Teaser Tuesday

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Just do the following:

1. Grab your current read

2. Open to a random page

3. Share two “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page

4. 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!)

5. Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

Mine is from pg.126 of The Colour of Magic by Terry Pratchett

Demons can’t call things weird. I mean, what’s weird to a demon?”

Happy Reading!

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Teaser Tuesday

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Just do the following:

1. Grab your current read

2. Open to a random page

3. Share two “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page

4. 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!)

5. Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

Mine is from pg.xviii of Who Am I? And if so, How Many? : a philosophical journey by Richard David Precht

We should never stop asking questions, because a combination of learning and enjoyment is the key to a fulfilled life. Learning without enjoyment wears you down, and enjoyment without learning is mind-numbing.

Happy Reading!

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A Long-Forgotten Truth Review

A Long-Forgotten Truth by Rachel Ballard

Genre: Adult fiction

Publisher: Rozlyn Press

Source: Personal Copy

Book Description:

Gail Cavanaugh is eighteen when she unearths a long-held family secret. Haunted by a persistent, ghostly voice inside her head, Gail is propelled west on a highway journey away from the father she's always known. Guided by her ghost, searching for the truth about her origins, she lands broken-down in Sylver, a mountain town in Northwest Washington, half a continent away from home. Trapped and cashless, Gail is swept up in the lives of three people with their own tangled longings and imperfections. Their haunted yearning is a perfect match for Gail and her ghost. Amongst past and present secrets, Sylver becomes a place Gail can't escape even years after she's left for good. Unapologetically nostalgic, A Long-Forgotten Truth is an engrossing, road-bound literary novel, perfect for the wanderer in all of us.

Review:

This is a great read and the writing is lyrical, sad and longing.  Gail is believable and endearing for her innocence and the desire to find herself and discover hidden truths about her family. She’s never known her biological father, just Daniel who raised her after her mother leaves and comes back and leaves again.

This novel shows us how all of us are imperfect, but struggling to make it in this crazy world we live in.  If you love literary fiction and stories of discovery and longing, then you’ll enjoy this debut novel. 

I want to thank Alayne Fiore of Rozlyn Press for sending me this book for review.

Happy Reading!

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Fragile Review

Fragile by Lisa Unger

Genre: Adult fiction

Publisher: Vintage

Source: Personal Copy

Book Description:

Maggie and Jones live with their teenage son, Rick, in The Hollows, a small town outside of New York City.  The cozy intimacy of the town is broken when Rick’s girlfriend, Charlene, mysteriously disappears.  The investigation has Jones, the lead detective on the case, acting strangely and Rick, already a brooding teenager, becomes even more withdrawn.  Maggie finds herself drawn in both as a trained psychologist and as a mother, walking a tightrope that threatens the stability of her family.  Determined to uncover the truth, Maggie pursues her own leads into Charlene’s disappearance and exposes a long-buried town secret—one that could destroy everything she holds dear.

Review:

I’ve read several books by Lisa Unger and haven’t been disappointed yet.  Her plots are intricate and characters that are deep and intense.  If you like plots that are intricate and have so many tangents that make you wonder how everyone is connected, then you’ll enjoy this novel.

Having grown up in a small town myself I can understand how the dynamics of the town can determine how you approach life.  Everyone in the town has a secret of some kind and until a young girl goes missing and the worse is assumed to have happened to her do we get to the heart of the novel. 

I loved this novel and it’s twists and turns and the interconnection of the residents of The Hollows.  One of the main things I got from the novel is that secrets connect all those involved either directly or indirectly.  If you like novels with depth and insight, then you’ll love Fragile.

Happy Reading!

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Teaser Tuesday

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Just do the following:

1. Grab your current read

2. Open to a random page

3. Share two “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page

4. 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!)

5. Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

Mine is from pg.31 of A Long-Forgotten Truth by Rachel Ballard

Gail,

It isn’t much but it’s what’s left and I’m done carrying it.

The least I can give you is the truth.

                                                          Yours,

                                                          Audrey

Happy Reading!

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Teaser Tuesday

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Just do the following:

1. Grab your current read

2. Open to a random page

3. Share two “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page

4. 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!)

5. Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

Mine is from pg.29 of Fragile by Lisa Unger

It was a dry brushfire, a shift of tectonic plates at the bottom of the ocean. It changed the topography of a life, destroyed and created.

Happy Reading!

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Dork Diaries 2 Review

Dork Diaries: Tales from a Not-So-Popular Party Girl by Rachel Renee Russell

Genre: Juvenile fiction

Publisher: Aladdin Books

Source: Borrowed from my local library

Book Description:

Settled in at her new school and flanked by awesome friends Chloe and Zoey, life is looking up for Nikki Maxwell, especially since her crush, Brandon, asked her to be his lab partner - a seriously awesome development. However, when Nikki overhears mean girl Mackenzie bragging that Brandon’s taking her to the Halloween dance, a bummed Nikki signs on to spend Halloween at a kids’ party with her little sister, Brianna, instead. After she finds out Mackenzie was lying and her dream of going to the party with Brandon could be a reality, Nikki has two events to juggle plus plenty of other entertaining trials and tribulations along the way.

Review:

If your daughter is a fan of Diary of a Wimpy Kid then she will enjoy this second book in the series.  The drawings are cute and the story is fun.  This is a quick fun read.  I haven’t read the first Dork Diaries, but I feel it’s not necessary. 

If your daughter is not part of the “in crowd” then she will relate to Nikki and the troubles she goes through just to put on a Halloween party for her school and to capture the eye of her crush.

This is a fun book and a good one for reluctant readers.  You’ll laugh and cheer as Nikki makes her way through middle school.

Happy Reading!

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Living a Beautiful Life

Living a Beautiful Life: 500 Ways to Add Elegance, Order, Beauty and Joy to Every Day of Your Life by Alexandra Stoddard

Genre: Adult non-fiction

Publisher: Avon Books

Source: Personal copy

Book Description:

With the publication of Living A Beautiful Life, Alexandra Stoddard originated the idea of creating an atmosphere of beauty and tranquility with simple touches that turn the ordinary into the extraordinary. As a world-famous interior decorator, she has worked her magic on interiors large and small, from mansions and embassies to cottages and studio apartments. Through her writing and lectures, she has encouraged millions to brighten their lives and their homes by turning mundane tasks into small pleasurable rituals that add beauty and joy to everything they do. Alexandra Stoddard's secrets of Living A Beautiful Life are yours.

With the publication of Living A Beautiful Life, Alexandra Stoddard originated the idea of creating an atmosphere of beauty and tranquillity with simple touches that turn the ordinary into the extraordinary.

As a world-famous interior decorator, she has worked her magic on interiors large and small, from mansions and embassies to cottages and studio apartments. Though her writing and lectures, she has encouraged millions to brighten their lives and their homes by turning mundane tasks into small pleasurable rituals that add beauty and joy to everything they do. Alexandra Stoddard's secrets of Living A Beautiful Life are yours.

Review:

This is one of my favorite non-fiction authors.  I am rereading her books because when I’ve had a change in my life I read her books to inspire and uplift me.  She is a modern day philosopher who practices what she preaches. 

Her ideas are simple, beautiful and anyone can do them without spending a lot of money.  She believes that beauty is everywhere and we deserve to have beauty in our lives no matter what the cost.

When I first discovered her books I wrote to her to tell her how much I enjoyed her books and several weeks later she wrote a handwritten letter to me thanking me for my letter.  I still have that letter and it’s one of my treasures.

If you’re looking to change things in your home or your life then pick up this or any of her books.

Happy Reading!

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Teaser Tuesday

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Just do the following:

1. Grab your current read

2. Open to a random page

3. Share two “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page

4. 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!)

5. Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

Mine is from pg.12 of Living a Beautiful Life: 500 Ways to Add Elegance, Order, Beauty and Joy to Every Day of Your Life by Alexandra Stoddard

“Emerson said, “Every spirit builds itself a house, and beyond its house a world, and beyond its world a heaven. Know then that world exists for you.”

Happy Reading!

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