Cold Rock River by Jackie Lee Miles

Paperback: 320 pages
Publisher: Cumberland House Publishing (October 1, 2008)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1581826680
ISBN-13: 978-1581826685

About the book:

In 1963 rural Georgia, with the Vietnam War cranking up, pregnant, seventeen-year-old Adie Jenkins discovers the diary of pregnant, seventeen-year-old Tempe Jordan, a slave girl, circa 1963, with the Civil War well under way.

This is one of the most beautifully written stories I have read in a long time. This is actually two stories in one - that of Adie Jenkes and Tempe Jordan. Adie Jenkins hasn't had an easy life. After losing her sister at a young age to an accident her whole world seems to have fallen apart. Her relationship with her father will never be the same, and even though she takes the brunt of the blame for her sister's death, she knows deep down that her father was even more at fault than she was - in more ways than one. So, when Buck Jenkins starts to treat her nice, she jumps at the chance. Before you know it she is pregnant and living in Hog Gap with his mother and disabled brother.

Thanks to Murphy Spencer they get a "shack" to live in before the baby is born. Buck can't be bothered with it - he's too busy chasing after Imelda Jane, the daughter of the store owner where he works. Thankfully Adie meets Willa Mae - the black woman who lives in the nearby cabin. She is a wonderful friend and she eventually shows Adie the diary of Tempe Jordan - a young black woman living during the times of slavery and The Civil War. Adie becomes engrossed in the journal, even after the birth of Grace Annie and the departure of Buck to the military. There is just something that doesn't seem to add up - who is Heart in relation to Willa Mae? And what happened to her children - why were they drowned? And why are the pages at the end of the journal missing?

This story was so wonderfully woven, even if it was somewhat predictable that was ok. The characters were so warm and charming and you really can relate to all of them - even the ones you would love to hate. This is a book that I would highly recommend!

About the author:

J.L. (Jackie Lee) Miles, a resident of Georgia since 1975, hails from Wisconsin via South Dakota. She considers herself "a northern girl with a southern heart." Her paternal grandfather was christened Grant Lee by her great-grandmother in honor of the many fallen soldiers on both sides of the Mason-Dixon line. Ms. Miles is a former D.I.A.L. Systems Engineer for Baker/Audio Telecom, one of the premier forerunners of voice mail. In addition to systems application, she provided voice tracks for several major companies, including Delta Airlines and Frito-Lay Corporation.

COLD ROCK RIVER VIRTUAL BOOK TOUR '08 will officially begin on October 1 and end on October 30. You can visit J.L.'s blog stops at www.virtualbooktoursforauthors.wordpress.com in October to find out more about her latest book!
As a special promotion for all our authors, Pump Up Your Book Promotion is giving away a FREE virtual book tour to a published author or a $50 Amazon gift certificate to those not published who comments on our authors' blog stops. More prizes will be announced as they become available. The winner(s) will be announced on our main blog at www.pumpupyourbookpromotion.wordpress.com on October 30!

Easy Entertaining for Beginners by Patricia Mendez

Paperback: 176 pages
Publisher: Maple Heights Press (August 1, 2008)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0979956404
ISBN-13: 978-0979956409

About the book:

Readers don’t have to be gourmet chefs or nervous wrecks to host casual at-home entertaining. Beginners will have all of their questions answered, from what to serve to what to do. Included are 13 delicious complete menus with easy-to-follow recipes, full color photographs, ideas for music, activities and drinks. Checklists ease readers step-by-step through every phase of planning, preparation, and presentation. Readers will gain confidence and have a terrific time putting together successful celebrations.

There are not too many things in this world that I enjoy doing more than reading. But, cooking just might be one of them. There is something so satisfying about creating a menu, buying the ingredients, doing the prep work, cooking the meal and then serving it to the people you have made it for. Patricia Mendez has created a fantastic book for the beginner cook, to someone more "seasoned" (no pun intended). With her fantastic menus, easy preparation instructions, detailed instructions on what to do and when, she makes it almost impossible to fail!

I know that I am more than anxious to have the opportunity to try out one of the menus she has created in her book. I may end up with A LOT of leftovers due to the fact that we have recently moved and don't really know anyone, but that won't stop me. Why do you need a large group of people to decorate your house - I know my family is certainly worth entertaining.

This book would make a great gift for someone, or for yourself. One of my favorites of the year!

About the author:


Join Patricia Mendez, author of the entertainment and cooking book, Easy Entertaining for Beginners (Maple Heights Press, Aug. '08), as she virtually tours the blogosphere in October on her first virtual book tour with Pump Up Your Book Promotion!Patricia Mendez has catered and coordinated special events in the Los Angeles area since the early 1990’s. Her experience also includes coordinating a Mothers of Preschoolers (MOPS) community group for three years and working with women of all ages as a Director of Women’s Ministries for eight years. She met many “new nesters” who had the desire to entertain family and friends, but lacked know-how and experience. It was for this audience that she wrote her first book, EASY ENTERTAINING FOR BEGINNERS.

She has taught many cooking classes and currently teaches “Easy Entertaining for Beginners” cooking classes for novice hosts/hostesses in Torrance, CA. She speaks/teaches at women’s groups and has written articles/menus for website newsletters. She was recently a guest chef at Torrance Citicable Channel Community Cooking Show, airing in October 2008.

When Patricia is not writing or teaching, she is a home chef who loves to throw fun parties!

You can visit her website at www.ezentertaining.net or her blog at www.ezentertaining.blogspot.com.

If you would like to see your blog here and have it specially promoted during Patricia's virtual book tour in October, email us! Deadline is Sept. 30.EASY ENTERTAINING FOR BEGINNERS VIRTUAL BOOK TOUR '08 will officially begin on October 1 and end on October 30. You can visit Patricia's blog stops at www.virtualbooktoursforauthors.wordpress.com in October to find out more about her latest book!As a special promotion for all our authors, Pump Up Your Book Promotion is giving away a FREE virtual book tour to a published author or a $50 Amazon gift certificate to those not published who comments on our authors' blog stops. More prizes will be announced as they become available. The winner(s) will be announced on our main blog at www.pumpupyourbookpromotion.wordpress.com on October 30!

A Jolly Good Fellow by Stephen Masse

Paperback: 220 pages
Publisher: Good Harbor Press; 1st edition (November 26, 2007)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 097996380X
ISBN-13: 978-0979963803

About the book:

Two weeks before Christmas, Duncan Wagner gets into his car for another attempt at kidnapping the son of his most despised enemy, State Representative Win Booker. When he drives into the wealthy Boston suburb, he is surprised to find the boy hitchhiking.So begins Wagner’s quest for revenge as he finds himself face to face with a real boy, and without a clue about how to run a kidnapping. Wagner, a self-styled charity Santa Claus, comes to realize that eleven year old Gabriel Booker is truly a runaway, much more curious than scared. Gabriel has no idea who Duncan Wagner is—or could be.

This was an entertaining book to read for me on a few levels. First, the main characters, Duncan and Gabriel, are written in such a way that I found it very easy to develop a mental picture of what these two looked like.

Second, the relationship that develops between them is written brilliantly. The caring and trust that they have for each other isn't rushed into, rather developsed throughout the book, making it quite believable.

Last, the story itself is a very interesting premise. Street corner Santa, petty thief turned kidnampper, kidnapper turned friend/confidant. All this set in New England during the holidays. Very interesting indeed. I did feel that the ending was a bit sensational and somewhat unbelievable, but all in all I enjoyed reading this book.

About the author:

Stephen V. Masse was born in Boston, Massachusetts. Educated at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst, he studied creative writing and historical biography, and was the author of a weekly column, "Out of Control." His first novel, Shadow Stealer, was published by Dillon Press in 1988. When not writing, he restores and renovates homes in the Boston area, and serves as an ambassador each year in the Santa Claus Anonymous fundraising benefit. You can visit his website at www.ajollygoodfellowthebook.com. You can also learn more about him at www.stephenvmasse.com.

WIN!

A JOLLY GOOD FELLOW VIRTUAL BLOG TOUR '08 will officially begin on October 1 and end on October 30. You can visit Stephen's blog stops at www.virtualbooktoursforauthors.wordpress.com in October to find out more about his new book!

As a special promotion for all our authors, Pump Up Your Book Promotion is giving away a FREE virtual book tour to a published author or a $50 Amazon gift certificate to those not published who comments on our authors' blog stops. More prizes will be announced as they become available.

The winner(s) will be announced on our main blog at www.pumpupyourbookpromotion.wordpress.com on October 30!

Belly of the Whale by Linda Merlino

Hardcover: 208 pages
Publisher: Kunati Inc. (April 1, 2008)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1601640188
ISBN-13: 978-1601640185

Excerpt from the back of the book:
Hudson Catalina has given up—having lost both breasts to cancer, she is emotionally and physically exhausted, no longer willing to endure the nausea and crushing weakness of her grueling treatment. Nothing in her life—not even her beloved husband and children, her best friend, or her passion for teaching high school—will sway her decision to terminate her treatment. On the eve of her daughter's fifth birthday celebration, a troubled former student confronts her, hell-bent on violent revenge and then suicide. Facing certain peril, Hudson vows to do whatever she must in order to survive and see her husband and children once again.

Hudson Catalina is up against "the beast" - that is what she calls the cancer that has taken both of her breasts and is threatening to take her life. She has already lost her grandmother and mother to this awful disease, and even though she has fought hard, she is ready to give up and give in. In the midst of a raging New England blizzard, she decides she is going to go and visit Ruby Desmond, the owner of Whales Market, to pick up some supplies she needs to celebrate her daughters fifth birthday, quite likely the last she will celebrate with her. While there she encounters trouble in the likes of Buddy Baker, the town hoodlum. Buddy is truly armed and dangerous, and it is unsure whether any of them will get out alive.

I don't believe in spoiling the fun for everyone, but this one got a grip and wouldn't let go. Whether the breast cancer was front and center, or the drama among the family, or the terror that encounters the participants at the market, the author has a wonderful ability to keep you on the edge of your seat waiting for what is to come. Excellent job!

About the author:

Life is our daily teacher. One lesson begets another and then another.

Once-upon-a-time life kicked me off my writer's path and led me to pursue a more practical profession. My childhood dream of becoming a journalist was silenced.

Years later, I became a single parent, not by choice but by necessity, and my most trustworthy partner became a ballpoint. The fiction in my head turned into words on yellow legal pad. I wrote anywhere, any time, on my dining room table, and on my lunch hour. No place was my sacred space. I wrote in my car during soccer practices, under an umbrella on rain drenched sidelines, in fast food restaurants and in chain hotels. I wrote during championship after championship in cities and states, from Jersey to Phoenix.

The quieted yearning to be a writer reawakened onto the pages of a novel. My first was self-published after five years of juggling work, kids and day-to-day. A flawed but beautiful story emerged onto paper and "Swan Boat Souvenir" enjoyed local acclaim and success.

I knew there was more to do, more to write and that the next book would be published traditionally, that the next manuscript would have the benefit of an editor and the advice of professionals. After months of writing, Belly of the Whale went from paper, to computer, to draft after draft and finally into the arms of Kunati Publishers.

My children are grown. My passion to write remains a constant. Each book I complete is dedicated to the magic of believing in my dream, to my son and to my daughters.

You can also find out more at www.lindamerlino.com