Book "Touchstone" by Melanie Rawn

About the Book: Cayden Silversun is part Elven, part Fae, part human Wizard—and all rebel. His aristocratic mother would have him follow his father to the Royal Court, to make a high society living off the scraps of kings. But Cade lives and breathes for the theater, and he’s good — very, very good. With his company, he’ll enter the highest reaches of society and power, as an honored artist — or die trying. Cade combines the talents of Merlin, Shakespeare, and John Lennon: a wholly charming character in a remarkably original fantasy world created by a mistress of the art.

About the Author: Melanie Rawn (born 1954) is an author of fantasy literature. She received a BA in history from Scripps College and worked as a teacher and editor before becoming a writer.
She has been nominated for a Locus award on three separate occasions: in 1989 for Dragon Prince in the first novel category, in 1994 for Skybowl in the fantasy novel category, and again in 1995 for Ruins of Ambrai in the fantasy novel category. The third novel in the "Exiles" trilogy has been "forthcoming" for over a decade due to the author suffering from clinical depression and moving on to other projects to facilitate her recovery.

My Review: This is a very interesting book, although not very easy to read. The author was brilliant in the creation of the environment where the story develops. Her fantasy world has characters from mixed races like giants, elves, trolls etc. Our main character is Cayden and his wish is to assemble a theater troupe. In his land, those groups are composed of four members. He has two other old friends (Rafcadion and Jeschenar) that want to join him. The fourth one is Mieka. Magic is performed to create illusion on each play. They start to being recognized as good and they are invited to participate in a contest to see which troupe is the best in the land.
The author uses a lot of terms defined later at the end of the book in a long  glossary, and that is why I mentioned earlier that this is not an easy reading at all. But it is entertaining. If you have the patience to dig into the glossary and find the meaning of the term, you will definitely enjoy the book.

This book was written by Melanie Rawn and was Published by Tor Books on February of 2012. Amazon.com was kind enough to provide this book for me through their Vine Program for reviewing and I was not request to provide a positive review. Opinions expressed here are my own.

If you read this review, fell free to leave a comment!

Product "Case Logic Sleeve for 9-10.1-Inch Tablet/iPad"

About the Product: Fits 9 to 10.1 inch tablets and iPad 1 & 2.
Slimline design protects your tablet without adding bulk.
Unique striped jersey fabric gives the sleeve stylish appeal and dimension.
Asymmetrical zipper provides easy access to your tablet and allows in-case charging.
With hand-drawn graphics printed over variegated stripes, each has a one-of-a-kind look.

My Review: This is a very well produced item with nice finishing, that has enough padding to safely protect your iPad or e-reader or any other electronic device that can fit there. My daughters even asked to use it to store their DS games as you could place the DS plus some of their favorite game cartridges inside, as well as the power adapter. The stripes provide a nice grip and zipper seams to work fine. I would recommend this item to those who feel like they need extra layer of protection to their tablets. Definitely this case will do the job.

Amazon.com was kind enough to provide this product for me through their Vine Program for reviewing and I was not request to provide a positive review. Opinions expressed here are my own.

If you read this review, fell free to leave a comment!

Balance of January

During the month of January, I read/watched and/or reviewed the following:

AudioBook:
- "Home Front" by Kristin Hannah. Read my review.

Books:
- "Guardian of the Gate" by Michelle Zink. Read my review.
- "Not For Parents - New York" a Travel Guide by Lonely Planet. Read my review.
- "Not For Parents - Paris" by Lonely Planet. Read my review.
- "God Gave Us Two" by Lisa Tawn Bergren and art by Laura J.Bryant. Read my review.
- "The One Year Uncommon Life Daily Challenge" by Tony Dungy and Nathan Whitaker. Read my review.
- "Moments of Truth" by John MacArthur. Read my review.

Products:
- "Paula Deen Dinnerware, 58180 Tatnall Street, 4 Piece Porcelain Place Setting, Bluebell ". Read my review.

Product "Paula Deen Dinnerware, 58180 Tatnall Street, 4 Piece Porcelain Place Setting, Bluebell "

About the Product: Set includes 1 each of 10.5" dinner plates, 1 each of 8" salad plates, 1 each of 5.5" cereal bowls, 1 each of 11 oz. mugs.
Microwave safe for everyday use and convenience.
Dishwasher safe for makes clean up quick and easy.
Tatnall Street dinnerware is designed with a durable porcelain.
This dinnerware is CA prop 65 compliant.

My Review: The decoration is beautiful, although perhaps a little bit overdone. I personally like to eat on large plates, it gives me space to cut the food, if needed. Being dish washable is a nice feature, although I only washed them by hand so far. Usually I do not heat food on the plate at the microwave, but I know this might be another important feature for many people. All pieces are heavier then a regular porcelain or china equivalent, and I like that in the sense that we are not always afraid that we are holding an eggshell piece that will brake apart just looking at it. The fact that it is recommended not to stack the pieces (if you have more than one set) is a problem, as it would be difficult to store in a regular cabinet. But overall, a great product, that I would recommend. This is a great gift for any person who is starting life on its own.

Amazon.com was kind enough to provide this product for me through their Vine Program for reviewing and I was not request to provide a positive review. Opinions expressed here are my own.

If you read this review, fell free to leave a comment!

Book "Moments of Truth" by John MacArthur

About the Book: Devotions that offer biblical teaching, scripture, and prayer to match the annual happenings of the calendar and give daily truths from a foremost biblical scholar and author. Christianity starts with a life-changing encounter with Christ. But then what? From the beautiful moment of salvation to the dying breath, a powerful life in Christ depends on one thing: being in continual relationship with the Father. But does that relationship deliver only encouragement? Or does it offer instruction, reshaping, and revitalization?
In this unique daily devotional, renowned teacher and Bible scholar John MacArthur offers readers truths that will not only inspire them day-by-day but also will give them digestible nuggets of biblical wisdom.
Moments of Truth is designed to meet readers right where they are each day. Entries are intentionally arranged to match the highlights of the calendar year, such as Christmas, Easter, Tax Day, Mother's and Father's Day, Back-to-School, and everything in between. This book recasts the role of faith in readers' lives by matching God's truth with the daily realities we all face. It is only by seeing life through our relationship with the Father that we will access and experience the spiritual depths he designed us for.

About the Author: Widely known for his thorough, candid approach to teaching God’s Word, John MacArthur is a popular author and conference speaker and has served as pastor-teacher of Grace Community Church in Sun Valley, California since 1969. John and his wife, Patricia, have four grown children and fifteen grandchildren.
John’s pulpit ministry has been extended around the globe through his media ministry, Grace to You, and its satellite offices in seven countries. In addition to producing daily radio programs for nearly 2,000 English and Spanish radio outlets worldwide, Grace to You distributes books, software, audiotapes, and CDs by John MacArthur.
John is president of The Master's College and Seminary and has written hundreds of books and study guides, each one biblical and practical. Best-selling titles include The Gospel According to Jesus, Truth War, The Murder of Jesus, Twelve Ordinary Men, Twelve Extraordinary Women, and The MacArthur Study Bible, a 1998 ECPA Gold Medallion recipient.

My Review: This is a very well written devotional, where the author starts each day quoting a Scripture passage and then he develops the main theme for the day in an easy to read and powerful message, finishing with a question that makes us stop and think.
The author is very well known to write many books about the truth as revealed in His Word. An as the introduction states clearly on this book, the messages are excerpts from many of those books.
Each month has a major theme, like beginnings, love, cross and Easter, growing as a Christian, parenting, marriage, work, etc.
The one day that particularly touched me was "The Message of the Cross". Very inspirational and touching.
I recommend this book for the permanent library of any Christian home for those who want to grow in understanding the truth behind the Word of God. Superb work!

This book was written by John MacArthur and published by Thomas Nelson in January of 2012 and they were kind enough to send me a copy for reviewing through their Thomas Nelson Book Review Bloggers Program.

If you are reading this review, feel free to leave a comment with your thoughts.