Martha's Bookshelf***Friday Pick Giveaway February 7, 2014

[** If you are new to Friday Pick Giveaway - Welcome!  Scroll down a bit (below book group #19) for instructions on how to enter.]

(Thanks for being patient - got busy at work today and didn't get to this until end of work day.) We thought it was warming up but got another couple of cold days this week. Lost yesterday to 2nd chemo treatment day but all in all a good week.



More details at My Cancer Journey. 

[UPDATED NOTE - US entrants I prefer, please, that you pick a book as that is the first purpose of this giveaway - to find new homes for books. The GCs are for the international entrants because postage has jumped up.]

Thank you to all who entered the January 31 Pick. There were two Automatic wins this week.  (Automatic winners are those who requested the book four times and I did not note other people asking for that book during those weeks). There was one title blocked.
Faith Hope & CherryTea gets A Lady of Consequence
and
Anita gets Star Light, Star Bright

CONGRATULATIONS
to Random.org picked Winners from January 31 Pick:
LindaK gets All I Ever Wanted

ElizabethL gets a GC

All winners please fill in the Winner's Acceptance Form or email me to confirm your win, send your snail mail address information and let me know if you would like bookmarks - sensual, sexy or sweet bookmarks. {The form is new because Google changed their forms and the old one wasn't letting me print out the responses.}

This is a lovely thought for the month of love. :-)

Image found at Simple Reminders by Richard Bach.

New Book Group #45 January 31, 2014

PAIRS:
   Deborah Cooke: Winter Kiss and Kiss of Fate
   Fern Michaels:  Hey Good Looking and Charming Lily
SINGLES:
Swimming Without a Net by Mary Jane Davidson
Exit Strategies by Catherine Todd
Perfection in Pearls by Madeline Hunter
The Reckoning by Beverly Lewis
Out of Darkness by Lynn Erickson
Lord Braybrook's Penniless Bride by Elizabeth Rolls
Contract Dad by Helen Shelton
Sandhill Dreams by Cara Putman
Hearts Are Wild by Laura Wright
Dare Me Anthology, Cherry Adair, Jill Shalvis and Julie Elizabeth Leto
All I Ever Wanted by Kristan Higgins
A Writer's Dream & A Cowboy's Heart by Vickie Kennedy


New Book Group #44 December 14, 2013

PAIRS:
Rachel Lee
     A Conrad County Homecoming and Boots & Badges
SINGLES:
Renegade Heart by Madeline Baker
Shades of Scarlet by Linda Fallon
Legendary Warrior by Donna Fletcher
Found Money by James Grippando - Abridged Cassette Audio
Every Whispered Word by Karyn Monk
A Lady of Consequence by Mary Nichols
Hawk's Pursuit by Connie O'Banyon
Tides of Passion by Tracy Sumner
Guarded Secrets by Rebecca York and B.J. Daniels

New Book Group! #43 November 1, 2013

Pairs gone
SINGLES:
Father for Keeps by Ana Seymour
Crimson Rain by Meg O’Brien

New Book Group #42 September 27, 2013

Singles:
Silver Feather by Cassie Edwards (pictured and in box but missed the listing.)
Something Extra by Janet Dailey

New Book Group #41 August 2, 2013

Singles:
The Nightingale's Song by Jo-Ann Power
Cattle Rancher, Secret Son by Margaret Way
White Heather by Jaclyn Reding

New Book Group #40 June 28, 2013

Pairs:
      (Angels) Not Quite An Angel by Bobby Hutchinson and An Angel for Dry Creek by Janet Tronstad
Singles:
Breakfast in Bed by Sandra Brown - Audio Cassette Tapes
Star Light, Star Bright by Katherine Stone

New Book Group #39 May 31, 2013 - Plenty of "summer" titles!
Oops - I never added all the links last month so no promises on these either.

Singles:
Shetland Summer by Janet Lynnford
That Summer by Joan Wolf

New Book Group #38 April 20, 2013
Here is a group with many mysteries.  Links to be added as I get time.

Awaken the Senses by Nalini Singh

New Book Group #37 March 22, 2013

As I am linking these titles it is clear to me why they were in my TBR boxes and it is really hard to let them go but I have soooo many. Better that they find good reader homes than sit on my shelves, or in a box, and collect dust. 
Pairs:
Singles:
Anthology: Something Borrowed, Something Blue - this book has spine creases and minor water damage...I thought I had read it and liked it but now I realize it was another anthology I read with Elaine Barbier.
Lady Ice by Joan Hohl

New Book Group #36 February 15, 2013

The Trailsman: Texas Lead Slingers by Jon Sharpe

New Book Group #35 January 11, 2013 (All gone)

New Book Group #34 December 7, 2012--- (All gone)

New Book Group #33 October 27, 2012---(All gone)


New Book Group #32 October 5, 2012
- Oops upside down book! NOTE This book has dog bite damage; it is missing half back cover and the edges of pages in the back third of the book... it does not effect the text but I will understand if no one wants this one - A Courtesans Guide to Getting Your Man by Susan Donovan and Celeste Bradley

New Book Group #31 August 31, 2012
I pulled some more books from several of my boxes.
An Honorable Man by Rosemary Rogers (spine creases)

New Book Group #30 July 27, 2012
This time I pulled some books from one of my older boxes.
*asterisks indicate lighter, smaller books possibly suitable for international mailing
The Willful Widow by Valerie King (spine wear)
Wild Escapade by Lisa Bingham
Dancing on Snowflakes by Jane Bonander (postage too much - replaced with GC)

New Book Group #29 June 29, 2012
*asterisks indicate lighter, smaller books possibly suitable for international mailing
Magic: The Gathering Distant Planes, An Anthology

New Book Group #28 May 18, 2012--- (All gone)

New book Group #27 April 13, 2012--- (All gone)

New book Group #26 March 2, 2012--- (All gone)

New Group #25 January 12, 2012---(All gone)

New Group #24 Pick Books November 25, 2011---(All gone)

New Group #23 Pick Books October 14, 2011
I tried to pick some books that would be good for October -
Halloween or dark minded.
Ghost Writer (Shivers #3) by M.D. Spenser

New Group #22 Pick Books September 2, 2011---(All gone)

New Group #21 of Pick Books July 29, 2011---(All gone)

May, 2011 New Group of Pick books Group #20
Luciano's Luck by Jack Higgins - Audio Cassettes

3/25/11 I did get to set up a new group of books: Group #19
Primary Colors - audio tapes

2/19/11 Book Group #18- Pairs!---(All gone).

I have finally updated the intro and Entry paragraphs here:

If you saw the pictures posted of my bookshelves and boxes you know I do have lots of books! And that doesn't include the other eight or so boxes at my office!! And more books as I find deals too good to pass up! I am sharing my book bounty by these Friday Pick Giveaways.

I started Friday Pick on November 27, 2009 and in four years I have posted 43 groups of 16 (688) books to find new homes! (as of November 2013).

I periodically update the lists - deleting those won. You can still go to the Friday Pick list link to see older posts and the older lists book pictures if you want! I am happy to say that so far about 623+ books have found new homes! YAY. I have to update my print out to check the exact number sent out - a few were never claimed.

Note rules here regarding international entries.

Because postage to overseas can be prohibitive I am willing to give a $5.00 book certificate to international winners - Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Borders, ARe, TWRP, ClassAct Books, eTreasures, Desert Breeze, etc....you tell me where and I'll set it up. So for my overseas visitors your comment may indicate a smaller book and I'll check postage or note your choice of gift card.

I learned that The Book Depository does not ship to everywhere. The postage for some of the books to far away places runs between $5.00 $7.00 and $6.00 $10.00 and up. Since I would award $5.00 for The Book Depository to an international winner, as an alternative you may choose a smaller book and we will hope the postage will not exceed $6.00. If the postage is more, or if you want to pick a larger book and you are willing to pay any extra postage beyond the $6.00 I will work with you on that. This may not make a difference to many but if it helps one or two of you to give one of my books a home that will make me happy too. :o)

TO ENTER:

Leave a comment and tell me WHICH BOOK you would like to get from the Friday Pick lists.
CUT OFF TIME IS THURSDAY NIGHTS AT 10:00 PM CENTRAL so I do not have to stay up past midnight to do the winner post!
I will randomly pick two winners to announce Friday mornings with the next Pick post.
Automatic wins are those who requested the book four times and I did not note other people asking for that book during those weeks.
WINNERS PLEASE CHECK THE WIN POST ON FRIDAYS AND fill in the Winner's Acceptance Form or email me at mesreads@gmail.com. [I will confirm receipt of the addresses- well I realize I haven't always done this. But if you filled out the form and don't get the book within two weeks nudge me with an email please!] If I have the winners e-mail I will send a reminder in a week or so....

Thanks for helping these books find new homes!!

Repeating this helpful blog tip: You can right click on a link and you will be given the choice to open the link in a new window or tab so you do not navigate away from the screen you are on!! I use this all the time!

1/14/11 New List #17--- (All gone)

12/3/10 Book Set: #16
The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown  (postage too much - replaced with GC)

List #15---(All gone)

List #14---(All gone)

Here is set #13 of Used books! ---(All gone)

Group #12---(All gone)

Group #11

Alien Chronicles - The Crimson Claw by Deborah Chester

List #1
Circle of Stars by Anna Lee Waldo

Pick #2---(All gone)

Pick #3---(All gone)

Pick #4---(All gone)

Pick #5
See Jane Lead by Lois P. Frankel
Cold Hit by Linda Fairstein - Audio Tapes

Pick #6---(All gone)

Pick #7
Prey by Michael Crichton - Audio Tape

Pick #8
(sc) = slightly creased on binding otherwise all in good shape
The Jury by Steve Martini - Audio Tapes
No Safe Place by Richard North Patterson - Audio Tapes

Pick #9
On Treacherous Ground by Earl Murray

Pick #10---(All Gone)

Delay in Posting Friday Pick February 7, 2014

I had round two of Chemo treatment today (Thursday) and slept most of the afternoon. It is 8:30pm now and I am going back to bed.  I can't do Random.org until after 10pm so I plan to make the selections and upload the post early Friday morning. :-) Thanks for understanding.

Audio Book Review: Forever His: Stolen Brides, Book 1 by Shelly Thacker

This is an intensely romantic time travel, medieval tale.

Forever His: Stolen Brides, Book 1
by Shelly Thacker
 Narrated by Julia Motyka

 Length: 15 hrs and 5 mins
    Series: Stolen Brides, Book 1
Format: Unabridged
 Release Date:09-26-13
Publisher: Summit Avenue Books
Genre: Time Travel Romance
My Rating: 4.0 of 5.0

Publisher's Summary
On New Year's Eve, she tumbles 700 years back in time - and into the bed of a darkly handsome knight.

Sir Gaston de Varennes wanted a docile bride who would fit into his plans for vengeance and justice, but a trick of time finds him married to a thoroughly modern American lady who turns his castle, his life, and his heart upside down. Will her desperate secret tear them apart after only a few bittersweet weeks of stolen passion - or will they conquer mistrust, treachery, and time itself to discover a love that spans the centuries?

Winner of the National Readers Choice Award: Best Historical Romance of the Year

The Stolen Brides Series: One falls through time and finds herself married to a dark stranger...one may never reach her royal wedding if she can't resist her rugged protector...one is abducted by a mysterious swordsman and swept away to a secret island paradise. Three regal brides are about to discover that falling in love with a warrior is the most dangerous adventure of all.
©1993 Shelly Thacker Meinhardt (P)2013 Shelly Thacker Meinhardt

Review:
Celine Fontaine is a twenty-three year old woman of wealth and sophistication. She had been engaged to a charismatic man until some hoodlums tried to steal his car and she suffered a bullet wound in the back. Her ambitious family doesn’t understand her panic attacks nor do they know that she must soon go through another operation to remove a fragment of the bullet that could otherwise end her life. She is struggling with her fears as she stares at the moon through the window of the family ancestral chateau in France. Suddenly she is struck by the light of a lunar eclipse. When she stumbles from the flash of light she finds herself in an oddly familiar room that looks totally different. She is dismayed when she learns that she has been whisked 700 years to the past.

Everyone thinks Celine is Lady Christiane Fontaine, the convent raised cousin of Sir Gaston’s vicious enemy, Duc Alain de la Tourelle. Gaston is convinced that Tourelle murdered his father and elder brother. The battle between Gaston and Tourelle has angered the King to the point that he ordered Gaston to marry Lady Christiane. Gaston could not refuse to marry as ordered but he could refuse to consummate the marriage. He is sure it is just a matter of time to uncover proof of Tourelle’s treacherous lies to reveal to the King so he can seek an annulment.

Gaston is a fierce, handsome warrior who earned the title of the Black Knight. Gaston tries to humiliate Lady Chrisitane by treating her no better than a house servant. But she soon makes friends in the household as she treats everyone with kindness and makes changes around the fortress to help make things easier and improve conditions.

Gaston doesn’t believe Celine’s claims to be from a future time even if there are oddities. And he is adamant that their union will not be consummated no matter how fierce their attraction. He can’t decide if he should keep her close so he knows what threat she poses or stay away from the overpowering temptation. Meanwhile Celine desperately tries to find a way to return to her time for the surgery she needs to save her life.

This story has wonderful chemical attraction and frustrating tension. The medieval settings are believable and beautiful. The time travel dilemma is also believable and well done. There were a few too many vivid sexual encounters for my tastes but they were nicely handled and could be skimmed over without losing the intimacy and emotional depths growing between the pair. If you like medieval and/or time travel romance and strong minded characters who struggle against the pull of true love this is a story you should check out.

Audio Notes: Initially I struggled with the rather breathy narration. Julia Motyka does a good job with the French and accents but has to work to portray the deep, manly voice of the warrior knight. Still, this is a story that I think was easier for me to listen to than if I had picked it to read in print.

I received this audible download to review for the publisher through Audiobook Jukebox.

Note: the Kindle version appears to be free at the time of this posting.

Another Month of Winners- December Through January!

I apologize to all these winners - I have been late in picking the winners again. I have listed some on the sidebar during the week but this is the first they have been listed in a Winner Announcement.
So here are the Winners to bring us up-to-date.
{Note- Friday Pick and Sharing Beyond Books Winners are announced each week and listed in the sidebar too so they are not included in winner link listing - you can check those winners by clicking on Friday Pick link or Sharing Beyond Books link found on the right sidebar.}


Giveaways Ended January 24, 2014:

Spontaneous Dreaming of Books Giveaway Hop. WINNERS: Entry #161 Kathie S. and Entry #17 Kamla L.

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Print Giveaway: The Harbinger: The Ancient Mystery that Holds the Secret to America's Future by Jonathan Cahn; Winner: NATASHA

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Print Giveaway: White Rogue by David R. Fett M.D., Stephen Langford & Connie Malcolm; Spy Thriller; 
Winner: BETH C (rubynreba)

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Giveaway Ended January 18, 2014

Attention Shana Galen Fans! A Pre-Order Gift Offer and A Giveaway from SOURCEBOOKS. Winner: SANDY X

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Giveaway Ended January 11, 2013


Giveaway: Angel Christmas by Patricia Rice, Mary Balogh & 3 more; Anthology, Christmas, Angels. Winner: CASSIE


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Giveaway Ended January 6, 2013

Book Blitz Feature - Double Life of Incorporate Things
GIVEAWAY $50.00 GC
Winner: Check Rafflecopter or Author website

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Giveaways Ended January 3, 2014

Giveaway: Christmas in Lucky Harbor by Jill Shalvis
US Print. WINNER: BONNIE H.

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Giveaway: Carving Angels by Diane Stringam Tolley
WINNERS: US (Print) VICTORIA; International (eBook) ERIN F

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Giveaway Ended December 18, 2013


Giveaway: Christmas at Harrington's
by Melody Carlson
Winner: MEGHAN S
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ALL WINNERS - if you have not already done so - Please fill in the Winner's Acceptance Form AND you can email me at mesreads AT gmail.com to confirm the win and I will arrange the mailing or notify the publishers.
[I ask that all winner's fill in the form as it helps me keep track of when I have completed the mail outs or notice to the publishers rather than tracking individual emails. But of course -- feel free to email me too! :-)]

Book Review and Giveaway: In One Year and Out the Other Collection

This is a fun anthology to kick off a new year!
In One Year and Out the Other
Cara Lockwood, Pamela Redmond Satran, Beth Kendrick, Megan McAndrew, Tracy McArdle, Kathleen O'Reilly, Eileen Rendahl, Diane Stingley, Libby Street, Christina Delia

• Mass Market Paperback: 384 pages
• Publisher: Pocket Books (November 28, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1416530932
• ISBN-13: 978-1416530930

Genre: Romantic Comedy, Short Story Anthology, Chick-lit
My Rating: 4.0 of 5.0

Book Description
Publication Date: November 28, 2006
Out with the old, in with the new, and on with the party!
Maybe it's just another midnight...or maybe there really is magic in the air when December 31st becomes January 1st, and confetti kisses and champagne toasts kick off a new year, a new romance, a new look, a new attitude.

Celebrate the start of something new with In One Year and Out the Other...a sparkling collection of all new stories by today's rising fiction stars:

Cara Lockwood puts self-improvement to the test with 528 resolutions -- not least of which is "Do not sleep with married men" -- in "Resolved: A New Year's Resolution List"...Pamela Redmond Satran instructs a single mom in the fine art of partying like the boys (have lots of sex, don't worry that you're too fat) in "How to Start the New Year Like a Guy"...Diane Stingley shows a twentysomething why there's more to life than waiting by the phone for a New Year's date in "Expecting a Call"...Megan McAndrew seizes the day -- or just a very special one-night stand -- for a single food stylist hungering for more in "The Future of Sex"...and more great tales from Kathleen O'Reilly, Beth Kendrick, Eileen Rendahl, Tracy McArdle and Libby Street.

Review:
This is a fun collection of short stories perfect to greet a new year or to provide quick, break-size reading chuckles. There are ten stories running between 30 to 60 pages each. I wasn’t crazy about all of them but many were fun and introduced me to new-to-me authors.

Resolved: A New Year’s Resolution List by Cara Lockwood kicks off the set with a ridiculous 500+ long list. Clearly the character has issues to work through!

Expecting a Call by Diane Stingley is a fun New Year’s eve twist on a Christmas Carol.

Halo, Goodbye by Kathleen O’Reilly is a sweet view from a young woman who died New Year’s eve and has to find a way to let go and move on.

The characters were a bit desperate or shallow in one or two of the stories, like The Future of Sex and The Luckiest People. But all in all I enjoyed the quick reads and the theme being new year, resolutions and new beginnings. 

I pulled this from my TBR to read for the new year.

ENTER THIS GIVEAWAY for the gently used Print Copy.

ENTRY FORM HERE

Don't forget to fill in the form for entry! 

I have noticed a few commenters who forgot to enter through the Form.  

For 3 Extra Bonus entries comment on the review OR 

tell me about another book by any of the authors that you enjoyed.

* This contest is open to U.S. address only.
* This contest will close 10 PM (Central) on February 14, 2014.
The winner will be randomly selected from all entries.
WINNER WILL BE ANNOUNCED after February 14, 2014.
Winners will have 72 hours to respond by email or the winners form linked in the announcement.