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Net Galley
Monthly Archives: May 2017
Sultry Mermaid Designs designs printed one side of the page
Mermaids: A Mermaid Coloring Book with Mythical Ocean Goddesses, Enchanting Sea Life, and Lost Fantasy Realms (Coloring Books for Adults)
By: Jade Summer
Rating: 5 of 5
This is a new Mermaids coloring book by Jade Summer (note that this coloring book is not a duplicate of their first coloring book of the same title which is no longer available because of potential copyright issues.)
These designs are inspired by the sultry and sensuous sirens of the sea. These are creatures who certainly can be considered enthralling with their come hither poses and inviting eyes. The designs show them above and below the waves and even with pirates and treasure.
The designs are detailed but not what I consider intricate with small areas to color. I am able to use a wide variety of coloring medium on these designs.
While you can have access to .PDFs when you purchase this book, my review is based on the book as it is received from Amazon. That way you will know what the pages look like and how they accept color. I like that the publisher provides the digital version as well so you can choose the paper you wish to use and/or to color the pictures as many times as you choose.
This is what I found while coloring in this book and testing the paper with my coloring medium:
30 x 2 each Sensuous Mermaid Designs (total of 60 design pages)
Paper is typical of CreateSpace: white, thin, slightly rough and non-perforated. The back of the page is printed black.
The designs do not merge into the binding. There is a heavy framing line at the outer edges of the design to give the project a more finished look, especially for framing. There is a slight shadowing effect to the framing line which gives the image an almost 3D effect.
Glue Binding (there is room to cut the pages out if you choose to do so.)
Though you cannot see the bleed-through easily due to the back of the page being printed in black, I recommend the use of a blotter page when working in this book. I use a page of card stock or several sheets of heavyweight paper under my working page. It keeps seeping ink and marring dents from ruining the pages below.
Alcohol-based markers bleed through the page quickly.
Water-based markers bleed through in spots.
Gel pens and India ink pens leave shadows on back of the page. India ink can bleed through if you apply heavily or multiple coats.
Coloring Pencils work well with this paper. I found that I could layers the same color for deeper pigment or multiple colors and I could blend easily using a blending stick. I tested both oil and wax based pencils. I also found that hard lead pencils leave dents through the paper.
Posted in Adult Color Books
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Fantastic Steampunk Grayscale Coloring book from Bennett Klein printed on one side of the page
Colour My Sketchbook STEAM: Mech & Cybrids; Greyscale Colouring Book
By: Bennett Klein
Rating: 5 of 5
This is the a wonderful Steampunk style grayscale coloring book in the grayscale series by Bennett Klein. I own many of Mr. Klein’s fantasy coloring books and I enjoy Steampunk as a genre as well, so this is a great combination of two of my favorites. Mr. Klein’s signature style is evident with a great addition of gears and other mechanical elements.
With this book, the artist provides a table of contents with the title of each of his pieces of art. The designs are detailed and intricate in nature. The designs are very detailed and intricate and, except for one, are black and grayscale on white background paper.
This is what I experienced while coloring in this book and testing my coloring medium on the paper.
25 Hand-drawn Steampunk inspired fantasy designs in grayscale based on the artwork of Bennett Klein
Designs are printed on one side of white, thin, slightly rough non-perforated paper typical of CreateSpace
Glue Binding
Easy to open to flat position for coloring
Designs do not merge into the binding and there is plenty of room to cut pages out if you choose to do so
Alcohol and water-based markers bleed through the page to some degree. Water-based bleed through in spots while alcohol-based bleed through freely
Gel pens and India ink pens leave shadows of color on the back of page. India ink can bleed through if you use multiple layers.
Colored pencils work well with this paper. Both oil and wax based provide good color when I use multiple layers of the same color. I am easily able to blend (using a pencil style blender stick) and layer multiple colors as well. I generally prefer wet blenders for grayscale designs as I have found that some designs with smear with a blender pencil. Hard lead pencils leave dents through the back of the page.
Because of the bleed through and dents, I use a blotter page below my working page. I prefer card stock but several sheets of heavyweight paper work as well.
Posted in Adult Color Books
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30 Beautiful Garden Fairy Designs in grayscale designs printed on one side of the page
Garden Fairies Grayscale Coloring Book: Featuring the Early Works of Molly Harrison
By: Molly Harrison
Rating: 5 of 5
I own a number of coloring books by Molly Harrison both in grayscale and in line drawings. I always enjoy her signature style. This coloring book is different as it is based on her earlier artworks. I can see where Ms. Harrison’s style evolved from but the designs are quite different and are beautiful as well. My previous books showed either adult or young children in fantasy. The fairies in this book seem to be more of a young teenager to young adult. As such, they bridge the gap between the subjects of my other books.
The designs are detailed and contain some intricate areas to color. The grayscale is done in lighter tones so I have more control over shading than I do with books done with darker tones.
This is what I experienced while coloring in this book and testing my coloring medium on the paper.
30 Garden Fairies inspired fantasy designs in grayscale based on the earlier artwork of Molly Harrison
Designs are printed on one side of white, thin, slightly rough non-perforated paper typical of CreateSpace
Glue Binding
Easy to open to flat position for coloring
Designs do not merge into the binding and there is plenty of room to cut pages out if you choose to do so. There is a double framing line at the outer edge of each design.
Alcohol and water-based markers bleed through the page to some degree. Water-based bleed through in spots while alcohol-based bleed through freely
Gel pens and India ink pens leave shadows of color on the back of page. India ink can bleed through if you use multiple layers.
Colored pencils work well with this paper. Both oil and wax based provide good color when I use multiple layers of the same color. I am easily able to blend (using a pencil style blender stick) and layer multiple colors as well. I generally prefer wet blenders for grayscale designs as I have found that some designs with smear with a blender pencil. Hard lead pencils leave dents through the back of the page.
Because of the bleed through and dents, I use a blotter page below my working page. I prefer card stock but several sheets of heavyweight paper work as well.
Posted in Adult Color Books
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30 Cute Animal designs designs printed one side of the page
Super Cute Animals Coloring Book: Adorable Kittens, Bunnies, Mice, Owls, Hedgehogs, and More (Adult Coloring Books)
By: Alisa Calder
Rating: 5 of 5
I like to color both animals and different styles of fantasy. The designs of the animals in this book are generally of them dressed as humans. A few have doodle style designs but most are simply animals doing things that people who ordinary do. They are very cute and should be lots of fun to color.
The designs are detailed and a few contain intricate and small areas to color. The line work from design to design is somewhat different, sometimes light and delicate and sometimes darker and thicker.
I have seen some of these designs in other coloring books. I’m not sure if the designs in this book are license (no license attribution is present) or if the artist has licensed some of her works previously. In any case, most are new to me and I will enjoy coloring all of them.
This is what I discovered while coloring in this book and testing my coloring medium on the paper:
30 Cute Animals designs most dressed as humans.
Printed one side of the page
Paper is typical inexpensive quality used by CreateSpace: white, thin, slightly rough and non-perforated.
The designs do not extend into the binding area. The designs have a dark black framing line at the outer edges
Glue Binding
Alcohol-based markers bleed through the page quickly.
Water-based markers bleed through in spots.
Gel pens and India ink pens leave shadows on back of the page. India ink can bleed through if you apply heavily or multiple coats.
Coloring Pencils work well with this paper. I found that I could layers the same color for deeper pigment or multiple colors and I could blend easily using a blending stick; however, some of the darker and thicker lines of the designs had a tendency to smear using this type of blender. I found that liquid forms (Gamsol or mineral spirits) did a better job. I tested both oil and wax based pencils. I also found that hard lead pencils (like Verithins) leave dents through the paper.
I like to use a blotter when working in the book. I use a page of card stock or several sheets of heavyweight paper under my working page. It keeps seeping ink and marring dents from ruining the pages below.
Posted in Adult Color Books
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71 Design Pages of Snow White with story plus huge removable poster all but poster printed on both sides of the page
Snow White Coloring Book
By: Fabiana Attanasio
Rating: 5 of 5
This is a book based on the story of Snow White. It is part of a series of story book coloring books by Fabiana Attanasio. The first five pages of the book tell the story briefly and also have a couple of coloring elements scattered throughout. The next 71 pages line drawings based on this story. In addition to these great coloring pages, there is a huge removable poster at the end of the book.
All of the characters are present I would hope for are present, Snow White, the Evil Queen (both as herself and as the old witch), the Seven Dwarfs, the Huntsman and Prince Charming. Snow White and Prince Charming are drawn as younger individuals rather than as adults in this coloring book.
This is what I experienced while coloring in this book and testing the paper with my coloring medium.
71 pages of Designs based on the story of Snow White plus a folded and removable poster at the end of the book.
Printed on both sides of the page
Paper is white, heavyweight, lightly rough and non-perforated.
Sewn Binding
Most designs merge into the binding area
24 of the Designs (including title page) are printed across two pages of the book.
The images line up well in my copy of the book.
Front and back covers fold out with an apple motif pattern that can be colored; however, the paper is slick and may not work with all coloring medium
Alcohol-based markers bleed through this paper
Water-based markers can leave the faintest of shadows on the back of the page if you use dark or bright colors or have to put multiple coats on for coverage. My brush end Tombows were the one exception and those did not show through at all.
Gel pens and India ink pens did not bleed through on my tests. Gel pens required additional drying time.
Colored pencils worked well with this paper. I tested both oil and wax based pencils. I was able to layer same colors to get deep pigment, layer different colors, and blend well using a pencil style blending stick. Hard lead pencils did not dent through on this paper.
If you choose to use markers, you will probably have bleed through of some sort and that will mar the design on the back of the page.
Posted in Adult Color Books
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69 Design Pages of The Wizard of Oz with story plus huge removable poster all but poster printed on both sides of the page
The Wizard of Oz Coloring Book
By: Fabiana Attanasio
Rating: 5 of 5
This is a book based on The Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum. It is part of a series of story book coloring books by Fabiana Attanasio. The first seven pages of the book tell the story briefly and also have a couple of coloring elements scattered throughout. The next 69 pages line drawings based on this story. In addition to these great coloring pages, there is a huge removable poster at the end of the book.
The characters are drawn in a very cute style. Dorothy, Toto, the Scarecrow, The Tin-man, The Cowardly Lion, The Wicked Witch are all present. The scenes begin with the tornado which takes Dorothy and Toto to Oz and end with her arriving back home once again.
This is what I experienced while coloring in this book and testing the paper with my coloring medium.
69 pages of designs based on the story of The Wizard of Oz plus a folded and removable poster at the end of the book.
Printed on both sides of the page
Paper is white, heavyweight, lightly rough and non-perforated.
Sewn Binding
Most designs merge into the binding area
24 of the designs (including title page) are printed across two pages of the book.
The images line up well in my copy of the book.
Front and back covers fold out with a Wizard of Oz inspired motif pattern that can be colored; however, the paper is slick and may not work with all coloring medium
Alcohol-based markers bleed through this paper
Water-based markers can leave the faintest of shadows on the back of the page if you use dark or bright colors or have to put multiple coats on for coverage. My brush end Tombows were the one exception and those did not show through at all.
Gel pens and India ink pens did not bleed through on my tests. Gel pens required additional drying time.
Colored pencils worked well with this paper. I tested both oil and wax based pencils. I was able to layer same colors to get deep pigment, layer different colors, and blend well using a pencil style blending stick. Hard lead pencils did not dent through on this paper.
If you choose to use markers, you will probably have bleed through of some sort and that will mar the design on the back of the page.
Posted in Adult Color Books
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Another great book in this funny mystery series set in the 1970’s
Send in the Clowns (The Country Club Murders) (Volume 4)
By: Julie Mulhern
Rating: 5 of 5
I’ve read all of the books in this series and each one is as great as the last. The series is set in the 1970’s with Ellison Russell as the reluctant sleuth. It isn’t that she wants to keep finding dead bodies, it just keeps happening.
Ellison, who is not quite 40, is one of the privileged country club set. She wants to break out of the mold and has become a successful painter. She is also being actively pursued by two different men, one who is part of her set (and a lawyer) and the other is from a different class which makes him even more appealing (not to mention he is the homicide detective who keeps popping up to assist with those dead bodies.)
Posted in Mystery/Suspense/Thriller
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31 Tropical Flower Designs by Ruth Soffer printed one side of the page
Creative Haven Tropical Blooms Coloring Book (Adult Coloring)
By: Ruth Soffer
Rating: 4 of 5
Attached will be a silent full book flip-through and a few sample photos so you can determine if this coloring book will work for you.
This is my first floral coloring book by Ruth Soffer so these designs are all new to me. It is a coloring book of large tropical blossoms. On most of the designs, a single blossom or two take center stage. On a few, there is more detail. I grew up and spent most of my adult life in Southern California with many tropical flowers and had a lovely garden where I grew them. As I had family living in Hawaii, I also visited the Islands often. A lot of these flowers remind me of those years.
I was especially pleased to see that the artist included the name of each flower and, interestingly, it was printed on the bound side of the perforations. That way, if you want to remove the page, you don’t have printing on it.
What I didn’t like was that the designs were printed without a frame line at the outer edges. It makes it very difficult to color as unfinished elements simply stop with about a half inch of white margin on all sides. It is also strange as Creative Haven generally has framing lines. What’s also strange is that the two sample designs included in the book (I’ll include them in the video and the photos I post), do have framing lines but their line drawing counterparts do not. As this effects almost every designs to some extent, I dropped my rating to a 4.
The flowers included in the book are (by commonly known name): Hawaiian clermontia, Milkweed, Freesia, Velvetleaf, Hawaiian loosestrife, Heliconia, New South Wales waratah, Miltonia Orchid, Bromeliad, Dahlia, Gladiola, African Daisy, African violet, Tropical water lily, Plumeria, Anthurium, Waimea Canyon nehe, Hibiscus, Manuka, Hawaiian hoawa, Flame lily, Tahian gardenia, Camellia, Hawaiian geranium, Rhododendron, Bleeding heart, Rain lily, Treasure flower, Shell ginger, African tulip and bat flower.
This is what I found while coloring in this book and testing the paper with my coloring medium.
31 Tropical Flower designs by Ruth Soffer
The designs are printed one side of the page
Paper is the usual Creative Haven quality: white, medium weight, slightly smooth and has perforated pages. I’ve noticed that some Creative Haven books have slightly rougher paper than others. This is one of the ones that is slightly more smooth.
Glue Binding but with perforated pages so removing a page is fairly simple.
The designs stop well before the perforations and are cut off abruptly on all four sides, leaving elements unfinished.
Alcohol-based markers bleed through this paper
Water-based markers bleed through in spots and show colorful shadows on the back of the page
Gel pens and India ink pens leave shadows of color on the back of the page. India ink pens can bleed through when I apply more than one layer of ink.
Coloring pencils work well with this paper. I was able to get good color, layer the same color and multiple colors and blend easily using a pencil style blender. I tested both oil and wax-based pencils with similar results. Hard lead pencils, like Verithins, leave dents on the back of the page.
I suggest either removing pages from the book to color or using a blotter page under your working page. I like card stock as it keeps ink from seeping through and damaging the pages below.
Posted in Adult Color Books
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24 lovely quilt designs with quotes printed one side of the page
Quilts & Quotes
By: Product Concept Mfg Inc.
Rating: 5 of 5
This is a lovely coloring book which features a quilt on each page. In some instances, the quilt is the design and in others, the quilt is an featured element in a design which is much more detailed. A number of the designs have elements which invoke the Amish and their traditions. The included quote is printed on each page, sometimes at the bottom and sometimes as part of the design. The quotes are in a printed font and are not made for coloring.
The designs are detailed and some have small areas to color. I don’t consider it to be intricate and hard to color.
This is what I found while coloring in this book and testing my coloring medium on the paper.
24 hand-drawn designs featuring quilts. A quote, some with attribution, or Bible Scripture is included on each page.
Printed on one side of the page
Paper is white, medium/light weight, slightly smooth and perforated
Staple Bound
Some designs cross over the perforations but nothing essential to the design is lost if you remove a page from the book
All wet medium: markers (alcohol and water-based), India ink pens an gel pens bleed through the paper to some extent. I suggest using a blotter page under your working page or removing the page from the book before coloring. That will keep ink from leaking through and damaging the rest of the book.
Colored pencils worked well with this book. I was able to blend, layer the same and multiple colors using both oil and wax-based pencils.
Posted in Adult Color Books
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This series just keeps getting better and better
Oliver Twisted (An Ivy Meadows Mystery Book 3)
By: Cindy Brown
Rating: 5 of 5
The Ivy Meadows Mystery series by Cindy Brown has rapidly become one of my favorite cozy mystery series. I have so much fun reading the books, that I end up laughing out loud.
In this story, actress/private detective (in training) Ivy Meadows (aka Olive Zweigwart) has a gig on a Get Lit (as in Literature, people) which involves both of her areas of expertise. She and her uncle are undercover looking for the gang that is responsible for the series of thefts that have been plaguing the cruise line. As part of the deal, Ivy has also been cast as Nancy in their adaptation of “Oliver” which is called “Oliver! At Sea!”).
Posted in Mystery/Suspense/Thriller
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