Book Review: True Betrayals - Nora Roberts

I feel as if I just had a memorable vacation somewhere in a horse farm in Virginia. I was very taken by the exciting world of thoroughbred racing, which this story was based on. There is no doubt that horse racing in real is a thrilling spectator sport / game. But Nora Roberts added more thrills to it with heart wrenching rivalries, ugly family secrets, steamy romance, and chilling suspense. This book is not the typical shallow cheesy romance with the limited world view of a teenager. This is a book that helps readers become more worldly. I had learnt so much about the inner workings of a horse farm and horse racing that I would not have known if not for this book. To me, it's eye opening and mentally stimulating to read all that technical details of thoroughbred breeding and racing in such an entertaining and fascinating way. This is a story about a young woman's breaking out of the mold to become who she really should be. It's a story about someone who lost a whole lot and ended up winning more. It's about one betrayal after another and the risks to uncover them all. This book is a page turner for me. I feel my time is well spent reading this book. (I recommend you not to read reviews on Amazon before you read this book yourself, because a lot of the reviews are true spoilers, they are like retelling the story in a short form. I don't know why people have to write reviews like that, as if they don't have feelings or opinion about what they read, but just copy synopsis from the back cover and worse, add the ending from the book....)

A Most Wanted Man

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Winner of Our Comfort Book Giveaway Is....

There is only one participant in this giveaway, the winner is: Jolene. If you're the winner, please email us your shipping address.

To continue my clutter clearing campaign to get rid of my thousands plus books that are literally taking over my home, I'm giving away this book (click here to read my review of this book) to my blog's followers. On Dec 25, 2010, a winner will be randomly picked and will be announced here on this blog. To have a chance to win this book, please do the following:

1. Be a follower of my blog.
2. Subscribe to our newsletter and get an additional entry to win this book.
3. Have a U.S. mailing address.
4. Scroll down this post and fill out the giveaway participation form.

Hopefully, I will get rid of all my books pretty soon. I do have separation anxiety with all my books (this is only the 15th book I'm giving away.... at least I'm making a tiny progress....), but I've got to start parting with them, or I won't even have room to sleep in... So follow my blog to be informed of my latest book giveaway.

My Christmas Greeting To All of You!!

Nice Girls Don't Get the Corner Office

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Prefabulous

I tumbled on "Prefabulous: The house of your dreams, delivered fresh from the factory" when I was looking for a book to learn more about buying a first home. I had never heard of prefabricated houses before.... This seems to be an efficient, convenient, and environmentally friendly way to build a high quality and energy efficient home. I'm glad that I discovered this option. Now, I just have to look for a piece of land to buy in Los Angeles, which is the problem....

Click here to see a fabulous gallery of energy efficient and eco-prefabricated houses.

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Superfoods Rx: fourteen foods that will change your life

According to this book, butternut squash is a superfood in winter that is packed with immunity boosting vitamins A and C to fend off colds. Here is a recipe inspired by this book: Slice a butternut sqash in half lenghtwise, spoon out the seeds. Drizzle 2 tablespoons of maple syrup and a dash of cinnamon. Bake at 350F for 30 minutes. This makes a great side dish to a winter meal.

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Holiday Lights

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Middlesex

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Winner of Christmas Romance Novel Giveaway

Winner for this book is: Music4Betty. If you're the winner, please email us your shipping address.

Some of you ask me how do I pick a winner. Well, I don't pick, I use Excel to randomly pick a winner. If you have Excel and you want to learn how to do that, you can email me for the instruction. Didn't win this time? Try your luck again with this new giveaway we have.

To continue my clutter clearing campaign to get rid of my thousands plus books that are literally taking over my home, I'm giving away this Christmas romance novel to my blog's followers. On Dec 12, 2010, a winner will be randomly picked and will be announced here on this blog. To have a chance to win this book, please do the following:

1. Be a follower of my blog.
2. Subscribe to our newsletter and get an additional entry to win this book.
3. Have a U.S. mailing address.
4. Post a comment on this post to express your desire to participate in this giveaway

Hopefully, I will get rid of all my books pretty soon. I do have separation anxiety with all my books (this is only the 14th book I'm giving away.... at least I'm making a tiny progress....), but I've got to start parting with them, or I won't even have room to sleep in... So follow my blog to be informed of my latest book giveaway.

A World of Cakes

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Celebration

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Life Is Meals: A Food Lover's Book of Days

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The Haunting of Hill House

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Christmas With Southern Living 2009

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The Space Between Us

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Atonement

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For The Love of Country

Reading this magazine makes me want to buy a Condo. But Condos in Los Angeles are more expensive than a house. I would never be able to afford without winning a lottery. I'm reading this magazine because I would like to learn how to improve the look of my rental apartment... I like this Canadian magazine. The following is one of the featured contents from this magazine that I particularly enjoy:

Click here to take a video tour of the above condo.

Happy Thanksgiving, Everybody!!!

Book Review: Cup of Comfort

I really love this book!! This book is made up of heart warming short stories that can comfort my soul and fill my heart and spirit with hope, inspiration and positive energy. Right now, my everyday routine after work is to brew a fresh cup of tea, read one short story from this book while sipping tea and absorbing my dose of antioxidant. I find such a short moment of reading solitude very enjoyable. It relaxes me after a long day of stress at work so I can recoup my energy for making dinner.

The Earring Style Book

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Pretty Bookmark DIY

I had never used bookmark for my books. I am so lazy that I just use sticky note to mark the page I last read. But these bookmarks look easy enough to make. They are so pretty too. What a great idea! You can click here to get the instructions. I'm so definitely going to make some for this Christmas as gifts for my book loving friends:)

The Bell Jar

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A Three Dog Life

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Winner of 2 Young Adults Fictions Giveaway Is....

Winner is abitosunshine. Please email us your mailing address so we can mail you the books.

To continue my clutter clearing campaign to get rid of my thousands plus books that are literally taking over my home, I'm giving away these two books to one of my blog's followers. On Nov 12, 2010, a winner will be randomly picked and will be announced here on this blog. To have a chance to win this book, please do the following:

1. Be a follower of my blog.
   
2. Have a U.S. mailing address


3. Post a comment on this post to express your desire to participate in this giveaway

Hopefully, I will get rid of all my books pretty soon. I do have separation anxiety with all my books (this is only the 13th book I'm giving away.... at least I'm making a tiny progress....), but I've got to start parting with them, or I won't even have room to sleep in... So follow my blog to be informed of my latest book giveaway.

Never Let Me Go

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An Equal Music: A Novel

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Jamie's America

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Nigella Kitchen: Recipes from the Heart of the Home

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Skinny Bitch: Ultimate Everyday Cookbook

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Rachael Ray's Look + Cook

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Gravity

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Evolution for Everyone: How Darwin's Theory Can Change the Way We Think About Our Lives

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Book Review: Chinese Thai Japanese Cookbook

Don't know if the recipes in this book were tested before going into print. Or may be the recipes in this book don't work because the book was printed in China and somehow the ingredients and measurements were messed up because of the Chinese printer's misunderstanding in the English manuscript.... The book has great pictures and the paper and print quality are excellent though.

Pg. 4: Chinese Chicken Salad: This is too salty, bitter and way too hot.
Pg. 82: Sweet and Sour Pork: Pork's too bland, vegetables too soggy and watery...

Bistro Cooking At Home

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Thirteen Moons

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Then We Came To The End: A Novel

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The Master Switch: The Rise and Fall of Information Empires

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Antibiotics: The Perfect Storm

Lately, I have been seeing the news talking a lot about NDM-1, a dangerous genetic mutation that makes bacteria immune to even the younger, last-resort antibiotics. All of our hospitals are predicted to be soon colonized by the very destructive mutated bacteria. Is this going to be another crisis worse than the 2008 economic crisis that is brewing? Have the politicians and government once again failed us by being too busy in advancing their very own agendas instead of watching out for us?

According to this book, the antibiotics marketplace is no longer attractive for large pharmaceutical companies, the costs of development are skyrocketing because of ever more stringent requirements by the regulatory agencies, and finding new antibiotics active against resistant strains is getting harder and harder. These forces are all combining to deny us these miracle drugs when we need them the most. But there are a number of possible paths in which our government and politicians can take to protect us from the crisis. Just cross our fingers and pray that they don't wait till it's too late to act....

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The Pritikin Edge: 10 Essential Ingredients for a Long and Delicious Life

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Click here for sample recipes of the Pritkin Diet...

Winner of Contemporary Novel Giveaway Is

Winner of this book is Stephaniethebookworm who is the only participant in this giveaway.

To continue my clutter clearing campaign to get rid of my thousands plus books that are literally taking over my home, I'm giving away this book to one of my blog's followers. Click here to read my review of this book. On October 12, 2010, a winner will be randomly picked and will be announced here on this blog. To have a chance to win this book, please do the following:

1. Be a follower of my blog.
2. Have a U.S. mailing address
3. Post a comment on this post to express your desire to participate in this giveaway

Hopefully, I will get rid of all my books pretty soon. I do have separation anxiety with all my books (this is only the 10th book I'm giving away.... at least I'm making a tiny progress....), but I've got to start parting with them, or I won't even have room to sleep in... So follow my blog to be informed of my latest book giveaway.

Winner of Winston Churchill Biography Is:

Winner is JudyLynn

I'm giving away this book to one of my blog's followers. This book was given to me by Skyhorse Publishing. On September 30, 2010, a winner will be randomly picked and will be announced here on this blog. To have a chance to win this book, please do the following:

1. Be a follower of my blog.


2. Have a U.S. mailing address


3. Post a comment on this post to express your desire to participate in this giveaway

Hopefully, I will get rid of all my books pretty soon. I do have separation anxiety with all my books (this is only the 11th book I'm giving away.... at least I'm making a tiny progress....), but I've got to start parting with them, or I won't even have room to sleep in... So follow my blog to be informed of my latest book giveaway.

Inspirational Quote I Last Read

"Small opportunities are often the beginning of great enterprises" - Demosthenes

The Writer's Way - Realize Your Creative Potential And Become A Successful Author

This book is supposed to teach people how to become a successful author. Ironically, the books written by this author are never well received by the readers. This book is all about theories on how to write well. It's however written with poor editing and typos. There are a lot of tedious writing exercises that I personally think are a waste of time. May be a lot of the inspired writers will find these exercises and theories helpful. I just don't see the purpose of spending time doing them. If I want to be a successful author, I will just write what I want to publish and then I will send the manuscript myself or through an agent and try my luck. Instead of spending time engaging in silly writing exercises, I rather write the actual work that I want to publish. Focusing too much on the theories of good creative writing actually may cage the writer into writing boring books that lack creativity. This book is another example that shows, having a Master Degree or PHD in Literature doesn't make one a successful writer. A lot of the boring books I read were actually written by teachers or professors who teach English Literature or Writing. Just remember that most of the best selling authors out there don't have a PHD. There is undoubtedly a thing or two about writing that I learnt. But other than that, this book is totally uninspiring to me.

Don't Mess With Taxes

"Being reflexively and absolutely anti-Bush has made many otherwise sophisticated minds (particularly along the nation's coasts) as dogmatic and simplistic as, well, George Bush."

--Portfolio Magazine April 2008 (I bought this magazine then and I'm only starting to read it now... )

I am not a fan of Bush and I don't agree with his war in Iraq. But I absolutely agree with the above.

I'm not rich, and I'm not even remotely close to being rich. I can't afford to buy my own home even at this so-called depressed housing market. But I do hope that there will be an extension on Bush's tax cut on capital gain and dividend income. People like me are 100% invested in the 401 K, which is mostly invested in stocks. Extending Bush's tax cut on capital gain and dividend income is not just good for the wealthy people, but it's also good for people like me who has nothing but a small 401K invested in stocks. I can't afford to have the government take away more from the already little dividend income I am having. Since I don't own a home, I am counting on cashing my stocks for my future down payment. Any capital gain that my stocks generate will significantly shrink if only Bush's tax cut is not extended......

Instead of debating a "tax cut for all or a tax cut no more", I think they should extend this tax cut for people whose annual gross income is under a certain ceiling. That way, the wealthy people cannot benefit from Bush's tax cut, while the struggling working class like myself are able to have a lower tax on our dividend income and capital gain. Why can't the Congress do that ?

Martha Stewart Living October 1997

I found this magazine in one of my moving boxes, I forgot when I bought it. I bought it used a few years ago from some yard sale.... I had never opened this magazine until now. This is the first Martha Stewart Magazine I read... I haven't watched any of her shows either. In 1997, I was still a student in Hong Kong, never heard of Martha. It's amazing how the world was different back then. The fashion, the technology, the cars, the make-ups and even the medicines were so different back then. It's a pretty intriguing look back at America, (even to look at the advertisements) I really am enjoying this magazine. Martha Stewart also looked a lot younger back then:) Anyway, the following contents are what I love from the magazine, the rest are just advertisements, or contents I don't care about.

Page 62: Candy Wreath

Afternoon Tea Parties

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Book Review: Selling in Tough Times

This compact little book turns out to be very educational. It concisely pinpoints how sales can be conducted successfully in a tough economic environment. It's a no non-sense crash course for any novice in the sales field. It's also a super quick sales guide for professionals or small business owners who are interested in learning how to sell their products and services in a down economy.

Book Review: Glad Tidings

This is an entertaining book if you want to escape into a world where life is simple and straight forward. This book has two romanctic stories that help us detox our mind from the moral corruption of everyday reality, to venture into a world of old-fashioned romance that advocates innocent love, decency and values of marriage and family.

Winner of Debbie Macomber Romance Novel Giveaway

Winner of this book is: CarolNWong

To continue my clutter clearing campaign to get rid of my thousands plus books that are literally taking over my home, I'm giving away this book to one of my blog's followers. On September 12, 2010, a winner will be randomly picked and will be announced here on this blog. To have a chance to win this book, please do the following:

1. Be a follower of my blog.
2. Have a U.S. mailing address
3. Post a comment on this post to express your desire to participate in this giveaway

Hopefully, I will get rid of all my books pretty soon. I do have separation anxiety with all my books (this is only the 9th book I'm giving away.... at least I'm making a tiny progress....), but I've got to start parting with them, or I won't even have room to sleep in... So follow my blog to be informed of my latest book giveaway.