BOOK REVIEW: An Eclair to Remember by Rich Amooi

Sydney St. James has decided to settle. She says yes to Mr. Not Quite Right and sets sail on a cruise to Alaska for her bachelorette party. But when Sydney meets Silicon Valley’s most eligible bachelor aboard the ship, her world turns upside down. Oscar Martin is handsome, charming, and to make matters worse...he gets her completely.

Oscar has his own problems—and his own fiancee. He'd planned the cruise as a last ditch attempt to save their relationship, but she decided to skip it. The tide turns when he meets Sydney as they both reach for the last eclair at the dessert station. Now he can’t get the beautiful, feisty woman off his mind.

Oscar is certain serendipity brought them together. Sydney is not so sure. But the cruise will be a trip of self-discovery for both of them, and fate will have the final word.

If you are looking for some great literary work of romantic fiction you have definitely picked up the wrong book.  If you are looking for a quirky, easy romantic comedy then keep on reading!   Sydney is on a cruise to Alaska with her bestie before her wedding.  Knowing her fiance would have no interest in traveling there, he hates the cold, it's her last chance to visit.  Oscar is supposed to be on the same cruise with his fiancee in order to rekindle their flame.  However, she refuses to go, not understanding why it's so important for her to go.  And on the first night of the cruise, Sydney and Oscar meet over the last eclair.  And have a silly spat over the last eclair.  Which all sets the scene for a cute, slightly over the top, romantic comedy.  Obviously, they end up falling in love but not without a few bumps and bruises along the way.

I liked this book for a couple of different reasons.  First, I appreciate that Amooi was able to create an entertaining romantic comedy without having people fall into bed on the first date.  To be fair there really wasn't any specific first date.  And to be fair they never fell into bed either.  That alone gains stars in my opinion!  Secondly, I liked the whimsy that it was written with.  It wasn't over the top, though it wasn't real life either.  It was innocent and loving and silly.  It was the perfect weekend read of friendship, and love, and challenges and happily ever after.  It's not a literary work of art.  It's not over the top lust without romance.  It's just a pretty decent 'beach read'.

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About Rich Amooi

Rich Amooi is a former Silicon Valley radio personality and wedding DJ who now writes romantic comedies full-time. He is happily married to a kiss monster imported from Spain. Rich believes in public displays of affection, silliness, infinite possibilities, donuts, gratitude, laughter, and happily ever after.

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BOOK REVIEW: Light of My Heart by Ginny Aiken

Dr. Letitia Morgan comes to Hartville, Colorado, in the late 1800s to follow her God-given calling to heal. Soon she becomes Hartville's ministering angel, reaching out to the children of the town drunk, and skillfully touching all who need her.
But not everyone warms to the lovely new physician and Letty ruffles plenty of feathers when she takes on Hartville's thriving brothels. As she rescues first one then another young girl forced into the sordid trade, Letty becomes the target of some of the town's most powerful people.
Eric Wagner, Hartville's newspaper editor, finds he got much more than he bargained for when he brought this female doctor to town. As Letty stirs more controversy with each passing day, he wonders if he can save the noble-minded doctor from herself.
This is heart-warming and engaging fiction at its best, straight from the pen of a skilled storyteller.

Raised by a 'proper' mother and a doctor father Letty chooses to follow in her father's footsteps and go to medical school.  Unheard of for a female.  Unnatural according to her mother.  Unable to find acceptance, as a doctor or as a woman, Letty struggles to stay ahead in Philadelphia and during a visit to her old medical school discovers a letter that leads to a new path and a new future for Doctor Morgan.  Moving halfway across the country to Hartville Colorado at the request of the town for a woman doctor.  Of course girl meets boy and is smitten.  Boy meets girl and is smitten.  However, boy is still drowning in his own grief and self pity that despite all the feelings will not accept his, or her, feelings and attempts to stifle them.  And attempts to thwart them.  And attempts to push her away.  Mired in her own self pity girl can't decide whether to pursue or leave town.  After she tries to save the world.  And he tries to stop that at every step as well.  Oh the tangled webs we weave when we attempt to deceive ourselves.  That's ultimately what it all boils down too.

Eric Wagner has his own demons, his own battles and his own self deceptions.  Having lost his wife and child tragically he writes to find a female doctor for their booming town.  What he expected is no where near what he received.  He also never expected to develop feelings for the new doctor.  Letty Morgan expected to meet the newspaper man who wrote and his wife.  She had long before given up the idea that she could be a doctor and have a family.  That didn't stop her from developing feelings for Eric. However, please do not be drawn to the idea that this book is only about feelings and falling for each other.  There's oh so much more to talk about.

Letty's life focus on her calling to minister to the sick.  Not just through medicine but also through her faith in God.  When confronted with the fact that there are young women, read teenagers, working in the brothels she is focused on rescuing them for a better life.  Many in town are not OK with Letty putting herself into the position to spend them with these girls.  Eric included.  He is convinced that if he can find another way to close the brothels, and jail the women, then he can save her from herself.  Save her practice and her reputation.  Through all the ups and downs of their battle of wills the friendship grows stronger.  But Eric can't just let the past be the past.  So many times in this story I wanted to yell at both of them.  What is it with the books I choose here lately and the inability of the characters to communicate with each other.  And my need, desire, want, to yell at them. The urge to fix it for them.  When they both stopped being so hard-headed and self-absorbed they were able to communicate.  When they both stopped lying to themselves they were able to communicate.  And when they started communicated...life was grand.  Parts of the story dragged for me.  Parts of the story felt rushed.  All in all though the author did an amazing job of creating two strong characters that I became invested in and want to read more about in the next installment of this series.

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About Ginny Aiken

Ginny Aiken, a former newspaper reporter, lives in Pennsylvania with her husband and their three younger sons--the oldest is married, has flown the coop, and made her a doting grandmother. Born in Havana, Cuba, and raised in Valencia and Caracas Venezuela, Ginny discovered books at an early age. She wrote her first novel at age fifteen while she trained with the Ballets de Caracas, later to be known as the Venezuelan National Ballet. She burned that tome when she turned a "mature" sixteen. An eclectic list of jobs--including stints as reporter, paralegal, choreographer, language teacher, retail salesperson, wife, mother of four boys, and herder of their numerous and assorted friends, including the 135 members of first the Crossmen and then the Bluecoats Drum & Bugle Corps--brought her back to books in search of her sanity. She is now the author of twenty-seven published works, but she hasn't caught up with that elusive sanity yet.

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RECIPE: Cashew Chicken (Springfield MO recipe)

If you have never lived in, visited, or traveled through Southwest Missouri then you have no idea what you are missing. If you have never been to a Southwest Missouri oriental restaurant and ordered cashew chicken then you have missed one of the best things on this dear beloved planet. If you go to an oriental restaurant, even in Southwest Missouri, and they have something called Springfield Style Cashew Chicken save yourself...don't order it! Yes, Cashew Chicken is the stuff of legend, the occasional taste bud craving, and seriously it's own food group. Unfortunately, up here in BoMo, since China Pearl closed the availability of 'good' cashew chicken is gone. I've been kinda jones-ing for some here lately but never in Springfield to get the hookup and too lazy to make it. It's super easy to make. Ma and I went out a few weeks ago to a restaurant she thought she'd been to with a friend that had good cashew chicken. We ended up at the wrong restaurant. And their 'Springfield Style Cashew Chicken' wasn't worth the effort or the drive. Everything else was good but oh lort, not the sauce! So, back to her house with our leftover rice and chicken and I whipped up a pot of sauce. Everyone happy! Any time I've been out for oriental, if it says it's Springfield Style I need to learn to walk away. In my experience, if it's advertised that way on the menu - it's not. And so far, it's not been worth eating. So today, today we make the real deal, the good stuff. Cashew Chicken. Prepare your taste buds!

If they have to tell you it's Springfield Style, then it's not. Trust me!  This isn't Springfield Style this is Springfield Cashew Chicken.  Accept no substitutes.

Before we talk chicken or even sauce we need to talk rice.  If you prefer fried rice, and if you don't I'm not sure I can accept your sanity at face value, you need to know that to get it to turn out right you have to start with cold rice.  Again, accept no substitutes.  Either make the rice the day before and pop in the refrigerator or cook it and then spread it thin and pop it in the freeze for same day prep. 

The Rice
I sorta messed up here.  I thought I had taken a picture of the rice but apparently it was just a thought and not an actual happening.  The rice is easy though. Cook according to package directions and chill.  Then scrambled an egg, maybe two or three.  That depends on how much rice you are making and how much egg to rice ratio you prefer.  To the scrambled egg add the cold (yes still cold) rice.  Mix it together well, pat into the skillet and let it sit.  Yes, let it sit.  Don't stir it or scramble it just let it cook.  Give it 5 or 10 minutes and flip it.  You can mix it up a little at this point but the key is to try and fry it on all sides.  You got this!

The Chicken
Ingredients:
boneless chicken cut to bite size pieces
egg
milk
flour
cornstarch

Directions:

Mix the eggs and milk together.  Mix 2 parts flour with 1 part cornstarch.  Trust me!  Use enough to of each to be able to coat all the chicken you are cooking.  Let's talk cornstarch.  Adding it to the flour helps to create a crispier flakier coating (think tempura like without being tempura) and that just tastes better.   Meanwhile heat some oil for frying.  I am using a sauce pan but you can also use a deep fryer, just don't try to skillet fry - it doesn't work so great.  Dip the chicken in the milk/egg mixture and then coat with the flour/cornstarch mixture.  From there to the oil and fry!

The Sauce
Ingredients:
Chicken broth (or water with soup base)
Cornstarch
Water
Soy Sauce

Directions:

This part is also easy.  Bring chicken broth to a boil.  Again measurements are going to be based more on how many you are feeding.  I am starting with 2 cups just for myself.  But then again I love this sauce!  Once at a boil slightly lower temperature and in a cup or bowl or any other vessel mix about half a cup of water with cornstarch.  Again measurements will depend on how many you are feeding and how thick you like your sauce.  I'm using two heaping tablespoons.  Slowly mix the cornstarch into the broth and stir constantly unless you like lumpy sauce.  Bring to a near boil and then add soy sauce until the flavor and color are right.  You want the look of brewed tea.  The key is taste.  For the love of gravy taste your food people!  You'll know when it's right.

Enjoy!
I prefer to eat from a bowl with rice under chicken and sauce over it all.  The kids like to dip their chicken in the sauce.  Restaurants will top with cashews and green onion.  Me, I'm allergic to nuts and not a fan of onion so there ya have it.  You enjoy how you prefer.

BOOK REVIEW: Courage in Patience by Beth Fehlbaum

Courage in Patience

Courage to endure.

Courage to survive.

Courage to overcome.

Tenacious 14-year-old Ashley Asher claws her way back to normalcy after enduring six years of an unimaginable Hell. Uprooted from her negligent and selfish mother, Ashley finds solace in the safety of her father's home. Building a relationship with her stepmother, she's finally able to open up and confront the past that haunts her.

With the help of her stepmom, therapist, and a group of troubled adolescents, Ashley battles her demons, struggling to find the normal teenage life she's always wanted. Can Ashley find the strength and courage to overcome the horrors of her past while fighting for the future she so deserves?

Talk about a hard book to review.  As I sit at the keyboard I'm still trying to gather my facts.  So let's start with the facts.  This book was so well written.  The characters, for the most part, were well developed.  Even the ones that pulled from established stereotypes (Step-Dad comes to mind, and to some degree Mom as well) were pretty well developed as individuals.  Ashley was so multi-layered and believable.  So many times it's hard to find a character with her story that is written so believably.  The P.T.S.D, the disassociation, the reactions are so in line with reality.  Some additional backstory on Dad and Step-Mom would have been helpful and added to their dimension.  However, without that it still works.  And works well.  The hard part, of the facts, for me was how many different issues arose in one short summer.  I'm not saying it's not possible or even within the realm of reality in today's world.  It was just hard to feel like each idea was able to be fully developed and handled with proper resolution.  

The facts out of the way, it all worked.  The characters worked, the diverging story-lines worked, even the slightly unbelievable parts just worked.  There are so many trigger warnings in this book that I feel like that should be covered in the synopsis or back cover.  Abuse (mental, sexual, and physical), racism, and violence.  Outside of triggers there's also the idea of censorship and faith gone sideways.  There's a LOT to wrap your head around.  But even with all that it works, and flows, and grips you, and keeps you engaged and and and.  So many more ands.  Seriously, I read this book in less than 24 hours.  I started it one evening and stayed up entirely too late reading it (thank goodness for weekends!) and jumped right back in the next morning.  This story unfolds in so many different facets of life but mingles them together perfectly.  Creating a space where unbelievable becomes believable.  Outside maybe how quickly the F.B.I. was involved (bureaucracy and all).  I have to address one thing that bothered me though.  The churches mentioned in the book, the church leaders mentioned.  There are two, not really developed but they set the idea that church and thereby faith are less than helpful and more likely hurtful.  As a woman of faith I can understand how that sentiment can take hold but I also know that it's not always like that.  The church were Mom and Step-Dad are supposedly involved in now feels like what I refer to as a Candyland church.  More about the feels and the environment and the social than about the faith.  The second church there in Patience feels more like a cult than a church.  Neither truly represent my personal experiences with faith.  Candyland churches are all the thing these days with their power points and coffee bars and themed teachings.  Sorry, I need to get off this tangent.  I see these churches, I see the hold and the belief set that are drawn to them and it hurts that in society (not necessarily this story) all churches are seen in this light.  Soap box gone.  

One more thing to nitpick.  I promise I truly did love this book.  This is listed as a young adult or teen book.  It's so hard to weigh young adult literature on such a heavy subject.  How do you reach all the audiences that could benefit from this book without also putting things before them that they aren't ready to deal with if they haven't encountered it in life already.  Part of me feels like this book should be available in some way for all ages.  Part of me feels like a younger teen, never having been exposed to these issues, would not benefit from this story.  I'd like to say that parent's should be part of that decision but as we all know the kids that would most benefit from this book don't have exactly involved parents making appropriate decisions for their children lives.  Based on the themes I wouldn't necessarily suggest this book as appropriate for under say 16 or 17.  But then again there's a child out there that needs to know that they are enough and that there is hope and help who may not even been a technical teen yet. 

I was provided the opportunity to read this book through NetGalley for review.  I am not required to write a positive review and all thoughts and opinions expressed are my own.

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About Beth Fehlbaum

In addition to writing Young Adult Contemporary Fiction, Beth Fehlbaum is an experienced English teacher who frequently draws on her experience as an educator to write her books. She has a B.A. in English, Minor in Secondary Education, and an M.Ed. in Reading.

Beth is the author of the forthcoming Big Fat Disaster (Merit Press/F+W Media, March 2014); Courage in Patience (Kunati Books, 2008); and Hope in Patience (WestSide Books, 2010). Hope in Patience was named a 2011 YALSA Quick Pick for Reluctant Readers. Truth in Patience, which rounds out The Patience Trilogy, is as yet unpublished.

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BOOK REVIEW: Road Food by Jane and Michael Stern

First published in 1977, the original Roadfood became an instant classic. James Beard said, "This is a book that you should carry with you, no matter where you are going in these United States. It's a treasure house of information."
The 40th anniversary edition of Roadfood includes 1,000 of America's best local eateries along highways and back roads, with nearly 200 new listings, as well as a brand new design.
Filled with enticing alternatives for chain-weary-travelers, Roadfood provides descriptions of and directions to (complete with regional maps) the best lobster shacks on the East Coast; the ultimate barbecue joints down South; the most indulgent steak houses in the Midwest; and dozens of top-notch diners, hotdog stands, ice-cream parlors, and uniquely regional finds in between. Each entry delves into the folkways of a restaurant's locale as well as the dining experience itself, and each is written in the Sterns' entertaining and colorful style. A cornucopia for road warriors and armchair epicures alike, Roadfood is a road map to some of the tastiest treasures in the United States.

I was so excited to be getting this book.  Living in Southwest Missouri and so close to Branson (a major tourist destination) I figured I might have the chance to discover or even rediscover a local-ish place (Think Leong's Asian Diner - Goggle it). On this front I was disappointed.  Upon opening the book for the first time, it was of course to scour the Missouri listings.  All St. Louis and Kansas City area, with a side step to Columbia.  So much of the state, with it's own amazing history and hidden gems of dining are forgotten, or worse ignored.  I'm going with forgotten for my own piece of mind.  Kansas City or St. Louis are not particularly areas I am going to foray to just for foodie road-trip.  They are more a drive around than drive into, unless I'm there for legitimate reasons.  Crestfallen, but not broken, I checked the states near me for other local ideas.  The only other close location was Chicken Mary's in Pittsburg, Kansas.  Been to both Mary's and Annie's and they are both pretty spectacular.  In the book they mention Annie's with their description of Mary's and I can attest that both serve amazing fried chicken along with typical southern style comfort sides.  Wasn't quite enough to cure my heartbreak but must push through.

Let's start with what I didn't like about the layout of this book.  There's only one thing so it's easy.  Within each region, it's broken down by state.  (Like this, more later.) However the restaurants are then listed alphabetically within the state.  Which means, Illinois for example, you have to go through all the listings to find the restaurant choices for you if you happen in be in Springfield (see what I did there?).  I feel like it would be easier to utilize the listings if they were grouped georaphically instead of alphabetically within each state section.  Perhaps alphabetically by city or something?  Ok, that's really it.  Negative is out of the way.

What I liked.  While some of the regional breakdowns I slightly disagree with I liked that each region had a map of each state with locations marked, usually with major roadways marked as well for ease of locating the restaurant.  I liked that each state, within the region, was dedicated it's own section in order to help narrow down your searches.  But then places like Chicken Mary's in Kansas, which is right on the Missouri/Kansas border was separated from someone who could just make a quick hop across the state line.  This is not a dislike however as when you are dealing with state-lines there's really no way to prevent this.   The descriptions of each location and the menu offerings were amazing.  I don't even eat hamburgers but some of the descriptions made me think I wanted one.  Each location also included contact information which is super helpful for someone who may be planning a foodie road trip to these areas.  A quick perusal of the website, a phone call if in doubt about anything and oh wait they are closed on Tuesday? let's wait and go this time frame instead.  I would highly recommend this book for anyone who tends to drive on their vacations, likes to road trip or is just a general foodie who likes to explore new locations as well. 

I was lucky to be able to receive this book from Blogging for Books for review.  I was not required to post a positive review and all thoughts regarding this book are my own. 
  
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About Jane and Michael Stern

For any food lover who’s ever heard the call of the open road, Jane and Michael Stern have been trusted, trailblazing guides for over 40 years. After meeting at Yale, where they came to study art, they began a collaboration that has yielded over forty books, including the good-eats guide Roadfood, The Lexicon of Real American Food, cookbooks Square Meals and American Gourmet, and pop-culture best-sellers Elvis World, The Encyclopedia of Bad Taste, and Way Out West.

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RECIPE: Chocolate Chip Cookie

So,  I went browsing Pinterest looking for a chocolate chip cookie recipe that turned out soft cookies, not crisp cookies.  I have used lots of recipes but they always have a crisp cookie.  So, I found this one. I almost went by it just due to the ingredient list.  But then I found some work arounds that did not require a run to the store and decided to give it a whirl.  The original recipe can be found here --> Chocolate Chip Cookies.

So let's get started with this massive ingredient list.

Ingredients: 
 2 cups minus 2 tablespoons (8 1/2 ounces) cake flour *
1 2/3 cups (8 1/2 ounces) bread flour *
1 1/4 teaspoons baking soda 
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder 
2 1/2 sticks (1 1/4 cups) unsalted butter 
1 1/2 teaspoons coarse salt 
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons (8 ounces) granulated sugar 
1 1/4 cups (10 ounces) light brown sugar 
2 large eggs, room temperature 
2 teaspoons vanilla extract 
1 1/4 pounds chocolate chips (original recipe calls for chopped dark chocolate)

OK, seriously don't freak out, let's talk about flour.  I started with Google to find out decent ways to substitute bread flour.  I found a website called The Balance and found a quick easy substitute, and a little education about, for bread flour.   That same website had a quick and easy substitute for cake flour as well. So, now that we have a better grasp on our ingredients let's get cooking!

Directions:
Step 1: 

 Sift flours, baking soda, baking powder and salt into a bowl and set aside.  I don't have a sifter so it was just a mix really well and set aside.

Step 2:

 Using a mixer with a paddle attachment, cream butter and sugars until light and fluffy – about 5 minutes.  Reduce speed and add eggs and vanilla.  Again, I don't have a good mixer with a paddle attachment so I just did what I do best, go with what I got and make it work.  With me so far?

Step 3:

 

Slowly add dry ingredients, mixing until just combined. Fold in chocolate chips. Refrigerate dough for 24-36 hours.  DO NOT SKIP THIS REFRIGERATION.  OK, so as I was adding the dry ingredients back in I noticed that it was very crumbly.  Almost as though there was too much dry to the wet.  I wonder, in hindsight, if this was due to my doing measurements instead of weights.  Or the use of an incorrect mixer.  And then of course part way through the mixing my mixer decided to become antisocial and didn't want to blend it anymore.  Mixing by hand was not exactly how I wanted to spend my evening.  And to top it off I couldn't even have fresh warm cookies to ease my sore muscles!

The Next Day:

 When ready to bake, preheat oven to 350.  Drop spoonfuls of dough onto baking sheet. Bake for 10-12 minutes. Cool on wire rack.  OK, again I digress here.  First as you can tell I prefer to bake on parchment, makes clean up SO much easier.  But also, I'm not a fan of hte spoon method.  My cookies are never even and well yeah.  I actually am a little bit crazier and use a melon baller to scoop my cookies.  I prefer the smaller, bite size cookies as opposed to the larger cookies from a spoon drop or even a cookie dipper.  I baked at just 10 minutes and the cookies were perfectly done and lo and behold, the ultimate goal...the were still soft after they cooled.

You can bake them all at once and enjoy cookies for days.  Or do what I did and enjoy cookies, and cookie dough, for days.  I made a couple of sheet pans and put the rest of the dough back into the refrigerator.  I don't recommend doing this forever but over about 3 days I used up all the dough and it was still amazingly delicious.

BOOK REVIEW: UnHappenings by Edward Aubry

When Nigel Walden is fourteen, the UNHAPPENINGS begin. His first girlfriend disappears the day after their first kiss with no indication she ever existed. This retroactive change is the first of many only he seems to notice.

Several years later, when Nigel is visited by two people from his future, he hopes they can explain why the past keeps rewriting itself around him. But the enigmatic young guide shares very little, and the haggard, incoherent, elderly version of himself is even less reliable. His search for answers takes him fifty-two years forward in time, where he finds himself stranded and alone.

And then he meets Helen.

Brilliant, hilarious and beautiful, she captivates him. But Nigel’s relationships always unhappen, and if they get close it could be fatal for her. Worse, according to the young guide, just by entering Helen’s life, Nigel has already set into motion events that will have catastrophic consequences. In his efforts to reverse this, and to find a way to remain with Helen, he discovers the disturbing truth about the unhappenings, and the role he and his future self have played all along.

Equal parts time-travel adventure and tragic love story, Unhappenings is a tale of gravely bad choices, and Nigel’s struggle not to become what he sees in the preview of his worst self.
  
Oh Nigel, your life was nothing but unique.   Each day was a complete mystery while the Unhappenings were happening.  Wait my red bike is now green, where did this cat come from, you mean I work here now?  Yesterday you were my girlfriend, today you are dating my bestie?  Wait, where did my house go?  Who's that weird old guy who looks like me wanting me to head off to the future to work for him?  Say What?!?  That's such a simplified scenario of events. It was so much more than that.  It was taking a past and a future and a present and merging them together to attempt to tweak the desired outcomes.  Both in the past and in the future (which became the present).  Confused yet?  I promise as you read the book it all makes sense, sorta.

The book is written in small chapter references, all related to unhappenings that were trying to be tweaked.  All were short which caused the sheer volume of chapters to become overwhelmed. The other overwhelming issue, for me, was the constant jumps in time and the attempts to explain the paradoxes of time travel.  I think it may be just me that didn't quite wrap my head around the way they really work.  But forget about time travel and the secondary set of issues it involves and delve into human nature for a moment.  Ultimately this book is about the story of one man, at different stages in his life, attempting to be controlled by this man at a different age in a different time, in order to get what he wants.  When he was too late to get it himself.  He's selfish.  And in his selfishness he has the means to attempt to tweak history in order to get what he wants.  But guess what?  Because of his selfishness and attempts to change his history (with versions of himself of course) he changes things that creates the selfishness of other people to appear.  Other people that also have the means to attempt to regain what they want...and lost because of the other man's selfishness.  See what I mean about confusion!

All that said I did like this book.  It took something futuristic (time travel) and applied it to human nature (selfishness and the want what I want when I want it like right now mindset).  However I think to truly appreciate this book and overcome the confusion that I experienced it would recommend a second read.  Seriously.  Think of it this way.  There are things in chapter X that completely explain something that happened many chapters earlier.  With a full scope of reading the little nuances that were probably missed and tracking on the confusion list would be better understood.  It's worth the pick up to read and it's best when you read it again.  Just my two pennies.

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About Edward Aubry

Edward Aubry is a graduate of Wesleyan University, with a degree in music composition. Improbably, this preceded a career as a teacher of high school mathematics and creative writing. He now lives in rural Pennsylvania with his wife and three spectacular daughters, where he fills his non-teaching hours spinning tales of time-travel, wise-cracking pixies, and an assortment of other impossible things.

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PRODUCT REVIEW: Dove DermaCare Scalp Pure Daily Care 2n1

So, I have the opportunity to try this new shampoo from Dove (whom I already use and LOVE) as part of a campaign with BzzAgent, which means I totally got it free.  (I'm not required to write a review but well, it's a thing I like to do.)  While I love Dove and have never really had a bad product experience with them I was a little leary of this particular product.  Don't worry, I'll explain it all.  Though there are really only two reasons.

Reason One.  I don't have dandruff per-say, which is what this particular shampoo/conditioner combo is geared toward.  I do however, have excezma on my scalp which, when it's flaring, can seem like it's dandruff.  I also have an aversion to the scent of these types of shampoos.  This shampoo though, the scent is muted.  It's still there but it's not overpowering or obnoxious like others.  The other great thing?  With other shampoos you can still smell it on your hair the next day and with this one you can't.

Reason Two.  My hair is legendary for it's NEED for conditioner.  With dry hair, lots of hair, and a texture that rivals any toddler's hair it's hard to keep it manageable.  Ninety percent of the time my hair is in some sort of up do.  If I don't I'll never get a brush/comb/pick/fingers/you name it through it.  There's enough for about 10 people and it's oh so baby fine.  And dry.  Conditioner is my hair's best friend.  I've never been able to use a 2 in 1 standalone.  I've always had to supplement with added conditioner.  With this particular shampoo I've been able to only have to supplement about every 3rd washing.  That's a minor miracle!

All in all I consider the Dove DermaCare Scalp Pure Daily Care 2n1 a success.  It's not a shampoo I'd probably use all the time as I really only have issues when my excezma is being problematic.  And while the scent is well muted it's not a scent I want to smell every single time I shampoo my hair.  Will I buy it again?  Yes.

Why yes, that is an extremely rare photo of me!

RECIPE: Biscuits and Gravy

Nothing screams comfort food more to a southern gal than biscuits and gravy.  Well, OK there's a few other things but I digress.  Gravy is such a part of my world view that it's even an exclamation.  If you know me then Oh Gravy, Good Gravy or even Good Gravy Mavis have been part of my speech for years.  Not long ago I was talking to my other southern friend over at A Simply Enchanted Life and I could only repeat gravy, gravy, gravy.  Her retort?  When life gives you gravy... to which the only response was make biscuits.  Hence a new life mantra was born.  I grew up on biscuits and gravy.  In college we moniker them Bs & Gs.  The cafeteria had some amazing Bs & Gs and it was on the menu every Wednesday morning.  The only morning we made it to breakfast.  Today, it's chilly (read freezing) and chance of snow.  I feel like comfort food.

The Biscuits
I feel the need to share with you the biscuit recipe that I grew up on.  Grandma Atkins was an amazing cook, even better baker and I'm choosing to share her recipe.

Ingredients:
2 cups flour

1 tbsp baking powder

1 tsp salt

1/4 cup shortening

3/4 cup milk

Directions:

Combine flour, baking powder, salt; cut in shortening until mixture looks like meal. Stir in milk. Round up dough on lightly floured board; knead lightly. Roll 1/2-inch thick. Cut with floured biscuit cutter; place on ungreased baking sheet. Bake at 450* for 10 to 12 minutes. Makes 12.

Seriously, these are pretty amazing fluffy biscuits.  The biscuits that breakfast dreams are made of.  But I'm not making them.  Several years ago I discovered frozen biscuits.  They aren't quite the same but they come pretty close.  An untested palette will never know the difference.  And by untested I also mean someone who hasn't eaten amazing homemade biscuits in quite a while.







The Gravy
Ingredients:
Breakfast Sausage (I'm using homegrown locally processed pork sausage, use any sausage you prefer)
Flour
Butter (if you sausage doesn't have quite enough fat - see sausage above)
Milk
Salt
Some people like pepper - not I

Directions:
Cook the sausage thoroughly.  Seriously, no pink left.  I average 2 ounces of sausage (pre-cooking) per serving of sausage give or take your preference.  And cook it completely!

See No Pink!

 Today I'm cooking a full pound but I don't need near that much today so I'm saving the rest for another recipe later.  (Cooked sausage can be frozen!) 

Add Flour

See how little fat there is there.  I added about a tablespoon of the butter and it was about the perfect amount of fat.  Add flour to just cover the sausage lightly and absorb most of the fat.  Too much flour and your gravy will be too thick and a gallon of milk later before it's right.  I used about a tablespoon and a half for this sausage.  Let that cook in a little before adding the milk. 

Add Milk

If you know me at all you know that as a rule I don't measure.  It's more by flavor, sight and guesswork.  It's a fine ratio of meat, fat and flour that determines liquid.  I like to start with just enough to float the sausage and then work from there.  If it's too thick before it reaches a gentle boil then add more.  If it's too think cooking will thicken it.  You want to bring the gravy to a gentle boil before letting it cool to eating temperature in order to ensure it's the right consistency for your preference. 

Let's talk about salt.  With gravy I don't salt while it cooks.  Sometimes the meat and fat have just enough sodium that it's not needed.  Taste your gravy.  If it needs salt add it.  If it's perfect just the way it is then put it away.  Comfort food is about how it tastes and how it makes you feel.  Be comfortable! 

And enjoy!

BOOK REVIEW: The Medium by C.J. Archer

Seventeen year-old spirit medium Emily Chambers has a problem. Actually, she has several. As if seeing dead people isn't a big enough social disadvantage, she also has to contend with an escaped demon and a handsome ghost with a secret past. And then there's the question of her parentage. Being born an entire year after her father's death (yes, a year) and without the pale skin of other respectable English ladies, Emily is as much a mystery as the dead boy assigned to her.

Jacob Beaufort's spirit has been unable to crossover since his death. It might have something to do with the fact he was murdered. Or it might not. All he knows is, he has been assigned by the Otherworld's administrators to a girl named Emily. A girl who can see and touch him. A girl who released a shape-shifting demon into the mortal realm. Together they must send the demon back before it wreaks havoc on London. It should be a simple assignment, but they soon learn there's nothing simple when a live girl and a dead boy fall in love.

Set in not current day England (think like horse and buggy times) Emily is an honest to goodness Spirit Medium, unlike the hacks, fakes, and wannabes that are popping up on the scene as the idea of contacting spirits and holding seances are like parlor games for society ladies.  Emily and her sister Cecilia make a decent living on these parlor tricks.  Until they hold a seance here the ghost won't leave when he's supposed to.  And Celia accidentally lets a demon loose on London.  In swoops Jacob.  The rest is interesting, frustrating and a bit of a let down.

I liked that, for the most part the characters are thought out and developed.  The story didn't drag but it didn't go anywhere either.  Jacob is a pain and pouty but at times also pulls some hilarious antics and tricks as only a ghost can. His 'romance' if you can call it that with Emily is trite and overblown.  They are in love within just a few days, but he can't have her he's a ghost you know.  But heaven forbid someone else show interest in her and blam he's all moody jealous that she might actually have a normal healthy relationship with a living breathing human, you know as opposed to a ghost. Celia is a mix between wanting her sister to find a man and marry when she should be encouraging her to grow up.  Good gravy but Emily does not act her age, she acts like a petulant 12 year old child.  In a day and age when most girls grew up and married young Emily is very immature.  And there's this demon.  Which really takes a back seat to everything else most of the time.

The book had a very interesting cover story.  The synopsis was intriguing.  But it stopped there.  Most of the story that actually happened had very little to do with the demon and more to do with Emily and Jacob making gooey eyes at each other, when they weren't fighting and pouting.  Even the wrap up about the demon left me wanting more.  I really wanted to like this book.  I loved the idea of this book.  However the actual story left me waiting for something to be delivered by FedEx that never got updated with tracking and just disappeared off the radar.  

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About C.J. Archer

C.J. Archer has loved history and books for as long as she can remember and feels fortunate that she found a way to combine the two. She spent her early childhood in the dramatic beauty of outback Queensland, Australia, but now lives in suburban Melbourne with her husband, two children and a mischievous black & white cat named Coco.

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BOOK REVIEW: Grace and the Preacher by Kim Vogel Sawyer

The Kansas community of Fairland anticipates the arrival of their new minister and in recent months, late in 1882, postmistress Grace Cristler has communicated with Reverend Dille via letters, answering his questions about the little town, and developing affection for the man who pens thoughtful missives.

Theophil Garrison grew up under the loving influence of his saintly grandmother, but was roped into his cousins’ train-robbing plan. When they fail and are apprehended, Theo fled the scene, evading jail time. Now an angry cousin is out to avenge Theo's duplicity, and he’s on the run. He encounters a fatally ill traveler--a minister. Seeing a way to keep hidden, Theo trades identities with the man, dons his fine black suit, carries a Bible, and prays that he'll be accepted as Rufus Dille.

Once in Fairland, if Theo's true identity is uncovered, what will be left of the world he has built for himself, Grace, and those in the town who have come to love and accept him?

Before we even talk about the story I have to ask..where the gravy is Cooperville, Missouri!?!  The book gives me enough to go on that it is right in my neck of the woods.  An hour stage ride from Springfield and somewhere south of Stockton.  (Straight from the book in a round about way.)  Not on Google nor on any map I can find. The Mother person, who is so deep into genealogy that I feel like I grew up in the Sheppard Room at the Springfield Greene County Library and/or cemeteries, would know if it had ever been a town right?  Wrong!  I'm totally OK with a fictitious town but it did send me on a slight goose chase for a bit.  And since I'm wound up in the geography of Cooperville I need to delve into another roundabout the book brought me.  Theo is traveling on horseback from Cooperville to his birthplace in Birds Nest, Iowa (I didn't go hunting for that one, I'm only partly somewhat familiar with a small area of Iowa that I used to visit friends in) to escape his cousin.  He stopped in Stockton (I used to drive there like 3 days a week) and had passed Warrensburg (yup, know that one too...don't drink the water!).  He is trying to decide where to go and what to do for supplies on the road at this point.  And he talks about going 'westerly' to Marshall.  I had to stop, second guess myself by grabbing a map, and prove myself right.  Unless he was on the St. Louis side of the state (and based on dropped locations he isn't) Marshall would be east for him, not west.  OK, I've digressed enough for one little slip up in geography.  Let's move on shall we?

While I honestly and truly enjoyed this book I do have to nitpick for a moment.  And explain why it's only a 4 star review on Goodreads and Amazon.  And no, it's not over geography!  The pace was a little slow.  I found myself wanting to tell Theo and Grace just to spit it out already.  Stop wallowing in your mess and find a way.  Stop hiding from what is really going on and deal with it.  Stop but for the love of gravy hurry up.  I know, a bit of a multi sided conundrum.  We all knew what 'needed' to happen.  We didn't know where it would eventually lead but we knew it had to happen.  But both of them stayed mired in their own thoughts, their own fears, their own bubble and not reaching out with the details.  Both characters were beyond blessed with the influence of Mrs. Kirby.  Aunt Bess was an amazing resource of faith, hope, love, and guidance for Grace and Theo.  But even with her, they stumbled over truly sharing their turmoil.  The truth is, like most people, I ruminate over my own insecurities and fears before actually dealing with them.  I recognize that in these characters and I want to tell them to buck up when I won't tell myself that.  My only other real issue was over describing.  That is a huge pet peeve of mine in books and in life.  Probably, something I do myself if I was more self aware.  Telling me you ate amazing stew is perfect, please don't go back and describe the meat and potatoes and carrots floating in a flavorful broth.  Too much.  Moving on.

I loved this book.  I loved the characters and how very well developed they were as people.  I loved how faith was so interwoven into the story and didn't feel 'forced' like I find in other Christian books.  I loved watching each character shine in their own truth from Aunt Bess who was solid in her faith and understanding of herself, even when it hurt. Uncle Philemon who knew what he thought was right and then really put his faith on the line to figure out if it was his desire or God's.  Theo, poor sideways Theo.  Raised by a loving Granny who taught him about Christ and love and the Bible but then sent to live with the antithesis of this after her passing.  Now on the run from his cousins, who have promised retribution over what they believe he cost them in life, he finds a way to come into his own as a person, man, and Christian.  Watching him grow and blossom, through his own fears and even wayward choices during this revelation made my heart feel good.  Can't forget Grace.  Sweet, loving, somewhat backward Grace.  With the attention of Aunt Bess, the love of Uncle Philemon and a little faith in herself she truly grows from a Christian woman to a woman of Christ.  Trust me, there is totally a difference.  Lastly, I can't leave out Earl.  Part of me feels like I should have started with Earl.  A man on a mission...vengeance.  In his determination to extract the revenge he promised his cousin Theo before heading off to prison, Earl finds himself on a trek of discovery.  I truly believe that had he not had the experiences he had, the sidetracks and derails of his journey, then he would never have had the opportunity to become the man he was capable of being.  I think Earl is the perfect example of the idea that everyone you meet is for a reason.  A reason to learn, to grow, to discover yourself and your place in the world.  Not one of us would have become who we are today without the people (both positive and negative) we have crossed paths with.  Earl is a shining example of this.  

Kim Vogel Sawyer is an author I want to read more of.  This book, despite my occasional frustration that may or may not have ended in me yelling at the characters, touched my heart and fed my soul.  I am so grateful that Blogging for Books provided me the opportunity to read this book free for review.  Without that opportunity I wouldn't be able to share it with you.  And yes, it was free.  But all thoughts opinions and star ratings are my own. 

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About Kim Vogel Sawyer

Award-winning, bestselling author Kim Vogel Sawyer wears many hats. As a wife, mother, grandmother, song-singer, cat-petter, and active participant in her church’s music and women’s ministries, her life is happily full. But her passion lies in penning stories that share the hope we can all possess when we place our lives in God’s capable hands. She and her retired military hubby live on the beautiful plains of Kansas, the setting for many of Kim’s books. In her free time, she enjoys quilting, traveling with “The Hubs,” and spoiling her quiverful of granddarlings..

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