The Bodybuilder's Kitchen by Erin Stern

Description

100 delicious recipes and proven meal plans to burn fat, build muscle, and chisel your physique.

How do professional bodybuilders get that chiseled look? It's as much about what happens in the kitchen as it is about what happens in the gym. Professionals fuel their bodies with precise nutrients delivered at specific times to achieve their sculpted physiques, and now you can, too. The Bodybuilder's Kitchen provides expert guidance on what to eat, when to
eat it, and helps you understand how our bodies use what we eat to burn fat and build lean, strong muscle. Through phased weekly meal plans, expert insight on how and when to take full advantage of your body's muscle-building capabilities, and 100 delicious recipes, you'll find yourself achieving that sculpted look you've always longed to have.

***Thanks to NetGalley and DK for providing me with an ARC and the understanding that any review posted will be my honest opinion.***

My Thoughts:

I am always looking for new recipes to try out.  My boyfriend lives in the gym 5 days a week and is a power lifter so healthy recipes are always a bonus.  I have lifted in the past to gain definition but over the years I have lost a lost of muscle tone and find myself in the position of starting at the bottom.  I love to eat healthy but as I approach 40 I have realized that my metabolism is not what it used to be and a lifestyle change is needed.  This book appealed to me because it was written by a female bodybuilder.  Once I opened the book I knew it was going to be amazing.  I love that it is filled with awesome recipes (Meatza was the first one we tried....and loved) but it also had some amazing tips and techniques to get the most out of your routine.  I think this book is fantastic and will be used a lot around our house.

School for Psychics by K.C.Archer

Description

An entrancing new series starring a funny, impulsive, and sometimes self-congratulatory young woman who discovers she has psychic abilities—and then must decide whether she will use her skills for good or…not.

Teddy Cannon isn’t your typical twenty-something woman. She’s resourceful. She’s bright. She’s scrappy. She can also read people with uncanny precision. What she doesn’t realize: she’s actually psychic.

When a series of bad decisions leads Teddy to a run-in with the police, a mysterious stranger intervenes. He invites her to apply to the School for Psychics, a facility hidden off the coast of San Francisco where students are trained like Delta Force operatives: it’s competitive, cutthroat, and highly secretive. They’ll learn telepathy, telekinesis, investigative skills, and SWAT tactics. And if students survive their training, they go on to serve at the highest levels of government, using their skills to protect America, and the world.

In class, Teddy befriends Lucas, a rebel without a cause who can start and manipulate fire; Jillian, a hipster who can mediate communication between animals and humans; and Molly, a hacker who can apprehend the emotional state of another individual. But just as Teddy feels like she’s found where she might belong, strange things begin to happen: break-ins, missing students, and more. It leads Teddy to accept a dangerous mission that will ultimately cause her to question everything—her teachers, her friends, her family, and even herself.

Set in a world very much like our own, School for Psychics is the first book in a stay-up-all night series.

My Thoughts:

**Thank you to Simon & Schuster and NetGalley for the ARC with the understanding that any review provided will be my honest opinion of the book.**

The description of this book had me hooked but the story itself kept me hooked.  Teddy, a woman in her 20s, is trying to win at least $200,000 at a card table in a Vegas casino when her life changes forever.  She has always been different from others but she knew it wasn't because she was special.  Teddy was wrong. She always thought of herself as a human lie detector but she is actually psychic.  She gets an offer she can't refuse to attend The Whitefield School in exchange for clearing her debts with a pretty nasty loan shark.  Teddy soon realizes that there are so many others that have special abilities like hers and for the first time in her life, she feels like she belongs.
This book was reminded me of the X-Men a bit and that works. I really liked reading this story and would absolutely read any more that were part of the series.  It moves at a really good pace and I loved, loved, loved that the characters were NOT teenagers.  The only reason I didn't give 5 stars is because I don't like the cover.

The Ultimate Guide to Divination.....

Description

The Ultimate Guide to Divination is a modern seer's handbook to techniques used throughout the ages for fortune-telling and prediction.

With this guide, you'll learn time-honored methods for developing your intuition, accessing the unconscious, and parting the veils between the realms. Learn to understand the deeper meaning of ordinary events -- and reveal what the future may hold.

Lavishly illustrated, The Ultimate Guide to Divination presents to you the oracles of the ancients, from palm-reading and tea leaves, to fortune-telling with cards, runes, and crystals.

Step-by-step illustrations guide you through the methods, and helpful tables and reference charts show you how to understand and decipher common psychic symbols. Learn the stories and meanings in everyday objects -- such as patterns of tea leaves and coffee grounds in a cup or delve deeper into esoteric traditions such as the tarot.

There is an oracle for every purpose and question. The Ultimate Guide to Divination is the essential handbook to the mystic arts. 

My Thoughts:

**Thank you to Quarto Publishing Group-Fair Winds Press
and NetGalley for the ARC with the understanding that any review provided will be my honest opinion of the book.**

I really enjoyed this book. I actually made my whole family participate in the numerology section. We were surprised by how accurate the descriptions of each one of the numbers were. I have always been interested in reading tea leaves and palms but in the past a lot of the books I have read have been boring or hard to interpret. Liz Dean made this one so fun and easy to navigate that I absolutely want to buy a physical copy for my home. I want to try all the different methods. 5 stars, 5 stars, 5 stars!!!! That is all.

X Marks the Spot- Opal Carew's Newest Book

Description

Opal Carew takes desire to a whole new level in her latest erotic, standalone romance!

Abi has been in love with Del for years, but they never got around to acting on their mutual attraction. And then she met and married his best friend, Liam.

But when Abi and Liam’s marriage falls apart, Abi decides to take control of her life and find her happily-ever-after with Del. So when they’re all staying in a country inn for her brother’s wedding, Abi decides to slip into Del’s bed and seduce him…except she accidentally ends up in Liam’s instead.

Liam never stopped loving Abi, and he plans to use every blazing hot trick in his book to keep her in his bed…even if it means sharing her with Del.

X Marks the Spot is emotional, sexy, and is Opal Carew at her best!

My Thoughts:

**Thank you to Harlequin/Graydon House Books and NetGalley for the ARC with the understanding that any review provided will be my honest opinion of the book.**

This is a stand alone novel by Opal Carew.  I have enjoyed novels and series by her in the past but his one was a bit different.  I think that lots of people will truly enjoy the sexy and sensual aspects of the love triangle between Abi, Liam, And Del.  I personally, however had issues with it.  I actually am not into stories that involve polyamorous relationships that much.  I may have liked it more if Abi was more of a dominant personality where her emotions are concerned.  The story itself was very well written and moved along at a pretty good pace.  I just prefer my leading lady to be the one in charge.  I give this one 3 out of 5 stars.  The book is being released tomorrow and you can grab a copy at Amazon or your favorite retailer.

Sweet Siren by Cerise DeLand

Overview:

FROM BESTSELLING AUTHOR OF ROMANCE FICTION, CERISE DELAND 
Book 3 in THOSE NOTORIOUS AMERICANS series

Money can buy anything, can't it? Those brash Americans--their dollars and charms work wonders. Until they learn that money can buy anything...but love.

Tycoon. Robber baron. Builder of ships, dreams…and a fortune. Few women can resist him.
One tries.
But who wins when their choices are revenge—or love?

Killian Hanniford has everything he wants. Charming children, a growing empire and wealth beyond his hard-scrabble childhood dreams. He doesn’t need a wife. Doesn’t look for love from the women who only want to dip their hands in his wallet.
But one woman cuts him cold—and he wonders why she has the nerve.
Olivia Bereston knows the notorious American millionaire well. He’s ruthless, unprincipled. And she’s delighted to cut him down to size. 
But afterward, he finds her amusing. Intriguing? 
Is he mad?
Or is he so unique, so forgiving, she might even learn to forgive herself for her own failures? And love him?


My Thoughts:

***Thanks to Cerise DeLand for allowing me the privilege to have an ARC of this book with the understanding that any review posted will be my own honest opinion of it.***

You may have noticed that I have reviewed books by Cerise DeLand in the past.  I love her style of writing and in particular this series.  Sweet Siren is book 3 of Those Notorious Americans.  The series follows Killian Hanniford and his family as the take Europe by storm with their new found wealth.  This book was about the patriarch Killian.  He has met with Lady Savage, Olivia Bereston at 2 previous events including his niece Marianne's (book 2) wedding.  She captivates him with her beauty, wit, and laughter.  Oh and she completely and totally ignores him as much as possible.  He is not used to being ignored by the ladies and finds himself growing more attracted to her everyday.  Olivia finds Killian extremely attractive, charming, and caring which is the exact opposite image she has spent a lifetime carrying of the "Robber Baron".  This story picked up very quickly and I was once again swept away by the way DeLand wove her tale of love.  

I love that the struggle between the two main characters involves a past that Killian is unaware they share.  The growth in the way Olivia starts viewing herself once she realizes she is in love is really wonderful and the surprise at the end makes me want to immediately dive into the next installment, which is unfortunately not available yet.  I didn't find as much humor in this book as some others but it didn't really need it as the story was just so sweet.  This one was a perfect read as far as I am concerned. 5 out of 5 stars for sure.