Tuesday, September 26, 2017

Book Review: The Rules of Magic by Alice Hoffman

Are you ready for some magic? Then don’t miss out on this amazing prequel to PRACTICAL MAGIC. THE RULES OF MAGIC by Alice Hoffman.


The Rules of Magic

Alice Hoffman


Book Description:

From beloved author Alice Hoffman comes the spellbinding prequel to her bestseller, Practical Magic.

Find your magic.

For the Owens family, love is a curse that began in 1620, when Maria Owens was charged with witchery for loving the wrong man.

Hundreds of years later, in New York City at the cusp of the sixties, when the whole world is about to change, Susanna Owens knows that her three children are dangerously unique. Difficult Franny, with skin as pale as milk and blood red hair, shy and beautiful Jet, who can read other people’s thoughts, and charismatic Vincent, who began looking for trouble on the day he could walk.

From the start Susanna sets down rules for her children: No walking in the moonlight, no red shoes, no wearing black, no cats, no crows, no candles, no books about magic. And most importantly, never, ever, fall in love. But when her children visit their Aunt Isabelle, in the small Massachusetts town where the Owens family has been blamed for everything that has ever gone wrong, they uncover family secrets and begin to understand the truth of who they are. Back in New York City each begins a risky journey as they try to escape the family curse.

The Owens children cannot escape love even if they try, just as they cannot escape the pains of the human heart. The two beautiful sisters will grow up to be the revered, and sometimes feared, aunts in Practical Magic, while Vincent, their beloved brother, will leave an unexpected legacy. Thrilling and exquisite, real and fantastical, The Rules of Magic is a story about the power of love reminding us that the only remedy for being human is to be true to yourself.

Publish Date: October 10, 2017
Simon & Schuster

Preorder on:



Or buy at your favorite bookseller.


My 5-Star Review:

The long awaited prequel to PRACTICAL MAGIC is here! If you’ve ever wondered who the aunts were and how they came to live in the house where our favorite little witches grow up in Practical Magic, then now all your questions will be answered.

In the 1960s, Franny and Jet Owens—and their brother Vincent, a delightful surprise—are raised by their parents in New York City without a clue about the Owens’s history. All they know for sure are the rules their mother, Susanna, sets down— no walking in the moonlight, no red shoes, no wearing black, no cats, no crows, no candles, no books about magic and no falling in love! But one summer when the girls and their brother are in their young teens, they are called to visit their Aunt Isabelle who lives in a huge old house in a small Massachusetts town. Here, they begin to understand their strange gifts and who they really are, and a whole new world is opened up to them.

As we watch these three young people grow into adulthood, we see what shapes their lives and how they become who they are when we meet them years later in Practical Magic.

If you think the prequel cannot possibly be as good or better than Practical Magic, then you’d be mistaken. Author Alice Hoffman does not disappoint in this amazing story full of richly developed characters who charm their way into your heart. It is a wonderfully woven tale masterfully written by the queen of magical stories.

As someone who’s read several of Ms. Hoffman’s novels, many of which I’ve loved, I would have to say that this is my absolute favorite one to date (along with Practical Magic, of course). Highly, highly recommended!

(I received an advance copy from the publisher and NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.)


About the Author:



Alice Hoffman was born in New York City on March 16, 1952 and grew up on Long Island. After graduating from high school in 1969, she attended Adelphi University, from which she received a BA, and then received a Mirrellees Fellowship to the Stanford University Creative Writing Center, which she attended in 1973 and 74, receiving an MA in creative writing. She currently lives in Boston and New York. 

Hoffman's first novel, Property Of, was written at the age of twenty-one, while she was studying at Stanford, and published shortly thereafter by Farrar Straus and Giroux. She credits her mentor, professor and writer Albert J. Guerard, and his wife, the writer Maclin Bocock Guerard, for helping her to publish her first short story in the magazine Fiction. Editor Ted Solotaroff then contacted her to ask if she had a novel, at which point she quickly began to write what was to become Property Of, a section of which was published in Mr. Solotaroff's magazine, American Review. 

Since that remarkable beginning, Alice Hoffman has become one of our most distinguished novelists. She has published a total of eighteen novels, two books of short fiction, and eight books for children and young adults. Her novel, Here on Earth, an Oprah Book Club choice, was a modern reworking of some of the themes of Emily Bronte's masterpiece Wuthering Heights. Practical Magic was made into a Warner film starring Sandra Bullock and Nicole Kidman. Her novel, At Risk, which concerns a family dealing with AIDS, can be found on the reading lists of many universities, colleges and secondary schools. Her advance from Local Girls, a collection of inter-related fictions about love and loss on Long Island, was donated to help create the Hoffman (Women's Cancer) Center at Mt. Auburn Hospital in Cambridge, MA. Blackbird House is a book of stories centering around an old farm on Cape Cod. Hoffman's recent books include Aquamarine and Indigo, novels for pre-teens, and The New York Times bestsellers The River King, Blue Diary, The Probable Future, and The Ice Queen. Green Angel, a post-apocalyptic fairy tale about loss and love, was published by Scholastic and The Foretelling, a book about an Amazon girl in the Bronze Age, was published by Little Brown. In 2007 Little Brown published the teen novel Incantation, a story about hidden Jews during the Spanish Inquisition, which Publishers Weekly has chosen as one of the best books of the year. In January 2007, Skylight Confessions, a novel about one family's secret history, was released on the 30th anniversary of the publication of Her first novel. Her most recent novel is The Story Sisters (2009), published by Shaye Areheart Books.

Hoffman's work has been published in more than twenty translations and more than one hundred foreign editions. Her novels have received mention as notable books of the year by The New York Times, Entertainment Weekly, The Los Angeles Times, Library Journal, and People Magazine. She has also worked as a screenwriter and is the author of the original screenplay "Independence Day" a film starring Kathleen Quinlan and Diane Wiest. Her short fiction and non-fiction have appeared in The New York Times, The Boston Globe Magazine, Kenyon Review, Redbook, Architectural Digest, Gourmet, Self, and other magazines. Her teen novel Aquamarine was recently made into a film starring Emma Roberts.

Wednesday, September 20, 2017

Cover Reveal: As the Snow Fell by Deanna Lynn Sletten

Hi all,

I am so excited to share with you the beautiful cover of my upcoming romance novel, As the Snow Fell. We return to the delightful Lake Harriet neighborhood where we first met Kristen and Ryan and their beloved dog, Sam, in Walking Sam. If you loved their story, you are going to love Mallory and James story too.

Here is the gorgeous cover created for me by Deborah at Tugboat Design




Book Description:

In the charming Lake Harriet neighborhood in Minneapolis, MN, where we first met Kristen, Ryan, and their beloved dog, Sam, in Walking Sam, we meet another couple who are struggling to find true love.

Mallory Dawson is planning the winter wedding of her dreams. She’s found a wonderful man to share her life with and is looking forward to a promising future together. But one month before her wedding, she runs into the man she once loved who she hasn’t seen in ten years and her entire life is turned upside down.

James Gallagher fled to California ten years ago to start his life over after the love of his life, Mallory, refused to marry him. But when his dad passes away and his mother becomes ill, he returns home to help run the family business. Seeing Mallory again brings a flood of memories back, and he begins to wonder what his life would have been like if he hadn’t left.

Will the wedding go on or will fate play a hand in Mallory's happily ever after?



Publish Date: November 21, 2017
Contemporary Romance/Sweet Romance

Pre-order now on:



Coming Soon to:

Paperback


Be sure to pre-order now!

Wednesday, September 6, 2017

Book Review: The Summer that Made Us by Robyn Carr

Hi all,

I was so happy to be asked to join the blog tour for Robyn Carr's latest novel, The Summer that Made Us. It is a deeply moving novel about loss, family ties, and redemption. Here is more about the novel and my review.


Book Description:

Mothers and daughters, sisters and cousins, they lived for summers at the lake house until a tragic accident changed everything. The Summer That Made Us is an unforgettable story about a family learning to accept the past, to forgive and to love each other again.

That was then… 

For the Hempsteads, two sisters who married two brothers and had three daughters each, summers were idyllic. The women would escape the city the moment school was out to gather at the family house on Lake Waseka. The lake was a magical place, a haven where they were happy and carefree. All of their problems drifted away as the days passed in sun-dappled contentment. Until the summer that changed everything.

This is now… 

After an accidental drowning turned the lake house into a site of tragedy and grief, it was closed up. For good. Torn apart, none of the Hempstead women speak of what happened that summer, and relationships between them are uneasy at best to hurtful at worst. But in the face of new challenges, one woman is determined to draw her family together again, and the only way that can happen is to return to the lake and face the truth.

Robyn Carr has crafted a beautifully woven story about the complexities of family dynamics and the value of strong female relationships.

 

Buy now:


Or at your favorite book store.

 
My 5-Star Review:

A family torn apart by a past tragedy that slowly decends into a dysfunctional mess. That pretty much sums up the lives of the Hempstead women and their daughters. But how did this all happen one lovely summer by the lake? One moment, everyone was happy and carefree. The next, everything had fallen apart. The lake house is boarded up and left, forgotten.

Fast-forward to the present. Megan’s days are numbered as she battles cancer and her last wish is to bring her sisters, cousins, aunt, and mother back together one last time to the lake house. Enlisting help from her sister, Charley, who’s career is falling apart, the lake house is freshened up, ready for the family to return. And in doing so, old memories are dug up, past differences are rehashed, and new relationships are formed.

The Summer that Made Us is an intricately woven, heartfelt family story that will make you laugh and cry and will warm your heart. I highly recommend it.

 

About the Author:

Robyn Carr is an award-winning, #1 New York Times bestselling author of more than 50 novels, including the critically acclaimed Virgin River and Thunder Point series, as well as highly praised women’s fiction titles such as Four Friends, What We Find, and The Life She Wants.

Robyn has won a RITA Award from the Romance Writers of America, and in 2016 she was awarded RWA’s Nora Roberts Lifetime Achievement Award for her contributions to the genre. Her novels have been translated into 19 languages in 30 countries. Originally from Minnesota, Robyn now resides in Henderson, Nevada, with her aviator husband; they have two grown children. When she isn’t writing, Robyn puts her energy into community service: she has mentored a seniors’ memoir-writing group, attends book club chats in and out of state whenever possible, and is working with her local library on the Carr Chat Series, a program centered on fundraising and visiting author events that bring writers, their books, and the community together.

 

THE SUMMER THAT MADE US

Publication date: September 5, 2017

Hardcover $26.99 U.S. / $29.99 CAN.

ISBN-13: 978-0778331049

 

Friday, September 1, 2017

The Amazing Autumn Paperback Giveaway!

 
The Amazing Autumn Paperback Giveaway!
 
 
All of the book covers created made by Deborah @ Tugboat Design.

September is here which means that autumn is
right around the corner. That means shorter days
and cooler nights, the perfect time to curl up
in front of the fire and read a book.
 
Lucky for you, we have 12 wonderful books you
have the chance to win that will entertain you until
winter.
 
Twelve amazing authors from all genres have teamed up to give away twelve incredible paperback novels to
ONE LUCKY WINNER!
 
That's right - one lucky winner will receive all twelve books.
And it's very easy to enter.
 
Use the Rafflecopter below to enter.
The more entries you make, the higher chance
you have of winning.
 
If you don't want to enter using the Rafflecopter, you may leave a
comment below to enter instead. Tell us the title of your favorite book ever!
 
 
Contest Rules:
 
U.S Residents only please.
Contest runs 9/1/17 - 9/22/17
The winner will be selected randomly from the entries.
One winner will win all 12 paperback books. The books will be shipped
directly to the winner from each author.
 
 
Enter Now!
 
Good Luck!