THE SECRET KEEPER, HOME TO HICKORY HOLLOW SERIES #4 by BEVERLY LEWIS

About Book:

Come home to Hickory Hollow, Pennsylvania--the beloved setting where Beverly Lewis's celebrated Amish novels began--with new characters and new stories of drama, romance, and the ties that draw people together.

Jennifer Burns shocks her family and friends when she bids farewell to her modern life in favor of the Old Order Amish world, settling in with Samuel and Rebecca Lapp.

The people of Hickory Hollow are curious about the beautiful young seeker among them--one handsome Amishman in particular--and Jenny faces many challenges in the Proving time the brethren set for her...challenges of the heart, as well as the spirit.

More about book: http://bakerpublishinggroup.com/books/the-secret-keeper/337690

Read Excerpt Here

About Author:

Beverly Lewis, born in the heart of Pennsylvania Dutch country, is the New York Times bestselling author of more than ninety books. Her stories have been published in eleven languages worldwide. A keen interest in her mother's Plain heritage has inspired Beverly to write many Amish-related novels, beginning with The Shunning, which has sold more than one million copies and was recently made into an Original Hallmark Channel movie. In 2007 The Brethren was honored with a Christy Award. She has been interviewed by both national and international media, including Time magazine, the Associated Press, and the BBC. Beverly lives with her husband, David, in Colorado.

Visit her Web site at www.beverlylewis.com for more information.


Bethany House Publishers Q & A with Beverly:

1. You are a regular on multiple bestseller lists, including the New York Times, and your books have been published in eleven languages—and counting. What do you think of your widespread popularity? Wowed—and humbled! I never imagined such a writing journey—or a reception from readers—after my first Amish novel, The Shunning, was released in 1997. Sharing God’s tremendous love through story is an opportunity I don’t take lightly, and I am so thankful for His hand of blessing on my work. My Plain relatives and friends have been surprised and pleased by the apparent desire for a less hectic way of life—and appreciation for the Amish—many of my readers have voiced over the years. 

2. Does Home to Hickory Hollow differ from your previous series? Yes! Home to Hickory Hollow is a collection of individual novels, unlike my prior series. While there are some repeating characters and a common setting that tie the books together, each novel is a complete story that readers can enjoy in any order they wish. 

3. What inspired your newest novel, The Secret Keeper? Years ago, I received a letter from a young woman who was eager to know what it would take for her as an Englisher to become Amish. Since then, I’ve received many other such letters from people with a similar hope, or with a longing to somehow share in the Old Ways. Those letters planted the compelling seed for this story. Jenny Burns, who gives up her modern life to become a seeker with the hope of becoming an Amish church convert, certainly wouldn’t have come to life without them! 

4. Tell us a little about The Secret Keeper. My main character is a twenty-five-year-old single Englisher named Jennifer Burns. Jenny shocks her family and friends when she bids farewell to her modern life in favor of the Old Order Amish world. The people of Hickory Hollow are naturally very curious about this beautiful young seeker who comes to live among them—one handsome Amishman in particular. Yet while Jenny delights in finally being able to live Plain, she faces many challenges in her Proving time. Like the other books in Home to Hickory Hollow, The Secret Keeper revisits the beloved setting of my very first Amish series, Heritage of Lancaster County. More than any other book in this series, though, The Secret Keeper offers a window into the lives of some of the most memorable characters from The Shunning and its sequels. For example, Jenny comes to live with Samuel and Rebecca Lapp, Katie’s adoptive parents, during the time of Jenny’s Proving. Rebecca is actually a viewpoint character with gripping secrets of her own, and even dear Katie makes several appearances, along with her husband, Daniel, and the rest of their darling family. The Secret Keeper definitely gives longtime fans a chance to catch up. And although this book is a wonderful read on its own, some are calling it another sequel to The Shunning! 

5. The concept of the Proving is very important to this book. What exactly is a Proving time and how long does it typically last? A Proving is the process through which an Englisher can become a member of an Amish church. The specific requirements vary, but during a Proving, a person separates from the English world, wears Plain dress, and learns and adopts the Old Ways—the community’s traditional cultural practices. This includes everything from attending Preaching services to practical matters like hitching up a horse to a buggy and learning to speak Pennsylvania Dutch. Potential converts are expected to reflect Gelassenheit—a compliant and submissive spirit— in all they do. If they succeed, they are baptized into the Amish church. A Proving time can last anywhere from six months to two years—the exact length is determined by the bishop and ministerial brethren in an individual church district. 

6. What are you currently working on? Well, right now I’m very busy writing The Last Bride, the fifth novel in Home to Hickory Hollow, as well as Child of Mine, a collaboration with my husband, David Lewis. The Last Bride will be released on April 1, 2014, and Child of Mine on June 3, 2014. 

7. You certainly have a lot going on! How can readers keep up with your work? There are many ways to stay in the loop! To sign up for my free newsletter, readers can visit my Facebook fan page, facebook.com/officialbeverlylewis, where I answer questions related to my writing life and the Amish tradition, or my website, beverlylewis.com. The website includes my monthly blog, book excerpts, delicious authentic Amish recipes, and news about my upcoming fall book tour, which will include library and bookstore events September 4-13 all over Kentucky and Indiana. I love this opportunity to connect with my readers!

My Thoughts 

Ever since Jennifer Burns was a young girl she has wanted to be Amish.  Friends and family never thought she would actually sneak away to join the Old Order Amish.  She is called a seeker in the Amish community and will have to go through a Proving time first.  

While staying with an Amish couple she meets their charming bachelor neighbor and the connection between the two is instant. Andrew Lapp feared he would never meet the woman he was to build his life with until he meets Jennifer. They both were pretty sure they would no tbe allowed to seek a future together so they became friends and tried to keep any other feeling buried. 

Beverly Lewis has never failed to entertain me with her writing.  This book was a perfect example of her unlimited talent.  I enjoyed revisiting characters from the previous novels and series writtten by Beverly along with being introduced to a new character from outside the Amish community, Jennifer Burns the seeker.  I am so excited to read THE LAST BRIDE book five in this series.  Beverly is on roll with this series!

I highly recommend this book.

I rated this book a 5 out of 5.

Disclosure: I received a free copy of this book from Bethany House/Baker Publishing for review.  I was in no way compensated for this review.  This review is my honest opinion. 

Q & A with Debra Chapoton Author of New Release SHELTERED

NEW RELEASE - SHELTERED !

In Debra Chapoton's latest Young Adult novel, SHELTERED, five troubled teens find themselves living together unsupervised and are confronted with demonic forces, compelling them to deal with their problems in distinctly different ways. Paranormal meets psycho meets Goth in this story of a supernatural haunting and budding love.

High school junior, Ben, hacks into his step-father's real estate holdings and provides rooms in an old two-story house to various outcasts: the schizophrenic kid, the angry Goth girl, and the homeless girl who adores him. When Megan needs a place to live she comes to the rooming house with a different set of problems and the ability to confuse and attract Ben.

One by one strange and mysterious occurrences stretch the teens’ beliefs in the supernatural. How they deal with demons, real and imagined, has tragic as well as redeeming consequences.

SHELTERED is a young adult novel for teens 14 and up.

Available now for Kindle, Nook, and in Paperback. Buy now!

DEBRA CHAPOTON, AUTHOR

Debra Chapoton enjoys writing Big Pine Lodge Books, as it allows her to combine two things she loves greatly: writing and providing wholesome lessons to kids. She holds a Master of Arts degree in Teaching English - something that came in useful as she now pursues her passion in writing. She started writing novels in 2002, and was surprised to find out that the characters quickly take over the action and dialogue in the stories. She tries to head the stories on a certain course, but the characters take control and often change its direction.

"That’s what makes writing fun and exciting," she explains. "I'm just as eager to find out what's going to happen next as you are." 

She now resides at the real Big Pine Lodge with her husband, Paul, where she enjoys the company of many other friends. 
Interested to learn more? Contact the author at bigpinelodge@gmail.com or follow her bloghere.

Please check out the Author's blog by clicking here.

Big Pine Lodge Books are authored by Debra Chapoton. Currently, Big Pine Lodge Books is offering two different types of fiction books - Young Adult Novels and Children's Books. Both types are full of adventure, mystery, and suspense and will draw readers in from the first page. In addition to fiction, Debra has authored a Christian Study Guide.

Big Pine Lodge Books are available at Amazon.com.

Q & A with Debra Chapoton

1. What books most influenced your writing? 
This is the hardest question to answer because I think that every single book I’ve ever read has taught me something about writing. If I have to pick two then I’ll say Dean Koontz’s “Intensity” and Dwight V. Swain’s “Techniques of the Selling Writer”.

2. What type of books do you mostly write and why?
I write Young Adult novels because the main characters are teenagers and I love that age group. I spent decades in a high school classroom so I have plenty of experiences to draw from and personality types to build on.

3. Do you have to travel much concerning your books? 
I’m not a good traveler; I get car sick. I love airplanes, but not airports, so I haven’t traveled out of state in quite a while.

4. Do your family and friends inspire any of your books’ characters or plots?
Absolutely. Embarrassing moments, family troubles, favorite sayings, humiliating events, funny situations, nicknames, habits . . . it all gets worked in.

5. Do you consider yourself a born writer? 
Sure, we all have different talents and abilities. I like words. I've had a thing for language, grammar, and writing for as long as I can remember.

6. Just for fun! What do you like to eat and drink while you are writing? 
Nothing. When I’m writing I go for hours without thinking of food, well, except for chocolate.

Thanks for the interview. I hope your readers will check out “Sheltered”.

Debra thank you so much for sharing about yourself 

and your new release SHELTERED! 

I am sure my readers will be anxious to check out SHELTERED! 

                                 

Author Q&A/Interview with Amber Argle: WITCH BORN (sequel) YA

About Book

Brusenna thought it was finished.

She defeated the Dark Witch, saving the Haven Witches from imprisonment and death. She found love and a place to belong.

She was wrong.

Haven is not the sanctuary it appears to be. Even love is in danger of slipping away like water through cupped hands.

Some things can't be saved.

A new threat merges with the old as the Witches’ dark history begins to catch up with them. Only Brusenna knows the extent of the danger and how to stop it, though doing so might cost her everything.

Including her life.

Will Brusenna be required to make the ultimate sacrifice?

First page:

1. Shadows

The night was so deep the shadows seemed to bleed darkness. Senna glanced toward the hidden sky, searching for the moon that would not come. Not tonight. Even the strongest starlight was strangled by the dense canopy of trees. The temporary blindness was frightening, but it ensured no one would notice her slipping away.

With each step she took, the roar of the waterfall grew louder. Finally, she reached the staircase carved into the side of the cliff. Mindful of the slippery steps, she climbed upward until her muscles burned and sweat broke across her skin despite the chill.

When she’d crested the top and crossed the bleak expanse, she glanced at the frothing sea far below. Sea spray misted her skin. She faced westward, towards the distant land of Tarten. Closing her eyes, she cast her senses across the vast ocean, searching and feeling the faraway echoes of the Four Sisters—Earth, Water, Plants, and Sunlight. She concentrated until she could hear their pain, an aching melody.

Senna’s tears started again, wetting the salty tracks already on her cheeks. At night, her dreams haunted her. Dreams of a withered land and a dying people. With all the strength she had, she sang.


Let not the curse of Witches
Destroy a land of natural riches.
Plants, preserve life in thy roots,
Seeds sleep in earth, send forth no shoots
Until the Witches shall disperse

This terrible and unjust curse.  

About Amber

I am the author of Witch Song and its sequel, Witch Born. I run because I like to eat chocolate and fit in my jeans. I have a thing for vintage inspired clothes, and I firmly believe one can never have enough jewelry, shoes, or books.

Q&A with Amber

1. What made you decide to write about Witches?

I wanted to take something that was often portrayed as dark and evil and twist it into something beautiful and natural. So instead of satanic chanting, my witches sing to control nature. I also wanted to use resonance with the Salem Witch Trials, so though my world is completely fictional, it has many similarities in landscape and technology with seventeenth century New England. 

2. How did you get your book published?

After years of hard work and rejection, I finally found an agent. Dropped him after a year. Had a book contract (for a different book), but the contract was awful so I couldn't sign it. Had another publisher and other agents nearly take it, but it was always nearly. Rhemalda published Witch Song. They did a good job, but when I received my first royalty statement, I realized if I wanted a chance to make any money at this, I was going to have to try something else, so I published Witch Born under my own publishing house.

3. What type of readers will be interested in this series/book?

Readers who enjoy clean fantasy with a touch of romance. 

4. What is special about this series/book?

It's very different from anything else out there. When I first started, there wasn't anyone else doing YA high fantasy except Kristin Cashore. I haven't really heard of other books that use singing as a medium for magic. There's a few more now, but still not many. Also, I'm clean and lyrical. 

5. What differentiates this book from others in this category?

My characters are flawed and make mistakes (read: screw up). Also, I have lots of young girls who relate to Brusenna because she's very shy and unsure in the beginning. 

6. Have you published any other books?

Just these two so far. 

7. Do you plan to publish more books?

I have two coming out next year. Witch Wars, which is a short prequel to Witch Song and follows the events that initiated the Witch wars. 

Winter Queen is the beginning of a whole new trilogy. 

Mortally wounded during a raid, seventeen-year-old Ilyenna is healed by winter fairies who present her with a seductive offer: become one of them and share their power over winter. But that power comes with a price. If she accepts, she will become a force of nature, lose her humanity, and abandon her family.

Unwilling to pay such a high price, Ilyenna is enslaved by the one of the invaders, Darrien. While in captivity, she learns the attack wasn’t just a simple raid but part of a larger plot to overthrow her entire nation. 

With the enemy stealing over the mountains and Darrien coming to take her to his bed, Ilyenna must decide whether to resurrect the power the fairies left behind. Doing so will allow her to defeat Darrien and the other invaders, but if she embraces winter, she will lose herself to that destroying power—forever.  http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/15829917-winter-queen

Where to buy WITCH BORN:  Barnes&Noble, Amazon, IndieBound, Books-A-Million

* * *

AMBER I WANT TO THANK YOU FOR THE INTERVIEW/Q&A. 

 I AM SURE MY VIEWER/FRIENDS ENJOYED THIS AS MUCH AS I HAVE.  

CONGRATULATIONS ON YOUR BOOK !

WE ALL LOOK FORWARD TO READING WITCH BORN!

The Fiddler (Home to Hickory Hollow, #1) by Beverly Lewis

About Beverly

Beverly Lewis, born in the heart of Pennsylvania Dutch country, is The New York Times bestselling author of more than ninety books. Her stories have been published in eleven languages worldwide. A keen interest in her mother's Plain heritage has inspired Beverly to write many Amish-related novels, beginning with The Shunning, which has sold more than one million copies and was recently made into an Original Hallmark Channel movie. In 2007 The Brethren was honored with a Christy Award. She has been interviewed by both national and international media, including Time magazine, the Associated Press, and the BBC. Beverly lives with her husband, David, in Colorado.

Visit her Web site at www.beverlylewis.com for more information.

The Fiddler Q & A

1. You recently reached the #2 spot on The New York Times bestseller list, your highest position ever. How do you feel about your expanding popularity? 
I am continually amazed and truly grateful for God’s hand of blessing on my work, and for the opportunity to share His love through story. So many thousands of readers write to say my books speak directly to them, that they believe my intimate writing style is for their hearts and eyes alone, like an open letter from a friend. I also think the fascination with the Amish tradition has taken on a life of its own due to a general longing for peace and a less hectic lifestyle.

2. Your new series, Home to Hickory Hollow, returns to the fictional Lancaster County setting that graced your inaugural Amish series, tHe Heritage of lancaster county. (The first milestone in what eventually became the current “bonnet fiction” craze!) What led you to make that decision? So many readers continue to express their fondness for idyllic Hickory Hollow, which I created back in 1997 with The Shunning, the first book in The Heritage of Lancaster County. The longtime interest in that place has grown tremendously in recent years, in part because of the recent Hallmark movie adaptation of The Shunning, as well as the enormously popular musical, The Confession Musical. I took a poll on my Facebook fan page and discovered that readers were just “a-hankerin’” to come back to this beloved setting where it all began. Truly, Hickory Hollow is as real to me as it is to my readers, and fans will be in for some fun surprises! Although this new series offers peeks into the lives of some of the most memorable characters from The Shunning and its sequels, the primary characters in The Fiddler are brand-new, with compelling stories of their own.

3. In what way is this series different from your previous ones? 
Home to Hickory Hollow is really a collection of books rather than a continuing saga. Each novel will be a related stand-alone that can be read in any order the reader chooses. I wanted to write a series where readers can pick up any book and know they will find a satisfying and complete story.

4. Amelia Devries, the main character from The Fiddler, isn’t your typical leading lady. What inspired her? 
In this book, my passion for music, as well as the Plain community of Lancaster County, where I grew up, come together like a patchwork quilt. Like my protagonist, Amelia Devries, I studied violin, although I was never as proficient a fiddler as she! The story begins with Amelia at a crossroads: A classically trained musician, she’s been moonlighting on the fiddle circuit and is about to be found out. She subsequently takes a wrong turn in a rainstorm…which leads her to Michael Hostetler, an Amishman from Hickory Hollow with a dilemma of his own. The juxtaposition of an “English” girl with an Amish love interest really appeals to me, and I know my readers will love it, too. Readers can get an early peek at The Fiddler via the wonderful book trailer my publisher has posted on YouTube, as well as on my website and official Facebook fan page.

5. What are some story questions that run throughout The Fiddler? Is it possible to balance the expectations of our families and communities with our own hopes? How do we find our purpose in life? What can happen when our hearts are open to others? Virtuoso or not, everyone has talents and gifts that can make a difference in this world!

6. Fans have been ecstatic about the film and stage adaptations of your books. Are more in the works? It’s been an absolute joy to see my stories fleshed out for the screen or in live theatre, with fabulous music. The filming schedule is about to be released for the movie sequel, Beverly Lewis’ The Confession, the continuation of Katie Lapp’s saga from my Heritage of Lancaster County series. I’m delighted that Michael Landon, Jr., will once again be at the helm as director and co-producer, just as he was for Beverly Lewis’ The Shunning, available now on DVD. Also, due to its enormous popularity, The Confession Musical is expanding to more locations—opening on June 7 in Sugarcreek, Ohio at the Carlisle Inn, as well as opening for its third run in Shipshewana, Indiana at the Blue Gate Theatre, and its second run in Bird-in-Hand, Pennsylvania at the Bird-in-Hand Family Restaurant and Stage. My website and Facebook fan page offer more information.

7. What are you working on next? Presently I’m writing The Bridesmaid, the second novel in my new series, Home to Hickory Hollow. That will appear on shelves September 11, 2012.Facebook fan page offer more information.

8. How can readers keep up with your work? To sign up for my free newsletter, they can visit www.beverlylewis.com or my Facebook fan page, www.facebook.com/officialbeverlylewis. My website also features my monthly blog, book excerpts, delicious Amish recipes, and news about my upcoming book tour, which kicks off April 10 at Barnes and Noble in the Har Mar Mall in Roseville, Minnesota. I will be visiting bookstores and libraries in Minnesota, Wisconsin, and North Dakota.Facebook fan page offer more information.

The Fiddler


About Book

Series: Home to Hickory Hollow, Book 1
ISBN: 978-0-7642-0977-2
ISBN-10: 0-7642-0977-9
Dimensions: 5.5 x 8.5
Number of pages: 336
Publisher: Bethany House
Publication Date: Apr. 2012
Formats: Paperback | Hardcover | Large print

Amelia "Amy" DeVries, a 24-year-old violinist, is disillusioned with life and love after the collapse of her long-running romance. Weary of endless rehearsals and performances, Amy sets out on a road trip through the Pennsylvania mountains. She leaves her cell phone behind so life's demands can't intrude on her solitude. She doesn't know, nor care, where she will end up.

When her car breaks down deep in the mountains, Amy realizes the flaw in her "no cell phone" plan. She abandons her car and walks the winding roads, searching for help. Following the smell of woodsmoke and the sound of music, she finds a rustic log cabin. There she meets a young Amishman--and through him a community--that will change her life forever.

Where to buy:
Amazon
Barnes & Noble
Christianbook.com

 

My Thoughts

Englisher Amelia Devries is performing the opening act for a Tim McGraw concert in Philadelphia. Amelia is a champion fiddler going by the stage name of Amy Lee. But this is her secret life. In her real life she is famous concert violinist. As she is leaving the concert her agent and family friend has found out her secret and has come to confront her. He feels this is below her and that her ailing father would be very disappointed if he every found out. She agrees to call him once she gets home to discuss a tour overseas. This is not something she wants to do in fact she is considering taking a hiatus from performing with her violin. She feels more alive around the people at the country concerts.

As she heads home it comes a downpour or as we say around here a gully washer. She can't she where she is going and makes a wrong turn. She looses control of her car and blows a tire. As she tries to get her bearings she has no idea where she is all she see is fields. When the rain slacks up a bit she sees a faint light and realizes it is a small cabin. She makes a run for the cabin fearing what or who she was fixing to face. A handsome young amishman opens the door and without hesitation invites her out of the rain  and into his cabin. He introduces himself as Michael Hosteler. From the looks of the things sitting around the room, like a laptop and an iPod, she wonders what kind of Amish has this kind of technology.

The rain does not let up and from the sounds of the storm it would be tomorrow before the flat tire could be changed. So against better judgement she decides to wait it out. They end up sharing each others life story, to an extent, they decide to play chess. As it gets late they knew they should try to get some sleep. With the privacy of a curtain between the two sleeping areas it was difficult to not be aware of the stranger on the other side of the curtain.

The next morning after they had breakfast Michael's invites Amelia to visit his Amish community and friends. She agrees to go and makes new friends then decides to stay the weekend with her new Amish friend Joanna. It is such a peaceful place and she goes out into a field and plays her fiddle, but not the country music. She plays and practices the music she plays on her solo violinist tours.

What is going through her mind? Does she plan on staying with the Amish permanently? How does the community feel about her music especially since they don't allow such instrument as the fiddle?

Are Amelia and Michael becoming more than friends? Is Michael planning on leaving the Amish since he is so hesitant to join the church? He wants to further his education and enjoys his car and his new found electronics.

The author has given us two young people pondering and drifting from the lives there families expected and raised them to live. Confused as to what God's will is for their future.

This is a lovely coming of age story. The parents are so concerned and fearful for their children's future. I read something in "River's Call by Melody Carlson" that said, to "Sometimes we have to give up the oars and let them row the boat by themselves". But that is not so easy do when we want to protect them from themselves.

I hope I left you wanting to know more about God's will for Amelia's and Michael's  future.  So go get the book you will not regret reading THE FIDDLER by BEVERLY LEWIS.

I highly recommend this book!

I rated this book a 5 out of 5.

Disclosure: I received a free copy of this book from Bethany House for review. I was in no way compensated for this review. It is my own opinion.

In Celebration of Blogaholic Social Network 1st Anniversary: Q&A with Emily Murray the Owner of Blogaholic Social Network

IN CELEBRATION OF 

BLOGAHOLIC SOCIAL NETWORK 

1ST ANNIVERSARY 

I AM REPOSTING A Q&A WITH BNS OWNER/CREATOR EMILY MURRAY THAT I POST ON JULY 10, 2011. 

 CONGRATULATIONS EMILY !!!!!

JULY 10, 2011

Emily Murray is the owner and creator of a new community for bloggers: Blogaholic Social Network. The community went live on Monday, May 30th and in just a few short weeks has become an active community for all bloggers! Here is a bit more from Emily about the new network!



Tell us a little bit about Blogaholic Social Network.
BSN is a community where bloggers can get together and pretty much talk about all things blog related. There is a wide variety of groups that you can join from blog niche’s to gaining followers- groups are a lot of fun and members have created quite a few of them so far so there is something for everyone! The site also allows you to post blog posts, list your giveaways, list your blog hops, there is really so much you can do on the site!

How did Blogaholic Social Network come to be?
Well long story short it was an idea I had for quite awhile. I also do blog design and my creative mind never seems to stop running, I knew that I loved blogging and I had learned so much about blog design from other bloggers so I wanted to create a community that allowed all these wonderful resources to come together, not just blog design but all bloggers helping each other, getting to know each other, learning from each other about all aspects of blogging. There is so much that even I still want to learn and I know that I can do it here on BSN. So it came down to the push of a button to hit publish live and I paced back and forth until finally my husband said “Listen, do you want to be sitting on the front porch 30 years from now saying, I should of hit that publish button” so off I went and here we are!




What are your future hopes for the site?
Really, I just hope to continue to see so many people enjoying it and getting great use out it. I want the network to be a “go to” for all things that have to do with blogging while still having a close knit community and I also want people to be able to connect, ask their questions and get answers- there is nothing worse than being a new blogger and feeling completely lost. So hopefully the site can help new bloggers and for veteran bloggers they have so much advice that they are willing to share, it’s great how everyone just comes together! The truth of it all is that the community is the foundation of the site and they are the future of the site as well.


I can not begin to tell you how overwhelmed with happiness I was to see it all come together the site itself and the community that has built just in a few short weeks. I just hope the members of BSN know that I appreciate each and every one of them because without them the network is not a community at all.


Feel free to stop by and check us out, we would love to have you as a member!


Emily, I feel so honored that you have done this interview for the viewers of my blog. I know what a wonderful job you have done with Blogaholic it has been a great source of information for me and has a wonderful community of bloggers. Blogaholic has a wide variety of Groups including several Book Groups that I have joined. I hope it continues to grow which I know it will. Thanks again for the interview.

Okay bloggers now is a perfect time to check out Blogaholic Social Network.

Clash of the Titles: April New Releases Winner Announced!

The winner of our April New Releases Clash

The Restorer’s Son-Expanded Edition by Sharon Hinck

A hearty congratulations to Sharon!

And a special thank-you to the following authors for being part of this fun week:

Susan Page Davis, author of Cowgirl Trail

DiAnn Mills, author of The Chase

Kate Lloyd, author of Leaving Lancaster

Nancy Herriman, author of The Irish Healer

ABOUT The Restorer's Son-Expanded Edition:
Book two in the groundbreaking Sword of Lyric series, The Restorer’s Son won a Carol Award for speculative fiction.

Plunged again into the gray world of Lyric and Hazor, Susan and Mark search frantically for their teenage son, Jake. All signs hint that a trusted ally has betrayed them and threatens their son. A target of assassins and more political intrigue, false leads and near misses beset their path, which leads them into the dark prisons of Hazor before the One’s purpose is revealed.

Cast out by those he trusts, the new reluctant Restorer prefers to cross swords with the One rather than submit to His will. Pursued by his calling, he journeys to Sidian, where he finds a boy without a home, a king with burning questions, and a nation torn by darkness. As he embraces the tasks the One has set before him, this new Restorer learns that the One requires his all—perhaps even his life.

WHAT VOTERS HAD TO SAY ABOUT "The Restorer's Son."


*Have read the other books & the original editions & Sharon is a master story-teller. ..humorous, poignant, deep & lyrical! A must-read!
*I love and am impressed and inspired by everything you write, Sharon. God's blessings daily.
*  I LOVED The Restorer! One of my all-time favorite books because it made me love Jesus more.
*I love, love, love The Restorer's Son. If you haven't read it, you should. (Make sure to look for the Expanded Edition to get extras.)
*Sharon is a wonderful wordsmith whose creative writing is experience validated. Can't wait to dig into this one.
*To be read? Maybe to be re-read... for the sixth time. I'm in love with The Sword of Lyric trilogy, and the extended releases are the perfect excuse to tell everyone I know about these books. The Restorer's Son is one of the most powerful fiction titles I've ever read, and it will be on my to-(re)read list for many years to come.

ABOUT the author, Sharon Hinck:

Sharon writes “stories for the hero in all of us,” about ordinary people experiencing God’s grace in unexpected ways. Known for their authenticity, emotional range, and spiritual depth, her novels include contemporary fiction such as The Secret Life of Becky Miller or Stepping into Sunlight and the groundbreaking Sword of Lyric fantasy series which includes The Restorer’s Son–Expanded Edition . She’s been a Christy finalist and won three Carol awards.
Sharon’ s undergrad degree is in education, and she earned an M.A. in Communication. When she isn’t wrestling with words, Sharon enjoys speaking to conferences, retreats, and church groups. She loves interacting with visitors at her website and blog: sharonhinck. com.


Q and A with SHARON:& nbsp;


Q. Besides an entertaining read, what do you hope people experience in The Restorer’s Son-Expanded Edition?

A. My hope is that readers will catch glimpses of the way the One speaks to each of us in the language we understand, and that we can go to Him with our difficult questions. For those who are walking very painful roads, I hope the story will help them feel acknowledged. The journey is hard, heroic, and sometimes frightening. But we are never alone.

Q.What was it like developing new material for this new edition?

A. Books are like children. I treasure each of them in different ways, and among the novels I’ve written, I try not to have favorites. However, I confess that The Restorer’s Son has an extra special place in my heart. Because of that, it was fun to revisit the characters and world of this story. Kieran’s attitudes were loosely inspired by a verse in Judges where Gideon is told God will use him to save his people. Gideon’s response is basically, “If God is for us, why have all these bad things happened to us?” It’s a question many can relate to, and part of the reason that Kieran is such a beloved character. 

The new devotion guide gives readers an opportunity to dig deeper into the Biblical inspirations that helped inform the book, as well as find personal application. About forty pages of new content, including bonus scenes and a new song composed for the book, make this edition a new experience.& nbsp;

Q. Where can we buy the book?


www.sharonhinc k.com
http://sharonswriti ng.blogspot. com/


To order The Restorer’s Son-Expanded Edition:
http://urlcut. me/aM3


Kindle version:
http://urlcut. me/aM2

Secret of Lies by Barbara Forte Abate Q&A and Review

About Barbara

Barbara Forte Abate was born in Millbrook, New York, the middle of five children. After graduating from Millbrook High School, she married young and promptly launched into the joys of family life, in short order becoming the mother of four very fabulous children, and along the way earning a doctorate from the University of Real Life.


Initially having settled in Franklin, New Jersey, she has lived with her family in a wonderful historic home in Chester County, PA, for the past fifteen years.
While increasingly challenged for several years by old house renovations and raising her children, Barbara never considered abandoning her dreams of writing. Most often composing her stories on yellow legal pads while babies napped and supper simmered (and sometimes burned) on the stove; piling up the pages until the time at last arrived to borrow a friend's typewriter and transfer her longhand scribbles onto finished pages.


While that particular milestone transpired some twenty years ago, and the aforementioned first novel has since lived a quietly rejected life in a rarely visited closet, Barbara's passion for writing has continued at a gallop. Her debut novel, "The Secret of Lies" was released on June 30, 2010.


Barbara's website http://www.barbaraforteabate.com/




Q & A with Barbara

What do you like most about writing?

I absolutely love getting lost in my characters lives and experiencing their joys and turmoil’s, throwing out obstacles and watching to see what they’ll do – lending them a hand when all seems lost. Considering how much I enjoy solitude and thrive on quite moments, writing is a beautiful fit for me. Finishing that final edit after a dozen rewrites and knowing a book is really done is exhilarating.


Do you write genres other than fiction?

I've only ever written literary fiction. I enjoy reading a variety of genres though, and don’t rule out branching beyond my comfort zone with future books. At any given time I have three or four books on my nightstand which I alternate reading: a novel, spiritual writing, and memoir, something related to the craft of writing.


What’s next from Barbara Forte Abate, perhaps a new book you can tell us about?

I have four other novels I’ve written, but am still working to perfect. Two are getting close to being finished; two others need a major overhaul. Until I’m convinced that a project is “really” done I generally don’t talk it up all that much because it then dampens my enthusiasm for getting it done. I can tell you that I have a penchant for writing about wounded characters in challenging situations, who are in need of hope and redemption. In real life and in fiction, I am intrigued by the unexpected strength of the human spirit when life is looking especially bleak.


What led to your crafting of the main character Stevie?

Writing Stevie became an incredibly personal and profound experience over the years it took for me to tell her story. She felt like something of a one dimensional cardboard cutout when I started writing her, a body moving about in my story, but her voice, her struggles, and inner turmoil notably took on weight with each draft. I recall a distinct point when I was writing a scene with Stevie, and it all at once occurred to me that Stevie wasn’t as much being written as she was writing herself, consistently lending me prompts into her character in order to help me get her right. It was a thrilling transition and I consequently learned the importance of listening rather than simply telling a story.


Was the secret lie in the story something you shared for any other purpose than storytelling?

As a writer and voracious reader, I think it’s supremely important to find and understand the truth that is such an integral part of well written fiction. It’s certainly wonderful to be entertained, but something extraordinary happens when we recognize those things we might have experienced or struggled with in our own lives. The very nature of secrets so often comes into question over the course of our life experience. While some secrets are arguably necessary as they cause less damage when tucked away and left alone, there are those which are something altogether different – things tangled up and sold as secrets for the deliberate intention of concealing infinitely damaging mistruths. When Stevie is confronted with the question of whether the secret she’s protected so diligently in a bid to protect her wounded family is in actuality a terrible lie, it is an opportunity for the reader to catch a glimpse beyond fiction and possibly recognize something of their own personal experience.



The environment the story took place in was described in a way that made me want to visit and stay awhile. Was there a reason you chose a particular backdrop?

From the time this story first started to unfold in my mind, I saw it in shades of an earlier time – black and white to be precise. There is a certain innocence and simplicity of life apparent in the 1950’s that was essential to how I wanted to tell this story and that era very much fit the sequence of events that would transpire over the course of the novel. As much as settings are in effect characters themselves, the ancient house on the cliffs beside the sea where the sister’s spend summer vacations felt to be the perfect backdrop for capturing the carefree sense of two young girls away from home on a grand adventure, and then later, the lonely isolated family farm will serve to magnify everything that’s been lost.


How long did the Secret of Lies dwell in you before penned and published?

I have shared a most incredible journey with this story and its characters. When the first threads of this idea came twenty years ago, I hadn’t a clue as to how to go about writing a book other than a rather naïve sense of logic that assured me to “just do it”. To look at that first draft now is to be horrified, but absolutely it was the bazillion rewrites that followed which taught me how to write – how to listen for the strengths and nuances of my characters, and how to bring otherwise stagnant scenes to life. Twenty years may seem like an excessive amount of time to reach a goal and cross the finish line, but for me it was necessary. I was literally learning to write a sentence at a time.



Just for Fun. What advice would you give the women characters if you had the chance to teach them about secrets?

Know what you’re protecting! My characters made a fatal mistake that so many of us make, which is that they ignored their instincts in favor of hoping it would all work itself out with the sunrise. We come into this life with the most wonderful gift of God given instinct, which is to say that if something smells rotten – even just a little – we need to keep a watchful eye and proceed with caution. Too often we end up protecting or making excuses for things or people that by any other name are simply hurtful, harmful, and evil. Equally painful and infinitely damaging, is our tendency to confuse grief with guilt, and we so often convince ourselves that we must carry blame for mistakes and sins that are not truly ours. Such burdens can effectively cripple our very existence and my characters truly do need to understand the danger of such erroneous beliefs.


Do you have a muse? Any special places you write to get the ideas flowing faster?

I can only focus when the house is quiet and the neighborhood dogs are quietly curled up under a porch taking a nap. I’m very blessed that I have a wonderful little room of my own with a creaky old desk and all my favorite pictures, books, and doodads on walls and shelves around me. I always say a prayer before I settle in to write, because my Creator is first and foremost my muse. (Besides which, His book is the blockbuster best seller of all time, so I know He understands the process and how essential it is to get the words just right.


How addicted are you to Facebook?

I’m currently in recovery! I was very late coming to the party, but very quickly caught the fever. It’s been amazing for finding and keeping in touch with family and friends, and social networking has never been such fun or allowed us to reach so far, but there is a downside in that it becomes so much easier and infinitely pleasant to drop over at Facebook and check on the happenings, rather than stare at the blank screen and agonize because my novel in progress has hit a roadblock and refuses to move on. Before you know it hours have passed and so has your allotted writing time. So I’m trying to be more disciplined about my time. A big glitch in that plan though, is that The Secret of Lies now has its own pretty new book page on Facebook, which means I’ve just increased my FB activities, when my intention has been to wean away from it. http://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Secret-of-Lies-Novel/195421757151252


What is your favorite holiday?

I’m crazy about Easter. Which is really very startling in a way, because springtime was my least favorite season as a child, and I considered it terribly depressing as a teenager. Rebirth, new life, the Earth waking and renewing after a long winter’s sleep….beautiful and infinitely awesome.



If you were stranded alone on a desert island, what one item would you have to have and why?


My Bible. It doesn’t require electricity or special operating instructions, which is certainly a bonus. But most importantly it has everything essential for survival: hope, eternal promises, consolation, comfort, wisdom, commandments for life ... not to mention drama, mystery, and tons of spot-on storytelling. And once I tire of all that delicious solitude, there are detailed instructions for building an ark, which I could then use to sail back to civilization.

Thank you Barbara.  The Q&A was very informative and a whole lot of fun!  Can't wait to have an excuse to do this with you again. We will just have to keep up with you on Facebook and your website.

About book:


Propelled by an insurmountable sense of desperation, Stevie Burke is recklessly abandoning home, husband, and outwardly contented life under cover of night; at last resigned to defeat in her long battle against the tortured memories of her past.


Days later, lost and floundering in a dreary motel room without plan or destination, it is a long ago song playing on the radio that gently tugs Stevie back through the dust of remembrance. 1957 – The last summer spent at the ancient house overlooking the North Atlantic. A season which had unfolded with abundant promise, but then spiraled horribly out of control – torn apart by a shattering tragedy that remains splintered in fragments upon her soul. And it is only now, when Stevie at last lifts her eyes to stare deep into the heart of her long sequestered memories, that the long held secrets of past and future are at last unveiled...


It began in much the way of all the perfect golden summers at her aunt and uncle’s beach house. Stevie is in love with Jake, an intriguing deaf boy; so thoroughly absorbed in her new romance that she easily ignores the evidences of breakdown in her aunt and uncle’s once blissful marriage and the hairline indicators of her sister Eleanor’s role in their faltered relationship. Not until Stevie and Jake slip away from the farewell bonfire on the beach, anxious for a private moment on this last night together, will she finally be forced to confront the ugly truth of those things unfolding around her. The resulting tragedy shattering her family and leaving her emotionally paralyzed.


Although desperate to leave behind the gnawing emptiness and press of memories suffocating her life, Stevie remains helplessly bound to the family farm. She eventually lands a job as an advice columnist for the local newspaper, and only then does her life finally make a turn toward steady ground, her new position as advisor to the troubled allowing her to address her own deepest feelings of love and loss.


Even then, Stevie is infuriated when her mother hires a farm hand, Ash Waterman, irrationally rejecting his overtures of friendship – drawn to him as passionately as she feels determined to push him away.


Her silent battle is continuous; an insurmountable sense of guilt holding her to the firm conviction that she is responsible for her family’s suffering. Despite Ash’s patient love and support she is unable to smooth the painful cracks etched deep into her memories, continuing to sacrifice her future in order to shelter the sins of the past. And it is only as Stevie feels her life spiraling out of control, that she at last comes to understand the true secret of the lies she has so diligently guarded.


Book can be purchase at Barnes and Noble here.

Paperback, 304 pages
Published April 21st 2010 by Dog Ear Publishing
ISBN160844418X (ISBN13: 9781608444182)




My Thoughts:


Stephanie and her sister Eleanor leaves their families farm for the summer to vacation at their Aunt and Uncle's beach house. This is something they look forward to every year. But recently the visits have become a little tense because of an under current between her Aunt Smyrna and Uncle Cal. Stevie just tries to overlook the tension and enjoy the summer.


As the girls get into their teens they become more interested in boys than finding sea shells and swimming. Eleanor is the oldest so she would stay pretty busy with her summer flings leaving Stevie to entertain herself. Then Stephanie becomes very interested in a young boy on the that is deaf. She convinces her sister and aunt to get a book from the library and learn how to sign so they can befriend the boy.


Each summer they come to stay things just get worse between the aunt and uncle. This makes their time there very uncomfortable.


I connected with the timline of this book since I was born in 1950 and the story is set in the 1950's.


The teens characters were very realistic with their attitudes and relationship toward each other.


I got a bit anxious towards the last half of the book and did not want to put it down. I think you will be very surprised at how it ends, I know I was.


I recommend this book!


I rate this book a 5 out of 5.


Disclosure: I received a copy of this book from the author for review. I was in no way compensated for this review it is my own opinion.

Nurture Book Tour and Giveaway/Q&A with Lynda M. Martin author of This Bird Flew Away

        

         September 28th – Kendall G. @ Telly Says @ Reading; Reading & Life

          September 29th – Lindsay H @ Everyday Is An Adventure

          September 30th – Wendy G. @ Fabulosity Nouveau

          September 30th – Charla W. @ Book Talk With Charla

Let's give a warm welcome to author Lynda M. Martin she will be sharing her book This Bird Flew Away with us today.

Lynda was born in Dunfirmline, Scotland in 1953, emigrated to Canada with her parents as a young girl. She grew up on the vast prairies of Western Canada, and loved the open wide spaces of that wild land. She was educated in Medicine Hat, Alberta, a town in the southeast corner of that province, and spent most of her time riding horses, barrel racing and hanging around rodeos and cowboys.

In 1968, the product of a troubled youth and a dysfunctional family, she found herself on her own at the age of fifteen, two thousand miles from her home, and knows first hand the dangers facing girls on our streets and the predators that prey on them. She was one of the lucky ones. She survived.

Later in life, she went east to Montreal for her education, graduating from the University of Montreal with a degree in Business Administration, which provided a fine income, but little in the way of personal satisfaction. Still in her twenties, she became a volunteer with social services to work with troubled teen-aged girls, and took every course the social agencies offered.   Read More!
                                                 
 
Synopsis:
What is real love? The whole world wants to know. They should ask Bria Jean, because she has it all figured out. Opinionated, stubborn and full of woe, Bria would tell you real love is having one person you can always count on through thick and thin. For her, that's Jack. And it doesn't matter to her that she's nine and he's twenty-three-not one bit.
When, at the age of twelve, Bria disappears, he and his Aunt Mary search for her, and when she surfaces, injured, abused and traumatized, Jack fights to become her guardian with no idea of the trials ahead of him. By then, Bria is thirteen going on thirty, full of her own ideas on how her life should run and with some very fixed notions about who is in charge.


This Bird Flew Away
Author: Lynda M. Martin
Genre: Literary Fiction
Published by: Black Rose Writing (January 27th, 2011)
Age Recommendation: 14+ for Mature Themes & Sexual Assault
Format: Trade Paperback & eBook
ISBN 13: 978-1935605928
Number of pages: 312

Lynda has agreed to let me interrogate her. So Lynda let's get to it.

How did this novel come to you? In other words how did it come about?

I’ve mentioned this a few times, but never delved into it. So here goes.

As anyone who reads my articles or other work knows, I spent a good chunk of my life involved in child protection, a second career that began in my twenties, helping underage prostitutes get off the street. (And it would break your heart to know how young some of them are, or how they got there.) From there I moved on to working with such groups as SafePlace and Children’s Home, organizations dedicated to at-risk children, offering them shelter, counseling and other assistance. (My training was through social agencies and law enforcement, but truth is you either have a knack for connecting to these kids, or you don’t.)

Before too long, I had made good connections with law enforcement, and became an outreach worker, often the first person to speak to child victims of crimes. In those days, the idea of paid workers was still unheard of, and most of us were volunteers. Later, I added fostering children in my own home to the mix, specializing in abused and exploited teenage girls – those completely messed-up, (and often indescribably wounded) kids no one wants to take on.

Over the years, you might say I developed a pretty good handle on the child-protection system, knowing it from kids on the street, social workers, law enforcement, prosecutors and the courts.

I wrote about it in articles and edited a journal for the international group, SafePlace for several years. I spoke to Chambers of Commerce, church groups and anyone who would listen and perhaps help out. In 1985, I attended the first ever international conference on child protection in Vancouver, Canada and made acquaintance with professionals in that field from all over the United States, Canada, Mexico and the Pacific Rim countries, including the infamous Thailand (though in all honesty, their problem is no worse than ours – only more publicized.)

Then, changes in my private life and the needs of my own teenaged daughters took precedence and I stepped back, but my interest and passion for these issues remained strong. If anyone would like to read more about my experience in child protection, here’s a link to my personal publishing site on Hubpages, and an article there that sees 20,000 reads per year, The Rape of the Innocents http://lmmartin.hubpages.com/hub/The-rape-of-the-innocents .

Suddenly, child abuse and exploitation plunged out of the closet and into the limelight. It featured in the movies and moved to the small screen. TV dramas abounded with child victims, but something was wrong, very off kilter. The worst of these had to be Law and Order: Special Victims Unit with all its dark and twisted plots, intense and brooding police officers whose behavior is off the scale (if any real police officer acted this way, they’d be fired in an instant) and most despicable of all, the depiction of survivors as psychological bombs waiting to go off, suicidal, neurotic and warped, likely to murder (or be murdered,) destined to grow up into dysfunctional adults and become abusers themselves, with the phrase “ruined lives” bandied about at least ten times per show. High drama, indeed, but about as far from reality as one can get.

It angered me. I know so many survivors and most have grown up to live reasonably normal lives (or as normal as anyone else, which may not be saying a lot.) I’m not suggesting there aren’t scars or their subsequent behavior isn’t affected. No, not at all. But the portrayal of the victims in these dramas struck me as so disrespectful, so distorted as to do disservice to the God only knows how many survivors of childhood sex abuse walk the planet. (I promise I won’t quote the stats yet again.)

Friends who knew my background would ask me, “Did you see last week’s episode, when the teenage girl killed her abuser and…” in a hushed, shocked voice, followed by questions, as though I should feel some connection to the story, as though this was the way it is. It isn’t.

I decided then and there I was going to write a story reflecting the truth as I knew it. And after much thought and reflection, This Bird Flew Away was born.

Tell us about the most difficult chapter you had to write in this book. Tell us why.

There were a number of tough ones but by far, the most painstaking effort had to be Chapter Ten: “Jesus Loves the Little Children.” This is a scene written in the first person voice of the victim depicting the rape of a twelve-year-old girl. I wanted to express the girl’s pain, fear and bewilderment without stooping to anything overly dramatic or gratuitous. Finding that delicate balance presented a challenge.

I changed tenses for this one chapter from past to present to develop more of a sense of immediacy. I struggled to find bring to life that strange voice children will use when they remember and relate such experiences, often as though they’ve distanced themselves from the reality. They speak of what went through their minds – a day at the beach, the memory of a happy event, anything to escape the present and divorce themselves from what is happening to them. This is what they will remember, not the brutality committed against them – survival instincts at work.

I worked so hard to put all these somewhat nebulous things into words.

It was the first chapter of the book I wrote. I felt if I couldn’t get it right, there was no point in going on. I must have written that chapter thirty times before I shared it with my editor. I waited for her reaction with bated breath, expecting the worst. (Don’t ask me why I expected the worst, but I did. It had been such a difficult thing to get right.)

Her reaction was complete and utter enthusiasm for the scene, filled with many compliments about “my talent,” and how I’d taken her breath away. She said I’d transported her into the poor tortured girl’s mind while at the same time leaving her enough distance to be an observer, exactly the balance I’d striven for.

What was most important to me was that she “got it!” She understood it all. I knew it when she spoke of how I’d so vividly described the “shutting down of the child’s self.”

It meant a lot. I think that chapter is the most difficult, but the best writing I’ve ever done.

Who was your biggest supporter in writing this book? Tell us why.

I have to give you three answers here. It wouldn’t be fair otherwise.

First and always is my biggest fan, my husband, Jim. Not only did he make it possible for me to take the time to write this book, sending me to our Florida house while he stayed up in Alberta, facing the ice and snow – and work! – but he had the patience to sit on the other end of the phone for hours while I chattered away discussing this bit of plot or that, never voicing an opinion, just letting me talk. When I wrote the scene of Jack’s finally confronting his abusive alcoholic father, he gave me a lot of insight into the male point of view, helping me with the dialogue, line by line. By the way, Jim has never read the finished work. He doesn’t read much. But that doesn’t mean he wasn’t deeply involved.

Second, I have to talk about my granddaughter, Paige. She was sixteen when I wrote this novel and came down to spend a couple of weeks with me in Florida, leaving the frigid Manitoba winter behind for a while. I was still struggling through that messy first draft and Paige became deeply involved in the process, reading each passage as it developed and offering me her youthful input. Much of the voice of the teen-age Bria, particularly in Chapters Twenty-Seven and Twenty-Eight where Bria confronts Jack’s girlfriend and must cope with idea she is not the center of his life, as she yearns to be -- belongs to Paige, right down to the cadence of my granddaughter’s speech with that flippant teenage attitude.

Lastly, I can’t say enough about my editor, Kathryn Lynn Davis. A talented and successful author herself, she devotes much of her time to editing and mentoring new writers and writers like me who’ve been out of the game for so long, they’ve gotten a little rusty. Her kindness, her faith in my work, her sometimes sharp tongue, and her tremendous skill kept me going and pushed me to put the book out there. We’ve since become good friends and I will always be grateful.

Lynda M Martin

I have found Lynda M. Martin, author of This Bird Flew Away, guilty of writing a good book. I have no other chose than to give her a rating of 5 out of 5.  Do we all agree! Say Yay!


Where you can find and follow Lynda M. Martin?
Author Website
Author Blog
Twitter
HubPages Profile
Facebook Page
Facebook Profile
Goodreads Profile

Where can you buy her book?
Amazon.com
Amazon.ca
Amazon.co.uk
Barnes & Noble
Author Website

My Thoughts:
Some of you may be curious to know what I disliked about this book.  I pondered over this question and could not come up with anything I disliked about the book.  It is somewhat of a touchy subject that a lot of people keep behind closed doors.  I feel as if Lynda has done us a favor by opening those doors for people to face up to the fact of abuse, slavery, yes and trafficking of children.
Bria Jean felt as if she could trust only one person with her secrets and that was Jack. He understood her need to share her dark secrets because he had secrets of his own and he shared them with her.  Even though Bria was thirteen years younger than Jack she was much older in maturity because of what she had to live through.  This kept Jack confused about his feelings toward her. This I think was a problem for the readers of this book but also for other characters in the book.  Jack wanted to keep her safe.  But is that all he really wanted?

The author, okay Lynda, gave the character Bria a strength and courage along with determination to not only survive but to succeed in her life.
Kuddos, bravo or however you say it Lynda did the job of sticking it in our face as some say.  Let's be more aware and protect our children.

It Takes A Village To Raise A Child!!!

Lynda I want to thank you for joining us on my blog today! I hope I wasn't too tough on you. I enjoyed the questions and answers.  I wish you great success with this book and I can't wait for more.  Watch over Bria and her family until we hear from you again with the next book. You are free to go write again!

Patricia aka Mamaw

Disclosure:

I received a free copy of this book  for review.  This is my honest opinion.

Lynda is offering to giveway a pdf copy of This Bird Flew Away.
To enter leave a comment about what you enjoyed about the Q&A or you ask a question to Lynda.  Be sure to leave you email so we can contact you if you win.
 It is not mandatory that you follow me but it would be nice.
When you leave your email be sure to leave it so spammer can't get it.
example:  plb1050 (at) gmail (dot) com
Entries Sept 27-30th.  Winner will be announced Oct. 1st.
GOOD LUCK!