In My Mailbox (32)

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E-Galleys
Skinnydipping By Bethenny FrankelFlirting In Italian By Lauren HendersonVelveteen By Daniel MarksKissing Shakespeare By  Pamela Mingle
(HUGE Thanks to Simon and Schuester and to Random House)

The Summer My Life Began

Summary:

"Elizabeth Margaret—better known as Em—has always known what life would contain: an internship at her father’s firm, a degree from Harvard and a career as a lawyer. The only problem is that it’s not what she wants. When she gets the opportunity to get away from it all and spend a month with the aunt she never knew, she jumps at the chance. While there, Em pursues her secret dream of being a chef, and she also learns that her family has kept some significant secrets from her, too. And then there’s Cade, the laid-back local surfer boy who seems to be everything Em isn't. Naturally, she can’t resist him, and as their romance blossoms, Em feels she is living on her own terms for the first time."

Plot: The Plot is perfect for a spring and/or summer break read, if you are a young pre-teen.

Characters: For the most part I found all the characters pretty one dimensional, even though most had back-rounds and everything. I just couldn't really feel for them. Ironically, the characters I like the most Frederick, Gwenny and Sid. Weren't even main characters. And really WHY was Beth a character? Her being there and her story line was pointless.

Pros: Prefect for the younger crowd, perfect for summer or a quick read.

Cons: It felt forced, and didn't live up to the potential it had.

Final Thoughts: The cover and the title promise a lot and in the beginning the book really lived up to all that, I thought okay I could totally dig this book while lying on the beach catching some sun. Then something happened something in the middle of the book, that I can't explain really, besides forced and maybe fake? I didn't feel the love connection and all though the secret was surprising, I just didn't feel that compelled to be sympathetic or anything over it. Oddly, my favorite part of the book is when the characters are having ice cream and the choice of ice cream flavors, fits each character perfectly. Would I recommend this book to my blogger friends.. no. Would I give this my 12 year old cousin? Yes.

The Summer My Life Began Will Be Available May 10th

Thank You To NetGalley and Speak / Penguin!

VLog Review: The Book Thief

You Can Also Head over To My New YouTube and watch the longer less sleepier version of this review... YouTube Glitched and I didn't know that, that version had actually uploaded to later this morning.

Want Want Want Wednesday (31)

Kissing Shakespeare By Pamela Mingle

"Miranda has Shakespeare in her blood: she hopes one day to become a Shakespearean actor like her famous parents. At least, she does until her disastrous performance in her school's staging of The Taming of the Shrew. Humiliated, Miranda skips the opening-night party. All she wants to do is hide. 
Fellow cast member, Stephen Langford, has other plans for Miranda. When he steps out of the backstage shadows and asks if she'd like to meet Shakespeare, Miranda thinks he's a total nutcase. But before she can object, Stephen whisks her back to 16th century England—the world Stephen's really from. He wants Miranda use her acting talents and modern-day charms on the young Will Shakespeare. Without her help, Stephen claims, the world will lost its greatest playwright. 
Miranda isn't convinced she's the girl for the job. Why would Shakespeare care about her? And just who is this infuriating time traveler, Stephen Langford? Reluctantly, she agrees to help, knowing that it's her only chance of getting back to the present and her "real" life. What Miranda doesn't bargain for is finding true love . . . with no acting required"

The Dressmaker By Kate Alcott

 "Just in time for the centennial anniversary of the sinking of the Titanic comes a vivid, romantic, and relentlessly compelling historical novel about a spirited young woman who survives the disaster only to find herself embroiled in the media frenzy left in the wake of the tragedy. Tess, an aspiring seamstress, thinks she's had an incredibly lucky break when she is hired by famous designer Lady Lucile Duff Gordon to be a personal maid on the Titanic's doomed voyage. Once on board, Tess catches the eye of two men, one a roughly-hewn but kind sailor and the other an enigmatic Chicago millionaire. But on the fourth night, disaster strikes.  Amidst the chaos and desperate urging of two very different suitors, Tess is one of the last people allowed on a lifeboat. Tess’s sailor also manages to survive unharmed, witness to Lady Duff Gordon’s questionable actions during the tragedy. Others—including the gallant Midwestern tycoon—are not so lucky.  On dry land, rumors about the survivors begin to circulate, and Lady Duff Gordon quickly becomes the subject of media scorn and later, the hearings on the Titanic. Set against a historical tragedy but told from a completely fresh angle, The Dressmaker is an atmospheric delight filled with all the period's glitz and glamour, all the raw feelings of a national tragedy and all the contradictory emotions of young love."

Skinnydipping By Bethenny Frankel 

“Who do I have to sleep with to get a drink on this plane?” Beloved by countless fans for being devilishly dishy, outrageously funny, and always giving it to us straight, three-time New York Times bestselling author Bethenny Frankel now makes her fiction debut with the story of Faith Brightstone. Faith is an aspiring actress just out of college, who moves to L.A. determined to have it all—a job on the most popular TV show, a beach house in Malibu, and a gorgeous producer boyfriend. But when reality hits, she finds herself with a gig as a glorified servant, a role that has more to do with T&A than acting, and a dead-end relationship. Finally, Faith decides she’s had enough of La La Land and moves back to New York with just a suitcase and her dog, Muffin. Five years later, Faith has finally found her groove as an entrepreneur and manages to land a spot on a new reality TV show hosted by her idol—the legendary businesswoman and domestic goddess Sybil Hunter. Diving into the bizarre world of reality TV, Faith’s loud mouth and tell-it-like-it-is style immediately get her in trouble with her fellow contestants—the delusional socialite; the boozy lifestyle coach; the moody headband designer; and her closest friend, the ambitious housewife who eventually betrays her. Even Sybil is not what she appears. As the show comes to a dramatic close, Faith discovers that the man of her dreams may have just walked into her life. Will she choose fame or love? Or can she have it all?"

UPDATE: I actually just was approved to read the "ARC" ebook copy of Skinnydipping by Simon and Schuester yesterday. However, I still would want this in book form = )

Top Ten Tuesday : Books To Read In A Day

Hosted By The Broke and The Bookish

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What Can I Do To Improve...?

Hey Guys!!

So, recently I have been thinking of ways I can improve and expand the blog. I enjoy doing this and it has basically become a 2nd job. Within, the next year I plan to do just that and make it bigger and make it a job. However, right now I just want to do some minor expansions and improvements. Which is where I need your help. What Can I Do To My Blog, to make it better? What Would You Like To See More Of? Please Let Me Know!

One thing that is happening very soon is a new customized lay-out and background. I am also, very aware, that I need to actually take time to re-read and edit my posts! It is my weakness, I just like to type it out and post!

In My Mailbox (31)

Hosted By The Story Siren

Couldn't get my video to upload, So I am Doing it old school... Recently, I obtained my Mom's IPad, for studying my French. However, I uploaded a TON of Free E-Books onto it. 

The Beautiful and Damned By F. Scott Fitzgerald

This Side of Paradise By F. Scott Fitzgerald

Flappers and Philosophers By F. Scott Fitzgerald

Tales of the Jazz Age By F. Scott Fitzgerald

Secret Adversary By Agatha Christie

The Mysterious Affair at Styles By Agatha Christie

Jane Eyre By Charlotte Bronte

Wuthering Heights By Emily Bronte

Mansfield Park By Jane Austen

Through the Looking Glass By Lewis Carroll

Grimm's Fairy Tales By The Grimm Brothers

Fairytales By Hans Christian Andersen

The Summer My Life Began By Shannon Greenland 

(Thank You NetGalley)

For Review

Thank You to Karlene Petitt and My Aunt Margaret for telling Karlene about my blog!

Bought

FINALLY in Paperback Form!!!