Book Review: Lady in Waiting

My first impressions of this book when I picked it up were:

1. The cover art is beautiful.
2. I want that ring!
3. I've never read anything by Susan Meissner. I'm excited to get to know a new author.
4. It's got that new book smell!!!
5. There's a family tree chart in the front. I love books with charts!

My impressions after reading are that you still can't judge a book by it's cover. That said I must confess, I'm an avid reader. I eat books. But this book turned out to be a really slow read for me. It took probably 3-4 days to complete.

Lady in Waiting is the story of 2 women, living hundreds of years apart. Their destinies become connected by a ring found by Jane, an antique shop owner and our main character. Jane is in a bad place, emotionally. When her husband walks out, she is blindsided. She begins to see her life clearly for the first time. That she has the life that she decided for herself. She's allowed others to shift her focus and make her life decisions. Jane doesn't know herself. She begins to question the life that she's been living for the past 20 plus years.

The other character, Lucy Day is a dressmaker for Lady Jane Grey in 1500s England. Lucy's story begins when she is brought in to attend to Lady Jane Grey, a young royal who is the chief mourner at a funeral for the Queen Dowager, Katherine. Jane and Lucy form a friendship that impacts them both for life.

This story is about decisions. We make them daily and they impact our lives. We decide who to love. We decide where our focus lies and in the end we have to live with those decisions. I didn't really enjoy this book as much as I thought I would. It felt very disjoint. The two stories didn't seem to have an obvious common thread. The theme was decisions. The ring didn't really play that big a part in the story, in my opinion.

I would have like to read just Jane's story. Her story would have been enough. I think the historical secondary story actually took away from the story of Jane and her husband. So in the end there were 2 semi-complete stories that felt forced in to the same book. Jane's story doesn't have the ending you want to read. It's more of a beginning. Overall, the characters could have used a little more development. I didn't feel like they had a lot of depth.

I will rate this book at 3 stars. 

Disclaimer: I received this book for free from WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group for this review.

Lady in Waiting

I just received a review copy of Lady in Waiting by Susan Meissner!

My first 5 impressions of the book are:

1. The cover art is beautiful.
2. I want that ring!
3. I've never read anything by Susan Meissner. I'm excited to get to know a new author.
4. It's got that new book smell!!!
5. There's a family tree chart in the front. I love books with charts!

If you wanna get a preview of this book to see if it's for you, here are the first four chapters!

http://www.multnomahemails.com/wbmlt/pdf/SneakPeek_LadyinWaiting.pdf

So go check it out and let me know what you think. I'd love to hear your thoughts on the book.

Book Review: Tandem by Tracey Bateman

I haven't read anything by Tracey Bateman before so I have no idea what her style is usually. This book was a slow starter. It took about 1/3 of the book to get going. It's also a sequel. The cover says "A Novel" but it's the sequel to Thirsty, which I haven't read.

All that aside, it was an interesting read. I didn't know it was going to be about vampires. But the cover art and title font is reminiscent of a certain series.

The writing style took a while to get use to. The story was engaging. It did keep me wanting to know how it would all end. I don't know if there's to be a third book in the series but I'm probably gonna check out the first one.

If you are on a vampire binge, I would recommend it. It's a pretty good mystery.

Disclaimer: I received this book for free from WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group for this review.

Book Review: Two Tickets to the Christmas Ball by Donita K. Paul

I'll be honest. This is the first book I've read by Donita K. Paul. But it won't be the last. I thoroughly enjoyed every minute of *Two Tickets to the Christmas* Ball. My only complaint is that is was short. It left me wanting more of Cora and Simon. I want to know what happens next. But that's not really a bad thing. Is it?

The story is very reminiscent of The Shop Around the Corner and You've Got Mail. I love a "diamond in the rough" story. You know, that person that's always been there but when they finally get their "shining moment" they become the love of your life.

I foresee this book becoming a Hallmark holiday special. It's got all the elements of a fun movie. The lead characters who aren't really looking for love but find it anyways. Mysterious matchmakers who get them ready for the ball. People who know each other but come to really see each other for the first time.

This book comes highly recommended! It's one of those books you keep around to read at least once a year. That is if your friends don't swipe it.

Disclaimer: I received this book for free from WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group for this review.

New stuff to be excited about!

I started blogging for books! I'm really excited. The first book I received was "Two Tickets to the Christmas Ball" by Donita K. Paul. I'm really loving the book so far. Kind of a "You've Got Mail" type story. The review is coming as soon as I finish reading. But in the meantime, here's a book trailer for it. It's not really descriptive but here it is anyways.

Enjoy!

It's that Time again! Countdown to Thanksgiving printable.

I love Thanksgiving! It's right in the middle of the holidays and also in fall which is my favorite season. So I thought I'd share a printable I created for my kids a few years ago.

This is Tom Turkey. He's not very happy. Do you know why? He knows that Thanksgiving is coming soon. lol. So feel free to print Tom and share him. Just link back if you post him on your blog. I'd love to see your pics! We've been doing this since I created it in 2005 and my kids look forward to it every year.

Countdown to Thanksgiving

Super Mario Birthday Party

Just wanted to share some pics from my sons Super Mario Birthday Party we hosted this week! Last year we did a Legend of Zelda Birthday Party.

Here's what we did. First for some decor we got some gold star balloons from the dollar tree and made little construction paper eyes. There was one balloon for each boy at the party.

We also set up a Bowser Game station. Just a presentation board we had around the house. The boys took turns setting up games with the cups and ping pong balls.

My oldest son and I worked together to make this block poster from the original Mario game. And the boys took turns getting their pictures taken as Mario.

I didn't get pictures of this but the boys also played Boo Light Tag (hide and seek outside with a flashlight). It was a sleepover. The birthday cake was a 10-up mushroom. I'm still learning fondant but I think it turned out well.

The boys each went home with goody bags filled with Mario gummies and hard candies that we found at the dollar tree. I think the most we spent on the party was for the pizzas. The boys spent the rest of the time playing video games. Boy parties are so much easier. lol

Curtains on the cheap

Note: Please ignore the clutter in the curtain pic.

I don't like to pay a lot of money for things if I don't have to. Who does? When we moved to our house to find that our bedroom has 3 windows, I needed curtains fast. So I came up with a quick fix that didn't cost a lot.


What you need per window:
One flat sheet (I used twin size for a window around 36") $3
One curtain rod (I used cafe rods, there are cheaper ones available)~$4
One pack of clip rings~$4
Final cost with rod ~$11 per window


Hang the curtain rod. You can iron the sheet(s) if you want but they tend to straighten out just hanging there. You could also just throw 'em in the dryer for a few. Anyways after that you hang the ring clips on the rod. The pack I got at Wally world had 7. Now fold over the top of the sheet according to how long you want your curtain to hang. And attach the clips to the fold you just made. I'd start on the ends and then the middle and so on, just so they are even. And taa daa, you have a curtain. I was doing this for the kids rooms today and thought I'd share.

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Ruffles Are So In! (or Why my butt continues to grow)

I started to write an entry about all the awesome crafts and clothing styles I've seen lately that incorporate ruffles. However, when I began to jot down the linkage I realized that I couldn't remember how I'd gotten there. So I retraced the "steps" that I took to find this cute necklace tutorial. And I realized that I would be robbing you of the wonderful experience that I had finding it if I didn't link to the sites that lead me to the blog where I found it. So without further ado, welcome to my stream of consciousness. It takes me on wonderful adventures.

I started out checking my Google Reader and saw this, which has absolutely nothing to do with ruffles. But seriously who is not gonna click on that?:
"To the Parents of the brattiest kid at McDonalds tonight..."
from Somewhat Simple
http://www.somewhatsimple.com/2010/08/to-parents-of-brattiest-kid-at.html
Warning: This is the funniest entry I've ever read. If I hadn't already drank all my sweet tea I would have spewed it on my monitor.

On the sidebar of Somewhat Simple I saw an ad for EZ Crafts with Karlista - who btw is 12! Really cute site and a much more devoted blogger than I.
http://ezcrafts.karlista.com/

She had created a really cute Bible holder/cover from a tutorial that she found on:
Buttons & Bangles
http://www.buttonsandbangles.blogspot.com/
Who is also 12! I'm not sure I was nearly that crafty when I was 12.

Okay, so here's where my mind draws a blank cause after this I somehow ended up at this blog:
Ruffles and Stuff - the prettiest ruffle necklace ever! I'm not a huge jewelry fan but I'm seriously becoming one.
http://www.rufflesandstuff.com/2010/06/my-ruffle-necklace.html
She got the idea for this necklace from a tutorial on:

Poppy Chic Designs
http://poppychic.blogspot.com/2010/06/shabby-chic-ruffle-necklace.html
Also check out her other tutorials.

So anyhoo, that's how I found that tutorial for the cute ruffle necklace. Now I'm off to try to recreate it.

Book Review: Beguiled by Deeanne Gist

I'm a huge fan of Deeanne Gist - I'm just gonna go ahead and put that out there. The first book I read by her was A Bride in the Bargain, which is still my favorite. She's got a great writing style; her settings are so well researched and believable that you walk away feeling as though you've vacationed there.

This book differs from Gist's previous novels because it was a joint effort with J. Mark Bertrand, a suspense/crime writer. Bertrand's suspense background was a useful influence; it made for a story that was not only a great romance but also kept you on the edge of your seat till the very end. The romance and mystery were so well blended that it enhanced the story and made for a richer experience.

Beguiled is set in Charleston, South Carolina. Charleston is a city of rich history and I really enjoyed the setting. Rylee Monroe, our unlikely heroine, is a dog walker in the old money part of Charleston. She's kind of in her own little world. She loves the dogs she walks, as well as, their owners and has become well trusted. But when a string of "Robin Hood" burglaries hit, Rylee's reputation comes under attack.

Enter Logan Woods, a reporter for the local paper. He's covering the burglaries and moonlighting as a crime novel author. When he begins to research, he runs into a common element in all the burglaries: Rylee Monroe. Suddenly, Rylee becomes the focus of his investigative reporting.

Rylee and Logan are polar opposite characters. Even though Rylee and Logan both grew up in Charleston, their lives have taken completely different paths...it makes for interesting interactions. As for Rylee, she's a very down to earth person: sweet but guarded. She's used to taking care of herself and others but is a little naive about it. She sees the world as it has been presented to her and tends to not look deeper. She doesn't see the mystery in things. Logan, on the other hand, finds the mystery in everything. He is, at the heart of him, an investigative reporter. He doesn't just live in the city but he knows it and is part of it.

Logan surrounds himself with a network of friends, family and colleagues that know him and are always there for him. Other than her sometimes lucid Grandmother, Rylee finds family in the next door neighbor, the dogs she walks and the owners.

The plot isn't ground-breaking or anything but it's good. Isn't the point of a good mystery to keep you guessing till the very end? Well, this book does that. Their story is sweet and funny. You really feel like you know that characters when you finish reading. If you are a fan of Deeanne Gist you will not be disappointed with this great book. I highly recommend it!