Freda's Voice

Welcome to the Canada Day edition of news! Sadly my oldest brother Rick passed away on the 26th. Thank you for the support, love and condolences that were sent. BOOKS: 1. 13 Little Blue Envelopes - Maureen Johnson (recommend) 2. The Rough Guide to Psychology - Dr. Christian Jarrett (recommend) 3. Soldier of Rome - James Mace 4. 187 Pain and Bliss - Wade J. Halverson (recommend) 5. The Immortality Virus - Christine Amsden (recommend) 6. Shattered - Melody Carlson (recommend) 7. Delirium - Lauren Oliver (HIGHLY recommend) 8. Get the Scoop: Taylor Lautner - Lexi Ryals 9. Chicken Soup for the Soul: Nascar 10. The Complete Photographer - Tom Ang 11. The Moon in Habock's Mirror - Kara Bartley (recommend) 12. Without Mercy - Belinda Boring (recommend) PRODUCTS: 1. Bath Thyme Zinnia Body Milk (recommend) 2. Swiffer Duster 360 (recommend) 3. Swanson Skillet Meals (recommend) YEARLY TOTAL: 108 Books, 1 Magazine, 2 Services, 17 Products, 1 Tv Show, 1 C

Synopsis & Book Info: What would you do if a simple errand takes a deadly twist, turning you from cautious prey to dangerous predator? When Darcy’s outing takes a turn for the worst and tests her to the point of breaking, she struggles to maintain her humanity. Where loyalty and pack mean everything, she surrenders to the inevitable and only an act of complete trust can touch her. When all is said and done, with memories flooding her mind, Darcy holds tightly to the only thing that makes sense – it was all a dream. Or was it? Kindle Edition: 43 KB Publisher: Moonstruck Media ASIN: B005BR11LY Purchase at Amazon Belinda's Blog Belinda's Twitter Facebook ©2011 My Opinion: This might have been short but don't let that fool you into thinking it wasn't awesome. It totally was! The idea of having to hold back the wolf inside of you, when faced with a you-or-me situation, that was exciting and cool to read! Probably my favorite part of the story. A real

The Black Eyed Peas front man/entrepreneur/tech wizard, will.i.am pairs up with inventor/ FIRST founder Dean Kamen for “ i.am . FIRST : Science is Rock and Roll,” a groundbreaking, one-hour special promoting education, science and technology. The first of its kind, the special takes an inside, up close look at the 20 th Annual FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) Championship , a worldwide science and robotics K-12 competition that celebrates technology and features live performances by The Black Eyed Peas and Willow Smith, as well as special appearances from a host of high profile celebrities speaking out to support STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) education. “ i.am . FIRST -- Science is Rock and Roll” airs SUNDAY, AUGUST 14 (7:00-8:00 p.m., ET) on The ABC Television Network. “I.am. FIRST – Science is Rock and Roll” is an electric hour of highlights from the 20 th Annual FIRST ® Robotics Championship . At the FIRST event

Synopsis: Follows the life of Scarlett Cavanaugh, a golden-hearted but reckless fifteen-year-old. Although born with a hole in her heart, she has learned to live life without limits—in contrast to her twin sister, Gwendolyn. A few weeks before the girls’ sweet sixteenth birthday party, Scarlett is punished after breaking curfew with a school boy. In lieu of a weekend with friends, she is instead banished to the attic in her house, to clean. It is there that Scarlett discovers a mysterious diary, a mirror with secrets, and a pet’s unnatural mother tongue. A newly-acquainted friend named Habock, leads Scarlett into the future through an unsuspecting portal. In his attempt to show how her life has changed, they accidentally become trapped in another time and their journey soon diverges. With a little guidance from a celestial spirit, each learns the truth about the past as they both encounter new friends and enemies along the way. In the hopes of finding one another, Scarlett and Haboc

Welcome to Week 37 with me! Rules: *Grab a book, any book. *Turn to page 56. *Find any sentence that grabs you. *Post it. *Add your (url) post below in Linky. Add the post url, not your blog url. It's that simple. Safe from the Past - Patricia Miller Mauro PAGE 56: I directed my eyes toward the sound of the music and realized there was someone lying there on a big red blanket on the roof.

Synopsis & Book Info: Taking the successful thematic approach of How to Photograph Absolutely Everything and combining it with the practical tools and genre tutorials of Digital Photography Masterclass, The Complete Photographer encourages photographers to explore every discipline and experiment with different approaches, to hone their skills, and find their own personal style. Unlike other books, which tend to cover the principles of photography in a general way, The Complete Photographer is based around tutorials on ten different genres-Portraits, Landscape and Nature, Fashion, Wildlife, Sport, Documentary, Events, Travel, Architecture, and Fine Art-and shows in step-by-step detail how an idea progresses from concept stage to final image. Hardcover: 400 pages Publisher: Dorling Kindersley Ltd. ISBN: 9780756664299 Purchase at Amazon Purchase at DK Canada ©2010 My Opinion: This is a great book for photographers of all levels. It has great tips for catching the best sh

SHOULD BE READING * Grab your current read. * Let the book fall open to a random page. * Share with us two (2) “teaser” sentences from that page, somewhere between lines 7 and 12. * You also need to share the title of the book that you’re getting your “teaser” from…that way people can have some great book recommendations if they like the teaser you’ve given. * Please avoid spoilers! Battles for survival and life and death scenarios are played out in miniature all around us all the time--you don't need to go on safari to observe nature in the raw. ~ The Complete Photographer - Tom Ang

Let's give a warm welcome to Nadine Rose Larter, author of Coffee at Little Angels. Please visit her website , and come back and tell us what you thought of it. 1. Please tell readers about your current book. Coffee at Little Angels is not so much my first book as it is the first book I ever finished. I think perhaps it might be because the subject matter niggled at me for such a long time that the book itself would not be denied. The story is about eight high school friends who meet up again in their adulthood after one of them dies in a car accident. The book explores each one’s response to the death, as well as takes you through how each character deals with a couple of previously ignored demons. I do admit that it is a sad book, and that it makes even me cry sometimes, but I also like to think that it has a heart to it, as well as a sense of humour. It covers an incredibly sad topic, but I do like to think that it has a bit of an emotional magic to it as well. 2. Who

Synopsis & Book Info: Get behind the driver's seat with these personal tales and anecdotes from inside the race track. Famous drivers and their families, pit crews, and fans share their stories of perseverance, triumph, comebacks, and life on and off the track. Includes stories by the following NASCAR drivers: Aric Almirola Buddy Baker Kurt Busch Kerry Earnhardt Jimmie Johnson Bobby Labonte Joey Logano Casey Mears Ryan Newman Mike Skinner Scott Speed Tony Stewart Martin Truex Jr. Brian Vickers Darrell Waltrip Michael Waltrip NASCAR CEO Brian France Former NBA player and now NASCAR broadcaster: Brad Dougherty Lt. Governor of South Carolina Andre Bauer Paperback: 416 pages Publisher: Chicken Soup for the Soul ISBN: 9781935096443 Purchase at Amazon ©2010 My Opinion: Another great book from the Chicken Soup for the Soul series, and if you have been a reader of my blog for some time, you will know I have read a few of these. I read these books when

Let's give a warm welcome to Joseph Devon, author of Probability Angels. Please visit his website , and come back and tell us what you thought of it. 1. Please tell readers about your current book. Persistent Illusions is the sequel to Probability Angels and is the second book of a planned trilogy. This all grew out of an urge to write a Twilight Zone sort of story where a guy makes a deal with the devil. Only, that immediately seemed boring to me and I started wondering if I could write a story where the "devil" character was the good guy. Out of that idea grew this entire world of beings known as testers. Basically they're a group of people who died in specific ways (that's sounds vague because I'm avoiding spoilers) so that they became trapped in this world after their deaths, unable to move on to whatever comes next. While here they're tasked with the job of pushing humans to become the best that they can be, often by bringing hurt or pain into a

Let's give a warm welcome to Tim Kizer, author of Intoxication. Please visit his website , and come back and tell us what you thought of it. 1. Please tell readers about your current book. “Intoxication” is a suspense thriller inspired by real events. It tells a story of a young psychopathic woman suspecting that someone at work is trying to poison her. Her paranoia drives her insane, and she starts wreaking havoc in an effort to expose the evildoer. And even though her suspicions could be just the fruit of her imagination, the damage she does is very real and devastating. If you are a fan of suspense, this book is for you! You will never guess the ending. It is available at Amazon kindle store at http://www.amazon.com/dp/B004V49L24 for only $0.99. (USD) 2. Who or what inspires your writing? My inspiration mainly comes from my desire to share a great story with public at large. Whenever a promising idea comes to me, I am eager to sit down and start writing. Another source

Welcome to Week 36 with me! Rules: *Grab a book, any book. *Turn to page 56. *Find any sentence that grabs you. *Post it. *Add your (url) post below in Linky. Add the post url, not your blog url. It's that simple. Tempest in the Tea Leaves - Kari Lee Townsend PAGE 56: No way in hell would I allow myself to get involved with Detective Stone. I was smarter than that.

Synopsis & Book Info: Thirteenth Daughter. Heritage Witch. Demon Slayer. They say every town has its secrets, but that doesn’t even begin to describe Whispering Pines. The townsfolk are a superstitious lot and the mystical disappearance of a local teen has everyone murmuring about a centuries old witch’s curse. Sixteen-year-old Shiloh Ravenwolf is a heritage witch from the Broussard family, a family both destined and cursed. When she takes a summer job at Ravenhurst Manor, she discovers a ghost with an agenda. That’s where she meets the new town hottie, Trent Donovan, and immediately becomes spellbound by his charms. Finally, Shiloh's met someone who is super cute and totally into her, but Trent may be the next victim on the supernatural hit list. And Shiloh is the only person with the power to save him. Complicated much? It sucks to have a destiny, especially since Shiloh would rather spend her summer being a normal girl who worries about clothes and boys, not the supern

Let's give a warm welcome to T.P. Boje, author of The Eye of the crystal Ball. Please visit her blog , and come back and tell us what you think. 1. Please tell readers about your current book . My newest book is called “The Eye of the Crystal Ball”. It is a fantasy novel for teens and young adults, but I really think that anyone who likes to use their imagination would enjoy it. I know I enjoyed writing it. The story is about Sara, the gypsy girl. We follow her from birth when she is left at the doorstep at a house and taken in by the family living there. When she is ten she discovers she is not like other girls. She can move stuff around just by her will alone. And when she is twelve her real parents comes to get her and that is when she realizes that she is a gypsy. Her new life is different and exciting but one day her newborn brother gets very ill by a strange illness and no one can cure him. Sara asks “The Book of Foresight” to help her well knowing that it will cost her

Synopsis & Book Info: Davie Jones—an ugly duckling growing up in small-town Mississippi—is positive her life couldn’t be any worse. She has the meanest mother in the South, and on top of that, she’s pretty sure she’s ugly. Just when she’s resigned herself to her fate, she sees a movie that will change her life—Sixteen Candles. But in her case, life doesn’t imitate art. Tormented endlessly in school and hopelessly in unrequited love with a handsome football player, Davie finds it bittersweet to dream of Molly Ringwald endings. When a cruel school prank goes too far, Davie leaves the life she knows and reinvents herself in the glittery world of Hollywood—as a beautiful and successful lounge singer. Just as she’s about to ride off into the LA sunset, a million miles from where she started, the past comes back with a vengeance, threatening to crush Davie’s dreams—and break her heart again. Paperback: 352 pages Publisher: Harper Paperbacks ISBN: 9780061957857 Purchase at Amazon

HOST * Grab your current read. * Let the book fall open to a random page. * Share with us two (2) “teaser” sentences from that page, somewhere between lines 7 and 12. * You also need to share the title of the book that you’re getting your “teaser” from…that way people can have some great book recommendations if they like the teaser you’ve given. * Please avoid spoilers! My Teaser: I was eight the first time I saw the girl. Mom freaked when I told her, said I was letting a girl terrorize my dreams, but I didn't get it.

Synopsis & Book Info: Taylor Lautner is one hot star! He's burning up the silver screen as super cute, super buff Jacob Black in the Twilight Saga. But this star is no newbie--he's been acting since he was nine years old in movies like The Adventures of Sharkboy and Lavagirl in 3-D and Cheaper by the Dozen 2 , and has guest starred in tons of television shows. But did you know that Taylor can kick some serious butt? He's got a black belt in karate and has won several world and national championships! Get the inside scoop on this hunk's life--complete with four pages of color photos! Paperback: 128 pages Publisher: Price Stern Sloan Merch ISBN: 9780843189681 Purchase at Amazon ©2009 My Opinion: Yummy! Thanks to Samantha for the eye candy. At 34, you would think I could contain myself. Really I should be ashamed of myself..... but every woman on the planet saw that kid with his shirt off and thought the exact same thing.... DAMN! Now, I did read th

Synopsis & Book Info: Ninety-five days, and then I'll be safe. I wonder whether the procedure will hurt. I want to get it over with. It's hard to be patient. It's hard not to be afraid while I'm still uncured, though so far the deliria hasn't touched me yet. Still, I worry. They say that in the old days, love drove people to madness. The deadliest of all deadly things: It kills you both when you have it and when you don't. Hardcover: 448 pages Publisher: Middle Grade ISBN: 9780061726828 Purchase at Amazon ©2011 My Opinion: I read Before I Fall last year and it was actually my favorite book of 2010. I knew I had to read this second book by Lauren, without a doubt. I was floored when I won the copy. I knew that it was nothing like Before I Fall, but I had no idea what to really expect. Can you believe it took me places I have never been with books. I saw all the scenery, like it was right in front of me, and I felt the emotions from the charact

Let's give a warm welcome to Artie Van Why, author of That Day In September. Please check out his books' Facebook page , and let me know what you think of it when you are done. 1. Please tell readers about your current book. That Day In September is my story of 9/11. I worked across from the World Trade Center and was there in the streets the morning of the terrorist attack. The book is an adaptation of a one man theater piece I wrote; also titled That Day In September. I performed it in L.A. and Off Broadway in New York. 2. Who or what inspires your writing? I never sat out to write a book or a play. The morning of September 12 I finally listened to all the voicemails I had gotten from concerned friends and family. I also had many emails. I knew there was no way I could answer each person so I sat down to write a basic “I’m okay” email to send to everyone. As I sat at the computer and began typing I found myself just detailing in words what it was that had happene

Dammit , just how many toes was she going to have to stomp on before people realized she was a delicate freakin’ flower? Naomi doesn’t want to follow tradition and settle down with a violence-loving, chest thumping shapeshifter. She grew up in a household with five, testosterone laden brothers where none of the dishes ever matched, the ugly-as-sin furniture could withstand any catastrophe, and where crazy glue was bought by the case. When fate—with a snicker—makes her meet not one, but two mates, Naomi digs her heels in and refuses to do what her wolf—and her body—demands. No way is she voluntarily allowing herself to get hitched to a pair of dumbass—totally hot and muscled—lacrosse players. Can Ethan, the towering Kodiak bear, and Javier, the sexy, tanned jaguar convince this she-wolf that life with them won’t be all chaos? And can this delicate freakin’ flower unbend her prejudices enough to recognize she needs a pair of men who can handle her thorns—and her passion? Purchas

Welcome to Week 35 with me! Rules: *Grab a book, any book. *Turn to page 56. *Find any sentence that grabs you. *Post it. *Add your (url) post below in Linky. Add the post url, not your blog url. It's that simple. Delirium - Lauren Oliver PAGE 56: She sidesteps me.

Synopsis & Book Info: Cleo Neilson's best friend is moving away and she wants to make Lola's last night in town special. For Cleo, that means going to the big Christian concert in the city, but her mom won't allow her to go. She says that area of the city is too dangerous for two unchaperoned teenage girls. Convinced her mom is just being an overprotective "helicopter" mom, she sneaks out of the house. After all, her mom has to let her grow up sometime, right? Cleo now faces the chilling consequences of her actions and a secret that it is eating her up inside. As Cleo fights through her grief and guilt, she learns about faith in God and forgiveness through him. Paperback: 208 pages Publisher: NavPress ISBN: 9781600069499 Purchase at Amazon Author Bio: Melody Carlson has written more than a hundred books for all age groups, but she particularly enjoys writing for teens. Perhaps this is because her own teen years remain so vivid in her memory. After c

With the choicest cuts of meat, unbelievably crisp vegetables, and 6 sumptuous sauces, new Swanson Skillet meals are, well, exactly what you’d make. Flavors available: Garlic Chicken, Alfredo Chicken, Three Cheese Chicken, Creamy Cheddar Chicken, and Beef Lo Mein. ©2011 My Opinion: While browsing the choices I had in the grocers, I will be honest, I wasn't sure I would enjoy the meal. Then I chose Beef Lo Mein. Even in the saucepan, I wondered if I would enjoy it. It looked boring really coming out of the bag. Once it softened up and cooked down, it really started to smell good. Then my taste buds started to get curious. So I served the dish, and sat to eat, all the while staring at my bowl, still curious. It smelled delicious, and looked better than when I started, but I'm not a big fan of frozen meals, so the leeriness was still there. Then I tasted it.... talk about surprising!! It was delicious, just like the smell. I was really blown away. The vegetables stil