Thursday, July 18, 2013

Review: Dirty Little Secret by Jennifer Echols

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Review: Dirty Little Secret by Jennifer Echols
Jennifer Echols is back with her newest novel, Dirty Little Secret, which centers on Bailey Mayfield, who loves playing the fiddle on stage while her sister, Julie, plays the guitar and sings. Her hopes and dreams of becoming a country singing sister duo came crashing down when music execs signed Julie to a solo career. Her parents commands Bailey to stay out of sight until her sister’s music career launches. 

Feeling angry at her family, Bailey becomes rebellious, which leads to her being shipped off to her granddad's house in Nashville for the summer. For a teenage girl, spending an entire summer with your grandfather is the worst punishment one could give her.

To deal with her mix feelings of being betrayed by her sister and parents, Bailey picks up her fiddle again, but only this time she goes to the local mall to play her music with washed-up tribute groups. Then she meets Sam, a guitarist, who persuades Bailey to join his band. The only problem is Bailey doesn't want to get her heart broken again.
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Tuesday, July 16, 2013

Review - Chicken Soup of the Soul: Inspiration for Writers

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Review - Chicken Soup of the Soul: Inspiration for Writers
*This is a sponsored review. All opinions are 100% mine.


Being a blogger and a freelance writer can be extremely stressful and depressing. We have dreams of becoming successful published authors, but with all the rejection letters piling up, we begin to feel our dreams will never come true. I have had my own fair share of rejection letters. No matter how many times I tell myself not to let them bother me, they still do.

Chicken Soup for the Soul recently released Inspiration for Writers, which is written by newbies to bestselling authors. There are 101 motivational real-life stories covering fears of writing, critique pals, scheduling your writing time, battling writer's block, handling rejections, and finding inspiration for your work.
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Review - A Bride For All Seasons: The Mail-Order Bride Collection

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Review - A Bride For All Seasons: The Mail-Order Bride Collection
A Bride For All Seasons: The Mail-Order Bride Collection
By Margaret Brownley, Debra Clopton, Mary Connealy, Robin Lee Hatcher
Publisher: Thomas Nelson
Pub. Date: June 18, 2013
ISBN: 978-1401688530
Pages: 400
Buy Link: Paperback
Blog Tour Link: http://litfusegroup.com/author/BrideSeasons
 
Review:

I've been trying to cutback on my reading and focus more on my writings, but I became interested in this anthology when I learned Mary Connealy and Robin Lee Hatcher were two of the authors, which I received a free copy from Litfuse Publicity Group and Thomas Nelson in exchange for my honest review.

The year is 1870 and four women, Mary-Jo, Ellie, Luvena, and IMegan, are looking for a second chance at life by becoming a mail-order bride, which the ads are placed in the Hitching Post Mail-Order Bride Catalogue.

In Margaret Brownley's And Then Came Spring, Mary-Jo Parker travels from Georgia to Kansas to marry a successful attorney, Daniel Garrett, only to arrive in time for his funeral. Here is another shocker; Daniel has a son, which he never mentioned in his letters to Mary-Jo. Her hope of getting married may not be over as the sheriff, who happens to be Daniel's brother, offers to marry her.

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Review: Doctor Who - The Doctors Revisited: One - Four

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Review: Doctor Who - The Doctors Revisited: One - Four
*This is a sponsored post. All opinions are 100% mine.


To celebrate the 50th Anniversary of Doctor Who, BBC Home Entertainment is releasing the best serial from each of the eleven Doctors. The first release features the first four Doctors, William Hartnell, Patrick Troughton, Jon Pertwee, and Tom Baker, from the years 1963-1981, each in one classic episode, The Aztecs, Tomb of the Cybermen, The Spearhead From Space, and Pyramids of Mars.

My introduction into the world of Doctor Who was when the episode "Rose" aired on the Sci Fi Channel (now known as SyFy) in the spring of 2006. I was aware of the previous series that aired from 1963-1989, but I had never watched an episode before, though I had watched the Peter Cushing's version, Doctor Who and the Daleks and Daleks - Invasion Earth: 2150 A.D., so I was eager to watch the four-disc set, which I received free of charge from BBC Entertainment in exchange for my honest review.

Each episode can be watched in its original four-part version or as a feature presentation with an introduction by Steven Moffat. For a bonus, there is a profile special on each doctor.

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Monday, July 15, 2013

Monday Morning Madness #23: Revolt to a New Me!

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Monday Morning Madness #23: Revolt to a New Me!


Another week has quickly gone by and here I am again writing my Monday Morning Madness post on Monday evening. My mind was on other things over the weekend and I forgot to write my weekly Revolt Now Fitness post. The workout program was created by Nichole Huntsman and consists of five workout days and two rests days, though there are optional workouts on Wednesday if you don't want to take the day off. There are cardio, upper and lower workouts, all ranging from twenty minutes to forty-five minutes.

I had a chest cold last week, so my workouts weren't 100%, but I tried my best. My diet has been pretty good; though the scales have informed me I haven't lost any pounds yet. Maybe it's just my scale! I'm getting a new digital scale to review soon, so maybe I have lost a few pounds.

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Back-to-School Giveaway Blast!

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Back-to-School Giveaway Blast!

Welcome to the Back to School Blast!

Getting your family prepared to head back to school, can be difficult especially after a long, fun-filled summer. Here are a few of our favorite Back to School Tips to help you along the way.
1. Back-to-School Supplies Checklist - Backpack? Check. Pencils? Check. Safety scissors? Not Yet. Use the same checklist each time you head out to grab supplies, to keep track of what you have already purchased and the things you still need to. These are also handy if you have more than one child. Simply print 2, 3, 4 list and add their name to the top.

2. If you don't live in a big city, you'll probably restricted to Walmart stores for your child's Back-To-School shopping. Here is a smart tip: Check the Sunday newspaper ads for other stores not in your area to see if their school supplies or clothes are cheaper. If so, take the ad with you when you checkout as Walmart will meet any other store's prices as long as the ad is not outdated.

3. Yes, it may be cheaper to buy back-to-school supplies at your local dollar store, but make sure you inspect the product before buying as the product may be in bad quality and end up breaking during the first quarter of school. You're better off buying a better quality product even if it is a few dollars more.

4. Notebooks (the paper kind not the computers) are extremely cheap in July and August. I recommend stocking up on a few dozen and store them for future use. School projects popup all the time, where a student may need a required separate notebook by the next day. Getting off from work and then having to go to a store late at night may be stressing for parents. It would save time if you keep extra notebooks on hand.
The Back to School Blast was organized by Mom Powered Media.
Please take a moment to also visit our lovely co-hosts, whom without them great things such as these would not be possible: My Vegan Gluten-Free Life, Plum Crazy About Coupons, Capri's Coupons, Downshifting - Your Family, Your Home, Your Life, Jack of all trades, Master of Mom™, Quick Tattletails, Mew Review and Iowa Mom.

One lucky winner will receive a $1,000 Visa Gift Card!

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Sunday, July 14, 2013

Fears of Being a Writer

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Fears of Being a Writer
 *This is a sponsored post. All opinions are 100% mine.

Life as a writer or even a blogger isn’t easy as it seems to be. Many people think we have an easy job, or more like an obsession, and all we do is sit at a computer and write all day. It is not as simple as it seems. We have daily life problems just as anybody else does. Many of us have a full-time job and dabble at writing early in the morning, late at night, or on the weekends. Sometimes we only get as little as five minutes to write. We have to worry about deadlines, financial troubles, and the dreadful writer’s block.

Many famous writers, like Edgar Allen Poe, turn to substance abuse to deal with their pain or try to erase their troubles. Writer’s have a tendency to have depression due to being isolated for numerous hours at a time working on a writing project. When this occurs, some recycle into the substance abuse. Sadly, a few have taken their own lives.

All of this can be avoided if you would admit you have a problem and seek help. StepHouse recovery centers help people with addiction problems, like the Outpatient Program - StepHouse Recovery located in Fountain Valley, California, where their certified counselors and licensed therapists offer specific programs to help those with addiction problems. Live-in-recovery or inpatient or residential treatments are available in these programs.

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