Thursday, August 31, 2017

BOOK REPORT.....CROSS MY HEART

Cross My Heart - James Patterson

















Product Description(Amazon.com)
Detective Alex Cross is a family man at heart--nothing matters more to him than his children, his grandmother, and his wife Bree. His love of his family is his anchor, and gives him the strength to confront evil in his work. One man knows this deeply, and uses Alex's strength as a weapon against him in the most unsettling and unexpected novel of James Patterson's career.

When the ones Cross loves are in danger, he will do anything to protect them. If he does anything to protect them, they will die. 
Series: Alex Cross 
Hardcover: 448 pages 
Publisher: Little, Brown and Company; First Edition edition (November 25, 2013) 
Language: English 
ISBN-10: 0316210919 
ISBN-13: 978-0316210911

MY THOUGHTS:  Alex is deep into a duo serial killer raging around Washington.  The murder rate has gone sufficiently and the man power is down.  Alex and Sampson are working overtime trying to solve  their cases, but it's slow going.  Alex is missing his family, wishing he could spend more time with them.  There is also someone watching their every move, but Alex doesn't know yet.  Who is this mysterious person?  What does he want?  This book is a cliff hanger.....got to rush to the library to get the book to find out what happens.  I give this book 5......





This book is for one of my reading challenges......
Outdo Yourself Challenge

Wednesday, August 30, 2017

BLOG HOPPING & CROCHETING.......

I was blog hopping last week and found a CAL(Crochet Along) that I want to do.  I'm a really a slow crocheter, so who knows when it will be done.  This is the list of blogs I hopped and their links.....

Heather over at Books and Quilts, she hosts Needlework Tuesday.  From there I hopped over to Lin's place St Victor Quilts, that's where I saw the CAL, Lin is working on this.  Then I went to Sharmayne's, over at Country Fragrance, she is hosting the CAL. Sharmayne started this blanket for her granddaughter and asked if anyone else might like to join in.  She has the pattern that you can copy and paste, then print.  So if you want to join in, hop over to Sharmane's place and check it out.

I've got a lot of little balls of yarn to work on this, but haven't yet figured out the rest of the color scheme.  This is just part of my stash of yarn.  
I'll be posting about my progress a long the way.  I might get this done someday.............


Tuesday, August 29, 2017

BOOK REPORT....EXIT, PURSUED BY A BEAR

Exit, Pursued by a Bear - E. K. Johnston

















Product Description(Amazon.com)
Hermione Winters is captain of her cheer leading team, and in tiny Palermo Heights, this doesn’t mean what you think it means. At PHHS, the cheerleaders don't cheer for the sports teams; they are the sports team—the pride and joy of a small town. The team's summer training camp is Hermione's last and marks the beginning of the end of…she’s not sure what. She does know this season could make her a legend. But during a camp party, someone slips something in her drink. And it all goes black.

In every class, there's a star cheerleader and a pariah pregnant girl. They're never supposed to be the same person. Hermione struggles to regain the control she's always had and faces a wrenching decision about how to move on. The rape wasn't the beginning of Hermione Winter's story and she's not going to let it be the end. She won’t be anyone’s cautionary tale. 
Hardcover: 256 pages 
Publisher: Dutton Books for Young Readers (March 15, 2016) 
Language: English 
ISBN-10: 1101994584 
ISBN-13: 978-1101994580

MY THOUGHTS:  This is a new author for me.  I really liked reading this book, the plot, characters, and subject were all written beautiful.  The story didn't struggle at all, it kept me glued to the book, I wanted to find out what happened to this girl.  Hermione is the captain of her cheer leading squad.  One night at a party at a cheer leading camp, someone spikes her drink, rapes her and leaves her in the lake.  Hermione doesn't remember any of it because of the drug they put in her drink.  But she gets triggers that help her to remember.  She also has all her friends and family to help her.   Really moving book.  I give this book 5.....





This book is for 2 of my reading challenges.....
Outdo Yourself Reading Challenge
11th Annual Canadian Reading Challenge

Monday, August 28, 2017

WHAT ARE YOU READING......

Kathryn over at The Book Date is the host for It's Monday, What Are You Reading.  Hop over and check out all the books everyone is reading.  You could find your next book to read.





WHAT I READ LAST WEEK
I finished reading "L" is for Lawless - Sue Grafton




















WHAT I'M READING AT PRESENT
Exit, Pursued By A Bear - E. K. Johnston

















UP NEXT
Cross My Heart - James Patterson

















LAST WEEKS POSTS
"L" is for Lawless - Sue Grafton
 Alex Cross, Run - James Patterson
 Chris Hadfield - Chelsea Donaldson
 The Darkest Dark - Chris Hadfield and Kate Fillion

Sunday, August 27, 2017

SLOW STITCHING......

This Sunday I am working on my Crazy Quilt.  I finished 18 this week and finished 19 yesterday.  I'm putting 20 together today.  I think it's about time to put this one together.  Then I'm going to start another one for my sister.
Block 18
Block 19
I'll be joining Kathy over at Kathy's Quilts for Slow Sunday Stitching.  Hop over and check out all the stitching everyone is doing.

Friday, August 25, 2017

BOOK REPORT...."L" IS FOR LAWLESS

"L" is for Lawless - Sue Grafton

















Product Description(Amazon.com)
"L" Is for Lawless: Call it Kinsey Millhone in bad company. Call it a mystery without a murder, a treasure hunt without a map, a quest novel with truly mixed-up motives. Call it the return of Kinsey as bad girl-- quick-witted and quicksilvery, smart-mouthed and smart-alecky-- poking her nose into everyone's dirty laundry as she joins up with a modern-day Bonnie and Clyde in an Our Gang comedy that will take her halfway across the country and leave her with a major headache and an empty bank balance. 
Hardcover: 304 pages 
Publisher: Henry Holt and Co.; 1st edition (September 15, 1995) 
Language: English 
ISBN-10: 0805019375 
ISBN-13: 978-0805019377

MY THOUGHTS:  This book didn't involve a murder.  Kinsey is looking into a neighbors father, who was to suppose to be a WW2 Vet.  But once Kinsey did some digging, she found out he wasn't, he was in prison all those years.  The guy had robbed a bank, but before he got caught, he hid the stash of money.  He arranged clues as to where it was before he died.  Now Kinsey is looking for it, but could find herself killed before she finds it.  I give this book 5......





This book is for 1 of my reading challenges......
Outdo Yourself Reading Challenge

Thursday, August 24, 2017

EMBROIDERY SAMPLER.......

I've been doing the TAST stitches over at Pintangle, I'm making a sampler.  Want to know what TAST IS?  Just click on the link and you'll be there.  Here is my sampler.....
The first 25 stitches from TAST stitches are on here.  I've started another one, I will being doing 25 for that one too.  There are 100 stitches embroidery stitches in TAST.

I've also finished another Crazy Quilt Block.  This is block 18.....

The little red buttons on the left are from my mother's collection of buttons.  The orange one came from the Dollar Store.  Well that's it for now.  I'm linking up with Heather over at Books and Quilts for Needlework Tuesday...head over and check out all the things everyone is sharing.

Wednesday, August 23, 2017

BOOK REPORT.....ALEX CROSS, RUN

Alex Cross, Run - James Patterson

















Product Description(Amazon.com)
DON'T LOOK, ALEX CROSS
Top plastic surgeon Elijah Creem is renowned for his skills in the operating room, and for his wild, no-expense-spared "industry parties," bringing in underage exotic dancers and models for nights of drugs, champagne, and uninhibited sex. That is, until Detective Alex Cross busts one of Creem's lavish soirees and ruins his fun. Now Creem is willing to do anything to avoid going to jail.

DON'T THINK, ALEX CROSS
But Alex doesn't have time to dwell on that case. A beautiful woman has been found murdered in her car, a lock of her hair viciously ripped off. Then a second woman is found hanging from a sixth-floor window with a brutal scar slashed across her stomach. When a third mutilated body is discovered, rumors of three serial killers on the loose send Washington D.C. into an all-out frenzy.

JUST RUN
Alex is under so much pressure to solve these three grim cases that he hasn't noticed that someone else investigating him-someone so obsessed and so twisted that they'll do anything-ANYTHING- to get the vengeance they require. 
Series: Alex Cross 
Hardcover: 512 pages 
Publisher: Little, Brown and Company; Lrg edition (February 18, 2013) 
Language: English 
ISBN-10: 0316224235 
ISBN-13: 978-0316224239

MY THOUGHTS:  Alex and the WPD have a serial killer, Alex thinks there are 2 working together.  But how to find out for sure?  So Alex starts digging, and asking questions.  While Alex is working the case, someone is working a case against Alex.  He knows who is doing this, but he has no proof.  Finally all the clues come together and they catch the serial killers.  But how to catch the person who's messing with Alex?  I give this book 5.....





This book is for 1 of my reading challenges......
Outdo Yourself Reading Challenge

Tuesday, August 22, 2017

2 BOOK REPORTS.......

Chris Hadfield - Chelsea Donaldson

















Product Description(Amazon.com)
 In this book, simple text and full-color photographs describe the amazing life of Chris Hadfield! Chris was a Canadian astronaut who served on two space shuttle missions and commanded the International Space Station. He was also the first Canadian astronaut to walk in space! 
Age Range: 4 - 8 years 
Grade Level: Kindergarten 
Series: Canadian Biographies 
Paperback: 24 pages

The Darkest Dark - Chris Hadfield and Kate Fillion

















Product Description(Amazon.com)

Chris loves rockets and planets and pretending he's a brave astronaut, exploring the universe. Only one problem--at night, Chris doesn't feel so brave. He's afraid of the dark.

But when he watches the groundbreaking moon landing on TV, he realizes that space is the darkest dark there is--and the dark is beautiful and exciting, especially when you have big dreams to keep you company. 
Age Range: 4 - 8 years 
Grade Level 
Hardcover: 48 pages 
Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers; 1St Edition edition (September 13, 2016) 
Language: English 
ISBN-10: 0316394726 
ISBN-13: 978-0316394727
MY THOUGHTS:  I used to know all the astronuts names at one time.  But over the years they have slipped away.  Chris Hadfield is one I didn't know about.  Actually, I never heard of him.  When I went looking for Canadian books and authors, his name kept popping up.  So I got some info from google and headed to the library.  They had these 2 children's books, so I got them.  A couple things I like about children's books is the pictures and illustrations.  What the words don't tell you the pictures and illustrations will.  Really great books.  I give these books 5.....
These books are for 2 of my reading challenges......
Outdo Yourself Reading Challenge
11th Canadian Reading Challenge

Saturday, August 19, 2017

BOOK REPORT...."K" IS FOR KILLER

"K" is for Killer - Sue Grafton

















Product Description(Amazon.com)
Lorna Kepler was beautiful and willful, a loner who couldn't resist flirting with danger. Maybe that's what killed her.
Her death had raised a host of tough questions. The cops suspected homicide, but they could find neither motive nor suspect. Even the means were mysterious: Lorna's body was so badly decomposed when it was discovered that they couldn't be certain she hadn't died of natural causes. In the way of overworked cops everywhere, the case was gradually shifted to the back burner and became another unsolved file.
Only Lorna's mother kept it alive, consumed by the certainty that somebody out there had gotten away with murder.
In the ten months since her daughter's death, Janice Kepler had joined a support group, trying to come to terms with her loss and her anger. It wasn't helping. And so, leaving a session one evening and noticing a light on in the offices of Millhone Investigations, she knocked on the door.
In answering that knock, Kinsey Millhone is pulled into the netherworld of unavenged murder, where only a pact with the devil will satisfy the restless ghosts of the victims and give release to the living they have left behind.
Hardcover: 284 pages 
Publisher: Henry Holt and Co.; 1st edition (May 15, 1994) 
Language: English 
ISBN-10: 0805019367 
ISBN-13: 978-0805019360

MY THOUGHTS:  Janice Kepler thinks her daughter was murdered and  has hired Kinsey to look into the suspicious death or her daughter.  The cops don't have a suspect, no motive for murder, so they have filed under unsolved.  So Kinsey starts digging into the life of Lorna.  A secretary by day and a high priced Call Girl by night.   Was it a boyfriend no one knew about or someone close to her?  I give this book 5...





This books is for 1 of my reading challenges.....
Outdo Yourself Reading Challenge

Thursday, August 17, 2017

BOOK REPORT....MERRY CHRISTMAS, ALEX CROSS

Merry Christmas, Alex Cross - James Patterson

















Product Description(Amazon.com)
It's Christmas Eve and Detective Alex Cross has been called out to catch someone who's robbing his church's poor box. That mission behind him, Alex returns home to celebrate with Bree, Nana, and his children. The tree decorating is barely underway before his phone rings again--a horrific hostage situation is quickly spiraling out of control. Away from his own family on the most precious of days, Alex calls upon every ounce of his training, creativity, and daring to save another family. Alex risks everything--and he may not make it back alive on this most sacred of family days.
Series: Alex Cross 
Hardcover: 352 pages 
Publisher: Little, Brown and Company; Reissue edition (November 5, 2013) 
Language: English 
ISBN-10: 0316399531 
ISBN-13: 978-0316399531

MY THOUGHTS:  Alex is trying to spend time with his family on Christmas, but he keeps getting phone calls for help.  Sampson calls on him to help with a thief that is stilling from the poor box at a church.  Then the police calls Alex for a hostage problem.  He just gets home  and the FBI calls him in to help with a terrorist attack on Union Station in Washington, D.C.   Is Alex ever going to get home for Christmas??  You will have to find out by reading the book.  I give this book 5....





This book is for 1 of my reading challenges......
Outdo Yourself Reading Challenge

Wednesday, August 16, 2017

MORE EMBROIDERY.....

I'm still working on my Crazy Quilt.  Got a couple more blocks done.

Block 16




















I found the Burlap Ribbon at Dollar Store.  There is a new stitch I used, it's called the Buttonhole Wheel.  Go check out Sharon's place over at Pintangle.  She has a Stitch Dictionary to look through for lots and lots of Embroidery Stitches.

Block 17


















The tag on the bottom piece of lace is off our mattress.  We bought that mattress 35 years ago and it still sleeps good.  We gave 450.00 dollars for a mattress and box springs.  That was a lot of money for us to spend, but it was worth it.  The tag recently fell off, so I scooped it up and decided to put it on a block

I've also been working on my Blue Work.  I've gotten blocks 2 - 5 done and have started block 6.
Block 2
Block 3
Block 4
Block 5

Well that's it for now.  Hope you enjoyed looking at my work.

Monday, August 14, 2017

BOOK REPORT.....THE RUAWAY MIDWIFE

The Runaway Midwife - Patricia Harman

















Product Description(Amazon.com)
Midwife Clara Perry is accustomed to comforting her pregnant patients…calming fathers-to-be as they anxiously await the birth of their children…ensuring the babies she delivers come safely into the world.
But when Clara’s life takes a nosedive, she realizes she hasn’t been tending to her own needs and does something drastic: she runs away and starts over again in a place where no one knows her or the mess she’s left behind in West Virginia. Heading to Sea Gull Island—a tiny, remote Canadian island—Clara is ready for anything. Well, almost. She left her passport back home, and the only way she can enter Canada is by hitching a ride on a snowmobile and illegally crossing the border.
Deciding to reinvent herself, Clara takes a new identity—Sara Livingston, a writer seeking solitude. But there’s no avoiding the outside world. The residents are friendly, and draw “Sara” into their lives and confidences. She volunteers at the local medical clinic, using her midwifery skills, and forms a tentative relationship with a local police officer.
But what will happen if she lets down her guard and reveals the real reason why she left her old life? One lesson soon becomes clear: no matter how far you run, you can never really hide from your past. 
Hardcover: 416 pages 
Publisher: William Morrow (January 31, 2017) 
Language: English 
ISBN-10: 0062659618 
ISBN-13: 978-0062659613

MY THOUGHTS:  When Clara's best friend commits suicide,  it seems her life has hit the bottom.  Then a patient dies, and charges are brought against Clara, Manslaughter,  her husband is cheating on her, and her daughter is off in Australia and doesn't write or call.  To Clara the logical thing to do is run away from it all.  She drains the bank account and finds a way to get to Canada.  She doesn't have a passport, so has to go in under the radar.  Where does she land at?  Seagull Island, it's one of the many islands that surrounds Canada.  As Clara tries to make a new life, she makes friends along the way with the island people.  But how long can Clara keep up the charade before someone or something gets her caught.  I give this book 5.....





This book is for 2 of my reading challenges.....
Outdo Yourself Reading Challenge
11th Canadian Reading Challenge

Saturday, August 12, 2017

BOOK REPORT.....BRAIN ON FIRE

Brain on Fire - Susannah Cahalan

















Product Description(Amazon.com)
When twenty-four-year-old Susannah Cahalan woke up alone in a hospital room, strapped to her bed and unable to move or speak, she had no memory of how she’d gotten there. Days earlier, she had been on the threshold of a new, adult life: at the beginning of her first serious relationship and a promising career at a major New York newspaper. Now she was labeled violent, psychotic, a flight risk. What happened?

In a swift and breathtaking narrative, Susannah tells the astonishing true story of her descent into madness, her family’s inspiring faith in her, and the lifesaving diagnosis that nearly didn’t happen. 
Paperback: 288 pages 
Publisher: Simon & Schuster; Reprint edition (August 6, 2013) 
Language: English 
ISBN-10: 1451621388 
ISBN-13: 978-1451621389

MY THOUGHTS:  This is my book clubs read for August.  The book is a memoir of Susannah Cahalan and her mysterious illness that no one could diagnose.   It al started with Susannah obsessing for bedbugs, she found 2 bite marks on her arm.  Which sent her into a manic episode.  Next came the man in the elevator that sneezed on her.  While home with her father, she had a seizure that sent her to the hospital.  This started a 24 day stay in the hospital, with lots of tests, but the doctors couldn't find anything wrong with her.  Until on man checked what he thought was wrong.  The tests he took of Susannah's brain confirmed what way wrong.  This is a really great book.  I give this book 5.....





This book is for 1 of my reading challenges.....
Outdo Yourself Reading Challenge

Wednesday, August 9, 2017

STITCHING......

I'm still working on my Crazy Quilt.  I love working on these blocks.  All kinds of ways to put "stuff" on the block.  I'm also learning new embroidery stitches.  Need some new stitches to spruce up your embroidery?  Head over to Sharon's place, Pintangle, she has lots and lots of embroidery stitches. 

Block 14
There are butterflies motifs, buttons, lace and ribbons.

Block 15
Motif, butterfly, ribbon.

I've also started an embroidery sampler.  Trying to learn some new stitches.  Instead of going to the internet all the time, I'm putting them on fabric, then if I need a refresher on the stitch, I can look at my sampler.





I am linking up with Heather over at Books and Quilts for Needlework Tuesday.



Tuesday, August 8, 2017

BOOK REPORT...."J" IS FOR JUDGEMENT

"J" is for Judgement - Sue Grafton

















Product Description(Amazon.com)
"J" is for Jaffe: Wendell Jaffe, dead these past five years. Or so it seemed until his former insurance agent spotted him in the bar of a dusty little resort halfway between Cabo San Lucas and La Paz.
"In truth, the facts about Wendell Jaffe had nothing to do with my family history, but murder is seldom tidy and no one ever said revelations operate in a straight line. It was my investigation into the dead man's past that triggered the inquiry into my own, and in the end the two stories became difficult to separate."
Five years ago, when Jaffe's thirty-five-foot Fuji ketch was found drifting off the Baja coast, it seemed a sure thing he'd gone overboard. The note he left behind admitted he was flat broke, his business bankrupt, his real estate gambit nothing but a huge Ponzi scheme about to collapse, with criminal indictment certain to follow. When the authorities soon after descended on his banks and his books, there was nothing left: Jaffe had stripped the lot.
"Given my insatiable curiosity and my natural inclination to poke my nose in where it doesn't belong, it was odd to realize how little attention I'd paid to my own past. I'd simply accepted what I was told, constructing my personal mythology on the flimsiest of facts."
But Jaffe wasn't quite without assets. There was the $500,000 life insurance policy made out to his wife and underwritten by California Fidelity. With no corpse to prove death, however, the insurance company was in no hurry to pay the claim. Dana Jaffe had to wait out the statutory five years until her missing husband could be declared legally dead. Just two months before Wendell Jaffe was sighted in that dusty resort bar, California Fidelity finally paid in full. Now they wanted the truth. And they were willing to hire Kinsey Millhone to dig it up.
As Kinsey pushes deeper into the mystery surrounding Wendell Jaffe's pseudocide, she explores her own past, discovering that in family matters as in crime, sometimes it's better to reserve judgment.
"J" is for judgment: the kind we're quick to make and often quicker to regret. 
Hardcover: 304 pages 
Publisher: Henry Holt and Co.; 1st edition (May 15, 1993) 
Language: English 
ISBN-10: 0805019359 
ISBN-13: 978-0805019353

MY THOUGHTS:  Someone has staged a death and got away with.  But did he?  Kinsey is on the hunt for Wendell Jaffe.  She finds him in Mexico, but loses him.  Then he shows up at his old home town.  But what does he want, forgiveness?    Full of secrets and lies, this is a really great read.  I give this book 5.....





This book is for 2 of my reading challenges......
Alphabet Soup Reading Challenge
Outdo Yourself Reading Challenge

Friday, August 4, 2017

BOOK REPORT....KILL ALEX CROSS

Kill Alex Cross - James Patterson

















Product Description(Amazon.com)
The President's son and daughter are abducted, and Detective Alex Cross is one of the first on the scene. But someone very high-up is using the FBI, Secret Service, and CIA to keep him off the case and in the dark.

A deadly contagion in the water supply cripples half of the capital, and Alex discovers that someone may be about to unleash the most devastating attack the United States has ever experienced.

As his window for solving both crimes narrows, Alex makes a desperate decision that goes against everything he believes--one that may alter the fate of the entire country. 
Series: Alex Cross 
Hardcover: 464 pages 
Publisher: Little, Brown and Company; Lrg edition (November 14, 2011) 
Language: English 
ISBN-10: 0316189251 
ISBN-13: 978-0316189255

MY THOUGHTS:  Alex is really busy, the President's children have been abducted, with no ransom asked for.  The United States is under attack from a group calling themselves The Family.  Alex has to solve these cases before lots of people die.  But where does he start first, and who gets priority?   Alex works the clues and info they have until he has someone to follow.  Does he get the President's children back before it's too late?  Does he catch the people responsible for attacking the United States?  This is an awesome book, the best Alex Cross so far.  I give this book 5.....





This book is for 1 of my reading challenges.....
Outdo Yourself Reading Challenge

Thursday, August 3, 2017

STITCHERY "STUFF".......

I've been stitching away on my Crazy Quilt.  I've got blocks 12 and 13 done.  I'm having such a good time working on all these blocks.  Using my stash of "stuff".  I've bought some new to use, but most everything is in my stash. 

Block 12

The Chicken fabric I found at a rummage sale a few years ago.  There was less than a yard of it.  So have been using it as little as possible.  The pretty buttons in the top right corner I got at Dollar Store.  Embroidery stitches I used are Running Stitch, Button Hole Stitche, Straight Stitch, Detached Chain Stitch, and Chain Stitch.  I used beads and ribbon. 


Block 13

The fabric is from my stash.  The embroidery stitches used for this block are.....Detached Chain, Couching, Running Stitch, Straight Stitch, Button Hole Stitch, Chain Stitch and a new to me embroidery stitch, it's in the upper left corner.  The stitch is called Buttonhole Wheel.  I found this stitch over at Sharon's place, Pintangle.  She has a Stitch Dictionary of embroidery stitches you can find, along with the tutorial so you can learn them yourself.  I also added some beads and a piece of lace I picked up at Hobby Lobby.  I added a few Silk Flowers as well.
I also finished my Pillowcase I was working on.  I found the pillowcases and lace at a rummage sale,  they are stained a little with age, hoping it comes out when I wash it.  I think it turned out pretty good.
I'm linking up with Heather over at Books and Quilts for Needlework Tuesday.  Hop over and check out what she's working on.