Booking Through Thursday

CMash August 4, 2011 Leave a Comment

http://btt2.wordpress.com/

Today’s question:
What’s the last book you were really EXCITED to read?

And, were you excited about it in advance? Or did the excitement bloom while you were reading it?
Are there any books you’re excited about right NOW?
My answer:
If you know me then you already know the answers to these question so you can just hop right by lol. But for those who don’t, here are my answers. The last book was the one I posted my review for yesterday, Scream Catcher by Vincent Zandri. I became a huge fan of his back in May 2010. We occasionally keep in touch and he will let me know what books he is working on and the approximate publication date. However, I was totally surprised, shocked and excited last week when he sent me an email that held an attachment with the Scream Catcher galley, which I had no idea that he had even written it. This book supposedly had been a secret for a year. And it was a secret surprise that was well worth it. Scream Catcher should be out any day now. If you like action packed, page turning thrillers (read my review from yesterday) get this book!!!

And the book I am excited about right now, is and was the book I was reading before receiving Scream Catcher. And that is Moonlight Rises, also by Vincent Zandri. Another galley, one which I knew about and will be out later this year. Patterson had always been my Number 1 male author, but last May, he got edged out and Vincent Zandri took that spot!!

Guest Author

Guest Author Gary Ryman

CMash August 4, 2011 1 Comment

I can honestly say that I have enjoyed each and every day since I have found this wonderful community of book blogging. Every day there is always something new to get excited about, be it, meeting a new blogger, adding more books to the ever growing TBR list, finding a new book, discussing a book just read and the list goes on. Today, I am thrilled about another new and exciting event. Nicole, from Tribute Books, has graciously invited me to be part of her tour group and today is the first time I am hosting!! And what a way to start. With the anniversary of 911 next month, Nicole is introducing us to author and fireman Gary Ryman. So please help me give him a warm welcome to the CMash blog!!!

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Gary R. Ryman is the second of three generations of firefighters. He has a bachelor’s degree in Fire Science from the University of Maryland and has been employed as a fire protection engineer for over twenty-five years. He is currently pursuing a master’s degree in American History. Ryman is married with two children. His oldest son makes up the third generation of firefighters in his family, which makes him feel both old and young at the same time.

GUEST POST

Slightly more than a month from now we will observe an important anniversary; one significant to firefighter’s nation wide. On September 11, 2001, among the thousands of others who died that day, 343 firefighters perished. Beyond New York City, firefighters from Pennsylvania, Virginia, the District of Columbia, and Maryland worked for days—the initial responders to tragedy, as always.

The constant news coverage increased the understanding and respect of the important service that firefighters provide throughout the country. Communities small and large recognized that these are the initial troops, not just for a terrorist attack, but in the daily battles fought against emergencies. Firefighters were feted and praised and more importantly, supported in their needs for equipment and training. Time, however, is a great healer, and the lack of successful additional attacks has lessened the importance of fire departments in the mind of many. Fires, as we all know, only happen to other people, not me. Budget problems, financial difficulties, and simply the passage of time have dulled our memories of the sacrifices made on that day and those before and since. The responsibilities of our firefighters, though, continue to increase as they are expected to handle each new hazard which arises in our communities.

Nothing has changed, however. As before 9/11, firefighters continue to be killed and injured. Thankfully not in the numbers of that day, but die they still do. Hopefully this anniversary will remind communities of all sizes of the protection afforded them by their firefighters. We think of two sureties in life: death and taxes. There is, however, one more. Dial 911 and the firefighters will come. On 9/11, and the days which follow, let’s remember that.

You can find Gary Ryman at the following sites:

Book web site: http://www.fire-men-book.com/

Book Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Fire-Men-Stories-from-Three-Generations-of-a-Firefighting-Family/183551625026176#!/pages/Fire-Men-Stories-from-Three-Generations-of-a-Firefighting-Family/183551625026176?sk=wall

Gary Ryman Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/gary.ryman

Tribute Books website: http://www.tribute-books.com/
Buy links: http://tribute-books.com/shop.html#biography1

ABOUT THE BOOK

Having served over thirty years in fire departments across three states, Gary R. Ryman brings a unique perspective to the firefighting experience. The son and father of firefighters, Ryman ignites the fire, smoke, blood and fear spanning three generations of the “family business.” He recounts his early days in upstate New York learning from his father, the department fire chief. He describes the blazes he battled with a career and volunteer crew in the crowded suburbs of Washington, D.C. He examines the mentoring relationship established with his son as they respond to the calls of a volunteer department in rural Pennsylvania. Overall, Ryman shares both the personal and professional turning points that define a firefighting career.

Watch the trailer:

THANKS TO NICOLE FROM TRIBUTE BOOKS

AND AUTHOR, GARY RYMAN, I HAVE THREE (3)

EBOOK EDITIONS OF THIS TRUE STORY TO GIVE AWAY.

CLICK HERE TO BRING YOU TO

THE GIVEAWAY ENTRY PAGE.

DISCLAIMER

No items that I receive

are ever sold…they are kept by me,

or given to family and/or friends.

ADDENDUM

I am providing this link solely for visitors

that may be interested in purchasing this EBook.

I do not receive any monetary compensation from any parties

Giveaway

EBOOK-INTERNATIONAL GIVEAWAY ENTRY PAGE "FIRE MEN" ENDED

CMash August 4, 2011 15 Comments

AUGUST 4th to AUGUST 18th, 2011

FIRE MEN

by GARY RYMAN

SYNOPSIS:

Having served over thirty years in fire departments across three states, Gary R. Ryman brings a unique perspective to the firefighting experience. The son and father of firefighters, Ryman ignites the fire, smoke, blood and fear spanning three generations of the “family business.” He recounts his early days in upstate New York learning from his father, the department fire chief. He describes the blazes he battled with a career and volunteer crew in the crowded suburbs of Washington, D.C. He examines the mentoring relationship established with his son as they respond to the calls of a volunteer department in rural Pennsylvania. Overall, Ryman shares both the personal and professional turning points that define a firefighting career.

THANKS TO NICOLE FROM TRIBUTE BOOKS

AND AUTHOR, GARY RYMAN

I HAVE THREE (3) 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: DO YOU HAVE A FAMILY

MEMBER OR FRIEND WHO IS A FIREMAN?*

*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.

*EBOOK EDITION–INTERNATIONAL*

**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 AUGUST 18th 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,
agent and/or author. This blog hosts 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

Booking Thru Thursday

Booking Through Thursday

CMash August 4, 2011 8 Comments

http://btt2.wordpress.com/

Today’s question:
What’s the last book you were really EXCITED to read?

And, were you excited about it in advance? Or did the excitement bloom while you were reading it?
Are there any books you’re excited about right NOW?
My answer:
If you know me then you already know the answers to these question so you can just hop right by lol. But for those who don’t, here are my answers. The last book was the one I posted my review for yesterday, Scream Catcher by Vincent Zandri. I became a huge fan of his back in May 2010. We occasionally keep in touch and he will let me know what books he is working on and the approximate publication date. However, I was totally surprised, shocked and excited last week when he sent me an email that held an attachment with the Scream Catcher galley, which I had no idea that he had even written it. This book supposedly had been a secret for a year. And it was a secret surprise that was well worth it. Scream Catcher should be out any day now. If you like action packed, page turning thrillers (read my review from yesterday) get this book!!!

And the book I am excited about right now, is and was the book I was reading before receiving Scream Catcher. And that is Moonlight Rises, also by Vincent Zandri. Another galley, one which I knew about and will be out later this year. Patterson had always been my Number 1 male author, but last May, he got edged out and Vincent Zandri took that spot!!

Winners

And the winners are……….

CMash August 3, 2011 Leave a Comment

………….of THE SUN’S HEARTBEAT by Bob Berman

Random Integer Generator

Here are your random numbers:

16 7 19

Timestamp: 2011-08-03 22:23:14 UTC

Patricia said… 16 Follow you via GFC as Patricia

Carol N Wong said… 7 I follow you on Facebook.

gene said… 19 well i strongly disliked the part of the sun being safer than sunscreen. i’m a redhead and at only 18, skin cancer patches were found on my shoulders because of the sun, old sunburn.

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.

Wed 08/04/11 Another winner has been chosen and an email sent due to one of the original winners had previously won this book on another site. Thank you Carol for letting me know. Deborah now has 48 hours to respond with her mailing address or another winner will be chosen

Random Integer Generator

Here are your random numbers:

23

Timestamp: 2011-08-04 14:06:25 UTC

Deborah Wellenstein said… 23 I follow you via GFC as dwellenstein.

Book Review

Review "Scream Catcher" by Vincent Zandri

CMash August 3, 2011 Leave a Comment

SCREAM CATCHER by Vincent Zandri

Published by StoneGate Ink

ISBN:

At the request of the author, an EPub galley was sent, at no cost to me, for my honest opinion.

Synopsis (from author): Life is but a scream. Then you die.

Jude Parish was once a tough cop. But now he is afraid. For reasons even he can’t begin to fathom, the former violent crimes cop turned bestselling true crime author has acquired a fear-filled demon that’s lodged itself inside him. A demon so real, so visceral, he can only imagine a slimy reptilian beast with scaly gray skin, black eyes, and razor-sharp fangs having taken up residence inside the place where his once confident and fearless soul resided.

Now, in the wake of his literary success, the ever anxious Jude is hoping to lead a quiet, peaceful life in the idyllic Adirondack vacation town of Lake George, New York with his new pregnant wife, Rosie, and Jack, his young son from a previous marriage. But when Jude becomes the accidental witness to a bizarre “kill game” in which the killer, video game designer and master of disguise, Hector “the Black Dragon” Lennox, insists on recording the screams of his victims prior to shooting them dead, the ex-cop’s life is turned upside down.
When Lennox is arrested by the L.G.P.D. and Jude is asked to act as the state’s “star witness,” he has no choice but to fight his demon-fear and take on the role. But what he doesn’t realize at the time is that the killer’s arrest is actually the first chapter in what is a carefully designed and scripted kill game that will involve Jude’s entire family.
How will the kill game end?
It will end not with a whimper, but a scream.

My Thoughts and Opinion: Where do I begin? I’m thinking that I should apologize in advance as this is not going to be like my typical reviews where I attempt to make them short, concise, and to the point but this book has me reeling. It all started in May of 2010 when I read a debut novel, Moonlight Falls, by an unknown author to me, Vincent Zandri and I was hooked. Since that time I have read every one of his books and he doesn’t disappoint.
I wrote a pre review last week when I was quite surprised when I received this galley in my email. So I will start this review there.
(written on 07/28/11) If you are a reader of mystery’s, thrillers, non stop action filled novels, mark your calendar for the release of this book!!! Vinzent Zandri has IT!!! Vincent Zandri is IT!!! Vincent Zandri is brillIanT!!! Just when you thought he reached the pinnacle in writing, he has found a higher mountain!!! He has raised the bar with Scream Catcher!! My heart was pounding at warp speed!!! And that’s from reading 1/2 the book. It can only get better!!! In ten days…plan on spending the day reading….it’s a page turning, can’t put down novel.
Now that I have read the book in it’s entirety, I can give a full review. Fantastic!!!! Zandri is a genius at story telling. Why does this book have me reeling? His inventiveness of writing style. I noticed a deviation immediately. It has the classic Zandri flair, short chapters, cliff hanging chapters, twists and turns, non stop action and page turning suspense. However, this had more drama, less quirky, quip dialogue and more of a psychological thriller plot. Masterful!!!!
In my pre review, I stated “it could only get better”…It did!!! Exceptional!!! His creative talent is phenomenal!!! Vincent Zandri and Scream Catcher are Champions!!!!

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.

Winners

And the winners are……….

CMash August 3, 2011 2 Comments

………….of THE SUN’S HEARTBEAT by Bob Berman

Random Integer Generator

Here are your random numbers:

16 7 19

Timestamp: 2011-08-03 22:23:14 UTC

Patricia said… 16 Follow you via GFC as Patricia

Carol N Wong said… 7 I follow you on Facebook.

gene said… 19 well i strongly disliked the part of the sun being safer than sunscreen. i’m a redhead and at only 18, skin cancer patches were found on my shoulders because of the sun, old sunburn.

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.

Wed 08/04/11 Another winner has been chosen and an email sent due to one of the original winners had previously won this book on another site. Thank you Carol for letting me know. Deborah now has 48 hours to respond with her mailing address or another winner will be chosen

Random Integer Generator

Here are your random numbers:

23

Timestamp: 2011-08-04 14:06:25 UTC

Deborah Wellenstein said… 23 I follow you via GFC as dwellenstein.

Book Review

Review "Scream Catcher" by Vincent Zandri

CMash August 3, 2011 2 Comments

SCREAM CATCHER by Vincent Zandri

Published by StoneGate Ink

ISBN:

At the request of the author, an EPub galley was sent, at no cost to me, for my honest opinion.

Synopsis (from author): Life is but a scream. Then you die.

Jude Parish was once a tough cop. But now he is afraid. For reasons even he can’t begin to fathom, the former violent crimes cop turned bestselling true crime author has acquired a fear-filled demon that’s lodged itself inside him. A demon so real, so visceral, he can only imagine a slimy reptilian beast with scaly gray skin, black eyes, and razor-sharp fangs having taken up residence inside the place where his once confident and fearless soul resided.

Now, in the wake of his literary success, the ever anxious Jude is hoping to lead a quiet, peaceful life in the idyllic Adirondack vacation town of Lake George, New York with his new pregnant wife, Rosie, and Jack, his young son from a previous marriage. But when Jude becomes the accidental witness to a bizarre “kill game” in which the killer, video game designer and master of disguise, Hector “the Black Dragon” Lennox, insists on recording the screams of his victims prior to shooting them dead, the ex-cop’s life is turned upside down.
When Lennox is arrested by the L.G.P.D. and Jude is asked to act as the state’s “star witness,” he has no choice but to fight his demon-fear and take on the role. But what he doesn’t realize at the time is that the killer’s arrest is actually the first chapter in what is a carefully designed and scripted kill game that will involve Jude’s entire family.
How will the kill game end?
It will end not with a whimper, but a scream.

My Thoughts and Opinion: Where do I begin? I’m thinking that I should apologize in advance as this is not going to be like my typical reviews where I attempt to make them short, concise, and to the point but this book has me reeling. It all started in May of 2010 when I read a debut novel, Moonlight Falls, by an unknown author to me, Vincent Zandri and I was hooked. Since that time I have read every one of his books and he doesn’t disappoint.
I wrote a pre review last week when I was quite surprised when I received this galley in my email. So I will start this review there.
(written on 07/28/11) If you are a reader of mystery’s, thrillers, non stop action filled novels, mark your calendar for the release of this book!!! Vinzent Zandri has IT!!! Vincent Zandri is IT!!! Vincent Zandri is brillIanT!!! Just when you thought he reached the pinnacle in writing, he has found a higher mountain!!! He has raised the bar with Scream Catcher!! My heart was pounding at warp speed!!! And that’s from reading 1/2 the book. It can only get better!!! In ten days…plan on spending the day reading….it’s a page turning, can’t put down novel.
Now that I have read the book in it’s entirety, I can give a full review. Fantastic!!!! Zandri is a genius at story telling. Why does this book have me reeling? His inventiveness of writing style. I noticed a deviation immediately. It has the classic Zandri flair, short chapters, cliff hanging chapters, twists and turns, non stop action and page turning suspense. However, this had more drama, less quirky, quip dialogue and more of a psychological thriller plot. Masterful!!!!
In my pre review, I stated “it could only get better”…It did!!! Exceptional!!! His creative talent is phenomenal!!! Vincent Zandri and Scream Catcher are Champions!!!!