This is a colorful alphabet book that would be enjoyed by many younger children. The pictures are engaging. However, the text under the pictures was a bit out of place - specifically since it said what was in the picture. As well, the book went from several objects of one letter - to just one - even for very common letters. Worth reading for free, however could have been better.

The pictures look great. There are detailed and full paged. I wouldn't call them forest designs as much as bird, flower, and occasionally a tree designs.

I have the Kindle edition, so I cannot speak to the quality of the paper or binding. However, the back of the kindle book has a link to download a pdf so that the pictures can be printed out. Apparently, this book has been abandoned as the link is no longer active. The book is also no longer available on Amazon.

Today is Going to be a Great Day: Anti-Stress Therapy and Biblical Inspiration
by. Christian Art Publishers

Review: ***** (5 stars)
Paper: Medium quality paper
Single Sided: Yes
Perforated Pages: Yes
Book Length: 128 pages
Genre - Christian Coloring Book

Full page pictures, postcards, bookmarks, and tags

This is one of my favorite coloring books. There is a lot of variety in the pictures. There are quotes, wallpaper pages, mosaics, and even bookmarks and postcards.

Each design is unique, there is a lot of variety. You can see that the artist took care with each page. This is a great first book, as you do not feel like you are coloring the same picture over and over again.

The paper is closer to 30 weight. It will bled through with sharpies, but is fine with colored pencils. The pages are perforated and it is very easy to take them out. Doing so does not interrupt the design.

The book does have a Christian theme. There are several quotes, with very nice matching designs. They are great for decorating a house, and I have given away one as a birthday gift. However, not every page is a spiritual quote. There are also nice designs, nature pictures, and a few just fun pictures as well.

My only con would be that the bookmarks and postcards are not individually perforated. You would need to cut them out by hand.

Originally published on The Book Recluse Review

When I think of food allergies I immediately think of gluten and dairy. I will then go to analyze the sulfate level in various foods - since I have an allergy to sulfate as well. I was excited to pick up this book, because I wanted to understand how consuming even a little bit of gluten will affect my intolerant daughter.

Except that is not what this book is about - at all. This book is mainly about allergies that can cause a child to go into anaphylaxis shock. It talks a lot about peanut allergies and tree nut allergies. It does also mention diary allergies.

The book is divided into sections. In the first section, you receive stories from various areas of their lifespan - starting at infancy and ending to adulthood. The stories are helpful for individuals to empathize with - an I am not alone kind of thing. They do not provide a wealth of information. You do receive some more information in the second section, which is where medical providers, educators, and community members write about their expertise.

Overall the book does not provide a whole lot of information on allergies. It is more along the theme of you are not alone, and people do successfully manage their allergy. The biggest problem that I had from the book (besides from a very generic title) is that everyone in the book is a sample of convenience. By this I mean that they were all connected to the same support group - possibly even all members of just one meeting location. This only provides a limited perspective. Even the medical professionals and community members were all connected to the same support group. Both educators for from the same PRIVATE school. Even though one teacher is in preschool and one in early education you do not get a very different perspective since they are both from the same school.

The best thing about this book is that it got me thinking about the effect of my daughter's lunch box on children at her school. Yet at the same time, it frustrated me. The parents in the book were not very sympathetic to children who only eat peanut butter. It was a your kid can starve because my kid is allergic. Since my child WILL STARVE herself rather than eat a non-preferred food I was not very happy with this attitude. However, I have talked with my daughter about how to make sure that she does not contaminate her friends with a peanut allergy. For example, she should always wash her hands after she eats. Also, she should never share food with her friends with a nut allergy since we often bake with almond flour and they could be allergic. These are also rules that I reinforce to help her manage her own allergies.

Origanelly published at The Book Recluse Review

Dempsey's Demise
by A.B. Thomas

Rating: **** (4 stars)
Genre: Urban Fantasy, Vampires, Paranormal, Horror
Book Length: 104 pages

Dempsey's Demise reads like a prequel to another series. It is a beginning story. The beginning of this story happens to be how Harriott becomes a vampire. Perhaps it would be better to describe her as a hate filled, bitter, vengeful vampire. What else would happen when you are turned at fourteen years old.

This novel will capture your attention and take you for a ride. Although that ride may be more of a freak show or haunted house at a carnival. The story is not for the faint of heart. It is pretty gruesome. While the descriptions themselves are not overdone, leaving my dinner safely in my stomach, it is evident that the author has no qualms about throwing anything gruesome in is novels. It makes for one fantastic story that left me more emotionally involved than I expected. I was hooked - in the same way that you can't stop looking at your festering wound.

I do not usually enjoy a story where I do not relate to the main character. Harriott has major emotional issues. Maybe it wasn't as concerning because she has legitimate excuses for them - not that slaughtering everyone in her path is truly excusable, but it is a vampire novel.

While I enjoyed Dempsey's Demise very much there is sometimes where the person narrating the story would change within the same section. This was confusing and did not add to the story. There were also sections that seemed to switch from showing the story to just telling about it. Usually, it was to sum up longer periods of times but it was a bit jarring. It didn't stop the flow of reading, though. I ended up reading most of the novel in one sitting.

Dempsey's Demise is not a book for everyone. It is something different to pick up if you are into the darker side of Urban Fantasy. The language is pretty clean but the content could be a bit disturbing. It also does contain sex scenes. It flowed with the narration rather than dominating the story and were not erotica graphic.

***This book was given to me for free in exchange for an honest review.***

As Reviewed on The Book Recluse Review

The Takitawah
by A.B. Thomas

Rating: **** (4 stars)
Page Length: 145
Genre: Urban Fantasy, Paranormal

The Takitawah is an urban fantasy novel trying to be packaged as erotica. It is a shame since the series has the potential to be one of my favorite urban fantasy series.

I found myself being sucked into the story and carried away into the fantastical and downright crazy world of Jared Club - a bounty hunter for the Gods. Even the premise is unique in the urban fantasy world. So are the characters of the book. Urban fantasy is dominated by strong female leads, Jared Club is neither female nor strong. He is kind of a looser, but with just enough compassion and strength that you find yourself connecting with him anyway - kind of like a guy you would date because you feel sorry for him.

I gave The Takitawah a strong rating because I really enjoyed the book and I saw a lot of strength and potential in the author. Unfortunately, there were some downfalls to the novel as well - all of which stem from trying to make an urban fantasy into erotica. The characters lack descriptions, you never know much more about them than their height and size. You are unable to visualize them. Yet the characters are so alive and distinct otherwise that this is a disservice. Also, the book is only 145 pages, which is not enough time to truly develop the depth of plot that this book deserved. Instead, whole sections were summarized in one paragraph so the story could move along. It felt like the reader had to be cheated so that the book could stay in the restrictive page length of an erotica novel.

I really enjoyed The Takitawah and look forward to seeing what A.B. Thomas creates next.

As reviewed on The Book Recluse Review