4/24/18

All the Way to Italy Book Spotlight & Giveaway

This morning, we are featuring an historical fiction novel in our book spotlight!  We will be sharing our review of this novel in May--but, for today, be sure to check out the book, learn about the author & enter for a chance to win a prize in the book tour giveaway at the end of this post.


Book Title: All the Way to Italy: A modern tale of homecoming through generations past
Author: Flavia Brunetti
Category: Adult Fiction, 222 pages
Genre: Women's Fiction (can fit into YA Fiction as well)

About the Book

Until her dad died, Little considered herself a Californian. Now, thanks to half a letter, a symbol she can’t quite remember, and writer’s block, she finds herself back in Italy, the country of her birth. In a headlong rush to return to her beloved San Francisco, Little will journey throughout Italy, hoping to find the answers she needs to move on with her life so she need never look back. She’ll enlist the help of the woman who raised her, Sira, her father’s sister; but Sira has secrets she’s kept for decades, and Little underestimates the power of the country she fled years before.

In this powerful story of mixed cultures in a world trying to globalize, one girl’s struggle to leave her home behind will lead her back to the women in her family and the memories each of them has safeguarded through the generations. From war-torn Italy to the belpaese of today, All the Way to Italy is a tale for those in search of a balance between wanderlust and the necessity to come home, a reminder that although we may be fragments, we are never a lost cause.

To follow the tour and read reviews, please visit Flavia Brunetti's page on Italy Book Tours.

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Buy the Book


​iTunes ~ Kobo


About the Author

Photo credit: Roberta Perrone

Born just outside of Rome, Flavia Brunetti grew up bouncing back and forth between Italy and California, eventually moving back to the Eternal City and confirming her lifelong commitment to real gelato. Flavia holds a Master of Arts degree in Government and Politics from St. John’s University and a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from John Cabot University. Today she travels the world working for an international humanitarian organization and spends her free time writing and wandering around her beloved Roma in constant search of bookstores and the perfect espresso. You can find her city blog on Rome at whichwaytorome.com and her portfolio of published writing at flaviinrome.com.

Connect with Flavia: Website ~ Blog on Rome ~ Twitter ~ Facebook ~ Instagram

Enter the Giveaway!
Ends May 26, 2018


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a Rafflecopter giveaway


Princess Nevaeh Children's Book Spotlight & Giveaway

This morning, we are featuring a children's picture book in our book spotlight!  Check out Princess Nevaeh, learn about the author & enter for a chance to win a $10 Amazon gift card in the book tour giveaway at the end of this post!

Princess Nevaeh
by Paulette Harper
Genre: Children's Picture Book 

Six year old Nevaeh wants to be something she already is —a princess. Do you know a little girl that doesn’t know she is loved or even beautiful? Do we as parents, grandparents, or guardians reinforce and give our little ones daily affirmation? Princess Nevaeh, Lessons on Self-Discovery covers topics that are important not only to parents but also to our little girls.

Find out how Mimi shares with her granddaughter the things that matter most. Some of the topics discussed in this book are:
Teaching behavioral skills: fighting, bullying, listening, and obeying. 
Reinforces manners.
Teaches self-worth and values. 

Princess Nevaeh, Lessons on Self-Discovery allows caregivers to use this as a tool to affirm the child, build positive dialogue and to encourage self-worth. 



Beginning her career in 2008, Paulette is an award-winning, bestselling author and the founder of WNL Coaching and Marketing Services. Along with being an ordained Elder, she is the author of several books and founder of Write Now Literary Virtual Book Tours, a service to help promote authors of the Christian genre and authors of clean books. 

As an inspirational and motivational speaker, Elder Paulette's desire is to empower, influence and cultivate women to move forward while dealing with issues that hinder women from becoming all they are created to be. Her topics are biblically sound and pertinent to the needs of today's women. Paulette is a mother, grandmother and Bible teacher. Paulette has appeared on numerous radio and Television shows. 
Combining enthusiasm with an energetic speaking style, audiences describe Paulette's presentation as inspiring, enriching and encouraging. She is committed to speaking a message that is always uplifting and edifying. 
As a writing coach, she is the visionary behind her own writing ministry called "Write Now," a literary program that specializes in coaching aspiring writers in the areas of creativity, development, and publication of Christian books. She provides her listeners with tools, resources, and opportunities to help them succeed in the writing business.
Her books have ranked consecutively on the Black Christian Publishers Bestsellers List for Independent Publishers (non-fiction category).





Follow the tour HERE for exclusive content and a giveaway!

The Phoenix Cycle Book Tour & Giveaway

This morning, we are featuring a dystopian, science fiction novel in our book spotlight.  Check out The Phoenix Cycle, learn about the author & enter for a chance to win a copy of the book in the book tour giveaway at the end of this post.


The Phoenix Cycle
by Bob Collopy
Genre: Dystopian


New San Francisco is the last city standing on a world ravaged by storms of ash and debris. The city survived by putting the ideals of the American dream on steroids and inspiring its people to persevere, though they have become ruthless in the process. Its citizens are ruled by the General, who has made sure that his people understand that gentleness and pity have become weaknesses that nature no longer tolerates.


Now Steve and Leslie must choose whether they will apply for the General’s once in a lifetime opportunity to “Rise from the Ashes” and join the Inner Circle that rules the city. If they don’t, they will be damned to spend the rest of their lives in the ghettos of Edingburg, a place where virtual reality has become a government-subsidized addiction.

For Steve, the choice is easy. His loyalties lie with the IRA, a revolutionary army led by a voice only known as “Mom.” They are trying to overthrow the General and free the people of New San Francisco from the cruelties of the City Guard. Steve’s mission is to broadcast a recording of a speech that a famous philosopher died to tell. Many thousands have and will perish to get this message out, but is anyone willing to listen?








Bob Collopy was raised on southern values. A world of rigidity and blind faith. He was then
moved to Sedona. A near cultlike world, grown from 1960's flower children. He was then moved
to Scottsdale. A world of extreme wealth and vice. He then went to college and joined a
fraternity so notorious it was on national and world news multiple times.
Due to these shifts, Bob always found himself the the semilucid observer; constantly confused
and adjusting to new and opposing sets of norms few cultures would ever call normal or even
acceptable.
The city Bob has created is a blending of these intense and opposing cultures and the people
trying to survive and conquer them.




Follow the tour HERE for exclusive excerpts, guest posts and a giveaway!

4/23/18

Baltic Amber: Relief for Everyone


Being a mom with children who were spaced apart by several years has always been fairly easy. Each of my children are about five years apart, give or take a year. That meant that by the time we had another baby in the house, the older child had been off the bottle for years, potty trained, and officially in school. What did this mean for me? I could sleep when baby slept, I could take time to heal after childbirth, and most importantly, each of my children always felt that they got all of my attention before they started school. 


I felt those were important years for building bonds and I didn't want to spend them stretched and stressed to the max. The downfall to this age gap, however, was that they were each in a different phase of life, ALWAYS. They never lost teeth at the same time, became interested in the opposite sex at the same time, hit puberty at the same time, or moved out at the same time. I felt that I was constantly repeating phases every five years, and I was. The benefit was that I lived and learned and through making mistakes with my oldest, I was able to do better by the next child in line.
However, I was always looking for a way to solve everyone's problem without having to buy three different solutions. This wasn't always the case and sometimes I'd have to accept three solutions as my fate, but that never stopped me from trying. When my oldest hit puberty, I thought this would be a monster all of its own. We were in another universe now! My other two children were 10 and five and honestly I had just forgotten that this was an inevitable thing.
Such is life, my 10 year old was dealing with overwhelming anxiety about starting the sixth grade and a whole new school in six months, and my five year old was at the peak of a growth spurt and complaining more than an older gentleman about her back and legs hurting. It was as if my entire family was falling apart at the physical seems. How could it be that they were each in different phases an all struggling from something completely different at the same time?

I was tired of giving my children Ibuprofen every time they complained about an ache and pain and I wanted a natural way to cure my daughter's growing anxiety. My holistic caregiver had suggested Baltic amber necklaces for each one of them. This is because of the succinic acid component found in amber stones. Baltic amber, in particular, has the highest traces of this compound found in the stones today.
Succinic acid is responsible for curing headaches, muscle and joint pain, menstrual cramps, and even anxiety! It's been used as an immune booster for centuries as well, due to being rich in antioxidants. When worn, amber is heated by the body, allowing for the medicinal rich oils to seep through the beads surface and into your bloodstream. Once absorbed, it's as if you took a natural anti-inflammatory, multivitamin, or anti-anxiety medicine. 
I bought three Baltic wonder amber teething necklaces and hoped for the best. I asked my daughters to wear the necklaces and give it a few days to work. My older daughter reported back to me during her next cycle that her cramps weren't nearly as bad as they were the first several times. My middle daughter hadn't complained about being anxious in a few weeks, which was a first since the beginning of her fifth grade year. My youngest had completely forgot that she was wearing the necklace or what it was even for, but I hadn't heard her complain of growing pains in several weeks. Across the board, amber seemed to be working for all of my children and their very different issues.
We have been wearing them for a year and I honestly don't know how we would have survived without it. We have replaced our Ibuprofen with the necklaces and our family is running like a smooth machine! While they may be at different stages in their lives, Baltic amber doesn't care! Amber is natural relief for people of all ages! If your children are suffering from teething pain, growing pains, anxiety or menstrual cramps, try a natural relief that works and see why Baltic amber has been around for centuries!

#MeBeingMe Book Spotlight & Giveaway

Today, I am featuring a coming of age story for middle grade readers.  Check out #MeBeingMe, learn about the author & enter for a chance to win a $20 Amazon gift card in the book tour giveaway at the end of this post!

#MeBeingMe
by Challa Fletcher
Genre: Middle Grade, Coming of Age

Jonathan is getting ready to start 6th grade, but without his best friend. The issues of growing up are about to become all too real for him, especially with bullying and labels and all the other pressure that comes along with growing up. He's hoping his close relationship with his brothers, his love for treehouses and his passion for comics will be enough to pull him through the rough patches, but will it?




I was born in Colorado Springs, CO as an Army Brat. I have lived all across this country but unfortunately I don't remember most of it (hate that). What I do remember is growing up in Detroit and Highland Park, Michigan, playing in my grandmother's basement that was filled with books my family bought for me and my sister, pretending to be a singer, a news anchorwoman, and a writer. Of these, reading and writing stuck.


When I was still very young I moved to Arkansas with my father and sister and have thus lived here for most of my life. I graduated from Jacksonville High in Jacksonville, AR. I got my BBA from Philander Smith College and my MSM from Kaplan Online University. And I have spent the last 10 years working for the State of Arkansas. Yet all I really wanted to do was have reasons to read and write. But not only did I want to write, I wanted to share my writing with the world. 

I have not been more proud of a completed goal as I am of being able to share #MeBeingMe with you. This story is inspired by my oldest son (and my own) experiences with challenges, change, and middle school (sometimes it really does suck).

I still live in Arkansas with my three sons and our dog, Barker. I am still finding every available minute to read, write, and share it with the world.





Follow the tour HERE for exclusive content and a giveaway!

Nite Fire Series Spotlight & Giveaway

This morning, I have an urban fantasy in our book spotlight.  Check out the books of the Nite Fire series, learn about the author & enter for a chance to win a prize in the book tour giveaway at the end of this post.

Flash Point
Nite Fire Book 1
by C.L. Schneider
Genre: Urban Fantasy

Slated for execution, shapeshifting assassin, Dahlia Nite, flees her world to hide in the human realm. As payment for the shelter they unknowingly provide, Dahlia dedicates herself to protecting humans from what truly lives in the shadows. Moving from town to town, she hunts the creatures that threaten an unsuspecting human race; burying the truth that could destroy them all. 


But the shadows are shifting. The lies are adding up. And when Sentinel City is threatened by a series of bizarre brutal murders, light is shed on what should never be seen. The secrets that have kept humanity in the dark for centuries are in danger of being exposed. 

Wrestling with a lifetime of her own deceptions, Dahlia investigates the killings while simultaneously working to conceal their circumstances. But with each new murder, the little bit of peace she has found in this world begins to crumble. Each new clue leads her to the one place she thought to never go again. Home. 


**Only .99 cents!**



Chain Reaction
Nite Fire Book 2

If anyone can tell the difference between monsters and humans, it’s Dahlia Nite. For nearly a century, she’s hunted one to protect the other; safeguarding humanity from the creatures that slip through the torn veil between the worlds—creatures like her. But the lines are blurring. As people begin mutating and combusting on the streets, Dahlia realizes a strange affliction has descended upon Sentinel City. The mysterious ailment strikes all walks of life, from the posh, high-end nightclub district to the homeless community. Its victims, driven to random acts of savagery, are drawing attention too fast to cover up.


Assigned to the case, Dahlia and her human partner, Detective Alex Creed, investigate the deaths. But all they have are questions and bodies, and a public on the verge of panic. Working behind the scenes with her self-appointed sidekick, Casey Evans, Dahlia struggles to discover what, or who, is behind the alarming transformations. As the violence spreads and the mystery unfolds, she wonders: are the victims still human? Were they ever?


**Only .99 cents!**


Born in a small Kansas town on the Missouri river, C.L. Schneider grew up in a house of avid readers and overflowing bookshelves. Her first full-length novel took shape while she was still in high school, on a typewriter in her parent's living room. While her main focus is adult epic and urban fantasy, she also pens the occasional science fiction or post-apocalyptic story.


Though she has been writing all of her life, Magic-Price (the first installment in The Crown of Stones Trilogy) was Schneider's first published novel. With the trilogy complete, she is excited to be embarking on a new path with her urban fantasy series, Nite Fire.




Follow the tour HERE for exclusive content and a giveaway!
Booking.com