ROME AGAIN - GOOD TIMES, OLD TREASURES AND NEW ACQUISITIONS

You know I live near Rome and that I love being a tourist from time to time in the city where I used to study at university. I love Rome also because I can meet very special friends there with whom I share several interests and little pleasures . They often help me to discover hidden treasures and interesting sites which make our capital surprisingly gem-set.  My latest trips to Rome were to see The Hobbit with my son and , not long before,  I had been there for the talk Juliet Gael gave at the Keats and Shelley Memorial House in Piazza di Spagna about her books on The Brontës  and The Shelleys (see my post)

Port Isaac - Cornwall

This time the occasion for going at the weekend was meeting my friends for a "premiere". No red carpet for my friend Louise 's film project based on our adventures in South - West England last summer , but lots of laughs and final applause. I can't translate the funny title she gave her work, I really can't. I can only admit the project was definitely entertaining and crammed of good memories and unforgettable moments. We laughed a lot watching and commenting  the images,  after we had appreciated our host  K/V 's delicious dinner and exchanged  little post-Christmas gifts.

GIVEAWAY WINNERS ANNOUNCEMENT

Two giveaway contests are over today and I'm here to quickly announce the names of the three lucky winners. 

Two copies of the first book to give away, a paperback for US readers and an e-book for international readers (or US who prefers the e-version) of  Sally Smith O'Rourke,   Christmas at Sea Pines Cottage: 

- Susan Heim wins the paperback copy  

- Stephanie will get the e-book version of the book

The winner of the second giveway contest could choose between two different e-books by Marilyn Brant. 

Erika Messer wins and has chosen  Marilyn Brant ' s Double Dipping   

Many grateful thanks to Sally Smith O'Rourke and Marilyn Brant for being my kind guests and granting free copies of their works for the giveaway contests.

Thanks to all the readers who commented and took part in them!

AT THE CINEMA - THE HOBBIT: AN UNEXPECTED PLEASURE

As usual what you find here is just a very personal approach to the movie and nothing like a professional review. So, get ready to my very subjective vision of a film I just wanted to see for Thorin Oakenshield, or better  Richard Armitage. or go to the end of the post for a link to a proper review. I wouldn't mind you reading my post at all, if you have a few minutes, though. 

After waiting for a couple of years and after booking a ticket to see it with my friends in Rome as soon as it came out,  I was really disappointed when I felt sick overnight and had to give up going.

I was, however , very happy to go and see it later on with the Tolkien expert in my family, my elder son , who wanted to see it again with me in the English version after watching it in Italian with his friends.

AUTHOR GUEST POST: MARILYN BRANT, MEMORIES AND HOLIDAY CELEBRATIONS + GIVEAWAY

Marilyn Brant's newest novel is out and she's visiting to share her memories of past holidays. Read her enjoyable piece and take your chance to win a copy of her previously published romances.  The giveaway details are at the end of the post. Good luck and happy holidays, everyone.

I love holidays and special celebrations! Before my son was born, I used to be an elementary school teacher who loved nothing more than traveling and learning about new cultures. (Anyone who read my last women's fiction book, A Summer in Europe, already knows how much that's true, especially when it comes to traveling in beautiful Italy!! *waving to Maria Grazia*) Well, as the teacher of my classes, I would lead my students through social studies units on topics like “communities” or “cultures," which always led to discussions -- especially during the holidays -- about “celebrations around the world.” And, since I was also really fond of films like Bing Crosby's and Fred Astaire's "Holiday Inn" (one of the inspirations for my newest novel, Holiday Man, which is a contemporary romance that takes place over a year of holidays), I couldn't imagine what could be more fun than the idea of creating and celebrating holidays! These days, I might find myself chuckling about the goofy paper mache projects and plates filled with international appetizers my students and I made, but the truth is that always really loved teaching these units. They were so enjoyable. And, above all, my classes not only loved them, but they always learned a lot in the process.

HAPPY CHRISTMAS TIME!

THE LADIES' PARADISE BY EMILE ZOLA - BOOK REVIEW

The Ladies' Paradise is a compelling story of ambition and love set against the backdrop of the spectacular rise of the department store in 1860s Paris. Octave Mouret is a business genius who transforms a modest draper's shop into a hugely successful retail enterprise, masterfully exploiting the desires of his female customers and ruining small competitors along the way. Through the eyes of trainee salesgirl Denise we see the inner workings of the store and the relations and intrigues among the staff, human dramas played out alongside the relentless pursuit of commercial supremacy. 

My review 
(beware of spoilers! ) I came to read this book after watching the BBC adaptation, The Paradise, which gave the story a British setting. The series  scriptwriters worked many changes on the original text, which usually disturb people fond of literary classics, but not me and not in this case. I think they quite  improved both plot and   characterization,  instead.

Zola's text aims to depict  the department store, The Ladies' Paradise, as an ambiguous symbol of progress:

"It helped women to establish themselves historically in the public sphere, and it may appear to have increased the customer's power and autonomy; but, as Zola shows, the new codes of social behaviour and social discourses which it entailed for the shopper simultaneously organized a powerful network of constraints, providing a mere illusion of freedom and fulfilment. The department store, in its embodiment of consumer culture, was - and is - a giant, precision-made dream-machine" (Brian Nelson)

The department store is a model of the new capitalism, designed to seduce more than to supply. The mechanisms of seduction described in the text are numerous: the policy of free entry, the establishment of fixed prices, the system of returns, the seduction of the eye with an almost "orgiastic" display. To create the need, to awake new desires is the main philosophy at The Ladies' Paradise.  

KELLY ORAM, "V IS FOR VIRGIN" BLOG TOUR + GIVEAWAY

This Year’s Sexiest Man Alive!

Sure his voice is like honey and his smile could cause cardiac arrest, but it’s his confidence and determination that have earned Kyle Hamilton the title of this year’s Sexiest Man Alive.

“It’s as simple as knowing what you want and not stopping until you get it,” Kyle told us when asked we asked what the secret of his success was. Well, there’s no arguing with that when he led his band to platinum status at just seventeen.

And if his passion for his music isn’t enough to make you swoon, the closet romantic also loves to funnel all of that ambition into matters of the heart. On the subject of his notorious pursuit of “Virgin” Val Jensen he had only one thing to say, “Faint heart never won fair maiden!”

 Kelly Oram

The author  

Kelly Oram wrote her first novel at age fifteen–a fan fiction about her favorite music group, The Backstreet Boys, for which family and friends still tease her. She's obsessed with reading, talks way too much, and loves to eat frosting by the spoonful. She lives outside of Phoenix, Arizona with her husband and four children.

Links 

Blog: http://www.kellyoram.com/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/kellyoram

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Kelly-Oram/167476866620455

Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/3203095.Kelly_Oram

EIGHT CHRISTMAS QUESTIONS FOR SALLY SMITH O’ROURKE - BOOK GIVEAWAY

    Author Sally Smith O'Rourke  is my guest today, ready to share her Christmas favourite things, memories and even recipes! There's a double giveaway of her Christmas novella, too. Enjoy the interview, read the giveaway details  and  ... good luck, everyone!

1.       What do you like best and what the least of Christmas time?

Gatherings of friends and family most but I love the decorations. I decorate every room. Someone once said being in my house at Christmas is like stepping into Macy’s windows. I love the smell of a live tree and spicy, sweet smells of cookies baking.

 There are two things about Christmas that I find difficult. Retail; in the ‘olden’ days stores would spend Thanksgiving decorating for Christmas so everything was festive the next day. Now that day is ‘Black Friday’ and people get hurt in the rush to buy stuff. Now, too the decorations go up before Halloween taking much of the fun and festiveness out of it. I prefer to celebrate one holiday at a time.

 The most difficult for me is not having Mike, my late husband, to share it with. He loved all holidays. I love to cook and he loved to entertain so our house was always filled with food, friends and family during the holidays (and not the holidays). I hate that he is no longer here with me.

2.     What are your favourite …

 a.       Christmas movie  

The Bishop’s Wife with Cary Grant, Loretta Young and David Niven

AIDAN TURNER AND ROBERT SHEEHAN, YOUNG TALENTS FROM THE EMERALD ISLE

Will they become as popular and universally acknowledged as Liam Neeson, Colin Farrell,   Pierce Brosnan, Gabriel Byrne, Ciaran Hinds and  Jonathan Rhys Meyers? All these fascinating men share their talent at acting and their being Irish. All of them made it in the movie industry,  getting to a huge popularity. Will Aidan Turner and Robert Sheehan, young, Irish and talented, make it too? I'd say, they've got great chances and , in fact, they are already on their way to stardom. I bet you'll soon hear of them if you haven't yet.

EIGHT CHRISTMAS QUESTIONS FOR ... CAROLE MATTHEWS , AUTHOR OF WITH LOVE AT CHRISTMAS

Hello Carole and welcome back to FLY HIGH! This time we talk Christmas. Are you ready? What do you like best and what the least of Christmas time?

I love all the decorations and dressing the house for Christmas. I least like how crowded all the shops are and that I can never find quite the right gift!

What are your favourite …

 Christmas movie - The Muppet Christmas Carol. Christmas can really start once Kermit has been on the     television

 Christmas book -  Has to be A Christmas Carol again. By Dickens this time though!

 Christmas song - Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas  by Judy Garland

 Christmas decoration - I love to get a real Christmas tree. The bigger, the better

 Christmas traditional dish/food? I love all Christmas food. It’s my diet downfall. Now that I write Christmassy books, I start eating mince pies in July.

When and how  did you decide to write your novel  “With Love at Christmas”?

I wrote a book a few years ago called That Loving Feeling which featured a really great family, the Joyces. When I decided to write a family-based Christmas book, they seemed like the ideal characters. So it was really nice to pick up with them again. It’s not a sequel, we just catch up with the family two years later as they’re approaching Christmas.

READING THE HOBBIT IN SEARCH FOR THORIN - PART IV

Richard Armitage as Thorin  smiling at his Lego alter ego

The hammering press campaign of these days, the several premieres all over the world, the many interviews and the huge amount of new pictures must have involved fans in an incredible  whirlpool of frenzy,  leading to the long-waited-for moment: the release of The Hobbit - An Unexpected Journey,  film I in the new trilogy by Peter Jackson. It's time to close the book and get ready to watch the adaptation, the result of  almost two years  of detailed, talented, thoughtful,  creative work.

My reading of the book in search for Thorin must be completed, then,  in a couple of days, I too will see the film. 
I want to be clear again with any Tolkien fan  who might find themselves to drop by and read this: I undertook this journey through the book as a complete Tolkien newbie and only in order to follow the career of my favourite actor, Richard Armitage,  who is now  for many Thorin Oakenshield in The Hobbit, but will always remain Mr Thornton for me. 

This is my final post about the book, written leafing through chapters XI - XIX in  search for Thorin Oakenshield.  My previous posts are HERE, HERE and HERE. 
Time to get ready to compare the book with the movie. It's just a matter of hours for the majority of us now. 
For Thorin and his warrior dwarves it is instead time to meet the terrifying dragon Smaug. Is Bilbo ready to face him and steal the treasure Thorin claims back?

Warning!!! Huge spoilers ahead

FREE AT KINDLE STORE - THE WEDDING SHROUD BY ELISABETH STORRS

Don't miss the chance to get this wonderful e- book for free December 11 - 12!

CLICK HERE

'All the drama and sensuality of an historical romance, plus a sensitivity to the realities of life in a very different time and world...' Ursula Le Guin

In 406 BC, to seal a tenuous truce, the young Roman Caecilia is wedded to Vel Mastarna, an Etruscan nobleman from the city of Veii. The fledgling Republic lies only twelve miles across the Tiber from its neighbour, but the cities are from opposing worlds so different are their customs and beliefs. Leaving behind a righteous Rome, Caecilia is determined to remain true to Roman virtues while living among the sinful Etruscans. Instead she finds herself tempted by a hedonistic culture which offers pleasure and independence to women as well as an ancient religion that gives her a chance to delay her destiny. Yet Mastarna and his people also hold dark secrets and, as war looms, Caecilia discovers that Fate is not so easy to control and that she must finally choose where her allegiance lies.

Exploring themes of sexuality, destiny versus self-determination and tolerance versus prejudice, The Wedding Shroud is historical fiction at its best which vividly brings Ancient Rome and Etruria to life while accenting the lives of women in ancient history.

Read my review (the giveaway contest is now closed)

Read my interview with Elisabeth Storrs

TROUBLE WON'T WAIT BY AUTUMN PIPER - BLOG TOUR : AUTHOR GUEST POST + REVIEW + GIVEAWAY

Hi. Thanks for having me today.

Traditional literature has certain typecasts for characters: Villain, evil. Hero, good. Staying inside these boundaries helps an author ensure her readers will dislike the bad guy and like her good guy/girl.

My characters tend to misbehave, though. In Trouble Won’t Wait, hating Mandy’s husband Mike from the start is easy—after all, he broke a sacred vow of marriage. And yet, as the story goes on, he’s not quite so hate-able. At times, it’s even easy to feel bad for the guy who did something really rotten, and still has a few bonehead moments, but underneath it all is a good man. Staying angry with him is also difficult for Mandy, which complicates her plight. And I have to confess, having a not-all-bad “bad guy” flustered some of the ladies in my romance critique group. But life isn’t always all straight lines and clean cuts, is it?

Giveaways! 

Have you ever empathized with a villain? If you leave a comment and share who, you’ll be entered into a drawing to win a digital copy (PDF, EPUB or Kindle) of Trouble Won’t Wait. An Amazon gift card of $15 will be awarded to one lucky commenter from Buy The Book Tours  Media Page at the end of the 8 week book tour.

Have a great day.

Autumn Piper

DICKENS 2012 - THE LIFE AND ADVENTURES OF NICK NICKLEBY

“Happiness is a gift and the trick is not to expect it, but to delight in it when it comes.” ― Charles Dickens, Nicholas Nickleby

Have you seen Nick Nickleby? I don't think many of you had the chance to meet the lovely boy, actually. Watching the 5-part modernization of Charles Dickens' s classic of which he was the protagonist was not for anyone . The Life and Adventures of Nick Nickleby was on at daytime , which doesn't usually  and obviously  get big audiences. That was a pity, because it was a really good one.
You know I wouldn't miss an adaptation of a classic for nothing in the world, so I wanted to see this new one too and, fortunately, I did it. But most people could not, since they couldn't be at home on weekdays at 2.15 p.m.

ALL I WANT. BOOK BLAST - WIN A $50 AMAZON GIFT CARD OR PAYPAL CASH

ALL I WANT

THREE STORIES. THREE COUPLES. ONE HOLIDAY.

Pretty Near Perfect
by Jolene Perry

The last thing Norah needs is to be attracted to anyone – especially in her deceased fiancé's parents' home. Collin’s starting a new career, and has no business getting involved – especially while staying with his roommate’s family, who very kindly offered to take him in for the holidays. Unfortunately, you just don’t always pick the most convenient time and place to fall for someone.

Six Days of Christmas

by Kaylee Baldwin

When Natalie goes home with her best friend for Christmas, she expects plenty of quiet time to work on a winning ad so she can turn her dream internship into her dream job. Instead, she gets time-consuming Christmas festivities, a house full of children, and Jimmy, her best friend’s brother - someone who makes her question everything she’s always thought she wanted.

Twist of Fate
by Rachael Anderson

When a postcard meant for Kenzie winds up in Ty's mailbox, Ty's faced with a decision. Should he tell her that her fiancé is breaking up with her and let it ruin her favorite holiday, or should he do what he’s wanted to do since he met her - make a move and hope that he can win her over before she discovers there won’t be a wedding after all.

Purchase All I Want

Kindle Ebook * Paperback

BOOK LOVERS' HOLIDAY GIVEAWAY HOP - WIN THE HOBBIT AN UNEXPECTED JOURNEY VISUAL COMPANION

Welcome to Book Lovers' Holiday Giveaway Hop! Fist of all I want to thank Kathy at  I am a Reader not a Writer and Chapter by Chapter blog for hosting a new great blog hop.

Check the list of sites participating below my post in order to get all the chances to win great prizes and enjoy all the fun possible. The prize I've chosen for you, my readers,  and for  all those who will drop by and enter the giveaway contest  is The Hobbit  - An unexpected journey Visual Companion.

This official tie-in photo guidebook is packed with exclusive photographs and in-depth text offering a sneak peek at the highly anticipated new film The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, directed by Peter Jackson coming out in 10 days. 

Fill in the rafflecopter form below, one entry is compulsory, the others are optionals. I'll suggest you to take as many chances as possible to win this great book. The contest is open internationally and ends on December 10th.

FIRST TIME BLOG TOUR: WRITING & TIME TRAVELLING BY SAMUEL BEN WHITE - GIVEAWAY!

It has been said that all writing is time travel.  Even the coverage of last Friday’s football game is time travel in that it attempts to take the reader back to last Friday night.  Whether we’re writing about past events or futuristic happenings, we’re trying to take the reader to a place and a time where they aren’t.

I know that’s not what people want to know about when they ask me questions of time travel.  As an author of time travel novels (find them at www.garisonfitch.com) people want to know if I really think it’s possible for people to travel through time.  “What about the physics?”  Or, “Wouldn’t you need to exceed the speed of light, which science says is impossible?”

Those questions are interesting and I’ve waded through some scientific tomes on the subject (like Brian Greene’s “The Elegant Universe”) and have touched on them in my stories, but what fascinates me most of all—and what I’ve tried to write passionately enough about to excite my readers—is the human story of time travel.  “If it’s possible, what would it do to ME?”

SPOTLIGHT ON PHILIPPA JANE KEYWORTH'S THE WIDOW'S REDEEMER

Philippa Jane Keyworth's debut novel is out today: The Widow's Redeemer.  If you like me, love historical fiction novels, you are invited to discover more about her Regency novel and about herself. Read the excerpt, watch  her video presentation and visit her links. Enjoy!

Book Blurb

“Does she have no thought to propriety?”

“No, aunt, I cannot lie to you. I do not think she does.”

A penniless young widow with an indomitable spirit. A wealthy viscount with an unsavory reputation.

London, 1815: After her husband’s untimely death, Letty Burton comes up from the country with her domineering mother-in-law. Hiding a past she wishes to forget and facing an uncertain future, all she wants is to navigate London Society as a silent companion. A chance meeting with London’s most eligible bachelor sets in motion a series of events that will bring her quiet life under the unfriendly scrutiny of the ton. With the net of scandal, debts, and rivals closing in, will she let her dark past dictate her life forever? Will she learn to trust again? And most importantly, will she allow herself to love?