Satisfying Stitches: Learn Simple Embroidery Techniques and Embrace the Joys of Stitching by Hand by Hope Brasfield

 
Satisfying Stitches by Hand by Hope Brasfield

My Rating: ★★★★★

I received a copy from Quarry Books through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

If you’re looking to learn embroidery, this is the book for you! Here you will learn the basics: what supplies you’ll need, how to transfer a pattern onto fabric, how to prepare your floss, starting and finishing techniques, and a selection of stitches. There is also a chapter on mindfulness and how to set yourself up for crafting success that you can read or skip, but I highly recommend the section on setting yourself up for success. I feel like there’s this misconception that we can only have one project going at one time and that everything must be perfect when that simply isn’t true. I think that this part of the first chapter will help anyone who feels an internal or external pressure to make these things happen escape that. It will really help them come to their own conclusions about what they want to gain from embroidery.

As far as the rest of the book, it is an excellent guide. There are in-depth stitching graphs, an explanation on the supplies you’ll need and what is optional, and the starting and finishing tips are excellent. This is the first time I’ve seen anyone mention backing a finished project with cardboard, and I think I’m going to try that out on one of my embroidery or cross stitching projects one of these days. I’m an experienced cross stitcher, but I’m still somewhat of a newbie embroiderer, and the tips and tricks outlined in this book are excellent. I’ve never seen some of the stitches that are in this book and I understood exactly how to do those stitches from reading the instructions and looking at the graphs.

This book also features 18 patterns ranging from simple to a little more complex. They’re separated by the following themes: florals, houseplants, fruit, skies, animals, and mushrooms. There are three patterns for each theme, and they range from levels 1 to 3 in complexity but all look fairly simple depending on what you’re ready to take on at the time of reading this book. Each pattern also has a list of stitches and stitches along with a color theme that one can stick to or do their own thing with. All in all, this is a great book!

Aru Shah and the Nectar of Immortality (Pandava Quartet #5) by Roshani Chokshi

 
Aru Shah and the Nectar of Immortality by Roshani Chokshi
My Rating: ★★★★★

Aru, Mini, and Brynne are racing to prepare to make their final stand against the Sleeper. The only problem? They have no idea how they’re going to gain access to the labyrinth now that their celestial weapons are destroyed. All they know is that they have to find the labyrinth. They just have to figure out how to get in when the time comes. Unfortunately for them, they’re racing against the clock and they’re starting to lose hope about ever seeing their celestial weapons the closer they get to finding the labyrinth. Will they make it, or will they be sitting ducks watching as the world as they know it ends?

I was super excited when I picked up this book only to avoid even opening it for several months because I was sad about it being the final book. Well, all good things must come to an end, and this series didn’t escape that! Plus, I’d much rather have a series end while it’s still at the top of it’s game. While I’m sad it’s over, I’m very happy with the entire series and how it ended.

We pick up shortly after where the previous book left off and follow Aru, Mini, and Brynne as they struggle to deal with the aftermath of Kara’s betrayal. One of the things I like about this plot point is that we see how they overcome the struggle with their self-esteem that this betrayal has left them with. That struggle has always been there, but without their celestial weapons, it becomes magnified once again. It forces them to have to look within themselves and see who they are to themselves and not others. The reason I like this plot point is because we can’t heal these types of things with objects or by relying on other people’s perspectives, and given the target audience’s age, it’s an extremely important plot and lesson.

This is truly an excellent ending to a wonderful series that I’m going to miss. Roshani Chokshi has a way with words and stories. She creates wonderfully magical worlds, and in this case, a hilarious while heartfelt story on top of that. I’m sad to see this series end, but I’m excited to have been along for the ride from the beginning. This is one of those stories that I recommend to everyone because there’s something special in it for every reader.

Fantastic Tales of Nothing (Nothing #1) by Alejandra Green, Fanny Rodriguez

Fantastic Tales of Nothing by Alejandra Green, Fanny Rodriguez

My Rating: ★★★★

Nathan is just an average human until his luck runs out, but instead of his life flashing before his eyes, a burst of magic saves his life and he finds himself somewhere in a forest. It turns out Nathan isn’t a regular human, and the fate of Nothing weighs heavily on his shoulders as he finds himself part of a team on a mission to save everyone.

I absolutely loved this book. We follow Nathan as he discovers he’s an unusual human who has magic. Along the way, he gains a few friends who ultimately find themselves on a mission to save Nothing with him. These friends are Haven, Bardou, and Sina, and they are absolutely delightful. I don’t want to say too much about the three of them because then I’d spoil their character arcs, but I will say that I enjoy following each of them and look forward to seeing how they continue to develop.

The plot is a bit of a slow burn, so it takes a while before it starts to pick up. Much of the first half of the book is watching Nathan and his friends stumble around. It all makes sense once the main plot really gets rolling, but if a slow burn isn’t your thing, I’d say pass on this book. I really enjoyed the build up, which I think really makes sense for the story as well as who Nathan is as a person. The artwork is absolutely stunning and really impacts how the story is told, so that is another thing this book has going for it.

All in all, I had a lot of fun following Nathan and his friends through their ups and downs. I’m really excited about checking out the next book. I’m hoping the story continues to pick up momentum since it’s the type of story that benefits from starting out at a slow pace while slowly getting faster and faster.

Totally Psychic by Brigid Martin

Totally Psychic by Brigid Martin
My Rating: ★★★★

I received a copy from Inkyard Press through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Paloma Ferrer comes from a long line of psychics. In fact, her grandma is a famous medium and their family can’t go anywhere without being recognized. Paloma loves the attention and can’t wait to follow in her grandma’s footsteps. The only problem is that her mom is determined that her children go on to live normal lives with nothing to do with their psychic abilities. What better way to escape following in their family’s footsteps than moving across the country? Paloma is furious, but she’s determined to help people and realizes she’s in over her head when she wants to impress her new friends and accidentally rips open a hole in the spirit portal.

I absolutely love this book. We follow Paloma, a 12-year-old girl who has recently come into her psychic abilities, as she’s forced to move across the country with her family. As a pre-teen, she’s faced with starting her entire social life over at a new school while her two best friends appear to have replaced her with a new friend already. Paloma is going through some typical feelings about the move, such as not understanding her parent’s choices and being irritated by Magdalena, her little sister, who always appears to be perfect in her parent’s presence.

I think there are some pretty good lessons in the book for young readers. For example, Paloma feels the pressure to impress her new friends or possibly find herself friendless at her new school, but her decisions lead to a supernatural mess. If your friends ditch you for not letting them crash over your boundaries, are they really your friends? That’s always a good lesson to learn, and I like that the book features it with a supernatural spin.

Another thing I love about this story is the family relationships. Paloma has a good relationship with her grandma that we get to see play out, but we also see her bond with her parents and her sister over time. While I do wish there was more time spent on Paloma and Magdalena’s sister bond, I do love what we did get. Overall, I think there did need to be more character development with her friends at the new school because they were very one dimensional. The ghosts we frequently saw had more depth than them, which I think was a little strange given how much we saw of the three new friends.

Otherwise, I think this is a great book that middle schoolers will enjoy. I’m looking forward to seeing what else Brigid comes out with because this was such a good story.

A Myrtle Clover Christmas (Myrtle Clover Mysteries #21) by Elizabeth Spann Craig

 
A Myrtle Clover Christmas by Elizabeth Spann Craig

My Rating: ★★★★

When Myrtle and Miles attend a wedding close to Christmas, they expect to see a happy union and a fine celebration. Instead, there are wedding crashers, arguing, drunk and singing guests, and a grim discovery. Unfortunately for Myrtle and Miles, they’re the ones who found the bride’s aunt soon after she was murdered! Now that they have a new murder mystery on their hands, they’re determined to find the killer before more people have a deadly run-in with a killer hiding among them.

I decided to read the latest book in the series because I was looking to read another Christmas cozy. One of the great things about this series is that you don’t have to read it in order. While it’s meant to be read in order, each book can also stand up on their own because there’s never any confusion if you start off with a random book in the series. I know this from experience since I started this series with the fourth book!

Like always, we follow Myrtle and her best friend’s adventures. This time around, they’re happy to attend a wedding only to frown at the shenanigans. The bride’s deadbeat father crashes the wedding along with her aunt’s ex and his new girlfriend. While the drunk guests are entertaining, they aren’t to Myrtle and Miles! And of course, the crime solving duo come across the bride’s aunt shortly after her murder. There’s several red herrings as there’s quite a few people with a motive. I like that we are kept guessing because I was convinced it was between two people until the end. It was revealed that one of the two people on my suspect list was the perpetrator!

Along the way, we see some hilarious shenanigans occur, like Myrtle and her terrible cooking. She means well, but she shouldn’t be set loose in the kitchen… which is why it’s so hilarious she’s intent on crashing a cookie swap! Wanda makes another appearance since she’s staying with Myrtle for the holidays. I love Wanda and enjoy seeing her interact with the other characters. We’ve also got some heartwarming moments, like the time Myrtle spends with her grandson and daughter-in-law. All in all, it’s a great read with a lot of Christmas cheer involved, which is exactly what I was hoping to find.

Cleaning is Murder (Myrtle Clover Mysteries #13) by Elizabeth Spann Craig

 
Cleaning is Murder by Elizabeth Spann Craig
My Rating: ★★★★

It was just another day in Bradley when Myrtle gets a frantic call from her house cleaner, Puddin. You see, when Puddin was done watching her shows on her client’s couch, she discovered that he was murdered! Myrtle is on the case because she knows Puddin doesn’t have it in her to murder someone. Is she lazy? Yes, but Puddin wouldn’t hurt a fly! Unfortunately for Myrtle, Puddin keeps making herself look worse as the prime suspect on top of announcing that she knows who the killer is. It’s up to Myrtle to find the killer before Puddin gets locked up, or worse… becomes the next victim!

One can never go wrong with one of the Myrtle Clover mysteries, and here I am happy to read yet another book in the series! I always love following Myrtle around in these hilarious and fun book. This time around, we follow her as she investigates the latest murder in town because she wants to clear her housekeeper's name. While Myrtle and Puddin are never on the best of terms, they’re now forced to work together to some extent.

Like always, there’s a great cast of characters. Honestly, I think this is the most I’ve ever seen of Puddin in these books and now I want to see more of her and Myrtle butting heads about things other than cleaning. It was absolutely hilarious! It also turns out that they’re a great duo of sorts, though saying they did much investigating together would be stretching it. It was also fun to see Miles attempt to increase his investigating skills in addition to getting to see more of the townsfolk. It’ll be interesting to see if some of these new characters pop up in later volumes.

While it was fun seeing Puddin play a larger role, I was also excited to see Wanda make a regular appearance. It would be so much fun to see a short story or something with Wanda taking a prominent role. I can dream! Like always, this was an excellent read, and I’m hoping to see a lot more of Wanda and Puddin after this.