Why don't you pass the time by playing a little Solitaire?

Ooooh. Just typing that title line gave me the chills. Any Manchurian Candidate fans out there? Anyone? If so, you know what I mean. If not--go read it!

So lately I've been feeling sorry for Cheating at Solitaire--my first born. Kind of.

I guess all authors do this when they have a bouncing new book to promote, but I've been spending most of my time talking about Love You Kill You--which is totally irresponsible of me because, Cheating at Solitaire deserves my attention too!

So it was totally nice to see that the Library Diva spent this weekend reading both Cheating at Solitaire and Love You Kill You, and here's a little of what she has to say:

• This book had everything I love about Chick Lit: humor, great characters (both main and secondary), fun plot, and an instant relatabilty to the main character. What makes this book extraordinary to me, however, is that Julia is one of the few heroines in recent memory that is fine with who she is. She doesn't spend the entire book bemoaning the fact that she doesn't have a boyfriend, her job sucks, her family doesn't understand her, etc. Instead Julia serves as a role model to the women in her world, an ideal of being comfortable in your own skin. It was so refreshing and enjoyable. Each chapter of the book begins with a piece of wisdom from Julia's 101 Ways to Cheat at Solitaire, and I found myself looking forward to reading those bits of advice just as much as I looked forward to seeing the story unfold. I would recommend Cheating at Solitaire to anyone who enjoys reading Chick Lit, as well as anyone who has heard of the Chick Lit genre and wondered what the fuss was all about.

I swear I don't know her and I didn't pay her to write that--seriously. But honestly, I can't imagine a higher compliment since that's EXACTLY what I was going for! Did you read the part about how the heroine doesn't moan about her bad job, bad boyfriend and bad family? Do you know how happy I am that someone noticed that? Whoo hoo! Love it when that happens.

And I just got this super cool email from a YA reader who loved Love You Kill You and decided to give Cheating at Solitaire a try:

• I just finished Cheating At Solitaire. It is absolutely FABULOUS. I know it´s an adult book and I´m only twelve, but I really enjoyed reading it.

So, if you liked or loved The Gallagher Girls you may want to give Cheating at Solitaire a try. Sure, it's an "adult" book--but the only thing "adult" about it is that the characters are in their thirties, not their teens, but believe me all of life is like high school. I wish it weren't true, but it is.

Oh, and The Library Diva also had kind things to say about Love You Kill You:

• This book is the first of Carter's Gallagher Girl books, and it is just as smart, fun, and unique as Cheating at Solitaire. While reading it I couldn't help but think what a lovely alternative it made to books like Gossip Girl (for those of you who have parents coming in and schnarring at you about that series and others like it). It's just as cool as the Gossip Girl books, only smarter.

Pretty cool, huh?

Plus, Cheating at Solitarie's sequel Learning to Play Gin will be out this November and Gallagher Girls 2 won't be out for a long time after that, so please, pass the time by playing a little Solitaire. I mean...if you want to.

--Ally