The characters in this book portray their emotions brilliantly, the book is well written, and I enjoyed the read. You can stop there, and take that as my recommendation.

Delving a little deeper, the reason this is 4 instead of 5 stars is that the author missed the boat on fat girls. The psychology is off the mark, with the fat girl having enough confidence to proposition the guy, and the thin girl trying to leave that fat girl behind and losing some of her confidence. Once a fat girl loses the weight, her confidence rises exponentially, and the psychology is more along the lines of "see what you missed when all you saw was the fat girl?" There was a movie with Stockard Channing - "The Girl Most Likely To" that shows a woman who used to be bullied because of her looks seeking revenge. That piece is missing in this book. Willow too easily forgives a slight she got in college, too easily dismisses that her SEAL is panting after her now when he pushed her away before. While Ms. St. Claire does explore the reasons behind that decision, I would have liked to see more conflict about "oh, now you want me!" rather than "He's so hot, I still want him!"

Welp - I think I'll chicken out on this one. After finishing and trying to decide what to write, I went back to read some of the less excited reviews, and I'll just say I agree more with them than with the 5-stars. The book started out at breakfast, but suddenly they're at a ball. Is it a breakfast ball? What happened to breakfast? Oh wait, now we're back at breakfast, but then walking outside at night at the ball. A breakfast ball, at night? And then there was the misuse of verbs and overuse of pet words. "Choosing to do this, he chose to do that." In the same sentence. And orbs and tides. And a heroine who overthinks to distraction. To. Distraction. If I was the DNF type, this would have raised it's hand to jump into that pile, but I always think that eventually the story will redeem itself... (not this time). Lots of author intrusion, lots of hammering a point home (I got it the first time), not enough show and too much tell.

Some scars aren't as visible as others.

Hallie Hartley has lived in her step-sister's shadow for most of her life. Saddled with a step-mother only Cinderella could appreciate, Hallie comes home one day to find her step-sister impersonating her and trying to sell her house. Hallie's only option is to go to the house in question and fulfill the responsibilities her sister forged upon her - literally.

What she finds is Jamie Taggert, a man recovering from a "ski accident" and much more. As she slowly earns his trust and sees the depths of his injuries, she finds herself drawn more deeply into the comfort of Jamie and his family. At the same time, Jamie discovers Hallie's scars, scars she isn't even aware she has.

With the intervention of two maidenly ghosts, Jamie and Hallie find the only way they can both be healed, through the gift of true love.

Love this third in the Nantucket Brides Series.

Reach in, grab my heart, squeeze. Gushing on the depth of emption this pulled out, the way I felt for Harper, who had been abandoned by her mother as a child, leaving her "stunted." Years after a walkaway divorce from Nick, they find themselves thrown together, unresolved feelings front and center.

Kristan Higgins doesn't take the easy way out. It would be easy to write "and they all lived happily ever after," but Harper and Nick haven't fixed what went wrong the first time, so despite the fact that they share a deep and abiding love, this book reminds us that life isn't so easy.

I loved this book from start to finish, dude. :-)

How many books do you remember a week after you've finished reading it?

I read this book when it was first released, and I read it again when it was re-released. Dougless is such a charming underdog, the youngest child trying not to be the family clown. She feels like she can't do anything right, and in spite of landing a doctor (who is going to propose "any day") she discovers he isn't her best choice in husband material, but he's her chance to appear to have done the right thing with her family. Until she meets her knight in shining armor, and he shows her how a man should treat a lady.

One of the first time travel romance novels, this story stuck with me for all these years, and even in re-reading it (I must have been mixing up two books, they don't BOTH travel through time, do they?), I still loved the way Dougless uses a waterfall as a shower, and I remembered Nicholas's trip to the dentist. I love the way Nicholas is fascinated by modern-day inventions. Particularly endearing is the ending... Because love endures the test of time.

Overall, a well done Gothic romance. The hero was dark and, as a reader, I wasn't sure how the author would redeem him (although you know she has to!)

The heroine is painted as a realistic optimist, and it works. She looks for the good in people, and sometimes that works against her. There are times I didn't quite buy it, and yet, her characterization was strong enough for me to say "yeah, that's just who she is." She's that character in the story that deliberately walks into danger.

I did figure out about 3/4 the way through who the true villain was, but the author left several options to be considered along the way.

There were a lot of moans and groans that distracted me from time to time, places they weren't quite appropriate (silence would have been appropriate!). The author led me by the hand through plot lines where I might not have gone, straining slightly, and yet I bought it. It worked. Some information was withheld, which annoyed me as a reader (the hero's occupation, for instance), and yet if the author had told us sooner, some of the mystery would have been lost. But when she comes face to face with the bad guy, how does she not immediately notice the tell-tale buff pants and black boots (especially when they are not standard issue - spoiler there, so I'm being deliberately obtuse)?

All said, I will look to read more in this series.

Hairstylist Marla is on her honeymoon with police detective husband Dalton at Dalton's family's ranch in Arizona. In exchange for a free stay, his cousin has requested help uncovering the source of a series of accidents in and around the ranch and a ghost town Dalton's uncle is trying to resurrect. Threats, sabotage and ultimately murder threaten not only Marla and Dalton, but Dalton's family as well.

Filled with information on mining and Arizona lore, Marla and Dalton work together to uncover the secrets hidden in this cozy mystery, the 12th in Ms. Cohen's "Bad Hair Day" series.

Don't let the title fool you into believing this is a redneck hick type of book.

Set in Georgia, Baxley Powell is a probably widow trying to raise her daughter without marketable skills. But she does have the gift passed through to her from her father - she can talk to the dead. As a dog walker, landscaper, she freelances with the sheriff (an old would-be boyfriend from high school) when someone is murdered. The hope is that the dead man will tell her who killed him, but "dreamwalking" on the other side isn't quite that cut and dried.

Baxley's impatience to solve the murder intersects with a young girl's disappearance, her daughter's best friend. Along the journey, she discovers her daughter has inherited some sensitivity of her own. And is Baxley's husband really dead? We ride the roller coaster of Baxley's emotions as she struggles to protect her daughter, to keep herself safe, and to cope with the other distractions of everyday life. Filled with suspense, this well written book keeps you guessing all the way to the end which Bubba Done It.

A heartwarming story of second chances, for the "mean" guy, for the nerdy guy, for the women they wronged and the women they loved. Happy endings don't come easily, and in some cases they aren't meant to be. And sometimes, the decisions have to wait for "God's good time." Readers will be able to relate to at least one of the characters in this book. Famous for her "feel good" books, this one does not disappoint, even when things fo horribly wrong.

A well written book about greed and ambition and goals at crossed swords. However can two people overcome all the pain and suffering of their pasts and set aside the negativity barking at their heels? At the source of it all is trust (and some very noble friends and motives). I enjoyed this book immensely and will be looking for the zodiac man with MY sign!