Over Spring Break, my eleven-year-old was sick and stuck at home, meaning my seven-year-old was also stuck at home. Luckily, I had recently picked up the audio CD of Rump: The True Story of Rumpelstiltskin by Liesl Shurtliff from our library. So even though we were stuck inside, we were able to listen to an entertaining story explaining Rumpelstiltskin’s side of things. The audio version, read by Maxwell Glick, was excellent and made being stuck at home not seem so bad. Poor Rump. His mother died shortly after he was born and was only able to say the first part of his name. It’s no wonder Rump ended up being “the…
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Cover Reveal for Pirate Island by Katie L. Carroll
I’m excited to help reveal the cover for Katie L. Carroll’s middle-grade adventure, Pirate Island. I just recently finished reading Carroll’s YA fantasy Elixir Bound, so can’t wait to read Pirate Island when it’s out in October. So, without further ado… PIRATE ISLAND by Katie L. Carroll (katielcarroll.com) Cover Illustration by Susan Tait Porcaro (susantaitporcaro.com) Coming October 2017! A thrice cursed island, a legendary pirate treasure, and one not-so-brave boy. What could possibly go wrong? For centuries, the whereabouts of Captain William Kidd’s lost pirate treasure has remained a mystery. When Billy’s best friend, Andy, proposes they look for it on nearby Pirate Island, Billy thinks it’s just another one of their crazy adventures.…
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Saturdays at Sea Book Review
I loved this whole series. Saturdays at Sea by Jessica Day George was no different. It might even be my favorite one of them all. In Saturdays at Sea, we get to meet the family of Lilah’s betrothed, Lulath, as Celie and her family travel to Grath. The Ship (notice the capital S) is built and shows that it is definitely like the Castle. On the maiden voyage, Celie and her family are whisked away on another adventure, this time on the high seas. And there are unicorns involved. I applaud Jessica Day George on her unique take on unicorns. If you haven’t read this series yet, I highly recommend it. Although…
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Inspiration behind the Dreamland forest
I’ve been asked where I get my inspiration, so I thought I’d give you a glimpse of some things that helped inspire The Gardenia Curse in a series of ‘inspiration’ posts. I’ll start with some pictures of the forest walk that was around the corner from my house during the time I was writing about Eva’s forays into the Dreamland forest. I would often take walks through this forest with my family. On evening walks when the sun was just beginning to drop, the shadows were emerging, and the cold began moving in is when I felt Eva’s forest coming to life. These pictures and this forest helped inspire the section in…
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Favorite Books I Read in 2016
It’s a snow day today for my girls. As I look outside at the accumulation of snow with my coffee, I just want to curl up with a book in front of the fire. This got me thinking about all the books I enjoyed reading in 2016 and I thought I’d share some with you. Later today, I’ll be snuggled nice and warm on the couch, possibly with my two girls, my dog or cat, or maybe all four of them, enjoying my current reading-for-fun book. This will be after I go out, shovel a bit and just have some plain old fun in the snow and get nice and…
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One Year Anniversary Blog Tour
It’s the last day of the one year anniversary blog tour and giveaway for The Gardenia Curse! If you haven’t entered yet, don’t worry, there’s still time. The clock is ticking though, so hurry up. Enter the Rafflecopter Giveaway here Blog Tour Prize Pack Giveaway One lucky winner will receive a $25 Amazon gift card or $25 PayPal cash prize (winner’s choice), a copy of The Gardenia Curse, and a book flower made by Garden Dreams Decor.Giveaway ends: November 28, 11:59 pm, 2016Terms and Conditions: NO PURCHASE NECESSARY TO ENTER OR WIN. VOID WHERE PROHIBITED BY LAW. A winner will be randomly drawn through the Rafflecopter widget and will be contacted by email within 48…
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First Chapter of The Gardenia Curse
Chapter 1Darkness Gasping, Eva felt the coolness of the blade as it sliced through her skin. She clutched her now oozing side and opened her eyes to darkness. She frantically looked around. Her heart pounded against her ribs as if trying to break free. Her face dripped with sweat. Where was she? What was going on? Feeling a sticky warmth on her hands, Eva looked down. Her hands still clutched her side. In the trickle of moonlight that filtered through the window, she could see blood. Her blood. Eva scanned her surroundings. The darkness that faced her now was just that, darkness. A lack of light. Nothing more. As her…
