Featuring guest authors; crafting tips and projects; recipes from food editor and sleuthing sidekick Cloris McWerther; and decorating, travel, fashion, health, beauty, and finance tips from the rest of the American Woman editors.

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Showing posts with label free books. Show all posts
Showing posts with label free books. Show all posts

Wednesday, September 14, 2016

#TRAVEL TO KAUAI WITH GUEST AUTHOR PATRICIA PRESTON

Alekoko Fishpond, Kauai
Patricia Preston writes witty mainstream romances where love matters most. Learn more about her at her website

Books and a Gift Card Giveaway!
Patricia is celebrating the coming of fall and the release of One Week in Your Arms, the first book in her new Love Heals All series, by giving away a batch of her Kindle ebooks and a $20 Amazon gift card. Enter by leaving a comment and email address on this blog and add extra entries by going to her Giveaway post on her blog. Drawing will be on Sept 30th. The winner will be notified via email and posted on her blog.

The Magical Menehune

In my new release, One Week in Your Arms, Marla and Carson spend a week at a resort on the island of Kauai. During this time, Marla finds out about the legendary Menehune, and she can’t wait to share it with her little girl when she gets back home to Tennessee.

Legend has it that a race of tiny, magical people, like leprechauns, once lived in the mountains of Kauai. The Menehune stood only about two or three feet tall. They had stout bodies with potbellies. They loved pudding made from sweet potatoes, squash, and taro leaves. The Menehune were mischievous and playful. They loved diving off the cliffs. It is said when you hear water splash at night on the island, it is Menehune diving into the ocean. 

The Menehune slept all day hidden deep in caves and roamed through the forests of the island at night. According to legend, they were master builders, and they would band together in groups of thousands to do great feats of construction overnight. They did not like being seen, and if they were seen at work, they would abandon the project.

The Alekoko Fishpond on the island of Kauai was built by the Menehune. One of the stories regarding the fishpond is that it was built by the Menehune who used lava rock transported by a brigade of thousands of Menehune. They were building the fishpond for a princess and her brother, who stole through the forest at night to watch the Menehune at work although they had promised not to do so.

They were discovered by the Menehune who turned the princess and her brother into twin stone pillars, which still remain in the mountains above the fishpond. As was their custom, they abandoned the fishpond, leaving a gap in one of the retaining walls, which was finished by workers in the 1800’s.

The Menehune loved singing, dancing, and archery. They were said to use magical arrows on an angry person, thus replacing the anger with love. 

Some have suggested the Menehune were early inhabitants or primates that populated the island before the third century and the arrival of the modern Hawaiians. Nevertheless, their stories and legends thrive on the islands.

One Week in Your Arms
Book One of the Love Heals All series

It Started With A Fling...

Six years ago, ambitious med student Marla Grant gave into temptation with a gorgeous man. Now a busy doctor and a loving single mom, the only thing that matters to Marla more than her adorable daughter is the Lafayette Falls Community Clinic. When its funding is threatened, Marla is determined to find out why-until she learns the person responsible is none other than the powerful, persuasive man of her long-ago fling and the unsuspecting father of her child...

Carson Blackwell has never forgotten bright, beautiful Marla. When he discovers that she runs the clinic his grandmother's foundation funds, it's the perfect chance to put an end to his ongoing infatuation-and use his leverage to cement a new business deal. He needs a fake girlfriend for one week in Hawaii, and Marla is just the woman for the job. It's a win-win situation, until they realize the attraction between them isn't feigned, and the heat has never died down. Only the secrets they're both keeping stand in the way of a future together-and a love that could last a lifetime.

Buy Links

Monday, October 6, 2014

HALLOWEEN SCAVENGER HUNT

Find this Halloween graphic somewhere at www.loiswinston.com
as part in the Halloween Scavenger Hunt
The hunt has begun!

As mentioned last week, from now through the 23rd, over 30 authors featured in Bake, Love, Write: 105 Authors Share DessertRecipes and Advice on Love and Writing are hosting a
Halloween Scavenger Hunt. It's now time to start hunting!

Here’s how it works:Participants visit the website or blog listed for each featured author to find a Halloween graphic hidden on one of the website or blog pages. The more sites you visit, the more chances you have to win. There are over 60 prizes with multiple winners. The list of prizes and the dates they will be given away is here.

Authors participating include: Lois Winston, Brenda Novak, Caridad Pineiro, Jessa Slade, Kathryn Jane, M.L. Guida, Skye Taylor, Cathryn Cade, Victoria Adams, Sharleen Scott, Kathleen Kaska, Erin Farwell, Daryl Devore, Cynthia Luhrs, E. Ayers, Chantilly White, Helena Fairfax, Molly MacRae, L.C. Giroux, Stacy Juba, B.V. Lawson, Ruby Merritt, Kay Manis, Ashlyn Chase, Kitsy Clare, Elizabeth Rose, Liese-Sherwood-Fabre, Sloan McBride, Elaine Joyce, Debra Goldstein, Barbara Phinney, Alicia Dean, Haley Whitehall, Terry Shames, Melinda Curtis, Lynn Cahoon, and Renee Field.

Here’s what you need to do: Visit Sloan McBride’s blog where she’ll have all the information posted, including links to the authors' websites/blogs and a link to a page to type all the answers. Or your can download the page of authors, websites/blogs, and for typing your answers here. The page will give you the authors’ names and links to their websites/blogs where you’ll search for the Halloween graphics. Rafflecopter will be used to determine prizewinners.

Here's the IMPORTANT part -- once you've filled in your answers on the scoresheet, you must email the document to Sloan at sloanmcbride@gmail.com.  She’ll review the answers and will enter your name the number of times that corresponds to the number of sites you visited and provided the correct answers.  

Happy hunting, everyone!

Monday, September 29, 2014

A SPOOKTACULAR SCAVENGER HUNT

Last week Lois Winston mentioned that there would be a scavenger hunt with lots of prizes in connection with the debut of Bake, Love, Write: 105Authors Share Dessert Recipes and Advice on Love and Writing. Well, it’s going to be a Halloween Scavenger Hunt!

For those of you who like dealing with the spooky, join us to do something cooky!

From October 6th through the 23rd, over 30 authors featured in Bake, Love, Write: 105 Authors Share DessertRecipes and Advice on Love and Writing are hosting a Halloween Scavenger Hunt. 

Here’s how it works: Participants visit the website or blog listed for each featured author to find a Halloween graphic hidden on one of the website or blog pages. The more sites you visit, the more chances you have to win. There are over 60 prizes with multiple winners. The list of prizes and the dates they will be given away is here.

Authors participating include: Lois Winston, Brenda Novak, Caridad Pineiro, Jessa Slade, Kathryn Jane, M.L. Guida, Skye Taylor, Cathryn Cade, Victoria Adams, Sharleen Scott, Kathleen Kaska, Erin Farwell, Daryl Devore, Cynthia Luhrs, E. Ayers, Chantilly White, Helena Fairfax, Molly MacRae, L.C. Giroux, Stacy Juba, B.V. Lawson, Ruby Merritt, Kay Manis, Ashlyn Chase, Kitsy Clare, Elizabeth Rose, Liese-Sherwood-Fabre, Sloan McBride, Elaine Joyce, Debra Goldstein, Barbara Phinney, Alicia Dean, Haley Whitehall, Terry Shames, Melinda Curtis, Lynn Cahoon, and Renee Field.

Here’s what you need to do: On October 6th, visit Sloan McBride’s blog where she’ll have all the information posted, including links to the authors' websites/blogs and a link to a page to type all the answers. If you want to have a handy reminder, you can also download the page of authors, websites/blogs, and for typing your answers here. The page will give you the authors’ names and links to their websites/blogs where you’ll search for the Halloween graphics. However, the graphics won’t be posted on the authors’ sites until October 6th. Rafflecopter will be used to determine prizewinners.

Here's the IMPORTANT part -- once you've filled in your answers, you must email the document to Sloan at sloanmcbride@gmail.com.  She’ll review the answers and will enter your name the number of times that corresponds to the number of sites you visited and provided the correct answers.  

Sunday, October 9, 2011

THIS WEEK'S BOOK GIVEAWAY WINNERS

Once again this week we have multiple books to give away, thanks to our very generous guest authors, Liz Lipperman and Lesley A. Diehl. Thank you both for visiting at Killer Crafts & Crafty Killers.


The winner of a tasseled recipe bookmark and copy of Liver Let Die by Liz Lipperman is Edie Ramer. 


Lesley offered copies of both of her books. The winner of Dumpster Dying is Cindy Sample, and the winner of A Deadly Draught is Barbara Dorsam.


Ladies, please send your mailing addresses to me at anastasiapollack@gmail.com. I'll forward them to the authors.

Sunday, January 2, 2011

THIS WEEK'S CRAFTS BOOKS WINNER

Thanks to all who stopped by this week at Killer Crafts & Crafty Killers. We hope you'll come back often and also tell your friends about us. We have lots of exciting posts and guests planned for the months ahead. I’d also like to thank Lois Winston for being our Book Club Friday guest and offering a selection of crafts books to one of our readers who posted a comment this week. The winner this week is Gen Voss who posted to Killer Crafts & Crafty Killers at Creating the Hive where the blog feeds. Gen, please email your mailing address to me at anastasiapollack@gmail.com. I’ll forward the information to Lois, and she’ll mail your books to you. 


And don't forget to check out Lois's other guest blogs throughout January. Post a comment to any of them, and you'll be entered in the drawing to win one of five copies of Assault With a Deadly Glue Gun, the book about yours truly. In addition, Lois will be offering crafts books giveaways at select blogs. You can find the blog tour schedule right here on the sidebar and at Lois's website.


Happy reading and happy crafting! -- Anastasia

Friday, August 13, 2010

BOOK CLUB FRIDAY -- GUEST AUTHOR LAUREN CARR

Dear Readers, I regret to inform you that our much anticipated visit from the great Robin Spencer had been cancelled due to her unexpected death this spring. The author of eighty-seven murder mysteries, most of them best sellers, plays, and movies, Robin was the undisputed American Queen of Mystery. She will be greatly missed all over the world by her fans. However, her assistant, Archie Monday, was kind enough to visit to tell us about what has been happening at Robin’s estate on the shores of Deep Creek Lake in Maryland since her long lost son Mac Faraday moved in.
You can read more about the goings-on at Deep Creek Lake from author Lauren Carr at her website http://laurencarr.webs.com/ and blog http://writerlaurencarr.blogspot.com/. Lauren is also offering a copy of It’s Murder, My Son to one lucky reader who posts a comment to Killer Crafts & Crafty Killers this week. -- AP


Thank you,
Anastasia, for letting me fill Robin’s very big shoes--and I don’t mean that literally! But, after working as her editor and research assistant for over a decade, I knew that Robin wouldn’t have it any other way. Robin was like a mother to me and she’d want her fans to know what has been going on at Spencer Manor.
Most of you are probably surprised to find out that Robin Spencer even had a son. He was the Spencer family’s deep dark secret. While Robin was in high school, she and her first love had a baby together. Her folks forced her to put the baby up for adoption and shipped her off to college. Meanwhile, her first love, Patrick O’Callaghan, got married and went on to become Spencer’s police chief. I only found out about it a few years ago when Robin asked me to find her son for her.
I found him in less than three weeks. If there’s a record of something anywhere in cyberspace, I’ll find it. That’s what I do.
Would you believe it? The baby of the world’s most famous murder mystery writer had grown up to become a top-notch homicide detective. It has to be in the genes.
I don’t think any of Robin Spencer’s fans were as surprised to find out that she had a baby out of wedlock as Mac Faraday.
After twenty years of marriage, Mac’s wife had left him for an assistant district attorney who used his influence to get Mac taken to the cleaners in his divorced. She got everything! So lawyers were not Mac’s favorite people.
Robin’s lawyer was finally able to catch up with Mac on the day his divorce became final to inform him that he had inherited an estate worth two-hundred-and seventy million dollars, give or take a million. That includes Spencer Manor here on the Point on Deep Creek Lake. But Robin had stipulated that I get to continue living in the guest house on her estate as long as I want. I guess you might say I came with the house.
His ex-wife’s loss is my gain. (Oh! Did I really say that?)
Mac is still trying to settle into life at Spencer Manor.  I could tell the first day that he wasn’t going to be your average millionaire playboy rubbing elbows on the golf course at the Spencer Inn. For example, he’s been trying to hire a housekeeper and cook, but so far he’s had no luck. He had one likely candidate, but she ran screaming from the house when Gnarly, Robin’s German shepherd, dragged a dismembered head with a bullet hole in it into the living room.
Spencer’s police chief, an idiot appointed by the town council after Pat O’Callaghan died, assumed it belonged to Katrina Singleton’s killer and closed her case as a murder-suicide.
Well, having investigated well over a hundred murder cases during his career as a homicide detective, Mac was shocked to see a case closed so fast without any investigation. And when the police chief got snooty after Officer David O’Callaghan, Mac’s half-brother, pointed out evidence that didn’t fit with a murder-suicide—Well, the game got afoot really fast!
Who’s Katrina Singleton? Katrina was our next door neighbor. She was found in the family room with her throat crushed the day after the Valentine’s Day blizzard.
No one could understand Katrina’s murder. Her first husband had been killed less than two years before she was murdered. He had been attacked and killed up at Abigail’s Rock. Katrina swore that the killer was a disgruntled client of hers from Washington, but he had an alibi. Months turned into years and Katrina said that her stalker was still after her, but no one could ever catch him.
Then, the blizzard hit Deep Creek Lake on Valentine’s Day. Katrina was dead and Gnarly, her German shepherd, almost died trying to protect her.
Robin saved Gnarly and adopted him. Mac and Robin’s dog got off to a rocky start when Gnarly tried to kill Mac when they first met, but they get along okay now, as long as Mac doesn’t try to sit in Gnarly’s love seat.
Well, I’m running out of time, and I would love to tell you how, with the help of Robin’s journal, this retired cop put all his detective skills to work to pick up where the local police had left off to follow the clues to Katrina’s killer.  But I guess you’re going to have to find that out for yourself. Order your copy of It’s Murder, My Son by author Lauren Carr today.

Thanks for the lowdown, Archie. And thank you, Lauren for offering a copy of It’s Murder, My Son to one of our readers this week. Remember, if you want to be entered in the drawing to win a copy of It’s Murder, My Son, post a comment to the blog. -- AP

Saturday, August 7, 2010

THIS WEEK'S BOOK WINNERS

Thanks to all who stopped by this week at Killer Crafts & Crafty Killers. We hope you'll come back often and also tell your friends about us. We have lots of exciting posts and guests planned for the months ahead. I’d also like to thank Mike Manno for being our Book Club Friday guest author and for offering copies of Murder Most Holy to two of our readers who posted a comment this week. The winners this week are jeff7salter and Jill McCullough. If you'd both please email your mailing addresses to me at anastasiapollack@gmail.com. I’ll forward them to Mike, and he’ll mail your books to you. Happy reading! -- Anastasia

Monday, August 2, 2010

CRAFTS WITH ANASTASIA--GUEST AUTHOR AND CRAFTER CHRISTINE VERSTRAETE


Today, I welcome Christine Verstraete, author and crafter. Along with writing mysteries and short stories, Christine is the author of the children’s book Searching for a Starry Night, A Miniature Art Mystery for ages 9 and up, and is here today to talk about her book and share a miniature craft with us.

Christine is in the middle of a blog tour and is offering some prizes to anyone who comments on her guest posts during the tour. One person will win a Kindle copy of
Searching for a Starry Night. (If you don’t own a Kindle, you can get a free Kindle for PC download.) One person will also win a miniaturized dollhouse collector’s edition of the first chapter from the print edition of Searching for a Starry Night, by miniaturist LeeAnn Borgia. Also, to celebrate the release of the revised Searching for a Starry Night, Christine is offering a copy of the print edition when it becomes available.

Since Christine is choosing the winners herself from various blogs where she’s guest posting, in order to be eligible for one of the prizes, you’ll have to include your email address when you comment today.
-- AP

Anastasia, thanks for welcoming me to your great blog!  Before I get to the craft project, I’d like to tell everyone a little bit about Searching for a Starry Night. In the book Sam, her BFF Lita, and a mischievous dachshund named Petey face a cranky housekeeper, a dog-hating gardener, and an ancient family curse as they search for a missing miniature replica of Van Gogh's famous painting, "Starry Night."

Besides being a writer, I enjoy creating and crafting dollhouse miniatures, so I thought I'd share a simple idea that can be used for dollhouses or for decorating a scrapbook or other project.

Materials:
Cotton fabric with designs to cut out, small scissors, tacky glue, cotton batting, red and silver fine glitter (or desired colors), wood dollhouse furniture (optional), scrapbook paper, box or other project

Directions:

1. Choose a fabric with designs in the size you want to cut out. Since I wanted to use this for a smaller scale Halloween dollhouse, I chose a smaller print fabric.

2. Cut out the design, leaving a slight edge all around that will be glued. Cut a second piece from same design or coordinating fabric for the back.

3. Starting with the front piece, dot top edge of wrong side with tacky glue. Position over wrong side of bottom layer. Hold in place with fingers until glue sets.

4. Tuck a small piece of cotton batting between two layers of fabric.

5. Add dots of tacky glue around wrong side of remaining edges. Hold in place, making sure edges match, until glue sets.

6. After glue is set, dot tacky glue around perimeter edges of front. Sprinkle with fine glitter. Allow to dry.

7. If you're not using this project for a dollhouse pillow, the finished piece can be used as a 3D decoration for a scrapbook page, photo album, a letter, decorative jewelry box, etc. Use your imagination!

(Design, photos and project © 2010 C. Verstraete. Cannot be duplicated or reprinted without written permission.)

Thanks for joining us today, Christine!
Remember, if you want to be eligible for the prizes Christine is offering, don’t forget to include your email address in your comment today. 
-- AP

Friday, July 23, 2010

BOOK CLUB FRIDAY -- GUEST AUTHOR BETH GROUNDWATER AND AMATEUR SLEUTH CLAIRE HANOVER


Today's Book Club Friday guest is Claire Hanover, owner of a part-time gift basket business in Colorado Springs, CO, and the creation of mystery author Beth Groundwater. In addition to the two already published Claire Hanover books and a new contracted third one, Beth writes the Rocky Mountain Adventure mystery series featuring whitewater river ranger Mandy Tanner. That series will debut with Deadly Currents in March, 2011. To find out about new releases and appearances and to enter a contest for free mystery books, sign up for Beth's email newsletter at her website: http://bethgroundwater.com/ -- AP

Claire Hanover’s Tips for Creating an Effective Gift Basket

Anastasia Pollack has kindly invited me to give her blog readers some tips about making effective gift baskets. I can tell you that after the adventures I had in Beth Groundwater’s To Hell in a Handbasket, I am ready to return to my basement workroom and just create gift baskets for a while!

One of the gift baskets I put together during that time was a sympathy basket for Angela Contino, whose daughter was killed on a Breckenridge, Colorado ski slope. Here’s what I remember of a conversation between my daughter Judy and me about that basket:

“Thank you cards and a pen won’t fill a basket,” Judy said. “What else do you have in mind?”

“Some soothing things, like scented candles or a book of uplifting poems. Are the Continos religious?”

“Catholic. Nick doesn’t go to church much, but his mom attends mass every Sunday.”

“Okay, some religious poetry or a book about taking your grief to God, or something like that. And some soft music. A gift basket should have something for every sense—taste, smell, sight, touch, and sound. What kind of music do Nick’s parents enjoy?”

Judy thought for a moment. “Classical, I think.”

“Good, I’ll ask at the stationary store where we can find some nice CDs.”

This conversation covers two of my most important guidelines for creating gift baskets that will be appreciated and remembered. The first is to really know the recipient’s interests and tastes. That way you can tailor the basket’s contents to match, the same way I took into account Angela Contino’s Catholic religion and enjoyment of classical music. The second guideline is to include something for all the senses. The music was for Angela’s ears, the scented candle for her nose, and later I found some soothing chamomile herb tea for her mouth.

I usually pick one main color and two complementary accent colors for each gift basket. In this case, I found a dyed wicker basket that matched the colors in the Contino ski house living room so the basket could be used to hold reading materials later. They have a dark green leather sofa and stone-inlaid coffee table and fireplace, so dark green, gray, and brick red were the colors woven into the basket. I also used those colors for the decorations—a fancy bow and dried flowers, and for the lining, a soft, woven wrap scarf that could be used to warm a grieving woman or to drape decoratively over a chair later.

The basket couldn’t take away Angela Contino’s grief, but it let her know that we were thinking of her. It may have brought her some comfort, and it contained useful items such as the pen and thank you cards that she could use in the days ahead. And, while delivering that basket to the Contino home, I happened to discover an important clue to the mystery of who killed Stephanie and why!

With gift baskets, it is truly the thought that counts. I encourage everyone to put together gift baskets for special occasions, and don’t worry about it looking amateurish. To read the rest of my Tips for Making Perfect Gift Baskets, visit the Articles page of Beth Groundwater’s website at http://bethgroundwater.com/ . Also on her website are reviews, excerpts, discussion questions, and more information about her books, and a schedule of her appearances. She writes a blog, too, at http://bethgroundwater.blogspot.com/ .

I’d love to answer here any questions you have about gift baskets, and Beth will be available, too, to answer questions about her mystery books and writing.

You can purchase To Hell in a Handbasket and A Real Basket Case by ordering them at your local bookstore, or by going to one of the following links:
Thanks for visiting today, Claire. Gift baskets make such lovely, thoughtful presents. I’m sure our readers will want to try making one the next time they need to give a gift. -- AP

Saturday, July 17, 2010

THIS WEEK'S BOOK WINNER

Thanks to all who stopped by this week at Killer Crafts & Crafty Killers. We hope you'll come back often and also tell your friends about us. We have lots of exciting posts and guests planned for the months ahead. I’d also like to thank Sheila Lowe for being our Book Club Friday guest author and for offering a copy of one of her books to one of our readers who posted a comment this week. The winner this week is Pennyt. Pennyt, please email your mailing address to me at anastasiapollack@gmail.com. I’ll forward your address to Sheila, and she’ll mail your book to you. Happy reading! -- Anastasia

Saturday, July 3, 2010

THIS WEEK'S BOOK WINNER

Thanks to all who stopped by this week at Killer Crafts & Crafty Killers. We hope you'll come back often and also tell your friends about us. We have lots of exciting posts and guests planned for the months ahead. I’d also like to thank Cricket McRae for being our Book Club Friday guest author and for offering a copy of Something Borrowed, Something Bleu to one of our readers who posted a comment this week. The winner this week is Crystal. Crystal, please email your mailing address to me at anastasiapollack@gmail.com. I’ll forward your address to Cricket, and she’ll mail your book to you. Happy reading! -- Anastasia

Saturday, June 19, 2010

Thanks to all who stopped by this week at Killer Crafts & Crafty Killers. We hope you'll come back often and also tell your friends about us. We have lots of exciting posts and guests planned for the months ahead. I’d also like to thank Mary Kennedy for being our Book Club Friday guest author yesterday and offering a copy of each book in her Talk Radio series to one of our readers who posted a comment this week. The winner this week is Janet. Janet, please email your mailing address to me at anastasiapollack@gmail.com. I’ll forward your address to Rob, and he’ll mail your book to you. Happy reading! -- Anastasia