I have one copy of White Picket Fences by Susan Meissner to give away to a reader!
The Janviers have the idyllic life - a beautiful home, great jobs, two wonderful kids - and surrounding it all is the proverbial white picket fence that protects them, offers them a serene sense of security. . .and hides all their secrets.
When her black sheep brother disappears, Amanda Janvier eagerly takes in her sixteen-year-old niece Tally. The girl is practically an orphan: motherless and living with a father who raises Tally wherever he lands -- in a Buick, a pizza joint, a horse farm -- and regularly takes off on wild schemes. Amanda envisions that she, her husband, Neil, and their two teenagers can offer the girl stability and a shot at a "normal" life, even though their own storybook lives are about to crumble.
Seventeen-year-old Chase Janvier hasn't seen his cousin in years, and other than a vague curiosity about her strange life, he doesn't expect her arrival will affect him much -- or interfere with his growing, disturbing interest in a long-ago house fire that plagues his dreams.
Tally and Chase bond as they interview two Holocaust survivors for a sociology project, and become startlingly aware that the whole family is grappling with hidden secrets, with the echoes of the past, and with the realization that ignoring tragic situations won't make them go away.
Will Tally's presence blow apart their carefully constructed world, revealing a hidden past that could destroy them all - or can she help them find the truth without losing each other? From the author of The Shape of Mercy, one of Publishers Weekly's Best Religious Fiction Books of 2008, comes a tale of family secrets smoldering behind a white picket fence. (back cover)
It is easy to enter the giveaway - Just give me the title of another Christian Fiction book that you have read this year. Include your email address in your comment. U.S. Only. (sorry) One entry per person and the giveaway will Nov 24.
Title: Family Plots: Love, Death & Tax Evasion Author: Mary Patrick Kavanaugh Publisher: iUniverse
First Sentence: The day was unusually hot and clear.
My synopsis: This is a somewhat autobiographical novel - the author has even said taken some liberties for "dramatic impact" - she calls it Pulp Faction. The novel opens Oct 17, 1989 - the day of the big California earthquake where the bridge collapsed. I was living in San Diego at the time so I remember this day! Anyway, Mary is a young mother living with her little girl Rachel's, daddy. I won't call him her boyfriend as he seems to be a loser and has just admitted to infidelity.
Well, Mary decides to turn her life around, cutting out some bad habits and trying constructively to get a job. During this search she contacts an ex-employer, Dan, and ends up with more than a job. A relationship develops and he seems to be the answer to all of Mary's problems. Because of her own dysfunctional upbringing, she thinks that a stable relationship is the answer. Dan seems to be able to provide that for her. Unfortunately in her rush for "stable" she overlooks suspicious activity on Dan's part - tinfoil on his windows, shady business associates, always paying in cash. What would you overlook to have what you think you desire?
My review: According to the "award" on the front of this book - as well as information from Mary Kavanaugh's guest post, this book was rejected 16 times from NYC publishers. I am not sure why. I thought the book read very well, was very entertaining in a dark sort of way, and I would definitely recommend it. If you have the chance to pick this one up - do so!
Family Plots: Love, Death & Tax Evasion Publisher/Publication Date: iUniverse, Oct 2008 ISBN: 978-1-4401-0466-4 300 pages
TEASER TUESDAYS asks you to: Grab your current read. Let the book fall open to a random page. Share with us two (2) “teaser” sentences from that page, somewhere between lines 7 and 12. You also need to share the title of the book that you’re getting your “teaser” from … that way people can have some great book recommendations if they like the teaser you’ve given! Please avoid spoilers!
He was a classic barroom-brawler type, a huge man with a fleshy nose that lay flat against his face, supposedly because he'd had the cartilage removed so he could take more punches. The beating Tex had taken in his fight with Holmes had been so severe, Howard Cosell had retired from calling boxing matches in protest that the fight wasn't stopped sooner.(p95, The Time of My Life by Patrick Swayze and Lisa Niemi)
Teaser Tuesday is hosted at Should be Reading. Come on over and share your teaser, too!
Today’s MUSING MONDAYS post is about social reading…
How much of your reading do you share with others (outside of blogging?) Do you belong to a book or library club? Do you trade books with friends? Do you tell others what you’re reading?
Musing Mondays is hosted by Rebecca at Just One More Page. To participate please visit her blog and leave your link! (You are also welcome to leave your link for me too!)
I mainly share what I am reading right here. Occasionally I will try to get my mom or my sister interested in what I am reading, but it is usually futile. I am not quite sure where my love of reading came from! There is a lady who shares my bus stop that always asks what I am reading - and actually asked to borrow one of the books that I finished last week - so I might have found a new buddy there! I only know of one reading group in this area, and it is on a night where I already have a prior commitment.
What are you reading on Mondays? is hosted by J. Kaye at J. Kaye's Book Blog. If you would like to participate, please leave your link with Mr. Linky at J.Kaye's blog - but you can also leave me a comment - I would love to know what you are reading!
Title: Night of Flames: A Novel of World War II Author: Douglas W. Jacobson Publisher: McBooks Press
First sentence: Anna Kopernik slept on this hot, muggy night, but it was a restless sleep troubled by strange dreams.
My synopsis: Anna and Jan Kopernik were a young married couple in Poland when the Germans invaded in 1939. Jan was a Major with the Wielkopolska Cavalry Brigade and was in the field when the Germans bombed Warsaw. Anna was in Warsaw with her good friend Irene and her son Justyn to take care of everything since Irene's mother had just passed away. Irene's husband Stefan was in the cavalry with Jan.
After narrowly escaping the bombs that fell on Warsaw, Anna, Irene and Justyn make their way back home to Krakow. When their driver is killed and Anna injured they end up staying with an older farm couple, the Berkowicz until Anna is recovered. When they finally make it back to Krakow, it has been taken over by the Germans, but Anna's father Thaddeus is still safe. He is a professor at the local university. It isn't long before all the professor's are rounded up and sent to a prison camp in Germany. Since Irene and Justyn are Jews, they are forced to wear the Star of David on their sleeves. Anna knows they must escape and through contacts of her father's she is able to secure visas for the three of them to Italy.
The story continues of Jan's endeavors during the war and how he is eventually recruited as a spy since he speaks fluent German. He takes the chance to return to Poland so he can search for Anna. Meanwhile, Anna inadvertently becomes involved in the resistance in Poland and the Comet Line, which escorted fallen aviators out of the country. Will they both survive the war? If they do, how in the world will they ever find each other again?
My review: While I am not a WWII buff, this book was a great read! You did not need to know a lot about the war to be able to appreciate the sacrifices that everyday people made in the name of freedom. It was a very engaging read and I was instantly invested in the outcomes of Anna, Irene and Justyn. The author told the story in a very easy manner, going back and forth from Anna and the Resistance to Jan and his involvement. In this way, you moved through the war and actually got two different perspectives - one of the actual fighting, and one of the behind the scenes sabotage efforts. I wish that I would have taken some notes along the way though, as there were a lot of characters, and when they would go on a mission, they would use different names, so sometimes I wasn't sure who was who! It was still a really good story though!
*This book was provided for review from Dorothy at Pump Up Your Books.*
Night of Flames Publisher/Publication Date: McBooks Press, Oct 2008 ISBN: 978-1-59013-166-4 384 pages
The first two Halloween books I won over at The Mommy Files and they are autographed by the author. Thanks Erica and Shannon! Big Pumpkin by Erica Silverman
There once was a witch who wanted pumpkin pie. But no matter how hard she tried to take her pumpkin off the vine, it just sat. Drat! What's a witch to do? (back cover)
The Halloween House by Erica Silverman
In the Halloween House, in a dark, dingy den a papa werewolf crouched with his little ones, ten. "Howl," said the papa. "We howl," said the ten. So they howled through the night in the dark, dingy den. (back cover)
I received Sworn to Silence through Paperback Swap!
Sworn to Silence by Linda Castillo
In the sleepy rural town of Painters Mill, Ohio, the Amish and "English" residents have lived side by side for two centuries. But sixteen years ago, a series of brutal murders shattered the peaceful farming community. In the aftermath of the violence, the town was left with a sense of fragility, a loss of innocence. Kate Burkholder, a young Amish girl, survived the terror of the Slaughterhouse Killer but came away from its brutality with the realization that she no longer belonged with the Amish.
Now, a wealth of experience later, Kate has been asked to return to Painters Mill as chief of police. Her Amish roots and big-city law enforcement background make her the perfect candidate. She's certain she's come to terms with her past -- until the first body is discovered in a snowy field. Kate vows to stop the killer before he strikes again, but to do so, she must betray both her family and her Amish past -- and expose a dark secret that could destroy her. (book jacket)
I won Lady Vernon and Her Daughter at Historical Fiction. Thanks Arleigh!
Lady Vernon and Her Daughter by Jane Rubino and Caitlen Rubino-Bradway
Jane Austen's novella Lady Susan was written during the same period as another novella called Elinor and Marianne -- which was later revised and expanded to become Sense and Sensibility. Unfortunately for readers, Lady Susan did not enjoy the same treatment by its author and was left abandoned and forgotten by all but the most diligent Austen scholars. Until now.
In Lady Vernon and Her Daughter, Jane Rubino and CaitlenRubino-Bradway have taken Austen's original novella and transformed it into a vivid and richly developed novel of love lost and found -- and the complex relationships between women, men, and money in Regency England.
lady Vernon and her daughter, Frederica, are left penniless and without a home after the death of Sir Frederick Vernon, Susan's husband. Frederick's brother and heir, Charles Vernon, like so many others of his time, has forgotten his promises to look after the women, and despite their fervent hopes to the contrary, does nothing to financially support Lady Vernon and Frederica.
When the ladies, left without another option, bravely arrive at Charles' home to confront him about his treatment of his family, they are face with Charles's indifference, his wife Catherine's distrustful animosity, and a flood of rumors that threaten to undo them all. Will Lady Vernon and Frederica find love and happiness -- and financial security -- or will their hopes be dashed with their lost fortune?
With wit and warmth reminiscent of Austen's greatest works, Lady Vernon and Her Daughter brings to vivid life a time and place where a woman's security is at the mercy of an entail, where love is hindered by misunderstanding, where marriage can never be entirely isolated from money, yet where romance somehow carries the day. (book jacket)
The upcoming holiday season is all about showing off her talents as a pastry chef for college-age Dakota Walker -- when she's not busy stitching at Walker & Daughter, the coziest little yarn shop on Manhattan's Upper West Side. Now, with the help of the family that's always sustained her, including the women of the Friday Night Knitting Club, Dakota remembers what is truly important. And the possibility of a Christmas visit to her beloved Gran in Scotland -- with the potential for illuminating revelations about her mother, Georgia Walker -- is overwhelmingly tempting.
From Thanksgiving through Hanukkah and Christmas to a spectacular New Year's wedding reception, Knit the Season is a tender story about the richness of family bonds, the magical power of memory, and the everlasting joys of friendship. (back cover)
How to be a Hepburn in a Hilton World by Jordan Christy
In a society driven by celebutante news and MySpace profiles, women of class, style and charm are hard to come by. The Audreys and Katharines of the world continue to lose their luster as thongs, rehab, and outrageous behavior burn up the daily headlines. But, despite appearances, guys still want girls they can take home to their moms, employers still like to see a tailored suit, and peers still respect good manners. So is it possible to maintain traditional virtues in a modern world? Jordan Christy shows young women how in this guide to glamorous style, professional success, and true love. . . the classy way.
Full of fun assignments, notable names, and real-life examples, HOW TO BE A HEPBURN IN A HILTON WORLD offers a new look at seemingly "old-fashioned" advice. Jordan covers diet, speech, work ethic, friends, relationships, manners, makeup, and fashionable yet modest clothing, showing modern ladies how they can be beautiful, intelligent, and fun while retaining values and morals. (book jacket)
Don Fidencio and Don Celestino are brothers with more in common than either will admit: fiercely independent, sharp as tacks, and stubborn. Between them stands an argument so old neither wants to concede. The dispute -- over their grandfather's alleged kidnapping in Mexico more than a century ago and the truth of their family heritage -- appears destined to die with two men too consumed with the past to ever put it behind them.
Enter Socorro, the delightful and kindhearted Mexican housekeeper with whom Don Celestino falls in love. She hasn't lived nearly as long as the brothers, but she's learned that people can indeed run out of time to make amends. She leads the begrudging pair on a quest to end their estrangement -- while they still can.
In a story full of warmth and wonder, the unlikely trio ventures far into Mexico and deep into the past, following their only lead: that of the lost, and possibly mythic, El Rancho Capote, home of the brothers' grandfather. As the two men test the limits of their pride and patience, they uncover long-hidden truths both painful and redemptive, and learn it's never too late for a new beginning.
With the winsome prose and heartfelt humor that won widespread accolades for his story collection, Brownsville, Oscar Casares's novel of family lost and found radiates with the generosity and grace of a truly original voice in American fiction. (book jacket)
Evenings at the Argentine Club by Julia AmanteIn the close-knit Argentine-American community of Burbank, California, there are rules about marriage, family, money, and success. Tradition dictates that you must stay close to those who know you best. But two young people are questioning their parents' version of the American Dream - and turning their world upside down.All her life, Victoria Torres has navigated nimbly between her family's expectations and her own U.S.-born sensibilities. But when her successful, irreverent friend Eric Ortelli unexpectedly returns to the Argentine Club - the heart of their community - she, too, dares to break some rules. Soon secrets are spilling out of marriages. Generations are shifting in and out of conflict. And the dream of a better life for their children held so tightly by the older generation starts to morph into something new. Everything is changing. . . in a place where everything has always stayed the same. (back cover)
Zumba: Ditch the workout, Join the Party! The Zumba Weight Loss Program by Beto PerezCreated by celebrity fitness trainer Beto Perez, the Zumba program combines fun, easy-to-follow dance steps with hot Latin beats to help you shed pounds and inches fast. Now the DVD and classes that have hooked millions are available in this book - with a complete workout program, fat-burning diet, and an exclusive instructional DVD with sixty minutes' worth of music to help you dance your way to the perfect body.Using the principles of interval and resistance training, the simple dance and sculpting moves of Zumba (inspired by the traditional cumbia, salsa, samba, and merengue) tone and shape your body. And because it can burn 600 to 1000 calories per hour, you don't have to restrict your meals to boring or bland-tasting diet foods. The Zumba eating plan begins with a 5-Day Express Diet to jump-start weight loss (lose up to nine pounds in five days) and then offers fourteen-day meal plans that target fat-burning in the stomach and thighs. You'll find:
Hot moves that make you feel like you're on the dance floor - not on the elliptical machine!
Recipes for mouthwatering meals that boost your metabolism.
Dozens of workout combinations so you never get bored.
An exclusive jump-start program to get you ready for that big event next weekend.
An easy plan to help you keep up your progress and maintain the weight loss.
So start moving, grooving, and losing with the Zumba program today! (book jacket)
Tell Me Something True by Leila CoboA major force in the Latin music industry, Leila Cobo has written a powerful, sensuous, and moving debut novel about a young woman unearthing her mother's secrets -- and truths of her own.Gabriella Richards feels betrayed. Between her doting father in Hollywood and her grandmother's aristocratic family in Cali, Colombia, a few facts have been carefully hidden about her mother, whose tragic death shattered a picture-perfect marriage, Gabriella, now a classical pianist, has kept one foot in her grandmother's elegant, guarded world, visiting her every year. But this trip changes everything. In a dusty closet in a faded mansion, Gabriella finds her mother's diary, written just for her. And at a party of Cali's young and hip, she meets a man she can't resist. Soon, between her mother's shocking confessions and her new lover's secretive life, Gabriella will enter a season of pleasure, pain, and awakening -- as she discovers that things are not always true or false, and that the words that matter most can be the most dangerous ones of all. . . (back cover)
Remedy SuperStress with Chocolate By Roberta Lee M.D., Author of The SuperStress Solution
If you love chocolate, you're not alone. It turns out that the average person in the United States consumes approximately 12 pounds of chocolate a year. That might sound like a lot of chocolate, but I actually recommend that my patients -- especially those who are chronically stressed or what I would describe as SuperStressed -- indulge in 1 ounce of high quality and high cocoa mass chocolate a day, and that actually adds up to well more than 12 pounds over the course of the year. Sure, chocolate is a calorie laden food (with most of the calories coming from the cocoa butter), but in my opinion, the benefits of this treat outweigh the caloric load as long as you keep the portions small. Here are the benefits:
On a gram for gram basis, chocolate has a terrifically high concentration of antioxidants known as flavonoids. More than berries and spinach, even. Flavonoids have been shown to lower high blood pressure and reduce the risk of heart disease and strokes.
Chocolate is rich in magnesium and potassium, two minerals that help promote the "relaxation response," as well as iron and zinc, which are minerals that many people don't often get enough of during the course of the day. Chocolate also contains a good amount of selenium, which enhances immune health.
Chocolate contains several psychoactive compounds being studied and debated as responsible for the mood lift many of us experience when eating it. First, there's phenylethylamine (PEA), a natural trace amine that is a stimulant that is elevated in the brain when we are in love and is low when we are depressed. Secondly, there's theobromine, a compound that imparts energy and a sense of alertness. Finally, chocolate contains a small amount of a chemical known as N-arachidonoylethanolamine, a substance that keeps our endogenous happiness molecules -- or endorphins -- from breaking down. In other words, if we are happy, we just might stay happier longer with a little chocolate.
Of course, there's also ample consumer-proven evidence that chocolate tastes good, and that eating it can provide a little respite -- an oasis of pleasure and calm -- from our otherwise hectic days! And to me, that's what's so special about this sweet treat. I find chocolate has the ability to enhance sensory recruitment in every way. It's so inexpensive to have a piece of chocolate and it's so pleasurable, that if that's something you like and that's part of what living well is about, I say: go for it. The ideal cocoa mass is 75% or more -- this will be clear on the label and is most often found in dark chocolate -- and the ideal portion is 1 ounce (about 1/3 of an average bar or roughly the size of the palm of a woman's hand). Doctor's orders!
To reduce stress, and avoid SuperStress, try this today:
Simple as it sounds; focused breathing -- during which you think about your breath as you inhale and exhale -- is a very effective stress-management technique. A slow, full breath triggers physical and cognitive changes that promote relaxation. Deep breathing helps release tension and anxiety and is a great energizer because the deeper the breath, the more your body is flooded with life-fueling oxygen. A full breath begins with the diaphragm pushing downward so that the stomach extends out. As your lungs fill with air, your chest expands. When you exhale, the reverse occurs -- your chest settles first and then your stomach.
* When anxiety strikes or you find yourself focusing on negative thoughts, immediately exhale through your mouth. * Now, open your lungs, and breathe in through your nose, drawing in a fresh, cleansing air to the count of four. * Exhale again slowly to the count of five. * Repeat four times.
Author Bio Roberta Lee, M.D., author of The SuperStress Solution, is vice chair of the Department of Integrative Medicine, director of Continuing Medical Education, and co-director of the Fellowship in Integrative Medicine at Beth Israel's Continuum Center for Health and Healing at Beth Israel Medical Center in New York City. Dr. Lee attended George Washington University Medical School and is one of the four graduates in the first class from the Program of Integrative Medicine at the University of Arizona conducted by Andrew Weil, M.D.
For more information please visit www.superstresssolution.com
It is time for a FIRST Wild Card Tour book review! If you wish to join the FIRST blog alliance, just click the button. We are a group of reviewers who tour Christian books. A Wild Card post includes a brief bio of the author and a full chapter from each book toured. The reason it is called a FIRST Wild Card Tour is that you never know if the book will be fiction, non~fiction, for young, or for old...or for somewhere in between! Enjoy your free peek into the book!
You never know when I might play a wild card on you!
My Review: This book picks up exactly where book 1 - Always Watching ended. Caution - spoilers if you have not read the first book!
Shaley and her mother's band are headed back to the hotel after their bus driver, Jerry, is killed. He had been the one who had murdered Shaley's friend Tom and he was also the one stalking her. The last thing he said to her was "Your father sent me".
There were many paparazzi at the hotel and Rayne, Shaley's mom was hit by a car. She cracked her ribs and broke her left wrist. She was taken to the hospital in Denver and this is where the rest of the story plays out.
Shaley's mom overhears Shaley talking to her best friend on the phone as she is telling her what Jerry's last words were. As Shaley has never met her father, nor does she know anything about him, this really threw her for a loop. With her mom overhearing her, she knows that she now has to share it with the police detectives.
Rayne figures it is finally time to tell Shaley about her father, so in between sleeping and pain medication, she begins the story of how her and Gary, her father, met. Is the man who sent Jerry really her father? If Rayne's remembrances are true - why would he want to hurt Shaley? How far will Shaley go to find the dad she has always wanted?
This was another fun read in this series. It was very quick - read it in a couple of hours during the Readathon. I am hoping there is going to be a book 3.
***Special thanks to Lindsey Rodarmer of ZONDERKIDZ for sending me a review copy.***
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Brandilyn and Amberly Collins are a mother/daughter team from northern California. Brandilyn is a bestselling novelist, known for her trademarked "Seatbelt Suspense". Amberly is a college student in southern California. She and her mom love attending concerts together.
Here's a video about the first book in the Rayne Series:
Product Details:
List Price: $9.99
Reading level: Young Adult
Paperback: 240 pages
Publisher: Zondervan; 1 edition (October 1, 2009)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0310715407
ISBN-13: 978-0310715405
AND NOW...THE FIRST CHAPTER:
Your father sent me.
The last words of a dying man, whispered in my ear.
Were they true? What did they mean?
Your father sent me. The stunning claim drilled through my head, louder than the crowd’s screams.
Guitars blasted the last chord of Rayne’s hit song, Ever Alone, as Mom’s voice echoed through the Pepsi Center in Denver. The heavy drum beat thumped in my chest. With a final smash of cymbals the rock song ended. Multicolored laser lights swept the stadium, signaling the thirty-minute intermission.
Wild shrieks from thousands of fans rang in my ears.
I rose from my chair backstage. Tiredly, I smiled at the famous Rayne O’Connor as she strode toward me on high red heels. In the lights her sequined top shimmered and her blonde hair shone. She walked with confidence and grace, the picture of a rock star—until she stepped from her fans’ sight. Then her posture slumped, weariness creasing her beautiful face. Mom’s intense blue eyes usually glimmered with the excitement of performing, but now I saw only the wash of grief and exhaustion. How she’d managed to perform tonight, I’d never know. Except that she’s strong. A real fighter.
Me? I had to keep fighting too, even if my legs still trembled and I’d probably have nightmares for weeks.
Your father sent me.
I had to find out what those words meant.
“You’re a very brave young lady,” a Denver detective had told me just a few hours ago. I didn’t feel brave then or now.
“You okay, Shaley?” Mom had to shout over the screams as she hugged me.
I nodded against her shoulder, hanging on tightly until she pulled back.
The crowd’s applause died down. A heavy hum of voices and footsteps filtered from the stadium as thousands of people headed for concessions and bathrooms during the break.
Kim, the band’s keyboard player and alto to my mom’s lead vocals, stopped to lay a darkly tanned hand on my head. A strand of her bleached white-blonde hair was stuck to the gloss on her pink lips. She brushed it away. “You’re an amazing sixteen-year-old.”
I shrugged, embarrassed. “Thanks.”
Mick and Wendell, Mom’s two remaining bodyguards, approached without a word. I gave a self-conscious smile to Wendell, and he nodded back, sadness flicking across his face. His deep-set eyes were clouded, and the long scar across his chin seemed harder, more shiny. At five-eleven, Wendell is short for a bodyguard but every bit as muscled. Tonight his two-inch black hair, usually gelled straight up, stuck out in various directions. He hadn’t bothered to fix it since the life and death chase he was involved in just a few hours ago. Seeing that messed-up hair sent a stab through me. Wendell was usually so finicky about it.
Mick, Mom’s main personal bodyguard, folded his huge arms and stood back, waiting. Mick is in his forties, ex-military and tall, with a thick neck and block-shaped head. I’ve rarely seen emotion on his face, but I saw glimpses of it now. He and Wendell had been good friends with Bruce, Mom’s third bodyguard.
Bruce had been killed hours ago. Shot.
And he’d been trying to guard me.
My vision blurred. I blinked hard and looked at the floor.
“Come on.” Mom nudged my arm. “We’re all meeting in my dressing room.”
Mick and Bruce flanked her as she walked away.
Usually we don’t have to be so careful backstage. It’s a heavily guarded area anyway. But tonight nothing was the same.
Kim and I followed Mom down a long hall to her dressing room. Morrey, Kim’s boyfriend and Rayne’s drummer, caught up with us. He put a tattoo-covered arm around Kim, her head only reaching his shoulders. Morrey looked at me and winked, but I saw no happiness in it.
Ross Blanke, the band’s tour production manager, hustled up alongside us, trailed by Stan, lead guitarist, and Rich, Rayne’s bass player. “Hey.” Ross put a pudgy hand on Mom’s shoulder. “You’re doing great.” He waved an arm, indicating everyone. “All of you, you’re just doing great.”
“You do what you have to,” Stan said grimly. His black face shone with sweat.
Narrowing single file, we trudged into the dressing room. Mick and Wendell took up places on each side of the door.
Marshall, the makeup and hair stylist, started handing out water bottles. In his thirties, Marshall has buggy eyes and curly dark hair. His fingers are long and narrow, deft with his makeup tools. But until two days ago, he’d been second to Mom’s main stylist, Tom.
“Thanks.” I took a bottle from Marshall and tried to smile. Didn’t work. Just looking at him sent pangs of grief through me, because his presence reminded me of Tom’s absence.
Tom, my closest friend on tour, had been murdered two days ago.
Mom, Ross, Rich and I sank down on the blue couch—one of the furniture pieces Mom requested in every dressing room. Denver’s version was extra large, with a high back and overstuffed arms. To our left stood a table with plenty of catered food, but no one was hungry. I’d hardly eaten in the last day and a half and knew I should have something. But no way, not now.
Maybe after the concert.
Stan, Morrey and Kim drew up chairs to form a haphazard circle.
“All right.” Ross sat with his short, fat legs apart, hands on his jeaned thighs. The huge diamond ring on his right hand was skewed to one side. He straightened it with his pinky finger. “I’ve checked outside past the guarded area. The zoo’s double what it usually is. The news has already hit and every reporter and his brother are waiting for us. Some paparazzi are already there, and others have probably hopped planes and will show up by the time we leave.”
Is Cat here? I shuddered at the thought of the slinky, effeminate photographer who’d bothered us so much in the last two days. He’d even pulled a fire alarm in our San Jose hotel the night before just to force us out of our rooms. Now by police order he wasn’t supposed to get within five hundred feet of us. I doubted he’d care.
My eyes burned, and my muscles felt like water. Little food, no sleep, and plenty of shock. Bad combination. I slumped down in the couch and laid my head back.
Ross ran a hand through his scraggly brown hair. “Now at intermission folks out there”—he jabbed a thumb toward the arena—“are gonna start hearing things. Rayne, you might want to say a little something when you get back on stage.”
Mom sighed, as if wondering where she’d find the energy to do the second half of the concert. “Yeah.”
I squeezed her knee. If only the two of us could hide from the world for a week or two.
Make that a whole year.
Rich frowned as he moved his shaved head from one side to the other, stretching his neck muscles. His piercing gray eyes landed on me, and his face softened. I looked away.
Everyone was so caring and concerned about me. I was grateful for that. Really, I was. But it’s a little hard to know you’ve been the cause of three deaths. Under all their smiles, did the band members blame me?
Ross scratched his hanging jowl. “We got extra coverage from Denver police at the hotel tonight. Tomorrow we’re supposed to head out for Albuquerque. It’s close enough for Vance to drive the main bus without a switch-off driver, and the next two venues are close enough as well. But that’s just logistics. We’ve all been through a lot. Question is—can you all keep performing?” He looked around, eyebrows raised.
“Man.” Morrey shook back his shoulder-length black hair. “If three deaths in two days isn’t enough to make us quit …” His full lips pressed.
I glanced hopefully at Mom. Yeah, let’s go home! I could sleep in my own bed, hide from the paparazzi and reporters, hang out with Brittany, my best friend—who was supposed to be here with me right now.
But canceling concerts would mean losing a lot of money. The Rayne tour was supposed to continue another four weeks.
Mom hunched forward, elbows on her knees and one hand to her cheek. Her long red fingernails matched the color of her lips. “I almost lost my daughter tonight.” Her voice was tight. “I don’t care if I never tour again—Shaley’s got to be protected, that’s the number one thing.”
I want you protected too, Mom.
“I agree with that a hundred percent,” Morrey said, “but at least the threat to Shaley is gone now that Jerry’s dead.
Jerry, one of our bus drivers—and a man I’d thought was my friend—killed Tom and Bruce, and then came after me earlier that night. A cop ended up shooting him.
Kim spread her hands. “I don’t know what to say. I’m still reeling. We’ve barely had time to talk about any of this tonight before getting on stage. I feel like my mind’s gonna explode. And Tom …”
She teared up, and that made me cry. Kim had been like a mother to Tom. Crazy, funny Tom. It was just so hard to believe he was gone.
I wiped my eyes and looked at my lap.
“Anyway.” Kim steadied her voice. “It’s so much to deal with. I don’t know how we’re going to keep up this pace for another month.”
Mom looked at Ross. “We can’t keep going very long with only Vance to drive the main bus.”
Ross nodded. “Until Thursday. I’d have to replace him by then.”
“With who?” Mom’s voice edged.
“I don’t know. I’ll have to jump on it.”
“You can’t just ‘jump on it.’ We need time to thoroughly check the new driver out.”
“Rayne.” Ross threw her a look. “I did check Jerry out. Completely. He had a false ID, remember? That’s what the police said. I couldn’t have known that.”
“You might have known if you’d checked harder.”
Ross’s face flushed. “I did—”
“No you didn’t! Or if you did it wasn’t good enough!” Mom pushed to her feet and paced a few steps. “Something’s mighty wrong if we can’t even find out a guy’s a convicted felon!”
What? I stiffened. “How do you know that?”
Mom waved a hand in the air. “The police told me just before we left the hotel.”
We’d huddled in the manager’s office after the policeman killed Jerry.
I stared at Mom. “When was he in jail?”
Mom threw a hard look at Ross. “He’d barely gotten out when we hired him.”
Heat flushed through my veins. I snapped my gaze toward the floor, Jerry’s last words ringing in my head.
Your father sent me.
How could my father have sent Jerry if he was in jail?
“Rayne,” Ross snapped, “I’ve told you I’m sorry a dozen times—”
“Sorry isn’t enough!” Mom whirled on him. “My daughter was taken hostage. She could have been killed!”
Rich jumped up and put his arms around her. “Come on, Rayne, it’s okay now.”
She leaned against him, eyes closed. The anger on her face melted into exhaustion. “It’s not okay.” Mom shook her head. “Tom’s dead, Bruce is dead. And Shaley—”
Her words broke off. Mom pulled away from Rich and hurried back to the couch. She sank down next to me, a hand on my knee. “Shaley, you’re the one who’s been through the most. What do you want to do?”
My throat nearly swelled shut. Go home! I wanted to yell. But I couldn’t. It wouldn’t be fair. This wasn’t my tour. I didn’t have to pay the bills.
I glanced around at all the band members. Morrey was holding Kim’s hand. Stan and Rich watched me, waiting. A canceled tour wouldn’t just affect them. Rayne had three back-up singers, one of them Carly, who’d been such a help to me. Plus all the techs and roadies. They’d all lose money.
Wait—maybe Mom would let me go home and stay with Brittany. Now that Tom’s and Bruce’s killer was dead …
“Shaley?” Mom tapped my leg.
“I don’t … I can’t stop the tour.”
Ross exhaled. “Rayne?”
Mom looked at the wall clock and pushed to her feet. “We can’t decide this now. It’s only fifteen minutes before we have to be back on stage. I still need to change.”
Stan stood. “I say we figure on doing Albuquerque, and then we can decide about the rest.”
“Yeah, me too.” Rich got up, along with everyone else. I could see the business-like attitude settle on all their faces, including Mom’s. Soon they had to perform again. Every other concern must be pushed aside. In the entertainment world the saying was true: the show must go on.
Within a minute everyone had left except Mom, Marshall and me. Mom threw herself into a chair by the bright mirrors so Marshall could adjust her makeup. When he left she changed into a steel blue top and skinny-legged black pants.
I sat numbly on the couch, four words running through my mind. Words, I sensed, that would change my life.
Your father sent me.
Mom didn’t know what Jerry had whispered to me as he died. I needed to tell her.
But how? Like me, she was running on empty. It would be one more shock, another scare. I wasn’t sure she could take anymore and still perform.
Had Jerry told me the truth? Had the father I’d never known—the man my mother refused to talk about—purposely sent a killer to join our tour?
I needed to know. I needed to find out. Because if it was true—the danger was far from over.
Reynaud St. Aubyn has spent the last seven years in hellish captivity. Now half mad with fever he bursts into his ancestral home and demands his due. Can this wild-looking man truly be the last earl's heir, thought murdered by Indians years ago?
Beatrice Corning, the niece of the present earl, is a proper English miss. But she has a secret: No real man has ever excited her more than the handsome youth in the portrait in her uncle's home. Suddenly, that very man is here, in the flesh-and luring her into his bed.
Only Beatrice can see past Reynaud's savagery to the noble man inside. For his part, Reynaud is drawn to this lovely lady, even as he is suspicious of her loyalty to her uncle. But can Beatrice's love tame a man who will stop at nothing to regain his title-even if it means sacrificing her innocence?
I have five copies of To Desire a Devil to giveaway courtesy of Hachette Books!
U.S./Canada only - No PO Boxes
Giveaway ends Nov 20, 2009, 11:59PM CST.
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Twenty-seven-year-old Josey Cirrini is sure of three things: winter in her North Carolina hometown is her favorite season, she's a sorry excuse for a Southern belle, and sweets are best eaten in the privacy of her hidden closet. For while Josey has settled into an uneventful life in her mother's house, her one consolation is the stockpile of sugary treats and paperback romances she escapes to each night....Until she finds her closet harboring none other than local waitress Della Lee Baker, a tough-talking, tenderhearted woman who is one part nemesis--and two parts fairy godmother...
Fleeing a life of bad luck and big mistakes, Della Lee has decided Josey's clandestine closet is the safest place to crash. In return she's going to change Josey's life--because, clearly, it is not the closet of a happy woman. With Della Lee's tough love, Josey is soon forgoing pecan rolls and caramels, tapping into her startlingly keen feminine instincts, and finding her narrow existence quickly expanding.
Before long, Josey bonds with Chloe Finley, a young woman who makes the best sandwiches in town, is hounded by books that inexplicably appear whenever she needs them, and--most amazing of all--has a close connection to Josey's longtime crush.
As little by little Josey dares to step outside herself, she discovers a world where the color red has astonishing power, passion can make eggs fry in their cartons, and romance can blossom at any time--even for her. It seems that Della Lee's work is done, and it's time for her to move on. But the truth about where she's going, why she showed up in the first place--and what Chloe has to do with it all--is about to add one more unexpected chapter to Josey's fast-changing life. (Amazon)
A riveting, psychologically rich family drama set in the American West, from a writer who has been compared to Cormac McCarthy.
Bandy Dorner, home from Vietnam, awakes with his car mired in a canal, his cabin reduced to ashes, and his pregnant wife preparing to leave town with her lover. Within moments, a cop lies bleeding on the road.
Eighteen years later, Bandy is released from prison. His parents are gone, but on the derelict family ranch, Bandy faces a different reunion. Tracy, his now teenaged son, has come to claim the father he’s never known. Iona, Bandy’s ex-wife, has returned on the heels of her son. All three are damaged, hardened, haunted. But warily, desperately, they move in a slow dance around each other, trying to piece back together a family that never was; trying to discover if they belong together at all.
With unflinching honesty and restrained beauty, Brian Hart explores the possibilities and limitations of his characters as they struggle toward a shared future. Like a traditional Greek tragedy, suffused with the mud, ice, and rock of the raw I daho landscape, Then Came the Evening is tautly plotted and emotionally complex—a stunning debut. (amazon)
My son (who will be 5 in 12 days) started coughing yesterday and complained of a stomach ache off and on - then about 6pm last night started running a fever. I took him in to the doctor first thing this morning and left feeling worse than when I went in. He basically told me that the only flu's they are seeing right now are H1N1 as regular flu season hasn't hit yet. Since our state just got the H1N1 shot yesterday - he said it is already too late - that we are already in the middle of the epidemic and that shot takes about 4 weeks to reach its maximum effectiveness.
So - he did a nasal swab on him and they have sent it out - results should be back tomorrow. Unfortunately I now have to worry about him - and the possibility of my other 2 girls getting it - and then there is me. . .
I have a disease called Wegener'sGranulomatosa. I was diagnosed about 15 years ago - and have been taken to the emergency room 3 times by ambulance - hospitalized 3 times (only once from the ambulance trip), have had blood clots, seizures, pneumonia, voice loss for years at a time (I'm not kidding), arthritis and even just stopped breathing once - they think my throat swelled or collapsed or something. . . Anyway - Wegener's affects nose, throat, lungs (so - respiratory) and kidneys. Thankfully I have never had kidney involvement. The treatment I am on is an immunosupressant drug called Methotrexate - So, in addition to being at high risk - I also have a lowered immune system. So - if my son has H1N1 - what are my chances of avoiding it? Anyone wanna make a bet?
And for the curious bunch out there - for more information on Wegener's.
I have one copy of White Picket Fences by Susan Meissner to give away to a reader!
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