Books Read-2016 – Page 4 – Cindy's Love Of Books

Book Spotlight, Review & Giveaway/ “Spread More Love with Put Me In The Story”

Posted on January 24, 2016January 19, 2016 by Cindy

Today I am very happy to share with my readers an awesome give away. Put Me In The Story is an amazing company that offers beautiful personalized books that are reasonably priced at $29.99 US

This Valentine’s Day, Put Me In The Story wants to help you the readers say “I Love You” to your little ones through our most heartfelt personalized books.

Today I am going to spotlight three books:

Show your little one the many ways you love them with the help of your friends over on Sesame Street!

There are lots of ways to say “I love you,” but it’s how you share and show it that matter most! The sweetest book to share every day of the year, I Love You Just Like This! brings parent and child close and cozy together in a special storytime experience to spread some love. Often, always, and time and time again, this personalized book will show your little one how much you love them… just like this! Personalize the story with your child’s name, photo, and a special message with lots of love on the dedication page!

Inspire your little one in a big way! This personalized edition of You! encourages children to dream big and reach for the stars. Kids will love exploring the bright pages of motivation in Sandra Magsamen’s adorable book of extraordinary messages.

A life full of adventure needs big dreams. And big dreams need big encouragement. Encourage your child to dream big with this one-of-a-kind personalized story about exploring all that life has to offer!

Personalize this lovable book with your child’s name and photo throughout the story, and a special message on the dedication page. There’s always a reason to celebrate life, and all the amazing qualities about your little one. They’ll love this keepsake for years to come!

The third book is actually the one I will be reviewing. I was graciously provided with a code to obtain the book. They retail for $29.99 US each. As you can see they are personalized and its so easy to do all you have to do is just follow the easy instructions on the page and that is is within 5 minutes I had the in my cart and ready to go. Shipping was super fast and I had the book within a week of ordering it. Please note that you have until January 27th, 2015 to place an order to get it in time for Valentine’s Day.

The book is beautifully bound like a regular hard cover picture book and it arrived in perfect condition.

I spent quite a bit of time trying to pick out the right book and I have to say that I think this is the perfect book. I loved reading as did Michael. I think this is perfect for kids no matter what age they are as the message is beautiful as is the story.

Within the last couple of months I have noticed that before bed time we go through about a 10 minute routine of Michael saying how much he loves me and then he will say how much do you love me and this can go on for another 10 minutes or so.

So when I spotted this book I knew it would be the perfect book to give him to read.

Michael, I can’t image life before you came along. You are the music to my dance and my song.

I am meant for you, and you are meant for me, the one I love forevermore. Undeniably.

The illustrations are bright and colorful and I think this could attract readers of all ages. The story line is easy and simple and its just great words kids should hear from their parents.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Put Me In The Story, the #1 personalized books site in the U.S., has hundreds of personalized books and gifts for newborns, kids, and even grown-ups! With a diverse selection of personalized story books, activity books, adult coloring books, adorable plush and more, Put Me In The Story is a fantastic spot to find personalized gifts that become beloved keepsakes.

Review/ First Love by James Patterson & Emily Raymond

Posted on January 21, 2016January 16, 2016 by Cindy

First Love by James PattersonEmily Raymond
Format: Paperback
Published by Little, Brown Books for Young Readers on December 15th 2015
Pages: 336
Goodreads
Genres: Dating & Sex, Death & Dying, Friendship, Love & Romance, Runaways, Social Issues, Young Adult

The New York Times bestseller First Love is now available in paperback, and illustrated with never-before-seen snapshots evoking the romantic trip of a lifetime.

Axi Moore is a "good girl". When Axi invites her best friend, Robinson--with whom she's secretly in love--to come with her on a cross-country road trip, she's finally breaking all the rules. But they soon find that, however far they run, they can't escape the heartbreaking troubles that brought them together in the first place.

In this madcap adventure full of love and loss, Axi realizes that her romance with Robinson might not have the happy ending she was hoping for....

As I was beginning to write this review I quickly realized that this book was released before with different covers. So just in case you think this is new you might want to check to see if you already read it.

I am a huge fan of James Patterson’s books and I admit its been awhile since I read them and I am a bit behind so I need to get caught up. First Love is not like his typical crime thrillers which was a nice little break. First Love is a sweet story that makes you think of your first love.

Axi is your typical sixteen year old girl. She is a good student and her life is focused. She is that girl who can do no wrong she has never gotten into trouble and she avoids trouble at all cost. She is probably everyone’s dream child who can do no wrong and she does no wrong.

Out of the blue Axi decides she has had enough and wants something different and she wants to experience life so she makes a plan to run away. She is fed up with her life in the small town. She hasn’t had it easy. Her younger sister died of cancer and her mother left the family and never returned and her father is an alcoholic who is basically drinking his problems away and Axi realizes this is probably why her mother left. She enlists her best friend Robinson to go with her.

Robinson is the complete opposite of Axi in which he breaks every rule if possible and will charm his way to get what he wants and its worked for him.

With cash in her pocket and a schedule of places to go and see, Axi and Robinson head out. Axi thinks they will hope the bus to travel but Robinson has other plans if they are going to do this cross country trip they steal motor cycles, cars, trucks etc and almost never getting caught. Whenever they get in a bind Robinson manages to use his charm to get out of trouble. This is the trip of a life time for both and they are going to places they always wanted to.

Axi and Robinson are making memories that will last a life time. Axi is determined to find a way to tell Robinson how she really feels about him but at times she wonders if he feels the same way. Is it worth risking their friendship for?

I won’t give to much away but I will say that while they are on the road and enjoying their adventure they hit a bump in the road that should stop them but it doesn’t its like they almost know what the outcome will be if the stop it and I think they both want to continue this trip because its more then just and adventure its a matter of life and death and making memories that will always be cherished.

I loved how the book included photographs of their trip and I think that is why I enjoyed it even more. It was a nice touch to the book.

I should warn you that you will need some tissue towards the end of the book and I didn’t realize that right away because up until that point the book was light and fun and I laughed at parts and shock my head in others but I really enjoyed reading this book it was a nice light and fun read. It was the perfect read.

Review/ The Readers of Broken Wheel Recommend by Katarina Bivald

Posted on January 19, 2016January 13, 2016 by Cindy

The Readers of Broken Wheel Recommend by Katarina Bivald
Format: ARC
Published by Sourcebooks, Inc. on January 19th 2016
Pages: 400
Goodreads
Genres: Contemporary Women, Fiction, Humorous, Literary

The International Bestseller #1 Indie Next Great Reads January 2016 #2 LibraryReads January 2016 Once you let a book into your life, the most unexpected things can happen...Broken Wheel, Iowa, has never seen anyone like Sara, who traveled all the way from Sweden just to meet her book-loving pen pal. When she arrives, however, she finds Amy's funeral guests just leaving. The residents of Broken Wheel are happy to look after their bewildered visitor -- not much else to do in a small town that's almost beyond repair. They just never imagined that she'd start a bookstore. Or that books could bring them together and change everything.There's a book for every person ... and a person for every book.

The Readers of Broken Wheel Recommend by Katarina Bivald was a book that I picked up at BEA 2015 and its been sitting on my shelves since then so I was really happy that I could finally dig into this book. I believe it was Lucy from Moonlight Gleams that told me about this book and I am happy that she did tell me about it because I really enjoyed reading this.

The main character Sara. lives in Sweden and use to work in a bookstore until it closed. During that time she was corresponding with Amy from a little town in Iowa called Broken Wheel. Sara has traveled to Broken Wheel by the request of Amy to spent two months together. How much fun would it be to meet a pen pal you have had that shares the common interest of books? I would have loved that.

Upon arriving in Broken Wheel Sara discovers that Amy has passed away. At first Sara doesn’t know what to do and the people of Broken Wheel kind of take her in because that is what Amy would have wanted them to. Sara is uncomfortable at first because honestly who wouldn’t be staying in a person’s house who is no longer there and you haven’t even met?

As the book progresses Sara is starting to meet the people of Broken Wheel. She realizes that they are a unique kind of people where it seems like everyone is there to help each other and have their backs and you can see Sara starting to fit into the town. I loved how every character in the book played a role in it and it all blended so well within the story.

For Sara she has a passion for books and loves to read. Not a lot of people share that kind of passion in the town and the only other person who loved books just as much as Sara was Amy. Gradually Sara begins to think that she needs to find a way to give back to the town for their kindness and perhaps this little town needs a bookstore. Sara brings it up because Amy actually had a empty building just sitting there waiting to be used and Amy has a ton of books that could fill the little store. (This is what I should be because I have a ton of books)

With the towns permission Sara goes a head to prepare the store but due to her visa she is unable to work to sell the books but she can give them away or lends them to the people of the Broken Wheel. At first its not a hit because no one likes to read and they are puzzled at how much and long Sara can seat and read for.

Gradually word starts to spread in the next city called Hope that Broken Wheel has a book store. I think out of curiousity they come to check it out but are quick to point out that no one from the town is ever there so with a little help of the town they set out to prove the people of Hope wrong. Can they pull it off?

As the weeks slip by the people of Broken Wheel begin to realize Sara’s visa is about to expire and they don’t want to loose her so they have to come up with a plan to make her stay but will Sara stay or will she want to go back to Sweden to be with her family?

This was a fun and pretty easy read and I did enjoy it. I think Sara is some one I would be friends with. I would be curious to see what kind of books she would recommend to me because she had that knack about her of giving the right person the right book.

Review/ And Again by Jessica Chiarella

Posted on January 12, 2016January 7, 2016 by Cindy

And Again by Jessica Chiarella
Format: ARC
Published by Simon and Schuster on January 12th 2016
Pages: 320
Buy on Amazon
Goodreads
Genres: Dystopian, Family Life, Fantasy, Fiction, General, Literary

In the spirit of Station Eleven and The Age of Miracles, this exciting literary debut novel imagines the consequences when four ordinary individuals are granted a chance to continue their lives in genetically perfect versions of their former bodies.

Would you live your life differently if you were given a second chance? Hannah, David, Connie, and Linda—four terminally ill patients—have been selected for the SUBlife pilot program, which will grant them brand-new, genetically perfect bodies that are exact copies of their former selves—without a single imperfection. Blemishes, scars, freckles, and wrinkles have all disappeared, their fingerprints are different, their vision is impeccable, and most importantly, their illnesses have been cured.

But the fresh start they’ve been given is anything but perfect. Without their old bodies, their new physical identities have been lost. Hannah, an artistic prodigy, has to relearn how to hold a brush; David, a Congressman, grapples with his old habits; Connie, an actress whose stunning looks are restored after a protracted illness, tries to navigate an industry obsessed with physical beauty; and Linda, who spent eight years paralyzed after a car accident, now struggles to reconnect with a family that seems to have built a new life without her. As each tries to re-enter their previous lives and relationships they are faced with the question: how much of your identity rests not just in your mind, but in your heart, your body?

I received this book for free from publisher/pr firm in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

Would you live your life differently if you were given a second chance?

That is what sold me on the book when I got pitched it to read.

I had no idea what was going to happen and after a bit of a slow start I have to say that I ended up really enjoying the story.

What a great way to ring in 2016 then with a debut novel.

As my readers you know I don’t dip myself into a lot of sci fi and that is mainly because its not usually my cup of tea but I have to admit that after reading this I am a little curious about the whole genre. Although, And Again isn’t really in the sci fi section is more of a fiction book that has the sci fi element to it with the cloning of real life people. The story line is modern day and it wasn’t really a far fetched story line like most sci fi is.

I really enjoyed the four main characters: Linda, Hannah, Connie and David. All four people come from four different walks of life all with a tragic life threatening aliments that get them into this program. The book begins as the four patients are waking up from the transformations. As the story progesses we discover secrets, lies and betrayals. They are all going through changes and learning to adjust to their new lives. Will all four be able to adjust to their new bodies or will the revert to their past ways and hinder their progress?

The chapters are all told in alternating points of view from the four characters and its not confusing at all to follow it along and Jessica keeps each chapter quick and simple and she makes it work.

Another thing I loved about the book was that it was all wrapped up at the end and nothing was left hanging.

So my question for you is, Would you live your life differently if you were given a second chance?