I'd like to take this opportunity to thank you all for your support through out the year and to wish you a very 'Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year'.
I hope you have all enjoyed reading Writers and Authors this year and that you continue to visit and comment in 2010.
Blurb: It's a modern prodigal son story set in Jacksonville, FL, USA about a worldly young man, Ward McNulty, who has abandoned his Catholic family values in his pursuit of fame and fortune.
The novel falls in the Catholic thriller-suspense genre. To read more about it, you can log onto the website http://outskirtspress.com/insight and from there go to the many five star reviews.
About Gerard D. Webster
Gerard Webster has been a Peace Corps volunteer, a soldier, a businessman, and an addictions counselor. Most of all: he’s a husband to his wife, Anne, and a father to their 5 children. He lives with his wife in Jacksonville, Florida.
Gaea is available on Amazon.com -- http://www.amazon.com/Gaea-Robina-Williams/dp/1606191837/ref=ntt_at_ep_dpi_2
Summary:
Gaea, the earth goddess, fed up with the damage Man is doing, decides to teach him a lesson. She ropes in her relatives to help her… and three-headed Cerberus, the hell hound, tags along too. Quant, golden-eyed seraph and quantum cat, is there to keep an eye on them all.
Author bio:
Robina Williams has an M.A. in Modern Languages from Oxford University and an M.Phil. in English Literature from Liverpool University. It occurred to her that Schrödinger's dead-and-alive Cat would make a useful character for fantasy novels. Gaea is the third book in her Quantum Cat series.
In your beginning—yes, in your beginning, God thought of you, and He loved you.
A tiny seed grows into a majestic tree. A small caterpillar flutters from the cocoon as a beautiful butterfly. A fragile egg cradles the new life of a baby robin. And a much-loved child is nurtured within a mother’s womb. Beginnings is a fresh new way to teach children about the value of life at every stage. Gorgeous illustrations take little ones through all of the wondrous beginnings of God’s creations—a seed becomes a pine tree, a yellow blossom becomes a tomato, a spring becomes a river. Beginnings emphasizes the value of human life by reassuring children that God has loved them all along, from the very beginning.
Review: Beginnings, a pro-life picture book for preschoolers and up: http://new.catholicmom.com/2009/05/25/in-the-beginning-new-childrens-book-looks-at-wondrous-beginnings/
About the Author: Lori Ann Watson studied elementary education in Texas. She taught first, second, and fifth grades and was named County Teacher of the Year before becoming a full-time mother and Catholic writer. She and her husband have three young children
The Window to my Soul; My Walk With Jesus By Tannia E. Ortiz-Lopés
*A BOOK OF MEDITATIVE DEVOTIONS AND FREE-STYLE INSPIRATIONAL POETRY, *
Voted “2006 Best Poetry Book” by www.christianstoryteller.com
The book is the author’s profession of her love for Jesus and of thanks to God for the many gifts and talents that He has given her. It also expresses her deep gratitude for God's sending His only begotten Son to die for her sins and allowing her and many more to find peace in Christ and an open door back to heaven. It is a total surrender to the teachings and guidance of the Holy Spirit during the study of the Scriptures. These poems and reflections are the author's way of pouring out her heart and soul while meditating on God's Word and the marvelous daily miracles in her life.
The book can be purchased directly from the publisher at www.tatepublishing.com and at all major online stores.
About the Author:
Tannia E. Ortiz-Lopés is an author, a book reviewer, a song-writer, and interviewer by profession, a mother by choice, and a wife by the covenant of marriage. She was born in Guayama, Puerto Rico and currently lives in Germany with her husband and two sons.
For more information about the author, visit her at: timewithtannia.tripod.com, www.myspace.com/tanniaortizlopes and www.shoutlife.com/tanniaortizlopes
The Ice Chorus By Sarah StonichBook Trailer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1DR9LztWKpc
Blurb: "After her affair with a painter, documentary filmmaker Lise Dupre's life has unraveled. She leaves Toronto for the remote Irish coast to consider her future, and heal. In a seaside village of characters, she's embraced by the Conners', whose wholehearted charm and colourful stories inspire her to pick up the camera once again, to record their lives and loves. Discovery of a devastating family secret in the Conners' past makes Lise realize that to tell the stories of others, she must first tell her own.
Review:
Booklist In this tender, elegantly told love story, Liselle flees her native Toronto for a small village on the Irish coast. As she slowly incorporates herself into the lives of the villagers, Liselle recreates the circumstances surrounding the bitter breakup of her 18-year marriage. While accompanying her workaholic husband on an archaeological dig in Mexico she met Charlie, a gifted painter. When he mounts an exhibit of eight shockingly intimate portraits, she is forced to make a decision. Stonich effortlessly conjures multiple vivid settings and uncommonly interesting characters even as she moves seamlessly between the past and present. A subtle, lovely evocation of the transforming power of love.
Title: Rise Of The Darkness Author: C.A.Milson Website: www.authorcamilson.com ISBN: 978-1-4092-8136-8
Synopsis: From the time that the Darkness ruled the ancient tribes, The Elders prophesied of a time when a descendant of The Gods would arise. Tonight, in the town of Winmont, an Ancient Legion has been awoken to finish what they started many millennia ago. Now, the fate of humanity is in the hands of One, but can he overcome the forces that dare to challenge the bloodline of the Gods?
Alex Manning is The One. Born of a heritage that was once a powerful civilization before it was destroyed by the Giants that once walked among men. Now tonight, in a small town, after thousands of years of being bound in the Dark Realm, the Ancient Darkness has been unleashed, and they set about to finish what was begun. Only Alex can stop the Dark Forces from destroying this town, but will he fulfil his own tests and sacrifice his life for those would seek to betray him?
Sensitivity 101 for the Heterosexual Male. By Philip Nork
Publisher: AuthorHouse
ISBN: PB 9781438967446
HC 9781438967455
Pages: 252
Available at www.amazon.com and www.barnesandnobles.com and on my website www.philipnork.com
E-book only available at www.authorhouse.com
Genre: Fiction/Relationships and reality memoirs
Synopsis: Follow a young boy thru the challenging journey of self-discovery, and his yearning to become the “real” yet sensitive man he longs to be. But as he discovers…a good thing used the wrong way has its dire consequences. A “highly entertaining and unique trip back in time” says Editor Cliff Carle.
“Women will want to have someone like Phil enter their life, while men will wish they were more like him. Either way, all will be thoroughly entertained.”
“Sensitivity 101 for the Heterosexual Male is reflections of a discovery of self and the quest for acceptance and finding happiness. If you like memoirs that are honest, different and give you a peek into behind closed doors, this is a read for you.” Authors Promoting Authors.
Purchasing Information: http://tinyurl.com/CMFKamazon or direct from publisher at http://www.archebooks.com/BookIDX/Indexes/Fantasy/CMFK/CMFKDesc.htm
The video trailer is at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M9pWKLAiyWc
This novel is about Girl Power Fantasy, but without the feminist agenda. There's no doubt: Chariss is in danger. Her geasa is hampered by the effects of a friend's marriage. The dashing Nigel Taiman hides something from her, yet demands she stay at his family's estate where he and her wizard guardian intend to keep her safe. But the sorcerer Lord Jamieson Drake and Julette the Betrayer know she's there, and their monstrous army marches that way. When prophecies stack up to threaten an arrogant deity, Chariss must choose between the dragon that courts her and the ostracized kings of the Southlands for help. Evil stalks her at every turn and madness creeps over the goddess who guides her. Can an orphan-turned-Protector resist the dark side of her heritage? Or will she sacrifice all to keep her god-charge safe?
The intense sequel Choices Meant for Kings has just been released at http://www.archebooks.com and http://tinyurl.com/CMFKamazon.
More information--meet characters, excerpt, reviews at: http://joyceanthony.tripod.com/
Back Cover Text
What do a prostitute, an abused child, a disillusioned minister, a Vietnam Vet and a homosexual have in common? These and many others find their lives changed when they meet Storm and his companion, an amethyst-eyed dog named Maggie.
As you follow Storm on his journey to discover his true identity, you will meet many of society’s forgotten people. You will laugh, cry and get angry—whatever the emotion, you will feel deeply.
When Storm realizes who he is and why he is here, the world is completely changed and not one soul remains untouched. Upon closing the covers of this book, you will see the world around you in a far different light and find yourself wondering—is it really fiction?
The Best Selling Toy of the Season By Elaine Cantrell
Blurb: Who’d want to be Nikki Lane? Sure, she’s beautiful, but her family isn’t much. She isn’t married either, and supporting her two boys on a minimum wage job has cost her more than one sleepless night.
Tommy Price is everything Nikki isn’t. He lives on James Street, the best street in town. Naturally, his rich, influential family has a suitable woman picked out for him to marry.
Tommy and Nikki’s two diverse worlds literally collide one evening at the discount store where Nikki works, giving both of them a glimpse into a life they never knew existed.
Can the growing attraction between them bridge the vast gulf which separates them, or will their romance end before it even begins?
Review: The Best Selling Toy of the Season
Tommy Price is a wealthy attorney from a prominent family. When he goes to Super Mart a few days before Christmas, he is simply shopping for a gag gift for a party. He doesn’t expect to accidentally trip over a lovely woman in his path and break her Christmas presents. Nikki Lane is a single mother and an employee of Super Mart. She has been saving for months to buy her boys the toy that Tommy just broke. It is the one hot toy of the holiday season, and there are no more to be found for purchase anywhere. When Tommy shows up at her door a couple of days later with replacements and an invitation to dinner for her and the boys, she is charmed beyond belief.
Nikki and Tommy find an immediate connection in spite of their differences in background and social status and are utterly taken with each other. Their families, however, have a different opinion. Tommy’s family is of the opinion that Nikki is trailer trash and a fortune hunter, Nikki’s cousin Dan warns her that Tommy just wants to get her in bed before he dumps her, and her mother pushes her to demand marriage. Tommy refuses to listen to this – he loves Nikki and plans to marry her. Nikki, however, is much more susceptible to family pressure and the murmurs and gossip she hears among Tommy’s social circle. She doesn’t want to let him go, but how can she allow Tommy to ruin his reputation by marrying someone as socially backwards as herself?
Elaine Cantrell’s The Best Selling Toy of the Season is a sweet seasonal romance in which the hero and heroine attempt to navigate the huge social and financial gap between them. This contrast between the two seems to be a popular theme in romantic fiction – the rich and handsome hero sweeps the poor waif off her feet and she miraculously fits into his life. The Best Selling Toy of the Season takes a slightly different angle and shows exactly how ill-prepared such a heroine would be for such a dramatic and sudden change in circumstances. This gives a refreshing injection of realism into the Cinderella theme. The story is well-written and plotted if somewhat slow-moving, and it features two main characters who are sympathetic enough to make the reader care what happens to them. Both Nikki and Tommy are genuinely nice people. Even though Tommy purposely turns a blind eye to potential difficulties that his romance with Nikki may cause and Nikki has something of a chip on her shoulder, the reader can’t help but root for a happy ending for these two. Readers loving a rags-to-riches tale should find The Best Selling Toy of the Season just up their alley.
Following last years success, The Christmas Wish List is back!
Throughout the month of December I will be featuring a different book each day. The aim of this project is to give ideas for books as Christmas gifts. As we all know a book lasts a lot longer than a box of chocolates, is more entertaining than a tie, costs less than a diamond and one can be found for all tastes.
You will find a wide range of genres by a variety of authors. A little something for everyone.