Wednesday, February 29, 2012

      TODAY, FEBRUARY 29th, 2012,
               "RARE DISEASE DAY"
                   Worldwide
This is a WORLDWIDE AWARENESS OF RARE DISEASE DAY!

The LINK for the website is: http://www.rarediseaseday.org/
The LINK for the US website specifically is: http://rarediseaseday.us/

At this website, you will find ALL kinds of information about this day, and ALL the individuals ALL around the WORLD who must live with them. 

What is today about? Here it is, copied and pasted from the first posted website:  

Rare Disease Day is an annual, awareness-raising event co-ordinated 

by EURORDIS at the international level and the National Alliances of 

Patient Organisations at the national level

February 29, 2012 marks the fifth international Rare Disease Day 
coordinated by EURORDIS and organised with rare disease national 
alliances in 25 European countries. (This also includes the United States) 
On this day hundreds of patient organizations from more than 40 countries
 worldwide are organizing awareness-raising activities converging around 
the slogan “Rare but strong together”.
Activities will take place across Europe, all the way to Russia, continuing 
to China and Japan, in the US and Canada, and as far as Australia and
 New Zealand! Get involved!
The focus of this year's event is Solidarity.

       “Rare but Strong Together”!



PLEASE GO TO THE World Wide website as well as the US website! Celebrate RARE DISEASE DAY, FEBRUARY 29, 2012!
IF you are reading this the day or the week after, please still check these websites out so you are aware. The MORE people are aware, the MORE of a chance of the possibility that cures  can be found, or if YOU are suffering from one of these yourself YOU CAN HELP AS WELL JUST BY BRINGING AWARENESS TO PEOPLE!
The MORE we work to find cures, the MORE peoples' lives will become SO much better!
Thank you NORD for participating in this day!

If ANY of you would like to help support this cause, and it is a HUGE cause which helps SO many people, please feel free to do so at ANY time of the year!

Some of you may be wondering WHY am "I" celebrating this day, and WHY am I bringing awareness to this day?
The reason is "I" HAVE A RARE DISEASE CALLED STIFF PERSON SYNDROME. It only affects 1 in 1 MILLION people! That is ALL. I'm a RARE bird! This disease started to take my life, as I knew it, away in August of 2004. That one day in August this hit so hard, it threw me into bed and I could no longer work. The disease literally hit so hard and almost out of nowhere, it did throw me into bed riddled with spasms, unable to get out. 
What this disease does is it makes your muscles go stiff/rigid, then they spasm out of control because they are not supposed to be completely stiff. It starts in the core group of your muscles, taking your breath away, literally, and they work their way down all the way into your toes. This generally lasts several hours, to the rest of the day or night and sometimes into the next day. Rest. You need to rest as they can come right back at any moment. Just the right trigger is needed, including moving the wrong way. There is a lot more to this disease than just what I have written about so far, but suffice it to say these spasms can put up to 6 TONS of pressure on your skeletal system. My back is a train wreck. The spasms are even know to break ribs, they are so strong. 
Even though I have this HORRID disease that rules your every moment of your life, and it will never go away, I remain VERY positive and am a VERY happy person. It's my nature! I am still very optimistic and always look to the good in things and people. I've had to change the way I do a LOT of things, and some I just cannot do, but that is okay.
The person who helped me the MOST is Joni Erickson Tada. I don't know if you are familiar with her or not, but she had a diving accident when she was 17 and became a quadrapalegic. Today she has been married well over 30 happy years and has a HUGE organization. She does a lot of charitable work, especially one that helps people in third world countries obtain wheelchairs.
Joni paints! She uses mouthsticks! She has very strong faith, and states that is what pulled her through. There is a Bible verse she refers to that I have written down that has helped me tremendously! It is 2 Corinthians 12: 7-10 which says:
To keep me from becoming conceited because these surpassingly great revelations, there was given me a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me. Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. But he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Therefore, I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ's sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong. (NIV)  
I hung that verse up everywhere! On the bathroom mirror. On the refrigerator, on my bookcase, on my desk, everywhere!
I figured if Joni is a quadrapalegic could get by and live such a full life, so can I! That IS what saved me!  Thank you, Joni! That verse has gotten me through many years now!
So I take it day by day. I have to. No choice.
I have NOT written this to get Comments back patting me on the back for going through this so positively, but I have written this so that perhaps "I" can help someone else out who really needs it, just like Joni did! I just find being happy, positive and optimistic really helps anyone get through anything. It's not an easy thing to do at first, as there were many days I went through anger that this happened, which is why I say Joni helped me so much.
Anyone with a rare disease needs to find a role model they can look up to, in my  opinion, to help them get through.

Thank you for taking the time to read this and to be supportive, even in prayer, to ALL the people in this world suffering from Rare Diseases. THANK YOU!

Tuesday, February 28, 2012

Review, Author Info, and Giveaway for the Blog Hop!

   
       "An Unlikely Arrangement"
             by Patty Wiseman
          Review and Giveaway!
                       for the 
            "Leap Into Books Giveaway Hop!"
                 February 29th to March 5th


I would like to thank our Sponsors, I Am A Reader, Not A Writer and Jinky is Reading! THANK YOU!! Without you, this would NOT be possible! This is a really NEAT hop, as it is LEAP YEAR! We are celebrating it with this Hop! Leap year, as we know, only comes but once every 4 years, so this Hop is pretty special! Let's have fun now!

For this Blog Hop Giveaway, I am featuring:


         Patty Wiseman - Author of the book, 
               "An Unlikely Arrangement"




What a gorgeous cover! The book is as GREAT as the cover! It's a gripping story which takes place in the late 1920's, FULL of suspense, romance, intrigue and adventure! There is so much in this book that is attractive, it will appeal to a large audience of people who love many different genres! 


There will be 3 prizes - 3 Winners!
US and Canada only.
The link to enter this Giveaway will be down below.


1st  Prize - 1 Paperback "Signed" Copy!
2nd Prize - 1 Ebook and 1-$5 Amazon Gift Card
3rd Prize - 1 Ebook


Synopsis from Goodreads:
Young and rebellious, Ruth Squire defied her parents to live the high life of young people in 1929 Detroit. Handsome and responsible, Peter Kirby worked diligently to make his family's life easier. Rich and powerful, Eric Horton held the fates of many families in his hands. 

These three lives intertwine through the differing worlds of high society, middle-class life, and organized crime, culminating in an engagement, a kidnapping, a misunderstanding...  and murder.


My Take:
Patty Wiseman, the author of this book, has penned a story so intriguing, as soon as you open this book and start to turn the pages of this novel, she has you instantly in Detroit, Michigan, in 1929, meeting the Squire family.
We meet Ruth, the Squires' only daughter, who is 17, a senior in High School, and almost ready to graduate. She is a self-proclaimed young adult woman who is ready and able to make her own decisions in life. She knows she may have been a little bit rebellious in the past, once, and it did get her into trouble, but she feels the way she is being treated now by her parents is uncalled for. She gets locked in her bedroom, and is kept there until her mother allows her out, then the maid follows the instructions given her, unlocks the door and lets her out. While Ruth is locked in her bedroom, her parents decide they will be the ones to decide Ruth's fate for her, without her input. 
Ruth knows something is going on but she can't understand all this secrecy and being locked in her bedroom as she only did the rebellious thing one time. Why should she be punished so harshly for sneaking out of her bedroom window one time? She does not understand their reasoning. She finds herself continuously blaming herself over and over again for doing what she did. She feels that perhaps her parents are up to no good in making life altering decisions for her life, and she is right. When she finds out what they have done to her, setting up an arranged marriage for her, she is livid. She does not deserve this type of punishment for what she did. Again, she  blames herself for being rebellious. Little does she know she is about to meet the man to whom she has now been promised to marry, and will fall madly in love with him. His name is Peter, and he is a milkman by trade. Peter Kirby is very excited to meet Ruth, his future wife. 
At the same time, Ruth's parents are losing their home, unbeknownst to them. The bank, one man in particular who works there, Eric Horton, is up to no good. He is out to ruin many lives of people in order to gain power and position within the bank he works at as a Loan Officer as he feels he deserves it. He has worked there long enough and now it is time for him to be in a higher position. He uses his current position as power to get what he wants. He has plans of his own, and they involve Ruth. No one knows of  this man's plans, and the evil ones up his sleeve, nor do they know who he is involved with. Corruption - The Mob.
Ruth meets her future husband, Peter, at a dinner his mother put on for the two of them.  Anxious to meet each other, Ruth is pleasantly surprised to find out he is just as concerned as she is about this arranged marriage because they have never even met before. Ruth is immediately calmed to know he feels the same way she does. They go for a carriage ride together under the moonlight on a cold, wintry night. They find they are very attracted to each other, beyond what they could have ever  foreseen. This marriage will work out perfectly for the both of them, they agree. Maybe her parents weren't so bad with their decision after all.
Out of nowhere, Ruth is whisked off to a boarding school to get her away after she hears news that Peter will not be her husband after all, as he is betrothed to another woman. What has happened she wonders. She is left clueless.
Meanwhile, Eric Horton's evil plans are in place and have begun, thus sets the stage for this story of crime, kidnapping and murder.
I felt the author, Patty Wiseman, did a wonderful job writing this story. It is a captivating read. I really enjoyed this book, and HIGHLY suggest it to everyone. It is not just 'one' genre, but a mix of many, which will make it very enjoyable to a wide audience. I am giving this book a 5-star rating! 
For anyone who is wondering, YES, THERE "IS" A SEQUEL TO COME!


I received this book for “FREE” from the author, Patty Wiseman, in exchange to read the book and write a review about it. It is NOT required for this review to be either positive or negative, but, “of my own opinion.”  I was provided with “NO MONIES” to read and write a review for this book, except for the pure enjoyment of reading it.  I am disclosing this information in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255, http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/cfr/waisidx_03/16cfr255_03.html Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.

About the Author:  Patty Wiseman


The proud daughter of a WWII Navy vet who survived Pearl Harbor, Patty Wiseman was raised in Washington State. She attended The Wesleyan College in Bartlesville, Oklahoma, and later moved to Northeast Texas where she has resided for over 30 years.
Retired from her career of 24 years from Ernie Marshall Investments, she is now able to write full time. Writing has been a life-long passion and in 2007, she entered the National Novel Writers Month competition to write a novel in 30 days and won, entered in 2011 and won a 2nd time. Two novels came from those events, one of which is published, An Unlikely Arrangement, and the 2nd is the sequel, hopefully coming out in the summer.
She also has several short stories published, serves as secretary of the East Texas Writers Association, is a member of Northeast Texas Writers Organization, and is the 2nd place winner of the Rough Draft short story contest. Her family consists of 2 grown sons and a step-daughter and eleven grandchildren. Patty currently lives in Woodlawn, Texas with husband, Ron, and crème lab Cutter, and enjoys gardening, is an avid bowler, and loves to travel.
Patty can be reached at all of the following links!

FACEBOOK

Patty's WEBSITE





  

                                                                                                                                                 Nook - http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/an-unlikely-arrangement-patty-wiseman/1105119703?ean=2940013471672&itm=2&usri=an+unlikely+arrangement



To ENTER to have a chance to WIN one of these prizes, CLICK HERE!

                   Come join a 
                  Bloggiesta
           on March 30th, 31st and April 1st!

"Bloggiesta" is Sponsored by Sueysbooks! Click on that name and it will take you to her site! Thank You for sponsoring this! To me, it sounds GREAT!

I came across this either in our last Blog Hop, or from another link somehow. I'm not really sure how I did, but I am SO glad I did! I am definitely going to participate in this event because it sounds like a LOT of fun to me, and I'm going to learn a few things along the way, too!

What is this event?
What I am going to do is to copy and paste what she has on her Blog so you can see what this Bloggiesta is! It's pretty much a catch-up time planned out so YOU can get some of the things you have been working on, or TRYING to work on, either on your blog, or reading, reviews, etc., ALL DONE!
Also, there are Challenges they will Host where we can LEARN things! I'm excited about a few of them! They are listed below as well. She'll explain it better than I will, so here is the 'copy and paste' for you directly from her blog going into much more detail than what I could do to explain this! Again, click on her name at the LINK above, and it will take you directly to her site!
Just a suggestion, if you ARE going to participate in this event, I would go over and Follow the Blogs that are listed below. You'll get MORE information along the way and it will benefit you!


We are so excited to announce that Bloggiesta, the wonderful blogging event where we focus on all things blog related, is back! It's taken a bit of a hiatus because Natasha from Maw Books who created this event has had a few other things going on (like a baby in the works!) and she decided awhile back that she needed to hand it over to whoever was willing which turned out to be me - Sueysbooks and Danielle of There's a Book. Hopefully we can make it happen and keep up the awesomeness that Natasha created.

So here's the date to get on your calendar right now:

March 30 , 31 and April 1

But first, for those who have no idea what I'm talking about, Bloggiesta is a three day event where participants will spend as much time as they can working on fixing all those pesky blog related tasks.... all those things that you think "some day I'm going to clean that up, or change that around, or add that thing!" Everyone will post a "to do" list, or goals they want to accomplish and then all of us will work together to get our lists done. The fun thing is that we can cheer each other on, and learn from each other and have a blast doing it. It's the perfect time to figure out that something you've always wanted to do, but didn't know how... or to get caught up on reviews, or to fix your labels, or take control of your Reader... or do oh so many other things!

As part of the event we'll have several mini-challenges where hosts who are experts at a certain blog related thing will share their knowledge and teach us something. It's fun to add those challenges to your to do list and learn something new. We'll be asking that those interested in hosting a challenge come back to sign up next week on Tuesday. So be thinking about what you have some extra expertise in and come back and sign up! 

Just a couple ideas we've had so far are:
  • how to use Facebook, Twitter and/or Pinterest to promote your blog
  • how to add social media icons to your sidebar
  • what should be in a sidebar anyway?
  • HTML for Dummies
  • SEO for Dummies
  • what about vlogging?
You get the idea. The list goes on and on. We'll talk more about these ideas and others in the host sign up post!

Right now, the important thing is to get all these dates in your head:

*Bloggiesta Event: March 30, 31 & April 1

*Challenge Hosts Sign-ups Start: Tues. Feb. 28th

*Participant Sign-ups Start: March. 1st

Please spread the news around and let all your readers know about this! We'd love for everyone to participate! Remember, this is NOT just a book blogging event, it's for anyone with a blog that wants to join in the fun and learning and chatting. (Past participants have mentioned that the Twitter interaction is one of the best things about this event, so if you don't have Twitter yet, now is the time! Follow@bloggiesta and #bloggiesta)

We are so excited to get this going again! We know a lot of people have missed it and wondered what happened, but now, we're back! We hope you all join us for the fun! Let's break out the guacamole and mariachi band! Ole!


Bookmark Sueysbooks and make SURE to go back this Thursday, March 1st, to sign up! Again, this is copied and pasted from Sueysbooks so make sure you go to HER site and check it out for MORE INFO!

Saturday, February 25, 2012

Blogging from A to Z Challenge - April 2012 Come and JOIN us!

"Blogging from A to Z Challenge - April 2012!"
Come join us!
26 Posts starting Sunday, April 1st, 2012!
NO! It's NOT an April Fool's joke! It's true!
Come have FUN!
You get Sunday's OFF for Good Behavior!
We do START on Sunday, April 1st, 2012! The ONLY Sunday we Blog!
"YOU" choose your theme of what YOU will write about!
MY THEME: BOOKS!




Blogging from A to Z Challenge - April 2012!


This is the brainchild of Arlee Bird, at Tossing it Out, the A to Z Challenges to post the letter of the alphabet every day during the month of April, with Sundays off for good behavior. Since April 1 falls on a Sunday, that will be the day we start with A. Whether you go with a theme or freestyle, your post must match the letter of the alphabet for that day. Add your name to the list, grab the badge in the right sidebar, and when the Challenge begins, start by visiting the blog immediately after your own. Set a goal – we recommend five blogs a day, more if you are able.


When you visit other Blogs in ANY type of Challenge or Blog Hop, etc., you learn SO many things! You find other Challenges, Blog Hops, or different ways of Posting, learn new things from the articles they write, and SO much MORE! I have even found NEW ways of using Widgets! It is a wonderful thing to do, and a GREAT way to help support other Bloggers who are in on this same event! Leave a comment that you stopped by! It's ALWAYS WONDERFUL to receive COMMENTS and SUPPORT from other Bloggers!  

Don't go to the SAME blogs every day, unless you want to, but broaden your horizons by visiting more and different blogs, too! Visit many different Blogs! You will find and learn a LOT! I've learned this from my own experience! 


A HUGE "THANK YOU" TO OUR HOSTS, and we suggest you FOLLOW THEM to be able to stay on top of EVERYTHING that is going on, or changes, etc. (You can click on every Blog address and the link will take you there so you can follow ALL of them!) Here they are: 
A to Z Challenge Blog and the hosts: Arlee Bird at Tossing it Out, Alex J. Cavanaugh, Stephen Tremp at Breakthrough Blogs, Jenny Pearson at Pearson Report, Matthew McNish at The QQQE, Tina Downey at Life is Good, Jeremy Hawkins at Retro-Zombie, DL Hammons at Cruising Altitude, Shannon Lawrence at The Warrior Muse, Elizabeth Mueller,Damyanti Biswas at Amlokiblogs, Karen Gowen at Coming Down the Mountain, and Konstanz Silverbow at No Thought 2 Small. We also have a Facebook page,  Email address 2012azinfo@gmail.com, and the Twitter hashtag is #AtoZChallenge.


I would HIGHLY suggest you follow this Challenge on Twitter and Facebook! Here are the links to do so:

Twitter:      https://twitter.com/#!/@AprilA2Z
Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/atozchallenge?sk=wall 


What is this, you ask? As it states above, and here is MORE information: Everyone who signs up for this Challenge, and the goal is to have at 'least' 1,000 Bloggers to participate! (If this number is NOT met, we will STILL HAVE THIS CHALLENGE!) you will write a Blog Post using the letters from A to Z all through April. We are to write a Blog Post EVERY day, starting from Sunday, April 1st, 2012! We will have Sundays OFF! Whew! There will be a total of 26 posts for the month! This will be IN ADDITION TO, in my instance, Book Reviews, Tours, Blog Hops, or anything else I may blog about in books!
It seems as if there are a LOT of writers who have signed up. I am just a Book Reviewer, but would LOVE to talk BOOKS! That is my LOVE! The Sponsors also put up a call for Photographers! So it sounds like there are a LOT of different Blogs out there that are participating!

This is a great opportunity to discipline yourself, grow as a blogger, and make new friends – come join us! 

Are YOU going to participate? If you would like to, PLEASE GO TO THIS LINK AND DO SO! HOPEFULLY BEFORE MARCH 1st, 2012! That is the goal the Sponsors would like to meet, that BEFORE March 1st they have 1,000 or MORE participants! Here's the LINK: http://amloki.blogspot.com/2012/02/pre-march-sign-up-blast-for.html

I hope to see some of my fellow Bloggers there!

There is a really cool article on a Survival Guide at http://www.a-to-zchallenge.com/2012/02/dls-guide-to-surviving-to-z.html and what I have done already is to post my Alphabet, and started to write down what I want to write about for each corresponding letter. I hope this gives me a good head-start! A lot of people are already starting to write their posts! If you figure there will be 26 Posts, that is a LOT! This is the end of Feburary, we have an entire MONTH before we are to start to post! This gives us a LOT of time to start writing NOW and saving the Posts we want to Post! That sounds good to me! I'll continue to take the next several days and think of the letters of the Alphabet and at least write down what I want to write about for that letter. Once I have gotten as far as I can for that, I WILL start to write Posts NOW, in preparation for the BIG DAY!  I should be AHEAD of the game! We ALL can be by doing it this way! Don't forget that survival kit LINK at the top of this paragraph! It has VERY useful information in it! USE IT!

How am I going to do this? I will be posting a brief Post on my Home Page, giving the link to THIS page for that days Letter! This page will hold ALL the letters of my Posts for the entire Challenge! When this is all over, the alphabet will end up being backwards if you think about it. Hmmm?  I'll have to give that some thought!  Figure out how to do this by keeping the alphabet by A to Z! NOT Z to A!

If you'd like to leave COMMENTS on my Posts,, PLEASE DO SO ON THE HOME PAGE FOR THAT DAY! This page does NOT allow you to post a comment for every new Post.  That's the way Blogger is set up. Thanks for understanding! Here I go - Jumping into something I 've never done before, but REALLY looking forward to doing so! Isn't that what life is all about? Doing things beyond your comfort zone to keep it fresh and exciting! Sounds like SO much fun! I'll get to see how I grow in my blogging, too! FUN!

Now go on over to: http://www.a-to-zchallenge.com/p/2012-to-z-challenge-sign-up-list.html to sign up and participate! I am #725! This is HUGE!!! I've NEVER seen anything like this SO big!  If ALL of 'them' can do it, so can "YOU" and I!

Tuesday, February 21, 2012

     "Crazy in Paradise" by Deborah Brown


This book is part of a Virtual Book Blog Tour through CrazyBookTours.blogspot.com Today is MY Blog's Post Date! I LOVED this book, and think you will, too! It is VERY entertaining, and takes place in the Florida Keys! Pack your bags, as there is a group of Cottages there just waiting for you! Or, there is always the beach!


Synopsis from Goodreads:  Crazy in Paradise (Mystery & Thrillers)


Description: "A girl, her Glock and a hot guy." Dying in the middle of the summer in the Florida Keys is sweaty business. When Madison Westin inherits her aunt’s beachfront motel, a variety of colorful tenant’s - drunks, ex-cons, and fugitives come along. The big problem: First, she has to wrestle control from both the lawyer and the conniving motel manager. She enlists the help of her new best friend whose motto is “never leave home without your Glock.” Welcome to Tarpon Cove, land of hot tan lines, drugs on demand, not to mention blackmail and murder.

My Take:
"5 Stars!"
This was a really neat book in that it was full of conversation. Almost the entire book was conversation, unless it needed some description or other things to be explained, for the most part it was pure conversation. This is the first time I have come across writing like this. It was rather interesting, very well done, and I enjoyed it immensely.
Madison Elizabeth Westin, a newly divorced and a cynical character because of it, yet perhaps not so cynical as she was "realistic" in her approach to life now, was packed and ready to go visit her favorite aunt and second mother to her, Elizabeth.
Elizabeth lived in Tarpon Cove, Florida, in the Keys, running a bunch of cottages/motel, and living in the main house on the property. Madison is ready to leave when she finds out Aunt Elizabeth has passed away. She was so shocked.
Somehow her Aunt's attorney had been left directions to coordinate the funeral, without any say-so of the family whatsoever, and the entire funeral turns out to be a fiasco which infuriates Madison.
I have to say the author has written this event to be absolutely hilarious in places you would least expect it. First, at the funeral home, where the Funeral Director has her Aunt sitting straight up in her casket and people feel like she is staring at them and is a little offended. The attorney schedule a couple of local drunks who knew her to get up to speak about her. One has to be carried away, the other escorted out.
Only in the keys would people be attending a funeral be sitting around in bathing suit cover-ups, tropical shirts, cut-off blue jeans shorts and more. Madison was the only person dressed in black. She was very angry about this entire funeral that her Aunt's attorney set up. This did not make sense to her as to why the family would not be allowed to take part in the planning of this funeral.
For anyone who has ever traveled to the Florida Keys, or spent any time  there at all, this can be very typical of the way many people dress and act, which is what was so hilarious about this for me. It was so laid back and  true-to-life I was in hysterics! I remember some of the characters I met on the beach, and couldn't help but to relate them to some of these characters in this book! ONLY in the Keys! Now I was left wondering WHAT could happen next?
First she finds a little romance! Okay, one HOT guy!
Madison later finds out she has inherited this property her aunt owned. Now she has to fight with this attorney, and the Hotel Management guy, who does nothing but give her grief. If anyone needs to be cynical and realistic now, it's Madison. All of these new problems now, which just does not make sense to her, nor the Reader, ALL being caused between these two men. The attorney blames is on Probate Court, the Maintenance Man states her Aunt appointed him to do this and that. None of this makes sense to Madison.
With this comes a lot of problems, problems you would never think of! From her meddling mother setting her up on dates she never would have gone on on her own, to the very colorful tenants and the visitors of Tarpon Cove, to a dead body.
Out of the blue, Madison gets herself involved in a Murder/Mystery which puts her and other people's lives in danger.
Only in Tarpon Cove!
I happened to greatly enjoy this story. I thought it was a lot of fun to read, and the interjected humor was a riot. I really liked the main character, Madison's, approach to life. Cynical at times, yet not so cynical but more of being realistic towards life. She had some tough things thrown at her with very little knowledge or understanding as to what was going on. She was like a fish out of water at times.
This was a great story to lose yourself in. I enjoyed every part of it!
Now, throw all your cares away and read this book!
I HIGHLY suggest this book for a beach read, or a great Winter Vacation in Tarpon Cove right now!  Escape the cold 'now' and go on vacation down to the warmth of the Florida Keys! Take this trip! Turn up the heat in your house, throw on your bathing suit, grab your flip-flops and your cover-up, and put on some tropical music! Don't forget the beach towel and the sunscreen! You'll have transported yourself directly to the Florida Keys, in the thick of it! Say "Hi!" to Madison for me!

I received this book for “FREE” from "Crazy Book Tours" through Deborah Brown-Create/Space Publishing, in exchange to read the book and write a review about it. It is NOT required for this review to be either positive or negative, but “of my own opinion.”  I was provided with “NO MONIES” to read and write a review for this OR ANY book, except for my pure enjoyment of reading it.  I am disclosing this information in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255, http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/cfr/waisidx_03/16cfr255_03.html
Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.


About the Author:  Deborah Brown



From Goodreads:
I’ve been writing, in one way or another for as long as I can remember; writing poetry, short stories, a romance novel secretly stashed under the bed and sappy love letters. My love of reading began when I was seven, the day I opened the cover of my first Mrs. Piggle Wiggle book. Mrs. P gave lessons to other children in how to behave and to me I learned to love the written word. I live in South Florida, with my ungrateful animals, where Mother Nature takes out her bad attitude in the form of hurricanes.
On the Goodreads Author Profile Page, it states the genres Debra enjoys are  Mystery & Thrillers, Humor! That's where this great humor in this book comes from!


If you would like to purchase this book, click on the Amazon photo and it will take you directly to the page in Amazon! Also, by purchasing this book through my blog, my blog does earn a small percentage of the sale, and that WILL help to support this blog! Thank you in advance!



Thursday, February 16, 2012

IT'S THAT TIME AGAIN!
ANOTHER BLOG HOP!

"Random Acts of Kindness"
Giveaway Blog Hop!
Feb 17th to Feb 21st till 11:59pm!

HUGE thanks to I am a Reader, Not a Writer and Read for Your Future! Thanks SO much for sponsoring this Blog Hop!

A HUGE THANK YOU to ALL my Readers! THANK YOU! Here is MY giving BACK to YOU! Have you ever just received something from someone out of the blue, for no reason whatsoever? Well, here is YOUR chance! I have a gift for some lucky winner 'just because'!

What? You want to enter to win something?
Well, "CLICK HERE!" then! Good luck, and THANK YOU, Readers!

Friday, February 10, 2012

Before I Go To Sleep by S J Watson

BEFORE I GO TO SLEEP, by S J Watson



REVIEW:
Synopsis from Goodreads:
'As I sleep, my mind will erase everything I did today. I will wake up tomorrow as I did this morning. Thinking I'm still a child. Thinking I have a whole lifetime of choice ahead of me ...' Memories define us. So what if you lost yours every time you went to sleep? Your name, your identity, your past, even the people you love - all forgotten overnight. And the one person you trust may only be telling you half the story. Welcome to Christine's life.

My Take:
I saw an ad for this book, and because of the synopsis of it, it had me hooked!  I really wanted to read this book because of the very interesting description alone. I grabbed this book when I could, and read it almost all the way through. I did not want to put it down but for when I had to, for life's demands. Frustrating! When I was reading this book, I thought to myself this debut author is really outstanding the way he creatively and masterfully uses the suspense in this story to create it. How he would allow Christine, the main character, and us, the Reader, only learn so much at a time about her life, in snippets at a time, here and there. S J Watson is an author I will be watching for another book from!
I loved, loved, loved the build up of the suspense in this book! It takes you to a point it is so built up, we, the Reader, can't take it anymore! I was reading it furiously trying to figure out what was going on as there are so many missing pieces for Christine, and us, the Reader. As I was reading this, I think I was JUST as confused at times as much as Christine was, as the events of her life, as she learns them, and in the way she learns them, unfold.
Christine wakes up every morning with NO memory of her life, not even her name. She feels as if she is in her 20's. She feels young, yet when she sees her hands, she does remember what they used to look like, and these are not her hands. The age spots, the dry skin, the wrinkles. They look so different to her than what she thinks they should look like. When she looks in the mirror, she does not see the woman she knows she is. Who is this woman looking back at her? Surely this is not her. She is young, and the woman looking back at her is old.
Every morning she wakes up next to a man whom she does not recognize. Who is he? Why is she sleeping with this man? Why is she in the same bed with him? She learns this is her husband, Ben. He has to tell her who he is, who she is, that there was a bad accident that has taken her memory away. He is her husband and he loves her very much. He takes her on a tour of their house, shows her every room, where to go for this and that, and about her life in general.  He gets her to the kitchen and he leaves for work. Christine is left at home so confused. Put yourself in this situation and you can feel how Christine feels, completely lost.
Unbeknownst to her husband, Christine's doctor encourages her to keep a daily journal of all her memories as she learns them. He reminds her not to tell Ben about the journal. This journal is for her to help her remember who she is. She can only read and write in this journal as long as he calls her to tell her to do so, as she can't remember there is a journal, nor where she keeps it, hidden from Ben. As she rereads this journal every day, she starts to learn a lot about herself, yes, every day all over again. She learns about her life as it was and as it is. This helps, yet doesn't because she has more questions she wants answered. She starts to have flashbacks of memories. Bad memories. This is where the suspense really starts to build and build. The most intriguing part of this journal is what she has written on the inside cover. Three words. "Don't trust Ben". Why not? This part she does not know. She has not written down why not to trust him.
Christine becomes obsessed with reading this journal every day, and writing in it. She takes risks of Ben finding out, too, because when she learns something about herself, her first thought and action is to get that journal and write it down, even if Ben is home.
The story plays out the rest of the way and it is EXCELLENT!
I don't want to give any further information about this book than what I have given so far. I don't want to spoil this reading experience for you. I can say, however, that this is one book NOT to miss! Get it on your 'to read' list!
This book is an excellent build up of suspense, intrigue, and finally learning all that happened, has happened, or how it happened, and what happens next.  Confusing, I know! The whole book can be and is confusing. It's meant to be.  Imagine how Christine feels! Oh, if I could just say more! I will - Read this book!
I purchased this book for my own reading pleasure, and this is my honest opinion I have written about this book.
You can grab a copy of this book by clicking on the link on the left side icon at Amazon. It is in hard cover, paperback now, and in ebook format, which is how I read this book. You've GOT to read this one!



About the Author from Amazon's Author Page:




S. J. Watson lives in London and worked in the National Health Service for a number of years. In 2009 Watson was accepted into the first Faber Academy Writing a Novel course, a rigorous and selective program that covers all aspects of the novel-writing process. Before I Go to Sleep is the result.
This biography was provided by the author or their representative.

Also, on the Author's Blog, he has ALL the covers of this book from many countries. In my opinion, I don't particularly like the US cover, which is at the TOP of this Post and also on the link to Amazon to purchase the book. I LOVE the UK and France covers! They really get your attention! My second choice of covers are the Canadian and Australian versions as they really portray the confusion Christine is in over 'who am I?' 

Here is the UK Cover:

Here is the Australian cover:

Which do YOU prefer?

This debut author has a Blog where you can learn more about him at this link: http://sj-watson.blogspot.com/2012/02/guardian-masterclass.html

Check it out! He has a LOT of posts on his Blog! It will be very interesting to get inside this author's head to learn more about him! At least I think so!

You can also follow this Author on Twitter at this link: https://twitter.com/#!/sj_watson  I am!

You can follow this Author on Facebook at this link:
https://www.facebook.com/S.J.Watson.Writer  I am!

THIS BOOK IS MY FEBRUARY 2012 "JUST FOR FUN READING CHALLENGE". (On the right side-bar there is a photo of a girl reading a book. Click on that and it will take you to the original Post for this Challenge. This is a group that was made by Dollycaccas where we choose '1' book a month 'just for us' to read! No review books, no ARC's, no books that authors have requested you read for them, but a book of YOUR CHOICE!


Thursday, February 9, 2012

FREE Today ONLY! Thursday, February 9th, till 11:59pm - 


The Keeper, The Stoney Ridge Series, by Suzanne Woods Fisher






Get YOUR copy today!
Click here! It's FREE!

Monday, February 6, 2012

Beatrice Munson by Lorena Bathey



This is going to be one of my favorite books of 2012! I dearly LOVED this book!

It's time to meet the women of Vista Heights, in one of the cul-de-sac's! A delightfully fun and very refreshing read, yet full of depth!  Hilarious at times!  Brilliantly written! Compassionate. The plot is so true-to-life. These women could be any one of us. Contemporary Fiction/Chic-Lit at it's finest!  The story is touching, moving, and endearing, and yet goes much deeper than that in this book. Each time I would go and pick this book back up to read, it was like opening a brand new present for myself! I thoroughly enjoyed this book, and HIGHLY RECOMMEND this book to you to take your mind off the daily, mundane things that tend to happen in life. Take a day or two and spend it with these women! You won't want to put it down. These women stay in your mind till you pick it back up.
The women in the cul-de-sac inside of Vista Heights are living a regular, nice, but mundane life in their little worlds, when someone new moves into the house that just sold on their street.  A person who is about to change their lives, they just don't know it yet.  One of the main characters, a woman named Marissa, recently divorced, has lived on this street since before her two children were born. She is very curious as to who it is moving into the house across the street.  She is peeking through her curtains trying to see who it is that has just moved in, hoping she doesn't get caught!  So, she bakes up a plan!  Brownies!  Later that afternoon she takes them over to meet the new owner.  Oh, does she meet her!  After introducing herself, she thought she recognized this woman.  Sure enough!  "Hello, I'm Beatrice Munson."  Oh my!  When she figures out that this was her High School nemesis, she is determined to befriend her in a new light.
Oh, Beatrice Munson!  She had what everyone wanted back in High School when Marissa knew her. She had style, charisma, drive, dreams, and even the most handsome boyfriend in the school that Marissa always envied.  And now, Beatrice still manages to have what everyone wants, even as grown adults.  Beatrice has a style all her own that many people envy.  She moves into Vista Heights, and takes the neighborhood by storm with most everything she does! I LOVE this character!
Not only do Marissa and Beatrice become dearly close friends, but they become very true and dear friends.  ALL of the characters who befriend Beatrice Munson have their lives' change for the better, as Beatrice teaches them how, through life enriching occurrences, to the every day grind, how to have real meaning in the mundane. Beatrice puts a new spin on life for these women.  She teaches them to go after their dreams and reach them! Not just dream them, but to really reach them, create them, LIVE them, and they do.
This book is a truly a charm of a read! I could not stop turning the pages of this book!
One of my favorite lines in this book is this:
"We have all been living in a state of perpetuity and Beatrice's paradigm of freedom just shone a spotlight on it."
I received this book for “FREE” from the Author, Lorena Bathey, in exchange to read and write a review about this book.  It is NOT required for my review I write to be either positive or negative, but, “of my own opinion.”  I was NOT provided with “ANY” monies to accept this book, “NOR” to read it, NOR were “ANY” monies given to me to write the review for this book.  All that was ‘expected’ of me was to enjoy the pure pleasure of reading it.  Again, the opinions expressed for and about this book are ‘of my own opinion’.  I am disclosing this information in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255, http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/cfr/waisidx_03/16cfr255_03.html Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.

About the Author:




Growing up in the Bay Area of Northern California, Lorena Bathey attended St. Mary’s College in Moraga graduating with a degree in English. Then she traveled, learned about life, and developed great fodder for a book. Losing her mother to cancer and her own marriage’s demise brought her to find herself. She wrote Happy Beginnings: How I Became My Own Fairy Godmother (www.amazon.com) and found speaking and empowering others was her passion. 

Lorena Bathey found after writing her first book that characters were visiting her mind and wouldn't leave. She was introduced to Marissa, Andrea, Lily, Deidre and Beatrice and her first novel, Beatrice Munson, came to life. After finishing that book she was inspired to write more novels and she knew that pursuing her passion was the best way to live her life. So a writer she became.

After meeting the love of her life, they embarked on the thrilling life to follow their dreams bringing their families along for the ride. Today Lorena has nine novels in her writing queue all with screenplays in the works. 

But writing isn't the only muse that inspires Lorena. She has become a passionate photographer and likes to push the envelope taking shots while learning how to navigate Photoshop. Travel, walking, enjoying new restaurants, and Italy are other loves and things she makes sure she has time for.

Find her at Lorena@LorenaBBooks.com or at www.LorenaBBooks.com https://www.facebook.com/pages/Lorena-B-Books/138014032926011?ref=tn_tnmn and at www.twitter.com/lorenabbooks

If you would like to purchase this book, click on the link here on the left! ALL proceeds go to supporting this blog.


Lorena's NEWEST BOOK out is called
"The House on Plunkett Street"
Synopsis from Amazon's Editorial Review:
Phoebe Bertram is boring, bland, and unexciting. She works a job that is inadequate of her abilities. She has a boyfriend that is a dud. She is on the treadmill of her life and doesn’t know how to get off. 

With changes in her job and her apartment going condo, she must find a new place to live. Her friend Meghan brings her to the perfect apartment and the moment Phoebe steps in the door she knows there is something atypical about this perspective residence. 

What she never expects are the three ghosts that arrive on her couch to teach her how life is really meant to be lived. 

Author of Beatrice Munson, Lorena Bathey, has brought us another great example of character study combined with a moral at the end of the story. This book will make you laugh, cry, and look at your world with new eyes.