Tales from the Teal Warrior:A Memoir by Dixie Theriault

Kindle Countdown Deal!

Starting today, my book Tales from the Teal Warrior:A Memoir is being featured as a countdown deal at amazon.com. For 6 days you can save 67%.
My book has received 5 Star reviews and there is buzz in the forums at Inspire.com.
I want to thank everyone for their positive response and continued show of support.

God bless you all.

Love,
Dixie

A New Chapter in my Life

I just recently finished my memoir Tales from the Teal Warrior and it is an e-book available at amazon.com

It is about my battle with hereditary ovarian cancer, (yeah, turns out the women in my family carry the brca gene mutation) and also my husbands battle with myeloproliferative disease. The last few years have been crazy. All kinds of ups and downs.

 But I am still here and still fighting...

Beth, Feb.13th,1961-Feb.28, 2010

Wildflowers by Dolly Parton

The hills were alive with wildflowers
And I was as wild, even wilder than they
For at least I could run, they just died in the sun
And I refused to just wither in place

Just a wild mountain rose, needing freedom to grow
So I ran fearing not where I'd go
When a flower grows wild, it can always survive
Wildflowers don't care where they grow

And the flowers I knew in the fields where I grew
Were content to be lost in the crowd
They were common and close, I had no room for growth
I wanted so much to branch out

I uprooted myself from home ground and left
Took my dreams and I took to the road
When a flower grows wild, it can always survive
Wildflowers don't care where they grow

I grew up fast and wild and I never felt right
In a garden so different from me
I just never belonged, I just longed to be gone
So the garden, one day, set me free

Hitched a ride with the wind and since he was my friend
I just let him decide where we'd go
When a flower grows wild, it can always survive
Wildflowers don't care where they grow

In memory of my beloved baby sister.
Lori Beth Browning Wilson.
Our own wild mountain rose...

Review: Reasons by Tracy Fabre

From the back cover of Reasons: Delphi Brent, seriously injured in a hit-and-run accident as a teenager, is ready to spend the summer with old family friends when her parents make a distressing confession: the driver of the car that nearly killed her was one of the three sons of the Laughlin family she's about to visit. They urge her to stay home and let the past be, but she resolves to go out West anyway to learn the truth about what happened the night she was struck and one of the Laughlin sons died. However, in reconnecting with the Laughlins, who operate a sprawling ranch in Colorado, Delphi learns a lot not only about brothers and families, but also about the reasons people keep secrets, and what to do with the truth once it's uncovered. She also falls in love with one of the Laughlin brothers, which wasn't part of the plan at all.

My thoughts:

About four hours ago I fished this book out of a stack I have on my desk,
and I just read the last page.
I would've finished it sooner but I was interrupted by hungry family members who wanted supper.
I loved this story-I loved the characters and I loved the way it flowed.
The pages seemed to turn themselves and I almost hated for it to end.

Tracy Fabre's book isn't just a cute little love story.
It's about families and the ties that bind,
and ultimately it is about forgiveness and redemption.
I thoroughly enjoyed it and look forward to more from this author.


About the author in her own words:
Vaguely-worded statements about "me"... from tracyfabre.com

I consider myself a resident of the "mid-South", which is defined as everything from Oklahoma to upper Alabama. I've lived in various southern states and feel a pretty strong connection to Alabama, which doesn't claim me but hasn't figured out how to stop me from coming around.

In fact, three of my other (also unpublished) novels are set on the eastern shore of Mobile Bay (a series of mysteries) and I hope you'll see them in print someday.

I really am a "closet writer," but you can find me posting bits of fluff on Gather.com (they can't figure out how to keep me from coming around, either).

Steadily writing for my own entertainment--because I just haven't been able to stop--for the last eight years, I am glad to finally get into print so I can find out whether anyone else has any interest in what I've
been doing "in the privacy of my own home" all this time!

Paperback: 224 pages
Publisher: StoneGarden.net Publishing (February 25, 2009)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1600761259
ISBN-13: 978-1600761256
Disclosure: I received my review copy of Reasons from Renee Giroux of Stimulating-Conversation.com

HP TouchSmart 600 Giveaway at DaddyForever!

Happy Monday everyone! Just wanted to give you all a heads-up on a wonderful opportunity to enter to win the incredible HP TouchSmart 600 computer.
This awesome giveaway is being hosted by DaddyForever and you can get up to 7 entries in for this one.

You need to hurry though because the deadline to enter is Wednesday, Dec.23rd!

So get on over to DaddyForever and get those entries in!

Good Luck.

Blog Tour: A Blue and Gray Christmas by Joan Medlicott

About the book from simon&schuster.com


In this stunning holiday story, a cache of Civil War-era letters and diaries sweeps the ladies of Covington up into a dramatic and heartwarming historical saga that inspires them to plan an unforgettable Christmas for two families forever changed by war.

When a rusty old tin box is unearthed at the Covington Homestead, longtime housemates Grace, Amelia, and Hannah discover that it contains letters and diaries written by two Civil War soldiers, one Union and one Confederate.

The friends are captivated by the drama revealed. The soldiers were found dying on a nearby battlefield by an old woman. She nursed them back to health, hiding them from bounty hunters seeking deserters. At the end of the war the men chose to stay in Covington, caring for their rescuer as she grew frail. But while their lives were rich, they still felt homesick and guilty for never contacting the families they'd left behind.

Christmas is coming, and the letters inspire Amelia with a generous impulse. What if she and her friends were to find the two soldiers' descendants and invite them to Covington to meet? What better holiday gift could there be than the truth about these two heroic men and their dramatic shared fate? With little time left, the ladies spring into action to track down the men's families in Connecticut and the Carolinas, and to make preparations in Covington for their most memorable, most historic Christmas yet.

My Thoughts:

I joined this blog tour thinking this might be a charming holiday story, but I realized a few pages into the book
that this was a flat-out good read.

After discovering a cache of old letters and diaries, three best friends, Hannah, Amelia and Grace set out to reunite the lost families of two Civil-War soldiers.

A very charming and inspiring tale that also has a sub-plot of how three "Golden Girls" reinvented their lives anew, and met the challenges that life as a Senior had brought them.

Book Tour Participants:

Books Reviews by Buuklvr81
The Life (and Lies) of an Inanimate Flying Object
Good Books & Wine
I Read
Rundpinne
Morbid Romantic
Book Junkie
Drey’s Library
My Book Addiction and More
Red Headed Book Child
Blog Business World
My Reading Room
Frugal Plus
Book Magic
All About {n}
The Bibliophilic Book Blog
One Person’s Journey Through a World of Books
Psychotic State
That’s a Novel Idea
My Friend Amy
Brizmus Blogs About Books
Found Not Lost
Jen’s Book Talk
The Princess and the Monkey
Marta’s Meanderings
Readaholic
Broken Teepee
Books, Books Everywhere
Books, Books, The Magical Fruit
Reading at the Beach



About the author:
Joan Medlicott was born and raised on St. Thomas in the U.S. Virgin Islands. She lives with her husband in the mountains of North Carolina. Visit her website at www.joanmedlicott.com



Pocket, November 2009
Hardcover, 336 pages
ISBN-10: 1-4165-9735-2
ISBN-13: 978-1-4165-9735-3

I received my review copy for this tour courtesy of Simon & Schuster.com

BOGO Today at EyebuyDirect.com!

L@@K!
It's 2 for the price of 1 Monday at eyebuydirect.com

You need to hurry though-this is a 24 hour only special, and the clock is ticking!
This is a great time to pick up an extra pair of prescription glasses and while you're there, check out their Deal of the Week on these great frames.

Old Gringo Boots-A Love Affair

There are boots and there are boots.
And then there are Old Gringo boots.

I've long lusted after this brand but they've always been just a tad too pricey for my limited (sigh...) shoe budget.
Even on Ebay they go like hotcakes if you can actually find a pair without a high reserve to bid on.
I have a few times, and although I pride myself on being a crafty sniper when faced with a bidding war, some wily shoe maven has always beaten me to the punch...damn her.
I finally found a fairly reasonably priced pair over at a website called 6pm.com. Actually there were a few that I liked but I chose the ones pictured above.

First off let me say that these boots are so pretty that I just want to display them somewhere so everyone can see the details.
The distressed leather is so soft and the craftsmanship that went into making these boots is just meticulous.
Now a few words about the fit.
A good fitting cowboy boot is different than what you expect or want in a regular shoe.
The foot should feel snug across the instep and will be a little loose about the heel until they are broken-in. As you break them in, the heel will naturally conform to your foot. Here is a great little guide to properly fitting a western boot.
No way in hell is your foot ever supposed to reach all the way into the toe box..can you imagine the pain?
Always buy your boot true to size. Unfortunately some people think that the classic western style boots "run big", and will order a half or full size lower than normal.
This is a common mistake.

Now as far as comfort goes my pair of Old Gringos would have been absolutely perfect if only for one important detail...the insole.
Or lack of one to be precise.

Don't get me wrong-these boots are gorgeous with leather detailing inside and out, but they have no padding whatsoever and I'm at the age where I don't care how good a shoe looks on the outside, if there is no shock-absorption in the heels and at the ball of my great toe, I won't be doing much dancing or anything else in them.

This problem was easily solved by inserting a pair of good old Dr. Scholl's foam insoles, but for the price of these boots I really wish this were not necessary.
Take Dan Post boots for example, another one of my favorite brands-their insoles are outstanding-more comfortable than sneakers in my opinion.

I don't know if this is true of all Old Gringo boots or just for the style I bought, but don't let this deter you from this brand. The more I wear them the more I love them, and I've received tons of compliments.
I'm already saving up for my next pair.

Review: Life After 187 by Wade J. Halverson

Penal Code 187:
Murder, to take the Life of another...

About the book from 187books.com

Sentenced to life in prison when he executes the men who murdered his wife, Kane Silver is singled out by the warden for his fighting ability. Along with inmates Valentino Lopez and Si’Ling Lee, Kane is drafted into service and forced to fight for money in high-stakes tournaments. But when the three friends escape during a New Year’s Eve match in Lake Tahoe—saving the warden’s life in the process—their situation becomes more complicated.



Their status undetermined, they vanish underground and sign on to help a young woman whose parents are being held by an Argentinean drug kingpin. Follow Kane and his friends as they compete and grow closer while rediscovering what it means to be free. From Lake Tahoe and the western United States to Costa Rica, Hong Kong, Buenos Aires, and Thailand, Life After 187 takes readers on an exhilarating ride filled with big money, intense action, justice, and the pursuit of honor.

My thoughts:

What a thrill ride! This book grabbed me right from the get-go and kept me glued to my seat with every twist and turn of the page.
The hero, Kane Silver is a charismatic figure who due to the most unfortunate of circumstances, finds himself teamed up with two ex cons, and even though the scenario was incredulous at times, the fast-paced action of their adventures has left me wanting to know more about this trio.
Bravo Mr. Halverson-this was a great read!

About the Author from 187books.com

Wade J. Halverson is the author of the 187 book series. For the past twenty years he has owned kickboxing gyms and has worked as a bodyguard. Living in Alaska, Miami, Colorado, Thailand, and Los Angeles. He currently resides in Southern California.



Readers may correspond with him at: wadehalverson@ymail.com.


Paperback: 238 pages
Publisher: Xlibris Corporation (August 4, 2009)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1441540261
ISBN-13: 978-1441540263

I received my review copy of this book courtesy of the author.

Enter The Coach Handbag Giveaway Extravaganza!

If I had a Fairy Godmother like Cinderella,
I'd definitely want her to turn my pumpkin into a Coach but only if it were the kind I could carry on my arm!

I was just over visiting at The Fashionable Housewife's blog and Yowsa!
She is taking part in the most fabulous giveaway of this Holiday season.

She's teamed up with none other than Coach as one of the blogs that are participating in their "Holiday Blog-A-Day Handbag Giveaway"

Be sure and visit her blog and check out all the different ways you can gain entries to win a gorgeous bag just like the one pictured above.

You have until Dec.20th at 11:59 pm est to enter.
Good Luck!

Review: Children Of Dust by Ali Eteraz

From FSBmedia.com

Ali Eteraz's Children of Dust is a spellbinding portrayal of a life that few Americans can imagine. From his schooling in a madrassa in Pakistan to his teenage years as a Muslim American in the Bible Belt, and back to Pakistan to find a pious Muslim wife, this lyrical, penetrating saga from a brilliant new literary voice captures the heart of our universal quest for identity.

Children of Dust begins in rural Islam at the lowest levels of Pakistani society in the turbulent eighties. This intimate portrayal of rustic village life is revealed through a young boy's eyes as he discovers magic, women, and friendship.

After immigrating with his family to the United States, Eteraz struggles to be a normal American teenager under the rules of a strict Muslim household.

In 1999, he returns to Pakistan to find the villages of his youth dominated by the ideology of the Taliban, filled with young men spouting militant rhetoric, and his extended family under threat. Eteraz becomes the target of a mysterious abduction plot when he is purported to be a CIA agent, and eventually has to escape under military escort.

Back in the United States, with his fundamentalist illusions now shattered, Eteraz tries to find a middle way within American Islam. At each stage of Eteraz's life, he takes on a different identity to signal his evolution. From being pledged to Islam in Mecca as an infant, through Salafi fundamentalism, to liberal reformer, Eteraz desperately struggles to come to terms with being a Pakistani and a Muslim.

Astonishingly honest, darkly comic, and beautifully told, Children of Dust is an extraordinary adventure that reveals the diversity of Islamic beliefs, the vastness of the Pakistani diaspora, and the very human search for home.

My thoughts:
I was interested in reading this book because since Nine-Eleven, I have attempted to gain some understanding into the Muslim beliefs and culture.
This book is a memoir of one man's reflection of his life growing up in the Islam faith. It begins with his humble childhood in Pakistan, and extends through his immigration to the US, ending up as a teenager in Alabama, then back to Pakistan.

The religious zeal with which he was brought up was actually not unlike a couple of people that I knew back in grammar school.
I knew a couple of girls in my class who weren't allowed to cut their hair or wear pants. There was no television in their household, no dancing or rock'n'roll, and wearing make-up was of course, out of the question.
Not surprisingly, it was these same girls who rebelled the loudest when we were all thrust into high school.
As they began to question their parents beliefs, and search for their own identities, out came the scissors and the eyeshadow.I recall one of them coming to school with huge welts on her calves from the whipping she'd received from her mother after she had defiantly taken a razor and shaved her legs for gym class.

Back then it wasn't considered child abuse for a parent to do that.

The Author's detailed descriptions of his youthful upbringing left me amazed at the all encompassing fervor of the Islam faith.
So many details and points to remember and live by. And the punishments seemed barbaric and harsh. At least to me.
I also couldn't help but wonder at the almost superstitious beliefs that the adults held on to and instilled in their young.
When his baby brother died, the women of the household actually blamed it on a barren sister-in law, as if she'd cast some sort of spell or curse in this case.
After reading this memoir I can't help but be grateful that over-zealous, religious baggage was the one thing that I didn't have to drag with me into adulthood.
Why should Life be such a struggle?
Thank you Mama.

About the Author from fsbmedia.com
Ali Eteraz, author of Children of Dust: A Memoir of Pakistan, was born in Pakistan and has lived in the Middle East, the Caribbean, and the United States. A graduate of Emory University and Temple Law School, he was selected for the Outstanding Scholar's Program at the United States Department of Justice and later worked in corporate litigation in Manhattan. He is a regular contributor to True/Slant; has published articles about Islam and Pakistani politics in Dissent, Foreign Policy, AlterNet, and altMuslim; and is a regular contributor to The Guardian UK and Dawn, Pakistan's oldest English-language daily. His blog in the Islamosphere received nearly two million views as well as a Brass Crescent award for originality. Eteraz has spoken publicly about the situation inside Pakistan, Islamic reform, and Muslim immigration. He currently divides his time between Princeton, New jersey, and the Middle East, and is working on a novel.

Hardcover: 352 pages
Publisher: HarperOne; 1st edition (October 13, 2009)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0061567086
ISBN-13: 978-0061567087

I received my review copy of this book courtesy of FSB Media.com

ALERT! HP Touchsmart 600 Computer Giveaway!

While perusing my emails this morning I came across this incredible giveaway that is going on at Jolly Mom's blog.

She's bringing us a fabulous giveaway with this incredible prize of the HP TouchSmart 600 computer valued at $1,497 retail! How awesome is that?
If you're in the market to upgrade your old machine (or etch-a-sketch with a cord as I fondly refer to mine) you'll want to get on over to JollyMom's and get your entry in.

The giveaway officially launches Monday, Nov.23 but JollyMom's generously offering us the opportunity to get in a few extra entries early on so click on over there and see what it's all about!

Review:The Manufactured Identity by Heath Sommer

I invite you to read this FIRST CHAPTER. As I was invited to read it by the author himself.

My thoughts:
The Manufactured Identity tells the story of lives that are connected by deceit of the worst kind.
Imagine if the person that you have spent your life with, and built a relationship with did not even really exist?
Their whole identity simply made-up.
How would you feel?
Would it change your perceptions of your memories of time spent with this person?
Would you begin to even doubt your own existence, if someone squandered your love and time this way?
Suppose you learned there were others involved.
Just like you.
Innocent and unaware.

Lory Latchley's husband is missing.
Unfortunately, several other ladies partner's have flown the coop also.

As Lory seeks to unravel the mystery of her husband's disappearance, she stumbles upon a common thread that ties them all together in this absorbing and suspenseful tale.
As a reader I found myself drawn in to Lory's character, and I kept reading to learn each new discovery about her husband as she made them.

While some of the characters storylines seemed disjointed, I knew they were all going to tie together somehow, but I admit that the ending surprised me.
This is probably one of the best psychological thrillers I've read all year.

About the author:

Doctor Heath Sommer earned his Ph.D. in clinical psychology from Idaho State University and holds an additional degree in Marriage, Family, and Human Development. A native of Sacramento, California, he has enjoyed many opportunities for public speaking and regularly conducts workshops/gives lectures on psychologically related as well as theologically related domains. In addition to his literary interests, Dr. Sommer specializes in the assessment and treatment of trauma, anxiety, and marriage, family, and child development.

For further information please visit the author's website at www.heathsommer.com.

Paperback: 308 pages
Publisher: Tate Publishing & Enterprises (June 23, 2009)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1606965506
ISBN-13: 978-1606965504

Disclosure:I received my review copy of this book courtesy of the author Heath Sommer.

And The Winner's Are...

The Funky silver bracelet goes to:

Pamela S said...
I love the "Rome" earrings. pamelashockley(AT)netscape(DOT)net
Thanks

The Glacier earrings go to:

erma said...
I like the Hip Hoop Bling gold.
erma.hurtt@sbcglobal.net

Congratulations to Pamela and Erma and a big Thank You to everyone who entered my impromptu little giveaway!

Remember if you didn't win you can always get the items at TwistedSilver.com and be sure to sign up for their emails 'coz there is always something great happening there.

Blog Tour: To Desire A Devil by Elizabeth Hoyt

About the book from hatchettebookgroup.com

NOTHING IS MORE INTOXICATING-
Reynaud St. Aubyn has spent the last seven years in hellish captivity. Now half mad with fever he bursts into his ancestral home and demands his due. Can this wild-looking man truly be the last earl's heir, thought murdered by Indians years ago?

OR DANGEROUS-
Beatrice Corning, the niece of the present earl, is a proper English miss. But she has a secret: No real man has ever excited her more than the handsome youth in the portrait in her uncle's home. Suddenly, that very man is here, in the flesh-and luring her into his bed.

THAN SURRENDERING TO A DEVIL.
Only Beatrice can see past Reynaud's savagery to the noble man inside. For his part, Reynaud is drawn to this lovely lady, even as he is suspicious of her loyalty to her uncle. But can Beatrice's love tame a man who will stop at nothing to regain his title-even if it means sacrificing her innocence?


Elizabeth Hoyt has done it again with this fourth installment of The Legend of the Four Soldiers series. In To Desire a Devil we follow the steamy and delicious tale of Viscount Reynaud St. Aubyn and Lady Beatrice Corning.
If you missed the first three books in this series
To Taste Temptation, To Beguile A Beast,and To Seduce a Sinner,
-not to worry.
Each is a "Stand-Alone" saga by themselves.

Be sure and check out these other stops along the tour for reviews and giveaways!
Tour stops:

Oct. 30: My Overstuffed Bookshelf, Maria's Space, Just Another New Blog,
Oct. 31: Bookin' with Bingo
Nov. 1: Froggaritaville's Bookcase,
Nov. 2: Readaholic
Nov. 3: Reading with Monie
Nov. 4: I'm Booking It, Book Soulmates, A Journey of Books, Find the Time to Read
Nov. 5: Bookfan, Seductive Musings
Nov. 6: Found Not Lost,Book Junkie
Nov. 7:Starting Fresh
Nov. 8: 'Manda Blogs About...
Nov. 10: My Reading Room, Anna's Book Blog
Nov. 11: Morbid Romantic
Nov. 12: The Eclectic Book Lover I ♥ Book Gossip


About the author from hatchettebookgroup.com

Elizabeth Hoyt is a USA Today bestselling author of historical romance. She also writes deliciously fun contemporary romance under the name Julia Harper. Elizabeth lives in central Illinois with three untrained dogs, two angelic but bickering children, and one long-suffering husband. Please visit her websites for chapter excerpts, book extras, and author appearances: www.elizabethhoyt.com and www.juliaharper.com.

Disclosure: My copy of To Desire a Devil was provided courtesy of the Hachette Book Group for this blog tour.
Mass Market Paperback: 384 pages
Publisher: Vision (November 1, 2009)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0446406945
ISBN-13: 978-0446406949

Review: Feddie Girl by Nona David

Back Blurb: from bernardbooks.com

Carlotta Ikedi (A.k.a Feddie Girl) has never liked school. Not in California. Not in Oklahoma. When her exasperated parents ship her off to boarding school–in West Africa–Carlotta faces a life, culture, and existence unlike anything she’s ever known.

School rules and regulations, rising bell, lights-out, manual labor, inspections, dining time, prefects, punishments, mean bunk mates, and visiting days–it’s all here. But author Nona David takes Carlotta’s story a step further when her adventure’s lead to unfortunate incidents that threaten to drive her American family into the clutches of infidelity and organized crime.

Boarding school doesn’t get any better than this…

For those who have experienced the boarding school life, the adventures of Feddie Girl will bring those memories crashing back… For anyone else, get ready to see the world as Feddie Girl.

My thoughts:

I love to promote reading, especially for teens so I picked up Feddie Girl, and after skimming the back cover
I thought "Oh good, a YA book I'll pass along to one of my nieces after I'm through".
Not entirely so though as I was soon to discover.
The central character Carlotta aka Feddie girl, an almost stereotypical rebellious teen is after all, a product of her upbringing, whose parents I found dysfunctional as well.
Ward and June Cleaver they are not.

You have a philandering father with a somewhat shady past, and an alcoholic mother whose solution to being called to the Principal's office one too many times is to ship their daughter off to boarding school, preferably one halfway around the world.
And not just any boarding school.

Federal Government Girls College Uddah-or FGGC Uddah- is not your typical finishing school for well-bred young ladies, as Carlotta soon discovers. Thus begins Carlotta's life at Sapphire House where she soon learns to adapt to the rather institutionalized, somewhat rigid curriculum with rules set forth by the Senior girls or "Prefects" as they are called.

The cover of this book bears the description of "The Hilarious Adventures of an American Teen in a Nigerian Federal School"
I kept waiting to be amused, but maybe something got lost in translation because nothing that happened to Carlotta tickled my funny bone.

The book periodically would jump back to Carlotta's parents Richard and Shelley, but mainly told the story of Carlotta's adjustments and maladjustment's at school.There were also some rather improbable plot twists towards the end of the book which frankly, left me a little bewildered. Perhaps you had to have attended boarding school to appreciate this "adventure".

About the author from Benardbooks.com:

Nona David currently lives with her husband in Cincinnati Ohio. She has a passion for foreign cultures and zeal to visit new places, learn new languages, and experience new things. Her background, friends, and experiences in Nigeria, West Africa is the major influence for her debut novel, FEDDIE GIRL...

disclosure: I received my copy of this book for review courtesy of Bernardbooks.com


TITLE: Feddie Girl: The Hilarious Adventures of an American Teen in a Nigerian Federal School
AUTHOR: Nona David
AUTHOR E-MAIL: nona.david@yahoo.com
GENRE: Women's Fiction, International Adventure, Thriller
PUBLISHER: Bernard Books Publishing
PUBLISHER WEBSITE: https://bernardbooks.com
PAGE COUNT: 400
PUBLICATION DATE: February 2010
TARGET AGE: 13 and above
ISBN: 978-0-9824526-0-8

A Fabulous Twisted Little Giveaway!

It's no secret that I love to win stuff-who doesn't? Right?
And among my favorite things to try and win is jewelry.
Especially the cutting-edge, trendy jewelry like they have at Twisted Silver

I was fortunate enough to be selected as a winner during a recent giveaway at DailyDivaDish.com and as part of my prize I got to select 2 incredible pieces of jewelry from Twisted Silver-Yay Me!

Unfortunately (or maybe not;))due to a recent move, my prize went to my old address and I never received it.
I wrote to Elizabeth at Twisted Silver and she tracked the package for me and discovered the mistake. Being the awesome person that she is, she immediately sent me out a duplicate package, as it appeared that the original was being returned to her.
Imagine my surprise (and embarrassment) when 2 identical packages containing both items of jewelry showed up in my mail on the same day? Gotta love the Post Office right?
Well now for the fun part.
I immediately emailed Elizabeth about my prize faux pas, and I rather boldly proposed doing a giveaway here instead of returning the duplicate items.
To my delight (but not surprise because as I mentioned Elizabeth is an awesome and amazing gal,) she agreed that a giveaway would be a smashing idea!

So here goes! There will be 2 winners!
First prize will be the incredible Funky Silver Bracelet
And I will draw a second winner for a lovely pair of Glacier Earrings.
Let me describe these items a bit for you-the pictures do not do them justice.
The Funky Silver bracelet is huge! It is bold and shiny-It rolls up and down your wrist with the trademark Twisted Tag dangling and jingling-I tell you, it is a party for your arm-I love mine!

The Glacier earrings are rather elegant-long and sexy with a light catching crystal bead on the ends.They are perfect for the upcoming holidays.

For an entry just click on over to Twisted Silver and come back here and leave a comment telling me which piece of jewelry is your favorite. Make sure to leave your email address in your comment, so I'll have a way to contact you if you win. You can get a 2nd entry if you follow my blog but please leave a 2nd comment letting me know.

Additional RULES-Please Read!
This contest is open to USA and Canada.
Deadline for entering is November 15th 2009 at 11:59 pm eastern standard time.
The Winners will be drawn the following day and notified by the email address they provided in their comment.
They will have 48 hours to respond with their shipping info or I will choose an alternate winner.
The prizes will be shipped directly from me.

Good Luck Everyone!

Get Your Read On: A Highlander's Temptation by Sue Ellen Welfonder

About the book from hatchettebookgroup.com

Darroc MacConacher spends sleepless nights dreaming of a raven-haired beauty who makes him ache with desire. Then his dream comes true: the lady with her lush curves and fair skin appears shipwrecked on his shores. Darroc is immediately drawn to her strength and beauty, and from the moment she lays eyes on this powerful, broad-shouldered warrior, Lady Arabella MacKenzie knows she'll never want another man.

But theirs is a forbidden love. The MacKenzies drove the MacConachers from their lands and destroyed their honor. Now, Darroc can use this sapphire-eyed seductress to shatter his foes. Yet how can he deny the passion that burns between him and Arabella, and ruin the one woman who touches his very soul?

Whew! I was in the mood for a little romance reading and I'm so glad I grabbed this one up.
There are a couple of elements that always make for a great romance book, and one of them is of course the Love Triangle.
My next favorite hook is Forbidden Love.
It worked for Shakespeare in Romeo and Juliet, and it still works today in A Highlander's Temptation, only so smoking hot that it would curl the Bard's hair if he read it.

The characters are well-defined and the Author's use of Scottish dialect will have you wanting your own castle by a misty loch for an afternoon tryst with his lordship...aye...
Throw in a romantic historical setting like the windswept shores of medieval Scotland and you've got yourself an afternoon of curled-up in your favorite spot, self-indulgent reading-and isn't that what a good romance book is all about?
My thanks to Anna from hatchettebookgroup.com for my review copy.

About the author from hatchettebookgroup.com

Sue-Ellen Welfonder is a dedicated medievalist of Scottish descent who spent fifteen years living abroad, and still makes annual research trips to Great Britain. She is an active member of the Romance Writers of America and her own clan, the MacFie Society of North America. Under the pseudonym Allie Mackay, she has also written contemporary Scottish-set paranormals for Signet. Sue-Ellen Welfonder is married and lives with her husband, Manfred, and their Jack Russell Terrier, Em, in Florida.

Blog Tour: 9 Dragons by Michael Connelly

About the book from hatchettebookgroups.com

LAPD Detective Harry Bosch is off the chain in the fastest, fiercest, and highest-stakes case of his life.

Fortune Liquors is a small shop in a tough South L.A. neighborhood, a store Bosch has known for years. The murder of John Li, the store's owner, hits Bosch hard, and he promises Li's family that he'll find the killer.

The world Bosch steps into next is unknown territory. He brings in a detective from the Asian Gang Unit for help with translation--not just of languages but also of the cultural norms and expectations that guided Li's life. He uncovers a link to a Hong Kong triad, a lethal and far-reaching crime ring that follows many immigrants to their new lives in the U.S.

And instantly his world explodes. The one good thing in Bosch's life, the person he holds most dear, is taken from him and Bosch travels to Hong Kong in an all-or-nothing bid to regain what he's lost. In a place known as Nine Dragons, as the city's Hungry Ghosts festival burns around him, Bosch puts aside everything he knows and risks everything he has in a desperate bid to outmatch the triad's ferocity.



I am excited to be part of the 9 Days of 9 Dragons book tour.
Award-winning author Michael Connelly, has written another fast-paced thriller with the twists and turns his books are known for, and crime-fiction addicts will not be disappointed.

Although homicide detective Harry Bosch is a recurring character from Connolly's' earlier work beginning with The Black Echo, don't let it stop you from picking up this book, even if you've never read the earlier books.

This book is a "stand alone" roller-coaster ride all the way through the final pages.
Be warned though, after reading 9 Dragons you're going to want to go out and read those other Harry Bosch books.

My thanks to Miriam From Hatchette Book Groups for my copy.


Check out the other tour stops along the way for other reviews and giveaways, and visit michaelconnelly.com for news, excerpts and more.


Blog Tour Participants:
10/13
http://booknerdextraordinaire.blogspot.com/
http://www.chickwithbooks.blogspot.com/
http://www.reviewfromhere.com/
http://justonemorepageblog.blogspot.com
http://popculturenerd.wordpress.com

10/14
http://bookrevues.blogspot.com/
http://bookseriesreviews.blogspot.com/
http://bookinwithbingo.blogspot.com

10/15
http://dreyslibrary.blogspot.com/
http://startingfresh-gaby317.blogspot.com/
http://froggaritavillesbookcase.blogspot.com/

10/16
http://www.rundpinne.blogspot.com/
http://mindingspot.blogspot.com

10/17
http://bridget3420.blogspot.com/
http://www.bookingmama.blogspot.com/
http://www.lovingheartmommy.com/

10/18
http://bookjourney.wordpress.com/
http://luanne-abookwormsworld.blogspot.com/


10/19
http://justanothernewblog.blogspot.com/
http://ilratb.blogspot.com/

10/20
http://bermudaonion.wordpress.com
http://mandablogsabout.blogspot.com/

10/21
http://libslibrary.blogspot.com/
http://abookbloggersdiary.blogspot.com/
http://myreadingroom-crystal.blogspot.com