Hi. My name is Kelly, and I'm an ADD reader.

Or at least this week I have been. I've admitted to reading more than one book at a time on several occasions, but this week I've been really bad about doing that. Out of the five books I have started this week, only one is completely finished while another two I have a couple of chapters to go on. To be fair, the two I have only a few chapters left to read would be finished if I would have had power on Wednesday night (an SUV smashed into a pole right near my apartment in the LG. We had no power for about six hours.).

The one book I did finish reading was Postmortem by Patricia Cornwell. It was a forensic mystery that I read for my RA class, and while I enjoyed it I don't think I enjoyed it enough to motivate me to read other titles from the Kay Scarpetta series. Although now that I have read my first forensic mystery I think I would like to give Kathy Reichs a try. I'll need to work Deja Dead into my reading schedule soon.

I am almost finished with The Oldest Kind of Magic by Ann Macela, a paranormal romance that features practitioners: a group of people who use magic and spells to do their everyday jobs. The main character, Daria Morgan, is a burned out management consultant. Taking a lengthy break from work after three difficult cases, all Daria wants is to relax and recharge her magical battery. CEO John "Bent" Benthausen, however, is in desperate need of her services. Normally an expert at turning around troubled companies, Bent finds himself struggling to turnaround his company's latest acquisition. Initially Daria refuses to take Bent on as a client, but when things at the company turn ugly and threats are made against her, Daria can't help but get involved. But getting to the bottom of what is troubling Bent's company is the least of Daria's worries. You see for Daria there is the little problem of the soulmate imperative, an ancient force that brings a practitioner together with their soulmate (whether they like it or not). When it appears that Bent might be her soulmate, Daria is faced with more than one challenge. Does she really believe that the soulmate imperative exists? And if it does how does she explain that to Bent?

There is so much about this book I am enjoying: great lead and supporting characters, fresh twist on a paranormal element, a touch of suspense. The Oldest Kind of Magic has a little bit of everything to please most romance readers, but what pleased me the most as a reader (and I know this is going to sound strange) was the pacing of the story. It felt natural, not rushed. And that in itself was incredibly refreshing. My only complaint is that I want more practitioner books, but according to the author's website her next book will not be part of this world. Grrr.

The other book I am almost finished with is The Butcher of Beverly Hills by Jennifer Colt. Identical twins Kerry and Terry McAfee have nothing in common except their looks and the business they run, Double Indemnity Investigations. As a favor to their aunt they agree to help her socialite friend Lenore recover the $10,000 Lenore's husband Mario absconded with. That should be simple enough to do, right? But a little digging shows that there is more to the story than just the missing money, and as dead bodies start to pile up the twins realize that they've gotten themselves into a situation that they may not survive.

A Chick Lit mystery with strong characters and lots of humorous dialogue and situations, readers who enjoy light mysteries like the Stephanie Plum books will enjoy this one. This book is the first in a trilogy, with the second installment (The Mangler of Malibu Canyon) available in June. Consider that a heads up if you are working on your summer reading list. I know the sequel will be making mine. :-)

Now it's your turn. What have you been reading this week?

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