Romance Eats Sand

Does 7-11 (July eleventh) have any significance to you? 

I won't be blogging that day, but it's held a special place in my heart for 17 years. That's the day I met a wonderful man who keeps me laughing, fixes my computer when I do things like this

and tells me every day he loves me. We met while doing this:

Source

And have been doing this ever since:

Source

I love you, my Matthew!

(And now for those of you who love to chuckle, a volleyball fail.)

Ready to guess the lie and win a book? 

Last week, the fabulous Ally Malinenko shared THIS IS SARAH with us, along with two truths and one lie. Those who guessed the lie correctly were entered into a random drawing for the chance to win her ebook. You can get a copy of her book HERE. 

Ally's game:

1. Ally fell off a waterfall in high school and cracked her skull open.
2. She was kicked out of the country of Monaco when she was 16 for "trespassing."
3. She's stepped foot on nearly every continent in the world.

And the lie is: 

#3. Ally would desperately like that to be a truth, one day. 

Way to guess those of you who got it right! And the winner is:

...DRUM ROLL...

J.L. Campbell!

Congrats J.L.!

And now to today's feature:

Isabella Troy Stanley is a divorced, slave freeing pariah surviving in the shattered post Civil War south the only way a fallen debutante knows how.

She heads to a Yankee prison and buys herself a husband.

Jack Byron is the former Troy plantation stable boy and object of young Bella's affection. He rejected her then, and he's still not sold on the idea of marrying her now.

It’s complicated.

Though to Bella, it’s simple: make Jack love her, marry her, and live happily ever after. The plan seems to work...at least until her secret is revealed.

Get your copy on JULY 15th.

Elizabeth is a wife, a mom, and a writer. She has four wonderful boys, one dusty house, and three published books to her credit. Feel free to check them out and buy them HERE! Erm, the books, not the kids or the house...though all things in life are negotiable ;)

She loves too many cheeses to pick a favorite, but she'll take mozzarella in a stick at the beach any day. 

You can find her here: Blog // Facebook // Twitter

Elizabeth gave me two truths and one lie to test your "lie detector" skills. Those who figure out the lie will go into my magic hat for the chance to win an eBook of BELLA'S POINT. 

You have until Tuesday, July 15 (RELEASE DAY!!!), at 1 p.m. EDT to guess--and be sure to come back for the answer on July 16th.

TRUTH OR LIE

1. Elizabeth was a resident advisor at Marshall University.

2. She is amazing at Call of Duty.

3. The beach is her happy place.

Which is the lie? Is July 11th significant to you? Do you like volleyball? Are you as excited as me about Elizabeth's book? (And Ally's?)

Don't Move My Cheese IWSG

IT'S MOVING DAY!!!
(Or it was two days ago and I may or may not have a functional internet connection.)

So how about some moving funnies, eh?

Is it just me, or is this guy moving a wedge of stinky cheese?

This is about how I feel right now. (Like the dog.) My insecurity this month is simple: will I lose my mind around this move? And will I be able to make any writing progress while wrangling the kids at our two month "vacation rental" while the new house is being built? Send some virtual love to keep me going, eh?

Ready to guess the lie and win a book? 

Last week, the amazing Tara Tyler shared BROKEN BRANCH FALLS with us, along with two truths and one lie. Those who guessed the lie correctly were entered into a random drawing for the chance to win her ebook.

Tara's game:

1. When Tara was young, she and her classmates would have recess in the snow and once made a dragon as long as the school.
2. When she was growing up, she and her family were the victims of burglars two times in two different houses.

3. When she was young, a huge St Bernard tackled her, causing her to be afraid of dogs.

And the lie is: 

#1. The dragon they made was only half as long as the school, but it was huge!  In Massachusetts, they had blizzard days rather than snow days and had to wear heavy layers to school and leave them in a big walk-in coat closet. Additional truth - Tara was once sent to the coat closet at school for laughing too loudly! She's always had a big mouth.

Way to guess those of you who got it right! And the winner is:

...DRUM ROLL...

Hilary Melon-Butcher!

Congrats Hilary!

And now to today's feature:

When Colin Leventhal leaned out his bedroom window on the night of May 12th and said goodbye to his girlfriend, he never expected it would be forever. But when Sarah Evans goes missing that night, Colin's world unravels as he transforms from the boyfriend next door to the main police suspect. Then one year later, at her memorial service, Colin makes a phone call that could change everything. Is it possible that Sarah is still alive? And if so, how far will he go to bring her back?  

As Colin struggles with this possibility, across the street, Sarah’s little sister, Claire learns how to navigate the strange new landscape of life without her sister. While her parents fall apart, Claire remains determined to keep going, even if it kills her.

THIS IS SARAH serves as a meditation on loss, love, and what it means to say goodbye.

Get your copy NOW.

Ally Malinenko is the author of the poetry collection, The Wanting Bone (Six Gallery Press) and the children’s fantasy Lizzy Speare and the CursedTomb (Antenna Books). She lives in Brooklyn with her husband.

Her favorite cheese is camembert and her favorite place to eat it is the Jardin du Luxembourg in Paris - which is also the only place she's eaten it. She's also cool with extra sharp cheddar and would even break her "no eating food on the subway" rule for it.

Ally gave me two truths and one lie to test your "lie detector" skills. Those who figure out the lie will go into my magic hat for the chance to win an eBook of THIS IS SARAH. 

You have until Tuesday, July 8, at 1 p.m. EDT to guess--and be sure to come back for the answer on July 9.

TRUTH OR LIE

1. Ally fell off a waterfall in high school and cracked her skull open.

2. She was kicked out of the country of Monaco when she was 16 for "trespassing."

3. She's stepped foot on nearly every continent in the world.

Which is the lie? What's your favorite/least favorite part about moving? What's the best place you've ever lived? Have you ever made a snow dragon? Do you read tear-jerkers?