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Sad Desk Salad by Jessica Grose

I received a copy of Sad Desk Salad in exchange for an honest review. I thought I was going to love this novel from the description and the beyond-hilarious cover. I knew I was going to love this novel from the first page. But seriously – how was I not going to fall in love with a main character who blogs at a women’s lifestyle website called Chick Habit? I was immediately transplanted into the story and stayed in Alex’s world until the last page. Alex is starting to lose focus with herself as she continues blogging at Chick Habit, being encouraged to write more vindictive and scandalous articles to raise her traffic and avoid getting the sack. But when a salacious story gets put in Alex’s lap via an anonymous tipster, she struggles with morals versus traffic views and saving her job.
As someone who lives a lot of her time in the web world, I had no trouble connecting right off the bat with Alex. I loved the story Jessica Grose built and found her to be fresh, funny, and a modern new voice to fiction. Even though the book is light-hearted, there are a lot of deep issues to think about throughout. Who is granted privacy online? Why are we so obsessed with not only celebrities, but hearing about other people’s misfortunes and pitfalls? And of course, a big reason why I love this book so much is because it’s an enjoyable chick lit read that comes with a message. This is a definite favorite of mine, and one I recommend you to check out ASAP!
[Rating: 5]

You Don’t Know Jack by Adrianne Lee

I received a copy of You Don’t Know Jack by Adrianne Lee in exchange for an honest review.

You Don’t Know Jack by Adrianne Lee follows off Jacqueline Bouvier Smart, who has completely sworn off men … and murder. But, when she finds herself in quite a predicament when she stumbles over a dead body and into the arms of a a sexy former lover, she has no choice but to dive in head first. When her best friend in the entire world gets accused of murder, she goes all out in an attempt to find out who the true killer is. Along the way, she gets help from a few unexpected sources and together, they find clues and attempt to solve the mystery. But will it be too late?

I had so much fun diving into this book. Adrianne has crafted a clever, sexy and hilarious heroine in Jacqueline and she was an absolute delight to read. This book was quick paced, fun and quite a riot. The supporting characters were so much fun too, and boy oh boy, I sure flipped through the pages quickly to find out what would happen next. I read quite a few reviews online before starting and numerous reviewers suggested that they would love to see a series written about Jack and the slew of characters from this book, and I would definitely have to agree- I for one would definitely enjoy that. Overall, a very enjoyable and easy read. Quirky and witty and fun. I highly recommend this book.

[Rating: 4.5/5]

Book Review: Sarah’s Key by Tatiana de Rosnay

I received a copy of Sarah’s Key in exchange for an honest review. Summary: Paris, July 1942: Sarah, a ten year-old girl, is brutally arrested…

Book Review: 77 Ways to Find New Readers for Your Self-Published …

Laura Pepper Wu is someone I feel lucky to have made an acquaintance with. She runs a great service for writers, Ladies Who Critique, and also 30 Day Books – both I highly recommend checking out! When she came to me with her book 77 Ways to Find New Readers for Your Self-Published Book! I jumped at the chance. An indie author and publisher myself, how could I say no to that title? And I thought this book was fab! Filled with tips and tricks for writers looking to gain more exposure and new readers, I found this to be a very handy tool. I recommend having some paper handy while reading, as I was jotting down notes to myself while going through it, and I’m happy to say I’ve already implemented three ideas from the book, and I just finished it a day ago! I’m very happy I got the book, and for self-published authors, I would give this a read!

Another quick tip– if you are looking for professional looking and easy to use author website, check out the Authorlicious WordPress theme that is now available through 30 Day Books!
[Rating: 5]

The Girl, the Gold Tooth and Everything by Francine LaSala

I received a copy of The Girl, the Gold Tooth and Everything by Francine LaSala in exchange for an honest review.

The Girl, the Gold Tooth and Everything begins with Mina Clark, who is losing her mind … or maybe, she has already lost it. Mina realizes that she is dealing with a slight case of amnesia brought on from a traumatic event in her past that she can’t remember. Along with a husband who is never around and her 3 year old daughter, she attempts to tackle the world that she once knew. Oddly enough though, no one seems to want to help her remember the moment that she has seemed to permanently forget. But, one trip to the dentist changes everything and leaves Mina on the brink of a startling realization. Will she able to uncover what is really going on? Or will it all be lost before it is too late?

I found this book to be completely unexpected. At first, I was kind of lost. I wanted to know what happened to Mina and where the story was headed but then I realized that her story was an intriguing mystery and I really enjoyed it. I feel like most of the story was a tug-of-war between the reader and the author, meaning that Francine would only give the reader a short glimpse of what was really going on. It was just enough to keep me going and towards the end, I was quickly working through the pages to find out the whole truth. Overall, an enjoyable read with lots of twists and turns and a lot of mystery and intrigue. I really enjoyed the characters and thought they were cleverly developed. I think this book shows the true range that Francine brings to the table as an author, seeing as how completely different it is from Rita Hayworth. Kudos to Fracine for having such great talent – you have another winner with this one.

[Rating: 4/5]

Dogs Have Angels Too by Sarah Cavallaro

I received a copy of Dogs Have Angels Too in exchange for an honest review.
Summary:
A heart-warming comedy of errors for dog lovers of the twenty-first century. . . .

In the dog-eat-dog world of recessionary New York City, the irrepressible Miss Pink leads a pack of down-on-their-luck women, who ultimately find hope in the most unlikely of places: an over-crowded animal shelter, where unwanted pets are routinely abandoned to their grim fates. Miss Pink, a former marketing executive and divorcée who’s intermittently homeless herself, makes it her mission to find homes for a growing bevy of cuddly canines. Her “adoption walks” bring her to meet a series of fellow New Yorkers, all of whom are struggling with their own personal and financial crises. In other words, they are all uniquely right for recruitment in Miss Pink’s master plan-which she’s devising on-the-fly, by the seat of her favorite pink pants!
My Review:
I enjoyed this book because I think a lot of people can relate to it – hurt by the economy, feeling down on yourself, and trying to find a way to still be inspired and upbeat. Miss Pink was a nice character that manages to still have drive after all she goes through, and that was nice to read about. I am a dog lover, so that aspect always made me smile. With all that said, something just seemed lacking in the book to me. Sometimes I couldn’t connect with the writing, and I found myself drifting away at a few different points while reading. Still an enjoyable read though, and one I especially think animal lovers would enjoy.
[Rating: 3]

The Bracelet by Roberta Gately

I received a copy of The Bracelet in exchange for an honest review.

The Bracelet by Roberta Gately tells the tale of Abby Monroe, a newly heartbroken UN worker searching for her purpose in life. After witnessing a brutal murder in her new home in Pakistan, she is haunted by the terrible crime and the image of the victim’s bracelet has made its permanent mark on her memory. She attempts to move past it but struggles. Turns out, this crime was her first introduction into the world of human trafficking. Once she realizes that, she begins working at a local women’s shelter and hopes to help change lives. There, she meets some amazing women with some atrocious stories about their experiences in human trafficking. As she gains their trust, she dives deeper into their stories and then joins forces with a NYT reporter. Together, they attempt to track down the leader of the ring. Will they be able to find out who is responsible for these terrible crimes? And will Abby be able to make her impact on the world?

The Bracelet is not typically the type of book that I would normally read but I am so glad I did. This book will reel you and keep you enthralled for the entire ride. I loved every second and could literally picture each page being turned into a movie on the big screen. Gripping doesn’t even begin to describe it. I am very unfamiliar with the world of human trafficking but this book has made me research a few things already, and I just finished it. Overall, a gripping novel about a sad world that exists … but that many ignore because it doesn’t touch them directly. I would highly recommend this book. A must read.

[Rating: 5/5]

The Bloody Mary Club by Debbie Dyke

Debbie Dyke is on tour now with CLP Blog Tours and her financial thriller The Bloody Mary Club.

The Bloody Mary Club by Debbie Dyke takes place during the stock market meltdown and our main character, Gina Van Story is caught right in the middle of it all in her role as a savvy investment adviser. Over the years, she has been rather successful in tracking the market and taking advantage of incoming trends … and she is eager for one last hoorah. Gina and her three best friends form the Bloody Mary Investment Club and run into corruption and a suspenseful mystery while they try to up their stock portfolios. Will it be worth it? Or will things get more dangerous then they already are?

I had a lot of fun reading this book. I thought all of the characters were very believable and I absolutely adored Gina. She and I are so very different but I was definitely able to put myself in her shoes throughout the book. I loved the stock market aspect and actually found it to be quite exciting (which is one thing I never thought I would say). Overall, this book was not at all what I expected but that is a good thing. This book is suspenseful and I had such a fun time as I flipped through the pages to see what would happen next. I loved the mystery and intrigue and would definitely recommend this book to anyone looking for a fun time with a little twist added in there. This book is definitely a fun ride.

[Rating: 4/5]

Review & Guest Post : From Notting Hill with Love…Actually by …

I received a copy of From Knotting Hill with Love…Actually in exchange for an honest review.
This was the first I have read from Ali McNamara, and I was really excited for it. Everything about it just screamed classic chick lit, and it left me with a smile at the end. Main character and movie fanatic Scarlett O’Brien has an obsession with movies. She loves dreaming about the glamorous and romantic lives some of her favorite leading ladies have had. There is a tiny problem though – her life is quite unexciting and unglamorous. When Scarlett gets the opportunity to house-sit in none other than Knotting Hill, she jumps at the chance. Finally, a way to show her father and boring fiancé that life really can imitate art. But her romantic comedy plans turn out decidedly more complicated than Scarlett ever expected. Will she get her happy ending?
This is a really fun chick lit book, and I immensely enjoyed it. Scarlett is such a fab heroine, a bit mixed-up and clueless but such an optimist you have no choice but to love her. I enjoyed her quite complicated love life, and was really on the end of chair when I was reading the last few chapters. The supporting cast mixed in seamlessly and the minor plot points were interesting and kept the story moving along. One for chick lit lovers to check out!
[Rating: 4]

Big thanks to Ali McNamara for sharing this guest post!

I think one of the most commonly asked questions of novelists is “Where do you get your ideas from?’
And it’s one of the hardest to answer, because usually they spring out of nowhere. What sometimes seems like a great idea when you first think of it, might never actually lead anywhere. Sometimes you don’t even know you’ve had an idea until it keeps banging away in your mind trying to tell you it needs to escape and become something else. And sometimes an idea hits you so hard in the face you feel like you’ve been hit by a clown throwing ‘idea’ shaped custard pies.

‘From Notting Hill with Love…Actually’ was the second of those three. It came to me when I was watching one of those countdowns on one of the music channels on TV – ‘50 greatest movie theme tunes.’
As each of the songs came on to the screen I realised the movies were so well known I knew exactly what was going on in each plot even without dialogue, and I thought wouldn’t it be wonderful if I could get all those great movies into one story, and that’s how the idea began to slowly take shape.
‘Breakfast at Darcy’s’ my second novel was the latter of three. One year I was on holiday with my husband. In a momentary fit of insanity I’d agreed it would be a good idea to take a touring holiday around Ireland in a motorhome, I have no idea why now to this day, I’m much more your luxury hotel sort of holiday-maker. The ‘luxury’ motorhome we hired was not quite the home-from-home we were promised over the Internet, I actually christened it the ‘dustbin on wheels’ it was so bad. But however as we trundled about Ireland, one night when we parked up amongst spectacular scenery in County Kerry, directly opposite the island of Great Blasket, a casual chat about the beauty and remoteness of the island led to one of those random conversations about how you might go about trying to live on an island as isolated as that, and the seed of an idea was immediately planted in my brain for a new novel based around such an island.
So you could say the idea for ‘Breakfast at Darcy’s’ pretty much came from the trashcan!
My third novel is a sequel to my first; it just felt like I had more to tell about the characters and their lives. And my fourth, which I’m writing now, is a story I’ve wanted to write for sometime. It has a music theme this time – with a twist!

Ali McNamara
www.alimcnamara.co.uk
Twitter @AliMcNamara