Girl Wash Your Face – Book Review

Hello Lovelies! I’ve got another book review for you and trust me, this is a book you do not want to pass up.

[I received a copy of this book from the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for my honest opinion]

girlwashyourfaceI will admit that I was on the fence about this book. I had heard so many amazing things and nearly gotten a copy so many times and let me just say I will be purchasing my own physical copy of this book!

This book is AMAZING and something all women, both young and old, should read! Although it is more directed towards mothers and wives in some chapters, the takeaway can be for anyone. The way this book was written is for both married or single, old and young, as the chapters all have their own point. For example, I did start to read the chapters directed towards motherhood but found I just couldn’t relate so I skipped them but the nice thing about this book and some of the chapters is simply this: If it doesn’t apply to you it’s made in a way that you can either read it or just move on without missing crucial information or points!

Right from the start I knew this book was going to be amazing. How? Well I encountered a quote like this in the opening letter:

            “The truth? You, and only you, are ultimately responsible for who you become and how happy you are. That’s the takeaway.”

I just love that! Getting right to the point before the book has officially started! The way Hollis has structured the book and the chapters is brilliant! I love the whole approach of ‘here is a struggle that I, and many other women, have but this is how to deal with it!’ and at the end of each chapter she provides ways that helped her or would have helped her in these moments in her life!

4stars

 

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Romanov by Nadine Brandes [ARC – Book Review]

romanovSummary:

The history books say I died.

They don’t know the half of it.

Anastasia “Nastya” Romanov was given a single mission: to smuggle an ancient spell into her suitcase on her way to exile in Siberia. It might be her family’s only salvation. But the leader of the Bolshevik army is after them . . . and he’s hunted Romanov before.

Nastya’s only chances of survival are to either release the spell, and deal with the consequences, or enlist help from Zash, the handsome soldier who doesn’t act like the average Bolshevik. Nastya’s never dabbled in magic before, but it doesn’t frighten her as much as her growing attraction for Zash. She likes him. She thinks he might even like her . . .

That is, until she’s on one side of a firing squad . . . and he’s on the other.

My Review:

I realized that a part of forgiveness was accepting the things someone had done – and the pain that came with that – and moving on with love.” -Anastasia from Romanov

This book was AH-MAZING.

I’m someone who very rarely reads Historical Fiction aside from a few authors and Nadine Brandes is definitely now a part of this list. My issue with so many Historical Fiction books is that they often feel like I’m reading a history textbook, and this…this was NOT one of those books.

This story was crafted so beautifully, and the ending was beyond perfect. Throughout the whole story I was just in LOVE with the Romanov family. I loved their relationships and love for each other. I especially loved the relationship between Nastya and Alexei! It was beyond beautiful. And I love how the story focused more on the love and relationship between a family more than the love interest story line. I knew nothing about the real-life Romanov family going into this story and the whole time I was reading this book I was just rooting for them and my heart rejoiced and grieved with them and their situation over and over and over again. Their small moments of joy brought me joy and their moments of sadness broke me. I was so invested in this story of their amazing family. I love the strength and the voice Nadine brought to Nastya’s character. She was so easy to connect with and relate to. I love that despite everything Nastya and her family has been through, she is so strong and despite her pain and being faced with many difficult decisions she was never selfish. She always thought about her family and those around her.

Whether you read Historical Fiction on a regular basis or not I 100% recommend this book.

5stars

**NOTE: I was given this book (from NetGalley) in exchange for my honest review/opinion**

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Jesus Called. He Wants His Church Back (Book Review)

I was recently given a copy of Jesus Called: He Wants His Church Back by Ray Johnston to review from Book Look Bloggers.

 

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As early as AD 50, Christians had gotten away from knowing who Jesus really is. Our generation is no different.

In every decade we, as Americans, lost something important that we couldn’t afford to lose: • In the 1950s, we lost innocence • In the 1960s, we lost respect for authority • In the 1970s, we lost love • In the 1980s, we lost values • In the 1990s, we lost faith • In the 2000s, we lost security • In the 2010s, we lost hope in the future

What can restore what we’ve lost? Only Jesus. Jesus gave us His name, His friendship, and a commission to accept responsibility for ourselves and for the world. When introduced to His words and ways we’ll rediscover the Jesus who:

• Wants His enemies won over, not wiped out • Wants you to stop playing it safe • Believed great things were possible no matter what things are like right now • Was full of grace and truth • Unleashed compassion • Believed no one was too far from God to return to Him • Came to seek and to save that which was lost • Loves the church

Pastor Ray Johnston shares the Jesus of the Bible and how we can be Christians without being jerks. He reveals how the radical message of the gospel calls us to love and serve not only our neighbors but our enemies as well. That’s the Jesus the American Church has missed and needs to meet.

Jesus’ mission is clear—risk everything in order to take care of people, starting in our home, neighborhoods, cities, and those in need around the world. That’s the Jesus the American Church has missed and needs to meet.

 

My Thoughts

I wasn’t entirely sure what this book would entail and I’m still not sure what to make of it. The book wasn’t bad! Just not what I was expecting. I’m unsure if maybe it;s the fact I’m still getting used to reading more non-fiction or what. I’m starting to ease myself into non-fiction books so sometimes I don’t know what to expect. Aside from that fact I quite enjoyed the book. Though for a non-fiction this one was very factual. In this novel the writer discusses how, since the 50’s, the church and Christianity has changed.  The one thing that jumped out to me was the following statement by the author:

  • In the 1950s, we lost innocence.
  • In the 1960s, we lost respect for authority.
  • In the 1970s, we lost love.
  • In the 1980s, we lost values.
  • In the 1990s, we lost faith.
  • In the 2000s, we lost security.
  • In the 2010s, we lost hope in the future.

This was definitely a good read with facts on the church and how it has fallen from God in some senses then this is definitely a good read

 

 

Time To Fall Into Things

So.

Summer has come to an end and fall begins.

Its my first semester where I’m a graduated human being and so far things have been weird and uncomfortable. I feel I should be doing something but I don’t know what.

 

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So in this post, I’m gonna address the elephant in the room. My blog has changed! The change might seem sudden and maybe I should have warned you all considering I knew about this for a while…but I didn’t. Honestly the reason I didn’t warn anyone was because I was on the fence about it all.

Do I change the blog? or do I leave it? I even entertained the idea of starting a new blog. But then I decided, I have some lovely and wonderful followers here so why leave them behind and hope they find my new blog? and who wants to go back and forth between two blogs? YUCK.

 

Please know that I still love books and writing and will continue to post about those things! But I also want to branch out. Personally I feel that God has put a lot on my heart lately with things going on in our world and I wanna speak up and talk about them. Part of the reason things keep getting worse and worse is because people don’t take action against that ever-growing thing. Talking about an issue won’t fix it…but it can start a movement.

So thats kind of where I’m at with the new blog at this moment but know that all my bookish love and craziness will still continue. There will just be more posts like THIS and THIS.

 

Also if you have something on your heart you want to blog about, let me know! I don’t care if you are a writer or not or have a blog. You can guest post on my blog, no problem. If you’ve got something you want to say then say it. Let me help you get your words out there 🙂

 

Comment below or fill out the contact form on my contact page if you wish. And if you don’t wanna guest post and just read stuff, then by all means go ahead!

 

See you around the blog!

 

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Unashamed by Lecrae

Back with another book review! Wooh! Look at me go. I am on a roll!!   *cough cough* ANYWAYS. Today I’m gonna be reviewing ‘Unashamed’ by Lecrae…and for those of you who don’t know. Lecrae is a rapper/songwriter and honestly … Continue reading

The Rest of Us Just Live Here by Patrick Ness

Hey look at that! I FINALLY have a book review on here again. I just read this book this weekend and have been reading through it this month with Briana Morgan and I just finished it this weekend! I had … Continue reading

Man, Myth, Messiah

Hello Readers!

Iiiiiii am back with another book review for you! Today I’m going to be reviewing one of the books I received from BookLook Bloggers and that book is called ‘Man, Myth, Messiah’ by Rice Broocks

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I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Rating: 5 Stars

Review: I first heard of Man, Myth, Messiah in the movie God’s Not Dead 2 and I was instantly intrigued as to what it was about. So I was quite excited to have been able to read this as a review copy. “Man, Myth, Messiah” is a great book that shows you how and talks about defending your own faith and what you believe about God. As well, the book explores the proof behind who Christ is, why Christians believe in him and it backs it up, with proof, from not only scripture but also proof from history. I found it both shocking and amazing how many other sources, aside from scripture, pointed to proof that Christ exists. I mean I myself know that everything in creation points to Christ but even sources that were supposed to lead away from any proof of Christ’s existence still pointed to him anyways.

I would encourage everyone to read this book. Especially if you have questions about who Christ really is and are maybe on the fence about if He exists or not. It is an intrersting and intriquing read and if you are someone who likes books with a lot of facts and helpful information you can use in your everyday life, this is definitely a book to check out!

Book Review – The Sound of Emeralds

Hello Readers!

I’m back with another book review! It might be the last one for a couple weeks cause I won’t have much reading time but I promise I’m working through like 3 books right now…

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So, with that said. Lets get on to this review!

Sound of Emeralds

 

What once was blazing hatred has turned to lasting love, but could the union of a wild heart with that of a lady ever result in more than heartache?

With the help of an old friend with uncertain loyalties, Dirk inches ever closer to clearing his name. Gwyneth throws her faith into good tidings and the promise of a future as a family. But an old evil comes to call, just as tragedy rips apart a fledgling truce. Enemies from the past and grief for the future threaten to tear asunder what God had brought together…

As the date of Dirk’s trial approaches, his fate and his family hang in the balance. Will he be proven innocent of Gwyneth’s parents’ murders—or separated from her forever? How much pain does it take to erode a love steadfast?

 

So basically this book broke my heart, then broke it again…..then broke it AGAIN.

Rachelle has this wonderful way of making you feel the pain and emotions these characters feel even though you may never have felt it before. She just gives this insight that radiates off the characters that you can’t help but sympathize for them and feel their pain and sorrow…or even their joy and happiness too! I just LOVE how Rachelle’s stories are just so true and filled with love and a true picture of what that really is. Especially during hard times and grief. (as this novel captures perfectly.) Honestly, the story was fabulous but what I keep going back to was the emotion and the accurate portrayal of true love and what it actually is. I feel like most novels can twist the idea of love into some almost – impossible, once in a lifetime thing and if you miss it, well too bad. Not to mention love and relationships where two people are in love is conveyed as absolutely flawless and perfect. I mean I’m no expect with love and relationships but to me that seems wrong. But do Rachelle’s books have any of that wrong-ness? NOPE.

anyways

Many tears were shed and much heartbreak occurred while reading this book and I was honestly afraid for how it was gonna end (Can I just say the end/epilogue was PERFECT! ❤ ) but in the end my heart wasn’t as broken and I was able to glue and sew as many pieces together as possible. The feels in this book were absolutely insane and sad and heartbreaking ok?

and what rating do I give a book that completely shattered my heart?

5 stars of course!

 

Honestly this entire book series should get a million and one stars because it is by far one of the best Historical novel series I’ve ever read. I mean…I haven’t read much in this genre but what I’ve read in this genre, The Steadfast Love Series is by far the best…so If you haven’t read it yet you probably should.

About The Blogger – Absolute Insanity

Hello Lovely People!

I am back once again with another post about the blogger thing-y!

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^^ Your reaction right now, I’m sure 😀

Today’s post is definitely going to be shorter and me kinda ranting and complaining about the horrible thing in my life known as Grade 12…because why not?

Okay okay… Not really gonna whine or complain but you get my point. Kinda just a little update on life and books and other such things with the help of some fun GIFS! Cause who doesn’t love GIFS?

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LIIIIIIFE: 

SO basically the countdown for Grad, YC Alberta 2016, My friends Grad AND my bestie coming home from Mexico has begun… Well, actually it began MONTHS ago but now things are getting closer and I’m getting more and more excited! and also more and more stressed. Yes, yes. I just said I was excited but now I’m stressed? ( #myemotionsinanutshell ) …Let me explain.

So yes, all these wonderful things are happening like Graduation, spending time with friends, my birthday and all that other fun stuff (you can read about all that –>  here ) BUT its down for the final stretch for this semester and I’m really stressing about final exams cause basically they are in just over 30 days and I’m nowhere near ready…

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….eeeeeespecially when it comes to Biology. I’m failing it and GAH. Things are insanity. But its ok. Its okay. I THINK I got this.

So yes, thats kind of where I am at BUT I’m almost done so thats exciting!

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^ I could literally watch this for hours and not get bored…. ANYWAYS.

Which reminds me. In regards to school and having one more month of it a LOT of my time will be used for studying. So much so that I even made this desktop today:

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So I won’t be as active on here as I was hoping considering I kinda brought this thing back to life after months of being gone but note: I WILL NOT ABANDON YOU! (More on that in literally a moment… Just scroll down….

 

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……..Keep going……

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LIIIIIIITTLE MORE…………………

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Book and Youtube Stuff!

See. Told ya. More on that.

So as I mentioned in two different previous posts. (This one and This one ) I have joined a book review program called BookLook Bloggers and I have a Youtube Channel!

As for BookLook Bloggers, I already got the two books I requested! So I am reviewing those and have a couple other review copies on the way as I write this so I obviously will be posting reviews here as I go along through May and the first week or two of June (I WILL still be here! I’m not leaving. Just posts won’t be as frequent as I have scheduled. But then this summer you will probably (maybe) see a lot of me so YAY! fun times!) as well as a couple updates and photos I’m sure!

 

As for Youtube, I am planning on doing some Vlogging of these things I am going to and road trips I am taking. So I will be posting those on my youtube channel as I go and I will give updates on the blog when those are live too! (I make no promises cause sometimes life gets crazy and I forget to vlog! But I hope to get some things up regardless!) So stay tuned for that!

 

 

So thats about all I have going on right now (Its back to studying now cause finishing this post counted as my 20 minutes study break) nothing all that interesting as of yet but hey, just keeping you updated.

BUT before I go…A Recap in case any of what I just said made no sense. I WILL be around on the blog this summer but this next month of May I will be very slow and not posting as much as I would like due to final exams coming.

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Until Next time

Adriana G.

BookLook Bloggers

Hello Lovelies!

Just popping in to talk about something called BookLook Bloggers. Basically BookLook Bloggers is a website where, once you have a certain amount of blog followers, you can request books (physical copies and ebooks) for review. Pretty cool right?

Something even cooler (yeah yeah, I know thats not used properly) is that I finally applied today and got accepted!

excited

I kept meaning to apply for a while now but have been crazy busy!  But now I finally just sat down and did it and already I’ve requested some paper back books to read! So, it will be a little while before they come (3-4 weeks cause I’m in Canada but YES they ship worldwide!) but by then I should have life together somewhat and I’ll be almost done school at that point which means REVIEWS AND BOOK READING ALL OVER THE PLACE!

….Or maybe. I know it will for sure be more often because I’ll be free from the clutches of High School. From there I’ll be working but minor details my friends, minor details.

Is this something you’re interested in and want to check out? Well you can click the link I provided above or (hopefully if this works) click this blog button and it should take you to the website.

 

I review for BookLook Bloggers
At this point I’m off to my nannying job but I just had to come tell you all because I’m excited! I’ll let you know what books I requested in another post 😉

Until Next time!

Adriana G.

 
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