GUEST POST and GIVEAWAY: Author Lydia Dare

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Today on My Overstuffed Bookshelf, we have the wonderful author Lydia Dare here to share with us about her book A Certain Wolfish Charm. I have read and reviewed the book already found here, and it was a wonderful read by an amazing author! Let’s get started!

Welcome to Regency England – well, my Regency England which is inhabited by werewolves , witches and other creatures. Ahem, I should have said Lycans, not werewolves. Simon, the Duke of Blackmoor does get cranky when one uses the “w” word. It’s a bit derogatory, after all. And it’s best not to irritate His Grace.

Without further ado – I probably should introduce you to Simon, the hero of A Certain Wolfish Charm. He is the oldest of three Lycan brothers, the alpha of his pack, and the current Duke of Blackmoor. Rich and sexy, he spends most of his time in London enjoying the clubs, gaming hells and lightskirts.  Well, he does until the moon is nearly full. Then he retires to his family seat in Hampshire where he waits for the one night a month when he sprouts a tail, pointy ears, a snout, and can become one with nature.  His life is a routine controlled by the fullness of the moon.  Until one particular month when his routine goes awry by the sudden appearance of a woman,  one who just happens to  call more loudly to him than the moon ever has.
For years Simon has had his hands full, keeping his youngest brother, Benjamin, in check. Ben is kind and gregarious, but regrettably has found himself in more than one scrape of his own making. At the beginning of Tall, Dark and Wolfish (in stores May 2010), Ben has a problem and it’s not one he wants to discuss with either of his brothers. After an unfortunate incident, he is no longer able to transform under the power of the moon and he’s never been quite so frightened. After learning about a healing witch who lives north of the border in Scotland, Ben decides to seek out the old hag in hopes that she can return him to his former wolfish self. Little does he know that Scottish witches come in all shapes and sizes, even with fiery hair and curves any smart Lycan would want to take a bite out of.
William, the silver-tongued, middle brother is a rogue of the first order. He has an eye for the ladies and they have one for him. Will has been in love with the girl next door his whole life. But after losing her and realizing he couldn’t have her, he decided to have everything else in a skirt.  Or out of a skirt, as the case may be.  However when a wild Lycan tries to woo his lovely Prisca, Will instantly realizes that if any Lycan is going to have her, it will be him even if he has to move heaven and earth to win her back.  Will is forced to vow chastity in exchange for Prisca’s vow that she’ll take great care around the Lycan in gentleman’s clothes.  Only his vow of chastity does not pertain to her. She is fair game.  And one heck of a fun game it is, which you can read about in The Wolf Next Door (in stores June 2010)!.
Regency England has gone to the wolves. And I hope you enjoy the world I’ve created as much as I do.
A CERTAIN WOLFISH CHARM by LYDIA DARE—IN STORES APRIL 2010!
He gets crankier and crankier as the moon gets full…
The rules of society can be beastly—especially when you’re a werewolf and it’s that irritating time of the month. Simon Westfield, the Duke of Blackmoor, is rich, powerful, and sinfully handsome, and has spent his entire life creating scandal and mayhem. It doesn’t help his wolfish temper at all that Miss Lily Rutledge seems not the least bit afraid of him, and in fact, may be as untamable as he is…
A woman whose charm is stronger that the moon…
When Lily’s beloved nephew’s behavior becomes inexplicably wild, she turns to Simon, the boy’s cousin and guardian, for help. But Simon’s idea of assistance is far different than hers, and Lily finds herself ensconced in his house and engaged to the rogue.
They both may have bitten off more than they can chew when each begins to discover the other’s darkest secrets…
About the Author
Lydia Dare is the writing team of Tammy Falkner and Jodie Pearson. Both Tammy and Jodie are active members of the Heart of Carolina Romance Writers and live near Raleigh, North Carolina. They are working together on their next paranormal historical trilogy as Lydia Dare, which will be released by Sourcebooks Casablanca in Spring 2011! For more information, please visit http://www.lydiadare.com/. 
GIVEAWAY:
Thanks to Sourcebooks, I have 2 copies of A Certain Wolfish Charm to giveaway! Yes, that means 2 winners! This contest will run until 4/25/2010 with the winner announced on 4/26/2010.

TO ENTER:

1.  You must live in the USA or Canada only. 
2. No P.O. Boxes.
3. Be A follower of my blog.
4.  Just comment on this post with your name and email addy to enter!
GOOD LUCK!

WINNER!

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The weekly drawing has now ended for How To Catch and Keep A Vampire.  The winner is:

Congrats! Please email me your address at djsfoxylady@gmail.com.   Please include in the subject line: WEEKLY WINNER.

You have 48 hours to respond or the book passes to the next in line. 

Thanks to everyone who entered and for spreading the word.  The next weekly giveaway will be posted shortly!

Blogmania Early Bird Checklist *April 30th*

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We want all of our visiting guests in our first Blogmania Event scheduled for April 30th to Get On Their Marks-Get Set…  

It’s not time to go yet, but if you want to have the most fun and scoop up as much loot as possible, here are a few Early Bird Reminders to help you do just that.

1.     1.   Be at any of the blogs participating in the Blogmania Event as early as possible on April 30th.   The easiest way to find a
Blogmania Blog is to look for the Blogmania Badge.

2.      2. This is an international event, so understand that there will be some differences in time zones.  My advice is to start early and stay
late to catch all the blogs.

3.      3.  Each blog will have their own giveaway requirements. Read them carefully, follow through, and then move on as quickly as possible.
If you run across a blog that you really like and want to spend some
time exploring, copy their URL and then visit them after Blogmania is
over.

4.      4.  We will have a 100+ blogs for you to visit. Each one will post their number like this. ( This is blog 47 of 100) This is to help
you keep track of which blogs you’ve visited, and which ones you still
need to reach. I’d suggest that you prepare a blog sheet which is
numbered from 1 – 120, then mark off each numbered blog as you visit
them.

5.      5.   All blog links provided will also have a number like (Blog 89 of 100). Look for the blogs that you haven’t yet visited and follow
those links until you’ve checked off all the blogs on your sheet.

6.      6.  We have all types of blogs participating in Blogmania, which means that the range of items in their giveaways are diverse. I have
previewed many and they are awesome.

7.      7.  Why not contact a friend and partner up. Compare notes, share loot, or organize your own friendly neighborhood Blogmania Competition.

This is our first Blogmania Event, but it isn’t our last. Blogmania is a bi-yearly Giveaway Extravaganza. In fact, our next Blogmania Event will
start September 15th,  and do we have some cool stuff planned
for you! So keep in touch with our Blogmania Blogs, because they will
be giving sneak previews, secret codes, and who knows what else in the
weeks and months ahead.

SOME GIRLS ARE by Courtney Summers

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SOME GIRLS ARE
Author: Courtney Summers
Source: Library
  • Reading level: Young Adult
  • Paperback: 256 pages
  • Publisher: St. Martin’s Griffin; 1 edition (January 5, 2010)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0312573804
  • ISBN-13: 978-0312573805
SYNOPSIS:
Climbing to the top of the social ladder is hard–falling from it is even harder.  Regina Afton used to be a member of the Fearsome Fivesome, an all-girl clique both feared and revered by the students at Hallowell High… until vicious rumors about her and her best friend’s boyfriend start going around.  Now Regina’s been “frozen out” and her ex-best friends are out for revenge.  If Regina was guilty, it would be one thing, but the rumors are far from the terrifying truth and the bullying is getting more intense by the day.  She takes solace in the company of Michael Hayden, a misfit with a tragic past who she herself used to bully.  Friendship doesn’t come easily for these onetime enemies, and as Regina works hard to make amends for her past, she realizes Michael could be more than just a friend… if threats from the Fearsome Foursome don’t break them both first.

Tensions grow and the abuse worsens as the final days of senior year march toward an explosive conclusion in this dark new tale from the author of Cracked Up To Be.

MY THOUGHTS:
I thought my high school years were bad, but this book just reminds me that I could have had it worse!  The author did a wonderful job telling this story!  At the beginning of the book, Regina is at a party with the rest of her friends. They are all the top five kids of the popular ladder at school.  When Regina’s best friend Anna passes out at the party,  Anna’s boyfriend tries to rape Regina.  The only person she tells is Kara, the odd one of the popular group.  Now, when I say odd, I mean psycho!  The next school day, everyone believes that Regina and Donnie had sex instead of it being an attempted rape. Regina must now come to terms of no one believing her and finding herself the least favorite person at school now.
Regina finds a friend in Michael, who was labeled as an outcast by the popular crowd.  She sits with him at the famous table by the garbage cans.  She quickly finds herself becoming friends with Michael, but he is not going to make it easy for her to apologize for all the wrong she has done to him.  Michael ends up being Regina’s saving grace or her chance to redeem herself from being labeled a bitch.  
The romance between the two was so touching and sweet.  Where were the Michael’s when I was in school?  I will say that this book will have your emotions in overdrive at times.  I felt a lot of anger and frustration at the peers that were treating Regina so badly.  It helped me sympathize with her though throughout the story.  When she keys a car, takes a beating and puts her friendship on the line for Michael, you can’t help but feel for Regina in this book even if she was a bitch to begin with.  
Overall, this book was amazing. It was more than what I expected and beyond.  The pace was perfect, the characters were perfect, and the whole book in my opinion was perfect!  I was up most of the night reading and rereading this book because I didn’t want the story to end.  A wonderfully written story focused on teenage years that will have an impact on even the adults! Bravo Ms. Summers for reminding me that it is not who is popular in school, but who is the true friends that will stand by you!
MY RATING:

Outstanding Book That Will Stay On My Bookshelf
For Rereading!

Speed Reading: A Response to A Bloggers Question

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Tonight I was scrolling through posts from my blog roll and I came across this post from Lori @ Escape Between the Pages. Basically she was asking how readers can read so fast? Are they in a competition with other blogs or do they actually read that fast and retain what they read from the books?  I just knew she was talking about me! Not in a mean way Lori, I know. Yet, I felt like I needed to explain some things to everyone.

Yes, I speed read most of the time.  It is not something I can control though.  I happen to be a fast reader anyway.  I think after having 3 kids of my own and a stepson, I have found myself reading alot more to escape mommyhood.  Plus, you never know when these kids of mine are going to want something, so I read as much as I can at a time.  I also can stay up until well after midnight reading because they are finally leaving me alone. The question is, am I reading 5 books a day? No.

It may look like I am reading a ton of books each day, but I average 2-3 books a day on good days only. If you notice, there are days I will post only one review, then a day or two later I have posted up to 5 posts.  How do I do it? Well, here it is.  I preplan.  Tuesdays are my contest days. I usually try to only post the contest and maybe one other post on that day.  The rest of that day is dedicated to reading and the occasional twitter now. I also have a ton of reviews that I have logged on my computer for emergencies, or when I just feel like posting something.  I like to have back up posts in case I get sick, or my family needs me for a day. So at times, I will have 10 or more review posts just waiting to be posted.  Now, if they get to be more than that, I will post many in a day to free up some space on my computer for more reviews to write up.  Throw in the author interviews, author guest blogs, cover alerts and random thoughts in my head, and yes, the posts add up.

Another thing to remember is I also review childrens books.  Those take like 5 minutes, or 10 minutes max if my child wants to really look at the pictures, and I have another post.  Some people mentioned that people like me are doing it as a competition. NO! I am doing it because I want to. I enjoy my reading.  I also want to point out that some people don’t understand how I can write a review and sometimes it has no plot points on a book.  My reviews are mainly my feelings on a book.  Quite frankly, you can look at the synopsis of a book and figure out the basic plot of the story.  I am more interested in explaining how a book makes me feel, instead of retelling that.  I like to express how the book got me mad, sad and heartbroken instead.

All I can say is yes, I read them at a faster pace than most people. Does that make me a cheater because I don’t spend days on one book? No. It shows I am addicted to reading I think.  There are some who will say that they got a different take on the book than what I had written in my review. Not everyone is going to have the same thoughts about a book. Some people might take the meaning of the book a different way.  Isn’t that the point in blogs? To share your point of view?

I hope this explains my book review status better.