And The Winner Is

OUR NEW WINNER OF VICKI HINZE'S "FORGET ME NOT" IS: JO! CONGRATULATIONS JO AND I HOPE YOU ENJOY THE READ.

THANKS TO EVERYONE WHO LEFT A COMMENT AND CONTINUES TO SUPPORT MY BLOG!

NOTE: DON'T FORGET TO SCROLL DOWN TO THE PREVIOUS POST TO ENTER THE GIVEAWAY FOR VICKI HINZE'S "FORGET ME NOT".

Thanks for the Sunshine Award

What an honor to receive the Sunshine Award from one of my blogging buddies, Janet at janetstreasures.blogspot.comI like to think that I'm passing on His sonshine. :)


This award is traditionally passed on to those blogger's that inspire others and show positivity and creativity, so, in that spirit, I picked my nominees from blogs that I visit regularly and are very informative and inspiring to me.
The rules for accepting the award are:

This is what I've done and the nominees should do the same if they choose to:

1) Put the logo within my blog or on my post

2) Pass the award onto 10 fellow bloggers

3) Link the nominees within my post

4) Let the nominees know they have received this award by commenting on their blog

5) Share the love and link to the person whom you received this award from.

Here are my 10 nominees, please visit them and check out their blogs! As you know we all live for comments!

Check back for nominees!

Ashley at:http://anotherdayforhim.blogspot.com/

Stormi at:http://writesthoughts.blogspot.com/

Lee at:http://leesmithwriting.blogspot.com

Colletta at:

http://collettaskitchensink.blogspot.com/ Glenda athttp://meandmineinasmalltown.blogspot.com/

"Forget Met Not" by Vicki Hinze BOOK REVIEW AND GIVEAWAY!

BACK COVER: Crossroads Crisis Center owner Benjamin Brandt was a content man -- in his faith, his work, and his family. Then in a flash, everything he loved was snatched away. His wife and son were murdered, and grief stricken Ben lost faith. Determination to find their killers keeps him going, but after three years of dead ends and torment, his hope is dying too. Why had he survived? He'd failed to protect his family.

Now, a mysterious woman appears at Crossroads seeking answers and help -- his victim who eerily resembles Ben's deceased wife, Susan. A woman robbed of her identity, her life, of everything except her faith -- and Susan's necklace.

The connections between the two women mount, exceeding coincidence, and to keep the truth hidden, someone is willing to kill. Finding out who and why turns Ben and the mystery woman's situation from dangerous to deadly. Their only hope for survival is to work together, trust each other, and face whatever they discovered head on, no matter how painful. But will that be enough to save their lives and heal their tattered hearts?

ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Vicki Hinze is an award winning author of 23 novels, three nonfiction books, and hundreds of articles. Selected for Who's Who in America in 2004 as a writer and educator, Hinze is active in Romance Writers of America and serves on the International Thriller Writers Board of Directors. Vicki lives in Florida with her artist husband, a retired Air Force Lieutenant Colonel. Visit www.vickihinze.com to learn more about Vicki's books, blogs, and writing program.

MY TAKE: I had not read any of Vicki Hinze's books before this one. I did not know what to expect. I was pleasantly surprised. In writing I've heard so many times how important it is to start your book in the proper place. Be sure and hook your reader right away with something exciting - not too much back story to start with. Well, I would say that Vicki has this goal down pat. She had me hooked from the beginning. There was non-stop action and many twists and turns to keep you guessing until the end. If you like a page turner then you will love Vicki's book "Forget Me Not" which you can find at Water Brook Multnoman.com.

To be entered in the giveaway please: (remember this is a slightly used book) you can leave all of these in one post

1. be a follower or sign up as a new follower and leave an email address

2. visit Vicki's website at www.vickihinze.com

3. let me know what you think about blogs that review Christian books - are they helpful and what would you like to see more of.

Ends April 24th, 2010

Void where prohibited;Open to US residents only. Odds of winning depends on the number of entrants.

What Is A Reviewer/Influencer

There has been a lot of talk lately on the American Christian Fiction Writers newsgroup about the definition of reviewer and/or influencer. This is a very debated subject as are many on the newsgroup. When you have a lot of people giving opinions you will have almost as many different opinions as people. That is human nature or as Ches McCartney a.k.a. The Goatman would say, "That's just human environment." If you don't know who The Goatman is look him up on facebook - you will get a kick out of this wonderful character of God's.

Back to the discussion of reviewer vs. influencer. I have been what some would consider both. I review books for WaterBrookMulnoman.com who has graciously given me the book "Forget Me Not" to read and review. These books come from the publisher and they will give you a review copy and a giveaway copy if you want to participate in the giveaway. Since I have just started doing giveaways I have decided to give away my reviewers copy so we can recycle books. Some people would consider a review of a book telling the good and the bad and the ugly. And this might be true. When I first started reviewing I came upon this dilemma pretty quick. I was stumped as what to do. After thinking about the situation I've decided that I will only write a review of a book that I enjoyed reading and think others would enjoy. The reasons are: I know how much works goes into writing a book - any book and I do not want to downgrade another writer's work - I don't feel professional enough for that. Another reason is we all have different likes and dislikes in books and genres and this makes it extremely hard to be impartial. What one person hates another might love. Therefore, that is how I made my decision.

An influencer is a person that the author asked to read their book and influence others to read it as well. Usually, influencers have read the author before and would love to help promote their books. You might blog about it, go to book sites and write a review, maybe send out postcards to your friends, etc. Anything to get the word out that the author has a new book on the horizon.

Both reviewers/influencers are usually provided with a book to keep for the time and effort they have put into helping spread the word. To sum it up: You won't see a book on my blog that I didn't like or that I just couldn't get through reading it. That is how you will know what I truly feel about a book. If you see it I liked it - or someone else did! I hope this explanation helped a little and did not confuse you more. LOL Now on to the next review!