WINNERS!

Here are the lastest round of winners:

Song of the Silk Road was won by Swedish (confirmed)

In Zanesville was won by margie and Maureen (confirmed)

Texas Blue was won by Jen B and I decided to throw in my copy as part of the giveaway and it is going to Cheryl F.

Battlefield of the Mind was won by susanmoaks and Kelly F.

All winners have been notified!

CONGRATS WINNERS!  I should have some new giveaways up this week. 

Texas Blue by Jodi Thomas - Book Review and Giveaway!

Title: Texas Blue
Author: Jodi Thomas
Publisher: Berkley

Gambling man Lewton Paterson wants to marry into a respectable family, even if it costs him his friendship with Duncan McMurray. After fleecing a train ticket from one of the three gentlemen picked to call on Duncan's cousins, Lewt makes his way to Whispering Mountain. But seducing a well-bred woman is harder than Lewt thought, and he realizes that to entice a McMurray sister, he'll need to learn a thing or two about ranching -- and love.



Emily McMurray has no intention of ever getting married, so she convinces a friend to take her place when the suitors arrive, leaving her free to run the ranch as usual. But when Lewt insists that Em teach him about ranching, she finds herself struggling to keep up both her disquise and the walls around her heart. Because the more time Em spends with Lewt, the more she desires the man she's determined to escape. . .


My thoughts: I liked the premise of this story - of two people who are trying to escape who they are - one to find love and one to avoid love. Neither one of them were pretending to be someone else for shady purposes.  I thought it was a nice switch up to have the man be the one looking for love and a family though, and the woman wanting to avoid it.

Even though Lewt was a gambler, and they were looked down upon by "respectable" people, he was an honest gambler and never left anyone completely broke without an out. He genuinely cared about people.  He would probably say he was determined, but other people might see him as just stubborn. 

The only people Emily was really close to were her family.  She even kept the ranch hands at arm's length and didn't realize the extent that they watched over her.  She had a secret in her past that caused her to mistrust men.  Working every day with Lewt on the ranch though, she first had respect for him, and then realized she was beginning to trust him.

You could really feel the passion between the two of them.  I love that the author was able to convey this passion without turning the scenes x-rated. To me, it makes the love portrayed seem more pure somehow. 

This is book 5 in the Whispering Mountain series, but it reads very well as a stand-alone.  The books in order are:
1. Texas Rain (Whispering Mts)
2. Texas Princess (Whispering Mts)
3. Tall, Dark, and Texan (Whispering Mountain)
4. The Lone Texan
5. Texas Blue

~I received a complimentary copy of Texas Blue from the author in exchange for my review.~

Jodi Thomas gave me a second book to giveaway to one of you!  This giveaway is open to U.S. only and will end at midnight CST, May 7, 2011.

Mandatory Entry: Just leave a comment with your email address.

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A total of five entries are available - please leave each entry in a separate comment

Winners of all giveaways on Books and Needlepoint are chosen using Random.org.

Texas Blue
Publisher/Publication Date: Berkley, April 2011
ISBN: 978-0425240472
336 pages

Please Welcome Jodi Thomas! (author of Texas Blue)

I hope all my fans will step into Texas history and enjoy the adventure. From the day I was walking in the Hill Country near Fredericksburg, Texas, the story of the McMurray family has been playing in my head. I am very excited about TEXAS BLUE, the first book in the new generation of the Whispering Mountain Series.


I opened in 1875, with two friends parting ways one stormy night in Austin. Duncan, a Texas Ranger, is off to fight at the border and Lewt, a gambler, plans to find a wife among one of Duncan’s three rich cousins while his friend is away.


Duncan, called Duck when he was a boy, is wild and fearless. He leaves his law practice to join a raid at the border. Lewt has never done anything brave and never plans to. He just wants a respectable wife.


Lewt joins a group of men Duncan hand selected to travel to Whispering Mountain and meet his three female cousins. Though Lewt knows his friend would never introduce a gambler to his rich relatives, he wants a chance for more than just a life in saloons.


I loved blending two stories together. Both men have a great deal to learn about who they are and about what is worth risking your life to keep. Since this is the fifth in my series about Whispering Mountain, it was fun to see the children, Duck and the girls, grow up to be strong independent adults. If you’ve never read any in this series, TEXAS BLUE would be a great place to start. For those of you who love series, you might want to go back to the beginning and start with TEXAS RAIN. I promise you’ll fall in love with the men of Whispering Mountain.


Thanks for inviting me for a visit. I wish you all many hours of pleasure in reading. Isaac Asimov was once asked what he would do if he knew the world would end in fifteen minutes. He said, “Write faster.” As I’m working on my 34th book I’m afraid I’d have to say the same.


Blessings to you all,
Jodi Thomas
http://www.jodithomas.com/
www.facebook.com/JodiThomasAuthor

About Jodi
Jodi Thomas is the NY Times and USA Today best-selling author of 31 novels and 8 short story collec-tions. As of July 2006, she was the 11th woman to be inducted in to RWA Hall of Fame. She is also cur-rently serving as the Writer in Residence at West Texas A&M University in Canyon, Texas.


Starred review from Publishers Weekly
Bestseller Thomas's fifth Whispering Mountain American historical (after 2009's The Lone Texan) is another winner. When Texas Ranger Duncan McMurray tells gambler Lewton Paterson that he's sending three men from good families to court his three cousins, Lewton, wishing for a respectable life and family, decides to take the place of one of the men. He meets the three ladies, but spends his time with Em, the ranch overseer--who is really one of the ladies and never intends to marry. When news reaches the ranch of Duncan's capture in Mexico, Lewt and Em set out to save him. Tension rides high, mixed with humor and kisses more passionate than most full-on love scenes. Fans will be delighted by this series continuation.


Texas Blue
Publisher/Publication Date: Berkley, April 5, 2011
ISBN: 978-0-425-24047-2
336 pages