The Sleepover -- Review and Giveaway

Thought for the Day:

"When in doubt, have a man come through the door with a 

gun in his hand."

~ Raymond Chandler ~

Gifts for My Writer Friends:

Sue Colletta wrote a very useful post on The Wicked Writing Blog HERE that has 10  ways to keep readers enthralled. 

I saw myself in this post by Janice Hardy on Fiction University. HERE you will find a good post on too much plot. 

Martina Boone at Adventures in YA Publishing has a great post about tricks to creating engaging characters HERE. This is just Part I, so there will be more. 

Last week I offered one of you a hardback copy of Sweet Home Alaska by Carole Estby Dagg. This week's winner is Nancy. Congratulations, Nancy! I will get the book out to you this week. For the rest of you, please stay tuned. I have another cute book to give away this week.

When I saw Jen Malone had a new book coming out, I couldn't resist getting a copy for review. I loved her earlier book, At Your Service, that I reviewed HERE. The Sleepover is terrific and I loved it just as much. The cover is perfect! Here is the review I wrote for the San Francisco Book Review. 

Middle-schooler Meghan has never made it through an overnight, but tonight will be different. It’s Anne-Marie’s birthday and with Paige, the three best friends are planning an EPIC night, but a few things go awry. First Anne-Marie’s future step-sister, Veronica, joins the party, and she is pretty wacky. She has hired a hypnotist to entertain the girls at the party. Anne-Marie’s little brother is trying to make a name for himself with on-line videos. He loves to post pictures of his sister looking foolish, and he gets in the mix. When the girls wake up in the morning, they find Meghan wearing the sweatshirt of a local bad boy, on whom Meghan has a huge crush, and Anne-Marie is missing. No one can remember anything from the night before!

“So what if he’s gorgeous, with this kind of blue-black 

hair that falls across his face and bright blue eyes that 

have actual soul to them?”

Jen Malone is in the habit of writing smart, funny middle-grade novels with compelling characters and super stories. This is no exception. The voice of

Jen Malone

Meghan, the narrator of this story, is absolutely pitch perfect. The writing is snappy, the dialogue sounds right out of a middle-grade playground, and there is just a little bit of romance to spice things up. Winner!

I have a gently-read ARC for one of you. To win, all you need do is have a US address, be a subscriber or follower, and tell me that in a comment you leave on this post. If you are reading this in your email, click HERE to go to the blog so you can leave a comment. If you would like extra chances, please spread the word by posting the link on a Tweet, blog post, Facebook, or any other way you like. Let me know what you have done in your comment, and I will put in extra chances for you for each that you do.

Don't forget to check out Shannon Messenger's wonderful blog HERE for many more Marvelous Middle-Grade Monday reviews and giveaways.

Breadcrumbs -- Review and Giveaway

Thought for the Day:

“Use the talents you possess, for the woods would be a very silent

place if no birds sang except the best.”

~ Henry van Dyke, poet~

Gifts for My Writer Friends:

Writers Helping Writers are busy helping writers again with a guest post HERE by Warren Adler with 11 Novelist-Tested Ways to Defeat Writer's Block.

Kristin Lamb has a terrific post on adding tension. Click HERE to get some great tension tips.

Erika Wassall has a great guest post HERE about mastering kid-speak on Kathy Temean’s Writing and Illustrating blog. Check it out. 

I have two winners to announce this week. First from my post on Friday, Nov. 7 when I offered an ARC of Leisl's Ocean Rescue by Barbara Krasner, the winner is Patricia Tilton. Patricia blogs at Children's Books Heal and reviews a wide variety of children's book. Click on the title to check out her blog. Last Sunday, I offered an ARC of At Your Service by Jen Malone. Joanne Fritz is the winner of that book. Joanne blogs at My Brain on Books and also reviews middle-grade books. It's worth the trip over there (click on the title) to read the About Me and find out why her blog has such in interesting title. Congratulations, ladies. I will get your books out this week. 

I have a couple of books I'd like to recommend. I've read these recently and will

be passing them along in our family reading circle, so won't give them away here. Both are terrific, both deal with young people who have a parent with mental illness, and both are stunning books. The first for middle grade readers -- Nest by Esther Ehrlich -- has a main character, Chirp, who will absolutely steal your heart and leave you wanting the book to go on and on. Don't miss this one. The second -- Crazy by Linda Vigen Phillips -- is a young adult book written in lyrical verse, yet with a great sense of reality and some surprising turns, that is also not to be missed. 

This week, I would like to tell you about a book I won from Jennifer Rumberger's blog, which you can find HERE. Jennifer is a writer and features a lot of terrific books, mostly for middle-graders, on her blog. Anyway, I had been hankerin' after a book I'd heard a lot about, Breadcrumbs by Anne Ursu, and was lucky enough to win a signed copy from Jennifer. This is a re-told fairy tale, a form I'm falling more and more in love with.  But this one may well be the best of the bunch, certainly the most engaging I have read. 

Hazel and Jack have been best friends for, well, just about forever -- from the time they were six. Now eleven, they are still best friends until suddenly and

inexplicably they are not. Jack stops speaking to Hazel, then disappears into the woods. Jack's heart has been frozen and he has been led away by a woman all in white. She has taken him to her ice palace. Hazel must leave everything she knows and venture after Jack to save him. Will either of them survive this harrowing journey? How will it change them? 

Ursu has written an amazing story that is gripping, heart-wrenching, and brilliant. It is based on Hans Christian Anderson's The Snow Queen, but as Hazel goes on her way, Ursu weaves in many other of Anderson's tales.This is a story of friendship, love, and heroism. It is a coming-of-age story as well. I can't say enough good things about this book. Find it. Read it. Soon.

It's hard for me to give this one way, but for a couple of reasons I will. First, I

Anne Ursu

want to share it; it deserves to be shared. Secondly, I know I won't have time to re-read it although I wish I had that time. It's lovely. So, I am offering this signed copy to one of you. All you need do is have a US address, be a subscriber or follower and tell me that in a comment you leave on this post. If you are reading this in your email, click HERE to go to the blog so you can leave a comment. If you would like extra chances, please spread the word by posting the link on a Tweet, blog post, Facebook, or any other way you like. Let me know what you have done in your comment, and I will put in extra chances for you for each that you do. 

Don't forget to check out Shannon Messenger's wonderful blog HERE for many more Marvelous Middle-Grade Monday reviews and giveaways.

At Your Service -- Review and Giveaway

Thought for the Day:

“Rivers know this: there is no hurry. We shall get there someday.”  

~ AA Milne ~

Gifts for My Writer Friends:
Aerogramme Writer’s Studio has posted top ten tips for writers by Geoff Dyer. This is one of the best tips columns I’ve seen. Click HERE to check it out.

Writer’s Digest has a killer article on writing killer plot twists. This one is really, really good. Click HERE to find it.

Fairy tales can come true, it can happen to you, if you … write a great book based on fairy tales. Literary Rambles has a post that can help you do that. Click HERE to find it.

I am having some problems with my blog. I am replying to all comments, but I'm not at all sure the replies are being sent out. I used to receive a copy in my email, but now I don't. If you think I have ignored you, please check the blog. You will see the replies there. Also, my followers have disappeared from the right-hand column! I still have them within the blog, but the gadget seems to be gone on the page although when I go to layout, it says it's already been added, but it doesn't show on the layout. I am at my wit's end. If any of you have a suggestion, I would love to hear it. I have thought for a long time it might be time to move my blog, and I am getting closer and closer to doing it. Stay tuned.

Last week, I offered a gently-read ARC of The Paper Cowboy by Kristin Levine to one of you. It's always fun when one of my very regular readers is the winner, and this week it is Natalie Aguirre who always stops by and leaves a comment. I especially appreciate her blogger friendship because I know how busy Natalie is and how much is going on in her life right now. If you are not familiar with Natalie, you should really check out Literary Rambles. She and her blogging partner Casey McCormack run reviews, interviews, giveaways, and more. Yeah, the Literary Rambles mentioned above. Click HERE to visit. Natalie, I will put your book in the mail this week. Congratulations! I know you'll enjoy reading this one. I have another great giveaway this week, so keep reading.

I've had a busy weekend with a baseball tournament, critique work, and a visit

to relatives out of town, so in the interest of not driving myself to the brink, I will simply republish the review I wrote for the San Francisco Book Review of an absolutely delightful middle-grade book, At Your Service by Jen Malone. This was a five-star review for good reason.

12-year-old Chloe has a terrific life. Her father is the concierge at the posh Hotel St. Michele in New York City. She and her father live at the hotel, and Chloe often is able to help her father with his duties. Sometimes she gets to work with clients, especially the young ones, and hopes to become the youngest concierge ever. After some real successes with young clients, she gets her biggest chance when the King and Queen of Somerstein come to town with their three children. The handsome young prince and two princesses turn out to be a real challenge, especially when the younger princess disappears.

Jen Malone has written a real romp of a middle-grade story. The first-person point of view she chose for Chloe to tell her story is pitch-perfect, and Chloe is an absolutely believable character. She is smart, driven, clever, and still a typical middle-school girl with all the accompanying baggage. Most of the time she makes good decisions, but every now and then, she simply acts her age. There is plenty of conflict, adventure, and just a touch of romance. This is the

Jen Malone

perfect book for the middle-grade

crowd, but especially the girls.

I have a gently-read ARC for one of you. All you need do is have a US address, be a subscriber or follower and tell me that in a comment you leave on this post. If you are reading this in your email, click HERE to go to the blog so you can leave a comment. If you would like extra chances, please spread the word by posting the link on a Tweet, blog post, Facebook, or any other way you like. Let me know what you have done in your comment, and I will put in extra chances for you for each that you do.