Random.Org decided as follows:


Congratulations Erin and June M.!

The winners have been emailed. Thank you, everyone who entered!

With the help of Random.org I have picked two winners!

The winner of the the Romance Trading Cards-set of SERENDIPITY and DESTINY is

Andrea

who said...

Hi Pearl, I LOVE your blog and this post. My fav genre is Contemp. I also love my cowboys too :) I try to add in some historical, and a little PNR occassionaly.
I loved Lisa Kleypas Travis Series.
I am re-listening to Sugar Daddy right now!

The winner of a copy of Serendipity ordered via The BookDepository is:

marybelle

who said...

I do read some contemporary romance, but I think I will always prefer my romance to be Historical. I love the etiquette involved.

Congratulations to the winners, you have been emailed.
Thank you for everyone who participated. Stay tuned for more giveaways soon as I have a Vivian Arend giveaway running at the moment and I have some RWA 2011 books and swag giveaways coming up in due course.

The True Random Number Generator has spoken once again this week and here are the results.


Set of 4 Granite Lake Wolves ebooks goes to

Barbara (bimmergrlmd@...)

barbara said...
There are many shifter authors I love... Shelly Laurenston, Cynthia Eden, to name a couple. The newest (to-me) shifter series that has won my heart is Nalini Singh's Psy/Changeling series. I especially love their complete sense of loyalty, family and friendship. Those qualities coupled with strength and grace just make me melt.

I've not read Vivian's Granite Lake series but look forward to doing so. I have read (& re-read!) her Tangled Tinsel, and thoroughly enjoyed it... a very sexy shifter story! :)

I would love either prize but prefer the ebook copies of the series.

Thanks for the giveaway!

AND...


The print ARC + swag go to

Proserpine (proserpinecravedfor@...)

Proserpine said...
I would say Christine Feehan!
Please count me in!
Thanks for the giveaway!

The winners have been contacted via email and asked to provide the information needed to get their prizes.

Thanks to everyone who entered. I loved reading about your favorite shifter series and authors :)
I hope you stay tuned because there will be more giveaways in the near future!

The True Random Number Generator has spoken and the winner of the bound galley-ARC of NEVER ENOUGH by Lauren Dane is:

*drumroll please........*


Rachel (email: rriddles@....)

Who said...

Those are some awesome quotes!!! I'm trying to decide out of all of my books which quote is the best

Inside Out...

"You have to expose yourself, ask someone else for their blood, sweat and tears and give your own. It leaves you laid bare and inside out, Andrew. And that's what makes it so good. That's love, man." I believe it's Todd to Cope!!


Great contest, Rachel

Congratulations Rachel! An email has been sent to you for your mailing address so the ARC can be mailed to you asap.

Big thanks everyone who entered, and I hope you will come around again soon for a visit!

Everyone loves a hero. That's the problem.

Hero pilot Cole Langston is learning to live with—and enjoy—his newfound fame and the rabid female attention that comes with it until a lucky punch knocks some sense into him and opens his eyes to true love.


When his copilot suffers a heart attack in flight, Cole lands the jetliner in a blizzard and revives the stricken captain. Catapulted to national hero status, Cole has more women vying for his attention than he knows what to do with. They all have one thing in common: they try without success to bring this happy-go-lucky pilot down to earth.

Then comes an airport altercation, a punch to the face, and the lovely Olivia—a shy, timid artist who does what no other woman has ever managed to do: steal Cole's well-protected heart. With women coming on to him everywhere they go, Olivia struggles to believe that Cole is ready for a committed relationship. His biggest problem is getting rid of all his extra ladies before the only one he wants figures out that she's one of many.

Title: EVERYONE LOVES A HERO
Author: Marie Force
Series: Standalone (to my knowledge this book is not part of a series)
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Publisher: Sourcebooks Casablanca
Year of release: 2011, February 1
Format: Mass Market Paperback
Source: won an ARC of this book in a Twitter contest held by the author

First line:
Cole opened the eye that still worked and struggled to figure out how he had ended up on the floor.

Memorable Scenes:
Sorry people, didn’t write down memorable scenes, though I know for sure that there were quite a few…I normally jot down these scenes on the Notes App on my iPhone but unfortunately I read this book during an iPhone-less stint and apparently don’t do hand-written memorable scenes notes. :)


Cole Langston is a pilot and a real life hero without making an effort to be one. He’s a sweet, confident nice guy who’s energetic, spontaneous, thoughtful and considerate. He’s also just cocky enough to pull it off without being annoying or arrogant. A ladies-man and commitment phobic until he meets Olivia and realizes she’s “the one.” However, his ladies-man reputation, despite his good and honorable intentions towards Olivia, keeps hunting their new and budding relationship. Throughout the book it comes back to bite him in the ass (almost literally in the form of a crazy ex-fling).

Cole was a character who was difficult for me to peg down. He’s not a hero I could easily fit into a labeled box. He has a dry, subtle sense of humor that made him very attractive and should have made him a hero after my own heart but his sometimes not so fine moments and actions prevent me from putting him on my favorite heroes lists. On one page I’d really like him and find him adorable. On other pages there would be glimpses of a man I had trouble connecting with and this had to do with his attitude towards the women in his past. It’s hard for me to not sound wishy-washy about this but it’s hard for me to explain what I mean. There was just some stuff that he did or didn’t do that I didn’t like/agree with. And then he’d say or do something that made me melt and go all “awww he’s actually really sweet.” I guess I will remain fickle where Cole’s concerned.

Olivia Robison is a neat freak, still living at home and still in college because of some interesting circumstances. She’s a very talented artist who works at an airport store as a clerk to put herself through business school. But business is not where her heart lies, it’s with art. She’s serious, easy-going, undemanding and appreciative of little things. She’s also a dreamer with hopes and dreams for the future despite also being practical and realistic.

Though she’s totally smitten with Cole, Olivia doesn’t understand what he, an adventurous, worldly man, sees in her, a student living with her parents and working in an airport shop.

The next note is literally copied from my review notes but I must use a disclaimer here stating that I honestly don’t remember what the heck I’m referring too. I would have to re-read the book to recall what it’s about and alas I have no time for re-reads so I’m still including it but please don’t ask me what I mean by it… *smile*

Marie Force totally surprised me with her heroine and something (which I won’t disclose due to spoiler-ish reasons) about her heroine. I definitely didn’t expect it and before reading EVERYONE LOVES A HERO I would have even said I didn’t like to read it in a contemporary romance but Force made it work perfectly with the story.

If someone has any idea of what I’m talking about here, please clue me in…LOL And I must remember that since I’m the only person who reads my review notes, it’s okay for me to disclose stuff that may be considered spoiling. *sigh*

The secondary cast contained some very interesting characters. For example, Olivia’s parents: Mary and Jerry. Mary is an agoraphobic hoarder and obsessive-compulsive shopper. Jerry is Olivia’s rock and anchor. Olivia’s other anchor and touchstone was Jenny, her best friend and cousin. There were also some interesting secondary characters surrounding Cole: I loved Tucker (and secretly hope that he’ll have his own book one day) and “Nutty” Natasha, a crazy, stalker-ish past fling of Cole’s I wanted to smack in the face. Finally there was the cute gay couple Victor and Paolo. Victor reminded me so much of a family friend of my parents I called my mom to ask about him and how he’s doing.

Humorous banter was one of the elements that contributed to the feel-good vibe this book oozes. The start was funny, sweet and endearing/touching. In other words, exactly what I expect from my favorite contemporary romance. The sex scenes are smokin’ HOT, making this book a very sexy contemporary, next to being cute and sweet.

With all the sweetness and cuteness and I wondered if the other shoe was ever going to drop. Just when I thought the book was getting too cute I started to hear that eerie JAWS theme in my head while I read how the sugary sweet romance was about to hit a rough patch. And I was glad for the conflicts and complicating factors (Cole’s women-filled past, his behavior and attitude towards them and Olivia’s doubts and insecurities) to the relationship/romance because without them the whole book just would have been too cute for my taste.

The big misunderstanding was completely in line with the development of the story and I even saw it coming. I didn’t understand Olivia’s first reaction as my first move would have been to confront Cole and ask for an explanation or at least give him an opportunity to explain. She didn’t however and this understandably led to the big resolution finale towards the HEA that belongs in romance novels. More importantly, it gave the book the emotional punch to counter the cute sweetness because those last 20-30 pages were heartbreakingly emotional.

Of course it goes without saying that all romance novels I read are romantic but it bears mentioning that EVERYONE LOVES A HERO is one of the most romantic books I’ve read in a long while. Following Cole and Olivia’s falling in love, reading about their first phone call, their first date and their first kiss gave me that warm fuzzy feeling and made me sigh and smile at the same time while reading.

I really loved my first encounter with Marie Force’s work. EVERYONE LOVES A HERO is a cute, sweet and butterflies-inducing contemporary romance written in an easy and agreeable writing style. I adore her voice and can’t wait to start her Fatal Series (romantic suspense series with Carina Press).

Favorite Quotes:
Never in her life had Olivia experienced a kiss quite like this –a kiss that made her want to tear off his clothes and have him. Right there. Right now. She whimpered under the weight of the need that blazed through her.

“Finally,” he sighed, turning his head ever so slightly, just enough to capture her lips. He pressed her to the wall and sent his tongue to find hers.

Breathing in his warm, masculine scent, Olivia couldn’t help but smile at the relief in his voice. In a thick Cockney accent, she said, “Am I permitted a quick trip to the loo, my lord?”
Cole cracked up. “Only if you hurry up. Your lord’s boner requires your immediate attention.”

Random.org chose Aurian as the winner of a copy of PROMISES IN THE DARK.
Congratulations Aurian! An email has been sent for your address details so I can get your copy to you as soon as possible.

Thanks everyone who visited and read the review, and entered the giveaway.

Cari picked a winner:
"I picked the winner of the ebook copy of Reveal Me ..."

lisagk said...

I agree with Daisy. I very seldom read a book if there are children involved any more. Got really burned out on the cute kid thing.

Congratulations Lisa! As you included your email address, you don't need to contact us. Cari will send you the ebook shortly.

Thank you to everyone who participated in the discussion and giveaway. Thank you Cari for the guest post and the giveaway. My review of REVEAL ME will be posted this weekend...

Quite belated because of several circumstances and being swamped at work but I finally found a sliver of time to pick the Wild Irish Week Winners...


The winner of COME MONDAY is: barbara
The winner of RUBY TUESDAY is: JenM
The winner of WAITING FOR WEDNESDAY is: desi
The winner of SWEET THURSDAY is: johnsonsteven
The winner of FRIDAY, I'M IN LOVE is: flchen1
The winner of SATURDAY NIGHT SPECIAL is: Aurian
The winner of ANY GIVEN SUNDAY is: elaing8

Congratulations to all winners! And thanks everyone for commenting during this Wild Irish Week. Special thanks to Mari for writing such wonderful books and for her cooperation and generosity.

If I do have your email address I will sent it to Mari and she will contact you about your prize. I've contact the winners whose email address I don't have. johnsonsteven, I haven't found a way to contact you to get your email address so if you read this please send me your email address asap so I can get it to Mari.

Random.org has spoken and...

...the winner of the copy provided by me via The Bookdepository is



LEONTINE

...the winner of the signed copy provided by Stephanie Tyler is


SPAV

I will contact the winners and Steph to get the books to their destinations as soon as possible and thank you to everyone who entered the giveaways. Please note that your entries will be automatically go into the drawing for the grand prize at the end of November and I hope you'll join Steph and me in a few weeks for the release of PROMISES IN THE DARK!

After a busy weekend with a lovely visit with my mom on Saturday where I got to tan my legs lounging about in the garden and reading my book and a drive home that was hell, complete with thunderstorms, heavy wind and downpours, a Sunday that was marked by the disappointment of the Netherlands losing the Soccer World Championship final against Spain and a Monday where I was taken hostage by an AWESOME read (more about that in a week or two, as it was an ARC-read) I am finally sitting down behind the computer to announce the winner I picked on Saturday via random.org for Liz Fichera's Guestpost and giveaway of her Carina Press debut CAPTIVE SPIRIT.




I have your email address Nicole and will send it to Liz so she can contact you about your copy of CAPTIVE SPIRIT.

Thank you for everyone who participated and thank you, Liz for your wonderful post and your time!

OMG I think I've never gone this long without posting something on the Blog. I hereby promise to make it up to my loyal readers in the coming weeks! Have a bunch of reviews of wonderful books to come so I hope I can make it up to you with that.

I also want to apologize to the people waiting for the announcement of the #CarinaWeek Winners. I had it all planned and we all know the way even the best laid plans sometimes go. And this one was a textbook example of it. The Carina Week ended the day before I left on my vacation to L.A. and I had this wonderful plan of doing a lot of blogging during the vacation, after all I had wireless Internet in both hotels, I took my laptop and my iPhone...what could ever go wrong? Well, a lot...you can be sure of that...
First the complimentary wireless internet in the first hotel was crap! Then it turned out we had only one electricity socket converter (please don't ask me how this is called officially) that fit the powersupplies of our laptopsand hubby had to work a lot on his laptop in our hotelroom. A laptop with a wonky battery just like mine. So whenever hubby was working in the hotelroom I couldn't do anything one mine and whenever I could, it had to be on the wired internet at an very uncomfortable desk in the room. So there went my plan to blog a lot...right out the window. I'll spare you the heated discussion I had with the hotel frontdesk staff about the wireless internet on my iPhone stuff...It was ugly, that's all I'll say about it.

But next to all this internet stuff there was also a (reversed) jet lag I hadn't counted on. People told me the effects time difference when going TO the US wouldn't be that bad. Well they hadn't counted on Pearl's ornery and stubborn body. I was most definitely effected those first days and would collapse at 7 or 8 PM to wake up in the middle of the night and feel like crap...This wasn't conducive for blogging either...so hence the lack of blogging the winners of the Carina Week and some other blogging stuff I had planned during the vacation.

Then I returned and was determined to post the winners last weekend, as soon as I was home...but nooo..Mr. Jet Lag decided to show me that what I had experienced going TO the US was NOTHING compared what he could do to me returning FROM the US...I have never felt so tired in all my live and Mr.Jet Lag played a real number on me. I am just now, a week after we returned, getting back to feeling my normal self again and the first thing I'm doing is, announcing the winners of my Carina Week.

Thanks to everyone who participated in these two giveaways. Hope you all have better luck next time.

I hope to welcome you soon...Next week I am having a Welcome Carina Press Week and there will be a giveaway linked to it, so if you're curious about this new e-publisher, make sure you check back next week ;)