Review - The Trouble with Cowboys by Denise Hunter

The Trouble with Cowboys by Denise Hunter
Publisher: Thomas Nelson
Published: October 2, 2012
Pages: 304
Age Group: Adult
Acquired: Publisher
Format: Paperback
Rating: 3/5
Author Site: Denise Hunter

I wanted to shake Annie so hard! It is clear Dylan is head over heels for her but she can't get over her misconceptions that all cowboys are trouble and refuse to let him get close to her. She tries so hard to put a man in between them that is comfortable to her but boring as day old soup. They so obviously are a mixed matched couple but Annie is so hard headed because of heartaches her family has had to deal with involving cowboys in the past. This always tends to gripe me about how folks stereotype others because of things somebody else has done.

Annie is a good person and awesome character that she tries very hard to do the right things but in doing so she comes off as hard and tight lipped especially to her younger sister which causes way more problems than it's worth. Thru the better first half of the story I felt she really needed a good roll in the hay to loosen her feathers a bit but she woulda probable done so with the stuffy banker, John whom I couldn't stand!

This story is about letting go of the reins and living a bit as well as understanding no matter how good your intentions you can't live another's life for them..all you can do is be there when they need you and let folks learn from their own mistakes.

Review - Simply Grilling by Jennifer Chandler

Simply Grilling by Jennifer Chandler
Released: April 17, 2012
Publisher: Thomas Nelson
Age Group: Young Adult
Pages: 256pages
Format: Hardback
Source: Publisher
Rating: 5/5
Author Site: Jennifer Chandler

Oh my Gosh do not even get me started on how I feel about this cookbook! This has quickly became one of the most used cookbooks in our home for the simple reason is it's typically geared towards mainly "grilling" menu's and such. We are a family that loves to grill but we were kinda limited to things like steak, hamburgers, hot dogs...you get the picture?

Simply Grilling showed us how simple it was to do vegetables and seafood on the grill and it just opened up our eyes to so many more possiblilities than what we had been doing. We increased our grill usuage threefold and you can do alot of these recipes on your indoor grill as well with minor changes and that is great when it's too hot out or rainy to be doing outdoor grilling.

One other major thing I enjoy about Simply Grilling other than the wide assortment of food is each recipe has it's own page with photo along with cooking tips, suggested sides, and other neat info and not just a wad of pictureless recipes on a page.

I always knew you "could" do lots more with your grill but was always afraid to try it because it seemed to much trouble or time consuming and having this cookbook on my shelf gave me the encouragement I needed to try these new things.

Review - Cliques,hicks, and ugly sticks by KD McCrite

Cliques,hicks, and ugly sticks by KD McCrite
Released: December 6, 2011
Publisher: Thomas Nelson
Age Group: Young Adult
Pages: 288 pages
Format: Paperback
Source: Publisher
Rating: 5/5
Author Site: KD McCrite

A clique of mean girls, a grandma--yes, you heard it--a grandma stuck in a love triangle, a church pageant run by a dictator, and a mom who's acting very mysterious--it all sounds like a disaster, but it's just another day in the life of April Grace Reilly!

I Loved Loved Loved this incredibly funny book! April Grace is a child after my own heart! This book was breaming with southern hospitality, charm, and good ole country living and being an good ole country gal myself I ate up every page.

The cover itself is just adorable before you ever begin reading the pages inside with little squigglies around it. Then you open it up and the pages are filled with more of the same little squigglies and designs, and across the top is "boxed off" sort of with the page numbers. Really super cute.

The story begins with Isabel, a house guest of April Grace's family being in a car accident and boy is she a mouthy city gal who thinks everything should revolve around her! She is just so bossy and high & mighty I want to sock her one a couple of times. While everybody is trying to help Isabel, April begins to notice her mom is not really her usual self and begins to worry over her and her health which leads to a very scary ordeal for the family, and then there are The Lottie's, a clique of bratty little girls who over the summer vacation decided they were somehow better than all the other school kids and April has to come to terms with them now as well. Oh and let's not leave grandma out who is juggling three, yes I said three men! Good Lord have mercy on poor April as she has to run some interference for granny as well as deal with the rest of her crazy goings on!

If you need a break from the more serious and involved books then grab this one for some laugh out loud fun. April Grace is a quirky, fun, and tell it like it is young lady who will not dissapoint you!

Review - Heaven is for Real by Todd Burpo

Heaven is for Real by Todd Burpo
Released: November 1, 2011
Publisher: Thomas Nelson
Age Group: Adult
Pages: 192 Pages
Format: Hardback
Source: Publisher
Rating: 5/5
Authors Site: Todd Burpo

Burpo, a Wesleyan pastor in rural Nebraska, recounts the story of his son's mystic vision of heaven while the youngster was suffering from a near-fatal illness in the spring of 2003.

My mother told me a co-worker recommended this book to her and I was so thrilled when Thomas Nelson sent it to me for review even though I was skeptical of it a bit at first thinking like everybody else that this was another one of "those" books but was soon on a journey with the Burpo family as Todd gives us a blow by blow outline of events that lead up to his bizarre conversations with his son. It is told thru Colton's words (a childs words) and is simple to understand and just a beautiful heartwarming story of what he saw in Heaven.

Did Colton really see Heaven or is this just another elaborate ploy to make a quick buck (a work of pure fiction)? We may never know but I do know that we must have Faith and that sometimes Faith is blind and we just have to simply believe things we cant see with our own eyes. When all is said and done it really doesn't matter if this book is fact or fiction the message is still the same which is Heaven is for Real!

Review - The Christian Zombie Killers Handbook: Slaying the Living Dead Within by Jeff Kinley

The Christian Zombie Killers Handbook: Slaying the Living Dead Within by Jeff Kinley
Released: October 11, 2011
Publisher: Thomas Nelson
Age Group: Adult
Pages: 272 pages
Format: Paperback
Source: Publisher
Author Site: Jeff Kinley

Ben Forman was just an ordinary guy, a young professional starting his first job and falling in love with his girlfriend. Living in the outskirts of a southern city, he didn't think the zombie activity so common in the major cities would hit so close to home. But it was becoming clear that the mysterious infection reanimating the deceased was a growing epidemic across the country. The question was, would he stay alive or become the undead?

This was a wonderful double whammy of a zombie adventure tale. It's kind of like getting two stories in one...You have Ben's zombie story and then you have the theoretical story of how there is a little bit of zombie (sin) in all of us and how we can overcome our wicked side and live in harmony with God. It took me a while to get used to the way the the book was divided up. It would give us episodes of the ongoing zombie adventure with Ben and his family and then would lead into a chapter of the theoretical/nonfiction story. There were things I admit I didn't want to read in this book on the spiritual side because they "hit to close to home" but after doing so I had a greater awareness of my relationship with God and how I want to live my life.

There is a notes section as well as a discussion guide for each chapter of the book which I found very helpful in helping me follow along especially the notes section with the Bible verses that corresponded to the passages in the story.