Me, My Book and the Couch: Mailbox Monday

Showing posts with label Mailbox Monday. Show all posts

Monday, February 1, 2010

Mailbox Monday

Marcia, The Printed Page, hosts Mailbox Monday each week. She writes:

It has been a long time since I last participated in "Mailbox Monday". Here's what arrived in my mailbox in the last two weeks:

Purchased from Book Depository:

Purchased from B&N.com:

ARCs for Review and Blog Tour from Miriam Parker:

B&N.com First Look:

ARC from Amy Currie, Publicist:

Monday, November 9, 2009

Mailbox Monday

Marcia, The Printed Page, hosts Mailbox Monday each week. She writes:

Here's what I received in the mail last week:

From Sarah Reidy of Pocket Books for an upcoming blog tour:

Title: The Secret of Joy
Author: Melissa Senate

Is the half sister that Rebecca Strand has never met short? Tall? Rich? Poor? Pretty? Funny? Married? Lonely? Happy?. . .

Rebecca is about to find out. The New York City paralegal thought nothing could shake her life off its fast track⎯which includes her handsome lawyer boyfriend and their extravagant condo. The shocking revelation that she even has a half sister comes from her dying father, in a hospital bed confession of a long-past summer affair. . . and now the dad she adores has one last wish: would Rebecca deliver a cache of letters he never sent to his other daughter, Joy Jayhawk, in a tiny coastal Maine town?

But when Rebecca arrives in Wiscasset, with the life-changing letters stashed in a leather box, nothing goes as she imagined⎯and Joy Jayhawk is less than thrilled to meet her. Joy already has her own life, her own family, and her own business: she runs a bus tour for singles, a matchmaking excursion that's brought lovers together, healed broken hearts, and changed lives. Rebecca joins the singles tour in the hopes of unlocking a door into Joy's life and forming a relationship with the only family she has left. But as she spend more and more time with Joy and the women who dub themselves The Divorced Ladies Club of Wiscasset⎯and starts a flirtation with a seriously hunky local carpenter⎯Rebecca realizes it's her life and heart that are ready for healing and change. . . and that sometimes, you just have to go along for the ride.

Monday, October 12, 2009

Mailbox Monday

Marcia, The Printed Page, hosts Mailbox Monday each week. She writes:

Here's what I received in the mail last week:

ARC from Caitlin Price of FSB Associates:

Lilly and Val are lifelong friends, united as much by their differences as by their similarities. Lilly, dramatic and confident, lives in the shadow of her beautiful, wayward mother and craves the attention of her distant, disapproving father. Val, shy and idealistic-and surprisingly ambitious-struggles with her desire to break free from her demanding housebound mother and a father whose dreams never seem to come true.

In childhood, "LillyPad" and "Valpal" vow to form an exclusive two-person club. Throughout the decades they write intimate letters in which they share hopes, fears, deepest secrets-and recipes, from Lilly's "Lovelorn Lasagna" to Valerie's "Forgiveness Tapenade." Readers can cook along as the girls travel through time, facing the challenges of independence; the joys and heartbreaks of first love; and the emotional complexities of family relationships, identity, mortality, and goals deferred.

But no matter what different paths they take or what misunderstandings threaten to break them apart, Lilly and Val always find their way back together through their Recipe Club . . . until the fateful day when an act of kindness becomes an unforgivable betrayal.

Now, decades later, while trying to recapture the trust they've lost, Lilly and Val reunite once more-only to uncover a shocking secret. Will it destroy their friendship, or bring them ever closer? (From Barnes & Noble)

Monday, September 7, 2009

Mailbox Monday

Marcia, The Printed Page, hosts Mailbox Monday each week. She writes:

Here's what I received in the mail last week:

ARCs from Miriam Parker of Hachette books:

Margaret and Patrick have been married just a few months when they set off on what they hope will be a great adventure-a year living in Kenya. Margaret quickly realizes there is a great deal she doesn't know about the complex mores of her new home, and about her own husband.

A British couple invites the newlyweds to join on a climbing expedition to Mount Kenya, and they eagerly agree. But during their harrowing ascent, a horrific accident occurs. In the aftermath of the tragedy, Margaret struggles to understand what happened on the mountain and how these events have transformed her and her marriage, perhaps forever.

A Change in Altitude illuminates the inner landscape of a couple, the irrevocable impact of tragedy, and the elusive nature of forgiveness. With stunning language and striking emotional intensity, Anita Shreve transports us to the exotic panoramas of Africa and into the core of our most intimate relationships. (From Barnes & Noble)

High-powered executive Steven Kerner is living the dream in southern California. But when his bottled pain ignites in anger one night, his wife kicks him out. Then an eccentric mystery man named Andy Monroe befriends Steven and begins unravelling his tightly wound world. Andy leads Steven through a series of frustrating and revealing encounters to repair his life through genuine friendship and the grace and love of a God who has been waiting for him to accept it. A story to challenge and encourage, BO'S CAFE is a model for all who struggle with unresolved problems and a performance-based life. Those who desire a fuller, more authentic way of living will find this journey of healing a restorative exploration of God's unbridled grace. (From Barnes & Noble)

Monday, August 24, 2009

Mailbox Monday

Marcia, The Printed Page, hosts Mailbox Monday each week. She writes:

Here's what I received in the mail last week:

ARCs from Miriam Parker of Hachette books:

Title: The Last Song
Author: Nicholas Sparks

Seventeen year old Veronica "Ronnie" Miller's life was turned upside-down when her parents divorced and her father moved from New York City to Wilmington, North Carolina. Three years later, she remains angry and alientated from her parents, especially her father...until her mother decides it would be in everyone's best interest if she spent the summer in Wilmington with him. Ronnie's father, a former concert pianist and teacher, is living a quiet life in the beach town, immersed in creating a work of art that will become the centerpiece of a local church.

The tale that unfolds is an unforgettable story of love on many levels—first love, love between parents and children — that demonstrates, as only a Nicholas Sparks novel can, the many ways that love can break our hearts...and heal them. (From Barnes & Noble)

Title: Bo's Cafe
Authors: Bill Thrall, Bruce McNicol and John Lynch

High-powered executive Steven Kerner is living the dream in southern California. But when his bottled pain ignites in anger one night, his wife kicks him out. Then an eccentric mystery man named Andy Monroe befriends Steven and begins unravelling his tightly wound world. Andy leads Steven through a series of frustrating and revealing encounters to repair his life through genuine friendship and the grace and love of a God who has been waiting for him to accept it. A story to challenge and encourage, BO'S CAFE is a model for all who struggle with unresolved problems and a performance-based life. Those who desire a fuller, more authentic way of living will find this journey of healing a restorative exploration of God's unbridled grace. (From Barnes & Noble)

Monday, July 20, 2009

Mailbox Monday

Marcia, The Printed Page, hosts Mailbox Monday each week. She writes:

Here's what I received in the mail last week:

An ARC from Miriam Parker of Hachette books:

Title: I Can See You
Author: Karen Rose

Evie Wilson was the victim of the villain in DON'T TELL, an assault which resulted in paralysis on one side of her face. After her injury, Evie retreated into the virtual realm, seeking refuge from the public eye by interacting with online friends. Now, with the help of a surgeon, Evie's face is restored and she is ready to return to the real world. However, she remains connected to the Internet for her graduate thesis on using the virtual world as therapy to improve self-esteem. She has become an online shopkeeper who sells faces and bodies to users interested in building a new avatar on a website called "Shadowland." In her new role, Evie maintains "surveillance" over her test subjects to ensure they don't become too caught up in the intoxicating virtual realm.

Meanwhile, homicide detective Noah Webster has been investigating a string of suspicious suicides that he believes are connected murders. Noah's investigation leads him to Evie when one of her online test subjects is found dead of apparent suicide, but Evie believes otherwise.

Evie is shocked to find herself drawn to someone for the first time in many years and she's reluctant to trust Noah. However, he's the only one who believes her story about the suspicious death of her test subject, and he soon discovers that many of the apparent suicides in his case had avatars in "Shadowland."

As murder victims connected to the website begin to appear more frequently, Noah asks Evie to be his virtual guide in the investigation. However, they don't realize that the killer is closer than they think--and that he holds a special grudge against Evie.

(From Barnes & Noble)

Monday, July 13, 2009

Mailbox Monday

Marcia, The Printed Page, hosts Mailbox Monday each week. She writes:

Here's what I received in the mail last week:

I won a giveaway hosted by Mary of Bookfan-Mary:

Title: How to Score
Author: Robin Wells

HER LIFE COACH

Museum curator Sammi Matthews isn't just in a dating slump, she's putting men on the injured list. After giving one date a black eye and cracking another's rib, Sammi decides she needs professional help. Enter life coach Luke Jones, who advises Sammi on how to overcome her klutziness. And their phone sessions work! Sammi soon meets a sexy FBI agent who seems to know just what she needs.

IS CHANGING HER LIFE

When his brother Luke goes into federal protection, FBI Special Agent Chase Jones agrees to cover for him. Then Sammi's hot voice sizzles down the line, and the usual "phone only" rule is out. With "Luke" coaching her by day, and Chase dating her by night, Sammi's confidence soars, along with her appeal. Chase falls hard, but how will Sammi feel if and when he comes clean? Chase would rather she break all his bones than risk breaking her heart.

IN WAYS SHE'S NEVER IMAGINED!

(From Barnes & Noble)

Monday, June 29, 2009

Mailbox Monday

Marcia, The Printed Page, hosts Mailbox Monday each week. She writes:

Here's what I received in the mail last week:

From Sarah at Pocket Books for July blog tour:

Title: How Perfect is That
Author: Sarah Bird

Blythe Young—a wannabe Texas princess, a heroine as plucky, driven, and desperate as Vanity Fair’s Becky Sharp—is plummeting precipitously from up- to downstairs, banging her head on every step of the Austin social ladder as she falls. Not unlike the country as a whole, Blythe has surrendered to a multitude of dubious moral choices and is now facing the disastrous consequences: bankruptcy, public humiliation, a teensy fondness for the pharmaceuticals, and no Pap smear for ten years. But worst of all, she is forced to move back into the fleabag co-op boardinghouse where she lived when she was a student at the University of Texas.

Though Blythe cares much more about the ravaged state of her nails, and how to get the ingredients for Code Warrior—Blythe’s proprietary blend of Stoli, Ativan, and Red Bull that keeps everything in focus—her soul is hanging in the balance. Only when she is in danger of losing the one friend who’s been her true moral center is she ready to face her sins and make amends.

And her penance is merciless: she must find a way to lure her former socialite friends into the tofu tenement she has been reduced to. Little does Blythe know that the ensuing collision between the pierced, tattooed, and dreadlocked inhabitants and the pampered, Kir-sipping socialites offers the only hope of finding a way out of her moral quagmire.

Funny, fast-paced, sharp-eyed, an old-fashioned morality tale with an appropriately twenty-first-century ending, How Perfect Is That is a comic triumph of a novel. (From Barnes & Noble)

Monday, June 22, 2009

Mailbox Monday

Marcia, The Printed Page, hosts Mailbox Monday each week. She writes:

Here's what I received in the mail last week:

From Amazon Vine Program:

Title: Trouble
Author: Kate Christensen

Josie is a Manhattan psychotherapist living a comfortable life with her husband and daughter—until, while suddenly flirting with a man at a party, she is struck with the sudden realization that she must leave her passionless marriage. A thrillingly sordid encounter with a stranger she meets at a bar immediately follows. At the same time, her college friend Raquel, a Los Angeles rock star, is being pilloried in the press for sleeping with a much younger man who happens to have a pregnant girlfriend. This proves to be red meat to the gossip hounds of the Internet. The two friends escape to Mexico City for a Christmas holiday of retreat and rediscovery of their essential selves. Sex has gotten these two bright, complicated women into interesting trouble, and the story of their struggles to get out of that trouble is totally gripping at every turn.

A tragicomedy of marriage and friendship, Trouble is a funny, piercing, and moving examination of the battle between the need for connection and the quest for freedom that every modern woman must fight. (From Barnes & Noble)

Monday, June 15, 2009

Mailbox Monday

Marcia, The Printed Page, hosts Mailbox Monday each week. She writes:

Here's what I received in the mail last week:

From LibraryThing Early Reviewers

Title: Don't Miss Your Life!
Author: Charlene Ann Baumbich

Along comes a book by a storyteller who holds the power, in true stories well told, to offer a motivating and healing balm for those thirsting and eager for somebody to remind them to "say YES to life, slow down, wake up, let go, hold on and LIVE!" As readers listen to Baumbich's stories, laugh and cry, and then revisit their own stories, they will discover the sovereign hand of God not only loving them in the midst of adversity but wooing them to live life to the full.Readers should fasten their seatbelts for this warm, fun, provocative, heartwarming ride. "We are so busy running our lives that we are often not enjoying them, giving thanks for them, or realizing our joy and potential," Charlene says. "But if you learn the lively and releasing art of listening to and mining your own stories, you'll learn that your life is, indeed, better than you think! (From Amazon)

Purchased from BarnesandNoble.com

Title: The Accidental Bestseller
Author: Wendy Wax

Once upon a time four aspiring authors met at their very first writers’ conference. Ten years later they’re still friends, survivors of the ultra-competitive New York publishing world. Mallory St. James is a workaholic whose bestsellers support a lavish lifestyle. Tanya Mason is a single mother juggling two jobs, two kids, and too many deadlines. Faye Truett is the wife of a famous televangelist and the author of inspirational romances: no one would ever guess her explosive secret. Kendall Aims’s once-promising career is on the skids—and so is her marriage. Her sales are dismal, her new editor detests her work—and her husband is cheating. Barely able to think, let alone meet her final deadline, Kendall holes up in a mountain cabin to confront a blank page and a blanker future. But her friends won’t let her face this trial alone. Together they collaborate on a novel using their own lives as fodder, assuming no one will ever discover the truth behind their words.

No one is more surprised than they are when the book becomes a runaway bestseller. But with success comes scrutiny and scandal…as these four best friends suddenly realize how little they’ve truly known each other. (From Amazon)

Title: Driftwood Summer
Author: Patti Callahan Henry

Three sisters— responsible Riley, vivacious Maisy, and fun-loving Adalee—reunite to save the family’s beach-community bookstore. But summer also marks the return of Mack Logan, whose choice of Maisy over Riley years ago destroyed the special closeness between the sisters…

Now Riley, a single mom, is hiding a shattering secret about their mother. Maisy, a California designer, still blames Riley for ruining her one true love. And Adalee resents the family’s intrusion into her summer plans. All three will be forced to confront the conflicts that tore them apart and the bounds of love and loyalty that still draw them together…
(From Amazon)

Monday, June 1, 2009

Mailbox Monday

Marcia, The Printed Page, hosts Mailbox Monday each week. She writes:

This is my first time participating. Last week I was invited to join Amazon Vine Program and I received my first book on Friday.

Title: The Last Bridge
Author: Teri Coyne

For fans of Jodi Picoult and Sue Miller, a dark, edgy, page-turning debut about the lengths one woman will travel to escape her past

After a ten-year absence, Alex 'Cat' Rucker returns to her Ohio hometown because of a letter left on her mother's kitchen table, a suicide note, carefully preserved in a Ziploc® bag, that reads:

"He isn't who you think he is. Love, Mom"

Thus opens this stunning debut novel from author Teri Coyne, who, with wry humor and sharp wit, follows Alex's journey through the traumatic experiences of her youth and the haze of her adult life.

While Alex tries to repress the memories of her brutal childhood, an abusive father, her estranged (and possibly illegitimate) brother, and the first love who would do anything to save her, she must face just how shattered she still is. At each step Alex confronts her biggest fears, realizes the impact of her choices, and inches closer to redemption. Can she embrace her vulnerabilities, talents, and desire for love, or will the revelations of her mother's cryptic note prove too overwhelming for her to bear?

The Last Bridge is a perfect blend of suspense, despair, and romance and at its heart lies the question: are we a product of our experiences or our choices? (From Amazon)