Premier Virtual Author Book Tours

Bitter Chocolate by Dawn Greenfield Ireland & Giveaway (eBook – open Int’l)

July 18, 2014 by Darlene

Happy Friday everyone! Today’s spotlight is on Bitter Chocolate by Dawn Greenfield Ireland and I must apologize once again to the author for not having a review ready for today. We are getting smoke in our city from the forest fires and our air quality is really bad which is making me really sick and being that I’m having a hard time breathing I’m also having a hard time concentrating. I have however read the first book in the Alcott Family Adventures and enjoyed it a great deal. I’m looking forward to getting back to Bitter Chocolate and reviewing both for you all! In the meantime I want to let you all know about the book and the author and be sure to enter for a chance to win a copy of both of the eBooks at the end of the post.

Publisher: Artistic Origins Inc (June, 2014)
Category: Cozy Mystery
Series: Hot Chocolate Series- Book 2
Tour Date: June 30-July 30, 2014
Available in: ebook, 400 Pages, With Recipes

About the Book

The characters you loved in Hot Chocolate are back with more escapades of life in Houston’s wealthy River Oaks.

Lila Mae is in a tizzy over the Chocolate Ball – a huge event that she and her sisters, Dorothea and Madge, host every year. But due to unusual circumstances, Dorothea and Madge dump everything in Lila Mae’s lap. If it weren’t for Julian Gillespie of Event Is King, the Chocolate Ball would have melted.

Bernie, the Alcott sisters’ 92-year-old father, decides he wants his Bentley back. The sisters and Bambi are horrified. They hire Joseph’s cousin Chewie as Bernie’s new chauffeur.

Wolfram, Lila Mae’s new astrologer, gives clues of things to come. This leaves Lila Mae and her sidekick Amelia with brows furrowed.

On her day off, Amelia decides to bake a chocolate blueberry pie. She discovers she needs to make a grocery run. When she returns home, she discovers her kitchen door is slightly ajar. Arms loaded with groceries, she toes the door open.

Three things catch her attention: a vase of flowers on the kitchen island that was not there when she left the house, her marble rolling pin covered with blood… and a dead body on her kitchen floor.

Amelia’s eyes drift toward the dining room and beyond – is the house empty, or is there a murderer inside? She backs up, turns and hurries outside. After setting the bags on the ground, she slips back into the kitchen and snaps a picture of the dead guy. Then she calls Detective Chance Walker, Lila Mae and finally… 9-1-1.

Tour Stops with Premier Virtual Author Book Tours
Buy at: Amazon, Amazon Canada

About the Author

Dawn Ireland is the CEO of Artistic Origins Inc, a 100% woman-owned publishing and technical writing service company that has been doing business since 1995. She’s an award winning independent publisher and author of The Puppy Baby Book , Mastering Your Money, and Amazon Best Seller Hot Chocolate (the first in the series, and her fifth novel). The Hot Chocolate audio book was awarded the AudioFile Earphones Award on Valentine’s Day 2014.

Her family feature film screenplay A Girl and Her Dog was awarded a Kids First! Endorsement by the Coalition for Quality Children’s Media in October 2012 and optioned by Shadow Cave Productions in February 2013.

Originally from Feeding Hills, MA, Dawn migrated to San Antonio in 1968, then when her first son was one years old, her family moved to Houston where work was more plentiful. After 40+ years of heat and humidity, she has her sights on the Pacific NW.

Dawn is the co-author of the animated screenplay Memoirs of a Dog which won the Spirit Award of the Moondance Film Festival (children’s category) September 2011. Her dark comedy Plan B was a finalist in the Table Read My Screenplay script competition in 2010 and years before that, Standing Dead won the Women in Film and Television (Houston Chapter) screenplay award.

Stay tuned for The Last Dog (futuristic/sci-fi 2015), and Spicy Chocolate (2016).

Author Links: Website, Facebook, Twitter, Google+

GIVEAWAY – OPEN INTERNATIONALLY

Win 1 eBook Copy of Bitter Chocolate & an added bonus (from me) of Hot Chocolate too!

*CLICK HERE* and fill out the form to enter

Draw Date August 2/14

Good luck!

(comments are very much welcomed but do not count as an entry)

Her Loving Husband’s Curse by Meredith Allard & Giveaway (US/Canada/Int’l)

April 11, 2014 by Darlene

Her Loving Husband’s Curse by Meredith Allard is the second in the The Loving Husband Trilogy. I really enjoyed the first in the series Her Dear and Loving Husband so I was anxious to read this one as well to see what would happen next. Once again I listened to the audio version which is narrated by Laura Jennings. I really enjoy listening to her. She has a soft tone to her voice and is very good at using different inflections for different characters. She really makes the story come alive and that really added to my enjoyment of the book.

I really want to be very general about this book because saying too much can give away parts of the story that you get from the first book and then the second and that would just ruin it for anyone wanting to experience it for themselves. In this installment we find James and Sarah happily married but Sarah is now haunted by memories of a child she once carried in a past life and this leaves her wanting a child for her and James. Being a vampire James can’t father a child so they turn to adoption and find the perfect baby in Grace.

All seems to be coming together for them until Kenneth Hempel, the reporter, starts again with his vicious rumors of vampires living and working among the innocent citizens of Salem. It isn’t long before things are out of control and James and Sarah must decide what to do to keep Grace and themselves safe.

This sequel expertly weaves actual events in history such as the Salem Witch Trials and the Trail of Tears into Sarah and Jame’s stories. I found this part of the story very interesting as I hadn’t even known of the Trail of Tears before. I love how Meredith takes the reader back in time and enlightens us to a time in history while giving us a modern and page-turning story. That’s one of the reasons I love this series so much.

Meredith truly has a talent with words and I would be remiss in not saying how beautifully written this book is. This is not just another vampire novel! This book is so much more with the emotional elements of Sarah and Jame’s lives together and now with baby Grace all woven together with their past lives. I do suggest starting with the first book Her Dear and Loving Husband otherwise you may find yourself a bit lost plus it would be a shame to lose out on any part of this great series. Highly recommended!

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Read the Prologue
Meredith’s Links: Website, Facebook, Twitter, Google+, and Pinterest
Buy at: Amazon, Amazon Canada, Book Depository, and B&N

GIVEAWAY (US/Canada/Int’l)

I have one copy of Her Loving Husband’s Curse by Meredith Allard to share with my readers. There is a print copy available to US and Canadian residents and an eBook copy available internationally. To enter…

Leave a comment for 1 entry into the giveaway.
Tweet, share on Facebook, or blog for 2 extra entries.

Print open to US/Canada
eBook open Internationally
Draw Date April 26/14

Source: Audiobook from my personal library.

The Return by Melissa Douthit

October 17, 2013 by Darlene

The Return by Melissa Douthit is the final book in The Legend of the Raie’Chaelia trilogy and my favorite! I have really enjoyed this trilogy which includes The Raie’Chaelia and The Firelight of Maalda and I looked forward to seeing how the story would wrap up and I wasn’t disappointed. Melissa has a knack for building an intriguing fantasy world with great characters and plenty of action and adventure with the added touch of a little romance. A great series for fantasy lovers!

In The Return Chalice is reunited with her friends and the love of her life Jeremiah. I’m not going to use the various names of different groups that comprise the story because it may be too confusing for those that haven’t read the books but I will say that Chalice is up for the fight of her life against an evil man that would like nothing better than to see her dead. Chalice is not that easily beaten though and she will use her smarts and special powers to save herself, her friends, and even bring her father back from a faraway place that the evil one put him in. Ultimately they will all have to band together to fight the enemy but the question is – will Chalice live to talk about it?

I adore Chalice and have from the first novel. She is the reason I kept reading this trilogy – well I liked the story too. I love how spunky, tough, and independent Chalice is. I like reading novels with strong female characters and yet Melissa keeps her story believable because Chalice isn’t invincible despite her special powers. Chalice is eighteen in The Return and she definitely hums to the beat of her own drum and refuses to be told what to do. She’s a warrior and yet has a soft side. Her love Jeremiah I’m sure spends a lot of time pulling his hair out while trying to deal with her stubbornness. Their love story has built from the first novel and is a sweet and pure love.

The Return wraps up nicely. In fact both Chalice and Jeremiah come from two different cultures and are not able to marry so it was interesting to see how the author works her way around this. There are also twists and turns I just wasn’t expecting and at one point in time I thought something was going to happen that I was most definitely not going to like but thankfully it didn’t. I enjoyed this trilogy and my only complaint is that I’m sad the journey is over.

Be sure to check out my giveaway of an eBook copy of The Return and the wonderful giveaway that Melissa is holding for a free eReader or a $75 Amazon gift certificate.

Follow along on Melissa’s tour with Premier Virtual Author Book Tours
Melissa’s website, Facebook, and Twitter
Buy at Amazon, Amazon Canada, and B&N

Source: Review copy provided by the author. No compensation was received for this review and all opinions are my own.

Her Dear & Loving Husband by Meredith Allard & Giveaway (US/Canada)

September 9, 2013 by Darlene

Her Dear & Loving Husband by Meredith Allard was the perfect novel for me. We have witches, vampires, past lives, and more! This is book one of a trilogy and thankfully all of the books are already published as I’m anxious to see what comes next. I listened to the audiobook of Her Dear & Loving Husband which is narrated by Laura Jennings who has a nice melodic tone of voice that I thought lent very well to the telling of this story. This is an interesting novel in that it encompasses a supernatural element but also leans towards the serious in its discussions of the Salem Witch Trials.

Sarah has always felt drawn to Salem so once she’s divorced she decides to move there for a while. There are also those horrible nightmares of the hangings and being jailed in the Salem Witch Trials that haunt Sarah’s dreams. Apparently she had an ancestor that died in the Salem Witch Trials. Could it be that if she spends time in Salem she may be able to shed some light on what exactly her dreams mean?

Shortly after her arrival she meets a few witches who befriend her and mean to help her decipher her dreams. What she doesn’t expect though when she’s out walking is to be accosted by a man calling her by a different name. Even worse than that this appears to be the same man from her dreams. What could it all mean? The man James is overcome by the sight of Sarah as she looks exactly like his wife. His wife that he lost years ago and simply can’t forget. Who is this woman Sarah and why does she look and even act like his long lost wife Elizabeth? As the two spend time together more and more of the past comes to light and they find that they may have more in common than even they could have imagined.

Of course you can’t have a story about Salem without the age old question of whether or not witches and vampires actually exist there. The author has seamlessly woven historical detail about the Salem Witch Trials into a fictional story that captured my attention from beginning to end. I have long been fascinated with the Salem Witch Trials and I always enjoy books that touch on them in any way. To have a great story that gave me goosebumples at times was even better.

Her Dear & Loving Husband is a great pick if you enjoy novels about the Salem Witch Trials along with the added excitement of the supernatural! I really enjoyed it and can’t wait to get to the next two books in the series. If you have the chance to listen to the audio you really should as it is really well done!

Her Dear & Loving Husband by Meredith Allard is on tour with Premier Author Virtual Book Tours so be sure and visit the other tour stops to see what others thought of the book. You can connect with Meredith on her website, Facebook, Twitter, and Google+. Your own copy of Her Dear & Loving Husband can be purchased at Amazon and Amazon Canada while the audiobook can be picked up at Audible.com.

GIVEAWAY DETAILS (Print copy-US only, eBook-US/Canada)

I have one copy of Her Dear & Loving Husband by Meredith Allard up for giveaway. A print copy is available to US entrants only while an eBook copy is open to both US and Canadian entrants. To enter…

For 1 entry leave a comment entering the giveaway.
Tweet, share on Facebook, or blog for 2 extra entries.

This giveaway is open to US residents (print copy or eBook) and Canadian residents (eBook copy only) – No PO boxes and I will draw for the winner on September 22/13. Good luck!

Source: Audiobook copy from my personal library. Giveaway is provided by the author. No compensation was received for this review and all opinions are my own.

Finding Lily by Lisa D. Ellis

May 17, 2013 by Darlene

Finding Lily by Lisa D. Ellis is a very emotional story that is very likely to break your heart and yet ultimately offer hope. Claire and her husband Jim had anxiously awaited the birth of their first child Lily and are devastated when they lose her shortly after she is born. Everywhere Claire turns there are reminders of her baby girl and she outwardly grieves. She cries and is unmotivated to do anything at all. In contrast her husband Jim throws himself into his work and tries to move on. Needless to say this infuriates Claire who feels if he can’t outwardly grieve their daughter, then he must not have loved her. Not knowing what else to do Claire escapes to a live for a while in a lighthouse that she had visited and loved as a child.

When Claire arrives she revels in the solitude thinking it exactly what she needed. There are no reminders of Lily here. The time there will give her the space she needs to sort through her grief and her feelings on her marriage. As the weeks go by Claire feels certain she can feel her daughter’s presence there with her and it comforts her. When she discovers some old love letters of the woman who lives there year round they cause her to reflect on her own marital problems. Yet she also remembers meeting her husband on this very island and falling in love with him. Does the loss of their child also mean the loss of their marriage? Claire just doesn’t know.

Finding Lily isn’t the easiest book to read at times. I can’t imagine losing a child as I barely survived losing my dog. I did relate to this book in a lot of ways because many, many years ago one of my best friends lost her first baby as he was stillborn. I was there for his birth and later witnessed much of the same emotions that Claire experiences and it was heartbreaking.

I think one of the biggest things to note is not everyone deals with grief the same way in a marriage and this novel portrays that perfectly. While Claire wears her emotions on her sleeve, Jim does not and neither way is wrong but it’s easy to see how it can cause conflict in a marriage. The person literally falling apart simply cannot understand how their partner can go on and live each day as they did before. I’m one of those falling apart people so again I identified with Claire. Ultimately I think Finding Lily is a novel of hope and healing. It’s weird to say I enjoyed a book that broke my heart but I did. I would say that this would make a fantastic book club pick as there is a lot to discuss from losing a child to the effects it has on a marriage. Finding Lily is well worth reading but have a box of tissues nearby.

Finding Lily by Lisa D. Ellis is on tour with Premier Virtual Author Book Tours so be sure to check out the other tour stops for more thoughts on the book. You can connect with Lisa on her website, Facebook, and Twitter. Your own copy of Finding Lily can be purchased at Amazon, Amazon Canada, B&N, and SoulMate Publishing.

Source: Review copy provided by Virtual Author Book Tours and the Publisher. No compensation was received and all opinions are my own.

Guest Post with Benjamin Berkley, author of Against My Will & Giveaway (US/Canada)

October 31, 2012 by Darlene

Today finds Benjamin Berkley, author of Against My Will, here at Peeking Between the Pages. I reviewed Against My Will last week and while the book deals with difficult subject matter it is also a really good read (my review). I’m going to tell you a bit about the book and Benjamin as well as giving away a copy of the book at the end of the post. In the meantime enjoy Benjamin’s thoughts on his inspiration for Against My Will…

My inspiration for the character of Irene came from my representation of Irene Opdyke. Note, several years ago, Mrs. Opdyke came into my office seeking my legal representation. She had written a book but her English was very poor as was her writing. The book was about how she harbored and saved Jews during the war while working as the housekeeper for a German commandant.

Never the less, a publisher wanted to publisher the book but with a coauthor. I negotiated a contract for her and eventually 20/20 did a story about Irene. And alter she was recognized by Yad Vashem in Israel as a Righteous Gentile.

About Against My Will

AGAINST MY WILL is the life changing novel about Danielle, a victim of marital abuse, who finds the strength to leave her husband and pursue a career in law.

Danielle Landau knows she should feel lucky, but she can’t feel anything but dread. Not only did she pass the New York Bar, but she married the man her father says is just right for her and lives in a fashionable new loft in Queens. But the man who seems like the perfect catch is a perfect nightmare at home. Jacob tries to control her career, her daily routine, and even what she eats. He ignores her desires and belittles her every chance he gets. Soon, Danielle doesn’t recognize her husband or herself, and she struggles to find a way out.

Danielle tries to talk to her father but he dismisses her marital problems. But she can confide in her Nana Rose, a Holocaust survivor who lost her entire family at the hands of the Nazis. Rose helped raise Danielle and her brother when their mother died when Danielle was only three. Having faced death, Rose is Danielle’s source of security. But while Danielle holds on to the fragile belief that her father’s prince charming will change, she is raped by her husband on the night of their one year wedding anniversary.

Now, Danielle has to escape. And with the help of her beloved Nana, Danielle moves across the country and starts to rebuild her life. But will she be able to escape her past? And when one of her clients finds herself in the same terrible situation, will Danielle have the strength to help her?

As we follow Danielle on her journey of terror and recovery, we see her story intersect with the diary entries of her Nana as a young girl held captive in a concentration camp. The entries begin with Rose waking up in a hospital after the liberation of the Mauthausen Concentration Camp. Graphically she recounts the train ride to the camp and the emotional separation of her from her family upon arrival. And the full weight of the family’s secrets becomes clear. This is a story of survival, self-discovery, justice, and ultimately, it’s about love.

Check out the other tour stops at Premier Virtual Author Book Tours
Buy at Amazon.com, Amazon.ca, B&N

About Benjamin Berkley

“Against My Will” is Benjamin Berkley’s fifth book and debut novel. He is also the author of four self-help books: “My Wishes, Your Plan for Organizing Your Family’s Needs” (Sourcebooks, June, 2006) “The Complete Executor’s Guide” (Sourcebooks, June 2007) “Winning Your Social Security Disability Case” (Sourcebooks, February, 2008) and “Before You Say I Do Again, A Buyer’s Beware Guide to Remarriage.” (Frederick Fell Publishers, September, 2009).

And though writing is his passion, for over 34 years he has conducted a busy law practice in which he has seen many interesting clients come through his door. One in particular, an older woman with white hair, the kindest smile, and an amazing story became the inspiration for one of his characters for “Against My Will.” Berkley lives in southern California with his wife Phyllis and their cat Riley. He has two grown children and is always bragging about his most beautiful grandson and granddaughter.

Benjamin’s website
Find Ben on Facebook
Follow Ben on Twitter

GIVEAWAY DETAILS (US/Canada)

I have one copy of Against My Will by Benjamin Berkley to share with my readers. To enter…

For 1 entry leave me a comment entering the giveaway.
For 2 entries, follow my blog. Let me know if you already do so I can pass the extra entry on to you as well.
For 3 entries, blog or tweet this giveaway.

This giveaway is open to US and Canadian residents only (no PO boxes) and I will draw for the winner on Saturday, November 17/12. Good luck!