Weekend Writing Warriors – Donuts in an Empty Field 3#WeWriWa

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Here’s the link to the Weekend Writing Warriors central page, so you can visit all the participants sharing excerpts!

Donuts in an Empty Field is a contemporary, realistic fiction, and Young Adult novel about two best friends, the local food challenge, and letting go of anger.

This excerpt is from chapter one. After last week when Vanessa first opens the room to her late father’s office, she is tasked with cleaning everything out and boxing everything up with her mom. Nichole, her best friend, comes over to help. When Mom leaves to get the girls a snack, Nichole trips over a stack of books and Vanessa accidentally rips a photo off the wall in her attempts to save Nichole from falling on her butt.

 

Nichole sucks in a breath as I turn to face the ruined picture. Something flutters behind the missing corner and I lift the stiff paper to peer behind it.
Something is there.
Nichole and I both jump at the sound of a crash from the front of the house.
“Mom!” I yell.
I’m wound up from being in Dad’s office, from remembering our last day together, to the finality of packing up his stuff that I go into panic mode and run toward the door.

 

What’s behind the photo? It’s a single piece of paper. Find out next week what it says.

 

Purchase the book HERE.

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Local young adult writer, Rachel Barnard, will release the first novel in her young adult For the Love of Donuts series titled Donuts in an Empty Field with Life’s a Book Publishing, June 3rd, 2016 (AKA National Donut Day). Order your copy HERE.

Letting go of anger is life’s greatest challenge.

Vanessa hasn’t been the same since her father’s death. A hero until the end, he died saving a restaurant owner’s son from a burning building. Nessa blames the boy, but her best friend Nichole thinks it’s time to let go of the past. In a last ditch effort to break Nessa’s obsession, Nichole hopes signing up for the local food challenge will bust her out of her shell. A single choice defines the road ahead for Nessa. Doing the right thing isn’t easy, but living with the consequences of doing nothing might be worse.

donugts

Subscribe to Rachel’s newsletter to receive important updates and promotions, if you haven’t already. Signup HERE

Don’t forget: Enter the free raffle to win neat goodies HERE

Add the book to your Goodreads shelf HERE

All About the Donuts: Donuts in an Empty Field (For the Love of Donuts Book 1) Publication Day June 3rd (Tomorrow)!

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TOMORROW it’ll be here!

Have you joined the release party for Donuts in an Empty Field? Go RSVP now.

Here’s the lineup of my blog tour for Donuts:

May 31- Fluffygolarky – https://fluffygolarky.wordpress.com/2016/05/31/blog-tour-donuts-in-an-empty-field/

June 1 – FreeValleyPublishing – https://freevalleypublishing.com/2016/06/01/just-two-more-days-until-donuts/

June 1 – T.A. Henry – https://tahenryauthoress.wordpress.com/2016/06/01/wed-no-cafe-suprise/

June 2 – K.J. Farnham – https://kjfarnham.com/2016/06/02/facts-about-donuts-in-an-empty-field-by-rachel-barnard/

June 3 – A Spark in the Dark Blog – https://clrozelle.wordpress.com/

June 3 – Jo Michael’s – http://jomichaels.blogspot.com/2016/06/release-day-donuts-in-empty-field.html

 

 

And Oddmall in Everett is coming up this weekend! Be sure to stop by our booth (8) and say hello, maybe take your picture with me.

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Local young adult writer, Rachel Barnard, will release the first novel in her young adult For the Love of Donuts series titled Donuts in an Empty Field with Life’s a Book Publishing, June 3rd, 2016 (AKA National Donut Day). Pre-order your copy HERE.

Letting go of anger is life’s greatest challenge.

Vanessa hasn’t been the same since her father’s death. A hero until the end, he died saving a restaurant owner’s son from a burning building. Nessa blames the boy, but her best friend Nichole thinks it’s time to let go of the past. In a last ditch effort to break Nessa’s obsession, Nichole hopes signing up for the local food challenge will bust her out of her shell. A single choice defines the road ahead for Nessa. Doing the right thing isn’t easy, but living with the consequences of doing nothing might be worse.

Don’t forget to subscribe to Rachel’s newsletter to receive important updates and promotions, if you haven’t already. Signup HERE

Come celebrate the awaited release of the first book in the For the Love of Donuts series – “Donuts in an Empty Field” by Rachel Barnard,  Online Here

Don’t forget: Enter the free raffle to win neat goodies HERE

Add the book to your Goodreads shelf HERE

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Book Review: Dust in the Desert: A Flipped Fairy Tale (Flipped Fairy Tales Book 4) by Starla Huchton

Dust in the Desert: A Flipped Fairy Tale (Flipped Fairy Tales Book 4) by Starla Huchton

A Fantasy/Fairy Tale Adaptation published through Amazon Digital Services LLC (05/16/16)

Summary:

“A single grain of sand can shift the course of a dune, which changes the entire desert.” (Kindle Locations 192-193).

Alida was a simple thief. Istara was a dying city. The Sultana would not give up her power, would not go wanting, would not save her own kingdom. What can Alida, a single grain of sand, do to save Istara?

Keywords:

Desert, Dust, Kingdom, Sultana, Power Hungry, Thief, Deceit, Lies, Wit, Dying Empire, Magic Lamp, Djinn, Wishes, Humbleness, Love, Kindness, Falling in Love, Sympathy

 

My Review:

I absolutely loved Alida! She is the exact princess I always imagined myself to be as a little girl. She is so well spoken and clever, exactly how I want a princess to be. This book is exactly what teenagers should be reading! There is so much to take away from Alida in her actions, her reserved temperament, and her ability keep a level head. She is a great role model.

The dialogue between Alida and the prince Shahzadeh Sameer is amazing. It is so mature, eloquent and realistic for their world and their situations. I was captivated every time Alida spoke.

Tension is held constant throughout this book and it contained solid and compelling storytelling.

This novel was published through Amazon Digital Services LLC May 16th, 2016 and is available on Amazon here.

TL;DR Star Rating:5.00

Links for more information:

Goodreads

Starla Huchton’s Website

Weekend Writing Warriors – Donuts in an Empty Field 2#WeWriWa

www_tiny

Here’s the link to the Weekend Writing Warriors central page, so you can visit all the participants sharing excerpts!

Donuts in an Empty Field is a contemporary, realistic fiction, and Young Adult novel about two best friends, the local food challenge, and letting go of anger.

This excerpt is from chapter one. After last week when Vanessa first opens the room to her late father’s office, she is tasked with cleaning everything out and boxing everything up with her mom. What does Vanessa have left to remember her father?

 

Bluster noses his way into the room, waddling around to sniff at each pile of books and papers stacked on the floor. I bend down to pet him. Not only is it the anniversary of my father’s death, but it’s also the anniversary of the day we got Bluster. It’s almost as if he came to replace Dad, arriving mere hours ahead of the incident at the restaurant. Bluster’s stubby reddish brown tail beats at my thigh as I try to hold him down and hug him. Bluster’s softness rubs against my bare legs. I can hear his heartbeat pattering and his breath wheezing as he struggles to get out of my grip. He smells like a dog should, musty wet from his recent bath. I breathe deep, the smell overpowering the staleness of the office around us.

 

Vanessa and her Mom are cleaning out Dad’s office and in the four years since he died, Vanessa’s best reminder and memory of her Dad is the Corgi Bluster, but that’s not all he left behind. Tune in next week when we find out the surprise Vanessa will discover in her Dad’s office.

 

Purchase the book HERE.

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Local young adult writer, Rachel Barnard, will release the first novel in her young adult For the Love of Donuts series titled Donuts in an Empty Field with Life’s a Book Publishing, June 3rd, 2016 (AKA National Donut Day). Pre-order your copy HERE.

Letting go of anger is life’s greatest challenge.

Vanessa hasn’t been the same since her father’s death. A hero until the end, he died saving a restaurant owner’s son from a burning building. Nessa blames the boy, but her best friend Nichole thinks it’s time to let go of the past. In a last ditch effort to break Nessa’s obsession, Nichole hopes signing up for the local food challenge will bust her out of her shell. A single choice defines the road ahead for Nessa. Doing the right thing isn’t easy, but living with the consequences of doing nothing might be worse.

donugts

Subscribe to Rachel’s newsletter to receive important updates and promotions, if you haven’t already. Signup HERE

Come celebrate the awaited release of the first book in the For the Love of Donuts series – “Donuts in an Empty Field” by Rachel Barnard,  Online Here

Don’t forget: Enter the free raffle to win neat goodies HERE

Add the book to your Goodreads shelf HERE

Thunderclap It – Indie Marketing – Donuts in an Empty Field Upcoming Release

Feel the thunder of thousands of people posting the same thing at once!

Definition of Thunderclap as Rachel sees it: A marketing technique wherein authors fill out a campaign on thunderclap to have a simultaneous posting release to Twitter/Facebook/Tumblr. Thunderclap is much like Kickstarter in that you HAVE to have the minimum amount of supporters for the thunderclap to release.

I’m not to my minimum yet and would kindly ask my blog readers to check out my campaign and pledge their support.

Thunderclap!!

Book Review: The Human (The Children of Wisdom Book 3) by Stephanie Erickson

The Human (The Children of Wisdom Book 3) by Stephanie Erickson

A Fiction Novel that will be published (03/06/2016)

Summary:

This woman is like no human I’ve ever encountered. (Kindle Location 1417).

Michaela the Reaper has been captured during her latest Reaping of a Surprise. Did the child make it to heaven or has the human intervened in Fate once again? Even the Fates know the true evil behind the snipped threads and innocent souls trapped in hell and their bent on fixing things and rescuing Michaele.

Keywords:

Fate, Life, Death, Order, Chaos, God, Humans, Immortals, Love, Friendship, Heaven, Earth, Hell, Tapestry of Life, Demons, Escape, Capture, Humanity, Morals

My Review:

The flow of knowledge and understanding about the plot are finally revealed! The plot is clever and integrated well into all three books. The pacing is slower than your average novel and care is taken at all plot points to really dig into the action. Tension was never very high, but the book will keep you reading. Nothing was very surprising, but the book (and series) were still satisfying, kind of like a well-known fairy tale where you know there’s going to be a happily ever after, but you want to read about the journey anyways.

Every time God was mentioned or seen was interesting as he is portrayed as very human. He wears clothing and goes by the gendered pronoun “he.” His handwriting is not perfect, nor are his words always perfectly understandable. In everything, what is God doing? He’s like the mysterious wizard behind the curtain, not really part of the adventure, but the voice of wisdom all the same.

The only note I had on the book was that Shiloh did not act like a child, but like a 1000 year old soul, which seemed rather odd.

Disclaimer: I received a free copy of this book from the author and this is an honest review.

This novel will be published 03/05/2016 and will be available on Amazon.

TL;DR Star Rating: 4.25

Links for more information:

Stephanie Erickson’s Website