Review: MWF Seeking BFF by Rachel Bertsche

MWF Seeking BFF by Rachel Bertsche

Publisher: Ballantine Books 

Pages: 349 

Format: eARC (NetGalley)

Buy the Book: Amazon  

Goodreads:  When Rachel Bertsche first moves to Chicago, she's thrilled to finally share a zip code with her boyfriend. But shortly after getting married, she realizes that her new life is missing one thing: friends. Sure, she has plenty of BFFs—in New York and San Francisco and Boston and Washington, D.C. Still, in her adopted hometown, there’s no one to call at the last minute for girl talk over brunch or a reality-TV marathon over a bottle of wine. Taking matters into her own hands, Bertsche develops a plan: Meeting people everywhere from improv class to friend rental websites, she'll go on fifty-two friend-dates, one per week for a year, in hopes of meeting her new Best Friend Forever.




Kritters Thoughts:  Sometimes I can connect with books on a personal level, but this book hit straight to my heart and at times I was wondering whether she was talking about herself or me!  I too recently moved for my significant other and yes, I have my mom and a cousin who is close to my age in town, but I do not have the friend group that I had back in Charlotte.    


Rachel uses many different ways to meet people - speed friending, professional friend matcher and even a religious group meeting.  I am not sure I could use all her tactics, but I loved how her confidence in talking to strangers grew; it made me want to start random chats with people I pass each day.  Her struggle with keeping her new marriage a priority with this endeavor to find new friends was refreshing because many women (myself included) struggle with placing the people in their lives in a priority line up.


A perfect book for those in their late twenties, who do not have kids to make easy connections to new friends.  The book clubs, the friends of friends and co-workers as friends have all been things that I have done in the past and continue to do to make lasting friendships in this new city that we live in.


Rating:  absolutely loved it and want a sequel


Ebook Challenge 2012: 12 out of 25 


Disclosure of Material Connection:  I received one copy of this book free of charge from the NetGalley.  I was not required to write a positive review in exchange for receipt of the book; rather, the opinions expressed in this review are my own.

Review: Love Lifted Me by Sara Evans & Rachel Hauck

Love Lifted Me By Sara Evans and Rachel Hauck

Publisher:  Thomas Nelson Publishers

Pages:  320

Format: eARC  (Netgalley)

Buy the Book: Amazon 

Goodreads:  Jade never knew happily-ever-after would be this messy, loud . . . delicious.

Jade Benson embraces unexpected motherhood when her husband Max gains custody of his young son. As she and Max work out their newly formed family, an invitation to coach Texas high school football sends them on a journey.

Then a stranger reveals a painful secret, and Jade faces her hardest challenge yet. When she surrenders her heart to God and to her husband, Jade discovers the joy of love lifting her above her fears.

Kritters Thoughts: The third in a series of heart wrenching stories that have an air of Christian fiction, but do not shove their religious views in your face.  Written together with country singer, Sara Evans, and well seasoned fiction author, Rachel Hauck - this series hits straight to the heart with each flip of the page.


With a gap in time between reading the second book and this third and final in the trilogy, it was still so easy to get back into Jade's life and be swept away by her struggles and extreme faith and forgiveness.  As this is the third in the series, I can't talk too much about the specifics of this book because you must go read the first two before you dive into this one.  Jade and Max are a couple that have real emotions and real experiences that help make this book enjoyable.  This couple has trials and tribulations just as another other couple.  


A job change, a big move, and the struggle to start a family are themes in this book that almost anyone who is reading can relate to, I felt Jade's struggle as she moves for Max to follow his dreams.  Whether you are a fan of chick lit or women's fiction, this series would be a perfect start to a cold winter weekend.




Rating: absolutely loved it and want a sequel 


Ebook Challenge 2012: 11 out of 25


Disclosure of Material Connection:  I received one copy of this book free of charge from NetGalley.  I was not required to write a positive review in exchange for receipt of the book; rather, the opinions expressed in this review are my own.

Review: Smitten by Assorted Authors

Smitten by Assorted Authors

Publisher: Thomas Nelson

Pages: 432

Format: ebook

Buy the Book: Amazon  

Goodreads:  Four friends devise a plan to turn Smitten, Vermont, into the country's premier romantic getaway-and each finds her own true love along the way.


With Smitten Lumber closing, residents wonder if their town can stay afloat. Then four friends and local business owners-Natalie, Julia, Shelby, and Reese--decide the town is worth saving. How will they do it? They'll turn Smitten into a honeymoon destination!


As Natalie, Julia, Shelby, and Reese work to save the town, each discovers romance in her own life. Meanwhile, the faith of a little child reminds the whole town what it means to have real faith in the God who is the always and forever Love.




Kritters Thoughts:  With four unique christian fiction authors, I was excited about a different type of book where it is one continuous story with each author writing for a certain character.  Although it fell a little short for me, it was a sweet tender story.


Four friends live in a small town in Vermont that is in the midst of crumbling due to a mill closing that has left many of its residents out of work.  The women of the town come up with an idea to recreate their town into a vacation destination.  Each small novella inside of this book is a story about one of the four friends and her contributions to the towns changing scene and their love story with an eligible bachelor in town.  


With barely any conflict and a very sweet story - this book was charming, but didn't hold my attention.  If you are a sweet kind of reader, then you will love this one.

Rating: enjoyable, but didn't leave me wanting more


GR Cover Challenge 2012: All Smiles 


Ebook Challenge 2012: 5 out of 25


Disclosure of Material Connection:  I received one copy of this book free of charge from BookSneeze.  I was not required to write a positive review in exchange for receipt of the book; rather, the opinions expressed in this review are my own. 

Review: The Day I Shot Cupid by Jennifer Love Hewitt

The Day I Shot Cupid by Jennifer Love Hewitt

Publisher: Voice 

Pages: 208 

Format: book 

Buy the Book: Amazon 

Goodreads:  Jennifer Love Hewitt is a self-proclaimed "love-aholic" and hopeless romantic (her middle name is Love, after all!). She has been lucky and unlucky in love, and lived to tell—and she's done it all in the spotlight. Much has been written about her love life—some true, most made up to sell magazines. Now Hewitt shares the real story of what she's learned navigating the dangerous dating waters.

In The Day I Shot Cupid, Hewitt offers her hard-won wisdom and tells us how to embrace love with both feet on the ground. First, we have to shoot Cupid. We have to believe that happily-ever-after is hard work—it's not all flowers and symphonies and floating hearts.

Kritters Thoughts:  Short, sweet and to the point.  This little book is chock full of tips, thoughts and ideas about dating and break ups.  As a young lady that is in a relationship, I even enjoyed the reminder to be a little mysterious and to appreciate the good guy that I have in my life.  


Jennifer Love Hewitt has been in the spotlight from a young age and so has her love life.  Through this book she allows the reader a little behind the scenes peek into how she approaches new relationships and endures the break up.  Even an ex (Jamie Kennedy) makes an appearance with a chapter on women's rear ends.  I loved the women empowerment and the message that we are complete people even if we aren't in relationships. 


If I didn't live with a boy, this would be the perfect book to put on the back of the toilet to encourage guests to pick up some relationship tips.  I would almost compare this to a modern day Rules book where women can go to for the basic tips that a woman should now before, during and after a relationship.

Rating:  absolutely loved it and want a sequel

Review: Falling Fast by Lucy Kevin

Falling Fast by Lucy Kevin

Publisher: self-published 

Pages: 136 

Format: nookbook

Buy the Book: Amazon

Goodreads:  When Alexa is sent by a magazine to be an undercover contestant on the reality TV series "Falling For Mr. Right" she assumes the worst part of the assignment will be having to act like a brainless bimbo to try and win the affection of an arrogant guy who is out looking for his fifteen minutes of fame. Color her shocked when it turns out that not only are several of her fellow contestants intelligent, funny women...but that Brandon - aka Mr. Right - isn't at all the kind of man she thought he'd be.

What's Alexa supposed to do when instead of digging up dirt for her cover story, she finds herself falling way too fast for the man she's supposed to tear apart in her first big feature story?


Kritters Thoughts:  As we approach Valentine's Day, I thought it would be perfect to share a sweet story that is light and fun, but also has a little love in it.  Centered around a young woman who isn't quite sure about herself and hasn't had the best of luck in the dating world.  Through the stories, she comes to find out that first you must love yourself before you can be loved by anyone - a lesson that is best learned through mistakes!  

A sweet novella that takes you behind the scenes of a dating show and to be honest, this book could be called fluff, but it was interesting to think how honest this behind the scenes glance could be.  With a little twist at the end, this book was lent to me by my sister and if she takes the time to read a book and send it my way, then any female should read it.  


Yes, it is February and I believe this book would be perfect to load on your new ereader for the upcoming beach season, it is just around the corner.  A chick lit with fun, romance, and a lot of heart - the perfect recipe. 



Rating:  perfect beach read

GR Cover Challenge 2012: Primary Colors

Ebook Challenge 2012: 2 out of 25

It's Monday, What are you Reading? (58)

An eventful weekend - celebrated my sister's birthday with the family and spent the night at my parents house.  It was fun to get a little family time in and Charlotte loves the extra attention from a toddler and my parents, my dad is a great doggie masseuse!

A meme hosted by Sheila at BookJourney.

Finished this past week:
The Mediator by Michael Abayomi
Pieces of Us by Margie Gelbwasser
Love Lifted Me by Sara Evans
Mother of the Bride by Lynn Michaels

Currently Reading:

Gods and Fathers by James Lepore
MWF Seeking BFF by Rachel Bertsche

Next off the TBR pile:
First You Try Everything by Jane McCafferty

Review: The Sausage Maker's Daughters by AGS Johnson

The Sausage Maker's Daughters by AGS Johnson

Publisher: BiblioFile Press 

Pages: 400 

Format:  ARC

Buy the Book: Amazon  

Goodreads:  The sausage maker's youngest daughter is heading for the fight of her battle-scarred life. It's the era of the counterculture and Vietnam. But twenty-four-year-old Kip Czermanksi is nowhere near her home in California. She's in a jail cell in her hometown in Wisconsin awaiting a court appearance in the mysterious death of her ex-lover, who happened to be her brother-in-law. Given her father is the small town's leading citizen; Kip isn't overly worried, at first. But the personal grudge the DA holds for all the Czermanskis is about to find a foil Kip. What follows is a wild ride through Kip's present predicament and her past. She'll come to regret leaving her life in LA, regardless of the good reason for which she returned, when family dynamics and sibling rivalries, magnified by her counterculture attitudes and feminist beliefs, lay Kip's life bare before the courtroom. Distrusting her legal team, her rebellious history well known, things both personal and legal spiral out-of-control. It doesn't look good for Kip Czermanski.




Kritters Thoughts: Very rarely does a book completely take me away and this one absolutely did.  I was a little put off by this synopsis, but hopefully I will convince you all  that this is one to go out and grab immediately.


From the beginning you are introduced to the baby of the family - Kip who is very different from her three older sisters who all have blonde hair and are all praised for their beauty.  Kip is the younger sister that has taken on the problems of the family, but after college she escaped to California to start a new.  She ends up back in Wisconsin and  in the middle of family drama.  Of course, as I always say, I can't reveal too much because it is worth the read.


I loved the combination of family trouble and a who dun it mystery.  Two of my favorite plots combined makes a complete story, a wonderful story.  I am passing this book onto everyone I know, this could be one of my top 5 of 2012 and we are only in month 2 of 2012.  


Rating:  absolutely loved it and want a sequel 


GR Cover Challenge 2012:  Nature-ally

Disclosure of Material Connection:  I received one copy of this book free of charge from JKS Communications.  I was not required to write a positive review in exchange for receipt of the book; rather, the opinions expressed in this review are my own.

Review: Nobody's Child by Austin Boyd

Nobody's Child by Austin Boyd

Publisher:  Zondervan

Pages: 336 

Format: book 

Buy the Book: Amazon 

Goodreads:  Meet… Laura Ann McGehee—Determined to honor her father’s dying request, the young West Virginia woman will do whatever it takes to save the family farm, including using the one remaining financial resource she has—her body. 

Sophia McQuistion—Thanks to the unusual sacrifice of a woman she has never met, she carries the child she could never conceive. 

Ian Stewart—In Laura Ann’s time of need, he’s more than just a close friend. He is a source of grace, a man who loves Laura Ann through her many trials. 

When unusual circumstances place Sophia’s baby in Laura Ann’s care, Laura Ann is now the virgin mother of her own biological son. The media call him “Nobody’s Child.” But somebody wants him badly enough to steal the baby. Weaving together bioethics and faith, Nobody’s Child dramatizes a future that is already upon us with consequences we can no longer avoid.





Kritters Thoughts:  Are you looking for that book to curl up with on a snowy weekend?  This one is the perfect one to keep you cuddled under a blanket just wondering what is coming up on the next page.  The reader starts in the midst of a young woman's struggle as her father is battling for his life.  Set in a small town in West Virginia, I found it interesting to read a story set somewhere that I have never been and in a setting (family farm) that I have no connection to.  The descriptions of farm and small town life were beyond vivid.  From the first page, you are hooked into this story.


Laura Ann must work hard to keep her family's farm.  She goes to some extreme measures, of course, I can't share because that would obviously spoil your reading.  With conquering a farm, the weather and unexpected visitors, this book takes on a life of its own.  There is even an evil villain in her Uncle Jack.


A piece of women's fiction that is sweet and pure while also absolutely entertaining.  A read fit for any age because this story can hit home to any reader.

Rating: definitely a good read, but can't read two in a row


GR Cover Challenge 2012: Reflections


Disclosure of Material Connection:  I received one copy of this book free of charge from the author.  I was not required to write a positive review in exchange for receipt of the book; rather, the opinions expressed in this review are my own.

Guest Post: Dorothy James

Today I have the pleasure of sharing a guest post from Dorothy James, author of A Place to Die. You can grab her book here at Amazon.

Stashing Granny
Yesterday I read an article in the Huffington Post by Ann Brenoff with the provocative title: ”Stashing Granny in a Backyard Shed “  (http://tinyurl.com/7l5yr87).  Today there are already pages of comments. It is a catchy title and the pitch is humorous: “ . . . as much as you love Mom, you really don’t want her under the same roof . . .”   The “backyard shed” turns out to be a do-it-yourself  construction kit for a $60,000 largely pre-fabricated house, not the worst idea to save your mother from “the assisted living place with the awful medicinal smell.”  However the many comments, pro and contra, illustrate what a hot topic this is.

What caught my eye, and at first glance turned my stomach, was the phrase “stashing Granny.”  Consider yourself for a moment if you can, not as a  son or daughter with a parental or grandparental problem, but as a Granny or Grandpa.  Do you want to be stashed?

This question is close to my heart because I have written and published a murder mystery called “A Place to Die,” set in a retirement home in Vienna. I did this in the first instance because it occurred to me that a retirement home was an ideal setting for a murder mystery – a large country house, a set of characters who weren’t going anywhere, who because they were by definition old had long lives behind them full of stories and secrets, lives that stretched back to the Vienna of the Nazi and post-Nazi period, a fascinating time to explore. I gave myself a fictional entrée into this world through an American baby-boomer-age couple visiting the husband’s mother who has been “stashed” in the home.  I did not of course think of this word at the time, but it is true that the mother is not happy about being there and she is there because her family cannot cope any longer with her living alone.

The novel is not really about this quite common dilemma – it is a murder mystery and the plot centers on the detection of the crime.   But in writing the novel, where the suspects as well as the victim are all old, some older than 90, I found myself delving into their lives, thoughts and feelings, seeing them not as items in the lives of others, people to be “stashed” somewhere out of the way, but people of pride and passion, happiness and misery, pettiness and greatness.  People, in other words, just like the rest of us.

Wordless Wednesday

Miss Charlotte and her beaver cuddled up for a good night of sleep!

Review: Lovesick by Spencer Seidel

Lovesick by Spencer Seidel 

 Publisher: PublishingWorks, Inc. 

 Pages: 376 

 Format: ARC 

Buy the Book: Amazon 

Goodreads:  A teenage boy is found on Portland Maine’s Eastern Promenade Trail holding the dead body of his best friend and the murder weapon. Forensic psychologist Lisa Boyers is called in to interview the disturbed young man, and her jailhouse interviews reveal more about her troubled, violent past than she bargained for.




Kritters Thoughts:  A book that is more than a suspenseful who dun it.  This book begins with one friend dead, one friend missing, and one friend in jail with the police assuming that he had orchestrated the entire scene.  But did he.  With this  main story there is one underneath that involves the forensic psychologist who is asked to interview the suspect and get to the bottom of the story.  These two plotlines were intertwined so well, that the reader was able to effortlessly flow from one story to the other.


You fall in love with the suspect, Paul, but you want to know how these friends ended up in such tragedy.  Every once in awhile, a book can take you away where it is beyond impossible to put it down - so was this book.  With an ease of reading, the story was able to take center stage.

So many twists and turns, this book ended in completely different spot than I expected, but I loved it.  For those who love a little mystery in their lives, this is the perfect book to curl up with and hours later you will realize that you are mere pages from the end.

Rating:  absolutely loved it and want a sequel


GR Cover Challenge 2012: Holidays


Disclosure of Material Connection:  I received one copy of this book free of charge from Media Muscle Tours.  I was not required to write a positive review in exchange for receipt of the book; rather, the opinions expressed in this review are my own. 

Check out this link to find other bloggers participating in the blog tour.

Review: Outside the Lines by Amy Hatvany

Outside the Lines by Amy Hatvany

Publisher: Simon & Schuster 

Pages: 352

Format: book 

Buy the Book: Amazon  

Goodreads:  When Eden was ten years old she found her father, David, bleeding out on the bathroom floor. The suicide attempt led to her parents’ divorce, and David all but vanished from Eden’s life. Since childhood, she has heard from him only rarely, just enough to know he’s been living on the streets and struggling with mental illness. But lately, there has been no word at all.

Now in her thirties, Eden decides to go look for her father, so she can forgive him at last, and finally move forward. When her search uncovers other painful truths—not only the secrets her mother has kept from her, but also the agonizing question of whether David, after all these years, even wants to be found—Eden is forced to decide just how far she’ll go in the name of love.

Kritters Thoughts:  A book where mental illness takes center stage, but the reader gets a full picture with this read - from both the person fighting the illness to the family that is affected by the highs and the lows of the disease.  The format of this book was a perfect way to share the story both what is currently happening to the full story of the past.


From the beginning we meet Eden who has been severely damaged by her father's battle with a mental illness.  She has struggled with her romantic relationships and can not find fulfillment at her job.  Throughout the book you read the past from both her perspective and her fathers and learn why she has come to be the adult she is now.  I absolutely loved reading the perspective of her father and having moments in his head as he tried to conform to society's standards and be a father and a husband.    


A story that hits you deep in your heart and makes you want to rescue her from her expectations of a father that can't live up to them.  I fell hard into this book and was swallowed hole by the story.  I couldn't put down if I tried!  




Rating:  absolutely loved it and want a sequel


Disclosure of Material Connection:  I received one copy of this book free of charge from Simon & Schuster.  I was not required to write a positive review in exchange for receipt of the book; rather, the opinions expressed in this review are my own.

It's Monday, What are you Reading? (57)

What an interesting week of reading!  February has started and we may have an extra day this year, but this short month always feels rushed.


A meme hosted by Sheila at BookJourney.

Finished this past week:
The Day I Shot Cupid by Jennifer Love Hewitt
Elizabeth the Queen by Sally Bedell Smith
The Sausage Maker's Daughters by AGS Johnson
North of Hollywood by Rick Lenz

Currently Reading:
Mother of the Bride by Lynn Michaels
Next off the TBR pile:

Gods and Fathers by James Lepore
Life in Death by Harlow Coban

In My Mailbox (61)

Busy weekend, so must skip the vlog this weekend.  Will be back next weekend!


A meme hosted by Kristi at The Story Siren.


For Review:
Whole Latte Life by Joanne DeMaio  (Goodreads)
First You Try Everything by Jane McCafferty  (Goodreads  Amazon)


Swapping:
Notes From the Backseat by Jody Gehrman  (Goodreads  Amazon)
Loose Screws by Karen Templeton  (Goodreads  Amazon)


Winnings:
Bond Girl by Erin Duffy  (Goodreads  Amazon)