OUR CROWD: THE GREAT JEWISH FAMILIES oF NY

OUR CROWD: THE GREAT JEWISH FAMILIES oF NY    STEPHEN BIRMINGHAM

The New York Times–bestselling history of the rise of the most powerful and privileged Jewish families in America

They immigrated to America from Germany in the nineteenth century with names like Loeb, Sachs, Seligman, Lehman, Guggenheim, and Goldman. From tenements on the Lower East Side to Park Avenue mansions, this handful of Jewish families turned small businesses into imposing enterprises and amassed spectacular fortunes. But despite possessing breathtaking wealth that rivaled the Astors and Rockefellers, they were barred by the gentile establishment from the lofty realm of “the 400,” a register of New York’s most elite, because of their religion and humble backgrounds. In response, they created their own elite “100,” a privileged society as opulent and exclusive as the one that had refused them entry.

“Our Crowd” is the fascinating story of this rarefied society. Based on letters, documents, diary entries, and intimate personal remembrances of family lore by members of these most illustrious clans, it is an engrossing portrait of upper-class Jewish life over two centuries; a riveting story of the bankers, brokers, financiers, philanthropists, and business tycoons who started with nothing and turned their family names into American institutions.
 

HUBBY'S REVIEW:
This book about the Jewish families, Sachs, Lobe, Straus, Belmont, Guggenheim, and many other Jewish families that lived in the upper crust of New York. Who they did business and how the families even married because if the families were into banking or other finical doings it stayed in both families. It was the same with jewelry and others. This is about how families stayed together that had wealth and how they did not associate with lower class Jewish families either. This is a very fascinating book that is a reprint and is a good read. It can be a little long if you are not into history or even social history of the past. For this was a good book. I got this book from netgalley. I give this 4 stars.  Follow us at: 
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COWBOY RESURRECTION

COWBOY RESURRECTION                  MIA HOPKINS

Ball-busting businesswoman meets no-holds-barred cowboy. He’s gonna need a longer rope.

Marketing hotshot Monica Kaur has put her big-city life on hold to help bail out her brother’s failing business. Now she’s got three months to plan and promote a rodeo, the first her tiny hometown has ever seen.

To ensure the rodeo’s success, Monica enlists a local hero, a rancher’s son who’s made a name for himself on the bull-riding circuit. Problem? She can’t stop daydreaming about the cocky bastard—and all the things she longs to do to him out behind the chutes. 

Professional bullfighter Dean MacKinnon is home helping his family while his father fights cancer. Haunted by bad memories, jaded by love, Dean finds escape in a no-strings-attached go-round with brainy, sexy Monica, whose close-knit Sikh-American family would sooner run him out of town than see her with a notorious rodeo romeo.

In private, Monica and Dean play as hard as they work. But as the rodeo draws near, that clean break they promised each other is getting more and more hung up in the rigging.

Warning: Contains rope play, motel nooners, a blue-eyed charmer with a taste for kink, and a brown-eyed princess with a taste for cowboys.

HUBBY'S REVIEW:
This book opens up with Monica Kaur needing to talk to a local rodeo star Dean MacKinnon. She needs this rodeo to be a success not just for her but, for the town, and her families new venture into buying an inn that she thought was a mistake. In her family though she does not have a say. Her older brother does even though he does not have the business degree from Stanford that Monica does. Dean finally agrees to go out to look at the site for the rodeo and after they talk they end up kissing. After a few days working together to get everything in place for the rodeo he takes to a place that she did not know about even though she grew up there. The more they spent time together working the more their physical attraction for one another heated up and because of her family they had to go to a town far away for their time together this went on until right before the rodeo and they were seen by one of her aunts coming out of an hotel. By the time they got back into town it had blown up and she was for bidden to see him even though she was a grown woman of 28. Her family being of India and him being white and not of the same faith caused a stir. She leaves town after the rodeo for a new job in the bay area and he is stuck trying to come up with a way to show her father that he is truly in love with his daughter. You must read the book to find out what happens. This is a good story. I got this book from netgalley. I give this 4 stars.  Follow us at:  www.1rad-readerreviews.com 

BELIEVE (ONI FIGHTERS #2)

BELIEVE (ONI FIGHTERS #2)             NATALIE GAYLE

Have you ever hit a point in your life where everything looks good from the outside but there’s this feeling deep in your gut that tells you something is wrong?

Dane Roberts was just an ordinary guy—so he thought. Best friend to MMA fight sensation Xander Todd, and all round decent guy. But now a restlessness surrounds him. Dare he reach for more? Could he too emulate his best friend’s results in the cage?

Arianne Le Flegg was a woman starting over, with her son. Running from a past littered with broken promises, manipulation and violent abuse at the hands of family. Violence terrified her on every level. She longed for an “ordinary life”—safety for herself and her son.

Can there ever be a future for two people who view violence so differently? One embraces it, the other dispels it. One is seeking the extraordinary, the other ordinary. She longs for the type of man he’s trying to leave behind.

For there to ever be a future together, they’ll need to dig deep and decide what really is important to each of them.

To do this, they must first accept—The hardest demons to defeat are the ones inside.

They’ll have to Believe
 

HUBBY'S REVIEW:
Dane Roberts comes upon a women who needs helps because a man is getting ready to attack her. He springs into action and when the guy leaves Dane notices a boy in the back seat. After picking up her purse from the ground Arianne Le Flegg leaves with her Isaac. When she is gone Dane notices her wallet on the ground and the next day she receives a card with his number saying he found her wallet. They meet at a coffee shop and he is attracted to her but once she finds out that he does martial arts she leaves from the place. When her car breaks down and is towed to the shop he is there as well he owns one of the buildings. He gives her a ride to pick up her son and they start spending more time together. When her ex comes into the picture he stays with them because the police cannot do anything to protect her yet. Her fear of violence comes from being abused when she was married and put into the hospital. Dane must show her that he is not that way and she must work on allowing a man in her life that is not going to take advantage of her. Really this story is about each of them being for the other one to help them past their fears of trust and love. To be together instead of the easy way out and walk away. At times I felt the story was a little long, but overall a good book. I got this book from netgalley.   I give this 4 stars.  Follow us at: 
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ROCKS: MY LIFE IN & OUR OF AEROSMITH

ROCKS: MY LIFE IN & OUR OF AEROSMITH        JOE PERRY, DAVID RITZ

In the tradition of the mega-bestseller Life by Keith Richards, Aerosmith’s Joe Perry opens up for the first time about the wild, inside story of his life in the legendary band he cofounded in 1970—which is still going strong today.

In Rocks, Joe Perry exposes his unrepentant, unbridled life as the lead guitarist of Aerosmith. He delves deep into his volatile, profound, and enduring relationship with singer Steve Tyler and reveals the real people behind the larger-than-life rock-gods on stage. The nearly five-decade saga of Aerosmith is epic, at once a study in brotherhood and solitude that plays out on the killing fields of rock and roll.

With record-making hits and colossal album sales, Aerosmith has earned their place in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. But theirs is ultimately a story of endurance, and it starts almost half a century ago with young Perry, the rebel whose loving parents wanted him to assimilate, but who quits school because he doesn’t want to cut his hair. He meets Tyler in a restaurant in New Hampshire, sways him from pop music to rock-and-roll, and it doesn’t take long for the “Toxic Twins” to skyrocket into a world of fame and utter excess. 

From the mega-successful song and music video with Run DMC, “Walk This Way,” to the realization that he can’t pay his room service bill, Perry takes a personal look into the human stories behind Aerosmith, the people who enabled them, the ones who controlled them, and the ones who changed them. In his own words, Rocks is the whole story: “the loner’s story, the band’s story, the recovery story, the cult story, the love story, the success story, the failure story, the rebirth story, the re-destruction story, the post-destructive rebirth story.”

HUBBY'S REVIEW;
I really liked the first part of this book his younger years and how he got into playing the guitar. I thought he was very honest about his problems in school which was a learning disorder and how he overcame that. Also impressed with his homemade driving gear and his sense of adventure in exploring the depths of the lake during his childhood. The rest of the book was okay not great but good. How he started different bands and then how he meet Tyler and started writing and then the crazy Aerosmith stuff. Overall not a bad book. I got this book from netgalley. I give this 3 stars.  Follow us atwww.1rad-readerreviews.com

A SEAL'S TOUCH

A SEAL'S TOUCH                                      TAWNY WEBER

Subject: Navy SEAL Taylor Powell

Mission: Find a sexy fake girlfriend…with even sexier benefits!

Lieutenant Taylor "The Wizard" Powell has a reputation for getting out of tricky situations. Bad guys, bombs, weapons—no problem. Finding a girlfriend in order to evade matchmaking friends? Not so easy. He's banking on contractor Cat Peres to help him out…not realizing his tomboy friend has a whole lot of sexy surprises hidden in her tool belt.

Cat can't remember a time when Taylor wasn't the object of her hottest dreams—so she can't help but agree to his plan. Their only rule? Friends, no matter what. Except the deliciously hot chemistry that ignites between them takes them both by surprise…and having nothing between them might just ruin everything.
 

HUBBY'S REVIEW:
First time reading this series and I must say I really enjoyed the story. LT. Taylor Powell a Navy Seal is back from a mission and during the get together at their local bar the wife’s and of some of his teammates want to set him up with a real date not the one night stands that he always brings around. While they are talking to him he says he is dating someone and after he leaves he now must come up with a date for the Saturday bon fire. Catrina Peres is a contractor and can run a crew of men, on a job site and take care of three job sites, not that she wants to her uncle who is supposed to help is always out and she feels like she is running the family construction company, but her uncle still is. The youngest of five girls she always followed her dad around from job to job, learning how to hammer, pour cement, etc. not what to wear on a date how to put on makeup, and she is glad that her sisters are making her mother a grandmother and are married because that takes the pressure off of her. Taylor and she have lived across the street from each other for ever and his mom and her mom are bff’s. Taylor comes home to his mom’s home on the person he finds is Cat, she is fixing a sink. This is the first time that he is seeing her as a woman and not as his best friend, he is surprised how beautiful she is but not shocked. He asks her to go to the bon fire with him Sat and she agrees. After being there awhile she does not like faking and not being honest with the people that she has meet. They end up kissing a few times and after he takes her home he shows up the next night after her work. He talks to her in taking their friendship to the next level and she agrees. Everything is going good for many weeks and then he is gone for a mission again for two weeks. When they get back the ladies call her to meet at a bar and she notices that he is off a little bit. During this time it comes up about the Navy Ball and if she was going. He does ask her and they are having a good time when part way through she notices a change in him. They leave and on the way home he turns into a—hole. The problem is he got pissed at a construction worker and she gives it right back both barrels, when she leaves the car he realizes that he mess up and he must fix it, but he has to fix himself first. Do they get back together and if so how does he do it? Read the book a good story. I got this book from netgalley. I give this 5 stars.  Follow us at: www.1rad-readerreviews.com 

SHADOW COMMANDER :DONALD D. BLACKBURN

SHADOW COMMANDER :DONALD D. BLACKBURN       MIKE GUARDIA

The fires on Bataan burned on the evening of April 9, 1942 illuminating the white flags of surrender against the nighttime sky. Woefully outnumbered, outgunned, and ill-equipped, battered remnants of the American-Philippine army surrendered to the forces of the Rising Sun. Yet amongst the chaos and devastation of the American defeat, Army Captain Donald D. Blackburn refused to lay down his arms.With future SF legend Russell Volckmann, Blackburn escaped from Bataan and fled to the mountainous jungles of North Luzon, where they raised a private army of over 22,000 men against the Japanese. Once there, Blackburn organized a guerrilla regiment from among the native tribes in the Cagayan Valley. Blackburn s Headhunters, as they came to be known, devastated the Japanese 14th Army within the western provinces of North Luzon and destroyed the Japanese naval base at Aparri the largest enemy anchorage in the Philippines.After the war, Blackburn remained on active duty and played a key role in initiating Special Forces operations in Southeast Asia. In 1958, as commander of the 77th Special Forces Group, he spearheaded Operation White Star in Laos the first major deployment of American Special Forces to a country with an active insurgency. Seven years later, Blackburn took command of the highly classified Studies and Observations Group (SOG), charged with performing secret missions now that main-force Communist incursions were on the rise.In the wake of the CIA s disastrous Leaping Lena program, in 1964 Blackburn revitalized the Special Operations campaign in South Vietnam. Sending cross-border reconnaissance teams into Cambodia and North Vietnam, he discovered the clandestine networks and supply nodes of the infamous Ho Chi Minh Trail. Taking this information directly to General Westmoreland, Blackburn received authorization to conduct full-scale operations against the NVA and Viet Cong operating in Laos and Cambodia. In combats large and small, the Communists realized they had met a master of insurgent tactics and he was on the US side.Following his return to the United States, Blackburn was appointed Special Assistant for Counterinsurgency and Special Activities, where he was the architect of the infamous Son Tay Prison Raid. Officially termed Operation Ivory Coast, the Son Tay raid was the largest POW rescue mission and indeed, the largest Special Forces operation of the Vietnam War.During a period when United States troops in Southeast Asia faced guerrilla armies on every side, it has been little recognized today that America had a superb covert commander of its own, his guerrilla skills honed in resistance against Japan. This book follows Donald D. Blackburn through both his youthful days of desperate combat against an Empire, and through his days as a commander, imparting his lessons to the newly-realized ranks of America s own Special Forces.REVIEWS A follow-up to a fine bio of Russell Volckmann, this tale of guerrilla warfare spans from Bataan to Vietnam. World War II Magazine Donald D. Blackburn's involvement in guerilla warfare against the Japanese in WWII qualified him to become one of the first commanders of the Special Forces. For this career biography, the author conducted personal interviews with Blackburn and his family in 2008, with access to all of Blackburn's personal papers, documents, photos, and his war diary from 1941 1944. BOOK NEWS very well researched and readable account of one man s fascinating military career, which was rarely spent far from where the action was. Miniature Wargames an excellent biography of one the Army s lesser known but very important leaders. . Blackburn s activities in World War II alone would make him a hero, but the author goes on to cite in some detail Blackburn s other contributions in Viet Nam as well as to the evolution of Army Special Forces.The author s detailed accounts of Blackburn s activities make this book a must read for anyone interested in military history, World War II, and particularly for anyone studying or who simply enjoys reading about guerilla warfare or Army Special Forces. Military Writer s Society of America" 

HUBBY'S REVIEW:
This book is about Army Captain Donald Blackburn, who with future SF Legend Russell Volkmann escaped Bataan and fled to the jungles to raise an army to fight the Japanese. A good portion of the book talks about his time during the jungle and the difficulties they had at first. Also overcoming sickness, and different diseases. He also goes into losing other Americans either by death or being captured. How he had to go farther into the mountains and by doing so he came across different tribes that after he gained there trust he was able to lead them. They eventually became to be known as Blackburn’s Head Hunters. They fought against the Japanese 14th Army gaining victory over them and destroying a naval base. They also made other raids, gaining intelligence, supplies, etc… He stayed active after the war and by 58 was back in Special Forces and in Asia, Vietnam. He played a role in in many operations and creating the training and the way they insert themselves into an area to become one with a village, for example the Green Berets. He goes into his role as commander of SOG, yes it is real. He was also the planer of the Son Tay prison raid. The author used diary and other papers as research for the book, and though I would have liked more detail about SOG and Son Tay, I have other books about those. It would have been nice to have a few comments of men that were under him, but that is just me. Overall a good book about a man that should not be forgotten, but thought of more. I got this book from netgalley. I give this 5 stars.  Follow us at: www.1rad-readerreviews.com 

SHATTERED HEART #3

SHATTERED HEART #3                             DOROTHY F. SHAW

A crush is just a fantasy. The real thing packs some serious heat.

The Donnellys, Book 3

When Cynthia Donnelly lays eyes on her high school crush at her brother’s wedding rehearsal, she regrets her self-imposed, one-year moratorium on dating. If possible, he’s even hotter now than when they were teens.

Back in school, Shane made a point to ignore his best friend’s cute, sassy little sister. Now that she’s grown into an incredibly sexy woman full of Irish spunk, resisting her is out of the question. Besides, in his book, all “hands-off” rules have expired.

One sizzling night together should have been enough. Instead, the heat rises, tempting Cyn to take a chance on a long-distance relationship and making Shane consider pulling up stakes and moving back to L.A.

Cyn’s recently dumped ex, however, has other ideas. His quest to get her back escalates into violence, shattering Cyn’s faith in herself, and in anyone else of the male persuasion, and leaving Shane with his work cut out for him to repair the damage—or lose his shot at a once-in-a-lifetime love.

Warning: This book contains a physical assault. Buckle up for a bumpy emotional journey with the characters as they fall apart and then slowly find their way to healing, and to each other. You might get angry or tearful along the way, you may even get frustrated, but as is with any good love story, it’ll be worth it in the end.

HUBBY'S REVIEW:
Cynthia Donnelly has just broken up with her cheating boyfriend and has made a pact to not date any man for a year. Her plan seems good until she goes to meet her brother’s groomsmen from the bachelor party, he is getting married Saturday, and the one man she was not expecting to see was Shane. She had a crush on him from grade school through high school and for even a year after he left for the Marines. She was not expecting him, and he was not expecting her to look like she did either. Always his best friends little sister she was now a good looking women that was making parts of him now he was a man. After they danced she decided to not start her yearlong away from men at least while Shane was in town, for that cannot be for too long because he has a business in Texas and he has always stayed away from California because of his mother. The passion that they have is making him think about staying longer and he is realizing that he is in love with her, but then she gets assaulted by her ex and though he came in time to stop it she is totally affected by it and because angry, hurt, frustrated, and really the only person she can take it out is him. When it finale’s blows up she tells him to leave and to make sure he leaves she tells him words that she knows will make him leave. Which he does but she is pissed. She then gets more upset when she finds out that he went back to Texas without saying goodbye. Finally she starts counselling and after about a month she is thinking I should go to Texas and get my man. She has a meeting with her sisters and sister in law, to see what they think. I will not tell you the ending but it is not as what I thought it was going to be. This book has a lot of sexual scenes, but you do know they care for one another. I differently could relate with Shane and his relationship with his mother. Overall a good book. I got this book from netgalley. I give this 5 stars.  Follow us at: www.1rad-readerreviews.com 

POWER PLAY (Pilots Hockey #2)

POWER PLAY (Pilots Hockey #2)                                     SOPHIA HENRY

In Sophia Henry's blistering follow-up to Delayed Penalty, hailed as “sexy, fun, and full of angst” by L. P. Dover, a good girl and a hockey hunk face off against expectations—and this match is guaranteed to see plenty of action.

Beneath her innocent facade, Gabriella Bertucci has her reasons to be standoffish with guys. Especially guys like Landon Taylor, a star defenseman on the minor-league Detroit Pilots and the object of a serious crush since he first walked into her family's market. But when Landon comes through for her in a moment of crisis, Gaby starts to wonder if there might be more to Landon than hard muscles and fast skates.

Landon isn't afraid of telling Gaby that he's got it for her bad. The problem is, she seems unwilling to believe it. And though Landon enjoys his reputation as a cool-headed athlete, he hates losing—both on the rink and off. It's his competitiveness that makes him so damn good at what he does . . . but it also makes him just a little bit complicated.

One minute Gaby's tempted to give in; the next, she's getting cold feet. How can she trust a guy who's destined for bigger and better things to stick around? Then again, when Landon pulls her close with those powerful arms, the only thing that matters is right now.
 

HUBBY'S REVIEW:

This is the second book in the Pilots series. Gabriella Bertucci works at her family’s stores and mainly at a new that they opened. She sees Landon Taylor when he comes in when he is in town and he makes a point to stop by. He is there on the one day when her father has a heart attack and is rushed away to the hospital. During this time worrying about her father she is noticing that Landon is spending more time around her. He also knows things about her that she did not think he knew. Then one weekend he showed up at a concert that her and her friend were at and she started thinking that maybe he liked her. After a week or so they start dating and when their relationship turns to the bedroom she then must tell him of being raped. He does not freak out but helps her and from there they start spending more time together. She is still trying to find her voice in her family especially with her father who she feels does not listen to her because she is a women, and not a male. I liked this story because you get to see her work through her frustration and working towards a voice that will heal her as well. At the end she and the father have a good talk and it brings the story together. A good book. I got this book from netgalley. I give this 4 stars.  Follow us at: www.1rad-readerreviews.com

BASEBALL'S NO-HIT WONDERS

BASEBALL'S NO-HIT WONDERS          DIRK LAMMERS

Baseball's No-Hit Wonders, with a foreword written by former Major League Baseball commissioner Fay Vincent, honors such legendary pitchers as Cy Young, Bob Feller, Nolan Ryan and Sandy Koufax, while introducing readers to other eccentrics and one-shot wonders who have thrown no-hitters. The book fleshes out the colorful characters, compelling narratives and statistical oddities from baseball's 294 no-hit efforts—as well as the many near misses that are also part of the national pastime's storied history.

Painstaking research and personal interviews have allowed the author to pack great detail into a fun, fast-paced take on the game, revealing the stories of the no-hitter thrown by a pitcher on acid, the hitters most adept at breaking up no-hitters and other gems thrown by guys with nicknames of Bumpus, Bobo, Cannonball and Nixey. Even the game's greatest slugger is credited with a partial no-hitter, and all he did was throw a punch! Chapters detailing the best no-hitters of all time are interspersed with "Did You Know?" lists that include no-hitters by team, city and day of the week, no-hitters of the Negro Leagues, catchers who caught the most no-nos and the best pitchers not to throw a no-hitter.

HUBBY'S REVIEW:
This is a book with a lot of information and goes back to the first no hitter thrown on July 15, 1876 by St. Louis Browns pitcher George Washington Bradley. This was during a time when the players did not use gloves. Including the catcher who stood behind the plate almost to the backstop in order to catch the ball on a hop. The author goes into different stories of the players with the nick names that were used backed then. I do miss those nick names. He also goes into the men who got to the final out only to lose the no-no. Feller and Ryan both have pitched the most one hitters at 12, and Feller is the only pitcher to have thrown an opening day no hitter. He goes into Toothpick Jones, who with the Cubs pitched a no hitter as the first African American. Of course there had been ones thrown in the “Negro Leagues”. Satchel Page pitched two. But they were not recognized for the longest time by Baseball. A chapter about Vander Meer’s 2 no hitters back to back. I liked the chapters about Koufax, Ryan, and the he put in about the catchers and giving them credit as well. I do remember Ryan’s no hitter against the Dodgers while he was pitching for Houston. That was a gem that day you could really see his curve ball breaking that day. The author closes the book with a list of all of the no hitters thrown, and it should be noted he speaks about the committee that was formed in 91 that came up with a definition of no hitters and took away ones that were rain shortened, called because of darkness, and really a game had to go 9 innings, so one pitcher had pitched 8 innings of no hit ball but because of an error, walks, hit batter, he had a no hitter even though he lost the game. This meeting took his game away because his team did not score in the top of the 9th so he did not pitch in 9th. A book filled with a lot of information, and has a lot of stats. A good book. I got this book from netgalley. I give this 4 stars.  Follow us at: www.1rad-readerreviews.com 

SOME GIRLS DO

SOME GIRLS DO                                   AMY ANDREWS

Fashion student Lacey Weston is desperate to leave the city and go home to Jumbuck Springs. Her three older brothers are adamant she’s not. They made a deathbed promise to their mother that Lacey would stay the distance at design school and Ethan, the oldest, takes this responsibility very seriously. But Lacey is deeply homesick and determined not to be dissuaded again. She’s also impulsive enough to try anything - even faking a pregnancy.

Ex-cop turned mechanic, Cooper Grainger - one of Ethan’s oldest friends - agrees to watch out for Lacey in the city even though he has a history with her he’d rather forget. How hard could it be, right? But a couple of years later, Coop is over pulling Lacey out of scrapes and cleaning up her messes as she tries to outrun her grief and sense of dislocation. He takes her back to Jumbuck Springs so she can persuade her brothers to let her come home. But things don’t go according to plan. Before Coop knows it Lacey’s pregnant and he’s putting his hand up as the fake baby daddy, filling in for the town mechanic and moving in with her at the local pub.

Lacey is thrilled to have won a reprieve but nothing about the situation sits well with Coop. Least of all having sweet little Lacey Weston as his new roomie…
 

HUBBY'S REVIEW:
Lacy Weston is a sister a younger sister with three older and over protective brothers who made a promise to their dying mother on her death bed that she would go to fashion college to be a designer. Her biggest problem is that she feels that no one listens to her, that she has no voice. Before she starts college she goes to a bar all dressed up and goes by the name of Tracy. She is having a great time when she meets Cooper Grainger, she tell him that it is her birth day and she is turning 24, not her real age of 19. He is 32 so to him it is no big deal. They have a good night and then he takes her to his place. The next morning she feels great but knows that for her this is only a one time deal so she leaves. He is wondering where she ran off to, but lo and behold his question is answered. When his best friend and former partner, Cooper was a cop but retired because he was shot twice. Now his friend Ethan is in town to ask him to do a favor and watch his sister while she is going to college because she will be two hours away from home. You guessed it in walks not Tracey, but Lacey, and she looks nothing like she did the other night and she is not 24, but 19. He holds together his surprise until after her brother leaves and for the next two years gets her out of jams, and fixes her car. He owns a shop that restores cars and is making a decent living. Then she shows up at his door step at 2:00am and explains her problem with the man she was dating, and just finding out he is married by his wife. She explains to him that she wants to leave school for a while and go back to her home town and would he drive her in the morning. He agrees and when they arrive they eat with her family and then the fireworks begin when she tells them that she wants to take time off from school. Not really having a plan when one of her brothers’ mentions is she pregnant she says yes and after yelling at her about who the father is Cooper says it is him. Well after he gets up off the floor from being punched he finds himself staying with her in town for a month and running someone else’s garage. When they are alone he also finds out that she is not pregnant. I think he likes that she drives him crazy, but he does not tell her, just like he does not tells her he is in love with her so she can leave for a job. This is a fun story with a lot of funny parts. Read the book to see if they get back together. A good book. I got this book from netgalley.  I give this 5 stars.  Follow us at www.1rad-readerreviews.com 

RUE TOULOUSE

RUE TOULOUSE                                     DEBBY GRAHL

It’s Mardi Gras time in New Orleans. Attending a masquerade ball, wealthy fashion designer Caterine Doucette, dressed as a shimmering ice princess, has her cool façade shattered when she encounters Bayou-born ex-cop Remi Michaud, disguised as the darkly handsome pirate Jean Lafitte. Their true identities hidden, the princess and the pirate come together in an explosion of passion and desire. But when fantasy turns to cold reality, Caterine panics and disappears into the night, unaware this man will soon be sent to rescue her from a killer and will capture her heart.

Orphaned at a young age, Caterine grew up in the home of her beloved grandmother, Miss Dauphine Doucette. Despised by her Doucette relatives for the devotion she received from her grandmère, Caterine suffered years of envy and disdain. The young Caterine learned quickly how easily the love she had to give could be thrown back in her face.

After Miss Dauphine turns over ownership of the century-old fashion house, Ma Chérie, to Caterine, an attempt is made on her life, for there are those in the Doucette family who will stop at nothing to possess what they feel is their rightful inheritance.

Not knowing whom to trust, Caterine goes into hiding. Miss Dauphine, convinced someone in her own family is behind the attack, hires Remi, now working for a private security company, to track her down and unmask her would-be assassin.

Learning that the affluent Caterine Doucette is the beautiful princess he held in his arms at the ball, Remi is torn between his growing desire for her and painful memories of another rich socialite’s betrayal. Caterine finds herself falling in love with Remi, but old embedded pain leaves her afraid to open her heart.

Down in the Big Easy, Caterine and Remi must learn to trust one another if they are to survive in a world of family greed and ruthless revenge.
 

HUBBY'S REVIEW:
Caterine Doucette is attending a masquerade ball during the Mardi gras TIME IN New Orleans. There she meets a pirate who really is Remi Michaud a former police officer and now runs his owns security firm with his former partner. Catrine is a fashion designer and study in Paris, which was paid for by her grandmother who raised her after her parents died in a car accident when she was a child. The grandmother noticed she had a talent for cloths design when she would make clothe for her dolls out of newspapers. Her grandmother owns a top of the line fashion house that has been in the family for a century. Her family will do anything to stop her from inheriting the store, and her fling with the pirate actually comes to her rescue from her family. A story of mystery, kidnapping, extortion, attempted murder, and sex. So much New Orleans that it makes for a great read. I got this book from netgalley.  I give this 4 stars.  Follow us at: www.1rad-readerreviews.com 

JOHN MUIR:THE MAN WHO SAVED AMERICA'S WILD PLACES

JOHN MUIR                                            MARY COLWELL

An in-depth portrait of John Muir, the founder of the U.S. National Parks and the founder and first president of the Sierra Club

John Muir was the founder of the U.S. National Parks and a towering figure in the history of that country's involvement with ecology. Born into a harsh home in Dunbar, Scotland, he would often escape to revel in the birds and wildlife of the area. When his father suddenly uprooted the family and moved to the United States, the oppression he associated with his childhood continued—and so did his involvement with the natural world. Despite the difficulty of his formative years Muir grew up to be a man of great joy—first an inventor and then an explorer, he found his haven in the mountains of Sierra Nevada. He was a fascinating character: on the one hand a recluse, who sought solitude, and on the other a passionate activist, determined to save the places he loved. A strong believer in both God and the essential goodness of humanity, he was the founder and first president of the Sierra Club. This wonderful memoir pays tribute to a giant of ecology and is essential reading for lovers of natural history.
 

HUBBY'S REVIEW:


This was a book that got my attention because as a teen I hiked several trails of the John Muir trail. Doing so I really did not know that much about him. This book goes into his life from Scotland, to the family move to the U.S. settling in Wisconsin. Then his life there and I must say it was not easy at all. His father was strict and had a set of rules that must have been followed by the book. John as he got older did not always agree with his father, but made do. His time spent alone even though he was with family made for an easier time when he was exploring around the mountains of California later in life. Also goes into his travels of Yosemite and his work of making that and the Sequoias National parks. I will say there were times when I thought the book dragged some but maybe that is the way it is with some biographies. For me not a bad story, was well written. I got this book from netgalley. I give this 3 stars.  Follow us at www.1rad-readerreviews.com

CHECK SIX! A THUNDERBOLT PILOT'S WAR ACROSS THE PACIFIC

CHECK SIX!                                      JIM CURRAN, TERRENCE POPRAVAK JR.
There were no mission limits for a pilot in the Pacific during World War II; unlike in Europe, you flew until it was time to go home. So it was for James Jug Curran, all the way from New Guinea to the Philippines with the 348th Fighter Group, the first P-47 Thunderbolt outfit in the Pacific. After the attack on Pearl Harbor, Curran volunteered to try flying in the blue yonder, and trained as an Army fighter pilot. He got his wish to fly the P-47 in the Pacific, going into combat in August 1943, in New Guinea, and later helping start the Black Rams fighter squadron. The heavy U.S. Thunderbolts were at first curious to encounter the nimble, battle-hardened Japanese in aerial combat, but soon the American pilots gained skill of their own and their planes proved superior. Bombers on both sides could fall to fighters, but the fighters themselves were eyeball to eyeball, best man win. Check Six! is an aviation chronicle that brings the reader into flight, then into the fight, throughout the Pacific War and back. This work, from someone who was there, captures the combat experience of our aviators in the Pacific, aided by pertinent excerpts from the official histories of units that Jug Curran flew with. It is a tale of perseverance, as Curran flew over 200 combat missions, and with the men of the 348th Fighter Group proved the Thunderbolt s great capability as they battled their way against a stubborn and deadly foe. This work increases the body of knowledge on the critical role of aviation in the Pacific War, as U.S. fighter pilots took the lead in our counteroffensive against the short-lived island Empire." 

HUBBY'S REVIEW:
A story of James Curran and the men that he flew with in a squadron of P-47 Thunder Bolts. The story begins with him volunteering in Chicago, and then going through a series of tests along with other men. Then 66 of them were sent to Oklahoma for training. They then went to Texas, and Florida. A group of them were sent to California and from there he sent to New Guinea to begin flying with squadron 348th. Other units already there flying made fun of them for the look of their planes, but after they were able to see their ability opinions changed. He also started another fighter squadron the “Black Rains”. He moved along with the different battles up to different Islands either doing bombing runs, protection of troops, ships, and aerial fighting with the enemy. He flew over two hundred missions. They of course started behind because of all of the planes lost during the attacks of Dec 7. Once they the air power got to full strength they were able to overtake the enemy not only on land but in the air also. This is a good story of one of those fighting groups of the air corps and the not only the missions they did but also some of the men that passed while serving. A story about the thunderbolts in the Pacific that you don’t hear about often enough. A good book. I got this book from netgalley.  I give this 4 stars.  Follow us at: 
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BREAKER: A WINDY CITY DARK MYSTERY

BREAKER: A WINDY CITY DARK MYSTERY     RICHARD THOMAS

Living alone in the dusty apartment where he grew up, Ray Nelson is a mystery to his neighbors and an unbeatable foe to the brutal men he fights in the ring for money. But a life defined by sinister secrets doesn’t stop Ray from trying to do the right thing for his dangerously high-flying sister. Or for Natalie, the young girl living next door. As a sadistic murderer’s ominous white van trolls for young victims throughout the Windy City, Ray is determined to protect Natalie from both predators and a bleak future.

When she sees a bruised and beaten Ray return from late-night fights, Natalie spots a kindred spirit. Still, she cannot imagine the darkness just beneath, or what’s hidden in the rooms he calls home. Now, as the horrors of his own past creep back to life with a twisted vengeance, Ray may not even be able to save himself.

HUBBY'S REVIEW:
This is a dark and gritty story, but a very good one. Ray Nelson lives in the apartment that he grew up in and you are taken through his childhood through his memories which were not good. He now leaves at night and at least once a week goes to a ware house where fights in an underground fight ring. Taking on one to four opponents at a time with usually one arm tied behind his back. He looks scared and because of his size people are put off of him and scared. The one person who is not afraid of him is his neighbor Natalie. She looks out for him and he does the same for her. He also teaches her how to protect herself from the gangs around the neighborhood, and some of the people she has to watch for on her way to school. What they both don’t know is that Ray’s past is going to come back and destroy what at least he thought he had made, and had overcome. He and Natalie are both fighting for their lives, and the last part of this book is really what makes the story come together. You find yourself routing for them against the evil that has come back that he thought was dead. A good suspenseful book with what I thought was a surprise ending at least in my opinion. I got this book from netgalley. I give it 4 stars.  Follow us at: www.1rad-readerreviews.com

MY KIND OF WONDERFUL#2

MY KIND OF WONDERFUL#2                JILL SHALVIS

UNEXPECTED AND UNDENIABLE...

Bailey Moore has an agenda: skiing in the Rockies, exploring castles in Europe, ballroom dancing in Argentina. Now that she has a second lease on life, she's determined not to miss a thing. What she doesn't realize is that item #1 comes with a six-foot-one ski god hot enough to melt a polar ice cap. She doesn't want to miss out on him either, but Hudson Kincaid isn't the type of guy to love and let go. And as gorgeous as Cedar Ridge is, she's not planning to stick around.

As head of ski patrol at his family's resort, Hud thinks he's seen it all. But never has he run into someone like Bailey. She might look delicate, but her attitude is all firecracker. And her infectious joy touches something deep within him that he's been missing far too long. Now he'll just have to convince Bailey to take a chance on her biggest adventure yet . . . something rare and all kinds of wonderful.
 

HUBBY'S REVIEW:


Bailey Moore is wanting to cross off items of the list that she has. She just does not know what order they should go in. She is sitting atop of a mountain that she really should not be on because of the experience you need as a skier. Hudson Kincaid, who is in charge of the ski patrol for his families resort comes across her and is taken back by her beauty and her lack of a filter. He fixes her binding, and helps her to the ski lift so she can get off the mountain safely. The problem that Hudson will have throughout the story is he really does not want Bailey to leave. He wants her more and more each time they see one another, and she wants the same from him. She is a strong women who has fighting cancer for 10 years and is now doing things on her list. One is doing a mural and since she is an artist she is looking forward to the challenge that it is bringing her being hired by his family to do a family mural at the resort. Another item is passion it is not on her list but when she caught her now ex fiancé kissing another women so passionately that was what she wanted for herself. She has found that in Hudson, and when she tells him he responds by saying he is not in love with her. When he realizes his epic mistakes or as I say f- up. She is gone from the mountain, and mural is finished and when he finally finds her apartment in Denver she is not there. He continues to search for her hoping and praying that she will forgive him for being stupid. This is a very powerful book. With Bailey fighting cancer she needs to know that any one that she allows in her life is going to be there with her for the right and run away scared, and hide from their feelings by always working instead of talking. A very good story. This was the second book in the authors’ series. I got this book from netgalley.  I give this 5 stars.  Follow us at: www.1rad-readerreviews.com

NOBODY BUT YOU #3

NOBODY BUT YOU #3                                 JILL SHALVIS

SOMETIMES YOU CAN GO HOME AGAIN…

After an overseas mission goes wrong, Army Special Forces officer Jacob Kincaid knows where he must go to make things right: back home to the tiny town of Cedar Ridge, Colorado. All he needs to scrub away his painful past is fresh mountain air, a lakeside cabin, and quiet solitude. But what he discovers is a gorgeous woman living on a boat at his dock.

Sophie Marren has nowhere else to go. She’s broke, intermittently seasick, and fighting a serious attraction to the brooding, dishy, I’m-too-sexy-for-myself guy who’s now claiming her dock. Something about Jacob’s dark intensity makes her want to tease—and tempt—him beyond measure. Neither one wants to give any ground . . . until they realize the only true home they have is with each other.

HUBBY'S REVIEW:
This is the third book in this story line. It begins with Sophie Marren trying to moor her boat to a dock that she thinks is not owned by any one. She is surprised when she finds that it is and Jordan the twin to Hudson is back in town after eight years of being gone. He still has to go back to finish his commitment to the Army, but for the most part he is back and working through the issues that he had that made him leave and trying to repair the relationship with his siblings, mainly Hudson. Sophie is working on her self-coming out of a divorce where all she took was her ex’s boat. After a while she realizes that this was not the smartest thing to do but she was looking at hurting him and this was the only way she knew how. Jordan helps around the lodge and at the same time is attracted to Sophie and the way she handles herself when some of the women who were sleeping with her husband when they were married come around. At the same time they both have things they must work on in order to move on in life before they can move on together. There was times when this book reminded me of the last two books, funny with different characters, but there were also times that I found that this story just did not move along fast enough. There also not as much interaction between the families as there was in the other two books. Not a bad story I was just expecting more after reading the first two. I GOT THIS BOOK FROM NETGALLEY. I GIVE THIS 3 STARS.  FOLLOW US AT: www.1rad-readerreviews.com 

SECOND CHANCE SUMMER #1

SECOND CHANCE SUMMER#1             JILL SHALVIS

RESCUE MECedar Ridge, Colorado, is famous for crisp mountain air, clear blue skies, and pine-scented breezes. And it's the last place Lily Danville wants to be. But she needs a job, and there's an opening at the hottest resort in her hometown. What has her concerned is the other hot property in Cedar Ridge: Aidan Kincaid-firefighter, rescue worker, and heartbreaker. She never could resist that devastating smile . . .

The Kincaid brothers are as rough and rugged as the Rocky Mountains they call home. Aidan has always done things his own way, by his own rules. And never has he regretted anything more than letting Lily walk out of his life ten years ago. If anyone has ever been in need of rescuing, she has. What she needs more than anything are long hikes, slow dances, and sizzling kisses. But that can only happen if he can get her to give Cedar Ridge-and this bad boy-a second chance . . .
 

HUBBY'S REVIEW:


This book is a beginning in a series about the Kincaid Brothers, but there is a sister as well and she is also in the story. This one starts with Lilly Danville coming back to Cedar Ridge Colorado. She is hoping not to be seen by anyone she knows and it goes good for her until she stops at a gas station with a store inside and stocks up on junk food that she has not eaten in the last ten years. That is how long she has been gone. She almost makes it out until she knocks over a display and in the mix of grabbing everything she forgot her keys and a package of cookies. The clerk asks Aiden Kincaid who is also a firefighter if he would run those items out to that hot chick. He knew who that chick was and he had not been the same since she left ten years ago and broke his heart. The problem is she does not know that. He never got to tell her. When he gets to her car she is banging her head on the steering wheel and he taps on the window holding the keys, but she does not stop until he she her the cookies. She opens the door and he tries to talk to her but she drives away. She is back in town for a couple of reasons. One for a job since she got fired from her job in San Diego after ten years, and two to try to heal from the death of her sister and then her father at her sisters funeral. She left right after the funeral. Aiden must now work on getting her to see that it was not her fault for either one of those deaths, and that she can be loved. By him. This is going to take a while, but there are some funny moments along the way. All of the characters a great and are real and the jokes that the brothers play on each other is a great piece to the story. I must say the women in this story, Char the mom, Penney, married to the oldest brother Gray, are all strong. Lily is as well it just takes both her and Aiden to work together to make a fir. A good story. I got this book from netgalley.  I give this 5 stars. Follow us at: www.1rad-readerreviews.com

BETTING ON HOPE

BETTING ON HOPE                               DEBRA CLOPTON

One clutzy advice columnist.

One champion cowboy.

And an entire small town rooting for love.

Advice columnist Maggie Hope never dreamed she d be shaking hands with champion horse trainer Tru Monahan over a high-stakes bet, especially one that involves horses. And saddles. And everything else a city girl like Maggie feels uncomfortable around. But after filling in for a coworker and interviewing the handsome cowboy, she finds herself doing just that. Anything to save her advice column.

Despite Maggie s two left feet, Tru is bound and determined to bring out her inner cowgirl by teaching her to ride a cutting horse, trained to separate cattle from the rest of the herd. While her riding improves, their attraction intensifies, but Tru knows he can never let her into his heart for her own good.

In Wishing Springs, a community full of meddling but well-meaning townsfolk, Maggie discovers the home she s always longed for. But she s holding something back a secret that could destroy her reputation and any future she s ever hoped for with the cowboy she might just love."

HUBBY'S REVIEW:
Maggie Hope writes an advice column and now she has been ordered by the boss of her paper to go to Wishing Springs and do a TV interview with a champion horse trainer Tru Monahan. She also has questions that her friend wrote out for and is the host normally but has the flu. When she arrives she falls and drops the pages and as the interview begins she gets nervous and there is some dead air but Tru puts his hand on hers and that seems to calm her, so she can ask some of her own questions, but also there is a spark between them. The show then moves out doors where the talk is about teaching anyone to ride a horse and when he takes his out of the trailer she ends up falling again this time on her back side. She gets up walks to her car and leaves. So embarrassed that she does not want to see Tru again. The problem with that is someone recorded her fall and posted it on you tube and because of all of the hits they are sending back out there for Tru to teach her how to ride a horse. When she arrives back out there they each begin to find things out about each other and the more she is getting closer to Tru she does not know if he will still want to be with her when the truth about her back ground comes out. What she did not expect was her friend and all of the people in Wishing Springs being there for her. She did not have that growing up, and when Tru goes after her father because he is still wanting to cause problems for her she realizes that maybe just maybe this will all work out. A good story and not just a love story. I got this book from netgalley. I give this 4 stars.  Follow us at: www.1rad-readerreviews.com 

AFTER LOVE

AFTER LOVE                                         KATHY CLARK

DEA agent Nick Archer puts his life on the line every day. A former Marine, he fears nothing . . . except commitment. Nick has no trouble finding women eager to warm his bed, and no problem sending them on their way the morning after. Relationships don’t mix with risky careers, a fact Nick learned the hard way after his marriage fell apart. He’d go it alone if it weren’t for his new K-9 partner—and the stunning trainer who makes Nick sit up and take notice.

Just like her service dogs, Jamie Chambers knows how to sniff out trouble. From the moment Nick swaggers into her kennel, she knows he’s heartbreak waiting to happen, and he wastes no time getting under her skin. Hell, he doesn’t even like dogs. As a cop’s widow, Jamie has felt the sting of loss in the line of duty, yet she recognizes something of her own pain in Nick’s smoldering gaze. Jamie knows there are no guarantees in life. But a moment of pleasure, however fleeting, holds the promise of forever—and for that, Jamie’s willing to take the plunge.

HUBBY'S REVIEW:
DEA agent Nick Archer seems to be always in trouble. He is still in hot water for taking off to Mexico on a drug bust that was not approved. Even though in his mind it was successful he really does not understand the problem. Now to make matters worse he just put a congress man’s son in cuffs thinking that they were transporting cocaine in the tuck of his car when it was actually white powder caffeine like what goes into energy drinks. Normally he would not have a problem with a mistake but with this one being close to his Mexico trip and it being shown on the local TV station he really was not surprised when his boss called him at 3:00 in the morning saying he needed to be in her office at her time not his time in the morning. After she read him the riot act and got at him for not working well with others so he could not have a partner. She decided that she would give him a partner a four legged one. Given a phone number he was to call he was not to come back until he had a dog. Jamie Chambers runs her kennels and since her husband was killed in the line of duty she is not looking for a relationship or anything close to one. So when Nick shows up she feels that this might be difficult, and they still need a dog to choose him. After almost an entire day of no dog matching up with him she finally tells her hand to bring in Harley, the worker looks at her and are you sure she says yes. Nick is wondering what is wrong with Harley. Jamie says nothing really he does not really listen or gets along. Well lo and behold they have a match, both dog and human are a fit for each other. The more Jamie and Nick have to work together he is thinking the same thing about the two of them. He is still hurt over his divorce but has twin boys and he cannot stop thinking about Jamie. She wants to be with him but his job being so close to her husband’s frightens her. Now there are a few characters in this book that are good, like his Grammy, his brother, the twins, and a few of the surrounding people. There are also some funny moments with the dog and strawberries. He is also working a case while trying to get the girl, but everything works and it is a good story. I got this book from netgalley. I give this 4 stars.  Follow us at: www.1rad-readerreviews.com 

                                                                      Back to You #1 Hard Crush HARD CRUSH                                  ...