Why Trifecta Books?
Ramblings of an author, editor, media reviewer, homeschooling mommy, and headless chicken.
Friday, September 27, 2013
Announcing ... Trifecta Books!
Why Trifecta Books?
Friday, September 20, 2013
I, Spy Book Blast
To save her country and her secrets, CIA operative Talia Reynolds must sacrifice the man she loves—but your choice is much easier! Just buy a copy of I, Spy during the book blast AND receive awesome prizes!
What you have to do
Step 1: Buy the book any day from September 19 to September 22. Any retailer will do!
Amazon, Kobo, Barnes & Noble & Smashwords, and direct from JordanMcCollum.com!Step 2: Email Jordan a copy of the receipt (jordan at jordanmccollum.com). Yes, even if you buy the book from Jordan's site, we need to know you want to receive the freebies.
Step 3: Wait with bated breath.
What you're going to get
EVERYONE who participates gets fabulous prizes, including 13 free books and samples from wonderful authors!
The fabulous prizes!
a free copy of A Body in the Backyard (A Myrtle Clover Mystery) by Elizabeth Spann Craig |
a free copy of Rose, Undercover (Dead Roses #1.1) by RaShelle Workman |
a free copy of Anasazi Intrigue: The Adventures of John and Julia Evans by Linda Weaver Clarke |
a free copy of Writing Your Family Legacy by Linda Weaver Clarke (Isn't she awesome?!) |
a free copy of Secret Sisters by Tristi Pinkston |
a free copy of Dead Running by Cami Checketts |
a free copy of First Kiss (Confessions of a 16-Year-Old Virgin Lips 1) by Cindy Hogan |
a preview of A Change of Plans by Donna K. Weaver |
a sneak preview of The Witnesses by Stephanie Black, out next month! |
a sneak preview of Pocket Full of Posies (Hostage Negotiation Team #3) by Julie Coulter Bellon, out next month! |
an exclusive look at "I'll Cry for Christmas," a short story by Rachelle J. Christensen |
a free copy of Mr. Nice Spy (I, Spy Prequels) by Jordan McCollum |
What if I've already bought I, Spy?
First of all, THANK YOU!! If you take a picture of you with your copy of I, Spy (or the cover on your reading device) and post it somewhere public on the Internet— Facebook (or maybe on Jordan's Facebook page), a Tweet, Flickr, Tumblr, Instagram, sky's the limit—send Jordan the link and you can have these fabulous prizes too!
So spread the word! The more, the merrier!
Friday, September 06, 2013
Guest Post: Drienie Hattingh on Christy Monson's New Release, Love, Hugs, and Hope
This delightfully illustrated self-help children’s book is a must-have for parents to share with their children after traumatic events. In a very direct but kind way, Christy Monson’s words will help children get through difficult times.
Christy was born in Medford Oregon, and now lives in Ogden, Utah, with her husband. Through her husband’s work, they travelled a lot and lived in several places in the United States—Utah, Idaho, Michigan, California, Nevada, and finally back in Utah. During this process, they raised six children. After Christy’s children were in school, she went back to UNLV to become a marriage and family therapist, setting up a practice in Las Vegas, Nevada.
The first draft of Love, Hugs, and Hope: When Scary Things Happen took Christy about a week to write. She felt the need to write this little book after several heartbreaking incidents in America—the school shooting at Sandy Hook, and shortly after when a gunman shot up the Clackamas Towne Center in Oregon. Christy’s daughter, son-in-law, and two granddaughters live about three miles from the center.
Even though parents turned off all media, Christy knew they couldn’t protect children by keeping the truth from them. Children needed to share their feelings and find hope in the difficult world surrounding them during such traumatic events.
As these thoughts manifested in Christy’s mind after these catastrophes, she felt something had to be written to help parents and children work through such disasters … and the idea for this little book was born.
Christy wrote the book with one primary idea in mind and that was to answer the question: What do you do when scary things happen? The result is a delightfully illustrated little book all about love and light that will help children everywhere to process hurt and anger and help them heal from tragedies. The book is not only meant for major disasters like the ones mentioned earlier, but it can be helpful to parents and children in the event of the loss of a friend or a grandparent and even the death of a beloved pet.
To my mind, the book accomplishes what the author set out to do and so eloquently states in her book: “Love chases away hate and light chases away the dark.”
Love, Hugs, and Hope is available in hardcover, Kindle, Nook, iPad, and ePub. Purchase it on Amazon.com by clicking here, and come meet Christy Monson by clicking here.
Drienie Hattingh was born and raised in South Africa. She now lives in Ogden, Utah, with her husband, Johan. She has been a columnist for 18 years and her writings have been published in newspapers and magazines in America and overseas. Her stories appeared in anthologies such as ‘Christmas Miracles’ and ‘The Spirit of Christmas’ (St. Martin’s Press) as well as ‘Lessons from my Parents’ (Familius). She also compiled, published and contributed stories to three ghost anthologies, ‘Tales from Huntsville, Eden, Liberty and Beyond…’ and Part I and II of ‘Tales from Two-Bit Street and Beyond…’
Guest Post: Drienie Hattingh on Christy Monson's New Release, Becoming Free
Christy Monson’s past career as a marriage and family therapist in Las Vegas, Nevada, no doubt inspired her to write her latest book, Becoming Free. It took Christy a year to write this worthwhile self-help adult book.
Becoming Free is all about the clients Christy helped in her practice. Of course, she did not use real names, but the stories are all true. It is clear to see that the author gave each case a lot of thought before writing this book. Every "story" is a life lesson as the author concentrates on what motivated those clients who improved their quality of life.
Christy outlined the healing process of every case, from identifying the problem to solving it. She walks us through every case with wisdom, compassion, and sometimes humor. I came away from each chapter feeling positively influenced, even when some stories did not end well.
I appreciate the concept conveyed throughout: It is important not only to give, but also to receive.
I was really inspired by the book, knowing that there just might be hope for every difficult situation women face in their everyday lives. The author makes it clear that goals can be achieved if one goes about problems the right way.
Each case/chapter read like a story. I found myself looking forward to the next and the next story. Reading the book, I felt it might just be possible to find a deeper happiness in life and that we possess more strength than we might think we have to achieve our goals. Sometimes, while reading certain chapters, I said to myself, “If only I knew this when my kids were small or in their teens” or “If only I knew this when I was trying to solve a similar problem in my life.”
The title for this book is perfect. I felt that many of the suggestions to solve problems in these real-life situations could help me in "becoming free."
Through the last couple of years, after reading Christy’s other books, I have come to love her way of writing—filled not only with wisdom and compassion, but also humor.
I agree with Margaret Johansen when she wrote this about Becoming Free: “…just like a recipe book that gives both ingredients and instructions for successful baking, Christy gives both ‘what you need’ and ‘how to do it.'"