June 10th

Hi, It’s Christina –

Today’s blog is going to be completely different than any other blog I’ve done before. This morning, before I even took my second swallow of coffee, I was issued a challenge, a gauntlet was thrown and crazy me picked it up.

The challenge was issued by my friend Keith, better known in the writing world as K. Edwin Fritz, author of stories which will keep you up at night. He just published the second installment in his Man Hunt trilogy. Keith is an amazing writer, and even though I tend to avoid horror at all cost, he has such a way with words, I tolerate being terrified so I can read his work.

Well, here’s what my friend got me into:

Meet My Main Character Blog Tour

1) What is the name of your main character? Is he/ she fictional or a historic person?

The main characters in A Second Chance are Kathryn and Graydon. They are both fictional characters in a historical setting.

2) When and where is the story set?

The story is split between rural England and London in 1804.

3) What should we know about him/her?

Kathryn is a young widow with two grown sons. Graydon is a widower, and he also has a grown son. Oh, did I mention, Graydon is an operative for the Crown?

4) What is the main conflict? What messes up his/her life?

The main conflict in the story is Graydon’s niece is kidnapped. During his initial attempt to rescue her, he is shot. Kathryn’s quiet life is turned upside down when she finds him and nurses him back to health.

5) What is his/her personal goal?

Graydon’s goal is to get his niece back from a ruthless unknown assailant, hell bent on revenge; and Kathryn’s goal… well she didn’t really have one. She was quite content, living her boring existence, in her tranquil country estate with her smart-alecky butler.

6) Is there a working title for this novel, and can we read more about it?

Excerpts from all of my books can be found on my website: ChristinaPaul.webs.com

7) When can we expect the book(s) to be published?

A Second Chance, the first in my Bradford Series, was published in 2012. It, as well as the second book in the series, Taking Chances, published in 2013, are available on Amazon.com, in both hard copy and on Kindle. Simply By Chance, the third in the series, will hopefully be finished by the end of the year.

And now it's my turn to pass the challenge along!

It was difficult to choose, but the following are five fabulous books by five incredible authors I have met since I embarked on this insane profession of being an author. The links will take you to their books.

Dorothy May Mercer

Linda Rawlins

Julien Ayotte

Jan Raymond

Heidi Angell

Authors, friends, tag, your it (photo stolen from Keith, but I loved it).

Okay folks, tomorrow’s blog will be back to normal. Hopefully by then, my sister in law will send over pictures from this crazy weekend we just had, and I’ll be able to get you updated. Until then, I hope you have a wonderful day, and happy writing!

November 2nd Challenge

Hi, it’s Christina – 

Okay folks, I know the look of the blog today is really different, but there is a good reason. I am participating in a blog hop for Heidi Angell and she is giving away prizes. You only have a few days to enter the first one, so you better click now. The other two giveaways will be going on for three weeks, so you have a little more time on them.

 

 

Here's what the items look like: 

Angel's Dance - only 6 days left on this one folks. Enter now.
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Bookmarks:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Poster:
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This is a really cool idea, and I’ve seen other authors do similar events. Both Heather Graham and Stephanie Laurens have done contests with other authors, and the readers needed to go to each of the author’s sites and do something (make a comment, hit the “like” button, count the pumpkins, whatever) to be entered into the contest. It was a fun way to introduce you to authors you may not know and see what was new with your favorite authors. I just wish I had the technological expertise to do something similar for my next book release.

Since I am a technological ditz, I’m going to keep it real simple. For my Facebook and Twitter followers, you need to log onto my blog - http://christinapaulbooks.blogspot.com/ - put “ENTERED” into the comments section, and then you can click on the contest giveaway buttons (yes you can enter all three) on the right hand side. For my blog followers, you still need to put “ENTERED” into the comments section, and then you can click on the contest giveaway buttons on the right hand side.

So, all this hubbub and rearranging is because Heidi Angell is releasing Angel’s Dance, her sequel to Elements of a Broken Mind, which I reviewed (and thoroughly enjoyed) a few months back.

Grant and Clear are back, and they’re better than ever. After several months with no contact, Grant shows up in Clear’s doorstep, in tears, looking like hell and begging for her help. His daughter had been kidnapped and the trail has gone cold. He has nowhere else to turn if he wants to get his get his daughter back. He just prays he’s not too late already.

Seeing Grant again is difficult for Clear, and what he is asking her to do could literally destroy her, but how could she refuse him when a child’s life was at stake?

You are thrown into the seedy underbelly of the dance world, the polar opposite to the grace and beauty seen by the public. And somewhere within that dance world lies a psychopath…

This psychological thriller sucks you in, thrashes you about, and won’t let you go. At the end, you are completely spent, yet somehow left craving for more. Heidi Angell has outdone herself on this one.

Elements of a Broken Mind is available on Amazon if you are interested in reading the first book in the series before Angel's Dance is released later this month.  

I hope you have a great day and happy writing!

 

Your Last Challenge:

 

You work at a restaurant – you witness a blind date that goes horrible wrong

 

“Morey, Morey, you are not going to believe what just happened at table twelve.” Tabatha exclaimed as she rushed into the kitchen through the swinging doors.

“How many time has I got to tell you, you dimwit use the door on the RIGHT, ALWAYS the door on the right!”

Tabatha cracked her gum in response, “Whatever. It ain’t like anyone else would be comin’ out the left doors anyways. You sure as heck ain’t gunna. So anyways, guess what happened.”

“I don’t give a dang what happened. Ain’t yous got tables to wait on? An iffin you don’t, you could always clean up… Yeah, like that’ll ever happen.”

“Quit bein’ a jerk and listen. You know that new English teacher who’s been comin’ in here.”

“The tall doofy guy?”

“Yeah, he’s the one. Anyways, Trixie started feelin’ sorry him. Sittin’ there all by himself, day after day, eatin’ alone. So, she fixed him up with her cousin Cassey.”

“Aw cripes, not Sassy Cassey!”

“The very one.”

“The poor shlub!”

“You said it. So anyways, Mr. Teacher man comes in dressed all professor like. He’s even got a bunch of flowers. Not ones he picked out of a garden neither, they had paper around them and everything. Then in walks Cassey.”

Your Next Challenge is:

 

There is a knock at your door and you answer it to find a lawyer. He tells you your great uncle has passed away and has left everything to you. One of the things he has left you was and island. Yes, you now own your very own island…

 

You have 10 minutes (be honest). There is no right or wrong, just write. Spelling and punctuation don’t count and NO ONE is allowed to criticize what someone else has written. Go.

September 15th Challenge

Hi, it’s Christina – 

If today isn’t the epitome of a fall morning, I don’t know what is!

 

As promised yesterday, I said I would be giving you a review of a book I just finished and information on a blog hop I was participating in for the book. Well, I went on the author’s site and she is WAY more technologically savvy than I am, so I am going to give you the link to her site. The reason I’m doing this is because she has a raffle going on where you can receive some pretty cool prizes and I don’t want you to miss out because I can’t figure out how to do the same thing on my site. Here it is:

 

http://anangellslife.blogspot.com/2013/09/elements-of-broken-mind-blog-hop.html

 

The book I read was Elements of a Broken Mind and I loved it, but again, it is another book which doesn’t fit neatly into one specific genre. Perhaps if I describe the story a little, you will be able to form your own opinion as to where you would categorize it.

 

There are two main characters Grant and Clear. Yes, the woman’s name is Clear, the unfortunate product of hippy parents (the name, not the character). Grant is a detective who moved to a small town from Chicago after his divorce. He’s lonely, misses his daughter terribly, and is determined not to have a drinking problem. When dead bodies of young women start turning up and Grant is frustrated at the lack of tangible leads, in walks Clear stating she “knows” what happened and she wants to help. But how can she know? The information on the case was being held close to the vest.

 

It takes a little while for Grant to believe that Clear is a true psychic and not just a charlatan and Grant reluctantly agrees to let Clear help him catch what now appeared to be a serial killer. Things get really amped up when the Sherriff’s daughter’s best friend is kidnapped. They fight against time and their growing attraction to each other.

 

That’s all I’m going to tell you. You’ll need to wind your own way through all the twists and turns of this psychic rollercoaster yourself. The story draws you in and tosses you around with the characters, and at the end you are left wanting more.

 

 

I hope you have a wonderful day. Happy writing and maybe happy reading!

 

Your Last Challenge was:

 

You are driving when something off the side of the road catches your eye and intrigues you enough you feel compelled to stop.

 

What the heck was that? Jenna wondered as she slowed the car and pulled over to the side of the road and exited her car. As she jogged closer to the object which caught her eye, she paused when she thought she saw it move ever so slightly. Cautiously she approached the gaily wrapped package and removed the note tucked inside the bow.

 

            Dear kindhearted stranger –

             Thank you for stopping. It is with a heavy heart I need to abandon my babies. Please take care of them and love them as I did.

                                                Signed,

                                                Heartbroken Mamma

 

Jenna couldn’t breathe, horrified what the note implied. She shoved the note into her pocket and looked for the safest way to open the box without jostling its inhabitants. How could anyone do this to their children? As quickly as she could, she examined the package and found what appeared to be hinges. On the other side she found a clasp, flipped it up and slowly lifted the lid, afraid at what she might find.

What she found were three sets of sparkling blue eyes staring at her. One occupant meowed Jenna a greeting. Inside the box were three identical grey striped kittens.

 

If I had more time, I would have went into how their was food and water in the box and big cut in the back and how the wrapping was actually made out of cloth not paper so the kitties could breathe…

 

Your Next Challenge is:

 

The fever was so high…

 

You have 10 minutes (be honest). There is no right or wrong, just write. Spelling and punctuation don’t count and NO ONE is allowed to criticize what someone else has written. Go.