Guest Post with Author Cornelia Amiri + Contest

Daffodils and The Prince of Powys

By Cornelia Amiri

I live in Houston, Texas, a climate that is usually warm, so I’m already thinking about and looking forward to spring. The ancient Celts like most people loved spring. The ancient Celtic festival Imbolc, which takes place next month, February 1^st, ushered in spring. When I think of spring, I often think of Daffodils. Not only are yellow daffodils the essence of spring but they also hold a place of sacred honor to the Welsh.

One of the daffodil's many Welsh names is Cenhinen Bedr (Peter's leek). St. David, also known as Dewi, the patron saint of Wales, was a monk who lived on bread, water, herbs and leeks. The day he died, March 1, 589 A. D., is celebrated each year in Wales as St. David’s day. At the battle of Heathfield in 633 AD, which took place in a field of leeks, St. David told the Welsh warriors to wear a leek on their helmet so they could tell them apart from the Saxons they were fighting. Legend has it that the wild daffodils open their buds on March 1st to remind people of Saint David. Also Welsh soldiers wear a leek or daffodil in their caps each year on St. David's Day. Daffodils are often worn in place of leeks in hats and buttonholes, because they’re prettier and smell much sweeter.

Even warriors, both present and past, loved daffodils. The 8^th century Welsh Warrior King, Elisedd, has a pillar, a standing cross his grandson erected to honor his deeds in battle, which still stands in Powys near Eglwyseg Mountain.

In my new young adult novel, The Prince of Powys, King Elisedd picked daffodils at the hill fort of Dynas Bran and discovered the magic within them as he said, “Men like your sire and I are warrior kings. We have no time for pretty words and daffodils. We must look after our land and our people." As the stern-faced king spoke those words, he twirled a daffodil in hand.

Branda covered her trembling lips to keep from laughing. She gathered a bouquet of the yellow flowers and handed them to the king.

”Don’t tell Carthann that you picked these flowers," Elisedd said.

“No." Branda leaned in close to him. "Are you going to give her the daffodils?"

"Yes. Let her think I picked them, for it was my intent. It is why I offered to bring you here, I remember a time when I picked daffodils for her. The summer scents and a pretty maid meant much to me. You make me feel young again girl."

Blurb for The Prince of Powys:

In an age of heroes, Branda, a Saxon princess helps Blaise, a Prince of Powys, escape her father’s stronghold. In turn, he vows to escort the princess to her sister in Scotland so she can escape an arranged marriage. Instead, he holds her captive as his hostage in the unbreachable hill fort of Dinas Bran, where she captures his heart. Will Blaise be forced to throw away his honor for love or to tear out his heart for honor?

I included a picture of me with daffodil balloons at the Dafodill Festival in Round Rock Texas. For more more information about my young adult fantasy/romance, The Prince of Powys, please visit http://www.eternalpress.biz/book.php?isbn=9781615725823 or my website http://CelticromanceQueen.com.

Blogging Contest:

I am giving away a Celtic leather bracelet. Please post a comment or question below and a winner will be randomly selected. Include you email so I can contact you if you win.

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Thanks for stopping by Cornelia!
And be sure to check out her website and comment below to win the bracelet :)

Box of ARCs Contest!

Hey all, my resolution for this new year will be to read more at college (yes I am in college now, majoring in English Lit YAY!) and to definitely BLOG more! I will try my hardest to read and review more books as well as juggle my school workload, work, and social life. 

Anyways I feel bad having all of these ARCs that I have either read, don't want to read, or know I will never read just sitting in my room soooo I will be sending a lucky winner a box full of ARCs (12 Total)! I want to send it before I go back to school so the contest will end MONDAY January 16th, 2012. I move back into my dorm the 17th so this will give me a day to bundle it all up and send it before I go back!

These are the 12 ARCs I am giving away:

(click the link to go to the Goodreads page to read their summaries)

• The Beautiful Between by Alyssa B. Sheinmel
• Bitter End by Jennifer Brown
• Secret Society by Tom Dolby
• Shut Out by Kody Keplinger
• Girl in the Arena by Lise Haines
• Nothing but Ghosts by Beth Kephart
• Three Rivers Rising by Jame Richards
• A Brief History of Montmary by Michelle Cooper
• The Sigh of Haruhi Suzumiya by Hagaru Tanigawa
• The Lighter Side of Life and Death by C. K. Kelly Martin
• Dirty Little Secrets by C. J. Omololu
• Goth Girl Rising by Barry Lyga

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CONTEST INFO:

- Open to U.S. addresses only

- Must fill out THIS FORM

- One winner ~ 12 ARCs (new and gently used)!

- Ends January 16th!

- Also since there are so many and a lot of them have been out for a while, if you have any of these just say so. If you win, I'll try to exchange one of them with a different ARC or another book.

EXTRA ENTRIES ~ MUST LEAVE LINKS:

+1 Commenting on any post (besides this one)

+2 For being a follower 

+3 Linking to Twitter, Sidebar, Facebook, Post, or etc.

Fill Out THE FORM and Good Luck!

August Celebration Giveaway ~ 6 Books, 3 Winners, & 2 Books Each!

 In the event of many things to celebrate in August, I'm hosting the August Celebration Giveaway. My one year Blogoversary is August 13th, my birthday is August 20th, and I have reached over 250+ followers which calls for my biggest contest yet! There are six book up for grabs and three winners each win two books. Here are the books for three lucky winners and each book is linked to their Amazon page & my review:
 

 Grace by Elizabeth Scott

(Gently Used ARC) ~ my review

Midnight Charter by David Whitely
(Gently Used ARC) ~ my review
The Duff by Kody Keplinger
(Gently Used ARC) my review

Jane by April Lindner
(Gently Used ARC) ~ my review

The Naughty List by Suzanne Young

(Gently Used ARC) ~ my review

Butterfly by Sonya Hartnett

(Gently Used ARC) ~ my review

 

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CONTEST INFO:

- Open to U.S. addresses only

- Must fill out THIS FORM
- Three winners ~ Two books each!

- Ends September 1st!

EXTRA ENTRIES ~ MUST LEAVE LINKS:

+1 Commenting on any review
+2 For being a follower before 8/01/10
+3 Linking to Twitter, Facebook, Post, or ect.

+4 Adding contest button to sidebar/post
+5 For completing blog survey

<center><a href="http://anaddictedbookreader.blogspot.com/2010/08/august-celebration-giveaway-6-books-3.html"><img src="http://i915.photobucket.com/albums/ac352/Adrienne2093/AugustCelebrationGiveaway.jpg"/></a></center>

 
 
Fill Out THE FORM and Good Luck!

Summer ARCs Contest!

Up for grabs today are two gently used ARC copies of The Summer of Skinny Dipping and Boys, Bears, and a Serious Pair of Hiking Boots. There will be two winners, one for each book! Both books I gave 4 stars, so I very much recommend reading them! Here's the descriptions from Goodreads + links to my review of each:

"Sometimes I still wake up shivering in the early hours of the morning, drowning in dreams of being out there in the ocean that summer, of looking up at the moon and feeling as invisible and free as a fish. But I'm jumping ahead, and to tell the story right I have to go back to the very beginning. To a place called Indigo Beach. To a boy with pale skin that glowed against the dark waves. To the start of something neither of us could have predicted, and which would mark us forever, making everything that came after and before seem like it belonged to another life.
My name is Mia Gordon: I was sixteen years old, and I remember everything...."

After getting dumped by her boyfriend, Mia is looking forward to spending a relaxing summer in the Hamptons with her glamorous cousins. But when she arrives she find her cousins distant, moody, and caught up with a fast crowd. Mia finds herself lonelier than ever, until she meets her next-door-neighbor, Simon Ross. And from the very first time he encourages her to go skinny dipping, she's caught in a current impossible to resist.

Timeless in feel, The Summer of Skinny-Dipping is a poignant, literary coming-of-age romance that will live on long after summer has ended.

 ~ MY REVIEW ~

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Can a boy-hungry Jersey girl survive the wilds of Canada with her eco-identity intact? A witty new YA novel from the author of SOPHOMORE SWITCH.

Jenna may hail from the ’burbs of New Jersey, but Green Teen activism is her life. So when her mom suggests they spend the summer at Grandma’s Florida condo, Jenna pleads instead to visit her hippie godmother, Susie, up in rural Canada. Jenna is psyched at the chance to commune with this nature she’s heard about — and the cute, plaidwearing boys she’s certain must roam there. But after a few run-ins with local wildlife (from a larger-than-life moose to Susie’s sullen Goth stepdaughter to a hot but hostile boy named Reeve), Jenna gets the idea that her long-held ideals, like vegetarianism and conservation, don’t play so well with this population of real outdoorsmen. A dusty survival guide offers Jenna amusing tips on navigating the wilderness — but can she learn to navigate the turns of her heart?

~ MY REVIEW ~

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CONTEST INFO:

- Open to U.S. addresses only

- Must fill out THIS FORM
- Two Winners ~ One for each book!

- Ends July 22nd!

EXTRA ENTRIES ~ MUST LEAVE LINKS:

+1 Commenting on either review
+2 Linking to Twitter, Facebook, Post, or ect.

+3 Adding contest button to sidebar/post

<center><a href="http://anaddictedbookreader.blogspot.com/2010/07/summer-arcs-contest.html"><img src="http://i915.photobucket.com/albums/ac352/Adrienne2093/summerarcs_edited-2.jpg"/></a></center>

Fill Out THE FORM and Good Luck!

Contest Time! 250 Followers Contest!!

In thanks of all my amazing, lovely 250+ followers, I'm hosting a 200 followers contest with 2 winners! The first winner can pick two books from the list, and the second winner can pick one book from the list! Each winner will also receive some swag : )

These are the books you can choose from 
 (linked to Amazon pages):

Beautiful Dead: Jonas by Eden Maguire

(Gently Used ARC) ~ my review

Dedication by Emma McLaughlin and Nicola Kraus 

(Gently Used Paperback) ~ my review

Merlin's Harp by Anne Eliot Crompton

(Gently Used ARC)

Saving Maddie by Varian Johnson 
(Gently Used ARC) ~ my review

She Thief by Daniel Finn

(New ARC)

Wherever Nina Lies by Lynn Weingarten

(New Paperback)

CONTEST DETAILS:

To enter fill out this form HERE and answer what is your favorite debut novel so far?

Open to U.S. addresses only and ends June 18th!

EXTRA ENTRIES:

(I will be checking all entries, so please be honest!)

+1 commenting on any review

+2 for adding/added my button or blog to your blogroll

+3 for being a follower before the contest: before 5/12

+4 for spreading the word anywhere

Thanks again and good luck : D Enter HERE!

 

Princess Bookie's Contest Craze

Princess Bookie is hosting thousands of contests (it seems like it lol) for the Read-a-Thon today! There are many from the beginning of the week and tons from today. Just click on the button to start entering all the awesome contests now! : )

Interview, Guest Post, and Contest with Author Lee Nichols!

Today Lee Nichols is here, and she is an Adult Romance author who has a debut YA book,  Deception, coming out this year! Below is an about me about Lee, Deception description and cover, then her guest post, followed by our interview, and finally contest information. Enjoy : )

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Lee Nichols is the author of five romantic comedies with Red Dress Ink: Tales of a Drama Queen (2004), Hand-Me-Down (2005), True Lies of a Drama Queen (2006), Wednesday Night Witches (2007) and Reconstructing Brigid (2008). This spring, Lee will be debuting on the YA shelves with the first book in her haunting paranormal trilogy, Deception ~ A Haunting Emma Novel (Bloomsbury Children’s Books, June 2010). Follow her on Twitter at LeeXNichols or Friend her on Facebook at Lee Nichols. 

http://www.leenicholsbooks.com/

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I can still remember some of my favorite young adult books. Passed back and forth between friends who loved to read as much as I did. It's thrilling to me that I may encourage a young reader to love books in the way that S.E. Hinton and Judy Blume excited me. Not to mention all the authors I've forgotten, but whose stories still live on in my mind.

 
My goal has always been to write books that you're so content reading on a Saturday night, you don't feel like you've missed out on something better. I loved creating Emma Vaile and her ghosts and hope that readers happily lose themselves in her world for a couple of hours. 

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Deception: A Haunting Emma Book One 
By Lee Nichols

Release Date: June 8, 2010! 

When Emma Vaile’s parents go missing while away on a mysterious business trip, she’s left all alone in her creepy old house. But her brother’s very cute best friend, Bennett Stern—Emma’s knight in J. Crew armor—arrives unexpectedly to whisk her away to New England. There, Emma settles into his family’s museum-like mansion and enrolls at an old-fashioned private school. She quickly finds friends in the popular legacy crowd at Thatcher and spends her free time crushing on Bennett. But the eerie visions she’s been hiding from everyone have gotten worse. Emma has memories of Thatcher that she can’t explain—it’s as if she’s returning home to a place she’s never been. Finally, Emma confides in Bennett and learns she is a ghostkeeper, a person who can communicate with ghosts. Bennett brought Emma to Thatcher to protect her, but now he needs her help tracking an other-worldly murderer. 

A rich New England setting filled with mystery, tradition, and prep-school intrigue make Deception the perfect choice for fans of series like Kate Brian’s Private, as well as all those paranormal fans. The shocking ending will leave readers desperate for book two. 

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How did you come up with the idea for the story of Deception? 

I was knocking around some ideas with my agent for an adult novel about a woman who moves into an old New England house that she soon realizes is haunted. The more I worked on the character and plot, the more I realized it was better suited for a YA novel. That I really wanted to write about a seventeen year old girl who could control ghosts. So the house is still there and so are the ghosts, but it took on a completely different nature: less gothic, more kick-butt young heroine. 

How many books will be in the series? 

Deception comes out this June, followed by Betrayal next winter, and I'm just starting to write the third in the Haunting Emma series which will be titled Possession. 

How was writing a Young Adult book different from writing books for adults? 

I don't really find it that different. I'm still building plots and characters which then lead to the settings. So while they may be at school and proms instead of work and bars, the process is very much the same. The voice came easily to me. I think inside, I'm still seventeen. 

What was your favorite book when you were little? Right now? 

The Gift of Magic, by Lois Duncan. It was the first book I can remember loving that hadn't been handed to me by my mother. I think parents influence children's book choices for so long, and my mother and I did not agree on what made a book fun. The Gift of Magic began my love affair with reading. Right now, I tell anyone who asks to read The Brief and Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao, by Junot Diaz, which funnily enough was handed to me by mother. We still have very different tastes, but this one we both loved. 

What is your favorite genre to write? Read? 

Right now I'm completely involved with YA books. The genre has just exploded and I think it's most exciting place to be as a reader and a writer. 

Who inspired you to start writing? 

My husband, Joel N. Ross, who's also a writer. He gave me the confidence to think this could be something more than a dream. 

What is one or a couple things you just have to have when you are writing? 

A comfortable spot. I am not a desk person. I write on the couch or the bed. It surprises me that I can write whole books that way, but I do. 

Finally, thanks for taking the time to answer my questions! 
Thanks for having me. It was a pleasure!

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Contest:
Dedrie and Lee have offered to give away one of Lee's older books to one of my readers, so without further ado a contest for Hand-Me-Down! Here's the description from Goodreads and the cover: 

For Anne Olsen, new and improved is the only way to live. So how'd she fall for a secondhand man? Charlotte had the Malibu Barbie with a full wardrobe. Emily inherited a slightly used Barbie with two outfits and Anne was left with a one-armed, bald Barbie who enjoyed nudist colonies. It's little wonder that at twenty-nine, Anne drives a new car, eats only from freshly opened packages and thinks. 

After growing up in the shadows of her older sisters -- one a swimsuit model, the other a pop-feminist -- Anne's personality is one part sibling rivalry and two parts VD (stands for Vague Dissatisfaction, and yes, it itches). Now she's the self-professed underachiever in the family, determined to find happiness on her own terms. But when her sister's ex-boyfriend -- seemingly perfect, potentially interested -- reenters her life, Anne's got to ask: Could she possibly fall in love with a hand-me-down man.
 

200 Followers Contest!

In honor of all of my amazing, lovely followers, I'm hosting a 200 followers contest with 3 winners! The first two winners will pick one book from a list, and the third winner will win a swag pack full of bookmarks, stickers, postcards, and ect. 

These are the books you can choose from 
 (linked to Amazon pages):

The Midnight Charter by David Whitely 

(Gently Used ARC) ~ my review

The Espressologist by Kristina Springer  

(Gently Used Hardback) ~ my review

Candle Man Book 1: The Society of Unrelenting Vigilance  

(Gently Used ARC) ~ my review

Liar by Justine Larbalestier Gently 

(Used Hardback) ~ my review

Guardian of the Dead by Karen Healey  

(Gently Used ARC) ~ my review

Saving CeeCee Honeycutt by Beth Hoffman  

(Gently Used ARC) ~ my review

CONTEST DETAILS:

To enter fill out this form HERE and answer what is your favorite book you read this year so far?

Open to U.S. addresses only and ends March 31st!

EXTRA ENTRIES:

(I will be checking everything, so please don't lie. If you do lie, I will delete you from the contest!)

+1 commenting on a review(s)

+2 for adding/added my button and/or blog to blogroll

+3 for the original 200 followers

+4 for spreading the word anywhere: only one link counts but spread the word as much as you want : )

Thanks again and good luck : D Enter HERE!

 

Unwritten Rule Magnet and Bookmark Contest!

As an extra creative entry in Elizabeth Scott's amazing contest for now 35 books (!!!) and more prizes, I made some magnets and bookmarks for The Unwritten Rule with the help from my sister. I would love to give some away to you guys, so I giving away 3 magnets and 5 bookmarks!

**Update: My sister came home from college and helped me tweak a couple things, so they look different now but a lot better : ) The bookmarks are two-sided now, and I added another magnet winner also!**

New Pics of Bookmark Front and Back and Magnet:

 

  

This will be a simple contest and not have an extra entries, but if you want to enter her amazing contest which ends March 2nd go here. To enter fill out the form below:

Mini-Contest for Shadow Hills Swag and sorry for being MIA! CLOSED

 CLOSED!

Hey everyone! I received a lot of Shadow Hills swag from the wonderful author Anastasia Hopcus, so I'm giving away some. I'm giving away 5 signed bookmarks and 5 regular bookmarks! There will be 10 winners total and it will end February 11th (my sister's and bff's birthday). Please just fill out the form below. It's only open to U.S. and Canada residents.

Also, sorry I've been MIA this past week. I have been pretty busy studying and doing packets for finals, swim practice/meets, and I also have SATs Saturday : ( I probably won't have many posts til next week unfortunately. I can't wait til the new semester begins and swim team is over, so I can read and blog more!

Contest ~ A Brief History of Montmaray ARC! CLOSED

CLOSED!
 Hey everyone! My 100 Followers contest just ended, so now for a new one : D I won A Brief History of Montmaray ARC by Michelle Cooper from Random Buzzers and for some reason I received two copies. So that means I'm giving away one copy to one of my fellow readers! Here's a description and picture of the book from Michelle's website:

I need to write down what has just happened. I need to set down the truth. If I write lies or if I write nothing at all, this journal is worthless. I must do this, in case anything happens. All right. This is what happened tonight, every single terrible thing that I can remember...

Sophie FitzOsborne lives in a crumbling castle in the tiny island kingdom of Montmaray, along with her tomboy younger sister Henry, her beautiful, intellectual cousin Veronica, and Veronica's father, the completely mad King John. When Sophie receives a leather-bound journal for her sixteenth birthday, she decides to write about her day-to-day life on the island. But it is 1936 and the world is in turmoil. Does the arrival of two strangers threaten everything that Sophie holds dear? From Sophie's charming and lively observations to a nailbiting, unputdownable ending, this is a book to be treasured.
  
To enter:
Please fill out this form, and the winner will be chosen by random.org. Contest will end on January 10th and is open to U.S. addresses only. (If the whole form doesn't show up you can enter HERE instead.)

100 Followers Contest CLOSED!

Thank you to all my readers and followers who have made my blog so awesome and giving me such support, you guys rock! In honor of all of you I'm having another contest, yay. There will be two winners: the first winner will get their choice of one book & some bookmarks, and the second winner will receive some swag~bookmarks and other random things! Here are the book choices, the summaries are from Amazon: 

Candle Man: The Society of Unrelenting Vigilance (Read Once ARC)
By: Glenn Dakin
Murder, mystery, and adventure aren’t your typical birthday presents... But for Theo, anything that breaks up his ordinary routine is the perfect gift. A mysterious “illness” and Theo’s guardians force him into a life indoors, where gloves must be worn and daily medical treatments are the norm. When Theo discovers a suspicious package on his birthday, one person from the past will unlock the secret behind Theo’s “illness” and change his life forever. Molded into an exhilarating steampunk adventure that gives birth to the next great fantasy hero, Theo Wickland, Candle Man: The Society of Unrelenting Vigilance is the first book in a trilogy by debut author Glenn Dakin.

Dreamhunter (New Paperback)
By: Elizabeth Knox
Knox sets her first YA novel in a fictional nation called Southland, where turn-of-the-century society is coming to terms with a geographical marvel called "the Place," a harvesting ground for dreams that can be caught and sold to sleeping customers. Fifteen-year-old cousins Rose and Laura belong to a first family of dream hunting: Laura's father discovered the Place 20 years before, and Rose's celebrity mother is a sought-after dream-palace performer. When a test reveals that only reluctant Laura, not pert, confident Rose, has inherited the gift, Laura must contend not only with her shaken relationship with her cousin but also with the disappearance of her father, who has left behind puzzling messages about the true nature of dreams. Although Laura's transformation from wilting violet to intrepid avenger seems too abrupt, Knox's wide-angle narrative convincingly explores the nuances of the charismatic extended family and the personal and political implications of the dream-hunting phenomenon. Questions are not so much answered as deepened in anticipation of book 2 in the highly promising Dreamhunter Duet.

GoldenGirl: A Bradford Novel (New Paperback)
By: Micol Ostow
Paige, Spencer, and Madison have it all: the looks, the connections, the money, the boys. As the daughters of three of the most prestigious families on Philadelphia's Main Line (read: old money, and lots of it) and the ruling juniors at Bradford Prep, nothing can stand in their way....except, perhaps, their own dark secrets. When an old frenemy from Paige's hidden past shows up at Bradford and plays nice--too nice--Paige is desperate to smother the threat. How far will she go to silence the truth?

Tenth Grade Bleeds (New ARC)
By: Heather Brewer
It’s another sucky year at Bathory High for Vladimir Tod. The evil vampire D’Ablo is hunting for the ritual that could steal Vlad’s powers. His best friend Henry doesn’t want to be his drudge anymore. And as if all that weren’t enough, it’s getting harder for Vlad to resist feeding on the people around him. When months go by with no word from Uncle Otis and D’Ablo shows up demanding Vlad’s father’s journal, Vlad realizes that having a normal high school year is the least of his concerns. Vlad needs to act fast, and even his status as the Pravus won’t save him this time . . .


To enter:
To enter please fill out this form HERE! The winners will be chosen by random.org.

Extra Entries:
+1 add my blog button to your blog and/or add me to your blogroll
+1 goes to my 100th follower ~ Miss Cindy!
+2 linking to this post (please leave link, no link no extra entry)
+2 for becoming a follower
+3 if you already are a follower
+3 will go to my top 5 commentators at the end of the contest!

Contest will end in a month on December 8th!

Contest is open to U.S. addresses only, sorry international readers.

New blog button and extra entries for contest!

I've made a blog button which you can grab from my sidebar by copying and pasting the code! If you add my blog button to your blog I will give another you 2 extra entries for my contest which ends October 13th.

Enter HERE and I will love you forever if you add my button : ) Thanks!