SubTitle: The Story of Little Red Riding Hood as Told by the Wolf
Publisher: Capstone
Imprint: Picture Window Books
Pub Date: 1 August 2011
ISBN: 9781404866737
Author: Trisha Speed Shaskan
‘Honestly Red Riding Hood Was Rotten’ written by Trisha Speed Shaskan was a highly entertaining and humorous picture book aimed for young readers.
It’s a fairy tale with a twist, where the story was told from the Big Bad Wolf point of view.
In this story, the wolf was portrayed as a vegetarian wolf who haven’t been eating as food is scarce while Red Riding Hood was portrayed as a little vain pot, just like her grandmother.
Very humorous kind of book, really, and a very refreshing approach to the classic fairy tale. It was beautifully illustrated as well with the wolf looking pitiful and the Red Riding Hood looking vain and annoying as ever.
I’ve loved stories like this; where the story is told from the bad people point of view. To me, there’s always two side of the same story and you ought to not just listen to the ‘good’ people’s version of the story. For what it’s worth, the villains are just poor, misunderstood characters.
I enjoyed this book very much, and highly recommended as a bedtime stories for both boys and girls age 5 years up.
I received an ARC of this book from Capstone publisher via Netgalley. I was not compensated in any ways for writing this review.
Susan Anderson is a genius. She made me laugh with this masterpiece of hers. ‘Playing Dirty’ is a rather witty romantic comedy with believable characters who are not above playing dirty to get things that they want. If they want something, they’d get it, by hook or by crook.
Frankly speaking, I think some fictions are not very far removed from reality. As far as I’m concern, alot of people are not above playing dirty to get what they want too.
Unlike reality where more often than not things ended up with devastation, heartbreak or a tragedy when people started to play dirty to get what they want, ‘Playing Dirty’ by Susan Anderson ended up with a happily ever after, like most fiction do.
I rate this book 4 out of 5 for the sheer reflection on today’s society and the nasty nature of some people’s heart.
I received an ARC of this book from Harlequin via Netgalley. I was not compensated in any ways for writing this review.
Book description:
When old enemies are thrown together, all bets are off…
Way back in high school, golden boy Cade Gallari publicly revealed he’d slept with “fat girl†Ava Spencer to win a bet. Now a decade older and a head turner with her own concierge business, Ava isn’t the gullible dreamer she once was— and she plans to prove it when Cade, hotter than ever, breezes back into town with an offer she can’t refuse.
A documentary film producer, Cade is shooting a movie about the mysterious mansion Ava inherited. And he wants her as his personal concierge. She’s certainly professional enough to be at his beck and call without giving him everything he wants. Like another shot at having her in his bed. But Ava doesn’t count on Cade’s determination. Because he’s never gotten over her— and he’s not above playing dirty to score a second chance at a red-hot future…
‘Tell Me More’ by Janet Mullany is a rather tasteful erotica. It is arousing, but not trashy in any ways like many adult fictions out there. It’s all about dirty little secrets as well as secret fantasy with a blend of nasty desires that the world would not approve of.
If you’re looking for some naughty read… or some dirty little secret that nobody would ever whisper into your ears for the fear of your disapproval, then this is the book that you ought to read.
Highly recommended for those who are bored or those who have nothing better to do with their boring sex life. This book will surely amuse you… if erotica tickles you fancy, that is.
I rate this book 3 out of 5 stars. I received an ARC of this book from Harlequin via Netgalley. I was not under any obligations to write a positive review for this book, and I received no compensation for doing this.
Book description:
Tell Me More…
Tell me every dirty detail….
Jo Hutchinson is obsessed with a man she’s never seen—only heard. Her late-night calls from the office to the mysterious “Mr. D.†grow increasingly intimate, until they finally become full-blown phone sex. Still, Jo doesn’t dare meet him. Instead, she embarks on a series of sizzling sexual escapades with other guys, sharing every sweaty moment with Mr. D. afterward, a passion-by-proxy arrangement they both get off on. But even as she’s charting brave new naughty worlds, Jo knows that it’s all really for Mr. D. Every pleasure she experiences—eagerly, athletically, vocally—is to please him.
Immersed in fantasy, reality just slips away—even the chance at that elusive combination of love and lust. Her new tenant, Patrick, an Irish hunk in geek’s clothing, is totally into her. And in her lucid moments, Jo knows she feels the same. Can she tear herself away from her kinky dreamworld long enough to appreciate what’s right in front of her? Or has Mr. D. ruined her for real life?
This book, ‘Notorious’ by Nicola Cornick is meant to be highly arousing. It’s a very naughty book to read, but at the same time, it reminds me of reality where there’s a lot of people who break the hearts of others on purpose and using one another purely for their own benefit while putting up a very sweet facade on the outside.
Very interesting read, and highly amusing. The story was well planned and the plot thickens perfectly to suit the dynamics of the characters in this story. If I were to rate this book, it will be a 4 out of 5 stars.
I received an ARC of this book from Harlequin via Netgalley. I was not compensated in any ways for writing this review and I was not under any obligation to give this book a positive review.
Book description:
When the ton’s most notorious heartbreaker…
Dangerously seductive and sinfully beautiful, Susanna Burney is society’s most sought after matchbreaker. Paid by wealthy parents to part unsuitable couples, she’s never yet failed to accomplish her mission of diverting a groom-to-be. Until her final assignment brings her face-to-face with the man who’d once taught her
an intimate lesson in heartache…
The Waiting Place by Eileen Button contains very enlightening stories. It made me think of my own life where there’s so much delays has been imposed on me and sometimes, I feel as if I could scream in agony, dissatisfaction and injustice.
But in ‘The Waiting Place’, we’re all taught on how to be patient and submit to God’s will, for whatever that had happened, surely happened for a reason, and more often than not, the reason is to show us truth and the evil around us so that we all could be more aware of our environment and learn whatever lesson that we must learn.
This book is absolutely fantastic, and I learn quite a deal from it. Highly recommended to people of faith who feel as if they need to find inner peace with themselves by not just making peace with people around them, but by being more aware of their surroundings.
I rate this book 4 out of 5 stars. I received an ARC of this book from Thomas Nelson Publisher in exchange of an honest review.
Book description:
A collection of essays describing the beauty and humor that can be found in what often feels like a most useless state—The Waiting Place.
We all spend precious time just waiting. We wait in traffic, grocery store lines, and carpool circles. We wait to grow up, for true love, and for our children to be born. We even wait to die. But amazing things can happen if we open our eyes in The Waiting Place and peer into its dusty corners. Sometimes relationships are built, faith is discovered, dreams are (slowly) realized, and our hearts are expanded.
With humor and heart-breaking candor, Eileen Button breathes life into stagnant and, at times, difficult spaces. Throughout this collection of essays she contends that The Waiting Place can be a most miraculous place—a place where beauty can be experienced, the sacred can be realized, and God can be found working in the midst of it all.
Includes stories on waiting for:
the day to end a place called home the fish to bite a baby’s healing church to be over a husband’s return children to grow a mother’s acceptance a loved one to die As Eileen says, “To wait is human. To find life in The Waiting Place, divine.”
If you like Indiana Jones or Robert Langdon, then you would probably like this biblical-adventure fiction written by Leonard Sweet and Lori Wagner. This is the kind of book that you will either will like it, or you just don’t.
Seraph Seal is full of symbolic prose and is rather fast paced, and it takes quite a lot to decipher the message behind this book.
Some people may not like this book, but I happen to like this book. To me, this book have quite a depth to it, and it was well researched. I like the biblical symbolism used and the foreshadowing in the story, and unlike Dan Brown’s stories, I did not feel guilty after reading it for the storyline was not blasphemous in nature.
Anyway, the book is well written for a biblical fiction, and I look for more of this kind of story from both of the authors.
I would recommend definitely recommend this to those of high taste for fiction. I rate this book 4 out of 5 stars.
I received this book from Thomas Nelson Publisher in exchange of an honest review. I was under no obligation to write a positive review for this book.
Book description:
An epic tale of good and evil based on the four horsemen of the Apocalypse found in Revelation.
Using the four horsemen of the Apocalypse to symbolize the four Gospels, four transcendentals, and four forces of the universe (air, water, earth, and fire), Sweet and Wagner weave a fast-paced, end-times tale of good vs. evil and the promise of a new dawn for humanity.
Set in 2048, when planet Earth is suffering from the damaging effects of years of misuse and abuse, cultural history professor Paul Binder receives a mysterious letter that leads him to examine a lost 2nd-century Diatessaron manuscript. Ancient prophecies, cryptic letters, and strange events set him on a course to uncover the missing clues that could lead humanity into a new age. Layered with forgotten symbolism from the ancient, Jewish, and Christian traditions, the novel is a type of engaged fiction in which the main character’s lost journal serves as a guide to the reader in interpreting clues and understanding the novel’s conclusion.
When I was a little girl, I was a very hard to impressed kind of child. I was quite a tough nut to crack, and it takes a lot to impress me. I am still like that. I am not easily swoon with admiration for people who glittered with glamour. No, that’s just not me. I admire things that’s larger than life, and things that not many people can do.
I admire unsung heroes. To me, anyone can be on TV… anyone can be famous and make it to the front page of a glossy magazine, but not many can be unsung heroes and tell extraordinary stories that will be etched in your memories forever.
When I was a child, I did not like the normal happily ever afters. I love adventures and queer stories that does not exactly involved a desperate princess who needs some rescuing. I like stories where princesses do some rescuing of their own.
I hate weak characters with a passion. And my father had to create stories for me for our bedtime story sessions. Thank God, though, I don’t hate all ready-written storybooks. One of the books that I loved to listen to when I was a child was ‘The Last Unicorn’ by Peter S. Beagle.
It’s a story filled with captivating magic and it never failed to enchant me every time. The Last Unicorn follows the journey of a unicorn and the unicorn’s discovery of reality, truth, love and adventure. It’s the kind of story that will intrigue a child, and I daresay, most adult as well. The Last Unicorn is the kind of story that not only will make you laugh, but touch your heart and make you cry as well.
I’ve forgotten about this story til recently I noticed that the book has been made into a comic book, and it’s for review on Netgalley. The Last Unicorn by Peter S. Beagle was given a new breath and published by IDW Publishing in 2011 and it’s livelier than ever.
I couldn’t help myself and requested it for review, and the illustration is superb and beyond my expectation.I fell in love with this story all over again, and it’s one story that I would not mind sharing with my boy during our bedtime story session.
Yes, people, I do tell bedtime stories to my son, despite the fact that he struggles to concentrate listening to the stories. Somehow, I have the kicks out of scaring him with stories that I made up as I go. I know it’s not a very good thing to tell the typical bedtime stories to your child, but then again… I’m sure he will appreciate it when he grows older. He get to tell people that his mum is unique and he had a hell of a childhood with her.
Mummies and daddies out there, do you tell bedtime stories to your children before they go to sleep? If you do, what is their favourite story? Do you read to them, or you made up stories as you go? Care to share with me your children’s favourite stories and your own personal favourite when you were children yourselves?
Disclaimer: I received an ARC of this book from IDW Publisher via Netgalley. I was not compensated in any ways for this review/write-up. I rate this book 5 stars.
Book description:
Whimsical. Lyrical. Poignant. Adapted for the first time from the acclaimed and beloved novel by Peter S. Beagle, The Last Unicorn is a tale for any age about the wonders of magic, the power of love, and the tragedy of loss. The unicorn, alone in her enchanted wood, discovers that she may be the last of her kind. Reluctant at first, she sets out on a journey to find her fellow unicorns, even if it means facing the terrifying anger of the Red Bull and malignant evil of the king who wields his power.
Adapted by Peter B. Gillis and lushly illustrated by Renae De Liz and Ray Dillon.
For more information on this title please refer below:
Cleffairy:Â Bedtime stories keep children’s imagination alive and help them believe in wondrous possibilities. Tell it to them before they grow up and start doubting the power of imagination.
‘How to Write A Book Proposal’ by Micheal Larson is a classic guidebook on how to write an effective proposal for your book so that it will be published by publishers.
As an aspiring author, I found that this book is rather useful though I already knew most of the things mentioned in the book.
The book is rather thick in my opinion, and I think some of the things ought to be ommitted from the book. But then again, it’s still a good reference book and I rate this book 3 out of 5 stars. Not necessarily a must have in everyone’s personal library, but might be helpful for aspiring authors like me.
Book description:
With more than 100,000 copies sold, How to Write a Book Proposal has been the go-to resource for getting your work published for almost 25 years. This Writer’s Digest classic from literary agent Michael Larsen outlines in a clear step-by-step manner how to create an effective nonfiction book proposal. The 4th edition of the book features information about recent changes in the publishing industry, updated trend information, new sample proposals, a completely updated resources section, and a new chapter on online promotion.
**Please note that this book is not explicitly Christian in content. If you are looking for a Christian Living titles featuring a large amount of faith-centered content, this titles may not be the best selection for you.
I received this ARC from Thomas Nelson Publisher. I was not compensated in any ways for writing this review.
Hotel Angeline is a very special novel. Why do I say so? Well, it’s special because it’s ONE story and was written by 36 authors live on stage. Yes you heard me right. The novel was written live, in front of audience. The result? Messy? Plot-less?
No… it’s nothing new messy or plot-less. In fact, the result was a brilliant, wacky, exhilarating and polished novel. The outcome of it was so wonderful that I wished that I was a part of it somehow, someway. You see, as an aspiring author, I’ve participated in various crazy writing events like NaNoWriMo and Script Frenzy. Those are events that will require you to churn out words for one month so that you can have a novel/script to hold by the end of the month. But what I’ve been doing is nothing in comparison to these 36 authors. What they did was outrageously crazy and challenging. Imagine writing about 150,000 words with your other fellow writers live on stage for just a week. That’s just… insane!
Any authors in the right mind would back out from this challenge… cuz if you’re going to churn out words like that… it’s definitely not going to be your best work. But these crazy people proved to us all that it’s possible and the outcome is even better than a well thought, well-planned novel that possibly took years to be completed and published.
Anyway, just so you know, Hotel Angeline is brought to the readers by Seattle7Writers, which created “The Novel: Live!†event. It’s one of a diverse range of not-for-profit, author-focused organizations receiving support from Amazon.com for programs dedicated to developing new works and new voices. Watch the video on how the idea of it comes to life.
Fifty percent of the proceeds from Hotel Angeline go directly back to the writing and reading community. Seattle7Writers will use these proceeds to award grants to worthy nonprofit organizations making a difference through literacy programs and support of the local arts.
Below is my review for Hotel Angeline:
Title: Hotel Angeline
SubTitle: A Novel in 36 Voices
Publisher: Open Road
Pub Date: 3 May 2011
ISBN:9781453212318
When I requested this book for review in Netgalley, I am not quite sure what to expect, considering that it’s one story written by 36 authors live. Yes… it’s just one story…not a collection of story. I was rather skeptic a with the end result even before I began reading.
I wondered if it will even have coherence, but much to my surprised, it’s not only decipherable, but the story is amazingly well written and I’m pleased to say it’s one of the best novel I’ve ever read. It’s highly entertaining, inspiring and not to mention, unpredictable in a good way. I was really hooked on the story and i find it hard to put down. This book, is a gem, a treasure and definitely a keeper.
If you’re a reader who is bored of the conventional novel with predictable plot, you might want to try reading Hotel Angeline. I daresay that you won’t be disappointed and will crave for more. I rate this book 5 out of 5 stars for not only the effort done by authors, but also for the sheer brilliance of it.
Book description:
Thirty-six of the most interesting writers in the Pacific Northwest came together for a week-long marathon of writing live on stage. The result? Hotel Angeline, a truly inventive novel that surprises at every turn of the page.
Something is amiss at the Hotel Angeline, a rickety former mortuary perched atop Capitol Hill in rain-soaked Seattle. Fourteen-year-old Alexis Austin is fixing the plumbing, the tea, and all the problems of the world, it seems, in her landlady mother’s absence.
The quirky tenants—a hilarious mix of misfits and rabble-rousers from days gone by—rely on Alexis all the more when they discover a plot to sell the Hotel. Can Alexis save their home? Find her real father? Deal with her surrogate dad’s dicey past? Find true love? Perhaps only their feisty pet crow, Habib, truly knows.
Provoking interesting questions about the creative process, this novel is by turns funny, scary, witty, suspenseful, beautiful, thrilling, and unexpected.
For more information on this project and where you can buy the book, please CLICK HERE.
I received a digital copy of this book from Open Road Publisher via Netgalley. I was not compensated in any ways for writing this review and I was under no obligation to write a positive review for it.
It’s difficult to read a book when you already know the story in it and it gets much more worst when you have high expectation from the book in question. That is what happened when I read this book, A Reluctant Queen: The Love Story of Esther by Joan Wolf.
The story of this book is based on the Biblical Queen Esther of Persia. This novel is very well written. Highly descriptive, inspiring and heartwarming, but since it’s based on a biblical story- The Book of Esther in the Old Testament, I can’t help but notice that certain things had been change to beautify the novel. For example, in most Bible translation, Mordecai is more recognized as Esther’s cousin who fostered her when her parents died, not her uncle. And there’s no mentioning Esther’s real name, Hadassah before she went to Ahasuerus harem and became the Queen of Persia. This book is pretty romanticized, I must say.
Perhaps if I ought to take this book as a fiction instead of a memoir or a biography of Esther, I would have been more satisfied.But then again, I’ll give credit where it’s due. It is difficult to write a story based on what people already know. This book is inspiring nevertheless and I enjoyed it very much. The author did a good job in bringing the Persian court and culture to life, and for that, I rate this book 3 out of 5 stars.
Book description:
An inspired re-imagining of the tale of Esther, a young Jewish woman thrust from a life of obscurity into a life of power, wealth, intrigue . . . and tender love.
See the story of Esther in an entirely new way-with all the political intrigue and tension you remember, but told as a passionate and tender love story between a young man and woman. Misunderstood by many, King Xerxes was a powerful but lonely man. Esther’s beauty caught the eye of the young king, but it was her spirit that captured his heart.
Imagine anew the story of Esther, one of our faith’s great heroines, destined to play a key role in the history of Christianity.
I received an ARC of this book from Thomas Nelson Publisher via Netgalley. I was not required to write any positive review for the book. For Booksneeze reviewers, this book will be available for review in May 2011. Do KIV for it if you’re interested.
