Donating Books

March 13, 201015 Comments

I have two purposes for this post. The first is to thank giveaway hosts and to accept donations from any of you who would like to donate to a good cause. The second is to share info on this very cool book that I won from Dawn at She is Too Fond of Books. This may be long because I’m in a rambling mood.

I don’t know if I’ve ever mentioned New Clevelanders, a welcome group for ladies who move to the east side of Cleveland. We’ve lived here almost 10 years now and I’ve been involved with New Clevelanders for 8 of those years. The great thing about this social group is that they never kick you out 🙂 When you move without kids or a job it is very difficult to meet people so this group was essential to my mental health. There are around 150 members right now and I’m in my fifth year on the board, my second year publishing the 8 page monthly newsletter. It is mainly a place to make friends, so many of the activities are for fun, but once a year we have a British Tea at a country club where we drink tea, dine on some delicious food and raise money for a local charity. Last year we raised over $11,000 for the Karen P Nakon Breast Cancer Foundation. We mainly raise the money by silent auctions on many donated items. I always donate a Mary Kay basket, but there are big ticket items like Cleveland Cavs tickets, Florida condos for a week, etc.

I have been blessed to win many books over the past few months from many of you awesome book bloggers. I decided to keep only a few a donate the rest for a nice basket of books to be auctioned or raffled off for the British Tea. This year we are raising money for Providence House, a crisis nursery offering emergency shelter to children. So, I want to thank all of you who have randomly chosen me as the winner of your book giveaways 🙂

Interested in New Clevelanders? Click on over. Do you have a new book that you’d like to donate to the cause? Let me know by leaving a comment or emailing me and I’ll get you my address. I have about 3 weeks before I need it done.

Now on to my second book donation topic. I won Give + Take from Dawn and there are were a few rules. Concord Free Press published this book for free and they only ask that you donate to a charity in the amount of your choice. Then you read the book and pass it on to someone who agrees to do the same. I have made my donation to The City Mission on Cleveland that do amazing things for the homeless, the poor, the addicted. I volunteered there a few years ago by sorting the donated clothes once a week and I have the greatest respect for the place. So, I made my donation and logged it on the website. Next week I plan to read the book and then pass it along. If you would like to be the next person to read this book, make a donation, and pass it on, let me know.

War & Peace & Natasha

March 11, 2010March 20, 20107 Comments

No picture this week, but I encourage you to hop on over the Molly’s post where she shares the state of her book and the notes she has taken in the book. My cover isn’t as beat up, but it does look similar on the inside. This is a book just begging to be marked up.

We finished Volume II this week and it was high in the drama department and it was all my Natasha’s fault, so I’ll start with her this week.

Natasha is a messed-up, boy-crazy 16-year-old who I’ve liked until this week. Natasha has ‘it’, you know, that spark that certain people have that draws everyone to them. The men can’t get enough of her. Boris, Prince Andrei, and Prince Anatole all proposed marriage to the girl and even Pierre admitted his tender feelings. And as much as I hate to say it she treated them all poorly (except for Anatole, but who cares about that jerk?). She doesn’t have a self-confidence problem, but she doesn’t seem to use her brain very often. Maybe it’s the hormones and she’ll recover. I hope she does because she’s going to run out of potential husbands soon.

Prince Andrei recovered from his deep depression and he became interested in military study going as far to submit his ideas to the top Russian decision makers. Though they did not accept his ideas they did appointment him the head of the Legislative Commission. He met Natasha and felt youth returning to him. So much so that he proposed. His father disapproved and Andrei decided to wait one year to marry. During that time their engagement was to remain secret. He went away to heal and when he came back a year later he found that Natasha had refused him.

Maria is a tough one to understand. Her two loves are her religion and her family. At one point she had decided to becomes a religious wanderer, without home or possessions, but luckily it has not happened. She loves her brother Andrei very much and hates Natasha before they even meet. She doesn’t like the woman who will take Andrei away. When the two finally do meet the dislike is intense and mutual and she is happy when the engagement is called off. Her father is still hateful to her and has told her to move out. I think that would be the best thing for her.

Vaska Denisov was nowhere to be seen this week. The only thing I learned was that Molly’s Prince Nikolai took over his regiment. I hope he’s okay.

We’re at the halfway point. Thanks so much for following along with us. Now head on over to Molly’s post. The pics of her book make it worth your time.

Lake Magic, by Kimberly Fisk

March 10, 20106 Comments

Finished 3-1-10, rating 4/5, romance, pub. 2010

“I don’t need to look at any contract. I am the sole owner of Blue Sky Air.”

He muttered something under his breath, and Jenny had the sinking feeling she should be glad she hadn’t been able to understand what he’d said. “You’re exactly like Steven described.”

“Excuse me?”

“Just like Steven said. All package, no product.”

For a moment she couldn’t breathe.

He was lying. Steven would never have said anything like that about her.

Chapter One

Jenny was trying to run the fledgling business that she had started with her fiance before he had died nine months before. Jenny is not the black sheep of the family, but she is the youngest sibling and the one everyone protects from harm. Jared blows into town and announces that he is a partner in the Blue Sky Air charter business and he would like Jenny to buy him out. Only Jenny can’t pay him because the business isn’t making any money. So, Jared moves in with her and helps her get the business in order, all the while waiting for the money that will give him the freedom he craves.

This is a sweet romance with lots of family drama. I loved Jenny’s family and the way they all came together and loved each other even if they didn’t always get along. Jenny’s sister and nephew are important characters in the story and Jared himself is a great hero. The author does a wonderful job of really digging into Jared’s history and psyche.

I really enjoyed this one, but I wish that Jenny and Jared could have been a little less physically perfect. This is what Jared though about Jenny, “She’d look completely at home frolicking around Hugh Hefner’s mansion in a bunny suit.” His nickname for her was Bunny. As for Jared, “he was one of those men who always looked good, whether they’d gotten off a motorcycle, out of the shower, or out of bed,” and so on. For me, their perfection made them less interesting. A flaw or two can make a character endearing, but being reminded the Jenny was drop dead gorgeous every time Jared called her Bunny was a bit much for me. Maybe I’m just jealous 🙂

I received this from the Library Thing Early Reviewer Program.

Deadly Promise, by Brenda Joyce

March 7, 201011 Comments

Finished 2-28-10, rating 4/5, Romance, pub. 2003

Book 6 in the Deadly series (Book 1) (Book 2) (Book 3) (Book 4) (Book 5)

“You have made this so very complicated by wishing to marry me. A part of me wishes we could go back to the way things were a month ago!”

“A month ago Rick’s wife hadn’t returned and you were denying all the passion you feel for me. Poor Francesca.” He was only half-mocking. “Torn between tawdry lust and true love.”

She trembled. “That isn’t fair,” she tried.

“Life is rarely fair. And do you deny it is Rick that you love? Do you? I am the man you merely wish to bed.” He stared, waiting for her response, his eyes as hard as obsidian.

Chapter 1

It’s 1902 in New York City and Francesca is back from a month out of town when she went off by herself to contemplate her romantic predicament. She is in love with Rick, an unhappily married man, but his half-brother Calder is her best friend and she accepted his marriage proposal. But can she go through with a wedding when she loves another man?

There are young, beautiful girls being kidnapped from the streets and sold to brothels and Francesca is determined to find these girls alive. Only this time Calder insists on accompanying her and causing more tension with Rick. This book is more about the heat between Calder and Francesca and it was hot! Calder is one of those bad boys that girls think they can tame, only Francesca doesn’t want to and he doesn’t want to stifle her ambitions either. I love them together.

I know you are wondering when this series will end and you only have two more Sundays to read about Francesca’s exploits. I encourage all you romance lovers to give this series a try.

This book is from my personal library.

Free Books for March

March 6, 2010March 14, 20104 Comments

Leave a comment, tell me which book or puzzle you want and I’ll get it to you for FREE either by mail or personally if I’ll see you soon. The first one to request each book or puzzle wins. Once you’ve ‘won’ I can get your shipping address if I need it. Also, you can come back and get a free book every month if you want. These have all been read a few times.

1. Soft Landing Hoyle Jigsaw Puzzle. 1020 pieces. Measures 18″ x 26″. I bought this at a yard sale and it had been done once or twice before, but the pieces are all there and it’s a fun puzzle. for Dawn

2. Storm Rider by Cassie Edwards. Romance. 340 pages. Pub. 2002. Review here. for Linda H.

3. A Night to Remember by Walter Lord. First person account of the sinking of the Titanic. If you watched the movie and want a different perspective, try this. 209 pages. Pub. 1955. Review here. for sheere

4. The Carriage House by Carla Neggers. Romantic Suspense. 376 pages. Review here. for Veens

Max is really into War & Peace

February 25, 2010February 25, 201019 Comments

When Max heard that the boys were going to war this week he really wanted to be involved. So, I set up a nice little reading spot by the window and let him take it all in. He liked that there were less girly parties and gossip and more battles and strategy. Oh, and he thought it was very cool that he got to read about Napoleon, he’d heard about that dude before. Max is giving these two parts two paws up.

So, this week Molly and I finished Volume I by reading Parts 2 & 3. The men went off to war to battle for Russia against the French invasion. We do take occasional visits to the Bolkonskys at Bald Hills, and the Rostovs in Moscow, but the bulk of the action is on the battlefield involving, mainly, two key players, Prince Andrei and Prince Nikolai.

So, a little about what happened to my four characters…

Vasily Denisov I finally met him. From now on I’ll call him Vaska Denisov because that’s what he’s called in the book. Here’s his physical decription…”a small man with a red face, shining black eyes, and disheveled black mustaches and hair.” He has another physical characteristic that makes him easy to identify when reading. He “swallows his r’s” so that started looks like staghrted when he talks. I don’t know much about him except that he gambles and seems to distinguish himself in battle. He’s friends with Prince Andrei.

Prince Andrei Bolkonsky He wants nothing more than to distinguish himself and to impress his father, who he writes to everyday. He places himself with the right people and becomes an adjunct to the commander-in-chief. He has a hero complex but he smart, haughty, and connected so I expect him to go far. He is friends with Vaska, mixed it up with Prince Nikolai and challenged him to a fight at a later time. At the end of this volume he had been wounded and Napoleon himself had saved him from the battlefield. As the French Army leaves him with locals he is not expected to live.

Princess Maria Bolkonsky Last week I said I felt sorry for her and I still do. Prince Vassily Kuragin shows up at Bald Hills with his son, Prince Anatole, and tries to make a match between the two. Much was made of her plainness and even ugliness and she grudgingly let herself hope that the handsome Prince would love her as much as she loved him at first sight. This was not to be and betrayal left Maria convinced she would never marry.

Natasha Rostov We meet up with Natasha when the family receives a letter from her brother, Nikolai. She admits to Sonya that she is already forgetting her boyfriend Boris now that he has gone off to war and a comment is made that she (Natasha) has a crush on Count Pierre. Time will tell. Oh, and we found out that she is terrible at keeping secrets!

I liked these two parts less than the first, but I think military or history buffs (like Max) would appreciate the battle descriptions more that I did. So, how did Molly’s characters make out? I personally think that Prince Nikola has some real issues and am unsure about this Pierre/Helene pairing. Go on over and see what she has to say.

The Story of My Life, by Helen Keller

February 24, 201015 Comments

Finished 2-23-10, rating 4/5, autobiography, pub. 1905

While my days at Radcliffe were still in the future, they were encircled with a halo of romance, which they have lost; but in the transition from romantic to actual I have learned many things I should never have known had I not tried the experiment. One of them is the precious science of patience, which teaches us that we should take our education as we would take a walk in the country, leisurely, our minds hospitably open to impressions of every sort. Such knowledge floods the soul unseen with a soundless tidal wave of deepening thought.

Chapter 20

When Helen was a year and a half old she became blind and deaf due to a fever. She lived in her isolated world until she was 7 and a teacher came to open up a world of communication to her. Anne Sullivan taught her manual sign language, braille, and lip-reading. She was able to travel to special schools and teachers in Boston and New York and eventually graduated from Radcliffe with honors. She wrote this autobiography at the age of 22.

That’s the bare bones because I think most everyone knows more than I did about Helen Keller before I read this book. Somehow I missed the movies and any detailed stories of her life, so I was in complete awe of what this girl accomplished. Helen had a thirst for knowledge and her love of learning and books was intense. She attended high school and college classes and succeeded. I felt in turn inspired and embarrassed by her. If she could lead a productive and fulfilled life with her handicaps surely any of my small problems were not important, but these things she was able to learn and do made feel like I was wasting my days away. Helen learned French and Latin, sign language and lip-reading, and braille and how to speak without being able to hear a thing. How amazing is that?

I cannot even imagine her silent and dark world and yet, this book did not contain self-pity. Things that would be scary to any child, almost drowning, almost getting hit by a train, being stuck in a tree during a thunderstorm, could only have been more frightening to Helen. I don’t know why it took me so long to read this!

This book was from my personal library.

What Book Is That? Quiz

February 23, 2010February 26, 201014 Comments

This is the final week of the new and improved weekly quiz where I’ve decided to have them count for something! While you all get adjusted this first round will last through February and there will be 2 prizes! Check out the details HERE.

The biggest difference is that you don’t have to be first. Everyone gets an equal shot. You have until Thursday night to submit your guesses. I’ll announce the big winners on Friday.

Please no copying off of other commenters! Since this one is hard feel free to look around the web to find the books.

Want to see the leaderboard? Answers from last week’s quiz? And please guess if you only know one or two. You’ll still be eligible for a prize!

Each book is worth 10 points. points for the title and 5 points for the author. These are all recent wins, so you should recognize some of them.

1.Show No Fear by Marliss Melton

2.City of Refuge by Tom Piazza

3. Try Darkness by James Scott Bell

4.How to Be a Hepburn in a Hilton World by Jordan Christy

5.Seduce Me by Robyn DeHart

6.Searching for Pemberley by Mary Lydon Simonsen

7.The Financial Lives of the Poets by Jess Walter

8.The Survivor’s Club by Ben Sherwood

9.Dying for Mercy by Mary Jane Clark

10.The Queen’s Mistake by Diane Haeger

Deadly Caress, by Brenda Joyce

February 21, 201010 Comments

Finished 2-18-10, rating 4/5, romance, pub. 2003

Book 5 in the Deadly series (Book 1) (Book 2) (Book 3) (Book 4)

Francesca Cahill and Rick Bragg are having a few problems. Rick’s wife is back in town a determined to make a go of their marriage. Rick’s brother, the cad Calder Hart, is determined to marry Francesca. There’s also another killer on the loose in the streets of New York City and the Cahill house is in disarray after Evan is almost beaten to death because of his gambling debts. Francesca’s sister, Connie is still trying to come to terms with her husband’s infidelity and in 1902, women did not leave their husbands if they cheated.

So, you know by my reviews of the first four books that I love this series, but it is not perfect. I haven’t mentioned yet, but this series starts in January 1902 and at the end of this fifth book it is February 1902. That is a lot to happen in such a short time. I don’t understand why she chose to write the series this way, especially since I distrust romances when the heroine falls in love so fast. Because I love the characters I can overlook it, but it still doesn’t make sense to me.

There was sex in this one! And it was angry sex. I didn’t like it. I don’t mind a little sex, it’s to be expected in a romance, but I like it to be romantic. I’m surprised that of the five books of this series so far, only three actually have sex in them. It’s a nice change of pace from your typical romances.

So, the series is fun, but not perfect. Only three left to catch up.

This was from my personal library.

War & Peace by Tolstoy

February 18, 2010February 18, 201035 Comments

Molly and I are reading War & Peace. It may take awhile, but we’ll be posting every Thursday until we’re done. I’d love to be able to tweet the first part of Volume 1, but you are stuck with a somewhat more traditional post.

So, what’s War & Peace about anyway? Napoleon is taking over the world and it will only be a matter of time before he invades Russia. This is the story of five aristocratic Russian families during those turbulent years from 1805-1813.

Who’s the main character? This is about a multitude of people, but mainly about members from five families. Here’s my scoop on the main players…Bulonskys– The Old Prince was a general in earlier wars and he has two children, Andrei and Maria. Rostovs– Loving family with four adolescent children and never enough money. Drubetskoys– Poor mother and her son. Bezukhovs– A dying count, many illegitimate children and a greedy extended family. Kuragins– They seem sketchy, but it’s too early to tell.

What happens in Part 1? There’s a party in Petersburg for the titled and wealthy where we meet several key players from the Bezukhovs and Kuragins. Then we move on to Moscow to a party at the Rostovs and a death watch at the Bezukhovs. And finally we end up in Bald Hills where the Bolkonskys live and the young Prince has brought his pregnant bride.

Is it confusing? Yes, especially at first. There are a lot of people with similar names. Who knew there were so many princes? And there is quite a bit of French (of the 1215 pages, 2% is in French) that is translated at the bottom of the page and there are 53 references to the Notes in the back of the book just in part one. So there’s lots of flipping. But as the story gets moving and some of the people become more recognizable it becomes easier to read. Just a small learning curve 🙂

Is it boring? No! I was never bored and I was interested in all of the characters and how they all fit together. I was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed it.

Prince Andrei Nikolayevich Bolkonsky…We meet the little Prince at the Petersburg party where he expresses his dislike of his wife and his friendship for Pierre. Here’s his first physical description…”of medium height, a rather handsome young man with well-defined and dry features.” And this is our first taste of his personality at that party “he not only knew everyone in the drawing room, but was also so sick of them that it was very boring, the face of his pretty wife seemed to be the one he was most sick of.” He is fed up with society (and his wife), finding it empty. He takes a position in the military and on his way to war he takes his pregnant wife to his father and sister in Bald Hills. He is very unhappy, but he is smart and insightful. I like him.

A little about Natasha Rostov…We meet the precocious 13-year-old at the party held in honor of her name day, which she shares with her mother. This is her first description…”dark-eyed, big-mouthed, not beautiful, but lively girl.” and this is a description her personality, “inconceivable boldness and adroitness…both smart and pert” She is in love with Boris Drubetskoy. She is charming and comes from a very close-knit and supportive family. I can’t help but like her.

A very little about Princess Maria Bolkonsky… We first meet Marie when her brother brings his pregnant wife to the family estate where she lives with her overbearing father. A few words that were used to describe her or her actions…timid, fearful, sickly, unattractive, sad, frightened. I know she is scared of her father, her best friend is Julie Karagin, she loves her brother, and she is very religious. I feel more sorry for her than anything, but I don’t know her very well yet.

I’m having a good time with Tolstoy so far. Want to know what Molly thinks and meet the characters she’s hanging out with? Click on over… She covering overweight Pierre (seriously, it’s mentioned just as often as he is!), jealous Sonya, handsome Prince Nikolai, and beautiful Helene.

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