Penned Perspective

So 2020 was going to be the best year ever, and then... COVID-19. I was having a fantastic year and planning to catch everyone up on the incredible finds I'd fallen into, and then suddenly, the world went crazy.


My whole world changed overnight, and my time was filled with homeschooling, remote working, and just trying to stay alive, so once again, you know the saying best-laid plans... 
And after six months of this new existence, while my sanity has been questionable at times,  I have thank goodness be able to put my kindle unlimited membership to good use. I read a lot and stumped upon some real gems.
Some of my favorites:

• Royal Dragon Bind by Ava Ward
• A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah Maas
• Andorra Sector by Lexi C. Foss

I really loved the Night Huntress series and am a fan of the author. It was a treat to visit a world that fascinated me for months. While it wasn’t as incredible as Cat and Bones’ story, it was a solid novel.

So yes I did it!

 I finally finished the 12 book Calendar Girls series and now it's time to review....



Mia Saunders is between a rock and a hard place. She goes to work for her aunt's escort company to pay off her father's one million dollar debt. The best part is that Mia's father owes the debt to her loan shark ex-boyfriend. When the book begins Mia is resigned to working each month with a different client for the next year to ensure her family's safety. Each month will earn Mia a solid $100K with the option of a bonus for any favors given to the client.

The Good

The premise of the books are enchanting. Who doesn't love a hero and Mia is seen as one from the start. I enjoyed most of the books beginning with January. The first book of the series was explosive and sexy. It set the stage for the books with the introduction of Wes, a rich and dreamy California dude at heart. His romance with Mia is a whirlwind. They meet because his mother hires Mia and the spark between them ignites almost immediately. I was nearly as swept up as Mia is with him and was ready for the series to end with the first client. Alas, it was not to be as Mia endeavored to continue her journey.

February was also one of my favorite months as it introduced Alec, a painter who allows Mia to see herself and truly fall in love. What I loved most was the growth Mia experienced with Alec, he thought she was beautiful from the inside out and Audrey Carlan did a great job allowing the reader to experience the growth alongside the main character. As Alec paints Mia and enjoys his sexual escapades with her, the reader learns more about her too. You learn that Mia is still smarting from her mother's abandonment and allows herself to be attached to the wrong men because of issues caused by that abandonment. You also spend more time falling in love with her because she also is falling in love with herself.

March is the first book that doesn't feature sex with the specified client.  Readers are shown a different side of Mia and it helps to round out her character. In this book, you are treated to Mia's cupid complex. Mia is the third wheel hired to help a successful restaurant owner, Tony appears to be straight while in private he carries on a relationship with another man, Hector. Mia is instrumental in her belief that love should be first and her influence helps Tony come out to the public about his sexuality.


I won't recap all of the books because I think you'd be missing out on a lot of I did.  August brought a renewal to the series for me.  After March, Mia fluctuated between lover and cupid for the majority of the books until we reached August's story. In August, Mia is hired to pretend to be an oil tycoon's sister. This is when the series takes a very interesting twist. Mia discovers more about her mother and finds out she now has a choice about whether to continue her journey for the full twelve months.


Not so Good

Not every book in the series is a must read but they do help tell Mia's story. I found June and July a but more difficult to read because the stories didn't tell me much more about Mia.  June introduces Washington as the setting and puts Mia's experience in a tailspin. There was a bit of violence and abuse that while realistic I didn't find fit into her story. July has Mia still reeling from June and she spends some time in California mooning over Wes. We did get a true villain in June but July felt more like a filler story to move you towards August's reveal.

I also had a strong distaste for the banter between Mia and her best friend. I've had girlfriends who I banter with in this way but not many and some of the pet names between them were a bit much.

My Verdict:




Twelve novellas is ambitious for any author but I felt the premise and characters were full enough to carry readers through the story. I really liked Mia for her humanity, she a single woman that enjoys sex and while not necessarily in search of romance falls right into it. She grows as a character in the year learning who she really is and what she has to often in terms of love. In learning to love herself she is finally able to find true love and strength to champion the people who surround her. Readers will fall in love with Mia like all of the people she comes in contact with. I am impressed with Audrey Carlan and plan to read more of her books.

Review of Delicious by Susan Mallery



This book begins the four book saga of the Buchanans, a wealthy family who made their fortune in the restaurant industry, and their search for love. Delicious features the story of Cal and Penny, ex-spouses who find themselves pushed together for the sake of the Buchanan's family restaurant.

The Good:

The writing is excellent. This is my first Susan Mallery book and I can definitely see why she's popular. The story had a natural flow with enough comedy and sweetness to get you through the typical push and pull of a romance. Cal and Penny's relationship had just enough of everything. There were some funny parts and they balanced well with sad beats as well as the span of their love story. I really enjoyed the secondary characters like Walker, Reid, Dani, but especially Naomi. Naomi was a nice balance to Penny's independent but often cautious nature. I enjoyed Cal's brothers' relationships with Penny and Penny's friendships with about all of the other characters.

The Not So Good:

I liked the secondary characters more than Cal by far.  I didn't get the reasoning behind their original break up. The story about Cal's mystery child, Penny's miscarriage, and that mysterious' child's cancer battle was a bit too heavy.  And when you add in Gloria, Cal's overly domineering Grandmother, it was just too much.  Cal didn't seem like a very heroic or even likable character.

The Verdict:



Overall I liked the story (just not Cal as much) and am interested in finding out about the love stories for the rest of the Buchanans. It was a sweet start for the series.