The Last Boyfriend by Nora Roberts

Owen is the organizer of the Montgomery clan, running the family’s construction business with an iron fist—and an even less flexible spreadsheet. And though his brothers bust on his compulsive list-making, the Inn BoonsBoro is about to open right on schedule. The only thing Owen didn’t plan for was Avery MacTavish...

Avery’s popular pizza place is right across the street from the inn, giving her a firsthand look at its amazing renovation—and a newfound appreciation for Owen. Since he was her first boyfriend when they were kids, Owen has never been far from Avery’s thoughts. But the attraction she’s feeling for him now is far from innocent.

As Avery and Owen cautiously take their relationship to another level, the opening of the inn gives the whole town of Boonsboro a reason to celebrate. But Owen’s hard work has only begun. Getting Avery to let down her guard is going to take longer than he expected—and so will getting her to realize that her first boyfriend is going to be her last…

A nice, light romance. My favourite part was with the rooms of the Inn being named after famous couples, one of the rooms was the Eve and Rourke (from her In Death series) room.

Ink and Bone by Rachel Caine

Ruthless and supremely powerful, the Great Library is now a presence in every major city, governing the flow of knowledge to the masses. Alchemy allows the Library to deliver the content of the greatest works of history instantly—but the personal ownership of books is expressly forbidden.

Jess Brightwell believes in the value of the Library, but the majority of his knowledge comes from illegal books obtained by his family, who are involved in the thriving black market. Jess has been sent to be his family’s spy, but his loyalties are tested in the final months of his training to enter the Library’s service.

Great world building, well written characters and lots of action kept me very interested. 

A Place Called Winter by Patrick Gale

This is the story of an outwardly conventional man in England around the turn of the 20th Century who is forced to leave his wife and daughter as a result of the discovery of his affair with another man. So he takes off across the ocean to homestead in the western part of the Canadian prairie. Ultimately, he forms a relationship with a brother and sister on a nearby quarter section of land. He marries the sister to save her reputation when she became pregnant after being raped and becomes the lover of her brother.

 I really liked this book. It was well written, the story was flowed brilliantly and I loved Harry Cane as a character, so prim and proper but yet so strong willed and charming.

Soundless by Richelle Mead

Fei and her people have lived on the top of their mountain for generations. Hundreds of years ago, they also lived and farmed the fertile valleys beyond the mountain pass, but an avalanche blocked the pass, and ever since they have been dependent on the line keeper.

The line keeper sends food and supplies via zip cord, which has always been there and leads no-one-knows where.

But the line keeper only sends the supplies in exchange for the metal mined on the mountain top, and when the villagers begin to lose their sight in addition to their widespread and complete loss of hearing (also generations ago--no one on the mountain even knows what sound is), and they begin to send less and less ore, the line keeper sends less and less food.

It's only fair.

As an artist, it is Fei's job to record the daily life, to preserve the history in text and picture, to capture the growing crowd of beggars who have lost their sight and have never had sound. Beggars who can do nothing but sit in silent darkness, slowly starving, waiting for handouts from a dwindling food supply.

Fei is to observe, never interfere. She is separate from the lower working classes of miners and servants.

Except Fei herself grew up in a mining family. The boy she loved but can never marry (Li Wei) is a miner still. And when her sister, the last surviving member of her family, begins to lose her sight, Fei can no longer simply observe . . . So when an avoidable tragedy claims the life of Li Wei's father and he decides to climb down the mountain and confront the line keeper, Fei decides to go with him.

Something must change.

What follows is an incredible journey of discovery. Of life off the mountain. Of lies and abuse. Of kernels of truth in old stories. Of determination and hope and perseverance. Of new beginnings.

A truly lovely, beautifully written story.

The Lake House by Kate Morton

The story begins in 1933 with a couple named Eleanor and Anthony Edavane, living in Cornwall in a house called Loeanneth with their three daughters Deborah, Alice and Clemmie and their 11 month old son, Theo, along with grandmother Constance and several other people. Theirs was a happy and contented family, and nothing seemed to disturb their peaceful and tranquil life until a midsummer eve party throws everything out of gear. Nothing the Edavanes did could undo what happened. Broken and shattered, leaving the lake house for good, the family moved to London where the girls grew up.

Fast forward seventy years later to 2003, and we have detective Sadie Sparrow of the Metropolitan Police, with strong views and a no-nonsense attitude, who is forced to go on leave while handling a case involving a grandmother, mother and a supposedly abandoned child. Sadie visited her grandfather Bertie in Cornwall, and it was during her stay at Cornwall that she stumbled on a dilapidated Loeanneth, and learned of how it came to be abandoned.

A complex, captivating, intricate mystery that I loved.

Girl Reading by Katie Ward

Seven portraits. Seven artists. Seven girls and women reading. Each chapter of this richly textured debut takes us into a perfectly imagined tale of how each portrait came to be. It is a collection of stories linked by art and the lives of seven girls reading in seven different time periods between 1333 and 2066.

Very enjoyable, well written book about the lives of 7 girls connected through time by reading. I liked how each story had a mention of the artwork in the previous story.

I also got a small thrill at the mention of Bookcrossing.

Lies Sleeping by Ben Aaronovitch

The Faceless Man, wanted for multiple counts of murder, fraud, and crimes against humanity, has been unmasked and is on the run. Peter Grant, Detective Constable and apprentice wizard, now plays a key role in an unprecedented joint operation to bring him to justice.

But even as the unwieldy might of the Metropolitan Police bears down on its foe, Peter uncovers clues that the Faceless Man, far from being finished, is executing the final stages of a long term plan. A plan that has its roots in London's two thousand bloody years of history, and could literally bring the city to its knees.

To save his beloved city Peter's going to need help from his former best friend and colleague--Lesley May--who brutally betrayed him and everything he thought she believed in. And, far worse, he might even have to come to terms with the malevolent supernatural killer and agent of chaos known as Mr Punch....

The humour and inventiveness of the storylines and the characters remain fun to read, so I continue to recommend the series.  I particularly enjoy Peter's "voice" - his wry attitude and his entire approach to being a wizard's apprentice while at the same time being a newly promoted Detective Constable in London.