Author Spotlight: Ethan Carrell

Overcoming Obstacles The True Story of How Ethen Carrell Went From Being In A Straight Jacket to Receiving the Most Scholarships In his Graduating Class!


by Ethan Carrell


This book is based on true events in the life of Ethen Carrell. This book should show you that the possibilities in this life are truly unlimited. This is an inspirational story that can positively impact all those that are willing to read it.

                                                        5 Star Review By James Henderson

"This is truly a great book. We need more positive books like this in the world today. Ethen overcame a lot to get to where he is now. I think that everyone should get a copy of this book because it is extremely inspirational. I read this book all the way through and was not disappointed in any way. I would recommend it to the world!!"

Resources:

LuLu

Thank you Ethan for being this week's Author Spotlight!

-CYM

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Review Party Link-Up Starts NOW!!

<a href="http://cymlowell.blogspot.com/" target="_blank"><img alt="CymLowell" src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2442/3960797566_f11cfb2f41_o.jpg" /></a>

Welcome to Book Review Party Wednesday.

It is real simple. Link up any (old or new, any genre) book review that you have
written to the below MckLinky.

A couple of things to remember while you're linking.

1. Add a permalink to your specific post, not the main page of your blog (only one review per blog).
2. Add my Book Review Wednesday Badge or a link-back to the party at the end of your review post.
3. List the name of your blog, Title of Book or Genre. Be sure to use spaces and limit characters to 50. For example: The Lost Symbol, thriller

4. Become a follower of my blog, pretty please (not mandatory).
5. Visit the other linked up reviews and leave comments....it's a party, have fun!
6. I will announce the winner in a weekend post. The winner is chosen from the linked up reviewers using Random Number Generator. All included.

I am so excited to be reading all the reviews! This is always so much fun and gives me the opportunity to add new books to my list.

-CYM

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Thrillerfest 2012

Preparing for ThrillerFest 2012

I love to write thrillers.  One day, I might even become a successful author in the terms of the world, meaning selling lost of books.  In the meantime, I love to immerse myself in a story and work to improve my craft of writing.  I am fortunate to have a supporting family, including a professional blogger.  The trade association of thriller writers is the Int’l Thriller Writers’ Ass’n.  The ITW annual meeting in New York City is ThrillerFest.  It will occur just after the 4th of July and we will be there.  One element of the meeting is AgentFest,  which is a speed-dating process of aspiring writers and agents.  This will be my third AgentFest.  I did have an agent at one point, who had wonderful credentials and credits but his heart was elsewhere.

My blogging partner, whose enthusiasm for the fiction business never ceases (even though her writer is yet to become a household name beyond the world of transfer pricing), and I will participate in both ThrillerFest and AgentFest this year, and I will try to be a faithful reporter.

Last year, about ten agents asked me to send a synopsis and the first 3-5 chapters of the manuscript I was working on, Bite Me!  At the time I was working with a wonderful editor helping me to polish my style.  We are still working, though I am delighted with my progress.  I have contacted those agents to advise of my progress, hoping to see the mat AgentFest again this year.

I will report on ThrillerFest and AgentFest again this year, as well as my progress in the fiction-writing world.


Are you attending?

Thrillerfest 2012

-CYM

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Winner of Wednesday's Book Review Party!

 *all winners are selected by Random Number Generator *

And the winner of the Amazon Gift Card ($15 value) from Wednesday's Review Party is...

(**Drums Rolling in the Background**)

 

Congratulations to Wag The Fox!


Be sure to check out Wag The Fox and leave a comment!


Send me your email address for the Amazon eGC.

Warms-
CYM

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Author Spotlight: Stephen Leather

NIGHTFALL 

by UK thriller master Stephen Leather

Synopsis:

"You're going to hell, Jack Nightingale."

The last words spoken in Jack's final case as a police negotiator have been haunting him ever since leaving the job. He'd been a cop long enough to see people at their worst, to doubt the existence of God, heaven, hell, or souls. Now a struggling private detective, the chilling words return with a vengeance when Jack inherits a mansion with a priceless library and a terrifying warning.

Nightingale quickly learns his soul was sold at birth and a devil will come to claim it in three weeks on his thirty-third birthday. It's a hard pill to swallow
—
until people close to him start to die horrible deaths, leading to the inescapable conclusion that real evil may be at work. And if he doesn't find a way out, he'll be damned in hell for eternity.

Dripping with brooding intensity, unrelenting suspense, and surprising wit, UK thriller master Stephen Leather's first book in the Nightingale series is a riveting, heart-stopping mystery with extraordinary range and power.

NIGHTFALL will take you on a high-speed ride that will keep you turning the pages well into the night.  NIGHTFALL is an updated classic thriller, tersely written to keep your heart rate up as Jack Nightingale follows a trail of murders and suicides to figure out where he really came from…and why his biological father would sell his unborn son's soul to a devil.

Cinematic in its quick pace and shocking moments of violence, NIGHTFALL will have readers wondering about good and evil, and whether or not we really have any control over our own destinies. This private-eye-meets-Satanism thriller is satisfying to the last (bloody) drop.

What others are saying about NIGHTFALL:

"Authentic…exciting stuff with plenty of heart-palpitating action gingered up by mystery and intrigue…"

—Daily Mail

"Leather is in the top rank of thriller writers."

—Jack Higgins, New York Times bestselling author

"…A good, old-fashioned page-turner."

—Reviewing the Evidence

"Taut, tense, teasing…and terrific! The first book of Stephen Leather's brilliant new thriller series is so dark that you won't want to put out the light…Devilishly good…"

—The Lancashire Evening Post

About the Author:

Stephen Leather is one of the UK's most successful thriller writers. Before becoming a novelist he was a journalist for more than ten years on newspapers such as The Times, the Daily Mail and the South China Morning Post in Hong Kong. Before that, he was employed as a biochemist for ICI, shoveled limestone in a quarry, worked as a baker, a petrol pump attendant, a barman, and worked for the Inland Revenue. He began writing full time in 1992 and his bestsellers have been translated into more than ten languages. He has also written for television on such shows as “London's Burning,” “The Knock,” and the BBC's “Murder in Mind” series and two of his books, The Stretch and The Bombmaker, were filmed for TV. His ebooks have spent more than six months on the UK Kindle Top 100 and for several months he had four titles in the UK Kindle Top 10. You can find out more from his website, www.stephenleather.com. AMAZON. 

Thank you Stephen for being this week's Author Spotlight!

-CYM

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~ What's Been Going on with Me ~

McDermott Adds Internationally Recognized Transfer Pricing Team in Expansion of Global Tax Platform

Seven-Person Team Lead by Renowned International Tax Lawyers

CHICAGO AND HOUSTON (June 19, 2012) – International law firm McDermott Will & Emery LLP today announced the appointments of renowned international tax lawyers Cym H. Lowell and Mark R. Martin as part of a seven-person, full-service transfer pricing team in Texas.  The team, whose practice focuses on designing and defending the allocation of income and expense in cross-border transactions, is joining the Firm from Gardere Wynne Sewell LLP.  In his new role, Mr. Martin will serve as the head of McDermott’s transfer pricing practice.

Mr. Martin, partner John T. Woodruff and associate Mark Horowitz will be based in McDermott’s Houston office.  Mr. Lowell and three professional advisors (Hiroaki Furuya, Managing Director, Tracy Gomes, Economist, and Haiyan Zhang, Financial Analyst) will practice out of a satellite office in Dallas.

Mr. Lowell, who is ranked by Chambers USA in Band 1 for Tax (Litigation), works across a wide range of planning and controversy matters for U.S. and foreign-based multinational companies as well as wealthy individuals.  He has handled transfer pricing cases with proposed adjustments in the billions, structured advance pricing agreements on a global basis and advised clients on the full range of international tax planning matters.  Mr. Lowell is Vice-Chairman of the International Chamber of Commerce Taxation Commission, as well as a member of the Business and Industry Advisory Committee to the OECD and U.S. Council of Business.  He has been a consultant to U.S. tax writing committees, an expert witness for the United States in treaty litigation, as well as a former Council Director, ABA Section of Taxation (responsible for international committees).

Mr. Martin was named an “Up and Coming” lawyer in Chambers USA 2011.  A leader in resolving transfer pricing matters through unilateral and bilateral processes, his global practice includes multinational energy, construction, and chemical clients.  Mr. Martin has particular specialization in resolving critical transfer pricing issues through emerging dispute resolution processes in the U.S. and other countries.  He is the incoming Chair of the Transfer Pricing Committee of the American Bar Association and formerly served as Chairman of the International Tax Committee (Tax Section) of the State Bar of Texas.  Mr. Lowell and Mr. Martin have co-authored several important treatises on U.S. international transfer pricing, U.S. international practice and procedure, and U.S. international taxation. 

“I am truly excited about this unique opportunity to welcome Cym, Mark and their excellent team to McDermott,” said Lowell D. Yoder, partner and head of McDermott’s U.S. and International Tax Practice Group.  “McDermott has long had the most prominent tax law brand in the country.  The Firm is widely recognized for excellence in international planning, M&A, partnerships, financial products, closely held companies, and tax controversy.  Our new transfer pricing team enhances the McDermott brand of excellence, rounds out our full-service client capabilities on a global basis and adds particular strength in the area of tax litigation.”

“These important additions will help us dramatically expand the Houston office and our offerings to clients,” said Steven G. Spears, partner-in-charge of McDermott’s Houston office.  “Transfer pricing knowledge has become increasingly important in Texas as oil companies and suppliers with significant international operations seek to adapt with more tax efficient structures.  This group provides us with a highly-branded tax practice and a strong platform to build our tax capabilities in this very important market.” In May, McDermott added prominent antitrust lawyers Allan Van Fleet and Nick Grimmer to its Houston office.

Transfer pricing is a critical element of the tax planning of multinational companies.  It is also a material issue for all countries in defending their tax base, and therefore creates a significant amount of interest and controversy, even attracting front-page New York Times coverage.  The relationship of multinational companies and tax administrations with respect to transfer pricing (especially in developing nations such as the BRIC countries) is perhaps the most important current international tax issue.

This new McDermott team is at the forefront of this evolution in transfer pricing.  As one of the largest law firm-based transfer pricing practices in the United States, it has in-depth experience in negotiating advance pricing agreements and handling competent authority cases between the U.S. and its treaty partners.  A significant part of their practice is international, and they work with foreign advisors and governments in countries such as Canada, U.K. and the Netherlands to negotiate advance pricing agreements and resolve competent authority cases.  In addition, the team has extensive experience handling inbound and outbound transfer pricing and controversy matters in Japan.

“The combination of our in-depth experience in transfer pricing and McDermott’s brand and global reach will enhance service to our clients, current and future,” Mr. Martin observed.  “Indeed, our expanded team has its fingers on the pulse of the transfer pricing world as it is evolving.  I look forward to working with such a great international team of professionals,” Mr. Lowell added.

In addition to Mr. Yoder and Mr. Spears, the transfer pricing team will work closely with Tom Scott, the new head of the London office Tax Department, across a broad range of international and domestic corporate/commercial tax issues. 

About McDermott Will & Emery
McDermott Will & Emery is a premier international law firm with a diversified business practice. Numbering more than 1,000 lawyers, we have offices in Boston, Brussels, Chicago, Düsseldorf, Frankfurt, Houston, London, Los Angeles, Miami, Milan, Munich, New York, Orange County, Paris, Rome, Silicon Valley and Washington, D.C. Extending our reach to Asia, we have a strategic alliance with MWE China Law Offices in Shanghai.

Bloomberg Businessweek

-CYM

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Wednesday's Book Review Party Starts Now!

<a href="http://cymlowell.blogspot.com/" target="_blank"><img alt="CymLowell" src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2442/3960797566_f11cfb2f41_o.jpg" /></a>

Welcome to Book Review Party Wednesday.

It is real simple. Link up any (old or new, any genre) book review that you have
written to the below MckLinky.

A couple of things to remember while you're linking.

1. Add a permalink to your specific post, not the main page of your blog (only one review per blog).
2. Add my Book Review Wednesday Badge or a link-back to the party at the end of your review post.
3. List the name of your blog, Title of Book or Genre. Be sure to use spaces and limit characters to 50. For example: The Lost Symbol, thriller

4. Become a follower of my blog, pretty please (not mandatory).
5. Visit the other linked up reviews and leave comments....it's a party, have fun!
6. I will announce the winner in a weekend post. The winner is chosen from the linked up reviewers using Random Number Generator. All included.

I am so excited to be reading all the reviews! This is always so much fun and gives me the opportunity to add new books to my list.

-CYM

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Hooked by Les Edgerton *Book Review*

Hooked 

by Les Edgerton 

(Writers Digest Books 2007)

Do you dream of writing a novel?  The trick is getting started.  Over the years, I have begun several.  I believe that I have written six manuscripts.  I though that each of them was a masterpiece, complete, exciting, and destined to ride atop best-seller lists.

My faithful blogger gave me Hooked.  Well, I was hooked, that’s for sure.  In this wonderful, succinct tome, Mr. Edgerton lays bare the process of beginning a novel.  He explains how to, and not to, do so.  I must say that I, like almost all aspiring writers, run afoul of the backstory and narrative traps, telling not showing our readers the story.  I keep trying.

I first read Hooked several months ago as I was finishing what I hoped to be the final draft of my current manuscript Bite Me!  Now that my writing coach and I are on the same wave length and she has given me the green light  to keep revising the manuscript, I re-read Hooked on a 10-day cruise in the Baltic Sea.  

Wow!  I can tell from my highlighting, in different colors for the respective reads, that I have learned and confirmed a lot about writing the opening of a successful story.  If you are just getting started on your first work, or your 20th, you will find Edgerton’s information and style to be educational and instructive.  The essence of his message follows:

 

1. Story Structure: Stability + Inciting Incident = Instability + Struggle to Resolve Instability =               New Stability

2. Inciting Incident: A scene in which something happens to the protagonist (“P”) that creates P’s Surface Problem and introduces the first indications of the Story-Worth Problem.

The story then involves P’s struggle to resolve the Surface Problem and the Story Worthy Problem (such as P’s guilt over failing to perceive what was boiling in her husband, which failure led to his murder and kidnap of her children).  

Should be associated with P’s inner self; a deep psychological problem.  The story is emotionally framed as this problem is laid bare (understood by the reader).

Each new Surface Problem must arise organically out of the preceding problem.

3. Scenes: a unit of drama.  Each must involve Conflict.

Opening scene:

a. Dramatization of the Inciting Incident.

b. Usually followed by a sequel scene in which delves into P’s emotional reaction to the drama of the opening scene. 

Not completely understood by P until the end of the story.

c. Make a stellar opening sentence

d. Backstory: should make appearance only after Inciting Incident, and be delivered as a scene that ends with P and reader at least somewhat aware of the Story Problem.

Language: avoid adverbial qualifiers; use “said”

e. Goals:

(1) successfully introduce the story

(2) hook the reader: intrigue her

(3) establish the rules of the story

(4) forecast the ending of the story

When P becomes aware of the Initial Surface Problem and is forced to take action is one of the most important aspects of a story. 

 f.     Emotion: reader must experience the story to have emotional reaction – i.e., show.  It is scene evolution not exposition that emotes reaction.  Flatten out words so that the reader experiences the scene as it unfolds.

As I have read many other books throughout the year since I first read Hooked, I have annotated my notes, which is actually quite interesting to review and edit.  We’ll see if I can successfully transform all of this study into a successful thriller.

  

Warms, Cym

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Winner of Wednesday's Book Review Party!

*all winners are selected by Random Number Generator *

And the winner of the Amazon Gift Card ($15 value) from Wednesday's Review Party is...

(**Drums Rolling in the Background**)

Congratulations to Frugal Creativity!



Be sure to check out Frugal Creativity and leave a comment!


Send me your email address for the Amazon eGC.

Warms-
CYM

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Author Spotlight: Mark Jacobs

Pascal's Wager

by Mark Jacobs

Amazon

Smashwords

B&N

Synopsis:

     Destined for a brilliant career in academia, Pascal Silver instead decides to be a risk taker. Packing up his unfinished philosophy dissertation he moves to Las Vegas to pursue his dual goals of winning the World Series of Poker and the only slightly less daunting task of finding the meaning to existence.

     Low on cash, Pascal is forced to take a part-time job at a private detective agency. Now, with his boss out of town, into his life walks the gorgeous Allegra LaPierre. She asks Pascal to find out who murdered her father, casino owner “Houston Phil” LaPierre.

     Using his uncanny poker skills, Pascal can tell everyone involved with Houston Phil has something to hide, including his ex-stripper widow, his knucklehead son, Bruce, and his old business partner, Fat Johnny, who’s in debt to a local gangster. Complicating matters, Bruce LaPierre is suddenly found dead in his office and the number one suspect is Allegra. Though all the evidence points to his client’s guilt, Pascal falls back on the famous wager of faith put forth by his illustrious namesake. He chooses to have faith in Allegra, not just because he’s gone head over heels for her, but because it’s a good bet.


     But when representatives of the Chicago mob show up and tell him to drop the case, Pascal has to take his greatest gamble yet. With Allegra’s life hanging in the balance, he’ll need to pull off the biggest bluff he’s ever attempted to get her back alive. Even if he does, he’s still left with the question “Who killed Phil?” a question only he is shrewd enough to answer. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Author Bio:


 Mark Jacobs is a freelance writer, martial arts instructor and semi-professional poker player who regularly plays for more money than he can afford to lose. His written work has appeared in publications such as Sports Illustrated, Men’s Health and TimeOut New York. The author of the acclaimed instructional text, The Principles of Unarmed Combat, he currently serves as a monthly columnist for Black Belt Magazine. Pascal’s Wager is his first novel.


Also by Mark:




The Principles of Unarmed Combat (“If ever there was a comprehensive look at just about every scenario possible in hand-to-hand combat, whether it’s attack or defense, it’s covered here.” - espn.com).

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Book Review Party Wednesday - LIVE!!

<a href="http://cymlowell.blogspot.com/" target="_blank"><img alt="CymLowell" src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2442/3960797566_f11cfb2f41_o.jpg" /></a>

Welcome to Book Review Party Wednesday.

It is real simple. Link up any (old or new, any genre) book review that you have
written to the below MckLinky.

A couple of things to remember while you're linking.

1. Add a permalink to your specific post, not the main page of your blog (only one review per blog).
2. Add my Book Review Wednesday Badge or a link-back to the party at the end of your review post.
3. List the name of your blog, Title of Book or Genre. Be sure to use spaces and limit characters to 50. For example: The Lost Symbol, thriller

4. Become a follower of my blog, pretty please (not mandatory).
5. Visit the other linked up reviews and leave comments....it's a party, have fun!
6. I will announce the winner in a weekend post. The winner is chosen from the linked up reviewers using Random Number Generator. All included.

I am so excited to be reading all the reviews! This is always so much fun and gives me the opportunity to add new books to my list.

-CYM

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Gun Games by Faye Kellerman *Book Review*

Gun Games
by Faye Kellerman
(Wm Morrow 2012)

The passion and devotion of young love is a precious experience for each of us. It can happen at any time of life. In this context, to me, the word young simply means abandonment of reason to the cherished experience of loving another person.

How do you feel about that? Can young love happen later in life, or is it relegated to youth who actually don’t have the life experience to know any better. To me, a huge element of the emotion is having lived enough life to appreciate the investment of self.

In Gun Games, young love emerges at the high school level. The protagonists are Gabe, a 17 year-old son of a gangster living with police officers. A Juilliard quality pianist, he is on his way to New York City or Harvard. Yasmine is just 14, a child with potential talent as a singer. She is fascinated with opera and invites Gabe in a coffee shop to share tickets with her. Can love blossom between a Catholic son of a gangster and a protected Persian Jewish girl?

The detective who has opened his home to Gabe is investigating two suicides at an elite private school. The hallways of the school harbor a full range of cheating, thievery, drugs, sex, guns, and other intrigue probably predictable in a world of too much money and too little supervision. The story focuses on a gang led by the big man on campus, who has an arm full of scholarships to name brand universities.

Gabe and Yasmine fall passionately in love. Their reactions feel like those of mature people. The gang focuses first on Gabe, then on Yasmine, as the detective and his team are circling on the odd connections between the gang and the unexplained suicides.

Ms. Kellerman, as always, provides a thoroughly enjoying read, as love and danger collide. The dangers are fearsome as the gang, the gangster trained young man, police on the prowl, a Persian family intent on protecting the innocence of their daughter from the heathen boy, parents of the gang members who will spend any amount on lawyers to protect the honor of their persecuted offspring, all collide. Can these strands be brought together?

In the midst of enjoying such a finely written story, I always search for the keys to successful fiction writing. In this case, there were many, including the art of bridging time and space with a seamless flow of story. On the other hand, the description of love between 17 and 14 year-olds seemed forced, as did the seemingly constant description of erections and oral sex. 

Is this necessary in the context of a thought-provoking story? I wondered closing the back cover, satisfied with an enjoyable experience.

Warms, Cym

AMAZON

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Winner of Wednesday's Book Review Party

*all winners are selected by Random Number Generator *

And the winner of the Amazon Gift Card ($15 value) from Wednesday's Review Party is...

(**Drums Rolling in the Background**)

Congratulations to Colloquium!



Be sure to check out Colloquium and leave a comment!


Send me your email address for the Amazon eGC.

Warms-
CYM

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Author Spotlight: Batya Casper

Israela

by Batya Casper

Tate Publishing 2011

Synopsis:

In Israel, the lives of three women interweave with the story of their country. Ratiba, an Israeli journalist, turns her back on her heritage to marry an Israeli Arab. Her sister Orit, an actor, lives alone and longs for her lost sister. Elisheva is a nurse who dedicates her life to the wounded and the dying. As their lives unfold, the three women find themselves facing choices they would never have envisioned.
This is a story of secrets and alienation, yet also of hope and heroism. It is about Arabs who save Jews from disaster and Jews who heal Arabs. It is the story of everyday people torn and desperately searching for the right path.

Author Bio: Batya Casper

Batya Casper is a director, actor and teacher of theater. Born in Edinburgh, Scotland. Lived in Manchester and London, England; Johannesburg, South Africa; Jerusalem and Caesarea, Israel; in Boston, Massachusetts; New Haven, CT; St. Louis, Mo; and Los Angeles, CA.

She has a BA in English literature; and a Masters and a Ph.D. in theater Arts from UCLA.

Batya has lived in Israel intermittently since early childhood, has taught Hebrew literature and biblical studies at an adult education center in St. Louis, and Hebrew to adults in Boston.  She worked as an Assistant to the Cultural Attache of Israel in Boston, as the coordinator of educational programs for exchange students between U.S. and Israel. She has lived in Israel intermittently since early childhood; has watched friends and family struggle, question, sacrifice their children.


Additional Resources:


Israelathebook
Facebook
Amazon
Barnes & Noble

Thank you Batya Casper for being the week's Author Spotlight!

-CYM

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Wednesday's Book Review Party and Amazon G'way - LIVE!

<a href="http://cymlowell.blogspot.com/" target="_blank"><img alt="CymLowell" src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2442/3960797566_f11cfb2f41_o.jpg" /></a>

Welcome to Book Review Party Wednesday.

It is real simple. Link up any (old or new, any genre) book review that you have
written to the below MckLinky.

A couple of things to remember while you're linking.

1. Add a permalink to your specific post, not the main page of your blog (only one review per blog).
2. Add my Book Review Wednesday Badge or a link-back to the party at the end of your review post.
3. List the name of your blog, Title of Book or Genre. Be sure to use spaces and limit characters to 50. For example: The Lost Symbol, thriller

4. Become a follower of my blog, pretty please (not mandatory).
5. Visit the other linked up reviews and leave comments....it's a party, have fun!
6. I will announce the winner in a weekend post. The winner is chosen from the linked up reviewers using Random Number Generator. All included.

I am so excited to be reading all the reviews! This is always so much fun and gives me the opportunity to add new books to my list.

-CYM

Read More

Winner of Wednesday's Book Review Party

*all winners are selected by Random Number Generator *

And the winner of the Amazon Gift Card ($15 value) from Wednesday's Review Party is...

(**Drums Rolling in the Background**)

Congratulations to Hezzi-D's Books and Cooks!



Be sure to check out Hezzi-D's Books and Cooks and leave a comment!


Send me your email address for the Amazon eGC.

Warms-
CYM

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Author Spotlight: Lee Harrington

Rex and the City

by Lee Harrington

In this humorous, moving, intelligent and startlingly original memoir, critically-acclaimed author Lee Harrington shares her story of love, loss, dysfunctional relationships, and the shelter dog who put things right. In 1997, Lee and her then-boyfriend Ed were on the verge of breaking up. Money was tight, their careers were floundering (Lee was an aspiring novelist: Ed was an aspiring documentary filmmaker) and their personalities, frankly, did not mix. Plus, they lived in a crumbling, cramped tenement apartment on the Lower East Side—for which they paid more than they earned. Tempers, needless to say, often flared.

Then, on a fateful day in August 1997, they decided on impulse to visit a nearby animal shelter, just to “look at” dogs. In a split-second decision that would change their lives, they brought home a troubled spaniel mix named Wallace. They quickly realized that this dog was more than they could handle—he was aggressive, fearful of humans, untrained and seemingly untrainable. For the first few months of their new lives with this aggressive animal, Lee and Ted struggled with the question—the reality—of whether they could realistically rehabilitate this dog (they even considered bringing him back to the shelter). They also struggled with the question of whether they could make it as a couple. Faced with a new responsibly, they bickered constantly, worried incessantly, cried daily (mostly Lee) and disagreed on nearly every aspect of how to handle the dog. Their disagreements ranged from how to train the dog to where he should sleep to what to feed him. But the one thing they could agree on was that they loved their dog. And slowly but surely, that love helped transform both the dog and the relationship. Both Lee and Ed, through the dog, learned how to love in new and fearless ways. And thus, by rescuing a needy spaniel, they ended up rescuing themselves.

Written with keen insight, sparkling humor, piercing honesty and masterful prose, Harrington’s memoir leaves the reader with the sense that, while adopting an abused dog can often be a challenge at first, the rewards are limitless. This is an exhilarating book—readers will laugh out loud, smile in recognition, nod in empathy, and/or pause in reflection as Harrington shares both her pains and her joys of her life with a troubled dog. Mostly, readers will be reminded—in a delightful way—that love does indeed conquer all. Especially dog love.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

About the Author:

Lee Harrington is an award-winning, critically-acclaimed author and musician who divides her time between New York City, Woodstock, and–when she is lucky—the south of France. Her memoir, Rex and the City: True Tales of a Rescue Dog Who Rescued a Relationship (published by Random House and now available in enhanced eBook edition) is hailed as “the best human with dog memoir you’ll ever read.” Her forthcoming books include two novels (The Expatriate’s Guide to Heartbreak and Secrets in Motion); a memoir about her experiences living in a tent at a Tibetan Buddhist retreat center after losing her husband, apartment, job and beloved dog (entitled, for now,In Tents); a four-volume young-adult fantasy series (which seems to be writing itself at the moment); and a second volume of Rex and the City. Lee is also working on a screenplay based on two Edith Wharton short stories. And that’s just her day job.

At night, Lee is lead singer in various rock bands. In 2012 she is recording her first CD—a companion CD to The Expatriate’s Guide to Heartbreak, with eleven songs based on characters, lines and deleted chapters from that novel. Lee is also a kirtan walli and has lead kirtans throughout the East Coast. She leads chants from the Hindu, Buddhist, Sikh, Sufi and Native American traditions and continues to study mantra, chanting, and sacred sound with masters from many traditions.

Also at night, Lee teaches creative writing at New York University and studies graphic design, sound healing and energy medicine.

Sometimes she has to wake up extra early in order to compose essays, stories, columns and blogs—which have appeared in such publications as Salon, Huffington Post, Poets and Writers, One for the Table and The Bark as well as in various fiction and non-fiction anthologies. For the past decade she has been an Editor-at-Large and contributor at Bark magazine.

Her other hobbies include Kundalini yoga, painting, samurai sword, and graphic design.

She considers it a great gift to be able to do what she loves, and aspires to give back to the world in some meaningful way. Thus, Lee always gives 10% of her book, music, and art proceeds to animal rescue.

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Resource Links:

Amazon

Lee Harrington

RexandtheCity

You don't want to miss the great web sites listed above (Rex and the City & Lee Harrington). So great! Thank you Lee for being this week's Author Spotlight.

-CYM

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