Step by Step - A Review

Published - February 2016, Tyndale House
Series - Crisis Team Book 2
Author - Candace Calvert
Title - Step by Step
Format - ebook, paper
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Widowed ER nurse, Taylor Cabot is determined to move on after three years. She is slowing checking things off of her survival list. She moved to San Diego in the hopes of starting back over without the painful memories that still haunt her. She's even considering the possibility of dating again, and is in a relationship, of a sort, with a plastic surgeon. When crisis chaplain, Seth Donovan, steps back into her life, Taylor is forced to confront the unanswered questions surrounding her husband's death. Seth's in San Diego to train the crisis volunteers. He wants to get to the truth behind the surface reasons Taylor has given for taking herself off of the crisis team. When a crisis hits the community and several lives are at stake, both Taylor and Seth must work together for the sake of the community. But is is possible that hope can be added to the survival list and have a chance at blossoming in the midst of adversity?

First of all, I just have to say that I love this cover. Of all of the books I've read by Candace Calvert, this cover is my favorite.

For some reason, most of Candace Calvert's books are hard for me to get into. I'm not sure why. I'm happy to say that this one wasn't hard to get into at all. I had met both Taylor and Seth in the first book, and so getting to know them better in this book was a plus.

Taylor made me laugh at the way that she's just crossing off items on her list. But as I got to know her, I realized that she was hurting, and only really going through the motions. I loved Seth from the moment that he set foot on the page. I also loved how he was with Taylor. He didn't let her get away with easy answers.

I received the Kindle copy of this book from Tyndale via NetGalley for the purpose of reviewing. My thoughts and opinions are my own.

Recommended to fans of women's fiction, medical romance, Candace Calvert, Denise Hunter, Colleen Coble

Rating - 4 stars

Bedtime Snuggles - A Review

Published - March 2016, Worthy Publishers
Author - Patricia Reeder Eubank
Title - Bedtime Snuggles
Format - board book
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Told in rhyme, baby animals get tucked in for bed at night.

My Thoughts:
This was super cute. The way that it was illustrated, it seems that you can almost feel the fur of the animals.

I read this one aloud to my best friend's daughters. All three of them loved it (ages almost 2, 3.5, and 5). Each child had a different favorite page.

The illustrations are bright and beautiful. They really engage the kids. Also the text was very simple and made the kids smile.

I received this book for free from Worthy's First Look Blog Tour for the purpose of reviewing. My thoughts and opinions are my own.

Recommended to parents of young children, toddlers

Rating - 5 stars

Top Ten Tuesday - Top Ten Characters Everyone Loves but I just don't get

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly feature hosted by The Broke & The Bookish

Today's top ten is about characters. The official topic is the top ten characters everyone else loves that I don't get OR the top ten characters I love that no one else seems to get

I have a feeling that I'm in the minority in several of these, but oh well.

1. Mr. Darcy from Jane Austen's Pride & Prejudice - Yeah I don't see what the fuss is about him. I really don't.

2. Peeta Melark from Suzanne Collins' Hunger Games - For some reason, I didn't really like him when he walked onto the page. I get him, but I don't really like him.

3. Edward Cullen from Stephanie Meyer's Twilight books - I think that this sparkly vampire is very immature and not well written.

4. Princess Winter from Marissa Meyer's Lunar Chronicles - Don't get me wrong, I've loved each of the books in the Lunar Chronicles, but Princess Winter was probably my least favorite character.

5. Tyrion Lannister from George R R Martin's Song of Ice and Fire Series - Sure he's rather entertaining to read about, but I just don't really care for him.

6. The Baxter Family from the Baxter Series by Karen Kingsbury - I've read all of the Baxter books. While I enjoyed the first five the best (Redemption, Remember, Return, Rejoice, Reunion), the characters in the others were not nearly as developed as the ones from the Redemption series. I can't pinpoint a specific character that I didn't like that everyone else has loved, so I went with the entire series.

7. Tris and Four from the Divergent Series - I stopped reading after book 1. I wasn't too interested in it, so I don't understand the hype around these two. Maybe if I read the others I'll understand.

8. Nancy Drew from the Nancy Drew Series by Carolyn Keene - Yes I read Nancy Drew when I was growing up. But I don't really get her. I mean she's the only child of a rich father who evidently is pretty busy with his life, and it's like she gets into all sorts of trouble. I don't get it.

9. Perrin from Robert Jordan's Wheel of Time books - Yes, I know he's very pivotal to the story. But he became a whole lot less interesting to read about after he married Faile.

10. Scout from To Kill a Mockingbird - I didn't understand her when I read the book in school. As an adult, I still don't understand her.

Berenstain Bears Easter Blessings - A Review

Published - January 2016, Worthy Publishers
Author - Mike Berenstain
Title - The Berenstain Bears Easter Blessings
Format -  board book
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In this addition to the popular series, Brother and Sister Bear learn what they are blessed with.

My thoughts:
I grew up reading the Berenstain Bears books. I think I had a collection of almost all of them. They are still some of my favorites.

Mike Berenstain has continued his parents' series. This particular book is delightful and engaging. My best friend's almost two year old loved it.

What I really loved about this book, as opposed to the ones that I grew up with, is that there is a much more Christian feel to the book. I love the fact that the cubs learn that the biggest blessing of all for Easter is the resurrection of Jesus.

This is a wonderful addition to the Berenstain Bears collection.

I received this book for free from Worthy Books for the purpose of reviewing. My thoughts and opinions are my own.

Recommended to fans of the Berenstain Bears, parents of young children, teachers, librarians

Rating - 4 stars

Saturday Scribbles Vol 2.8

Happy Saturday my friends. Today is a beautiful day. Spring has unofficially arrived in Houston. The temperatures have been in the 70's most of the week. And the pollen counts have been crazy high. Which all adds up to spring arriving.

Spring is my favorite season, I think. Yes I know, I can't breathe for half of it (hello allergies!), but there's something about spring in general that makes me smile. Maybe it's the fact that wildflowers bloom like crazy. Or that farms have an abundance of baby animals. Or the fact that there's Easter.

Spring in Texas means that the hill country hillsides become covered in bluebonnets. Where I'm at in Houston is just a short drive to Brenham and other popular locations for photo shoots of the abundance of bluebonnets growing along the sides of the road. My cousin has a field in her backyard and every year, she has a beautiful bluebonnet crop.

These pictures were taken about 6 years ago in my cousin's backyard. And if you notice, you'll see that they were also used in my blog's title picture.

What are some of your favorite spring flowers?

Kissed by A Cowboy - A Review

Published - February 2016, Thomas Nelson Publishers
Series - Four of Hearts Ranch Romance Book 3
Author - Debra Clopton
Title - Kissed By a Cowboy
Format - ebook, paper
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Cassidy Starr has returned to Wishing Spring after hard divorce. She wants to put her aunt's farm back in operation and raise organic strawberries as well as open a bed and breakfast. She's done with love. Jarrod Monahan's got his own troubles. He's running the family cattle ranch and trying to track down some rustlers. He's never forgotten the girl next door though. When he learns that the one woman who stole his heart years ago has moved in next door, he can't help but see this as a second chance. Despite the fact that she wants nothing to do with him or love. But as their lives collide, will Cassidy recognize the fact that not all men are like her ex-husband, and will she give the cowboy she still loves a second chance?

Whenever I read one of Debra Clopton's books, I know a couple of things. First, there will be cowboys. Second, it's usually hilarious. This book is true on both accounts. It's the third in the series, but does stand alone.

I loved Jarrod's pursuit of Cassidy. I loved that he realized when he was rushing her and took a step back. But I also loved how he was the wonderful good neighbor and was there to help her out when she needed it. I thought that Cassidy was a little too determined to hang onto her plans.

The secondary characters, as usual, are delightful. I love the town of Wishing Springs and the people who live there. In this one, I really liked Doc's pig Clover.

It's a quick read. I also found it to be very light-hearted.

I received the Kindle copy for free from Booklook Bloggers for the purpose of reviewing. My thoughts and opinions are my own.

Recommended to fans of Debra Clopton, Love Inspired, cowboys, Mary Connealy, Janice Thompson, Lacy Williams

Rating - 4 stars

Top Ten Tuesday - Top Ten Books to read if in the mood for WWII fiction

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly feature hosted by The Broke & the Bookish. 

Today's topic is the top ten books to read if in the mood for _____. So I decided to do WWII fiction.

1. The Wings of the Nightingale Series by Sarah Sundin - This trilogy is my first experience with Sarah's books. I loved them. In fact, all of her books are wonderful. For fans of WWII, I highly recommend them.

2. The Zion Covenant Series by Brock & Bodie Thoene - I remember reading this AGES ago, and my mom loved them. They're really good.

3. The Upstairs Room by Johanna Reiss - I read this one in junior high. It's a fictionalized account of the author's own experiences as a Jewish girl in WWII.

4. Saving Amelie by Cathy Gohlke - I adored this book in 2014. It was one of my favorites for the year. This one is about an American woman who travels to Germany and saves the daughter of a friend.

5. Secrets She Kept by Cathy Gohlke - Another one that looks at the war in a different way. But just as moving as some of the others I've read.

6. The Butterfly and the Violin by Kristy Cambron - Seriously, this was probably my favorite book last year. I love how it's both modern and historical. The sequel to it, Sparrow in Terezin is good too.

7. For Such a Time by Kate Breslin - I read this book before all of the fuss was being made about it. It's a retelling of the story of Esther set in Nazi occupied Czechoslovakia. I thought it was beautifully done and well written. It has since taken a lot of heat because of the fact that it is controversial. Still as much as we like to say it didn't happen, the Holocaust did in fact happen.

 8. Number the Stars by Lois Lowry - I read this one in school. Probably in junior high. It's told through the eyes of a ten year old as she and her family hide a young Jewish girl as part of their family. It also tells of how the Danish Resistance managed to smuggle almost all of Denmark's Jewish population out of the country to Sweden.

9. The Wings of Glory series by Sarah Sundin - Have I mentioned that I love her WWII books? This one is her first series, and it took me several years to read it. But it's very good.

10. Dangerous Allies by Renee Ryan - In this one, Jack's a British agent who must work with Katarina Kerensky, an actress. She's desperate to save her mother from the Gestapo, and will work with Jack. But their lives are in danger. Yes, it's shorter than most. It is supposed to be. But it's still one of my favorite WWII books.