Four Before Their Time by Timothy Spillane Book Feature

November is "National Prematurity Awareness Month" (Nov. 17 is "World Prematurity Day").There are nearly a half million babies born prematurely in this country every year. 

Title: Four Before Their Time
Author: Timothy Spillane
Publisher: Skitterbird, LLC
Pages: 342
Genre: Memoir
Format: Paperback/Kindle

Anne had it all. She was a physician, an Army officer, and a great wife. She'd be a great mom, too. But the joy of pregnancy is short-lived after an ultrasound reveals that Anne isn't just pregnant, she's really pregnant - with quadruplets! Now her dad, Tim Spillane, is a grandfather four times over, and much too soon. Just 24 weeks into her pregnancy, Anne delivered, and not one of Tim's grandkids weighs more than half a mug of coffee. So underdeveloped that even calling them babies feels wrong, the odds of just one of them surviving - let alone all four - are heartbreakingly low. And even if the children pull through, they face the likelihood of disabilities so severe that they'd have no real quality of life. It all seems hopeless until Tim's wife observes that just seeing the quads is like "being allowed a glimpse into the miracle that grows in a mother's womb." Four Before Their Time is the true story of four babies surviving on a razor's edge, one mom's overwhelming and guilt-ridden entrance into parenthood, and an entire family's experiences with extreme premature birth. It will take all the faith, hope, and resilience the Spillane family can muster - along with more than a few miracles - just to get the quadruplets home.

For More Information

• Four Before Their Time is available at Amazon.

Tim and his wife live in Chester County, PA and are the parents of three daughters. They became grandparents when their daughter, Anne delivered quadruplets in April, 2010. A graduate of Colorado College (1979) with a degree in English Literature, Tim returned to school to earn his Masters of Public Health from Drexel University in 2005. He has worked in residential construction for more than three decades but is now focusing full-time on his writing. He currently serves on the executive board of Graham's Foundation, an organization for parents and families going through the journey of prematurity. 

For More Information

• Visit Timothy Spillane’s website.
• Connect with Timothy on Facebook.

Behind the Taffeta Curtain by Verne Castress Book Feature

Title: Behind the Taffeta Curtain
Author: Verne Castress
Publisher: iUniverse
Pages: 102
Genre: Women's Fiction
Format: Paperback/Kindle

 Clair, a small-town girl attending Iowa State University in 1940, has her palm read for a laugh—and gets a surprisingly specific prediction about her career, marriage, and children. She laughs it off, with no idea of how accurate it will turn out to be. After a failed romance, she hastily marries a man named John, has two children, and very soon finds herself miserable. John is not only abusive and controlling, but also a compulsive gambler. In an effort to support their family, Clair finds work in a nearby department store, and her career in fashion begins. In the sixties and seventies, Clair works her way up through the industry, chipping away at the glass ceiling of a field with far fewer women executives than the ad firms of Madison Avenue at the time. As an executive buyer for numerous retail conglomerates, she travels the globe searching for innovative fashions and meets regularly with iconic designers such as Coco Chanel, Yves Saint Laurent, and Oscar de la Renta. Among the fashion elite living the high life, there are steamy affairs, drugs, and suicides, as tragic elements mark the lives of these women in fashion whose insecurity remains hidden beneath their stoicism. This novel tells the story of Clair’s journey through the fashion world, a single mother contending with the conniving wiles of men and women and facing obstacles in the devious, behind-the-scenes political struggle of those climbing to the top.

Verne Castress retired following a forty-five-year career as a fashion executive, for which she traveled the world in search of innovative fashions for the American market. The mother of two adult children, she currently lives in Scottsdale, Arizona.

GIVEAWAY

Tom is giving away one $25 Amazon Gift Card!

Terms & Conditions:

• By entering the giveaway, you are confirming you are at least 18 years old.
• One winner will be chosen via Rafflecopter.
• This giveaway begins November 10 and ends November 21.
• Winner will be contacted via email on Monday, November 24.
• Winner has 48 hours to reply.

Good luck everyone!

ENTER TO WIN!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Impure by J.R. Bailey Book Feature

Title: Impure
Author: J.R. Bailey
Publisher: iUniverse
Pages: 272
Genre: Fantasy
Format: Ebook
Purchase at AMAZON

 "As darkness spills down from the north and stains all it touches with sin, a den of vampires known as the Great Citadel reaches out with its snaking hands. A change in the winds is signified by the death of an emperor—and the time for retribution has come. No one desires vengeance more than Koristad Altessor, a young necromancer and son of the legendary Black Guardian. Although it has been nearly twenty years since the Vampire King murdered his father, stole his throne, and then unleashed barbarians upon the defenseless villages of the foothills, Koristad’s thirst to kill the evil king remains unquenched. As he relentlessly searches for the monster and attempts to protect those he loves, Koristad’s own legend begins to take shape. With the powerful Executor Blade in hand, he sets his sights upon the Great Citadel and the Vampire King. But now only time will tell if he is prepared for the terrible secrets he may find there. In this continuing tale, a child of darkness instigates a mission of revenge against the lord of all vampires—a conflict destined to shake the very pillars of hell and test him in ways he never imagined."

   

J. R. Bailey began writing as a child after his first encounter with a typewriter and has never stopped. He is an eccentric dreamer who spends more time exploring the worlds of his imagination than the one at his fingertips. J. R. currently resides in southern Nebraska.

J.R. is giving away a $25 Amazon Gift Card!

Terms & Conditions:

• By entering the giveaway, you are confirming you are at least 18 years old.
• One winner will be chosen via Rafflecopter to receive one $25 Amazon Gift Certificate or Paypal Cash.
• This giveaway begins September 1 and ends on September 13.
• Winners will be contacted via email on Monday, September 16.
• Winner has 48 hours to reply.

Good luck everyone!

ENTER TO WIN!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Guest post from Natsuya Uesugi, author of grydscaen

ABOUT GRYDSCAEN

Title: grydscaen
Genre: Science Fiction/Fantasy
Author: Natsuya Uesugi
Publisher: Xlibris
EBook: 288 pages
Release Date: July 21, 2011

 Follow the lives of the main characters as they come together in the backstory to grydscaen:retribution, the first volume of the grydscaen saga. Faid is tired of life on the run in the Echelons, trying to keep his psychic power in check, he founds the Packrats establishing a safe haven for psychics. As a hacker he uses his jack to support his neurocyne habit. Lino is recruited by the Psi Faction and is sent on a mission to kidnap Faid. Riuho, Lino’s half brother becomes a prisoner of the Elite military and they experiment on him, train him and subject him to mind control, then send him out on a mission. On his return, Riuho is set on escaping and recruits Faid who hacks into the Psi Faction systems. They escape and return to the Packrats leading up to the start of grydscaen:retribution.

Xlibris

The grydscaen series which is set in 2055 in the near future is a microcosm of today’s society. Technology is pervasive and infiltrates the day to day lives of the people recounted in the book. The lead character of grydscaen is Ameliano “Lino” Dejarre who is the son of the Viceroy of the Pacific Territories and a prince. Lino is a clandestine psychic operative of the Psi Faction who’s job is to fight against cyber terrorism and the infiltrations of the Atlantea Federation which dropped the nuclear bomb called the Dionysis Effect on the Pacific Territories.

Lino and the psychic operatives of the Psi Faction are set against the Packrats which are seen as cyber terrorists by the government. The grydscaen series makes a commentary about freedom and anti government actions. Today we have activists and hackers standing up against oppression in various countries. I think that grydscaen gives voice to that fight and shows how things could happen in a world where there are less freedoms and the government rules everyday life.

Psychics are oppressed in grydscaen and I wanted to make a commentary about marginalized groups in society such as the transgender and gay community. LGBT youth also have to face bullying in schools and can have a difficult time adjusting to just being who they are. I wrote grydscaen to provide positive role models to today’s youth and show them that they can be different and still be respected. Bullying is a big problem today in person and online. I remember being bullied in high school for just being who I was and who I liked. This shaped who I am and I wrote grydscaen because I wanted to give back and let gay and trans kids know that they can be accepted for who they are.

The other topic that I touch on in grydscaen is mental health. There is stigma about mental illness that is pervasive in society. One of the grydscaen characters named Sati Ima has schizoaffective disorder but he is a pilot in the military. He just needs to take medication and otherwise he handles his symptoms. There are many people who deal with depression and other mental illnesses that take medication. There should be no stigma to that. I wanted to shed light on this and make it clear that people with mental illness can lead full and fulfilling lives and they should be treated with dignity and respect.

Grydscaen deals with difficult themes all rolled up into a science fiction backdrop. I also talk about LGBT homeless youth in the series as one of the characters Rom who is 16 years old lives on the streets. I wanted to detail the plights of homeless youth and give them a voice that is often not heard. Many people think this is just a problem in the inner cities but there are many cities where gay kids come out and tell their parents and then they are kicked out on the street, or for some reason or another they are running away from abusive situations. Homeless youth need a voice and I just wrote a grydscaen short story which is available on the grydscaen blog called “A Storm’s Coming” which is about Rom the homeless LGBT youth.

Grydscaen makes a commentary about life and marginalized groups in society. It calls for equal rights and equality like the marriage equality initiative that is getting media now. When I was in college I wished that I had strong LGBT role models that I could look up to who would have helped me find out more about who I am. I wrote the grydscaen series to provide this voice for those that might not feel that they were worthy of having a voice or had no means to speak up. Grydscaen shows that a gay teenager can have a position of power and rise up and make a change in his environment for the better. Lino is that character and the grydscaen series revolves around him. I wanted to give him a voice and tell about his struggles and his triumphs. Grydscaen is about respect and being recognized for your talents. I wanted to give back and grydscaen allows me to do that.

There are currently 4 books published in the grydscaen series: grydscaen: utopia, grydscaen: beginnings, grydscaen: retribution and grydscaen: war with a fifth book grydscaen: alliance due to be published this year. I hope that you would take a look at grydscaen and the positive message that it brings for today’s youth.

For more on grydscaen visit http://www.grydscaen.com