Maisie Dobbs Read-A-Long with Book Club Girl

I'm planning on taking my reading and blogging in a slightly different direction during 2011.  To that end, I'm signing up with Book Club Girl's Masie Dobbs Read-A-Long. 

I loved the first couple of books in the series by Jacqueline Winspear, and now I'll be reading them all in preparation for the release this spring of A LESSON IN SECRETS.

This is more than a reading challenge - it's an ongoing reading event! There will be discussions, contests, prizes - even (hopefully) a visit from Jaqueline Winspear to Book Club Girl on the Air. You can get all the details on Book Club Girl's website.

If you're interested in joining, here is the schedule of when Book Club Girl will post questions to discuss each of the books:

January 14th - Maisie Dobbs
January 31st - Birds of a Feather
February 14th - Pardonable Lies
February 22nd - Paperback edition of The Mapping of Love and Death goes on sale
February 28th - Messenger of Truth
March 14th - An Incomplete Revenge
March 22nd - Hardcover of A Lesson in Secrets goes on sale
March 28th- Among the Mad
April 11th- The Mapping of Love and Death
April 25th - A Lesson in Secrets

Click here to visit the website of Jacqueline Winspear.

I am so looking forward to this! Hope you join in, too!

Waiting on Wednesday: THE DIVINER'S TALE by Bradford Morrow

"WAITING ON WEDNESDAY"

is hosted by Jill from

Breaking the Spine.

Join in and tell us . . .

What are you waiting for?

My pick for this week is . . .

THE DIVINER'S TALE

by Bradford Morrow

Pub. Date: January 2011

Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt

Format: Hardcover , 320pp

ISBN-13: 9780547382630

ISBN: 0547382634

Description (from the publisher):

Walking a lonely forested valley on a spring morning in upstate New York, having been hired by a developer to dowse the land, Cassandra Brooks comes upon the shocking vision of a young girl hanged from a tree. When she returns with authorities to the site, the body has vanished, leaving in question Cassandra’s credibility if not her sanity. The next day, on a return visit with the sheriff to have another look, a dazed, mute missing girl emerges from the woods, alive and the very picture of Cassandra’s hanged girl.

What follows is the narrative of ever-deepening and increasingly bizarre divinations that will lead this gifted young woman, the struggling single mother of twin boys, hurtling toward a past she’d long since thought was behind her. The Diviner’s Tale is at once a journey of self-discovery and an unorthodox murder mystery, a tale of the fantastic and a family chronicle told by an otherwise ordinary woman.

When Cassandra’s dark forebodings take on tangible form, she is forced to confront a life spiraling out of control. And soon she is locked in a mortal chess match with a real-life killer who has haunted her since before she can remember.

About the Author (from the publisher):

Bradford Morrow is the author of numerous acclaimed works of fiction and poetry, including Ariel's Crossing and Giovanni's Gift. He is also the founder of the literary magazine Conjunctions, which he has edited since 1981. He received a Guggenheim fellowship in 2007 and is a professor of literature at Bard University.

Advance praise:

“In his sublime new novel The Diviner’s Tale, Bradford Morrow accomplishes the deep, subtle miracle I have been waiting and waiting for someone to effect—he gives us the first novel-length work of fiction that actually does create a seamless breathing breathtaking unity of the literary and the suspense novel. This novel detonates the very notion of genre. And it works because it is riveting, insightful, sentence by sentence charged with feeling, as it bears us helpless with it on its downward journey to illumination.”
—Peter Straub

“Bradford Morrow, like the diviner-heroine of The Diviner’s Tale, is a mesmerizing storyteller who casts an irresistible spell. He has constructed an ingeniously plotted mystery story that is at the same time a love story—luminous and magical, fraught with suspense, beautifully and subtly rendered—a feat of prose divination.”
—Joyce Carol Oates

“Bradford Morrow is a force of nature. I have already publicly used the word ‘masterpiece’ about one of his books, Trinity Fields. It is a measure of this writer that I must invoke the word again, and about a novel that not only contains pitch-perfect, surpassingly beautiful line-to-line writing but that finds in fictional genre forms both narrative excitement and profound human insight fully as successfully as Dostoevsky did with murder mysteries and Melville did with sea adventures. The Diviner’s Tale will not only delight, it will endure.”
—Robert Olen Butler

“An astonishing dark gem of a novel, The Diviner's Tale is a gorgeously written, deeply unsettling thriller that kept me reading long past my bedtime for three nights in a row. I don't regret a moment of it, and neither will you — I loved this book.”
—Elizabeth Hand

“Bradford Morrow’s The Diviner’s Tale packs a mighty emotional wallop. This haunting portrayal of a woman possessed by irresistible visions which draw her through mystery and terror to cataclysmic self-discovery is both chilling and impossible to put down. Morrow is at the top of his form: bold, original, and mesmerizing. Truly a stunning achievement.”
—Valerie Martin

“Superb. The only thing I did for two straight days was read this book—it really is that riveting. It reminded me of the greatest Hitchcock films that were somehow alchemically able to combine suspense, wonder, and romance all in one seamless story that kept you guessing and gasping right up until the end. A long time fan of Morrow’s work, I can honestly say this is the best he’s ever done.”
—Jonathan Carroll

“The Diviner’s Tale is Bradford Morrow’s most ambitious novel to date. He deftly wicks the literary and the paranormal into a single strand, making us wonder why we ever thought of the two as separate, and then uses this thread to weave a perfectly articulated mystery. The result is a sly masterpiece by a truly marvelous stylist that will cause you to question what you thought you knew about both genre and literature. Triply satisfying, The Diviner’s Tale is a virtuoso performance.”
—Brian Evenson

“Bradford Morrow's beautifully written and tautly paced novel brings the old and all but forgotten gift of divination into the modern world. With the aptly named but thoroughly contemporary Cassandra as the book's flawlessly rendered voice, Morrow has created a woman both heroic in what she seeks and human in what she finds. The Diviner's Tale is about past crimes and future consequences, a tale whose subtle and mysterious confluences are as elusive as water underground.”
—Thomas H. Cook



 

Romantic Holiday Giveaway from Hachette Book Group: STEAMY READS FOR SNOWY NIGHTS

CLOSED.

Thanks to those saucy folks at

Hachette Book Group,

I have been authorized to
 give away three (3) sets of
four (4)  novels in
the Romantic Holiday Giveaway:
Steamy Reads for Snowy Nights.

Rules for entering this giveaway
are at the bottom of this post.

STEAMY READS FOR SNOWY NIGHTS

Romantic Holiday Giveaway

Forever Romance

TO SIN WITH A SCOUNDREL

By Cara Elliott

Format: Mass Market

Price: US$6.99/CA$8.99

ISBN: 9780446541299

Description (from the publisher):

A reclusive widow known for her scientific scholarship, Lady Ciara Sheffield is shadowed by rumors that she poisoned her husband . . . A rakehell rogue notorious for his devil-may-care antics, Lucas Bingham--the Earl of Hadley--is not accused of murdering anything--save for the rules of Polite Society. The only thing they have in common is seeing their names featured in the lurid gossip columns of London's newspapers. Until an ancient manuscript draws them together.

Ciara needs a titled fiancé to quell the slanderous speculations which may send her to the gallows. Lucas needs brilliant scholar to help his elderly uncle decipher the secrets of the mysterious manuscript. So when her friends urge her to accept the earl's proposal of a temporary alliance, Ciara decides that she has no choice but to make a deal with the Devil. And so begins a seductive dance of sinful pleasures and hidden desires as the two of them waltz through the mansions of Mayfair. Lies, intrigue, treachery, sex. They find themselves facing slanderous whispers, unscrupulous relatives-not to speak of their own simmering passions, which quickly ignite into dangerous flames. It's a potent mix and the result may be explosive-and perhaps deadly-if they don't watch their step.

A TOUCH OF SCANDAL

By Jennifer Haymore

Format: Mass Market

Price: US$6.99/CA$8.99

ISBN: 9780446540278

Description (from the publisher):
The last thing Garrett, Duke of Calton, expects to find while tracking his sworn enemy is the delectable, mysterious Kate. This beautiful servant girl rouses a longing the battle-scarred ex-soldier had never hoped to feel again. But when she turns out to be the sister of the man he seeks, he's convinced he's been betrayed.

Kate knows her duty to her family, yet how can she ignore Garrett's powerful pull on her heart? Or the heady temptation of his stolen-and sizzling-kisses? Scandal has followed the duke since the war. Now the greatest shock of all is on its way-the one that can separate Garrett and Kate forever.

BOUND TO PLEASE 

By Lilli Feisty

Format: Mass Market

Price: US$6.99/CA$8.50

ISBN: 9780446541923

Description (from the publisher):
FROM FANTASY TO ECSTASY
Ruby Scott is a beautiful, quiet event planner who leads an oh-so-respectable life. Yet the things that go on in her secret fantasies are anything but. She has every intention of keeping her hidden desires under wraps-until she meets a gorgeous, hard-muscled man ten years her junior. Mark St. Crow is a gifted, up-and-coming musician who collects erotic art and loves to "play" women as much as his piano. After one night of uninhibited passion, Ruby realizes there's no turning back.

A HIGHLANDER NEVER SURRENDERS

By Paula Quinn

Format: Mass Market

Price: US$6.99/CA$8.50

ISBN: 9780446619134

Description (from the publisher):

Defending Her Was His Duty:  Skilled with a sword and quick with her wit, Scottish rebel Claire Stuart cannot be tamed. And nothing can deter her from rescuing her beloved sister and saving them both from arranged marriages--not even the handsome Highlander who vows to protect Claire. His scorching gaze and fiery kiss bring her to the brink of surrender, but she belongs to no man...

Seducing Her Would Be His Reward:  Graham Grant has had his share of lasses. But he has never met one as headstrong or as bonnie as Claire--or one with such desperate, dnagerous plans. Helping her could betray his honor, his country, and more. Graham can't claim her. Yet everything in him says: Take her, make her yours, teach her pleasure, and never let her go.

RULES FOR ENTERING THE GIVEAWAY:

• Leave an original comment on this post telling me you would like to win. Include an email address with your comment so that I can contact you if you do win. Use a spam-thwarting format such as geebee.reads AT gmail DOT com or geebee.reads [at] gmail [dot] com

• You must leave an email address in order to qualify. If I can't contact you, you can't win!

• You can earn an extra entry by being or becoming a Follower or Subscriber of this blog and telling me about it in a separate comment.

• Blog about this contest and provide me with the link to the post in a separate comment, and I'll give you yet another entry.

• Tweeting about this contest and providing me the link in a separate comment will get you one more entry. I've added a Retweet button at the bottom of every post.

• Stumble this blog, Digg it, or Technorati Fave it, whatever, and leave a separate comment for another entry.

• Winners must provide a U.S. or Canadian street address. Hachette is unable to deliver to P.O. Boxes.

• PLEASE NOTE: One win per household. If you win this title in another contest hosted at another blog, Hachette will only send one copy per household address.

• Deadline for entry is 11:59 p.m. EST on Monday, December 27, 2010.

• Winners will have 48 hours to respond to my email announcing that they have won; if I don't hear from a winner, I will draw another name.

• Winners are determined using the sequence generator at Random.org.

Thank you to Anna
at Hachette Book Group

for making this giveaway possible.

GOOD LUCK EVERYONE!
THIS CONTEST IS NOW CLOSED.

Who Won What . . .

Graphic courtesy of Cupcakes for Clara.

Click here to visit her Etsy shop.

!!  CONGRATULATIONS !!

Some of these should have been posted weeks ago
 -- my apologies for getting backlogged!

GIVE THANKS FOR GREAT BOOKS

#65 Sandee61

#68 Ruthie

#107 Sharon

THE BRAVE

(audio book)

#23 LindaKish
#37 bcteagirl

OOGY

(audio book)

#6 Zibilee
#39 traveler

DON'T BLINK

(audio book)

#31 librarypat
#48  Susan
#70 Cindy W.

KATIE UP AND DOWN THE HALL
by Glenn Paskin

#2    Charleydog
#16  Martha Lawson
#23  JHS

SAFE HAVEN
by Nicholas Sparks

#64   Carole Spring
#77   Emma
#103 Cheli

ROOM: A Novel
by Emma Donoghue

#57   carla
#91   Irene
#125 Tara

DARE TO TAKE CHARGE
by Judge Glenda Hachett

#1   PoCoKat
#6   Anonymous
        (a/k/a headlessfowl at jteers dot net)
#22 Benita



-  All winners have been contacted and confirmed.

- Thank you to everyone who stopped by and entered. If you weren't one of the lucky ones in this drawing, click here to hop on over to the contest page at Hachette Book Group for listings of other blogs hosting book giveaways.

- Be sure and check my sidebar for other ongoing giveaways here and at other blogs.

A big thank you to
Hachette Book Group

 for making these giveaways possible.

Spotlight and Book Giveaway: THE SWAN THIEVES by Elizabeth Kostova

CLOSED.

Thanks to the generous folks at
Hachette Book Group,

I have been authorized to
 give away three (3) copies of

THE SWAN THIEVES
by Elizabeth Kostova.

Rules for entering this giveaway
are at the bottom of this post.

THE SWAN THIEVES

by Elizabeth Kostova

Publisher: Back Bay Books

Category: Fiction

Format: Trade Paperback

Publish Date: 11/3/2010

Price: $15.99/$17.99

ISBN: 9780316065795

Pages: 592

Size: 5-1/2" x 8-1/4"

Description (from the publisher):

Andrew Marlow, a psychiatrist, has a perfectly ordered life--solitary, perhaps, but full of devotion to his profession and the painting hobby he loves. This order is destroyed when the renowned painter Robert Oliver attacks a canvas in the National Gallery of Art and becomes Marlow's patient.

 When Oliver refuses to talk or cooperate, Marlow finds himself going beyond his own legal and ethical boundaries to understand the secret that torments this silent genius, a journey that will lead him into the lives of the women closest to Robert Oliver and toward a tragedy at the heart of French Impressionism.  

Moving from American museums to the coast of Normandy, from the late nineteenth century to the late twentieth, from young love to last love, THE SWAN THIEVES is a story of obsession, the losses of history, and the power of art to preserve human hope.

• Click here to read an excerpt.
• Click here to access the Reading Group Guide.

About the author (from the publisher):

Elizabeth Kostova graduated from Yale and holds an MFA from the University of Michigan, where she won the Hopwood Award for the Novel-in-Progress.  

• Click here to visit the author's website.
• View the Video
• Become a fan on Facebook
• Podcast Interview from ALOUD at Central Library

RULES FOR ENTERING THE GIVEAWAY:

• Leave an original comment on this post telling me you would like to win. Include an email address with your comment so that I can contact you if you do win. Use a spam-thwarting format such as geebee.reads AT gmail DOT com or geebee.reads [at] gmail [dot] com

• You must leave an email address in order to qualify. If I can't contact you, you can't win!

• You can earn an extra entry by being or becoming a Follower or Subscriber of this blog and telling me about it in a separate comment.

• Blog about this contest and provide me with the link to the post in a separate comment, and I'll give you yet another entry.

• Tweeting about this contest and providing me the link in a separate comment will get you one more entry. I've added a Retweet button at the bottom of every post.

• Stumble this blog, Digg it, or Technorati Fave it, whatever, and leave a separate comment for another entry.

• Winners must provide a U.S. or Canadian street address. Hachette is unable to deliver to P.O. Boxes.

• PLEASE NOTE: One win per household. If you win this title in another contest hosted at another blog, Hachette will only send one copy per household address.

• Deadline for entry is 11:59 p.m. EST on Friday, December 17, 2010.

• Winners will have 48 hours to respond to my email announcing that they have won; if I don't hear from a winner, I will draw another name.

• Winners are determined using the sequence generator at Random.org.

Thank you to Valerie
at Hachette Book Group

for making this giveaway possible.

GOOD LUCK EVERYONE!
THIS CONTEST IS NOW CLOSED.

Waiting on Wednesday: STARTED EARLY, TOOK MY DOG by Kate Atkinson

"WAITING ON WEDNESDAY"

is hosted by Jill from

Breaking the Spine.

Join in and tell us . . .

What are you waiting for?

My pick for this week is . . .

STARTED EARLY, TOOK MY DOG

by Kate Atkinson

Publisher: Reagan Arthur Books

Little, Brown

Category: Fiction, Suspense & Thrillers

Format: Hardcover Book

Publish Date: 3/21/2011

Price: $24.99/$0.00

ISBN: 9780316066730

Pages: 400

Size: 6" x 9-1/4"

Description (from the publisher):
Tracy Waterhouse leads a quiet, ordered life as a retired police detective-a life that takes a surprising turn when she encounters Kelly Cross, a habitual offender, dragging a young child through town. Both appear miserable and better off without each other-or so decides Tracy, in a snap decision that surprises herself as much as Kelly. Suddenly burdened with a small child, Tracy soon learns her parental inexperience is actually the least of her problems, as much larger ones loom for her and her young charge.

Meanwhile, Jackson Brodie, the beloved detective of novels such as Case Histories, is embarking on a different sort of rescue-that of an abused dog. Dog in tow, Jackson is about to learn, along with Tracy, that no good deed goes unpunished.

Click here to visit the author's website.

Click here to download the story "To Die For" by Kate Atkinson

About the Author (from the publisher):
Kate Atkinson lives in Edinburgh. Her first novel, Behind the Scenes at the Museum, was named Whitbread Book of the Year in the U.K. in 1995, and was followed by Human Croquet, Emotionally Weird, Not the End of the World, Case Histories, One Good Turn, and When Will There Be Good News?