The Creed Legacy by Linda Lael Miller - BOOK FEATURE/GIVEAWAY {CLOSED}

Title:  The Creed Legacy
Author:  Linda Lael Miller
Publisher:   HQN books, a division of Harlequin
Release Date:  June 28, 2011
Paperback, 377 pages
ISBN 10:     0373776004
ISBN 13:  9780373776009
The Book Depository / Amazon

Goodreads description:

Rough-and-tumble rodeo cowboy Brody Creed likes life on the move. Until a chance encounter with his long-estranged twin brother brings him "home" for the first time in years. Suddenly Brody is in Creed territory—at thirty-three, he's a restless bad boy among family with deep ties to the land and each other. And a secret past haunts him as he tries to make plans for his future. 

Carolyn Simmons is looking for Mr. Right in Lonesome Bend, as the ticktock of her biological clock gets ever louder. Then she falls for gorgeous Brody Creed, the opposite of everything she wants. Until lassoing his wild heart becomes everything both of them need.

Read an excerpt


I remember liking Harlequin romances and those with the hot, masculine, broody guy and the independent woman who secretly wants to be swept off her feet and taken care of when I was in my early twenties and enjoying them.  Summertime is probably perfect for those types of reads, so I thought, "Well, why not try again to see if I still like them?".   I can't tell you, because I didn't HATE it, but it just couldn't hold my attention, therefore I didn't finish it.  Given that this was a review book, I DID give it the good ole college try, however.

I KNOW that Linda Lael Miller is a successful writer in this genre, and this title is part of her immensely popular Montana Creed series, so I'm offering a chance to fans of the genre to win their own copy. 

BUY IT:  At Amazon, The Book Depository, through the publisher's website,  and through other on-and-off-line booksellers.

WIN IT:  I'm making this international, and will ship a copy to the winner from The Book Depository. (my own copy came with a big crease in the back cover from the packaging when it was shipped).

MORE-->>

Across Eternity by Aris Whitter - BOOK REVIEW

Title:  Across Eternity
Author:  Aris Whittier
Release Date:  March 11, 2011
eBook, 298 pages
Kindle Edition: B004RVB2EG
Amazon

Goodreads description:

Born a genius; education, wealth, and prestige came easy to Logan Richards. Actually, there wasn’t much that Logan couldn’t learn or acquire. However, he knew there was more to life than money and power. Logan was determined to find the woman who he'd dreamed of his entire life and know what it was like to love her before he died.

Amber Lewis, a waitress for a five-star restaurant in, Dana Point, California, was overworked, stressed, and wary of life since her sister, Heather, had passed away. Then, one evening while working she fell hopelessly in love with Logan Richards, a chivalrous man who felt deeply familiar.

For Amber, it was the beginning of a voyage of self-discovery and renewal. For Logan, it was the completion of life. For each of them it was the deepest sort of love.
 
My Take: 

Logan Richards grew up in Napa Valley - a genius who started college at the age of 13, until he was 10 years old, he had an imaginary friend that visited him and talked to him all of the time.

Amber Lewis is a waitress whose sister Heather died of cancer a year ago.  Now she is just trying to work and find her way through life.

When Logan sees Amber at a restaurant, he is instantly drawn to her.  For this reader, the deep attraction was puzzling until we realize that Logan feels that he's known Amber before ... actually, forever .. through many lives.

Amber is, quite intelligently, a bit put off by the seemingly wealthy man and his keen interest, although she is encouraged by a fellow waitress and friend to see what happens.

As their relationship develops, the reader is taken with them on their discovery of each other, their life and travels together, Logan's wonderful family, and their parting (serious romantics should have tissue ready).

This book is pure clean romance.  In the beginning, I found the prose a bit overblown and stilted; however, as I read, I almost couldn't help being interested in the back story of these two souls who seem to find each other through every life.  I rejoiced along with Amber at her feeling of belonging, and could almost picture the Irish countryside and pub that they visited on one journey.

There are some editing issues (transitions, flow, etc.) - for me, the biggest gaffe was that Logan speaks of his father and we see two different names (Dennis and Adam).  It is also a bit saccharine for my personal taste, but for lovers of sweet romance it should perfectly fit the bill.

QUOTE:

He wanted her to know that they always met up.  No matter what the lifetime or who they were they always connected.  But he knew it would be better if she remembered on her own.

Writing: 3 out of 5 stars

Plot:   4 out of 5 stars

Characters:  3.5 out of 5 stars

Reading Immersion:  3.5 out 5 stars

BOOK RATING:   3.5 out of 5 stars

BLOGGERS:  Have you reviewed this book? If so, please feel free to leave a link to your review in the comments section; I will also add your link to the body of my review.

Author blog

BUY IT:  At Amazon and through other on-and-off-line booksellers.

Disclosure:  I  received a  complimentary copy of this title from the author to facilitate my review.  No other compensation was received and I was not required to post a positive review.

One Season of Sunshine by Julia London - BOOK REVIEW and GIVEAWAY (GIVEAWAY CLOSED)

Title:  One Season of Sunshine
Author:  Julia London
Publisher:  Pocket Books, a division of Simon and Schuster
Publish Date:  June, 2010
Format:  Paperback, 416 pages
ISBN-10: 1416547096
ISBN-13: 9781416547099



From the publisher's website:

Should some questions be left unanswered?
 
Adopted as an infant, Jane Aaron longs to know the identity of her birth mother and why she gave her up. Her only clue is the name of the small Texas town where she was born, so she's come to Cedar Springs for answers. 

Handsome ad executive Asher Price lost his wife, the beautiful, mysterious Susanna, in a terrible car crash eighteen months ago. When he hires Jane as the nanny for his two children, sparks fly. Jane finds herself falling in love with both Asher and his children, but begins to suspect that Susanna was not the perfect mother and wife the family portrays her to have been. 

As Jane gets closer and closer to finding out the truth about both her own and Susanna's past, devastating secrets begin to emerge that may be more than anyone can bear. Will the truth bring Jane and Asher closer together or tear them apart forever?

My Take:  Jane Aaron, a teacher with a wonderful, warm, adoptive family and a loving boyfriend, Jonathan, who is just waiting for her to say "yes" to his proposal, feels, like many adopted children, that to know herself better, she must learn where she came from.

In her search for answers, she takes a leave from her job, her family, and her boyfriend to move to the town of her birth, Cedar Springs, where she hopes to learn who her birth mother is and hopefully, still the restlessness and vague dissatisfaction that has crept into her life.  She also hopes that this respite from her everyday life will give her the time to finish her graduate thesis.

Jane, whose teacher's salary only allowed for a small amount of savings, takes a job as a nanny to Asher Price's children, Levi and Riley, who are still recovering from the sudden death of their mother, Susanna, in a terrible car accident a year-and-a-half ago.  She moves into the guest house of their lavish property and promptly finds herself in the midst of pre-teen angst (Riley), and toddler rebellion (Levi), in a home where the only surviving parent spends most of his time away, even out of the country, on business.

On her voyage of discovery, she runs into many pitfalls in her search for her birth mother as well as in her relationship with her new charges and their seemingly self-absorbed father.

As her friendship with both the children and Asher begins to bloom, she unearths the story of what happened to her birth mother - and it is a shocker - one that rocks her to her core and causes her to suddenly veer off course yet again.

I was drawn into this story by the believability of the characters.  They are fully-fleshed and drawn-to-life with a well-paced evolution throughout the story.  I understood and empathized with Jane's dilemmas.  The depicted romance was sweet - not overblown and dramatic - the sort of easing into that often happens in everyone's life.

I enjoyed reading this story, It touched on many items:  adoption, the struggle of getting back to life after the loss of a parent and spouse, how someone adapts to suddenly becoming a single parent, the ravaging effects of bipolar disorder on the family of the person who suffers the disorder .. if you haven't experienced any of these situations, you won't come out with a deep understanding, but you will definitely come out with a better understanding of these issues.

Sensitive Reader:  Due to some intimately drawn romantic scenes, this book may not be for you.

Browse Inside the book

Julia London's website

Book Rating:  4 out of 5 stars

BUY IT:  On Amazon, at the publisher's website, and through various on and off-line booksellers.  It is also available as an e-Book.

WIN IT:  The publisher has generously agreed to provide you, my readers, with a chance to win this book for yourselves!  I have two copies up for grabs!


MANDATORY ENTRY:  Visit Julia London's website and tell me the name of another book of hers that you would like to read!  (No fair picking the same as the previous commentor, either! LOL!)

EXTRA ENTRIES (please leave a separate comment for each; if you already follow or subscribe prior to this post, leave 2 comments for each):

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3.  Spread the word! Tweet (maximum of ONCE daily - include @jewelknits and @Pocket_Books in the tweet so that I see it. To make it easy, you can use the "Share" button at the bottom of this post!  Blog about - 2 entries/comments.  Sidebar link to giveaway - 1 entry/comment (leave the URL)

4.  Enter another one of my giveaways that are current at the time you post your entry comment. You can get one extra entry for each giveaway that you enter.

ALL ENTRIES:  Please leave your email in your comments: Like this: imacrazedmommy at whydidihavekids dot com OR like this imacrazedmommy(at)whydidihavekids(dot)com to avoid the spam bots.  If I can't reach you, you can't win!

In addition, if you follow, tweet, etc., please leave the name or email address you follow/tweet/subscribe under.

Eligibility: US, 18 and older.  These books will ship directly from the publisher, so no P.O. Boxes, please!

End date:  August 19, 2010 at 11:59 PM EST

I will pick the winner(s) using Random.org.  I will post the winner(s) on the site AND send an email to the email address used to enter.  The winner will then have 48 hours to reply with their mailing information; otherwise, a new winner will be picked.  The email will be easy to spot; the subject line will begin "You WON on Knitting and Sundries"

Disclosure:  I received a complimentary copy of this title from Pocket Books to objectively review.  No other form of compensation was received for this post, and I was not required to post a positive review.