Top Ten Tuesday

Top Ten Tuesday is hosted by The Broke and The Bookish.

 

 

I am going to be completely honest...I failed at the Top Ten topic this week. What topic could I possibly fail at? Well, the Top Ten Books Dealing With Tough Stuff. This should be an easy topic right? I really don't like books that deal with "tough stuff" that much. I may have a close minded philosophy, but everyday life around the world is depressing enough. Why buy books that just depress me when I could turn on the news? Anyways, I tried my best. These are a few books that I have read in the "tough stuff" category that I really liked.

 

 

~ If He Had Been With Me by Laura Nowlin

 

You know this book is sad just by looking at the cover and you know it is sad by reading the back of the book. Despite all of this you start reading, it gives you hope, and crushes you in the end. The Tough Stuff factor- death of a young person and one or two surprise issues

 

 

~The Probability of Miracles by Wendy Wunder

 

I received this a review book and started reading it between class breaks at college. By the time I was through with the book I had to go to my mother's office (who works at my college) and sit in her office behind closed doors as I cried my eyes out. The Tough Stuff factor- Cancer

 

 

~Something Like Normal by Trish Doller

 

Military books will get me every time. I absolutely love Something Like Normal by Trish Doller. This is a book about a young soldier who comes home from war and has to learn to deal and accept what happened during his time of service and how his old life has changed as well. The Tough Stuff factor- War, PTSD, Divorce, & Death

 

 

~The Disenchantments by Nina LaCour

 

This looks like a happy, fun, summer book and in most ways it is. That's not the whole story. This book is mostly about growing up and realizing things don't always turn out like you plan. The Tough Stuff factor- Growing Up and Disillusionment

 

 

 

****That's all I have folks! Leave me a link or comment so I can check out your Top Ten!

 

 

 

 

From My Mama's Kitchen by Johnny Tan

Title: From My Mama's Kitchen
Author: Johnny Tan
Publisher: THC Investments (January 19, 2009)
Length: 150 pages
Format: paperback

Description:

Endorsed by the National Association of Mothers’ Centers and a gold award winner in the category of Inspirational/Motivational from the Mom Choice Awards®, this book is about the power of unconditional love, women empowerment, and potent leadership. Through nurturing motherly love, moms have the ability to make a positive difference in the lives of their loved ones in the roles of teacher, coach, and counselor. The book offers a wealth of wisdom for good parenting skills and communicating more effectively. Adopted at birth in Malaysia, Johnny Tan later arrived in the United States at 18 to attend college. His life’s journey led him to cross paths with several women whom he affectionately refers to as moms. His 9 moms’ insightful parenting skills and motivational words of wisdom helped him overcome the challenges of everyday living. The book pays tribute to moms all over the world in an entertaining, inspiring, and educational way. The kitchen is used as a wonderful backdrop because it is the heart of every home, and where Johnny and his moms enjoyed their many conversations. This book is designed as a keepsake for all occasions, meant to last and inspire forever. It includes a blank dedication page for readers to inscribe their own loved one’s name, and a space where readers can record their recipes for living. At the very end of the book, Johnny incorporates nine of his favorite food recipes.
 

 

My Thoughts:


From My Mama's Kitchen by Johnny Tan is a heart touching journey that show readers that a woman does not have to a blood relation to impact and impart wisdom and love. In this short book, Mr. Tan shares the philosophies of 9 women who greatly impacted his life. As I was reading and each bit of "wisdom" was revealed I kept thinking to myself," I know this" or "I always do this." These philosophies are simple, but it made me realize where I learned them from...my mother, my grandmother, and a very special lady who treated me as her own. Mr. Tan's 9 moms provided him with the universal wisdom of mothers and he in turn is passing it along through this book. From My Mama's Kitchen is sweet, insightful, and personal all at the same time. This would be the perfect gift for a child to share with the various mothers in their lives! I highly recommend From My Mama's Kitchen by Johnny Tan.


For More Information:

Learn more about From My Mama's Kitchen in this YouTube video

Spring Fling Giveaway! May 1-7

It's time for a giveaway! Eve's Fan Garden & I Am A Reader, Not A Writer are hosting an awesome giveaway hop. Two winners will receive MP3 CD copies of Shut Out by Kody Keplinger and narrated by Kate Reinders. This contest is open to ages 13 & up and you must have a US mailing address. Winners will be emailed and have 48hrs to respond or a new winner will be chosen.

Most high school sports teams have rivalries with other schools. At Hamilton High, it's a civil war: the football team versus the soccer team. And for her part,Lissa is sick of it. Her quarterback boyfriend, Randy, is always ditching her to go pick a fight with the soccer team or to prank their locker room. And on three separate occasions Randy's car has been egged while he and Lissa were inside, making out. She is done competing with a bunch of sweaty boys for her own boyfriend's attention

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Top Ten Tuesday 04/30/2013

 Top Ten Tuesday is hosted by The Broke and The Bookish.

 

 

I cannot tell you how excited I am for this weeks topic! Today's Top Ten Tuesday is...Top Ten Words/Topics That Instantly Make Me Buy/Pick Up A Book! So, this is going to be like blogger confessions. Don't judge my by my guilty pleasures!

 

 

10.) Girl-Falls-For-BFF's-Brother: I love the idea of this semi forbidden romance

09.) Boarding School: Whether rich kid boarding school or paranormal boarding school...it doesn't matter. I used to wish I went to a boarding school and they have just always stuck with me.

08.) Famous-Athlete-Falls-For-Regular-Girl: I just recently finished a book where a NFL quarterback falls for a publishing house intern. I am in love!

07.) Girl-Falls-For-Older-Brother's-BFF: see # 10

06.) Movie-Star/Rock-Star-Falls-For-Regular-Girl : I just finished Sinners on Tour: Double Time and am currently obsessed with watching Hollywood Heights...don't judge.

05.) Main-Characters-"Hate"-Each-Other: A la The Lux series by Jennifer L. Armentrout. There is just something about the sexual tension of supposed enemies.

04.) Let-Me-Teach-You-How-To-Be-A-Player/Seducer/Lessons-In-Love : You know the books where the girl is in love with some guy but doesn't know how to approach him so she gets the bad boy player to teach her how to lure the other guy in and they wind up falling in love.

03.) Best-Friends-Fall-in-Love : I think the idea of best friends falling in love is just so sweet!

02.) Kick Ass Heroines!: I love me some Rose Hathaway, Riley Blackthorn, and Tris type girls. Women who are vulnerable, but can still handle themselves are an empowering read for me.

01.) LOVE TRIANGLES! Yes, I am one of those dreaded uber fans of all things love triangle! If
 the summary/description of the book says anything to this effect I am more than likely to pick it up on that alone.

                                                                                (one of my fav love triangles of all time)

Leave me a comment and a link to your Top Ten so I can check it out!

Connected by Kim Karr

Title: Connected
Author: Kim Karr
Series: Connections #1
Publisher: CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform (March 20, 2013)
Length: 364 pages
Format: paperback


Description from Goodreads:

What if a ‘Once in a Lifetime’ could happen twice?

Suffering from a past full of tragedy, Dahlia London's soul has been left completely shattered. Happily ever after is a far cry from reality in her world. But, when she is reconnected with her past, the bonds that form are irrefutable.

When River Wilde, lead singer of The Wilde Ones, comes back into Dahlia’s life, the intensity that fires their relationship combined with underlying feelings that have never died lead her to believe she has met her soulmate.

Struggling with confusion as old connections fade and new ones begin, Dahlia's grief begins to lift--but guilt remains. River wants to be the one to mend all that is torn within her.

But with a past that is never really gone, can their future survive?

My Thoughs:

Connected by Kim Karr is a new asset to the world of romance writing. Her first novel Connected stole my heart. Dahlia London has had tragedy strike many times in her young life. Everything horrible that can happen seems to happen when it comes to her loved ones. After a tragedy that has left her reeling for years Dahlia realizes it is time to start joining the world of the living again. On her first outing she meets with a man from her past, someone who she felt an instant connection to, someone she could easily lose her heart to…River Wilde. River is no longer the unknown performing at the university student center, but an up and coming rock star. He has never forgotten his one brief encounter with Dahlia and sees this new meeting as fate. He just needs to convince her that to give them a shot. And in one of my favorite tag lines ever, “What if a ‘Once in a Lifetime’ could happen twice?”

This story has everything; a damaged heroine, the hottest and sweetest guy ever, danger, heartbreak, love, and healing. Dahlia has had life hand her one lemon after another, but eventually with the help from Rider life starts to get a little sweeter. She has a hard time letting go of her past and it constantly shows throughout the book. Heartbreak and the death of loved ones is always going to be difficult to move on from so it was understandable that she was the way she was. Now, to my favorite topic… River Wilde. River has to be one of my favorite book boyfriends ever and is the complete package having everything a girl could want. He is moderately rich, successful, can sing like a rock god bird, is caring, patient, and has to be one of the most loving book boyfriends I have ever read about. If every man was like him there would be no breakups and no divorces. You can’t get much better than River Wilde. My only complaint about these two characters and relationship in general was that River’s patience and devotion to Dahlia was somewhat unrealistic. He has held a torch for a woman he met five years ago and for only a couple of minutes? This and the fact that he is seemingly flawless were a little hard to believe. There are a few supporting characters in the book, but none of them have a major role. I wish I/readers had gotten to know a couple of them a little more. Their friends and family sound awesome and could have fluffed out what is almost a two character book.

As far as the rest of the book is concerned it was awesome. The pacing is perfect, the emotions are raw, and the love and sex are a wonderful mixture of passion, love, lust, and general sexiness. The fact that there is a small amount of mystery involved really takes the plot to a whole other level and ushers in an ending that left me with my mouth hanging open and “googling” for how I could get my hands on the sequel. If you love romance, heartbreak, and learning how to heal this is definitely the book for you. I give this book a 4 ½ STAR rating. 

***According to Goodreads the sequel Torn should be available on October 1, 2013.

The Wild Ones by M. Leighton



Title: The Wild Ones
Author: M. Leighton
Series: The Wild Ones
Publisher: Berkley; Reprint edition (March 5, 2013)
Length: 332 pages
Format: ebook (Kindle)



Description from Amazon:

Passion as hot as midnight in the South and love as wild as the horses they tame.

The darling daughter of a champion Thoroughbred breeder, Camille “Cami” Hines has a pedigree that rivals some of her father’s best horses. Other than feeling a little suffocated at times, Cami thought she was happy with her boyfriend, her life and her future—until she met Patrick Henley.

“Trick” blurs the lines between what Cami wants and what is expected of her—and he just happens to be so sexy she can’t keep her hands off him. While they both know that Trick would lose his much needed job on the ranch if anyone finds out, they can’t resist the lure of their scorchingly hot encounters.

But when Trick stumbles upon a note from his father, it triggers a series of revelations that could ruin what he and Cami have worked so hard to overcome. It turns out there’s more to Trick’s presence at the ranch than either of them knew, and secrets with the power to tear them apart…


My Thoughts:

The Wild Ones is a classic story of rich “princess” falls in love with the stable hand, sneaking around and drama ensue, and then a bombshell from the past comes to tear them apart. There are dozens of romance novels out there that follow this exact plot. That said, this story stood out for me. The characters are ones you become invested in. With the characters of The Wild Ones something bad happens and you want to tell them it will be ok, you want to tell them to quit being stubborn, and most of all you want them to be happy in the end. Cami hasn’t always been a rich daddy’s girl. She remembers what it was like to be normal and doesn’t have the rich snob syndrome that her father and mother seem to have. Cami is just a good person in general. She doesn’t want to hurt anyone’s feelings, but she can’t help her instant attraction to Trick. (This was one book where the instant attraction is actually believable) Trick is cocky, extremely attractive, dedicated to his family, loves horses, and is a good friend. What more could you ask for in a guy? Having to hide their relationship is no picnic, but they are somehow managing it. However, when past secrets are revealed they may never look at each other in the same way again.

 I loved every single interaction between Cami & Trick.  You can feel the attraction and the sexual tension between them. Let me just say… it’s hot! They are perfect for each other. They have the classic case of opposites attract: rich girl-poor boy, impulsive-thoughtful, and screw social convention-image conscious. Add into that the fact they are both unbelievably attractive, young, intelligent, stubborn, and caring…you have a match made in Heaven. One of the things that makes them so great is that M. Leighton has written not only their characters, but that of the supporting characters in a way that readers can truly feel their emotions whether it be lust, heartache, shame, or hatred. Speaking of the supporting characters...they  were every bit as amazing as Cami and Trick were. These two, although only supporting characters, developed their own personalities and I loved seeing their interactions almost as much as I loved Trick and Cami’s.  You have to love friends who know when to play and when to push you out of your comfort zone for your own good. It addition to amazing characters The Wild Ones moved at a great pace. Just briefly touching on the big “bombshell” of the story…I kind of saw it coming. However, it may be because of all of the little hints that M. Leighton dropped. She could be just that good!  Often with romance books they tend to drag and get bogged down in the tiny details or take the opposite approach and rush past the parts of everyday life that lets readers really get to know and enjoy the connection between the characters. The Wild Ones moved at the perfect pace not dragging out, but still allowing for the small details to really show how substance formed behind this insta-lust attraction. As a reader you have to appreciate that. Recently there has been a wave of New Adult/Romance books released. Some are good, some are bad, and a few are absolutely amazing. The Wild Ones by M. Leighton falls into the AMAZING category! I hope this review can get across just how much I loved this book! This is one I own on Kindle, but will definitely be buying in paperback so I can share it with all my romance loving family and friends. I give this book a 5 STAR rating!



Top Ten Tuesday 04/16/2013

Top Ten Tuesday is hosted by The Broke and The Bookish every Tuesday!

I am so excited for this week! Why? Because I get to choose any past topic I want... and I do love being in control :) Today's topic is (drum roll please) Books I Just Had To Buy...But Are Still Sitting On My Shelf. It seems I will never run out of books to put on this list. I may be an avid reader, but I'm a master collector... in my mind at least. 

10.) Getting Over Garrett Delaney by Abby McDonald~ This is one of those books I wanted during my contemporary YA kick. It now sits on my shelf going on over half a year and has never been opened.

09.) Fifty Shades of Grey by E.L. James~ I've always liked erotic romances and when I heard how amazing this book was...I said why not. I'm not entirely sure if this book should be on my list...I got 40 pages in and could not continue. So it sits on my shelf in shame, unread/unfinished, too embarrassed and ashamed to be given away, and to throw away a book is sacrilege. 

08.) The Immortal Rules by Julie Kagawa~ It sits there so pretty and dark looking, but I've just had no interest in reading it.

07.) While He Was Away by Karen Schrek~ I had just finished and fell in love with Trish Doller's Something Like Normal and was looking for another military book. Honestly, I've kind of forgotten about it until I did this post. 

06.) The Diviners by Libba Bray~ I am a chicken. This book is just down right intimidating. I am a huge Libba Bray fan and will eventually get around to it.

05.) Sweet Evil by Wendy Higgins~ This book was bought on pure peer pressure. The blogosphere was buzzing with how awesome this book is and I bought it because everyone else had it.

04.) The Lost Prince by Julie Kagawa~ Another book I bought because everyone else was talking about it. 

03.) The Fault in Our Stars by John Green~ I have to be in a mood for sad books and let's face it...all YA cancer books are sad heart-wrenching sob fests. I have to be in the mood, depressed, and looking for a good cry.

02.) City of Lost Souls by Cassandra Clare~ I love this series, but I just haven't gotten around to it. I am a horrible fan.

01.) Insurgent by Veronica Roth~ I know! This is the ultimate YA book lover sin. I have read

Divergent twice and listened to the audiobook two or three times and absolutely love this book. There is no excuse why I haven't read it. I am a horrible blogger and I am sorry :(

So...what did you think of my "confessions"? Leave me a comment/link so I can check out your Top Ten!