Finding Rose by Stephanie Humphreys

It's blog tour time for Whitney Nominee, Finding Rose by Stephanie Humphreys. The tour runs from November 22-December 3, and we'll be giving away THREE copies!

From Walnut Springs Press: To qualify for the contest, check out the fabulous reviews and leave a comment letting us know why you're excited to read Finding Rose. Remember to include your email address. If you tweet about the blog tour, or post about it on your blog or facebook, leave the link in the comments section and you'll receive an additional entry.



From the back cover:

On his deathbed, Rose Sterling's father asks her to consider Miles Crandall as a suitor. Then Rose is sent to live with an uncle in Spring Creek, Montana, far from her carefree life with her family in Utah. Miles is returning to his hometown of Spring Creek to set up a medical practice, so Rose is certain her being sent there is a setup. Yet Miles doesn't seem interested in her, and after Rose falls ill in Montana, he seems content to act as her physician and friend. When Rose captures the attention of Miles's younger, flamboyant brother as well as the town sheriff, Miles retreats even further from any attempt at courtship.

How can Rose honor her father's last wish if Miles doesn't even try to court her? Will she have the courage to put her heart on the line and fight for the one she really loves?

My Review:
I'm going to begin by making an observation that has nothing to do with this book, simply because I really want my posts  to be something readers can learn from. With that said . . .

As both a writer and a reader, I've learned that reviews, contests, and even the finding of a publisher are very subjective experiences. Simply put, if a book isn't the reader's "cup of tea," then he or she will likely disregard it or give it a bad review. Not easy for the author to take. I know, I've been there. But the truth is, there are also many, many other readers who love what that same author has written. He or she may even become that reader's favorite author. The trick for us as authors is to find those readers. Sort of like finding friends. Or spouses. :)

But with Finding Rose, one of the things I liked most about it was it was a lot like a Hallmark Channel movie; it was a gentle romance about two people who grew into love. My novels are fast-paced, so Finding Rose was a pleasant change for me. I also loved Miles, the romantic lead. It took me a little while to warm up to him because I initially didn't think his character fit his profession, but the more I read, the more I liked him and the more I hoped he'd show up on the page--a good thing in a romance novel. So if you like quiet romances, give Finding Rose a try. Author Stephanie Humphreys just might become one of your new, favorite authors.

To read more about Finding Rose and to have more chances to win a copy, check out these reviews:

November 22
Tristi Pinkston--Tristi Pinkston

November 23
Alison Palmer--Tangled Words and
Dreams

November 24
Taffy Lovell--Taffy's Writing

November 29
Jenn Wilks--Jenn Wilks
Ronda Gibb Hinrichsen--The
Write Blocks

November 30
Amanda Thomson--Maybe Mandi

December 1
Sheila Staley--Why Not?
Because I Said So

December 2
Valerie Ipson--Valerie Ipson

December 3
Christine Bryant--Day
Dreamer

Angela Morrison--What She Did Right

               

I recently had the priviledge of reading two romantic, YA novels by Angela Morrison: Taken by Storm and its sequel, Unbroken Connection.

From the back cover of Taken by Storm:

Leesie Hunt's Unbreakable Rules:

No Kissing (at least not of the French variety) . . . No Sex (hah! not even close to happening anyway) . . . No Dating Outside the Mormon Faith (what would be the point?) . . . ABSOLUTELY No Falling in Love with the Wrong Boy (wold ruin everything)

Leesie thinks she has her whole life planned out: get into the school of her dreams, write her poems meet the perfect guy, and settle down. Then she meets Michael--a boy whose parents were killed in a diving accident during a terrible storm.

Michael is drowning in tragedy. And all Leesie wants is to save him. With each day, her heart hurts more. Could it be perfect Leesie is falling from grace? Or is she just falling in love?

But if Leesie gives in to temptation, who is going to save her?

What She Did Right:

One of the elements I loved most about these two novels is the way Morrison defined her characters, allowing us to discover their personalities the moment we look at the page. Like many romance novels, Taken by Storm and Unbroken Connection are told from the main character and the romantic lead's points of view, but Morrison took this technique up a notch by giving us Michael's point of view through what he writes in his dive logs (he also uses "i" instead of "I"--very unique!) and revealing Leesie's POV through her poetry and her online chats. Sooo cool.

Another great thing about this technique is it immediately makes a "connection" with Morrison's YA readers who chat, often write poetry to express their emotions, and try to differentiate themselves from the crowd. Which brings me to my next comment.

I recently attended a class where David Farland said Stephanie Meyers planned to--and did--write a book about sex, and yet it had no sex in it. That is a close description of Morrison's novels, only without the vampires and danger. In fact, both characters are obsessed with their physical desire for each other while at the same time trying to control those emotions. Like the classic conflict of man against self, sometimes they fail, but most of the time they redeem themselves and succeed. Yay!

If you'd like to learn more about these books, read the third book in the trilogy as the author writes it, or contact her, visit her website at www.angela-morrison.com.

Happy Reading!

Thanksgiving Blog Hop

In honor of Thanksgiving and because I want to thank you for your support and interest in my work, I am participating in this amazing, week long blog hop. It begins today, November 17th and runs until November 28th, 2010.






Each blog is offering a contest for a book related prize to their followers, so for YOU I am offering a free copy of my first novel, MISSING.



To enter, you must be a follower of this blog (If you're not currently a follower, you can follow now) and leave me ONE comment detailing all of your entries at the bottom of this post.

Each step earns one entry.
1) Required: Follow my blog, The Write Blocks.
2) Join my mailing list by emailing me at rondagibbhinrichsen@gmail.com and writing "Subscribe to Mailing List" in the subject line.
3) Subscribe to this blog.
4) Tweet, Facebook, blog, or otherwise announce my giveaway.

The winner of MISSING will be determined by random.org.

THANK YOU
and
HAVE A WONDERFUL THANKSGIVING!

Thanksgiving Blog Hop coming November 17th!

In honor of Thanksgiving and because I want to thank you for your support and interest in my work, I am participating in this amazing, week long blog hop. It begins Wednesday, November 17th and runs until November 28th, 2010. Book related prizes will be offered to followers on each blog. The winner of my contest will receive a copy of MISSING. I hope to "see" you there. :)

See my sidebar link to the Thanksgiving Blog Hop for more info.

Divine Intervention

Last weekend, I read a great book I think everyone should read. It's Divine Intervention by Helen and Randy Hall, and it's the true story of how the Halls' survived a should-have-been-deadly plane crash in Arizona. The tale alone is fascinating, but even more importantly, it is inspirational. Divine Intervention reminded me of not only how much Heavenly Father loves us, but also how much--physically and spiritually--we take for granted.