Little Thoughts About Books and Stuff

Black City by Elizabeth  Richards My rating: 4 of 5 stars wow...that was some end to the book! That was my review when I read this book back in December of 2012. I read the book in two days and just loved how it ended. I recommended this book but sadly was not able to make the book club meeting. I was really looking forward to discussing the book but was hosting the Mercer County Girls Book Club that night. Description: A dark and tender post-apocalyptic love story set in the aftermath of a bloody war. In a city where humans and Darklings are now separated by a high wall and tensions between the two races still simmer after a terrible war, sixteen-year-old Ash Fisher, a half-blood Darkling, and Natalie Buchanan, a human and the daughter of the Emissary, meet and do the unthinkable—they fall in love. Bonded by a mysterious connection that causes Ash’s long-dormant heart to beat, Ash and Natalie first deny and then struggle to fight their forbidden feelings for each other,...

Under the Hood  is the first book in Sally Clements Under the Hood series. Under the Hood is an auto body shop run by three friends, Alice, Melody, and Betty.  They have started their all-female shop for women, so they have a place to take their cars to be serviced with out being made to feel inferior to the men who dominate body shops. Alice is up first in this quick, fun, and sweet novella. She meets her neighbor Mark and believes he needs her help in fixing his car. Mark knows cars, but likes the idea of being rescued and hides his knowledge from Alice. Mark has just about convinced Alice that she can fit a relationship into her busy schedule when his business threatens their budding romance. Mark is a divorce attorney and he represented his Aunt in her divorce from the owner of the garage that Alice and her friend are renting.  The Aunt is not thrilled with this set up and is threatening actions that would close Under the Hood. Mark now has to figure out to diff...

This assignment called for us to write in a point of view we hadn't used yet for class. I tend to be a third person point of view writer and my three previous short stories were written as such.  So for this assignment I went with first person.  I wanted to edit a story I had written during my under grad creative writing classes and wasn't completely satisfied with the outcome.  I took the story to our Monday night Writers' Group and was given a suggestion that I went with and really ended up loving. I was asked to consider chopping the first two pages of the story. Below is the original story and I've marked where I started the story I ended up submitting for class. After I made the cut, I changed some aspects of the story, including adding in a small bit of dialogue inspired by another comment made at Writers' Group. (That Eddie's actions sound a little Dateline-ish). I love winter; it’s my favorite season.  I love waking up to crisp morning air.  I love takin...

Beautiful Ruins  by  Jess Walter My rating:  4 of 5 stars I originally read this book back in December for the Winter Book Club . Since we were moving Tea & A Book from Tuesday afternoons to Saturday mornings. I wanted to pick a popular book that I knew a lot of people had read, so patrons would feel more comfortable stopping in (you know in case they wanted to join us!). The switch didn't go smoothly. I thought I could get some computer updates done before our 11 am start time, but the last 3 computers were not updating nicely. Since just one person showed up, I apologized and asked if he wanted to stop back later and sit with me at the Ref Desk and discuss the book and he was okay with that (I love how flexible he is to changing book day/time).  At around 11:45 a woman came in and asked about the book club and we explained that we didn't really have it, but I could ask the other interested person and we could meet at 1. That worked for everyone and we held...

I just haven't been motivated to write reviews. I wrote a really brief one for CNJ JASNA and feel kinda bad about it. Here's what I read and a brief review of the books. First up Forever YA: The Tyrant's Daughter by J.C. Carleson My rating: 5 of 5 stars I wasn't 100% sure about this book since I wasn't there when they picked the book. I have to say it was a great book, one that has the reader asking a lot of questions.  I liked that we got to see her life, it's a life that most of us question a person living. We ask "How does (the person) not know what's going on around them?". This book shows us that even though Laila's father was a tyrant, she was brought up with lies and to her they were the truth.  Until she comes to the U.S. she lives in a carefully constructed world. While Laila is trying to fit in with a life that is so very foreign to her, her mother is trying desperately to find a way to fix their lives. For her, that's ...

Look in the mirror and describe what you see. 7 am – a blur of bed head as I shuffle past the mirror on my bedroom door 7:02 – more bed head, a little less blurry as I shuffle into the bathroom 7:20 – a mass of wet hair and freshly scrubbed face as I get out of the shower 7:22 – hair wrapped in a towel as product gets applied to reduce puffy eyes and diminish blemishes 7:30 – damp hair that is currently finger tussled with the application of anti-frizz product 8:00 – blown dried hair, curled, slight presence of frizz, damn humidity 8:02 – hair pulled back, face currently bring moisturized and tinted 8:05 – toothbrush sticking out of mouth, head moving side to side as I try to spot blemishes 8:07 – face slightly darker with foundation powder 8:09 – eyes lined, mascaraed lashes, brushed brows, lightly shadowed lids framed by glasses 8:13 – sheered lined lips, slightly colored in 8:15 – hair tussled into place, slightly more frizz then when it went up 15 minutes ago 8:30 – double check ey...

I revisited with the imagined life of my grandparents with this story.  Chronologically it takes place before my first short story for this class. I hope you enjoy it! Sunday Gravy             It was a simple meal, one Maria had been making since she was a child. She had started the gravy by browning any and all meat she found in the refrigerator. She would add it all to the gravy a little later including some leftover chicken from last night’s dinner.  She started her gravy with a few jars of tomatoes she had canned with Katie not that long ago. The grief she felt when she open the jars was overwhelming, she should be cooking this meal with her mother-in-law.  After five years of making the Sunday gravy they had it down to an art form.  While one woman cleaned up from breakfast the other would brown the meat.  After finishing the dishes it was a trip down to the basement to get two jars of canned tomatoes a...

Here's Where I Stand on the I Love the Library Challenge Books Checked Out and Read: Paris in Love by Eloisa James (BCD) The King by J.R. Ward Shadow Spell by Nora Roberts Everything I need to Know I Learned From a Little Golden Book by Diane Muldrow The History of diners in New Jersey by Michael C. Gabriele A Call to Action by Jimmy Carter (BCD) Books Checked Out and Currently Reading Orange is the New Black by Piper Kerman (BCD) Books Checked Out and Not Read - Yet The Public Library: A Photographic Essay by Robert Dawson The Geography of You and Me by Jennifer E. Smith Books Checked Out but Didn't Read Once Upon a Time by John Barth* The End of the Road by John Barth* My Age of Anxiety by Scott Stossel The Returned by Jason Mott Here's Where I Stand on the TBR Pile Challenge I read one book from my Kindle app Shadows by Jennifer L Armentrout