Happy Holidays!

Whatever you celebrate, I hope you've found some time to relax with a good book.

Sorry to disappear for so long but I suddenly found myself swamped with family obligations and had no scheduled posts. I have about five reviews to write so expect good things to come soon!

If you're not on Tsu (pronounced Sue) you should come check it out. Lots of bookish folks have gone over there due to Facebook making it harder to see posts. Much fun to be had. So if you're not there, check it out. If you've already discovered Tsu, feel free to add me as a friend! https://www.tsu.co/WiLoveBooks

Barbara Vey Reader Appreciation Pictures

Saturday I spent the day in Milwaukee at the Barbara Vey Reader Appreciation Lunch. This was my first reader event and I had a great time. It was a little overwhelming at first. There were close to 500 people and 60 authors. All the authors I talked to were so incredibly nice. Authors are the best people. :)

Welcome

Raffle

Goodie Bags

Lunch

Cupcakes and Author Goodie Bags

I sat at Kate Meader's table.

Book Signing

Kate Meader

Eloisa James

Dianna Love

Tracy March

Maddie James

Darynda Jones

Sara Humphreys

Elizabeth Hoyt

Tonya Kappes

Susan Elizabeth Phillips 

Ruthie Knox

Sylvia Day

Books!

Swag!

Kate Meader Goodie Bag

More Goodies and Books I Bought

Goodies I Forgot In My Purse

I now have so many new books to read! I had so much fun and met great people. I would definitely do it again. If you want to see more pictures, check out http://barbaravey.com/. There should be pictures up soon. Or check the social media of the authors that were there. Like Twitter. 

Tell me, have you been to any reader events?

BTS Book Reviews FREE eMagazine

Here is a FREE book review eMagazine for you to check out :

Check the October issue of BTS Book Reviews magazine. The talented Kristine Painter is this

month’s cover author. We highlighted her House of Camarre’ series with her insight into the series and a sneak peek into Last Blood. Our features included 11 other authors such as Alexander Ivy, Diane Duvall and Victoria Dannan.

Each month our columns are:
Chic Trends in Romance by Sandra Bunino
The Scrying Eye by Kelly Hudson
Sex & the Single Woman by Nicole Morgan
Heat Diva by Nikki McCarver
The Lowdown with Laurie by Laurie Garrison

Reviews:
We have 38 reviews in the emag and over 160 as of October for the btsemag.com website.
www.btsemag.com

Liebster Blog Award

I have been nominated for a 2013 Liebster Award. Twice. What a nice surprise! A big thank you to Tammy's Tea Time and Books and their Wordly Realm for nominating me! 

The rules of the Liebster Award are as follows:

1. Thank your Liebster Blog Award presenter on your blog and link back to the blogger who presented this award to you;

2. Answer the 11 questions from the nominator, list 11 random facts about yourself and create 11 questions for your nominees;

3. Present the Liebster Blog Award to 11 blogs of 200 followers or less who you feel deserve to be noticed and leave a comment on their blog letting them know they have been chosen. (No tag backs)

4. Copy and Paste the blog award on your blog.



Questions from Tammy's Tea Time:

1. Who is your favorite fairy tale character? Rapunzel
2. What is your favorite book genre? Depends on what I'm reading, but I'll say romantic suspense because it combines two of my favorite things. Add sci-fi or paranormal and it's even better.
3. If you could pick to be a character in a book who would you be and why? Book characters have too many problems. :) Ok, so I can't choose.
4. Do you have a favorite author? No! Too many great authors for me to choose one.
5. Where did the inspiration to start your blog come from? It was a combination of things. Husband said, "You read enough books, why don't you start a blog?" And it was when I was starting to write reviews because I realized how important they are to authors. Also, for a while I was having trouble finding things to read so I wanted to be able to recommend good books to other readers.
6. Who is your book crush? Depends on what I'm reading. :)
7. How many books have you already read this year? 14
8. What is your favorite ice cream? cookie dough
9. If you had to give up chocolate what would you replace it with? More coffee.
10. What book made you laugh? Most recently Cadaver Blues by J.E. Fishman.
11. Where would you go if you could go anywhere? (Real or Fantasy) Anywhere warm would be wonderful right now. 

Questions from Books and their Wordly Realm

1. What other languages can you speak besides English? I minored in Spanish in college and teach it to small children, though I'm not exactly fluent.
2. Can you use Photoshop / Gimp? Not even a little.
3. What are your pet peeves? Whining, rudeness, bad grammar, setting the alarm clock 5 minutes fast.
4. What's your favorite color combinations? Purple/green
5. What was your first pet's name? Snapper
6. On which are you the most active: Facebook or Twitter? Twitter
7. On average, how long do you take to finish a book? 2-4 days
8. How many books do you aim to read this year? 210
9. How do you decide your next read? Whatever is next on my list, or whatever catches my eye. Depends.
10. Do you prefer reading at night or day? Night
11. What are the top 3 books that you love from last year? Let's just say 3 of my top picks because I have a bunch of favorites. :) Niedermayer & Hart by M.J. Johnson, Sempre by J.M. Darhower, Love of Her Lives by Sharon Clare.

Random Facts About Me

1. I have two sisters. 
2. My favorite color is purple.
3. My mom wanted to name me Desiree, but we ended up with a cat by that name instead. 
4. I'm not a tv watcher, but I can get sucked into HGTV. 
5. I'm married to my high school sweetheart. 
6. As a child I had imaginary friends: Tiffany, Gina, Marvin, Randy, and Mamie. And a cat named Octobe. They lived on Hall St. 
7. I played percussion in my junior high band.
8. My name is constantly misspelled. (It's Brinda, not Brenda.)
9. In school, my classmates always wanted to be on my team for trivia games. 
10. I've lived in Wisconsin since I was a baby and I still wish I could hibernate during the winter. 
11. In elementary school I wanted to be an author, then I realized I had no good stories to tell so I just kept reading instead.

Questions for the Nominees

1. Print or ebook?
2. There's a fire and you can grab 3 books from your shelf. What do you take?
3. Beverage of choice?
4. Do you have any favorite tv shows?
5. What book character would you like a chance to hang out with? 
6. If you could only have one food for the rest of your life, what would it be?
7. What is your favorite season and why?
8. Book you are currently reading, or plan to read next?
9. What is your favorite reading spot?
10. What do you like to do when not reading/writing or blogging?
11. Do you like your given name? 

My Nominees
1. Books for Kids by Dena McMurdie
2. Have You Heard My Book Review
3. The Book Gazer
4. Portable Pieces of Thought
5. This Bookish Endeavor
6. Book Munchies
7. Workaday Reads
8. Ruby's Reads
9. I'm a Voracious Reader
10. Fae Books
11. Mystery Thrillers and Romantic Suspense Reviews

Kindlegraph is now Authorgraph

I saw this on Twitter and thought it was worth mentioning. It makes sense that the name has changed since you don't have to have a Kindle to use it. I have talked about Kindlegraph before and I try to include a link when I know an author has a book available to request. I currently have 19 in my collection. Basically it is a digital file with a brief message and the author's actual digital signature. You can also include a message to the author when you request. It is just fun to get one. It always makes my day. And it is a FREE service. 

Here are some authors that I have authorgraphs from: Sylvain Reynard, E.L. James, Heather Huffman, Debra Anastasia, J.M. Darhower, T.M. Franklin, Teresa Ragan, Jessica McQuinn, Jennifer Lane, and Charles Dougherty. And I just found Robin Burks. (These are all authors I have reviewed here at WLB.)

You can click the links to get more information about Authorgraph or browse books and start requesting. Do you have any authorgraphs?

I made a decision!

I did it! I used my Amazon voucher from Sally Nicoll (author of The Power Behind the Throne). Want to know what I'll be reading? Here is what I chose:

I have been wanting to read this one for a while:


With Good Behavior by Jennifer Lane


Description:
In a world gripped by organized crime, family dysfunction, and dim hopes of redemption, can true love persevere? For Sophie Taylor, a beautiful psychologist who lost everything when she violated an ethical boundary, and Grant Madsen, a handsome naval officer who sacrificed everything to protect a loved one, finding that love may carry an unbearable cost. 

Starting their lives over in Chicago, both are fighting influences from their family and running as fast as they can to escape the past. When their paths cross outside the parole officer's door, the attraction is instantaneous. But a hidden connection may not only shatter their fledgling love, but prove deadly to them both.

I read the first book, Seth and Chloe. You can read the review here. This is all three in one:


Lunara: The Original Trilogy by Wyatt Davenport


Description Seth and Chloe:
Earth is dead, destroyed by a barrage of meteors. What was left of the population has escaped to Mars and colonized it as humanities new home.

Lunara, a small colony on Earth’s moon, is charged with catching and mining meteors for desperately needed minerals. But the deep-seated human thirst for domination is not easily defeated, nor is the capacity for deceit and betrayal. All it needs is a powerful catalyst, a prize valuable enough to risk plunging mankind into another destructive war.

Parker McCloud and his friends, Seth and Chloe, are caught up in a violent series of events when Lunara is invaded. On Mars, Parker, Seth, Chloe, and the crew of the Protector attempt to sort out who is responsible, where the tide of suspicion swings back and forth between Aethpis and Zephyria.

In the end, we see barbarism by the leaders of Mars, great courage by the crew of the Protector, and immense valor by the military on Lunara in adventure one in an exciting new series.


Description Gwen and Eamonn:
In the sequel to Lunara: Seth and Chloe, Mars is in turmoil. The Martian Supremacy Authority conquered Mars through treachery and deceit, and relegated the Alliance to the lunar colony of Lunara. The Alliance's victory on Lunara was short-lived as the threat of the MSA's influence has spread across the solar system.

The MSA and their leader have turned Mars into a battle zone where the need for Metalor has the two sides racing for control of the valuable substance.

Parker McCloud and Eamonn Dalton have been charged with conducting a pair of perilous missions that will lead the Alliance one step closer to victory. Parker wrestles with his sense of honor and must decide whether he can defy his wife, the leader of the Alliance, and bring a secret, and controversial, starship to the Alliance's side, while Eamonn Dalton seeks vengeance against the MSA for their role in killing his beloved Madelyn.

Within the MSA, Gwen Arwell is caught between her loyalty to her father, her commitment to the crew of the Protector, and her love for Seth Smith. When Seth's promise to rescue her is interrupted by his need to ensure the safety of his true love Chloe Jones, Gwen must decide what is most important to her.

For the crew of the Protector, tough choices must be made in order the fight the evil that seeks to tear them apart.


Description Parker and the Protector:
In book three of the Lunara Series, the Martian Supremacy Authority is on the verge of controlling the solar system. Their leaders have successfully deceived the Martian people deeper into their corrupt rule over Mars.

The Alliance's remnants, led by Parker McCloud, are on the precipice of destruction. In desperation, Ty Falloom convinces Eamonn Dalton and Shannon Buckley to return to Mars to destroy a shipment of metalor that the MSA require for their final push for control. Parker enlists the help of Chloe Smith, but doubts about Chloe's loyalty threaten to unravel the tenuous bond remaining between them, and may cause the destruction of the Alliance.

Parker McCloud faces his greatest challenge yet. He must convince his former crew to reunite in a last desperate attempt to topple the MSA and lead Mars back to freedom.




So that is how I spent my Amazon voucher. Stay tuned for reviews. I have 2 books to read and review first, but I'll get to them next. Don't forget to check out Sally Nicoll's website where I am Reader of the Month. And read The Power Behind the Throne. It's a great book!

Reader of the Month? Me?

You bet! If you are curious about me, head over to Sally Nicoll's website where I am Reader of the Month for April. Sally Nicoll is the author of The Power Behind the Throne, an exciting political thriller I reviewed here. She even gave me a voucher for Amazon. Now I have to agonize over the downloaded samples I have and decide what to get. This could take a few days.