Planet Urth

Planet Urth by Jennifer Martucci
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I've been really big into dystopian/end of the world type of books & movies lately, so I was thrilled to grab this book on amazon, which I read in one afternoon.

There's some minor & major plot holes (for example, killing a large, 300 pound animal by jumping out of a tree, and mentioning technology that the characters would have absolutely no idea about), but all in all, the book is a good read. There's no new concepts here, but if you are looking for a quick, sci-fi romp, this will fit the bill.

The biggest drawback is the book doesn't end, so much as just ... well, stops. I understand it's part of a series, but it seems like more and more indie authors are creating series because the book just got too long, instead of a well written story that has a beginning, middle, climax, and ending (like Harry Potter, where every book has a conclusion, yet leaves you desperately wanting more).

I picked this book up for free on amazon.

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A Beginners Guide to Companion Planting: Companion Gardening with Flowers, Herbs & Vegetables by Jeffreys, Mel

A Beginners Guide to Companion Planting: Companion Gardening with Flowers, Herbs & Vegetables by Jeffreys, Mel
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I consider myself an avid vegetable gardener, but I've only had a garden two years so I'm definitely still in the beginner camp. I've been reading a lot about it, but I've learned the most just from talking to other gardeners. My boss has had a huge, successful garden for most of 30 years, and he's taught me the post, and he was teaching me about companion planting before I had ever heard of the term or knew what it meant.

This book is really rather basic, doesn't present anything that hasn't been mentioned before, and the drawings/illustrations are so tiny as to be useless (I looked on kindle keyboard & on my kindle nook app, which is in color). If you try to enlarge the screen (which I did) the drawings end up blurry.

The only "good" thing about this book is its length - and the reason why I gave this 3 stars. The book is very short, but it makes it very easy for you to find the information you are looking for. If you are about to plant peas, for example, and you can't remember what to plant with it or what not to plant with it, it's easy enough to find that section in the book.

The other good thing is the author does talk about what flowering plants are good for your garden - something I attempted to do last year, but all my flowers died, defeating the purpose.

I got this book on amazon when it was listed for free.

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8 bit Christmas

8-Bit Christmas by Kevin Jakubowski
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This book is about Jake, a 9 year old boy who wants a Nintendo. I was a kid (though a girl) in the 80s and couldn't resist reading this book for the memories. There's a lot - and I mean a LOT - of pop culture references in the book (and not all of them were accurate, at least I didn't feel like they were really 80s pop culture references), from Cabbage Patch kids to He-Man, and it's a fun romp through memory lane.

That being said - I had to rate the book 3 stars because I didn't feel like there was any plot at all. Yes, certain things happen in Jake's quest to own a Nintendo, and the book certainly has a lot of funny moments (and a part where I bawled my eyes out hysterically, which may add to my 3-star feelings for this book) but I just felt like every scene was strung together mostly to lead the reader through memory lane and to the end of the book, more so then to actually tell a story of one young boy.

In other words, the book was fun to read, without any meat on the bones.

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How to Make a Living from Crafts by Margo Price

How to Make a Living from Crafts by Margo Price
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I downloaded this book when it was offered for free a few weeks ago. I DO make my living from crafts - both from teaching and from designing, and occasionally (very rarely) selling a finished item. Most of my income comes from designing, and thus my experiences as well.

I always read books and articles on a subject like this because I figure there's always more to learn about your business - and I DO consider designing a business. Unfortunately, this book (really a novella) taught me absolutely nothing new, and because it's based on crafts-in-general, a lot of it is just way too general to be helpful to me specifically.

There's sections on selling and pricing your crafts for sale, teaching, marketing, pricing your time fairly, the difference between selling your crafts as a hobby and as a business (a hot topic, always), the benefits of being self - employed, and so on.

I do recommend it to someone who may be interested in selling their crafts or starting to teach, but not to someone who's been doing so for a while.

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Trafficked: The Terrifying True Story of a British Girl Forced into the Sex Trade by Sophie Hayes

Trafficked: The Terrifying True Story of a British Girl Forced into the Sex Trade by Sophie Hayes
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I picked up this book to read from net-galley because though I know, in the vaguest possible terms, that things like trafficking and the sex trade do exist, it's so distant from my life that I don't really *know* what goes on.

Sophie starts off her book by telling us about her childhood with an abusive father and a mother she worships. She has a few adult relationships and meets a man, Kas, who she views with innocence. I found it hard to believe that she honestly never saw any signs of his insaneness prior to his kidnapping her, but certainly know that this does happen every day.

While Sophie's story is heartbreaking, and I can't even imagine her pain or how difficult it must have been for her to write of her story, it wasn't as emotional as I expected - which isn't necessarily a bad thing. She brings a story often ignored into media's attention (and that's one of the reasons why I read and am reviewing this book, to help educate people).

While a difficult story matter, this book was a very quick read.



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Boleyn King

The Boleyn King by Laura Andersen
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I love England, I love British history & I love, love reading about the Tudors. I also love reading alternate history books, though I seldom actually get to read one.

Well this book fits the bill completely - it begins to answer the what if a lot of Tudor buffs wonder about - what if Anne Boleyn had a male child that lived to adulthood?

The book focuses on 4 young individuals - Will, Anne's son, his friend Dominic, Will's older sister Elizabeth (aka the future Queen Elizabeth), and their childhood friend and servant, Minuette (told primarily through her point of view). It is not meant to be historical fiction, but alternative history, with some mystery & romance thrown in for good measure.

The book does a great job with recreating a new reality for us, though I struggled greatly with Minuette being Will & Elizabeth's equal. Yes, it's entirely possible for Dominic to be a friend and adviser, but for Minuette to also be treated as an equal (a girl) leaves me a little flustered at the unlikeness of it all.

The other big reason why I only gave this book 4 stars, has to do with the extreme abrumpt ending. Reading the back cover of the book / the blurbs, leaves you with the feeling that there is going to be a decision made about the love triangle by the end of the book, which does not happen.

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borrowed from library

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