Saturday, May 16, 2009

A Great Book - and My First Giveaway!!


I recently received a copy of the new novel, "The Girl Who Stopped Swimming," compliments of Hachette Book Group. It arrived on Thursday at about 2:50 in the afternoon.

I do enjoy reading, but generally don't have a lot of free time, so I will read a few pages here and there. I haven't read a book cover-to-cover with barely a break since "The Davinci Code." I decided to open this one and just read a couple of pages. All I can say is WOW!! This book had me after the first two pages. At 3:00, I turned off the television and curled up on the couch. My kids came home from school and I kept reading. I put things in the oven for dinner, while reading. I could not put it down!! At around 7:45, I finished the book. It really was THAT GOOD! This is not common for me, so you know it had to be a very intriguing book.

Here is the publisher's description of the tale:

Laurel Gray Hawthorne needs to make things pretty, whether she's helping her mother make sure the literal family skeleton stays in the closet or turning scraps of fabric into nationally acclaimed art quilts. Her estranged sister Thalia, an impoverished Actress with a capital A, is her polar opposite, priding herself on exposing the lurid truth lurking behind middle class niceties. While Laurel's life seems neatly on track--a passionate marriage, a treasured daughter, and a lovely home in suburban Victorianna--everything she holds dear is suddenly thrown into question the night she is visited by the ghost of a her 13-year old neighbor Molly Dufresne. The ghost leads Laurel to the real Molly floating lifelessly in the Hawthorne's backyard pool. Molly's death is inexplicable--an unseemly mystery Laurel knows no one in her whitewashed neighborhood is up to solving. Only her wayward, unpredictable sister is right for the task, but calling in a favor from Thalia is like walking straight into a frying pan protected only by Crisco. Enlisting Thalia's help, Laurel sets out on a life-altering journey that triggers startling revelations about her family's guarded past, the true state of her marriage, and the girl who stopped swimming.

Richer and more rewarding than any story Joshilyn Jackson has yet written, yet still packed with Jackson's trademarked outrageous characters, sparkling dialogue, and defiantly twisting plotting, THE GIRL WHO STOPPED SWIMMING is destined both to delight Jackson's loyal fans and capture a whole new audience.

I have to say, this book doesn't fit neatly into the box of any genre. It is part mystery, part drama, part ghost story, part suspense/thriller...all work of art. It kept me interested from beginning to end, and I was never quite sure where it was going or how it was all going to play out in the end. It never slowed down, and the character development was sheer genius! I will definitely be seeking out other books by Joshilyn Jackson!

You can order a copy of "The Girl Who Stopped Swimming" from many retailers. You can find a great list here. But, thanks to Hachette Book Group, I am also offering 5 of my readers the chance to WIN a copy! Believe me, you WANT to read this book. It's endlessly fascinating!! Winners must be in the US or Canada, and books cannot be shipped to a PO Box. So if you have a US or Canadian street address, PLEASE enter!!!

In order to enter to win, please leave a comment on this post. If your email is not visible on your profile, please leave me a way to contact you. For an additional entry, become a follower of my blog. Be sure and leave a second comment if you follow me. For a third entry, blog about this giveaway on your own blog and leave me a comment with a link to your post. I really want to get the word out!! And for a fourth, and final, entry, grab my button and post it on your blog, leaving a comment with a link to where I can find it. Easy, isn't it?? I will take comments through midnight on Monday, May 25th and the winners will be selected by random.org and announced on Tuesday, May 26th.

Thanks for entering my first giveaway! And a HUGE thanks to Hachette Book Group for sponsoring a giveaway of an absolutely excellent novel!!!

39 comments:

KR said...

I hate being first but I'd love to add this book to my summer reading stack!

mj.coward[at]gmail.com

Minda said...

I'm always on the lookout for a good book!

And I'm a follower :)

mindascookin at yahoo dot com

Trinette said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Beth said...

I love to check out new authors, and would love to tuck this book away for an upcoming trip!

I have been with you since the beginning as a follower, although I am jealous of your other blog being three columns!

Dorkys Ramos said...

Oh what a wonderful giveaway! I love books. In fact, I just restarted my book club on my blog. This week we're going to start reading Paulo Coelho's By the River Piedra I Sat Down and Wept. I loved The Alchemist so I want to see how this one is.

mindy said...

sounds like a great read thanks for the giveaway minsthins at optonline dot net

purplegengar said...

Thanx for the contest

carolasar said...

I would love to read this book. Thanks for the chance

scottsgal said...

I've read many good review about this book - would love to be entered

msboatgal at aol.com

jemscout425 said...

i've been hearing alot about this book. count me in
pksanddancer@yahoo.com

jemscout425 said...

follower
pksanddancer@yahoo.com

Sarah Z said...

I love it when you become so engrossed in a book you can't put it down!
Thanks
Sarah
believedreamcourage (at) gmail.com

Renee G said...

I've seen a lot of good press on this book and would love to read it for myself.

rsgrandinetti@yahoo(dot)com

Anonymous said...

I have been dying to read this book! Please enter me. Thanks so much!

hillary1128@yahoo.com

Annie Jones said...

I'd love to have a copy of this book! You already have my email addy.

Annie Jones said...

Here's my entry for being a follower!

Annie Jones said...

And here's one for grabbing your button and putting it on my blog.

Unknown said...

I keep hearing so much about this book, I just have to read it! Please enter me :)

Annie Jones said...

And finally, here's my fourth entry for mentioning your giveaway on my blog.

Here's the link.

apron-strings said...

I have read so many great reviews about this author and her work. I am looking so forward to reading this. Thanks for hosting an awesome giveaway.

rubymoonstone at gmail dot com

apron-strings said...

I follow you now (Rubymoon/Blogger)


rubymoonstone at gmail dot com

Marie said...

This looks like a great book, I'd love to read it!

marielay@gmail.com

Sandra K321 said...

I really want to read this book. I keep seeing reviews and comments about it and they are all very positive.

Sandra K321 said...

I just signed up to follow your blog.

Julie said...

Sounds good! I can be reached by leaving a message on my blog, thanks!

wendy wallach said...

heard alot about this book and would love to win it.

madamerkf at aol dot com

Belinda said...

Thanks for the chance to win!
1bmore @ gmail . com

Sue said...

I've read other books by this author and I'm looking forward to this as well. Thanks for the giveaway~

s.mickelson at gmail dot com

Kelly said...

I'd love the chance to read this. I keep hearing good things about it!

krtrumpet [at] aol [dot] com

Bonnie in FL said...

sounds like a great summer read

Ellie Wright said...

I've been wanting to read this. Sounds like a great book. Thanks for the giveaway.
eswright18 at gmail dot com

Ynaffit said...

Ooh, I need a good summer read! Actually, I need something to hook me back INTO reading! (My daughter and I are having a reading contest this summer!)

ynaffit.tiffany@gmail.com

Brooke said...

Oh this is on my TBR list and would love to win it... There is just something about a good scary thriller mystery.. weeshenanigans (at) gmail (dot) com

D Q said...

I've heard a lot about this book. Looks like a great read.

LittleEagle said...

Thank you for the great review. sharonaquilino(at)hotmail(dot)com

A Reader said...

Would love this.
Thanks for the giveaway!
Kimspam66(at)yahoo(dot)com

Anonymous said...

I'm always looking for some new reads, so I'd love to enter ;)

jaam121388 at yahoo dot com

Mishia said...

I'd love to read this book! Thanks

ossmcalc said...

I would love to read this book. Thank you for the opportunity to win a copy.

thank you,

Christine
womackcm@sbcglobal.net