Over 2 billion-6 billion served!

For Fun, you don't even need to read the review just look at the handy dandy pie chart!

Please note this pie chart does not include the Last topic as that would be in the 2-6 billion range covering up my chart in a mess!

Lover Unleashed by J.R. Ward

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


Lover Unbound (Black Dagger Brotherhood #5) Part 2* or also know as Lover Unleashed (Black Dagger Brotherhood #9)

Lover Unleashed is about, the warrior Payne. She’s the twin sister of Vishous. It picks up right at the end of Book 8, Payne was paralyzed. In Lover Unleashed, it’s up to a human surgeon Dr. Manuel Manello to save her from her imprisoned paralysis.

I love this series it’s my HEA series. It’s funny, sexy, and predictable. This book was about imprisonment, Payne being imprisoned by her mother, and her body; Vishous being imprisoned by his past; and Manny by his lonely life. I felt secluded at times reading this book. J.R Ward did a good job of making you feel imprisoned, as a reader, you are placed in one setting for most of the book. There is very limited contact with the other brothers.

STOP READING IF YOU INTEND TO READ BOOK, SPOILERSSSSS AHEAD!!!!





I liked Payne. She’s a tough warrior, and I liked the chemistry between her and Manny. This book was supposed to be their story, but it was Vishous who stole the spot light. Manny is ok, his “surprise” isn’t really a surprise. At this point we’ve read the books so if you see the words: mine, musky cologne, my woman, you know where it’s going!

I like V’s story, I wasn’t happy how things went down with Jane. The book ended I let it go, I thought we were done with all of that poor me crap. Never heard anything was wrong with the happy couple in any of the other books, but then bam, looks like they aren’t so happy and V has regressed into his fun side. I liked showing the couple struggling, but I felt like it was out of character or a step way back in the wrong direction. I thought he worked through all Bloodletter stuff. Then Warden complicates things by bring Butch in the mix. I’m sorry, sure Jane is beyond understanding but Marissa side steps too?

We are introduced to our next friendemy Xcor and his gang of merry misfits. In short they want to kill lesser and rule. I’m up for a new story line!

The Cop caper, ugh why was it in the book? That’s all I got to say about that.

Blay. And. Qhuin. Maybe 30 pages devoted to these two. Don’t get your hopes up, nothing is resolved! You get to about 440 pages and realize this book is going to end with little resolution and not end on a solid foot. There are some loose ends that aren’t tied up. I did like Qhuin’s word Breast-iculated! I’m trying to work that into everyday use! I’m intrigued by his prediction.

The last topic, I fully discuss in my goodreads review.




*please note sarcasm!



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I WON I WON I WON!

I hate to say it but I am winning!

Does this mean I can hang out with Charlie Sheen now? Not that I want to, I mean he's great to watch from a distance but he's like a train wreck, you don't want to get to close to that mess!

So here’s how I won…. My parents in the 70’s got together, I was born, and yada yada yada, Living in Dar awarded me the Stylish blogger Award. Since I just called my best friend about a makeover, maybe I was to quick in my decision, and don’t need a makeover after all hmmmm?! I mean it says I’m Stylish so it must be true.

Part of my responsibilities of holding the title of Stylish blogger Award is to thank my giver. Tima, thank you! She lives in Dar hence the clever title of her blog Living in Dar. Go see her blog, she lives in Dar, you know Africa, where adventures happen in real life!

Another heavy responsibility of holding the title, Stylish blogger Award of March 20, 2011 10:17pm 23 sec., is to tell you 7 thing you wouldn’t already know about me. If you already know my 7 things, fake it!

1.       I wanted to be a nurse, but in high school realized I suck at math, and was kicked out of my chemistry class. Well kicked out is a strong phrase, the teacher and I agreed I wasn’t chemistry material!

2.       I don’t like fish. I’m 35, I’ve tried enough to finally say it and mean it, I don’t like fish.

3.       I admire true vegetarians! (vegetarians who eat fish are not vegetarians) I could never give up a great juicy steak!

4.       The night I met my husband, I told my mom I met the one I was gonna marry, and yes it was my husband.

5.       I broke the same ankle as my mom, at the same time. I was trying to come to her rescue!

6.       Right after Platoon won best picture, I met the respectable, clean, non prostitute seeking, non bi winning, Charlie Sheen and asked him what movies he was in. I was 12.

7.       I allow myself to purchase 5 bad songs a year. I call these my guilty pleasure playlists. These songs are usually top 40, engineered, and targeted at much younger audience then myself.

Finally as my title of Stylish Blogger comes to an end, I’m to share this award with 15 of my favorite blogs. 15!!!! That’s a big number I know 5 and they’ve won already!

Here’s my favorite blogs, go, visit, and follow. They are now winners of the Stylish blogger Award, and it's a lot like a chain letter isn't it?

The Jey of Cooking
My Kids.. My Life... In Pictures
hyperbole and a half
The daily snark
stark.raving.mad.mommy.

Embracing Chaos

Running into a Wall 

Our Life, Our Family, Our Love

Book of the Week: March 20, 2011

The Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett

My rating: 2 of 5 stars


I started this mighty book in November of 2010 and finally finished it March 2011. I started out strong, really loving the foundation of this book (*groan* yes I used a building reference). But then Phillip entered the picture and I put the book down for 2 months. Then I started reading it and William entered the picture, so then I put the book down. I eventually got tired of seeing it on my currently reading list so I finished it.

First let stress that it is a well written book, I liked the style, I felt like I was really there and got a good picture of the setting and lifestyle.

What I didn’t like was the cast of characters. Everyone was out for something. They all were extremely clever and one step of the other.

Life was hard but in this book it was HARD!

I’m saving the worst for last, William. I get he was a villain, I have no problem with him being a villain, and doing his villainy things. My problem was that there was no counter balance to him, there wasn’t an opposite hero character that was just as good to his bad. The author really focused and was descriptive of his scenes but didn’t give us an equally tender moment. After the 3rd “active” scene of his, I started to wonder why the author was so focused on that, We got it, we know what William likes and what gets him going. But just in case you didn’t get it the first time, there are about 5 “active” scenes.

Everyone, (except for Jonathan who was a baby for most of this book) has very little redeemable qualities, I hated them all! Yeah I hated them all! I think the author might of realized that he needed to fix that because he makes an about face with some of his characters with about 200 pages left.

This book is highly rated, people loved this book, I just wasn’t one of them. I posed the question Is it still a good book if its well written but hate the cast? Some of my friends said yes, with the exception of one (who I kind of agree with). Here’s another way to look at it: I’m going to take you to a place, these guys have some wonderful stories, and they are convicted thieves, con-artists, rapists, and murderers. It’s at a prison would you still want to go? Now the book isn’t a prison, but it is a good story of thieves, con-artists, rapists, and murderers.







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Book of the Week: February 27th 2011

How To Marry a Millionaire Vampire by Kerrelyn Sparks

My rating: 2 of 5 stars

Simple put: Funny, quick read. Bad vampires and good vampires don't like each other. "Damned" angst vampire falls in love.

Biggest problem with this book was all the religious stuff. Damning of souls, God has left me, God heals all. I like my vampire straight up, sexy, and godless!

My other problem was the crying heroine. Jeeze! She cried every other page.

The appeal of a vampire book, I think comes down to the ultimate tall dark handsome troubled man we romanticize about changing. It’s a conquest to change the ultimate bad boy into a loving ball of mush. We also picture ourselves as his ultimate choice, an undying love for all of eternity, healthy and with copious amounts of financial security. Right? That seems to be the theme with modern day vampire books out there for us readers.

I’m currently searching for the evil vampire in the modern times, You know the type of vampire that is scary and actual kills people. I have to say they are hard to find nowadays. I suppose Anne Rice writes a bad vampire you find yourself rooting for. Melissa Mars wrote a whole book based on two “lovable” bad guys, but they were faeries. Is there a lovable bad guy? I suppose I will add that to my reading challenge.

In the mean time, here’s a list of my top paranormal/ paranormal romances in no particular order.

1.       Lover Awakened and Dark Lover (or an J.R Ward book): Hello! Fits the criteria (Tall Dark Handsome Troubled). Interesting take on the vampire and battle over good and evil.

2.       Interview with a Vampire.

3.       Half Way to the Grave: finally a kick ass female heroine!

4.       Ink Exchange: Book 2 The incredible mature teenagers and the lovable bad boy faeries!

5.       Kiss of Midnight: Big twist, if you like the J.R. Ward you’ll like this.

6.       Dead to the World: The shower heard around the world!

7.       Guilty Pleasures: This stars Sookie, I mean Anita Blake.

8.       Nice Girls Don’t Have Fangs: A funny undead librarian!

9.       Some Girls Bite: Book 1 of a series, takes place in Chicago, funny, lots of tension.

10.   Soulless

11.   Lord of the Fading Lands:  a Cinderella story in a fairy world.

12.   Divine by Mistake: a funny accidental goddess story!

13.   The lightening Thief: Teenage demigods.

14.   The Black Jewels Trilogy: Daughter of the Blood, Heir to the Shadows, Queen of the Darkness: Bad guys as good guys!

15.    Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone

16.   Twilight: The movie ruined this book for me. This book is hit or miss with readers. Miss for vampire fans, Vampires don’t sparkle! But the dialogue between the main characters was good.

Honorable Mention

1.       Hunger Like No Other: book 2 in a series, mediocre.

2.       Bloodsucking Fiends: FUNNY!

3.       A Girls Guide to Vampires

4.       Jacob: Demons and Faeries

5.       Outlander : One element is “paranormal-ish”

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Book of the week: February 20th 2011???

So you may notice a skip in the book of the weeks. That’s because my e-reader and I aren’t seeing eye to eye at the moment. My book club has picked an incredibly sad book. I’m not looking forward to being sad so I keep putting it away. So my idle e-reader is sitting there taunting me. I know I’ll read it I made the commitment, plus I really have to get going or I won’t meet my goal of 100 books this year. It’s just the sad book. I wonder why people pick sad fiction books to read when real life can be just as sad.

So this week is dedicated to the sad books or the heartache books or the books without a happy ending!

Year of Wonders by Geraldine Brooks

Read March 2010

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Based on the true story of Eyam. England in 1666. A bolt of cloth carrying the plague arrives in the little village. The village elects to quarantine themselves within the village boundaries to stop the spread of the disease to nearby towns. The book is told from Anna’s view point. She witness death to a point of numbness. She watches the villagers turn to God, witchcraft, medicinal herbs, each other, and murder.

I think I cried the first 100 or so! At some point I became numb to the drama, and at about 200 pages was looking for closure.

I do recommend it. It was an interesting look at what would happen on a small scale if an apocalypse happened. The book is a quick read and it must've had a small effect on me because I brought it up and discussed this book with my husband about some of the topics in it. As a mom of 2, the story made me cry a little. What would you do, if you had no knowledge or way of protecting your babies from death and it’s knocking on your door?
Ending was not my favorite, it was quick and questionable.


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Some of my other top 10 sad books off the top of my head:

1.      Diary of Anne Frank

2.      Marley and Me (I sobbed through the whole book because I could see what was going to come at the end)

3.      Angela’s Ashes

4.      Of Mice and Men

5.      Anybody Out There?

6.      The Giving Tree

7.      Charlotte’s Web

8.      I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings

9.      New Moon (yeah I was heart broken when he left, Bite me!)

10.   If I Stay

The Harlequin Lover

Price of Passion by Susan Napier

My rating: 2 of 5 stars

This was one of the Harlequin freebies, read further below for review.

My grandma was a fan of the Harlequin romance books. She read 1000's of these books, not the "Blaze" she said those were too "dirty". So last year, Harlequin gave away 16 or so free ebooks to celebrate their anniversary (they still have free book fridays). They included one book from each on their romance categories, Historical, religious, ethnic, mystery, and the infamous Blaze. I figured this was my time to see why these books are so popular and read a few so I started with grandma's favorite,        Blaze!

Slow Hands (The Wrong Bed: Again and Again, #1) by Leslie Kelly

My rating: 1 of 5 stars


This book is a "mistaken identity". Wasn't a fan of the male version of Pretty Woman. It was set in Chicago with a hot paramedic and a voluptuous rich banker. It was pretty predictable but I wanted to see what my grandma considered “dirty, and was surprised that she would consider this “dirty” This comes from someone who has read books by Megan Hart, Lora Leigh, and Anne Rampling, now those grandma would say are filthy!
So I read a few more from the other categories. I started to see a pattern. The Harlequin romances have a recurring theme: misunderstanding or mistaken identity, good looks, tons of money, a baby and a wedding
Price of Passion was one of the books I actually did somewhat like. This book is a "misunderstanding" Out of all of them this was ok. I didn’t like the beginning or the characters but then about half way through I liked the dialogue and interaction between the two main characters and actually started liking this book. But it had the same Harlequin ending.
Not all romance novels are bad, and I don’t hate all Harlequins. Harlequin was a stepping stone for many authors and readers. I enjoy a good Historical Fiction Romance or Paranormal Romance. If your looking for more romance with something that isn’t written for quick mass production, may I suggest a few: Lisa Kleypas, Nora Roberts, Nicholas Sparks, J.R. Ward, Diana Gabaldon or if your daring Megan Hart. Maybe you’d like to envision yourself in a romance novel of your choosing for that visit, Books by you. There you become the star in your own romance novel! Here’s the link: http://www.bookbyyou.com/

Book of the Week : February 6, 2011

If I Stay by Gayle Forman

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Really 3 1/2 stars.



Another book from the book club. Another book I wouldn't necessarily pick. If I Stay, is about a 17 year old girl Mia, She was in a horrible car accident with her family, she has an out of body experience, and has to make a choice on more than one level, if she should stay or go.

This book was a fast read, two and a half hours. It read like a friend telling you a long story. the story goes off on small flash backs, but comes back to the main story. The author is able to pull it off without losing her readers.

This Book is mainly about Mia and Mia's relationship with her boyfriend. There is little focus or concern on the other characters. Most of the flashbacks are about her boyfriend or music. I felt like the author may have been trying to say that teenagers are somewhat self absorbed; only concerned with their boyfriends, school, and friends, and little concern on family. I think the author was mistaken a bit; she needed to show a little more that Mia had more feelings about what had happened to her family. I think any teenager would have been a bit more upset by what happen.

There are 2 parts that got me to tears in this story, Grandpa's permission, and Teddy. Teddy got me, because of my own personal experience with my little sister.

I really liked the ending. I could see how some people would be unhappy about it, but this story was about a choice and the choice was made.
There is a sequel coming out called Where She Went. It's told from the boyfriends point of view and moves the story into the future.
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