This OR That #Giveaway № 145 ~ The Belonger by Mary Kathleen Mehuron OR Into the Jungle by Erica Ferencik #TheBelonger #IntoTheJungle

 

I have sooooo many books!

The This or That Giveaway! feature that I post every Saturday is a way for me to cull my collection and to share some of the many books I have. I get to clear off some of my shelves to make room for more books and give someone else the chance to enjoy these treasures.

As this posts on Saturday, hubs and I are on our way to Phoenix, AZ. We have family there we are going to visit and we're driving from South Dakota, the whole way and back. We plan to be gone about two weeks. So, I have some posts already planned and ready to go but I'm not sure if I'll be posting any This OR That posts while we're gone. I'm not sure how much I'll be on my computer, I plan to enjoy my time away. 

Never fear, I'll post more books when I get back for sure.  

****************

The Belonger: A Novel

by Mary Kathleen Mehuron

ARC ~ Published June 2023

Read my thoughts here

⭐⭐⭐⭐

Caribbean-island innkeeper Holly Walker is hunkering down against a monster hurricane. Unfortunately, so is player Lord Anthony Bascombe, a man who excuses his bad behavior by saying he is descended from pirates. Then her grown son, Byron, and his father, Montez—the man she’s never stopped wanting—go missing. Will she ever see them again? What about the many others hurt and dying? And will help ever arrive? 

With each passing day, Holly’s tumultuous past and the epic storm send her hurtling toward a shattering climax that will change the island—and Holly’s life—forever.

****************

Into the Jungle

by Erica Ferencik

ARC ~ Published May 2019

In this pulse-pounding thriller from the author of the “haunting, twisting thrill ride” (Megan Miranda, New York Times bestselling author) The River at Night, a young woman leaves behind everything she knows to take on the Bolivian jungle, but her excursion abroad quickly turns into a fight for her life.

Lily Bushwold thought she’d found the antidote to endless foster care and group homes: a teaching job in Cochabamba, Bolivia. As soon as she could steal enough cash for the plane, she was on it.

When the gig falls through and Lily stays in Bolivia, she finds bonding with other broke, rudderless girls at the local hostel isn’t the life she wants either. Tired of hustling and already world-weary, crazy love finds her in the form she least expected: Omar, a savvy, handsome local man who’d abandoned his life as a hunter in Ayachero—a remote jungle village—to try his hand at city life.

When Omar learns that a jaguar has killed his four-year-old nephew in Ayachero, he gives Lily a choice: Stay alone in the unforgiving city, or travel to the last in a string of ever-more-isolated river towns in the jungles of Bolivia. Thirty-foot anaconda? Puppy-sized spiders? Vengeful shamans with unspeakable powers? Love-struck Lily is oblivious. She follows Omar to this ruthless new world of lawless poachers, bullheaded missionaries, and desperate indigenous tribes driven to the brink of extinction. To survive, Lily must navigate the jungle--its wonders as well as its terrors—using only her wits and resilience.

Primal, gripping, and terrifying, Into the Jungle features Erica Ferencik’s signature “visceral, white-knuckle” (Entertainment Weekly) prose that will sink its fangs into you and not let go.

*****************

a Rafflecopter giveaway

*****************

Be sure to check the sidebar for my current giveaways!  

This or That Giveaway № 117 ~ The Belonger by Mary Kathleen Mehuron OR Blackberry Winter by Sarah Jio #TheBelonger #BlackberryWinter

 

I have sooooo many books!

The This or That Giveaway! feature that I post every Saturday is a way for me to cull my collection and to share some of the many books I have. I get to clear off some of my shelves to make room for more books and give someone else the chance to enjoy these treasures.

Good luck and be sure to stop back next week!

*****************

The Belonger: A Novel

by Mary Kathleen Mehuron

ARC ~ Published June 2023

Read my thoughts here

⭐⭐⭐⭐

Caribbean-island innkeeper Holly Walker is hunkering down against a monster hurricane. Unfortunately, so is player Lord Anthony Bascombe, a man who excuses his bad behavior by saying he is descended from pirates. Then her grown son, Byron, and his father, Montez—the man she’s never stopped wanting—go missing. Will she ever see them again? What about the many others hurt and dying? And will help ever arrive? 

With each passing day, Holly’s tumultuous past and the epic storm send her hurtling toward a shattering climax that will change the island—and Holly’s life—forever.

*****************

Blackberry Winter

by Sarah Jio

Paperback ~ Published September 2012

I've loved all of this author's stories!

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

In 2011, Sarah Jio burst onto the fiction scene with two sensational novels--The Violets of March and The Bungalow. With Blackberry Winter--taking its title from a late-season, cold-weather phenomenon--Jio continues her rich exploration of the ways personal connections can transcend the boundaries of time. 

Seattle, 1933. Single mother Vera Ray kisses her three-year-old son, Daniel, goodnight and departs to work the night-shift at a local hotel. She emerges to discover that a May-Day snow has blanketed the city, and that her son has vanished. Outside, she finds his beloved teddy bear lying face-down on an icy street, the snow covering up any trace of his tracks, or the perpetrator's.

Seattle, 2010. Seattle Herald reporter Claire Aldridge, assigned to cover the May 1 "blackberry winter" storm and its twin, learns of the unsolved abduction and vows to unearth the truth. In the process, she finds that she and Vera may be linked in unexpected ways.

***********************

a Rafflecopter giveaway

*****************

Be sure to check the sidebar for my current giveaways! 

The Belonger by Mary Kathleen Mehuron ~ My Thoughts and an Excerpt #TheBelonger @MKMehuron25 @GoSparkPress

The Belonger by Mary Kathleen Mehuron

Marriage & Divorce Fiction, 272 pages

June 13, 2023 by SparkPress

Caribbean-island innkeeper Holly Walker is hunkering down against a monster hurricane. Unfortunately, so is player Lord Anthony Bascombe, a man who excuses his bad behavior by saying he is descended from pirates. 

Then her grown son, Byron, and his father, Montez—the man she’s never stopped wanting—go missing. Will she ever see them again? What about the many others hurt and dying? And will help ever arrive? With each passing day, Holly’s tumultuous past and the epic storm send her hurtling toward a shattering climax that will change the island—and Holly’s life—forever.

My thoughts about The Belonger ~~

(I love to note the first lines of the books I'm reading. First lines can really grab a reader's attention and I love seeing where the author takes the reader after their first lines.)

First lines—"Holly put both her hands flat on the deep sill of the hinged window of her bedroom and leaned out to see the morning light. Then she pulled on shorts and a T-shirt over her head."

What's not to love about a story set in the Caribbean islands? It's like taking a vacation without leaving the comfort of  your favorite reading chair.  Lots of beautiful scenery and appetizing food, with a little romance thrown in. 

But then the author throws in a hurricane, and a lost love from the past, and the story becomes anything but a vacation. Holly worries about her son, and their inn, when the hurricane threatens. Along with the physical turmoil she's going through, she also finds herself emotionally torn, wanting her past love but also curious about her future possibilities. 

I loved The Belonger, not only for the amazing setting but also for the memorable characters. I struggled and fretted right along with them as their world seemed to collapse. This is a story that will stay with me because of the interesting storyline but also because of the beautiful location that the author took me to. 

I received an ARC of The Belonger from the publisher and this is my honest opinion.

***************************

Excerpt

Sameera practically threw herself into Anthony’s arms and he tossed an amused smile over his shoulder to his friend. Like a character from an old Hollywood movie, he bent her backward for a kiss. Although he pulled off a dramatic vignette, which he seemed to thoroughly enjoy, he only planted a loud smooch on her forehead instead of her lips.  

“You gorgeous girl. What are you cooking up for us tonight? I’m famished. When we are ready perhaps you can give us one of everything. You decide— a chef’s tasting.” With that, he pulled her back up and gave her a playful push toward the kitchen. “But wait till later in the evening. Cocktails first. Priorities, you know. Then we are off on a walkabout.”  

Sameera seemed a bit baffled and, certainly, furious as she slunk back through the kitchen door. 

Anthony’s attention now turned toward the bar as he exclaimed, “Fabienne, my lovely! You are a shining example of the beauty of the women of Haiti. What shall I drink tonight my darling?” She cast her eyes down, presumably embarrassed by the intimacy in his statement, though Holly couldn’t help noticing Fabienne was smiling. It was a shy one, but a smile, nonetheless. 

***************************

About the author

Mary Kathleen Mehuron is a career educator who made a splash with her first book, Fading Past, an autobiographical novel whose protagonist, like Mary Kathleen, grew up Irish-Catholic in New Jersey. The Opposite of Never was Mary Kathleen’s second book, and to finish it, she traveled alone to Havana in January of 2015 during President Obama's opening of Cuba. Her goal was to experience the city before it became Americanized and write the ending of her book. Though the integration of Americans never really happened, the launch of The Opposite of Never was the catalyst that made her a full time writer.

The Belonger is her third novel, its basis was the loss of her family home to a Category Five hurricane and two of her three sons being caught in a Category Four storm on Grand Turk Island. As the island had no communication with the outside world, she didn’t know if her children or friends were alive or dead. The stories told afterward inspired The Belonger.

Her fourth novel, S. Beach Drag, revisits the New Jersey of her youth. Set in 1972, her Irish Catholic protagonist, Maeve O’Conner dives into the decayed pandemonium of carnival life on the boardwalk of Asbury Park, New Jersey. Grifters, side show entertainers and characters of every ilk abide there. Many, like Bruce Springsteen, are undiscovered artists. Looking for these arresting subjects, Maeve is desperate to win a photography contest that will get her a scholarship to art school in Manhattan. 

Mary Kathleen lives and teaches in a ski town in Vermont where she and her husband raised three sons, she is a weekly columnist in her local newspaper, The Valley Reporter. Her Take Me Back articles have become a non-profit 510(c)(3) that raise money for organizations that want to showcase local history. The first fundraising product was her non-fiction book Take Me Back: An Anecdotal History of the Mad River Valley. She also takes extended time to work on her novels on Grand Turk Island, in Vermont’s Northeast Kingdom and Savannah, Georgia.

Connect with Mary Kathleen

Website | Facebook | Goodreads | Twitter | Amazon

*********************

Be sure to check the sidebar for my current giveaways!

It's Monday! What Are You Reading? June 19, 2023 #IMWAYR

        

It's Monday! What Are You Reading? is a place to meet up and share what you have been, are and about to be reading over the week. It's an opportunity to visit other blogs and to comment on their reads. And ... you can add to that ever growing TBR pile! So welcome everyone. This meme started with J Kaye's Blog and then was taken up by Sheila from Book Journey. Sheila then passed it on to Kathryn at the Book Date. And here we are! 

**************************************

Thanks for stopping by. I hope you all have a good week. 

Happy reading!

What I'm currently reading

Walking on Fire

by Kathryn Crawley

print ARC

Pub date ~ June 13

The Second Chance Supper Club

by Nicole Meier

audiobook from my TBR shelf

What I recently finished

The Belonger: A Novel

by Mary Kathleen Mehuron

Pub date ~ June 13

My thoughts coming soon

The Girls of Summer

by Katie Bishop

Pub date ~ June 6

My thoughts coming soon

What I am going to read next

Have You Seen Her

by Catherine McKenzie

eARC

Pub date ~ June 27

I really love my reading life!

What are you reading this week?

*************************

Be sure to check the sidebar for all of my current giveaways!

It's Monday! What Are You Reading? June 12, 2023 #IMWAYR

       

It's Monday! What Are You Reading? is a place to meet up and share what you have been, are and about to be reading over the week. It's an opportunity to visit other blogs and to comment on their reads. And ... you can add to that ever growing TBR pile! So welcome everyone. This meme started with J Kaye's Blog and then was taken up by Sheila from Book Journey. Sheila then passed it on to Kathryn at the Book Date. And here we are! 

**************************************

Thanks for stopping by. I hope you all have a good week. 

Happy reading!

What I'm currently reading

The Girls of Summer

by Katie Bishop

e-ARC

Pub date ~ June 6

The Second Chance Supper Club

by Nicole Meier

audiobook from my TBR shelf

What I recently finished

The Visitor

(The Seaside Saga #18)

 by Joanne DeMaio

e-book from author for review

Read my thoughts here

The New Mother

by Nora Murphy

eARC

Read my thoughts here

Missing in Death

(In Death #29.5)

by J.D. Robb 

Narrated by Susan Ericksen

 audiobook from my TBR shelf

Tangled Vines

(Tales of the Scavenger's Daughters #2)

by Kay Bratt

Narrated by Kate Rudd

audiobook from my TBR shelf

What I am going to read next

The Belonger: A Novel

by Mary Kathleen Mehuron

Pub date ~ June 13

print ARC

I really love my reading life!

What are you reading this week?

*************************

Be sure to check the sidebar for all of my current giveaways!

It's Monday! What Are You Reading? May 29, 2023 #IMWAYR

      

It's Monday! What Are You Reading? is a place to meet up and share what you have been, are and about to be reading over the week. It's an opportunity to visit other blogs and to comment on their reads. And ... you can add to that ever growing TBR pile! So welcome everyone. This meme started with J Kaye's Blog and then was taken up by Sheila from Book Journey. Sheila then passed it on to Kathryn at the Book Date. And here we are! 

**************************************

Thanks for stopping by. I hope you all have a good week. 

Happy reading!

What I'm currently reading

The New Mother

by Nora Murphy

eARC

Pub date ~ May 30

The Belonger: A Novel

by Mary Kathleen Mehuron

print ARC

Pub date ~ June 13

Tangled Vines

(Tales of the Scavenger's Daughters #2)

by Kay Bratt

Narrated by Kate Rudd

 audiobook from my TBR shelf

What I recently finished

Instant Karma

(Hart's Ridge #5)

by Kay Bratt

eARC

Pub date May 26

Read my thoughts here

Broken Strings

by Rachel Lane

e-book from my TBR shelf

What I am going to read next

The Wishing Game

by Meg Shaffer

eARC

Pub date ~ May 30

I really love my reading life!

What are you reading this week?

*************************

Be sure to check the sidebar for all of my current giveaways!

It's Monday! What Are You Reading? May 15, 2023 #IMWAYR

     

It's Monday! What Are You Reading? is a place to meet up and share what you have been, are and about to be reading over the week. It's an opportunity to visit other blogs and to comment on their reads. And ... you can add to that ever growing TBR pile! So welcome everyone. This meme started with J Kaye's Blog and then was taken up by Sheila from Book Journey. Sheila then passed it on to Kathryn at the Book Date. And here we are! 

**************************************

Thanks for stopping by. I hope you all have a good week. 

Happy reading!

What I'm currently reading

Broken Strings

by Rachel Lane

e-book from my TBR shelf

The Belonger: A Novel

by Mary Kathleen Mehuron

print ARC

Pub date ~ June 13

Tangled Vines

(Tales of the Scavenger's Daughters #2)

by Kay Bratt

Narrated by Kate Rudd

 audiobook from my TBR shelf

What I recently finished

Where the Sweet Bird Sings

by Ella Joy Olsen

print from my TBR shelf for two challenges

What I am going to read next

The New Mother

by Nora Murphy

eARC

Pub date ~ May 30, 2023

I really love my reading life!

What are you reading this week?

*************************

Be sure to check the sidebar for all of my current giveaways!