tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30678375021268211072024-03-14T14:49:58.951-04:00The Plot ThickensAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05624363362005982902noreply@blogger.comBlogger251125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3067837502126821107.post-75330510338443026512017-11-02T00:01:00.000-04:002017-11-02T00:01:08.326-04:00Claudia Riess - Love and Other Hazards - Review & Giveaway<a href="http://loveandotherhazardsblogtour.blogspot.com/" target="_blank"><img align="middle" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0Wpqe-QDKQLQLpqKxZEvBBNNYgIMVNTQAG5CjznNWe2Gu-C_KPYqbcBSnZB22orzKGR9bD0QmarbLiYLsf9D0CUcd3UmrFlFOl-CpvDPL8jxsLYEDG0Hk1UQoHVYKt87IX9rhbHIBbfc/s1600/banner.jpg" width="100%" /></a><br />
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<img align="left" border="1" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgifImpXmInhhEkkqcJbQeR4AWeP0Lq5ixSc_IJlQBed6Pf76gwBZW-9hchnK8DENdvaSgBImyqpZX75z_TyzezLx4X5OnXap6VMCTrJ0HLrjed6tVzxyl-lh07xW1GxWgXg6XXAjNyxww/s320/35111698.jpg" width="188" /><b>About the Book</b><i><br /><br />Glenda Fieldston is at the Metropolitan Museum of Art with her seven-year-old daughter, Astrid, when Eugene Lerman comes walking by with his eight-year-old daughter, Meredith, a schoolmate of Astrid’s. The families spot each other, Glenda and Eugene engage in long-range cursory assessments, and then they go their separate ways. But not for long. Glenda and Eugene cross paths professionally soon after, and circumstances at work bring them into close association. So begins a friendship fraught with complications. Glenda’s independence is self-imposed and fierce. Eugene’s was foisted on him by a wife who left him. Although Glenda’s and Eugene’s personal demons are incompatible, their longings are, confoundedly, in harmony. Their cautious friendship is further inhibited by past and present relationships, and it remains to be seen if they can break out of their set ways to make a break for uncharted love. </i><br />
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<b>Review</b><br />
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Relationships lack a certain something without conflict. A sense of tension doesn't necessarily have to be a bad thing when it comes to romance. Sometimes, it ignites a spark between two opposites.<br />
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...as in the case of Glenda and Eugene.<br />
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She's the uptight neurotic and he's the disheveled philosopher. They drive each other crazy, but in a good way. It reminds me of a scene in the last Harry Potter movie when Hermione mutters about Ron, "When am I not mad at him?" It's that kind of push and pull dynamic that keeps the fire of romance alive and burning.<br />
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But at the base of things, the couple truly has to care about each other. Challenging the one you love needs to be done with tender loving care, otherwise it devolves into nothing but cattiness and cruelty, a series of stinging rebukes without any constructive encouragement.<br />
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Ultimately, it's about growth, individually and collectively. If a couple can grow together, then they stand a chance of making it. Her honesty tries him, while his presumptuousness makes her want to run in the opposite direction. Yet somehow they make it work when, "her…vulnerability bounded out to meet his."<br />
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He likes how he can't figure her out. He's drawn to how she's "staunchly independent, yet cloyingly maternal." She resists letting down her guard with him, especially when it comes to not looking her best in front of him. However, she finds out that he likes her when she's a mess, when she's not perfect. She's finally able to let her hair down and he discovers a newfound excitement when it comes to monogamy, because now with Glenda, he is able to approach it with a heightened awareness and an enhanced appreciation.<br />
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Do they eventually make it down the aisle? Well, the last line says it best: "She felt control falling from her like a bridal gown, exposing her to the hazards and other possibilities of love."
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***
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<i>Love and Other Hazards</i> can be purchased at:<br />
<b><a href="http://www.amazon.com/dp/B071P4FLK2?tag=tributebooks-20" target="_blank">Amazon</a></b><br />
<b><a href="https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/love-and-other-hazards-claudia-riess/1126420588?ean=9781632991225" target="_blank">Barnes and Noble</a></b><br />
<b><a href="https://geo.itunes.apple.com/us/book/love-and-other-hazards/id1238526584?mt=11&at=10lu5f&ct=w" target="_blank">iTunes</a></b><br />
<br />
Prices/Formats: $2.99 ebook, $14.95 paperback<br />
Genre: Family Life, Romance<br />
Pages: 256<br />
Release: May 10, 2017<br />
Publisher: River Grove<br />
ISBN: 9781632991225<br />
<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/35111698-love-and-other-hazards" target="_blank">Click to add to your Goodreads list.</a></b><br />
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<img align="left" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigMGzHUYXmaXGljfcK1n8yIYpxZKj3-zhv3QGwtyx91gAHKj4JbMVsW8lE6lfVlkneCCJKSNCVkaNZ6oCrWTRnF2edg6Eo2-oWzZB05OKKgIEtXXqkkHkYzaXn0oaztwu-S4vZXlX6PS4/s1600/author.jpg" width="188" /><b>About the Author</b><br />
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Claudia Riess is a Vassar graduate who has worked in the editorial departments of <i>The New Yorker</i> magazine and Holt, Rinehart and Winston books and has edited several art history monographs. Her first novel, “Reclining Nude,” was published by Stein and Day. Oliver Sacks, author of “Awakenings,” had said her first book was “exquisite—and delicate… a most courageous book, full of daring—a daring only possible to a passionate and pure heart.”<br />
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The author divides her time between the Hamptons and Manhattan with her husband, Bob. <br />
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<b>Links to connect with Claudia:</b><br />
<b><a href="http://claudiariessbooks.com/" target="_blank">Web Site</a></b><br />
<b><a href="http://www.facebook.com/ClaudiaRiessBooks" target="_blank">Facebook</a></b><br />
<b><a href="http://twitter.com/ClaudiaRiess" target="_blank">Twitter</a></b><br />
<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/3052782.Claudia_Riess?from_search=true&search_version=service" target="_blank">Goodreads</a></b><br />
<b><a href="http://loveandotherhazardsblogtour.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Blog Tour Site</a></b><br />
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<b>About the Giveaway</b><br />
<br />
<a class="rcptr" data-raflid="2bf06796163" data-template="" data-theme="classic" href="http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/2bf06796163/" id="rcwidget_c4wasol8" rel="nofollow">a Rafflecopter giveaway</a>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05624363362005982902noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3067837502126821107.post-14956214059466540992017-10-03T00:01:00.000-04:002017-10-03T00:01:12.695-04:00Jerome Charyn - Winter Warning - Review & Giveaway<a href="http://winterwarningblogtour.blogspot.com/" target="_blank"><img align="middle" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipcBKwQp1q20Omz2tUFeIO-po_uIckHMI0VHnqeK7VoQFDqSsxGg-RSAMdNZB3hmfAn9RjTeEhIztU9B64mm-mHFZCkpj0Ynw58SXVC1P7RbQDIVO33vlP25CQEOMTM4kLOOaToK1aaTpD/s1600/banner.jpg" width="100%" /></a><br />
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<img align="left" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkFhLeCduYFjo4FroXkaxdfAsvmIfLwQ-BsyO8Gz5gMNzOOhqfsjiZAo4ogTvYviiPSWZV7Arj2O7YCof2S7a9sfHyS7_mqZlZrgxPeSqtVfZP7QOd2h5ncN3wqvS_dbXovBKPr7ChGHAA/s320/Winter+Warning-DJ-v1.jpg" width="188" /><b>About the Book</b><i><br /><br />Reflecting our own world like a volatile funhouse mirror, Winter Warning lures us back to the 1980s, an era that could have been ripped right out of our most recent political upheaval. Isaac Sidel should have been vice president, banished to some far corner of the West Wing, but the president-elect has been forced to resign or face indictment for his crooked land deals—and Sidel becomes the accidental president. He’s a maverick, a crusader with a Glock in his belt, who defies both the Republicans and the Democrats. He seems haunted by Lincoln’s ghost, and the presidential palace becomes his own “great white jail,” as it did for Harry Truman. There’s never been another president quite like Isaac Sidel, New York’s former police commissioner and mayor. There’s a secret lottery created by some bankers in Basel to determine the exact date of Sidel’s death. And Sidel has to outrun this lottery in order to save himself. His greatest allies are not the Secret Service or the DNC, but a former Israeli prime minister who was a explosives operative during the British occupation of Palestine . . . as well as a mysterious billionaire who belongs to a brotherhood of killers and counterfeiters. His only companions in the capital are the captain of his helicopter fleet and a sexy naval intelligence officer who realizes that something has gone amuck at Camp David, when a band of mercenaries arrive with their sights trained on Sidel.
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<b>My Review</b><br />
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Some presidents break the mold. Isaac Sidel is one of those presidents. And it's not long before the first Jewish president becomes everyone's favorite target.<br />
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Take for example the following offhand remark: "What does it feel like to ferry the big Jew around? Does he recite his evening prayers in a yarmulke?" Little respect is shown for the new commander-in-chief. The Secret Service can't protect him. His chief of staff ignores him. There's a civil war brewing in his cabinet. And oh yeah, there's an underground lottery out there betting on the exact date of his death.<br />
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And just who's running this lottery? A group of bankers, looking to get even richer. With his enemies ready to eat him alive, it's open season on Isaac Sidel.<br />
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Is it just because he's Jewish? Not necessarily. Their defiance and abandonment is fueled by more than just anti-Semitism. He's a danger to the establishment because he doesn't care about money or power. His campaign promises mean something to him, he never meant for them to become lies. Yet he's mocked by those seeking to bring him down, "Sidel's a dreamer. He'll turn Yankee Land into one big welfare state. All our holdings will be flushed into the toilet. We can't afford him."<br />
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Yet Sidel, an ex-police chief, isn't ready to go down without a fight. He's not about to let his presidency disappear down the black hole of politics. He doesn't care if he's their currency, their bait. In his mind, the only one who's going to determine his fate is him, regardless if their rate of exchange is currently being measured in spoonfuls of his blood.<br />
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For Isaac Sidel, his heartbeat is not negotiable, and boy, oh boy, in the latter half of the book does he ever turn the tables on them.<br />
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***
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<i>Winter Warning</i> can be purchased at:<br />
<b><a href="https://www.amazon.com/dp/1681773481?&tag=tributebooks-20" target="_blank">Amazon</a></b><br />
<b><a href="https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/winter-warning-jerome-charyn/1125829672?ean=9781681773483" target="_blank">Barnes and Noble</a></b><br />
<b><a href="http://www.indiebound.org/book/9781681773483" target="_blank">IndieBound</a></b><br />
<b><a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/winter-warning-an-isaac-sidel-novel/id1238839750?mt=11" target="_blank">iTunes</a></b><br />
<b><a href="https://www.biblio.com/book/winter-warning-isaac-sidel-novel-charyn/d/988271727?aid=frg&utm_source=google&utm_medium=product&utm_campaign=feed-details&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIvcr33ujy1AIVnYuzCh2UoQHBEAYYAyABEgIjiPD_BwE" target="_blank">Biblio</a></b><br />
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Prices/Formats: $25.95 ebook, $25.95 paperback<br />
Genre: Political, Espionage, Thriller<br />
Pages: 256<br />
Release: October 1, 2017<br />
Publisher: Pegasus Books<br />
ISBN: 9781681773483<br />
<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/34445219-winter-warning?from_search=true" target="_blank">Click to add to your Goodreads list.</a></b><br />
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***<br />
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<img align="left" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglxRzHJ3p5C6VbbHavQZlzJai7aoPf_WOW4BV8zWI92vR3F9IXbPzOuCIlgNmHn8b-FoApPrZOCJd9s6iYAz8kNqC6hpsCAC7Wf1k_zQOu5u1on4JzenUaKr6Wt_B5m6FGOvkXG0jOcxw/s320/Jerome+crop+NYPD+jpg.jpg" width="188" /><b>About the Author</b><br />
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Jerome Charyn published his first novel in 1964. He's the author of <i>Johnny One-Eye, The Secret Life of Emily Dickinson, I Am Abraham</i>, and dozens of other acclaimed novels as well as nonfiction works. His short stories have appeared in <i>The Atlantic, Paris Review, American Scholar, Epoch</i>, and <i>Ellery Queen</i>. Charyn's popular crime novels featuring homicide detective Isaac Sidel inspired a new animated drama series: <i>Hard Apple</i> debuts on the small screen in 2017, helmed by Hollywood insider James Gray (<i>The Immigrants</i>) and illustrated by famed artists Asaf and Tomer Hanuka. Charyn lives in Greenwich Village, New York.
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<b>Links to connect with Jerome:</b><br />
<b><a href="http://www.jeromecharyn.com/" target="_blank">Web Site</a></b><br />
<b><a href="https://www.facebook.com/jerome.charyn?fref=ts" target="_blank">Facebook (author)</a></b><br />
<b><a href="http://twitter.com/jeromecharyn" target="_blank">Twitter (author)</a></b><br />
<b><a href="https://www.facebook.com/IsaacSidel/" target="_blank">Facebook (Isaac Sidel)</a></b><br />
<b><a href="http://twitter.com/IsaacSidel" target="_blank">Twitter (Isaac Sidel)</a></b><br />
<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/53408.Jerome_Charyn" target="_blank">Goodreads</a></b><br />
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<b>Giveaway</b><br />
<br />
<a class="rcptr" data-raflid="2bf06796161" data-template="" data-theme="classic" href="http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/2bf06796161/" id="rcwidget_qh72kit8" rel="nofollow">a Rafflecopter giveaway</a><script src="https://widget-prime.rafflecopter.com/launch.js"></script>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05624363362005982902noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3067837502126821107.post-75640936009556515412017-09-12T00:01:00.000-04:002017-09-12T00:01:00.868-04:00A. Keith Carreiro - The Penitent: Part II - Review & Giveaway<a href="http://thepenitentpartiiblogtour.blogspot.com/" target="_blank"><img align="middle" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgD9dl6NGVOo6B1S8LTwTrELrARsRmSwJ_yn_R0hpMEZyJz_smksVICkI4sSK57IpRcT8-Kizw8GwC6dE8ODksq49Ug3WeMkZ45NN1YQRq7I43cg4AHelV-ZJijHCAYeRl3SgdzVm8lSFyp/s1600/banner.jpg" width="100%" /></a><br />
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<img align="left" border="1" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNdoskJoApW1HTpQx6QvmVIRo7ycX1d07Np5UsvYoEhMTTrnhfby5MG1uQnU7mszZxN_o2Bzs8SMIaeGSgMdw_dBJzpeb6halklNfQ2PHoW25W0izoHs9sHL4irJro8VOwL5X51-reSD3W/s320/THEIMM%257E1.JPG" width="188" /><b>About the Book</b><i><br /><br />Hidden in the bottom of a roadside ditch as a baby, Evangel is only steps away from her viciously murdered parents. An old hermit finds her there a day later and takes her to his home in the heart of a sylvan wilderness. She is raised in a hermitage built by Matthew where he learns she is touched by a rare spiritual power. 17 years later a series of miracles occur that rock the very nature of her reality. Befriended by outlaws and a king’s champion, she is also betrayed by a woman of the cloth during a bard of the realm’s performance. That night, in a dream, Evangel envisions her future soul mate, Pall Warren, on a battlefield of death, and casts a prayer of protection around him. Thus begins a remarkable journey to save herself and those who believe in her. A hauntingly beautiful and startling tale of wonder. </i><i><br /><br />
</i><br />
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<b>My Review</b><br />
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"The forces and omens are assembling into play…to ignite into being."<br />
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Now that's what I call a great introduction. With opening references from the Bible to Shakespeare, the scene is set. What has been predicted, by so many for so long, is now about to come true.<br />
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So is this a novel all about doom and destruction? Surprisingly, no. Yes, there are parts that are graphically violent and crude. Yet the main message revolves around, "there is goodness and innocence in the world if we but look for it." And happily, it resides in the heart of a 17-year-old girl and the tender restored eyes of her grandfather-protector. Together, they shatter the enveloping darkness that begins to surround them with their own combined light.<br />
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A genuine miracle occurs when the girl begins to work wonders for the people, so that "the laws of nature are suspended…or rather fulfilled." It's an interesting way to look at things, as if the possibility of the miraculous is just within our grasp if we but reach for it. In the story, "each moment in time is filled with this potential. We have but to invoke it in faith for it to be seen in our presence."<br />
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Yet the girl's strength centers not so much on performing unbelievable feats, but on forgiving her enemies. She doesn't let hate fester inside of her. Instead, she turns the violence committed against them into an act of healing and love.<br />
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Yet grave danger accompanies the revelation of tenderness and mercy. It makes some people very uncomfortable, and it's not long until all the deadly sins are unleashed upon them. Envy. Pride. Fear. You name it. The rich, the powerful, the well-connected—all want to overthrow their sense of comfort and peace.<br />
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Yet they carry on because they know what they're doing is right. It's a burden they're willing to bear, secure in the knowledge that their treasure isn't found in this realm, but "within man's heart and heaven's home."
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***
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<i>The Penitent: Part II</i> can be purchased at:<br />
<b><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Penitent-Part-Immortality-Wars-Book-ebook/dp/B07176R49M?&tag=tributebooks-20" target="_blank">Amazon</a></b><br />
<br />
<b>Prices/Formats:</b> $4.99 ebook, $15.99 paperback<br />
<b>Genre:</b> Science Fiction, Fantasy<br />
<b>Pages: </b>274<br />
<b>Release:</b> May 15, 2017<br />
<b>Publisher:</b> Copper Beech Press<br />
<b>ISBN:</b> 9780997382716<br />
<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/35278125-the-penitent---part-ii" target="_blank">Click to add to your Goodreads list.</a></b><br />
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***<br />
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<img align="left" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgaZkyS84yeIH8Fq_Hwc2Gv529S3iSFSvzdCcnui_ct8u-NWSjKUEbEWZkGv1N_NSC05qpsaE0GAhSMIcG8uK6yNxqRTKJjD-hQLKuYizGKx30bgVmN5YN0RE9mUsj0hS3ZMYBTUC1a5X7/s1600/IMG_0387.JPG" width="188" /><b>About the Author</b><br />
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A. Keith Carreiro earned his master’s and doctoral degrees from Harvard Graduate School of Education, with the sequential help and guidance of three advisors, Dr. Vernon A. Howard, Dr. Donald Oliver and Professor Emeritus, Dr. Israel Scheffler. Keith’s academic focus, including his ongoing research agenda, centers upon philosophically examining how creativity and critical thinking are acquired, learned, utilized and practiced in the performing arts. He has taken his findings and applied them to the professional development of educational practitioners.<br />
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Earlier in his teaching career he was a professor of educational foundations, teaching graduate students of education at universities in Vermont, Florida, Arizona, and Pennsylvania. He currently teaches as an adjunct professor of English at Bridgewater State University, as well as teaching English, philosophy, humanities and public speaking courses at Bristol Community College.<br />
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He lives in Swansea, Massachusetts. He has six children and 13 grandchildren. He belongs to an eighty–five–pound golden retriever, an eight–pound Maltese, and an impish Calico cat.<br />
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Due to his love of family, he has seen his fervor for history, as well as his passion for wondering about the future, deepen dramatically.<br />
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Starting on May 23rd until October 9th of 2014, he sat down at his computer on a daily basis and began writing the first book of a science fiction/fantasy thriller in a beginning series about the quest for human immortality.
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<b>Links to connect with A. Keith:</b><br />
<b><a href="http://immortalitywars.com/" target="_blank">Web Site</a></b><br />
<b><a href="https://www.facebook.com/The-Immortality-Wars-The-Penitent-Book-One-1023452581055756/" target="_blank">Facebook</a></b><br />
<b><a href="https://www.twitter.com/immortalitywars" target="_blank">Twitter</a></b><br />
<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/15959901.A_Keith_Carreiro" target="_blank">Goodreads</a></b><br />
<b><a href="http://immortalitywars.com/blog/" target="_blank">Blog</a></b><br />
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<b>About the Giveaway</b><br />
<br />
<a class="rcptr" data-raflid="2bf06796162" data-template="" data-theme="classic" href="http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/2bf06796162/" id="rcwidget_pzi2ph9y" rel="nofollow">a Rafflecopter giveaway</a><script src="https://widget-prime.rafflecopter.com/launch.js"></script>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05624363362005982902noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3067837502126821107.post-29847365251683634642017-09-05T00:01:00.000-04:002017-09-05T00:01:25.340-04:00R. Franklin James - The Bell Tolls - Review & Giveaway<a href="https://thebelltollsblogtour.blogspot.com/" target="_blank"><img align="middle" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhruKaUbpu9Ou5YmHTGTuOLXEY10pAN45o_Np7RZ38uc-oofMks2x8h-AVaS6DG-e_V5likbtsXVO5iPtbFkVF91dDVqnuOFcj9TxRB-_eovw9H3Ap9w_RgwKIe_i8S_b9JS1wl6UBHG28/s1600/banner.jpg" width="100%" /></a><br />
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<img align="left" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxTvFaZrBSEaCoRsTf6Pq2VOlav2_lqOHQO3QXtOspC0V2TqDPzZ6_b6ptLhGPtFB5m9cc1E1Hve3vAzhDklKaJZ-5y0Za6jrrHckn0HooXM3dYXW1zwcX9OSae4t4mYfuTjZYYgv-zro/s320/bell_tolls_300.jpg" width="188" /><b>About the Book</b><i><br /><br />Hollis Morgan has survived imprisonment, received a pardon and persevered to finally become a probate attorney. Tough as she is, her newest case will further test her mettle. She discovers her client, Matthias Bell, is a deceased blackmailer whose last wish was to return the damaging documents he collected, letting his victims off the hook. It falls to Hollis to give them the good news. But it’s revealed that Bell was murdered, and the victims of “Bell’s tolls” are now suspects.<br /><br />
Hollis’ white-collar criminal past has left her with keen survival instincts. A gifted liar she knows a liar when she meets one. A lot of people in this case are lying and one is a killer.<br /><br />
On top of that, she’s also representing a dying stripper, a wealthy widow whose estranged daughter spurns her attempts at reconciliation, but whose husband sees the potential inheritance as mending all wounds particularly financial ones.<br /><br />
Clients aside, Hollis is defensive and wary. Her mother, who hasn’t spoken to her for years, needs a kidney, and Hollis is a match, but neither are ready to put away the past. With Hollis’ fiancé and emotional support off on an undercover mission for Homeland Security, she must count on her own survival instincts. She is swept along on an emotional roller coaster as her absent love and her family’s coldness take their own toll.<br /><br />
Work is her salvation. The specter of a killer keeps her focused. Hollis has always had to rely on her wits, but now she finds that others who don’t have her well-being in mind are relying on them as well.</i><br />
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<b>My Review</b><br />
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What are you supposed to do with a blackmailer?<br />
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For the five victims manipulated in this story, you wait for him to die.<br />
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What exactly did he have on them, you wonder?<br />
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Well, one had a fling outside of marriage. Another cooked the books at work, concocting a fraudulent banking system. A third failed at properly hiding his gambling addiction. While a couple of foreign spies were willing to pay an exorbitant amount to keep their true identity under wraps.<br />
<br />
And you can say, living under the constant strain of such torment gets to be too much for them. So when their blackmailer unexpectedly dies, they can't believe they've actually reached the end of the line with him. Finally, they can let go of the imminent threat of exposure he's been holding over their heads for far too long.<br />
<br />
However, Hollis, the probate attorney hired to let them off the hook, becomes acutely aware of her own precarious situation, now that she, too, is privy to all their secrets.<br />
<br />
And when the blackmailer's family orders his body to be exhumed, suspecting foul play, the cause of death turns out to be murder. Now constantly looking over her shoulder, Hollis is afraid the killer may be out to get her too.<br />
<br />
The big twist comes at the end of the book when it's revealed that the blackmailer never intended to return the material he was holding on his victims after all. Someone else set them free from his reign of terror. But did that person (or persons) kill him too? You'll just have to read the book and find out.
<br />
<br />
***
<br />
<br />
<i>The Bell Tolls</i> can be purchased at:<br />
<b><a href="https://www.amazon.com/dp/B071Z883NN?&tag=tributebooks-20" target="_blank">Amazon</a></b><br />
<b><a href="https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-bell-tolls-r-franklin-james/1126374281?ean=9781603812177" target="_blank">Barnes and Noble</a></b><br />
<b><a href="https://geo.itunes.apple.com/us/book/the-bell-tolls/id1238511092?mt=11" target="_blank">iTunes</a></b><br />
<b><a href="https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/the-bell-tolls" target="_blank">Kobo</a></b><br />
<b><a href="https://www.overdrive.com/media/3301532/the-bell-tolls" target="_blank">Overdrive</a></b><br />
<br />
<b>Prices/Formats:</b> $4.95 ebook, $15.95 paperback<br />
<b>Genre:</b> Women's Sleuth, Mystery, Suspense, Thriller<br />
<b>Pages: </b>239<br />
<b>Release:</b> June 1, 2017<br />
<b>Publisher:</b> Camel Press<br />
<b>ISBN:</b> 9781603812177<br />
<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/34518818-the-bell-tolls?from_search=true" target="_blank">Click to add to your Goodreads list.</a></b><br />
<br />
***<br />
<br />
<img align="left" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEha_zLAV6ihpT49s9o9GgrRYpdhMyFkbDTo8l6SExmlnsbJwlUE8lHz0zqoF9qQUTkQFTCIXlK2o-OW_V8kO4x0X-G6A0p_KdJIEDvKSNaScUoIWU79yPLVe4YWd0s5jvavJcmvY3rkdhg/s320/RaeBksh.JPG" width="188" /><b>About the Author</b><br />
<br />
R. Franklin James grew up in the San Francisco Bay Area and graduated from the University of California at Berkeley. From there she cultivated a different type of writing—legislation and public policy. After serving as Deputy Mayor for the City of Los Angeles, under millionaire Richard Riordan, she went back to her first love—writing, and in 2013 her debut novel, <i>The Fallen Angels Book Club</i> was published by Camel Press. Her second book in The Hollis Morgan Mystery Series, <i>Sticks & Stones</i>, was followed by <i>The Return of the Fallen Angels Book Club</i>, and <i>The Trade List</i>. <i>The Bell Tolls</i>, book five was released in June 2017.<br />
<br />
R. Franklin James lives in Northern California with her husband.
<br />
<br />
<b>Links to connect with R. Franklin James:</b><br />
<b><a href="http://rfranklinjames.com/" target="_blank">Web Site</a></b><br />
<b><a href="https://www.facebook.com/R-Franklin-James-273658892738172/" target="_blank">Facebook</a></b><br />
<b><a href="https://twitter.com/RFJBooks" target="_blank">Twitter</a></b><br />
<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7043359.R_Franklin_James" target="_blank">Goodreads</a></b><br />
<br />
<br />
<b>About the Giveaway</b><br />
<br />
<a class="rcptr" data-raflid="2bf06796160" data-template="" data-theme="classic" href="http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/2bf06796160/" id="rcwidget_ggpsyttx" rel="nofollow">a Rafflecopter giveaway</a><script src="https://widget-prime.rafflecopter.com/launch.js"></script>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05624363362005982902noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3067837502126821107.post-57610041765570220952017-08-09T00:01:00.000-04:002017-08-09T00:01:25.010-04:00Rich Zahradnik - Lights Out Summer - Review & Giveaway<a href="http://lightsoutsummerblogtour.blogspot.com/" target="_blank"><img align="middle" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEKoslsiVgDZrwUM7BFXosQh6-tSB8BXbZ8o-PD_syoXCGSFBhgeOoFvo6aFo4xNR1EHVWoX6bQOedNRDfoFCJBGyAnm8V3MKuJJoVajhq_MCGKhDY-uGBrMf0xsaetKLdeO_Q0QwA8Ks/s1600/banner.jpg" width="100%" /></a><br />
<b><br /></b>
<img align="left" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiO3sUzXgkgD5J4bAYHCRh6wG82nnaEm2n0PKnnyjVc4FSaB3ljvHVacbvjqaBIK9DcCbQJ2ievjSVaP7x9S49HLITGaVBAp2Z3xjEIi1z5i9EwX_bilZ7oIT-Vy-hVuI3SnbuEzcCGoyo/s320/lights_out_summer_300.jpg" width="188" /><b>About the Book</b><i><br /><br />In March 1977, ballistics link murders going back six months to the same Charter Arms Bulldog .44. A serial killer, Son of Sam, is on the loose. But Coleridge Taylor can't compete with the armies of reporters fighting New York's tabloid war--only rewrite what they get. Constantly on the lookout for victims who need their stories told, he uncovers other killings being ignored because of the media circus. He goes after one, the story of a young Black woman gunned down in her apartment building the same night Son of Sam struck elsewhere in Queens.
The story entangles Taylor with a wealthy Park Avenue family at war with itself. Just as he's closing in on the killer and his scoop, the July 13-14 blackout sends New York into a 24-hour orgy of looting and destruction. Taylor and his PI girlfriend Samantha Callahan head out into the darkness, where a steamy night of mob violence awaits them.
In the midst of the chaos, a suspect in Taylor's story goes missing. Desperate, he races to a confrontation that will either break the story--or Taylor.
Book 4 in the Coleridge Taylor Mystery series. </i><i><br /><br />
</i><br />
<br />
<b>My Review</b><br />
<br />
<i>"Stereotypes had a bad way of making you wrong."</i><br />
<br />
But for poor Martha Gibson that sentiment no longer applies…because she's dead.<br />
<br />
And the sad thing is no one seems to care that a young, black woman has been murdered, not when the press and the police are fixated on one thing: stopping the Son of Sam killer from killing again. Unsurprisingly, her case falls through the cracks, until a lowly news wire reporter named Taylor makes it his mission to tell her story.<br />
<br />
<i>"There was a White city and a Black city. He knew too little of the Black city."</i><br />
<br />
Taylor is no rookie to witnessing racism in action in the city, but he becomes thoroughly disgusted by it when he starts investigating Martha's case. Just how did a college-educated woman get stuck cleaning toilets for a living? She started off well, rising from secretary to a sales position for a company located in the Empire State Building…until her boss started making unwanted sexual advances on her. <br />
<br />
<i>"He came on real strong. She said no. He fired her."</i><br />
<br />
Holding fast to her principles, Martha was left with no other choice than to take a job as a maid on Park Avenue, until her predatory ex-boss came after her and assaulted her in an alleyway.<br />
<br />
<i>"Did she go to the cops?" Taylor questions a witness.</i><br />
<i>"You kidding? Black woman. White man. Black witness."</i><br />
<br />
A rhetorical no.<br />
<br />
Of course, she didn't. That's why she's dead. But did her ex-boss kill her? That's what Taylor is trying to find out.<br />
<br />
Martha was a girl who didn't make enemies. She didn't make mistakes. She only talked about people if she had something good to say. And yet it quickly becomes clear to Taylor that Martha didn't know how she fit, or was supposed to fit, in 1977 New York. <br />
<br />
No one else seems to know either, when her death is mocked by:<br />
<br />
<b>1) The tabloid press</b><br />
<i>"A black woman was murdered? We're looking a different reader."</i><br />
<br />
<b>2) The mother of her ex-boss</b><br />
<i>"A news story about her?" She laughed. "They can't even read."</i><br />
<br />
<b>3) Her friends and family</b><br />
<i>"A white man is doing a story on a black woman from Queens by coming up to Harlem?"</i><br />
<br />
The story subtly addresses the question, has anything really changed?
<br />
<br />
***
<br />
<br />
<i>Lights Out Summer</i> can be pre-ordered at:<br />
<b><a href="http://www.amazon.com/dp/160381213X?&tag=tributebooks-20" target="_blank">Amazon</a></b><br />
<b><a href="https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/lights-out-summer-rich-rich-zahradnik/1126293458?ean=9781603812139" target="_blank">Barnes and Noble</a></b><br />
<b><a href="http://www.indiebound.org/book/9781603812139" target="_blank">IndieBound</a></b><br />
<br />
Prices/Formats: $4.95 ebook, $15.95 paperback, $29.95 audio<br />
Genre: Historical, Mystery, Thriller, Suspense<br />
Pages: 288<br />
Release: October 1, 2017<br />
Publisher: Camel Press<br />
ISBN: 9781603812139<br />
<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/34605303-lights-out-summer" target="_blank">Click to add to your Goodreads list.</a></b><br />
<br />
***<br />
<br />
<img align="left" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWWLTrYPt1qkDdNqPjJP_iKsKMN3o_pgZX_8Kdx7CB-TFbqMS6kkwoIc1QYoN8LzMkp8GTHGnHLjuOSFwnUSqBML-IdBVfwQtKMeUFj91EK851m0mD53pXXM9tucf10FpxNZggen1ibS6R/s320/_45D3397.jpg" width="188" /><b>About the Author</b><br />
<br />
Rich Zahradnik is the award-winning author of the critically acclaimed Coleridge Taylor Mystery series (<i>Lights Out Summer, A Black Sail, Drop Dead Punk, Last Words</i>).<br />
<br />
The first three books have been shortlisted or won awards in the three major competitions for novels from independent presses. <i>A Black Sail</i> was named winner in the mystery category of the 2017 Next Generation Indie Book Awards. <i>Drop Dead Punk</i> collected the gold medal for mystery ebook in the 2016 Independent Publisher Book Awards. <i>Last Words</i> won the bronze medal for mystery/thriller ebook in the 2015 IPPYs and honorable mention for mystery in the 2015 Foreword Reviews Book of the Year Awards.<br />
<br />
"Taylor, who lives for the big story, makes an appealingly single-minded hero," Publishers Weekly wrote of <i>Drop Dead Punk. A Black Sail</i> received a starred review from <i>Library Journal</i>, which said, “Fans of the late Barbara D’Amato and Bruce DeSilva will relish this gritty and powerful crime novel.”<br />
<br />
Zahradnik was a journalist for 25-plus years, working as a reporter and editor in all major news media, including online, newspaper, broadcast, magazine and wire services. He held editorial positions at CNN, Bloomberg News, Fox Business Network, AOL and <i>The Hollywood Reporter.</i><br />
<br />
Zahradnik was born in Poughkeepsie, New York, in 1960 and received his B.A. in journalism and political science from George Washington University. He lives with his wife Sheri and son Patrick in Pelham, New York, where he writes fiction and teaches kids around the New York area how to write news stories and publish newspapers.<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<b>Links to connect with Rich:</b><br />
<b><a href="http://www.richzahradnik.com/" target="_blank">Web Site</a></b><br />
<b><a href="https://www.facebook.com/richzahradnik/" target="_blank">Facebook</a></b><br />
<b><a href="https://twitter.com/rzahradnik" target="_blank">Twitter</a></b><br />
<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/8335771.Rich_Zahradnik" target="_blank">Goodreads</a></b><br />
<b><a href="http://www.richzahradnik.com/blog/" target="_blank">Blog</a></b><br />
<br />
<br />
<b>About the Giveaway</b><br />
<br />
<a class="rcptr" data-raflid="2bf06796159" data-template="" data-theme="classic" href="http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/2bf06796159/" id="rcwidget_918kg4z9" rel="nofollow">a Rafflecopter giveaway</a><script src="https://widget-prime.rafflecopter.com/launch.js"></script>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05624363362005982902noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3067837502126821107.post-81842759893702345842017-08-02T00:01:00.000-04:002017-08-02T00:01:18.780-04:00Sharon St. George - Spine Damage - Review & Giveaway<a href="http://spinedamageblogtour.blogspot.com/" target="_blank"><img align="middle" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitIvh_DQ1eSnOk0i-ckZTUYf9S5yfhyAj4c2ptRg6lIJf1hVkozfqnGMvOwhpbAmvaYLHi_LdKVGdKVcrUmkvhbT-uqmW5xn6d8xjkvo7iRkMbTWkHP-EiV5CMLugTJFVvQxJyEI0VC8g/s1600/banner.jpg" width="100%" /></a><br />
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<img align="left" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_NvgoNhNe6fGxLzglKSISb3L4DmRtkPvDMGgAArlGqi_37tNSZpp4RUQ_llWi_zXaqGxSzaQ2z98qqh19jpeyJ0juRzmMxjD2IeP0oYXGC6h-Upxn8HZemF0zCc8k9BRJ-_1CCo1ahh8/s320/spine_damage_300.jpg" width="188" /><b>About the Book</b><i><br /><br />Paulo Ferrara, a young Portuguese man, lies comatose in the Intensive Care Unit of Timbergate Medical Center, shot in the spine. The neurosurgeon who would normally be in charge of his care has left town to attend to an injured daughter, and the only other neurosurgeon, the rude and egotistical Dr. Godfrey Carver, is about to be suspended for not completing his continuing education requirements.
The unpleasant duty of ensuring that the staff obey the rules lies with Aimee Machado, the medical center's forensic librarian and Continuing Education Coordinator. Aimee and her pilot boyfriend Nick live together on her grandparents’ llama farm. While dealing with Dr. Carver, Aimee learns the circumstances of Paulo’s injury and enlists Nick’s help. Aimee is half Asian and half Portuguese, and her parents live on Faial, one of the Azores Islands off the coast of Portugal. Faial is the closest neighbor to Pico, home of Paulo and his family. Paulo came to rural Northern California in search of his fifteen-year-old sister Liliana, who vanished two weeks ago. Nick’s wealthy employer Buck Sawyer takes an interest in the girl’s plight as well, especially when they learn that she left the Azores on a superyacht. Not only is Buck a yacht owner, but he is also on a crusade against drug trafficking, and Paulo and Liliana have clearly stumbled onto a criminal operation of some kind.
The trail leads Aimee and Nick from Timbergate, to the Azores, to San Francisco. Paulo’s condition is deteriorating, and he might never be able to explain what got him shot. Can Aimee, her brother Harry, and Nick unravel the mystery in time to save Liliana?
Book 4 in the Aimee Machado Mystery series, which began with Due for Discard. </i><i><br /><br />
</i><br />
<br />
<b>My Review</b><br />
<br />
Are you two really serious about each other?<br />
When are you getting married?<br />
Don't you want to have a baby and start a family?<br />
<br />
These are just some of the questions a young woman usually faces once she starts living with a man. Everyone is eager to move the couple along to the next step, whether they're ready to move forward or not. Most people mean well with their good-natured ribbing, and sometimes…<i>yes, sometimes</i>…they may encourage a young woman to really think about where her life is heading.<br />
<br />
Aimee Machado is one of these women. When her on-again off-again relationship with her boyfriend, Nick, turns into a more stable arrangement, he shocks her with the revelation that he's been working with his boss to ferret out illegal drug traffickers. Needless to say, it's not something she expected to hear.<br />
<br />
Defending himself, Nick claims he didn't tell her sooner because, "It isn't about trust. It's about timing, back when you and I weren't solid, it wasn't necessary to pull you into the deep end."<br />
<br />
Yet all Aimee can think to herself is, "I wasn't convinced his definition of need to know matched mine."<br />
<br />
So does she really want to continue down this dangerous road with him? He's never home as it is, and she admits her instincts aren't always reliable, no matter how much she wants the comfort of being close to someone.<br />
<br />
When their romantic getaway to the Azores turns into more of a crime-solving mission than anything else, she's left more conflicted than ever. Nick doesn't have to solve this mystery. He's not a part of any police investigation. He could very well be putting the two of them in harm's way for nothing. So when Nick urges Aimee to keep a loaded weapon on her at all times, she laughs ruefully to herself that it's certainly not an expectant baby bump that's protruding from her midsection.<br />
<br />
By the conclusion of the book, she's left to ponder whether or not she wants to raise a baby in this kind of environment. And the only answer Nick can give her is, "A ship is safe in harbor but that's not what ships are for."
<br />
<br />
***
<br />
<br />
<i>Spine Damage</i> can be purchased at:<br />
<b><a href="http://www.amazon.com/dp/B071YTQ6TH?&tag=tributebooks-20" target="_blank">Amazon</a></b><br />
<b><a href="http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/spine-damage-sharon-st-george/1126282506?ean=2940157570613" target="_blank">Barnes and Noble</a></b><br />
<b><a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/spine-damage/id1234678429?ls=1&mt=11" target="_blank">iTunes</a></b><br />
<b><a href="https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/spine-damage" target="_blank">Kobo</a></b><br />
<br />
<b>Prices/Formats:</b> $4.95 ebook, $16.78 paperback<br />
<b>Genre:</b> Mystery<br />
<b>Pages: </b>328<br />
<b>Release:</b> May 15, 2017<br />
<b>Publisher:</b> Camel Press<br />
<b>ISBN:</b> 9781603815819<br />
<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/34518537-spine-damage" target="_blank">Click to add to your Goodreads list.</a></b><br />
<br />
***<br />
<br />
<img align="left" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFD_7I26ngIJD4QXdNS36SWIa9LMpmo49GsBB0D_-akIOTXqtlMEwmWruJWycf6oPoSRkTVFF6iO8Y0-opUnDXjVPBwGIVSWHSNet2EEEKMIPes7Ahbkas0A-CmdgTwIAsyD8B1_sEAtlw/s1600/XG8D1047+300+dpi+for+print,+book,+etc+gaussian+blur.jpg" width="188" /><b>About the Author</b><br />
<br />
Sharon St. George’s writing credits include three plays, several years writing advertising copy, a book on NASA’s space food project, and feature stories too numerous to count. She holds dual degrees in English and Theatre Arts, and occasionally acts in, or directs, one of her local community theater productions. Sharon is a member of Sisters in Crime and Mystery Writers of America, and she serves as program director for Writers Forum, a nonprofit organization for writers in northern California.
<br />
<br />
<b>Links to connect with Sharon:</b><br />
<b><a href="http://sharonstgeorge.com/" target="_blank">Web Site</a></b><br />
<b><a href="https://www.facebook.com/SharonStGeorgeauthor/" target="_blank">Facebook</a></b><br />
<b><a href="https://twitter.com/SharonStGeorge" target="_blank">Twitter</a></b><br />
<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/10908363.Sharon_St_George" target="_blank">Goodreads</a></b><br />
<br />
<br />
<b>About the Giveaway</b><br />
<br />
<a class="rcptr" data-raflid="2bf06796157" data-template="" data-theme="classic" href="http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/2bf06796157/" id="rcwidget_8pbi1xh5" rel="nofollow">a Rafflecopter giveaway</a><script src="https://widget-prime.rafflecopter.com/launch.js"></script>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05624363362005982902noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3067837502126821107.post-29914613408020921972017-06-09T00:01:00.000-04:002017-06-09T00:01:13.161-04:00Tricia Dower - Becoming Lin - Review & Giveaway<a href="http://becominglinblogtour.blogspot.com/" target="_blank"><img align="middle" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEji8ruKTXxelyhKwHSbLj7ka0OlNv6ETRoF_rc9ev2wg0nJ2DbX4eRuG36963NThsLgYXkl29nVt4CkFpoOVJBvJ-kdQ_0X0xvKqYaqHfctTkLDzl_5mdQvVGNFxzPe2-OxLW-Q95XWkzZM/s1600/banner.jpg" width="100%" /></a><br />
<b><br /></b>
<img align="left" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiamrJZejFkl-JShuBAe7lHQ8HeKYkf0wr7k9RewfpNvKrT8DGyMKIHtcKHNALCmJINPFmAks2XvZIGzYkAusLZ5dBOmA7fKMfm1xdvyUF2OMGtqfRsM73KWPn7_9Jbgo274c8RQySuQR_G/s320/Becoming+Lin+Cover+V1+MED.jpeg" width="188" /><b>About the Book</b><i><br /><br />It’s 1965. Twenty-two-year-old Linda Wise despairs of escaping her overprotective parents and the town of Stony River where far too many know she was sexually assaulted as a teenager. Deliverance arrives in the form of marriage to the charismatic, twenty-six-year-old Ronald Brunson, a newly ordained Methodist minister who ignites in her a dormant passion for social justice. He tells her war and racial discrimination are symptoms of the “moral rot” destroying the country, conjuring up something dark and rancid in her mind, thrilling in its wickedness. He sweeps her away from New Jersey to serve with him at a church in a speck-on-the-map prairie town in Minnesota. What lies ahead for her over the next seven years is the subject of Tricia Dower’s penetrating study of a marriage and a woman’s evolving sense of self as she confronts the fear that keeps her from an unfettered future. Becoming Lin conjures the turbulent era of Freedom Riders for civil rights, Vietnam war resistance, the US government’s war against the resisters, the push for equal rights for women and the unraveling of the traditional marriage contract—an era that resonates today in tenacious racism and sexism, perpetual war and wide-reaching government surveillance.</i><i><br /><br />
</i><br />
<br />
<b>My Review</b><br />
<br />
"Gender is the single most important factor in attitudes toward the use of military force."<br />
<br />
So says the thesis of pastor's wife / college student, Lin Brunson. But her undergrad independent study project turns into a whole lot more than she bargains for when she starts handing out surveys to the women in her husband's congregation. They stir up a whole hornet's nest of questions including: Why not use the huge chunk of federal funds earmarked for war and allocate it for women and children's services instead?<br />
<br />
But the ladies are quickly silenced when a veteran among them voices aloud that no one can deny the type of bond that forms between men serving in combat, guys who are willing to risk their lives for one another. In his mind, a woman just can't understand what that means to guys like him.<br />
<br />
So the question is rephrased: "Do men get saddled with war and women childbirth in some cosmic balancing act?"<br />
<br />
And Lin doesn't stop there. She starts marching in rallies for peace as well as sheltering draft dodgers in her home, on their way to Canada. But when she starts getting threatening letters in the mail saying, "Beware traitor," she begins having second thoughts. The exhilaration she felt at speaking out about the war soon turns into a sickening dread.<br />
<br />
So much so that her marriage breaks apart and she ends up on her own as a single mom, trying to make ends meet. But she keeps crusading, taking on the upper levels of management and bringing to their attention the lack of women executives, not to mention minorities. When the company tries to stonewall her, a fellow female employee congratulates her, "You must be doing something right. Somebody's looking to shut you up."<br />
<br />
This quiet, little mouse of a woman turns into a mighty crusader. Lin starts calling the shots of her own life, and it's inspiring to journey with her through the growing pains of her transformation.
<br />
<br />
***
<br />
<br />
<i>Becoming Lin</i> can be purchased at:<br />
<b><a href="https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01K10Q71O?&tag=tributebooks-20" target="_blank">Amazon</a></b><br />
<b><a href="http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/becoming-lin-tricia-dower/1123316470?ean=9781987915075" target="_blank">Barnes and Noble</a></b><br />
<b><a href="https://geo.itunes.apple.com/us/book/becoming-lin/id1132755961?mt=11&at=10lu5f&ct=w" target="_blank">iTunes</a></b><br />
<b><a href="http://www.indiebound.org/book/9781987915075" target="_blank">IndieBound</a></b><br />
<b><a href="http://www.booksamillion.com/product/1987915070" target="_blank">BooksaMillion</a></b><br />
<b><a href="http://www.midpointtrade.com/book_detail.php?book_id=134687" target="_blank">Midpoint Trade</a></b><br />
<b><a href="https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/becoming-lin" target="_blank">Kobo</a></b><br />
<br />
<b>Prices/Formats:</b> $12.99 ebook, $22.95 paperback<br />
<b>Genre:</b> Women's Fiction, Historical, Coming of Age<br />
<b>Pages: </b>240<br />
<b>Release:</b> March 20, 2017<br />
<b>Publisher:</b> Caitlin Press<br />
<b>ISBN:</b> 9781987915075<br />
<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/28481693-becoming-lin" target="_blank">Click to add to your Goodreads list.</a></b><br />
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***<br />
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<img align="left" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMC6P-5JGhpXyz4s5CPpyNmXYp0Sh_AlhOlvGPS_rjee5PZZQ6DpyxwBp3ZrkD5meB47WDrrR9xcT-40wd2M6ftXs3u0uYx5PTjvd7wcj_DGZXc3hl5Bt_VzLjm3WuyZjMblWvQ26V-Hc/s320/Tricia+Dower+%25231+sRGB+for+internet.jpg" width="188" /><b>About the Author</b><br />
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Tricia Dower hails from Rahway, New Jersey. You can find her on the “Rahway’s Own” website with other individuals the town has recognized for innovation and creativity. A graduate of Gettysburg College and a Phi Mu, she built a career in business before reinventing herself as a writer in 2002. Her literary work has crossed borders and won awards. She expanded a story from her Shakespeare-inspired collection, <i>Silent Girl</i> (Inanna 2008) into <i>Stony River</i>, which was published in both Canada (Penguin 2012) and the US (Leapfrog 2016). She gave a character from <i>Stony River</i> her own novel in <i>Becoming Lin</i> (Caitlin Press 2016), now available in the US.<br />
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The <i>Vancouver Sun</i> says, “Some of the most powerful and eloquent novelists of the 20th and 21st centuries…including Margaret Atwood, Margaret Laurence and Ethel Wilson...open up what had been cloaked in silence, the oppression of women and their self-discoveries in resistance. We can now add to this important liberation canon the name of Tricia Dower.”<br />
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A dual citizen of Canada and the United States, Dower lives and writes in Brentwood Bay, BC.
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<b>Links to connect with Tricia:</b><br />
<b><a href="http://triciadower.com/" target="_blank">Web Site</a></b><br />
<b><a href="https://www.facebook.com/tricia.dower" target="_blank">Facebook</a></b><br />
<b><a href="https://twitter.com/TriciaDower" target="_blank">Twitter</a></b><br />
<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/1302018.Tricia_Dower" target="_blank">Goodreads</a></b><br />
<b><a href="http://triciadower.com/silent-girl-speaks/" target="_blank">Blog</a></b><br />
<br />
<br />
<b>About the Giveaway</b><br />
<br />
<a class="rcptr" data-raflid="2bf06796156" data-template="" data-theme="classic" href="http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/2bf06796156/" id="rcwidget_938fbxg2" rel="nofollow">a Rafflecopter giveaway</a><script src="https://widget-prime.rafflecopter.com/launch.js"></script>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05624363362005982902noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3067837502126821107.post-35089557376012879622017-06-02T00:01:00.000-04:002017-06-02T00:01:17.788-04:00Michael J. McCann - Burn Country - Review & Giveaway<a href="http://burncountryblogtour.blogspot.com/" target="_blank"><img align="center" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzKr5IIquLSTSACmXugm8VueFtM0qEH-k-1ybDZFc_1eDQ09F1TENgen6sOBb9BauLM0VOs4wM_lNrlAua0YzW0mFxpsGRp384mhGTw0BjreOiB-s4nLuImLdtYn4YpcTb2LlbM6q12zxh/s1600/banner.jpg" width="100%" /></a><br />
<b><br /></b>
<img align="left" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgQnFReMePrHE4x0qDzrXeXAHLDapuoPu4NaM8kqfYf6HjYYSRA40FgtN0gg0XkYXIlH6L4ewPhMembWPAGfT_0ptUj6IOuHR55b-durNwT20fs_CnRqRdwGwp_U5S7imvqzYBKN3n_tvM/s320/BURN+COUNTRY+front+cover.jpg" width="188" /><b>About the Book</b><i><br /><br />The latest in a series of barn fires in Leeds County turns ugly when a body is discovered inside the burned-out husk of an old hay barn near the village of Elgin. When the victim turns out to be Independent Senator Darius Lane, a renowned artist and social activist recently appointed to the upper chamber by the prime minister, Detective Inspector Ellie March of the Ontario Provincial Police finds herself coping with an RCMP national security team which must first assess whether the senator’s involvement in sensitive government business led to his brutal murder by forces hostile to Canada. While Detective Constable Kevin Walker works the case files of the previous barn fires looking for a serial arsonist within Leeds County who may have killed for the first time, Ellie discovers that the intervention of RCMP Assistant Commissioner Danny Merrick, unexpectedly polite and charming, will place her directly in the cross-hairs of a homicide investigation with national repercussions! This is the second book in the March and Walker Crime Novel series and the sequel to Sorrow Lake, which was shortlisted for the 2015 Hammett Award for best North American crime novel.
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<br />
<b>My Review</b><br />
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"This is burn country, man. I think half the population of this province just likes watching s*** burn."<br />
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From weeds crackling in ditches to bonfires set in newly cleared fields, the residents of Sorrow Lake, a small, backwater community in Canada, like a good blaze. So why in the world is the latest arson case considered a possible threat to national security?<br />
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Well, as it turns out, it's not just arson—but murder—when a charred body is found among the smoldering rubble. And it's not just any corpse, either. Oh no, it's that of a left-wing senator. Immediately the stakes are raised for the investigators assigned to the case, especially when the prime minister, himself, is expecting frequent updates when it comes to their findings.<br />
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That's why I love how the mindset of the killer is explained through magic tricks. Walker is a young cop who trusted the wrong people early in his career. He can't lie for the life of him, and he's sick of people taking advantage of his good nature. So he takes up this new magician's hobby in order "to see what it's like to fool people," much to the chagrin of his snarly, more experienced partner, Bishop.<br />
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But there's a method to Walker's madness. It's all about misdirection, or "forcing attention to one spot while doing something at another spot when they're not looking." In other words, it's like studying the art of getting away with a crime.<br />
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It's a neat technique that the author uses in order to get us to think about how someone goes about committing the perfect murder. Some plan everything down to the last detail, while others get caught up in the heat of the moment and make mistake after mistake after mistake, leaving a trail of evidence a mile long. Walker and Bishop don't know who they're dealing with as they begin crisscrossing the countryside investigating a series of confirmed arsons, but they're about to find out what kind of a firebug they're dealing with.<br />
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And when Walker begins making some serious headway, his star just may get a chance to shine a bit brighter higher up the ladder. Sometimes good guys don't always finish last, and this one may not have to settle for being a part-time magician at children's birthday parties after all.<br />
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***
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<br />
<i>Burn Country</i> can be purchased at:<br />
<b><a href="http://www.amazon.com/dp/B06XQPLB45?tag=tributebooks-20" target="_blank">Amazon</a></b><br />
<b><a href="https://www.kobo.com/ca/en/ebook/burn-country" target="_blank">Kobo</a></b><br />
<br />
Prices/Formats: $5.99 ebook, $24.99 paperback<br />
Pages: 304<br />
ISBN: 9781927884096<br />
Publisher: Plaid Raccoon Press<br />
Release: March 17, 2017<br />
<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/34668497-burn-country" target="_blank">Click to add to your Goodreads list.</a></b><br />
<br />
<br />
<img align="left" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXP11p6HX4MJW5w6GxPaJfcECU_bToFcyCRUe-6zm3jEcg_RkD8rgxX7-uzDj79AuP_g87QC3_bS9TMLePMeuKcKYr0LrvWPQZGeURM2Y2Zh7Zizd5zPovWS-3RtB2mLU-fa6XoE0iIprA/s1600/author+photo+3.jpg" width="188" /><b>About the Author</b><br />
<br />
Michael J. McCann was born and raised in Peterborough, Ontario, Canada. He earned degrees in English from Trent University and Queen's University in Kingston, ON.<br />
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He is the author of <i>Sorrow Lake</i>, the first March and Walker Crime Novel, which was shortlisted for the 2015 Hammett Award for best crime novel in North America.<br />
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He is also the author of the Donaghue and Stainer Crime Novel Series, including <i>Blood Passage, Marcie's Murder</i>, and <i>The Fregoli Delusion. The Rainy Day Killer</i>, the most recent in the series, was longlisted for the 2014 Arthur Ellis Award for best crime novel in Canada.<br />
<br />
<b>Links to connect with Michael:</b><br />
<b><a href="http://www.mjmccann.com/" target="_blank">Web Site</a></b><br />
<b><a href="http://www.facebook.com/pages/Michael-J-McCann/130617140389341" target="_blank">Facebook</a></b><br />
<b><a href="https://twitter.com/MichaelJMcCann1" target="_blank">Twitter</a></b><br />
<b><a href="http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4724806.Michael_J_McCann" target="_blank">Goodreads</a></b><br />
<b><a href="http://michaeljmccannsblog.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Blog (mystery)</a></b><br />
<b><a href="http://wallsofnightmare.blogspot.ca/" target="_blank">Blog (paranormal)</a></b><br />
<b><a href="http://www.pinterest.com/michaeljmccann/" target="_blank">Pinterest</a></b><br />
<b><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cz3uySAROcI&feature=youtu.be" target="_blank">YouTube</a></b><br />
<b><a href="http://burncountryblogtour.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Blog Tour Site</a></b><br />
<br />
<br />
<b>About the Giveaway</b><br />
<br />
<a class="rcptr" data-raflid="2bf06796153" data-template="" data-theme="classic" href="http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/2bf06796153/" id="rcwidget_1y3uih30" rel="nofollow">a Rafflecopter giveaway</a>
<script src="https://widget-prime.rafflecopter.com/launch.js"></script>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05624363362005982902noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3067837502126821107.post-30357484383934161722017-05-09T00:01:00.000-04:002017-05-09T00:01:11.231-04:00Jerome Charyn - Jerzy - Review & Giveaway<a href="http://jerzyblogtour.blogspot.com/" target="_blank"><img align="middle" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinpjp3f8omNXqR4CzoJQa1KNMeRQHHnU3RYeeVE5P4Rvchj_ZhR9IFarxTHzDer5Bkfb6slh2obYz-z1cNADLok5BLkEMQ6L7Ks6H7GWMC7Jr1XHabBTcIyy-bM9KkO37AYnpJFeSTHDw/s1600/banner.jpg" width="100%" /></a><br />
<b><br /></b>
<img align="left" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxxOKYD_pjCKOgyZ_ANSgCZ7dC1urUWQCmvqlMsFYRcfKsN0XlaLKckWFOxutD5kS37tUZAtfKpZchaLLRS3NssPHqIqPwyHv7NVTAkvqBH7agTcerDYD1ldDU11g27nxLw9Uy2Uv2x0w/s320/JERZY+cover.jpg" width="188" /><b>About the Book</b><i><br /><br />Jerzy Kosinski was a great enigma of post-World War II literature. When he exploded onto the American literary scene in 1965 with his best-selling novel The Painted Bird, he was revered as a Holocaust survivor and refugee from the world hidden behind the Soviet Iron Curtain. He won major literary awards, befriended actor Peter Sellers (who appeared in the screen adaptation of his novel Being There), and was a guest on talk shows and at the Oscars. But soon the facade began to crack, and behind the public persona emerged a ruthless social climber, sexual libertine, and pathological liar who may have plagiarized his greatest works.<br /><br />
Jerome Charyn lends his unmistakable style to this most American story of personal disintegration, told through the voices of multiple narrators—a homicidal actor, a dominatrix, and Joseph Stalin’s daughter—who each provide insights into the shifting facets of Kosinski’s personality. The story unfolds like a Russian nesting doll, eventually revealing the lost child beneath layers of trauma, while touching on the nature of authenticity, the atrocities of WWII, the allure of sadomasochism, and the fickleness of celebrity. </i><i><br /><br />
</i><br />
<br />
<b>My Review</b><br />
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Jerzy Kosinski, the title character of this book, was quite simply a con artist. He could spin fabulous tales to amuse high profile people at parties and social gatherings, but when it came to writing it all down, he used the hidden talent of a troubled young girl, claiming it as his own.<br />
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But like all those who try to pull off wearing different masks throughout life, Kosinski's eventually had to come off. When he's exposed as a fraud by <i>The Village Voice</i>, a quote from his childhood hits the nail squarely on the head, "I'm tired of chess. [My] whole existence has been a chess game."<br />
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Let's face it, his formative years growing up in German - then Russian - occupied Poland couldn't have been easy. He learned from a young age that to stay alive, "the best lies keep as close as possible to the truth." Humorously enough, he became "the village's Jewish altar boy." Yet it makes one understand his need for subterfuge.<br />
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However, the esteemed literary circles of Manhattan show him no mercy. He falls from the heights of grace becoming a social pariah among the elite and the powerful. No more talk show appearances. No more best sellers. In fact, it could be said that suicide was built into the very fabric of his work since he survived the war on his fierce will alone. One could conclude that his tragic demise was inevitable.<br />
<br />
Is despondency Poland's national disease? Possibly. If as a child, Kosinski says, "I feel like I'm a hundred - when will I have time to be a boy?" And his parent replies, "When all our enemies are in the grave." It has to damage a person's psyche, and when it comes to Kosinski, the damage is beyond repair.<br />
<br />
Ultimately, he turned into a creepy voyeur rather than a fully actualized person. He even admits it in the novel, when he says to someone, "I meant to say hello. But I was enjoying my little game too much - the pleasure of watching you."<br />
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On the whole, I found <i>Jerzy</i> the novel to be a sad tale of a man who was willing to do anything to live, yet didn't know how.
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***
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<br />
<i>Jerzy</i> can be purchased at:<br />
<b><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Jerzy-Novel-Jerome-Charyn/dp/1942658141?&tag=tributebooks-20" target="_blank">Amazon</a></b><br />
<b><a href="http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/jerzy-jerome-charyn/1123623732?ean=9781942658146" target="_blank">Barnes and Noble</a></b><br />
<b><a href="http://www.indiebound.org/book/9781942658146" target="_blank">IndieBound</a></b><br />
<b><a href="http://blpress.org/books/jerzy/" target="_blank">Bellevue Literary Press</a></b><br />
<br />
Prices/Formats: $16.99 ebook, $16.99 paperback<br />
Genre: Historical, Jewish<br />
Pages: 240<br />
Release: March 14, 2017<br />
Publisher: Bellevue Literary Press<br />
ISBN: 9781942658146<br />
<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/29633908-jerzy?from_search=true" target="_blank">Click to add to your Goodreads list.</a></b><br />
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***<br />
<br />
<b>Excerpt</b><br />
<br />
<b><a href="http://www.staythirstymagazine.com/p/b-rothers-and-sisters-you-cannot.html" target="_blank">CLICK HERE</a></b> to read an excerpt from <i>Jerzy</i>.<br />
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<br />
<img align="left" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglxRzHJ3p5C6VbbHavQZlzJai7aoPf_WOW4BV8zWI92vR3F9IXbPzOuCIlgNmHn8b-FoApPrZOCJd9s6iYAz8kNqC6hpsCAC7Wf1k_zQOu5u1on4JzenUaKr6Wt_B5m6FGOvkXG0jOcxw/s320/Jerome+crop+NYPD+jpg.jpg" width="188" /><b>About the Author</b><br />
<br />
Jerome Charyn is the author of more than fifty works of fiction and nonfiction, including <i>A Loaded Gun: Emily Dickinson for the 21st Century, Bitter Bronx: Thirteen Stories, I Am Abraham: A Novel of Lincoln and the Civil War</i>, and <i>The Secret Life of Emily Dickinson: A Novel</i>. Among other honors, he has been longlisted for the PEN Award for Biography, honored as a finalist for the PEN/Faulkner Award, named a Commander of Arts and Letters by the French Minister of Culture, and is the recipient of a Guggenheim Fellowship and the Rosenthal Family Foundation Award for Fiction from the American Academy of Arts and Letters. He lives in New York.
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<b>Links to connect with Jerome:</b><br />
<b><a href="http://www.jeromecharyn.com/" target="_blank">Web Site</a></b><br />
<b><a href="https://www.facebook.com/jerome.charyn?fref=ts" target="_blank">Facebook</a></b><br />
<b><a href="http://twitter.com/jeromecharyn" target="_blank">Twitter</a></b><br />
<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/53408.Jerome_Charyn" target="_blank">Goodreads</a></b><br />
<br />
<b>Giveaway</b><br />
<br />
<a class="rcptr" data-raflid="2bf06796151" data-template="" data-theme="classic" href="http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/2bf06796151/" id="rcwidget_15h0lud2" rel="nofollow">a Rafflecopter giveaway</a>
<script src="https://widget-prime.rafflecopter.com/launch.js"></script>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05624363362005982902noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3067837502126821107.post-17523969182009894012017-05-02T00:01:00.000-04:002017-05-02T00:01:04.560-04:00David E. Grogan - Sapphire Pavilion - Review & Giveaway<a href="http://sapphirepavilionblogtour.blogspot.com/" target="_blank"><img align="middle" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEix3T9-c3s3FI_sddS8RqOHALP7doDjD4Ivl_r2T762x5gLa1f2cS2KCmFcwcW-8Amuwlv55l-ERqnlGcLCgx67sBq4wRUtHAhgbOZKMwr2iB-_2R_-vGWeX84bGODhIiYtqt9wFWo9iAk/s1600/banner.jpg" width="100%" /></a><br />
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<img align="left" border="1" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjl1iH9eBhIQl-Egdgossk-EaLSYIscB56gcWn6GdP5sZuz9qkQ7ZT6ptI7irrZbQkd55eu9TugDhEvC3CzZhSx3Q9nuClSqUy4Vh-l-Yn7N0xSYfCZJLv4oareSz0xSPdcodRYSnf-BsQ/s320/Sapphire+Pavilion+Cover.jpg" width="188" /><b>About the Book</b><i><br /><br />Steve Stilwell’s former Navy JAG Corps buddy Ric Stokes has been jailed for possession of heroin in Vietnam. He was found in the same room with his traveling companion Ryan Eversall, dead of an overdose and in the company of a prostitute. Steve knows his friend is a straight arrow. Was he set up? If so, for what reason? Steve travels to Ho Chi Minh City in search of the truth. In no time Steve is targeted by the people who framed his friend. A beautiful young American businesswoman insinuates her way into the case. Can she really help, or is she just a dangerous distraction? Ric and Ryan came to Vietnam in search of an Air Force transport plane that disappeared in 1968. The pilot was Ryan’s father. Before the heroin bust, they had located the wreckage. Ryan’s notebook, which Steve manages to obtain, spells out the exact location. Ryan’s widow has given Steve’s associate Casey another piece of valuable evidence, a file labeled “Sapphire Pavilion.” Someone is willing to go to any lengths to steal both the notebook and the file. From Virginia and Texas to DC and Vietnam, powerful, all-seeing forces with unlimited resources are determined to bury the truth about Sapphire Pavilion. But they have grossly underestimated Steve Stilwell and his associate Casey, a former Army pilot who lost her leg in a helo accident. And the ability to inspire loyalty wherever you go can come in handy when danger lurks behind every corner.</i><i><br /><br />
</i><br />
<br />
<b>My Review</b><br />
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Why does a man always seem to lose his head when it comes to a beautiful woman?<br />
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Attorney Steve Stilwell should know better.<br />
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One, he's married. And two, he's investigating a politically sensitive case in Vietnam. But when a femme fatale wanders over to his table, asking if she can join him for dinner, instead of saying no—like he should—he takes her up on her offer. Beguiled by her charm, he discloses way too much information about the case and things quickly escalate from there, culminating at his hotel later that night with an unwanted kiss. Before leaving, a chill goes down his spine when she whispers to him, "We're not in Virginia anymore, Steve. This is the Third World. There are no bright lines between good and evil. Everything is a shade of gray."<br />
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Making a mad dash for the airport, he arrives back in the United States, and breathes a sigh of relief, thinking that he got away from her…until she shows up at his office uninvited. And this time, she has a stack of secretly-taken photos that she's threatening to show his wife of the two of them, unless he surrenders a key piece of evidence to her. Succumbing to her pretty face in Vietnam has now put Steve in a very compromising position, and he's forced to make a life-altering choice.<br />
<br />
And he chooses his professional integrity over his marriage.<br />
<br />
When his wife confronts him after viewing the photos, her reaction is gut wrenching. "Her eyes had an intensity about them; Steve felt them probe deep inside him, searching for something like evidence of innocence lost. They made him feel distant from her."<br />
<br />
Because in that moment, he knows that he's lost her.<br />
<br />
It's disturbing to watch their marriage disintegrate in such a painful way. She knows that she's just not that important to him, and he knows that he failed her as a husband. He didn't even sleep with the woman in Vietnam, but he didn't have to. He always said he'd work on his marriage down the road, but he never did. His job always came first, and when he wins the case that cost him so much, he realizes it's all he has left in his life.<br />
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Throughout his life, he's learned how to talk a good game, but his actions never backed up his words. He took advantage of his wife's trust. He used her generosity. And now he's afraid she's going to discover that she's better off without him. He hates that he let the one person he actually loved get crowded out of his life.<br />
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It's a brutal lesson for him to have to learn, but it's one that's truthfully told.<br />
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***
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<i>Sapphire Pavilion</i> can be purchased at:<br />
<b><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Sapphire-Pavilion-David-E-Grogan/dp/1603816038?&tag=tributebooks-20" target="_blank">Amazon</a></b><br />
<b><a href="http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/sapphire-pavilion-david-e-grogan/1125726555?ean=9781603816038" target="_blank">Barnes and Noble</a></b><br />
<br />
<b>Prices/Formats:</b> ebook, $15.95 paperback<br />
<b>Genre:</b> Mystery, Thriller, Suspense<br />
<b>Pages: </b>280<br />
<b>Release:</b> May 1, 2017<br />
<b>Publisher:</b> Camel Press<br />
<b>ISBN:</b> 9781603816038<br />
<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/33833232-sapphire-pavilion" target="_blank">Click to add to your Goodreads list.</a></b><br />
<br />
***<br />
<br />
<img align="left" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0GO_rz1VzvXb2e8qNxao9sClMYZPHO65cv37xCyyj-pPV4cw4vVU6Pewd6gTK2KfZ2fHNKAR1QIYc-Mg0E6wVoBqZL4y-8ES-azQE0yfnzRLUJp3xR3_dDOhZuRPz-DRG5Ttd8DMCaXg/s320/Dave+Grogan+Promo+Picture.jpeg" width="188" /><b>About the Author</b><br />
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David E. Grogan was born in Rome, New York, and was raised in Cleveland, Ohio. After graduating from the College of William & Mary in Virginia with a B.B.A. in Accounting, he began working for the accounting firm Arthur Andersen & Co., in Houston, Texas, as a Certified Public Accountant. He left Arthur Andersen in 1984 to attend the University of Virginia School of Law in Charlottesville, Virginia, graduating in 1987. He earned his Masters in International Law from The George Washington University Law School and is a licensed attorney in the Commonwealth of Virginia.<br />
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Grogan served on active duty in the United States Navy for over 26 years as a Navy Judge Advocate. He is now retired, but during the course of his Navy career, he prosecuted and defended court-martial cases, traveled to capitals around the world, lived abroad in Japan, Cuba and Bahrain, and deployed to the Mediterranean Sea and the Persian Gulf onboard the nuclear powered aircraft carrier <i>USS Enterprise</i>. His experiences abroad and during the course of his career influence every aspect of his writing. Sapphire Pavilion is his second novel. His first was <i>The Siegel Dispositions</i>.<br />
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Grogan’s current home is in Savoy, Illinois, where he lives with his wife of 33 years and their dog, Marley. He has three children.
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<b>Links to connect with David:</b><br />
<b><a href="http://www.davidegrogan.com/" target="_blank">Web Site</a></b><br />
<b><a href="https://www.facebook.com/davidegrogan/" target="_blank">Facebook</a></b><br />
<b><a href="https://twitter.com/davidegrogan" target="_blank">Twitter</a></b><br />
<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/9060971.David_E_Grogan" target="_blank">Goodreads</a></b><br />
<b><a href="http://sapphirepavilionblogtour.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Blog Tour Site</a></b><br />
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<b>About the Giveaway</b><br />
<br />
<a class="rcptr" data-raflid="2bf06796150" data-template="" data-theme="classic" href="http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/2bf06796150/" id="rcwidget_zahcksml" rel="nofollow">a Rafflecopter giveaway</a><script src="https://widget-prime.rafflecopter.com/launch.js"></script>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05624363362005982902noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3067837502126821107.post-60821192536599276992017-03-02T00:01:00.000-05:002017-03-02T00:01:14.981-05:00Kate Bloom - The Legend of the Dwarf - Review & Giveaway<a href="http://thelegendofthedwarfblogtour.blogspot.com/" target="_blank"><img align="middle" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXFWPzlAZ5CTC1_qADiHPaSYbWinflpXH3YHpCu17jy1jAyJtEof-Phee7H8Eht4OsZxbbFbpjfaG39F1jfrl6PE9bDJpmzH00RQXyl1fEPk_n9QvBOtQmpv_r1iNG1cKggfMHjUYS9gow/s1600/banner.jpg" width="100%" /></a><br />
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<img align="left" border="1" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggXiZ3bVr7JAa-fj3_oMKuCpiwklxEm16baaCY3Mahd2zHJ2L0YYdC_zuPzxlVyPejyaGhwWNucHJt2MMMQxj7_zAE0I3pVuBh71u8VEnVZBSDHv42fiN2UzrGih8rnPCuT9-7217kh8G2/s1600/51gXELDpFPL.jpg" width="188" /><b>About the Book</b><i><br /><br />Ever Trollkiller is a young dwarf, twenty-three years old, who had lived her entire life in an isolated cave far away from the dwarven kingdom. She lives with twelve other dwarves who have raised her in complete isolation, keeping the surviving dwarves a secret from the rest of the word. They hide form Terrisino, the Great and Evil Sorcerer, who demolished their kingdom a quarter century ago. But when Ever accidentally meets an elf, she decides that she is no longer satisfied with the stories she hears from her clan. She decides to seek out the mysterious elf so that he might show her the world. But it isn’t long before she realizes that the freedom of the world and the future of the races of elves, men, and dragons will soon end like the dwarven race. Orcs run rampant in the land, killing innocents and plundering the villages. Strange creatures are given rise as they bring death to those who dare harbor the dwarf that they seek. Evil men lie in wait till they might strike. And each of them is allied under Terrisino himself. The stories of hope reach Ever. The stories of legends that all center around one strange dwarf who is destined to defeat Terrisino and ensure the freedom to the world. Convinced that she is the dwarf of legend, she unites with the unlikely company of men, sorcerers, elves, and dragons to save the races and discover who she is.</i><i><br /><br />
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<b>My Review</b><br />
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The question of race exists, even in an imaginary realm.<br />
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Dwarves, elves, dragons - none of them can seem to get along with each other. Until an unexpected quest unites a ragtag group of exiles and misfits into one, and an "adopted" member of the elven royal family befriends a lowly dwarf, trying to pass for human.<br />
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Why the sudden turnaround in race relations?<br />
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Maybe because what the big bad sorcerer fears the most is the blood of all three races running through the same veins, suggesting the emergence of a very important person.<br />
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But does this person already exist or is he or she yet to be born? We really don't know. Clues are dropped along the way when the dwarf, Ever, discovers she's also part dragon. But is she part elf too?<br />
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Or... is she pregnant with the chosen one? There are signs that she's battling through morning sickness, because before leaving her secluded mountain home, she did her duty as one of the only two surviving females of her imperiled race. But the man she slept with was a fellow dwarf - not an elf.<br />
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It's only later that she develops a crush on the handsome elven prince, Jesper. They are drawn to each other from the start, and he feels the need to protect her. In the eyes of the world she's nothing but a mere mortal, but to him, she's so much more.<br />
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When dragon markings unexpectedly begin to show up on Ever's face, it only makes Jesper even more enamored of her. Proving the message at the heart of the story: race does not define a person. In a world where mixed blood is looked down upon, he can't take his eyes off her.<br />
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Too bad they just don't fit into society together. However, they know that separately they will fall to the forces of evil if they try and go it alone. It's only by forming a united front, will they stand any chance against an enemy who's determined to pull them apart.
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***
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<i>The Legend of the Dwarf</i> can be purchased at:<br />
<b><a href="https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01MZ18YLN?&tag=tributebooks-20" target="_blank">Amazon</a></b><br />
<br />
<b>Prices/Formats:</b> $15.00 ebook, $15.00 paperback<br />
<b>Genre:</b> Epic Fantasy<br />
<b>Pages: </b>260<br />
<b>Release:</b> December 18, 2016<br />
<b>Publisher:</b> self-published<br />
<b>ISBN:</b> 9781540574176<br />
<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/33412263-the-legend-of-the-dwarf?from_search=true" target="_blank">Click to add to your Goodreads list.</a></b><br />
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***<br />
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<img align="left" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBXYZxhHaSQI5jHlAHmAO2tTsAF8WgNQJFdUBpSypLqK-3Alu4yZBHAv0YiiV4gDHT_fQXaSrnhh8-L3FxJr6ZOQpu_BV_DCQwdlnqq0lxDmGJV4QJ0J2crOrW8UeY2PhsVz3ZNmkuolKs/s320/author+pic.png" width="188" /><b>About the Author</b><br />
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Kate Bloom is a tenacious and edgy millennial with a BS in English and history, giving her a knack for story-telling. As a fantasy writer, her mind is constantly running wild in fictional worlds, such as that of her first project, Alice in Dreamland (kindle2016). Born in Albuquerque, New Mexico in 1994, and where she has lived her entire life, Kate found the dry dessert scenery to grow tiresome to look at. She found her escape in the fantastical worlds that played out in her head. She has fallen in love with the idea of putting those worlds in print so that everyone else might see those worlds as well.
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<b>Links to connect with Kate:</b><br />
<b><a href="http://kateabloom.com/" target="_blank">Web Site</a></b><br />
<b><a href="https://www.facebook.com/Kateabloom/?fref=ts" target="_blank">Facebook</a></b><br />
<b><a href="http://kateabloom.com/blog/" target="_blank">Blog</a></b><br />
<b><a href="http://thelegendofthedwarfblogtour.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Blog Tour Site</a></b><br />
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<b>About the Giveaway</b><br />
<br />
<a class="rcptr" data-raflid="2bf06796149" data-template="" data-theme="classic" href="http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/2bf06796149/" id="rcwidget_kirybpx7" rel="nofollow">a Rafflecopter giveaway</a>
<script src="https://widget-prime.rafflecopter.com/launch.js"></script>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05624363362005982902noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3067837502126821107.post-67955224583981075002017-02-07T00:01:00.000-05:002017-02-07T00:01:05.376-05:00A. Keith Carreiro - The Penitent - Review & Giveaway<a href="http://thepenitentblogtour.blogspot.com/" target="_blank"><img align="middle" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGnbFWFsfrmlpC86HMqPqfQm8pg1zrZ-7AHFNQ1OT1nOH_uQanVpCgqiShwgCBJgN4BnjWN725fjTkIW_dLK8Ibhlj38B5zSuqfDus2pl5ocFKn8RMM85vU3nMy0xOzccJFJQVmjuT7dcw/s1600/banner.jpg" width="100%" /></a><br />
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<img align="left" border="1" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqOwxgxvnCqaC74odAG_S6hef6iorZzbfcS4StYTnm_b6-ATLpFogSimRZhCLVMr1wGNGO_R5m8Lse2y621xtYQW0UwaXcb5xSbyeQwfJEY0105ZauMnO6Gps9ZX6E_GVEH2z6ncweeyst/s320/The+Immortality+Wars_The+Penitent_Part+1_EBOOK_Cover_03+-+8-8-2016.jpg" width="188" /><b>About the Book</b><i><br /><br />A baby is born and placed in his dead mother's arms. When the funeral shroud is cast over her, his father decides to name his son Pall. It will soon become a name that strikes a shiver into the hearts of those who hear it in combat. A lone survivor on a battlefield many years later, Pall dazedly recovers from the wounds of war. Despite the dead cast about him, everything he looks upon is unfamiliar to him. Wandering away from this scene of carnage, he encounters John Savage, a giant of a man who puts Pall within the sight of Savage's seven–foot, nocked longbow. What ensues from this deadly encounter is an elusive journey for truth. Yet, it is haunted not just by a ravening demon that is out to destroy Pall and John, but by the vision of a startling beautiful young woman protecting Pall from afar.</i><i><br /><br />
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<b>My Review</b><br />
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Upon reaching the end of this book, I was left scratching my head a little over the title. Why is Pall a penitent? In my mind, he's nothing but a force for good, singing a magical song that tames evil and battling evil with a sword earmarked to defend the defenseless. He doesn't commit any egregious crimes or heinous acts as far as I can see. Sure, he kills a bully of a brute in a bar fight, but sheerly out of self-defense. In fact, I'd label him more of a victim, than a perpetrator, when he's hogtied in an abandoned farmhouse by a roving group of sadistic men.<br />
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So what does he have to be sorry for? Why is he the one who needs to beg forgiveness for his sins?<br />
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It turns out the answers to those questions are hidden somewhere inside Pall's faulty memory.<br />
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At present, he can only see but darkly into who he really is. Which begs the question: So what did Pall do in his past that was so very regrettable?<br />
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Well, I'm guessing it has something to do with the striking figure of a girl named Evangel. We get to meet her only briefly inside one of Pall's dreams, and the moment the two of them lock eyes with each other. <i>Wow, what a moment! </i>But right when things start getting good... Pall wakes up.<br />
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Thankfully, the author provides a tempting little sneak peek into book two with the opening chapters of Evangel's backstory, describing her God-given mystical abilities. Now, I really can't wait to find out what happened between her and Pall. Who is the true penitent? Him or her? I'm crossing my fingers that he didn't do anything to hurt her, anything he needs to confess.<br />
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***
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<i>The Penitent</i> can be purchased at:<br />
<b><a href="https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01MAZDG4S?&tag=tributebooks-20" target="_blank">Amazon</a></b><br />
<b><a href="http://www.lulu.com/spotlight/immortalitywars" target="_blank">Lulu</a></b><br />
<br />
<b>Prices/Formats:</b> $3.99 ebook, $13.99 paperback<br />
<b>Genre:</b> Science Fiction, Fantasy<br />
<b>Pages: </b>254<br />
<b>Release:</b> November 1, 2016<br />
<b>Publisher:</b> self-published<br />
<b>ISBN:</b> 9781365287077<br />
<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/32571461-the-penitent" target="_blank">Click to add to your Goodreads list.</a></b><br />
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***<br />
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<img align="left" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgaZkyS84yeIH8Fq_Hwc2Gv529S3iSFSvzdCcnui_ct8u-NWSjKUEbEWZkGv1N_NSC05qpsaE0GAhSMIcG8uK6yNxqRTKJjD-hQLKuYizGKx30bgVmN5YN0RE9mUsj0hS3ZMYBTUC1a5X7/s1600/IMG_0387.JPG" width="188" /><b>About the Author</b><br />
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A. Keith Carreiro earned his master’s and doctoral degrees from Harvard Graduate School of Education, with the sequential help and guidance of three advisors, Dr. Vernon A. Howard, Dr. Donald Oliver and Professor Emeritus, Dr. Israel Scheffler. Keith’s academic focus, including his ongoing research agenda, centers upon philosophically examining how creativity and critical thinking are acquired, learned, utilized and practiced in the performing arts. He has taken his findings and applied them to the professional development of educational practitioners.<br />
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Earlier in his teaching career he was a professor of educational foundations, teaching graduate students of education at universities in Vermont, Florida, Arizona, and Pennsylvania. He currently teaches as an adjunct professor of English at Bridgewater State University, as well as teaching English, philosophy, humanities and public speaking courses at Bristol Community College.<br />
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He lives in Swansea, Massachusetts with his wife Carolyn. They have six children and 13 grandchildren. They belong to an eighty–five–pound golden retriever, an eight–pound Maltese, and an impish Calico cat.<br />
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Due to his love of family, he has seen his fervor for history, as well as his passion for wondering about the future, deepen dramatically.<br />
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Starting on May 23rd until October 9th of 2014, he sat down at his computer on a daily basis and began writing the first book of a science fiction/fantasy thriller in a beginning series about the quest for human immortality.
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<b>Links to connect with A. Ketih:</b><br />
<b><a href="http://immortalitywars.com/" target="_blank">Web Site</a></b><br />
<b><a href="https://www.facebook.com/The-Immortality-Wars-The-Penitent-Book-One-1023452581055756/" target="_blank">Facebook</a></b><br />
<b><a href="https://www.twitter.com/immortalitywars" target="_blank">Twitter</a></b><br />
<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/15959901.A_Keith_Carreiro" target="_blank">Goodreads</a></b><br />
<b><a href="http://immortalitywars.com/blog/" target="_blank">Blog</a></b><br />
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<b>About the Giveaway</b><br />
<br />
<a class="rcptr" data-raflid="2bf06796148" data-template="" data-theme="classic" href="http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/2bf06796148/" id="rcwidget_2a032hxh" rel="nofollow">a Rafflecopter giveaway</a><script src="https://widget-prime.rafflecopter.com/launch.js"></script><script src="https://widget-prime.rafflecopter.com/launch.js"></script>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05624363362005982902noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3067837502126821107.post-87121178040446360302017-02-02T00:01:00.000-05:002017-02-02T00:01:21.864-05:00Bonnie M. Hennessy - Twisted - Review & Giveaway<a href="http://twistedblogtour.blogspot.com/" target="_blank"><img align="middle" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4Ht1jp_nCf7KyTab0fUc0mKsSL-ky5W3avhehC0tyLT4z1n1vSMktJ6lTVW97jsIQH28iCWGjbTeZXzCAKWCfpr0vLg1vO-sNyyOzhh1D_vVhTl4ejkR9C9Att2PyCrnk6AkC4Zh7v5Wk/s1600/banner.jpg" width="100%" /></a><br />
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<img align="left" border="1" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPIv2t96ZSIE-TX8I7rP50172D6zCdWj2LTt2BjIhuTtnSAVKAN14ZAvAKMCVlk5Re5dtSsWHE2_GJssN6Xrw88bDExja8923Q8nBfji8LKK1Kc5ABP08272-2HVNjfvdwhTq7xGWkAGNC/s1600/ebook+300dpi+.jpg" width="188" /><b>About the Book</b><i><br /><br />An old tale tells the story of how a little man named Rumpelstiltskin spun straw into gold and tricked a desperate girl into trading away her baby. But that’s not exactly how it happened. The real story began with a drunken father who kept throwing money away on alcohol and women, while his daughter, Aoife, ran the family farm on her own. When he gambled away everything they owned to the Duke, it was up to her to spin straw into gold to win it all back. With her wits and the help of a magical guardian, she outsmarted the Duke and saved the day. Well almost… Her guardian suddenly turned on Aoife and sent her on a quest to find his name, the clues to which were hidden deep in the woods, a moldy dungeon, and a dead woman’s chamber. This is not the tale of a damsel in distress, but a tenacious, young woman who solved a mystery so great that not even the enchanted man who spun straw into gold could figure it out. Not until Aoife came along.</i><i><br /><br />
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<b>My Review</b><br />
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How does growing up in a broken family affect the type of relationship you'll have with your future spouse?<br />
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It's not necessarily a theme one would expect from a retelling of <i>Rumpelstiltskin</i>, but I, for one, appreciated the more mature "twist." It shows a layer of depth, not often associated with young adult novels. Mainly because it brings up an interesting point: How does witnessing the behavior of one's parents color the way a person views love later in life?<br />
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Simple cause and effect, yet fascinating nonetheless.<br />
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First, the female perspective. Aoife's father is a loaf of a drunk, who shrugs off his breadwinner duties by blowing what little gold he has in the village brothel. <i>Unfaithful father, check.</i> While at home, Aoife has to deal with a fault-finding critic of a mother, who refuses to lift a finger to help ease their precarious financial situation. <i>Bitter, broken mother, check.</i> Which means the task of providing for the family ultimately falls to Aoife, so much so that she cares little about how she presents herself to the world. She knows she doesn't act or dress like a young lady should, and I love how she doesn't care about appearances. Yet it's tragic at how determined she is not to give any man a chance. No one—and I mean, no one—is going to get through the walls she's built up around her heart. Sadly, she prefers the only thing she's ever known, taking care of her impossibly weak father and her unappreciative mother.<br />
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Then, there's the male point of view. The Duke, also known as Ronan, is a child born out of lies and betrayal. Unfortunately, his mother isn't the woman he thought she was. Over the course of his childhood, he felt the truth, but it was never spoken aloud. <i>Illegitimate birth, check.</i> Now as an adult, he can't begin to fathom the thought of ever being loved by anyone, much less his future wife.<br />
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The entire concept is completely foreign to him.<br />
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Until he lays eyes on Aoife … and tricks her father into getting her to marry him.<br />
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Simply put, he wants her because she doesn't want him, and he pursues her with the sole intent of getting the better of her. Sure, he's attracted to her—more like frustrated with her—since he sees how she treats everyone with kindness, and he wants her to be kind to him, too. It's sort of sweet that all he really desires is her love and affection. But it's also maddening that he's too afraid to show her his vulnerable side. Instead, he chooses to play the part of the big, strong man, hiding who he really is from her.<br />
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And with Aoife, love can't be forced, and I admire that about her. She's human, set in her ways just as much as Ronan's set in his, and at first she judges him harshly. The last thing she feels like doing is reforming a spoiled, pampered man. Yet despite herself, she starts to warm up to him when he tries to get to know her better. Her tender heart can't resist his pleading eyes and things begin to change between them. But just when she starts to lower her guard, he retreats back to his selfish, manipulative ways, scared of the hitherto unknown feelings she's bringing to life inside him.<br />
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This back and forth drama goes on for a while, until there comes a tipping point in their relationship when a dire set of circumstances winds up bringing them closer together. They realize that the only way forward is if they come together as a couple. And that made me smile because Aoife ends up falling in love with the man she was so determined to escape, and Ronan learns how to care about someone besides himself, someone he deeply and truly loves.<br />
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Their relationship is no longer about their hangups over their parents' failed marriages. From this point on, it's all about making a go of THEIR marriage, by protecting their unborn child from a certain "little man."
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***
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<i>Twisted</i> can be purchased at:<br />
<b><a href="https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01N3MC1K4?&tag=tributebooks-20" target="_blank">Amazon</a></b><br />
<br />
<b>Prices/Formats:</b> $2.99 ebook, $12.99 paperback<br />
<b>Genre:</b> Fantasy, Mythological, Fairy Tale<br />
<b>Pages: </b>306<br />
<b>Release:</b> November 11, 2016<br />
<b>Publisher:</b> self-published<br />
<b>ISBN:</b> 9781539753421<br />
<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/32962973-twisted?from_search=true" target="_blank">Click to add to your Goodreads list.</a></b><br />
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***<br />
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<img align="left" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdJx6ykhpPW59mZaDWrJR_YR2h04QDrLiFaL6bgda18AVESlTcPG9-k0WimZA59RpQKpPcqic0xljM8jZG8kvsUMurk3u1g0UgQ5Nl5OAR-VNZ25ieIXR00PLEEapKMIz2FTKDYL0E_twR/s320/IMG_8777.jpg" width="188" /><b>About the Author</b><br />
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Bonnie grew up a shy, quiet girl who the teachers always seated next to the noisy boys because they knew she was too afraid to talk to anyone. She always had a lot she wanted to say but was too afraid to share it for fear she might die of embarrassment if people actually noticed her. Somewhere along the line, perhaps after she surprised her eighth grade class by standing up to a teacher who was belittling a fellow student, she realized that she had a voice and she didn’t burst into flames when her classmates stared at her in surprise.<br />
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Not long after that, she began spinning tales, some of which got her into trouble with her mom. Whether persuading her father to take her to the candy store as a little girl or convincing her parents to let her move from Los Angeles to Manhattan to pursue a career at eighteen as a ballet dancer with only $200 in her pocket, Bonnie has proven that she knows how to tell a compelling story.<br />
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Now she spends her time reading and making up stories for her two children at night. By day she is an English teacher who never puts the quiet girls next to the noisy boys and works hard to persuade her students that stories, whether they are the ones she teaches in class or the ones she tells to keep them from daydreaming, are better escapes than computers, phones, and social media.
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<b>Links to connect with Bonnie:</b><br />
<b><a href="http://www.bonniemhennessy.com/" target="_blank">Web Site</a></b><br />
<b><a href="https://www.facebook.com/twistedthebook/" target="_blank">Facebook</a></b><br />
<b><a href="https://www.twitter.com/bonniemhennessy" target="_blank">Twitter</a></b><br />
<b><a href="https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC23yBSLSEcbE2Bw98_4k-WQ" target="_blank">YouTube</a></b><br />
<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/16075736.Bonnie_M_Hennessy" target="_blank">Goodreads</a></b><br />
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<br />
<b>About the Giveaway</b><br />
<br />
<a class="rcptr" data-raflid="2bf06796147" data-template="" data-theme="classic" href="http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/2bf06796147/" id="rcwidget_garqvb88" rel="nofollow">a Rafflecopter giveaway</a><script src="https://widget-prime.rafflecopter.com/launch.js"></script>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05624363362005982902noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3067837502126821107.post-15755611925029480812016-12-06T00:01:00.000-05:002016-12-06T00:01:10.311-05:00Nancy McCabe - Following Disasters - Review & Giveaway<a href="http://followingdisastersblogtour.blogspot.com/" target="_blank"><img align="middle" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZLxXwIYlq0Tsowx71crExQK1ndK8pQ18sOGriDIiyVOSV6DUee5GgsN1CVfrTS5DHXNWGSENizQpaSAn9Z_p4-nlUTQkWgxyG0CiGEnsylFihSLbwVdmX2mcNU8-ouQZXY6R5AQ1bQKsN/s1600/banner.jpg" width="100%" /></a><br />
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<img align="left" border="1" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJ5hzJioM4Vb-vSDHTctrD0v1y9Y2mioaa0lw3GRJvn0K02eoYf2sDc-HZ-JbIhCrp_9Mi1rawJGeLK9PwoyQLHGLQjTMRePl9N3RuEqOyHKXuV9pTrGqPStvO3oNKHsBFi5ev3qjX8RKz/s320/followingdisasters-7.jpg" width="188" /><b>About the Book</b><i><br /><br />On her twenty-first birthday, Maggie Owen receives an unusual birthday gift: a house. That same day, the house’s owner, her aunt, dies. For three years, Maggie has been fleeing her childhood demons: the deaths of her parents, estrangement from her terminally-ill aunt, and a betrayal by her best friend. But now her career on the road, following natural disasters in temporary insurance claims offices, ends abruptly as Maggie returns home to face her past. But why does the house hold a mysterious spell over her? Why does she have the persistent feeling that her aunt is haunting her? Why did her aunt lie to her about the circumstances of her parents’ deaths? Who is the ghost child that may be hanging around the house? And what’s with the guy next door who seems so hostile toward her? FOLLOWING DISASTERS is tightly woven ghost story that raises questions about legacies and their influence on our choices.</i><i><br /><br />
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<b>My Review</b><br />
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The disasters in this book are mostly of the heart. The plot follows the underlying tension that builds between introverts and extroverts, and the fallout that results because of it. On the whole, the book presents a study in contradictions since neither group ends up the clear-cut winner in the grand scheme of things. The introverted remain paralyzed, wallowing in their mistakes and regrets, while the more extroverted characters tend to lead unsatisfying double lives, burying their problems beneath the surface, pretending they don't exist, only to discover that they do.<br />
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The bottom line is that no one gets through life unscathed. Yet does the pattern of jealousy and betrayal need to continue down through generations of a family? Can the cycle of following disaster after disaster ever be broken?<br />
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The book offers a glimmer of hope that with knowledge comes power. For Maggie, the main character, her parents are dead, but not for the reasons she was led to believe. She comes to the painful revelation that she's been living with a false set of facts. When she finally finds out the truth about what happened, it completely changes the outlook of her life.<br />
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Now she doesn't view herself as such a screw-up. She comes to the realization that there's no set standard she has to live up to anymore. When it comes to living her life, she's the one making the rules in defining what success means to her and what constitutes her own personal happiness.<br />
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It's an affirming finish to a book that works through two generations of a family's pain, covering everything from health problems to untimely loss to infidelity. In the end, the silence is broken. Secrets are revealed, and true healing can finally begin.<br />
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***
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<i>Following Disasters</i> can be purchased at:<br />
<b><a href="https://www.amazon.com/dp/1944853030?&tag=tributebooks-20" target="_blank">Amazon</a></b><br />
<b><a href="http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/following-disasters-nancy-mccabe/1123466844?ean=9781944853037" target="_blank">Barnes and Noble</a></b><br />
<br />
<b>Prices/Formats:</b> $9.99 ebook, $16.00 paperback<br />
<b>Genre:</b> Gothic, Horror, Ghosts<br />
<b>Pages: </b>234<br />
<b>Release:</b> October 1, 2016<br />
<b>Publisher:</b> Outpost19<br />
<b>ISBN:</b> 9781944853037<br />
<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/29209394-following-disasters" target="_blank">Click to add to your Goodreads list.</a></b><br />
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***<br />
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<img align="left" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgg9FPfNc0ZfShwoWXq0-jwax282clzWHn4jxQrBStJSVzcNOI3USjzqS8h2M8XgccpSBGsDjj6q87XzDdGygKgYfqVS_iqXRFycHoT8ir4P9ByRlJ57-5V5TNJVjHtu226fhaoQsBVVZ9K/s320/Fall+2014+photo.jpg" width="188" /><b>About the Author</b><br />
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<i>Following Disasters</i> is Nancy McCabe's first novel. She has also published four books of creative nonfiction, including <i>Meeting Sophie: A Memoir or Adoption; Crossing the Blue Willow Bridge: A Journey to My Daughter's Birthplace in China</i>; and <i>From Little Houses to Little Women: Revisiting a Literary Childhood</i>. She is a regular blogger for Ploughshares and has published work in <i>Newsweek, Writers' Digest, Prairie Schooner, Gulf Coast, Fourth Genre</i>, and other magazines and anthologies. Her work has received a Pushcart and six times made notable lists in Houghton Mifflin Best American anthologies.
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<b>Links to connect with Nancy:</b><br />
<b><a href="http://www.nancymccabe.net/" target="_blank">Web Site</a></b><br />
<b><a href="https://www.facebook.com/nancy.mccabe.92?fref=nf" target="_blank">Facebook</a></b><br />
<b><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mbL-vzvnBbg" target="_blank">YouTube</a></b><br />
<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/227353.Nancy_McCabe?from_search=true" target="_blank">Goodreads</a></b><br />
<b><a href="http://blog.pshares.org/index.php/author/nancygracemccabe/" target="_blank">Blog</a></b><br />
<br />
<br />
<b>About the Giveaway</b><br />
<br />
<a class="rcptr" data-raflid="2bf06796146" data-template="" data-theme="classic" href="http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/2bf06796146/" id="rcwidget_yrwcfwud" rel="nofollow">a Rafflecopter giveaway</a>
<script src="https://widget-prime.rafflecopter.com/launch.js"></script>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05624363362005982902noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3067837502126821107.post-31189162985896686422016-10-04T00:01:00.000-04:002016-10-04T12:09:06.565-04:00Tricia Dower - Stony River - Review & Giveaway<a href="http://stonyriverblogtour.blogspot.com/" target="_blank"><img align="middle" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjv7eBCGY6d3A_XXVUSFV4vi1KpvyJbsgPtxH22Z13BNhg3EsbGZJjL1hS6AZymUp6fSshT0rUhaCBT0uUlAvPtgSQQ4FoplXTqPPyuB5WeuKoUOfwjAaHqIVgquSnFjpJcpWPu9D7X9nc/s1600/banner.jpg" width="100%" /></a><br />
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<img align="left" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxwxvRFj1SSGEmd5JzcchFUUC1-OlW2kSU8M7VOr1nyac1VaM2ZZqgGY-wJ_hrbrcegssMDtFherFGVE0BOkKOtzQKdL7ctnKgKPRAwjR8fPIIUANBkPi9pXNX4FIBBTPwruKFNQkiRDY/s320/StonyRiverCBSD.jpg" width="188" /><b>About the Book</b><i><br /><br />It wasn’t all poodle skirts and rock ‘n’ roll. From its deceptively innocent beginning—two young teens exploring the riverbank and spying on “Crazy Haggerty’s” dilapidated house—through the intertwining story lines of paganism, murder and sexual violence, Stony River shows how perilous life was for some girls in the 1950s. Absent mothers, controlling fathers, biblical injunctions, teenage longing and small-town pretense abound. The threat of violence is all around: angry fathers at home, dirty boys in the neighborhood, strange men in strange cars, a dead girl and another gone missing.<br /><br />
The central mystery, inspired by the crimes of Robert Zarinsky as documented by Robin Gaby Fisher and Judith Lucas in Deadly Secrets (Newark Star–Ledger 2008), keeps the reader guessing until almost the very end, when the frightening truth is revealed. In this coming-of-age mystery, three girls learn who they are and what they’re capable of surviving—and forgiving.</i><i><br /><br />
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<b>My Review</b><br />
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This is a thought-provoking book. It's dark, disturbing at times, but the way it's crafted is a marvel to behold. The author knows what she's doing. She paints a picture with words, instead of jamming a bunch of random, meaningless details down a reader's throat. In essence, she shows what it was like to be a female adolescent in the late 1950s.<br />
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The social rules of engagement are implied, but never fully spelled out. A girl is to supposed to somehow intuit them as she goes along. For example, a popular girl only befriends a chubby classmate, so that all the boys will look at her, and not at her friend. While it's expected for a girl to always say yes when a boy asks her to dance, whether she wants to or not.<br />
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But these little courtesies and schoolyard dramas, quickly cross into dangerous territory when these young, impressionable girls come to believe they need to bend over backward—and do whatever it takes—to look good in a man's eyes. Forget common sense. Throw gut instinct out the window. As one by one they start to go missing, before one eventually turns up dead.<br />
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The adults in the novel always seem to avert their eyes to tragedy, until it's too late. A young girl is molested and gives birth to her father's baby, and no one wants to talk about it. Another is beaten with the belt of her stepfather, but everyone pretends not to notice. No one wants to get involved in anyone else's problems. As far as "the grown-ups" are concerned, what happens behind closed doors, stays behind closed doors.<br />
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But there comes a tipping point when the voices of these girls won't be silenced any longer. When their supposed innocence gives way to the disturbing realities of life, their ideas, about what the world is really like, begin to change. They realize they've been fed a line of bull. And maybe, just maybe, that's a good thing. After battling through a whole host of issues, they become survivors, no longer ignorant to the truth and the harshness of life, and how poorly they've been protected from it.<br />
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***
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<i>Stony River</i> can be purchased at:<br />
<b><a href="http://www.amazon.com/dp/1935248863?&tag=tributebooks-20" target="_blank">Amazon</a></b><br />
<b><a href="http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/stony-river-tricia-dower/1123485056;jsessionid=04D1856B3A4CE64B6A66D3E483B84E76.prodny_store02-atgap01?ean=9781935248866" target="_blank">Barnes and Noble</a></b><br />
<b><a href="https://geo.itunes.apple.com/us/book/stony-river/id1135492622?mt=11&at=10lu5f" target="_blank">iTunes</a></b><br />
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<b>Prices/Formats:</b> $10.99 ebook, $15.95 paperback<br />
<b>Genre:</b> Crime, Historical, Coming of Age<br />
<b>Pages: </b>320<br />
<b>Release:</b> October 6, 2016<br />
<b>Publisher:</b> Leapfrog Press<br />
<b>ISBN:</b> 9781935248866<br />
<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13616825-stony-river" target="_blank">Click to add to your Goodreads list.</a></b><br />
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***<br />
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<img align="left" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMC6P-5JGhpXyz4s5CPpyNmXYp0Sh_AlhOlvGPS_rjee5PZZQ6DpyxwBp3ZrkD5meB47WDrrR9xcT-40wd2M6ftXs3u0uYx5PTjvd7wcj_DGZXc3hl5Bt_VzLjm3WuyZjMblWvQ26V-Hc/s320/Tricia+Dower+%25231+sRGB+for+internet.jpg" width="188" /><b>About the Author</b><br />
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Tricia Dower confesses to smoking a river punk or two in Rahway, New Jersey, where she was born and raised by perfectly fine parents who did not keep her hidden in a spooky house. A graduate of Gettysburg College and a Phi Mu, she built a career in business before reinventing herself as a writer in 2002. Her literary work has crossed borders and won awards. She expanded a story from her Shakespeare-inspired collection, <i>Silent Girl</i> (Inanna 2008) into <i>Stony River</i>, which was first published in Canada (Penguin, 2012). Her novel, <i>Becoming Lin</i> (Caitlin Press), was released in Canada in 2016. A dual citizen of Canada and the United States, Dower lives and writes in Brentwood Bay, BC.
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<b>Links to connect with Tricia:</b><br />
<b><a href="http://triciadower.com/" target="_blank">Web Site</a></b><br />
<b><a href="https://www.facebook.com/tricia.dower" target="_blank">Facebook</a></b><br />
<b><a href="https://twitter.com/TriciaDower" target="_blank">Twitter</a></b><br />
<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/1302018.Tricia_Dower" target="_blank">Goodreads</a></b><br />
<b><a href="http://triciadower.com/silent-girl-speaks/" target="_blank">Blog</a></b><br />
<br />
<br />
<b>About the Giveaway</b><br />
<br />
<a class="rcptr" data-raflid="2bf06796145" data-template="" data-theme="classic" href="http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/2bf06796145/" id="rcwidget_4t4hcp7r" rel="nofollow">a Rafflecopter giveaway</a>
<script src="https://widget-prime.rafflecopter.com/launch.js"></script>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05624363362005982902noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3067837502126821107.post-60513950969614246792016-08-02T00:01:00.000-04:002016-08-02T00:01:22.436-04:00Rich Zahradnik - A Black Sail - Review & Giveaway<a href="http://ablacksailblogtour.blogspot.com/" target="_blank"><img align="middle" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqyUyQvc62ReBsRzH5i43LjCZ1pfIVkT6NFIV042QiytWSJNOgLHUyo5f_htpgCIXIOWCc3DkhMn70MQTRQ5C7SjjK4wT2FZ_No_6LxO3QHa0Z4_FY93YjBzrPwXGmDQkPSBrtes9sTbk2/s1600/banner.jpg" width="100%" /></a><br />
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<img align="left" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUrx4-zztfhxBA7NGazA1MJeO8tF33u9ZWAWYaN6tSjIjbso0Rc2MnQAL9LpOlFrZk2wTcFj21yLkzRWdbPCkHG5CNGdly3cTpZL3_N5AkVum7dadcJn5o2oYEIcpPwEomKHXFbawiqGUD/s320/A_Black_Sail_300.jpg" width="188" /><b>About the Book</b><i><br /><br />On the eve of the U.S. Bicentennial, newsman Coleridge Taylor is covering Operation Sail. New York Harbor is teeming with tall ships from all over the world. While enjoying the spectacle, Taylor is still a police reporter. He wants to cover real stories, not fluff, and gritty New York City still has plenty of those in July of 1976. One surfaces right in front of him when a housewife is fished out of the harbor wearing bricks of heroin, inferior stuff users have been rejecting for China White, peddled by the Chinatown gangs.<br /><br />
Convinced he’s stumbled upon a drug war between the Italian Mafia and a Chinese tong, Taylor is on fire once more. But as he blazes forward, flanked by his new girlfriend, ex-cop Samantha Callahan, his precious story grows ever more twisted and deadly. In his reckless search for the truth, he rattles New York’s major drug cartels. If he solves the mystery, he may end up like his victim—in a watery grave.</i><i><br /><br />
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<b>My Review</b><br />
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Do the biggest crimes occur when the biggest events are happening? This story certainly gives merit to the idea. It's summer 1976 and preparations are in full swing for the Fourth of July Bicentennial celebration. Tall-mast ships from all over the world are descending upon New York City for this once-in-a-lifetime event. From a PR standpoint, the cops, the media, they all know they need to make the city look like a fun and happy place. But what if the underground criminal element doesn't agree?<br />
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A few days before it's all set to go down, a body is found beneath the Brooklyn Bridge. Almost immediately, the murder is hushed up since a whole lot of drugs are taped to the woman's corpse. The NYPD assumes it's likely the Chinese sending a message to the Mafia (since the mob supposedly doesn't kill women and children), as they battle for control of the city's narcotics trade. No one in charge wants word of this getting out until <i>after</i> the festivities are over. They can't afford for a drug war to erupt in the middle of everything, compromising the safety of the millions, attending the event.<br />
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The book lays out one cardinal rule when it comes to crime in New York City—it usually occurs when the sun goes down. So things get even crazier when hundreds of thousands of dollars in jewelry is stolen right out of the Empire State Building—<i>in broad daylight</i>. A flock of reporters literally run to the scene, giving the cops no chance to cover it up. And just when things can't get any hairier, the situation almost spirals out of control when the Coast Guard is forced to intervene after gunshots are fired and a boat explodes on the water across the harbor in Newark. Yet strangely enough, the next day, nothing manages to make it into the papers about it.<br />
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I liked the parallels that were drawn to the present day. In 1976, there are bombings in Boston. There's discord with Russia. There's a strong racist element among those in power. And there's a presidential election, looming in the fall. When you look back, in some ways, the United States wasn't so different than it is today, which is alternately scary and comforting, depending on how you look at it.<br />
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In the current age of terrorism and gun violence (by and against) police, it's interesting to compare 1976 with 2016 and wonder just how much is going on that we don't know about. The only thing is that now camera phones are beginning to change the story, shining a light on things that authority figures would much rather keep us in the dark about.<br />
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And that's what great storytelling, like this book, gets us to do—think, look beyond the surface and question the status quo.
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***
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<i>A Black Sail</i> can be pre-ordered at:<br />
<b><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Black-Sail-Coleridge-Taylor-Mystery/dp/1603812113?ie=UTF8&tag=tributebooks-20" target="_blank">Amazon</a></b><br />
<b><a href="http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/a-black-sail-rich-zahradnik/1123845960?ean=9781603812115" target="_blank">Barnes and Noble</a></b><br />
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Prices/Formats: $4.95 ebook, $15.95 paperback<br />
Genre: Historical, Mystery, Thriller, Suspense<br />
Pages: 264<br />
Release: October 1, 2016<br />
Publisher: Camel Press<br />
ISBN: 9781603812115<br />
<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/30208460-a-black-sail" target="_blank">Click to add to your Goodreads list.</a></b><br />
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***<br />
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<img align="left" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWWLTrYPt1qkDdNqPjJP_iKsKMN3o_pgZX_8Kdx7CB-TFbqMS6kkwoIc1QYoN8LzMkp8GTHGnHLjuOSFwnUSqBML-IdBVfwQtKMeUFj91EK851m0mD53pXXM9tucf10FpxNZggen1ibS6R/s320/_45D3397.jpg" width="188" /><b>About the Author</b><br />
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Rich Zahradnik is the award-winning author of the critically acclaimed Coleridge Taylor Mystery series (<i>A Black Sail, Drop Dead Punk, Last Words</i>).<br />
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The second installment, <i>Drop Dead Punk</i>, won the gold medal for mystery/thriller ebook in the 2016 Independent Publisher Book Awards (IPPYs). It was also named a finalist in the mystery category of the 2016 Next Generation Indie Book Awards. <i>Last Words</i> won the bronze medal for mystery/thriller ebook in the 2015 IPPYs and honorable mention for mystery in the 2015 Foreword Reviews IndieFab Book of the Year Awards. <br />
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"Taylor, who lives for the big story, makes an appealingly single-minded hero," Publishers Weekly wrote of <i>Drop Dead Punk</i>. <br />
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Zahradnik was a journalist for 30-plus years, working as a reporter and editor in all major news media, including online, newspaper, broadcast, magazine and wire services. He held editorial positions at CNN, Bloomberg News, Fox Business Network, AOL and The Hollywood Reporter.<br />
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In January 2012, he was one of 20 writers selected for the inaugural class of the Crime Fiction Academy, a first-of-its-kind program run by New York's Center for Fiction.<br />
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Zahradnik was born in Poughkeepsie, New York, in 1960 and received his B.A. in journalism and political science from George Washington University. He lives with his wife Sheri and son Patrick in Pelham, New York, where writes fiction and teaches kids how to publish newspapers.
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<b>Links to connect with Rich:</b><br />
<b><a href="http://www.richzahradnik.com/" target="_blank">Web Site</a></b><br />
<b><a href="https://www.facebook.com/richzahradnik/" target="_blank">Facebook</a></b><br />
<b><a href="https://twitter.com/rzahradnik" target="_blank">Twitter</a></b><br />
<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/8335771.Rich_Zahradnik" target="_blank">Goodreads</a></b><br />
<b><a href="http://www.richzahradnik.com/blog/" target="_blank">Blog</a></b><br />
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<b>About the Giveaway</b><br />
<br />
<a class="rcptr" data-raflid="2bf06796144" data-template="" data-theme="classic" href="http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/2bf06796144/" id="rcwidget_kh0d9pld" rel="nofollow">a Rafflecopter giveaway</a><script src="https://widget-prime.rafflecopter.com/launch.js"></script>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05624363362005982902noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3067837502126821107.post-86991762841019743242016-07-26T00:01:00.000-04:002016-07-26T00:01:06.829-04:00Michael J. Bowler - A Matter of Time - Review & Giveaway<a href="http://amatteroftimeblogtour.blogspot.com/" target="_blank"><img align="middle" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvaQ6H3PZnPeI7-PD6y9XEo4NbepWMx-QP2tqmS14n94p91AOBQr0skmIEdeXi8TYw9dfnJLhSWf1dYQCAF5Wuhepdy3DuZTF9yqQcjLItIJWQ_3-4XUGuDOfhQLs0tivg_RDsIVNsxBtR/s1600/banner.jpg" width="100%" /></a><br />
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<img align="left" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg16X34EodKA7Yulsa0VUnAup3Yq0HGp8VPvsGaCNsqMHI7tw8z8PUcdL644Y_VsD_aU41Rb3BmGraXgbw5WFrmT_uNVU8nRop_jmyuMNjwoDc53SCXDVF3k26TVzVfkxALzIkidElUxtNR/s320/A+MATTER+OF+TIME+%255B+cover+print+format%255D.jpg" width="188" /><b>About the Book</b><i><br /><br />The world's greatest evil stalks the world's greatest ship, and the only one who can stop him hasn't been born yet. Jamie Collins is a junior at Santa Clara University in 1986. He has friends, a professor who mentors him, and a promising future as a writer. Then the dreams begin - nightmarish memories that transport him back to a time and place fifty years before he was born: Titanic's maiden voyage in 1912. When Jamie discovers a foreign cell in his blood that links him to the famous vessel, the two timelines begin to overlap and he realizes an unimaginable truth - something supernatural stalks the ill-fated ship, something that will kill him if he can't stop it first. And the only way to stop it may be to prevent Titanic from sinking. But even if he can figure out a way to do that, should he? What will be the effect on history if he succeeds? And what about the lady he wasn't supposed to fall in love with? As her destiny becomes entwined with his, Jamie discovers the value of friendship, the power of love, the impact of evil, and the vagaries of Fate.</i><br />
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<b>My Review</b><br />
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What I like about a Michael J. Bowler novel are the sub-plots within the main plot. And the standout in this one has to be the main character's calling to be a writer.<br />
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Jamie has always been a bookish kid. Even now that he's in college, he still lives in his head, instead of the real world. To his friends, he's known for having a vivid imagination, which is why no one believes him when he says he has to hire a boat to take him to the middle of the North Atlantic on the 100th anniversary of the sinking of the Titanic. According to him, he's slowly turning into a vampire, thanks to a series of troubling dreams he's been having about being onboard the doomed ocean liner. (On a side note, I love how he makes it all happen simply by handing over the MasterCard his parents gave him for any "emergencies" that might come up.)<br />
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He doesn't understand what's happening to him, but deep down he feels he has to do this. He's out to find his destiny, but what he doesn't understand is that sometimes it finds us whether we're ready for it or not. He believes in what he's doing because he feels it. He's positive he's right about this, even though his insistence on following through on this hunch is bordering on obsession.<br />
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Jamie doesn't think the way other people do. He's not afraid to delve into his inner self to see what's there. But there's a danger in that when he withdraws further into himself, and starts acting like one of his characters. It's sad that his exceptional mind makes him feel very much alone.<br />
<br />
And really that's where Jamie's identity crisis stems from. His father is a hard man. He doesn't accept his son for who he is. He's displeased with him because he's not the kind of man he wanted him to be. It's the classic case of the husband blaming the wife for babying a grown son.<br />
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But when Jamie steps foot on the fishing vessel that's going to take him to the Titanic's last known coordinates, he meets someone who gets him, the captain of the ship. They have a lively discussion about "Moby Dick" and the dangers of excessive pride. And the literary allusions keep coming, most notably in the Hamlet-like decision Jamie's going to have to make, if indeed, he's able to journey back through time. If he chooses to alter the past, is he ready to accept the consequences of changing the future ... and possibly making things worse than they are now?<br />
<br />
And the kicker is, that the ship's captain used to be like Jamie's father. He didn't understand his bookish son either. It's not until after he died, that he bothered to read any of the books that are now lining the walls of his cabin. In Jamie, he sees the man his son could've become. And he'll stop at nothing to do whatever he can to help him.<br />
<br />
Even if it means, setting him adrift at sea, to write the next chapter in his life.
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<br />
***
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<br />
<i>A Matter of Time</i> can be purchased at:<br />
<b><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Matter-Time-Michael-Bowler-ebook/dp/B007GOAC9C?ie=UTF8&tag=tributebooks-20" target="_blank">Amazon</a></b><br />
<b><a href="http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/a-matter-of-time-michael-bowler/1109296752?ean=9781432787110" target="_blank">Barnes and Noble</a></b><br />
<b><a href="https://geo.itunes.apple.com/us/audiobook/a-matter-of-time-unabridged/id1035392958?mt=3" target="_blank">iTunes</a></b><br />
<br />
<b>Formats/Prices:</b> $2.99 ebook, $12.95 paperback, $14.95-$21.83 Audible<br />
<b>Genre:</b> Historical Fiction, Suspense<br />
<b>Pages:</b> 340<br />
<b>Release:</b> March 2, 2012<br />
<b>Publisher:</b> Outskirts Press<br />
<b>ISBN:</b> 9781432787110<br />
<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/14438165-a-matter-of-time?from_search=true&search_version=service" target="_blank">Click to add to your Goodreads list.</a></b><br />
<br />
<br />
<img align="left" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLMhZp7qFX9noDVaGCTYAlM0VMy9tYghohI39jwbGZtoFidfKKkwzrT0gJrpzIHAqXKi8uBpdq0eC-2fiDl8x0TsU0W3r7SLGAO2_rfx3W-v47gT6L_f_bVehs207DkjNF9e6MCmFrazU/s320/bowler.jpg" width="188" /><b>About the Author</b><br />
<br />
Michael J. Bowler is an award-winning author of nine novels—<i>A Boy and His Dragon, A Matter of Time</i> (Silver Medalist from Reader’s Favorite), and <i>The Knight Cycle</i>, comprised of five books: <i>Children of the Knight</i> (Gold Award Winner – 2013 Wishing Shelf Book Awards; Reader Views Honorable mention; Runner-Up Rainbow Awards; Honorable Mention - Southern California Book Festival), <i>Running Through A Dark Place</i> (Bronze Award Winner in the Wishing Shelf Book Awards), <i>There Is No Fear</i> (Finalist – 2015 Wishing Shelf Book Awards), <i>And The Children Shall Lead, Once Upon A Time In America</i>; <i>Spinner</i> (Winner Hollywood Book Festival; Honorable Mention San Francisco Book Festival; Bronze Medal from Reader’s Favorite; Literary Classics Seal of Approval; Runner-Up - Southern California Book Festival; Honorable Mention - Halloween Book Festival; Finalist – 2015 Wishing Shelf Book Awards), and <i>Warrior Kids: A Tale of New Camelot</i> (Honorable Mention in the London Book Festival and The New England Book Festival; Finalist – 2015 Wishing Shelf Book Awards).<br />
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His horror screenplay, “Healer,” was a Semi-Finalist, and his urban fantasy script, “Like A Hero,” was a Finalist in the Shriekfest Film Festival and Screenplay Competition.<br />
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He grew up in San Rafael, California, and majored in English and Theatre at Santa Clara University. He went on to earn a master’s in film production from Loyola Marymount University, a teaching credential in English from LMU, and another master's in Special Education from Cal State University Dominguez Hills.<br />
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He partnered with two friends as producer, writer, and/or director on several ultra-low-budget horror films, including “Fatal Images,” “Club Dead,” and “Things II.”<br />
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He taught high school in Hawthorne, California for twenty-five years, both in general education and to students with learning disabilities, in subjects ranging from English and Strength Training to Algebra, Biology, and Yearbook.<br />
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He has also been a volunteer Big Brother to eight different boys with the Catholic Big Brothers Big Sisters program and a thirty-year volunteer within the juvenile justice system in Los Angeles.<br />
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He has been honored as Probation Volunteer of the Year, YMCA Volunteer of the Year, California Big Brother of the Year, and 2000 National Big Brother of the Year. The “National” honor allowed him and three of his Little Brothers to visit the White House and meet the president in the Oval Office.<br />
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He has finished writing a novel based on his screenplay, “Like A Hero,” and another book aimed at the teen market. He hopes to find a publisher or an agent for both.<br />
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His goal as an author is for teens to experience empowerment and hope; to see themselves in his diverse characters; to read about kids who face real-life challenges; and to see how kids like them can remain decent people in an indecent world. The most prevalent theme in his writing and his work with youth is this: as both a society, and as individuals, we’re better off when we do what’s right, rather than what’s easy.<br />
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<b>Links to connect with Michael:</b><br />
<b><a href="http://www.michaeljbowler.com/" target="_blank">Web Site</a></b><br />
<b><a href="http://www.facebook.com/michaeljbowlerauthor" target="_blank">Facebook</a></b><br />
<b><a href="https://twitter.com/BradleyWallaceM" target="_blank">Twitter</a></b><br />
<b><a href="http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6938109.Michael_J_Bowler" target="_blank">Goodreads</a></b><br />
<b><a href="http://michaeljbowler.com/blog/" target="_blank">Blog</a></b><br />
<b><a href="http://michaeljbowler.tumblr.com/" target="_blank">Tumblr</a></b><br />
<b><a href="http://www.pinterest.com/michaelbowler/pins/" target="_blank">Pinterest</a></b><br />
<b><a href="http://instagram.com/stuntshark" target="_blank">Instagram</a></b><br />
<b><a href="http://amatteroftimeblogtour.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Blog Tour Site</a></b><br />
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<b>About the Giveaway</b><br />
<br />
<a class="rcptr" data-raflid="2bf06796143" data-template="" data-theme="classic" href="http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/2bf06796143/" id="rcwidget_jh8s9xxh" rel="nofollow">a Rafflecopter giveaway</a><script src="https://widget-prime.rafflecopter.com/launch.js"></script>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05624363362005982902noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3067837502126821107.post-65133356301448928952016-07-19T00:01:00.000-04:002016-07-19T00:01:00.231-04:00Claudia Riess - Semblance of Guilt - 99¢ Ebook Sale, Review, Excerpts & Giveaway<a href="http://semblanceofguiltblogtour.blogspot.com/" target="_blank"><img align="middle" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj56A4-o_yOBGDL22Na9h0Pk1QqZ03Ls6cucOy7ODYywMjfh-jkpYa2Nn5VIh6hHile_zJtNB2BCS0I6-vX5wgzc8JCXtZvnDWkjttx6lYubPy0gTYBgkeH0tmqrex1zcYRyXHC7CPBlrw/s1600-r/banner.jpg" width="100%" /></a><br />
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<img align="left" border="1" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7mgqGRNT-RWzJS9zrhpcHb-A3dnzZ1t5qY1E_LuccCr9wD6n_k8rPjIwDXD02MjCbQTIhB7HMp3dIrUL3Efq9kySu9z6YOMnhvt5C3aBjR0cvneDor7elb8ArQMtS2DEWuCG-mopeHrM/s1600/cover.jpg" width="188" /><b>About the Book</b><i><br /><br />Ellen Davis’s husband left her for another woman. Post-divorce, she’s trying to reassert her independence and lands a job as a reporter for her local newspaper. One of her assignments is covering weekly items on the police blotter, which is how she gets to know Lieutenant Pete Sakura—a handsome, witty Japanese- American Ellen is drawn to immediately.<br /><br />
Another of Ellen’s assignments is interviewing for the paper’s “Around The Town” column, and in this capacity, she meets Graham and Sophia Clarke, newcomers to the community. He’s an administrator at Columbia; she’s his beautiful Greek wife. Ellen and Sophia become fast friends, so it comes as a great shock when Sophia ends up dead.<br /><br />
Sophia Clarke is found murdered, and to all appearances, Ellen is the last person to have seen her alive. When Ellen’s fingerprints are found on the murder weapon, she’s arrested, and evidence steadily mounts against her. Ellen takes matters into her own hands as her romantic feelings for Pete intensify. Closing this case could either save Ellen or lead to her destruction.</i><br />
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<b>Review</b><br />
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Wanting control. Wanting respect. Wanting it all. There's a tug-of-war going on in this mystery novel, and I never knew what side of the rope I was going to end up on.<br />
<br />
Claudia Riess's writing style involves a lot of back and forth, plenty of push and pull. One minute I was inside the head of one character, one minute the next. Reading a chapter, I was in one place before the scene shifted to another. It left me with an unbalanced, unhinged sort of feeling, like I was never exactly sure what was going to happen or what was going on. I just had to trust Riess and hold on for the ride.<br />
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Take for example when Riess frames Ellen Davis, her main character, for a murder she didn't commit. Ballsy stuff that's all wrapped up in the conundrum known as Graham Clarke. Sometimes, Ellen is afraid of him, and sometimes she's not. At first glance, he seems harmless enough, a college admissions advisor, sporting preppy horned-rim glasses, a hen-pecked demeanor, the whole nine yards. However, once Ellen befriends his wife, Sophia, that's when my impression of him began to change. Ellen starts picking up on the more sinister edge to his personality…albeit a little too late.<br />
<br />
Needless to say, Ellen doesn't see it coming when Sophia winds up dead and she's the one accused of being the killer. (Even though, I did…from reading the blurb!) Right from the start, it comes across as almost too neatly done, as if Graham had targeted her ahead of time, casting her in the starring role of offing his wife. My biggest mistake was the same as Ellen's. We both underestimated nerdy Graham, not believing him capable of being as cunning as he turns out to be.<br />
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It's not until later on in the novel when the comments of his deceased mother are revealed, that Riess beings to show how her cutting words continue to emasculate Graham from beyond the grave. His mother even goes so far as to leave her inheritance to charity in order to spite him. So it's no surprise when his resentment of his wife's wealth bubbles up and spills over. He's sick and tired of living to please the demanding women in his life. First, his mother, then his wife, then his college-aged mistress. He snaps, not intending to play second fiddle to anyone anymore. Mama's boy, Graham, is taking charge now—let the pieces fall where they may. Watch out, Ellen. He wants a new life, regardless of who he has to destroy in order to get it.<br />
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Let's say this: Reiss knows how to pen one heck of an elaborate plot—one that certainly left my mind spinning.<br />
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<b>Excerpts</b><br />
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<div style="border-color: 000000; border-style: solid; border-width: 2px; height: 350px; overflow: auto; width: 400px;">
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After navigating past the desks, she knocked on the door of the cubicle. No response. The second, more deliberate, rap was answered with an impatient “Come!”<br />
<br />
Ellen entered the office and was somewhat taken aback by the sight of an attractive Asian man in shirt-sleeves awkwardly poised by the side of his desk, arms out, legs spread one behind the other, the front one slightly bent, the rear rigidly locked. He looked, she thought, as if he were trying to keep his balance on a skateboard. His attention was fixed on an open book sitting at the edge of his desk. “Give me a second,” he said testily, without taking his eyes off the book and at the same time adjusting the position of his front foot to a more pigeon-toed angle.<br />
<br />
“I won’t ask what you’re doing,” Ellen said.<br />
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“Smart.” There was a sound of raised voices coming from the outer room. “The door!”<br />
<br />
She closed it. “However, maybe you’d like to know what <i>I’m</i> doing?”<br />
<br />
He ignored her question. “Damn, I’m not getting it.” He glanced up. “Do me a favor, take a look at number fifty and tell me what the hell is wrong here.”<br />
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Ellen approached the desk and peered down at the open book. A two-page spread of photographs showed a man in what looked like an usher’s uniform demonstrating a series of exercises. “Is this tai chi?”<br />
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“This is a pain in the ass. Could you look at the picture, tell me where I’m off, please?”<br />
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“‘Fair Lady works at Shuttles,’” she read aloud. She looked up from the page at him then back down again. “I see where you are. Figure fifty-A. It says: ‘Elbow bent, your right hand comes to your center line, fingers pinched together…’” She looked up. “For starters, your fingers aren’t pinched together.”<br />
<br />
“Just hold the book up so I can see it from a better angle, okay?”<br />
<br />
She held the book, show-and-tell style. He went through a variety of disconnected motions, clearly becoming more frustrated. “Shit.”<br />
<br />
Ellen had formed a perception of the Japanese male as meditative, controlled, mysterious, soft-spoken, one who quietly went about transcending the material world while politely manipulating it. She had never realized she harbored this fully defined and fallacious stereotype until that moment, as she was looking at what appeared to be its antithesis. “If your phone rings, should I answer it?”<br />
<br />
“Forget it.” He dropped the pose, took the book from her and put it back on the desk. “I’m all out of sync.”<br />
<br />
“Now I’ll ask. What are you doing?”<br />
<br />
“Getting my goddamn yin and yang together. My doctor tells me I have an ulcer and prescribes pills, but I don’t like pills. I’m taking up the eastern approach.”<br />
<br />
“But isn’t tai chi Chinese?”<br />
<br />
“Yeah, so?”<br />
<br />
“‘Sakura’ sounds like a Japanese name.”<br />
<br />
“Let me ask you a question. You ever eat chow mein?”<br />
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“Well, yes.”<br />
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“I rest my case.” He waved her toward the chair on the other side of the desk and dropped down into his own. “Sit.”<br />
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She remained on her feet. “I’m Ellen Davis. I was told you had the data for the <i>Chronicle</i>’s ‘Blotter’ column. I’m just here to collect it.”<br />
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He threw up a hand. “What’s the point of that column? All it does is stigmatize the poor saps who appear in it. There’s no investigation of circumstances, no disclaimers stating charges could be erroneous. Just a cold-blooded list of citations.”<br />
<br />
“It’s supposed to serve as a deterrent,” she said without conviction. “Actually, I don’t particularly like the column myself, but I don’t make up the rules. I’m sorry I messed up your exercise routine. May I have the material, please?”<br />
<br />
She became aware of herself as an unattached, uncompromised individual as she once was at Penn. She sensed the boundaries of her being as clearly as she felt the hem of her knit dress pull tightly against her legs with each step she took. It was as if she had never been married, had instead dressed for an interview and walked straight out of west Philadelphia into Morningside Heights.<br />
<br />
Mid-block between 109 and 108 Streets, as she was passing a shoe store and scanning the view across the way, her attention was drawn to the bright blue awning of Charlie’s Snack Bar. At that moment the door to the restaurant opened, and a tall young woman with cropped red hair and wearing a tight black turtleneck sweater, clingy black pants and black cowboy boots, stepped out into the daylight. The girl stood aside to allow the man behind her to pass, and as he emerged completely into the sunlight, Ellen recognized Graham. She was about to hail him, when he took a step toward the redhead and Ellen realized he was with her. Unable to tear her focus from the scene or insinuate herself into it, she backed up into the shadow cast by the overhanging eave of the shoe store.<br />
<br />
While Graham snapped down and adjusted the removable sun-visors of his eyeglasses, the young woman reached into the breast pocket of his blazer, drew out a pair of sunglasses he must have been holding for her, and put them on, in the process grazing her breasts against his left elbow. The act defined them as intimate friends, yet the distance springing up between them immediately afterward seemed devised to refute it. They stood apart talking to each other, their postures stiff and formal, their not touching as conspicuous as an open embrace.<br />
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Ellen watched them as her years at Penn were sucked into a black hole, and all she could remember was her husband Kevin dropping the bomb, telling her he was leaving her. Watching Graham and the redhead across the street was like catching the discovery scene she had missed, seeing it replayed for her benefit, like a burlesque in which she was both captive audience and object of scorn.<br />
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Almost at once she felt a connection with Sophia.<br />
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Sophia pulled her hands away and struck out at Ellen in one continuous movement, throwing herself off balance and stumbling sideways. She stared in horror at the gouge one of her nails had made on Ellen’s chest, and Ellen, stunned by the violence and not yet feeling the pain, gazed in disbelief at the drop of blood tracking toward the scalloped edge of her white satin bustier.<br />
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“Go—get out of here,” Sophia rasped. “I’m afraid what I might do to you. Get out, get out.”<br />
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The blood trickled onto the rim of smooth white fabric, forming a small, irregular stain. Ellen looked up at Sophia. The woman she thought she knew had become a trapped animal, her eyes wary-wild.<br />
<br />
A sharp pain from the nick in her chest jolted her from her numbing inertia. She moved quickly from the room, feeling the tears coming, holding them back, postponing them as she ran silently down the hall. She descended the steps with blazing deliberation, her pace quick and even, her focus on reaching the door and disappearing into the sheltering night. She could feel her eyes, static-wide in bewildered alarm, betraying her attempt to appear in total control. Still, she focused straight ahead, concentrating on her goal, hearing Anna calling her name but moving through the sound, pacing herself to simulate haste without flight as she sliced through the clear zone of the foyer and pushed open the storm door. Midway across the porch she collided with an incoming guest, all pearls and black silk, the woman’s staccatoed “Shit!” like a gunshot in an open field of combat.<br />
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Picking up speed, she hurtled down the bluestone drive, anticipating the sound of the engine starting up even before she could spot her car.<br />
<br />
***
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<br />
Tuesday, March 13. First day in court. The jury sat knit-browed and entranced, leaning forward so as not to miss a word, not yet settled in their role of deliberative body. To Ellen, they looked as if they’d been caught off guard at the supermarket, a rainbow assortment of shoppers rounded up one afternoon and transported to a box at the opera, best seats in the house.<br />
<br />
Ellen sat in a heavy, slat-back chair drawn up close to a long oak table. She was wearing a gray suit and paisley print blouse because Rosenthal had told her to wear something conservative but not somber. The skirt buckled and slid around her waist every time she moved because in the last two months she’d lost ten pounds from under-eating and over-exercising. As she’d taken her seat in the courtroom, she’d snagged her pantyhose on a rough spot on the table leg and felt the rip crawl up her leg, making her feel exposed to the prying eyes in the room. She’d been unable to choose earrings that morning, vacillating between small and large, shiny and dull, gold and silver, fixating on this final aspect of her attire as if she could determine the decision of the jury by choosing the politically correct objects to hang on her earlobes. When Rosenthal blew his car horn in the driveway she’d grabbed for familiarity, the small gold hoops, before allowing herself to be whisked off to the mind-boggling unknown.<br />
<br />
Sitting next to her at the oak table, “Try to relax,” Rosenthal whispered in her ear, leaning toward and away from her in one smooth, condensed motion.<br />
<br />
Ellen sat back in the chair, her rigid spine meeting hard wood, the word “relax” banned from her body’s vocabulary. Through an impromptu technique of auto-suggestion and deep breathing, she was barely managing to bring under control the strangulating tension in her neck and the explosive blood-humming in her ears. It was not her lawyer’s fault she hadn’t been prepared for Mark Gilbert’s speech. Rosenthal had described the prosecutor’s meticulous approach, but there was no way he could have prepared her for the immediacy of the event: the way Gilbert cocked his left hip as he stood facing the jury; how his dark eyes seemed to glow from some deep passion or conviction; how he flashed her alternating looks of consternation and pity; how he stressed syllables unexpectedly, so that his words jumped against the wall of her chest—“enter the room,” “<i>points</i> of the scissors,” “<i>homicidal</i> violence”; how his brow suddenly furrowed as he reminded the jury—“You and I, we represent the People. We have been charged not to avenge a wrong, but to deliver justice.”<br />
<br />
***
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<br />
“Come up to the bedroom.”<br />
<br />
“Yes.”<br />
<br />
“Stay the night.”<br />
<br />
“Yes.”<br />
<br />
“Hurry.” She wanted to be taken on the spot, jammed against the table or pinned to the floor, but delay would set the act apart. She could foresee it, her first experience of absolute exposure—the loss of her true virginity on her sex-worn bed. The chaste and devilish nuances of amazing contradiction lifted the event to the peak of desire.
He was one step behind her, holding on to her hand as they climbed the staircase. She was aware of every footfall, every breath, every sound of this outwardly conventional drama. She led him down the hall, almost turning in at the wrong doorway, almost forgetting where she slept, his presence casting an aura of unfamiliarity on the surroundings. He caught her hesitation and uttered a short, nervous laugh, sharing her bewilderment.<br />
<br />
As they entered her bedroom, it seemed to lose all connection to her past, as if it had come into existence at that very moment just to harbor them.<br />
<br />
In rapt silence they helped each other with the shedding of clothes, marveling at the unhurried pace of the ritual, as if their bodies had agreed to temper urgency with curiosity.<br />
<br />
They lay on the white comforter, barely disturbing it in their intent exploration, the upheavals taking place inwardly, while over audacious globes and rises and along newly accessible furrows, their fingers, lips, tongues concentrated movement in targeted pressures, exacting exquisite modulations of sensation from each focal point.
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***
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<i>Semblance of Guilt</i> can be purchased at:<br />
<b><a href="http://www.amazon.com/dp/B01DWXBGRW?tag=tributebooks-20" target="_blank">Amazon</a></b><br />
<b><a href="http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/semblance-of-guilt-claudia-riess/1123612832?ean=9781480827851" target="_blank">Barnes and Noble</a></b><br />
<b><a href="https://geo.itunes.apple.com/us/book/semblance-of-guilt/id1100615156?mt=11" target="_blank">iTunes</a></b><br />
<br />
<b><span style="color: red; font-size: x-large;">99¢ EBOOK SALE!</span></b><br />
<div>
<b><i>runs July 1-30, 2016</i></b><i> </i><br />
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Prices/Formats: <b><span style="color: red;">99¢</span></b> <strike>$3.99</strike> ebook, $21.99 paperback, $39.95 hardcover<br />
Genre: Mystery<br />
Pages: 328<br />
Release: April 5, 2016<br />
Publisher: Archway<br />
ISBN: 9781480827851<br />
<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/29838148-semblance-of-guilt" target="_blank">Click to add to your Goodreads list.</a></b><br />
<br />
"A determined amateur detective who'll garner fans with her refusal to either back down or give up." -<b>Kirkus Reviews</b>
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***<br />
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<img align="left" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigMGzHUYXmaXGljfcK1n8yIYpxZKj3-zhv3QGwtyx91gAHKj4JbMVsW8lE6lfVlkneCCJKSNCVkaNZ6oCrWTRnF2edg6Eo2-oWzZB05OKKgIEtXXqkkHkYzaXn0oaztwu-S4vZXlX6PS4/s1600/author.jpg" width="188" /><b>About the Author</b><br />
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Claudia Riess, a Vassar graduate, has worked in the editorial departments of The New Yorker and Holt Rinehart and Winston. On her first novel, Reclining Nude, Oliver Sacks, M.D. commented: “exquisite—and delicate.” Her second, art suspense Stolen Light earned: “complex and intriguing” —Kirkus Review<br />
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<b>Links to connect with Claudia:</b><br />
<b><a href="http://claudiariessbooks.com/" target="_blank">Web Site</a></b><br />
<b><a href="http://www.facebook.com/ClaudiaRiessBooks" target="_blank">Facebook</a></b><br />
<b><a href="http://twitter.com/ClaudiaRiess" target="_blank">Twitter</a></b><br />
<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/3052782.Claudia_Riess?from_search=true&search_version=service" target="_blank">Goodreads</a></b><br />
<b><a href="http://semblanceofguiltblogtour.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Blog Tour Site</a></b><br />
<br />
<br />
<b>About the Giveaway</b><br />
<br />
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05624363362005982902noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3067837502126821107.post-5197110629217599112016-07-12T00:01:00.000-04:002016-07-12T00:01:03.558-04:00Frank Nappi - Welcome to the Show - Review & Giveaway<a href="http://welcometotheshowblogtour.blogspot.com/" target="_blank"><img align="middle" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfGQdiZylqYWlRwSsbWAmhWRJQV7yrRbNzFq6oJjrRUESTus81WQLbjueahXKzgQxrbYVNbVhkQIgTcqv-XPP2dUVLKZlTfjNiEZ6QuBK4matPmZUAn4BvPwsCvQjyTLywpIXGA9tNc6M/s1600/banner.jpg" width="100%" /></a><br />
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<img align="left" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihF1g2b2v1zZ-Mu206aB5z-029yoO2lf9lGvZNWsxlpJb4BPz55C_uWlZDKVz_JML3yRTHsShmJlDOMrhhq4OGrexHCMyepuLTfIb3_9Yh4NLbPi9YgYntDidfyIR8irzvIlUNutyokws/s1600/wts.jpg" width="188" /><b>About the Book</b><i><br /><br />It’s 1950 and Mickey Tussler—the now-famous pitching prodigy with autism and a golden arm—is back for another baseball season in this third installment of Frank Nappi’s critically acclaimed Legend of Mickey Tussler series. Talk of Mickey’s legendary exploits on the field has grown since his improbable debut two years prior, as have the fortunes of Murph and the rest of the lovable ragtag Brew Crew. Now Mickey, Murph, and Lester find themselves heading to Bean Town to play for the Boston Braves.<br /><br />
The call up is sweet, for all of them have overcome insurmountable odds to get where they are. But life in the major leagues is filled with fast-paced action both on and off the field. The bright lights of Boston hold a new series of challenges, hardships, and life lessons—especially for Mickey, who finds himself a long way from throwing apples into a barrel back on the farm. The three newest Braves have each other to lean on, as well as a new group of fans who are swept away by pennant fever, but balancing everything this new world has to offer may prove to be the greatest challenge of all.</i><i><br /><br />
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<b>My Review</b><br />
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I always judge a book based on how quickly I'm able to get through it. And this one I was able to finish in one, maybe two sittings tops. So it definitely gets my seal of approval for that. I'm not a fan of long, drawn out story lines that take forever to get to the point. And thankfully WELCOME TO THE SHOW was the complete opposite of that. It moved along at fast clip. I didn't get bored. Honestly, I was fully engaged in the story from the first page to the last. So thanks, Frank Nappi for capturing my attention, and keeping it.<br />
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Because let's face it, coming up with the plot of a baseball book is tricky. If you're going to write one from spring training to the end of the season, it means A LOT of scenes about A LOT of games. The danger is things can get repetitive in a hurry. The same line-up. The same pitches coming in. But this book held some surprises for me, like the back-to-back home run blasts that go foul, first one to the left field foul pole then one to the right. Or having the starting pitcher, who pitched the night before, come in to close out a do-or-die game with everything on the line. Nappi is no doubt a fan of the game, and he gets all its little eccentricities right. I'm pleased to say that the amount of detail - like the pitch counts, or the catcher's signs - don't affect the overall pace of the storytelling. It moves quicker than one of Mickey's blazing fastballs.<br />
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While I love reading baseball books for the baseball, that's not what I'll take away from this one. The emotion behind each play, each managerial decision that's what I'll remember. Players can go out and take the field night after night, but if a group of guys isn't busting their butts for each other, no matter how talented the individual players are, you're not going to have a TEAM. Mickey's tale is a good reminder that the game is played by people, people from all walks of life. And when the chemistry is right, sometimes magical things can happen.
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<i>Welcome to the Show</i> can be purchased at:<br />
<b><a href="http://www.amazon.com/dp/1634508297?tag=tributebooks-20" target="_blank">Amazon</a></b><br />
<b><a href="http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/welcome-to-the-show-frank-nappi/1122378351?ean=9781634508292" target="_blank">Barnes and Noble</a></b><br />
<b><a href="https://geo.itunes.apple.com/us/book/welcome-to-the-show/id1097501147?mt=11" target="_blank">iTunes</a></b><br />
<br />
Prices/Formats: $9.99 ebook, $9.99 paperback<br />
Genre: Sports, YA, Special Needs<br />
Pages: 288<br />
Release: April 19, 2016<br />
Publisher: Sky Pony<br />
ISBN: 9781634508292<br />
<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25898459-welcome-to-the-show" target="_blank">Click to add to your Goodreads list.</a></b><br />
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***<br />
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<b>Video</b><br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="225" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/JZfDb_i-TbU" width="300"></iframe><br />
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<img align="left" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEic1mA_CULsm0Z-2bFxwZj4D2vucKPq6yZ_7QtHH2OJcbnab_dQUkQVfHuAciHwY-k1Boxt37Db3BkMgWeqkqvLoNk9VjmTg05WKL-JKoNqTUgsRDg863U2hahBGcIOlqZfhSlWQLrVhUQ/s1600/nappirvc.jpg" width="188" /><b>About the Author</b><br />
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Frank Nappi has taught high school English and Creative Writing for over twenty five years. His debut novel, ECHOES FROM THE INFANTRY, received national attention, including MWSA's silver medal for outstanding fiction. His follow-up novel, THE LEGEND OF MICKEY TUSSLER, garnered rave reviews as well, including a movie adaptation of the touching story "A Mile in His Shoes" starring Dean Cain and Luke Schroder. Nappi continues to produce quality work, including SOPHOMORE CAMPAIGN, the intriguing sequel to the much heralded original story and the thriller, NOBODY HAS TO KNOW, which received an endorsement from #1 New York Times bestselling author Nelson DeMille. The third installment of Nappi's Mickey Tussler series, WELCOME TO THE SHOW, was released April 2016, and he is currently working on his next thriller, AS LONG AS WE BOTH SHALL LIVE. Nappi lives on Long Island with his wife Julia and their two sons, Nicholas and Anthony.
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<b>Links to connect with Frank:</b><br />
<b><a href="http://www.franknappi.com/" target="_blank">Web Site</a></b><br />
<b><a href="https://www.facebook.com/authorfranknappi" target="_blank">Facebook</a></b><br />
<b><a href="http://twitter.com/franknappi" target="_blank">Twitter</a></b><br />
<b><a href="http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/589342.Frank_Nappi" target="_blank">Goodreads</a></b><br />
<b><a href="https://www.youtube.com/user/FrankNappibooks" target="_blank">YouTube</a></b><br />
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<b>About the Giveaway</b><br />
<br />
<a class="rcptr" data-raflid="2bf06796142" data-template="" data-theme="classic" href="http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/2bf06796142/" id="rcwidget_lshylnmm" rel="nofollow">a Rafflecopter giveaway</a><script src="https://widget-prime.rafflecopter.com/launch.js"></script>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05624363362005982902noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3067837502126821107.post-72282911683938811042016-06-17T00:01:00.000-04:002016-06-17T00:01:03.775-04:00M. Glenda Rosen - Dying to Be Beautiful series - 99¢ sale, excerpts & giveaway<a href="http://dyingtobebeautifulblogtour.blogspot.com/" target="_blank"><img align="middle" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBC84xH9X30WcashsmLYt4KeLglpLs4hsOmwiGjJxncT5fOF_e7EY30vZDGfqxiKf62o8ndEyLN9ppI1UcR0bF1VOkTnsuS0jkTrpYo-DmyL57kbySVvwk7FmiTTu87bWyVndFp3Pyq6NC/s1600-r/banner.jpg" width="100%" /></a><br />
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<img align="left" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUjC-NFmw0CE8IEHDKj2hq1CaS1V-xv-2Y_-FdruDmEY5YQU5ElSLyJWFOxzm3oRKQwNvlv3V8QQ3M07kSX5Z-GoZBdMtUTvuqQUJBZjUcJVIGuMgP9RwDJK31zDDXOpQ8Lyhyr7veRE_B/s320/book1cover.jpg" width="188" /><b>BOOK ONE: WITHOUT A HEAD</b><i><br /><br />Saturday Morning, 6:00am<br /><br />
The head in the sink stared up at her. Darcy Monroe, the owner of a popular, chic hair salon was used to this. Only this time, the head was there without a body.<br /><br />
Chapter One: The Murder<br /><br />
As a Private Investigator, Jenna Preston had been hired to help solve murders, insurance fraud, cheating spouses and more. This was a new one for her.<br /><br />
She received what could only be described as a hysterical call from Darcy Monroe, owner of a popular, upscale hair salon in The Hamptons. A head without its body was rolling around in one of her shampoo basins.<br /><br />
Almost five-feet, five-inches tall, always looking taller in her two- or three-inch heels, Jenna had long red hair, blue eyes and was often seen driving around the East End in a white jeep, and in recent years, with her Irish setter sitting next to her.</i><i><br /><br />
</i><br />
<br />
<b>Excerpt</b><br />
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<div style="border-color: 000000; border-style: solid; border-width: 2px; height: 350px; overflow: auto; width: 400px;">
<br />
<b>Chapter 1<br />
The Murder</b><br />
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Saturday, 6:10 A.M.<br />
<br />
As a Private Investigator, Jenna Preston had been hired to help solve murders, insurance fraud, cheating spouses and more. This was a new one for her.<br />
<br />
She received what could only be described as a hysterical call from Darcy Monroe, owner of a popular, upscale hair salon in The Hamptons.<br />
<br />
A head without its body was rolling around in one of her shampoo basins.<br />
<br />
Almost five-feet, five-inches tall, always looking taller in her two or three-inch heels, Jenna had long red hair, blue eyes and was often seen driving around the East End in a white jeep, and in recent years, with her Irish Setter sitting next to her.<br />
<br />
As a well-respected private investigator in the area, she told the salon owner, “I’ll be right there, and don’t touch anything until the police arrive.”<br />
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Jenna knew they needed to secure the business as a crime scene and Coroner Doc Bishop and Head of Forensics Lara Stern had to be brought in as well.<br />
<br />
“Troy, someone left a head, without the body, in a shampoo bowl at Darcy’s Salon. I’ll be there in about ten minutes.”<br />
<br />
”Damn it, Jenna, I nearly spilled my coffee listening to this bizarre message. I’ll be there within the half hour. Meantime, I’ll ask Lara to get over there to check the crime scene for prints and other possible evidence and for Doc to arrange to bring the head to the morgue. We’ll want to look at it there, after he’s had a chance to determine how it was cut off and anything else he might find.”<br />
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Detective Johnson hung up.<br />
<br />
He and Jenna had worked together and known each other for a long time. They clearly trusted each other. He knew she would follow police protocol at the crime scene.<br />
<br />
Saturday, as always was an exceptionally busy day, “in season” at Darcy’s Salon, which is why she had gotten there so early. She always wanted the salon looking perfect, ready for stylists and clients, who this day had appointments beginning at 7 am.<br />
<br />
Located off the main avenue of this posh resort at the East End of Long Island, less than ninety miles from Manhattan, the salon was known for catering to the rich and famous, as well as some of wanna-be customers, primping for weekend parties and fundraising events.<br />
<br />
The salon was truly beautiful with warm color tones and soft matching leather client chairs facing gold (well, fake gold), trimmed mirrors. There was a reception area with the latest issues of fashion magazines from Paris and Rome, and a few of the more popular Hampton rags, like <i>Dan’s Papers</i> were spread out on a marble table, next to it a coffee machine offering gourmet flavored coffee and teas.<br />
<br />
Most of the women who came to Darcy’s Salon had plenty of money, some from their own success, although others were arm candy for much older, wealthy men. Sometimes one of them would joke (maybe not) that they were “Dying To Be Beautiful” like some of the famous models and celebrities, many of who summered in the Hamptons.<br />
<br />
“Jenna, you’ve seen how difficult and fussy they can be, and their egos—they’re constantly seeking confirmation of how beautiful they look. They want to come to a high-end salon, expecting to be treated like royalty. And believe me, we do.”<br />
<br />
Darcy Monroe was only too glad to charge megabucks for her services since it included a whole lot of catering to their whims and demands. Beauty could indeed be expensive in The Hamptons. The chatter amongst the clients, the eight hair stylists, three manicurists and several assistants meant gossip was a basic ingredient of conversation. The story about the body without a head, and the head found in the salon, was sure to explode through The Hamptons. It certainly had all the elements of a soap opera.<br />
<br />
“My god, Jenna, the gossip about this mess is going to be like a volcano spilling over this town.”
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***
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<br />
<i>Dying to Be Beautiful: Without a Head</i> can be purchased at:<br />
<b><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Dying-Be-Beautiful-Mysteries-Without-ebook/dp/B01BTMZA16?tag=tributebooks-20" target="_blank">Amazon</a></b><br />
<b><a href="http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/dying-to-be-beautiful-mysteries-m-glenda-rosen/1123451946?ean=9781483445304" target="_blank">Barnes and Noble</a></b><br />
<b><a href="https://geo.itunes.apple.com/us/book/dying-to-be-beautiful-mysteries/id1082721139?mt=11" target="_blank">iTunes</a></b><br />
<br />
<h2>
<b><span style="color: red;">99¢ EBOOK SALE!</span></b></h2>
<h4>
<i>runs June 1-30, 2016 </i></h4>
Prices/Formats: <strike>$2.99</strike> ebook, $14.99 paperback<br />
Genre: Mystery<br />
Pages: 140<br />
Release: February 1, 2016<br />
Publisher: Lulu<br />
ISBN: 9781483445304<br />
<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/29295731-dying-to-be-beautiful-mysteries?from_search=true&search_version=service" target="_blank">Click to add to your Goodreads list.</a></b><br />
<br />
***<br />
<br />
<img align="left" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiN4YpQm0nwmjk0hYgdPXakMwObiRiq22IqBgYNmsPjzS-P47s-oK0oqbKN70K7zGHyTar_vbFCQHNvtYKjFAgDh2KFXQid0wU4Ngodgpsq1xK1l1DA0ry3LwSVWY16P0SKcmCOyv94ujNW/s320/book2cover.jpg" width="188" /><b>BOOK TWO: FASHION QUEEN</b><i><br /><br />Monday, 6:45am<br />
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Kevin Larson swam in his pool nearly every morning. Going on sixty-five, he prided himself on being in good shape.<br />
<br />
Walking toward the small pool house, off to the left of the pool, he noticed a light was on. He was certain he turned it off the night before. Strange, he thought.<br />
<br />
Even stranger, lying in a different sort of pool—blood—was his long time friend and lover, fashion designer Andre Yellen. Yellen was stuffed into one of the gowns he had designed and a wearing a blond wig.<br />
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The gown had been auctioned off the night before at a huge Hamptons fundraiser.<br />
<br />
People in the Hamptons were certainly dying to be beautiful.
</i><i><br /><br />
</i><br />
<br />
<b>Excerpt</b><br />
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<div style="border-color: 000000; border-style: solid; border-width: 2px; height: 350px; overflow: auto; width: 400px;">
<br />
<b>Chapter 1<br />
THE GOWN</b><br />
<br />
Monday, 7:30 a.m.<br />
<br />
Detective Troy Johnson was at Larson’s house when Jenna arrived. He had covered the victim with a large beach towel until the coroner and forensics arrived. [deleted “He and”] Sergeant Stan Miller, who had taken the call, accompanied him and was presently attempting to hold back the media. They had heard about Yellen’s death on the police scanner, and in no time, the active crime scene was quite a wild sight.<br />
<br />
It was 6:30 A.M. when she had received the call from Johnson that he was on his way to Kevin Larson’s house: “Jenna, there’s been a murder. Designer Andre Yellen, the Fashion Queen, was found dead this morning at the home of movie mogul Kevin Larson. He gave her the address and exactly where it was located, “past the windmill at the edge of Southampton.”<br />
<br />
“More like the situation was at the edge of reason,” Jenna thought.<br />
<br />
“Jenna, they’re acting like a bunch of hungry vultures. Help! These are your people. Well, they’re reporters like you used to be. The homeowner is either in shock or just completely uncooperative except for telling me where and when he found Yellen’s body.”<br />
<br />
Jenna sighed, “Sure, I can’t say no to such a lovely invitation.”<br />
<br />
The death of Andre Yellen was big news.<br />
<br />
Andre Yellen was squeezed—really, truly squeezed—into a beautiful ocean blue, sleeveless, silk gown he had designed and donated for a fundraiser the evening before. The size-8 dress was torn at all the seams. Yellen, in his early fifties, 5’9” and clearly out of shape, was more like a size-18-plus, and stuffed into a dress way, way too small for him.<br />
<br />
As a designer for major celebrities for nearly twenty-five years, Yellen was a man about town who loved both the ladies and the men, or so it had been gossiped around the East End of Long Island, also known as The Hamptons.<br />
<br />
After all, this is THE HAMPTONS, and all sorts of lifestyles are accepted, where choices are supposedly not judged, and relationships are not restricted by conventional boundaries. Unfortunately, there are always those determined to exercise their own brand of severe judgment.<br />
<br />
However, there was no evidence this murder had anything to do with narrow minds. Not yet, anyhow. In fact, it wasn’t clear at all what this murder was about—or who had committed it.<br />
<br />
Private Investigator Jenna Preston was familiar with many celebrities who lived or vacationed on the East End. Before becoming an investigative reporter, she was entertainment and social events reporter for the local daily paper and had interviewed quite a few of the “anointed” as she had once called them. Gossip columnists covered the rest.<br />
<br />
Jenna was regularly hired by law firms, insurance companies and businesses for corporate fraud issues. She also had an arrangement and relationship with the local police—especially when it came to murder investigations. Some of the people she had once written about also tried to hire her for personal investigations and for, what she considered, ridiculous reasons. Such complaints included some new fence being too high or people walking on the beach in front of someone’s home.<br />
<br />
Most of these cases she didn’t accept.<br />
<br />
“For me, it’s about justice. We all have reasons, even life experiences motivating our passions. I have mine for what I do,” Jenna told a local reporter whose paper was doing a story on crime in The Hamptons.<br />
<br />
Jenna had a solid reputation for being smart, resourceful and most definitely charming—without an attitude—which was different from many of the people who summered in The Hamptons.<br />
<br />
She did love nice clothes, including the red shoes or red boots she almost always wore.<br />
<br />
“Hey,” she laughed once when Troy made fun of her red shoes, “you wear a cowboy hat most of the time, so don’t make fun of me, Tex.”<br />
<br />
Jenna and Troy worked together professionally almost as soon as she had become a licensed private detective. It was a small police force, often stretched thin during the summer season. Because they actually had few experienced investigators, he had requested and been given approval by his captain to use a discretionary fund to hire Jenna on an as-needed basis. She was often a member of his investigative team, usually for murders.<br />
<br />
Lately, there didn’t seem to be any shortage of them.<br />
<br />
Slender and almost 5’5,” yet always looking taller in her two- or three-inch heels, Jenna had long red hair, sometimes pulled back in a ponytail when she was working. She also had deep blue eyes. With more than a hint of spunk and mischief about her, she was definitely considered attractive.<br />
<br />
Jenna’s new romance, Dave, thought so!
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***
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<br />
<i>Dying to Be Beautiful: Fashion Queen</i> can be purchased at:<br />
<b><a href="http://www.amazon.com/dp/1483449157?tag=tributebooks-20" target="_blank">Amazon</a></b><br />
<b><a href="http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/dying-to-be-beautiful-mystery-series-m-glenda-rosen/1123791641?ean=9781483449159" target="_blank">Barnes and Noble</a></b><br />
<b><a href="https://geo.itunes.apple.com/us/book/dying-to-be-beautiful-mystery/id1114048910?mt=11" target="_blank">iTunes</a></b><br />
<h2>
<b><span style="color: red;">99¢ EBOOK SALE!</span></b> </h2>
<div>
<h4>
<i>runs June 1-30, 2016 </i></h4>
</div>
Prices/Formats: <strike>$2.99</strike> ebook, $14.99 paperback<br />
Genre: Mystery<br />
Pages: 132<br />
Release: June 1, 2016<br />
Publisher: Lulu<br />
ISBN: 9781483449159<br />
<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/29864465-dying-to-be-beautiful-fashion-queen?from_search=true&search_version=service" target="_blank">Click to add to your Goodreads list.</a></b><br />
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***<br />
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<img align="left" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2k_67C1sXgSMzqTe5uYo4TAqxUoQ60jfG1AOzNpNolxJKmQPkGc93TYWahGOZbHuYbC-porP4-CiiANLkgOJ2v2mG2FYD0wMcd43oi_cgqp7xrER6hgIRPxu5E3iHefW0M5d6WqhiZ6a5/s320/IMG_1095.JPG" width="188" /><b>About the Author</b><br />
<br />
M. Glenda Rosen is the author of <i>The Woman’s Business Therapist: Eliminate the MindBlocks and RoadBlocks to Success</i>, and award-winning <i>My Memoir Workbook</i>. For over fifteen years, she helped numerous authors develop and market their books, and presented writing programs in New York, The Hamptons, New Mexico and Carmel, California, on “Encouraging and Supporting the Writer Within You!” She's the founder and owner of a successful marketing and public relations agency for twenty-five years.<br />
<br />
<b>Links to connect with M. Glenda:</b><br />
<b><a href="http://www.dyingtobebeautiful.com/" target="_blank">Web Site</a></b><br />
<b><a href="http://www.facebook.com/MarciaGRosen" target="_blank">Facebook</a></b><br />
<b><a href="http://twitter.com/writermysteries" target="_blank">Twitter</a></b><br />
<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/search?utf8=%E2%9C%93&search%5Bfrom_nav%5D=true&query=M.+Glenda+Rosen" target="_blank">Goodreads</a></b><br />
<b><a href="http://dyingtobebeautifulblogtour.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Blog Tour Site</a></b><br />
<br />
<br />
<b>About the Giveaway</b><br />
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<a class="rcptr" data-raflid="2bf06796140" data-template="" data-theme="classic" href="http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/2bf06796140/" id="rcwidget_asvmwz6w" rel="nofollow">a Rafflecopter giveaway</a>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05624363362005982902noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3067837502126821107.post-75951346010898806962016-06-14T00:01:00.000-04:002016-06-14T00:01:08.722-04:00Jerome Charyn - A Loaded Gun - Review & Giveaway<a href="http://aloadedgunblogtour.blogspot.com/" target="_blank"><img align="middle" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGsSZueOeU_-_tA6ABm1pVZBDVdEjdA7n-3Bs2WQrTdjTngD7Os2MHmagES9upBVMPNAZ0BIoPYTB0_PbfpgkSnHgiruF6H7kDccI_UXad6vvfAk6xCQk39opsE27_wduagXEOfR0F3fk/s1600-r/banner.jpg" width="100%" /></a><br />
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<img align="left" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKK-o6HRAtk5WTeoYLtjSSMQCgTk4waPSNIl9c4-APnEBcHxnWzAec07UXfJ6AnpP4OILLcfVpHPMFH2uvzdCBq5V8TNTo8ycyx2D_8msvELtKL0-vRorOQIV9qy9KvBe7SKWGYu8IFqo/s320/A+Loaded+Gun+Mock+Cover.jpg" width="188" /><b>About the Book</b><i><br /><br />We think we know Emily Dickinson: the Belle of Amherst, virginal, reclusive, and possibly mad. But in A Loaded Gun, Jerome Charyn introduces us to a different Emily Dickinson: the fierce, brilliant, and sexually charged poet who wrote:<br /><br />
My Life had stood—a Loaded Gun—<br />
…<br />
Though I than He— may longer live<br />
He longer must—than I—<br />
For I have but the power to kill,<br />
Without—the power to die—<br /><br />
Through interviews with contemporary scholars, close readings of Dickinson’s correspondence and handwritten manuscripts, and a suggestive, newly discovered photograph that is purported to show Dickinson with her lover, Charyn’s literary sleuthing reveals the great poet in ways that have only been hinted at previously: as a woman who was deeply philosophical, intensely engaged with the world, attracted to members of both sexes, and able to write poetry that disturbs and delights us today. </i><i><br /><br />
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<b>My Review</b><br />
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This critical look at Emily Dickinson's life moved me more than I thought it would. I was expecting a scholarly rundown of her life, but Jerome Charyn penned something far richer and deeper. He presents Dickinson as a tragic figure, a nineteenth century woman forced to live on the fringes of society simply because she was ahead of her time. Her fierce intelligence and her vivid imagination set her apart in a little, sleepy, New England town that quite frankly didn't know what to do with her.<br />
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Charyn paints a picture of Dickinson as a woman who hated her creative gift. He depicts her as being afraid of it, and subsequently of herself. She knew she wielded a dangerous weapon, so she removed herself from the world in order to use it. What's even more remarkable is that Charyn points out that Dickinson was self-taught, relying on her Bible and Lexicon to reshape the English language into something we've never seen before.<br />
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But the upside is that even while Dickinson was suffering through a life of isolation and contempt, she still managed to thrive. Her anger at the injustice she was forced to endure fueled her, demanding a release. She didn't want to be some man's plaything, yet all her life she yearned to be loved. She was plain, and she knew it, denouncing herself as a kangaroo. So she retreated into the lofty heights only her mind was able to ascend to, even while she was stuck dredging through a mundane existence along with everyone else, never going anywhere, never seeing the world or doing anything spectacular.<br />
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Instead, she became a living, breathing contradiction, a special type of person one doesn't encounter often, if ever. She was strange, eccentric, unpredictable, in the best possible way. She wasn't accepted in her own time and place, yet now is universally revered as a poetic master because in her heart, she knew she was on to something, even if while she was alive no one else believed in her. The triumphant thing about Emily Dickinson is that her internal turmoil counted for something because in the end she was the one who turned out to be right.<br />
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<i>A Loaded Gun</i> can be purchased at:<br />
<b><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Loaded-Gun-Emily-Dickinson-Century-ebook/dp/B01AR51G0K?tag=tributebooks-20" target="_blank">Amazon</a></b><br />
<b><a href="http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/a-loaded-gun-jerome-charyn/1121185872" target="_blank">Barnes and Noble</a></b><br />
<b><a href="https://geo.itunes.apple.com/us/book/a-loaded-gun/id1076133268?mt=11" target="_blank">iTunes</a></b><br />
<b><a href="http://blpress.org/books/a-loaded-gun/" target="_blank">Bellevue Literary Press</a></b><br />
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Prices/Formats: $11.99 ebook, $19.95 paperback<br />
Genre: Literary Criticism<br />
Pages: 265<br />
Release: March 15, 2016<br />
Publisher: Bellevue Literary Press<br />
ISBN: 9781934137987<br />
<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/24796140-a-loaded-gun" target="_blank">Click to add to your Goodreads list.</a></b><br />
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<b>Video</b><br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="169" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/hZpXxBJRbXM" width="300"></iframe><br />
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<b>Excerpts</b><br />
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<b><a href="http://lithub.com/neither-mad-nor-motherless-on-emily-dickinsons-self-creation/" target="_blank">CLICK HERE</a></b> to read <b>Excerpt One</b>.<br />
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<b><a href="http://blog.longreads.com/2016/03/15/a-loaded-gun-the-real-emily-dickinson/" target="_blank">CLICK HERE</a></b> to read <b>Excerpt Two</b>.<br />
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<b>Reading Groups</b><br />
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<b><a href="http://blpress.org/reading-group-guides/reading-group-guide-for-a-loaded-gun/" target="_blank">CLICK HERE</a></b> for a <b>Reading Guide</b>.<br />
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<img align="left" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjc4MZ4Td5KEqVZ-UptYOMtdHWKiRx6yxZ4Ewa0v9GJPbJs3dV1RKjAdNGSX9OX2M9J1n4ovBfRj3GqTL1_PVR4siNsaEzvjSaW90GLErTMkMAZCD3_UTJqzCVnm0yt-o_4soLLxvxK9Yw/s1600/Jerome+%2526+Chloe+I+by+Jorg.jpg" width="188" /><b>About the Author</b><br />
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Jerome Charyn was born and raised on the mean streets of the Bronx. He graduated <i>cum laude</i> from Columbia College. He has taught at Princeton, Columbia, Stanford, Rice, was Distinguished Visiting Professor at the City University of New York and is currently Distinguished Professor Emeritus at the American University of Paris. Charyn is a Guggenheim Fellow and has twice won fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts. His stories and articles have appeared in The Atlantic, Paris Review, Esquire, American Scholar, New York Review of Books, New York Times, Ellery Queen and many other publications. Charyn's most recent books are <i>The Secret Life of Emily Dickinson, I Am Abraham</i> and <i>Bitter Bronx: Thirteen Stories</i>. His latest book is <i>A Loaded Gun: Emily Dickinson for the 21st Century</i>.
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<b>Links to connect with Jerome:</b><br />
<b><a href="http://www.jeromecharyn.com/" target="_blank">Web Site</a></b><br />
<b><a href="https://www.facebook.com/jerome.charyn?fref=ts" target="_blank">Facebook</a></b><br />
<b><a href="http://twitter.com/jeromecharyn" target="_blank">Twitter</a></b><br />
<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/53408.Jerome_Charyn" target="_blank">Goodreads</a></b><br />
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<b>Links to connect with <i>A Loaded Gun:</i></b><br />
<b><a href="https://www.facebook.com/SecretLifeOfEmilyDickinson/" target="_blank">Facebook</a></b><br />
<b><a href="http://twitter.com/emilysecretlife" target="_blank">Twitter</a></b><br />
<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/24796140-a-loaded-gun?from_new_nav=true&ac=1&from_search=true" target="_blank">Goodreads</a></b><br />
<b><a href="http://thethingisblogtour.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Blog Tour Site</a></b><br />
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<b>About the Giveaway</b><br />
<br />
<a class="rcptr" data-raflid="2bf06796139" data-template="" data-theme="classic" href="http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/2bf06796139/" id="rcwidget_vp2bt5ya" rel="nofollow">a Rafflecopter giveaway</a>
<script src="https://widget-prime.rafflecopter.com/launch.js"></script>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05624363362005982902noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3067837502126821107.post-46523149424941509032016-06-02T00:01:00.000-04:002016-06-02T00:01:00.167-04:00Kathleen Gerard - The Thing Is - Review & Giveaway<a href="http://thethingisblogtour.blogspot.com/" target="_blank"><img align="middle" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-IPbYy7ldnV07NlfidGWmdBQKufQBJgz7QaeYAx1Igw2W7gN5mTmiK9oAtUxsYg-bcpMCuVWB0u7zktoVClKaSIwn_7y-HoF0_PYZeAQNOfSNoIfsaVKXV9talllKDs6dKTe4e1nNdO_C/s1600-r/banner2.jpg" width="100%" /></a><br />
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<img align="left" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg73VykTo4kv5TuKyxqpu-rAoEwgIIPSqsfrbXIAAwrI575pIYrpfiHZhw73EPXRw8ToiIevngl_OXc9XVc3Aw6PbrIurb5CUoKc2pzLx6HDZirdSvkqTnaRit1BBwQBKqRwdsm9PmS3Cc9/s1600/TheThingIs-KGerard-300+pixels.jpg" width="188" /><b>About the Book</b><i><br /><br />Can a woman mired deep in the throes of grief have her heart and soul rallied by a therapy dog named Prozac who possesses supernatural wisdom and a canine Mensa IQ?
Meredith Mancuso is depressed. Ever since the death of her fiancé, she has shrunk from the world. Even with her successful writing career, she's not motivated to work. When her sister, Monica, begs for a favor, Meredith wants nothing more than to say no. But she’s ultimately roped into pet-sitting an orphaned Yorkshire terrier named Prozac.
Blessed with spiritual wisdom and a high IQ, Prozac is an active pet therapy dog. To heal broken-hearted Meredith, he rallies his fan club at Evergreen Gardens, an independent living facility, where he visits each week.
Prozac and the community of resilient older folks challenged by losses of their own propel Meredith, often against her will, back into the land of the living. Meredith learns that most people carry some sort of burden, but it's still possible to find meaning, purpose, and joy—and even love—along the way.
THE THING IS—a perfect read for fans of General Fiction, Contemporary Fiction, Romantic Comedy, and Dog and Pet Lovers!</i><i><br /><br />
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<b>My Review</b><br />
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This is a beautifully written book, tender and deep. It touched me on so many levels because Kathleen Gerard's insight into the human soul is quite remarkable. Everyone needs love. Without it, we wither and die, simply going through the motions of being alive without really living. It's heartbreakingly sad to see the lonely, isolated routine that Meredith has fallen into. She's been hurt, traumatized by grief and she shuts herself off in order to keep going. Feeling anything for anyone just hurts too much.<br />
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But Gerard doesn't give Meredith a free pass. She's critical of what Meredith's let herself become, and she lets it be known through the voice of Prozac the dog. It's a fascinating take on looking at human interaction—how an individual perceives herself versus how the rest of the world does. We can trick ourselves into believing that we're okay when we're really not. It's only when we see ourselves reflected in other people that the truth begins to emerge, forcing us to see what we'd rather not see.<br />
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I enjoyed reading how the elderly residents of Evergreen Gardens held that mirror up in front of Meredith's face, opening her eyes to the possibilities still within her reach. Meredith is only in her early thirties, but she's an old soul who has experienced a heck of a lot. That's why she's able to relate to the senior citizens and be herself around them. Once she lets her guard down, she's finally able to let love back in.<br />
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Sometimes all it takes is finding the right people at the right moment to get a person back on track. Prozac is like Meredith's spirit guide. He gets a non-animal lover to love him, and in turn gets her to love herself and love others again too. Bravo, Kathleen Gerard!<br />
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<i>The Thing Is</i> can be purchased at:<br />
<b><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Thing-Kathleen-Gerard-ebook/dp/B01B55MZY2?tag=tributebooks-20" target="_blank">Amazon</a></b><br />
<b><a href="http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-thing-is-kathleen-gerard/1123327681?ean=2940152772616" target="_blank">Barnes and Noble</a></b><br />
<b><a href="https://geo.itunes.apple.com/us/book/the-thing-is/id1079207409?mt=11" target="_blank">iTunes</a></b><br />
<br />
Prices/Formats: $5.99 ebook, $14.99 paperback<br />
Genre: Romantic Comedy<br />
Pages: 299<br />
Release: February 9, 2016<br />
Publisher: Red Adept<br />
ISBN: 9781940215587<br />
<b><a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/26014424-the-thing-is" target="_blank">Click to add to your Goodreads list.</a></b><br />
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<img align="left" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjX3uOIK4dzRNuVCy4u2o_CsizZGgq7819MHFe56d7ay5R68W8iSAbw9ysYGvqC8t70whJ82_JsOD7Y2dIw3KpGW5GSV9lcNrWLMJVMZPZs1G0M1iigE1-aqxbztaaPurXpeSMzCqlsVOUC/s1600/C1IUT2euRTS._UX250_.jpg" width="188" /><b>About the Author</b><br />
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Kathleen Gerard writes across genres. Her work has been awarded many literary prizes and has been published in magazines, journals, widely anthologized and broadcast on National Public Radio (NPR). Kathleen writes and reviews books for <b><a href="http://www.shelf-awareness.com/search.html?sitesearch=kathleen+gerard&search=search" target="_blank">Shelf Awareness</a></b>. Kathleen's woman-in-jeopardy novel, IN TRANSIT, won "Best Romantic Fiction" at the New York Book Festival.<br />
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<b>Links to connect with Kathleen:</b><br />
<b><a href="http://www.thethingis-thenovel.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Web Site</a></b><br />
<b><a href="http://www.facebook.com/kathleengerard.writer" target="_blank">Facebook</a></b><br />
<b><a href="http://www.twitter.com/kathleengerard" target="_blank">Twitter</a></b><br />
<b><a href="http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/2865523.Kathleen_Gerard" target="_blank">Goodreads</a></b><br />
<b><a href="http://www.kathleengerard.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Blog</a></b><br />
<b><a href="http://thethingisblogtour.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Blog Tour Site</a></b><br />
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<b>About the Giveaway</b><br />
<br />
<a class="rcptr" data-raflid="2bf06796138" data-template="" data-theme="classic" href="http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/2bf06796138/" id="rcwidget_msv7hnw7" rel="nofollow">a Rafflecopter giveaway</a>
<script src="https://widget-prime.rafflecopter.com/launch.js"></script>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05624363362005982902noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3067837502126821107.post-83641679078098347822015-11-17T00:01:00.000-05:002015-11-17T00:01:00.154-05:00Michael J. Bowler - Warrior Kids - Review & Giveaway<a href="http://warriorkidsblogtour.blogspot.com/" target="_blank"><img align="middle" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2VyhOc8xxTYDpXJWTWLnpKEEJZiljK_1AOdaX89KV1S-bf_HNQZDZ0Eg1wST7uakyvpvJ7x4A-WREa5uLlMqII5zKFKeXhN4xhVa6pYvFehf_5NOfyyZhnKrqF7-vt4xPqlPosh6G/s1600-r/banner2.jpg" width="100%" /></a><br />
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<img align="left" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaijwcbojcMzhCPKrqlpV6tjeQVvcVQDLwE74atQqRLUWldbkovpGIl2qSs8-NwRRdtyV8kkGnDEjgPmpEsbkNSJ5CIfixyBJKKRey-4yoaAf7bF8QnpOgVS4-O4fj7lNLETQdLbzd/s1600/cover.jpg" width="188" /><b>About the Book</b><i><br /><br />The future looks bleak unless eighteen year-old Lance and his New Camelot Earth Warriors can save the planet from catastrophic climate change. </i><i>Spurred by twelve year-olds Billy, Enya, Itzamna, and his ten-year-old brother, Chris, Lance creates a branch of Earth Warriors, a youth-led movement designed to save the earth from its greatest enemy – greed. </i><i>His involvement leads to Earth Warrior crews springing up all across America. Millions of kids leap into action, paralyzing the country and alarming the rich and powerful. </i><i>Having adopted his father’s philosophy of doing what’s right, rather than what’s easy, Lance makes serious enemies when he calls out New Camelot donors who represent fossil fuel or other polluting industries, and then barely escapes a series of "accidents” designed to kill him. </i><i>When he challenges the United States Congress to step up and act immediately on the climate crisis, the attacks on him escalate. With the majority of America's kids on his side, Lance and his young Earth Warriors prepare for the United Nations Conference of the Parties in Paris, where they will call upon world leaders to stop talking about sustainability and start acting on it. </i><i>But whoever wants him dead isn't giving up. Will Lance and his crew live long enough to even get to Paris? </i><i><i>Warrior Kids</i> is a standalone tale set within the <i>Children of the Knight</i> universe.</i><i><br /><br />
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<b>My Review</b><br />
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The environment is a hot button issue. Every human being has a hand in destroying the earth. No one is blameless. However, there are many who talk the talk about the need for change, yet few are willing to walk the walk.<br />
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<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<b>"If the environment is to heal, every single one of us has to step up."</b></blockquote>
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The Earth Warriors hope to be a leading voice when it comes to tackling the complexity of this multi-layered problem. They're a group of young activists who are looking to achieve long-lasting results, using their brain power to figure out what it's going to take to get government and big business on board and convince them to change their ways. There's just one big problem.<br />
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<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<b>"Big corporations that support us with donations - some of them are the biggest carbon emitters in the country. [They're] giving us money knowing they earned it by wrecking the planet."</b></blockquote>
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What's a non-profit to do: close up shop or work with the enemy? The kids involved find it ethically challenging to say the least. By taking on the fossil fuel industry, they're literally putting their lives at risk by daring to go up against them. A car they're in is nearly forced off a bridge. A sandbag almost takes one of them out during a live televised debate. They face some very real consequences for standing up for what they believe in, yet they persevere, refusing to let anyone stop them.<br />
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<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<b>"Nature is God's way of talking to us."</b></blockquote>
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These kids put their faith in the Public Trust Doctrine, which states that resources such as land, water and air must be preserved for public use and that it's the government's job to maintain them. They petition Congress to remember that pledge and live up to it.<br />
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It's uplifting to read how they work tirelessly to raise the public consciousness on this very important matter, uniting everyone under one banner.<br />
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The dream of a better future.
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<i>Warrior Kids</i> can be purchased at:<br />
<b><a href="http://www.amazon.com/WARRIOR-KIDS-Camelot-Knight-Cycle-ebook/dp/B01686MJYE/" target="_blank">Amazon</a></b><br />
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Formats: ebook, paperback<br />
Genre: Middle Grade<br />
Pages: 211<br />
Release: October 6, 2015<br />
Publisher: self-published<br />
ISBN: 9780990871149<br />
<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/26530788-warrior-kids" target="_blank">Click to add to your Goodreads list.</a></b><br />
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<b>Special message from the author:</b><br />
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<b>THE eBOOK OF WARRIOR KIDS IS FREE FOR EDUCATORS.</b> It is available in the following formats: PDF, Kindle (mobi), and ePub (Nook and iBooks). In addition, teachers can purchase the paperbacks at the per unit cost of $3.08 (plus shipping and applicable tax.) Educators can contact the author via the Warrior Kids Facebook Group (<b><a href="https://www.facebook.com/groups/1505241449796357/" target="_blank">https://www.facebook.com/groups/1505241449796357/</a></b>) or directly by email – <b><a href="mailto:stuntshark2.0@gmail.com">stuntshark2.0@gmail.com</a></b>. For paperback orders, the author will generate an invoice from Createspace (the physical publisher of the book) and payment can be made through PayPal. There is no profit motive and he will earn nothing off the paperbacks sold to teachers. Per unit cost and shipping rates are exactly as Createspace charges him – no markup. As an educator, he has always sought supplemental reading material that would engage his students on important issues. Having found very little, he decided to write one and make it readily available.<br />
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<img align="left" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLMhZp7qFX9noDVaGCTYAlM0VMy9tYghohI39jwbGZtoFidfKKkwzrT0gJrpzIHAqXKi8uBpdq0eC-2fiDl8x0TsU0W3r7SLGAO2_rfx3W-v47gT6L_f_bVehs207DkjNF9e6MCmFrazU/s320/bowler.jpg" width="188" /><b>About the Author</b><br />
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Michael J. Bowler is an award-winning author of nine novels—<i>A Boy and His Dragon, A Matter of Time</i> (Silver Medalist from Reader’s Favorite), and <i>The Knight Cycle</i>, comprised of five books: <i>Children of the Knight</i> (Gold Award Winner in the Wishing Shelf Book Awards), <i>Running Through A Dark Place</i> (Bronze Award Winner in the Wishing Shelf Book Awards), There Is No Fear, And The Children Shall Lead, Once Upon A Time In America; <i>Spinner</i> (Winner Hollywood Book Festival; Honorable Mention San Francisco Book Festival; Bronze Medal from Reader’s Favorite; Literary Classics Seal of Approval), and <i>Warrior Kids</i>.<br />
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His horror screenplay, “Healer,” was a Semi-Finalist, and his urban fantasy script, “Like A Hero,” was a Finalist in the Shriekfest Film Festival and Screenplay Competition.<br />
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He grew up in San Rafael, California, and majored in English and Theatre at Santa Clara University. He went on to earn a master’s in film production from Loyola Marymount University, a teaching credential in English from LMU, and another master's in Special Education from Cal State University Dominguez Hills.<br />
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He partnered with two friends as producer, writer, and/or director on several ultra-low-budget horror films, including “Fatal Images,” “Club Dead,” and “Things II,” the reviews of which are much more fun than the actual movies.<br />
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He taught high school in Hawthorne, California for twenty-five years, both in general education and to students with learning disabilities, in subjects ranging from English and Strength Training to Algebra, Biology, and Yearbook.
He has also been a volunteer Big Brother to eight different boys with the Catholic Big Brothers Big Sisters program and a thirty-year volunteer within the juvenile justice system in Los Angeles.<br />
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He has been honored as Probation Volunteer of the Year, YMCA Volunteer of the Year, California Big Brother of the Year, and 2000 National Big Brother of the Year. The “National” honor allowed him and three of his Little Brothers to visit the White House and meet the president in the Oval Office.<br />
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His goal as a YA author is for teens to experience empowerment and hope; to see themselves in his diverse characters; to read about kids who face real-life challenges; and to see how kids like them can remain decent people in an indecent world.<br />
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<b>Links to connect with Michael:</b><br />
<b><a href="http://www.michaeljbowler.com/" target="_blank">Web Site</a></b><br />
<b><a href="http://www.facebook.com/michaeljbowlerauthor" target="_blank">Facebook</a></b><br />
<b><a href="https://twitter.com/BradleyWallaceM" target="_blank">Twitter</a></b><br />
<b><a href="http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6938109.Michael_J_Bowler" target="_blank">Goodreads</a></b><br />
<b><a href="http://sirlancesays.wordpress.com/" target="_blank">Blog</a></b><br />
<b><a href="http://michaeljbowler.tumblr.com/" target="_blank">Tumblr</a></b><br />
<b><a href="http://www.pinterest.com/michaelbowler/pins/" target="_blank">Pinterest</a></b><br />
<b><a href="http://instagram.com/stuntshark" target="_blank">Instagram</a></b><br />
<b><a href="http://warriorkidsblogtour.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Blog Tour Site</a></b><br />
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<b>About the Giveaway</b><br />
<br />
<a class="rcptr" data-raflid="2bf06796137" data-template="" data-theme="classic" href="http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/2bf06796137/" id="rcwidget_taovxeyw" rel="nofollow">a Rafflecopter giveaway</a>
<script src="//widget-prime.rafflecopter.com/launch.js"></script>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05624363362005982902noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3067837502126821107.post-63284457044503402102015-11-03T00:01:00.000-05:002015-11-03T00:01:00.257-05:00Leta Serafim - When the Devil's Idle - Review & Giveaway<a href="http://whenthedevilsidle.blogspot.com/" target="_blank"><img align="middle" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbF9Oz_pozbdy74NDiqjOxfLfktwfsulasDz47Y05JTdusIQWF4zzAgLDRgRkJeix7JDHyjmizih5nbGYHavIZp0yNzKMj-uBaQ0nKYGwJo3g5edoeR8NyDNXMjGjKcdbPSH6ds6d45BHl/s1600-r/banner.jpg" width="100%" /></a><br />
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<img align="left" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKnU_izkIU__nvhEYxa-QuhLoKLvtmar3ppcP8PSJJDq2TO37n3Nb1_uaQ1n-gCdGH9ya0Bv6ibmcCGl6GaJ-uEgKs4sHrDGwi1DmIffUz8pTsqa0XA9ad5Xd3jNcPu57EVa0BMlQ4SG_5/s320/when_idle_300.jpg" width="188" /><b>About the Book</b><i><br /><br />In the Book of Revelation, written by St. John on the Greek island of Patmos, it was said a pale horse would appear whose rider was death, others would cry out for vengeance, and the stars of heaven would fall to the earth. Death does indeed come to Patmos when a German tourist is found murdered in the garden of one of the island’s fabled estates. Yiannis Patronas, Chief Officer of the Chios police, is called in to investigate. He summons his top detective, Giorgos Tembelos, and his friend and amateur sleuth, Papa Michalis, to assist him. What the policemen discover will disturb them long after the conclusion of the case. Only six people were at the house at the time of the murder—the gardener and housekeeper, the victim’s son and his wife and their two children, a boy of seven and a teenage girl of sixteen. All appear to be innocent. But access to the isolated estate is severely restricted. Surrounded by high walls, it has only one entrance: a metal gate that was bolted at the time of the crime. Patronas can only conclude that one of the six is a killer. He continues to probe, uncovering the family’s many secrets. Some are very old, others more recent. All are horrifying. But which of these secrets led to murder? </i><i>Book 2 of the <i>Greek Islands Mystery</i> series, which began with <i>The Devil Takes Half</i>.</i><i><br /><br />
</i><br />
<br />
<b>My Review</b><br />
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<b>"The Bible was the first murder book. Cain and Abel. Humanity hasn't changed much since it was written."</b></blockquote>
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God and man, the relationship between the two is always a source of conflict. And in Leta Serafim's mystery series, she explores how the Greek Orthodox Church is as much an institution of the economically-challenged nation as Socrates and Plato. It's what makes Greek culture an interesting blend of the old and the new, whereby tourists, migrants and the youth of today are quickly wiping away centuries of pride and tradition, the very cradle of Western civilization.<br />
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But Papa Michalis sees things differently. He's an old priest who likes to tag along on police business. An ardent watcher of American crime shows, he's able to quote Sir Arthur Conan Doyle at will. While he's a lover of fiction, he hasn't given up on humanity just yet. To him, even a man murdered for the heinous acts he committed over the course of a lifetime "is still a child of God."<br />
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Some on the detectives on the police force think that Papa Michalis is blissfully naive to the pervasive nature of the evil that lurks all around him. They feel he preaches about a just world that really doesn't exist.<br />
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<b>"Holy fool that he was, he believed everyone was good simply because he was."</b></blockquote>
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Yet Papa Michalis brings a voice of wisdom to the story, always taking a more compassionate approach toward the victim's family as well as any possible suspect. He doesn't jump to conclusions. He sees the big picture, and urges the officers he's advising to tread carefully because everything is not always as it seems.<br />
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<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<b>"So our troubles are caused by fallen angels?"</b></blockquote>
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Papa Michalis shakes his head at such questions. He knows better than to try to have a discussion on theology with a bunch of hardened cops. Yet he provides them with a ray of hope, hope that there's a point to the work that they do, even when they're not able to claim victory in justice.
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***
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<i>When the Devil's Idle</i> can be purchased at:<br />
<b><a href="http://www.amazon.com/dp/1603819983?tag=tributebooks-20" target="_blank">Amazon</a></b><br />
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<b><a href="https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/566886" target="_blank">Smashwords</a></b><br />
<br />
Formats: $6.95 ebook, $13.95 paperback<br />
Genre: Mystery Suspense Thriller<br />
Pages: 192<br />
Release: September 1, 2015<br />
Publisher: Coffeetown Press<br />
ISBN: 9781603819985<br />
<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/26057071-when-the-devil-s-idle" target="_blank">Click to add to your Goodreads list.</a></b><br />
<br />
<br />
<b>Excerpt</b><br />
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<div style="border-color: 000000; border-style: solid; border-width: 2px; height: 350px; overflow: auto; width: 400px;">
The police cruiser arrived later that day and Giorgos Tembelos and Papa Michalis disembarked, the priest inching down the ramp like a tortoise.<br />
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“I think the identity of the old man is the key,” Papa Michalis announced when they’d all gathered in a taverna to review the case. “I analyzed it and that is my conclusion. It simply cannot be anything else. It has elements of an Agatha Christie story, one of her locked-room mysteries like <i>And Then There Was None</i>. Nobody else had access; <i>ergo</i>, one of the people inside the estate, a family member or a servant, must be the guilty party.”<br />
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“Anyone could have gained access,” Patronas pointed out. “The Bechtels were careless. They didn’t keep the door locked and there were keys lying around everywhere.”<br />
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“No matter. It’s got to be one of them. We can interview other people forever, but it will eventually come back to them. Them and them alone.”<br />
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“I think Father is right,” Tembelos said. “The identity of the victim is the important thing here. There was nothing about him in any of the European databases I checked. I called our counterparts in Germany and asked them to run him through their system, but I doubt they’ll find anything. It’s like he never existed. We need to establish who he was. Could be he changed his name.”<br />
<br />
“Why would he change his name?” Patronas wondered.<br />
<br />
“I don’t know.“<br />
<br />
The four of them were sitting outside by the water, it being too hot to venture inside. A haze hung over the sea, and the air was very still. Suddenly, a soft breeze rose up and stirred the tamarisk trees that lined the shore, setting their feathery branches in motion. Patronas liked the rustling sound the trees made, the relief the wind brought. It was almost as if he could hear the earth breathe.<br />
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I’ll go swimming tonight, he told himself, looking out at the harbor. Float on my back and look up at the stars. Frolic like a dolphin.<br />
<br />
Maybe he’d ask Antigone Balis to join him. He pictured her dripping wet, that long hair of hers hanging down over one shoulder like Botticelli’s Venus. Adrift in his vision, he subsequently lost track of the conversation.<br />
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“Hey, boss, you with us?” Tembelos nudged him with his elbow.<br />
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Patronas made a show of straightening his back, stretching. “Sorry, it’s the heat. Always makes me sleepy.”<br />
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“You were grinning.”<br />
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“So what if I was? A man’s allowed to grin.”<br />
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“I don’t know, Yiannis,” the priest said. “I think when one is discussing a homicide, it might be better if one dispensed with grinning. At such a time, such behavior is unseemly. It makes one appear insensitive at the very least.”<br />
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“Thank you for that, Father. In the future, I will dispense with grinning.” He tapped his pencil on his notebook. “So, to sum up, we have nothing concrete in the case, no witnesses or physical evidence, nothing that will lead us to the killer.”<br />
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“Gardener’s clean,” Tembelos reported. “I ran his fingerprints and there was nothing. There was a match on the shoes, too, exactly like he told us.”<br />
<br />
“What about the housekeeper, Maria Georgiou?”<br />
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“Same thing. The case is heating up. If we don’t catch the killer, it could get ugly. Ministry’s already clamoring for action.”<br />
<br />
“We need to turn the housekeeper, Maria Georgiou, inside out, also the members of the family,” Patronas said. “Check their history. Something’s going on here, but as of yet, I haven’t established what it is.”<br />
<br />
“You can’t rule out a random act of violence,” the priest said, “directed at them because of their nationality.”<br />
<br />
“Worse would be if it were a case of mistaken identity,” Patronas said, “the killer targeting the owners—the Bauers—and killing one of their guests by mistake.”<br />
<br />
He was thinking of Charlie Manson, who along with his disciples had wiped out six people without blinking an eye, not realizing his intended victim was a subletter. “Personally, I think someone targeted the family for reasons we don’t know. The cat, the old man. It stands to reason.”<br />
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“I’d start with the housekeeper,” Tembelos said. “What she said doesn’t add up. That bit about coming to Patmos on holiday and staying on as a maid.”<br />
<br />
“Unlikely, Giorgos. She’s in her seventies.”<br />
<br />
Papa Michalis continued to promote the locked room concept. Citing a case in <i>The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes</i>, he described how the killer had released a cobra through a fake vent and activated its poisonous energy by whistling. “ ‘Oh, my God, it was the band,’ the victim shouted, ‘the speckled band.’”<br />
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“Fiction, Father, fiction,” Patronas said impatiently. “Remember? We discussed it.”<br />
<br />
“My point is if you are determined to kill someone, a lock is no deterrent. Sometimes murderers are ingenious. Using a cobra as a murder weapon is brilliant when you think about it. Absolutely brilliant. No fingerprints involved, no way to trace it back to you. The snake does all the work.”<br />
<br />
“I repeat, Father, there is no snake involved here. A stone maybe, but no snake.”<br />
<br />
“A stone? What makes you think that?”<br />
<br />
And around they went again, weighing the possibilities. The victim had been hit on the head, but with what? A hammer or a rock? A shovel or pickax? Rock, scissors, paper.<br />
<br />
Forget swimming, Patronas told himself. I might as well drown myself.</div>
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<img align="left" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgj-CxVwb_KKQ9d5hFP4ZpAoafpwsEfZXDGcQ6Slcg8Vqjm_dUHdk9zW4KiqKjDwuAxGMKu0abKfpsB8t0_x-J0zwtCuPBckSR9F0aetuD4m9ptjF9I7Qwc4bMqkjFbnuGSsZbN5p0gtT1/s320/CIMG0997A.jpg" width="188" /><b>About the Author</b><br />
<br />
Leta Serafim is the author of the <i>Greek Islands Mystery</i> series, published by the Coffeetown Press, as well as the historical novel, <i>To Look on Death No More</i>. She has visited over twenty-five islands in Greece and continues to divide her time between Boston and Greece.
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<br />
<b>Links to connect with Leta:</b><br />
<b><a href="http://www.letaserafim.com/" target="_blank">Web Site</a></b><br />
<b><a href="https://www.facebook.com/Leta-Serafim-768335269894253/" target="_blank">Facebook</a></b><br />
<b><a href="https://twitter.com/serafimleta" target="_blank">Twitter</a></b><br />
<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/8274457.Leta_Serafim" target="_blank">Goodreads</a></b><br />
<b><a href="http://whenthedevilsidle.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Blog Tour Site</a></b><br />
<br />
<br />
<b>About the Giveaway</b><br />
<br />
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<script src="//widget-prime.rafflecopter.com/launch.js"></script>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05624363362005982902noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3067837502126821107.post-75206309942670635422015-10-27T00:01:00.000-04:002015-10-27T00:01:00.280-04:00Scott A. Lerner - The Wiccan Witch of the Midwest - Review & Giveaway<a href="http://thewiccanwitchofthemidwest.blogspot.com/" target="_blank"><img align="middle" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrShT9-5vEzCoBfcFBpCNE2kZfm1lv5_d-TT8Zizqv1ef-rhBjuX2dvTycB5EytMAIxUHi-tct0WFXkJG_HREZQRVPhG8Gbv7dEBmynpRfLtA_FZCNR_g_uyQE-TpxmTzE9Nrm7ooRI94j/s1600/banner.jpg" width="100%" /></a><br />
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<img align="left" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjm6_9CwKOUJtkPOzRp7QyhyphenhyphenAfkgMEp3_nz4A9PlGyp1S-CfIHFmYQTsM_QzqOIfioGS1QDtPOu5zzpEEJ2IDLX4cDsrY1tzw8LqiQ59BcUijwzXyPKBdeJHUokfqyJ8_gqSsoshkLBb7Qr/s1600/wiccan_300.jpg" width="188" /><b>About the Book</b><i><br /><br />Samuel Roberts, a lawyer in Champaign, Illinois, has just moved to a new home to escape the memories of his old place—the stray body parts left by evil entities as well as traces of his relationship with Susan, who left him because he couldn’t stop risking both their lives trying to save the world. That leaves Sam free to fall in love again. Sam falls hard, suspiciously hard, for Bridget Gillis, a beautiful fortune teller who also happens to be a witch and a member of a coven. The village that encompasses the coven was founded by Bridget’s great-great aunt, also named Bridget and a dead ringer for her descendant. The new relationship quickly gets complicated. It is two days before Halloween, and Bridget is about to be tried by her fellow witches for the crime of practicing dark magic involving the blood of children. The punishment is to be burned at the stake. Bridget needs an advocate, and Sam is the perfect man for the job.<br /><br />
Sam brings in Bob, who is suspicious of his best buddy’s sudden passion. The two of them have until the Witching Hour on Halloween to clear Bridget’s name and find out who is killing the local children. As they comb the area for clues, quiz the locals, and take a crash course in witchcraft and Wiccan customs, Sam and Bob can’t shake the question: is Bridget a good witch or a bad witch?<br /><br />
The Wiccan Witch of the Midwest is the fourth book in the Samuel Roberts Thriller series, which began with Cocaine Zombies and continued with Ruler of Demons and The Fraternity of the Soul Eater.
</i><br />
<br />
<b>My Review</b><br />
<br />
Sam's father once told him: <b>"If you're bored, go out and play."</b> It's a little tidbit of advice he's never really forgotten, even though it's not exactly a winning strategy for a lawyer plagued by the supernatural. Based on the strange things he's encountered over the past year or so, Sam seriously doubts that he's going to live a long life, especially when twenty crows swoop down and surround him with their black-eyed stare.<br />
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After receiving such a dire omen, the message he gets from a dominatrix-like fortune teller is no less disturbing. She emphatically states that, <b>"There are many people who are uncomfortable knowing about their destinies."</b> But apparently Sam is not one of them. When she agrees to read his Tarot cards, she's perplexed by what she sees.<br />
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<b>First Card</b><br />
<i>His Past</i><br />
The Tower<br />
He has seen great evil and has survived it.<b><br /></b><b>Second Card</b><br />
<i>His Present</i><br />
Ten of Swords<br />
He is trapped. Evil is trying to hold him in place.<b><br /></b><b>Third Card</b><br />
<i>His Future</i><br />
The Devil<br />
He is addicted to his struggle with darkness.<b><br /></b><b>Fourth Card</b><br />
<i>How He Will Deal with His Future</i><br />
Death<br />
He is learning to deal with the darkness that has been haunting his past.</blockquote>
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But for Sam, her reading raises more questions than answers. When he asks if there's anything he can do to change his fate, she responds, <b>"We have free will, so the future is not set in stone, but it rarely changes."</b><br />
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Despite his trepidation, Sam finds himself insanely attracted to her. He's thinking about returning to her purple Victorian house and asking her out—until he learns that her quaint little neighborhood is what locals refer to as 'The Village of the Damned.' His lovely fortune teller is thought to be a witch, and a very powerful one at that, one accused of killing innocent children and using their blood to perform dark magic.<br />
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But Sam ignores all of the warnings, believing her to be innocent. His lawyering instincts even kick in when he agrees to defend her.<br />
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By taking on her case, Sam's motto becomes; <b>"Life is about risks. You can't always play it safe."</b> He puts everything on hold to work tirelessly on her behalf. Reading ancient spell books and brushing up on the basics of Wiccan philosophy, he immerses himself in the world of the occult. Yet what he finds most intriguing is the history of her sequestered community. Hidden among the cornfields of Illinois, it was meant to be a safe haven for those born with magical gifts, offering them a place of protection against the persecution of the outside world.<br />
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Yet Sam fears the threat may be coming from within when one of their own is found dead, chopped up and laid out in a refrigerated display case with price tags listed for each body part.<br />
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The gruesomeness behind such an act is not lost on Sam. The killer means to send a message—anyone who comes to the defense of the fortune teller will meet a similar fate. Sam's just hoping his seductive client really didn't kill those children, and he's not just falling under her spell.<br />
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***
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<i>The Wiccan Witch of the Midwest</i> can be purchased at:<br />
<b><a href="http://www.amazon.com/dp/1603812911?tag=tributebooks-20" target="_blank">Amazon</a></b><br />
<b><a href="http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-wiccan-witch-of-the-midwest-scott-a-lerner/1122298339?ean=9781603812917" target="_blank">Barnes and Noble</a></b><br />
<br />
Formats/Prices: $4.99 ebook, $13.95 paperback<br />
Genre: Paranormal, Mystery, Thriller<br />
Pages: 230<br />
Release: October 31, 2015<br />
Publisher: Camel Press<br />
ISBN: 9781603812917<br />
<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25885209-the-wiccan-witch-of-the-midwest" target="_blank">Click to add to your Goodreads list.</a></b><br />
<br />
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<img align="left" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhj7lgDPHrMGl_Nb6lbT9A8xzWFFGpABp1_IKzKgxxv3poA1T47s6a8QyM5UyVvi3Dm2gkormfz9zKekOQ2wCaolgPYx41rkg1azdQ_x1TB9e0vsjjBdOyHh0TPHkxjWyHynf8rrWTvjJDn/s320/Scott+Lerner+in+color.jpg" width="188" /><b>About the Author</b><br />
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Author and attorney Scott A. Lerner resides in Champaign, Illinois. He obtained his undergraduate degree in psychology from the University of Wisconsin in Madison and went on to obtain his Juris Doctor degree from the University of Illinois in Urbana Champaign. He is currently a sole practitioner in Champaign, Illinois. The majority of his law practice focuses on the fields of criminal law and family law. Lerner’s first novel and the first Samuel Roberts Thriller, <i>Cocaine Zombies</i>, won a bronze medal in the mystery/cozy/noir category of the 2013 Independent Publisher (IPPY) Awards. The second book in the series is <i>Ruler of Demons</i>. <i>The Fraternity of the Soul Eater</i> is book 3. Book 4, <i>The Wiccan Witch of the Midwest</i>, will be released on Halloween, 2015.<br />
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<b>Links to connect with Scott:</b><br />
<b><a href="http://scottlerner.camelpress.com/" target="_blank">Web Site</a></b><br />
<b><a href="http://www.facebook.com/ScottALernerAuthor" target="_blank">Facebook</a></b><br />
<b><a href="https://twitter.com/scottlernerauth" target="_blank">Twitter</a></b><br />
<b><a href="http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6479067.Scott_A_Lerner" target="_blank">Goodreads</a></b><br />
<b><a href="http://thewiccanwitchofthemidwest.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Blog Tour Site</a></b><br />
<br />
<br />
<b>About the Giveaway</b><br />
<br />
<a class="rcptr" data-raflid="2bf06796135" data-template="" data-theme="classic" href="http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/2bf06796135/" id="rcwidget_s34w1mz4" rel="nofollow">a Rafflecopter giveaway</a><script src="//widget-prime.rafflecopter.com/launch.js"></script>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05624363362005982902noreply@blogger.com2