Tag: audio

Books, great reads, Out of the Box Blogs

Little Girl Blue: The Life of Karen Carpenter by: Randy L. Schmidt

Les

little girl

**THIS ONE IS MORE OF MY FEELINGS AND OPINION OF KAREN AND HER LIFE, THAN THE BOOK**

To be honest I forgot that my Goodreads is attached to the blog, and the whole world sees what I read. Kind of strange to think about it now. This is a book I read for me and my mother. She loved Karen Carpenter, and thought she was a victim of circumstance and an overbearing family as well as the fame.

This book dives into her entire life, even the not so glamorous times, and the low points. There are a lot of interviews with her friends in this book, which is the reason I decided to read it. I know the music, but who was she? My take on Karen is she was a beautiful soul looking for unconditional love, and a life as a wife and mother that she could be proud of. She had this amazing gift, that voice was so unique and so recognizable. I didn’t  know until this book that she recorded a solo album while Richard was in Rehab for his addiction issues. While reading this book told by some of her closest friends, there were times when I was so mad for her. I was so angry, when I found out about the solo album, and then to find out they made her shelf it. They told her it wasn’t good enough. I think they were afraid. They were afraid to release it. What made me the most mad was that they released it after her death. My favorite Karen Carpenter song is on this album. I wish she could have seen how many people loved that album.

So many people controlling her life and micromanaging her. She was already a perfectionist when it came to her singing. The constant comments about her weight in the beginning, to the butting in of her relationships with men. She never had a moments peace. When she found out the truth about her fiancé being a fraud, it is said she wanted to cancel the wedding. Her friend claims her mother wouldn’t here of it, too many invitations had gone out. It would have been too embarrassing. So she married a con man who blew almost all her money, and it is said he even told her ” Look at you, I would never have a child with you, you look sick. Nothing but skin and bones, how can I love that”. It is no wonder she sought refuge in the few who did love her as she was. She tried to be perfect on the outside in front of the world, but she forgot to love herself. This is why my mother told me this story, so I can always remember to love myself first.

She tried to fight her bulimia and anorexia, she was doing well, but she just couldn’t get that monkey off her back. Some friends say she was taking a prescription medicine, instead of her usual laxatives, but some friends truly thought she had beaten it. Some say she was doing so well. Her autopsy says she did have the prescription in her system, but some say it was because she was sick. I say no matter what we lost a great artist, and an amazing woman, who never got to live up to her full potential.  I listen to her music almost daily, and I am saddened by the fact that she didn’t get to see how many people still listen even now.

Here is my favorite song from her solo album. I hope you enjoy it. *of course I do not own the rights to this song*

Peace,

Les

Books, fantasy, great reads, indie author, Reviews, scifi

Dragon Storm by Lindsay Buroker

Karen

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Lindsay Buroker was the first indie author I ever read, and I still love her books. This is the newest series she is realeasing. First the blurb:

Telryn “Trip” Yert has always been a little odd, with hunches that are too accurate to explain. Magic is feared and forbidden in Iskandia, so he’s struggled his whole life to hide his eccentricities. As a boy, he was forced to watch his mother’s execution. Her crime? Witchcraft.

Understandably, Trip wants nothing to do with the power that lurks within him, always threatening to reveal itself. Instead, he dedicates himself to serving as an officer in the king’s army, to battling pirates and imperial conquerors. He longs to become a soldier as respected and renowned as the legendary General Zirkander.

But his country is in need of more than a soldier.

After disappearing for over a thousand years, dragons have returned to the world. A few of them are willing to be allies to mankind, as they were millennia before, but far more want to destroy or enslave humans and claim the world for themselves.

There are few people left with the power to fight dragons. For reasons he doesn’t understand, Trip may be one of those people. But if he chooses to learn more about his heritage and the power he can wield, he risks losing everyone he loves and everything he longs to be.

This book reminded me of why I fell in love with indie authors. This is quality writing, a fast and fun fantasy and it was $1 (free if you have KU)!! I know I’ll pay more no doubt for the rest but that’s okay because I’m hooked. I loved the world, where swords talk and dragons power depends on their color, I enjoyed the cast of characters, most quirky and crazy, and the story was fun.

You should grab this book.

Books, fantasy, great reads, Reviews, scifi, Urban Fantasy

*Audiobook* Magic Bites by Ilona Andrews

Karen

magic-bites

I LOVE THIS SERIES!! I didn’t want there to be any doubts. But I’m not a huge audio book person, and I will admit when it comes to the first two books of this series I tend to skim some when I reread, so when give the opportunity to review this, I thought this was a great chance to be objective. First and foremost, the blurb..

Atlanta would be a nice place to live, if it weren’t for the magic…

When the magic is up, rogue mages cast their spells and monsters appear, while guns refuse to fire and cars fail to start. But then technology returns, and the magic recedes as unpredictably as it arose, leaving all kinds of paranormal problems in its wake.

Kate Daniels is a down-on-her-luck mercenary who makes her living cleaning up these magical problems. But when Kate’s guardian is murdered, her quest for justice draws her into a power struggle between two strong factions within Atlanta’s magic circles.

The Masters of the Dead, necromancers who can control vampires, and the Pack, a paramilitary clan of shapechangers, blame each other for a series of bizarre killings—and the death of Kate’s guardian may be part of the same mystery. Pressured by both sides to find the killer, Kate realizes she’s way out of her league—but she wouldn’t have it any other way…

This book is a well written, has fantastic world building and some of my all time favorite characters in it, but when forced to actually listen to the whole thing I must admit it isn’t the strongest in the series. That’s not to say it isn’t amazing, how about we just break it down..

Pros: The book leaves no doubt where you are and what the world is about. You are in this post magic Atlanta and you never doubt the world building in it.

There are some fantastic character introductions in this book, and a lot of them remain key for many books to come. I understand who Kate is and I get her purpose. Also it is so nice to have a strong female lead that doesn’t have to be mean or crazy. She just kicks ass, I love her.

Story. I love that, though this becomes a 10 book series, this is a self contained story. It has a beginning (will talk about that) a middle and an end. No cliffhangers or underdeveloped plots.

Now remember I said this wasn’t the best of this series, so let’s talk about what I didn’t like about it.

Cons: It can be very slooooowww, especially the beginning. I’ve developed a very deep liking for Kate and her band of misfits so I have patience for anything she is doing but if you don’t know her (and for all intent and purpose you don’t since this is book one) the beginning does tend to drag. Hang in there!

World building. Wait wasn’t that on my pros list? I know this is one of those quirky things that was both a pro and a con. You see when I originally read this book there was already three books out and I knew I was going to read them. This world building is A LOT for just one book. Is it necessary for the series? Hell yes! Is it too much if this is the only book you read? Maybe. So just don’t let it be the only one, you are only hurting yourself.

This was an audio book so I would also like to comment on the narrator Renee Raudman. I thought she was fantastic! I thought a first she was a little dramatic, but then the more she read the more I fell in love with her. What an amazing job, I hope to hear her again soon.

If you like to listen to your books grab this audio here http://www.audible.com/search?advsearchKeywords=magic+bites+kate+daniels&sprefixRefmarker=nb_sb_ss_i_1_11&sprefix=magic+bites