Jen Castleberry's Blog, page 5

Coffee and OOTD

Good morning party people! Who's ready to make the most of this pretty day?  With less than ONE MONTH till the release of STOWAWAY, I've got quite a bit on my plate! Here's a quick OOTD (featuring the always-lovely Anna Marie) before I get a jump start on my to-do list!Dress is from Forever21, everything else (blouse, watch, scarf, earrings) is from the almighty Target. Coffee mug is also from Target!Hope your day is filled with puppy-kisses and productivity!-J

COVER REVEAL!

It's HERE!! And it's MAGICAL!  I cannot express how drool-worthy the cover artwork for STOWAWAY is! Don't you agree?  Big, enormous, jumping-up-and-down thank yous to Sarah Olevsky ofBella Jovialityfor lending her BIG ENORMOUS artistic talent to my little trilogy!These babies will be up for grabs on Amazon and Kindle on October 15th!Come visit me at the VA Beach Central Library on October 8th for your chance to snag a pre-release copy!-J

CoffEE and FamiLY!

Hello readers, and farewell summer! I spent the first weekend of autumn in pretty North Carolina celebrating birthdays and spending sweet quality time with my family. Needless to say, OOTDs were the last thing on my mind! Here's a stylish (cough, style-less) update!TA-DA! Sometimes, your OOTD isn't an outfit at all! PJs all the way! Who cares what you're wearing when you get to snuggle up with your mama and a cup of joe in your childhood home? At least my coffee mug is cute and totally appropriate! I was raised in Raleigh, but born in Hilton Head!That's a little more like it. This OOTD was featured back in July. Who says you can't wear the same outfit twice? (Or over and over and over again?) There's no competing with my cute niece anyway, so why even try! Am I right?I may have just one HUMAN niece, but I have MANY non-human nieces and nephews! I was in NC for less than 48 hours, but I made sure to visit all the horses, goats, and chickens at beautiful Valentine Fields while I was there! Doesn't this photo just scream fall?Happy September, everyone!-J

Indie Author Day!

Big news! A new national event celebrating indie authors is upcoming! And I get to be a part of it! Happy dance!You can find me and 20+ other VAB indie authors at the Meyera E. Oberndorf Central Library in Virginia Beach on October 8th for book signings and sales from 10 PM - 2 PM. Admission is FREE!I will have copies of CARGO up for grabs, and I'm working VERY hard to finalize an advanced-release of STOWAWAY.  No promises, but if all goes to plan, you may be able to snag a pre-sale copy!I can't wait to see you all there! Don't forget to spread the word!Happy Friday!-J

Review: Throne of Glass

Throne of Glass is the first installment in the TOG series by Sarah J. Maas. (Second, if you count its prequel, The Assassin's Blade, which I have yet to read -- I didn't realize it existed when I picked up TOG.) It follows Celaena Sardothien out of a work camp (or rather, a death camp parading as a work camp), and into a palace made of glass, where she must literally fight for her freedom in a series of challenges meant to select the king's personal champion. In true SJM form, the cast list is bursting at the seams, and the subplots are ripe with murder, mystery, and magic.I've heard such great things about this series, and I died a little when I turned the last page on ACOMAF, so I really wanted to get hooked on the TOG installments. Honestly, I might've DNF'ed this one if I hadn't already decided that SJM was a literal goddess.TOG takes a few chapters to really rev its engine. The world-building is vivid and crystal clear, which I loved, but the action does seem to drag its feet a bit in the beginning. Celaena took a while to grow on me, too.  I can't say I wasn't surprised/annoyed to watch a strong, female character drool over jewelry.  But rest assured, she shifts from, "I love pretty dresses," to "I'm a total badass," eventually.All in all, I'm super glad I stuck this one out.  It starts to get REALLY exciting about three-fourths of the way in, and the heroine becomes exponentially more likable.  I'm itching to read the next installment!Three stars!

Blueberry Sunday

Hello lovelies! No Coffee and OOTD today because me and my recently-returned-from-the-boat husband slept in till 12 PM! Needless to say, most of our day (aside from a sweet lunch date) was spent in our pajamas! (No complaining here!)After a big, greasy plate of food this afternoon, I needed something a little more wholesome and green (eh hem, purple) to snack on, so I made a spinach-blueberry-banana-honey-&-coconut oil smoothie!After drinking the entire blender (about two full glasses), I still had a few blueberries left over, so I made a blueberry&honey mask and put that goodness on my face!To reward Anna Marie for not eating me alive (although she sat staring at me and licking her lips for a full twenty minutes), I let her go to town on the blueberry juice left in my glass.Happy Sunday, y'all :).-J

Coffee & OOTD

Good morning! Can you tell I'm on my SECOND cup of coffee already?? This amazing coffee mug was a gift to celebrate my obsession with the majestic ten-year-old boob-hugger pictured below!Also...this.Top is a Lularoe Irma, worn over a knee-length cotton dress from Target.But let's be real...it's all about that mug. (And that cat!)Happy Sunday!-J

Coffee & OOTD

Who says you can't dress like sunshine in the middle of a flash-flood warning?Top is a tried-and-true tank from Express that's held up since my high school days.Skirt is a Lularoe Maxi!The fact that I'm barefoot means I haven't fully committed to the idea of going outside today..!Here's a better shot of my cute, beaded coffee mug from Target!Have a lovely, rainy Sunday, everyone!-J

Coffee & OOTD

Good morning, lovely readers! Behold the first installment of Coffee & OOTD. (Ah hem, cof-feeand oo-td, get it?) Marketing research says that readers of fiction crave real life content, too, so each Sunday, I'll be showcasing two of my favorite things: clothes that are NOT hospital scrubs, and coffee in cute coffee mugs! (Unless I haven't done the dishes, in which case the coffee will be in a sad, plain-Jane, backup coffee mug.)Today's outfit, in preparation of a Top Golf (i.e., golf-badly-and-drink-beers) date with my hubby, features a dress from Target (worn as a skirt) and an Irma tunic from Lularoe!My cute coffee mug is fromMain Street Shop Coffeehousein Chincoteague! Here's a better photo of it from myInstagram! (Yes, I know it's TEA and not COFFEE in the photo...)Happy Sunday, everyone!-J

Stowaway

Who are YOU hoping to see again in Stowaway?Cass? Nathan?  Nars?  Adrienne?How about Mya and Eli?How about Karsci?Are you excited to see some brand new faces, too?Leave it in the comments`-J