It's been a slow reading week this week. Been busy running this week - daughter's band concert, work, extra after school pick-ups instead of riding the bus. Not much reading done, but definitely enjoyed the book I read.
It Happens Every Spring (The Four Seasons of Marriage #1) was a limited time free download on my Kindle. (Sorry, it's not free anymore.) I enjoyed this romance/inspirational book very much. The rest of the series made my to read list. The characters were well thought out and well developed. The book showed a realistic struggle between empty nesters as they struggled to define their life and marriage after the kids have gone away. The supporting cast of characters were as well developed as the main. The side plots of the rest of the town was as interesting as the main plot. I look forward to reading the rest of the series, and hope it touches on some of the other characters in this charming town as their stories are not finished yet.
Happy Reading!
See you next week!
Saturday, February 23, 2013
Saturday, February 16, 2013
February 16, 2013 the week of romance...or not
I had every intention of loosing myself in a ton of romance books this week - I got a stack sitting here and a bunch downloaded to my Kindle, but got derailed by sickness (flu maybe?) I did get some reading in before I got sick.
I finished The Way They Were by Mary Campisi early in the week. I give it 3 stars. It started out with a lot of potential. I totally enjoyed the premise of the book and the start. Part way through it became too predictable - and unreasonable. There was so many different ways the story could have been better, so may ways the characters could have been developed better. It was an average book.
Beyond the Storm (Quilts of Love #1) by Carolyn Zane was the winner of the week I gave it 4 starts - because it made me cry too much. A tornado rips through town, a baby born in the aftermath, death, rebuilding and moving on. This one has a little bit of everything life can throw at you. And while some of the story was predictable and you could see it coming, the writing was excellent and made you feel what the characters were going through. I recommend this one to almost anyone - romance, general, christian - it has something for everyone.
The last book I finished this week was Virtually Mine: a Love Story by Susan Rohrer and rated it 3 stars. It was an OK book. While it was well written, the plot line was generic and predictable. Characters needed to be fleshed out some more, but an OK romance for a quick light read.
I am going to work on that stack of romance books sitting here now. A week of romance just past Valentine's Day.
Happy Reading! See you next week!
I finished The Way They Were by Mary Campisi early in the week. I give it 3 stars. It started out with a lot of potential. I totally enjoyed the premise of the book and the start. Part way through it became too predictable - and unreasonable. There was so many different ways the story could have been better, so may ways the characters could have been developed better. It was an average book.
Beyond the Storm (Quilts of Love #1) by Carolyn Zane was the winner of the week I gave it 4 starts - because it made me cry too much. A tornado rips through town, a baby born in the aftermath, death, rebuilding and moving on. This one has a little bit of everything life can throw at you. And while some of the story was predictable and you could see it coming, the writing was excellent and made you feel what the characters were going through. I recommend this one to almost anyone - romance, general, christian - it has something for everyone.
The last book I finished this week was Virtually Mine: a Love Story by Susan Rohrer and rated it 3 stars. It was an OK book. While it was well written, the plot line was generic and predictable. Characters needed to be fleshed out some more, but an OK romance for a quick light read.
I am going to work on that stack of romance books sitting here now. A week of romance just past Valentine's Day.
Happy Reading! See you next week!
Saturday, February 9, 2013
February 9, 2013
This was a typical reading week - three books completed. None of them really stood out as outstanding. Average books, nothing amazed me.
The first book this week was Get Some by Daniel Birch is supposed to be a gangster revenge thriller. The book had lots of potential, but was hard to read. Switching perspectives and point of view changes caused the book to be hard to read. A great story underneath, but writing style makes it hard to read. Only gave it 2 stars.
The second book this week was The Homework Trap by Kenneth Goldberg. I gave the book 4 stars. It was available as a free download for my Kindle, so I thought I would see what the book had to say as it was written by a psychologist not associated with a school. He told about his troubles with his youngest and how the school system and traditional solutions do not always work. I wish this book had been around when my daughter was in elementary school - I think his ideas would have definitely helped a bad situation. I would definitely recommend this to any parent who has kids struggling with homework and to ALL school teachers, guidance counselors and administrators. I would have paid money for this when my daughter was younger!
The last book I read this week was The Breakup by Brenda Grate and gave it 3 stars. This was a chick-lit romance. It was OK - started strong, but ended fast, almost like the author had to rush to meet deadline. A good story, but had so much more potential than it what it was. I was hoping for a good romance to get ready for Valentine's Day, but not quite what I was looking for. An average book.
Like I said, average week. Here's hoping for a better week next week.
Happy reading!
The first book this week was Get Some by Daniel Birch is supposed to be a gangster revenge thriller. The book had lots of potential, but was hard to read. Switching perspectives and point of view changes caused the book to be hard to read. A great story underneath, but writing style makes it hard to read. Only gave it 2 stars.
The second book this week was The Homework Trap by Kenneth Goldberg. I gave the book 4 stars. It was available as a free download for my Kindle, so I thought I would see what the book had to say as it was written by a psychologist not associated with a school. He told about his troubles with his youngest and how the school system and traditional solutions do not always work. I wish this book had been around when my daughter was in elementary school - I think his ideas would have definitely helped a bad situation. I would definitely recommend this to any parent who has kids struggling with homework and to ALL school teachers, guidance counselors and administrators. I would have paid money for this when my daughter was younger!
The last book I read this week was The Breakup by Brenda Grate and gave it 3 stars. This was a chick-lit romance. It was OK - started strong, but ended fast, almost like the author had to rush to meet deadline. A good story, but had so much more potential than it what it was. I was hoping for a good romance to get ready for Valentine's Day, but not quite what I was looking for. An average book.
Like I said, average week. Here's hoping for a better week next week.
Happy reading!
Saturday, February 2, 2013
January 2013 - Sorry I've been away.
I've been absent from the web lately. 2012 was not a good reading year for me - only completed 67 books all year instead of the 140-145 I usually average. 2013 is starting to look up as I have already read 21 books this year. (Although I do not think I will be able to keep this pace up all year.) My goal is 125 books for the year. I will rate all books this year on a scale of 1 - 5 stars.
I just finished To Love Anew (Sydney Cove #1) by Bonnie Leon. I gave the book 3 stars, meaning I liked it, bit wasn't wowed by it. It is classified as historical christian romance. The writing was OK - it flowed well, but it did seem something was missing throughout the book - not sure what.
Before that I finished Almost Kings by Max Doty and would give it 4 starts. This young adult coming of age story about a high school freshman and the big brother he idolizes. Very well-written - there was one point in the epilogue that blind-sided me and brought me to tears as it was happening, despite being in a busy food court on my lunch break. Recommend this one!
I also read The Husband List by Janet Evanovich and Dorien Kelly, a historical romance and gave it 4 stars. This is not your typical Janet Evanovich book, so fans of Stephanie Plum should be forewarned. A great light easy read!
A fun and easy book called Dear Cupid by Julie Ortolon was given 4 stars. This was a fun and easy light read. Recommend this one for every romance fan!
Always the Designer, Never the Bride by Sandra Bricker was also given 4 stars. It was a fun romance. I look forward to finding the rest in the Emma Rae Creations series as this was the first I've read, despite being number 3 in the series
Target: Santa (A Holiday Black Ops Campaign) by Robert A Hoyt received 3 stars, although I really enjoyed this free Kindle book. I laughed while I read this wonderful short parody - and made sure my daughter downloaded it as well. Well written action adventure against a Santa set to rule the world.
Other books I've finished in January and their ratings:
Jacob's Daughter by Samantha Jillian Bayarr 4 stars
A Negotiated Marriage by Noelle Adams 4 stars
Irreparable Harm (Sasha McCandless Legal Thriller #1) by Melissa F Miller 4 stars
The Calling of Emily Evans (Women of the West #1) by Janette Oke 3 stars
Worth the Weight (The Worth # 1) by Mara Jacobs 4 stars
Stealing the Dragon by Tim Maleeny 4 stars
Rapid Recipes for Writers and Other Busy People by Marsha Ward 2 stars (glad it was a free Kindle download!)
Cooking the Books by Bonnie S Callhoun 2 stars
Sweet Masterpieces ( A Samantha Sweet Mysteries #1) by Connie Shelton 3 stars
Summer at Willow Lake (Lakeshore Chronicles #1) by Susan Wiggs 4 stars
Harlequin Holiday Collection: Four Classical Seasonal Novellas and A Dead Guy in a Pear Tree/Seduced by the Season/Evidence of Desire/Season of Wonder 4 stars
A Christmas to Die For (The Three Sisters Inn #2) by Marta Perry 4 stars
The Knife's Edge by Stephanie Draven 2 stars
Notorious Nineteen by Janet Evanovich 3 stars
A Killer Among Us (Women of Justice # 3) by Lynette Eason 4 stars
That sums up my January from the reading front - some mysteries, some thrillers, some young adults, some inspirational/christian, some historical and lots of romance - getting ready for Valentine's Day a little early.
See you next week!
I just finished To Love Anew (Sydney Cove #1) by Bonnie Leon. I gave the book 3 stars, meaning I liked it, bit wasn't wowed by it. It is classified as historical christian romance. The writing was OK - it flowed well, but it did seem something was missing throughout the book - not sure what.
Before that I finished Almost Kings by Max Doty and would give it 4 starts. This young adult coming of age story about a high school freshman and the big brother he idolizes. Very well-written - there was one point in the epilogue that blind-sided me and brought me to tears as it was happening, despite being in a busy food court on my lunch break. Recommend this one!
I also read The Husband List by Janet Evanovich and Dorien Kelly, a historical romance and gave it 4 stars. This is not your typical Janet Evanovich book, so fans of Stephanie Plum should be forewarned. A great light easy read!
A fun and easy book called Dear Cupid by Julie Ortolon was given 4 stars. This was a fun and easy light read. Recommend this one for every romance fan!
Always the Designer, Never the Bride by Sandra Bricker was also given 4 stars. It was a fun romance. I look forward to finding the rest in the Emma Rae Creations series as this was the first I've read, despite being number 3 in the series
Target: Santa (A Holiday Black Ops Campaign) by Robert A Hoyt received 3 stars, although I really enjoyed this free Kindle book. I laughed while I read this wonderful short parody - and made sure my daughter downloaded it as well. Well written action adventure against a Santa set to rule the world.
Other books I've finished in January and their ratings:
Jacob's Daughter by Samantha Jillian Bayarr 4 stars
A Negotiated Marriage by Noelle Adams 4 stars
Irreparable Harm (Sasha McCandless Legal Thriller #1) by Melissa F Miller 4 stars
The Calling of Emily Evans (Women of the West #1) by Janette Oke 3 stars
Worth the Weight (The Worth # 1) by Mara Jacobs 4 stars
Stealing the Dragon by Tim Maleeny 4 stars
Rapid Recipes for Writers and Other Busy People by Marsha Ward 2 stars (glad it was a free Kindle download!)
Cooking the Books by Bonnie S Callhoun 2 stars
Sweet Masterpieces ( A Samantha Sweet Mysteries #1) by Connie Shelton 3 stars
Summer at Willow Lake (Lakeshore Chronicles #1) by Susan Wiggs 4 stars
Harlequin Holiday Collection: Four Classical Seasonal Novellas and A Dead Guy in a Pear Tree/Seduced by the Season/Evidence of Desire/Season of Wonder 4 stars
A Christmas to Die For (The Three Sisters Inn #2) by Marta Perry 4 stars
The Knife's Edge by Stephanie Draven 2 stars
Notorious Nineteen by Janet Evanovich 3 stars
A Killer Among Us (Women of Justice # 3) by Lynette Eason 4 stars
That sums up my January from the reading front - some mysteries, some thrillers, some young adults, some inspirational/christian, some historical and lots of romance - getting ready for Valentine's Day a little early.
See you next week!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)