Booking Thru Thursday, Meme, Thursday Memes

Booking Through Thursday

CMash May 17, 2012 6 Comments

http://btt2.wordpress.com

This week’s question:
A while ago, I interviewed my readers for a change, and my final question was, “What question have I NOT asked at BTT that you’d love me to ask?” I got some great responses and will be picking out some of the questions from time to time to ask the rest of you. Like now.
abookandashortlatte1 asks
If you had to choose to live within a novel, which would it be?

My answer:
The first novel that came to mind was one that I had read last year and it was Beachcombers by Nancy Taylor. It takes place in Nantucket and the premise is of 3 sisters that come home to reconcile their pasts. It was the type of novel where I became invested in the lives of the characters and wanted to follow their journey long after I finished the book.

Giveaway, Hachette Giveaway

GIVEAWAY ENTRY PAGE “SERVICE A NAVY SEAL AT WAR” by Marcus Luttrell ENDED

CMash May 16, 2012 10 Comments

MAY 16th to MAY 30th, 2012

SERVICE

A NAVY SEAL AT WAR

by MARCUS LUTTRELL

SYNOPSIS:

Navy SEAL Marcus Luttrell returned from his star-crossed mission in Afghanistan with his bones shattered and his heart broken. So many had given their lives to save him-and he would have readily done the same for them. As he recuperated, he wondered why he and others, from America’s founding to today, had been willing to sacrifice everything-including themselves-for the sake of family, nation, and freedom.
In Service, we follow Marcus Luttrell to Iraq, where he returns to the battlefield as a member of SEAL Team 5 to help take on the most dangerous city in the world: Ramadi, the capital of war-torn Al Anbar Province. There, in six months of high-intensity urban combat, he would be part of what has been called the greatest victory in the history of U.S. Special Operations forces. We also return to Afghanistan and Operation Redwing, where Luttrell offers powerful new details about his miraculous rescue. Throughout, he reflects on what it really means to take on a higher calling, about the men he’s seen lose their lives for their country, and the legacy of those who came and bled before.
A thrilling war story, Serviceis also a profoundly moving tribute to the warrior brotherhood, to the belief that nobody goes it alone, and no one will be left behind.

Petty Officer Marcus Luttrell joined the United States Navy in March of 1999 and became a combat-trained Navy SEAL in January, 2002. After serving in Baghdad, he was deployed to Afghanistan in the Spring of 2005. He was awarded the Navy Cross for combat heroism in 2006 by President Bush.

THANKS TO ANNA, AND THE GENEROUS

FOLKS AT THE HACHETTE BOOK GROUP

I HAVE THREE ( 3 ) COPIES OF THIS MOVING

TRIBUTE AND THRILLING BOOK TO GIVE AWAY.
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PLEASE NOTIFY ME IF YOU HAVE
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DISCLAIMER / RULES

Giveaway copies are supplied and shipped to winners via publisher,
the giveaway on behalf of the
above. 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 and/or friends.

I am not responsible for lost or damaged books that are shipped
from agents. I reserve the right to disqualify/delete any entries
if rules of giveaway are not followed

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Continue reading “GIVEAWAY ENTRY PAGE “SERVICE A NAVY SEAL AT WAR” by Marcus Luttrell ENDED“ →

Meme, W.W.W. Wednesdays

W.W.W. Wednesday

CMash May 16, 2012 1 Comment

Hosted by Miz B at Should Be Reading

What are you currently reading?

What did you recently finish reading?

What do you think you’ll read next?

Guest Author, Partners In Crime Tours, Showcase

Guest Author Peter Leonard

CMash May 15, 2012 Leave a Comment

Today is a very special day and I get to share it with all of you. My guest has been here before with his previous novel, Voices of the Dead, and today he is back with his newest book. Why is it special? Because Peter and Mr. Aronica, publisher of The Story Plant, have given me the honor of kicking off his virtual tour with Partners In Crime Tours, as All He Saw Was The Girl hits the shelves today!!!!!! So please help me welcome back , Mr. Peter Leonard!

ABOUT PETER LEONARD

Peter Leonard lives in Birmingham, Michigan with his wife and four children. He is a partner in the ad agency Leonard, Mayer & Tocco, Inc.

Peter Leonard’s debut novel, QUIVER was published to international acclaim in 2008, and was followed by TRUST ME in 2009, and VOICES OF THE DEAD in 2012.

You can visit Peter at his website here.

ABOUT THE BOOK

Rome:

McCabe and Chip, two American exchange students, are about to become embroiled with a violent street gang, a beautiful Italian girl, and a flawed kidnapping plan.

Detroit:
Sharon Vanelli’s affair with Joey Palermo, a Mafia enforcer, is about to be discovered by her husband, Ray, a secret service agent.

Brilliantly plotted and shot through with wry humor, ALL HE SAW WAS THE GIRL sees these two narratives collide in the backstreets of Italy’s oldest city.

See my review here.

Amazon link B&N link

Read an excerpt:

Sharon was thinking, who was this guy lived in a five-thousand-square-foot house – not that his taste was any good – on Lake St. Clair, had nothing but leisure time or so it seemed?He called her four, five times a day, said, “How you doing?”And Sharon would say, “Same as I was when you called fifteen minutes ago.”“Baby, I miss you. Tell them you’re sick, we’ll go to the casino.” Or he’d be at the track or a Tigers day game, he’d say, “I gotta see you. Take the afternoon off, I’ll send a car.”She’d been going out with him for three weeks and it was getting serious. They’d meet at noon, check into a hotel a couple times a week and spend two hours in bed, screwing and drinking champagne. It was something, best sex she’d ever had in her life. He did things to her nobody had ever done before. She’d say, where’d you learn that? And he’d say, you inspire me, beautiful. The only bad thing, he called her Sharona, or my Sharona. Everything else was great so she let it go.

They’d take his boat out on Lake St. Clair and she’d sunbathe topless. Something she’d never done in her life and never imagined herself doing. She felt invigorated, liberated. He always told her she looked good, complimented her outfit. Showered her with gifts, bought her clothes and jewelry. She felt like a teenager again. They’d meet and talk and touch each other and kiss. She was happy for the first time in years. She had to be careful. Ray, the next time he came home, might notice something and get suspicious.Why’re you so happy? she could hear him saying – like there was something wrong with it.

But this relationship with Joey also made her nervous. Things were happening too fast. She was falling for him and she barely knew him, and she was married.

DISCLAIMER
I do not have any affiliation with Amazon.com,
Barnes & Noble and/or any other retail/wholesale
outlets either online and/or elsewhere.
I am providing this link solely for visitors
that may be interested in purchasing this Book/EBook.
I do not receive any monetary compensation from any parties

Book Review, Partners In Crime Tours

Review ” All He Saw Was The Girl” by Peter Leonard

CMash May 15, 2012 2 Comments

All He Saw Was The Girl by Peter Leonard
Published by The Story Plant
ISBN-10: 1611880424
ISBN-13: 978-1611880427
At the request of The Story Plant, an ARC digital version was provided, at no cost to me, for my honest opinion.

Synopsis (from publisher):
Rome:
McCabe and Chip, two American exchange students, are about to become embroiled with a violent street gang, a beautiful Italian girl, and a flawed kidnapping plan.

Detroit:
Sharon Vanelli’s affair with Joey Palermo, a Mafia enforcer, is about to be discovered by her husband, Ray, a secret service agent.

Brilliantly plotted and shot through with wry humor, ALL HE SAW WAS THE GIRL sees these two narratives collide in the backstreets of Italy’s oldest city.

My Thoughts and opinion: I was first introduced to this author when I read, Voices of the Dead, which I thoroughly enjoyed due to his writing style, his character development and descriptive settings, however, I am always a bit skeptical when I start to read a follow up novel. Will it be as good? Have I set my expectations too high and compare it to the first book?

All He Saw Was The Girl, just like Voices of the Dead, within the first few pages the book pulled me in with the introduction of a few of the characters that the author brought to life. Chip and McCabe, 2 students studying in Italy. Then Sharon, a lonesome wife from Detroit, married to a secret service agent, is injected into the story line. Characters, so different and on different ends of the spectrum, had this reader wondering what is their connection? The suspense starts and builds, like a ticking time bomb with one kidnapping that has gone bad, and continues with the tumultuous “mob” related cat and mouse chase of another kidnapping through the streets of Italy.

What I like about Peter Leonard’s books is that he creates the cast of characters, with the reader not knowing the connection, and in a very fluid manner, interweaves them all into an intricate plot. Another aspect of his writing that I enjoy is that he alternates chapters with different characters and leaves the reader with mini cliff hangers that it’s a “one more chapter” read to find out what happens and I found that I had read many more chapters than one. The detailed descriptions of Italy were vivid, and for me, factual as I had seen and visited many of the locales that he used as his settings. The action fast paced, with twists and turns of suspense and a bit of dry humor thrown in.

Did All He Saw Was The Girl meet my expectations, yes! It was what I call “a transport read”, where I was so engrossed into the story that I was unaware of what was going on around me. A page turner!! Would I recommend it, absolutely!!! Only one problem now, waiting for his next novel!!

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 and/or friends.

(2012 Challenges: Romantic/Suspense, EBooks, ARC, Mystery/Suspense, Off The Shelf, FreeReads, Where Are You, A-Z, Merely Mystery, I Want More, 52 in 52, Outdo Yourself, 100+)

Giveaway, Winners

And the winners are……

CMash May 14, 2012 2 Comments

…….of An Unexpected Guest by Anne Korkeakivi

50 Maureen Carol “Like” the Blog Post

44 Carol Mintz Follow @CherylMash on Twitter

1 Marjorie Roy Leave a Blog Post Comment

An email has been sent to the winners and they have 48 hours to respond with their mailing address or another winner will be chosen. Thank you to all that entered.

ADDENDUM 05/16—Another winner has been chosen due to notification that one of the above winners had also won the book on another site. The new winner is:

32 Margaret Be a Public Follower of ‘CMASH Loves to Read’

Mailbox Monday, Monday Memes, Musing Mondays

Monday Memes

CMash May 14, 2012 11 Comments

Hosted by Miz B at Should Be Reading

Today’s question:
Do you tend to read to the end of a chapter or can you stop anywhere?

My answer:
I usually read to the end of a chapter, however, if something interrupts me, I have to stop where ever I am. When that happens, I do find myself having to go back a page or 2 and reread to refresh my memory.

May is being hosted by Martha’s Bookshelf

Mailbox Monday was created by Marcia of A girl and her books and is now on tour.

According to Marcia, “Mailbox Monday is the gathering place for readers to share the books that came into

their house last week. Warning: Mailbox Monday can lead to envy, toppling TBR piles and humongous wish

lists.”

The following books were received during the past 2 weeks due to being on vacation:

WOW Personal d/l Simon & Schuster

The Hachette Book Group

The Hachette Book Group Win-Booking With Bingo

2012 Challenges, Events, Read-A-Thon

Bout of Books 4.0 Read-A-Thon 05/14 to 05/20

CMash May 14, 2012 7 Comments

DAILY POSTINGS BELOW.

This is a STICKY POST Progress Report for Bout of Books Read-A-Thon.

Hosted by bout of books

My Goals:
Complete current read, Far and Away by Meg Mitchell Moore
Start and finish 2 other books not chosen as of yet

Books To Read:
Far and Away by Meg Mitchell Moore
The Lost Years by Mary Higgins Clark
Summerland by Elin Hilderbrand

Updates:
Monday 5/14
Today’s topic/question:
“What do you like best about readathons? Do you have any readathon traditions or rituals? If this is your first readathon, what do you like so far? Discuss away!”
Read-A-Thons give me the incentive to read more and not spend as much time at the computer, especially during the day.
Number of pages I’ve read today: 74 (RL had other plans for me and it wasn’t reading.
Book: So Far Away by Meg Mitchell Moore

Tuesday 5/15
Today’s Challenge:
Physical book or eBook? Print
Paperback or Hardcover? Paperback (TPB)
Reality or Make-believe? Fiction
Adult or Young-Adult? Adult
Dog ears or Bookmarks? Bookmark
Breaking the spine or Barely open the book? Barely opening the book
Tea or Coffee? Coffee (both hot (am) and Iced (pm)
Reading in bed or On the couch? Both
Series or Standalone? Stand alone
Original or TV Adaptation? Original
Defy motion sickness or Audiobooks? ?
Author crushes or Who-was-that-guy-again? Author crushes
Interview or Guest post? Interview
Number of pages I’ve read today: 89 (another not so good day of reading due to not feeling well)
Book: Finished So Far Away by Meg Mitchell Moore
Next Book: The Lost Years by Mary Higgins Clark

Wednesday 5/16
Number of pages I’ve read today: 68 (unfortunately I can’t put in the time to read as I had planned to due to RL..Maybe Thursday will be different)
Book: The Lost Years by Mary Higgins Clark

Thursday 5/17
Number of pages I’ve read today: 129 (a little better..RL really interfered this week)
Book: The Lost Years by Mary Higgins Clark

Friday 5/18
Number of pages I’ve read today: 154
Book: Finished The Lost Years by May Higgins Clark
Started Summerland by Elin Hilderbrand

Saturday 5/19
Number of pages I’ve read today: 94
Book: Summerland by Elin Hilderbrand

5/20
Number of pages I’ve read today: 74
Book: Summerland by Elin Hilderbrand

WRAP UP:
Total number of pages read during Read-A-Thon: 682
Books:
Finished: So Far Away by Meg Mitchell Moore (review written)
Finished: The Lost Years by Mary Higgins Clark (review written)
1/2 Done: Summerland by Elin Hilderbrand
I didn’t make my goals but came close. I was hoping to put in more reading time and to finish 3 books this week, but only read 2 1/2. As usual, RL had other plans for me. But I enjoyed participating as it did give me the incentive to get away from the computer and pick up my book. I want to thank Bout of Books for hosting and am looking forward to the next Read-A-Thon.