Literary Friday, ya’ll….

Today is Literary Friday- the best day of the week!

I’ve got much to talk about- so let’s get to it!

1. First, before I get into the fun of #literaryfriday- Traveling With T has had a “face lift”- yes, a new theme has been applied! While Matala ( my paisely print theme had been a very good theme to me- I did love the bright colors!), the new theme, Sorbet, looks to be a winner. It’s a bit more customizable- even without having to buy all the upgrades, etc- so I hope Sorbet and I are happy for quite some time.

2. Deep South Magazine and their #literaryfriday- Wiley Cash interview (and giveaway of A DARK ROAD TO MERCY), 50 Books by Women Authors and much more! Continue reading →

Release Blitz + Giveaway: Beautiful Addictions by Season Vining

Photo Credit: StarAngels’ Reviews

A few weeks ago, Closed The Cover put out a call to bloggers- StarAngels’ Reviews was putting on a big release blitz for Season Vining’s BEAUTIFUL ADDICTIONS, and they needed some extra bloggers.

So, today is my stop on the BEAUTIFUL ADDICTIONS tour- as part of my stop on the tour there will be a synopsis, excerpt and links to a huge Rafflecopter giveaway! Continue reading →

Guest Post: Kristin @ Always With A Book reveals her New Year Resolutions

Kristin @ Always With A Book- eek! She’s so great- we have similar book tastes, both She Reads bloggers, and love scrapbooking! Kristin was featured back in July as part of Bloggers Made of AWESOME feature at Traveling With T- and she has become a treasured bloggy friend!

Kristin @ Always With A Book talks about her 2014 Resolutions

2014 is here and I have quite a few areas I am going to concentrate on…

Reading:

* This is going to be the year I read my own books…as of Jan 1 I have 241 unread books sitting on my shelves and 84 unread e-books on my iPad. While I while still be participating in blog tours and taking review books, I will be more selective as to those I agree to take on. I would really like this number to be considerably down by the end of the year.

* For those review books I do agree to take on that have a set review date, I am going to try to read ahead of schedule. This past year I found myself reading them at the last minute and feeling a bit frantic writing up the review – no more of that!!!

Blog:

* Organized…I need and want to be more together this year. I have my blog planner/calendar and am going to try to be better at scheduling things ahead of time. Some of this goes hand in hand with making sure books that need to be read by a certain date are read in a more timely fashion!

* I want to try to branch out more with different types of posts – this is still a book blog and will continue to remain so, but rather than always just reviews and giveaways, I’d like to do more feature posts and excerpts, even more author interviews and even more discussion posts relating to all things bookish.

Bookish Events:

* I am hoping to attend a book events this year, including BEA – my first time going!!!

* I also hope to continue attending as many author events that are near me as I can – I so enjoy going to them and getting to know those authors I love to read on a more personal level.

Fitness:

* I am training to walk my first 1/2 marathon and am super excited…my eventual goal is to walk a full marathon.

Be sure and check out Kristin’s blog- Always With A Book!

Guest Post: Rhiannon @ Ivory Owl Reviews discusses her ideas about New Year Resolutions

Back in 2013 (gosh that SOUNDS like a long time ago- but it really wasn’t!) Rhiannon @ Ivory Owl Reviews was featured as a Blogger Made of AWESOME. So when I asked her to consider guest posting about New Year Resolutions, I knew it would be good. I knew I would like it. I just didn’t realize how much I was going to wish me and Rhiannon could be in real life friends because her resolutions sound amazingly fun!

Rhiannon @ Ivory Owl Reviews discusses New Year Resolutions

A couple of years ago I figured out that if you make a resolution for something you WANT to do instead of something you NEED to do, you are much more likely to stay on track. Putting big demands on yourself to dramatically alter your lifestyle generally leads to a crash and burn scenario. So why not set yourself up to succeed with your resolutions? For 2013, I made a list of a three or four things I WANTED to get in the habit of doing more often: reading, time with friends, massages, date nights. Then I asked myself how often I wanted to do these things? I wanted to read two hours per day, have date night and go to coffee/ lunch / drinks with my friends every 1-2 weeks, and get a massage once a month. I made mental notes and plugged my “appointments” into my planner. Now when I find myself straying from these resolutions, it is easy to jump back in line instead of totally giving up.

For 2014, I will be sticking with my resolutions from last year (because I love them,) but I also want to try more recipes and walk more often at the park. I collect recipes on my Pinterest boards and try a new recipe occassionally but I’m going to try to make one new recipe per week. My neighborhood park has a wonderful 2.5 mile loop trail that I can walk in about 45 minutes. That means that even factoring in driving to and from the park, it would only take an hour out of my day. Plus, I’m so much happier after I go. Granted the first months of the year are pretty chilly (even in Georgia) so weather permitting I would like to go 4 times per week.

Making resolutions to do things you WANT will make you happier throughout the year and shouldn’t we all resolve to be happier?

Don’t forget to check out Rhiannon’s blog- Ivory Owl Reviews!

Hunted by Elizabeth Heiter

Photo Credit: Goodreads

This book was sent to Traveling With T in exchange for a fair and honest review.

Hunted

Evelyn Baine is criminal profiler with the FBI. Evelyn has wanted to work with the FBI for many years- and her star is rising and she’s making quite a reputation for herself. When called in to profile the Bakersville Burier, Evelyn knows she must work hard to create a profile before too many innocent people are killed. What Evelyn does not count on is how the Bakersville Burier will change her life- and how deeply it will affect her. Continue reading →

Tuesday Mashup

Tuesday Mashup: Crafty, Bloggy, Giveaways and more!

Giveaways:

Always With A Book is giving away The Comfort of Lies by Randy Susan Meyers.

Luxury Reading is giving away The Comfort of Lies, as well.

Bookfan is also giving away a copy of The Comfort of Lies!

* The Comfort of Lies is a really good book- and with it’s recent paperback release, if you missed out on during it’s hardcover phase- I urge you to get a PB copy (or maybe you’ll win a copy!) Continue reading →

Starter House by Sonja Condit

Photo Credit: Goodreads

This book was sent to Traveling With T in exchange for a fair and honest review.

Starter House

Lacey and Eric, a young married couple, are looking for a house. Their 2 will becoming 3 in a short few months and both Lacey and Eric desire a place of their own to raise their child, in a neighborhood that has good schools and a nice look. Lacey, though, wants a house with character- not a square cookie-cutter house- a house with character. When Lacey sees this 1 house and finds out that it is for sale- she falls in love with the house. Eric is happy because it’s in the neighborhood they want, is in their price range, and makes Lacey happy. Too bad neither of them really listened to the real estate agent when she tried to discourage them from buying the house.

Shortly after moving in, Lacey begins having difficulty with her pregnancy- and is concerned. She and Eric begin making alternative arrangements- Lacey sleeping downstairs, her mother moving in temporarily and Lacey trying to keep stress to a minimum. Still, Lacey feels uneasy. The house, at times, has a different feel to it- not warm and welcoming; but dark and mysterious. There is a little boy who Lacey keeps seeing… in her house. This boy, Drew, appeals to Lacey and her teacher/maternal instincts. But, slowly, she begins to pick up on things- that Drew is not what he seems. That Drew is a jealous child and quick to anger- which Lacey finds out the hard way.

Determined to get to the bottom of what has happened in this house and the story of Drew- Lacey begins to look for clues. What she finds is dark and chilling. Will Lacey be able to put an end to evil in the house- before she and her baby pay the ultimate price?

Traveling With T’s Thoughts:

This is Sonja Condit’s first book and while I enjoyed it- I was a bit conflicted at times. Sonja’s characters- Lacey and Eric, I did not completely connect with either. Lacey, at times, seemed like she was cracking up and Eric, was an obsessive workaholic.

The story is compared to The Thirteenth Tale and since I have not read that book, I can’t accurately say if Starter House is like that book. I was a bit worried that it would be too scary- similar to the movie, The Conjuring, but it was not super-scary. Starter House has more of a creepy vibe- and Sonja Condit does that very well.

Would I recommend? Yes. Was it perfect? No. But, Starter House kept me flipping pages because I had to know what happened in that house- and if or when it would ever end.

*Thanks to William-Morrow for sending Traveling With T STARTER HOUSE. Above thoughts and opinions are mine alone.

Cover Reveal: Paris, Rue des Martyrs by Adria J. Cimino

Today, today, TODAY…. It’s a Cover Reveal day! Yes, readers of Traveling With T- we are the first to see the cover of Paris, Rue des Martyrs by Adria J. Cimino!

How did we get so lucky?

The details: Adria contacted me a few weeks ago after hearing about my love of cover reveals (seriously- cover reveals are like the sweetest candy to me- nothing but love for a cover reveal!) I’ve taken part in them in a group effort- but this was a first to be asked to be the blogger who gets to reveal the cover. I wasted no time in telling Adria I was in- and we started the process of emailing and working out logistics. Continue reading →

Guest Post: Lucy Burdette reveals her character, Hayley Snow, 2014 resolutions

Hayley Snow is a character that Lucy Burdette created. And I don’t like to play favorites- but Hayley is in my top 5 fav cozy mystery characters. Maybe it’s her food critic job, or the fact that she has been unlucky in love (and I can relate). Perhaps, it’s because she rides a scooter everywhere and I think that is so cool. But, maybe, just maybe- it’s Hayley and her love of having her tarot cards read. Continue reading →