Review: Dead Until Dark - Charlaine Harris

Rating: 4/5
Summary: Sookie Stackhouse is a mindreader who is relieved when a vampire finally comes to her small town and she finds she can't hear his thoughts. When she begins to develop a relationship with him, dangerous things start happening around her and she must decide whether her life is worth being with a dead man.
Review: I really didn't want to like this book simply because everyone loves the series and I'm about at the end of vampire obsession. And even though it follows the TV series almost exactly, or the reverse I guess, I still found myself enjoying the book. The characterization and personalities aren't extremely captivating and I didn't feel the emotions of the narrator the way I would have liked, but one thing is for sure, the um... intimate scenes... are pretty breathtaking. This book is definitely not a YA in my mind but fun to read especially if you're feeling a little naughty. I will probably read more of the series but I don't feel like I have to run out and get them now.

Review: Bruiser - Neil Shusterman

Rating: 4/5
Summary: Tennyson and Bronte are brother and sister living the normal teenager lifestyle. When Bronte starts dating Bruiser, the boy nominated "most likely to receive the death penalty" by his classmates, they quickly learn that people aren't always as they seem.
Review: I read this because I loved Unwind by Shusterman and this also got good reviews. In my opinion, this wasn't nearly the caliber of Unwind but it was still enjoyable. Shusterman is very talented and I enjoyed his style of writing, especially because he gives each character a very defined personality and when you read their chapters, you relate to each individually. I feel like I've heard this story before those, and the plot was relatively expected. Nonetheless, I still enjoyed reading this and would recommend it to others interested in the YA style of books.

Review: Ender's Game - Orson Scott Card

Rating: 5/5
Summary: In a futuristic world, Ender is a child that has been born for his potential. When he is sent off to school to learn how to command a ship and battle aliens he finds his journey a little different than that of the other children and much more difficult than he ever imagined.
Review: Read this now! The cover of this book is awful and even the summary did not really seem appealing to me. However, this style of writing, the incredible plot twists and adventures and the creative characterization really make this book a must read. Its not hard to suspend disbelief in the beginning of the book (when you meet Ender and realize a 6-year-old is thinking much more intelligently than normal) if you just remind yourself that this is the future and this is specifically what he was born for. The ending is absolutely satisfying, especially since there is a series that follows this if you're so inclined to read more, but you don't feel you have to either. I highly recommend you pick this up and read it, or listen to the audio for more of the intended attitudes of the characters. You won't regret it!

Buy it here: Ender's Game (Ender, Book 1)

Need chocolate NOW!!!

I was craving chocolate and cookies, so I found this easy recipe and made these, except I used semisweet mini chocolate chips instead of white chocolate chips. DELICIOUS! And it made way more than 27 cookies. Just thought I'd share:
http://allrecipes.com/recipe/favorite-chocolate-cookies/detail.aspx

Review: Mark of the Golden Dragon - L.A. Meyer

Rating: 5/5
Summary: Jacky does it again! Somehow she manages to get stuck in a sticky situation (this time on another deserted beach,) leaving her friends thinking she's dead and her love Jamie gone mad with nothing but revenge on his mind. When Jacky finds out about Jamie's plan she must hurry back to England to save him from  a terrible fate with the noose.
Review: I have to love this adventure just as much as the others. As Jacky gets older, she gets smarter making her plans and adventures much more cunning. Along with age also comes handsome men and the return of one of my favorite of her pursuers. Again, L.A. Meyer kept me absolutely captivated throughout this story and depressed when the book was over. Definitely a must read, but more so a must listen if you're really looking for great storytelling. Katherine Kellgren is one of the best narrators ever. I would even put her above Jim Dale (Harry Potter's narrator!)

Buy it here!

Venison potato quiche

Not only do I have ground venison sitting in my freezer and I have no idea what to do with it, but I've been craving quiche lately but don't feel like going out shopping for it. So I decided to make quiche with the ingredients I had in my fridge and the venison. But I had no pie crust, so I decided to use potatoes as my crust! I always make things in 2 so I can freeze them, so here's my recipe for 2 venison quiches.

I sliced 2 idaho potatoes thin with my mandolin and fanned them out in a greased pie pan. Then I seasoned with salt and pepper. I precooked this "crust" for about 10 minutes on 400 degrees and pulled it out to cool.

Then I poured in these ingredients as the filling:
9 eggs mixed with a splash of milk
1 lb. cooked ground vension (cooked with sage, garlic and thyme)
1/2 cup chopped white onion
1/3 cup chopped tomatoes (all I had were grape so I sliced them)
3/4 cup crumbled white cheddar cheese (again, all I had, feel free to use regular cheddar)
season with thyme and basil
sprinkle a little romano/parmesan cheese on top

Then I baked it at 350 degrees until egg was no longer jiggly (about 45 minutes.) Cut and serve with a little more parmesan, delicious!

This ended up being a great way to use ground venison, but next time around I will probably add a little bacon (cause its awesome in everything) and more tomatoes.

Giveaway winner....

The giveaway winner is CatCMiller! Thanks for following my blog and your book will be in the mail this week!