All tagged Molly O'Keefe

Dear Googler: You Ask, CEFS Answers

Dear Googler: You Ask, CEFS Answers

Sarah Moon
Dear Googler

The other day I was looking through the CEFS web statistics and was browsing my favorite section: search terms. 

A fascinating trend I’ve noticed is that many Googlers put their searches in the form of a question, not dissimilar from Jeopardy! Since we get a lot of the same searches, I thought I’d answer a few of these common questions.

[Note: I’ve paraphrased a number of these searches that appear over and over again. But I swear, I’m not making any of this up.]

Friggin' Great.

General Books/Recommendations

What should I read next?

Um… I don’t know. I just finished Wanderlove and adored it. Actually, I don’t even know what I’m reading next, to be honest. Maybe check out our CEFS favorites page?

What are the main themes in [book name]?

Kid, you’ve got to read the book. I’m not doing your homework for you. 

Where can I download [book name] for free?

  1. Try your library, if there’s one in your area. Some publishers participate in ebook lending.
  2. If you’re a Kindle owner with Amazon Prime, you can also access the Kindle Owners’ Library in which you can access one book for free each month; many of these are self-published books, but there are a number of traditional publishers participating as well. 
  3. Check Books on the Knob for daily deals, including freebies. 
  4. If you live in a community with a library (not everyone has one, sadly), you can also check out print books for free—the one in my neighborhood actually holds back new releases each week for people who come into the library (Lucky Day Books), so it’s worth actually going in the library too. 
  5. Some ebooks are lendable. If one you want read is, see if a friend will virtually lend you a book for your Kindle or Nook.
  6. Whatever you do, please don’t pirate books. 

What are some books with lots of sex?

That’s probably a question better answered by Rebeca, whose knowledge on that subject is more broad than mine (I’m trying to get her to review the zombie apocalypse polyamorous novel she just read). But, maybe try Victoria Dahl? Her books are a little much for me, but with that said, they don’t have the yucky gender dynamics that can be very problematic. (Yes, this is a very, very common search term.)

What are some books with lots of action/violence?

I’m kind of a wimp when it comes to this subject, but check out our recommendations for my friend Matt in our Book Matchmaker feature. 

I want to read an urban fantasy series with a strong female lead.

Check out these ideas!

Review: Can't Hurry Love by Molly O'Keefe

Review: Can't Hurry Love by Molly O'Keefe

Sarah Moon
Books

I have a a tough time reading the romance genre. Renegade is our Official Romance Correspondent, and she is so shrewd with her observations of what works an what doesn’t, and really articulating that in the context of the genre.

And, I think that romance is a very important genre. Yep. People who know me are often shocked by this. That’s because romance is the only genre that’s largely dominated by female readers and writers. This is a significant thing. 

However, I often find myself distracted by the tried and true character types and story structures. There’s nothing wrong with those things, it’s just they often don’t work for me. I like books that push the limits and take characters in unexpected directions. And more than anything, I want an emotionally authentic story. 

This is why I appreciate the two novels I’ve read by Molly O’Keefe so much—they work for me because they’re emotionally complex and the characters surprise me. Can’t Buy Me Love was remarkable in how challenging the characters were, pushing all sorts of boundaries in terms character motivation and development. Can’t Hurry Love, the companion novel featuring different characters but set in the same Texas ranch, featured similarly challenging characters, one of whom was simply unlikable in the previous novel. 

But (also as in the previous novel) Can’t Hurry Love explores damaged people finding a path forward and coming to terms with their own pasts and figuring out a future together. 

{Review} Can't Buy Me Love by Molly O'Keefe

{Review} Can't Buy Me Love by Molly O'Keefe

Sarah Moon
Books

… she realized she wanted more. Not a husband or a bunch of kids burping on her clothes … but a life. A real one. A chance to figure out who she was…

Can't Buy Me Love by Molly O'Keefe

When I read that Molly O’Keefe’s main character in Can’t Buy Me Love was inspired by Tyra Collette from Friday Night Lights (“Tyra times 10” is how she referred to her), I immediately set aside my deeply-held philosophical objection to images of creepy waxed man chests* to check out her take on one of my favorite fictional characters. 

What I found in Can’t Buy Me Love was surprising. 

You know I’m not a voracious romance reader, nor an expert on the subject like Rebeca is, so I probably have a lot of preconceived notions about what a Big R Romance is. Most of those notions went straight out the window with Can’t Buy Me Love. 

Tara Jean Sweet is a prototypical woman from the wrong side of the tracks. She’s spent much of her life scrapping and fighting for every little thing she has. When she’s offered a stake in a Texas rancher’s leather business (she already designs items for the company) in exchange for a pretending to be his fiance in hopes of luring the rancher’s estranged children back to the ranch, she jumps at the chance. This is her opportunity to have something that’s hers, that’s legit—even if the means to that end are sketchy.

That rancher’s son is Luc, aging professional hockey player who’s literally suffered too many blows to the head as his team’s enforcer, and is facing a potentially career-threatening, if not life-threatening, brain injury if he doesn’t stop playing. His father soon dies after Luc and his sister (who’s a main character in O’Keefe’s novel, Can’t Hurry Love) descend on the ranch, leaving him obligated to fulfill a series of conditions of his father’s will—and making him Tara Jean’s boss. 

More than anything, I was stuck by the character development of both Luc and Tara Jean.

{Book Matchmaker} Tracey Seeks Romance, Dystopia & Urban Fantasy Featuring Strong Female Characters

Sarah Moon
Book Matchmaker

Tracey, our latest Book Matchmaker victim lucky participant, filled out our extremely sophisticated Book Matchmaker questionnaire in search of recommendations for some fresh reads with romance, but also with strong female characters.

You’d think this would be an easy one—but snooping on her Goodreads profile, Tracey had already read a lot of our go-to recommendations. But we came up with some good ones—or at least we hope so. 

Tracey’s Responses

YA or Adult: Surprise Me
Genres: Romance, Urban Fantasy
Multiple POV
Swoon Factor: 4
Gross Out Factor: 3
Smut Factor: 4
Fluff Factor: 4
Likes: “On the Island, loved the character development. And multi-POV. Hunger Games, Graceling, Wicked Lovely, Enders Game, Feed, Divergent! Strong women, romance—but great characters and strong writing are a must”
Dislikes: No quest books, no sagas that need maps and a glossary to keep track of everyone! Bad writing and bad character development. 

The Results

Thumped by Megan McCafferty

Bumped & Thumped by Megan McCafferty (YA)

I know. It’s shocking to think that the government would try to stick its nose in our ladyparts.

This satire by the author of the fabulous Jessica Darling series is recommended by Laura as a great read for someone looking for a something fresh in the cluttered dystopian shelves.