Book Blast: Evertaster & The Buttersmith's Gold

 

The Buttersmiths' Gold

BATTLES. BLUEBERRIES. BOVINES.

TORBJORN AND STORFJELL’S HISTORY UNFOLDS IN AN EPIC EVERTASTER NOVELLA.

Everyone knows the most coveted treasure of the Viking Age was blueberry muffins. Blueberry muffins so succulent that if you sniffed just a whiff, you'd want a whole bite. If you bit a bite, you'd want a batch; if you snatched a batch, you'd stop at nothing short of going to war just to claim them all.

Young Torbjorn Trofastsonn comes from the clan that makes them. He's a Viking through and

through – he's thirteen winters old, larger than most respectable rocks, and most of all, a Buttersmith. That's what he thinks anyway, until a charismatic merchant makes Torbjorn question his place among the muffin-makers. When Torbjorn lets the secret of his clan's muffin recipe slip, he calls doom and destruction down upon his peaceful village and forces his brother Storfjell and his clansmen to do the one thing they are ill-prepared to do: battle for their lives.

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About The Buttersmiths' Gold

The Buttersmiths' Gold is a spin off novella in the Evertaster series that tells the story of two Viking brothers and their adventurous past. The Evertaster series (Book #1 released June 14, 2012) is about Guster Johnsonville, who goes searching for a legendary taste rumored to be the most delicious in all of history. Along the way he meets a slew of mysterious characters, including two Viking brothers Torbjorn and Storfjell. The Buttersmiths' Gold is their story. 124 pages. By Adam Glendon Sidwell. Published by Future House Publishing.

Evertaster, Book #1:

A legendary taste. Sought after for centuries. Shrouded in secrecy.

When eleven-year-old Guster Johnsonville rejects his mother’s casserole for the umpteenth time, she takes him into the city of New Orleans to find him something to eat. There, in a dark, abandoned corner of the city they meet a dying pastry maker. In his last breath he entrusts them with a secret: an ancient recipe that makes the most delicious taste the world will ever know — a taste that will change the fate of humanity forever.

Forced to flee by a cult of murderous chefs, the Johnsonvilles embark on a perilous journey to ancient ruins, faraway jungles and forgotten caves. Along the way they discover the truth: Guster is an Evertaster — a kid so picky that nothing but the legendary taste itself will save him from starvation. With the sinister chefs hot on Guster’s heels and the chefs’ reign of terror spreading, Guster and his family must find the legendary taste before it’s too late.

 

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Book Trailer

    Author Adam Sidwell In between books, Adam Glendon Sidwell uses the power of computers to make monsters, robots and zombies come to life for blockbuster movies such as Pirates of the Caribbean, King Kong, Transformers and Tron. After spending countless hours in front of a keyboard meticulously adjusting tentacles, calibrating hydraulics, and brushing monkey fur, he is delighted at the prospect of modifying his creations with the flick of a few deftly placed adjectives. He’s been eating food since age 7, so feels very qualified to write this book. He once showed a famous movie star where the bathroom was. Adam currently lives in Los Angeles, where he can’t wait to fall into the sea.

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BookBlast Giveaway $50 Amazon Gift Card or Paypal Cash Ends 6/30/13 Open only to those who can legally enter, receive and use an Amazon.com Gift Code or Paypal Cash. Winning Entry will be verified prior to prize being awarded. No purchase necessary. You must be 18 or older to enter or have your parent enter for you. The winner will be chosen by rafflecopter and announced here as well as emailed and will have 48 hours to respond or a new winner will be chosen. This giveaway is in no way associated with Facebook, Twitter, Rafflecopter or any other entity unless otherwise specified. The number of eligible entries received determines the odds of winning. Giveaway was organized by Kathy from I Am A Reader, Not A Writer http://iamareader.com and sponsored by the participating author. VOID WHERE PROHIBITED BY LAW. Prize value $50 US. a Rafflecopter giveaway

Review: Ramblings in Ireland

Title: Ramblings in Ireland

Series: N/A

Author:  Kerry Dwyer

Publisher:  Someday Box

Published: August 15, 2012

Genre: Memoir

Format: Kindle

Pages: 179

Source: Received From Author

Read: March 7-9th 2013

My Rating: 4 Stars

Goodreads:  Add To Your TBR Shelf

Goodreads Synopsis:

This is not a book about rambling in Ireland.

It tells the tale of one particular walking trip and the memories and musings it inspired.

Exploring the West of Ireland is a time for meditation, spiritual reflection and strengthening the bonds of life. More practically the ability to read a map might have proved helpful. The tourist office in Ireland has all their paths clearly marked. You can’t go wrong if you follow that little yellow man. Or can you?

As British ex-patriate Kerry Dwyer leads Bertrand, her trusting French husband, astray once more, they reminisce and reflect upon accents and accidents, family and friends, love and what it means to be alive. Bertrand doesn’t mind getting lost – he loves Kerry all the more for going off the beaten track.

This is a book about ramblings in Ireland. Walk with Kerry and Bertrand and follow where your thoughts lead you.

Melissa's Musings:

This is a very easygoing read, just like the title might suggest. The reader follows Kerry and her husband Bertrand on their walking trip through Ireland. In addition to great scenery, you get little snippets of their personal life with different stories that are mixed in throughout the chapters.

This is the kind of book that I love because it intersperses personal anecdotes with information. You get to learn about the great sights of Ireland, but at the same time you get to know more about the author on a personal level. Sometimes with non-fiction pieces I often get the feeling of informality, but not here.

I really enjoyed the author's comparisons of the differences between aspects of French and English (British) cultures. I really related to this given that my boyfriend is Canadian. Having had the chance to live in both Canada and the US, I definitely know what it's like to be of one culture and experiencing another, and the differences that you can encounter.

One of the examples that Dwyer uses is a reference to idle chit chat. Britons like to chat with people, to ask how they are doing, etc. whereas the French are more direct and don't tend to chit chat with one another. Dwyer's husband was also very excited by the fact that in Ireland the houses are all painted unique combinations of bright, cheerful colors. In France, house colors must fall within a range that has been approved by the French government.

One thing I noticed is that at times, the interactions described in the book do seem somewhat stiff, even formal. Most of these are the interactions between Kerry and her husband. I'm just wondering if some of that is... I'm not even sure how to put this, language interspersment issues? Since Dwyer knows both French and English, but lives in France, where my guess would be she mainly uses French, maybe some of the formality of the French language is coming through in the writing?

There's an element of fun, easygoingness to this book in the fact that Kerry and her husband do get lost from time to time. They have as much fun getting lost as they do when they aren't, which is enjoyable to see.

This is an excellent travel memoir that will give you a glimpse of the scenery of Ireland just as if you were walking the journey yourself.

Review: The Wedding Cake Girl

Title: The Wedding Cake Girl

Author: Anne Pfeffer

Publisher: Bold Print Press

Published: July 24, 2012

Format:  PDF

Genre: YA

Pages: 255

Source:  Won in a giveaway @Getting Your Read On

Read: January 6, 2013

In A Few Words: Simple yet engaging

My Rating: 4 Stars

Goodreads: Add To Your TBR shelf

Goodreads Synopsis:

Seventeen year old Alexandra spends so much time helping others realize their dreams that she never has time for her own. An expert ocean diver and reluctant maker of wedding cakes, she longs to leave roses and frosting behind to study oceanography. Alex’s mother won’t have it—needy and dependent, Mom can’t run the family wedding cake business on her own.

No matter what Alex does, things only get worse for her. When she risks her life to save a tourist while scuba diving and becomes the local hero, Mom's angry with Alex for going diving at all. Mom also discourages Alex's new friendship with the insanely wealthy Jeremy, a fun boy with a secret. Then, Alex's best friend, Zack, a hunky island guy, starts to take an interest in her as well. The problem is, he's dating another girl.

As Alex struggles to learn where she stands between her two difficult and confusing Prince Charmings, it occurs to her that maybe what she really needs is a Prince Charming for Mom. If she doesn't do something, she will make cakes all her life and die in her "Sue's Wedding Cakery" apron with a spatula in her hand.

This story features a colorful island setting, dangerous underwater diving adventures,a family of billionaires, and lots and lots of buttercream. It is Alex's journey toward not only finding love, but learning how to step forward and take control of her own life, a rite of passage that faces all young readers.

Melissa's Musings:

This was a great story. I got pulled in right away, primarily because the dialogue flows so easily, you're quick to get wrapped up in the story. Right away we meet Alex, a girl with big dreams, to study marine life, but who has a mom that just can't seem to get it together.

I have to admit I felt really sorry for Alex. Here she is, at 17, with big dreams, of going to college to do what she loves, and at the same time she's hesitant to leave because she doesn't think her mom will make it without her. And at first, as the reader, I thought she might not make it either. The more I read though, the angrier at Alex's mom I became. She was so self involved, and so... just plain rude to Alex I found myself thinking at one point "man, her mom is a leech." 

She takes Alex for granted, and what's worse, she almost ruins opportunities for Alex by refusing to help her. First it's by refusing to pay for her to attend a summer course to help set up her senior thesis. Then, it's by telling her that she won't give her a  ride to attend a wedding that she's been asked to help out at. (The reason why she's been asked to help out is a major plot point so I don't want to spoil it.)

But, the thing about Alex is that she's determined. Her mom won't help? Fine. She'll do it herself. She makes it to that wedding and that sets the course for the rest of the story. Alex is a strong character, which is always a good thing and I would say in this case, necessary, in order for her to be able to deal with her mother.

 Alex also stands up for herself and her principles which is nice to see. There's a point in the book where her and her friend Zack become romantially involved, and she feels like she may be ready to have sex with him. (There are a lot of factors to this, including other characters, and again I don't want to ruin it.) But, as time goes on, she realizes she's not ready and she lets him know that. Zack is disappointed, but Alex stands her ground and that's something I really enjoyed.

Alex also grows a lot personally. She turns her dislike for the wedding cake business into a skill that works for her and allows her to live out her dream for her senior year the way she wants it to be. She learns to take more risks and it's nice to see her enjoying the benefits.

Overall this is a great story. It's wonderfully written and you are immediately drawn to the characters. And anyways, any story that has wedding cake in it can't be bad.

Christmas in Wine Country *Contains Mild Spoilers* *Edited To Add...*

Title: Christmas In Wine Country

Author: Addison Westlake

Publisher: Self Published

Published: November 18, 2012

Format: Kindle

Pages: 390

Source: Received from the author

in exchange for an honest review

Read: December 10-11, 2012

In  A Few Words: Sweet, Romantic,

My Rating: 4 Stars

Goodreads:  Add This To Your TBR Shelf

Goodreads Synopsis:

It's Lila's big debut as an event planner and the company holiday party is going to be her chance to shine. At a Tuscan-style vineyard near the Northern California coast in the perfect little black dress she's sure to impress commitment-phobe Phillip. What could go wrong?

Seventy-two hours later with no job and no boyfriend, Lila finds herself with all kinds of answers to that question. Like mistaking the glowering Jake Endicott of Endicott Vineyards for the groundskeeper. Or a new video on YouTube featuring Lila pawing her way through drunken karaoke of "Hungry Like the Wolf."

Solo on the romantic holiday getaway she'd booked for her and Phillip near the vineyard, Lila at least gets to visit with her old friend Annie who lives nearby in the coastal town of Redwood Cove. Drawn into the local bookstore with gleaming wooden floors and welcoming armchairs, Lila chats with the owner and impulsively accepts a job offer.

Sleepy, misty Redwood Cove is the perfect place for Lila to take a break from her horrible track record with guys. The only one she finds even remotely attractive knows her as the holiday party crazy lady. Ranked in Bay Area magazine's 10 hottest bachelors, Jake Endicott is just the type Old Lila would have wasted years pining after.

Join Lila on her year of comedy, adventure and self-discovery on the Northern California coast, with all kinds of ups, downs and misadventures and a full cast of small-town wine country characters. Thankfully, even the greatest misunderstandings can all be worked out with a little Frank Sinatra and mistletoe.

Melissa's Musings:

*EDITED: All profits for Addison Westlake's book sales this month will go to charity to help the victims of the CT school shooting**

Christmas in Wine Country is wonderfully funny, sweet, always brimming with one kind of adventure or another.

Lila is a 28 year old woman who is stuck in a job that she doesn't like, dating a man that barely even acknowledges her presence,  and barely living life outside of her job. Then in one drunken, karoke filled evening, she loses her job, her semi-relationship and is forced to finally make some real choices about what she wants to do with herself and her life.

She drags herself to a B&B that she had reserved for her and her boyfriend's holiday getaway. While there she wanders into a charming book shop named Cover to Cover. After talking with the owner, she is hired on the spot, and with that she leaves big city life for small town life.

I admired Lila's guts in making the move to Redwood Cove. I think everyone wishes they could make moves like this, completely transform themselves, start over somewhere new. It has to be fun to do, and Lila really seems to enjoy herself.

She embraces being single for a while, giving herself time to get over Phillip. He's a huge jerk, and easily the least likeable character in the story. He tells Lila that they were never really dating and that he and a woman named Axcell are ready to take things to a new level. I laughed every time I read the name because I kept thinking about the computer program.

The surrounding characters in this story are so much fun. There's Lila's loving, patient, wise Gram, who always knows just what to say. Then there's Annie, Lila's college roomate, who supports her, but also gives her healthy doses of reality when she needs it. There's also Zoe, whose a lot of fun. She's a yoga teacher in Red Cove, who's very into naturalistic thought and ways of life.  And there's also Godfrey, a somewhat dramatic, (but well meaning) co-worker from the bookstore.

I think Zoe is actually my favorite of the characters because she's got this double persona. You mainly read about her as hippie-ish, vegan, yoga teacher Zoe. But about halfway through you learn that she grew up in the privileged lifestyle and used to be a debutante. It just goes to to show that not everyone is what they seem and they don't always keep the same path that they start life out on.

The same is true for Lila's love interest in the story, Jake. She assumes that he grew up in the hills of wine country, when in reality he grew up with a single mother who died of breast cancer when he was a teenager and a father who sent him to boarding school.

The romance between he and Lila is perfect. Definitely not insta-love, (their first meeting definitely does not go smoothly) the tension throughout their relationship is the perfect balance of nice moments and awkward ones, as they start the complicated dance of trying to figure out just what they are to each other. They definitely have their work cut out for them with interfering presences like Vanessa (I'll just let you discover her for yourselves) and some serious misunderstandings.

In addition to the great characters, there's also great food. Lila learns to cook and goes through periods of making soups and desserts, most of which sound delicious. I'm always a sucker for books with food. A book about food and a bookstore? Even better.

The overall message of the book is about embracing life, and doing what makes you happy. It's also about following your dreams, sticking up for yourself, and letting yourself be comfortable with who you are and what you want out of life. It teaches the reader that you don't have to let other people's perception of you or what you do for a living make you feel any less worthy. As long as you love what you're doing (and isn't that what we all really want anyway) then the title really doesn't matter, and who cares if you don't fit in to the cookie cutter world of fancy job titles or marketing?

I'd rather be passionate about what I do than a person who's only in their job for the money any day and Lila becomes just that. Passionate, happy, and sure of herself.

This is the perfect holiday comfort read.

Behind the Blog 28: Getting in the Holiday Spirit

Behind The Blog is a meme to help bloggers connect their life and interests to the content showcased on their blog. The co-hosts Faye Kathe and Melissa will provide a different topic, idea, or question every week that bloggers can relate to themselves and the books, films, or media they find interesting!

It's Free Choice Week this week. I've decided to write about Holiday Music/Festivities

With Halloween done and over with, (although we still have a small bowl of leftover candy sitting on our counter) it's now time to start thinking about Thanksgiving (here in the US anyway) and then Christmas and New Years. 

So, I thought I'd write about things that I like to do to put myself in the holiday spirit.

My sister and I have been talking for the past week or so about the types of things that we're going to include in our Thanksgiving dinner. The grocery list of things we need at this point is massive. What can I say, we take Thanksgiving pretty seriously around here. I love to bake, but I'm not much of a cook as I've mentioned before, so you can bet that I'll be helping more with the desserts than the main course.

One thing I like to do to get into the holiday spirit is listen to holiday music. I try to do this sparingly in November because I know that the songs will be all over the radio in December and I'll be sick of them before too long if I start too early. So I'm laying off listening to the actual songs for now, but I did change my ringtone on my phone to Carol of the Bells. It's one of my absolute favorite Christmas songs.

When I was in 8th grade, I was in the school choir and that song was one of the pieces for our Christmas concert. I was a soprano and had to work at high ranges for this piece, and I loved the contrasts in the different musical sections for this song and how it all came together at the end. You'd think after singing it over and over again for months on end I'd be sick of it, but I love it, even now.

Another song I really like is Happy Christmas (War is over) by John Lennon. It's John Lennon, for one, so who could say that they don't like his music? But I like this song in particular because of the message it portrays, that we should all learn to put aside our differences and share in the experiences, which is really the embodiment of the holiday spirit. It's not about the presents, but about being together. 

This song actually makes me tear up a little, particularly on Christmas day. I can't explain exactly why, but it just feels like a good song for the ending of Christmas. All the rush and hustle and bustle of the season and this song just feels like the perfect way to wrap it all up. Like I said, I can't really explain it.

Another thing I like to do to spread some holiday cheer and get in the spirit is write holiday cards. I love to write cards and letters in general. There's just something about going to the mailbox and seeing a card/letter waiting  that I really love. Especially in the day and age of technology and instant gratification, it's nice when someone takes the time to write you. 

If any of you would like a holiday card to look forward to, be sure to go to This Post and fill out the request form and I'd be happy to send one out to you.

Books and Media:

For this week's books and media tie in I figured that I might list some of the holiday themed reads that are waiting on my shelves for me.

Photo Credit to Goodreads

Photo credit to Goodreads

Those are just a couple of the holiday themed books I have waiting to be read. What's on your holiday TBR list, or what do you do to put yourself in the festive spirit?

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Behind the Blog 21: Cherry Fanatic

Behind The Blog is a meme to help bloggers connect their life and interests to the content showcased on their blog. The co-hosts Faye Kathe and Melissa will provide a different topic, idea, or question every week that bloggers can relate to themselves and the books, films, or media they find interesting!

This week's theme is Food

We all have a basic necessity to eat. Without food our bodies can deteriorate. It takes a long time, but it will happen. If you’re reading this, then you probably have the luxury of choice when it comes to food. With that in mind, what is your favourite food? Are you a sweet tooth or do you favour the savoury?

In relation to media, have any books or films given you a craving for food? Or made you want food you’ve never tried before?

When it comes to food I'm a pretty basic eater. I like simple, easy to make food. I'm not really one for fancy dishes, though I will try them every once in a while. But when it comes down to it, I like simple, home cooked meals.

It's so hard to choose my favorite food. I have a lot of different foods that I like a great deal. If I have to choose though, I'd probably say mashed potatoes. They, along with popcorn are my ultimate comfort foods. They're completely unhealthy, but they're so good. 

And, thanks to Dearran, I'm completely spoiled and don't really like microwave popcorn anymore. I'd never had popcorn cooked on a stove until he made it for me. And now, I can't go back. Although we did end up getting an air popper so not needing to use oil makes that significantly healthier. But, I haven't had popcorn since I saw him last, so I'm missing it a bit. I could make it myself, but I just haven't thought to buy any, and I'm afraid it won't be as good.

If I had to pick a favorite dish, I'd choose sheperds pie because it combines so many yummy ingredients, mashed potatoes, veggies and beef. You can also do different variations on the type of meat if you like.  When I was in Canada last year, Dearran and I made a version using some moose meat a friend had given us. It was really good, but also a bit heavy. We've also thought of doing a version using ground turkey.

My favorite flavor has to be Cherry. I love cherry flavored foods/drinks. Cherry Coke is my absolute favorite soda. It's not manufactured or imported into Canada, so when I was there I went quite a while without it until my best friend sent me some. They also don't make or import Cherry Poptarts, so she had to send me some of those too. And of course I love cherry yogurt, jam, and ice cream. Plus Tim Horton's makes awesome Cherry Cheese danishes. Unfortunately those wouldn't hold up or I'd have Dearran send me some.

Since I like basic foods I'd say I'm more of a sweet tooth. I also really like to work on creating healthier versions of dishes and using healthier ingredient substitutes. In my baking, when I'm doing cakes and muffins I almost always use applesauce instead of oil. To help give the dish a little more moisture and bind together better I do a 1:1 ratio of applesauce instead of oil but I always add in one tablespoon of oil in addition. The applesauce doesn't chance the flavor at all and it's so much healthier than just using oil. I was shocked when I looked at how many calories are in oil...in a quarter cup of oil which is the standard measurement for some muffin recipes, there's 500 calories. Compare that to a quarter cup of applesauce where there's 50. It's a big difference. You can use applesauce with cookies too, but because the cookies really need to bind together well, it's best to do half and half, so you can substitute half of the butter or shortening for applesauce.

I also like to try vegetarian dishes every once in a while. Dearran and I were doing some cooking once, and we had a lot of veggies to use up, so we decided to make a vegetarian chili. It was so flavorful that you would have never even known that there wasn't meat in it unless we told you. 

Books/Media Tie in:

Links go to Goodreads descriptions

There are a lot of books and movies that center around food, and here are just a few that I liked:

French Lessons: 

In addition to the interesting stories, this book had my craving pain au chocolat by the end of it. I sooo want to to try that some day.

The Friday Night Knitting Club

In addition to the camaraderie of the characters, there are some great baking recipes in this book.

So now that this post has undoubtedly made you hungry, (I know I am!) tell me what some of your favorite foods are!

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Behind the Blog #5: Canada

Behind The Blog is a meme to help bloggers connect their life and interests to the content showcased on their blog. The co-hosts Faye Kathe and Melissa will provide a different topic, idea, or question every week that bloggers can relate to themselves and the books, films, or media they find interesting!
Due to the Jubilee being on the beginning of this week, and with the upcoming Olympics, I thought it would be good to look at countries. Where do you live? What is your favourite country? Why? What do you like about it most? What about least favourite? What book has described a place you desperately want to visit? Etc...



I live in California. While we  do have plenty of beaches in California, unfortunately I don't live by the beach. Oh how I wish I did, because I love the ocean! The weather is nice enough, though it gets to be sweltering in the summer The winters are usually pretty mild, and where I live it doesn't snow, so it doesn't get too cold.

As for my favorite country? That's easy.

 Canada, hands down. I absolutely love Canada. Now, before anyone starts to wonder, I'm not saying that I don't love the US. I do. I love the US and Canada equally. I feel equally at home in both countries.

There are so many reasons I love Canada, I could probably go on and on, but I'll try not to.

One of the main reasons is that my boyfriend is Canadian. We've been friends for over 9 years, and  dating for nearly 7 years now, so I've had lots of time to enjoy and grow to love Canadian culture. I've visited plenty of times of course.

I even lived in Canada for a year and a half, between July of 2010 and January of 2012. I was fortunate enough to participate in a year long work exchange program. After my work permit expired, I applied for an extension on my stay so that I could do a bit more traveling that I didn't get to do while working full time. And so that I could spend the winter holidays here, even though winter isn't my favorite season. (Winters are a lot colder in Canada than I'm used to in California!)

Besides my boyfriend and his family, there are lots of other reasons I love Canada so much.

I love the diversity. There are so many different groups of people. It seems silly to say because there's diversity in every country really, but I notice it more when I'm in Canada for some reason.

The food is also awesome.  I've only had it once or twice, but Poutine is an excellent Canadian dish. I have to be in the right mood for it, because I don't like cheese curds all that much, but it's always pretty good. Another awesome food that's popular here is the Donair. While the origins are Turkish, the first time I ever had a donair, and the only place I've ever had them is in Canada. They are delicious. So is donair pizza.

I've also tried a lot of different ethnic foods for the first time while in Canada. I tried Thai (love it!) Japanese, Korean, Lebanese, and Malaysian foods. All of which were excellent.

And finally, I love the politeness of the people here. It's somewhat of an adjustment going back and forth sometimes. Not that there aren't nice people in California, of course there are. It's just a different, easier kind of mentality in most of the areas of Canada that I've spent time in. It's difficult to put into words what I mean by that.

 Some of my friends in Canada tell me I must be Canadian at heart because of my easygoing personality. I'd say I agree with them.

Since the only two countries I've ever been to are the US and Canada I can't say that I have a least favorite. Hopefully my lack of countries visited will change someday. It'll be silly if all the stamps in my passport are from visits to Canada.

Books and Films:

Since I gushed about Canada so much, it seems only fair that I bring up a book by a Canadian author. If you're looking for a hilarious read, I'd definitely recommend Dirk Danger Loves Life by Chris Rothe. You can check out my review here

And now for some books that center around a place I'd really like to visit. One day, I'd really like to go to France. 

A Secret Kept

This is a wonderfully intricate story set in both Paris and Noirmourtier Island, France.

French Lessons

Here you see Paris through three different character's eyes. This book also happened to make me want to try pain au chocolat very badly!

I'd also really like to visit Ireland someday as well, but I can't think of any good books off the top of my head that are set in Ireland. Does anyone have any suggestions?

Don't Forget!

If you're choosing to join us for Behind The Blog don't forget to link up your post by using the Linky List below!

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• The hosts' Behind the Blog posts go live at midnight on Friday, GMT+0:00. Feel free to post before that, just link up on Friday!
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• Read, write, and connect! The Linky is there for you. Make use of it!
• Last but not least, have fun!

Peas and Thank you: A Review

Rating: 4/5
Read from January1-2 2012

I received this from goodreads as a giveaway. Again it sat on my shelf for too long, but I'm glad I finally got to it. Maybe since it's a new year, I've decided to get to all those ones I've had since last year?


This is full of delicious and healthy recipes. There are several that I want to try, and one that we tried with little success. (Tofu is tricky to work with!). The recipes are varied and tasty. I do enjoy that there is a lot of fiber and protein in these, as fiber in particular is something that many people lack in their diets.

I learned a lot of tips and tricks for substitutions, which I hope to put to good use. There are a few recipes that stick out that I'm particularly eager to try.

I'm looking forward to trying the chocolate almond cherry smoothie,the apple cinnamon pancakes, and skinny elvis sandwiches.

When I first saw this on goodreads I thought that it was simply a vegetarian cookbook, and went on to discover when I received it that it's actually a vegan cookbook. I wasn't familiar with a lot of the ingredients. This was a bit of a letdown for me, but the book mostly made up for it.

I like that the book is sweet and family oriented. I got caught up in the author's personal stories and enjoyed them very much. That being said, there was a bit of sexual innuendo that I thought was out of place. I wasn't offended by it personally, but there might be people who would be. Plus it just seemed out of character for a book so obviously oriented for families.

Passages that stick out to me in particular are when the author describes a box of cocoa Krispies as "sexy" or when she makes comments about her creation the "Hugh Jass salad" There are several other sexual type references but I'll stick to those two.

I understand that the author is trying  to infuse some humor, but it just seems a little strange.

For the first cookbook I read all the way through, it's not bad.