And the Survey Says!

From Glass Road Public Relations...
Do you read Christian novels? Do you buy Christian novels? GRPR is conducting a research study and wants to know more about you! If you would like to participate, go to http://tiny.cc/G4IsN to take an anonymous survey about buying Christian fiction. At the end, you can enter to win a library of TEN Christian novels!

From me...
Tune in tomorrow for another book contest and the winner of Single Sashimi!

Single Sashimi by Camy Tang

One of my favorite authors (and people!) Camy Tang has written an awesome set of books called the Sushi Series. Sing Sashimi is the third in the series and my favorite one two. They dynamics between her two main characters are fantastic—some of the best dialogue I've read.

Smudge gives this book the most coveted rating of five. And the beauty of it is I have an extra copy in my hands, ready to share! Leave a comment for a chance to win this fabulous story.

About the Book:
Drake Yu. Why would Drake call her after ... what, five years? Six?

Venus heard in his voice that resonance that was almost a growl, that titanium-hard determination to get what he wanted. And he usually got what he wanted. The voice said: "I want you to work for me."

Not this time ... If it was a choice between Drake and McDonald’s—she’d choose french fries. She’d never work for him again. It would take an act of God.

Venus Chau is determined to start her own game development company and launch the next Super Mario-sized phenomenon. However, she needs an investor to back her idea. When Drake Yu, an old nemesis, approaches Venus with a contracting opportunity at his sister’s startup, the offer to become Chief Technology Officer tempts Venus to think the unthinkable.

Venus would rather throw away her PS3 than work for Drake again ... except Grandma bribes Venus to do this favor for Drake’s wealthy family with a coveted introduction to the most respected investor in the game industry. It’s also a short job—only a few months—so Venus won’t have to stand Drake’s presence for very long.

But one wild youth group, a two-faced assistant, and Grandma’s determined match-making threaten to make them both fail—or go insane. With the encouragement of her three cousins, Lex, Trish, and Jennifer, Venus discovers that even a wounded heart can undergo a beautiful transformation...

Dark Pursuit by Brandilyn Collins

This week, the
Christian Fiction Blog Alliance
is introducing
Dark Pursuit
Zondervan (December 1, 2008)
by
Brandilyn Collins
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Brandilyn Collins is known for her trademark Seatbelt Suspense®. She is currently working on her 20th book. For chances to win free copies of her work, join her Fan Club on Facebook. Here’s what Brandilyn has to say about why she wrote Dark Pursuit:

In John Milton’s Paradise Lost Satan’s followers, kicked out of heaven, boast about storming the gates and reclaiming their territory. Beelzebub scoffs at their boasting as merely “hatching vain empires” and suggests a different revengeful scheme: seduce mankind away from God. So Satan visits the Garden of Eden to teach humans the very thing he and his cohorts have learned to be futile—the dark pursuit of hatching their own vain empires instead of following God. He presented man with this “gift” of death, disguised as life. And man fell for it.

Upon this theme of man’s fall and spiritual blindness, I created the characters and events in Dark Pursuit. The story clips along at a fast pace, with much symbolism running underneath.

ABOUT THE BOOK
Dark Pursuit—A twisting story of murder, betrayal, and eternal choices

Novelist Darell Brooke lived for his title as King of Suspense—until an auto accident left him unable to concentrate. Two years later, reclusive and bitter, he wants one thing: to plot a new novel and regain his reputation.

Kaitlan Sering, his twenty-two-year-old granddaughter, once lived for drugs. After she stole from Darell, he cut her off. Now she’s rebuilding her life. But in Kaitlan’s town two women have been murdered, and she’s about to discover a third. She’s even more shocked to realize the culprit—her boyfriend, Craig, the police chief’s son.

Desperate, Kaitlan flees to her estranged grandfather. For over forty years, Darell Brooke has lived suspense. Surely he’ll devise a plan to trap the cunning Craig.

But can Darell’s muddled mind do it? And—if he tries—with what motivation? For Kaitlan’s plight may be the stunning answer to the elusive plot he seeks...

Read the first chapter of Dark Pursuit, HERE.

ABOUT THE CONTEST
Smudge says to leave a comment to win a copy of Dark Pursuit. If you haven't read Brandilyn's books before, now's a good time to start! This story promises to be one of her best!

And The Winning Name Is...

Wow! Over 50 comments poured in to name this cute little dude. And after much (And I mean much—that's why I wanted a whole month!) deliberation, we now have a name.

Drum roll please...

Smudge the Paradox!

Special thanks to our winner Gina Conroy for her awesome suggestion of "Smudge." Too cute! And so fitting. Smudge says "meeeeeeoooooooooow."

Special thanks to Scott Neth for suggesting "Paradox," because, well, kittens coming from eggs is really a paradox. I liked this concept so much I decided to give Smudgy a title. (See? Nicknames already!)

Gina and Scott, be sure to EMAIL ME and send your mailing information. I have prizes ready for you!

And thank you to everyone who participated in my quirky contest. Keep your eyes open as Smudge makes more appearances in book reviews, contests, and just to say a purrrrrry hello.

Three More Days!!!

Only three days left until the end of the contest to name this little critter. One lucky person is going to win these books and a Starbucks gift card.
And I'm oh so close to a decision...

The Watchers by Mark Andrew Olsen
The Restorer's Son by Sharon Hinck
Demon: A Memoir by Tosca Lee (signed)
Embrace Grace by Lizz Curtis Higgs
Generation Next Parenting by Tricia Goyer
Reclaiming Nick by Susan May Warren
Only Uni by Camy Tang

CONTEST ENDS MAY 31st

Kittens Come From Eggs has a whole new look! And now you get to be part of the fun. This little guy (or gal!) needs a name. Leave as many comments as you want with name suggestions. The one who comes up with the name I like will receive a Starbucks gift card and a gift pack of 7 books to include:

The Watchers by Mark Andrew Olsen
The Restorer's Son by Sharon Hinck
Demon: A Memoir by Tosca Lee (signed)
Embrace Grace by Lizz Curtis Higgs
Generation Next Parenting by Tricia Goyer
Reclaiming Nick by Susan May Warren
Only Uni by Camy Tang

Now here's the plus. Send a friend over with his or her suggestions, and if he or she wins, you get a gift too! Just be sure they mention who sent them.

Be creative, be silly, be original! This little critter will have to live with this name for a long time, so give it a name to fit it's quirky character.

Contest ends May 31st! Meeeeeoooooooow...

An Interview with Amy Wallace

Today it's my absolute delight and pleasure to have one of my favorite authors here. Amy Wallace is the author of Ransomed Dreams and Healing Promises. These books are two of my favorite stories and I can't wait to read Enduring Justice, book three in the Defenders of Hope series (Spring '09). (Btw, there are some spoilers in the first chapter of Healing Promises so you might want to read Ransomed Dreams first.)

Now here's the best part. One very special commenter will win a Healing Promises Gift Pack, which contains a signed copy of the book, Healing Promises, a Healing Promises mug, and a Starbucks gift card!

Amy, you touch on some pretty powerful struggles with your characters. What’s the “story” behind this story?

Healing Promises grew out of a painful time of wrestling with God and doubting His goodness during two very intense experiences. One was attending a friend’s funeral after three years of praying for healing. My faith was rocked to the core and I struggled to pray for a long time after my friend died. The second difficult season was that of losing a baby before becoming pregnant with my third daughter. Both dark nights of the soul took me to the end of what I understood about God. As I worked on Healing Promises, I went back to those memories and poured into the pages all the pain of those moments as well as what God taught me and the grace He lavished on my wounded heart.

Clint’s character is so deep and real in his struggle to trust God through his cancer treatment. And what a challenge that must have been to write! How did you handle that?

I had an amazing group of people praying me through the writing of this story. And four very dear friends who shared their cancer journeys with gut-wrenching honesty and gave me the privilege of mixing my tears and prayers with theirs.

Sara’s constant feeling of failure, no matter how much she actually helped or accomplished, is true for so many Christians. What was your motivation to show her struggle?

Not until writing the end of this book did I realize how much of my life and my struggles appeared in Sara’s story. It would have been easier to sanitize Sara’s pain and rework her issues. But my mentor taught me that bleeding into our writing and letting the Lord work within the mess of our lives and our stories is the only way to fashion words that will capture people’s hearts and point them to the Lord.

One part I really could relate to was Sara’s role as Clint’s wife, especially in such a difficult time and through her own emotional struggles as well. Marriage is a challenge even in the best of circumstances. What holds this fictional couple together in such a difficult time in their lives and relationship?

The only thing that holds real-life together—the all-powerful and infinite love of our amazing God that never lets go of us. I think the various storms Clint and Sara faced together in the past as well as their deep love and respect for each other also provided some strong glue to their relationship.

There were definitely some hanging threads there with Michael and Hanna. Will we get to see their story in book three?

Absolutely! Enduring Justice is Michael and Hanna’s story as they learn that the difference between executing vengeance and pursuing justice is their choice to heal.

What has been the most difficult aspect in writing this series? The most rewarding?

The most difficult aspect has been pouring my soul into these stories and then having to let them go and trust that God will accomplish His good purpose for them.

The most rewarding has been pouring my soul into the pages and watching God touch hearts and do amazing things beyond what I could have asked or imagined.

One line in the book is so powerful. “Are you depending on circumstances or people?” Can you give blog readers a glimmer of this most important message?

It’s been said that trusting God on sunny days when life is cruising along is easy. But it’s a far different scene when storms are raging and God asks us to step out of the boat—the one we’re sure is the only thing keeping us safe.

I’ve watched God pry things from my hands that I knew were His will for me and His gifts. The problem was I kept looking to those people and circumstances for my peace and okayness. It’s God’s amazing grace and love that breaks our hold on the things that can’t keep us afloat when life turns stormy, so that we’ll cling to His hand instead. The hand that holds tight even when the waves roar and enables us to walk on water with Him.

Wow, great stuff, Amy. Thanks for sharing with us.

Don't forget to leave a comment for a chance to win that gift pack. Also, check out Amy's AMAZINGLY cool website, where you can sign up for her newsletter, Dark Chocolate Suspense. You really don't want to miss that. Amy shares wonderful stories in her newsletter, and the most tempting recipes!

Still Time to Win!!!

There's still time to win a copy of Sandra Glahn's Informed Consent (original post). I just finished this book last night and really enjoyed it. So leave a comment if you'd like to enter the contest. Blessings!