“Cost Of Living” is a standout, amazing episode for many reasons. First, it’s a show about death and what we owe our decedents. Second, the entire script is carried by Luaxanna Troi and a guest star played by David Ogden Stiers (which, if you’re going to put a show in the hands of a guest star, it should be David Ogden Stiers). And third, it parks the first appearance of Michelle Ford who later played the role of Ro Laren. The whole season is good, but honestly that one episode is worth more than its weight in gold.

I remember breathlessly waiting for this season to start. I happened to be at Chicago Comicon that summer so I got to sit with a bunch of other fans debating what we thought would happen. It was exciting and new to have a cliffhanger season finale, and we honestly didn’t know what to expect. Ah, lost innocence.

This is where the show really started hitting its stride. It also happens to be the season where the writers father obsession is on display. There are 4 episodes in a row with father themes. If not for Luaxanna Troi, I’d start wondering if everyone in the 24th century was hatched out of eggs and raised my male-only single parent households. Definitely with watching though. Data dreaming is priceless.

Reluctantly on her way to a blind date Maureen detours into her mechanic’s garage because her brakes are squeaking. Her regular mechanic isn’t there but his very intriguing brother Michael is. Maureen can’t believe how instantly and powerfully she’s attracted to this grease monkey and neither can any of her friends, but since he’s only going to be in town for a week, she doesn’t want to waste an instant.

Except that grease monkey is no grease monkey. He’s Bear D’Amato, rock n’ roll drummer and in a week he’s headed back to get ready for a world tour with his band, Touchstone. When he meets Maureen, he just wants to go out with her a few times like a normal guy, but as the relationship deepens, he wants more. He wants a lifetime.

Content Warning: judgmental people, bad parents and giant fish.

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For U.S. Navy SEAL, Bowie “Ruckus” Cooper, going on a mission into the most dangerous place on earth wasn’t new, neither were the orders to tag and bag an international criminal, but when Bowie finds a captive American reporter, fearless and bold photojournalist, Dana Sorenson, that wasn’t exactly run of the mill. Neither was getting separated from his team, protecting her against all odds, while working to keep his hands from around her neck and off her delectable body.

Dana never backed down from a fight until she meets Bowie and big, bad, and tough takes on a whole new meaning. Gratitude for saving her ass gets lost in his demanding orders and fighting for her life takes a back seat to falling for this alpha male who’ll risk everything to see her safe.

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Isabella Farrington’s marriage was hasty. For all her new husband’s riches, Lord Draven Winthrop is whispered about, avoided, and feared. Yet Isabella is drawn to Draven’s dark good looks, his strength, the charm he can turn on as easily as she can blink. The impoverished daughter of an Egyptologist, she knows there are rumors about her, too, and the amulet she wears. Nothing more than superstitious babble…

But when Isabella returns to Draven’s remote coastal manor, she senses there is something more at work in the grim gardens of Thorncliff Towers than superstition. Draven is passionate and seductive, but he has a brutal, uncontrolled side too, and a history of secrets. To live in peace she must discover the reasons behind a Gypsy curse and a mother’s scorn. Especially when she learns Draven believes his sweet young bride is doomed to a fate even darker than his own…

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In this enthralling novel, you will find out about the heart that never forgets and the disease which has the power to rob, damage, and destroy yet cannot vanquish the feeling of love and being loved.

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Biochemist Eden Sinclair has no idea that the scent she spritzed on herself before leaving the lab is designed to enhance pheromones. Or that the cute, grungy-looking guy she meets that evening is the Adam Copeland international rock god and object of lust for a million women. By the time she learns the truth, she’s already spent the night in his bed. She can’t bear to reveal that this overpowering attraction could be nothing more than seduction by science. The only way to know how Adam truly feels is to ditch the perfume, and risk being ditched in turn.

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Yasmin Khan is everything an imam’s daughter should be: faithful, respectful, and veiled. Behind the cloth lies nothing but darkness and loneliness. She longs for the freedom to speak her own mind and escape her mundane life, but above anything else, she wants to be like her friend, Noor.

Dean Thynne-Edwards Walker is battling his own demons. Abandoned on the doorstep of a Catholic orphanage at birth, he endured years of unspeakable abuse and cruelty. He blames God for the nightmares of his stolen childhood and will stop at nothing to seek his revenge against religion.

He doesn’t see her face on that fateful day, but he does see her beautiful eyes. An instant desire sparks within him, a desire to corrupt this woman and sever her ties with God. Can he do it? Can he seduce a devout Muslim and add her to his list?

As for Yasmin, could this silver-eyed, beautiful stranger be her salvation? Might he be a savior that will release her from the shackles of her cultural obligations? Or will he be the cause of her damnation?

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Once upon a time a talented art student met a beautiful girl, and their lives exploded into colour. For one long, hot summer at university, Niall and Beth were the king and queen of the campus.

Then their world turned black.

Nine years later, Niall is an artist, returning to London after years in New York. He walks back into Beth’s life, lighting up her world. She isn’t looking for a relationship. He isn’t searching for anything more than friendship. Yet they both find the thing they’re looking for redemption.

But things aren’t as easy as they seem. And they’re about to get even more complicated.

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In Navy SEAL Dex Riley’s world, women fall into two categories: those who don’t ask questions and those who wish they hadn’t. He hides the darkness in his past, content to run an island adventure company in the Caribbean with his former SEAL team, until resort guest Emma Richardson targets him for a vacation fling. Her fresh innocence and insistence on seeing hero material in Dex where none exists makes him yearn to be the man she deserves. And that terrifies Dex more than any war zone he’s ever faced, until he discovers Emma has demons of her own.

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A darkling with a lust for power.
Henry Saint shouldn’t exist. Every year on his birthday, he kills someone and takes their soul so that he may live another year. He is a darkling, not fairy, but not human either. Yet he is bound by the laws of both worlds.
A spy without a soul.
Darah was Felan’s spy before he became King of Annwyn. Now he has one last mission for her. As Darah gets drawn into Henry’s world she realizes he can give her the one thing she can’t find in Annwyn, love. But is love worth betraying her King?

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What happens when an assassin has a nervous breakdown? A sexy computer geek and a feisty heroine who likes to do things her own way come together in this tale of murder, escape, redemption and, uh, donuts.

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Meet Rogan. Alpha Male. Delta Force sniper. Heart closed to love. Can Tessa break through?

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Can he break through the walls of the sworn-off sex erotica author?

Prop cowboy? Hell, Cole Dawson knew he could do that. Anything to take his mind off the very real possibility of losing the family ranch. Until he met Tabby. And fell. Hard.

Tabby Grey was shocked she’d become a top-selling erotica author, overnight. Take that, you jerk of an ex-fiance. But she’s sworn off men. And sex, despite her hot-as-hell book. But when hunky Cole shows up for her book-signing, it’s game over. Because she’s hiding a secret. One she can’t bear for the man she’s head over cowboy-boot heels in love with to find out.

Because if he knew: what would he do about it?

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He’s a Fire Elemental with a bit of a control problem. She’s a small town graphic designer with a touch of Water in her blood. When Fire and Water meet? *Steam.*

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Illiterate runaway Ana meets a handsome man from out of town who makes her feel alive for the first time in a long time. But if he finds out who she is, it could shatter her world and put him in danger. How will she keep her love, and keep him safe?

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Callie’s fan fiction blog becomes real life when the object of her obsession moves in next door.

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As a demi-goddess, Wyn has always stood out from the human crowd. And now, on her 22nd birthday, her magic finally surfaces with a bang. A Big bang. She’ll need the help of not one, but four (sexy) Guardians to control her destructive powers. If only they weren’t so distracting…

Her mother, the Winter Queen, waits for Wyn in the Realms of Gods, but there are enemies who will try and prevent her from ever reaching the Realms, even if that means going to war.

Will Wyn be able to survive the journey? And if she does, can she resist falling for her Guardians?

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Kenna Campbell had a perfectly good life plan. Love wasn’t on her list.

Everything was going according to plan, until she met Lucius Chaerea. He was a detail she hadn’t foreseen, and she knew he would break her heart. Despite her fears, Kenna gradually lowers her defenses.

Lucius had resigned himself to a life in the shadows. Using a vast network, cultivated while serving with SAS Intelligence, he fights the rising tide of terror and evil of human trafficking. Kenna throws a bright, warm light into his heart and life. He would exchange that life to keep her safe.

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Taylor Elgin was a child star, but keeping her career as an adult is frustrating. Now executives want to cut her part unless she garners more audience appeal. Her producer has a perfect plan. Match her character up with a fan favorite played by hot guy and terrible actor Ryan Asher. It would be easier to just quit…

Ryan had a crush on Taylor when he was a kid and is thrilled to be partnered with her now. But does a guy carrying the scars of an abusive childhood deserve America’s Little Girl? And then to learn she never wanted to work with him in the first place? There’s no reason to even try…

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After her husband leaves her for a younger woman, Eve’s surprised how much she enjoys being on her own. When she hires the contractor next door to renovate her new apartment, her surprising feelings for him threaten to turn her new life upside down.

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She thought she could never go home again. Kennedy Reynolds has spent the past decade traveling the world as a free spirit. She never looks back at the past, the place, or the love she left behind until her mother s unexpected death forces her home to Eden’s Ridge, TN. Will Kennedy be able to bury the past, or will the secret that sent her running destroy her second chance?

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Pelican Bay is not the quiet little sea side town I remember.

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A hot Aussie rock star looking for love. Why did he have to pick HER hotel?

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Alexis Le Blanc enjoys her simple life in Crystal Cove, Maine, devoting all her time to running her family’s winery, Coastal Vines. She wants to keep it small and traditional, but her parents have other ideas.

When Benito Martelli shows up in her family’s tasting room, she wants nothing to do with him or his big business ideas, but she’s pleasantly surprised when they come to a compromise, and even more surprised when she gives in to the sparks between them.

Unfortunately, things don’t go quite as planned and Alexis is faced with complications she never could have predicted. Promises and secrets unravel, and she must decide if love and wine are as well paired as she hoped.

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All rookie officer Colby Daniels wants is to prove herself. She hadn’t counted on stumbling upon the town’s first homicide. While working closely with the squad, Colby is attracted to Officer Tom Vitali, the handsome cop with the mischievous smile. But department relationships are forbidden. As the case heats up, so does their relationship. When a fellow officer becomes the third victim, Colby voices her theory, and tensions rage, both in the department and the relationship. Doubts and distrust spread and Colby’s career, reputation, and relationship hang by a thread. Will she risk it all to solve an unconscionable crime?”

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For her, he’ll break all the rules, but at what cost?

She’s the healer of her werewolf clan, destined to save lives and live in the shadows. He’s the alpha’s son, destined to mate to cement his status at the top of the pack. What happens when he chooses her instead?

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Meg O’Hara is trapped in a nightmare situation, waiting tables for a crime boss and fearing for her life. When an undercover FBI agent offers her a way out, she seizes it.

Chris Shaunessy pretends to be Meg’s lover in order to keep her safe, but passion has no place in the sordid world of organized crime. And yet, the closer they get to cracking the case, the stronger his feelings for the spirited waitress shine. It’s a dangerous game he’s playing, and taking Meg in his arms for real could prove a fatal misstep . . .

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Billionaire businessman Logan Mitchell is an empath. While his talent of reading people’s emotions has come in handy in the business world, it’s about to drive him insane. His psychic ability triggers unbearable OCD attacks, and the ghost that’s haunting him is doing everything in her power to keep him away from love. He’s given up hope of ever having a normal life, until he meets psychic Allison Gray. She’s everything he’s ever dreamed of, and now he has to decide if loving her is worth risking her life.

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A guilt-driven firefighter, a widowed mother, neither is ready for love, but love has other plans. A car accident on a dark, rainy night put Lucas and Sarah on a collision course neither of them expected, with questions they’re not ready to answer. Can a single mother open her broken heart for a second chance at love? Will a broken firefighter risk his heart for what might be his only chance at forever? Are each of them willing to take one last risk to be together? His risk. Her reward. Together, they’ll mend each other’s broken hearts.

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What happens when your neighbor hires you a stripper?

It starts one hell of a prank war. A war that involves goats, phallic chandeliers, stolen kisses in the rain, strawgasms, and eating out on the kitchen counter.

A war that could damn well involve two hearts and a plan. Her plan doesn’t involve falling in love. His life doesn’t involve plans.

This could be a problem.

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On her way to see her ex, barista Riley Eames finds herself stuck in the hotel elevator with rising British star, Ashe Hunter. He’s gorgeous, charming, and before the night is over, smitten with the woman who has no idea who he is.

But even as sparks fly between them, a Hollywood romance may not be enough to get Riley’s life moving again, not when the answers to the questions she’s been seeking are finally revealed, leading her to question everything that is true in her life.

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How do you take a chance on love when every other decision you’ve made has been the wrong one?

Laney Monroe’s life looks nothing like she’d planned. She certainly hadn’t pictured herself as a twenty-five-year-old single mom with a boring job, a freeloading brother, and an exhibitionist son. When her brother finally steps up and applies for a job, Laney never imagines it might lead to an opportunity for her as well, an opportunity at love.

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I was mortified. I ran away because I couldn’t face the embarrassment of what took place at the party. Now he’s back in the picture and I don’t think I can face him.

Will he remember who I am?

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Planet Earth was invaded by an alien race, the Taucets.

Humans fought back, especially with their cyborgs, warriors conceived to fight tirelessly against their alien enemies. Unfortunately, humans decided cyborgs should be considered machines enslaved to their masters and forgotten they were mostly humans.

In no time this new race was struggling to free themselves from human’s yoke. This is the story of Khajal, a fugitive cyborg.

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While they were fighting the Consortium’s war against the Sargus Empire far from their home world, the Sargus Empire attacked Farseek, leaving mass destruction in its wake. Only about a dozen survivors remained to tell what happened—a dozen of over a million. Those who weren’t killed were taken to become slaves of the Empire. As the story opens, Commander General Zared Maktu has found the piles of wreckage that is all that’s left of his family’s neighborhood.

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The Aledan Series is romance set in space opera, part science fiction, part adventure and part family saga. It starts with Hankura and Chelle whose love story is carried through the series plus a new romance in each subsequent book of the series. Each book has enough back story to be read as a standalone.

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This season is especially painful due to the exclusion of Beverly Crusher and the inclusion of Dr. Pulaski. The actress was obviously instructed to act as much like Dr. McCoy as possible, but I found him pretty insufferable too. Not all the episodes were bad. The introduction of Moriarty was lovely. I think you have to be a fan of the series to want to watching this season though.