calmIf you'd like to see my recent four-plus- and five-star YA recommendations, visit Robin ReadsnWrites.
* I didn't make it beyond the first 20 pages.
** I made it to the end, but I either skimmed or skipped large sections.
*** I might have skipped/skimmed, but I liked it and might read it again.
**** I read at least 95% of the book and it was good -- probably will be reread.
***** I read every word, and I loved it! A favorite and definite reread.
A Reason to Believe, by Diana Copland
oldenuf2nb ***** I really enjoyed this! I started it Saturday night (a little too late), and I couldn't do anything until I finished it Sunday morning. I enjoyed the story, but mostly I enjoyed the characters: Matt was very realistic as someone still grieving and only 'half-living' (loved the Strictly Ballroom reference); and Kiernan, of course, was wonderful. I loved his enthusiasm for life, his ability to keep trying (even though he'd been burned in the past), and the way he embraced the circumstances which came his way. I thought the mystery was good, and the overall mood of the book (although sad in places -- I definitely cried near the end) was very engaging. The story: Matt is called late at night to help with a missing child. When he arrives at the house, however, the child (Abby) calls to him, and it's only when she shows him where her body is hidden that he realizes he's just seen a ghost. Now Matt is on the brink of losing his job (as he told his boss, who was already unhappy with him because he'd admitted his sexual preferences), and he's freaked out that something very strange has happened to him. His SIL (and best friend) drags him to a psychic, hoping to give him some peace about what he experienced. The psychic, Kiernan, is like no one Matt has ever met before -- and even though he's still struggling to get on with his life after the death of his partner 18 months earlier, Matt finds himself drawn to the energetic man. As for Kiernan, he also sees and even talks with Abby, and soon both men are targeted by her killer as they investigate further. Can Matt help Abby's family find peace -- and can he let go of his own pain and past long enough to start building a new future? (Adult romantic suspense, GLBT, released 11/12, publisher: Carina Press)Currently Reading: Reached (and I'm loving it too)