Friday, May 30, 2014

Blog Tour - Immersed - Ripple Effect - Jennifer Griffith

Immersed tour
Ripple Effect Romance Series 
Immersed New


Immersed by Jennifer Griffith Lisette Pannebaker speaks five languages and has a brilliant business plan—personal language immersion. Clients can hire her to shadow them and speak all day in any language they need to learn for business or travel—whatever. But there’s a major hitch: she’s far too pretty. Clients with less than honorable intentions sign up just have Lisette at their side. Solution? A make-under. Way under.It works like a charm. None of her male clients show her the least bit of interest. Until… Erik. Erik Gunnarsson is charming, kind, and smart—everything she’s ever looked for. Even though he seems to have a secret and she swore she'd never date a client, Lisette is tempted to shed her disguise—even if it means jeopardizing her career.
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Author Jennifer Griffith Jennifer Griffith studied French, German, Japanese, and a wee bit of Spanish in her school days. Her grandmother was Norwegian, and Jennifer grew up with lots of Scandinavian traditions floating around, including fabulous cardamom laced cookies called Krumkaker, made on a fancy waffle iron. However, she’d never dream of trying to teach someone any of those languages. And she might botch the cookies. Instead, she writes novels in English, drives her five kids a million places, and laughs with her husband, who came up with the plot for Immersed because he’s just a cool muse like that.

ExcerptThis was it, the day she’d waited and worked for over the past years—her degree would be firmly in her hand. Lisette Pannebaker, Master of Business Administration. Her smile even made her eyes scrunch.


Dad’s dress shirt would've popped buttons, had he been here to see her.


But it wasn’t just the degree. Chances were that tonight she’d have something else in hand. Or, rather, on her hand. She’d seen the little navy velvet box on Justin’s coffee table—he’d left it in plain sight when she came by to drop off dinner for him last night—and she’d nearly fainted from heart palpitations last week when he’d dragged her past windows sparkling with diamonds and asked whether she thought round cut or brilliant cut had more fire.


Brilliant cut, of course.


Ah, Justin Fox. She sighed for his blond crew cut, his square jaw. Mrs. Justin Fox. It fit. Lisette Pannebaker, student, no more. Now she’d be Mrs. Justin Fox, Master of Business Administration.


  Blog Tour Giveaway $25 Amazon Gift Card or Paypal Cash Ends 6/9/14 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

Wednesday, May 28, 2014

Book Review - The Redhead Plays Her Hand - Alice Clayton

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Title: The Redhead Plays Her Hand

Author: Alice Clayton

Review: Famouses have relationship problems too.

You have young mega-star leading man continuing his relationship with
older, curvy, up and coming actress.  Can their relationship withstand the
pressures of fame?

Also, while the sex has been toned down from the ridiculous levels of the
last book (so reviewer tip – if you want tons of OTT Sex get the previous
book), it is still clear they are way into oral sex; both giving and
receiving.  But then again, who isn’t.

A fun read which does a good job of demonstrating who frustrating and
detrimental a life in the constant eye of the paparazzi can be.  They
struggle with the cost of fame, people using them, including friends, and
just plain tensions we all feel when a relationship moves beyond the
honeymoon phase.

A good series to keep up with.

Publisher: Gallery Books
ISBN: 978-1-4767-4125-3
Copyright: 2013
Pages: 304
Quick Review: 3.5 stars out of 5.
Where I Obtained the Book:   Sent by the publisher for review

Synopsis:  The third sexy novel in USA TODAY bestselling author Alice Clayton’s playful and erotic Redhead series continues the sizzling romance between actress Grace Sheridan and Hollywood’s hottest leading man Jack Hamilton.

Grace has landed the lead in a new TV series—but when the director asks her to lose fifteen pounds, she goes public with her weight struggles and suddenly develops a huge fan club who support her right to have curves. But between that and the public’s continuing fascination with her “are they or aren’t they” relationship with Jack, Grace begins to wonder if anyone’s really interested in her because of her upcoming TV series, or if it’s all speculation about the size of her ass and her bedroom partner.

Meanwhile, Jack is voted the Sexiest Man Alive and becomes a little too enamored with the party-hard lifestyle. Grace vows to give him the space he needs to find himself, but then he begins to spiral down from lovable Brit to Hollywood brat. People are talking, but are Jack and Grace? Her career is on the rise, and his continues into the stratosphere, but will she be able to catch him if he falls? Will they ever be able to just be a couple who can hold hands when they walk down the street?
 Alice Clayton
Author Biography:  Alice Clayton is a novelist with an unholy love for her KitchenAid mixer. Making her home in St Louis, she enjoys gardening but not weeding, baking but not cleaning up afterwards, and is trying desperately to get her long time boyfriend to make her an honest woman. Hi sweetie!!

After working for years in the cosmetics industry as a makeup artist, esthetician, and national educator for a major cosmetics company, Alice picked up a pen (read laptop) for the first time at 33 to begin a new career, writer. Combining her love of storytelling with a sense of silly, she was shocked and awed to be nominated for a Goodreads Author award in 2010 for her debut novels, The Redhead Series.

Alice has penned three novels, The Unidentified Redhead,The Redhead Revealed, and coming soon in November 2012, Wallbanger. She thinks you should purchase them immediately. She’s not kidding, not even a little bit. Everyone needs some comedic erotica in their lives. She is hard at work on the third book in The Redhead Series, set to release in Spring of 2013, continuing the saucy and sexual escapades of everyone’s favorite couple, Jack and Grace.

Additionally, Alice loves spending time with her besties on Not Your Mother's Podcast, make sure you check them out at notyourmotherspodcast.com or over on iTunes. 3 women rushing towards their forties still acting like teenagers. A saucy little mix of sex, love, relationships, pop cultural, celebrity gossip and All Things Jake Ryan.

Alice enjoys pickles, Bloody Mary’s, 8 hours of sleep, and a good pounding.

Finally Alice would also like all her readers and listeners to help her convince Mt. Alice that the only other thing that would make her truly happy is finally bringing home a Bernese Mountain Dog. She is totally serious. And done talking about herself in the third person…


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Monday, May 26, 2014

Book Review - Paradise Valley - Dale Cramer

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Author:  Dale Cramer

Review:  The book tells the story of an Amish family that emigrates to Mexico in the 1920s. After Caleb Bender, and four other Amish men, are arrested for not sending their children to an English school  full time their children are taken away to a state home. After their release Caleb finds property for sale in Mexico and takes his family there to start an Amish colony. The book covers their first year and the problems and troubles encountered.

If you enjoy books by Beverly Lewis you will like this offering.

I give it five stars and would recommend the author as a writer to watch for and to read.

I picked up the book from kindlebuffet.com.


Published:  Published January 1st 2011 by Bethany House Publishers
ISBN:  9780764208386
Page Count: 359
Quick Review:  5 out 5 stars –
Why I Read this Title:  found it on Kindlebuffet.com and thought why not?

Synopsis:   An Amish settlement in Ohio has run afoul of a law requiring their children to attend public school. Caleb Bender and his neighbors are arrested for neglect, with the state ordering the children be placed in an institution. Among them are Caleb's teenage daughter, Rachel, and the boy she has her eye on, Jake Weaver. Romance blooms between the two when Rachel helps Jake escape the children's home.

Searching for a place to relocate his family where no such laws apply, Caleb learns there's inexpensive land for sale in Mexico, a place called Paradise Valley. Despite rumors of instability in the wake of the Mexican revolution, the Amish community decides this is their answer. Since it was Caleb's idea, he and his family will be the pioneers. They will send for the others once he's established a foothold and assessed the situation. Caleb's daughters are thrown into turmoil. Rachel doesn't want to leave Jake. Her sister, Emma, who has been courting Levi Mullet, fears her dreams of marriage will be dashed. Miriam has never had a beau and is acutely aware there will be no prospects in Mexico.

Once there, they meet Domingo, a young man and guide who takes a liking to Miriam, something her father would never approve. While Paradise Valley is everything they'd hoped it would be, it isn't long before the bandits start giving them trouble, threatening to upset the fledgling Amish settlement, even putting their lives in danger. Thankfully no one has been harmed so far, anyway.

Author Information:   Dale Cramer was the second of four children born to a runaway Amishman turned soldier and a south Georgia sharecropper’s daughter. His formative years were divided between far-flung military bases, but he inherited his mother’s sense of place—

"I remember knee-deep snow in the Maryland woods, chasing horned toads in El Paso, playing soccer in Mainz, and the way German shopkeepers and hausfraus fussed over us kids. But when I picture that sun-rippled macadam road leading up to my granparents’ house in Georgia I can still feel the anticipation. That was home."

True to his Amish ancestry, Dale skipped college and went to work with his hands, earning a living as an electrician, but he had early acquired the habit of reading widely and voraciously. The thought was never far from his mind that someday he would like to write books. In 1975 he married his childhood friend, Pam Crowe, and in the early years of their marriage the two of them enjoyed traveling, camping, water skiing, scuba-diving, snow skiing and flying sailplanes. They eventually bought a piece of land and built a home out in the country south of Atlanta. In 1990 their first child, Ty, was born. Dusty arrived two years later. Unlike their parents (Pam was an Army brat as well) Ty and Dusty have lived in the same place all their lives.

At the age of forty, with two toddlers in the house, Dale began to ask deeper questions of himself. He’d attended church all his life but never felt a real sense of God’s presence. After months of study and meditation he began to feel that he was being called to do something, but he had no idea what it was. He finally came to understand that genuine commitment means no reservations, that the answer to the question ‘Will you do it?’ is not ‘What is it?’ The only acceptable response is ‘Yes—whatever the question, the answer is yes.’ That deeper level of commitment brought a very real sense of God’s presence and a sense of direction in Dale’s life, though he still did not know the direction.

After keeping the boys in daycare for a year Pam and Dale decided to make whatever sacrifices were necessary to provide a full-time home. The decision altered their lives in ways neither of them could have anticipated when Dale drew the short straw and became a stay-at-home dad—

"A baby is a lot like an old truck— it leaks and makes weird noises. Clean up the mess, top off the fluids, and the noises usually stop."

He took on small construction projects at night to help make ends meet— "and to preserve the remainder of my sanity," he says. While building an office in the basement of a communications consultant, a debate over labor/management relations turned into an article on mutualism which found its way into an international business magazine. It was Dale’s first published article, and he liked the feel of it. He bought books, studied technique, and began participating in an online writers’ forum, writing during the boys’ naps and after they went to bed at night. Before long he was publishing short stories in literary magazines and thinking about writing a book.

Three storylines vied for Dale’s attention when he finally decided to write a novel. His first two choices were commercially viable secular stories, and a distant third appeared to be some kind of Christian saga about a broken-down biker. The process of determining which novel to write was settled by a remarkable encounter with his youngest son, a lost set of keys, and God.* His sense of direction was suddenly clarified. In 1997, Dale began work on Sutter’s Cross, which was eventually published in 2003.

His second novel, Bad Ground (July 2004), while it is not autobiographical, contains a great deal of material drawn from his own experience as a construction electrician. The industrial setting is based on a real water treatment plant on the southside of Atlanta. One of the main characters, who has been


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Friday, May 23, 2014

Prejudice Meets Pride - Book Tour and Review - Rachael Anderson

Prejudice Meets Pride by Rachael Anderson Book Cover
Review: What a cute book - great writing - Love this Book !!!! - fun memorable characters - fun romance without all the sex written out for you - I think this book would make a fantastic romantic comedy for all of us girls.  This is a book I would like my teenage daughter to read - strong-independent female lead with plans for the future and ideas of what she wants her life to look like - then life happens but she stays strong in her beliefs and carries on- 

I think anyone who likes romance would enjoy this quick to read book - a great way to spend a few afternoons of your week.  And who needs a giveaway - this is a great book that can stand without any freebie!!!  But you are welcome to enter anyway - but buy this book you will not be disappointed!!!!  I promise ;)

Rating: 5 stars for fun- flirting - falling in love - feel good reading .


Synopsis:  After years of pinching pennies and struggling to get through art school, Emma Makie’s hard work finally pays off with the offer of a dream job. But when tragedy strikes, she has no choice but to make a cross-country move to Colorado Springs to take temporary custody of her two nieces. She has no money, no job prospects, and no idea how to be a mother to two little girls, but she isn’t about to let that stop her. Nor is she about to accept the help of Kevin Grantham, her handsome new neighbor, who seems to think she’s incapable of doing anything on her own.

Fun, compelling, and romantic, Prejudice Meets Pride is the story of a guy who thinks he has it all figured out and a girl who isn't afraid to show him that he doesn't. It’s about learning what it means to trust, figuring out how to give and to take, and realizing that not everyone gets to pick the person they fall in love with. Sometimes, love picks them.
Coming Soon...
Coming Next in the Meet Your Match Series

I cannot wait to read these also!!!!
Rachael
 
Author Rachael Anderson A USA Today bestselling author, Rachael Anderson is the mother of four and is pretty good at breaking up fights, or at least sending guilty parties to their rooms. She can't sing, doesn't dance, and despises tragedies. But she recently figured out how yeast works and can now make homemade bread, which she is really good at eating.
  Blog Tour Giveaway $25 Amazon Gift Card or Paypal Cash Ends 5/31/14 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, Not A Writer and sponsored by the author. VOID WHERE PROHIBITED BY LAW.   a Rafflecopter giveaway

Wednesday, May 21, 2014

Book Review - Bluegrass Undercover - Kathleen Brooks

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Title:  Bluegrass Undercover

AuthorKathleenBrooks

Review:  I found this book free on Amazon and thought why not it sounded interesting.  DEA agent Annie Blake is sent undercover to find and bust up a dung ring by going undercover as a high school guidance counselor.  She figured it would be easy, keep her head down, listen to the local gossip to find the scientist who developed a deadly drug.

Cade Davis high school football coach and biology teacher spent his days avoiding the M word but soon finds he can’t stop thinking about the new guidance counselor.  As the drugs filter into the small southern town, Keeneston, Cade and Annie find themselves working together to find and destroy the business of killing kids.

I found this book to be a quick read with fun memorable characters. The author created simple detail and well developed charterers that you want to know more about. I fell in love with feisty Annie who had a horrible life to start but quickly took charge and made the best of her life finding the DEA. Annie is a woman to look up to and a great fictional character. I felt the author created the small town feel perfectly down to the welcome committee. The plot was good, fast pace and kept the reader guessing until the end.

The book is more romance than mystery but it still a fun read. I found myself wanting to read the next in the series and end up over several months finishing the bluegrass series enjoying some and simple passing though others.

Thank you Heidi for this review.


Published:  Published April 14th 2012 by Createspace (first published March 1st 2012)
ISBN:  9781475111477
Page Count: 242
Quick Review:  4 out 5 stars –
Why I Read this Title:  Free on Amazon.

Synopsis
In her first follow-up to the Best Selling Bluegrass Series, Kathleen Brooks brings Keeneston back to life through the Davies Brothers. Cade Davies had too much on his plate to pay attention to newest resident of Keeneston. He was too busy avoiding the Davies Brothers marriage trap set by half the town. But when a curvy redhead lands in Keeneston, the retired Army Ranger finds himself drawn to her. These feelings are only fueled by her apparent indifference and lack of faith in his ability to defend himself.

DEA Agent Annie Blake was undercover to bust a drug ring hiding in the adorable Southern town that preyed on high school athletes. She had thought to keep her head down and listen to the local gossip to find the maker of this deadly drug. What Annie didn’t count on was becoming the local gossip. With marriage bets being placed, and an entire town aiming to win the pot, Annie looks to Cade for help in bringing down the drug ring before another kid is killed. But can she deal with the feelings that follow?
   Kathleen Brooks
Author Information:   Kathleen Brooks is a New York Times, Wall Street Journal, and USA Today bestselling author. Kathleen's stories are romantic suspense featuring strong female heroines, humor, and happily-ever-afters. Her Bluegrass Series and follow-up Bluegrass Brothers Series feature small town charm with quirky characters that have captured the hearts of readers around the world.

Kathleen is an animal lover who supports rescue organizations and other non-profit organizations, such as Friends and Vets Helping Pets, whose goals are to protect and save our four-legged family members.

Kathleen will begin a new series in 2014 called Women of Power. This series will follow the lives of successful businesswomen as they fight off dangers to their lives and careers while searching for true love.

Email Notice of New Releases: www.kathleen-brooks.com/new-release-n...
Kathleen's Website: www.kathleen-brooks.com
Facebook Page: www.facebook.com/KathleenBrooksAuthor
Twitter: www.twitter.com/BluegrassBrooks
Goodreads: www.goodreads.com/author/show/5101707...



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Monday, May 19, 2014

Things we Love Review - Prom flowers 2014 - C-lytes

C-lyte 


For Prom I made the flowers since the prices are ridiculous and my son wanted something unique, so we found these fun light-up stems from C-Lyte - they come in 3 stems like I used and in 5 stems that are a bit more expensive- I got a great deal on the 3 stems so that is what we went with - they are easy to work with and push into the flowers without ruining them or at least after I ruined a few I figured it out.   I had a fun time making these and found it not difficult after watching many YouTube how-to videos - what did we ever do without YouTube - it knows all.


Friday, May 16, 2014

Book Review - April Undercover - Evan Katy

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Title:  April Undercover

Author EvanKaty

Review:  There are very few books I get excited over but when I found out Evan Katy was still writing her Samantha Rialto Mysteries I couldn’t stop smiling.  April is just as good if not better than January, February and March which I was an unable to put down. April Undercover starts off with Sam trying to do a good deed for her sort of friend Skipper Turnbuckle but as always no good deed goes unpunished and by the end of the day a man threatens to kill her, a mob boss “kidnaps her” and her jeep is set on fire. Sam best friends Maxine and Olivia learn what was buried in the backyard attracting attention of two trespasser and the girls decide to use booby traps to catch the trespasser.

To top off everything Sam’s almost boyfriend Ben Parker seems to be keeping secrets and spending time with his ex-partner Sharon Gilbert.
Before spring break is over Sam is dragged into the middle of a gang war that threatens everything she knows and loves.

April Undercover is filled with laugh out loud moments, non-stop action, sweet moments of Ahh and nail biting moments which I lost a nail too biting it off. Olivia had me laughing so hard though out the book.

Evan Katy writes equal parts Mystery and Romance with neither part dominating the story. I think this might be my favorite book in the series so far and I can’t wait for the next book coming out next May 2015.

There is quite a bit of language in the book and if there is sex it ends with a close of the door.

I love this series.

Thank you Heidi for this review.


Published:  Published March 30th 2014
ISBN:  B00JDLV06A
Page Count: 246
Quick Review:  5 out 5 stars –
Why I Read this Title:  Sent by the publisher for review.

Synopsis Spring Break – If you’re Samantha Rialto, this is a time for bingo tournaments, ice cream trucks, and backyard electrocutions.

Sam is on spring break from her job as a middle school music teacher. She has no plans other than to relax and recover from the stressful events of the past few months. Her friend, private investigator Skipper Turnbuckle, has just been released from the hospital. He tricks her into accompanying him on a simple background check. But nothing in Sam’s life is ever simple. By the end of the afternoon a man named Chili threatens to kill her, a Russian mob boss briefly abducts her, and her Jeep is set on fire.

At home, Sam’s friends Maxie and Olivia, want to learn the secret of what’s buried in their backyard. Edgar and Jackson, a pair of bumbling trespassers, are also interested in the mysterious hatch, and their actions become increasingly more destructive.

If that weren’t enough, FBI Agent Ben Parker, Sam’s almost-boyfriend, has a secret he won’t share and has been spending time with Sharon Gilbert, a detective on the Oak Valley Police Department. Ben is irritated with Sam for continuing to associate with Skipper, and their mutual frustration reaches a boiling point.

Before Sam’s spring break is over, she’s dragged into the middle of a brutal gang war. Her life and the lives of her friends are threatened. To stay alive Sam will have to figure out the truth…before it kills her.
  Evan Katy 
Author Information:   Evan Katy was born and raised in Southern California. True to her roots she frequently visits Disneyland with her children, loves the Dodgers, and relaxes to the sound of ocean waves. She is currently busy writing the continuing adventures of Samantha Rialto and working on her middle grade science fiction story - A Breach in the Boundary.
  

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Wednesday, May 14, 2014

Book Reviewers Needed

We are in need of more book reviewer - anyone out there reading a book that should be shared with the world?  Write a review of 200 plus words telling everyone what you think of the book and why - give the book a rating of 1-5 stars and tell us where you picked it up and why.  Consider it an audition - 

That is all there is to reviewing books - we send out review inquires to those who send us a few reviews - we receive book offers daily from all the major publishing houses and other smaller ones.  We cannot read everything that is being offered to us - we cannot even read everything that is sent to us - books in the mail everyday around here.

Think about it - if you love to read share that with the world - send us reviews - you will soon have more book offers than you can keep up with - its fun and interesting to read things you never thought about reading in the past - I have learned that I like more genres then I originally thought - you might too!!!!

Send your reviews to me at lisapeters at yahoo dot com

Thanks so much for anyone thinking about reviewing a book or two- 

Disclaimer for all reviews sent by the publisher, publicist or author for review.

THE FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION (FTC) ISSUED NEW RULES THAT WENT INTO EFFECT ON DECEMBER 1, 2009. THESE RULES STATE THAT PRODUCT REVIEWERS ON BLOGS MUST DISCLOSE WHETHER THEY RECEIVED REVIEW PRODUCTS FOR FREE OR RECEIVED MONETARY PAYMENT FOR SUCH REVIEWS. PAYMENT IS NEVER ACCEPTED IN EXCHANGE FOR A REVIEW OR BOOK MENTION UNLESS NOTED IN THE POST. THE RECEIPT OF ARCS OR FREE REVIEW COPIES IN NO WAY INFLUENCES OR HAS AN IMPACT ON THE OPINIONS EXPRESSED IN THE BOOK REVIEWS POSTED ON THIS SITE.