Death of the Mad Hatter by Sarah J Pepper

The Jack prophesied: If the king loses his head, then the Queen with a Bleeding Heart would rule the Red Court until Time ceased to move forward. When a second carried on for infinity, every creature in Wonderland would tip their Hat to the misfit girl with a Boy’s name (or was it a boy with a Girl’s name?) who’d end the Reign of Terror. However, it all hinged on the One-Eyed Hare being able to convince an uninspirable Heir that the impossible was indeed possible—like stopping time—and that Love was worth a Beheading.

Heads would Roll…
Hearts would Break…
In the end, would it matter who Reigned?

Sarah J. Pepper specializes in dark, paranormal romance – think “happy ever after” but with a twisted, dark chocolate center. Real-life romance isn't only filled with hugs, kisses, unicorns, and rainbows. True-love can be more thoroughly described in times of darkness and tribulation. It’s in those harsh moments where you see what a person is truly capable of – both the good and bad. Sometimes prince-charming isn't always on time, and the glass slipper is a little snug. However, it doesn't mean Charming is not Mr. Right, and who says every shoe is the perfect fit?

 

And that is exactly what she gives us with Death of the Mad Hatter (available for pre-order).  This is a wildly imaginative book filled with rich quirky descriptions, strong characters and a believable romance line.

 

Death of the Mad Hatter answers the question of what happened after Alice's trip to Wonderland.  This isn't the Alice you know, she is now a teenager and has been drastically changed after multiple visits to Wonderland. Alice is but one of the many characters from Lewis Carroll's work that Sarah develops.  There's of course the Mad Hatter, The Queen of Hearts is still the nemesis and a book with Alice in it isn't complete without the White Rabbit.  However the book isn't about Alice, it's about falling in love, surmounting obstacles and defeating evil.  To do this Sarah adds her own characters. Ryley is a down to earth kid who's got a bit of a daddy issue, his friends Dax, Irwin, Mick, Becky and Courtney are each individual in their own way and help carry the story without spending too much time on them (because after all the book isn't about the minor characters).   

 

The romance line is more of a tug of war, none of that falling into each other's arms at first glance.  For those of you not keen on romance, don't count this book out.  Sarah balanced the romance line with action, rich descriptions (that are tight and concise) and her magical world.  It makes for a well rounded book.

 

"Wonderland was an intoxicating, magical world where the most farfetched dreams could come true and the impossible was possible.  Conversely, it was a realm where the most daunting nightmares could haunt us until the end of time." Sounds like love doesn't it.  I really enjoyed how Sarah mixed her magical story with real life lessons. 

 

This is a fun, must read for anyone that knows the story of Alice and Wonderland - boys and girls alike (and of course those adults who love Alice in Wonderland). 

 

Still undecided (how could you be!) check out some of the other reviews.  I think you will see a common trend, you should read this.

Altered Witch Shoe

 When the Altered Witch Shoe swap came up on BlissfulART swaps I jumped on it. 

 Immediately I knew I wanted to use this shoe. 

It was my Grandmothers.  She was always a great supporter of my art and I know that she would love that her shoe was used by me in this manner.

Yes, I know it is supposed to be a witch...but can't some witches turn into bats? 

 I crackled a Bat image available from Alpha Stamps to embellish the toe, along with some seam binding flowers.

A few sprigs of black and glittery green twigs around my witch.

A black glittered bat hiding under the shoe.

And that's that. 

I hope my partner likes it. 

French Inspired Swatches

 A few weeks ago I shared the French Inspired Swatches that I made. 

 Well, the swap is back and I've put all my pieces together.

Now that I have it all together I think this very well may be my favorite swap this year!

All White Tussie Mussie

 My new obsession with Tussie Mussie's has continued. 

 I recently participated in an all white tussie mussie swap.

 You can't see it but I used a white glitter to fill in the spaces the lace didn't cover.

I completed this piece with lots of lace bits, white seam binding, flowers that I made and some metal leaves that I spray painted white.  

666 Park Avenue by Gabriella Pierce

What if your mother-in-law turned out to be an evil, cold-blooded witch . . . literally?

Ever since fabulously wealthy Malcolm Doran walked into her life and swept her off her feet, fledgling architect Jane Boyle has been living a fairy tale. When he proposes with a stunning diamond to seal the deal, Jane can't believe her incredible luck and decides to leave her Paris-based job to make a new start with Malcolm in New York.

But when Malcolm introduces Jane to the esteemed Doran clan, one of Manhattan's most feared and revered families, Jane's fairy tale takes a darker turn. Soon everything she thought she knew about the world—and herself—is upended. Now Jane must struggle with newfound magical abilities and the threat of those who will stop at nothing to get them.

 



With the streak of bad books I've been reading I wanted to pick something up that would be light and most likely something I would enjoy.  Well, I enjoyed the TV show 666 Park Avenue, so why not try the book?

 

The book is nothing like the TV show!  And when I say nothing I mean literally the only thing that is the same is the name of the heroine and the city it takes place in.  But this is not a review of the TV show vs. the book, so onto my book review.

 

666 Park Avenue is a bit unfocused.  It seems to me that Gabriella Pierce was trying to write a romance, a paranormal and a chic lit book all in one and instead of getting the formula right it ended up lacking on all fronts.  The romance line is unbelievable.  Without giving anything away, Malcolm does some things that would make any girl run for the hills but Jane forgives and forgets and plows forward with their marriage.  It's hard to swallow and makes Jane out to be a very week character.

 

On top of that Jane never stands up for herself.  She allows her mother-in-law to plow over all of her wedding wishes.  It is so bad that it is hard to read.  I just wanted to reach into the book and throttle some sense and spine into Jane.  Another unforgivable flaw is that Jane accepts that she is a witch way to easily.  She never has that "witches aren't real" moment or the "how can I be a witch" she just says oh, okay. 

 

***Spoiler***

There were two components of this book that screamed unoriginal to me.  In the house is a giant family tree tracing only the females for the family, Anne Rice did that in The Queen of the Damned and then there is a family member hidden in the attic, hello Jane Eyre. 

 

I hate to say it but the TV show was far more interesting and had much stronger characters.  I'm sad that it has been canceled.  Regardless of all the negative things I have said, this was the type of book I needed, a light don't have to think about it read.  I am also not opposed to reading the other books in this series. 

I'm linking up, come join us! 

I'm Some Pumpkin Banner

 It's time for another fabulous Alpha Stamps Kit.

This month Leslie went with the theme Halloween Banners.

 There are two swaps you can sign up for with this kit, a banner swap and/or an ornament swap.

Visit Alpha Stamps for more information.

 My favorite part of my banner is the flowers I created using ric rak.  Aren't they perfect!

 And I've fallen in love with this green shade of seam binding (available in my etsy store).

This piece is available in my etsy shop.

Mermaid Bookmark ~ COF Journal

 I had so much fun creating this Mermaid bookmark for Andrea's Journal. 

She requested that each member simply create a bookmark with a mermaid theme.  Since mermaids are one of my favorite themes I dove into this one.

 I tried to keep it as flat as possible and decided not to use glitter since it could rub off in the book. 

But what I really enjoyed doing is creating her tail.  I used a small hole punch and punched hundreds of various colored paper.  Then I attached them all to the tail in a scale like pattern. 

 

Right now I am working on the last journal in this rotation, kind of sad, but I can't wait to get mine back.  I hope Andrea likes what I have created for her.

Drums of Autumn by Diana Gabaldon

It began in Scotland, at an ancient stone circle. There, a doorway, open to a select few, leads into the past—or the grave. Claire Randall survived the extraordinary passage, not once but twice. Her first trip swept her into the arms of Jamie Fraser, an eighteenth-century Scot whose love for her became legend—a tale of tragic passion that ended with her return to the present to bear his child. Her second journey, two decades later, brought them together again in frontier America. But Claire had left someone behind in the twentieth century. Their daughter, Brianna....

Now Brianna has made a disturbing discovery that sends her to the stone circle and a terrifying leap into the unknown. In search of her mother and the father she has never met, she is risking her own future to try to change history...and to save their lives. But as Brianna plunges into an uncharted wilderness, a heartbreaking encounter may strand her forever in the past...or root her in the place she should be, where her heart and soul belong....

The Outlander series is one of my all time favorite reads.  I read the first three, Outlander, Dragonfly in Amber and Voyager back to back over 7 years ago.  I got 50 pages into Drums of Autumn and put it down.  For years since I've been hearing that I just have to make it through the book and then everything gets better.  Well in my opinion there should not be a book you "have to get through."

 

This time when I picked it up I was determined to get through it.  But boy did it hurt.  The first 450 pages, yep you read that right, this book is close to 1000 pages, were so dry I might as well have been in the Sahara Desert.  It did pick up a bit after that but nothing like Diana's other page turning, heart racing, gotta know what happens books. 

 

This book also took us away from Scotland, which had happened before but they always returned.  It took place in North Carolina after the French and Indian War.  There was a lot about how to survive in the wilderness and deal with the natives but there didn't seem to be any reason for as much as Diana put in.  I missed my European setting. 

 

As for character development I think Diana missed the mark.  She spent a ton of time on Claire and Jamie (yes I love them but they are already well established) and not enough time on Brianna (Claire and Jamie's daughter) and Roger, Brianna's love interest.  Of course there was some but not enough to justify the length of the book.

 

Overall I'm glad I "got through it" because I have high hopes for the next book which I won't be picking up right away but do have more of a desire to read than I did this one. 

 

I'm linking up with 

come join us

French Inspired Swatches

 Recently I took part in a swap through Marie Antoinette Mail Art Group hosted by the fabulous Tabitha of Creative Wings

 We were to make 12 French inspired 4 x 3 swatches that could be sewn together into a large piece once everyone's were swapped out.

 I made one set with soft pinks and creams featuring lovely women.

 And added lots of vintage lace, flowers and buttons to them.

 For my second set I went with a soft blue vintage fabric my grandmother left to me.  She made a lovely dress for me out of it when I was little.

 Again I stuck with vintage laces but used seam binding and a floral appliqué to enhance them.

I have received the swapped out pieces and have a plan of how I am going to put them together, now I just have to find the time. 

This was a fun swap and I am so glad I took part.

The Round House by Louise Erdrich

One Sunday in the spring of 1988, a woman living on a reservation in North Dakota is attacked. The details of the crime are slow to surface as Geraldine Coutts is traumatized and reluctant to relive or reveal what happened, either to the police or to her husband, Bazil, and thirteen-year-old son, Joe. In one day, Joe's life is irrevocably transformed. He tries to heal his mother, but she will not leave her bed and slips into an abyss of solitude. Increasingly alone, Joe finds himself thrust prematurely into an adult world for which he is ill prepared.

While his father, who is a tribal judge, endeavors to wrest justice from a situation that defies his efforts, Joe becomes frustrated with the official investigation and sets out with his trusted friends, Cappy, Zack, and Angus, to get some answers of his own. Their quest takes them first to the Round House, a sacred space and place of worship for the Ojibwe. And this is only the beginning.

This book is among one of the worst books I've ever read.  I am seriously starting to wonder about award winning books.  Does it have to suck to win an award?

 

The Round House is what I call a "boy book."  You know those books that are about boys and probably only appeal to boys (like A Separate Peace).  But the big issue is what boy would want to read about how another boy deals with his mother being raped?  So it fails even that criteria (yes it is my own but I have to have some criteria's).

 

Louise Erdrich did something rather unusual in her writing style, she used absolutely no quotations.  A number of times I had to read read sections to figure out what was actually being spoken out loud by the character, what was internal thought and what was just descriptions.  It was really annoying.  It broke up the pace (not that she had an edge of your seat pace, which a mystery book in my opinion should have).

 

None of the characters seem to have any redeeming qualities.  Again I feel like another author tried to make their characters more realistic by giving them flaws but went overboard.  The Catholic Priest in this book is particularly scummy, come on people stop picking on the Catholic's they are not all bad. 

 

As I'm sure you can tell from my tone I am absolutely disgusted with having made myself read this entire book and am loosing faith in the literary world.  I am ready to go back to my mind numbing teen vampires!

 

I'm linking up, come join us!