ARC'S REVIEWERS STAGE

Not a Keeper Anymore

In this follow up to "He's A Keeper" we pick with
Toni and her kids, who have moved from Oakland
to Ohio. Toni is trying hard to get over the demise
of her abusive marriage and adjust to life in Ohio.
The kids are struggling being the new kids on the
block. Eric is feeling the loss of his family so much,
he just goes deeper in a rut, and he is still the man
we love to hate. Eric is trying hard to win back Toni,
but she just cannot get over the pain he has
inflicted on her and their children.

This story kept me entertained with the day-to-day
life of the characters. Toni, trying to adjust to life,
has some funny situations and some trying ones.
Amiya and Junior hate Ohio. They're teenagers and
get into some situations that will have you wanting
to wring their necks. Amiya the oldest has a
different out look on life, while Junior misses his
dad.

Author Leila Jefferson does a good job painting the
pictures. "Scorned Hearts is easy enough to keep up
with. There are twists and turns along with things
that were predictable, thankfully not many things
were predictable. Overall, I enjoyed this novel and
look forward to see what she comes up with next. If
you read "He's a Keeper" I recommend the follow
up, you wont be disappointed.

SiStar Tea
ARC Book Club Inc.
4 star rating:****.
A Little white Lie....
This follow-up to Trice's debut novel (Unexpected
Interruptions) brings us back to the relationship of
Victoria & Ted. Now married with a daughter, the `power'
couple faces new hurdles. Ted is confronted with a
tragedy and has to cope with a single life-long family
secret that is so shocking, he can barely share the news
with his wife.

Meanwhile, due to the sudden reappearance of the
debonair Parker Brightwood Victoria is thrown off her "A"
game and has been less than forthcoming with her
husband. As the plot thickens Victoria's lies have her
backed up against the wall and Ted...well as he
contemplates how the dynamics of his marriage will
change due to his secret - he continues to tell lies.

I enjoyed the read due to Trice's excellent writing style
however, being a seasoned reader I had an idea which
direction the story was going to take, and I was correct.
Sufficient background information was given so you were
not in the dark if you didn't read the prequel. I felt the
conclusion was too neat. With all that transpired
throughout the story and joint activities of the characters'
children, I just see there being more. Writing is certainly
Trice Hickman's forte, and when I pick up her next novel
I'll be looking forward to the same fluid, mature writing
style.

English
Star Rating: 4.0 ****
ARC Book Club Inc.
stick up sibblings


Author Mike Sanders put a fresh spin on the old
stick up boys' story. In his latest novel "Thirsty"
Justice is a female sexy kitten who lures her prey
and sets them up lovely for her brother Monk and
his crew to rob.

Justice and Carlos was once an item but Justice has
since sworn off of drug dealers although she still
does the occasional round in bed with her ex Carlos.
According to Carlos, loyalty is worth much more
than money and he has his own street team of
fierce men who will die for him if necessary. Carlos
is well aware that Monk and Justice have their own
hustle going on and he has warned Monk not to
cross him which is understood by all parties.

When Carlos gets robbed and false accusations
point to Monk and Justice, Carlos is out for blood!
At first Monk and Justice are confused as to why
Carlos would believe they would rob him so they
just stay out of his way, thinking it's all a big
misunderstanding. But the blood shed starts to get
closer to home and the siblings realize they are in
the middle of a war and there's only one thing to
do!

This story started off slow, moving at snail's pace
before really heating up. But once it caught fire it
was blazing bringing it to its explosive showdown.

I read Mike Sanders first novel a few years back
and he certainly has talent. Now I'm looking
forward to Thirsty ll and I hope he doesn't take too
long to bring it!

Locksie
Star Rating: 4.0****