Category / Giveaways

by mvbookreviewer

Pick of the Month Giveaway Winners

Pick #1: The Dragon & The Pearl by Jeannie Lin

Leni who left the comment:

Luke was fuming when he got home. He hated the whole idea of his new neighbors. It wasn’t bad enough that the largest part of his hay crop had been ruined by too much rain, or that cattle prices were falling after a bacteria scare.

This is from: Love With A Long, Tall Texan by Diana Palmer

Pick #2: Lethal by Sandra Brown

Mariee who happened to be the only one who requested for this book, who left the comment:

I shivered when the tang of the sea hit my nose, and I gestured at the path. “The nightmares are that way.” Somehow I knew it to be true; if I were to follow it, I’d come to a rocky cliff, golden dunes, and a swirling sea of darkness.

From A Brush of Darkness by Allison Pang

CONGRATULATIONS!!!

I will be contacting both winners by e-mail. You have until the end of 8th of October 2011 to respond.

by mvbookreviewer

Pick of the Month Reads – September 2011 & Giveaway!

So, like the previous two months, I found myself picking two books that made fantastic reads for me, which I undoubtedly highly recommend to each and everyone who loves romances! While I managed to get the Q&A session with these posts ready for Pick #1, getting the answers from the author of Pick #2 didn’t prove to be doable.

Pick #1: The Dragon & The Pearl by Jeannie Linthedragonandthepearl

Author Jeannie Lin is one of a kind. I say this because for one thing she writes romances that are based in China during the Tang Dynasty. The prose she sets for her novels is an excellent one, one that the reader is helplessly drawn into, unable to let go until you have read every last morsel of the  story.

The Dragon & the Pearl was released by Harlequin on the 21st of September 2011. I was lucky enough to grab an ARC, having waited on tenterhooks for the release of Li Tao’s story. Li Tao’s character first appears in the novel Butterfly Swords which was released on October of last year. I managed to get Ms. Lin to answer a couple of questions regarding her latest release, which quickly made its way towards my favorite reads for the year 2011 and in turn became one my picks for the month for September 2011!

MBR: I have been hooked onto your books ever since I stumbled upon The Taming of Mei Lin. What made you venture into the unique setting of China to base your romances on? And the Tang Dynasty in particular?

JL: I grew up watching huge epic series based on the novels of Jin Yong (Louis Cha) and they just captured my imagination. These stories were the one thing that we shared across generations in my family: My grandmother, my parents, and me, my brother, my sister and all the cousins knew these tales. I always tried to explain what they were to my non-Asian friends, even trying to show them the episodes while I translated, but it was so hard to share with them what I loved so much. When I started trying to write my first novel, I think at the heart of it I wanted to be able to share this childhood love of the martial arts epics with people who hadn’t seen them yet.

The choice of the Tang Dynasty came from another historical series that revolved around the life and reign of Empress Wu and then the sequel about her daughter, Princess Taiping. I loved everything about that series: the costumes, the high drama, the intrigue. Most of all, it was the many empowered women of the Tang Dynasty that inspired me. As I researched Chinese imperial history, the more I learned about the Tang Dynasty, the more I felt it was the perfect place for adventure and romance.

MBR: At first when I picked up The Dragon & The Pearl, I thought to myself that Li Tao’s dangerousness would be mellowed to suite the requirements of the average romance reader. But, I was pleasantly surprised and later wowed by the fact that Li Tao remained true to his persona whom we come to know of in Butterfly Swords.
How did he emerge as a character into Butterfly Swords at first? Is he based on any real life person you might know of? And what made you decide not to let him be cast as just a villain but paint him in shades of grey so that he could have his own happily ever after in the end?

JL: His character development in Butterfly Swords is an interesting one. I very loosely plot my books and the last part of Butterfly Swords indicated that Ai Li and Ryam would be captured by the villain and there would be a showdown. That was it. So as I wrote the first half of the book, I wondered to myself who was this guy? My heroine had never met him, but she hates him because she’s learned he’s a traitor. I wondered would I make him cowardly? Would he be scheming and self-centered? Would he be old and fat and gross? It’s so easy to make a villain especially nasty so everyone knows he’s supposed to lose. In romance, the villains are often greedy, vengeful and shallow. They may leer and try to force themselves on the heroine. None of that was working for me.

The hero of Butterfly Swords, Ryam, was struggling with issues of worthiness and Ai Li was struggling with issues of duty and honor. In order to give them a worthy opponent, I decided I had to make him in many ways better than they were, though still a villain. Some of my favorite wuxia characters were villains or morally complex characters so following in that tradition, I created Li Tao with actually a deep sense of honor — only it was his own. It’s so easy to see what way the heroine should go when her family is forcing her into marriage with someone’s who is truly nasty, but what if Ai Li’s adversaries were well-meaning parents and a man who was by all rights, a bigger and more magnificent figure than the one she had chosen with her heart? That would truly be a test of love and conviction.

He’s not based on any real person I know, but a lot of his stubbornness and sense of conviction reminds me of my husband. (Shh….he doesn’t know). I think all characters should be gray as that’s more realistic. I didn’t intend for Li Tao to be a hero in a sequel to near the end of the writing of Butterfly Swords. In order to truly create this villain as a compelling character in so short a time, I experimented by plotting the last part of Butterfly like the beginning of a romance–only it was the heroine meeting the villain instead of the hero. If you track the events of the end game, you’ll actually see very familiar elements: Ai Li and Li Tao meet, they fight, the sparks fly. She accuses him of being a traitor, he accuses her of being impetuous and reckless.  If she hadn’t already had her adventures and fallen in love, this could have been the beginning of a hot romance! My sister recognized it immediately and told me that  Li Tao had to be my next hero.

MBR: You have a talent for creating heroines of the most unusual calibre, who nevertheless have that inner courage and fire deep inside that makes them very worthy as heroines.


JL: Ling Suyin actually is the only character that appears in all three of the manuscripts I’d written prior to publication. (Butterfly Swords was #2, BTW). She was inspired by the historical character of Yang Yuhuan who was better known as Yang Guifei (Precious Consort Yang) and one of the Four Beauties of China. I had thought about her character a lot in the other books where she was just a secondary, and though she didn’t get as much time front and center, I had in my head that she was a lot more complex that she appeared. I do a lot of daydreaming to figure out characters before I try to fit them into a story and all the little twist and turns that her life had taken kind of emerged as I tried to form why she was the way she was. All the surprises felt right–like an “Ah, that explains it” moment.

MBR: Looking forward to many more such great reads from you.

Author Jeannie Lin has very graciously agreed to giveaway a copy of The Dragon & The Pearl, whether it be an e-copy or the print version which is up for the winner to decide.

And so that brings me to my pick #2 for the month of September 2011

Pick #2: Lethal by Sandra Brownlethal.jpg

As most of you all already know, I am a HUGE fan of Sandra Brown. I still remember reading my first Sandra Brown back in the 90’s which turned out to be French Silk. From then onwards, I always made it a point to seek out her books whenever I could.

Though her later books have been disappointing in the fact that the story is more focused on the suspense aspect than the development of romance between the hero and heroine, with Lethal, Sandra Brown proves that she hasn’t forgotten nor has strayed far from knowing how to deliver a good dose of romance with the suspense aspect of the novel.

If you are fan of Sandra Brown like myself, this one’s a must-read!

GIVEAWAY!!! GIVEAWAY!!!

This post’s giveaway includes a copy of Jeannie Lin’s The Dragon & the Pearl and a Kindle copy of Lethal by Sandra Brown.

Giveaway rules are simple!

  1. Open a page of the current book that you are reading. (If you are not reading a book at the moment, open a page of the book that’s nearest to you.) And give me 3 sentences from the page you open up. Please mention the book title and author as well.
  2. Mention which book you would like to win. If you don’t mention the book you are entering for, you would not be entered for the giveaway.
  3. Leave a valid e-mail address for a way to contact you in case you are the winner!
  4. Help spread the word about the giveaway! Tweet and earn 5 extra entries, recommend this post on Facebook & earn 5 extra entries. And don’t forget to mention in your comment whether you have tweeted or recommended the post on Facebook.
  5. Like my page on Facebook to gain 5 extra more entries. If you are already a member of my page, just state so and you would gain your 5 extra entries.
  6. Giveaway will end at 00:00 hours Maldivian time on the 7th of October 2011. Winners will be contacted soon after and announced.
Thank you all so much for being a part of MBR’s Pick of the Month posts! And don’t forget to enter the giveaway!
by mvbookreviewer

Pick of the Month Reads – August 2011 & Giveaway!

Yep, its that time of the month again where I haul ass and choose my pick of the month read(s) for the previous month. Once again, I found myself wavering between two great books, both released by Carina Press I might add, that made for fantastic reads! And this time as well, both authors agreed to answer a few questions regarding their book, the heroes and the heroines. So without further ado, my peeps, a huge round of applause for the authors of my picks of the month for August 2011.

Pick 1: Deceiving the Protector by Dee Tenoriodeceivingtheprotector

MBR: I have read both books in the series and the one thing that continually amazes me is the world you have created for the series. How did you come up with the idea of creating the Resurrection series?

Dee: I’d have to say it’s a blend of the history I’ve learned from the people I grew up with. I’m a Native American—Chumash—and my mother worked for the Federal American Indian Council when I was a kid, so I was brought up being taught all about our history and what parts of the culture we have left. I’ve known from a very early age what extinction is about and how it can come about. Then, as a teen, she worked for a Jewish temple, where I met some of the most amazing people ever and they spoke very openly about the Holocaust how they survived it. Throw in my affection for animals and then my attraction to shifters and the whole world kind of came together rather organically.  I can’t really explain the Sibile, though. I guess I just have a fascination with women in power, lol.

MBR: Jensen Tate, he is my favorite hero from the series so far. The one thing I can always count on when I read your books is for me to fall in love, hard and fast with your heroes and Tate is no exception to that rule. How do you come up with such alpha heroes who makes us women go aflutter EVERY.SINGLE.TIME?

Dee: Aww, I’m so glad you loved Tate. He’s not an easy man but something about him just tugged at me. Like a tarnished soldier, he’d put the world on his shoulder and carry it if he could. LOL @ “EVERY SINGLE TIME”! Thank you, that’s such an incredible compliment! I guess it’s simply that I love good, strong men. Despite having four sisters, I find I understand guys a lot better. I was a lousy girl growing up, so I hung out with them and I love the more direct way a lot of men think. I mean, sure, you want to smack them with frying pans sometimes, but God love them, they do have a way of seeing the world in terms of “I’m gonna fix that!”

MBR: Lia Crawford is a heroine that continually surprised me at every turn. She is amazing, no two ways about it. Did her character materialize as you wanted her to, or did she surprise you and made her own way through the story?

Dee: Lia surprised me a lot too. Initially, there are parts of her that are my sister. That indomitable, break-for-no-one will comes from her, primarily. And the stubborn, too. I guess I wanted to give her the happy ending I felt my sister deserved. But there are parts of Lia that came to life and insisted she was her own person. I meant for her to have a soft side, but she’d keep shaking her head at me and reminding me having a heart wasn’t the same as being soft. So it’s a little bit of both, I have to say. :)

MBR: Which books are you currently working on in the series?

Dee:Yes, I’m working on Book 3. This one will step back from the Resurrection brothers and take you into the world of the Sibile. We’ve seen flashes of the Order and their rather ruthless tactics, but the Sibile as a whole are a complicated society and you’ll get to see that in this one. Favorites from the first book will make an appearance—in particular Jalla and Sage—but you’ll also see the dynamics of the people beneath the Order. And, if you know anything about the Sibile, you know that all the males are pretty much slaves. But what happens if you pair one who refuses to accept his place with a Scarlet heroine on the verge of discovering a secret that will change absolutely everything?

Hee hee, you’ll find out in Book 3!

MBR: OMG!! I absolutely cannot wait!!

Dee has very generously agreed to giveaway an e-copy of Deceiving the Protector to one lucky commenter on this post. This is one paranormal suspense romantic series that you ought to get your hands on ASAP!

Pick 2: Boomerang Bride by Fiona Loweboomerangbride

MBR: How did you come up with the idea of writing Boomerang Bride?

Fiona: It came in three parts.. The first was on a ski lift when an image of a bride standing in a wedding dress, holding a cake and staring into a shop window popped into my head and wouldn’t leave but I had no clue why she was there. Two weeks later, I  heard a song by The Waifs called, ‘Bridal Train’ and not long after that I read an article about an heiress being scammed out of a lot of her money. Suddenly, I had Tildy’s story.  

MBR: Matilda landed in my list of favorite heroines after reading Boomerang Bride. Is she based on anyone you know or is her character written down exactly as you imagined she would be?

Fiona: Matilda is her own person, and not based on anyone in particular, but that said, I grew up surrounded by strong women who have dealt with whatever comes their way with grace and determination, so perhaps a bit of that came out in Matilda. There was a risk some people might think her TSTL (too stupid to live) , but you know, grief really does mess with your head so it was important that Matilda took responsibility for her actions early on. She made a mistake – a BIG mistake- and from that moment on, she had to move forward.  As for the confusion about language, that came directly from my own experience living in Wisconsin.

MBR: Marc Olsen is a truly sexy and charming hero underneath all of which lies a man confused with his priorities in life. How did you come up with his character?

Fiona: I look around and see some men getting so focused on their career and making money that they can lose sight of what’s really important. This has happened to Marc, although at the start of the book he has no clue about this and is only aware of a restlessness that has him feeling slightly off center. I also think that men find it easier to walk away from the ties of family so I think Marc is a product of what I see in the world around me.

MBR: Are you planning on writing any more contemporary romances in this setting?

Fiona: I have written another small town contemporary book (Saved By The Bride) filled with brides, family and a small town that won’t take no for an answer.  I hope it will be a three part series, but it isn’t set in Hobin. Right now, I can’t tell you when it will be available except to say it will be one day :) Meanwhile, Career Girl in the Country is out now, my 15th Harlequin Medical romance, and it, along with my other 14 books are  all set in small towns with big hearts. So if you’re wanting another small town fix, I recommend you visit http://www.fionalowe.com for my back-list and where to buy the books.

MBR: Thank you so much for answering the questions which has shed light on many aspects of your fantastic book that I loved so much!

So guys, Fiona has very generously agreed to give away an e-copy of Boomerang Bride, a Boomerang magnet and a signed postcard as well! How cool is that?

So the giveaway rules ladies and gentlemen:

The rules are simple:

  1. Open a page of the current book that you are reading. (If you are not reading a book at the moment, open a page of the book that’s nearest to you.) And give me 3 sentences from the page you open up. Please mention the book title and author as well.
  2. If you do not mention which giveaway you are entering for, I will be entering you for both Dee and Fiona’s giveaways.
  3. Leave a valid email address for a way to contact you if you are the winner!
  4. Help spread the word about the giveaway. Tweet about it and gain 5 extra entries AND/OR like the post on Facebook and gain extra 5 more entries. In your tweet, use the tag #MBRpickofAug11giveaway. Let me know in your comment whether you have done either or both so you would get your extra entries into the contest.
  5. Giveaway ends on the 5th of September 2011, 00:00 hours Maldivian time!

You can  read my reviews for both books by clicking on the yellow headline before the beginning of the interview for each book.

Good luck and don’t forget to leave a comment behind!

by mvbookreviewer

Guest Post – Author Dee Tenorio + Giveaway!

deetenorio.JPGToday, is a first for me and my blog. I am opening up my doors for the first time for guest posts and who better to do that than with the uber talented Dee Tenorio whose latest book in the super fabulous Resurrection Series hit the stands just yesterday. Dee is sharing with us today how she settled into writing the way she likes it, a writing style that continues to amaze me as her latest release Deceiving The Protector contains what I would call the essence of Dee’s way with the words in one setting.

So please welcome Dee and also check out how you can win an e-copy of Deceiving the Protector, a book so fabulous that fans of paranormal romantic suspense NEED to check this one out!

Genre-ations!

When I first started out, a very kindly editor gave me some advice I’ve never forgotten, not in ten years.

“You need to find a tone that fits you and stick to it.”

She said this to be helpful, of course, as she had read several submissions from me and apart frm the fact that I had much to learn, she also couldn’t in any conscience buy my books because she had no idea what to do with me.

My stories all seemed to come from different directions. Did I write hometown comedies? Or did I write gripping suspense (Or even just slightly compelling suspense—I was just starting out, after all)? She liked my voice quite a bit and she liked my sense of humor, she simply couldn’t see how all of it could come together inot a marketable author unless I stopped dancing through genres. Worse, I had to stop genre-dancing inside of singular books.

“You can’t have a suspense book with this kind of dark tone and have all this humor.”

Because I have a bad habit of creating sarcastic, smart ass people and putting them in bad situations. (What, those people are more fun.)

“Conversely, you can’t have a comedy with all these dark situations.”

Because apparently other people aren’t as prone to laughing while at funerals as I am.

Honestly, when I heard all that advice, I did my best to try to listen, but it seemed so…unrealistic to me. I’d been brought up not as an optimist, but as a make-the-best-of-it-ist. In my crazy clan, we laugh through our tears, we snicker through trouble and we store up stories of stupidity like badges of honor. As my Mom once put so well, “You have to find something to laugh at when times are hard, or you’ll never make it through. And you won’t appreciate the good times when you have them.”

So it’s not that I just wanted to be difficult with my writing, or that I’m terribly stubborn. (Well, ok, I’m a “little” bit stubborn) I wanted to give that editor what she was looking for, but I could never quite do it. In my mind—and as a result, in my books—life just rarely falls into neat little slices where only one tone exists. It does make me a little harder to market, she was right about that. But that’s okay. I’m good being “that writer you like who writes all those stories”.

In fact, I can’t think of a better way to be known! :)

So that’s about it from Dee folks!

If you want to find out more about Dee, you can always check out any of the following links:

Dee’s Website
Dee’s Blog
Dee on Twitter
Dee on Facebook
Dee on MySpace
Dee on YouTube

To find out more about both books in the Resurrection series, you can always check out the trailers which can be found from here & here.

 GIVEAWAY! GIVEAWAY!

So guys, in order to celebrate my first guest post, I am giving away an e-copy of Deceiving the Protector, the 2nd book in the Resurrection Series that just came out yesterday. For a chance to win, leave a comment behind stating your name, a valid e-mail address and why you want to win a copy of Deceiving the Protector. If you want to know more about both books 1 and 2, you can always read my reviews which can be found from here & here. Don’t forget to leave a comment behind and help spread the joy! Giveaway will end at 00:00 hours on the 18th of August 2011, Maldivian time!
by mvbookreviewer

Pick of the Month – July 2011 Giveaway Winners!

A warm round of thanks goes out to EVERYONE who participated in the giveaway and of course helped spread the word.

A very special thanks to both Norah Wilson and MJ Fredrick who are both beyond awesome by the way, and answered the questions and gave away a copy of their book as well!

So, the winners of the giveaway are:

  1. Winner #1 of Something to Talk About by MJ Fredrick: Claudia
  2. Winner #2 of Something to Talk About by MJ Fredrick: Lorraine Nelson
  3. Winner #1 of The Merzetti Effect by Norah Wilson: Brie
  4. Winner #2 of The Merzetti Effect by Norah Wilson: Ju dimello
CONGRATULATIONS to all those who won copies of wonderful books! Enjoy them!

Winners, I have already contacted you via e-mail. Please respond before the 7th of August 2011 after which the offer will be withdrawn.

Stay tuned for more giveaways next month!

by mvbookreviewer

Pick of the Month Reads – July 2011 & Giveaway!

Having read almost 25 books the past July, almost all of them rating 4-stars or higher, I couldn’t have asked for a better month of reading even if I tried. Since I enjoyed so many great books the past July, choosing just one novel as my Pick of the Month turned out to be much harder than I thought. Eventually I gave up on forcing myself to choose just one because simply put, I could change the rules as I go. Yeah, I am unpredictable that way.

So in the end, after much deliberation, which lasted like about 5 seconds max, I picked up the 2 novels that has been haunting me (all in a good way of course!) since I let myself be swept away on their respective journeys towards their happily ever afters.

To make things much more interesting, I decided to go one step further and contact both authors with 4 questions, each of them about the novel that has rightfully earned its spot as one of my favorite reads for the year. And I am thrilled that they both agreed to answer the questions and are giving away an e-copy of their novel to the lucky winners of this giveaway! And let me tell you that you should all read these 2 books ASAP because they are definitely worth your precious reading time – in gold!

Pick #1: Something to Talk About by M.J. FredrickSomethingtotalkabout.JPG

MBR: You state on your website that “Something to Talk About” is “The Book That I Love”. Why do you say so?

MJF: I think it’s because it was the first straight contemporary romance I’d written in a while– no suspense or adventure. In fact, when one of my critique partners read it, she said she was waiting for the gunships to come over the cliffs! I think because I didn’t have to worry about who-done-it, or how my hero and heroine were going to get away from the bad guys, the story just flowed. I even enjoyed going back and doing edits on this book, I love it so much!

MBR: I think your love for the story comes across so well which makes Something to Talk About so hard to put down. Noah Wilson is so dreamy! How did you come up with his character? And is he based on any real life character that you have come across?

MJF: Okay, you want to know something sad? He’s not based on a real character, but the Christmas after I finished this book, my brother’s best friend’s wife passed away, and it was the most horrible thing ever. I asked myself if I had treated Noah’s grief with enough respect, because wow. It was just terrible. So he’s not based on a real person, but when I was going through edits, I did my best not to trivialize his grief because of what I knew Steve was going through.

As for Noah himself, I had a mad crush on Jeffrey Dean Morgan while I was writing this, and I’d been watching a lot of Gilmore Girls, and I loved Luke’s love/hate relationship with the town. I asked myself why would he stay if he was so cranky all the time, and I came up with Noah. God, I love Noah.

MBR: That is so sad. And maybe that is one reason why that Noah’s grief comes off so realistically and you have definitely treated his love for Lily with respect which made me adore this book that much more! And Jeffrey Dean Morgan? *gulp* Ellie Morgan is a true sweetheart. I love the way she comes across in the story. Is she based on any real life character?

MJF: In a way, she’s like my friend Cindi at school. When Cindi became teacher of the year (the first time) I wrote a speech saying she was the heart of the school. I wanted Ellie to have that dedication to her town, but I wanted to know what drove her to work so hard. So I gave her a mother who left them in a flurry of gossip, and Ellie is trying to prove herself better than that. Plus, she had to be this person that Noah saw as a light coming back in his life.

MBR: You have really brought to life what you wanted to portray for both of your characters in the story. So do you plan on writing any more books with the same setting?

MJF: I hadn’t, actually. In all my years of writing, I’ve never written a series (except the one I’m working on now, set in Minnesota). But there certainly are a lot of people in Winchester Cove who could use a happy ending, don’t you think? I should go back there!

MBR: Most definitely!

Combining breathtaking passion, a love that is so worth fighting for and a story definitely worth talking about, “Something to Talk About” is a novel that truly earns its spot as one of my Pick of the Month reads for July 2011!

Pick #2: The Merzetti Effect by Norah Wilsonthemerzettieffect

MBR: The Merzetti Effect is your first vampire romance and an awesome one at that. How did you come up with the idea to create such a unique spin on the world of vampires?

NW: It is a unique spin, but I can’t claim to have invented it. I actually stumbled across an article online many years ago, in which a guy on a discussion board talked about how ridiculous he found the conventional vampire model, the idea that a vampire could drink blood – digest it through a digestive tract – and somehow suddenly be infused with power. He felt it would make much more sense if the vampire could take the blood intravenously, for instance, through hollow, telescoping fangs. That really resonated for me. Our human experience tells us that things taken directly into the bloodstream are much more potent than something swallowed. At the end of his article, he said if any writers wanted to take up his model, they were quite welcome. Well, at the time, I thought it was all very fascinating (I love all things medical), but I knew beyond the shadow of a doubt that I would never write a vampire story. Of course, years passed, and the shelves became more and more dominated by vampires. I began toying with the idea of writing one, but I just couldn’t find a way into the story, a hook that would keep me interested enough to keep writing. Then I remembered this gentleman’s article. Unfortunately, so much time had passed that I could no longer find it online. I might even have bookmarked it once upon a time, but after several computer crashes, no trace remained. However, I remembered enough about it to get me started. I even had a physician read it to make sure it made a kind of sense (in the suspend-your-disbelief kind of way).

MBR: Dr. Delano Bowen, the name itself just makes me want to lay myself at his mercy and never look back. How did you come up with his character? Might he have any resemblance to a real-life character so that I can permanently fix his picture as my computer wallpaper? LOL!

NW: LOL! So glad you liked Del. I loved that man, too. I did worry a bit that readers wouldn’t find him Alpha enough. I mean, he’s no Black Dagger Brotherhood vamp. It’s not that he’s not strong – incredibly strong – but let’s face it, he’s a physician/research scientist. A little more cerebral than your average vamp. At least, that’s how he thinks of himself … until things get complicated with Ainsley. (I do so love to challenge a character’s self-concept!)

As for what he looks like to me, I almost hesitate to say. I’m more interested in what other people think my character looks like. LOL! But here goes. In my mind’s eye, I see him as looking like a younger Adrian Paul from back in his Highlander days. You know, long hair, dark eyes, and a sort of brooding, smouldering look. Not quite as muscled, perhaps, but with that kind of vibe. Does that mesh with the image you formed when you read the story? Or did you have someone else in mind? Inquiring minds want to know!

MBR: Believe me, I am hopeless when it comes to envisioning characters. Apart from their physique which tends to make my eyes glaze over, I have a hard time finding real-life characters that match up to the men that I read and fall in love with though I dearly wish I had the imagination to do so. *sigh*

Ainsley Crawford is my favorite type of heroine, someone who doesn’t play coy games, just ups and accepts the fact that her fate is sealed. But that doesn’t make her a wimpy heroine either. What made you come up with her character the way she is; or did she just morph her way into how she is as you wrote along?

NW: Thank you! It was a little of both. I certainly had an idea of what her personality would be like – a no-nonsense nurse who is pretty hard to rattle – but there are always little gifts that the universe hands you as you write. I think it helped that I gave her a bit of a tough background, with all those foster homes. She had to learn to roll with the punches a little bit, and she falls back on that resourcefulness. Even as an adult, it’s pretty much always been about keeping herself and those she loves safe. She really hasn’t had the luxury to learn to play games.

MBR: How many books are you planning on writing with the same setting?

NW: I don’t have any set number of books in mind at this point. When I started out, I think I had the idea that it would be a trilogy (we love threes!). But after having written the second book (if you loved Delano, you’re really gonna give it up for Aiden Afflack, the hero of NIGHTFALL), I have a number of characters who are clamouring for their turn. So who knows? Six? (That’s a multiple of three!)

MBR: Oh boy! I had a feeling that Aiden is going to put forth some serious competition when his story comes through! Glad you are going to give us a lot more books to enjoy! Six sounds like a perfect number! *winks*

A novel that delivers exceptionally well on the world of vampires with a unique twist and gives the reader an abundance of romance and mouth-watering passion, The Merzetti Effect is a must-read!

Giveaway Rules

  1. This post will give away 2 copies of both Something to Talk About and The Merzetti Effect, which means a total of 4 copies will be available for the giveaway. Please note all of them would be e-copies of the novels.
  2.  To enter, choose the novel that you want to win a copy of. If you don’t you will automatically be entered for the 2 books in the giveaway.
  3.  Leave a comment behind stating your name, a valid e-mail address, the title which you would like to win and why you would like to win a copy of the book you have chosen.
  4.  Help me spread the word about the giveaway to others like yourself. Tweet about it (mention @mdvbookreviewer) and earn 5 extra entries, share this post on Facebook and gain 5 extra entries. Please mention in your comment if you have done either.
  5. Post will be open for comments from 00:00 hours of 2nd August 2011 Maldivian time till 00:00 hours 4th August 2011 Maldivian time!
  6. Winners of the giveaway will be randomly chosen, e-mails will be sent out to winners and winners will be given a total of 3 days to respond to the e-mail.
  7. Please note that if the winner(s) do not respond within the given time frame, new winners will NOT be drawn.
  8. Please also note that to enter the giveaway, you DON’T need to share this on Twitter or Facebook. Doing so just would earn you extra entries!
If you want to know more about each book before entering the giveaway, you can always read my reviews which can be found by clicking on the image of the novel in this post.
Have fun, and don’t forget to leave a comment and enter the giveaway!
by mvbookreviewer

MBR’s Realm of Romance Turns 2 Giveaway Winners!

First of all, a HUGE thank you to everyone who participated in the giveaway. And a MASSIVE thank you for all the anniversary wishes that you guys sent my way. And for those who tweeted, re-tweeted and then re-tweeted some more about this giveaway, you guys have my earnest and heartfelt gratitude! So onto the winners!

  1. Winner of the 10$ Amazon gift certificate: Brie
  2. Winner of the 10$ B&N gift certificate: ClaudiaGC
  3. Winner of the 10$ BooksOnBoard gift certificate: ClaudiaGC
  4. Winner of the 10$ Samhain gift certificate: Nikki Brandyberry
A huge round of applause to all those who won, especially Claudia who seems to have hit gold with this giveaway!

Stay tuned and stop by on the 2nd of this month for my “Pick of the Month July” post and Giveaway!

Winners, I have already contacted you via e-mail. Please respond before the 4th of August 2011 after which the offer of the gift certificate would be withdrawn.

Once again, thank you for making my realm of romance a fun place to hang out and for the continued support!

by mvbookreviewer

MBR’s Realm of Romance Turns 2!

2nd-anniversary.gifA girl cannot help but be a bit teary-eyed knowing that the book review blog that she started on a whim back in 2009 has just turned 2 years old. The 2 years that has passed has certainly brought to light that this reviewing stuff can be addictive, time-consuming, at times a bit frustrating and nevertheless very rewarding. There is no greater feeling as a reviewer when you write down a review that is appreciated by the author and well received by readers alike, knowing that you have put forth your honest opinion of the story.

The past 2 years has also opened up doors that would have definitely remained closed if not for the initiation of Maldivian Book Reviewer’s Realm of Romance. I have “met” a lot of authors through both Twitter and Facebook, some of them wonderful and a few others not so much, but nevertheless knowing that I would be able to reach out to them via those means makes a lot of difference. I have also made some great friends and can only hope that the feeling is reciprocated and am always grateful to know that somewhere in the vast expanse of the world wide web I too may have made a minute impression that might someday surpass even my expectations.

Throughout the 2 years I have read some great books, had the opportunity to review some fantastic books for authors and I believe I would continue to do so in the time to come. Though time is definitely a constraint when work demands so much, I believe I treasure those moments that I manage to sink into a good book more than ever because of the fact.

So, to celebrate in style, and to give visitors to my blog a chance to join the celebrations, I am giving away 4 different gift certificates to 4 lucky winners.tiggerhappy.jpg

Giveaway: 10$ gift certificates from Amazon, Samhain, BooksOnBoard and Barnes&Noble.

So here’s what you need to do to enter to win either one of the 10$ gift certificates.

  1. Let me know which gift certificate(s) you would like to enter to win. If you don’t state one, I will enter your name for ALL of them.

  2. Give me the title, author name and genre of the current book that you are reading. It doesn’t necessarily have to be a romance. If you are not reading a book at the moment, you can tell me the title, author and genre of the last book that you’ve read. And I want you to rate the book between 1 and 5, 1 = Don’t even attempt to read this and 5 = Get this book ASAP!

  3. Help me spread the anniversary glow and contest details to others like you. If you tweet about it, you get 5 extra entries, if you LIKE this post on Facebook,  you get another 5 extra entries. If you share it on Twitter, don’t forget to mention me (@mdvbookreviewer) so I would be able to verify your tweet. And don’t forget to mention the fact that you have tweeted or LIKED the entry of this post on MY Facebook page if you have done so! Otherwise you might miss your 5 extra entries into the contest which would  be a sad, sad thing!

  4. Last, but not the least, just hit “LIKE” on my Facebook page or “Follow” me on Twitter! Doing either of them would give you 5 extra entries each! And do let me know if you do either of them because otherwise you might miss out getting your 5 extra entries. Just state you have done so and give me your username on both/either of them!

    Please note that in order to enter the giveaway you DON’T need to tweet or share this on Facebook. All that would just gain you extra entries to the contest which improve your chances of winning!

This contest will go on till the end of tomorrow, i.e. end of 31st July 2011, Maldivian time!

And don’t forget to wish my blog a happy anniversary! *winks*

by mvbookreviewer

Giveaway Winners!

Just wanted to let you all know that winners were randomly selected for the giveaway held as part of the “Get To Know My Favorite Authors – Sarah Mayberry” post.

Winner of the “Best of Sarah Mayberry bundle” was Julie Guan from US whose bundle of books should be on its way pretty soon!

Winner of the e-copy of One Good Reason was Lori who still hasn’t responded to my email. Lori, if you see this post, please get back to me before the 1st of August 2011.

Thanks to everyone of you who stopped by and left behind a comment and especially those who helped spread the word.

And ALL of you, come visit my blog on the 30th of this month to help celebrate the 2nd blogversary of MBR’s Realm of Romance!

by mvbookreviewer

Get to Know My Favorite Authors – Sarah Mayberry

sarahmayberry.jpgAs most of the visitors to my blog would be well aware of, I am a HUGE fan of Harlequin romance author Sarah Mayberry. Ever since I discovered and read her Blaze title Anything For You which is of the friends-to-lovers trope which happens to be one of my favorite themes of romance, I have never looked back. Apart from 2 or 3 titles, I have read everything I can get my hands on by Ms. Mayberry and I don’t foresee that changing anytime in the future.

Since I read and reviewed an ARC of her last title One Good Reason which is to come out on the 26th of this month, and because I have been toying with the idea of doing author profiles/interviews on my blog for quite sometime now, I decided to cross into unchartered waters by requesting Ms. Mayberry to delight us all with her presence and kick-start my “Get to Know My Favorite Authors” series.

For those who may not know her Sarah Mayberry hails from Melbourne, Australia which serves as the setting for most of her romances. Recently married to her partner of 18 years, Sarah Mayberry worked as a storyliner on Australia’s longest running soap Neighbours which she credits as giving her insight into writing romances that tugs at your heartstrings. Her recent titles all belong to the Harlequin Super Romance line which delivers a lot more on the character development and in depth story telling though I do miss her super HOT Blaze titles now and then.

So without further ado, please give a warm welcome to the very talented Sarah Mayberry.

shesgotitbad.JPGMBR: Thank you so much for agreeing to do this Ms. Mayberry. Please make yourself at home right here at my little corner of the world wide web. And since you are the first author to do so, I am so excited I think I can barely control myself. LOL! So onto my first question. Did you always know that you wanted to be a romance writer?

SM: I always knew I wanted to be a writer, but I wasn’t sure what I wanted to write about. I used to make books out of folded and stapled paper when I was in primary (elementary) school, and when I left high school I did a Bachelor of Arts in Professional Writing. I was reprimanded by my fiction teacher for writing what he called “women’s fiction.” He didn’t consider this a good thing, but I did. Eventually I worked out that I wanted to write books like the one’s I enjoyed reading, and they were romances, every one of them.

MBR: Ah! I bet every one of your readers is thankful that you didn’t listen to your fiction teacher in this instance. The next question relates to family life. Similar to you, I am also the middle of three children. What was your childhood like as the middle child? Any funny childhood stories to share with your readers?

SM: My husband is also a middle child and we make lots of jokes about the over achieving middle child/overlooked middle child syndrome. To be honest, it’s hard for me to imagine what it would be like being first or last in the line up – I definitely don’t think I handle responsibility as well as my older sister, but I’m also more independent than my younger brother. I think every “role” has its up and down sides. The best story for illustrating our family dynamic is one that has been documented on one of our old home movies (this is on real film, not video, because I am THAT old!) My family are playing around on a large strip of grass in front of the local shops near our holiday house on the bay near Melbourne. My brother is a toddler, and my sister is about 5 or 6 and completely obsessed with him – she loved changing his nappies and playing mum to him. So, mum and my sister are doting on my younger brother, my father is behind the camera. I am in the background doing somersaults and handstands on the grass. At one point, my brother makes a break for it, running on his little bandy legs toward the busy road on the other side of the grassy reserve. Everyone goes after him, including my father (the camera jerks in panic but chills out a bit when my mum and sister catch my brother). I am completely oblivious in the background, still rolling around on the grass in my own little world. My brother in law has called me “monkey girl” ever since he saw this piece of film, but I think it illustrates the fact that I was often off imagining in my head while the world went on around me.

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MBR: (chuckles) Your imagination has definitely paid off in the long run as each of your books just get better and better. You have gone through a lot before settling down to write romances. What would you do differently if given the chance to do it all over again the second time round?

SM: It’s always tempting to think “I wish I’d submitted that story earlier or been more consistent in my attempts to be published”, since I worked at it off and on for about 10 years before I finally made it. But I honestly really value the experiences I had in other industries prior to becoming a full time writer. Not only did they teach me to value the freedom of what I do now, they also gave me lots and lots of fodder for my stories and an appreciation for how the “real” world works. Imagination is great, but there’s no substitute for having experienced something first hand.

MBR: Your stories are certainly “real” enough and I bet many readers would agree with me on this fact. I have mentioned at the beginning just how much I love your Blaze titles. You seem to have settled well into writing for the Harlequin Super Romance line. Does this mean that fans of your super hot Blaze titles like myself would never get to read one of them ever again?

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SM: At the moment my story brain seems to be producing Super Romance stories. If a super hot story pops into my brain, I will definitely consider writing it as a Blaze, if the senior editor would be happy to hear from me again. Or perhaps I might consider publishing it myself – it’s a whole new world at the moment with digital media, so there possibilities are out there.

MBR: Oh yes, a lot of authors seem to be venturing into self publishing. And whichever way you choose  to publish, I am sure your fans would be onboard. All your published novels to-date are contemporary romances. Most authors tend to branch out into other genres over time. Have you ever considered doing that yourself?

SM: I read romance, fantasy and a smattering of crime fiction. For many years I have had two rather epic fantasy ideas rattling around in my head. I would love to find the time to write them, but I also worry that they are so different from what I do now that there would be a huge learning curve to overcome. One day I might get around to it… I love reading historical romance, and there’s a part of me that would love to try to write one, but I don’t know that my “voice” would be suited to historicals. My next writing goal is to write a single title length book that will hopefully find a home with a mainstream publisher. Fingers crossed…

MBR: I for one am a huge fan of contemporary romances and wouldn’t be disappointed even if you continued writing just that. And the single title length novel sounds like a wonderful idea. Crossing fingers myself! So, what’s the one genre of romance you would never write?

SM: Hmmm. This is tough. Never say never, but I suspect I am not the kind of writer who excels at suspense/crime plots. My stories tend to be very character and emotion driven, and I have always found what I call “what happens next?” plotting a little bewildering. I hugely admire writers who do it well (Tess Gerritsen is a favourite – although she’s not strictly writing romantic thrillers, she used to be a Harlequin writer).

hersecretfling.JPGMBR: Have never read any books by Tess Gerritisen. I need to check out her books then. That brings me to the  next question. What’s your next title going to be about? Would you mind sharing a bit on your next release?

SM: My November release is called All They Need. This was a hard book for me in many ways – I started it four different times before settling on what story I wanted to tell. In hindsight, this was because I came up with a situation rather than two people with a story between them when I wrote my proposal. It’s an easy trap to fall into, and sometimes you only realise as you start writing the actual book that the situation you created requires your characters contorting themselves into weird and unnatural behaviors to service the story. Since I’m the kind of writer who prefers for the story to service the characters and not vice versa, I got myself into a real state. However, there was a deadline to be met and with the patience and generosity of my man and my editor, I finally found the story hidden inside all that gumph I’d spun originally. The resulting book is the story of Mel and Flynn.

Mel’s recovering from an ugly marriage to a controlling, disapproving husband. She took a lot of crap from this guy before she hit bottom and realised she needed to get out, and she’s questioning herself in the aftermath, wondering why she let herself be treated so badly. She’s lost her trust – both in other people and in her own judgement. Flynn comes from the same monied set as Mel’s ex and has always found her attractive, even though they were never very close during her marriage. He was aware of her, though, and when circumstances bring them into contact again he once again finds her very appealing. But Flynn is dealing with the sad and stressful decline of his father thanks to early onset Alzheimer’s Disease and he doesn’t think he has the space in his life to do a relationship with Mel justice. Especially since he very quickly understands that she has been wounded by her marriage. But, as we all know, love doesn’t work to schedule, and these two find themselves drawn to one another despite all the sensible voices in their heads telling them to back off. Still, Mel isn’t even close to being ready for another relationship, and she’s convinced that she never wants to marry or even live with another man again. Which leaves Flynn with nowhere to go, really. Obviously, they resolve their differences, but I don’t want to ruin things for readers!

MBR: Wow! Sounds like its going to be an emotional read. Can’t wait for November to get here. Or maybe I could read it much earlier if Harlequin were to offer an ARC on Netgalley. Fingers crossed… Next question is about the drool-worthy heroes that you write. Every single one of your heroes are so yummy! Where do you find your inspiration to create heroes that tug right at the reader’s heartstrings?

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SM: Honestly? My husband! He is The Best. Handsome, sexy, smart, funny, capable, kind. I am always channeling him in some shape or form when writing one of my heroes. I sometimes feel as though I have a little cartoon him sitting on my shoulder saying “a real man wouldn’t do that!” and encouraging me to let my heroes make mistakes. Men are so wonderfully different from women, and I love the way they think and the way they behave with each other. I think that all women want to be noticed by the man they love – not just sexually, but in all ways. We want him to notice our new hair cut, or new perfume, or new bra. We want him to realise when we’re flat or sad. I try to show that my heroes are into my heroines in every way – they desire them (of course!) but they also like and admire them and want to be with them. Friendship is at the core of any great relationship, and it’s what remains when the fiery excitement of the first few months of a relationship begins to settle down, so I always try to show that my heroes and heroines are friends, too. And I like to try to access the private world of doubts and fears that men hide so well from the world. I think a lot of the time we think they are cool and collected and strong, but underneath that they are just as wracked by doubts as women are. I think seeing someone’s vulnerability is very endearing, especially when you know that they’re doing their damnedest to hide that vulnerability.

MBR: Now that right there is why I love your books. The heroes do not behave like a bunch of ninnies but rather they stay true to who they are in your stories. Thumbs up to your husband and the little cartoon of him that you carry around. Based on your profile on Goodreads, you seem to read a lot of romances yourself. Who is your favorite author? And is there any author that inspires you?

SM: I have a handful of favourite authors. I love Susan Elizabeth Philips, Ain’t She Sweet being my favourite book by her. I love Rachel Gibson, too,See Jane Score being right up the top of her hit list for me. Kirstin Higgins’ Just One of The Guys is one of the books I can re-read and re-read and never gets sick of it. And I ADORE Lisa Kleypas’s books, both historicals and contemporaries, but I have to give special mention to Blue Eyed Devil and Smooth Talking Stranger. I think those last two books epitomise the sort of of single title contemporary romance I’d like to write myself – they made my chest ache when I was reading them, my benchmark for a great romance, and they were sexy and funny and smart. If I could come even close to doing that in a longer length work I would be one happy writer! I also have a big writer crush on Victoria Dahl after reading Lead Me On, and I also love Mary Balogh, Loretta Chase, Laura Kinsale and Anna Campbell.

MBR: All of the authors you have mentioned are some of my favorites as well. Love Susan Elizabeth Phillips! Goodreads and your website seems to be your only online presence at the moment. There are a lot of authors who maintain contact with their fan base through social networking mediums such as Twitter and Facebook. Is there any hope of us ever being able to find your presence there in the foreseeable future?homefortheholidays.JPG

SM: I am avoiding Facebook at the moment, but I joined Twitter last week and am enjoying it so far – it’s fun, and I love the way people can jump into the conversation. My Twitter name is MayberrySarah, and I can’t promise the most scintillating of posts, but I am trying to stay in touch with the world a little more via this medium. My website is being updated as we speak – this will be my third revamp, and hopefully a good solid one. I made the mistake of having an amateur design my first site, and when she disappeared, she took a bunch of the images from my site with her and the whole thing kind of fell apart. My sister in law designed my current site, and it’s gorgeous, but we’ve been relying on a friend to do the technical side of things since Annie is a graphic artist and not a web designer. My new neighbour, however, IS a web designer, and he does great stuff. We started working on a new site a couple of weeks ago, and he’s due back from holidays this week so I am hoping to have something up by the end of the month. Incorporated in that will be a new blog which hopefully will be hack-proof – I have been hacked 4 times by people selling illegal prescription drugs and have tried lots of things and spent lots of money trying to secure my site only to have it happen again. This it what motivated me to revamp the site again, so I am hoping to resolve a number of issues at the same time with this new take on my site. I do blog regularly over at www.superauthors.com, and I always give away books.

In general, I have to admit that I find the internet very distracting – I go to check my email and wind up spending hours looking at completely unrelated things. It’s really played havoc with my focus in the last year or so. So I try to be really disciplined about how much time I spend on the net. I even have a program which bars me from accessing the internet for a set number of hours. I find when I know I can’t get online, I really concentrate for fixed periods and am very productive. But I also love interacting with readers and other writers, so at present I am trying to find a balance that allows me to keep writing 3 – 4 books a year as well as my other work while staying in contact with the world.

MBR: Aha! Finally, I would be able to ‘stalk’ you to my heart’s content. And I mean it in the best possible way. (laughs). And am really sorry to hear about the issues you have faced with your website and blog. Darn spammers! So, what is your favorite way to spend your ‘me-time’?

SM: Sleeping. Reading. Shopping. Hanging out with my man, my family or my friends. I’m trying to like gardening more, since ours is HUGE.

MBR: Sleeping and reading I can definitely get on board with. For me, I am someone who craves the Internet and I don’t think it would be a pretty sight if someone were to deprive me of my daily fix of the World Wide Web. For you, what is the one thing you absolutely cannot do without?

SM: I have to agree with you that the internet is very damned addictive. But the one daily fix I couldn’t do without is some form of contact with friends or family. We don’t have children, and my husband works full time outside of the home, so I spend A LOT of time on my own! Things can definitely get a little cabin-feverish if I don’t make the effort to talk to people. We’re hoping to get a dog in the near future that will be great company, but definitely people are my can’t-do-without fix!

MBR: I guess I get my people-fix when I go to work 5 days a week. But I can totally relate to what you mean about things getting a bit cabin-feverish. And that brings me to the last and final question. For those who are aspiring to become writers, what would your one valuable piece of advice be?hotislandnights.JPG

SM: Keep writing and reading. When you find a book and a writer you love, read them over and over. Find a page or scene you really admire and put your writer hat on and analyse how the author put the scene together and think about how you feel as you read it and try to understand how the author has conveyed/created that emotion in you. I have had some of my most valuable writing breakthroughs doing this. Also, I learn something new from every book I write, so never expect to be able to whip a story out with the greatest of ease – writing is hard, and for me it’s very emotional and sometimes very draining. Don’t be afraid to put yourself on the page, though – if you’re not feeling something when you write big emotional scenes, then it’s hard for readers to feel it, too, I think. The bottom line is that there is both craft and talent required to make it as a writer. Learning the tools of the trade – the craft – gets you one step closer to being able to harness your creativity.

MBR: Once again, thank you so much for taking some time out of your busy schedule to spend some quality time with us. And I wish you the best of luck in all your future endeavors. Hopefully your dream of writing a single title length novel would be realized in the near future.

SM: Thanks for the support for all of us writers in general. We would be nothing and nowhere without readers.

And now for the fun part.

GIVEAWAY! GIVEAWAY!

Two giveaways will be happening here, so read carefully to know what you have to do to participate in either or both of them.

First of all, I will be giving away an e-copy of Sarah Mayberry’s newest release One Good Reason to one lucky commenter on this post. All you have to do to win a copy is to tell me why you want a copy of One Good Reason. If you want to find out what the book entails, you can always read my review of the book from right here.

Secondly, Sarah has very generously agreed to give away 3 books, a “Best of Sarah Mayberry bundle” chosen and handpicked for you by myself. The books include The Last Goodbye, She’s Got It Bad and Home for the Holidays. This giveaway is for those who have never read Sarah Mayberry before. All you have to do is tell me your most favorite contemporary romance that you have read to-date for a chance to win the Best of Sarah Mayberry bundle.

Post will be open for comments till 26th July 2011. The winner of One Good Reason will receive the e-copy of the book on the 26th itself if you respond to my “winner e-mail” on time. For the winner of the “Best of Sarah Mayberry bundle”, Sarah would be mailing the books to your address.

Please help spread the word and don’t forget to leave a comment behind. And don’t forget to leave your e-mail address as a way to contact you in case you are the lucky winner!

Good luck to all of you!

I hope that you all enjoyed reading our conversation as much as me and Sarah had fun doing the interview.