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July turned into a great reading month for me. Which is fantastic because not only did I need to catch up on some great authors, but I needed the escape and downtime too. My daughter’s surgery was a huge success, but the recovery is a long one and being up every few hours meant more reading time during that first week post-op.

Just as a refresher, Nat offered the following choices for the July reading challenge:

TOPICS: 1) Read a book that has a “male profile” on the cover. 2) Read a book that is currently at the top bestselling romances 3) Read a book that is part of a series (Don’t forget to name the series and what Book number it is) 4) Reread a favorite book.

THEMES: 5) Read a book that has one of the following words in its title: summer, heat, hot, scorching, fire, sizzle, flame or burn; or has a Hot Summer theme cover. 6) Read a book that has a “Western” theme. (Think cowboys, etc. Can be historical or contemporary) 7) Read a book that has a princess or prince as a character; or a book inspired by a fairytale.

SPECIAL EVENTS:  U.F.O Day: a) Read a book with space-travel or a sci-fi book. b) Read a book set in another planet or involves space travel or has aliens in it.

I chose Colby Roundup by Debra Webb, which met challenge #3 as the 50th book in her Colby Agency Intrigue series!!! It also met challenge option #1 as it had a male starring on the cover. Not only did I read Colby Roundup, but I went back and read Colby Law and High Noon – the other two books in this trilogy within the series (so I guess that means I re-read a fave book too!)

Colby Roundup was an exciting, edge of the seat read to wrap up the trilogy. Olivia’s story – a woman searching for answers from her childhood shrouded in mystery and nightmares – certainly stands alone. Russ is a hunk of a hero (it’s a pre-req for Colby agents) sent to protect her from her clouded memories as much as from the real villains of the book.

Overall I loved the determination of both Olivia and Russ as they strive to survive and sort out facts from the various motives and agendas of the surrounding cast.

There was a fantastic bonus in the back of this book – a companion guide to all the Colby Agency novels. I’m still astounded by such an amazing feat – that Webb has maintained a killer balance between romance and suspense that has kept fans like me in touch with so many memorable characters.

I also thoroughly enjoyed Tamed by a Texan by Tanya Michaels which continues her Hill Country Heroes series. I loved the premise of the cooking competition (though it made me hungry) and Michaels writes family dynamics (the good, bad, and ugly) so very well. It was a delightful romance that tugged on my heartstrings – and put me in the mood to visit the next food festival in my area. 😉

Chime in with a comment here or at ReadingRomances.com and let us know if you met the reading challenge this month!

Live the adventure!