Sandra C. Lopez's Blog, page 186
May 14, 2022
Review: FRIENDS WITH BOYS by Faith Erin Hicks
The illustrations were nice, but would’ve liked them better in color. Having the drawings in black-and-white with the panels clustered and overlapping each other just made it a little difficult to read.
The story wasn’t quite as captivating as I thought it would be. It’s rather long and wordy. It’s all about the girl’s struggles in high school. It’s relatable, sure, but it just didn’t keep me vested in it.
Overall, this was an okay comic—certainly not the best.
Rating: 3 stars
Review: SHIRLEY AND JAMILA SAVE THEIR SUMMER by Gillian Goerz
Meet Jamila and Shirley—2 polar opposites.
This was a confusing story with too much text that was way too small to read. So you have to rely on the illustrations, which were nice.
Rating: 3 stars
May 9, 2022
Blog Tour: CHARMING DOCTOR LOVELESS by Annee Jones
Health Care Heroes Book 14
Contemporary Romance
Date Published: 02-02-2022
The more she pushes him away, the more he’s interested….
Kenzie McMillan just landed her dream job – she’s been promoted to Head Nurse at Mercy General Hospital and assigned to prominent cardiac surgeon Dr. Trevor Loveless. However, Kenzie soon wonders if she should have been more careful what she wished for, since the young doctor has an ego the size of Seattle. If only he weren’t so good-looking….
When Kenzie discovers that someone has been dipping into the hospital’s stash of controlled substances, she’s determined to identify the culprit. But she can't do all the detecting alone... does she dare ask Dr. Loveless for help? Will she be able to resist the attraction between them?
Review: Kenzie was a surgical nurse on her first day on the job to which she arrived frazzled and late. And, of course, Dr. Loveless was none too pleased. He also happened to be one of the hottest guys she ever laid eyes on. Still, Dr. Loveless adhered to strict standards and refused to accept anything less than perfection, and he certainly wasn’t going to sacrifice his reputation for a clumsy, shy nurse—no matter how cute she was.
As the two work side-by-side, they begin to develop a growing respect and empathy toward each other. Both had things in their past that led them to the world of medicine and healing. Two insecure and lonely people. Can they find something more?
Story had an easy narrative—plain and simple. It keeps you engaged from beginning to end. A charming and sweet story and a good, clean romance!
Rating: 4 stars
About the Author
Annee Jones is a heartwarming romance and soon-to-be cozy mystery author who enjoys sharing her heart and imagination with others. She is passionate about writing stories that offer readers a place where dreams come true! Professionally, Annee works as a disability counselor where she helps her clients navigate through complex medical and legal systems while rediscovering their wholeness in Spirit.
Annee also enjoys freelance writing for Publishers Weekly and multiple publishing companies.
Subscribe to Annee’s newsletter on her website: www.anneejones.com
Want to join Annee’s private Facebook reader group, Annee's Angels? Request your spot now:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/anneesangelgroup
Contact Links
Purchase Link
May 7, 2022
Review: MURDER ON POODLE PLACE by Cindy Bell (Book 7)
A chance to finally open that animal shelter she’s always wanted? It sounded wonderful until Nikki looks at the place and finds a body stabbed to death. The police know that Nikki had something to gain from the murder.
A wonderful mystery with a surprising culprit!
My rating: 5 stars
Review: GIRL IN TROUBLE by Stacy Claflin
Alex Mercer had a crappy life with a dead-end job. The only thing he can look forward to was his daughter’s Halloween party. But the past can never be forgotten.
The perfect daddy/daughter night at the Fun Zone Arcade turns into a nightmare when a man kidnaps his daughter. The events leading up to this point was rather slow and the lengthy narrative was predictable. You just knew where the girl was headed when she stepped into the parking lot. Then afterwards, there’s a lot of time spent on Alex’s panic and blind search for the girl. It was fine, but just slow.
Story was well-written overall with a sense of allure. The whole thing keeps at the same steady, slow pace throughout the book. It’s a decent thriller read, but just needed to be quicker.
Rating: 3 stars
Review: POISON IN THE PASTRIES by Susan Harper
Right away, this kicks off to a slow start. The characters kept talking about the opening of the food truck—what they would serve, what was wrong with the truck, and so on. We don’t get moving on the mystery until we get past the grand opening and finally get to a dead body in chapter 4. The read itself was decent enough, but the story just didn’t keep me interested.
Rating: 2 stars
Review: PERMED TO DEATH by Nancy Cohen
A dead client. Nice to have the murder right off the bat. However, the play-by-play of what happened when the detective started questioning the hair dresser was kind of daunting. The narrative is descriptive. In fact, it was too descriptive. We can all appreciate the scenery being described in minute detail, but this can make the whole thing rather long and winded for the reader. Matter of fact, it kind of made me lose interest in the story. I didn’t even care about the dead body anymore.
A little long and very boring!
Rating: 2 stars
May 4, 2022
Book Blast: THE LITTER by Kevin R. Doyle
This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. Kevin R. Doyle will be awarding a $10 Amazon or B/N GC to a randomly drawn winner, and a second drawing for a free e-Book copy of the book, via rafflecopter during the tour. Click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour.
They kept to the shadows so no one would know they existed, and preyed on the nameless who no one would miss. Where did they come from, and who was protecting them? In a city that had seen every kind of savagery, they were something new, something more than murderous. And one woman, who had thought she had lost everything there was to lose in life, would soon find that nothing could possibly prepare her for what would come when she entered their world.
Read an Excerpt
The youngster nodded, looking somewhat relieved, though it was clear that he wouldn’t be sleeping well for a few nights.
“Do you think . . .” This one seemed to have a real issue with finishing sentences. “Do you think I’ll be called to testify?”
“Testify?”
“Yes, sir. If you catch the guy who . . .”
“I think you’ve missed something here, son. That old fellow wasn’t murdered.”
“He wasn’t? But what about all the . . .”
“Relax, kid. He obviously ran afoul of a wild dog who tore into him.”
Tony looked at them for a second, a panoply of emotions crossing that young face, disbelief first and foremost.
“Are you sure about that, sir? I mean, I grew up on a farm, and I’ve never seen any dog attack that looked like that.”
Gleason’s partner reached over and patted the kid on the shoulder.
“Don’t worry about it, son. We don’t get them often, but every now and then a stray animal makes its way in and does a number like this.”
“No, sir. I don’t think you followed me. I used to hunt all the time back home. And what I mean is I’ve never seen a single dog, or even a coyote, attack that looked that way.”
“Come again?”
The kid took a breath, obviously feeling a bit more sure of himself.
“What I meant was, whatever animal attacked that old man, it wasn’t only one. I’d lay money he was attacked by a pack.”
About the Author:
A high-school teacher, former college instructor, and fiction writer, Kevin R. Doyle is the author of numerous short horror stories. He’s also written three crime thrillers, The Group, When You Have to Go There, and And the Devil Walks Away, and one horror novel, The Litter. In the last few years, he’s begun working on the Sam Quinton private eye series, published by Camel Press. The first Quinton book, Squatter’s Rights, was nominated for the 2021 Shamus award for Best First PI Novel. The second book, Heel Turn, was released in March of 2021, while the third in the series, Double Frame, came out in March of 2022. Website
Goodreads
The book is on sale for only $0.99!
Amazon
Barnes and Noble
a Rafflecopter giveaway
Blog Tour: WHAT MAKES ME...ME by Anne and Levi Baldwin
Join Us for This Tour: May 2 to May 20, 2022Book Details:
Book Title: What Makes Me...Me by Anne Baldwin
Category: Children's Fictions (ages 3-7), 34 pages
Genre: Children's Picture Book
Publisher: Anne Baldwin
Release date: June 2021
Formats Available for Review: print - softback (USA only), e-book PDF
Tour dates: May 2 to May 20, 2022
Content Rating: G -Suitable for everyone. Book Description:
What Makes Me...Me is a story about harnessing your super powered brain. We are all special and unique and our differences are what make us all special. What Makes Me...Me was written especially for those kids with neurological differences, their families, and their friends. BUY THE BOOK:
Amazon~ indiebound
add to goodreads
Review: “For lots of these things, we have no control…like when our brains tell our bodies when to walk or to stroll.”
“Our hearts pump our blood and our brains make us think…our brains help our bodies do lots of cool things.”
Here’s a montage of what our brains can do for us. It can help us talk, sing, and play. It can help us run, jump, and twirl. But not all brains work the same. Sometimes they can make you fidget, twitch, and lose focus.
“My brain is different, that’s what they can’t tell.”
The doctor says words like “Tourette,” “ADHD,”and “OCD.” But that doesn’t stop this little guy.
“My brain is my superpower. It’s what makes me…ME.”
The illustrations were bright and adorable. It’s a fun rhyming book that provides some useful info on those special brains. It’s a great way to teach kids a little about neurological disorders.
A good and fun read!
Rating: 4 stars
.jpg)
Meet the Author:Anne Baldwin is a wife, mom, and fierce advocate for neurodiverse kids. Anne wrote her first book What Makes Me...Me after her son Levi was diagnosed with Tourette Syndrome. Passionate about stopping the stigma around Tourette-Syndrome, Anne hopes that her books about embracing your differences as what makes you unique will help kids with Tourette Syndrome, ADHD, and other neurological disorders to feel included and accepted by everyone. Anne lives in metro-Detroit with her husband Nick, their sons Levi and Gus, 3 cats, a dog, and a leopard gecko.
connect with the author: website ~ instagram Tour Schedule:
May 2 – Working Mommy Journal – book spotlight / giveaway
May 2 - Cover Lover Book Review – book review / giveaway
May 2 - Rockin' Book Reviews – book review / guest post / giveaway
May 3 – Gina Rae Mitchell – book review / guest post / giveaway
May 3 - Baroness' Book Trove – book spotlight / giveaway
May 4 – Sandra's Book Club – book review / giveaway
May 5 – fundinmental – book spotlight / giveaway
May 6 – Splashes of Joy – book review / giveaway
May 9 – Triquetra Reviews – book review / author interview / giveaway
May 10 – Locks, Hooks and Books – book review / giveaway
May 11 – Jazzy Book Reviews – book review / guest post / giveaway
May 11 - @twilight_reader – book review
May 12 – Reading is My Passion – book review
May 12 - Bound 4 Escape – book review / giveaway
May 13 – Lisa's Reading – book review / giveaway
May 16 – Kam's Place – book review
May 17 – A Mama's Corner of the World – book review / giveaway
May 17 - Library Lady's Kid Lit – book review / giveaway
May 18 – Pause for Tales – book review / giveaway
May 18 - Literary Flits – book spotlight / giveaway
May 19 – Westveil Publishing – book review / guest post / giveaway
May 19 - The Phantom Paragrapher – book review
May 20 – Books for Books – book review
May 20 - Ravenz Reviewz – book review / giveaway Enter the Giveaway:
WHAT MAKES ME...ME Book Tour Giveaway
May 2, 2022
Book Blast: DAUGHTER OF LIGHT by Eileen Dreyer
This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. Eileen Dreyer will be awarding a $20 Amazon or B/N GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour. Click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour.
He’s had enough…
Harry Wyatt, Earl of Hartley has enough problems trying to keep his estate solvent. What he does not need is yet another lost child showing up on his land looking for the Hartley Fairy Diamond made famous by a recent film. A fairy diamond that is no more than myth handed down by delusional ancestors and responsible for the perilous state of his finances. And yet there is something about this latest visitor, something beside her delicate beauty and troubling familiarity. Something that is compelling him to go against everything he believes to help her. To want her.
She’s on a quest…
Sorcha, daughter of Mab Queen of Fairies is on a quest. Dropped into a cold, alien world, it is her task to recover the great fairy stone that has been lost to the land of mortals, a stone whose absence has upended the balance of nature. If she doesn’t get the stone back, spring will not come. But there is a handsome mortal standing in her way. A mortal she is drawn to like no other man, fairy or mortal. A mortal who claims he doesn’t believe in her, but whose memories and fears say otherwise. A mortal with green fairy eyes. A mortal she could love, if only he weren’t mortal and she fairy.
Note: This title was previously published as Dark Seduction
Read an Excerpt
“Here! What are you doing? Get up!”
Startled, Sorcha looked up to see long legs in front of her. Thick boots, sturdy pants, long, sleek limbs. Tall limbs. She kept looking up and then up and still he went on.
A man.
A mortal, dark and fierce and glowering at her.
Sorcha stumbled to her feet, her instinct that of flight. This man was her enemy, surely, in this terrifying place.
“I—I... Forgive me...” she gasped and stumbled. Her feet were too numb from the cold to hold her up, her senses still in too much upheaval.
She reached out for balance and ended up crashing into the mortal’s chest. He grunted, struggling to stay upright. He reached for her, but it was too late. In a tangle of limbs, the two of them tumbled over and their momentum carried them rolling all the way down the long hill into the rocks at the bottom.
“Ooomph!” he grunted, coming to a halt right on top of her.
“Please...” She shoved at him, but it was like trying to move granite. “I... can’t... breathe...”
“Oh. Sorry.”
He lurched up, a hand on either side of her head, until he balanced himself over her, lifting his weight but not his control. “I...” But then he stopped and stared. Sorcha couldn’t help it. She stared back. A mortal he might be, but he was magnificent. Taller than even the Tuatha, stronger than the elven guards, fiercer than the Dubhlainn Sidhe. Dark and sharp-edged, with high cheeks and a taut jaw and a rapier of a nose. A face on which even a scowl was a thing of beauty. And Sorcha revered beauty.
But that wasn’t what silenced her. It was his eyes. Dark-fringed, wide, crystal-bright. And green.
Fairy green.
Sorcha’s heart leapt in her breast. She felt joy bubble up in her, the relief of a saved life, the delight of finding that she’d been wrong. There was another familiar face in this alien place.
“Ah, how lovely,” she said, lifting her hand to his face. “You’re the one I’m to be looking for, then.”
“The one you’re looking for?” he asked, his voice oddly hushed, his eyes still deep and dark.
She laughed. “Of course. Didn’t the queen herself tell me to look for the one who is us? And who would be quicker to recognize the mark of a fairy than I? Your sister thanks you for her welcome, mo dearthair’”
“What?”
She gave him an even larger smile. “Ah, pardon. I forget it’s the mortal tongue I need. I merely called you my brother. I thank you, my brother, for my welcome.”
For a second the stranger stared at her. Then, shaking his head, he dragged her to her feet. “That’s it,” he said. “I’m calling the police.”
About the Author:
New York Times bestselling author and RWA Hall of Fame member Eileen Dreyer and her evil twin Kathleen Korbel have published over forty novels and novellas, and ten short stories in genres ranging from medical suspense to paranormal to romance. She is thrilled to have joined Oliver Heber Books to continue her Drake’s Rakes series about Regency aristocrats who are willing to sacrifice everything to keep their country safe, of which Ill Met by Moonlight is a near relative.A former trauma nurse, Eileen lives in St. Louis with her husband, children and large and noisy Irish family, of which she is the reluctant matriarch. A seasoned conference speaker, Dreyer travels to research, and uses research as an excuse to travel. Oh, who's she kidding? She doesn't need an excuse. She has the Irish wanderlust and satisfies it as often as she can to the point that she has sung traditional Irish music on four continents. She also had the incredible chance to research Drake’s Rakes by attending the 200th anniversary of not only the Battle of Waterloo, but the Duchess of Richmond ball (in period attire). She has animals, but refuses to subject them to the limelight.
Website
Amazon
a Rafflecopter giveaway
