Merry Christmas & Happy New Year!

The graphics in this post have been Designed by Freepik but edited by me to fit my content.

Blitz & Giveaway: Insanity Books 1-3 by Cameron Jace

Insanity
Cameron Jace
(The Complete Books 1-3)
Publication date: October 28th 2015
Genres: New Adult, Fantasy, Paranormal

A Top 100 Bestseller!
Amazon readers love it – over 500 reviews of 5* and 4* for the first book in the series.
‘Most absorbing fantasy read in years!’ W. McNaughton.
‘Insanity is A Summer Hit!!!’ Kindle Gram
‘An insane page turner’ – Kindle reviewer
‘Engrossingly fun!’ Rhonda Miller.
‘A truly twisted tale….fantastic!’ Sheri A. Wilkinsonon
Hannibal Meets Alice in Wonderland in this fantasy page-turning thriller.
After accidentally killing everyone in her class, Alice Wonder becomes a patient in the Radcliffe Lunatic Asylum. No one doubts her insanity. All but a hookah-smoking professor named Carter Pillar who believes he can prove her sanity by decoding Lewis Carroll’s paintings, photographs, and finding Wonderland’s real whereabouts.
Professor Caterpillar persuades the asylum that Alice can save lives and catch the Wonderland Monsters now reincarnated in modern day criminals. In order to do so, Alice leads a double life: an Oxford university student by day, a mad girl in an asylum by night. The line between sanity and insanity thins when she meets Jack Diamond, an arrogant college student who believes that nonsense is an actual science.
Larger than life characters, intricate mysteries, engrossing fun, and intriguing historical locations. Insanity will thrill you, makes turns pages, and stay with you forever.
Warning: intended for insane audience only.

Goodreads / Amazon

You can also purchase book 5 – Wonder – today!

—

EXCERPT:

Underground Ward, the Radcliffe Lunatic Asylum, Oxford

The writing on the wall says it’s January 14. I am not sure what year. I haven’t been sure of many things lately, but I’m wondering if it’s my handwriting I’m looking at.
There is an exquisite-looking key drawn underneath the date. It’s carved with a sharp instrument, probably a broken mirror. I couldn’t have written this. I’m terrified of mirrors. They love to call it Catoptrophobia around here.
Unlike those of the regular patients in the asylum, my room is windowless, stripped down to a single mattress in the middle, a sink, and bucket for peeing—or puking—when necessary. The tiles on the floor are black and white squares, like a chessboard. I never step on black. Always white. Again, I’m not sure why.
The walls are smeared with a greasy, pale green everywhere. I wonder if it’s the previous patient’s brains spattered all over from shock therapy.
In the Radcliffe Lunatic Asylum, politely known as the Warneford Hospital, the doctors have a fondness for shock therapy. They love watching patients with bulging eyes and shivering limbs begging for relief from the electricity. It makes me question who is really mad here.
It’s been a while since I was sent to shock therapy myself. Dr. Tom Truckle, my supervising physician, said I don’t need it anymore, particularly after I stopped mentioning Wonderland. He told me that I used to talk about it all the time; a dangerous place I claim I had been whisked away to, when my elder sister lost me when I was seven.
Truth is, I don’t remember this Wonderland they are talking about. I don’t even know why I am here. My oldest vivid memory is from a week ago. Before that, it’s all a purple haze.
I have only one friend in this asylum. It’s not a doctor or a nurse. And it’s not a human. It doesn’t hate, envy, or point a finger at you. My friend is an orange flower I keep in a pot—a Tiger Lily I can’t live without. I keep it safe next to a small crack in the wall, where a single ray of sun sneaks through for only ten minutes a day. It might not be enough light to grow a flower, but my Tiger Lily is a tough girl.
Each day I save half of the water they give me for my flower. As for me, better thirsty than mad. My orange flower is also my personal rain check for my sanity. If I talk to her and she doesn’t reply, I know I am not hallucinating. If she talks back to me, all kinds of nonsense starts to happen. Insanity prevails. There must be a reason why I am here. It doesn’t mean I will easily give in to such a fate.
“Alice Pleasance Wonder. Are you ready?” The nurse knocks with her electric prod on my steel door. Her name is Waltraud Wagner. She is German. Everything she says sounds like a threat, and she smells like smoke. My fellow mad people say she is a Nazi—that she used to kill her own patients back in Germany. “Get avay vrom za dor. I’m coming in,” she demands.
As I listen to the rattling of her large keychain, my heart pounds in my chest. The turn of the key makes me want to swallow. When the door opens, all I can think of is choking her before she begins to hurt me. Sadly, her neck is too thick for my nimble hands. I stare at her almost-square figure for a moment. Everything about her is four sizes too big. All except her feet, which are as small as mine. My sympathies, little feet.
“Time for your daily ten-minute break upstairs.” She approaches me with a straitjacket, a devilish grin on her face. I never get out. My ward is underground, and I’m only allowed to take my break in another empty ward upstairs where patients love to play soccer.
A big, muscled warden stands behind Waltraud. Thomas Ogier. He is bald, and has an angry-red face and a silver tooth he likes to flash whenever he sees me. His biceps are the size of my head. I have a hard time believing he was ever a four-pound baby.
“Slide your arms into the jacket,” Waltraud demands in her German accent, a cigarette puckered between her lips. “Slow and easy, Alice.” She nods at Warden Ogier, in case I misbehave.
I comply obediently and stretch out my arms for her to do whatever she wants. Waltraud twists my right arm slightly and checks the tattoo on my arm. It’s the only tattoo I have. It’s a handwritten sentence that looks like a thick armband from afar. Waltraud feels the need to read it aloud: “‘I can’t go back to yesterday, because I was a different person then.'” I was told I had written it while still believing in Wonderland. “That Alice in Wonderland has really messed with your head,” she says as she puffs smoke into my face.
The tattoo and Waltraud’s mocking is the least of my concerns right now. I let her tie me up, and while she does, I close my eyes. I imagine I am a sixteenth-century princess, some kind of lucky Cinderella, being squeezed into a corset by my chain-smoking servant in a fairy tale castle above ground, just about to go meet my prince charming. Such imagery always helps me breathe. I once thought that it was hope that saved the day, not sanity. I need to cool down before I begin my grand escape.

Author Bio:
Cameron Jace is the bestselling author of the Grimm Diaries and Insanity series. A graduate of the college of Architecture, collector of out-of-print books, he is obsessed with the origins of folk tales and the mysterious storytellers who spread them. Three of his books made Amazon's Top 100 Customer Favorites in Kindle 2013 & Amazon's Top 100 kindle list. Cameron lives in California with his girlfriend. When he isn't writing or collecting books, he is playing music.
Sign up for his mailing list here: http://bit.ly/1sxp3p1

Website / Goodreads / Facebook / Twitter

GIVEAWAY!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Hosted by:

Book Blast & Giveaway: Demons by Ednah Walters

Demons by Ednah Walters
Demons continues the Runes series by USA Today bestselling author Ednah Walters. What happened to Eirik after he left his friends on Earth and went to Hel? Eirik Baldurson—son of Baldur, God of Light—failed living as a Mortal. He lost the girl of his dreams and nearly got his friends killed. Now, he's gone to the underworld to meet the mother he’s never known. Torn between his duty to her and the man he used to be, Eirik struggles to find himself, until a witch appears in his world. Feisty and stubborn, she is a reminder of everything good he left behind. Celestia Devereaux proudly attends a charter high school for “gifted” teenagers who embrace magic. Witches. However, she keeps a terrible secret—a prediction that she would one day be responsible for massive destruction and death. Though Celestia uses her clairvoyant abilities to help people, she worries that it is just a matter of time before she goes over to the dark side. Her world changes when she unexpectedly astral projects to a place she didn’t believe existed and meets a tortured man who needs her help. Will helping him cause her fears to come true, or will he sacrifice everything to save her?

Amazon | B&N | GoodReads

 

Praise for Demons 

 Ednah Walters just keeps getting better. Demons is one Hel of a ride!  

~ Karen Lynch, USA Today Bestselling author of Relentless series.

 A beautiful addition to an already mesmerizing world. Be ready to obsess over a new book boyfriend! 

~ Melissa Haag, Bestselling author Judgement of 6 series.

 

 ABOUT THE AUTHOR 
 EDNAH WALTERS grew up reading Nancy Drew and the Hardy Boys and dreaming of one day writing her own stories. She is a stay-at-home mother of five humans and two American short-hair cats (one of which has ADHD) and a husband. When she is not writing, she’s at the gym doing Zumba or doing things with her family, reading, traveling or online chatting with fans.

Website | Blog | Facebook | Twitter

 

  Book Blast Giveaway 

$100 Amazon Gift Card or $100 in Paypal Cash 

 Ends 1/1/16 Open only to those who can legally enter, receive and use an Amazon.com Gift Code or Paypal Cash. Winning Entry will be verified prior to prize being awarded. No purchase necessary. You must be 18 or older to enter or have your parent enter for you. The winner will be chosen by rafflecopter and announced here as well as emailed and will have 48 hours to respond or a new winner will be chosen. This giveaway is in no way associated with Facebook, Twitter, Rafflecopter or any other entity unless otherwise specified. The number of eligible entries received determines the odds of winning. Giveaway was organized by Kathy from I Am A Reader and sponsored by the author. VOID WHERE PROHIBITED BY LAW.

  a Rafflecopter giveaway

Andrea Laurence Guest Post & Giveaway!

Click here to check out all the other authors and blogs participating in the tour!

Hey guys! So today I am super excited to welcome author Andrea Laurence to the blog! She's going to share a delicious holiday recipe with us! I may have to give these treats a try this year!

Welcome to Rainy Days and Pajamas, Andrea!

Christmas Recipe - Oreo Truffles
Every year my mom and I get together to bake. Neither of us needs the calories, but we just have to do it. It’s tradition. Typically we spend one afternoon cranking out cookies, candy and other assorted baked goods to give as gifts or take to work. The men usually stay far, far away as this is not a leisurely activity. It is a flurry of sugar and chocolate, a well-choreographed dance set to the holiday crooning of Perry Como and Bing Crosby.

This year I’m having surgery, so it may put a damper on the baking chaos, but I know there’s at least one recipe that we’re guaranteed to make. It’s super simple to make and we do it every year because it tastes so darn good! It’s my Oreo Truffles.

Ingredients:

• 1 package of Oreo Cookies
• 1 8-oz package of cream cheese (softened)
• 1 block of white chocolate
• 1 block of dark or milk chocolate

Directions:
Grind the whole package of Oreo cookies in a food processor or blender until it is powdery. Put the Oreo powder in a bowl and add the cream cheese (it’s easier to just mix this with your hands). The mix should have the consistency of dough. Roll into small balls about the size of a gumball, put on cookie sheet and then put in the freezer for 30 minutes.

Melt the whole block of white chocolate in a bowl in the microwave. Dip each ball into the white chocolate and put on wax paper to dry. Melt a portion of the dark or milk chocolate and use a fork to drizzle the dark chocolate over the truffles. Let cool.

You can mix and match the chocolate however you like or even reserve some of the Oreo crumbs to sprinkle over the truffles before they cool. One year, we bought Oreos with the mint filling and made a special chocolate mint batch with white chocolate dyed green. Another fun spin on the recipe is to use the golden Oreos instead of the chocolate ones. Dip them in white chocolate, then dust in sugar crystals or shredded coconut for “snowballs.” Have fun with it.

Happy holidays! Andrea

A White Wedding Christmas by Andrea Laurence

I do—two words wedding planner Natalie Sharpe will never utter. The cynic in her doesn't believe in love…but the woman in her believes in lust! When a last-minute Christmas wedding reunites her with the bride's hunky brother—Natalie's teenage crush and star of all her fantasies—Natalie wants a second chance for their first time

But Colin Russell isn't a teen anymore. He's all man. And his every touch has her thinking about the F word—forever. Working with him on the wedding is more temptation than she can take. Will one long, hot kiss lead this reluctant bride down her own wedding aisle?

GoodReads | Amazon | B&N  

About The Author:
Andrea Laurence loves Christmas and she loves to bake. Her December release, A White Wedding Christmas, combines these two things together in an almost orgasmic cake-tasting chapter. It’s a winning combination available December 3 at all bookstores and online booksellers.

Website | Twitter | Facebook

Giveaway Info:  

One grand prize winner will receive:

• 1 print copy of The Harder You Fall by Gena Showalter, White Wedding Christmas by Andrea Laurence, A Cowboy Under the Mistletoe by Vicki Lewis Thompson, Wrapped in Red by Nana Malone and Sherelle Green
• 1 eBook copy of A Copper Ridge Christmas by Maisey Yates and Under the Spotlight by Kate Willoughby
• 100,000 Harlequin MyRewards points
• 2 Harlequin Classics limited edition notebooks
• 1 Brenda Jackson Westmoreland limited edition notebook

Please enter via the Rafflecopter form.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Promo: Battle Cry by JL Snyder

Title: Battle Cry 
Author: JL Snyder

Synopsis: 

Fall in love with a true heroine . . .16 year old Kaí-Ling was raised in the ways of the sword. The child of a former samurai warrior and an American mother embarks on a journey to right the wrongs life has dealt her. The lifelong lessons and skills she acquires as well as the friends she makes along the way aid her in her quest to fulfill her destiny. Robbed of her father’s love before she was born, Kaí-Ling now seeks vengeance upon those who took him from her.

Amazon | B&N | Tower Books | Alibris | BooksAMillion 

About The Author:

Jeffrey (JL) Snyder is a Top 25 Author at Authorsdb.com. He has a Bachelor's Degree in Creative Writing from the University of Texas - El Paso. The spark that ignited his ambition to becoming an author was first lit by words of encouragement from his high school English teacher. Initially, he did not act upon those words, and the flame flickered within him for many years, almost extinguishing at times. That was until he met an angel, a gift from God, whom he now happily calls his wife. She reignited that spark that was once lit so many years ago with love, motivation and support.

Jeffrey is an avid reader of fiction as well as comic book/graphic novel fiction. He is a self taught artist who is fond of the Japanese Manga style of drawing. As a writer of fiction, he enjoys walking in the footsteps of his characters.

"Battle Cry" was his first novel. He recently published his second novel "Battle Cry 2 Shadow of the Sword." It is the second installment in the "Battle Cry" series. Jeffrey is a huge fan of 1970's cop shows and is currently working on a crime series that is influenced by shows from that era. The series will also include artwork like the “Battle Cry” series. In fact, this story will be heavily driven by the art, as well as the narration.

Best of 2015 Giveaway Hop (INT)

The Prize

Listed above are the best books I read this past year (that were published in 2015).

One winner will receive an eBook copy of one book of their choice from those pictured above.

INT as long as you can accept eBooks gifted through Amazon.com

Good luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway <!-- end LinkyTools script –>

Review: The Air He Breathes by Brittainy C. Cherry

Cover Source: GoodReads.com

Title: The Air He Breathes

Author: Brittainy C. Cherry

Series: The Elements Series #1

Version Reviewed: Finished, eBook.

Website: www.bcherrybooks.com

*I purchased this book myself*

GoodReads Synopsis:

I was warned about Tristan Cole.
“Stay away from him,” people said.
“He’s cruel.”
“He’s cold.”
“He’s damaged.”
It’s easy to judge a man because of his past. To look at Tristan and see a monster.
But I couldn’t do that. I had to accept the wreckage that lived inside of him because it also lived inside of me.
We were both empty.
We were both looking for something else. Something more.
We both wanted to put together the shattered pieces of our yesterdays.
Then perhaps we could finally remember how to breathe.

Review:
Just like the last book I reviewed, I am, again, unsure of where to begin.  But with this book, for an entirely different reason.  Sometimes there's a book so good that it wraps around your heart, takes over your mind and leaves you a little unstable. You can't find the right words to speak or the correct sentences to type and The Air He Breathes is one of them. It kept me up at night in the best of ways. This book is so amazing that, only 35% into it, I had to stop and post about it on Facebook. I informed everyone that this is a "drop everything and read it now" book and I still stand by that statement. In the first sentence, I was hooked. In the first chapter, I knew this book was something special and, at less than half way through, I had already cried about four times. If a book can draw that much emotion in such a short period of time, it's a damn good read.

Tristan and Elizabeth are both broken characters.   They are both haunted by the same ghosts and the events that changed their lives forever. They're shattered by the memories that they can't change, by the life that they were forced to give up. They each needed a savior and they managed to find that haven in the other, despite their raw hearts.

The story and it's characters are so insanely beautiful and dark in their pain and it's words like Cherry's that feel real and not at all like a book but like honest to God people that have lost their way.  There's something so achingly lovely about two people so broken and so lost in their depression that their only way out is someone in just as much pain.

I couldn't get enough of The Air He Breathes and it instantly put the author on my radar. With words this amazing, characters so real and a story that can break your heart into a million tiny pieces, there's no denying that Brittainy C. Cherry is an amazing storyteller.  This was five out of five stars, a fucking amazing book and I want nothing more than to curl myself back into it's pages.

Dark, raw, amazing, real and truly beautiful.


Rating: 5 Stars.

Review: Mechanic by Alexa Riley

Cover Source: GoodReads.com

Title: Mechanic

Series: Breeding #2

Author: Alexa Riley

Version Reviewed: Finished, eBook.

Website: www.alexariley.com

*I purchased this book myself*

GoodReads Synopsis:

Everything was fine until that innocent little rich girl walked into my garage. Since the second I laid my eyes on her, all I've wanted to do is get my dirty hands on her pure body.

There's one minor obstacle standing in my way, but I've got a plan. All I've got to do is claim her, and she’ll be mine forever.

Warning: This book is over-the-top, insta-love. There's nothing but steamy scenes, babies trying to be made, and an obsessed bearded alpha hero claiming a virgin who will be his forever. If you want it hot and dirty, this is it!

*whispers* There's a sweet smutty surprise at the end!

Review:
Okay, so where do I begin with this book?  To be honest, I'm not really sure.  I contemplated not even writing a review, but I'm going to anyway.

I won't lie, the number one reason why I bought the book in the first place was because of the cover. That man is damn gorgeous. Normally, if I choose a book in this way, it turns out okay. Sometimes it's a win, sometimes it's a lose.  But you know how everyone says 'don't judge a book by it cover'? Yeah, well in this case I should have listened. I struggled with this book so much but I forced myself to continue reading it.  I absolutely hate to close a book and say that I'm done with it if I haven't finished reading it.  Even if don't really care for it, I usually try to get through a book because my feelings could change so I stuck with Mechanic until the very end.

Let me clarify that I did read the synopsis and do I realize that it says "over-the-top insta-love" and "babies trying to be made". I get that. I've read books like this before and there are more than enough "obsessed bearded alpha hero" stories to last a lifetime. I do not have a problem with that. I read a lot of that. But this... it did absolutely nothing for me, personally.

The insta-love was definitely over the top.  That was correct.  Paine had known her for only a few days when he was talking marriage and babies and acting all stalkerish.  I went into this book expecting to like Paine, execting to love Paine. In all honesty, he creeped me out. I'm into some weird stuff but it was uncomfortable for me to read the story and try to understand how Penelope could be okay with the things he was saying and doing. It was weird to me.

I am a lover of erotica. I love me some steamy sex scenes and I like it graphic. But I couldn't enjoy these constant sex scenes because, for me, they were uncomfortable. It was filled with graphic erotic thoughts mixed with thoughts of wanting to plant his seed inside her, wanting to impregnate her, wanting to breed her. Reading how much this guys wants his woman to be bred while he pounds into her and basically tells her that she is not allowed to use birth control was insane to me and was not sexy at all.

The story itself was decent. I feel like if the sexual aspect was a little different and Paine wasn't so creepy, I could have really enjoyed the story. It could have been great but it just didn't get there.  Not one thing drew any sort of emotion from me other than uncomfortable.

The writing and editing honestly wasn't up to par either.  I know that mistakes can be made, people can be busy, things can slip by. Normally I could look past editing issues if the story is well written. But I don't enjoy feeling like I'm reading an unfinished book when it was something that I bought and paid for. There were a couple of times when a word or two were completely left out of a sentence. Other times words were misspelled or used incorrectly. If I'm going to pay for a book, I expect the basic quality to be a little higher.

I really hate to write a negative review and it isn't something that I do often, but I was extremely let down by Mechanic and it didn't feel right to not write the review.  I feel like if some of the kinks were worked out a little and some of the stuff was edited a little better, in my opinion, it could have been a better book.

Rating: 2 Stars

Promo: Battle Cry 2 by JL Snyder

Title: Battle Cry 2
Author: JL Snyder

Synopsis: 

With the first part of her journey and training now behind her, Kaí-Ling is ready to face her destiny. For as long as she can remember, she has trained for this very moment. Along with the knowledge and skills she acquired, Kaí-Ling is ready to face all the challenges that lie ahead. But, will she be able to quench her thirst for vengeance?

Amazon | Amazon UK | Barnes & Noble | iTunes | The Book Depository 

About The Author:

Jeffrey (JL) Snyder is a Top 25 Author at Authorsdb.com. He has a Bachelor's Degree in Creative Writing from the University of Texas - El Paso. The spark that ignited his ambition to becoming an author was first lit by words of encouragement from his high school English teacher. Initially, he did not act upon those words, and the flame flickered within him for many years, almost extinguishing at times. That was until he met an angel, a gift from God, whom he now happily calls his wife. She reignited that spark that was once lit so many years ago with love, motivation and support.
Jeffrey is an avid reader of fiction as well as comic book/graphic novel fiction. He is a self taught artist who is fond of the Japanese Manga style of drawing. As a writer of fiction, he enjoys walking in the footsteps of his characters.
"Battle Cry" was his first novel. He recently published his second novel "Battle Cry 2 Shadow of the Sword." It is the second installment in the "Battle Cry" series. Jeffrey is a huge fan of 1970's cop shows and is currently working on a crime series that is influenced by shows from that era. The series will also include artwork like the “Battle Cry” series. In fact, this story will be heavily driven by the art, as well as the narration.

2016 Reading Challenges

3/5 Challenges Completed!

Retelling Challenge
Host: The Daily Prophecy
Goal: Goose Girl (5-9) Books
Reading List & Progress: 8/5-9

CHALLENGE COMPLETE!

1. Starcrossed by Josephine Angelini 
2. Love, Tink by Elle Strauss 
3. The Blood of Hydra by Michelle Madow 
4. Dreamless by Josephine Angelini
5. The Head of Medusa by Michelle Madow
6. Ella Enchanted by Gail Carson Levine
7. The Portal To Kerberos by Michelle Madow
8. The Hands of Time by Michelle Madow

2016 Horror Reading Challenge
Hosts: Cornerfolds & Books, Movies, Reviews! Oh My!
Goal: Brave Reader (6-10 Books)
Reading List & Progress: 5/6-10

1. Welcome To Dead House by R.L. Stine
2. Stay Out of the Basement by R.L. Stine
3. The Nightmarys by Dan Poblocki
4. Monster Blood by R.L. Stine
5. Say Cheese and Die! by R.L. Stine
6. 
   

Netgalley Reading Challenge
Host: Fictively
Goal: Easy (5-10 Books)
Reading List & Progress: 4/5-10 Books

1. Slip of the Tongue by Jessica Hawkins
2. The Blood of Hydra by Michelle Madow
3. Come What May by A.M. Arthur
4. The Way We Fall by Cassia Leo
5. 
   

Contemporary Romance Reading Challenge
Host: Gone With Words & Love At First Page
Goal: Home Run (16-20 Books)
Reading List & Progress: 16/16-20
CHALLENGE COMPLETE!

1. #Junkie by Cambria Hebert
2. Priest by Sierra Simone
3. Midnight Mass by Sierra Simone
4. Grey by E.L. James
5. Slip of the Tongue by Jessica Hawkins
6. Walk The Edge by Katy McGarry
7. Maneater by Cambria Hebert
8. #Rev by Cambria Hebert
9. Come What May by A.M. Arthur
10. #Swag by Cambria Hebert
11. Beautiful Bastard by Christina Lauren
12. The First Taste by Jessica Hawkins
13. Tryst by S.L. Jennings
14. #Bae by Cambria Hebert
15. The Way We Fall by Cassia Leo
16. Yours To Bare by Jessica Hawkins

CHALLENGE COMPLETE!

2016 Reading Challenge

Darcus has read 17 books toward her goal of 60 books.

hide

17 of 60 (28%)

view books

The Write Space with Violetta Armour

Click here to check out all the other entries in The Write Space!

Hey guys!  I'm excited to bring you guys another installment of The Write Space. Today we have author Violetta Armour showing off her office and writing space! Welcome Violetta!

The Write Space with Violetta Armour

Thanks Darcus for allowing me to share my writing corner of the world. As I look around my “space” in preparation for this blog, I am thinking, “Wow, I need to clean up my act” or in my defense, perhaps creativity flows in clutter? We can only hope so.

I find myself surrounded by family photos and momentos of gifts bestowed upon me at the publication celebration of my first novel, as they inspire me to continue to write, especially on the days I question why I am doing something often so difficult.

Photo #1

Photo # 1 is the logo from the neighborhood independent bookstore I owned , PAGES, in the early 90’s. A dream fulfilled and such a rewarding one! If you are reading this, you are a book lover. Imagine going to work each day surrounded by hundreds of authors and their stories and the labor of love that went into each page upon page. Their efforts inspired me to do the same and experience the thrill of seeing my book on a shelf someday. Facing out, of course.

The shelf below the Logo plaque is just to the left of my desk and houses many writing resource books, like WORD MENU, SYNONYM FINDER, THE OXFORD AMERICAN WRITERS’ THESAURUS. That title just makes me feel legitimate and like I am doing something important, when in fact, I prefer the EMOTIONAL THESAURUS AND FLIP DICTIONARY. Writing is emotional and some days I do flip out.

Photo #2

The second photo is an art work my neighbors presented to me in July when the first copy of my book arrived and they shared the joy I felt holding it in my hands. I love the old-fashioned typewriter because that is what I first learned to type on—not counting the toy typewriter I received at age ten. Now, 64 years later, I think of the many keyboards my fingers have touched--the toy, the Old Royal, the IBM Selectric (wasn’t that the best?) and the many computers. I now work on a MacBookPro which I love because I can carry it to my “other” work station.

Photo #3

Photo #3

Lucky enough to live in a warm climate (Phoenix,AZ) I often take my laptop to my patio where I have a view of the golf course. 7th green par 3. Golf is a wonderful outdoor and social sport but I am doing it less and less because it takes so much time that I could/should be writing-- and perhaps because I am so bad at it. :)

Photo #4

Photo # 4
The bookcase to the right of my desk houses back issues of Publishers’Weekly, The Writer’s Digest and some of my favorite hardbacks like The Jan Karon series, and other authors’ inspirational advice, like Stephen King’s On Writing. My favorite is still Bird by Bird by Anne Lamott and I read pages of it often when “stuck”. Another gem from 1938 is Brenda Ueland’s If You Want to Write. For example, her first chapter starts with “Everyone is Talented, Original and Has Something to Say”. How’s that for a morning pep talk?

On top of this bookcase are family photos through the years…lots of grandchildren and they are the ones that inspire me because I want to leave a legacy and hopefully a message to make their dreams come true as I did mine with the publication of “I’ll Always Be With You” 

Photo #5

Photo # 5

Lastly, some favorite quotes pasted on my printer to the right of my laptop which I glance at 100 x a day. From Erma Bombeck, “When I stand before God at the end of my life, I would hope that I would not have a single bit of talent left, and could say, “I used everything you gave me.”

So one last look around my cluttered space and I realize that the most important space is not physical surroundings, but as a writer what is in our hearts and heads that we want to share with the world.

---

Books By Violetta Armour

I'll Always Be With You

Since the horrific night a drunk driver slammed into their car during his driving lesson, young Teddy has had to live with the memory of seeing his beloved father, Stan, die. Now just sixteen, he carries both sorrow and survivor’s guilt.

Concerned for her grieving son, Mary decides to put as much distance as she can between Teddy and the nightmarish Phoenix intersection that claimed Stan’s life. She moves the family to Stan’s small Indiana hometown, a place of peace in which she hopes they can build new memories. There, Teddy finds inspiration in an old book his great-grandfather carried with him to America, a book Bulgarian fathers have always read to their sons.

Is Stan reaching out to his son from the grave?

Mary also makes an equally life-changing discovery in the small town—Rosetta, Stan’s high school sweetheart. The deeper Mary digs, the more she learns of the forbidden love Stan and Rosetta shared. During the Civil Rights Movement, they dared to reach out for love across racial lines.

Now as their three lives intertwine, Teddy, Mary, and Rosetta must make difficult choices. Will they choose happiness? Or will old pains cause them to live as victims of circumstances?

Beginning in 1912 on Ellis Island and told in three voices over four generations, I’ll Always Be with You is a profound celebration of the power of family.

Amazon | GoodReads

---

Violetta Armour is a first-generation American who cherishes her Bulgarian heritage. In her debut fiction novel, I’ll Always Be With You, she captures the spirit of her ancestors’ love for America. She lives in Phoenix, Arizona, where she owned a neighborhood bookstore in the 90’s, Pages. She has written for Highlights for Children and Chicken Soup for the Soul. Visit her at www.violettaarmour.com

Stacking The Shelves (9)

Stacking The Shelves is hosted by TyngasReviews.com

Click on the book titles to find out more!

Today's Stacking The Shelves is THREE weeks combined into one post.

Bought

• Eighteen (18) by JA Huss (eBook)
• Priest by Sierra Simone (eBook)
• #Holiday by Cambria Hebert (eBook/Had PreOrdered)
• Confessions of A Queen B* by Crista McHugh (eBook)
• Anarchy Found by JA Huss (eBook)
• The Air He Breathes by Brittainy C. Cherry (eBook)
• Masquerade by Cambria Hebert (Paperback)
• #Nerd (Anniversary Edition) by Cambria Hebert (Hardback)

Amazon Freebies

(All books listed were free at the time of purchase. Prices may now have changed).

• Here With Me by Heidi McLaughlin (eBook)
• Gravity by Melissa West (eBook)
• Angels & Whiskey by Kimberly Knight (eBook) 

Won

• Charmed by Cambria Hebert (paperback from Great Imaginations)
• Carry On by Rainbow Rowell (Hardback from Great Imaginations)

Gifted

All the books listed below were give to me either by my aunt or one of my former coworkers.

• Give Yourself Goosebumps: Reader's Beware... You Choose The Scare by R.L. Stine (paperback)
• First Date by R.L. Stine (paperback)
• One Evil Summer by R.L. Stine (paperback)
• The First Horror by R.L. Stine (paperback)
• Say Cheese And Die - Again! by R.L. Stine (paperback)
• Calling All Creeps! by R.L. Stine (paperback)
• Why I'm Afraid of Bees by R.L. Stine (paperback)
• The Babysitter 3 by R.L. Stine (paperback)
• Be Afraid - Be Very Afraid! by R.L. Stine (paperback)
• Let's Get Invisible by R.L. Stine (paperback)
• Switched by R.L. Stine (paperback)
• The Headless Ghost by R.L. Stine (paperback)
• The Scream of The Haunted Mask by R.L. Stine (paperback)
• Escape From Horrorland by R.L. Stine (paperback)
• Dr. Maniac Will See You Now by R.L. Stine (paperback)
• The Blob That Ate Everyone by R.L. Stine (paperback)
• Son of Slappy by R.L. Stine (paperback)
• Claws! by R.L. Stine (paperback)
• A Night In Terror Tower by R.L. Stine (paperback)
• Monster Blood by R.L. Stine (paperback)
• The Ghost Next Door by R.L. Stine (paperback)
• The Girl Who Cried Monster by R.L. Stine (paperback)
• Say Cheese And Die! by R.L. Stine (paperback)
• Attack of The Mutant by R.L. Stine (paperback)
• Monster Blood 2 by R.L. Stine (paperback)
• Monster Blood 3 by R.L. Stine (paperback)
• Night of The Giant Everything by R.L. Stine (paperback)
• Piano Lessons Can Be Murder by R.L. Stine (paperback)
• The Haunted Mask by R.L. Stine (paperback)
• It Came From Beneath The Sink! by R.L. Stine (paperback)
• 30 Tales To Give You Goosebumps by R.L. Stine (Hardback)
• Goosebumps Monster Edition #1 (Stay Out of The Basement, Welcome To Dead House, Say Cheese and Die!) by R.L. Stine (Hardback)k

---

Reading Updates

CURRENTLY READING

Harry Potter and The Goblet of Fire by J.K. Rowling

To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee

Mechanic by Alexa Riley

JUST FINISHED

Nowhere But Here by Katie McGarry

#Holiday by Cambria Hebert

READING NEXT

The Air He Breathes by Brittainy C. Cherry