Follower Love Giveaway Hop 2012! Starts at Midnight

WELCOME TO 2012 FOLLOWER LOVE GIVEAWAY HOP!

I love my followers and wish you could all win. :-)
This hop is hosted by the fabulous Kathy at I Am A Reader Not A Writer and Rachael Renee Anderson 

The hop runs from Tuesday, February 7th through Tuesday, February 14th.

My Giveaway is for ANYONE who can get books from Amazon, Indie Presses, OR Book Depository. OR if Book Depository doesn't ship to you then I will do a PayPal or other gift card for that winner.  So hopefully this really does include EVERYONE.

There will be two winners:
$15.00 towards books at The Book Depository or $15.00 Gift Certificate from the vendor of the winner's choice.

The books can be any format: ebook, hardback, paperback or even audio for a total value of $15.00.

Rule #1 - You must be a follower of my blog in some form.
Rule #2 - ENTER USING THE RAFFLECOPTER FORM!
Giveaway closes 12:01 AM Eastern on February 15.  Winners to be chosen through the Rafflecopter system.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

GOOD LUCK AND HAVE FUN HOPPING!

Sunday Words of Encouragement February 5, 2012

[Continuing the message from last week based on 1 Timothy 4:1-10.]  Last week our associate Pastor was warning us against Saboteurs who might mislead believers. How do we protect ourselves from this? He recommended:
1. Stay in the word - the better you know the best manual, the less likely you will be deceived. Also, always compare the message given by any man to the word given by God.
2. Do not forsake assembling together with other followers of Christ. Together we strengthen each other.
3. Pray, especially for strength, wisdom and guidance.
4. Avoid those who are living in unrepentant sin. God is Love but enabling sin is not loving.

I didn't find a song that quite fit this message 

but this one struck me as good for any day!

A Verse for Today: 

1 Timothy 4:16

¹⁶ Watch your life and doctrine closely. Persevere in them, because if you do, you will save both yourself and your hearers. 

I give praise and Thanksgiving that God is richly blessing my business. I pray for his continued wisdom and guidance each day.

Sharing Beyond Books #34 Comment Giveaway February 4, 2012

Welcome once more to SBB. I hope everyone had a good first week sliding into February. I am still moving at fast speed..

Thank you to all those who commented last week.
Most of us are not fans of love triangles although they are okay if there is no infidelity, no cheating and it moves along quickly so no unnecessary pain. lag123 mentioned Stephanie Plum but I know some people have gotten tired of that trio after so many books.

It was fun to read the different 'picky habits.' Several agree with liking the toilet paper in the front but there are those who like it the other way - does that make you the "odd ones"?? Only kidding. A number of us like to do certain chores our own way. Several of you  have pet peeve's relating to your book collections. How fitting. :-)  It sounds like there might be some more "peeves" to share so I'll bring that question back in the future.

~~~~

The Winner from SBB #33 comments is: #12 Jane. There are still 8 'love' books to pick from, 3 Christmas choices and 1 Summer title below. Jane please choose a book from the remaining Love Books List for Giveaway or remaining Christmas Giveaway Books, the one summer book below OR pick from the ARC box and let me know your choice, your address and a choice of bookmarks by completing the WINNER FORM.

WEEK #34 Questions

Q1. This week Emily asks:  Would you rather be a Princess in a castle in medieval times, or a millionaire in the 1800s, OR a cavewoman??

A:  Hmmm--- I'll pass on the cavewoman but it's harder to decide between a Medieval Princess or an 1800's millionaire??  I'm choosing to be an millionairess in the 1800s - a few more amenities.

Q2. Here is my question: When did you start keeping a list of books you have read??

A:  I started keeping a book list in 2001 when my children were old enough that I started reading more.  I bought a software called Readerware and used that from 2005 through 2009. Now the lists are on my blog. I also started in 2004 keeping favorite author lists to track the books I read, had to read or had to buy - no sense getting duplicates although it still happens now and then.

 List found at Century Farmhouse

Thanks to those who are sending in Questions. DON'T BE SHY! Surely everyone has a Q or two you'd like to ask.  Input suggestions in this Suggested Question Form.  At the end of each month I will draw from the suggestions I used the month before and that person will get a book choice or GC. I thank everyone for submitting questions but some of you others might want to get in a question or two as we have a few people submitting most of the questions so far.  Either way - it works for me. :-)  The question list is getting low so feel free to send in a Q or 2 or 4! Remember they don't all have to be book related. I'm going to be asking some other questions soon! 

Your turn to share:

1. This week Emily asks: Would you rather be a Princess in a castle in medieval times, or a millionaire in the 1800s, OR a cavewoman??

2. When did you start keeping a list of books you have read??

SBB Comment Winners can choose a selection from the remaining  Valentine and "Love" books or the remaining Christmas Giveaway Books - there are still about 12 books available plus 2 left in the Summer titles to choose from. Also I have added the Review and ARC Box now.

The Days of Summer: A Novel

My copy is a paperback from 2006

with a different cover.

 
A Summer Affair (Calhoun Chronicles)
I love Susan Wigg's historicals!

SBB Rules: a) Must be a follower; 
b) Share a comment on any (or all) of the two/three questions above.
Open internationally and an international winner may get a smaller book or a $5.00 GC if I decide the mailing is too much.

I will pick a Comment winner from all comments made by Friday, February 3, 2012 at 10PM central.

Winners of Deeper Water and A Demon Does it Better

CONGRATULATIONS 

to the Winners of

Two Copies of Deeper Water

Carol M
and
misskallie2000

ARC copy of  A Demon Does it Better

Pam K

ALL WINNERS please fill in the Winner's Acceptance Form so I can mail the books out to winners.  Please reply within 72 hours! 

Audio Book Review: Grant Me Timely Grace by Timothy Woods

This is full of intrigue and peeks into what might have been happening in Washington during the Civil War days leading up to Gettysburg.

Grant Me Timely Grace

• UNABRIDGED
• by Timothy Woods
• Narrated by Andy Mack

LENGTH 16 hrs and 38 mins
AUDIBLE RELEASE DATE 09-09-11
Genre: Historical Fiction
My Rating: 4.25 of 5.0

Product Description

Washington, D.C., June 1863. It is the week before Gettysburg, and the nation's fate hangs in the balance.

A Union officer was not court-martialed after disobeying a direct order during battle. Why?

Major Russell Johns is being played by puppet-master, Gerard Chantier. Transplanted New Orleans businessman and toast of the town. Chantier hosts the city’s most lavish entertainments attended by members of Lincoln’s cabinet and Washington’s elite.

Little do they know Gerard is coordinating an attack with Confederate general JEB Stuart's cavalry to take over the city, kidnap Lincoln and bring victory to the South.

When Russell’s probing brings him in contact with Chantier's daughter, Thérèse, he has to face his most difficult moral choice: manipulating her to get to her father or honoring the one thing that has sustained him through years of battle and loss—his own integrity.

Review:
The Civil War history is woven into this fictional drama so skillfully that I had to wonder which parts were completely real and which were all fiction. I thoroughly enjoyed the historical aspects.

Major Russell Johns has been sent out of battle, which is his passion, back to desk work. Someone exposed his letters to his father in which he ranted against the inferior weapons the Union leaders were providing to the troops. His father has been forced out of Washington and Major Johns is trying to overcome the disgrace of his near court-martial.

Johns gets caught up with his friend Paul and the wealthy Chantier family. Johns doesn’t belong in this elite and privileged social set but the young and impetuous daughter, Therese, has taken a clear liking to him. Johns begins to investigate improper weapons accounting and soon suspects there is much more than just normal government mismanagement. The more he searches the more he finds that much of the rumors and business dealings revolve around the wealthy Gerald Chantier. What he doesn’t realize at first is the extent of secrets and spies that surround him.

Chantier acts the benevolent patron of the Union while he secretly plots to bring down the capital city itself. Meanwhile, James, his life long friend and a former slave, is working to train a black militia to help defend the city. James is also struggling under the weight of guilt for a past betrayal that he can’t decide if he should confess.

While all of the political and military moves are going on, Therese has decided to assert her freedom of will.  She breaks off her arranged engagement to a British operative who is another spy tied up with her father. She is seeking more information from James about her mother’s past and she goes so far as to sell jewelry so she will have money not controlled by her father. What Therese doesn’t realize though is that her rather nasty friend, Rachel, is the biggest spy monger and will use anyone to further her own ends. Rachel is a character you can quickly dislike.

There is plenty of intrigue that kept me interested in the story. I was invested in Johns’ behavior, wanting things to go well for him and wanting him to capture the bad guys and save the day. Things don’t always work out perfectly but it is a believable and realistic ending.

The narration reading is a little dry and the beginning was just a bit slow. However the more the story moved on the more engrossed I became.  The narrator does a good job with many of the voices although I thought the female accents were a bit inconsistent, weak and whiny. Then again... that was part of Therese’s personality.  All in all, this is an engaging story and well worth listening to especially if you love Civil War settings, like I do.  I will watch for more books from this author.

I received this book from Crossroad Press through the Review Program at Audiobook Jukebox.