Heat Wave Torches Vegetables, Crops in Tennessee

On Jul 3, 2012 my husband put together a video about what the heat wave was doing to our backyard garden. Our sunflowers flourished, while other pants did not fare so well.

http://voices.yahoo.com/heat-wave-torches-vegetables-crops-tennessee-11528340.html

Growing Peas

My husband wrote this last year about growing peas, I wanted to share the link with you. 

http://www.livingspace360.com/index.php/growing-peas-316/

THE FIVE W’S and HOW Of Eleanor Moran

Eleanor Moran is the author of three previous novels: Stick or Twist, Mr Almost

Right and Breakfast in Bed, which is currently being developed for television.

Eleanor also works as a television drama executive and her TV credits include

Spooks, Being Human and a biopic of Enid Blyton, Enid, starring Helena Bonham

Carter. Eleanor grew up in North London, where she still lives.

WHO? Who are you besides a writer?
I write part of the week, and run a drama department in a TV company the other
half. I come up with ideas for shows, and also work on fabulous ideas people bring
to me. I had a long career at the BBC, where I got to work on all kinds of great
projects like MI5 and Rome.

WHAT? What do you enjoy doing other than writing in your spare time?
I try not to write in my spare time! I love cooking, I find it really satisfying, even
though I'm no cordon bleu wunderkind. I love cooking for people, I'm happy with
an open bottle of red wine and a noisy, crowded kitchen. I'm a film and tv nut, and
I cannot WAIT for Thursdays for the next episode of The Good Wife (choose Will!)

WHEN? When did you know you wanted to be a writer?
I think I always wanted to write, and took an English Literature degree. I didn't
have the guts to think I had a story worth telling until I was in my early 30s. I was
set to get married and, whilst it all looked good on paper, I knew in my heart it
was wrong. A friend unexpectedly dropped out of a week long course. I took her
place and spent that week pouring it all out on paper. It was the beginning of my
first novel, Stick or Twist.

WHERE? Where do you write?
I write at the British Library, an amazing place in London where they keep every
book ever published. It's very sociable, so there's always some fellow writer who is
also desperate to break for coffee. It's also the world's most unlikely pick up joint.
A soulful looking man with a ponytail dropped a poem on my desk a few months
ago.

WHY? Why do you write?
I write because I can't not! I do find it hard, but it's also immensely satisfying. I
like being able to shape a story and watch my heroines change and develop as I
throw rocks at them.

How? Has your writing success changed your life?
I love seeing my books in print, and I really love hearing from readers, and knowing
they were moved by the story. The response in England to The Last Time I Saw
You was particularly gratifying. It proved my theory that most women have had a
toxic friendship at some time in their life that has haunted them for years to
come.

The Last Time I Saw You

by Eleanor Moran

When Olivia Berrington gets the call to tell her that her best friend from university has been killed in a car crash in New York, her life is turned upside down. Her relationship with Sally was an exhilarating roller coaster, until a shocking betrayal drove them apart. But if Sally had really turned her back, why is her little girl named Olivia?

As questions mount about the fatal accident, Olivia is forced to go back and unravel her tangled history. But as Sally's secrets start to spill out, Olivia's left asking herself if the past is best kept buried.

I think THE LAST TIME I SAW YOU by Eleanor Moran sounds wonderful! Make sure to learn more about Elanor by following her and I set up links, so you can purchase your copy!

Follow Eleanor Moran

Website | Facebook | Twitter

Buy your copy of The Last Time I Saw You by Eleanor Moran

Amazon | Barnes & Noble

“Gripping, emotional – shows how losing a best friend can be worse than losing a lover."

—Daisy Goodwin, author of My Last Duchess on The Last Time I Saw You

"Defiantly superior women's fiction . . . “ —Independent on Breakfast in Bed

On Grace by Susie Orman Schnall

Almost forty, Grace May, is a mom of two boys and wife of a successful man.     Then her whole world is shake.     With her boys finally in school all day, she finds a job she cannot wait to start, until she loses the job before it begins.    Then she gets more horrible news.   Grace struggles to get her life back on track and make herself happy again.

My Review:

This was a easy read.   I could relate easily to the stresses in Grace's life.   Being a mother and wife brings on everyday adventures but add on the extras in Grace's world and I am amazed she truly did lot crack under the pressure.   Whenever a person looks at herself it is easier to be critical of what you see rather than celebrate what you are.    I loved that at her birthday party her friends managed to tell her exactly why they are friends and how amazing Grace is.   Her resolution to become herself again was amazing.   I was excited that she grew throughout the story and was able to recognize that she was important and needed but that she had to be herself.

On Grace is a story of warmth and humor.   More importantly it is a story of a mom being more than just a mom; a wife being more than just a wife.     It is a story of true friendships.  I feel like anyone who reads this will sit back and have an ah ha moment and realize they can learn something.   Whether they learn how to be a better friend, wife, or just a better self; they will learn something.

I certainly recommend this book.  This is a book I will keep close by.  A book I will return to over and over.

Purchase Links

Goodreads   |   Amazon   |   Barnes and Noble

About Susie Orman Schnall

Originally from Los Angeles, Susie Orman Schnall graduated from the University of Pennsylvania. Schnall has written for national and local publications about parenting and health. She lives in New York with her husband and their three young boys. ON GRACE is her debut novel.  

 

Author Links

Website   |   Twitter   |   Facebook

THE MOON SISTERS by Therese Walsh + Giveaway

A beautiful coming-of-age novel about two sisters on a journey to forgive their troubled mother, with a sheen of almost-magical realism that overlays a story about the love of a family, and especially between sisters.

Therese Walsh's poignant and mesmerizing novel is a moving tale of family, love, and the power of stories. After their mother's probable suicide, sisters Olivia and Jazz are figuring out how to move on with their lives. Jazz, logical and forward-thinking, decides to get a new job, but spirited, strong-willed Olivia, who can see sounds, taste words, and smell sights, is determined to travel to the remote setting of their mother's unfinished novel to say her final goodbyes and lay their mother's spirit to rest.

Though they see things very differently, Jazz is forced by her sense of duty to help Olivia reach her goal. Bitter and frustrated by the attention heaped on her sunny sister whose world is so unique, Jazz is even more upset when they run into trouble along the way and Olivia latches to a worldly train-hopper. Though Hobbs warns Olivia that he's a thief who shouldn't be trusted, he agrees to help with their journey. As they near their destination, the tension builds between the two sisters, each hiding something from the other, and they will finally be forced to face everything between them and decide what is really important.

My Thoughts:

A hauntingly beautiful novel. The Moons Sisters is an adventure in grief. On one hand we have Olivia who was very close to her mother, her mother was her center and she is very much aware of her loss. Needing something more, some magical good-bye, she heads out to find find it. While her sister Jazz is licking her wounds in private, filled with regrets and confusion over her loss to a mother she was not close to. As Olivia takes off on her adventure, Jazz is pressured to yet again be her sisters keeper-a job she doesn't want.

I was captivated by The Moon Sisters. The struggle with the loss, the grief for their mother--a mother who may have actually chosen to leave them. Their pain haunted me, I knew it too well. As a daughter who has lost her mother and as a sister I related on different levels to both young women. Nothing can tear sisters apart and bring them together like the loss of a mother, a woman's center. Grief exposes us to our core, makes us raw.

A breathtakingly beautiful story of two sisters trying desperately to find a way to live in a world their mother is no longer a part of. Olivia is a story of a daughter's devotion, Jazz is a story of a daughter's rebellion. Will Olivia's quest tear them apart? Can they find themselves? Find each other? Can they say goodbye?

As I closed The Moon Sisters and wiped tears from my eyes, I wanted nothing more than to hug my sister. I will not soon forget this novel. Highly recommending.

Therese Walsh’s TLC Book Tours TOUR STOPS:

Monday, March 3rd:  Lit and Life

Tuesday, March 4th:  Beth Fish Reads – “Today’s Read” guest post

Tuesday, March 4th:  Book Club Classics!

Wednesday, March 5th:  Book-a-licious Mama

Thursday, March 6th:  girlichef

Friday, March 7th:  Books in the Burbs

Monday, March 10th:  Bookchickdi

Tuesday, March 11th:  Traveling with T

Wednesday, March 12th:  Patricia’s Wisdom

Friday, March 14th:  The Book Barn

Monday, March 17th:  Book Snob

Tuesday, March 18th:  Fiction Addict

Wednesday, March 19th:  Time 2 Read

Thursday, March 20th:  Bibliotica

Monday, March 24th:  Mockingbird Hill Cottage

Wednesday, March 26th:  A Novel Review

Thursday, March 27th:  A Bookish Affair

Tuesday, April 1st:  Suko’s Notebook

Wednesday, April 2nd:  A Reader of Fictions

Tuesday, April 8th:  Books a la Mode

TBD:  5 Minutes for Moms

Follow Therese Walsh

Facebook | Twitter | Website | Blog

Buy your copy of THE MOON SISTERS by Therese Walsh

Amazon | Barnes & Noble

A Giveaway of THE MOON SISTERS to one lucky US winner (no po boxes).

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Tempting Fate by Jane Green + Giveaway

When Gabby first met Elliott she knew he was the man for her. In twenty years of marriage she has never doubted her love for him - even when he refused to give her the one thing she still wants most of all. But now their two daughters are growing up Gabby feels that time and her youth are slipping away. For the first time in her life she is restless. And then she meets Matt . . .

Intoxicated by the way this young, handsome and successful man makes her feel, Gabby is momentarily blind to what she stands to lose on this dangerous path. And in one reckless moment she destroys all that she holds dear.

Consumed by regret, Gabby does everything she can to repair the home she has broken. But are some betrayals too great to forgive?




My Thoughts:

From page one I related to Gabby. We are both women of a certain age, live in the suburbs, happily married for twenty years, still very much in love, stay-at-home moms and may not always feel as good about ourselves as we once did. I liked her right off the bat. I liked how she wanted to look nice with her girlfriends, but wasn't looking to spend a ton of money. She felt so genuine. Then on her night out she meets a young guy who flatters her and she likes it and oh by the way he's a hottie! It builds her confidence. I got it. I even got the emails. Jane Green made Gabby real. The wife who goes too far. I was mad, I was angry. Let me say if I could have I would have given Claire a high five for being a good best friend and giving Gabby some perspective.

The fall out for Gabby's "one reckless moment" changes everything for everyone around her. Jane Green really showed the ugly side, the side where it falls apart, the hurt of not only others but your own pain. I found myself crying over the broken family.

I didn't necessary feel bad for Gabby and in moments I didn't like her, but deep down she just made a really bad decision with repercussions that everyone felt. I loved how those repercussions were explored. The only negative for me was the ending...it felt a little over the top. Had it been a little less it would have been perfect.

I can't say TEMPTING FATE is an enjoyable book, because of the story line...but it was a really really great read. A story line that really makes you realize how unexpectedly those lines can be crossed and what you can lose. I am highly recommending it!!!

Now for the giveaway! I have one copy of Tempting Fate by Jane Green to give away! The giveaway is for US and Canada! Please no Po Boxes!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Buy a copy of Tempting Fate by Jane Green

Barnes & Noble | Amazon

CLEVER GIRL by Tessa Hadley

All the qualities that readers praised in The London Train are present in CLEVER GIRL, Tessa Hadley's brilliant new novel. It follows the story of Stella, from her childhood as the daughter of a single mother in a Bristol bedsit in the 1960s into the mysterious shallows of her middle age. The story is full of drama - violent deaths, an abrupt end to Stella's schooldays, two sons by different fathers who aren't around to see the boys grow up - but as ever it is her observation of ordinary lives, of the way men and women think and feel and relate to one another, that dazzles. Yes, you think. This is how it is.

My thoughts:
I have not read Tessa Hadley before, but I do have more than one of her books on my wishlist. I have to say this novel was a bit different. It's written almost like a diary or a memoir where she is retelling her story. She was a young girl growing up in the 60's in England. Her father is dead (but she wonders if he really is) and her mom is single. Her mother eventually remarries and moves Stella to the suburbs. She always seems a bit of an outcast, but finds a place in the new generation. She becomes a sort of hippie. There is sex and drugs without commitment. She moves along in her life determined to not be her mother--to be more, because she is clever. She has two children without being married and no real support system in place. Stella eventually finds her way.

For me CLEVER GIRL is a mixed bag. Tessa Hadley had me thoroughly convinced with Stella's story. Completely believable. I can't say I liked Stella nor can I say I thought she made good decisions, but Tessa wrote a character who felt so true and Stella was always true to character. Not only was Stella's character real, but the world around her. I could almost feel the avocado shag carpeting under my feet as I read. I was transported into Stella's story. I didn't like Stella. I wanted better for Stella. But Stella carves out a life, which is true to her. It's hard to explain, you have to read it.

I felt I walked away from CLEVER GIRL understanding people a bit more. Her choices and life path are foreign to me, but she made me respect her differences. I feel like I understand a generation I didn't know before. For as much as I didn't like the story, I loved it. For as much as I didn't like Stella, I loved her. I recommend you take a trip to your local bookstore and open CLEVER GIRL up. This isn't a 'typical' read, not a 'typical' story. It is very good, but may not be for everyone. I do want to say I think you should take time and read a few chapters. CLEVER GIRL by Tessa Hadley is the exact reason why I became a book reviewer. I knew I wanted to experience new genres and writing techniques, I may have otherwise not tried. If you are looking for a more unique experience in your reading selections, than I recommend CLEVER GIRL.

What others are saying about CLEVER GIRL by Tessa Hadley:
Booklist
“Hadley displays the keen insight and masterful portrayal of the domestic life for which she has become known.”

Ron Rash
“One woman’s story comes to exemplify a whole era in this marvelous novel. Tessa Hadley writes with a poet’s attentiveness to language, and finds the profound and wondrous in the seemingly quietest of lives.”

Carol Anshaw
“With Clever Girl, Tessa Hadley examines the blunt force of young adulthood. She deftly portrays this short stretch of time in which we make many of the most important decisions of our lives, all while driving under the influence of ignorance and inchoate sexuality.”

Sunday Times (London)
“Quietly brilliant….Hadley has always been adept at drawing out the unrecognisable from the everyday….Domestic fiction is often disparaged as less than serious, but Hadley demonstrates admirably that the genre can carry weight.”

Buy your copy of CLEVER GIRL by Tessa Hadley

Amazon | Barnes & Noble

CLEVER GIRL by Tessa Hadley

All the qualities that readers praised in The London Train are present in CLEVER GIRL, Tessa Hadley's brilliant new novel. It follows the story of Stella, from her childhood as the daughter of a single mother in a Bristol bedsit in the 1960s into the mysterious shallows of her middle age. The story is full of drama - violent deaths, an abrupt end to Stella's schooldays, two sons by different fathers who aren't around to see the boys grow up - but as ever it is her observation of ordinary lives, of the way men and women think and feel and relate to one another, that dazzles. Yes, you think. This is how it is.

My thoughts:
I have not read Tessa Hadley before, but I do have more than one of her books on my wishlist. I have to say this novel was a bit different. It's written almost like a diary or a memoir where she is retelling her story. She was a young girl growing up in the 60's in England. Her father is dead (but she wonders if he really is) and her mom is single. Her mother eventually remarries and moves Stella to the suburbs. She always seems a bit of an outcast, but finds a place in the new generation. She becomes a sort of hippie. There is sex and drugs without commitment. She moves along in her life determined to not be her mother--to be more, because she is clever. She has two children without being married and no real support system in place. Stella eventually finds her way.

For me CLEVER GIRL is a mixed bag. Tessa Hadley had me thoroughly convinced with Stella's story. Completely believable. I can't say I liked Stella nor can I say I thought she made good decisions, but Tessa wrote a character who felt so true and Stella was always true to character. Not only was Stella's character real, but the world around her. I could almost feel the avocado shag carpeting under my feet as I read. I was transported into Stella's story. I didn't like Stella. I wanted better for Stella. But Stella carves out a life, which is true to her. It's hard to explain, you have to read it.

I felt I walked away from CLEVER GIRL understanding people a bit more. Her choices and life path are foreign to me, but she made me respect her differences. I feel like I understand a generation I didn't know before. For as much as I didn't like the story, I loved it. For as much as I didn't like Stella, I loved her. I recommend you take a trip to your local bookstore and open CLEVER GIRL up. This isn't a 'typical' read, not a 'typical' story. It is very good, but may not be for everyone. I do want to say I think you should take time and read a few chapters. CLEVER GIRL by Tessa Hadley is the exact reason why I became a book reviewer. I knew I wanted to experience new genres and writing techniques, I may have otherwise not tried. If you are looking for a more unique experience in your reading selections, than I recommend CLEVER GIRL.

What others are saying about CLEVER GIRL by Tessa Hadley:
Booklist
“Hadley displays the keen insight and masterful portrayal of the domestic life for which she has become known.”

Ron Rash
“One woman’s story comes to exemplify a whole era in this marvelous novel. Tessa Hadley writes with a poet’s attentiveness to language, and finds the profound and wondrous in the seemingly quietest of lives.”

Carol Anshaw
“With Clever Girl, Tessa Hadley examines the blunt force of young adulthood. She deftly portrays this short stretch of time in which we make many of the most important decisions of our lives, all while driving under the influence of ignorance and inchoate sexuality.”

Sunday Times (London)
“Quietly brilliant….Hadley has always been adept at drawing out the unrecognisable from the everyday….Domestic fiction is often disparaged as less than serious, but Hadley demonstrates admirably that the genre can carry weight.”

Buy your copy of CLEVER GIRL by Tessa Hadley

Amazon | Barnes & Noble

Tuesday, March 4th: Svetlana’s Reads and Views

Wednesday, March 5th: BookNAround

Saturday, March 8th: Books in the Burbs

Monday, March 10th: missris

Tuesday, March 11th: Read. Write. Repeat.

Wednesday, March 12th: She’s Got Books On Her Mind

Thursday, March 13th: A Bookish Way of Life

Friday, March 14th: Write Meg

Monday, March 17th: bookchickdi

Tuesday, March 18th: Tiffany’s Bookshelf

Wednesday, March 19th: A Novel Review

Thursday, March 20th: The House of the Seven Tails

Monday, March 24th: Between the Covers

Tuesday, March 25th: Bibliotica

Wednesday, March 26th: A Chick Who Reads

Thursday, March 27th: 5 Minutes For Books

Monday, March 31st: From the TBR Pile

Tuesday, April 1st: A Lovely Bookshelf on the Wall

Wednesday, April 2nd: Sweet Tea and Lollipops

Thursday, April 3rd: The 3R’s: Reading, ‘Riting, and Randomness

In my TBR pile: A Circle of Wives by Alice LaPlante and Q&A

When Dr. John Taylor is found dead in a hotel room in his hometown, the local police find enough
incriminating evidence to suspect foul play. Detective Samantha Adams, whose Palo Alto beat usually covers small-town crimes, is innocently thrown into a high-profile murder case that is more intricately intertwined than she could ever imagine. A renowned plastic surgeon, a respected family man, and an active community spokesman, Dr. Taylor was loved and admired. But, hidden from the public eye, he led a secret life—in fact, multiple lives. A closeted polygamist, Dr. Taylor was married to three very different women in three separate cities. And when these three unsuspecting women show up at his funeral, suspicions run high. Adams soon finds herself tracking down a murderer through a web of lies and marital discord.

With a rare combination of gripping storytelling, vivid prose, and remarkable insight into character, Alice LaPlante brings to life a story of passion and obsession that will haunt readers long after they turn the final page. A charged and provocative psychological thriller, A Circle of Wives dissects the dynamics of love and marriage, trust and jealousy, posing the terrifying question: How well do you really know your spouse?

I can't wait to start reading A Circle of Wives! It sounds so interesting! I had to share! I haven't read Alice LaPlante before, so I'm also excited about reading a new author. Have you read her books before?

Follow Alice LaPlante

Website | Goodreads

Buy a copy of A Circle of Wives by Alice LaPlante

Barnes & Noble | Amazon

Author Q+A, a conversation with Alice LaPlante

On the surface, your first book, Turn of Mind, which examines the interior of the mind, seems very different from A CIRCLE OF WIVES. But in both books you use the framework of a mystery to explore the characters’ psychology. What made you want to write another book in this style?

I enjoy the pacing and structure of mysteries/thrillers, but my heart is in the characterizations. I couldn’t write a more conventional detective novel—my mind just doesn’t work that way. Instead of whodunit, I’m much more interested in whydunit. Flannery O’Connor wrote in Mystery and Manners something to the effect that as writers we want to transfer our attention from the external mystery to the internal ones. That’s what I’ve tried to do with both Turn of Mind and A CIRCLE OF WIVES.

You create four very distinct female characters in A CIRCLE OF WIVES: Detective Samantha Adams and Deborah, MJ, and Helen (Dr. Taylor’s three wives). Is there a particular character that you closely relate to, and is there one that pushes your buttons?

I don’t know about relate to, but I found myself liking two of the characters in particular very much: Sam, the young detective, and Helen, the third wife. I liked Sam because she has a wry, self-deprecating way about her that makes her seem both tough and vulnerable. She’s very honest and I think quite emotionally intelligent. Helen I like because she’s achieved so much at a relatively young age yet hasn’t let it go to her ego. She’s truly fascinated by her work and, despite her own characterizations of herself as being on the clinical side, has a big heart.

In this book you explore the nature of marriage. Why did you choose to focus on that relationship?

It was just in the nature of the situation I chose to write about—a doctor who is found to have three concurrent wives. That intrigued me. Why would he do such a thing? Why would the women put up with the diminished relationship they would inevitably have in such a situation? Even if they didn’t know the reason that their “husband” was so unavailable, the fact would be that he was unavailable, both emotionally and physically. I was interested in exploring all this, specifically from the points of view of the women. Marriage has always fascinated me—such a mysterious relationship, and never obvious from outside the institution what keeps two people together or breaks them apart.

Even after his death, Dr. John Taylor exerts a powerful hold over the women he was married to, and even over the detective investigating his murder. What makes him so magnetic to these women?

I think he was genuinely attractive to women because he truly saw them. He looked deeply into the women he chose to have relationships with, saw their strengths and weaknesses, and, I believe, accepted them for who they were. That he was able to do so with such different women was to me the really interesting part—each of them gave him something special that he couldn’t get anywhere else.

What were each of these women seeking in their marriage to Dr. Taylor, and were they ultimately fulfilled?

I think that Deborah was seeking status and security; MJ, an emotionally safe haven from a rather rough life; and Helen, passion for the first time in her life. Except for MJ, I think they did get what they wanted out of their relationships with John Taylor. MJ was perhaps the worst betrayed, in my opinion.

Did your perspective on marriage and the expectations, hopes, and passions attached to it change throughout the writing of this novel?

It’s funny, but writing books always changes your opinion about what you’re writing about! It was that way with Turn of Mind, and it was that way with A CIRCLE OF WIVES. I think before I wrote it, I would have been more inclined to judge a man like John Taylor harshly for his deceptiveness. Now I see that he brought real happiness to each of the women in his (busy) life. He wasn’t a monster… just had unconventional ways of having his needs met. 

A Ball for Daisy by Chris Raschka

OVERVIEW (Barnes & Noble):

Here's a story about love and loss as only Chris Rashcka can tell it. Any child who has ever had a beloved toy break will relate to Daisy's anguish when her favorite ball is destroyed by a bigger dog. In the tradition of his nearly wordless picture book Yo! Yes?, Caldecott Medalist Chris Raschka explores in pictures the joy and sadness that having a special toy can bring. Raschka's signature swirling, impressionistic illustrations and his affectionate story will particularly appeal to young dog lovers and teachers and parents who have children dealing with the loss of something special.

Winner of the 2012 Caldecott Medal
A New York Times Best Illustrated Children's Book of 2011


A BALL FOR DAISY, is a hardbound wordless book. From the illustrations the story is that of a dog who loves his ball, loses his ball and gains a new friend.

I sat down with my 5 and 3 year old and really wasn't sure what to expect. I can't say I've ever bought a book without words, I sure didn't expect much to be honest with you. Wow was I wrong! Both kids LOVED this book! With each picture they started telling me the story they say on the pages (and yes most of the time telling me at the same time, lol). Not only were they extra animated, but we easily discussed "feelings of losing a toy" and "how do we behave when someone accidentally breaks something of ours." Not only did they both enjoy it, but my three year old has been dragging it around the house so she can "read" it by herself!

This would make a fantastic gift for your pre-readers! Definite recommend!

Buy a copy for a little one at Barnes & Noble or Amazon!

The books we review on this site (A NOVEL REVIEW) are sent to us by publishers, authors or downloaded from Netgalley. This is a very common practice.  We never take payments for these reviews and all the reviews on this site are our own thoughts and feelings and are not influenced.

Easy weekly menu and what I need to buy!

Meal planning, oh how I hate thee. Let's be honest it is necessary if you want to stay at all on top of your grocery spending and avoid eating out. I find if I know first thing in the morning what I'm going to make for dinner, my day runs a little more smoothly. I know what time I need to get started. I know we have soccer at five on Thursday nights, so I will make something in the crock pot. If I know ahead of time what I'm going to make and actually have everything I need--presto better day. Whereas, when I'm not meal planning it may slip my mind it's Thursday and at 4:30 I'm throwing together sandwiches or running to Sonic.

An important aspect of meal planning, is getting the right groceries. I know I've stood many times in the middle of Krogger wondering if I have refried beans at home or not. Then getting home and finding no I don't and didn't buy them or I do buy them and I already have six cans, but I didn't buy the olives I need. With meal planning, I simply right down what I want to make each night (make sure you do this next to your weekly calendar). Then I take my list and go through the cabinets and fridge and see what I have and what I need. Now I know what I need to buy. If I was really good I'd do this for lunches too, but one thing at a time!

All I did I was go into Word and type this up. Took all of five mins, but will save me time and money.

Return to Tradd Street by Karen White

Facing her future as a single mother, psychic Realtor Melanie Middleton is determined to be strong and leave her past with writer Jack Trenholm behind her. But history has a tendency of catching up with Melanie, whether she likes it or not.…


Melanie is only going through the motions of living since refusing Jack’s marriage proposal. She misses him desperately, but her broken heart is the least of her problems. Despite an insistence that she can raise their child alone, Melanie is completely unprepared for motherhood, and she struggles to complete renovations on her house on Tradd Street before the baby arrives.

When Melanie is roused one night by the sound of a ghostly infant crying, she chooses to ignore it. She simply does not have the energy to deal with one more crisis. That is, until the remains of a newborn buried in an old christening gown are found hidden in the foundation of her house.

As the hauntings on Tradd Street slowly become more violent, Melanie decides to find out what caused the baby’s untimely death, uncovering the love, loss, and betrayal that color the house’s history—and threaten her claim of ownership. But can she seek Jack’s help without risking her heart? For in revealing the secrets of the past, Melanie also awakens the malevolent presence that has tried to keep the truth hidden for decades.…

I recently 'found' Karen White books and have added her as one of my favorite authors. However, I haven't read all of her books nor had I read any of the previous books, which are a part of this series. Whenever I am asked to review a later book in a series I'm hesitant. I like to let the readers know if they can follow the story having not read the previous books, as well as what I thought of the book itself.

Having not read the three previous books, I had no problem jumping right into RETURN TO TRADD STREET. White shares enough history to allow you to follow along, but not too much to bore those who have read the series. I very much enjoyed getting to know the cast of characters in this novel, especially Melanie and Jack. I actually kinda loved the characters in this book. If the other books in the series are as good as this one it is no wonder why people wanted Karen White to continue the series.

The novel has a paranormal element to it and I found it was a very balanced story. The paranormal was just enough, the story between characters was perfect, the right amount of mystery,  just a great balance to a really good book. The setting is in Charleston, South Carolina and White did a fantastic job of making me 'see' Charleston as I read. There was nothing about this book I didn't enjoy. You could read it as a stand alone, but gosh why would you? I am HIGHLY recommending RETURN TO TRADD STREET!

When the book ended, I didn't want to leave. I wanted more-- Honestly, if I didn't have stacks of books to review I would go buy the entire series, pop some popcorn and sit up all night reading the series!

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Love Water Memory by Jennie Shortridge

At age thirty-nine, Lucie Walker has no choice but to start her life over when she comes to, up to her knees in the chilly San Francisco Bay, with no idea how she got there or who she is. Her memory loss is caused by an emotional trauma she knows nothing about, and only when handsome, quiet Grady Goodall arrives at the hospital does she learn she has a home, a career, and a wedding just two months away. What went wrong? Grady seems to care for her, but Lucie is no more sure of him than she is of anything. As she collects the clues of her past self, she unlocks the mystery of what happened to her. The painful secrets she uncovers could hold the key to her future—if she trusts her heart enough to guide her.

The amnesia story is not an uncommon theme, and LOVE WATER MEMORY felt more genuine than most I've read. Lucie 'wakes up' for lack of a better word, and no longer knows who she is. She knows somethings to be true about the world around her, but that's it. She finds herself being led into this new world by a man she has no memory of. Her fiance, Grady, seems to be holding something back from the very beginning. The novel moves back and forth from Lucie to Grady's perspective, so we the reader find out what right away. But like the two characters we somehow can't put all the pieces together.

When Lucie comes back, she comes back as a very different woman...almost like she got to reset. Lucie had what seemed to be a hard edge to her before and a soft Lucie has taken her place. But it leaves the question: What had made Lucie so hard before? Grady didn't have the answers, as he realizes how little he knew the 'real' Lucie.

I would say LOVE WATER MEMORY is one of my favorite books to date. I loved how both Lucie and Grady had to look at themselves, dig deep into their own pasts to see what defined who they were and why, not only that, but did they want those incidents to define who they were? Could they learn to love each other again? Could they? Were they even still compatible? Not only was this a great story, I thought it was very well written. I became emotionally invested in what happened to Lucie (past and present). I am highly recommending LOVE WATER MEMORY!

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Review: Lake Como by Anita Hughes

Hallie Elliot has a perfect life. She is an up-and-coming interior designer in one of San Francisco’s most sought after firms, and has just recently become engaged to Peter, a brilliant young journalist. But when she stumbles upon Peter and her boss in what seems to be a compromising position, her trust in her perfect life is shaken.


So Hallie escapes to Lake Como, Italy to spend time with her half-sister, Portia Tesoro, an Italian blueblood dealing with the scandal of a public estrangement from her cheating husband. While staying in the Tesoro villa, Hallie falls in love with the splendor and beauty of Lake Como, and finds work designing the lakeside estate of a reclusive American tech mogul. The caretaker of this beautiful estate is a handsome man named Angus, and Hallie finds herself drawn to his charm and kindness, despite hints of a dark secret in his past.

But just as Hallie is beginning to find her footing on Italian soil, she uncovers a family secret that upends all the truths she’s believed about herself, and calls into question the new life she’s built in Lake Como.

Sisterhood, family, career, and sumptuous descriptions of Italian life fill the pages of this newest offering by Anita Hughes. Lake Como is a heartbreaking and heartwarming story of love, self-discovery, and the quest for truth.

Love, sisterhood, and sumptuous descriptions of la dolce vita fill the pages of Anita Hughes' Lake Como, a heartwarming story of romance, self-discovery, and the quest for truth.

My thoughts:

I was very fond of Hallie, she didn't just side step what Peter did nor did she go crazy. I liked how she wasn't hard nor a pushover. She does give herself some space and goes to Italy. Her sister, Portia has a lot on her plate and Hallie can center on her rather than herself. When she gets there Portia ends up taking off and the Italian men in the area have taken notice of Hallie. Before she knows it, Hallie has landed herself a job of a lifetime and the attraction of a new man.

Just as everything seems to be as it should be, when Hallie stumbles onto some unexpected secrets. Secrets when revealed changes lives.

I have read and enjoyed all of Anita Hughes books, but I have to say this is my favorite! Always Hughes opens the door to an upper class elite. I love how Hallie seems so down to earth even though she is has this amazing lifestyle. It makes me able to really connect to the characters. The issues of an overbearing family member, cheating husbands and boyfriends, sisters needing help, lies being told to us...no matter what we can all relate (but truthfully dealing with it while staying at Lake Como would help to soften the blow).

I felt Lake Como moved right along, it had an easy flow. The twists and turns were very natural. I didn't see everything coming the way it did.  I love how Hughes seems to answer those questions that pop up for me while reading. I normally try to write my reviews right after I read the book, but this time I didn't have a chance to. As I began writing my review, I found myself enjoying the story all over again. A great book and I'm recommending! (hey it's cold outside, so warm up with Lake Como!)

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Giveaway 10 of 52

A sophisticated page-turner about a wealthy New York family embroiled in a financial scandal with cataclysmic consequences. 

Now that he's married to Merrill Darling, daughter of billionaire financier Carter Darling, attorney Paul Ross has grown accustomed to New York society and all of its luxuries: a Park Avenue apartment, weekends in the Hamptons, bespoke suits. When Paul loses his job, Carter offers him the chance to head the legal team at his hedge fund. Thrilled with his good fortune in the midst of the worst financial downturn since the Great Depression, Paul accepts the position.

But Paul's luck is about to shift: a tragic event catapults the Darling family into the media spotlight, a regulatory investigation, and a red-hot scandal with enormous implications for everyone involved. Suddenly, Paul must decide where his loyalties lie-will he save himself while betraying his wife and in-laws or protect the family business at all costs?

Cristina Alger's glittering debut novel interweaves the narratives of the Darling family, two eager SEC attorneys, and a team of journalists all racing to uncover-or cover up-the truth. With echoes of a fictional Too Big to Fail and the novels of Dominick Dunne, The Darlings offers an irresistible glimpse into the highest echelons of New York society-a world seldom seen by outsiders-and a fast-paced thriller of epic proportions

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Lost Lake by Sarah Addison Allen

Published January 21, 2014

Lost Lake is the SheReads choice for March.   Each month SheReads choices a lucky author and offers their book to many bloggers and reviewers, helping to promote that book. 

Suley, Georgia is where Eby and George lived their life at Lost Lake Cottages.  When George dies Eby is left to run the cottages.   Lost Lake Cottages is also where widowed Kate, who is also Eby’s niece, spent the best summer of her life.   Kate has now returned to Lost Lake with her young daughter, Devin.  Eby wants to sell Lost Lake and travel the world.  Kate has discovered all that she thought was lost when she was forced by her parents to leave so many years ago.  She has rediscovered her almost first kiss, Wes, the magic of being with friends and family again, and the greatness of being a mom again.  Can being at Lost Lake make everything right again?

My Review:

First thought when I started reading Lost Lake was that this was going to be another sweet romance story, boy was I wrong.   There was sweet romance but there was so much more.   Lost Lake became a story of remembering past and moving into the future.  Starting with Kate becoming awake after living in a haze after losing her husband and concluding with Eby figuring out what her future could be. 

Devin is an amazing character that is quirky and wonderful.   She is the person in the book that each and every other character was able to relate to.  Even the characters that thought they had no friends were friends with Devin.   She is the character that changed the lives of every person she came into contact with. 

Eby is the character that starts the book on its journey.  The story started with Eby and George on their honeymoon and getting lost in various towns.  Their honeymoon was all they dreamed of, until it was cut short.  Upon returning home, their life path takes a different turn, a turn for the good and they purchase Lost Lake Cottages.  These cottages manage to attract a wide variety of visitors and touch the souls of the people who stay there and the people who just visit from town.  I loved this couple.  You could tell that they were the perfect couple, willing to do anything possible to make the other person happy.

Kate won my heart.  The fact that her story start with her waking up and getting back to her life after having such tragedy made her a hero right away.   Then when she let Devin live her life, dressing as she wants, playing freely, and generally being a free willed child totally won me over.    As Kate struggled to take back her life, I enjoyed watching her get stronger and stronger.  Once she figured out the right path to take I was able to take a deep breath and know that she would be happy and successful again. 

This is a story that is about starting over, understanding the past, and doing whatever you can to be happy.   I am new to Sarah Addison Allen, but will certainly be finding more of her works to enjoy.

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