Attention Winners!

Woohoo Winners!

I have more winners! Congratulations to MJ, hlbsurfin, quelleheure4, Wanda and Karol for winning copies of How Not To Look Old! I have sent you all emails - please get me your information by Monday night or I will need to draw more names!

Also - the winners of Bobbi Brown Living Beauty are: Living My Happily Ever After, Book Crossing Kitten, Library Grinch, nhertel, and Debdesk! I have sent you all emails, so please get my your information by Monday night or I will need to draw more names! I already have to draw 2 more names for ladies who already have this book! So Kelly and Bobbie are the lucky replacements!

I Won a Monster Giveaway!

Relz from Relz Reviews had a Monster Giveaway in January - I won this giveaway way back then - but my books just came today from the author! Let me tell you everything that was in this giveaway - From Relz I received an Aussie gift pack which included a 2009 Australian Wildlife Calendar, an Aussie tea towel and a Aussie cap. I received these back in February. (Thanks Relz!)

But let's talk about the books - I received 6 autographed books from Robert Liparulo! This included the 3 Dreamhouse King Books (which I have read - they are great books The House of Dark Shadows, Watcher in the Woods, Gatekeepers - my reviews are here) which he autographed to my son - and 3 adult thrillers - Comes a Horseman, Germ and Deadfall - which he autographed to me! I also received a Dreamhouse King t-shirt and bookmark. Robert and his wife Jodi were both very gracious in communicating with me about the books - and making sure that they were autographed just right. Thank you so much Liparulos - I look forward to reading these!

The Friday 56 4-24-2009

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.

Everyone else in the arena is leaving, but he claps on, tears of pride in his
eyes for Rayne O'Connor. He thrusts a hand up toward her. Suddenly in his finger
- a single white rose wrapped in green cellophane and tied with a red ribbon.

(from Always Watching by Brandilyn Collins and Amberly Collins, p57 - because there was nothing on p56!)

Friday Finds 4-24-2009

The good books just go on and on - here are some I'd like to share this week.

Annie's Ghosts by Steve Luxenberg I "found" at Savvy Verse and Wit.

Beth Luxenberg was an only child. Everyone knew it: her grown children, her friends, even people she'd only recently met. So when her secret emerged, her son Steve Luxenberg was bewildered. He was certain that his mother had no siblings, just as he knew that her name was Beth, and that she had raised her children, above all, to tell the truth.

By then, Beth was nearly eighty, and in fragile health. While seeing a new doctor, she had casually mentioned a disabled sister, sent away at age two. For what reason? Was she physically disabled? Mentally ill? The questions were dizzying, the answers out of reach. Beth had said she knew nothing of her sister's fate.
Six months after Beth's death in 1999, the secret surfaced once more. This time, it had a name: Annie.

Steve Luxenberg began digging. As he dug, he uncovered more and more. His mother's name wasn't Beth. His aunt hadn't been two when she'd been hospitalized. She'd been twenty-one; his mother had been twenty-three. The sisters had grown up together. Annie had spent the rest of her life in a mental institution, while Beth had set out to hide her sister's existence. Why?

Employing his skills as a journalist while struggling to maintain his empathy as a son, Luxenberg pieces together the story of his mother's motivations, his aunt's unknown life, and the times in which they lived. His search takes him to imperial Russia and Depression-era Detroit, through the Holocaust in Ukraine and the Philippine war zone, and back to the hospitals where Annie and many others were lost to memory.

Combining the power of reportage with the intrigue of mystery, Annie's Ghosts explores the nature of self-deception and self-preservation. The result is equal parts memoir, social history, and riveting detective story. (Description from Amazon)

I can't remember where I found Public Enemies by Bryan Burrough.

In Public Enemies, bestselling author Bryan Burrough strips away the thick layer of myths put out by J. Edgar Hoover’s FBI to tell the full story—for the first time—of the most spectacular crime wave in American history, the two-year battle between the young Hoover and the assortment of criminals who became national icons: John Dillinger, Machine Gun Kelly, Bonnie and Clyde, Baby Face Nelson, Pretty Boy Floyd, and the Barkers. In an epic feat of storytelling and drawing on a remarkable amount of newly available material on all the major figures involved, Burrough reveals a web of interconnections within the vast American underworld and demonstrates how Hoover’s G-men overcame their early fumbles to secure the FBI’s rise to power.
(Descripton from Penguin website)

A

A Vintage Affair by Isabel Wolff was "found" at Books and So Many More Books.

In her eighth novel, 'A Vintage Affair', the heroine, Phoebe Swift, has just opened a vintage dress shop in Blackheath. At the same time she is coping with the recent loss of her best friend, Emma. So Phoebe takes refuge in her work - restoring these wonderful old clothes to their former glory so that they can go on to have new lives. But what of the past lives these clothes have lived she often wonders? What stories would they tell if they could speak? One day Phoebe meets an elderly French woman, Therese, who wishes to sell her some elegant dresses and suits. In Therese's wardrobe Phoebe also finds a child's sky-blue winter coat, from the 1940s. At first Therese wishes not to reveal the coat's history but, as the two women become friends, she opens up. Phoebe listens to the story of the little blue coat not knowing that it is to have a profound and uplifting connection with her own life...
(Description from HarperCollins/UK - I could not find this book available in U.S.)

The Great Expectations School by Dan Brown was "found" at BermudaOnion.

At 22, Dan Brown was an idealistic first-year elementary teacher at P.S. 85 in the Bronx. He was even assigned a class of his own: 4-217. What he wasnÕt told was that 4-217 was the dumping ground for all fourth-grade problem cases, and his students would be more challenging than he ever anticipated. Dedicated and passionate but up against volatile children, absent parents, and a failing administration, Dan was pushed to the limit time and again. Yet in this seeming chaos, he discovered an unexpected well of inspiration to discipline, teach, and make a difference. THE GREAT EXPECTATIONS SCHOOL is the touching journey of Class 4-217 and their teacher, Mr. Brown. But more than that, it is the revealing story of a broken educational system and all those struggling within and fighting against it. (Description from Amazon)

What great books did you find this week?? Stop over at Should Be Reading and share yours!

I am Honored

You have all made me feel the love this month! And I feel very undeserving of it the last couple of days. I have been fighting a terrible head cold that has pretty much kept me from visiting many blogs - it has been enough to just try to keep my normal posts going. I am still behind on my reviews, as I have two to write yet right now. But anyway! (I feel like I have forgotten to acknowledge an award - so if I haven't given thanks to someone, please please let me know!)



I am the honored recipient of "Our Lovely Blog" Award from 2 other bloggers this week. This came to me from Kristina at Kristina's Favorites (love her name - this is my given name also) and Suzanne at Chick with Books. These lovely ladies were well deserving of this award also, so please go by and check out their blogs!

The rules to follow are:

1) Accept the award, post it on your blog together with the name of the person who has granted the award and his or her blog link.

2) Pass the award to 15 other blogs that you've newly discovered. Remember to contact the bloggers to let them know they have been chosen for this award.

1. Cheryl at Adventures of a Somewhat Crunchy Mama or The Unadorned Book Review (I believe she has others too! I am envious of those people who can have more than one blog going!)
2. Michelle of Michelle's Bookshelf
3. Sandra from Fresh Ink Books
4. Ashley and Holly at Bellas Novella
5. Roxanne from Fang-tastic Books
6. Rachel from Grasping for Objectivity in my Daily Life (Don't ya just love this name?)
7. Marcia at The Printed Page
8. Avis at She Reads and Reads
9. LuAnn at Reading Frenzy
10. Bobbie at Book Reviews by Bobbie
11. Mary at Bookfan-Mary

That will have to be it - I need sleep - and to think, I sat down here tonight to do my Friday Finds for tomorrow morning and didn't get to it! My head feels like a balloon. . .

My New Reading Room!

Ok, actually it is going to be a three season room, but I am calling it my new reading room - it is going to be a "technologically-free" space. Well, maybe a radio. . .

I am going to share the progress of this room - and since I am not someone who is organized enough to take pictures and immediately get them up in a post - these pictures are from last week -



This is the back of the house from right to left - the three season room will be on the left. These, of course are the before pictures. The bottom picture is my view as I sit at the computer - this is where the room will be added.

This is what the back of the house looked like last Friday - the picture with the jack hammer showed what I got to listen to all day Friday. - This was the view from my computer - and yes, by 2:00pm I had hit the Tylenol!

They have been back to do some prep work this week - but, you guessed it - the pictures are still on my camera. I will get them up in a few days! See ya then!

Thursday's Threads

It isn't much - but I actually started a new project this week! (Not that I didn't have plenty of UFO's in my stash that I could have worked on.) This is a small one - but it is a Mill Hill Beaded Kit, so I am sure when I get to the beads it will seem like it is much larger than it really is! I am not going to tell you what it is going to be, you will just get to watch it as it takes shape.

See you all next Thursday!

The Girl She Used to Be by David Cristofano (Book Review)

Title: The Girl She Used To Be
Author: David Cristofano
Publisher: Hachette Books
Available: Now
Genre: Fiction
My ARC was provided to me by Miriam at Hachette Books.

First sentence(s): Name me. Gaze into my eyes, study my smile and my dimples and tell me who you see.


Melody was six years old when she and her parents witnessed the brutal slaying of a man by Tony Bovaro. Thought to be the only witnesses, they fled the scene and returned to their home. Somehow the FBI tracked them down and convinced them to testify against this Mafia boss. Even though they lost the case, Melody and her parents were forced to go into the Witness Protection Program.

She has had eight names in the last 20 years - not including the one she was born with. Since her parents where killed by the mafia when she was in high school, whenever she becomes bored with her life - she calls up her federal contact and claims that she has been "found." She has no friends, no family, no freedom, no career, no security, no past and she feels no future.

But then she meets Jonathan Bovaro, the son of Tony Bovaro. Jonathan gives her something her federal agents have not been able to - security and freedom to be "the girl she used to be."

I liked this book. I can't say that I fell in love with it, but I did like it. It was a very original story - or maybe an original take on a story - with an ending that I did not see coming. I think the author did a good job of expressing Melody's feelings of loneliness and despair. Despair in the sense that she would never be able to live her own life, but would always be in this invisible prison.

Jonathan was quite a surprise for her, and I think his feelings for her were a bit of a surprise for him, too. He had tracked her down many times - on orders to kill her - but was really trying to keep her safe. Their relationship had a lot of undercurrents to it involving safety, trust, family. Their lives were so irrevocably intertwined though that I think it was inevitable that they would eventually meet.

If you want a nice, easy story, with a surprise ending - then this one is for you.

I Have the Best Followers!

WOO HOO!

I hit 100 followers!

(I know, I have more in my feed reader - and I love them too - but I can't identify them!) If anyone would have told me last September that I would have this many people following my blog - I would not have believed them!

A big thank you to everyone who comes by to visit! Please know that if you follow me - I do visit your blog too. I may not comment everytime, but my husband can tell you that I spend way too much time on my computer!

BIG THANKS TO ALL!

The Lost Hours by Karen White (Book Review)

Title: The Lost Hours
Author: Karen White
Publisher: Penguin
Genre: Fiction
Available: Apr 7, 2009
This book was made available to me by Dorothy for the Pump Up Your Book Virtual Tour.

If you missed Karen's guest post - you should go back and take a look - It was fabulous!

First sentence: When I was twelve years old, I helped my granddaddy bury a box in the back garden of our Savannah home.


Piper Mills has been raised by her grandparents since the age of six, when her parents were killed in a car crash. A crash that she walked away from. She goes on with her life, believing that she will be free from tragedy. Living in Savannah, her grandparents encourage her to become an equestrian. On the eve of realizing her dream of going to the Olympics, Piper takes a fall off her horse that almost kills her. Her broken bones heal, leaving her with a limp, but her broken spirit does not.

All Piper remembers of her grandmother is a woman in the background, with no spirit, no opinions, no life. She has been in a nursing home due to Alzheimer's for years. When Piper's granddaddy dies, she is give clues that lead her to believe there is more to her grandmother's story. Sadly, her grandmother dies before she can learn what that might be.

Armed with a tin box full of scrapbook pages, a key to a hidden room, an angel charm, and a knitted blue baby sweater and blanket, Piper sets off to discover the grandmother she never knew. Along the way, maybe she will reawaken the Piper that has been sleeping for so long.

This was my first Karen White book, though The House on Tradd Street has been on my TBR list for awhile. I really, truly enjoyed this book. It was so easy to become immersed in the story and to visualize Asphodel Meadows and Savannah.

Gripping the wheel tightly, I angled the car and turned, finding myself suddenly enveloped in the canopy of an ancient live oak alley. I stopped the car, looking at the old trees that barely resembled the live oaks of Savannah's squares despite the generous shawls of Spanish moss. These trees were darkened and withered, despite enough leaves to show that they were alive. But the limbs were bent and gnarled, the knobs at the forks like the bent shoulders of mourners at a funeral.(p54)

Ms. White combines tragedy, family, mystery and a touch of romance for a heartwarming story that life does go on.

And now for a little bit about the author:

They had her at hello. From her first moments in Charleston and Savannah, and on the South Carolina and Georgia coasts, novelist Karen While was in love. Was it the history, the architecture, the sound of the sea, the light, the traditions, the people, the lore? Check all of the above. Add Karen’s storytelling talent, her endless curiosity about relationships and emotions, and her sensitivity to the rhythms of the south, and it seems inevitable that this mix of passions would find its way into her work.

Known for award winning novels such as Learning to Breathe, the recently announced Southern Independent Bookseller Association’s 2009 Book of the Year Award nomination for The House on Tradd Street, and for the highly praised The Memory of Water, Karen has already shared the coastal Low country and Charleston with readers. Spanning eighty years, Karen’s new book, THE LOST HOURS, now takes them to Savannah and its environs. There a shared scrapbook and a necklace of charms unleash buried memories, opening the door to the secret lives of three women, their experiences, and the friendships that remain entwined even beyond the grave, and whose grandchildren are determined to solve the mysteries of their past.

Karen, so often inspired in her writing by architecture and history, has set much of THE LOST HOURS at Asphodel Meadows, a home and property inspired by the English Regency styled house at Hermitage Plantation along the Savannah River, and at her protagonist’s “Savannah gray brick” home in Monterey Square, one of the twenty-one squares that still exist in the city.

Italian and French by ancestry, a southerner and a storyteller by birth, Karen has lived in many different places. Born in Tulsa, Oklahoma, she has also lived in Texas, New Jersey, Louisiana, Georgia, Venezuela and England, where she attended the American School in London. She returned to the states for college and graduated from New Orleans’ Tulane University. Hailing from a family with roots firmly set in Mississippi (the Delta and Biloxi), Karen notes that “searching for home brings me to the south again and again.”

Always, Karen credits her maternal grandmother Grace Bianca, to whom she’s dedicated THE LOST HOURS, with inspiring and teaching her through the stories she shared for so many years. Karen also notes the amount of time she spent listening as adults visited in her grandmother’s Mississippi kitchen, telling stories and gossiping while she played under the table. She says it started her on the road to telling her own tales. The deal was sealed in the seventh grade when she skipped school and read Gone With The Wind. She knew—just knew—she was destined to grow up to be either Scarlet O’Hara or a writer.

Karen’s work has appeared on the South East Independent Booksellers best sellers list. Her novel The Memory of Water, was WXIA-TV’s Atlanta & Company Book Club Selection. Her work has been reviewed in Southern Living, Atlanta Magazine and by Fresh Fiction, among many others, and has been adopted by numerous independent booksellers for book club recommendations and as featured titles in their stores. This past year her 2007 novel Learning to Breathe received several honors, notably the National Readers’ Choice Award.

In addition to THE LOST HOURS, Karen White’s books include The House on Tradd Street, The Memory of Water, Learning to Breathe, Pieces of the Heart and The Color of Light. She lives in the Atlanta metro area with her family where she is putting the finishing touches on her next novel The Girl on Legare Street.
You can visit Karen White's website at www.karen-white.com.

Wondrous Words 4-22-2009

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!

My first word this week is from The Lost Hours by Karen White.

Doyenne - used like this - I thought about writing him back to mention the borderline alcoholic doyenne of the estate, the blind daughter with a penchant for colors, the two little girls who were wise beyond their years, or their father whose odd mixture of aloofness and caring I found more attractive than I wanted to admit. (p133)

Definition - A woman who is the eldest or senior member of a group.

The following three words are from The Girl She Used to Be by David Cristofano.

Effete - used like this - I am so effete from being disarmed, I'm numb. (p74)

Definition - Depleted of vitality, force, or effectiveness; exhausted

Inimical - used like this - I am wired, like I've been drugged against my will with an inimical amount of adrenaline. (p195)

Definition - in opposition; adverse;

Insensate - used like this - Like a libidinous adolescent, I've been concerned with where and how I am going to lose my virginity, an insensate thing to scheme, in general; I should've been most concerned with if.

Definition - Foolish; witless

Waiting on Wednesdays: Ravens

Ravens by George Dawes Green

Publisher: Hachette Books

Available: July 15, 2009

The Boatwrights just won 318 million dollars in the Georgia State lottery. It's going to be the worst day of their lives.

When Shaw McBride and Romeo Zderko pull up at a convenience store off I-95 in Georgia, their only thought is to fix a leaky tire and be on their way again to Florida-away from their dull Ohio tech-support jobs. But this happens to be the store from which a 318,000,000 million dollar Jackpot ticket has just been sold -- and when a pretty clerk accidentally reveals to Shaw the identity of the winning family, he hatches a ferociously audacious scheme: He and Romeo will squeeze the family for half their prize.

That night, he visits the Boatwright home and takes the family hostage, while Romeo patrols the streets nearby, prepared to murder the Boatwrights' loved ones at any sign of resistance. At first, the family offers none. But Shaw's plot depends on maintaining constant fear-merciless, unfaltering terror-and soon, under the pressure, everyone's sanity begins to unravel . . .

At once frightening, comic, and suspenseful, RAVENS is a wholly original and utterly compelling novel from one of our most talented writers.
(Description from Hachette website)

Show Your Bookmarks!

I don't know if you can be a reader and not like bookmarks. Here are the ones that I could find for this picture (but have found 3 more since!) If you want the chance to win some more for your "collection" check out this contest over at MariReads!

Hey You - Yeah - You! Congratulations!

Kathy from Bermudaonion

Gwendolyn B. from A Sea of Books

Bettie B.

Janice H.

AllyKatt

You have won one of the five copies of Do-Over by Robin Hemsley!

Please get me your mailing info before Friday morning! Congrats winners!

Guest Post by Karen White (The Lost Hours)

I want to welcome Karen White to my blog today! She is the author of the new book - The Lost Hours. My review will follow tomorrow - but let me tell you - this is a must read book!

Confessions of a Multi-published Author


On April 7th, my 10th novel, The Lost Hours, will be published. Each book I’m able to share with readers is a dream come true, and each time I see my book in a bookstore or receive a fan letter, it’s like the first time all over again.
But getting here wasn’t easy. It’s still not what I’d call ‘easy’, but I now have wisdom and experience on my side to weather the next storm. So I thought I’d share with readers and writers alike my confessions of inadequacies and failure, and why I still open my laptop each morning hopeful and eager to write the next page.

For those writers who view your career as a hobby, or see the post-published life as one consisting of lolling about eating chocolates while dictating demands to your publisher-supplied publicist, don't read on. This is not for the faint-of-heart. However, for those writers who are striving every day to reach your goals and have come to a bump in the road that seems like Mt. Everest, please do continue reading. There is a light at the end of the tunnel (and along the way) and I can prove it. I've been there—and survived.

After my first book came out in 2000, I had a book published each year for four years. Sure, that's an accomplishment in anybody's book. I was at least climbing the ladder of success, although my paltry print-runs and publisher non-support kept me firmly planted on the bottom rung. I felt as if I were going to the prom. Sure, my date was the ugly boy with pimples, but at least I was going!

And then even my foothold on that bottom rung was shaken loose and I crashed to the floor. My publisher dropped me, stripping me of confidence and pride. I couldn't sell a book for 2 ½ years. Now, even the ugly boy didn't want to take me to the prom. I was humiliated, devastated and heartbroken. My critique partners and friends supported me when and how I needed it. They would point out how I should be proud—after all, I'd sold four books, right? At the time, all I could do was point out Tom Petty's song, Even the Losers Get Lucky Sometimes.

I was inconsolable. And I will confess now what I have never told anyone: I shed tears each and every day of those 2 ½ years. St. Jude, the patron saint of hopeless cases, became my close companion and we'd talk every day. I even thought seriously about making voodoo dolls of certain New York publishing personnel and holding them over hot flames.

Then the miracle happened. A week before Christmas of 2003, I got a phone call from my agent. She had a really great 2-book offer from a publisher that I used to only be able to dream about writing for. I think my shriek of ecstasy shattered my agent's ear drums and I'll have to use part of my advance for a hearing aid for her, but that was okay. I had a contract. And I say that in the same revered tones as a person would say, "I'm pregnant," or "chocolate is calorie-free."

So, my advice for all of you writers who have hit a bump? Have faith. Have faith in a higher authority that things are working out the way they should. Have faith in your abilities as a writer. Then go do. Keep writing. You can't sell that next book if it's not written. Read books out of your genre. Take a writing class to hone your skills. Help others. It takes the focus off of yourself for a while and makes you feel better. Hang out with your friends and people who love you. They are a marvelous buffer against the mean people out there.

Then, do what I'm doing. Confess. It's cathartic for me, and I'm hoping that I might just inspire some people to keep going—regardless of what career ladder they’re climbing. A friend of mine sent me an inspirational quote that I keep by my computer. I say it out loud every day and so should you. "When you get to the end of your rope, tie a knot and hang on."

I know that it's inevitable that I'll hit a rough spot in my career again. But I've found the survival basics I'll need to get through it the next time. Remember: have faith. And voodoo dolls couldn't hurt, either.

Please come back tomorrow to learn a little more about the author and to get my opinion of The Lost Hours! Thanks Karen!

First Wild Card Tour - So Not Happening

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!

I didn't get this book until last week - so my review will follow in a few days. It is a good book though! Go here to see my review.

Today's Wild Card author is:

Jenny B. Jones

and the book:

So Not Happening (The Charmed Life)

Thomas Nelson (May 5, 2009)

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Jenny B. Jones writes adult and YA Christian Fiction with equal parts wit, sass, and untamed hilarity. When she's not writing, she's living it up as a high school speech teacher in Arkansas.


Visit the author's website.



Product Details:

List Price: $12.99
Reading level: Young Adult
Paperback: 352 pages
Publisher: Thomas Nelson (May 5, 2009)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1595545417
ISBN-13: 978-1595545411

AND NOW...THE FIRST CHAPTER:

One year ago my mom got traded in for a newer model.

And that’s when my life fell apart.

“Do you, Jillian Leigh Kirkwood . . .”

Standing by my mother’s side as she marries the man who is so not my dad, I suppress a sigh and try to wiggle my toes in these hideous shoes. The hideous shoes that match my hideous maid-of honor dress. I like to look at things on the bright side, but the only

positive thing about this frock is that I’ll never have to wear it again.

“. . . take Jacob Ralph Finley . . .”

Ralph? My new stepdad’s middle name is Ralph? Okay, do we need one more red flag here? My mom is marrying this guy, and I didn’t even know his middle name. Did she? I check her face for signs of revulsion, signs of doubt. Signs of “Hey, what am I thinking? I don’t want Jacob Ralph Finley to be my daughter’s new stepdad.”

I see none of these things twinkling in my mom’s crystal blue eyes. Only joy. Disgusting, unstoppable joy.

“Does anyone have an objection?” The pastor smiles and scans the small crowd in the Tulsa Fellowship Church. “Let him speak now or forever hold his peace.”

Oh my gosh. I totally object! I look to my right and lock eyes with Logan, the older of my two soon-to-be stepbrothers. In the six hours that I have been in Oklahoma preparing for this “blessed” event, Logan and I have not said five words to one another. Like we’ve mutually agreed to be enemies.

I stare him down.

His eyes laser into mine.

Do we dare?

He gives a slight nod, and my heart triples in beat.

“Then by the powers vested in me before God and the family and friends of—”

“No!”

The church gasps.

I throw my hands over my mouth, wishing the floor would swallow me.

I, Bella Kirkwood, just stopped my own mother’s wedding.

And I have no idea where to go from here. It’s not like I do this every day, okay? Can’t say I’ve stopped a lot of weddings in my sixteen years.

My mom swivels around, her big white dress making crunchy noises. She takes a step closer to me, still flashing her pearly veneers at the small crowd.

“What,” she hisses near my ear, “are you doing?”

I glance at Logan, whose red locks hang like a shade over his eyes. He nods again.

“Um . . . um . . . Mom, I haven’t had a chance to talk to you at all this week . . .” My voice is a tiny whisper. Sweat beads on my forehead.

“Honey, now is not exactly the best time to share our feelings and catch up.”

My eyes dart across the sanctuary, where one hundred and fifty people are perched on the edge of their seats. And it’s not because they’re anxious for the chicken platters coming their way after the ceremony.

“Mom, the dude’s middle name is Ralph.”

She leans in, and we’re nose to nose. “You just stopped my wedding and that’s what you wanted to tell me?”

Faint—that’s what I’ll do next time I need to halt a wedding.

“How well do you know Jake? You only met six months ago.”

Some of the heat leaves her expression. “I’ve known him long enough to know that I love him, Bella. I knew it immediately.”

“But what if you’re wrong?” I rush on, “I mean, I’ve only been around him a few times, and I’m not so sure. He could be a serial killer for all we know.” I can count on one hand the times I’ve been around Jake. My mom usually visited him when I was at my dad’s.

Her voice is low and hurried. “I understand this isn’t easy for you. But our lives have changed. It’s going to be an adventure, Bel.”

Adventure? You call meeting a man on the Internet and forcing me to move across the country to live with his family an adventure? An adventure is swimming with dolphins in the Caribbean. An adventure is touring the pyramids in Egypt. Or shopping at the Saks after-Thanksgiving sale with Dad’s credit card. This, I do believe, qualifies as a nightmare!

“You know I’ve prayed about this. Jake and I both have. We know this is God’s will for us. I need you to trust me, because I’ve never been more sure about anything in my life.”

A single tear glides down Mom’s cheek, and I feel my heart constrict. This time last year my life was so normal. So happy. Can I just hit the reverse button and go back?

Slowly I nod. “Okay, Mom.” It’s kind of hard to argue with “God says this is right.” (Though I happen to think He’s wrong.)

The preacher clears his throat and lifts a bushy black brow.

“You can continue,” I say, knowing I’ve lost the battle. “She had something in her teeth.” Yes, that’s the best I've got.

I. Am. An. Idiot.

“And now, by the powers vested in me, I now pronounce you Mr. and Mrs. Jacob Finley. You may kiss your bride.”

Nope. Can’t watch.

I turn my head as the “Wedding March” starts. Logan walks to my side, and I link my arm in his. Though we’re both going to be juniors, he’s a head taller than me. It’s like we’re steptwins. He grabs his six-year-old brother, Robbie, with his other hand, and off we go

in time to the music. Robbie throws rose petals all around us, giggling with glee, oblivious to the fact that we just witnessed a ceremony marking the end of life as we know it.

“Good job stopping the wedding.” Logan smirks. “Very successful.”

I jab my elbow into his side. “At least I tried! You did nothing!”

“I just wanted to see if you had it in you. And you don’t.”

I snarl in his direction as the camera flashes, capturing this day for all eternity.

Last week I was living in Manhattan in a two-story apartment between Sarah Jessica Parker and Katie Couric. I could hop a train to Macy’s and Bloomie’s. My friends and I could eat dinner at Tao and see who could count the most celebs. I had Broadway in my backyard

and Daddy’s MasterCard in my wallet.

Then my mom got married.

And I got a new life.

I should’ve paid that six-year-old to pull the fire alarm.

Where are you? 4-21-2009

I am at the home of Lucius Malfoy - it is a meeting of the DeathEaters with Lord Voldemort. Severus Snape has just told us when they are going to move Harry Potter! (I have just started reading Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows by J.K. Rowling!)


Where is your reading taking you? Stop over at Adventure in Reading and share!

Teaser Tuesday 4-21-2009

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!

"The jammies always let me know how vulnerable she is, right Babe?" Rocky said, squeezing me. I smacked his arm away. I didn't want Jazz to think we still had something going. Just in case. (from Murder, Mayhem and a Fine Man by Claudia Mair Burney, p102)

New Giveaway! Made in the USA by Billie Letts

Thanks to Valerie and Hachette Books I have 5 copies of Made in the U.S.A. to give away! Here is a little bit about the book:


The bestselling author of WHERE THE HEART IS returns with a heartrending tale of two children in search of a place to call home.


Lutie McFee's history has taught her to avoid attachments...to people, to places, and to almost everything. With her mother long dead and her father long gone to find his fortune in Las Vegas, 15-year-old Lutie lives in the god-forsaken town of Spearfish, South Dakota with her twelve-year-old brother, Fate, and Floy Satterfield, the 300-pound ex-girlfriend of her father. While Lutie shoplifts for kicks, Fate spends most of his time reading, watching weird TV shows and worrying about global warming and the endangerment of pandas. As if their life is not dismal enough, one day, while shopping in their local Wal-Mart, Floy keels over and the two motherless kids are suddenly faced with the choice of becoming wards of the state or hightailing it out of town in Floy's old Pontiac. Choosing the latter, they head off to Las Vegas in search of a father who has no known address, no phone number and, clearly, no interest in the kids he left behind.

MADE IN THE U.S.A. is the alternately heartbreaking and life-affirming story of two gutsy children who must discover how cruel, unfair and frightening the world is before they come to a place they can finally call home.

I guess we need to have some rules:

1. Must be a resident of the U.S. or Canada
2. No PO Boxes.
3. Giveaway will run until midnight (CST) May 18.

How do you enter:

1. Leave a comment WITH EMAIL ADDRESS!
2. For 2 additional entries - blog or twitter and leave a link back here.
3. For 2 more entries - sign up as a follower over on the left, where I can see your little picture!
4. If you already follow - either by RSS feed, email, etc - let me know and you will get your extra entries also.
5. Maximum of 5 entries possible.

What a Super Blogging Community!

Everybody has been so good to me with awards lately! I love all of them! I have been the lucky recipient of three awards this month! Make that four awards now!


I received The Splash Award from Rebecca at Lost in Books. Thanks Rebecca!
The rules are as follows:
1) Put the logo on your blog/post.
2) Nominate up to 9 blogs which allure, amuse, bewitch, impress, or inspire you.
3) Be sure to link to your nominees within your post.
4) Let them know that they have been splashed by commenting on their blog.
5) Remember to link to the person from whom your received your Splash award.

I just passed this one earlier this month, so I am going to decline from passing it on right now - I will make a list as I am reading blogs and send it along at a later date!

I received The Sisterhood Award from Myza at Books and So Many More Books. Thank you Myza!

The rules are:
1. Put the logo on your blog or post.
2. Nominate up to 10 blogs which show great attitude and/or gratitude!
3. Be sure to link to your nominees within your post.
4. Let them know that they have received this award by commenting on their blog.
5. Remember to link to the person from whom you received your award.

Here are my nominees, they were my biggest commentors during the 24 hour readathon! Thanks ladies!

Kathy from Bermudaonion

Staci from Life in the Thumb

Kailana from Historical Tapestry (as well as quite a few others!)

Teddy Rose from So Many Precious Books, So Little Time (as well as a few others!)

Dar from Peeking Between the Pages

Jessica.marie from Books Love Jessica Marie

Eva from A Striped Armchair



I received the Lets Be Friends award fromVanessa at Today's Adventure. Thanks Vanessa!


Blogs that received the Let’s Be Friends Award are exceedingly charming. These kind bloggers aim to find and be friends. They are not interested in self-aggrandizement. Our hope is that when the ribbons of these prizes are cut, even more friendships are propagated. Please give more attention to these writers.

My nominees:

Wendi from Wendi's Book Corner

Mo from Unmainstream Mom Reads

RAnn from This That and the Other Thing

Twiga from The Twiga Blog

As I was distributing the other awards - Jessica Marie from Books Love Jessica Marie gave me the Zombie Chicken Award! I must say I have been coveting this award because I wanted it for my sidebar! It is a hilarious picture!

The blogger who receives this award believes in the Tao of the zombie chicken - excellence, grace and persistence in all situations, even in the midst of a zombie apocalypse. These amazing bloggers regularly produce content so remarkable that their readers would brave a raving pack of zombie chickens just to be able to read their inspiring words. As a recipient of this world-renowned award, you now have the task of passing it on to at least 5 other worthy bloggers. Do not risk the wrath of the zombie chickens by choosing unwisely or not choosing at all...

I will be awarding this to other blogs at a later date! My son wants me to play! See ya!

Please go check out all these wonderful blogs!