November - a time to be thankful

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November was a fantastic month!  We had a few things going on - hosted our first party at the new house and hosted Thanksgiving, Bruno received some fantastic training where he learned to be a gentleman(dog) and I curled up with our new gas logs and read quite a many books!!  Because of November, I just may finish my reading goal of 213 books in 2013!

1. The Stranger You Know by Andrea Kane

2. The Theory of Opposites by Allison Winn Scotch
3. Me Before You by Jojo Moyes
4. Snowflakes and Coffee Cakes by Joanne DeMaio
5. The Sowing by K Makansi
6. The Sandpiper by Susan Lovell
7. The Absence of Mercy by John Burley
8. Christmas Carol by Michele Gorman
9. The Secrets She Carried by Barbara Davis
10. The Seduction of Miriam Cross by Wendy Tyson
11. The Sister Season by Jennifer Scott
12. Doubting Abbey by Samantha Tonge
13. Stones for Bread by Christa Parrish
14. The Alligator Man by James Sheehan
15. A Nantucket Christmas by Nancy Thayer
16. Still Growing by Kirk Cameron
17. Cut Short by Leigh Russell
18. Mrs. Lincoln's Dressmaker by Jennifer Chiaverini
19. The Christmas Train by David Baldacci
20. Undressing Mr. Darcy by Karen Doornebos
21. Comfort & Joy by Kristin Hannah
22. Somewhere in France by Jennifer Robson
23. The Gift by Cecelia Ahern

Total pages read, clicked, and flipped:  7,247

Where Have I Been Reading?:

New York City (2)
London (4)
Connecticut
Lake Michigan
Wintersville, OH
Scotland
North Carolina
Philadelphia, PA
Missouri
Vermont
Florida
Nantucket, MA
Los Angeles (2)
Washington, D.C.
Seattle, WA
Chicago, IL
Ireland

Author Interview: Barbara Davis

Yesterday, I reviewed the book The Secrets She Carried by Barbara Davis, today she is here for an interview!  Without further ado . . . 

1.  What do you find yourself rambling about?

College football.  It's my one real vice, and I can literally talk about it for hours when I find someone who's equally passionate.  I grew up with four brothers, so there was always football on.  I became a student of the game, not so much an armchair quarterback as an armchair coach.  I can talk offensive and defensive strategy, call plays, recite players' bench press numbers, forty times, and yards per carry stats.  And when the season is over, I fill the void by following high school recruiting with nearly equal vengeance.

2. What was the inspiration that started you down the path to this book?

Not long after I moved to North Carolina, I was sitting in the car, waiting for my husband to come out of a store when I noticed a single grave in a vacant lot across the street.  I'd seen others like it before.  You see them over the place here, on roadsides, in the middle of cornfields, even in the mall parking lot in Greenville, NC.  But this time, something spoke to me.  I started wondering who was buried there, and why.  Was anyone looking for this person? Did anyone ever visit?  Or had they, and their stories, simply been forgotten.  And just like that, in the space of ten minutes, Adele Laveau was born.  The rest of SECRETS grew up around her - and her grave.

3.  If you could put your book into one person's home, who would that be?

Oprah, hands down.  She's a smart, strong woman who has made it her business to discover and promote great books.  Her stamp of approval would be a dream come true for me.  You . . . uh . . . you don't happen to know her, by chance?

4.  Is there any part of yourself in Leslie?

I think the part of Leslie that I most strongly identify with is the "Big City" aspect of her personality, the part of her that got caught up in the office and title and lost sight of her creativity for awhile.  I had a fairly meteoric rise to an executive position in a large corporation.  All of a sudden I was a Vice President, traveling and making all this money, not realizing that it all came with a cost.  Not until I wound up jobless, with a lot of time on my hands, did I realize how little I'd been enjoying life, and how far from my true passion I had really strayed.

5.  What is next on your plate?

I'm currently putting the finishing touches on my second novel, which is called The Wishing Tide, and will be out in September 2014.  It's the story of a woman, Lane Kramer, who leaves Chicago to open a bed and breakfast on North Carolina's Outer Banks.  All she wants is to retreat from the world and put her failed marriage behind her.  The novel opens at the beginning of the off-season - the inn is closed for the winter, and a late-season tropical storm is bearing down on the island.  Everything seems to be under control until a weathered old woman full of improbable stories appears on the dunes behind the inn, and a mysterious stranger who is not quite what he seems lands on her doorstep in the middle of a storm.  Suddenly, three unlikely characters find themselves on a collision course with a past that will either destroy their fragile bonds, or forge them forever.

Thank you to Barbara Davis and Penguin for the opportunity to send questions!  I will definitely be waiting for The Wishing Tide!

Review: The Secrets She Carried by Barbara Davis

The Secrets She Carried

by Barbara Davis

Publisher: NAL Trade

Pages: 368

Format: book

Buy the Book: Amazon

Goodreads:  When a young woman returns to North Carolina after a thirty-year absence, she finds that the once grand tobacco plantation she called home holds more secrets than she ever imagined.

Though Peak Plantation has been in her family for generations, Leslie Nichols can’t wait to rid herself of the farm left to her by her estranged grandmother Maggie—and with it the disturbing memories of her mother’s death, her father’s disgrace, and her unhappy childhood. But Leslie isn’t the only one with a claim to Peak.

Jay Davenport, Peak’s reclusive caretaker, has his own reasons for holding onto the land bequeathed to him by Leslie’s grandmother. Before she died, Maggie hinted at a terrible secret surrounding Adele Laveau, a lady’s maid who came to Peak during the 1930s and died under mysterious circumstances. Jay is haunted by Maggie’s story, yet the truth eludes him—until Leslie uncovers a cryptically marked grave on the property.

As they delve into the mystery of Adele’s death, Leslie and Jay discover shocking secrets that extend deep into the roots of Leslie’s family tree—secrets that have the power to alter her life forever.

Kritters Thoughts:  Two parallel stories that mingle right from the beginning as the present and the past of this one family mix to create a fantastic story.  Leslie is escaping New York to return to the home that she escaped a long time ago.  She finds it has changed and hasn't changed all at the same time and she must decide whether this can be home again.  

The characters made this book and the secrets that they were hiding to the end.  With each chapter, I wanted to find out how the mystery would unravel and even how Leslie would react to the truth that was in her past.  I enjoyed that there were also secrets and things to find out in the current story, mystery and intrigue throughout the book!  It made me wish I had a history or family with secrets to find!

I am recommending this to all readers who love a fantastic story set in a small town.  This is a perfect book for those who may not read a ton of historical fiction because the history part is just as entertaining as the current storyline.  

Rating: absolutely loved it and want a sequel

Disclosure of Material Connection:  I received one copy of this book free of charge from Penguin.  I was not required to write a positive review in exchange for receipt of the book; rather, the opinions expressed in this review are my own.

It's Monday, What are you Reading?

What a good week in reading!  May have forgone some chores, but almost done with the reading and posting for December!!
A meme hosted by Sheila at BookJourney. 

Finished this past week:

A Nantucket Christmas by Nancy Thayer
Still Growing by Kirk Cameron
Cut Short by Leigh Russell
Mrs. Lincoln's Dressmaker by Jennifer Chiaverini
The Christmas Train by David Baldacci
Comfort & Joy by Kristin Hannah
Undressing Mr. Darcy by Karen Doornebos

Currently Reading:

The Gift by Cecelia Ahern

Twilight by Stephanie Meyer 

(this one will be here for awhile as I am reading it chapter by chapter with my sister)

Next on the TBR pile:

The Round House by Louise Erdrich

Review: The Absence of Mercy by John Burley

The Absence of Mercy by John Burley

Publisher: William Morrow

Pages: 352

Format: book

Buy the Book: Amazon

Goodreads:  Just west of the Ohio River, lies the peaceful town of Wintersville. Safe from the crime and congestion of city life, it is the perfect place to raise a family . . . or so they thought.

Life as the town medical examiner is relatively unhurried for Dr. Ben Stevenson. With only a smattering of cases here and there-car accident victims, death by natural causes-he has plenty of time to spend with his loving wife and two sons. That is until a teenager's body is discovered in the woods and Ben, as the only coroner in the area, is assigned to the case. But as the increasingly animalistic attacks continue, the case challenges Ben in ways he never suspects.

Kritters Thoughts:  A book with a serial killer with the coroner and his family at the center, what a great change to the normal serial killer book.  I loved having the main character be a different part of the investigation; it gave a different perspective on how the hunt for a serial killer can unfold.

WHAT a twist!  I have to keep this review brief because I just can't reveal anything that would ruin the spoiler on this one!  The killer came out of nowhere for me, but not too far that I felt annoyed.  It was just out of left field that I wanted to read it again to pick up on any more clues that I think I may have missed!  I absolutely adore being surprised!  

This is a psychological thriller that I would put at the top of my list, but definitely need to read something light just after!

Rating: definitely a good read, but can't read two in a row

Disclosure of Material Connection:  I received one copy of this book free of charge from Partner In Crime Tours.  I was not required to write a positive review in exchange for receipt of the book; rather, the opinions expressed in this review are my own.

Review: The Sandpiper by Susan Lovell

The Sandpiper by Susan Lovell

Publisher: KrissCross Press

Pages: 272

Format: ebook

Buy the Book: Amazon

Goodreads:  One family's story of pain, secrets, and love. 

The Sandpiper is about three Cameron women. Kate the perfect older sister. Jamie the screw-up. Their widowed mother Ellie. It's about Nina Judd, their guardian angel, the novel's heartbeat. 

Kate had the chance to know their father Dr. James. Jamie was born too late. Sisters by birth. Sisters in loyalty sanctified by a blood oath. Two bright, pretty women full of promise. Then something happens the summer Jamie turns 18 that ruins everything. 

And maybe Kate is not so perfect after all. Jamie not so hopeless. Embraced by The Sandpiper, Nina's white-shingled cottage above the endless blue of Lake Michigan, the sisters struggle toward forgiveness, toward healing.

Kritters Thoughts:  A story of sisters, mother/daughter and friends who must learn to lean on each other for help through both the good and the difficult times.  Jamie is the younger sister who has never been able to live up to the perfection that she thinks her sister is.  Kate is the older sister that became an adult at a very young age and has a hard time letting go of the caregiver role.  

I love books where the characters are the complete central and the setting takes a little bit of a backburner and the story is the heart of it all.  These two sisters have had many things to overcome as a family and individually and thankfully this is the story where it starts pretty low and there is hope for a light at the end.  There were a few moments where I wanted to knock some sense into the girls to have them see the situation through a different set of eyes, but maybe that is a lesson to be learned, not to think before you try to see it a different way.

A very character driven book that wasn't for the faint of heart.  These girls lived through some horrific moments and only a happy ending made this book worth the time for me.

Rating: definitely a good read, but can't read two in a row

Ebook 2013 Challenge: 73 out of 50

Disclosure of Material Connection:  I received one copy of this book free of charge from Booksparks PR.  I was not required to write a positive review in exchange for receipt of the book; rather, the opinions expressed in this review are my own.

Review: The Sowing by K. Makansi

The Sowing by K. Makansi

Publisher: Layla Dog Press

Pages: 372

Format: book

Buy the Book: Amazon

Goodreads:  When Remy Alexander’s older sister is murdered in a classroom massacre and the Okarian Sector hides the truth behind the attack, her family goes underground to join the clandestine Resistance movement. Now, three years later, Valerian Orlean, the boy Remy once thought she loved, has become the man who is sworn to hunt and destroy the Resistance. As Vale fights to protect his people, he must choose whether to follow in his parents’ footsteps or to blaze his own path – and with Remy’s life in the balance, his choices will change everything.


Kritters Thoughts:  Another dystopian series and although this one isn't big just yet, I think it has the power to play with the big boys in the dystopian genre.  Told through a few characters points of view, this one centers around the Sector and the Resistance that has broken off from it.  Remy is part of the Resistance and has been ever since her family suffered a tragedy while her sister was at the Academy.  The Resistance was created due to a group that disagrees with the genetically modified foods that are fed to different parts of the society to change them physically, emotionally and intellectually.  

This book was so easy to get into and the worlds were easy to understand.  As both Remy and Vale share the story, it helped show the difference between the two societies and I appreciated hearing parts of the story overlap in both of their points of view.  The other thing that I loved was the reason the Resistance broke off - genetically modifying food.  This seemed unique and different and made for a perfect plot point.  

I will definitely be looking out for the next in this series.  As there isn't too much lovin or language, I think this will be perfect for any YA reader.

Rating: YA read

Disclosure of Material Connection:  I received one copy of this book free of charge from TLC Book Tours.  I was not required to write a positive review in exchange for receipt of the book; rather, the opinions expressed in this review are my own.

Review: The Theory of Opposites

The Theory of Opposites

by Allison Winn Scotch

Publisher: Camellia

Pages: 306

Format: ARC

Buy the Book: Amazon

Goodreads:  What happens when you think you have it all, and then suddenly it’s taken away?

Willa Chandler-Golden's father changed the world with his self-help bestseller, Is It Really Your Choice? Why Your Entire Life May Be Out of Your Control. Millions of devoted fans now find solace in his notion that everything happens for a reason. Though Willa isn’t entirely convinced of her father’s theories, she readily admits that the universe has delivered her a solid life: a reliable husband, a fast-paced career. Sure there are hiccups – negative pregnancy tests, embattled siblings - but this is what the universe has brought, and life, if she doesn’t think about it too much, is wonderful.

Then her (evidently not-so-reliable) husband proposes this: A two-month break. Two months to see if they can't live their lives without each other. And before Willa can sort out destiny and fate and what it all means, she’s axed from her job, her 12 year-old nephew Nicky moves in, her ex-boyfriend finds her on Facebook, and her best friend Vanessa lands a gig writing for Dare You!, the hottest new reality TV show. And then Vanessa lures Willa into dares of her own - dares that run counter to her father’s theories of fate, dares that might change everything…but only if Willa is brave enough to stop listening to the universe and instead aim for the stars.

Kritters Thoughts:  Surprisingly, this is my first book by Allison Winn Scotch, although I own them all, I hadn't read any.  The synopsis drew me in and I was excited to read about a character that was living in the shadow of a parent and the accomplishments they had.

Willa was a likeable character and I appreciated that she was having relationship issues, but she wasn't completely whiny about them.  I also loved that even a character at this age (close to mine) showed that you can change who you are no matter where you are in life.  It took family and friends around her, but Willa through some ups and downs found where she wanted her life to go and who she wanted on the "trip" with her! 

I enjoyed this book, but it didn't completely wow me.  I thought it was a great read, I read it in one day.  I am still interested in reading some of her other books, so we will see how I feel about her after I read some of her others. 

Rating: definitely a good read, but can't read two in a row

Disclosure of Material Connection:  I received one copy of this book free of charge from Get RED PR.  I was not required to write a positive review in exchange for receipt of the book; rather, the opinions expressed in this review are my own.

It's Monday, What are you Reading?

Ok, I admit it.  I read a TON this week/weekend.  My husband spent many a nights on duty, and with the home projects dwindling, instead of catching up on the DVR, I decided to just read.  Minus a fun lunch and shopping trip with a friend and some dog parkin on a pretty Sunday, this girl was reading!

A meme hosted by Sheila at BookJourney. 

Finished this past week:

The Secrets She Carried by Barbara Davis

The Seduction of Miriam Cross by Wendy Tyson
The Sister Season by Jennifer Scott
Doubting Abbey by Samantha Tonge
Stones for Bread by Christa Parrish
The Alligator Man by James Sheehan

Currently Reading:

A Nantucket Christmas by Nancy Thayer
Mrs. Lincoln's Dressmaker by Jennifer Chiaverini

Twilight by Stephanie Meyer 

(this one will be here for awhile as I am reading it chapter by chapter with my sister)

Next on the TBR pile:

Undressing Mr. Darcy by Karen Doornebos

Review: Blogger Girl by Meredith Schorr

Blogger Girl by Meredith Schorr

Publisher: Booktrope

Pages: 249

Format: ebook

Buy the Book: Amazon

Goodreads:  What happens when your high school nemesis becomes the shining star in a universe you pretty much saved? Book blogger Kimberly Long is about to find out. 

A chick lit enthusiast since the first time she read Bridget Jones’s Diary, Kim, with her blog, "Pastel is the New Black," has worked tirelessly by night to keep the genre alive, and help squash the claim that "chick lit is dead" once and for all. Not bad for a woman who by day ekes out a meager living as a pretty, and pretty-much-nameless, legal secretary in a Manhattan law firm. 

While Kim's day job holds no passion for her, the handsome (and shaving challenged) associate down the hall is another story. Yet another story is that Hannah Marshak, one of her most hated high school classmates, has now popped onto the chick lit scene with a hot new book that's turning heads--and pages--across the land. It's also popped into Kim's inbox--for review. With their ten-year high school reunion drawing near, Kim's coming close to combustion over the hype about Hannah’s book. And as everyone around her seems to be moving on and up, she begins to question whether being a “blogger girl” makes the grade in her off-line life.

Kritters Thoughts:  Every blogger who does this as a side hobby and loves to read books of the chick lit variety, must run and pick up this book and read it.

Ok, now that you have read it.  We can all agree that this book made you chuckle, nod in utter agreement and actually made you sigh once or twice!  For a book to hit close to home, this happens, but to feel so close to the main character, this only rarely happens and from the very beginning I wanted to find out where Kim would end up.

I myself am an Executive Assistant to an amazing CEO and love the value - both monetary and emotional, that I get from my full time job.  BUT nothing gives me the joy (minus the husband and the dogs) that blogging has given me and for a character to share this with me was fantastic.  

I think an added bonus was that this blogger also reads chick lit and has a hard time talking about this "guilty pleasure" to others.  I don't know if bloggers who read other genres feel the same kind of embarrassment to divulge that not only that they have a blog, but at the heart it is a book blog - anyone?  So props to the author who made a book that reminded me why I have a book blog and that I am not the only one to enjoy this side hobby/passion.


Rating: absolutely loved it and want a sequel

Ebook 2013 Challenge: 71 out of 50

Disclosure of Material Connection:  I received one copy of this book free of charge from the author.  I was not required to write a positive review in exchange for receipt of the book; rather, the opinions expressed in this review are my own.

Review: The Supreme Macaroni Company

The Supreme Macaroni Company

by Adriana Trigiani

Publisher: Harper

Pages: 352

Format: ARC

Buy the Book: Amazon

Goodreads:  For over a hundred years, the Angelini Shoe Company in Greenwich Village has relied on the leather produced by Vechiarelli & Son in Tuscany. This historic business partnership provides the twist of fate for Valentine Roncalli, the school teacher turned shoemaker, to fall in love with Gianluca Vechiarelli, a tanner with a complex past . . . and a secret. 

A piece of surprising news is revealed at The Feast of the Seven Fishes when Valentine and Gianluca join her extended family on a fateful Christmas Eve. Now faced with life altering choices, Valentine remembers the wise words that inspired her in the early days of her beloved Angelini Shoe Company: "A person who can build a pair of shoes can do just about anything." The proud, passionate Valentine is going to fight for everything she wants and savor all she deserves-the bitter and the sweetness of life itself.

Kritters Thoughts:  WARNING: Due to being on tour for this book, this review may contain some spoilers.  

The third book finds Valentine, newly engaged as it starts just moments after the second book ended.  She gets married and then must start living as a married woman when she has spent many many years single.  I loved the juggling act of family, career and lifestyle and trying to please each part of her life all at the same time - it is such a theme that many women now have to deal with and the juxtaposition of her Italian husband who has a different view of what a woman's role should be.

A complete twist at the end took this book to a completely different level than the last two and really made me feel the closure of the trilogy.  I can't believe Trigiani went there but when I finished reading the book, I was glad she did!

Although this was the third in the trilogy that I fell in love with, I had a few issues with this one.  I felt as though the author spent quite a bit of time reminding readers what went on in the first two books.  I didn't feel this way when I read the second one, but for some reason I felt as though she took too much time to recap the first two books.  The other thing I was disappointed about was the title, I understand the title, but I just wish it had matched the first two in the trilogy.

Rating: absolutely loved it and want a sequel
(the third in the trilogy had to say goodbye to the characters)

Disclosure of Material Connection:  I received one copy of this book free of charge from TLC Book Tours.  I was not required to write a positive review in exchange for receipt of the book; rather, the opinions expressed in this review are my own.

Review: Brava Valentine by Adriana Trigiani

Brava Valentine by Adriana Trigiani

Publisher: HarperCollins

Pages: 352

Format: book

Buy the Book: Amazon

Goodreads:  As Brava, Valentine begins, snow falls like glitter over Tuscany at the wedding of her grandmother, Teodora, and longtime love, Dominic. Valentine's dreams are dashed when Gram announces that Alfred, "the prince," Valentine's only brother and nemesis, has been named her partner at Angelini Shoes. Devastated, Valentine falls into the arms of Gianluca, a sexy Tuscan tanner who made his romantic intentions known on the Isle of Capri. Despite their passion for one another and Gianluca's heartfelt letters, a long-distance relationship seems impossible.

As Valentine turns away from romance and devotes herself to her work, mentor and pattern cutter June Lawton guides her through her power struggle with Alfred, while best friend and confidante Gabriel Biondi moves into 166 Perry Street, transforming her home and point of view. Savvy financier Bret Fitzpatrick, Valentine's first love and former fiancée who still carries a torch for her, encourages Valentine to exploit her full potential as a designer and a business woman with a plan that will bring her singular creations to the world.

A once-in-a-lifetime business opportunity takes Valentine from the winding streets of Greenwich Village to the sun-kissed cobblestones of Buenos Aires, where she finds a long-buried secret hidden deep within a family scandal. Once unearthed, the truth rocks the Roncallis and Valentine is determined to hold her family together. More so, she longs to create one of her own, but is torn between a past love that nurtured her, and a new one that promises to sustain her.

Kritters Thoughts:  The second book with the Angelini family that is still centered around Valentine, but with her family taking a close second.  Valentine must decide in this book how to take the family shoe making business to the next level, but also how to work in the shop without her grandmother and with her brother.  Fantastic family drama ensued!

I raved yesterday about the characters and the setting that Adriana Trigiani has in her books and with this review trying to keep it mostly spoiler free - I have to say that I love how Trigiani balances the story and the way she moves it forward effortlessly.  With the second book in the series, I was concerned that it may falter and stall out, but instead, I was just even more invested in how these characters were going to interact.  I didn't wait one minute when I finished this one to start the third!

The second book in this trilogy and trying to make my reviews short and spoiler free.  NOTE - on tour for the third book tomorrow, review probably won't be able to be spoiler free!

Rating: absolutely loved it and want a sequel
(happy the second book was part of a trilogy)