Cool Contemporary Reads Contest

I’m happy to be a part of Rock Star Lit’s Cool Contemporary Reads Contest!

Need to cool down this summer? Rock Star Lit has some Cool Contemporary Reads handy for that! From August 1st to August 31st, Rock Star Lit will be holding a Cool Contemporary Reads contest featuring their coolest (okay hottest) contemporary authors and a TERRIFIC contest prize. Please see the end of the post for more giveaway details.

Here’s the books featured in this awesome giveaway.

Candice Gilmer from Night Owl Reviews shares her ‘Top 5 Beach Reads.’

For the beach, (or in my case, the lake), that’s my time to catch up on all the books I’ve downloaded to my device. I prefer books that are fun and funny. They can get serious as I get wrapped up in the world, but especially if it’s a new-to-me book, I like it to be lighter and a bit more fun.

As far as some of my favorites to read, here’s a standing list of romance novels I love to read (in no particular order) and I’ve read over and over because I love them.

•    Katie MacAllistar’s Improper English. This book makes me laugh every time. The heroine is a little self-obsessed, and horribly accident prone, but I can totally relate to her antics.

•    Any of the Bridgerton Series by Julia Quinn. I can pick one of these up, any of them, truly, and read them because not only do they crack me up, but the characters bring me to tears… Every time!

•    Tasha Black’s 300 Moons series. Well, they’re stand-alone shifter books, but they’re a series.  Love them. Shifters, spells, and magic, oh my!

•    JC Andrijeski’s Quentin Black series is also awesome. Mystery. Gritty, A hero to squeal over… Yeah. It’s got it all.

•    Anything by Theresa Romain. I love me some historical romance. I can’t write it to save my life—too many details I can screw up. Fairy tales? That’s a different story, though, but historicals have always been a love of mine. Especially fun historicals.

So there you have it. My beach reads.

It’s not that fancy, and like most books, I found them all by random shopping, but it’s a list of just some of the books I love to read, whenever I get a second to relax. (Though that doesn’t happen as often as I’d like, lol) 

Linda Winfree shares her ‘Top 5 Beach Reads.’

1) Once and Always by Judith McNaught – actually, just about any historical by McNaught, but I love the last few chapters of this book. Love.

2) Lucy Monroe’s Harlequin Presents – it doesn’t matter which one, they are all amazing mind-candy. Monroe writes the best grovel ever.

3) Sleepless at Midnight by Jacquie D’Alessandro – love this whole historical series. Smart heroines and infatuated heroes. Intrigue and secrecy – what’s not to love?

4) The Big Girl’s Guide to Buying Lingerie by Amie Stuart – hilarious and hot cowboy romance. I adore all of Stuart’s cowboy romances.

5) Into Thin Air by Jon Krakauer – because every list needs at least one great nonfiction read and it doesn’t get much better than this!

When asked about beach reads, Jett Monroe had this to say, “Full of drama, sexy times, and sometimes humor, here's my top 5 beach reads.”

First Star I See Tonight - Susan Elizabeth Phillips

Dare to Surrender - Carly Phillips

The Rogue Not Taken - Sarah Maclean

The Girl on The Train - Paula Hawkins

any of the Rock Chick books by Kristen Ashley

This tour-wide giveaway features some amazing items and runs through Aug. 31. The giveaway includes: a prize-filled beach bag, eBooks, signed books, gift cards, and a $25 Powell’s City of Books eGift Card courtesy of Night Owl Reviews.

To enter the giveaway, just click on the Rafflecopter widget below and follow the instructions. The widget may take a few seconds to load so please be patient.

Thanks so much for stopping by today. There’s a lot of interesting books featured here. What’s your favorite beach read? Do you have more than one?

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Beach Blues by Joanne DeMaio

◊ BEACH BLUES by Joanne DeMaio

◊ Paperback: 420 pages

◊ Genre: Women’s Fiction, Contemporary Women

◊ Publisher: CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform (May 17, 2016)

◊ Language: English

◊ ISBN-10: 1532874693

◊ ISBN-13: 978-1532874697

SYNOPSIS:

          New York Times bestselling author Joanne DeMaio invites you to spend the summer by the sea, in a quaint New England beach town where friends and love await just outside the cottage doors.
         

Celia Gray finds herself house-sitting a silver-shingled cottage at Stony Point. She arrives with her guitar, a few staging jobs ... and a bit of summertime sadness. That is, until an unforgettable group of beach friends draws her in like a breath of salt air.

Sal DeLuca heard the words in a dream: Take me to the sea. So after a decade of demanding work, he takes his first vacation in years. Trading in his suit and tie for blue jeans and boat shoes, Sal unexpectedly arrives at his mother's shabby inn on the Connecticut shore, winding his way into the lives and hearts of the close-knit beach community.

When Stony Point's two wash-ashores, Sal and Celia, meet, some say it's a match made in beach-heaven. And so begins a sweet seaside summer ... forging friendships, adventures and new love. But all is not at ease in the gentle sea breeze as a dark secret turns the tide for the Stony Point crew.

Beach Blues is a novel bringing you right to its secluded fishing shack and weathered boardwalk, to its wooden rowboat and lantern-lit porches. A novel that welcomes you, as much as it may break your heart.

Author Joanne DeMaio has an ease about her writing that gently pulls you into her stories. The smooth rhythmic flow of the story is similar to the gentle ebbing of the ocean she so effortlessly writes about.

DeMaio’s characters are well-developed, realistic and quite likable. Their actions and emotions are such readers can relate to them. The close-knit atmosphere of the core cast of characters adds depth to the story.

Through vivid descriptions and rich details, readers can almost feel the ocean breeze and hear the sand crunch under their feet. Through a mix of returning characters and a few new ones, the author creates a melting pot of intrigue. The setting is tranquil and inviting.

BEACH BLUES is a fascinating story dealing with the unpredictable lives of several people calling Stony Point home for the summer. With a few twists and turns, the author draws the story to a conclusion in such a heart-pounding way you can’t wait to see what’s to come in the next story.

A good mixture of romance, humor, friendship and devotion with a touch of heartache makes this the perfect summer read. DeMaio never fails to deliver an entertaining story with an ending I didn’t see coming.

Beach Blues by Joanne DeMaio, CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform, @2016, ISBN: 978-1532874697, Paperback, 420 Pages

FTC Full Disclosure – A copy of this book was sent to me by the author in hopes I would review it. However, receiving the complimentary copy did not influence my review. The thoughts are completely my own and given honestly and freely.

Thanks for stopping by today. I hope I’ve caught your attention with Joanne’s latest release. Be sure and check it out. Do you spend your summers at the beach? If not, would you like to?

The Weekenders {+ Giveaway}

◊ THE WEEKENDERS: A Novel by Mary Kay Andrews

◊ Hardcover: 464 pages

◊ Genre: Women’s Fiction

◊ Publisher: St. Martin’s Press (May 17, 2016)

◊ Language: English

◊ ISBN-10: 1250065941

◊ ISBN-13: 978-1250065940

SYNOPSIS:

Some people stay all summer long on the idyllic island of Belle Isle, North Carolina. Others come only for the weekends-and the mix between the regulars and “the weekenders” can sometimes make the sparks fly. Riley Griggs has a season of good times with friends and family ahead of her on Belle Isle when things take an unexpected turn. While waiting for her husband to arrive on the ferry one Friday afternoon, Riley is confronted by a process server who thrusts papers into her hand. And her husband is nowhere to be found.

So she turns to her island friends for help and support, but it turns out that each of them has their own secrets, and the clock is ticking as the mystery deepens...in a murderous way. Cocktail parties aside, Riley must find a way to investigate the secrets of Belle Island, the husband she might not really know, and the summer that could change everything.

Told with Mary Kay Andrews’ trademark blend of humor and warmth, and with characters and a setting that you can’t help but fall for, The Weekenders is the perfect summer escape.

From the first few pages of a Mary Kay Andrews novel you know you’re in for a rip-roaring good time combined with a little heartache and lots of hope.

With her sweet Southern flare, Andrews quickly pulls you into the chaos that is her characters’ lives. You can feel their pain and joy, highs and lows while reflecting on your own life. Andrews’ protagonist Riley Griggs is a strong, independent woman who has lost herself while tending to her family. Readers can relate to her as she finds her way back.

The summer vacation setting comes alive through intense descriptions. The close knit Southern atmosphere shines as the unique characters make you laugh.

THE WEEKENDERS is a story of hope and starting over. It’s about facing life as it comes and taking on the challenges. This is a tantalizing read you won’t be able to put down as those you read about feel more like new friends than characters in a book.

The Weekenders: A Novel by Mary Kay Andrews, St. Martin’s Press, @2016, ISBN: 978-1250065940, Hardcover, 464 Pages

FTC Full Disclosure – A copy of this book was sent to me as part of the author’s virtual book tour in hopes I would review it. However, receiving the complimentary copy did not influence my review. The thoughts are completely my own and given honestly and freely.

Thanks to the lovely Meg and the wonderful folks at Tandem Literary, I have a print copy of THE WEEKENDERS by Mary Kay Andrews to giveaway. The giveaway is open to residents of the U.S. only and will end at 12 a.m. (EST) on Friday, June 3.

To enter the giveaway, just click on the Rafflecopter widget below and follow the instructions. The widget may take a few seconds to load so please be patient. A winner will be selected by the Rafflecopter widget and I’ll send an email with the subject line “Thoughts in Progress Giveaway.” The winner will have 72 hours to reply to the email or another winner will be selected. PLEASE be sure to check your spam folder from time to time after the giveaway ends to make sure the notification email doesn’t end up there. If you win and you’ve already won the book somewhere else or you just decided for whatever reason you don’t want to win (which is fine), once again PLEASE let me know.

Thanks so much for dropping by today. I hope I’ve tempted you to check out this fascinating new novel by Mary Kay Andrews. Do you have a favorite ‘go-to’ author that you read to begin your summer fun? What book do you have currently that you would take to the beach with you for an afternoon of relaxing read time?

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