A Second Chance: Hotel Marchand Book 11 Review

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(More customer reviews)Loretta Castille does her best to raise her daughter alone. Since her late husband died in prison, she's been even more careful not to expose her young daughter to any evil influence. Still, new neighbor Luc Carter might look dangerous, but surely he's a nice guy. After all, what kind of criminal would run a bed and breakfast for his grandmother?
After his run-ins with the law, Luc Carter plans to serve out his time in the tiny town of Indigo and then get on with his life. He doesn't count on falling for anyone local, but Loretta hits him like an unexpected tackle. Any sort of family is dangerous, but a beautiful woman with a charming child is worse than dangerous--especially when Luc knows he's not the only one who'd get hurt.
Set in the Cajun country outside of New Orleans, A SECOND CHANCE picks up the rhythm of the French/American mingling, the combination of old-world charm and new-world sensibilities, and all of the complexities--and joy that family can bring. Because Luc isn't just a criminal--he's been the man responsible for almost destroying his entire family.
Author Kara Lennox spins a delightful story of family and love. He is the ultimate bad-boy--but is it really possible that the love of the right woman can tame even Luk?

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The only person who can keep Luc Carter in the little town of Indigo is Loretta Castille. She's also the reason he has to leave. A single mom and local baker who supplies Luc's B and B, Loretta has had a no-dating policy since discovering the man she married was a criminal. Bending the rules for Luc is a possibility, but not if she finds out he's on probation.Luc will soon be a free man and his record expunged, but there's no pleasure in freedom when it means giving up the woman he loves.

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Luxury Hotels Europe Review

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(More customer reviews)Someday (when I win the lottery) I'll board a plane and visit every one of the luxurious hotels featured in this gorgeous volume. Dreaming, you say? Well, it's easy dreaming curled in an arm chair with 400 beautiful full color photographs detailing the homes-away-from-home for the privileged. These are havens where luxury is not a luxury but the norm and no request is denied.
Of the 38 hotels one is hard pressed to select a favorite - they are all diverse, whether castles, palazzos, villas or state of the art modern. All boast manicured grounds so immaculately kept that they resemble Elysium. Eden-like settings give way to rooms decorated in kingly style and offering every amenity imaginable.
The Danieli in Venice, Italy, offers a rooftop restaurant with a breathtaking view of St. Mark's Square. A renovated 14th century palazzo, the Danieli is the epitome of elegance with a gilded staircase and chandeliers fashioned from Murano glass. Through the revolving doors is the hubbub of the Grand Canal; inside again one returns to an earlier time of comfort, quiet, and ease.
Speaking of views, the Villa San Michele was once a Franciscan monastery nestled in the hills above Florence, Italy. Today with its entryway framed by columns attributed to Michelangelo and private gardens, guests can look down upon the incomparable City of Florence.
La Reserve in Geneva, Switzerland also offers a feast for the eyes as well as the appetite with gourmet Chinese cuisine. If Germany is your choice, do stop at The Regent Schlosshotel in Berlin, which was once a private palace.
All of these hotels are, of course, five stars. If it were up to me, I'd give each ten.
"Luxury Hotels: Europe" is as beautiful as the hotels it presents - a coffee table book to enjoy for years to come.
- Gail Cooke

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This sumptuously illustrated, beautifully produced book inaugurates a four volume series on hotels that offer the best in style, service, and design - on the most luxurious hotels in the world! Whether traditional or modern, luxury need not be defined in terms of richly decorated formality. The European hotels featured in these pages, both the well established names and the hidden gems, have been chosen for their distinctive architecture and the tastefulness and simplicity of their interior design. Includes a separate section on business and holiday hotels.

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Hotel South Dakota (Tory Bauer Mystery) Review

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(More customer reviews)The folks in Delphi South Dakota are planning a big high school reunion and reminiscing about the past. One of the things they are remembering is the death of Butchie Pendergast in 1969 at a kegger party by the river following the Homecoming celebrations. At the time, it was assumed to be a drowning accident. But was it? Twenty years later history seems to be repeating itself and Tory Bauer wants to know the truth. Along with a good mystery, told with humor and suspense, there are some good life lessons served up in this one. I've read three Tory Bauer mysteries now, and every one of them is a winner.

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"In 1969, I, Tory Bauer, was a high school sophomore. For me, a Life and Death issue involved finding a date for Homecoming. The only thing I had in common with the rest of my generation was the notion that love was all we'd need and an unshakable confidence in our own immortality.""Unfortunately we were wrong on both counts.""It took a couple of decades, a few tragedies and betrayals, and a windy afternoon standing along the bank of the James River looking down at a dead body in the water for me to realize that the past has a long reach.""And that high school lasts forever.""In 1969, I, Tory Bauer, was a high school sophomore. For me, a Life and Death issue involved finding a date for Homecoming. The only thing I had in common with the rest of my generation was the notion that love was all we'd need and an unshakable confidence in our own immortality.""Unfortunately we were wrong on both counts.""It took a couple of decades, a few tragedies and betrayals, and a windy afternoon standing along the bank of the James River looking down at a dead body in the water for me to realize that the past has a long reach.""And that high school lasts forever."

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Cool Hotels Best of Europe (Photography) Review

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(More customer reviews)All of Europe's most influential designers find a place in this collection of cutting-edge accommodations for the jet set, the landed, and the tastemakers in between. Rich, vibrant photographs capture the astonishing craftsmanship and ingenuous design that goes into truly world-class hotels built to draw the best and brightest and most beautiful.
It's a gorgeous book -- the perfect conversation starter, a thoughtful present, and so much fun to read.

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Europe's burgeoning contemporary hotel scene draws much attention for its daring and panache. This oversized addition to the successful Cool Hotels series is a selection of the most outstanding examples the continent offers. With designs that intrigue and amuse, these accommodations highlight the absolute best in groundbreaking architecture and design. Stunning photographs showcase bold use of materials, innovative artworks, hip furnishings as well as creative color combinations. Each hotel is a true microcosm of the cutting edge aesthetic.

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The Legacy: Hotel Marchand, Book 12 Review

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(More customer reviews)Photographer Paul Clermont learns he inherited a dinosaur from his late Uncle Neil in Indio, Louisiana. His plan is to sell the dilapidated opera house as fast as he can even if it means making little money on the property. Still he goes to see the place and is further depressed by what he finds as this a more than just a fixer-upper as the decrepit place that is his "family legacy" reminds him figuratively and literally of Great Expectations.
Residents like funeral director Marjolaine Savoy have plans to restore the Indigo Opera House to its former glory as part of the Bayou's Cajon heritage. Paul cannot understand Marjolaine's passion for the project as he sees the place as heap of junk. However, he is extremely passionate when it comes to making love with Marjolaine. As they fall in love, he is the wanderer with no roots while she is entrenched in the Bayou; leaving no room for compromise.
The lead pairing is a wonderful coupling as they slowly change from enemy combatants to beloved enemies with their wider than the Mississippi gap on what to do about the opera house. The story line is fun to follow as the skeptical outsider and the local spitfire go at it. Though the link back to Hotel Marchand is tentative at best, THE LEGACY is a fine finish to the Louisiana mini series.
Harriet Klausner


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Hotel and Motel Sales, Marketing and Promotion: Strategies To Impact Revenue and Increase Occupancy Review

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(More customer reviews)I am the guest services/front office manager for the Holiday Inn in Athens, Ga. I was interested when I purchased this book in obtaining information to increase our sales and develop our group and transient markets. I also hoped to in our customer service levels to meet to standards of an increasingly demanding market. This book gave me a tremendous amount of information that allowed me, not only to meet, but exceed my goals concerning market growth, an understanding of customer requirements in an increasing demanding market. The book was very well written and organized in a very easy to understand style, for someone with only limited knowledge of the terms used in the hotel industry. I am very pleased with my purchase of this material and would recommend this material to anyone in the hotel industry that desires success in the field.

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INCREASE OCCUPANCY, AVERAGE RATE AND REVENUE!A step by step promotional guide for every lodging property operator.Dramatically increase your revenue by applying the principles of this book.Today's rapidly changing tourist environment is creating many exciting opportunities for the small lodging property operator.However, many of these operators are finding it difficult to choose appropriate marketing strategies they can afford, at the same time impacting their bottom line.Hotel & Motel Sales, Marketing & Promotion wades through the complexities of filling guest rooms and helps to set any lodging property on the path to effective sales and marketing.Joe Wolosz demonstrates key factors that will focus your hotel or motel on higher profits.

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Cool Hotels: India, Maldives, Sri Lanka Review

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(More customer reviews)Students of architecture, hotel and commercial building design, and travel will all find much to attract in Cool Hotels: India, Maldives, Sri Lanka: it features the best hotels of the region, from rustic to big city, and discusses craftsmanship, artistic d‚cor, and landscaping qualities which make each hotel exceptional. The meat of Cool Hotels lies in its full-page color photos of both interior and exteriors of featured hotels.


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With more than 500 ravishing full-color photographs, Cool Hotels brings you to the best hotels in India, the Maldives and Sri Lanka. The super-deluxe establishments included here are all at the cutting-edge of hotel design and management. Each property has been hand-picked according to a set of criteria that includes a strong design aesthetic, architectural integrity, and a sense of individuality a million miles away from the cookie-cutter approach of chain hotels. Many of these properties have never been featured in guides before, and many have recently opened. Cool Hotels is the first in a series of hotel guides focusing on Asia. Ultimately these will be the definitive guides exclusively featuring Asia'sfinest places to stay.

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Resort Hotels of the Adirondacks: The Architecture of a Summer Paradise, 1850-1950 Review

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(More customer reviews)This is the fourth book by Tolles that I have purchased; the first was a guide to the historic buildings of New Hampshire. Another is on the historic hotels of the White Mountains. The most recent one I've purchased, Summer by the Seaside, is on the wooden resort hotels of coastal New England. This book is a fine survey of the architecture of the grand wooden hotels that once stood in the resort areas of the Adirondacks. Most of the buildings in this book are gone; the book provides a fitting memorial for some long-disappeared handsome buildings. Until I saw this book, I never realized that as many interesting hotel structures had been built in the Adirondacks - I've always associated the great wooden hotels with New England. History and architecture are well-documented. Photography and reproductions are excellent. Tolles' books are a great find for anyone interested in historic 19th century American architecture and the possibilities of wood frame buildings.

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The Haunted Hotel Review

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(More customer reviews)Reading a novel by Wilkie Collins requires substantial time, but my investment is usually well rewarded. His lesser known novel, The Haunted Hotel, is uncharacteristically short, and is an easy way to become acquainted with Wilkie Collins. The Haunted Hotel offers a fast moving, tight plot that maintains the reader's interest. It is a mystery story, a ghost story, and an early psychological thriller, all melded smoothly together.
The story begins in London, but later moves to the modern Venice of 1860. The dark, wet waterways and aging palaces provide an ideal setting for a mysterious death and a possibly related disappearance. Suspicion there is, but evidence is sparse. A threatening apparition indirectly hints at further clues.
The psychology component revolves around the Countess Narona, one of the most memorable characters created by Collins. The seemingly amoral Countess foresees, or believes she foresees, her eventual punishment and doom for previous evils. Her obsession leads her step by step toward the very retribution that she hopes to avoid.
The Haunted Hotel - A Mystery of Modern Venice was first published in 1879. I recommend buying the inexpensive Dover edition (ISBN 0486243338). Dover also reprints other books by Wilkie Collins, including The Moonstone, The Lady in White, The Dead Secret, Basil, No Name, and others. Through these works Wilkie Collins is credited with having popularized the classic detective mystery story.

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This is perhaps Collins’ last lucid effort before ill health and opium drained his powers. A tale of ghostly terror, relentless pace, tight narrative, and a doomed Countess characterize and distinguish this powerful Collins novelette.--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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The Winecoff Fire: The Untold Story of America's Deadliest Hotel Fire Review

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(More customer reviews)"The Winecoff Fire" is the true story of America's worst hotel fire. Working in downtown Atlanta, I often pass by the still-intact but abandoned hotel on Peachtree Street. I knew a few facts about the tragedy: that a Tech student won the Pulitzer Prize for his picture of a jumping lady; that many of Georgia's top high schools students were victims; and that many of the 119 dead were Georgians. I was curious to know more and, fortunately, this book came out. It includes the many aspects involved: cause, characters, individual experiences, scientific, political, historical, courage, benefit of info released years later, etc. Yet the book never bogs down. Yes, there are some vivid descriptions, but I didn't find them gratuitous at all. In fact, those tough parts brought home to me the real human horror of this tragedy. (Like what "Saving Private Ryan" did with war.) Even with the objective narrative, I get a sense of the authors being appalled and astonished at what happened. Sympathy, compassion, an understanding of sheer heartbreak, poignancy, and a quiet-but-obvious disgust with bad characters all kept emanating as I read. Those qualities made this book a lot more than just the "fact book" that I had originally bought it for. It was interesting that several friends read the book and they were surprised to learn of some family/friend connections with people involved in the fire. Years ago, Ralph McGill (the Atlanta journalist called the "conscience of the South") had encouraged someone to write about this story, but the effort was derailed. Fortunately, Mr. Heys and Mr. Goodwin put this together.

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Novels Review

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(More customer reviews)There are 3 bands that I always wanted to love when I was growing up: The Strokes, No Knife, and Alkaline Trio. All three bands had something unique that I really enjoyed, but they all left me wanting something more.
The Strokes I loved for their guitar play. It was unique and different, something I hadn't truly experienced before. But they took some creative directions that I grew bored of quickly (overuse of vocal distortion comes to mind), and I never really fell in love with their music. I wanted to love them so bad, but it was just little things that bothered me about their style that I couldn't totally get lost in.
No Knife I loved for their sheer technical genius. While it was difficult to follow sometimes, I appreciated what they musically explored. However, almost all their songs would take a route that I just couldn't quite get in to. They would start out a certain way, really catch me, then totally take a turn and ruin it. I could appreciate their music, but that was as far as it went.
Alkaline Trio is one of my guilty pleasure bands I love to listen to. Simple, catchy, and sing-out-loud-in-your-car sort of songs that are just fun. Their songs would start and end the same way, not many surprises, and were easy to let yourself go with. But I always wished they took a more mature route with some of their music. They have always been a talented group, and I always wished they explored some of their songs a little more.
Enter The Burning Hotels. Simply put; they are the band I've always wanted. Their music is a throw-back to my early years, with a mature, grown-up sound that always surprises me, and never leaves me lost. They have a technical style that is so beyond any of the other pop-rock bands, yet maintain that sing-out-loud sort of style that I can't wait to listen to every time I get in my car. Every time I listen to one of their songs, I get completely nostalgic. Their songs often start one way, and end another, but it all totally fits. Listening to a sample, you would miss some of the amazing surprises they put into each song.
I can not recommend this band enough. I haven't been this excited about music in a long time. Some people will say they are a rip-off of other bands or don't have their own style yet, but I completely disagree. They may have taken cues from other bands, but The Burning Hotels are one of the only bands I've heard in a long time that got it right from start to finish. Every single song on this cd is awesome.
As a side note, if you want a good overall example of their music, download "Silhouette" and see if you like it. It starts off sort of generic then totally changes and becomes this whole new song. Also, "One to Five" and "Where's My Girl" are some personal favorites as well.

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Hotel Hennepin Review

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(More customer reviews)Being from the Twin Cities area, and knowing the different hospitals that are written about, I was drawn to this book. I truly suggest it for anyone who is considering being a nurse -- it allows you to see a different perspective of things. Not only is Janet Izzo sympathetic to those she serves, she is a great storyteller.

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From an early age, I knew someday I would be a nurse...I looked for every opportunity I could find to practice my nursing skills. I even dreamed about it. After two years of candy striping, I had learned some valuable lessons about myself. Number one: I didn't like to be around sick people. Number two: vomit made me vomit... At the age of thirty, Janet Izzo decided to make her childhood dream a reality. Sure, she'd had some setbacks, but with the image of Florence Nightingale ever-present, she plowed forward, ignoring her family's laughter, braving college courses with students nearly half her age, and balancing the roles of wife, mother, and student. Then it happened: she was finally a nurse. But the journey wasn't over there; in fact, it was just beginning. In Hotel Hennepin: Nurses Can Make the Difference author Janet Izzo, RN shares the joys and struggles of being a nurse. Her dream of caring for mothers and their babies brought her to County Hospital, jokingly known as Hotel Hennepin, where she had the privilege of caring for hundreds of women. Janet tells their stories as only a nurse can, taking readers behind the scenes of this busy obstetric unit where new life begins and sometimes ends on the same day. You will laugh and you will cry as you read the dramatic real-life stories behind the doors of Hotel Hennepin, showing that nursing is more than just a jobit's a passion.

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The Hotel on the Roof of the World: Five Years in Tibet (Summersdale travel) Review

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(More customer reviews)This is a good book. The author got a job at the Holiday Inn in Tibet. Theres a lot of humor in it. I enjoyed reading it.

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Few foreigners have been lucky enough to set foot on Tibetan soil - Alec Le Sueur spent five extraordinary years there, working for an international hotel chain. Against the breathtaking beauty of the Himalayas he unfolds a highly amusing and politically enlightening account of his experiences. Fly infestations at state banquets, hopeful mountaineers, unexpected deliveries of live snakes, a predominance of yaks and everything yak-related, the unbelievable Miss Tibet competition, insurmountable communication problems and a dead guest are just some of the entertainments to be found at the 'Fawlty Towers' of Lhasa. Daily challenges are increased by the fragile political situation. Le Sueur, the only foreigner since the days of Heinrich Harrer to spend so long in Tibet, examines its intriguing cultural background, thus providing a fascinating insight into a country that is virtually impenetrable to today's traveller.

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Hotel du Lac (Panther Books) Review

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(More customer reviews)Anita Brookner's "Hotel Du Lac" is a literary marvel. She is the kind of writer who opens up new uses for old words. She paints the portrait of a wounded woman on an enforced vacation insisted on by her "friends". Although the vacation is slow moving and meditative she slowly finds herself renewed and ready to go back home. This is a typical Brookner book where little seems to happen unless you really keep your eyes open for some of the subtleties in the story and the one or two surprises that the author always seems to insert at unexpected moments.

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Asia's Legendary Hotels: The Romance of Travel Review

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(More customer reviews)Having been interested in tracking down the remaining stamp of the Western colonialism on present-day Asia for close to a decade, I ordered this book immediately after I came across it in a magazine.
The accomodation, the theme of this book, is absolutely one of the few ways left for those who are interested to savour the good old and short-lasting colonial era on their own today.
Unlike South Korea which has struggled, since its depature from the Japanese rule, to stamp out the Japanese influence both materially and mentally, most of the Asian countries have retained the Western colonial stamp and have learned to utilise it as one feature of tourism.
This book covers most of the internationally- famed hotels in both South and South-East Asia dating back to the colonial era.
Every page is beautifully coloured looking like they have been freshly and directly from the authors' camera.
Each hotel's visual introduction is accompanied by a detailed commentary on the history of the hotels.
Hotels featured here range from Peninsula in Hong Kong, the Strand in Burma to top-tier hotels in both Vietnam and Cambodia.
My conclusion is this is not merely a picture guide of old hotels but a highly detailed, academic and entertaining encyclopaedia of colonial hotels with a cornucopia of tips on travelling.
I highly recommend this book for the above reasons, but not 5-star evaluation due to the book's rather bulky size and heavy weight(If the book were much more compact it would be a perfect addtion to your list of things to take with you on your trip.

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Legendary Hotels of Asia features some of the region's most historically significanthotels,from the Taj Mahal in India to the Raffles Hotel in Singapore to the Railway Hotelin Hua Hin. The result is a showcase of unique establishments where the past is not only present, but celebrated—and where one can discover what it was like to travel when a hotel was more than merely a collection of rooms and a restaurant or two.

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Last Dance at the Hotel Kempinski: Creating a Life in the Shadow of History Review

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(More customer reviews)Hirsch's account of growing up German Jewish in England is wonderful - while his story is often laugh out loud funny, it remains a thoughtful exploration of the repercussions of the Holocaust and the pain in growing up with a difficult father. After Hirsch sets out on adulthood, his own story is not as compelling, but his encounters with elderly Holocaust survivors, as well as his attempts to come to terms with his father, are still fascinating.

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A remarkable memoir of the legacy of the German-Jewish diaspora.

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Nightmare Hotel: Danger: Spooky Pop-Up Book Review

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(More customer reviews)My son and I really enjoy this book. He loves pop ups and Halloween, so what could be better!

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Each colorful page of this ingenious creation has flaps and tabs to pull, each revealing a new delight or fright in this playfully scary haunted hotel pop-up book. Full color.

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