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

Posted on September 17, 2008 by Jenn

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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Teaser Tuesdays

Posted on September 16, 2008 by Jenn

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

Posted on September 15, 2008 by Jenn

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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Winner of the Lori Andrews Contest!

Posted on September 13, 2008 by Jenn

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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Tag, I'm it!

Posted on September 9, 2008 by Jenn

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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Lori Andrews Contest!

Posted on September 8, 2008 by Jenn

The winner of this contest will receive all three books in Lori Andrew’s Dr. Anita Blake Series, including her newest, Immunity.

To enter the contest, post a comment on my blog. To be entered twice, mention this contest on your blog. Please be sure to include a link to your blog (if applicable) and your email address in your comment.

Winner will be announced Saturday, September 13.
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Winners of Tess Gerritsen Contest!

Posted on September 8, 2008 by Jenn

Are:

Julie P.
Gwendolyn
Anonymous

I will email each of the winners. Winners will be able to pick which one one of the three books available.

I used list randomizer to determine the winners. Here is the list that was generated:

Julie P.
Gwendolyn
Anonymous
Bella
Bobbi
Sherri
Lenore
Becca
Bella
Yan
Monie G.
Anne
Vickie
Theresa N.
Penny
Wendi
WindyCindy
Tammy
Carol
Bobbi
Anne
Mari
Hersheyskisses
PopinFresh
PopinFresh
Monie G.
Janel
Wendi
Vickie
Ramya
Cindy

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Review: Sweetheart, by Chelsea Cain

Posted on September 5, 2008 by Jenn

In Cain’s follow up to HEARTSICK, we find Portland Detective Archie Sheridan still getting over from his “encounter” with serial killer Gretchen Lowell of two months prior. This is virtually impossible, however, as Archie an Gretchen have a twisted sadistic bond that runs deep.A woman’s body is found in Forest Park, the same location of the first of Gretchen’s Beauty Killings ten years ago. Archie can’t help but believe the murders are related, but since Gretchen is in prison it seems to be impossible. Archie begins to work with Susan Ward, a reporter, and when they uncover the identity of the body it becomes a high-profile case. But when Gretchen escapes from prison, Archie is unable to focus on the case. He knows he is the only one that can bring in Gretchen, once and for all. But just how much is he willing to sacrifice? He almost lost his life once, is her apprehension worth risking it again? Just like HEARTSICK, SWEETHEART pulls you in from the first few lines. The storyline is fast paced and powerful. The various sub plots slowly weave together, and the ending appears with the reader begging for more. I sincerely hope Cain has another Archie Sheridan book up her sleeves. The demand definitely exists!
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Review: Inside Out Girl, by Tish Cohen

Posted on September 5, 2008 by Jenn

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Rachel Berman is publisher of Perfect Parent magazine. She’s also an extremely overprotective single mother of two: Janie, a rebellious teen still searching for her identity, and twelve-year old Dustin.

Len Bean is the single father of ten-year old Olivia, who has a non-verbal learning disorder. Rachel and Len meet when Rachel offers to help Len change a flat tire. Eventually, they begin dating. This is to the chagrin of Janie and Dustin, who know Olivia from school as “The Inside Out Girl”, the girl that wears her clothes wrong-side-out. Olivia is extremely intelligent, but due to her learning disorder, she is unable to pick up on facial and verbal cues, which often results in socially inappropriate behavior.

Rachel and Len’s world is suddenly upended and Rachel is forced to deal with hidden secrets from her past. Will she be able to be the perfect parent that she aspires to be, or is this level of perfection unattainable?

It is impossible not to fall in love with Cohen’s characters. My personal favorite was Olivia. Olivia’s combination of innocence and vulnerability tugs at your heartstrings. She alone is the individual responsible for joining together two very unlikely families into one.
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Review: Sweetsmoke, by David Fuller

Posted on September 5, 2008 by Jenn

Sweetsmoke Plantation is a Virginia tobacco plantation. The Civil War rages on in the background. Cassius Howard, a slave on this plantation, risks his life to avenge the murder of Emoline Justice, a freed slave. Emoline saved Cassius’ life after his wife died and his son was torn away from him, and became his surrogate mother. During his stay with her, she taught him how to read and write. Cassius uses this forbidden skill to his advantage and leaves the plantation to search for Emoline’s murderer. The amount of research Fuller put into this work is very evident. We learn about slave customs, including marriage and social standings. This book is not only a story of a search of vengeance, but a history lesson as well. I don’t recall ever reading a book that delved so deeply into the slave world of the Civil War South. Fuller’s vivid descriptions and detail of the characters is probably the biggest asset. We discover so much about the characters of Howard Hoke, the plantation owner, Cassius Howard, Emoline Justice, and the slaves of Sweetsmoke that we feel as though we know them personally. We feel their pain and we suffer along with them. I was lucky enough to obtain an early release copy of this book, and I am forever grateful. I have no doubt that this novel will soon join the ranks as an amazing piece of Civil War fiction like The March and Gone with the Wind.
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