PrincessReviews

Beyond the Grave by Jude Watson is the fourth installment in The 39 Clues book series. In this installment, Amy and Dan Cahill are in Cairo trying to find the next clue. They are being pursued by Irina Spinsky, their Russian cousin and a number of other Cahill cousins. The children are constantly on the move, taking flights to various places in Egypt. They are also getting messages left for them by their deceased grandmother Grace. This book, as like every other in the series, is written by a different author. I could really tell the difference in the writing. There is more emotional development in the characters, and not just the Cahill children. Irina Spinsky also seems to be fighting that "weakness" called emotion. Amy and Dan are fighting each other while trying to hold on to the loving image of their grandmother in the face of the "evil" they find out about the Ekat branch of the Cahills. It is especially hard since they still don't know their branch...

This guest post was brought to you by JF Jenkins and Astraea Press. Just Keep Writing Writer's block is one of the hardest things to get through. Everyone has their different tricks and techniques, and it's probably the most common question I get asked. Other writers and non-writers are desperate to know. Here's a small list of things I do every time I hit that block. 1)       I ask myself why I am hitting the block. Is it because I don't know what's happening next in the story, or simply because I'm bored with what I'm writing? Because sometimes a writer does get bored of a scene, particularly when it's an uninteresting piece of explanation rather than action or drama. 2)       Once I figure out why I'm blocked, I lay down and take a nap. Okay, half the time I don't actually sleep. Sometimes I use the nap as an excuse to have a quiet place where I can think and visualize my story. 3)       If...

The Man in the Box by Andrew Toy is about Robbie Lake, a middle-aged man who finds a box that sends him to a fantasy world that he created as a child. When Robbie is fired from his job of 11 years, he is at a loss of what to do next. This comes on the heels of yet another blowout with his teenaged daughter and another cold shoulder encounter with his distant young son. Robbie doesn't know his family and they're not quick to welcome him either after he's fired due to layoffs. Only his wife Rosalynn keeps everything together for him and the family. When Robbie discovers this "magical" box, he enters a world called Reveloin where he is the long lost "god" that everyone has been waiting for. He is strong and fast and cunning--opposite to how he feels in the real world. Robbie only needs to sit on his throne in Reveloin to take power and reign supreme; if only he didn't have to come back to reality do mundane tasks like apply for jobs and pick the...

Princess Kandake: Warrior By Choice...Appointed to Rule  by Stephanie Jefferson follows the story of Princess Kandake, one of four of King Amani's children. In a kingdom rich with culture, wealth and peace, girls can grow up to be artisans, warriors and even queen. Kandake desires to be a warrior and worries that Great Mother will not choose her to be Prime Warrior to the kingdom of Nubia. What she fears most comes to fruition when Great Mother not only doesn't name her Prime Warrior, but she instead names her the next Queen of Nubia. How can she be what she's been called to be while being who she was meant to be? Princess Kandake is full of rich sights, aromas and sounds. It skillfully captures the feel of the Nile and the kingdom of Nubia and her people. It is a very peaceful and loving kingdom. Everything and everyone acts with respect and discipline above everything else even in the face of adversity and death. Princess Kandake's family is loving ...

Guest Post:: Dr. Jerry Cook’s New Book to be released: Grow Your Marriage by Leaps and Boundaries 11/8/2012– Sacramento, CA – Dr. Jerry Cook announces the release of his book, Grow Your Marriage by Leaps and Boundaries, officially to be released December 2012. Grow Your Marriage is available now for pre-sale at Amazon.com and BarnesandNoble.com. Is your marriage out of bounds? “ The art of creating life-long marriages is disappearing at an alarming pace, largely because couples do not fully understand where (or how) to “draw the line” in a way that strengthens the relationship. These lines drawn are the boundaries that, when created the right way, show each spouse they are more important to the other than anything or anyone else. Grow Your Marriage by Leaps and Boundaries provides the tools for you to effectively create boundaries with technology, words, and body language.” Cook’s new book will inspire readers to evaluate how they prioritize their marriage, and...

My husband's cousin was married at the Inverrary County Club in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida in October.   In the hallway was a table with place cards for the guests with their name and designated reception table number. The Country Club had a room provided for the wedding ceremony. It was simple, yet elegantly decorated. The room was large with folding chairs draped in white covers from the top to the floor and tied with a bow of lavender gauze. The runner was white with flower petals. There was an arch of silk flowers and podium for the pastor to speak from. It was a lovely ceremony and when the bride sang to her new husband, it brought tears to my eyes. After the ceremony, the guests were ushered to an adjoining room where they could wait while the bridal party took pictures. There was a bartender offering drinks and also a small buffet of bread and sautéed smoked sausage and peppers and onions. In addition, servers walked around offering shrimp and teriyaki ch...

Guest post: John Barlow Is writing YA different from writing adult fiction? My first YA novel, ISLANDERS, is out today. My previous book was a crime mystery for adults, published last year, and more recently I’ve been finishing a thriller, also for adults. So, how does writing for a YA audience stack up? Writing in a new genre is always a process of discovery. You’re trying to learn the ropes as you go, and also to work out where your own take on things fits into the genre as a whole. You don’t want to copy anyone’s style or themes, and you don’t want to stay so close to the norms of the genre as to be predictable and humdrum. What you really need is to find a space for yourself and your writing. That space needs to be comfortable for you, because otherwise you’ll feel awkward when you write. Writing is difficult enough as it is, without the constant thought that you need to be conforming to rules and conventions that are not natural to you. This, I guess, is why writ...

My husband and I headed to Ft. Lauderdale, Florida for a wedding. We actually didn't know if we were going until the last minute and so didn't book a hotel. The All-Inclusive Inverrary Vacation Resort came up on our Kayak search. It was listed as an all-inclusive resort and had a reasonable rate. We arrived in Ft. Lauderdale at 9pm and found out that the wedding reception was actually at the Inverrary Country Club across the street from the hotel, so we headed to the "resort" to see if we could get a room. Apparently, there was a boat show in town that weekend and almost every hotel in the area was booked. However, the woman at the front desk told us that someone had not shown up or called about a reserved room. She told us to call in an hour to see if it was available. We went to get something to eat and called around to several other hotels looking for rooms. But none were available or offered at a price we wanted to pay. When we called Inverrary...

Well Witched  by Frances Hardinge is about Ryan, Josh and Chelle, three friends who find themselves indebted to a powerful centuries' old water goddess. When the three face possible punishment for being someplace they shouldn't be, their last recourse to obtain the money to get home is Josh's plan: steal coins from the wishing well. The plan by the group's notorious troublemaker unwittingly causes the well goddess, now a twisted and confused being, to require the friends to fulfill the wishes of the coins they took. Endowing them with "powers," the well "witch" compels them to do her will if they ever hope to be released from her service. Ryan, the "smart" one, figures out what they need to do, but soon the wishes that seemed simplistic on the surface begin to go very wrong. People's lives soon hang in the balance. This was a very creepy book. It was marked for ages 10 and up, but it seemed a bit scary to me. I guessed the chara...

By Evelyn Ink Quests, adventure, scandals, danger, magic, romance, strong heroes, expertly interwoven storylines, mystery, and monsters. This book has it all. Ill-fated follows Leila as she begins a perilous quest to prove her worth and right to rule as the heir to the Bainland throne. At only fourteen, this would seem like a daunting task, but every ruler before her has done the same at fourteen. Leila has been training for this for most of her life. It should be routine, if a bit dangerous, except the falling star that is to determine her course falls dead South. Southland is rumored to be full of dark magic and unsavory characters. So Leila sets off with only her awesomely fast horse, an unlucky number and a chip on her shoulder.  In Southland a boy about Leila's age has been wandering around with no recollection of his name or orgins. Each day he awakes without a memory of the day before or anything about himself, but strangely has general knowledge of Southland, figur...