The Dinner by Herman Koch

Paul Lohman and his wife Claire are going out to dinner with Paul's brother Serge, a charismatic and ambitious politician, and his wife Babette. Paul knows the evening will not be fun. The restaurant will be over-priced and pretentious, the head waiter will bore on about the organically certified free-range this and artisan-fed that, and almost everything about Serge, especially his success, will infuriate Paul.

But as the evening wears on it becomes clear that tonight's dinner will be even more difficult than usual. There is something the two couples have to discuss. It's about their teenage sons and the very bad things they have been doing.

And it's about how far two sets of parents will go to save their children from the consequences of their actions. 

A disturbingly good, uncomfortable read.

The Nerd Who Loved Me by Vicki Lewis Thompson

 Lainie Terrell is no ordinary single mother. With feathers in all the right places, she's one of the hottest showgirls in Vegas. Aside from a hot-tempered ex-boyfriend on her sequined tail, Lainie's biggest problem is finding a decent babysitter for her son. Lainie's dilemma is solved when she ropes Harry Ambrewster, the casino's shy - but very smart and cute - accountant, into the task.

Inheriting his chemist father's high IQ and sexy good looks, Harry has always been intrigued by Lainie. He isn't thrilled at the prospect of babysitting, but he'll do anything to get near the gal who fuels his craziest fantasies. Then Lainie's dangerous ex comes knocking...

In disguise and on the lam, Lainie's masquerading as the perfect wife. Harry's doubling as the he-man protector. But with a setup this hot, who's fooling who?

A light, fun bit of fluff read.  I enjoyed it more than I expected to. 

The Winters in Bloom by Lisa Tucker

Every marriage has three stories: the husband’s, the wife’s—and the one they create together.
Everyone who knows Kyra and David Winter considers them over-protective parents, but the Winters have good reasons for fearing the worst. When the best thing about their lives—their beloved son, Michael— disappears from his own backyard one perfectly average summer day, the question is, whose past has finally caught up with them?

In the search for young Michael, Kyra and David will be forced to reveal secrets about themselves they’ve always kept hidden, but they will also discover that it’s not too late to have the sort of family they’ve always dreamed of.

Told from a number of different viewpoints and it skips back and forth along a time line. There are hints given of a tragedy in the past and it all comes together well in the end. A good read, with a happy ending, but without absolutely everything being neatly tied up. I enjoyed this book.

Last Chance Cafe by Liz Byrski

Margot detests shopping malls. Any distraction is welcome, and the woman who has chained herself to the escalator, shouting about the perils of consumerism, is certainly that. She recognises Dot immediately – from their time campaigning for women’s rights, and further back still, to the heyday of the Sydney Push when Margot married Laurence.Dot is in despair at the abandonment of the sisterhood, at the idea of pole dancing as empowerment and the sight of five year-olds with false eyelashes and padded bras. She’s still a fierce campaigner, but these days she isn’t sure where to direct her rage. 

 It's all about motherhood and secrets, different styles of mothering, different needs of the children even when they are adults and the secrets that separate mother from child.

The second half was much better than the first.  At times I considered giving up on this book, then it would get better for a bit.  By the end I was glad I had stuck with it.

Concealed In Death by J D Robb

There is nothing unusual about billionaire Roarke supervising work on his new property - but when he takes a ceremonial swing at the first wall to be knocked down, he uncovers the body of a girl. And then another - in fact, twelve dead girls concealed behind a false wall.

Luckily for Roarke, he is married to the best police lieutenant in town. Eve Dallas is determined to find the killer - especially when she discovers that the building used to be a sanctuary for deliquent teenagers and the parallel with her past as a young runaway hits hard.

As the girls' identities are slowly unravelled by the department's crack forensic team, Eve and her staunch sidekick Peabody get closer to the shocking truth... 

The who dunnit isn't a huge surprise by the end of the book.  The best part of this series is the relationship between Eve and Roarke.  Another excellent addition to the series.

Stone Cold Lover by Christine Warren

Art restorer Felicity "Fil" Shaltis can read the magic in auras, but her fascination with a valuable statue her friend Ella Harrow asks her to locate is purely artistic. At least until the fierce stone gargoyle comes to life as a powerful, and powerfully hot, immortal warrior, who promptly saves her life from a cultist set on destroying them both. Suddenly "chiseled good looks" takes on a whole new meaning…
STONE COLD LOVER
Spar expected nothing less than one of the seven demons of the Dark to wake him—and instead finds himself the unlikely savior of a spirited human female who now bears the mark of the demon. As one of seven Guardians created to vanquish the Darkness, Spar has no time for love—but he can’t deny that his destiny is clearly entwined with Fil’s. To battle the looming threat to humanity, first Spar must save the woman who summoned him... 

Spar is a great hero, protective, possessive, stoic, and sweet. Fil is funny, sharp-witted and and confused.

An intriguing story line, action and some steamy scenes made for a good read. 

The Other Queen by Philippa Gregory

"The Other Queen" is about Mary, Queen of Scots' imprisonment in England, focusing on the early years of her imprisonment. Like "The Boleyn Inheritance", the story alternates between three perspectives. The narrators are George Talbot, Earl of Shrewsbury and his wife, Bess of Hardwick who were charged with responsibility for the Queen; the third narrator is Mary, Queen of Scots. Bess is an ambitious social climber who initially thinks that hosting Queen Mary will be a way to advance the family fortunes, but who is dismayed to find that it drains their financial resources instead. George on the other hand becomes infatuated with the Queen, which causes irreparable friction in his own marriage. 

Philippa Gregory does and excellent job of making a short time in history very readable and personalised.  This story is told in 3 voices, Queen Mary when she was a prisoner of Queen Elizabeth and the people who had to look after her, Bess who had come from being a commoner and married her way up through 4 husbands to be a countess and her husband George.

Overall a very interesting read.