Category Archives: 2000-2009

2000-2009

by | March 7, 2012 · 4:22 pm

Joan Medlicott. The Spirit of Covington. New York: Atria Books, 2003.

The Ladies of Covington that you know and love are back in this, the fourth book of Joan Medlicott’s popular series. Tired of watching their lives waste away at a dismal Pennsylvania boarding house for widows, 60-something Hannah, Amelia, and Grace threw their lots together when Amelia unexpectedly inherited a farmhouse in the little town of Covington. Often compared to Jan Karon’s Mitford, Covington is a small, North Carolina mountain town near Asheville.

In this installment of their adventures, the unthinkable happens: a careless forest fire burns the Ladies’ precious renovated farmhouse to the ground. Amelia, for all her complaining about the opossums in the walls and the creaky floorboards, is the most devastated. With the loss of the farmhouse, all the other losses in her life (the deaths of her husband and young daughter in particular) rise up and threaten to send her into a deep depression. Hannah and Grace are also saddened by the loss of their possessions and the house, but they are initially willing to rebuild in an affordable, modern style. But Amelia’s pain causes them to reconsider, and soon the Ladies are having an exact replica of the old building constructed. All seems well, but building a house takes a long time, and each woman will face different challenges that will threaten her former lifestyle: insistent gentleman friends proposing, abused children who need a guardian, and the problems visited on them by their own blood relatives all present Hannah, Amelia, and Grace with compelling reasons to move on with the rest of their lives. Will they decide to stay in Covington, the town each has come to know and love, after all? And will they remain, together, the Ladies?

Check this title’s availability in the UNC-Chapel Hill Library catalog.

 

 

Comments Off on Joan Medlicott. The Spirit of Covington. New York: Atria Books, 2003.

Filed under 2000-2009, 2003, Medlicott, Joan, Mountains, Novels in Series, Novels Set in Fictional Places

Tagged as , , , ,

by | March 2, 2012 · 9:49 am

Katy Munger. Better Off Dead. New York: Avon Books, 2001.

Casey Jones, Triangle-based Private Investigator and (contrarily) ex-convict, is enjoying a quiet evening at home watching NC State trounce Duke at basketball. That is, until her boyfriend Burly starts haranguing the disconsolate Blue Devils fans from their Durham apartment window. With all the ruckus, Casey almost misses the knock on her door- and may come to wish she had. Her visitor is a terrified cleaning lady, who isn’t worried for herself, but for her employer- the infamous Helen Pugh McInnes. Casey knows a little about Helen: a graduate student who accused a well-respected Duke professor of rape, she lost her case and became a community pariah. Casey comes to learn that the gentle Helen has spent the year since her day in court too afraid to leave her quiet country home, terrorized by perverse phone calls and letters from her rapist, who is clearly still at large. Even venturing onto her front porch leaves her in the throes of a major panic attack. Casey knows right away that she has to help Helen, but since Helen is viewed as a liar and a loose woman, Detective Jones must tread carefully.

Her first move is to protect Helen: Casey’s boyfriend Burly, her lovable yet flabby boss, Bobby, and Bobby’s voluptuous girlfriend and paragon of Southern charm, Fanny, as well as a host of others all take up residence in Helen’s spacious, self-induced prison. Meanwhile, the thirty-something Casey applies a liberal amount of concealer and eyeshadow in order to infiltrate Duke University itself, going undercover as a non-traditional coed. But she isn’t entirely prepared for what she finds. As usual, the case is complicated by unforeseen circumstances: a wide-eyed college boy develops a crush on the gruff Casey, and for some reason it’s more difficult than usual to determine who the rapist really is. But Casey Jones always gets her man…unless this time, he gets to her first.

Readers will be glad to know that this tightly wound narrative deals sensitively with a difficult topic while still maintaining the series’ usual sense of humor. Katy Munger’s cast of misfits, cops, and strange birds is back, with some entertaining new additions. The Duke community will be pleased to note that the author issues a strong statement in the beginning as to the very fictional content of this novel. The UNC and NC State communities will be more satisfied with Duke’s (inevitable?) loss in the opening game.

Check the availability of this title in the UNC-Chapel Hill Library’s catalog.

1 Comment

Filed under 2000-2009, 2001, Durham, Munger, Katy, Mystery, Novels in Series, Piedmont

Tagged as , , , , , , ,

by | February 25, 2012 · 2:18 pm

Katy Munger. Bad to the Bone. New York: Avon Books, 2000.

Casey Jones is doing well: despite being an (unfairly convicted) ex-con, she has established herself as one of the Triangle’s premiere, if unofficial, private investigators. But when Tawny Bledsoe walks through her door, she gets a bad feeling. At first, Casey attributes this to the fact that the pale, fragile-looking Tawny is black and blue all over, and claims that her ex-husband first beat her, then stole their four-year-old daughter. Ms. Bledsoe begs Casey to get her child back, and with her special interest in wronged women, Raleigh’s toughest cookie is on the case. However, Tawny’s story begins to look suspicious after Casey easily tracks down the ex, and instead of a wife-beating kidnapper, finds a reputable Wake County Commissioner and devoted father who is a respected member of the African-American community. When Tawny’s $1,000 check bounces, Casey is convinced she’s been had in a spiteful divorcée’s spat. But then Tawny’s current beau (a scummy car mechanic named Boomer) turns up murdered, and Casey knows there’s more to the situation than simple fraud. As the P.I. snoops around, she uncovers several unsavory parts of Tawny: the cocaine addict, the blackmailer, and the abusive parent. When Casey’s no-good ex-husband Jeff gets involved, things quickly move from bad to worse, and the gloves come off as Casey goes to all lengths to put Tawny behind bars where she belongs.

Fans of the feisty, self-starting Casey Jones will enjoy this adventure, in which the fallible but lovable heroine faces a type of villain she hasn’t encountered  before, as well as turmoil in her romantic life,  but also puts some old troubles to rest.

Check this title’s availability in the UNC-Chapel Hill Library catalog.

2 Comments

Filed under 2000, 2000-2009, Chatham, Durham, Munger, Katy, Mystery, Novels in Series, Piedmont, Wake

Tagged as , , , , ,

by | January 6, 2012 · 10:22 am

Zolene. Ecstasy’s Angel. New York: Xlibris, 2000.

In the years following the Civil War, the fiery Katherine St. Clair is a beautiful young woman who is tragically orphaned when her father and stepmother are killed in a bandit-induced train accident. Because Katherine’s stepmother was a malicious woman who squandered away her husband’s wealth and accrued enormous amounts of debt, the extensive St. Clair estate near Wilmington, North Carolina must be sold. The St. Clair family’s sympathetic barrister takes care of all the arrangements, not wanting to hurt the emotionally traumatized young woman further. But Katherine’s trials have just begun.

One dark and stormy night, she takes in a wounded young man, not realizing that he is both the new owner of her ancestral home and a former Yankee captain. Brandon Morgan is handsome, passionate, and completely delirious with fever. Katherine nurses him back to health, all the while fighting her growing attraction to him. Although unintended, the two eventually spend the night together. Brandon, still fevered, is convinced that he has met an angel. Katherine, distressed at her deflowering, sends him to a nearby hospital, determined to forget his name. Besides, her stepbrother, the tall, dark and sultry Ramon Van Marcus, has returned; together they hatch plan to marry in order to receive their small inheritance. But Katherine cannot avoid Brandon Morgan forever, or his determination to find and possess the woman he thinks of as his angel.

Readers of romance novels will be fascinated by Zolene’s highly dramatic interpretation of Reconstruction in this, her debut novel. The portrayal of race and gender are true to nineteenth century opinions, but this does not stop the novel from being a steamy bodice-ripper of the most exciting kind.

Check this title’s availability in the UNC-Chapel Hill Library catalog.

1 Comment

Filed under 2000, 2000-2009, Coast, Historical, New Hanover, Romance/Relationship, Zolene

Tagged as , , , ,

by | December 13, 2011 · 8:40 am

Anne V. Wigg. Filex 13. New York: Xlibris, 2007.

Tiffany Silver lives in Wrightsville Beach, North Carolina with her husband Shadow and two young children. She has a happy existence running a small dress shop while Shadow works as an oceanographer, and they are surrounded by friends and family. But all of that is about to change. A hurricane destroys their home, and Shadow dies in a mysterious accident at sea. Tiffany and the children are grief-stricken, and rebuilding everything they have lost is a slow process. Over time, life becomes more normal: they move into a new house, and Tiffany’s dress shop is working on the biggest wedding of the decade.

Disaster, however, is about to call again. Something is wrong with the lake near Tiffany’s new house, where she spots glowing bathers late at night, and her best friend from high school, Lindy, has been acting strangely. Steve Treat, the lone survivor of the accident at sea that took Shadow’s life, rouses from his coma muttering nonsense about blue, glowing lights. Incredibly, all of these weird occurrences are linked, and the answer is nothing anyone in Wrightsville Beach would ever have guessed: visitors from another world walk among them.

Now Tiffany and state officials must work quickly to determine the extent of this threat that is slowly polluting North Carolina’s pristine waterways, all while keeping it a secret from an easily-panicked public … and keeping their lives. By turns spooky, scientific, and sentimental, this tale of otherworldly beings doesn’t end at all the way one might think.

Check this title’s availability in the UNC-Chapel Hill Library catalog.

Comments Off on Anne V. Wigg. Filex 13. New York: Xlibris, 2007.

Filed under 2000-2009, 2007, Coast, New Hanover, Wigg, Anne V.

Tagged as , , ,

by | November 22, 2011 · 2:50 pm

Tamara Leigh. Southern Discomfort Series.

Author Tamara Leigh

The Pickwick family certainly has their share of characters, no one will deny that. A wealthy clan with a large estate in the mountains of North Carolina, they have a reputation stretching back generations for swindling and conniving their way to the top. But Uncle “Obe” Obediah, the current head of the family, has experienced a brush with his own mortality and decided that it’s time to make amends. This includes revising his will significantly to include estranged relatives and wronged parties, and then selling off the grand family estate. This puts the younger generations of Pickwicks in a pickle, since along with reducing their inheritance, Uncle Obe may reveal some of their best-kept secrets, putting them in uncomfortable positions. There’s Piper, who moved all the way across the country to Los Angeles and changed her name to escape her family; there’s beautiful Maggie, who struggles with choices she made in high school that left her a single parent, and last but not least, feisty but grief-stricken Bridget, who turned her back on God and the world when she was widowed at 33.

But maybe Uncle Obe, with his insistence on putting the past to rights for all the Pickwicks, will unintentionally allow each of these young women a way to find a future brighter than she thinks possible.

Find more detailed summaries of all the installments in the Southern Discomfort Series in the Read North Carolina Novels blog. Then, check out their availability in the UNC-Chapel Hill Library catalog:

 

1 Comment

Filed under 2000-2009, 2009, 2010, 2010-2019, 2011, Leigh, Tamara, Mountains, Novels in Series, Novels Set in Fictional Places, Religious/Inspirational, Romance/Relationship, Series

Tagged as , ,

by | November 11, 2011 · 11:39 am

Paul Clayton. White Seed: The Untold Story of the Lost Colony of Roanoke. [Bangor, ME]: Booklocker.com, 2009.

White Seed follows the journey of the settlers of the Lost Colony, the third group sent to the Americas by Sir Walter Raleigh, as they fight to survive on what is now the North Carolina coast. But who would be daring, or desperate, enough to abandon his or her homeland, England, for the wilds of the Virginia Colony?

Maggie Hagger, a simple Irish girl running from a terrible deed, seeks indentured passage as a means of escape from the faceless man who pursues her. Accepted as a maidservant for Governor John White’s pregnant daughter Eleanor Dare, Maggie has no idea that she may be trading one death sentence for another. Thomas and Lionel, her erstwhile companions, flee from similarly unsavory fates in England, while others, like the greedy Portuguese captain Simon Fernandes, seek only the opportunity to take what fortune they can from the Natives or fat Spanish ships. As for Governor White, he plans to live out his days peacefully in the tranquil Chesapeake, where the Natives are friendly and the land is mild. But all these hopes are dashed when they are put ashore in Roanoke.

There, a bellicose chieftain, Powhatan, has already determined that he will capture and kill any English who return to his land. He is especially reliant on Towaye, the spy he instructed to be captured before the last English returned to their native land. Now Towaye is back with these new settlers, although he finds himself under the watchful eye of Manteo, a Native loyal to the English who raised him from a child in this interpretation of the tale. But Powhatan isn’t the settlers’ only problem. When John White returns to England for supplies, conditions begin to deteriorate, and soon Maggie, Thomas, Manteo, and others find themselves fighting not one, but two enemies: the angry Natives…and their own soldiers.

Readers will enjoy this fast-paced, epic account of the Lost Colony’s still-unknown fate, and will find the author’s artistic choices to be interesting deviations from accepted research and other fictional versions.

Check the availability of this title in the UNC-Chapel Hill Library’s catalog.

 

2 Comments

Filed under 2000-2009, 2009, Clayton, Paul, Coast, Dare, Historical

Tagged as ,

by | November 1, 2011 · 8:50 am

Leigh Greenwood. Family Merger. New York: Silhouette Books, 2002.

This is not your typical romance novel.  Cynthia Egan is a pregnant high school student who has taken refuge in a small Charlotte home for unwed mothers.  Cynthia grew up wealthy, but she felt neglected by her widowed father who was often away on business.  When he learns that his daughter has left home, Cynthia’s dad, Ron, flies back to Charlotte ready to make things right.  But he is clueless about what Cynthia needs and how she got to the situation she’s now in.  Kathryn Roper, who runs the home that Cynthia is staying in, plans to set Mister Hot-Shot Business Man-Neglectful Dad straight. What Kathryn hadn’t planed on was Ron’s interest in her and her attraction to him.

Kathryn and Ron spar over Cynthia in crisp and believable dialog.  But the budding relationship between Kathryn and Ron does not dominate the book.  Equal time is given to Cynthia and how her pregnancy affects the people in her life–from the baby’s father to the household staff who brought her up–making this a novel with some social weight. Family Merger takes on the troubling topic of teen pregnancy–but like all romances, the book has a happy ending.

Check this title’s availability in the UNC-Chapel Hill Library catalog.

Comments Off on Leigh Greenwood. Family Merger. New York: Silhouette Books, 2002.

Filed under 2000-2009, 2002, Greenwood, Leigh, Romance/Relationship

Tagged as

by | October 28, 2011 · 2:38 pm

Teresa D’Amario. Shewolf. Culver City, CA: Freya’s Bower, 2007.

Veterinarian Anna Callaway has always had a special talent with animals. Beyond her skill with a scalpel, sutures, and other tools of the trade, Anna has some extra gifts. These include extremely sharp eyesight, more strength than she should have, and a sense of smell that allows her to detect things no one else can: moods, illness, and fertility.

These gifts that make her such an excellent vet do have their downsides: she can’t stand noisy, crowded places. One night, feeling obligated to attend a staff birthday party at a local bar, Anna seeks a respite from the smoke and pounding music in the parking lot. There, she is assaulted by two strange men who are determined to kidnap her, rape her, or both. What frightens Anna the most is their bodies: they seem to shift and become hairier, and their smiles are full of pointed canines. Does she see claws sprouting from their fingers? Suddenly, a third man materializes to rescue her…but Anna is horrified to find that he is just as strange as the others. Is she hallucinating?

Kieran Hunter only wanted to rescue the human woman from Ryland and Joshua, who were dangerously close to exposing their true nature as wolven: a species with the ability to take both human and wolf form. He doesn’t understand his immediate attraction to the female…until he realizes that she’s just like him. More than that, she’s The One–his True Mate. Kieran must fight wolven instinct, exercising all of his self control to educate Anna about herself and her heritage until she is ready to accept him as a True Mate, and with him, his way of life. Despite her almost uncontrollable attraction to Kieran, Anna is angry and confused, and at first reluctant to see the truth. But violence is stalking the handsome wolven’s normally peaceful pack, and Anna is directly in its path, motivating her to acknowledge her true nature (and needs) sooner instead of later.

An erotic romance novel set in and around the Uwharrie National Forest in Montgomery County, North Carolina, Teresa D’Amario’s steamy tale (a 2008 Prism Finalist) takes readers on a wild adventure. Due to the nature of the content, this book is recommended for mature readers only.

Check this title’s availability in the UNC-Chapel Hill Library catalog.

Comments Off on Teresa D’Amario. Shewolf. Culver City, CA: Freya’s Bower, 2007.

Filed under 2000-2009, 2007, D'Amario, Teresa, Montgomery, Novels in Series, Piedmont, Romance/Relationship, Science Fiction/Fantasy

Tagged as , , ,

by | · 2:28 pm

H. Leigh Aubrey. A Keen Edge. New York: iUniverse, 2009.

Scott Davan is the man with everything: he is a partner in his father’s successful architectural firm, has a supportive wife and three loving sons, and at thirty-seven, is still in peak physical condition. Poised to run for state senator, he is Charlotte, North Carolina’s golden boy in every way. There’s no reason for him not to be happy…but he isn’t. Randall Davan is a controlling man who refuses to relinquish his hold on both his son and the business, and in reality, Scott’s relationship with his wife Paula has been cold and distant for years. When the senior Davan hires Scott an assistant without his knowledge, it’s the last straw, but not in the way he thinks. Instead of plunging Scott deeper into his father’s stifling grasp, Neil Phelan will free him.

Because Neil turns out to be just what Scott needs: he’s an excellent architect, a competitive jogging partner, and incredibly easy to talk with, not to mention handsome. There is an undeniable connection, and the two men fall for one another instantly. Neil has identified as gay for some years, always struggling with the fact. Scott has denied that he is anything but heterosexual for his entire life, and must now embark on an inner journey to find his true self. The outside world is little help. The Davans have always held conservative views on certain topics, homosexual relationships included. When Paula and Randall are faced with Scott’s self-discovery, a painfully difficult time ensues for all involved, especially the children.

H. Leigh Aubrey, a pen name for an author who has written over forty romances for straight audiences, has tackled some of the most charged issues in his first novel for “romantic gay men.” He fits a great deal into 288 pages, but the result is a combination of many different types of love: romantic, sexual, familial, and most importantly, the love and acceptance of oneself. Romance readers everywhere will enjoy Neil and Scott’s budding relationship, and applaud their courage in the face of so many trials.

Check this title’s availability in the UNC-Chapel Hill Library catalog.

Comments Off on H. Leigh Aubrey. A Keen Edge. New York: iUniverse, 2009.

Filed under 2000-2009, 2009, Aubrey, H. Leigh, Mecklenburg, Piedmont, Romance/Relationship

Tagged as , ,