Classic Kallmaker Strikes Again...
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The text from the back cover is not currently available on this page, so I'm adding it first below.

BACK COVER TEXT

Twenty-nine-year-old Rayann Germaine, betrayed by her lover, flees in grief and rage.  She meets rare book store owner Louisa Thatcher, a woman many years her senion, who offers shelter and work... and soon, passion, and a loving place in her life.

But Rayann encounters challenges to this new love-- from friends who question its wisdom, from her mother who disapproves of this liaison with a woman her own contemporary, from Louisa's son who learns for the first time his mother's true sexuality.

And there are profound differences between Rayann and Louisa themselves, two women who come from dramatically different places in the spectrum of age and life experience.

Setting her story in today's ever-changing environs fo California's Bay Area, Karin Kallmaker brings her talent to full flower in this entertaining, erotic, thought-provoking exploration of love, and of that landscape of the mind known as age.

END OF BACK COVER TEXT

Karin Kallmaker is one of my favorite authors in this genre.  She never fails to deliver a great story, albeit a story that is almost always pure formula.  'Touchwood' is equally as good as her other works, but it seems to stray from that formula just a little bit.  This provides a refreshing new aspect this reader wasn't expecting.

The biggest hurdle for the reader seems to be acceptance of the age issue between the two main characters, Rayann and Louisa.  Rayann is 27.  Louisa is twice that and has a son older than Rayann.  I like older women, but had a hard time getting over the huge age difference.  Therefore, I cheated and pictured Rayann about 15 years older, shrinking the age difference to 12 years.  This tactic didn't take away from the story and made it much easier for me to enjoy.  This was the only reason I gave it 4 stars instead of 5.

'Touchwood' is a must own book and a great addition to any bookshelf.
3610599
KLR is by far one of my favorite Christian fiction authors.  She has done it again!  And like some of the readers said, the book does not spend a lot of time on the good Reverend Black, which was a pleasant surprise for me.  I think Curtis has long played out.  It was good to see the plot revolving around someone else this time.  However, I agree that Charlotte's girlfriend's character was a bit unbelievable.  A real black woman - or any woman with a spine - would've given the abusive live-in his walking papers in the blink of an eye.  Overall, I think she knocked this one out the ballpark and can't wait to January 2008 to read Sin No More.  Go Kimberla!  You still rock!
4093367
All of Jan Karon's books are wonderful. This one is part of the Mitford series with Father Tim. You should start with the first one and work your way all the way through. I, personally, own the whole series and am in the process of reading it for the fourth time.  When life is hectic and you just want to go "home" then go home to Mitford.  In fact, I have pre-ordered the new one coming out in September.
256286
Have played some games sort of like this ! General Kaos & Starcraft come to mind . Too bad it's thurs night ! But tomorrow is FRIDAY ! STILL GETTING USED TO COMMANDS & system itself . I RECOMEND THIS TO ANYONE TIRED OF SAME OLD FPSers !
4630399
Salander is back, as strong as ever. Bloomkvist is as determined as ever. Like mathematics? Hackers? Lots of good and bad guys? A plot that keeps you turning page after page? Get in bed with the dragon and enjoy the ride!
1781025
Stephen W Bennett has produced another winner in his fantastic Koban series.  This book has a great mix of hard science and military science fiction that avoids bogging down on too many details but still provides enough substance to satisfy those who have tired of the flood of supernatural bodice rippers that seem to dominate the market lately.  The original characters are well-developed and now familiar as old friends, and the post-Krall crisis makes for a compelling read.  I hope there are a few more stories to tell as I have found myself thoroughly addicted.
3423345
He's older, wiser, more powerful...and in a heap of trouble, as usual.

I've enjoyed each and every Dresden novel because Butcher writes consistent characters even as they age and the world changes around them. Dresden's wisecracking ways hide the terror that for all his efforts, the people he knows and loves are going to get hurt just from being around him, and he's not wrong. But mostly, the hurt is repairable - or in Michael's case, endurable - and they stick by him because of his moral core and willingness to do the right thing, even when it will come back to bite him personally.

But you **really** need to read the previous novels in this series if you haven't already, because Butcher has built a sequential narrative so start with "Storm Front" and work your way up to this. If you don't, you will miss a lot the subtext and it will likely dampen down your enjoyment because what came before forms the foundations of pretty much every situation and the subsequent interactions.

So, the premise of "Skin Game" is that Harry's on his island fortress, but Mab (as is her wont) needs him to do a little job for her. As the blurb says, it's "a smash-and-grab heist run by one of his most despised enemies, to recover the literal Holy Grail from the vaults of the greatest treasure horde in the world - which belongs to the one and only Hades, Lord of the Underworld."

Nothing simpler!

Of course, this being Mab, simple does not come into it and Harry is backed into all sorts of corners with only his wisecracking ways and Winter Knight turbo-charged magic to help him. Oh, and few of those friends, of course. To add to the pressure, his personal 'brain virus' is ticking down to zero and when it goes boom, so does Harry!

This is classic Dresden, and the plot tension is more in the "how will he escape this" than worrying whether Harry is going to survive or not. He's the Winter Knight after all, survival is now built into his DNA and cheating the Grim Reaper is already on his CV. Still, the maturing Dresden is really getting getting into the game playing space forced upon him by Mab and there is a neat twist in the tail (tale?) that was especially gratifying when it came.

What made "Skin Game" particularly interesting for me (apart from the magic of course), is that Harry is finally examining and reconciling his relationships honestly, especially with Karen and his daughter, rather than doing the manly thing and just ignoring that there might even be a problem.

And having read a Charles Stross Laundry File short immediately before and then after "Skin Game", I was struck by how coherently Dresden's character has developed over so many novels and how difficult such an outcome actually is. So kudos to Butcher for this, as a fussy reader I certainly appreciate the consistency.

Anyway, I've given this 5 Stars and if you're a Dresden fan I can't see "Skin Game" disappointing. And if you enjoy magical detective stories that build and build both within each novel and across the series, absolutely give Dresden a go. Just start at the start.
889686
Another Excellent book from Michael Savage. :-) You can get more information from his web site: http://www.michaelsavage.wnd.com/ and he is also on KSFO at 12 NOON PST.  Keep up the good work.
4425599
Kevin Wright is one fine writer -read him now, before everyone else discovers him.  His characters are never from central casting but creations all his own.  His plots are twisted and devious, yet always come together in the end, which is no small accomplishment.

This Medieval/horror/fantasy/detective noire story is his most recent accomplishment.  Sir Luther Krait is one troubled messed up character.  Scoundrel, admitted coward, and survivor, he's forced to solve problems for people he hates, in a place he loathes and discovers things he does not want to know.  In spite of everything, Krait is a witty smooth talker who's tongue saves his skin as often as his sword.
1203684
In Frostborn #4, our merry band is joined by no less than a halfling master thief. So we now have a dwarf, an orc, a white wizardess, a black sorceress, and a renegade knight and his "squire." The plot, it thickens. The old timey fantasy tropes continue. I'm enjoying the nostalgia.
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I'm convinced that this author has a magic touch - I enjoy doing any of the puzzles he makes more than other authors.  I haven't done Kakuro for a while, and it's been good doing some again.  The puzzles are a mixture from easy to very challenging, and in his own inimitable,inspired way, DJAPE lures you (well, me, anyway) into a sort of relationship with the little black and white numbers peering at you from the page.  And I'm also convinced, that even if he uses his computer to generate the puzzles, it is not a random thing like many other computer-generated puzzles.  The joy I get from discovering new patterns and sneaky solutions just makes solving these puzzles even better!
1123883
Kelly strikes again with another great offering in the Galactic Pool franchise! I took the opportunity to pre-order this ebook a couple of months ago and then promptly put my Kindle aside and waited impatiently. It was worth the wait, hence the 5 stars.

This author has long ago, in my estimation at least, pushed himself above the pack of emerging authors by pursuing a brand that is all his own. It is truly remarkable that this is the third installment and the gags keep on coming. It is funny, it is intelligent, it is innovative. The characters we have come to know and love and/or just know are back and continuing their respective quests for publication, domination, film making and revenge.

Too many times by this stage of a series the author will spend the majority of the time recapping the events of the previous books to the extent that the actual new data is limited to a couple of sentences at the end. Kelly does not do this, so you will get the new, pure, good stuff and if you are like me you will want to go back and read them all again.

It is notable and extraordinary that there is still a willingness to try new things, to keep all of the strands going, to at times be confusing and just keep going. This is a genuinely rare approach and even considering the list of referenced authors that inspired Kelly the Galactic Pool is cutting edge.

I await with eagerness the production of the main characters as little figures that shall surely go alongside the film adaptation.
2943007
I love this book, all his books, and what he and Liza have done for the quilting world.  As for the negative reviews, I don't know how anyone can say anything negative about Kaffe and Liza and what they have done for the quilting world.  Their books don't disappoint, the colors always lift me up, the instructions are clear (and I really don't know my way around a sewing machine that much.)  Are some of the quilts time-consuming? Sure are,  but if you don't enjoy the process, stick to your Quilt-in-a Day books.  If you want to make something beautiful, you need to invest the time. He promotes his own fabric?  Well, gosh, why not?  Isn't he trying to show us how to use large repeats and bold colors?

I guess it comes down to this:  Some people who make quilts are artists, but many are just seamstresses and seamsters.  There is room for all of us, but Kaffe is an artist and if you want to just be a seamstress or seamster, keep your narrow focus and stick to your calicos.
515267
This is third version of old classic. Great advices on lambda, streams and other new things since Java 7 and beyond.
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Grafton takes a long time to write a book, and the results show it.  Since her "S" novel, Grafton has seemed to dedicate herself to making sure that the wrapup of her Alphabet mysteries starring private eye Kinsey Millhone, is as exceptional as when she started the series in the 80's.

In this outing, the book starts with a violent bang with a young gambler, Phillip Lanahan, meeting an untimely death.  That scenario isn't connected to the mainstream of Grafton's plot until the near-conclusion.  Minor theft...of shoplifting, turns into something major when Kinsey's observation of a woman, Audrey Vance, shoplifting in a store, leads to Vance's capture and later to her murder.  Kinsey pursues the threads of the story, first with a client, and later without... uncovering a major theft ring, and getting a warning from police who are friendly to her, that she needs to drop her line of questioning, since she's in to something big and dangerous.

There is a violent attack on Kinsey in the book, which will stop your heart for a few seconds, but she plunges on, drawing the reader with her.

Another 5 star effort for Grafton.  Can't wait for "W"!!!
1289850
Can we all agree that 4.0 was terrible?  I think even the publisher realized it, as we all either stuck stubbornly to our 3.5 books, or jumped to Pathfinder.  4.0 was WoW for tabletop, and it didn't work.  3.5 was over-complicated, I'll admit it (reluctantly), and so a simplification and refactoring was about due.

Well, here it is!  This is what 4.0 should have been!  Simpler, and easier for beginners, yet the different races and classes are distinct again, and they built in a lot of mechanisms to increase variety without making things too complicated (easier cross-classing comes to mind).  I may miss the lengthy 3.5 skill list, but really... this is well done.

We've only played to about level 4, but I can already report that we're having fun with it.  It plays like D&D again, with a great new coat of paint.
4329971
I gave Cornwell's last book a really bad review, so I feel compelled to come back and give her credit for this one.  Flesh and Blood returns to the formula that made Cornwell's early novels must-reads.  Whatever Cornwell and her protagonist were going through during the writing of the previous book they seem to have come out the other side.  This was a good, interest-holding read.  I can't give it 5 stars because having read all of the previous books I knew who the "bad guy" was at the prologue, although like Kay I had questioned whether it was possible.  It just seemed to me to take way too long for this character that embodies all evil to be re-revealed, and there is still this undercurrent of conspiracy against Kay and those close to her.  Nevertheless, it's good to have the gang back in action, doing what they do best.  And like everyone else, I want to know what the very last word in the book portends.  Good job, Patricia.