A Body at Bunco (Myrtle Clover cozy mystery series, book 8 )

A BODY AT BUNCO 

When I noted this cozy mystery by Elizabeth Spann Craig (click to visit her site/blog) at Amazon recently, it was the word "bunco" in the title that caught my attention first.  

Many years ago, my mom hosted bunco parties. 
At that time, I was a little girl, sneaking out of bed to see what was going on with all these ladies moving around our living room and porch, the tables, the treats...what a nice memory it brought to mind. :-)

And In case you haven't heard of BUNCO, it's a dice party game that is apparently still quite popular now.

A Body at Bunco was a real treat and Myrtle Clover is my kind of main character.

 Myrtle is spunky, sassy, opinionated (in a good way) and lives life on her own terms. 

And In spite of being in her 80s, she is not portrayed as some achy, whining older woman (which has all too often been the case in other books I've read), who is past doing anything constructive or exciting, Myrtle is still living life full-tilt and making the most of every day! ;-)

The story has LOTS of twists and turns and red herrings left along the way. Had me guessing who the real killer(s) was too, I like that. I don't like stories with obvious finales almost right from the start, that are too obvious.

Another plus with this series, the stories can be read in any order. Too often books in a series don't make sense, unless they are read in order from book 1...I appreciate that. 

I will definitely be reading more from the Myrtle Clover series! :-) Just delightful.  

Overall rating for this book: Very Good. 4 out of 5

Cat Haiku by Deborah Smith

As any of my regular blog readers already know, I LOVE cats. I have long "been owned" by many felines over the years; currently by the fab Mr. Cheddar (who btw is co-blogger here at My Real Life Reviews). And as the author of two haiku poetry collections, I also LOVE haiku poetry. 

When I saw: Cat Haiku by Deborah Smith over at Amazon recently, I was eager to give it a read. This eBook did not disappoint, it's just wonderful! :-)

Deborah Smith is the author of several books/eBooks and also by her own admission a "crazy cat lady" who knows first-hand the joys, thrills and spills (pun intended) of being owned by several cats (she currently lives with 8 felines!), yes EIGHT!!!

She is not only a talented writer; her artwork featured in this book is both original and captivating. 

Here are a couple of poems from the book that I particularly liked:

Cats make bad soldiers:

No discipline, no order

And they won't salute.

***

I see beyond worlds

Deep hearts,

waking fantasies

in my eyes

are dreams

I can SO relate to these lines. 

And again, the artwork that accompanies each poem adds so much to this collection.

 I only keep my absolutely fav books on my Kindle carousel (home page) but this eBook will definitely be staying there for the foreseeable future. I love to re-read a poem or two, when I'm reading on my Kindle. These poems always bring a smile to my day.

If you love all things feline (like I do) and perhaps haiku poetry too (even better): Cat Haiku by Deborah Smith is an eBook you will not want to miss. Highly recommended.

Overall rating for this eBook: Excellent. 5 out of 5. 

How I Roll by J. Bryant Neville Jr.

How I Roll by Bryant Neville Jr. is not the kind of book I normally pick to read. But I noted it on one of the Top 100 Kindle lists at Amazon recently, for inspirational books and decided to give it a try. I'm so glad that I did.

I was inspired by Bryant's true life story of how he has faced his disability head-on, from the young age of 17, when he was involved in a car accident to the present day, at age 47.

I learned a lot about the reality of what it means to live life in a wheelchair and how a person with a disability like this must learn to adapt to so many "givens" that we take for granted, like going to the bathroom, bathing, showering... etc. Although I'm rather a squeamish person, I did not find these references particularly gross or hard to read; just enlightening. 

It certainly put my own (by comparison, small) challenges over the years into perspective too. How Bryant has adjusted and gone on to having a very successful life in every way, is truly inspiring for anyone who reads this book. 

His disability obviously changed his life forever, but it certainly didn't defeat him. He has accomplished so much, in spite of his disability including: graduating from college, rising up through the ranks for several upper-level employers and raising a family of his own.  

I thought the book was well written, in a realistic but still for the most part, sensitive way.

Bryant has an incredible family who really helped him to get to where he has in life, in spite of his disability. I was touched by the love that he conveyed for all the people who are close to him, including many friends who stuck by him, through the years. In that respect, Bryant is blessed so much more, than many people in similar circumstances.

There was only one sentence that I found a bit surprising and insensitive and this was not in relation to Bryant's injury. It was in reference to a weekend at the Daytona 500 when one of the drivers was tragically killed in a race. 

When asked by a friend after the weekend was over, how things had gone and if he had HAD FUN, Bryant replied: 

"Absolutely! The seats were amazing and everyone had a blast."

Wow, that didn't sound right and it bothered me, reading this. 

Other than that, a good book and one that I definitely think would help a lot of people who are struggling with big challenges and adjustments in life (of any kind) as Bryant has so capably done.

I did not find the book overly religious either. I don't like that in a book and I didn't agree with some comments from other reviewers over at Amazon, in this regard. Obviously, Bryant's faith is important to him and that is conveyed throughout this story, but not in a preachy or overbearing way.

Overall rating for this Ebook: Very Good. 4 out of 5.