Review: The Black Tower

The Black Tower by Louis Bayard My rating: 2 of 5 stars I just don’t know why, but this book didn’t do it for me. I was bored beyond belief during the first third of the book. Thank goodness the action picked up along the way. But, even though the action picked up, the story […]

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Review: The Witness Wore Red: The 19th Wife Who Brought Polygamous Cult Leaders to Justice

The Witness Wore Red: The 19th Wife Who Brought Polygamous Cult Leaders to Justice by Rebecca Musser My rating: 4 of 5 stars This was powerful. I remember when the book came out I watched Musser on some TV show. She seemed so relatable and her story was intriguing. This book illustrates that. She tells […]

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Lake Superior Ice Caves, March 2014

It’s been a good 11 months, and I promised to post some pictures so much earlier. To jump straight to the gallery, click here: http://jen.jllocke.com/blog/2016/12/lake-superior-ice-caves-march-2014-gallery/ and please be patient for all the photos to load. I’m an adventurer at heart. Anywhere I go, I try to seek out the remote areas, the spectacular views, and the […]

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Review: Dark Eden

Dark Eden by Patrick Carman My rating: 3 of 5 stars The story was good and I enjoyed the main character. The writing was a bit simple, but I understand to expect that from some YA books. The best part of all is the reference to some classic works of literature that might help kids […]

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Recipe time

Every year we host a Christmas Eve family get together at our house. It’s great to cook up some old family favorites and to incorporate new ideas. I love the traditional sweet potato casserole I grew up with. The sweet potatoes, brown sugar, and marshmallows are delicious. But it’s heavy on the sugar and that’s […]

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Review: The Little Green Book of Chairman Rahma

The Little Green Book of Chairman Rahma by Brian Herbert My rating: 1 of 5 stars I’m glad my updates about this book didn’t take. I was a little upset and spewing some vitriol. But the truth of the matter is that I didn’t like it. Not one bit. The writing was… ugh. I can’t […]

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Review: That Night

That Night by Chevy Stevens My rating: 5 of 5 stars Sometimes, after reading several ho-hum books in a row, I get a little frustrated and start to forget the excitement that a book can hold. So I get surprised when a book keeps me up all night reading and evokes physical responses of tension, […]

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90’s Musical Obscurity

So I found this buzzfeed article that I couldn’t look away from. Also, I had to write some commentary. It was a reflex. Couldn’t help it. The article got me to reflect on some old music. Here are my favorites from their list. And some of my personal thoughts. Dig – “Believe” Whale – “Hobo […]

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Recently I listened to

The Good Guy by Dean Koontz My rating: 3 of 5 stars I haven’t read too much by Mr. Koontz, but keep getting recommendations to read his work. This one wasn’t specifically recommended but it was available as an e-audiobook through the library and that’s what I wanted. So I thought I’d give it a […]

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Note to self: Just buy the brand name bandages!

When you’re accident prone like I am, you have to have a good supply of bandages in the medicine cabinet. Or, in my case, medicine shelf… but that’s another story! See, I’m bandaging my finger right now because there’s a section of skin that keeps cracking open. It started as a paper cut. It almost […]

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