Tag Archives: Pauline Baird Jones

Keepers 2018

28 Friday Dec 2018

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Among the books I read this year, there are a number that I would call Keepers. That is, they made an impression while I was reading them and they made a home in my literary brain and moved in. I can visit them any time. Such was the impression the made on me. So here is my Keepers list for 2018. I am purposely excluding SciFi Romance because I will be recognizing those in the SFR Galaxy awards that will be announced in January. But for every other genre, here are my picks.

Audiobooks

A Peace Divided (Peacekeeper, #2) by Tanya Huff – I’ve been listening to the Confederate/Peacekeeper series for a year or two. Pure military scifi, (even after the heroine retires from the marines).

The Greyfriar (Vampire Empire, #1) by Clay and Susan Griffith – Greyfriar is an often-recommended steampunk novel that I’ve been wanting to read for a while. I know now why it is recommended. The audiobook is superbly narrated by James Marters. (Yes, I was a Buffy fan.)

The Chronicles of St. Mary’s series by Jodi Taylor. – I am finally caught up with the series, having read all the novels and short stories up to And Now for Something Completely Different which released on Christmas day this year. The series is brilliantly narrated by Zara Ramm. I’m not sure I could ever read a print St. Mary’s books. She has spoiled me.

Themis Files series by Sylvain Neuval – This fascinating scifi series is told with a series of interviews and mission logs. The audiobooks have take a cue from the format and are read by a huge cast of characters. I just downloaded the third and final book in the series. I can’t wait to see how it ends.

Scifi

Donovan Trilogy by W. Michael Gear – Books 1 and 2 were release this year. I would call them pure scifi thriller/mystery/adventure taking place on a scary planet with a life of its own.

Dark Orbit by Carolyn Ives Gilman– This book is exploration scifi with a positive theme.

The Sky Woman by J.D. Moyer – Humans who think they are advanced observing other humans. Non-interference, strange powers. I can’t wait to see where this one goes.

Stars Uncharted by S.K. Dunstall – The ragtag crew of Road to Goberlings is the real attraction in this book. I will be a happy to read their further adventures.

Before Mars (Planetfall, #3) by Emma Newman – This book had me thinking of all the Mars exploration movies/TV shows I’ve ever seen. I’ll be reading the next one – Atlas Alone.

Fantasy

Entreat Me by Grace Draven – Entreat Me is an older book, but I finally read it this year. Loved it!  One of my Draven favorites.

Highland Dragon Master (Dawn of the Highland Dragon, #3) by Isabel Cooper – An unimpressive title for a very impressive book. A most unusual take on dragons, magic and fantasy.

Blackthorn and Grimm series by Juliet Marillier – I absolutely fell in love with both Blackthorn and Grimm and finished the series this year. Oh my. I wish I could explain why I love this series so much. But you have to feel it.  My favorite in audiobooks!

Other Genres

The Big Uneasy series by Pauline Baird Jones – I got caught up with this series in a binge read. I love the humor and the New Orleans setting.

The Shadows of Stormclyffe Hall: A Modern Gothic Romance (The Dark Seductions Series, #1) by Lauren Smith – This atmospheric story had me feeling the chill of the ghosts and the fear of the protagonists. Great Gothic story!

Treacherous is the Night by Anna Lee Huber – Treacherous is the Night is my favorite book of the year. If I really had to pick a favorite. Historical fiction set in post WWI Europe.  Ms. Huber’s talent shines in this one.

The Legend of All Wolves series by by Maria Vale – Books 1 and 2 were released in 2018 and I read them both. I was impressed with Vale’s unique and amazing depiction of the wolf world.

 

If you read any Keepers this year, please share in the comments below.  Your Keeper might become someone else’s next great read!

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Worry Beads (The Big Uneasy, #4) by Pauline Baird Jones – Review

28 Wednesday Nov 2018

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About Worry Beads by Pauline Baird Jones

Laura Baker has seen a lot during her job as a New Orleans EMT. She has responded to just about every type of emergency known to man. An unexpected act of kindness during one call puts her on the news—and her life and heart at risk.

Archie Gunn receives an unexpected tip sends him to the beautiful and mysterious city of New Orleans. His trip opens up more than he expects –and a bayou full of danger. There is a lot going on in New Orleans and it isn’t all good times and Mardi Gras.

Download the latest installment of The Big Uneasy series and discover what happens in New Orleans can be downright deadly!

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Review of Worry Beads

My favorite thing about this book is the fact that the hero, Archie, is such a big unknown for most of the book. Oh, we know he is a good guy. But we don’t even know his profession, so his background is not crystal clear. So, should we like him for Laura. Or not? Hmm.

Having said that, we also have a Baker protagonist. That is always a good thing. Mainly because it comes with not one Baker, but a baker’s dozen of Bakers. This family has a big chunk of the market on crime solving in New Orleans. Readers of The Big Uneasy series know what I am talking about. In this family, the cop line of ‘need to know’ is a hard one to follow. It’s a family thing.

In Worry Beads, Zach (Baker dad) and his girlfriend (Becca) are responsible for setting Laura and Archie up on a blind double date. While Archie may have taken a shine to Laura at hello, he is also interested in her because he saw her on the news wearing some Mardi Gras beads that look very interesting. Trouble is, a lot of people saw the news and also think the bead are interesting. So the adventure begins.

Despite the blind date being only a diversion for Archie who is only in town for a short time, the couple end up spending quite a bit of time together. Chasing clues or being chased. And how do they end up together? I blame the nobody-is-good-enough-for-my-daughter Zach. Really, you have to read the book, but I think you can see it. A little bit ironic, I think. 🙂

That feelings develop between Archie and Laura is inevitable.  Isn’t that why I wanted to read this story in the first place? Plus, the Mardi Gras Beads Mystery. It is a great combination. Humor, romance and pure charm mix with mystery and suspense in New Orleans. Sound good? Yep!

One more thing – Bread Pudding. Yum!

The author provided a copy of her book in exchange for my honest review.

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Links

Add Worry Beads to your Goodreads shelf:

Pre-order Worry Beads (releases 12/1/18):

 

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Giveaway

Don’t forget the ongoing giveaway for the audiobook of Phantom Evil by Heather Graham, or the print books of Catherine Cerveny’s The Rule of Luck and The Chaos of Luck.  If you haven’t entered yet, you might be interested to know that commenting on today’s post helps qualify you for an entry – see the giveaway post for all the details.  Or go straight to the giveaway….

Click Here:  a Rafflecopter giveaway

Going Back to New Orleans by Pauline Baird Jones – Guest Post

27 Tuesday Nov 2018

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As a tourist, I have spent some time in New Orleans.  Not nearly enough time.  I hope to go back someday.  In the meantime, I’ve asked Pauline Baird Jones to tell us about her time in New Orleans.  If you follow this blog, you may know that she is one of my favorite authors, so I am very happy to welcome Pauline Baird Jones!

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Going Back to New Orleans
by Pauline Baird Jones

I’d like to thank Riley for inviting me here to talk about my love affair with New Orleans, a city we lived in for eighteen years.

The hubs and I arrived in New Orleans in what I would call a state of disarray. The hubs had just had a hip replaced, and I’d just had a baby. Our first “meal,” in the city famous for its food, was at the Taco Bell.

Yes, it is embarrassing.

As a gal raised in Wyoming, I don’t think I exaggerate when I say that where I came from and where I found myself were polar opposites (particularly in the winter lol). I was so struck by the opposite-ness, that for a while, I wrote a column for my hometown paper called Letters Home.

Things I struggled with in New Orleans:

1. Bugs and critters – there were a lot of both in a lot of varieties, but the two worst for me were the water bugs (basically, these were big, FLYING cockroaches) and the stinging caterpillars that infested the trees in the spring. I love trees so much, it was a shock the first time one of those things dropped on my head. Once they’ve made contact, they curl into a circle of stinging ouch.

2. Heat, humidity, and oh yes, hurricanes. Need I say more? And yet, there is more. Once Christmas, when we were supposed to fly home, they shut down the WHOLE city because it might snow. I wish I was kidding about this. lol

3. Navigating a city that has parallel streets that cross each other. Oh yes, you read that right. Having the Mississippi River bend around the city the way it does causes some…peculiarities in the traffic flow. An example would be: driving due EAST over the bridge to get to the WEST bank. (I once had this entirely real, not exaggerated phone call with my hubs: Me: I found the Children’s Museum. Hubs: Really? How? Me: I got off at the wrong exit from the bridge, realized it and took a right, then went straight for two blocks and there it was. Hubs: It scares me that I understood that.)

Things I still miss about living in New Orleans:

1. Bread pudding and pastries. I used to navigate my way by where the best of these were. Lol

2. New Orleans. Yes, the whole Big Easy of amazing architecture, flowers, trees, music, food, street cars, Mardi Gras, and the people. It was the lovely, warm-hearted, joyous people of the city that care forgot that helped us adapt to life in what an almost foreign assignment for someone from Wyoming.

I loved being called “baby” by the gal selling me pralines. I loved sitting overlooking the river and watching the river traffic while behind me jazz or zydeco or rock or country music played in the background.

I can close my eyes and feel the silken stroke of cool, but humid air against my skin. I can smell the intense mix of spice scents from walking through the French Quarter. And I will never forget the taste of pastries and bread puddings that sometimes haunt my dreams. I might be a touch obsessive about my desserts. Lol

So many famous people passed through, or lived and worked and wrote in New Orleans. I will always believe it was the intense creative environment of this fantastic city that launched my writing career. I wrote my first book there, and when life took us away, and it was a joy to “go back” there with my Big Uneasy series.

The series is about the Baker family, patriarch Zach, and his Baker’s dozen, who have “protect and serve” imprinted on their genes. In the latest installment, EMT Laura Baker’s act of kindness to a hit and run victim puts her heart and her life at risk.

Available at Amazon, Apple Books, Kobo, Barnes & Noble and GooglePlay December 1, 2018!

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Links

Add Worry Beads to your Goodreads shelf:

Pre-order Worry Beads (releases 12/1/18):

Amazon          Apple          Nook

Kobo          GooglePlay

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About the Author

USA Today Bestselling author Pauline Baird Jones never liked reality, so she writes books. She likes to wander among the genres, rampaging like Godzilla, because she does love peril mixed in her romance. Loves chocolate, bacon, flamingoes, and mid-century modern anything.

Find Pauline here:

 

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Giveaway

Don’t forget the ongoing Holiday Treat Giveaway for the audiobook of The Mystery Woman by Amanda Quick, or the print books of Tiffany Roberts’ Dustwalker and Bec McMaster’s Nobody’s Hero.  If you haven’t entered yet, you might be interested to know that commenting on today’s post helps qualify you for an entry – see the giveaway post for all the details.  Or go straight to the giveaway….

Click Here:  a Rafflecopter giveaway