2013 Holiday Greetings and Thank You!

  

 

 

It's been a pleasure hosting My Real Life Reviews for it's third year.

 

My sincere thanks to all my readers and friends.
 I truly appreciate your visits, feedback, comments, suggestions, emails.

And your affiliate link purchases made from here too (they do add up, slowly but surely!) ;<)

 

 

Special thanks to the many individuals and companies that have supplied wonderful prizes, product samples and gifts throughout this past year. It's been a pleasure corresponding with all of you. 

Your generosity and positive feedback, has meant so much. 

 

***

 

2013 has been a very productive year for me. I hope it was for you too. ;<)

 

I was able to complete and publish several book projects, some that I had had "in the works" for a long time.

 

Now, I am gearing up for 2014, including three new book projects.

 

And of course, more reviews and some new contests too, here at My Real Life Reviews.

 

 

***

 

I'm going to be taking a short break at all my blogs, very soon.

I'm guessing it's going to be kind of quiet around the blogs, in the next 2-3 weeks.

 

So for now... I wish you all: a safe, happy and magical holiday season! :<)


And thanks to Flickr for the original photo.

 

First Sight by Danielle Steel

I was a fan of Danielle Steel's novels, about 20 years ago.

 

A good friend of mine at the time, got me "hooked" on her books and I read more than 20 of them during the next few years. But for reasons unknown, I gradually stopped reading her new releases and moved on to other authors.

I noted the book cover for First Sight by Danielle Steel a novel published this past summer, while I was doing a recent browse at the Kindle store and thought I'd give this author another try.

 

I'm a sucker for great book covers (aren't we all) and this one certainly is. 

 

And I was curious to see if I would enjoy one of this author's more recent books, as much as I had her earlier novels.

So, I got a copy from our local library and settled in for what I hoped would be a satisfying escape from the dreary grey afternoon that we had that day.

 

Well, as they say: you can't always tell a book by it's cover.

 

And in this case, it was all downhill after turning that first page.

Wow, what's happened to Danielle Steel's writing?
 

I got as far as Chapter 2 and that was it for me.

I remember her books from years ago as: easy, entertaining stories with believable characters, often exotic settings and travel. And with dialogue and narration that flowed smoothly.

 

This story was, in a word:

 

ANNOYING!

Oh (spare me!!!) the details, repeated over and over and over....

Yes, I got it (the first time):

 

-the protaganist: Timmie is a good but not flashy dresser.

 

-yes, Timmie is a good employer and her staff love her.

 

And yes...

 

- Timmie has had a series of bad relationships with toy-boys hanging on to her coattails for whatever they can get.

 

And stop talking incessantly about wearing a real fur jacket and carrying an alligator handbag Ms. Steel. It's no longer considered to be in good taste or chic and by a lot of people, to be wearing animals; haven't you heard?

Boring, pretentious and just plain bad.

Now, I HAVE read my last Danielle Steel novel, that I am sure of.

 

And yes, I'm so glad it was a copy from the library. 

 

Overall rating for this book: BAD. 0 out of 5

Christmas Crochet Done In a Day! by Tara Cousins

 

I've always loved giving (and receiving!) handmade gifts. :<)

 

There's something so special about a present that someone took the time to make, in whatever type of craft it was created.

 

 

I recently found this short but worthwhile holiday crochet book over at Amazon:

 

Christmas Crochet Done in a Day.

 

 

You can read my full review here, that I just posted at Veggies, Yarns & Tails.

 

 

If you love to crochet and would like to make some handmade crochet gifts for Christmas (or for your own home!) there's still time. These are all definitely doable in a day or two.

 

Happy Hooking and Holidays! :<)