Finished Thrill Me to Death by Roxanne St. Claire. This is the second book in her popular Bullet Catchers romantic suspense series.

In this one, Bullet Catcher Max Roper is assigned to protect wealthy widow Cori Peyton, who suspects her billionaire husband was murdered. At one point, Max and Cori were engaged, before Cori’s dad died while out on a DEA drug bust with Max. Of course, Max and Cori are still attracted to each other, and sparks fly as they try to figure out who killed Cori’s husband and why. Was it his jealous stepson? The embezzling lawyer? The grateful housekeeper? You’ll have to read the book to find out.

I enjoyed the previous entry in the Bullet Catchers series, and I liked this book a lot too. It’s hard to do a story about previous lovers (I always wonder if they’re really going to stay together, since they broke up before). But St. Claire pulls it off nicely. You get a sense of how much Max and Cori cared about each other and how determined they are to make it work this time.

The setting is Florida once again (as it was in the first Bullet Catchers book), and there are some nice descriptions of the area and Cori’s upper-crust lifestyle. Also, I didn’t figure out who the killer was or even why he/she murdered Cori’s husband until the very end. I always like books that keep me guessing.

Overall, this is a solid romantic suspense, and I’m looking forward to getting the next book in the series. Thumbs up.

Up next: Pale Horse Coming by Stephen Hunter

Books in my TBR pile: About 19.

Finished Swine Not? by Jimmy Buffett. Not sure if I’m mentioned this on the blog before or not, but I’m a huge Parrothead. I’ve got all his albums and all his books, and one of my dreams is to see him live in concert. So anytime Buffett comes out with something new, I buy it. (Much to Wheezley’s chagrin. He is not a fan of the Buffett, although he was nice enough to buy me this book anyway).

Buffett’s previous books have been about kooky characters doing kooky things in the tropics. But Swine Not? is actually a kids’ book about a Tennessee family who moves to New York. The family has a pet pig named Rumpy, and since their hotel has a no exotic pets policy, they’re forced to hide Rumpy from the hotel staff — including a psychotic chef who’d like to make tenderloin out of poor Rumpy.

The story is sort of in the vein of Stuart Little, as Rumpy explores New York and looks for his twin brother. There are talking pigeons and more. Also, the chapters alternate between Rumpy’s point of view and that of Barley, one of the kids who’s obsessed with soccer.

It’s a cute story, but nothing really new or different happens. If you’re looking for another life-in-the-tropics novel by Buffett, you’ll want to skip this one. But if you or your kids like pig tales or talking animal stories, you might want to pick this one up (or try the Redwall series by Brian Jacques, which is quite good). But overall, Swine Not? was cute enough for me to give it a thumbs up.

Up next: Thrill Me to Death by Roxanne St. Claire.

Books in my TBR pile: About 18.

What about you guys? What are you reading right now?