What the Wenches are Reading

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As we hope you noticed, the Wenches have been on a brief hiatus called The Holidays. We spent some time with family and friends celebrating our loved ones and the end of another year. And we are really a little irritated that said celebrations have kept us away from our eReaders and books. But it IS a new year, and we are safely nestled back in our cozy, warm reading corners enjoying quite a variety of literature.

Click through to find out what has captured our attention this week.









Amanda: I read As You Are by Ethan Day. It took me a little bit to get into it, as it does not have the kind of action I'm used to. However, once we got more Danny-time, it went quickly. I really loved it, and the dinner scene is hysterical! This is a must for the m/m romance fan.

Anne: I am catching up on my favorite serial killer, Dexter. I'm just starting the sixth book, Double Dexter by Jeff Lindsay. The books are very different from the show, but equal in quality. I'm also getting to the end of the audiobook of A Feast for Crows by George R.R. Martin. 

Angela: I finally got Dragonfly in Amber by Diana Gabaldon back from the library. I am adoring Claire. She is definitely a heroine after my own heart.

Barbara: Voyager was a very long, intense, action-packed book, so I had to take a smut break. I read Sweet Seduction and Sweet Temptation by Maya Banks. Now I am back in the Outlander world and enjoying Drums of Autumn.

Beta: I just finished Drums of Autumn and wow, just wow. Diana Gabaldon really is a genius. There were a lot of things happening in that book and boy, did I get a good glimpse into how it would be to live in these times, even more so than in previous books. Gabaldon sure knows how to write interesting and lovable characters... as well as not-so-lovable characters... along with some good plots and twists as she sucks you into a great story. I can't get enough of the Outlander world, I can't get enough of Jamie Fraser, Claire or the people in their lives. I've already started reading The Fiery Cross... which means, as I understand it after checking it out online: "a cross constructed of two firebrands, and pitched upon the point of a spear; formerly in Scotland borne by a runner as a signal for the clan to take up arms". Should I be worried? I guess I'll find out....

Donna: I just finished reading Into the Wilderness, by Sara Donati. Set in the eighteenth century, it's the first book in a series about a young Englishwoman, Elizabeth Middleton, who joins her father and brother in a remote mountain village in New York, to set up a school. There she meets Nathaniel Bonner, an American frontiersman, who has strong ties to the Mohawk nation. Ms. Donati gives a huge shoutout to Diana Gabaldon, by referring to several of her Outlander characters: Claire, Jamie and (young) Ian. I will probably pick up the remaining books in the series, but I've got a huge hankering for Outlander now, so it's back to the Highlands for me, baby!

Katherine: I'm reading Bone River, by Megan Chance. It was on sale at Amazon and I took a chance. It's kind of creepy, and I found myself spooked when walking the house late last night. It's about a woman in the 1800s who discovers a mummified body in the river that borders her home. She is warned by many to put the body back in the river so that bad luck does not strike; however, she is compelled to keep it and discover where it came from and who this woman was. The woman speaks to her in her dreams, and she is starting to heed the woman's words. She is also warned by a Native American elder about her much older husband's son, who comes looking for his father after 20 years. I gave it a shot and was up till 4:00 this morning reading it. I'm intrigued and have 100 pages left to go!

Kathi: I read Diana Gabaldon’s The Scottish Prisoner, which was published in 2012 as an addition to her Lord John Grey series. Lord John is a peripheral character in the Outlander books, and I had not felt particularly inspired to read his books until recently, given that I’m all out of Outlander books and biding my time until the next one is available in the fall. The story in this book occurs during the events of Voyager (Outlander #3) and includes Jamie Fraser as a main character, so I paused in my reread of Voyager, way back in September, thinking I’d try The Scottish Prisoner before continuing. I did enjoy this book and do plan to read more of this series. It provided a lot of insight into the early, complicated relationship and eventual friendship that evolved between Jamie Fraser and Lord John. I’m continuing my reread of Voyager this week, feeling like I have a better understanding of things occurring behind the scenes after reading The Scottish Prisoner.

Merit: I'm reading On Dublin Street by Samantha Young. This book was recommended to me about a month ago as a contemporary romance, 50 Shades style. It has tons of good ratings on Goodreads (4.42 rating/19,977 ratings/2,509 reviews ) and Amazon ( 4.5 rating/1,408 customer reviews). Well, the name Dublin and the promise of a verra sexy multi-millionaire Scottish hunk did it for me (ha), and I read it last night. Can’t make up my mind, the story is angsty enough, emotional, with hot sex scenes, but maybe I am a little tired of all these young women, whose problematic past is ending, struggling with their attraction to gorgeous young men… Don’t get me wrong, this was enjoyable reading, and I was curious enough to read it to the end, but we have read so many with a similar theme, I am a bit ambivalent about it. Also just started book 5 in the Kara Gillian series, Touch of the Demon, by Diana Rowland. It's too early to comment, but I was waiting breathlessly for this one.

Olga: Finishing The Immortal Highlander (Highlander #6) by Karen Marie Moning. And, WOW, I can only repeat this "word". I couldn't put down Adam's book. I just started reading it yesterday, then went to bed at 6 in the morning, and now I'm finishing reading it and I don't want to. Oh, Adam! *sigh*

Shau: I'm still enjoying Diana Rowland's Kara Gillian series. I'm on book 3, Secrets of the Demon, at the moment.

Veronica: I just finished Hot Head by Damon Suede. I started it several months ago, but only got about 10% through before Iced came out, and I just picked it up again the other day. It was a good read, but it seemed to go straight from super-angst to schmoop in 0.8 seconds flat. "Abracadabra" and all conflict points were resolved. I did like reading about the photo shoot. I also liked the Anastagio family and wished we had more time with them.

What are you reading this week, Saucy Readers?

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