#review Cade (MacKenzie Security) #bookaddict #amreading

May10

Cade (MacKenzie Security Book 1) 

Synopsis
Cade MacKenzie is prepared to give his life to destroy the cartel that killed his lover, but the only way to draw them out is to present them with the perfect bait.

Bayleigh Scott has no idea who her new neighbor is, only that her body is drawn to him in ways she can’t explain, and the danger that surrounds him isn’t the deterrent she knows it should be.

More than fireworks explode between Cade and Bayleigh when she discovers the real reason he relentlessly pursued her, but by then it’s too late, because she’s already been drawn into a deadly game of desire, deception and revenge.

Opinion
I was excited about reading this book because I thought I would be able to identify. My hubby could be described as surly and I am bubbly. I wanted to read OUR story. We have a happy marriage, so I knew I happy ending is possible.

This was not that kind of story.

The start of the story was promising. When a job went wrong, Cade’s cover was blown and his girlfriend at the time was killed by a drug lord. I was still on board. He has angst, guilt, and grief as to why he cannot love another.
Enter Bayleigh. Her brother warns her to stay far away from Cade, but she ignores that to pursue a relationship with her surly neighbor.
She wants the forbidden fruit. OKAY. Still on board.

But then everything fizzled out. It was probably one the most predictable book ever with their insta-lust. If they were in the same room, they had no self-control to get it on.

There were (what I thought) gaping plot holes in the suspense/mystery. It seemed that Cade left himself vulnerable a lot of times. Plus, why did he start a relationship with Bayleigh when he knew the drug lord was capable of doing?

Most notable plot hole was at the end when there should have been a showdown between Cade and drug lord, the drug lord disappears. It was like a Bond movie where the villain is so confident the person is going to die, so he leaves. Am I to believe that? It is like the author did not know who to finish the scene and thought the readers could use their imagination and create their own ending.

By the end, I was soured on Cade and Bayleigh. Yea I get it. They like to have a lot of sex. But that is about all they do.

TOW Final Word: Buy, Borrow, Pass?
PASS but BORROW if you like insta-lust stories. To me, the book had so much potential but did not deliver.

Book details
Series MacKenzie Security
Book length: 221 pages
Heat level: 🔥 🔥 🔥


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Foodie Friday: Nahm Thai Cuisine #thairestaurant #alpharettaga #foodie #goodeats

Apr27

 

Welcome to the latest edition of FOODIE FRIDAY!

It has been ages that I have posted about a restaurant. The main reason is that I have been so busy and it has been hard for me to find the time to upload all my pictures. Recently, I decided that I would post using my cell phone and I think that is going to help considerably.

The other day, I was in Alpharetta, GA for work and my colleagues suggested we go to Nahm Thai Cuisine. Since they have been highly rated on many food sites, I was eager to try them out.

For an appetizer, I ordered the sampler trio which had shrimp tempura, corn fritter, and pork dumplings.

TOW Opinion: I liked all three. They were paired with sauces that were a delicate mix of sweet, spicy, and salty. My favorite would have to be the shrimp. I should have ordered a plate of just that! Perfect tempura can be difficult to find, but Nahm knows how to get the flavors right every time.
***Allergy warning for the dumplings: They were garnished with peanuts. Since it was just sprinkled on top, I removed that layer and ate the bottom ones.

     

For my main course, I ordered Massaman chicken curry. If you have never had Massaman, the paste is first fried with coconut cream, and only then are meat, potatoes, onions, fish sauce or salt, tamarind paste, sugar, coconut milk and peanuts added. And topped with avocado.

Massaman is usually eaten with rice, in a meal together with other dishes.

They added cashews instead of peanuts. I asked for them to leave off the nuts, but they did not.

 

TOW Opinion: I ordered medium heat and it was just right. I did think it was too sweet and I did not have enough rice to balance out the sweetness. The potatoes were not fully done all the way through.  I still enjoyed the food. I took home my leftovers and ate later after cooking some more rice. Even better then next day!

 

Guest Hope Clark talks about #journaling #guestpost

Apr25

This guest post is by C. Hope Clark from www.chopeclark.com

Q&A a Day: Five Years of Finding Yourself

                     When I hear that someone has journaled for years, I instantly admire them. For no other reason than they held themselves to a regimen, I find them incredibly in tune with themselves. They are living life, noting its lessons, and probably improving themselves in the process.

Presidents do it. Many authors do it, which makes me feel guilty since I’m an eight-book published mystery author, with a couple of nonfiction books thrown in for good measure. I’ve been writing for years, yet I could not find the discipline to write at the end of the day when I’m spent, probably having already written a couple thousand words for some story or feature.

Yet I’ve beat into my sons’ heads that journaling is a mental vitamin. I like to think I set an example, though abbreviated ones. I kept a journal for each of them, noting the year before they graduated high school, recording their highs and lows, and my accompanying highs and lows, my opinions and observations. Then I wrapped it and gave it to them when they went to college. One son continues to journal to this day, probably has for over 15 years, putting me to shame.

Then one Christmas, scrounging for a gift for my sons and nephew that reflected on my beliefs about writing and reading, I stumbled across Q&A a Day: 5-Year Journal in a Barnes & Noble.

Each day the journaler answers a question, almost in Twitter-style. With only four lines to post on, and the book being 4.25 x 6 inches in size, brevity is key. In other words, no excuse not to keep up with it. And you get to keep up with it for five years, each year answering the same question on the same day.

However, don’t dismiss short as lacking depth. For instance, January 1 (no year)’s question is “What is Your Mission?” In 2015, I spoke of enjoying life peacefully via writing stories and nature. No controversy.

Five years is a long time, and regardless our stage in life, we shift, bend, regroup and grow. That’s the magic of this journal, in my opinion. Taking the same question and watching how I advance through the years.

In 2016, I showed an eagerness to write prolifically, go to my favorite beach more often and research my new mystery series that’s set there.

In 2017, I set quite the goal of writing two novels and two nonfiction books in a year. Oh, and land a cable television deal.

Then in 2018, I wrote about how 2017 drained me with my parents’ diagnosis of Alzheimer’s and shredded my 2017 goals. Time to “define a new normal,” I said, “involving family and those I love.”

I look forward to seeing how I answer 2019. And no doubt that I’ll buy another book and start another five years. Q&A is the perfect journal for the non-journaler.

And there are derivations of the Q&A journal, as well.

All of these books are by Clarkson Potter, or Potter Gift. They are durable, which is nice considering you’ll handle these books daily for multiple years. There are copycat titles out there but look for the Potter Gift name.

Whether you’re a non-writer just eager to record the passing of time, or the writer who’s to spent to write epic journal entries, the Q&A a Day journal is a jewel for yourself and makes for a remarkable gift. I’ve given three in addition to purchasing my own, and all of us are still journaling away!

C Hope Clark

BIO: Mystery author C. Hope Clark’s newest release is Newberry Sin, set in an idyllic small Southern town where blackmail and sex are hush-hush until they become murder. The fourth in the Carolina Slade Mysteries. Hope speaks to conferences, libraries, and book clubs across the country, is a regular podcaster for Writer’s Digest, and adores connecting with others. She is also founder of FundsforWriters.com, an award-winning site and newsletter service for writers.  She lives on the banks of Lake Murray in central South Carolina with her federal agent husband where they spin mysteries just for fun. www.chopeclark.com

BLURB from Newberry Sin:

When a local landowner’s body, with pants down, is found near Tarleton’s Tea Table Rock—a notorious rendezvous spot, federal investigator Carolina Slade senses a chance to get back into the field again. Just as she discovers what might be a nasty pattern of fraud and blackmail, her petty boss reassigns her fledgling case to her close friend and least qualified person in their office.

Forced to coach an investigation from the sidelines, Slade struggles with the twin demons of professional jealousy and unplanned pregnancy. Something is rotten in Newberry. Her personal life is spiraling out of control. She can’t protect her co-worker. And Wayne Largo complicates everything when the feds step in after it becomes clear that Slade is right.

One wrong move and Slade may lose everything. Yet it’s practically out of her hands . . . unless she finds a way to take this case back without getting killed.

All links embedded in blog are TOW Amazon affiliate  links 

To buy on other platforms:

Kobo link https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/newberry-sin

B&N link https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/newberry-sin-c-hope-clark/1128369562

Google link https://play.google.com/store/books/details/C_Hope_Clark_Newberry_Sin

Apple link https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/newberry-sin/

Try It Tuesday – #Segwaytours #sandiego

Apr17

I was trying to decide what to choose for TRY IT TUESDAY and thought SEGWAY TOURS!

Segway Tours – San Diego
601 Pacific Hwy San Diego CA
619-889-4326

http://www.nationtours.com/

I had to go to San Diego for a conference. On the last day, sessions finished earlier enough that I could go a short tour of the downtown San Diego via a segway. I wondered if this was going to be a mistake considering I am not the most graceful person. Honestly, I cannot believe I have made it to almost 4 decades and not broken any bones. At this point, I am trying to broken bone free!

I chose the Little Italy and Waterfront tour. It took about 90 minutes. It cost $59 but if you have a large group, you can probably get a discount. I added the insurance in case I totalled my segway. At the time, I hoped I would not but, again, I was being realistic with myself. I will clip a corner in a minute.

After a brief introduction about segway safety, we were off.

The participants, with helmets firmly affixed, all headed single file down the sidewalk along the San Diego Embarcadero. We saw the entrance to the Gas Lamp district, went through a few parks, saw the PetCo baseball stadium, and finished our tour riding up along coast.

Surprisingly, my feet got tired from way I had lean up and down to maneuver the segway. I did not expect that. Also surprising to me was that I was quite agile on my segway. I even posed as if I was Rose on the Titantic at one point. Afterwards, I called my husband and told him we have to do a segway tour on our next vacation.

TOW Final Word: This was a fantastic way to see the downtown area and I am now hooked on segway tours! I cannot wait to do another in a different town.

#review Alion King Milly Taiden #romance #whattoread #bookaddict

Apr15

Alion King by Milly Taiden

Synopsis
Isabella Barca is great at organizing—not so great at keeping her nose out of trouble. When Bella goes to work as Mrs. Wilder’s assistant, the opportunity of a lifetime pops up: travel with Gerri to another planet, a shifter planet, and help Gerri find a lion king his mate.

Alyx Treyvaal isn’t known for being patient. A lion doesn’t ask for help. A lion doesn’t apologize. And he most certainly does not purr. But once he meets Bella, he finds himself doing all of the above…except for purring. He will not purr.

With wolves stirring all kinds of trouble for them and a cousin who would like to shred Bella to ribbons, things are not simple for the couple. Not at all. One thing’s for sure, when his mate is taken and threatened, the entire planet will hear the lion king’s roar.

Opinion
Alyx is a lion shifter and king in his world. He needs a mate and asks for a dating agency to help him find someone suitable. When he meets Bella, he introduces himself as a regular guy instead of telling her that he is king. I understand why Alyx did not tell Bella who he really was. I knew, predictably, that would backfire on him. He knew it too.

“Alyx was an Alpha, but he was not stupid.”

Bella went with her matchmaking boss through a portal to another galaxy world to help find a mate for a lion shifter king. Bella called him ALION because he was an alien and lion shifter. That cracks me up every time.

This book was entertaining but it was mainly an insta-love & lust romance. If it had not been for Alyx’s self-control, they would have been knocking boots on day one.

That being said, I still think that the author should have made Bella make him suffer a little more when she found out the truth about who he was.

TOW Final Word: Buy, Borrow, Pass?
BORROW. While the story is cute and humorous, it is not $3 worth. Sorry Milly!

Book details
Series: Paranormal Dating Agency
Heat Level: 🔥 🔥 🔥 🔥
Print Length: 186 pages



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