Rainy Days With Amanda

In case you don't know me or are new to my blog, Liane Moriarty is one of my favorite authors. I really enjoy her way of giving the reader suspense with little twists and turns here and there. The plot lines are always interesting and there's never a huge ending surprise in the sense that you will have these outlandish ideas, only for it to be the last thing you would have thought about but makes the most sense (did that even make sense?). Anyway, Here One Moment came out on September 10th, 2024 in the U.S. and best believe I was there at Barnes & Nobles on the day of (and receiving 30% off. Thanks B&N!). So here are my thoughts and feelings on Here One Moment by Liane Moriarty.  About the Author Liane Moriarty is the Australian author of eight internationally best-selling novels: Three Wishes, The Last Anniversary, What Alice Forgot, The Hypnotist’s Love Story, Nine Perfect Strangers and the number one New York Times bestsellers: The Husband's Secret, Big Little ...

 Hey Ya'll! It's been a while since I've made a manga post. I guess I just got busy, but I have been reading lots of great manga! One of those manga happens to be Cherry Magic! Thirty Years of Virginity Can Make You a Wizard?! by Yuu Toyota. Yes, I know. The title is long and a little strange, but trust me it's a good read if you're into the seinen/boys love genre. I forgot how I found this manga to be honest, but somehow I stumbled upon it and all it's different mediums. Let's get into it. About the Mangaka Toyota Yuu is a manga creator with numerous series spanning many different genres, from shojo to slice-of-life with her most known creation being Cherry Magic! . The story she originally came up with was about a wizard who had a one-sided crush on someone else, but it turned into something way beyond that. Just like other Mangaka, there isn't much on Yuu, but I did find a great little interview on her on the Otaku USA Magazine . About Cherry Magic! ...

    Poppy's Coffee House  ☕ 6417 Evers Rd, San Antonio, TX 78238 Poppy's Coffee House is a cute little (but kind of big) coffee shop in the Leon Valley area. It was actually at a place that my husband and I used to frequent but sadly didn't survive after the pandemic (RIP Leon Valley Cafe 😭). This coffee shop is located inside a n actual house and is decorated in Snoopy memorabilia (which we LOVE), along with knitted cup holders, groovy colors, and different types of seating. There are fun coffee's, teas, and other drinks to try along with some great pastries. The last time I visited, I ordered a cheese and spinach pastry with a nice cold green tea with honey. Simple, I know, but I did try their strawberry acai refresher and I wasn't a fan, mainly because it has sparkling water and I'm just not into sparkling water. Other than, I love this spot and it's a newer spot that you should visit sometime soon. 💻 https://poppyscafe.net/ Shotgun House Coffee Roaste...

 Hey Ya'll! I'm happy to be back with another list of coffee shops or you to try this month! I'm getting in all my coffee shop time right now as I will be a new mom in just about 5 more weeks, give or take, and I'm not sure how much time I will have to go out to coffee shops, at least for the following couple of months. Anyways, it's fall!! Kind of. Doesn't feel like it, but here in Texas, we like to pretend. Gravves Coffee ☕ 2106 McCullough Ave, San Antonio, Texas 78212 If you're looking for something a little more goth to grab your coffee, you've come to the right place. Gravves Coffee offers a great selection of fun coffee concotions, including their Elixir drink that is purple because it's made with ube! They also now offer affogato, which is coffee and ice cream and something I've discovered in other places, but not really here in the San Antonio area.  As far as the space, it's in a good size warehouse, which I love. The bathroom is cl...

  THE BORDER BETWEEN US By Rudy Ruiz Literary Fiction Publisher: Blackstone Publishing Pages: 256 Publication Date: August 27, 2024 SYNOPSIS The Border Between Us is a poignant coming-of-age novel from one of the most exciting voices in fiction. Ramón López was born along the US–Mexico border but is determined to get out and embrace the American dream—and he’s not sure whether his complicated family is a help or a hindrance. As the son of immigrants, as Ramón grows, his admiration for his entrepreneurial father sours as he watches his dad’s dreams of success wither on the vine. Ramón’s mother is constantly preoccupied with his younger brother, who struggles with intellectual disabilities. And the outside world is rife with danger and temptations threatening to distract Ramón from his dreams of making it to New York and succeeding as an artist. As dreams clash with reality and values conflict with desires, Ramón finds the American dream within his reach—but will it demand too big ...

 Hey Ya'll! I'm back with another e-book that I picked up for Lone Star Literary Life . Side note, you should check out all the new things Lone Star is doing and planning on doing. Keep up with them on their social media, newsletter, and website! Anyway, this is my last review with them for the year as baby will be here anytime now, but it won't be forever! So I chose to read this book because I'm sucker for reading all things set in the 90's and I love to see how writers portray different eras when it comes to fiction. It also seemed like a cute book according to the synopsis, so I had to throw my hat in the ring. Here is everything you need to know about Poetic Justice by Kathleen McFall and Clark Hays.   About the Author(s)  Kathleen McFall lives, writes, and plays in the Pacific Northwest. Together with Clark Hays, she has written eleven books. Their first book together was about a cowboy and vampire falling in love, which was originally published two decades...

    THE PINK DRESS: A Memoir of a Reluctant Beauty Queen By Janet Little Botkin Memoir Publisher: She Writes Press Pages: 304 Publication Date: 9/10/24 SYNOPSIS Growing up in West Texas, Jane Little Botkin didn’t have designs on becoming a beauty queen. But not long after joining a pageant on a whim in college, she became the first protégé of El Paso’s Richard Guy and Rex Holt, known as the “Kings of Beauty”—just as the 1970’s counterculture movement began to take off. A pink, rose-covered gown—a Guyrex creation—symbolizes the fairy tale life that young women in Jane’s time imagined beauty queens had. Its near destruction exposes reality: the author’s failed relationship with her mother, and her parents’ failed relationship with one another. Weaving these narrative threads together is the Wild West notion that anything is possible, especially do-overs. The Pink Dress awakens nostalgia for the 1960s and 1970s, the era’s conflicts and growth pains. A common expectation that ...

 Hey Ya'll! Thanks for coming back and checking out some awesome coffee shops around the San Antonio area. If you're new, welcome! I usually write book reviews, or book talks as I call them, and sometimes random thoughts, but I just started this coffee series, so we'll see how it grows and expands. Without further ado, here are three coffee shops you should visit this month and any other month in San Antonio.    Sip & Sit With Me Coffee House ☕  3244 Mission Rd, San Antonio, TX 78214   I was on the southside of town for work and afterward, I was looking for a cold drink. I looked up some spots and this cute little shop popped up, so I decided to give it a try. It was a hot day, so I'm glad that as soon as I walked in, there was cold air blowing in the little house-turned-coffee shop. From upon entry, the baristas were very welcoming, and even though I got a cold Jasmine Blossom tea, I was surprised to see so many syrups to choose from your coffee (and I gues...

I found this book when I was looking through a table set at Barnes & Nobles with a sign that read something along the lines of "Translated Japanese Novels." Of course, I had to take a look. This one caught my attention not by the cover, but by the title. It intrigued my interests, so I put it on my list of books to read and I was happy to be able to find a copy at one of my local bookstores. Here's a little bit about All the Lovers in the Night by Mieko Kawakami . About the Author Meiko Kawakami is a Japanese writer and poet from Osaka. Her work has won prestigious Japanese literary awards in several genres including the 138th Akutagawa Prize for Chichi to Ran (Breasts and Eggs), the 2103 Tanizaki Prize for Ai no yum to ka (Dreams of Love, etc.), and so much more.  Kawakami published All the Lovers in the Night in 2011. In 2022 is when it was translated into English by Sam Bett and David Boyd.  About the Book Fuyuko Irie is a freelance copy editor in her mid-thirtie...

 Hey Ya'll! So during one of the nights that I woke up at 4am and couldn't go back to sleep, I thought to myself, "Hmm, maybe I should do a little coffee shop series on my blog." If you don't follow me on social media, then you probably don't know that I go to a lot of coffee shops around town and frequently post them. There's a certain comfort that coffee shops bring to me and it's one of those little joys in life that I treat myself to almost once a week. What do I do at these coffee shops? Work, write, read, and enjoy being out around the town.  Anyway, here are a few coffee shops you should check out this month in no particular order.   Bright Coffee  ☕  1705 Blanco Rd, San Antonio, TX 78212 Bright coffee is an art hub, a community gathering spot, and a place to grab some coffee, tea, and giant pastries in the morning. I discovered Bright Coffee one day when I was looking for coffee shops and I've been coming back ever since. They have a nice ...

    HALLOW:  A FRACTURED FAMILY TALE A Black Orchid Enterprises Mystery, Book #5 by M.R. Dimond Mystery / Cozy Mystery / Lawyers & Criminals Humor Publisher: Rock Rose Press Pages: 321 Publication Date: May 30, 2024

 I am back with another book talk from the L.A. Night Market Mystery series from J. Chow. I enjoyed my time reading the first book of this series, Death by Bubble Tea , so of course I had to come back for seconds. Just like the last book, I checked this one out at my local library (suppoer your local libraries!) since it was the place I discovered the last one and I was already there, so might as well! Anyway, onto the review. About the Author Jennifer J. Chow writes cozies filled with hope and heritage. She is an Agatha, Anthony, Lefty, and Lilian Jackson Braun Award-nominated author. Her newest series is the Magical Fortune Cookie mysteries; the first book is Ill-Fated Fortune . Jennifer’s previous series is the L.A. Night Market Mysteries. Death by Bubble Tea was reviewed by the New York Times , featured in Woman’s World , and hit the SoCal Indie Bestseller List.   About the Story Trouble is brewing for cousins Yale and Celine Yee after a hot pot dinner gets overheated...

 Hey Ya'll! My husband and I are back from another trip and not just any trip, but our babymoon! Yes, I am one of those people who took a trip and called it a babymoon. To be honest, this is probably our last trip for a while, which kind of makes me sad but at the same time, I'm excited for future trips with our baby girl. So on today's blog post, I really just want to talk a bit about Laguna and traveling as a preggo person in general. Laguna Beach, California The Laguna Beach area sits in between LA and San Diego and is part of Orange County. Some may say, why Laguna? Well, I knew that at this point in my pregnancy, I wanted somewhere that was lowkey, but still popping, somewhere with a nice beach, and I wanted the whole trip to not break the bank. Laguna happened to tick all those boxes. The Laguna beach area is comprised of a bunch of different suburban cities, so there is a great many things to do while you're in town. While we were here, we did do a few things. Wh...