Friday, September 30, 2016

Punderdome!


ABOUT PUNDERDOME

From the daughter-father duo that created Brooklyn’s beloved live pun competition comes Punderdome, the “Punderful card game [that] will replace Cards Against Humanity at your next party” (Mashable.com).

One part game, one part conversation starter, you don’t need to be a pun master to master Punderdome: the goal is to make bad jokes and have fun along the way.

A player (the prompter for that round) draws two prompt cards from the deck, and then reads the prompts to the rest of the group, who have 90 seconds to create a single, groan-worthy pun that combines the two prompts.     

When time is up, pun makers share their puns with the prompter, who awards the prompt cards to the player whose pun he or she likes best. The winner then draws the next pair of prompt cards and the process repeats. Players win by obtaining 10 pairs of cards.
Every Game Set Comes With:
200 double-sided cards (100 White and 100 Green)
2 Mystery Envelopes with fill-in prize slips
2 80-page pads for drafting puns
1 instruction card and 1 pun example card
A stu-PUN-dous time for 3 or more players


My Thoughts

I have never reviewed a game before so this is new for me!  I was so excited to receive a game!  My family and I love to play board games so this was super exciting to me :)
When I first opened it up and read the directions I wasn't so sure about my ability to play it.  It seemed a little confusing and, honestly, harder than I thought it would be.  My son and I tried a few cards out and seemed to catch on a bit more.
I've mainly just played it with him so far, not really keeping score, but I'm going to be seeing my sister's family in about a week and I'm going to bring Punderdome so that we can all play it together!  I'm sure it will be a hit with all of them!

*Note: I received this game from Blogging for Books in exchange for an honest review.

Thursday, September 22, 2016

Coinman: An Untold Story by Pawan Mishra



Goodreads Summary

Prejudice takes place in a plethora of forms. It sprouts a rare growth when a clerk called Coinman can’t stop jingling the coins in his pocket. It’s a seemingly harmless addiction, but it’s one that comes to rule his life and begins to invite the wrath of virtually everyone around him. His work environment becomes increasingly hostile while his life at home begins to suffer as a result of his wife’s obsession with acting. When an attempt to remedy the situation goes horribly wrong, it spurs those involved onto unexpected paths.

In this eccentric tale set in a small town in northern India, Pawan Mishra masterfully weaves ingenuity and sarcasm in a manner that’s simultaneously hilarious and tragic. Coinman is a modern-day parable laced with pithy wisdom and psychological insight into human nature--a clever parody of the dynamics of office politics and groupthink. At times, surreal, Mishra’s distinctive novel is an overflowing basin of linguistic humor. Eloquently written, this satirical story beautifully depicts how even mature, sensible adults can callously inflict emotional damage upon the most vulnerable.


My Thoughts

Coinman is definitely not the kind of book that I normally read but it was pretty good!  There were times that I went back and forth about it, did I like it....did I not like it... Yep, it was pretty good :)

With that being said, I enjoyed it but I didn't exactly love it.  I wasn't necessarily bored by it but I wasn't completely sucked in like I like to be.  In the book's defense, I have been so incredibly busy and exhausted that maybe it's not that the book isn't great.  Maybe I've just been too tired to enjoy it like I should.  I have read several other reviews that say that Coinman is wonderful so it really might just be me.  Get it and try it for yourself!

*Note: I received a copy of this book from the author in exchange for an honest review.

Not Alone by Gaelyn Whitley Keith




Goodreads Summary

Find a comfortable chair and spend a few hours with Joe-and if you're blessed in a magnificent way, you may encounter a world that can change your life forever. Have a good visit! Have any of you suffered an injustice, been overlooked, ignored, rejected? Has anyone been denied, repudiated, negated, humiliated, devastated, infuriated, frustrated, or transgressed upon? You're a good person. So why have people disrespected, slighted, wounded, snubbed, oppressed, held down, discriminated against, beaten down, distressed, tortured, haunted, bullied, teased, tormented or talked smack about you? Why? And when it was over, did you think... I don't deserve this! Why me? I'm a good person! If someone is going to get divorced, have a heart attack, be mugged or raped, blown up by a terrorist, lose a limb in an accident, be swindled, slandered, foreclosed on, or fired, don't you think it should happen to someone who deserves it? It should never happen to me! I'm a good person! Well, if any of this has happened to you, I just want you to know that Joseph Michael Moretti has found the answer!


My Thoughts

I have actually been reading and studying the book of Job a lot lately.  I had heard the story of Job several times while growing up but now, as an adult, I have been reading about him again and am surprised by all of the things that I am learning.  When I read the description of Not Alone I was excited to read a "retelling of Job" type of story.

I did enjoy Not Alone and am glad to have read it.  It is the kind of book that can really make you take a good look at your own life.  Sometimes we take the things we have, our many blessings, for granted.

I have to say, this book is quite action packed and detailed!  More so than I thought it was going to be.  I didn't love all of it but I did enjoy the majority of it.  Thank you, Gaelyn Whitley Keith, for sending this book to me!

*Note: I received a copy of this book from the author in exchange for an honest review.

Wednesday, September 14, 2016

Next of Sin by Lisa Gordon




Goodreads Summary

A string of murders dating back to 1987 and in all that time only one witness and she doesn't even know she's a witness! Two teenagers fooling about on a camping holiday; a young woman marries surrounded by her loving family; an idyllic honeymoon; a salubrious law firm - the image of perfection and yet evil lurks. A body on a Moroccan Beach; a missing girl in Japan; a corpse floating in the Mediterranean - what is the link? The vital clue lies locked in away in a memory - a memory that now wants to be remembered. A desire to explain a recurring nightmare, leads young lawyer Gaby to a horrifying discovery which throws into question everything she thought she knew about her past, her family and even herself. She is forced to stray onto the wrong side of the law in world where the scales of justice are rigged in favour of her eminent and respectable adversaries. Along with an unlikely set of allies from across the social strata she digs into her past, knowing that it will change her future forever. Gaby's hunt for the truth will cost her everything; it may even cost her her life.

My Thoughts

I haven't read a thriller type book in a while so I was excited for the suspense factor of this book.  While I did have a bit of a difficult time getting into it, I ended up enjoying the storyline.  I felt like I had to talk myself into reading for the first few chapters, but after a while, I began to have the feeling of not wanting to put it down.  You know that feeling where you just HAVE to know what happens next?  I felt it :)

There were a few things that I didn't love.  First, there were times when a choice word would be thrown in that really didn't need to be there.  It was like it was put there to make the book seem harder, more tough (if that makes sense at all).  Second, it seemed like certain scenes and scenarios were kind of out of place.  I don't really know how to explain it clearly.

I definitely didn't hate this book.  It wasn't my favorite book ever, but it was pretty good.  Next of Sin was a fairly quick read and it was enjoyable.  Thanks to Author Lisa Gordon for sending it my way!

*Note: I received a copy of this book from the author in exchange for an honest review.

Friday, September 9, 2016

Shadow Eyes by Dusty Crabtree



Goodreads Summary

Iris thought she could ignore the shadows…until they came after everyone she loved.

Seventeen-year- old Iris Kohl has been able to see both dark and light figures ever since a tragic incident three years ago. The problem is, no one else seems to see them, and even worse…the dark figures terrorize humans, but Iris is powerless to stop them. 

Although she’s learned to deal with watching shadows harass everyone around her, Iris is soon forced to question everything she thinks she knows about her world and herself. Her sanity, strength, and will power are tested to the limits by not only the shadows, but also a handsome new teacher whose presence scares away shadows, a new friend with an awe-inspiriting aura, and a mysterious, alluring new student whom Iris has a hard time resisting despite already having a boyfriend. As the shadows invade and terrorize her own life and family, Iris must ultimately accept the guidance of an angel to revisit the most horrific event of her life and become the hero she was meant to be.


My Thoughts

I realized something somewhat recently... I just might be getting old.  You see, I used to stay up reading until the wee hours of the morning and still wake up later and go on with my day like normal.  I seem to get sleepy a lot earlier these days.  Because of that, I have to REALLY be into a book to be willing to stay up late to read!

With that being said, I AM TIRED!  All because I didn't want to put this book down!  I was caught up in the story and didn't want to put the book down even when my eyes were drooping and I knew I would be exhausted the next morning!

Dusty did a phenomenal job with her debut book!  I wasn't sure what I would think of this one but I wasn't disappointed.  Iris is a great character.  She seemed real and relatable.  Most main female characters lately are extremely strong and brave, even some to an extreme degree.  But Iris was more real, I guess.  Strong for the most part, but also scared and unsure at times.  It just made her seem more relatable for me.

Anyways, Pick this book up!  It's a good one!

*Note: I received a copy of this book from the author in exchange for an honest review.