TLR's Summer Book Splash

We are hosting are first book challenge at Teen Lit Review. All our readers are invited to participate just by making a list of pre-teen, teen, oy young adult books they want to read and sharing the list with us. I'm going to give away at least one book, hopefully more. I'm going to participate, too. Here's my list I plan to read:

Reforming the Potter's Clay by Donald James Parker
The Book of the King by Jerry B. Jenkins
Dizzy by Cathy Cassidy
Devil on My Heels by Joyce McDonald

Angi from TLR wanted me to share her list, too:

When I was Older - Weyr
Found - Haddix
Book of a Thousand Days - Hale
Trouble - Schmidt
Big Fat Manifesto - Vaught
My Name is Chloe - Carlson
Notes From A Spinning Planet - Ireland - Carlson

Past and present TLR reviewers can paricipate in the challenge, too, but aren't eligible for the book drawing.

Bloggy Giveaways Carnival

I can't resist a giveaway -- lots of drawings to enter AND lots of new faces to meet. The quarterly carnival is for one week, July 28 - August 1. Go to the Bloggy Carnival Giveaways site to participate.

Anyway, I'm Shawna, the mom around here. Scamp's my rambunctious almost 3-year old who inspires much of my blogging. And you'll see my hubby, Matt (aka Beef) around, too. I love to write and have picked back up my love of reading as well. Recently, another blogging buddy and I started a Christian book review site for parents and teens called Teen Lit Review. Please stop by if you get a chance. We are doing a book giveaway there, too.

Now, let's get down to the real business. I'm giving away my personal copy of the book "Snow Angel" by Jamie Carie.

Synopsis (from book jacket): When Noah Wesley heard the faint sound outside the door of his remote Alaskan mountain cabin during a violent nighttime blizzard, it was no less than the voice of God that urged him to take a closer look, soon to discover his snow angel.

Unconscious and more than half frozen to death, her name, as Noah would later learn after boldly saving her life, was Elizabeth, a beautiful young woman, fragile yet fierce, and intent on discovering gold like so many others in that region during the late 1800s.

But why Elizabeth was so drawn to the gold, and why she would chase it even through a pounding storm that no man would dare face, was a secret to be shared with no one else, not even at the invitation of Noah's deep blue trusting eyes.

I was a bit disappointed in how the book started, being Christian fiction and all. The plot was pretty cliche, nothing original. It was, however, very romantic but not one of my favorite romances. It was enough of a good read to pass on though.

Rules to enter drawing:

1. Leave a comment. You don't have to be a blogger, but please leave a way to contact you if you aren't.

2. You must be a US resident.

That's all. Because I'm late to enter the carnival I'm extending my drawing to August 7, which gives everyone a week to enter. Entries will be taken up until noon CST on Thursday, August 7.

We Have a Winner Ladies

I had such a fun time visiting for the Ultimate Blog Party. I met so many nice ladies, and I enjoyed everyone who came to visit me here. Now, it's time for the book drawing. Through a random number crunch the winner below has won my personal copy of A Bride Most Begrudging by Deanne Gist:

Hazel from Just Add Dots

Congratulations Hazel! Please head over to her site to tell her so. Thank you to everyone who participated!! I hope you'll stop by again.

Welcome to My Blog Party!

This post wll be stickied for the blog party week, so scroll down for newer posts.

Welcome to my party!! I'm Shawna, and this is my sweet and sassy Scamp. How's the weather where your from? We are about to be blasted with a little snow, so we're bundling up tight.

We are so excited that you came that we are giving away a book. I hope you love Christian fiction. That's mostly what I read besides pre-teen and teen books. I love doing book reviews and also participate in a teen book review blog called Teen Lit Review. We're giving away some books over there, too, so hurry on over after you've visited here a little while.

I am giving away my personal copy of "A Bride Most Begrudging" by Deanne Gist. Click here for my review of the book. All you have to do it leave a comment on this post, but please include an email address if I can't get to your blog. Non-bloggers are welcome to participate, too.

The contest ends Monday, March 17 at midnight. The winner will be posted after noon on Tuesday, March 18.

BTW, scroll down to see Scamp's Philosophies on life. You don't want to miss this! Thanks for stopping by.

Teen Lit Review Book Giveaway

Teen Lit Reivew is having another book giveaway featuring Hollywood Nobody by Lisa Samson. If you would like to participate in the drawing, please read the rules below:

1. Leave a comment at this link with an email address or a blog where we may reach you. **(You don't have to have a blog to participate).
2. If you have a blog, please write a small post with a link back to Teen Lit Review. This is not required, but it's greatly appreciated because it helps us spread the word about our blog.

The winner will be announced on Feb. 29 (Leap Year) after 1:00 pm CST. And be sure to read the review here. Plus, if you're the winner, Teen Lit Reivew would love to hear what you and your child think about the book.

One Year Blogging Anniversary and Giveaway

I am so excited to be celebrating such an awesome event. This same day last year was the beginning of my first entry into blogging land. I was so ecstatic then that I did two posts that first day. But, take a look at my first posts. What better way to start off than by talking about my favorite time of the year -- fall.

The time for bonfires and ooey gooey smores is at hand, and to celebrate both my favorite season and my year anniversary, I'll be giving away a $10 Gift Certificate to Starbucks.

The only thing is I don't really like coffee, but I'm all into a Vanilla Chai Tea Latte with lots of whipped cream and chocolate on top. Mmm!!! And coffee (or a good ole cup of hot chocolate, which I have the perfect new Pirate Princess mug from Stacy from Disney World) tends to go right along with a good book, which I'd love to be curled up reading right now.

Leave me a comment to be entered into the drawing and if you give me a shout out and link back here, I'll enter your name in twice. The drawing will be next October 31st at noon. And make sure you link to your blog or leave an email address for me to contact you in your comment!

And here are my One Year Ago Today pictures of Scamp for you to see how much she's grown.

Riddle Rhyme Giveaway

Poems can be used for any occasion, and I've been on a ryhme quest the last week or so. Therefore, I have written a rhyming riddle for you to solve. I hope it's easy enough, but if not I'll try to give more hints. You will probably need a calendar and an Internet search engine to figure it out.

I will be giving away a prize to the person who guesses it. If there's more than one solver, I'll draw a name out of a hat. The prize will probably be a book, but I may gear the prize toward the person who wins. This is not a requirement, but if you would please write a small post and link back to the article, I would be thrilled. Here we go:

Two girls, they are not sisters
But are related just the same.
There’s a generation between them,
And they share a similar name.

Two special events will happen
In which both girls will be blessed.
They’ll celebrate God’s gift of life,
One on the day of rest.

Tis not the Ides of March
Nor April, May, or June.
When this special occasion
Will happen upon us soon.

But add one to the day of Caesar
And half the date is revealed.
Still need another hint?
When did you first get behind the wheel?

The season of the equinox
When Autumn approaches soon,
This is the month; you're almost there.
But, don’t forget there’s two.

The original gal came first you see.
Then was joined by the latter.
One day past Mexican Independence,
And we had a whole new matter.

What two girls am I speaking of?
What events?
And what are the dates of the events?

If you can't figure it out, I'll give you a hint! And EMAIL me your answer at nutritionshawna@yahoo.com.

Huge Contest!!

I found Camy's blog through another blogger. She writes Christian chick lit with Asian American characters and her newest book is Sushi for One?

"She is giving away THREE huge baskets of books AND an 8 GB iPod Nano!

1st place winner will receive a copy of her novel, Sushi for One?, a basket of books by other Christian authors, and an 8 GB iPod Nano. (The winner can also elect to receive a 4 GB colored Nano instead of the 8 GB Nano, which is only available in black or red.)

2nd place winner will receive a copy of her novel, Sushi for One?, a basket of books by other Christian authors, and a 1 GB iPod Shuffle.

3rd place winner will receive a copy of her novel, Sushi for One?, a basket of books by other Christian authors, and a 1 GB iPod Shuffle (silver).

20 Honorable Mentions will each receive a copy of her novel, Sushi for One? and a $10 Amazon gift certificate.

You read that right! 23 winners in all!"

****Please go to her site and read the contest rules. And if you sign up, please name me (it has to say nutritionshawna) for your referral.****

Book Winner

Congratulations to vail at Thoughts of a Wannabe for winning "The Midwife of St. Petersburg." And please go on over to her site because she is having a book giveaway as well! Isn't this so much fun?!

The Midwife of St. Petersburg: Book Review and Giveaway

Recently, I won the book "The Midwife of St. Petersburg" by Linda Lee Chaikin from another blog. Since I have found so many other generous bloggers, I would like to do the same and pass the book along. But, up first is my review.

Synopsis: Karena Peshkova grew up under the direction of her midwife mother, Yeva, and desperately wants to follow in her footsteps. But due to her mother's Jewish heritage, Karena's dream is far from attainable. She and her family live in Czarist Russia, where the poor and Jewish peasants are often persecuted.

Karena's brother, Sergei, becomes involved with the Bolsheviks, a fascist political sect willing to do anything to overthrow the Czarist government. Karena unwittingly becomes suspected as a traitor and must flee from the Okhrana, the secret Russian police. The plot thickens as the man she is falling in love with, Aleksandr Kronstadt, whom she meets through her father's high society side of the family, becomes the lead investigator for the same police wanting to convict her.

Alex realizes his deep feelings for Karena and must decide what is most important, clearing the name of the women he loves or advancing his military career under the direction of the Czar. Along the way, both seek answers to their many questions on faith.

"The Midwife of St. Petersburg" borders on historical fiction along with being classified as Christian fiction. At first, I was taken aback by the authors writing style but eventually fell at peace with her wording and descriptions. The story was rather winding and lengthy. The author continued to add more and more plot without any remorse for my desperate want of answered questions.

Although the novel was very well researched, I feel that she could have been a little more in depth with Karena discovering the answers to her faith. I thought the building romance between Karena and Alex was also too unreal at times. All in all, I was left wanting more at the end.

Who would like to take a turn with the book next? Leave me a comment. If there's anyone interested, I'll choose a winner on Wednesday.

Bloggy Giveaway Winners

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FL02IYjF7Nc
Watch the video announcement by clicking on the link.

Ok, what was going on with my hair?! Anyway, Scamp and I are going to announce the winners!

CONGRATULATIONS!!

Jill's Book Bag Book Giveaway

Jill@Who Could Ask for Anything More is hosting another book giveaway. This time the book is "I Know This Much Is True" by Wally Lamb, which will be sent to you along with a monogrammed tote. The winner will be drawn Saturday July 21st so head on over to sign up!

Yes, Another Book Contest

Jill at Who Could Ask for Anything More is hosting a book drawing. All you have to do to sign up is comment on her site and write a post linking back to her site. This will be a monthly thing, and she's calling it Jill's Book Bag because she'll send you her new favorite book and some other goodies all in a neat little bag if you win. So cool! So hop on over to her blog.

Book Giveway

There's a book giveaway going on at Joyful Days this week. The 5 books to be given away (in one package) will be reviewed each day. All you have to do to participate is comment on one of the reviews and link back to the rules page from your blog! So what are you waiting for?!