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Bashed – Barbara Marquardt – I Managed Almost 4 Chapters…

Angela1 Comment

…and then I could not take another word of it. I wanted to like it, and I tried to like it. But I just could not read any more of it.

(ATTENTION! If anyone decides to get this book, for free I hope, and skim through it, I would love to hear what your take was on the story. If 5 people can tell me I was wrong, I will remove this review, and send an apology to the author. Any takers?)

First, the premise of the story. A teacher at a high school, seemingly for the town’s cast-off kids whose parents stopped caring, gets locked into a storage room over Christmas break by an 18 year old who she has continuously had issues with because she tried to make him learn, but had no choice other than to fail him.

I did not read too far beyond this point, at least not far enough to get to the chapter where she is rescued.  The story continues with a battle between her and this student, the usual he-said-she-said things.  Per the synopsis, the public and school officials are quick to blame her after her rescue, because he is the star football player. The synopsis continues that this event changed her life in many ways, but as I am not going to continue reading this story, I cannot tell you what those changes are.

Bashed Cover Image

I stopped reading the story when Jean, the main character, was locked in the storage room. The storage room with a window. With a plexi-glass window. Already with a hole in it and spider-webbed cracks. I went back and literally read everything over again, trying to see if it mentioned some reason, somewhere, as to why she would not have broken the window and got out. Was it too small? Too high up? Why would you be looking out a window, at your freedom, and not try to get out?

I skimmed further along, because I really had to know if this glaring issue got resolved. I got to about the half-way point in the story, and the author mentioned that the room was on the 3rd floor. Thanks for letting me know.

Another issue, right from the start, was the lack of a cell phone.

Why was her purse and all of her belongings in the storage room, yet she has no cell phone. No cell phone. This book was published in 2009, and it is not set in the 1960’s. Why would she not have a cell phone?

I know; because if she had a cell phone, the author could not have written this story. What the author should have done, is explain why there was no cell phone, instead of just ignoring that flashing-neon error like no one would ever think twice about someone not having a cell phone.

The writing was also not very good, as far as sentence structure and the use of the English language in general. So even if I could of ignored the 2 huge errors that were distracting me, I could not read through the choppy use of the English language. Am I being harsh? Possibly. I will blame it on 2 wonderful weeks of vacation, and my first Monday back to work. Yeah; that’s it.

This story had one review on Goodreads, at 4 stars. It had 2 excellent reviews on Amazon, both from school teachers.  The free ebook site I got it from had 5 reviews, all 5 stars. But no actual written review. Just stars. You can buy it on Amazon for $9.00, or get it free from here: http://www.free-ebooks.net/ebook/Bashed

Kuhstedtermoor – Helen Waldron

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Kuhstedtermoor by Helen Waldron is certainly a book that is different than what I would normally read. At least I thought so at first. I was unsure what to expect when reading a story set in Germany, with some German words and dialect thrown in, as I am not familiar with Germany, per-se.

Kuhstedtermoor in the Winter. Courtesy of Helen Waldron.
Kuhstedtermoor in the Winter. Courtesy of Helen Waldron.

I was very pleasantly surprised as I was at the beginning of the story, and kept saying to myself, “just one more chapter!” It pulled me in right from the start, and it took some chaotic Christmas holiday events and personal family issues to make me put the story down for more than a day.

This story is written in the first-person, but you also get to experience the intertwining lives of the people in this small German town on a very personal level. On the outside, it appears as any regular run-of-the-mill small town where everyone knows everybody, including their secrets. But not all of their secrets.

Each character is intertwined with the next, but it did not feel cluttered or complicated. It felt like I was observing the people of Kuhstedtermoor from the outside, looking in. A silent watcher of the personal triumphs and tragedies of the townspeople, like seeing someone on the wrong path that you know you cannot help.

My almost-strict rule of no spoilers holds true for this story, but I will give you the scenario. A woman, new to Kuhstedtermoor, slowly gets to know the residents, even though she feels like an outsider; so very different from everyone else who lives there. As one young girl goes missing, the town gathers to search for her. With no trace or clues, the woman continues to watch, observe, and try to fit in. Gossip is idle, and contagious, and then girl #2 disappears.

You hope for the best, while expecting the worst, and will be turning pages until you get to the ending! At 22 chapters, this is a quick read (minus any personal-life interruptions!) and you will be glad you spent your time getting to know the residents of Kuhstedtermoor.

Kuhstedtermoor is the first part of The History Lovers trilogy and Helen Waldron’s first novel.

Helen Waldron Portrait light 6

Helen works as an English Language Coach in Hamburg and has created a blog about the day-to-day business of two such language professionals which can be found here: http://speakeasyandwritewell.wordpress.com/.

Murder Is Binding – Lorna Barrett

Angela4 Comments

The first book in another series by Lorna Barrett, these books are sold under the “A Booktown Mystery” tag line. Set in Stoneham, New Hampshire, Tricia Miles is one of many bookstore owners who finds herself caught in the center of this small town’s first murder in decades.

Murder is binding Cover Image

Stoneham is a sleepy town on the coast, where in order to boost the tourism and economy, Bob Kelly, president of the Chamber of Commerce, had the idea to rebuild the center of the town and have various bookstores that cater to the tourism from neighboring cities and states.

Tricia Miles owns “Haven’t Got a Clue”, a bookstore devoted to mystery novels. There is also “The Cookery”, devoted to cookbooks, and “History Repeats Itself”, specializing in historical novels. Who wouldn’t want to live in a town with so many great little bookstores? Well, except for the murders, that is.

Apparently Bob Kelly is putting the pressure on one of the bookstore owners, threatening to raise her lease amount when it is time to renew. Tricia wants nothing more than to run her store, and not get involved in all of the issues going on around her. When her sister, Angelica, decides to come for a visit, Tricia knows her peace and quiet is officially over. Questioning what the ulterior motive is for the visit from Ange, Tricia’s days of calm and quiet are about to end.

As is my policy, about 98% of the time, there will be no spoilers here. What I can tell you though, is that this story is a fun read, full of twists and turns, and it will keep you guessing until the end. It also includes recipes that are mentioned throughout the story, and the antics of the shop cat, Miss Marple, will have you smiling!

If you love books as much as I do, you certainly will not want to pass up the opportunity to read a story about books, bookstores, murder, and mayhem! I do have 7 of the 8 books in this series, so you will be hearing more about this fun series in the near future.

A fun cartoon from Lorna's website! Be sure to visit it at http://lornabarrett.com
A fun cartoon from Lorna’s website! Be sure to visit it at http://lornabarrett.com

You can visit her website here: http://lornabarrett.com/

I was So Thrilled to Post This Book Review…and Now I Feel Like a Complete Jerk because I Did!

Angela11 Comments

As some of you know, some of my best books read and reviewed (in my opinion) are the ones I stumbled upon, chose to read, and am grateful I did. I will say straight-off that I do belong to a free ebooks website, and get 5 books a month through there. I also pick up random books at Barnes and Noble in their clearance bins, and buy books through Amazon because I like the cover.

I put myself out there (and many of you did as well), when I offered to read, edit, and review your works for free. I have met some amazing authors, made some great literary friends, and am glad I could help out others in a way that means so much to me!

Last month while perusing my free ebooks, I came across a story that I had to get. It was “The Scimitar and the Glory Boxes”, by Fred Morse. I love reading religious stories, factual, fiction, and whatever else may fall between the cracks. This story was fantastic, and I was so excited to post a review and also wanted to make sure I let Mr. Morse know. This book was too good to be on a free ebook site.

The Scimitar and the Glory Boxes Cover image

For the past couple of years of doing this blog, I would often post these types of reviews; but it was as of late that I thought I really need to make sure these authors know their stories are being read, and appreciated.

So as I have been so often doing now, I posted the book review, and sent an email to the author letting them know I reviewed their book, and included the link so they did not have to search for the review.

And then I was checking my email. I will admit I was anxiously awaiting to hear from Mr. Morse, and hoping he liked my review.

It was from his wife. He had passed away in September, and she wanted to let me know she appreciated me reaching out, and was happy I enjoyed his writing.

So many things ran through my mind. I was sad I never got to communicate with this great writer about his works. I likely opened afresh the pain his wife was trying to control during the Christmas holiday season. And more than anything, was I looking for approval from someone whom I did not know because I liked their writing?

I asked in my email that he let me know of any other books he had written, because I wanted to buy and review them. His wife was gracious enough to let me know, and with her permission, I will indeed be reading and reviewing them.

I never ask favors of anyone, but I would truly like any of my followers who enjoy this same type of genre to look up this book and read it. You will not be disappointed!

And to his wife, I would like to wish a Blessed, Happy New Year full of warm memories and comfort on how her husband’s writing truly did make a difference.

You can find my original review here: https://booksandopinions.com/2014/12/24/the-scimitar-and-the-glory-boxes-frederick-morse/

You can find it on Amazon here: http://www.amazon.com/The-Scimitar-Glory-Frederick-Morse-ebook/dp/B006ZB39R4

It is the best 0.99 you will ever spend.

Gene.Sys – Aaron Denius Garcia

Angela1 Comment

A spectacular YA novel, this Dystopian story will have you waiting anxiously for the next book by Aaron Denius Garcia.

Gene.Sys cover image

Being a fan of religious fiction and biographies (do NOT panic if you are not religious, this story is not either) I was immediately drawn in to read the story about Atom and Ev, and how they were created to create a new life for everyone, in E.D.E.N.

Created much like I would assume a test-tube-infant was created (no offense intended here, I am not a Science or Biology student), Atom and Ev live in a secluded, monitored, high-security environment.

They are on the ‘inside’; the rest of the human race is on the ‘outside’. A select group of Doctors and Scientists are tasked with creating a new race of humans, whatever the cost. The humans on the outside are barely alive, fighting wars, famine, and plagues.

There is a lot to this story, but it is an easy read that you will not want to put down. You will immediately feel empathy to the drones, those who are genetically modified to do nothing other than protect the Gene.Sys, even at the cost of their own lives.

For Atom to befriend one, called nothing more than #80, could be the beginning of the end for all of them.

Aaron denius Garcia Cover image

Once again, no spoilers here. To find out more about the author, you can find him on Amazon here: http://www.amazon.com/Aaron-Denius-Garcia/e/B00L8H6VGQ

I Wrote How Many Book Reviews?

Angela3 Comments

I thought I should do a final post for 2014 of how many books I actually read, how many of those resulted in book reviews I posted, and anything else I may have thrown in.

Frosted Leaves and books 10-19-2014 063

I could really tell from my blog activity what months were the most busy for me. Or should I say, what months I was working on the toughest MBA college classes.

I did a whole lot of nothing in the summer months when it came to posting book reviews. I was really busy from September to December, and although I have every good intention of reading at least 3 more books when I finish the one I am currently on, I thought this would be a good time to do this post.

As a side note, I am off work until January 5th, and am kid free until January 4th. Which means I have a whole lot of reading-in-bed-writing-reviews-playing-with-the-cat-nap-time planned 🙂

For the year as a whole, I posted to date, 67 book reviews.

Of those 67 reviews, 18 were of books I had previously read, so for 2014 I read 49 new books. Not too shabby for being a single Mom of a whole lot of girls, working 50+ hours a week, and going to college for my MBA. The 18 on books I previously read were a combination of Halloween features, Christmas features, and books that I had read in the past that had a great impact on me.

The Cricket on the Hearth

June was the only month I did not post any book reviews, and October was my busiest month, with 12 book reviews posted. I have to add that for December I am currently at 7, and do plan on at least 5 more before the New Year, but certainly do not expect it to exceed October.

Frosted Leaves and books 10-19-2014 060

Some notables for 2014 for me:

I made the very tough decision to begin working on my MBA. After working non-stop for 2 years straight to get my BBA, I did take the entire year of 2013 off, as I promised my girls, and did not start college again until January 4th, 2014.

Girls 10-12-2014 012

After many months of contemplating, searching, and debating, I became the very proud owner of Beeblebrox Bare Bottom Benjamin Blu, or Benny to me! He is a Hairless Sphynx cat and I am not ashamed to say that little ball of wrinkled-velvety-soft skin has changed my life! I like to tease my 4 girls about their “little brother’, but believe you me, that little guy has gotten me through a lot of weekends when I was wide awake all night long from being a 3rd shift worker and having the weekend off.

Benny Christmas Eve 12-24-2014 002

I made the decision to leave my Supervision position with my company and go back to a Materials Coordinator position that I had previously worked in for almost 5 years. I have worked for my company for over 18 years, and am so thankful to have such a wonderful employer.

I joined the Editorial Freelancers Association, and am currently working on getting myself set to begin editing and proofreading books for new and current authors. I have a love for books and the English language that I would probably have a very difficult time putting into words in order to get anyone to understand. (Now that is ironic, right?)

EFA_logofull_80T

I would personally like to thank each and every single one of you for liking, following, or just commenting on a random blog post. I could not begin to tell you the excitement I have when I see that someone liked a post I made, and even better yet, left a comment, or followed my blog!

I will be setting some goals for myself for 2015, and there will be more to come on that!

Darkness Falls (Submit to Darkness Series Book 2)- AJ Spencer

Angela5 Comments

I had the great pleasure and enjoyment to read AJ Spencer’s second book in her Submit to Darkness Series. I reviewed the first book here: https://booksandopinions.com/2014/11/18/edge-of-darkness-submit-to-darkness-book-1-aj-spencer/

One of the first things I noted about her first story was that I had it read in less than 24 hours, it was that good. This second installment, Darkness Falls, I had read in less than 8 hours.

Darkness Falls Cover Image

This second book continues with Detective Natasha Stolt trying to get into the mind of the serial killer known as Grimm. Her partner, Giovanni Tagliente reveals the reason he has something to hide. Natasha finds herself being held captive by this monster of a man, only she sees something other than the horrible, un-human being the country seems to know him as.

Natasha is forced to look deep inside herself at thoughts and feelings she would rather not admit she has. Can she control the monster known as Grimm, before he truly gets 100% control of her?

This is a heart-pounding adventure, full of twists and turns, and its fair share of erotica. This is not your cookie-cutter story seeking fame on the coattails of previously released erotica stories. This series stands well on its own, and puts the others to shame!

(The first novel has a well-earned warning due to the graphic nature of the story. The same holds true here. There is descriptive violence against women and children in the most depraved sense of the word. It justly serves the story, and is necessary to the telling of it. As I said in my first review; if this is something you cannot handle, this is not the series for you.)

It’s Time To Stop Stalling…

AngelaLeave a comment

…and start reading!

That sounds odd, especially coming from me. I usually never stall when I know I have some reading to do. I think it is more the fact that I also know I need to finish my laundry, get gifts wrapped, and other chores that I do not have the motivation to do.

So when I know I have these chores waiting to be done, I always feel that I have got to do them all before I can sit down, relax, and read a story.

Luckily, I have been asked to complete a book review on a story that I have not quite finished yet. So from where I am sitting, it looks like the most important thing I need to do today is finish that book, and get the review wrote.

That makes perfect sense to me 🙂

Wishing you a Sunday full of Blessings and great stories!