Mama Bear Reviews

I just finished The Star-Touched Queen by Roshani Chokshi and loved it! I happened across this book because I was seeing reviews come in for the second book in this series which is A Crown of Wishes and which is set to release the end of next month. The reviews are so amazing for the second book already that I knew I had to read the first. The reviews are a bit mixed for this book. Here is the link to them on Goodreads . I really enjoyed this story, I thought it was beautiful and loved that Mayavati got to experience the wonderful stories she had created for her little sister. This is a love story that spans throughout lifetimes. There is a wonderful mix of Greek mythology and Indian folklore infused into the whole book and the author has a really beautiful writing style that creates wonderful imagery. Here is the link the author's site . I hope you enjoy this book as much as I did. I really look forward to reading A Crown of Wishes next month!

I just finished reading Harvest: Unexpected projects using 47 extraordinary garden plants by Stefani Bittner & Alethea Harampolis. You can find out more information about the book and where it can be purchased here and find out more about the authors here . This book has only been out for a couple of weeks and I am seeing wonderful reviews for it everywhere. I am not surprised because it truly is an incredible book. The first thing that I noticed when going through this book was the amazing photography. Seriously, this book is packed with gorgeous images! Even the images on the front and back cover are enough to make you want to pick it up. I also love the way that it is broken down. The book goes through 47 garden plants and discusses information about planting and harvesting each of them. It is also separated between the different season in which the plants grow. The authors then go on to show a unique way that the plant can be used. For example, after the information fo

I received my February Bookish Box today! The theme this month was galentines day so the box focused on literary friendships. Inside the box were best book friend pins from Jar of Buttons. A mug with a quote from the Raven cycle series from Drop & Give Me Nerdy. A really cute Fangirl nerd necklace from Appraising Pages.  Also, a bookmark with an Anne of Green Gables quote from Lexy Olivia . There has been a bookmark in every box I have received from this shop and they are all beautiful!  My favorite item in the box was the shirt with the quote from The Perks of Being a Wallflower from Appraising Pages. This was my favorite book in high school and I am psyched to have it on a shirt. I will wear it proudly with my nerdy necklace. I really loved all of the items this month. It all fit very well with the theme and included items from some of my favorite books. I have loved all of the boxes that I have received and have yet to be disappointed. The March theme for Bookish Box is sidekic

Hi Everyone! How has it been a week since I last posted? I swear I have been reading! Honestly, I read a book that I really, really did not like. I struggled with whether or not I should post about it and decided that I would not. I don't like to be mean and I know that if I posted a review that I would dig deep to find positive things about this book and I honestly could not really find them. It was quite a challenge to get through. With that said, I just finished reading Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo. I have heard a lot of great things about the Grisha series and I was not disappointed. You can check out the author's website here . It is really fun and interactive and has lots of interesting information about the books. I loved this book! It is such a fun world and I am excited to just be starting out with it. Honestly, I love starting a series when all of the books are already out because that means I can binge read! It is so hard to wait! The main character Alina is a no

I just finished reading Own It: The Power of Women at Work by Sallie Krawcheck. This book was a little outside of my normal pleasure reading but actually fit in very nicely with what I am studying in school right now. I am taking social psychology this term and we have been talking about sexism this week. Own It is about how women can create more power for themselves in the workplace. I love the way that the author discusses this topic. Yes, things are obviously not equal between men and women in the workplace and unfortunately it will probably be a while before that changes. Sallie Krawcheck gives advice to women in a conversational and honest way as to how they can best get ahead in the workplace and take control of evening out their own playing field. She gives practical advice to women such as how to network and work with other women to receive feedback and build each other up. The author points out how women think differently to men and how that can be used to their advanta

The first book I finished this week was Accidentally On Purpose by Jill Shalvis. This came out a couple weeks ago and is the third book in the Heartbreaker Bay series. Any book by Jill Shalvis is an automatic read so I was very surprised to find that I had somehow missed the second book in this series. Not only did I miss the second book but the second one The Trouble With Mistletoe is going to be a movie . So, guess I need to get on reading that. The author does have a handy list on her blog for keeping all of these straight here . I will need to reference that in the future. I really enjoyed this book and love the setting that has been created for this series. Elle and Archer have a history that goes back to her being a teenager in trouble and him being a rookie cop. Now they work in the same building with him having his own security company and her being the building manager. Being pushed back into each others lives has meant that they will spend more time together and be unable

I just finished The Drifter by Christine Lennon. This was an advanced copy that I received from William Morrow. The book is set to come out in a couple of weeks. I'm a little mixed on my feelings about my book. I was really hooked on it from the beginning and enjoyed the characters and the story development. Something happened in the middle that made it all see a bit tedious though. I started to wonder how the relationship between the main character and her husband was even working out with the way that she was handling life. She was on a very destructive path that really didn't seem to let up for 20 years. The character was obviously changed by this major event that happened in her life and she just couldn't seem to let it go. In holding on to this tragedy she could not seem to live her life. I did however like that the book came around in the end to give a little closure. I really liked the way that it ended and that things worked out but it seemed like it took a long tim

I have been sick with the flu this last week so I don't feel like I have accomplished much but I did manage to get some reading in. Here are the books that I got through this week: Heartless by Marissa Meyer has been on my too read list for a while. I must admit that I have never read Alice in Wonderland or any other books by Marissa Meyer. I really enjoyed her writing style but feel like I would have been more prepared for this book if I had a better understanding of Alice in Wonderland. This book is written as a prequel to Alice in Wonderland and gives a back story to some of the characters, mainly the queen of hearts. I should have known where the story was going as it was about the queen of hearts but I really held out hope for a happy ending. Do not expect one with this book. It was a good story but oh that ending really drove me a little crazy. How to Tame a Beast in Seven Days by Kerrelyn Sparks was an advanced copy that I received from St. Martin's Press. This boo