Litfuse Publicty Tours Presents: Swept Away (Trouble in Texas, #1) by Mary Connealy

 

When a cowboy focused on revenge encounters a woman determined to distract him, there’s going to be trouble in Texas!
Swept away when her wagon train attempts a difficult river crossing, Ruthy MacNeil isn’t terribly upset at being separated from the family who raised her. All they’ve ever done is work her to the bone. Alive but disoriented, she’s rescued by Luke Stone…so unfortunately, there are more chances to die in her immediate future.
Luke is on a mission to reclaim the ranch stolen from his family. But the men currently on the property won’t let it go without a fight. Luke plans to meet up with friends who will help him take back the land, and since he can’t just leave Ruthy in the middle of nowhere, she’s going to have to go with him.
But the more time Luke spends around the hardworking young woman, the more he finds himself thinking of things besides revenge. Will Ruthy convince him to give up his destructive path and be swept away by love?
Purchase a copy here.

About The Author

Mary Connealy writes fun and lively "romantic comedy with cowboys" for the inspirational market. She is the author of the successful Kincaid Brides, Lassoed in Texas, Montana Marriages, and Sophie's Daughters series, and she has been a finalist for a Rita and Christy Award and a two time winner of the Carol Award. She lives on a ranch in eastern Nebraska with her husband, Ivan, and has four grown daughters.

One fortunate winner will receive:

• A $250 Visa Cash Card (Get away for the weekend or use it to buy an eReader for a relaxing ‘Staycation’!)
• A copy of Swept Away (For you AND a friend!)

Enter today by clicking one of the icons below. But hurry, the giveaway ends on March 27th. Winner will be announced at the “Swept Away” Author Chat Party on March 28th. Connect with Mary, get a sneak peek of the next book in the series, try your hand at the trivia contest, and chat with readers just like you. There will also be many fun giveaways — gift certificates, books, and more!

So grab your copy of Swept Away and join Mary on the evening of the March 28th for a chance to connect and make some new friends. (If you haven’t read the book, don’t let that stop you from coming!)

Don’t miss a moment of the fun, RSVP today. Tell your friends via FACEBOOK or TWITTER and increase your chances of winning. Hope to see you on the 28th!

 

 

My Review:

 From the title of the book Ruthy MacNeil is the one swept away. She is dragged for miles down stream by a flash flood. Having her arm wedged in some wood saved her life.
Luke Stone is on his way home to redeem his property, when he stumbles upon a muddy mess of a girl, Rosie aka Ruthy. Because of her beautiful red hair Luke insists on calling her Rosie!! Others do also, but she is quick to correct them.
A vicious man by the name of Flint Greer, has stolen the S Bar S Ranch that was owned by his Father. He not only stole the ranch but is responsible for killing his Dad. Luke is not some young kid anymore, he is a survivor. He fought for the North during the Civil War, and was in Andersonville Prison, and has forged lasting friendships with a Preacher, a Doctor, A Lawyer, and a Texas Ranger. There all there waiting for him in Broken Wheel, TX, a small town, with not many people.
I found the faith of these people to be outstanding....even when they wanted revenge they listened to their Lord, and decided to do what was right! There was such compassion shown to Greer's wife and family, they wanted to help them no matter the cost.
I hope that in the next book there will be further updates, but this book was a keeper, and I didn't want it to end.

I received this book through the Revell Book Bogging Program, and wasn't required to give a positive review.

Pump Up Your Book Presents Athol Dickson’s January Justice Book Blast – Win $25 Amazon Gift Card

Reeling from his wife’s unsolved murder, Malcolm Cutter is just going through the motions as a chauffeur and bodyguard for Hollywood’s rich and famous. Then a pair of Guatemalan tough guys offer him a job. It’s an open question whether they’re patriotic revolutionaries or vicious terrorists. Either way, Cutter doesn’t much care until he gets a bomb through his window, a gangland beating on the streets of L.A., and three bullets in the chest. Now there’s another murder on Cutter’s Mind. His own. Link to purchase: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00AGAW6EC

Athol Dickson’s mystery, suspense, and literary novels have won three Christy Awards and an Audie Award. Suspense fans who enjoyed Athol’s They Shall See God will love his latest novel, January Justice, the first installment in a new mystery series called The Malcolm Cutter Memoirs. The second and third novels in the series, Free Fall in February, and A March Murder, are coming in 2013. Critics have favorably compared Athol’s work to such diverse authors as Octavia Butler (Publisher’s Weekly), Hermann Hesse (The New York Journal of Books) and Flannery O’Connor (The New York Times). Athol lives with his wife in southern California. Website: http://www.malcolmcutter.com Twitter: https://twitter.com/AtholDickson Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Athol-Dickson/416622918355206

Pump Up Your Book and Athol Dickson are teaming up to give you a chance to win a fabulous prize!

Here’s how it works: Each person will enter this giveaway by liking, following, subscribing and tweeting about this giveaway through the Rafflecopter form placed on blogs throughout the tour. This promotion will run from March 18 – Mar 22. The winner will be chosen randomly by Rafflecopter, contacted by email, and announced on March 25, 2013. Visit each blog stop below to gain more entries as the Rafflecopter widget will be placed on each blog for the duration of the tour. Good luck everyone! a Rafflecopter giveaway If the Rafflecopter form doesn't load, please visit the JANUARY JUSTICE TOUR PAGE to enter the giveaway: http://www.pumpupyourbook.com/2013/02/27/pump-up-your-book-presents-athol-dicksons-january-justice-book-blast-%E2%80%93-win-25-amazon-gift-card/

JANUARY JUSTICE BOOK BLAST SCHEDULE

Monday, March 18^th

The Book Connection

Literal Exposure

ASC Book Reviews

Tuesday, March 19^th

As the Pages Turn

Melina’s Book Blog

GivingNSharing

Miki’s Hope

Wednesday, March 20^th

Literarily Speaking

Between the Covers

Review from Here

Acme Authors Link

The Dark Phantom Review

Thursday, March 21^st

The Writer’s Life

Broken Teepee

Inside BJ’s Head

Paperback Writer

Friday, March 22^nd

Beyond the Books

Maureen’s Musings

The Busy Mom’s Daily

Bookingly Yours

Marilyn’s Musings

The Avalon Ladies Scrapbooking Society by Darien Gee

Perfect for fans of Debbie Macomber, Kristin Hannah, Beth Hoffman, and Kate Jacobs, this luminous novel from the author of Friendship Bread follows a group of fascinating women who form deep friendships through their love of scrapbooking—as memories are preserved, dreams are shared, and surprising truths are revealed.

Welcome to Avalon, Illinois, Pop. 4,243

At Madeline’s Tea Salon, the cozy hub of the Avalon community, local residents scrapbook their memories and make new ones. But across town, other Avalonians are struggling to free themselves of the past: Isabel Kidd is fixing up her ramshackle house while sorting through the complications of her late husband’s affair. Ava Catalina is mourning the love of her life and helping her young son grow up without his father. Local plumber Yvonne Tate is smart, beautiful, and new to Avalon, but finds that despite a decade of living life on her own terms, the past has a way of catching up—no matter where she goes. And Frances Latham, mother to a boisterous brood of boys, eagerly anticipates the arrival of a little girl from China—unprepared for the emotional roller coaster of foreign adoption.

Enter Bettie Shelton, the irascible founder of the Avalon Ladies Scrapbooking Society. Under Bettie’s guidance, even the most reluctant of Avalon’s residents come to terms with their past and make bold decisions about their future. But when the group receives unexpected news about their steadfast leader, they must pull together to create something truly memorable.

By turns humorous, wise, and deeply moving, The Avalon Ladies Scrapbooking Society is a luminous reminder that the things we hold most dear will last a lifetime.

About The Author

 Darien Gee lives in upcountry Hawaii with her husband and three children. She is the author of THE AVALON LADIES SCRAPBOOKING SOCIETY and FRIENDSHIP BREAD, which was published in 11 countries and was a 2012 About.com Reader's Choice winner. Darien also writes under the pen name Mia King. To learn more, visit her at www.dariengee.com.











Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Indiebound  

My Review: 


This book brings us back to Avalon IL, and our friends from Friendship Bread and Madeline's Tea Room. How great to be able to spend time again with these remarkable women. We also meet some of the other residents of this great town.
Bette has done with scrap booking what friendship bread did for the community in the last book. Although, loaves of this amazing starter keep showing up.
Bette is an awesome, sweet, elderly lady, that runs a scrap booking business. She is suffering from a form of dementia, and the sweet soul is actually quite funny. She gives away a lot of her supplies, and makes each and everyone feel special. She has been gifted with a talent to help one find their inner self.
Isabelle is Bette's neighbor, and don't think she ever knew when and where Bette would appear. We find a gruff exterior in Isabelle as the book opens, but I never expected what would happen.
Madeline is still running the tea shop, and Connie still lives with her, now including a goat named Serena...keeping them on their toes!
This story comes at you from a lot of directions, some have lost love ones because of deceit, others from divorce, and others from death. We have couple of stories of adoption, and the heart ache both good and bad that comes with it. We enjoy life with adorable Max, a precocious three year old!
Don't miss this one, would recommend you read the first book, but this can stand alone. We end with an epilogue, which I loved! Also included are some great tips for Scrap Booking, and then some recipes that were used in the book!!

I received this book through Net Galley and Random House Publishing, and was not required to give a positive review.

Fever by Mary Beth Keane

Mary Beth Keane, named one of the 5 Under 35 by the National Book Foundation, has written a spectacularly bold and intriguing novel about the woman known as “Typhoid Mary,” the first person in America identified as a healthy carrier of Typhoid Fever. On the eve of the twentieth century, Mary Mallon emigrated from Ireland at age fifteen to make her way in New York City. Brave, headstrong, and dreaming of being a cook, she fought to climb up from the lowest rung of the domestic-service ladder. Canny and enterprising, she worked her way to the kitchen, and discovered in herself the true talent of a chef. Sought after by New York aristocracy, and with an independence rare for a woman of the time, she seemed to have achieved the life she’d aimed for when she arrived in Castle Garden. Then one determined “medical engineer” noticed that she left a trail of disease wherever she cooked, and identified her as an “asymptomatic carrier” of Typhoid Fever. With this seemingly preposterous theory, he made Mallon a hunted woman. The Department of Health sent Mallon to North Brother Island, where she was kept in isolation from 1907 to 1910, then released under the condition that she never work as a cook again. Yet for Mary—proud of her former status and passionate about cooking—the alternatives were abhorrent. She defied the edict. Bringing early-twentieth-century New York alive—the neighborhoods, the bars, the park carved out of upper Manhattan, the boat traffic, the mansions and sweatshops and emerging skyscrapers—Fever is an ambitious retelling of a forgotten life. In the imagination of Mary Beth Keane, Mary Mallon becomes a fiercely compelling, dramatic, vexing, sympathetic, uncompromising, and unforgettable heroine.

About the Author

Mary Beth Keane was born in New York City to Irish parents and grew up in Rockland County, New York. She attended Barnard College and the University of Virginia, where she received an MFA in Fiction. In 2011, she was named by Julia Glass to the National Book Foundation’s “5 under 35.” She lives in Pearl River, New York with her husband and their two sons.
http://marybethkeane.com/







Purchase: Amazon/Barnes & Noble

My Review:

Reading about Mary Mallon, you feel the injustice that was done to her. Yet, if it were my child or relative that died, I certainly would feel differently.
She was stripped of her life, literally, and put on an island in the Hudson River, North Brother Island. Left with very little contact, to the outside world. How could they do that to her? Written up in the press as Germ Lady, Typhoid Mary. Yet a dairyman who also is a carrier of the germ, is allowed to stay at home. He killed over a hundred people. Yes, Mary is credited with about 20 deaths.
Mary is a spunky Irish immigrant, and pulls herself up from being a laundress to an exceptional cook. She wins raves from everyone who tastes her food. It is Mary's downfall. It is her passion, and yet people she has loved die.
Mary Beth Keane has brought Mary Mallon to life, we meet the love of her life Alfred. Mary is content to live as Alfred's mistress, back in the late 1800's. That in itself had to be difficult. She was a woman before her time, living on the edge. Yet the people who loved Mary, really loved Mary, for who she was to them.
When Mary, after three years, is finally let to return to her life, she is admonished to never take a job as a cook. Her passion is taken from her! Can she ever completely give cooking up? Her reasoning says that she has cooked for so many, and none of her friends have gotten sick?
You are going to find this to be a very compelling historical read, and not going to put it down, until it is done. You will root for Mary, even though, we find her breaking the law?? What law? Don't miss this excellent story.

I received this book through the Publisher Scribner, and Net Galley, and was not required to give a positive review.

Heads Up A Prelude: Tempest in the White City by Deeanne Gist

Deeanne Gist’s E-Short gives readers a peek inside the world’s fair. Tempest in the White City is a digital short story available from online retailers for 99 cents.

Deeanne Gist fans won’t have to wait until the April 30 release of It Happened at the Fair to read her latest work! On March 19, readers will be able to purchase the e-short, Tempest in the White City, a 40-page short story prelude to It Happened at the Fair, for 99 cents from all online retailers. While the characters from the short story are not carried over into the full-length release, audiences will get a taste of the awe-inspiring backdrop of the 1893 Chicago World’s Fair and will be anxious to spend more time exploring the exhibition.

In true Gist form, Tempest in the White City combines her trademark humor with romance. Hunter Scott is one of the elite. A Chicago World’s Fair guard specifically chosen for his height, physique, character and ability to serve and protect. When Hunter is overcome with debilitating abdominal pain, he stumbles to an infirmary in the Fair’s Woman’s Building only to discover the doctor is female—which he is none too happy about. But even worse, she has the nerve to diagnose him—the toughest man west of anyplace east—with constipation.

The 1893 Chicago World’s Fair overflowed with the latest innovations welcomed by a throng of people from all around the globe. This setting replete with history, intrigue and wonder caught Gist’s attention and is sure to draw readers of both releases in as well. “I’m always drawn to events in our country’s past that are strangely absent from our history classes. Why the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition has been left out, I don’t know, especially since it was such a pivotal event for us,” explains Gist. “We were able to wow the world with our scientific innovations, and it gave women their first official board position recognized and approved by an Act of Congress (all before we had the right to vote). But it was technology which claimed the day as it nipped at the heels of horses, buggies and man-powered tools.”

More about It Happened at the Fair: Young inventor Cullen McNamara gambles everything, including the family farm, in order to make his family proud—and earn his father’s entry money to the Fair Expo back—by selling his design for an automatic sprinkler system inspired by his mother’s death in a mill fire. Struggling with hearing loss from his previous life on the farm, McNamara finds it difficult to communicate with potential buyers over the din in the Fair’s Machinery Building. In an act of desperation, he hires attractive Della Wentworth, a teacher of the deaf, to tutor him in the art of lip-reading. Much like the newly invented Ferris Wheel, Cullen is caught in a whirl between his girl back home, his dreams as an inventor and his unexpected attraction to his new tutor. Can he keep his feet on the ground or will he be carried away?

2nd Annual Spring Cleaning Giveaway Hop

2nd Annual Spring Cleaning Giveaway Hop

It's time for some spring cleaning!

Up For Grabs Are Two Books That I Gave 5*'s To

Another Forgotten Child

by Cathy Glass

A new memoir from Sunday Times and New York Times bestselling author Cathy Glass.


Eight-year-old Aimee was on the child protection register at birth. Her five older siblings were taken into care many years ago. So no one can understand why she was left at home to suffer for so long. It seems Aimee was forgotten.


The social services are looking for a very experienced foster carer to look after Aimee and, when she reads the referral, Cathy understands why. Despite her reservations, Cathy agrees to Aimee on – there is something about her that reminds Cathy of Jodie (the subject of ‘Damaged’ and the most disturbed child Cathy has cared for), and reading the report instantly tugs at her heart strings.


When she arrives, Aimee is angry. And she has every right to be. She has spent the first eight years of her life living with her drug-dependent mother in a flat that the social worker described as ‘not fit for human habitation’. Aimee is so grateful as she snuggles into her bed at Cathy’s house on the first night that it brings Cathy to tears.


Aimee’s aggressive mother is constantly causing trouble at contact, and makes sweeping allegations against Cathy and her family in front of her daughter as well. It is a trying time for Cathy, and it makes it difficult for Aimee to settle. But as Aimee begins to trust Cathy, she starts to open up. And the more Cathy learns about Aimee’s life before she came into care, the more horrified she becomes.


It’s clear that Aimee should have been rescued much sooner and as her journey seems to be coming to a happy end, Cathy can’t help but reflect on all the other ‘forgotten children’ that are still suffering.

The Deliverer

by Kathi Macias

In The Deliverer, Mara has to make some major choices: 1) whether to trust her feelings for Jonathan, despite the fact that she fears men in general; 2) will she risk returning to Mexico to find her family, the very ones who sold her into slavery when she was just a child; 3) will she receive God's forgiveness and then offer that forgiveness to those who have so viciously hurt and betrayed her? Lawan is also deeply involved in this final book, as it opens with her winging her way from Thailand and all that is familiar to come and live with the family who adopted her younger sister, Anna. Though still a child herself, Lawan has survived nearly three years in a brothel and feels much shame as a result. Will she be able to bond with her new family and allow God to heal the losses and pain she has sustained in recent years? Jonathan too has much to deal with, primarily his feelings for Mara. Can he, a Bible college student, establish a deep and meaningful relationship with a young woman who has spent the majority of her life as a sex slave? At New Hope Digital (newhopedigital.com) you can find study questions for each book in this series and an "ideas and resources" list to help educate readers and enable them to apply what they've learned and become actively involved in this massive and ongoing human tragedy--Trafficking in Persons.

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Revell Tour Blog Network Presents: The Scent of Lilacs by Ann H. Gabhart

After the summer of 1964, life for Jocie Brooke will never be the same.
Life-changing events rarely happen in quiet Hollyhill, Kentucky, and when they do, they are few and far
between. But for young Jocie Brooke and her family, they happen all at once during the humid summer of
1964. Though on the surface things are just fine, it seems like everyone in Jocie’s life has something
they’re not saying, something they’re hiding from her-and from themselves. As Jocie digs into her family’s
past, she stirs up a whirlwind of discoveries. Will she find the answers everyone so desperately needs? Or
will her questions lead to truths better left hidden?
Combining unforgettable characters, true-to-life struggles, and the perfect dose of humor and nostalgia,
this riveting story from bestselling author Ann Gabhart explores the very essence of new life and love.
“Gabhart’s compelling characterization serves up a juicy slice of life in a small town where little is as it
seems. Jocie’s conversational voice and quirky sense of humor are a delight.”-RT Book Reviews
Ann H. Gabhart is the bestselling author of several novels, including Angel Sister, Words Spoken True,
The Outsider, The Believer, The Seeker, The Blessed, and The Gifted. She lives with her husband a mile
from where she was born in rural Kentucky. Find out more at www.annhgabhart.com.



About The Author


Ann H. Gabhart is the bestselling author of several novels, including Angel Sister, Words Spoken True, The Outsider, The Believer, The Seeker, The Blessed, and The Gifted. She lives with her husband a mile from where she was born in rural Kentucky. Find out more at www.annhgabhart.com.








Purchase

My Review:

A wonderful inspirational story, actually people with compassion before their time, the year is 1964. The story deals with some tough subjects of pregnancy, adultery, and possible murder.
This is the Jocie Brooks thirteenth summer, she is a delightful young girl. She has been praying for a dog, when possibly the ugliest dog around finds her. Zeb is her prayers answer and she loves him. When another prayer is answered people begin to wonder what she wants next.
There are some wonderful characters in this book, I wanted to live with them. There is Aunt Love, who is in her golden years, quite often putting something on the stove to cook, and forgetting it. There is Jocie's Dad, David, he owns the local newspaper and is a preacher. We also have Zelda and Wes, the man who came from Jupiter, that work at the paper, and are rather like family. We meet a bit younger woman than David, Leigh, who wants to have a special relationship with the Preacher.
Some of the things that are found out in her search for family answers, are really quite sad. Others are sad, but are rather heartwarming. One is that her Mother abandons her when she is seven, but was she ever a Mother to the child?
We find that God is ever present in their lives, and nothing happens for no reason, trust and forgiveness are ever present. A wonderful book to get lost in...don't miss this one!

I received this book through Revell Publishing Bloggers Tour, and was not required to give a positive review.