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Review Date: 8/25/2010
"This book introduces animal disguises involving camouflage and mimicry, in such animals as the zebra, polar bear, and caterpillar. I love this book series and this book is great. It is easy to read and easy for children to understand but is of interest to all ages. Includes facts and pictures that are very interesting and colorful. I highly recommend this book to everyone."
Review Date: 8/25/2010
"This is a great series. This book introduces the physical characteristics and habits of bears and pandas. The pictures and information about bears are fantastic and very interesting. They would appeal to all ages, not just younger readers. The book is easy to read and follow and very educational and entertaining."
Review Date: 8/25/2010
"I used this book with my son for our History/Social Studies curriculum. He loved it, and history became his favorite subject. It is interesting and broken up into easily read sections. It includes helpful skill building lessons with reading maps and tables and charts. It provided a good lesson in geography as well. I was very pleased with it and would highly recommend it to anyone who home schools or wants to add to their child's knowledge of history, culture, and/or geography."
Review Date: 9/13/2010
"This is a great art book for students, (primarily for elementary and middle school but beneficial to high school students as well). Does a good job of incorporating actual history with various art techniques. Provides a good variety of techniques and lessons. It's a fun way to cover art and history by involving aspects of CS Lewis' story of The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe. It is not necessary for students to have read the story or seen the movie to benefit from the lessons since lessons include art techniques that can be applied anywhere and history that covers medieval times, various countries, architecture, animal characteristics, weaponry, etc. I highly recommend it as an interesting way to teach art to students and engage them in cultural and historical learning at the same time."
Review Date: 6/5/2011
"This is an interesting book because it goes back to 1976 before the Arthur we've become used to seeing on PBS has been developed. It's a cute story about children accepting the way the look, even if they have something about them that is different. Children, who watch Arthur on PBS, may like seeing what an earlier version of Arthur looks like, as well as Francine and DW who are the only overlapping characters (other than Arthur's mom and dad) with the newer series. A funny thing for adults to note is that the "rhinologist" Arthur visits to get his nose redone, is actually a "rhino"."
Review Date: 6/26/2011
2 member(s) found this review helpful.
"I thought this was a very touching love story. The characters are so intriguing and likable and had a lot of depth to them. (I can't wait to read the stories about the secondary characters because they really drew me in, making me want to know more about them.) Through Lady Jocelyn, Putney did an excellent job of portraying the emotional damage that some people carry around all their lives when they have experienced traumatic events (in this case her parents' very nasty and public divorce, in addition to losing some people who were very close to her, all while she was at a very young age). Because of this, she decides to only enter into "safe" relationships where her emotions are not truly engaged. This comes crashing down when her "safe" marriage of convenience to a dying man falls through when he unexpectedly recovers. Her husband, David, does what he can to accommodate their bargain, but this becomes difficult when he falls in love with Jocelyn. It was very emotional when Jocelyn came face to face with her issues, and David was the perfect guy to end up with. I wish I could clone him. He had the perfect combo of passion, strength, patience, intelligence, sexiness, gorgeousness, humility. The list goes on and on."
Review Date: 9/29/2010
1 member(s) found this review helpful.
"This is Bk.2 in a series about the Montehue sisters who are descended from the legendary warrior, Boadicea. Bk. 1 is Love's Magic about the oldest sister, Celestia.
Bk. 3 is Boadicea's Legacy about the youngest sister, Ela.
This was a very enjoyable book to read, with a lot of humor in it. The whole twist on the Sleeping Beauty story was done well. The storyline is based on the premise that this very beautiful woman has been "cursed" with her beauty and only pursued by men because of her looks. She desires what she does not have - magic, which runs in her family, and which her two sisters have been gifted with. Ironically, she feels "less than" because all she has is her incredible beauty. Along comes the hero, who is partially blinded throughout the book and therefore cannot see what a beauty she is. He has been ordered to marry her by Prince John and solidify ties between her family and PJ. Based on misunderstood comments and his blurry vision, the hero assumes his wife-to-be is unattractive with very unpleasing features. He falls in love with her feistiness, wit, courage, intelligence, and compassion. Because of this, he continuously comes to her "rescue" to protect her from what he perceives to be piteous comments about her lack of beauty (when in fact, all the men around her are dumbstruck and half in love with her because they find her so attractive). I love the constant attempts on his part to try to make her feel pretty after he himself is the one who usually has just insulted her about her looks. In doing this, he digs himself deeper by making her sound even more unappealing. There's further misunderstanding and humor due to the fact that his knights don't realize he's partially blind and so they are confused by his comments alluding to her not being very desirable, when, in fact, it is obvious to all that she is.
If all of her books are this engaging, I can't wait to read the other books in this series."
Bk. 3 is Boadicea's Legacy about the youngest sister, Ela.
This was a very enjoyable book to read, with a lot of humor in it. The whole twist on the Sleeping Beauty story was done well. The storyline is based on the premise that this very beautiful woman has been "cursed" with her beauty and only pursued by men because of her looks. She desires what she does not have - magic, which runs in her family, and which her two sisters have been gifted with. Ironically, she feels "less than" because all she has is her incredible beauty. Along comes the hero, who is partially blinded throughout the book and therefore cannot see what a beauty she is. He has been ordered to marry her by Prince John and solidify ties between her family and PJ. Based on misunderstood comments and his blurry vision, the hero assumes his wife-to-be is unattractive with very unpleasing features. He falls in love with her feistiness, wit, courage, intelligence, and compassion. Because of this, he continuously comes to her "rescue" to protect her from what he perceives to be piteous comments about her lack of beauty (when in fact, all the men around her are dumbstruck and half in love with her because they find her so attractive). I love the constant attempts on his part to try to make her feel pretty after he himself is the one who usually has just insulted her about her looks. In doing this, he digs himself deeper by making her sound even more unappealing. There's further misunderstanding and humor due to the fact that his knights don't realize he's partially blind and so they are confused by his comments alluding to her not being very desirable, when, in fact, it is obvious to all that she is.
If all of her books are this engaging, I can't wait to read the other books in this series."
Review Date: 3/15/2011
"Enjoyable book to read. Heyer takes you from character to character for the possibilities of who the murderer may be. Along the way, you get a great picture of all the varied characters involved in the plot."
Bespelling Jane: Almost Persuaded / Northanger Castle / Blood and Prejudice / Little to Hex Her
Author:
Book Type: Paperback
24
Author:
Book Type: Paperback
24
Review Date: 12/21/2010
1 member(s) found this review helpful.
"I gave this book a 3 1/2, but only because I liked the last two stories. The funny thing is that I love the first two authors (Mary Balogh and Colleen Gleason), but I didn't care for their stories. I love Gleason's Gardella series, but I really didn't find much to like in her female lead. She was so silly, melodramatic, and immature that it was really hard for me to see the male lead developing any kind of interest in her, except as a scatter-brained pest. I did enjoy the last two stories by Krinard and Mullany, who I had never read before. For Krinard's story, it helped that I like Pride and Prejudice and the whole Darcy/Lizzy tension and storyline. The plot carried over well for this kind of redoing of the original story. Darcy being a vampire provided a good basis for the whole mystery surrounding him and his background; it also supported how quiet and serious and suspicious his character was. Mullany's story was a cute version of Emma reworked to include the supernatural. She was able to create likeable characters even in the short space of an anthology. Her story was good enough that I want to look up and read more of her books.
To be honest, although the anthology provided somewhat fun reading and was good enough to pass the afternoon, the stories really mean more if you are familiar with the original Jane Austen stories and can picture more of the backgrounds and plots of the stories. If you are not a fan of the original stories, you probably won't get much out of these."
To be honest, although the anthology provided somewhat fun reading and was good enough to pass the afternoon, the stories really mean more if you are familiar with the original Jane Austen stories and can picture more of the backgrounds and plots of the stories. If you are not a fan of the original stories, you probably won't get much out of these."
Between the Duke and the Deep Blue Sea (Royal Entourage, Bk 1)
Author:
Book Type: Mass Market Paperback
32
Author:
Book Type: Mass Market Paperback
32
Review Date: 7/1/2012
1 member(s) found this review helpful.
"This is one of the best books I've read in awhile. It has a great and extended cast of characters, and it's easy to love them all. I enjoyed the main couple so much and fell completely in love with them. I didn't want their story to end. There is a lot of humor in this story, which makes it highly entertaining, and there are a lot of side characters that I can't wait to read about in the future. I highly recommend this book if you want a fantastic historical romance with lots of wit and a hero and heroine you pull for from beginning to end."
Review Date: 1/25/2011
1 member(s) found this review helpful.
"I liked this collection of short stories. I've never read anything by this author before. She did a good job of creating a world where vampires exist, and humans are aware of their existence. All three love stories involve a different situation where romance with a vampire is involved. The first one is a story between a vampire and a human and deals with the dynamics that exist with the misperceptions and fears the human has of the vampire world/culture and the difficulties this creates for cultivating a relationship between them. The second involves the conversion of a human to a vampire and how the romantic relationship weathers this change. The third story gives an opportunity for a vampire to see what it would be like for her romantic relationship if she had never become a vampire. All three stories give good insight into problems and issues that most relationships face, just with the twist of involving vampires. The stories flow together since they are all at Christmas time and have a common character, a matchmaking vampire who is friends with all the characters.
I liked her stories so much that I looked up the list of her books. I was very surprised to see that her books up to this point are not paranormal romances. I hope to see her write some books with the paranormal romance theme in the future because she did a good job with this genre in this book."
I liked her stories so much that I looked up the list of her books. I was very surprised to see that her books up to this point are not paranormal romances. I hope to see her write some books with the paranormal romance theme in the future because she did a good job with this genre in this book."
Review Date: 1/26/2011
"This book gave helpful background information and helped fill in the blanks about what happened when some characters disappeared and how characters became who or what they are. For example, the book told about when Dylan disappeared, and it gave background information on Kingsley. It helped also to get you up to speed if, like me, over the course of reading all the books, you've lost track of some of the details of the story. I liked the glossary and history of characters, as well. I liked seeing the history of names that each character had lived under, as well as who their conduit and familiars were. Interesting reading for people who are fans of this series."
Review Date: 8/29/2011
"Another good book in this series. I read Beauty's Curse and loved it. This book didn't have the same amount of humor that Beauty's Curse (it was a play on the Sleeping Beauty story) had, but it continued the legacy of a family of strong females who descend from the line of Boadicea, a queen who led Britain in revolt against the Romans in ancient times. This book covered the story of the youngest of three sisters, who have inherited the skills and heart of a warrior from their famous ancestor, as well as gifts of healing, reading auras, and foreseeing the future. I look forward to reading the story of the last sister in Love's Magic and seeing what aspect of Boadicea's legacy she is charged with maintaining and protecting.
This story left off with the potential for more books. Ela is charged by Boadicea to find ancestors of her other daughter who went into hiding after the last battle against the Romans where Boadicea was killed and her two pregnant daughters fought and escaped so they could carry on her line. I hope they come about. I would enjoy the continuation of this series."
This story left off with the potential for more books. Ela is charged by Boadicea to find ancestors of her other daughter who went into hiding after the last battle against the Romans where Boadicea was killed and her two pregnant daughters fought and escaped so they could carry on her line. I hope they come about. I would enjoy the continuation of this series."
Review Date: 10/11/2011
1 member(s) found this review helpful.
"This is the last book of a series of 4. The main characters have been 4 brothers whose dad is the most powerful god of the Underworld (a world where numerous gods and demigods exist). These brothers work for their dad as "Soul Reapers" - they tear out the hearts and steal the souls of evil people and deliver them to their dad, who feeds on evil and chaos. The series starts off with the murder of the youngest brother, Lokan. The brothers have a very strong connection and loyalty to one another, even though they were all born and raised at different times and places, with different mothers and foster families. That is one of the best things of these books, the relationship the brothers have with one another. Each book involves a brother finding his mate and a little more of the mystery is revealed throughout each story. Book Four concludes the mystery and gives backstory to fill us in on what happened and the history of the murdered brother, who had a daughter, an impossibility for a Soul Reaper. The brothers are all unique from one another in personality, as well as their mates being very different from each other. The author does a great job creating a world where demons, gods, demigods, and their henchmen all exist. There's a lot of politics involved between the Underworld powers, which causes complications and makes things all the more interesting.
Overall, this was a great series that I highly recommend. It is unlike other books I've read and is very creative and intriguing. Also unlike some books I've read, this series comes to a satisfying conclusion and ties together loose ends and answers questions that have been brought up all throughout the series."
Overall, this was a great series that I highly recommend. It is unlike other books I've read and is very creative and intriguing. Also unlike some books I've read, this series comes to a satisfying conclusion and ties together loose ends and answers questions that have been brought up all throughout the series."
The Bodyguard: Temptation on Ice / Temptation in Shadows / Hunting Temptation
Author:
Book Type: Mass Market Paperback
98
Author:
Book Type: Mass Market Paperback
98
Review Date: 1/22/2011
"I had never read any of these authors before. I enjoyed the stories enough that I would like to read more novels by them. I thought the characters were interesting, given the short space allowed for each story. They of course could've been fleshed out more if they had been given their own books. This anthology was worth spending the time and credit, and I recommend it to anyone who would like an entertaining way to spend an afternoon."
Review Date: 7/7/2011
"This is a super textbook to use for students in grades 2-3 (this is my best guess as to the grade level, I suppose advanced first graders or struggling 4th graders would be able to use it just as well). The book has a great variety of reading material that includes works by famous authors. The stories are illustrated in a very appealing way that would please any child. Each story has review questions, and a list of new words that are used is given at the start of each story. I like the selections chosen for the book. They provide a nice variety of fiction and nonfiction, as well as using a variety of literary devices (poetry, plays, stories, articles, etc.). I recommend this book for homeschoolers or anyone who would like to supplement and provide additional reading materials for their children or anyone who tutors kids in reading."
Review Date: 11/21/2010
"First let me say that I liked this book; I gave it a 4 out of 5. It was a good story with likeable characters. Having said this, even though this is a stand alone story, I felt like I was missing out on pertinant background info from the previous book (Mistress by Mistake). The main characters from that book played a significant role in this book. They were not pivotal to the story, necessarily, but there is a strong friendship that exists between the two main male characters. This is relevant because the trustworthiness of the main male character's friendships are called into question. I wanted to know what history of their friendship, if any, existed in the previous book. (I haven't read the first book so maybe this is completely irrelevant).
I had questions about the friend's wife as well because the bloodlines and "worthiness" of being considered as a wife of a titled gentleman was an issue with the female lead in this book. Certain comments call into question the pedigree of the friend's wife, but there's no background info given about her. It mattered to me only because she was well established as the "lady" of the house of the friend who is an earl, if I remember correctly, yet some people refer to her and her family in a derogatory way. If it is ok for her to come from a questionable background and be so seemingly accepted, then why doesn't the same apply to the heroine of this book. Also there are familial relationships referred to that aren't all that clear, even when things are revealed in the end. The author also has some of the characters giving strange and familiar looks to one another which infer a history between characters that is never really addressed. Some of this sets up the next novel to follow, which picks up with a few of the characters and apparently their story happens along the same timeline as this one, but I felt in the dark some of the time because of these comments or "hints" to other happenings. All in all, it was a good book. Maybe I'm just too hung up on trying to understand all the interactions and relationships that are alluded to. I recommend this book to other readers, but I do think that I (and possibly others) will get a better feel for it after reading the first, and possibly third, book that goes along with this one."
I had questions about the friend's wife as well because the bloodlines and "worthiness" of being considered as a wife of a titled gentleman was an issue with the female lead in this book. Certain comments call into question the pedigree of the friend's wife, but there's no background info given about her. It mattered to me only because she was well established as the "lady" of the house of the friend who is an earl, if I remember correctly, yet some people refer to her and her family in a derogatory way. If it is ok for her to come from a questionable background and be so seemingly accepted, then why doesn't the same apply to the heroine of this book. Also there are familial relationships referred to that aren't all that clear, even when things are revealed in the end. The author also has some of the characters giving strange and familiar looks to one another which infer a history between characters that is never really addressed. Some of this sets up the next novel to follow, which picks up with a few of the characters and apparently their story happens along the same timeline as this one, but I felt in the dark some of the time because of these comments or "hints" to other happenings. All in all, it was a good book. Maybe I'm just too hung up on trying to understand all the interactions and relationships that are alluded to. I recommend this book to other readers, but I do think that I (and possibly others) will get a better feel for it after reading the first, and possibly third, book that goes along with this one."
Review Date: 12/3/2010
"Great book. The main characters were very likeable and charming. Chandler Preswick was adorable the way he acted like a lovesick schoolboy, sneaking around to try to see Millicent, rather than an experienced rake and confirmed bachelor. I liked the fact that both characters were always honest about how they felt about each other. There wasn't any coyness or heavy drama, just a lot of witty and fun banter. It was entertaining to read their interactions. They were both clever and sweet characters. Altogether it was a fun regency romance to read that leaves you feeling light and with a smile on your face."
Review Date: 11/1/2010
"Second book in the series. I enjoyed it, and am going right into the third one immediately. As other reviewers have stated, not a lot of progress is made in Mira's relationship with Danaus (at least not romantically), but I'm taking this in stride realizing this is a series that will stretch the story over quite a few novels and so a slow building and revealing is to be expected. I see this as no different than Harry Potter and other series where more questions are raised than answered until the very end. I do think some important issues were faced between the way Danaus and Mira relate to one another. I think they will continue to face future crises that test how they are bound to one another as they seek to establish once and for all what their true relationship is to one another - temporary allies, ultimate enemies, reluctant friends, possible lovers? I think this will be clear to us in the future, and I'm just patiently waiting for the puzzle pieces we've been given so far to fall into place and fit together. There is a lot of vampire politics in book 2, but again, I think this is necessary for us to ultimately understand the big (final?) picture. I think enough plot and action were provided to give a good story, and I liked the further involvement and development of secondary characters from the first novel, as well as the introduction of a few new characters. I liked learning more about Mira's history, and although questions still remain, I believe all will be revealed in future novels. I look forward to Danaus's history being explained in future novels, as well. We're given intriguing tidbits about him in this book that I can't wait to learn more about (**Spoiler Alert: More to come on the boris and his relationship to them, I'm sure). All in all, there's a lot to look forward to in future books, and I can't wait to continue the story/series."
Review Date: 11/21/2011
2 member(s) found this review helpful.
"Fantastic book! It kept me riveted the whole time. The author has a very witty, humorous, and clever style with her writing, and this was how the dialogue between the characters went. I loved it. There was constant mystery between the characters and with the story as a whole. There was also lots of action, intrigue, and suspense. All the characters involved, primary and secondary, were very interesting, and it was easy to fall in love with them. The author did a great job painting a very vivid picture of her characters and the political and physical landscape they lived in."
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