The Beedog by Addie Broussard - Blog Tour Review

Today on Life Of A Nerdish Mum, I am reviewing a fabulous children's book, The Beedog: An Insect Discovery In Portugal by Addie Broussard. 

The Beedog: An Insect Discovery In Portugal

An award-winning picture book that will get little ones excited about science.

While building a unique sandcastle, Cora and Manny spot a rather curious insect.
Soon, the little scientists keep a watchful eye on the insect’s movements, while learning about the natural environment along the way.

A great book for STEM education and home-school projects or just curious little ones who love science. Book extras include fun, printable activities related to science learning and research.

The Beedog is available to buy on Amazon US and Amazon UK

My Review

The Beedog is a really fun way to get your little one interested in paying more attention to the world around them. Manny and Cora head to the beach and discover an insect they haven't seen before and the story follows them researching what kind of insect it actually is as well as then sharing their new found knowledge with their school friends. 

The story is fun and shows the children playing as well as learning, showing a good balance. The illustrations are beautiful and the joy that comes off the pages, matches the tone of the story. 

The book is also filled with facts as the children learn about the "Beedog" and there are resource references included if you wanted to go and find out more, including a video of the insect itself. I like the inclusion of information about other wasps and at the beginning there is some information about Portugal and the language used. 

The activities that are free to download are all excellent and cover a range of skills and topics. I particularly enjoyed the I Love Nature page encouraging children to go outside and find something that they can come home and research. I also liked the page with questions about Portugal. There is something for everyone though with colouring, drawing and exercise pages too. 

Overall a really wonderful book and resource and one I will be going back over with mini Nerdling and we will be completing some of the worksheets more than once they're that much fun (and educational). 

I gave this book 5 stars.

About The Author

Addie is an avid traveller, and once went on a solo journey to fifteen countries in one year. When she encounters something unique, she writes about it. Her first published picture book, The Beedog, is about a curious insect that she found in southern Portugal.

Addie began her writing journey when she was just nine years old, with a book called Doggienauts. That book has been updated and is set for publication in 2018. Addie is originally from the United States and is currently a full-time traveller. Home is where her suitcase is.

About The Illustrator - Joyeeta Neogi

Joyeeta is a children’s book illustrator who has worked with international authors and publishers. Her engagement with worldwide clients and multicultural themes has allowed her to create captivating original animal and child characters. Her art captures the expressions, movements and vibrancy of life within simple compositions to bring the author’s story to life. In her free time, Joyeeta is busy with painting and music. She loves to paint in oil and acrylic, and has also developed a passion for watercolour.

Don't Forget To Check Out The Rest Of The Tour

Brick by Conrad Jones - Blog Tour Review

Today I am super excited to be kicking off the blog tour alongside Chelle's Book Reviews for Brick by Conrad Jones. 

Brick 

When a teenager is the victim of an unprovoked attack while walking his dog, a murder investigation begins. A cruel twist of fate makes his innocent family the targets of a vicious campaign of terror. As the detectives of Liverpool’s Major Investigation Team try to contain the violence, several key members of an organised crime family begin to topple, causing shock waves across the world. 

Why was the teenager attacked?

And will the villains be brought to justice? 

My Review

Well, where do I start with this book?

Bryn, the main character, is just a normal 14 year old boy going about his life when a chance occurrence irreparably changes his and his family's life . This book just shows how one moment can completely change everything. Bryn is absolutely lovely and throughout the book I was hoping against hope that things would work out for him. I didn't think I'd get behind a teenage boy as much as I did and that just shows how well written the character is. I actually found all the characters believable in one way or another and DI Braddick was really interesting. 

It was really interesting to see gangs/crime families based in the UK as I think all other gang related books I have read have been based in America. Their workings are so intricate and how each affects the other is fascinating and just incredibly well written. It's also terrifying to think just how much influence some people can have and the lengths some people will go to. The story also shows the extreme grit and brutally of the gangland in Liverpool, so this book is not for the faint of heart! 

Brick is extremely fast paced and I flew through it, following each character and seeing how all the stories intertwine and overlap. It's definitely a hold onto your pants and edge of your seat kind of read and you'll find yourself arguing with the characters when they're doing things that are beyond baffling! There are so many intricate goings on that I just can't do the story justice in any description I can come up with and I definitely don't want to spoil anything by going into too much detail. 

Overall an excellent book and one I just couldn't put down. If you are a fan of grittier and hard hitting crime stories based in the UK, then this book is definitely for you! 

I gave this book 4 stars. 

About The Author

I am Conrad Jones a 50-year-old Author, originally from a sleepy green-belt called Tarbock Green, which is situated on the outskirts of Liverpool. I spent a number of years living in Holyhead, Anglesey, which I class as my home, before starting a career as a trainee manger with McDonalds Restaurants in 1989. I worked in management at McDonalds Restaurants Ltd from 1989-2002, working my way up to Business Consultant (area manager) working in the corporate and franchised departments.

In March 1993 I was managing the Restaurant in Warrington`s Bridge St when two Irish Republican Army bombs exploded directly outside the store, resulting in the death of two young boys and many casualties. Along with hundreds of other people there that day I was deeply affected by the attack, which led to a long-term interest in the motivation and mind set of criminal gangs. I began to read anything crime related that I could get my hands on.

I link this experience with the desire to write books on the subject, which came much later on due to an unusual set of circumstances. Because of that experience my early novels follow the adventures of an elite counter terrorist unit, The Terrorist Task Force, and their leader, John Tankersley, or `Tank`and they are the Soft Target Series, which have been described by a reviewer as ‘Reacher on steroids’.  

I had no intentions of writing until 2007, when I set off on an 11-week tour of the USA. The Day before I boarded the plane, Madeleine McCann disappeared and all through the holiday I followed the American news reports which had little or no information about her. I didn't realise it at the time, but the terrible kidnap would inspire my book, The Child Taker years later. During that trip, I received news that my house had been burgled and my work van and equipment were stolen. That summer was the year when York and Tewksbury were flooded by a deluge and insurance companies were swamped with claims. They informed me that they couldn't do anything for weeks and that returning home would be a wasted journey. Rendered unemployed on a beach in Clearwater, Florida, I decided to begin my first book, Soft Target. I have never stopped writing since. I have recently completed my 17th novel, SHADOWS, something that never would have happened but for that burglary and my experiences in Warrington.

As far as my favourite series ever, it has to be James Herbert’s, The Rats trilogy. The first book did for me what school books couldn’t. It fascinated me, triggered my imagination and gave me the hunger to want to read more. I waited years for the second book, The Lair, and Domain, the third book to come out and they were amazing. Domain is one of the best books I have ever read. In later years, Lee Child, especially the early books, have kept me hypnotised on my sunbed on holiday as has Michael Connelley and his Harry Bosch Series.  

To Connect With Conrad Jones

Facebook - Conrad Jones

Twitter - @ConradJones

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Rupture by Ragnar Jonasson - Blog Tour Review

I'm super excited today to be a part of the blog tour for Rupture by Ragnar Jonasson. For my stop I have my review of what I thought about this wonderful book. 

Rupture

1955. Two young couples move to the uninhabited, isolated fjord of Hedinsfjörður. Their stay ends abruptly when one of the women meets her death in mysterious circumstances. The case is never solved. Fifty years later an old photograph comes to light, and it becomes clear that the couples may not have been alone on the fjord after all…
In nearby Siglufjörður, young policeman Ari Thór tries to piece together what really happened that fateful night, in a town where no one wants to know, where secrets are a way of life. He’s assisted by Ísrún, a news reporter in Reykjavik, who is investigating an increasingly chilling case of her own. Things take a sinister turn when a child goes missing in broad daylight. With a stalker on the loose, and the town of Siglufjörður in quarantine, the past might just come back to haunt them. 

My Review

Rupture is my first Ragnar Jonasson book and I realise I've been missing out! Rupture is the fourth book in the Dark Iceland series but can definitely be read as a stand alone like I did, however I do now need to go back and read them all! 

First things first, the cover is absolutely stunning and really reflects the isolation and cold from the book. Also I am eternally grateful for the pronunciation guide in the front of the book as it immediately helped me immerse myself in the story without spending time sounding out words and names that were unfamiliar to me. 

The story is a slow burn and weaves beautifully between two storylines. As you get further into the book, the pace builds up and leads to a crescendo for both cases which both took a direction that I had not expected at all. The story telling is clear and really well thought out and everything worked out really well. 

I really enjoyed the character Ari Thór and I liked how he went about investigating the cold case and his interaction with people in the community. I also think the friendship/partnership that was developed between him and Ísrún was really good as it was built on mutual need and respect. Ísrún was also a really interesting character and I think there will be a lot more to her story going forward.

The location itself feels like a character in its own right, you can feel the oppressive isolation, especially during the threat of a contagious and killer disease and I certainly kept myself wrapped in my blanket as I felt the cold. 

Overall an absolutely wonderful book and I have discovered a new favourite author. 

I gave Rupture 5 stars. 

About The Author

Ragnar Jonasson is author of the international bestselling Dark Iceland series.

His debut Snowblind, first in the Dark Iceland series, went to number one in the Amazon Kindle charts shortly after publication. The book was also a no. 1 Amazon Kindle bestseller in Australia.

Snowblind was selected by The Independent as one of the best crime novels of 2015 in the UK.

Books in the Dark Iceland series have been published in the UK, Germany, Poland and Iceland, and rights have also been sold to the USA, France and Italy.

Ragnar was born in Reykjavik, Iceland, where he works as a writer and a lawyer. He also teaches copyright law at Reykjavik University and has previously worked on radio and television, including as a TV-news reporter for the Icelandic National Broadcasting Service.

Ragnar is a member of the UK Crime Writers' Association (CWA) and recently set up the first overseas chapter of the CWA, in Reykjavik.

He is also the co-founder of the Reykjavik international crime writing festival Iceland Noir.

From the age of 17, Ragnar translated 14 Agatha Christie novels into Icelandic.

Ragnar has also had short stories published internationally, including in the distinguished Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine in the US, the first stories by an Icelandic author in that magazine.

He has appeared on festival panels worldwide, and lives in Reykjavik with his wife and young daughters.