Me and Mom Fall For Spencer by Diane Munier

Genre: Adult, Mystery, Romance
Source: I received a copy to facilitate my review. The opinions expressed here are my own. 




From Goodreads:
The house next door to Sarah and her mother Marie has been vacant since the murder that happened there when Sarah was ten. Their neighbor, Frieda, was like a second mother to Sarah and she died brutally and th eighborhood never recovered. No one has lived in Frieda's house for seventeen years. Imagine Sarah's surprise when it finally sells to an on-line buyer. She looks through the thick growth separating her house from the other and a wild man looks back. He's not exactly wild. He's thirty-seven year old Spencer Gundry. Once he shaves the beard and gets a haircut, he's not hard to look at. Well Sarah's mom doesn't think so, and neither does she. Problem is, Spencer has a few secrets of his own.

My Thoughts:
I love books that combine mystery and romance.  That is what this book does.  This is not a boy meets girl and they fall in love immediately type of book.  They both are carrying some baggage with them that makes their relationship take time to develop. I really didn't like Sarah's mom too much. She just seemed over the top dramatic.  The old man who lived across the street from Sarah had a son. He moved out leaving the old man living in the chaos and filth he'd been living in for quite some time. I loved the way that Sarah took charge and "told" him what was going to happen and then ignored him and did it anyway.  Sarah was one of those people who had to fix and care for everyone else when she herself needed fixing.  You don't really find out why she and Spencer are the way they are until near the end.  When you learn Sarah's story your heart will really ache. You have a new understanding of her and her mom.  The revelation still didn't make me like her mom more. I still felt she was selfish and self-centered. This was a strange but interesting book.  I've enjoyed reading books by this author.



About the Author:
Diane Munier was raised as a midwestern urban kid. She spent a lot of time nosing around in the many establishments that filled the neighborhood. Love of story grew as she sat in various places--pews, restaurant chairs, barstools, and listened to the story-tellers, the keepers of the tales that patched us together. Lots of colors in the neighborhood quilt, lots of threads and shapes and patterns. It was all music ad she wondered how to capture what she was feeling; she wondered how to share it. Diane wanted a voice and to take her place in the quilt. She's currently learning to stitch some small part of it together.

Pressed Pennies by Steven Manchester

Genre: Adult, Contemporary Fiction
Source: I received a copy to facilitate my review. The opinions expressed here are my own.

The main characters of this story are Abby and Rick and Abby's daughter Paige. At one time Abby and Rick were real close. When Rick moved things changed. Each of them married and then divorced. Abby was married to an abusive alcoholic. Rick was married to a woman who was very distant. His marriage was going no where. The other characters in the story are childhood friends that they have all reconnected with. This is not a feel good story.  There are deaths and decisions to be made around every corner.

I definitely understood where Abby was coming from when it came to Paige. When you have a dysfunctional marriage and you split the one thing you want to do is protect your children.  I knew the game Paige was playing. She wanted her dad to show how much he loved her so she overlooked his issues. This is where I can say "been there done that". My daughter was Paige in many ways.  She liked her new step-dad yet she constantly compared him to her biological dad in the hopes of getting a reaction from her biological dad. Paige made Ricks life so much more difficult. He hung in there for her because he truly loved her as much as he loved her mother.

This book is full of hope. Hope for the future that things can be made good again. Hope that you can recapture some of your youth.  All in all this was a very good book and one I would recommend.

The Sacrifist by T. Mason Gilbert

Genre: Adult, Adventure/Paranormal
Source: I received a copy to facilitate my review. The opinions expressed here are my own.

From Goodreads:
Sir Randolph Barrington hires a mountaineer to look for his son who has disappeared, leaving nothing but a lot of blood in the snow on Mt. Kangchenjunga, the third tallest mountain in the world. Was it the fabled yeti? Any witnesses aren't talking. Torleif Günner, who guided the expedition in which Rand disappeared, meets with Dane "Lake" Nielsen and forwards Sir Randolph's terms. Dane has been hiding out at his ranch in Leadville, Colorado since an avalanche accident, but money talks.

Dane and Torleif organize an expedition to find Rand's remains. Before Dane leaves, he receives a strange call from a woman warning him not to go. Meanwhile, the High Lama of a monastery near Kangchenjunga sends his emissary, the Sacrifist, to the Sherpa guide who is heading up the crew used by Dane. The guide agrees to take the Sacrifist along, disguised as a porter for the expedition, but has no idea what the Sacrifist's intentions are. Is he a monk? He doesn't look like one. Besides these competing factions, Sir Randolph has also hired the TV show host of 'Big Game, Big Times' to look for the animal who attacked his son. 

Will Rand or his remains be found? Who will find the beast first? Who will die?

My Thoughts:
The author did an excellent job of showing the different cultures and beliefs. The descriptions were so good you felt like you were on the mountain with the sherpas. As well as being read for entertaiment the book provides a lot of information about mountain climbing and the beliefs of those who live in the area. The story line progresses at a pace that keeps you turning the pages. You really don't want to put the book down for any reason. For that reason I recommend it to those who love adventure with a touch of the paranormal.

Author Bio:

T. Mason Gilbert is a humorist by nature, but his past is not checered. It is more of a chessboard full of strange strategies that worked for him. Before writing novels hehad written jokes for other stand-up comedians, screenplays, and sitcoms. At one time, he was a sidekick for a well-known DJ doing impressions on Los Angeles radio and also did voiceovers for Premier Radio Network. He was a finalist for the ne Mickey Mouse voice in 2009.

His first novel. "The Sacrifist" is an adventure about the hunt for a yeti that is killing climbers in the Himalaya. His second nove, "Poker, Poker: An Erotic Sex Comedy" was written during NaoWriMo 2014 and will be availabe in April of 2015 and published under the pen name of Matt Broseling.

He lives with his wife of 36 years in Orange County, California.

Where you can find him:

Website
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Bitter Bronx by Jerome Charyn

Genre: Short Stories
Source: I received a copy to facilitate my review. The opinions expressed here are my own.

From Goodreads:
In Bitter Bronx, one of our most gifted and original novelists depicts a world before and after modern urban renewal destroyed the gritty sanctity of a land made famous by Ruth, Gehrig, and Joltin' Joe.

Bitter Bronx is suffused with the texture and nostalgia of a lost time and place, combining a keen eye for detail with Jerome Charyn's lived experience. These stories are informed by a childhood growing up near that middle-class mecca, the Grand Concourse; falling in love with three voluptuous librarians at a public library in the Lower Depths of the South Bronx; and eating at Mafia-owned restaurants along Arthur Avenue's restaurant row, amid a "land of deprivation…where fathers trundled home…with a monumental sadness on their shoulders."

In "Lorelei," a lonely hearts grifter returns home and finds his childhood sweetheart still living in the same apartment house on the Concourse; in "Archy and Mehitabel" a high school romance blossoms around a newspaper comic strip; in "Major Leaguer" a former New York Yankee confronts both a gang of drug dealers and the wreckage that Robert Moses wrought in his old neighborhood; and in three interconnected stories—"Silk & Silk," "Little Sister," and "Marla"—Marla Silk, a successful Manhattan attorney, discovers her father's past in the Bronx and a mysterious younger sister who was hidden from her, kept in a fancy rest home near the Botanical Garden. In these stories and others, the past and present tumble together in Charyn's singular and distinctly "New York prose, street-smart, sly, and full of lurches" (John Leonard, New York Times).

Throughout it all looms the "master builder" Robert Moses, a man who believed he could "save" the Bronx by building a highway through it, dynamiting whole neighborhoods in the process. Bitter Bronx stands as both a fictional eulogy for the people and places paved over by Moses' expressway and an affirmation of Charyn's "brilliant imagination" (Elizabeth Taylor, Chicago Tribune).

My Thoughts:
This was a tough one for me to read.  Had I grown up in the Bronx, or lived in New York where I was more familiar with its history, I might have made better connections to this book. Instead I felt disconnected. I was able to get a sense of what life in the Bronx was like and the changes it went through after Robert Moses split it in two.  I have to agree that the changes were not for the best. I know my first husband came from the Bronx and his parents would talk about their reasoning for living was how bad it had grown and how gang filled it had become.  His writing was wonderful to read. It made me long to see the Bronx before the expressway went through cutting areas in half. It almost reminded me of the Berlin Wall that cut off the two sides.  Each side grew in a different way and at a different rate.  Sometimes the things we do in the name of progress have the opposite effect. The division created is one that has been a struggle for years and will continue for many more to come.  This was an honest look at what once was, what it is now and hopefully a glimpse into what it may become one day.


About the Author

Jerome Charyn's stories have appeared in The Atlantic, The Paris Review, The American Scholar, Epoch, Narrative, Ellery Queen, and other magazines. His most recent novel is I Am Abraham. He lived for many years in Paris and currently resides in Manhattan.

You can find him on:

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New York Times Review

Utopia, Iowa by Brian Yansky

Genre: YA, Mystery, Paranormal

Source: I won a copy from LibraryThing. The opinions expressed here are my own.

From Goodreads:

An Urban fantasy (small town urban) with paranormal elements (ghosts, witches, fortune-cookies that come true, an astral traveling movie-theater owner, a goddess, a banshee). Kind of funny. Utopia, Iowa is a place where the people are strange and there are stranger things than people. Our hero, Jack, is a high school boy who wants to be a screenwriter and has a serious crush on his best friend, Ash. He also happens to see ghosts. When two girls are murdered in Utopia, those ghosts insist he help them find their murderers. This gets him into all kinds of trouble with the police. But there's something darker and much more powerful than local law enforcement interested in Jack. Will Jack's dream of becoming a screenwriter come true or will he be caught up in a nightmare he can't get away from?

My Thoughts:

Imagine living in a town where everyone has a special gift. This is the type of town Jack bell lives in. For Jack, who has the ability to talk with dead people, life becomes very complicated. Two girls have asked for his help making him the prime suspect in their deaths. His parents and friends have their own drama going on. I loved the first person point of view. I know not everyone is a fan, yet I felt it was nicely done and made the story feel more personal. This is one for you to check out.

Student Saturday: The Dark Zone by Dom Testa

Student Reviewer: Isaac
Genre: Young Adult, Science Fiction

Alexa, a crew member of Galahad has recovered from a coma after having her appendix removed. However, she’s had weird visions believed to see the future. As strange aliens that have little info about themselves make contact with Galahad everyone’s fate may be sealed.

It felt odd for me to try new things and that I knew nothing about it. Galahad’s crew members have similar feelings about the aliens. Readers who like thinking about the plot and questioning everything,  would like this part of the story. Each Galahad book has an original plot which still continues to baffle me.

Summer Reading Plans

http://ebr.oncoursesystems.com/

I have fallen so far behind on reading books.  Part of this was due to new testing at our school this year.  We literally tested from the middle of April to the end of May. I didn't personally test every day. However, it meant I had students missing at different times for different tests etc.  It meant I had more school related things to do and got behind on my usual amount of reading.  I am here to tell you that is going to change. I am reading everyday this next week. That means I will be posting anywhere from two to four book reviews a day throughout the month and hopefully throughout July. When given time to just read I can read anywhere from four to six books a day. This is especially true when I tell my mom and husband I am doing a reading challenge.  They leave me alone for a specified amount of time. I will continue with other things in my life during that time such as physical therapy, working out, and getting out of the house. But it is that undisturbed time to read which will benefit me. The only days I will have a single review posted is if it was previously arranged with the author or publisher. I plan on keeping up this pace until I have worked through a large number of my books. If I can get ahead enough then I will continue posting a morning and evening post until I am completely caught up. That may take me up until Thanksgiving, but I am willing to do this. Why? Because I don't like taking books from authors and pubishers and then getting behind. The second reason is that it is interrupting my own writing. I can't focus knowing I have made a committment to read and review books and then I have fallen behind in that committment. So, wish me luck.
Here is a list of books I will be reviewing this month. So far I written reviews through Tuesday the 16th. So let the fun begin.

My List for the rest of June beginning the 17th and July. There are 40 books here and I will see how it goes. Some of these are picture books that I have read but must write the review.  I will cross the off as I go and maybe add some more.

Pressed Pennies - Steven Manchester
Becoming Monsters - Liss Thomas
Qumran - Jerry Amernic
Heroes and Giants - Douglas Ashby
If Only - Norma Buden
Sacrifist - T. Mason Gilbert
You Are Not Alone - W.R. Watkins
An Obsessive Infatuation - W.R. Watkins
deepFreak - Mars Dumont
The Skye in June - June Ahern
City of Redemption - Jue Ahern
The FunGkins - C.Raymond Gray
Second Chance Friends - Jennifer Scott
The Circle - Mario Escobar
D.E.M. Deux Ex Machina - Lee Ness
Stereo Realism - Milton R. Trice
Kitty Hawk and the Case of the Yukon Gold - Iain Reading
Parents For Sale - Dr. Nicole Audet
The Enterprising Chipmunk - Gramps Doodlebug
The Karate Shepherd - Walter Rouzer
Diary of Chris & Boomer the Wonder Dog - Walter Rouzer

Wolf City - Walter Rouzer

Perfect Pam and the Big Bad Wolf - Walter Rouzer
Oliver and Jumpy Stories 10-12
Cool Magic Tricks You Can Do - Steve Black
A Light Shining in the Darkness - Karen A. Cooper
Blood Sweat Tears and Prayers - Gary Ludwig
The Jumble Jungle - Michael Sasson
Playlist of the Ancient Dead - Aaron Frale
The Diary of an Ugly Sweater - Cassie Eubank
Ninelands - K.E. Boyer
Dragon's Future - Kandi J. Wyatt
Nuts About Nuts - Shir Guez
The Mind of the Living - J. Kaihua
Witches Protection Program - Micahel Cash
Youngtimer - G.G.Fulton
Dinosaurs - Rose Leo
Two for Joy - Gigi Amateau
Sapient - Jerry Kaczmarowski
Mercy's Rain - Cindy K. Sproles

The Kidney Sellers by Sigfrid Fry Revere

Genre:  Adult, Nonfiction

Source: I received a copy to facilitate my review. The opinions expressed here are my own.

I’m not sure what I was expecting when I agreed to read this book. This is the story of a woman from the west who ventures to Iran to check out their kidney donor system. Here in the U.S. if you need a kidney transplant you go on a waiting list, then dialysis and play the waiting game.  If you are lucky enough you survive until someone dies that matches you, and you get their kidney. According to Sigrid Fry-Revere, Iran has a system that has a waiting list of people wanting to donate their kidney. According to the author, there are government incentives for this. Would this work in the United States? I’m not sure.  I know this has been in the news lately and I’m not sure where I stand on the issue.  Maybe that is because I don’t personally know anyone in that situation. However, this was an interesting read on this subject.

Draw in Perspective By this Weekend by Liron Yankonsky

Genre: Informational, Art

Source: I received a copy to facilitate my review. The opinions expressed here are my own.

I’ve always had an issue with perspective. Tht may be because no onne has ever taught me. The author shows step by step how to do this. The pictures, instructions and explanations make it easy to learn. There are a lot of examples. The only art class I’ve ever taken was for elementary art. It never covered shading or light source. However, the one project we had to do, my professor pointed out, in front of my fellow classmates, my perspective and light source were wrong but didn’t explain why, or how to fix it.  I was well aware that the picture was wrong but couldn’t figure out on my own why.

Since I’ve found this book and his method was so helpful I am willing to check out his other books. We need more people willing to take what some of us consider to be so difficult and point out ways we can understand it and realize that with practice it is not all that difficult.

Visit my websites:

VeganShape.co.il - An Israeli website aimed at vegan athletes and bodybuilders.

Lironyan.com - My personal blog.

Three Wonderful Picture Books With Great Messages

The Letter by N.D. Byma

Source: I received a copy to facilitate my review. The opinions expressed here are my own.

This is the story of a young girl who sets out to write a special letter. When she can't think what to say she goes for a walk to think, leaving the letter on the park bench. The letter is blow around Different people find it and add to it. It always makes its way back to the bench.  The letter is a special one indeed. Read this wonderful story to find out what the letter says.



The Gnomes of the Night by Itzik Klein
Source: I received a copy to facilitate my review. The opinions expressed here are my own.


First I have to say that the book's illustrations are magnificent. This is the story of a little boy who seems to have trouble reebering to put things away. He leaves his dishes, his shoes and clothes. His dad tells him the gomes of the Night will take them. This is a great book to read to children, who like Ryan seem to have difficulty putting things away.

Monday Morning Leadership for Kids with Paw Paw & Baxter by Evelyn Addis & David Cottrell
Source: I received a copy to facilitate my review. The opinions expressed here are my own.
As a grandparent this story resonated with me. I want to be an influence in the lives of my grandchildren. The main characters are bears. However, children will be able to identify with them. baxter is the young bear telling the story of time spent with his Paw-Paw every Monday morning. These trips with his Paw-Paw are special. He learns lessons about accepting responsibility for his own decisions. He learns that the choices he makes can have an effect on others. he learns he needs to do the right thing when no one else is watching him.  He also learns the importance of making good choices, especially when it comes to choosing his friends.

I passed this book on to my best friend who has a so the same age as my grandson.  She said her son repeatedly asked her to reread the book.  It is important that I place good books not only in the hands of my own grandchildren ad their parents but in the hands of my friends with young children as well. After all, one day these children will grow up to be adults and I want to make sure I've done my part in helping them to grow up to be great people.