Demolition and the Great Spider Hunt

Yes I'm back! I've been offline for a few days to get new windows fitted in my hall, kitchen and bathroom, and a new front and back door. This meant moving a pile of stuff out, the upheaval and noise, and getting everything cleaned and put back in place. To be fair, the guys worked well and tidied up most of the mess behind them which was good.

However there were two problems! Firstly the company that the guys ordered the doors from sent us a back door with a letterbox in it which looks so stupid! I mean seriously, what are we going to do with a letterbox in it? Push dog biscuits outside to feed foxes and badgers at night??? So we need to wait for a new one to get ordered which could be ANOTHER six week wait so I'm not greatly happy.

But the WORSE news is that all this building work has given us a bloody invasion of big hairy spiders into the kitchen. I was scared shitless by one about an hour ago but we can't find the bugger to get rid of it so I'm not going in there until it is found and dealt with. Yes I'm an arachnophobe on a Ron Weasley level and I just can't deal with the horrible things.

So after I get my blog posts done, the hunt will have to continue.

*shudder*

What's on Chuckle TV #6

Welcome to Chuckle TV! 
Every week I will be talking about what I have been watching in the world of TV, be it sport, documentaries, TV series, films, soaps or interesting news items. I'll be talking about favourites from the past and all the great sounding stuff that I haven't watched yet. Believe me, there are a lot of popular series that I haven't had the chance to see! Let the Count and I be your guide in the world of entertainment! Comments are welcome on what I'm currently watching but no spoilers please or your comments will not be published!

Well again this week I have continued to watch re-runs of Masterchef Australia season 3, Extreme Makeover Home Edition and Dog the Bounty Hunter which has been a lot of fun! 

Of course, for the last three days my attention has been fully on the 2014 Ryder Cup, one of the sporting events that I love the most. I never miss this and I love the tension of the last day. As I type all of the singles matches have started so it'll be an exciting afternoon! 

Go Europe! 

Stacking the Shelves #51

Stacking the Shelves is a meme hosted by Tynga’s Reviews

Stacking The Shelves is all about sharing the books you are adding to your shelves, may it be physical or virtual. This means you can include books you buy in physical store or online, books you borrow from friends or the library, review books, gifts and of course ebooks! Click on the link under the book to find its page on Goodreads or Smashwords.

                  

Please note that I always leave a message on your STS/SP if you visit me, but if you use DISQUS I will not be able to leave a comment on your page. And sometimes, I have problems leaving messages on blogs hosted by Wordpress. Links will take you to a Goodreads page or Smashwords page where you can view the book plot. Don't say I'm not good to you!

This was a good week for getting books in but not a great week for actually reading anything. I've been busy all week trying to get everything moved ready for the workmen coming in to fit new windows and doors on Tuesday. It is going to be a big upheaval and I'm not looking forward to it at all. But it need to be done to stop the winter draughts getting in and it will only be a day or two at the most so I better just suck it up! I'm also just lazing in front of the dvd player at night which is not helping me to get books read! I need a bit of a kick up the butt to get me focused on my tbrs again. Oh well, maybe next week!

So, my book haul this week reflects what I've been watching on TV with my Dog the Bounty Hunter books and the Marco Pierre White biography. I'm really excited to read the three of them but not until I get at least ten older tbrs read first! The review book was a lovely surprise from JL Bryan for everyone who took part in his book blitz and I look forward to reading it soon!

FOR REVIEW:

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/23150980-ellie-jordan-ghost-trapper  

BOUGHT PAPERBACKS:

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1758548.The_Devil_In_The_Kitchen 
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/3936301-you-can-run-but-you-can-t-hide-duane-dog-chapman-with-laura-morton

 https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/7516628-where-mercy-is-shown-mercy-is-given

 

 https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18223048-frankenstorm

FREE/BARGAIN DOWNLOADS:

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17210281-end-dayz 

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18816643-colony-z 

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/22836166-nano-contestant---episode-1 

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17225161-snow-white-blood-red-ashes-to-ashes-cinder-to-cinder-beauty-never-di

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17261859-the-grimm-diaries-prequels-volume-7--10

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17661963-happy-valentine-s-slay-children-of-hamlin-tooth-nail-fairy-tale-e

 https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18484981-the-grimm-diaries-prequels-volume-15---18

                                                    FOLLOW ME:

https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/3426724-chucklesthescot 

http://chucklesbookcave.blogspot.co.uk/ 
http://www.bloglovin.com/blog/9910183/chuckles-book-cave 

https://twitter.com/chucklesthescot 

https://plus.google.com/107869792450677466935/posts 

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https://www.goodreads.com/group/show/114319-my-big-fat-indie-book-gang  

https://www.goodreads.com/group/show/48169-my-big-fat-booky-challenge-athon

Throwback Thursday #37

I blog about great looking new releases, new books sent to me for read and review, book reviews of what I've read and features about exciting new authors to try.

But what about all the books that are already on my TBR, waiting for me to read them? Don't they deserve a mention and a chance to be highlighted? Yes they do!

Welcome to Throwback Thursday, where I will take the time to tell you about some of the books that have been on my shelves for a while and maybe a few of you will add them to your wishlists/tbrs. If you have read them, why not leave a comment to tell me what you thought of it-but no spoilers please! 

This week I am starting to look at the tbrs that are on my Kindle and Kobo. And there are quite a lot of them so that will keep us going for a good few weeks! 

Beri O’Dell is investigating paranormal creatures because she wants to know what she is. Taller and stronger than most men, she astral projects and can peel through dimensional layers to see the creatures and spirits beyond. She once helped her foster sister, Detective Elsa Remington, track down killers in Jacksonville, Florida, but stopped when a nasty fire elemental turned her strength against her. Now, she finds herself pulled back when something steals Elsa’s soul and puts her into a coma. With little time to spare, Beri searches for the reason behind her sister’s coma. 
She has help in her spirit guides Fred and Phro, but others come along for the ride, including a pyro-nervous witch, and an androgynous necromancer. The last thing Beri needs is to fall in love with a mysterious stranger. But the handsome Minoan warrior Nikolos knows what creature she’s after because he’s battled it before. It’s bad. He calls it the Dweller on the Threshold. 

Warning:
Contains a worried heroine with no time, a witch with fire problems, a pissed-off necromancer, a trapped goddess, and a damned sexy, but scary, warrior. Throw in bloody battles, mass-murderer history lessons and a bit of sexy time and you get the start of Beri’s new life.

Teenager Shanna Hunt has been hunting demons since her parents were murdered by them. She’s used to doing things alone, her own way, but one fateful night throws her into the company of a team of hunters, each specializing in a particular kind of monster: vampires, werewolves, witches, shape-shifters… This newly-formed team should be an unstoppable force for whatever is out there picking off individual hunters across the globe, but their first battle together against the monsters of the night could be their last.

Shayna and her two best friends have the abilities to manipulate and control the four elements, earth, air, water and fire. While learning to hone their growing powers, they discover a new and malicious presence in their sleepy beach town. Someone is performing blood magic and threatens to expose their small magical community. So far only small animals have been slaughtered, but then the nightmares start.

Shayna suffers nightmares of being chased and sacrificed only to wake up bloodied and bruised. She thinks her magical blood is the ultimate target for the final blood rite. When an innocent girl, Tracy, is kidnapped Shayna knows it's only a ploy to draw her out; she can't let someone die because of her.

Book Review: War Horse by Michael Morpurgo

A powerful tale of war, redemption, and a hero's journey.

In 1914, Joey, a beautiful bay-red foal with a distinctive cross on his nose, is sold to the army and thrust into the midst of the war on the Western Front. With his officer, he charges toward the enemy, witnessing the horror of the battles in France. But even in the desolation of the trenches, Joey's courage touches the soldiers around him and he is able to find warmth and hope. But his heart aches for Albert, the farmer's son he left behind. Will he ever see his true master again?

My Review:
Albert's dad buys Joey as a drunken mistake but Albert devotes himself to caring for the horse. When his dad sells Joey to the army as a horse for warfare, Joey ends up in the trenches in FRance and Albert is determined to join up as soon as he can to track down his horse.

This was a good story. For those of you who have read Black Beauty, you will be familiar with the story being told from the horse point of view. Joey talks about his love for Albert and his fear of being taken away by strangers. The story tells of his experiences as a British cavalry horse and a German medical horse. Joey develops a friendship with another horse and with French civilians and soldiers who all try to care for him as the war ploughs on.

I enjoyed the close bond between Albert and Joey and the way the horse connected to both British and German soldiers who briefly owned him as well as French civilians who looked after him. The horse was a neutral character for telling the story from all sides. It was extremely balanced and there were no bad guys in this book, just weary people who wanted it all to end so they could just go home. I liked that balance. British soldiers cursing the constant charges across no man's land, Germans wondering why the British keep sending men and horses to certain death, civilians wondering how they will survive another winter. We even see a scene where a Welsh and German soldier bond over Joey which reminded me of the Christmas ceasefire in the trenches. It was well written and gives you an insight into what these men were feeling, so far from home and how pointless all the death and destruction was.

It is suitable for most ages. Yes there are descriptions of death and injury but not in horrific graphic detail. It has a couple of sad events in it as you would expect but some good moments too. The copy I have has beautiful colour illustrations throughout which really added to the story for me.

Overall, an enjoyable and educational book about World War 1.