Seven Year Switch by Claire Cook
Published by Hyperion
ISBN 978-1-4013-4116-9
At the request of Pump Up Your Book, a HC was sent, at no cost to me, for my honest opinion.
  Synopsis (book’s jacket): Just when Jill Murray has finally figured out how to manage on her own, her ex-husband proves that he can’t even run away reliably. After seven long years missing in action, he’s back-crashing into the man-free existence Jill and her ten-year-old daughter have built so carefully. What’s a good mother to do? To a child, even a deadbeat dad is better than no dad at all.
  Jill’s life just hasn’t turned out quite the way she planned. By now, she’d hoped to be jetting around the world as a high-end cultural coach. Instead, she’s answering phones for a local travel agency and teaching cooking classes at the community center.
  Enter free-spirited entrepreneur Billy, who hires Jill as a consultant for an upcoming business trip. Is their relationship veering off in a new direction? And what about her ex? Jill couldn’t possibly still have feelings for him….could she? Suddenly, her no-boys allowed life is anything but.
  The say that every seven years you become a completely new person, but Jill isn’t sure she is ready for the big change. It takes a Costa Rican getaway to help her make a choice-not so much between the two men in her life, but between the woman she is and the one she wants to be.
  My Thoughts and Opinion:  Hurry!! You still have time to read this delightful, female self liberating, fun, maybe even a little envy thrown in summer read. Jill, has been surviving and going through the motions of daily life to stay afloat to make a life for her daughter and herself after being abandoned seven years ago by her husband. But she hasn’t moved on since that time. The characters in this book come alive through Ms. Cooks writing. I found myself laughing along with Jill, the main character, feeling sorry for her and, at the same time, rooting her on. It was very easy to form imagery of the settings by the words the author conveyed. I might add that one scene, involving a tarantula, had me looking around and I don’t even live where tarantulas do, but was not taking any chances. I also enjoyed the little tidbits of knowledge that the author also added about different lands, the unique foods and customs of different cultures. And for the jealousy, I now believe that every woman needs to and should take a GGG, Great Girlfriends Getaway. This was the first book I read by Claire Cook and it won’t be my last. I thoroughly enjoyed it, as have so many others, from reading the many great reviews regarding this book.
Claire Cook visited this blog and was a “Guest Author” in July. Check out that posting.

From her blog:
We all leave our “footprint” on the world, in one way or another. We each, individually, do something or are someone that makes the world a little better just by being here. I created this weekly meme to get to know the blogging community I love just a bit better. To know what makes them tick, outside of books, that is. Each week I will post a question to be answered in the following week’s “A Bit of Me(Me)”. Check back each Saturday to get the info for next week’s post and link up with your current post right here.

Read more: http://www.theresabook.com/category/a-bit-of-meme/#ixzz0wZp8KLuh
  I have been lucky to have traveled to some faraway places.  When in high school (many, many) years ago, I traveled to Europe twice.  My first trip was to Spain and then we took a boat to Africa. Of course, while in Spain, we saw a bull fight, which parts of it were not pleasant to watch.  Africa, the country side was beautiful but then we took a side trip to the Casba and that left a lasting impression on me.  The poverty, the lack of housing and illness, mainly leprosy. 
  The next year, I traveled to Italy, which was beautiful and rich in heritage.  I went to the Vatican, the Coliseum, Pompeii, shopping in Florence and so much more. 
  We have also been to the Caribbean 4 times. 

So to answer this week’s question, I would love to go back to Italy and visit but as a family vacation with our 2 sons.

Seven Year Switch by Claire Cook
Published by Hyperion
ISBN 978-1-4013-4116-9
At the request of Pump Up Your Book, a HC was sent, at no cost to me, for my honest opinion.
  Synopsis (book’s jacket): Just when Jill Murray has finally figured out how to manage on her own, her ex-husband proves that he can’t even run away reliably. After seven long years missing in action, he’s back-crashing into the man-free existence Jill and her ten-year-old daughter have built so carefully. What’s a good mother to do? To a child, even a deadbeat dad is better than no dad at all.
  Jill’s life just hasn’t turned out quite the way she planned. By now, she’d hoped to be jetting around the world as a high-end cultural coach. Instead, she’s answering phones for a local travel agency and teaching cooking classes at the community center.
  Enter free-spirited entrepreneur Billy, who hires Jill as a consultant for an upcoming business trip. Is their relationship veering off in a new direction? And what about her ex? Jill couldn’t possibly still have feelings for him….could she? Suddenly, her no-boys allowed life is anything but.
  The say that every seven years you become a completely new person, but Jill isn’t sure she is ready for the big change. It takes a Costa Rican getaway to help her make a choice-not so much between the two men in her life, but between the woman she is and the one she wants to be.
  My Thoughts and Opinion:  Hurry!! You still have time to read this delightful, female self liberating, fun, maybe even a little envy thrown in summer read. Jill, has been surviving and going through the motions of daily life to stay afloat to make a life for her daughter and herself after being abandoned seven years ago by her husband. But she hasn’t moved on since that time. The characters in this book come alive through Ms. Cooks writing. I found myself laughing along with Jill, the main character, feeling sorry for her and, at the same time, rooting her on. It was very easy to form imagery of the settings by the words the author conveyed. I might add that one scene, involving a tarantula, had me looking around and I don’t even live where tarantulas do, but was not taking any chances. I also enjoyed the little tidbits of knowledge that the author also added about different lands, the unique foods and customs of different cultures. And for the jealousy, I now believe that every woman needs to and should take a GGG, Great Girlfriends Getaway. This was the first book I read by Claire Cook and it won’t be my last. I thoroughly enjoyed it, as have so many others, from reading the many great reviews regarding this book.
Claire Cook visited this blog and was a “Guest Author” in July. Check out that posting.

From her blog:
We all leave our “footprint” on the world, in one way or another. We each, individually, do something or are someone that makes the world a little better just by being here. I created this weekly meme to get to know the blogging community I love just a bit better. To know what makes them tick, outside of books, that is. Each week I will post a question to be answered in the following week’s “A Bit of Me(Me)”. Check back each Saturday to get the info for next week’s post and link up with your current post right here.

Read more: http://www.theresabook.com/category/a-bit-of-meme/#ixzz0wZp8KLuh
  I have been lucky to have traveled to some faraway places.  When in high school (many, many) years ago, I traveled to Europe twice.  My first trip was to Spain and then we took a boat to Africa. Of course, while in Spain, we saw a bull fight, which parts of it were not pleasant to watch.  Africa, the country side was beautiful but then we took a side trip to the Casba and that left a lasting impression on me.  The poverty, the lack of housing and illness, mainly leprosy. 
  The next year, I traveled to Italy, which was beautiful and rich in heritage.  I went to the Vatican, the Coliseum, Pompeii, shopping in Florence and so much more. 
  We have also been to the Caribbean 4 times. 

So to answer this week’s question, I would love to go back to Italy and visit but as a family vacation with our 2 sons.

Today I am thrilled that James Hayman is stopping by, his 2nd visit here, to talk about his latest novel. The last time he was here, was for his book, The Cutting, (review 03/30/10) which I thoroughly enjoyed. Today he will be telling us about his newest novel The Chill of Night. Lets give a group welcome to Mr. James Hayman.

   We both married beautiful brunettes. McCabe’s wife, Sandy dumped him to marry a rich investment banker who had “no interest in raising other people’s children.” My wife, Jeanne, though often given good reason to leave me in the lurch, has stuck it out through thick and thin and is still my wife. She is also my best friend, my most attentive reader and a perceptive critic.
   Both McCabe and I eventually left New York for Portland, Maine. I arrived in August 2001, shortly before the 9/11 attacks, in search of the right place to begin a new career as a fiction writer. He came to town a year later, to escape a dark secret in his past and to find a safe place to raise his teenage daughter, Casey.
   There are other similarities between us. We both love good Scotch whiskey, old movie trivia and the New York Giants. And we both live with and love women who are talented artists.
   There are also quite a few differences. McCabe’s a lot braver than me. He’s a better shot. He likes boxing. He doesn’t throw up at autopsies. And he’s far more likely to take risks. McCabe’s favorite Portland bar, Tallulah’s, is, sadly, a figment of my imagination. My favorite Portland bars are all very real.
Visit James on the web at http://www.jameshaymanthrillers.com/.

   A mentally ill woman named Abby Quinn witnesses the brutal crime. But when she tells what she has seen, nobody will believe her. Not until she too mysteriously disappears.
   In The Chill of Night, Portland homicide detective Michael McCabe finds himself finds himself fighting memories from his own past as he races to find the killer before another life is lost.
   James Hayman once again tells a gripping tale of evil and deceit and creates characters so real and so human, we want to meet them again and again.

Abby looked up and saw a low dark thing moving toward her. A black form, now visible through the whipping snow, now obliterated by it. With each step it grew clearer and bigger. At twenty feet it began to take shape. Animal. Not human. A large dog, gray fur glistening under crystals of snow, cruel icy eyes shining through the night, more wolf than dog. She stopped but the animal kept coming. She could hear its rumbling growl. Low. Menacing. Commanding. Her heart beat against the walls of her chest so hard she was certain it would break through. She knew what the creature wanted. She knelt on her hands and knees. It bared a fang long enough and sharp enough to penetrate the soft flesh at back of her neck. She lowered her head and waited for release. But release didn’t come. Finally, after a minute or two, she looked up and it was gone. She could see nothing in front of her but the snow-covered street and the wind-swept flakes still hurtling down through the night sky. She stayed where she was, kneeling in the snow. She could hear a child crying. She listened. After a bit she realized the sound was coming from her. She got up and started walking again.

Watch the Trailer!

Look for my review of The Chill of Night very soon!!

From An Island Life:
In Hawaii, Aloha Friday is the day that we take it easy and look forward to the weekend. So I thought that on Fridays I would take it easy on posting, too. Therefore, I’ll ask a simple question for you to answer. Nothing that requires a lengthy response.
If you’d like to participate, visit An Island Life answer the question and then post your own question on your blog and leave your link below. Don’t forget to visit the other participants! It’s a great way to make new bloggy friends!

   In the spirit of the Twitter Friday Follow, the Book Blogger Hop is a place just for book bloggers and readers to connect and find new book-related blogs that we may be missing out on! This weekly BOOK PARTY is an awesome opportunity for book bloggers to connect with other book lovers, make new friends, support each other, and generally just share our love of books! It will also give blog readers a chance to find other book blogs that they may not know existed! So, grab the logo, post about the Hop on your blog, and start HOPPING through the list of blogs that are posted in the Linky list below!!
   The Hop lasts Friday-Monday every week, so if you don’t have time to Hop today, come back later and join the fun! This is a weekly event! And stop back throughout the weekend to see all the new blogs that are added! We get over 200 links every week!!
   Your blog should have content related to books, including, but not limited to book reviews.
If you start following someone through the Hop, leave a comment on their blog to let them know! Stop back during the week to see other blogs that are added! And, most importantly, the idea is to HAVE FUN!!
This week’s twist:
How many books do you have on your ‘to be read shelf’?
My Answer:
Shelf?  More like a bookcase.  I have 22 books in my “tbr requested review” pile and for my “personal tbr shelves” it is too many.  And then there are quite a few in my EReader waiting to be read.  Since finding the book blogging/reviewing world my tbr lists have grown.  And because of that I have renamed my tbr list to “my tbr bucket list”.
Have a great weekend and thank you for stopping by and visiting!!