Teaser Tuesday (22)

Yay for "Teaser Tuesday" from MizB of Should be Reading!!

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

• Grab your current read
• Open to a random page
• Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
• BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
• Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers! 

My teaser Tuesday pick:


" She inclined her head but said nothing. Her uncle had taught her never to feel compelled to fill a silence.  "





p 51 "How to Marry a Duke" by Vicky Dreiling

Giveaway and Review: "Sins of a Highland Devil"

As part of the "Sins of a Highland Devil" blog tour, I have my review and a giveaway of 3 copies of the book, sponsored by Hachette!

"Sins of a Highland Devil"
 by Sue-Ellen Welfonder

Publisher: Grand Central Publishing
Release Date: Jan 1, 2011

Source: sent by publisher

My Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars
Summary from Goodreads.com:


The first book in the Highland Warriors trilogy, in which three heroes make a pact to insure that a rival clan does not take over their Glen of Many Legends. At the same time, three women plot to marry these heroes to ensure peace. In SINS OF A HIGHLAND DEVIL, James Cameron is concerned when the King's decree states all three neighboring clans must have a battle to the death in order to lay official claim to the scared Glen of Many Legends. James attempts to make a pact with the heads of the other clans to fight this decree. But he ends up fighting his own fierce desire when coming head-to-head with Lady Catriona of the opposing MacDonald clan, who has her own plan for peace.
 
My Review:

I loved the supernatural element to the story and Scandia, the ghost, had a much more interesting and romantic love story than Catriona did. However, I did like how Catriona wanted to help Scandia and felt sympathy for her.

For me, this book would have been better if I had liked the hero more and if the story had been more romantic. I just didn't feel like the hero and heroine felt anything more than lust for each other. James kept saying he loved Catriona, but he didn't show it. He always pushed her away when he started to actually feel anything for her.


My favorite character was Rannoch, the mystical deer stag. I especially had a soft spot for Rannoch because the author's note at the beginning told of the inspiration for his character.
 
Main Characters: 3/5
Supporting Characters: 5/5
Setting: 3/5
Romance: 3/5
Uniqueness: 4/5
Cover: 3/5
Writing: 4/5


Bottom Line: I loved the supernatural characters, including Scandia and the deer Rannoch, but I wanted to see more love between the two leads. 

GIVEAWAY RULES:
Hachette books has generously provided three copies of this historical romance for readers of my blog!

All you have to do is follow my blog publicly and leave a comment on this review with your email address!
Please follow publicly or I can't tell that you are following :) Also, if you aren't comfortable leaving your email here, go ahead and leave a comment and then send me an email with your email addy.
Extra Entries:

• +1 Tweet this contest (leave link in comment)
• +1 Post link in sidebar of your blog (leave link in comment)

Rules:

• US and Canada only
• No PO Boxes please
• Must be a follower to enter
• Extra entries are optional and can all be left in the same comment
• Leave a comment with your email address
• Books will be mailed out by Hachette
• Ends Friday Jan 28

Thanks to everyone for entering! Good luck!

Book Blog Follow and Book Blogger Hop Jan 7

Happy New Year, Everyone!!

It's time for Book Blog Follow Friday hosted by Parajunkee.com and The Book Blogger Hop hosted by Crazy for Books!








My answer: I have discovered so many great reads from blogs!! The one that stands out in my head is "Crescendo" I probably wouldn't have read it if I hadn't seen so many great reviews of it!

My answer: I really can't think of a book that changed my life in a huge way...lots of books have changed the way I look at things though, that's the great thing about reading, it opens your mind!

This week, my post went up before the questions were posted! I'll try to edit the post tomorrow with the answers!

If you're visiting for the first time, I'd love to hear from you, so please leave a comment and say hi!! :)

Waiting on Wednesday (51)

Waiting on Wednesday is hosted by Breaking the Spine, and it is a way to show off the books you can't wait to be released!!

This week I chose:

"Belladonna"
by Mary Finn
Candlewick Press
Release Date: June 14, 2011

The following description is from goodreads.com:
 
A lyrical coming-of-age story about a boy, a girl, and a horse - and how a chance encounter can lead to a life of intrigue and learning, a life beyond imagining.
When Thomas Rose first spots the girl hidden by the roadside, she looks as drab as a lark, with only her red kerchief giving her away. But French Hélène, who goes by "Ling," is no ordinary bird. Tiny Ling enchants Thomas with her wild spirit and tales of a circus where she danced atop her beloved horse, Belladonna. But the horse has been sold, and Ling must fetch her back. Now Thomas’s life as a clever but unschooled wheelwright’s son is about to change. Their search leads to painter George Stubbs, who euthanizes ailing animals in order to study their anatomy. Stubbs draws eerie horses that stride as if they could move out of the paper world into the real one - but he assures his young friends that their horse is safe at a nearby estate. As Ling and Thomas devise a risky plan to recover Belladonna, Stubbs hires Thomas as an apprentice, teaching him to read and write as well. In this fascinating story, Mary Finn incorporates a real eighteenth-century artist into a beautifully imagined tale of adventure and young romance.

 This looks so fantastic!! I haven't heard that  much about it, but I can't wait to read it. Romance, a circus, and a horse, what's not to like??

Which book are you waiting for this week?

Teaser Tuesday (21)

 Yay for "Teaser Tuesday" from MizB of Should be Reading!!

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

• Grab your current read
• Open to a random page
• Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
• BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
• Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers! 

My teaser Tuesday pick:


" Then, as now, Rannoch had turned his velvety gaze on James, making him feel as if all creatures, large and small, ever to walk the earth, were looking at him through the stag's kind and gentle eyes.  "


p 89 "Sins of a Highland Devil" by Sue-Ellen Welfonder

Rannoch, the mystical deer stag is my favorite character in this one! Check back in a couple of weeks, I have a contest for this book during the book tour!

In My Mailbox (50)

In My Mailbox is hosted by The Story Siren, and is a way for everyone to show their new books for the week, including those bought, swapped, won, or received for review.

contest wins: 

"Anna and the French Kiss" by Stephanie Perkins 

I won this one, along with two others, from Jessica at The Cozy Reader! I can't wait to read it, it's been on my to read list for so long!

for review:

"The Girl Who Became a Beatle" by  Greg Taylor

There is some serious Beatle-mania going on in my house!

"Death Cloud" by Andrew Lane

I didn't get the audiobook, I just couldn't find this version of the cover anywhere else, and the new cover is so cute, I had to show it. This one is about young Sherlock Holmes!

"Anastasia's Secret" by Susanne Dunlop

"Cate of Lost Colony" by Lisa M. Klein

Bloomsbury sent these last two and more books that I will feature in next week's IMM, I can't wait to dive in to all the awesome YA historicals they sent! Thanks, Bloomsbury!

What did you receive in your mailbox this week???

Review and Giveaway! "John Lennon: Life is What Happens"

Thanks to FSB, I have a giveaway of a brand new copy of "John Lennon: Life is What Happens"!

"John Lennon: Life is What Happens"

by John Borack

Publisher: KP Books
Release Date: Sep 27, 2010

Source: sent by FSB

My Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars

Summary from Goodreads.com:

John Lennon - Life is What Happens celebrates the life and times of one of the most influential musicians in pop music history. A singer, songwriter, artist, social activist, husband and father, Lennon's genius inspired a generation &#151 and continues to do so today some 30 years after his death.
This fascinating read features rare images of Lennon juxtaposed by the myriad pop-culture memorabilia created from the height of Beatlemania into the late 1970s and the Plastic Ono Band. Chronicling his musical career, the book includes hundreds of classic photographs, dozens of quotes by and about Lennon, and personal reminiscence from fans and celebrities recalling Lennon's impact on their lives.

My Review:

This book is filled with beautiful photos and packed with information, quotes from John Lennon, as well as quotes about him from others. The photos include pictures of Lennon and detailed photos of memorabilia. My personal favorite parts of the book were the quotes from Lennon himself.

As a Beatles fan, but also someone who didn't live during the ear, I found out a lot of new information from this book. The body of the book was just the right balance of concise information, with enough details to satay both fast moving and in depth.

You could tell the book was written by a true fan and I loved the gushing moments praising Lennon and the Beatles' work. It was fun to know that the author was so passionate about Lennon's music.

If you are a Beatles collector, you definitely need this book. There are detailed photos of memorabilia with prices and details about the rarity and condition of the items. I had no idea that some really fun items were actually affordable. It's fun to think that if I wanted to, I could really get that vintage Beatles bobblehead for myself!

If I had to make one complaint about the book, it was that the photos didn't always match up to what you reading about in the body of the text. I would be reading about John's relationship with Yoko and on the opposite page was a photo of the Fab Four circa 1964 in matching black suits. It just didn't make for a smooth flow.

That aside, I loved the book and it was filled with info, quotes, and photos. There was just enough detail to make me feel informed and also want to read more about Lennon and the Beatles and do more research.

Bottom Line: Lennon's life philosophy shines in this book, and I absolutely loved the quotes featured here.

GIVEAWAY RULES:
FSB has generously provided a copy of this book for readers of my blog!

All you have to do is follow my blog publicly and leave a comment on this review with your email address!

I'm also opening this contest up to readers of my vintage blog, In the Hammock Vintage, because I know fans of vintage will love this one too! Just let me know you're a follower of In the Hammock Vintage in the comments! Followers of both blogs will get an extra entry!

Please follow publicly or I can't tell that you are following :) Also, if you aren't comfortable leaving your email here, go ahead and leave a comment and then send me an email with your email addy.
 
Extra Entries:

• +1 Tweet this contest (leave link in comment)
• +1 Post link in sidebar of your blog (leave link in comment)
• +1 for following both this blog and In the Hammock Vintage

Rules:

• US only
• Must be a follower to enter
• Extra entries are optional and can all be left in the same comment
• Leave a comment with your email address
• Books will be mailed out by FSB
• Ends Monday Jan 17

Thanks to everyone for entering! Good luck!