The Blessings of the Animals by Katrina Kittle

From the authors website

"Shaken by her recent divorce, veterinarian Cami Anderson is on a quest to unravel the secret ingredient of a happy, long-lasting marriage. Cami’s parents are preparing to celebrate their fiftieth anniversary, yet her brother and his partner are legally blocked from marriage. Her best friend—and ex-sister-in-law—is newly engaged, but her teenaged daughter’s romance has developed its own complications.

Surrounded by several couples approaching different milestones in their relationships, Cami reflects on the meaning of love and partnership, sharing her hopes and fears with an angry horse, a three-legged cat, and an escape-artist goat in her care. As she tends to the rescue animals, so, too, does Cami begin to rescue herself. Coming to terms with her own divorce, she learns poignant lessons in forgiveness, flexibility, and happiness that help her master the art of simply moving on."

I cannot express how much I ABSOLUTELY adored this novel. I managed to finish it in a day, stealing away moments to try to finish it whenever I could and ended up staying up really late since I was so entranced by it. I want to be Cami, well maybe not with the whole having my husband just up and leave me but more in how she handled it. She was so strong and brave, she ended up thriving while her ex-husband remained as unhappy as before.
She really did end up making the divorce a good thing for her, she changed her life and didn't need a man anymore.

As an animal lover, I loved Cami's connection with her animals especially the horse, Moonshine. It was amazing how they both healed each other. I loved the other characters as well, Cami has some pretty amazing people in her life. I enjoyed her ex-husband a lot, he was just so entertaining in his childish ways and his complete disregard for others.

The ending was also great but I don't want to spoil it. It did however have me hopeful and I ended up reading the acknowledgments just wanting more. I think this is my favorite book that I've read in a while, I can't recommend it enough. I'd give it five out of five stars.

Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book to participate in an online book club. The opinions expressed her are my own.

The Life You've Imagined by Kristina Riggle

From the author's website

"Are you living the life you imagined? Is there anything you’d have done differently if you could? Those are the questions asked in Kristina Riggle’s unforgettable new novel.

In high school, Cami and Anna were as close as they could be...now, years later, both have returned to their hometown to face the people they had once left behind. Anna must confront her mother, still distraught over the abandonment of her husband, and come to terms with choices she had made years before. While Cami returns home to stay with her alcoholic father, she uncovers a secret he sought to keep which could change her life and salvage her future. They reconnect with their classmate, Amy, who can't understand why achieving the thin body and handsome man of her dreams hasn't given her the happily-ever-after she desired. This is a novel that digs deep and touches the heart of the issues so many women face-the quest for perfection, the hope of love, the value of family and importance of always striving for your dream."

The publishing date for this novel is August 17.

This novel was definitely not what I expected. After looking at the cover and reading the title (I know I shouldn't judge based on just that but still) I thought this would be a light read about teens and friendship. It ended up being MUCH more complicated than that, the story is about two adult friends who happen to wind up back in their home town at the same time for different reasons. Both women have complicated family situations, Cami's mother has died years ago leaving her to be raised by her alcoholic father while Anna's father abandoned her and her mother over twenty years ago. The story follows the two women as they try to recover from their issues in this small town while at the same time dealing with the issues of their families.

The novel explores complex topics such as happiness and contentedness with your life. It explores the idea of settling and not reaching your full potential and just not being satisfied with your life in general or rather not living the life you've imagined. It talks about both not wanting to grow up to be your parents and parents wanting more for their children than they had.

I found I was able to relate to Anna and Cami but at times wondered if they were really acting like women their age would act. At times, I seemed to forget that these were grown women not high schoolers. As for Anna's mother, Maeve I couldn't seem to understand her unwillingness to let go of the past and just move on.

Overall, I enjoyed this novel but it was much more complicated than I originally expected. If you want to forget about your own problems for a bit and get wrapped up in someone else's then this is the novel for you.

Disclaimer: I received no compensation for this review. I received a copy of this book as part of an online book discussion.

Commuters by Emily Gray Tedrowe

From the author's website

After losing her husband of many years, seventy-eight-year-old Winnie Easton has found love again with Jerry Trevis, a wealthy, elderly Chicago businessman; their decision, however, to buy one of the biggest houses in the small, upstate town of Hartfield, New York, ignites anger and skepticism in their families. Jerry's daughter, Annette, fearing for her inheritance, takes drastic action to freeze Jerry's assets; Winnie's daughter, Rachel, struggling with her own finances, accepts Jerry's offer of a loan; and Avery, Jerry's twenty-year-old grandson, a hotshot chef with a cocaine-fueled past, scouts out Manhattan venues in which to start his own restaurant--with Jerry's money to back him up.

With so much riding on Jerry's wealth, a rapid decline in his physical health forces hard decisions on the family, renewing old loyalties while creating surprising alliances. Commuters traces the interwoven stories of Winnie, Rachel, and Avery as each is changed by the repercussions of one marriage, and by the complex intertwining of love, family, and money.

Have you ever read a novel that you just don't want to stop reading, that you want to continue even after you're finished? Well this is one of those. The novel is told through multiple viewpoints, Winnie, Rachel and Avery. This allows the reader is able to understand what each character is going through. I tend to love novels told from multiple viewpoints because I feel you get a better understanding of what makes each character tick and what matters most to them.

The story is one about love, money and family and the problems associated with them. I loved that the story was based on finding love in different ages and just how trans-formative it can be. Love really does change the characters in this novel. Another aspect of this novel I enjoyed was the wide range of characters, Winnie is so different from her daughter Rachel and Jerry is so different from his grandson Avery. I loved this novel and can't recommend it enough.

Disclaimer: I received no compensation for this review. I received a copy for an online book club.

Georgia's Kitchen by Jenny Nelson Book Tour

Georgia Gray has a bright future ahead of her as an up and coming chef, she works at one of the best restaurants in NYC and is on the verge of getting a career making review. Or so she thinks, instead of her well deserved rave review she receives a horrible review that costs her her job. To make matters worse, her fiancee decides to call off their wedding just hours after getting fired. Jobless and fiancee-less, Georgia decides to escape to Italy to work for a former employer who is opening up a new restaurant. There she meets Gianni, who gives her a very appealing offer with one catch, she'd have to stay for longer than she had planned. Will Georgia take the job or chase her actual dreams and open a restaurant of her own?

Georgia is down on her luck, she's just lost her job and her fiance and after her awful review no top-notch restaurant with any sense would want to hire her. So she goes back to work for a woman who had been really influential in her past and is able to find/learn a lot more than she expected. I liked the plot and how Nelson has Georgia leave the country after being publicly humiliated, its something I'm sure we've all wished for previously.

In Italy, Georgia learns the importance of having hope and chasing after her dreams. She doesn't take the easy way out and I admired her for that. I enjoyed this novel because it was so hopeful, Georgia never gave up hope of getting what she wanted the most, her own restaurant. I found myself entranced with this novel and wished I could venture out to the Italian countryside and attempt to learn to cook. I found Georgia to be very agreeable, she really is amazing and I wanted her to succeed.

If you're looking for a feel good novel with a happy ending then this is for you. I'd give it 4.5 out of 5 stars.

Disclaimer: I did not receive compensation for this review, I did however receive a copy for review. This is my honest opinion.

And One Last Thing by Molly Harper Book Tour

If Singletree's only florist didn't deliver her posies half-drunk, I might still be married to that floor-licking, scum-sucking, receptionist nailing hack-accountant, Mike Terwilliger.

With a first sentence like that, I knew I was going to be in for a treat with this book and boy was I right. This book is extremely entertaining, I fell in love with the witty Lacey and came to admire her. See Lacey comes to find out that her husband is cheating on her with his secretary when roses are accidentally sent to her house. The seemingly perfect wife, Lacey doesn't know how to react and then one night in anger she decides to email out a newsletter to everyone Mike knows (even his parents!) detailing her findings. But what Lacey doesn't realize is just how big this is going to get and the fact that once out for everyone to see, she can't undo it. The letter gets much bigger than she expects and she goes into hiding from the world temporarily, seeking retreat in her family's cabin. But even there she can't escape what she's done, will she be able to handle it? Especially when a new neighbor comes into her life?

I thought this book was great, it had me laughing so often. I loved that Lacey actually had to deal with the consequences of the email and it didn't just disappear. This book is a great read for every angry/hurt woman who has done something/said something that she regrets. It was able to remind me that while not every relationship is successful there's still hope for everyone to find something better.

I would give this 5 out of 5 stars.

Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book in return for my honest review. The opinions expressed here are my own.

The Recipe Club by Andrea Israel and Nancy Garfinkel

From the cover

Loyalty, loss, and the ties that bind. These are the ingredients of The Recipe Club, a "novel cookbook" that combines an authentic story of friendship with more than 80 delicious recipes.

Lilly and Val have been friends since childhood in spite of their great personality differences. Lilly is artistic and creative while Val is smart and ambitious. Throughout their childhood, the girls send letters to each other and form a Recipe Club where they exchange recipes with each other. These shared letters and recipes follow the girls as they grow up and go through all the experiences that brings with it. The novel follows the journey of these two now grown up women, and their attempts to try to reconnect after a twenty-six year long fallout.

Yet again, I loved this book! Maybe I'm a bit partial because I love books told in letter form but I seriously loved reading this. I like how it is separated into three different parts, the first reconnection, the girls growing up and then the second attempt to reconnect and just how much changes within these phases. I thought it was great that almost the entire novel is told through letters, it just seems so much more personal to me for some reason. The recipes were another great addition, I definitely want to try some of them out, although I'll have to modify most somewhat because I'm vegetarian. I loved that the recipes often matched what was going on in the book, it was their story told in recipes.

This was a book that made me believe in the healing power and the resilience of friendship. It made me long to reconnect with friends that I have fallen out of touch with recently. I absolutely couldn't put it down.

Disclaimer: I received no compensation for this review.

The Nanny Diaries by Emma McLaughlin and Nicola Kraus

While walking through the park one day, Nanny ends up finding a lot more than she bargained for. Her stroll in the park allows her to meet Mrs. X, a woman who quickly turns Nanny’s life upside down. Nanny takes on the job as nanny to Mrs. X’s only son and soon realizes that taking care of a four year old is much more complicated than it seems, especially when your employer is as self-centered as Mrs. X. The novel traces Nanny’s struggle as she tries to keep her own sanity while having to cater to Mrs. X’s every whim and desire.

This was another book that I absolutely loved; recently I have been really lucky and keep finding books that I really enjoy. I can see why this was a bestseller and why it was turned into a movie (although I watched the movie after finishing the book and was somewhat disappointed but that’s another story). I loved the characters in this book! This was especially true for the self-centered Mrs. X, whom while I would hate to have as my own employer, I loved to hate her. I also loved Nanny, I found that I could relate to her horror stories but I couldn’t understand why she put up with as much as she did, I definitely would have left. This is an entertaining read, it would be perfect for the beach.

Disclaimer: I received no compensation for this review, I purchased this book myself.

Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater

From www.maggiestiefvater.com

For years, Grace has watched the wolves in the woods behind her house. One yellow-eyed wolf—her wolf—is a chilling presence she can't seem to live without. Meanwhile, Sam has lived two lives: In winter, the frozen woods, the protection of the pack, and the silent company of a fearless girl. In summer, a few precious months of being human... until the cold makes him shift back again.

Now, Grace meets a yellow-eyed boy whose familiarity takes her breath away. It's her wolf. It has to be. But as winter nears, Sam must fight to stay human—or risk losing himself, and Grace, forever.

So I know I'm late to jump on the Shiver train, but I finally read it yesterday and absolutely loved it. I wish I had read it earlier but looking on the bright side now I don't have to go through the anticipation of waiting for the sequel, I can just go pick Linger up at the bookstore. But seriously, I loved this book, I loved how well the longing to be together came across.

Sam and Grace have been in love for the past six years but have been unable to do anything about it since they are not always in the same form, since Sam spends part of his year as a wolf. I absolutely loved Sam and Grace and found myself cheering for them and hoping that they could find a way to make their peculiar situation work. I loved that they had been admiring each other from a far for the past six years and just how perfectly they worked together once they finally are able to meet. This was such a great book, I just can't recommend it enough!

Disclaimer: I did not receive any compensation for this review. I purchased this book myself.

Remember Me? by Sophie Kinsella

What would you do if you woke up to find that your memory was stuck three years in the past? After surviving a car accident this is the reality for Lexi Smart. With the past three years wiped from her memory, Lexi has no idea how she has gone from being just another worker bee with a dead beat boyfriend to being a big shot at her company married to a multimillionaire. She has to try to figure out how she went from being the girl she remembers to this “perfect” life, little does she know that her new life is also far from perfect.

I loved this book; it was super funny and entertaining. At some points it was a bit predictable,(I won’t say where so I don’t want to spoil it for others) but I didn’t think any less of it for it. This book is a light read that had me laughing for a while, it is a perfect beach read for anyone interested.

Disclaimer: I did not receive any compensation for this review. I purchased this book myself.

The Reading Group by Elizabeth Noble

I absolutely loved this book! It made me wish that I belonged to a book club or that I could get my friends interested in starting one. I thought it was wonderfully written and actually got me interested in the books that they discussed in their meetings(maybe some more reading material for me once I finish my already large TBR pile). But really I thought it was great, I loved how close the characters become over time and how much changes within the year that the club starts to the end of the novel. I also loved how the characters grow throughout the novel, I found myself cheering them on when they had done well and feeling sorry for their mistakes.

I also enjoyed how realistic it seemed, it didn't portray five women who were completely content with their lives, instead it showed five women who had to actually work to find happiness within their lives and relationships. It showed that not every marriage or relationship is meant to last and that's ok. It also just made me feel really happy to have great girlfriends and reminded me how important that is. Another part of the novel I loved was just how British it is, my best friend just got back from studying in England and the characters related to her experience. I would recommend this book to anyone looking for a funny entertaining summer read, I really did love it. This could be a great book to share with your girlfriends.

Disclaimer: I did not receive any compensation for this review. This book was purchased at my local library's book sale.

Library Finds

Oh I'm so excited! I went to my local library today and found out they were having a great sale, a bag of books for $1. I just stocked up on some great books, here's what I got.

The Reading Group by Elizabeth Noble
The Vanished Child by Sarah Smith
The Dante Club by Matthew Pearl
The Painter of Birds by Lidia Jorge
Wet Grave by Barbara Hambly
A Song I Knew by Heart by Bret Lott
Verbena by Nanci Kincaid

7 books all for a dollar, what a great deal. I've started reading the first and can't wait to post my review, its great so far.

Review: Lady Vernon and Her Daughter

I’ve been away from blogging for a long time now and I think its time to restart now. My blog will mainly consist of book reviews with the occasional recipe or any other good find I stumble across that should be shared.

One of the more recent books I’ve read was Lady Vernon and Her Daughter by Jane Rubino and Caitlen Rubino-Bradway. This is a novel about Jane Austen’s Lady Susan. So first I have to admit that I’m probably one of the few people left that hasn’t read any Jane Austen novels before. As such, maybe I’m not the best judge of this novel but I just wasn’t really too impressed. Don’t get me wrong the writing is detailed but I just did not like the plot very much. It just seemed to go on for a while about things that didn’t seem to matter all that much. I also couldn’t really relate to the characters or their worries. Overall I’d give the novel 3 out of 5 stars.