Six Sentence Saturday

Welcome to Six Sentence Saturday.

Where I try to express my thoughts on recent reads using only 6 sentences!!!!.
At the end of each review I will post a
rating scale of 1-5 using the cute and original (lol) Playing Cards.
Rating scale will be as follows:

5 of Hearts- You must read this book NOW!!
4 of Hearts- A great read, put it on your TBR list.
3 of Hearts- Glad I read but no big deal
2 of Hearts- Why did I finish this?
Joker Card - Don't bother (why did I?)


If Grace Is True: Why God Will Save Every Person by Phillip Gulley
** I'm not a church goer because I've experienced so many hypocrites that organized religion turns me off. This book helped affirm a lot of things I already believe. I believe that God is kind. I believe that forgiveness is between me and God - no one else. I don't believe in purgatory, hell, fire and brimstone...but in love, kindness, and love your neighbors as you would yourself. I truly enjoyed the perspectives given by these two authors and read this book with an open mind.
My Rating:







A Year in Japan by Kate Williamson
** I loved this book. Even if you haven't been to Japan and just want to immerse yourself in their culture for an hour this would be the perfect book to read. The paintings/drawings are gorgeous and I loved the informational, yet personal paragraphs that the author included. Reading this brought back some memories of my time as an exchange student in Japan. It was interesting to note how different Niigata (northern Japan) was from Kyoto (southern) by way of traditions and food! A very fun way to spend an hour or two and highly recommended!!!
My Rating:






Rage: A Love Story by Julie Anne Peters
** I've read some of the author's other YA GLBT books(Luna, and Keeping You A Secret) and enjoyed them a lot more than I did this one. I was actually looking for a more developed relationship between the two girls. Because without that, the actual abuse that occurs doesn't totally ring true to me. Even though I was a bit let down I still think the author wrote about an important topic- Domestic violence. It occurs in all types of relationships: gay/lesbian, straight..violence knows no labels or sexual preference. I would recommend this to a young adult who is questioning whether or not their relationship with a significant other is healthy or not.
My Rating:

Introducing....Lily!!

The kids at my middle school know and ACCEPT the fact that I am obsessed with books. In fact, quite a few actually share my passion!! Over the years I've been blessed to get to know some great students that actually want to talk books with me. Today I'd like to introduce you to one of them. Her name is Lily and she's a doll. I've known her since fourth grade and let me tell you that she has the kindest heart I've ever seen in a young person. She's so caring about animals, people, causes....she's phenomenal. One of the traits that I love the most about her, is that she's beautiful, and she has no idea!!!!!!!! Truly people she doesn't!!!!!!! She decided that she wanted to start a book blog like mine because she loved the idea of getting books in the mail!!! Does that sound like some of us?? So, I scoured my bookshelves and gave her a ton of ARCs that I knew I wouldn't get to anytime soon and she literally devoured them!! I love her reviews because they're from her perspective and that is very refreshing indeed. She's very excited about being a guest blogger today and to show blogging love (because this is a great community of people) I would really appreciate it if you would follow her link back to her blog and become a follower. We all remember that person in our life that introduced us to the first book that we fell in love with and this is a way for each one of us to pay it forward!!!! Thanks friends!!

Lily-Books Recommended to Me

Embellish by R.L. Sloane

As a young girl, Solis Burkes is raped at the hands of ruthless school bullies-an incident that hunts her into young adulthood. Then she meets Nacio, a strikingly handsome man who seems to know everything about her-including the painful past Solis hasn’t told anyone about. But what Solis doesn’t know is that Nacio has been with her every step of the way, protecting her since that fateful episode.

It’s a destiny he’s been working up for the last 257 years.

Now, Solis enters a dark world of vampires, voodoo, and passion, she’ll need all the protection she can get. Unbeknownst to her, those responsible for Solis’s rape have returned. Connected to the evil voodoo Priestess Aldicia, they’ll stop at nothing in their plans to spew violence and mayhem throughout the city. And an old family feud dating back centuries puts Solis first on their list of targets. But not if Solis unravel the clues fast enough, and inflict her own brand of revenge.

Embellish mixes sexy romance with high-stakes paranormal intrigue for a keeps-you-guessing, fast-paced and savvy thriller, right up until the shocking finale.

I thought this was a very enjoyable book. I love stories about vampires and magic and one thing that I really appreciate about Embellish is that unlike Twilight, I really liked the lead character so when she was happy, it made me happy. I found that every time I picked it up, I was lost inside it and could feel and see what was going on in the book in my mind. It never seemed to drag on, as soon as I thought I knew what was going to happen, something else would! The author did a great job writing this book for readers who want to feel what’s happening in the story, and I can’t wait to read the sequel!

Thanks Lily for such a great review!!! As an added bonus, I'm giving away the book that Lily reviewed today. Here's how you can win Embellish.

• leave a comment here with your email address
• go to Lily's blog Books Recommended to Me and follow her
• blog about Lily, send me a link and I will add your name 2 more times!!!
  

This will give you up to 4 chances to win Embellish. This giveaway will close December 11th at midnight!!

Thanks to everyone for stopping by and lifting Lily up!!!!

Library Loot- December 2, 2009

Hosted by Eva at A Stripped Armchair and Marg at Reading Adventures.
We share what we each picked up at the library during the week.

First off, I can't believe that it is December!!! Where has the time went???? This year has been my best reading year to-date. The reason for that is all of my blogging friends and their wonderful reviews and recommendations. I hope you all know that when I blame you for a book that it is all in fun!!?? My loot for this week is ridiculous, so much so, that I've decided to make it into two separate posts for a few reasons. One, I'm a little embarrassed by how many books that I've checked out, and two, I have a lot of blame to pass around!! This post will be dedicated to the books that others have suggested or reviewed. These books are all YOUR fault and I thank you!!!

The House on Tradd Street by Karen White- gothic feeling fiction!

• Dar- Peeking Between the Pages
• Janel- Janel's Jumble
  
• Nicole- Linus's Blanket
  
• Heather at Book Addiction

Rebecca by Daphne Du Maurier- another gothic book and a classic to boot!!!

• Matt- A Guy's Moleskin Notebook
  
• Amy- My Friend Amy
  

Murder on Nob Hill- a very cool sounding mystery series.

• Stacy- Stacy's Bookblog
  

Secret Diaries of Charlotte Bronte- I love reading people's most intimate thoughts!!

• Nichole- Linus's Blanket
  

Year of Ice- YA GLBT book .

• Matt- A Guy's Moleskin Notebook
  

Books Read in 2009 to date: 172
Number of Books Checked out from the library:26
Book Blogger Buddies Recommendations TBR List: 293 last week 297 this week

The Book Review Club: Sew What!

This is my first review for the Book Review Book Club and I've chosen a non-fiction book to highlight today. I always browse the non-fiction section at my local library in chance that I may stumble upon a cookbook that will make me a hit at home. I'm still looking for that, but in the meantime I happened upon this little gem:

Sew What! Bags: 18 Pattern-Free Projects You Can Customize to Fit Your Needs

by Lexie Barnes

This book has inspired to me get out my sewing machine, which hasn't seen the light of day in many many years. I really liked the way the author organized the book with the beginning chapters introducing the newbie to the tools, lingo, and tips of the trade. I've been wanting a messenger bag for a long time. But frankly some of the prices that they charge for retail makes my hair curl!! Now, with the instructions that are given I feel like I can actually make one that will fit me perfectly. There are different levels of sewing in this book: newbie, pro, and dare-devil......can you guess which one I am??? I will be making my first bag out of muslin so that I don't waste any beautiful material my first go-round. If you're feeling crafty and like the idea of roaming the aisles looking at beautiful fabric, then I say pick-up this book because you might find a bag that is just right for you!!!

Teaser Tuesdays and It's Tuesday...Where Are You?

It's Tuesday...Where Are You?

I'm back in Regency England again, but this time I'm a penniless orphan who has to rely on an aunt that I've never met before. I'm on my way to their forbidding looking country house. I'm just a little nervous about all of this.
~Cousin Kate
____________________________________________________

TEASER TUESDAYS asks you to:
Grab your current read.
Let the book fall open to a random page.
Share with us two (2) “teaser” sentences from that page, somewhere between lines 7 and 12.
You also need to share the title of the book that you’re getting your “teaser” from … that way people can have some great book recommendations if they like the teaser you’ve given!
Please avoid spoilers!

She was not afraid, but she was a good deal disturbed, because it had seemed to her, for a few seconds, that the expression on Torquil's face had been almost fiendish. She shivered, and was forced to remind herself that as soon as the dog had vanished from sight so too had the fiendish look from Torquil's face, and so swiftly that she could not be sure that she had not imagined it.
p.173 from Cousin Kate by Georgette Heyer

Mailbox Monday- November 30

Mailbox Monday
is hosted by Marcia at The Printed Page.
We share what books that we found in our mailboxes last week.

The Piano Teacher
** I love this cover and the story sounds really entertaining so when I was offered a copy to kick-off this being in paperback from Gabrielle @ Penguin, I jumped at the chance.

In the sweeping tradition of The English Patient, a gripping tale of love and betrayal set in war-torn Hong Kong.Claire Pendleton comes to Hong Kong and is hired by the wealthy Chen family as their daughter’s piano teacher. A provincial English newlywed, Claire is seduced by the heady social life of the expatriate community. At one of its elegant cocktail parties, she meets Will, to whom she is instantly attracted—but as their affair intensifies, Claire discovers that Will’s enigmatic persona hides a devastating past. As she begins to understand the true nature of the world she has entered, and long-buried secrets start to emerge, Claire learns that sometimes the price of survival is love.

What came for you?

Six Sentence Saturday

Welcome to Six Sentence Saturday.

Where I try to express my thoughts on recent reads using only 6 sentences!!!!.
At the end of each review I will post a
rating scale of 1-5 using the cute and original (lol) Playing Cards.
Rating scale will be as follows:

5 of Hearts- You must read this book NOW!!
4 of Hearts- A great read, put it on your TBR list.
3 of Hearts- Glad I read but no big deal
2 of Hearts- Why did I finish this?
Joker Card - Don't bother (why did I?)


Casting Spells by Barbara Bretton
** I read a bunch of great reviews on the second book in this series and that is what made me pick up this copy. What a fun read.....I totally loved this little town in Vermont and all of its quirky and magical characters. Chloe Hobbs is a person that I would like to know in real life. Not only is she down to earth and charming but...she can knit! Something that I wish everyday I had the talent for. This one is a fast, fun read with a great romance in the works....pick it up and settle in for a cozy read!
My Rating:







Something, Maybe by Elizabeth Scott
** The first book that I read by this author was Living Dead Girl...which was an emotional powerhouse that made my skin crawl. I've been wanting to read her lighter YA fare, so I chose this one. I totally felt bad for Hannah, her mom basically does soft-porn to pay the bills and her dad is a complete rich loser who only wants to use her to promote his own reality show. With not much guidance in her life it really wasn't any surprise to me that she chose her first love based solely on his good looks. Overall, it was a fun light read but I have to admit that I kept comparing her writing to Dessen, which I feel is much stronger. I will probably try another book by Scott sometime in the future but I don't feel like my world will stop spinning if I don't read her books anytime soon.
My Rating:






Diary of a Wimpy Kid by Jeff Kinney
** OMG....I can't believe that I've waited this long to read the first one in this series. All of the kids at my middle school have been disappointed with me when I tell them, "Sorry kiddo, I haven't gotten to it yet." They basically look at me as if I was a complete and utter LOSER!! Not any longer people, not any longer. This book is hilarious, so true to how a middle school kid feels, and I have several favorite parts that I had to point out to my son Marc. If you need a good laugh and happen to have a 10-14 year-old at home then you will be uber-cool just by reading this one and sharing all your favorite Greg moments!!!
My Rating: