Audiobook Review: Worst Case by James Patterson and Michael Ledwidge

Here is a summary of Worst Case from James Patterson's website:

Best case: Survival
The son of one of New York's wealthiest families is snatched off the street and held hostage. His parents can't save him, because this kidnapper isn't demanding money. Instead, he quizzes his prisoner on the price others pay for his life of luxury. In this exam, wrong answers are fatal.

Worst case: Death
Detective Michael Bennett leads the investigation. With ten kids of his own, he can't begin to understand what could lead someone to target anyone's children. As another student disappears, another powerful family uses their leverage and connections to turn up the heat on the mayor, the press—anyone who will listen—to stop this killer. Their reach extends all the way to the FBI, which sends its top Abduction Specialist, Agent Emily Parker. Bennett's life—and love life—suddenly get even more complicated.

This case: Detective Michael Bennett is on it
Before Bennett has a chance to protest the FBI's intrusion on his case, the mastermind changes his routine. His plan leads up to the most devastating demonstration yet—one that could bring cataclysmic ruin to every inch of New York City. From the shocking first page to the last exhilarating scene, Worst Case is a nonstop thriller from "America's #1 storyteller" (Forbes).

My Review:
This was a fast paced audiobook that kept me gripping the steering wheel for the most part, but still had a few parts that made me burst into laughter.  This is the first book I have read (actually listened to) by Patterson and it was a very enjoyable experience.  Although I don't usually read books that are from the 'thriller' genre I have been finding that I do enjoy the audioversions.

There is a maniac on the streets of New York City who is kidnapping children of wealthy families for what seems to be his own personal quest for economic justice.  He asks his victims a series of questions that have to do with countries that have been attacked by disease or bad economics.  Once the victim answers too many incorrect questions he or she is killed.

Detective Mike Bennett is assigned to this case and I have to say that I loved his character.  Not only is he a successful detective for the NYPD, but he is also a loving and caring father of oodles of kids that he has at home.  I loved getting a glimpse into Bennett's family life because helped me to see what a huge heart he really has.

Bennett gets a break in the case when one of the victims is set free after answering the series of questions correctly.   Once they are able to get a description of the murderer/kidnapper, Bennett tries to piece together the motives of his actions before he has the opportunity to strike again.

If you enjoy action packed books with just a touch of romantic interest then I think you will enjoy this book.  I thoroughly enjoyed the audioversion and will probably try to listen to the other books in the Bennett series...yes, there are more!  The multiple narrators of this book included Bobby Cannavale, John Glover, and Orlagh Cassidy.  Cannavale did a great job narrating as Bennett, while the voice of Glover as the villain was definitely unnerving.

My Rating:  5/5

Disclosure:  I received this audiobook from Anna at Hachette in exchange for an honest review.

You can check out more great book reviews at Cym Lowell's Book Review Party Wednesday!

Winners of The Castaways by Elin Hilderbrand!

I am pleased to announce that I have drawn two winners for The Castaways by Elin Hilderbrand!  The lucky winners are

Marjorie

and

Dollycas

Congratulations ladies!  I will be emailing you shortly to get your mailing information to forward to the publisher.  I want to give a big Thank You once again to the wonderful Valerie from Hachette for allowing me to host this giveaway on my blog.  Thanks to everyone for stopping by and entering the contest!

Mailbox Monday-June 28

Thanks to Marcia of The Printed Page for hosting the Mailbox Monday Meme that has us list the books that we received last week. You can go to her blog to see what everyone else got last week or to play along.

Here is what was in my mailbox last week:

Room by Emma Donoghue

The Air Between Us by Deborah Johnson (I also received an ebook and a nice assortment of See's chocolates with this book that I won from Book Journey...yummy!)

I think it's funny how I just posted about Room on my Friday Find in the last week or so and the next thing you know it's here!  That was such a nice surprise and I was jumping for joy like you wouldn't believe!  So was there anything interesting in your mailbox?

Current Giveaways!!!

I know it's been a couple of weeks since I have posted about ANY giveaways, but life has been getting pretty busy for me this summer.  Here are few you might like! If I happened to miss posting your giveaway please feel free to leave the link in the comment section below.

Drey's Library  is giving away Into the Beautiful North by Luis Alberto Urrea--HURRY because this contest ends TODAY-6/24.

Bermudaonion is giving away autographed copies of Gods in Alabama and Backseat Saints by Joshilyn Jackson--Contest ends 6/26.

Bermudaonion  is giving away The Opposite of Me by Sarah Pekkanen--Contest ends 6/26.

Luxury Reading  is giving away The One That I Want by Allison Winn Scotch--Contest ends 6/30.

Tutu's 2 Cents is giving away The Nobodies Album by Carolyn Parkhurst--Contest ends 7/1.

Bookin' With Bingo  is giving away The Passage by Justin Cronin--Contest ends 7/3.

A Sea of Books is giving away  the audiobook of Fever Dream by Preston and Child--Contest ends 7/9.

Book Journey is giving away The Opposite of Me by Sarah Pekkanen--Contest ends 7/10.

A Sea of Books is giving away Into the Beautiful North by Luis Alberto Urrea--Contest ends 7/15.

And don't forget to check my sidebar to see what I have to offer!  Good luck everyone!

Winners of Men and Dogs audiobook!

I am happy to announce the winners of the Men and Dogs audiobook by Katie Crouch are............

nfmgirl

and

Ally

Congratulations ladies!  I will be emailing you shortly to get your mailing information to forward to the publisher. Thanks again to Anna from Hachette for offering this contest on my blog!  And thanks also to everyone that stopped by to enter the contest.  Don't forget to check my sidebar for the latest giveaways that I have to offer!

Review: Very Valentine by Adriana Trigiani

Here is a summary of Very Valentine from the Harper Collins website:

Meet the Roncalli and Angelini families, a vibrant cast of colorful characters who navigate tricky family dynamics with hilarity and brio, from magical Manhattan to the picturesque hills of bella Italia. Very Valentine is the first novel in a trilogy and is sure to be the new favorite of Trigiani's millions of fans around the world. 

In this luscious, contemporary family saga, the Angelini Shoe Company, makers of exquisite wedding shoes since 1903, is one of the last family-owned businesses in Greenwich Village. The company is on the verge of financial collapse. It falls to thirty-three-year-old Valentine Roncalli, the talented and determined apprentice to her grandmother, the master artisan Teodora Angelini, to bring the family's old-world craftsmanship into the twenty-first century and save the company from ruin. 

While juggling a budding romance with dashing chef Roman Falconi, her duty to her family, and a design challenge presented by a prestigious department store, Valentine returns to Italy with her grandmother to learn new techniques and seek one-of-a-kind materials for building a pair of glorious shoes to beat their rivals.  There, in Tuscany, Naples, and on the Isle of Capri, a family secret is revealed as Valentine discovers her artistic voice and much more, turning her life and the family business upside down in ways she never expected. Very Valentine is a sumptuous treat, a journey of dreams fulfilled, a celebration of love and loss filled with Trigiani's trademark heart and humor. 

My Review:
Trigiani brings us into the heart of an Italian family living in New York City.  Valentine lives in an apartment with her Grandmother above the family owned custom-made shoe store that they own and operate.  It is a small business as they only create wedding shoes, but it has obviously proven to be a lucrative business as it has been operating for a hundred years.

Valentine seems to come from a normal size Italian family with two sisters and one brother, but boy do they have big attitudes!  She also seems to be the one unlucky in love as all of her siblings are married except for her.  To all of her relatives she is known as the sweet girl that put her life on hold to help out her Grandmother, only to get left behind in the romance department.  But there is plenty of romance in this novel to keep Valentine busy!

I really enjoyed the family relationships within this novel.  Although Valentine has a close knit relationship with both of her sisters you can feel the tension between her and her brother Alfred.  She sees Alfred as only being around when things go wrong, so he can be the hero that picks up all of the pieces.  Valentine cannot understand why Alfred feels like he always has to fix everything.  I really got a kick out of both of her parents.  Her mother set the tone in the family that aging is unnecessary by having the plastic surgery that no-one ever talks about.  Even though her mother made a fashion statement every time she stepped out of her front door, you could feel the love that she put into that family every day of her life.

One of my favorite parts of the book is when Valentine and her Grandma take a business trip to Italy.  Valentine sees a side of her Grandma that she didn't know existed as they embrace the easy lifestyle of the Italian countryside.  Even though they are on a business trip Valentine learns more about herself, including why her relationships keep failing.  Here is an excerpt from page 306 that explains a typicaly working American:
We're typical overextended, overworked Americans with the worst kind of tunnel vision.  We waste the present for some perfect future we believe will be waiting for us when we get there.  But how will we get there if we don't build the connection now?

The elements in this book just worked so well together.  I just loved hearing about the different types of food, fashion references, romance lost and romance found, and especially the dynamics of the family relationships.  This is the first book in the trilogy and if you are a fan of Trigiani you will definitely want to pick this one up.  I can't wait to read Brava, Valentine next!

My Rating:  4/5

Disclosure:  This book was provided to me from HarperCollins through TLC Book Tours in exchange for an honest review.

You can check out more great book reviews at Cym Lowell's Book Review Party Wednesday!

Giveaway: April and Oliver by Tess Callahan

Thanks to Valerie from Hachette I am able to give away up to three copiesof this book on my blog!  This book would make a great selection for a book club and there are even some discussion questions here to get your conversation underway.

Here is a summary of April and Oliver from the Hachette website:
Best friends since childhood, the sexual tension between April and Oliver has always been palpable. Years after being completely inseparable, they become strangers, but the wildly different paths of their lives cross once again with the sudden death of April's brother. Oliver, the responsible, newly engaged law student finds himself drawn more than ever to the reckless, mystifying April - and cracks begin to appear in his carefully constructed life. Even as Oliver attempts to "save" his childhood friend from her grief, her menacing boyfriend and herself, it soon becomes apparent that Oliver has some secrets of his own--secrets he hasn't shared with anyone, even his fiancé. 

Now for the giveaway!

I will be giving away one book for every 10 entries with a maximum of three books to give away.

To enter this contest you must be at least 18 and live in the U.S. or Canada. No PO Boxes please.

For one entry leave me a comment including your email address below.

For two additional entries, blog about this contest or add the link to your sidebar.

Please include your email so I will have a way to contact you if you win.

You will have until July 9th to enter and I will draw for winners on July 10th.

Good luck everyone!

**This giveaway is closed.

About Author

A painter, teacher and mother of twins, Tess Callahan has written for Cottonwood, The Stylus Anthology: 1950-2000, The Boston College Magazine, New York Newsday and elsewhere through syndication. When not exploring the complex motivations of intriguing characters (in her personal life and in her work), she finds nourishment and sustenance in periodic travels to wild, austere landscapes around the world. Tess has an MFA in Fiction from Bennington College. April & Oliver is her first novel.

Audio and Video

Mailbox Monday-June 20

Thanks to Marcia of The Printed Page for hosting the Mailbox Monday Meme that has us list the books that we received last week. You can go to her blog to see what everyone else got last week or to play along.


It just so happened that I stayed home from work one day last week because I wasn't feeling so hot.  That UPS man put a smile on my face when he delivered all of these books to my door!

The Castaways by Elin Hilderbrand

 April and Oliver by Tess Callahan

The Violin of Auschwitz by Maria Angels Anglada

So that is what was in my mailbox...did anything interesting arrive at your home?

Java With Jo

Well summer is definitely getting underway in our household as my kids have returned from college for the summer.  It has been a very busy household with my Grandma trying to get used to all of the hustle and bustle also.  And it's only going to get busier from here! 

We spent the weekend travelling to Omaha, NebraskaToday to pick up my niece and nephew.  I haven't seen them since my sister's memorial service last spring so I am very excited about the visit that we have ahead of us.  They are going to be staying with me for the next three weeks so I am anticipating my blog activity to be very limited during this time.  My home is just going to be a whirlwind of activity!

I've had a hard time keeping up with my exercise routines lately but since we are finally seeing some sunshine here in Northern Wisconsin I'm hoping I can change that.  If I can at least even get some walking in I would feel so much more productive. 

I've only got a couple more book review obligations to get squared away and then I plan on diving into The Passage.  Since I've heard only wonderful things about this book I've had a hard time keeping away from it.  I hope you had a safe and wonderful weekend and I also want to wish a Happy Father's Day to all of you dads out there!  I am especially grateful to my wonderful husband who is giving up his Father's Day this year in order to bring my niece and nephew back....I love you!

Giveaway: The Life O'Reilly by Brian Cohen (International)

Brian Cohen is gracious enough to offer a giveaway for his book to one of my readers!  This was a touching story that I thoroughly enjoyed and you can read my review here.

This is an International contest!

Now on with the giveaway!

To enter the contest you must be able to receive mail delivery.

For one entry leave me a comment including your email address below.

For two additional entries, blog about this contest or add the link to your sidebar.

Please include your email so I will have a way to contact you if you win.

You will have until June 30th to enter and I will draw for winners on July 1st .

Good luck everyone!

Review: The Life O'Reilly by Brian Cohen

Here is a summary of The Life O'Reilly from Brian Cohen's website:

On the outside, Nick O’Reilly has it all: a high-flying legal career, as a partner of an elite Wall Street law firm, and financial security, with an apartment overlooking Central Park.  Having grown up in a working-class family, as far back as Nick can remember this was his dream.  But at the age of thirty-six, after several years of sacrificing his personal life for professional gain, Nick has started to ponder his future and consider the mark he wants to leave on society both professionally and personally—his legacy. 

After being chastised in the press for turning a cold shoulder to the community, the firm calls upon Nick to help rehabilitate its image by handling its first pro bono case.  Nick is asked to represent Dawn Nelson, a domestic violence victim who is fighting for custody of her young son, Jordan.  A far cry from Nick’s specialty of defending the misdeeds of Corporate America, it is up to Nick to set Dawn and Jordan on a path to a better life.  But Nick gets much more than he signed on for, as Dawn forces him to reassess his life choices and, ultimately, be true to himself.  Only when Nick finally realizes what is truly important in life does he face his toughest—and possibly final—challenge: a battle for his own survival.

Exploring the flaws of being human and the importance of controlling one’s own destiny, The Life O’Reilly reminds us of how precious life is and how quickly and tragically it can change.  Written with great empathy, The Life O’Reilly is an emotional and unforgettable tale that will challenge one’s expectations of the modern love story.

My Review:

When Brian Cohen contacted me asking to review his novel my first thought was that it would be interesting to read about the life of a lawyer since my son just finished his first year of law school.  Little did I know that this book would tug at my heartstrings the way that it did. 

We are introduced to Nick O'Reilly who seems to have everything going for him.  He is a successful attorney working for a high-profile law firm who basically lived and breathed for that company until he finally made partner.  They handle mostly corporate law cases but in an attempt to improve public relations they take on some pro bono cases, one of which Nick finds himself needing to handle.  

When Nick starts to work the pro bono case he realizes that there may be more to life than working almost all available hours in the day and trying to help cover up the mistakes that are made in corporate America.  As he is representing Dawn, the domestic abuse victim from the pro bono case, he finds that he enjoys spending time with her compared to sitting in his office.  Dawn returns Nick's attraction and feelings and before you know it they find themselves in a meaningful relationship.

You would think it a happy ending once these two realize what they mean to each other, but it is definitely not an easily travelled road.  They have many obstacles and frustrations along the way, but luckily Nick figures out what really is important to him and gets his priorities in order.  

Although I would consider this a love story, it was also so much more than that.  With themes of values, love, change, and survival this novel had so much to offer.  When I first started reading the story I wasn't sure if I was enjoying the writing style, but before I knew it I was wrapped up in the characters and threw all reservations out the window.  This was Cohen's first novel and I believe that he is working on his second novel now, which I will be anxiously awaiting.

My Rating: 4/5

Disclosure:  This book was provided to me by the author, Brian Cohen, in exchange for an honest review.

You can read more great book reviews over at Cym Lowell's Book Review Party Wednesday!

Wondrous Words Wednesday-June 16

Bermudaonion asks you to share new words that you have learned during your reading adventures in the last week. Feel free to join in the fun!

Here is a new word that I learned last week while I was reading The Life O'Reilly:

Recidivist: repeated or habitual relapse, as into crime.

Here is how recidivist was used on page 145:
"While moments earlier I shared your sentiments, with all due respect, I am gravely concerned about Mr. Nelson's recidivist behavior."

Please stop back tomorrow to read my review of this novel and there might even be an extra surprise!  So did you learn any new words in your reading travels last week?

Teaser Tuesday-June 15

Check out Teaser Tuesdays from Should Be Reading.  TEASER TUESDAYS asks you to:

Grab your current read.

Let the book fall open to a random page.

Share with us two “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page.

You also need to share the title of the book that you’re getting your “teaser” from … that way people can have some great book recommendations if they like the teaser you’ve given!

This week my teaser is from The Hundred-Foot Journey by Richard C. Morais:
And he sweated buckets while he ate, wet spots the size of dinner plates appearing under his arms.  When he finally lifted his face from the food, he had the glassy-eyed look of a drunk, his chin and cheeks slicked with orange grease.

pg. 10
***Please note that this is from an Advanced Reading Copy so the final printing may change.

Mailbox Monday-June 14

Thanks to Marcia of The Printed Page for hosting the Mailbox Monday Meme that has us list the books that we received last week. You can go to her blog to see what everyone else got last week or to play along.


I was starting to think that I was going to have an empty mailbox this week, but Saturday afternoon the mailman delivered!  Here is what I received:

The Girl She Used To Be by David Cristofano

This sounds like a great story to me and I can't wait to dive into it!  Since life is going to be very busy for me over the next couple of weeks I don't mind only receiving one book.  So what was in your mailbox?

Friday Finds-June 11

Should Be Reading asks you to share what books you discovered this week that interest you!

It has been awhile since I have posted a Friday Find, but I guess nothing has really caught my eye up until the last week or so.  Room is a novel that I originally spotted in a Shelf Awareness newsletter and it sounds like a pretty powerful story to me. 

Here is a summary of Room by Emma Donoghue from the Hachette website:
To five-year-old Jack, Room is the entire world. It is where he was born and grew up; it's where he lives with his Ma as they learn and read and eat and sleep and play. At night, his Ma shuts him safely in the wardrobe, where he is meant to be asleep when Old Nick visits.

Room is home to Jack, but to Ma, it is the prison where Old Nick has held her captive for seven years. Through determination, ingenuity, and fierce motherly love, Ma has created a life for Jack. But she knows it's not enough...not for her or for him. She devises a bold escape plan, one that relies on her young son's bravery and a lot of luck. What she does not realize is just how unprepared she is for the plan to actually work.

Told entirely in the language of the energetic, pragmatic five-year-old Jack, ROOM is a celebration of resilience and the limitless bond between parent and child, a brilliantly executed novel about what it means to journey from one world to another.

Not that I need to be adding any books to my Must Read pile, but this one really tempts me!  So did anything catch your eye recently?

CSN Product Review

A few weeks ago I told you about a bookcase that I was expecting to receive from CSN for me to review.  Well things have been quite hectic since it arrived a couple of weeks ago, but I am happy to finally be able to rave about the newest furniture addition to our home.  The instructions appeared to be easy to follow as I just supervised my daughter complete the assembly process.  She did a great job putting the shelf together and was so impressed with how beautiful it really was that she decided to rearrange the formal living room that we are housing it in.  I was honestly hoping to include a photo of the finished product in my living room but wasn't sure how long that would be, so this is what you get for now.  Hopefully in the near future I will be able to post the real photo.

CSN has such a huge variety of products to offer through their on-line stores including recessed lighting, cookware, rugs, office furniture, bookcases, and much, much more!  I think the next piece of furniture we will be looking to purchase will be a corner unit entertainment center.  You can bet that CSN will be one of the first places that we look.

Disclosure:  This bookcase was provided to me by CSN in exchange for an honest review.

Winner of The Last Bridge by Teri Coyne!

This was such a fun contest and I am so excited to announce that the winner is.........

nfmgirl

Congratulations!!!  Thanks to all who stopped by to enter the contest, because it really was entertaining.  If you missed out you should really go check out the comments in the giveaway post because everyone that entered was required to share a joke....what a hoot!  There really are some good ones in there that made me laugh out loud.  

Here is the knock knock joke that nfmgirl left:

-- Knock-Knock
-- Who's there?
-- Nunya
-- Nunya who?
-- Nunya business!

I want to thank Teri Coyne for inviting me to participate in her celebration of the paperback release of The Last Bridge.  It really was one of my favorite books last year and if you missed my review you can still read it here.

Thanks again to all who entered and I will be contacting the winner shortly to get her mailing information.

Review: The Age of Orphans by Laleh Khadivi

Here is a summary of The Age of Orphans from the Bloomsbury website:

Kurdistan, Persia. A village high in the Zagros mountains. A small green-eyed boy wrestles free from his mother and climbs atop a straw and mud hut to gaze at the dusty landscape; the jagged mountains and azure sky, the cattle in the distance. With his arms stretched out beside him he pretends to be a bird, to lift up and soar over this land: the land of his fathers and forefathers. Kurdish land.

Soon after the boy is ritually initiated into manhood, messengers from the hills bring whispers of war; rumours that the Shah’s army is moving from village to village, stamping out any tribal rebellion that may stand in the way of the creation of a unified ‘Iran’. Just nine years old, the boy must stand alongside his men and fight for their land.

Years later, Reza Pahlavi Khourdi can only faintly recall the brutal murder of his father and cousins. Orphaned on the bloody battlefield, conscripted into the great column of the army and given a new name, he has quickly risen up the ranks, proving both his prowess in battle and allegiance to the Shah’s troops. Now in Tehran, Reza is about to marry to a beautiful, educated, city girl, and become a Capitian.

But there are stirrings within his heart. He will soon move west to be the Shah’s servant in Kermanshah, the land of his birth, and a figurehead of modernization.

At once rich and bleak, The Age of Orphans unleashes a tapestry of untold horrors and pleasures, of blood and smoke, hopes, dreams and desires. It is a profound and darkly poetic story of a land roughly sewn together under the ambitious imagining of a nation, and of the life of a boy whose identity does not - can not - unite with this vision.

My Review:
I will start off by saying that the writing in this novel was just beautiful as it seemed to me to have almost a poetic prose to it.  We are taken through the life of a Kurd from the time he is a young boy living in his village in Courdestan with his family to the time that he is an old man that has been brought full circle through a life of disappointment and changes.

I don't recall knowing what the young boy's name was at the beginning of the novel, but he is introduced as a young boy yearning to be accepted as an adult by members of his village.  When it is finally his turn to be taken on a journey with the men of the village to become a man he is thrilled beyond words.  Although it wasn't clear to me exactly what age he was, it seemed that he was only about eight years old, but upon his return from the ceremony he would be considered a man by all.

He finds many benefits come with being a man-people look at you with respect, he gets to pick on the little boys in the village, and girls look at you with yearning eyes.  He is quite distraught when he realizes that as a man he can no longer feed from his mother's breast.  This I will admit is my main problem with the novel.  That he has such a problem as a young man and even into adulthood dealing with the fact that he will no longer taste the milk that his mother has to offer.

When he is later captured by the Shah's army he loses all sense of tradition and worth that he learned in his Kurd village.  He finds himself turning into a person that the people in his village have learned to fear and it seems to me that he was just an empty shell doing what he needed to do to survive.  Before you know it he becomes a favorite amongst the Shah's army officials and he advances quickly within the ranks.  As a young adult and a faithful servant of the Shah he is sent to restore order to a small Kurd village.  It is in this small village when he starts to reminisce about the life he has lost and question the decisions that he has made along the way.

Besides the one problem that I had with this novel I really enjoyed it otherwise.  I found the second half of the book was a much more enjoyable experience for me.  With themes of traditions and belonging this made for a very interesting story.  Even though I was not enjoying the story fully in the beginning I could not put it down because I found the writing so beautiful.  I do believe that many book clubs would also enjoy this book as there are some great discussion topics within the pages, but be aware that a more 'reserved' group may be put off by some of the content.

My Rating: 3/5

Disclosure:  This book was sent to me from Bloomsbury as part of the First Reads program through LibraryThing in exchange for an honest review.

If you are interested in reading more book reviews you should check out the Book Review Party Wednesday at Cym Lowell's Blog!

Teaser Tuesday-June 8

Check out Teaser Tuesdays from Should Be Reading.  TEASER TUESDAYS asks you to:

Grab your current read.

Let the book fall open to a random page.

Share with us two “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page.

You also need to share the title of the book that you’re getting your “teaser” from … that way people can have some great book recommendations if they like the teaser you’ve given!

This week my teaser is from The Life O'Reilly by Brian Cohen:
"Just like that, everything he had worked for was taken away-everything from his pension to his dignity to his manhood.  And believe me when I tell you, his dignity was much more important to him than money."

Pg. 80

Giveaway: The Castaways by Elin Hilderbrand

Thanks again to Valerie  from Hachette I am able to offer up to three copies of the paperback edition of The Castaways by Elin Hilderbrand!  Here is a summary of the book from the Hachette website:

Greg and Tess MacAvoy are one of four prominent Nantucket couples who count each other as best friends. As pillars of their close-knit community, the MacAvoys, Kapenashes, Drakes, and Wheelers are important to their friends and neighbors, and especially to each other. But just before the beginning of another idyllic summer, Greg and Tess are killed when their boat capsizes during an anniversary sail. As the warm weather approaches and the island mourns their loss, nothing can prepare the MacAvoy's closest friends for what will be revealed.

Once again, Hilderbrand masterfully weaves an intense tale of love and loyalty set against the backdrop of endless summer island life.

Now for the giveaway!

I will be giving away one book for every 10 entries with a maximum of three books to give away.

To enter this contest you must be at least 18 and live in the U.S. or Canada. No PO Boxes please.

For one entry leave me a comment including your email address below.

For two additional entries, blog about this contest or add the link to your sidebar.

Please include your email so I will have a way to contact you if you win.

You will have until June 23rd to enter and I will draw for winners on June 24th.

Good luck everyone!

**This giveaway is closed.

Mailbox Monday-June 7

Thanks to Marcia of The Printed Page for hosting the Mailbox Monday Meme that has us list the books that we received last week. You can go to her blog to see what everyone else got last week or to play along.

Here is what was recently in my mailbox:

The Kingmaking by Helen Hollick

Pendragon's Banner by Helen Hollick

Shadow of the King by Helen Hollick

Yes, I was one of the lucky recipients to win this whole trilogy and I can't wait to kick back and get lost in the time of King Arthur!  So what was in your mailbox?

I am soooo glad that Blogger is fixed so I could finally post this!

Winners of The Bride Collector by Ted Dekker!

I am so happy to announce the winners of The Bride Collector audiobooks by Ted Dekker! 

They are:

Bermudaonion

lag123

Rubynreba

Congratulations everyone!  I will be emailing you shortly to get your mailing information to forward to the publisher.  Thanks again to Anna from Hachette for offering these giveaways on my blog!

Winner of A Change in Altitude!

And the winner of A Change in Altitude by Anita Shreve is.......................

Sharon54220

Congratulations Sharon!  I will be emailing you shortly to get your mailing information to forward to the publisher. Thanks again to Valerie  from Hachette for offering this giveaway on my blog!

Audiobook Review: Goodnight Nobody by Jennifer Weiner

Here is a summary of Goodnight Nobody from ReadingGroupGuides.com:

Life in suburban Upchurch is anything but picturesque for Kate Klein. Along with three small children and a husband who is hardly at home, Kate has to contend with living up to the standards set by her fellow Upchurch mothers. They're designer-clad, perfectly coiffed---at the playground---and feed their kids organic food. They make motherhood look effortless while Kate, with uncombed hair and a stash of bribe lollipops, "hasn't done one single thing right" since moving from Manhattan to this small Connecticut town.

When Kate arrives for lunch at the home of Kitty Cavanaugh and finds the Upchurch mom murdered, she's jolted from her malaise and sets out to uncover the killer. As her investigation heats up, Kate finds out not only that Kitty had a few dark secrets but that they had a mutual acquaintance---a man from Kate's past who will lead her to reexamine the life she's chosen.

In Goodnight Nobody, Jennifer Weiner brings together two compelling tales---an engrossing murder mystery and a poignant story about one woman's quest to save her sanity and sense of self amidst the challenges of motherhood, marriage, and suburbia.

My Review:
I will have to admit that when I first started listening to this book I didn't think that I would enjoy it.  So I can honestly tell you that I think I enjoyed listening to this book more than I would have liked actually reading it.  I try not to read too much light fiction, but the mystery aspect of this book held my attention.

It seems that Kate lives in the perfect suburb with her husband and three children.  Kate finds herself wanting to fit in with the other mothers that she meets at the playground, but with their perfect bodies, children that could do no wrong, and spotless clean homes, she realizes that she could never be like them.  When Kitty, who is beautiful on both the outside and inside, invites Kate over to her home, she jumps at the chance of friendship with an adult.  Unfortunately, Kate arrives to find Kitty murdered in her home so the friendship was over before it began!

After the murder takes place, Kate takes it upon herself to find out why Kitty was murdered and by whom.  Kate loves her children but is just not feeling fulfilled with her daily parenting activities.  She finds that by focusing on trying to solve this murder case her life once again has more meaning and purpose.  She also learns through her investigation that residents in the Upchurch community are not quite as perfect as they appear.

Kate calls on the assitance of her best friend Janie, who is a very interesting character.  I couldn't help but laugh when Janie drops some Ecstacy into a drink at Kate's home, that happened to be consumed by Kate's mother.  She was one of a kind but you got the sense that Janie would be there and do what needed to be done for her friends.

We also get a glimpse into Kate's past when she finds herself looking for help from a man that she never imagined that she would have to see again.  When she gave him her heart years ago, only to turn his back on her, she really wasn't sure how a professional relationship would work with Evan today.  As the attraction between Evan and Kate builds throughout the novel Kate begins scrutinizing her marriage and pondering whether her decision to marry was made in haste.

This was an interesting story and although the mystery was solved in a way that seemed reasonable, Kate was still sorting through her personal life at the end of the book and trying to figure out what direction to take.  I think I would consider this book a 'cozy mystery', which I don't think I would have enjoyed actually reading, but it was a fun audiobook to listen to.

My Rating: 3/5

Disclosure:  I borrowed this book from the library and listened to it for my own entertainment.

Audiobook Giveaway: Men and Dogs by Katie Crouch

Thanks to Anna from Hachette I am able to give away up to three copies of this unabridged audiobook on Jo-Jo Loves to Read!!!

Here is a summary of Men and Dogs by Katie Crouch from the Hachette website:

In April of 1985, Buzz Legare went fishing. The next day all that was found was his boat and his waiting, faithful dog.

Twenty years later, his daughter Hannah still finds hope in believing, alone among her family, that he's still alive somewhere. She has a smart husband, a thriving business, a beautiful home in San Francisco-and a huge hole in her troubled heart. True to her trademark talent for self-sabotage, she finds herself one starry night climbing up the fire escape in a desperate (and drunken) attempt to win back her own husband--and failing disastrously.

Slightly worse for the wear, Hannah returns to Charleston to salve her wounds. There, old loves, unrepented crimes, and family legends are stirred up from the dust. Hannah's brother Palmer, the stoic with a secret of his own, cannot dissuade her from a manic search to uncover clues to the past, and they will both face shocking discoveries that lead them to reconcile their very different notions of loyalty and blind faith.

As she did so memorably in her bestselling debut, Girls in Trucks, Katie Crouch has created another great voice--spiky, tender, and hilarious--in the screwball heroine Hannah Legare. Much like Julia Roberts in My Best Friend's Wedding, Hannah follows the misguided impulses of a heart that's in the right place.

Now on with the giveaway!

I will be giving away one book for every 10 entries with a maximum of three books to give away.

To enter this contest you must be at least 18 and live in the U.S. or Canada. No PO Boxes please.

For one entry leave me a comment including your email address below.

For two additional entries, blog about this contest or add the link to your sidebar.

Please include your email so I will have a way to contact you if you win.

You will have until June 19th to enter and I will draw for winners on June 20th.

Good luck everyone!

**This giveaway is closed.

Wondrous Words Wednesday-June 2

Bermudaonion asks you to share new words that you have learned during your reading adventures in the last week. Feel free to join in the fun!

I learned a few new words last week while I was reading The Age of Orphans by Laleh Khadivi:

Triumvirate: 1. any association of three in office or authority.

2. any group or set of three.

Here is how triumvirate was used on page 11:

His baba points up to the triumvirate of human men sculpted shoulder to shoulder in the stone.

Raillery:  good-humored ridicule; banter.

Here is how raillery was used on page 60:

They set up no tents and light no fires and sing no songs and play only silent games free of raillery and maintain an invisibility so pristine the boy wonders if they exist at all. 

Lackadaisical:  1.without interest, vigor, or determination; listless; lethargic

2. lazy; indolent

Here is how lackadaisical was used on page 102:
The captain, with his long face and sunken eyes that forever peer past the boys, and the childlike colonel, who leans up against the wall in his chair, his heavy body delicately balanced in a lackadaisical pose that makes Reza nervous.

So did you learn any new words in your reading journey this last week?

Teaser Tuesday-June 1

Check out Teaser Tuesdays from Should Be Reading.  TEASER TUESDAYS asks you to:

Grab your current read.

Let the book fall open to a random page.

Share with us two “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page.

You also need to share the title of the book that you’re getting your “teaser” from … that way people can have some great book recommendations if they like the teaser you’ve given!

This week my teaser is from Ellen Foster by Kaye Gibbons:
I tried not to think and work at the same time because that made me slow.  If I did think though I wondered about Roy and Julia and how the chickenshit worked out.

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