The Migrant Report by Mohanalakshmi Rajakumar

November 19, 2015

The Migrant Report by Mohanalakshmi Rajakumar was a very interesting book. I loved this book because it takes place in another part of the world and has to do with a culture I don’t know much about so I was intrigued by this story. I love how the author talks about issues and things that are taking place in the middle east so that people who don’t know what is going on can have a sense of some of the things that are going on. I loved everything about this book and I love the author’s writing as well. This is an author who I know I will be reading more books by her because she is an amazing author. If you love to read books that teach things than I know you will love this book as much as I did.

About The Book

Against the glittering high-rises of the capital, Manu, a recent arrival from Nepal, drips his days away on a construction site, cut off from the world outside the labor camp. His sister despairs of finding him among the thousands of migrant workers flooding into the Arabian Gulf to build the country’s infrastructure. Manu and Sanjana must keep their younger siblings out of poverty, even if at their own expense.

Police captain Ali’s hopes of joining the elite government forces are dashed when his childhood deformity is discovered. His demotion brings him face to face with a rising pile of unexplained dead bodies and also an aspiring journalist who is unlike any local girl Ali knows. In danger of flunking out of university, Maryam is searching for an original story that will appease her professor and keep her family’s machinations for marriage in check.

Can the unlikely trio fit the pieces of the puzzle together before agency thugs get to Manu?

About The Author

Mohanalakshmi Rajakumar is a South Asian American who has lived in Qatar since 2005. Moving to the Arabian Desert was fortuitous in many ways since this is where she met her husband, had two sons, and became a writer. She has since published eight e-books, including a momoir for first time mothers, Mommy But Still Me; a guide for aspiring writers, So You Want to Sell a Million Copies; a short story collection, Coloured and Other Stories; and a novel about women’s friendships, Saving Peace.

Her coming of age novel, An Unlikely Goddess, won the SheWrites New Novelist competition in 2011.

Her recent books have focused on various aspects of life in Qatar. From Dunes to Dior, named as a Best Indie book in 2013, is a collection of essays related to her experiences as a female South Asian American living in the Arabian Gulf. Love Comes Later was the winner of the Best Indie Book Award for Romance in 2013 and is a literary romance set in Qatar and London. The Dohmestics is an inside look into compound life, the day-to-day dynamics between housemaids and their employers.

After she joined the e-book revolution, Mohana dreams in plotlines. Learn more about her work on her website at http://www.mohadoha.com or follow her latest on Twitter: @moha_doha.

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Crimson Path Of Honor by M.B. Tosi

November 19, 2015

Crimson Path Of Honor by M.B. Tosi was so different from anything that I have read before. I have read a ton of historical fiction books but none that dealt with Native Americans like this book does. This is the third book in “The Indian Path Series” but you don’t have to read the other two books to know what is going on in this book. It is the third book but all books can stand alone because they all focus on a different Indian tribe. I love watching and Luci turn into Morning Star after she is captured and taken with them instead of being killed when the other people in her party were killed. This was an amazing book and I am so glad that I chose to review. I can’t wait to read the other books in this series in the future.

About The Book

Each of the three books in The Indian Path Series focuses on a different Native American tribe during the Indian Wars in the late 1800s, and the lives of fictional characters are woven into the true events. The books can be read in any order as each book stands alone with different characters, tribes, settings, and events in the Indian Wars.

In the newest book, The Crimson Path of Honor (Book Three), the Civil War is over, and a violent period known as the Indian Wars is erupting. Ignoring the danger, a feisty young woman from Boston rebels against her tyrannical father’s plans to marry her off to a family friend, and she seizes an opportunity to go west to teach. On the way to the Oregon Territory, her stagecoach is attacked, and she is captured by a marauding band of Lakota (Sioux) Indians who call the Rocky Mountains home.

Accepting her perilous situation, the young woman courageously confronts the daily hardships inherent in early Native American life. At first treated like an outcast, she eventually adapts to her circumstances and comes to respect the camaraderie of the Indians, even falling in love with her captor. Over time, she begins to challenge her abductor’s traditional views on bloodletting and violence as the path of honor. Torn by her inability to justify her growing feelings for her captor in a culture of violence,she continually wonders why God has abandoned her in such a desolate place.

The theme of The Indian Path Series is how to find life’s purpose and a path of peace, love, courage, and faith in times of trouble. As American poet Henry Wadsworth Longfellow said, “If we could read the secret history of our enemies, we should find in each man’s life sorrow and suffering enough to disarm all hostility.”

Other books in The Indian Path Series include The Sacred Path of Tears (Book One) and The Secret Path of Destiny (Book Two). In The Sacred Path of Tears, a young Cheyenne woman in Kansas is torn between two worlds at war and the two men she loves after the Sand Creek Massacre. The Secret Path of Destiny is about the Comanche in Texas and a young German-American girl who seeks refuge with the Comanche when her wicked stepfather pursues her.

About The Author

M.B. TOSI is the bestselling author of The Indian Path Series, which includes Book One The Sacred Path of Tears, Book Two The Secret Path of Destiny, Book Three The Crimson Path of Honor. Book Four, The Thundering Path of Spirit, and Book Five, The Solitary Path of Courage. She also has been an editor of non-fiction books and a weekly newspaper. She teaches piano and has a bachelor’s degree in journalism and master’s degree in education. Born in Pierre, South Dakota, she has lived in Alexandria, Virginia; Bucks County, Pennsylvania; and Toledo, Ohio. She has three children and five grandchildren.

Website

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The Courtship of Utopia Miner by Linda Gilman

November 18, 2015

The Courtship of Utopia Miner by Linda Gilman was such a cute book to read. The entire time I was reading this book the only thing I thought was how great this story was. I couldn’t help but laugh and love Utopia because of what she wanted to do with her life and the fact that she had 3 dads. I loved this author’s style of writing. There were times when I laughed out loud because the entire situation was crazy but the author wrote about in a way that makes you laugh. If you are looking for a great historical fiction novel than I know you won’t want to miss this one.

About The Book

Title: The Courtship of Utopia Miner

Author: Linda Gilman

Series: Gold Rush

Genre: Historical Romance

Release Date: November 9^th 2015

Publisher: Indie Published

Print Length: 289 pages

Format: Paperback and Digital

Print ISBN: 9781517538941

Digital ISBN: 1517538947

Utopia Miner is tired of hunting gold and caring for her three adopted fathers. Living in a Rocky Mountain mining camp is holding up her dream of becoming a saloon girl. If only she could learn the essential skills of singing, dancing and kissing, she’d be on her way to a glamorous life. When Utopia discovers she’s the prize in her three fathers’ marrying scheme, she sees benefits in going along with the courting contest. She now has a kissing teacher. And wow, what a teacher. One starter kiss from Lance and her body’s sweating in places it never had before.

Lancelot Jones wants to turn in his life-risking marshal’s badge for a much safer job as a reporter, but the newspaper wants articles as proof of his qualifications. When his editor sends him to a mining camp to get the scoop on a courtship contest, Lance discovers the privilege of covering the story hinges upon chaperoning the bride-to-be. He soon finds himself ensconced in Utopia’s innocent charms and demanding saloon girl lessons. In short order, chaperoning the bride-to-be becomes risky business.

About The Author

Linda Gilman is known for writing humorous western romance novels. Her stories are centered on independent, strong-willed women, and courageous heroes who always protect the innocent without violating their personal code of conduct. It’s the cowboy west readers are so enamored with and a twist of zany plot. From first page to last, her books are loaded with pain-in-your-side laughable moments.

She has a deep love of the American gold rush era and often uses this as an excuse to do book research and travel to ghost towns in the western states.

Born into a city girl life, her parents raised her in St. Louis County. However, Linda has always felt her country girl roots calling her to move west young woman. She currently lives in rural Missouri with her hubby and the oldest of her three sons.

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Waking Up To Love by Katie O’Boyle

November 18, 2015

Waking Up To Love by Katie O’Boyle was a sweet romance novel. I really liked both Kyle & Lyssa from the first chapter which is always a good thing because it is hard to read a book when you don’t like the main characters. I didn’t like Rand from the first page that they introduced him and to be honest I am not sure why but he just got on my nerves. I spent the entire book hoping that Lyssa and Kyle would figure it out and end up together because they both seemed like they would make a great couple. If you love romance novels than I know you will love this book as much as I did.

About The Book

Contemporary Romance

Date Published: October 21, 2015

Kyle Pennington broke Lyssa’s heart when he let her go, rather than interfere with her budding career. An ocean away now, Lyssa has fallen under the spell of golden-tongued Rand Cunningham who’s in a hurry to marry her. But Kyle is miserable without her and is willing to risk everything to get her back. Will Lyssa wake up in time to ask who she really loves?

About The Author

Born in the upstate-New York village known as the Birthplace of Women’s Rights, Katie O’Boyle loves the Finger Lakes in every season. She enjoys lunch with friends at quaint inns, and she cherishes the lakeside porch as a place for intimate sharing, laughter, and inspiration. To the outside world, she’s a tech-savvy college professor. In her soul, she’s a passionate author of warm-hearted romance.

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Keep S’Myelin Foundation

November 17, 2015

I know I am lucky that I live around so many amazing MS doctors and clinics and even if I can’t find one in Salt Lake I could always go to Provo or Ogden to find a doctor. I know that not all people are as lucky as me to live in such a great location and to have several different doctors to chose from.

Up until recently I have never really thought about how far people have to drive in order to find any Multiple Sclerosis doctor and even with driving that far they may not like the doctor but have no other choices and are forced to see them anyway. I was contacted by a woman named Erica who was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis this past summer and she asked me to write a post about a charity that she is trying to get up and running to help people with money for traveling costs and things like that.

Here is some of the information that she sent me when she contacted me:

OUR MISSION:

To provide resources, both financial and tangible, to patients and families fighting multiple sclerosis.

WHAT WE WILL DO:

Through the efforts of extensive fundraising campaigns, private donations and grants, the organization seeks to provide financial support to multiple sclerosis families not typically covered by health insurance. This includes travel expenses, personal comfort items, service animals, and other needs as they arise. The needs will be met on a case by case basis as the need arises. In addition, the organization seeks to provide work from home training, employment assistance, and scholarships for those affected by multiple sclerosis. This differs from current organizations because many organizations focus efforts on the research and pharmaceutical side of multiple sclerosis and lack interest or focus on the patient quality of life.

WHY THIS, WHY NOW?

As a current MS fighter, the founder, Erica Durham, seeks to empower others like herself with the disease rather than be a victim of the disease. These resources are near and dear to her heart and she understands the need for them.

My website is http://www.keepsmyelin.org , my twitter is @erica_gayle79 , and I have two t-shirt fundraising boosters going on now, https://www.booster.com/ms-gets-on-my-nerves and https://www.booster.com/keepsmyelinfoundation as well as a general give forward fund at https://www.giveforward.com/fundraiser/npfb/raising-money-for-non-profit-foundation-helping-patients-with-ms

I am hoping that I will reach an audience that is willing to help others as I am, any amount of giving helps.

Over the past few years I have stopped giving money to charities because I don’t like what they do with the money and things like that so when I was contacted by Erica I thought would write about it in case you are looking for a charity to donate to this time of year. Since this is a new startup charity I don’t know what will happen in the end but I would be more likely to donate to Keep S’Myelin before I send any money to the National MS society.

I will have an MS update coming the middle of December after I meet with my doctor. Not much has really changed though so it will be a super short update but an updated none the less.

Butterfly Dreams by A. Meredith Walters

November 16, 2015

Butterfly Dreams by A. Meredith Walters was a fun book to read. Corin made me smile throughout most of the book because I know people like her in real life and I can’t help but smile. I also loved Beckett from the start as well because lets be honest he seemed like someone that I would love to meet and date in real life. I really enjoyed how light hearted this book was and how easy it was read. I am usually not a huge fan of books like this but it was a great book to throw in middle of some of the books that I have been reading lately that have been more intense lately. I you easy to read chick lit books than I know you will love this book.

About The Book

In a powerful romance hailed as “heartbreaking, real, and breathtakingly beautiful” by Stacey Lynn, New York Timesbestselling author A. Meredith Walters tells the story of a troubled young woman and the unforgettable guy who teaches her to live—and love—to the fullest.

She’s waiting to die. . . . Corin Thompson is paralyzed by her obsession with mortality. Having lost both of her parents, she is terrified by the idea that she too will die young, and she loses control at any sign of illness. But when Corin connects with someone who has survived a very real brush with death, she begins to see the world in a whole new way.

He’s learning to live. . . . As Corin struggles under the weight of her neuroses, Beckett Kingsley is attempting to rebuild a life that feels all too temporary. With the ever-present threat of heart failure never far from his mind, he just wants to make the most of whatever time he has left. And that means pursuing the girl he never expected to find.

Together, Corin and Beckett finally learn to let go of their fears and take solace in everyday pleasures. Who knows what the future holds? After all, nothing lasts forever—the only promise they have is right now.

About The Author

The New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of Contemporary and New Adult romances including the Bad Rep, Find You in the Dark, Reclaiming the Sand, and Twisted Love series.