A Slight Change of Plan - Teaser Tuesday

I adored A SLIGHT CHANGE OF PLAN and couldn't put it down! Author Dee Ernst kept me laughing and wondering what was going to happen next. 

When Kate quits her job and moves into a condo, her new digs seem perfect for one person, until ….
And the new job she has accepted seems just right for this stage of her life, until …
Then when she reconnects with an old love on a dating website, things seem to be going well, until….
Dee Ernst tackles all these situations with wisdom, warmth, and wit. This is a book I'll read more than once.


I'm stretching my Teaser to three sentences:
My husband, Adam, had died of a sudden heart attack. I was over the pain of his loss and had been quite content in my singlehood. But lately I really wanted somebody who was happy to see me when I got home who didn't have a separate water bowl.
(From 1% on my Kindle.)

Genre: Contemporary Women's Fiction
Length: 352 Pages 
Amazon Link: A SLIGHT CHANGE OF PLAN
Other Books by This Author: HERE.

Goodreads Synopsis:
      Kate Everett is about to begin her “second act.” She’s been a widow for eight years and thinks it might be time to start looking for someone to share her life with again. She quits her high-pressure job for something that will allow her more leisure time. She gets rid of the huge family home and moves into a fabulous condo that’s smaller and easier to manage. She’s pretty much got the rest of her life figured out. All she has to do is sit back, relax, and let the pieces fall into place.
      But her real life never gets the memo. First, her son moves back in with her—along with his girlfriend. Her dream job falls through, leaving her unemployed. Her mother, whom she hadn’t spoken to in years, can no longer live alone and has to move into her basement. And her only daughter is planning the smallest and simplest wedding in the history of all weddings, much to Kate’s dismay.
      Kate thinks that she and Jake, her former college love who has reemerged on an online dating site, of all places, can build something real, and that maybe her happy ending is in front of her at last. But the arrival of Edward, her daughter’s future father-in-law, presents Kate with an unexpected choice. 
      It looks like real happiness may require a slight change of plan.

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

• Grab your current read
• Open to a random page
• Share two (2) "teaser" sentences from somewhere on that page
• BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn't give too much away -- you don't want to ruin the book for others)
• Share the title and author too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR lists if they like your teasers
• Leave a comment on MizB's Teaser Tuesday post (HERE) and include your link so everyone can find your post.

BLUEBONNETS FOR ELLY in Paperback

 NEWS FLASH *** NEWS FLASH *** NEWS FLASH

I just received word from my publisher Sweet Cravings Publishing that BLUEBONNETS FOR ELLY is now available in paperback as well as ebook formats.

To purchase, click on one of the links below:

Amazon

CreateSpace

Saturday Snapshots - Fifty Shades of Green

Even though I enjoy the glorious azaleas, rhododendrons, tulips, and other flowers and trees that bloom in springtime, there's nothing quite as dramatic as the myriad shades of green when the trees bud on the hillsides near my home. I took these pictures along the Green River in Kent, Washington. Click on photos to enlarge.

Soccer fields on Green River Road, Kent, WA

Green River, Kent, WA

Saturday Snapshots is hosted by West Metro Mommy Reads. To view more photos from around the world or to participate yourself, click HERE.

Rescue My Heart - Book Beginnings on Friday and The Friday 56

Some of the most delightful books I've read lately have featured dogs in their plots, including RESCUE MY HEART by Jean C. Joachim. As you can guess from the cover, her story features an adorable pug. His name is Baxter, he's a rescue dog, and he plays an important part in this story. 

With New York City as the setting and a hunky, bicycle-riding veterinarian as the hero, this first book in the "Manhattan Dinner Club" series is a great read. Ms. Joachim's sense of humor adds an extra element, too. The insulting nicknames she comes up with for the veterinarian's ultra-skinny girlfriend will keep you chuckling throughout the book.  

Book Beginning:
It came at her suddenly, out of nowhere. Rory Sampson leapt out of the way of the speeding bike and onto the grass, yanking her pug, Baxter, with her.

Friday 56 (from 56% on my Kindle):
I wish I could put the pillow over my head, take it off, and have it be May, have Alfred well, and Miss Cardboard shipped off to Alaska. Time to face reality. Rory picked up the phone.
(FYI: Miss Cardboard is one of those insults I mentioned. *Giggle*)

Genre: Contemporary Romance
Length: 206 Pages
Amazon Link: Rescue My Heart
Other Books by This Author: Jean Joachim Books

*********

Anyone can participate in Book Beginnings and Friday 56. 

   Click here to connect to other Book Beginnings posts  

   (sponsored by Rose City Reader)

   Find other Friday 56 bloggers here 
   (sponsored by Freda's Voice) 
                           

Loving Chloe - Teaser Tuesday

Back in February, I read and thoroughly enjoyed HANK AND CHLOE and featured the book on my blog (here). So when a friend asked if I'd like to borrow her copy of the sequel, I jumped at the chance. Although LOVING CHLOE stands alone, I recommend reading HANK AND CHLOE first, mainly because the characters are so interesting, as are their stories. The Arizona setting and Native American connections are essential to both books and give them added meaning and depth. 

Here's my Teaser from Page 121.
Was the baby all right? She tried to remember if it had cried, but of the birth in the Johnsons' living room she recalled only bits and pieces: Corrine's soothing voice, her hand on Chloe's calf, the television on some game show, Hank's face pressed close to her own, as she struggled to push out of her body what felt like a full-grown horse.

Genre: Contemporary Women's Fiction
Length: 347 Pages (Trade Paperback)
Amazon Link: Loving Chloe

Synopsis from Goodreads:
When thirty-four-year-old Chloe Morgan appears on Hank Oliver's doorstep in Cameron, Arizona, she arrives with more than her old white German shepherd, Hannah, and a rambunctious young horse in tow. Chloe is pregnant with Hank's child, and she's as tough-talking and vulnerable, skittish and tender as when last we saw her in Jo-Ann Mapson's acclaimed first novel, Hank & Chloe. As Chloe and Hank settle somewhat uneasily into domesticity, a local Navajo legend named Junior Whitebear returns home to collect his father's ashes and renew his own spirit after years spent in the art-world fast lane. When Junior arrives at the reservation, he doesn't expect to find a son he fathered unwittingly nine years ago; nor is he looking to fall in love with Chloe and to deliver her baby girl. Both events change his life, and the lives of those around him, forever. A passionate love story, Loving Chloe explores the emotional complexity of a love triangle with sympathy, humor, and compassion.

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

• Grab your current read
• Open to a random page
• Share two (2) "teaser" sentences from somewhere on that page
• BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn't give too much away -- you don't want to ruin the book for others)
• Share the title and author too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR lists if they like your teasers
• Leave a comment on MizB's Teaser Tuesday post (HERE) and include your link so everyone can find your post.

Saturday Snapshots - Easter Treats (or Easter Threats?)

With Easter coming up, it seemed like a good time to post a few related photos. The first two were taken in Salzburg, Austria (if I'm remembering correctly) during a vacation several years ago. We couldn't believe the array of eggs filling this shop's windows. Looks like the Easter bunny worked overtime here.

And here's a blast from the past. I'm sure my parents thought we'd enjoy a visit with an Easter bunny, but those giant mutant critters are scary! We look kind of uncertain, don't we? (I'm the blonde--front and center.)

                     

For more photos from all over the world, link to West Metro Mommy Reads, the host of Saturday Snapshot: West Metro Mommy Reads

  

Weekend Writing Warriors #5 - Mrs. Bagley

Since I've started participating in Weekend Writing Warriors, I've been introducing the characters in my book BLUEBONNETS FOR ELLY. These snippets will hopefully provide a snapshot of each person. Today you'll meet a villain -- Mrs. Bagley. She's the President of the homeowners' association for Sunset Acres Mobile Home Village (for residents over age 55), and she's a major pain. Her mission in life is to make sure all the HOA rules of the Geriatric Gestapo are enforced.

By the way, I took this picture at a senior mobile home community near my home. I had fun with Photoshop, trying to make the picture look a little less like a snapshot and a little more like "art."

Mrs. Bagley is speaking first in this excerpt:

     "Our homeowners' association has a rule that young people can visit for one month, then they have to go--one month. I assume you're aware of that restriction?"
     Elly searched her mind for the right response. She wondered if the Bagley woman knew how long she'd been living with Granny.
     "Yes, ma'am," Elly answered, limiting her response to as few words as possible.
     "Well, just so you know. We won't tolerate any breaking or bending of our covenants." She fixed Elly with a glare, her forehead ribbed with rows of wrinkles.
     Elly clamped her teeth together, holding back the rude retort that came to mind.

***

Writers hanging out with writers -- a good time with a great group of people. Check out excerpts from other Weekend Writing Warriors HERE. 

Saturday Snapshots - More Coffee, Please

When my husband and I went on a photo safari of our area (Seattle suburbs) to find more coffee kiosks, we came up with quite a few! So I'm continuing last week's post. This time we tried to capture the surroundings where the shops are situated. The photos I've posted were taken around two o'clock in the afternoon, and only one of the baristas had a customer (Sweet Cheeks Espresso). I hope these little independent businesses are able to survive. 

     (Click on photos to enlarge.)

Java 2 Go is located in the parking lot of a closed ARCO gas station. 

Heather's Coffee Shop is next to an auto detail business and
across the road from car dealerships.

Baristas "World Famous Costume Coffee" is right outside
the door of the Royal "A" Motel.
Between you and me, this wouldn't be my first choice for lodging.

We found Jump Shot Espresso in the parking lot
of a small shopping center.

There's an antique store right across the parking lot
from Sweet Cheeks Espresso. (Bikini baristas.)

On this beautiful day Mount Rainier was out in all its glory.
We never get tired of seeing it!

Here's the link to my earlier posting of coffee kiosks: HERE

I hope you enjoyed another tour of the coffee emporiums in my little area of the Pacific Northwest. One of these days I'll stop by and do taste tests of their offerings!

Link to West Metro Mommy Reads, the host of Saturday Snapshot, for connections to more beautiful photos: West Metro Mommy Reads

Teaser Tuesday - Snow Fence Road

I'm only partway into SNOW FENCE ROAD, and I'm loving it. The descriptions of the small town in Maine are beautiful, the characters are intriguing, and the plot and subplots have captured me. I've also found the book to be free of typographical and grammatical errors, which is always appreciated.  

Teaser (from 1% on my Kindle):
As he nosed the car into the Inn's lot, Evan saw Claire coming out the side door from the kitchen, hurrying away from the sprawling old wooden structure at her brisk pace, auburn curls tossing in the March breeze. He'd once teased her that she had "two speeds--here and gone." 

Isn't that a great description of a character?

Genre: Women's Fiction/Romance
Length: 169 Pages
Amazon Link: Snow Fence Road

Synopsis from Goodreads:
A village on the coast of Maine holds painful secrets- the kind only the miracle of new love can heal. Tormented by her fiance's death, Tess Johansen escapes to the only place that can still comfort her-the Spinnaker Inn in coastal Maine. Here in this place by the sea she feels close enough to the man she lost to numb the pain, if not the guilt. For local craftsman, Evan Marston, the ramshackle inn serves only as a grim reminder of the accident that shattered his life and killed the woman he once loved. But while the Spinnaker's walls may hold guilt and grief and suspicion, they might also house a bright new spark. Drawn together by a love they never expected, Tess and Evan begin to unravel the mysteries of their pasts and question the miracle at work in their wounded hearts-until one fateful evening along a snow fence road.

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

• Grab your current read
• Open to a random page
• Share two (2) "teaser" sentences from somewhere on that page
• BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn't give too much away -- you don't want to ruin the book for others)
• Share the title and author too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR lists if they like your teasers
• Leave a comment on MizB's Teaser Tuesday post (HERE) and include your link so everyone can find your post.

Weekend Writing Warriors #4- Granny

Granny Macauley wins my prize for character that was the most fun to write in BLUEBONNETS FOR ELLY. She's up for just about anything and has a zest for life. In this 8-sentence excerpt, Granny and her granddaughter Elly are celebrating at a local restaurant. Granny speaks first and places her order.

     “I'd like the rib eye—well done—and a baked potato with all the fixin’s. First, please, bring me a Cosmopolitan.”
     Elly stared across the table at her grandmother's sparkling eyes, placed her own order, and then asked, “A Cosmopolitan?”
     “Yep. Ever since I saw those girls on Sex and the City drinking Cosmopolitans, I've wanted to try one.” She chuckled and whispered. “I have no notion what it is.”

***

Writers hanging out with writers -- a good time with a great group of people. Check out excerpts from other Weekend Writing Warriors HERE. 

Photo Attribution:
By Rick A. (rick) (Flickr) [CC-BY-2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons

Snapshot Saturday - Coffee+Pacific Northwest

Seattle and Coffee. 
It's true. There's a coffee kiosk on just about every corner in my part of the world. Even with a population of only 70,000 people, the small Washington town where I live has dozens of drive-thru coffee shops. Here are photos of a few that thrive just a few miles from my home.



Link to West Metro Mommy Reads, the host of Saturday Snapshot, for connections to more beautiful photos: West Metro Mommy Reads

BigFoot Java - a local coffee chain

This structure ("Cowgirls Coffee") is actually shaped like a tea kettle (see the handle on the right?)
I couldn't get a photo of the whole thing, including the spout, without risking my life in traffic!

In case you can't decipher it, that says "Bikini Baristas."

Looks homey, doesn't it? The drive-thru is around back.

Brownie Camera Photo: By NotFromUtrecht (Own work) [CC-BY-SA-3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)], via Wikimedia Commons