Celebrate National Sisters Day & Enter to Win The Last Chance Matinee by Mariah Stewart and The Mirror Sisters by V.C. Andrews®

Today is National Sisters Day! I had no idea there was such a day until recently. *Note to self - call or text both sisters today* Apparently, the first Sunday in August is National Sisters Day. The idea is to connect or reconnect with your sister, to cherish that special family member.

And since we are all book lovers here, we know that there are books about sisters and those books can bring enlightenment or a few hours pleasure. Thanks to Simon and Schuster, I have 2 books to give away today that will hopefully bring you some pleasure.

15 BOOK HOLIDAY PRIZE PACK SWEEPSTAKES!

Simon & Schuster is running a huge holiday giveaway of their new releases. They're giving away books ranging from Garth Stein’s SUDDEN LIGHT to WOMAN I WANTED TO BE by Diane Von Furstenburg.

The books in the giveaway: Mistletoe Promise by Richard Paul Evans, MONEY Master the Game by Tony Robbins, Innovators by Walter Isaacson, Map of Heaven by Eben Alexander, Rocks by Joe Perry, Dominique Ansel, Sudden Light by Garth Stein, Woman I Wanted to Be by Diane Von Furstenburg, Art of Stillness by Pico Iyer, Eat More Better by Dan Pashman, Thirteen Soldiers by John McCain, At Home With Madame Chic, Elements of Style by Erin Gates, Outlaw Pete by Bruce Springsteen and Frank Caruso, and Cinderella Murder by Mary Higgins Clark and Alafair Burke.

Winners: Two (2)

Dates: Open through 11:50pm December 19

Enter here: http://pages.simonandschuster.com/holidaysweeps?mcd=z_251114_CLP_Holiday_Sweeps

Some deals, excerpts and giveaways!!!

Simon & Schuster has some romance deals going on right now, and a few excerpts from some of the books on sale. All of the deals below are for ebooks only.

FAR HARBOR and HOMEPLACE by JoAnn Ross are both discounted to $3.99 until 7/10.

Excerpt from FAR HARBOR 
Excerpt from HOMEPLACE


A WEDDING WAGER by Jane Feather- $2.99 until 7/15. (Her next book, AN UNSUITABLE BRIDE, goes on sale 7/24)


DEFIANT by Kris Kennedy- $2.99 until 7/30. (Her next book, DECEPTION, goes on sale 7/31.)

Excerpt from DEFIANT

Simon and Schuster has generously offered up several books for giveaway, to US residents. There's a copy of An Unsuitable Bride, by Jane Feather, and a copy of Deception, by Kris Kennedy. Both are historical romances.

Enter using the rafflecopter widgets below. Please read my Giveaway Policy.

Giveaway & Excerpt from "The Taker" by Alma Katsu

Thanks to Simon & Schuster, I have an excerpt from "The Taker" to share with you. "The Taker" was released in hardcover in September 2011 and will be out in paperback on March 27th. The book was a sensation when it was released and generated a lot of buzz. Now, you have a chance to check it out for yourself and see what was the fuss was all about. But, wait! There's more! (Sorry, I couldn't resist, lol.)

Also, again thanks to S&S, I have one paperback copy of "The Taker" to give away to a US resident. Sorry, that's the publisher's restriction. You'll find more info at the bottom of the post, after the excerpt.

The Taker by Alma Katsu

Giveaway!! Flesh and Fire by Laura Anne Gilman

Nebula Award nominee Laura Anne Gilman’s novels of vine, earth, and deceit have been hailed as a “dramatic, authentic, and potent” (Publishers Weekly) fantasy series.  Now, with THE SHATTERED VINE: BOOK THREE OF THE VINEART WAR, releasing October 18th, two opposing forces are drawn into a duel of magic and will…

Thanks to Simon & Schuster, I am a doing a three week giveaway, one book each week. This week is a paperback copy of "Flesh and Fire", next week will be book two, "Weight of Stone", in paperback, and the third week, publication week, "The Shattered Vine", in hardcover. 

Book Blurb (from goodreads): 

From acclaimed bestselling author Laura Anne Gilman comes a unique and enthralling new story of fantasy and adventure, wine and magic, danger and hope....

Once, all power in the Vin Lands was held by the prince-mages, who alone could craft spellwines, and selfishly used them to increase their own wealth and influence. But their abuse of power caused a demigod to break the Vine, shattering the power of the mages. Now, fourteen centuries later, it is the humble Vinearts who hold the secret of crafting spells from wines, the source of magic, and they are prohibited from holding power. 

But now rumors come of a new darkness rising in the vineyards. Strange, terrifying creatures, sudden plagues, and mysterious disappearances threaten the land. Only one Vineart senses the danger, and he has only one weapon to use against it: a young slave. His name is Jerzy, and his origins are unknown, even to him. Yet his uncanny sense of the Vinearts' craft offers a hint of greater magics within — magics that his Master, the Vineart Malech, must cultivate and grow. But time is running out. If Malech cannot teach his new apprentice the secrets of the spellwines, and if Jerzy cannot master his own untapped powers, the Vin Lands shall surely be destroyed. 

In Flesh and Fire, first in a spellbinding new trilogy, Laura Anne Gilman conjures a story as powerful as magic itself, as intoxicating as the finest of wines, and as timeless as the greatest legends ever told.
 

The giveaway is open until Saturday, October 8th, 2011 11:59PM EST.  

Simon & Schuster will ship the book directly to the winner. Sorry, but the giveaway is only open to US addresses.

Please read my Giveaway Policy. 

  

Good luck!