I'm Reading Debbie Macomber's "Summer on Blossom Street"

I love Debbie Macomber's books!! She writes in a style that I can relate to and also enjoy any time of the year. I get so involved in her stories that I feel let down when they end, which is why I love her Cedar Cove series the best as it keeps on going!! :)

Summer on Blossom Street, is back at the yarn shop with Lydia and her sister Margaret and some of the other characters from Back on Blossom Street, I so enjoy the characters and each of their side stories and can't wait to see what happens next as this one has a man joining in on the yarn group's meetings should be interesting. The meetings are called, "Knit to Quit" geared for people who want to quit something, like smoking, a boyfriend, any bad habit...

A Review of Darkness Falls

 Don Summers gave a review of Darkness Falls and I thought I would add my "two cents" too!! Since I am a big fan of scary and thriller type movies this one "takes the cake" as mom always used to say....It's a real scary one and one that will leave you questioning the Tooth Fairy and maybe convince you to keep that closet door closed all night long!!!
Release: 2003
Directed by: Jonathan Liebesman
Starring:
Chaney Kley as Kyle Walsh
Emma Caulfield as Caitlin 'Cat' Greene
Lee Cormie as Michael Greene
Grant Piro as Larry Fleishman

Remember when you were a kid? Alone, in bed at night. Can’t sleep (because your mom probably made you go to bed at 8:00 PM) and so you peer around your room in the dark. What’s that shadow on the floor from moonlight spilling in from the window? A scarecrow? And what IS that I see through the closet door that’s open a crack? An eye? Oh no…under the bed…what’s that noise?!?

Once in a while there is a movie that captures the fears constructed in a child’s vivid imagination that never completely leave us even into adulthood. Darkness Falls is such a movie.

Darkness Falls begins with a boy, Kyle Walsh (Chaney Kley), who has lost his last tooth. He puts it under his pillow as any good lad should. He knows, however, that the town lore in (the cheerily named) Darkness Falls reports that the tooth fairy is actually the spirit of a woman that was persecuted and generally treated badly by those that lived 150 years ago, and that this “fairy” will do her job correctly and replace the tooth with silver unless…you have the NERVE to see her face while she’s replacing your tooth for money.

If you do see her, it is told, you will be killed horribly. (She is, it would seem, a bit sensitive about her burned up mess of a face) Talk about having trouble sleeping…who could sleep knowing that some frightful frauen is going to come in your room and dare you to take a peek…..

So, of course he can’t sleep, and of course he does see her…and because of that his poor mother is killed when she comes in his bedroom to and checks out his closet to prove to him that everything is alright.

Then Kyle is sent to a mental institution  because of rumors that he brutally murdered his mother…only he is  wrought with terror of the dark. It seems that the tooth fairy will not rest until she punishes Kyle for peeking, but she can only attack in the dark.

12 years later Kyle is still living in fear and trying to keep his world brightly lit, always holding a flashlight to fend off the attacker of the darkness. He comes back to town when his childhood sweetheart is concerned that her little brother is afraid of the dark and is apparently being stalked by the same spooky specter. I know why would he? But remember its a movie and you have to have the dumb decisions to make it more scary...

Is Darkness Falls a "B" movie? Sure. Does it use a lot of the horror tactics we have seen before to startle and scare the audience? Definitely. Does this mean that you should not see this flick? Absolutely not!

Sometimes I want to see a scary movie simply because I want to sit on the edge of my seat and feel that sensation in my stomach that makes me want to to hold my breath in anticipation. The tooth fairy monster is a  scary movie. She comes out at dark time to snatch people up and carry them away – and she is very creepy and very well done through the special effects. The monster herself is original and very believable. The scenes are interestingly constructed and promote the "throwing of popcorn in the air" when the music and the tooth fairy jumps out. The one thing that I did like was that Darkness Falls was extremely light on the gore. I peronally do not care for a lot of gore as others might, I just want to be scared! Which is why I always read thrillers...

If your looking for an excellent Acadamy award movie, then don't watch this one, but if you want some scary, hands over your eyes, movie then rent this one and enjoy. You'll be sure to be checking your closet all night long.....Be sure to put this on your "must see" lists but be sure that you have someone with you when you watch it!!!

I am Reading Again

So Sorry I have been aay for so long, such is life!!! You know what they say.... "Fill what's empty. Empty what's full. Scratch where it itches."  So to scratch my itch....I am reading a real THRILLER....ohhh...and I am thinking that is why my BP rises...really, I read that when you watch happy-funny-laugh out loud flicks your BP actually lowers, but when you watch horror-scary-thriller flicks it rises, and since that is all I watch, wellllllll????????????????? Get the drift?

Anywho....on with this books' little critique......... I love it ....

John Saul's ....."Perfect Nightmare"

This is about a girl that vanishes from her bedroom and how her mom and the next store neighbor collaborate to try and draw out the monster that is taking people and doing unspeakable things to them....it is a book to make one's skin crawl, and one of suspense and chills to make you want to sleep with the light on at night! The Prologue sets the pace of thrills and the story keeps you on the edge of your seat. Not a book to read when you're home alone but one to read on a cold winter evening with a nice hot cup of tea!! You won't want to put this one down, or will you? It may scare you so much that you will want to put it in the freezer. ??? {Remember that episode with Friends, when Joey and Rachel read scary books and Joey kept it in the freezer?}

Whiter Than Snow Book Review author Sandra Dallas

Whiter Than Snow was a really great read. It has an intriging feel of historical fiction put into the story about a tiny town in Colorado and it's townsfolks. It starts out with a tragic Avalanche that destroys not only some of its residents lives, but it also begins to mend relationships and reveal some hidden secrets.

I found it to be interesting and a hard to put down read.  I kept wanting to read more to know what was going to happen next with the town. I especially wanted to know about two of it's main characters, who were sisters, and how their lives from high school age through adulthood would end.

Set back in 1920, the reader is thrown into a whirlwind drama of the towns reactions and emotions from this tragic occurance, and how it effects the people that there. I liked the stories twists and turns of how fate and chance are reveled through the Avalanche's aftermath and how no one's life is without sin nor is it "whiter than snow." A wonderful play on words!

Sandra Dallas has nine other novels and lives in Denver.

Guest House by Barbara K Richardson, Discussion

I finished reading "Guest House " by Barbara K. Richardson. I found this novel to be fast paced and have very true to life characters. Ricahardson depics the thoughts and actions of one of the main characters, an eleven year old boy, with great detail and precise adolescence behavior. It kept me onthe edge of my seat in anticipation of his next experience. I liked how the scenes were not so over indulged on, bringing the main focus of the characters feelings and demeanor as the life line of the stories plot.

The people who lodged at "Guest House" are brought to the reader's attention by their strange and "unfantasized" relationships, which is so true in any real life scenario. Stepping into the minds of these characters and learning about their desires and sorrows is invigorating and makes you want to jump in and help them out or tell them to shut-up? Not sure which I felt at times?

It begins when Melba, one of the best real estate agents in Oregon, witnesses a tragic accident involving a large truck and a bicyclist. It ends in the cyclist's death. Melba, so torn up inside by this experience, swears off her vehicle, leaving it right there on the side of the road, quits her job, and declares to never drive again for fear of killing somone with her car and also to help stop air polution. She finds "Guest House in major need of repair and purchases the place in hopes of gaining peace in a more simpler life.

The "guest" that ends up living with her, Jolee, has her own twisted agenda, which does not always coincide with Melbas. Between that, and Jolees visitors, Melba gets entangled on a long roller coaster ride of daring lifestyle choices, which has her facing her own maternal instincts, and more than she had bargained for. I liked this novel and if you get a chance to read it you won't be disappointed.

This is Barbara K. Richardson's debut novel. She comes from a background of part comedian, part landscape designer, and zen master. She has portrayed her characters to accentuate their despair and ambition allowing the reader to experience hope and salvation through the natural nuturing of a woman who meshes with a child in need of love. She entangles family obligations with her character's actual magnetic inclinations and depicts it all in the landscaping of the country and a sparce little "blink of the eye" town in the desert. An excellent read!! :)

A New Guest Reader Book by Barbara Richarson

   I just received today a copy of this book, "Guest House" by Barbara Richardson, to read for them. I can't wait to get started and see what it is all about...I just wanted to post that I am starting it and will be posting what I think soon...What a fun sounding book.... 

Ugly Sweater Party Prize Books

I recently hosted an "Ugly Sweater" parter for my LYG Spring Fling party and the prizes for the 3 best sweaters were books. I did some research and found some pretty interesting books about sweaters that I felt were appropriate for the winners.

The 1st prize was for the "Ugliest Sweater"....and the prize book was called "The Sweater Book" and it is a really cool book about how people's personalities relate to their sweaters. They had all the subjects put on the same sweater and then watching how they wore it, the author Mosher, was able to capture on film a really remarkable phenomenon - when given a common item with which to express themselves, each person's distinctive personality came shining through, and the sweater becomes a symbol of what each considers to be most unique about themselves.

The resulting collection of over 500 stunning black-and-white photographs proves to be a touching and exhilarating ride from New York to Dallas, from Hollywood to London, as Mosher explores the creativity of celebrities and humbles alike - in their homes and workplaces, with their families and pets, in any way they chose. The people featured includes top names from the world of theater, film, TV, fashion, music, dance, and literature, such as Michael Bolton, Dominick Dunne, Matthew Broderick, Ted Danson, Tim Allen, Noah Wyle, Quentin Crisp, Josh Hartnett, Ryan Phillipe, and many more. I loved the book and want to order one just for myself now!!
 

The 2nd prize was for the "weirdest, funniest, strangest" sweater and the book given was none other than the "king" of sweater wearing himself, Bill Cosby's book...called "Cosbyology" it consists of essays and observations from Bill Cosby himself... and a little trivia "Awhile back it seems his daughter was going through a closet can came across a ton of his famous  "sweaters" he wore on all his TV shows and they ended up donated them to an auction to help out needy children and they raised over $5000 from them." wow...
 

Our 3rd prize was for the sweater "that would never see the light of day again" and it was a funny book by Debbie Macomber called, "The Truly Terrible, Horrible Sweater ...that Grandma knit..."
It is a fun little story of how this little boy was knit a sweater by his grandma that he felt was awful and the book even comes with the pattern!!! There’s probably not a knitter alive who hasn’t presented a handmade gift and wondered whether the recipient would use it or throw it in the closet. Cameron’s sweater from Grandma Susan gets the closet treatment—and worse. But there's a twist when she tells him why she chose the special colors she knit it with..... another must have book for any knitter or child's library....
 
 
 

Reading When it Rains Outside

Do you like to read when it rains outside? I do...I especially like to get my favorite "lapghan" and curl up next to the fireplace and grab a good book and read. The only problem is making sure DH stays away long enough to get me through more than a few chapters. LOL.....

I am just starting A Veiled Deception  by Annette Blair, and love it...If you love cozies, get this first-person paranormal mystery. This is a new series and this being the 1st one is one not to be missexd. The main character is a dress designer/vintage clothes collector with paranormal gifts inherited from her late mother. New York designer Madeira Cutler who returns to Connecticut for the wedding of her younger sister Sherry, who she virtually raised when their mother died.  Their father can't deal with the details of the wedding and the hostility of the groom's wealthy mother. Then the groom's former flame shows up, obviously planning to replace Sherry as bride.

When she's strangled at the shower with her antique bridal veil, Maddie has to not only redesign the dress but also make sure neither bride nor groom is jailed for the murder. Helping her -- and vying for her affections -- are her hot FBI sometimes-boyfriend and a local police detective she's fought with since high school. yummy....be sure to grab a copy of this short paperback and curl up by your fireplace to enjoy another wonderful read like I am doing, opps here comes more rain...ta ta for now I am off to read some more.. :)
 

               

Dogs and the Miricles they Create for Us and Mitford Series

Hello 2010...I just found out that Jan Karon's "Mitford" series has like 9 books in it... WOW I thought there were only 4....so I am back to excitingly reading the 3 I have and the Bedside Companion one too!






I wanted to share this video I found on A Knitting Junkie blog with you. It is so inspiring that I had to add it here. :)