The Nano decision

So not very long since I was debating doing Nano this year. well I have finally come to a decision. I may be going completely out of mind but I have decided to participate.
Obviously I decided that finishing The Ondine, taking on extra hours at work and taking care of my three year old and doing book reviews wasn't enough to drive slowly insane and thought Nano would give me the extra push.

as luck would have it, I do have a story I want to write so at least that is one hurdle down. so for the next four days I will be fitting in as much as possible before Nano takes over. Hopefully this year I wont be up until the very early hours on the last day trying to reach the 50,000 word target, but I make no promises.

I will try and blog my progress but again that will all depend on my word count.

Review; The Pineville Heist by Lee Chambers

Seventeen year old Aaron stumbles into the aftermath of a five million dollar bank heist gone wrong. Hiding under a canoe, Aaron partially catches the murder of one of the robbers. In the chaos he sneaks away with the money and heads straight for the closest place of safety, his high school. Terrified, Aaron tells his shocking tale to Amanda Becker, his drama teacher, but it doesn't take long for one of the psychotic robbers to show up. In the locked down school the pair are relentlessly pursued in a quest to get the money back and wipe out the evidence.

My Thoughts
The Pineville Heist was an action packed mystery from start to finish. Just when I thought I had figured out the plot and the "who done it", I was thrown a curve ball that had me guessing and second guessing all over again. Brilliant.

Aaron was a typical teenage boy going about his daily life, he was lucky that he came from such a wealthy family but unlucky that his father was too busy bothering with his business to even care about Aaron. despite the wealth Aaron was level headed and despised his father for reasons that are clear in the book.

When Aaron stumbles upon a bank robbery he quickly needs to learn how to out smart his would be killers and stay alive not only does he need to protect his own life but that of his drama teacher  Amanda Becker too. unable to call for help as the the school is a no cell phone area there only choice is to fight there way out.

Aaron grew from a boy to man in this book as he fought against the robbers who wanted the money back and all evidence gone. That included Aaron, as long as Aaron knew what was going on he was threat and would need to be dealt with.

The characters were well developed, especially Aaron who I felt I really got to know and understand. 

A brilliant read by Lee Chambers and I am excited to hear this is going to be turned into a movie staring Booboo Stewart (Seth Clearwater from twilight) I cant wait to see how it translates to the big screen. if the book is anything to go by it will hit at the cinema

The Devil's Serum (Ramblings of the Damned Book #1) by Ashliegh Wolfgang

When Christian met the girl that would become the love of his life, he thought it was the most amazing thing that could ever happen. It wasn't even close to the most amazing thing that happened that day. Christian discovers he has become immortal after drinking from a mysterious silver flask. Is this a gift or a curse?

My thoughts 
The devils serum is a short story and reads like a journal, so the reader is thrown straight into Christians mind. His hopes, His fears, and above all his love for Corrine. 
Its easy to understand Christian and what makes him tick and understands the decisions he makes.

I especially enjoyed reading his fears about becoming immortal and the despair he felt over what would become of him, the story reading as a journal definitely help me understand all this better  I would like to have known more about what Corrine thought of him being immortal but then this book was about Christian not Corrine

Ashliegh does a brilliant job at bringing Christian to life, and kept me turning page after page, I read this is one day as I couldn't put it down, I found myself finding hiding places so I could read undisturbed  

A great short read and I am looking forward to reading the devils folly

you can find Ashliegh Wolfgang and his books on;
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Website

The Essential Adoption Guide: Everything the potential adoptive parent needs to know by Iain Dickinson, Rebecca Maxfield

This booklet has been written to give you an understanding of adoption, the assessment process and how you may be 'matched' with the right child for you. In this booklet, you will find the answers to the most commonly asked questions and misconceptions about adoption.

We will also look at the difficulties in the adoption process and the problems you might face. In reading this booklet, you will be given information on how adoptions break down, why they do so and what you can do to prevent it happening. Although this sounds ominous, by showing you what can go wrong, we can equip you with the tools to help everything go right. 

This guide is based on the experience of many adopters and assessing social workers. In this booklet, you will find real life case studies, simple guidance, practical tips and other useful information. We have included a glossary of useful terms to help you cut through the ‘social worker-speak’ to find out how the adoption process will work for you.

In reading this booklet, you will hear from social workers, adopted people and others to gain an understanding of:

· How adoption works 

· Your assessment and what the social worker is looking for

· Tips on becoming more involved in your assessment 

· Getting the right child for you

· Legislation

· Potential pitfalls

My Thoughts
I know this is definitely not the sort of book I would normal read, but I was interested in this as I have a few relatives that are adopting or have adopted. 

I found this informative and helpful, learning all the steps involved in the adoption process and the statics involving children that are put in care. I feel I am more able to understand what my relatives are going through with each step they take and I would recommend this to anyone who is looking to adopt I will certainly be recommending it to my relatives.

not only does it outline the steps that will be taken it also suggest ways to make the process easier on all involved and how to make sure you and the social worker, work together and all relevant information is made aware to the social worker

What surprised me the most was when the booklet discussed the type of people that can adopt and was pleased that the range of potential adopters can be quite large that, age, race gender and sexuality and marital status are not an issue, emphasis is placed on the child needing a caring  secure loving home. 

I also feel I  understand my niece better who is also adopted as the book explains the effects to children in care

Review; Fade (The Ragnarök Prophesies #1) by A.K. Morgen

What do you do when you realize nothing in your life is what you’ve believed it to be?

When Arionna Jacobs loses her mother in a tragic accident, her world is turned upside down. She’s forced to leave her old life behind and move in with her father. 

Dace Matthews, a teaching assistant at her new college, is torn in two, unable to communicate with the feral wolf caged inside him.

When they meet, everything they thought they knew about life unravels. Dace has intimate access to Arionna’s mind, and something deep within her fights to rise to the surface. They don't understand what's happening to them or why, and they're running out of time to sort out the strange occurrences around them.

Their meeting sets an ancient Norse prophesy of destruction in motion, and what destiny has in store for them is bigger than either could have ever imagined. Unless they learn to trust themselves and one another, they may never resolve the mystery surrounding who they are to one another, and what that means for the world.

My Thoughts
I think I have found a new favourite series, and a new boy book crush. I love Dace. okay so he might a bit possessive and protective but he is struggling with his feelings and struggling with who he is. he as no more answers than Arionna does but together they need to discover the truth about there connections and who they are

Arionna is a strong girl, still reeling with the death of her mother she then as to cope with all the crazy stuff happening to her, She handles Dace well and even handles his wolf who Dace is disconnected with.
Dace keeps the wolf caged inside, scared to let him out, scared of what could happen if he did but he struggles even more when Arionna is around, his wolf wants Arionna as much as Dace does which makes him all the more possessive of her. I liked that Dace was a shifter and not a werewolf it meaning that this book is different to other wolf type books I have read the Norse mythology also added a different dynamic to the story


I loved the Norse mythology in this book and so much is explained as the book goes on to explain the instant connection between Arionna and Dace.

Dace is a complicated character mainly because of his struggles with his wolf. he is an Alpha shifter and also as some control on normal wolves I did love the scenes when he was interacting with the wolves.
although he keeps himself mainly to himself he would lay his life down for those he cares for and would do what ever he can to protect them and there family.

Arionna's dad was a cool guy, he loves and understands his daughter realising she is an adult (19) he treats her like one and because of this they have a great relationship. 

This book kept going at a good pace, hardly giving me a moment to put it down, I had to be careful to only read once my son was in bed for fear of being neglectful, I am looking forward to reading the next book in the series 

find out more about the author and her books on;
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Website

Review: Reflection by Nadia Kim

Jessica Hamid thought she put her past behind her when she finished college. With her dream job in hand she was set. That is, until she started working at Teen Savvy and found herself a true fish out of water. Surrounded by people who looked like models, Jessica began to feel her insecurities rushing to the surface. And everything any mean kid had teased her about slapped her in the face.

With a mean boss and a meaner coworker who scrutinize her down to the color nail polish, Jessica starts to rethink her career choice. To make matters worse the outgoing photographer Mark Craig swoops in with his alluring charm and confuses things even more.

This story is Jessica's journey. The roller coaster of emotions she feels and the difficulties she faces with conflict around every turn. Will she stay and find happiness at her job? Will Mark wiggle his way into her heart, creating a nest of comfort. Or will Jessica's world come bearing down on her and smash her to bits?



My thoughts
Reading this blurb you could be forgiven for thinking this would be an office romance book, but this is so much more. I already knew from the author that this book had a fantasy element although there is no indication to that in the blurb. To begin with I did wonder about what the fantasy element would be. Then Jess started having very vivid dreams and just like that I was hooked.

Jess is an insecure young woman who as had a life time of ridicule she then lands a job working for teen savvy, although its her dream job her insecurities resurface as she as to spend each day been looked down at by her boss and colleagues  when Mark Craig shows interest in her she is reluctant to let her guard down and trust him. He spends his days around models, what would he want with Jessica?

Her insecurities put her in more danger than she could ever imagine. even sleeping is dangerous. Jessica is a dream walker. her soul astral projects to an alternate universe while she sleeps. it is here she mets Angela and quickly forms a bond with her, but Angela warns her how much danger she is in. Jess needs to mend her soul if she is going to be able to save herself.

A compelling read, with characters I could empathise with demons that where truly terrifying and a guy that made me want to swoon oh and not forgetting the hot Italian  I really enjoyed this story, very different to a lot of the fantasy books I have read lately. the end left me wondering if they will be a book two, if there is I will definitely be reading it.

To NaNo or not to NaNo

With only seventeen days left to go this is a question I am still asking myself. I just cant decide if I should partake in NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month) or not this year.

Last year was my first year and I was over the moon when, with only hours to go I reached the 50,000 words and became a NaNo winner and had finally finished my first ever novel Forest Falls.
It took me a while to go back and look over what I wrote, despite needing a heavy edit its not a bad story and I believe it can be salvaged.

At the minute though I have been busy writing The Ondine, I am loving writing this story and I am roughly halfway through the first draft and have been sending chapter at a time off to be critiqued and so far feedback is good.

I am hoping that by the time the 1st of November comes round I will have completed the first draft of The Ondine and will have even done some of the first round of edits.

the question is do I take a break from The Ondine and throw myself into NaNo for a month and write a whole new story. Or do I keep on with the edits. Hmm decisions, decisions.