Author: CMash

An avid reader for many years. Married for 31 years with 2 fantastic adult sons who I am so very proud of with great gfs. Am disabled. Found this wonderful community of book blogging in approximately December 2009 and have loved every minute of it. Am now a reviewer for authors, publishers, publicists, etc. And am also a partner in a Virtual PR tour company, Partners In Crime Tours for authors of novels of mystery, suspense and crime (www.Partnersincrimetours.net)

Aloha Friday (1 of 3)

FRIDAY

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Hosted by An Island Life

From An Island Life:
  In Hawaii, Aloha Friday is the day that we take it easy and look forward to the weekend. So I thought that on Fridays I would take it easy on posting, too. Therefore, I’ll ask a simple question for you to answer. Nothing that requires a lengthy response.
  If you’d like to participate, visit An Island Life answer the question and then post your own question on your blog and leave your link below. Don’t forget to visit the other participants! It’s a great way to make new bloggy friends!
My Question is:
My son recently went on vacation and had stories about the flight so I thought I would ask this:

On a plane do you prefer the aisle, middle or window seat?
My Answer:
I prefer the aisle or window seat but then so does hubby, so I get stuck in the middle every time.

Friday Book Blog Hop (2 of 3)

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Hosted by Jennifer from CRAZY FOR BOOKS

Here are the instuctions from her site:
  Every day I seem to find another book blog that I start following. In the spirit of the Friday Follow, I thought it would be cool to do a Book Blog Hop to give us all bookies a chance to connect and find new blogs that we may be missing out on! It will also give blog readers a chance to find other book blogs that they may not know existed!
  So, if you’d like to participate, just repost this on your blog, sign MckLinky on her site, and check out other blogs in MckLinky! Let’s connect and make new book bloggy friends!! So, if you consider yourself a book blogger, come join the fun!
  Pretty please – Your blog should have content related to books, including, but not limited to book reviews.

The Friday 56 (3 of 3)

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Rules:
* Grab the book nearest you. Right now.
* Turn to page 56.
* Find the fifth sentence.
* Post that sentence (plus one or two others if you like) along with these instructions on your blog or (if you do not have your own blog) in the comments section of this blog.
*Post a link along with your post back to this blog.
* Don’t dig for your favorite book, the coolest, the most intellectual. Use the CLOSEST.
I hung my head under the tap, washed the stickiness I assumed was blood off my face, and drank my fill.

From Still Missing by Chevy Stevens

Review and Giveaway Still Missing by Chevy Stevens

Still Missing by Chevy Stevens (ARC)
Published by St. Martin’s Press
ISBN 978-0-312-59567-8
At the request of both St. Martin’s Press and Librarything, an ARC was sent, at no cost to me, for my honest opinion.
  Synopsis (from book): On the day she was abducted, Annie O’Sullivan, a thirty-two-year-old realtor, had three goals-sell a house, forget about a recent argument with her mother, and be on time for dinner with her ever-patient boyfriend. The Open house is slow, but when her last visitor pulls up in a van as she’s about to leave, Annie thinks it just might be her lucky day after all.
  But nothing could be further from the truth.
  Through sessions with her psychiatrist, Annie retells the terrifying story of the year she spent captive in a remote mountain cabin. Interwoven is a second narrative recounting the aftermath of her escape and her struggle to piece her life back together.
  The truth doesn’t always set you free.
  My Thoughts and Opinion: There is a buzz about this book around the blogosphere and now I know why. The following review is very generalized because I will not include any spoilers, which there were many throughout the novel. The author writes a phenomenal story, whereas she gets inside the head of Annie O’Sullivan and conveys those emotions to the reader. It was a true Stockholm Syndrome account, that at times, read as a non fiction. I must admit that I did think of Elizabeth Smart while reading this book and thinking that she might have lived through this same type of horrifying ordeal. The chapters are broken down to individual therapist’s appointments where Annie relives and tells of a different incident that she dealt with. The plot was of a horrifying, “page turning”, “can’t put down” story that Annie lived through and her thought process to survive. At times, I found myself holding my breath, as the writer tells of different details that Annie had to deal with, both physical and emotional torture.. There were sub plots of Annie’s life before, during, and after the abduction. And the relationships of those that she loved and trusted. The suspense was fast paced and palpable !!! The ending was an alarming, surprising and intense finale!!! This is one author to watch !!! I highly recommend this book be read.

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I HAVE ONE (1) ARC COPY OF THIS GREAT BOOK
TO GIVE AWAY. HERE IS WHAT YOU
NEED TO DO TO WIN IT.
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**ALL COMMENTS TO BE SEPARATE
AND INCLUDE YOUR EMAIL ADDRESS
SO THAT I CAN CONTACT YOU, IF YOU WIN
** +1 LEAVE COMMENT WHY YOU WANT TO WIN
** +1 IF YOU ARE A FOLLOWER OF THIS BLOG
(IF YOU AREN’T, FOLLOW BUTTON ON RIGHT SIDE)
** +1 GRAB MY BUTTON AND PLACE IN YOUR SIDEBAR

*** ENTER HERE ***
PLEASE CLICK ON THE WORD “HERE” ABOVE
TO BRING YOU TO THE GIVEAWAY PAGE.
***U.S. RESIDENTS ONLY***
***NO P.O. BOXES***

GIVEAWAY ENDS THURSDAY, JULY 1st AT 6PM EST!!!
WINNER WILL BE CHOSEN BY RANDOM.ORG
AND NOTIFIED VIA EMAIL AND
WILL HAVE 48 HOURS TO RESPOND OR
ANOTHER WINNER WILL BE CHOSEN.

***GOOD LUCK !!!***

DISCLAIMER
I received a copy of this book, at no charge to me,
in exchange for my HONEST review.
No items that I receive
are ever sold…they are kept by me,
or given to family or friends.

Booking Thru Thursday

THURSDAY
Today one of our fellow, or should I say gal. blogger is celebrating a milestone.  Julie over at Reading Without Restraint today turns the Big 40!!!!  So if you get a chance, stop by and wish her a Happy Birthday.  She is another nice book blogger, but then all book bloggers are the nicest people.  And she has a great site !!!!
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Today’s Question:
Do you read book reviews? Do you let them change your mind about reading/not reading a particular book?
My Answer:
Yes…Absolutely!! I read the reviews of books that look interesting to me, the genres I like, and authors that I enjoy.  I have been surprised at times when a blogger, who appears to have the same likes as me, will write a soso of an author I like.  Prior to blogging, I would have put that on my tbr list no matter what.  But today, books go on my tbr depending on the reviews.  Only drawback I have found with reading reviews, is that my tbr list is now what I call my “tbr bucket list”.  At my age, and with the list I have going, I know that there is no way I will read all those books.  🙁

Review and Giveaway Still Missing by Chevy Stevens

Still Missing by Chevy Stevens (ARC)
Published by St. Martin’s Press
ISBN 978-0-312-59567-8
At the request of both St. Martin’s Press and Librarything, an ARC was sent, at no cost to me, for my honest opinion.
  Synopsis (from book): On the day she was abducted, Annie O’Sullivan, a thirty-two-year-old realtor, had three goals-sell a house, forget about a recent argument with her mother, and be on time for dinner with her ever-patient boyfriend. The Open house is slow, but when her last visitor pulls up in a van as she’s about to leave, Annie thinks it just might be her lucky day after all.
  But nothing could be further from the truth.
  Through sessions with her psychiatrist, Annie retells the terrifying story of the year she spent captive in a remote mountain cabin. Interwoven is a second narrative recounting the aftermath of her escape and her struggle to piece her life back together.
  The truth doesn’t always set you free.
  My Thoughts and Opinion: There is a buzz about this book around the blogosphere and now I know why. The following review is very generalized because I will not include any spoilers, which there were many throughout the novel. The author writes a phenomenal story, whereas she gets inside the head of Annie O’Sullivan and conveys those emotions to the reader. It was a true Stockholm Syndrome account, that at times, read as a non fiction. I must admit that I did think of Elizabeth Smart while reading this book and thinking that she might have lived through this same type of horrifying ordeal. The chapters are broken down to individual therapist’s appointments where Annie relives and tells of a different incident that she dealt with. The plot was of a horrifying, “page turning”, “can’t put down” story that Annie lived through and her thought process to survive. At times, I found myself holding my breath, as the writer tells of different details that Annie had to deal with, both physical and emotional torture.. There were sub plots of Annie’s life before, during, and after the abduction. And the relationships of those that she loved and trusted. The suspense was fast paced and palpable !!! The ending was an alarming, surprising and intense finale!!! This is one author to watch !!! I highly recommend this book be read.

Photobucket

I HAVE ONE (1) ARC COPY OF THIS GREAT BOOK
TO GIVE AWAY. HERE IS WHAT YOU
NEED TO DO TO WIN IT.
Photobucket
**ALL COMMENTS TO BE SEPARATE
AND INCLUDE YOUR EMAIL ADDRESS
SO THAT I CAN CONTACT YOU, IF YOU WIN
** +1 LEAVE COMMENT WHY YOU WANT TO WIN
** +1 IF YOU ARE A FOLLOWER OF THIS BLOG
(IF YOU AREN’T, FOLLOW BUTTON ON RIGHT SIDE)
** +1 GRAB MY BUTTON AND PLACE IN YOUR SIDEBAR

*** ENTER HERE ***
PLEASE CLICK ON THE WORD “HERE” ABOVE
TO BRING YOU TO THE GIVEAWAY PAGE.
***U.S. RESIDENTS ONLY***
***NO P.O. BOXES***

GIVEAWAY ENDS THURSDAY, JULY 1st AT 6PM EST!!!
WINNER WILL BE CHOSEN BY RANDOM.ORG
AND NOTIFIED VIA EMAIL AND
WILL HAVE 48 HOURS TO RESPOND OR
ANOTHER WINNER WILL BE CHOSEN.

***GOOD LUCK !!!***

DISCLAIMER
I received a copy of this book, at no charge to me,
in exchange for my HONEST review.
No items that I receive
are ever sold…they are kept by me,
or given to family or friends.

Booking Thru Thursday

THURSDAY
Today one of our fellow, or should I say gal. blogger is celebrating a milestone.  Julie over at Reading Without Restraint today turns the Big 40!!!!  So if you get a chance, stop by and wish her a Happy Birthday.  She is another nice book blogger, but then all book bloggers are the nicest people.  And she has a great site !!!!
Photobucket
Today’s Question:
Do you read book reviews? Do you let them change your mind about reading/not reading a particular book?
My Answer:
Yes…Absolutely!! I read the reviews of books that look interesting to me, the genres I like, and authors that I enjoy.  I have been surprised at times when a blogger, who appears to have the same likes as me, will write a soso of an author I like.  Prior to blogging, I would have put that on my tbr list no matter what.  But today, books go on my tbr depending on the reviews.  Only drawback I have found with reading reviews, is that my tbr list is now what I call my “tbr bucket list”.  At my age, and with the list I have going, I know that there is no way I will read all those books.  🙁

WWW Wednesday

WEDNESDAY
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Hosted by Miz B at Should Be Reading

**What are you currently reading?
        Still Missing by Chevy Stevens
**What did you recently finish reading?
        Sidney Sheldon’s After The Darkness by Tilly Bagshawe (Rating: 5)
        Beachcombers by Nancy Thayer (Rating: 4)
**What do you think you’ll read next?
        Dare To Die by Carolyn Hart
        I Can See You by Karen Rose