Do you want $500 worth of books? Seriously?

Chronicle Books is giving away $500 worth of books! All you have to do is comment on my blog or any other of the blogs who are participating. One blogger will luck out and get all of the books on their list, along with one lucky commenter. Scroll down to see my list and leave a comment if you agree with my picks.
*(I had to go back and fix my pick of books)



The Beatles Anthology by The Beatles

Top Chef The Cookbook by the creators of Top Chef

Allure by Diana Vreeland

The Beatles Anthology

Make Your Own Dinner Notepad by Anne Taintor

Quick & Easy Mexican Cooking: More than 80 Everyday Recipes

Ichthyo: The Architecture of Fish
The Anatomy of the Sea: Over 600 Creatures of the Deep by Dr. David

Tartine Bread by Chad Robertson
Milk & Cookies: 89 Heirloom Recipes from New York's Milk & Cookies Bakery
Other Goose: Re-Nurseried and Re-Rhymed Children's Classics by J.otto Seibold
Squiggles: A Really Giant Drawing and Painting Book by Taro Gomi
MICHAEL CHIARELLO'S BOTTEGA

A NUTTY NUTCRAKER CHRISTMAS

LARGE RULED MOLESKINE VOLANT NOTEBOOK PURPLE/SET OF TWO

Sea Stories: A Classic Illustrated Edition, compiled by Cooper Edens

Giant Pop-Out Ocean, A Pop-Out Surprise Book

Tyger Tyger by Kersten Hamilton

 A fresh take on the paranormal, you will want to read this Celtic romance over again as soon as you reach the end.

Food to eat while reading: Tadpole Soup


Read the synopsis here.

I read Tyger Tyger on my iPad and plunged right in without knowing anything about it. Imagine my surprise when I found that the book has Celtic folklore, sign language, a magic system based on music and paranormal romance-all elements that are in my own WIP. Karma!

The characters at times reminded me of the kids in A Wrinkle in Time-the sister who has a quirky and intelligent little brother and the love interest who helps them. Other times Finn reminded me of Peter in Peter Pan-the immortal boy who has no family and watches Teagan’s family with interest.

The first chapter will draw you in quickly as Teagan works with a chimpanzee who speaks sign language. The sign language comes in handy later on when she is in trouble and I found that satisfying.

Though I like the angst that develops between Teagan and Finn, I really wanted more of the romance and I wanted Finn to have a bit more depth and mystery to him.

The celtic mythology in the book is cleverly woven into a contemporary setting. I found myself a bit lost with all of the Irish names and folklore-even though I study it myself. I want to read the book again to figure out all of the mythology and that won’t be a problem, I will read the book again anyway.

Only one part jarred me out of the book. When a loved one dies, the author skips over the entire grieving process and barely mentions that it happened. Because it is someone close to Teagan, I feel yanked around and don’t get a chance to deal with the death and experience what she dealt with.

All of the characters are real and multi-dimensional. Teagan’s best friend Abby is a great side-kick with an unusual family. I have to say that one of my favorite parts of the book involve Abby’s love of painting angels. That scene grabbed me and I’m hoping to see more of the result in the sequel.

I can’t wait until In the Forests of the Night comes out next year! I’ll have to console myself with reading Tyger Tyger again.

On a personal note, I wrote to Kersten and asked if she would share some of her resources on Celtic mythology.  She wrote me back within an hour and shared some with me.  Thanks Kersten!

Genre: YA fantasy paranormal romance

Publisher: Hardcover, 322 pages, November 15th 2010 by Clarion Books

Where I got the book: www.netgalley.com *

*I received only a copy of the e-book as compensation for my review.

Tasty Tuesday-Time-stopping Chocolate Truffles

Dante gives Abby life preserving chocolate in The Hourglass Door by Lisa Mangum.  We all know that chocolate is a life saver.  Why not try to make some yourself with this super easy recipe.  You can even have your kids make it!

Time-stopping Chocolate Truffles
2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 small container of whipped topping
2 tablespoons cocoa

In a microwave-save bowl, melt the chocolate chips.  If the chocolate is hot, allow it to cool to lukewarm.  Beat in the whipped topping.  Place in the freezer for 15 minutes or until firm enough to form into balls. Shape into 1 inch balls and roll in the cocoa. Yield: 2 dozen

source

The Hourglass Door by Lisa Mangum

The Hourglass Door is the perfect combination of a clean read with delicious romantic angst.

Food to eat while reading: Time-stopping Chocolate Truffles

Read the synopsis here.

Drawn in by the prologue, I thirstily drank this story up in a few days, even though I had many other books I was supposed to be reading. The prologue is intriguing and an even better read a second time upon completion of the novel.

I like Jason, but I am glad when Abby starts to fall for Dante. The angst that Mangum creates by the price they have to pay for physically touching each other is brilliant. And I found it interesting how Dante and his associates can release the pressure of their existence through the arts.

I found myself wondering if the same allure that Abby feels for the exciting Dante, (as opposed to the predictable, safe Jason) is one of the false ideas that many people fall prey to in their marriages. Of course, it makes for an exciting novel, but in real life we find that the excitement mellows to a different sort of passion.

Purchase: The Hourglass Door
Genre: YA
Publisher: May 13th 2009 by Shadow Mountain
Where I got the book: Deseret Book