The Ink Black Heart by Robert Galbraith

 Cormoran Strike and Robin Ellacott, detective partners extraordinaire with a heated undercurrent of love, are entangled in another multi-layer murder investigation.

Without experience in online discovery, Strike and Robin are jerked into the homicide case of  Edie Ledwell, cartoon artist of The Ink Black Heart.  Her partner is paralyzed from the same attack, but reveals little to no clues on the case.

Strike and Robin work excessive hours on a full load at their detective agency, of which I feel they do in order to ignore the sentiment they both almost consciously admit.  

Strike's rugged, yet handsome appearance always attracts the most beautiful and rich woman in England.  He doesn't intend to use them, but his heart is hidden in Robin's pocket.  

Robin rarely dates, but keeps herself busy searching for clues and answers for the agency.  I chuckle when Strike thinks a man is interested in Robin because he forces himself to wish her well even if any other guy is nothing more than a bloke and not good enough for her.  She silently admits she loves Strike.  Dashing my excitement as the reader, she insists on changing her feelings.

Fortunately, the murder investigation is incredibly in-depth with many characters taking part and keeping me engrossed in the story as I wait, and wait for Robin and Strike to somehow find a way to be together.  

Happy reading,

Dawn 

Offline or Online Shopping for Books?

My name is Lexi Post and I despise shopping. I admit it. I know, strange but it’s true. I can’t stand going into stores to try on clothes, or look for just the right gift, or find a new author to read. Oh, but don’t get me wrong, I love to do all those things. I just prefer to do them online :-)

Honestly, with offline shopping, my feet get tired, I develop a terrible thirst, and I have to avoid rush hour traffic so my time is limited. In fact, I dislike it so much that it wasn’t until this Monday that I finally made myself go into a clothing store and shop after a decade of not shopping for clothes in stores. Granted, I hadn’t shopped for new clothes online either in over six years, so I didn’t even know what size I wore anymore or what styles might look good. It took me three hours! I bought 3 pairs of jeans, 2 skirts, 4 tops, and a wrap for a total of $116. Now that’s my kind of shopping, if it had been online. 

So what about book shopping? Okay, granted, there is nothing like going into an independent bookstore or Barnes & Noble and buying a hot chai as one peruses the colorful array of romance novels in every sub-genre possible. There is just something about being around books that fills the soul. They’re like old friends. And about once a year, I enjoy that little experience.

However, it is online shopping for me, in general, and for books in particular. The first reason is I live on a Caribbean island and though our one bookstore does have a romance section, (highly influenced by me), it is small. So to really get the breadth of authors I like, I need to go online anyway.  Plus, when books are shipped, they get here faster than me traveling across the island to where the bookstore is! Mainly because to save gas, I don’t go over to that side of the island unless I have multiple things to do there.

Another plus for online shopping is the option to buy electronic books which I read while on the treadmill. They are the only incentive that gets me on the @#$% thing :-} Since my debut book Masque is only in ebook right now, I’m am very pleased that people can buy my book online ;-) I don’t know about you, but I buy lots of books online. Just trying to keep up with all my friends’ books is a challenge, but with easy access online, it makes it fun to shop for their books.

Which do you prefer?  Do you like to go into a store and surround yourself with physical books before buying, or do you prefer to sit at your computer and click away?

Always,

Lexi