Black 'n' Gold Girl's Book Spot

America Pacifica by Anna North Copyright 2011 Hachette Book Group 304 pages ISBN: 9780316105125 Fiction From the publisher : Eighteen-year-old Darcy lives on the island of America Pacifica--one of the last places on earth that is still habitable, after North America has succumbed to a second ice age. Education, food, and basic means of survival are the province of a chosen few, while the majority of the island residents must struggle to stay alive. The rich live in "Manhattanville" mansions made from the last pieces of wood and stone, while the poor cower in the shantytown slums of "Hell City" and "Little Los Angeles," places built out of heaped up trash that is slowly crumbling into the sea. The island is ruled by a mysterious dictator named Tyson, whose regime is plagued by charges of corruption and conspiracy. But to Darcy, America Pacifica is simply home--the only one she's ever known. In spite of their poverty she lives contentedly with her mother...

by Jen Slattery A few years ago someone mailed me a historical fiction about.... Well, I'm not sure what it was about because I never made it that far. I tried. Oh, my, did I try, but after page upon page of life-activities, my perseverance waned and I put the book aside. I learned the heroine wore her hair in ribbons, what she ate for breakfast, and numerous other details of her daily life. To the author, perhaps these events were significant. Maybe she had fond memories of getting her hair done and thought perhaps if she outlined these details, one movement at a time, she could invoke those same emotions in her reader. But sadly, her over-abundance of minute details, void of conflict, dulled my brain. As I read over today's excerpts again--talking of spiritual warfare, castles, and jail sentences--I realized one of the things I long for in a story is the ability to visit a place other than my own. That doesn't mean I always gravitate toward time-traveling speculative fict...

It is time for a FIRST Wild Card Tour book review! If you wish to join the FIRST blog alliance, just click the button. We are a group of reviewers who tour Christian books. A Wild Card post includes a brief bio of the author and a full chapter from each book toured. The reason it is called a FIRST Wild Card Tour is that you never know if the book will be fiction, non~fiction, for young, or for old...or for somewhere in between! Enjoy your free peek into the book! You never know when I might play a wild card on you! Today's Wild Card author is: Loree Lough and the book: Unbridled Hope (Book Three in the Lone Star Legends Series) Whitaker House (July 5, 2011) ***Special thanks to Cathy Hickling of Whitaker House for sending me a review copy.*** ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Loree Lough is a well-known, beloved Christian romance writer with nearly three million books in circulation. She's released 78 books, including one that's been optioned for a TV movie, 68 short stories, and ove...

Thank you to everyone who entered and left comments for Linda Yezak last week on my blog. I used random.org to choose the winner and the winner is... BLUEROSE! Congratulations Bluerose, random.org must love your name! I've emailed you with the details. Everyone, be sure to stop back next week for another giveaway! I'm going to be giving away a brand new Christian fiction release to TWO LUCKY WINNERS!

by Michelle Massaro Christine Lindsay crowned COTT champ! Shadowed in Silk won the vote for Best Back Cover Blurb against competitor Sunny Eads. A clip of her winning excerpt : After the Great War, Abby Fraser returns to India with her small son, where her husband is stationed with the British army. She has longed to go home to the land of glittering palaces and veiled women . . . but Nick has become a cruel stranger. It will take more than her American pluck to survive. read the full blurb here A few reader comments :  I'm drawn to the post war aspect of the second one. Both really pulls you in but the romance of India under the Bristh rule caught my attention. Oh, India! Sounds mysterious!! Makes me wonder if this is a romance or not. Would def give this book a go. Blurb B is just so intriguing! Definitely makes me want to read the whole thing. So much clearly going on. Christine says :  The only reason I write is in order to encourage readers to love Christ and follow Hi...

A Killer Among Us (Women of Justice, Book 3) by Lynette Eason Copyright 2011 Revell 352 pages ISBN: 978-0-8007-3371-1 Fiction/Romantic Suspense From Revell : What happens when the hunter . . . becomes the hunted? Kit Kenyon is a first-rate hostage negotiator. Noah Lambert is a good detective with excellent instincts. These new partners have hardly had time to get used to each other when they are thrown into a grisly murder case. As evidence mounts up and more victims are found, Kit and Noah realize they are on the hunt for a serial killer. The problem is, he may be hunting one of them too. With nail-biting suspense, clever plot twists, and a hint of romance, A Killer Among Us is the latest thriller from Lynette Eason. My Review: It doesn't take a detective to figure out that Lynette Eason is a great suspense novelist. With grisly crime scenes, psychotic killers, great cops, and a touch of romance, Eason has come up with a near perfect spine-tingling tale that will appeal to both m...

Thank you to everyone who entered to win the signed Feast cover flat and bookmarks. The winner as selected by random.org is... BLUEROSE!!!!!!! Congratulations, I'm emailing you for your mailing address info so I can get those out to you ASAP.

It is time for a FIRST Wild Card Tour book review! If you wish to join the FIRST blog alliance, just click the button. We are a group of reviewers who tour Christian books. A Wild Card post includes a brief bio of the author and a full chapter from each book toured. The reason it is called a FIRST Wild Card Tour is that you never know if the book will be fiction, non~fiction, for young, or for old...or for somewhere in between! Enjoy your free peek into the book! You never know when I might play a wild card on you! Today's Wild Card author is: Jillian Kent and the book: Secrets of the Heart Realms (May 3, 2011) ***Special thanks to Anna Coelho Silva | Publicity Coordinator, Charisma House | Charisma Media for sending me a review copy.*** ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Jillian has been a member of American Christian Fiction Writers for several years. She has also been a member of Romance Writers of America for 20 years and a member of The Beau Monde, Kiss of Death, and Faith, Hope, and Lov...

I had the pleasure of reading and reviewing author Linda Yezak's Christian romance earlier this month and it was a blast! I would love for you to share this fun reading experience so I'm giving you the opportunity to win a signed copy of Give the Lady a Ride! First please join me in welcoming Linda as she tells us a little bit about herself and her writing... ************ Please tell the readers a little bit about yourself. I’m a plain ol’ housewife with a bit of an imagination and a few hours a day I can devote to writing. Everything interests me, which makes researching my projects my favorite part of the writing process. Give the Lady A Ride is about bull-riding among many other things, how much research did you have to do and I think the million dollar question is have you ever ridden a bull? Let me answer the second part first–No. But that doesn’t mean I wouldn’t have tried back when I was younger. That bit I have in the book about women riding bulls is true, and back wh...

Be sure to visit Bluerose's Heart Blog this week to help her celebrate one year of blogging! Not only does she post great Christian fiction reviews but she reviews Young Adult fiction and posts about other interesting things too. Say hi, wish her a happy blogoversary and enter the giveaways!!!

article by Lisa Lickel MAKE SURE YOU CHECK OUT COTT'S EXCITING NEW VENTURE: Join us in June as we premier COTT's book club! Karen Witemeyer and her COTT winning novel , A Tailor-Made Bride is up as our first read (The books is offered as a free e-book here ; if you don't have a Kindle, you can download the program to your pc or mobile device free here ). More details and to vote for July's book, CLICK HERE . Read this week's excerpts here and vote! What's the Big Deal About the Back of the Book? I hid behind a copy of the NYTimes at the local bookstore, my trench coat belt pulled tight and my fedora at a swanky angle. Totally incognito, I was on the case. My assignment? To discover once and for all the answers to an author's most persistent questions: Do readers really care about the back of the book? Would they buy based on a catchy blurb or teasing headline or a really cool picture of the author? I thought...