Category: iRead tour

When Blake and Soto meet in the San Cristobal, California courtroom, they begin a 120-day journey that will invariably alter both of their lives.

About 120 Days

BARBARA BLAKE is a bright, young, attractive, and ambitious defense attorney. Alejandro Soto, an inmate already serving two life sentences for the brutal murder of a drug dealer and the man’s mother, is on trial for a third murder, one he did not commit but that could well result in the Death Penalty. When Blake and Soto meet in the San Cristobal, California courtroom, they begin a 120-day journey that will invariably alter both of their lives. Together, they spiral ever more deeply into the dark heart of a quintessentially American story of sex and love, truth and lies, justice and prejudice, crime and punishment, and, ultimately, life and death.

My Thoughts

I could not put this incredible book down that centers around two very different characters. We have Barbara – an ambitious and intelligent woman who is incredibly smart and powerful in court but her personal life is quite different. She struggles with relationships and love – she has had failed marriages and she seems to have resigned herself to not meeting ‘the one’. Then we have Alejandro – a convicted murder serving two life sentences. Someone that you start off not having much sympathy for but as the story unfolds, we see a whole new side of his character. Yes, he is flawed and committed awful acts, but he has this different side of him that was created because of his upbringing.

The two characters meet in a courtroom and this begins a 120 day spiraling journey that we are left guessing constantly at where they are going. Barbara tries to feel no compassion or attraction to this man, especially a man who could jeopardize her whole career. But as we learn more about Alejandro, you sympathize with his story and you can feel the attraction and love these two have that could destroy both of them.

Their love is definitely forbidden and could destroy so much and we are left on the edge of our seats throughout the whole novel, wondering will they be caught, what future could these two have? While the ending was fantastic and suited the story, my heart was a bit sore!

This is a fantastic read – full of raw emotions, heartache, pain and forgiveness. I loved every moment of this story!

You can purchase a copy of this book on Amazon.

Rating: 5/5

About the Author

Ronald L. Ruiz is a retired attorney whose entire career was spent in criminal law as a deputy District Attorney, a District Attorney, a Defense Attorney and a Public Defender.

You can connect with him on his website and Facebook.

The Giveaway!

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

When you need help better understanding why your child feels or acts they way they do in times of crisis, or you just want to connect with them on a deeper level, learn more about temper tantrums and emotional control with Matt’s swirly world – Helping Parents Raise Mindful Kids, Understand Tantrums and Relief Stress, Anxiety (Growing Up & Facts of Life Emotions Feelings).

About Matt’s Swirly World – Helping Parents Raise Mindful Kids, Understand Tantrums and Relief Stress & Anxiety

When children are young their emotions come in peaks and valleys. Sometimes they’re super excited, sometimes they’re sad, and sometimes they lose control and express themselves by throwing a temper tantrum.

These outbursts of emotions are common for parents and kids of all walks of life and can be leveraged by parents who want to teach impulse control, improved behavior, and better mindfulness.

That’s why Matt’s Swirly World was written to help parents understand the “why” behind a tantrum as well as what’s going on inside their child’s brain when they’re acting out, feeling scared, or reacting to stressful situations.

An adorable journey featuring a mother and her young son, this book is a great reminder about how all emotions are accepted and that proper behaviors can be learned by kids and taught by moms and dads. In fact, your love is the perfect space where emotions can be processed, expressed and shared together.

In this book, parents will learn how mindfulness helps kids create better coping skills, and also a variety of other useful tools, including:

• How love can be used to process emotions and support positive behaviors
• Why feelings of anger and frustration come and go and are non-threatening
• How a calm voice and demeanor can soothe a child and minimize meltdowns
• Providing children relief from stress, anxiety, or big feelings and emotions
• How children often mimic the behaviors of their mothers and fathers
• Moving forward and adapting to behavioral changes in the future

This is an opportunity to learn and grow as a parent while teaching your child valuable mindfulness and self-control skills they can use long into adulthood. It should be the first book you read on tantrums, emotions, and how to inspire positive behaviors each and every day.

When you need help better understanding why your child feels or acts they way they do in times of crisis, or you just want to connect with them on a deeper level, learn more about temper tantrums and emotional control with Matt’s swirly world – Helping Parents Raise Mindful Kids, Understand Tantrums and Relief Stress, Anxiety (Growing Up & Facts of Life Emotions Feelings).

You can purchase a copy of this book on Amazon.

About the Author

Aspiring contemporary ballerina, commercial poet, grateful wife and mother. Certified Life Coach, BA Finance, MA Statistics ( don’t judge, I was young ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ ), now IT Product Manager. When I was pregnant with my now 3 y/o boy, I was worried of how I can raise my child to cope in a world of bullying, peer pressure, substance abuse, screen time etc. My husband told me that if we want our son to thrive in this world, all we need to do is build his self confidence & firm limits. So that’s how I started reading parenting books, and read a lot. I read tons of books on the latest research discoveries in interpersonal biology and brain development. I love anything that Daniel J Siegel ever wrote. I am also a fan of “How to talk so kids would listen” by Adele Faber and Elaine Mazlish.

For “Matt’s swirly world,” I worked with a psychologist who specialized in child development and attachment parenting. That’s because, I am above all, convinced of the immense potential every child has and their absolute innocence. I know from experience that raising kids can often feel quite differently, and challenging. I am convinced that the way to turn that potential into peaceful family lives and well balanced kids – is both intuition and science (and patience). Being emotionally available as a parent, being present for them and for yourself, to keep your own emotional highs & lows in check. Because they are good at triggering us, aren’t they? When I was 8, I had no money to buy my mother gifts; I really wanted to create joy in her heart, so I started dedicating poems to her. That’s what got me started writing.

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

The Giveaway!

Disclosure: This is a spotlight post, I received no compensation for this post. All opinions expressed are my own.