Friday, November 29, 2019

Happy Holidays Reader Appreciation Giveaway!

Update: The Giveaway has ended. Three lucky winners have been chosen:

Mick M. - $50 Gift Card
Jeanne K. - $25 Gift Card
Still waiting on response from 3rd winner.

Thank you all for entering! 


The Holiday Season is here
and I'm thrilled to annouce the 

2019
Happy Holidays
Reader Appreciation Giveaway!


As a way of thanking all my amazing and supportive readers, I want to give you a chance to win one of three Amazon Gift Cards.

Prizes:
1- $50 Amazon Gift Card
1- $25 Amazon Gift Card
1- $25 Amazon Gift Card

Dates:

November 29th - December 20th


Enter by using the Rafflecopter below. The more entries you have, the greater the chance of winning!

You can also leave a comment on this post to enter if you'd rather.

U.S., UK and Canadian Entries Only. 


GOOD LUCK!

And have a wonderful holiday season!




Tuesday, November 26, 2019

Book Review: Woman on the Edge by Samantha M. Bailey



Hi all,

This debut novel by the talented Samantha M. Bailey is going to keep you on the edge of your seat. Be prepared to be taken for a bumpy ride! Here are my thoughts.


Woman on the Edge

Samantha M. Bailey



Book Description:

A moment on the subway platform changes two women’s lives forever—a debut thriller that will take your breath away.

A total stranger on the subway platform whispers, “Take my baby.”

She places her child in your arms. She says your name.

Then she jumps...

In a split second, Morgan Kincaid’s life changes forever. She’s on her way home from work when a mother begs her to take her baby, then places the infant in her arms. Before Morgan can stop her, the distraught mother jumps in front of an oncoming train.

Morgan has never seen this woman before, and she can’t understand what would cause a person to give away her child and take her own life. She also can’t understand how this woman knew her name.

The police take Morgan in for questioning. She soon learns that the woman who jumped was Nicole Markham, prominent CEO of the athletic brand Breathe. She also learns that no witness can corroborate her version of events, which means she’s just become a murder suspect.

To prove her innocence, Morgan frantically retraces the last days of Nicole’s life. Was Nicole a new mother struggling with paranoia or was she in danger? When strange things start happening to Morgan, she suddenly realizes she might be in danger, too.

Woman on the Edge is a pulse-pounding, propulsive thriller about the lengths to which a woman will go to protect her baby—even if that means sacrificing her own life.

Psychological Thriller
Publish Date: November 26, 2019

Buy now:



Paperback (Releases 3/3/20)


My 5-Star Review:

Morgan Kincaid’s life has already been set in a tailspin from her deceased husband’s dealings and all she wants is for her life to be normal again. But while waiting on the platform for the train, a frantic woman she’s never met before shoves her small infant in Morgan’s arms and asks her to take care of her baby. Then, in an instant, Morgan’s life changes forever when the woman falls in front of the moving train. Soon, Morgan finds herself a suspect in the woman’s death as strange details come to light. Desperate to clear her name, she begins to unravel the woman’s last days before she died to prove her innocence. But unraveling the web of deceit and lies is more difficult that Morgan could have ever imagined.

Woman on the Edge is a tightly-woven, edge-of-the-seat psychological thriller that you will not be able to put down. The twists and turns in this story will keep you guessing until the very end. A brilliantly written debut novel by the talented Samantha M. Bailey, this novel is a must-read for all thriller fans.



About the Author:

Samantha M. Bailey is a Toronto-based novelist, journalist, and freelance editor. Her work has appeared in NOW Magazine, The Village Post, and Oxford University Press, among other publications. She was a writer-in-residence for Kobo Writing Life at Book Expo America 2013. She is the co-founder of BookBuzz, a promotional and interactive author-reader event held in New York City and Toronto. Woman on the Edge is her debut novel. Connect with her on Twitter and Instagram @SBaileyBooks and on her website at SamanthaMBailey.com

Saturday, November 16, 2019

Book Review: Stay by Catherine Ryan Hyde


If you read my reviews at all, you already know I’m a huge fan of Catherine Ryan Hyde. Her novels portray everyday people in difficult situations that most people can relate to. STAY is yet another wonderful novel by this talented wordsmith. Below is more about her latest novel and my thoughts.


Stay


Catherine Ryan Hyde


Book Description:

In the summer of 1969, fourteen-year-old Lucas Painter carries a huge weight on his shoulders. His brother is fighting in Vietnam. His embattled parents are locked in a never-ending war. And his best friend, Connor, is struggling with his own family issues. To find relief from the chaos, Lucas takes long, meandering walks, and one day he veers into the woods.

There he discovers an isolated cabin and two huge dogs. Frightened, he runs. And the dogs run with him. Lucas finds unusual peace in running with the dogs, and eventually he meets their owner, Zoe Dinsmore. Closed off and haunted by a tragic past, Zoe has given up. She doesn’t want to be saved. She wants out. But Lucas doesn’t want her to go, and he sees an opportunity to bring more than one friend back into the light. It’s either the best or worst idea he’s ever had, but Lucas isn’t giving up on Zoe or Connor.

Their unexpected connection might be the saving grace that Zoe thought she’d lost, that Connor needs, and that Lucas has been running toward.

Release Date: December 3, 2019
Lake Union Publishing

Buy:





My 5-Star Review:

Fourteen-year-old Lucas is worried about many things in the summer of 1969. His older brother is fighting in Vietnam, his parents fight constantly, and his best friend is growing more and more reclusive. Lucas is worried about everyone, and wants to fix their problems, but is unable to do so. As a release, he’s started running. He runs in the woods behind his house, finding it calming. Until one day he come upon a small cabin that he’s never noticed before and two very active dogs. After days of running with the dogs, he meets their owner, Zoe, who lives isolated from everyone. After a near-tragedy, Lucas’s friendship with Zoe grows, and an unusual connection is made that will touch everyone in Lucas’s life, especially him.

I love stories where unexpected friendships grow to be so much more. Catherine Ryan Hyde is an expert at developing flawed characters who somehow find each other and learn to live to their potential. It’s people helping people, even the most broken of us. Set in the turbulent era of the Vietnam War, when knowing right from wrong was difficult, this book pulls at your heartstrings. This novel is one of my favorites by this amazing author.  



About the Author:

Catherine Ryan Hyde is the author of more than thirty published and forthcoming books. An avid hiker, traveler, equestrian, and amateur photographer, she has released her first book of photos, 365 Days of Gratitude: Photos from a Beautiful World.

Her novel Pay It Forward was adapted into a major motion picture, chosen by the American Library Association (ALA) for its Best Book for Young Adults list, and translated into more than twenty-three languages for distribution in over thirty countries. Both Becoming Chloe and Jumpstart the World were included on the ALA’s Rainbow List, and Jumpstart the World was a finalist for two Lambda Literary Awards. Where We Belong won two Rainbow Awards in 2013, and The Language of Hoofbeats won a Rainbow Award in 2015.

More than fifty of her short stories have been published in the Antioch ReviewMichigan Quarterly ReviewVirginia Quarterly ReviewPloughsharesGlimmer Train, and many other journals, and in the anthologies Santa Barbara Stories and California Shorts and the bestselling anthology Dog Is My Co-Pilot. Her stories have been honored in the Raymond Carver Short Story Contest and the Tobias Wolff Award and nominated for the O. Henry Award and the Pushcart Prize. Three have been cited in The Best American Short Stories.

She is founder and former president (2000–2009) of the Pay It Forward Foundation and still serves on its board of directors. As a professional public speaker, she has addressed the National Conference on Education, twice spoken at Cornell University, met with AmeriCorps members at the White House, and shared a dais with Bill Clinton.

For more information, please visit the author at www.catherineryanhyde.com.