Review: Silhouette by Justin Richards

Books are great. What can make a book better? Adding Doctor Who to it, of course.  From the great people at Blogging for Books I was given the chance to read Doctor Who: Silhouette by Justin Richards.  Having never read a Doctor Who book I was hoping it would be a decent read. I was not disappointed. It was like a written episode of Doctor Who.

Reading Silhouette felt like Doctor Who had been crossed with a whodunit novel, which for me was great. The 12th Doctor, Clara, Victorian England. What more do you need?  I had a good time reading this book. It was an easy relaxing read.  I would recommend this book to anyone who is a Doctor Who fan.

For more info on the book go here: Silhouette

Author Info: Justin Richards

Without giving away the whole story, you have the Doctor, Clara, and a few acquaintances trying to track down who is behind a few bizarre murders. Lots of Whovian fun.

I only have two negatives to say about this book. One is there were a few typos that annoyed me. Second, if you don't know anything about the Whoverse, you might be confused while reading this. There really isn't any back story given about the main characters so if you don't know who they are, what a Tardis is or a sonic screw driver, this probably won't be the book for you.

*I received this book from Blogging for Books for this review.*

**All opinions in this blog are mine and mine alone*

Skintimate Shave Gel

Summer is just about over but that doesn't mean your legs can't be silky smooth.  I keep my legs smooth and moisturized with Skintimate Shave Gel.  This is a product I tend to use a lot anyway but recently I was given the chance by Crowdtap to try Skintimate's Mandarin Burst Moisturizing Shave Gel for free.  Of course I jumped at the chance to get into this sampling because I love to try new scents from products I already use.

The upsides to this product is that it works really well.  The lather is amazing.  I grew up having to use horrible shaving cream. There is not enough words to describe how much I detest shaving cream and how much better shaving gel is.  I got a smooth shave with no nicks or irritation when I used this shave gel.  It was another great shave gel from Skintimate.

The only thing I did not like about this product was the scent.  Don't get me wrong, it didn't smell awful at all. It was a very nice scent...if you like that kind of smell in your bath and body products.  I am just a bit sick of feminine products smell like fruit or overly thick flowers.  If you do like fruity smelling products this one is for you.

*I was given the shave gel free from Crowdtap to try. The opinions in this post are mine and mine alone.  I was not paid to give this opinion*

Neutrogena Beach & Beauty Party

Kids are going back to school, the stores are already starting with holiday merchandise, and my favorite shows starting to release last season's episodes on dvd. The summer feels like it gets shorter every year.  But its not over yet, and its party time thanks to Crowdtap and Neutrogena. I got selected to host a Neutrogena Beach & Beauty Party.  I received for free from Crowdtap a variety of Neutrogena products to try and to share.

Included in this fun party pack was:

Neutrogena's Makeup Remover Cleansing Towelettes.  I have to admit I am guilty of trying them already before letting any family or friends sample them. I love face cleaning wipes (or towelettes if we must be fancy). And these are great.

Next up is the Neutrogena's Professional Triple Repair Fortifying Shampoo and Conditioner. It is suppose to mend split ends, strength brittle hair and protect from breakage. It smells very nice and I'm sure one of my friends will love it.

Now we have what everyone needs during the summer.  Neutrogena's Beach Defense Water & Sun Barrier Lotion Sunscreen. Broad Spectrum SPF 70.  I'm going to make sure my sister tries this one. She is forever without sunscreen.  My only comment on this is that it doesn't smell like most sunscreens I've tried.

Neutrogena's MoistureShine Lip Soother with SPF 20 Sunscreen and Cooling Hydra Gel is up next. I tried a little (with an applicator, not by touch the container to my lips, I swear.) and it has an odd sensation on my lips. Must be the cooling gel. That would take some getting used to.

And finally is the Neutrogena Visibly Even Daily Moisturizer with Broad Spectrum SPF 30 Screen.  It contains essential soy that is suppose to help reduce blotchiness & the look of dark spots.

Oh there is a frisbee too.  It will be fun to play a game or two with friends and family...if I can ever get it away from the dog. She loves frisbees.

I got these products for free from Crowdtap.  The opinions in this blog are mine and mine alone.

The B.T.C. Old-Fashioned Grocery Cookbook review

I'm a Yankee by birth. Half Southern by blood.  This means I like clam chowder just as much as I do bbq ribs.  I eat apple pie yet I make a mean lemon ice box pie. I make northern potato salad but my corn bread is pure southern.  The point is I love food and I love learning how to cook food, whether it be northern or southern.  So when I was given the chance to receive the The B.T.C. Old-Fashioned Grocery Cookbook by Alexe Van Beuren with recipes by Dixie Grimes from Blogging for Books I jumped at the chance.

The B.T.C. Old-Fashioned Grocery Cookbook is written by some locals in Water Valley, Mississippi, which makes this  the perfect book for me to review because I live in a town about 50 miles from Water Valley.

This cookbook is full of delicious sounding, well presented recipes. You of course can find recipes for foods such as Cornbread dressing, tomato gravy, chocolate gravy, key lime pie, and chicken and dumplings. No southern cookbook is complete without them. You will also find tasty recipes for dishes such as Watermelon Salad with Feta and Artichoke & English Pea Au Gratin.  I'm dying to try the chocolate gravy recipe. Chocolate gravy is one of the best things I've ever found in the South.  Grew up hearing that you can't have stuff like ice cream for breakfast, then we move to Mississippi and learn that they eat chocolate gravy for breakfast. Yeah, that is what a kid wants to hear.  

There are some great recipes in this book. Yes, you will find pecans, peppers, relish, etc used in quite a few recipes because that is how the South is.  Put a little bit of everything into a dish.  I plan to try out some of the recipes (husband is begging for the Key Lime Pie) but I will probably tweak them a bit because I do not put pickles, peppers, etc into my dishes.  All in all, I highly recommend this book to anyone who wants to make some authentic yet modern Southern dishes.

Book Excerpt

 Facebook link to Cookbook 

*Disclaimer: I received this book for free from Blogging for Books for this review*

**All opinions in this review are mine and mine alone.*

Schick Hydro® 5 Groomer Sampling

I so rarely get to directly include my husband in campaigns that I get.  Usually he benefits from the stuff I get to try, but this time it was all him.  Crowdtap sent a free Schick Hydro 5 Groomer for my husband to try and I think this one is a winner.

The Schick Hydro 5 Groomer can shave, hydrate, edge, and trim all in one. It has a Power Trimmer and Adjustable Trim Comb with 3 adjustable settings so that you can trim to the length you want.  The razor cartridge has a hydrating gel reservoir and 5 blades for a ultra smooth shave. Of course this razor can use any Schick Hydro refills.

It is a great razor and did a great job on my husband's face.  I want to know where the female version of this is.

The Great American Slow Cooker Book

I like to cook. And to be honest, I like to eat.  What I don't enjoy is the clean up involved after having cooked a terrific meal.  So like so many people I know, I thought cooking in a crockpot would be a great idea. My grandmother gave me one a few years back. I used it a few times and then stuck in a cabinet. Typical I know.  Recently I've thought about dusting it off and putting it to use.  But what to make in it? That is why I decided to give The Great American Slow Cooker Book a try.

As a member of Blogging for Books, I am given a chance to read books and review them.  While thumbing through their selection I came across The Great American Slow Cooker Book by Bruce Weinstein and Mark Scarbrough.  I thought is was kismet. I wanted to use the crockpot and here was a book that promised "500 easy recipes for every day and every machine".  And that leads me to this review.

The book is quiet large with about 500 pages of recipes.  I like how the recipes are set up. Easy to understand and the charts that show how the recipes vary for different sized cookers is so helpful.  There are helpful tips and tidbits in the "Tester's Notes", "All-American Know-How" and "Ingredients Explained" sections after most of the recipes.  The book is immense and has recipes of every variety. From chicken to beans. From pork to puddings.  There is even a vegetarian section. Some of the recipes sound quite yummy while some of the recipes I wouldn't even fathom trying.

The book is great. My only problem with it is it didn't live up to my expectations.  With wording like "500 easy recipes for every day"  I was expecting simpler foods. I was expecting like crockpot potato soup and a few different varieties of easy macaroni and cheese.  Instead there are recipes like "Rabbit with whiskey and lima beans" and "osso buco with coffee and chiles". I wanted recipes that used ingredients that I always have on hand. Unfortunately that is not what this book contains. Don't get me wrong. This book has some amazing sounding recipes that most likely produce delicious food.  But not for me. I need simpler (and cheaper) foods.  There are a few breakfast/desserts that I'm going to try.

Would I recommend this book? Definitely. It was a well written book full of great recipes. Just not what I was looking for. 

More Info..

Author Bio

**"I received this book for free from Blogging for Books for this review."**

Snuggle Scent Boosters

All hail the Snuggle Scent Boosters!  Want your laundry smelling better and fresher for longer? Just throw in a Snuggle Scent Booster at the beginning of the wash and you are all set.  I don't generally use "scent boosting" products because I figure that is what the detergent, fabric softener, and fabric sheets are for; however, this product was decent.

So easy to use. Scent boosters is a little pouch that you throw in the washer, then load in your clothes.  That's it.  I had no problems with this product. It dissolved like it was suppose to. No residue on my clothes, no pouch stuck to my clothes or washer drum.  My clothes came out smelling great.  My husband hasn't even complained that they smell too strong, so it seems to be a nice scent but not overly so.

Snuggle Scent Boosters come in two scents: Lavender Joy and Blue Iris Bliss. I got to try the Lavender Joy. Very nice scent. I am quite curious as to what the other scent smells like. These are reported safe for use in standard and HE washers (though I can only say for certain that it worked well in my standard washer). The price for scent boosters is reasonable. At Walmart it is about $4 for a 26 count.  I would recommend this product. So go out and buy some today.
 Click me to go to Smiley360 Snuggle!

*I was given this product free to try by Smiley360.com. The opinions in this blog are my own.*