Let's Bake!: A Pusheen Cookbook by Susanne Ng, Claire Belton

Let's Bake!: A Pusheen Cookbook by Susanne Ng, Claire Belton

My Rating: ★★★★★

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

If you you’re a Pusheen fan and you love to bake, than there’s a good chance you will be interested in this book because it is all Pusheen baked goods. Split up by the type of baked good, you’ll find everything from adorable cookies to cakes and breakfast items. As a long time fan of Pusheen, I was super excited about this book and it did not disappoint me in any way.

Each recipe has a picture of the adorable finished item, clear baking instructions, and photos that accompany the steps based on its difficulty level and ease of decoration. I like that there’s extra pictures to show the steps as needed because sometimes you need a visual. I think the instructions are clear enough that even unexperienced bakers can easily follow along. It’s a great book to experiment with as beginner bakers become more experienced because even the difficult recipes have easy and detailed instructions.

Because each finished item is absolutely adorable, I think that many of them are great treats for kids. It reminds me of when my mom would make food in fun shapes and cute, decorative baked goods as treats when I was growing up. Anyone who likes to bake that also has kids who are Pusheen fans are bound to enjoy making these as treats for their kids. Some of the recipes would actually be fun to make as a family, like the Pusheen marshmallows.

All in all, I really enjoyed this book and look forward to making several of the recipes. They look great, sound tasty, and I’m bound to have fun making them since I love baking. I highly recommend this cookbook for anyone who is a Pusheen fan.

In Focus Numerology: Your Personal Guide by Sasha Fenton

In Focus Numerology: Your Personal Guide by Sasha Fenton

My Rating: ★★★★

I received a copy from Quarto Publishing Group through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I’ve been interested in numerology for some time and thought it was a good time to check it out. This is the first book on a short list of books I plan on reading about numerology. I think that this is a great book to start with. Sasha Fenton begins with a short history of numerology before diving into important numbers, what they mean, and how to calculate them.

I had a lot of fun reading this book. Each chapter gives a brief explanation about the topic at hand, explains how to calculate your personal number, and then moves onto the list of numbers and their meanings for that area. It’s also a very beautiful book with great designs throughout the pages. I think that it’s a great book for beginners like me because it doesn’t leave you swimming in too much information at once.

My only complaint is that that some of the explanations on how to calculate each number is lacking. It’s very straight forward if your number is simple, but if some of your numbers are more complex and require further breaking down, it starts to get vague. I had to do my own research outside of the book to find out how to finish calculating my number in these cases because it was not clear. Otherwise, I do think it’s a great book and I plan on buying a physical copy.

To Coach a Killer (The Life Coach Mysteries #2) by Victoria Laurie

To Coach a Killer by Victoria Laurie

My Rating: ★★

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

After finally launching her new business and surviving the Angel of Death, Cat has hit a bump in the road. The problem? Her life coaching business is not taking off like she thought it would. However, things are looking up because she just got a new client who is convinced he’s cursed. Not sure how this applies to her skill set, she’s determined to help while she dives into a new murder mystery that has her two love interests staring daggers at each other.

I was pretty excited to start this book only for my excitement to die in its tracks early on. Unfortunately, Cat’s new client is convinced he was cursed by a Roma woman while he was still a fetus. The “g” slur was used as well, so it was rather disheartening to read such a prejudicial and stereotypical characterization in a book coming from an author I’ve been following for years. To top things off, this character also believes that he was born a little person because of this curse, which did not sit well with me at all. This all occurs right at the beginning of the book and it really made me not want to continue reading. However, I did agree to read this book in exchange for an honest review when I got it from netgalley, so I forged ahead and here we are.

I had a really hard time getting into the story for the above reasons on top of just being bored. After two books, I am now sure that I liked Cat much better as a supporting character because she’s just not interesting enough to keep my attention from wandering. I keep finding myself wishing that there was a different protagonist leading this story, so I don’t think this is something that will change for me however long this series runs.

I do think that the murder mystery was truly wild. It reminded me why I’ve almost always loved Victoria Laurie’s books. She’s got a way with her mystery plots that always keeps me coming back. They’re entertaining and sometimes quite complex. I truly enjoyed the mystery aspect of this cozy once it got rolling, which is also when I got into the story. At that point, I really wanted to see what was going to be revealed next. I can honestly say that I was not disappointed with how the mystery plot concluded. It was unexpected, wild, and entertaining while gut wrenching at the most crucial moments.

All in all, this is the final book in the series for me. Cat as a protagonist just does not hold my attention, so I will not continue to follow her adventures. Plus, I’m disappointed with Laurie’s usage of a prejudicial characterization for her cursed storyline.

The Great Witches Baking Show (Great Witches Baking Show #1) by Nancy Warren

The Great Witches Baking Show by Nancy Warren

My Rating: ★★★★★

Poppy Wilkinson has landed herself a spot on The Great British Baking Contest. While it would be lovely to win, and the exposure from being on the show is bound to be great for her, she has her own reasons for becoming a contestant. You see, Poppy was abandoned when she was a baby. The show gives her a chance to sneak her way into Broomewode Hall and check out something she recognized: the pattern on her baby blanket in one of their old paintings. Unfortunately for Poppy, her past isn’t the only mystery on the baking show. One of the contestants is being sabotaged and when they turn up dead on set, their unfortunate demise becomes the most important mystery to solve.

When I saw this series, I knew I had to read it. It sounded right up my alley and the perfect kind of fluffy book until you get to the murder mystery. I’m happy to say that I was not disappointed. This book has a great cast of characters, majority of which seem like sweet and wonderful people. Poppy is such a fun and sweet character. I related to her worries about being on camera and the nervousness about baking on camera. I would be going through the same thing if I was in her shoes. I can also see why the characters began to develop friendships with one another so fast because they seem like cool people I’d love to meet.

The book has two mysteries. The main one is Poppy’s background and how that connects to the supernatural world that she’s a member of, which is the mystery that will continue throughout the series. I think that there was a great introduction to the supernatural world, but I do with there was more than what we got. The second mystery is the murder, which takes a bit of time before it starts but is well thought out and I didn’t catch on to the killer until a bit before they were revealed.

All in all, I think this is a great book that’s fun and entertaining. I’m looking forward to seeing how Poppy and company develop as the series continues and the baking competition starts to get hot. I’m also looking forward to seeing how big the supernatural community is and what else Poppy can do as the series continues. It’s also neat that there’s a recipe at the end, so I’m excited to see what other recipes will pop up since I love baking.

Sublime Stitching: Hundreds of Hip Embroidery Patterns and How-To by Jenny Hart, Alexandra Grablewski

Sublime Stitching: Hundreds of Hip Embroidery Patterns and How-To by Jenny Hart, Alexandra Grablewski

My Rating: ★★★★★

I recently decided to learn how to embroider, so when I saw this book at my local library, I knew I had to pick it up. Jenny Hart offers a great beginners guide that covers everything from the type of fabric one might want to use to tips on how to finish up your projects. If you’re a cross stitcher like me, some of the information may overlap, but it’s all laid out in simple and easy to understand terms for those new to embroidery.

The only thing about starting a new craft with a book is that diagrams can be difficult to understand. I found that was not the case with this book as Jenny Hart supplies a variety of comprehensive stitch diagrams that are paired with written instructions. Of course, diagrams are not for everyone, but it’s easy to find how-to videos to pair with this book.

I found much of the information covered valuable and look forward to starting my first embroidery project when my fabric arrives. Unfortunately, because I picked up an ebook copy of this book, the patterns are not actually included since the physical copy comes with iron-on patterns. That’s fine with me since I picked this up learn what I need to know to start my first project, but if you want the iron-on patterns, make sure to buy the physical copy of this book.

The Banana Cookbook: 50 Simple and Delicious Recipes by Sam Brooks

The Banana Cookbook: 50 Simple and Delicious Recipes by Sam Brooks

My Rating: ★★★

I received a copy from Andrews McMeel Publishing through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Sam Brooks has put together a book full of easy recipes, including a variety of vegan and gluten free options, that center around delicious bananas. Ranging anywhere from a classic loaf of banana bread to ice-cream and delicious iced banana coffee, there are a variety of recipes that covers everyone’s interests.

If you are someone with a nut allergy like me, you’ll be happy to find that there are several nut free options throughout the book. However, quite a few of those options will require you to simply omit the nuts that are used to garnish the final product. There are some recipes that will be difficult to get around, such as peanut butter based recipes, as substituting peanut butter with cashew, almond, or sunflower seed butter will create a much drier final product than the author intended.

One of the things that I liked about this book is the mouthwatering pictures that accompany the recipes. It’s one thing to read a recipe and think about making it, but there’s something about seeing a picture that really entices you to check out the recipe and get you pumped about making it. This is why I was disappointed to discover that the book is full of stock images rather than photos taken of the products of these recipes. Some of the pictures can pass, but there are some that are clearly not what you’ll get when you make the recipe.

I also wish that there were savory recipes included in the book. For a book that views bananas as a “new” staple, it’s odd that savory options are so overlooked. Otherwise, I did enjoy the book and look forward to trying some of the recipes. I’m looking forward to giving the iced banana coffee a go since it combines two of my favorite things: coffee and bananas. I’ve also been looking for a new tried and true banana bread recipe, so I’m excited to bake the one included in the book and seeing how it turns out.

Death at High Tide (Island Sisters Mystery #1) by Hannah Dennison

Death at High Tide by Hannah Dennison

My Rating: ★

I received a copy from St. Martin's Press through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

When Evie’s husband, Robert, suddenly passes away, her entire world is turned upside down. Not only did she just lose the love of her life, but also just found out that they were broke and she’s about to lose the house they shared. Then Evie finds out that she might own a hotel she’s never heard of while her sister, Margot, tries to help her sort out the puzzle that her life has become. Armed with her grief, some luggage, and her secretive yet outspoken sister, she takes a trip to Tregarrick Rock to check the place out. The only problem? Someone is murdered at the hotel and now they’re trapped.

When I saw that Hannah Dennison was releasing the first book in a new series, I was super excited because I love her Honeychurch Hall mysteries. Unfortunately for me, I had a hard time getting into this book. I don’t particularly care for Evie and I found many of the characters unlikable, especially Margot and Jago. The one character I did love was super interesting but wasn’t fully developed before they were gone.

My other complaint is that the murder mystery started way too late in the book. If I hadn’t already known that the mystery surrounded a murder from the summary, I would’ve thought that it was actually surrounding Robert’s secrets. However, I did like that Evie and Margot were terrible at investigating once the mystery started because it was very realistic.

I did like the setting of the book. Tregarrick Rock sounds absolutely beautiful even during the off season when the weather isn’t the best for visiting. While the hotel needs some work, it sounds like a beautiful place to stay. I’m not sure how practical it is from a business perspective since going to and from the hotel depends on the tide, but I loved how it was described.

Sadly, this book turned out not to be up my alley. I might pick up the next book in the series when it’s published just to see if the series just had a bit of a rocky start, but we’ll see.