Completed 1/18/14
Synopsis: Unlike quite a
number of people, Agatha had not given up on Christmas. To have the
perfect Christmas had been a childhood dream whilst surviving a rough
upbringing in a Birmingham slum. Holly berries glistened, snow fell
gently outside, and inside, all was Dickensian jollity. And in her
dreams, ex-husband James Lacey kissed her under the mistletoe, and, like a middle-aged sleeping beauty, she would awake to passion once more.
This year she is sure
that if she invites James to a really splendid, old-fashioned Christmas
dinner, their love will rekindle like a warm Yule log.
In the meantime, when a wealthy widow
hires Agatha because she is convinced a member of her family is trying
to kill her, Agatha is intrigued---especially when the widow drops dead
after high tea at the manor house. Who in this rather sterile house,
complete with fake family portraits, could have hated the old lady
enough to poison her?
Agatha sets out to find the murderer, all the
while managing a pretty, teenage trainee who makes her feel old.
My review: Agatha Raisin can be a bit sharp tongued, opinionated, pushy and whiney all at the same time. Her heart is in the right place when she hires Toni, a teenager running away from abuse.
Yet, while she manages to love and care for Toni, she whines about how inadequate, frumpy and old Toni makes her feel and she worries that Toni will steal her friends away.
I liked Toni and hope she stays around. There were plenty of characters to keep the book moving fast and the story interesting.
Sunday, January 19, 2014
Sunday, January 12, 2014
The Body in the Piazza - Katherine Hall Page
Completed 1/12/14 -
Synopsis:
Faith Fairchild and her husband are celebrating a big anniversary with a trip to Italy, filled with exquisite indulgences—the art, the Chianti, the food, the Ferragamos! After a weekend in Rome, they travel to Tuscany, where Faith's former assistant Francesca has opened a cooking school.
But, along with pecorino, panna cotta, and prosecco, it looks like murder and mayhem are also on the menu! On their fist night in the Eternal City, the Fairchilds stumble upon a dying man in the Piazza Farnese. Mysterious characters from Rome resurface in Tuscany. And somebody is intent on sabotaging Francesca's new business. It's up to Faith to put everything right—and still whip up a mean Spaghetti a la Foriana, of course!
My review:
This is a fun foodie book with a little mystery on the side. Plenty of Italian food to drool over and the talk about Tuscany towns and scenery made me want to go back again.
There were pieces that could have been played into more but the story line moved on to something else.
It almost felt like there was more to the story but things were cut out in editing.
Too bad, it's a cute, fast little mystery with a fun romp through Tuscany.
It's worth ready, just for fun.
Faith Fairchild and her husband are celebrating a big anniversary with a trip to Italy, filled with exquisite indulgences—the art, the Chianti, the food, the Ferragamos! After a weekend in Rome, they travel to Tuscany, where Faith's former assistant Francesca has opened a cooking school.
But, along with pecorino, panna cotta, and prosecco, it looks like murder and mayhem are also on the menu! On their fist night in the Eternal City, the Fairchilds stumble upon a dying man in the Piazza Farnese. Mysterious characters from Rome resurface in Tuscany. And somebody is intent on sabotaging Francesca's new business. It's up to Faith to put everything right—and still whip up a mean Spaghetti a la Foriana, of course!
My review:
This is a fun foodie book with a little mystery on the side. Plenty of Italian food to drool over and the talk about Tuscany towns and scenery made me want to go back again.
There were pieces that could have been played into more but the story line moved on to something else.
It almost felt like there was more to the story but things were cut out in editing.
Too bad, it's a cute, fast little mystery with a fun romp through Tuscany.
It's worth ready, just for fun.
Sunday, January 5, 2014
Christmas Bliss by Mary Kay Andrews
Completed 1/4/14 --- 
Synopsis:
The wedding is planned for Christmas eve. Eloise (wezzie) is having her mother, Marion Foley help her with the dress. redoing one that was her grandmothers.
Daniel, the groom, goes to work for a New York restaurant. he's a guest chef, design a menu and run the kitchen for a month. Wezzie had no idea the owner of the place is not a fat old lady and the photo she sees on the bulletin board of the sexy owner and her fiancee throws her off guard.
Wezzie travels around town to set up the food, flowers, and the wedding.
It was only to be a small family gathering but the others make it sound like a major extravaganza. Weezie goes to yard and estate sales and her concept of buy and sell with a profit is spot on. Then a week before the wedding she takes off to New York to surprise her fiancee.
In alternating chapters Beebe has her own story-she is 8 months pregnant, and runs a beach motel on Tybee Island with her live in boyfriend who is also the baby daddy. An old woman visits her to discuss her divorce from Richard who then went to jail 6 years earlier.
My thoughts:
This is the 4th book in this series with Bebe Loudermilk and Weezy Foley. I enjoy the 2 friends together and all their misadventures, but this last book had too much starry eyed - bride to be romance for me. I still highly recommend reading it, I felt Weezy was made to look too innocent in the light of her upcoming wedding. Read the book, I'll be interested in seeing how others feel about that.
Back to the misadventures... Christmas Bliss has it's fair share of fun, but could this be the last in the series if Weezy is getting married and Bebe is having a baby?
Synopsis:The wedding is planned for Christmas eve. Eloise (wezzie) is having her mother, Marion Foley help her with the dress. redoing one that was her grandmothers.
Daniel, the groom, goes to work for a New York restaurant. he's a guest chef, design a menu and run the kitchen for a month. Wezzie had no idea the owner of the place is not a fat old lady and the photo she sees on the bulletin board of the sexy owner and her fiancee throws her off guard.
Wezzie travels around town to set up the food, flowers, and the wedding.
It was only to be a small family gathering but the others make it sound like a major extravaganza. Weezie goes to yard and estate sales and her concept of buy and sell with a profit is spot on. Then a week before the wedding she takes off to New York to surprise her fiancee.
In alternating chapters Beebe has her own story-she is 8 months pregnant, and runs a beach motel on Tybee Island with her live in boyfriend who is also the baby daddy. An old woman visits her to discuss her divorce from Richard who then went to jail 6 years earlier.
My thoughts:
This is the 4th book in this series with Bebe Loudermilk and Weezy Foley. I enjoy the 2 friends together and all their misadventures, but this last book had too much starry eyed - bride to be romance for me. I still highly recommend reading it, I felt Weezy was made to look too innocent in the light of her upcoming wedding. Read the book, I'll be interested in seeing how others feel about that.
Back to the misadventures... Christmas Bliss has it's fair share of fun, but could this be the last in the series if Weezy is getting married and Bebe is having a baby?
Friday, December 27, 2013
2014 Audiobook Challenge
I listen to a lot of audio books so I'm going BIG on this challenge.
I listen while I clean, while I cook, while I walk, while I drive, while I knit, while I bead.... you get the idea. I love listening to books so I can multitask.
I'm taking challenge level "My Precious" 30+ The rules follow my list of books.
1. Christmas Bliss by Mary Kay Andrews
2. The Real Macaw by Donna Andrews
3. Ghost Gone Wild by Carolyn Hart
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.
16.
17.
18.
19.
20.
21.
22.
23.
24.
25.
26.
27.
28.
29.
30.
I listen while I clean, while I cook, while I walk, while I drive, while I knit, while I bead.... you get the idea. I love listening to books so I can multitask.
I'm taking challenge level "My Precious" 30+ The rules follow my list of books.
1. Christmas Bliss by Mary Kay Andrews
2. The Real Macaw by Donna Andrews
3. Ghost Gone Wild by Carolyn Hart
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.
16.
17.
18.
19.
20.
21.
22.
23.
24.
25.
26.
27.
28.
29.
30.
Reading Challenge Details:
- Runs January 1, 2014 – December 31, 2014. You can join at anytime.
- The goal is to find a new love for audios or to outdo yourself by listening to more audios in 2014 than you did in 2013.
- Books must be in audio format (CD, MP3, etc.)
- ANY genres count.
- Re-reads and crossovers from other reading challenges are allowed.
- You do not have to be a book blogger to participate; you can track your progress on Goodreads, Shelfari, Facebook, LibraryThing, etc.
- If you’re a blogger grab the button and do a quick post about the challenge to help spread the word. If you’re not a blogger you can help by posting on Facebook or Tweeting about the challenge.
Levels:
- Newbie (I’ll give it a try) 1-5
- Weekend Warrior (I’m getting the hang of this) 5-10
- Stenographer (can listen while multi-tasking) 10-15
- Socially Awkward (Don’t talk to me) 15-20
- Binge Listener (Why read when someone can do it for you) 20-30
- My Precious (I had my earbuds surgically implanted) 30+
Audio Resources:
FREE audio resources:
Overdrive through your local library
Audiobook Jukebox audios for review
Wednesday, December 25, 2013
2014 - Lucky #14 Reading Challenge
Lots of rules to follow below, but it sounds like a fun challenge for me !
Lucky No. 14 Reading Challenge
I'll add to my selections to this list as I find them:
1. Visit The Country:
2. Cover Lust:
3. Blame it on Bloggers:
4. Bargain All The Way:
5. (Not So) Fresh From the Oven:
6. First Letter’s Rule:
7. Once upon a time:
8. Chunky brick:
9. Favorite author:
10. It's been there forever:
11. Movies vs books:
12. Freebies time:
13. Not my cup of tea:
14. Walking down the memory lane
Period of the Challenge: January 1, 2014 – December 31, 2014
Yep, we almost welcome 2014, the year of anticipation. There will be the World Cup in Brazil, Presidential Election in Indonesia – and tons of great books to be published (and read) for sure!
This challenge will require you to read 14 books (or more) from 14 categories below. You can combine the books you read with other challenges, but can not use the same book for different categories in this challenge.
Try to match the categories from your TBR piles
But if you don’t have any suitable books in your TBR – and want to
find an excuse to buy a book for this challenge, that’s totally fine
too!
Here are the 14 categories:
1. Visit The Country: Read a book that has setting in a country that you really want to visit in real life. Make sure the setting has a big role in the book and it can make you know a little bit more about your dream destination.
2. Cover Lust: Pick a book from your shelf that you bought because you fell in love with the cover. Is the content as good as the cover?
3. Blame it on Bloggers: Read a book because you’ve read the sparkling reviews from other bloggers. Don’t forget to mention the blogger’s names too!
4. Bargain All The Way: Ever buying a book because it’s so cheap you don’t really care about the content? Now it’s time to open the book and find out whether it’s really worth your cents.
5. (Not So) Fresh From the Oven: Do you remember you bought/got a new released book last year but never had a chance to read it? Dig it from your pile and bring back the 2013.
6. First Letter’s Rule: Read a book which title begins with the same letter as your name (for me, Astrid means A, and I can read anything that started with the letter A). Remember: Articles like “a”, “an” or “the” doesn’t count
7. Once Upon a Time: Choose a book that’s been published for the first time before you were born (not necessarily has to be a classic book, just something a little bit older than you is okay. You can read the most recent edition if you want to)
8. Chunky Brick: Take a deep breath, and read a book that has more than 500 pages. Yep, the one that you’ve always been afraid of!
9. Favorite Author: You like their books, but there are too many titles. This is your chance, choose a book that’s been written by your fave author but you haven’t got time to read it before.
10. It’s Been There Forever: Pick up a book that has been there on your shelf for more than a year, clean up the dust and start to read it now
11. Movies vs Books: You’ve seen the movie adaptation (or planned to see it soon) but never had time to read the book. It’s time to read it now, so you can compare the book vs the movie.
12. Freebies Time: What’s the LAST free book you’ve got? Whether it’s from giveaway, a birthday gift or a surprise from someone special, don’t hold back any longer. Open the book and start reading it now
13. Not My Cup of Tea: Reach out to a genre that you’ve never tried (or probably just disliked) before. Whether it’s a romance, horror or non fiction, maybe you will find a hidden gem!
14. Walking Down The Memory Lane: Ever had a book that you loved so much as a kid? Or a book that you wish you could read when you were just a child? Grab it now and prepare for a wonderful journey to the past Comic books or graphic novels are allowed!
RULES:
1. To complete the challenge, you have to read at least one book for each category, or total of 14 books during the challenge period. You can set your own pace and do not need to follow the categories in particular order. You can also read more than one book for each category. You have to write your reviews in your blog/FB note/Goodreads page/tumblr/etc.
2. Please write a master post about this challenge in your blog/Goodreads/FB notes/etc, and submit your link below for signing up. You can use this master post to sort down the book(s) that you’ll read for each category, and edit them later if necessary. The sign-up linky will be opened from November 12, 2013 throughout the year until December 1, 2014.
3. There are also linkies for each category of the challenge. Please submit your link of review posts for each category in their respective linkies. These linkies will be opened in January 1, 2014 until December 31, 2014.
4. At the end of the challenge, write down a wrap-up post and submit the link in the linky too. The linky for wrap-up posts will be opened until January 10, 2015 to give you more time for wrapping things up. It’s okay if you don’t finish the challenge but you are not eligible to be selected as the winner.
5. After the wrap up post linky is closed, I will pick two lucky winners who had completed the challenge for winning great bookish prizes (including book vouchers, novels, and other exclusive bookish gimmicks/goodies
) The prizes will be revealed soon, so please stay tuned. You must
have delivery address in Indonesia to be eligible for the two grand
prizes.
6. If you are an international participant who doesn’t have Indonesian mailing address, don’t worry, I’ll also choose two winners, each winner can pick any book from The Book Depository for maximum of $ 10.
7. I’ll try to write a round-up post every month and pick some of the most interesting reviews. And who knows? Probably there will be some surprise gifts and giveaways throughout the year
Now, let’s start this wonderful 2014 and get ready to tackle some great books!
Lucky No. 14 Reading Challenge
1. Visit The Country:
2. Cover Lust:
3. Blame it on Bloggers:
4. Bargain All The Way:
5. (Not So) Fresh From the Oven:
6. First Letter’s Rule:
7. Once upon a time:
8. Chunky brick:
9. Favorite author:
10. It's been there forever:
11. Movies vs books:
12. Freebies time:
13. Not my cup of tea:
14. Walking down the memory lane
Period of the Challenge: January 1, 2014 – December 31, 2014
Yep, we almost welcome 2014, the year of anticipation. There will be the World Cup in Brazil, Presidential Election in Indonesia – and tons of great books to be published (and read) for sure!
This challenge will require you to read 14 books (or more) from 14 categories below. You can combine the books you read with other challenges, but can not use the same book for different categories in this challenge.
Try to match the categories from your TBR piles
But if you don’t have any suitable books in your TBR – and want to
find an excuse to buy a book for this challenge, that’s totally fine
too!Here are the 14 categories:
1. Visit The Country: Read a book that has setting in a country that you really want to visit in real life. Make sure the setting has a big role in the book and it can make you know a little bit more about your dream destination.
2. Cover Lust: Pick a book from your shelf that you bought because you fell in love with the cover. Is the content as good as the cover?
3. Blame it on Bloggers: Read a book because you’ve read the sparkling reviews from other bloggers. Don’t forget to mention the blogger’s names too!
4. Bargain All The Way: Ever buying a book because it’s so cheap you don’t really care about the content? Now it’s time to open the book and find out whether it’s really worth your cents.
5. (Not So) Fresh From the Oven: Do you remember you bought/got a new released book last year but never had a chance to read it? Dig it from your pile and bring back the 2013.
6. First Letter’s Rule: Read a book which title begins with the same letter as your name (for me, Astrid means A, and I can read anything that started with the letter A). Remember: Articles like “a”, “an” or “the” doesn’t count
7. Once Upon a Time: Choose a book that’s been published for the first time before you were born (not necessarily has to be a classic book, just something a little bit older than you is okay. You can read the most recent edition if you want to)
8. Chunky Brick: Take a deep breath, and read a book that has more than 500 pages. Yep, the one that you’ve always been afraid of!
9. Favorite Author: You like their books, but there are too many titles. This is your chance, choose a book that’s been written by your fave author but you haven’t got time to read it before.
10. It’s Been There Forever: Pick up a book that has been there on your shelf for more than a year, clean up the dust and start to read it now
11. Movies vs Books: You’ve seen the movie adaptation (or planned to see it soon) but never had time to read the book. It’s time to read it now, so you can compare the book vs the movie.
12. Freebies Time: What’s the LAST free book you’ve got? Whether it’s from giveaway, a birthday gift or a surprise from someone special, don’t hold back any longer. Open the book and start reading it now
13. Not My Cup of Tea: Reach out to a genre that you’ve never tried (or probably just disliked) before. Whether it’s a romance, horror or non fiction, maybe you will find a hidden gem!
14. Walking Down The Memory Lane: Ever had a book that you loved so much as a kid? Or a book that you wish you could read when you were just a child? Grab it now and prepare for a wonderful journey to the past
Comic books or graphic novels are allowed!RULES:
1. To complete the challenge, you have to read at least one book for each category, or total of 14 books during the challenge period. You can set your own pace and do not need to follow the categories in particular order. You can also read more than one book for each category. You have to write your reviews in your blog/FB note/Goodreads page/tumblr/etc.
2. Please write a master post about this challenge in your blog/Goodreads/FB notes/etc, and submit your link below for signing up. You can use this master post to sort down the book(s) that you’ll read for each category, and edit them later if necessary. The sign-up linky will be opened from November 12, 2013 throughout the year until December 1, 2014.
3. There are also linkies for each category of the challenge. Please submit your link of review posts for each category in their respective linkies. These linkies will be opened in January 1, 2014 until December 31, 2014.
4. At the end of the challenge, write down a wrap-up post and submit the link in the linky too. The linky for wrap-up posts will be opened until January 10, 2015 to give you more time for wrapping things up. It’s okay if you don’t finish the challenge but you are not eligible to be selected as the winner.
5. After the wrap up post linky is closed, I will pick two lucky winners who had completed the challenge for winning great bookish prizes (including book vouchers, novels, and other exclusive bookish gimmicks/goodies
) The prizes will be revealed soon, so please stay tuned. You must
have delivery address in Indonesia to be eligible for the two grand
prizes.6. If you are an international participant who doesn’t have Indonesian mailing address, don’t worry, I’ll also choose two winners, each winner can pick any book from The Book Depository for maximum of $ 10.
7. I’ll try to write a round-up post every month and pick some of the most interesting reviews. And who knows? Probably there will be some surprise gifts and giveaways throughout the year
Now, let’s start this wonderful 2014 and get ready to tackle some great books!
Monday, December 9, 2013
Preparing for 2014
I took a hiatus from Reading Challenges in 2013 so the only review I posted was for Celebration House which the author asked me to read and review. It's is a lovely book and made me realize I missed the reading challenges and reviewing the books.
So I'm looking through all the 2014 challenges out there and beginning to prepare my pages, lists and challenge icons.
Hope to see you back here in 2014.
Diana
So I'm looking through all the 2014 challenges out there and beginning to prepare my pages, lists and challenge icons.
Hope to see you back here in 2014.
Diana
Wednesday, October 30, 2013
Celebration House by Annette Drake
Celebration House is that kind of book for me. The characters are lovable and the details of the house and surroundings kept me wanting for more.
There is great potential for a series with this book.... and I love to read series books.
Celebration House is currently only in e-book format.
Here is an excerpt on Celebration House, followed by a bio about author Annette Drake.
----------------------------------
Carrie Hansen spent her life caring for cardiac patients. Little did she know she would become a patient herself. After recovering from her own heart surgery, she realizes she has a special gift: the ability to see and talk with the dead. Now, with her new heart failing, she leaves the bustle of Seattle behind and returns to Lexington, Missouri, the small town where she spent her childhood. Here, she sets out to restore an abandoned antebellum mansion and open it as a venue for celebrations.
Carrie’s work is cut out for her. The 150-year-old Greek revival house is in need of serious repair. Her sister, Melanie, tries to bully Carrie into returning to Seattle, predicting “her little project” is doomed to fail. Finally, Carrie’s health gives out on her, requiring emergency surgery. But she will not give up. Carrie’s unique gift allows her to build relationships with the mansion’s original occupants, especially Maj. Tom Stewart, the handsome Civil War soldier who died a hundred years before Carrie was born. He encourages and comforts her, though not in the physical way they both desire. Then there’s the builder of the house, Col. Bartholomew Stratton. If there’s one thing this 19th century horse trader cannot abide, it’s the living trespassing on his estate. He delights in scaring these intruders away, even if they are paying guests.
Will Carrie finish restoring Celebration House or will it finish her? And how can she plan a future with a man who has only a past?
-------------------------------------------------------
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Annette left high school after two years to obtain her GED and attend Truman State University in Kirksville, Missouri. There she earned a degree in journalism before working as a reporter and editor for newspapers in Missouri and Kansas. She earned a bachelor of science in nursing in 1994 from Rockhurst University in Kansas City, Missouri, and worked as a registered nurse in hospitals throughout Missouri, Alaska and Washington for 18 years before returning her focus to writing.
Annette recently completed her middle-grade novel, Bone Girl, and is hard at work revising her steamy contemporary romance, A Year with Geno.
She is the mother of four children. The oldest just graduated from the University of Washington; the youngest just graduated from kindergarten. She is a member of the Society of Children’s Book Writers & Illustrators. She loves libraries, basset hounds and bakeries. She does not camp.
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