Wednesday, August 28, 2013

Something different

So, vacation and traveling. The next few days I will not be posting reviews of books though I will be reading while on the planes so the reviews will be coming. Instead; DRAGONCON. Expect photos and stories galore and the husband and I go, play. This is your warning. :)  #DragonCon

Monday, August 26, 2013

Law's Strangest Cases

Law's Strangest Cases

Extraordinary But True Tales from over Five Centuries of Legal History

Peter Seddon
This was an okay book. Every legal case that is in included in the book is just a few pages long with no real substance; but it was interesting to read each of them. It has a little bit of everything in it starting with a case for 33 CE to 2001 CE. It is a unique look at how views and the law have changed over the years. My favorite story in the book is Jury V. Bench related to a trial in 1670 London in which the bench tried to bully the jury into changing their not guilty verdict; needless to stay this one case most likely set the ton for jury trials for the rest of time.

If you like legal history you might really enjoy this one.

Received copy to review from NetGalley.com

Wednesday, August 21, 2013

Shuddering.....Twilight meets Jersey Shore

Fangsters: Clan of the Jersey Boys


I must confess, I have a secret; I love to read slash novels. Yes I am that woman that likes Gay Romance novels when done well. However, this book is just bad. I could not finish the book before it was just too bad to continue; which is very rare for me.  The vampire in this book is a mobster who lives and home and is working for daddy. He is a bit whiny and seems weak. The violence in the sex scene I got to in the book is what finally made me stop reading. I can handle BDSM in books and actually enjoy it most of the time however there was something very disturbing in this book. I cannot say if the book would have been redeemed itself later on, and I am going to try to finish it later; but for now I cannot recommend this book.

I received a copy of this book for review from NetGallery.

Tuesday, August 20, 2013

A Taste of Yummy

I love cooking and cookbooks. I can spend hours surfing the web looking for new recipes and one of my favorite sites is A Taste of Home, I also get magazine every month. I was really excited when I got as a reviewer copy from NetGallery. I loved this book. The recipes are good American comfort food from all the different regions of the US. I also loved all the little tidbits in the book about different states and cities. One of the few complaints I had about the book is there is not many pictures of the recipe but I found that did not hurt the book at all. This was a lovely book that I truly enjoyed and cannot wait to cook several of the recipes in it.

Monday, August 19, 2013

Not so True North to me

True North - The Shocking Truth about "Yours, Mine and Ours"


I know I am one of the few people that did not care for this book, but I could not bring myself to like it; I wanted to but it so did not happen. There was something about the book that was just not believable for me. The writing style was a jumbled mess to me. The author in one chapter goes from 16 to 12 to 16 again. This book just was not a book I can recommend to anyone. I found it odd that with 20 children in this blended household the only ones that are mentioned are his full blooded siblings; even his half siblings are not listed as part of the abuse he alleges. 
I received this book as a reviewer copy from NetGallery.com

Friday, August 16, 2013

Embracing Darkness


The End of Night: Searching for Natural Darkness in an Age of Artificial Light

Thursday, August 15, 2013

Magic Simply


Supermarket Magic

Creating Spells, Brews, Potions & Powders from Everyday Ingredients  by Michael Furie

If you are witch you have seen the spell and ritual books that call for insane ingredients and shopping lists that are 5 miles long. This is not that book. This book is about the simple everyday magic that is found everywhere. Need a red candle, stop by the in aisle 5 and pick up a package of birthday candles, while you are in the aisle go to the end and pick up some sage from the dried herb and spices area. That is what this book is a lovely look at kitchen witchery. Using what is around us getting back to the roots of country magic.

Tuesday, August 13, 2013

A look inside your body book

Hidden Beauty


 Exploring the Aesthetics of Medical Science by 

Norman Barker and Christine Iacobuzio-Donahue

This is an beautiful look inside the inner workings of the body. The pictures of the different systems show what an amazing thing nature is. The cover itself shows the beauty of something, gallstones, which are usually held is such low regard.  If you enjoy photography, medical research or just the strange human condition this might be a book you are interested in.

Sunday, August 11, 2013

Sunday, reading and other things.

Today was an interesting day. Woke up late (8am  shhh when you get up at 430 most days 8 is quite late LOL). Spent sometime feeding my inner geek playing some Rift. I then decided to go to the store for my bi-weekly meat run. Read a book. Made a new skirt for work tomorrow. Then cooked dinner. I made a few new things including strawberry-lemonade tiramisu. It was very yummy and quite a hit.

The recipe is from the Yummy Mummy cookbook I reviewed on good reads a few months back.

 The Yummy Mummy Kitchen: 100 Wholesome Recipes and Yummy Tips to Keep Your Family Healthy, Happy, and GlamorousThe Yummy Mummy Kitchen: 100 Wholesome Recipes and Yummy Tips to Keep Your Family Healthy, Happy, and Glamorous by Marina Delio
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

What a beautiful book. Trying to decide if it is a cookbook with pictures or an art book with recipes. If you do a meatless meal a week there are so many lovely recipes to choose from in this book. This book would make a lovely mother's day gift to the moms in your life. I have gotten so much out of this book. There are many recipes that are now staples in my rotation.


The next book I am going to look at is

Buffi's Dress Design: Sew 30 Fun Styles

Make It, Own It, Rock It  by Buffi Jashanmal

This is not a book for the beginner sewer. While the dress on the cover is deceptively simple looking, none of the designs in this book are. If you are a dressmaker  you will most likely already know this information; however if you are ready to move up to dressmaking from starch this might be a book you would want to look into. None of the 3 dresses in the book are my style so I will not be attempting them anytime soon so I cannot say if the designs are executable or not. 


Friday, August 9, 2013

Cookbooks.......

Today I am looking at two different type of cookbooks.


Year-Round Slow Cooker 100 Favorite Recipes for Every Season by Dina Cheney

This is a hard cookbook for me to actually review due to it being summer and well most of the recipes for summer in this book having tomatoes in them. Vile, evil things tomatoes; stupid food allergy. However the book is well laid out as a cookbook broken down into all four seasons. Each season focusing of the veggies that are readily available during that time of the year. If you like using your slow cooker and need some new recipes thing is a good book to check out. However if you are like me and have a tomato allergy you might want to look somewhere else.








Bake It Like You Mean It by Gesine Bullock-Prado

This book is beautiful, well laid out, and wonderfully scary. I am a little intimidated by this book. The recipes are lovely giving both, weighted measurements and volume so no having to do conversions. The pictures are wonderful and the step by step pictures for how to put together some of the cakes are so lovely. Do I think I will break down and bake one of these cakes, maybe/maybe not. However, I just love looking at the book.

Thursday, August 8, 2013

Holiday Knittng

Recently I received a reviewer copy of Handknit Holidays Knitting Year-Round for Christmas, Hanukkah, and Winter Solstice Melanie Falick https://www.netgalley.com/catalog/show/id/22314. I am in love with the patterns in this book. I just need to make sure my stash of yarn is up to all the lovely projects listed. The pictures are lovely and the charts are so easy to read. If you are looking for a winter holiday project book for knitting check this one out.
Decided to post some of the reviews for books I have already read this year. Yes I will and do read anything including the back of the cereal box.


A Map of Tulsa: A NovelA Map of Tulsa: A Novel by Benjamin Lytal
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

A Map of Tulsa was okay. I do not feel strongly one way or another about it. I am a long time Tulsan, so I did like seeing my home city portrayed in a positive light. However, I just could not really empathize with the protagonist in the story. One of the few things that stood out for me in the book was when the protag lamented that August was hot. Anyone that has spent any time in Tulsa during the summer knows just what that line means.


1,000 Places To See In The United States And Canada Before You Die1,000 Places To See In The United States And Canada Before You Die by Patricia Schultz
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

You know those books you look at and go hmm well that could be interesting, this is one of those books. It makes me want to get into my car and just start driving to explore the lovely country side of the United States. Fill up the gas tank of your imagination and lets go for a spin.

Death of a Dowager (The Jane Eyre Chronicles #2)Death of a Dowager by Joanna Campbell Slan
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I loved this book, Joanna's version of Jane is so lovely and heartwarming. I did not want the book to end, I wanted to stay in London with Jane and Edward.

View all my reviews

Wednesday, August 7, 2013

Giving up TV

Back in December of 2012, I finally got fed up with paying for nothing to watch. The spouse and I decided to do an experiment...cancel the cable and remove the television from the living room. 8 months later and we still do not miss it. I have always been a reader, but now even more so; and my husband is now even a reader. There is nothing like sitting down in the evening after a stressful day of work and getting lost in the words.

Our house is a peaceful retreat from the insanity that resides outside the doors and windows. I cannot be happier that music and books are our refuge.