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  • Archive for September, 2008

    Review: One Small Victory, by Maryann Miller


    Young Michael Jasik is killed in a car accident at the hands of his drug abusing friend, Brad Brennan. His mother, Jenny, a single mom, is destroyed by the news. When she learns that her son’s death was influenced by Brad’s drug addiction, she has to take action. She storms into the local police station and demands to be put on the undercover drug enforcement task force that she heard about on the news. Police Lieutenant Steve Morrity is leading the task force. While civilians aren’t typically involved in this type of police work, Morrity knows Jenny will take action on her own if she isn’t selected. So, after a grueling physical test, Jenny passes and becomes an undercover informant. She is forced to hide this from her two surviving children, Scott and Alicia. They notice a change in her behavior and contact their father, who has never really been a part of their lives. Jenny risks her life, and the custody of her children for this mission. I commend Jenny’s character for her strength, and the fearless acts she performed in an effort to bring down a big time drug pusher. ONE SMALL VICTORY is an amazing, heart pounding, emotional tale about one mother’s love of her children, and the steps she takes to protect them from harm.

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    09 2008

    Review: Living Dead Girl by Elizabeth Scott

    “Alice” was abducted by Ray when she was ten years old. Five years later, she’s a skeleton of the young, vibrant girl she used to be. She’s sustained unspeakable physical and mental abuse at the hands of Ray. She begs each day just to die. Then, Ray asks her find him a new girl. And so, Alice begins the search for her replacement, her salvation. LIVING DEAD GIRL is a dark and terrifying look into the life of an abused teen. While this book is geared to teens, there are bits that aren’t overly graphic but would still be too shocking and detailed for a young teen. Although this is a very short book, it is powerful and memorable. A book so disturbing you’ll want to put it down, but so compelling that you are forced to continue. This book, and the “Alices” out there will be on my mind for some time. It has been quite some time since a book has impacted me so powerfully.
    To win an ARC of Living Dead Girl, comment on this review. Winner will be announced next Saturday, October 4th.
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    26

    09 2008

    National Book Festival Tomorrow!

    I’m headed to the National Book Festival tomorrow. It’s sponsored by the Library of Congress. I’ve lived in the DC area for almost 10 years, and this is the first opportunity I’ve been able to attend. My husband has graciously offered to watch our boys while a friend and I attend.

    Some of my favorite authors will be there. Here’s a list of the fiction authors who will be making an appearance.

    Since I don’t have the strength to lug all the books I want signed, a friend of mine (thanks Toni!) suggested that I just take book jackets/sleeves. Awesome idea!
    Anyway, I can’t wait! I’ll try to get a few pictures of me with my favorite authors.
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    26

    09 2008

    Review: THE GIRL WITH THE DRAGON TATTOO by Stieg Larsson

    Mikael Bloomkvist, a Swedish financial journalist, is convicted of committing libel against a powerful and manipulating businessman, Hans-Eric Wennerström. As he awaits the start of his jail sentence, Bloomkvist is approached by Henrik Vanger, an aging industrialist and is hired to investigate the disappearance of Vagner’s niece, Harriet. Harriet went missing forty years ago from the family’s small island village. Teamed up with Lisbeth Salander, an eccentric and tattooed computer hacker, Bloomkvist begins to delve into the Vanger family history. They uncover a horrid past littered with abuse, lies, and murder. The storyline of THE GIRL WITH THE DRAGON TATTOO was a little slow at first, but it quickly reveals itself to be an amazing story that any fan of mystery would love. The characters are powerful and the story line, once it picked up, was faced paced and thrilling. Fortunately, THE GIRL WITH THE DRAGON TATTOO is the first of a Millennium trilogy. Unfortunately,THE GIRL WHO PLAYED WITH FIRE (2009 release), and CASTLES IN THE SKY (2010 release) are the last books written before Larsson died of a heart attack in 2004. All three have become international best sellers. I anxiously and impatiently await the release of the rest of the trilogy here in the U.S.
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    09 2008

    Winners of The Almost Moon Contest

    Are:

    1. Ronnica
    2. rachel
    3. Sheri
    4. Kristi Valiant
    5. Ramya

    Winners-please email me at jenlaw77(AT)earthlink(DOT)net with your complete mailing address. The books will be send directly from the publisher!

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    20

    09 2008

    Let's Talk Blogging! (And win an autographed Tess Gerritsen bookmark!)

    My Friend Amy is asking bloggers to answer two questions about blogging, in honor of Book Blogger Appreciation Week. I’ve answered them below.

    What is one thing you wish you knew about blogging when you started or what advice would you give a newbie blogger? What is your best blogging tip?

    How addictive it can be! Not just posting on my blog, but reading other blogs! Seriously, though the book blogging community is great! I’ve made tons of new friends, done a lot of networking, and have come in contact with a number of great publicists. I’ve been introduced to some pretty amazing books as well. So for all you new bloggers–visit other blogs, post comments. Don’t fret too much about the design of your blog (ok, I’m being a total hypocrite…how many times have I changed my layout!). In time, your blog will get a pretty static chain of followers.

    So, my fellow book bloggers! How would you answer the questions above. Post your answer in comment and you will be entered into a contest to win an autographed Tess Gerritsen The Keepsake bookmark!

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    17

    09 2008

    Teaser Tuesdays

    TEASER TUESDAYS asks you to:

    • Grab your current read.
    • Let the book fall open to a random page.
    • Share with us two (2) “teaser” sentences from that page, somewhere between lines 7 and 12.
    • You also need to share the title of the book that you’re getting your “teaser” from … that way people can have some great book recommendations if they like the teaser you’ve given!
    • Please avoid spoilers!

    Here’s my teaser:

    “She decided that whatever else he might be, he did not seem to be a malicious person. And there was nothing in the PI she had done that would indicate he was a vicious bastard who abused his girlfriends or anything like that.”

    Taken from The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson.

    Share your teaser!

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    16

    09 2008

    In Honor of BBAW–Win a copy of The Almost Moon by Alice Sebold!

    Thanks to Valerie from Hachette Book Group USA, I have 5 paperback copies of The Almost Moon by Alice Sebold to give away! This giveaway is open to US and Canada only.

    The Rules:

    To enter, comment on my blog. To be entered twice, blog about this contest. Please be sure to include your email address and the link to your blog if applicable. Contest ends Saturday, September 20 at NOON Eastern Time.
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    15

    09 2008

    Winner of the Lori Andrews Contest!

    Congratulations, Carol! You are the winner of the Lori Andrews contest. I’ll be contacting you directly to obtain your mailing address. Stay tuned for next week’s contest–5 paperback copies of Almost Moon by Alice Sebold!

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    13

    09 2008

    Tag, I'm it!

    Ti from Book Chatter and Other Stuff tagged me for a fun meme

    Here are the rules: I am going to list three categories of books. 3 MUST Read Books, 3 Keep Your Eyes on These, and 3 Look For These Soon. Keeping with the theme, I am going to tag at least 3 bloggers. They should put these same lists on their blog but SUBTRACT one book from each list and ADD one of their own. Then they should tag at least 3 more bloggers. It will be fun to see how the lists change as they go around the blogosphere. Please come back to this post and leave a comment so I can see how the lists are changing.

    Since this is Book Buzz…please keep your lists to titles released in 2007-2009.
    So, here goes…[asterisks are next to my additions]

    3 MUST Read Books:
    Mister Pip by Lloyd Jones
    Black Swan Green, by David Mitchell
    *The Lace Reader, by Brunonia Barry

    3 Keep Your Eyes on These:
    Out Stealing Horses by Per Petterson
    The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society, by Mary Ann Shaffer
    *The Keepsake, by Tess Gerritsen

    3 Look For These Soon:
    The Prudent Mariner, by Leslie Walker Williams
    When Will There Be Good News? by Kate Atkinson
    *The Fire by Katherine Neville

    3 Tags to keep this meme going:
    No More Grumpy Bookseller
    Bookish Ruth
    Redlady’s Reading Room

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    09 2008