Lots of fun things here for you guys today. I want to share with you a book review of The Start of Everything by Emily Winslow and and some more reviews of products I tried recently. But first, be sure to check out this yummy recipe for a Chocolate SunButter Chia Pudding which is vegan, nut-free, and sugar-free!
If you liked my Chocolate Peanut Butter Chia Pudding but have allergies to nuts, you will LOVE this nutfree version – it is super delicious and healthy! The recipe can be found on Lisa Lately’s blog. So head on over there after you finish reading this post 🙂
Book Review:
I recently read a book by an author of The Whole World, a book I really liked and praised in my review. I had been putting off reading The Start of Everything by Emily Winslow due to a lot of school-related reading I had to do, but I finally got a chance to read it. And man, oh man – this author will never cease to amaze me. Maybe I am speaking too soon since this is only her second book but I have faith in her – this book was a huge winner in my eyes.
Here’s the synopsis from Amazon:
“If you don’t want to see me again, say so. But it’s not right to say nothing. It’s not right to go silent. You know what to do.”
Cambridge, England:Â Outside the city, the badly decomposed body of a teenage girl has washed up in the flooded fens. Detective Inspector Chloe Frohmann and her partner, Morris Keene, must work quickly to identify the victim before the press takes off with the salacious story.
Across the hallowed paths and storied squares of Cambridge University, the detectives follow scant clues toward the identity of the dead girl. Eventually, their search leads them to Deeping House, an imposing country manor where, over the course of one Christmas holiday, three families, two nannies, and one young writer were snowed in together. Chloe Frohmann begins to unravel a tangled web of passions and secrets, of long-buried crimes and freshly committed horrors. But in order to reveal the truth—about misaddressed letters, a devastating affair, and a murdered teenager—she may have to betray her partner.
My thoughts:
This book was right up my alley. I was the kind of thriller you did not know what would happen. Like, literally I had NO idea how it would end. There was just not enough to go off on – which was perfect! I love this sense of mystery and engagement, it made me feel very intrigued to continue reading and I was sucked into the book very quickly. I liked that the chapters were written from first-person perspective and each chapter was written from a different characters’ eyes but it was not done in a confusing way whatsoever. I am usually not a big fan of switching perspectives in a book cause it tends to confuse me and I get lost in who’s talking and what’s going on – but this was not the case here. Everything was very well-written and Ms Winslow has a voice like many authors strive to own. I totally recommend reading “The Start Of Everything” by Emily Winslow.
Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
Currently Reading:
Currently, I’m reading The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown. I don’t know why I resisted reaading this book for so long, I was afraid it would be too confusing and intelligent for me, but it is not! I am about 1/3 of the way through and I cannot put it down. Just a side note if you haven’t read it yet.
I also started reading Permission Marketing by Seth Godin. I rented it from the library after reading about it somewhere – the subheading of the book sounded very intriguing but when I was halfway through the second chapter I thought something was off. The things he was referring to in terms of online marketing were… not relevant. I was confused. Why did he keep referring to AOL?! So I checked the year and sure enough, this book is from 1999. Ancient when it comes to something so fast-moving as the Internet. Hah, I want the 15 minutes of my life back! Sigh.
Before I started reading Da Vinci Code (PS. I JUST realized this is the second book in the Langdon series.. why the heck do I keep reading books that are in the middle of a series? Sigh), my roommate kept pushing me to start reading her favorite book series by Kim Harrison about witches. The first book is called Dead Witch Walking. She loves the series and has every single book from it. However, it was just way too supernatural for me to get into it. I couldn’t relate to it (obviously), I guess I like only a smidgen of supernatural (ohhh, Twilight…) if anything.
New Product Tries:
I am a big fan of Enjoy Life Foods and I got to try their new soft baked bars recently. The flavors are scrumptious: moist and soft, as promised. They are too sweet for me though.
I don’t think Larabars need much of an introduction but I am excited to be able to try all of these different flavors! I’ve only tried a couple of them before so I’m looking forward to finding a favorite. So far I’ve only tried the Chocolate Coconut Chew – it’s yummy but I wish it was bigger.
Bestowed is a cool subscription box that you can get in the mail with new swag every month. I’m pretty excited to get to try that Blueberry Date Chia oatmeal, it sounds really cool. And I looked through that salad book – lots if interesting salads! Oh and the Sun Cups were like Reeses but with Sunflower Butter and they were SO good!
Check out these adorable clothes from Ellie! Ellie offers women a chic new line in women’s fitness apparel. It mixes essential fashion-forward looks with high-tech performance activewear for the most stylish fitness experience you’ve ever had! I have to admit, I really LOVE these clothes. The top is a large because I found that their sizes run a bit small and it is SUPER comfortable to wear and the fabric is very high quality.
I also have long leggings that I wore for running numerous times and I really like them. They are very comfortable and the fabric is, again, very high quality.
If you want to sign up for Ellie fitness clothing, you can do so here and get 20% off!
The STIMULAST Solution is a cellulite-reduction workout program that’s very doable.
Since I no longer belong to a gym, due to funds, I am on a look out for a new workout program. I currently do my C25K running program and I am on week 5, so I run about 3 times a week but I feel like I need something extra. I know most women can relate to the issue of having cellulite, even if you are skinny you might have it – mine isn’t as bad as I used to have it before I started working out but I do want to do something to get rid of it. This workout program seems like a great way to do it, it’s body-weight and it is totally doable with my running because it only requires 20 minutes or less, 3 times a week for 28 days.
Check out the program here.
 Kammie wants to know:
- What is your favorite Larabar flavor?
- What is your favorite type of a workout?
Let me know in the comments below!
Disclaimer: I have received these products (besides the Stimulast workout) free of charge from the companies. My opinions are my own.Â
