Spooktacular Giveaway Hop

As a part of the Spooktacular Giveaway Hop, I'm holding a giveaway for your choice of one of the following books:


The Tale of Castle Cottage by Susan Wittig Albert is a historical mystery. You can read my review.

Beatrix is eager to marry her fiancé, solicitor William Heelis. But with remodeling work at Castle Cottage, their future home, going at a snail’s pace, Beatrix finds frustration when the building contractor fires his best carpenter, Mr. Adcock, for stealing. At the same time, Will is investigating thefts on other construction sites—an inquiry that comes to a screeching halt when Mr. Adcock is found dead.

Meanwhile, the animals that live in and around the village have a problem of their own: a gang of rats has moved into the neighborhood and is stealing food and valuables from humans and animals alike. Sadly, the cats aren't up to the job of ridding the area of the rats, but something must be done before the rats clean the village out...


Murder in the Rue Dumas by M.L. Longworth is a cozy-like mystery set in France.
You can read my review.

When Dr. Georges Moutte is found murdered, Judge Antoine Verlaque is stumped. Certainly the director of theology at the Universite d'Aix had his enemies. Moutte was just about to name the recipient of an elite fellowship as well as his own successor--a highly coveted position that includes a lavish apartment in a seventeenth-century mansion--when his lips were sealed permanently. Yet Verlaque isn't convinced that any of the academics are capable of murder. Aided by his on-again, off-again girlfriend, law professor Marine Bonnet, Verlaque turns Provence upside down, uncovering a world far more complicated than university politics.


This contest is for USA & Canada residents only.


To enter the giveaway:

1) you can twitter me saying "Hi @genrereviewer. Enter me in the giveaway for [give the book name and author's name]."

OR

2) You can leave a comment to this post asking to be entered and naming which book you'd like to win. Please also leave some way for me to contact you--or follow this blog so you can see the winner announcement. I'd be fun if you also included why you're interested in reading this novel.

This giveaway ends on October 31st, 2012 at midnight. The winner will be randomly selected. I'll announce the winner on November 1st, 2012 on this blog.

If you entered using twitter, I'll send you a @ or DM telling you of your win and asking where to send the book. If you entered using the blog comments, you'll need to leave your e-mail address or check back to see if you won so you can e-mail me your mailing address. If the winner hasn't responded with a mailing address within four days, I reserve the right to pick a new winner.

I hope everyone has fun with this!


The blogs participating in the Spooktacular Giveaway Hop:

The Homecoming by Dan Walsh

The Homecoming by Dan Walsh ISBN-13: 9781441212054 Sony ebook: 310 pages Publisher: Fleming H. Revell Company Released: May 4th 2010

Source: Free ebook offer.

Book Description from Back Cover:
No sooner has Shawn Collins returned home from the fighting in Europe than he is called upon to serve his country in another way--as a speaker on the war bond tour. While other men might jump at the chance to travel around the country with attractive Hollywood starlets, Shawn just wants to stay home with his son Patrick and his aging father, and grieve the loss of his wife in private.

When Shawn asks Katherine Townsend to be Patrick's nanny while he's on the road, he has no idea how this decision will impact his life. Could it be the key to his future happiness and the mending of his heart? Or will the war once again threaten his chances for a new start?


My Review:
The Homecoming is a Christian historical novel set in 1944 to 1945 and mainly occurred in United States and London, England. This book is a sequel to The Unfinished Gift. You don't need to read the first novella to understand this book, but I suspect I would have felt more connected to the main characters if I had read The Unfinished Gift first.

The vivid historical details were woven into the story without slowing the pacing. We get a tour of events happening at the time, from a bomber getting shot down and its crew escaping occupied territory, to fame for a war hero on a war bond tour, to missiles falling on civilian houses in London.

There was a romance as well, but I felt like time jumped by so quickly that we didn't really get to see the romance grow. We know that they spent time around each other and that they seem well-suited for each other, but the novel's focus was more on the historical events going on than on scenes of them falling in love with each other.

There was a Christian element to the story. Katherine knew so little about church that she thought she had to pay to attend (due to the offering plate), but we're told she learns more about how churches work and what Christ is all about. The hero believed in God before his wife died, but afterward he was mad at God and had to deal with the issue of God being good.

There was no sex or explicit bad language. Overall, I'd recommend this interesting historical novel.


If you've read this book, what do you think about it? I'd be honored if you wrote your own opinion of the book in the comments.


Excerpt: Read an excerpt using Google Preview.

Sylvester by Georgette Heyer

Sylvester or The Wicked Uncle by Georgette Heyer ISBN: 0-06-100257-7 Mass Market Paperback: 410 pages Publisher: Harper Paperbacks Released: 1985, 1957

Source: Bought through Half.com

Book Description, my take:
Sylvester, the Duke of Salford, takes his responsibilities very serious, and he's decided that it's time for him to marry--but he hasn't yet met a woman he loves. When his mother mentions the daughter of her dead best friend, he decides to meet the girl.

Phoebe Marlow had a poor showing during her London season, and she wrote a novel mocking the silliness of the ton after she came back to the country. She makes Sylvester the villain due to his slanted eyebrows. When she's told that he's coming to ask her to marry him, there's only one thing to do--run away!

She ends up stranded at a small inn in a snowstorm with an injured companion, so she welcomes Sylvester's help once she's told he didn't intend to marry her. Still, she's offended by his sometimes aloof attitude and occasional thoughtless actions, and she blames him for causing her to run away. She knows that he's not the villain she's made him out to be, but surely his pride will never forgive her for portraying him as one...


My Review:
Sylvester or The Wicked Uncle is a historical adventure/romance set in Regency era England. I like Heyer's funny novels, but it turned out that this one had more scornful criticism than humorous dialogue or events. It also had a lot more adventure, including a kidnapping and travel in France. It was very exciting, and I hated putting the book down because I could never guess what would happen next.

I didn't really like the "romance," though. There were moments when I could see that Sylvester and Phoebe could get along very well, but Phoebe spent most of their time together criticizing Sylvester (not because he's bad, but because he isn't perfect) and blaming him for provoking her bad behavior. I suspect she did this because she was very insecure and felt like she'd be safer if she was constantly on the attack and could pretend to have the moral high ground. Sylvester took it all like a gentleman, apologized when he did wrong, and even modified his behavior when she made valid criticisms. He kept rescuing her from the consequences of her rash actions.

But if they'd been a modern, married couple, they'd be filing for divorce. They're going to have a miserable marriage. Even Sylvester's mother thinks this is the likely result, though she hopes it's the making of them instead. So it's not the "they're better people when together than when apart" type romance I like.

There was no sex. There was some explicit bad language. Overall, I'd recommend this novel to those interested in reading all of Heyer's books, those interested in the adventure part of it, or those who don't mind "always fighting" romance novels.


If you've read this book, what do you think about it? I'd be honored if you wrote your own opinion of the book in the comments.


Excerpt: Read an excerpt using Google Preview.

The Convenient Marriage by Georgette Heyer

The Convenient Marriage by Georgette Heyer ISBN-13: 9780373834457 Mass Market Paperback: 404 pages Publisher: Harlequin Released: 1934, 2000

Source: Bought through Half.com.

Book Description, Modified from Goodreads:
Horatia Winwood, a stammering girl barely out of the schoolroom, offers to take the place of her beautiful older sister (who is romantically involved elsewhere) in a marriage of convenience with the wealthy Earl of Rule. Horatia thinks that Rule loves another woman who is unsuitable to marry, so she tries to find her happiness in buying clothing and flirting with other men.

Rule is actually taken with his adorable new wife and is concerned about her behavior. Lord Lethbridge sees this as an opportunity to ruin Horatia as revenge against Rule for an earlier dispute between them. Little does he expect the mess that results due to Horatia's, her brother's, his friend's, and Rule's hilarious interference with his carefully laid plans.


My Review:
The Convenient Marriage is a funny historical romance set in 1770's England. The hero, Rule, reminded me of The Scarlet Pimpernel - he seemed lazy and unconcerned yet he was a lot more aware and athletic than he outwardly appeared. Horatia was charming and very funny at the beginning, but then she behaved rather badly (though not so much so that I stopped liking her). Rule's old enemy and a previous mistress of Rule's did some shocking things to try to break up the marriage. The comic relief mainly came from Horatia's usually-drunk brother and his friend doing their bumbling best to prevent her actions from creating a scandal...and only making things worse.

There was a fair amount of historical detail--mainly about the clothing, though some about dueling, highway robbery, and such--woven into the story. I had a hard time putting the book down because of the bad scrapes Horatia and her brother kept getting into, some of them dangerous.

There was some explicit bad language. There was no sex. Overall, I'd recommend this funny novel.


If you've read this book, what do you think about it? I'd be honored if you wrote your own opinion of the book in the comments.


Excerpt: Read an excerpt using Google Preview.

The Swan House by Elizabeth Musser

The Swan House by Elizabeth Musser ISBN-13: 9780764225086 Trade Paperback: 448 pages Publisher: Bethany House Publishers Released: July 1, 2001

Source: Bought through Half.com.

Book Description, Modified from Back Cover:
Sixteen-year-old Mary Swan Middleton has always taken for granted the advantages of her family's wealth. But a tragic plane crash that touches all of Atlanta threatens to crush her in grief for her lost mother.

When the family maid challenges her to reach out to the less fortunate as a way to ease her own pain, Mary Swan meets Carl. He is her opposite in nearly every way--he's black, poor, and struggling against the racism so present in 1962. She asks for his help to uncover a mystery about a lost painting of her mothers and ends up learning far more than she ever could have imagined.


My Review:
Swan House is a historical set in 1962 in Atlanta, Georgia. Segregation was being broken down, but prejudice and violence against blacks was still very present. Vivid descriptions about the place, time, and people brought the story alive in my imagination.

The characters were engaging, had depth, and reacted to things in realistic ways. The low level of suspense came from relationship tensions--romantic, family, and racial. While not depressing, it's not a light-hearted story. Mary Swan goes through so much pain due to losing loved ones, her naivete, and learning some new, hard things about her mother.

There was a strong Christian element, and it flowed naturally as a part of the story. Mary Swan went to church all of her life, but she's challenged by the devotion she sees in a white woman who gave up a life of privilege to serve among the poor. Mary Swan is afraid God will ask her to do something like that, so she doesn't want to get any closer to God, but she is curious about the strong faith she sees.

There was a very minor amount of explicit bad language. There was no sex. Overall, I'd highly recommend this novel.


If you've read this book, what do you think about it? I'd be honored if you wrote your own opinion of the book in the comments.


Excerpt: Read an excerpt using Google Preview.

Masques by Patricia Briggs

Masques by Patricia Briggs ISBN-13: 9780441019427 Mass Market Paperback: 320 pages Publisher: Ace Released: September 28, 2010

Source: Bought through Half.com.

Book Description, my take:
Rewritten from the original story of 1993.

Aralorn is a mercenary spy, so it helps that she's a shape-shifter. She can change to look like anyone and can easily take on animal shapes like a mouse or goose. But her latest mission turns unexpectedly deadly. Few people knew that the ae'Magi, a very powerful and charming magic user, secretly kills people to increase his power. So Aralorn joins her mysterious companion, Wolf, to defend a handful of untrained magic users and to try to stop the ae'Magi.


My Review:
Masques is a traditional fantasy novel. The 1993 version is one of my favorite novels, and I finally decided to read this re-written version. The author mainly added descriptions to the existing dialogue and action.

I love to read the 1993 version whenever I feel down because Aralorn has a wry sense of humor and can find humor in even the worst situations. And she loves to cheer other people up, too, and make them laugh at themselves for being so serious. She's a woman of action. Even when she knows there may be very bad consequences for her actions, she still does what's right. She risked her life to help others when she knew they wouldn't even thank her for it.

Due to the additions in the new version, Aralorn's humor is more muted. It's also a mask for her true feelings of utter terror and uncertainty about what to do and for her horrible nightmares. This is a more realistic reaction to the things she goes through (including torture), but it also isn't a book I'd read when I feel depressed about the world.

Though slower-paced than the original version, the new version still had a good level of suspense due to physical danger and relationship tensions. The added detail did bring the world more vividly alive, and the main characters still came across as intriguing, nice people.

There were no sex scenes, though it was implied that the bad guys raped women. There was a very minor amount of explicit bad language. There was torture, but the focus was more on healing the damage rather than the actual torture, so it wasn't very gory. There was fantasy magic and shape-shifters. Overall, I'd recommend this new version as an enjoyable fantasy. The old version is very difficult to find at a reasonable price.


If you've read this book, what do you think about it? I'd be honored if you wrote your own opinion of the book in the comments.


Excerpt: Read an excerpt using Google Preview.

The Tale of Castle Cottage by Susan Wittig Albert

The Tale of Castle Cottage by Susan Wittig Albert ISBN-13: 9780425251539 Mass Market Paperback: 304 pages Publisher: Berkley Prime Crime Released: 2011; October 2, 2012

Source: Review copy from the publisher.

Book Description, Modified from Back Cover:
Beatrix is eager to marry her fiancé, solicitor William Heelis. But with remodeling work at Castle Cottage, their future home, going at a snail’s pace, Beatrix finds frustration when the building contractor fires his best carpenter, Mr. Adcock, for stealing. At the same time, Will is investigating thefts on other construction sites—an inquiry that comes to a screeching halt when Mr. Adcock is found dead.

Meanwhile, the animals that live in and around the village have a problem of their own: a gang of rats has moved into the neighborhood and is stealing food and valuables from humans and animals alike. Sadly, the cats aren't up to the job of ridding the area of the rats, but something must be done before the rats clean the village out...


My Review:
The Tale of Castle Cottage is a historical mystery and romance set in 1913 in England. It's the 8th book in the series, but you don't need to read the previous book to understand this one. Throughout the story, we're told snippets about what has happened in the previous novels (and the title of the novel it happened in), so the previous novels are spoiled to a certain extent if you haven't read them first.

The story was told by a storyteller describing to the reader what's happening and the back-story to what's happening. Despite this distant viewpoint, we get to know the characters because we're told some of their history and what the storyteller suspects they are thinking and feeling.

Most of the book was a biography of Miss Beatrix Potter with scenes based on her comments in real letters (at least, I'm assuming that part was real) and a little fictional mystery worked in. There was another parallel story about the animals in the area dealing with a rat thief-gang invasion. We see the animals talking to each other and at the humans, but the humans in the story only hear barks and meows and such.

The story was fun and interesting (especially if you'd like to learn more about that period of Miss Potter's life), but it wasn't a very complex story. The mystery was not a clue-puzzle whodunit as very few clues--or evidence--was given and very little time was spent on solving it.

There was a very minor amount of explicit bad language. There was no sex. Overall, I'd recommend this interesting and entertaining novel.


If you've read this book, what do you think about it? I'd be honored if you wrote your own opinion of the book in the comments.


Excerpt: Read an excerpt using Google Preview.