Category: book review

November 2, 2016

DK Eyewitness Travel Guide: South Africa

For the first time in my adult life we are going on a vacation this year. Our destination? South Africa! My husband if from Southern Africa and has quite a few family members who live in South Africa so we wanted our boys to meet their family and see where their Dad grew up. We couldn’t wait to open DK Eyewitness Travel Guide to get familiar with all that South Africa has to offer.

About DK Eyewitness Travel Guide South Africa

DK Eyewitness Travel Guide: South Africa is your in-depth guide to the very best of South Africa. From exploring the Palace of the Lost City to seeing the “Big Five” on safari in Kruger National Park to experiencing the multifaceted culture of a country with 11 official languages, visiting the “Rainbow Nation” is an adventure you will never forget.To help you make the most of your adventure, this guidebook includes a field guide to South Africa’s wildlife and the safari experience with detailed information on safaris, wildlife preserves, and local species.

The guide contains:

Detailed itineraries and “don’t-miss” destination highlights at a glance.
Illustrated cutaway 3-D drawings of important sights.
Floor plans and guided visitor information for major museums.
Guided walking tours, local drink and dining specialties to try, things to do, and places to eat, drink, and shop by area.
Area maps marked with sights .
Insights into history and culture to help you understand the stories behind the sights.
Hotel and restaurant listings highlight DK Choice special recommendations.

With hundreds of full-color photographs, hand-drawn illustrations, and custom maps that illuminate every page, DK Eyewitness Travel Guide: South Africa truly shows you this country as no one else can.

My Thoughts

I am so excited to be going on this adventure with my family this year. I am also super nervous. This is the first time we have travelled as a family of four and the first big trip of my adult life. I am also super anxious and need to know everything before hand. When this guide arrived in the mail, I could not wait to pop it open with the kids.

The guide itself is visually stunning with a slightly harder cover and is easy to hold in the palm of your hand. The visuals are bright and have a combination of large, medium and small-sized photographs. The guide is divided by colours and I have to say I am shocked at how many different areas and regions there are. The guide has sections for how to use the guide, discovering South Africa and its history and then divided into areas. Each area looks at the history of the area, main sites to visit, shopping, entertainment and where to eat and drink.

We quickly went to the areas we are visiting and it had us so excited! We looked through the sections of Kruger and Sun City and already began to make plans for our visit in Johannesburg. Thank goodness we have family to help us when we are there. We gave them a few of our must see items from the guide and they are already organizing it for us on their side.

The guide is extremely detailed, thorough and will be an excellent travel company for us. This will definitely be in our carry on baggage for our trip.

You can purchase a copy of this book on Amazon and DK Canada.

Rating: 5/5

About DK Eyewitnes Travel Guides

For more than two decades, DK Eyewitness Travel Guides have helped travelers experience the world through the history, art, architecture, and culture of their destinations. Expert travel writers and researchers provide independent editorial advice, recommendations, and reviews. With guidebooks to hundreds of places around the globe available in print and digital formats, DK Eyewitness Travel Guides show travelers how they can discover more.

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

November 1, 2016

The Perfect Tear Book Review

In The Perfect Tear, Eleanor, a timid orphan, has no clue to her real purpose, but she also has no desire to become a subservient old maid, like the miserable nuns she is forced to with.

About The Perfect Tear

Eleanor, a timid orphan, has no clue to her real purpose, but she also has no desire to become a subservient old maid, like the miserable nuns she is forced to with. Eleanor believes Edward, whom she loves, will save her from being forced to take vows. She knows Mother Superior has no intention of letting her leave–her songs are the only thing keeping the grey mist at bay. Her devastation is complete when she discovers Edward is a prince and heir to the throne, but it is the impetus she needs to leave the safety of the abbey and go in search of her long lost father.

She doesn’t get far before discovering her true destiny. With only her instincts to protect her, she must match wits with a powerful being intent on the destruction of her world. If she does not find The Perfect Tear and release its healing power into the land, she will become an accomplice in the destruction of all she loves.

My Thoughts

An imaginative, unique story that leaves you wanting to know more, especially at the end! The Perfect Tear is magical with Eleanor and her connection to Tsera and the Earth, at the heart of our story.

Eleanor was orphaned at a young age but her childhood was very special. She is a special child who carries with her very unique abilities that are in tune to Mother Earth. She doesn’t understand her true purpose but she knows that her heart desires more than just being with the nuns. She is adventurous, fun and kind – just the type of friend anyone could ask for. She meets Edward, the prince and heir to the throne, but doesn’t realize who he is. They forge a strong bond of love and hope. She begins a quest that she understands in her heart but in her mind finds it difficult to comprehend as she has to save the world from destruction. This quest finds her forging new bonds, losing connections and fighting for everything she loves.

While this is going on in the human world, there is an intricate battle being played behind the scenes by Tsera, one of the ancients who designed the humans. This part was a bit harder to follow, especially in the beginning as we were given a lot of information to sort through and understand in order to fully appreciate the novel. But once you understand the history here, the novel makes so much more sense.

This was a unique tale full of surprise, hope and love. I loved every moment of The Perfect Tear and this would be a great book for both young adults through to adults.

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

Rating: 5/5

About the Author

Connie Lansberg is a singer/songwriter, scriptwriter and now author with the publication of her first book The Perfect Tear. Connie studied script writing at AFTR and has had songs placed in major Australian TV series. She has just complete an album of songs connected to the book and will be performing these live at her weekly jazz gig in Melbourne.

Connect with her on Website ~ Twitter ~ Facebook ~ Pinterest ~ Instagram

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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.

October 31, 2016

The Breedling & The City In The Garden

Absolute obedience, servitude, neutrality. This is what ruled Bartholomew in The Breedling & The City In The Garden.

About The Breedling & The City In the Garden

These were the laws that once governed Bartholomew, an immortal soulcatcher, until one ill-fated night when he was forced to make a choice: rebel against his masters or reveal an ancient, dangerous secret.

He chose defiance.

Imprisoned for centuries as punishment for his decision, Bartholomew wastes away—until he creates an opportunity to escape. By a stroke of chance, Bartholomew finds himself in the human world and soon learns that breaking his bonds does not come without a price. Cut off from the grace that once ruled him, he must discover a new magic in 1930s Chicago.

Armed with only a cryptic message to give him direction, Bartholomew desperately tries to resume the mission he had started so long ago. Relying on the unlikely guidance of the streetwise orphan Charlie Reese, Bartholomew must navigate the depressed streets of the City in the Garden. But in order to solve this riddle, he must first discover if choice and fate are one in the same.

My Thoughts

The Breedling & The City In The Garden starts out with a look at Bartholomew’s life and how he was imprisoned for a crime that we are not quite sure of what he did, we know he defied those he should never have defied but what exactly he did I was not sure. You can tell those in his life were worried about him and his survival but the only person who could save him was a human.

The book then jumps to Charlie and his very difficult life. He has lost his whole family and only has his cousin left. He has led a harsh life but has learned how to thrive in this world. He is quite an amazing young man! Even with all of his pain and suffering, it is so clear how good and kind he is. His life is changed forever when his path crosses with Bartholomew. That night changes him forever.

The novel continues to switch between Bartholomew and Charlie as the story unfolds. I found the beginning a bit harder to follow as I tried to catch up on what exactly Bartholomew had done and how it tied into Charlie. As you continue throughout the novel, this all becomes clearer and becomes a lot easier to follow and understand. The ending definitely leaves you hanging! I can’t wait to see what happens to Bartholomew and if his path crosses with Charlie again.

You can purchase a copy of this book on Amazon, Barnes & Noble and the author’s website.

Rating: 4/5

About the Author

Kimberlee Ann Bastian has a unique love affair with American nostalgia, mythology, and endless possibilities. This melting pot of elements is what prompted the creation of her epic ELEMENT ODYSSEYS series, starting with the reboot of her debut novel now titled THE BREEDLING AND THE CITY IN THE GARDEN.

When she is not in her writer’s room, working her current “day job”, or consuming other literary worlds, she enjoys hiking and cycling around the bluffs of your Southeastern MN home and catching up on her favorite pop culture.

Connect with the her on: Website, Twitter Facebook, Pinterest, Instagram.

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.

October 31, 2016

Killer In The Band Review

It’s the summer of love and murder in Killer In The Band.

About Killer In The Band

Joshua’s eldest son, Joshua “J.J.” Thornton Jr., has graduated at the top of his class from law school and returns home to spend the summer studying for the bar exam. However, to Joshua’s and Cameron’s shock and dismay, J.J. moves into the main house at Russell Ridge Farm, the largest dairy farm in the Ohio Valley, to rekindle a romance with Suellen Russell, a onetime leader of a rock group who’s twice his age. Quickly, they learn that she has been keeping a deep dark secret.

The move brings long-buried tensions between the father and son to the surface. But when a brutal killer strikes, the Lovers in Crime must set all differences aside to solve the crime before J.J. ends up in the cross hairs of a murderer.

My Thoughts

An amazing novel full of suspense and with an ending that you never see coming.

The novel starts off with the return and quick leaving from the family home by J.J., who moves in with his much older girlfriend (this was the source of quite a bit of stress between him and his Father). We are quickly thrown into a mystery from Suellen’s past – the disappearance of one of her band members and the finding of his dead body. The band members had always thought he had left to go make himself a star, never did they think they would find him alive! Suellen holds some secrets to that awful night but with her illness and time playing a factor, it is hard to keep those memories in focus. These are secrets that the band members would prefer not to be brought up since many of them would be considered suspects, especially after what he put them through!

Throw into the mysterious crime of the past that has so many loose ends, a new killer is wreaking havoc! J.J., his Father and his step-mother must set aside all of their feelings (and boy are there some unpleasant feelings between J.J. and his stepmother) in order to help solve all of these murders. And what an amazing adventure this was! There were so many curve balls thrown in but done so well that you were never left feeling confused instead it was just one more intricate layer laid down.

Killer In The Band is well written, the plot line is incredible and leaves you guessing to the very last minute and is intense the whole way through. It builds up quickly but never disappoints you at all. This is one excellent mystery suspense home library addition!

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

Rating: 5/5

About the Author

Lauren Carr is the international best-selling author of the Mac Faraday, Lovers in Crime, and Thorny Rose Mysteries—over twenty titles across three fast-paced mystery series filled with twists and turns!

Book reviewers and readers alike rave about how Lauren Carr’s seamlessly crosses genres to include mystery, suspense, romance, and humor.

Lauren is a popular speaker who has made appearances at schools, youth groups, and on author panels at conventions. She lives with her husband, son, and four dogs (including the real Gnarly) on a mountain in Harpers Ferry, WV.

Connect with Lauren: Website ~ Twitter ~ Facebook

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

October 27, 2016

The Christmas Tree Book Review

The classic New York Times–bestselling tale of friendship, generosity, and the magic and wonder of the Christmas spirit in The Christmas Tree.

About The Christmas Tree

On his annual search for Rockefeller Center’s next Christmas tree, the chief gardener spots an ideal candidate: a stately Norway spruce located on the grounds of a convent. There he meets Sister Anthony, a nun for whom the tree has special meaning. Orphaned and sent to the convent as a lonely young girl, Sister Anthony befriended the then-tiny spruce whom she lovingly named “Tree.” Over the following decades, as the tree grew, so did Sister Anthony’s appreciation for the beauty and wonder of nature.

She is reluctant to see her oldest and closest friend chopped down and sent away to New York City. But when a fierce blizzard threatens the old tree’s existence, Sister Anthony realizes it’s time to let the world enjoy Tree as she has for nearly her whole life.

My Thoughts

A sweet tale that was easy to read with beautiful illustrations throughout the book. This story follows the relationship between a young nun and her tree. The Nun, Sister Anthony, befriended Tree when she first came to the convent. This relationship was so important to her because of her past. She had lost so much and Tree helped her connect to her past and forge her future in a new role.

The Chief Gardener’s main goal is to find the most beautiful and characteristic tree each year. Which one would think is a simple job but from this story it is quite complicated! Not any old tree will work and I loved how we watch him open up about what makes the “magical” tree for Rockefeller Centre. You can see him grow throughout the story and mostly in part due to Sister Anthony and their friendship. Sometimes while we love our job, the stress of it can take away the joys. Sister Anthony helps him see his passion and love again.

Their friendship grows over years and it isn’t until one dreadful storm that Sister Anthony reflects on her past and her relationship with Tree. She decides that it is time for Tree to show his beauty to the world and bring joy to others. This is such a difficult decision for her, she has to say goodbye to a companion, a sounding board and a friend. We watch her struggle and want to just reach out to her and offer her a hug.

A beautiful and simple story of friendship, love and faith. This would make a great Christmas gift for someone special on your list this year.

You can purchase a copy of this book on Amazon.

Rating: 4/5

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