Where I share my love of books with reviews, features, giveaways and memes. Family and needlepoint are thrown in from time to time.

Friday, July 24, 2009

Tome Travelers - Garage Sale Day!

If you have been following me for any length of time, then you know that I love to go to garage sales - mainly for the books! I was able to pick up 5 books today.




Title: Bad Cat: Not-so-pretty kitties and cats gone bad
Author: Jim Edgar

It's the dark side that most cat owners never see. The side that wouldn't be caught dead purring. Here, captured in all their infamy, are hundreds of trouble-makers, delinquents, and dementos.

They're bad cats, with bad intentions, bad habits, and bad attitude. So the next time your sweet little ball of fur misses the litterbox, ask yourself -- was it really an accident?




Title: No Second Chance
Author: Harlan Coben

When the first bullet hit my chest, I thought of my daughter. . .

Shot twice by an unseen assailant, Dr. Marc Seidman lies in a hospital bed. His wife has been killed. His six-month-old daughter has vanished. But when the ransom note arrives, it gives Mark one chance to bring her home alive. Then something goes wrong, and Marc spirals into a world of shock and surprise, of hope and yearning, where nothing is as it seems. . .




Title: Third Degree
Author: Greg Iles

Sometimes the gravest dangers -- and the darkest souls -- live right beside us. . .

In the span of twenty-four hours, everything Laurel Shields believes about her life and her marriage to a prominent doctor will be shattered -- if she survives a terrifying ordeal. The day begins with the jarring discovery that, soon after ending an affair, Laurel is pregnant. But when she returns home to find her husband ashen, unkempt, and on the brink of violence, a nightmare quickly unfolds. In the heart of an idyllic Mississippi town, behind the walls of her perfect house, Laurel finds herself locked in a volatile standoff with a husband she barely recognizes. Confronted with evidence of her betrayal, she must tread a deadly path between truth and deception while a ring of armed police prepares a dangerous rescue. But Laurel's greatest fear -- and her only hope -- lies with her former lover, a brave man whom fate has granted the power to save both Laurel and her children -- if she can protect his identity long enough.


Title: Right as Rain
Author: George P. Pelecanos

Derek Strange is black and successful. Terry Quinn is white and barely holding on. Now Strange has been hired to investigate a police shooting in which Quinn played a major role. For Strange, a savvy and careful man, the investigation goes against his style and instinct. For Terry Quinn, Strange's questions are a chance to absolve his conscience and shake out a little truth. But in a city that lives in the shadow of a nation's dream, neither man can foresee the dirty little war that will break out around them . . . or how deadly being right can be.




Title: By the Light of the Moon
Author: Dean Koontz

Dylan O'Conner is a gifted young artist just trying to do the right thing in life. He's on his way to an arts festival in Santa Fe when he stops to get a room for himself and his twenty-year-old autistic brother, Shep. But in a nightmarish instant, Dylan is attacked by a mysterious "doctor," injected with a strange substance, and told that he is now a carrier of something that will either kill him. . .or transform his life in the most remarkable way. Then he is told that he must flee -- before the doctor's enemies hunt him down for the secret circulating through his body.

No one can help him, the doctor says, not even the police.

Stunned, disbelieving, Dylan is turned loose to run for his life. . . and straight into an adventure that will turn the next twenty-four hours into an odyssey of terror, mystery -- and wondrous discovery.

It is a journey that begins when Dylan and Shep's path intersects with that of Jillian Jackson. Before that evening Jilly was a beautiful comedian whose biggest worry was whether she would ever find a decent man. Now she too is a carrier. And even as Dylan tries to convince her that they'll be safer sticking together, cold-eyed men in a threatening pack of black Suburbans approach, only seconds before Jilly's classic Coupe DeVille explodes into thin air.

Now the three are on the run together, but with no idea whom they're running from -- or why. Meanwhile Shep has begun exhibiting increasingly disturbing behaviour. And whatever it is that's coursing through their bodies seems to have plunged them into one waking nightmare after another. Seized by sinister premonitions, they find themselves inexplicably drawn to crime scenes -- just minutes before the crimes take place.

What this unfathomable power is, how they can use it to stop the evil erupting all around them, and why they have been chosen are only parts of a puzzle that reaches back into the tragic past and the dark secrets they all share: secrets of madness, pain, and untimely death. Perhaps the answer lies in the eerie, enigmatic messages that Shep, with precious time running out, begins to repeat, about a man who does his work "by the light of the moon."

(all book descriptions were taken from back covers or book jackets)

Purchased Pages and a Giveaway!


A few weeks ago I had the opportunity to meet Brad Thor at an author visit to our local library. The following is a repost of that visit:

Then, on Saturday, I got to meet Brad Thor, also a New York Times bestselling author - this time of thrillers, or I would call them political thrillers. Even though he was up for the Thriller of the Year award last night at Thriller Fest in NYC - he opted to come to our little ole library to continue his tour for his latest book - The Apostle. (The award went to Jeffrey Deaver for The Bodies Left Behind).

He was a great speaker and we got to hear about what pushed/enabled him to write his first novel, The Lions of Lucerne. His wife had asked him one evening (as they were drinking wine in Italy no less) that if he were on his deathbed, would there be any one thing that he would regret. He said he would regret never writing and publishing a novel. She told him then, that when they returned home, he needed to take 2 hours of time - everyday - and get busy, and she would do whatever it took to enable him to do that. (Behind every good man is a good woman you know!) And that is how The Lions of Lucerne was born. Since then he has written seven more novels.

He also entertained us with stories about his research for his last novel, The Apostle. He actually spent time with a Black Ops group in Afghanistan to learn how they would go about "recovering" someone who might be kidnapped. After he left Afghanistan, NYTimes reporter David Rohde was kidnapped by the Taliban, and the Black OPS group that he traveled with were the ones sent in to try to find him. (Mr Rohde has since escaped the Taliban last month after 7 months in captivity and is apparently in good health.) Mr. Thor said that was probably his scariest research he has ever done for a book. He also has a fun website full of pictures and information about his books - www.bradthor.com. I forgot my camera for this one - but the photographer for the library was nice enough to take our picture and will be emailing it later this week - so I will share it at that time.

I picked up a copy of his last book - The Last Patriot - and had it signed to giveaway to one of my readers.




I want to take the opportunity now to giveaway this book that I purchased and to share with you some of his other books that I either purchased that afternoon, or picked up through paperback swap since then.

The giveaway is for 2008 release - The Last Patriot - and it is autographed.


About the book: June 632 A.D.: The prophet Mohammed shares a final and startling revelation. Within days, he is assassinated. September 1789: Thomas Jefferson uncovers a conspiracy that could change the face of Islam. Present day: Men still kill to keep the secret hidden. When a car bomb explodes outside a Parisian cafe, counterterrorism operative Scot Harvath is thrust back into the life he has tried desperately to leave behind. In a race to uncover an ancient secret with the power to stop militant Islam, Harvath will risk everything to reclaim Mohammed's final revelation and defeat one of the deadliest evils the world has ever known. (from the back cover)

Easy to enter giveaway - just leave me a comment as to why you would like to win this book with your email address. Giveaway will end Aug 14. Only open to U.S. (sorry guys - this is out of pocket for me)

Other books that I have purchased this month by Brad Thor:

Title: The Lions of Lucerne

I got this book from Paperback Swap.

About the book: On the snow-covered slopes of Utah, the unthinkable has happened: The President of the United States has been kidnapped and his Secret Service detail massacred. Only one agent has survived - ex-Navy SEAL Scot Harvath. He doesn't buy the official line that Middle Eastern terrorists are responsible, and begins his own campaign to find the truth - and exact revenge. But his search makes him a marked man by the sinister cabal behind the attack.

Framed for murder by the conspirators, Harvath goes on the run, taking the fight to the towering mountains of Switzerland. There, he finds an unlikely ally: the beautiful Claudia Mueller of the Swiss Federal Attorney's Office. Together they must brave the subzero temperatures and sheer heights of treacherous Mount Pilatus - and their only chance for survival is to enter the den of the most lethal team of professional killers the world has ever known. . .(from the back cover)


Title: Path of the Assassin

I bought this at the author visit and had it autographed to me!
About the book: After rescuing the President from the kidnappers, Navy SEAL-turned-Secret Service agent Scot Harvath's bloody and twisting mission of revenge leads to one man: Hashim Nidal. Having assembled an internationalleague of Islamic terrorist networks in an ingenious plot to topple both Israel and America, Nidal must be immobilized. But Harvath and his CIA-led team have no idea what the man looks like and must recruit a woman who survived a brutal hijacking, the only person who can positively identify their quarry. From the burning deserts of North Africa to the winding streets of Rome, Scot Harvath's hunt for a ruthless madman has the world's survival at stake. (from the back cover)





Title: The Apostle

This is his latest book - I also purchased this one at the visit and had it autographed, too.

About the book: Every politician has a secret. And when the daughter of a politically connected family is kidnapped abroad, America's new president will agree to anything - even a deadly and ill-advised rescue plan - in order to keep his secret hidden.

A new administration and a new approach to dealing with America's enemies have left covert counterterrorism operative Scot Harvath without a job. But when American doctor Julia Gallo is kidnapped in Afghanistan, the terms of her ransom leave the president with only one course of action.

In a dangerous assignment that the United States government will deny any knowledge of, Scot Harvath must secretly infiltrate Kabul's notorious Policharki Prison and free the man the kidnappers demand as ransom --al-Qaoda mastermind Mustafa Khan.

But when Harvath arrives, he quickly learns that there is more to the kidnapping than anyone dares to admit. And as the subterfuge is laid bare, Harvath must examine his own career of hunting down and killing terrorists, and ask himself if he has what it takes to help one of the world's worst go free.

Brimming with the kind of ripped-from-the-headlines authenticity Brad Thor's internationally bestselling novels are known for, The Apostle doubles down on the blockbuster uccess of The Last Patriot and reaffirms Thor's status as the master of the political thriller. (from the book jacket)

His other books include State of the Union, Blowback, Takedown and The First Commandment.

Any Minute audiobook winners!

Webfetti.com

Let's hear it for:

nfmgirl
neas nuttiness
janetfaye


They have each won an audio copy of Any Minute by Joyce Meyer and Deb Bedford. All winners have been emailed and responded. Congrats!

The Friday 56: Hollywood is Like Highschool with Money



Rules:
* Grab the book nearest you. Right now.
* Turn to page 56.
* Find the fifth sentence.
* Post that sentence (plus one or two others if you like) along with these instructions on your blog or (if you do not have your own blog) in the comments section of Storytime with Tonya and Friends.
*Post a link along with your post back to Storytime with Tonya and Friends.
* Don't dig for your favorite book, the coolest, the most intellectual. Use the CLOSEST.




Kylie. Her moment of sisterly advice in the kitchen replayed itself in y head with a flash. Trade info. Honesty is pretty much always the best policy. I winced involuntarily. (p56, Hollywood is Like High School with Money)











Hollywood is Like High School with Money
Publisher/Publication Date: Grand Central Publishing, July 23, 2009
ISBN: 978-0-446-69719-4
288 pages

ARC Arrival: The Confidential Life of Eugenia Cooper by Kathleen Y'Barbo


The Confidential Life of Eugenia Cooper by Kathleen Y'Barbo

Publisher: Waterbrook Press

I received this from Random House for an August blog tour.

About the book: The future is clearly mapped out for New York socialite Eugenia "Gennie" Cooper, but she secretly longs to slip into the boots of her favorite dime-novel heroine and experience just one adventure before settling down. When the opportunity arises, Gennie jumps at the chance to experience the Wild West, but her plans go awry when she is drawn into the lives of silver baron Daniel Beck and his daughter and finds herself caring for them more than is prudent -- especially as she's supposed to go back to New York and marry another man.

As Gennie adapts to the rough-and-tumble world of 1880s Colorado, she must decide whether her future lies with the enigmatic Daniel Beck or back home with the life planned for her since birth. Will Daniel's past -- and disgruntled miners bent on revenge -- take that choice away from her? (from the back cover)

About the author: Kathleen Y'Barbo is the best-selling, award-winning author of more than thirty novels, novellas, and young adult books, with more than 850,000 books in print. A graduate of Texas A&M University, she is currently a publicist with Books & Such literary agency. The mother of three grown sons and a teenage daughter, Kathleen makes her home in the Houston area. (from the back cover)

The Confidential Life of Eugenia Cooper
Publisher/Publication Date: Waterbrook Press, June 2009
ISBN: 978-0-307-44474-5
352 pages



ARC Arrival: Rose House by Tina Ann Forkner

Rose House by Tina Ann Forkner

Publisher: Waterbrook Press

I received this book from Random House for an August tour.

About the book: Still mourning the loss of her family in a tragic accident, Lillian Diamon finds herself drawn back to the Rose House, a quiet cottage where four years earlier she had poured out her anguish among its fragrant blossoms.

She returns to the rolling hills and lush vineyards of the Sonoma Valley in search of something she can't quite name. But then Lillian stumbles onto an unexpected discovery: displayed in the La Rosaleda Gallery is a painting that captures every detail of her most private moment of misery, from the sorrow etched across her face to the sandals on her feet.

What kind of artist would dare to intrude on such a personal scene, and how did he happen to witness Lillian's pain? As the mystery surrounding the portrait becomes entangled with the accident that claimed the lives of her husband and children, Lillian is forced to rethink her assumptions about what really happened that day.

A captivating novel rich with detail, Rose House explores how the brushstrokes of pain can illuminate the true beauty of life. (from the back cover)

About the author: Tina Ann Forkner, author of Ruby Among Us, is originally from Oklahoma. She now lives with her husband and three children in Wyoming, where she serves on the Laramie County Library Foundation Board of Directors. (from the back cover)

Rose House
Publisher/Publication Date: Waterbrook Press, May 2009
ISBN: 978-1-4000-7359-7
320 pages


ARC Arrival: Undone by Karin Slaughter

Undone by Karin Slaughter

Publisher: Delacorte Press/Random House

About the book: In the trauma center of Atlanta’s busiest hospital, Sara Linton treats the city’s poor, wounded, and unlucky—and finds refuge from the tragedy that rocked her life in rural Grant County. Then, in one instant, Sara is thrust into a frantic police investigation, coming face-to-face with a tall driven detective and his quiet female partner…. In Undone, three unforgettable characters from Karin Slaughter’s New York Times bestselling novels Faithless and Fractured collide for the first time, entering an electrifying race against the clock—and a duel with unspeakable human evil.

In the backwoods of suburban Atlanta, where Sara’s patient was found, local police have set up their investigation. But Georgia Bureau of Investigation detective Will Trent doesn’t wait for the go-ahead from his boss—he plunges through police lines, through the brooding woods, and single-handedly exposes a hidden house of horror buried beneath the earth. Then he finds another victim.…

Wresting the case away from the local police chief, Will and his partner, Faith Mitchell—a woman keeping explosive secrets of her own—are called into a related investigation. Another woman—a smart, upscale, independent young mother—has been snatched. For the two cops out on the hunt, for the doctor trying to bring her patient back to life, the truth hits like a hammer: the killer’s torture chamber has been found, but the killer is still at work.

In her latest suspense masterpiece, Karin Slaughter weaves together the moving, powerful human stories of characters as real as they arecomplex and unforgettable. At the same time she has crafted a work of dazzling storytelling and spine-tingling mystery—as three people, each with their own wounds and their own secrets, are all that stands between a madman and his next crime. (from Barnes and Noble website)

About the author: Karin Slaughter is the New York Times bestselling author of eight novels, including Beyond Reach and A Faint Cold Fear, which was named an International Book of the Month Club selection; she contributed to and edited Like a Charm. She is a native of Georgia, where she currently lives and is working on her next novel, which Delacorte Press will publish in 2010. (from Barnes and Noble website)

Undone
Publisher/Publication Date: Delacorte Press, July 2009
ISBN: 98-0-385-34196-7
448 pages



Friday Finds 7-24-2009

Here are my finds this week!

(I could not get a picture of this cover to post here.)


Heart of the Sky by Miranda Pope

Publisher: Lulu

About the book: HEART OF THE SKY celebrates the magic of place and the transforming power of an unlikely love. When recently widowed Marilyn Carpenter moves to Guatemala, she intends to volunteer for a few years after which she'll return to California to retire comfortably as a psychotherapist. When she meets Mayan farmer Juan Carlos Tuc, is it love for this man and his children or for the Guatemalan countryside and the Mayan people that she feels? For him, is it love or simply need? And when Guatemala's past suddenly intrudes, can the fabric of their relationship withstand the strain? A gracefully crafted, richly sensual tale which traverses Mayan traditions, emotional, historical and spiritual issues, and the ever-changing culture. A percentage of the profits will go to support the author's projects in Guatemala. (from Lulu website)

About the author: Miranda Pope is a former psychotherapist, social worker and teacher from California who has lived and volunteered in Guatemala for three years. This is her first published work. (from the back cover via Lulu website)

Read an excerpt of Heart of the Sky.


No Mercy by John Gilstrap

Publisher: Pinnacle

About the book: No names. No feds. No trace evidence. That's how Jonathan Grave operates. As a freelance specialist in covert rescues, he has to work outside the law to get things done—especially in highly sensitive hostage situations. But when an Indiana college student is abducted, and Jonathan's meticulous plan explodes into a deadly shooting spree, the local authorities are out for blood—and they're not alone. Someone wants to control a devastating secret... someone rich and powerful... someone willing to capture, torture, and kill anyone to get it. Even the people he loves most... (from the author's website)

Please visit his website to learn more about the author, John Gilstrap. Read a sample chapter of No Mercy.


No Mercy
Publisher/Publication Date: Pinnacle, July 2009
ISBN: 978-0786020874
400 pages


Thursday, July 23, 2009

Critical Care by Candace Calvert (book review)


Title: Critical Care
Author: Candace Calvert
Publisher: Tyndale House Publishers

I read this book for a First Wild Card Tour earlier this month and have been delinquent in writing the review! You can visit the tour post to read the first chapter of Critical Care.

First sentence: Don't die, little girl.

My synopsis: Claire thinks she is settling in nicely as nurse educator at Sierra Mercy, until an explosion at a daycare center thrusts her back into the ER. She is called on to provide staff support for the ER team.

Erin is a charge nurse who also leads a morning prayer circle called Faith QD. Though her relationship with God may be strong, she always seems to find the guys who are losers, and her latest is no exception.

Sarah is a tough nurse who seems to be able to anticipate Dr. Logan Caldwell's needs before he can. She always arrives early to double check equipment - but will the secret she is keeping tear apart her entire life.

Dr. Caldwell runs the ER with an iron hand. He expects nothing but the best from his nurses and doesn't fail to tell them when they don't live up to those expectations. He has no patience for "touchy-feely" during work hours. Has he detached himself from personal relationships too?

Claire is definitely needed to bring support to this ER staff, but after her firefighter brother Kevin dies in a trauma room, every day she spends in the ER is worse than the last. She has prayed and prayed for God to give her the strength to go on - so why does He keep putting her back in the middle of where her pain started?

My thoughts: This was a good book. I liked the way it showed how God works even when we think He is no where to be found. how He sometimes uses the most unexpected people to show us His love and especially how our plan is not necessarily His plan!

About the author: Candace Calvert is an ER nurse who landed on the "other side of the stethoscope" after the equestrian accident that broke her neck and convinced her love, laughter - and faith - are the very best medicines of all. The inspirational account of her accident and recovery appears in Chicken Soup for the Nurse's Soul, and launched her writing career.

Her new medical drama series offers readers a chance to "scrub in" on the exciting world of emergency medicine, along with charismatic characters, pulse-pounding action, tender romance, humor, suspense - and a soul soothing prescription for hope.

Born in Northern California and the mother of two, Candace now lives in the Hill Country of Texas. (from the back cover)

Critical Care
Publisher/Publication Date: Tyndale House Publishing, June 2009
ISBN: 978-1-4143-2543-9
304 pages

ARC Arrival: Mercury in Retrograde by Paula Froelich


Mercury in Retrograde by Paula Froelich

Publisher: Atria

Another Atria Galley Grab Book! For some reason that I cannot explain, I really like this cover!

About the book: Penelope Mercury, an intrepid reporter at the New York Telegraph, has pounded the pavement for five years from city borough to borough, carrying out her boss's eccentric orders to break stories that seem inconsequential to everyone but him. Finally, she is inches away from being promoted to her dream job--covering courtroom drama for the paper--but after one spectacularly disastrous day, she is fired instead.

Lena "Lipstick Carcrash" Lippencrass has a pretty fabulous life, even by a socialite's standards, as a top editor at the high fashion magazine Y. Long lunches with her girlfriends and afternoons spent shopping at Bergdorf's are all in a day's work. But when Lena's always indulgent parents abruptly cut off her cash flow and kick her out of her beloved West Village duplex for refusing to work for the family business, she is forced to confront the reality of what it takes to pay the bills.

Dana Gluck, a workaholic lawyer, had been married for two years to a man who was perfect on paper but increasingly critical in reality. She hoped that her dreams of motherhood would be fulfilled soon, which surely would also fix their marriage problems. Instead, her husband leaves her for an exchange student/model who, to make matters worse, promptly gets pregnant.

When fate conspires to have these three very different women move into the same SoHo apartment building, they soon discover that having their carefully planned lives fall to pieces might be the best thing that could have ever happened to them.
(from the book jacket)

About the author: Paula Froelich is the deputy editor of the New York Post's Page Six column. She lives in New York City. This is her first novel. (from the book jacket)

Mercury in Retrograde
Publisher/Publication Date: Atria, June 2009
ISBN: 978-1-4165-9893-0
272 pages



ARC Arrival: Best Friends Forever by Jennifer Weiner

Best Friends Forever by Jennifer Weiner

Publisher: Atria

I received this book from Atria Books Galley Grab!

About the book: Addie Downs and Valerie Adler will be best friends forever. That's what Addie believes after Valerie moves across the street when they're both nine years old. But in the wake of betrayal during their teenage years, Val is swept into the popular crowd, while mousy, sullen Addie becomes her school's scapegoat.

Flash-forward fifteen years, Valerie Adler has found a measure of fame and fortune working as the weathergirl at the local TV station. Addie Downs lives alone in her parents' house in their small hometown of Pleasant Ridge, Illinois, caring for a troubled brother and trying to meet Prince Charming on the Internet. She's just returned from Bad Date #6 when she opens her door to find her long-gone best friend standing there, a terrified look on her face and blood on the sleeve of her coat. "Something horrible has happened," Val tells Addie, "and you're the only one who can help."

Best Friends Forever is a grand, hilarious, edge-of-your-seat adventure; a story about betrayal and loyalty, family history and small-town secrets. It's about living through tragedy, finding love where you least expect it, and the ties that keep best friends together. (from the book jacket)

About the author: Jennifer Weiner is the New York Times bestselling author of seven books, including Good in Bed, In Her Shoes, which was made into a major motion picture, and Certain Girls. A graduate of Princeton University, she lives in Philadelphia with her family. (from the book jacket)

Best Friends Forever
Publisher/Publication Date: Atria, July 2009
ISBN: 978-0-7432-9429-4
368 pages



ARC Arrival: Sugar Time by Jane Adams

Sugar Time by Jane Adams

Publisher: BookSurge Publishing

I received this book from the author through Bostick Communications.

About the book: Charlotte "Sugar" Kane hasn't brought in a hit TV show for 20 years. She's about to prove she still can, even if she's an old broad in a youth-obsessed business, when she's blind-sided by a medical malady that could cost her the pilot if anyone knew about it as well as ruin her chance to turn it into a winning series. She manages to keep her secret from the conniving young assistant who wants her show, and even from her grown kids and closest friends. And when she falls in love with Alex Carroll, she can't tell him, either: "What man who's still got what it takes wants a woman with a condition?" But Alex has a secret of his own, and by the time Sugar learns it, she'll have to face the hardest decision of all for a woman of a certain age who gets her last chance at both love and success - and knows that getting one means giving up the other. (from the book cover)

About the author: Jane Adams is the author of twelve books of fiction and nonfiction, one play, and over a hundred essays, columns and articles that have been published nationally in many magazines and newspapers. She writes on-line for a variety of web sites and is also a frequent media commentator on radio and television. A social psychologist, she is also a coach, consultant and speaker. (from the book cover.)

Sugar Time
Publisher/Publication Date: BookSurge Publishing, July 2009
ISBN: 978-1-4392-3761-8
214 pages


Congrats! You've won!

Misusedinnocence
etirv
clenna

You have each won an audio copy of The Juror!
All winners have been emailed and have responded!
Congrats!

Wednesday, July 22, 2009

Wonderful Win: The Bone Factory by Nate Kenyon

The Bone Factory by Nate Kenyon

Publisher: Leisure Books/Dorchester Publishing

I won this autographed copy from Nate Kenyon's website!! Some of you might remember that I had featured this book on a Friday's Find awhile back. I am so excited that I won it!!!!

About the book: The biggest news in the small northern town of Jackson was the reopening of the local hydropower plant. Until the deaths. First a farmer was found horribly mutilated in his field. Then a little girl disappeared from her home. Deep in the woods a deputy came upon a chamber of horrors straight from a nightmare. And through it all, one child is haunted by visions of the mysterious "blue man," a madman who brings with him blood and pain and terror, a terror spawned by forces no one can understand. (from the back cover)

About the author: Nate Kenyon grew up in a small town in Maine with dark nights and long winters to feed his interest in writing. His stories have appeared in various magazines and in the horror anthology Terminal Frights. Kenyon lives in a recently restored 1840s Greek Revival home in the New England area with his wife, Nicole, their three children, and their ferocious dog, Bailey. Bloodstone, his first novel, was a Bram Stoker Award finalist and a P&E Horror Novel of the Year award winner.


The Bone Factory
Publisher/Publication Date: Leisure Books, June 2009
ISBN: 978-0-8439-6287-1
320 pages

Wondrous Words Wednesday



Wondrous Words Wednesday is a weekly meme where we share new (to us) words that we’ve encountered in our reading. To join in the fun, post your words on your blog and then leave a message over at Bermudaonion's Blog!

It has been a while since I have participated and I only have 2 words this week - but hopefully I will get this one going again. I really enjoy it, but summer is only here for so long!

This week my words are from Ravens by George Dawes Green.

Timorousness - Used like this: You were permitted to fold from prudence but never timorousness. (p34)

Definition: fear of the unknown or unfamiliar or fear of making decisions

Vizier - Used like this: He was good at all this stuff, a natural vizier. (p167)

Definition: a high executive officer of various Muslim countries and especially of the Ottoman Empire


What new words did you learn this week?

Waiting on Wednesday: Intertwined

This week's pre-publication "can't-wait-to-read" selection is:
Intertwined by Gena Showalter

Publisher/Publication Date: Harlequin Teen, Sept 1, 2009

About the book: Most sixteen-year-olds have friends. Aden Stone has four human souls living inside him:

One can time-travel.

One can raise the dead.

One can tell the future.

And one can possess another human.

With no other family and a life spent in and out of institutions, Aden and the souls have become friends. But now they're causing him all kinds of trouble. Like, he'll blink and suddenly he's a younger Aden, reliving the past. One wrong move, and he'll change the future. Or he'll walk past a total stranger and know how and when she's going to die.

He's so over it. All he wants is peace.

And then he meets a girl who quiets the voices. Well, as long as he's near her. Why? Mary Ann Gray is his total opposite. He's a loner; she has friends. He doesn't care what anyone thinks; she tries to make everyone happy. And while he attracts the paranormal, she repels it. For her sake, he should stay away. But it's too late….

Somehow, they share an inexplicable bond of friendship. A bond about to be tested by a werewolf shape-shifter who wants Mary Ann for his own, and a vampire princess Aden can't resist.

Two romances, both forbidden. Still, the four will enter a dark underworld of intrigue and danger—but not everyone will come out alive…. (from Amazon website)

About the author: Gena Showalter sold her first book at the age of 27 and now, four years later, is the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of thirteen books, with eleven more on the way in a thrilling blend of genres: breathtaking paranormal and contemporary romances, cutting edge young adult novels, and stunning urban fantasy. Her novels have appeared in Cosmopolitan Magazine, MTV, Seventeen Magazine, and have been translated in French, Italian and Korean. The critics have called her books "sizzling page-turners" and "utterly spellbinding stories", while Showalter herself has been called "a star on the rise". (from Amazon website)


I want to know where these books were when I was a kid - I would have devoured them. I just don't understand why my kids don't read as much as I think they should with books like this available to them! Who were some of your favorite authors when you were a teen?

Intertwined
Publisher/Publication Date: Harlequin Teen, Sept 2009
ISBN: 978-0373210022
448 pages





What are you waiting for? Waiting on Wednesdays is hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine.

ARC Arrival: The Hope of Refuge by Cindy Woodsmall

The Hope of Refuge by Cindy Woodsmall

Publisher: Waterbrook Press

I received this book for a blog tour in August - I have a second copy that will be given away at that time!

About the book: Can an Amish man help Cara find safety in a strange community with complex, unspoken ties to her family history?

Raised in foster care and now a widowed single parent, New Yorker Cara Moore struggles against poverty, fear, and a relentless stalker. When a trail of memories leads Cara and her daughter, Lori, away from the city toward an Amish community, she follows every lead, eager for answers to mysteries from her past and a fresh start. She quickly discovers that Dry Lake, Pennsylvania, is no place for an outsider. But one Amish man, Ephraim Mast, dares to fulfill the command he believes that he received from God - "Be me to her" - even though doing so threatens his way of life.

Fearful of the strange Englischer woman causing turmoil for her family, Ephraim's sister Deborah tries to focus on the marriage and home she longs to begin with Mahlon Stoltzfus. Her dreams are threatened when her fiance begins behaving oddly, withdrawing, causing concern for both Deborah and Mahlon's mother Ada. Will Ada's vision for transforming a run-down house unite them all in a common purpose - or push Mahlon away forever?

Torn between the requirements of his community and trying to do what he believes is right, Ephraim risks losing everything, including a developing friendship with the guarded single mother. And only he knows that long-held secrets about her family history ripple beneath the surface of Dry Lake - secrets with the power to tear apart the home Cara is desperately trying to create.

From the author of The New York Times bestseller When the Soul Mends, this powerful story of colliding worlds illuminates the assurance that only comes when truth is revealed. (from the back cover)

About the author: Cindy Woodsmall is the author of When the Heart Cries, When the Morning Comes, and When the Soul Mends. Her ability to authentically capture the heart of her characters comes from her real-life connections with Amish Mennonite and Old Orchard Amish families. A mother of three sons and two daughters-in-law, Cindy lives in Georgia with her husband of more than 30 years. (from the back cover)

The Hope of Refuge
Publisher/Publication Date: Waterbrook Press, August 11, 2009
ISBN: 978-1-4000-7396-2
352 pages



Purchased Pages: Night World by L.J. Smith

Night World by L.J. Smith
(contains Secret Vampire, Daughters of Darkness, and Spellbinder)


I picked this up for my daughter when I was out shopping - but that probably won't stop me from reading it!

About the book(s): Vampires, werewolves, witches, shapeshifters - they live among us without our knowledge. Night World is their secret society, a secret society with very strict rules. And falling in love breaks all the laws of the Night World.

In Secret Vampire, Poppy thought the summer would last forever. Then she was diagnosed with terminal cancer. Now Poppy's only hope for survival is James, her friend and secret love. A vampire in the Night World, James can make Poppy immortal. But first they both must risk everything to go against the laws of Night World.

Fugitives from Night World, three vampire sisters leave their isolated home to live among humans in Daughters of Darkness. Their brother, Ash, is sent to bring the girls back, but he falls in love with their beautiful friend.

Two witch cousins fight over their high school crush. It's a battle between black magic and white magic in Spellbinder. (from the back cover)

About the author: L.J. Smith is the New York Times bestselling author of The Vampire Diaries and has written more than twenty-five books for young adults. She lives in the Bay Area of California, where she enjoys reading, hiking, traveling, and communing with her cat Suzie. Her favorite place is a cabin in Point Reyes National Seashore. (from the book)

Night World
Publisher/Publication Date: Simon Pulse, June 2008
ISBN: 978-1-4169-7450-5
752 pages





Tuesday, July 21, 2009

Join me for another giveaway!

Karen Rose is quickly becoming one of my favorite thriller writers! You must check out this book if you are a fan of this genre. Thanks to Miriam and Hachette Books - I have 5 copies to giveaway to 5 of my lucky readers!

Book synopsis: New York Times bestselling author Karen Rose delivers her latest pulse-pounding suspense novel, where the line between the virtual world and everyday reality blurs when it comes to murder.

Eve Wilson's face was once scarred by a vicious assault. Terrified and ashamed, she escaped to the online realm, where she could choose the face she allowed people to see. Years later, her outer scars faded and inner scars buried, Eve has fought her way back to the real world and is determined to help others do the same. Now a graduate student moonlighting as a bartender, Eve researches the addictive powers of online communities. When her test subjects begin turning up dead as a result of apparent suicides, she doesn't know where to turn.

Homicide detective Noah Webster is one of the few people who believe the victims are connected murders. Eve becomes Noah's online guide and realizes that the handsome detective may have secret scars as painful as her own. As Eve and Noah chase a killer who is always one step ahead of them, together they try to overcome the tragedies of their pasts and learn to trust again, but they soon discover that danger is much closer than they think. (from Amazon website)

And now for the rules:
  1. Only open to U.S. and Canada
  2. No PO Boxes
  3. All entries in one comment if possible
  4. Must leave email address in comment and tell me your favorite thriller author and/or book for first entry.
  5. +2 if you follow - but must let me know (and followers - thank you very much - it is because of you that I host these giveaways!)
  6. +3 if you post this on any social network - (on twitter please use @kherbrand in tweet) otherwise leave me a link
  7. +3 for referrals and referrees (is that a word?) Just put it in your comment!
  8. Oh - Giveaway ends 8/11, Midnight CST.

If you can't wait for the giveaway - here is a link to order it!

ARC Arrival: The Husband Project by Kathi Lipp

The Husband Project by Kathi Lipp
(21 Days of Loving Your Man - on Purpose and with a Plan)

Publisher: Harvest House Publishers

I am going to try to do this from Aug 1 - Aug 21. I might post it online - depends on how personal it gets! The author also sent me a second copy to give away - so I will be having a giveaway during that time also!

About the book: Keeping a marriage healthy is all about the details—the daily actions and interactions in which husbands and wives lift each other up and offer support, encouragement, and love. In The Husband Project women will discover fun and creative ways to bring back that lovin’ feeling and remind their husbands—and themselves—why they married in the first place.

Using the sense of humor that draws thousands of women a year to hear her speak, Kathi Lipp shows wives through simple daily action plans how they can bring the fun back into their relationship even amidst their busy schedules.

The Husband Project is an indispensable resource for the wife who desires to:

  • discover the unique plan God has for her marriage and her role as a wife
  • create a plan to love her husband “on purpose”
  • support and encourage other wives who want to make their marriage a priority
  • experience release from the guilt of “not being enough”

The Husband Project is for every woman who desires to bring more joy into her marriage but just needs a little help setting a plan into action. (from Amazon)

About the author: Kathi Lipp is a busy conference and retreat speaker, currently speaking more than 45 times each year to thousands of women. Kathi and her husband, Roger, are the parents of four teenagers and live in California.

The Husband Project
Publisher/Publication Date:
ISBN: 978-0-7369-2522-8
208 pages


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