Ok, the sparks did fly between Kiera and Jesse, in the begininning. The book was just lacking something for me, of course that's my opinion. If you like mysteries that leads to love in the end, you'll like this book. All and all, the book was ok, just not what I expected.

I thoroughly enjoyed this romance/mystery set in the Arizona desert. Ms. McFarland's use of imagery is exquisite. I could see the lush resort, Summer Wind, in my mind's eye. And her characterization was superb. Even the minor characters leapt off the page. But Keira and Jesse(what a man!), well they were perfectly matched. Keira could have been seen as just another poor little rich girl, but the author was wise enough to develop her character and let her be revealed as a warm, caring, down-to-earth, and earthy full-bodied woman. No cliches here. I believe Summer Wind was Ms. McFarland's first published novel. If so, then she did a great job, and she has a fan for life. Check it out.

Good plot, great writing. I'm still laughing about the man found dead on the stairs with his pants on backwards!

Bebe Moore Campbell writes from personal expierance in the novel, Sweet Summer. Campbell tells about growing up as an African American girl living in the South during the 60's. Through this story I learned the prejudice of racism, the struggle of growing up with a divoraced family, and the will to live life. This story touched my heart, because it provided me to a differnt point of view about life.

Once in a great while - about as often as Halley's Comet - a book comes along which stirs the soul and rattles your heart; a book which can transcend race, gender, age, place and time. This is such a book. Moore-Campbell is a magnificent writer; her verses poetic, her theme universal. Her autobiogrophy tells the story of growing up black and young without a full-time father, and the affects it can have on a child. It's not just her story; she shares this life with her cousin Michael (again, young and black without a full-time father), their Mothers, Grandmothers, Aunts, and assorted 'father figures': Dads, Uncles, Reverands, Neighbors. One child (BeBe) can learn to adapt graciously, while the other (Michael) has a tougher time, as they each learn difficult 'truths' about their patriarchy. Beautifully written, the reader hangs on every word, as this wonderful story unfolds.

This is a wonderful book and I recommend it to any one out there living or growing up with and without a father.

As far as beach reading goes, this book is the ultimate beach read. I would have loved to have had this book around 15 years ago when I needed it. Now, I just see it as 4 paint by the number stories that portray gay life as shallow, unsatisying and sadly hollow. Many of these stories end up with the same plot twists (which any astute reader can see coming a mile away)and cookie cutter characters who seem to think only of sex, liquor and men (not always in that order.) The worst offender is Ben Tyler, who wraps up the collection. Tyler has a lot to learn about writing, with his junior high-level style writing and jaw droppingly bad similes. The other three stories fare a bit better ... but not much. Characters fall in love in minutes, hearts are broken, men are cast aside like Kleenex, and the reader is supposed to think "Oh, what romance!" The two middle stories, "A Perfect Husband" and "The Outline of a Torso" fare somewhat better since the writing style is a bit more professional, but the stories themselves are a bit weak and suffer, as the other two stories do, from protagonists who are so self involved and shallow that they left me cold.

This leads to the question as to why I bothered to even give it 2 and a half stars? The reason being is that while this book is not something I liked or go for, why CAN'T we have such books? After being fed a steady diet of similar stories in our lifetime from a heterosexual point of view, the gay community should also have a variety of nice, frothy reads, even if I realized I don't like this style book. As I said, had this book been around 15 years ago when i needed it, I'd have loved it. No doubt there are guys out there who need this book now ... and it's important that it's here, whether I like it or not.

4 simple stories of finding and rediscovering love, gay-style... I find that in 3 of them, they fall in love way too fast and the resolutions are way too pat and too perky. BUt who wants to read a party-pooper of a book in the bright, sunny days of summer anyway. But they are all charming in their own way.

But I gave this book 5 stars just because of 1 story - Andy Schell's The Outline of a Torso. It is light, unassuming and sweet at the start but suddenly, you willingly allow yourself to get swept up in the story in order to discover the tangled relationship between Rusty and Ethan. Schell sets up situations and uses other supporting characters to pave that way for a happy ending, but he does it so cleverly that I wished that he could have turned this short story into a novel. I would have loved to delve deeper into this rediscovery of first love.

I didn't know what to expect when I purchased Summer Share. The only reason I bought the book was because I wanted to read more gay authors and figured that I could hit 4 birds with one stone. It was the ultimate surprise!

I immediately became engulfed in the worlds that each author created. In this world, true love was paramount and although each protagonist had his share of heartbreaks, each man never gave up hope that one day they would find what they were searching for.

I would recommend this work to anyone, and will probably make my friends read it. If you enjoy reading love stories or are weary of every falling inlove again, this is the book for you! It will change your perspectives and give you hope!

Having been raised in central Montana, I was waiting for historical or geographical innaccuracies. I found none. The writing was excellent and did an excellent job of portraying the relationships between the traders and the Native Americans. I felt it handled the issues of race and racism tactfully while at the same time hitting them head on. Highly reccommended.

The depth of research Gear did is obvious in the wealth of Indian culture, tradition and practice. Gear takes Vine DeLoria's "God is Red" and puts flesh on the bones, and tells a story with riveting action and characters you care about. In addition to making his contrast of Christianity with Tribal Religion come to life, he also illustrates the Union of Polarities thesis.

The Bibliography at the back of the book is a reading list I will be looking closely at. The quotes from Socrates, Plato, Kant, Hobbes and Hegel, et. al., at the Chapter head give you a good intro into the chapter, and are worth reading as well

I don't know when a book has enthralled me more. I came away challenged to understand my surroundings and those folks around us. Historically Coyote Summer is with out peers. Please Micheal continue this story.

I give this book five stars because it's the book that I actually wanted to keep reading. It was very interesting and it seemed to pull you into it.If you read it you would just want to read the next part. It's one of the best books I've read. Now I am reading the whole series.

The book that I have read is Werewolves Don't Go to Summer Camp . I have chosen this book because it is very mysterious and funny . The book is about four children, who are going to a different summer camp. I won't give the whole story away, but the only thing I can say is that I recommend it to kids in the 7th grade and higher.

Werewolves Don't Go To Sumer Camp is a great book that takes us on an adventure to summer camp. Howie, Eddie, Melody, and Lize run into some wolf problems as they arrive at camp Lone Wolf. On the first day of camp they met Mr. Jenkin, the camp director. The kids think he is a werewolf because he's hairy and he likes raw hamburgers. They make it through the long week and find out the scary truth.
I recommend this book because I like funny and scary books. I like picturing scary things.

This is a really fun book! Each kid has his or her own chapter in the book. This book has something for everyone, literally! Such as 2 of the kids are always looking for mysterys to solve, one kid is crafty and makes crafts to sell at the ferry docks, one of the girls dreams of being a movie star, etc. This is a fun book to read during summer because you dont have to read it straight through. Each chapter is kind of a story in itself. So you can read it off and on. Im 12 and I read the book 3 times! I would recommend this book for kids age 5 to 13. This book makes a great gift and younger kids love it too. BUY THIS BOOK, YOU WILL NOT REGRET IT!!!!!!!

The book Eleven Kids One Summer is a great book about a family of
13! This book tells their exiting stories about a summer they spent on an island of the coast of NY. Every kid has their own chapter telling about their own most exiting part of the summer. Like, when they meet a movie star shooting a movie on the island. Or when they heard a spooky story from a fisherman and find the truth about it. I recamend this book to people who like exiting humarus books!

Eleven Kids, One Summer is a great book. As the sequel to Ten Kids no Pets, it still has the same lighthearted humor as its preceder. In Eleven Kids, One Summer, the ten Rosso kids have lots of adventures. (I said ten and not eleven because Keegan doesn't do much.) This was a really good book and I recommend it to kids from 1 to 101!

SUMMER OF THE DRAGON was a good book. It had the humor to keep u giggling at even intervals. The frustration to keep u turning the pages to found out what Hank Hunnicut's big find was. The action and suspense to make u hold your breath and gasp frequently.
Over-all it was a good book. Though, it wasn't up to Peters' standards. The narrative seemed a little flippant at the beginning, but as Peters gained confidence (i guess) it became more and more bold. At times, i was waiting for the herione (D.J. Abbot) to say "Another shirt ruined!!" I can see how this book came before our revered Amelia, there are things that happen to be similiar, as well as the physical description of Tom De Karsky.
D.J. is a unique heroine, one that actually ate something and wasnt petite and well, girly. She had a mind of her own, and voiced her opinion when and not when asked. About the characters, they were amusing and helped to further the plot, but they werent well-deveolped. Physical descriptions were great (except for D.J. i can only remember her heigth) but the general personality of Tom, Hank, Jesse, The Stockwells, wasnt believable.
If u want to read something over the summer that is light and funny, w/ suspense, mystery, and action... then by all means this book is for u. I read it in one sitting. IT WAS GOOD!!
but not the best

Purchased this when desperate for new Vicki Bliss mystery and couldn't wait any longer. This is a somewhat older book.

In some respects, perfect summer reading. Light romance, a little mystery, some good funny lines--all what you'd expect from Peters. I also like that the heroine is depicted as not your typical romance heroine, she's both intelligent and plump.

Where it doesn't get my higher rating, is with the predictability of the plot (seems like a cross between recycled Nancy Drew and Agatha Christie), not enough zingy action, and a bit dated.

But still, not a bad read.

I really loved this book and read it entirely in one sitting. DJ is such an interesting character (and not thin, thank god!) it would be nice to see her in a possible sequel. The only criticism I would make is that the ending is a little vague. I had to read it a couple of times before I realised exactly what it was everyone was running around trying to find. Also the development of the relationship between DJ and Tom was a bit unreal. At first they hate each other, then out of the blue he declares his love for her, and in the last few pages DJ is talking marriage! I'm surprised Tom wasn't heading for the hills. It would have been nicer if there had been a bit more buildup between the two, but other than that, I'd rate "Summer of the Dragon" as one of Ms. Peters' best.

The Winter clan's century and a half reign over Tiamat is ended and now its Summer's time to rule with Moon as the leader. Moon, vowing a different economic path through technology, has ended the harvesting of the Mers whose blood was the cash crop sellable commodity, providing off world longevity to clients. The Hegemony also has left the planet.

Moon's former lover, Gundhalinu, attempts to save the Hegemony by trying to gain control over stardrive plasma spilled from a wrecked Old Empire ship. If he succeeds, faster-than-light travel will become available as it once was and Tiamat will no longer suffer periods of isolation. However, the Brotherhood seeks the immortality elixir allegedly found only on Tiamat while Moon clashes with opponents over the fate of the Mers, as these intelligent beings are the source of the elixir. She also must keep safe the ancient computer hidden under the planet's prime city that links the galaxy's clairvoyants. If the Hegemony obtain either the people of Tiamat will face endless winter, but if the Hegemony gain both the people of the galaxy will face eternal winter.

Surprisingly the sequel to THE SNOW QUEEN is a tighter, albeit still very complicated, planetary thriller. The story line is loaded with many concepts though some get shortchanged because of the abundance. The key charcaters are fully developed (critical in this novel) so that the audience appreciates Moon's troubles and her former lover's endeavor. Joan D. Vinge provides readers with a strong galaxy tale that shows why she was nominated for a Hugo for this work (and won with the first story).

Harriet Klausner

Although Summer Queen lacks the mythic structure which lent such power to Vinge's Snow Queen, it is an expertly written "social science fiction" exploration of colonialism, as well as an appealing story about characters worth caring about.

The characters who were young and simple in Snow Queen have grown up, and grown more complex in their view of the world. Vinge also develops the political situation on Tiamaat in more complexity. The world she develops is believable. Her best characters struggle heroically to do the right thing, but are often hampered by the need to compromise with more powerful military, cultural, or economic forces--just like real revolutionaries, visionaries, and leaders. I'm impressed by the depth of political consciousness Vinge brings to this story.

Joan Vinge developes characters like none other, by the end of the book you are left with a "leaving camp" feeling...like you just spent a week at camp making new friends and now it's time to go. Sure other books develope one or two, but Joan has nearly a dozen going by the end that are all wonderfully done.

Which has it's drawbacks, you get the feeling thoughout the read that Arienrhod is constantly being dwelled upon, and much of the 600+ pages are spent backtracking on character developments. This detracts from what could have been one of the better storylines in sci-fi, I wanted to hear more about the Sibyl net and the mers. I feel perhaps a character could have been cut, or a development cut to make way for this.

At any rate, if you liked the Snow Queen then you need to be reading this, however don't expect to finish with a pleasent feeling. There are some slow parts in the beggining and middle, but once you hit the home stretch it can't be put down :)

Well, it's a great book as fiction. I read this late last summer and thought it was cute, but it didn't change my preconceived notions that leprechauns simply don't exist.

When the author decides she will take a vacation to rediscover her Irish roots and take a break from everyday stress, we discover immediately that she has not had the best of mental health in the past, herself. Taking that into consideration might explain the commonplace descriptions of the leprechauns- as though she's been seeing them all her life.

Reading this would convince one that perhaps she HAS.

Tanis not only speaks to the family of leprechauns, but also the other spirits. She goes shopping with them, shares her cabin with all sorts of fantastic creatures a five-year-old would delight in reading about. As the book progresses, it just begins to irritate those of us who are "denser" than Ms,. Helliwell (I know not her current marital status). Because she's so willing to believe in the supernatural, she's therefore able to see and communicate with them.

According to her, the leprechauns have become her friends and still visit her periodically! They're the reason she's written this book. To tell us mortals (what does she believe herself to be?) that we should not eat lettuce because it screams when it's uprooted. (I swear to you, this is ACTUALLY in the book, mentioned several times.)

For what it's worth, the book is charming and quaint fiction. As a realistic look at the supernatural, it's simply not up to par. Read it if you'd like a refreshing work of fiction or a nice break from your typical gory Stephen King cold-blooded murder mystery. For something about the supernatural, keep looking. Even the most open-minded reader would find this exceedingly difficult to believe.

This book has opened up a whole new world for me. The key to it's magic is "Believing is seeing". Both the story and information flow perfectly. The humor throughout made it a joy.

This book encapsulates the world of Irish elemental beings in a very well written, engaging modern tale. The author describes her unexpected adventures in Ireland one summer with many elemental beings, and one Leprechaun in particular. This Leprechaun instructed her to wait 10 years before releasing this book. Even with the wait, some readers will not be able to intellectually accept that this is a work of non-fiction. But that doesn't change the fact that this is a very engaging, clearly written, fascinating story. This book opens the door to a magical world, and thus, it is a welcome boon for those readers who are ready and willing to invite that magic into their lives.