Audiobook: The Perfect Gift- Mackenzie Family Christmas

 
Read by Angela Dawe
Duration:  5 hours

The Mackenzies gather for a clan Christmas and Hogmanay in Scotland. In the chaos of preparations for the celebration--the first of Hart and Eleanor's married life--one of Ian's Ming bowls gets broken, and the family scrambles to save the day. Daniel busily runs a betting ring for everything from the hour Eleanor's baby will arrive, to whether Mac's former-pugilist valet can win a boxing match. Ian begins a new obsession, and Beth fears that the loss of one of his precious bowls has made him withdraw once more into his private world.

Goodreads 

Library Love: Horrorstor by Grady Hendrix

Something strange is happening at the Orsk furniture superstore in Cleveland, Ohio. Every morning, employees arrive to find broken Kjerring bookshelves, shattered Glans water goblets, and smashed Liripip wardrobes. Sales are down, security cameras reveal nothing, and store managers are panicking.

To unravel the mystery, three employees volunteer to work a nine-hour dusk-till-dawn shift. In the dead of the night, they’ll patrol the empty showroom floor, investigate strange sights and sounds, and encounter horrors that defy the imagination.

A traditional haunted house story in a thoroughly contemporary setting, Horrorstör comes packaged in the form of a glossy mail order catalog, complete with product illustrations, a home delivery order form, and a map of Orsk’s labyrinthine showroom.

Goodreads

Audiobook: All Is Calm/All Is Bright

During the holidays, I like to read winter reads that focus on Christmas. However, my mood lately has been gearing towards suspenseful and spooky books. Well, might as well combine the two: Suspenseful Christmas stories.

Read by Pam Turlow
Duration: 4 hours and 19 minutes

All is Calm
Brendan Waddell needs a place to recuperate. Lauren Everman needs a place to hide. It’s going to be an unexpectedly romantic Christmas at Bluebird Ranch.
All is Bright
A romantic, Christmas wedding at her seaside hotel gives Delilah a chance to shine with her unique gifts. But will her light be snuffed out before the bride and groom say “I do”?

Overdrive  *  Goodreads

#ShelfLove: Dark Water by Koji Suzuky

A haunting collection of short stories from Koji Suzuki, author of the smash thriller, Ring, which spawned the hit film and sequels. The first story in this collection has been adapted to film.

Goodreads

My Thoughts: This book had been in my TBR pile for over ten years, so I was glad to finally scratch it off my list. I really loved the Japanese movie, Dark Water. It was creepy and heartbreaking. The American movie adaptation was not as great. Having the Japanese movie in mind, I was hoping this book would have the same emotions that I felt when I watched the film. Unfortunately, I was not expecting it to be a collection of short stories (I did not read the synopsis) so I was a little disappointed. 

Audiobook: Cruel Beauty by Rosamund Hodge

Read by: Elizabeth Knowelden
 Audio Length: 10.25 hours

Based on the classic fairy tale Beauty and the Beast, Cruel Beauty is a dazzling love story about our deepest desires and their power to change our destiny.

Since birth, Nyx has been betrothed to the evil ruler of her kingdom—all because of a foolish bargain struck by her father. And since birth, she has been in training to kill him.

With no choice but to fulfill her duty, Nyx resents her family for never trying to save her and hates herself for wanting to escape her fate. Still, on her seventeenth birthday, Nyx abandons everything she’s ever known to marry the all-powerful, immortal Ignifex. Her plan? Seduce him, destroy his enchanted castle, and break the nine-hundred-year-old curse he put on her people.

Mini Reviews: Lover Eternal and Lover Awakened

I listened to these audios around September time but I never got to share my thoughts on them. They are re-reads as I prepare myself to continue reading the rest of the series. :)

Lover Eternal

Read by Jim Frangione
Duration: 14 hours and 18 minutes

Goodreads

The second book in the Blackdagger Brotherhood was about Rhage. Rhage was known as "Hollywood." He looked like a god and was able to get any woman he wanted. He also had a dragon tattoo on his back that controlled him (he actually turned into a dragon *gasp*). Though he was a "tortured" being, he cannot help but fall in love with Mary. Unfortunately, Mary was dying and there was nothing Rhage could have done to save her.

Hello! ~Update~

Hello, peeps! It has been a while since I've been around the book blogging world. If any one of you are still visiting my blog and wondering what has happened to me, well here's an update:

I've been super busy trying to balance my new career life as a resource specialist. I knew this job was not easy but I was not expecting how much it was going to affect me mentally. Do I enjoy my new job? Yes and no. I love my students but I dislike the paperwork. In fact, I am head over heels with paperwork that I don't have that much time to teach. I rely heavily on my substitute and my instructional aide to hold the fort for me, especially when I go to meetings. 

#ShelfLove: A Kiss to Remember by Lisa Medeiros

Review contains spoilers 

AWAKENED BY A KISSLaura Fairleigh needs a husband. If she is to keep a roof over her siblings heads, the prim rectors daughter must wed by her twenty-first birthday. When she finds a mysterious stranger with the face of an angel and the body of Adonis unconscious in the forest and with no memory of his name or his past, she decides to claim him for her own. Little does she know that her fallen angel is really the devil in disguise.

Sterling Harlow, the notorious rake known as the Devil of Devonbrooke, awakens to the enchanting kiss of a lovely young woman who informs him he is her long-lost betrothed. With her sun-kissed cheeks and smattering of freckles, she looks every inch the innocent, but her curves possess a womans allure. When she assures him he is the perfect gentleman, he wonders if hes lost his wits as well as his memory. He would have sworn he was not a man to be satisfied with mere kisses especially from lips as sweet and luscious as Laura's. As he attempts to uncover the truth before their wedding night, A Kiss To Remember ignites a passion neither of them will ever be able to forget....

 Goodreads

Audiobook: The Other Einstein by Marie Benedict

Read by Mozhan Marno
Duration: 8 hours and 40 minutes

In the tradition of The Paris Wife and Mrs. Poe, The Other Einstein offers us a window into a brilliant, fascinating woman whose light was lost in Einstein's enormous shadow. This is the story of Einstein's wife, a brilliant physicist in her own right, whose contribution to the special theory of relativity is hotly debated and may have been inspired by her own profound and very personal insight.

Mitza Maric has always been a little different from other girls. Most twenty-year-olds are wives by now, not studying physics at an elite Zurich university with only male students trying to outdo her clever calculations. But Mitza is smart enough to know that, for her, math is an easier path than marriage. And then fellow student Albert Einstein takes an interest in her, and the world turns sideways. Theirs becomes a partnership of the mind and of the heart, but there might not be room for more than one genius in a marriage.

Goodreads

Christmas in July: Miss Kane's Christmas

With Christmas only three days away, Carol Claus agrees to her father’s request that she leave the North Pole on a mission to help save Christmas. Joining single father Ben Hanson and his children for the holidays seems an easy enough task until Santa informs her that Ben is the man behind the disturbing new book ‘Beyond Bah Humbug: Why Lying to Your Children about Santa Claus is a Bad Idea’.

Posing as Miss Kane, the children’s new nanny, Carol pulls out all the stops to show Ben how fun Christmas can be, all the while struggling to understand how one man could hate the holidays so much. How could she, Santa’s only daughter, be so attracted to a man who refuses to believe her father exists?

Goodreads

High Summer Readathon 2017 Wrap-up

The High Summer Readathon was hosted by Seasons of Reading. It ran from July 17th to July 30th, and boy...It flew by!

I thought I was going to finish more books than I did since it was a two week readathon, but my personal life was too distracting. I really need to have this sign posted every time I read:

Review: Parent Teacher Association by Jennifer Soosar

This review is for an ARC copy from the author.

Thank you to Wendy from Wall-to-Wall Books for introducing me to this book!

A small town with a bad reputation. A troubled new teacher. An aggressive mother with a bizarre agenda. Welcome to Splinter Wood, Pennsylvania.Fresh out of a mental hospital, Lizanne Demeter is thrilled to get a second chance at her career when she's hired to teach third grade in the backwater town of Splinter Wood, Pennsylvania. But hopes for a peaceful new life are ruined when Naomi Seabrook, a demanding ‘helicopter mom’, pushes Lizanne to the brink.

While struggling to maintain control of her classroom, Lizanne begins to unravel the secret behind Naomi’s hell-bent agenda. As deadly clues emerge, Lizanne suspects Naomi is guilty of more than just overindulging her child.With her life teetering on chaos, Lizanne risks everything to expose the shocking truth. But first, she must race against her own spiraling sanity to prove herself a more dedicated teacher than anyone dared imagine—the kind of teacher who makes ALL the difference.

Amazon  •  Black Opal Books  •  Smashwords  • Barnes & Noble • Kobo • iTunes • Scribd

Book dress

So last week, something special arrived. I ordered a dress from Amazon as a gift for myself in becoming a teacher. I did not realize how excited I was until I got the package.

After ripping apart the packing, there was this cute box:

I knew I had to take a picture of it because it was adorable. 

Audiobook: Stargirl by Jerry Spinelli

Read by John Ritter
Duration: 4 hours and 24 minutes

Stargirl. From the day she arrives at quiet Mica High in a burst of color and sound, the hallways hum with the murmur of “Stargirl, Stargirl.” She captures Leo Borlock’s heart with just one smile. She sparks a school-spirit revolution with just one cheer. The students of Mica High are enchanted. At first.

Then they turn on her. Stargirl is suddenly shunned for everything that makes her different, and Leo, panicked and desperate with love, urges her to become the very thing that can destroy her: normal. In this celebration of nonconformity, Newbery Medalist Jerry Spinelli weaves a tense, emotional tale about the perils of popularity and the thrill and inspiration of first love.

Goodreads

Library Love: Frida Kahlo (Libro en Espanol)

Frida Kahlo: Una Biografía por María Hesse

*This post contains both Spanish and English (after the first) reviews. Book blurb will be in Spanish only.*

Inspirado en las vivencias de la iconica pintora mexicana, Frida Kahlo, este libro ofrece un hermoso paseo ilustrado por su vida y su obra.
Frida fue algo mas que dolor y angustia. Quiso ser fiel a su arrolladora personalidad y se convirtio en una artista llena de vida. Su pintura es fiesta, color, sangre y vida. Fue una luchadora que decidio ponerse el mundo por montera y una mujer apasionada que no se conformo con estar a la sombra de su gran amor, el pintor Diego Rivera. Frida decidio vivir con intensidad, tanto las desgracias como las alegrias que le deparo la existencia. 

"Pies, para que los quiero si tengo alas para volar."

Goodreads 

#ShelfLove: The Name of this Book is Secret

Warning: this description has not been authorized by Pseudonymous Bosch. As much as he'd love to sing the praises of his book (he is very vain), he wouldn't want you to hear about his brave 11-year old heroes, Cass and Max-Ernest. Or about how a mysterious box of vials, the Symphony of Smells, sends them on the trail of a magician who has vanished under strange (and stinky) circumstances. And he certainly wouldn't want you to know about the hair-raising adventures that follow and the nefarious villains they face. You see, not only is the name of this book secret, the story inside is, too. For it concerns a secret. A Big Secret.

Goodreads

My Thoughts: Shhh!!! I can't say much about this book because it's a secret! Just kidding. I would share my thoughts on this children's book without revealing too much about the plot or characters.

#ShelfLove: The Mask

He travels only at night, shrouded by darkness, his visage shielded by a leather mask. After 11 years, Galen Tarrant, Lord of Rosenthorn, rides back from the Crusades to reclaim his lands, only to stumble upon the most beautiful creature he has ever seen. In her arms he feels complete, but cannot allow himself to take her innocence when the demons of his past threaten to destroy everything he touches.

Goodreads

My Thoughts: I've had this book for many, many years in my shelves. I was so happy to finally get started on this! I remember getting this book because it was Phantom of the Opera and Beauty and the Beast themed, and I love both stories! I was looking forward to reading this book but unfortunately, it was not as great as I thought.

Little Free Library Adventures #6

Hello readers!

I was in the Santa Ana area and saw that there were seven LFLs. I was hoping to find all of them but, unfortunately, I was only able to visit two because I began to have car problems. But that's okay. I know that I can always go back and try to find the rest on a different day. 

These are the two libraries that I visited:

Santa Ana

High Summer Readathon 2017 Sign-up

Yay! It's time to join a readathon!!!!

The High Summer Readathon is hosted by Seasons of Reading. It runs from July 17th to July 30th. I enjoy the readathons from Seasons of Reading because they are low key. The whole point is to read for fun and at your own pace. You can read more of the official guidelines on the Seasons of Reading blog.

Library Bar in Los Angeles

Finally!!!! I have finally visited this awesome bar! I've been wanting to go ever since it opened a couple of years ago. My good co-worker friend took me here to celebrate my success in getting my teaching credential and obtaining a teaching job. I was super excited to be celebrating in this place!

Audiobook: Asylum by Madeline Roux

Read by Michael Goldstrom
Duration: 6 hours & 45 minutes

Once you get in, there's no getting out.

For sixteen-year-old Dan Crawford, a summer program for gifted students is the chance of a lifetime. No one else at his high school gets his weird fascinations with history and science, but at the New Hampshire College Prep program, such quirks are all but required.

Dan arrives to find that the usual summer housing has been closed, forcing students to stay in the crumbling Brookline dorm—formerly a psychiatric hospital. As Dan and his new friends Abby and Jordan start exploring Brookline's twisty halls and hidden basement, they uncover disturbing secrets about what really went on here . . . secrets that link Dan and his friends to the asylum's dark past. Because it turns out Brookline was no ordinary psych ward. And there are some secrets that refuse to stay buried.

This mind-bending listening experience blurs the lines between past and present, friendship and obsession, genius and insanity.

Overdrive

Library Love: Persepolis

I read the two part autobiographical story of Marjane Satrapi. I know that the newer editions combine both books into one graphic novel. I will review both parts separately since I read them at separate times:

Persepolis: The Story of a Childhood by Marjane Satrapi

My thoughts: In part one, Marjane recounted her childhood in Iran during the Islamic Revolution. She gave a brief history of her country and explained the revolution through the eyes of a child. Marjane was well educated. She was raised by two progressive parents who encouraged Marjane to think for herself and be outspoken. As a young girl caught in a war, she was fascinated with death. People who died fighting in the war became her heroes. Marjane did not fully understand the meaning behind all of the violence; she thought that everything was for a good cause.

Library Love: Everything, Everything by Nicola Yoon

My disease is as rare as it is famous. Basically, I’m allergic to the world. I don’t leave my house, have not left my house in seventeen years. The only people I ever see are my mom and my nurse, Carla.

But then one day, a moving truck arrives next door. I look out my window, and I see him. He’s tall, lean and wearing all black—black T-shirt, black jeans, black sneakers, and a black knit cap that covers his hair completely. He catches me looking and stares at me. I stare right back. His name is Olly.

Maybe we can’t predict the future, but we can predict some things. For example, I am certainly going to fall in love with Olly. It’s almost certainly going to be a disaster.

Goodreads

Little Free Library Adventures #5

Hello everyone! I decided to treat myself this past Monday on a small adventure in surrounding cities. Here are some cute LFLs that I found:

Fullerton

 

#ShelfLove Challenge 2017: Mid-year Check-in

The #ShelfLove Challenge 2017 is co-hosted by Chapter Break and Second Run Reviews.

Okay...This is embarrassing. I hardly read books from my shelves these past few months. In fact, I've only read 2. Yup, 2...

 

Bibliophile's Summer Reading Challenge 2017

BRG's 2017 Road Trip Summer Reading Challenge

Hello Peeps!
For those who are on Goodreads and are seeking a fun reading challenge for the summer, I am hosting one over at our Bibliophile Reading Group. The theme for this year is: ROAD TRIP!

Here are the rules (Thanks to Lisa for paraphrasing):

• The books have to take place 100% in the United States.
• You have to read at least one BOTM throughout the months of June, July, and August, and participate in the discussion questions
• A book can take place in more than one state, but the state only counts if at least one whole chapter takes place in that state.
• The number of pages= the number of miles traveled.  For an audiobook, 2 minutes= 1 mile.
• The book has to be a minimum of 50 pages (100 minutes on audio).  Graphic novels and picture books do not count.
• There will be random "detours" along the way; mini challenges that are optional to take, where you would be awarded extra raffle entries.

Library Love: Shadow House, You Can't Hide by Dan Poblocki

Shadow House will find you . . .

Poppy, Marcus, Dash, Dylan, and Azumi are all trapped within Shadow House, a sinister estate where past and present intertwine. As they fight to find a way out, the kids think the ghosts of the house are the greatest danger they face. Little do the kids know it's the secrets they're each hiding that will prove even more lethal.

They're going to have to come face to face with their fears if they stand any hope of escaping the house alive. Is there anyone or anything in the house they can trust? Or is all hope disappearing, too...

Enter Shadow House . . . if you dare.

Goodreads

Teaser Tuesdays #121

Teaser Tuesday is a weekly bookish meme hosted by The Purplebooker.

Here are the rules:

• Grab your current read
• Open to a random page
• Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
• BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
• Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!


My Teaser:
 

Audiobook: Dark Lover by JR Ward

Read by Jim Frangione
Duration: 13 hours & 36 minutes

The first novel of J. R. Ward's New York Times bestselling Black Dagger Brotherhood series features a unique take on vampire lore and heavy doses of sensuality. The vampire Darius fears for the life of his half-breed daughter, who is unaware of her unusual destiny. To oversee her transformation, Darius seeks help from Wrath, a dangerous loner and the world's only purebred vampire.

Audiobooks.com

My Thoughts: I first read this book years ago and I remembered loving it. I went on to read the next two books in the series and I couldn't wait to read the fourth book. But like I do with the majority of series, I always stop at the third book (I guess I'm a trilogy type of girl). However, the Black Dagger Brotherhood series kept calling out to me. I wanted to finish the it so I had to retrace my steps back to book one because...for the life of me, I could not remember what it was about! So instead, I decided to re-read the first book as an audio to help me remember what the series was about.

Children's Book: The Invisible Dog by Dick King-Smith

Illustrated in black-and-white. When her parents can't afford a new pet, seven-year-old Janie invents one. Her new pretend dog is Henry, an invisible Great Dane who eats invisible food bought with invisible money. Then some mysterious events--and perhaps a touch of magic--bring the invisible Henry to life.

Goodreads

Mini Reviews: 2 Audiobooks

Okay...here are some way over-due reviews on some audios that I listened to while finishing school:
 

Audiobook: The Book of Broken Hearts by Sarah Ockler

Teaser Tuesday #120

Teaser Tuesday is a weekly bookish meme hosted by The Purplebooker.

Here are the rules:

• Grab your current read
• Open to a random page
• Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
• BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
• Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!


My Teaser:
 

I'm back!

I'm back! Did you miss me? Not really? Oh well...That's okay. lol
For anyone who might be reading this, I've been inactive these past few months because I was finishing my credential program. And yes...I finished!!!! I am so thrilled to be done after two long years of hard work and staying away from things that I love to do: dance, hike, read, and blog. 

I was so excited to be done that I went to the library this morning and checked out all of these even though I have hundreds of books at home:

Mini Reviews: 3 Children's Books

Okay...*sigh* 
Here is another round of mini reviews for you since I cannot find the time or motivation to write full reviews for each one. I do hope that my brief thoughts can shine a little light on these wonderful books.

* * *

Third Grade Angels by Jerry Spinelli

This was a cute and super quick story of a boy named Suds. He was entering the third grade, the grade known to be the "Angels." He wanted to be the perfect Angel and wanted to be the first in his class to receive the halo. 

Mini Reviews: Audiobook and #ShelfLove

So...I've been completely terrible in trying to write my posts, especially reviews, lately. I've read a few books here and there, but for some reason I can't make myself type up what I think of them. I mean, I do try. I have started many posts. In fact, I have six drafts saved up right now but....I can't seem to finish them. I start typing and then, WHAM! I don't want to write anymore after two to three sentences.  Perhaps I have writer's block? Hmmm...

After a few weeks of finishing the following books, I decided to do mini reviews of them instead. I figured, I should at least say something about them before I forget how I feel about them. Well, here goes!

Audiobook: The Haunting of Maddy Clare by Simone St. James

Read by Pamela Garelick
Duration: 9 hours & 56 minutes

Overdrive  *  Goodreads

Friday Posts #14

It's that time again! It's time to participate in the many memes happening on Fridays.  
The first three memes will be focusing on the book...


Shadow House: The Gathering
by Dan Poblocki

Friday 56 is hosted by Freda's Voice and Book Beginnings is hosted by Rose City Reader. The idea is to share a sentence or so from the first page and the 56th page of the book you are currently reading!

Six Word Summary is hosted by the (book) supplier. The idea of the meme is to summarize a book using only six words. 


Boy...I keep forgetting to publish my posts for Friday. Well, here goes!

Library Love- Shadow House: The Gathering by Dan Poblocki

Some houses are more than just haunted... they're hungry.

Dash, Dylan, Poppy, Marcus, and Azumi don't know this at first. They each think they've been summoned to Shadow House for innocent reasons. But there's nothing innocent about Shadow House.

Something within its walls is wickedly wrong. Nothing -- and nobody -- can be trusted. Hallways move. Doors vanish. Ghosts appear. Children disappear.

And the way out?

That's disappeared, too...

Enter Shadow House... if you dare.

Don't just read about Shadow House -- explore its haunted depths with the free app!

Goodreads

Book to Movie: Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children

Wow! When was the last time I did one of these? I need to start watching more films. Anywho...

The following review will have *SPOILERS.*

Director Tim Burton
Producers Peter Chernin, Jenno Topping
Screenplay Jane Goldman
Cast Eva Green, Asa Butterfield, Chris O'Dowd, Ella Purnell, Allison Janney, Rupert Everett, Terence Stamp, and Samuel L. Jackson

My thoughts: So...obviously I did not see this film in the movie theater.  Instead, I ended up renting it when it was finally available at our local Redbox. I was super excited to see this movie because I greatly enjoyed reading the book a few years back. I even read the manga version a couple months ago to help me remember what the plot was about. Did it help? Yes. Did I end up liking the film? Yeah...but it wasn't the greatest.

Share-a-Tea January Check-In

I'm a little late to post this, but I did not forget! Share-a-Tea 2017 Reading Challenge is hosted by Becky's Book Reviews. This challenge is not about how many books you read, but actually slowing down. The goal is to sit down and enjoy your read with a nice cup of tea. For this month, the host has posted a few questions for participants:

• What are you currently reading for the challenge? 
• Have you finished any books for this challenge this month?
• Is there a book you're looking forward to starting next month?
• Want to share any favorite quotes? It could be from your current read. It could be about reading. It could be about drinking tea. 
• What teas have you enjoyed this month? 
• Do you have a new favorite tea?