Release Day! Me & Milo the Great by Michelle Schlicher

Happy Release Day!! 

Me & Milo the Great

Me & Milo the Great by Michelle Schlicher
Print and e-book
Published: September 14th 2017

My name is Holiday Sanchez. I carry a heavy burden.

But I'm not the only one.

There are others who know what it feels like to remember. Maybe they are the answer. Maybe we can help each other. Maybe I'll finally get past it.

Maybe it just takes time—and a little bit of magic.

Enter the giveaway on Goodreads!

Congratulations Michelle

 on the release today of 

Me & Milo the Great!

I loved Me & Milo the Great.

You can read my thoughts HERE. 

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About the author

Michelle Schlicher is the author of the novels The Blue Jay, Gracie’s Song and Come This Way. She lives outside of Des Moines with her husband, two children, two fluffy dogs and a cat that followed her home to become a prince. You can follow her on Instagram @michelleschlicher.

Connect with Michelle

Website | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Goodreads

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The Summer That Made Us by Robyn Carr ~ My Thoughts

The Summer That Made Us

The Summer That Made Us by Robyn Carr 
Print and e-book, 336 pages
Published September 1st 2017 by MIRA

Mothers and daughters, sisters and cousins--they lived for summers at the lake house until a tragic accident changed everything. The Summer That Made Us is an unforgettable story about a family learning to accept the past, to forgive and to love each other again.

That was then... For the Hempsteads, two sisters who married two brothers and had three daughters each, summers were idyllic. The women would escape the city the moment school was out to gather at the family house on Lake Waseka. The lake was a magical place, a haven where they were happy and carefree.

All of their problems drifted away as the days passed in sun-dappled contentment. Until the summer that changed everything. This is now... After an accidental drowning turned the lake house into a site of tragedy and grief, it was closed up. For good. Torn apart, none of the Hempstead women speak of what happened that summer, and relationships between them are uneasy at best to hurtful at worst. But in the face of new challenges, one woman is determined to draw her family together again, and the only way that can happen is to return to the lake and face the truth. 

Robyn Carr has crafted a beautifully woven story about the complexities of family dynamics and the value of strong female relationships.

My thoughts about The Summer That Made Us ~~

(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 line—"Charlene Berkey was devastated. Her television career had come to an abrupt end."

This was a great story to read, but at the same time it was a tough story to read. These two families had so much going for them, summers together at the beach house, cousins getting together each summer making wonderful memories. Until one summer, when it all starts to fall apart. The drowning death of the youngest little cousin seemed to send everyone into a tail spin. But evidently, there was so much more going on, secrets were being kept, blame was placed on others, and sisters who were estranged for years and years afterwards.

Now, one of the cousins is dying of cancer and she wants to spend one last summer at the beach cabin, to try to heal this broken family. Everyone is invited to come and spend some time together but not everyone is happy about the prospect of opening up all the old wounds. The family dynamics and the drama of it all made this an engaging story that I was totally wrapped up in.

I truly loved this story with all the supposedly 'normal' characters as well as the ones with their plethora of issues. Not everything and everyone is who or what they appear to be and figuring it all out made this book a page-turner for me.

The Summer That Made Us is my first Robyn Carr book but I loved her complicated characters and I loved the depth of her story, so it will not be my last. I will definitely be looking for more of her stories to read.

I received a copy of The Summer That Made Us from Little Bird Publicity via NetGalley in exchange for my honest opinion.

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About the author

A RITA award-winning author of 25 novels, Robyn Carr has found a whole new following with her stories about the independent women and former marines of Virgin River."

RT's Career Achievement Best Author Award winner (2010) for Contemporary Romance.

RWA's Nora Roberts Lifetime Achievement Award recipient 2016

Connect with Robyn

Website | Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads

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Release Day! Magnolia Nights by Ashley Farley

Happy Release Day!! 

Magnolia Nights

Magnolia Nights by Ashley Farley
Kindle Edition, 237 pages
Published: September 12th 2017

From the author of the bestselling Sweeney Sister Series and Sweet Tea Tuesdays comes a new novel of passion, intrigue, and redemption. 

Ellie Pringle has spent endless hours and countless dollars working with a therapist to remember the lost years of her childhood. She’s baffled and more than a little intrigued when the grandmother she hasn’t seen in thirty-four years dies and leaves her a fortune. The time has come to face her past in person. Still reeling from a recent breakup of a long-term relationship, and with nothing to keep her in San Francisco, Ellie packs her meager belongings and boards a plane for the South Carolina Lowcountry.

Standing in the entryway of her grandmother’s antebellum home on South Battery Street in Charleston, Ellie faces the first of many ghosts who will soon haunt her. On her first night in the creepy, creaking mansion, as she’s perusing the titles in a dusty bookcase, she comes across her deceased mother’s leather-bound journal. Her mother’s words create more unanswered questions and send her on a quest to find more journals. As Hurricane Irma bears down on the South Carolina coast, Ellie encounters Julian Hagood, a handsome architect who has the talent to restore her dilapidated mansion and the charm to mend her broken heart. But as Ellie reads her mother’s diaries, they dislodge a stone in the wall that safeguards her memories, causing her world to come crumbling down. Revelations about her childhood lead Ellie on a harrowing journey of discovery that will hold readers spellbound until the dramatic conclusion.

Congratulations Ashley

 on the release today of 

Magnolia Nights!

I loved Magnolia Nights!

You can read my thoughts HERE. 

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About the author

Ashley Farley writes books about women for women. Her characters are mothers, daughters, sisters, and wives facing real-life issues. Her goal is to keep you turning the pages until the wee hours of the morning. If her story stays with you long after you've read the last word, then she's done her job.

After her brother died in 1999 of an accidental overdose, she turned to writing as a way of releasing her pent-up emotions. She wrote Saving Ben in honor of Neal, the boy she worshipped, the man she could not save.

Ashley is a wife and mother of two young adult children. While she’s lived in Richmond, Virginia for the past 21 years, part of her heart remains in the salty marshes of the South Carolina Lowcountry where she grew up. Through the eyes of her characters, she’s able to experience the moss-draped trees, delectable cuisine, and kind-hearted folks with lazy drawls that make the area so unique.

Connect with Ashley

Website | Facebook | Twitter | Amazon | Goodreads

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Release Day! Cardinal Cabin by Joanne DeMaio

Happy Release Day!! 

Cardinal Cabin

Cardinal Cabin by Joanne DeMaio
Kindle Edition, 215 pages
Published: September 12th 2017 by Joanne DeMaio

From New York Times bestselling author Joanne DeMaio comes a heartwarming novel as merry and bright as a red-feathered cardinal taking flight.

Frank Lombardo's never been spontaneous. The closest he's come was accepting a side job chopping firewood for a lakeside community of rustic cabins. But with another lonely holiday season imminent, Frank's sister urges him to be spontaneous because, seriously, who does he ever expect to meet out in the woods?

With a suitcase in hand and a bit of reluctance, too, Penny Hart arrives at Cardinal Cabin on Snowflake Lake. It's only for a brief stay, though nobody knows where she is. Not her boss, not her friends...

Only Frank Lombardo. As the two unexpectedly meet at Addison's hidden hideaway, a spontaneous kiss sets everything amiss. But can the magic of this quaint New England town keep these snowy sweethearts together?

Cardinal Cabin is an enchanting tale about finding love where you least expect it. So come on inside. A cozy fire crackles, lights twinkle on the evergreen tree, snowflakes tap at the windowpanes, and little redbirds bring cheer this time of year.

Congratulations Joanne

 on the release today of

Cardinal Cabin!

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About the author

Joanne DeMaio is a New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of contemporary fiction. She enjoys writing about friendship, family, love and choices, while setting her stories in New England towns or by the sea. Currently at work on her next novel, Joanne lives with her family in Connecticut.

For a complete list of books and to learn more about the author, visit Joannedemaio.com. She also enjoys hearing from readers on her Facebook Page.

Connect with Joanne

Website | Facebook | Goodreads | Twitter | Instagram

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Cracked Open by Susan Kaye Quinn ~ My Thoughts

Cracked Open

Cracked Open by Susan Kaye Quinn
Series: Mindjack Series #5
Print andebook, 237 pages
Published July 15, 2017 by Susan Kaye Quinn

Zeph always knew he was a weapon. He didn’t count on being a spy.

But he made a dangerous bargain with the Director of the Jacker Technologies Division of DARPA—he’d let Wright test his mutant mindjack ability if she’d release his parents. Simple. Occasionally painful. And the screams of his victims fill his nightmares. But it will be worth it as long as she can’t crack open his head and find out his sister, with her super-surge jack-ability, is still alive. And if his parents are finally set free.

Once that happens, he’s gone. Even if it means giving up everything he’s just now getting back. A home. Friends. A girl who believes in peace and love even when the world is falling apart.

But as the shock of assassinations and bombings and hate killings continue to pull at the threads that hold society together, Wright hands him a mission he can’t possibly complete. If he does, it will tear everything apart. If he doesn’t, he’ll lose everyone he loves.

Sometimes being a powerful weapon is the most dangerous thing of all.

The bestselling Mindjack Series continues, diving deep into a world of mindreaders and mindjackers where being different means staying hidden… or struggling to stay alive.

MINDJACK SERIES—Check them out here on Goodreads!
Open Minds (Book One)
Closed Hearts (Book Two)
Free Souls (Book Three)
Locked Tight (Book Four)
Cracked Open (Book Five)
Mindjack Short Story Collection (Novella Box Set)
Book 6 coming soon

 

My Thoughts about Cracked Open ~~

(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 line—"The pressure on my head is enough to make it crack. At least, it feels that way."

I just love this series. I am constantly amazed that this author can continue to take me back to the exciting, futuristic world of mindreaders and mindjackers where I just want more. 

Zeph is a good guy but finds himself on the wrong side, agreeing to do things that he wouldn't normally do, in order to get his family back and to keep them safe. As he plays one side against the other, it's hard to tell who will win. 

SKQ keeps this series alive by coming up with exciting new plots and adventures. This series is not getting old or stale but is staying as riveting as it was from the start. Cracked Open is book #5 of this series and I loved it just as much as I loved book #1. 

I received a copy of Cracked Open from the author in exchange for my honest opinion.

About the author 

Susan Kaye Quinn is a rocket scientist turned speculative fiction author who now uses her PhD to invent cool stuff in books. Her works range from young adult science fiction to adult future-noir, with side trips into steampunk and middle grade fantasy. Her bestselling novels and short stories have been optioned for Virtual Reality, translated into German, and featured in several anthologies.

She writes full-time from Chicago, inventing mind powers and dreaming of the Singularity.

Chat with her about our coming robot overlords on Facebook.

Find all of Susan's books on Amazon

Click here for a FREE story!

Connect with Susan 

Website | Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads | Amazon

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