TWW's Book Review: Snarky and Sweet: A Romantic Comedy by Susan Denney

Lurleen and Lurlette...good golly! We must be in Texas! Sorry...I had to get that out my system. Now that I have your attention, we can get on with the story. Lee and Lurlette are identical twins in looks, but nothing alike in terms of fashion, lifestyle and temperament and marital status. Well come to think of it, they are completely different in every way except for looks. 

Lee lives a quiet life in San Pablo as a French teacher at the local high school. Lurlette is married, again, to some millionaire. What is this? Her third or fourth attempt...whatever. Lee's barely had a date and she's harboring feelings for a co-worker her sister has nicknamed "The Halibut". 

Now Lurlette is coming back to town, marriage over, and bringing with her an assortment of trinkets she just can't leave behind. Trinkets...hmmm! More like running off with the valuables. She's the epitome of royalty as far as her hometown is concerned. Now she has to figure out what she is going to do. She'll just conveniently stay with her sister Lee and let her deal with it. Not on your life!

So as you can expect, Lurlette turns Lee's world upside down. And...friends, co-workers and neighbors all get sucked into Lurlette's larger than life world! Throw in a big red diamond, two dumb thugs, a Cezanne and a tractor and you've got yourself an amusingly entertaining read. Great for a rainy weekend! Rating:

 

    
Wishing you moments of  great reading!
 

Like anything you see here? Then contact me, Susan Dusterhoft at todaysworkingwoman@hotmail.com. I am always looking for more books/products to review. I can also provide assistance with blog writing!

TWW's Book Review: Crazy Love by Nicola Marsh

Bring on another mildly humerous read in the form of an internet dating agency. While I wouldn't say this is the best thing I ever read, I will say that the characters were actually amusing. 

Sierra Kent owns the agency. Belle Adamson is her best friend and local beautician. Olivia Fairley is newly engaged to Sierra's "Uncle" Hank Stevens and Marc Fairley is Olivia's son. He's in town to stop the wedding and to secretly check out a future acquisition, The Love Byte Dating Agency. Marc is extremely annoyed that his mother has moved to the country to marry some guy that he thinks is only after her money. Hmmm...can you see where this is headed yet?

Throw in a quirky cafe owner, Cythera (affectionately known as Cy), who has a penchant for dreadlocks and crystals; Rob Alden, Marc's cut-throat business associate; Aussie-broad Flo, owner of The Love Shack Diner; William Jamieson, Marc's right hand man around the house,  and don't forget Ripley, the dog!

While I didn't find anything really exciting about the story, there were a few moments that brought a chuckle or a smile to my face. Oh...and there just might be a little something revealed too! Crazy Love by Nicola Marsh is an easy read over a weekend or a several nights during the week.  Rating:

Wishing you moments of great reading!

 

Like anything you see here? Then contact me, Susan Dusterhoft at todaysworkingwoman@hotmail.com. I am always looking for more books/products to review. I can also provide assistance with blog writing!

TWW's Book Review: The Fortune Quilt by Lani Diane Rich

There are some stories that when you read them you simply can't put them down. Then there are others that you read over several days. While still others are simply just okay or complete stinkers.

The Fortune Quilt by Lani Diane Rich is just okay. At one point, I was almost disappointed, but perhaps I was just reading it at the wrong time. I didn't find anything that was really outstanding about it, save for the fact that it was about a mystical woman who makes a lot of quilts and waits for the owners to show up so she can give it to them.

Some of the things that happen to the main character, Carly McKay, could be considered real life, but there was really nothing that I would call tragic. Okay, so her runaway mom returns, and she loses her job, goes back to Bisby, AZ (the site of where she meets the mysterious quiltmaker) to find herself, and then somehow miraculously gets herself another job. All because of a quilt! Hardly. While I am a firm believer in destiny, I also believe in making things happen for yourself. I can't really feel sorry for Carly. At some point all I remembered thinking was "suck it up and get on with it."

Frankly, I wish that Ms. Rich would have spent a little more time developing some of the ancillary characters. It would have helped provide a bit more color to the story. Rating:

Wishing you moments of great reading!
 

Like anything you see here? Then contact me, Susan Dusterhoft at todaysworkingwoman@hotmail.com. I am always looking for more books/products to review. I can also provide assistance with blog writing!

TWW's Book Review: Vinny & Violet, The Unwanted Kittens by Maranda Russell

What do you get when you have two abandoned kittens and a little girl named Ashley? Two very lucky rescued kittens whose new owner really loves them! Good thing too, because after giving them a bath, Ashley realizes there is something really wrong with Violet. She is a sick little kitty and needs extra attention, and Ashley is just the person to take care of her.
After hand-feeding little Violet, she puts both kittens to bed. They quickly find comfort with each other and fall asleep. The next morning though, it's pretty clear that Violet is not getting any better. Fortunately for Ashley, her Aunt Linda is a veterinarian with an animal hospital. Unfortunately for Violet, she'll have to stay overnight.

Both of these kittens are very lucky that someone found them, as it is not every day that it will happen. Small, helpless and abandoned animals generally do not survive if left on their own. But thanks to the love of a very special little girl, they have a fighting chance.  

What a great short story about taking chances! Best of all, Vinny & Violet, The Unwanted Kittens by Maranda Russell, teaches children the art of patience. While taking care of any pet is not an easy job, taking care of a sick pet is more difficult. Ashley learned that with a little love and faith, anything is possible. As adults, we have a responsibility to look out for our fur-friends and make sure that they all get an opportunity to enjoy a happy and healthy life. Rating:

Wishing you moments of great reading!
 

Like anything you see here? Then contact me, Susan Dusterhoft at todaysworkingwoman@hotmail.com. I am always looking for more books/products to review. I can also provide assistance with blog writing!

TWW's Book Review: God Loves You. - Chester Blue by Suzanne Anderson

Miss Millie of Blossom, OH is faced with a dilemma. On a night so clear and bright, she looks up to the stars and prays for help. The next morning it arrives in the form of a little blue bear and his name is Chester Blue.

What follows is a story of how one little bear changes the lives of the people who need him the most. And he does this by simply showing up with suitcase in hand and being himself. However, there is something really important inside that suitcase. Nothing elaborate, just a needle and thread and a short message that says...God Loves You. - Chester Blue.

How amazing that such a simple message can transform lives!

Chester Blue in his wonderful way miraculously shows up where he is needed the most. Oh how I wish there had been a Chester Blue in my life...but amazingly enough, reading this book about this little bear actually turned my life around when I was feeling a little...well I was needing to refocus. So yes, even Chester Blue helped me too, because God does love me and he loves you too! 

This is a great story to share with everyone. I highly recommend this as a family read at the end of the day. Taken chapter by chapter, Gold Loves You. - Chester Blue by Suzanne Anderson offers a message of hope and faith. Rating: 

 

Wishing you moments of great reading!


Like anything you see here? Then contact me, Susan Dusterhoft at todaysworkingwoman@hotmail.com. I am always looking for more books/products to review. I can also provide assistance with blog writing!

Get off the Highway and take time out for Yourself

Hello and Welcome to Today's Working Woman! I am glad that you have stopped by to visit me. I can't believe that it's been almost three years since I started this project. My original intent was to just use this as a cathartic release from some difficult moments in my life that I had been going through. Over time it evolved into a whole lot more. I realized that I had a lot of good things to say and to share.

Officially, next month is my anniversary. So I am winding down another year with plans for the rest of this journey. I did not get to do many of the things that I planned, but I've learned that is life. And life, is all about the journey with its many highways, bi-ways and exits to new destinations.Right now, I have pulled over into a rest stop to rejuvenate myself and take a look at the map. Sometimes you need to do that. We fly through life so fast that we forget to stop, rest, take a look around and listen to the sounds. 

There is a lot to look at when we get off the highway, but when we stay on the same course, we don't see anything except the road in front of us and the cars whizzing by. Take if from me, it pays to take an exit or two and see where it takes you. If you don't like it, then you can always get back on the highway until another interesting exit sign comes along. Just remember that highways were built to get from one place to another a little faster. They were never meant to stay on all the time.

Don't think it's all that easy for me though to just pull over like this. I am totally guilt ridden (sorry, it's the Catholic school girl in me!) that I am not writing every day and keeping up with the personal commitments that I made to myself. However, I know that if I don't take this time, I won't be any good to myself or anyone else for that matter. Your health and well-being is the most important thing, because if you don't have it, you won't be able to get back out on the road again. So, I am taking a break and enjoying a little vacation. It doesn't mean that I am not doing anything at all, it just means that I am not doing much out in the forefront.  

So while I enjoy this month of rest and relaxation, I hope that you all are doing well and are enjoying yourselves. I'd like to remind all of you that it's okay to take some time our for you because you deserve it.Get off the highway and pull over for awhile. Enjoy a break from this fast-paced world. Fix yourself a cuppa of something and put your feet up. Find a good book to read, put on some music or just daydream as you gaze out the window. Close your eyes and take a nap. It's okay...

Spring is just around the corner and Summer is not far behind. I don't know about you but I am ready to say goodbye to Winter. I need to get back into the garden that I have been planning all winter. I need to get my camera out and take some cool pictures. I need to go out and stand on the beach and listen to the ocean sing to me. I need to breathe...

If I can leave you with a few parting thoughts before you go, remember that we don't live to work, we work so that we can live. For those of you that are experiencing difficulties at work, you are not alone. Today's Working Woman has seen it all and lived through even more of it. While I am not that old, I can assure you that no matter what negativity that you are experiencing right now...it...will...pass. It Will Get Better. I PROMISE.

It's great that we all have careers, but don't let that career be the end all and be all of who and what you are. There is more to you than the job, it's just the means to get you to whatever you want in your life. And whatever you want in life can be anything. Dream...and dream big. For if we don't have our dreams, we can't turn them into reality.

Thank you for being with me on this journey and I hope that you continue to enjoy the ride!

Like anything you see here? Then contact me, Susan Dusterhoft at todaysworkingwoman@hotmail.com. I am always looking for more books/products to review. I can also provide assistance with blog writing!

TWW's Book Review: It Happens Every Spring by Gary Chapman & Catherine Palmer

Steve does nothing but work, work and work some more. Brenda is faced with nothing to do as the children grown and gone. He doesn't listen to her and she doesn't take an interest in his work. Two people who used to be so in love and into to each other are now so far apart from each other. While this book is billed as a empty nest story, it really is much more than that. It's how to get two people to reconnect after drifting so far apart.

The story is set in the small town of Tranquility, Missouri, a beautiful town in the heart of the Ozarks. We meet a cast of characters that include Brenda and four other local neighborhood women, who form the TLC, a group that helps each other, the community and meets weekly at the local beauty shop. Throw in a handyman, a mentally challenge homeless man/boy and a owner of a rod and tackle shop.

Throw in some humor, some emotion, wrong attraction, a little antagonism, and some honest, real life dialogue and you have not only a fictional story, but a scene out of someone's actual life. How many couples can say they have never experience a time like what was present in It Happens Every Spring by Gary Chapman & Catherine Palmer? Very few, I would imagine, as every couple goes through a period of winter when one, the other or both spouses feel a little bit dead inside. While the situation might not be exactly the same, the feelings and emotions most definitely are.

After being married for 20 years, I can totally relate to this story. Every marriage, including my own, has gone through the various seasons. In my eyes, this story is totally believable and shows that no matter what the season, anyone can weather it as long as they make an effort. Rating:

Wishing you moments of great reading!
 

Like anything you see here? Then contact me, Susan Dusterhoft at todaysworkingwoman@hotmail.com. I am always looking for more books/products to review. I can also provide assistance with blog writing!