Tag Archives: Book

October 11, 2013 · 2:23 am

Coming Soon. PreOrder 10/14/13

Books Coming Soon

Just One Evil Act: A Lynley Novel (Inspector Lynley) by Elizabeth George. Available October 15, 2013.
#1 New York Times bestselling author Elizabeth George delivers another masterpiece of suspense in her Inspector Lynley series: a gripping child-in-danger story that tests Detective Sergeant Barbara Havers like never before.

Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy by Helen Fielding. Available October 15, 2013.

Bridget Jones—one of the most beloved characters in modern literature (v.g.)—is back! In Helen Fielding’s wildly funny, hotly anticipated new novel, Bridget faces a few rather pressing questions:

What do you do when your girlfriend’s sixtieth birthday party is the same day as your boyfriend’s thirtieth?
Is it better to die of Botox or die of loneliness because you’re so wrinkly? Is it wrong to lie about your age when online dating?
Is it morally wrong to have a blow-dry when one of your children has head lice? Is it normal to be too vain to put on your reading glasses when checking your toy boy for head lice?
Does the Dalai Lama actually tweet or is it his assistant?
Is it normal to get fewer followers the more you tweet?
Is technology now the fifth element? Or is that wood?
If you put lip plumper on your hands do you get plump hands?
Is sleeping with someone after two dates and six weeks of texting the same as getting married after two meetings and six months of letter writing in Jane Austen’s day?
Pondering these and other modern dilemmas, Bridget Jones stumbles through the challenges of loss, single motherhood, tweeting, texting, technology, and rediscovering her sexuality in—Warning! Bad, outdated phrase approaching!—middle age.

Available the week of October 14, 2013:

UnSouled (Unwind Dystology) by Neal Shusterman. Available October 15, 2013. I can’t wait for this one!

Connor and Lev are on the run after the destruction of the Graveyard, the last safe haven for AWOL Unwinds. But for the first time, they’re not just running away from something. This time, they’re running toward answers, in the form of a woman Proactive Citizenry has tried to erase from history itself. If they can find her, and learn why the shadowy figures behind unwinding are so afraid of her, they may discover the key to bringing down unwinding forever.
Cam, the rewound boy, is plotting to take down the organization that created him. Because he knows that if he can bring Proactive Citizenry to its knees, it will show Risa how he truly feels about her. And without Risa, Cam is having trouble remembering what it feels like to be human.

With the Juvenile Authority and vindictive parts pirates hunting them, the paths of Connor, Lev, Cam, and Risa will converge explosively—and everyone will be changed.

Neal Shusterman continues the adventure that VOYA called “poignant, compelling, and ultimately terrifying.”

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October 5, 2013 · 4:27 pm

Saturday Steals 10/5/13

Circle of Friends – 25 Pie, Crisp & Cobbler Recipes by Gooseberry Patch. FREE Kindle E book.
Have a sweet tooth? Get this Free Amazon Kindle Ebook. Treat your family & friends to a helping of fresh-baked goodness. This collection features 25 down-home desserts like Apple Blush Pie, Cherry Brownie Cobbler and Pumpkin Custard Crunch…all guaranteed to be scrumptious and easy as pie to make!

Gingerbread Man by Maggie Shayne. FREE Kindle E book.
Maggie Shayne has written an excellent mystery and thriller that is sure to spook and intrigue the reader.

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The Housewife Assassin’s Handbook (A Romantic Mystery) (Book 1) (Book #1: Housewife Assassin Series) by Josie Brown. The first in the series is FREE!

Other Books Include:

Cool Contest offers a chance to WIN a FREE backlist title. Jill Shalvis & Lori Foster are doing a giveaway-a-day all week, Today is my day again. Be sure to check the right page on the right day! Because “Always On My Mind” and “Getting Rowdy” released at the same time, we figure Jack and Rowdy are hanging out together. They ask questions about characters and pick a random winner each day. Visit facebook pages: Jill Shalvis or Lori Foster.

The Great Pumpkin Recipe Book Just in time for Halloween and pumpkin harvests. FREE Kindle E book. Halloween Food (Instructables Halloween) FREE Kindle E book.
Things Mother Used to Make A Collection of Old Time Recipes, Some Nearly One Hundred Years Old and Never Published Before by Lydia Marie Gurney. Hardcover book lists for $22.49 so this book is a STEAL as a FREE Kindle ebook.
Information about the Hardback book: This is a pre-1923 historical reproduction that was curated for quality. Quality assurance was conducted on each of these books in an attempt to remove books with imperfections introduced by the digitization process. Though we have made best efforts – the books may have occasional errors that do not impede the reading experience. We believe this work is culturally important and have elected to bring the book back into print as part of our continuing commitment to the preservation of printed works worldwide.

Coming Soon. PreOrder Now for Week of 10/7/13

Starry Night: A Christmas Novel by Debbie Macomber. Available October 8, 2013. ’Tis the season for romance, second chances, and Christmas cheer with this new novel from #1 New York Times bestselling author Debbie Macomber.

Carrie Slayton, a big-city society-page columnist, longs to write more serious news stories. So her editor hands her a challenge: She can cover any topic she wants, but only if she first scores the paper an interview with Finn Dalton, the notoriously reclusive author.

Living in the remote Alaskan wilderness, Finn has written a megabestselling memoir about surviving in the wild. But he stubbornly declines to speak to anyone in the press, and no one even knows exactly where he lives.

Digging deep into Finn’s past, Carrie develops a theory on his whereabouts. It is the holidays, but her career is at stake, so she forsakes her family celebrations and flies out to snowy Alaska. When she finally finds Finn, she discovers a man both more charismatic and more stubborn than she even expected. And soon she is torn between pursuing the story of a lifetime and following her heart.

Filled with all the comforts and joys of Christmastime, Starry Night is a delightful novel of finding happiness in the most surprising places.

Jesus > Religion: Why He Is So Much Better Than Trying Harder, Doing More, and Being Good Enough by Jefferson Bethke. Available October 7, 2013. Abandon dead, dry, rule-keeping and embrace the promise of being truly known and deeply loved.

Jefferson Bethke burst into the cultural conversation in 2012 with a passionate, provocative poem titled “Why I Hate Religion, But Love Jesus.” The 4-minute video literally became an overnight sensation, with 7 million YouTube views in its first 48 hours (and 23+ million in a year). The message blew up on social-media, triggering an avalanche of responses running the gamut from encouraged to enraged.

In Jesus > Religion, Bethke unpacks similar contrasts that he drew in the poem—highlighting the difference between teeth gritting and grace, law and love, performance and peace, despair and hope. With refreshing candor he delves into the motivation behind his message, beginning with the unvarnished tale of his own plunge from the pinnacle of a works-based, fake-smile existence that sapped his strength and led him down a path of destructive behavior.

Bethke is quick to acknowledge that he’s not a pastor or theologian, but simply a regular, twenty-something who cried out for a life greater than the one for which he had settled. Along his journey, Bethke discovered the real Jesus, who beckoned him beyond the props of false religion.

PreOrder: Available the week of October 7, 2013

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Takedown Twenty: A Stephanie Plum Novel by Janet Evanovich. Available November 19, 2013. Pre Order Now. Have you been waiting for Stephanie Plum to return? In 1 ½ months she will be back with more zany antics and sexy men.

Stephanie Plum has her sights set on catching a notorious mob boss. If she doesn’t take him down, he may take her out.

New Jersey bounty hunter Stephanie Plum knows better than to mess with family. But when powerful mobster Salvatore “Uncle Sunny” Sunucchi goes on the lam in Trenton, it’s up to Stephanie to find him. Uncle Sunny is charged with murder for running over a guy (twice), and nobody wants to turn him in—not his poker buddies, not his bimbo girlfriend, not his two right-hand men, Shorty and Moe. Even Trenton’s hottest cop, Joe Morelli, has skin in the game, because—just Stephanie’s luck—the godfather is his actual godfather. And while Morelli understands that the law is the law, his old-world grandmother, Bella, is doing everything she can to throw Stephanie off the trail.

It’s not just Uncle Sunny giving Stephanie the run-around. Security specialist Ranger needs her help to solve the bizarre death of a top client’s mother, a woman who happened to play bingo with Stephanie’s Grandma Mazur. Before Stephanie knows it, she’s working side by side with Ranger and Grandma at the senior center, trying to catch a killer on the loose—and the bingo balls are not rolling in their favor.

With bullet holes in her car, henchmen on her tail, and a giraffe named Kevin running wild in the streets of Trenton, Stephanie will have to up her game for the ultimate takedown.

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September 25, 2013 · 12:02 pm

WWW Wednesday 9/25/13

To play along, just answer the following three (3) questions:

• What are you currently reading?
• What did you recently finish reading?
• What do you think you’ll read next?

Currently Reading:

Edward Adrift by Craig Lancaster.

It’s been a year of upheaval for Edward Stanton, a forty-two-year-old with Asperger’s syndrome. He’s lost his job. His trusted therapist has retired. His best friends have moved away. And even his nightly ritual of watching Dragnet reruns has been disrupted. All of this change has left Edward, who lives his life on a rigid schedule, completely flummoxed.

But when his friend Donna calls with news that her son Kyle is in trouble, Edward leaves his comfort zone in Billings, Montana, and drives to visit them in Boise, where he discovers Kyle has morphed from a sweet kid into a sullen adolescent. Inspired by dreams of the past, Edward goes against his routine and decides to drive to a small town in Colorado where he once spent a summer with his father—bringing Kyle along as his road trip companion. The two argue about football and music along the way, and amid their misadventures, they meet an eccentric motel owner who just might be the love of Edward’s sheltered life—if only he can let her.

Endearing and laugh-out-loud funny, Edward Adrift is author Craig Lancaster’s sequel to 600 Hours of Edward.

The Wisdom of No Escape: And the Path of Loving-Kindness by Pema Chodron. Almost finished!
It’s true, as they say, that we can only love others when we first love ourselves and we can only experience real joy when we stop running from pain. The key to understanding these truisms lies in remaining open to life in all circumstances, and here Pema Chödrön shows us how. Because when we embrace the happiness and suffering, intelligence and confusion that are a natural part of life, we can begin to discover a wellspring of courageous love within our hearts.

Finished Reading:
600 Hours of Edward by Craig Lancaster. Loved it! Review Coming

Reading Next: 2 Books for Reviews.
The Morac by Colleen M. Bratley.

Four friends just out of high school are on a weekend getaway when the power goes out. At least that’s all they thought it was. But returning home they don’t see any cars, lights or people. Not one soul.

Searching for answers to what exactly happened, reveals information leading them to an event that they wouldn’t have thought of even in their wildest dreams. It’s a realization so impossible, their nightmares dim in comparison.

Now they just have to figure out what to do next; not just to control their destiny, but how to survive it.

The Starlight Chronicles: Slumbering by C.S. Johnson.
Sixteen-year-old Hamilton Dinger is an above-average teenager. He’s got the grades for the top of the class, the abilities of a star athlete and Tetris player, and the charisma to get away with anything. Everything seems to be going along perfectly as he enters into tenth grade at Apollo Central High School. Everything, that is, until a meteor crashes into the city, unleashing a whirlwind of evil and awakening a deep, hidden power as the long battle between good and evil continues. Bringing an abrupt halt to the easygoing pace of Hamilton’s life, he and his longtime dormant supernatural powers are caught up in the middle of things when his comfort zone is turned into a war zone. On top of everything else, there’s the homecoming game, the school play, and the history test to worry about.

Can Hamilton overcome his ignorance and narrow-mindedness to see what is truly real? Can he give up his self-proclaimed entitlement to happiness in order to follow the call of a duty he doesn’t want? More importantly, will he willingly sacrifice all he has to find out the truth?

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September 24, 2013 · 7:04 pm

Author Interview and Review: Order of the Dimensions by Irene Helenowski

Author Interview and Review: Order of the Dimensions by Irene Helenowski

Interview with Irene Helenowski.

Can you give me a Synopsis of Your Book? The book is about a graduate student names Jane Kremowski who is involved in developing a device that allows for inter-dimensional travel. She could also see how her life differs in different dimensions. But trouble ensues when the villain, Anton Zelov, gains access to it.

What drove you to write this book? I was watching a special on the Discovery channel featuring theoretical physicist Dr. Michio Kaku about the multiverse theory and became fascinated with the notion that we could really be living different lives in different dimensions within our universe.

You are a bio statistical analyst (correct me if I have your title wrong) how did that play into your writing if at all? As a biostatistician, I work with different researchers at Northwestern here in Chicago. In my book, I focus quite a bit on academia life, since that is where my career lies. I also do quite a bit with probability, which I consequently read is also part of the multiverse theory as scientists have become interested in how possible are certain events if there are indeed other dimensions.

What is your writing process? I just try to write whenever I can about whatever comes to me.

You self-published. Can you share the pros and cons of self-publication? I know many authors are considering this option. It’s a lot of hard work promoting it yourself and unfortunately, a lot of people are still weary of picking up anything self-published. But I still try my best. And so far, I like the freedom of not having to answer to a publisher. I am still entertaining the thought of going the traditional route, perhaps with my next book, however.

If you were to re-write your book or edit anything in the published version what would you change? Actually, I have just re-written the book a third time based on some criticisms I’ve received and focused on doing more showing than telling.
What is next on the horizon? Hoping to finish up the sequel 🙂

Is there any one thing you would like to share with readers? Just hope they enjoy the story 🙂

If you are a person that wants to know ‘what happens next?’ than you will enjoy.

Review: Order of The Dimensions by Irene Helenowski.

Jane Kremowski is a physics graduate student at Madison State University. She is part of a team that has developed a device that allows for inter-dimensional travel. After a successful testing, Jane decides to use the device. The book begins with Jane jumping from one reality to another. She ends up in different cities working at different universities on similar projects.

Dr. Anton Zelov visits the university under the guise of providing funding for further research of the Multiverser – the inter-dimensional traveling device.
Jane discovers Zelov has taken the technology her team developed and has created his own version of the Multiverser. Confused at first by Zelov’s capture of scientists at a convention, she is whisked away into a Multiverser where she discovers she is married to Zelov.

Zelov is a classic villain. He wants to create a New World Order, an Order of Dimensions. He uses different dimensions for his own evil, selfish purposes. He wants Jane, he wants power and he has a team of henchmen available to force is schemes on others.

Jane along with Randy, her husband in some dimensions, Emily, Michael and the other members of the Good Guys working for the Federation jump from dimension to dimension trying to thwart Zelov. Along the way she discovers ‘alters’ and dimensions where you can never tell who is good or bad.

A science fiction novel set in contemporary times, The Order of the Dimensions is a mesh of Sliders, Jump and Fringe. The author reveals different paths a life can take. A New World Order is a conspiracy theory in which secret elite, in this case Zelov, is conspiring to rule the world via world government and globalization.

The novel is fast paced, jumping from event to event. Helenowski’s writing style is third person omniscient driven by dialogue. The characters talk about what they are thinking and what is happening. I am not generally a fan of this method of writing as I like description and deep POV. If you are a person that wants to know ‘what happens next?’ than you will enjoy.

I admire writers that consider other avenues to publication. Self-publishing is a brave and confident step. Authors can make more money with a book they publish themselves but they most work diligently at self-promotion. The downside of self-pubbed books is the lack of a trained editor and copy editor. Self-publication is an entire topic for another blog.

As this is the author’s first novel I expect her to grow and improve as she works on the sequel. I feel petty mentioning that the overuse of adverbs drove me batty. It’s not like I am the queen of grammar because I fail repeatedly. Helenowski even mentions in her interview that she has rewritten based on criticisms and critiques.

Sci-Fi fans and Sci-Fi purists should consider adding Order of Dimensions to their library. And through October 31, 2013 Irene Helenowski is giving away a FREE Ebook copy of her book, follow this link: box.net link . In addition she will donate $1 to Susan G. Komen for every book.

If you are a person that wants to know ‘what happens next?’ than you will enjoy.
I met the author through Book Blogs and was given a copy for review. Irene Helenowski kindly answered my questions.

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Books: Dogs Are Better People Than Us

Dogs & Our Animal Companions Are Better People Than Us.
If you are a dog lover, you already know that dogs are better people than humans. Here are some wonderful books that help make the point.

“Dogs love and share and help and care. Dogs Are Better People Than Us. Dogs Make Us Better Humans.” Andrea Geist

A Dog Walks Into a Nursing Home: Lessons in the Good Life from an Unlikely Teacher by Sue Halpern.
Funny, moving, and profound, A Dog Walks into a Nursing Home is the story of how one faithful, charitable, loving, and sometimes prudent mutt—showing great hope, fortitude, and restraint along the way (the occasional begged or stolen treat notwithstanding)—taught a well-meaning woman the true nature and pleasures of the good life.

The Possibility Dogs: What a Handful of “Unadoptables” Taught Me About Service, Hope, and Healing by Susannah Charleson.
“Charleson journeys into the world of psychiatric service, where dogs aid humans with disabilities that may be unseen but are no less felt. This work had a profound effect on Charleson, perhaps because, for her, this journey began as a personal one: Charleson herself struggled with posttraumatic stress disorder for months after a particularly grisly search. Collaboration with her search dog partner made the surprising difference to her own healing. Inspired by that experience, Charleson learns to identify abandoned dogs with service potential, often plucking them from shelters at the last minute, and to train them for work beside hurting partners, to whom these second-chance dogs bring intelligence, comfort, and hope.

Along the way she comes to see canine potential everywhere, often where she least expects it – from Merlin the chocolate lab puppy with the broken tail once cast away in a garbage bag, who now stabilizes his partner’s panic attacks; to Ollie, the blind and deaf terrier, rescued moments before it was too late, who now soothes anxious children; to Jake Piper, the starving pit bull terrier mix with the wayward ears who is transformed into a working service dog and, who, for Charleson, goes from abandoned to irreplaceable.”

Scent of the Missing: Love and Partnership with a Search-and-Rescue Dog by Susannah Charleson.
Charleson first book. In the wake of the Oklahoma City bombing, Susannah Charleson clipped a photo from the newspaper of an exhausted canine handler, face buried in the fur of his search-and-rescue dog. A dog lover and pilot with search experience herself, Susannah was so moved by the image that she decided to volunteer with a local canine team and soon discovered firsthand the long hours, nonexistent pay, and often heart-wrenching results they face.

The Silence of Dogs in Cars by Martin Usborne.
“Photographer Martin Usborne is on a mission to save as many animals as he can in 365 days. His aptly titled project—A Year to Help—began in July 2012 and will wrap up next month. The quest has sparked him to travel the world visiting rescue shelters in Spain and a dog meat restaurant and a zoo in the Philippines, as well as to launch a blog chronicling his adventures. In his just-released photo collection, The Silence of Dogs in Cars (Kehrer Verlag), he aims to capture the way in which we silence, control or distance ourselves from other animals. Mission accomplished.” quote by Abbe Wright.

The Dog Who Couldn’t Stop Loving: How Dogs Have Captured Our Hearts for Thousands of Years by Jeffrey Moussaieff Masson.
“No other animal loves us in quite the same way as dogs love us. And it is mutual. Is it possible that we developed the capacity for love, sympathy, empathy, and compassion because of our long association with dogs? In “The Dog Who Couldn’t Stop Loving”, Masson considers the far-reaching consequences of this co-evolution of dogs and humans, drawing from recent scientific research. Over the past 40,000 years a collective domestication has occurred that brings us to where we are today – humans have formed intense bonds with dogs, and the adoration is almost always reciprocal. Masson himself has experienced a profound connection with his new dog Benjy, a failed guide-dog for the blind, who possesses an abundance of inhibited love. But Masson knows that the love he feels for Benjy – and that Benjy feels for all the people and animals around him – is not unique, but is in fact a love that only dogs and humans possess. With wisdom, insight, and a brilliant analysis of recent scientific research, the bestselling author delivers a provocative and compelling book that will change the way we think about love and canine companions.”

Be the Change. You can make a difference.

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One Day Sale $0.99 Entangled Publishing Covet

ONLY $0.99 ENTANGLED COVET! 99 CENTS!

Entangled Publishing is a boutique publisher of romantic fiction for adults and teens. They are having a sale and a scavenger hunt event. All books in the Covet line are $0.99 through today. Covet is a paranormal romance line with strong alpha male heroes.

Since I know Ms. Candace Havens, I thought I would feature her books. Candace is a prolific author with fun, sexy and fast read books. Lions, Tigers, and Sexy Bears Oh My! (Entangled Covet)

“Everything about runaway heiress Ainsley McLeon screamed trouble—from her luscious midnight locks to her Louboutin-clad toes. Yet sexy, stoic bar owner Luc couldn’t deny the instant connection he felt to the tempting stranger…or the long-dead feelings she evoked. She could work in his pub until her truck was fixed but after that she had to leave town for good.

Ainsley traveled with her own emotional baggage and there was no way she’d fall for the bear-tempered Luc…no matter how many passionate nights she spent in his bed or how safe she felt in his muscular arms. Can these two opposites find love in the middle of a blizzard, or will Luc’s darker side and Ainsley’s past catch up with them? “

Take it Like a Vamp (Entangled Covet) by Candace Havens.

Middle Ages, but the good old days seem tame compared to the last eight years he’s spent ruling the Supernatural Council. His only respite is with his cute neighbor Casey Meyers, a woman he wants more than any undead man should. Sure, he’s forced to take a cold shower after every encounter, but there’s no way he’ll test his own strength by getting too close to a human, and he’s not willing to risk her life–not with bloodthirsty family on the prowl out to ruin Nick’s life.
When said Nick’s kin shows up, the innocent Casey is caught in the middle of a centuries old fight, and Nick’s biggest fear is realized. Now, instead of keeping his hands off his neighbor, he’ll risk everything to save the human he’s come to love.

Check out all the sale books here: Entangled Covet