Thursday, June 16, 2016

Alien Embrace - Donna Steele



Italian Cream Cake
(One of Lori's favorites)

2 cups cake flour
1 stick margarine
1/2 cup shortening
2 cups sugar
5 eggs (separated - whites beaten stiffly)
1 tsp soda
1 cup buttermilk or 1/2 cup buttermilk and 1/2 cup ricotta cheese
1 tsp vanilla
1 cup chopped nuts (I use pecans)
1 cup coconut

Cream margarine and sortening. Add sugar and beat until smooth. Add yolks and beat well.  Shift flour and soda and add to mixture with buttermilk alternately (start and end with dry). Stir in vanilla, coconut and nuts.  Fold in stiffly beaten egg whites.

Cook in 3 greased and floured 9" pans at 325 for 45 minutes (or until toothpick ready)

Cream cheese frosting -
8 oz cream cheese
1 tsp vanilla
1 box powered sugar
1/2 stick margarine.

Beat margarine and cream cheese until smooth, then add vanilla and sugar.

Hope you enjoy!!  It's a family recipe from my Aunt Charlotte who lived in Hickory.



Alien Embrace - Review by Martha A. Cheves, Author of Stir, Laugh, Repeat; Think With Your Taste Buds; A Book and A Dish

Everyone he had known must have cried out at once.  There had been nowhere to run.  He had no idea what had exploded or what could have caused the destruction.  That didn't matter now.  The flames had raced through the narrow corridors, killing everyone inits path by smoke if not flames.  How could everything have gone so wrong?  They'd had such high technology.  He knew the answers, the out-of-control population.  He had only known shortages until he came here.  There was still guilt at every meal he ate.  Now his home was a burnt-out shell.  The structure remained, damaged, probably collapsed in places, but uninhabitable.  And all done to themselves.

As Lori comes out of a coma she finds that she has no memory of her life.  The purse that had been found with her contained only a comb, wallet and cell phone.  Her address meant nothing to her and she couldn't visualize her home at all.  Then she met Dr. Marcus Greene, the doctor called in to consult due to her amnesia.  She knew she had never met hem but there was something familiar about this handsome man standing before her.  Mark was in a long relationship with Cynthia but after meeting Lori he couldn't get her out of his mind.  This is a woman that has stolen his complete being - mind, soul, and body.  But getting to know her, where she really came from and why she is here may change those feelings completely, or could it bring them closer?  You see, Lori isn't from here and Mark will have to accept that fact or walk away from her.  What will he do and is she the only one like her out there?  Maybe not.  Does he even believe in Aliens?  Maybe he better start believing.

I fell in love with this book from page one.  Author Donna Steele writes in a way that allows you to 'feel' each character.  You feel their pain, their joy, their love and you can't get enough of them.  I'm really hoping this is the beginning of many more books in what would make a great series.  When I read this book I couldn't help but remember the series of books written by John Jakes.  This book has so many stem offs as well as connections that would make it a great set of books to read and who knows, maybe into a TV series.

If you like a bit of the known and a lot of love, you can't help but love this book.  On a scale of 1-5 stars I would give this one 7 stars!



1 comment:

  1. Great review for a wonderful book. I loved it too. And that Italian cream cake recipe looks kind of yummy too.

    ReplyDelete

 
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