Book Review: To Catch a Lady by Pamela Labud

If you want to read a book that is a light read and has characters that you will enjoy getting to know , then "To Catch a Lady" is for you.  I really enjoyed this book.  I wanted to read a book that was lighthearted, not too serious and just an enjoyable read for a few hours.  I found that in this book.  Ashton Blakely and Caroline Hawkins are their own worst enemies at times almost keeping themselves from being able to let themselves be loved.  I had to laugh at some of the plans or schemes that they planned and played on each other.  I did not want to put the book down because I wanted to see if they ever did get over themselves and just enjoy being married.

Here is how Amazon describes the book:
If you love Mary Balogh and Eloisa James, don’t miss Pamela Labud’s sensuous Hunt Club series! To Catch a Lady introduces four lordly, rakish sportsmen whose bachelor paradise is threatened by a matchmaking aunt—and by the sting of unexpected love.
 
Ashton Blakely, the Duke of Summerton, cannot stop his aunt from meddling in his affairs. So rather than let her select a most disagreeable mate, Ashton decides to fire the first volley by holding a ball as a scheme to bag the ideal wife: a deferential girl eager to produce and raise an heir, leaving Ashton to his beloved hunting lodge and titled friends. But when Ashton falls for the one woman who isn’t willing to play his game, all his plans scatter like buckshot. Suddenly, the chase is on!
 
Caroline Hawkins has no interest in marriage. In fact, she has devoted her life to defending women from the indignities visited upon them by their husbands. She only chaperones her beautiful younger sister to Summerton’s ball in the hopes of saving her family from bankruptcy. She certainly doesn’t expect to catch the Duke’s eye . . . nor is she prepared for the heat that rises every time she thinks of his powerful build or his dark, tantalizing gaze. Caroline can run, but she cannot hide—for Ashton has already captured her heart.

Thank you to Netgalley for allowing me to read this book for my honest review.

Book Review: When Breath Becomes Air by Paul Kalanithi

Here is a beautiful memoir written by Paul Kalanithi, a 35 year old Neurosurgeon, that was written while he battled and lost the war with Cancer.

Here is how Amazon.com describes the book:

For readers of Atul Gawande, Andrew Solomon, and Anne Lamott, a profoundly moving, exquisitely observed memoir by a young neurosurgeon faced with a terminal cancer diagnosis who attempts to answer the question What makes a life worth living?

At the age of thirty-six, on the verge of completing a decade’s worth of training as a neurosurgeon, Paul Kalanithi was diagnosed with stage IV lung cancer. One day he was a doctor treating the dying, and the next he was a patient struggling to live. And just like that, the future he and his wife had imagined evaporated. When Breath Becomes Air chronicles Kalanithi’s transformation from a naïve medical student “possessed,” as he wrote, “by the question of what, given that all organisms die, makes a virtuous and meaningful life” into a neurosurgeon at Stanford working in the brain, the most critical place for human identity, and finally into a patient and new father confronting his own mortality.

What makes life worth living in the face of death? What do you do when the future, no longer a ladder toward your goals in life, flattens out into a perpetual present? What does it mean to have a child, to nurture a new life as another fades away? These are some of the questions Kalanithi wrestles with in this profoundly moving, exquisitely observed memoir.

Paul Kalanithi died in March 2015, while working on this book, yet his words live on as a guide and a gift to us all. “I began to realize that coming face to face with my own mortality, in a sense, had changed nothing and everything,” he wrote. “Seven words from Samuel Beckett began to repeat in my head: ‘I can’t go on. I’ll go on.’” When Breath Becomes Air is an unforgettable, life-affirming reflection on the challenge of facing death and on the relationship between doctor and patient, from a brilliant writer who became both.

My thoughts:
This is an unforgettable book that was beautifully written by Paul Kalanithi and his wife Lucy.  Lucy Kalanithi writes where Paul had finished.  This is a book that should be read by Doctors and anyone else that loves an inspirational book.

Thank you to Netgalley for allowing me to read this book for my honest review.

Book Review: The Family Caregiver's Guide by Harriet Hodgson

Here is the description from Amazon.com

Caring for a loved one at home. What s really involved? And what does it mean for your family and future? Tens of millions of Americans have had these questions and more as they prepare for this unsettling yet necessary task. The Family Caregiver s Guide fills in the gaps, connecting the dots between research and real life. Drawing on the author s extensive caregiving experience, this book provides strategies to care for your loved one,
inside and out, as well as for yourself including how to use your natural skills in your new role, and which skills you may need to add. You ll discover how to set up your home for caregiving, including a safety checklist, equipment suggestions, and words you should know. And for those days that are more than a handful, you ll find positive affirmations, a section on facing and accepting illness, and smart steps at the end of each chapter, in case you need guidance in a hurry. Caregiving has both rewards and challenges. But through it all, you ll discover what s most important that caregiving is love in action.

Here is my review-
This book is a very thorough guide for any Caregiver that is dealing with a family member that has Alzheimers.  It not only helps you to take care of someone else but also encourages you to take care of yourself in the process.  I highly recommend this book for not only caregivers but medical personnel as well.

Thank you to Netgalley for allowing me to read this book and to give my honest review.

Book Review: A Girl's Guide to Moving On by Debbie Macomber

I was recently given the opportunity to read and review the newest novel by Debbie Macomber, talk about a dream come true!!!!  I have read almost all of her books and seen her movies and they never disappoint! Well Debbie Macomber's latest book "A Girls Guide to Moving On" does not disappoint either.

Here is Amazon.com's description of the book--

In this powerful and uplifting novel from #1 New York Times bestselling author Debbie Macomber, a mother and her daughter-in-law bravely leave their troubled marriages and face the challenge of starting over. Leaning on each other, Nichole and Leanne discover that their inner strength and capacity for love are greater than they ever imagined.
 
When Nichole discovers that her husband, Jake, has been unfaithful, the illusion of her perfect life is indelibly shattered. While juggling her young son, a new job, and volunteer work, Nichole meets Rocco, who is the opposite of Jake in nearly every way. Though blunt-spoken and rough around the edges, Rocco proves to be a dedicated father and thoughtful friend. But just as their relationship begins to blossom, Jake wagers everything on winning Nichole back—including their son Owen’s happiness. Somehow, Nichole must find the courage to defy her fears and follow her heart, with far-reaching consequences for them all.
 
Leanne has quietly ignored her husband’s cheating for decades, but is jolted into action by the echo of Nichole’s all-too-familiar crisis. While volunteering as a teacher of English as a second language, Leanne meets Nikolai, a charming, talented baker from Ukraine. Resolved to avoid the heartache and complications of romantic entanglements, Leanne nonetheless finds it difficult to resist Nikolai’s effusive overtures—until an unexpected tragedy tests the very fabric of her commitments.
 
An inspiring novel of friendship, reinvention, and hope, A Girl’s Guide to Moving On affirms the ability of every woman to forge a new path, believe in love, and fearlessly find happiness.

Here is my review of the book--

This is a book that you will want to read and pass on/recommend to your friends!  This is a good story with romance, friendship with a few unexpected twists thrown in.   Hopefully this will be made into a movie.

Thank you to Netgalley for allowing me to read this for my honest review.

Book Review: Death by the Book by Julianna Deering

Book Review: Death by the Book by Julianna Deering

I wanted to share with you a very clever book I just finished reading.  It is called "Death by the Book" and was written by Julianna Deering.  I love a good mystery novel and this one was no exception.  The story was very well written.  I was kept guessing who committed the murder until the very end, which I really appreciated.  Usually I just tend to stop reading if the mystery is solved before the end (sad, but true).  The author really made the characters likeable and I laughed a little at the interactions between the characters.  The conversations of the characters themselves really made it feel like I was there with them inside the story.

I don't like to spoil a good story, so if you would like to read a book that is a quick, enjoyable read, while still being a book that you don't want to put down (because you just have to know who the killer is), this book is for you. 

I want to thank Bethany House for a copy of this book to review with my honest opinion.
Enjoy!

Book Review: A Match Made in Texas by Karen Witemeyer, Mary Connealy, Regina Jennings, Carol Cox

 

I just finished reading "A Match Made in Texas".   This book is a Novella Collection containing four stories written by four different authors.  In each of the stories a secret matchmaker is at work trying to help an unsuspecting female find her match.

     What a pleasure it was to read this book!  I really enjoyed every one of the stories.  The stories flowed so well into the next one it seemed like they were all written by the same author.  

   I did not want to put this book down.  The stories were funny, they had adventure, love and a setting that helped you escape.

  I want to say thank you to Bethany House for providing this book for an honest review.

Book Review: The Silent Children by Anna K. Boheim

I just finished reading a really good book that I HIGHLY recommend!!  

Here is the information about the book that Amazon.com shared.

Vienna, 1938: Something's amiss at the home of young Annabel Albrecht. First, her favourite maid Eva disappears, then her friend Oskar. Worse is to come – her brother is murdered and her mother is taken away, leaving Annabel to fend for herself. 

Almost 70 years later, Annabel's son Max uncovers his mother's long-buried past, and unlocks the secrets preserved by Annabel's missing friends. But as Max is to discover, some children can never be completely silenced. Is he haunted by ghosts or by guilt, and will he ever escape?The Silent Children is a gripping tale of tragedy and revenge, a modern-day ghost story that will stay with you long after you turn the final page.

Here is my review:

This book will captivate you from the very first line.  If you like to read a book that you do not want to put down and that you can not predict how it will end, this one is for you.

Thank you to Netgalley for letting me review this book for my honest review.  I look forward to reading MORE book written by Anna L. Boheim.

Book Review: An Unlikely Suiter by Nancy Moser

I just finished reading "An Unlikely Suitor" by Nancy Moser.  I really enjoyed this book.  I have even recommended it to my neighbor to take on her beach trip as a summer read.  When I started reading the book I did not want to put it down.  When I had to put the book down, it was very easy to pick up where I left off.  The book takes place in 1895 it has adventure, romance and a few great friendships.  
Thanks to Bethany House for my free copy in exchange for an honest review.