Children's Book Review: The Little Boy Who Lost His Name By David Cadji-Newby & Pedro Serapicos

As parents, we all know how important it is to spend quality time reading to our children.  It's a chance within a busy day to create a safe space and a pocket of time just for parent and child to bond over a shared story.

And what better way to make the story even more special than by giving a child a book that is personalised with a message just for them?  It adds an extra bit of mystery and fun.

As we go towards Halloween and start to focus on all things mystical and spooky, younger children may prefer a story that is a little less scary and a little more magical.

The Little Boy Who Lost His Name fits the bill nicely. (Or The Little Girl ...)

This lovely story is about a child (boy or girl) who loses their name and goes on a magical journey to find it. They find their name again by being given each letter by a magical or mythical creature - and when the letters are put together their name is spelt out.

So, for example, on Ieuan's journey he meets an Imp, an Elephant, a Unicorn, an Aadrvark and a Narwhal whale.

I would say that the story is suitable for children up to about Ieuan's age (7) but probably better suited to children a little younger who are just beginning their reading journey.

The book can be further personalised in the front page with a letter from their parents (or a message from the giver of the book which would make a lovely Christmas present, or a non-sugary Halloween gift).

It also comes in a beautiful paper wallet to keep the book in good condition.

The Little Boy Who Lost His Name is independently published and produced in as environmentally friendly a way as possible.

The story has really resonated with parents and children and the book has sold over 1.7 million copies in 176 countries.

The book retails at £19.99 with free shipping worldwide and you order and customize online at the Lostmyname website.  You enter the child's name and gender, pick an avatar which reminds you most of them and enter your dedication.

A preview is then generated for you to check and approve before checking out.

Although the price isn't cheap, the quality is superb and the book is really designed more as a special keepsake with a personal touch. I think it would even make a lovely Christening / naming gift to be kept for the special moment when bedtime stories begin.

Before settling down for the night with Yoda (who needs lots of early nights because he's 900 years old apparently), Ieuan remarked that the dedication in the front was "really cool" and he enjoyed the story.

High praise from a 7 year old.

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New Releases, Free & Bargain Books Link-up Week 39

How are you all this week?  We've been really busy.  Ieuan is preparing for his next Tae Kwondo grading (green stripe) and when he's not practising for that, we've been making sure that we read the school library books from cover to cover.

I've been reading to the kids in different accents and they think it's now hilarious to talk in a variety of new dialects each day.  I'm not quite sure they've mastered the Scottish or Irish accents as they mostly sound American or Australian!

I've just finished the latest crime thriller from one of my new favourite authors, John W. Mefford - At Dusk - which features a female detective for a change - Alex Troutt.  If you've not read any of John's books I highly recommend them. This latest features a really creepy serial killer who is obsessed with eyes. You can find my review here.

Happy bargain and freebie hunting on this link.

Have a great week!

Sharing the Love of Books
Enjoy our selection of New Releases / Free & Bargain Books this week

Authors please feel free to add your own books
Readers please free to add your own finds
(any genre except erotica welcome)

This weekly link up is hosted by Beck Valley Books & these awesome book loving blogs...
Monday
 Life as Leels | IrishdaisylovesRomance | Book Babble | All Romance Reader
Tuesday
It's My Side of Life | Celticlady's Reviews | First Time Mommy Adventures 
Wednesday
Beck Valley Books | Cinnamon Hollow Reviews
Thursday
Miki's Hope | Nicki's Nook
Friday
Ebook Addicts | I Love Romance | Mother Distracted | Colorimetry | The Ultimate Fan Blog
Saturday
Totally Addicted to Reading | 3 Partners in Shopping | Angie's Angle | I Create Purty Thangs | Wishful Endings
Sunday
Lynchburg Mama | LibriAmoriMiei | Ali - The Dragon Slayer | Wondermom Wannabe | Deal Sharing Aunt | Rambling Reviews 

For Pre-orders post - PRE-ORDER / genre / title /author

For New Releases post - NEW / genre / title / author

For Free Books post - FREE / genre / title / author / end date 

For Bargain Books post - SALE / price / genre / title / author / end date
(Strictly no Erotica please.  Steamy romance is fine but watch those covers people, incase any underage child is viewing it!)

Click here for this weeks awesome selection!

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Inspirational Design Ideas That Parents Will Love

If you’re busy juggling the school run with work or other commitments, you may not have time for DIY and interior design. 

Thankfully, you don’t have to devote a lot of time to shopping or hammering with these inspirational design ideas. If you’re a parent looking to give your home a mini makeover, why not give these suggestions a try?

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Displaying children’s artwork

Have you got folders of paintings lying around in boxes in the spare room? Have you run out of room on the fridge? Or are you struggling to find enough wall space to hang your children’s masterpieces? If these scenarios sound familiar, it’s time to find some innovative new ways to display your kids’ artwork.

One idea is to create a wall-mounted gallery. Buy a series of frames, and select your favourite works. Put up some tacks in the wall and hang your frames. This idea works really well on staircases or landing walls. You can choose frames that are all the same size and colour, or mix things up with different sizes and styles. You don’t need to spend a fortune on your creation. Take a look online and compare prices. Sites like Best4Frames offer a range of cheap picture frames.

Another idea is to create a washing-line style gallery. Put up a piece of string or tape and then use mini pegs to hang your pictures. Once the line is in place, you could add personalised wall stickers to finish off the look. Go for your child’s name or a quote from a famous artist.

Wallpaper with a difference

Are your kids always drawing on the walls or adding their own touches to your wallpaper? If so, why not create a chalkboard wall? Your new wall will look stylish, and your children can be as creative as they like. You can use chalkboard paint or buy a ready-made sticker. This is an excellent idea for family kitchens, playrooms, and children’s bedrooms.

Sensational storage

Storage issues are commonplace in family homes. Are you constantly tripping over building blocks or trying to cram as many books as possible into your shelving units? The good news is that there are some fantastic child-friendly storage ideas out there. You can buy units, which look like toys and invest in clever solutions. Think giant Lego brick storage boxes. Or wardrobes and beds fitted with pull-out drawers. If you have older kids, bunk beds with desks underneath are an excellent space-saving option.

Family photos

Every parent loves to display photographs of their kids around the house. There are various ways you can do this. You can stand frames on units and chests. You can hang canvases on the wall or buy giant multi-aperture frames. You could create a photo wall in the same style as your artwork gallery. Or you could put up a series of shelves and fill them with your favourite images.

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If you’re a parent looking for simple but effective design ideas, hopefully, you’re feeling inspired. Try these quick and easy tips, and your home will look beautifully unique in no time!

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Greece Is The Word - Why You Should Choose Greece For Your Next Family Holiday

In south eastern Europe, across the water from Turkey, lies Greece and the Greek Islands. Greece continues to be one of the most sought after destination for vacations. Read on to find out why Greece is the last word in family holidays.

Image credit: Nikos Roussos

The Aegean Sea

First of all, one of the biggest pull of all those little islands is that they are situated in the beautiful Aegean sea. The Aegean sea is like the ocean that you see on postcards. It's blue and deep and surrounded by beautiful sandy beaches and quaint little towns. It’s also so clear that you can see the fishes and marine life that surrounds you in the water.

In fact, in most places, the weather is so good and the current so favorable that the sun actually gets the chance to warm up the water. This makes it more like a pleasantly warm bath, instead of the freezing endurance test we are used to in the UK.

Another huge boon for taking the family to Greece is that many Greek beaches slope slowly away into the sea. This creates warm shallows in which the kids can play and swim. They can also learn to snorkel here and check out the underwater activity that is common at that shore line.

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Food

Of course, food is a major part of any family holiday. If you are concerned that there won't be enough choice for your little ones, don't worry. In fact, there are a lot of English style dishes on offer that will satisfy even the pickiest of eaters.

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However, it's unlikely that you’ll need to resort to pie and chips as the Greeks are known for their excellent cuisine. Many a holidaymaker has returned from the islands having realized that they do in fact enjoy all sort of culinary delights and the Mediterranean Diet is recognised as being extremely beneficial for the health conscious, with the possible benefit of a longer life too! Fruits and vegetables such as Kalamata olives, tomatoes and pepper are all sweet from being grown in the glorious sun. So your kids may return home with a far more sophisticated palate than when they arrived.

Accommodation

Accommodation in Greece varies in style and type depending on your needs. There is bed and breakfast accommodation in places such as the local taverna or hotel rooms in towns like Lindos and Lardos, suitable for couples or friends sharing. Then there are plenty of self-catering apartments for families in the larger centers of the islands like Rhodes or Mykonos town. Or if you are looking for more privacy then you might choose one of the Santorini villas on offer, most of which include a private pool.

Activities

If your little ones get bored, easily there is plenty to see and do in the Greek Islands. There are plenty of long coastal walks to pretty villages on most islands that you can do. Or what about visiting a live volcano or some ancient ruins?

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There are also plenty of water sports to take part in. Jet skis can be hired from stations on the larger beaches. Or how about taking a day trip on an old-fashioned sail boat. One of the highlights is getting to jump into the ocean from the deck, but be warned the sea isn't always quite as warm that far out!

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Common Ear Problems And What You Can Do About Them

If you have ever had a problem with your ears, you’ll know that it can be tough to deal with. You are in pain and there's no escape as it's right there in your head. 

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If you are struggling with hearing loss, you may be trying to mask it. But it is important that you speak to your doctors and find out what the underlying cause is.

There are many different problems you can suffer with in your ears, and many can be treated or the symptoms at least alleviated. Read on for more information about some of the most common of these - and what you can do about them.

Ménière’s disease 

Ménière’s disease is a fairly rare condition, the cause of which is still unconfirmed. It occurs in the inner ear and causes bouts of dizziness and vertigo. Other common symptoms include tinnitus or ringing in the ears. Attacks usually last around 1- 3 hours, but the after-effects can be felt for up to 24 hours, and sufferers often need to stop and rest in order to feel well again.

For sufferers, Ménière’s can be debilitating. They never know when it will strike, and it may cause  severe attacks of dizziness and vomiting at any time. This is very stressful for the sufferer and can understandably lead to depression or anxiety as well. It can cause problems for them in all parts of their lives. This can result in a large amount of time off work, difficulty travelling and socializing.

Scientists believe that the cause may be problems with pressure in the inner ear or issues with the membrane of the ear. A more specific explanation of what happens during an attack is still being researched.

Treatment for Ménière’s differs depending on your practitioner. Some doctors advise relaxation techniques including Yoga or Tai Chi. Some people find relief in guided meditations during an attack. In America, the newest treatment is a device that pushes air pressure into the ear which seems to stop the dizziness.

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Other things that may improve the condition include changing your medication as some are known to produce the symptoms of the disease. A change in diet is also often recommended, for example cutting out sodium (salt).

Extreme cases may result in surgery - although patients will have gone through balance retraining and other techniques before they get to that point.

Tinnitus

Tinnitus or ringing in the ears is a symptom of Meniere's disease, but it can also occur on its own. Regular readers of this blog will know that I am a sufferer. It might not sound too bad if you haven't got it, but try to imagine what it's like to have a constant high pitch whining in your ears that you can do nothing about.  It is incredibly frustrating.

Image Credit: Coty Schwabe

It is more common in people over 80 years of age, but anyone can develop the condition. It's often linked to hearing loss, although Tinnitus doesn't cause it.  Many younger people today are beginning to suffer from tinnitus through over exposure to loud noise at rock concerts, festivals and in clubs.

There are several types of tinnitus.  The most usual kind is when the sufferer hears a whooshing, ringing or roaring in the ears. Pulsatile Tinnitus is when the sound pulses in time with your heartbeat. Suffers may also have musical hallucinations, when the sound appears as fragments of songs or music.

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Whichever type you think you have it's important that you see your doctor for some advice on how to deal with this condition.

There are several things that we know can cause tinnitus. One is inner ear damage, which can be due to age, self-inflicted or due to a work related injury.

It is now even possible to seek advice from companies like UKClaim Lawyers about this and to apply for compensation which can then be put towards treatments to hopefully improve the quality of the sufferer's life.

Other causes include a build of wax, anemia, diabetes and hypertension. It can also be a result of blood vessel issues and neck and jaw problems.

Your doctor may recommend a range of therapies that may help you cope with tinnitus. Firstly, CBT or Cognitive Behavioral Therapy should be considered. Although not a cure, it is designed to help you reframe the problem and find working solutions to cope better with it in your daily life.

Secondly, hearing aids with noise devices (maskers) may help, as these can cancel out the noise that you are experiencing in your ears. Many tinnitus sufferers also use white or pink noise to drown out the sound at night, which allows them some peace and makes it easier to get off to sleep.

Tinnitus is a frustrating disease with no real cure and most of the therapies involved learning to live with the problems. They center finding relief where you can and dealing with the emotional and mental fallout. This is why many sufferers are referred for relational training and counselling.

Ear Barotrauma

Ear barotrauma or stretched ear, is a condition which occurs when the air pressure in the middle ear and the ear canal is unequal. This causes the eardrum to bend inwards, which can lead to bleeding, bruising pain or even a rupture.

This can occur due to a blockage in the eustachian tubes. which normally help to regulate the air pressure in the ears. They let out additional air to the middle ear when necessary but if they get blocked for some reason, this does not happen and the ear drum can be damaged.

Ear barotrauma is only an issue when you experience air pressure changes. So diving, flying and other activities where your ears can pop should be avoided. These include travelling by tube and climbing at altitude, which can be risky if your eustachian tubes are blocked.

Blockages in the eustachian tubes can occur from tumors, scarring, and infections like colds or allergies. If you are suffering from a cold or allergy and have to do an activity where you will subject yourself to a change in air pressure, your doctor will recommend a decongestant. You can also chew or suck sweets to help alleviate the pressure or do specific exercises which will balance the pressure in your ears.

Ear Infections 

Most of us remember having an ear infection as a child and the pain from these can be very severe and very unpleasant. They can be caused by either bacteria or a virus and there are some things that can lead to an increased susceptibility to infection in the ear. These include smoking, inflamed adenoids, colds and sinus infections. There is also a condition called swimmer's ear which is caused by residual water in the ear, which helps bacteria to grow.

Depending on the type of infection a range of treatments may be prescribed by your doctor. Ear drops are a common solution to swimmer's ear. If you smoke, then you will be asked to stop. Antibiotics can also help if it is a bacterial infection.

You can prevent further infection by keeping your ears dry and away from infection carriers such as your fingers. It is essential to keep your ears as clean as possible. It is also important to remember that cotton buds should not be inserted into the ear canal. They are just for clearing the outer folds of the ear. By inserting them into the canal, you can introduce bacteria that will then develop into a full blown ear infection.

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There is also a risk that inserting them too far may puncture the ear drum leading to lasting damage.  Don't do it!

Hearing Loss

Hearing loss is something that many of us expect to experience with age. However, it can occur for a number of reasons at any time in our lives.

There are two main types  - conductive hearing loss and sensorineural hearing loss. There is also a third which is a combination of the two.

Conductive hearing loss is caused by damage to the ear, so the sound waves are not passed to the inner ear effectively. This can be due to a blockage, a tumor or a build-up of wax.

Sensorineural hearing loss is the type most seen as we age, and is due to the destruction of the tiny hairs in the ear drum that pick up and amplify sounds. It can also be caused by trauma such as a very loud noise like an explosion.

Before hearing loss can be treated effectively, it needs to be identified and classified by a health professional. This is because there could be a number of underlying reasons why your hearing is deteriorating. Without knowing what the causes are, treatment is unlikely to be successful.

It could be that the sufferer has a perforated eardrum, Meniere's disease or meningitis. There is even a condition where skin clumps in the ear and effects hearing called cholesteatoma.

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Each cause will need to be looked individually and treated appropriately. Some people can benefit from a hearing aid, especially if they have Sensorineural hearing loss. Others will need surgery, and some may need to find a way to cope with the loss of their hearing to continue to lead happy lives.

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Puddles Win Prizes - Submit A Photo Of Your Favourite Puddle To Win Great Cash Prizes

If you consider yourself a bit of a dab hand with a camera and see beauty even in the pouring rain and the dank, drizzly landscapes the UK offers, I have a fabulous photography competition for you.

Image Credit:  Shutterstock

So get the macs and kagools out, get the kids in their wellies and enter Welly Foods "Puddle of the Year" photography competition.  The people at Welly, the British cooked meat brand, are looking for your pictures of your favourite puddles.

Puddles are something we Brits are very au fait with and have themselves had many a celebrity moment. 

From the comic never ending puddle on the Vicar of Dibley, to the recent Dame Joan Collin’s puddle war on Twitter, it is time they were celebrated.

As Richard Morris, Welly's marketing controller says; “As a nation we are used to endless rain so it is time we faced facts and celebrated the wet British weather. Through Puddle of the Year we want to encourage people to grab their wellies and see the beauty in the great outdoors. We look forward to seeing the selection of photos entered.”

Image credit:  Shutterstock

The Prizes

There are some amazing prizes on offer:- 

Public - £500 and hamper of Welly Foods (meat products) 1 (one) winner

Children (school) - 1 (one) school will win £1000 of camera equipment 

Children (family) - £200 and a hamper of Welly Foods (meat products) 5 (five) winners

Professionals - 1 (one) x £500 and a hamper of Welly Foods (meat products)

How To Enter

There are 3 categories open for entry:- i) general public, ii) children and iii) professionals

You need to submit your puddle photo on the tab on the Welly Facebook page, leaving your contact details and indicating which category you are entering.

Don't forget you must have the consent of anyone appearing in your photograph and if you are photographing animals, you'll need the consent of their owners before submitting your shot.

ENTER HERE:  wellypuddleoftheyear.co.uk 

Once approved, your photo will be displayed on the gallery.

The photographs will be judged by Adrian Brooks, award winning photo journalist and WELLY marketing controller Richard Morris.

The competition runs from 26th September to 31st October.

A list of the prizes can be found on the Facebook page.  You can find terms and conditions here.

The promoter of this competition is Welly Foods.

Good luck with your puddle photography!

Win An Extra £50 With Mother Distracted When You Enter Puddles Win Prizes

Click Mother Distracted on the drop down "where did you hear about the competition" tab to qualify for my own mini puddle competition.

Once you've done that then enter via the Rafflecopter widget below for a chance to win a bonus £50 (one winner).  This prize will be supplied by Welly Foods once your photographic entry has been verified. You must submit a photo to the main competition to qualify for the extra cash prize.

Good luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

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Win A Spooky Bundle of Halloween Decorations From Flying Tiger [closed]

Halloween is fast approaching and if you're already thinking about making your fright night as scary as possible (not too scary if you've little ones of course), then I have a spooky prize of a bundle of Halloween decorations to win from quirky Danish design store, Flying Tiger worth £20.

Caitlin models the lovely pumpkin wig

Flying Tiger (previously just Tiger) has an ever-changing selection of own-designed and branded products at affordable prices.  Just click on the link to find your local store.

You can find all kinds of things such as everyday items like kitchen utensils, office supplies, toys, hobby and crafts, party products, food, stationery, electronics, sports, gadgets and fashion accessories.

The designs are colorful, practical, original and often surprising. They have a Scandinavian flavor and a humorous touch.

Just right for decorating your party on a budget (and great for the cost conscious and students too!).

The exact contents of the prize box will be a surprise but they will include some of the following:-

Skull & Crossbones paper garland, £1

Fright in a can, £2

LED lights, £2

Pumpkin light chain, £2

Ghosts light chain, £4

Lanterns, £2

Hanging skeleton, £3

Pumpkin Wig £4

The Giveaway

The prize is a selection of Halloween decorations (which may not contain all of the above) to the value of £20. 

Entry is via the Rafflecopter and terms and conditions can be viewed on my competitions page.  UK entrants only.  The giveaway ends at 11:59 pm on Friday 21st October.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Good luck!

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Review: Say Goodbye To Boring Mealtimes With HelloFresh

Being a so-so cook, I find that deciding what to have for tea is rather difficult - despite having a collection of cookery books that would fill a library.

If I do find a recipe, there will be at least one ingredient I don't have to hand, or the ingredients will be far more exotic than our local supermarket will offer.

This means that the kids' weekday teas tend to consist of pizza, salmon, spaghetti bolognese, fish fingers and ham sandwiches.

Over the summer holidays we got into a bit of a rut with rather more of these than was good for us. Now autumn is here and it's getting colder, I find myself wanting proper, hot, nutritious food - particularly for the kids.

But I've discovered HelloFresh who offer a food box subscription service with fresh produce, all the stocks, sauces and spices you'll need and recipe cards with instructions even the most hopeless cook can follow.

We were sent the family box to try over 2 weeks.  This feeds 2 adults and 2 children for the price of £64 per week for 4 meals (that's £4 per head per meal).

These were the 8 meals we were sent:-

Week 1

Jamie's South Asian Chicken Curry with Fluffy Rice
Mushroom, Broccoli and Pancetta Gnocchi
BBQ Sausage Skewers with Cheesy Wedges
Chorizo Crusted Tilapia with Miniature Roasties

Week 2

Creamy Leek and Mustard Chicken with Stir-Fried Green Beans
Jamie's Sizzling Steak Stir-Fry with Tenderstem Broccoli & Noodles
Sweet and Sour Pork with Bulgur Wheat
Courgette, Broad Bean and Feta Orzotto with Pork Meatballs

Once you have signed up (and there are other boxes to choose from), you select your delivery day and then wait for your box to arrive.

Each box contains a variety of vegetables, a bag of all the spices and condiments you need to make the recipes, your meat and fish (carefully wrapped in wool with ice packs) and the recipe cards.

HelloFresh also offer a box for vegetarians and a classic box with more adult and spicier meals.

With the possible exception of a splash of olive oil, milk or water, there is nothing else you need to provide.

You can cook the meals in any order and the produce lasts for one week so there is no need to panic and cook them 4 days on the trot, although I did find I began to get into a routine.

Whilst the meals are easy to prepare, if you don't do much cooking I would allow yourself extra time for chopping etc.

As experienced cooks will know, a small block of time for food prep in the morning (unless your school mornings are complete chaos) or just after you've put the kids to bed will give you a useful breathing space when tea time comes around - particularly if you are taxiing the kids back and forth to various clubs and classes.

Not only are the recipe cards clearly written and easy to follow, the quality of the produce you are sent is incredibly high.

All the food is carefully packaged and clearly marked with the use-by date.  There is nothing processed and you add the seasoning yourself so there is no danger of too much salt.

The cooking time for each meal is around 25-35 minutes, designed specifically for busy mums and dads who need to get tea on the table pronto.

Caitlin is an excellent eater but Ieuan is a lot more picky. To my surprise I found that they both tested everything.

I did substitute the bulgur wheat for rice with the sweet and sour pork and Ieuan wasn't a fan of the orzo pasta.

I also managed to undercook the Gnocchi which could have been better had they been crisper - but I've learned to cook in batches rather than chuck everything in a frying pan and hope for the best!

I was really impressed with HelloFresh and we have now subscribed because

* No more bulky main meal food shopping
* No cupboard full of condiments and pickles that never get used
* No stress about thinking "what's for tea"
* Cooking is actually quite enjoyable (don't tell the Husband)
* I feel like a much better mum for feeding my kids decent meals each tea time
* We all feel quite a bit healthier due to less processed food

Of course there are still another 3 tea times to cope with but the recipe cards are punched so you can store them in a folder for a quick idea or two.  I feel far less guilty about pizza and fish fingers when the kids have already had 4 proper meals that week.

Currently, if you sign up to HelloFresh there is £40 off (£20 off each of your first 2 boxes) and if cooking is your bugbear, I heartily recommend you take a look.

In terms of value, I think the £64 is very reasonable. You could probably cook 4 meals a lot cheaper but it's the removal of the stress of planning, shopping and storing that adds value to Hello Fresh.

Their subscription plans are flexible too - you can stop your subscription when you need to or cancel it at any time (as long as you give about a week's notice).

It's going to be a much healthier, and tastier winter in the Hobbis household.

For more information visit www.hellofresh.co.uk or you can contact them on Twitter or Facebook.

*We were sent one family food box for two weeks for the purpose of this post. Our subscription is entirely independent.

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Beck Valley Book Tour: At Dusk - An Alex Troutt Thriller (Book #5) by John W. Mefford

New Release....
Alex Troutt Thriller, Book #5
AT Dusk

A little boy makes his first kill—and he likes it. He is cunning, charming, and without remorse.

He is a sociopath.

As boy turns to man, what lies inside takes root. He will make a mark on Boston unlike any other, and FBI Special Agent Alex Troutt must figure out how to stop him.

But when she and her close-knit team move in closer, the stakes become much higher as the case takes on a more personal tone. It’s a frantic race to stop a manipulative killer before his web of deceit and destruction escalates into a blood bath of haunting proportions.

Available to buy from.....

Amazon.com    Amazon.co.uk    Barnes and Noble    iBooks   Kobo   

"Alex Troutt is quickly becoming one of my favorite fictional characters. I love how she's constantly having to balance her family life and her job, even though her job is continually threatening to take over." - Sonya N

"I simply love every single one of John Mefford's novels. They keep you on the edge of your seat reading late into the night." - Michele B

"Intrigue and attempts at revenge for long held grudges – the twists and turns keeps your adrenalin pumping." - Tracy C
above reviews from the Alex Trout Series

Also available in the series...
      

My Review

Alex Troutt is rapidly becoming one of my all time favourite detectives - all the more so because it's quite unusual to find a convincing, ballsy and likeable female detective in crime fiction. In this latest foray into the city of Boston and its crime scene, Mefford has created a deeply unpleasant killer and given us hardly any suspects.  I spent the almost the entire book questioning whether Alex's team was on the right track, whilst being convinced I knew who the killer really was.

The usual characters we've grown to love are there, the hunky but possible too young Brad, Gretchen, Alex's partner Nick (who has undergone quite some transformation), loveable Ezzy and kids Luke and Erin. And this time Mefford gives us a second feisty female detective in the form of Terri who makes Alex look positively restrained.

I'm not going to give the game away but At Dusk moves at a lightening pace and is very difficult to put down.as the reader becomes as obsessed with finding proof as Alex and her team are.  Although part of a series, At Dusk works equally well as a stand-alone story but I recommend that you read the rest of the Alex Troutt thrillers.  You'll find yourself gripped.

About the Author

A veteran of the corporate wars, former journalist, and true studier of human and social behavior, best-selling author John W. Mefford has been writing novels since he first entered the work force twenty-five years ago, although he never put words on paper until late 2009.

John writes novels full of intrigue, suspense, and thrills, but they also evoke an emotional connection with the characters.

When he’s not writing, he chases three kids around, slaves away in the yard, reads, takes in as many sports as time allows, watches all sorts of movies, and continues to make mental notes of people and societies across the land.

John lives in Frisco, Texas with his beautiful wife, three opinionated kids, and a feisty fat cat who rules the world.

Find the author on the following sites....

Website   Facebook   Twitter   Google+   Goodreads   Amazon Author Page

Join John's Readers’ Group and receive the first novels in both the Greed and Booker Series 

FREE for a limited time!

OTHER BOOKS FROM JOHN W MEFFORD

Follow the book tour

I received this book to review through Beck Valley Books Book Tours, all the opinions above are 100% my own.

NOW FOR THE AUTHOR'S GIVEAWAY

Win AT Dusk by John W Mefford ebook
5 Winners!!
Ending on Sunday 1st October at 11.59pm CST

Open Worldwide 

Enter HERE

Good Luck !!

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