Simmons Books

A strong anthology, with a 3.57 average, with the Simmons being the weakest part in general. However, the Martin 'hard boiled werewolf' novella is excellent.

Dark Visions : The Reploids - Stephen King
Dark Visions : Sneakers - Stephen King
Dark Visions : Dedication - Stephen King
Dark Visions : Metastasis - Dan Simmons
Dark Visions : Vanni Fucci is Alive and Well and Living in Hell - Dan Simmons
Dark Visions : Iverson's Pits - Dan Simmons
Dark Visions : The Skin Trade - George R. R. Martin


Tonight show replacement appearance.

4 out of 5


Music biz mule dunny ghost.

4 out of 5


Spoof eater curse signing time.

3 out of 5


Cancer monster suspicion.

3 out of 5


Bolgia's televangelist transformation torment time.

3.5 out of 5


Officer's holey end.

3 out of 5


Mirror mirror on the wall, werewolf killer, blood will call.

4.5 out of 5




3.5 out of 5

I have been reading SK for almost 30 years now. Along the way I have occasionally had to allow for some "make a deadline" stories(ie Geralds Game, The Tommynockers.) Over all I have loved most of his work and have always eagerly awaited his next story. The last one I read was the final Dark Tower book of the series and I have to say, his ego seems to be out of control in this one. It used to be quirky and fun to have him incorporate himself into his stories and movies.
Stephen King's story, in this book, definitely falls short of his normal intense and creative writting. As was stated in another review, there seems to be no ending. As for buying it, that's up to you. I am a loyal reader of his and will give him a few more sales (we'll see what "Cell" has to offer, but it sounds dangerously close to the semi-recent movie) just in case he is going through a slow period. Dare I say it...maybe it's time to call it a day and retire from writing Stephen...or at least take an extended vacation.

I purchased this collection of works originally in its 1988 "Night Visions" release, primarily for its Stephen King contributions - and promptly work the cover off reading and re-reading the absolute masterworks by Dan Simmons and George R.R. Martin. I was literally jumping out of my chair when I happened across this new edition!

First off King's works are as good as always, both entertaining (Reploids, Sneakers), disturbing (Dedication) and thought-provoking.

Dan Simmons' contributions were an unexpected surprise. "Metastasis" had me on the edge of my seat, and "Vanni Fucci is Alive and Well and Living in Hell" had me laughing out loud and shouting triumpantly at the same time. Bravo, Mr. Simmons!

George R.R. Martin's "The Skin Trade" definitely saves the best for last. This short story has become my favorite horror tale of all time, hands down. As of my writing this, I have read it at least twenty times, and it hasn't lost a bit of its appeal. For those of you who only know Mr. Martin through his "Song of Ice and Fire" series, this will show you why he is one of the greatest storytellers of our generation. It is a must-have for any reader's shelf.

I agree with Harry - I don't know why everyone feels the need to post reviews before they actually read/use the products. This definately goes to all the losers who posted reviews on the latest Harry Potter book seconds after it came out. Or spoiled it by insisting on reviewing right after they finished it. I really don't care if you lined up for a two hours at midnight and then read it cover to cover over the next 24 hours...get a life.
In short -- don't display your ignorance for the whole world to view...there are enough people doing it as it is.
If you really want to see crazy, check out the review of "Partridge Family Christmas" that some religious nutbag posted.

"Dark Visions" (2000) is a new edition of a 1988 anthology called "Night Visions 5: The Skin Trade."

It includes 3 short stories by Stephen King, 3 more by Dan Simmons, and one by George R.R. Martin.

King's contributions are "Reploids", "Sneakers", and "Dedication." Reploids is very short and goes nowhere. "Sneakers" is okay. Some parts are pretty cool. It's basically about a haunted men's room. (I kid you not.) "Dedication" is pretty gross. (As part of a black magic spell, a woman eats a man's congealing semen off of his sheets.) It gets points for the originality of its disgusting premise, but it's not a great story. Plus, if I'm not mistaken, all three stories are reprinted in King's collection "Nightmares & Dreamscapes."

Dan Simmons' contributions are "Metastasis" -- which is great -- "Vanni Fucci is Alive and Well and Living in Hell", and "Iverson's Pits." Metastasis is about supernatural slug-like creatures that cause cancer. They're usually invisible. Only one man is able to see them, and he invents a technique for drawing them out of their victims. "Vanni Fucci" is about a damned man and is slightly comedic. It's an okay story. A lot of Dan Simmons' fans think "Iverson's Pits" is the best of the three, but I liked it least. It's about Civil War ghosts, I think. (It's been a while since I read it.) Like Stephen King's stories, these three Dan Simmons stories were reprinted elsewhere. I think they're in the collection "Prayers to Broken Stones."

The best story is the last and also the longest. It's George R.R. Martin's werewolf story "The Skin Trade." I don't remember the whole plot, but I remember the story was *good*. And I don't think this story is available in another book.

Thank you everyone for your comments and corrections. We are putting out a revised and expanded edition of this book (link is below). The armoire was originally sized to fit the hanger design also included in the book, but we have modified the dimensions so that it will fit either the hanger purchased from American Girl or the design in the book itself.

Additionally we have combed through the book looking for discrepancies in directions and fixed all of those that were found.

The new book also includes directions on building a modular dollhouse for an 18" doll.


Making Furniture & Dollhouses for American Girl and Other 18-Inch Dolls

Great book! I bought it for my son-in-law--he loved it.

How disappointing! I bought this book for my daughter's 9th Birthday. Her dad is going to make her American Girl dolls some furniture & I thought this would be the perfect guide. WRONG! The armoire is only 6" deep. The American Girl clothes hangers are 6 1/4" wide. Tell me, how is that going to work? The doors won't even be able to close! Thankfully my hubby is a skilled woodworker & can expand the dimensions, but if he is going to have to come up with his own pattern this book would have best been left on the shelf. We are very disappointed. My brother-in-law is making the picnic table & my niece told me that they were surprised & how small it is looking. Seems like more than one project is not quite up to the 18" par. Think twice before buying this one or at least find one to look at in person before hand.

My husband and I had a ball with this book. Although we didn't have all the tools needed to complete some of the projects, we were still able to use the book to get some good plans out of. We can't wait to see our granddaughters' eyes on Christmas morning when they see their doll beds and bunks!

An excellent book with good projects. So far I've only built the armoire, but have others in mind. I did discover minor discrepancies in the directions. Cuts did not agree with what pictures showed in the construction. Trying to find all the different thicknesses of woods specified was difficult if you do not have access to a thickness planer or sander. There is no problem that can't be overcome with a little ingenuity.

Reading is the most boring human activity there is... unless it comes to reading certain books, those actually being the only objects that should be called "books"as opposed to the rest which are just printed paper sheets. Writing a real "book" takes the best there is in humankind and the authors were lucky enough to have it all during the writting of this book.

If I were to pick a more accurate rating I would make it a -2. This is book is very thorough and detailed to the point of boredom. It should have about 160 pages instead of 380.

If you are into this topic then you would love it. But as for me I had to force myself to read 5 pages in a setting. The only reason I read it was because I had to write a paper on it.

This book is incredibly uninteresting and poorly written. The writing style doesn't flow well, and there is no particular plot to speak of. I wouldn't recommend it.

I haven't read this book yet, but wanted people to know the Hopi themselves recommend it. See this website: www.hopi.nsn.us/Pages/Read%20List/readlist.html.

I enjoyed this book so much that I finished it in a couple of days. In my opinion, Don Talayesva is a charming narrator. His sometimes humorous, many times heart-breaking recollections underscores the tremendous cultural, social and religious upheavals the Hopi tribe were going through at the beginning of the 20th century, as no anthropological or historical work could ever do.

A pretty mediocre collection of stories. A few are of the amusing variety.



Ultimate Dracula : The Master of Rampling Gate - Anne Rice
Ultimate Dracula : All Dracula's Children - Dan Simmons
Ultimate Dracula : A Matter of Style - Ron Dee
Ultimate Dracula : Selection Process - Ed Gorman
Ultimate Dracula : The Vampire in His Closet - Heather Graham
Ultimate Dracula : The Tenth Scholar - Steve Rasnic and Melanie Tem
Ultimate Dracula : Nobody's Perfect - Philip José Farmer
Ultimate Dracula : Dracula 1944 - Edward D. Hoch
Ultimate Dracula : The Contagion - Janet Asimov
Ultimate Dracula : Sugar and Spice and... - Karen Robards
Ultimate Dracula : Vampire Dreams - Dick Lochte
Ultimate Dracula : Much at Stake - Kevin J. Anderson
Ultimate Dracula : The Name of Fear - Lawrence Watt-Evans
Ultimate Dracula : The Dark Rising - W. R. Philbrick
Ultimate Dracula : Los Ninos de la Noche - Tim Sullivan
Ultimate Dracula : A Little Night Music - Mike Resnick
Ultimate Dracula : Mr. Lucrada - John Lutz
Ultimate Dracula : In the Cusp of the Hour - John Gregory Betancourt
Ultimate Dracula : Children of the Night - Kristine Kathryn Rusch


Burning down the house as dead dad suggested a better move.

2.5 out of 5


Ceausescu Romanians not quick on the AIDS uptake, not even Vlad Tepes.

3.5 out of 5


Dracula finds being a hot chick useful for hunting.

3.5 out of 5


Flaming assasin recruitment test.

3 out of 5


Writer wakes vampire, gets to swap blonde for brunette.

3 out of 5


Drac only wants the kid for class, after the shagging.

3.5 out of 5


Escort hired by fundies as vampire assassin.

3.5 out of 5


The guards at much tastier at Bergen-Belson for Drac than the prisoners.

3.5 out of 5


Positronic shrink revives Drac in the future in the interests of telepathic robot research.

3 out of 5


Midget female vampire relatives are bad.

3 out of 5


Undead actor gets fed up with Hollywood types, goes over the edge with one.

3.5 out of 5


Lugosi and Tepes, temporal communication.

3.5 out of 5


Sneaking vamp thinks Vlad a good candidate for the ranks, after impressive death displays.

3 out of 5


In Haiti, vampire lord just full of disease, but isn't dead.

3 out of 5


Latino lore.

2.5 out of 5


Band booker signs Vlad and the Impalers.

3 out of 5


Sunscreen useful for old vamps.

2.5 out of 5


Overload of old people stuff.

2.5 out of 5


Vampire killers and little kids.

3 out of 5

I love dracula stories and I have to admit that I loved this book. I liked all the writers style and when I started to read it I could not put it down. I would recomend this book to those who enjoy vampire films and novels!

The books in this series--The Ultimate Dracula, Frankenstein, Werewolf, etc.--are striking for their cover art but disappointing in their story selection. They're eclectic enough--including stories by established writers and little-known authors and varying widely in tone. But none of them really stands out. There must be better collections out there.

When I first picked up the Ultimate Dracula, I wasn't sure what it was. I thought another collection on Dracula himself, but I was wrong. Anne Rice's "Master of the Rampling Gate" is a wonderful short story of hers. My other favorite is "The Tenth Scholar", a totally different look at the world of the vampire. If you're looking for some good short fiction, pick up this book. It won't disappoint you.

The Master of Rampling Gate by Anne Rice
Richard and Julie inherit Rampling Gate, a mysterious 14th Century manor house theyve never seen, from their father. He instructed Richard tear it down; but the siblings decide a visit is in order.

All Draculas Children by Dan Simons
The Dracul family?s decadence has led Transylvania to ruin.

A Matter of Style by Ron Dee
Neville was a looser in life and an even bigger looser as a vampire until the ancient one teaches him a valuable lesson.

Selection Process by Ed Gorman
Walter Reardon is a Victorian Veteran and ex-con working as a hitman, when he?s assigned a job to set a little girl on fire, his whole life changes.

The Vampire in His Closet by Heather Graham
Chris awakens Count Dracula, a vampire, and they discover they have more in common with the others made and trade women.

The Tenth Scholar by Steve Rasnic and Melanie Tem
Marie Bathory is a pregnant teen, who enrolls in Dracula?s Scholomance hoping to be chosen as The Tenth Scholar, so that she won?t have to live on the street anymore.

Nobodys Perfect by Philip Jose Farmer
Rudolph Redeemer is in concert come join his religious blood fest!

Dracula 1944 by Edward D. Hoch
Vlad Tepes is a prisoner at Bergen-Belsen!

The Contagion by Janet Asimov
A descendant of Count Dracula had himself put into cryonic suspension until a cure for his biochemical dependence could be found.

Sugar and Spice And by Karen Robards
Santa Claus brought Peter a new baby sister from Romania, and she?s got fangs!

Vampire Dreams by Dick Lochte
Twenty-five year old vampire style Hollywood murder solved!

Much At Stake by Kevin J. Anderson
Bela Lugosi takes a morphine-induced trip back in time and meets Vlad the Impaler where both learn important lessons from one another.

The Name of Fear by Lawrence Watt-Evans
Vlad the Impaler meets Nosferatu!

The Dark Rising by W.R. Philbrick
Dr. James meets the vampire responsible for transmitting the horrible wasting disease in Haiti in 1974.

Los Ninos De La Noche by Tim Sullivan
Los Ninos is the Spanish language motion picture version of The Children of the Night. This 1930?s horror film is legendary due the vampire murders that took place during filming.

A Little Night Music by Mike Resnick
Vlad and the Impalers are a new band in search of an agent.

Mr. Lucrada by John Lutz
Madeline and Gordy?s family move into a Florida condo when their father is transferred. Mr. Lucrada takes a special interest in Madeline.

In the Cusp of the Hour by John Gregory Betancourt
Beward of old people hanging out at the mall they?ll leach you!

Children of the Night by Kristine Kathryn Rusch
Cammie is a vampire hunter who discovers a dark secret about herself as the result of a hunt.

The volume also contains a Selected Filmography by Leonard Wolf of Dracula movies. The stories are very diverse from one another creating a riveting spell over the reader!

I read the whole thing. There are gaps in the storyline. Huge chunks of time pass and you have to figure this out. AND the lead woman character is PERFECT. Perfect looking, speaking, every action is perfect. She doesn't make any mistakes- she is not human! The guy is great- at least he shows some humanity. Save your money, save your time for better books. This was a dud.

I couldn't put this book down! I stayed up half the night last night and read the whole thing. It was sexy and funny and it had a really interesting story, too. Maybe I enjoyed it so much because I used to live in a small midwestern town. I highly recommend this book. Dorothy Brammer. New Jersey.

It's not Gary, Indiana, but it is the long lost home sweet home of the Charles family. Now that she's been left the estate, it's the town Gillian Charles owns, or will if she lives there six months. Rolling with the punches, she agrees to the terms of the will, moving into the executor's, Sam Law, house while he housesits for his parents. It's love at first sight, for her and his dog; maybe for the two humans as well. It's already assumed that they are in love, can reality be far behind? However, there is a sinister foe lurking, waiting for their chance to end all of Gillian's hopes if she gets in the way.

** There's a bit of everything in this novel; sensuality, humor, and suspense, but with so much, the overall effect shortchanges each aspect. **

Reviewed by Amanda Killgore

Sweetheart, Indiana is a wonderful town and a wonderful book! The characters are rich and warm, the setting true and as comforting as your favorite blanket, and the story itself filled with everything a reader could want--some sass, some laugh-out-loud lines and a touch of suspense. Gillian is not your average socialite and I found myself warming to her from the first page. Sam Law is, in a word, delicious, and I can't wait for his brother's book! All around, a great read with depth and wit!

Three years ago Sam Law fled his Manhattan practice because he detested the lack of morality in the legal system. His fiancé ended their relationship refusing to accompany him as he opened a practice in his hometown, Sweetheart, Indiana. However, upper crust Manhattan is coming to his town as socialite Gillian Charles needs to take up residence for six months to inherit her grandfather's "last gift", which includes owning Sweetheart. She will meet the will's stipulations simply because she would do anything for her beloved grandfather.

Sam is stunned from the moment Gillian arrives in town as she nothing like the pompous spoiled brat he expected; instead she is amusing and friendly. Even his anti-female dog Max dumps him for Gillian. Ginny receives anonymous nasty letters and a dead bird warning her to leave but most of the townsfolk like her and believe she is his former fiancée and that she and Sam belong together. As Sam and Gillian fall in love they try to find out what Jacob meant by his "last gift" and how to share "water from the moon" as he is small town and she is big city?

This fabulous contemporary romance is awesome as Gillian slowly is "sweetheart-ized" as proven by the clever usage of postcards and grandfather's "last gift" will keep the audience wondering until readers learn what Jacob truly bestowed on his beloved. Though the threat to Gillian adds superfluous suspense, fans will appreciate visiting SWEETHEART, INDIANA starring two people who seem so opposite that their metaphor of a duck and fish falling in love is apropos.

Harriet Klausner

Not a good historical book at all. It jumps from fact to fact without detail. Boring boring boring. Better to read bios or books on specific events.

There are several one-volume histories of the Marine Corps out there and this one is as good as any of them. I liked Simmons' book because of the maps and the tiny Waterhouse illustrations. I'm also partial to the Naval Institute and its work. All in all, a very neat little book.

Gen Simmons has written a good, but very superficial history of the Marine Corps. If you know nothing of the service's history, this provides a good overview. But if you are interested in anything but a generic overview, based solely on secondary sources, and lacking any critical analysis, than move on to something else.

BGen Simmons' excellent general history of the Marine Corps is just that a general history. I note with distain the comments from the Alexandria reader. Clearly they don't understand the book's purpose and intended audience. It tells the tale. It doesn't twist tails with analyis.

This is the 3rd edition of General Simmons' classic account of the United States Marine Corps. It is very readable and traces the complete history of the Corps. This edition brings his general history up-to-date and covers the Persian Gulf War and other recent conflicts. I highly recommended it.

I think the author is a very confused young man. As a Christian Scientist, I am appaled at the misunderstanding of what Christian Science is by both the author and his mother. Given that the Christian Science practitioner called by the family failed so siginificantly to help either of them, she should have been fired for non-performance of her job. I applied Christian Science--CORRECTLY--to heal a painful heel that a doctor told me I'd have to live with for the rest of my life. (The heel pad was destroyed. I was carrying a 35 lb backpack. Every step was agony. I healed it in 15 minutes by focusing on the Lord's Prayer, and on God's presence and power. Next day I hiked 7 pain-free miles still carrying the pack.) Christian Science DOES work when correctly applied--which it is clearly obvious the author and his mother and their practitioner didn't do.

This is a narrowly focused and very personal account of escaping the disembodied ideology/religion of Christian Science, to discover a kind of pesonal authenticity that seems to have left Simmons a sort of "pick and choose" delicatessan theist. So narrow and introsepctive is the approach that the reader is unaware that Simmons' struggle was going on during the denouement of the Vietman War, the turmoil of Watergate, the onset of postmodern culture in the 1970s and its reaction: the 8-year Reagan presidency.

The strengths of this book are his closely observed family dynamics - the parents, especially the mother, were committed Christian Sicentists, and they are revealed as sad and isolated figures in the end. Simmons also is very good at restrospective analysis of significant events in his adolesence and young adulthood. The reader feels compassion for his vulnerability in print and admires his dogged honesty to break out of a system that is neither Christian or scientific.

In addition, the book via its personal insights tracks the onset of serious decline of Christian Science in the 3rd quarter of the 20th century, a time when medical science was making enormous strides in eliminating disease and alleviating human suffering. It seems the only Christian Scientists I meet today are at least over 50 years old. If you want to see a fading American version of the ancient Gnostic heresy, you need look no further than Christian Science.

So why only 3 stars, a "gentleman's grade," for this little well-crafted book? In the end Simmons has written a respectable memoir of his spiritual journey, but within a bit too narrow of a framework. For a real 5-star account where the reader gets the "big picture" of a fully-realized and complex spiritual journey within the protagonist's times, I encourage you to delve into Thomas Merton's masterpiece, THE SEVEN STOREY MOUNTAIN.

In closing, now that THE UNSEEN SHORE is freely found in second-hand book stores, you can also save some $ on his little jewel. It will be a worthwhile read if the subject has piqued your interest.

It is interesting to compare this book to Blue Windows, the
other member of the very small literature of memoirs by
people brought up in Christian Science. I did not like
the Unseen Shore as much for several reasons.

First, the author is still too close to his subject. His
anger is palpable throughout the book and gets tiresome by
the end. It is also a bit unfocused - much of what he blames
on Christian Science seems, from his story, more appropriately
assigned to his parents, who were unable to love him, at least
in a way he could appreciate, and unable to love each other.
His anger gets in the way of telling the story as well. He is
so mad at his parents and at Christian Science that the reader
simply can't understand why he stuck with it. When I got to
the section near the end where he indicates that he seriously
thought about becoming a Christian Science practitioner, I
found myself incredulous. It did not seem possible given
the story of his life related up to that point. Simmons
thinks he has attained prospective and peace, and perhaps
he now has 10 years after writing the book, but the text
belies his belief that he had it at the time he was writing.

Second, Simmons overgeneraliyes his own experience of growing
up in Christian Science. I did too, and although I am no longer
active in the Church, my own experience was completely different
from his. It is still the case that most of the loving, caring,
real people I have met in my life are Christian Scientists.
Yes, I met some people like his parents too, but they are
everywhere. Simmons seems to have an almost mystic view of the
well-being of persons who were not raised in Christian Science
(and, relatedly, of the healing powers of modern medicine).
I recognize both these views, but they are wrong and come from
being an outsider looking in. Simmons should go to Chicago
where the whole cultural atmosphere seems dominated by the, at
some point, very tiring whining of persons lamenting their
working class Catholic upbringings. The overall lesson is that
relying on one data point to make statements about a large
population is pretty much always a bad idea.

To conclude, a positive note. Even though it wasn't done when
he wrote the book, looking in on Simmon's spiritual journey,
even through the light fog of over-intellectualization that
likely comes from being a professor (another characteristic
this reviewer shares with the author), is a moving read, and one
that leads to useful thought for the reader.

I thought this book was wonderful -- beautifully written, very personal, revealing and deep. Due to its subject matter (the book is critical of the Christian Science church), I could see how it might not be palatable to many "true believers" of this religion. But those with no religious axes to grind will undoubtedly find this book a wonderful read and an eye-opener about the experience of growing up in a Christian Science household. Readers who are able to appreciate the book on more than the theological level will find it a lyrical, poetic, and deeply personal discussion about many things -- growing up, having a family, coming to terms with life and with the past. Give it an open-minded read. You'll be glad you did.

I LOVE this book. Being a former Christian Scientist myself, I've suffered the tortures of the damned thanks to Mary Baker Eddy. The book Simmons writes should be required reading for all recovering ex-Christian Scientists.

The only thing I would like to have seen more of is a more detailed picture of Simmons' father. It would help the reader understand more clearly the whole family dynamics of such a religious saga.

I salute you, Thomas Simmons, for your courage and your willingness to share your journey!

No big secrets here, but it sure makes it easier to do things with XP than the program help files.

For a lay person who just started with XP Media Center Edition/Professional. I found this book to speak to the public in simple terms that any person can understand. Curt answered all my questions and some I didn't come to yet. I will recommend this book to any person who needs to learn about XP Professional or Home Edition. All the other books on computer operations for Microsoft that I purchased can not come close to this book.

Please: Find my Book, I (Chuck Elston) did not
recive, before I left for the Caribbean Island
of Cozumel !
( Will be back in Sacramento CA March-1-07. )
We have a Satellite (USA) phone#253-269-6608 in Cozumel.

This is nothing more than a owners manual. If you bought a new computer it came with one, read it .... It didnt answer 1 thing I wanted to know. Most of the things in this book I have done and I didnt even read my owners manual. If you were given "just" a computer with XP on it and you knew "nothing" about a computer, this would be an OK book.

This book is great - not only did it help solve some XP "headaches" of my own, but I learned a bunch of other stuff as well. The book contains headache after headache, tells you why the headache happens, then gives you steps to fix the problem. There are hundreds of headaches and solutions in this book! If you have Windows XP, you should have this book too.

This was my first time reading a graphic novel and I must say that this one was good. I loved the drawing and the story was very entertaining.

'85 has a comic book look, with an urban fiction feel. The perpetrator is a struggling junkie known simply as Crow. To support his habit he steals several of his friend, Danny's paintings. His intent is to sell them, split the earnings with Danny, and take care of his own needs. Crow makes his connection and is starting to move the art, but he is exposed to a slightly different world and gets caught up in more than he can handle. An art dealer assumes Crow is the artist, and wants to buy the psychedelic drawings, but he also wants to market Crow's rough, primitive image. Crow feels a moment of guilt, but not enough to end the ruse. He looses focus on his original plans and finds himself waist-deep in a world of sex, drugs and cold-blooded deals. When Danny discovers the paintings are missing Crow knows there friendship is doomed.

Author, Danny Simmons and Illustrator, Floyd Hughes have combined their eclectic artistries and capitalized on the seductive sex and drugs scene in New York, in the 1980s. '85 is filled with graphic and evocative black-and-white imagery and authentic street-smart dialogue. I did not get a full grip on the moral of the story, but the story still captures a time and place when street culture and the art scene came together in a strange way. The theme of '85 brings to life an eerie side of art and urban life.

Reviewed by aNN
of The RAWSISTAZ(tm) Reviewers

Really liked. It was really weird and unique, and ecclectic! Fast shipping, professional packaging.

Although having written 26 books at the time this book was printed, this is only Ms Simmon's second historical. I am not familiar with her work, but this book felt trite and cliched to me.

I found her virginal 24 year old heroine ordinary, and her duke was neither dangerous nor charming. There was some banter between them, but not enough to sparkle. The subplots were contrived and the so call secrets very easily discerned.

This is not a book I would recommend, there are far better regency style (it's set in victorian times but has a regency feel to it) romances out there.

This is only the second book I've read by Ms. Simmons, but now I want to read them all! This is what I would call a frolic. It's funny, sexy and there's a small mystery, too. I like picking up a book and knowing from the first page or two that I'm going to have fun. That's what I felt with Diamond in the Rough. It's a real treat to discover a new author, besides!

Lawrence, Duke of Deakin, is on a mission to get a rich wife. Miss Juliet Jones, a New York heiress, will do quite nicely, Lawrence decides. But there's just one hitch: Juliet is a romantic and will not be married for her money. The game is on, with Lawrence in danger of losing his heart...