Monthly Archives: July 2021

Bake Believe by Cori Cooper (Book Review)

Can it be real? Or is it bake believe?

All Cat Anderson wants out of life is a circle of friends to giggle with and a few cute boys to flirt with. Her first day of eighth grade is looking perfect—until a scheduling mishap places her in a culinary arts class.

Food, it turns out, is a very big deal. In her family there is a secret, too big to stay hidden any longer. A secret too fantastic to be real. Something happens when Cat bakes. Something impossible.

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I received a complimentary copy of this book from R&R Book Tours.
I voluntarily chose to read and post an honest review.

 

I adored Bake Believe by Cori Cooper. The cute foodie titles weren’t just for show. Nope. Almost every chapter contained a recipe: “Homemade Bread” – “Brownies” – Sugar Cookies” and a dozen more mouth-watering delights. While the recipes were incentive enough to read the book, it also contained drama, humor, and a heaping spoonful of magic.

According to Amazon, Bake Believe is marketed towards teens and young; however, this forty plus woman found it highly entertaining. It reminded me of the teeny-bopper movies I would watch in my younger years. 

I encourage anyone from pre-teen and up to read this book. Then, start baking! Just make sure and cook while happy; you don’t want to chance pulling a Cat. (That will make sense after you read Bake Believe, so read it!) 

 

Heart Rating System:
1 (lowest) and 5 (highest) 
Score: ❤❤❤❤❤

 

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Print Purchase Link

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About the Author

Cori (2)

Cori Cooper lives in the magical Arizona Mountains, which she’s pretty convinced is the setting for all the fairy tales.

Besides writing stories, she adores hanging out with her family, playing board games, hiking and baking, baking, baking. Like Cat’s family, she’s positive Cinnamon Rolls fix everything.

Cori’s Stories | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram

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Darkness Hides by J C Gatlin (Book Review)

Someone she knows is watching.
Someone she knows is stalking.
And something hides in the darkness.

With a Category 4 hurricane about to make landfall, boat safety instructor Kate Parks is running out of time. Bodies are piling up–and they’re not from the raging storm. An injury may have ended her career as a Fish and Wildlife officer, but nothing can keep her away from the investigation.

And it doesn’t take long for her to see that the clues have one thing in common: a connection to the recent death of her five-year-old nephew.

In a brewing storm of rage, guilt, and family secrets, Kate fights to protect her grieving sister just as the hurricane threatens everything she knows and loves. But before her world is completely ravaged, she must uncover one final truth:

Run from the water.
Hide from the wind.
Flee from the shadows where a weeper seeks revenge.

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Sun Bury Press
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I received a complimentary copy of this book from iRead Book Tours. I voluntarily chose to read and post an honest review.

 

Rarely do I stumble across a book that hooks me right from the start, but that’s precisely what occurred with Darkness Hides. I had a suspicion, early on, that this story was going to be a home run hit, and I was correct. 

Multiple people met their untimely demise courtesy of the elephant man. Yes, you read that right…an elephant man. Their journey to the hereafter was brutal, painful. The first notable victims were targeted for obvious reasons. It all centered around a death of a six-year-old boy named Noah. 

Then, when the hurricane made landfall, J C Gatlin, the author, really stepped up his game, dropping one bombshell after another. At one point, I remember saying aloud, “Holy crap, that was a nice twist.” 

I love stories that keep you guessing because who wants to read a mystery novel where you solve the plot (who and why) in the first several chapters. You WON’T have that problem with Darkness Hides. This story left me speechless. 

While I have much love for Darkness Hides, I wish J C Gatlin gave us some backstory regarding how Kate was shot. It altered her life drastically, so I wanted a brief recap of the incident. Who done it? Why? What happened to the shooter? Besides that, it was a solid read. 

On a final note, related to the book but not the plot: MAYO is delicious, and the flying poop-filled diaper scene was disgustingly funny. 😀

I can’t wait to read more books by J C Gatlin!

 

Heart Rating System:
1 (lowest) and 5 (highest) 
Score: ❤❤1/2

Amazon
Sun Bury Press
add to Goodreads

 

Meet the Author

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JC Gatlin lives in Tampa, Florida, and writes mystery novels that include sunny Florida locales and quirky locals as characters. His last novel, H_NGM_N: Murder is the Word, won the coveted Florida Royal Palm Literary Award for Best Mystery in 2019. He is active in the Florida Writer’s Association and is a board member on the Florida Writer’s Foundation, a charity organization that fights illiteracy.

connect with the author: website ~ facebook ~ linkedin ~ goodreads

 
 

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