Book Talk: I HATE This Question So Much!!

I LOVE to read. I love books; the smell of books and being surrounded by them are actually one of my favorite things in the world. Glade needs to step up their game and give a musty book scented candle. lol. Being that I read so much there is one question that I'm asked from time to time and it drives me insane.

What is your favorite book?

What? Excuse me? What is my favorite book? Are you insane?! I can't answer that question. I have so many books that are near and dear to my hear that I can't possibly answer with ONE book. So here are TEN of my favorite books. I had to limit myself or this post would never go live. lol.

1. Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery - This is by FAR one of my favorite books. This is one of the first chapter books I ever read. Anne was an amazing character and I loved how her story evolved through the rest of the books. If you have decided not to read Green Gables because the fact that she is a tween then I suggest you do it. It's a great coming of age story that will make you laugh and then sob like a baby.

2. Kiss an Angel by Susan Elizabeth Phillips - This is a romance novel! I love Phillips' novels. But Kiss an Angel had me falling in love with the heroine. Everyone underestimated Daisy and she still came out on top in the end. Now, this was written many years ago so you have do have Dominate Hero who can get on a modern girl's nerves, but give it a try!

3. First Grave on the Right (Charley Davidson Book 1) by Darynda Jones - This book is so fun! The heroine is the GRIM REAPER! I love it! There are 13 books in this series and I recommend each one of them. This is also a romance story but it has some action and a lot of funny scenes as well.

4. The Sherbrooke Bride by Catherine Coulter - One of my favorite books and I've read it at least 50 times. Our Heroine takes the place of her much more popular sister and marries the man of her dreams...and he's set on annulling the marriage. It's a great fun book with a Alpha hero and ton of fun characters that continue on into two other books. My favorite by far though is book one.

5. Nice Girls Don't Have Fangs (Jane Jameson series #1) by Molly Harper - What do you do when you get shot and die and wake up a vampire? Jane decides to make the best of it and hilariousness ensues. I love it. There is 3 books in this particular series but it spawns off into a ton of books and each one is interesting and different. I love Molly's sense of humor!

6. Slouch Witch by Helen Harper - I have no clue if Molly and Helen are kin, but they have very similar senses of humor. Slouch Witch is the first in the Lazy Girl's Guide to Magic and there are 3 books and a little novella. Seriously cool series and I love Ivy's back story and the way she takes up for herself. Ivy is a very talented witch who steers clear of The Order until a case of mistaken identity binds her to them...literally.

7. The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett - One of my first go-tos! I read this book once a year usually in the spring time and it always takes me back to my childhood. I love the movie as well. When a privileged girl loses her family and then starts to live with her uncle she discovers a few skeletons in her new closet. It is fun and it does make you think and there is a fabulous garden.

8. One for the Money by Janet Evanovich - Stephanie, lingerie buyer turned bounty hunter (by accident), suddenly has to learn to navigate a new world she never knew existed. And if you know me you know that this book has laugh after laugh. An eccentric grandma, a weird boss and a new hooker best friend is only a few things you will read in this series. This series has lasted for over 25 books so I'm not the only one that fell in love with the characters and eccentricity of the book.

9. Too Much Temptation by Lori Foster - This is NOT her best book. She a ton of others that I love as well but I reread this one and it holds a special place in my heart. It is the very first romance novel I read that had a heroine that was plus sized. Not that they actually say what size she is but it's heavily hinted at. Grace is shy and a chunky and offers her friendship to Noah who is hot and very experienced when he and his girlfriend break up. It's a great story and I love the fact that Grace isn't your typical romance novel heroine.

10. Are you there, Vodka? It's Me, Chelsea by Chelsea Handler - The only non-fiction book on this list. This is a collection of stories from Chelsea Handler and I laughed so hard I cried in some of these. These are stories from her life and relationships so you know it's bound to be hilarious.


And there you have it! I can easily shell out at least 30 more books but these are my top ten books that I reread yearly. What are yours? I'm always looking for new books to read and I read all genres. Except those weird reverse harem secret baby long lost love novels. I hate those. lol. 

Book Review: Accidental Sire by Molly Harper

If you know anything about me you know I love a good Paranormal Romance. Vampires, Werewolves, Witches, Wizards and so on. I read pretty much anything you give me but I definitely have my favorites and Molly Harper has been on my radar for a few years. I discovered her through her Jane Jameson trilogy and I've stuck with her as much as I could.

I was so excited to get enough digital credits from Amazon to be able to buy Accidental Sire. I had read a lot of mixed reviews claiming it was just like all her other novels and I scoffed at that because Molly always gives me something new and interesting in Half-Moon Hollow and she didn't disappoint me with Accidental Sire. I hadn't read premise like this before and it was extremely interesting. Girl Meets Boy. Girl Likes Boy. Girl Gets Killed in an Extreme Frisbee Game. Girl Becomes a Vampire. Girl Bites Boy. You can see, it's definitely not he usual vampire fare. Also Meagan and Ben are NOT normal vampires.

I loved the heroine. Meagan was sarcastic and snarky just like I like and she didn't back down. I love a strong female lead. The boy on the other hand got on my nerves a bit. He just seemed whiny as hell in the beginning but I can live with that as long as my strong female lead takes control, which she did in a spectacular way. About midway through the book Ben has a change of heart and starts acting like a man so I'm happy with that.

There is some underlying mystery which also kept me intrigued, not everyone is as they seem so once the pieces of the puzzle start coming together it creates a very interesting picture.

I did enjoy where the book took me. It was pretty interesting the situation that Meagan finds herself in. I will say that the end was a little underwhelming for me, I guess I was expecting more retaliation. lol. But it's a great book and if you like a light vampire romance this then is for you. No brooding (except of the teenage) kind found anywhere.

I paid for this book with my own money. (Well, with digital rewards from Amazon) so this book is in no way sponsored. I pride myself on being honest with my reviews whether the book was given to me or not and in this case...I just wanted to share another Molly Harper novel!

You can also join me on GoodReads! I love sharing my book posts and entering the giveaways there. Let's read together!

Book: Accidental Sire (Half Moon Hollow Book 15)

Author: Molly Harper 

Print Type: eBook 

Page Count: 291

Book Type: Romance, New Adult Romance, Paranormal

Do you want to buy this book? It's available on Amazon!  It has a price of $5.99 for the Kindle version. I read all of my books with the Kindle App.

Book Review: Martha's Flowers by Martha Stewart & Kevin Sharkey

Oh, Martha, Martha, Martha! You slay me with your knowledge and your beautiful DIY's and talent, and now you have handed me a fantastic book on gardening. I thank you deeply, you Majestic Woman!

I was excited to have the opportunity to receive a copy of Martha's new book and when it arrived today I could just imagine me sitting outside this spring tinkering in my Martha Stewart garden and making window boxes. Alas, I was a bit disappointed. Don't get me wrong, this book is beautiful. It seems to me that each flower has it's own "Chapter" with a few pages of how to grow the flower and how to arrange it. The photos are phenomenal. It read a bit dry to me though. I was expecting something different and that's my own fault I guess. I would recommend this as a coffee table book, or if you are really into flowers you will LOVE it. There really is a good amount of information here but it's not like other books I've had from Martha Stewart.

I was expecting some awesome DIY's and some helpful tips that can make me look like an amazing Suzie Homemaker. What I got was 288 pages of dry reading. Now, I will try to read some of this and report back what I think about the text, but right off after the first few pages, I'm going to struggle. Just so you know this is ALL FLOWERS. There are no fruits of vegetables mentioned.

Here are a few specs on the book. It is hardbound and beautifully so. The pages are thick and the photos are gorgeous. The book is bigger than a normal sized book, it would make a great decor piece on your table.

Flower Enthusiasts rejoice, this book is everything you will ever want. :)


I received this book from Blogging for Books for this review.

Book: Martha's Flowers

Author: Martha Stewart with Kevin Sharkey

Print Type: Hard Cover Book 

Page Count: 222

Book Type: Gardening, DIY, House and Home

Do you want to buy this book? It's available on Amazon!  It has a price of $28.46 for hardcover or $19.99 for the Kindle version.

Book Review: Daisy Cakes Bakes by Kim Nelson

I love Shark Tank! They always have some of the most interesting people and pretty awesome products. I'm not a fan of Mr. Not-So-Wonderful but the show really does give people an opportunity to get their product out there on the market.

One of Shark Tank's ingenious entrepreneurs was Kim Nelson from Daisy Cakes. She is a fabulous baker that was sending her cakes all over the country through a website she had created but she wanted a little guidance from one of the sharks. She became an instant celebrity because everyone fell in love with her Southern charm and fabulous looking cakes!

Well, Kim has arrived! She has given us this wonderful cookbook filled with classic recipes that will remind you of Christmas at Grandmas. Cakes, pies, cookies and even frosting recipes fill this book. There are over 100 recipes and 60 photos to guide you into your own mini home bakery! I remember Kim from the show and how she was so hopeful that one of the sharks would take her own and Barbara took her on! I love Barbara she is always looking for strong female women entrepreneurs and she found that in Kim.

Now that we have a little bit of background out of the way, let's get on to this glorious cookbook. I recognize about 90% of these recipes as I am a South Carolina girl as well and this book speaks to my childhood. The recipes are easy to follow and I know right off that they will be just like my Grandmother used to make. I'm very partial to the cakes in the book, but don't get me wrong, everything looks amazing!

The pictures are phenomenal and detailed, not every recipe has one but more than half do and I adore a good photo for a recipe. It tells me what my end result should be. Just about every recipe comes with a little anecdote that sheds light on why and how Kim makes these delicious creations. She's phenomenally intelligent and you can tell right away that THIS is the woman you want to be manning your dessert table during special occasions. But we can't all have Kim, so she's blessed us with a very detailed easy to follow recipe book that should make us all Southern bakers! (Make sure to check out pages 29, 99, and 112!)

As soon as you open the book you are going to want to break out the baking pan and get started, I know I am!


I received this book from Blogging for Books for this review.

Book: Daisy Cakes Bakes

Author: Kim  Nelson

Print Type: Hard Cover Book 

Page Count: 224

Book Type: Cook Book

Do you want to buy this book? It's available on Amazon!  It has a price of $16.51 for hardcover or $13.99 for the Kindle version.

Book Review: Buzzfeed's Tasty Latest & Greatest

Do you know those awesome little recipe videos you see ALL the time on Facebook? You know the ones I'm talking about. Usually, a few minutes long, and the food looks so yummy and easy!

Well, TASTY are the people who make those videos. They are actually created by Buzzfeed and this is one of their most popular segments. I have tried several of their recipes just by watching their videos but now...they have an OFFICIAL COOKBOOK!! Super exciting and I'm happy to have received this to take a look at it.

And it's amazing! The book is literally chock full of recipes, some pages having multiple recipes. The pro's to this book definitely outweigh the cons. I love that it encompasses everyone. From Fidget Spinner Cookies to Baked Ratatouille to Chicken Pot Pie, the recipes read easily with detailed instructions that anyone could follow. This is the videos we love to watch so much in print form. I have created a shopping list for at least 5 recipes and I know they will taste amazing. I've never owned such a more user-friendly cookbook. It's definitely one to have. Whether you are a novice or an experienced cookie or baker you will want to add this to your collection.

My one complaint is that there are a lot of photos but some of the items I wished had photos didn't. So things like Sliders had photos...but then something more complicated such as Lasagna ring didn't. I would much prefer to see what the Lasagna ring was as opposed to a slider because I know what a sandwich looks like. lol.

Another con to the book is there is no nutritional information.

But besides those two things, this book is awesome. I totally recommend it to anyone looking to try different, easy recipes. Such a family friendly book to have!

I received this book from Blogging for Books for this review.

Book: Tasty Latest and Greatest

Author: Buzzfeed

Print Type: Hard Cover Book 

Page Count: 192

Book Type: Cook Book

Do you want to buy this book? It's available on Amazon!  It has a price of $16.16 for soft cover or $13.99 for the Kindle version.

Book Review: Power Plates by Gena Hamshaw

With my new year's resolution, I promised myself I'd diet, lose weight, get a revenge body and generally kick butt. To help me with this I've started taking vitamins, doing yoga and looking at food in a whole new way. Enter Power Plates by Gena Hamshaw.

This book is chock full of nutritionally balanced vegan meals. Am I Vegan? No. But sometimes you got to cut out some of the protein and processed crap to find your inner self.

What I love most is that each recipe has a beautiful photo and a very detailed recipe to follow. I absolutely love the photos and the recipes are amazing!!           

The White Chili recipe is definitely on my shopping list and with over 200 pages there are 100 recipes to choose from! I'm not Vegan, but this book is full of recipes I can't wait to try. the book is heavy and the pages are thick. It's one of the beautiful recipe books I've ever owned and I can't wait to start cooking some of this healthy food for my family. Butternut Squash, Zucchini, Quinio, garlic, spinach...you wouldn't think to cook these foods in the manner this book gives you but it comes together beautifully and with so many strong flavors you know each one is delicious.

I would definitely recommend this book to any Vegan looking for new recipes or any non-vegan who wants to explore clean eating and weight loss! I'm on my own weight loss journey which is what drove me to order this book. It's phenomenal!

I received this book from Blogging for Books for this review.

Book: Power Plates

Author: Gena Hamshaw

Print Type: Hard Cover Book 

Page Count: 256

Book Type: Cook Book, Vegan

Do you want to buy this book? It's available on Amazon!  It has a price of $16.16 for soft cover or $13.99 for the Kindle version.