Wednesday, March 6, 2013

The Good Daughter


Synopsis:  Love was given to all, except herself . . .
 
Kit Brennan has always been the most grounded of her sisters. A Catholic school English teacher for seventeen years and a constant giver, her decisions have been sound—just not very satisfying. Her fortieth birthday is right around the corner, causing Kit to consider some wilder notions, like skipping right past the love and marriage to raising a child all by herself . . .
 
A girls’ weekend away is just the reprieve Kit needs from school, Mr. Wrongs, and life-changing decisions. It’s there that she meets a man who’s dangerous; a man who challenges who she thought she was, or rather should be. Kit wants to indulge herself this once, but with one of her students in crisis and the weight of her family’s burdens weighing heavy on her heart, Kit isn’t sure if now is the time to let her own desires take flight . . .

My Review: I really enjoyed The Good Daughter!  This is the second book in the Brennan Sisters series, but can be read as a stand alone.  I really liked Kit in the first book, The Good Woman and was so excited she was the main focus of The Good Daughter!

Kit is the daughter that is known as being the one that always makes the right decision, the peace keeper in the family, does the right thing.....the good one!  But we find out Kit has a secret side too!  While away, she walks on the wild side and she knows her family will not approve. Keep in mind Kate is single, forty and wants to be a mother.

Kit also struggles with her mother losing the battle to cancer.  Be prepared to have some kleenex near by.  There are other twists and turns in the book regarding a student, that I didn't see coming.  

The Good Daughter is a quick read that was very enjoyable!  Perfect for weekend read.

Meet the Author: Jane Porter, a native of Visalia, California, graduated from UCLA with a degree in American Studies and worked in sales and marketing before returning to school to earn a teaching credential and an MA in Writing from the University of San Francisco. Since publishing her first romance novel in 2001, Jane has written and sold 39 novels, including her latest release, The Good Woman, the first book in her Brennan Sisters trilogy. A bestselling author, Jane has also been a finalist for the prestigious RITA award in 2002, 2003, 2008 and 2010 from Romance Writers of America, and her '06 release, Flirting With Forty, picked by Redbook as its Red Hot Summer Read, went back for seven printings in six weeks before being made into a December 08 Lifetime movie starring Heather Locklear. Jane, her surfer husband, and three sons make their home today in San Clemente, CA where she's currently working on her next novel.

Purchase It:  You can purchase The Good Daughter online at Amazon for $15.00 (Kindle version $9.99).

Tuesday, March 5, 2013

Deadweather and Sunrise: The Chronicles of Egg, Book 1




Synopsis:  A stunning middle-grade debut--full of heart, humor, and nonstop action

It's tough to be thirteen, especially when somebody's trying to kill you.

Not that Egg's life was ever easy, growing up on sweaty, pirate-infested Deadweather Island with no company except an incompetent tutor and a pair of unusually violent siblings who hate his guts.

But when Egg's father hustles their family off on a mysterious errand to fabulously wealthy Sunrise Island, then disappears with the siblings in a freak accident, Egg finds himself a long-term guest at the mansion of the glamorous Pembroke family and their beautiful, sharp-tongued daughter Millicent. Finally, life seems perfect.

Until someone tries to throw him off a cliff.


Suddenly, Egg's running for his life in a bewildering world of cutthroat pirates, villainous businessmen, and strange Native legends. The only people who can help him sort out the mystery of why he's been marked for death are Millicent and a one-handed, possibly deranged cabin boy.

Come along for the ride. You'll be glad you did.


My Review: I really, really liked Deadweather and Sunrise: The Chronicles of Egg, Book 1.  My favorite character was Egg (of course!).  He was adventurous for his age.  He was able to survive pirates and floated on wood from the ship to an island.  On the island he realizes Guts (a pirate kid) made it to the island too.  They become a team and fight off an army of soldiers who were trying to take Egg's land.  The head of the army wants Egg's land because he thinks there is a buried treasurer on the land.  

I really like Burn Healy, one of the pirates. He gave Egg and Guts weapons to help fight against the soldiers.  Guts was pretty feisty.  He was not even scared of the soldiers.  He was a good fighter even though he only had one hand.  

I would recommend Deadweather and Sunrise: The Chronicles of Egg, Book 1 to middle school boys and girls (5th - 8th grade). I am giving the book to my school library, since so many kids in my class want to read it too!  I am so excited I have Book 2 - New Lands, so I can keep reading more about Egg's adventures.  Consider me, hooked!



Meet the Author:  Geoff Rodkey is the author of the Chronicles of Egg middle grade comedic adventure series and the Emmy-nominated screenwriter of such hit films as Daddy Day Care, RV, and the Disney Channel's Good Luck Charlie, It's Christmas. 

Geoff grew up in Freeport, Illinois and began his writing career on his high school newspaper. While in college, Geoff was an editor of both the Harvard Lampoon and the Let's Go travel guide series. His early writing credits include the educational video game Where In the World Is Carmen Sandiego?, the non-educational MTV series Beavis and Butt-head, and Comedy Central's Politically Incorrect. 

Geoff's debut novel, Deadweather and Sunrise, is the first book in the Chronicles of Egg trilogy. The final volumes in the series, New Lands and Blue Sea Burning, will be published by Putnam in 2013 and 2014.

Geoff currently lives in New York City with his wife and three sons. They do not have any pets, mostly because the whole experience with the goldfish was just too upsetting.


Purchase it:  You can purchase Deadweather and Sunrise - The Chronicles of Egg, Book 1 online from Amazon for $7.99.


Monday, March 4, 2013

Winners


Congrats to the following winners!

Sandy  - Yours Affectionately, Jane Austen

Laura - S.E.C.R.E.T

Check your emails ladies, I sent you one!

Thanks everyone who entered and for your continued support

Chin Music - TLC Book Tour Review + Giveaway!




SynopsisChin Music. A 95 mile-per-hour fastball thrown at a hitter’s chin -- an instant’s difference between disrupting the batter’s concentration and hitting him in the head. As a metaphor in life, chin music is the split second when destinies are altered and all of our certainties about who we are change forever. 

Ryan Buck, a high school senior and talented athlete, is weighed down with guilt over the horrific accident that has shattered his family’s idyllic life. His dad is dead, his younger brother is maimed, and his mom, Susan, is overwhelmed. Suddenly, life is full of challenges. In the aftermath of the crash, Susan is forced to sell the valuable Babe Ruth artifacts that have been in her family for five generations. 

A chance meeting with Sam, a retired businessman and baseball memorabilia collector, leads to a close friendship that provides the support Susan needs to investigate a secret that has plagued her family for as long as she can remember -- the remarkable encounter between her great grandmother Zel and the immortal Yankee slugger. As Ryan labors, baseball becomes his only outlet, emotionally and physically. When his superior talent for the sport is recognized, a chance at the major leagues becomes a reality, leaving Susan torn between her excitement at Ryan's prospects and protecting her family from the truth that will turn their world upside down. 

At once a moving story about a troubled kid's dream of making it in baseball, and the struggles of a Mom suddenly alone, trying to do the best for her family, Chin Music will leave readers cheering for more.

My Review:  Chin Music, a fastball under the chin that makes you take notice of your surroundings.  Edelstein has created a captivating tale about the great,  great-grandson of Babe Ruth.  

While tragedy has befallen their family, the Buck’s rally and soon find themselves engulfed in an intense story of the Yankee great and his lady barber.  Chin Music is a very compelling story and a very quick read.  I found myself dreaming of the warm Florida sunshine during spring training.  Ryan Buck’s first at-bat as a Yankee is gripping and I felt like I was in the park watching the entire thing unfold.  

This is a must read for any sports fan, and especially so for a baseball fan.




Meet the Author:  Lee Edelstein is a successful entrepreneur whose business activities kept him too busy to devote much time to writing. Now retired, he has graduated from penning the occasional short story for family and friends to his first novel, Chin Music, where he channels a lifelong passion for baseball into a charming story. Lee and his wife, Janet, split time between New York and Florida.

Purchase It: You can purchase Chin Music online at Amazon for $14.95 (Kindle version $6.95)

Giveaway:  I have one copy of Chin Music to giveaway (US/CAN)!  All you have to do is leave a comment letting me know your favorite baseball team.  Mine is Detroit Tigers!  Make sure you leave me your email address too!  Good luck, contest ends, March 11th at midnight (EST).
Make sure you check out the other TLC Book Reviews!


Monday, March 4th:  Seaside Book Nook
Tuesday, March 5th:  Patricia’s Wisdom
Wednesday, March 6th:  Fiction Addict
Thursday, March 7th:  Book Chase
Monday, March 11th:  Teena in Toronto
Wednesday, March 13th:  Proud Book Nerd
Thursday, March 14th:  Books a la Mode – guest post/giveaway
Monday, March 18th:  Padre Steve’s World
Wednesday, March 20th:  Dad of Divas’ Reviews
Thursday, March 21st:  WV Stitcher
Monday, March 25th:  Sweet Southern Home
Thursday, March 28th:  Teach Mentor Texts