Wednesday, September 29, 2021

A Child Called You by JD Wise #review #giveaway #picturebook

 


Genre: Children's Picture Book


Winner of a Mom’s Choice Award

This book is about you! That’s righttt, it is about YOU! You can love others for who they are by showing them kindness without judgement. The first book in the Kindness is for Everyone series, this book will teach you that celebrating our differences is the true expression of kindness the world needs.


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JD Wise is a West Virginian-born author who believes that the world can be changed for the better, by one person, one time, doing the right thing.

Just think what would happen if we all did that,” said Wise.

Wise is happily married to the love of his life. Together, they have four wonderful children, who are the true inspiration for the book.


MY REVIEW HERE


$10 Amazon giftcard,

Print Copy of A Child Called You

- 1 winner each!


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Tuesday, September 28, 2021

Guest post by Lorie Lewis Ham, author of One of Us #mystery

 



I want to welcome my guest author, Lorie Lewis Ham, who is here to tell us about how she comes up with character names for her book, One of Us. Take it away. ~Michelle

To find out more about Lorie and her book visit her:

Website https://www.mysteryrat.com/

Purchase Links – Amazon – B&N 


Where Character Names Come From

By Lorie Lewis Ham

 

I love coming up with names! In our home, I am usually the one who comes up with the pet names—including when I ran a small pet rescue—and that was a lot of names. Our current pet names are Lestat, Huey, Phoebe, Xander, Willow, Sam, Dean, Merlin, and Sidney. It is also one of my favorite things to do when writing a book.

 

My character names have come from many different sources. One name from my first series was an interesting one that I found on a tombstone in our cemetery, Hunter Edgington. I have used first or last names of favorite fictional characters, favorite actors, and mash-ups of names from people I know. Sometimes, a name will just pop in my head ready to go. The name of the main character in my first series was a name that I had wanted to use for our first child, but had gotten a definite no on from my husband—Alexandra. I named Alexandra’s daughter Jessica, after Jessica Fletcher in Murder She Wrote. Their last name, Walters, was my Grandma’s maiden name.

 

My new book, One of Us, features Roxi Carlucci. She is a part time private detective and podcaster who moves to the Tower District in Fresno when her life is in need of a reboot. I try to find names that fit with the character’s personality as much as possible. I had been playing with story ideas for her character for so long that I can’t remember how I landed on Roxi—but it fits. It’s fun and tough like she is.

 

Her last name, Carlucci, has a history. One of the first characters I ever created was Stephen Carlucci. Stephen is Roxi’s cousin. When I was in my early twenties, my brother and I liked to write mystery parties for our friends—they were full-blown scripts with unique characters for every guest to play. Stephen was one of those characters. Stephen’s family is connected to the Mafia, so I knew his last name needed to be Italian. One day while driving to the coast for a vacation, we passed a street sign with the name Carlucci—right then I knew that was Stephen’s last name. Now it is Roxi’s too!

 

The origins of some of the other names in One of Us include Nathan Gilmore (Nathan Fillion—one of my favorite actors, and Gilmore Girls), Lucas Shum (Luke from the days of Luke and Laura on General Hospital, and another favorite actor, Harry Shum Jr.), Humphrey Clark Halliwell (Clark Gable, Dan Humphrey in Gossip Girl, and Halliwell from Charmed). Most of the other names in the book just came to me as I was writing the character—somehow, I just knew that was their name. Those include Chloe, Teresa Moran (okay, her last name came from Sherlock Holmes), Tabitha, Alec Dunne, and Walt Wood.

 

Even the pet names in One of Us have similar inspirations—Merlin the pet rat (King Arthur), Dan the black cat (that one is a surprise), Bogie the Dachshund (Humphrey Bogart), and Watson the Pit Bull (that one is obvious).

 

Right now, I am starting to work on book two in the series, so I am looking for inspiration for some new names. I may need to take a walk in the cemetery to see if I can find some more ideas. Or perhaps there are some names from the British Mystery TV shows I have been binging during the pandemic that I could use. I hope you will consider reading One of Us and getting to know all of these characters.

#Review: A Child Called You by JD Wise #series #inclusive #picturebook




Synopsis:

This book is about you! That’s right, it is about YOU! You can love others for who they are by showing them kindness without judgement. The first book in the Kindness is for Everyone series, this book will teach you that celebrating our differences is the true expression of kindness the world needs.

My review:

This is a sweet rhyming book that is completely inclusive of other cultures and abilities. It is a refreshing take on how if we work together we can make a better world. 

I enjoyed the illustrations by artist Rachel Novel who brought bold and colorful pictures to make the book in its completion. I had to laugh at the page where a Mom is upset with her daughter. The hair flaring everywhere I could totally relate to.

There is a page that is "political" in nature and children reading the book would not understand the illustration for it at all. However, any adult who might be reading the book to a child would certainly get the message. This was by far intentional but could have been something else too.

Another page had children playing under a rainbow parachute. Again something I can relate to from my childhood. However, the message to adults is loud and clear. It adds to the overall message of inclusiveness and kindness which is what the books is ultimately about.

If I could mention one thing, it would have been to add more "abilities" to the book other than the "token" person in a wheel chair. There are many people, including myself, that have different "abilities." What about the deaf child? The blind child? An autistic child? It would have been nice to see one of these children playing with the other kids.

Overall, I truly liked this book and will be interested to read other books that are to come in this series. 

4 stars.

Disclosure: I received a copy of this book from the author. The views expressed here are 100& my own and may differ from yours. ~Michelle

About the author:

JD Wise is a West Virginian-born author who believes that the world can be changed for the better, by one person, one time, doing the right thing.

Just think what would happen if we all did that,” said Wise.

Wise is happily married to the love of his life. Together, they have four wonderful children, who are the true inspiration for the book.

Monday, September 27, 2021

The Spiricom and A Scandal at Crystalline by Roslyn Reid #giveaway #spotlight #paranormalmystery #bookseries

 


An Early Mystery Book 2

Genre: Paranormal Mystery



She was killed on their wedding day…but he couldn’t let her go.

Tall, handsome Dr. Spencer Py was a well-respected environmental scientist…until a limo crash killed his new bride Melanie and left him in a wheelchair. He is racked with despair over his failure to save her until the fateful night he discovers plans on the internet for the Spiricom, Thomas Edison’s electronic device for communicating with the departed. Determined to be united with his beloved Melanie, he builds the device—never imagining his unexpected results would draw an unsuspecting James Early into the scariest case of the Maine detective’s life.


Goodreads * Amazon




A Scandal at Crystalline

An Early Mystery Book 1

Chandler Hammond’s wife says he and his hot Iraqi girlfriend skipped out of their Maine town of Finderne with his company’s millions. But his sister thinks his wife murdered him and hires detective James Early and his teenage son Tikki to find the truth. A Scandal at Crystalline follows them through an intriguing maze of unexpected encounters: financial shenanigans, two beautiful women who were sleeping with each other (and with Chandler Hammond), a police psychic, and a runaway kid in a remote mountain cabin. But things turn dark when their investigation forces them to consider the unimaginable—the sinister side of raku pottery.


**Only .99 cents!!**

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Amazon best-selling author Roslyn Reid's first mystery, A Scandal at Crystalline, debuted to almost a dozen five-star reviews on Amazon. It reveals the sinister side of raku pottery and kicks off a series of quirky mysteries set in Maine, featuring Black private detective James Early and his teenage son Tikki. The Spiricom, second book in the series, debuts in September 2021.

Reid lives with her corgi, Great Pyrenees, and husband in Downeast Maine, where she gardens, lifts weights, and hikes. A former model, she contributed to Llewellyn's annual almanacs for several decades and has written for a few of the local newspapers. She is a member of the Author's Guild, has a blog on Goodreads, an author page on allauthor.com, a LinkedIn account, and several boards on Pinterest. You can follow her on Bookbub, or on Twitter as @the_moonshadow.


WebsiteAmazon * Goodreads



Follow the tour HERE for special content and a giveaway!

Custom Candle,

$10 Amazon giftcard,

-1 winner each!


a Rafflecopter giveaway


Fall Into Fantasy: 2021 Edition #anthology #multiauthors #spotlight

 


Fall Into Fantasy: 2021 Edition

Genre: Mixed Fantasy Anthology

with stories by:

Shane Porteous “Gathering Genocide”
Barend Nieuwstraten III “Hearthshare”
Alex Minns “The Concealed Witness”
Andrew P. McGregor “Demon Dave: Dinner Time”
Joanne Blondin “Astounding Performances”
James Pyles “Theo Klaggorn, Private Detective”
Anstice Brown “Beneath The Roots”
J. C. Pillard “Three Drops In The Snow”
Linda M. Crate “Flight Of The Fae”
Matthew McKiernan “The Each-Uisge”
Jabe Stafford “Dead Next Door”
Clarissa Gosling “The Genie Of The Ring”
R. A. Clarke “The Brightening”
R. A. Meenan “Some Things Remain”
Marsheila Rockwell “Play It Again, Sem


Fall Into Fantasy returns with 15 tales spanning the breadth of fantasy. From captive dragons to a magical war, Demons and circus performers, fairies and ghosts, dwarves and genies, even a typical day in the life of an earthworm. Don’t miss a single entertaining, exciting tale.


Can't get enough Fantasy? Check out the other Fall Into Fantasy sets! 

Fall Into Fantasy: 2020 Edition

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Fall Into Fantasy: 2019 Edition

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Fall Into Fantasy: 2018 Edition

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Fall Into Fantasy: 2017 Edition

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Follow the tour HERE for special content and a giveaway!

$10 Amazon card – 1 winner!

ebook copy of Fall Into Fantasy: 2021 Edition – 2 winners! 


a Rafflecopter giveaway


Sunday, September 26, 2021

Banned and Challenged Books Week Sept. 26-Oct. 2, 2021 #ReadBannedBooks


 
Books Unite Us. Censorship Divides Us. 

That is the theme for this year's banned and challenged book week. Every year since 1990 the American Library Association has collected and listed banned books for that year. Below, I have listed the top 100 in the last decade. (resource ALA, 2021)

No doubt you have read all or some of these books or have them on your shelves, not even realizing that the books have been challenged or outright banned. We all do not have to like what others read. Fortunately, we have the freedom in this country and some others, to read what we want. 

Take some time this week and read at least one of the books on the list. Talk about it. Visit your local library to see what events they have for the week. Comment to me about your own thoughts. Take some action by visiting the ALA and getting some ideas of what you can do. 

I will be reading, will you?

~Michelle

  1. The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie
  2. Captain Underpants (series) by Dav Pilkey
  3. Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher
  4. Looking for Alaska by John Green
  5. George by Alex Gino
  6. And Tango Makes Three by Justin Richardson and Peter Parnell
  7. Drama by Raina Telgemeier
  8. Fifty Shades of Grey by E. L. James
  9. Internet Girls (series) by Lauren Myracle
  10. The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison
  11. The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini
  12. Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
  13. I Am Jazz by Jazz Jennings and Jessica Herthel
  14. The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky
  15. To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
  16. Bone (series) by Jeff Smith
  17. The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls
  18. Two Boys Kissing by David Levithan
  19. A Day in the Life of Marlon Bundo by Jill Twiss
  20. Sex is a Funny Word by Cory Silverberg
  21. Alice McKinley (series) by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor
  22. It's Perfectly Normal by Robie H. Harris
  23. Nineteen Minutes by Jodi Picoult
  24. Scary Stories (series) by Alvin Schwartz
  25. Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson
  26. A Brave New World by Aldous Huxley
  27. Beyond Magenta: Transgender Teens Speak Out by Susan Kuklin
  28. Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck
  29. The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood
  30. The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas
  31. Fun Home: A Family Tragicomic by Alison Bechdel
  32. It's a Book by Lane Smith
  33. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain
  34. The Things They Carried by Tim O'Brien
  35. What My Mother Doesn't Know by Sonya Sones
  36. A Child Called "It" by Dave Pelzer
  37. Bad Kitty (series) by Nick Bruel
  38. Crank by Ellen Hopkins
  39. Nickel and Dimed by Barbara Ehrenreich
  40. Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi
  41. The Adventures of Super Diaper Baby by Dav Pilkey
  42. This Day in June by Gayle E. Pitman
  43. This One Summer by Mariko Tamaki
  44. A Bad Boy Can Be Good For A Girl by Tanya Lee Stone
  45. Beloved by Toni Morrison
  46. Goosebumps (series) by R.L. Stine
  47. In Our Mothers' House by Patricia Polacco
  48. Lush by Natasha Friend
  49. The Catcher in the Rye by J. D. Salinger
  50. The Color Purple by Alice Walker
  51. The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon
  52. The Holy Bible
  53. This Book is Gay by Juno Dawson
  54. Eleanor & Park by Rainbow Rowell
  55. Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close by Jonathan Safran Foer
  56. Gossip Girl (series) by Cecily von Ziegesar
  57. House of Night (series) by P.C. Cast
  58. My Mom's Having A Baby by Dori Hillestad Butler
  59. Neonomicon by Alan Moore
  60. The Dirty Cowboy by Amy Timberlake
  61. The Giver by Lois Lowry
  62. Anne Frank: Diary of a Young Girl by Anne Frank
  63. Bless Me, Ultima by Rudolfo Anaya
  64. Draw Me a Star by Eric Carle
  65. Dreaming In Cuban by Cristina Garcia
  66. Fade by Lisa McMann
  67. The Family Book by Todd Parr
  68. Feed by M.T. Anderson
  69. Go the Fuck to Sleep by Adam Mansbach
  70. Habibi by Craig Thompson
  71. House of the Spirits by Isabel Allende
  72. Jacob's New Dress by Sarah Hoffman
  73. Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov
  74. Monster by Walter Dean Myers
  75. Nasreen’s Secret School by Jeanette Winter
  76. Saga by Brian K. Vaughan
  77. Stuck in the Middle by Ariel Schrag
  78. The Kingdom of Little Wounds by Susann Cokal
  79. 1984 by George Orwell
  80. A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess
  81. Almost Perfect by Brian Katcher
  82. Awakening by Kate Chopin
  83. Burned by Ellen Hopkins
  84. Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card
  85. Fallen Angels by Walter Dean Myers
  86. Glass by Ellen Hopkins
  87. Heather Has Two Mommies by Lesle´a Newman
  88. I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou
  89. Madeline and the Gypsies by Ludwig Bemelmans
  90. My Princess Boy by Cheryl Kilodavis
  91. Prince and Knight by Daniel Haack
  92. Revolutionary Voices: A Multicultural Queer Youth Anthology by Amy Sonnie
  93. Skippyjon Jones (series) by Judith Schachner
  94. So Far from the Bamboo Grove by Yoko Kawashima Watkins
  95. The Color of Earth (series) by Tong-hwa Kim
  96. The Librarian of Basra by Jeanette Winter
  97. The Walking Dead (series) by Robert Kirkman
  98. Tricks by Ellen Hopkins
  99. Uncle Bobby’s Wedding by Sarah S Brannen
  100. Year of Wonders by Geraldine Brooks

Tuesday, September 14, 2021

Pineapple Circus and Pineapple Cruise by Amy Vansant #Spotlight #giveaway #CozyMysteries #bookseries

 


Pineapple Circus

Pineapple Port Mysteries Book 13



Now in the center ring... murder!

Newly-minted private detective Charlotte Morgan, resident orphan of the Pineapple Port 55+ community, discovers she might not be an orphan after all. Stunned by the news, she distracts herself with a cat burglar who left a smear of make-upped whiskers on a sliding glass door, and a path straight to "Clown Town" a retirement community for retired circus performers. When a fortune-teller doesn't see her own death in the cards, Charlotte's burglary becomes a murder investigation!

Charlotte's neighborhood moms, Mariska and Darla, can't help with this one. They're busy infiltrating an underground golf cart racing ring, led by a shady operator and her toady sidekick...

When another circus performer falls victim to the Big Top Killer and Stephanie goes missing, Charlotte finds herself walking a highwire of danger...this killer isn't clowning around!

WARNING! Fans of the series will be particularly shocked by the breathless ending! (though every book can be read as a standalone).

Pineapple Port Mysteries by Wall Street Journal and USA Today bestselling author Amy Vansant, is a funny, clean, and gore-free small-town, female amateur sleuth series, but with all the pulse-pounding excitement of a detective thriller.


**On Sale for $2 off right now!!**

Goodreads * Amazon


Pineapple Cruise

Pineapple Port Mysteries Book 14



When Mariska trades the brisket she won at “Meat Bingo” for three tickets on the new Gulf Voyager cruise ship, she, Darla and our detective Charlotte enjoy a ladies cruise to Key West. But when passengers start dropping like anchors, they find themselves afloat in the middle of the Gulf of Mexico...and a murder mystery.

Charlotte notices the victims were all sitting at their assigned dinner table...does that mean they're next?

Fans of Agatha Christie’s And Then There Were None will love this cruise-bound caper!


**On Sale for $2 off right now!!**


***Check out the rest of the Pineapple Port Mysteries – some are on sale!!***


Pineapple Lies – Get it FREE Sept. 2, 7, 14
Pineapple Beach House – Only .99c Aug 30 -Sep 5
Pineapple Turtles - Only .99c Sept. 18-24
Pineapple Puppies – Only .99c Sept 20-26
Pineapple House Hunter – Only .99c Sept. 30-Oct. 6
Pineapple Jailbird – Only .99c Sept 10-16


Goodreads * Amazon


Mystery Readers love The Pineapple Port Series:

"Amy is one of my favorite authors. I highly recommend all of her books. No matter what genre she writes in, she manages to create books that demand that the pages be immediately turned to find out what happened because you really care about the characters." Dianne Harman, USA Today and Amazon Chart #1 Bestselling Author

"Too much!! Wow! I don't think I've had so much laughter and fun in a cozy mystery ever! " - Amazon Reader ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

"Mysteries usually aren't my genre, but Amy does a great job in adding twists, turns and - of course - her humor to every page. For a person like me who finds it hard to pick up a book and keep turning the pages, the fact that I tore through this book from start to finish and am looking forward to the next one speaks volumes." - Author, Rodney Lacroix ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

"More than once, I found myself laughing out loud while reading through the story. The character development is good, the humor is unforced. All around, an excellent, lighthearted mystery that I would absolutely recommend." - Amazon Reader ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

"One of the best surprise ending I have read.." - Amazon Vine Voice Reader ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

"An unlikely friendship and romance develop with moments of levity and hilarious laughter. More than once, I found myself laughing out loud while reading through the story. The character development is good, the humor is unforced. All around, an excellent, lighthearted mystery that I would absolutely recommend." --- Amazon Vine Voice Reader ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐



USA Today and Wall Street Journal bestselling author Amy Vansant has written over 20 books, including the fun, thrilling Shee McQueen series, the rollicking, twisty Pineapple Port Mysteries, and the action-packed Kilty urban fantasies. Throw in a couple romances and a YA fantasy for her nieces... Amy specializes in fun, exciting reads with plenty of laughs and action -- she tried to write serious books, but they always ended up full of jokes, so she gave up.
Amy lives in Jupiter, Florida with her muse/husband a goony Bordoodle named Archer.


Website