Showing posts with label adopt. Show all posts
Showing posts with label adopt. Show all posts

Thursday, April 23, 2020

Book Review - The Safe Place by Anna Downes

Photo Credit - Amazon

In a span of one day, Emily Proudman's life is a terrible mess. She lost her acting agent, her apartment and her job. Scott Denny is a successful CEO and he has a problem that he can't fix on his own. His business prowess or his vast wealth isn't able to help him until he meets Emily.

Scott offers a job as his housekeeper and a companion for his wife, Nina on his remote, paradise French estate. Emily is immediately taken with Nina and her young daughter, Aurelia.  Emily finally feels like her life is where she wants it. However, soon Emily realizes Scott and Nina are keeping a deadly secret and if she doesn't play along things won't end well for her.

Being stuck in my apartment for what seems like days on end, I couldn't wait to dive into this thriller. The writing style was easy to read and fluid. However, as I kept reading I felt like the plot was predictable and it took the writer forever to get there. I found myself losing patience once, the predictable secret was exposed. I also didn't care for any of the characters and thought the whole situation was rather silly in the end. Perhaps at face value, the plot might sound promising but, once you delve deeper, it kinds of seems meaningless in some ways. The author did show how far someone would go to protect the people they love. I was expecting more from this book and disappointed it didn't deliver.


**Disclosure - I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest opinion. This post may contain affiliate links which means I earn advertising and/or referral fees if you purchase an item through my link. Please note, there will be no extra charges to you. Thank you for your support.**

Monday, March 30, 2020

Book Review - If We Were Giants by Dave Matthews + Giveaway


Photo Credit - Amazon

Kirra and her family live with the rest of her clan inside a dormant volcano. She is curious about the world that exists beyond their own. She and her father are the only two people allowed to venture out of their community. Kirra is training to become a Storyteller like her father. The pair travels from village to village to spread scary stories to keep people away from their homes.

On their last journey, Kirra hears a story about the "Takers". She is curious to know more and ventures out to learn more about them. However, she unwittingly leads the Takers back to her home. Kirra ends up losing everything she holds dear. In the aftermath, she is found by a child named Luwan. She is adopted by his family and becomes a part of their Tree Folk clan.

Afraid of the past, Kirra keeps to herself and hides her past from everyone. She no longers wants to leave the safety of home to find new adventures. Luwan loves to explore and he is captured when he went spying on a group of strangers. Kirra realizes the Takers have returned and she must face her inner demons if she wants to protect those she loves.

The novel was a fun and emotional read. I love the graphic photos that were included but, I wished they were included with the story instead of a section in the book. The main character was a fierce child who learned the values of loss, community, and forgiveness. I am hoping they turn this book into a series. I am excited to see Kirra grow and forge her own stories.

**Disclosure - I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest opinion. This post may contain affiliate links which means I earn advertising and/or referral fees if you purchase an item through my link. Please note, there will be no extra charges to you. Thank you for your support.**

 

About The Book:
Title: IF WE WERE GIANTS
Author: Dave Matthews & Clete Barrett Smith
Pub. Date: March 3, 2020
Publisher: Disney-Hyperion
Formats: Hardcover, eBook
Pages: 304

World-renowned musician, environmentalist, and humanitarian Dave Matthews, in collaboration with popular children’s book author Clete Barrett Smith, has conjured an exciting and poignant fantasy about a girl who must confront her past mistakes before she can save her peaceful community from a gigantic threat.

Kirra, a curious, agile, and outgoing girl, lives in an idyllic community hidden inside a dormant volcano. She and her father are the only two people allowed to venture beyond its walls. Kirra is in training to become a Storyteller like him, and together they travel from village to village spreading fearsome tales designed to keep outsiders away from their secret nest. One day, after hearing rumors of strangers called the “Takers,” Kirra leaves the volcano by herself, hoping to discover her own story. But she unknowingly leads the Takers back to her doorstep, and they rob her of everything she has ever held dear. A devastated Kirra is found by a boy named Luwan and adopted into his family, which lives among others high in the trees of a dense forest. Now quiet and withdrawn, Kirra hides her dark past from everyone and never wants to leave the safety of her tree dwelling. Luwan, on the other hand, loves to explore. One day it leads to trouble: He is captured while spying on a group of strangers. The Takers have returned. To save the Tree Folk, Kirra must face her inner demons and summon all her storytelling to weave the most important tale of her life. This compelling novel about overcoming loss, embracing community, and living in harmony with nature is highlighted with a full-color insert of concept artwork, making it perfect for family sharing.

Dave & Clete Talk about IF WE WERE GIANTS


YouTube Link:



About Dave:
Dave Matthews has chronicled his life’s travels so often that when asked, he can rattle off the details without pause. It goes like this:

Born in Johannesburg, South Africa, in 1967. Moves two years later with his family to Westchester County, NY, where his dad, a physicist, goes to work for IBM. Then, in the early `70s, to Cambridge, England, before returning to New York — where his dad died in 1977. The family moved back to South Africa in 1980, where Matthews went to a few different schools and “got more wise about the evils of government, there and in general.” O.K.; pause for a breath.

The key move for Dave Matthews Band fans, of course, was when he relocated in 1986 to Charlottesville, VA, where his parents had lived before he was born. Though he also logged time back in South Africa and in Amsterdam, it was in Charlottesville where Matthews — who took piano lessons as a child before picking up the guitar at age nine — became part of the local music community and hatched the idea for his own band.

“I didn’t really have a vision, or a plan,” says Matthews, acknowledging that some of his musical sensibility came from spending time in so many different places as a child. “I’m sure it gave me a little bit of an openness. The most diverse music in the world is in America, ’cause there’s so many different cultures here, but what tends to be pushed to the top is often a narrow view of what there really is. So maybe (his travels) just gave me a wider pool of listening.”

Matthews says his principal goal with the band was to surround himself with the best players possible. To this day he remains “amazed” that he was able to recruit and retain the four musicians he rather modestly refers to as his superiors. “I was just looking for people that I liked,” explains Matthews, who feels he’s “gotten a bit better” over the years. “Could I play with them was more of the question, I think. We just ended up fitting together. The band wasn’t something that I was looking for; it was very much I loved the people I asked to play with me. There was a connection at the beginning, and I think what we’ve been about is not some grand scheme but more the spirit of everyone, which is why we ended up with this band and why it sounds like it does.”

Dave Matthews photo credit Brantley Gutierrez




About Clete:
Clete Barrett Smith’s first novel for teens, Mr. 60%, will be released by Crown Books in August, 2017. Smith has also written four humorous middle grade adventures: Aliens on Vacation Alien on a Rampage, Aliens in Disguise, and Magic Delivery. Aliens on Vacation was released by Disney-Hyperion Books for Children in May, 2011 and named an American Booksellers Council “New Voices” selection as one of the top middle grade novels of the year by a debut author; and AOV was nominated for state award lists in Texas, Florida, Washington, Pennsylvania and Nebraska. A lifelong resident of the Pacific Northwest, Clete Barrett Smith taught English, Drama and Speech at the high school level for over twenty years. Clete received his MFA in Writing for Children and Young Adults from the Vermont College of Fine Arts in 2010. He currently lives in Bellingham, Washington with his family.



Giveaway Details:
Three lucky winners will receive a finished copy of IF WE WERE GIANTS, US Only.

Giveaway Link:

Tour Schedule:

Week Five:
3/30/2020
Excerpt
3/31/2020
Review
 














Saturday, January 4, 2020

Book Review - The Refuge by Ann H. Gabhart


Photo Credit - Amazon

Darcie and Walter Goodwin decide to join the local Shaker village when a new cholera epidemic hits their area. The Shaker village seems to be immune to the disease and once, the threat passes, the Goodwins will leave the community. During a routine trip into town, Walter is killed in a riverboat accident.

Darcie is devastated by the news and but, she has nowhere else to go. She has no family and money along with being pregnant with a child. The Shaker community is celibate people who believe in marital relationships to be sinful.  Darcie feels isolated and alone because of her pregnancy. However, when Darcie crosses path with Flynn Keller and his daughter, will Darcie be able to find her path to happiness?

This was the first novel I ever read about the Shaker community. I thought some of their ideas were a bit "strange" especially, the procreation portion and referring to our parents as "sister" or "brother". However, I also like many of their ideas, such as, providing a haven for everyone, being an inclusive community, and ensuring everyone having a role to play. I liked all the characters except for one of the characters, who tried to murder someone and nothing happened to her. I liked that each of the characters was flawed but, found someone else or a community to help bring out the best of themselves.

**Disclosure - I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest opinion. This post may contain affiliate links which means I earn advertising and/or referral fees if you purchase an item through my link. Please note, there will be no extra charges to you. Thank you for your support.**