Book Review and Giveaway - Catch Me If You Can Author: Carole Brown On Tour with Celebrate Lit

 

About the Book

Book: Catch Me If You Can

Author: Carole Brown

Genre: Romantic Suspense with a touch of quirkiness

Release date: August 5, 2021

The big cat sat on the oversized rock, ears pointed toward the sky, every muscle taut, every sense at the ready.

“S-s-shut up and f-f-forget it. You’ve s-seen nothing and know nothing. I won’t warn you again. G-g-got it?”

The cat’s head swiveled, his ears twitching as if catching the hint of threat in the whisper. A soft hiss slid from his open mouth and reinforced the overtone of evil pressing in upon the scene. Within hours, lies and dark secrets are slithering all over the campground.

Coaxed into finding the animal killer at Jamieson’s Outfitters, Tara Layne, with her sidekick, Boet, is welcomed by a threatening whisper and the unfriendly eyes of a rugged and devastatingly handsome manager. Wesley Clarke, both interesting and frustrating, holds an attraction for Tara that is primitive and exasperating.

Intermingled with her search, Tara deals with her own heartbreaking buried secrets. When a strange old Native American probes into the recesses of her heart, he encourages her to face her bitter feelings.

As Tara closes in on her search, she finds herself—and Boet—the target of someone who’s determined to outrun and outsmart her. Someone determined not to get caught.

His theme:

Fun as fast as you can, you can’t catch me.

The question:

Can Tara run fast enough to catch this real live Gingerbread boy

before he decides to get rid of her and Boet?

 

Click here to get your copy!

 

About the Author

Besides being a member and active participant of many writing groups, Carole Brown enjoys mentoring beginning writers. An author of thirteen full-length, best selling and award winning books (with a novella in an anthology), she loves to weave suspense and tough topics into her books, along with a touch of romance and whimsy, and is always on the lookout for outstanding titles and catchy ideas. She and her husband reside in SE Ohio but have ministered and counseled nationally and internationally. She has found that the traveling and ministering has served her well in writing her novels. Together, they enjoy their grandsons, traveling, gardening, good food, the simple life, and did she mention their grandsons?

 

More from Carol

Who doesn’t like a good book while nibbling on cookies and sipping your favorite drink?

 

Writing Catch Me If You Can, Book One of the Nursery Rhyme Series, was a fun endeavor. I can’t remember how I came up with the idea, but I do know it’s been interesting and a long-time coming. Both Tara Layne and Wesley Clarke have personal and spiritual issues to resolve which are more serious topics to address. So I knew definitely that I not only wanted to include those, plus suspense and romance, but also a bit of quirky-ness to the story.

 

What were the two quirky things that help make it special?

Tara Layne comes from a very special family. Her older brother, Tory, four years older than the twins: Tara and Tomas, and her grandfather, Poppy, an archeologist, who cared for them when their parents died. He raised them while on dig sites, teaching them and giving them a unique view of the world.

 

When Tory was murdered, while studying to follow in their grandfather’s footsteps, Tara, an elementary teacher, resigned and took the schooling she needed to be a detective because the authorities seemed unable to discover why Tory was murdered.

 

Her brothers were always pranksters, and after Tory died, Tomas bought her an expensive gift: A Savannah cat, sort of as a joke. But instead of being irritated at her nerdy computer brother, she fell in love with her cat and proceeded to name him Boet (An African name that means brotherly love).  Boet not only hisses at those he’s not crazy about, but shows tolerance for those who he favors.

 

Here are some fun facts about a Savannah cat:

1. Crossbred between a African Serval cat and a domestic cat.
2. Many Savannah cats enjoy water.
3. They are inquisitive and extremely intelligent.

 

The antagonist leaves Gingerbread cookie men at each site of the animal killings.

1. Now that seems weird enough, but when you discover why and how the cookies play a part of his/her past, you’ll understand the title better and why the antagonist is so obsessed with these specific cookies.
2. I’ve included a recipe below for your enjoyment! If you love gingerbread, these are sure to become a favorite!

Gingerbread Cookies

Ingredients

COOKIES

• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 3/4 tsp baking soda
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1 tsp ground ginger
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/2 cup unsalted butter softened
• 1 cup dark brown sugar
• 2 large egg
• 1/4 cup molasses
• 2 teaspoons vanilla
• additional flour for rolling out dough

ICING

• 1 cup powdered sugar
• 2 tsp milk
• 2 tsp light corn syrup
• 1/2 tsp extract of choice – lemon almond or vanilla

Instructions

COOKIES

• In a small bowl mix together baking powder, baking soda, salt, ginger and cinnamon until well blended. Set aside.
• In a large mixing bowl, beat together butter, brown sugar, and eggs on medium speed until well blended.
• Add molasses and vanilla and mix until well combined.
• Gradually add in dry ingredients and mix until combined, but do not over-mix.
• Wrap dough in plastic wrap and place into an airtight container or freezer style zipper bag, and place in refrigerator for at least two hours and up to 24 hours.
• When ready to bake, preheat oven to 375 deg. Line baking sheets with silicone baking mats ore parchment paper.
• Let dough sit at room temperature for 5-15 minutes or however long is needed to make it pliable enough to divide in half. The time it takes will depend on how long it’s been chilling.
• Place 1 portion of the dough on a lightly floured surface. Sprinkle additional flour over dough and gently roll dough out to approximately 1/4 – 1/3″ thick. The thicker the dough the softer the cookie will be. If dough sticks to rolling pin, sprinkle additional flour onto dough.
• Cut out cookies with cookie cutter. Whatever scraps are left over after cutting out cookies can be rolled out and rolled out to cut out more cookies.
• Place cookies on baking sheet approximately 1 1/2-inches apart.
• Bake each sheet of cookies for 7-10 minutes until tops and edges are starting to firm up.
• Remove baking sheet from oven transfer to a wire cooling rack. Allow to cool on baking sheet for ten minutes, then use a spatula to transfer cookies to another wire cooling rack to cool completely.
• If desired, once cookies are completely cooled decorate.

ICING

• In a medium size bowl, combine all ingredients and mix well to combine. For thicker icing, add more powdered sugar, one tablespoon at a time. For thinner icing, add more corn syrup, one teaspoon at a time. Place into a piping bag and pipe onto gingerbread cookies as desired.

My Thoughts

Catch Me If You Can is written by Carole Brown. It is a romantic suspense story. I have read a few other books by this author and have always loved every one that I have read. This one is my favorite one of her work. It was suspenseful and had some slight creepiness. The book has short chapters and moves quickly. 

Tara and her sidekick, Boet, are called in to help find the animal killer at Jamieson’s Outfitters mountain resort. She had been trying to figure out who killed her brother. However, she still needs to pay bills so she accepts the assignment. Tara realizes that everyone can be a suspect. Even the individual that hired Tara.  

There is a lot of secret hiding going. The one responsible will go to great lengths to keep them. A lot starts to happen to Tara. The attacks come from every which way and she is not sure who to trust.

Well written characters, fun, suspenseful story line.  This is a play on the gingerbread man. I look forward to more from this author. 

I received a copy of this book through the Celebrate Lit Blogging Program, all thoughts are my own. 

Blog Stops

Book Reviews From an Avid Reader, September 6

Pause for Tales, September 6

Because I said so — and other adventures in Parenting, September 7

Debbie’s Dusty Deliberations, September 8

Inklings and notions, September 9

deb’s Book Review, September 10

Locks, Hooks and Books, September 11

A Modern Day Fairy Tale, September 12

Texas Book-aholic, September 13

For Him and My Family, September 14

Mary Hake, September 14

The Meanderings of a Bookworm, September 15

Ashley’s Clean Book Reviews, September 16

Musings of a Sassy Bookish Mama, September 17

Truth and Grace Homeschool Academy, September 18

Happily Managing a Household of Boys, September 19

Giveaway

To celebrate her tour, Carole is giving away the grand prize package of a $50 Amazon gift card and signed copy of the book!!

Be sure to comment on the blog stops for nine extra entries into the giveaway! Click the link below to enter.

https://promosimple.com/ps/116c4/catch-me-if-you-can-celebration-tour-giveawa

Book Review and Giveaway - Saving Faith Author: Jennifer Sienes On Tour With Celebrate Lit

 

About the Book

Book:  Saving Faith

Author: Jennifer Sienes

Genre: Christian Women’s Fiction

Release date: July 13, 2021

Hearts and flowers might pay the bills, but that’s all they’re good for.

Still clutched in the grip of guilt over her youthful indiscretions, Faith Nicholson can’t seem to move past her parents’ disappointment in her—or her disappointment in herself.  Determined to make something in her life a success, she focuses on her floral design.

After all, she has quite the past to atone for.

Then her little sister decides to get married, and everyone but Faith chooses her for the job of coordinator. The family florist is the perfect choice. Right? Overruled, Faith agrees.

Enter a widower and his precocious daughter. A friendship with Michael Jacobs becomes more than a refuge in stress of wedding preparations. It becomes a catalyst for her entire life.

Hiding from her past hasn’t worked until now. Perhaps Michael is right.  Facing it is exactly what she needs if she has any hope of a real future.

Faith never would have imagined that her grudging agreement to help her sister could become an olive branch between herself and her family—and the Lord.

 

Click here to get your copy!

 

About the Author

Jennifer Sienes holds a bachelor’s in psychology and a master’s in education, but discovered life-experience is the best teacher. She loves Jesus, romance and writing–and puts it altogether in inspirational contemporary fiction. Her daughter’s TBI and brother’s suicide inspired two of her three novels. Although fiction writing is her real love, she’s had several non-fiction pieces published in anthologies–two in Chicken Soup for the Soul. She has two grown children and one very spoiled Maltese. California born and raised, she recently took a step of faith with her real-life hero and relocated to Tennessee.

 

More from Jennifer

Where does inspiration come from? When I wrote Illusions and Providence (books 2 and 3 of my Apple Hill series) it came from real-life tragedies I’d lived through. The characters and stories were pure fiction, but the inspiration was heartfelt and dark—just where I needed my emotions to be in order to write redemption stories. When I wrote Surrendered (Book 1) in the series, the inspiration came from one character that was eventually deleted in the second draft of Providence. Are you confused yet? Just to set the record straight, although Surrendered was the first book published in the series, it was the last one I wrote. Why they were published in the order they were is unimportant.

 

Saving Faith is unlike any other book I’ve written. It was the first novella I wrote in the series, although it isn’t the first to be published (are you sensing a pattern?) I’ve since written two Christmas novellas, both based on side characters introduced in my novels. All That Glitters released last November starring two characters from Surrendered—Julia and Marty. Wish Upon a Star will release this coming November, and the main characters are Elaina and Ryan from Providence.

 

But the characters in Saving Faith were created from thin air. Well, mostly. Although Addie Jacobs is a side character, she was inspired by a little girl in my Sunday School class—adorable, precocious, intelligent, and headstrong. Once I had her in place, the rest of the novella came together. It was also the first book I’ve written without plotting it out in advance, which was quite disconcerting for a control-freak like me. It was as if the Holy Spirit introduced me to the story as I wrote it. I’ve heard of those pantsers (they write by the seat of their pants rather than outline the plot), but until Saving Faith, I’ve never been successful at winging it. To be perfectly honest, I wasn’t the main writer; I was just the co-pilot. I believe the story of Faith, Michael, Chloe, and Addie is better for it.

 

Another first for me was writing a story where romance was the main genre. I write women’s fiction with an element of romance. But Saving Faith is a romance with an element of women’s fiction. This set the bar for my other novellas. It’s these shorter books that allow me to delve into the world of romance, although it’s not the typical boy-meets-girl kind of story. It’s more boy-knows-girl and loves her anyway kind of story. Because truth be told, none of us are loveable without the redemptive work of Jesus Christ.

My Thoughts

Saving Faith is written by Jennifer Sienes. This is an Apple Hill Novella it is 124 pages. One of the things that I love about this author is her characters. Her characters always feel like friends. I also love her covers of all the books. They always are done beautifully and are breathtaking. 

In this story, we meet Faith. She is still haunted by the demons of her past. She lives in regret with her past choices. I think the author was brilliant in creating Faith, for I know that I have felt like this. She feels like God is punishing her. 

Pastor Michael Jacobs and his daughter were also wonderful characters. Pastor Michael is human like all of us and struggles. He is a single dad and has his hands full with is daughter. 

I love how the two of them connect with a friendship first, then build to a romance. It builds at a comfortable pace. The reminder of God's forgiveness is present throughout the story. I loved seeing Faith evolve through the whole story. 

Well written characters, clean romance story line, great Biblical message. I received a copy of this book through the Celebrate Lit Blogging Program, all thoughts are my own. 

Blog Stops

Debbie’s Dusty Deliberations, August 30

Cats in the Cradle Blog, August 30

Texas Book-aholic, August 31

Inklings and notions, September 1

Reviewingbooksplusmore, September 1

For Him and My Family, September 2

deb’s Book Review, September 3

Locks, Hooks and Books, September 4

CarpeDiem, September 4

Ashley’s Clean Book Reviews, September 5

Because I said so — and other adventures in Parenting, September 6

Kayem Reads, September 6

A Modern Day Fairy Tale, September 7

Musings of a Sassy Bookish Mama, September 8

lakesidelivingsite, September 9

Mary Hake, September 9

Truth and Grace Homeschool Academy, September 10

Happily Managing a Household of Boys, September 11

Splashes of Joy, September 12

Giveaway

To celebrate her tour, Jennifer is giving away the grand prize package of a $25 Amazon gift card & a copy of the book!!

Be sure to comment on the blog stops for nine extra entries into the giveaway! Click the link below to enter.

https://promosimple.com/ps/11620/saving-faith-celebration-tour-giveaway

Book Review and Giveaway - Choir Loft Murder Author: Karen Randau On tour with Celebrate LIt

 

About the Book

Book:  Choir Loft Murder

Author: Karen Randau

Genre: Mystery Suspense

Release date: August 24, 2021

In book 3 of the Frankie Shep Suspense Novellas, a member of the church choir dies during rehearsal, and the apparent murder weapon—a blowgun—implicates the man Frankie loves. She’s shocked to discover Quint was a champion at the sport before he accepted the senior pastor role at the church. And he’s refusing to talk about his fate.

Her investigation reveals that Quint isn’t the only person with the skill to hit a woman’s carotid artery while she’s singing a high note, and Frankie is convinced someone is framing Quint. The closer she gets to proving it, the more she faces a stalker’s deadly wrath.

Can Frankie save herself and the man she loves from becoming the next victims?

 

Click here to get your copy!

 

About the Author

Karen Randau authors fast-paced mystery, thriller, and suspense books, including the Frankie Shep Suspense Novella series, Rim Country Mysteries, and Deadly Reception (a stand-alone novella as one of seven of the Tawnee Mountain Mysteries box set written by best-selling and award-winning authors). Her Rim Country Mystery novel, Deadly Payload, was a finalist in the Book Excellent Awards and the Beverly Hills Book Awards. She’s a lifelong writer, both for fun and as a professional in marketing communications. She holds a degree in journalism/public relations. A native of the southwestern U.S., Karen lives with her husband in Arizona.

 

More from Karen

Since Choir Loft Murder is the third book in the Frankie Shep Suspense Novellas series, I wanted to show how Frankie has grown through the series—from broken woman who is angry at God for allowing the deaths of family into a strong and happy woman who relies on God to help her through an unusually tough life.

She has shown her grit in all three novels in the series, and this one shows how she has grown through the adversity life has thrown at her.

In writing Choir Loft Murder, I wanted to show that ordinary people usually are stronger and more resilient than they know.

My Thoughts

 Choir Loft Murder is written by  Karen Randau. This is the first book that I have read by this author. This is the third book in the Frankie Shep Series. I would recommend reading them in order, but this can be read as a stand alone. I was a little lost the first few chapters as the book opened, as it appears as the book picks up where the second one left off. This is a Mystery Suspense story. It is a novella and is 134 pages. 

This book opens up with engaged couple Frankie and Quint heading toward church where Frankie is going to be rehearsing for the 4th of July Celebration. Quint is the pastor of the church. During the rehearsal a fellow choir member, Sarah is murdered. Quint is suspected of her murder since he is the only person in their small town with a known history of blowdart usage/competitions. 

Frankie knows that he did not do this. How could the man she loves and their church pastor be responsible for this? Frankie does not feel like Quint is getting a fair shake down and starts investigating herself. Boy does she uncover some chaos. You will learn a lot of Frankie and Quint's history throughout this. 

I like how action packed the book was. There was a lot packed into this novella. The book moves at a comfortable pace. Once I got to about chapter 3, I did not feel as lost as I did when I started the book. 

The book has well written characters, fun, engaging and suspenseful storyline. The story flows nicely. I enjoyed this book and will look for more from this author. 

I received a copy of this book through the Celebrate Lit Blogging Program, all thoughts are my own. 

Blog Stops

Book Reviews From an Avid Reader, August 27

Babbling Becky L’s Book Impressions, August 27

Debbie’s Dusty Deliberations, August 28

Blogging With Carol, August 28

Texas Book-aholic, August 29

Inklings and notions, August 30

For Him and My Family, August 31

deb’s Book Review, September 1

Girls in White Dresses, September 1

Locks, Hooks and Books, September 2

Betti Mace, September 3

Ashley’s Clean Book Reviews, September 4

Simple Harvest Reads, September 4 (Guest Review from Donna Cline)

Because I said so — and other adventures in Parenting, September 5

A Modern Day Fairy Tale, September 6

Mary Hake, September 6

Musings of a Sassy Bookish Mama, September 7

Truth and Grace Homeschool Academy, September 8

Happily Managing a Household of Boys, September 9

Pause for Tales, September 9

Giveaway

To celebrate her tour, Karen is giving away the grand prize package of a $25 Amazon gift card and a paperback copy of the book!!

Be sure to comment on the blog stops for nine extra entries into the giveaway! Click the link below to enter.

https://promosimple.com/ps/1161c/choir-loft-murder-celebration-tour-giveaway

Book Review and Giveaway - Liberty Lane and the One-Girl Rebelution Author: Shaylene King On Tour with Celebrate Lit

 

About the Book

Book:  Liberty Lane and the One-Girl Rebelution

Author: Shaylene King

Genre: Middle Grade Fiction

Release date: December 31, 2020

American Idol meets the bible in this modern retelling of the book of Esther creatively re-imagined for a younger generation

Sir Frederick Preparatory School’s Royal Crown competition is only the biggest singing competition on planet earth! So, when Liberty Lane O’Shea, is catapulted into the singing competition to compete for the coveted crown, it’s a dream come true.

Her dreams are dashed when she meets a beastly contestant who plots to vocally “kill off” anyone who might pose a threat to his rise to fame.

To halt the contestant’s vile ruse, Liberty Lane and her cohorts in crime, best friend Calliope and cousin Lincoln scheme to foil his evil ploys.

When Liberty Lane finds herself blackmailed, she is faced with a tough choice. Will she expose this contestant, divulging a secret of her own, and possibly disqualify herself from the competition? Or, will she watch the other contestants “die” an early Royal Crown competition death, putting the crown surely within her grasp?

 

Click here to get your copy!

 

About the Author

Shaylene is an anti-bully activist. She speaks to thousands of students each year across the country and internationally, empowering them to live with profound purpose when they learn to combat mean and cultivate kindness.

She is the founder of The Mean Girl Extinction Project a 501(c)3 on-profit created to address the rise in relational aggression among girls. She teaches girls how to not only survive girl world but to make a difference and thrive in girl world. She leads assemblies, workshops and speaks at girls events, camps, clubs and retreats.

Shaylene also teaches and trains the nation’s leading student-led bully prevention program called  Safe School Ambassadors. Equipping students with the tools they need to develop self-confidence and practice and promote positive communication with their peers.

Shaylene lives with her husband in Middle Tennessee, sailing the unchartered waters of empty nesting. She enjoys any time she gets to spend with her two grown children who are off exploring the world and living the life God created them for.

 

More from Shaylene

Liberty Lane and the One-Girl Rebelution was birthed from my love of fairy tales and reading Bible stories to my kids. I have likely read every modern retelling version of classic fairy tales like Cinderella and Snow White and the Seven Dwarves! One night, while reading a Bible story to my kids at bedtime, I noticed it read a lot like a fairy tale, only it was true. What fun it would be to write a modern retelling of my favorite Bible stories! And, rest is history… or at least a re-telling of history!

 

This book was a labor of love. It was fun to creatively reimagine what an Esther story might look like today. More important, though, I wanted to create a strong, confident young girl, one who was perfectly imperfect, able to think for herself and stand for what she believed in, even when it was hard—a one-girl “rebel”ution. My hope is that girls might connect with Liberty Lane and feel they too can be comfortable in their own skin and stand by their convictions. When they make a mistake, they can right their wrong, hold their head high, and press on. Speaking the truth is never easy to do, but I want them to know, it will always be the right thing to do.

My Thoughts

Liberty Lane and the One-Girl Rebelution is a Middle Grade Fiction book that is written by Shaylene King. This is a modern day retelling of Esther and it was a great read. The characters that the author has created are perfect for Middle Grade readers. I enjoyed them as an adult. 

Liberty Lane has such big dreams. She wants to be on stage and win the singing competition. While she is talented, there are others that want to see her fail. Especially Seth. He will do whatever it takes to secure victory. One of the things about his character you will notice is his ego. 

There are some good lessons for teen girls to remember. Be courageous. Be honest. Be bold. Show Grace as it was shown to you at the Cross.  Those are the big ones that I took away. I love the characters, their personalities, and look forward to seeing them again in the future. 

I received a copy of this book through the Celebrate Lit Blogging Program, all thoughts are my own. 

Blog Stops

Debbie’s Dusty Deliberations, August 24

Aryn The Libraryan 📚, August 25

Ashley’s Clean Book Reviews, August 25

Texas Book-aholic, August 26

Inklings and notions, August 27

Blogging With Carol, August 27

For Him and My Family, August 28

Musings of a Sassy Bookish Mama, August 29

Southern Gal Loves to Read, August 29

deb’s Book Review, August 30

Locks, Hooks and Books, August 31

Cats in the Cradle Blog, August 31

A Modern Day Fairy Tale, September 1

Because I said so — and other adventures in Parenting, September 2

Mary Hake, September 2

Library Lady’s Kid Lit, September 3

Bigreadersite, September 4

Vicky Sluiter, September 4

Truth and Grace Homeschool Academy, September 5

Sodbusterliving, September 6

Giveaway

To celebrate her tour, Shaylene is giving away the grand prize a $50 Amazon gift card, a signed hard back copy of my book, book bag and 2 BookStubs (Free ebook download) … One BookStub for the winner and one for a friend!!

Be sure to comment on the blog stops for nine extra entries into the giveaway! Click the link below to enter.

https://promosimple.com/ps/11423/liberty-lane-and-the-one-girl-rebelution-celebration-tour-giveaway