Literary Friday ya’ll….

It’s Friday- and I’m so ready for a weekend of fun. Spending time with my family and some reading. YAY!

1. Deep South Mag and their #literaryfriday has been posted! Susan Rebecca White’s A Place at the Table event, Zoey Deschanel as Amelia Bedelia, and more!

Deep South Mag also revealed their complete Summer Reading List! 21 books just waiting to read!

Out of the 21, I’ve read 5- A Place at the Table, Looking for Me, Topped Chef, The Guest House, And Then I Found You

2. Book Lovers Unite Online Book Club is in Week 2 of discussion of Reconstructing Amelia. Plenty of time to join in!

3. Looking for #giveaways? My Thursday Mashup is filled with the best info!

4. I reviewed The Roots of the Olive Tree by Courtney Santo.

5. A Hundred Summers by Beatriz Williams is divine. And totally 5 star worthy. My review to be posted next week.

6. My #fridayreads Reconstructing Amelia by Kimberly McCreight and The Engagements by J. Courtney Sullivan.

7. Look next week for my interview with Erika Marks and a giveaway of The Guest House. Come find out what her #literaryconfessions are!

Happy Reading!

Literary Friday ya’ll…

It’s Friday. And it’s 40-something degrees where I live. Whatttt? What happened to my spring weather?

1. Deep South Mag and their #literaryfriday- The Great Gatsby (pictures and listening to the soundtrack) in preparation for “Gatsby week”, and other festivals, book-ish things and more.

2. I read and reviewed The Girl Who Married An Eagle by Tamar Myers for TLC Book Tours this week. It’s an interesting book- and worth a read!

3. For Cozy Mystery Reviews, I read Topped Chef by Lucy Burdette. Ya’ll know how I love my cozy books. And I ADORE the character Hayley Snow.

4. All week long at She Reads– the discussion of AND THEN I FOUND YOU by Patti Callahan Henry has been going on- still time to chime in!

My review of And Then I Found You can be read HERE

5. My #fridayreads: Orphan Train by Christina Baker Kline and Deadly Harvest (A Detective Kubu mystery). What are your #fridayreads?

6. Read about Allison @ The Book Wheel’s meeting of BA Shapiro- author of The Art Forger- a book that I ABSOLUTLEY loved. I wanted to climb in this book, I loved it that much. Mystery, art, lust and love- I LOVE books like that. Allison was super-kind to send me an autographed copy because she knows how much I love this book!

My review of The Art Forger is HERE.

7. Looking for books to read for May? Read Bookmagnet’s suggestions!

8. She Reads articles you should read:

The Editor Recommends

Two Movies You Didn’t Know Were Books First

9. Like Cozy books? Want to join an online book club that only reads cozy books? Try Cozy Mystery Reviews

CMR is reading Mum’s The Word by Kate Collins for May!

10. #giveaway: The Fantastic 4 Cozy Mystery Giveaway

Literary Friday ya’ll….

Friday. The week has flown by. Supposed to go to Double Decker Art Festival tomorrow with my cousin- but appears to be rain in the forecast. So we’ll see!

1. Deep South Mag– the #literaryfriday edition celebrates Harper Lee’s birthday, Reese Witherspoon, and several festivals and writing events. Plus there’s a mention or 2 about The Great Gatsby!

2. Today, on my blog, I reviewed Mitiz Kelly’s Deadly Policy. Perfect for fans of #cozy books, or for readers looking to read about characters over the age of 40- it’s a quick read. Interesting. Nice plot. Mitiz Kelly is also being generous- and is giving away the 2 books in the Silver Sleuths series to each blog in the Cozy Mystery Reviews DEADLY POLICY blog tour. Go to my review of Deadly Policy, follow the directions (super-easy!) and you’ll be entered to win! Contest ends April 30th! Winner announced May 1st.

3. Monday, April 29th, Patti Callhan Henry will be Twitter chatting about her latest book, AND THEN I FOUND YOU. The Twitter chat will be hosted by yours truly- so def stop by! Did I mention there will be a #giveaway? We’ll chat from 2-3pmEST. Use #srchat to join in!

4. Can’t make it to Twitter chat? 😦 😦 Don’t worry! The AND THEN I FOUND YOU discussion will begin on April 29th and go through May 6th at She Reads. Again- yours truly will be hosting that as well!

5. What is your #fridayreads? Mine is The Glass Wives by Amy Sue Nathan!

6. With all this talk of AND THEN I FOUND YOU- have you gotten a thought of “this would be perfect for my book club?” Or maybe “I want to make something for my book club that goes with this book?” “Or I need music for my book club while we’re drinking a glass of wine- but what music?” She Reads has all these answers. Read the next articles for more info.

1. Books and music: The Playlist for AND THEN I FOUND YOU

2. Featured Recipe for AND THEN I FOUND YOU

7. Yesterday I packed my fictional beach bag with the books I plan to read over the summer- tell me what you want to put in your beach bag! Here’s my Beach Bag Reads list!

8. She Reads recommended books this week as well: A Tisket A Tasket A Book-Laden Basket

9. Remember my book-ish bucket list? Beginning in June, I can cross 1 thing off the list! Intrigued? Traveling With T will be having an ONLINE BOOK CLUB! The book is RECONSTRUCTING AMELIA by Kimberly McCreight. It’s been getting some great reviews- and it looks like it’s going to be a fun book to read. More details to come as it gets closer to time- but if you’ve been wanting the book and needing people to discuss the book with- this is a chance!

10. ICYMI:

Meeting Rita Leganski: The Silence of Bonaventure Arrow

Interview with Kimberly Freeman author of Lighthouse Bay

Meeting Jill McCorkle- author of Life After Life

Happy Reading!

Wednesday Mashup…

Got A LOT to catch up on! Read on for articles you need to be reading, giveaways you should be entering, and more!

Articles You Should Be Reading:

1.Dana Bate, author of The Girls’ Guide to Love and Supper Clubs, has this to say about writing: Find Your Voice. It’s an article that asipring writers should read!

2. Randy Susan Meyers poses the question: Are Writers Badgering Readers? It’s an interesting question, because in the land of social media- a person can promote their book till the cows come home- and it costs little to nothing. And does that help or hurt the writer? While Randy’s article takes a lot of other things in consideration- my thoughts on the social media aspect is this: I LIKE to see the author interact with fans, bloggers, and more on social media. It makes for a pleasant experience. I know that the bottom line of being an author is selling books. I get it. I don’t dislike you for wanting to make a living. In fact, as I’ve said before- authors are some of my favorite types of people. There are some things I don’t like about social media for authors- but for the most part, it’s a good fit. But remember- social media is not your personal platform for selling- if you think that, you’ve missed out on the “social” part of social media. And just like your mama taught you- if you see someone that has bought a book, or is talking positive about the book- a simple “thank you” goes a long way.

3. Wendy Francis writes about A Letter to the Author You’re About to Become– advice and more for people in the process of becoming an author.

4. The Affair by Colette Freedman was April’s #gr8books online book club discussion. And Colette was fun- letting the online book club know some future work she has planned, and talking extensively of the plot of The Affair. After the Twiiter chat, she wrote this blog post about it. Colin Firth, Brad Pitt and why I love book clubs is funny and a great summary of the amazing people who participate in the #gr8book chat. As I read the article, I was touched to see that 2 of my comments that I made in the post was listed in the “Some of my favorite tweets from the discussion” section- I’ll let you guess which 2 sound like me 🙂

Giveaways:

1. Great New Books is giving away Priscille Sibley’s book, The Promise of Stardust.

2. Lilmommareader’s blog, Read Baby Read is giving away The Good Woman by Jane Porter.

3. Bookmagnet is giving away The Paradise Guest House by Ellen Sussman.

She Reads:

As you know, I’m a She Reads blogger, Twitter chat hoster, and online book club leader- so I like to make sure other readers are aware of what’s going on at She Reads. April’s book club pick is AND THEN I FOUND YOU by Patti Callahan Henry- it’s fiction; but based on the real life experience of her sister. Beautifully written, heart-tugging and so much more- it’s a book that begs to be read.

I’ll be hosting the Twitter chat with Patti Callahan Henry on April 29th from 2-3pmEST. Use #srchat to join in. There will be a giveaway- and you’ll need to be particpating in the chat to be considered for the giveaway. Hope to see you there!

But, wait, there’s more! Can’t make it to the Twitter chat? No problem! April 29th- May 6th will be the online book club discussion at shereads.org/forum. Come, talk, tell me what you loved about the book. Or what you didn’t like. The discussion will last all week- and I love to hear from readers!

1. Dear Reader: A Note from Patti Callahan Henry

2. Featured Recipe for AND THEN I FOUND YOU

3. Release Day and launch party for AND THEN I FOUND YOU

Looking for Spring Thrillers? She Reads has a list! Spring Thriller Round-up

Literary Friday ya’ll….

Friday- oh Friday. And sunny!

1. Deep South Mag and their #literaryfriday- Joshilyn Jackson cover reveal, Jill McCorkle, 2 giveaways, and more (even some The Great Gastsby news!) Grab a glass of sweet tea- and soak up some #literaryfriday!

2. Speaking of Jill McCorkle, I had the pleasure of meeting her at Turnrow Books last night. She is adorable, funny, charming and so much more. Look for my blog post next week with pictures and tidbits of information she revealed as she read from her latest book, Life After Life.

Traveling With T’s review of Life After Life by Jill McCorkle.

3. Tonight, in a fit of luck, I will be at Rita Leganski’s book signing at Lemuria Books. You may remember that The Silence of Bonaventure Arrow was She Reads March Book Club Selection. I’ll be taking notes and pictures- so look for my blog post next week!

4. What is your #fridayreads? Mine is Three Good Things by Wendy Francis!

5. For those curious about when the Patti Callahan Henry Twitter chat will happen- it appears April 29th will be the day. As details are finalized, I’ll keep my readers in the know. If you’ve read And Then I Found You– or want to read- do consider joining us for the chat- it’s kept as spoiler free as possible!

Happy Reading and have a great weekend!

PS: Thanks to the new followers and commenters- you’ve been noticed and I appreicate you stopping by!

Literary Friday ya’ll…

Friday. Pretty spring day. I’ve been enjoying my morning coffee while watching these 2 small brown birds make a nest near the breakfast nook area. It’s a good day.

1. Deep South Mag and their #literaryfriday: A honor for Square Books, news about The Great Gatsby movie, and much more.

2. #giveaways: Luxury Reading is giving away a copy of Wendy Wax’s latest While We Were Downtown Abbey and She Reads is giving away a copy of The Promise of Stardust by Priscille Sibley.

3. Other She Reads news:

1. Books and Wine: A Pairing for The Silence of Bonaventure Arrow.

2. She Reads April Book Club Selection: And Then I Found You by Patti Callahan Henry

3. Book Review: Tapestry of Fortunes by Elizabeth Berg

4. A Room of Her Own: The Writing Space of Patti Callahan Henry

4. What is your #fridayreads? Mine is Going, Going, Ganache by Jenn McKinlay.

5. Books that I have read lately and really enjoyed:

1. The Affair by Colette Freedman

2. And Then I Found You by Patti Callahan Henry

3. Learning to Fly: An Ucommon Memoir of Human Flight, Unexpected Love, and One Amazing Dog by Steph Davis

4. Nickled and Dimed to Death: A Devereaux’s Dime Store Mystery by Denise Swanson

5. The Mermaid of Brooklyn by Amy Shearn

6. Life After Life by Jill McCorkle

6. Have you made your bucket list? What about your book-ish bucket list? Here’s mine: Traveling With T’s Book-ish Bucket List

Happy Reading 🙂

And Then I Found You by Patti Callahan Henry

Can the lost ever be found?

This is an idea that Patti Callahan Henry explores in her newest book, And Then I Found You, a beautiful and yet heartbreaking tale of love, making difficult choices, and what being a mother entails. This story, while technically fiction, is based upon Patti Callahan Henry’s family story of adoption.

Meet Kate Kate Vaughan. To the outside world, she has everything. A thriving business, good looks, a wonderful family, and a boyfriend that adores her. Life should be good- and it is, as long a Kate does not think about things too much. Kate knows that there is something that keeps her from wanting to commit to the adoring boyfriend.

Kate, years ago, made the toughest choice a woman can make- to give up her child for adoption. A choice that she made for the sake of her child- and not a day goes by that she does not think of that choice. Nor of the other choices she made in relation to the giving up of her child.

Kate feels as if some situations from her past were resolved, some doors that have been left slightly open were closed- that she could move on with her life, accept the pain, and fully commit to the adoring boyfriend she has.

What Kate finds is this: Sometimes doors aren’t meant to be closed- and sometimes the things we wish we want will not happen. Lastly, while we may not be able to vocalize our innermost wants and desires- sometimes life has a funny way of knowing and opening a connection.

Heartbreaking at times, heartwarming always- this is a book that is meant to be shared. To be enjoyed. To be discussed. Read. Share with friends. With book-clubs. Highly recommended. While this is my first book of Patti Callahan Henry’s, with the way she tells a story- it certainly will not be my last.

Literary Friday ya’ll….

Friday. Tomorrow going to a baseball game- fingers crossed for NO RAIN.

1. Book Blogger Twitter Con 2013– here are the details, the website, and more. Read and find out about it! #bbtc

2. Amazon Buying Goodreads. Here’s the thing: I don’t hate Amazon. I know some people are clutching their chest at that statement, but it’s the truth. Am I a total fan girl ready to defend Amazon to my last dying breath? No. But when you live in a small town, a town that barely has a grocery store- and never mind any Target/Walmart- Amazon becomes a place where you can shop, where you can get things that you can’t normally get. Now, I’ll admit: I’m a little cross with Amazon over stopping their “4 for 3” promotion because that is how I’d buy a ton of my cozy books, but not cross enough yet to cross them off my shopping sites.

Some scream “What about the indies?” And, yes, I suport the indies. Because, as much as I like Amazon- they haven’t figured out to have a bk signing virtually yet. I still like walking through the indie bookstore, seeing the books, and listening to people talk. I’ve even met some interesting people while I’m a indie store. I do my part to help keep the 3 indie bookstores that are near me in business- and I plan to continue. For me it all comes down to time, though. When you have to drive an hour to the nearest indie- it does get frustrating. But I do it as much as I can because I adore book signings. I walk in with my list of books that I plan to look at either before/after the signing- and I select a few. Sometimes, if I’m feeling super-generous- I buy an extra of the book that’s being signed- then I treat a friend.

For me- whether Amazon buying Goodreads is a good thing, bad thing, or will not change my opinion of Goodreads is yet to be seen. It’s just too early in the game- and there are too many variables (for me) at this point to formulate an educated response.

3. The Battle to Save Bookstores.

4. Deep South Mag and their #literaryfriday.

5. Tell Me Something True: A Visit With Lisa Wingate

6. The Magic of Childhood Reading

7. A Final Word From Rita Leganski

8. The Rita Leganski/The Silence of Bonaventure Arrow discussion is still happening at She Reads.

9. What is your #fridayreads? I have 2! And Then I Found You by Patti Callahan Henry and Learning to Fly by Steph Davis.

Happy Reading 🙂