there’s more to the stories than even the Wickeds know. Is it time to finally get revenge? After all, they’re due for a happily-enough-ever-after. Even if they have to write it themselves.

The Wickeds is part of Faraway, a collection of retold fairy tales that take the happily-ever-after in daring new directions. Whether read or listened to in one sitting, prepare to be charmed, moved, enlightened, and frightened all over again. 

Mug Shot: Rumi Quote Mug

I love Rumi. I love watercolor-esque paintings, and anything to do with oceans or fish--yes, it's the Pisces thing, again. So, of course I had to buy this mug. It's a decent size, not huge. Not particularly special, just a nice, serviceable mug. I definitely bought it because it's pretty and has a great quote. 

What I'm Reading: The Love Equation (Meg Benjamin)

So this is the latest book in Meg Benjamin's Konigsburg series. Only a few scenes are set in Konigsburg itself, and only a handful of characters show up, but it's still nice to visit with some old friends, and to speculate on whether any of the new characters will stick around and make appearances in future books.

Also, not to brag, but I did this cover. I created it before I read the book, and I liked it a lot. But now having read the book, I have to say that I think it REALLy catches the mood of the story. So yay, me! lol And obviously, yay, Meg, too!

The Love Equation
Meg Benjamin

https://www.amazon.com/Love-Equation-Konigsburg-Texas-ebook/dp/B0GJQXXZCG/

They’re both unlucky in love. Can they find the equation for the perfect mate?

Celine Murphy has had it. Her current boyfriend has broken up with her by text. That makes three boyfriends who’ve turned out to be losers, including one who left for Antarctica. She’s decided to go for an online matchmaking service, but as a mathematician, she wants to minimize her own faulty choices and let an algorithm make the selection.

At the same time, musician Delaney Boone has come to Austin to mentor “the kid,” a popular actor turned musician. He’s also escaping a broken heart from a failed relationship, and he’s hoping Austin will provide some new possibilities. With those new possibilities in mind, he goes for an online dating service.

Fate—or math—matches these two unlikely lovers. But can they overcome their own doubts to accept another chance at romance? Maybe with the help of an unlikely cupid in the form of Celine’s grandfather, The Judge, and the matchmaking skills of some familiar faces in Konigsburg. And an unexpected dose of cedar fever. It’s Texas y’all. 

Mug Shot: Rainbow Mug

I love this mug because it reminds me of my grandmother. As you can see from the pic, the rainbow on the mug is very similar to the keychain I've had since the very early '80s. I've kept it all this time because it, too, reminds me of my grandmother. Here's the story...

The night after my grandmother suffered the stroke that would end up killing her, I dreamed that she and I were standing atop a cliff in Ireland. She pointed at a rainbow in the sky and told me that when I saw the rainbow, I'd know that she was all right. Now, I had never seen a rainbow in real life, at that point, but she had often told me that, growing up in Ireland, she used to see them all the time.

So, all in all, this was not a surprising dream for me to have had, at that point. HOWEVER, when I arrived at the hospital the next morning, the first thing I saw, once I walked through the front door, was the big neon rainbow over the hospital gift shop. Thanks to the dream, I found myself comforted by that. 

Anyway...tomorrow would have been her birthday. 

What I'm Reading: On Thin Ice (Kelly Jamieson)

The characters in this book are layered and nuanced and perfectly imperfect. Neither of them believe in love at first sight. They both agree that they don't/can't/never-want-to do relationships. And yet...

On Thin Ice
Kelly Jamieson

https://www.boldwoodbooks.com/book/on-thin-ice/

Marek’s world is on the ice, Nicki’s is on the stage. But their worlds collide in one steamy night in Vegas… ️

Marek

Playing for the New Jersey Storm I know how to handle the heat – on and off the ice. But nothing compares to Nicki Sullivan. We collided in Vegas: One wild night, no strings and a spark I couldn’t shake. We went our separate ways, but I never stopped thinking about her. When I see she’s involved in an accident that nearly takes her life, I drop everything and drive to New York. She’s broken, shaken… but still the woman who set my world alight. So I bring her home with me — to recover, to breathe… and maybe, to see if that spark between us still burns.

Nicki

After the accident, I can’t face the music — or the world. The last person I expect to show up is Marek — sinfully hot, too good to be real, and suddenly my rescuer. I should push him away. Instead, I let him take me to his apartment, where everything feels dangerously safe. But it’s not just comfort — it’s him. The heat between us is impossible to ignore and being with him feels right. But I can’t hide away forever. Falling for him is a risk because this time the ice beneath us may just crack.