Online eBook Sale

If you are looking for some great deals on eBooks, be sure to check out Bookmarked Bargains this week for their four day eBook sale. There is also a chance to win a Reader Party Pack. Head on over to check it out.

MissionHome.com

Deseret Book announced that they are sponsoring the new website MissionHome.com for missionaries and their families. Here is their press release. 

MissionHome.com provides new resources for missionaries and their families

Where you serve is not as important as how you serve.

Salt Lake City, UT (September 17, 2013) – The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints currently operates over 400 missions with more than 75,000 missionaries serving throughout the world. When the missionary age change was announced in the October 2012 general conference, a new wave of prospective missionaries began preparing for the moment they would receive their call.

After receiving the call, missionaries and families often begin their search for specific information on that mission. Until now, there has not been a centralized site to learn about the culture and people of each mission area.  On October 1^st, 2013 Deseret Book Company will launch an online missionary website, MissionHome.com.  

MissionHome.com focuses on each phase of missionary service—prepare, serve and return. It includes helpful hints to prospective missionaries including tips for how to pack efficiently and how to prepare to leave as well as inspiring and authentic experiences from former missionaries.  A complete mission directory, created by missionaries who themselves have served in that area, provides information about local customs, food, transportation, safety, and many other insights.

“We saw a way that we could provide a gathering place for missionaries and the families of missionaries to become acquainted with the area where they would be serving as well as provide other unique resources,” said Laurel Christensen Day of Deseret Book Company, “and MissionHome.com was born.”

MissionHome.com is easy to use and provides a library of information for prospective and returning missionaries as well as help to families of those currently serving (a section for senior couples will be coming soon). Familiar LDS authors as well as recently returned missionaries and past mission presidents will be regular contributors to the site. 

In addition to great free content and resources, families will be able to send care packages directly to their missionaries with guaranteed delivery from Deseret Book. Service is available to most missions.

For more information on Mission Home, visit www.missionhome.com.

About Deseret Book

Deseret Book is committed to support the mission of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints by providing scriptures, books, music, and other quality products that strengthen individuals, families, and our society. For more information go to www.deseretbook.com.

Heads Up: Beyond the West Sea by Misty Moncur

I love getting updates from Wattpad that Misty Moncur has started posting a new story! I was able to read the first two chapters of Beyond the West Sea (which I think is the final book in the Daughter of Helaman series), and those two chapters are excellent! Now I just have to be patient for the rest of the story to be posted. ;)

Spread the Love Contest for Athena Launch

The Newport Ladies Book Club authors have another Spread the Love Contest going on their blog right now in honor of the upcoming release of Athena. This is a great series that shows the importance of friendships in our lives, and it is told from four different perspectives (and it sounds like more will be coming next year). I'm really excited to see what Heather Moore has done with Athena!

Athena's release date is in November, but if you can make it to the Ladies Night at the Fort Union Deseret Book on October 6th (between 6:00-8:00), you can purchase your copy of Athena early! It sounds like it will be a great book launch and a really fun evening with lots of authors, artists, refreshments, etc.

New Posting on Wattpad by Misty Moncur

I received an email from Wattpad letting me know that Misty Moncur has started posting book seven of her Daughter of Helaman series. It is called In Enemy Arms, and I am very excited to start reading it.

Misty is an excellent writer, and I highly recommend this series. If you haven't checked it out yet (or Wattpad for that matter), head on over and see what you've been missing.

Happy September

This year is just flying by. I'm so grateful for the rain and cooler temperatures we are having right now!

If you are looking for some free books to add to your e-reader this fall, Bethany House Publishers has its September E-book Specials posted. I've read a few of them (The Widow of Larkspur Inn, Secrets, and Talk of the Town). The details are a little fuzzy since I read them quite awhile ago, but from what I remember, they were all clean and enjoyable. I can't speak for the other September Specials, but I would recommend checking the reviews to see if they might interest you.

Sharing Time

It has been a crazy, busy week with school starting. We went from a very laid back summer schedule (oh, let's be honest, no schedule) to a packed schedule that requires everyone up and moving much earlier than our bodies are used to. But, it has been a good week. Just not one conducive to book blogging. :)

Here are a few things I wanted to share:

First, Misty Moncur has posted book six in her Daughter of Helaman Series on Wattpad. It is called Brothers in Arms and it's wonderful (as per usual with her writing). I highly recommend this series.

I'll be part of a couple of blog tours and a spotlight coming up in the next few weeks. This includes giveaways! Be sure to visit my Blog Tours / Launches page for more details.

Don't forget about the contest author Josi S. Kilpack and her publisher are doing in conjunction with the release of her latest culinary mystery, Tres Leches Cupcakes. To enter, you just have to leave a comment on my post, and you can enter on any of the participating blogs (by September 16th). Easy, easy entry for an awesome prize pack for a great series!

Through the end of the month Bethany House Publishers is offering some free ebooks. This is one of the "safe" publishers I've found (free from profanity and sex). Head on over to see if any of their August Specials interest you.

Have a great week!

Tres Leches Cupcakes Release & Contest

I received the following GREAT news today:

In conjunction with the release of Tres Leches Cupcakes the author, Josi S. Kilpack, and the publisher, Shadow Mountain, are sponsoring a contest for free books. To enter, leave a comment in the comment section of this blog before September 16th, 2012. Winners will be announced and notified September 17th 2012.

For additional ways to enter, go to www.josiskilpack.com.

This series is so much fun to read. You get great writing, quirky Sadie (middle-aged baker extraordinaire who dabbles in solving crimes), humor, mystery, suspense, and excellent recipes. I've read all of the books in the series (up to this one), and I own a couple them. This contest is so awesome (with the chance to win at least three books in the series, and more based on the number of entries to the contest). I am so excited to read Tres Leches Cupcakes.

For Sadie Hoffmiller, going undercover as an informant for the Bureau of Land Management on an archeological site in Santa Fe, New Mexico, seems like the perfect way to stay safe and busy while a threat against her life remains unresolved. Sadie’s days are spent digging up artifacts in the middle of nowhere while also digging up information on her fellow “dirt geeks.” With the help of her baking prowess—no one can resist those amazing dulce de leche bars—and Pete’s cousin, Caro, who takes to the detective work wholeheartedly, Sadie is finding herself again.

But the bright Southwestern sunshine only serves to illuminate the danger that lurks in the shadows. When recent burials are found on an ancient site, Sadie finds herself in the middle of an unexpected—and unwanted—investigation. The more she digs for the truth, the more secrets she uncovers—secrets that people would kill to keep hidden.

Before Sadie knows it, she’s arrested for starting a bar fight (which was totally not her fault), her new friend is missing, and she’s worn out her welcome in Santa Fe in more ways than one. A trip to the annual hot air balloon fiesta in Albuquerque is supposed to give her a break, but before long, she learns that when you’re dealing with the black market antiquity trade, you’re not really safe anywhere you go.

Comment below to enter and be sure to visit Josi's website for the other ways to enter this awesome contest!

If contests aren't for you, you can pre-order Tres Leches Cupcakes on Deseret Book and Amazon.

Erasing Time

It's Friday and that means that today is the last day of my Janette Rallison week. I hope you've enjoyed reading about Janette and a few of her books.

Janette (as C.J. Hill) has a new book coming out on August 28th. It's called Erasing Time. Here's the blurb:

In this high-action and romantic futuristic adventure, there is no escape from the future for two contemporary girls pulled out of their own time.

When twins Sheridan and Taylor wake up 400 years in the future, they find a changed world: domed cities, no animals, and a language that’s so different, it barely sounds like English. And the worst news: They can’t go back home.

The twenty-fifth-century government transported the girls to their city hoping to find a famous scientist to help perfect a devastating new weapon. The moblike Dakine fights against the government, and somehow Taylor and Sheridan find themselves in the middle. The only way to elude them all is to trust Echo, a guy with secrets of his own. The trio must put their faith in the unknown to make a harrowing escape into the wilds beyond the city.

Full of adrenaline-injected chases and heartbreaking confessions, Erasing Time explores the strength of the bonds between twins, the risks and rewards of trust, and the hard road to finding the courage to fight for what you believe in.

Janette has posted the first page or so of the book on both her blog and her C.J. Hill blog. You can pre-order Erasing Time on Amazon.

Thanks again Janette for participating this week, and for writing great books. Keep up the good work!

More Wattpad Finds

Last night I discovered that Jenni James has several books on Wattpad (Jenni is the author of 2011 Whitney Award finalist Pride and Popularity). It looks like you can read a few chapters of her published books, and much more of her unpublished books.

If you come across any Wattpad finds, feel free to share them in the comments.

LDSWBR Countdown to Summer

The awesome reviewers over at LDSWBR have started their Countdown to Summer where they are featuring several authors and books until the end of June. In addition to learning about some great reads, you can comment on any of the Countdown posts in order to win some fabulous prizes. Head on over!