Sharing Beyond Books #132 Comment Giveaway, January 1, 2014

Hello again on Saturday night the first day of 2014 and Welcome to Sharing Beyond Books, SBB!
Thanks to everyone who commented on the last SBB post in 2013 and shared books you are looking forward to reading! Thanks also for your patience on the delay of this post. I have decided to just do one question for this post and I may do that in the future too.

Now.. on to SBB time.
Many commenters named Green Tea as their favorite. Three commenters do not drink herbal and/or hot tea. There were other interesting flavors but the most interesting one to me is "Red Rose Vanilla Biscotti Black Tea K-Cups for my Keurig," mentioned by Brooke. That is one I think I will try.

Fifteen of us shared the titles we are looking forward to reading. One book was named three times -  The King by J.R. Ward; and one  was mentioned twice: First Love by James Patterson.

~~~~

The Winner from SBB #131 comments is: #15 CAROL L who can make a GC choice if international or book choice from the ARC/Review titles, Christmas titles or Love titles - all linked near the end of the post.  Please let me know your choice by completing the (new) WINNER FORM.

WINNER OF THE SPECIAL GIVEAWAY for book that you are looking forward to reading is:
#1 JESS1 who wants to read Magic Burns by Ilona Andrews (Bk 2 Kate Daniels series).
Jess - please fill in the Winner Form with your address for print book or if you already have this book then let me know if you want GC or PayPal for its value.

WEEK #132

Q1. bn100 asks: Is there anything specific you look for in reviews??

A: Good question. I look for details on action and comments on style of writing. I also note if there are comments on the extent of sexual content - sweet, steamy, hot or erotic.

Image - Review Icon found at hackcod.com.

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 draw from the suggestions I used during the month and that person will get a book choice or GC. I thank everyone for submitting questions. Thanks for sending in questions! We are getting low on questions so hopefully you will send more in -- even if they are duplicates I'll weed through or try to modify to use. 

Thank you for Questions used in December which were submitted by: Winnie, Marjorie, Margaret and ElizabethL. Random.org choice is #4 so ElizabethL gets to pick a book or GC.

Your turn to share:

Q1. bn100 asks: Is there anything specific you look for in reviews??


SBB Comment Winners can choose a selection from the Valentine and "Love" books , the Christmas Giveaway Books, or the June 2012 Newly Updated ARC/Review List.

SBB Rules:
a) Must be a follower.
b) Share a comment on either of the two 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 through Saturday January 4, 2014 at 5 PM  central.

First book of the year 2014 Post - The Harbinger: The Ancient Mystery that Holds the Secret to America's Future

First Book of the Year 2014

This link up is offered by Sheila at Book Journey.

I had my DH take a picture of me with the two books and my MP4 player.
(I hadn't prepared for this so I am dressed in a favorite, warm, 'sit at home' scruff shirt
and I didn't even have make-up on. At least my hair is normal and neat.)

I was very glad to plan this book, The Harbinger, as my first read for 2014.
It is quite amazing and alarming!
I selected this for the first book in the new year for Ladies's Book Club.
The ladies are excited about the discussion meeting this Saturday.
I will be posting my review, with a giveaway, on either Saturday or Sunday.

The Harbinger: The Ancient Mystery that Holds the Secret to America's Future
by Jonathan Cahn
Narrated by Jonathan Cahn


Publisher's Summary
Is it possible that there exists an ancient mystery that holds the secret of America's future? That this mystery lies behind everything from 9/11 to the collapse of the global economy? That ancient harbingers of judgment are now manifesting in America? That God is sending America a prophetic message of what is yet to come? Before its end as a nation, there appeared in ancient Israel nine specific warnings and omens of national destruction - these same Nine Harbingers are now manifesting in America with profound ramifications for America’s future and end-time prophecy.

Hidden in an ancient biblical prophecy from Isaiah, the mysteries revealed in The Harbinger are so precise that they foretell recent American events down to the exact days: the 3,000-year-old mystery that revealed the exact date of the stock market collapse of 2008… the ancient prophecy that was proclaimed from the floor of the US Senate and then came true…and more. The revelations are so specific that even the most hardened skeptic will find it hard to put down. Though it sounds like the plot of a Hollywood thriller - IT’S REAL.

The prophetic mysteries are factual but revealed through a riveting narrative the reader will find hard to put down. The Harbinger opens with the appearance of a man burdened with a message he has received from a mysterious figure called The Prophet. The Prophet has given him nine seals, each containing a message about America's future. As he tells of his encounters with the Prophet, from a skyscraper in New York City to a rural mountaintop to Capitol Hill to Ground Zero, the mystery behind each seal is revealed. As the story unfolds, each revelation becomes another piece in a larger and larger puzzle, the ramifications of which are, even now, altering the course of America and the world.

©2012 Jonathan Cahn (P)2012 Charisma House

I am listening on MP4 while referring to the texts.

The Harbinger
(UNABRIDGED)

Author: Jonathan Cahn

and

 
I purchased The Harbinger for my book club ladies as Christmas gifts. We will be reading this for meeting and review in January.
I already had the book on Kindle but I purchased the study guide in print to help me lead the discussion.

The Harbinger Companion With Study Guide: Decode the Mysteries and Respond to the Call that Can Change America's Future-and Yours
by Jonathan Cahn

Please share what is your first book for 2014 and I think there is still time to link up at Book Journey.
Happy Reading in 2014!

Welcome 2014 - Happy New Year!

Happy and Healthy 2014 to everyone!  Best wishes~~

I just finished my last review book for 2013. :-)

Book Review: Silver-White (The Great North Woods Pack #1) by Shawn Underhill

This wolf shape shifter story is very engaging but has a cliff hanger ending.

Silver-White (The Great North Woods Pack #1)

by Shawn Underhill

• File Size: 368 KB
• Print Length: 169 pages
• ASIN: B00AQHLQ5U

Genre: Paranormal, Wolf Shape Shifer

My Rating: 4.5 of 5.0

Book Description
Publication Date: December 18, 2012
“The woods are lovely, dark, and deep,
But I have promises to keep,
And miles to go before I sleep.”
~ Robert Frost

*Evie’s family has been holding out on her …
Big time.
On an unexpected visit to her grandparents’ house in New Hampshire’s secluded North Woods, the sixteen-year-old literally runs into the truth of the long-hidden family secrets, and finds herself thrust without warning into the clandestine world of the Great North Pack—a wild and exhilarating world of rugged beauty, heart-pounding adventures, and long nights running under a sea of stars … but as she’s set to discover, a world also fraught with potential dangers lurking in the shadows.

Review:
Evie was always a restless child and discovered a great passion for running at an early age. She lived with her widowed mother in Alabama and especially loved her summer and occasional winter visits to her grandparents' farm in the North Woods of New Hampshire. There she would run on dirt roads between cornfields and on trails through the woods. She would dream of running and then one night, as she was nearing her seventeenth birthday, she dreamt of familiar northern paths where she found herself running in wild freedom, faster than ever before, with a steady heartbeat of joy.

Evie has shifted to her wolf self without ever knowing of her history. Her mother immediately takes the feverish young woman to her grandfather and the pack. Suddenly Evie is not just the newest wolf, but a white wolf from the legendary leaders of the pack. This brings a response of jealousy from some but mostly joy in a pack that cherishes family and strengths. Evie faces a crash course in learning as she is ignorant of the pack ways, history and dangers. Her new world is complicated by outsiders too. There is a cougar pack that has had an old rivalry with the wolves. They tended to remain off on their own but the news of a new white wolf has brought them in to attack.

Evie is struggling to take in the fact that she is a wolf shifter, there are other shifters, and there are human ‘rats’ that sneak and spy. She is also trying to assert her reasoning, human will to control the wild wolf instinct that flashes forth causing concern and danger for herself and her friends. But she is young, foolish and quickly gets into trouble. While facing the dangers of control and marauding cats, Evie and her pack also have to remember to maintain a low profile so humans do not suspect strangeness in their midst.

This story jumps into a good steady pace and is wonderfully portrayed from the view of the young protagonist who is frightened, confused, a bit angry and yet thrilled at her new world. Evie doesn’t realize how special she is so she is not arrogant in her unique blood lines but she also is totally a reckless teenager. The character is fittingly developed as are others of the pack - relatives and friends. The reader gets the emotional impact of the teen fitting into a family dynamic, as well as wonderful descriptions of enhanced senses.

There is plenty of good action and I was well engrossed in the story when it hit a cliff hanger end! It was an “Aargh” moment because I didn’t want the adventure to end but I really didn’t want it to end in such a dangerous, unresolved situation! I recommend this story to those who like action and the family dynamic of shifter packs. Just be forewarned that you may want to have the second book handy.

I featured this in BookBlast and it sounded interesting so I purchased it for review. Note GC giveaway ends 12/31/13.

Mailbox Monday December 30, 2013

Welcome to Mailbox Monday.
Mailbox Monday is a gathering place for readers to share the books that came into their house last week and explore great book blogs.  This Meme started with Marcia at A Girl and Her Books (fka The Printed Page) but is now hosted at Mailbox Monday and through various blog hosts.
For DECEMBER: the Mailbox Monday Tour host is Gilion @ Rose City Reader

[It looks like the idea now is to return Mailbox Monday to its permanent home, so check back there next week to make your first MM post of the New Year.]

Warning: Mailbox Monday can lead to envy, toppling TBR piles and humongous wish lists.

No review titles but I received three books as Christmas gifts and a package of lovely chocolates from a blog friend! 

Are your mailbox and TBR piles blooming?

GIFT Items

These are the wonderful books from my son and daughter-in-law - now I just have to get my DH to help cook with this in mind and I have to set up a fitness regime for the New Year!

The Whole-Food Guide for Breast Cancer Survivors: A Nutritional Approach to Preventing Recurrence (The New Harbinger Whole-Body Healing Series) Paperback
by Edward Bauman MEd PhD (Author) & 2 more

The Breast Cancer Survivor's Fitness Plan: A Doctor-Approved Workout Plan For a Strong Body and Lifesaving Results (Harvard Medical School Guides) Paperback
by Carolyn Kaelin (Author) , Francesca Coltrera (Author) & 2 more

 

The Cancer-Fighting Kitchen:
Nourishing, Big-Flavor Recipes for Cancer Treatment and Recovery Hardcover
by Rebecca Katz (Author) , Mat Edelson (Author)

Here is the lovely chocolate surprise and sweet letter gift that I received!
Thank you for your thoughtfulness, Miki!

Won

None this week.

Purchased

I did purchase a couple of Kindle books at $.99 but it would take too long to figure out which ones of  those downloaded I actually purchased. :-)

Free

I managed to find 90 (Yikes!) Kindle titles to download this week - some through Rachel at Bitten by Books who linked up a list of paranormals and others linked through Bookbub, Bookfun, Free Par-tay, Inspired Reads, Pixel of Ink or Kindle ebooks.