GIVEAWAY: A Series of Lists – 3 Books!
I have two sets of A Series of Lists books to giveaway! Included in each set: The Back-Up List, The List of Possibilities, and The…
Book Review: For the Love of Cupcakes by Anita Kushwaha
I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Summary:
Priya Patel has wanted to become a baker since the first time she saw the light of her Easy Bake Oven. However, working as an assistant baker at Sugarplum Fairy Cakes isn’t the glamorous life she dreamed about. Priya tries to impress her boss, Helen Bouffant, with creative twists on traditional recipes but her culinary skills are completely ignored as she is forced to scrub toilets and clean up everyone else’s mess. After Priya is blamed for a major screw up at Sugarplum Fairy Cakes, she decides to throw in her apron. With the support of her husband, Arj, and a kick in the pants from her best friend, Mae, she decides to start her own cupcakery.
Just when Priya thinks she’s washed her hands of Helen once and for all, they both enter a charity bake off with a grand prize of $10,000. Priya will have to cook the most creative, delicious cupcakes of her life and defend herself against Helen, who will stop at nothing to see Priya and her cupcakery fail. The competition gets heated but there is one thing that will keep Priya going- the love of cupcakes. Does she have what it takes to win the bake-off? Whose talent will prevail?
For the Love of Cupcakes will leave your mouth watering for cupcakes and your cheeks sore from smiling.
Review:
What a cute read! I loved the style Kushwaha wrote in: fast, breezy, yet personal. Watching Priya come up with her cupcake recipes was fun to watch, and following her on her journey of finding her backbone and entrepreneurial spirit was fabulous. This was a spot-on chick lit book, and I hope other fans of the genre enjoy it as much as me. There were just a few issues that made me not rate it five stars. One was that I didn’t quite understand how Priya’s ex-boss could get away with stealing her recipes when they were so unique to Priya’s store and her vision, and Helen’s had never been that way. It seemed really obvious to me, yet apparently no one in the community could get it. Another is so small, but I actually have experience with this so it stuck out to me. Priya teams up with Victoria Secret to help with her marketing, and big chain stores like that would never typically do what they did. I wished she would have used a fictitious store instead, because it distracted me. Those are two smaller critiques I have, and I really did enjoy the book from beginning to end!
4 stars
Author Profile: Jessica Gordon
Connect with Jessica!
www.jessica-gordon.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/JessicaGordonBooks
Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/16077397-becoming-mrs-walsh
Twitter: https://twitter.com/jessicabgordon
Buy the Book!
Amazon:
http://www.amazon.com/Becoming-Mrs-Walsh-ebook/dp/B009O3NO9I/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1357616042&sr=8-1&keywords=becoming+mrs+walsh
Barnes & Noble:
http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/becoming-mrs-walsh-jessica-gordon/1113576054?ean=2940044984059
Apple: Available in iBookstore accessed through iPad and iPhone
Smashwords includes (Sony Reader, Kobo, and most e-reading apps including Stanza, Aldiko, Adobe Digital Editions): http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/243474
Book Review: The Runaway Actress by Victoria Connelly
I received a copy of The Runaway Actress by Victoria Connelly in exchange for an honest review.
Summary:
When the stresses of being an A-list actress get too much for her, Connie Gordon decides to escape to a tiny Scottish village. But little does she realise that whilst Lochnabrae might be quiet, it’s far from sleepy…
Connie kisses goodbye to her ex-boyfriends, stalkers and double-crossing agents, and prepares herself for complete relaxation.
But swapping the Hollywood Hills for the Highlands of Scotland doesn’t make for the easiest of transitions, and when she meets local playwright Alastair McInnes, who’s sworn he’ll never become involved with another actress again, sparks fly. The quiet little village of Lochnabrae will never be the same again…
Get your running shoes on to catch the latest hilarious, charming and utterly engaging novel from Victoria Connelly.
Review:
Sometimes British chick lit books can be hard for me to get into. They seem longer and sometimes more drawn out, so I started reading this book a bit apprehensively. I was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed this one! It was easy to slip into the charming village of Lochnabrae and enjoy the slow pace and friendly – and some eclectic – inhabitants. Connie is a fabulous MC to follow, and her life swap was interesting and intriguing to watch unfold. And we have to romance dabbled in there as well, and the cute little tale between her and Alastair was a lot of fun to read about. I love that this novel captured my attention right off the bat and left me engaged throughout. One I highly recommend!
4.5 stars
Book Review: Life in Plan B by Jennifer Vessells
I was given this book in exchange for an honest review.
This book had all my favorite things! Shoes, Clothes, secrets, hot sex, a fantastic gay couple, and did I mention shoes???
This is a great story about what one does after your dream life doesn’t happen. The first chapter drew me in perfectly with the comparison of life to shoes. I am a shoe fanatic and believe that shoes are a very important and personal part of a person.
There are so many fun parts to this book! But the relationship between Haley and Nick and how it grew and changed over the course of the story was by far one of my favorite parts of the story. I also loved the tight friendships between Haley and her friends. It was unique to see even close relationships can have their up’s and down’s-but in the end that love for a friend can beat just about anything in a person’s troubled life.
I loved the reality of that going to New York to make it big didn’t happen, but hard work and loyalty produced far better results. It is fun to see how a dynamic duo can make a boutique such a success!
This book covered so many things, from friendship, to love, to how to deal with adult family member’s in your life…and the disappoint that they can leave you with. I also think that as the book went along, Haley’s character grew and changed and truly grew up. This was fun to read and “watch”.
I believe the only thing that was a little disappointing was the very immature relationship that she developed quickly with Keegan. But I understood by the end of the book it was part of watching her grow and change. It was a relationship I would compare to a much younger person having, and for her age it seems off.
I was satisfied by the end of the book that the author covered all sides to the story. It was a very well developed story and really kept my interest throughout the book.
Book Review: Frisky Business by Clodagh Murphy
I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Summary:
In the past year, Romy Fitzgerald learned three valuable lessons.
One: Never have sex at a party with a stranger dressed as Darth Vader.
Two: Don’t tell him things you’ve never told anyone else.
Three: Find out the stranger’s name because you never know when you might need it …
Like nine months later when the baby arrives.
While Romy is happy to raise Luke on her own, one day he’ll need to know the truth about his father, and Darth deserves to know that he has a son.
Will Romy find her dark knight or will she be left to raise Luke (Han) solo?
Review:
I’ll be honest – when I first started reading this book, I wasn’t quite sure why it was written. There didn’t seem to be any intrigue, any mystery, and I was really actually disappointed. While I don’t like giving much away in my reviews, I will say that I was pleasantly surprised to find that maybe the plot wasn’t as straight-forward as I thought in the beginning. As I kept reading, I kept getting more and more excited and intrigued by the characters. There are some hilarious moments, especially in regards to Romy’s elderly neighbor and all the miscommunication the characters keep seeming to find themselves in. Once I was just a few chapters in I was really hooked and I highly recommend this book!
4.5 stars
Book Review: What Would Kate Do? by Fiona O’Malley
I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Summary:
What Would Kate Do? follows Cathy Dover who idolizes The Duchess of Cambridge and tries to follow her footsteps in life but fails miserably. Instead of ‘What Would Jesus Do?’ her motto in life is ‘What Would Kate Do?’ It’s a romantic comedy with an emphasis on comedy. If you enjoyed Bridget Jones and The Devil Wears Prada you will love this!
Review:
As a big (huge, giant, monstrous, etc) fan of the Royal Family and especially Kate Middleton, I couldn’t turn down this book! I won’t lie – I’ve been in situation myself and have thought “What would Kate do?” I’ve been staring into my closet and thought “What would Kate wear?” I was excited to see how this book played out, and I’m quite happy to report that I really enjoyed it. It moved along quickly, had plenty of laugh out loud moments, and had a depth that can sometimes be missed or lacking in cute chick lit books. One I recommend!
4 stars
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