Jen's Blog

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...