Friday, May 11, 2012

Friday Finds


What great books did you hear about/discover this past week? Share with us your FRIDAY FINDS! :D




It was something she would never forgive herself for…

It wasn’t until lunchtime that Jessi remembered to call home. No answer. She tried calling several times while she ate her lunch. Still no answer. She closed her eyes and rested her arms and head on her desk. She breathed deeply, wishing she had remembered to call earlier.

Until Forever is a story of a young family that is torn apart by the devastating effects of alcoholism. Can healing take place in a relationship when an unforgivable act is committed? Will Jessi's pain and Mark's guilt keep them apart forever, or will unforeseen circumstances bind them together?




The first two books in the national bestselling Knitting mysteries- "Knit One, Kill Two" and "Needled to Death." In "Knit One, Kill Two," Kelly Flynn returns to Colorado for her aunt's funeral only to suspect that the woman's death was not an accident. With the help of the knitting regulars at House of Lambspun, Kelly's about to get a few lessons in creating a sumptuously colored scarf-and in luring a killer out of hiding. In "Needled to Death," Kelly visits her friend Vickie's alpaca farm, and finds her splayed out on her original hand-woven rug, blood seeping into the design. Kelly can't resist investigating-even if it means taking a break from the sweater she's been knitting in the round.



Her husband's suicide left Nora MacKenzie alone, and his shady Wall Street dealings left the Manhattan socialite penniless. By a miracle she's held on to their mountainside farm--and she'll keep holding on, no matter what. The property is Nora's one chance to wring some dignity out of the sham she's been living.The Vermont locals think she's a city girl on a nature kick, but she's not afraid to get her hands dirty. Nora's serious about learning the farming business...if she can figure out where to begin. Against the locals' skepticism, she has only one ally: Charles "C.W." Walker.C.W. is hardworking, gentle with the animals and a patient teacher of the hundreds of chores Nora needs to learn. Slowly she starts to believe she'll survive in her new life, even flourish. She might even be willing to open her heart again. But she won't return to a life of lies...and the truth about C.W. may be more than Nora's fragile heart can bear.



Our house will not do for the wedding.
Our lounge room? far too small.
Our dining room? we don't have one.
A bar set up in our jungle? hopeless.

Frances Mainwaring takes us on a journey through the year that her younger daughter Angie prepares to be married.

All Fran wants is to see her elder daughter Sophie more often, a wedding for Angie that doesn't cost the earth, a renewed freshness to her own marriage, a lick of paint on the old house and time to make plans with Phillip for their empty-nest years.  Is this too much to ask?

You can renovate a house -
but can you renovate a marriage?

A light-hearted everywoman story, Mother of the Bride will make you laugh and make you cry, and ponder some of the big questions in life.


This book appeals to every parents desire to provide wealth and security for their children, taking a simple, fun, low-risk approach. Ashley Ormond outlines a very simple plan for parents not only to build wealth for their kids but also to help teach them about money - how it works, how to manage it and how to make it grow. In a nutshell the plan is: $1.00 per day + 1 hour per month = financial security for life. If parents start on the plan when the child is born, put a dollar a day into an investment fund, invest in growth assets and reinvest all the earnings, the fund will grow to $1,000,000 when the child is 50 years old. As soon as your kids are old enough, you are encouraged to get them involved in their very own savings plan. The book comes with a money box that your children can cut out and piece together and start filling up! Sydney author, Ashley Ormond, has spent 25 years in the finance industry - 15 years in major banks and 10 years as a private consultant. He is a semi-retired 40-something and as well as embarking on a career as an author he sits on various boards. Ashley draws on his personal experience in developing the plan for his own two kids and his many years in the finance industry giving people financial solutions that actually work.



Why do happy people make better investors?  Why do most investors achieve less than half the returns they should?  Why are lottery winners no happier than the rest of us?  What makes mature women better investors than young men? Why do we let the Joneses next door determine what car we buy and where we take our holidays?  Why are the world's two richest people giving away their fortunes?  And why, if we're so rich aren't we happier?

How we think has a huge effect on our success in life and the financial markets.  We're richer, live longer, and have more choices than ever.  Yet many of us fail to choose the things that will make us happy.  And the mental mistakes that cause the failure also cause us to make poor investment decisions.

But making better choices is surprisingly easy.  All we need to do is understand what we really want from life, ignore distractions and change the way we think about money and success.

Drawing on research in psychology and behavioural finance plus their years of practical experience, Arun Abey and Andrew Ford show how to identify your values, set goals for each stage of your life, and arrange your finances to achieve them. This practical accessible guide will not only challenge the way you think about money and happiness, but my well inspire you to change your life.

Friday Finds is a weekly meme hosted by Should be Reading.  If you would like to participate or check out what other people have added as their book finds of the week then you can visit here.

Monday, May 7, 2012

Barefoot Season - Susan Mallery


Title & Author :  Barefoot Season - Susan Mallery
Publisher :  Mira Books
Genre :  Romance
Series :  Blackberry Island - Book 1
ISBN :  978-192179542-8
Format :  Paperback
Source :  Borrowed from library
BACK COVER SYNOPSIS :
Michelle Sanderson may appear to be a strong, independent woman, but on the inside, she’s still the wounded girl who fled home years ago.  A young army vet, Michelle returns to the quaint Blackberry Island Inn to claim her inheritance and recover from the perils of war.  Instead, she finds the owner’s suite occupied by the last person she wants to see.
Carly Williams and Michelle were once inseparable, until a shocking betrayal destroyed their friendship.  And now Carly is implicated in the financial disaster lurking behind the Inn’s cheerful veneer.
Single mother Carly has weathered rumours, lies and secrets for a lifetime, and is finally starting to move forward with love and life.  But if the Blackberry Island Inn goes under, Carly and her daughter will go with it.
To save their livelihoods, Carly and Michelle will undertake a turbulent truce.  It’ll take more than a successful season to move beyond their devastating past, but with a little luck and a beautiful summer, they may just discover the friendship of a lifetime.

This is book one in a new series by Susan Mallery featuring Blackberry Island.

The story line focuses on Michelle Sanderson's life as she returns to her old home life at Blackberry Island Inn after suffering a hip injury while at war serving time as a young army vet in Iraq and Afghanistan.  Michelle has been away for ten years.  She is returning home injured and suffering from PTSD.  She was looking forward to being able to escape in the old lifestyle she used to know at Blackberry Island Inn.  However this is not going to prove to be as easy as she once thought.

Michelle is having to face some rather confronting issues.  Everything starts unravelling when she first arrives at the Blackberry Island Inn and Michelle starts to notice all the changes that have taken place in her absence.  What used to be her old room that she thought she would be able to escape from the worries of the world in is now occupied so she is left reeling.  How many changes can be be expected to have to take in all at once.  One challenge after another is sent her challenge her.  Michelle tries to cope by taking to drinking vodka to try and calm her and for her to be able to try and get some sleep at night without being invaded from dreams and nightmares she has no desire to relive. 

Will Michelle be able to face issues from her past such as her childhood, her mothers death, what happened with her friendship with Carly at the same time as being able to accept that she needs help to deal with and get on top of her issues with PTSD.  You will have to read the story to find out...

This is a great read from Susan.  You are left wanting to read on and find out just how Michelle deals with the challenges she is made to face.  There is a great mix of characters that are featured throughout the story which leave Michelle wondering at times just how to cope with all that is revealed to her but cope she does and realises that people and situations have a tendency to change over time and some things with work can be changed and repaired like her therapy for her injury and PTSD and her friendship with Carly and other friendships once you lose trust in a person are often best left in the past.  

To find out more about the Blackberry Island books you can check out Susan's website here and chat with her on facebook.


Friday, May 4, 2012

Friday Finds - 4 May 2012

Just found a weekly meme that I thought I would join for the first time called Friday Finds.



What great books did you hear about/discover this past week? Share with us your FRIDAY FINDS! :D


Some of the books that I have added to my wishlist this week are....



A Woman in a Mans Job.  Filling the shoes of her late husband as town marshal hasn't been easy for Danna Carpenter. She's not only fighting criminals, she's also fighting to earn the respect of the townspeople. So crossing paths with tenderfoot detective Chas O'Grady is the last thing she needs. He's hunting a band of cattle rustlers and isn't used to the rugged Wyoming landscape. Teaming up is their only option, but when circumstances place them in a compromising situation, the town forces a more permanent partnership--marriage. If they can let down their guards with each other they might find that love is the greatest catch of all.



To escape a dreaded arranged marriage, Penny Castlerock will face anything--even life on her grandfather's farm. But it isn't the rustic lifestyle that's got the Philadelphia socialite tied in knots. It's the handsome homesteader and his eight adopted children next door....With seven boys and a girl to raise, transplanted farmer Jonas White could sure use some help. He just didn't expect it to come from the high-spirited, copper-haired beauty he's always admired from afar. But surely working the land is no life for a woman like Penny. Yet a threat to Jonas's farm just might show him how perfect Penny is for him after all.



Mail-order bride Rebecca Ramsey arrives in the New Mexico territory full of dreams--but they're shattered when she discovers her intended husband has been killed. If it weren't for U.S. marshal Seth Billings's housekeeping job offer, she'd have nowhere to go. Rebecca loves tending to Seth's home, but the strong and silent lawman is harder to figure out. What secret is he hiding?Caring for Jesse Cole's would-be bride is the least Seth can do. If it weren't for him, the young man would still be alive. Seth had promised to look after Rebecca--and to keep her safe from Jesse's enemies. Now if only he can keep his heart safe, as well....



Join attorney Alanna Stone as she returns home despite her determination to never set foot on Mackinac Island again. Once again in close proximity to Jonathan Covington, her first love, she vows to protect her privacy and her heart from the man who still makes her pulse race. But when her worst fears are realized and history repeats itself landing her in the midst of a murder investigation Jonathan may be her only hope. Will they be able to lay aside the past and let God heal their hearts, or will reconciliation come too late?



We all know how to be joyful in the peaks of life, but what about the valleys? Acclaimed author Kay Warren shares the path to experiencing soul-satisfying joy no matter what you're going through. Joy is far more accessible than you might have thought - it comes from God, and it can be yours, today!



Lydia's Charm

Visit Amish Country during the fall as Lydia King attempts to make Charm, Ohio, feel like home after losing her husband. But is her heart ready to open back up to love when gifts appear on her porch from a mystery source? Could it be from the widowed father of four energetic boys, or is it from the man who has rejected romance to be his family's caregiver? When life hands Lydia another challenge, will the gift giver be there to support her?

A Celebration Of The Simple Life

Celebrate the beauty of simple living and experience new appreciation for a slower-paced, more enjoyable life. Featuring the original poetry of Wanda E. Brunstetter, bestselling author of Amish fiction, and paired with dozens of devotional readings, this unique package will bring delight and warmth to your spirit.


To participate or check out what others favourite Friday Finds are visit here...