Why is the Sky Blue? Book Review, Blog Tour. Reading Addiction Blog Tours.

I reviewed Why is the Sky Blue by Shabana Muhajir, in exchange for review from Reading Addiction Blog Tours.

My Review:
The story is about two little boys and their mother, who visit the beach. One brings his art supplies and the other brings his toys. It's an nice day at the beach. After some observation, the boys ask their mother, why is the sky blue? The book then moves into an explanation of why the sky is blue. So, the book is now part children's and part educational (science). The mother explains the colors of the rainbow and the order of colors in the rainbow. The book also explains wavelengths (Brings me back to high school) and briefly touches the speed of light. The book also has a speech bubble about the earth's atmosphere. Finally, the book ended with an experiment with rainbows. There is also a glossary at the end of the book.

I loved reading the book. It was a quick read. I chose the book to read to the kids. Love any children's book, which is interesting, but not too long to lose attention. The book touches different aspects of science. great to incorporate into a homeschool curriculum. Loved reading the book.
About the Author: Copied from RABT

Shabana, a Canadian, spent her early years in various countries and now lives with her husband, two sons in Singapore. She has a Master’s degree in Education from Newfoundland and a Master’s in Business Administration from Windsor, Canada. She worked for a telecommunication company in Canada and Singapore for thirteen years as a marketing and business development professional. She’s currently working as a Director at a consulting firm, and serving as the Vice President/room parent co-ordinator of the PTA at her sons’ school. She loves to read both fiction and non-fiction books. Her kids are also avid readers and love performing experiments and finding out how things work. She conducts weekly experiments with them based on their interest and level of understanding. It was her boys’ curiosity and endless questions that led her to write her first book, Why is the Sky Blue?  She plans to write a series of non-fiction books on thought-provoking and interesting topics for children.

Facebook page is www.shabanamuhajirauthor
twitter page is @shabanamuhajir
webpage is www.shabanamuhajir.com

Links to Buy
www.amazon.com/author/shabanamuhajir
Book is now listed on www.bookdepository.com with free shipping worldwide.

Reading Addiction Blog Tours: The Pact Book Review and Tour

I read The Pact by Graeme Brown, in exchange for review from Reading Addiction Blog Tours.

About the Book:

Will Lesterall grew up in his father's castle, safe from the outside world, full of Goblins, Ogres, Trolls, Knights, and Kings. The pact has kept the kingdom safe. Will is drawn into a conflict of Gods and a woman. The conflict requires blood and loyalty, in addition to changing Will for good. 

Buy Links

Kobo 

Kindle (Canada)

Kindle (America)

Publisher

My Review:
The book was a good, quick read, full of mystical creatures and kingdom battles. Next, The book did contain a lot of characters, which was a little confusing in the beginning though. The book is meant to be read slow or you will get lost easily. 

The beginning had many kingdoms gathering together at Fort Lesterall for food and fun, in addition to celebrating the Pact. Fort Lesterall is flourishing and thriving for over 200 years. The Pact has kept the kingdom protected from harm. Will has been sheltered at the Fort for most of his life, because of the Pact. He has little real-life experience, except for the life behind the fort. Will has always been intrigued by his Uncle's stories of Goblins, Knights, and Trolls. The Pact will soon be challenged by the Unborns (Goblins), which means war. Will wants to protect the Fort and willing to fight for his kingdom. 

Author Bio: (copied from website)

Graeme Brown is has been enchanted by the epic fantasy genre since he was a child, and consequently he started creating his own world with its stories at the age of thirteen. Influenced by writers like J.R.R. Tolkien, Robert Jordan, and George R. R. Martin, he has finally brought the first of those stories to life with his debut title, a short story called The Pact—48 pages that will whisk you away to a dark, medieval fantasy world with gritty realism. When he’s not
writing, he can be found exploring number theory problems or writing computer programs, training for a marathon, or unwinding in a yoga hot room. He has also explored other facets of art, both as a hobby and a profession, including vector graphics, pen and ink, classical piano, and web design. Despite being a full time student and a junior editor for Champagne Books, he makes sure to do a little writing every day. He is presently busy with the first of many sequels to The Pact, A Thousand Roads. For more about Graeme, visit his blog, Blog or on Twitter



Excerpt: (from media kit)

The Stablehouse climbed three stories, a narrow building just twenty feet shy from touching the top of the double outer wall that surrounded the castle’s north flank. Lights shone in the top floor windows and a few others at ground level, where the horses were kept. Will hurried across the dark stones. The soft tap of his shoes against the cobbles echoed in the empty Square. In the middle, where the ground sloped down toward the sewer drains, the statue of Amarr the Barbarian cast a long shadow. Will passed into it and stopped. He heard voices. Two men spoke in hushed tones, but their words carried when the wind wasn’t gusting. “It’s that hag, I tell ya,” came one voice. “She’s roundin’ them up, preparing one of her big spells, she is. I heards there’s a sacrifice comin’, and she means to raise the dead.”

“Don’t be stupid, Roth.” Will recognized the raspy tone at once. It belonged to Mern, the whitesmith, whose half-slashed throat had never fully healed. Will squinted, but couldn’t see where the voices came from, other than realizing they drifted over from the dark, walled yard outside Hellistead’s Tavern. “I’ll not have ya callin’ me stupid. Oh no. I know what this is about an’hoo. You’re just afraids, justs protectin’ yurself. Ya know whatcha got in it, ands I don’t blame you for bitin’ your tongue.” “Quiet, you hay-brained crofter,” Mern spat. “Tonight’s not a night to whisper about such treacheries. The Lord Ham will cut your tongue out, and the world’ll be a better place for it if he does.” “Old Cren will put it back, if he do, but I says he’d best act quick, or he’ll be lacking for the parts as fits him proper. The night’s black, Mern, and it’s gettin’ blacker yet.”

There was a hollow clatter, then sharp hisses. The man who spoke improperly cursed in words that would have made Grandma Mae gasp then Will heard quick footsteps and a series of clunks. He looked back to the castle, to where father gathered his fighters, then the other way, to the Stablehouse. If father’s in trouble, I have to warn him. Will knew his words wouldn’t be taken seriously, though. He began to run across the stone expanse. Fort Lesterall won’t fall. Mern’s a wicked man, and whoever that other one is, he’s got no wits. Cren’s just an old woman who lives in the woods. She probably doesn’t even exist. The side door to the Stablehouse opened as Will arrived, revealing a long labyrinth of stalls lit by rows of hanging lanterns. Jak peeked from behind the door, and Will slipped inside. When the older boy closed it, the dangerous night seemed far away. They were alone, Jak peering at Will, a curry comb still clasped in his hand.

He was broad-limbed and of average height, with tousled hair the color of wet earth and eyes like onyx. As usual, he smelled of straw and horse manure, but that only made him all the more inviting. Jak grinned. “I thought you’d hurry over after the feast proper. Too many clouds tonight, though. I’m afraid we won’t be spying Hell’s Cap, but I’ve another surprise for you. Found it myself, last night.”“We won’t be going to the groves, Jak.” Will lowered his voice. “The Unborns are going to attack. Alter Dun showed the Red Token. That means the Unborns have challenged us. The Pact is broken. Even as we speak, my father’s gathering an army.” “Of course he is.” Will turned toward the metal spiral stair. Barrik, a wiry man with saltand-pepper hair and a bushy moustache, bent his impressive height as he descended from the second floor serving quarters. “I’ve a hundred retainers to see to and that’s lots of horseshit, my little prince.

A good thing they’ve taken to the barracks. I’m full, and there’s a thousand more coming, twenty companies marching under you uncle’s banner knight, Telliken. If we hold the night, then there will be others, and we’ll feed the Unborns hell like they haven’t seen in centuries. But if what I’ve heard’s true, then they have hell to feed us first, before we can draw breath.” Will gaped at the Master of Stables then shook his head fiercely. “Fort Lesterall cannot fall.” Barrik grunted, though it sounded like a laugh. He picked up a pail and carried it to a nearby stall. “I wish I believed that, lad, but this world’s not run on luck, I’m afraid. A man forges his own blade then learns to use it, or he gets cut by everyone around him. This world’s a fierce battlefield, a bitch with a thousand teeth.” “We can fight with them,” Jak insisted. “I’ve practiced with the sword you gave me lots of times in the groves. I’m not bad.” “You would be with armor on.” Barrik came out of the stall with a pail full of black dung. He looked at Will, at Jak, his expression grave. “No, you boys have another errand...

Scarred Love Book Review and Tour

I read Scarred Love, in exchange for review from Reading Addiction Blog Tours. The book was written by M.S. Brannon. 

About the Book: (copied from Reading Addiction Blog Tours)
Darcie Claiborne spent several years of her young life living with a monster, always fearing what he would do next. Clasping onto her last ounce of hope, Darcie releases a scream. It’s her final attempt to live; to survive the villain of her reality. Sweeping her up in his arms, Darcie’s knight in shining armor rescues her from the hell she’s been living; from the stepfather she's feared for all those years.

Reggie Evans has been forced to grow up before he’s ready when his mother dies of an overdose, leaving him responsible to raise his younger brothers. One fateful night, Reggie jogs by an old, run down house and discovers a young girl clinging to life as she screams for help.

Three years later, Darcie is healing and always protected by the man who saved her, but now she's fighting with something she isn't prepared to face. The growing love for the man who saved her life three years ago, the same man who’s nine years older. All the while, Reggie fights to protect Darcie from the demons of her past and new ones of her present.
Excerpt: (from media kit. copied). 

Darcie ~ Age 12
“Darcie, your stepfather does these things because you refuse to listen to anything I tell you,” my mom says while swallowing a handful of pills with her glass of red wine. “Just stay out of his way, be in your room when he’s home and it will give him less of a reason to punish you.” I’ve been putting up with Robert’s punishments for eight years and I’ve come to the conclusion that I will never escape them until I leave. My mom takes pills and drinks from her bottle of wine several times a day. When she’s not drinking or downing pills, she’s sleeping. I despise my mother. She’s weak and I fucking hate her. She tells me I deserve punishments and she’s probably right, but what she’s neglected to tell me is why she allows him to do it. I barely remember what our life was like before Robert Stein, but I know it was never this horrible. We managed  o have fun and I never lived in fear. Why did she let Robert change her? Isn’t a mother supposed to protect their child? Once a child is born, isn’t their mother expected to possess this sixth sense, that same kind of sense that can allow women to lift cars off their children? My thoughts fade as soon as she squeezes the ointment on her finger and rubs it onto the fresh cigar burns on my back and thighs. Robert never gave me a reason why he did it other than he couldn’t find his ashtray.

My Review:

I wanted to review this book because I have been physically and emotionally abused by my ex. This was a sensitive topic for me and I wanted to do the book review justice. Darcie was abused and beaten by her step-father as a child. The opening scene was pretty graphic. Not for the faint of heart. It will also break your heart. She wants the beatings to stop. She desires death to end the pain. She is screaming inside. Her mother is dead and her father wants her to perform her mother's former duties. She does find salvation and the book fast forwards to three years later. 

The book was a good read. Like I said, some scenes were hard to take, and will break your heart. The book also moved at a decent pace. 

About the Author:(copied from RABT)
M.S. Brannon was born and raised in the Midwest. She still resides there today with her wonderful husband and son. When she is not writing or reading, M.S. Brannon spends time with her family, watching movies, and discovering new music. She writes romance because she believes love and heartache is the rawest emotion one can experience.

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Email: MBrannon16@gmail.com
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Links to Buy

Amazon Paperback
Amazon Kindle
Barnes and Noble Nook