Book Review: Gideon's Sword by Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child

About the Book:


At twelve, Gideon Crew witnessed his father, a world-class mathematician, accused of treason and gunned down.

At twenty-four, summoned to his dying mother's bedside, Gideon learned the truth: His father was framed and deliberately slaughtered. With her last breath, she begged her son to avenge him.

Now, with a new purpose in his life, Gideon crafts a one-time mission of vengeance, aimed at the perpetrator of his father's destruction. His plan is meticulous, spectacular, and successful.

But from the shadows, someone is watching. A very powerful someone, who is impressed by Gideon's special skills. Someone who has need of just such a renegade.

For Gideon, this operation may be only the beginning . . .


About the Authors:

Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child are coauthors of the bestselling novels Relic,Mount Dragon, Reliquary, Riptide, Thunderhead, The Ice Limit, The Cabinet of Curiosities, Still Life with Crows, Brimstone, Dance of Death, The Book of the Dead,The Wheel of Darkness, Cemetery Dance, and Fever Dream. Preston’s bestselling nonfiction book, The Monster of Florence, is being made into a major motion picture. His interests include horses, scuba diving, skiing, and exploring the Maine coast in an old lobster boat. Lincoln Child is a former book editor who has published four bestselling novels of his own. He is passionate about motorcycles, exotic parrots, and nineteenth-century English literature. The authors welcome email from their readers; visit their website at www.prestonchild.com




My Opinion:


This book starts out with a bang and takes off from there. A somewhat short front story is told to introduce the reader to Gideon Crew. Once he fulfills his mother's dying wish he thinks he is going to settle down into his life; pay off his bills, find a wife, have some kids, fish. Little does he know that his life is about to change in a very dramatic way.


Gideon is walking to his favorite fishing hole when he is approached by a man with an amazing offer. He flies off to New York to learn the details. He also learns some very disturbing personal information. Gideon is asked to track down a Chinese man who may be defecting and bringing a weapon with him. Gideon needs to get his hands on what the man has and bring it back for the good of the country.


What follows is a page turning novel full of suspense, thrills and lots of twists and turns. Gideon Crew is a very engaging character with lots of wit and luck. It was just plain fun to follow him as he used his skills and charm to get the job done. He seemed a bit naive at times but this was his first foray into espionage for hire. I'm sure he'll get wiser as he goes along. I really enjoyed this book.


You can read more about all of Preston and Child's books and sign up for their newsletter HERE


Gideon's Sword is available at Amazon.com













Disclosure:  I received a gratis copy of Gideon's Sword from Grand Central Publishing. Any opinions expressed are my honest opinions and were not impacted by my receipt of the free book. I received no monetary compensation for this post.

Blog Tour and Book Review: A View from the Back Pew by Tim O'Donnell

About the Book:

Since the time Tim O'Donnell was a nuisance to the nuns, he has been asking questions about religion and Catholicism. After sixteen years of formal Catholic education followed by a successful business career, at age forty he sold his companies, built a log home in the woods and resumed his inquiry into the religion of his birth. Being a former daily newspaper publisher, O'Donnell unabashedly and unflinchingly dove headfirst into the taboo questions of Christianity, not as a theologian but as an investigative reporter.

His bold probe has generated a straightforward, and at times controversial exploration into questions many Christians carry from Catechism into adulthood.

A View from the Back Pew is a thoughtful, original and organic expose' of discovery. Grab a seat in the back pew next to Tim and hold on as he navigates over a bumpy and rutted road to answer questions we all have encountered on our own spiritual journey through life.

About the Author:

TIM O'DONNELL owned and ran a daily newspaper publishing company and won dozens of awards for publishing excellence. He has also been an organizational consultant, university lecturer, and keynote speaker. In addition, he has led workshops and seminars on leadership as well as personal and organizational development.

O'Donnell sold his consulting practice and publishing company several years ago to pursue in-depth study of the topic which is now his passion - the effects of organized religion on modern society and the impact of religious indoctrination on the individual.

My Opinion:

Reading Mr. O'Donnell's book brought back so many memories of my days in Catholic School. From nuns with lethal aim with erasers to May Day processions for the Virgin Mary my early education was almost identical. I suspect we are the same age or very close in age judging from comments made in the book so we both went to school when teachers could still hit students. And the nuns did. A ruler across the back of the hand was nothing; it was that paddle the Mother Superior carried that really struck the fear of, erm God into the students.

This book was very easy to read. Mr. O'Donnell has a very engaging writing style that draws you into his world whether that world is his Catholic school or his business adventures. He was and still is a very curious person; he challenged the nuns in school always questioning them regarding issues that he was told needed to be taken on faith. He wanted more than "mysteries of faith" he wanted answers and so he searched for them. Sometimes in good places, sometimes in bad. Along the way he found himself studying in Italy were he had a revelation and what he considered to be a promise from God. His acceptance and agreement to the promise drives the rest of his life.

I found Mr. O'Donnell's study of his religion and other religions to be thorough and adequately documented in the book. He is not creating a new religion but showing his readers how he found a better relationship with God within the confines of his Catholicism. He strongly encourages the reader to follow his example to find a more personal relationship with Jesus as opposed to needing the church to develop and nurture that relationship. He feels that the "corporate" church has corrupted the message Jesus came here to tell. That Jesus came to question authority and to question existing doctrine and so should we.

Religion is a very personal and at times touchy topic.  Mr. O'Donnell is not by any means trying to force his reasonings on the reader but I felt at times that he came across as arrogant in his writing; as if he had found all of the answers and that was that. There is a fine line between confidence and arrogance and in my reading experience Mr. O'Donnell crossed it. Others may disagree...

A View from the Back Pew is available on Amazon.com

Disclosure:  I received a copy of A View from the Back Pew gratis from TLC Book Tours. Any opinions expressed are my honest opinions and were not impacted by my receipt of the free book. I received no monetary compensation for this post.

Blog Tour and Giveaway: From Scotland with Love #Giveaway

Now this is a fun giveaway!
Kira Morgan and Amanda Scott are touring together with their books, Seduced by Destiny and Highland Master. Thanks to Anna from Hachette three lucky readers will win one copy of each book!

Seduced by Destiny


All her life, Josselin Ancrum has been trained for combat, hoping to exact vengeance for her heroic mother, who was killed fighting the English. When asked to spy for the Scottish Queen, Jossy joyfully accepts. But when a handsome stranger rescues her from sudden danger, his charm distracts her from her mission.

On the surface, Drew MacAdam may appear to be nothing more than a carefree champion, but his heart harbors a dark secret: This Highland hero is actually a skilled English soldier with a hatred for war and for the Scottish. Yet from the moment he meets the feisty Jossy, he's captured by her fiercely loyal heart. He's determined the honey-haired lass will be his ultimate prize - until the tragedy of their entwined legacies is revealed. Are these star-crossed lovers to be divided by their pasts? Or will they be...seduced by destiny?

Highland Master

When eighteen-year-old Lady Catriona Mackintosh discovers a wounded man in the forest near her Highland home, little does she know that he has sworn a sacred oath to kill her father and other members of the powerful Highland confederation known as Clan Chattan. Nor does she realize that she has met her soul mate. Independent, competent, intelligent, fiercely proud of her heritage, determined always to live near her own family, and known to her family as the "wee wildcat" because of her quick temper, Catriona is the daughter of a Highland chieftain and granddaughter of the even more powerful Chief (or Captain) of Clan Chattan. But her life changes forever when she persuades Sir Finlagh Cameron to return with her to her home to recover from his wounds. 


Sir Finlagh "Fin" Cameron is on a mission for the heir to Scotland's throne, who has sent him to the Highlands to persuade the Chief of Clan Chattan to arrange a secret meeting for him with two other great lords (the Lord of the Isles and the Lord of the North). Until Fin meets Catriona, however, he has no idea that her father was the Clan Chattan war leader who led them in the battle that wiped out many of Clan Cameron's best warriors, including Fin's own father. The sole survivor of that battle, Fin accepted a bequest of vengeance from his dying father, providing him with a dilemma to face as he begins to fall in love with Catriona. He is not the only one enticed by her charms, either. There are two other contenders, one of whom is his own master, the heir to Scotland's throne. With royal mischief afoot, if Catriona and Fin are ever to find happiness, they must first avoid disaster that could change Scotland's history, and find ways to be open and honest with each other.

You can check out some Bonus material HERE.

Seduced by Destiny is available at Amazon.com

Highland Master is available at Amazon.com

How do you win? It's easy!

But first some rules:

US and Canada only

No PO boxes

One set per household

18 yrs older+

MANDATORY ENTRY:

Tell me if you have read any book by either author. Be sure to leave your email address so I can contact you if you win.

EXTRA ENTRIES:

1. Follow me on twitter and tweet about the giveaway(one per day) - #Win From Scotland with Love bundle from @HachetteBooks @http://tinyurl.com/4t54g5l  #giveaway

2. Become a fan of Broken Teepee on Facebook

3. Share the giveaway using the share buttons (except StumbleUpon) at the end of the post - 1 entry for each share. Leave a separate comment for each

4. Follow my blog publicly - if you already do, thank you!

SEE THE EXTRA ENTRIES PAGE FOR ADDITIONAL WAYS TO ENTER.

All entries need to be in by 9PM MST on March 18th when I will go to Random.org to choose the winners. They will have 48hrs to respond or I will choose new winners.

Good luck everyone.

Disclosure:  I received no compensation for this post in money or product.

Review: La Tortilla Factory Smart & Delicious Traditional Tortillas

I love to experiment in the kitchen. 
This is not news.
Some of my tastiest meals have come about from the ever popular, "what am I going to to do with these leftovers?" question. I truly hate to serve the same thing two nights in a row - unless it's a braise type of meal that just gets better with sitting.

Last night I found myself faced with the remains of a port roast. I also had some La Tortilla Factory tortillas to try. The little brain started sparking and this is what resulted:


Barbecue Pork and Cheese Tortillas with Creamed Cabbage Pickled Cauliflower
Mmmm, it was a vinegary dinner but that made the hubby very happy. He LOVES vinegar!


To make the pork and cheese tortillas I started by taking the Traditional La Tortilla Factory Smart and Delicious Tortillas and wrapping them in foil. I let them warm in a 350° oven. Then I cut up some of the leftover pork roast.

Sorry about the fuzzy photo. The pork was NOT fuzzy. heh

I opened a jar of my home canned barbecue sauce and put it in a saucepan

Mmm, apple/cherry barbecue sauce

I added the sliced pork and heated it through

I then put a warmed tortilla on my plate

Added the pork mixture

Then I added some of my homemade goat's milk cheddar

I rolled it up. 
The hubby got two. I served it with the creamed cabbage (my mother's recipe. This will be the Tuesday Treat this week. It's really yummy!) and my home canned pickled cabbage.

It was very tasty! I will admit to unrolling mine at the table and adding the creamed cabbage and rolling it back up - that made it even better!

98% fat free, no trans fats and high fiber! How cool is that?!

Now, for the tortilla itself - it was delicious! It rolled beautifully without cracking like some I have worked with in the past. It added a perfect backdrop to the strong tastes of the barbecue sauce and vinegary cabbage. It had the perfect texture and I can't wait for my next meal with the other tortillas I have to try.


Here is some information about the company:


For three generations, La Tortilla Factory and the Tamayo family have been dedicated to baking the best tasting wraps and tortillas that contribute to a healthy lifestyle. This dedication drives every employee, everyday, towards a common vision: To be the world’s “Best Specialty Baker”.

We know that our success depends on our consumers and their trust in us — that we will continuously make the finest products for them. We are deeply committed to earning their trust everyday.

So, unlike other tortilla companies, there is not a single drop of partially hydrogenated or fully hydrogenated oils anywhere in our manufacturing plant, which means there are absolutely NO trans-fats in any of our products! 

Of course, the commitment to healthy, high quality food is enhanced by the vision we see all around us, everyday!  Located in the heart of Sonoma County, California, La Tortilla Factory is at the intersection of the culinary arts, farm-fresh produce, artisan cheese-makers, some of the world’s finest wineries, and world-class chefs.

I have rosemary and traditional corn tortillas yet to try. Mmmm, I made the hubby a breakfast burrito this morning with a whole wheat tortilla. I will show you that later in the week. He was a happy man.

If you are looking for a FANTASTIC tortilla as the base for your meal, Mexican or otherwise I recommend the delicious products from La Tortilla Factory. They ARE Smart & Delicious!

You can find a slew of great recipes on the La Tortilla site.

La Tortilla Factory tortillas are available at a wide number of grocery stores. You can check HERE to see if your favorite store is listed.

You can also purchase La Tortilla Factory tortillas from their online store.

Disclosure:  I received La Tortilla Factory Tortillas gratis. Any opinions expressed are my honest opinions and were not impacted by my receipt of the free product. I received no monetary compensation for this post.

Ruminatin': On Winter

It snowed.
For three days.
There is now a foot of snow.
Admittedly the snow is much better than rain this time of year but we were just starting to see the ground again. It was covered by snow in October and had stayed that way due to cold weather until just recently. Seems the weather gods decided that I shouldn't see my yard.

Why?
Any ideas?
I don't have any.

There was also a lovely "arctic blast" sent from Canada. Thanks and all for the great gift Canada but you could have kept it and I wouldn't have thought any less of you. I've gotten quite used to my week or two of sub zero weather in these parts but they occur BEFORE CHRISTMAS. I am not wanting to have more of it after Christmas.

Even the goats are not happy. On the last day, the day of the biggest snow accumulation they basically refused to come out of the barn.

I can't say as I blame them. I wouldn't have come out of the yurt if I didn't have to go CARE FOR THE GOATS WHO WOULDN'T COME OUT OF THE BARN. Pricilla even expressed her opinion this way...

But it is beautiful. I cannot deny that. There is something about all the trees covered in snow. Everything looks all clean and pretty.

And with the cool present from Canada it will probably stay that way for a while....

Book Review: Mr. Darcy's Secret by Jane Odiwe

Click to purchase at Sourcebooks

About the Book:

One dark secret can completely ruin a bright future…

After capturing the heart of the most eligible bachelor in England, Elizabeth Bennet believes her happiness is complete—until the day she unearths a stash of anonymous, passionate love letters that may be Darcy’s, and she realizes just how little she knows about the guarded, mysterious man she married…

About the Author:

Jane Odiwe is an artist and author. She is an avid fan of all things Austen and is the author and illustrator of Effusions of Fancy, annotated sketches from the life of Jane Austen, as well as Lydia Bennet's Story. She lives with her husband and three children in North London.

My Opinion:

This is another in the Jane Austen continuation stories that I really seem to have developed a taste for; I think it's a testament to the strong characters that Ms. Austen wrote and just how much one wants to know more about them and to continue to follow their lives.  In this tale Elizabeth Bennet and Mr. Darcy are quite happily married - or so Elizabeth believes until she stumbles upon a cache of letters indicating a lost love. How much does she know about the love of her life?

Ms. Odiwe stays very true to the spirit of Jane Austen. The writing style and the cadence of speech is just about identical. I felt myself lost again in an Austenesque world. And I was happy there in spite of the tensions brought by these mysterious letters.  It was good to see the familiar characters yes, even Aunt Catherine de Bourgh. I thoroughly enjoyed reading this story of a lost love. You will have to read it to find out just whose love was lost. You won't be disappointed.

Mr. Darcy's Secret is available at Sourcebooks.

Mr. Darcy's Secret is available at Amazon.com

Disclosure:  I received a gratis copy of Mr. Darcy's Secret. Any opinions expressed are my honest opinions and were not impacted by my receipt of the free book. I received no monetary compensation for this post.

Discount Alert!

Mmmm, pancakes! Check out this coupon deal from Great River Milling.....

It’s Heart Healthy Month So… “Stack” the Odds in Your Favor with $2 off any 1 of Great River Pancake Mixes  via   facebook.com/GreatRiverMilling and Shop the store

   Great River Organic Pancake Mixes are the perfect way to create a stack of heart-healthy breakfast goodness!  They are loaded with organic fiber (good for the heart), will warm your family’s tummies and earn a “Hot Breakfast Month” gold star from us too!Great River offers 4 organic and delicious mixes to choose from: Buttermilk, Buckwheat Buttermilk, Corn ‘n Oat, and Five Grain Pancake Mixes. For the rest of February you can save $2 off any 1 of the mixes ONLY when you buy through our new FaceBook Store.   While you are there, “like” us to get on the new mailing list for great offers.

Simply go to facebook.com/GreatRiverMilling. 

Once there, click the Store button to choose your two favorite mixes. 

Happy Heart Healthy Month- From our mill to your table!

Great River Organic Milling

Stone-ground, Organic Flours & Mixes

www.facebook.com/GreatRiverMillling

#Giveaway: Soft Scrub/5 Winners

I have for you today 5, count 'em 5 coupons for any Soft Scrub Total, Soft Scrub Bleach Clean or Soft Scrub abrasive product.  (I actually have 10 coupons but I am going to donate 5 of them to my food bank for the customers there....)


Here is some information about Soft Scrub products:


Soft Scrub Total Bath and Bowl
Replace your arsenal of cleaning products with Soft Scrub^® Total Bath & Bowl^™cleanser, the one product that is powerful enough to clean and deodorize your entire bathroom. The patented trigger allows you to easily switch from a fine mist to a thick foam and even sprays upside down. The unique angle-neck bottle helps you get into those hard to reach places like the inside of the toilet bowl.


Soft Scrub Cleansers
Soft Scrub^® Lemon Cleanser offers the same micro-abrasive cleaning formula as regular Soft Scrub^® Cleanser but without the bleach, so it safely cleans virtually every surface in your home. From pots & pans to porcelain tubs to vinyl siding, you'll love finding ways to use this hard-working yet gentle formula with its fresh, lemon scent.


Soft Scrub with Bleach
Soft Scrub^® Gel with Bleach Cleanser's easy-to-use, non-abrasive gel formula cleans most household surfaces, including delicate marble countertops, Teflon^® cookware and linoleum flooring. Even tough stains like grape juice, coffee and tea are no match for Soft Scrub^® Gel!

_{Teflon^® is a registered trademark of E. I. du Pont de Nemours and Company or its affiliates.}

So how do you win? It's easy!
But first some rules:


US only
18yrs older+
one per household


MANDATORY ENTRY:


Go to the Soft Scrub site and tell me which product you would most like to try. Be sure to leave me your email address so I can contact you if you win.


EXTRA ENTRIES:

1. Join Soft Scrub on Facebook
2. Follow me on twitter and tweet about the giveaway(one per day) - #Win Coupon for Soft Scrub @SoftScrub & @BrokenTeepee @http://tinyurl.com/4ddh8qj #giveaway

3. Become a fan of Broken Teepee on Facebook

4. Share the giveaway using the share buttons at the end of the post - 1 entry for each share. Leave a separate comment for each (except StumbleUpon)

5. Follow @SoftScrub on Twitter

SEE THE EXTRA ENTRIES PAGE FOR ADDITIONAL WAYS TO ENTER.

All entries need to be in by 9PM MST on March 10th when I will go to Random.org to choose the winners. They will have 48hrs. to respond or I will choose new winners.

Good luck everyone.

Disclosure:  I received Soft Scrub Total Clean gratis. I was sent coupons to give away as I chose. I received no monetary compensation for this post.