Pump Up Your Book Promotion is currently running a virtual book blog tour with the author. You can find out more information here.

GUERLAIN – LAVANDE

Guerlain created this soliflore in the 1840s… over 170 years ago! It was reprised again in the 1920′s but was no longer produced beyond WWII. Anything but a ‘typical’ Lavender scent, Lavande has a complex backbone of shimmering citruses, lavender, tumbling florals, vetiver and darker, mossy accords. It is distinctly Guerlain in it’s approach as more of an ‘abstract’ of Lavander than a literal interpretation. Its deeply aromatic heart and exceptionally mossy base are unparalleled in modern perfumery, making it a regrettable loss to the annals of perfume history.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR…M.J. Rose is the international best selling author of eleven novels and two non-fiction books on marketing. Her next novel THE BOOK OF LOST FRAGRANCES (Atria/S&S) will be published in March 2012.  Her fiction and non-fiction has appeared in many magazines and reviews including Oprah Magazine. She has been featured in the New York Times, Newsweek, Time, USA Today and on the Today Show, and NPR radio.  Rose graduated from Syracuse University, spent the ’80s in advertising, has a commercial in the Museum of Modern Art in NYC and since 2005 has run the first marketing company for authors - Authorbuzz.com.  The television series PAST LIFE, was based on Rose’s novels in the Renincarnationist series. She is one of the founding board members of International Thriller Writers and runs the blog- Buzz, Balls & Hype.  She is also the co-founder of Peroozal.com and BookTrib.com.

Rose lives in CT with her husband the musician and composer, Doug Scofield, and their very spoiled and often photographed dog, Winka.

For more information on M.J. Rose and her novels, please visit her WEBSITE. You can also find her on Facebook.

A sweeping and suspenseful tale of secrets, intrigue, and lovers separated by time, all connected through the mystical qualities of a perfume created in the days of Cleopatra–and lost for 2,000 years.

Jac L’Etoile has always been haunted by the past, her memories infused with the exotic scents that she grew up surrounded by as the heir to a storied French perfume company. In order to flee the pain of those remembrances–and of her mother’s suicide–she moved to America. Now, fourteen years later she and her brother have inherited the company along with it’s financial problems. But when Robbie hints at an earth-shattering discovery in the family archives and then suddenly goes missing–leaving a dead body in his wake–Jac is plunged into a world she thought she’d left behind.

Back in Paris to investigate her brother’s disappearance, Jac becomes haunted by the legend the House of L’Etoile has been espousing since 1799. Is there a scent that can unlock the mystery of reincarnation – or is it just another dream infused perfume?

The Book of Lost Fragrances fuses history, passion, and suspense, moving from Cleopatra’s Egypt and the terrors of revolutionary France to Tibet’s battle with China and the glamour of modern-day Paris. Jac’s quest for the ancient perfume someone is willing to kill for becomes the key to understanding her own troubled past.

• Hardcover: 384 pages
• Publisher: Atria Books (March 13, 2012)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1451621302
• ISBN-13: 978-1451621303

PRE-ORDER NOW for March 23rd release:

I received an e-copy in exchange for an honest review as part of Historical Fiction Virtual Book Tours.

Many years have passed since civilization’s brush with apocalypse. The world’s greatest threats have all been silenced. There is no anger, no hatred, no war. There is only perfect peace… and fear. But a terrible secret has been closely guarded for centuries: Every single soul walking the earth, though in appearance totally normal, is actually dead, long ago genetically stripped of true humanity.

Fleeing pursuit, with only moments to live, a young man named Rom stumbles into possession of a vial of blood and a piece of cryptic writing. When consumed, the blood will bring him back to life. When decoded, the message will lead him on a perilous journey that will require him to abandon everything he has ever known and awaken humanity to the transforming power of true life and love.

But the blood will also resurrect hatred, ambition, and greed.

Set in a terrifying, medieval future, where grim pageantry masks death, this tale of dark desires and staggering stakes peels back the layers of the heart for all who dare to take the ride.

• List Price: $24.99
• Hardcover: 384 pages
• Publisher: Center Street (September 13, 2011)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1599953544
• ISBN-13: 978-1599953540

BUY THE BOOK… Amazon | Barnes & Noble

ABOUT THE AUTHORS…TED DEKKER is a New York Times bestselling author of more than twenty novels with a total of more than 5 million books in print. He is known for thrillers that combine adrenaline-laced plots with incredible confrontations between good and evil.

Visit the author’s website.

TOSCA LEE left her position working with Fortune 500 Companies as a Senior Consultant for the Gallup Organization to pursue her first love: writing. She is the critically-acclaimed author of Demon and Havah and is best known for her humanizing portraits of maligned characters. She makes her home in the Midwest.

Visit the author’s website.

Check out the Forbidden Facebook!

It is time for a FIRST Wild Card Tour book review! If you wish to join the FIRST blog alliance, just click the button. We are a group of reviewers who tour Christian books. A Wild Card post includes a brief bio of the author and a full chapter from each book toured. The reason it is called a FIRST Wild Card Tour is that you never know if the book will be fiction, non~fiction, for young, or for old…or for somewhere in between! Enjoy your free peek into the book!

You never know when I might play a wild card on you!

AND NOW…CLICK ON THE OPEN BOOK WIDGET TO VIEW THE FIRST CHAPTER:

Check out the FREE READER’S GUIDE and check out the Secret Lives FACEBOOK FAN PAGE

• Paperback: 650 pages
• Publisher: CreateSpace (September 8, 2011)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1466251786
• ISBN-13: 978-1466251786

On My Shelves is a weekly post at The Book Faery Reviews which shares THREE books from our personal collection. These books could be favorites, books to be read as soon as possible for our own enjoyment, as well as books to be read soon for scheduled reviews.

Books let us into their souls and lay open to us the secrets of our own.  ~William Hazlitt

The Stolen Child by Keith Donoghue - The double story of Henry Day begins in 1949, when he is kidnapped at age seven by a band of wild childlike beings who live in an ancient, secret community in the forest. The changelings rename their captive Aniday and he becomes, like them, unaging and stuck in time. They leave one of their own to take his place, an imposter who must try–with varying success–to hide his true identity from the Day family. As the changeling Henry grows up, he is haunted by glimpses of his lost double and by vague memories of his own childhood a century earlier. Narrated in turns by Henry and Aniday, The Stolen Child follows them as their lives converge, driven by their obsessive search for who they were before they changed places in the world. Moving from a realistic setting in small-town America deep into the forest of humankind’s most basic desires and fears, this remarkable novel is a haunting fable about identity and the illusory innocence of childhood.

The Rose Labyrinth by Titania Hardie - Before his death in 1609, Queen Elizabeth’s spiritual consultant, astrologer, and scientific advisor John Dee hid many of his most astonishing written works, believing that the world was not yet prepared to face the shocking truths that they revealed. For seventeen generations, his female descendants have carefully guarded the secret of his hiding place, waiting for the right moment to bring Dee’s ideas to light. That time is now. In The Rose Labyrinth, popular British author Titania Hardie masterfully blends historical fact and fiction as she introduces readers to Lucy King, a beautiful, young documentary producer based in London. With the help of a brilliant group of friends, Lucy races through London, France, and New York to decipher the clues that will eventually lead her to the hidden treasure of the Rose Labyrinth. Along the way she finds true love with Alex Stafford, the doctor who saw her through a life-threatening heart condition and transplant. A sweeping adventure for readers who loved The Da Vinci Code and The Expected One, The Rose Labyrinth is a decadent, romantic novel with a historical twist. It features a wonderful mix of literary references, from Shakespeare, to the Romantic poets, to Gabriel Garcia Marquez; the folklore and history of Islam, Christianity, Judaism, and Paganism; and of course, astrology and numerology, of which Titania Hardie is an expert. As the Rose Labyrinth tells us, the world we think we know is not all that it appears to be.

The Red Tent by Anita Diamant - Her name is Dinah. In the Bible, her life is only hinted at in a brief and violent detour within the more familiar chapters of the Book of Genesis that tell of her father, Jacob, and his twelve sons.

Told in Dinah’s voice, Anita Diamant imagines the traditions and turmoils of ancient womanhood—the world of the red tent. It begins with the story of the mothers—Leah, Rachel, Zilpah, and Bilhah—the four wives of Jacob. They love Dinah and give her gifts that sustain her through childhood, a calling to midwifery, and a new home in a foreign land. Dinah’s story reaches out from a remarkable period of early history and creates an intimate connection with the past.

Deeply affecting, The Red Tent combines rich storytelling with a valuable achievement in modern fiction: a new view of biblical women’s lives.

All book summaries come from Barnes & Noble.

As Tracy’s past begins to threaten their future with Jack, Bobbi is forced to face the unsettling truth about God’s grace. But this time, what will it cost to forgive the unforgivable? -FROM B&N

• Pub. Date: April 2011
• Publisher: Mindstir Media
• Format: Paperback , 404pp
• ISBN-13: 9780981964836
• ISBN: 0981964834

FROM THE BOOK FAERY REVIEWS…Like the first book in the Covenant of Trust Series, Paula Wiseman does an excellent job in portraying a marriage who’s been tainted by infidelity yet rebuilt through faith. Bring the woman back into the picture with a child this time and you wonder if this couple will make it through the pain again. Will they go backwards and lose what they rebuilt or will they move forward? I’ve been there. I was once Bobbi. Honestly there are probably STILL days I feel like Bobbi. Wiseman portrayed it all very well. While not all marriages may have the support system that Bobbi and Chuck had, in the end, their faith kept them strong so they could move forward (like my husband and I). I once again recommend this book series to married couples who may or may not have lived through infidelity.

You can read my review of the first book, Contingency, here and Paula’s guest post about the 10 Things You Can Do to Help Your Writing Career Before You’re Published here.

I RECEIVED A COPY OF THIS BOOK FOR REVIEW ALONG WITH THE PUMP UP YOUR BOOK PROMOTION. NO COMPENSATION WAS RECEIVED. ALL OPINIONS STATED ABOVE WERE NOT INFLUENCED BY ANYONE AND ARE MY OWN.

**It’s been some time since I last posted (7/12 to be exact) so I thought I’d do a bit of catch up as well as share some of the books I’ve picked up from others or purchased myself. You’d think with all the books I receive for free I’d keep myself from buying more books (or so my husband would hope) but on occasion I just can’t help myself! This list is lengthier than usual so this round there won’t be summaries but I did include links for more book information.**

Chic-Lit

Holly Inbox: Scandal in the City by Holly Dunham

Home

Paula Deen’s Savannah Style by Paula Deen (Upcoming tour this month)

Contemporary Fiction

The Book of Eli by Sam Moffie

Classic (Buy)

The Arabian Nights (Barnes & Nobles Collection; I just LOVE their collection of leather bound books! Beautiful artwork on each.)

SciFi/Fantasy/Paranormal (All Buys)

Guilty Pleasures by Laurell Hamilton (wanted to start the Anita Blake series)

Swallowing Darkness by Laurell Hamilton (re-read but I need my own to go with my Meredith Gentry series)

Divine Misdemeanors by Laurell Hamilton

Violin by Anne Rice (re-read but I had to get the hardback copy)

Historical Romance (Buy)

The Truth About Lord Stoneville by Sabrina Jeffries

Suspense (Buy)

Haunt Me Still by Jennifer Lee Carrell

And today I leave a special treat…the book trailer for Haunt Me Still by Jennifer Lee Carrell…

Someplace to Go by Elle Newmark…

Venice. 1498. The Renaissance. Welcome to the kitchen of the doge’s palace.

In The Book of Unholy Mischief, a young man, actually a dirty little thief, is taken off the mean streets of Venice by the doge’s chef.  The kid’s name is Luciano. Just Luciano. The chef gets Luciano scrubbed up and deloused and fed, and then makes him his apprentice. Why? Ah, that’s a long story— 367 pages worth.

It’s the time of the Inquisition. The church is all-powerful and very, very corrupt. The Venetian Council is just as bad, and the syphilitic doge has his own secret passageway to the dungeon. All these nasties are in an uproar over a mysterious book. No one knows where it is, or even exactly what it is, but they all want it.

Without telling you too much, I’ll just say the chef has got more cooking than stew. Actually, he’s stewing in his own juices, brewing up a storm, cooking his own goose. Ok, I’ll stop.

Meanwhile, testosterone-driven Luciano is mooning over a saucy little minx stuck in a convent. In those days, a girl without a father had three choices: marriage, the convent, or the street. Francesca took the veil but she probably would have done better on the street. Luciano is besotted, and she’s got him wrapped around her sacrilegious little finger.

The Book of Unholy Mischief will take you into their world and tell the rest of the story. If you just want a quick, virtual trip to Venice you can check out the video walking tour of Venice on my website www.ellenewmark.comor on Amazon.

See you in Venice, and buon appetito.

FROM THE BOOK FAERY REVIEWS…Thank you Elle for sharing your book today at The Book Faery Reviews.  It’s always a pleasure meeting new authors with exciting books that will keep you on your toes.

To read more about The Book of Unholy Mischief, visit Elle Nemark’s website at http://www.ellenewmark.com.  You can also check out her book club discussion guide at http://www.ellenewmark.com/discuss.php.  Amazon’s posted one of her video’s about the book and her book style at http://www.amazon.com/gp/mpd/permalink/m3OBVUHGFJ9M6M.

And as Ann Eliza’s narrative intertwines with that of Jordan’s search, readers are pulled deeper into the mysteries of love and faith. – FROM THE AUTHOR SITE

FROM THE BOOK FAERY REVIEWS…David Eberschoff’s manner of story telling alternating between a historical story and a murder mystery set in the present was a little hard for me to read smoothly in the beginning. One moment I was getting into the current story and then thrown into a different one. However, I have to say that once I got into the novel I was able to separate the two stories and found each interesting. The emotions he created in Anne and Jordan did captivate me and had me going through the feelings as I read. If you’re looking for a different writing style in which more than one story is told, this may be the book for you to read.

DAVID WAS HERE AND I WAS NOT…Last Thursday David was in town at Quail Ridge Books for a reading and book signing. I was ready to go but of course at the last minute as we all know what ALWAYS sems to happens to moms, I had a child who decided they wanted to be sick at the last minute and of course as I’m about to walk out the door…GRRR Hopefully the next time he’s in town I’ll be able to see him.

NOW THE BOOK GIVEAWAY…The Book Faery Reviews is giving away ONE copy of The 19th Wife to one lucky commenter! All you have to do is leave a comment below. If you’d like more chances, tweet “RT @wifeandmomof3 The 19th Wife book giveaway at http://tbfreviews.net”, blog about it, subscribe to The Book Faery Reviews either by e-mail or RSS reader. You can leave one comment with everything you did and I’ll happily count each action. This book giveaway will run through Friday, June 19th.

As Sarah tries to reconcile herself to a future that is drastically changed, Austin’s brother Clay wants nothing more than to shake the Texas dust from his boots, but first he must find his brother’s killer.  And then there’s Sarah.

Something is blooming out in the vast Texas landscape that neither Clay nor Sarah is ready to admit, and the promise of redemption blows like a gentle breeze through the prairie grasses.” – from the book back

Visit the Amanda Calbot at her author site.

FROM THE BOOK FAERY REVIEWS…If you’re looking for inspiration, love, a need to forgive, and/or a need to ask for forgiveness, this is a great book for you.  Calbot will have you reminded that God has a purpose for everything no matter the situation and that with faith in him you’ll make it through.  “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” (Philippians 3:14)  As I’ve said before, I believe books come across our paths at different times of our life to remind or soothe of something we are in need of.  Reading this novel reminded me of that day 7 years ago when I gave my life to Christ.  I was reminded of the wonderful and light feeling I had knowing that God loved me so much that He sent His son to die on the cross for my sins.  Thank you Amanda, for the opportunity to read and review your novel AND for the reminder I so needed.  I look forward to your next two books that will come out in the future to complete this trilogy.

FROM THE AUTHOR’S WEBSITE…The secrets of the past meet the shocks of the present. Aslaug is an unusual young woman. Her mother has brought her up in near isolation, teaching her about plants and nature and language—but not about life. Especially not how she came to have her own life, and who her father might be.  When Aslaug’s mother dies unexpectedly, everything changes. For Aslaug is a suspect in her mother’s death. And the more her story unravels, the more questions unfold. About the nature of Aslaug’s birth. About what she should do next.  About whether divine miracles have truly happened. And whether, when all other explanations are impossible, they might still happen this very day.  Addictive, thought-provoking, and shocking, MADAPPLE is a page-turning exploration of human nature and divine intervention—and of the darkest corners of the human soul.

THE BOOK FAERY REVIEW…While I have to admit that it took me some time to get into the novel, I could not help but keep it open to continue reading once Aslaug goes out into a new world she’s not accustomed to.  Imagine being a foreigner in your own city.  Imagine rarely venturing out to see what is beyond the home land or even having no interaction with those outside a mother-daughter relationship.  Imagine for 15 years never remembering affection as we as mothers give our children today.  Then imagine losing the only person you ever really knew with the blink of an eye and feeling more alone.  Aslaug had such an intelligent mind and kind heart who just wanted to find her place in the world after losing her mother.  She struggled to trust, love, and understand things from her mother’s past and the things that were happening to her.    She watched those that were supposed to be “right in the Lord’s eye” fall apart and worship other things behind closed doors and struggle .  Like her mother, at 15 she  had to grow up over night in order to survive both within herself and within the outside world even against those who blamed, ridiculed, and lied about her.  Great book that makes you look at yourself and your own beliefs.  Makes you question your hipocracies as well as those around you.  Even makes you wonder more about life’s mysterious miracles.

FROM THE AUTHOR’S WEBSITE…“When Allison Jenson was six, she and her best friend, Cindy, were playing in the woods near her home.  One moment her friend was beside her; the next, she was gone.  When no leads emerged, Cindy was given up for dead.  Now, years later, still haunted by the disappearance of her childhood friend, Allison suffers a brutal attack that forces her to try to fill in the gaps of a patchwork memory.  Even as a young adult she can get no answers from the Mormon community in which she lives.  She is trapped in a world where she does not fit, surrounded by patriarchs who feed her half-truths in an attempt to placate her, and where daughters and wives are at the mercy of a man who tyrannizes and torments as the self-appointed messenger of God.  Desperate to escape the closed world of the Mormon church and determined to bring her attacker to justice, Allison finds herself on a collision course with powerful community leaders as they cover up the tracks of a sexual predator.  She must uncover the truth before they find her and keep her from piecing together the tragic past that has haunted her life.”“Jennifer Apodaca, Author of The Samantha Shaw Mystery Series…  Natalie R. Collins’ Wives and Sisters is a journey through heartbreak, tragedy, and self-discovery with a courageous woman who dares to think for herself in a dogmatic society. This is a story for anyone who has ever questioned what they’ve been taught all their life; anyone who has ever doubted their self-worth, and everyone who loves to cheer on the underdog and watch them triumph in the end. You’ll be glad you took this journey with her.”

THE BOOK FAERY REVIEW…Well, this was DEFINITELY a book you can NOT judge by the cover!!  I don’t typically judge books by their covers but the back of this book didn’t have a summary to give you an idea of what it was going to be about.  So when I picked up the book, I honestly thought I’d be reading a story that took place during the medieval ages due to the castle on the front cover.   Course I can’t really remember any references to a castle so I’m not sure how they came up with the book cover.  This book really puts you in the mind of the main female character Allison.  You feel the pain she bears physically and mentally.  At some points I just wanted to hold the little girl tight and protect her and hug the young woman to soothe her.  Allison grows up in the Mormon church only to learn as she grows up that there are so many unknowns and nobody seems to know the whys therefore it doesn’t seem right.  She leaarns early on that women are discouraged to think and ask questions.  She finally ventures out on her own and goes to college only to find herself in destruction mode.  Drinking, sleeping around, just not caring…The night she is raped by a man wearing the disguise of the man who possibly raped and killed her childhood best friend, things change within her as she tries to find her rapist.  In finding her rapist, she discovers who killed her friend and why her rapist raped her.  Very good book once I got past the first couple chapters, very emotional, and definitely a book that will make you look further into your own religious beliefs.