Sunday, April 22, 2012

In My Mailbox (68)



A more than wonderful week when it comes to my mailbox, some great review books that I am more than elated to read!  


A meme hosted by Kristi at The Story Siren.

For Review:

A Chance in the World by Steve Pemberton  (Goodreads  Amazon)

The Most Dangerous Thing by Laura Lippman  (Goodreads  Amazon)
The Chaperone by Laura Moriarty  (Goodreads  Amazon)
The Innocents by Francesca Segal  (Goodreads  Amazon)
Reel Life by Jackie Townsend  (Goodreads  Amazon)

Swapped:
Spanish Disco by Erica Orloff (Goodreads  Amazon)
Losing It by Lindsay Faith Rech  (Goodreads  Amazon)

Saturday, April 21, 2012

Review: When All That's Left of Me is Love by Linda Campanella

When All That's Left of Me is Love by Linda Campanella

Publisher: Tate Publishing & Enterprises 
Pages: 228 
Format: book
Buy the Book: Amazon  


Goodreads:  Linda Campanella's emotional account of her last year with her mother, Nancy Sachsse, wrote itself on the pages of her mind as she lay awake unable to sleep in the days and weeks following Nan's death one year and one day after a diagnosis of terminal cancer. It is a heartwarming memoir filled with insights and inspirations that will help anyone jolted into confronting the inevitability and sudden imminence of death. Join the author as she reconstructs and relives a year of living while dying and, in the process, comes to terms with the pain and permanence of her loss. When All That's Left of Me Is Love is indeed a sad story born of death, but it is above all an uplifting portrait of living, loving, believing, and letting go. It is a celebration of the special bond between mothers and daughters, a touching love story, a spiritual journey, a poetry lesson, and even a case for happy hour. This story of a daughter's undying love for her dying mother will move and inspire not only those who face or fear death but also those who love and embrace life. 




Kritters Thoughts:  A heartwrenching story that had me in tears quite a few times, but with a sweet and simple message I am ever thankful that I read it.  A woman's story about the last year of her mother's life after she is diagnosed with terminal stage IV cancer - this book is more than just journaling the last days of her mother's life, but a helpful guide to those who may be experiencing the same last days of a loved one.


As a young woman, my mother is still fit and very active, at times more active than me!  She attends book signings with me and often comes and spends weekends shopping and just spending time with me.  She is an active grandparent to a toddler and loves to go to the gym with my little sister.  I am not near this time in my mom's life, but maybe this was the perfect time for me to read this book.  It made me stop and appreciate what moment I am in with my mom, but to store away some helpful tips for what the future could hold with me, my sister and our parents.  


I would recommend this book to women my age who may not be on the cusp of dealing with a parent death, but can absorb the tips of living each day while the idea of death isn't in the back of our minds.   




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


Disclosure of Material Connection:  I received one copy of this book free of charge from TLC Book 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.  


Other tour stops:


Tuesday, April 3rd: Hospitable Pursuits
Wednesday, April 4th: The Book Garden
Thursday, April 5th: The Feminist Texican [Reads]
Monday, April 9th: EmSun
Tuesday, April 10th: The Book Bag
Wednesday, April 11th: Good Girl Gone Redneck
Thursday, April 12th: BookNAround
Saturday, April 21st: Kritters Ramblings
Wednesday, April 25th: Silver & Grace
Thursday, April 26th: Life in the Thumb


Friday, April 20, 2012

Review: Whole Latte Life by Joanne DeMaio

Whole Latte Life By Joanne DeMaio 

Publisher:  CreateSpace
Pages:  336
Format: book 
Buy the Book: Amazon 


Goodreads:  Would you leave everything behind to know who you are?

Sara Beth Riley never dreamt she'd walk straight out of her life. Actually she'd never dreamt a lot of things that had happened this year ... From being kidnapped by her own best friend, to throwing her wedding rings into the Hudson River, to calling an old love in France, to getting inked with said best friend, painting the passionate constellation of these choices into permanence. But mostly, she could never have dreamt what started it all. How could it be that her mother's unexpected death, and the grief which lingered painfully long, turned her into the woman she was finally meant to become?

Sara Beth's escape begins a summer of change - of herself, of marriage, of the lives of those around her. In a story that moves from Manhattan to the sea to a quaint New England town, Whole Latte Life looks at friends we never forget, at decisions we linger with, at our attempts to live the lives we love.






Kritters Thoughts:  Two friends head to NYC to celebrate a milestone birthday - the 40th!  While out enjoying a meal, one friend (Sara Beth) disappears leaving only a note that she needs some time away.  The other friend (Rachel) is stuck trying to figure out what should be her next step.  


Told from both of their points of views and even Sara Beth's husband, the reader is easily taken through the story.  I was amazed at how flawlessly each character took over the story and I knew who was talking and what was going on.  As well, I easily kept each character's lives separate, this is only due to great writing.


A great book that went a few places that were nicely unpredictable.  I would recommend this book to readers who love a deep, heartfelt story with true characters.




Rating: absolutely loved it and want a sequel


April-June Challenge 2012: Drinks, Dinner & Dessert


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.  

Thursday, April 19, 2012

Review: More Like Her by Liza Palmer

More Like Her by Liza Palmer 

Publisher: HarperCollins 
Pages: 336 
Format: book 
Buy the Book: Amazon  


Goodreads:  What really goes on behind those perfect white picket fences?
In Frances's mind, beautiful, successful, ecstatically married Emma Dunham is the height of female perfection. Frances, recently dumped with spectacular drama by her boyfriend, aspires to be just like Emma. So do her close friends and fellow teachers, Lisa and Jill. But Lisa's too career-focused to find time for a family. And Jill's recent unexpected pregnancy could have devastating consequences for her less-than-perfect marriage.
Yet sometimes the golden dream you fervently wish for turns out to be not at all what it seems--like Emma's enviable suburban postcard life, which is about to be brutally cut short by a perfect husband turned killer. And in the shocking aftermath, three devastated friends are going to have to come to terms with their own secrets . . . and somehow learn to move forward after their dream is exposed as a lie.


Kritters Thoughts:  A chick lit that took a bit to get into, but once the prologue's 911 call is explained, the story picks up and takes off.  As the reader finds out in the prologue, there is a shooting involved, but it takes quite a few pages to get into where this fits into the story.  I was intrigued by the prospect of a school shooting that is centered around adults instead of the students.  It takes a whole new perspective on how adults react to a shooting that takes place among their peers.


I wasn't immediately hooked to any of the female characters, but slowly I fell in love with each of the three main girls.  Throughout the book there was a lot of internal dialogue that sometimes repeated things that the reader already knew.  The boys in the book took a back-burner until the end when they became major players.    


I would recommend this for chick lit fans, those who enjoy a book that takes a new approach to women interactions through their work environment that spills into their personal lives.




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


April-June Challenge 2012: Brand Spankin New (April 2012)

Disclosure of Material Connection:  I received one copy of this book free of charge from TLC Book 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.  




Other tour stops:


Tuesday, April 17th: A Bookworm’s World
Wednesday, April 18th: Iwriteinbooks’ blog
Thursday, April 19th: Kritters Ramblings
Monday, April 23rd: A Musing Reviews
Tuesday, April 24th: Seaside Book Nook
Wednesday, April 25th: Walking With Nora
Thursday, April 26th: A Bookish Way of Life
Tuesday, May 1st: A Soul Unsung
Wednesday, May 2nd: Into the Hall of Books
Thursday, May 3rd: Melody & Words
Tuesday, May 8th: Knitting and Sundries
Wednesday, May 9th: The Book Chick
Thursday, May 10th: Peeking Between the Pages

Tuesday, April 17, 2012

Review: The Singles by Meredith Goldstein

The Singles by Meredith Goldstein

Publisher: Plume 
Pages: 256 
Format: eARC 
Buy the Book: Amazon  




Goodreads:  Beth “Bee” Evans’s first vow as a bride is that everyone on her list be invited to bring a guest to her lavish, Chesapeake Bay nuptials. When Hannah, Vicki, Rob, Joe, and Nancy one by one decline Bee’s generous offer, the frustrated bride dubs them the “Singles,” adrift on her seating chart as well as in life.




Kritters Thoughts:  Five single people attending a wedding without a plus one, a bride who is quite unhappy with their decision and somehow all of the singles are separated like 6 Degrees of Kevin Bacon!  How can you not fall in love with this book?  There are five people who decided against bringing a plus one even though the bride insisted - this book is about their stories, why they are single and why they decided not to bring someone to the wedding.


Each character has a few chapters each in their own voice to help bring the reader from the bachelorette party to the invitations to the wedding while giving enough of a back story for the reader to appreciate why they were invited to the wedding.  The connections between the characters is what made this story even bigger and better than the synopsis could make it out to be. 


As I plan my wedding, I loved reading about how guests may be linked to each other in more ways than one.  It made me rethink how all of my guests may know each other besides knowing me or my fiance.


Rating: absolutely loved it and want a sequel


Ebook Challenge 2012: 26 out of 25  


April-June Challenge 2012: Have a Seat


Disclosure of Material Connection:  I received one copy of this book free of charge from Edelweiss.  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.  

Monday, April 16, 2012

Review: Patchwork of Me by Gregory G Allen

Patchwork of Me by Gregory G Allen

Publisher: ASD Publishing 
Pages: 312 
Format: ARC 
Buy the Book: Amazon 




Goodreads:  A product of the foster care system, Sara Butler spends her early thirties hiding from her past while striving for a normal life with her small group of quirky friends in Arizona. Seeking treatment for an invisible rash and abnormal dreams, her therapist helps her unlock a heinous past that she is unsure she wants to open. To patch her life back together, she realizes she must travel across country to Maine to confront that past in order to plan for a future.




Kritters Thoughts: An interesting trip into a main character's past that was unexpected.  Sara Butler knew only of her past beyond 3 years old where she was shipped from one foster home to another, she resents the childhood that she had and is unhappy with the lack of family that she has in her life.  The reader takes a road trip with her and her friends that are her family to see what all lies in her past.


A book that I read in one setting because the author makes it an easy read both with the words he chose and characters that were quick to get to know and get invested in.  I loved her "gay mafia" that she learns to love as family members as she realizes that families can come in every shape and size.  


When she spoke about her distaste about the foster care system, it intrigued me as to how truthful her problems with changing homes as often as she did was in reality.  I did enjoy that at the end she found a little bit of joy about escaping the childhood that she could have had for the one she ended up in. 


I am intrigued as to where Sara goes beyond the discoveries she makes and the people she meets.  I wouldn't mind a sequel or addition to the current book to see where Sara goes with all the information that she takes in at the end.    


Rating:  absolutely loved it and want a sequel


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.  

Sunday, April 15, 2012

It's Monday, What are you Reading? (68)

A full week of reading!  But I still have quite a few reads to complete for next week!


A meme hosted by Sheila at BookJourney. 

Finished this past week:
Patchwork of Me by Gregory G Allen

After the Fog by Kathleen Shoop
Sweetness by Lindsay Paige
I'm Yours by Lindsay Paige
Arranged by Catherine McKenzie
More Like Her by Liza Palmer

Currently Reading:

Cutting for Stone by Abraham Verghese

Next off the TBR pile:

I have no clue what is coming up next!  It is actually a nice feeling!

In My Mailbox (67)





Another two weeks of books.  Sorry for the ramblieness.  Yes, I made a mistake about the Stephenie Meyer Twilightness, New Moon is the third, so I am waiting on the 2nd or 4th!


A meme hosted by Kristi at The Story Siren.

For Review:
Arranged by Catherine McKenzie  (Goodreads  Amazon)

Between Me and You by Emma McLaughlin and 
     (Goodreads  Amazon)
Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel  (Goodreads  Amazon)
Paris in Love by Eloisa James  (Goodreads  Amazon)


Purchased:
The Coffins of Little Hope by Timothy Schaffert  (Goodreads  Amazon)
The Witness by Nora Roberts  (Goodreads  Amazon)
The Next Always by Nora Roberts  (Goodreads  Amazon)


Swapped:
Two Way Street by Lauren Barnholdt  (Goodreads  Amazon)
Getting Personal by Chris Manby  (Goodreads  Amazon)
Reconstructing Brigid by Lee Nichols  (Goodreads  Amazon)
Fishbowl by Sarah Mlynowski  (Goodreads  Amazon)

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