Bloggeretterized

Bloggerette Extraordinaire. Blogging the stuff in her brain one blog post at a time.

Book Meme of the Day: Ignorance, there is a cure #BMOTD

ignorance, there is a cure

 

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$10 amazon gift card giveaway

Just a reminder that there are 18 days left in the Heather Wardell $10 Amazon gift card giveaway.

 

One card daily.

 

Enter here: http://gvwy.io/qj3vjdd

Source: http://gvwy.io/qj3vjdd

Bridge to Destiny by April Marie Libs

Bridge to Destiny - April Marie Libs

Bridge to Destiny is April Marie Libs’ debut novel inspired on real life events. It is the story of Avery, a young woman who is living the dream. She is happily married to Mitchel, a wonderful man who adores her and their sweet four-year-old daughter, Hannah. But as in real life, tragedy struck her when she least expected. Her husband Mitchel dies in a tragic a car accident, an event that truly devastates Avery.

...the only she could register feeling was hallowed, empty, completely numb, as if her entire existence had depleted into an abyss of paralyzing nothingness.



Even though Avery felt alone and despaired, time heals all wounds. With the help of her wonderful parents, the support from her friends/neighbors and the magical personality of her little daughter, she recovers from her tragic loss only to be hit again by tragedy. Hannah becomes seriously injured in a household accident leaving Avery in a struggle to fight for her daughter’s life. During Hannah’s illness, Avery meets Nathan, a charming, single neurologist, who is instantly taken by Avery and so begins her journey to allow herself to fall in love with him.

I know what you’re thinking, what’s so great about this if it’s so predictable? Yes, it’s predictable but unlike many women fiction stories, this love story is not a conventional one. It is not an instant love story in which she falls for him, he falls for her, they have sex, a conflict happens and they live happily ever after. This love story like good wines, took time to develop. It was written in a way that even though you know they’ll end up together, you actually enjoy the wait. After all, good things come to those who wait, right? Also, it is not only about Avery falling in love again. It is about Avery being a mom, doing whatever it takes to get her daughter’s health back, while finding herself, bonding with and giving back to others.

Bridge to Destiny is written in third person narration, which was a great move from the author in my humble opinion, because it allows the reader to bond with each and every one of the characters in this story. More about this and the characters on the full review on my blog

Bridge to Destiny is a compelling story, filled with happy and sad events that feel right out of real life and to which many can relate to. My favorite scene of all was when Hannah sang for her daddy, impossible not to feel anything or get teary eyed with that one.

The title and the cover make total sense once you finish reading this story. I would change the title font, but then again, that’s just me being picky.

There’s a song by Alanis Morissette that says:

Well life has a funny way of sneaking up on you
when you think everything’s okay and everything’s going right
And life has a funny way of helping you out when
you think everything’s gone wrong and everything blows up
in your face

Avery’s life felt like that part of the song.

Bridge to Destiny is a story of love, friendship, family, and survival. A story that teaches you that there is life after grief and that it is OK to ask for help and reach out to others in your times of need. A story of hope. Read this book if you’re in the mood for a fast paced emotional roller coaster ride. You’ll fall in love, you’ll laugh, you’ll cry, you will feel everything in between, and in the end you will feel good. A good addition for your spring or summer reading lists.

 

 

Buy on Amazon US

Buy on Amazon UK

 

DISCLOSURE STATEMENT
I received an Electronic copy of this book but was not financially compensated in any way nor obliged to review. The opinions expressed are my own and are based on my personal experience while reading it. This post contains affiliate links
Source: http://bloggeretterized.wordpress.com/2015/05/16/read-reviewed-49-bridge-to-destiny-by-april-marie-libs

$10 Amazon gift card giveaway

dont forget the DAILY $10 Amazon gift card giveaway by author Heather Wardell is still on. 

 

Enter here http://gvwy.io/5r3p5q1

Source: http://gvwy.io/5r3p5q1
SPOILER ALERT!

Virgin by Radhika Sanghani

V!RG!N - Radhika Sanghani

If you don’t take this book seriously it is a fun fast paced read. A book that openly talks about dating, drinking, sex, masturbation, reproductive organs, body fluids, etc. in the college environment. Clearly a book for the college audience. But I am past my college years and even though I can’t deny that it had its funny parts, the final message or the concept of the novel ended up bothering more than I thought making it only an OK read (2 stars). But I’ll get to that later.

 

The synopsis sounded fun but what made me decide to read this book was JOAN RIVERS (may she rest in peace). I mean if a comedian like Ms. Rivers recommends this book, it must be something funny that can be missed. Kudos to the marketing people for getting Ms. Rivers’ quote.

 

Virgin is the story of Ellie Kolstakis, a 21-year-old senior in college who holds an embarrassing-to-her secret: she is a virgin and it absolutely shames her to be one.

Ellie blames her virginity on her “controlling” parents, her plain looks, and a boy named James Martell who had the sense of telling her that her first time should be special and that he was not going to be the one to ruin it for her. Somehow that traumatized her and she never did anything to change the status of her hymen after that.

 

But now that she’s a senior she decides it’s her last chance to change that once and for all. So she makes it her goal to lose her virginity before graduation. I usually write spoiler free reviews but with this one I can’t. Long-story short, she finally has sex with the wrong guy and ends up getting chlamydia, which she thinks is fine and dandy because she finally can have the words “sexually active” on her medical records, she can “happily” ask for an STD test on her doctor’s appointment and “everybody has it”.

 

Like I said in the beginning of this review, if you don’t take this book seriously you can find yourself reading ridiculous things about drinking, dating, sex, penises,  shaving/waxing pubic hair, watching porn, etc. Things the target audience of this book would utterly enjoy and laugh about. The language is simple and straight to the point; the first person narration makes it easy to read. The characters are the classic characters of a sex comedy like American Pie with the slight difference that they are all British.

 

As for me, most of the time, I didn’t know if I was supposed to feel sorry for Ellie or laugh at the things she went through. There were some fun things to read, her reference to Chaka Khan after she finally lost her virginity was of course fun but there was some ridiculous things that sound too impossible for a 21-year-old of our times to go through, and there was stuff like a bathroom incident that was rather disgusting to read.

 

Even though Ellie’s adventures to losing her virginity were written as a comedy, the author ended up making Ellie look dumb, desperate and utterly irresponsible.

 

First of all, Ellie thinks that being a virgin is a tragic deplorable thing for a 21 year-old “woman”. What kind of sex ed did this girl get? For a senior in college, hasn’t she had plenty of time to go on the internet and do research on virginity to get her ideas straight?

 

Second, her reason for losing her virginity is stupid. This girl is obsessed on losing her “V plate” because she wants her medical records to say that she is sexually active and she needs to be able to get tested for STD’s, like she’s abnormal because she can’t request an STD test. She’d rather get and embrace STD’s than be a virgin:

Embrace any STDs you may or may not have, along with the regrets, the disastrous stories, the heartbreak, the pain and the regret. Because if it weren’t for all this stuff, life would be pretty dull. – From Virgin by Radhika Sanghani

What is the matter with this author and publishing company? Who in their right mind would let young readers think that it is a normal rite of passage to get STD’s because without them your life is dull? Any disease is an abnormal condition with serious life altering consequences. STD’s are not to be taken ever so lightly.

 

Third, Ellie’s concept of virginity and the loss of it. The whole point of her mission was to have her hymen penetrated by a male sexual organ for the first time, but before that happens she fingers herself ends up losing her virginity to herself because she thought it would be “so embarrassing” to bleed on your first time. Oh and let’s not forget that she had previously blogged about inserting a bullet and how bad it felt. Yes, I had to be that graphic but there was no other way of saying it (and it is described in detail in the book, in an almost step by step way). Anyway, how dumb is this character?

 

Fourth, the Vagina-Vulva Conundrum: I think we need to get something straight and stop using the word vagina to refer to the vulva. I know it’s the colloquial use of the word but this has gone far enough in society. Besides, if the author is writing a book in which sexuality is a main subject, the correct use of words is a must, especially when probably the majority of readers of this book are not only reading this because it’s fun but because they probably expect to get more knowledge on sex by reading this book. The author constantly refers to shaving or waxing vaginas. As far as I know, you don’t have any pubic hair on your vagina. How can you shave or wax your vagina? If waxing your vulva is painful, I can’t imagine the torture it would be to try to shave or wax your insides. Oh and don’t get me started on the reasons she had for waxing, it was not about her but about what she thought men want or think. *eyeroll*

 

I could keep going but I’ve already exceeded my 1000 word limit for my reviews so I’ll start to wrap it up.

 

The good part of this book is that it talks about “taboo-ish” topics that should be talked more often and more openly so we don’t end up with a world full of idiotic misinformed 21-year-olds like Ellie. The bad is that it is full of wrong ideas that the younger population will take the wrong way if they don’t have the proper guidance. So as far as recommending this book, I’d say it is for the college audience, who are old enough to see beyond the ridiculousness and will just read this book for the laughs. Of course, because of the sexual subject, there would be a lot of teenagers attracted to this book, young minds who should not read this book without proper parental guidance.

 

With this review I’m not saying do not read this book. On the contrary, I hope that those who actually finish reading this book don’t find Ellie’s character relatable. I hope readers learn important lessons out of Ellie’s ridiculously stupid mistakes. I hope that if there are virgins reading this book, they

 

1. get motivated to research more about sexuality,

2. understand that losing your virginity is a personal choice not an obligation or something that must be done for the sake of it, and

3. learn to make sexual decisions that will keep you above all HEALTHFUL, SAFE and happy forever.

 

 

Buy on Amazon US

Buy on Amazon UK

 

 

 

DISCLOSURE STATEMENT
I received aN Electronic copy of this book but was not financially compensated in any way nor obliged to review. The opinions expressed are my own and are based on my personal experience while reading it. This post contains affiliate links

 

 

Source: http://bloggeretterized.wordpress.com/2015/05/09/read-reviewed-48-virgin-by-radhika-sanghani

Amazon Giftcard Giveaway

Hi guys.

 

Just wanted to let you know that author  Heather Wardell is giving away a $10 Amazon gift card a day for 30 days!

 

She writes good women fiction stories. I've read a couple of her books: Fifty Million Reasons and Bad Will Hunting.

 

Heather is celebrating 10 years since she wrote her first novel. She's now written 17 novels.

 

A $10 Amazon gift card daily for 30 days sounds pretty good to me. Who knows, you might be in luck and win.

 

 

Enter here! http://gvwy.io/5r3p5q1

Source: http://gvwy.io/5r3p5q1

Bad Will Hunting by Heather Wardell

Bad Will Hunting (Seven Exes series Book 2) - Heather Wardell

Bad Will Hunting is the second book I’ve read from author Heather Wardell. And once again I wasn’t disappointed. Last year I read Fifty Million Reasons, Book #13 from her Toronto Series, which I enjoyed reading.

Bad Will Hunting is Book #2 from Wardell’s Seven Exes Series. Even though it’s a sequel, it is written so that it can be a standalone. I haven’t read book #1 (99% off Kindle btw) in this series and I found that there is enough information to fill you in on the first book’s major events. You don’t feel left out or in limbo as to what is happening.

The writing is fast paced and it has a very good balance between humor and drama to keep you wanting to read the book until the end. There’s a love story, predictable but a feel good one, a love story you are rooting to happen as you read the book. The characters are relatable, even though because of the background reality TV story, they would appeal more to those 20-30-something year old readers, the story contains valuable advice for adult readers regardless of their age group.

The cover, to tell you the truth, I didn’t like it at first glance. More about this on the full review on my blog.

In Bad Will Hunting, we meet Ashley as she comes back from “the island” where she was a contestant in a famous TV dating “reality show” where she was portrayed as the crazy angry chic on the show. If you’ve watched those famous dating reality shows of our times you know what I mean.

Ashley is so hurt about this that she’s hungry for revenge on the producers. On her flight back home, she meets Will, an attorney who agrees to help her. Ashley trusted this guy but was soon after deceived by him and if that was not enough he goes MIA. This infuriates Ashley even more. As if she didn’t have enough on her emotional plate, Ashley feels she also needs revenge on Will too. And so begins her journey (as they say on those reality shows) to find Will and get her reputation straightened up.

I know a lot of people when they hear or read “reality show” get misled. Don’t be fooled about the reality show-revenge plot or the hunting of “Will” the character plot of this book. This book is so much more than that. It has a depth you wouldn’t expect in a story based on those simple looking premises.nThere is more to Ashley than just an apparently angry empty-headed TV character.

Bad Will Hunting is a book that gives the reader hope. Hope that in the midst of negativity, there is always a way to find happiness. A good reminder that everything shall pass. It is full of life lessons. More about this on the full review on my blog.

Bad Will Hunting is a good read, one that I would catalog in my “Women’s Fiction with a plus” shelf. This is a perfect read for Spring or Summer. If you’re in the mood for a realistic uplifting story that will shake your life and give you hope, this is the book for you. A good read for book clubs or classrooms, as interesting discussions on anger management can surge from this story.

I feel grateful for the opportunity given to read this book, it is a story that I know I will always remember, and will read again when I need a little reminder of hope in my life. I’m looking forward to book #3 in this series, which is coming out soon this year and other work from Heather Wardell.

 

Buy on Amazon US

Buy on Amazon UK

 

 

DISCLOSURE STATEMENT
I received aN Electronic copy of this book but was not financially compensated in any way nor obliged to review. The opinions expressed are my own and are based on my personal experience while reading it. This post contains affiliate links.

 

 

Reading progress update: I've read 352 out of 352 pages.

Madam President: A Novel - Nicolle Wallace

Looked promising being that the most powerful women in the US government starting with the POTUS were women.

 

Started with a bang and then it just went boring chick lit.

 

Blah. Bland pointless story. I hope the day doesn't come when women like those portrayed in this book rule a powerful country.

 

 

Happy Hour is 9 to 5 by Alexander Kjerulf

Happy Hour is 9 to 5 - Alexander Kjerulf

The pursuit of happiness is a fundamental human goal. We all want to be happy in life. We all deserve to be happy. We all must do everything in our hands to achieve happiness.

Sometimes we get all caught up in life’s vicissitudes that we lose perspective, especially those in the work force. And if we are unhappy at work, we will have a hard time being happy in life in general.

Happy Hour is 9 to 5 by happiness expert Alexander Kjerulf is a wonderful tool everyone must read every once in a while. It is a tool full of invaluable lessons that I’m sure you will highlight every time you read it. It is a very positive read that will help you get back in the happy track of life.

The writing in this book is fast paced and entertaining. The information is complimented by real life case studies of companies that have been successful in achieving happiness, fun illustrations, and links to the author’s website for additional worksheets and related articles. When I first read the book, the links didn’t work, I suppose the author has updated them since the book’s publication date. Another helpful thing is that the key points are clearly marked in bulleted or numbered lists. You can’t miss them. They are very helpful for when you re-read the book.

Like I said, this book is full of important happiness lessons. The most important is that Happiness at work is possible. For more about this check out the full review on my blog.

Happy Hour is 9 to 5 is a great resource for anyone in the workforce, regardless of ranks. Either if you’re going through a Meh! phase at work, or you are just starting a job, you are looking for one, you’ve been promoted, etc. you must read this book. It will inspire a positive attitude and will motivate you to improve your work life and be happy. Highly recommended.

For quotes and more about this book check the full review on my blog.

 

 

Buy on Amazon US

Buy on Amazon UK

 

DISCLOSURE STATEMENT
I received an Electronic copy of this book but was not financially compensated in any way nor obliged to review. The opinions expressed are my own and are based on my personal experience while reading it. This post contains affiliate links
Source: http://bloggeretterized.wordpress.com/2015/04/25/read-reviewed-46-happy-hour-is-9-to-5-by-alexander-kjerulf

Reading progress update: I've read 100%.

Bad Will Hunting (Seven Exes series Book 2) - Heather Wardell

Don't judge a book by its cover. This was not your typical empty women's fiction.

 

Yes it had the happily ever after ending but it wasn't predictable.

 

I even ended up getting a bit of therapy with Ashley!

 

Nice read.

Blogger Advice Needed: what to do when they steal your images?

Someone took my blog's header and used it in a blog post. She didn't even change the name of the image when she uploaded it to her blog.

This person didn't contact me to ask permission and is not giving me credit on her blog post.

 

What do I do?

I took a screen shot of her post.

I have a right to ask her to remove the image from her blog, right?

 

Should I email this person or leave a comment on her blog post asking to remove the image?

 

:/

 

*update: sent this person the email. hope she understands and it's solved peacefully.

*2nd update: found another person using my blog header in all of her social media accounts. Sent her a message too. Now I wait.

Rejection Proof by Jia Jian

Rejection Proof: How I Beat Fear and Became Invincible Through 100 Days of Rejection - Jia Jiang

Have you ever heard of or seen the video of the guy and the Krispy Kreme Olympic donuts (circa 2012)? If you did then you are acquainted with Jia Jiang and his journey against rejection. If you, like me, had/have no idea of what I’m talking about, then I recommend you to read this book.

Rejection Proof by Jia Jiang is the author’s recount of how he beat the fear of rejection through a series of self-imposed challenges during a 100 day period. After quitting his job, Jia started up a company of his own and when his dream didn’t go the way he had planned it, he had to choose between quitting and letting the feelings that come with failure rule his life or step back and reevaluate everything in order to find a new approach and make his dream come true.

He chose the second option. And for that he started an experiment in which he sought rejection for 100 days. Some days he found the rejection he expected but other days he found important and valuable life lessons that he carefully documented first on his blog and now on this book.

Rejection Proof is a book that will teach you many important life lessons. I want you to read the book but one of the most important ones is that this book will make you change your attitude towards rejection. For more about this check the full review on my blog.

Rejection Proof by Jia Jiang is a book for everyone. If you’re feeling insecure about anything in life, be it asking for a favor, trying to get into a certain college, a job or changing careers, selling something, starting your own business, blogging, finding funds for a charity, whatever, read this book. It will open your mind and give you ideas on how to face your fear, how to desensitize yourself against it and how to react to whatever the outcome may be. Also, if you are in a position in which you have to reject something or someone, read this book.

Rejection is inevitable in life. One way or another we will always face it. And it is completely normal to fear rejection. What you must always keep in mind is to never let the fear of being rejected paralyze you and keep you from living. It’s up to you. This book will help you learn how to achieve this and will pump up your optimism, after all, in Jia’s words:

…there is a possibility after rejection…rejection is not always the end of the story.

 

Buy on Amazon US

Buy on Amazon UK

I received a free copy of this book from Blogging for Books in exchange for a review. I was not financially compensated. The opinions expressed are my own and are based on my personal experience while reading it.This Post contains affiliate links.

Reading progress update: I've read 100%.

The Dream Lover: A Novel of George Sand - Elizabeth Berg

George is a contradiction. For someone as insecure as her, she sure did have affairs with an ease that was somehow scary.

 

It started OK but then every chapter felt like more of the same never ending story.

 

I wanted to like this book a lot but I don't. At the same time I can't hate it. If you want to read about George Sand, this is not the book. 2.5 stars it is.

A Wedding in Provence by Ellen Sussman

A Wedding in Provence: A Novel - Ellen Sussman

A Wedding in Provence. Good title for a book. Alluring and memorable. That was my first thought about this book. Then there was the cover. I see that cover and I want to read that story.

With that cover and title, I had high hopes for this book. I expected a romantic almost fairy tale like wedding story with lavish descriptions about the French countryside, food and culture. But sadly this story didn’t measure up to my expectations.

Don’t get me wrong, it’s not a lousy book. But I must be honest in saying that in my humble opinion, it is not the greatest story of all times, but an OK one to pass the time.

The premise and the setting is a good one. Sibling rivalry + infidelity + friendship + a fabulous setting = a good recipe for romance and drama. The author had everything to knock it off the romance novels ballparks but to me it just felt like a bad spin-off/imitation of Mamma Mia, without the singing and the picturesque humor.

My main problem with this story is that it had too many characters. Everyone had something going on, but nothing seemed like a major plot to me. I couldn’t quite bond with any of the characters. More about the characters on my blog

My other problem with the book was that I felt like Provence got ripped off, sort of. I pictured charming settings in my mind that were never described in the book. There were quite a bit of French phrases here and there but that was it. By the way, these French phrases, could be a turn off for non-francophone readers, as there is no way for them to figure out what they mean.

There is also an extended use of the f word. It didn’t add any drama to the story.

Gladly in the end, everything is resolved and they live happily ever after. Even though it’s quite predictable, it’s nice that the story ends on a positive non-conflicting way.

A Wedding in Provence by Ellen Sussman is not a bad book, it is a fast paced, quick read I would recommend reading in between heavy long reads. It’s cataloged as chick lit, but I don’t feel like the young audiences can engage with this story too much. I can see it as a good choice for older women book clubs, where the topics of marriage, parenting and infidelity can be discussed.

Check out the complete review on my blog

Source: http://wp.me/p28tqo-17y

Reading progress update: I've read 100%.

At the Water's Edge: A Novel - Sara Gruen

I liked this one. I'm giving it 3.5 stars I'll possibly round it to 4.

 

I was a fan of Water for Elephants (the book, not the movie). And this one didn't disappoint me.

 

I'm glad it ended how it did,[spoiler]although it would've been nice to know exactly what happened to Ellis in the end to have a sense of complete closure[/spoiler]. Other than that this was definitely a good story to read.

 

If you're into Historical Fiction during WWII and the Loch Ness monster check this one out.

Happy Easter

bunny animated GIF

Bunny on the Left: Dude, what's wrong with the Easter Bunny?

Bunny on the Right: Today was Easter, it's taking a well deserved break.

 

 

 

 

 

water animated GIF

 

:D

Hope you guys had a Happy Easter.

Currently reading

Mademoiselle: Coco Chanel and the Pulse of History by Rhonda K. Garelick
Progress: 355/547pages
Vanity Fair by William Makepeace Thackeray
Progress: 33/867pages