Take a photo of a barcode or cover
writerrhiannon's Reviews (1.1k)
I think that this novel's release date was absolutely perfect. With season 2 of "Orange is the New Black" releasing just over a week ago, female-prisoner themed stories are buzzing. Inside the prisons the "I'm innocent" pleas are met with eye rolls, snickers, and "We're all innocent" snarky replies from fellow inmates. Author Chevy Stevens did a good job of keeping the true story of what happened "that night" from being figured out until she was ready to play her hand. Her descriptions of Shauna (the best villan I've read in a long time,) Shauna's friends, and the caste system of a small town were spot on. They were so good that they made me quite uncomfortable. After growing up in one of these toxic environments myself, I knew exactly how Toni felt. Stevens provides a believable character with hurt but resiliant Toni by not having Toni perform any cliched missteps (you know, the girl that goes in the shed alone in her underwear without a flashlight in a lightning storm.) I read this book pretty quick and was really hooked by the suspense. I've not read any other works by this author but I will definitely be ready to read her next release.
** I received this book in exchange for an honest review **
Read my full review here: http://www.ivoryowlreviews.blogspot.com/2014/06/that-night-by-chevy-stevens.html
** I received this book in exchange for an honest review **
Read my full review here: http://www.ivoryowlreviews.blogspot.com/2014/06/that-night-by-chevy-stevens.html
I love to cook and I love to eat. The problem is that I (and some family members) have gained a little too much weight. When I try to make some healthier meals I am usually met with ugly faces and not so nice comments about what is on their plates. The meals I've prepared from the recipes in The New Low-Carb Diet Cookbook have actually been met with interested faces and clean plates. Score! My "meat and potatoes" husband loved the Sesame Beef with Asian Salad and the Spiced Turkey with Goat Cheese Burgers. Some of the recipes even incorporate *gasp* bread.
This book provides a ton of information on the diet benefits of reducing carbs in your diet as well as recipes for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Even if you aren't doing an entire diet overhaul, incorporating a few of these recipes into your meal rotations will be beneficial to your (and your family's) health.
** I received this book in exchange for an honest review **
Read my full review here: http://www.ivoryowlreviews.blogspot.com/2014/06/the-new-low-carb-diet-cookbook-by-laura.html
This book provides a ton of information on the diet benefits of reducing carbs in your diet as well as recipes for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Even if you aren't doing an entire diet overhaul, incorporating a few of these recipes into your meal rotations will be beneficial to your (and your family's) health.
** I received this book in exchange for an honest review **
Read my full review here: http://www.ivoryowlreviews.blogspot.com/2014/06/the-new-low-carb-diet-cookbook-by-laura.html
I didn't get around to reading Netzer's debut, Shine Shine Shine, despite several rave reviews from some of my most trusted book bloggers. I was not going to miss out this time around. (I read her novella, Everybody's Baby, and really liked it.) How to Tell Toledo from the Night Sky is like nothing I've read before. Netzer is able to provide two characters with opposite thoughts when they look skyward and although the characters represent science versus God, she doesn't distance the reader with their personal beliefs. Her secondary characters are anything but flat. They have strange habits, addictions, and uncommon religions. I felt that one secondary storyline should have either been flushed out more or excluded altogether and I found myself lost a few times when there was a sudden change in setting without notice. However, the overall achievement of this book outweighs what I thought were merely unpolished edges. I've read other reviews of this work and I see a lot of "quirky, nerdy, and outside-the-box" which are all true but what I really enjoyed is the lack of fluff. Now, don't get me wrong, I like a cupcake, predictable read now and then but this book is an important edition to the entire genre of women's literature. A smart novel that encompasses the macrocosms of humanity, science, religion, fate, and free will and presents the concepts in a modern microcosm daily connections.
** I received this book in exchange for an honest review ***
For my entire review: http://www.ivoryowlreviews.blogspot.com/2014/07/how-to-tell-toledo-from-night-sky-by.html
** I received this book in exchange for an honest review ***
For my entire review: http://www.ivoryowlreviews.blogspot.com/2014/07/how-to-tell-toledo-from-night-sky-by.html
Kids (and adults) will love this book from the first line: "One sunny morning, Minnie Feinsilver cooked dinner instead of breakfast." She is making Shabbat dinner for her cousins but accidentally spills her matzo ball soup! The frogs in the pond next door decide that they will make the soup while Minnie is gone for the day. Matzo Frogs highlights teamwork and good deeds, with a mini-cooking lesson thrown in by some fun, cute frogs. This book is great not only for Jewish children but also as a teaching tool to explain a small aspect of the Jewish faith.
Read my full review here: http://ivoryowlreviews.blogspot.com/2014/09/matzo-frogs-by-sally-rosenthal-with-art.html
Read my full review here: http://ivoryowlreviews.blogspot.com/2014/09/matzo-frogs-by-sally-rosenthal-with-art.html
I was initially drawn to this novel because I loved the cover and I can't resist a book set in a bookstore. Add to this an unexpected pregnancy and I'm hooked. Oh, there was everything I could ask for in the description. I mean, even the bookstore's name...The Owl? Come on. I should have been loving every word, right? Sadly, no. I was so frustrated with Esme's back and forth with her boyfriend, who is a total dick from a family of total dicks and wanted more about the bookstore, more literary references, and more in depth descriptions of the secondary characters. I think The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry set me up for disappointment with this read.
Read my full review here: http://ivoryowlreviews.blogspot.com/2014/09/the-bookstore-by-deborah-meyler.html
Read my full review here: http://ivoryowlreviews.blogspot.com/2014/09/the-bookstore-by-deborah-meyler.html