PG-13; 147 minutes; $32.99; Amazon

Landing on Blu-ray and DVD on Tuesday September 13th is one this summer's biggest movies - Marvel's Captain America: Civil War. The film is already available on buy on Digital HD. Directed by Anthony Russo and Joe Russo (Captain America: Winter Solider), the film stars Chris Evans, Robert Downey Jr., Scarlett Johansson, Sebastian Stan, Anthony Mackie, Don Cheadle, Jeremy Renner, Chadwick Boseman, Paul Bettany, Elizabeth Olsen, Paul Rudd, Emily VanCamp, Tom Holland, Frank Grillo,William Hurt, and Daniel Brühl.

The film is set one year after the events that occurred in Avengers: Age of Ultron, where Steve Rogers (aka Captain America - played by Chris Evans) is now in charge of the Avengers; leading the team to Lagos to hunt down and stop Crossbones (played by Frank Grillo) from stealing a biological weapon. However, things don't go as planned when Wanda Maximoff (aka Scarlet Witch - played by Elizabeth Olsen) unleashes her powers and accidentally kills many innocent lives.

Afterward, the the United Nations passes the Sokovia Accords, which gives the UN, lead by U.S. Secretary of State Thaddeus Ross (played by William Hurt), complete control over the Avengers. Tony Stark (aka Iron Man - played by Robert Downey Jr.), James Rhodes (aka War Machine - played by Don Cheadle) and Natasha Romanoff  (aka Black Widow - played by Scarlett Johansson) agree to the UN terms. However, Rogers and Sam Wilson (aka Falcon - played by Anthony Mackie) disagree with them.

After being sent a warning by Sharon Carter (played by Emily VanCamp) that the Winter Solider (aka Bucky Barnes - played by Sebastian Stan) has been located in Bucharest, Rogers attempts to help save his old friend, well, that is until the local authorities tries to apprehend them.

Now considered criminals, Rogers and Wilson put together a small team of super heroes - Scarlett Witch, Hawkeye (aka Clint Barton - played by Jeremy Renner), Ant-Man (aka Scott Lang - played by Paul Rudd) to help them find the terrorist that has set up Bucky. Standing in their way is Iron Man, War Machine, Black Widow, Vision (played by Paul Bettany), Spider-Man (aka Peter Parker - played by Tom Holland), and Black Panther (aka T'Challa - played by Chadwick Boseman), whom are dead set on stopping them.

Bonus Features on the Blu-ray includes:

If you want schedule next week's post, click here to find the next prompt question. To submit a question, fill out this form.

What to do:

1. Post on your blog answering this question:

  This week's question is submitted by Elizabeth @ Silver's Reviews!

When you set a yearly reading goal, do you set it high to force yourself to meet that goal or do you keep it low and normally go over that goal any way?

2. Enter the link to your post in the linky list below (enter your Blog Name and the direct link to your post answering this week’s question. Failure to do so will result in removal of your link).


3. Visit other blogs in the list and comment on their posts. Try to spend some time on the blogs reading other posts and possible become a new follower.  The purpose of the hop is to give bloggers a chance to follow other blogs, learn about new books, befriend other bloggers, and receive new followers to your own blog.

  

My Answer: 

 At the beginning of the year, I had made a goal on Goodreads to read/review 100 titles. Currently, I have read 85 books for 2016; 17 books ahead of schedule.

2016 Reading Challenge

Billy has read 85 books toward his goal of 100 books.

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85 of 100 (85%)

view books

There's no better way to start a rainy September morning than sipping on a strong cup of coffee, which is exactly what I've been doing today.

What kind of coffee am I drinking?

Brazil Santos Gourmet Coffee by Kaffina Kaffe Premium Gourmet, a new coffee company that is Kosher Certified. The #KaffinaKaffe can currently be purchased on Amazon.com for $16.99.

It's available in four different flavors - medium roasted Brazil Santos, medium roasted Colombian, medium roasted Guatemalan, and medium roasted Sumatra. The coffees are made from 100% pure high quality Arabica coffee beans. Each 12 oz. bag is resealable.

A peek at the "coffee grounds" inside the bag.

Abingdon Press; 200 pages; $14.99; Buy Link; Blog Tour

There's still 109 days till Christmas Day. However, I spent my morning reading a Christmas-themed book this morning while I sipped on a cup of coffee. (FYI - Today's my birthday!)

What the title of the book?

Well, the book is called God Bless Us Every One and it's written by Eva Marie Everson, which is basically a modern day spin on the Charles Dickens' classic "A Christmas Carol."

The novella centers on a twenty-seven-year old named Charlene "Charlie" Dixon who is fired just a few days before Thanksgiving as the the activities director at an all-girls school in Florida.

Yeah, it's a great way to start the holidays!

Charlie packs her bags and heads back home to Testament, North Carolina to spend the holidays with her grandmother, who she calls "Sis." Her mother abandoned her at a young age and her father has been in and out of a jail, so her grandmother had to raise her.

Not Rated; 287 minutes; $14.98; Amazon

Little House on the Prairie mightn’t ended it's run on  television over thirty-three years ago, but you can still find episodes of the series in syndication. Based on the children books by late Laura Ingalls Wilder (1867 - 1957), the television series kicked off with a made-for-TV movie in the spring of 1974; the first season debuted that fall. The series lasted for 204 episodes over the course 9 season, as well 4 specials. Three of those specials were 95-minute movies that aired after the series had ended in 1983.

These three movies (Look Back To Yesterday, Bless All the Dear Children, The Last Farewell) are arriving on DVD and Digital HD from Lionsgate on September 13th in the two-disc set, titled Little House and the Prairie: Legacy Movie Collection. All three movies have been restored and remastered! There are no special features or extras on the discs.

Look Back to Yesterday (first aired on December 12, 1983) was directed by Victor French (he also plays Mr. Edwards). Taking place shortly after the season nine finale, the movie centers on Albert Ingalls (played by Matthew Laborteaux) falling ill during his trip with his adopted father, Charles (played by Michael Landon). Diagnosed with a terminal blood disorder, Albert decides to spend his final day in Walnut Grove.


Bless All the Dear Children (first aired on December 17, 1984) was the second movie to be filmed after the series, but was aired after the final movie "The Last Farewell." Victor French once again directs. The film set around Christmas and centers on Laura (played by Melissa Gilbert) and Almanzo's daughter, Rose, being kidnapped.

Domestic Discipline
by Cara Bristol
Publisher: Cara Bristol
Pub. Date: September 6, 2016
Price: $3.99
ISBN: 9780996839006
Pages: 88
Buy Link: Nook, Amazon, ARe, iTunes, Kobo

Blurb:  

Love, desire, domination, and submission. Two domestic discipline romances by USA Today bestselling author Cara Bristol in one volume.

Wife on the Lam

Janelle wants to take a luxury vacation for her wedding anniversary. Despite numerous hints, husband Brent misses all the clues and plans a business trip! Miffed, she flies off alone to a luxury resort. She’s going to celebrate—with or without him.

Brent didn’t have to work. He’d planned a second honeymoon to the luxury Cabana Resort. Janelle might have ruined his surprise, but he’s not going to let her ruin their anniversary, too. He has a little trick up his sleeve to take his errant wife in hand and get their marriage back on track.

Rahm’s Way

Before her military husband left for his tour of duty, Cadence Simmons relied on Rahm’s love, direction, and protection. His absence forced her to become more independent and make decisions for herself. After serving his country, he’s home for good and eager to resume their marriage as it was before. Only Cadence isn’t quite sure she wants things exactly as they were. Can domestic discipline guide this couple through some major changes?

Sneak Peek: 

“I want to work in the field. Simmons isn’t the only private detective agency. Maybe I’ll go work for somebody else.”

The air sizzled. “Is that so?” he asked quietly.

She didn’t mean it. She would never defy him that way, but he had to learn she wasn’t a pushover. Cadence wet her lips as courage and its foolish cousin, bravado, deserted her. Poke the sleeping tiger with a stick, why don’t you?

Heritage Beacon; 290 pages; Buy Link; Blog Tour

Participating in blog tours gives me the opportunity to read titles by new authors. Well, that just happens to be the case with Starving Hearts written by Janine Mendenhall and published by Heritage Beacon Fiction (an imprint of Lighthouse Publishing of the Carolinas). Originally, I wasn't going to sign up to review the title as the cover art didn't appeal  to me. Note: The mansion on cover reminds me the one from Downton Abbey (which I've never taken the time to watch). Later, I gave it some thought and decided to give the novel a try anyway.

Typically, I prefer my romance reads to be set in the 1800s; however, this title is set in England in the late 1700s. It centers on two characters -Miss Annette Chetwynd and Mr. Peter Adsley.

Annette is worried about her mother trying to set up an arranged marriage. She would love to find someone to rescue her from her life, but she is still haunted from being assaulted.

Peter is becoming a pastor and is on the lookout for a wife, which is where Annette comes into the pictures. However, they are both haunted by their pasts, which might jeopardize any sort of future they could have together.

Bethany House; 320 pages; $14.99; Amazon

If you enjoy reading Christian romances, then you're probably already familiar with the works by Janette Oke, who has written over 70 titles and has sold over 22 million copies. One of her most popular books is Love Comes Softly and its many sequels. The books have been made into a series of made-for-movies that aired on the Hallmark Channel.

Another one of the author's book series is called the Canadian West series, which started in 1983 with When Calls The Heart. The movie adaptation aired of the first book aired in 2013 on the Hallmark Channel. A television series of the same name debuted a year later; this time focusing on the niece Elizabeth Thatcher, a young woman who is sent to a small town in Canada to work as a school teacher. Around the same time the series started, Janette Oke and her daughter Laurel Oke Logan published "Where Courage Calls," a companion to the new series, which ended up being book one in the Return to Canadian West series.

The third installment of the series, Where Hope Prevails, arrived in bookstores last month, and once again centers on Elizabeth "Beth" Thatcher, who is returning to Coal Valley after a spending the summer visiting her family in East Canada. She is in for the shock of her life when she returns to see that the small town has changed quiet a bit. Many of the beautiful trees have been cut down and all that remains are the stumps, which was done to make room for new buildings.

To make things worse, Beth has to move into the room above Abigail’s Tea House, because all the rooms at Molly's Boarding House are occupied by miners. While Beth as away, the school board approved of a second teacher, Mr. Robert Harris Hughes, due to the increase in new students.

If you want schedule next week's post, click here to find the next prompt question. To submit a question, fill out this form.

What to do:

1. Post on your blog answering this question:

  This week's question is submitted by Elizabeth @ Silver's Reviews!

Do you have books stacked in every room of your house or are you strictly a believer that books belong on bookshelves?

2. Enter the link to your post in the linky list below (enter your Blog Name and the direct link to your post answering this week’s question. Failure to do so will result in removal of your link).


3. Visit other blogs in the list and comment on their posts. Try to spend some time on the blogs reading other posts and possible become a new follower.  The purpose of the hop is to give bloggers a chance to follow other blogs, learn about new books, befriend other bloggers, and receive new followers to your own blog.

  

My Answer: 

 No, I don't have books in every room in my home. I have books on bookshelves in the living room/office and my bedroom. The rest of the books are in two closets.

Pocket Books; 368 pages; $7.99; Amazon

I believe almost every reader has heard of the author of V.C. Andrews or has read one of her books. Ms. Andrews got the attention of the world when her first "Dollanganger"novel (Flower in the Attic) was published in 1979. Teenagers and some adult readers couldn't get enough of the Gothic novel about four siblings being forced to live in an attic, though many libraries and schools banned the title and it's sequels due to the "taboo" love story.

In 1982, the standalone novel "My Sweet Audrina" was published. It centered on a young girl, Audrina, who was forced to live in her older sister's footsteps (the First Audrina), well, so she thought so. If you've read the book, then you are well aware how the story goes. I'm not going to spoil it for others; however, you can read my review for it here. (The water-down made-for-Lifetime movie aired earlier this year.)

After V.C. Andrews passed away in 1986, her family decided to let a ghostwriter, Andrew Neiderman, finish the books she was working on at the time of her death and to continue writing other novels under her name.

Fast-forward to 2016, Andrew Neiderman is still ghostwriting all V.C Andrews titles; though the Gothic-vibe from the V.C. Andrews' original novels are long gone, with many of the recent releases receiving mixed to negative feedback from diehard fans.The newest V.C. Andrews' release is Whitefern, the long-awaited to sequel to My Sweet Audrina.

(Warning: Spoilers!) Set several years after the ending of My Sweet Audrina, the novel opens up with the death of Audrina's father, Damian Jonathan Adare. She doesn't have much time to mourn as she has to help her autistic sister, Sylvia, deal with their father's death. However, it's more difficult than what she could ever imagined due to Sylvia's odd behavior of sitting in rocking chair in the First Audrina's bedroom, where the young woman claims to hear the voice of their father; telling her that a baby is coming.