So, Carlee, tell me how you liked the book. Did it grab you right off?
Carlee: It certainly did! What woman hasn't fantasized at least once about the cable guy, or the plumber or the... It grabbed me right off and led to great sex scenes but with great plot too.
MorganO: LOL, and how often do they NOT live up to the fantasy? But then, there was this one heating guy who was darn cute... but I must agree with you, the book caught me from the get-go and held me to the end. Piper's writing style draws me right in and I feel as if I'm in the room with the characters. Their thoughts and actions so closely relate to things I've thought of, or done and it makes you never want to put the book down. Later on she brings the reader to great empathy with her characters - sometimes even the bad guys!
Wait...You did the cable guy on the floor of the family room??? And I missed it? Sheesh.
Carlee: Nice try - I speak of no secrets like that, but... hmmm.
MorganO: Okay, I’ll let you off the hook…this time. You say you felt some empathy with the "bad guy" and I have to agree. I couldn't completely hate the husband, despite his sleazy cheating ways.
Carlee: Exactly. He just seems, well, human, with human foibles - though perhaps a bit more advanced than I'd let my husband get away with... and Ali doesn't let him get away with it either. She just reacts in, again, a perfectly human way.
MorganO: How did you feel about the side story of Shurre and her uncle?
Carlee: I was pleased with the way Piper handled that. The situation can be very daunting to the reader as well as the characters. Piper handled it with grace and understanding and let Ali's emotions come through as well. I thought too that the scenes with Ali and Shurre were handled with excellent taste and added greatly to the plot line. It’s a great book with a lot of great sexual undertones (and explicitness) that draws in all types of readers.
MorganO: Oh, the sex scenes. And I’m not just talking about the heat wave out here. Whew! Got me fanning my face a couple of times. That Cam sure is a hottie. I also liked how he grounded Ali and really encouraged her to learn to listen to her instincts.
Carlee: The story wasn't all about him, or his ego. A nice change to so many men out there! Cam really wanted Ali in the end but had great instinct about how to get her. Piper did a great job with that as well.
MorganO: No kidding. Not all alpha. I like my alphas, but give me a sweet supportive beta now and again and I melt. Not to say Cam wasn’t strong, ‘cuz whoo-boy, he sure was, but he didn’t rush in with all the solutions to her problems.
Carlee: Sometimes the best alphas know how to be beta too.
MorganO: True. Men. I think we had a discussion about alphas last week… Anyhow, Cam was a great hero. He even understood that Bill would still be a part of their lives and kudos to Ali for keeping Bill active in the lives of their kids
Carlee: Cam also seems to relish the whole extended family scene - he wouldn't expect to have his ex-wife disappear either, and neither would Ali. The whole new blended family concept is today's reality.
MorganO: …And how it can work with a little understanding and tolerance for some issues and holding a hard line on others. So far you've had lots of good things to say about the book. Were there any points which slowed you down a bit?
Carlee: I struggled a bit trying to understand where the relationships would go between a fling with Cam and a marriage to Bill. At first I wasn't too sure. But frankly, Piper brought me back to the characters quickly and handled my questions/thoughts with great style, almost as if she anticipated the concerns of the reader. Again, a good dose of reality!
MorganO: Okay, so it sounds like you liked the book as much as I did, so here's the big finale. How many stouts do you give it? And since we don't do halves, you have to pick whole numbers between 1 and 5 - 5 being the best, as who doesn't want more drinks?
Carlee: Oh man, I hate when you do this to me!! I guess I'd have to go with 4 because it really was a great read, but I'd only give 5 to my top 10. This would make my top 20! (For those who don't know me much, it really is a rare month I don't read 20 books or more!)
MorganO: No kidding, Carlee reads more than I do, but only because she isn't writing too.
Carlee: Ah hem... but some books I seem to read about 20 times, and all before they hit the publishers shelf...
MorganO: Yeah, well, you get input which few readers get.
Carlee: I am really looking forward to Piper's next book - she's definitely an author I'll track down again.
MorganO: I’ll be sure to let you know when her next one comes out! And while we've been chatting I've been mulling over my own choice of score. This is where I wish Jmo and I had agreed on half points, because I'm a bit torn. So... I'm also going to say 4, but only because there were points where dialect-type dialogue pulled me out a tiny bit. Otherwise, over all I'd give this book a 4.75, but we don't do that, so I'm giving it a good, solid, golden 4, which is still very high praise from TMD and I, too, am ready for the next book. Piper is one to watch.
Carlee: Maybe 4 stouts and a shot of tequila to go with??
MorganO: Hey, now there's a thought! I agree, a shot of tequila too! So that makes it a 4+
Carlee: Exactly.
MorganO: Now it's time for us to go find a pitcher of frozen 'ritas. Thanks for joining us this week and please be sure to post any comments you have about All Fore Revenge!
Carlee: Oh honey, and that waiter up at a certain restaurant???
MorganO: uh, yeah, him too -LOL. And since I haven’t been at altitude for awhile now, I’m going to be a cheap date. Now where’s my sombrero?
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