Best Seller For A Day

Woohoo! It's here, Best Seller for a Day...yup. Now I admit I have already reviewed this month's book, but it's ok. I can still let you all know about it. Plus Ann sat down and answered a few questions, which I am excited to share with you!

First off this month's Novel is Nearly Departed in Deadwood by the awesome Ann Charles.

You can find my review HERE

1.       Your main character, Violet, is anything but shrinking. What else can you tell us about her?

Violet is a hoot! From the first moment I stepped inside her head and stared down Old Man Harvey’s double-barrel shotgun, I knew I’d found a heroine I would love sharing headspace with for years to come. I love her wit, her sense of humor, the way she can laugh at herself when crap is really raining down on her, her lusty and bold appetite for men, and her acceptance that she’s not the best mother in the world, but she keeps trying anyway.

What I had hoped to create in a character when I started writing Violet’s story was someone readers would enjoy hanging out with in real life. The kind of character that is more genuine—she struggles with her weight, has stretch marks, has this crazy hair she can barely control, and cusses and howls at the moon when the situation calls for it. She’s not a first-rate sleuth, but she cares about people and allows that caring to draw her into places where she does things she’d normally avoid like the plague. 

2.       What is your ideal romantic hero like?

He loves to cook and he’s great at it. He also is willing to clean the toilet and shower/tub, do the laundry, and go grocery shopping. Oh, and he likes his women short, curvy, and full of spunk. Handsome with sexy forearms is a definite plus! He’s nice to kids and pets, he’s intelligent but doesn’t show off, and he is willing to give a woman the space she needs to grow and thrive.

3.       Speaking of romantic heroes, what can you tell us about Doc, Deadwood’s newest arrival?

Well, I’d love to tell you all kinds of fun details about Doc, but he refuses to spill—even to me. Seriously. When I write scenes with him in them, I have to work at getting him to share much. He’s extremely closed mouth about his history and his feelings. I curse him often. Not even hard liquor pries open his lips—and believe me, I’ve tried to use it many times and wound up passed out on the floor of my office.

4.       Do you feel like you have anything in common with Violet, and if so, what?

We both have two kids, rely on a sarcasm-laced inner monologue as a source of humor, and love men who are tall, dark, and handsome. We also both screw up a lot in life and have learned to laugh at ourselves whenever possible.

And there you have it...So now take the time to run over and grab your own copy for only 99cents..head to Amazon now! Then head over to the Best Seller For A Day website to enter for you chance to win a Brand New Kindle.

Wake Unto Me by Lisa Cach

Good morning! I have recently been stepping back and looking at my bookshelves. I realized I have so many books to read I started grabbing books at random to read (between my review requests) and this was the latest one that I grabbed. Hope you enjoy!

Caitlyn Monahan knows she belongs somewhere else. It's what her dead mother's note suggested, and it's what her recurring nightmares allude to.

Desperate to flee these terrifying dreams--and her small town--she accepts a spot at a boarding school in France. Only, when she arrives, her nightmares get worse.

But then there are her amazing dreams, so vivid and so real, with visits from an alluring, mysterious, and gorgeous Italian boy from the 1500s. Caitlyn knows they are soul mates, but how can she be in love with someone who exists only in her dreams?

Then, as her reality and dream world collide, Caitlyn searches for the real reason why she was brought to this school. And what she discovers will change her life forever.

REVIEW

I was pleasantly pleased with this story. Lisa Cach weaves  a wonderful story that sucks you in and has you trying to figure out the puzzle before Caitlyn does. With a great little romance plot on the side, you will be turning the pages as fast as you can to find out what happens. I sat down to read this and finished it in an afternoon because I just couldn't put it down. A great YA read that anyone of any age could enjoy. So if you see it and want to escape to another world, then definitely grab it. For a read filled with mystery, romance, back stabbing friends, a little bit of deceit then Wake Unto Me is a book for you!

We give it 4 stars--page turner.

Personal Demons by Lisa Derochers

Frannie Cavanaugh is a good Catholic girl with a bit of a wicked streak. She has spent years keeping everyone at a distance—-even her closest friends—-and it seems as if her senior year is going to be more of the same . . . until Luc Cain enrolls in her class. No one knows where he came from, but Frannie can’t seem to stay away from him.
What she doesn’t know is that Luc is on a mission. He’s been sent from Hell itself to claim Frannie’s soul. It should be easy—-all he has to do is get her to sin, and Luc is as tempting as they come. Frannie doesn’t stand a chance. But he has to work fast, because if the infernals are after her, the celestials can’t be far behind. And sure enough, it’s not long before the angel Gabriel shows up, willing to do anything to keep Luc from getting what he came for. It isn’t long before they find themselves fighting for more than just Frannie’s soul.
But if Luc fails, there will be Hell to pay . . . for all of them.

REVIEW

I will be honest, this is a book that has been on my shelf for a while. I picked it up on one of my book shopping spree simply because of the cover. Yesterday I had a yard sale at the house and figured what better time to get some reading done right? So as I scanned my shelf, this book spoke to me and said, hey grab me to read while you wait for people to stop by. So I went out to sit and wait for people armed with my book, my coffee and my phone. (gotta stay in touch with anyone who calls right?) I quickly got engrossed in the book and hated the disturbance of my first customer, I regretfully put the book down, but picked it back up as soon as the person turned to go back to their car. This is how it went all day and even a few times I simply smiled and greeted the yard sale customers and then quickly dove back into the book. Maybe not the best sales strategy but I just couldn't put the book down. 

I got caught up in Frannie's struggle with her "gift" and the fact that she had to forgive herself for her "past demons" before she could move on with her life and what she was destined for. I kept turning the page to find out if she would choose "bad boy" demon Luc or "good boy" angel Gabe. Who would win her over, would she be destined for heaven or hell. And then the turn, twist of the book took me by surprise and gave me a warm fuzzy feeling at the same time. I thoroughly enjoyed this book. The story is a well written page turner in the YA genre and I would recommend it to anyone who wants a quick easy read. The author brings forth a good obstacle that Frannie has to get over that many people can sympathize/empathize with. It makes you sit back and think, could I get past it, could I forgive myself, how would I have handled it.

We give this book 4 stars and recommend it to our readers. Great thing is you can get it in paperback or ebook format. Keep your eye out for sales, and add this one to your TBR pile!

Guest Post with O.C. Heaton

How to write

I’m often asked how I got into writing. 

“How do you write?”

“What are your writing dos and don’ts?”

I decided to put this post together to try and answer these questions. As with everything that I write I did a little research beforehand, for guidance. I visited other authors’ blogs to try and understand their writing tricks and tactics, but their ideas about how to write and mine simply don’t marry up. I don’t really follow any of the tried, tested or recommended ways of doing things.

I just freestyle. And freestyling seems to be the story of my life!

It’s quite frightening at first, but on reflection perhaps it isn’t. It just proves that there is no right or wrong way to learn how to write, just your way.

So here’s my story:

I was a very late starter. Until I started writing The Human Race at the grand old age of 35, I hadn’t written a fictional story in more than 25 years. In fact the last story I remember writing was a short story about a swarm of bumble bees and wasps on a “hunt” for humans, back when I was at school! That’s not to say I haven’t written at all during that period – I have, I’ve written loads.

I was a lawyer for eight years. That meant lots of writing… mainly commercial leases though. Yuck! After I left law I didn’t write for five years. When you are trying to grow a business empire, there is very little need – or time – for words. Then I became a business consultant and we all know how much they like to write… As I’m sure you can tell, writing has always been a big part of my life.

I have never been on a writing course. I’m not sure that you need to, to learn how to write. Your “voice” is your voice. Freestyle has worked for me!

There are downsides to this approach. Free styling isn’t always time-efficient – and it took me 10 years to write my first novel. Yes, that’s how long it took to write The Human Race. Don’t spend 10 years writing a novel! It’s bad for your health. It’s bad for your relationships. It’s bad for the story.  Everything.

I am writing the sequel far more quickly. All in all, when it is finished it should have taken about two years. I would add that this process has been just as difficult and painful; however there has been a shorter period of difficulty and pain to endure.

My tip, to make the process as painless as possible: sign up to Spotify! I play music when I write. Usually it is very loud and anthemic, but it’s amazing how quickly you get through your collection during a six hour writing stint. That’s why I joined Spotify: unlimited music on tap. Heaven! I am currently ploughing through the entire back catalogue of Nina Simone. What a voice.

While I love to listen to music while I write, I don’t really read at all. I can’t afford to. It’s too much of a distraction and, as the lost decade indicates, I love distractions all too well. The only thing I read is the stuff I research – and if you have read The Human Race you will know that I love research. Right from the beginning I wanted to fuse fact with fiction, so that anyone reading the story would struggle to spot where one stopped and the other began. Consequently I surf the Internet like crazy when I’m writing. Some say it’s a horrible distraction and should be disconnected. I disagree. I love the Internet. It’s an absolute Godsend for me.

It’s just as well. I love finding out about stuff. Anything. Finding out how it works. Where it is. How it got there. Why it got there.

Finally… 

If your writing is not going well, don’t blame anyone or anything but yourself. I realised very early on that you can write anywhere at any time of day and you don’t need a piece of paper or a pen or a deadly quiet room. Just your own overactive and unstoppable mind.

So there you have it, that’s how I write.

That’s not to say that this is how you should write.

All you need to do is find out what works for you.

Thank you for stopping by O.C., I have to say my writing style is pretty much the same, glad to know I'm not the only one!

Two for One today - The Deadwood Series

Good morning my wonderful friends! Miranda here and I am so excited to share with you my newest favorite series. I read the first two books in one day. That's right folks, two books in ONE day. I am now waiting with baited breath for number 3 to come out in early 2012.

Yesterday I sat down to read the next book coming up for Best Seller For A Day, now I know it's not till Sept 29th, but I couldn't wait to share what I thought of the book and the series. I picked up my NOOK yesterday to read and didn't put it down till I was done. Then promptly went online to purchase the next book in the series. Now I am proud of myself, I did wait to start the second until I had fed the rugrats (shocker I know) but ended up staying up late to finish reading it. Needless to say I am dragging butt this A.M.

What series had me so wrapped up you ask, well it's the Deadwood series by the wonderful, amazing, creative, and all out AWESOME Ann Charles.

Nearly Departed in Deadwood is the first in the series, here's the little snipped that you find about it online:

The first time I came to Deadwood, I got shot in the ass.--Violet Parker

Little girls are vanishing from Deadwood, South Dakota, and Violet Parker's daughter could be next.  She's desperate to find the monster behind the abductions.  But if she's not careful, Violet just might end up as one of Deadwood's dearly departed.

Now that so doesn't give you much, but trust me when I say this is one you don't want to miss. Many of the reviews I had read compared her books to the Stephanie Plum books written by Janet Evonovich and I must say I totally agree.  Ann has created a loveable character in Violet, I can totally see her as being the friend I have been missing my whole life. Headstrong, single mom doing what it takes to take care of her family. Yet her curiosity and empathy for others get her into one tight spot after another. With the help of old man Harvey and Doc Nyce, Violet digs deeper into mysteries where she would be best to keep her nose out of. Solving them by the skin of her teeth every time. On top of the fact she is barely scraping by, she has to deal with her feelings and magnetic attraction to Doc himself and his "secret" that she is determined to discover.

Nearly Departed in Deadwood is a page turner you won't want to put down. And please take my suggestion, grab book #2 while you are at it, cause once you finish book #1 you will want to dive straight into the next one.

In the second book in the series you are dropped straight into the next mystery that Violet uncovers. Non stop from page one, who done it, why and how is what goes through your head. All the while you are rooting for Vi to get over herself and admit her feelings for Doc. You want to smack them both through the book and say wake up, get over yourself and get together all ready! Old Man Harvey and Violet's twins bring in a good dose of comedic relief, you will be on the edge of your seat, laughing till tears and rooting for the bad guys to get caught in the end.

Move over Stephanie Plum, Violet Parke is here to stay!

Go grab your very own copy and fall in love with the Deadwood gang yourself.

Thank you Ann, Deadwood has now made it to my bucket list as places I want to visit before I die! Oh, and I think it's time for me to search out a pair of my very own Purple cowboy boots!!

5 stars from me for both books, keep em coming Ann!

Want to find Ann and her Deadwood Gang?
http://anncharles.com/
Twitter: @AnnWCharles and @DeadwoodViolet
Facebook:  Ann's Page

Indie Book Blow Out Weekend!

This Labor Day weekend is an ebook lover’s dream come true! Over 100 authors, over 130 titles, all priced to 99 cents as part of a Labor Day weekend sale to remember. It is the first annual Indie Book Blowout!

We are talking award-winners! Best sellers! All genres! New releases! All priced down to 99 cents PLUS, if you sign up for the newsletter, you’ll be entered to win a brand new KINDLE and $100 in gift card giveaways.

Just head to http://IndieBookBlowout.com, shop, click, buy and enjoy! Happy weekend and happy reading!!