Wordless Wednesday - Snow Squirrel

Wordless Wednesday

Tuesday - Tune In & Teaser

This song is on constant loop on my itunes. It is really sad and I can understand the love and loss she feels in this song, even with the amazing relationship I am in. It is just such a hauntingly beautiful song.

Adele - Someone Like You






"The boy kneeledlike he was going to start exercising right there in the dust. The place where he had spilled his cup was completely dry; I couldn't even tell it had been wet. I could see the elastic bad of his underwear and the smooth skin where his back was exposed. NO marks, scratches or scabs of any kind. My own hands looked like some kind of treasure map, except the lines didn't lead to riches."

The Water Wars
Cameron Stracher

Author Signing - Kathleen Flinn

I was lucky enough to be able to meet, shake hands with and talk with author Kathleen Flinn. She was signing books at a local indie store. She got there from a flight from Colorado and was wearing clothes for colder weather. Right from the get-go she was cracking jokes. I loved that she is from a small town and asked if anyone else was from there - there was one woman and Kathleen says, "Oh then I can't tell that joke!" She is the most fabulous woman!! It felt like Kathleen and I had been friends forever - YOU know those people. I loved listening to her speak. I was just mesmerized. She is funny - she actually worked at a comedy club while in college - and she is charismatic. She immediately pulled me with her kindness and warmth.

Literally - when you see the picture she took with me and my SIGNED copy of her book! She just grabbed me and hugged me! Completely fearless of people. LOVE it!

She wrote, "Be fearless in the kitchen!" And look how cute her stamp is!!


I read her first Cooking Writing book called The Sharper Your Knife, The Less You Cry which I LOVED!! She is a writer. When she comes home from a vacation she finds out her job is no longer. She calls her boyfriend and says, "Hey I'll move in with you," but he says, "No you should go to cooking school like you've always wanted." So she ends up in Paris at Le Cordon Bleu and from there her stories are just riveting. I laughed, I cried and my mouth watered the entire time. My mom even made a recipe out of the book. That is one thing I love, all of Kathleen's books come with recipes.

Her new book, The Kitchen Counter Cooking School is about a group of complete misfits in the kitchen - KIDDING. She talks to people, goes in their kitchens and teaches them not only how to cook, but what to look for and why to buy certain things. She doesn't just teach people how to cook, but WHY to cook.

Here's one of her stories from the book . . .



I cannot wait to sit down, read and then cook from her new book! So excited and really blessed that I got to meet her.

BUY NOW!
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ADD TO WISHLIST!
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She talked about two other books she is in the process of writing and I AM SO EXCITED! She is just such a talented writer.

JOIN!
Kathleen's Blog

IMM - In My Mailbox

The House of Thunder by Dean Koontz
Deadly Cool by Gemma Halliday
The Water Wars by Cameron Stracher
Sanctus by Simon Toyne

**Bookin' with Bingo**

What's in your mailbox??

Review & Giveaway - Shatter Me by Tahereh Mafi

Title: Shatter Me
Author: Tahereh Mafi
Publisher: Harper Collins
Publish Date: November 15, 2011
Paperback, 342 pages

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This book is written with very little conversation. Much of the first half of the book is Juliette's inner dialog. As she hasn't seen or touched anyone in nearly 300 days, she is becoming very used to her own company. Juliette cannot touch anyone for fear of hurting them, as she has been put her for that reason alone. She recounts that day over and over again where her parents turned their back on her and society forgot about her. Then a man is thrown in to her cell to save space. He wants to know her, she wants to be left alone. Yet, living together in a small cell, neither one can ignore the other. He cannot understand why she won't talk or touch, yet he is fascinated by her. He reminds her of someone she once knew in school, but it must be a coincidence . . . or is it?

An incredible romance book that is linked with chaos, destruction and the struggle for power. This book will enchant anyone and thrill the reader into wanting more. I know I do. I cannot wait to see what turns up in the next book.

Juliette is so fragile, I want to protect her, but sadly she is so powerful she doesn't need protecting. She needs love and hungers for human connections. She is so sure of her worthlessness that she cannot stand even herself.

Adam is a strong man who is in this same hell as Juliette. He wants her. He knows her in ways she will never understand. Maybe just their situations are what makes him know her. Either way, he cannot keep is hands off her. But can he really touch her without dying?

Juliette falls in love with Adam, but how can this be if she cannot stand human contact?

GIVEAWAY
For one advanced readers copy of
Shatter Me by Tahereh Mafi
Paperback copy

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and
then I will choose another winner.

Summary -
Juliette hasn't touched anyone in exactly 264 days.

The last time she did, it was an accident, but The Reestablishment locked her up for murder. No one knows why Juliette's touch is fatal. As long as she doesn't hurt anyone else, no one really cares. The world is too busy crumbling to pieces to pay attention to a 17-year-old girl. Diseases are destroying the population, food is hard to find, birds don't fly anymore, and the clouds are the wrong color.

The Reestablishment said their way was the only way to fix things, so they threw Juliette in a cell. Now so many people are dead that the survivors are whispering war-- and The Reestablishment has changed its mind. Maybe Juliette is more than a tortured soul stuffed into a poisonous body. Maybe she's exactly what they need right now.

Juliette has to make a choice: Be a weapon. Or be a warrior.

In this electrifying debut, Tahereh Mafi presents a world as riveting as The Hunger Games and a superhero story as thrilling as The X-Men. Full of pulse-pounding romance, intoxicating villainy, and high-stakes choices, Shatter Me is a fresh and original dystopian novel—with a paranormal twist—that will leave readers anxiously awaiting its sequel.

Review - Matched by Ally Condie

Title: Matched
matched #1
Author: Ally Condie
Publisher: Dutton Juvenile
Publish Date: November 30, 2010
Hardcover, 366 pages

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Cassia is what every girl wants to be by society - good. She follows the rules, she is excited for her future, she is good at what she does. She is in love with life. She has dreams. She just wants to live a good, happy life. So when her Matching Banquet comes around, she cannot wait. It is the moment all teenagers wait for. To see who she will spend the rest of her life with. She is lucky to be matched to Xander, he friend since she was younger. Most matches do not know their people. Cassia finds Xander handsome and good as well. She feels so lucky. Until fate steps in and shows her another face on her screen. One she doesn't know. It confuses her and makes her start to question everything. Especially when she meets this mysterious man. He is kind too. But he has knowledge. And knowledge is power. Ky and Cassia are paired together in an outdoor retreat class and soon become fast, secret friends. But the more Cassia gets to know Ky and waht he knows, the more she wonders if being good means following society or her own heart.

I loved this book because it talks about following your inner feelings rather than doing what everyone else is doing. Listening to our own inner dialog can be extremely difficult. Cassia is a strong and bright character, which I like too. When she really starts paying attention, she sees things that are supposed to be not seen and instead of forgetting them, she starts to wonder. Without making rash judgments, she learns what she feels and how she views the world. Even, at times, against the own advice of her close friends. In a society, that on the outside seems to want the best for each person, turns out that the best for each person also benefits the society - and maybe more for the Society than the person. To follow society or follow your heart . . .

I am really excited to read the next installment. What Cassia does and who she ends up with, will be interesting.

Check out the next in the series - Crossed!
The hotly awaited second book in the dystopian Matched trilogy

In search of a future that may not exist and faced with the decision of who to share it with, Cassia journeys to the Outer Provinces in pursuit of Ky - taken by the Society to his certain death - only to find that he has escaped, leaving a series of clues in his wake.

Cassia's quest leads her to question much of what she holds dear, even as she finds glimmers of a different life across the border. But as Cassia nears resolve and certainty about her future with Ky, an invitation for rebellion, an unexpected betrayal, and a surprise visit from Xander - who may hold the key to the uprising and, still, to Cassia's heart - change the game once again. Nothing is as expected on the edge of Society, where crosses and double crosses make the path more twisted than ever.

Wordless Wednesday - Cat Shawl

As a kitten, Izabel loved to curl up in my neck. Apparently, she never grew out of that phase. She lays with her feet on my left shoulder, and her body over my chest and her tail curled around my head. Usually. There are a very varied versions of this position. Sometimes I wonder if Izabel is really that cuddly or just trying to smother me. You cannot tell, but I am actually reading a book off to the side too! Talk about multitasking.

Wordless Wednesday