My server went kablooie last November (sigh), so I didn’t get a chance to finish NaBloPoMo.  Imagine my joy when it went monthly!

I’ve requested that my blog be added to the March NaBloPoMo blogroll.  Anyone want to join me?  Just one little post a day…  My book reviews might end up accounting for a fair number of the posts, but I promise it won’t be just book reviews and whining.  Perhaps I’ll talk about food, too. 

Apropos of nothing, I got a book from a publisher in ARC format (advance reader copy) that won’t come out until August.  The mind boggles – publishers are thinking WAY farther ahead than my poor little brain.  When that book comes out, all of my kids will have had their birthdays.

Which reminds me – in March I will turn 37.  Yikes.  How the heck did that happen? Am I too old to dye my hair funky colors now?

Before most long weekends, I have created a list of To Dos that make the long weekend more about work than about relaxation. After dealing with a bout of sickness and a backlog of work, I decided to keep this weekend free of to do lists, and low key. The girls went to my mother’s house, I tried to sleep in and recharge my batteries.

Part of my decision to stay low-key is that the weather has been cold and/or wet. If you have arthritis, you know that cold and/or wet can make arthritis worse. Well, the same is true for me with my fibromyalgia-type chronic Lyme disease. I have limited energy and limited tolerance for sitting in one position, and it is worse during bad weather. I’m infinitely better than I was a year or two years ago, but I’m not back to where I was before this started.

So, my goals for today:

• Get used to MG’s new haircut
• Make lunch and dinner
• Read. Perhaps read some more.
• Work on two book reviews for Did I Expect Angels? and Demon Envy (these are not two books you would ever see in the same sentence, but they are both great reads)
• Post my week’s menu
• Work on creating a creamy spinach and artichoke dip that is gluten-free and dairy-free
• Post interview with author Melanie Wells. (She was so nice, I want to sit down and have coffee queso and chips with her!)
• Catch up on dishes the children have ignored when filling the dishwasher.
• Have a family game evening
• Maybe a little more reading

Aaaah. That’s better. Perhaps less productive, but more relaxing!

There’s a new Mommy in town. I managed to catch a quick glimpse and capture this rare photograph.

She has been spotted in several different long coats, and has the dark hair and eyes of the Original Mommy of this house.

Unlike the Original Mommy, the Mommy-Bot is rumored to say “yes” to any request, even if it is for chocolate at 7am. The Mommy-Bot is also fond of finding treats on top of the fridge, or in other high places, and giving them to the children rather than saving them for herself.

The Mommy-Bot appears to have a limited time available for each visit, but she always brings good humor. After her appearances, I frequently find giggling children, occasionally with bumped heads.

I am torn between being overjoyed that the Mommy-Bot leaves the girls giggling, and being annoyed that I need to find a new snack hiding place… Whatever should I do?

The Duck Who Played the Kazoo is the newest children’s picture book by Amy E. Sklansky, illustrated by Tiphanie Beeke. Amy’s catchy poetry combined with the beautiful watercolors by Tiphanie make a book that is appealing to children and also fun for the designated reader. It isn’t always easy to find picture books that enchant children which adults will enjoy as well, but Amy and Tiphanie have created such a book in The Duck Who Played the Kazoo.
Read the rest of the review

The wonderful novel Happy Hour at Casa Dracula has been re-released as a mass market paperback after its original release in trade paperback. I mentioned this book in a previous post about great vampire romances, and relished the idea of the story being available to a larger audience. Of course, I also relished the idea of re-reading Marta Acosta’s bon mots within Happy Hour at Casa Dracula! If you know how Happy Hour ends, you will spot Marta’s clues throughout the book – it qualifies as a top re-read – definitely a novel to be read more than once.

Happy Hour at Casa Dracula could be put into many categories – Latina literature, vampire novel, vampire romance, paranormal mystery, and so many others. Marta Acosta does a wonderful job of introducing her audience to a new type of vampire and a new heroine – one with natural curves and a cooking style that includes “putting things in tortillas”. the vampire fantasy genre tends to be overrun with very Caucasian individuals, with very few “people of hue”. It’s wonderful to see Happy Hour at Casa Dracula and the rest of the series bucking that trend.

Read the rest of the review…

It’s Mine, all Mine!

The lovely author Jane Porter sent me her 9/07 release – "Odd Mom Out" as background for an upcoming review of her May, 08. She sent me a pretty red pen, too. Authors are lovely people!

It’s mine. All Mine! Mwah hah hah!

Photo for the CHBM Photo Friday Valentine.

The Final Warning: A Maximum Ride Novel is the much-anticipated fourth book in James Patterson’s young adult/tween Maximum Ride series. The series has attracted a large following as it puts the reader into the lives of a flock of six children who have been genetically designed to be 2% bird – they have wings and can fly! Before I launch into a review, NO – this is not going to be the final book. (That was my daughters’ concern when they heard the title.) I reviewed the first three books, and have been excited about this book for the past year. It’s hard for a book to live up to readers’ expectations, but James Patterson has written a fourth book that has no problems living up to the reader’s excitement and enthusiasm; I literally could not put it down, and finished it in one sitting! Keep reading for a sneak preview of Maximum Ride 4 – The Final Warning, without spoilers… Read the rest of the review..

The week started with my never-ending migraine, a fever, and a sore throat. It’s improved since then! (Ok, other than the server madness…)

I won a gift certificate to The Container Store from Crazy Hip Blog Mamas, and now have plans to go to the store in Boston, plus plans for sushi…

I was contacted by a reporter to discuss the Maximum Ride series, and then received an advance copy of The Final Warning: A Maximum Ride Novel, which I LOVED, and will have a review posted soon.

I’ve had one of my book reviews (the “My Soul to Keep” review) published in Boston Now on 2/15, page 15. I love it when my work appears in print!

I was approached for a new advertising program, which is very exciting.

And then with my cool new interviews on my book reviews site have significantly increased the traffic on the site. As in more than quadrupled the traffic! Woot!

My darling husband brought home yummy treats for Valentine’s day, and then my mother and step-father are taking the kids for the weekend, so the adults can have dinner ah-lone! We’re contemplating spending our gift certificate at Outback, which has a great gluten-free menu…

So, what’s looking up for you?

I’ve changed servers, and in the process some entries got mislaid. So then they found the entries, and mislaid the ones that were written in-between. Lovely! I really enjoy redoing a day’s work. Twice. Anyway, I wanted to make sure all my wonderful readers didn’t miss out on these 3 great books, so I’m reposting their blurbs – go check out the new reviews!

Beet is the newest novel by bestselling author Roger Rosenblatt. Beet is a (fictional) small, elite liberal arts college located about 40 minutes north of Boston. It and the small town with whom it shares a name were founded by a pig farmer, so the theme and mascot for both is a pig. Of course, the school mascot is named Latin the pig… The college’s endowment has gone missing, and the faculty is going back and forth between attacking each other and trying to find a set of courses that will save the college. Read the rest of the review

I was very impressed with the first two books in the Jaz Parks series by Jennifer Rardin, which I reviewed here. Jennifer has created a fascinating world in which others (such as weres and vampires) are known to exist, and in fact, some of them work for the government. Vayl is a 250 year old vampire working as an assassin for the CIA, and Jaz Parks is his Sensitive human partner. In Once Bitten, Twice Shy and Another One Bites the Dust, Jennifer set up the world and the characters, leaving us with an elite team of three assassins plus an accomplished seer and a incredibly talented inventor. In her third book, Biting the Bullet, she takes us several leaps forward with a book that has a dual focus on Jaz’s relationships and continuing their fight against paranormal terrorists. Read the rest of the review

My Soul to Keep (Dylan Foster Series #3) is the newest mystery and psychological thriller by Melanie Wells. Wells has previously written When the Day of Evil Comes and The Soul Hunter, both novels starring psychology professor Dylan Foster, who finds herself with appalling luck following her around. There are characters who are carried from one novel to the next, but no prior knowledge of the series is required for My Soul to Keep to quickly pull you into its thrall.

Melanie Wells and her protagonist Dylan foster share a background in both theology and psychology, and both live in the Dallas, TX area and have ties to Southern Methodist University. While there are similarities, there are also differences. Superficially, Wells has a dog, and Dylan has rabbits. But mostly, one hopes that Wells has never been involved in a real situation as haunting as the storyline in My Soul to Keep. Read the rest of the review

Three very different but fabulous books – go check them out!

Happy Love Thursday and Happy Valentine’s Day!

Love and sisterly fun from the Gaggle of Girls