Monday, October 14, 2013

I'm back ...my dear Diary :)

Hello again!!

Its a long time since i updated my blog...some personal reasons due to which i was away from my favorite blog and could not share my feedack on the books i was reading!! And was really missing my blog...but i'm back!! I'm updating the blog with review some of the not-recent books i have read in 2013.
I will be enjoying while writing the review...you too enjoy reading it!! It is not like, i was completely not in touch ...i was writing reviews in goodreads but, as i always wanted my blog to have my perfect review...it was taking time and i had issues with time :).
Now, i'm back to my blog mode and i'm happy...finally i could do one of my favorite thing....writing honest-to-heart reviews.



Thursday, August 8, 2013

Book Review: Home to Whiskey Creek by Brenda Novak

Home to Whiskey Creek was a full length interesting read for me. And i enjoyed Ms. Novak's formula of writing a strong romantic plot with a interesting story with substance. I can happily say that this was my favorite book out of the whole series! The name of the book and the book quote "Sometimes home is the refuge you need-and sometimes it isn't."  was very apt based on the storyline.

The book is Addy and Noah's love story and the struggles Addy has to overcome to get her happily ever after.
Adelaide Davies, Addy as friends and family calls her, who has been living in Sacramento, returns to Whiskey Creek, the place she once called home. She's there to take care of her aging grandmother and to help with Gran's restaurant, Just Like Mom's. But Adelaide isn't happy to be back. There are too many people here she'd rather avoid, people who were involved in that terrible June night fifteen years ago when she was attacked. Ever since the graduation party that changed her life, she's wanted to go to the police and make sure the boys responsible-men now-are punished. But she can't, not without revealing an even darker secret. So it's better to pretend nothing has happened but she is still having nightmares.. Now about our male lead,Noah Rackham, a professional mountain biker, popular, attractive, successful, is shocked when Adelaide won't have anything to do with him. He has no idea that his very presence reminds her of something she'd rather forget. He only knows that he's finally met a woman he could love.

I loved Addy and Noah's character, Addy is a strong person. She has suffered so much in her life because of her past,leaving her home and settling somewhere else, a failed marriage but still when she comes back, she is ready to forget the past and move forward in her life. She has a big and forgiving  heart.Even when she had a big crush on Noah when they were teenagers, she tries to stay away from him for his own good when he was clearly interested in her. Noah whereas, was a commitment-phobic, easygoing playboy, but the moment he saved Addy from the mine in the first chapter, he realized a connection between them and he worked till he convinced her his feelings were real for her and did not disappoint her till the end when she needed him the most. Then also, there was the relation between Noah and Baxter, as who have read the series already know, the tension was there from the previous books, but was efficiently handled in this book and their friendship (at least from Noah's pov :)), was wonderful!!

When i started reading this, i thought of another book i have read with a similar storyline...Breath of Scandal by Sandra Brown. Because the other book was an intense read for me, i expected a similar, repetitive story with this but, i was so mistaken, this Whiskey Creek book is entirely different and beautifully written by Ms. Novak. Actually, there are lot more to write about this book, but i don't want to reveal too much of the story!! So, read it yourself and enjoy.





Wednesday, August 7, 2013

Book Review: Hollywood Ever After by Sasha Summers

It is a long, long time since i have posted a book review in my blog. I was just busy with some personal problems and honestly, i read a lot of books but nothing captured my mind as my favorite, so was waiting something worth to post. And this is one of them which i enjoyed with my whole heart.

Recently, i have become a big fan of celebrity romances. Whenever i see one, i just add it to my goodreads bookshelves. Hollywood Ever after was one of the book i just added when i read synopsis of a celebrity hero in love with a  divorcee.
The story was predictable, not at all realistic...a complete fantasy romance , something a fairy tale romance, and that is why i loved the book and enjoyed it whole heartedly. A single praise for the book from me, Hollywood Ever After is a feel-good romance start to end. Even though the romance was a fairy tale kind, the characters were almost realistic...i loved both Josh and Claire. And i admired Claire...she is so strong...a good role model for all the women who has faced similar situations in life. Even though, she was in a abusive marriage for a very long time, she was brave to come out of it and she did it when she realized the single reason she had to leave her husband for kids. I loved how Claire was with her kids - Natalie and Will. Both were great kids especially Will...he was so cute and adorable...!! Now, our hero, Josh, what to say about him....he was the perfect prince for Claire....and awesome. He was a very sweet character, he knew what he wanted in life, something real which was difficult to find in Hollywood but he realized it the moment he meets Claire that she is the one for him. Once Josh decides, till the end, he sticks with Claire, a very consistent character and i loved him for that!
I enjoyed all other secondary characters mainly Claire's mom...a very sweet mom, always supportive of her daughter!!
This was having a bit of common plot line but still was a nice, sweet read for romance lovers!!

Saturday, June 1, 2013

Broccoli with Potato and Capsicum Fry: A Zesty Side dish

It is a long time i have posted a food recipe as i have been busy with work and family related stuffs. Last weekend, when i went for shopping, i saw this cute looking Broccoli, so i just bought it on a whim and i was planning on prepare a salad from it, but at the last moment changed my mind and got into preparing a tasty side dish. As usual, i used potato - my favorite which i put in most of my vegetable dishes, and added my own spices to the dish and created my own new dish, that also my first Broccoli dish. Luckily, the end result was so good, it was delicious (if i say so myself :) ) and here I'm posting it....

Ingredients Required:

1 small Broccoli (cooked)
2 medium-sized Potatoes(cooked and mashed)
1 medium-sized Capsicum (chopped)
1 small onion (chopped finely)
1 tspn garlic minced
1 tspn Chilly Powder
1 tspn Garam masala
1/2 tspn Turmeric Powder
1/2 tspn Mustard seeds
Curry Leaves
Salt as required
Oil as required

How to prepare:

  1. Heat a wide pan with oil. Once the oil heats, pop the mustard seeds.
  2. Add onion and minced garlic to the pan and stir-fry it for 5 minutes.
  3. To the onion mix, throw in the cooked Broccoli, mashed potato and raw capsicum and saute  it with red chilly powder, garam masala, turmeric and salt till the vegetables are uniformly coated.
  4. Fry the pan mixture for 5-10 minutes.
  5. Decorate the Broccoli dish with curry leaves and serve hot with Rice/Bread/Rotis.

 











Friday, May 10, 2013

Book Review: The Bet by Rachel Van Dyken

I saw this book in the 2013 new releases list and after reading the synopsis, just grabbed it and book was just fantastic. No single word to describe about the book...it was a mixture of everything...sweet , funny, refreshing! I finished the book in a single read till morning 3am. Ms. Rachel has done a great work - my best wishes to her.
I enjoyed the book very much for its funny, hilarious dialogues. Really entertaining! And i want to tell a bit about the story also....i loved the situations created in the book and how the author has beautifully sketched the storyline. The characters are nicely depicted.
Kacey, Travis and Jake are just wonderful, i loved each of their characters. Kacey's world was turned upside down after a fateful night where she not only loses her best friend but also her parents. Jake has always been Kacey's best friend and protector from not just his older brother who terrorized her as a kid, but also mean high school girls who did not understand their relationship. Travis, Jake's older brother, has a big crush on Kacey from their childhood. He teased and tortured Kacey as he was not able to express his feelings properly and also, he thought he was her saviour by slaying dragons (created by himself) for her (so cute and sweet:) thinking ). A few years later, after the falling out with Jake, Kacey gets a call from her ex-best-friend, Jake who is a millionaire playboy and heir to the Titus throne, with a proposition to be his fake fiancee for a weekend so that he can save his image in front of press and family. Kacey agrees to play the role for the sake of Jake's family and especially his grandma who she loves more than anything. Now, when Kacey and Jake comes to the family home....the story becomes really interesting as Travis, Kacey's nemesis, is also there the whole weekend. From there, it is lot of funny dialogues and sweet conversations between Travis and Kacey which will make you laughing out loud and happy at heart. I loved how they both develop their relationship and understand each other's feelings, and it was so cute to see their fights, very enjoyable. 

Travis's 85 years old grandma is a fantastic character , makes you laugh a lot, her affair with her neighbor was awesome :). This book was a refreshing experience for me. When you start the first chapters, you will think the story is going on the best-friends turned lover track, but it was a change from all such stories when we meet Travis. And you will love it, it makes the story more entertaining. It would be really unfair not to mention Jake, even though this is not his story but he has a equal role in this book - Ms. Rachel has created a great character in Jake, you will love and hate him at the same time. And because some chapters have Jake's point-of-view, it will help you to know him and understand why he is doing the things he does.
All in all...a romantic read with lots to laugh. It was an excellent read for me!!