Jen's Blog

Although I liked certain parts of this book, there were other parts I didn't like at all.  I loved the setting and the setting description a lot.  I also liked the premise of the book.  It was a fairly quick read, but I did have trouble with the flow of the story.  The writing seemed jilted at times, and it didn't flow as smoothly as I would have liked. The main part of the book dealt with young Olivia and her relationship with her recently returned father.  He had been largely absent during her youth.  I found him to be very unlikable.  I also wasn't super fond of Olivia's finance, he just didn't seem all that supportive.  I really liked Olivia and her mother and step-father though.  So an average book for me. 3/5 stars on GoodReads.

I have had several people ask me lately about my Sunday meal prep day.  This is something I have been doing pretty consistently for a while, not just since I joined Weight Watchers.  I spend a few hours in the kitchen on Sunday afternoon and prep as much food as I have the time and energy for.  Some weeks I am able to prep a lot, and some weeks just a little.  At the very least I prep my snacks for work and at least a few of my work lunches.  On a good week I can do all of my lunches and some dinner prep too.  Sometimes food prep just involves planning. I eat pretty much the same snacks every day.  My morning snack is a light string cheese, 7 almonds and an apple.  That is easy to prep.  I put the string cheese and almonds in a snack size bag and grab an apple each day.  My afternoon snack varies a bit more, but usually I have vegetables in some form so I chop as many fresh vegetables on Sunday as I can.  Easy to grab.  Somet...

Oh John Sandford, you got me again.  The first few pages made me think Lucas Davenport was somehow reverting to his old self. What happened to Weather?  Did quitting his job with the Minnesota Bureau send him off the rails?  I vowed to stop reading if he was reverting to his pre-Weather days (even though I knew that wouldn't be true).  Thankfully Lucas was just on a new job!  Davenport is a new U.S. Marshal, free of all the things he hated about his last job. Lucas takes on an old case to track down a killer who likes to steal a lot of money and kill people in the process.  No one has ever been able to track down the criminal called Poole, but Davenport is determined he is going to be the one.  There is a lot of action, excitement and shooting in this book.  I couldn't turn the pages fast enough.  The 400 pages went by super fast, and it left me wanting more. Well done! If you haven't read this series, start today.  I am not kidding....

I have been living with the Weight Watcher Smart Points plan for a little over three weeks now.  I shared a bit last week about my new journey.  It was hard (and a little embarrassing) but the wonderful and supportive comments I received made it worthwhile.  I know, despite how it feels sometimes, that I am not the only one who struggles with eating right, staying active and losing weight. My son  hunting eggs  So I decided to go ahead and keep sharing, if I motivate just one person it's totally worth it.  And since it's currently cold, cloudy and rainy at the end of April when I am writing this, it might just motivate myself to go down to the basement and hop on my elliptical. I weighed in Saturday, my third weigh in since joining, and was happy that I was down another 1.2 pounds, for a grand total of 7.4 pounds in three weeks.  Since it was Easter week and my goal was to stay the same I felt super happy to have a loss.  Especially since ...

Spring has sprung, and it's going to be a little harder to read for the next two months, until long summer days come back anyway!  I read two books in the last few weeks, both from Edelweiss, so thanks Edelweiss for the review copies!  Since I didn't give full reviews, I will just do a quick review for both and say I enjoyed them both. I enjoyed My One True Highlander by Suzanne Enoch quite a lot!  It was a fun, sexy story and as we all know I love any book set in Scotland, but it wasn't all that original.  I don't know why, but highlander's often kidnap their brides, although this time the kidnapping was indirect because it was done by Graeme's brothers.  Even though it wasn't super original, I thought the two characters were great together and had an instant chemistry.  I especially loved Marojorie's relationship with the youngest brother, who was so sweet you can't help but love him.  I am looking forward to another in the series!  4/5 star...

Little known fact about me...I was blessed Mormon when I was born.  My mother is Mormon, and originally from Utah.  I didn't know this until later in life when I was searching for a baptism certificate before I got married.  I didn't grow up going to temple and I didn't know a lot about the faith until I did some research, but technically I was Mormon. I love genealogy and have been working on our family trees, it turns out I come from a long line of Mormons, and some of my relatives knew with Joseph Smith and made the long journey from Illinois to Utah.  Also, there is quite a bit of polygamy in my family tree when it was allowed as part of the Mormon faith. It was interesting to me to read about polygamy from a more recent point of view, and to learn about the dark side of polygamy, and why it was ultimately outlawed.  I loved how Anna told her story and admire her for her bravery in having survived growing up with such a public polygamist father.  In...

Before picture...with my boys in Grand Cayman!  April 2017 Anyone who knows me knows I have always struggled with my weight and that in the last few years I have developed diabetes.  In 2009 I successfully lost 30 pounds with Weight Watchers, and my fasting blood sugar went down quite a lot without medicine.  While I have successfully kept almost half of that off since then I have gained the other half back, and my blood sugar has gone up as well. Although I haven't had to go on insulin, I am currently on three medications to keep my blood sugars low.  That along with exercise and fairly healthy eating habits has helped keep my numbers in control. But...I love food.  And I love sugar.  I know it's a little bit of an obsession and addiction but there you go.  When my blood sugar went back up the last few months I wasn't surprised.  Winter was rough for me this year, not enough sun, I made some bad food choices and I wasn't as active as usual....

The Good Daughter was a reading departure for me, but it proved to me that sometimes it’s a great idea to read something different than you normally do!  Alexandra Burt had me turning pages as fast as I could from the beginning.  I couldn’t wait to find out what was going on with Dahlia and her mother and to know the truth!  Dahlia remembers moving from one place to the next all her life, and finds that she continues to do so as an adult.  Why doesn’t she have a birth certificate?  Not it seems like her mother is having a breakdown as well and Dahlia doesn’t know why.  She does know that it’s probably related to her unorthodox upbringing.  Usually I don’t like stories that go back and forth in character and time, but this time it works.  I almost found that Dahlia’s mothers story was more intriguing and I couldn’t wait until the story switched back to her!  Recommended…4/5 on GoodReads Thanks to Net Galley for the Advanced R...

Who doesn't love Sophie Kinsella?  Well, I am sure some people are not a fan, but I know she is loved far and wide.  Sophie writes a fun, fast paced story that catches your interest right away and keeps you reading!  Her style of writing is so engaging I often find myself looking up at the clock and wondering how time has gone so fast! My (not so) Perfect Life wasn't any different.  It was light, fun, easy to read, entertaining and hilarious.  There was a little bit of romance as well...it hit all the right notes for me. Katie is the main character, she has always wanted to live in London and have a fabulous life and job.  The reality is that London is expensive and her job isn't that great, but she is optimistic and portrays her life the way she sees it ending up to everyone around her, and her Instagram followers. When Katie is fired from her dream job she is forced to move home and reevaluate her life a little.  She is not about to give up h...

Another day...another cowboy book. Carolyn Brown's new series Lucky Cowboys starts off with Talk Cowboy to Me .  This one was good enough I will be looking for book number two.  I don't see an entry for book number 2 on Goodreads yet, so I put Carolyn Brown on my author's to watch list. This book features two mismatched families who are clearly destined to become one big family.  There are not many surprises in romance novels so the reader know almost from the beginning what is going to happen.  (Honestly, that's one of the reasons I love the romance genre so much!)  The journey the characters take to get there is a somewhat unique one however. This one features Adele O'Donnell and her two lovely daughters.  They move onto the Double Deuce Ranch after Adele's divorce and after her ex-husband takes away the ranch she had been living on with her girls. Then there is Remington Luckadeau, who is well known for his lady friends and bachelor lifestyle. ...

Holding on Tighter is another book I read in February and just now am reviewing! Any fan of Erotic Romance knows the name Shayla Black.  This is the 12th book in her Wicked Lovers series, and it's a good solid addition. The main characters include Jolie Quinn, who is a woman in charge.  She has big goals and knows what she needs to do to get them accomplished.  Heath Powell is recovering from personal tragedy and wants to stay clear of any attachment.  However Jolie and her company become a target and she suddenly needs to rely on someone else to help protect the things she loves. The sparks between the two characters are evident, but they both are fighting not only their desires but also their true feelings. Watching them sort that out is a lot of sexy fun!  One of the best parts was catching up with past characters of the other books, seeing the big extended family these people have created was truly special. Thanks NetGalley for the advanced readers ...

Thanks to NetGalley for the Advanced Readers Copy of this one.  I read it in January but am a little behind on my blogging. I love a good cowboy story, but this one was just OK.   Wild Horse Springs is the fifth in the Ransom Canyon series...but it certainly isn't my favorite of the bunch. This story features sheriff Dan Brigman and Brandi Malone.  Brandi is a singer who is running from a loss...she travels from town to town preforming on the stage and trying to forget her past.  When danger strikes Brandi ends up running to Dan instead of running away like she usually does. The story also features Lauren Brigman, Dan's daughter, who has come home after her job in Dallas doesn't pan out.  Lauren has to decide if home is where her heart is or if she is going to travel back out into the world and try and forge a new life.  There are some really solid parts to this story, but it did fall a little flat for me.  It look me a long time to get into it...

Thanks NetGalley for the Advanced Reading Copy of this one!  I read it back in January, but am a little behind on my blogging. Spring has been busy this year! This book made me feel all the feels!  It features two sisters Ainsley and Kate, and although it's a romance it could also be called women's fiction because it heavily features the relationship between the two sisters who have never been close.  However, some pretty big life events bring the two sisters together, closer than ever. Kate, who found her husband later in life, tragically loses him at the beginning of the book.  Readers follow her story of getting over the loss of her whirlwind romance and marriage, and then navigate a surprise that she never saw coming.  Watching Kate rebuild her life was addicting, and I had trouble putting the book down. Ainsley's romance is completely the opposite of whirlwind.  She has been waiting for 11 years for her boyfriend to propose.  Instead of pr...

Thanks to NetGalley for the Advanced Readers Copy of this one! Anyone who has checked out my blog so far will notice I have featured Scottish themed romance novels often, and I admit I have a weak spot for them.  I just can't help it, men in kilts, what can I say?  After reading the first book in the series, Wild Wicked Scot , I couldn't wait to read the second book. I wasn't disappointed when I picked up Sinful Scottish Laird.   Although it took me a little longer to fall into this story, when I did I couldn't put it down. Julia London writes a wonderful story that makes any reader (me included) feel like part of the story.  This story features Lady Chatwick, Daisy, and her young son.  They set out to journey to Scotland to escape the many suitors who are after her Daisy's inheritance.  Daisy has to marry within three years of her husband's death or all is lost, and all of England know it. While waiting for the man she thought she would like to marr...

Thanks to NetGalley and the editors for the advanced readers copy of this book! This is a great book for working people who want to eat healthy at work and don't want to spend a lot of money.  The pictures were great and I am excited to try more of the recipes.  So far I have done a breakfast smoothie and one of the salads.  I am excited to try the morning cookies, some of the dips and the soups! Some positives about the book include the great pictures, the variety of recipes and the key that lets you know if it's going to be a fast recipe, one that could be made ahead or freeze well.  The ingredients are fresh, real and good for you.  I love that there are several that will be perfect for garden season when I am over run with zucchini and green beans. I was disappointed that the nutritional information wasn't included with the recipe.  I am diabetic and that makes it so much easier for me to know right away if the recipe will work or not.  Som...

Thanks NetGalley for the Advanced Readers copy! I wasn't too sure about this one the entire time I was reading it, and honestly I am still a little on the fence.  However, I will say it was fresh and new and unlike many other books.  This is how people communicate now...email and text so that was real. After the first few sections I got used to the dialog between the twins and I got more into their story.  In the end I was connecting to the characters and getting to know them, so maybe it just took me awhile to get into the story.  It's been about a week since I finished the story and when I think about it now I feel happy.  The story line was somewhat predictable but again a lot of fun. Overall, give it a try.  It was pretty good and the characters were a lot of fun.  3/5 stars on GoodReads.

Historical Fiction can be hit or miss for me, I either like it or I don't.   The Second Mrs. Hockaday lands in the like pile, but it took me almost half of the book to decide.  This is a really interesting book because it's told only though letters and diary entries.  It wasn't until part two of the book that I really got involved and wanted to know what REALLY happened on the farm. Major Gryffth Hockaday is away at war, leaving his new bride behind with his son from his first marriage. Placidia does her best to keep up the farm and protect the crops and animals with the help of hired hands while her husband is away.  But being alone on a farm during the Civil War isn't easy and everyone pays a price.  When Major Hockaday returns from war he finds out his wife is in jail and she is accused of murdering her newborn baby.  A baby she had during his two year absence.  The reader is left trying to guess what happened during those long hard years.  ...

As a frequent yoga class attendee and busy, working mom to three teenage boys the idea of this book spoke to me as soon as I saw the title.  I have been taking a yoga nidra class once a week (yoga sleep and guided meditation) and it's been making a world of difference in my mood and my days.  I just finished reading Breathe Mama Breathe and am so excited to add more mindfulness to my day when  I can't be in a yoga class!   I was a little worried about a book for busy moms, so many of them are focused on moms of just one age group, but this one is great for moms with any age kids!  There are so many places I can add a little calm in my day that I never had thought about before!   These quick breaks in the day are actually practical and I can see myself doing them on a regular basis!   I am especially looking forward to adding these mediation breaks to my day: Coffee Your Teen Driver STOP the Teen 'Tude Prepping to Launch Wonder W...

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the advanced copy of this new book, Lists to Love by: for Busy Wives by Mark and Susan Merrill.  I enjoyed the book, but it wasn't quite what I expected.  It was filled with great reminders on marriage, and had some really good points in it.  It was a great reminder on how to love, how to honor your husband, how to live in a faith based marriage and how to remember why you married him in the first place.  It's well written and easy to read, and I liked the personal antidotes in the book. The downside was it wasn't really new.  I have read many similar books in the past, and the same advice seems to be in all of them. So it was good, but not groundbreaking.  3/5 stars on Goodreads.

Thanks to NetGalley for the advanced reading copy of this one.   Wild Wicked Scot by Julia London was a great read, and one that I gobbled down in just one day!  There are some books that you just can't put down or read fast enough and this is one of them!  I am beyond excited that this is the first in a new series and I can't wait for book two! Book one features Margot Armstrong, a young and inexperienced English lady and Arran McKenzie, Scottish Clan leader.  The two had an arranged marriage and couldn't be more different in personality. Despite the natural passion that ran between them Margot runs away and returns to England. Three years later she is sent back to Scotland by her father to spy on her husband.  Although, deep down she is convinced that the Arran she was married too couldn't be a traitor she has to find out for sure. In her quest for the truth Margo finds out a lot about Arran, including some things she didn't see as a new bride.  She ...

I liked this one, but it wasn't my favorite.  I gave it a 3/5 stars on Goodreads.  Thanks to NetGalley for the advanced readers copy. The Trouble with Duke s is the first in a series, and like I mentioned I did like it.  I love series so I will defiantly read the second one.  This book features lovely Megan Windham and the gruff Hamish MacHugh, a brand new Duke. Megan has found herself in a courtship with a vile man and she doesn't know how to get out of it.  Instead of confiding in one of the many protective Windham men she turns to Hamish.  Despite his desire to distance himself from Megan he finds himself drawn to her sunny personality and a love match is born.  Together they find a way out of trouble and end up together. All of my favorite components of a good romance story are present in the book, and I did like the characters.  It's hard for me to put my finger on why I didn't like this book as much as some others, but I think it has a...

January 1st Carolina Belle January 3rd Lord Sebastian's Secret Breathe Mama Breathe Young and Slim for Life Lists to Love for Busy Lives January 10th Second Mrs. Hockaday The Most Dangerous Place on Earth 17th Salad in a Jar Healthy is the New Skinny Hey Harry, Hey Matilda 24th Accidentally on Purpose Night in with Grace Kelly My Husbands Wife 31st Runaway Midwife Falling for the Highlander Breathless Seven Minutes in Heaven On Second Thought Here is my list of January new releases I am looking forward too! Some of them are for work...looking at selecting for our non-fiction section!  I included the ones that I am really excited about personally on my list.