Category: book review

Keep Up Printing Skills With Handwriting Made Easy Printed Writing

Back To School Boutique

All kids look forward to the summer break. How can you blame them? No school, less routine and no homework. But it is so important to not stop practicing important skills even though a teacher isn’t assigning them. One of those skills is printing, especially with the junior grades. Handwriting Made Easy: Printed Writing allows your child to continue to build upon valuable skills learned at school during the summer months.

Keep Up Printing Skills with Handwriting Made Easy Printing

About Handwriting Made Easy Printed Writing

Developed with leading educational experts, this activity book is designed for children ages 6-7 and is full of exercises and activities to strengthen a child’s first skills in handwriting and reinforce the skills taught in school or at home.

This book helps kids learn to write in clear, easy-to-read print. Full of activities, exercises, and supportive illustrations that advance throughout the book from learning upper-case and lower-case letters to months and colours and finally to sentences and story writing, this workbook is perfect for kids who are learning to write.

Why We Love It

Keeping up with literacy skills is so important during the summer months. Although our children may want to skip practicing their printing skills and numbers, this is so important to make the transition back to school in the early fall easier for them. You don’t want them to forget all of those precious skills they learned in the preschool and primary grades! It will only make September harder for them which in turn is frustrating for us as parents.

Printing Made Easy with DK Canada

As parents we fell in love with the simple instructions and the activities in Handwriting Made Easy Printing. We only had to give our son minimal instructions and he was able to work alone which helped to boost his confidence. The printing spaces had lots of room on the lines with dashed lines to help guide him on how tall he should be making his letters. He loved the work book and uses it for ten minutes a day and he enjoys every minute, we have never had to push him to do the work – he pulls it out on his own. He is very proud of his work and loves to show it off to family when they visit.

This is the perfect book for the month of August as you get your children back into school mode. You don’t need to spend hours each day on it but even five minutes a day will help your child get back into school mode and boost their confidence before heading back to school. You can purchase a copy of this book on Amazon and Chapters.

Rating: 5/5

Disclosure: We received a copy of this book in order to facilitate this review. All opinions expressed are my own.

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When Death Draws Near

Litfuse Book Tour

In When Death Draws Near, death has always been part of Gwen Marcey’s job. But when faced with her own mortality, everything takes on a different hue.

When Death Draws Near

About When Death Draws Near

Forensic artist Gwen Marcey is between jobs and homes when she accepts temporary work in Pikeville, Kentucky. The Eastern Kentucky town, located deep in the heart of the Appalachian Mountains, has been plagued by a serial rapist and a series of unexplained deaths. Before Gwen can develop a composite drawing, the latest witness vanishes, just like all the previous victims.

Turning her attention to sketching the face of an unidentified body, she discovers a link between his death and a Pentecostal serpent-handling church. Serpent-handling is illegal in Kentucky, and the churches have gone underground to avoid the authorities and continue to worship as they believe. Gwen is offered a handsome reward to infiltrate the renegade members, a reward she desperately needs as it seems her breast cancer has returned.

Joined by her digitally obsessed, Generation Z daughter, Gwen goes undercover to a nineteenth century revival, planning to draw the faces of the snake handlers so they can be identified and arrested. Instead she uncovers a murderous plot and a festering evil.

My Thoughts

Gwen is a fighter, a cancer survivor and a loving Mother. She is employed in a very interesting line of work – forensic artistry, something I never even knew existed. Gwen is brought in for work in Pikeville, Kentucky where a mysterious string of rapes and deaths has occurred.

The plot is well thought out and built up, constantly keeping you guessing. The novel is full of characters and while you do need to pay attention, you will not get lost or have a hard time keeping up. I loved how the Pentecostal serpent-handling church was tied into this story. It definitely was not what I was expecting and how it was tied into the story was fascinating. We learn about their history, their beliefs and family values. While I think their beliefs are frightening at times, they have amazing family values which makes it harder to understand how they could even be associated with the rapes and deaths.

Along with her daughter, Gwen sets upon an impossible task of identifying a murderer, help to solve a case and keep them both alive. This novel was exciting and full of adventure that I just could not put down!

You can find more reviews on the Litfuse blog tour page. You can purchase a copy of the book here.

Rating: 5/5

About the Author

Carrie Stuart Parks is a Christy finalist as well as a Carol award-winning author. She has won numerous awards for her fine art as well. An internationally known forensic artist, she travels with her husband, Rick, across the US and Canada teaching courses in forensic art to law enforcement professionals. The author/illustrator of numerous books on drawing and painting, Carrie continues to create dramatic watercolors from her studio in the mountains of Idaho.

Disclosure: I received a digital copy of this book in order to facilitate this review. All opinions expressed are my own.

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Fresh Brewed Book Review

iRead Book Tours

In Fresh Brewed, Breanna is on a relaxing vacation by the ocean. When she makes up that she is Ethan’s girlfriend and he arrives, she thinks she has gotten everything she ever wished for but is it really?

Fresh Brewed Book Review

About Fresh Brewed

Breanna Mitchell is on her way to a relaxing vacation at the ocean. Maybe she’ll even have a beachside fling to help her get over a recent breakup.

But when a tropical storm makes her destination hotel uninhabitable, a chance encounter at continental breakfast delivers a fabulous option—with a catch. She and her friends can stay at a privately-owned, three-story oceanfront home—if she pretends to be the girlfriend of the owner’s heartbreaker grandson, Ethan. Since he won’t even be there, how hard could it be?

Everything is going swimmingly until Bree drinks too much wine and regales the family with romantic tales about her relationship with Ethan. His adorable brother Adam gets suspicious. His marriage-minded grandma gets engagement fever. The beautiful woman next door gets teary-eyed.

And then, Ethan unexpectedly arrives. Suddenly Bree is about to get everything she’s ever wished for—but is it what she really wants?

My Thoughts

Fresh Brewed is the hilarious second installment in The Continental Breakfast Club series. In this book, we find Bree and her friends travelling to the ocean to get away from it all, men, relationships and life in general. A tropical storm almost stops their plans in their tracks unless Bree can pretend to be the girlfriend of Ethan, a total handsome, heart breaker who has never held a serious relationship. Bonus, he isn’t even in the country, so how hard can it be?

That is when it all goes south! Poor Bree drinks too much on the first night (this was too funny!) and instead of helping her own cause may have set engagement fever in the home and causes some suspicion with Ethan’s brother, Adam. On the second day, Bree can’t help but feel the attraction to Adam but she has to learn to hide this attraction even though as the reader you can see that Adam would be just perfect for her, which is so difficult to read through when you want the best for her. Chaos really rains freely when Ethan arrives! Bree just wasn’t ready for her “perfect” boyfriend to appear in real life and neither is Ethan! You can just begin to imagine the hilarious scenes that follow, each one even better then the last one!

Fresh Brewed is as well written, if not even more so, then the Over Easy. I felt immediately drawn into the story and part of it. It is written in a personal way, almost like a conversation with your best friend. You can’t help but love Bree! She is just such a normal girl who gets caught up in a plan that you have never heard of before. You will love each moment in the second installment in The Continental Breakfast Club series.

You can purchase a copy of this book on Amazon.

Rating: 4.5/5

About the Author

Pamela Ford is the award-winning author of contemporary and historical romance. She grew up watching old movies, blissfully sighing over the romance; and reading sci-fi and adventure novels, vicariously living the action. The combination probably explains why the books she writes are romantic, happily-ever-afters with plenty of plot – and often lots of laughter.

After graduating from college with a degree in Advertising, Pam merrily set off to earn a living, searching for that perfect career as she became a graphic designer, print buyer, pantyhose sales rep, public relations specialist, copywriter, freelance writer – and finally author. Pam has won numerous awards including the Booksellers Best, the Laurel Wreath, and a gold medal IPPY in the Independent Book Publisher Awards. She is a Kindle Book Awards finalist and a two-time Golden Heart Finalist. She lives in Wisconsin where she is working on her next novel. You can connect with her through her website, Twitter and Facebook.

The Giveaway

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Disclosure: I received a digital copy of this book in order to facilitate this review. All opinions expressed are my own.

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Over Easy Book Review

iRead Book Tours

In Over Easy, when Allie meets the man of her dreams, she thinks this is it. All of a sudden her whole life is turned upside down in a strange turn of events.

Over Easy Book Review

About Over Easy

Allie Parker’s had enough. Just because she’s a dog groomer, her overachieving family of doctors and lawyers treats her like a child. She’s convinced that a successful husband is all she needs to change their attitudes. So when she and her friends come up with a brilliant new way to meet eligible men, Allie squeezes into her sister’s stylish clothes and sneaks into continental breakfast at an upscale hotel to find herself the perfect guy.

Before Allie has taken her last bite of syrup-laden waffle, she’s met the man of her dreams. But what she doesn’t know is that he’s a jewel thief who mistakenly thinks she’s his contact—and so does everyone else who’s after his stash of diamonds.

Suddenly Allie’s world is crazily upended. And as she scrambles to prove her innocence and get back to her old life, she discovers happily ever after sneaks up when you least expect it.

My Thoughts

Over Easy is a fun, romantic comedy that will take you through some crazy moments and moments of pure joy and throughout it all, Over Easy is one book you just can’t put down.

Over Easy is so well written, Pamela writes as though you are an active member in the story. As if you are having a conversation with Allie, your best friend, as she relays the story of her life. It made me laugh, made me worried for her and really helped to connect me with her character.

The plot is one you have never read before, which I loved! Who would have thought – finding love at the continental breakfast?? But it was this crazy idea that drags Allie and her friends through quite the ordeal! Allie, who can’t bear the thought of showing up at a family event without a partner in toe (I think so many of us could relate to this!) decides to follow her friends plan to meet a man at the continental breakfast. The man she meets? A jewel thief! At the time, she has no idea but it is later when she begins to be chased by his contacts that his true identity is revealed and leaves Allie desperate for help. In this time of desperation, a special person steps up to help her. I can’t reveal too much but it was an awesome turn of events!

Over Easy is a fun, romantic comedy that you will love from start to finish, never wanting to put it down because you just can’t wait to see what Allie gets up to next!

You can purchase a copy of the book on Amazon and Barnes & Noble.

Rating: 4.5/5

About the Author

Pamela Ford is the award-winning author of contemporary and historical romance. She grew up watching old movies, blissfully sighing over the romance; and reading sci-fi and adventure novels, vicariously living the action. The combination probably explains why the books she writes are romantic, happily-ever-afters with plenty of plot – and often lots of laughter.

After graduating from college with a degree in Advertising, Pam merrily set off to earn a living, searching for that perfect career as she became a graphic designer, print buyer, pantyhose sales rep, public relations specialist, copywriter, freelance writer – and finally author. Pam has won numerous awards including the Booksellers Best, the Laurel Wreath, and a gold medal IPPY in the Independent Book Publisher Awards. She is a Kindle Book Awards finalist and a two-time Golden Heart Finalist. She lives in Wisconsin where she is working on her next novel.

You can connect with her on her website, Twitter and Facebook.

The Giveaway!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Disclosure: I received a digital copy of this book in order to facilitate this review. All opinions expressed are my own.

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A Beauty Refined Book Review

Litfuse Book Tour

In A Beauty Refined, what does it take to reveal the true beauty of a hidden gem?

A Beauty Refined Book Review

About A Beauty Refined

Phoebe Von Bergen, the daughter of a German count, is excited to visit America for the first time while her father purchases sapphires in Helena, Montana. Little does she know, however, that her father’s intentions–both for her and the gemstones–are not what she thinks.

Ian Harper, a lapidary working in Helena, finds the dignified young woman staying at the Broadwater Hotel more than a little intriguing. Yet the more he gets to know her, the more he realizes that her family story is based on a lie–a lie she has no knowledge of. And Ian believes he knows the only path that will lead her to freedom.

Meeting Ian has changed everything for Phoebe, and she begins to consider staying in America, regardless of her father’s plans. But she may not be prepared for the unexpected danger that results when her family’s deception begins to unravel.

My Thoughts

A beautiful story of a quiet, young lady whose tragic loss of her Mother at a young age has shaped her and her attitudes. The loss of her Mother had left her alone to her Father, and while you can see he loves – his bullying ways and mean manners to others has carved out a very different personality for Phoebe. It hurt to watch her in the beginning when she would rather be quiet then voice her opinions and to never ever show emotion. I can’t even begin to imagine how it would feel not to show emotions – I am a highly emotional person!

When she meets Ian by chance in the hotel’s pool, her life changes course drastically. Her Father has held back the truth from Phoebe since she was a young child and this caused her so much heartbreak, when she realizes the truth we see a new Phoebe. A strong, willful young woman who is ready to fight for what she knows is right.

While a budding romance begins between Ian and Phoebe, I love the story of Phoebe, her Father and her Mother and how it is tied into the romance. This plot actually takes centre stage in my mind and I loved it. It gave the story that much more to it.

A beautiful, well written story of heartbreak, promises, hope and faith. I loved watching Phoebe grow and although the ending has some sadness it is also full of hope for a special future. While this is book two, you will have no problem picking up the story and characters. A great read!

You can find more reviews on the Litfuse Blog Tour page. You can purchase a copy of the book Litfuse Blog Tour.

Rating: 4/5

About the Author

Tracie Peterson is the bestselling, award-winning author of more than one hundred books. Tracie also teaches writing workshops at a variety of conferences on subjects such as inspirational romance and historical research. She and her family live in Montana.

Disclosure: I received a digital copy of this book in order to facilitate this review. All opinions expressed are my own.

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