Blogging for Books Review: “Far Afield” by Shane Mitchell

 

Far Afield: Rare Food Encounters from Around the World by Shane Mitchell

 

An extraordinarily photographed culinary travel book featuring profiles of the stewards of the world’s traditional foodways—farming, fishing, and herding methods—along with 40 recipes.

Journalist Shane Mitchell and photographer James Fisher have traveled the world on assignment for food and travel publications such as Travel + Leisure and Saveur. Along the way, they have encountered the fascinating people who are keeping some of the world’s oldest food traditions alive, such as taro farmers in Hawaii who have never left the islands, Maasai warriors in Kenya, and Icelandic shepherds who still use the techniques of their Viking ancestors. Full of compelling photography from far-flung locations, Far Afield profiles these people, sharing their unique and captivating stories along with forty recipes.

 

My Review:

This is a fascinating book. I’ve quite enjoyed going through it, reading the real-accounts, and browsing the pictures and recipes. It’s full of different cultures that is great to absorb. The recipes are all very intriguing and I will have to try several of them.

A very interesting and enjoyable book! Very colorful, fun, and inviting.

*I received a complimentary book through Blogging for Books.

 

The Ten Random Questions Tag

Hello, today I have another tag to do, this time tagged to me bt Shantelle at A Writer’s Heart. Since random is always fun, I gladly went along with it. :)

Guidelines:

• Use the header if you want to. :)
• Answer the questions
• Take five of the questions you answered and make up five more for the people that you tagged to answer
• Tag as many people as you wish!

 

 

1) What is something you loved to do when you were little?  Play softball. I was a short-haired softball fanatic. ^.^ Not lying. I still enjoy softball, but haven’t played it in a while.

2) If you had to change your first name, what would it be? Hmm…I rather like my name. If I  *had* to change it, I guess I’d go with either something really unique or else my middle name. :)

 3) If you had to dye your hair an unnatural color for one week, what color would it be? Aw, just for one week? I’d go bright rainbow or ombre’. I would absolutely love that! I’d totally die my hair rainbow colours if I could.

4) What book are you reading at the moment? “Destiny Delivered” by J.A. Marx. It’s an amazing book (second in a tightly knit series, so it has to be read in order)!

5) What era would you enjoy dressing up in? Several…The Medieval era definitely, and also the 1940’s, and the 50’s would be fun too.

6) How many siblings do you have? Two :)

7) What’s your favorite type of dance? Oh golly, I don’t really know any dances…The Regency dancing is fun to watch. As for what type of dancing I like to do…um, just dancing from the heart. XD

8) What’s your favorite restaurant? We don’t eat out a whole lot…but I really do love Culver’s. :D

9) What version of the Bible do you read?  The King James Version. :)

10) What’s one hope for 2017?  To grow more in Yeshua, and also to read a lot of my TBR books. :D (That was two! Whoops).

So, there we go. As for who I tag:

You. If you, reader, are inclined, interested, desiring to do this tag, go for it.

Here are the Questions:

1. If you had to dye your hair an unnatural color for one week, what color would it be?

2. What book are you reading at the moment?

3. How many siblings do you have?

4. What is something you loved to do when you were little?

5. If you had to change your name, what would you change it to?

6. What was the last movie you saw in Theaters?

7. Do you have a favourite kind of tea/coffee?

8. If you could travel to any state in the USA, which would you choose?

9. What do you like best about blogging?

10. Favourite form of chocolate?

Don’t Lie

Our relationship with Jesus is very personal. That’s what I believe. We are, because He is. He’s Holy, and Perfect, and Loving. We’re broken, and at this stage, un-perfect. But we’ll only stay that way if we don’t let Him into our lives. What’s broken can be healed, and what’s blemished can be perfected. It’s all grace. But we do have to choose. Choose to live like that – choose to be perfected, to let Jesus’ all encompassing grace surround us and make us new.

“Not my will, but Yours be done” – most of us are familiar with that phrase, I’m sure. But how often do we truly pray it ourselves? It’s h.a.r.d. To actually mean it, at least. But still, praying with our mouths still sets our direction and aligns our will with His.

I recently had a prayer appointment with a family friend. Many good things came from it, but one was not lying. To myself. We can’t lie to God – He knows everything anyway. But we can lie to ourselves. Maybe you’ve done this, too: I wouldn’t be totally authentic with God about what I was feeling because I didn’t think I “should” be feeling what I felt. For example, I wanted specific physical healing. But I wouldn’t truly ask for it because I knew I “should be thankful in all things”. And that’s true – we are to be thankful in all things, but it has to start from the heart. And I was lying to my heart, making me sick in a way. So sitting there in that prayer appointment, He said “Stop lying. Tell Me what you want,”. It sounds unconventional. Maybe it is. But my God is a Healing God – He knows the steps for inner and perfect healing. So I did, I let out all my pent-up feelings to Him. I listed off what I wanted, one by one. For years I never did that – I never was truly authentic out of fear of being “wrong” or making myself “unlovable”. Childhood fears. We all have them – He just unearths them slowly and gently when we give Him room to.

As I listed my wants, I was emptying myself so something beautiful could happen by His hands. When I was done speaking out my wants, He showed me that it was good, but now it’s time to give those wants over to Him and understand “Not my will but Yours be done”. Then He led me to want what HE wants. So if that means no immediate healing, Blessed be His Name. He’s teaching me to pray “This is what I want Lord, but not my will but Yours be done”.

Is it easier now? Heck no! We live in an ongoing battle. He showed me that I will have to keep affirming out loud that I want what He wants. It’s not going to be easy. And I’m still going to stumble. But He wants honesty. It’s cool how something two-sided can be bonded together. He wants to hear what I want, but also for me to align myself with His will – both of these work in harmony. “You have not because you ask not”  – so let us ask, let us be honest. Let us not lie. And watch as He brings us to a place of “not my will but Yours be done, Father”.

 

There’s a quote in one of my favourite books that I’m rereading right now (“Destiny Defied” by J.A.Marx”)  that says:

“Heal the spirit and the rest will fall in line.”

 

And that’s truth. Once we allow the Lord to heal our spirit, the rest really will follow.

Seek ye first the Kingdom of God, and all this shall be added unto you.

Book Review: “Why Not?” By Debra E. Marvin

 

“Why Not?” by Debra E. Marvin

Part of the Novella Collection: “Valentine MatchMakers”

My rating: 4 out of 5 Stars

 

About the book:

Love Puts These Two On the Edge!

Grand Canyon, 1914

Society girl Amber Wynott’s wintry escape to the Grand Canyon provides a chance to pursue her dream and prove she has what it takes to be a successful architect. It doesn’t take long to realize the incredible scenery can’t hide the simmering anger between ‘railroad money’ and the struggling locals.

Which side is master builder Stone Morrison on?

Amber has met her match in the handsome, hard-headed man. He’s been directed to keep an eye on her, but when iron meets iron—oh the sparks! As their unlikely old matchmaker tells them, pride goes before a fall, and this is a bad place to fall. Will danger finally knock some sense into the pair?

 

 

My thoughts:

 

A very cute little romance story – perfect for a Valentines Day read, as the collection promotes!

Amber and Stone both had very strong personalities, but blended really well together without diminishing the other one – that was pretty impressive. Usually when I read about a strong female lead, the man becomes less of a…well, a man, and backs down, losing his strong personality, but even though Amber was independent, she still came to rely upon him, and he didn’t back down, but also didn’t demean her either. It was a good match.

There was also a bit of mystery involved – always a fun thread to keep up with.

I think it would’ve been fun to have a bit more backstory – because it was a novella, it at times was a tiny bit rushed and I would’ve liked to get to know the characters more, but it was still a good read and well put-together. The romance was sweet, and you were rooting for the characters from the start. :)

The setting was fascinating, too – the Grand Canyon in 1914. And the unrest at the time – all very interesting! I enjoyed the touches this brought to the story.

So yes, a quick but enjoyable read. :)

I received a complimentary ecopy from the author. All thoughts are my own.

A Day in Life Explained by Gifs Tag

Guten-tag, blog readers!

Today I have another tag to share. Marrok at Marrok Macintyre has created a tag, A Day in Life Explained by Gifs, and has kindly tagged me, so here I am. :)

 

Rules are:

 

• Explain what an average day of life looks like for you (no need to divulge a ton of personal info, just the gist is fine)
• Animated or live action gifs are okay (nothing inappropriate)
• Tag at lest one other person
• Exaggeration is fine

The main point of this tag is just random fun.

So, without further ado, here’s a day in my life in gif form (and yes, mine will be exaggerated a bit. Because why not!):

 

Wake up. XD

 

Have my cup o’ tea.

 

Wade through the snow to go do chores.

 

Come in and have some breakfast. Very exciting.

Try to write. Sometimes ends in chaos and throwing things.

 

Get the mail and find something for me.

 

Read, of course.

 

Find out my nephews are coming over.

 

Chaos insues as my nephews run wild. (They’re adorable though – cuter than minions!)

 

Feeling triumphant to survive the 3 mini-tornados

 

.

Talk to my cats. Cuz I can.

 

Be weird. This is actually an all day thing…

 

Go to sleep. XD

 

As for who I tag…

Faith at Stories by Firefly

Ashley at Ashley Bogner

 

 

**None of these gifs belong to me. Also, this isn’t really a completely acurate description of a typical day for me, but dat’s okay. XD Like it said in the beginning, this is just for fun.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

2016 Book Recap Tag

Hello! Faith tagged me for the 2016 Bookish Recap Tag (click on the image below to go to her post!), and so I am here to fulfill this tag! Fun, fun, fun!

 

 

 

Rules. 

— Include the above button in your post.

— Answer the 11 questions.

— Use as many book covers as you like. (The correct answer to this question would be ALOT. B-))

— Tag 5-10 people and notify them that they have been tagged.

>> Questions. 

 

// How many books did you read in 2016? (Exact if you know, or approximate if not.) 

63 I think.

// Did you set a reading challenge for yourself and, if so, did you meet it?  

I did set a goal – I had originally set it for 75, but then in about October or November, I could see that wasn’t looking good, so I re-set it for 60. Which I did meet. :D

// What was your most read genre this year? Least read? 

Oooh, golly…I have to think about this one…The most was either historical or contempory fiction. Least read was…nonfiction – that can be a genre, right?! ;)

// What’s five of your favorite books from 2016? 

I did a post on this on the 31st (here), but I shall reitterate:

  

 

“Family Lies, Deadly Ties” by J.A. Marx, “Land of Silence” by Tessa Afshar, “Forest Child” by Heather Day Gilbert, “The Cautious Maiden” by Dawn Crandall, and “Light of the Last” by Chuck Black. All amazing!!

// What’s five of your least favorite books from 2016? 

Okay, um…let’s see…

  

 

“A Daring Sacrifice” by Jody Hedlund (didn’t finish because of inappropriate content), “The Prophetess” by Jill Eileen Smith (skimmed the end half), “Risen” by Angela Hunt (didn’t finish because again, inappropriate content), “The Fiercest Fight” by Brent King (wasn’t my kind of book. Creepy.) “A Time to Die” by Nadine Brandes (Okay, let me say something before I’m labasted by this choice…it was goodish, but I had some issues with it personally). And yeah, these least favourites were least favourites for me personally. May not be for others.

// What new favorite author did you discover? (Not necessarily that the author is ‘new’, but that they became new to you this year.)   Dawn Crandall! I loved “The Cautious Maiden” so much, and was really impressed with her writing!

// What’s five of your favorite book covers from the year? 

How about I show you?

(You just realised I chose 6 instead of 5. Yeah. I broke a rule – sorry! Couldn’t decide which to leave out, so I didn’t. XD)

// How many books did you purchase for yourself in 2016? (Exact if you know, approximate if not.) Oh my goodness, I don’t even know…maybe somewhere between 50-70?? Maybe more, or less. I really don’t know. XD Thriftstores are my friends, so I find quite a few there….and I got some as gifts/review copies…so yeah, I don’t know.

// What’s the longest book you read in 2016? “Watch Over Me” by Christa Parrish at 515 pages.

// What’s the shortest book you read in 2016? “Last Wish” by Valerie Howard at 15 pages.

// What’s your reading goal for 2017? 70 books is my goal. But to be honest, I’m really hoping to read 100. But…we’ll see!

And so there is the tag! And I’m afraid I’m going to break another rule and not tag anyone specific. Because let’s face it…I don’t know a lot of people to tag. So, if you’re reading this and you want to be tagged: You’re It!

(via Pinterest)

Blog Tour: The Reward of Anavrea by Rachel Rossano

We all like a reward, don’t we? But, not all rewards are what they appear. That’s the case in the latest installment of Rachel Rossano’s Theodoric Saga. Rachel created an intriguing Historical-like Christian Fantasy as she tells the tale of Jayne and Liam. Find out more and be sure to check out the giveaway!

About the Book

She couldn’t hide forever.

A hard life taught Jayne to avoid men, powerful men most of all. When a new nobleman arrives to take over the vargar, she takes her family and hides. But the new baron seeks her out and makes her an offer she can’t refuse: protection. However, once they were sheltered behind the dark stone walls of the vargar, who would protect her from the new master?

His reward isn’t what it seems.

King Ireic of Anavrea charges Liam, a former bodyguard, with the task of retaking and taming a corner of the northern wilds. Upon arrival at Ashwyn Vargar, Liam finds challenges beyond his military experience. The keys to the vargar are missing and so are the field hands who should be harvesting the fields. Once he finds the keeper of the keys, she raises more questions than answers.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01N2JATTB/

About the Author

Rachel Rossano is a happily married mother of three children. She spends her days teaching, mothering, and keeping the chaos at bay. After the little ones are in bed, she immerses herself in the fantasy worlds of her books. Tales of romance, adventure, and virtue set in a medieval fantasy world are her preference, but she also writes speculative fantasy and a bit of science fiction.

Giveaway

Rachel is giving away one of her favorite CDs to listen to while she writes. If you’ve ever wondered what kind of music she likes to listen to, you can check out the CD on Amazon and then come back here and enter the giveaway.

Amazon

a Rafflecopter giveaway

 

 

Book Excerpt

 

The rest of the day flew by in an unending series of crises. Rowana and Urith had a huge fight over who was to blame for the spilled soot all over the main hall floor. As far as Jayne could piece together, Urith tripped Rowana after she pushed his book on the floor. She happened to be carrying the metal ash pail at the time. The result was a loud clatter and a cloud of black that settled over the entire room. The ensuing shouting match brought Patti and Jayne running.

Once Jayne managed to start the two of them cleaning up the mess before the evening meal, Trina fell down the stairs with a blood curdling howl and a sickening crack. It took an hour to calm her. When Jayne settled her in the kitchen with a cold compress for her bump and a sugar stick for her sorrow, Urith appeared at the door, covered in black from sole to crown except for his hands, to tell her that the king wished to speak to her. Leaving Trina with her hiccup gasps under Patti’s watchful eye, Jayne hurried off toward the study, praying she would survive until bedtime.

She paused outside the heavy door to straighten her dress and brush the soot off the front as best she could. Please let it only be the king, Kurios, she prayed. I can handle him, but I don’t think I could face Liam right now. Her heart did a strange flip at the thought of Liam’s recent behavior in the garden. She had to struggle to push the image aside. Taking a deep breath, she tapped on the door.

“Come,” a deep male voice called.

The door opened easily to her touch and she stepped inside. The fire on the hearth held off the nip of rainy autumn air, and the dark, heavy furniture crowded for space on the carpets.

“Please close the door behind you,” the king requested without looking up from his scrutiny of the documents on his desk.

Jayne closed the door and crossed to stand before the desk. Instead of the memories of the distant past, she found her thoughts preoccupied with the first time she had met Liam here. His kindness and gentleness as she recounted her sordid family history warmed her heart.

Something stirred in the shadows to the right of the king. Jayne’s eyes met the steady gaze of the armed man standing in the shadow of a bookcase. He inclined his head to her politely. By now she had grown used to this acknowledgement. The royal guard treated her like a noblewoman. She wasn’t sure if they were taking their cues from Braxton and Liam’s men or the king’s direct orders. Either way, she was thankful for the distance and respect they granted her.

“Please be seated.” Ireic rose and turned toward the man in the shadows. Handing him a small stack of papers, he said, “See that Braxton gets these. He needs them immediately.”

“But, sire,” the man protested.

“She is hardly a threat to me, Yoric. Now go. The sooner you leave, the sooner you return.”

With a brisk bow and tapping of boot heels, Yoric left to obey.

Tour Schedule

January 2
Bookish Orchestrations-Tour Intro and Book Review
Julie Coulter Bellon-Review
Bokerah-Guest Post

January 3
The Overactive Imagination-Guest Post
Queen of Random-Book Spotlight
Rachel Rossano’s Words-Book Spotlight

January 4
Stephany Tullis-Book Spotlight
Ember’s Reviews-Author Interview and Review

January 5
Frances Hoelsema-Book Spotlight
Laurel’s Leaves-Author Interview
Author Franky A Brown-Guest Post

January 6
Zerina Blossom’s Books-Review
Shout outs-Guest Post
God’s Peculiar Treasure Rae-Book Spotlight
Rebekah Lyn Book-Character Spotlight

January 7
Bookish Orchestrations-Giveaway Winner

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New Year, New Growth

Happy New Year all. :)

I figured I ought to make a quick first post of the year. ^.^ I was hoping to put together a specific post to be my first of 2017, but haven’t had the chance to do so. I think I say that a lot… Coming up I have a blogtour post, so at least that’s something. ;)

 

It will be interesting to see how 2017 plays out. I know God will reign strong, and keep prompting us to His Cross.

2016 was a good year. A growing year. Towards the end months, I personally have felt more “refining fire”, and it hurts, but God’s growing me. He’s working on me – healing a lot of stuff. I praise Him. But it is hard, can’t lie. However, these verse bring amazing awe and comfort:

“Come, let us return to the LORD. For He has torn us, but He will heal us; He has wounded us, but He will bandage us.” – Hosea 6:1

“For He bruises, and binds up: He wounds, and His hands make whole.” – Job 5:18

 

Yes, He will bruise us. But He will heal and make us whole again – His bruising is only to make us more like Him. I pray that He continues to do that in each one of our lives this year. Let Him bruise. Burn the dross out of us. We can’t be full of Him if we don’t let Him empty us of ourselves first. Let that be our 2017 goal – to let Him work, no matter how painful it might be. Because the wounds of God are better than the pleasures of evil. Like the verse that says “Faithful are the wounds of a friend; but the kisses of an enemy are deceitful.”(Proverbs 27:6). Jesus is our Friend.

By Him growing us, we will only grow closer to Him, and that is a beautiful gift.

:)