Nourishing meals

Nourishing meals was a well written cookbooks that had many different healthy recipes in it. I liked that the recipes were all laid out in an easy to understand manner that was not confusing.  I particularly liked the dessert recipes, but then I have a bit of a sweet tooth. All in all I can't wait to give most of the recipes a try for either myself or for my family. I was sent this book for free for only my honest review.

Bloodmark by Aurora Whittet

Book Description for Bloodmark (Book #1):

Sixteen-year-old werewolf princess Ashling Boru is different from other wolves--she was able to shift to a wolf at birth. Rather than bringing pride to her family, it brings fear, and she is sent to live in Ireland's secluded countryside. Ashling's reputation is further blackened when she refuses her betrothed, defying the ancient laws. When her pack's oldest rivals begin to hunt her, she finds herself in the small town of York Harbor, Maine, far from everything she's known.

When she crosses paths with dark and rebellious Grey Donavan, something ignites within her soul. There's just one problem: Grey is human. Their instant connection turns into a passionate romance, and Ashling begins to believe she can create her own life outside of wolf laws. When she uncovers long-buried pack secrets that threaten to destroy all she holds dear, Ashling's courage and tenacity are tested. Will she choose her deep and enduring love for Grey or will she follow Old Mother's path to her destiny?

Buy Bloodmark:  Amazon ~ Barnes & Noble  

Author's Bio:

Aurora Whittet started out as a wild red-haired girl in Minnesota dreaming up stories for her friends to read. Mama’s Knight: A Cancer Story of Love is just the latest in a string of acclaimed works. Her first official writing endeavor became The Bloodmark Saga, featuring a werewolf princess-turned-ruler who falls in love with a human boy. Her first novel in the Bloodmark Saga, Bloodmark, came out in 2013, followed by Bloodrealms in 2014 and the final book Bloodmoon in 2016.

Connect with the author: Website ~ Twitter ~ Facebook ~ Instagram

My Review

Bloodmark by Aurora Whittet is the first book in the Bloodmark Saga. Bloodmark Saga was an amazingly well written supernatural fiction book. Bloodmark by Aurora Whittet follows Sixteen-year-old werewolf princess Ashling Boru as she learns about who she is as a person and as a unique werewolf. My favorite part of the book was when Ashling Boru met Grey Donavan. I loved how she really felt like she could escape wolf laws and her old life and just live how she wanted to. I felt for her when the world she pictured for herself began to crumble. If you enjoyed Twilight, but prefered the werewolves then this is the book and series for you. I was was provided with a copy of this book from the author or publisher.

Storm of Arranon

About the Book:

Title: Storm of Arranon

Author: R. E. Sheahan

Publisher: Rule of Three Press

Pages: 300

Genre: YA Science Fiction/Fantasy

 A forbidden birth. A remarkable young woman. A marauding alien society. The battle begins.

 A brutal alien society invades Korin and Arranon, intent on destroying the two worlds that make up Cadet Erynn Yager's home. Forced to expose her strange abilities and reveal her forbidden birth, a guarded web of secrets unravels.

Stranded on an unfamiliar planet of eternal winter and predatory wildlife, the mysterious living consciousness of Arranon intervenes, leading Erynn on a mystical journey.

Aware of Erynn's potential, the alien enemy pursues her. She struggles to gain control of her growing powers while in a constant race to elude the invaders, and join the forces preparing to fight a mounting occupation.

Erynn’s secret may be her worlds' only hope, but at the cost of her life. Swept up in a chain reaction of events, Erynn's dedication extends far beyond service and duty. She learns the true meaning of sacrifice.

Along with courage and hope, Erynn finds something unexpected on her journey of awareness and growth.

Love.

About the Author

I have always been a reader. I love books. When I’m not able to read, I listen to audio books. I started writing while working as a Paramedic/Firefighter in Northern California. Trust me, it’s not like it appears on TV. There was plenty of time for books, mostly reading them. I didn't seriously start writing until I moved to my ranch in Oregon. While waiting for lambs to be born in the middle of the night, I would head back to the house for an hour or two and sit down at the computer. Before I knew it, I had a manuscript. Not a good one, but a start.I joined critique groups and attended writer's conferences. I was on the fast track to learning. 

In 2013, I received an honorable mention in Writer’s Digest’s Self Published book awards for MG/YA. I guess I am learning something!

Ideas from dreams follow me into warm sunny days or the quiet of falling snow. “What ifs” feed a vivid imagination. Even mistyped phrases may lead to an "aha" moment. Brain storming sessions standing in windy, dark parking lots with fellow writers release thoughts that pry at the corners of my mind, grasping for purchase. Sometimes the ideas pursue me, with persistence.

For More Information

• Visit R.E. Sheahan’s website.
• Connect with R.E. on Facebook and Twitter.
• Find out more about R.E. at Goodreads.

 

My Review

The STORM OF ARRANON was a well written novel, that pulled me in form the very first page. I found the book to be very interesting with how it combined elements of science fiction and fantasy together perfectly. The characters were all well developed with their own unique personalities. The dialogue was all realistic and well written and not too wordy. I real enjoyed how the plot line flowed together perfectly. Erynn was a strong character who I really enjoy reading about and I liked how she grew through out the book. I was sent this book for free for only my honest review.

God Bless My Friends By Hannah C. Hall

God Bless My Friends By Hannah C. Hall is a well written children's book designed to teach the value of friendship and the friends should be cherished. I loved the cute animals and how it showed many different types of animals being friends. It teaches that different types of people can be good friends too. I was given a free copy of this book.

Book Description

Friendship is one of the most important things of the world, and sometimes it looks different than you might expect! God Bless My Friends celebrates all kinds of friendships and helps little ones see the value in being a friend.

Can a giraffe be friends with a mouse? Would a monkey play with a tiger? No matter if they’re big or small, friends are a gift from God! God Bless My Friends shows some unlikely animal buddies learning important lessons about how our friends can be different than us, how to be kind, how to share, and how to help others.

Featuring sweet, rhyming text from Hannah Hall and adorable artwork from Steve Whitlow, who illustrated the previous bestsellers in the God Bless line, God Bless My Friends uses surprising animal combinations to show children that friendships do not always look a specific way. Help your little one learn the importance of being a friend to all kinds of people, including ones who are different from them, through the sweet and simply rhyming verses.

Progenitor (The Earthside Trilogy Book 1) by Sherri Moorer

Progenitor (The Earthside Trilogy Book 1) by Sherri Moorer is the first book in the Earthside Trilogy and can most definitely be considered science fiction.  Progenitor (The Earthside Trilogy Book 1) by Sherri Moorer is a book that will appeal most to young adult females who enjoy science fiction as well as adult female science fiction lovers; males may also enjoy the book, but with a female main character this book is geared more towards a female audience. Progenitor (The Earthside Trilogy Book 1) by Sherri Moorer follows Kalea Kerner, an electrical engineer, who was all set to take over her Dad’s company when her world was sent spiraling when her uncle Carson woke from his comatose state and healed her broken foot without any known medical technology.  Kalea Kerner world was forever changes with the words “the world is about to turn”.

Progenitor (The Earthside Trilogy Book 1) by Sherri Moorer is a well written science fiction novel that did not waste any time with useless background information. Instead Sherri Moorer drops the reader right into the hospital room with Kalea Kerner and her (at the time) comatose Uncle Carson. From this point on Progenitor (The Earthside Trilogy Book 1) by Sherri Moorer moves at a fast pace and fills the reader in with information about Kalea Kerner’s life on an as needed basis. This allowed be to get to know Kalea Kerner as the character she is in the book instead of who she was supposed to have been in the past. I greatly enjoy reading Progenitor (The Earthside Trilogy Book 1) by Sherri Moorer and I look forward to the next book in the series!

           "Reviewed by Sefina Hawke for Readers' Favorite"

Wasp's Nest

Wasp's Nest 

WASP’S NEST (Book #2)

In the highly anticipated sequel to Roma, Underground, Bianca returns to the U.S. for her former employer, the covert organization Rendition, to investigate Cyril Sargent and Nasonia Pharmaceutical. Although ambivalent about the assignment and uneasy about her online “friend,” Loki, she is enticed into researching what Sargent is doing with insect genetics that might upset the world of cancer research and treatment. Old friends Farrugia and Gennaro uncover a twisted conspiracy from their past and join Bianca in Boston where they will experience conflicted loyalties, question allies, and confront uncertain enemies, as they’re drawn into the wasp’s nest.

“Again, Valjan successfully conflates multiple sophisticated narratives that bring the past and present together, which the archaeological theme of the last novel also helps accomplish . . . Black is back and just as entertaining as ever.”
—Kirkus Book Reviews

“…a compelling reading, action-packed and with intriguing characters. The plot had plenty of twists and turns, some surprising secrets, and it kept me on the edge of my seat, guessing until the very end.”
—The Book Junkie

Meet the Author:

Gabriel lives in Boston, Massachusetts. He is the author of the Roma Series, available from Winter Goose Publishing. Gabriel has also written numerous short stories and essays found online and in print.

Connect with the author:  Website ~Twitter  ~ Facebook

My Review

After reading ROMA, UNDERGROUND (Book #1) I did not see how book two could possible top it and yet it did. Wasp's Nest had many of the same characters as book one did which was nice as I began book two having already gotten to know many of the characters already in book one. 

My favorite part of Wasp's nest was that moment where I really understood why the title wasp's nest was chosen for this book. That was the moment when many of the plot elements started to come together in my head. However I won't go into more detail so as to avoid spoiling it for you.

I am pumped up after finishing Wasp's Nest and I will be starting THREADING THE NEEDLE (Book #3) shortly. Make sure to look for my review of it on November 9th.

I was provided with a copy of this book by the author or publisher.

Taste and Technique

Taste and Technique Review

I was surprised by how many different type of recipes were included in this one cookbook. I was especially happy with how well they were organized. There was a main table of contents that had the sections like: starters, soups, vegetables, and such. Then each section had its own table of contents that listed all of the recipes in that section. This made it easy to find the recipe I wanted.

My favorite recipe was the white mousse recipe. Though it was along recipe and somewhat complicated to actually make. However it was well worth it because it tasted amazing. 

  

I was sent this book for free for only my honest and unbiased review.

Killer in the Band by Lauren Carr

Book Three in the Lovers in Crime Mysteries explores forbidden love all while avoiding getting in the cross-hairs of a murderer!

Book Details:

Book Title: Killer in the Band by Lauren Carr
Category:  Adult fiction,  430 pages
Genre:  Mystery
Publisher:  Acorn Book Services
Release date:  Oct 3, 2016
Available for review in:  Print and ebook: mobi (for Kindle), ePub, PDF 
Will send books:  USA & Canada
Tour dates:  Oct 10 to 28 and Oct 31 to Dec 2, 2016
Content Rating:  PG (Lauren Carr's books are murder mysteries, so there are murders involved. Occasionally, a murder will happen on stage. There is sexual content, but always behind closed doors. Some mild swearing (a hell or a damn few and far between). No F-bombs!
Book Description:

Summer of Love & Murder

Joshua’s eldest son, Joshua “J.J.” Thornton Jr., has graduated at the top of his class from law school and returns home to spend the summer studying for the bar exam. However, to Joshua’s and Cameron’s shock and dismay, J.J. moves into the main house at Russell Ridge Farm, the largest dairy farm in the Ohio Valley, to rekindle a romance with Suellen Russell, a onetime leader of a rock group who’s twice his age. Quickly, they learn that she has been keeping a deep dark secret.

The move brings long-buried tensions between the father and son to the surface. But when a brutal killer strikes, the Lovers in Crime must set all differences aside to solve the crime before J.J. ends up in the cross hairs of a murderer.


Praise for Lauren Carr’s Mysteries:

“Lauren Carr could give Agatha Christie a run for her money!”
​- Charlene Mabie-Gamble, Literary R&R

“As always, Lauren Carr brings an action-packed story that is almost impossible to put down. Her mystery plots have so many twists and turns that I didn’t know if I was coming or going. And the action just didn’t stop from the very beginning till the very end.” - Melina Mason, Melina’s Book Reviews


Buy the Book: Amazon  ~  Barnes & Noble 

Meet the Author:

Lauren Carr is the international best-selling author of the Mac Faraday, Lovers in Crime, and Thorny Rose Mysteries—over twenty titles across three fast-paced mystery series filled with twists and turns!

Book reviewers and readers alike rave about how Lauren Carr’s seamlessly crosses genres to include mystery, suspense, romance, and humor.

Lauren is a popular speaker who has made appearances at schools, youth groups, and on author panels at conventions. She lives with her husband, son, and four dogs (including the real Gnarly) on a mountain in Harpers Ferry, WV.

Connect with Lauren: Website  ~  Twitter  ~  Facebook

The Most Important Thing Writers Need to Complete That First Novel 

(No, it’s not talent.)

By Lauren Carr

Over thirty years ago, I wrote my first book on an electric typewriter. Determined to be a novelist, I devoted all of my spare time to banging away on my IBM Selectra. The television was off. Meals consisted of peanut butter sandwiches that were quick and easy to make. Hours that I used to sunbathe for a golden tan were spent composing my masterpiece. I stopped going out with my friends. Not a minute that could be devoted to literary creation was wasted. At the end of the summer, I proudly emerged from my bachelorette apartment pale, thin, and socially bankrupt. 
In three months, I had written the Great American Catastrophe, all 846 pages of it in hardcopy. 
We have come so far in just the last twenty-five years that there is no excuse for anyone to not be a writer (except for complete lack of talent). So, one has to ask, why is it so hard for many writers to compose a simple murder in Windows 10 when three decades ago I was able to kill off the whole membership of the Screen Actors Guild over one summer without the benefit of a spellchecker?
The Internet has opened a whole new world, but it has also slashed our attention spans to the length of an inch-worm. While we sit in front of our laptops thinking that we’re actually writing and doing it well, in reality we are constantly being distracted and giving in to those distractions freely. Wearing only our underwear, we feel like hotshots being able to check e-mails; program our smart TV; make dozens of new friends who we’ve never met and most likely never will; download the latest tunes; write a job proposal; IM our spouse in the bathroom to ask what he wants for dinner; spy to see what our son is really doing on his laptop in his dorm room over three hundred miles away; and google to find out what had become of that teen idol to whom we had pledged our luv-4-ever. 
Then, at the end of the day, we scratch our heads and wonder why we’ve only written seven paragraphs in the last seven hours. 
As much as we would like to blame technology, or even jobs, families, and friends that interrupt us, the problem doesn’t lie with the distractions. There were distractions back when I wrote the Great American Catastrophe. They just weren’t as convenient to give into. 
With the click of the button, I can escape choreographing a shootout to check out Jill’s dog Elvis getting a bath on Facebook. Swooning over Elvis should only take thirty seconds, but before going back to the shootout I need to check out what is #PoweredByIndie and why is it trending on Twitter. Suddenly, I have only six minutes to forward an e-mail to eleven friends or suffer the curse of Saint Theresa. By the end of the day, that moment has turned into three hours with only one hour spent doing actual writing. 
Writing takes discipline. 
It takes the same type of discipline I had back when I gave up Fantasy Island for three months to write the Great American Catastrophe, which is now buried in my mother’s basement where hopefully no one will ever find it. 
If you want to write your Great American Catastrophe, or maybe the Great American Novel, you have to tell your thumb, “Don’t click on that! Don’t check that e-mail! Keep on writing and don’t stop for anything until you come to ‘The End!’”
Trust me. Elvis will still be on Facebook when you’re done.