My Creatively Random Life

Celebrate the Small Things is hosted by  Lexa Cain  along with wonderful co- hosts  Writing Off The Edge  and  The Cyborg Mom . It has been longer than I would like since I have gotten to post but life has been crazy. This week I am celebrating getting to go out and do fun things with my kids despite the long hours at work. What are you celebrating this week?

Jack Templar and the Last Battle by Jeff Gunhus In the last book of the Jack Templar series, Jack and his friends race to stop Ren Lucre before he launches this Creach army against humankind. But the Lord of the Lesser Creach and the Lord of the Zombies hold the last two Jerusalem Stones Jack needs to have any chance of success. To make matters worse, the Oracle predicts that one of their group will die in the upcoming fight, and Jack discovers betrayal among those he trusts most. Even so, Jack must find the courage to lead his friends into battle. Either they collect the Stones in time to defeat Ren Lucre or die trying. It’s "Do your duty, come what may" no matter the cost. The fate of the world hangs in the balance. Excerpt Before the witch could move, a shadow crashed through the hole in the collapsed roof, snarling and growling. Simultaneously, the cottage door flew open, nearly ripping from its hinges, and something ran into the room moving faster than

Madam President: The Secret Presidency of Edith Wilson by William Hazelgrove After President Woodrow Wilson suffered a paralyzing stroke in the fall of 1919, his wife, First Lady Edith Wilson, began to handle the day-to-day responsibilities of the Executive Office. Mrs. Wilson had had little formal education and had only been married to President Wilson for four years; yet, in the tenuous peace following the end of World War I, Mrs. Wilson dedicated herself to managing the office of the President, reading all correspondence intended for her bedridden husband. Though her Oval Office authority was acknowledged in Washington, D.C. circles at the time--one senator called her "the Presidentress who had fulfilled the dream of suffragettes by changing her title from First Lady to Acting First Man"--her legacy as "First Woman President" is now largely forgotten. William Hazelgrove's Madam President is a vivid, engaging portrait of the woman who became the acting P

Madam President: The Secret Presidency of Edith Wilson by William Hazelgrove After President Woodrow Wilson suffered a paralyzing stroke in the fall of 1919, his wife, First Lady Edith Wilson, began to handle the day-to-day responsibilities of the Executive Office. Mrs. Wilson had had little formal education and had only been married to President Wilson for four years; yet, in the tenuous peace following the end of World War I, Mrs. Wilson dedicated herself to managing the office of the President, reading all correspondence intended for her bedridden husband. Though her Oval Office authority was acknowledged in Washington, D.C. circles at the time--one senator called her "the Presidentress who had fulfilled the dream of suffragettes by changing her title from First Lady to Acting First Man"--her legacy as "First Woman President" is now largely forgotten. William Hazelgrove's Madam President is a vivid, engaging portrait of the woman who became the acting P

The Emerald Key by Mark Frederickson & Melora Pineda Penny and Laci are headed for a mundane summer vacation until a mysterious journal unlocks a portal to another world and they find themselves face to face with a baby dragon. In an attempt to send their new acquisition back to its home, the girls, along with two neighborhood friends, get sucked through to a mythical world. In this land, they must battle foes seen and unseen, pushing them to both their physical and mental limits. If they fail to stop the powers they’ve unleashed, it could not only destroy this strange world, but also annihilate their own. Review: Dragons, shapeshifters, portals... this book had everything. It was none stop excitement from start to finish and I loved all the small details in it that had meaning later. SO FANTASTIC!!!  I would love to see what Penny and Laci get up to next. Praise for The Emerald Key “In The Emerald Key, authors Mark Frederickson and Melora Pineda take readers on a

The Sapphire Blade by Dorine White The final journey begins! Travel with past heroes and a new adventurer to the historical romps of London and the scorching sands of Alexandria. Fourteen-year-old Akmir, raised from birth to sacrifice everything in the pursuit of Cleopatra’s magic gemstones, holds within his hands the secret location of the fifth and final mystic gem: the blue sapphire. His quest leads him to England, where four other gemstone searchers: Sara, Melanie, Kainu and Claire, are on the hunt. A pawn of the Roman Brotherhood, Akmir must choose his own path, whether to follow in his father’s brutal footsteps or stay true to his mother’s Egyptian heritage. Clues, puzzles, and danger rule the day. What will happen when the power of all five gemstones are brought together? This is a battle for life and death, and only one side can win. Review: An interesting story, parts of it felt very Indiana Jones for me and I thought that my son would like it very much as he l

OMG... I Did It Again? by Talia Aikens-Nuñez April Appleton wakes up to quite the sight: a herd of elephants marching down her street! She realizes that her powers of witchcraft have done it again. With her friends, Grace and Eve, April must figure out how the elephants got to her town in the first place and then how to get them back home. But with elephants playing in the neighbor's pool, sitting on cars and eating everyone's trees, how will they do it? Early readers will delight in the misadventures of this reluctant witch and her plucky friends as they try to figure out how to use April's powers to do good in the world. Review: April was such a cute character and my daughter really enjoyed us reading this book together.  It was a very interesting, unique story and we are looking forward to finding the first book to read. Author Talia Aikens-Nuñez Talia Aikens-Nuñez wanted to be a meteorologist, a politician and a lawyer. She never thought she would be a

New Adult, Romance, Coming of Age Date Published: September 26, 2016 There is trouble in Valdosta, Georgia. And a whole lot of it. Abram, a methodical 23 year-old, previously homeless, hopeless romantic, has a fierce devotion to his rendezvous with love, which is seemingly not on his schedule of life. Jec, an unassuming 19 year-old feminist and natural optimist, entertains her current relationship and search for a forever kind of love that is threatened by both, what her co-workers see in Abram that she refuses to believe, as well as what she does not see: Abram’s last seventeen minutes in jail before they met. Everything around her tells her that her obsession with dragging out what Abram offers in their courtship will end in turmoil, but something about him keeps her coming back for more, leading her to a series of exchanged love letters that do not quite make sense, at least to everyone else. Just what makes sense for her is so

Contemporary Romance Date Published: September 13, 2016 Friends with benefits. Toe curling, ecstasy inducing, and completely secret. Alex and Lia succumb to their scorching attraction, striking a deal of no-strings sex. Neither of them want a commitment, both of them are unable to stop the sparks from flying when they’re together. Feelings develop, old fears surface and sex is no longer enough. Will a glimmering sense of hope allow them to let go of the past, or will their secret blow up, leaving them shattered? ** All About Hope is a standalone novel intended for mature audiences due to coarse language and sexual content ** Other Books in the All of Nothing Series: Published: March 2015 Emma is broken inside. After tragedy strikes she returns to her childhood home in hopes to heal her heart. Reconnecting with old family friends, Emma is unprepared for the way