Sarai Henderson's Blog, page 215

Favorite Bookstagram Feeds to Follow

I love to surf my Instagram feed when ever I get a chance. There are so many Bookstagramers to follow and many books to read. I love how I can see what people are reading and what they thought about the books. There are also a lot of giveaways and opportunities to interact with my favorite authors.

I thought I would share some of my favorite Bookstagram accounts with you today. Keep in mind that by the time this post goes live, the feeds I'm sharing with you will have been updated with more awesome photos for you.

Lets start with aboutabook_ Her photos always have a really clean down to earth look. Lately, she's been sharing warm fall photos, with plaid and fall weather. It reminds me of Oregon and all the things I love about this part of the year in my home state.

Currently on on her feed is There's Something Inside Your House by Stephanie Perkins. I haven't read this one yet, but it looks really creepy and I will definitely put it on my TBR pile. Have you read this book yet?





Another Bookstagramer that you should be looking out for is theinfernalqueen. She does more real life photography with books included. 

I love her point of view and the books she reads. They aren't normal books that I would pick up, but they still sound really interesting.

The current post on her feed is Radio by Sophie Elaine Hanson. Again, not something on my radar, but I'm now very intrigued. Check her out




The last Bookstagramer I'm going to share with you is readsandroasts. This girl shares some of the most beautiful photos on Instagram. You really need to check her feed out. 

The latest photo on her feed is just gorgeous. I'm in love with the color orange to begin with and the book in this photo looks like a great morning read with your orange juice or cup of coffee.





These are my three Bookstagramers for you to surf today, but there are so many out there that still need your love. If you are in search of some of these feeds, try searching for #amreading or #bookstagram.

As always, stop by my own Instagram feed and let me know about your current reads. I'm always looking for a good book to try.

Happy Saturday!

Will She Betray Her Past | The Glass Spare by Lauren DeStefano #BookReview

Title: The Glass SpareBy: Lauren DeStefanoGenre: FantasyPages: 402Release Date: October 24th, 2017Publisher: Balzer + Bray
Summary from Goodreads:A banished princess. A deadly curse. A kingdom at war.
Wil Heidle, the only daughter of the king of the world’s wealthiest nation, has grown up in the shadows. Kept hidden from the world in order to serve as a spy for her father—whose obsession with building his empire is causing a war—Wil wants nothing more than to explore the world beyond her kingdom, if only her father would give her the chance.
Until one night Wil is attacked, and she discovers a dangerous secret. Her touch turns people into gemstone. At first Wil is horrified—but as she tests its limits, she’s drawn more and more to the strange and volatile ability. When it leads to tragedy, Wil is forced to face the destructive power within her and finally leave her home to seek the truth and a cure.
But finding the key to her redemption puts her in the path of a cursed prince who has his own ideas for what to do with her power.
With a world on the brink of war and a power of ultimate destruction, can Wil find a way to help the kingdom that’s turned its back on her, or will she betray her past and her family forever?
Add on Goodreads
Review: This is one of those books where everything moved very quickly. The main characters never stayed in one place long. You're kind of thrown into the world of Wil and Gerdie. Now, for the longest time I thought Wil was a boy and Gerdie was a girl, but that was not reality. It was flipped and I was confused. It was a nice surprise though.
There was a lot of family drama that moved the story along well and the action was great. I would recommend this book to fans of Royal Bastards. It was pretty darn great.

Received an advance reader copy in exchange for a fair review.

Silence of Shadows | A Monster Like Me by Pamela Sparkman

A Monster Like Me
Pamela Sparkman
(Heart of Darkness, #2)
Publication date: Spring 2018
Genres: Fantasy, Young Adult

“I love the peculiar silence of shadows. They exist, but leave no mark.”
Zeph had been a child, thrust into a war that wasn’t his. When he was older, he discovered he had landed on the wrong side of everything.
He’d been fighting for sweet revenge, because of lies he’d believed—and those lies proved to be his ruin. Falling into despair, Zeph decides living is too painful. So, he writes his final act with poison and chooses to end his story.
But Fate has other plans for Zeph and when he finds himself in the hands of his enemies, he has to decide: Does he want to live? Or does he want to die?
Or maybe that choice is no longer his to make.
Ruled by shadows and armed with secrets he never intended to share, Zeph will be put through his toughest battle yet: the war within himself.
“He isn’t a lost cause. He’s just—lost.”
That’s what Arwyn believes. She sees the monster he has become, but what she also sees is someone worth fighting for. Armed with secrets of her own, she’s determined to help Zeph fight his demons, because there was more on the line than Zeph’s soul. So much more.
Revenge may be sweet. But redemption is sweeter. The question is, can Zeph find the boy he used to be, or will he always believe that no one could ever love—a monster like him.
“You are everything good. And I am everything children are afraid of.”

Add to Goodreads—Sequel to:

Author Bio:
Pamela Sparkman grew up in Alabama. She became an avid reader at a young age. The written word has always fascinated her and she wrote her first short story while still in elementary school. Inspiration for her stories always begins with a song. She believes music is the pulse of life and books are the heart of it.
When she isn’t writing, however, she’s spending time with her family and taking one day at a time.
Website / Goodreads / Facebook / Twitter / Instagram

Fawn Plots Her Escape | Winter's Siren by Krystal Jane Ruin

Winter’s Siren
Krystal Jane Ruin
Publication date: November 1st 2017
Genres: Paranormal, Young Adult

For the last five years, Fawn has been the star soprano of a secluded opera house, forced to sing for her kidnapper.
His daughter, Devi, waits patiently in the shadows, hiding a face so horrible that no one who’s seen it will look at it again.
As Fawn plots her escape, whispers spread through the shaded corridors of dark sorcery, warning her that she must flee by the next opening night.
But when Fawn draws close to the exit, it’s Devi who’s standing in her way, leading Fawn to suspect that Devi has something to gain if she fails.
(a dark reimagining of Swan Lake)

Goodreads / Amazon / Barnes & Noble / iBooks / Kobo—EXCERPT:Frosty air nips at my nose. I stand almost knee deep in fresh fallen snow, letting the diffused sunlight hit my face. There is no sound. Peace settles over me. In this moment, I truly feel like I’m in the middle of nowhere.
Something cold and wet explodes on the back of my neck. For a moment, I fear the worst. A boil. Pus. My father’s description of my mother’s face plays out in my mind.
But then I hear Andrew laughing behind me. I touch the rough skin on my neck and bring a shaky and damp glove to my face. Snow. It’s just snow.
It’s the middle of the day, and my face is uncovered. To make everything worse, it’s bright outside. Freezing and overcast, but bright.
My hands fly to my face automatically.
“Are you going to let me get away with that?” Andrew laughs again.
I twist around and peek at him through my fingers.
He stands before me, his arms spread wide. A thick coat covers his arms, and in his gloved hands, he holds another snowball. “You have two seconds to stop me!”
I flip my hood over my head and drop down to gather snow in my hands.
Another snowball bursts against my head. The wetness plasters my hair to my face. I hurl my deformed ball in his direction. It misses him completely.
Another wad of snow lands on my neck while I gather a larger, rounder ball of snow. “Cheating!” I throw my handful at him. It lands weakly by his knees.
“Here, let me help you.” He climbs towards me and gathers a nice, solid ball in his fist. He hands this to me, and then stands back and spreads his arms wide again. “Try again.”
I throw it square at his nose.
“Ow!” He covers his face and cries out dramatically. “It’s in my eyes!”
“Stop it! Are you serious?” I navigate closer to him, and he falls back into the snow. I run to his side and hear laughter bubbling out from behind his hands. “Jerk!” I shovel snow over his body, and he laughs all the while.
Then he goes still. I stop.
“Andrew?” I lean in close. “Andrew?”
He lunges out of his shallow grave and tackles me to the ground.
A panicked scream leaves my body as he lands on top of me, heavy and warm. Then a strange sound comes out of my mouth. Something that’s never come out of it before. Laughter.
His braid hangs down, inches from my sunken cheek. Suddenly aware of how close his head is to mine, the laughter dies in my throat, and I slap my gloves to my cheeks.
“You have such beautiful eyes,” he says.
My breath is trapped in my chest. It hurts. I don’t know how much he can see of my face—my hood is pulled low and my hair and hands cover everything else—but I fear it’s too much.
“Andrew . . .”

Author Bio:
Krystal is the author of supernatural and paranormal fiction, living in the Tennessee Valley with a collection of swords and daggers. When she's not hoarding stuffed pandas, hourglasses, and Hello Kitty replicas, she can be found in YouTube hole or blogging about books, writing, and random things at KrystalSquared.net.
Website / Goodreads / Facebook / Twitter

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Peep and Egg Time | Happy Halloween

I'm going to give you an amazing episode of the Kids Corner, the Halloween addition. Just because I have kids and I love Halloween.
There are early readers in my house, so I've been picking out new books to read with them everyday they have school. Its been a lot of fun. We've read some really fun and awesome books lately. One of my favorite is the one I'm going to share with you today.
Peep and Egg - I'm Not Trick-or-treating. This cute little story is about two little chicks. One who is excited to trick-or-treat and the other who is scared of everything. 
Peep tries to convince Egg that trick-or-treating is fun, but Egg is scared of everything. Of course, in the end Egg goes with Peep, but it is a fun journey getting there. 
My seven year old who struggles with reading was really into this story. He was able to read the book from start to finish in one sitting and the words were easy enough for him to sound out.
This story is our new Halloween Favorite to read with the boys. 
What is your go to Halloween read? Do you normally stick something more gentle like Peep and Egg, or are you hard core and go straight for the Stephen King? Share you favorite stories in the comments.   

Sausage, Peppers and Onions | #WeeklyMenu Week #221

Hello, and welcome back to another Monday. Its been a busy week and this  coming week is going to be just as busy. Many doctors apts and Halloween to deal with.
Last week, my youngest son saw an ENT to figure out what to do about his hearing. The doctor determined that my son was in bad enough condition to get him right in for surgery to correct the problem. We were at the hospital two days later.
The surgery went well. Within an hour, my little man was sitting quietly in a chair in his recovery room, listening to sounds that he had never heard before. There was a bird outside his wind. Nurses talking quietly in the hallway. The sound of the AC coming on behind him. His little eyes would dart toward those sounds as he realized what he could hear. It was a great moment for him.
That boy is going to do amazing things. 
This week he starts seeing his speech therapist to help him talk better. We've already started seeing a difference now that he can hear himself clearly, but this will give him the tools he needs to succeed. 
I hope your week goes well. Please, enjoy this weeks menu!


Monday
- Taco Joe's
Tuesday- Cashew Chicken
Wednesday- Taco Salad
Thursday- Sausage, Peppers and Onions
Friday- Chicken Teriyaki 
Saturday- Potato Soup
Sunday
- Tuna Sandwiches

Before it Can Conquer All | A scandal in Battersea by Mercedes Lackey

Title: A Scandal in BatterseaBy: Mercedes LackeyGenre: FantasyPages: 320Release Date: October 17th, 2017Publisher: Daw Books
Summary from Goodreads: The twelfth novel in Mercedes Lackey's magical Elemental Masters series reimagines Sherlock Holmes in a richly-detailed alternate 20th-century England

Christmas is a very special time of year. It is special for Psychic Nan Killian and Medium Sarah Lyon-White and their ward Suki, who are determined to celebrate it properly. It is special for their friends, Doctor John Watson, and his wife Mary, both Elemental Masters, who have found great delight in the season seeing it through young Suki’s eyes. 


It is also special to others...for very different reasons.


For Christmas Eve is also hallowed to dark forces, powers older than mankind, powers that come awake on this, the Longest Night. Powers best left alone. Powers that could shake the foundations of London and beyond.


It begins slowly. Women disappearing in the dark of night, women only missed by those of their own kind. The whispers only begin when they start to reappear—because when they do, they are no longer sane. And when Nan and Sarah and the Watsons are called on to examine these victims, they discover that it was no ordinary horror of the streets that drove them mad.


But then, the shadows reach for other victims—girls of good, even exalted families, who vanish from concerts, lectures, and evening balls. And it will take the combined forces of Magic, Psychic Powers, and the worlds greatest detective to stop the darkness before it can conquer all.

Add on Goodreads
Review: I've always been drawn to this wonderful world that Mercedes Lackey has built. This book had a strange Pirates of the Caribbean vibe going on. It was interesting and easy to follow, even though I'm not familiar with this story line. This was a fun read with just enough magic and adventure to keep me entertained, but not overwhelmed. 
Received an advance reader copy in exchange for a fair review.

A Salty Dark Scandal | My Netgalley Shelf

I'm excited to share whats on my Netgalley shelf currently with all of you. I've been requesting a lot of awesome books lately and managed to get my hands on some really cool reads.

There have been a few that I was declined for and I'm totally sad about, but that's how this game works. You win some, you lose some.

So, lets get on to the fun stuff.


I was contacted by a rep from the Penguin Group about reviewing The Salt Line. This story sounded really interesting. I am often drawn to dystopians and all its sub genres and I'm excited to read this one. Currently, the PDF that I received from Netgalley, didn't convert very well into a format that I can use on my text to speech app, so I am waiting for a copy from the library. It's taken a while, but I am next in line, then this bad boy will be read.   My next book is one that I have seen all over the place. Instagram, blogs, Goodreads, its everywhere. So, naturally, I wanted to know what all the hubbub was about. I requested To Guard against the Dark and wallah! It was mine. I' really wondering what this one is about. It's in line, so I' excited. Third on my list is A Scandal in Battersea. I've heard great things about Mercedes Lackey, and recently I've picked up a few of her books and they are great. This one, I think is her new one and I'm really excited to dive back into this epic world that she has built.  The most recent one that I am really excited for is Banished by Betsy Schow. I read the last book in the series and loved it. It was actually one of the first books I was given on Netgalley, so we have come full circle. I can't wait to review this one, and of course, you will get the full scoop here on my blog as soon as I'm finished.  On my wishlist is The Cruel Prince by Holly Black. She is one of my favorite authors and I really, really want this one. If you are reading this Little, Brown Books, please approve my request. So many great books pass through Netgalley, too many for me to read, even at my fast pace. If you're on Netgalley, what books have you picked up lately? Share your favorite Netgalley or Edelweiss captures in the comments bellow. 

A Fugitive Werejackal | Posse: Legends by T. Hammond #BlogTour

Posse: Legends
T. Hammond
(Posse, #1)
Publication date: October 26th 2017
Genres: Urban Fantasy, Young Adult

It should have been an easy job.
Track the jackal. Locate the girl. Rescue said girl. Return bad puppy to the Council for questioning.
As leader of the Posse, a paranormal alliance, shapeshifter Lexa O’Clare thought she’d seen everything over the past millennia. Neither she, nor her vampire partner, Etienne, expected this case to be different.
A fugitive werejackal leads them to a secret lab where supernaturals are unwilling subjects in genetic experimentation. The Posse uncovers a conspiracy implicating high-ranking members of the Inter-species Council.
Can anyone’s motives be trusted?
Lexa: a shapeshifter sheriff who also proxies for humans killed before their destinies are fulfilled.
Etienne: a Knight Templar, turned master vampire.
Yasmin: a dragon who walked among the gods.
Jade: an historian & Fox-familiar to a cranky dragon.
Sentinel: a gargoyle who mourns the fall of Atlantis.
Richard: a witch with a target on his back.
Tris: a rare polyshifter with an eye for a sexy male.
Rhys: four months ago he was human…

Goodreads / Amazon—EXCERPT:I rocked forward on my arms so I could lean closer and hear more clearly. My attic bedroom was directly above the coven leader’s desk, and from this angle, I had a clear line-of-sight to the witches gathered below. It’s surprising how, after all this time, they still hadn’t caught on to the fact I was spying. I could see and hear everything they discussed. Note to self: when creating a sound-dampening spell, it’s not sufficient to muffle the walls, windows, and door—the floor and ceiling should also be considered.
The peephole had been a fortuitous mishap. I’d been practicing my air-moving skills when I accidentally created a small tornado. Hey now, it was a little one, only a couple feet tall—it’s not like I created a whirlwind of epic proportions. Did you know, if you got air spinning fast enough over a single focal point, it’s possible to drill a hole in a wood floor? It was easy enough to make a plug to conceal the damage, and my room’s simple privacy spell was always active, so there were no worries of discovery. Even if they’d looked up—and they never looked up—my magic was flawless enough they’d see an unblemished ceiling. Cocky witches.
Each coven contained a main circle of twelve witches, plus a priestess. The strongest groups consist of extended families who could pick and choose the most promising amongst themselves, but most covens are formed from a collection of individuals with varying degrees of power and skill. Mother Nan’s coven was moderately talented, with a core group of six sycophants, err…I mean, mature practitioners, all of which were crowded around her desk—standing, of course. The seventh witch was Lea, a semi-strong practitioner who still lacked emotional control over her mouth and her magic, but was her mother’s favorite daughter.
“He’s an abomination.” Mara spat the words as if they left a foul residue in her mouth.
“Too true,” Betti agreed, as was her nature.
“It’s a miracle we haven’t been killed in our beds,” Ella said, lips pursed in sour disapproval.
“Oh, definitely, in our beds.” Betti nodded in quick little jerks, like a bobble-head doll.
Coral sniffed. “It was touch-and-go while he went through his let’s-set-everything-on-fire phase.”
Oh, come on now, I’d been sick, running a high fever. I was seven! You’d think, after all this time, they could let it go.

Author Bio:
T, a paranormal romance and urban fantasy author, feels writing is not a calling so much as it is a compulsion. No one is more surprised than she is when characters take over the plot and dialog, (re)directing stories in directions she had not (consciously) intended. Although T starts out each novel with a basic outline, she finds one or two chapters into the novels, not only have the characters shredded her outline into tiny unidentifiable pieces, they use the resulting confetti in a nose-thumbing parade.
T is fully convinced the writer is the tool a story uses to tell its tale.
Website / Goodreads / Facebook / Twitter

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The Big Lebowski... Or Not... #MovieReview

Title: The Big LebowskiGenre: Comedy / CrimeRelease Date: March 6th, 1998Rating: 8.2/10Cast: Jeff Bridges and John Goodman 
Summary from IMDB: "The Dude" Lebowski, mistaken for a millionaire Lebowski, seeks restitution for his ruined rug and enlists his bowling buddies to help get it.
IMDB Trailer

Review: I know this is a huge must see movie among all my friends. Its taken me a long time to get around to watching it and I can't say that I'm any better off for it. 
The story was ok, but I didn't have that one moment where I laughed out loud which is one of the main things I look for in a comedy. 
I have to say that the character dynamic was great. It was the one saving point for the movie. I'm glad that I watched it, but its not on my list of favorites. Three stars for the Big Lebowski.