I’ve read a couple of Stephanie Tyler’s books now, and it’s fair to say I really enjoy her writing style. Her latest book is Beyond His Control, and it’s a winner: 4.5 out of 5.

Assistant District Attorney Ava Turkowski knows about leading a dangerous life—her father was a risk taker who died in the line of duty and her beloved brother is taking just as many chances. Now a high-profile case has landed Ava herself in the crosshairs—and the only man standing between her and certain death is the one she can’t forget.

Justin Brandt was Ava’s brother’s best friend, her protector during her wild-child teenage years . . . and the object of her hottest fantasies. Now he’s a highly trained Navy SEAL with a body to die for and he’s been tasked with keeping Ava alive. Which means keeping her close—the closer the better . . .

Tyler excels at creating a vivid world for readers to be immersed. The danger to Ava and the conflict she and Justin face is established quickly and feels real. I liked seeing them confront the issues that kept them apart, and it was nice that it wasn’t something that could be solved in one conversation. The story explores the challenges of being in a military relationship. The resolution felt natural and right.

Justin and Ava are both well-motivated characters whose feelings for each other run deep. Their story is interspersed with a secondary romance featuring Ava’s brother. In general, I prefer books without secondary stories, but the one in this book as a nice, engrossing accompaniment to the main romance.

The suspense is excellent, and it never overwhelms the romance. If you enjoy military/SEAL romance, you should definitely try Tyler’s books.

I have an extra (used) copy of Beyond His Control, and I’d like to give it away! Just comment here about the last Harlequin/Silhouette book you read. (If you don’t usually read them, just post that.) One comment/entry per person, and I’ll take comments until April 15. The winner will be contacted and announced the following week. Come on out, lurkers. I know you’re out there.

After hearing about Kristie’s Crusade, I figured I would probably like North and South when I was able to watch it. I’ve had it on hold at the library for months now, just waiting for my turn in the queue. When my turn finally rolled around, I sat down and told myself I’d watch the first of four parts. About four hours later, I finished watching the program.

I loved it. Loved it. No real surprise—I’m a crusader.

What a gorgeous program! The acting is terrific—yes, I love Richard Armitage, and Daniela Denby-Ashe does a fabulous job as well. The music is fantastic. Though I only watched the movie once, I can still hear bits of music in my head.

There are some truly great moments, all of which Kristie has covered, but I have to share a few thoughts as well. Armitage does an amazing job of showing how his character falls in love with Margaret—despite the folly of it, the hopelessness he feels. It was beautiful to watch.

The initial proposal was wonderfully memorable. Though I wanted her to say yes, and therefore I sympathized with Thornton, I could relate to Margaret’s discomfort with social situations as she just made everything worse. I don’t think anyone could watch it and not feel the pain of both characters.

Then there’s the amazing moment where Thornton wants her to look back at him as she’s riding out of his life. Honestly, it was difficult not to get a bit swoony about a man who loves that completely.

As for the end . . . I won’t spoil it but will simply say it lived up to the hype.

I wish I could have watched it again, but I couldn’t renew it at the library. More than 80 people have it on hold. I guess word of the Crusade is spreading.

I’m going to buy my own copy so I don’t have to wait another few months before seeing it again.

I started reading Maggie Price after reviewing one of her books for The Romance Reader. The book was good, and I’ve picked up several of Price’s books since then. Shattered Vows is one I bought when it was released in 2004, and it’s sat waiting to be read until now.

To: Lieutenant Brandon McCall
Subject: Temporary Assignment

An escaped murderer has vowed revenge against you for killing his cousin on the job, and he has targeted your estranged wife. Due to your familiarity with the convict—and his potential victim—you are hereby assigned to protect Victoria McCall until further notice.

The two of you will move into a safe house ASAP. Spending tension-filled days in such close proximity may lead to the resurrection of powerful feelings long thought dead, but do not let yourselves be distracted by renewed love. Your lives are on the line—and at times like this, desire can be deadly.

This book didn’t quite resonate with me. I got frustrated with the heroine’s I’m-in-danger-but-I-don’t-want-the-hero’s-help attitude. Maybe I’ve seen it once too often in romance. In this case, Victoria is a private investigator, has gun training, etc., so her determination to be self-sufficient is more motivated. Still, there’s a reason law enforcement officers have backup. It was tough to accept she felt that way even after nearly being strangled to death by one of the villain’s goons.

Price has worked in law enforcement, which usually adds a nice layer to her stories. In this case, though, I kept asking whether things would really happen that way. Would someone who is tucked away in a safe house go undercover—and into danger—where she could be recognized? The disguise helps, but the scenario still seemed implausible.

The romance didn’t quite work for me until near the end, partly because I didn’t feel like I got to know the characters. Victoria doesn’t want to rely on anyone; Bran wants someone who needs him. Their persistent attraction is obvious, but I wanted to have a deeper understanding of the characters.

The writing is strong, but the story didn’t engage my emotions. I rate it a 2.5 out of 5. If you’d like to try Maggie Price, I recommend Sure Bet instead.

This month, my TBR challenge is to read series books that have been in my TBR a while. I’ve had Terry McLaughlin’s Learning Curve for a couple of years now. I read a few chapters, then set it aside. I decided to pick it up again and see what I thought.

High school history teacher Joe Wisniewski may be in a rut, but he dug it himself and he’s not planning on getting out anytime soon. The last thing he wants is to mentor a starry-eyed newcomer, so when he gets an unexpected assignment—Emily Sullivan, a student teacher with a steamroller smile and dynamite legs—he digs in deeper and ducks for cover.

Emily has looked up to the legendary “Wiz” for a long time. In her opinion, the man is coasting these days, and she’s sure a little change in his routine is exactly what he needs. Besides this assignment is her chance to prove to her family—and herself—that she can stick to one project.

The question is: Will Emily get Joe fired up or just plain fired?

The first part of the book is a bit slow, and I didn’t initially connect with the characters. That’s why I stopped reading the first time. The further I got into the story, though, the better it got. Emily was very dedicated to the job and to Joe, and boy, could I relate to his feeling of burnout.

As the story continues, both characters become more real and sympathetic. I loved the scene where Joe ends up taking Emily to her house for Thanksgiving. Watching Emily fight her feelings for him even as her mom recognizes them made the story more compelling. And after that, the book gets even better.

At times the language is almost lyrical. Take this paragraph.

And then someone plucked her off the floor and tossed her up and around like a rag doll, and she fell against a solid chest and into a pair of long arms that closed around her the way she liked best—she was home. She wrapped her arms around his neck and her legs around his waist, and in that moment, as his big hands cradled her back and his breath puffed warm against her throat, she knew that she’d been wrong about everything. He wasn’t the emotional half of her emotional equation. He was its sum, its center, its completion.

She was in love with him.

Learning Curve ended up being a sweet, touching love story. I’m definitely going to look for Terry McLaughlin’s books in future. If the beginning had been stronger, I’d rate this higher, but I give it a 3.5 out of 5.

I put North and South on hold at the library months ago, and I finally reached the top of the queue. So here’s what I’m watching this week.

I’ll keep you posted.

It happens every year, but this time it snuck up on me—crunch time at the day job. Once it hits, it lasts a month or two. I’m sure I’ll still post, but if it’s less frequent in the next few months, you’ll know why.

I’ve been looking into the Firefox commenting issue. A couple of my coworkers visited and tell me that they can comment here when they are in Firefox, but the box is “Waaaaaay at the bottom.” (Yes, that’s a direct quote.) Yikes. Anyway, I’ll have my designer look in to it, but as a temporary fix, see if scrolling will work. Also, feel free to comment if there are other viewing issues on the site. Just let me know what browser you’re using so I can investigate.

All About Romance has announced the results of the 2007 poll. You can see them here. I posted my own ballet here.

As usual, most of my votes didn’t end up winning—I did get Strongest Heroine and Best Cabin/Road Romance right—but some of the books I voted for and liked ended up winning something, even if not in the category I hoped for.

Anyway, check out the results, and feel free to share what you think.