Debut Authorpalooza Winners Part Two

I apologize for the lack of activity around here the last week or so. I'm on a work trip and for some reason I have a hard time writing when I'm not in my own work space. And even worse, I have a hard time laying out blog posts. Who knows? In any case, here are the rest of the winners for Debut Authorpalooza. I want to thank the authors again for their awesome posts, and more importantly, their awesome novels. Thanks also to everyone who participated!

Here are the winners:

Miserere: An Autumn Tale by Teresa Frohock

Mieneke van der Salm, Netherlands

The Emperor's Knife by Mazarkis Williams

Mia C., Elmhurst, New York

Ken F., Flagstaff, Arizona

The Winds of Khalakovo and The Straits of Galahesh 

by Bradley P. Beaulieu

Sandino S., Bulgaria

The Alchemist of Souls by Anne Lyle

Doug S., Chandler, Arizona

Elias C., Spain

GRAND PRIZE WINNER

Sharon R., Davenport, Iowa

I'm sure Sharon is wondering what she's won exactly. I'm going to try to summarize what she'll receive. I reserve the right for it to be incomplete.

Signed Hardcover of King of Thorns by Mark Lawrence

Signed ARC of Rapture by Kameron Hurley

Signed ARC of Tainted City by Courtney Schafer

Signed ARC or Finished Copy of Knifesworn by Mazarkis Williams

Signed copy of Among Thieves by Douglas Hulick

ARC of Merchant of Dreams by Anne Lyle

6,700 word critique of any story by Teresa Frohock

Signed copy of and Blues Skies from Pain by Stina Leicht

Signed copy of Trinity Rising by Elspeth Cooper

Signed copy of something by Bradley P. Beaulieu (I can't find the e-mail!)

and.....

I'm sending her a dozen books from my own shelves, just because.

Let this be a lesson to you readers! When I run a giveaway that mentions GRAND PRIZE, you should enter. I fully plan to run a Debut Authorpalooza 2013 next year, sooo... if you have a favorite debut author from 2012 let me know and I'll force them to participate.

Debut Authorpalooza Winners Part One

Debut Authorpalooza was a two week event celebrating some of my favorite debuts from the last eighteen months. I posted guest posts from all the authors about their experience writing their second books and included an excerpt from their work in progress. All the authors chipped in books to giveaway, including a massive grand prize giveaway. Thanks to the god of random draw, one gentleman won twice. Since I didn't prohibit it in the rules... well... lucky guy!

Here are the winners from the first week of authors!

Prince of Thorns by Mark Lawrence

Brandon Z., Williamsport, PA

Ally R., Australia

God's War and Infidel by Kameron Hurley

Mark S., Bloomington, Indiana

Paul W., Roseville, Minnesota

Songs of the Earth by Elspeth Cooper

Brandon Z., Williamsport, PA
Elton P., Canton, Georgia

The Whitefire Crossing and The Tainted City by Courtney Schafer

Chris H., Apple Valley, Minnesota

Mikael S., Sweden

Rebekah K., Morrisville, North Carolina

Of Blood and Honey by Stina Leicht

Scott C., Canada

Josh M., Perry, Utah

Check back tomorrow for the second half of the winners!

Chapter One of The Tainted City by Courtney Schafer (Giveaway)

THE TAINTED CITY

Chapter One

(Dev)

I wedged my fingers higher in the crack snaking up the boulder’s overhanging face. A push of a foot, a twist of my body, and the overhang’s lip was nearly within reach. Good thing, since I had to finish this little warm-up climb fast, or risk a whipping if the shift bell rang before I got to the mine. Dawn’s light already streaked the gorge rim far above me with gold, though it’d be mid-morning before the sun rose high enough to touch the reedy mudflats here in the gorge’s depths. Beyond my boulder, clumps of men in grime-streaked coveralls trudged toward the yawning black mouth at the base of the cliffs. Lights bobbed in jerky rhythms within the tunnel as the night haulers hurried to finish sacking their quota of coal.

“Spend one instant longer crawling up that rock instead of joining your crew, boy, and I’ll choke you blind.”

The torc around my neck heated in warning as overseer Gedavar spoke. I jerked my fingers free of the crack and dropped to land in the mud at the boulder’s base. Sudden sweat laced my palms. What in Shaikar’s hells had brought Gedavar sniffing around? With the day shift soon to start, he should be relaying the minemaster’s orders to the crew chiefs, not skulking about behind the prisoners’ barracks. The thin copper disc of the stolen glowlight charm hidden beneath my sock cuff felt large as a wagon wheel.
Read more »

An Excerpt from King of Thorns by Mark Lawrence (Giveaway)

The following short passage is extracted from deep within King of Thorns and I hope gives something of the book’s flavour.

Mark Lawrence

I took myself to the courtyard where my levies, subjects, and bannermen waited, crowded rank upon rank before the gatehouse. Knights from Morrow to the left of the portcullis, armour gleaming, swords in hand. To the right more knights, plate- armoured, the noblest sons of Hodd Town, my capital down in the valleys to the north. No doubt they had come to win the king’s favour and honour for their houses. Young men in the main, soft with gold and more used to lance and tourney than blood and ruin. I saw Sir Elmar of Golden among them, his armour radiant as his name implied. A warrior, that one, despite his finery.

Read more »

Some Personal News and Giveaway Winners

This has been a long week. My father-in-law was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer a few weeks ago and this past Thursday he had surgery to remove it. Thankfully, the tumor was located in the head of the pancreas which allows for a surgical procedure known as the Whipple. Without boring everyone with the gory details, it's an amazing operation that basically rewires the entire digestive system removing parts of the pancreas, stomach, and small intestine. For patients lucky enough to catch the cancer before it spreads, the Whipple is a life saving operation.

From my daughter's Christening.

I've spent most of the last four days at Johns Hopkins. I can't explain how blessed we feel to live 45 minutes from the hospital where this surgery was perfected. Dr. John Cameron, the man responsible for it, has done 2,000 of them himself. For a cancer as rare as this, that's a mind numbing total. Considering my father-in-law's surgery took nearly eight hours from start to finish, you can appreciate how staggering that figure is.

The truth is we won't know how successful it was for some time, but the doctors are optimistic they were able to remove all the cancerous tissue. My father-in-law is already up and walking, doing his best to recover quickly. Nevertheless, he'll be undergoing chemotherapy and radiation starting in a month or so, to give him the best chance of winning the battle. 

He's sixty years old, relatively young in today's medical age. It seems so unfair to strike a man so fundamentally good. He immigrated from Colombia when he was 18. Worked two jobs most of his life to support his family and put both his children through college. He graduated from college himself two years ago. I don't know that I've been prouder of someone. He's been my daughter's primary caretaker since the end of my wife's maternity leave and he's teaching her to become as good a person as he is. Something she's already trying to pay him back for.

I write this mostly as an exercise in reminding others, and myself, of life's fragility. We don't have nearly long enough, and too often we don't say the things we need to say to those we love until it's too late. My own father is sixty himself, and I can't imagine losing him. It's hard to even write it. It's a sappy reason, but I think it's a good one.

I also write it to remind everyone of the importance of early detection. My mother is a breast cancer survivor largely because she never missed a mammogram (she was only 45 when diagnosed). And now my father-in-law has a chance to survive one of the deadliest forms of cancer because he went to see someone at the first sign of stomach pain. So let's all try to be a little better about never missing our annual exams. I can't spare the readers.

***

On a brighter note, as if anything wouldn't be brighter, I've got some giveaway winners to announce! Last month I hosted a giveaway for a copy of G.J. Koch's Alexander Outland: Space Pirate. I'm happy to announce the winner of that is:

Eric Schwartz, Kentucky, USA

I also have the winners from the awesome giveaway of two full sets of David Anthony Durham's Acacia Trilogy courtesy of Random House. The winners are:

 Susan Meek, Oklahoma, USA

Andrew Stewart, Virginia, USA

Thanks to everyone who participated. Stay tuned next month because I've got some huge stuff planned that's hopefully going to knock your socks off.

Giveaway - The Acacia Trilogy by David Anthony Durham

This week I turned my blog into David Anthony Durham central. Why did I do it? In short, because his Acacia Trilogy is one of the best completed series of the last ten years. I'm a huge fan. His books reintroduced me to fantasy. Below are links to my review and a tremendous interview:

Review of The Acacia Trilogy

Interview with David Anthony Durham Part 1

Interview with David Anthony Durham Part 2

Not only did I want to share that with all the people who read this blog, I also wanted to call attention to the fact that Durham and Anchor have reissued the entire series in trade paperback with a blurb from George R.R. Martin. I think the blurb is the main reason for the reissue, but Durham took the opportunity to do some edits, cutting 14,000 words from the first volume. I applaud the effort.

On that note, to celebrate my D.A.D Week (get it? Cause it's Father's Day on Sunday and Durham's initials are D.A.D. So clever), I have two full sets of the reissued trade paperback Acacia Trilogy to give away to two lucky winners.

The giveaway is open to US residents only. Two winners will receive one copy of each book in the trilogy. You must be 18 years of age or older to participate. Void where prohibited by law. Giveaway rules are subject to change.  

How to participate:

• To enter the giveaway, e-mail me at staffersmusings@gmail.com, with the subject ACACIA and declare intention to participate.
• You must include a valid mailing address(US) in the e-mail. Failure to do so will result in disqualification.
• One entry per person, or face disqualification.
• Entries accepted until 11:59pm ET on June 22, 2012
• Winners will be chosen by random sorting entries, and then using a random number generator.
• There will be 2 winners who will receive 3 books each.

Although not required, it sure would be nice if you:

• Follow me on my blog publicly so that you appear on Google Friend Connect.
• Follow me on twitter, @jdiddyesquire.
• Like me on Facebook.
• Or purchase a billboard for me on a highway near you.

Happy Mother's Day and Giveaway Winners

Happy Mother's Day to all the moms out there. I try not to under appreciate mine. This holiday has become increasingly complex for me in recent years. Mom, wife (mother of my child), and mother-in-law. It's a triumvirate that used to be a single. I'm not complaining, but it seems like they're ganging up on me. Right?

in any case, I just got back from brunch the family and I'm a lucky guy.

Yes, that's Diego. No this photo wasn't from brunch. How awesome would that be? No, that's not me inside the suit, nice try though. Do I look like I can pull off the one strap backpack? Please.

***

I also pulled the winners of the recent "clear the shelves" giveaway! The winners are:

Kevin, NC, USA

Galena, MI, USA

Elias, Oviedo, Spain

Congrats! I'll be getting your books out Monday.

Alexander Outland: Space Pirate - G.J. Koch (and giveaway)

Comedy is a real bitch to write. When I asked G.J. Koch, author of Alexander Outland: Space Pirate to talk with me about her new novel she said, "Dying is easy, comedy is hard. In part because everyone can agree that the hero dying before he gets to marry the princess is tragic, but what makes me laugh and what makes you laugh can be very different things."

I can identify. I try to be funny around here sometimes and my success rate is probably in the neighborhood of an Orson Scott Card keynote speech at the Democrat National Convention. I'm going to stop typing for a minute to give everyone a minute to recover from that hilarious image....

Good?

Interestingly, I feel like 2012 has a chance to be revitalizing year for comedic science fiction. As Koch points out, "For a long time, it seemed like Robert Lynn Asprin was the only one 'writing funny' and then Douglas Adams and Terry Pratchett arrived, and then Adams and Asprin died and it was only Pratchett out there. My world will be a little darker when we have no more of Pratchett’s Discworld series to read." Some have dabbled -- Lois McMaster Bujold at times in her Miles Vorkosigan series or Connie Willis in To Say Nothing of the Dog or Tom Holt in Snow White and the Seven Samurai, to name a few -- but saying such titles are scattered and intermittent would be an understatement.

This summer appears to bring a shot in the arm to the flagging comedy market. Joined by John Scalzi's Redshirts: A Novel of Three Codas and Rob Reid's Year Zero, Koch's novel is a cinematic space opera, blended with plenty of sexual innuendo and a dash of bathroom humor, told in a wry sarcastic voice.

Alexander Napoleon Outland, Nap to his friends, is the captain of Space Vessel 3369, or Sixty-Nine for short. He’s also a pirate, smuggler, and womanizer. His crew misfits includes a socially awkward engineer, a deposed ruler, a Sexbot copilot, and a bonkers-hot weapons chief who refuses to give it up. Into this picture of domestic bliss comes along an invisible band of space pirates trying to put a stranglehold on commerce of the legal and illegal variety. In true comedic form, shenanigans ensue.

Everything in Alexander Outland begins with Nap. He's Koch's first person narrator and moral center (If I asked Nap, I'm sure he'd rather be the center of a babe sandwich). Not the kind of man a woman would bring home to mom, he does hold a certain charm. "You don’t date a guy like Nap to give him a list of acceptable behaviors. You date a guy like Nap BECAUSE he’s a guy like Nap. We do love the bad boys, you know," says Koch. Despite his irascible behavior Nap's a do-gooder at heart, more sexually overt Han Solo, with a dash of Mal Reynolds completes the picture.

Telling the story from Nap's perspective does result in the novel's female characters being colored in a certain way. Slinky, the hard to get weapons chief, is Nap's primary target for sexual conquest and responds amorously when he treats her possessively. Audrey, the sexbot created by Nap's chief engineer, is programmed to serve in all ways. Or so Nap perceives it.

For the record, Koch doesn't "consider the female characters to be sex objects, and they don’t consider themselves sex objects, either. If being smart, sexy, attractive, and capable makes a girl a sex object, then the same makes the men sex objects, too. So, in that light, Nap’s a sex object, as well, as are several of the other male characters. A book full of sex objects! (Get it now, before all that sex sells out!)"

She goes on to argue, "One man’s negative stereotype is another’s satiric take on a variety of tropes. Where you fall on that scale will determine whose humor you like and whose you don’t." I find myself nodding. Too often critics talk about the character types and stories they want to see. Whether it's done in service to a social agenda or mere preference, it would be more appropriate to acknowledge that the subject is no longer about the quality of the writing, or humor, but a rather different, albeit no less valuable, kind of discussion.

Some will notice that G.J. Koch looks like Gini Koch, of the Alien/Katherine “Kitty” Katt series from DAW Books. They are one in the same. For fans of that series, she offers, "the Alexander Outland series is actually funnier than the Alien series. There’s a focus on romance in both series, but the Outland series has no graphic sex at all, and the Alien series does. They’re different enough that it made sense to write and publish under another pen name, and Night Shade agreed."

I can't speak for Koch's previous work, but there's also a ton of action and adventure in Alexander Outland. Earlier in this review I used the word cinematic to describe the novel, and it's apt. As I tried to consider what other novels might compare favorably to it, only films came to mind: Spaceballs, Serenity, The Ice Pirates, and Galaxy Quest. Plenty of explosions, daring rescues, and space battles, dot the narrative. For all that, and the romance angle mentioned above, this is a novel of humor. And it is genuinely funny. G.J. Koch brings it home:

I worship the literary ground Terry Pratchett walks on, but most of my friends don’t find him funny at all. And yet he’s managed to have a fabulous career and carry on with his life and writing. He doesn’t need every single person to love his writing in order to be successful, and neither does anyone else. 

I’m sure there were plenty of others doing humor in a variety of ways, but there’s always been less humor than drama in fiction as a whole, not just genre fiction, and there probably always will be. Writing humor is HARD, and despite what they’ll tell you, not everyone is funny. Some of us are, and out of those of us who do bring the funny, we’re all different and carrying on the Humor Torch, so to speak. 

I think we have humor out there because no matter who you are, sometimes you want to laugh, and sometimes you need to laugh.

Last week my father-in-law found out he may have pancreatic cancer. It's been a rough couple of weeks as my family comes to grips with what that means. Sometimes we need to laugh, a more appropriate choice of words than I imagined a month ago. Alexander Outland: Space Pirate couldn't have come along at a better time for me. If anyone else has a need, I strongly suggest G.J. Koch as a remedy.

***

G.J. Koch writes science fiction. Not the hard stuff, though. Because that requires actual scientific knowledge or at least actual scientific research. Knowledge may be power and research may be cool, but they take time away from writing jokes, action, and romance, and being witty in the face of death is what it’s really all about. Check out G.J.’s rollicking Alexander Outland: Space Pirate series from Night Shade Books and reach G.J. at Space…the Funny Frontier (http://www.ginikoch.com/GJKbookstore.htm).

Giveaway Details:

The giveaway is open to everyone. A US winner will receive a print copy, while an international winner will receive an electronic copy. You must be 18 years of age or older to participate. Void where prohibited by law. Giveaway rules are subject to change.  

How to participate:

• To enter the giveaway, e-mail me at staffersmusings@gmail.com, with the subject THE OUTLAND and declare intention to participate.
• You must include a valid mailing address(US) in the e-mail. Failure to do so will result in disqualification.
• One entry per person, or face disqualification.
• Entries accepted until 11:59pm ET on May 17, 2012
• Winners will be chosen by random sorting entries, and then using a random number generator.
• There will be 1 winner who will receive 1 book.

Although not required, it sure would be nice if you:

• Follow me on my blog publicly so that you appear on Google Friend Connect.
• Follow me on twitter, @jdiddyesquire.
• Like me on Facebook.
• Or purchase a billboard for me on a highway near you.

I feel like giving some books away...

I get books sometimes that I know I won't read. Sometimes I get two copies of a book. Sometimes I get books and I already have the eBook. Either way, I have more books than I know what to do with sometimes. So, I'm going to give some away.

Unfortunately, because of the costs associated with sending 5-7 books to another country, the main giveaway is open to only US residents. However, I will send one (1) book to one (1) international winner. I hate not including my non-American readers.

For the main giveaway there will be two (2) winners.  I'll let the each winner choose a couple books they want, and then I'm going to surprise them with the rest (probably 5-7 books each).

Sound good? Below are some of the titles available to giveaway. I'm sure I'll be adding more as I comb through the shelves. Rules to enter at the bottom.

Giveaway Details:

The main giveaway is open to US residents only, but International folks should also enter to win a secondary one.  You must be 18 years of age or older to participate. Void where prohibited by law. Giveaway rules are subject to change.  

How to participate:

• To enter the giveaway, e-mail me at staffersmusings@gmail.com and declare intention to participate.
• You must include a valid mailing address in the e-mail. Failure to do so will result in disqualification.
• One entry per person, or face disqualification.
• Entries accepted until 11:59pm ET on May 8, 2012
• Winners will be chosen by random sorting entries, and then using a random number generator.
• There will be 2  winners for the main giveaway, and 1 winner for the international one.

Although not required, it sure would be nice if you:

• Follow me on my blog publicly so that you appear on Google Friend Connect.
• Follow me on twitter, @jdiddyesquire.
• Like me on Facebook.
• Or purchase a billboard for me on a highway near you.

Books Received - Week of March 5, 2012

I don't usually do these posts, but this was a particularly good week of arrivals. I'll probably be starting Triggers (Robert J. Sawyer) next, but I'm beyond stoked about getting to The Killing Moon (N.K. Jemisin) and The Return Man (V.M. Zito).

Wide Open (Deborah Coates) isn't typically my kind of book. Sarah over at Bookworm Blues just posted a pretty glowing review though, so I might give it a shot. My urban fantasy 'have read' list is pitifully short. Also from Tor is Chrysanthe (Yves Meynard) which appears to be a YA epic fantasy -- looks can be deceiving! We'll see. It's one I'd like to give a go.

This is my second copy of Touchstone (Melanie Rawn), so I'll have to be giving this one away. Maybe I'll send it to the first person who e-mails me (staffersmusings@gmail.com) asking for it (US only).

Any thing in there strike your particular fancy?

Giveaway Winner and Next Week's Schedule

Last week I reviewed Tobias Buckell's Arctic Rising and ran a giveaway for a copy of the book courtesy of Tor. Through the powers of the RANDOM NUMBER GENERATOR and some assistance from Captain Planet (Buckell loaned him to me), we have our winner:

Jarod from West Des Moines, IA

Congrats Jarod, it's a great book. 

In other news, I have a few extra copies of books laying about that I'll be doing giveaways for in the next couple of weeks. Unfortunately, I'm mostly going to be doing US only giveaways when giving away my own books... the costs associated with international shipping are becoming cost prohibitive.

Coming next week:

• Review of Anne Lyle's Alchemist of Souls from Angry Robot
• Interview with Anne Lyle
• Review of Sacred Band by David Anthony Durham from DoubleDay
• Review of The Rook by Daniel O'Malley from Little, Brown

Arctic Rising - Tobias Buckell (and giveaway!)

Arctic Rising is the best James Bond novel I've ever read. Wait, what? Indeed Tobias Buckell's latest novel could be taken as an Ian Fleming experiment gone terribly... right. An ironic homage to Bond, based on gads of research into the nature of climate change and some of the more inventive solutions, Buckell has created a near term speculative novel that's as current as it is authentic. Believable? Let's not get greedy; I did say Bond after all.

Buckell's premise begins a few years in the future, where global warming has transformed the Earth. The Arctic Ice Cap has all but melted, and the international community is racing to claim the oil beneath the newly accessible ocean. Enter Gaia Corporation whose founders have come up with a plan to roll it all back using thousands of tiny mirrors floating in the air to redirect heat and cool the Earth's surface.

The protagonist is Anika Duncan, Buckell's first piece of Bond irony. She's a black lesbian, tough as nails, but far from a trained covert operative. She's an airship pilot for the underfunded United Nations Polar Guard. It's her job to ensure things run smoothly in the new Wild West. When a smuggled nuclear weapon makes it into the Polar Circle on Anika's watch, she winds up caught up in a plot to destroy Gaia Corporation and with it Earth's hope the future.

When I read the synopsis for Arctic Rising last winter, I was skeptical. I was aware of Buckell's relationship with Karl Schroeder and Paola Bacigalupi, two staunch environmental advocates, and of his own interest in environmentalism. It concerned me that Buckell was tackling climate change, and setting it in such a near future. The possibilities for political commentary, finger pointing, and hair shirt environmentalism were rife. My cynicism was completely unwarranted. Buckell uses well founded research to weave an argument not just for environmental reforms, but also against extremism and unilateral policy making. The end result is an even handed novel that will appeal (almost) equally to readers on both sides of the proverbial aisle.

In truth, Arctic Rising is far more of a thriller (see Bond) than other recent ecocentric novels like The Wind Up Girl (Bacigalupi) or Seed (Rob Ziegler). Buckell makes a few points here and there about the inevitability of climate change, and few more about how the world might go about solving them. Meanwhile, the focus remains on a breakneck story that would fit neatly into any host of genres. Anika has to save the world with the help of a few friends from an out of control corporate oligarchy bent on winning at any cost. And she might just fall in love on the way.

And therein lies the strength of Buckell's latest novel -- Anika. She embodies what makes Buckell such a dynamic voice in a sea of historical homogeny. The dashingly handsome white male, well trained and supremely confident, that so pervades this type of fiction, is absent. I mentioned Anika is a black lesbian. I should also mention she's completely believable in her sexuality and ethnicity. There's never a moment when I felt she was written by a man and despite numerous opportunities, she never turns into the Xena Warrior Princess action hero (thank God). She's a real woman in unreal circumstances. A third world native living in the developed world, I can't help but believe that Buckell's life experiences as a Caribbean man moving to the States pervade Anika. I know for sure that those values light up the page with their conviction.

Is the novel a little absurd? Well, yes. The major plot device involves millions of floating mirrors capable of redirecting the sun. A conspiracy surrounds it all that calls to mind Mel Gibson's Conspiracy Theory (1997), as unlikely as it is fun to imagine. Buckell balances that unreality with the truth of Earth's rising temperatures and the frenetic grab for natural resources that continues unabated throughout the world. That balance allows Buckell to take a stance on an issue, invite his reader to listen, and keep them there through a compelling and exciting story. Like Saladin Ahmed's recent debut, Throne of the Crescent Moon, Arctic Rising is a novel with a point of view. And that's something James Bond never seemed to have -- Ian Fleming, eat your heart out.

Arctic Rising comes with my highest recommendation. It's due out in Hardcover and eBook tomorrow, February 28. You should read it. Learn more about Tobias Buckell on Twitter or at his blog.

###

Giveaway

I have one (1) copy of Arctic Rising to 

give away courtesy of Tor.

Giveaway Details:

This giveaway is open only to residents of the United States and Canada.  You must be 18 years of age or older to participate. Void where prohibited by law. Giveaway rules are subject to change.  

How to participate:

• To enter the giveaway, e-mail me at staffersmusings@gmail.com, with the subject ICE CAPS, including a valid mailing address.
• One entry per person, or face disqualification.
• Entries accepted until 11:59pm ET on March 5, 2012.
• Winners will be chosen by random sorting entries, and then using a random number generator.
• There will be one (1) winners who will received one (1) book.

Although not required, it sure would be nice if you:

• Follow me on my blog publicly so that you appear on Google Friend Connect.
• Follow me on twitter, @jdiddyesquire.
• Like me on Facebook 

Winner Announcements of Two Very Different Giveaways

A couple weeks back, I wrote a post offering to read and review a randomly selected self-published speculative fiction novel. I got a decent response, with around 20 people entering their work. Unfortunately, I got almost that many e-mails asking me to review their novel, indicating that they didn't bother to actually read my post. If I'm being honest, I found that very annoying.

Regardless, I lined up all the eligible entries, ran a random number generator, and drew:

Twelve year old Karen is having vivid dreams that feel more like memories. After her parents go missing, Karen does her best to take care of her six year old brother, Timmy, while they stay with her busy Aunt Sarah, but Timmy is kidnapped to the Shadow Realm while Aunt Sarah is on a business trip.

Joey looks to be about thirteen. He has fiery red hair and a temper to match but no memory of who he is or where he came from. 

Fourteen year old Mike has a legendary swordsman for a grandfather and a past that he doesn't want to talk about. 

As the meaning of Karen's dreams becomes clear, the three of them must join together to help Karen master the first Sword Spirit and rescue Timmy from the Shadow Realm. If they can just keep from killing each other first.

Expect a review soon...

###

I also held a giveaway last week to off-load a bunch of duplicates and things I'll never read from my shelves. I was only going to do two winners, but I ended up having a lot more stuff than I thought... so I added in an extra winner. My only complaint -- two were Canadian. Damn you Canada!! Who knew it was so much more expensive to ship across a border that's so close?

Congratulations to:

Chris from Minnesota, USA

Bob from Ontario, Canada

Zara from Ontario, Canada

I'll probably do another one of these later in the year.  Each of the three ended up with around 7-8 books.

I feel like giving some books away

I get books sometimes that I know I won't read.  Sometimes I get two copies of a book.  Sometimes I get books and I already have the eBook.  Either way, I have more books than I know what to do with sometimes.  So, I'm going to give some away.

There will be two (2) winners.  I'll let the each winner choose a book or two they want, and then I'm going to surprise them with the rest (probably 5-7 books each).  I also promise that both winners will receive at least one book that I highly recommend that has not yet been released in the States.

Sound good?  Below is a small list of some of the titles I have duplicates of.  I'll be adding more when interesting falls out of my shelves.  Rules to enter at the bottom.

 

Giveaway Details:

This giveaway is open to anyone.  You must be 18 years of age or older to participate. Void where prohibited by law. Giveaway rules are subject to change.  

How to participate:

• To enter the giveaway, just place a comment in this post and declare intention to participate.
• One entry per person, or face disqualification.
• Make sure to provide an email address or Twitter username at which I can contact you.
• Entries accepted until 11:59pm ET on February 16, 2012
• Winners will be chosen by random sorting entries, and then using a random number generator.
• There will be 2  winners.
• Winner will have to confirm by email/DM to be considered a winner within a week after February 16, 2012.

Although not required, it sure would be nice if you:

• Follow me on my blog publicly so that you appear on Google Friend Connect.
• Follow me on twitter, @jdiddyesquire.
• Or like me on Facebook