My Ruby Slippers: The Road Back to Kansas By Tracy Seeley

Sure, there's no place like home -- but what if you can't really pinpoint where home is? By the time she was nine, Tracy Seeley had lived in seven towns and thirteen different houses. Her father's dreams of movie stardom, stoked by a series of affairs, kept the family on edge, and on the move, until he up and left. Thirty years later, settled in what seems like a charmed life in San Francisco, a diagnosis of cancer and the betrayal of a lover shake Seeley to her roots -- roots she is suddenly determined to search out. My Ruby Slippers tells the story of that search, the tale of a woman with an impassioned if vague sense of mission: to find the meaning of home.

Seeley finds herself in a Kansas that defies memory, a place far more complex and elusive than the sum of its cultural myths. On back roads and in her many back years, Seeley also finds unexpected forgiveness for her errant father, and, in the face of mortality, a sense of what it means to be rooted in place, to dwell deeply in the only life we have.

~My thoughts on this book~

I wanted to read and review this book because it hit close to home with me. I am a five year cancer survivor myself. I was touched in many ways by the words in this book more times than I can say. Facing cancer does give a person a new outlook on life.

http://youtube.be/CzHmrsqraRl

Dark Predator By Christine Feehan

As brutal as the undead he hunted, Zacarias De La Cruz was a master executioner. Over the long, dark centuries, he plunged into so many battles they blurred into an endless lifetime of evil that hardened the soul of this merciless, ruthless and implacable dark predator

Now his stark and savage journey is over. After a thousand years in a gray world, he has accomplished everything he set out to do. His brothers are safeguarded. Each has found a woman who completes him. And they are at peace. For his brothers, Zacarias has walked the edge of madness, but with centuries as a killing machine now left to the past, and without a hunt to define him, Zacarias wonders, for the first time in his life, who he really is.

The answer awaits him back home in Peru, in an unexpected betrayal, in the vengeance of an old enemy, in the inevitable consequences of a bloody family legacy, and in the deliverance of a lifemate he never could have imagined.

~My thoughts on this book~

I have just recently found this series, and I am enchanted by it! I did not want to put the book down. I am looking forward to finding and reading the rest of the books about the Carpathian Brotherhood.

Unforeseen Fears By H. William Gruchow

They played games with murders; harmless games, it seemed, piecing together details from news reports; imagining theories about how and why; and wagering each other on the outcomes.

Even gaming the Dunwright murders wasn't supposed to be serious. Two dead adults and a missing child; tragic, of course, but it's happened before. Except, this time something was different. There were voids, unanswered questions. Was it an execution or a kidnapping? And why did it seem investigators were misleading and deceptive? Was the investigation being subverted? By whom? And for what reason?

Their curiosities fired up, Armis and Jake broke the rules and did their own sleuthing; and when nine-year-old Brianne's dismembered remains turned up weeks later and miles away, their quest became an obsession that consumed Armis.

Yet, through encounters with corrupt lawmen, malevolent executives, and reticent family members, Armis was unable to find the answers he needed; until he met the mysterious Malwina. She insidiously drew him into her plan of personal vengeance, and closer to learning why Brianne had to die. But as they intruded into a world where the bad guys seldom lose, the game turned dangerous...and deadly.

~My thoughts on this book~

I love a good murder mystery, and this one was a real page turner. I look forward to more in what I hope is a long series from this writer.

The Mission, The Men, and Me By Pete Blaber

As a commander in Delta Force -- the most elite counter-terrorist organization in the world -- Pete Blaber has taken part in some of the most dangerous, controversial, and significant military and political events of our time. And he's learned and experienced more about the real world and how things really work than most people could imagine.

Here, he reveals his intimate knowledge of warfare, and that it's not the chaotic action of battle, but the interaction -- in the form of the way we think, the way we make decisions, and the way we act on them -- that provides the keys to success and the truly meaningful lessons.

In this book, you will learn the same lessons he learned, while experiencing what the life of a Delta Force Operator is like -- from extreme physical and psychological training to the darkest of shadow ops all around the world. From each mission, Pete Blaber has brought back a life lesson with him. You will learn these enlightening lessons as you gain insights into never-before-revealed missions executed around the globe. And when the smoke clears, you will emerge wiser, more capable, and better prepared to succeed in life than you ever thought possible.

~ My thoughts on this book~

My taste in literature is fairly eclectic, I like almost everything. I prefer to read instead of watching television or listening to the radio. You will never find me without a book in my hand or at least in my purse.

When it comes to books about the military, I hold most interest in the books about The Civil War and The Vietnam War, but I can't tell you why. This is the first book I have read that dealt with Special Operations, namely Delta Force, and I really liked it. It has gotten really good reviews and I highly recommend it. It is an easy read. The author teaches some insightful lessons based on his experiences.


In closing, I would like to share what the author wrote in the forward of this book.


"My motivation for writing this book isn't personal or political. Instead, I believe that accurately understanding and sharing lessons from the past is an essential step for gaining insights into and preparing for the future.....The stories in this book and the guiding-principle lessons they produced belong to all of us."

In My Mailbox 8/28/11

~To Review





My Pictures, My Words - Mac Kenney

The Mission, The Men, and Me - Pete Blaber

Uncaged - Paul McKellips

Unforeseen Fears - H. William Gruchow

Love and Marraige Perspectives - Vince Brendan Vincents

Gog & Magog By Jerry Pollock

In Dr. Jerry Pollock's riveting thriller, Satan descends to earth with the intention of destroying God and the entire planet by inciting war between a modern-day Cain and Abel. Will he succeed? That is the question at the center of this heart-pounding mystery-thriller, which takes much of its inspiration - and it's characters - from the Bible itself. It's a classic story of good vs. evil with one important twist: it takes place in America's halls of power.

Beginning in the Garden of Eden, where he entices Eve to eat a fig from the Tree of Knowledge, Satan's quest continues to modern times, where he aligns himself with the president of the United States and his son, Cain. Standing in Satan's way is a captivating cast of characters that include a brilliant psychiatrist charged with unraveling God's prophetic secret, a modern-day Abel who represents all things good, and the archangels Michael and Gabriel. Will Satan succeed or will God himself intervene? The answer lies in a duel to the death and the electrifying conclusion.

My thoughts on this book:

It was a page turner and kept me interested until the very end. This book is available at Amazon and also for e-readers.

The Lament: Selected Poems and Prose By Ercell H. Hoffman

The Lament captures the full range of emotion that whirl around human relationships. Here are dozens of poems examining the profound joy of those deeply in love, the incredible longing of the separated partner, the intense loneliness of modern working life, and - above all - the indisputable necessity of connecting with people around us. Poet Ercell H. Hoffman casts a penetrating gaze on our everyday emotions, revealing our extraordinary capacity for feeling, empathy, and love.

In "Lost to the Moment," the speaker relishes the irreplaceable first blush of fledgling love that sweeps through her body "like a cool summer breeze." "This Afternoon" explores the painful possibilities of a love that might have been - that "I knew could not blossom." "Stay Heart Stay" is about the undying fire for another that refuses to be extinguished despite considerable hurdles. Meanwhile, other poems examine relationships in the contemporary workplace, revealing a deeply unsatisfying existence: "The Factory" looks at the peculiarly disconnected relationships among under appreciated factory workers, while "On the JOB" tackles the boredom of a career that's anything but busy. Chock full of penetrating insights into the heart, The Lament is about our most basic needs: finding and keeping love and obeying your inner truth.

My thoughts on this book:

I don't read alot of poetry, however, I enjoyed this book. I'm a hopeless romantic, and quite a few of the poems in this book touched me. "Stay Heart Stay" was one of my favorites as well as a short poem called "Knowing You."

This book is available in paperback at Barnes & Noble and Amazon.com. It is also available as an instant e-book download. I highly recommend this book for an enjoyable, easy read.