INTERNATIONAL–EBOOK—GIVEAWAY ENTRY PAGE "JOURNEY TO HER DREAMS" by IRIS BLOBEL ENDED

CMash December 13, 2011 18 Comments

DECEMBER 13th to JANUARY 5th 2011JOURNEY TO HER DREAMS

by IRIS BLOBEL

SYNOPSIS:

Hollie Anderson is in her mid-twenties and living with her father, Murray, on a farm just outside Launceston in Tasmania. Her mother died at childbirth and Murray raised his daughter on his own. According to his own wordshe’s done a bloody good job with it, too. Hollie has got the looks, she likes her job at a local newspaper and loves the company of her friends, who go way back to school days. Two of those are Alex and Davo … she should be happy, right?

But lately Hollie’s dreams are literally keeping her from more than just having a decent sleep.

She enjoys life and her best friend Alex is a big part of it. They are a close team and usually hang out together most weekends. During one of their nights out, Hollie meets Jeremy who has just moved into town. Jeremy seems to have everything a woman would like in a man, the looks, the money, the good job – and he knows it, too. Their relationship blossoms over the summer, but Jeremy knows that Hollie won’t fully commit to their new relationship until she makes sense of her dreams and what they stand for. So with the help from Alex and Davo, Jeremy organises a surprise birthday present which takes Hollie to Dublin … but what she discovers is so much more.

Sam Shaughnessy lives in Dublin, Ireland husband Padraic. Like Hollie, she works in advertising, though she is the Head of Advertising. She seems to have it all – a successful career, gorgeous looking husband, good looks and money. But her life appears to crumble from underneath her and it’s when she meets Hollie and Davo that life all of a sudden takes a different turn. Sam as well will find more than she initially had looked for

THANKS TO AUTHOR, IRIS BLOBEL

I HAVE TWO ( 2 ) EBOOK EDITIONS
OF THIS BOOK TO GIVE AWAY.
HERE IS WHAT YOU NEED TO DO TO WIN.

*ALL COMMENTS TO BE SEPARATE*
AND INCLUDE YOUR EMAIL ADDRESS
SO THAT I CAN CONTACT YOU IF YOU WIN
*LEAVE COMMENT: (FROM B&N) WOULD YOU TRAVEL
AROUND THE WORLD TO UNCOVER THE REASON FOR YOUR DREAMS ?*

*EXTRA ENTRIES*

*LEAVE SEPARATE COMMENT IF YOU PUBLICLY FOLLOW THIS
BLOG (IF NOT, GOOGLE FRIEND CONNECT ON RIGHT SIDE).
*LEAVE SEPARATE COMMENT IF YOU FOLLOW ME ON FACEBOOK.
*LEAVE SEPARATE COMMENT IF YOU FOLLOW ME ON TWITTER.
*REMEMBER TO INCLUDE EMAIL ADDRESS FOR ALL ENTRIES.

*INTERNATIONAL—EBOOK EDITION*
**
**HONOR SYSTEM**
ONE WINNING BOOK PER HOUSEHOLD
PLEASE NOTIFY ME IF YOU HAVE
WON THIS BOOK FROM ANOTHER
SITE, SO THAT SOMEONE ELSE MAY
HAVE THE CHANCE TO WIN
AND READ THIS BOOK.
THANK YOU.

*GIVEAWAY ENDS JANUARY 5th AT 6PM EST*

WINNER WILL BE CHOSEN BY RANDOM.ORG AND NOTIFIED
VIA EMAIL AND WILL HAVE 48 HOURS TO RESPOND
OR ANOTHER NAME WILL BE CHOSEN

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

Teaser Tuesday

CMash December 13, 2011 5 Comments

Hosted by Miz B at Should Be Reading

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

*Grab your current read

*Open to a random page

*Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page

*BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)

*Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

“By 1940 we couldn’t buy shoes or clothes. Then we couldn’t have cameras. Then we couldn’t buy coffee, chicken, fish or vegetables. We couldn’t buy coal to heat the house.

Winners

And the winners are……….

CMash December 12, 2011 4 Comments

……of ONE HUNDRED AND ONE NIGHTS by Benjamin Buchholz

Random Integer Generator

Here are your random numbers:

29 8 3

Timestamp: 2011-12-12 23:57:53 UTC

Valerie Taylor Mabrey said…like to read anything and this grabbed me because of the culture 29

bermudaonion said…I follow on Twitter. 8

Kaye said…I don’t tweet but I am a friend on FB 3

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.

12/13 ADDENDUM:

Due to Kathy winning at another site…WTG Kathy, another winner has been chosen and notified. She has 48 hours to respond or another winner will be chosen.

Random Integer Generator

Here are your random numbers:

Timestamp: 2011-12-13 12:21:01 UTC

degood said…I knew very little about their culture and I would like to learn more so I want to read this book.30

Monday Memes

CMash December 12, 2011 7 Comments

Hosted by Miz B at Should Be Reading

This week’s question:

This week’s musing [borrowed from an old BTT post] asks…

I once knew a man who read about WWII. He read everything he could get his hands on on the subject. He had a whole wall of books that were all about WWII. It amazed me. How could he continue to find one subject that engrossing? My mother, on the other hand, loves to read best sellers. I’ve known other people who read science fiction to the exclusion of everything else; for others it was philosophy, self-help, or history.

So, to the questions…

What kind of books do you like to read?
Why? Provide specific examples.

My answer:

I gravitate toward the suspenseful, mystery type novels first and foremost. And to be honest, I’m not sure why. It could be that I like the fast paced, action like, trying to figure out whodunit that has me keep turning the pages. Authors like Zandri, Patterson, Lisa Jackson, Wendy Corsi Staub, Chevy Stevens. But then on the other hand I also enjoy reading books that fall in the “chick lit” category for the dynamics of relationships between the characters from authors Diane Chamberlain, Kristin Hannah,.

December is being hosted by Lady Q from Let Them Read Books

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 Story Plant Meryl L. Moss Media

Won from Booking With Bingo

2012 Challenges

HELP!!!

CMash December 10, 2011 10 Comments

You already know what I’m going to say, don’t you? Are you shaking your hear right now or are you sitting there laughing. You can be honest!!!! lol HOWEVER, I just can’t stop myself. It’s an addiction, I tell you!!! And I have it bad. However, not as bad as some other blogging buddies….shhhhhh don’t tell them I told you but like……my co host, Gina from Hott Books, of the Reading Challenge Addict Challenge or another blogging buddy, Bev from My Reader’s Block. You know how hard it is to say NO to buying a book or saying NO when asked to reviewing a book? That’s what happens to me when I see those cute little buttons and read the details of the challenges….I just can’t say NO. Cheryl’s justification….it keeps me off the streets, it keeps me out of trouble, it increases my vocabulary, the more books I read the more topics of conversation I have when I am out socializing…….ok people….any help here would be appreciated lol.

So what other goodies have I signed up for? Going to give you all the details so you can sign up too!!!!:

Justification for this one: Just the other day Marce from Tea Time With Marce recommended a book, which is the 1st book in a series. And then there’s my friend Gina who is a huge fan of J.D. Robb so I thought I take her recommendation and then I keep looking at a 3 book series that I won from Booking With Bingo this year by Chelsea Cain and haven’t started reading it yet. So I HAD to join this one, right?

First in a Series Challenge

January 1, 2012 to December 31, 2012

Are you an avid series reader? Do you want to give a few new series a try? Then this is the reading challenge for you! Participants in the 1st in a Series Challengedecide to start a certain number of series in 2012 and then share their reviews with the community!
(This challenge has previously been hosted at J. Kaye’s Book Blog, Royal Reviews, and A Few More Pages)
Interested in joining the fun? Here are the guidelines:
1. Anyone can join. You don’t need a blog to participate. If you’re not a blogger, you can post your reviews at a review site like Goodreads, LibraryThing, or Shelfari and link them up here.
2. There are four levels for this challenge:

Series Novice: Read 3 books that are the first in any series.
Series Lover: Read 6 books that are the first in any series.
Series Expert: Read 12 books that are the first in any series.
Series Fanatic: Read 20 books that are the first in any series.

You can list your books in advance or just put them in a wrap up post. If you list them, feel free to change them as the mood takes you. Any genre counts. Any book format counts. 3.The challenge runs from January 1 through December 31, 2012. 4. You can join anytime between now and December 31, 2012.
5. A post will be created here where you can link-up your reviews and visit the reviews of other participants.
6. If you’re a blogger, write up a sign-up post that includes the URL to this post so that others can join in. Feel free to use the button! You can grab the code you need from the box in the right sidebar.
If you write up a sign-up post, enter the direct link to that post when you sign up here so we can find it easily. Otherwise, link away!
For more information and to sign-up, please see this post.

Merely Mystery Reading Challenge 2012

Justification: Being this is my favorite genre plus the fact that I am a partner in Partners in Crime Tours…..DUH!!! lol Another one that I HAD to sign up for.

January 1, 2012 to December 31, 2012

There are those who snub their noses at genre fiction, including crime fiction. I think they just haven’t met the right mystery for them yet. While crime fiction is known for being plot driven, it isn’t always. Nor does a good crime fiction novel have to sacrifice well developed characters, a strong setting and good writing. The best, in fact, often include all of those qualities.
Yes, it’s true. I am crazy. Just when I start to wonder if I should give up blogging, I decide to try my hand at hosting a reading challenge. As if there aren’t enough challenges out there already. Maybe only one or two people join. That’s okay. We’ll have a great time and maybe discover new authors and books to try!
The focus of this challenge is to explore the different types of crime fiction out there. If you are new to the crime fiction genre, want to step outside your comfort zone and try another kind of mystery or are a mystery lover needing an excuse to join another crime fiction related challenge, here’s your chance!
As sources go, there are a number of them that offer a wide range of sub-genres to crime fiction. For the purposes of this challenge, I’ve narrowed it down to the following because they tend to encompass the full breadth of mystery sub-genres. Within each sub-genre are even more categories (for example, add in a bit of romance or fantasy for good measure). So you have a never ending list of choices to choose from!
Sub-Genres:

The Whodunit: The classic crime puzzle. The story generally revolves around determine who committed the crime, and potentially apprehending them. Some Whodunits, called “fair play mysteries”, will include all of the clues available in the text so that a careful reader can solve the crime on his or her own.
Locked Room Mystery: Like the Whodunit, there is a puzzle (crime) to solve. However in this instance, the crime has taken place under impossible circumstances, such as in a locked room or on an island with no way to exit or enter.
Cozy: The nice person’s mystery. Often the crime, particularly if it’s violent, occurs off scene. Sex and language are on the cleaner side. Humor is a common feature of the cozy.
Hard-Boiled/Noir: Often cynical, bleak or realistic, hard-boiled and noir stories often focus more on the characters involved instead of the crime. Violence and sex are not downplayed.
The Inverted Detective Story: In this style of story, the person perpetrating the crime is known up front. The point of the story is to see how (or if) the detective goes about solving the crime and how the perpetrator reacts to the investigation.
The Historical Whodunnit: Simply put, this is a mystery set in a historical setting. Often the mystery has some historical significance and features detection methods that are appropriate for that era.
The Police Procedural: Instead of featuring a independent detective, the police are investigating the crime in these stories. They often focus on the actual methods that police officers use to solve crimes.
The Professional Thriller: This kind of mystery involves a professional who is not involved directly in law enforcement, such a lawyer or doctor, who nonetheless finds themselves investigating a crime.
The Spy Novel: Related to the other professional mysteries, spy novels focus on intelligence operatives as they work to prevent or avenge some criminal plot. Spy novels can feature either in fantastic or realistic settings.
Caper Stories: While other crime and mystery stories look at the aftermath of crimes, caper stories feature criminals as the lead characters. The story usually details the planning and commission of a crime.
The Psychological Suspense: In these stories, the detective story takes on a psychological component.
Spoofs and Parodies: Spoofs and parodies make light of crime fiction, often with the goal of commenting on the conventions of the genre. Many feature famous characters, e.g. Sherlock Holmes, James Bond, Philip Marlowe, or pastiches of those characters.

The Merely Mystery Reading Challenge will last the entire year (January 1, 2012 to December 31, 2012), giving participants a chance to read at their own pace. In addition, to make things easy, participants can complete one of two levels. One is for those of you who want a more relaxed challenge while the other is for those more serious about exploring the various sub-genres:

Down on Her/His Luck Gumshoe – Read two or more books falling into any of the above sub-genres. Each book can be from the same sub-genre or can be varied among the different sub-genres. You pick the combination and the number of books.
Shamus Who Has Seen It All – Read at least one book from each of the sub-genres for a total of 12 books. If you are feeling ambitious, read more than one book from each sub-genre.

Making a reading list ahead of time is not mandatory, but it’s fun–not only for you, but also for your fellow readers. Even if you don’t stick to the list, we’d love it if you could share a few of the titles you are considering reading.
*Audio books and graphic novels are welcome.
*Crossover books from other challenges are okay.
*Cross-genre books are perfectly fine.
To sign up, please fill out the below form. The challenge is open to everyone, regardless of whether you have a blog. If you have a blog, please provide a link to your initial blog post committing to the challenge. Participants without blogs can post reviews on general review sites such as LibraryThing, Goodreads or Shelfari. I will be creating a post in which all participants will be able to link their reviews so that everyone can follow everyone’s progress and perhaps get a few good mystery recommendations.
Sign ups are open ended and so you are welcome to sign up at any time throughout the year.
There will be a prize! The biggest reward will be completion of the challenge, of course, but isn’t it more fun when, at the end of the day, there’s a drawing for a prize? For all those who complete the challenge, your name will be entered into a drawing for an as-of-yet-unspecified prize.
If there is an interest (and volunteers), I would like to feature guest posts from authors and readers on the topic of crime fiction throughout the course of the challenge. It won’t be every day. Maybe once or twice a month at most, depending on volunteer interest (so, if you are interested, please let me know! Shoot me an e-mail).
I hope you will join me for the Merely Mystery Reading Challenge!
For more information and to sign-up, please see this post.

Guest Author

Guest Author Lesley Kagen

CMash December 9, 2011 1 Comment

How I wish that genies in bottles were real and I would come across one, don’t you? I know one of my wishes would be to have the ability to read every single book I wanted to, including the one written by today’s guest. But, unfortunately, that isn’t the case. However, Nicole from Tribute Books, is stopping by today to introduce us to this author and I have already put her book on my tbr list. Please help me welcome Ms. Lesley Kagen!!

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

I was born in Milwaukee and spent my early years in a great working class neighborhood, much like the one whereWhistling in the Dark and Good Graces are set.

I attended Marquette University for one year, fell in love, and followed my boyfriend to New York City. I lasted about six months. I was so intimidated, I spent most of my time running from my apartment to the grocery store and back to my apartment, which was located above a 24 Hour Soul Record Store. Hence, I have the dubious ability to recite every lyric to every James Brown tune ever recorded.

After returning to Milwaukee, I enrolled in the University of Wisconsin where I majored in Radio and Television. I fell into a job as a morning drive DJ on one of the country’s first alternative radio stations—WZMF. I got to interview lots of very cool rock n’ rollers like Frank Zappa, Hendrix and John Lennon.

In 1976, I moved to Los Angeles, where I began a ten year career working for Licorice Pizza record chain where I produced, wrote and voiced thousands of commercials as Lesley from Licorice Pizza. When I set out to expand my career, I ended up doing on-camera commercials, a couple of Movies-Of-The-Week, and a Laverne and Shirley.

I met my husband, Peter aka Sushi Man, in Malibu, which is pretty funny considering he was from Milwaukee as well. While we both loved living in California, after the birth of our kids, Casey and Riley, we felt this overwhelming need to return to the roost, so we moved back home in 1990.

Well, that’s about it. Oh, wait. The writing. I adore it. I crave it. But it wasn’t until Casey went off to college, and teenage Riley made it clear that any form of communication between us was to be restricted to—”With or without pepperoni”—that I found the opportunity to sit down and let ‘er rip. I hope you love reading Whistling in the Dark, Land of a Hundred Wonders, Tomorrow River and Good Graces as much as I loved writing them.

You can visit Lesley at her website, Facebook, Book Blogs Tour, and Good Graces blog.

AUTHOR INTERVIEW

Q. Tell us a little about Good Graces.

A. It’s the story of two young sisters, Sally and Troo O’ Malley, set during the summer of 1960 on the west side of Milwaukee. It’s a sequel to my first novel, Whistling in the Dark.

Q. Was it tough to write a sequel to such a popular book?

A. I was scared to death, but once the ball got rolling it was wonderful to be back in Milwaukee. My previous two books were set in the South, so it was relief to be back home.

Q. Back home? Are you from Milwaukee?

A. I was born and raised there in a blue collar neighborhood much like the one where the stories are set. I moved to New York for awhile, and then lived in LA for fifteen years, and moved back home after I had my children. I wanted them to have the same kind of childhood I had. (I live in a small town outside of Milwaukee now. I’m a nature girl at heart.)

Q. How do you get your ideas for a story?

A. Location is important to me. I’ll get an idea, a feeling, really, where I’d like to spend the year or so that it might take to write a book. Once I feel firmly ensconced in the setting, my characters start appearing. I don’t outline, or have any idea generally what a story is going to be about. I trust the process and let ‘er rip.

Q. Have you ever had writer’s block?

A. My problem is that I have too many ideas and don’t know which to listen to. I think writer’s get blocked when they think too much about a story. You have to allow it to develop. To stand back and let it take charge. When you try to interfer with the creative process, you’re just asking for trouble.

Q. Anyone else in your family write?

A. My son has the talent, but he hasn’t tapped it yet. And my daughter and husband are fantastic editors. Especially my daughter who is an attorney. Her mind is so different than mine. She can spot problems in a manuscript sooner than I can, and is not shy about offering suggestions.

Q.What do you like most about being a writer?

A. Beside working in my pajamas? I love discovering every morning what turns the story will take.

Q. What do you like most about being an author?

A. It means a lot to me when readers send me an email or bump into me at an event and tell me how much they enjoyed a story. And book clubs. They’re fantastic. Writing is such solitary work. I often spend more time with my characters than real people. Getting out and talking to book clubbers is refreshing. Fun! And they have the best baked treats!

Q. Is there anything you don’t like about being published?

A. Bad reviews aren’t much fun. Every author gets them. It’s part of the job.

Q. How do you handle them?

A. I try not to read reviews Good or bad. Books are a buffet. Some diners are going to love Crab Rangoon, some not. It’s often just a matter of taste.

Q. Anything you’d like to add?

A. Happy Holdiays to one and all. Wishing you the best New Year ever!

ABOUT THE BOOK

Lesley Kagen returns with the sequel to her national bestselling debut, Whistling in the Dark.

Whistling in the Dark captivated readers with the story of ten-year-old Sally O’Malley and her sister, Troo, during Milwaukee’s summer of 1959. The novel became a New York Times bestseller and was named a Midwest Honor Award winner.

In Good Graces, it’s one year later, and a heat wave has everyone in the close-knit Milwaukee neighborhood on edge. None more so than Sally O’Malley, who remains deeply traumatized by the sudden death of her daddy and her near escape from a murderer and molester the previous summer. Although outwardly she and her sister, Troo, are more secure, Sally’s confidence in her own judgment and much of her faith have been whittled away. When a series of disquieting events unfold in the neighborhood-a string of home burglaries, the escape from reform school of a nemesis, and the mysterious disappearance of an orphan, crimes that may involve the increasingly rebellious Troo-Sally is called upon to rise above her inner demons. She made a deathbed promise to her daddy to keep Troo safe, a promise she can’t break, even if her life depends on it. But when events reach a crisis point, will Sally have the courage and discernment to make the right choices? Or will her false assumptions lead her and those she loves into danger once again?

Lesley Kagen’s gift for imbuing her child narrators with compelling authenticity shines as never before in Good Graces, a novel told with sensitivity, wit, and warmth.

Book Details
Hardcover
Price: $25.95
ISBN: 9780525952381
Pages: 352
Release: September 2011

Amazon buy link
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0525952381/ref=as_li_tf_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=tributebooks-20

Barnes&Noble.com buy link
http://click.linksynergy.com/fs-bin/click?id=dcSBhG3Rj8w&offerid=229293.9780525952381&type=2&subid=0

IndieBound buy link
http://www.indiebound.org/book/9780525952381

Books-A-Million buy link
http://www.booksamillion.com/product/9780525952381?id=5003903803737

eBookPrice: $12.99

Kindle buy link
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B005DIAUA4/ref=as_li_tf_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=tributebooks-20

Nook buy link
http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/good-graces-lesley-kagen/1100483667?ean=9781101549063&itm=1&usri=good%2bgraces

YouTube author interview video HTML embed code<iframe src=“http://www.youtube.com/embed/KMdfe-blKk0?rel=0” allowfullscreen=”” width=”375″ frameborder=”0″ height=”220″></iframe>

DISCLAIMER

No items that I receive

are ever sold…they are kept by me,

or given to family and/or friends.

ADDENDUM

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

Aloha Friday

CMash December 9, 2011 3 Comments

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:

What electronic gadget would you like to put on your wishlist?

MY ANSWER:

An IPad

Booking Thru Thursday

Booking Through Thursday

CMash December 8, 2011 10 Comments

http://btt2.wordpress.com

Today’s question:

All things being equal, which would you prefer–a mystery? Or a love story?

My response:

I didn’t even need a cup of coffee to think about this answer, well maybe a few sips. If you follow me, then you know it’s hands down, a mystery. But I won’t pass up a romantic suspense if that counts.

I was thinking somewhere along these lines the other day. I have always been drawn to books with suspense. Next would be chick lit. But why? I am usually wrong about the whodunit and/or surprised about the ending. So why am I drawn to these type of books. Is it the fast pace? The can’t put down, need to read another page type of read?

I have signed up for a ~~couple~~, ~~few~~, ok, many challenges for 2012. And was thinking maybe I should do a little personal challenge and that is to step a little outside of my comfort reading zone and try to read a few books that fall under different categories. Any recommendations and/or suggestions of a 5 star from a different genre? Would love to hear your suggestions, plus, lol it would go towards one of my challenges lol. Seriously, I feel I need to broaden my reading genres. Thanks for the help!!!