Friday, September 30, 2011

Poll - Do you like new commenting system?


Friends,

I need help with deciding please.  Poll is on sidebar.

I love that I can reply directly to you and it leaves your last post, this is superb to me.

I can overlook the other issues so far 'I think'.

Let me know your thoughts please. If you have heard any negative possibilities please comment so I can  research further to help make a decision.

Have a great weekend, thanks again.


Please click on title to comment.
(Does this irritate you?)

Wednesday, September 28, 2011

Throwing in the towel - IT by Stephen King









I am officially throwing in the towel.....  Sorry Anna and Serena.

Trying this book has sealed the deal on my reading style, which is a positive at the end of this.

My Reasons:
  1. I have realised Stephen King is not for me.  The first book I now know was a very bad 1st choice as intro to Stephen King's works, The Girl who Loved Tom Gordon.
  2. I thought the read a thon would be great to inspire me to read it but I feel pressured.  Honestly I shouldn't need to be inspired, first mistake.
  3. I am a mood reader and dealing with i'm not in the mood to read IT for 5 months is torture to me.
  4. I enjoy reading 1 book at a time and completely losing myself in it, 1000 pages felt excessive and unnecessary. 
Thanks to all that commented on my post - What is your page limit?  Chunkster books.  The discussion helped me to make a decision.  Stephen King has a huge following so one less won't hurt his ego or bank account :-)

It is possible I will continue in my own time and maybe a year from now I will say I completed a 1000 page book......






Here’s the reading schedule if still interested in joining.

Aug. 24 — discussion on part 1 to be held on Savvy Verse & Wit
Sept. 28 — discussion on part 2 to be held on Diary of an Eccentric
Oct. 31 — discussion on part 3 to be held on Savvy Verse & Wit
Nov. 30 — discussion on part 4 to be held on Diary of an Eccentric
Dec. 21 — discussion on part 5 to be held on Savvy Verse & Wit
 
 
 
 
Please click on title to comment - New commenting system
 

Tuesday, September 27, 2011

Teaser Tuesday - Inside the Outside by Martin Lastrapes


Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along!

Just do the following to participate:
Grab your current read
Open to a random page
Share two (2) 'teaser' sentences from somewhere on that page
BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS!
Share the title &; author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

 

Teaser from Kindle at 42%

Timber had no doubt that he could have killed her whenever he pleased, but he chose instead to drag it out, giving in to the more sadistic side of his nature, savoring their little game of cat and mouse.

This is the perfect read for the RIP Challenge, Horror genre.

Click on title to comment please.

Commentluv for Blogger - Comment please so I can test



If this works, HUGE thank you to this site, step by step instructions.

http://www.giglogo.com/2011/05/03/how-to-get-commentluv-on-blogger/


Leave a comment and your link so I can test it out please.........

Looks like you have to click on the title of post in order to comment, eek.....



Monday, September 26, 2011

Review - The Human Obsession by Heath Sommer



Book Summary from Amazon

A year before retirement, Chief of Police Frank Murphy wants nothing more than to spend his golden years on HGTV marathons and endless tee-off times. What he gets is a string of abductions that makes Ted Bundy look like an amateur. The Human Obsession is the sequel to Heath Sommer's 2009 breakout psychological thriller The Manufactured Identity, where Murphy and hapless lovers Addy and John Joe scramble against inhuman odds and unpredictable twists to solve the riddles of murder, obsession, and human weakness. Focusing on the trial of Cameron Bo, alleged murderer and loony from Sommer's The Grand Delusion, The Human Obsession takes readers even deeper into the minds of Sommers' belovedand twistedcharacters. In the end, no one could have seen why those meant to protect and serve may be in the greatest danger of all.

My Review - 5 Tea Time Perfection

An amazing thought provoking psychological thriller.  Heath did it again, he messed with my head.  The execution of this story was so well crafted, bringing his thrillers all together.  The Manufacture Identity, The Grand Delusion and now The Human Obsession, the perfect package deal.  All can be stand alone's but I recommend you read them all.

There are a few stories going on but they each have their own place.  You are trying to figure out how their puzzle piece fits into the larger picture.  The stories will make you paranoid, educate you, make you question your own beliefs, bring personal judgments to the forefront, all while messing with your mind. We continue to go on the journey with all the characters from the other books while questioning their mental stability. 

The Human Obsession is complex but interesting. Psychology, profiling a killer with mental heath illness and a hot, drama, detailed court room case, you have got to love that.  The case was national news, this was so good, I couldn't get enough.

The Manufactured Identity is still my ultimate favourite but Heath sealed the deal with this one also.  Complex and Brilliant.  You can tell Heath writes for a larger purpose and executes so well.  He takes you exactly where he wants when he wants. 

If religion is a topic that makes you uncomfortable I do not recommend this trilogy.  Now, if you enjoy a great thought provoking thriller, you must go buy his books now.

Dr. Heath Sommer has a PhD in Clinical Psychology which is apparent in his writing.  Such a great way to open your eyes to the mental health illnesses in our world.





$27.50 for all 3, free shipping (US Only)


My Giveaway

The Human Obsession is available for one of my blogging followers, international.

Leave a comment with your email address.

Closes Sunday, October 2.




Friday, September 23, 2011

Must Reads from Thrill Week

 


Thanks again to all those that participated in Thrill Week.  I added so many books and go to authors to my list, I am thrilled to pieces.  I have chosen my definite read from your posts, here they are.

 
 

 
Recommended by Book Nerd Club
 
 
 
 
 
 
Recommended by Stacys Books and Carols Notebook - Greg Iles
 
 


 
Recommended The Book Whisperer 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Recommended by Lah @ LazyGirl Reads
 
Can you recommend one?
 
 
 
Recommended by Cat @ Tell Me a Story
 
 
 
Recommended by Red Headed Book Child
 
 
 
 
 
She is a Horror, Stephen King fan, so I decided on a read a thon
 
Read-a-thon
 
 
 
I need to continue the Pendergast series
 


And the author Honourary Mention is.........

Harlan Coben

I haven't read him but definitely will before the year is out, which one is your favourite?


 
 
 
 
 Thanks again, look forward to next year.  Thrill Week will be an annual event.

Wednesday, September 21, 2011

What is your page limit? Chunkster books


Hello all,

Let us discuss chunkster books and if they are worth it, ok, I know all books are worth it but really.

I agreed to a Read a thon, IT by Stephen King.  I wanted to try him again as The Girl that loved Tom Gordon was such a let down, why that was the first book given to me to try I would never understand but oh well, its done now.  So, I agreed to reading IT, a read a thon should be fun, get a chance to discuss the book, scenes etc and figure out things you may have missed, brilliant.

Then I realised it was 1000 pages, :-0  whaaaaaaaaaat, sigh

The read a thon is only approx 200 pages a month, I can do it but is it worth it?

I got it from my brother and I can't even hold it to read, I didn't even make it to 100 pages before I said forget it, I will download to my Kindle.  Even this I find a little depressing because it tells you % and it seems like you have read 25 pages before it even moves a %.

When you read chunksters do you actually leave the house with them to read or are they strictly at home reads?  It is heavier than a baby, I should actually go and weigh it........

So my main question is?

Should I continue or give up on IT?  It is good, not great and already I decided I'm obviously not going to be a fan and the word that comes to mind is excessive, seriously is 1000 pages needed.

My second thought is, do you have a page limit?  For me it would be 500 - 600 pages, that is my new standard.

I only read 1 book a week.  I do not want to spend 2 weeks or more on one book.  I am a career mommy, so work, parenting and having a life leaves me reading time for evenings and weekends, I am up at midnight almost every night.

Summary of questions/opinions

Should I give up on IT?

What is your page limit?

Name a chunkster that you thought was worth the time and you recommend to others.



Thanks, hope you are having a great week.

Monday, September 19, 2011

What I am Reading and Vent........

I hope everyone had a fabulous weekend.

Starting with my vent, you can skip and go to the books if you like.

It has been a busy September for me.  Thrill Week started September 1 and BBAW week started September 12.  My vent is........  My computer has been in the shop for over a month, it is killing me to not have a computer.  The part they 'thought' was needed is not the issue, blah, blah, blah.  How can the backlight be such an issue, seriously.  So looks like I may just buy a new computer, seriously I cannot wait much longer, don't they know I have blogging work to do.

My niece has been wonderful in letting me use her computer which is an Apple, trying to figure that out has been torture.  My sweetie has let me use his Ipad which is ok for commenting, posting is not possible.

I have had far to much unproductive work time but I just cannot go without posting especially during blogging events.  Ok, end of vent, sigh of relief. 

My current read

Currently Reading


My favourite book from last year was Manufactured Identity, it is my ultimate favourite psychological thriller.  Well, I am reading the sequel now and it is great.

A N D!!!!!

Squeeeeeeeee, look at my surprise, how did I miss this when I got it, omg, so thrilled to have a glimpse of my review in Heath's book, seriously what an honour.




I completed - my review, great start to RIP Challenge

Currently Reading

I read a little of IT for my readathon and will go back to it again end of week.

Read-a-thon 
Don't let him scare you, his not so bad. :-)


I have no idea what is next, possibly my NetGalley read





I look forward to seeing what everyone is reading, especially the scary reads right now.

Friday, September 16, 2011

BBAW - Blogging, Best Practices for me



Today’s Topic


The world of blogging is continually changing. Share 3 things you are essential tried and true practices for every blogger and 1-3 new trends or tools you’ve adapted recently or would like to in the future.

I have been blogging for 2 years now and these are my:

Best Practices

1)  Comment, comment, comment

2)  Write a review at least once a week (Only memes posted may not get you consistent followers)

3)  Create email just for blogging.  I found this so important, no spam to account, easy to organise blog emails, review request, comment responses etc, this is a must in my opinion.

4)  Wherever you keep track of your books, record who the recommendation came from, another way to network with bloggers, most appreciate you linking them but also what a great way to acknowledge a bloggers review made you choose a book.  I use LibraryThing and it is perfect for note taking.

New Trends

Some of the new trends are not for me, Facebook, Twitter etc, I do not do social media, in my professional role I have seen how it interrupts with life in such a negative way.  Blogging is good enough for me.

For me the new trend personally is to be yourself and:

1)  Create events or Challenges specific to a genre or topic in order to meet more bloggers with the same interest or goals.

Examples

Thrill Week - An event for fans of Thriller, Mystery, Suspense and Horror

I Want More Challenge - There are so many amazing authors but sometimes we get caught up in reading all the new we forget about the authors that have already impressed, excited us, gave us what all readers want, a great read, that wow moment, so this Challenge is to show all the authors that have pleased us already how thankful we are by reading more of their literary works.



Hope you enjoyed BBAW Week, great to meet so many of you, I look forward to building blogging friendships with you.

Enjoy the weekend.  My Giveaway is International, click on the BBAW image above.



Thursday, September 15, 2011

The Restorer (The Graveyard Queen) by Amanda Stevens

Currently Reading

Book Summary

My name is Amelia Gray. I'm a cemetery restorer who sees ghosts. In order to protect myself from the parasitic nature of the dead, I've always held fast to the rules passed down from my father. But now a haunted police detective has entered my world and everything is changing, including the rules that have always kept me safe.

My Review - 4 1/2 Great to the last Drop

The Restorer is a great mystery with a creepy theme.  We learn about Amelia's job, how she restores unkept, abandoned cemeteries and the rules she has to follow to live safely because she sees ghost.  She is 9 when she realises she can see ghosts and her father tells her not to acknowledge them or tempt fate.  She grows up playing in cemeteries and loving the unique beautiful side of them but realises ghost bring with them an energy that you do not want to experience. There are moments I held my breath, chills down my spine and I wanted more.

She is requested to restore a cemetery and during the beginning of her work a body is found.  She is recruited as a consultant to assist the police with the murder investigation.  This was my favourite part of the book, the mystery surrounding the murder, why no one are answering all the questions, the history of a secret committee which may know all the answers but also it is a secret on who is and was a part so getting answers is impossible.  Amelia becomes the middle woman for many, detectives, police and of course the ghosts.

She also finds herself smitten with Detective Delvin and doesn't understand why she is drawn to him, if he is haunted then she needs to stay away, but how.  He called her 'strange, stunning and practical' which she loved.  She is naive to relationships and with the additional baggage they both bring this was an interesting forbidden romance. I thought this was executed well in the mystery.

There are so many sad, beautiful, creepy, entangled moments in this book, it really captures you in an eerie way while trying to figure out all of what is going on.

This book was a winner to me because it was so involved in a mysterious way.  I love murder mysteries and we did get closure but there is more than enough to keep this series going, more victim stories, the history of the ghosts, relationship with Amelia and Delvin, secrets around her parents and more. 

I read the prequel last week, The Abandoned which was a great lead in but now both have left me wanting to know so much more.

A great start to the RIP Challenge.  I recommend this one to Mystery fans that can handle the paranormal ghost story part, perfect creepy read to keep you up at night.  I swear I saw a spider, woke, turned on the lights and realised my mind was playing tricks on me from the book, now that is what I call perfection, lol.


Tuesday, September 13, 2011

BBAW Interview with Jeanne at Necromancy Never Pays




Welcome to Tea Time with Marce


Today is the BBAW Interview day.  We get to learn a little more about the bloggers we love, network and interact with and get to meet new ones.

I would like to welcome Jeanne here today.  She blogs over at Necromancy Never Pays


Marce - Is Trivial Pursuit for Book Lovers a special feature you host on your blog? Tell us about it so we can participate in the future.

Jeanne - A friend sent me the game (Trivial Pursuit for Book Lovers), saying she thought I might know more people than she did who would have fun playing it. What I discovered, though, is that it’s more fun to play in the virtual world than in real life, because it’s hard to find a group of friends so literary they know enough of the answers to make playing the game fun. So I reveal one card each Friday morning, and my virtual literary friends show up to play.


Marce - On your About page you state - “necromancy never pays; literature shows us this over and over.” What book or 2 books do you think proves this and you would recommend to others?

I am so glad she corrected the definition........
Jeanne - The definition of “necromancy” I was thinking of when I used the word in the title of my blog is the second definition in the online urban dictionary: “necromancy” is “sorcery/shamanism style of raising the dead.”

I have a list of books in which necromancy never pays on my sidebar, most notably the story “The Monkey’s Paw,” which sort of started the whole thing (see my “About” page). I would also mention what happens with the figure Ged calls back from the dead in the first book of The Wizard of Earthsea by Ursula K. LeGuin, and the recurring theme in the Harry Potter books and movies. In Part One of the final two-part movie, there’s a shadow graphic for the story of the Three Brothers; the one who gets the ring becomes a necromancer. This story is an explicit statement of the theme Dumbledore keeps trying to help Harry understand, that he couldn’t bring his sister back, and that Harry can’t bring his parents back, at least not in any satisfying way. Dumbledore understands that necromancy never pays.


Marce - How did you get into poetry?  Share a poem with us that is special to you.

Jeanne - I’ve always had poetry read to me and read it to others; the more you read, the more you love it. So lots of poems are special to me, especially seasonally—last year, I went through a whole series of autumn poems. I always put different ones up next to my desk, and the one that’s there this week is “How to Like It,” by Stephen Dobyns. I reread this poem a lot when I’m trying to learn to like something new. Sometimes you’ve just got to grit your teeth and try really hard to like something.

Jeanne's favourite poem How I Like It by Stephen Dobyns


Marce - You stated in a post you like to molest your books “I like to molest my books, flipping backwards and forwards, underlining a word or putting an exclamation point in the margin, and turning down the corner of a page here and there.” Please explain how you got into this habit and if enjoy reading on your Kindle more yet?

Jeanne - I very carefully developed the habit of molesting my books when I got to college, where for the first time I couldn’t just remember everything I’d read. I had to learn to highlight sections, make notes in the margins, and note certain pages. I worked even harder at this in graduate school, sometimes using pencil to lightly underline and sticky notes to mark pages when it wasn’t my book. Writing in books, especially, didn’t come easily to me, but if you want to be a critical reader, you have to learn to write down your responses, especially if you don’t want to have to read everything twice before you can articulate a point of view on it.

For blogging I usually dog ear the pages I know I’ll want to quote later, and usually I can spot the bit that made me turn the page down pretty quickly. I still don’t like to read with a pen or pencil in my hand.

So no, I haven’t warmed to the Kindle for ordinary reading, although I do love having it for travel and I can now cope with the “bookmark” feature.


Marce - Do you enjoy Thrillers, Mystery, Suspense or Horror books? What is one of your favourites?

Jeanne - The Gone-Away World, by Nick Harkaway, is one of my all-time favorite books, and it has elements of all four. It has a really big secret, plus ghosts, ninjas and pirates. Here’s her review:



Jeanne, thank you so much for taking the time to interview with me.  I am sure your Trivial Pursuit for Book Lovers will gain even more weekly followers.  I still gasp a little over you molesting your books :-0 but I know it is done with love, lol

Thanks for reading, Jeanne interviewed me also, you can read it here.





Monday, September 12, 2011

My Appreciation and Love for the Blogging Community




Welcome to Tea Time with Marce


Today is the start of BBAW, enjoy the week

This year’s theme is Cultivating a Community of Bloggers and Readers.


While the awards are a fun part of BBAW, they can never accurately represent the depth and breadth of diversity in the book blogging community. Today you are encouraged to highlight a couple of bloggers that have made book blogging a unique experience for you. They can be your mentors, a blogger that encouraged you to try a different kind of book, opened your eyes to a new issue, made you laugh when you needed it, or left the first comment you ever got on your blog. Stay positive and give back to the people who make the community work for you!



I have been blogging for 2 years and my first taste of the blogging community was when I came across the meme Booking Through Thursday. For a couple of weeks on and off I would read but not comment and one day I just said I want to network with other book lovers so I started this blog, Tea Time with Marce.

Over my 2 years I have learned a few things. How important networking and commenting on other blogs are, staying true to myself, participating on blogs during memes and challenges and the final for me is to not get overwhelmed, so posting 3 to 4 times is perfect and gives my followers from all over the world the opportunity to comment without feeling like they are late.

My Appreciation and Love.........

I respect these 2 bloggers for being amazing networking commenting leaders – thank you Kathy (Bermudaonion's Weblog) and Juju (Tales of Whimsy), you are always there.

Thank you Marie (Boston Bibliophile) for being a first commenter and you are still here today, I appreciate that.

Thank you Jennifer from Reading with Tequila, you may not know this but you taught me to stay true to myself and try to find my place in the blogosphere. I find you to be honest and always trying to think how to get bloggers involved with you and each other.

And to my Mystery, Thriller, Suspense buddies, Michelle (red headed book child) and Rae (The Best O' Books), blogging would not be the same without you guys, you have added to my Wishlist and TBR list so much it is the ultimate thrill and what makes it perfect is that you interact with me.

And to the bloggers I would love to have Tea with, Paula (Tomes Devotee), Julie (Reading without Restraint), Aths (Reading on a Rainy Day), Steph the Bookworm and Cheryl (CMash Loves to read) – you ladies are the best. You all have great blogs and content which I respect and enjoy. In many ways we have realised we have similar reading interests. Emailing away from the blogs is an additional special touch I appreciate.  BTW Julie, your blog is my favourite looking blog.

And last but not least, Christa (Mental Foodie), you are my favourite blogger, you have a genuine voice, have opened my eyes to memoirs and Non Fiction but love Mystery, Thriller and Suspense also. I love reading your posts and seeing your opinion, even when we don’t agree.

Diversity means so much to me personally and that is what is amazing about the Book Blogging Community.  So many have their own special touch thats adds to our book loving life.
 
I appreciate you.
 

Sunday, September 11, 2011

BBAW Giveaway International



Welcome to Tea Time with Marce


My favorite genres are Thrillers, Mystery and Suspense then Adult Fiction, Memoirs, Verse Novels and YA.

I have chosen Michelle Zink's trilogy to give away to 1 winner because I think it is a great cross over in a few genres, Mystery, History Fiction, Adult and YA.

I highly recommend this trilogy.

My Reviews of Prophecy of the Sisters and Guardian of the Gate, haven't read Circle of Fire yet.





International Giveaway

You must be a follower

Leave your email address

Tell me your favorite genre

1 person will win all 3 books

Note - If you have read one I will buy the other(s)

Giveaway closes on Saturday, Sept 17





Good luck to all the short listed bloggers.  Have fun during Book Blogging Appreciation Week


Saturday, September 10, 2011

New Blog Button - maybe not

UPDATE - I am seriously rethinking.  My 4 year old said ewww gross, I don't think a great choice now, lol

I finally decided I needed a blog button that really represents my blog and me, do you like?

Having tea, pretty long nails, blade with knife and of course lots of blood.........  The blood is to assist the police with the crime NOT for me to drink, vampires, I don't think so.

If you are new to Tea Time with Marce, my favorite genres are Thriller, Suspense, Mystery and a little adult fiction and horrors.





I still haven't figured out how to include the code etc, sorry.  

Friday, September 9, 2011

Review - The Abandoned by Amanda Stevens


Book Summary

There are rules for dealing with ghosts. Too bad Ree Hutchins doesn't know them.


When her favorite patient at a private mental hospital passes away, psychology student Ree Hutchins mourns the elderly woman's death. But more unsettling is her growing suspicion that something unnatural is shadowing her.

Amateur ghost hunter Hayden Priest believes Ree is being haunted. Even Amelia Gray, known in Charleston as The Graveyard Queen, senses a gathering darkness. Driven by a force she doesn't understand, Ree is compelled to uncover an old secret and put abandoned souls to rest—before she is locked away forever....

My Review - 4 Great to the last Drop

The Abandoned wan an ebook exclusive prequel to The Graveyard Queen series.  I was unsure if I would enjoy this kind of story but I am so glad I read it, it completely drew me and I immediately downloaded The Restorer which I am reading and enjoying now. 

The prequel was 4 chapters about 4 characters.  Ree, the main character in The Abandoned, Amelia, the main character in The Restorer so far and another 2 whom play an important part with the presence and history of ghosts, Violet and Ilsa. 

I was enjoying the eerie feeling, completed curious on the on goings of the ghosts and how they wanted to interact with people than bang a murder.  How I loved that, the mystery on why, who, what and how the history plays into everything.

Ree continued to say "I don't believe in ghosts", I think she was trying to convince herself.

The Abandoned makes you want to know more.  More about the dark, the unknown, why a cemetery was abandoned and what is the history of those that were abandoned themselves.

I can't wait to finish The Restorer and tell you more.  The Kingdom comes out Nov 2011.  The perfect start for the RIP Challenge.




Thrill Week Giveaway Winners.........


To Thrill means to excite greatly, I hope this week was that for all of you.  I appreciate the participation and look forward to next time, I think I will do this once a year.



Featured Hosts - A huge thank you, it is great to share books and authors with others that have similar interest, I love that we have small group of Thriller, Mystery, Suspense and Horror fans.

Authors and Publicists - We appreciate you and wish you continued success.  To the authors, we cannot get enough, so keep it up and to the Publicists, as bloggers we appreciate you liaising with the authors and taking the time to communicate and get us books.

Here are the winners..................  Congratulations


Lah @ LazyGirl Reads - You won the $20 Book Depository for announcing Thrill Week and my favourite Psychological Thriller from last year - Manufactured Identity by Heath Sommer


The Book Whisperer - Boof you won Jean Holloways ebook


Best O Books Reviews - Rae you won Dan Wells trilogy, lending on Kindle and Both of Sam Hayes books (double winner)


The Book Nerd Club - Danielle you won Someone Elses's Son by Sam Hayes


christa @ mental foodie - Christa you won Tell Tale by Sam Hayes and Bad Things Happen by Harry Dolan (double winner)


bermudaonion - Kathy you won Very Bad Men by Harry Dolan Kathy wasn't an entry

bookdout - you won Very Bad Men by Harry Dolan


Mystica - Mystica you won all 3 books from Kaye Publicity


carolsnotebook - Carol you won Boca Knights from Kaye Publicity


Natasha - Natasha you won Running Dark from Kaye Publicity


Cat @ Tell Me a Story - Carol you won Death Notice from Kaye Publicity


Gigi Ann - Gigi you won Bundle of Trouble


My email is marceblogspot(at)hotmail(dot)com
Send me your name and address please

FOR ALL THE THRILL WEEK GIVEAWAYS, GO HERE
(some are still open)







Thursday, September 8, 2011

A Maternal Instincts Mystery Giveaway from Diana Orgain



Thanks to author Diana Orgain for giving away one of her Maternal Instincts Mysteries for Thrill Week.

I don't usually read cozy mysteries but as a mommy of a 4 year old I wanted to try it and hilarious well done mystery is what DianaO has created. 

Meet Diana Orgain, Author and Mommy


Diana Orgain was born in San Francisco, CA. As a child she loved Hardy Boys and Nancy Drew mysteries and dreamed of being a writer one day.

She went on to earn her B.A and M.F.A. in Creative Writing from San Francisco State University with a minor in acting.

Diana has acted professionally in many theater roles and national commercials. She wrote several plays, which were produced at San Francisco State University, GreenHouse Productions, and PlayGround in San Francisco. But then a funny thing happened – on the way to becoming a mystery writer, she went and had a baby…

Go here to read an excerpt of the books to help you choose........  http://dianaorgain.com/




Bundle of Trouble

First-time mom Kate Connolly may have found the perfect work-from-home Mommy job: Private Investigator. After all, the hours are flexible, she can bring the baby along on stake-outs, and if you’re going to be up all night anyway, you might as well solve some crimes…




Motherhood is Murder - MY REVIEW

Nights out are hard to come by for new mommy Kate Connolly. So when Kate and her husband are invited to a dinner cruise hosted by her new mommy club, Roo & You, they jump at it. But when the president of the club takes a deadly spill, everyone becomes a suspect—and Kate’s on deck to solve the mystery.




Formula for Murder

Sleuth and first-time mom Kate Connolly and her baby are the victims of a hit-and-run, but escape unharmed. A witness identifies the car’s French diplomatic license plates, yet when Kate and her hubby try to get some answers, they get the cold shoulder.



But there’s something going on at the French consulate that’s dirtier-and far deadlier-than any diaper.


Giveaway open to US and CAN

1 Winner

Leave a comment choosing which book you would like and your email address

Ends tomorrow



FOR ALL THE THRILL WEEK GIVEAWAYS, GO HERE

Wednesday, September 7, 2011

Thrill Week Giveaway's Galore




Thrill Week ends tomorrow at midnight, have you participated, commented, networked, added to your Wishlist and entered the giveaways????  What are you waiting for, here is a glimpse........

Last day to do the Thrill Week Questionnaire (Blog Hop)


Giveaway's Galore


International

Best O' Books - ends tonight - Harlan Coben, Lisa Gardner, JT Ellison

Tell Me A Story - ends tomorrow - Book Depository choice in Thrill Week genres
(Featured Host day tomorrow)

Tea Time with Marce - ends sept 9  - Harry Dolan

Tea Time with Marce - ends tomorrow - 3 Mysteries from Kaye Publicity

Tea Time with Marce - ends tomorrow - Sam Hayes


US

red headed book child - ends tomorrow - Creep by Jennifer Hillier (debut)

Mental Foodie - ends Sept 9 - $10 Gift certificate


International, UK and Europe

The Book Whisperer - ends Sept 10 - loads of choices


Ebook Giveaways

Cafe of Dreams - ends Sept 16 Vampire Thriller by Laurie Bowler

Tea Time with Marce - ends tomorrow - Jean Holloway

Tea Time with Marce - ends tomorrow - Dan Wells Trilogy (ONLY for Kindle US)


Additional Surprise

The Novel Source - ends tomorrow - $15 Gift Certificate and Tea







Huge thank you to all the featured hosts, authors and publishers, you all have made Thrill Week a success and I truly appreciate it.


AND MORE GIVEAWAYS TOMORROW...............


Author Interview - Harry Dolan (Bad Things Happen and Very Bad Men)



I would like to welcome Harry Dolan to Tea Time with Marce and thank him for taking the time to interview with me.  I loved his book Bad Things Happen, it is the book that I think more around the blogosphere should be reading.  Bloggers that have also read Very Bad Men think that is even better, wow.

Well today you get to meet Harry and also have the opportunity to win one of his books.  Harry will be giving away his newest release Very Bad Men and I will give away Bad Things Happen. 




Currently Reading  



Marce – When did you decide to become an author, was it a childhood dream/goal?

Harry – I can tell you when I decided to get serious about becoming a writer: it was in 1999 when I quit a full-time editing job that I’d held for eight years and decided to try my hand at writing a novel. But I had been interested in writing for a long time before that. I grew up in a family of readers, and I started writing at a young age. I can remember writing stories in spiral notebooks when I was seven. One of them began, “Once upon a time, a boy killed a man. Then he went home.” -- which is not a bad hook. So as a child, I had the idea that I might become a writer, but it was one interest among many. I was also interested in science -- especially astronomy -- and in art and design. I wrote some stories as a teenager, and I started writing a novel in college -- I was majoring in philosophy at Colgate University, but I was also studying fiction writing with the novelist Frederick Busch. He saw something in my work and encouraged me to keep at it. When I left my job in 1999, I set out to finish that first novel that I had started in college. It was a strange hybrid: part crime novel, part romance, part coming-of-age story; it was never published, probably because it wound up being 850 pages long. But I learned a lot from writing it, and those lessons helped me with the two books that came after it: Bad Things Happen and Very Bad Men.


Marce - How did you come up with the titles of your books?

Harry – I went through several titles for the first book, including The Bad Editor and The Bad Murderer, before settling on Bad Things Happen. There’s a scene near the end of The Maltese Falcon where everyone is gathered in Sam Spade’s apartment: Spade and Casper Gutman and Joel Cairo and the rest. They’re waiting for Spade’s secretary to deliver the falcon. Spade asks Brigid O’Shaughnessy how she feels, and she says she’s frightened. “Don’t be,” he says. “Nothing very bad’s going to happen.” And soon after, of course, something bad does happen: he turns her over to the police for Miles Archer’s murder. I don’t think I consciously drew the title of Bad Things Happen from that scene, but I remembered it later. I think I must have gotten it by osmosis.


Marce – I loved the sarcasm in Bad Things Happen. Are you sarcastic, did this come naturally or did you want that to be a feel in the book?

Harry – People sometimes ask me how much of David Loogan, my protagonist, is based on me, and my standard response is that we’re about the same age and we’ve both worked as editors, and there, fortunately or unfortunately, the similarities end. But our sense of humor is definitely the same. Long stretches of the books are driven by dialogue, and I wanted to make it as entertaining as I could, and sarcastic humor is certainly part of that. My second book, Very Bad Men, is largely written in first person in David Loogan’s voice, so hopefully even more of his humor comes through.


Marce – What is your usual response when you see the cover? What is your opinion of UK and foreign covers of your book?

Harry – The cover of Bad Things Happen features a fountain pen with blood dripping from the tip. I was ambivalent about it at first, but it’s grown on me over time. Some of the foreign editions used variants of the same image, but others went in their own direction. I like the UK cover a lot: it has two men walking down a country lane, one of them carrying a shovel. (A shovel, of course, plays a big part in the opening of the book.) The Dutch edition has a rather odd, retro scene, with a man in a smoking jacket being held at gunpoint and a woman in lingerie looking on. It doesn’t remotely resemble any actual scene in the novel, but it’s very colorful and certainly eye-catching. The cover of Very Bad Men has an ace of diamonds on the cover, with blood dripping from one corner of the card, so you can see a pattern emerging here. I like it, and the ace of diamonds does play a role in the book. But I’m looking forward to seeing what the foreign publishers come up with.


Marce – Who are your favourite authors? Recommend a book to my followers that you think is a must read.

Harry – Some of my favorites are Lawrence Block, Tana French, Dennis Lehane, Lee Child, Jeffery Deaver, Karin Slaughter, Peter Abrahams, Thomas Perry, and Donna Tartt. Tana French has written three crime novels set in and around Dublin, and my favorite is The Likeness. That would be my must-read pick. The voice of the narrator, Cassie Maddox, is just wonderful.   Marce - Thrill Week participants, do you see some consistency......... Looks like I need to read Tana French and Jeffery Deaver soon.


Marce – What is on your bookshelf/ereader now?

Harry – I’ve got a lot of Robert Crais books on the shelf right now. I discovered him recently and have been reading his Elvis Cole/Joe Pike books, which are terrific. I’ve also got some more eclectic stuff on my “to read” pile: The Interrogative Mood by Padgett Powell; The Bullfighter Checks Her Makeup by Susan Orlean; Coronado by Dennis Lehane; and Sleepless by Charlie Huston.


Marce – Any upcoming events that you would like to share with us?

Harry – On Sunday, October 16th, I’ll be on a mystery panel at the Great Lakes Independent Booksellers Association trade show in Dearborn, Michigan (www.gliba.org/tradeshow.php). And on Sunday, November 13th, I’ll be at Writers on the River at the Monroe County Library in Monroe, Michigan. You can find more information on my website: www.harrydolan.com/events.html.


Marce – How do you deal with social networking, bloggers, interaction with fans, etc?

Harry – I don’t have a blog myself, but I’ve been fortunate to have a number of bloggers take an interest in my books and post reviews. I’m on Facebook (facebook.com/harrydolanauthor) and Twitter (@HarryCDolan), and I like communicating with readers on both those sites. But most of my interaction with readers has been on book tours and through email. My email address is readily available on my website (www.harrydolan.com), and it’s always great to hear from people who enjoy the books. The best messages are the ones from people who stayed up long into the night because they couldn’t put the book down; that’s about the highest compliment you can get. Occasionally I get friendly notes letting me know about mistakes I’ve made. For example, there’s a scene in Bad Things Happen where two of the characters are looking up at the night-time sky, and they see the constellation Orion’s Belt. More than one reader has written in to let me know that they wouldn’t be able to see that particular constellation at the time of year when the scene takes place. To take another example, there’s a scene in Very Bad Men in which some characters pick up a turtle to save it from being run over in the street, and then without washing their hands they eat bagels. I got an email from a reader who wanted to let me know that handling a turtle that way is an invitation to salmonella poisoning -- something I’d never thought of. So those kinds of emails are always fun to get.


Marce – Do you feel pressure on writing a book that could become a movie?

Harry – I find that you can’t think about that while you’re writing. There’s already enough pressure to make the book as good as it can be on its own terms, without worrying about whether it might eventually be made into a movie. As it turns out, Bad Things Happen has been optioned by a screenwriter who loved the book and is working on a screenplay. It’s an exciting development, but I’m trying to take a realistic view of the whole process. The option is just a first step, and there’s a long road to be traveled from book to screen. And the fact is that most books that are optioned are never made into films; it’s very challenging to get a film made. But it’ll be interesting to see what happens.


Thank you so much Harry, it was great to get to know you and I look forward to reading Very Bad Men soon.  You are already one of my favourite Mystery/Thriller authors.


The Giveaways for Thrill Week

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Winner will be chosen and announced on Friday







Tuesday, September 6, 2011

Teaser Tuesday - April Pohren


Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along!

Just do the following to participate:
Grab your current read
Open to a random page
Share two (2) 'teaser' sentences from somewhere on that page
BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS!
Share the title &; author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

Teaser from Kindle

Glancing in the mirror above the sink, she feels shivers ripple along her body.  The thoughts of what she saw that morning, in that same mirror, begin to make her head pound. 


Book Summary from Amazon


Sandy has a perfectly normal life. A house that she loves, a job that she loves and nothing but a bright future ahead of her. All that changes, however, when unexplainable things begin to happen to her. Nightmares of unspeakable terror grip her and what occurs within those dreams, cross over onto real life. Will she be able to survive the grip of death within her dreams, or will the dreams win? 

Dream Me to Death is a mix of paranormal and horror sure to hold readers at the edge of their seat until the very end.



I am pleased to feature April's Digital Short.  Do you know who April is....  She is a blogger and her blog is Cafe of Dreams
April is Thrill Weeks featured host tomorrow, make sure to go over and visit.


April Pohren has been an avid reader and aspiring writer since she was old enough to hold a pencil and could read. This passion turned into the venture of her book review blog Cafe of Dreams Book Reviews where she shares many books of varying genres, author interviews, guest posts, book reviews, Virtual Tours and several of other fun things. The newest adventure has been becoming a Tour Coordinator for Partners In Crime Tours. Dream Me to Death is April's first digital short to be published with Trestle Press.

When not reading, reviewing and writing, April works as a freelance writer in between refereeing her two young children and preventing them from doing bodily harm to one another. April resides in Iowa with her husband, two children, three dogs and two cats. Yes, never a dull moment.




My Review - 4 Great to the last Drop


I enjoy digital shorts when you are in between books, unsure of what to read next, they are perfect. 


Dream me to death is the perfect title.  Sandy is an editor and is wondering if the book she is editing is getting to her, is the story to scary for her to edit or is she allowing her emotions and reality to mess with her head. 


Does the author just write horrors or does he make them reality without the reader knowing.  


April gives a gripping psychological thriller that is edgy and its possible you will have nightmares, oops, I mean dreams after reading....... wink wink



Monday, September 5, 2011

Thrill Week Giveaways from Kaye Publicity



Thanks to all that are participating during Thrill Week, Featured Blogging Host's, I appreciate your work.

I would like to thank Dana, Virtual Assistant from Kaye Publicity for offering the following books to you, good luck.

Giveaway's - Will choose on Thursday, end of Thrill Week.


DEATH NOTICE by Todd Ritter
RUNNING DARK by Jamie Freveletti
BOCA KNIGHTS by Steven M. Forman



Death Notice

From Publishers Weekly

Unusually interesting people encounter unusually ghastly murders in New Jersey journalist Ritter's engaging debut. Single-mom police chief Kat Campbell of peaceful Perry Hollow, Pa., is shocked to find a local farmer's corpse left by the side of the road in a homemade coffin, his lips sewn together and his veins pumped full of formaldehyde. Meanwhile, Henry Goll, reclusive obituary writer for the Perry Hollow Gazette, is startled to realize that the man's death notice was faxed to him before the murder. Evidently, one of the townsfolk is a clever homicidal maniac who enjoys playing mind games. The murderer keeps nimbly ahead of his pursuers, even after Nick Donnelly, a state cop obsessed with serial killers, arrives on the scene. The action verges on pulp fiction melodrama, until a fiery conclusion that fully lives up--or down--to that standard. Even then, however, Ritter treats his main characters--sympathetic, believably vulnerable people--with respect. 

Running Dark


From Publishers Weekly

Freveletti rummages in the thriller pantry and comes up with an armful of standard ingredients for her unremarkable second novel featuring chemist Emma Caldridge (after Running from the Devil). Shortly after Emma is blown off her feet by a car explosion while running in a South African ultramarathon, a stranger injects her arm with a drug, then disappears. Emma recovers and finishes the 55mile race in record time. To solve this mystery, she turns to her friend Edward Banner, head of Darkview, an American security company. The cast of characters eventually includes a Somali pirate, Khalil Mungabe; his boss, "The Vulture"; Richard Stark, CEO of the shady Price Pharmaceuticals; and Emma's love interest, Cameron Sumner, a private security agent aboard the cruise liner Kaiser Franz. The action heats up once Emma gets on the liner and starts battling Somali pirates, but weak plotting and contrived situations make it hard to suspend disbelief. 


Boca Knights

From Publishers Weekly
Formans debut, an offbeat crime novel, introduces Eddie Perlmutter, a tough Jewish Boston cop, who has had conversations since age 11 with his penis (Hey, check me out. I can stand, I heard one night in bed). In his late 50s, retired from the Boston force and suffering from arthritis, Perlmutter begins a new life in Boca Raton, Fla., where he soon steps on the toes of the local Russian mafia, falls for a nurse who happens to resemble actress Halle Berry and looks into the murder of golfer Robert Goldenblatt. Found in his garage with a four-iron embedded in his forehead, Goldenblatt was apparently the victim of a dispute over country-club politics. While the books overall silliness and lack of credible characters, not to mention the absurd solution to Goldenblatts demise, will put off some readers, those with a cockeyed sense of humor will find much to like in this parody of a cop caper.


1 winner will win all 3 books

Each additional winner will choose their book

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