WIN A FREE BOOK!

For all the historical fiction readers out there, I’m offering a copy of Rod Miller’s novel, The Assassination of Governor Boggs. All you have to do is be/become a follower on my blog, and leave a message explaining why you'd like this book. Don't forget to include your email address so that I can contact you if you win. It's as easy as 1-2-3. Follow my blog. Leave a message saying you'd like to win. Leave your email address. I'll announce the winner on Monday.

Here’s the back cover blurb:

After an attempted assassination, Governor Lilburn Boggs couldn’t prove who’d taken a shot at him, leaving the identity of his assailant a mystery. Twenty-five years later and after the passing of Gov. Boggs, Detective Calvin Pogue has been hired by the Boggs family to open this cold case and find out the truth about the assassin. From Missouri to California and into the heart of the Utah Territory, Detective Pogue relentlessly seeks clues that lead him to the legendary Mormon gunman Porter Rockwell—who still isn’t making things easy for anyone!

Join Detective Pogue as he steps into this hair-raising mystery and tracks down Gov. Boggs’s enemies and friends to a finale you won’t believe.

If you would like a copy of this historical novel, and don't end up winning it, click this link to purchase a copy: http://www.amazon.com/Assassination-Governor-Boggs-Rod-Miller/dp/1599558637/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1321563228&sr=8-1

THE KISS OF A STRANGER, by Sarah M. Eden

Sarah M. Eden’s books are as clever and quirky as she is herself, and The Kiss of a Stranger does not disappoint.

            After Crispin inherits his family money and gains his father’s old and prestigious title of Lord Cavratt, the young women of society begin chasing him mercilessly. One in particular, a Miss Cynthia Bower, under the encouragement of her mother, tests Crispin beyond his limits of gentlemanly behavior.

She had practically thrown herself under his horse on a number of occasions, lost control of her own horse, and managed to be at every social event he attended. Yet, her practiced coyness and blushes did nothing but annoy. These kinds of “man hunts” did nothing for Crispin over the years except make him cynical and wary of female attentions—they were all false.

            The Kiss of a Stranger starts with one such “accidental” meeting between Miss Bower and Lord Cavratt. She manages to find and pursue him to an out of the way country inn. Her insistence that they’ve been seen together in society often enough that people are talking about them, and that he needs to declare himself, makes his blood boil—but when she insinuates that the only reason he hasn’t yet kissed her is due to a lack in ability—well, that sends him over the edge of reason.

            Rather than kiss Miss Bower as she clearly wants, Crispin looks around the gardens for another woman to display his “talents” on. Seeing a poorly dressed young woman standing nearby, and assuming she is a servant girl, he marches over to her and kisses her fervently.

            He is not some innocent young pup, and is surprised at how the kiss affects him. Nonetheless, girl’s abusive uncle sees this one kiss and insists that Crispin marry his niece, Catherine, instantly.

            While Crispin and Catherine try to show society that they are indeed happily married, they fall deeper and deeper in love, but neither believes that the other feels the same. Unfortunately, the gossiping socialites don’t believe it for a minute either, and young damsels and their mothers continue to come calling on Crispin, while under their breath they insult Catherine and reinforce her insecurities.

            Although it will ruin her socially, Catherine refuses to stay married to a man who doesn’t love her. She knows that eventually Crispin will become angry and bitter, like her uncle.

            Crispin gave up on the idea of true love years ago, after being thrust into society’s insincere and money-grubbing hands, and thus he doesn’t understand these feelings he has for her.

            As Crispin and Catherine both try to figure out their marriage before an annulment makes the idea too late, her uncle learns that he gets a greater inheritance if Catherine is not married, and starts trying to force her to come back home with him.

            I won’t give away the ending, but the whole book is fun and exciting, and worth every minute.

ALL THAT WAS PROMISED, by Vickie Hall

 All That Was Promised, by Vickie Hall, is set in Cardiff, Glamorgan, Wales during 1847 when a Mormon missionary is first noticed by Reverend Richard Kenyon. After a rock hits Ben Lachlan on the head, Richard takes him home and listens raptly to Ben’s message of the restored gospel. Questions he’d always had, yet dared not voice, are answered, and Richard wants to be baptized right away.

Richard’s wife, Leah, watches with horror as her husband embraces this strange religion and renounces his ministry. He’s always been a minister, a man of God; this was how he supported them. But, when Leah’s sister, Clair, and her husband, Samuel, hear of Richard’s interest in the new religion, they trust Richard’s judgment and also investigate. Leah doesn’t know how things will ever be right again, until she reluctantly takes her troubles to the Lord.

When Richard is called as the new Branch President, he and Leah are given many promises in return for their sacrifices and dedication—the main one that Leah is interested in is the promise of family. She’s lost several babies and the couple long for a family of their own.

All That Was Promised is a tale of conversions, miracles, and the persecutions that seemed to follow the early Saints. It shows with great clarity the blessings that can be ours if we follow the Lord—as well as what can happen when we listen to the wrong voice.

Robert Kenyon (Richard’s brother), married Abigail for wealth and connections. She does set him with the right people; but at what cost? They quit attending Richard’s congregation and connect themselves with the affluent minister on the other side of town. Abigail responds to Robert’s lack of love by taking her frustrations out on their daughter, Amelia.

With each passing day, Robert hates his wife more and more. He hates what she does to him and he especially hates how she treats Amelia. He responds by drinking, and by lashing out at Abigail, but does nothing to help his daughter. He has already started drinking more than is normal or polite when John Morgan comes to town spreading his lies about the Mormons and encouraging the locals’ violent response to their neighbor’s conversions. Before long, Robert is convinced that he must do the unthinkable—pay to have his brother killed in order to save the Kenyon name.

All That Was Promised is told through many points of view, and Vickie Hall takes us from one to the other seamlessly and skillfully. She writes with knowledge of Wales during the 1800’s, and I was pulled into their lives and trials, and easily envisioned their town and the surrounding countryside. The story is compelling and heartfelt—and it made me appreciate the easiness of my life. The multiple viewpoints help to round out the story, and give the reader an eagle-eye view of the hard life these early Saints led. Good job, Vickie Hall!

(I was given a copy of All That Was Promised to review. This in no way influenced my review.)

If you’re interested in purchasing your own copy, click on this link for the novel: http://www.amazon.com/All-That-Promised-Vickie-Hall/dp/1599554798/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1310103800&sr=8-1

Learn more about Vickie Hall at her author’s site: http://www.vickiehall.com

Or go to Vickie’s blog: http://www.authorvickiehall.blogspot.com

Author Interview with Nicole Giles

D.N. (Nichole) Giles has a new release, "The Sharp Edge of the Knife," which is based on the perilous kidnapping of her grandfather, Mel Petersen, on February 11, 1958. Giles offered some insights into her experience writing a biographical novel that hits so close to her heart.
The premise behind this story is fascinating. How did you find out about it?
The main character is my grandpa. I remember hearing during my childhood that he’d been kidnapped in the past. Actually, he was kidnapped or held hostage three times total in his life, which makes the story all that much more interesting to me.

It sounds very fascinating. What finally made you decide to write about it and get it published?
After my grandpa died, I was reading his life history and this particular incident really stood out to me. I decided to write it as an article at first, but there was so much information, and so much research involved when it came to finding the facts, that it turned into a book.

Turning a biographical piece into a novel almost always requires the author to make some plausible leaps to fill in the gaps. How much of this story is biographical and how much is fiction?
I'd say about seventy percent biographical. In my earlier drafts I tried to keep it as accurate as possible, but then discovered that if I did that I'd have almost no dialogue. And when three different publishers told me it was too short with just Mel's point of view, I added in one for Jeneal. Some of that is from things she told me from memory, but I fictionalized the majority of the scenes with the kids because it's been fifty years since all this, and there was no way for her to remember it all.

Did the fact that you were writing about your grandfather make this project easier or more complex?
 A little bit of both. Because it is a family story, there's more pressure to make it accurate to not only what happened, but also to the nature of the main character. That's harder to do than I ever expected. Also, though, it was difficult to track down the information and try to stay one step away from the details, because this is someone I love. But in that same way, I had far more determination to find the facts, which is probably what kept me going every time I hit a dead end. It was a long haul, but I actually tracked down one of the kidnappers and talked to him on the phone. Very interesting conversation, and so worth the work it took.

How did you go about conducting your research?
I started out with a handful of newspaper articles and about two pages worth of journal accounts from my grandpa, and somewhere in the mix there was a court subpoena. From there I called the police departments involved, but because the case was so old—fifty years—they referred me to the national archives in Denver. From there, I was able to get someone to help me track down the case and all the evidence and court documents. Interestingly, the knife used in the kidnapping, as well of some of the other evidence, is still there, and will remain there forever. Or at least, that’s what I’m told.

All this research is amazing! It sounds like you were guided. How long did it take you to actually write this book?
It was actually a fairly long process all things considered. From beginning to end, it took me almost three years to get from the inception of the idea to publication. And there was a lot that happened in between, including me working on two other major projects at the same time. All in all, though, I’m thrilled with how it turned out.

Is this your first published novel?
It is my first published novel, but not my first published book. I'm a co-author of the book Mormon Mishaps and Mischief, which is an anthology of short, humorous anecdotes about Latter Day Saints. That book was released this past December. I worked on both projects at the same time, which is why they're being released so close together.

What advice would you give to other aspiring authors who discover interesting stories in their family history?
Don't give up when you're researching and hit a dead end. There are always ways to find what you're looking for. Be warned, though, you might stumble on something that you never expected and end up with more work than you planned on. It's all worth it in the end.

What are you currently working on?
Generally, I'm not an LDS fiction author. Everything else I'm working on is young adult paranormal and/or fantasy. Right now, I have one YA paranormal finished, for which I'm looking for a publisher. I also have two other books, one a sequel to the first, and another a completely different story, about halfway through the rough draft stage. I'd like to finish both this year.

Where can we learn more about The Sharp Edge of a Knife?
You can read the first chapter at my website http://www.blogger.com/www.sharpedgeof%20aknife.blogspot.com. My author bio is also there, with a few interesting facts pertaining to the story.

Where can readers pick up a copy of "The Sharp Edge of a Knife?"
Right now it’s definitely available on Amazon, and I’m told it will be in stores sometime in the next few weeks, if not already. My official book launch promotion is scheduled for March 27th from 1-3:oo pm at Eborn books in the Provo Towne Center mall in Provo Utah. It’s open to the public, and going to be lots of fun.

Thanks for previewing your new release, "The Sharp Edge of a Knife." Good luck with your book launch!
Thanks so much.

Illuminations of the Heart by Joyce DiPastena

Joyce DiPastena has done it again!
Illuminations of the Heart, a historical romance novel by Joyce DiPastena is more than just romance--it's a compelling read. This book, her second, is set in 1179 France where women were regarded more as property and the object of men’s lustful desires, than humans whose feeling should be considered when making decisions involving their lives.

Exciting, with moments of 'chew your nails' action, Illuminations of the Heart takes us to Vere Castle where Triston de Brielle (a character from DiPastena’s first novel, Loyalty’s Web), is now its master. Unfortunately, life holds no joy for him because his beloved wife, Clothilde, passed away a year ago and he cannot move on.

Triston now has guardianship of his son, Perrin—a child who has unexplainably feared his father since his mother, Clothilde’s tragic death. This causes Triston further pain, yet he hasn’t the wherewithal to discuss it with the lad.

When a beautiful young stranger is placed under his responsibility—a woman who resembles Clothilde so completely that most, upon seeing her, believe she is Triston’s tormented wife returned from the dead—the eligible bachelors line up to make lewd passes and try to gain her hand in any way conceivable.

Donna Siriol de Calendri is not such an easy catch. She has fire in her soul and checks her ungentlemanly suitors with a boldness not expected from one so petite. There is only one person who owns her heart—Triston, and Siri refuses to settle for anyone less—that is until Sir Raynor de Molinet comes on the scene with his silver tongue.

The stakes rise as Raynor, recognizing Siri’s maiden name, searches out her lineage and discovers she is the sole living heir to a vast fortune now under Duke Richard’s hand.

As Triston faces charges of Tyranny, he battles his liege lord Roger Fauke, Raynor, and even Duke Richard himself for Siri’s safety, but will he ever be able to love her the way Siri desires him to?

DiPastena writes with a loving knowledge of medieval times and adds little details of the era in such a delightful and unobtrusive way that upon reading her novel, one is willfully transported back into a time when history was rich with knights in shining armor, fair maidens, castles, and highway robbers waiting to steal what treasures they can from their unsuspecting countrymen.

DiPastena’s Illuminations of the Heart gets five stars (out of five). It’s a novel so well written that it can be read over and over again with equal enjoyment.