Dear Abby - Videos That Abby Likes: Dachshunds Playing in Leaves

Dear Friends,

Is it cool and Fall-like where you are?  It is still very hot where I am, with temperatures up to 90 degrees in the afternoon, but I am thinking about Fall and looking forward to cooler weather for good long walks ahead.

I spent some time looking at dachshunds playing in leaves on Youtube.  I found a few videos to share with you!

Meatball the dachshund helps rake leaves in this video called Leaf It To Meatball.



A cute dachshund named Sasha plays in a big pile of yellow leaves.  I love the Fall colors in this video!



Short but sweet video with a 9 month old puppy named Baxter who really loves the leaves:



I hope you are having a great Fall and hope you enjoyed these videos.  Have a wonderful weekend!

Love,

Abby xoxoxo

Book Review - Summer Plans and Other Disasters, by Karin Beery

Book Synopsis

Elementary school music teacher Callie Stevens thinks she’s finally figured out God’s plan for her life—she even made a list to keep her on track.

Moving in with her brother and reconnecting with her ex-boyfriend are at the top of the list. What’s not on the list is running into her childhood crush, Ryan. God wanted her to connect with Kyle, right?

Trying to figure out God’s plan is hard enough. But a dating-averse older brother, the young blonde who adores him, a pregnant best friend, and Callie’s continual mishaps make her wonder whether her best laid plans were truly God-inspired. 

 
Now available from Elk Lake Publishing!


My Review
Summer Plans and Other Disasters tells the story of Callie, who moves home for the summer to live with her brother and pursue her ex-boyfriend Kyle.  She has her summer neatly planned out.  But things happen to make her re-think her plans, including meeting her long ago crush, Ryan, again.

This is such a fun, sweet read!   Callie is a very likeable and real character.  She is a music teacher and a bit of a klutz.  Her attempts to help her brother Jack as he works to maintain the lighthouse where they live and the surrounding park almost always end in disaster.

I loved the other characters too -- Callie's brother Jack, his best friend Ryan, Stacey (who has a crush on Jack), and Callie's friend Mae.

The atmosphere of the book was especially nice.  I felt like I spent a few hours enjoying life in a lighthouse in small town Michigan.

I also really liked the Christian message of this novel.  Callie is a planner but she learns to let go and trust God.  The author, Karin Beery, handled the message deftly and with a light touch.  The strength of the characters and the engaging plot were always at the heart of this novel.

This story is told from several characters' perspectives, and that took a few chapters to get used to.   But I soon was interested in what would happen next and I enjoyed getting to know the different characters via alternating perspectives.

I recommend Summer Plans and Other Disasters for fans of Christian fiction, women's fiction, and contemporary romance.  It would make a fun weekend read or vacation book.

Author Bio

Karin wrote her first novel in 2007 to cope with her husband’s cancer diagnosis (no worries – he’s cancer free now!). With the support and encouragement of her family, she submitted that manuscript. That particular manuscript has not been published yet, but Summer Plans and Other Disasters, her first published book, releases in September 2018.
 

Karin writes contemporary and speculative fiction stories with a healthy dose of romance, but she’s also expanded her repertoire: she writes feature stories for the local paper, copy material for businesses, and blog posts for herself and others. She even edits (offering copy editing, fiction editing, and critiques through Write Now Editing Services) and teaches (she’s the Substantive Fiction Editing instructor for the PEN Institute and can be found around the country teaching writing and editing courses at conferences and at her local college).

When Karin’s not reading, writing, or editing, she enjoys cooking and baking. She plays the piano and sings (the key of E, please). She kayaks with her husband in the summer, watches football in the fall (Go Blue!), and enjoys Christmas lights all winter long. Shy but extroverted, Karin adores her nieces and nephew and loves spending time with her family.  Learn more about Karin at: karinbeery.com.

You can also follow her on:

Facebook - www.facebook.com/authorkarinbeery/

Twitter - https://twitter.com/karinbeery 

Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/karinbeery/

I received a copy of this book from the publisher.

Book Review and Giveaway - Glitter Bomb (A Scrapbooking Mystery) by Laura Childs with Terrie Farley Moran

Book Synopsis

An exploding Mardi Gras float has got to be the strangest murder weapon scrappy sleuth Carmela Bertrand has ever encountered in this latest Scrapbooking Mystery from the New York Times bestselling author.

It’s Mardi Gras in New Orleans and scrapbook shop owner Carmela Bertrand is excited to be attending the Pluvius Parade along with her best friend Ava. Carmela’s ex-husband Shamus rides by the duo on his float at the head of the parade, when suddenly the revelry turns to disaster. Shamus’ float crashes and explodes, and although Shamus escapes unhurt, a member of his krewe is killed.

Carmela and Ava plunge into an investigation of the krewe-member’s death, but as they dig deeper it starts to look less like an accident and more like a murder….and Shamus seems less like a victim, and more like a suspect.

My Review
Carmela Bertrand, who owns a scrapbooking shop in New Orleans, is drawn into a mystery when she sees a float explode at a Mardi Gras parade.  A friend of her ex-husband, Shamus, is killed in the explosion, and Shamus asks her to help solve the mystery.

What rollicking fun Glitter Bomb is -- much like Mardi Gras itself!   I love New Orleans and the authors got the local detail absolutely perfect.   Reading this novel was like visiting the city at the height of Mardi Gras.

I have read several of the books in this series, but not all, and this book works well as a standalone.

Carmela is a fun character.  I enjoy reading about her scrapbooking shop and her amateur detective work.   The detective work is especially interesting since her boyfriend, Edgar Babcock, is a police detective.  I like their relationship and enjoyed their scenes in this book.  Carmela also has a wacky best friend, Ava, and two lovable dogs.

This mystery was complex because there were so many characters and suspects.  (I would have liked a cast of characters list to keep them all straight!)  There were some clues about the murderer and I guessed before the denouement.  Without giving spoilers I will add that the scene where the murderer is caught is my favorite in the book -- very atmospheric and suspenseful!

There were also sections at the back of the book with scrapbooking tips and New Orleans recipes.

I recommend Glitter Bomb to fans of cozy mysteries, and especially to anyone who loves New Orleans.  You are in for a fun read!

Author Bios

Laura Childs is the New York Times bestselling author of the Tea Shop Mysteries, Scrapbook Mysteries, and Cackleberry Club Mysteries. In her previous life she was CEO/Creative Director of her own marketing firm and authored several screenplays. She is married to a professor of Chinese art history, loves to travel, rides horses, enjoys fundraising for various non-profits, and has two Chinese Shar-Pei dogs.

Laura specializes in cozy mysteries that have the pace of a thriller (a thrillzy!) Her three series are:

The Tea Shop Mysteries – set in the historic district of Charleston and featuring Theodosia Browning, owner of the Indigo Tea Shop. Theodosia is a savvy entrepreneur, and pet mom to service dog Earl Grey. She’s also an intelligent, focused amateur sleuth who doesn’t rely on coincidences or inept police work to solve crimes. This charming series is highly atmospheric and rife with the history and mystery that is Charleston.

The Scrapbooking Mysteries – a slightly edgier series that take place in New Orleans. The main character, Carmela, owns Memory Mine scrapbooking shop in the French Quarter and is forever getting into trouble with her friend, Ava, who owns the Juju Voodoo shop. New Orleans’ spooky above-ground cemeteries, jazz clubs, bayous, and Mardi Gras madness make their presence known here!

The Cackleberry Club Mysteries – set in Kindred, a fictional town in the Midwest. In a rehabbed Spur station, Suzanne, Toni, and Petra, three semi-desperate, forty-plus women have launched the Cackleberry Club. Eggs are the morning specialty here and this cozy cafe even offers a book nook and yarn shop. Business is good but murder could lead to the cafe’s undoing! This series offers recipes, knitting, cake decorating, and a dash of spirituality.

Laura’s Links:
Webpage – http://www.laurachilds.com/
Facebook – https://www.facebook.com/laura.childs.31

Short-listed twice for The Best American Mystery Stories, Terrie Farley Moran is delighted to introduce mystery fans to the Read ’Em and Eat café and bookstore, which debuted with Well Read, Then Dead. followed by Caught Read-Handed and Read to Death released in July of this year.  The only thing Terrie enjoys more than wrangling mystery plots into submission is playing games and reading stories with any or all of her grandchildren.

Terrie’s Links:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/terrie.moran.9
Blog:  www.womenofmystery.net
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/23186092-terrie-moran

Purchase Links:

Amazon    B&N    Google Books    IndieBound   Kobo  BookBub 


Giveaway
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I received a copy of this book from NetGalley and Great Escapes Book Tour.