Second Chance Sam: King of the Junkyard and Carol's Quest for Courage

Happy last day of November! Happy Thanksgiving! Happy (belated) black Friday! Happy holidays to everyone out there! 

Today I bring you two reviews from an author I had reviewed before: JoAnn Sky. For those who have not read the previous review (see here), Ms. Sky combines her love of books and rescue pups together to bring stories for children in her Santa's Dog series and also the new Second-Chance Sam, King of the Junkyard. A portion of the proceeds from these books goes towards Dogs & Books, an organization that supports animal rescue causes. Please check them out! Along with the books mentioned, the website also has dog related gifts for sale, which is great if you want to support a cause and give out something really neat for the holidays! (There is also a holiday promotion happening until December 14th, if you want a good gift and a discount!)

(c) Dogs and Books, JoAnn Sky, John Tatulli

Second-Chance Sam, King of the Junkyard is by JoAnn Sky and illustrated by John Tatulli. Please see below for their bios. This book is a super cute rhyming story for children. It teaches children about the older dogs who are sometimes not chosen at rescue shelters. But, luckily for our story, little Sam finally finds a home. This short story will definitely warm your heart and entertain your children. The writing is perfect and the illustrations are very colorful. I recommend this book for children 4 years and older.

(This book is so cute, my mom who is a preschool teacher is most likely going to swipe my advanced copy! :) )

(c) Dogs and Books, JoAnn Sky, Ed Koehler

Carol's Quest for Courage is also by JoAnn Sky, illustrated by Ed Koehler. This book is the sequel/second in the Santa's Dog series for children. Carol is a dog who loves to sing, leaves the North Pole on a quest to find a place to sing her heart out. Along the way, she meets a girl named Aly and finds a home where she can sing with her new family. A very colorful and lively book for Christmas, this story has more words than Second Chance Sam and is recommended for children around 5 years and older.

Please give these books a read, especially if you love dogs and/or have children! You will not be disappointed! If you are curious to learn more about the author or the illustrators, please check them out below. 

I hope you have a wonderful weekend and I will write again in December!  

(c) JoAnn Sky

About the author, JoAnn Sky (visit her website here):
JoAnn Sky is an award-winning author and two-time Golden Heart® finalist who writes children’s stories as well as young adult and adult contemporary romance. She’s combined her love of books and dogs in both her award-winning SANTA’S DOG series and SECOND CHANCE SAM series. She hopes you enjoy reading it as much as she has enjoyed creating it. Originally from the Midwest, JoAnn currently lives in northern Nevada with her family and three crazy rescue dogs.

(c) John Tatulli

About the Illustrator, John Tatulli (visit his website here):

John Tatulli is an American born Illustrator who could always draw.  He spent hours on end with his headphones on drawing whatever came to mind.  At a young age he specialized in Pen & Ink over pencil sketches mostly.  As he got older his work progressed into his love for Children's book art. Now his passion is creating emotionally striking illustrations and kid friendly artwork hoping one day to illustrate some of the original stories his Dad used to tell him before bed. When he isn't drawing and creating he is a family man who is happily married to his wife of 12 years.  They have a great Dog named Sasha and are on a mission to adopt their first child.  John is an avid Air soft player, enjoys disc golf and spends quiet time reading.

(c) Ed Koehler

About the Illustrator, Ed Koehler (visit his website here):
Ed Koehler is an illustrator specializing in fun, lively art for children's books and other products. His work has been published around the world and has received numerous awards. His expertise is in Christian publishing but his work extends to general interest, editorial, and cross-generational books and materials. He has designed and illustrated projects as varied as multi-media stage sets, environmental graphics for a large church youth center, and smart board Sunday School curriculum. He is a member of the Society of Children's Book Writers & Illustrators and the St. Louis Artists Guild.

Blog Tour: The CatNapped Lover by Rue Allyn

Good Morning Bookworms! 

Today is a purrrrfectly good day to let you all know that I am hosting a book that is on tour this week: The CatNapped Lover by Rue Allyn. Ms. Allyn has teamed up with Babs Hightower of Babs Book Bistro to showcase her latest release, now out at Amazon.com! Read on for a quick blurb and a bonus excerpt!

(c) Rue Allyn 2019

A woman, a man, and a cat. What could possibly go wrong? 

What does a bet between best friends have to do with a kidnapped cat and a tumbled-down animal shelter? Nothing, unless you are Adam Talcott and you want to prove to your best-buddy that you can survive without access to your wealth and family connections. Adam would have succeeded too, if it hadn't been for Dierdre Clancy and that blasted cat.

Adam Talcott

Adam Talcott was born rich. He went into business with his best friend from college and made even more millions. His methods may be unorthodox, but he nearly always succeeds. Now he’s been challenged to live for two months without any of the privileges and resources he’s known all his life. Adam is confident that he can conquer this challenge as he has all others. But he didn’t count on Dierdre Clancy and that danged cat.

Dierdre Clancy

Dierdre Clancy grew up in a family of givers. Her parents were missionaries and often too busy saving other, less privileged people to realize how lonely and abandoned Dierdre felt. When she reached her teen years, she was shipped back to the USA to live with her Aunt Shea on Shea’s rundown farm and animal shelter. Finally she was in a stable environment with an adult she could count on. Dierdre went on to gain a degree in social work and took up the Clancy family tradition of helping others. Most of the time helping others was easy. But Adam Talcott broke that mold and every other box she tried to put him into. How could one man be so difficult to manage?

~ * ~              =^._.^=              ~ * ~ 

Excerpt:

          Balancing an armload of mail, an overloaded briefcase, and a gym bag with two yogurt cups teetering on top, Dierdre Clancy rushed to her cubicle. For the fourth time this week, and the umpteenth time this month, she was late. Once again, a power outage in the decrepit apartment building where she lived had caused her alarm clock to fail.

          Please, Lord, don’t let my chauvinist pig of a boss realize I’ve been missing.
        The yogurt cups threatened to topple off the gym bag. Dierdre wasn’t about to let her lunch decorate the linoleum. The mail showered to the floor. The briefcase hit her foot. With her free hand, she plastered the cups to her side. The gym bag slid down her arm. The webbed strap twisted, tourniquet style, around her wrist.

          She managed a couple of sideways hops that brought her to the edge of her desk. The gym bag swung wildly. Leaning against the arm weighed down by the bag’s stranglehold, she managed to dump the yogurt cups onto the desk without mishap. She pulled herself upright and reached for the strap at her wrist.

          Somehow, during all the hopping, the bag had swung around her legs and gotten wedged in the narrow space between her desk and file cabinet. The same strap that cut off circulation to her hand pressed into the backs of her knees, pinning her neatly to the desk. Only an act of extreme dexterity could save her from her own folly. Imbecile, why didn’t you make two trips?

Because I didn’t want to risk having the boss see me coming in late.

          "Clancy! You’re late.”

          Dierdre’s heart hit the ceiling. She knew the shout—a cross between an operatic tenor and a pig at slaughter. Still, she hadn’t been prepared to hear her boss’s screeching quite so soon. 

~ * ~              =^._.^=              ~ * ~

A cute, quick read of a romantic comedy, The Catnapped Lover will sure to bring a smile to your face! Ms. Allyn has a way with words that sucks you right into the story. This book is for adults - it is not the usual YA fluff I also love to read. It deals with real-life challenges and scenarios that would not appeal to the younger crowd. But, for those twenty-somethings and older, it is a perfect fit. What I found that is a nice touch, is that the book touches on the topic of animal shelters and rescues, and is even dedicated to animal rescue workers. Which brings me to the topic of our story. How did the two main characters meet? Well it all started with a bet and a cat...

 /\_/\''

 >^,^< 
 / \'''
'(__)_

Rue Allyn (c) 2019

About the Author (see her website for more information here):

Rue Allyn writes heart melting romance novels. Books about characters and adventures in which love triumphs at the darkest moment. The kind of hopeful, steal-your-breath romance that melts a reader's heart. The type of book she likes to read and hopes you will, too.

Also, just for you fellow bookworm fans, you can get a FREE download of Ms. Allyn's May 2019 novel, Forever Hold My Heart - a Scottish historical novella - by signing up for her newsletter here!

You can also find Ms. Allyn on social media: Facebook, Goodreads, Pinterest, and Twitter.


Note: As a fellow romance novel fan, do check out her Pinterest - there are many pins that showcase the regency era and beautiful vintage clothing! Until next time! :)

Santa's Dog by JoAnn Sky, Illustrated by Ed Koehler

(c) Dogs and Books, JoAnn Sky, Ed Koehler

Santa's Dog is a rhyming holiday story for children. The story begins with showing all the different dogs Santa has. But, Lance is Santa's favorite dog.

One year, Lance travels with Santa to deliver presents during Christmas one year and accidentally is left behind! What is a dog to do? Without a way back to Santa, Lance is sent to a shelter to be adopted. He is soon adopted by a family whose father is in the military and is on active duty. While the family is sad without their dad, they show love and kindness to Lance and is loved in return. But, by next Christmas, will Lance stay or go back by Santa? Lance may just be the best gift Santa could provide!

Santa's Dog is a short story that will warm your heart and children will love. It may be a bit long for children younger than 4, who may not want to sit all the way through, but it has colorful and cute drawings that will be sure to entertain children of all ages. The story itself advocates for the adoption of pets, and a portion of each purchase will support animal rescue causes. This is the first in a series of "Santa Dog" book, so be sure to check it out when it is published this upcoming July!

In case you are wondering if there is a real Santa's Dog, be sure to check out Ms. Sky's website below for a real life story!

(c) JoAnn Sky

About the author, JoAnn Sky (visit the Dogs and Books website here):

JoAnn Sky is an award-winning author and two-time Golden Heart® finalist who writes children’s stories as well as young adult and adult contemporary romance. She’s combined her love of books and dogs and her respect for the military in SANTA’S DOG. She hopes you enjoy reading it as much as she has enjoyed creating it. Originally from the Midwest, JoAnn currently lives in northern Nevada with her family and three crazy rescue dogs. You can visit her young adult and contemporary romance novel site at: www.joannsky.com.

(c) Ed Koehler

About the Illustrator, Ed Koehler (visit his website here):
Ed Koehler is an illustrator specializing in fun, lively art for children's books and other products. His work has been published around the world and has received numerous awards. He is a member of the Society of Children's Book Writers & Illustrators and the St. Louis Artists Guild.