Books and Needlepoint

A summer in New Orleans is exactly what Allie needs before starting college. Accepting her dad’s invitation to work at his hotel offers an escape from her ex-boyfriend and the chance to spend the summer with her best friend. Meeting a guy is the last thing on her mind—until she sees Levi.

Unable to resist the infuriating yet alluring Levi, Allie finds herself at the center of a supernatural society and forced to decide between following the path she has always trusted or saving a city that might just save her.

About the author: Alyssa Rose Ivy lives in North Carolina with her husband and two young children. Although raised in the New York area, she fell in love with the South after moving to New Orleans for college. After years as a perpetual student, she turned back to her creative side and decided to write.

You can connect with her at the following places:

Alyssa Rose Ivy (Blog)

Twitter

Facebook

Goodreads

Meeting a Real Paranormal Creature

by Alyssa Rose Ivy

In Flight, Allie is given no warning before being thrust into a paranormal world. When writing her story, I found myself wondering how I’d react in that situation.

In most paranormal-human encounters in books and movies the human reacts in one of two ways, either they think it’s really cool, or they are terrified and run away from it. I’d like to think I’d find it cool, but the truth is I’d be the type who would run away. Even my experience in writing paranormal books would be no match for the reality that those kind of creatures could actually exist.

Hopefully after some time to think about it, I’d return and at least get some good ideas for my next book.

How do you think you’d react?

My review: I took an instant liking to Allie, but I had a hard time imagining her as an 18-year-old the summer before college - she seemed older. (I have an 18yo senior in high school right now and can't imagine being comfortable with her in a new city with as much freedom as her parents gave her. . . - but then that's just me) But anyway, she ends up in New Orleans, living in a suite at her dad's hotel with her girlfriend Jess, sharing a cushy job with her where it appears she can set her own hours. Who wouldn't like that gig!?

On her first night there she meets Levi, and while she tries to give him the brush off, this just makes her more desirable in his eyes. Even without encouraging him she can't deny the attraction that she feels for him. Jess seems taken with his friend Jared so it is inevitable that they end up spending a few evenings together.

Jess heads home after things heat up between her and Jared and she crosses a line that she isn't comfortable with, and since Allie is left basically alone in New Orleans, Levi steps in to keep her company. She is quickly pulled in to his world and discovers that she likes the adrenaline rush that it leaves her with and even makes a new girlfriend, Hailey - who will also be a college freshman in the fall.

The book moves along at a rapid pace - read it in pretty much one sitting - but it basically lays the groundwork for the series. There are a lot of people introduced and lots of questions left unanswered - many of which I am sure will be addressed in the books to come. I like the way the relationship is left between Allie and Levi and can't wait to see where it will eventual lead. The second book, Focus, is due out in January 2013.

~I received a complimentary Ecopy of Flight as part of the Bewitching Blog Tours in exchange for my unbiased review.~

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Purchase the book:

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Sunday, September 30, 2012

It's Monday! What are you reading? (Oct 1, 2012)

Shared by Kristi

What are you reading on Mondays is hosted by Sheila at One Person's Journey - You can hook up with the Mr. Linky there with your own post - but be sure and let me know what you are reading too!

Current Giveaways:

Taking Charge by Mandy Baggot (ebook) - ends Oct 1

Pulled by A.L. Jackson - Ends Oct 1

Scrambled by Kathryn Elizabeth Jones - Ends Oct 4

Banned Books Giveaway - Ends Oct 6

Upcoming giveaways - this week:

Pushing the Limits

What the Heart Remembers

Flight by Alyssa Rose Ivy

Currently reading this week:

Found by Shelley Shepard Gray

Sad Desk Salad by Jessica Grose

Flight by Alyssa Rose Ivy

Upcoming books:
Life with Lily by Mary Ann Kinsinger and Suzanne Woods Fisher
Scrambled by Kathryn Elizabeth Jones
The Reluctant Bachelorette by Rachael Renee Anderson

Bathroom Book:

The Sisters Montclair by Cathy Holton

Books reviewed last week:
Letting Go of Supermom

Books read and needing to be reviewed:

The Goddess Test by Aimee Carter

Goddess Interrupted by Aimee Carter

The Witch is Back by H.P. Mallory

The Search by Shelley Shepard Gray

The Midwife of Hope River by Patricia Harmon

The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater

The Timekeeper by Mitch Albom

Until next week ---- Ready - Set - Read!

Mailbox Monday (Oct 1, 2012)

Shared by Kristi

Welcome to Mailbox Monday, the weekly meme created by Marcia from A girl and her books. This is where I share the titles I have received for review or purchased during the past week. Mailbox Monday will be hosted in October by Marcia!

I won these eBooks this week:

Don't Tell
by Mercy Amare

I won this from the author.

I could be surrounded by a million people, but I would still feel alone. I smile on the outside, but inside I feel like I’m slowly dying. I cry out for help, but nobody sees me, at least not the real me. They see a façade, a mask that I put on to hide the pain.

I pretend that I’m normal, but really, what is normal? Maybe what I’m feeling is normal. The hurt, the disappointment, the loneliness… it could be all just be a part of life. Maybe I will never know what normal is.

I put on long sleeves and makeup to hide the bruises, but they only mask the outside. What happens when I can’t carry my burden alone any longer? What would happen if I told somebody the truth?

Don't Tell is a YA Contemporary Romance about love, forgivness and hope.

I won this entire set of ebooks for participating in the release tour of the fifth book - Nine Lives!

Mourning Sun (1st Highland Home Novel)
Captured Sun (2nd Highland Home Novel)
Seven Days (3rd Highland Home Novel)
Banished Sun (4th Highland Home Novel)
Nine Lives (5th Highland Home Novel)

I received the following books for review:

Arctic Fire

by Stephen Frey

Troy Jensen could do it all: he conquered the Seven Summits, sailed solo around the world twice, and even fought a bull in a Mexican slum on a dare. So when word comes that a rogue wave has swept Troy off a crab fishing boat in the Bering Sea and into a watery grave, his brother, Jack, doesn’t buy it.

Against his better judgment, Jack decides to quit his job as a Wall Street trader and head to Dutch Harbor, Alaska, to investigate. Minutes after revealing his plan in his father’s New York City office, Jack is nearly run down in the street. He doesn’t think much of it at the time, but as he digs deeper into Troy’s disappearance, Jack unearths information about RED-CELL-SEVEN (RCS), a super-secret American intelligence group that has operated for forty years in almost total secrecy and with complete impunity—and its leaders intend to keep it that way at any cost.

Dodging bullets as he makes his way to Dutch Harbor, Jack connects the dots that link Troy with RCS. And when he realizes that it’s impossible to return to his old life, Jack charges headlong into the deepest recesses of America’s most secret and feared intel group in order to uncover the truth about Troy’s disappearance. Along the way, Jack learns that the civilian world’s rules of fair play don’t apply to this brutal new world that has swallowed him whole—especially when he crosses paths with the leader of RCS, a man firmly committed to destroying America in order to protect it.

Sweet Hell on Fire

by Sara Lunsford

As a corrections officer at an all-male maximum security prison, Sara Lunsford worked with the worst of the worst, from serial killers to white supremacists. She knew that at the end of every day, she had to try and shed the memories of the horrors she had witnessed in order to live a happy existence. But the darkness invaded every part of her life. And dealing with a stressful divorce and a mother sucumbing to cancer led her to a complete immersion in her work and eventually the bottom of a liquor bottle. Sweet Hell on Fire takes the reader on a journey with the author, from hitting rock bottom to becoming a woman who understands the meaning of sacrifice, the joy of redemption and the quiet haven to be found in hope.

All to Jesus: A Year of Devotions

by Robert J. Morgan

“Cast all your cares on him.” “Love the Lord with all your heart.” “I can do all things . . . .” You’d be surprised how often the word “all” appears in the Bible—thousands of times. And with each description of God’s comprehen- sive promises, each reminder of our complete blessing in Christ, each appeal for our full and total surrender, His reputation grows larger before our eyes.

We see again what He can do. We see again who we can be.

From Robert J. Morgan (100 Bible Verses Everyone Should Know by Heart, Then Sings My Soul) comes All to Jesus, a choice sampling of the Bible’s most “all”-encompassing statements, surrounded each day by inspiring stories, personal reflections, and the encouraging assurance that you are cared for in ways you never imagined.

Derived from the pages of real life and a pastor’s heart, each daily reading meets you in an ever-deeper place, revealing God’s immeasurable power and keen attention to the smallest detail. Truly, He is all you need. All year long.

I received the following Digital books for review as well:

Violet Midnight (Violet Night Trilogy 1)

by Lynn Rush

Blending in with her college co-eds proves difficult for vampire Hunter, Emma Martin, considering the mystical tattoo on her wrist glows whenever Vamps are near. And after three months of silence, the glow is back with a vengeance.

Jake Cunningham witnesses Emma, a violet-eyed beauty, using unimaginable powers to fight off a fanged creature. Finally, after two years of searching, he may have found out what he’s become—a Hunter, like Emma.

Thankful for an ally in the fight against the Vamps, Emma finds hope and comfort in Jake’s arms. As she learns more about her new love’s family and its dark heritage, she may be forced not only to hunt them but to sacrifice her life to save Jake’s soul.

***Portion of all proceeds donated to American Cancer Society***

Carnival Girl: Searching for God in the Aftermath of War

by Sonja Herbert

The only life little Sonja Francesco has ever known is traveling the carnival circuit and living with her five siblings in a tiny caravan home. The family never stays anywhere long enough for Sonja to make friends or develop roots. The only one in her family, Sonja always believed in God and wants to belong to a church.

At fourteen, Sonja meets the Mormon missionaries and develops a strong testimony of the truth of the Gospel. But can she live the commandments while traveling with the carnival and running one of the attractions every Sunday? Will it be possible for her to leave her family’s life behind and live the life she has always dreamed of?

Justice (Deck of Lies Book 1)

by Jade Varden

When you build an entire life on a foundation of lies, it only takes one truth for the whole thing to come crashing down. I never invited the truth in. I never went searching for it. I never had any reason to suspect that the two people I loved most were dishonest with me every second of every day.

I made one bad decision, and in a single day my entire world changed. If I'm ever going to discover the truth about myself and my parents, I have to trace all the lies back to their source. I have to try to find the truth that they're hiding.

The more I discover about myself, and my past, the more I realize that lies really are better than the truth. But now that I know the lies are all around me, I can't stop until I've discovered them all. I'll pull each lie away, one by one, and examine it to see what's underneath…until this house of cards crumbles into dust at my feet.

I just hope I can survive the crash.

Sugar Rush

by Rachel Astor

Dulcie Carter has been running her family’s homemade sweet shop, Candy Land Confections, on her own since her mom passed away. Butbusiness is slow and rent is high, so Dulcie knows if she wants to keep her mom’s dream alive, she’ll need a miracle. Winning the annual Assembly of Chocolatiers competition will change everything, if only she can overcome her fears and bring herself to create something new for the first time in a long time.

Then she meets Nick, a molten-hot guy with a sexy smirk and chocolate brown eyes. The attraction is stronger than any sugar rush—until she discovers he’s set to inherit his family’s big-box candy shop in town, which is her strongest competitor for first prize. Nick’s got his own reasons for needing the win, but then being around Dulcie is proving addictive.

As the competition heats up, so do the sparks between them. Can they keep their sights on winning, when love might be the sweetest prize of all?

The Persecution of Mildred Dunlap

by Paulette Mahurin

The year 1895 was filled with memorable historical events: the Dreyfus Affair divided France; Booker T. Washington gave his Atlanta address; Richard Olney, United States Secretary of State, expanded the effects of the Monroe Doctrine in settling a boundary dispute between the United Kingdom and Venezuela; and Oscar Wilde was tried and convicted for gross indecency under Britain’s recently passed law that made sex between males a criminal offense. When news of Wilde’s conviction went out over telegraphs worldwide, it threw a small Nevada town into chaos. This is the story of what happened when the lives of its citizens were impacted by the news of Oscar Wilde’s imprisonment. It is a chronicle of hatred and prejudice with all its unintended and devastating consequences, and how love and friendship bring strength and healing.

All the Broken Pieces

by Cindi Madsen

Liv comes out of a coma with no memory of her past and two distinct, warring voices inside her head. Nothing, not even her reflection, seems familiar. As she stumbles through her junior year, the voices get louder, insisting she please the popular group while simultaneously despising them. But when Liv starts hanging around with Spencer, whose own mysterious past also has him on the fringe, life feels complete for the first time in, well, as long as she can remember.

Liv knows the details of the car accident that put her in the coma, but as the voices invade her dreams, and her dreams start feeling like memories, she and Spencer seek out answers. Yet the deeper they dig, the less things make sense. Can Liv rebuild the pieces of her broken past, when it means questioning not just who she is, but what she is?

Conjure (The Hoodoo Apprentice Book 1)

by Lea Nolan

Emma Guthrie expects this summer to be like any other in the South Carolina Lowcountry--hot and steamy with plenty of beach time alongside her best friend and secret crush, Cooper Beaumont, and Emma’s ever-present twin brother, Jack. But then a mysterious eighteenth-century message in a bottle surfaces, revealing a hidden pirate bounty. Lured by the adventure, the trio discovers the treasure and unwittingly unleashes an ancient Gullah curse that attacks Jack with the wicked flesh-eating Creep and promises to steal Cooper’s soul on his approaching sixteenth birthday.

When a strange girl appears, bent on revenge; demon dogs become a threat; and Jack turns into a walking skeleton; Emma has no choice but to learn hoodoo magic to undo the hex, all before summer—and her friends--are lost forever.

What books came home to you last week?

Thursday, September 27, 2012

Banned Books Weeks Hop (Sept 28 - Oct 6)

Shared by Kristi

Thanks for stopping by the Banned Books Giveaway! It is being hosted by I Read Banned Books and I Am A Reader, Not A Writer. I am a big supporter of banned books as these books can empower kids. They can open up avenues of communication and conversation that might never come up (until it is too late. . ). I am giving away your book of choice from the lists of frequently challenged books found at the ALA site of banned books. You must be able to find this book at The Book Depository and it should be under $15.00. It is open internationally as long as The Book Depository ships to your country.

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PROMO: Under the Desert Moon (with excerpt and Guest Post)

Shared by Kristi

Title: Under the Desert Moon
Author: Emma Meade
Publisher: Soul Fire Press

Genre: Paranormal, Fantasy, Romance

About the book: 17 year old Erin Harris spends her time daydreaming, hoping to escape her small town life in Copperfield, Arizona. When a movie crew arrives unexpectedly to shoot a vampire film over the summer, Erin’s small town world changes forever.

Erin is positive she has seen the star, James Linkin before in a thirty year old TV show. He hasn’t aged a day. How is this possible? Erin is determined to find out, but how will James handle the scrutiny of an all too intelligent teenage girl?

About the author: Emma Meade lives in rainy Ireland. She loves vampires, slayers, witches, ghosts, aliens & shadow men (or at least the youngest of the Shadow Men), and regular people who live extraordinary lives (think Slayerettes and you’re on the right track).

Books, DVDS & TV show boxsets take up lots of space in her home, and she collects all the Point Horror books she can get her hands on.

Writing supernatural short stories and watching marathon re-runs of Buffy are some of her favourite ways of escaping reality.

Author Website: http://emmameadebooks.com/

Blog: http://emmameade.com/

Goodreads Author Page:

http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4229395.Emma_Meade

Goodreads book page:

http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/15780938-under-the-desert-moon

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/emmameadewrites

Amazon Author Page: http://www.amazon.com/Emma-Meade/e/B0064LKMK2

Twitter: https://twitter.com/emmameade83

Please enjoy this excerpt from Under the Desert Moon:

Erin stared out her bedroom window, wishing as always that she was elsewhere. Anywhere but here, she thought wistfully.
Nothing ever happened in this rundown town, not since the last mine had closed a decade ago. Copperfield, Arizona, was dusty, quiet and old-fashioned. It took months for the latest movie to make it to The Oracle theatre where Erin worked part-time, but it was the easiest job in the world. It got Erin out of the house she shared with her brothers and angry, alcoholic father, put money in her savings account, and most importantly, Erin got to see movies free.
It was escapism. For a couple of hours she could lose herself in another world, imagining herself as the beautiful heroine. Erin was waiting for the day she would learn she wasn’t her father’s daughter. That her mother had embarked on some secret affair with a handsome, rich man, and it was only a matter of time before he discovered her existence and introduced Erin to his world.
Sighing, she rested her chin in her hand. A cool summer breeze ruffled the curtains and lifted the strands of her bangs, tickling Erin’s forehead. She hated this tomb-like town, but had to admit that at night, Copperfield was beautiful. The desert gleamed beneath a full moon, and the scent of vegetation from the garden was spicy and fragrant. Erin breathed it deeply.
A cloud at that moment obscured the moon, and the hairs on her arms lifted. The breeze died down suddenly and she straightened up. She felt distinctly peculiar. Was there a storm coming?
The door to her bedroom sprang inwards. Startled, Erin turned to shout at whichever brother had disturbed her peace. It was Nick, her twin.
“Do you mind?” Erin said.
Nick’s sea-blue eyes gleamed. They were just like Erin’s. “You’re never going to believe this, Sis, sincerely.”
Erin rolled her eyes. “Try me.”
“A crew from Hollywood is in town. Copperfield’s the location for some scary movie.”
“Are you kidding?” Erin said, jumping off her bed.
“They’re all in Casey’s right now. The whole town’s there.” Nick was practically hopping with excitement.
“Oh, my God,” Erin said. “Why Copperfield? What kind of scary movie?” Slasher or ghost story? she wondered. She preferred the latter.
Nick shrugged. “Let’s go find out.”
Erin grabbed her jacket and followed him. Finally, there might actually be some life in this town, she thought.
“Hey, where you kids going?” her father's slurred voice demanded.
Erin caught a whiff of his beer breath as she passed and grimaced. Gross.
“Out,” she said, and slammed the door hard.

Casey’s diner was busier than Erin had ever seen it. Several waitresses were scooting across the shiny tiles in red and white roller skates that matched their uniforms. Every booth in the place was taken. Customers were eating their hamburgers and fries standing at the counter.
Erin’s eyes scanned the restaurant quickly as she crossed the threshold with Nick at her heels. A gust of air at the entrance lifted her long, chocolate brown hair off her neck, and raised goosebumps on her tanned arms. Strange. It wasn’t even cold that evening.
She paused inside, inhaling sharply. Her eyes were drawn immediately to the young man sitting at the biggest booth, furthest in the back. His presence radiated charm, charisma and self-assurance. Erin couldn’t help but notice the dusky brown of his eyes tinged with flecks of green, and the easy curve of his lips. He looked so familiar, but she couldn’t place him.
“Hey,” she poked Nick. “You know his name?” She watched him laugh heartily with his companions and lean back against the leather seat in complete ease.
Nick shook his head. “Don’t recognize him.”
“I’ve seen him in some TV show before. I think,” Erin added uncertainly. This was going to bug her.
“He’s the lead actor,” Nick said. “I heard people talking about him when he got off the bus earlier.”
Erin approached the counter. “Hey, Mrs. Casey,” she called over the middle-aged owner. Mrs. Casey was a kind woman. Her husband had died from cancer three years previously, and she was running the joint single-handedly. She also seemed to know everything in town before everyone else. “You know anything about this movie?”
“Sure. The crew’s just been here for hours, sugar. It’s one of those scary movies. Copperfield’s a real cheap place to shoot, I guess. That gorgeous boy over there,” she nodded in the direction of the young man Erin had been drawn to. “Name is James Linkin. He’s going to play the bad boy.”
Erin chanced another glance his way, not wanting to be caught staring. It didn’t matter. All eyes were on his table, particularly all female gazes.
“He ordered a hot dog from me just before you got here,” Mrs. Casey said. She chuckled. “He’s a little charmer from what I’ve seen so far.”
“What kind of bad boy?” Erin asked. Her stomach was fluttering. It hadn’t done that since she’d watched Brad Pitt in Legends of the Fall last summer in The Oracle. She’d been forced to throw a Brad weekend there for one of the most popular girls at school, Lyndsey Mason, her older brother’s girlfriend.
Now looking at James, she believed him to be even more handsome. Erin marveled at her racing hormones. She usually wasn’t as silly as the other girls in school, or so she liked to think. She risked another look at him. Dark hair with sunny tints when the light caught it right, pale skin, strong jaw, slender build…
“Vampire, I think,” Mrs. Casey’s voice broke Erin’s train of thought. “It's going to be some kind of horror romance.”

Unfinished Work

by Emma Meade

I have a stockpile of half complete novels and some barely started books that I hope to return to some day. Among them is a novel set in Ireland and Boston following a teenage vampire hunter, Sarah Knight. This was the first novel I ever wrote and actually completed. I started it the summer after I finished secondary school (high school), but re-wrote it several times over the years. I also have the outline of the follow up novel to it jotted down somewhere

Another story I began back in school calls to me at times. Set in a time of Celtic myths and legends, it follows the story of a daughter of a Chieftain who has no idea of her ties to the darker fairy world. It is tentatively titled Ripples. I also have a hand-written novel about a group of teenagers with various psychic abilities. I don't think this will ever see the light of day.

When I was a teenager, my friend Danielle and I would write Buffy fan fiction. We had a laugh writing new episodes featuring Xander, Willow, Angel and co. These are all hand-written, so who knows if I'll ever knuckle down and type these up. It might be fun just to see how bad, or possibly good my writing was ten to fifteen years ago.

I also created a short science-fiction series called Anomaly. In my dreams, I hoped it would become a TV series (feel free to laugh here). My school pals diligently read each ‘episode’ for me and gave me lots of feedback. God bless those girls for putting up with me. Anomaly focused on a high school in Massachusetts. Due to an explosion in a genetics lab many years previously, the town's pregnant women were infected with a virus and their children were genetically stronger humans than normal. I wrote this a year or two before Dark Angel came out and I remember being so annoyed that someone beat me to the punch. J Nicky was the only 'normal' human at the school, and the series dealt with bullying and prejudice. I must dig it out from whatever box the scripts are hiding in one of these days, and have a read.

Wednesday, September 26, 2012

First Wild Card Tour: Letting Go of Supermom by Daisy "Dr. Mommy" Sutherland

Shared by Kristi

It is time for a FIRST Wild Card Tour book review! If you wish to join the FIRST blog alliance, just click the button. We are a group of reviewers who tour Christian books. A Wild Card post includes a brief bio of the author and a full chapter from each book toured. The reason it is called a FIRST Wild Card Tour is that you never know if the book will be fiction, non~fiction, for young, or for old...or for somewhere in between! Enjoy your free peek into the book!

You never know when I might play a wild card on you!

My review: I am still enjoying this book as it is filled with so much good advice I did not want to rush through it. She writes with simplicity and wisdom and gives lots of creative ideas to connect your faith with your family and vice versa. She also gives you lots of suggestions on how to deal with all areas of motherhood - from husband to household. Some of it you probably will already know, but sometimes we just need a reminder. It is also nice to know that as mothers, we all basically climb the same hurdles daily. This would be a good book for mom in whatever season of motherhood she is in.

Today's Wild Card author is:

Daisy "Dr.Mommy" Sutherland

and the book:

Letting Go of Supermom

Publisher: Siloam (August 7, 2012)

***Special thanks to Althea Thompson for sending me a review copy.***

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Dr. Daisy Sutherland is the founder and CEO of Dr. Mommy, LLC. She is a doctor of chiropractic by profession, wife, and mom to five children, whom she has homeschooled for the past twelve years. She hosts a weekly Blog Talk Radio show called Family Talk and is the featured parenting expert on Mom Talk Radio, a nationally syndicated radio show that airs on more than fifty stations, reaches 50,000 moms, and has been recognized in The Oprah Magazine, Women’s Day, USA Today, and Parenting. Women all over the country have benefitted from “Dr. Mommy’s” health, parenting, and career management tips and godly advice. She is the voice and advocate for every mom and says she is blessed to be able to help so many.

My Review: I am still enjoying this book as there is so much good advice I do not want to rush through it. The author has given

Visit the author's website.

SHORT BOOK DESCRIPTION:

This guide will include time-management and organization tips, how-tos for handling stress, nutrition and general wellness advice, parenting and relationship tools, and ways to stay spiritually refreshed and highly productive without losing it! Dr. Mommy will also share her best tips and tricks from her personal experience of being a homeschooling, CEO mom.

Product Details:

List Price: $15.99

Paperback: 256 pages

Publisher: Siloam (August 7, 2012)

Language: English

ISBN-10: 1616384638

ISBN-13: 978-1616384630

AND NOW...A SAMPLE (Click on pages to see them better):