BEA'S BOOK NOOK "I can't imagine a man really enjoying a book and reading it only once." C. S. Lewis “If one cannot enjoy reading a book over and over again, there is no use in reading it at all.” ― Oscar Wilde

Thursday, May 4, 2023

Spotlight on One Kind Hand by Christine DePetrillo

ONE KIND HAND by Christine DePetrillo is out now! Check out the celebrity small town romance and be sure to get your copy today!

Wednesday, April 26, 2023

Excerpt & Giveaway: Return to Hummingbird Way by Reese Ryan

Publication date: April 25th, 2023
Purchase links: Goodreads / Amazon / Barnes & Noble / iBooks / Kobo / Google Play *affiliate links; the blog receives a small commission from purchases made through these links.


Blurb:

In this heartwarming small‑town romance, can three months, two planning projects, and a meddling grandmother finally make two high school hate crushes see just how right they are for each other?

Ambitious real estate agent Sinclair Buchanan is ecstatic to be her best friend’s maid-of-honor—until she discovers the best man is Garrett Davenport. Sin and Rett’s mutual hate crush ignited when they were teens and hasn’t let up since . . . except for that one extremely hot (and extremely regrettable) night they shared five years ago.

Nothing gets Rett fired up like going toe-to-toe with Sinclair. She’s as infuriatingly stubborn, and as absolutely gorgeous, as when he fell for her back in high school. Working together to plan their best friends’ last-minute wedding is one thing, but when his matchmaking grandmother gets involved Rett knows he’s in deep. Attraction has always simmered between them, but this time, they’re both in danger of losing their hearts.

Monday, March 20, 2023

Review & Giveaway: A is for Ambitious by Meena Harris, Illustrated by Marissa Valdez



Publisher: 
Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
Source: pr firm in exchange for an honest review
Release Date: March 20, 2023
Buying Links: Amazon*  | Barnes & Noble | Book Depository | Google Books 
* affiliate links; the blog receives a small commission from purchases made through these links.

Blurb from goodreads:

The awesome, bold, charming, and decidedly ambitious new picture book by the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Ambitious Girl, Meena Harris, is also a must-have ABC book.

The #1 bestselling team behind Ambitious Girl is back to take AG on a new adventure. A is for ambitious—and so much more in this fun and empowering picture book that reclaims words often used to undermine girls and women from A to Z. When they're ready to take on the world, ambitious readers will have the vocabulary to do so.

This book offers ambitious children everywhere inspiration as they pursue their goals and dreams. With a powerful message for us all, this is a perfect read aloud for showing children the power of words.

Monday, March 13, 2023

Review & Excerpt: A Tempest at Sea by Sherry Thomas


Series:
Lady Sherlock #7
Read As A Stand Alone: Not recommended
Publisher: Berkley
Source: the publisher in exchange for an honest review
Release Date: March 14, 2023
Buying Links: Amazon* | Apple Books* | Barnes & Noble | Book Depository | Google Books | Kobo |
* affiliate links; the blog receives a small commission from purchases made through these links.

Blurb from goodreads:

Charlotte Holmes’s brilliant mind and deductive skills are pulled into a dangerous investigation at sea in the new mystery in the bestselling Lady Sherlock series.

After feigning her own death in Cornwall to escape from Moriarty’s perilous attention, Charlotte Holmes goes into hiding. But then she receives a tempting offer: Find a dossier the crown is desperately seeking to recover, and she might be able to go back to a normal life.

Her search leads her aboard the RMS Provence, sailing from Southampton for the eastern hemisphere. But on the night Charlotte makes her move to retrieve the dossier, in the midst of a terrifying storm in the Bay of Biscay, a brutal murder also takes place on the ship.

Instead of solving the crime, as she is accustomed to doing, Charlotte must take care not to be embroiled in this investigation, lest it become known to those who harbor ill intentions that Sherlock Holmes is abroad and still very much alive.

Thursday, January 5, 2023

Review & Excerpt: Sleep No More by Jayne Ann Krentz


Series:
Lost Night Files #1
Read As A Stand Alone: Yes
Publisher: Berkley
Source: the publisher in exchange for an honest review
Release Date: January 3rd, 2023
Buying Links: Amazon* | Apple Books* | Barnes & Noble | Book Depository | Google Books | Kobo |
* affiliate links; the blog receives a small commission from purchases made through these links.

Blurb from goodreads:

Seven months ago, Pallas Llewellyn, Talia March, and Amelia Rivers were strangers, until their fateful stay at the Lucent Springs Hotel. An earthquake and a fire partially destroyed the hotel, but the women have no memory of their time there. Now close friends, the three women co-host a podcast called the Lost Night Files, where they investigate cold cases and hope to connect with others who may have had a similar experience to theirs—an experience that has somehow enhanced the psychic abilities already present in each woman.

After receiving a tip for their podcast, Pallas travels to the small college town of Carnelian, California, to explore an abandoned asylum. Shaken by the dark energy she feels in the building, she is rushing out when she’s stopped by a dark figure—who turns out to be the women's mysterious tipster.

Ambrose Drake is certain he’s a witness to a murder, but without a body, everyone thinks he’s having delusions caused by extreme sleep deprivation. But Ambrose is positive something terrible happened at the Carnelian Sleep Institute the night he was there. Unable to find proof on his own, he approaches Pallas for help, only for her to realize that Ambrose, too, has a lost night that he can’t remember—one that may be connected to Pallas. Pallas and Ambrose conduct their investigation using the podcast as a cover, and while the townsfolk are eager to share what they know, it turns out there are others who are not so happy about their questions—and someone is willing to kill to keep the truth from coming out.

Sunday, January 1, 2023

2023 Reading Challenges

Source: PNGtree


Happy New Year! For those of you using the Gregorian calendar, welcome to the start of another year. I am lucky enough to have a four day weekend, and I'm getting some reading done. I've also decided to try reading challenges again. I took a break for a few years and I'm ready to try again. I picked four, all repeats except for the Thrifty Thursday. That's been a meme for several years and is now a challenge too. Click on the each challenge's name to go the sign up post, and get more information.

1) Library Love  I use my library a lot, both personally and professionally. I actually did this challenge in 2022 and ended up reading over 100, including books for my classroom. This year, I'm aiming for Library Card on Fire: Read 60+ books. 

2) Thrifty Thursday Between sales and author newsletters, I get a lot of freebies every month. Which, more books + no money = AWESOME. But...they tend to languish on my Kindle. So I'm aiming to read and review one a month, more if I can manage it.

3) Mount TBR I'm sure it's no surprise that I have a large pile, virtual and physical, of unread books. I'm going for level 2, Mount Blanc: Read 24 books from your TBR pile/s. Books owned, requested, or ordered before today, January 1st, 2023, count. Also, rereads count, yay! But ideally, they'll be books I haven't read yet.

And finally the, Goodreads challenge. I do this one every year. Last year's goal was 250 and I almost doubled that. Note: I count all books I read in the classroom, and count rereads. Cuz toddlers love repetition. If they only want to listen to a book once, they don't like the book. This year's goal is 300. 

Are you doing any reading challenges this year? Tell me about them! And, good luck and have fun reading.

Friday, December 23, 2022

Review & Giveaway of The Last Minute First Lady by Tinia Montford


Publisher:
Emerald Press LLC
Source: pr firm in exchange for an honest review
Release Date: December 22, 2022
Buying Links: Amazon* | Apple Books* | Barnes & Noble | KoboSmashwords
* affiliate links; the blog receives a small commission from purchases made through these links.

Blurb from goodreads:

WHAT’S ONE ITSY, BITSY, LITTLE LIE? Cassian Anders will be the youngest governor in Illinois history... If he wins.

That’s all everyone seems to talk about these days. Jolie Coldwell isn’t one of them. As a journalist, her priorities comprise digging up dirt on crooked politicians and local cover-ups. When her latest exposĂ© on a congressman lands her in hot water, her days are reduced to covering the senior center’s casino night.

Unexpectedly, news breaks: the on-air investigative segment needs a replacement. This promotion advance could her career.

She needs a breaking story. She needs it now.

The road to office is ruthless compared to the courtroom. Without warning, Cassian Anders’ popularity rating falls, threatening his position on the ballot. He will do whatever it means to secure votes. Now, not only is he engaged, but he’s getting married to his non-existent fiancĂ©e...

He’s never relied on luck, but when a convenient but unorthodox wife falls into his lap? He makes her a deal.

He needs a wife. He needs it now.

Will Jolie and Cassian be able to fool the public long enough? Can she handle the public poking around in her past, one she would rather keep under wraps... Above all, can she be a model first lady or are they destined to be a scandal?

The Last-Minute First Lady is a steamy marriage of convenience romance. Perfect for readers who love outrageous in-laws, honeymoons to Napa Valley, and crooked politicians. This novel contains cursing and sex scenes, and intended for audiences 18 years and older.

Wednesday, December 14, 2022

Review & Giveaway: Keyana Loves Her Family by Natasha Anastasia Tarpley and Illustrated by Charnelle Pinkney Barlow




Publisher: 
Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
Source: the publisher in exchange for an honest review
Release Date: December 13th, 2022
Buying Links: Amazon* | Barnes & Noble | Book Depository | BookShop.org
* affiliate links; the blog receives a small commission from purchases made through these links.

Blurb from goodreads:

Natasha Anastasia Tarpley returns with a breakout new picture book series all about Keyana, the protagonist of her bestselling title I Love My Hair!, and the people and places she adores.

Keyana’s always full of big ideas. Her latest and greatest plan is to host a perfect family movie night. From aunts to uncles to her five favorite cousins, everyone is invited! She knows the best way to impress her guests is with a fabulous soiree, and there’s a lot on her to-do list. But when the night doesn’t go as planned, she’ll have to rely on a little help from the people she loves most.

With warm illustrations by Charnelle Pinkney Barlow, this character-centric new picture book series from Natasha Anastasia Tarpley will give Keyana a fresh, commercial update that's perfect for today's young readers.