Tara Chevrestt's Blog, page 117

Strong is Sexy Heroine of the Week: Sarah Brenner

Book: Forbidden AngelAuthor: Megan D. MartinHeroine: Sarah Brenner
Sarah Brenner is woman the world would consider a victim. That’s right, the world. Being Jewish wasn’t something that was favorable in Nazi Germany in the middle of WWII. The Nazi’s thought her to be weak and inferior because of her beliefs, yet she is neither of those things.

She is a woman who has taken care of her mother and sister for the last four years, since her father was taken by the gestapo; a woman who stepped up to be the protector when no one else could.  It isn’t until they are captured that her strength is truly put to the test. Not only is she and her family faced with living in the dire conditions of a concentration camp, but Sarah also meets a handsome Nazi doctor who can’t seem to stay away from her.
Meeting Aurel makes Sarah feel more defenseless than she ever has. She fights the attraction to her enemy, but just as she is imprisoned within the camp, the rugged doctor quickly becomes enslaved by Sarah’s beauty and strength. It’s then that Sarah has to make a choice, a choice that makes even the weakest woman… strong.
Falling for the enemy was never her plan, and trusting one was something she would have never considered. But, when faced with evil and suffering through heart-shattering tragedy, Sarah finds herself relying on her greatest strength, her woman’s intuition.
Overall, Forbidden Angel is about a woman’s journey through, what is arguably, the biggest hardship of the twentieth century. Where being tough is about more than the thickness of your skin, it’s about being resilient and not losing your identity in the end.
Blurb:
When captured by the Nazi's, Sarah finds herself in a concentration camp that not only brings her closer to death...but closer to love.      Sarah Brenner, a young Jewish woman, is terrified when she finds herself in the heat of a railcar bound for a work camp in Nazi Germany. For years she, along with her mother and sister, had hidden from the SS, but no one could hide forever. Her hatred for those who have enslaved them is ever-growing, especially when they arrive and she encounters the shockingly handsome Nazi doctor who can’t seem to keep his eyes—or hands—off her.       Aurel Rothstein is not your everyday concentration camp physician. The endless prisoners and lack of care he's allowed to give have made him numb to the work he so coveted. It isn’t until he comes face to face with a beautiful prisoner that his heart becomes involved with his job—a forbidden and fatal move to any Nazi.When a vile soldier takes direct interest in Sarah, she will be forced to make a choice that will change her life forever: ignore the pull toward the handsome doctor or give in to the forbidden passion he awakens with only a look. Either way they both risk everything...
About the Author: Megan D. Martin was born and raised in a small Texas town, where she still resides with her delightfully rotten son. She enjoys decorating her home with strange things that do not match, playing her old school Nintendo Entertainment System, and buying fish for her many fish tanks.  Forbidden Angel is her first published work. For more info and updates on Megan D. Martin follow her on Twitter. http://www. twitter.com/Megan_D_Martin

Buy here

Digital Publishing: The Grinch Who Stole Christmas?

Please welcome Mr. Viardo of Astor and Blue. Today he wants to talk about ebooks and Christmas, and just who is the Grinch? He's also being very generous this holiday season. Astor +Blue Editions has put its entire first season’s list of e-book titles on a holiday promotional sale for $0.99 or $1.99. This sale will last until January 7th. You can view the catalog here. I myself, bought two. I'll post their covers and buy links for your perusal. But meantime, here is Mr. Viardo:
Amazon
B & N
KoboSo how many articles have we read about E-books and Digital Publishing this year? For anyone who generally follows the book world (rabid booklover, book-blogger, industry pro or casual reader), we’re literally inundated with the amazing numbers—“E-book sales up 125% (again) over the 175% they were up from last year’s 225% increase!”—and equally amazing technological announcements—“Next Fall, the new ZimWittyZoomDitty tablet not only updates your Facebook and Goodreads friends whenever you snort in disgust … it cooks dinner for you at the same time!”
This leads many to take at least casual stock of what’s going on/going to happen to the “Publishing World” as we know it.  And if your friends are like my friends (hardcore print book consumers), that stock is usually pretty morbid (sharp Greenwich Village angst not included): “Print books are doomed, so are brick-and-mortar stores.  Goodbye literary quality. Oh and some pajama-wearing techie living in a basement with a laptop is going to be the new Sulzburger; we’ll all have to bow down!”
If you (or that good friend of yours) fall into the mortified category, my take (for what it’s worth) may come as positive news:  E-books are not, and will not be, the Grinch Who Stole Christmas; in this case, the “Print World’s” bacon. Now, as the owner of a “Digital First” publishing house (Astor + Blue Editions, www.astorandblue.com) my opinions may easily be written off as self-serving and invalid.  But bear with me for a minute… these are fact-based observations and I might just make sense (Someone tell my mom and dad).
Amazon
B&N
KoboAs someone who earns a living from publishing, I have to follow numbers and industry trends as closely as possible.  And while some see doom and gloom for Print, I see exciting developments for both Print and E-book formats.  What do the numbers show?  Digital book revenue is skyrocketing, print revenue is declining.  Natural conclusion?  E-books are killing print books. But not so fast.  Historically, Print revenue has always seemed to be declining (even before E-books were invented) , but that doesn’t mean the book market is dying or shrinking.
We have to remember that in fact the book market is growing. Readership always grows because population always grows.  Every year, new readers enter the vast pool of the club that is “adult readership,” (despite Dancing with the Stars). And every year more readers are being born and theoretically being inspired by Ms. Crabtree’s elementary reading class.  **So why the decline?  Readership grows gradually, but the sheer number of books and book vendors grow exponentially, showing an investment loss almost every year. (Basic statistics: the widening universe makes it look like a shrinking pie when it isn’t).
So what does this mean?  If you look at the numbers (historically), revenue for print books may have declined, yes, but not more than “normal,” and not significantly morethan it did when there were no E-books around. (This is arguable of course, but the long term numbers do not show a precipitous drop-off). The yearly revenue decline, if there is one, can just as easily be written off to economic conditions as to E-book competition.  Bottom line:  Any drop in print revenue that may be caused by E-books are not significantly sharp enough to declare that E-books are destroying print book sales.  (Hence no Grinch).
What may be happening, and what I believe is happening is that a whole new market for E-books is developing, while the print book market growth, like Publishing as a whole, is still growing at a historically gradual pace. (Boringly flat).  Come up with your pet anecdote here, but I believe that more new readers are entering the market (who otherwise wouldn’t have) because of E-readers; existing readers are consuming more books (both print and e-book) than they did before; and while it would seem that a certain print title is losing a sale whenever readers buy it in E-book format, this is offset, at least somewhat, by the fact that more print titles are being bought (that otherwise wouldn’t) because of the extra marketing buzz and added awareness produced by the E-book’s cyber presence.  All of it evens out in the end, and I believe, ultimately fosters growth industry-wide.
So take heart Print fans, E-books are not the dark villain you think they are.  And here, I should correct my earlier analogy—that E-books are not the Grinch Who Stole Christmas.  They may actually be the Grinch…in as much as, at the end of the story, the pear-shaped green guy ended up not only giving all the presents back to the singing Who-villers, he created a flash mob and started a big party as well.

She Flew Bombers by Jeane Slone

This is a good, entertaining read, rich in women's history. The heroine, Violet, starts her story as a young girl going up with barnstormers with her dad. Then, against her mother's wishes, she takes flying lessons and finds love with a fellow barnstormer.


But then WWII breaks out. She goes to join the WASP. The book tells the life of a WASP, the daily life, struggles, types of adventures they faced. It mentions lots of real women, such as Jackie Cochran, the attempts to be officially accepted in the military, etc. Had I not ready 25 WASP historicals already, I would have learned a ton. As it was, nothing was new to me, but I enjoyed it all the same.

Wait, I did learn of Mabel Cody and the White Rose of Stalingrad. Never heard of those ladies before and I was prompted to Google more.

There's a romance...it's very, very  mild, a minor part of the story and comes with some heartbreak. What I liked about this book was it was real life, not skipping through the flowers fluff that is so darned popular nowadays. It contains loss, grief, discrimination, strong women, a mother/daughter relationship filled with strife, and even touches on racism.


It also has some cool pictures. They were a wee hard to see on my Kindle, but I imagine they show up quite well on the fancier models.

There's one problem..it works for and against this type of book. It comes down to what you're in the mood for, I guess.

You could look at this way, as though you are sitting at your grandmother's feet and she's telling you the story of her life...cause that is what is: telling. Lots of telling, no showing. I saw many opportunities to really expand and fix that.

Example: The heroine literally reminisces with a copilot later in the book: "Remember when I was in the outhouse on the base and that damn Texas wind knocked it over and I was caught with my pants down?"

Why the heck wasn't that a real scene? And the locusts? So very much was TOLD, not shown. :( But it could be the way the author intended it: at your grandma's knee being told a story.

Three stars. I bought this on Amazon.

Strong is Sexy Wallpaper

This is just a random post... See, I recently discovered paintbrush and figured out how to use it. Yea. And then I started piddling around, making a Facebook banner. And I came up with this:





And then I liked it so much, I decided to make a screen saver. If anyone wants a file, let me know. It doesn't cover my entire screen but enough. I think what's important, however, is the message on it.

And that's all.

Are You Afraid of Periods?

Got your attention? Great...let's talk about periods today, and no, I don't mean the dreaded menses, though that's pretty scary sometimes too... I want to talk punctuation.

Today's tip from Tara...look closely at your computer keyboard. Let's focus on the space bar for a second as it's the largest key and easy to find. Yes, I'm being sarcastic. ;) Now above it and moving in the right direction is B, N, M, ,, and then... . 

You've found it... now hit a few times, get used to the feel. It's easy, isn't it? It's as simple as hitting any other key, such as ;, right?

My tip is simple. Anytime you feel the urge to put a ;, please don't. I don't know what's going on with the sudden love affair with the semi colon, but ebook publishers do not like it. It's ill advised in fiction and is rarely used right. I'm seeing them everywhere. They are even invading my dreams. It's an editor's nightmare, replacing all these buggers.

Here what I deal with on a daily basis:

He ran toward her; she was far away.

Why, oh please, why, is the author so afraid of the PERIOD?

He ran toward her. She was far away.

So, get over your fear of periods! They really aren't that bad. Hit that key. I promise it won't bite you, and guess what? Sometimes, Word actually even capitalizes the beginning of the sentence for you automatically! So it's really not that much work. :)

Blog Hop Winners

The winner of the Evernight blog hop Book Babe prize is Mary Dehaas.

The winner of the Secret Cravings 5 Favorite Things Book Babe blog hop prize is April.

April, an email with an attachment has been sent your way. Be sure to check your spam.

Thank you, everyone, who participated. Happy Holidays to all. :)

The Storm by Shelley Thrasher

I'm rather torn with my feelings on this one. I LOVE the uniqueness of it. A lesbian romance during WWI, here at home in Texas between a strong woman and a weak woman who wishes she were strong. It's almost a coming of age tale but older women rebelling against the confines and rules of society.


Jaq is a former ambulance driver who walks around with guilt weighing heavily on her. She feels responsible for a few deaths. Her grandmother, a man named Henry, and later in the book, others. I can't reveal beyond that without giving important stuff away. This was an interesting and very sad twist.

She wants the lovely farm wife, Molly, but Molly is married with a child. Jaq's own marriage is a sham on the verge of annulment. There's no way Molly can walk away from her son Patrick, even if she were to get the gumption to actually do something against her darned mother in law's wishes. See, her MIL runs the show. At first, I could figure out why the MIL had so many parts. She was irritating and mean and evil. I kept asking, "Why is she a main figure in this story?" When I got the author's notes, I understood. Despite my dislike of her and her opinions, she was a strong woman in her own right.

To avoid going on and on, there's a war going on, past issues being battle, a young woman feeling things she doesn't think she should be feeling, a meddlesome MIL, an alcoholic wanting to go back and fight, but recovering from wounds. Lots of things going on here.

Liked: That Molly finally sees the light, sorta. I don't think she would have if fate hadn't intervened, but at least she registers to vote. Liked Jaq, her dressing as a man, her working on cars, her attitude overall. Her side story about the storm and the war and the nun.

Disliked: The POV shifts a lot, too much. I had to read over passages at times as it was she, she, she, but I couldn't figure out WHICH she it was. Lots of long monologues of people talking to themselves or animals. Lots of stories from the past TOLD instead of shown. The MIL...lots of her parts were unnecessary. Molly was just irritating in her weakness. It was constantly, "If my MIL and hubby agree....If they let me do this." As I said, even in the end, I doubt she wouldn't had the backbone had fate not intervened. Also, bit long-winded at times, the narrative.

Three stars. Had some issues, but I would read more from Bold Strokes and this author.

Favorite line: "Strong women are simply that--strong--whether they wear a skirt or pants. They're merely being themselves, not trying to be like men. And if they happen to love other women, that's their right."

I received this thru netgalley.

Sins of the Mother by Tara Hyland

A very dramatic book, (spanning the 50s and 60s mostly) something you immerse yourself in not to learn anything or walk away enlightened, but to just get lost in a very long soap opera, centered around a very selfish, vain woman: the mother.


Franny wants to leave the farm in Ireland more than anything. She wants to be somebody, not be like her mother. But a tumble in the hay gets her in the family way and life just goes...not the way she wanted it to. When she gets a shot at Hollywood, she leaves her daughter behind, in the hands of her elderly mother. Cara lives a secret and shameful existence. Nobody can know about her. Her mother pretty much forgets about her, marries, is happy for a while, but there's a thing called karma, and to make a long story short, I'm going to say that Franny got what was coming to her. I personally felt, even in light of the ending, when her entire story was revealed, what she'd done was selfish and inexcusable.

Like I said, karma.

For 3/4 of the book I was wondering just how much pain and trauma one little girl could face. It was one of those novels where it was as though the author thought up every bad thing she could to happen to the heroine, Cara.

Abandonment, molestation, cruel nuns, men bringing women down, you name it, the women faced it. Scandal, secret pregnancies...

It may sound as though I didn't like it, but truth is, I did. I found myself riveted like one driving past the scene of a bad car accident. I like an occasional soap opera as good as the next person.

And if that's what you're in the mood for, pick this one up. It's very well-written and engaging with something shocking at every turn of the page. You won't be bored even though the book is very long. There will be parts, however, you'll just want to skip to the end cause you are dying to know and can't wait any gosh darned longer!

Four stars. I scored this via Goodreads swap before they did away with the program.

Frozen by Mary Casanova

The time is Prohibition. The setting is Minnesota Lakes, where a canoe can cross the States to Canada. The people vary between the stuck up upper class to whores and madams and just honest folk trying to make a living by delivering milk and ice.

Sadie Rose has been mute for eleven years. She was found frozen in a snow bank, almost dead. Something isn't quite right now, as she gets very bad headaches. She knows next to nothing of her past or where she comes from and just lives like a pet or a doll in the Worthingtons' house. They adopted her...sorta.


And then one day she finds some photos that jars something in her memory and suddenly she can speak again...but the Worthingtons don't want her talking. What's the point in having a voice if you can't use it? This and the questions arising about her past lead to Sadie Rose running away, to the very brothel where her mother once worked and she discovers she isn't just the daughter of a dead whore after all.

There's a murder mystery, political corruption, secrets, lies, surprises, a suicidal girl, the beginnings of a romance, and a girl coming of age during tumultuous times.

I liked the tone and the heroine. She starts weak and ends strong. I learned about Minnesota history while being entertained at the same time.

I feel the ending/resolution was too sudden and pit pat regarding the Worthingtons and I am really disappointed in the resolution regarding the murderer At the risk of revealing the ending, I'm not going to say more. I'm just unsatisfied. I also didn't quite see how certain secondary story lines were relevant, such as Trinity and her nuttiness. I was also hoping for more on suffrage as it was mentioned in the blurb.

But I was thoroughly engrossed in this, read it page by page in two days, so it is a very entertaining read and I was hooked. I'd say: perfect blend of historical events, young adult turmoil, and mystery.

Four stars. I received this from Netgalley.

5 Favorite Things Blog Hop!

You ready to hop again? This weekend I'm hopping along with Secret Cravings. We're talking about 5 favorite things and I'm giving away an ebook copy of my favorite book with SC...When Hubby's Away, the Ladies Play! (Yes, it's mine. *giggles*) 
My 5 favorite things:
1. Cupcakes. I am addicted to cupcakes. I've recently discovered this cupcake place called Heidi Cakes, and now I'm going there once a week. 

2. Classic movies. They must be black and white. Nothing gets me going more than Cary Grant, William Powell, and Humphrey Bogart. And, oh, the women... so sexy and curvy. I wish we had those days again, when it was sexy for women to have curves.


3. Wine. Especially sweet wine! My favorite is called Buck Naked! Kid you not! I have to pull a little magic to get some from South Dakota.

4. The New York Giants. Not a thing, but what the hell. :)

5. My book!

(I'd also like to note how much I just love Secret Cravings cover art. Matter of fact, I'm going to reveal my next one here...)

Coming January 2013
How about that???? Seriously? Secret Cravings cover art rocks. Anyway, enough about me. Leave me a comment telling me what YOUR 5 favorite things are and one lucky commenter will win an ebook copy of When Hubby's Away, the Ladies Play. Be sure to also like the Secret Cravings FB page. Link is above.
Blurb: Natalie is looking at six really lonely months when she kisses her husband goodbye before he heads to the Middle East on a deployment. So when he suggests she seek comfort in the arms of her sexy girlfriend, Mariah, and Mariah appears to be open to the idea herself, she does. 


A night of passion and peaches and cream body oil turns into a very close relationship, but when Natalie tells Chase in a letter what is going on, she discovers he was joking, and he is now afraid of losing her.
How can she convince her husband that she can, will, and does love them both and will part with neither?

Be sure to check out the other participants: 

Jillian ChantalMarie Rose DuFour http://www.marierosedufour.blogspot.comLindsay Downs http://ajessicasalesnovel.wordpress.com/Dawne ProchiloNicola/Imogene Nix http://www.imogenenix.blogspot.comJan GrahamSherry GloagJean Joachim http://joachimbooks.blogspot.comSable HunterJessica CollinsDF KriegerKaren Cino http://karencinobooks.blogspot.comJennifer Simpkins  http://www.jennifersimpkins.net/Shannon WestMelissa Keir http://www.melissakeir.com/blog.htmlKathleen Ball http://www.kathleenballromance.com/apps/blog/Christina ColeKerrianne CoombesCindy Christiansen http://cadragonfly.blogspot.com/Jl HammerHolly Gill http://hollyjgill.blogspot.co.ukPaloma Beck http://romancebeckons.blogspot.comLena HartCarol Preflatish http://CarolPre.blogspot.comAngela Quarles  http://angelaquarles.com/2012/12/14/five-favorite-things-giveaway/Layla HunterMeredith EllsworthDavee JonesB.a. Knight http://www.baknight.net/index.php/main-menu-blog-linkMolly Daniels http://www.mjdaniels.blogspot.comCarolyn De Ridder (Wren) http://carolynwrenauthor.wordpress.comFlossie Benton Rogers http://flossiebentonrogers.com