Month: October 2013

Book Spotlight & Excerpt/ Upir and the Monster Gang

Book Spotlight & Excerpt/ Upir and the Monster Gang

Posted on by Cindy

About the Book:
Coming from a long line of highly respected vampires, Upir knew that going to Neewollah, the Monster Mausoleum, would help him live up to his family’s reputation, but he never anticipated the terrifying turn his stay there would take. Upon entering, Upir befriends several strange creatures and their nights soon become treacherous when they have to dodge flying skulls whose hollow eye sockets shimmer with bright blue lights, avoid huge plants with tongue-like tentacles that devour young monsters, and run from a mad scientist who loves to use the monster students in his experiments. Most of all, they try to stay away from Muriel, an ill-tempered, nasty gorgon girl with slithering snakes for hair. She is the leader of three cantankerous monsters that follow her every command. Her group is bent on destroying Upir and his gang.
Without warning the young monsters find themselves entangled in a plot to destroy the Monster race. Will they escape the clutches of this horrifying villain and alert the Monster world, or will they become his loyal soldiers?

 About the Authors:

Sharron Thornton taught elementary school for 35 ½ years. She felt it was important that her students developed a love for reading. One of the special times of each school day was right after lunch recess when she read a novel to her children. It didn’t take the kids long to get quiet and settle down for they were anxious to hear where the next chapter would take them. Sharron soon realized that books were doors to imagination for all children at all levels of learning.
When she retired, Sharron missed all of those young faces. She missed their emotional involvement with the characters and story lines from the books she read to them. So, she decided to work on an illustrated novel with her son Raymond who is an artist. Thus, Upir and the Monster Gang was born, a world of monsters, mad scientists, zombies, ghosts, vampires and all things that live in the night. Sharron has been writing for almost a decade. Besides the Upir series, she is working on several other children’s novels.
Raymond Thornton is an artist from Northwest Indiana. At the age of fifteen he started his fine art training at the Drisi Studio Academy of Fine Art. For five years he studied the finer points of painting and drawing. He then continued his studies at Columbia College and the American Academy of Art in Chicago where he received a degree in fine art.
Raymond’s oil paintings have been exhibited across the country. He has received many awards including the gold medal at the 96th annual Allied Artists of America Exhibition and an award of excellence at the 2012 Oil Painters of America Eastern Exhibition. He has illustrated many national ad campaigns. Most recently he illustrated and co-created with author Sharron Thornton, his mother, Upir and the Monster Gang. It is an illustrated novel about a young vampire and his monster friends which features over 60 full colored illustrations.
 
Their latest book is Upir and the Monster Gang.
 
Visit their website at www.upirandthemonstergang.com.

Upir and the Monster Gang – The Sea Serpent

Upir and the Monster Gang – Monster Lives

Upir and the Monster Gang – Screaming Skulls

Upir and the Monster Gang – The Monster Garden

 
 

The Welcoming Committee

“Yeah, you kid!” A monster with an enormous bumpy head, bulbous nose and winged ears pointed at the vampire. A single tooth protruded from the troll’s lower lip as he gaped at Upir.

A wolf-boy, his grin revealing sharp pointy teeth, was with the group. His eyes had a hungry look to them.

Upir swallowed and tried to sound calm. “Yeah, what do you want?” he asked.

A green goblin boy, a skateboard under one arm, shoved his way between the other two and glared at Upir. “We’re the welcoming committee around here,” he said sarcastically.

Upir doubted that. “Okay,” he said slowly.

The goblin boy pointed up at the troll. “He’s Groks. I’m Gordon.” He tilted his head at the wolf boy. “And that’s Raff.”

Raff sneered, “What’s your name?”

Without thinking, Upir said his whole name. “Upir Amarande.”

“Yooper! Yooper!” Groks laughed, slobber spilling down his chin. “What kinda stupid name–”

“Move it!” A girl with dozens of slithering snakes for hair came forward as the other three monsters stepped aside. The gorgon stood before Upir, her breath smelled of swamp water; the snakes on her head hissed and stretched toward him. “What did you say your name was?”

Upir told her.

“Amarande, huh?” She looked Upir up and down and smiled, “Well look what we’ve got here boys, a little monster royalty in our midst.”

Upir started to shake his head, but before he could speak, the gorgon stuck out her hand. “Glad to have you aboard,” she said.

Upir shook her hand as he asked, “Aboard?”

Groks groaned. “Muriel, we don’t need a vamp–”

“Shut up, troll!” She turned back to Upir. “My gang,” she said as her head tilted toward the monsters behind her. “We plan on running this place, and I’m inviting you to join.”

Upir smiled. “Serious?” he asked. He didn’t like the fact that, once again, he’d been befriended because of his name. But to run with the in-crowd, he could deal with that. “Thanks,” he said.

“What’s going on!” a voice screamed behind them. The kids turned. The

hunchback lumbered toward them, his hump weighing him down to the floor. “What are you kids doing in the hall? It’s almost lights out. Get to your rooms!” Turning to his hump he mumbled, “Hugo always has to chase kids all over the place.”

Muriel lowered her gaze and innocently said, “We’re going now, Mr. Hugo.” Turning to her gang she growled, “Let’s go!” She slapped Upir on the arm as she brushed past him. “Welcome to my gang, Amarande. See ya around.”

“Yeah, see ya around,” Groks said hitting Upir on the back so hard that he stumbled into the wall.

Raff snickered and Gordon hooted. Muriel called out another “Shut up!” before they were out of sight.

Upir pushed open the creaky door and entered a dark, stone-like cave.

Jagged pieces of rock, some crooked as bad teeth, protruded from the ceiling and floor. Nestled in an alcove was a bunk bed made of heavily-polished dragon bones. On one wall rested a long narrow desk of stone and against the other wall sat a black coffin, just his size. The room smelled like the dust of ages past. And although there was no window, a strange light emanated across the ceiling. Looking around the room, Upir noticed a ghost hovering above the top bunk. The floating boy wore a long transparent shroud; a green woolen scarf was slung around his neck. A long chain, wrapped around his waist, clinked as it drifted lazily

in the air. Upir saw the rock wall through the boy’s glowing form.

The ghost boy smiled making his blue eyes look bluer and his plain face look mischievous. “Hi,” he said. “I’m Gusty,”

Upir smiled back. “I’m Upir,” he replied, glad he hadn’t offered his last name. He knew everyone would find out soon enough. But until then, maybe he’d have a chance to make friends on his own.

Gusty moved, seeping in and out of form like a genie near the mouth of its bottle. Upir blinked a few times, not sure the boy was really there.

“Yeah, he’s really there,” said another boy who emerged from a pile of blankets on the bottom bunk. He stood up, his rumpled flannel shirt and jeans hung limply from his stick frame. “Gusty likes to show off,” he said. The boy’s head was a carved hollow pumpkin. Light flowed through the triangular holes; the yellowish rays reflected across the room like searchlights. The grin on his face was cheerful. “I’m Payne,” he said to Upir. “Welcome to Neewollah

copyright 2010, Cindy (Cindy’s Love Of Books)
If you are reading this on a blog or website other than Cindy’s Love Of Books or via a feedreader, this content has been stolen and used without permission.

An Upcoming Local Authors Event

Posted on by Cindy

This morning I got a pleasant surprise from a local author, Karen Avivi, she emailed me to tell me about her upcoming book signing along with another local author Alexa Nazzaro.

 
The book signing is taking place Saturday November 2nd from 12 noon to 4pm at the Chapters bookstore here in Pointe-Claire.
 
I love discovering new authors especially when they are local so you can count on me being there. What about you?
 
I have to say I have never heard of these books but after reading what they were about I have to say I am very curious. They are both debut authors.  

 If you asked Kye Penton what his greatest accomplishment is, he’d probably say surviving years of bullying with nothing but his only friend Anthony and movies like The Godfather and anything by Quentin Tarantino to get by. Sure, there are scars, like the social phobia he can’t seem to shake off despite the self-help books he stashes in his bedroom, but at fifteen, things are finally looking up. By some miracle, Claudia in English likes him, and Julian is both his new friend and a super cool guy in general. It looks like Kye’s days of being an outcast are ancient history – until Annie Cooper shows up: pregnant and claiming the baby is his. Kye’s life quickly unravels as he’s pulled into a nightmare bigger than any bullying he has ever survived. A young adult contemporary novel that tackles teen pregnancy, bullying and social anxiety head-on, The Pool Theory is an honest depiction of what it means to live out the so-called best years of your life when all you want to do is disappear off the face of the earth.
 
A contemporary young adult novel

Drop into the world of rule-breaking, gravity-defying girls who shred riding freestyle BMX
“I would have preferred handlebars in the gut.
At least when that happened I definitely saw it coming.”

Shredded by Karen Avivi is more than a girls’ sports book or a BMX biking book. The motivating push-your-limits story takes on feminism, friendship, sexism, and sibling rivalry.

Josie Peters thinks she’ll do anything to ride in the Ultimate BMX freestyle event the summer before her senior year. To hit the qualifying events in the Midwest, Josie and her friends take off on a summer road trip where late-night parties, an intimidating mega ramp, and the lure of sponsorships spark friction between the girls. When Josie’s best chance for success depends on her relationship with flashy rider R.T. Torres, she has to decide what she’s trying to win and how much she’ll sacrifice.

Even readers unfamiliar with BMX or extreme sports will be caught up in the adrenaline rush of Josie’s tricks, wipeouts, and wins. Hints of romance provide extra conflict without overtaking the main plot. Ideal for fans of realistic young adult fiction, Shredded features a strong female lead character who goes after what she wants by taking action.

copyright 2010, Cindy (Cindy’s Love Of Books)
If you are reading this on a blog or website other than Cindy’s Love Of Books or via a feedreader, this content has been stolen and used without permission.
Chapter Reveal/ Hopefully Ever After

Chapter Reveal/ Hopefully Ever After

Posted on by Cindy

Chapter 1
And they lived hopefully ever after….
Tampa, Florida
Spring, 2012
A cancer diagnosis slams into you with the subtlety of a freight train. You can’t talk or breathe. You stare at familiar surroundings, but everything looks distorted. This isn’t real, you think. It’s just an out-of-body experience, and it is not happening to you.
 
Except it is. Breast cancer happened to me twice, but you don’t get any points for experience here. That freight train hit with the same ferocity the second time as it did the first.
 
After a decade of turbulence, however, I’ve now landed in a soft place. Outside the screened lanai where I’m sitting, a pair of sand hill cranes walks across the back yard, their bright red head feathers in brilliant contrast with the soft gray of their bodies. They are tall and majestic birds, deliberate in their steps, their posture exuding the confidence I’m lacking. 
 
“So much has happened since the first diagnosis,” I say to my husband, who’s nose-deep in a crossword puzzle. “I need to come up with the perfect starting point for this story.”
 
Mike lowered the newspaper and looked at me over his reading glasses. “You do know you’re always cranky when you begin a new book? But in the end, you figure out a good place to start.”
 
I must have looked doubtful because he glanced longingly at his paper before lifting his eyes to mine. “All right, all right. Here’s an idea: try starting with our current lives. We’re doing well. You’re healthy again. We’re finally living without holdings our breaths. Begin in the here and now.” With pen back in hand, he was once more engrossed in Across and Down.
 
Had I asked him to solve my problem?
 
No. I was just kvetching out loud. But Mike was being Mike, trying to find a solution. In our early days, long before cancer crept into our lives, I’d tease him about being my Knight in Shining Tin Foil. I’d expected him to share chores and didn’t want his head to swell because he shopped for groceries, cleaned the sink, or vacuumed the carpets. Tin foil seemed an appropriate garment.
 
More recently when the going got rough, he was at my side–sure, steady, and strong. A full-time job. I should replace his tin foil with armor now, but I’m holding off. He knows it and laughs; we laugh together. Gentle teasing is our way. After more than four decades as husband and wife, we understand each other very well. I know why he suggested I focus this story in the present. He prefers to live in the moment, enjoying the sunshine and the sand hill cranes. He prefers to leave the dark days behind us. I can’t blame him. 
 
Although I’m half of the Linda-and-Mike team, I am also a mother, grandmother and novelist with fourteen works of fiction in print. My stories are about ordinary people in crisis, struggling to reach their happy endings. In 2001, when breast cancer hit me for the first time, I had to fight for my own happy ending which I achieved and enjoyed for nine years.
 
Sitting on the screened porch today, I feel great, look pretty good, and am planning for a long future. Part of me doesn’t want to look back; I’m not that different from Mike. I should simply put the cancer experience behind me and, as we native New Yorkers say, fuhggedaboudit! The other part of me, however, wants to write about the turmoil and examine it for my own sake as well as for my children and grandchildren’s sakes, and for those families facing the same situation. There was a specific reason for my cancers; neither was a random hit, but I didn’t know that at the time.
 
On a sticky note taped to my computer is a quote I borrowed from Churchill: Never, never, never give up. Staring at those words got me through many a day.
Lab reports and medical records lay on the wrought iron table in front of me. Fact checking is a must for any book. I need no notes, however, to recall my feelings as a two-time rider on the breast cancer express. I need no cues to recall the complications the illness brought to my busy life and the heartache it brought to my family. And I need no reminders as to what I’d learned: in the fight to live, no decision is too extreme. They may be dramatic and scary, but if they work, so what?
 
Twelve years have passed since my first bout with the disease; two years since my second one. Fortunately, that tumor wasn’t a recurrence, but a brand new visitor. A good thing. Isn’t it weird that a malignant tumor can bring good news? My last appointment with my surgeon at Tampa General is long over, and I love my new oncologist at Moffitt Cancer Center who will monitor me from now on. Since our recent move to Florida, I’ve had to search for new cancer specialists, a chore I hadn’t anticipated taking on while recuperating from a second bout of the disease.
 
The timing of our relocation couldn’t have been worse. I adored my original oncologist who practiced in Houston, Texas where I’d lived for sixteen years. I fought most of my cancer battles there and didn’t plan on a second assault when we decided to move to Florida during the fall of 2010. I certainly wouldn’t have left at that point had I known the future, but I didn’t. Sometimes life presents choices, and we deal with the decisions we make. 
 
Which brings me back to choosing this memoir’s starting point. I briefly considered Mike’s suggestion of Right Now. Now is important because it measures the time out from surgery: one year out, two years out, five years out. The more years, the better. Now is important because I am living in it. But…where’s the story? I’m an author in search of a story, and my daily routines don’t cut it. They’re boring. As for the future? Well, that’s the sticky one. Tomorrow doesn’t come with a hundred percent guarantee, so why think about it? Besides, tomorrow’s events haven’t happened yet, so where’s the story?
 
The story lies in Yesterday. Yesterday provides the yardstick to measure the journey since the original diagnosis. I must sift through Yesterday in order to pull up remembrances and mine for the truth. For that is the meaning of memoir. 
       
Sorry, honey.
copyright 2010, Cindy (Cindy’s Love Of Books)
If you are reading this on a blog or website other than Cindy’s Love Of Books or via a feedreader, this content has been stolen and used without permission.
Book Spotlight/ Hopefully Ever After

Book Spotlight/ Hopefully Ever After

Posted on by Cindy

Title: Hopefully Ever After
Genre: Breast Cancer Memoir
Author: Linda Barrett
Publisher: Linda Barrett

Linda Barrett could be any one of us. She’s an ordinary woman living a wonderfully ordinary life – husband, kids, teaching, writing – totally unprepared for Murphy’s Law on steroids. In February 2001, everything goes wrong. She discovers her breast cancer exactly when she starts a brand new teaching job which is exactly the same time as the release of her very first published novel. Secrets must be kept to protect her fledging career as a writer. No secrets in the classroom however. Her adult students, preparing for the GED exam, out her in five minutes when they spot her wig!
Nine years later, Linda is fully recovered from her lumpectomy, chemo and radiation when breast cancer hits a second time. She is no longer a random one-in-eight woman who develops this disease. Blood tests show she’s a target of faulty genes, a carrier of the BRCA 1 gene mutation. Without drastic measures, she’d be susceptible to a third or fourth cancer hit. Murphy’s Law once again comes into play. This second time around coincides with a thousand mile relocation from Houston to Tampa. Putting a house on the market while handling a double mastectomy, implant prep, and six rounds of chemo is not for the faint of heart. Linda’s heart is not faint as she implores: “Do house hunters think we’re part of HGTV? Real homes aren’t perfect!”
At the heart of this memoir, however, is a love story. Cancer is merely the vehicle that exposes a mature marriage in full bloom. With her Knight-in-Shining-Tinfoil at her side, Linda and Michael Barrett meet the challenge of two enemies: cancer and fear. Their fight is hard won, but with cancer now in their rearview mirror, they are relaxed and laughing again. As Linda says, “Life is good. After all the turmoil, we’ve landed in a soft place. Friends and family are all around, and I expect to live out a natural lifespan however long that may be.”
Everyone deserves a Hopfully Ever After, and that’s what you’ll find here.
 
About the Author:
Linda Barrett is the author of 13 novels of contemporary romance. She’s earned many industry awards through Romance Writers of America, including the Holt Medallion, The Award of Excellence and the Write Touch Reader’s award. Family Interrupted is her first women’s fiction story. A graduate of Hunter College, Linda now lives in the Tampa area with her husband. They have three grown sons and the most adorable, intelligent, super-duper grandchildren ever!
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Her latest book is Hopefully Ever After.
 
Visit her website at www.linda-barrett.com.
 
Connect & Socialize with Linda!
 
If you are interested in purchasing a copy of Hopefully Ever After you can do so by CLICKING HERE
 
To see other stops on the tour be sure to CLICK HERE
copyright 2010, Cindy (Cindy’s Love Of Books)
If you are reading this on a blog or website other than Cindy’s Love Of Books or via a feedreader, this content has been stolen and used without permission.

Product Review/ Colors For Your Every Mood Campaign

Posted on by Cindy

If you know me, you know one of my other obessions next to books is make up. I love make up. I love seeing all the pretty colors but I honestly have to say that no matter how pretty the colors are I always stick to my basic nude colors. Am I the only one?

I am very lucky and I have never broken out from make up in all my years of wearing make up. Its just skin care items that break me out.

As a make up lover I love trying new brands from high end to low end but budget wise its mostly low end I purchase enless I have gift cards or redeem points.

So imagine my surprise when I was contacted by Mia Mariu to review their mineral based cosmetic line. The cosmetics are made with all natural healthy ingredients. You can only purchase their cosmetics online or through an independant consultant.

I was sent the Uniquely You Deluxe Touch Up Kit, 3 Hydrating Stick Gloss and three skin care samples along with a brush a Petite Detail/Accent Eye Shadow Brush TBP18.

Sorry in advance for this post being loaded down with pictures.

The first thing I noticed when I took everything out of the packaging was how nice the compact looked. I love the top of the palette and its got a magnetic closer which is really nice and would make it perfect for traveling with as its small. Isn’t the compatc really nice?
 

The palette which retails for $46 consists of a Magic Satin Mineral Powder, Mineral Blushing Blush and three Mineral Shadows in the shades Sexy, Flirty and Savvy.
Here are the swatches of the eye shadows. Sorry for the poor lightening but it was an over cast day I took them. The swatches are the far left is without primer and the swatches closest to the shadows are with primer. You can see the difference already.
 
I loved the shadows and thought there were really pretty and pigmented as you can see. I have yet to wear them all together but have been wearing them daily alone.

Now for the swatches of the Magic Satin Mineral Powder and Mineral Blushing Brush. As you can see the Magic Satin Mineral Powder is really sheer and its a great finishing powder. The Mineral Blushing Blush is very buildable in my opinion and during the day I would just use a little bit to give me a rosy glow and when we would do something in the evening I would retouch with a little more.
 
One of my absolute favorites is the Hydrating Stick Glosses. This retails for $15 and I think its a really good price. There is 12 colors in this line.
 
 
I was so surprised when I put these on. They were very hydrating on the lips. It didn’t dry out at all and the wear was a few hours after eating and drinking. I loved the consistency of them as they went on smoothly and nice. I didn’t find there to be any bleeding.

 The colors are Capricho, Mia and Beso. They smell really nice.  I wish I had swatches of them on my lips but I am currently fighting back a cold sore and well that just ain’t pretty to see. The above photo is with natural lighting.

 This photos was taken away from the window. The colors are very pretty and I wear them all the time. They have a creamy texture to them.

I love the packaging of the Hydrating Stick Glosses very simple which I love. Don’t you?
 
I also got three sample pouches of the RestauraCel-C Mircodermabrasion Refinisher Cream, the Thermal Activator and Proteccion Hydrating Moisturizer with SPF 30. I have to say I was a little nervous in trying the samples out because I have sensitive skin that breaks out at the drop of a hat. I was truly impressed with the items. I had no reaction to them at all and I think this is somthing that would interest me. I honestly felt like it was working with my skin and not against it.
 
The Refinisher Cream (2 ounces) and Thermal Activator (1.9  oz) are sold together for $55. I’m not sure how much the Proteccion Hydrating Moisturizer is because I couldn’t find in in the catalog.
 
I almost forgot but I also got the Petite Detail/Accent Eye Shadow Brush TBP18 and it sells for $18. It was a cute little brush that worked perfectly to add a little bit of an accent color to your eye. I used it for the lower lash line.
 
I have to say that I have been using these for the past month and I love it. The colors of the eye shadows are very pigmented and with trial and error I discovered that using a primer made the colors pop more and last longer. I could actually go the whole day (8 hours +) without a touch up. I love that you can get many looks from them which makes this a fantastic little palette.
 
The stick glosses have to be my favorite. I love the colors I picked out. They are very me colors.
 
 
So, you my lucky readers I have something special to tell you. Mia Mariu is letting me give away one the Colors For Your Every Mood set. So what I got to review you will get to win. How generous is that?
 
Please note that Mia Mariu will be sending you the prize. The prize is valued at $109 and its valid only to Canadian and US mailing addresses.
 
 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

copyright 2010, Cindy (Cindy’s Love Of Books)
If you are reading this on a blog or website other than Cindy’s Love Of Books or via a feedreader, this content has been stolen and used without permission.