Early ARC Review- Rules of Summer by Joanna Philbin

Rules of Summer
by Joanna Philbin
Hardcover, 352 pages
To be published June 4, 2013
by Poppy
ISBN 0316212059
Book Source: Netgalley
3.5 Stars

Book Summary from Netgalley: There are two sides to every summer.

When seventeen-year-old Rory McShane steps off the bus in East Hampton, it's as if she's entered another universe--one populated by impossibly beautiful people wearing pressed khakis and driving expensive cars. She's signed on to be a summer errand girl for the Rules, a wealthy family with an enormous beachfront mansion, and maybe to sneak in some beach time. Upon arrival, she's warned by other staff members to keep her head down and to avoid socializing with the family, but Rory soon learns that may be easier said than done.

Feeling claustrophobic in her country-club world, the youngest and most impulsive Rule child, seventeen-year-old Isabel, embarks on a breathless summer romance that her family would never approve of. Isabel has decided that this is the summer for taking chances, and she's bringing Rory along for the ride. The girls forge a true friendship, but when long-hidden secrets start to surface and Rory reveals that she has feelings for someone, too--Connor Rule, Isabel's older brother--their relationship is put to the test.

Review: I chose Rules of Summer because of the dreamy setting an promise of a light summer read in the Hamptons, on the tip of Long Island. Rory is a Jersey girl from a no nonsense background living wither her mom who seems to have a hard time picking reliable men. Tired of picking up the slack and being around the drama she packs up and takes a summer job with her aunt as the live in help of the Rule family, a blue blood high society wealthy Hamptons family. Right away it becomes obvious Rory is entering a different world of country clubs, in home theatres and a daughter of the house who is used to getting whatever she wants. Isabel Rule is Rory's same age but the two couldn't be any more different. Isabel's growing pains and quest to find herself landed her in California where she picked up a love of surf. Now that she is home she feels the undeniable itch that things aren't quite the right fit anymore. So when when she runs into an older surfer in the water she gets pulled in deep.

I loved the distinction between classes and how those lines can be blurred by life and friendship. The main distraction for me was one of the love interests and what a jerk he is through the entire book. Isabel is young and doesn't seem to catch on, but the underage drinking, the age difference and sex were a giant red flag from the beginning. I wanted to yell "run!" 

On the flip side, Connor Rule, "the other boy" is nice, all-American and the perfect fit.  Drama is high and the pacing a little uneven, but the overall message is one of breaking down boundaries in the name of loyalty and love. If you are looking for YA contemp in the perfect place this one is for you, for older audiences due to content.

About the author: Joanna Philbin was born in Los Angeles and grew up in New York City. She is the daughter of television host Regis Philbin. She started her first novel at the age of seven, but only got as far as the second chapter. She went on to receive her B.A. from Brown University and an M.F.A. from the University of Notre Dame. She now lives in Santa Barbara, California.

Learn more on Goodreads/ author's blog

21 Principles: Divine Truths to Help you Live by the Spirit by Richard G Scott Blog Tour and Review

21 Principles: Divine Truths to Help you Live by the Spirit 
by Richard G Scott
Hardcover, 105 pages
Published 2013
by Deseret Book
ISBN 1609075269
Book Source: publisher
5 stars

Product Description from Deseret Book.com: 

"As you seek spiritual knowledge, search for principles," counsels Elder Richard G. Scott. "Principles are concentrated truth, packaged for application to a wide variety of circumstances."

In this exciting book, Elder Scott offers 21 principles distilled from his life experiences. These "concentrated truths" will help you understand more fully how to be guided by the Spirit. Elder Scott's brief explanations open the way for your own discovery and exploration.

"I bear witness that Jesus Christ knows you personally," Elder Scott writes. "He will provide answers to every difficult problem in your life as you trust Him and do all you can to understand and apply His doctrine and strive to live by the Spirit." 21 Principles will be a valuable tool in that quest.

Review: Richard G. Scott shares the most important truths he was learned in life in his newest title 21 Truths. each chapter outlines a principle to ponder and adopt. As an artist who often feels the pull of being creative juxtaposed with doing the same things over and over again, I truly appreciated Principle 3 

"Repeatedly I have been impressed to learn that to reach a goal never before attained, one must do things never before done."  

Elder Scott talks about how on a visit to a close friend he was fascinated with his ability to create beauty using brushes, watercolor and paint, and had the impression "Try it."  He did just that, and the cover of his book is a print of one of his watercolor paintings. When I noticed the signature on the dust jacket I felt uplifted and encouraged to go out on a limb.

This book is power packed with sound advice and the way to apply it in our lives. If applied with prayer and perseverance these principles will set your life on the right course. I would recommend it for a Father's Day gift! Thanks so much to Deseret Book for inviting us to be on the blog tour today.

About the Author: Elder Richard G. Scott, was called as a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in October 1988. He had served in the First Quorum of the Seventy since 1977 and was a member of the presidency of that quorum for five years. He holds a B.S. degree in mechanical engineering and completed post-graduate work in nuclear engineering. Prior to his call as a General Authority, he worked on the staff of Admiral Hyman Rickover developing military and private nuclear power reactors. Elder Scott and his wife, Jeanene Watkins Scott (deceased), are the parents of seven children.

  Find out more on Deseret Book/ Goodreads

Giveaway Winners

Congratulations to Ell Rose who won an ebook from Heather Frost.

Karlene Browning who won signed Storymakers swag.

and Natasha D who won a signed copy of the Watson series.

Email us your mailing address and we will get your prizes sent out!

The Siren's Secret Blog Tour Author Guest Post, Breview and Giveaway

Author Heather Ostler is guest blogging today at Fire and Ice about Sirens as part of The Siren's Secret official blog tour! 

Sirens are enchanting and mysterious creatures. In mythology they are believed to be beautiful woman who can lure men to their deaths. Though they are supernatural creatures who live in water like mermaids, they have legs, not fins.

Powerful and manipulative, sirens have always been seen as a threat. They are extremely smart, and can see into your past and the future from only meeting you.

Sirens are able to lure and hypnotize sailors using their lovely, sweet singing voices. Often in mythology sirens would find unsuspecting sailors and hypnotize them. Once the sailors were lured in from their singing, the sirens would capture them, or make them crash their boats into rocks.

The siren’s song was different for each sailor, but always too beautiful to resist. Unfortunately for the many sailors, the end of the siren’s song was death.

Sirens are usually portrayed as femme fatals. They are known as being vicious and deadly. They can use either their beauty to charm and entrance their victim, or they can use their hypnotizing abilities to get what they desire.  

Mythology always portrays sirens always living on islands surrounded by cliffs and rocks, and Roman writers always linked sirens closely to the sea. Sirens are also featured in Homer’s Odyssey, and are known as the Muses of the lower world.

- Heather Ostler Pead, Author, The Siren's Secret

The Siren's Secret

The Shapeshifter's Secret #2

by Heather Ostler

Expected publication June 11, 2013

By Cedar Fort Books

Book Source: Netgalley

4 stars

Book Summary from Goodreads: Julia’s life has gone from complicated to nearly impossible! When Julia loses her shapeshifting powers and her appearance changes in alarming ways, she flees to Sirenity, where she learns an incredible secret about her mother. In this thrilling sequel, Julia must take greater risks and make bigger sacrifices as she discovers who she really is and what she can really become.

Early Breview: Sirens entrance me. I've always been fascinated by the creatures who live in the sea. When I saw this cover on Netgalley I was lured and captivated. I hadn't read book one of the Shapeshifter's Secret (we review it here) but was easily able to pick up where it left off as Heather gives a plot retelling in the first few chapters of book two. Julia is in hiding in an antique cottage with her father and the guard after an attempt on her life.  Her life seems ever more complicated as the tension heats up between her boyfriend Terrance and friend, protector Caleb. When a date with Terrance goes dangerously wrong and Julia is intercepted by a mysterious Siren there are questions to be answered.

With enchanting mythology and a magical setting, Heather Ostler paints her unique spin on shape shifters and the difference between water nymphs and sirens. I wish I could fully immerse myself in the Lockham academy and underwater scenes of Sirenity. I found myself wanting much more filling out of details and world building. With little inventions like a parchment that writes and receives messages and a truth telling ring there is plenty of room for lots more imagination. 

I also am pulling for one side of the love triangle to move ahead. I'm hoping book three picks up the pace in swoon worthiness and character development because a huge whopper of a plot twist has been dropped.

Content: The Siren's Secret is a clean read suited for middle grade and young adult readers and I am happy to recommend it to all. Mild violence.

About the author: Heather Ostler grew up near the mountains with a rambunctiously entertaining family. She majored in English at Utah Valley University, and soon began composing stories about masquerades, water nymphs, and shapeshifters. She and her husband, Kellen, reside in Highland, Utah with two remarkably pleasant pugs.

Find out more about author Heather Ostler: Goodreads/ Twitter/ Website

  The Giveaway: We have one ebook copy of The Siren's Secret to giveaway to our readers! Open internationally, simply fill out the rafflecopter form to enter. Good luck and thanks so much to Heather Ostler for visiting Fire and Ice today.

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Sirens In The Time of Gatsby Janet Fox Blog Tour- Post #8

Thanks to ModPodge Blog Tours and Janet Fox for inviting us to be today's stop on the official Sirens Blog Tour.

Janet is here with  Post #8. Calling All Ghosts: Ouija Boards, Spiritualism, and Harry Houdini

"One of the central images of SIRENS is that of ghosts and spirits and magic. I found this facet of the 1920s by accident, but it fit so perfectly into the novel I couldn’t ignore it. Cue the spooky music...

Maybe it was the war, maybe it was the influenza outbreak, but people in the 1920s became obsessed with life after death.

There were (well, yeah, there still are) two camps: those who believed in life after, and those who didn’t. Harry Houdini didn’t. Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and Howard Thurston did.

Houdini and Thurston were both magicians, so they knew how to pull the wool over someone’s eyes. Doyle – Mr. Sherlock Holmes – knew how to uncover secrets. These three were all good friends, and they argued this point excessively. Were there spirits? Ghosts? Was there life after death? Who could prove the point?

Two of the popular parlor games of the 1920s were séances and Ouija boards. Both of these purported to channel the dead through a medium, in the case of a séance, or through the group emotions, in the case of a Ouija board (if you’ve never played with the latter, it’s kind of fun. But you have to suspend your disbelief. That makes it spooky.) The dead would send, through these media, obscure messages back to the living.

Magic shows were a public phenomenon of the 1920s, and two of the greatest magicians were Harry Houdini and Howard Thurston. Houdini was a skeptic: he knew how to make people think one thing, but “it was all a trick. Fakery.” Thurston, too, was an excellent magician, but he actually believed that there was something guiding him, a kind of spirit life. The two engaged in a friendly competition, culminating with a wager that the one who died first would haunt the other.

Thurston’s shows were all about spiritualism. He would make a girl float magically in the air; he would make a girl vanish altogether; he would call forth floating apparitions to “speak.” His illusions were some of the best and his popularity high. But Houdini’s renown was greater, due to his amazing performances in escaping dire circumstances. And Houdini’s premature death of peritonitis gave a legendary aspect to his name, since the secrets of his magic act – ironically – went with him to the grave.

Thurston lived on but his magic shows were supplanted by a new public fixation: the moving picture.

As the decade progressed and Americans forgot their heartbreak over the war and their losses during the flu pandemic, and became more and more obsessed with the “new” things – cosmetics, automobiles, wealth, and glamour – preoccupation with spirits slipped away. They didn’t know it, but at the end of the 1920s Americans would bump up against a whole different kind of haunting experience: the Depression."

Sirens book summary: When Jo Winter’s parents send her off to live with her rich cousin on the glittering island of Manhattan, it’s to find a husband and forget about her brother Teddy’s death. But all that glitters is not gold.. 

Caught up in the swirl of her cousin’s bobbed-hair set—and the men that court them— Jo soon realizes that the talk of marriage never stops, and behind the seemingly boundless gains are illicit business endeavors, gangsters, and their molls. Jo would much rather spend time the handsome but quiet Charles, a waiter at the Algonquin Hotel, than drape herself over a bootlegger. But when she befriends a moll to one of the most powerful men in town, Jo begins to uncover secrets—secrets that threaten an empire and could secure Jo’s freedom from her family. 

Can her newfound power buy her love? Or will it to ruin Jo, and everyone around her?

About the author:

Janet Fox is the author of award-winning books for children and young adults. FAITHFUL (Speak/Penguin Young Readers 2010), set in Yellowstone National Park in 1904, is a YALSA Best Fiction for YA nominee and an Amelia Bloomer List pick, 2011. FORGIVEN (Speak 2011), set in 1906 San Francisco during the great earthquake, is a Junior Library Guild selection 2011, and a 2012 WILLA Literary Awards Finalist. Her most recent novel, SIRENS (Speak 2012) is set in 1925 New York. Janet has numerous MG and YA projects underway. She is a former high school English teacher and received her MFA in Writing for Children and Young Adults in 2010 (Vermont College of Fine Arts). Janet lives in Bozeman, Montana.

Learn more about Janet Fox on her website/ facebook/ blog

The Giveaway: 

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LDS Storymakers 2013 and Whitney Award Winners

I had the chance once again this year to go to the LDS Storymakers conference author signings. There is always a group of all of my favorite people in the whole world gathered there in one place. If you ever get the change to attend it is well worth it. I snapped some quick photos of the ones I found in the line and picked up signed author swag to give away to Fire and Ice readers! To enter to win a pile of bookmarks plus some exclusive Insomnia swag from J. R. Johansson follow me or comment on Instagram @fireicephotos. I will pick a winner on Friday. This one is open internationally.

Also announced at the conference were this years Whitney award winners. I read 14 of the finalist books this year as an academy member. You can see what I thought of them on Goodreads. Congrats to this years winners!

2012 WhITNEY WINNERS

Best Young Adult Speculative Novel: EVERNEATH By Brodi Ashton

Best Young Adult General Novel: AFTER HELLO By Lisa Mangum

Best Middle Grade Novel: THE FALSE PRINCE By Jennifer A. Nielsen

Best General Novel: THE RENT COLLECTOR By Camron Wright

Best Historical Novel: MY LOVING VIGIL KEEPING By Carla Kelly

Best Romance Novel: EDENBROOKE By Julianne Donaldson

Best Mystery/Suspense Novel: CODE WORD By Traci Hunter Abramson

Best Speculative Novel: THE HOLLOW CITY By Dan Wells

Best Youth Novel of the Year: THE FALSE PRINCE By Jennifer A. Nielsen

Best Novel by a New Author: EDENBROOKE By Julianne Donaldson

Best Novel of the Year: THE RENT COLLECTOR By Camron Wright

Lael Littke: LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD

Carol Lynch Williams: OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENT AWARD

Next years Whitneys will be under the direction of  the fabulous Mindy Holt from Min Reads and Reviews and LDSWBR. Looking forward to working together with her in 2013.

Thanks so much to all the awesome authors who contributed swag and let me take a photo. The gallery of Storymakers photos I took is on Smugmug and on the Heather Gardner Photography page on facebook.

Descendant by Nichole Giles Blog Tour, Author Q & A plus Giveaway

Fire and Ice is pleased to welcome author Nichole Giles on the Descendant Blog Tour.  I am particularly excited about this one because I just attended the release party at The King's English this week and had a chance to see my author photo of Nichole in print! See photos of the event here.

Plus, keep reading to hear why she became and author. We also have an awesome giveaway to offer to those who enter.

Seventeen-year-old Abigail Johnson is Gifted.

Blessed-or cursed-with Sight and Healing, Abby lives an unsettled life, moving from place to place and staying one step ahead of the darkness that hunts her. When she arrives in Jackson, Wyoming, she is desperate to maintain the illusion of normalcy, but she is plagued with visions of past lives mixed with frightening glimpses of her future. Then she meets Kye, a mysterious boy who seems so achingly familiar that Abby is drawn to him like he's a missing piece of her own soul.

Before Abby can discover the reason for her feelings toward Kye, the darkness catches up to her and she is forced to flee again. But this time she's not just running. She is fighting back with Kye at her side, and it's not only Abby's life at stake.

Fire and Ice: Can you tell us what myths or folklore tied into Descendant?

Nichole: Several years ago, I was in a bookstore, and came across a huge mythology book in the clearance section. It has all these beautiful pictures, and tells detailed, intricate stories to go with them. I bought it, and have used it as a reference book for my fantasy writing ever since. There’s a story in it about a mythological trio of goddesses who had their hands in all kinds of mischief, including love, war, and fertility issues. This trio is known as The Morrigana, and these ladies play a key role in Abby’s story.   

Fire and Ice: Do you have a playlist or music you listen to while writing?

Nichole: It depends on the day. Most often, I am more productive in the silence. But there are times when I need music. Usually, it’s to drown out other noise or distractions, and when I do turn on music, I have to be careful to listen to something that will not change the course of the story. For this particular story, I did have a playlist. Most of it was instrumental.  

Photo by Heather Zahn Gardner

Fire and Ice: We understand you've published more than one book, how did you decide you wanted to be a writer?

Nichole: Believe it or not, being an author wasn’t a life-long dream for me. I have always loved the arts, and been a creative-type person, but writing a book seemed so out of reach. More difficult than becoming a famous actress—which really was my ambition when I was a teen. And then I got married and had kids, and life took over. After my kids were born, I rediscovered my love of reading. I read a book in which one of the main characters was an author, and he seemed so…normal. And I thought, “Hey, maybe I could do that.” Fast forward a few months, I took an online class, and then I attended a writer’s conference, after which I knew I was hooked for life. I found my direction, started writing, and have never looked back.

Fire and Ice: Who is your literary hero?

Nichole: Katniss Everdeen, Alina Starkov, and . Raine Hightower.

Fire and Ice: If you could travel anywhere to research your book where would you go?

Nichole: If I had a choice, I’d fly to Cancun to research the (still untitled, and not-quite-finished) sequel, because there are scenes set near there. When researching Descendant, obviously, I’d have loved to fly to New York. But, I have another book (unrelated) set in California, and would love to research that one too.

However, if I’m going to get to travel wherever I want to research my books, I will immediately begin planning a story set in Tahiti. And Europe. And Ireland. Yes, all of those. And, uh, on a cruise ship that goes around the world. YES!

Fire and Ice: What advice would you give to someone who wants to publish a book?

Nichole: If you’re going to dive into the publishing industry, there is no talent more important than patience, closely followed by persistence. But aside from those two things, the best advice I can give anyone wanting to be a writer is to read. Read widely and thoroughly. Read everything you can, and learn from those books and those authors. Just read.

Fire and Ice: Most inspiring movie you've seen lately?

Nichole: Not long ago, we rented the DVD of Red Dawn. I was surprised at how inspired I was by that movie. I know it’s fiction, but it’s the idea that inspires me. Those kids were just teenagers, but they managed to be such sharp thorns in the sides of some important military operatives that they sparked a complete rebellion. I came away thinking about how the right people doing the right thing at the right time really can make a difference, really can change things. I love that a fiction movie can make me feel that way.

Fire and Ice: What upcoming events and signings do you have?

Nichole: Unfortunately, not a lot right now. On top of my book being released, we are also moving into a new house this month, so I had to keep my signing schedule light. The official launch happened in Salt Lake City, UT on May 4th and was a huge success. I am also presenting at the LDStorymakers conference in UT this weekend (May 9-11), and will be signing books at the Provo Marriott the evening of the 10th. Then I have another signing at Barnes and Noble in Corpus Christi, TX on May 18th at 1:30 PM.  For now, these are the only signings I have scheduled, but I hope to add more throughout the summer as I am able to travel.

Fire and Ice: Which character do you feel you most resemble in your book and why?

Nichole: I think I have to go with Abby. Because if I resembled the male love interest—that would be weird, I think. Abby has this empathetic tendency, where she kind of feels like it’s her responsibility to take care of everyone around her, and I have been known *ahem* to be a little like that as well. Also, she moved around a lot as a kid, so I can totally identify with that.

Thanks for the interview! I hope you enjoy Descendant. 

Praise for DESCENDANT: "A hot new spin on paranormal, Descendant is refreshingly imaginative and powerful. I can't decide which was best -- piecing together Abby's sinister past or keeping up with her heartbreaking future. If you like your YA laced with melt-my-heart romance and a good helping of heart-pounding suspense, you'll love this book!" -- Michelle Davidson Argyle, author of The Breakaway

"Nichole Giles has crafted a story that breathes from the pages. Her characters are authentic, the action intense, with powerful emotions that will keep Descendant on your mind long after the book ends. Open your eyes to another facet of our world in Descendant and you'll be sucked into an adventure with Abby and Kye, that will explore the power of gifts, courage, and love. With top-notch writing, Giles has crafted a story that breathes from the pages." --Rachelle J. Christensen, award-winning author of Wrong Number and Caller ID

"Nichole Giles brings a fresh new voice and flawless writing technique to the world of Young Adult fiction. I was swept away to another place and never wanted to come back." --Tristi Pinkston, author of Turning Pages and the Secret Sisters mystery series

"This debut novel delivers in all the right ways, with heart-pounding action and a delicious romance that sweeps centuries. I loved it!" --Elana Johnson, author of Possession and Surrender

About Nichole Giles: Nichole Giles was born in Nevada, and moved with her parents to a number of cities in and around the West. Writing is her passion, but she also loves to spend time with her husband and four children, travel to tropical and exotic destinations, drive in the rain with the convertible top down, and play music at full volume so she can sing along.


Nichole is sponsoring a massive giveaway during the blog tour of DESCENDANT! To enter, fill out the form below. 

The Perfume Collector by Kathleen Tessaro - Early Book Review

The Perfume Collector

by Kathleen Tesarro

320 Pages

Expected Publocation Date: May 14, 2013

by Harper

Book Source: Publisher

4.5 stars

London, 1955: Grace Monroe is a young newlywed, eager to make a success of her marriage. However, with her intellectual curiosity and her unladylike talent for advanced mathematics, she finds the routine of elegant luncheons and exclusive parties among post-war London’s social set more tiresome than exciting.

When Grace receives an unexpected inheritance from a woman she’s never met, she finds herself suddenly in Paris, embarking upon a journey to discover not only the identity of her mysterious benefactor but also the hidden secrets of her own past.

In a story that takes us from New York in the 1920s to mid-century Monte Carlo, Paris and London, Grace discovers a world filled with the evocative, intoxicating power of perfume; an obsessive, desperate love between muse and artist; and a trail of dark memories that may mean she isn’t the person she thinks she is at all.

Review: The Perfume Collector is a lush, rich, multi layered novel that takes the reader from 1950 London social circles back in time to 1920's New York, to Monte Carlo and Paris, France. Flipping between two spaces in time it is the unraveling of the mystery behind the estate left to Grace Monroe by a woman in Paris she has never met. Grace is bored with the role she is supposed to play as a new wife and member of a titled English family of the 50's. It seems the [push is for her to look pretty and make her husband successful by her presence in social circles. She has a brilliant mind and can't seem to find her expected role interesting enough.  Along comes an unexpected letter beckoning to meet with a solicitor in France to go over the terms of her inheritance and so begins the first step to discovering an altered past and a new future.

Tessaro concocts a novel that evokes all of the senses and in particular the sense of smells that tie us to memories-- the scent of rain, the familiar signature scent of our childhood and later, a love. My mind wandered to the eccentric exclusive perfume shop Grace and Monsier Tissot uncover in her search for whispers of the past.

"Even in the state of extreme neglect, the room dazzled; walls of glass and mirrors reflecting light so that Grace was blinded of r a moment. As her eyes adjusted, she could see that the space had been designed as a series of bold contrast. The dark wood counter was a rich warm mahogany. The floor was covered in black and white marble tiles. A tiered crystal chandelier, thick with dust and filmy cobwebs, hung from a heavy black silk cord in the center of the ceiling. And the shelves were filled with rows and rows of slim glass flacons, cloudy grey with dirt.

Several times you'll find yourself transported to the world of creating scent and to the field of Grasse where field of lavender abound. However, amidst the magic that is spun, there is also the dark shades of the not so glamorous night life of the Follies. Content wise there are some parts that leave a not so nice, gritty and sometimes down right yucky impression. The workings of childhood neglect, prostitution, drug use, extramarital affairs, alcohol addiction, gambling and codependency. I struggled with several elements of the lives of the characters and their moral reasoning as well as the strong sexual undercurrent that felt heavy handed at times. There is also a push and pull with feminism vs. victimization that was muddy.

Overall I will say this is unlike any other book I've ever read. It got me curious about the lives of Jews in occupied France, about the fascinating wizardry of the genius perfume makers and about life in London during the 50's. The setting awakened all of my senses and made me want to revisit several scenes that left me longing to drink in the same air as Grace. 

Thanks so much to Harper Collins for the preview.

I might suggest checking out the other reviews for this one on perfume blogs. It's a whole new world I am now determined to learn more about. 

You might also like Coming to My Senses: A Story of Perfume, Pleasure, and an Unlikely Bride and The Perfect Scent: A Year Inside the Perfume Industry in Paris and New York .

About the Author: Born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Kathleen attended the University of Pittsburgh before entering the drama program of Carnegie Mellon University. In the middle of her sophomore year, she went to study in London for three months and stayed for the next twenty-three years. She began writing at the suggestion of a friend and was an early member of the Wimpole Street Writer’s Workshop. Her debut novel, Elegance, became a bestseller in hardback and paperback. All of Kathleen's novels including Innocence, The Flirt, The Debutante, and most recently, The Perfume Collector have been translated into many languages and sold all over the world. She returned to Pittsburgh in 2009, where she now lives with her husband and son.

Learn more at HarperCollins/ the author's website

One Drop At A Time Blog Tour and Review

One Drop At a Time
by M. Russell Ballard
Published March 2013
by Deseret Book
Book Source: Publisher
5 stars

Book Summary: Do you sometimes wonder if your little efforts could possibly make any difference at all? Consider a simple example from nature.

Honey is “one of the foods that includes all the substances— enzymes, vitamins, minerals, and water—necessary to sustain life,” writes Elder M. Russell Ballard. And yet, “Over its short lifetime of just a few weeks to four months, a single honeybee’s contribution of honey to its hive is a mere one-twelfth of one teaspoon. Though seemingly insignificant when compared to the total, each bee’s one-twelfth of a teaspoon of honey is vital to the life of the hive.”

Your simple, daily acts of service matter, and this charmingly illustrated little book will lift your heart as it demonstrates the power of many righteous people working together to fill the world, one drop at a time, with the sweet truths of the gospel.

Review: Elder M. Russell Ballard grew up on an orchard and as a boy remembers the hives of honeybees his father kept--over 60,000 bees to pollinate the trees.  Each bee  only lives a few short weeks to four months and its contribution is a mere one twelfth of a teaspoon. But think of the collective effort each bee makes to the good of the hive. Their life's work is  vital and significant when taken as a collective effort. So many of us take for granted the beautiful harmony and system it takes to create each drop of honey.

This book is a visual and verse reminder that each of us has contribution to make, however small it may be. We better the world with daily acts of small service and as mothers. We nurture, we build, we work together. I was inspired by the pages and think One Drop At A Time is just the message we each need to remember.

About the Author: Elder M. Russell Ballard was sustained as a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in October 1985. Prior to that, he served in the first Quorum of the Seventy and in the presidency of that quorum. A successful businessman, he has engaged in various enterprises, including automotive, real estate, and investments. He has also served as a bishop twice and as president of the Canada Toronto Mission. Elder Ballard and his wife, Barbara Bowen Ballard, are the parents of seven children and grandparents of forty-three.