Sunday, April 29, 2012

The New York Times Top 10 Best Seller List! MY weekly MEME created for YOU to "BE IN THE KNOW!" Grab these HOT titles NOW and read what everyone else is reading at the same time! Don't miss out on these HOT books! Enjoy!

     
         New York Times Best Seller List
                      The "TOP 10"!
            Print and ebooks combined
                         Week ending 4-27-12


Click on the NAME OF THE BOOK IN COLOR, and it will take you straight to the Amazon page where you can purchase it NOW!


1.  Fifty Shades of Grey: Book One of the Fifty Shades Trilogy
      by E L James



2.  Fifty Shades Darker: Book Two of the Fifty Shades Trilogy
      by E L James



3.  Fifty Shades Freed: Book Three of the Fifty Shades Trilogy
      by E L James



4.  The Innocent by David Baldacci


5.  The Witness by Nora Roberts


6.  The Lucky One by Nicholas Sparks


7.  Calico Joe by John Grisham


8.  Unnatural Acts (Stone Barrington) by Stuart Woods


9.  Guilty Wives by James Patterson and Dave Ellis


10. What Doesn't Kill You by Iris Johansen


ENJOY READING THESE "BEST OF THE BEST!"


The information obtained for this list is available at this link:New York Times Best Seller List for the week ending as of 4-27-12 This is where I obtain all my information to give to you. 


When you click on these books' names and purchase them from this Blog through my Amazon Affiliate account, you are helping me to support my Blog! Thank you in advance for any purchases you  make!


This is my WEEKLY MEME created by me for YOU! This list of the TOP TEN is according to the New York Times Best Seller List, brought to you as a courtesy by myself so you are informed and up-to-date on what are the HOTTEST books selling at this moment! Grab these HOT books NOW by clicking on the titles of these books in the blue/purple colors up above in the list here on my Blog! Always feel free to LEAVE A COMMENT! COMMENTS ARE LOVED!


Happy Reading this week!


Have YOU PRE-ORDERED YOUR COPY OF "INSURGENT", Book 2 of the Divergent Trilogy Series, by Veronica Roth yet? Do it NOW! 
If you purchase the regular book, it will be shipped out on MAY 1st, the RELEASE DATE! 
IF you bought this as an ebook, it will be delivered to you ON your Kindle on May 1st! I cannot wait! I ordered the ebook!
I cannot wait! I am SOOOO looking forward to reading this book! Here is the LINK to purchase it NOW! Just click on the photo down below! (FYI: OVER 35,000 copies have already been pre-ordered! I am really wondering if this book will make #1 next week? We'll have to wait and see!)


Wait! You have NOT read "Divergent", Book One, yet? Oh, no! You HAVE TO READ IT! I HIGHLY recommend this Trilogy! It is an amazing book! This is the LINK to my REVIEW: http://www.lauriehere.blogspot.com/2012/04/divergent-review.html 
Here's the LINK to purchase it, too! Amazon has combined the two books to be purchased for right around $20 even! This is a series for Young Adults, and Adults will appreciate this book just as much! Adults will be able to read further into this book and see a possible futuristic Government! Quite amazing! Grab your copies today! Please DON'T miss this AWESOME opportunity! Veronica Roth, the author, pens an amazing story that you cannot put down! I never say that unless I mean it!


By the way - WANT TO ENTER FOR A CHANCE TO WIN A $100 AMAZON GIFT CODE? CLICK ON THIS LINK TO ENTER! You have until the 30th to enter!

http://www.lauriehere.blogspot.com/p/win-chance-for-amazon-100-gift-card.html
Good Luck!
Laurie
 


Saturday, April 28, 2012

Blogging from A to Z Challenge - April 2012 Letter "Z: The LAST day!

V'p



This is ALL possible with HUGE thanks to the following Sponsors: http://www.a-to-zchallenge.com/ AND to Arlee Bird at http://www.tossingitout.blogspot.com/ AND MORE Sponsors I have posted above!

Saturday, April 28th, 2012
Theme:  Books and Blogging
Subject: Letter "Z"
Topic:    "ZERO,  ZED, Zeea, Zee,  ZIP it up!  The LAST Post!  All done!  The END of this Challenge!"


This is IT! Z for Zero! OVER! Zed. Zeea. Zee. Zip it up! The LAST POST! ALL done! The END of this Challenge!
Guess what? I completed my Posts EVERY day! I did NOT miss ONE post! YEAH, FOR ME!!!! I was SO good posting EVERY single day! It came close a few times! I had yesterday's post posted at 11:58pm! Almost! But nope! I DID IT!
This Challenge has been a LOT of fun! I have enjoyed it immensely! I have LOVED writing something every day for the certain letter designated for the day, and ALWAYS could talk about something related to books! Books, they are a natural for me! What can I say? It is my second nature! 
I want to thank the Sponsors' of this Challenge and ALL the people who have visited my Blog AND LEFT COMMENTS on my blog! I found I had some friends participating in this Challenge with me, and that was GREAT! I also visited some Blogs as well, and thoroughly enjoyed this ENTIRE Challenge! To ALL the Blogs I could NOT get to, as there were almost 2,000 participating, THANK YOU! Next time! I cannot express my thanks ENOUGH to EVERYONE! THANK YOU!!!!!
I hope if there is another Challenge like this in the future, I get an email letting me know so I can participate again!
IF there are any questions, comments, or anything else you would like to see, PLEASE TELL ME! I WOULD LOVE TO KNOW!
Bye, for now!
Thank you ALL!
Laurie
IF you would like to read ALL my Blog Posts on the letters from A to Z, in order, then click on the TAB ABOVE called "Blogging from A to Z Challenge - April 2012" OR click on this LINK:     
I will keep this current page up until the end of June for now, as long as I don't need the page for something else. AT THE END OF JUNE and IF in the event I "do" need the page for something else, I will re-post the entire page under the TAB called GIVEAWAYS AT THE VERY BOTTOM OF THAT  PAGE! The subject is BOOKS (and Blogging), the topics based upon the letters from A to Z.
For NOW, please click on the TAB ABOVE called "Blogging From A to Z Challenge - April 2012".

THANK YOU!                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                        

Divergent - Review


I enjoyed this book immensely! Wow! 
Like many of you, I feel this is one of the BEST BOOKS of 2012!
Just think, I was NOT going to read this book! Had I not, I would have missed out on one of the BEST books of this year! I have to say all the 'hype' about this book swayed me into wanting to read it! As a Fiction reader who does not really get into the Dystopian genre, at first I was not planning on reading this book, as it is one genre I usually don't enjoy only because I have great difficulty envisioning the future in the many different ways this genre can go. However, with this book, I had no trouble at all! So leaving my comfort zone, I HAD to read this book, and I did NOT make a mistake, nor was I disappointed at all. I LOVED THIS BOOK! The action never stopped, the author kept you engaged in the story completely, and there were not any lull's in this book at all. The author spent a lot of time really thinking about the story line as she wrote this book. Something was always going on, and you could not stop turning the pages! I read this book in two days. I did not want to put it down but only for the demands of real life. Darn life! I read the ebook version, and I was just at Amazon and pulled it up to copy and paste the cover of the book, and I noticed this book is 576 pages. NO WAY! I have read some 600 pages books before, but I will admit, I have NEVER been SO entertained as I was with this book ever! I coasted through this book in two days! Other books of this length have taken me forever to read, and to a point where I have gotten bored reading them, but NOT with this book! I never would have guessed this book was that length even while reading it. I was still ready for more! I could and should go through and reread this book a second time as I know there ARE things I probably missed the first time around, and I will read and understand it the second time in a different light, knowing now what I didn't know before I read it. This is that type of book in which you could read it several times, and get more out of it each time you read it. It almost beckons you to read it again!
Since the release of Book 2 in this Trilogy is coming on May 1st, there is a lot of hype going on with all kinds of different types of activities and things in celebration of it. It is called "Insurgent". Book 3 is not yet named. Now I have also learned there will be a movie made of the Trilogy, as well! Yeah!!! We have to wait until 2015, but I am SO glad I am reading these books now because I cannot imagine a movie fitting in all 3 books. There would be no possible way! Everyone always hears the true statement that the book IS always better than the film! I believe in this case this truth will hold up! The neat thing about the movie will be our being able to put some faces and character traits to the characters in the books as we read or reread them. This would hold especially true for the people who see the movie first, then read the books. 
Yes, Veronica Roth, the author, this book being her "DEBUT" NOVEL, (amazing!) makes these books even MORE amazing being she is only 23 years old! Wow! I have read somewhere that when she was in her college classes she was actually writing this book! Heck, after this book, and the next 2 that are coming, AND a movie, who needs college? I believe she already has the art of writing down pat! Roth's creative writing has her set for life! I can also say after this Trilogy is over, people are going to want MORE from her! The demand is here now, imagine after everything else comes out! Wow! It's just amazing! Her writing NEVER bores you. Her writing engages you throughout the book and you do not want to stop reading. I have not quite come across an author who can have so much activity going on, have it to be so believable, and turn a fiction reader who stays away from the dystopian genre to fall madly in love with these books! I truly cannot wait to read Insurgent! She is amazingly talented with her writing! Wow! I think of where her career will be taking her since now she is  only 23 years old, and I just can't imagine it. I get goosebumps! I can see many more books coming from this author as well. She will not be stopping here with this trilogy. Imagine being inside of her head? Wow! ALL the stories that are going on inside of it, this is only the beginning! 
This book starts in futuristic Dystopian Chicago. The main character in this book is Tris (actually Beatrice). Each family belongs to a different Faction, or Government. (Government is not mentioned in the book at all. It is supposed. This is where the adult who is reading this book can enjoy this Young Adult novel as we watch how this 'supposed' government is running and what they control. It is quite interesting to think of a government such as this one. This is what will appeal to the adults reading this book.) Each family lives under one of these 5 Factions. Tris' family happens to be Abnegation.
The 5 Factions are (and I looked up the actual definitions from the dictionary):
Abnegation - To refuse or deny oneself; to serve others before yourself.
Erudite - Great knowledge/scholarly
Candor - State or quality of being frank or open; sincere in speech or expression
Amity - Friendship; peaceful; harmony; peace between nations.
Dauntless - To be different; to deviate.
There is one more area where people can fit into, although it is not a recognized  Faction, and that is to be Divergent. To be Divergent is to not fit into any 'one' of these five Factions, but to fit into a little bit of every one of the five Factions, which Tris, original name Beatrice, seems to fit into. She keeps this to herself, but a few people do eventually notice. Special to Tris, yet also common to a select few others, Divergent is something that I got the feeling that it is not something you really want people to know about.
In the beginning of this book, we learn when teenagers reach the age of 16, each year there is a huge event at school where these 16 year old's choose the Faction they believe they fit into, and this may or may not be what the rest of their family is or was. As the time leads up to this big event, this is when these teens have to make this huge decision which will affect the rest of their lives. What Faction do they believe their lives fit into? This is where on the front cover of the book it says "One choice can transform you". Oh, how true! It is up to each individual to choose what Faction they are going to join before going on stage, cutting themselves with a knife, and dripping their blood into the bowl for the Faction they have chosen. 
I had mentioned Tris. She also has a brother who has turned 16 this year as well, and both of them need to make the huge decision as to which Faction they feel they fit into at this major point in their lives. I felt this was a 'huge' decision to made at such a young age, however, what a better age to become influenced into the Faction they choose because they can learn more about the Faction and slip right into it much more easily at this age than at any other time in their lives. 
Tris deviates away from the Faction she was raised in, which was Abnegation, and she chooses a different Faction other than the one she has been raised in so far. Is this the correct decision for her? Her brother chooses a different Faction than he and Tris was raised, yet different than the one Tris has chosen. How will this work?
Now starts the Initiations! Wow! This is where we think the book is so good already, and it only gets better from here on out! 
We only really learn about the Initiation that Tris has chosen, and not of the others. It is amazing, on the edge of your seat, biting your nails time. I don't want to get to much more into what happens from here on out, as it WILL GIVE SPOILERS and I do NOT want to give spoilers, as it would be very easy to do so from this point on. However, allow me to inform you that her choice of Faction results in a lot of life or death decisions, and IF she can make it through this Initiation, she can make the Faction, or will she?
One of the Initiations of the Dauntless is they are put through simulations of fears they have. Can they face their fears head on? Are they able to face the fears? Can they get through and over their fears? These simulations are very realistic.
Some of the other things the new Dauntless face are their own peers. Can they get along, or can't they.
This book exceeded any expectations I had. There is so much more to this book than the little bit I have just told you about, and believe me, this is only maybe an 1/8 of a fraction of the book. This is a must-read book! Enjoy!
5-Stars + from me!
HIGHLY recommended!
(I chose to read this book on my own for my own enjoyment. I was not asked to review this book for anyone.)


WANT A CHANCE TO WIN A $100 AMAZON GIFT CODE TO SPEND ON WHATEVER YOU WANT? GREAT! CLICK ON THIS LINK TO FILL OUT THE FORM: http://www.lauriehere.blogspot.com/p/win-chance-for-amazon-100-gift-card.html 
GOOD LUCK!
ORDER YOUR COPY OF DIVERGENT HERE! 
"SCROLL DOWN" TO PRE-ORDER INSURGENT HERE!

PRE-ORDER YOUR COPY OF INSURGENT HERE! I've got mine, do you have yours? Get it NOW!


Friday, April 27, 2012

Blogging from A to Z Challenge - April 2012 - Letter "W"



This is ALL possible with HUGE thanks to the following Sponsors: http://www.a-to-zchallenge.com/ AND to Arlee Bird at http://www.tossingitout.blogspot.com/ AND MORE Sponsors I have posted above!

Friday, April 27th, 2012
Theme:  Books and Blogging
Subject: Letter "Y"
Topic:    "Yesterday"


How many of you were going to do something YESTERDAY? How many of you did NOT do it yesterday?
Today is THE day to STOP forgetting to do things TODAY so they don't become yesterday's!
Time to get reorganized and get on the ball and do it TODAY! 
It is hard to do this, I am WELL aware, and I have to re-think my schedule through over and over every time I start to notice I have done a "I was supposed to do this yesterday"!
If we can SUCCESSFULLY get ourselves to this point in which the thing we were supposed to do is NOT a yesterday item, we have conquered climbing Mount Everest! Don't you agree?!
Do it TODAY!
Thanks for reading!
See you tomorrow with letter Z! The LAST DAY!!!!
Laurie

Thursday, April 26, 2012

Blogging from A to Z Challenge - April 2012 Letter "Y"



This is ALL possible with HUGE thanks to the following Sponsors: http://www.a-to-zchallenge.com/ AND to Arlee Bird at http://www.tossingitout.blogspot.com/ AND MORE Sponsors I have posted above!

Thursday, April 25th, 2012
Theme:  Books and Blogging
Subject: Letter "X"
Topic:    "Xylography"


What does "Xylography" mean? What is it? Well, here is the definition:


Xylography: (zl-log-re-fe') n. 1. Wood engraving, esp of an early period.
2. The art of printing texts or illustrations, sometimes with color, from wood blocks, as distinct from typography.
This definition is from The American Heritage Dictionary, Second College Edition, 1985. This is 'the' dictionary I use the most, and has never let me down!
So, there we have the definition of the word. It starts with the letter "X". Did I know this word before I started to write about it?


If you would like to read the rest of this article, please click on the TAB ABOVE called "Blogging from A to Z Challenge - April 2012" OR click on this LINK here: 
http://lauriehere.blogspot.com/p/to-z-challengeblogging-april-2012.html and SCROLL ALL THE WAY DOWN to the letter "X"!
Thanks,
See you tomorrow with the letter "Y"!
Bye for now!
Laurie

Wednesday, April 25, 2012

Blogging from A to Z Challenge - April 2012 - Letter W



This is ALL possible with HUGE thanks to the following Sponsors: http://www.a-to-zchallenge.com/ AND to Arlee Bird at http://www.tossingitout.blogspot.com/ AND MORE Sponsors I have posted above!

Wednesday, April 24th, 2012
Theme:  Books and Blogging
Subject: Letter "W"
Topic:    "Wish, Wishing"



Have you or did you ever do something, write something, say something in which you wished you had never done it? I do. Have you ever wished a friend did not move away, or a family member or a friend had not passed away? Do you often find yourself wishing a certain date would get here faster than what it is taking to get here? I think we all are ALL guilty of this.
I just want to take a quick moment of your time today to tell you "I wish" . . . 


If you would like to read the rest of this article, please click on the TAB ABOVE, OR click on this LINK: http://lauriehere.blogspot.com/p/to-z-challengeblogging-april-2012.html 
Thanks for reading!
Laurie
PLEASE LEAVE A COMMENT!!! I LOVE TO HEAR FROM YOU!!!

Tuesday, April 24, 2012



This is ALL possible with HUGE thanks to the following Sponsors: http://www.a-to-zchallenge.com/ AND to Arlee Bird at http://www.tossingitout.blogspot.com/ AND MORE Sponsors I have posted above!

Tuesday, April 24nd, 2012
Theme:  Books and Blogging
Subject: Letter "V"
Topic:    "Victory"


Victory! This is a word I am going to feel once this Challenge is OVER in a few days! We only have W, X, Y and Z left! Four days! Yeah!
Don't get me wrong, I have enjoyed this thoroughly, but, I am not a writer, and it HAS take a LOT of self-discipline and . . . 
If you would like to read the rest of this Post, please click on the TAB up above called the "Blogging from A to Z Challenge - April 2012" OR click on this LINK here: http://lauriehere.blogspot.com/p/to-z-challengeblogging-april-2012.html and scroll ALLLL the way down to the Letter "V"!
Thanks! See you tomorrow with the letter "W"!
Laurie

Monday, April 23, 2012

World Book Night! April 23rd, 2012! Welcome NEW Readers!

      "WORLD BOOK NIGHT!" 
          April 23rd, 2012! 


YES! IT'S FINALLY HERE!!!
What is World Book Night? This is a day/night where Volunteers ALL across the US AND THE UK (and other countries as well, but I don't have a complete listing. This may be found at the website for World Book Night which I will provide in just a moment!) who have offered their time and dedicated it to passing out 20 books that have been specifically chosen by (from the back cover of one of the books) a panel of booksellers and librarians who have carefully and specifically chosen the BEST books they know of, and a MILLION combined copies of free World Book Night US editions have been printed FOR distribution ON April 23rd, 2012. (end) We are told to pass them out NO EARLIER, and it's assumed NO later! They are to be passed out ALL on this date, TODAY, Monday, August 23rd, 2012!


I picked my books up on Saturday at the Port Huron, Michigan, Barnes and Noble.  I received a case of 20 books that was not even opened yet! We DID get to choose the books we had wanted, but I happened to receive a book I did not even choose! They DID have had SO many requests from people! Wow! Oh, well. At least I got books! 


The title I received is an EXCELLENT book! I received "Bloood Work" by Michael Connelly! EXCELLENT book!WW!!Everyone gets 20 books, and WoW! They went FAST when I passed them out! TOO FAST! I had SO much fun doing it I wished I had had MORE books than what I did receive! I had to pass mine out in the daytime because I am in a power wheelchair, so . . . it kind of goes without saying!


These books ARE meant for people who do not read already, to help PROMOTE READING! They are then meant to be passed on to the next person, a friend who is into reading as much as well.


Inside the front and back covers of ALL these books are MORE INFORMATION about this night! You really should check it out! Go to the website, mark your calendars EARLY next year, and ENTER to see if you a chance to see if YOU get chosen to read these books!


Thank you for reading this Post!


Here's the LINK: www.worldbooknight.org  


Twitter: Follow them as @wbnamerica If you want to follow World Book Night 2012 - Use the hashtag of #wbnamerica


Facebook: Yes! They ARE on Facebook! As World Book Night! Look them up! Photos of ALL the books they had available and that people will be getting! It's SOOOO exciting!!! Watch YOUR Facebook account, too! If you have anyone YOU KNOW who is sharing in this HUGE event, you might see some Posts about it! 
ALL Volunteers are going to be sharing with Tweets, Facebook and Photos! See what's happening yourself! It's SO exciting!                                                                              


HAPPY READING!!!

Blogging from A to Z Challenge - April 2012 Letter "U"




This is ALL possible with HUGE thanks to the following Sponsors: http://www.a-to-zchallenge.com/ AND to Arlee Bird at http://www.tossingitout.blogspot.com/ AND MORE Sponsors I have posted above!

Monday, April 23nd, 2012
Theme:  Books and Blogging
Subject: Letter "U"
Topic:    "Understand"



Have you ever read a book and as you are going along you stop, think to yourself I don't understand this?
This has happened to me many a times. I don't understand WHERE the author is coming from or WHERE they are going. If, within the next few chapters I still don't get an idea of where this story is going, I ditch it. Why go on if I don't have a clue as to what the author is trying to get across? There is no reason.
This can occur for a variety of reasons. The author may . . . 
IF you would like to read the REST of the Post today, please click on the TAB above called "Blogging from A to Z Challenge - April 2012" OR click on this link:  http://lauriehere.blogspot.com/p/to-z-challengeblogging-april-2012.html
Thanks SO much for reading today's post! See you tomorrow with the letter "V"!




Sunday, April 22, 2012

Blogging from A to Z Challenge - April 2012 Letter T



This is ALL possible with HUGE thanks to the following Sponsors: http://www.a-to-zchallenge.com/ AND to Arlee Bird at http://www.tossingitout.blogspot.com/ AND MORE Sponsors I have posted above!

Sunday, April 22nd, 2012
Theme:  Books and Blogging
Subject: Letter "T"
Topic:    "Top Ten Books"

This week's Top Ten Books on the Best Seller List
     (Combined Print and E-book Fiction)
          Week ending April 21, 2012

1.  Fifty Shades of Grey: Book One of the Fifty Shades Trilogy by E L James


2.  Fifty Shades Darker: Book Two of the Fifty Shades Trilogy by E L James

3.  Calico Joe by John Grisham
 

4.  Fifty Shades Freed: Book Three of the Fifty Shades Trilogy by E L James 


5.  The Lucky One by Nicholas Sparks


6.  Guilty Wives by James Patterson and David Ellis


7.  On the Island by Ms Tracey L Garvis Graves (Indie Author!)


8.  A Game of Thrones (A Song of Ice and Fire, Book 1) by George P R Martin


9.  Come Home by Lisa Scottoline


10. The Marriage Bargain by Jennifer Probst (Indie Author!)


There we have it! GREAT books! The names of the books are "all" LINKS that take you to them at Amazon, so go ahead and click on them to have a look! They ALL sound good to me! I cannot pick 'just one'. Sorry!
I have had 'On the Island' on my Wish List for a while now!
There are even MORE books listed, up to 15! At the New York Times Best Seller List for the week of April 21st, 2012!


See you tomorrow for the letter "U"! Tomorrow you will have to go to the TAB ABOVE called "Blogging from A to Z Challenge - April 2012"! Today I thought it might be nice to list this on the Home Page for you! Enjoy reading!


UPDATE: Tomorrow, Monday, April 23, 2012 is WORLD BOOK NIGHT!!! WOO-HOO!!!!! I just picked up my box of 20 books at the local Barnes & Noble to hand out for FUN!!!! I will be focusing on handing most of my books out to people who are handicapped, like me. I know they don't get out much, like me, because it is hard to. So I hope to bring them some happiness to their lives! At least hoping so!
I don't know if you know this or not, but, when we are in a wheelchair it's like playing a collision course with people in a store because you are not expecting us. We always have to excuse ourselves so YOU don't get hurt because you are not expecting us to be next to you, or coming up behind you, etc. Get the drift? So we 'do' tend to stay OUT of stores for that reason. 
Next time you see someone in a wheelchair, please be careful! Watch out for us so YOU don't get hurt!  Our feet stick out, and we are afraid we will trip YOU!

Saturday, April 21, 2012

Blogging from A to Z Challenge - April 2012 Letter "S"



This is ALL possible with HUGE thanks to the following Sponsors: http://www.a-to-zchallenge.com/ AND to Arlee Bird at http://www.tossingitout.blogspot.com/ AND MORE Sponsors I have posted above!

Saturday, April 21st, 2012
Theme: Books and Blogging
Subject: Letter "S"
Topic:  "Sale"


So there is a SALE on books! Yes! I'm GAME! WHO can, in their right mind, resist a sale? I don't know, but if you can resist a sale, something must be wrong with you! Sorry!
The kind of sales I am thinking about are on . . . 


If you would like to read the rest of the article, please click on the TAB ABOVE  CALLED "Blogging from A to Z Challenge - April 2012"! OR this like: http://www.lauriehere.blogspot.com/p/to-z-challengeblogging-april-2012.html

Friday, April 20, 2012

Blogging from A to Z Challenge - April 2012 - Letter "R"



This is ALL possible with HUGE thanks to the following Sponsors: http://www.a-to-zchallenge.com/ AND to Arlee Bird at http://www.tossingitout.blogspot.com/ AND MORE Sponsors I have posted above!


Friday, April 20th, 2012
Theme: Books and Blogging
Subject: Letter "R"
Topic:  "Reading"


Ah, reading. What could be better than reading?
Yet many people have many other hobbies besides reading. They work on all kinds of things. Woodworking, Motorcycles, Boats, Crocheting, Knitting, Cooking, Child Care, and more. There are tooooo many hobbies to list! Do you know what brings together ALL of these hobbies? Reading!
Why would a hobby bring about reading?
Well, every hobby has printed materials about that particular one. Be it books, magazines, newsletters, and more! I would be willing to be you never thought of that! Well, look at that one . . . 


If you would like to read the rest of this article, please click on the TAB ABOVE called Blogging from A to Z Challenge - April 2012 OR click on this LINK here: 

Comeback Love, A Novel, by Peter Golden - REVIEW


Synopsis from Goodreads:


What would you do if you had a second chance with the one that got away? 

More than thirty-five years ago, Gordon Meyers, an aspiring writer with a low number in the draft lottery, packed his belongings and reluctantly drove away, leaving behind Glenna Rising, the sexy, sharp-witted med student he couldn’t imagine living without. 

Now, decades later, Gordon is a former globe-trotting consultant with a grown son, an ex-wife, and an overwhelming desire to see Glenna again. Though she’s stunned when Gordon walks into her Manhattan office, Glenna agrees to accompany him for a drink. As the two head out into the snow-swept city, they rediscover the passion that once drew them together—before it tore them apart. And as the evening unfolds, Gordon will finally reveal the true reason for his return. . . . 

Comeback Love is an evocative journey into the hearts of two lovers who came of age in the 1960s, and who never truly let each other go. Plumbing the depths of youth, regret, and desire, Peter Golden deftly illuminates the bonds that mysteriously endure in the face of momentous change.



Paperback Version/Release Date: April 3rd, 2012 - Original Edition


My Take:
Finally, I stumble upon a love story that is riveting with such delight, force, full of romance and so truly becoming that I fell completely and deeply mad in love with this book. I literally fell head over heels in love with these characters/couple, as they did with each other. This 'debut fiction novel' by Peter Golden surpasses a 5-star rating in this reader's opinion! This is a love story that is absolutely radiant, one you will not soon forget, as it will leave an imprint on your own heart. This book can truly answer the age old question of 'can love really last forever'? This story is a love story that is beautifully and romantically written, yet very realistic at the same time.
These two people meet in their college years and become a couple, Gordon and Glenna, and fall deeply in love during the 1960's, a trying and turbulent time, when the entire world was in unrest. Not only was the world at unrest, so were these two people which made for a riveting story. Each character needed to grow, one more so than the other. Cautious and trepidacaous with both of their hearts, they both try to guard them from one another, yet no matter how hard they try, their love would not allow them to. Something kept them together, until Gordon could tell something was happening with Glenna and her attitude once she started her Residency and also got involved in something illegal at the time. Shortly after noticing this change in Glenna, they had their first huge break-up in which Glenna would do something so severe to Gordon, that she was so angry at herself for doing it, she blames Gordon and makes him leave. Right then. Right there. NOW. It broke Gordon's heart. He was doubled over in pain.
Gordon is drafted and off he goes to Vietnam, but he still writes to Glenna. That love they have/had is still there. Every now and then, time willing when Gordon was in Glenna's neighborhood, the two of them would get back together. It must be because they were together for so many years that they still had that spark. I know this is what I felt about their visits. Some visits came to fruition, most did not.
Will true love win out in the long run of life?  
I truly fell as deeply in love with these characters as they did with each other. This is a love story that is so beautifully and romantically written, it will stay in your heart forever. I was glued to this book and I carried it with me wherever I went in the house, or even outside and while riding in the car. I just could not put this book down. 
Peter Golden's style of writing is very captivating and engaging. It is very descriptive and full of emotion. He knows what and how to tell a love story so touching and heartfelt, you simply cannot stop reading it. The length this relationship lasted, until the time they broke up and reunited, until the book ends, was timed to perfection. His writing is absolutely beautiful.
This book flip-flops between the past and the present. For instance, it starts off in the present during the Christmas holidays, with Gordon being stranded in New York city because of a blizzard. The airport is shut down, and there are no hopes of it opening soon. He takes a room at the Hyatt, and while stranded there, thirty-five years after their break-up, he decides to call upon Glenna again, after all this time has passed. 
Gordon goes to Glenna's office to see if she might happen to be in, pondering this because of the time of day. She's in! They meet, and walk together arm in arm, to get a drink and reminisce their past relationship. Gordon is still very attracted to her. The snow is still falling, the roads are almost empty, so they decide to walk to the restaurant. It turns out to be a romantic setting, through the streets of New York during the holidays, through the new fallen snow
The past: Gordon is a freelance writer who earns very little money with his writing as the stories he sells to different publications do not pay much money.  Glenna was a pre-med student who is now in her first year of internship at a local hospital. This immediately causes a little friction between the two, as Glenna is the bread winner of the two. She shares a large apartment with a friend, whereas Gordon is still living back home with his parents. Not an ideal situation for Gordon. Remember that during the 60's, with the Women's Movement, women were just starting to become very self dependent. Gordon somewhat felt a little 'less than' as compared to Glenna with his income.
This relationship is not without it's struggles and/or difficulties, but along with it's wonderful moments, those do outnumber any negatives. That is, until  eventually something huge happens that is so large, circumstances and words make hurts that cannot be mended whatsoever, and the relationship ends completely.
Each go their separate ways, but through the years, do get back in contact with the other, and they meet up every so often. Sometimes when they meet, Gordon finds out Glenna has completely changed more times than not. Growing pains, but I think Glenna had more of them than Gordon did. That is for you to read about and decide.
Back to the present, yet this is where the book begins, and as I began to tell you a little about Gordon and Glenna's relationship. Stranded, Gordon goes to Glenna's office to see if she's there or not. It's a toss-up he thinks. She is or isn't, but worth the chance. Yes! She's there! She is on her way out the door, as it is closing time. Gordon asks Glenna if she would like to go out for a drink, which is where my review has started.
As I said above, again, this book shows that love does still stand the test of time. The great part of it is finding out how and enjoying the ride.
I would LOVE to tell you more, but I cannot. This is the type of book that you will be glued to, and is a very personal experience of love, different for every person who reads this book. When you do start reading it, you are going to want to devour everything and find out just exactly how and where their relationship takes them as you escape into this fabulous love story. I HIGHLY recommended this book! Put it on your TBR lists now! You are going to find a NEW author, Peter Golden, who you are going to love!
My favorite line from the book "Comeback Love" by Peter Golden:
"Not every conviction is impervious to the lessons and corrosion of time, and I could feel the past and present gathering together to become, if I was lucky, the future I desired."
This is one of my FAVORITE books of the year so far! It is going on my "Favorites List of 2012".
I hope you enjoy this book as much as I did! 


*I received this book for FREE from Washington Square Books, a  Division of Simon and Schuster, AND through Crazy Book Tours through their Book Reviewers Program in exchange to read this book and write a review about it.  It is NOT required for the review to be either positive or negative, but, of my own opinion. Free means I was provided with NO MONIES to read this book or write a review, but to enjoy the book. 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.

Here is a way to get this book, just click on the Amazon photo:

About the Author:


FROM AMAZON'S AUTHOR PAGE:

Visit Peter Golden's website: http://www.goodreads.com/Peter_Golden
Peter is touring in SEVERAL cities across the US, and you can find where he is at on his website.

Biography

Peter Golden is an award-winning journalist and the author of six full-length works of non-fiction and fiction.

Some of Peter Golden's work has appeared in the Detroit Free Press Magazine, Albany Times Union, New Jersey Monthly, Microsoft's eDirections, Beyond Computing, Electronic Business, Midstream, The Forward, and Capital Region Magazine.

Golden's Quiet Diplomat, a biography of industrialist and political-insider Max M. Fisher made the Detroit Free Press bestseller list. Among those he interviewed were Presidents Nixon, Ford, Reagan, and Bush; Secretaries of State Kissinger, Haig, and Shultz; and Israeli Prime Ministers Shamir, Peres, and Rabin.



For more on Peter Golden visit http://www.petergolden.com/

Peter Golden is an award-winning journalist and the author of six full-length works of non-fiction and fiction.
Some of Peter Golden's work has appeared in the Detroit Free Press Magazine, Albany Times Union, New Jersey Monthly, Microsoft's eDirections, Beyond Computing, Electronic Business, Midstream, The Forward, and Capital Region Magazine.
Golden's Quiet Diplomat, a biography of industrialist and political-insider Max M. Fisher made the Detroit Free Press bestseller list. Among those he interviewed were Presidents Nixon, Ford, Reagan, and Bush; Secretaries of State Kissinger, Haig, and Shultz; and Israeli Prime Ministers Shamir, Peres, and Rabin.
With J. Stanley Shaw, Golden wrote, I Rest My Case: My Long Journey from the Castle on the Hill to Home, a memoir that chronicles Shaw's life from his childhood years under the supervision of the Brooklyn Hebrew Orphan Asylum in the 1930s to his career as one of the preeminent bankruptcy attorneys in the United States.
Golden's O Powerful Western Star, a history of the Cold War, will be published in the fall of 2011. For that book, Golden re-interviewed Henry Kissinger, George Shultz, and other world leaders, including Mikhail Gorbachev.
Golden's novel, Comeback Love, will be published the first week of November 2010.

Thursday, April 19, 2012

"Showers of Books Giveaway Hop" April 20th to April 25th!


GREAT thanks to our sponsors of this Giveaway Hop to One a Day YA and I Am A Reader, Not A Writer Without them, this Hop would not be possible. THANK YOU!!!


WELCOME TO: 
"SHOWERS OF BOOKS GIVEAWAY HOP!" 
April 20th to the 25th, 2012! 


Come and see what I have to give away!


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Blogging from A to Z Challenge - April 2012 Letter "Q"


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Thursday, April 19th, 2012
Theme: Books and Blogging
Subject: Letter "Q"
Topic:  "Quality vs. Quantity"


With all these FREE or 99cents books out there, and there is an overabundance of them, I start to wonder whether or not I have quality books, or if I just have  quantity in my elibrary if and when I purchase these or grab them for free.
When I purchase a 99cents ebook or download a free one, (and this goes for ALL lower priced ebooks) I always make sure I read the synopsis and reviews on the book first to see if I may like it. This is where book reviews are SO important. 
If I see a book only has 2 or 3 reviews on it, I will click on each person's review, especially if the review is a short 2 or 3 liner and the review is generally 'generic' or 'vague'. When that happens, in my opinion, I believe the person who wrote that review is a friend, an associate, or is related to the author. Sure enough, when I click on the name of that person, they have written only '1' review in their entire history on Amazon. 
What does this tell me? That I am most likely correct in my assumption that  the reviewer's of that book IS a a friend, a business associate, or a family member who may not have even read the book. In this case, the author probably has not taken the time to request reviews from Book Reviewers/Bloggers and has taken the book directly to Amazon and put it on special first before requesting book reviews. 
WHY would an author commit 'Russian Roulette' like this with their writing career, and why do I say it is that? Because there is SO much riding on the book reviews that particular author does NOT have when . . . 
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Thanks, and I'll see you tomorrow with the letter "R"!
Laurie