Books, Movies, Reviews! Oh My!

Callie's Heart Blog Tour

2012-05-26T17:46:00.001-05:00

Sorry to be getting around late on this blog tour but I have had a very busy day and it slipped my mind. Kathleen Ball author of Callie's Heart has a short guest post for my stop on the tour.

Nothing compares to the excitement of starting a new novel; the blank page just waiting for words, ideas, descriptions that lead to a page-turning novel. It's a bit like a new love. Anything is possible. Your Heroine becomes a new friend and the Hero becomes a new love.

Ideas just pop into my head. I usually start with character names. I start with the Hero. Who is he? What would make a great story surrounding him? What plot would work? What type of woman would he like?

Then I work on the Heroine. Why would she need to get married and why are there so many obstacles in her way? What are her flaws? How can she help the Hero?

I love to have characters change and grow. Maybe it’s someone that’s afraid to love but learns that true love is very potent. Maybe they just become a stronger better person.

I have a general idea of where I’d like to go with the novel and I start. More often than not, I sit down to write one thing and something completely different ends up on the pages. I love emotion in a novel, deep human emotion. My favorites are always the ones that make me cry. That's what I strive for when I write.

About the book:

Callie Daniels' mother has one dying wish. She wants neighboring rancher, Garrett O'Neill, to marry her seventeen year old daughter. It's not supposed to be a conventional marriage.Garrett O'Neill would keep Callie's ranch safe and Callie would go away to college.

Four years later, Callie comes home with stars in her eyes and happily ever after in her heart. She plans to make their marriage real until finds the new housekeeper, Sylvie in Garrett's arms.

Heartbroken, Callie takes off to her own house, which they closed up four years ago. She stays there with Old Henry, a longtime friend and ranch hand, until her new horse injures her. Garrett forces Callie to move back in to his house.

Callie finally gets her heart's desire. Alone in a line shack, they make sweet love for the first time. Unfortunately the love light is gone from Garret's eyes the next morning.

Tour Schedule:

3rd- Lovey Dovey Books http://loveydoveybooks.blogspot.com/Review/Sent PDF

24^th-Bunny’s Review http://www.bunnysreview.comReview/ Sent PDF

25^th-Storytime Book Reviews http://storytimebookreviews.blogspot.com/Review

26^th-Books, Reviews, Movies, Oh My! http://writesthoughts.blogspot.com/ Guest post

27^th-Ponderings, Politics and Prose http://ponderings.lucindagunnin.com/Interview

28^th-Lovetiggi’s Blog http://lovetiggisblog.blogspot.com/Interview

29^th- The Cover and Everything in Between http://thecoverbybrittany.blogspot.com/Interview

30^th- The Book Hoard http://www.thebookhoard.com/ Guest post

The Understory a Bancroft Press Giveaway

2012-05-23T17:42:00.001-05:00

Hi Everyone,

Harrison Demchick (Deputy Publisher/Editor/Screenwriter/Marketing Associate/Odd Jobs Guy) from Bancroft Press asked me if I would post about their facebook contest called The Understory.

Here is the Bancroft Press Facebook page is here: https://www.facebook.com/bancroft.press

And the contest link specifically is here: https://www.facebook.com/bancroft.press/app_121121694568521

More they get to enter the more books they will give away! They are trying to get at least 100, so go on over there and enter the contest for some free books!

Opinion Poll (not book related)

2012-05-21T17:15:00.000-05:00

Hi Everyone,

I am wanting to open an Etsy store and I would like to know what your opinion is of my candle holder that I have made. I am just wanting to know if I make up some of these do you think they would sale, or would you buy them, so I have a poll set up on the side and would love your opinion. I don't want to waste my time making things if nobody would buy them. :(

Review of No Shoes, No Shirt, No Spells

2012-05-18T10:37:00.002-05:00

No Shoes, No Shirt, No Spell by Rose Pressy
ebook
Reviewed By: Mishael (new reviewer here!)
Review copy: From the author
Rating: 3/5

Elly Blair welcomes the chance to escape her ex-fiance and job from hell when Grandma Imelda, ready to retire to sunny Florida, calls for her to take over her little southern cafe.

Elly has no idea her grandmother has baked up magic for the unsuspecting townsfolk for thirty years–and now Grandma Imelda insists that Elly use her own hitherto unsuspected magical powers to carry on the family tradition.

But Elly’s new at this stuff. Her dishes don’t turn out as full of smidgens of enchantment and dashes of wishes come true as she’d hoped. When handsome customer Rory Covington takes a bite of the wrong burger, he ends up capturing the attention of every woman in town. Elly doesn’t know if her feelings for Rory are true or based on her magic gone awry.

Tom Owenton is an investigator the National Organization for Magic sent to look into the magical mishap. Unless Elly can reverse the spell, the cafe will be closed permanently. Tom is more than willing to help Elly out of this magical pickle, but she’s not sure she should accept his offer.

Elly only has forty-eight hours to find a way to reverse the spell, or she’ll lose the cafe and never discover if her feelings for Rory are real.

-----
I started out liking this book - really, really liking it. It was going to be a four-star book at least. I was laughing in all the right places. And, although I thought it was kind of odd that Elly's grandmother would run off and leave her at the café by herself that quickly, I went along with it for the sake of the story. There is such a thing as "suspension of disbelief."

From that almost stellar beginning, though, things went downhill very quickly. The friend - her best friend - who gets so flustered by a handsome guy (who she sees every day, just looks at as a brother, and tries to fix up with Elly) that she gives him another customer's food (which just happens to be doused with a major love potion).

And, of course, Elly and the dreamboat start dating, but when they're on their first date, she tells him, "Tell me about yourself. I don't know anything." And he says he owns a farm - which is fine, except for the fact that they've already talked about his farm - eight pages earlier. They treat it like it's completely new information, but it's not. And the same sort of thing happens in Elly's conversations with Tom, the magic authority. I just don't understand. It seems that the author couldn't remember what she'd written from one day to the next (which, admittedly, does happen), but she didn't go back to read through it? A better editor would have been able to catch that and fix it.

And then there was that intriguing conversation with the weird drunk guy mumbling about "bad people in town" in the middle of the book. Sadly, it never really seemed to go anywhere - unless he was just referring to Rory's ex, Kim, but she wasn't all that bad, and the way he said it made me expect more. ... Or maybe that was just wishful thinking on my part. It was a strange bit of "foreshadowing" that, in my opinion, didn't really work.

Okay, and let's not leave out the absolutely ridiculous ending! Who's Elly going to end up with? The dreamboat she's been obsessed with since Day One and with whom she doesn't really have that much in common, or the magic inspector that she flirts with (and kisses) right in front of dreamboat and shares much more of substance? Guess.

There were some great bits toward the end (as there were in the beginning) that made me smile for all the right reasons, but there were many more parts that had me rolling my eyes and screaming at the computer screen (yes, I did say screaming). So did I like this book? I'm not sure. Yes and no, with a little more emphasis on the "No." If I could give this book two and half stars, I would, but I can't, so I'll just round up for the sake of generosity.

One Day Blog Tour: Michael (Book Two of the Airel Saga)

2012-05-17T03:30:00.000-05:00

ONE DAY BLOG TOUR!

MAY 17th!

Michael, book two in the Airel Saga, is live on Amazon TODAY ONLY for a discounted price!!

To promote Michael I’m hosting a contest where you can win a FREE copy of Airel and win a free Kindle Fire.

To take advantage of this awesome deal, head to Amazon and check out the eBook version of MICHAEL at its promotional price, then see below to enter the contest. Also, leave me a comment on this post. The blogger with the most comments will win the Kindle Fire! If I win, I’ll also get the chance to be part of a special giveaway in the next few months.

Praise for Michael

"Move over Twilight! Here comes Aaron Patterson!"

--Joshua Graham, bestselling author of Beyond Justice and Darkroom
"I was surprised by how much I really, really liked this book. I have not jumped on the whole "fallen angel" bandwagon, just as I didn't jump on all of the vampire stories that came out after Twilight. This is not your typical fallen angel story. It is one that has left me breathlessly waiting for the next one in the series. Hurry up please!!!"

--Sandra Stiles

Description of Michael

Michael did the unthinkable to save Airel from death, but now he must live with the choices he has made--both good and evil. Tortured by his past and haunted by what he believes might be his future, Michael seeks redemption--but will the past prove to be too strong? How can he break free of it and be the man he longs to be for Airel? If only he had never...
Airel. Michael's one true love. He had forced her to drink in new life only to find that old wounds and deep scars do not heal overnight. Can she truly forgive Michael, can she truly love him? And can he accept that forgiveness? Or is it all for nothing, and has he gone too far already? As the darkness of past choices closes in on them, chases them, intercepts them, coming at them from everywhere at once, how can their love possibly survive?

Aaron Patterson is the author of the best-selling WJA series, as well as two Digital Shorts: 19 and The Craigslist Killer. He was home-schooled and grew up in the west. Aaron loved to read as a small child and would often be found behind a book, reading one to three a day on average. This love drove him to want to write, but he never thought he had the talent. His wife Karissa prodded him to try it, and with this encouragement, he wrote Sweet Dreams, the first book in the WJA series, in 2008. Airel is his first teen series, and plans for more to come are already in the works. He lives in Boise, Idaho with his family, Soleil, Kale and Klayton. His daughter had an imaginary friend named She.

Chris White has an award for reading 750 books in one school year — from the 3rd grade. So yes, he’s more of a nerd than Aaron. Chris loves history, Sherlock Holmes, and anything that’s not virtual, like old motorcycles and mechanical typewriters. He also doesn’t get why we have these things called “smart phones” when all they do is make people dumber. Chris recently celebrated 10 years of marriage with his wife, April, and has two boys: Noah, age 8, and Jaden, age 3, who inspired the Great Jammy Adventure series; the OK-to-color-in picture books. Chris is working on a short story called The Marsburg Diary that will further explore the prologue to Airel, and he is finishing up his first novel, entitled K: phantasmagoria, due out in 2011. Chris has a major crush on Audrey Hepburn, who is now dead. His wife is okay with all of this.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Have I told you I hate Season Finales!!!!

2012-05-15T20:21:00.003-05:00

So far with every show I have watched that I love the season finales have been pretty good. From Castle to Once Upon a Time. Tonight was the finale of NCIS and OMG, talk about a freaking cliffhanger from hell!!!!!! All I can say is they better not kill of any characters or I will be very pissed off.

*Spoiler alert*

If you haven't watched the finale you may not want to read beyond this point.

For the last few episodes they have been building up a huge terrorist plot on NCIS, navel ships have blown up, buildings, when they get a lead they turn up dead. They know the mastermind behind is a man named Dearing.

Palmer's wedding was scheduled during all of this and because of what is going on the agents can't make it to his wedding so Ducky goes with Palmer to the wedding. Meanwhile, the agents are on the trail of Dearing and they find out that he really didn't want the Director like they thought but he used the Directors car. Gibbs find out they planted a bomb inside the Directors car and its parked outside of the NCIS building.

They rush to get everyone cleared out of the building, the phone call is made to activate the cell phone that sets off a huge bomb that blows through the NCIS building. Ziva and Tony are stuck in the elevator, Mcgee gets blasted back, Gibbs gets to Abby just in time to throw her on the floor!!!!!! Then it goes to a scene with Ducky walking on a beach, he gets a phone call and finds out what happened at NCIS. He gets a funny look on his face and I was like OOOOOH NO YOU DON'T! He starts having a freaking heart attach on the beach and there is nobody around!!!!!!!!!! And that is how NCIS decides to leave us hanging! I am soooo pissed, if they kill off Ducky....ohh the wrath.

I must admit it was a really good season finale but I hate having to wait to find out what is going to happen and if anyone gets killed off. :((((((((

So has any season finales made you made this season???

And the winner is...

2012-05-15T20:01:00.001-05:00

Hi Everyone,

I have finally picked a winner of the Immortal Rules by Julie Kagawa (ARC).

Congratulations goes to ERIN!

I have emailed you and need you to respond within two days of receiving my email.

Thanks everyone for entering my contest.

Follow Friday!

2012-05-11T12:18:00.001-05:00

It's Friday, so that means its Follow Friday time!! :) Hosted by parajunkee view.

Check out the featured blog on her site as well its called The Fake Steph dot com. (interesting name)

Today's question:

This Sunday in the U.S. is Mother’s Day, in celebration, what are some of your favorite books with strong mother/child relationships?

Wow, I have not a clue what to write for this question. I can't even think of one book that I have ever paid attention to the mother/child relationship in. I am sure there are some out there that I have read but it just is not coming to me at this time. :(

I am very interested in learning about every ones answers to this question though so please let me know what books have great mother/child relationships. I might even find some great new books!

---------------

I also want to take a little time to tell you that Enza by Kristy K. James, an author that I have had the pleasure of getting to know, is on FREE download today. If you are a historical fiction or women's fiction type reader then you will want to check it out! It just came off a blog tour that I put together for it and got some great reviews! Heck it's free so give it a try!

http://www.amazon.com/Enza-ebook/dp/B007WLF3PW/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1336753233&sr=8-1

Great Kindle Deal! Deadly Pleasures for .99!!!

2012-05-10T15:39:00.000-05:00

I have mentioned this book before on here, I have had the pleasure of working with Mary Firmin, the author of Deadly Pleasures. I thought her book Deadly Pleasures was a great murder mystery and when she decided to put it down to .99, I thought I should give it a little blog love!! It's the first in a trilogy and I can't wait for Deadly Secrets when it comes out!.

Do Not Judge This Book By It's Cover! :) It is not an erotic, or even steamy but it is about four women who hire a male stripper (hence the cover), it is about sexual themes such as sex clubs and bondage, but its totally a murder mystery and Mary has done a great job with the plot and twist, etc. It has a little romance in it between Megan and Matt, but not a lot. So if you are a total fan of murder mysteries then you need to check it out, men and women alike have loved this book!

Blurb:

Megan Riley has bigger things to worry about than the fact that her neighbor has just been found dead.

Her engagement has just ended, and she is once again on a quest to find Mr. Right—or at least Mr. Right Now. Tired of emotional ties and ready for a new adventure, Megan and her three best friends make a fateful decision. They hire hunky stripper Michael Harrington as their timeshare boytoy—unaware he is the prime suspect in a series of gruesome murders. Suddenly, they find themselves involved in a complicated murder investigation led by a handsome detective who is focused only on finding the twisted serial killer before he strikes again. But who will be the next to die? Megan, the hardworking real estate agent; newly divorced Kathleen; Alex, married to a wealthy businessman; or Rachel, the spurned wife of a hot Hollywood screenwriter?

Following her own investigation, Megan takes a wild ride through L.A.’s bondage parlors, hidden sex clubs, and the extravagant lifestyles of the rich and famous; soon she discovers that her quest for adventure has abruptly transformed into a dangerous game of life and death.

Get your copy for .99 here: http://www.amazon.com/Deadly-Pleasures-ebook/dp/B0060MU6FQ/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1336680449&sr=8-1

An awesome start to blockbuster summer! (The Avengers)

2012-05-07T16:36:00.000-05:00

The Avengers

Starring: Robert Downey Jr., Chris Evans, Chris Hemsworth, Mark Ruffalo,

Scarlett Johansson, Jeremy Renner, Tom Hiddleston, Samuel L. Jackson and more.

Tagline: Some assembly required.

I have to start out by saying that this to me was one of the best Marvel comic movies they have made so far, and I LOVED IT!!!

First off what is there not to love you have Robert Downey Jr, Chis Evans, Mark Ruffalo and Chris Evans all in one picture! So ladies take your men to the movies! Then you have a great combination of great action and comedy all in one. Some of the things the characters were saying to each other had the whole theater roaring with laughter, it was great!

Nick Fury knows the world is in a lot of trouble and so he gathers a group of misfit hero's together and tries to make them a team, but they are pretty hung up on themselves. So a lot of the movie is trying to get them to work together as a unit. The other half is them fighting to save earth from Loki and his minions. Most of my favorite parts had The Hulk in them, he was great in this movie. I wasn't really sure if I was going to like Mark Ruffalo playing Bruce Banner but he did a really good job. I think the CGI when it comes to turning Bruce into The Hulk has gotten a lot better since the last Hulk movie!!

Samuel L. Jackson finally gets to step up as Nick Fury and does a great job. Jeremy Renner makes a decent Hawkeye, but I kind of wish they would have given him a movie so people would know more about him. His role in this movie was mediocre. Scarlett Johansson made a kick ass Black Widow which sort of surprised me a bit. She needs her own movie! :) Honestly the movie was really about Iron Man, The Hulk, Capt. America and Thor, with the other two thrown in for good measure!

My favorite of the Avengers has always been Iron Man because I love Robert Downey Jr and his snarky uppity attitude, it always cracks me up! (I can't wait for Iron Man 3, yes its coming!!!) I also can't wait for The Avengers 2 also, but it will be a while (but its coming cause I looked it up!!)

I don't really want to give away any of the movie because its all so great and I hate when people talk about the plot of something I want to see. :)

In all honesty I think they should have waited and put this movie back a little and had it come out in July because it, to me, is going to take away from any other summer blockbuster movies. (The Dark Knight Rises might rival it, but I still don't think it will do as good), everything is going to be compared to the first blockbuster movie and I don't think anything coming out this year can rival it, I mean come on it made over 200 million its opening weekend and out did Harry Potter!!!!

If you haven't seen the Avengers you really need to get to a theater and see it, it was great from beginning to end. It was the fastest two and a half hours ever, I didn't want it to end. Also don't get up and leave right away or you will miss some as Marvel always likes to put a little hint of something during the creds!!!

Fun stuff *grabbed from IMDb*:

Before Mark Ruffalo was cast as The Hulk, Joaquin Phoenix was rumored for the part. (Can not see Joaquin in this part, thank goodness Mark go it!!)

Mark Ruffalo is personally going to portray the Hulk through virtual-camera motion-capture, which allows him to actually portray the Hulk. Previous live-action versions have had Bruce Banner and the Hulk be played by separate people (Bill Bixby and bodybuilder Lou Ferrigno), or had the Hulk rendered into the film in computer-generated imagery. (Made for a lot better HULK!)

According to Joss Whedon, the film is strongly influenced by the early 1960s Avengers comics, which he was a fan of while growing up: "In those comics these people shouldn't be in the same room let alone on the same team - and that is the definition of family." (So true, disfuntional but family..lol)

Fun quotes:

Tony Stark: [to Loki] There is no throne, there is no version of this where you come out on top! Maybe your army will come, maybe it's too much for us, but it's all on you! Becase if we can't protect the Earth, you can be damn sure we'll avenge it!

Tony Stark: Dr. Banner, your work is unparalleled. And I'm a huge fan of the way you lose control and turn into an enormous green rage monster. Bruce Banner: Thanks.

Bruce Banner: We're not a team. We're a time-bomb!
Loki: [Hulk throws Loki through a window into the Stark Tower penthouse] ENOUGH! You are, all of you, beneath me. I am a god you dull creature, and I will not be bullied by... The Hulk: [Hulk grabs Loki by the legs and smashes him against the floor repeatedly] Puny god.
(MY FAVORITE PART OF THE WHOLE MOVIE!!)

Pulse of Heroes Blog Tour (Guest Post)

2012-05-06T10:16:00.000-05:00

Today is my stop on the Pulse of Heroes blog tour and I am hosting a guest post by the author A. Jacob Sweeny. Also if you would like to have a chance at winning a copy of this book check out this link to a rafflecopter giveaway: http://www.jenniferwrightauthor.com/1/post/2012/05/pulse-of-heroes-on-tour-spotlight-and-giveaway.html

If you would like a chance to win a bookmark for this book, then leave a comment and on the May 8th I will draw a winner.

Writing History:

Many people ask me when and why I started to write, and to answer this question I have to go much further back in time to an age that precedes my knowledge of the power contained within those little signs called letters. Back then it was all just squiggles and dots to me, but for my mother who loved to read to me, they were words, words that strung together and spun out amazing stories.

My mother was an excellent storyteller, and by that I don’t mean that she wrote her own stories, although she did write poetry, but what I mean is that she did something very similar to writing and almost as amazing. She would read books that were complex beyond what a mind of what a young child such as myself could grasp, and retell them in such a way that they could; that I could. Of course she didn’t tell me every detail of such stories if she found them to be inappropriate, but she also never hid from me the fact that there was much more to the story that what she was sharing with me. When I would ask her why she couldn’t completely explain something, she would always answer that when I matured enough I could pick up the books and find out the answers for myself. Talk about installing cliffhangers in my mind!

The other thing my mother did was explain the nuances of words to me whenever I asked for a deeper explanation. I remember specifically being upset about words that didn’t seem quite right to me, as if they didn’t fit the context of the story, or even a single sentence. I think it was during those deep analytical thoughts around the age of five that I started thinking that if I were to tell the story I would tell it differently and use better words. This led to me making up different endings to these stories as well, and eventually I just started making up my own stories, which I in turn, just like my mother, would tell to my little sister. She loved my stories and I remember that certain sad ones even brought her to tears and would haunt her for years to come.

It took me a very long time to actually write any of my creations down. It was as if I knew that I had yet to master any language to truly convey what it was that I wanted to express. Also, with such genius writers as Homer, Shakespeare, and Dickens to live up to, as that was what my mother was reading to me, I pretty much knew that my writing career was over before it started by the time I was seven. If my memory serves me right, the first things I ever wrote other than my school work were entries in my first diary. I can’t imagine what an eight year old girl would write about, but I obviously had plenty to express. I distinctly remember having an outdated ugly orange organizer that was full of little scribbling in blue ink.

My next memory of any creative writing came as part of a game I was playing with my siblings and grandfather. The game was played by him giving us all a single word, a noun, and we each had one minute to write a poem using that specific word. I remember that one of the words was “moon” and another was a flower, maybe it was “rose”. In any event, my poems were voted to be the best. I remember the look on my grandfather’s face, as he was surprised and amused by my verse. In fact he even went and got my mother so she could read all that I had written. He asked her if she had ever noticed my propensity with words, descriptions, moods, etc. My mother, paying attention to my scrawls for the first time, seemed equally impressed. This was the first true praise I ever remember having gotten over a talent. Up until then, I was always good at some things I did, but never great, let alone gifted. I remember feeling so happy that I couldn’t wait to start writing more. Poetry started pouring out of me, and then songs and eventually long stanzas. It took a few years before I actually wrote down my first story. And after that I never looked back -

www.pulseofheroes.com

facebook.com/ThePulseMythSeries

E-mail: lyviavi@gmail.comGOODREADS LINKS:

Pulse of Heroes:

http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/10550107-pulse-of-heroes

Of Blood & Pulse:
http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/12938767-of-blood-and-pulse

A Sword For His Women:
(Pulse Historia)
http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13336534-a-sword-for-his-women

AMAZON LINKS:

Link that includes all works:

http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=ntt_athr_dp_sr_1?_encoding=UTF8&sort=relevancerank&search-alias=books&ie=UTF8&field-author=A.%20Jacob%20Sweeny

Pulse Of Heroes:

http://www.amazon.com/Pulse-Heroes-A-Jacob-Sweeny/dp/0615414168/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1333729284&sr=1-1

Of Blood & Pulse:
http://www.amazon.com/Blood-And-Pulse-The-ebook/dp/B006455BJK/ref=sr_1_3?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1333729395&sr=1-3

A Sword For His Women:
(Pulse Historia)
http://www.amazon.com/Sword-Women-PULSE-HISTORIA-ebook/dp/B006QXG41Y/ref=sr_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1333729395&sr=1-2

B&N:Link for both:

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/a--jacob-sweeny?keyword=a.+jacob+sweeny&store=allproducts

Pulse Of Heroes:
http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/pulse-of-heroes-ajacob-sweeny/1105098795?ean=2940013590816&itm=2&usri=a.+jacob+sweeny

Of Blood & Pulse:
http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/of-blood-and-pulse-a-jacob-sweeny/1106964014?ean=2940013590915&itm=1&usri=a.+jacob+sweeny

Book Blurb:

A suspenseful, passionate, paranormal romance that sweeps through the emotions of first love and heartache as it traverses centuries and continents.

Michelle used to feel like she was behind in everything, especially school and relationships. Her great aunt from the old country says she is like a bland meal, "no salt or pepper". But in junior year, everything changes. Her father takes a position on the Town Council, a popular boy in school becomes interested in her, and most importantly, the Hekademos Learning Center, a private school for 'troubled' students, moves into her quiet neighborhood amidst the protests of the entire town.

After seeing the School Regent out with a group of young guys just before Christmas, Michelle is convinced that there is something odd about them. Her curiosity gets the better of her and she embarks upon a mission to figure out what is really going on. After an embarrassing fall over the school wall, Michelle meets Elliot and her ordinary ‘bland’ life changes its course forever.

Elliot is no ordinary human. In fact, no one at the Hekademos Learning Center is. Beautiful and fierce, they have survived throughout the millennia by weaving in and out of human events. Through them, Michelle learns that history and myths from around the world are dotted with references to their kind. Michelle falls madly in love with the ever-striking and mysterious Elliot and, as much as he tries to fight it, he develops strong feelings for her as well. Although Elliot carries numerous painful memories from his many pasts, he disregards his own better judgment and the advice of his friends, and finds himself falling for Michelle‘s offbeat personality. Their feelings grow in intensity, but when History catches up with them, the difference between their life paths threatens to destroy any future that they might have had together.

Michelle learns that there are infinite shades of gray between black and white, and has to deal with the bundle of contradictory emotions called love. After some unexpected twists during a family trip to Europe, she has to trust her intuition in order to face the danger and uncertainty of being drawn into Elliot’s wondrous world. Ultimately, it is up to Michelle to make the split-second, life-altering decision that will either tear them apart forever, or give them another chance.

Schedule

May

Alchemy of Anne's Anomalies http://alchemyanne.blogspot.com/ Interview

Jennifer Malone Wright's Blog www.jenniferwrightauthor.com Interview and big rafflecopter contest.

Kristina's Books & More http://kristinasbooksandmore.blogspot.com/ Guest post and review posting.

Tsk Tsk What To Read www.tsktskwhattoread2.blogspot.com Character Interview or Guest post

Uniquely Moi Books http://uniquelymoibooks.blogspot.com/ Guestpost

Books, Reviews, Movies. Oh My! http://writesthoughts.blogspot.com/ Guest Post

The Cover and Everything in Between http://thecoverbybrittany.blogspot.com/ guest post.

Bookworm Lisa http://lisaisabookworm.blogspot.com/ Excerpt n promo

Lovetiggi's Blog http://lovetiggisblog.blogspot.com/ guest post and repost of review

Rant's n Scribbles http://rantsnscribbles.blogspot.com/ Interview Excerpt

Storytime Book Reviews http://storytimebookreviews.blogspot.com/ Character Interview

Snowdrop Dreams of Books http://www.snowdropdreams.ca/ guest post

Paranormal Reads http://paranormalreadsreviews.blogspot.com/ Character interview/post review

Alchemy of Anne's Anomalies http://alchemyanne.blogspot.com/ guest post

Just Another Book Addict http://justanotherbookaddict.blogspot.com/ Review/Excerpt

Magical Urban Fantasy Reads http://www.magicalurbanfantasyreads.com/ Guest post/promo

Lovey Dovey Books http://www.loveydoveybooks.blogspot.com/ Review/Excerpt

Geo Librarian http://geolibrarian.blogspot.com/ Review

The Lovely Books http://jessicaslovelybooks.blogspot.com/ Review

The Cover and Everything in Between http://thecoverbybrittany.blogspot.com/ Interview

Tattle Tale http://tattlet.blogspot.com/ Review

Buried in Books http://wwwburiedinbooks.blogspot.com/ Review

Jen's book reviews http://addicted2bookreviews.blogspot.com/ Review

Ramblings of a Misguided Blond http://russelllindsey.wordpress.com/ Review

Phenomenal Paranormal Reads http://jennswiger.blogspot.com/ Review

Texas Straight Talk Reviews http://michysbookreviews.com/ Review

Delphina Reads Too Much http://delphinareadstoomuch.blogspot.com/ Review

AboutClaireAtherton http://claireatherton.webs.com/ Review

Andie's Young Adult Books http://andisyoungadult.blogspot.com/ Review

Angel on Fire Blog Tour

2012-05-04T12:06:00.000-05:00

Angel on Fire by Jacquie Johnson
Pages: 255
Publisher: Author
Review source: copy from author
My rating: 4/5
Order your copy here: amazon.com

All Angela wants is to understand why her father, security specialist Mac McKenzie, dropped dead on a sidewalk in Boston. Instead, she is thrust into the midst of an international conspiracy when she discovers that her father was working on a classified project at the time of his death. Now, the FBI, a terrorist and a killer have her in their sights.

Former Navy SEAL turned undercover operative, Chase Romero thinks his boss is overreacting when he orders Chase to small town America to protect Angela. But he changes his mind when her home is burglarized and “accidents” begin to happen. The real question becomes, how can he keep her safe if he keeps tripping over his own heart?

After shooting an intruder, Angela flees the scene, and the FBI issues a warrant for her arrest. On the run for her life and her freedom, she places her trust in Chase. As they travel from New England, to the nation’s capital, to the shores of Lake Michigan, the trail – and their attraction – grow hotter. Together, they team up to prevent a global financial market meltdown and face a killer who will stop at nothing to get his hands on the project Mac protected with his life.

About the author:

Jacquie Johnson fell in love with books on her mother's knee. From Dr. Seuss to Carolyn Keene to L.M. Montgomery, she continued her affair until her teenage years when she began reading authors ranging from Tom Clancy to Nora Roberts to Johanna Lindsey. She's still an avid reader but now carries an e-reader instead of a paperback in her purse. Mystery and suspense are her favorite genres, but she enjoys romance, historical fiction and non-fiction as well.

She graduated from Harvard and Indiana University School of Law. After ten years practicing labor and employment law, she retired to homeschool her daughters. She lives in Northwest Indiana with her husband, three daughters, and a spoiled cocker spaniel named Princess.

Author's website: http://www.jacquiejohnson.com/

Angel on Fire is Jacquie Johnson's debut novel and it is a nice fast-paced romantic suspense.

Angela knows something is not right and she is determined to find out what really happened to her father. All signs say it was a heart attach, but she just can't believe it. Especially when she keeps getting strange phone calls, her house is broken into, she gets hit by a car, etc.

Her father was in to something which is why he tried to contact is friend Zach, and its why Zach sends Chase to see if Angela needs protection. Chase is an ex-Navy SEAL and works for Zach, so he goes where he is sent, but he doesn't really think anything is going to happen. It doesn't take to long after being in Manchester to find out that someone is after something and Angela is definitely in danger.

Angela is a great character and very strong and independent, which I love in female characters. When she meets Chase she connects with him immediately. Chase is sexy, strong and a protector, he is everything you would want in a man!

I love romance suspense novels but the one thing I would have to say I didn't like about this novel was probably how quickly they seemed to connect romantically. It's one thing to think that a guy is hot, etc but its another to jump into bed with him so quickly after meeting him. Maybe I am just a little old fashioned but I like it better when it takes a little romancing before she finally gives in. :) Other than that I really enjoyed this book and will be checking out what Jacquie Johnson writes next!

For a self published author I think that Jacquie Johnson did a great job with pulling you into the story from finish to end. I know some are leery about indie authors, but you are missing so much when you don't give them a try.

I would recommend this for all those lovers of romance!

This tour is a part of Lightning Book Promotions, http://lightningbookpromotions.com and if you would love to sign up to be a reviewer check out this site!

The Ruins of Noe free for one day!!

2012-05-01T04:24:00.002-05:00

A few months ago I reviewed Brigitta of the White Forest, it is a middle grade fantasy novel about faeries and I loved it. Today is the official release date of the second book The Ruins of Noe!!!

Because its the release date the author along with her publisher Hydra House is giving it away FREE today to celebrate its release. Its only free today, so you need to head over there and pick up a copy!

The free ebook SHOULD appear on THIS PAGE so what are you waiting for!!!

Review of The Immortal Rules + giveaway!

2012-04-27T20:20:00.000-05:00

The Immortal Rules by Julie Kagawa
Pages: 512
Publisher: Harlequin Teen
Review copy: From publisher (thanks Karen!)
My rating: 4/5

In a future world, vampires reign. Humans are blood cattle. And one girl will search for the key to save humanity.

Allison Sekemoto survives in the Fringe, the outermost circle of a vampire city. By day, she and her crew scavenge for food. By night, any one of them could be eaten.

Some days, all that drives Allie is her hatred of them. The vampires who keep humans as blood cattle. Until the night Allie herself is attacked—and given the ultimate choice. Die…or become one of the monsters.

Faced with her own mortality, Allie becomes what she despises most. To survive, she must learn the rules of being immortal, including the most important: go long enough without human blood, and you will go mad.

Then Allie is forced to flee into the unknown, outside her city walls. There she joins a ragged band of humans who are seeking a legend—a possible cure to the disease that killed off most of humankind and created the rabids, the mindless creatures who threaten humans and vampires alike.
But it isn't easy to pass for human. Especially not around Zeke, who might see past the monster inside her. And Allie soon must decide what—and who—is worth dying for.

I haven't read Kawaga's first series, though I do have the first book! I am much more of a vampire fan than fairy so when I was given the chance to review this book I jumped on it!

I was very impressed with the storyline, its a lot different than most vampire books I have read. It's much more than a vampire who wants to try and be human, but about a girl who never wanted to be a vampire, though when faced with death she let Kanin turn her into one. Allie didn't really think things would be so different once she was a vampire, she still wants to be a part of the human world.

Though she quickly learns that it is not something that can happen and if given a chance she can be that horrible bloodsucker that she despises. Kanin told her it would happen but she had refused to believe him but now that she is on her own she is finding things to be harder than she thought.

I really like Allie, she is a fighter and a very strong female character which I like to see in novels. Zeke is a likable character even though when they met it was a little rocky start. I liked Kanin most of all, he is just cool.

I am very interested in seeing how this series is going to go and can't wait for the next novel. I believe if you are a vampire fan then you need to grab you a copy of this novel.

This giveaway is for US residents only, sorry international people but I can't afford the postage right now. I am giving away my ARC copy of Immortal Rules to one lucky winner.

Please be a follower of my blog and then leave your name and email in the comment section.

Review of Batman: Super-Villains Strike+ giveaway!

2012-04-27T00:07:00.005-05:00

Batman: Super-Villains Strike by Michael Teitelbaum (Choose your fate adventure book)

Ages: 9-12

Pages: 144

Publisher: Starescape

Review copy: Giving to my by publisher

My rating: 4/5

Batman’s instincts tell him that Catwoman, The Riddler, Mr. Freeze, and Poison Ivy are all involved. But how could that be? They are all behind bars at Arkham Asylum. Batman knows these super-villains would never agree to work together…or would they?

Is a copycat criminal to blame? How could one person be in all these places at once? Follow the clues with Batman and then make your own choices for how the story will go. Can you help Batman solve this mystery? Will you be able to put the criminal—or criminals—behind bars and save Gotham City from chaos?

These DC Super Hero “interactive” stories will incorporate fabulous DC art along with puzzles and games to guide the reader through multiple outcomes of the story. The puzzles and games will appear at random chapter endings providing clues to help the reader decide where to go next. Familiar interactive elements, for readers otherwise absorbed with online games and other digital devices, these original concept books will add a new level of excitement and challenge for the reader.

I love choose your own adventure type books and so when this little book showed up at my house I was like, "How Cool!". I am a huge lover of comic book characters and how can you not like Batman!

You are Batman and its your job to clean up the city of Gotham, but wait aren't these super villians behind bar?? As Batman you will chance down Catwoman or Poison Ivy and try to figure it out. It has fun puzzles to solve to help you get clues, it's just a really fun book.

If you have a young reader at home then you need to get them this book, its fun, you can choose how you want the story to go, and find more than one ending. If you choose one way and you get a The End, then try the other way and see what happens, its like having a group of short stories in one book!

The only thing I think was wrong with it was that they say its for ages 9-12, but I think 7 and 8 year olds would like it more than a 12yr old as it seemed more for smaller children. It is more like a chapter book, though sometimes it might have a word that is hard for them to understand other than that it can be read by smaller children.

Over all I think if you love DC Comic characters then it is worth grabbing just for the pure fun of reading your favorite comic characters. I have been told that the next installment will be WONDER WOMAN!!!! I can't wait, I love wonder woman!!

Now for the really cool part! Starscape is letting me giveaway 5 copies!! So if you have a young reader here is your chance to grab this really cool book!

Just leave your name and email address in the comment section and let me know who is your favorite super hero or villian and I will put your name in the drawing!! Following is not madatory, but if you love me follow me and I will follow back. :)

Enza Release Day Party!!! Great giveaway from the author!

2012-04-23T13:03:00.000-05:00

Today is the release day for Enza by Kristy K. James and to celibrate she is doing a fantastic giveaway! It also starts her book going on a blog tour and I will have all the information about that in this post so be sure and check out the tour! She will be giving away some print and digital copies of her book during the tour!

For today though Kristy is giving away a $50 gift card to amazon.com pluse ten digital copies of her book Enza!!! Isn't that just way cool!!!!! What you need to do is leave a comment as she will be taking her winners from all the blogs helping with the release day party and picking the winners, so if you comment on some other blogs that have the release day party going on you can have extra chances to win!!!!

Questions for you to answer when you leave a comment:

Since Enza is a historical fiction novel. What is your favorite historial era?

Other blogs that will be hosting the Release Day Party!:

Reena www.reenajacobs.com/blog

Donna http://mylife-in-stories.blogspot.com

Dee http://bookzone.atwc1.com

Jessica http://booksake.blogspot.com/

Elizabeth http://silversolara.blogspot.com

Me http://writesthoughts.blogspot.com

Kristy http://kristykjames.wordpress.com/

The Enza blog tour information:

About Enza:

It is a time of innocence and prosperity. The Women’s Suffrage Movement gains more attention with each passing day. All across the country housewives and young ladies harbor hope that they might finally win the right to vote. Patriotism is at its peak as the war to end all wars rages an ocean away.
On the homefront, in a small town in Michigan, life is being lived out like the pages of a Mark Twain novel. Until an unseen enemy, deadlier than any human adversary, threatens Mankind’s very existence.

Elliot Owens – The only thing in the world that matters to Elliot is his wife and their five children, and he will do everything in his power to protect them.

Daniel Pullman – When his plans to join the Army are dashed following an injury, meeting the love of his life makes the disappointment easier to bear.

Colby Thornton – A devoted minister whose congregation loves him nearly as much as he loves them, Colby struggles with bitterness toward the wife who doesn’t love him at all.

Marcus McClelland – One of the local funeral directors, Marcus lives his life avoiding close relationships because if he doesn’t care about anyone, it won’t hurt when he loses them.

Jonathon Owens – At ten years old all Jonathon dreams of is to be a war hero…by proving that his German neighbor is a spy.

When all is said and done, will any of them survive?

Order Your Copy Here: Amazon

Authors Links:

blog: http://kristykjames.wordpress.com/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/KristyKJames

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/home.php#!/kristykjames

About the Author:

She is the author of Reluctant Guardian, A Fine Mess, and The Stranger in my Head, with the fact-based fiction novel, Enza, to be released later this year.
Kristy currently lives in Michigan with her two children, too many pets and a husband who gives her the freedom to write to her hearts content. She spends her time living in her make-believe worlds, cooking and baking up a storm, and doing her best to learn to say ‘no’ when stray animals wander into her large country yard.

Tour Schedule

April

23rd – Patricia @ Live and Dream a Little Dream

24th Andi @ Radiant Light

25th Heather @ It’s All About Me

26th Lisa @ Seeking With All Yur Heart

26th Shannon @ Cocktails and Books (guest post only)

27th Paula @ The Phantom Paragrapher

28th Kathleen @ The Celtic Lady’s Reviews

28th Elizabeth @ Silver’s Reviews

29th Molly @ Reviews by Molly

30th Hayley @ Hanging Off The Wire

May

1st Tracy @ Booked Up

2nd Donna @ My Life. One Story at a Time

3rd Ruth @ My Devotional Thoughts

Review of Masque of the Red Death

2012-04-22T18:05:00.001-05:00

Masque of the Red Death by Bethany Griffin
Pages: 336
Publisher: Greenwillow Books
Review Source: ecopy from Edelwiess
My Rating: 3.5/5

Everything is in ruins.

A devastating plague has decimated the population, and those who are left live in fear of catching it as the city crumbles around them.

So what does Araby Worth have to live for?

Nights in the Debauchery Club, beautiful dresses, glittery makeup . . . and tantalizing ways to forget it all.

But in the depths of the club—in the depths of her own despair—Araby will find more than oblivion. She will find Will, the terribly handsome proprietor of the club, and Elliott, the wickedly smart aristocrat. Neither is what he seems. Both have secrets. Everyone does.

And Araby may find not just something to live for, but something to fight for—no matter what it costs her.

Bethany Griffin has taken a short story from Edgar Allen Poe and turned it into a YA story that has the same depressive feel of Poe's writing.

It's set during the time of the plague and Araby's father has invented mask for people to wear to help people not get sick. Araby's parents always favored their son, Finn, who was Araby's twin and her father made him a mask first. Araby grabbed it and put it on her face first and once its been on one person's face it can't be on another, before he gets Finn another one made he dies.

Araby lives with the fact that she killed her brother and her parents don't really seem to care about her much. She pretty much lives like a zombie through most of the book as she is always doped up on drugs, trying to forget the pain.

Araby to me is not a real likable character, she steals from her father to help a guy she doesn't even like. Elliot scares her because he is the prince's nephew but he talks about rebellion and her friend April is missing so she thinks he is the right person to trust, even though he says not to trust him. I don't know I just couldn't care about her.

And it seems you can't have a YA novel anymore with out a love triangle so Araby is with Elliot, though she really like the way Will makes her feel when he is around. Though you pretty much know a bit about Elliot, and I always seem to go for the bad boy, you really don't know much about Will. Though Will seems to be kind hearted and takes care of his brother and sister, you really don't know where he stands with Malcontent and the Prince, it's to vague to decide if I like him or not. The two guys in this story or so wishy washy your not sure who might be a bad guy and who might be a good guy or are they both good or bad, or the lesser of two evils. It was just really confusing to me on that part of the story.

The thing that I didn't like the most out of this story was the drug use and dreariness of the story. I was also hoping it wasn't going to be a series but it seems that story these days has to at least be in three parts and so I was a bit disappointed at the ending. :(

Over all, I thought it was an interesting story and will continue to find out what happens. If you like steampunk novels you might want to check it out.

Quotable Feature: Jus Accardo contest! April 20th-27th

2012-04-20T16:33:00.000-05:00

Quotes

A great quote can be inspirational. It can make us laugh, or swoon. It can make us feel connected when we’re lonely. A quote is the perfect example of the power words can hold. They can come from anywhere. Movies, books, people… I thought today I’d share some of my favorites with you.

Let’s start with people. Some of my absolute favorites come from Lord Byron.

For truth is always strange; stranger than fiction – Simple and says it all. This describes my life perfectly. Example? My 60 something year old neighbor mowing the lawn at midnight wearing nothing but a red Speedo. Seriously. You can’t make this stuff up…

If I don't write to empty my mind, I go mad – My brain is a random idea generator. Some pan out, others get filed away in a WTF were you thinking folder. Either way though, I need to get them out. If I don’t, it gets really crowded in there…

　　　　　　　　　　　 And what about movies? Everything from creepy to hilarious. Movie quotes stick with us.

I’ll be back... – You know you think badass, unstoppable killing machine when you hear that.

I see dead people – Tell me you didn’t get the chills when you saw Haley Joel Osment turn to Bruce Willis and confess his big secret?

I want my two dollars! – I don’t care how old you are, if you don’t know this quote, a small part of me just died…

　　　　　　　　　　　 Of course I saved the best for last. The book quotes. Funny, swoontastic, and all around awesome! I’ve seen everything from t-shirts to tattoos honoring these puppies. A few weeks ago, I even saw a van that had Jacob’s face (Twilight) and I'm gonna fight for you, until your heart stops beating airbrushed across the driver’s side. On the passenger’s side, Edward's face and Look after my heart - I've left it with you. Crazy, right?

Pick up your clothes. I am not your maid. How do I know this? A maid cannot kill you with a tube sock. I can. – If you haven’t read Rob Thurman’s Cal Leandros series, you need to snap it up ASAP. There are so many awesome one liners, it will make your head spin.

So, since I’m a sucker for book quotes, we’re going to play a little game! There are 15 participating blogs for this event. At each stop there will be a teaser quote from TOXIC. It will be your job to figure out who said what. A random commenter from each blog will be picked to receive a swag bag and an eBook copy of UNTOUCHED, and then those winners will be pooled and one grand prize winner will get a signed copy of TOUCH and a Touch key chain. On the last day of the event, I’ll pop by each of the blogs and give the answers! (International commentors can receive the digital copy of Untouched, but I am afraid for the swag and copy of Touch/w Key chain is only open to those who are US/Canada)

Here is the qoute for this blog:

“Fine. Give me something sharp. If I stab him then we’ll beeven.”

Who said this? Was it Ginger, Kale, Dez, Alex or Keirnan?

Book Blurb

Untouched (A Denazen Novella 1.5)

Until he met Dez, Kale’s days were filled with violence and death. He was used as a weapon of destruction by the power hungry men of Denazen. He’s a Six. A person with an abnormal ability. Some people call them gifts, but not Kale. Kale’s touch means instant death.

But now there’s Dez, the girl he can touch, and they’re hunting down Sixes and warning them about Denazen. Kale is learning about the world outside captivity and trying to put his dark past behind him. But they underestimated how badly Denazen wanted him back.

When Dez sacrifices herself to save the new Six they’d rescued from falling into the corp’s hands, Kale is lost. Denazen has brought out its best to get the job done. Samsen, a nightmare from Kale’s past—the only person he’s ever truly feared—has come for them, and it soon becomes obvious he has his own twisted agenda.

Kale will need all his training to get Dez back and ensure they make it out, free—and alive. But will it be enough?

Add Untouched to your TBR pile on Goodreads

Touch, the first novel in the Denazen series, is set to re-release in mass market on June 12th (Complete with additional scenes from Kale’s POV!). You can pre-order your copy here

Toxic (Denazen 2) hits shelves on September 11th 2012

Bio

Jus Accardo is the author of YA paranormal romance and urban fantasy fiction. A native New Yorker, she lives in the middle of nowhere with her husband, three dogs, and sometimes guard bear, Oswald. Her first book, Touch, is available now from Entangled Publishing. She is represented by Kevan Lyon of Marsal Lyon Literary Agency.

Give Jus a yell on Twitter, or visit her on Facebook, and her website.

Featured Friday's

2012-04-20T15:29:00.000-05:00

Getting in on this a little late today, but I wanted to participate in Featured Friday, so here I am! Check out Parajunkee View or Allison Can Read for more info.

Q: Fight! Fight! If you could have two fictional characters battle it out (preferably from books), who would they be and who do you think would win?

A: Hmm, this is a question that I have to put some thought into..ugh. Well, lets see I think I would like to see Barrons from the Fever Series, he is probably one of my favorite male characters and then I would like to put him against Bones from The Night Huntress Series, he is another great male character. I would have to say Barrons would win but that's just cause I am more partial to him than Bones..LOL. Love them both though!

Review of The Great Deliverance

2012-04-20T13:18:00.000-05:00

A Great Deliverance by Elizabeth George
Pages: 432
Publisher: Bantam
Review Source: I bought the ebook version
My review: 3.5/5

To this day, the low, thin wail of an infant can be heard in Keldale's lush green valleys. Three hundred years ago, as legend goes, the frightened Yorkshire villagers smothered a crying babe in Keldale Abbey, where they'd hidden to escape the ravages of Cromwell's raiders.

Now into Keldale's pastoral web of old houses and older secrets comes Scotland Yard Inspector Thomas Lynley, the eighth earl of Asherton. Along with the redoubtable Detective Sergeant Barbara Havers, Lynley has been sent to solve a savage murder that has stunned the peaceful countryside. For fat, unlovely Roberta Teys has been found in her best dress, an axe in her lap, seated in the old stone barn beside her father's headless corpse. Her first and last words were "I did it. And I'm not sorry."

Yet as Lynley and Havers wind their way through Keldale's dark labyrinth of secret scandals and appalling crimes, they uncover a shattering series of revelations that will reverberate through this tranquil English valley—and in their own lives as well.

I had never heard of this author until I came across the British TV series Inspector Lynley starring Nathaniel Parker and Sharon Small. So I decided to give the book version a try to see if I would like it as well as I do the series (though I think I just like Nathaniel Parker...lol)

Anyway, it was a lot different that the series on BBC, though I still very much enjoyed the book. You get a little more incite on Inspector Lynley and detective-sergeant Havers the two main characters of Elizabeth George's series. You always get a lot more out of the books than TV or movie adaptations.

In this first book you meet Inspector Lynley, who is a bit of a player. The golden boy who is the eighth earl of Asherton who decided to take on a real job instead of living it up in lush style. He becomes a policemen but people still treat him different, they think his rise to Inspector is because of his station as earl. He really is a very good policeman and passionate about what he does. Even though he is a player he had fell in love with the same women his best friend St. James did and she chose St. James. So he sort of has a broken heart that he doesn't let anyone know about. I like the Inspector.

Barbra Havers is the exact opposite of Lynley, she has had a hard life. Nothing was handed to her she has had to work hard to get where she is and sometimes she lets her temper get the best of her. Nobody is CID wants to work with her and Lynley is pretty much her last chance. Havers is a ball of emotions, prejudice but has great instincts when it comes to working a case. She hates Lynley and can't believe that Webberly would put them together, but she really has to make the most of it. Havers is a great character and my favorite!

The case they get put on is a rough one, a man has been decapitated and the daughter says she did it, but she isn't emotionally together so they don't think she did it. The priest who found her doesn't believe she did it, nor anyone who knows her, so Lynley and Havers has to get to the bottom of what happens. It is a pretty emotional case with some incites to some nasty child abuse with a very religious father. (the man who was murdered) Elizabeth George does a great job of giving you a lot of red herrings so that you are not really sure who done it. Was it really the daughter or the cousin, the man with the painting, etc.

The only thing I didn't much care for in the book was the interruptions with the honeymooners Deborah and St. James, the dinner parties, etc of them really had no place in the book as far as I am concerned. I know why they are there because you find that out later on, but I just mainly skipped through them as I found them irrelevant to the story.

Over all I enjoyed this book and will be checking out Book Two (I am really behind since she just recently released #17 earlier this year!!!)

Download The Binding free on Amazon.com!

2012-04-17T04:00:00.001-05:00

The Binding by L. Filloon is a great story about elves and you just don't get enough stories about elves!! L. Filloon is someone I am working with and I would like to encourage you all to check out her book The Binding April 17th-18th as she is putting it free for those two days!

Tell all your friends and fellow readers!

http://www.amazon.com/The-Binding-ebook/dp/B006L960EO/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1334618337&sr=8-1

Explorer X: Beta blog tour (guest post)

2012-04-16T14:58:00.000-05:00

As a part of the Explorer X: Beta blog tour I have on my blog today a guest post from the author LM Preston.

Explorer X: Beta is a science fiction middle grade book and its the second in the series so if you have a young reader who likes this sort type of books, then you should check it out.

Blurb:

Barely escaping their captors, Aadi and Eirena are determined to save their dying friend. After their final confrontation with the species that tortured them, they've changed-unfortunately, not for the better. The changes caused by a terrible experiment force Aadi to accept the possibility that he may never be fit to go home, and that holding onto his sanity, or leading his friends to safety will end in failure and may rip his friendship with Eirena apart, forever. Time is slipping away and the possibility of losing his friend is not an option, but the foe that awaits them may be worse than the one they left.

Fessing up: Face Your Fears

There are times when you’ve made a great mistake, got caught sneaking out, or got punished for something you knew darn well you shouldn’t have done – and the time to pay the piper is near. Fess up and apologizing is one of the hardest things to do – and truly mean sometimes. We all have to start sometime.

THE TRIP UP

My parents had one rule, “Do not leave the house without telling us.” Well, you know what I did right? I left – just to go to the corner store. I did it a lot, heck, got away with it at least a dozen times before I got…caught. You know while I was doing it, I didn’t think I would get caught. No really, they hardly ever doubted that I would not follow the rules. I followed the rules in most everything else. I was a “good” kid that was easily managed – not! But at least I thought I was.

GETTING CAUGHT

I tell you, when you get caught doing something you know dang well you should be doing – it’s the worst feeling in the world. When I rounded that corner coming from one of my adventures off the safety of my neighborhood, my grandmother was standing on the porch waiting for me. Her hands were on her hips and her frown made it obvious that I was in for it.

I froze, yep I couldn’t take a step. Part of me wanted to run, but I knew she would catch me. I gulped, closed my eyes and slowly walked up the street. My booty of candy and soda firmly held in my hand. Even though I’d gone to the store, left the neighborhood, and didn’t tell my grandmother where I’d gone, there was no way, no – way, I was giving up the goods.

ARE YOU REALLY SORRY? And READY to FESS UP?

Now I admit I was sorry – really sorry. But, but, but, that didn’t mean I wanted to give up my candy. I couldn’t figure out what I was more sorry about. Was I sorry I got caught, or was I sorry that I broke the rule. Truth was, if I hadn’t gotten caught I would still go to the store without getting permission. Also, the truth was, if given the chance to do it again… I just might run to the store again. That meant, I wasn’t really sorry.

At the end of the day, I apologized. Also, I got punished. The punishment was – no playing outside for a week and no allowance for a month. I thought it was harsh, heck downright mean. But it taught me a lesson. There is a price to pay for breaking the rules, and most times…all times, it’s much higher a price to pay than it would have been to do things the right way.

Did I ever break that rule again? Naw, after that… I just asked. Sometimes being denied doing what I wanted wasn’t always so bad.

by: LM Preston, Author of Explorer X-Beta, The Pack and Bandits, http://lmpreston.blogspot.com and www.lmpreston.com.

Growing Pains: Kendra's Diaries Blog Tour

2012-04-13T10:58:00.000-05:00

Welcome to the last day of the Growing Pains: Kendra's Diaries Blog Tour and I hope you will check out all the great blogs that have been on the tour.

Growing Pains: Kendra's Diaries by K. P. Smith

Kendra Foster is just an ordinary girl trying to get through her growing pains. Join her for her eight grade year and the struggles she goes through such as her parents fighting, cheer leading tryouts, friendship ups and downs, first crushes, etc. Growing pains is a fun look at life and its ups and downs, its bumps and its bruises. But with perseverance, determination, and faith you can be all you were born to be.

The authors goal is to inspire young adults to never give up and to not be afraid of being yourself.

Website: http://doinitpublishing.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/KPSmith2
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Doin-It-Publishing/213838971964801
Purchase Copy Here: Amazon.com & BarnesandNoble.com

About the Author:

K.P. Smith has a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from Xavier University in New Orleans, LA. She also has a Masters in Business Administration with a Concentration in Marketing from Loyola University in Chicago, IL. K.P. Smith has a successful career in the Insurance Industry.
She has been an avid reader since her youth. Writing has always been a passion of hers. She is the author of the Growing Pains Series. The first book in the series is Growing Pains: Kendra’s Dairies She is currently working on the second book in the series; New Beginnings.

She has recently started her own publishing Company Doin It Publishing. In addition, she developed a community outreach program Open Hands Open Hearts. She currently resides in New Orleans, LA with her two sons.

Tour Schedule:

April 4th Precious @ Fragments of Life

5th Heather @ Fire and Ice

6th Michelle @ Much Loved Books

7th Victoria @ Always a Booklover

8th Michael @ Author Michael Allen (Guest Post)

9th Jo Ann @ Book Faerie

10th Ruth @ My Devotional Thoughts

11th Sheila @ Sheila Deeth

12th Jennifer @ My Life With Books (Guest Post Only)

13th Stormi @ Books, Movies, Reviews. Oh my!

My Review:

Growing Pains is a cute Middle Grade novel that incorporates a lot of the tough things children go through growing up. Kendra goes through the ups and downs of eight grade from first crushes to cheer leading. With her parents fighting and watching out for her little sister Kendra is growing up and having to deal with normal problems most kids deal with.

K. P. Smith really gives her book a sense of realism as she is not afraid of putting all those bits that most have to dill with into her book. I think it is a great start to a series and it will be a lot of fun to find out what happens to Kendra when she enters High School.

If you have a young reader in your mist I would recommend this novel to them.

Featured author: John Hansen

2012-04-07T10:53:00.000-05:00

For a limited time—April 7^th – April 8^th—

The Perfect Game by John Hansen is FREE on Amazon US, Amazon UK, and all other Amazons! Be sure to spread the word and download your FREE copy today! Here’s more info:

Blurb:

Entertainment is changing forever. Comedies, dramas, and reality TV shows are out. Murder is in.

In a world where murder is being exploited on TV, viewers watch live assassinations for their own entertainment. A hit game show where the challenge is to kill arises, stirring up remarkable popularity. Millions of viewers all across the globe watch it, vicariously experiencing the thrill of murder without ever committing the crime. And they all love it. Murder is the world’s latest and most remarkable excitement turned entertainment. But what happens when it goes too far?

---------------------------

What People Are Saying:

“The Perfect Game foreshadows the talents of a new talent.” – Aldo T. Calcagno, Amazon.com

“This is a short story like no other.” – Jenn, Amazon.com

“A bargain at 99 cents. Watch out Stephen King. You have company.” – Debra Spellman, Amazon.com

“What an amazing story!! Wow!! Still can’t get over how John’s mind worked in this one!! This is a MUST READ!!” – Brenda Romine, Goodreads.com

“I am so glad I read this book!” – Ana, Goodreads.com

------------------------

Excerpt:

The Perfect Game was an epidemic, a poison, a drug and although he knew it was bad, it was so addictive, so entertaining, so thrilling that Jeff simply could not stop. He loved The Perfect Game, loved how it changed him, strengthened him, darkened his moral and ethical views. It gave him this feeling of power, omnipotence, and violence; murder was a game, and he could do it freely. And it felt so good.

------------------------

Learn more at:

Goodreads
John’s Blog
Facebook
Twitter

Download for free for a limited time (only through April 7^th and 8^th!) here.

Amazon UK
Amazon US

Follow Friday

2012-04-06T07:46:00.001-05:00

Follow Friday is hosted by Parajunkee View and Allison Can Read. Check out their blogs for instructions and more information.

Have you ever bought a book BECAUSE of a bad review?

I can't think of anything right now that I have bought because of a bad review but I do know that I have bought the ebook version of some books that get bad reviews out of curiosity. Bad reviews just makes me to curious not to want to give a book a try, though I am not really influenced much by reviews because I think a person needs to form their own opinion about the book.

What about you?

------
Also everyone I entered my book blog into Goodreads Independent Book Blogger Awards and if you like my blog could you please vote for me! Would really appreciate it! Thanks!