Dear Reader

Dear Reader Column 06-04-12

Subscribe to one of Suzanne's online bookclubs and receive her daily
column at: DearReader.com


Sample Suzanne's book at:
Muffins and Mayhem, Recipes for a Happy (if disorderly) Life

AUTHORBUZZ: Discover new books, "meet" the authors and enter to win: Goto: http://authorbuzz.com/dearreader

Dear Reader,

The decorative deco dish on my kitchen counter is filled with nickels, dimes, quarters and pennies. Seems like only yesterday there wasn't more than fifty cents in it. Now it's overflowing, so it's time to go to the store and use the coin machine. The excitement of dumping my loose change in the coin machine must be a little bit like playing the lottery. I haven't ever bought a ticket, but I've seen people purchase tickets at the customer service counter in the market. Scratch, scratch, scratch, and two Hail Marys later, if they're lucky, they might be collecting a few dollars.
It's a game of chance, a game of long shot possibilities.

But my "lottery" is a sure thing. No tickets to buy. Just dump out that art deco dish, turn on the machine and soon it spits out my winning ticket. No paying out money up front, just pay a small percentage at the end.

What fun. Even the customer service woman is celebrating with me when I hand her my ticket. "Wow, $184.23, you've been saving girl! You hit the jackpot."

Yes, I'd have to agree. I did hit the jackpot. Not only is there new-found money in my pocket, I also "won" three paper clips, one safety pin and the back of an earring I'd been looking for the past three weeks. Yes, I definitely went home a winner.

And I'm not the only winner. Congratulations to the latest Rattlesnake Egg winners: Stephanie Morgan, Staci Fritz, Margaret Ashworth, Debi Croy and Leonora Stein. Have fun!

Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.

Suzanne Beecher
Suzanne@DearReader.com
www.muffinsandmayhem.com

AUTHORBUZZ: A LADY CYCLIST'S GUIDE TO KASHGAR (Fiction) by Suzanne Joinson

English missionaries Eva, Elizabeth and Millicent travel to the ancient Silk Road city of Kashgar in 1923 to establish a mission in the heart of the desert. Evangeline's reasons for leaving the restrictions of English society behind are not at all straightforward. Meanwhile, in present day, who has drawn Arabic script and illustrations of beautiful birds on the wall outside Frieda's house and why is there a stone, all the way from the Gobi desert, found in a bedroom in London?

Go to: http://authorbuzz.com/dearreader click on A LADY CYCLIST'S GUIDE TO KASHGAR to read more and to email author Suzanne Joinson, you'll get a reply.

Dear Reader Column 05-11-12

Subscribe to one of Suzanne's online bookclubs and receive her daily
column at: DearReader.com


Sample Suzanne's book at:
Muffins and Mayhem, Recipes for a Happy (if disorderly) Life

AUTHORBUZZ: Discover new books, "meet" the authors and enter to win: Goto: http://authorbuzz.com/dearreader

Dear Reader,

"Nesting?" my husband asked, when he saw five huge trash bags filled with shoes and clothes lined up next to the front door. I'd pared down so much, I was even giving away a shoe tree and a clothes rack.

I'd never thought about it until he asked, but my husband's right. There's a burning need inside of me and I can't ignore it. I have to, I must, clean, organize, and clear out my walk-in closet (which is really a small room with french doors adjacent to my bedroom), to make room for the light pink, gently-used bassinet I saw on Craigslist last week. Yes, I'm a grandmother experiencing wild, sometimes out of control urges, in a sympathetic pregnancy. Yes, my daughter-in-law is expecting--and it's a girl!

I may not be craving fish tacos with a dollop of mint chocolate chip ice cream, like my daughter-in-law, but whenever I'm in a store I magically end up in the newborn section admiring anything pink. I've sewn two baby blankets and am working on two more (yes, I'll post pictures when I'm finished). My friend Linda and I scoured consignment shops last week, "Oohing and awing" over tiny dresses and frilly little panties with colorful daisies on the back. I left the store with two overflowing bags. Oh, won't my new granddaughter look cute!

Even my five-year-old grandson Paul is excited about having a sister. He's been practicing feeding the cat with a baby bottle. Three year old James has donated some of his super hero figures, so his new sister will have some "cool" toys. And Paul, the planner in our family, has already organized a grandchildren sleep over. "Grandma, three days after my new sister comes, we can all sleep over at your house, watch a movie and Grandpa can pop popcorn!"

"Yes, Paul, we can all have a sleep over." Though I'm not sure how much sleeping this grandmother will get with a newborn, but in the meantime, I'll be sewing, shopping and preparing a "nest." What a blessing, I can't wait!

* Mmm, good! It's time for my monthly Chocolate Chip Cookie Giveaway and I'd love to bake for you. To see photos of satisfied cookie winners and to enter this month's giveaway, goto: http://www.emailbookclub.com/photo/cookie050812.html

Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.

Suzanne Beecher
Suzanne@DearReader.com
http://www.muffinsandmayhem.com/

KIDSBUZZ: Meet new authors--send an email, ask a question and they will reply. Plus enter to win a free (signed!) copy of the featured books from Jen Bryant, KALEIDOSCOPE EYES; Sheila Walsh, GABBY'S STICK TO IT DAY; and T.J. Garrison, TREASURES OF THE LOST KNIGHT. For a chance to win free copies, say hello to the authors, and more, see www.authorbuzz.com/kidsbuzz

* This month's Penguin Classics book is FOOLS CROW by James Welch. Start reading now and enter to win a Penguin totebag. Go to: http://tinyurl.com/May12Classics

AUTHORBUZZ: SALVAGE THE BONES (Fiction) by Jesmyn Ward

SALVAGE THE BONES follows Esch, a 15 year-old girl in coastal Mississippi, and her family through the 10 days preceding Hurricane Katrina, and through the immediate aftermath of the storm. Esch's mother died in childbirth, so her family consists of all men: her brothers and her father, who don't really know how to usher Esch into womanhood when she finds she is pregnant at the beginning of the book. Even though this book is about a hurricane, it's about so much more than a hurricane: about fighting and love and loyalty and survival and hope.

Go to: http://authorbuzz.com/dearreader click on SALVAGE THE BONES to read more and to email author Jesmyn Ward, you'll get a reply.

Dear Reader Column 04-18-12

Subscribe to one of Suzanne's online bookclubs and receive her daily
column at: DearReader.com


Sample Suzanne's book at:
Muffins and Mayhem, Recipes for a Happy (if disorderly) Life

AUTHORBUZZ: Discover new books, "meet" the authors and enter to win: Goto: http://authorbuzz.com/dearreader

Dear Reader,

Traveling in style on a giant bus, emblazoned with massive book graphics on the side, four mystery writers, John Connolly, William Kent Krueger, Liza Marklund and M.J. Rose (our own personal Mystery Bus Tour reporter) are in the midst of an 8-day Mystery Bus Tour to meet readers, stopping in 11 cities across the country to meet readers in person.

What's it like riding a bus for eight days, traveling 2,375 miles? Enjoy today's Mystery Bus Tour update, from author M.J. Rose, and you can sample her newest release, The Book of Lost Fragrances.

Take it away M.J. Rose...

What Matters?

The wheels roll round and round. And round. And round. And the ride is bumpier than I imagined and the stretches between stores give you a lot of time to think since reading and writing are more difficult than I imagined.

I'd planned to be funny and glib and witty about the tour in this column and give you sparkling anecdotes about the stores and the crowds and the (wonderful) writers I'm traveling with and the (brave and strong) booksellers we're meeting.

But instead I want to tell you about Sarah.

On Friday night we were in the B&N in I forget where already--not really--we were in Framingham outside of Boston, and we spoke to a good-sized crowd of about thirty people.

After our talk, during the signing a lovely soft-spoken woman approached. Her young daughter beside her. The woman held out a copy of my book. I took it and asked for her name so I'd know what to write in the inscription.

"It's not for me," she put her arm gently around her daughter. "It's for Sarah."

My eyebrows must have gone up a bit. I looked back at Sarah, thinking maybe I'd glanced too quickly before and she was older than I'd thought. But no, the beautiful little girl with dirty blonde bangs, creamy skin, blue yes and a heart shaped mouth was indeed very young.

"How old are you?" I asked Sarah.

"Eight," she said shyly.

I looked back at her mom. "You know there's some stuff in this book that isn't..."

She interrupted. "It's not for now. It's for when she grows up. We were here shopping for books and saw the poster that you were all here. Sarah wants to be a writer when she grows up and she thought the title of your book was beautiful and wanted to meet a real writer."

I looked back at Sarah who was nodding vehemently. I thanked her so much for liking my title. Then I asked her what books she liked we talked about how much fun reading was. Then she told me that she's taking a writing workshop and how much fun it was.

Everything about the Department of Justice lawsuit and e-book price wars and the lack of discovery and the other millions of things that are wrong with publishing faded into the background.

Sarah was so excited as she took the book from me. As she read the inscription I'd written, her eyes got wider.

Suddenly I was on her side of the table being her age falling in love with books and thinking they were some kind of magic and dreaming about one day being able to make that kind of magic. I never met a writer until I was seventeen and met Ayn Rand (Amazing first writer to meet, right?)

And I remembered how in awe I was and how gracious and kind she was when I told her I wanted to be a writer too.

The book world is living through a publishing revolution right now. But as I watched Sarah clutching my book and waving goodbye I was 100% sure of what one thing that's not changing. That's not even being questioned. Readers and writers. Writers and readers. We need each other. And I believe that one way or another we're always going to find each other and inspire each other.

And I can't wait for the day Sarah sends me a copy of her first book.

Sample M.J. Rose's new book, The Book of Lost Fragrances:
http://www.supportlibrary.com/bc/v.cfm?L=%%list.name%%qqxqR1FE5F42F3A3&c=SUZ

Send her an email and you'll receive a personal reply: LostFragrances@gmail.com

Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.

Suzanne Beecher
Suzanne@DearReader.com
www.muffinsandmayhem.com

AUTHORBUZZ: IN LEAH'S WAKE (Fiction) by Terri Giuliano Long

The Tylers have a perfect life--until 16-year-old Leah falls for a high school dropout and roadie for a rock band. As Leah's parents fight to save their daughter from a world of drugs, sex, and wild parties, 12-year-old Justine is left to observe her sister's rebellion from the shadows of their fragmented family. Can this family survive in Leah's wake? What happens when love just isn't enough?

Go to: http://authorbuzz.com/dearreader click on IN LEAH'S WAKE to read more and to email author Terri Giuliano Long, you'll get a reply.

Dear Reader Column 04-13-12

Subscribe to one of Suzanne's online bookclubs and receive her daily
column at: DearReader.com


Sample Suzanne's book at:
Muffins and Mayhem, Recipes for a Happy (if disorderly) Life

AUTHORBUZZ: Discover new books, "meet" the authors and enter to win: Goto: http://authorbuzz.com/dearreader

Dear Reader,

Digital books and fancy reading devices may be all the rage, but nothing beats the old fashioned way of personally meeting and greeting readers. Traveling in style on a giant bus, emblazoned with massive book graphics on the side, yesterday (April 12th) four mystery writers, John Connolly, William Kent Krueger, Liza Marklund and M.J. Rose began an 8-day Mystery Bus Tour to meet readers in person.

What's it like to ride a bus for eight days, traveling 2,375 miles? Author M.J. Rose is our own personal Mystery Bus Tour reporter. Enjoy today's guest column about the tour, and watch for her next Mystery Bus Tour update next week and you'll also be able to sample her new book, The Book of Lost Fragrances.

Take it away M.J. Rose...

The Secret Tale of The Mystery Bus Tour Real Fake Bag

What's authentic? What's false? Real? Fake? Questions authors struggle with all the time. But not necessarily like this.

Yesterday, April 12, Liza Marklund, John Conolly, Wiliam Kent Krueger and I set off on Atria's Mystery Bus tour. Four suspense writers traveling by bus through 12 states stopping at 12 book stores to meet booksellers and readers.

There are a lot of things to plan before you set off for a week-long bus tour that starts off in New York City and ends up in Chesterfield, MO. Stock the house with food for your husband and dog, make notes on what to talk about to entice readers to buy your book, fill lots of little bottles with shampoo and conditioner.

But what I did was go shopping for a bag.

I'm a New Yorker. I'm Jewish. I shop to celebrate. I shop to relax. I shop as a bonding experience with friends. So believe me, I have bags. I even had the perfect bag for this trip. One big enough for my laptop, my make-up, my wallet, and a book or two but not so big it would be cumbersome. A bag that doubles as a pocketbook and a tote so I could take it from the bus to the bookstore to Starbucks without any trouble.

The bag I have is a Louis Vuitton Lockit Voyage. If it were real it would retail for (gasp!) $5000. But it's not real. It's a fake that a friend of mine gave me. It cost her $130.

I'm not proud that I sometimes use a fake but it's a great bag and I love it. It doesn't look fake. In fact on a dare I once took it into the flagship Vuitton store on Fifth Avenue with a question about how to care for the material and the saleswoman thought it was real.

So if it's the perfect bag why not take it? Because it doesn't look fake. Which means if anyone notices it they might think it's real and I don't want anyone to think that I'm showing off by schlepping around the country with a bag that cost more than most people spend on their monthly mortgage.

Which is why in the days before the tour I went shopping for a real bag that cost more than the fake bag but didn't shout or scream that I'm an accessory obsessed, spendthrift writer.

Did I find another bag, dear reader?

Yes.

Did it cost more than the fake bag?

Of course. But nowhere near as much as the fake bag would cost if it were real.

The new bag has no logo or label to give away its maker or give the wrong impression. Because, to borrow a phrase from the great ad man Peter Rogers, sometimes your own initials are enough. (A phrase he created by the way to advertise Bottega Veneta who makes--what else--bags?)

Please come and check out my bag and meet me, Liza Marklund, John Connolly and William Kent Kruger. Here's the schedule: http://mjrose.com/fragrances/tour.asp for stops in NYC, Madison, CT; Framingham, MA; Brattleboro, VT; Albany, NY; Dayton, OH; Forest Park, IL; Milwaukee, WI; Minneapolis, MN; Madison, WI; Fairway, KS and Chesterfield, MO.

Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.

Suzanne Beecher
Suzanne@DearReader.com
www.muffinsandmayhem.com

KIDSBUZZ: Meet new authors--send an email, ask a question and they will reply. Plus enter to win a free (signed!) copy of the featured books from Jerel Law, SPIRIT FIGHTER and Erik Daniel Shein & Dennis M. Lowery, SERPENTAURIA: ARK OF EXTINCTION. For a chance to win free copies, say hello to the authors, and more, see www.authorbuzz.com/kidsbuzz

AUTHORBUZZ: SHOOTING HOLLYWOOD (Fiction) by Melodie Johnson Howe

Diana Poole, after the death of her husband, returns to the only career she knows--acting. But Hollywood can be a brutal place for an actress in her early forties trying to make a comeback, especially when she discovers betrayal and murder in the world of glitz, glamour, and greed.

Go to: http://authorbuzz.com/dearreader click on SHOOTING HOLLYWOOD to read more and to email author Melodie Johnson Howe, you'll get a reply.

Dear Reader Column 04-05-12

Subscribe to one of Suzanne's online bookclubs and receive her daily
column at: DearReader.com


Sample Suzanne's book at:
Muffins and Mayhem, Recipes for a Happy (if disorderly) Life

AUTHORBUZZ: Discover new books, "meet" the authors and enter to win: Goto: http://authorbuzz.com/dearreader

Dear Reader,

Extra candles on the cake, extra inches on my shorts. With each passing year I'm embarrassed to say my shorts get longer. I suspect other people don't really notice, but not me. I've been doing the math and as the years have added up, so have the inches on my shorts. In my early twenties, I wore three inch shorts, then in my 30s it was 4 and 5-inch shorts, the 6, 7, and 8-inch years--they were a blur--and last year's shorts came in at 9-inches long. And now this year, when I tried on my shorts and decided that another inch would make me feel more comfortable, I was shocked to discover that the number 10 doesn't follow nine. Nope, now that I've graduated from wearing 9-inch shorts, my options come in twos, 11 or 13-inch lengths. French walking shorts, Bermuda shorts, sassy cuffed shorts, catalog marketers try to appease baby boomers like myself with fancy descriptions of these longer shorts, but let's face it, what I'm looking for now is old lady shorts that don't look like old lady shorts! Where did the years go?

In my search for "it's-safe-to-bend-over" shorts, (but not old lady shorts) I finally spotted a pair on a woman standing in line in front of me at the rib shack. So while she was waiting for her order I asked, "Those are great looking shorts. Where did you get them?"

She couldn't remember where she bought them, and after a failed attempt to twist around to try to read the label herself, she pulled open the back of her shorts, "I can't see the label," she said, "but go ahead and look in my pants. So I did. And after I visit the Jones New York store at the outlet mall, I'll be wearing adorable old lady shorts, too!

Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.

Suzanne Beecher
Suzanne@DearReader.com
www.muffinsandmayhem.com

AUTHORBUZZ: THE FLOWER READER (Fiction) by Elizabeth Loupas

Rinette Leslie of Granmuir has the ancient gift of divining with flowers. She also has a silver casket full of secrets, including quatrains by Nostradamus revealing the past, present and future of the exquisite young Mary Queen of Scots. Rinette refuses to give up the casket until her husband's murderer is brought to justice, but ruthless lords--and ladies--in Scotland, England and France will kill for the casket's secrets...

Go to: http://authorbuzz.com/dearreader click on THE FLOWER READER to find out more about the book and the author, Elizabeth Loupas. Send her an email, she'd love to hear from you.

*Fun, free books and meet authors. Ask questions, they'll reply and read samples from their books. Visit AuthorBuzz at: http://authorbuzz.com/dearreader

(Fiction)
THE DISCOVERY by Dan Walsh

(Nonfiction)
PATTERNS OF GRACE by Debbie Macomber

(Fiction)
RED WEATHER by Janet Mcadams

(Fiction)
THE FLOWER READER by Elizabeth Loupas

(Fiction)
THE TENTH SAINT by D.J. Niko

Go to: http://authorbuzz.com/dearreader

Dear Reader Column 03-28-12

Subscribe to one of Suzanne's online bookclubs and receive her daily
column at: DearReader.com


Sample Suzanne's book at:
Muffins and Mayhem, Recipes for a Happy (if disorderly) Life

AUTHORBUZZ: Discover new books, "meet" the authors and enter to win: Goto: http://authorbuzz.com/dearreader

Dear Reader,

"My house is the gray historical home, three houses on the right-hand side after you cross over the bridge." For years I've been giving people driving directions to my gray house. But this past weekend, after painting three gray samples on my historical stucco home, duh, I realized I've been living in a tan colored home for the past 18 years. Looking well-used, and just a tad bit ragged is part of the 1926 historical charm, but after years and years of Florida sun, my house definitely needs a new coat of paint and I thought maybe it was time to change the color, too. Eighteen years of living in a gray, whoops there I go again, tan colored home with white accents, maybe it was time to splash on some green, yellow, or 'actual gray' paint. So for the past week my husband and I have been driving around looking at other peoples' paint jobs.

Picking a color you'll be living with for another 18 years, it's a lot of pressure. Thank heavens my husband and I discovered $2.94 paint samples. Pick any color, and the paint master at the hardware store will mix-up a sample; enough paint to cover a 4' x 4' area, paint a patch on your house, let it dry, and envision your entire house in the new color. How the heck did folks pick a color before paint samples? I guess you did a paint Hail Mary, bought a gallon and hoped for the best, which come to think of it, is probably why my Grandma and Grandpa Tindell lived in a pink house. Grandma was thrifty, well, actually, Grandma was cheap, and I bet after she bought the bubble gum pink paint, even though it was an eyesore in the small Wisconsin town, she wasn't going to waste the money--so pink it was, and pink it stayed for all the years I was growing up.

Learning from my grandparent's mistake, I'm still trying samples. I'm on my tenth one--actually the first three don't count. I bought those when I still thought I lived in a gray house and was searching for a little different shade of gray. My husband and I love these paint samples, we're heading out to the hardware store again this afternoon to request three more colors. You might think we're addicted to paint samples, but the good news is if we continue testing colors, say, 150 more, our entire house will be painted--not all the same color, but at least I'll be able to give accurate directions, "My house is the freshly painted patchwork colored home, three houses on the right-hand side after you cross over the bridge."

Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.

Suzanne Beecher
Suzanne@DearReader.com
http://www.muffinsandmayhem.com/

AUTHORBUZZ: THE CHASE (Fiction) by DiAnn Mills

Who could forget an unidentified little girl who was found starved to death in the woods behind a Houston apartment complex five years ago? Certainly not Kariss Walker, a TV news anchor who reported on the story.

Now a bestselling author, Kariss is compelled to turn the unsolved case into a suspense novel. To solve the murder in fiction, if not in real life, Kariss persuades FBI Agent Tigo Harris to re-open the case, and together they solve the crime in a collage of suspense, faith and romance.

Go to: http://authorbuzz.com/dearreader click on THE CHASE to read more and to email author DiAnn Mills, you'll get a reply.

Dear Reader Column 03-08-12

Subscribe to one of Suzanne's online bookclubs and receive her daily
column at: DearReader.com


Sample Suzanne's book at:
Muffins and Mayhem, Recipes for a Happy (if disorderly) Life

AUTHORBUZZ: Discover new books, "meet" the authors and enter to win: Goto: http://authorbuzz.com/dearreader

Dear Reader,

Today's guest columnist offers one of the most interesting "story behind the book" columns that I've ever read, and she has a very unique giveaway for readers.

When I read M.J. Rose's latest release, The Book of Lost Fragrances, I was as mesmerized by the glossary of research at the beginning of the book, as I was by the story. I'm a dedicated nonfiction reader, but The Book of Lost Fragrances was so engaging that I couldn't put it down.

Please welcome today's guest columnist, author M.J. Rose. Send her a welcome email, read her book, and hopefully you'll be one of the ten readers to receive a sample of the perfume that Joya Studio created after reading The Book of Lost Fragrances.

Email M.J.Rose at: LostFragrances@gmail.com

The Story Behind The Book of Lost Fragrances by M.J. Rose

Several years ago, I went to a brocante--a flea market--in Cannes, France. It was a perfect morning to peruse antiques; warm with a little breeze to mingle the scent of fresh flowers with seaside town's fresh salty air.

One table that caught my attention offered an intriguing mix of items laid out as if they were resting on an elegant woman's vanity.

Next to a shagreen jewelry box--opened to reveal strings of pearls, was a pair of fine creamy white kid gloves. Sunshine glinted off the silver trim of a turquoise cloisonne hair brush set and illuminated the gold lettering on a group of leather bound books all about mythology.

There were also a dozen perfume decanters scattered around. Some were cut crystal with fancy repousee silver caps. Others were intricately sculpted pieces of glasswork--the kind created by Lalique and Baccarat in the late 19th and early 20th century.

Sadly all the bottles were empty except for one with an inch or so of thick, dark perfume coating the bottom. It was the least ornate flacon. A residue of glue was visible to show where a label had once been pasted. It was capped with a green ceramic stopper shaped into a lotus--a flower that I recognized from Ancient Egyptian tomb paintings.

As I daydreamed about the woman who'd owned all these treasures, I picked up the bottle, uncapped it and sniffed.

In Remembrance of Things Past, Proust wrote about how the taste and smell of a Madeline returned him to his youth with an immediacy that nothing else ever had.

For me it was the scent in that bottle that returned me to a day years before.

Suddenly I wasn't in the square in front of the Hotel De Ville in that French town but was sixteen years old, standing on the hill overlooking Bethesda Fountain in Central Park, talking to a boy who I'd just met.

He was telling me about Plato's theory of soul mates.

And I was falling in love.

The scent in the bottle in the flea market was his scent. He'd worn a cologne--discontinued before he was even born--that he'd found in a house his parents had rented one summer.

It had been so long since I'd even smelled it--or even thought of it. But suddenly everything about that meeting--and learning about soul mates--and being sure I'd found one--and the tall boy with sly smile who had sadly long since died--came rushing back in that one inhalation.

The Book of Lost Fragrances is a very much a suspense novel weaving history into a tense hunt for a important treasure but the theme for book--an ancient scent that would help people identify their soul mates--came to life that lazy day in the south of France.

I bought the bottle from the antique dealer and it sits on a shelf with the rest of my perfume collection. I've never opened it again--I don't want the scent to evaporate any more quickly than nature will insist upon.

It's enough to know that memories lay captured inside and they were strong enough to inspire a novel.

Ten people who write me at LostFragrances@gmail.com will get a sample of the perfume that Joya Studio created after reading The Book of Lost Fragrances.

Cheers,
Author, M.J. Rose
Please visit my website: http://www.TheBookOfLostFragrances.com

AUTHORBUZZ: ILLUSION (Science Fiction) by Frank Peretti

A couple married forty years are separated by tragedy, and must overcome obstacles of time, space, and human evil to find each other, and rediscover the love they always had. ILLUSION is a sci-fi mystery and an emotionally stirring story. You'll find yourself entertained, intrigued, and turning pages as fast you can!

Go to: http://authorbuzz.com/dearreader click on ILLUSION to find out more about the book and the author, Frank Peretti. Send him an email, he'd love to hear from you.

*Fun, free books and meet authors. Ask questions, they'll reply and read samples from their books. Visit AuthorBuzz at: http://authorbuzz.com/dearreader

(Fiction)
THE MESSENGER by Siri Mitchell

(Fiction)
LIVING PROOF by Kira Peikoff

(Mystery)
AGONY OF THE LEAVES, A Tea Shop Mystery by Laura Childs

(Science Fiction)
ILLUSION by Frank Peretti

(Nonfiction)
JUICY JOY--7 Simple Steps to Your Glorious, Gutsy Self by Lisa McCourt

Go to: http://authorbuzz.com/dearreader

 

 

 

Dear Reader Column 03-06-12

Subscribe to one of Suzanne's online bookclubs and receive her daily
column at: DearReader.com


Sample Suzanne's book at:
Muffins and Mayhem, Recipes for a Happy (if disorderly) Life

AUTHORBUZZ: Discover new books, "meet" the authors and enter to win: Goto: http://authorbuzz.com/dearreader

Dear Reader,

Do you know a teen who loves to read, or wants to be a writer? Pass on this email or if you're a librarian, post a sign in the library. I'm looking for teens who would like to write a column for our weekly Teen Book Club. It's fun, doesn't take a lot of time, and they'll have the chance to be published in the Teen Book Club.

To make it extra fun, we're having a drawing for any teens who email Tiffany this week. Teens will have the chance to win one of these great prizes: a $10 gift card to Target, Starbucks, a favorite book seller or a free teen audio book.

Have fun, get published at the club, and you might also win a gift card. Interested? Email Tiffany at: Teen@DearReader.com and on the subject line write: I WANT TO BE A TEEN COLUMNIST.

Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.

Suzanne Beecher
Suzanne@DearReader.com
www.muffinsandmayhem.com

AUTHORBUZZ: LIVING PROOF (Fiction) by Kira Peikoff

In 2027, destroying an embryo is considered first-degree murder. Arianna Drake is a brilliant fertility doctor who's hiding an enormous secret. One so vital that her own life is at stake. She must protect it from the world at all costs--especially when she falls in love with the man who's out to expose her.

Go to: http://authorbuzz.com/dearreader click on LIVING PROOF to find out more about the book and the author, Kira Peikoff. Send her an email, she'd love to hear from you.

Dear Reader Column 03-05-12

Subscribe to one of Suzanne's online bookclubs and receive her daily
column at: DearReader.com


Sample Suzanne's book at:
Muffins and Mayhem, Recipes for a Happy (if disorderly) Life

AUTHORBUZZ: Discover new books, "meet" the authors and enter to win: Goto: http://authorbuzz.com/dearreader

Dear Reader,

I forgot the sugar. One and 2/3 cups of sugar. Everything was mixed and 24 cupcake liners were filled with batter and chunks of Oreo cookies, so there was no going back and adding the sugar, and re-mixing the batter, because the Oreo chunks would be mangled in the process. It was a big mistake. I even had to make a trip to the grocery store to buy another package of Oreos, and then it took another 30 minutes to redo the recipe. But I'm glad it was a whopper of a mistake, because Paul, my five-year-old grandson was watching.

Paul and I have been baking together, once a week, since he was three years old. He's quite the baker. He gathers the ingredients out of the cupboard, measures and levels flour, and even mixes and rolls pie crust from scratch. Paul's excited to learn, I'm privileged that I am able to teach him. Teacher and student, Grandma and Grandson. The student learns from the teacher, and when Paul and I were driving to the store to buy more Oreos, the teacher learned from the student.

"Don't worry, Grandma, when you make a mistake, it's okay, because you learn something new."

Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.

Suzanne Beecher
Suzanne@DearReader.com
www.muffinsandmayhem.com

AUTHORBUZZ: THE MESSENGER (Fiction) by Siri Mitchell

Hannah Sunderland felt content in her embrace of the Quaker faith, until her twin brother ran off and joined the army, and ended up captured. She longs to bring her brother some measure of comfort in the squalid, frigid prison where he remains. But Quakers believe they are not to take sides, not to take up arms. Can she sit by and do nothing while he suffers?

Spymaster Jeremiah Jones desperately needs access to the men in prison and he eyes Hannah as a possible way of garnering information. But for Hannah, agreeing to help would mean disobeying those she loves and abandoning a bedrock of her faith.

Go to: http://authorbuzz.com/dearreader click on THE MESSENGER to read more and to email author Siri Mitchell, you'll get a reply.

Dear Reader Column 03-02-12

Subscribe to one of Suzanne's online bookclubs and receive her daily
column at: DearReader.com


Sample Suzanne's book at:
Muffins and Mayhem, Recipes for a Happy (if disorderly) Life

AUTHORBUZZ: Discover new books, "meet" the authors and enter to win: Goto: http://authorbuzz.com/dearreader

Dear Reader,

It took longer than usual to get dressed today, because I decided to wear a light pink skirt I'd been saving for a special occasion. When I bought the skirt it was on sale. A 65% off sale! Don't ya love it?

Today isn't a special occasion, but this morning--two years later--there it was, on the hanger, staring at me with the 65% off price tag still attached. "When are you going to take me out on the town, Suzanne?" (In case you're wondering what a skirt's voice sounds like, this one sounded desperate to get out of the house, so I decided to oblige.)

First dates take a lot of preparation, even when it's a first date with a skirt. After trying on everything in my closet, I discovered only one top that would "go with" my skirt, a three-quarter sleeve, cream-colored shirt. It did look fabulous, but as I was giving myself that last once-over in the mirror, I discovered a teeny-tiny, tan colored stain. Right up front. Nobody could miss it. Nevertheless, I refused to change. Because it took way too long to find this shirt--so I tried to cover it up instead. A pin didn't fix it, and a scarf looked awkward, but then I noticed the "I Got a Flu Shot" sticker still attached to a shirt hanging in my closet. So peeled the sticker off the old shirt, pressed it on the shirt I was wearing and now (I appear) stain-free.

Actually stain stickers are a great new product idea. Instead of manufacturers including an extra button with a new shirt, they should include an assortment of matching cover-up stickers.

Are you ready to dunk and munch? I'm ready to bake for three lucky book club readers. All you have to do is enter and promise to send a photo. To enter this month's Chocolate Chip Cookie giveaway, go to: http://tinyurl.com/Cookie0212

Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.

Suzanne Beecher
Suzanne@DearReader.com
www.muffinsandmayhem.com

AUTHORBUZZ: HEART OF GOLD (Fiction) by Robin Lee Hatcher

Wells Fargo driver Matthew Dubois has little in common with Shannon. But he's desperate to find a wife to care for his young nephew once his widowed sister dies and Shannon--volunteer caregiver to Matthew's ailing sister--seems perfect. However, Shannon has little interest in a man who is neither a Southerner nor a gentleman...and too much pride to marry if not loved.

Go to: http://authorbuzz.com/dearreader click on HEART OF GOLD to find out more about the book and the author, Robin Lee Hatcher. Send her an email, she'd love to hear from you.