Pam Jenoff

I chatted with Pam Jenoff today as she was passing by on her way to her book signing and I was standing in another author's signing line.

Ms. Jenoff was at the BEA signing copies of her newest book, THE LAST SUMMER AT CHELSEA BEACH.

Meeting her today made my BEA complete.  :)

She is the sweetest person, and I just love her books.

I have THE LAST SUMMER AT CHELSEA BEACH and am looking forward to reading it.

Under The Same Blue Sky by Pamela Schoenewaldt

Where did Hazel belong?  Did she belong in Dogwood, Pittsburgh, or somewhere else.

Hazel Renner's mother left her and left Dogwood, and Hazel's aunt and uncle lovingly raised her in Pittsburgh.  The smog of Pittsburgh and the effects of war upon the citizens also had an effect on Hazel.

Like her mother, Hazel wanted to leave and find where she really belonged.  She first tried teaching in Galway, but things happened there that necessitated her leaving and coming back home.  Hazel then tried Dogwood where her she was born to see if that would help her find her roots.

UNDER THE SAME BLUE SKY will pull you in because of the beautiful descriptions and wonderful characters.  ​You will love Hazel and her parents and feel sorry for her and all the problems she encounters.  ​Hazel's father was quite intense about his heritage and the war.  You could vividly feel his every concern and the emotions of every character because Ms. Schoenewaldt has ​a marvelous ​knack for words and for descriptions of characters and situations.​

UNDER THE SAME BLUE SKY was set during the first world war when German-Americans were under attack just as they were in Europe.  History and a beautiful story make up UNDER THE SAME BLUE SKY.

You will enjoy UNDER THE SAME BLUE SKY because of the nicely flowing storyline.  The only ​complaint I have is that I was really confused at the beginning.  The healing power of Hazel was a bit confusing too and not sure why it was in the story.

UNDER THE SAME BLUE SKY is worth reading because of the wonderful writing style of Ms. Schoenewaldt and her marvelous research of WWI.  She has a very descriptive and in-depth writing style.​

​Sadness and heaviness do prevail in UNDER THE SAME BLUE SKY as we read of worries about war, the Influenza Pandemic of 1918, and the aftermath of the effects the war had on its returning soldiers.  UNDER THE SAME BLUE SKY is a book you will want to read but a book that will pull at your heart strings.​

This book was given to me free of charge and without compensation by the publisher and TLC book tours in return for an honest review.

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About Pamela Schoenewaldt

Pamela Schoenewaldt lived for ten years in a small town outside Naples, Italy. Her short stories have appeared in literary magazines in England, France, Italy, and the United States. She now lives in Knoxville, Tennessee, with her husband, Maurizio Conti, a physicist, and Jesse, their dog.

Find out more about Pamela at her website, keep up with her on her blog, and connect with her on Facebook.

A Perfect Quote from Neil Gaiman and A Glimpse at Depot 87 Cafe & Books

My son is visiting Cafe Mill Valley, California, and stopped in Depot 87 Cafe & Books.

He sent me these photos that he knew I would love.  

The book store looks adorable, and this quote is too amazing to not share.

I don't read Neil Gaiman's books, but I do love his quote.

ENJOY!!

All Souls Trilogy Board Game Giveaway

Penguin has created a gorgeous, limited-edition All Souls Trilogy Board Game (see pictures here, here, here, and here) and will be giving 10 board games away via their Twitter @PenguinPbks over the course of the next two weeks (among other great All Souls prizes). 

These will be random giveaways taking place on Tuesday 5/26 and Thursday 6/4. 

To enter, check the Penguin Twitter during the mornings (ET) on those days and be sure to re-tweet the giveaway post by 4:30 p.m. ET—Penguin will be randomly selecting winners around 5 p.m. from among the people who re-tweet.

Best of Luck!!  Looks like fun.

PLEASE let me know if you win!!  THANKS.

Little Black Lies by Sharon Bolton

Catrin was once a wonderful mother, wife, and friend, but once her sons died she became a totally different person.

Catrin grieved as any mother would, but she never got over the death of her sons.  She had plans to take revenge against the person responsible for their deaths even though another child went missing on the island and it was swarming with authorities and islanders looking for this third missing child.

Were all the disappearances accidents or deliberate kidnappings? Were they all related and carried out by the same person?

LITTLE BLACK LIES has beautiful, descriptive writing that will pull you along and have you absorbed in the lives of the islanders and especially in the lives of Catri​n, Callum, and Rachel.  Could one of them be the one responsible for the disappearances and kidnappings? They always seemed to be involved in some way.

​LITTLE BLACK LIES has you questioning those three characters in your mind.  Subtle hints make you think you know the answer about who is responsible and then boom...something happens and you change your mind.​  Each character has some obsession that is more deadly than innocent.  The characters stay with you even when you are not reading, and they will still haunt you after you close the last page.

When one of the suspects is arrested for yet another disappearance, the tension builds and the story turns into one you won't want to put down.​

LITTLE BLACK LIES has serious situations, lies, secrets, and love all rolled into one gripping, pull-you-in plot.  Ms. Bolton's writing is riveting, and as she hints at what's happening, you can't help drawing yourself into the book's drama.  ​The ending is excellent.

​If I were to put LITTLE BLACK LIES into a category, I would put it in the category of a psychological thriller.

ENJOY!!  A marvelous read.  5/5​

​This book was given to me free of charge and without compensation by the publisher in return for an honest review.

The Sound of Glass by Karen White

Southern families and families with secrets.

After her husband died, Merritt le​ft their home in Maine and headed to South Carolina to Cal's grandmother's home​ that she ​had inherited​.  Little did ​Merritt know that ​her husband, Cal, never told anyone about her, and she didn't know anything about his family.

Grandmother Edith's home is a huge mansion where ​​she ​kept secrets locked up inside herself and in the attic.  The death of Edith's husband had an enormous impact on her life for more than one reason.  After his death, Edith raised her only son C. J. alone, and he had a temper just like his father.  C. J.'s son, Cal, married Merritt and took the temper with him to his marriage.

Merri​tt​ is a bit unlikeable because she just couldn't relax and trust anyone, but who would after she knew no one even knew she existed.  When her half brother​, Owen,​ and ​her step-mother, Loralee, unexpectedly arrive at the house and plan on staying, secrets come out, and the story heats up with the secrets of the house and of the characters as they find clues about the house and each other's lives.  Merritt became more likeable and caring as the book continued.

Loralee is a bit overbearing, but means well and is very loving.  ​She definitely has a secret and a reason for moving in with Merritt.  ​

Owen is precocious and a nerd, but very pleasant and sweet and tries to bring Merritt out of her shell.​

Gibbs, Cal's brother, was likable and helpful.  He knew secrets about his brother and the house their grandmother lived in.  The attic and its contents were the biggest secret his grandmother had and one that caused the most excitement and questions.  Would Merritt find out what was meant by what was left in the attic and why Cal’s grandmother did what she did up there?

Did the house hold the family secrets, did the characters hold the family secrets, or did both the house and the characters hold the secrets that had been kept under wraps for years?​ To me both the house and the characters were fragile just like Edith’s glass wind chimes.

THE SOUND OF GLASS is another remarkable, beautiful book by Karen White.  Her descriptions of the characters, the scenes, and the emotions of the characters are very real.  The book kept me wondering just what some of the female characters had to hide and why they were the way they were.

The characters will grow on you and grow on each other in a warm, inviting way.  You will need some tissues as this wonderful story wraps up. 

THE SOUND OF GLASS has suspense and mystery as well as addressing the issue of domestic violence. 

I truly enjoyed THE SOUND OF GLASS, and if you have ever read one of Ms. White’s books, you know you will be in for a marvelous read. ​

I hope you get to read the book and enjoy it too.​  It is oh so good.  LOVED IT.  5/5

This book was given to me free of charge and without compensation by the publisher in return for an honest review.

Spotlight and Giveaway of The Accidental Art Thief by

 Giveaway Link is below this post

CONTEST HAS ENDED, AND THE WINNER IS:

JOHN - #16

Good Luck

USA ONLY

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All of this information is from the publisher. It is not my personal thoughts or a review.

For a quarter of a century forty-five-year-old Zinc has worked as a caretaker for a wealthy old man, living in a small casita on his ranch in New Mexico. She doesn't make much money, but she has the old man, her dogs, and gorgeous views of the mountains. She is basically a very content recluse who doesn't invest much time thinking about what she might do if her circumstances change. So when the old man dies suddenly, and his daughter all but throws her off the property, Zinc is forced to reinvent herself—and quickly.

With a touch of magical realism and a collection of offbeat characters, The Accidental Art Thief explores the thin line between life and death and the universal forces that connect all things.

What people are saying:

“Zinc is an engaging, quirky, and utterly unique heroine, instantly likeable, with a hefty mixture of strong intelligence and overwhelming naivety…. While the novel is realistic, there is subtle magic woven in nearly every line, as coincidence and confusion come together into what might be termed the wisdom of time, spirit, and love.” 
~ Magdelena Ball, CompulsiveReader.com, author of Sublime Planet, Black Cow, and other titles

“Schweighardt populates her modern-day odyssey through the southwest with fascinating, quirky 
characters thrust into a complex (and hilarious) web of emotional turmoil, poignant misperceptions, and downright lies. As laugh-out-loud funny as it is thought provoking.” 
~ Julie Mars, author of the memoir A Month of Sundays: Searching for the Spirit and My Sister, and the novels Rust, Anybody Any Minute, and The Secret Keepers

 “A sensitive, gripping, artfully rendered novel that kept me reading from the first page to the last.” 
~ Faye Rapoport DesPres, author of the memoir-in-essays Message from a Blue Jay

Book Information:

Title: The Accidental Art Thief
Author: Joan Schweighardt
Author web site: http://www.joanschweighardt.com/
Publisher: Twilight Times Books
url: http://twilighttimesbooks.com/
Genre: literary
 
*Print ISBN: 978-1-60619-070-8
    Format: 6x9 trade paperback; 232 pages; $17.95 USD
Distributors: Ingram, Baker & Taylor, Brodart, Follett, etc.
*eBook ISBN: 978-1-60619-069-2; $6.50 USD
    Format: ebook in pdf, ePub, Kindle, Mobi, PRC, etc.
Distributors: Amazon Kindle; Apple iBookstore; BN.com Nook; Kobo Books; OmniLit; etc

Release date: May 15, 2015 ebook; May 15, 2015 print
LCCN: 2015932115
 
Chapter excerpt:
http://twilighttimesbooks.com/ArtThief_ch1.html

Author Bio:

The Accidental Art Thief is Joan’s fifth novel. Her previous work includes three novels published with The Permanent Press and a historical novel published with Beagle Bay Books in 2003. The historical, called Gudrun’s Tapestry, won Foreword and IPPY awards and was translated into Italian and Russian. Joan is currently completely her sixth novel, another historical.

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Enter here

USA ONLY

Best of Luck

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