Two Book Reviews AND Two Giveaways!

For the month of November, I'm going to be getting into the Christmas spirit and reading/reviewing Christmas themed stories.  Today I have two really fun books to tell you about and each one has a giveway! Yay! There's something for the kids and family AND something for those who love sweet romance so scroll all the way down and don't miss either of them!

The first one I want to tell you about is Fairy Tale Christmas by Michael and Scott McLean. This book was hilarious.  It's about some fairy tale villains who form a club called The Clandestines and they want to change the ending to their stories, but they have to kidnap Santa in order to it.  You see, they're pretty sure that the fairy tale heroes and heroines will give up their happy endings to save Santa, and then the villains can have their revenge in the endings they deserve.

It's so clever, with Rumpelstiltskin as the spy inside Santa's workshop and the other villains called upon to figure out how to lure Santa outside his security-filled workshop so they can kidnap him.  It's the perfect family book with enough jokes and fun to keep everyone laughing and a storyline that will keep you turning pages long after bedtime. And it has a really great ending.  Highly recommend this one!

Here's the back copy and be sure to scroll down for the Rafflecopter giveaway:

Santa Claus has been kidnapped!

Behind the plot are an evil queen, a wicked stepmother, a sorceress, a beanstalk giant, and, of course, the mischievous Rumpelstiltskin. They have a plan that will erase the term "Happily Ever After" from our storybooks forever.

But it's nearly Christmas Eve, and time is running out. Can Santa and the fairy-tale heroes save the day and bring Christmas to all the children of the world? Will anyone have a "Happily Ever After" again?

Fairy Tale Christmas reminds us all that there is good in everyone and that the magic of Christmas can soften any heart.

If this sounds like something you'd like, you can click here to download your Kindle copy.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

The second one I want to tell you about is a Christmas-themed boxed set, Christmas in Snow Valley. This one is six clean and romantic novellas about different people connected to Snow Valley, a small town that goes all out for Christmas.  They have fireworks, dances, parties, a Polar Express train ride, the works.  I really fell in love with this little town and the people in it.

The stories in it were enjoyable and really put me in the Christmas mood.  I loved how different each story was, but also how much the Christmas traditions resonated in a unique and relatable way with each of them. The stories ranged from a girl trying to get her old boyfriend to stop carrying a torch for her so she kisses a stranger at the airport, to a little Sweet Home Alabama when a girl brings her city boyfriend home to meet the folks.  All these stories have Christmas miracles and Christmas traditions mixed with real-life situations and topped off with a dollop of Christmas cheer to make you all warm and fuzzy inside.

I don't think I could pick a favorite, since they were all well-done, with great characters and sweet romances.  And the boxed set is also on sale today for only 99 cents!  You can click hereto download your Kindle copy and don't forget to scroll all the way down for the giveaway!

Tour Schedule

     

Christmas in Snow Valley

Christmas in Snow Valley is packed with six wonderful Christmas novellas sure to bring romance into your holiday season. Snow Valley, Montana, is a small community with the tradition of doing Christmas big. Festivities begin with tree lighting in the town square the day after Thanksgiving and continue until the culminating romantic Christmas Ball. From the Polar Express to a Winter Carnival, there’s something for every wonder-filled child—and every couple who’s in love—or about to be.

An Unexpected Kiss by Cindy Roland Anderson Lucy Phillips doesn’t want to spend her Christmas vacation dodging her ex-boyfriend, so when he turns up at the airport to give her a ride home, Lucy panics and asks a complete stranger to kiss her. Although the kiss is incredible, Lucy never expects to see the guy again. Is it bad luck or destiny when Lucy comes down with a sore throat and the new doctor in Snow Valley is none other than the guy she kissed at the airport?

Feels Like Love by Jeanette Lewis Christmas in Snow Valley is the perfect way for April Winston to introduce her city slicker fiancé, Scott Mecham, to life on a farm. If only Wade Hadley, hometown boy and high school sweetheart, will cooperate! But Wade has no intention of letting April go without a fight. This Christmas, Wade is determined to overcome their painful past and show April that she already has what she’s been seeking all along.

Full Court Devotion by Cami Checketts Kazlyn is too busy with her schooling and future plans to enjoy life, let alone fall in love with a man who has heartbreak written all over him. Tyrese Hamilton, a college basketball star and major heartthrob, is intrigued when Kazlyn doesn't pursue him or even seem interested. Ty's career is in jeopardy, and he needs a miracle and Kazlyn to save him.

The Christmas Eve Kiss by Taylor Hart When Molly O’Hare gets a prediction that she will kiss her true love on Christmas Eve, she thinks it’s utterly ridiculous. But when she gets teamed up with Kevin Snow, aka her ex-boyfriend, to decorate a Christmas tree, things start to change. Too bad getting over the past is hard and seeing him kiss another girl is even harder. Now Molly is left with a choice—run away from home and heartbreak or let Christmas work out a miracle all of its own.

Risking it all for Love by Kimberley Montpetit Succumbing to family pressure, Jessica Mason reluctantly comes home for Christmas. Ever since her high school boyfriend's death from a car accident three years earlier, Jessica and religion have not been compatible. So, when she visits Michael’s grave, she's surprised to meet the handsome James Douglas, Pastor John’s nephew, who’s studying for the ministry. James can not only dish back Jessica’s finely-tuned sarcasm but understands grief all too well, turning Jessica’s world upside down. Is she ready to take another risk on love?

Blue Christmas by Lucy McConnell As head of Snow Valley hospital's fundraising effort, Paisley Hackett barely has time to organize the craft show, cookie decorating party, and the annual Christmas Ball. What she doesn't have time for is falling in love with Clay Jett, the incredibly handsome bass player who sweeps into town. She's been burned by a tourist romance before and, with everything going on, Paisley will have to work overtime to protect her heart from Clay and his swoon-worthy ballads.

Amazon * Barnes & Noble * Kobo

Smashwords * iTunes

 

Blog Tour Giveaway $25 Amazon Gift Card or Paypal Cash Ends 11/20/14 Open only to those who can legally enter, receive and use an Amazon.com Gift Code or Paypal Cash. Winning Entry will be verified prior to prize being awarded. No purchase necessary. You must be 18 or older to enter or have your parent enter for you. The winner will be chosen by rafflecopter and announced here as well as emailed and will have 48 hours to respond or a new winner will be chosen. This giveaway is in no way associated with Facebook, Twitter, Rafflecopter or any other entity unless otherwise specified. The number of eligible entries received determines the odds of winning. Giveaway was organized by Kathy from I Am A Reader and sponsored by the author. VOID WHERE PROHIBITED BY LAW.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

My New Novella Cover Reveal!

I'm so excited I just can't wait until Monday!  Here is the cover for my new novella (a little continuation of Colby and Sophia's story from Ashes Ashes.)

*drum roll*

Ta da!

Don't you just love it? I do.

Here's the back cover copy:

As a suspect in Senator DeMarco’s murder, Sophia Naziri worked hard to bring the true killer to justice and prove her innocence. But she pays a high personal price trying to clear her name when she’s held hostage and nearly killed---and Sophia can’t put it behind her just yet.

Matters get even more complicated when classified information regarding the murder is leaked. Sophia is besieged by the press and trapped even further by the memories that won’t let her move on. In order to escape the situation, Sophia heads to a secluded cabin with Detective Colby Black so they can lay low and figure out who the leak is. But can Sophia find the peace she craves? Or will the circumstances that brought her and Colby together now drive them apart?

I can't wait for you all to read it! What do you think?

Random Thoughts On The Last Two Hawaii Five-O's

So, while I was at my writer's retreat I missed an episode of Hawaii Five-O.  I caught up this week and then watched last night's ep so I wanted to talk about a few of my impressions of both.

The Ellie introduction episode.

The Good Parts:

Steve was in blue for most of it.  Loved that. And the sunglasses? Yeah.

Steve's emotional scenes at the grave of his father.

The flashback scenes with Steve's dad.

The Odd Parts

While I didn't mind Ellie per se, she looks older than Steve.  There's no way she's Mary's age!  (On a personal note, the name Ellie always reminds me of Ellie the Mammoth from Ice Age. I wish they'd named her something different, but that's just me.)

The editing in this episode was really odd.  The team would make progress in the case and we'd cut to Steve telling Ellie about it. Every time. For even small breakthroughs. It was so abrupt and just felt . . . off.  Like, hey, we need Steve to have airtime with her, so let's make sure he's giving her updates on EVERY LITTLE THING.

Seeing those matches from the bar in the CHAMP box was odd to me.  I would think by now that Steve had gone through every item in that box and knew everything about it, but he seemed surprised with the connection to Ellie in the box.  He really didn't know that one of his father's cases was for the murder of that bar owner?  Odd.

It was a good twisty case, and it definitely introduced Ellie.  And hey, they've given Ellie's character pretty much the Steve story---lost her dad at a young age, was pretty much an orphan, went into law enforcement, and she even had history with his dad.  I didn't get any romantic vibes between them, but if they are going to go there, the writers HAVE to tie up the Catherine storyline.  It is so bizarre that she hasn't even been mentioned once this season.


The Halloween episode

Yeah, this episode was gruesome and full of Jerry.  I don't get what the writers are going for with his character.  A man-child? His pouty face and flouting authority and whining for a badge drove me nuts.  He just grates on my last nerve.  (I couldn't stand Doris and her ineptness and scene chewing, but I would take her back in a heartbeat if she replaces Jerry.  Ugh.)  Since the episode mostly revolved around Jerry, well, it was a little hard to like a lot of it, but I thought of some good parts! *pats self on back*

The Good Parts:

I did like the case's twist at the end with the fake death.  (It was interesting that Hawaii Five-O did a high school bullying case this week and so did Castle.)

I also liked Steve and Danny boarding the ship from the helicopter.  Awesome!

There was better cast balance this week.  Everyone (even Kono!) got time in the field and were essential to the case. Grover cracks me up with his one-liners.

The Odd Parts

They are changing Steve's character in order to give him more facetime with Ellie.  He NEVER asks for warrants.  Immunity and means.  But this time he does, and goes to Ellie to get it.  What the wha?

The fishing scenes at the end were nice, but odd.  How did that come about? Did he invite her over then?  Why? Just weird.

Where is Grace? No phone call on Halloween or anything with Dad and daughter? No mention of how she's taking Uncle Matt's death either. Very strange.


So there you have it.  Did you watch any of these episodes? What did you think?

Freebie Friday & Happy Halloween!

Happy Halloween everyone! I hope you're having a safe and spoooky holiday!


Today's Friday Freebies are two short and sweet clean romances (just over a hundred pages each.)  I haven't read them yet, but I downloaded them and put them in my TBR pile.

Here's the a small back description of the first one And Something Blue:

Bridal consultant Laurie Fletcher spends her days helping others prepare for the most special day of their lives. Will true love ever come her way, or is she doomed to watch others get their happily ever after?

If this one looks interesting to you, click hereto download your free Kindle copy.

Here's the small back description of the second one, Hearts in Harmony:

Elahna Nezario gave up her musical dreams to help run the Queen of Hearts, her mother’s chocolate shop, after her sister’s sudden death. After an unfortunate run-in with Elahna’s childhood crush, owner of the Dolce Theater, not only do her dreams surge back to life, but so does her heart.

If this one looks interesting to you, click hereto download your free Kindle copy.

The Writer's Retreat Report

I was so nervous and excited for my first writer's retreat.  We got into beautiful Bear Lake right around dinner time and went to a Chilean restaurant (I got a sweet pork dish that was really good!) Then we headed over to the condo where we would be staying.

We chatted for a bit, then did some work. I was surprised at how well I was doing in concentrating. I let myself cruise Facebook for every chapter I finished writing.  That was good for me and kept me going.  We finished up with writing around midnight, chatted a bit more, then went to bed.

The first night I froze my hiney off because I couldn't figure out how to turn the heat up.  I huddled in my bed, thinking about putting on every piece of clothing I'd brought in my suitcase. I felt like I was camping in a drafty tent or something!

Needless to say, I was tired the next morning.  After a good breakfast, some more laughing and chatting with the crew, I got down to work.  Finished my novella and started a new book.  It was an amazing feeling.  I don't think I've ever really finished any piece so quickly and felt so happy with it. I wanted to celebrate and was so glad I was with ladies who understood that need. I broke out the chocolate and some caramel apple dip and just reveled in the feeling of finishing.

The heat was turned up that next night and I slept like a baby.  This was also the day that I wrote four new chapters to my new book.  I am SO EXCITED about this new book and the strong beginning it's got.  I showed it to the ladies up there and they were laughing in all the right places.  The characters are so awesome and coming together so nicely.  I was even COMEDIC which rarely happens.  A very productive day.  We did come up for air, though, and go to the shore of the lake and look around. It is gorgeous there!

Here are some pics I took:

I can't even describe how much fun I had there.  The only strange thing was how quiet it was. I'm not used to that at my house!  It was so quiet, I felt self-conscious chewing.  Yeah. I'm weird.  There was tons of keyboard tapping, though, and so many words were written. Wonderful, beautiful words that were meant to be shared. And will be!

So, my first writer's retreat was a success and I am sold on them now.  Especially if I can go with those same three women writers again. They are hilarious! And they liked me.  :)

Thank you to everyone who encouraged me to go, to my family who stepped up to make it possible and took care of everything at home, and to my fans, who give me a reason to keep writing. Love you all.

Word Count Wednesday & A Winner!

With the writer's retreat last weekend (which I can't wait to tell you all about tomorrow!) I failed to post the winner of Saints and Soldiers: The Void DVD.  So, I'm going to remedy that today . . .



*drum roll*



And the winner is, Jeni Pugh Roberts! I will be emailing you shortly.  Thank you to everyone who entered.

Don't forget the Spooktacular Giveaway Hop ends this Friday.  You can click on the link in the sidebar to enter.

With the retreat, I actually got nearly 11,000 words written this week.  Isn't it great? I'm so proud of myself and what I got done.  It feels wonderful.

How did you do this week?  Have you ever been on a retreat or had a weekend where you got a ton of writing done? It's a great feeling, isn't it?

Castle Review: The Netslayer

This Castle episode was more gruesome to me than normal. We usually watch this show with our older children, and have been including our twelve year old.  Last night, I was wishing we hadn't let him watch it without us previewing it.

We start off with a young woman getting ready to go out to a club and talking on the phone.  Then, as she's taking a selfie, she gets a picture texted to her from another angle---inside her house.  Then we see the back of someone as she's attacked.

Cut to Castle filming a web commercial and messing up, but still looking good.  Martha was there "helping" him and I have to say I love the scenes with those two together. They just have such a great vibe together and this one made me laugh.  But Castle has been assured that he and this web commercial will be going viral and letting social media make him sales.  Which coincides with the case because the murder victim was a queen of social media.  She posts pictures and "reviews" on a site called Snapomatic. Which the killer also uses to post pictures of the victim before she was found. Ew.  Caskett heads over to the company, but they have privacy policies in place so there's not really a way to track down where the killer is posting pictures from.

The team does manage to get a tag off one of the photos the "Netslayer" posted, though, and it leads them to a furniture store.  A retired cop owns it, and he used to work in cyber crime so he fits the profile.  He has awls which would match the murder weapon, a threatening note to the victim had wood varnish on it.  This guy looks good for it.  They bring him in, but his alibi checks out so back to the drawing board.

The killer sends the NYPD a pictogram of three pictures of body parts, sausages, and a date.  Castle figures it out that the killer is after a social media "spoiled brat" and the team goes to put the woman in protective custody. She won't go, but as she opens the car door, she finds her boyfriend's body. Gruesome. Murdered.

But the killer isn't done. He posts pictures of Castle and Beckett tapping coffee cups and makes them look bad in the public eye.  The head honchos over at 1PP aren't happy, but Gates keeps Beckett on the case.  Caskett goes home to clear their heads and Castle starts thinking out loud that most bullies start out as victims.  That gives them some new ideas, and they go back to the former cop who was framed.  He remembers a kid and a case of cyber-bullying where he couldn't help the kid get justice against his bullies. The kid's life was ruined over the incident.  The team manages to get some footage of the guy getting the murder victim's house key, they have a face of the killer to finally go off of.  They go to arrest him, and he's there in a dark little basement, but unfortunately, as they take him into custody, they get pictures of the owners of Snapomatic, abducted and taped to chairs and electrodes, with a countdown clock.  Whomever has the least "likes" will die.  Netslayer strikes again while in custody, which he is proud of.

Ryan and Espo are sent over to Snapomatic's offices to try and figure out the men's location through the streaming pictures, but all the staff is able to do is crash the system.  It's all up to Beckett now. She questions the killer who taunts her until she talks about how his kidnap victims were probably laughing at him and he's a joke. He snaps and gives them clues as to where the men are being held. The old locker room where the murderer's bullying took place. (I totally called that up front).

Ryan and Espo rush over there and save the men just as the clock gets down to one second. And those men looked extremely relieved.

The episode ends with the debut of Castle's web commercial and it's not what Castle is expecting.  It's more of a bumbling music video of all his mistakes while making the video, like mispronouncing his name Hi, I'm Critchard Rassle.  And him knocking over a display of his books. It's sort of a catchy tune and it made me laugh. (Every writer's nightmare, though, probably! haha)  I was glad the episode ended on a lighter note.

But the best part of all, was the previews of Caskett's WEDDING and HONEYMOON.  Woohoo! I can't wait for those episodes in November.

Did you watch last night? What did you think?