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Thanks for joining me today for Book Beginnings hosted by Rose City Reader.  The book I am spotlighting is “A Clash of Kings”, the second in the series by George R.R. Martin.  To call these books “epic” is something of an understatement.  They are long and detailed with many characters with unusual names.  There are many times when I had to go back and re-read a few sentences to make sure I had all of the players straight!

“The comet’s tail spread across the dawn, a red slash that bled above the crags of Draonstone like a wound in the pink and purple sky.”

Was the comet a sign?  Is Dragonstone an important place?  You will just have to read and find out.  I hope to eventually read the rest of the series, but I may have to take a break from it for a little while.  Usually reading relaxes me and I can do it anywhere, but these books take a lot of concentration to keep up with all of the action.

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Happy Friday, everyone!  The weekend is almost here and that means it is time for another Book Beginnings post.  After you read mine, jump on over to Rose City Reader who is the gracious host of the literary link party.  There you will find a link to my post and other book loving bloggers.

Today, my beginning lines come from “A Game of Thrones” by George R.R. Martin:

“We should start back,” Gared urged as the woods began to grow dark around them. “The wildlings are dead.”

Ooh, doesn’t that sound ominous? Who are the wildlings and how did they die?  Is that who Gared was looking for or did he just happen upon them?  So many questions!

I picked up this book while my dad was in the hospital and I needed some way to pass the time.  This is not a story for the faint of heart.  It is full of action, violence, love, hate, and every other emotion you can think of.  I enjoyed it and have read the second book of the series. 

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Welcome to another Friday which means it is time for Book Beginnings!  Head on over to Rose City Reader to see what I and other bloggers have been reading lately.

My book today is “Notorious Nineteen” by Janet Evanovich which is another in the funny and entertaining Stephanie Plum series.  It is always a hoot to see what mischief and mayhem Plum the Bounty Hunter can get into next!

“I don’t know why we gotta sit here baking in your car in the middle of the day, in the middle of the summer, in the middle of this crummy neighborhood,” Lula said.  “It must be two hundred degrees in here.  Why don’t we have the air conditioning on?”

Now, if you have read any of this series, you know there must be a reason there is no air conditioning in Stephanie’s car.  She is lucky to even have a car for more than a few days!  These books are funny and easy to read.  If you haven’t tried them, grab one and see if you can read it without laughing out loud. 

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Welcome to this week’s edition of Book Beginnings hosted by Rose City Reader.  If you love books as much as I do, please check out this great link party to see what other bloggers are reading and writing about.

I have been re-reading a few old favorites the last couple of months and this week’s line comes from “Outlander” by Diana Gabaldon.  This is the first book in a series that follows a time-traveling female doctor from the 1940’s to the Scottish Highlands in 1743.  It is an epic tale that continues through several books and I believe the next one comes out soon.  Can’t wait!

“It wasn’t a very likely place for disappearances, at least at first glance.”

This makes you wonder what you might find at a second glance, doesn’t it?  If you haven’t read these books, please give them a try because I think they are wonderful!

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It’s Friday so it is time for Book Beginnings over at Rose City Reader.  Hop on over there to check out Ms. Rose City’s book choice and other bloggers’ choices as well.  It is always entertaining.

My first lines are from Philippa Gregory’s “The Kingmaker’s Daughter”:

“My lady mother goes first, a great heiress in her own right, and the wife of the greatest subject in the kingdom.”

Ms. Gregory is successful yet again at letting us in on the inner workings of England’s royal life during the War of the Rose time period.  This book is part of a series that she is writing about the two families involved and they have all been entertaining so far.

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Welcome to today’s edition of Book Beginnings hosted by Rose City Reader.  Many thanks to her for hosting this great link party!  My book today is by one of my all-time favorite authors, Adrianna Trigianni.  I have read all of her books thanks to my local library and would love to re-read them which is a rarity for me. 

Her latest book is called “The Shoemaker’s Wife” and here is the beginning:

"The scalloped hem of Caterina Lazzari’s blue velvet coat grazed the fresh-fallen snow, leaving a pale pink path on the bricks as she walked across the empty piazza.  The only sound was the soft, rhythmic sweep of her footsteps, like hands dusting flour across an old wooden cutting board."

Ms. Trigianni is one of the best authors that I have read at setting a scene.  Can’t you just see this woman sweeping across an empty town square in a beautiful blue coat with the snowflakes falling around her.  I know I can.  This book was an epic tale and adventure with travel, war, love and loss.  I loved it!

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Hello to everyone reading this!  It’s Friday so it is time for another edition of Book Beginnings hosted by Rose City Reader so grab a book, write down the first line or two and give us your opinion.  My book for today is the latest by one of my absolute favorite authors, Joshilyn Jackson, who just happens to be a fellow Southerner.  If you haven’t read any of her books, please please try them.  They all have this air of mystery and intrigue along with family drama that just makes the pages turn themselves.  They are great!

Joshilyn Jackson "A Grown-up Kind of Pretty"

"My daughter, Liza, put her heart in a silver box and buried it under the willow tree in our backyard."

Isn’t that interesting?  We all know that she can’t literally bury her heart in a box, so what does that little box contain?  You will just have to read this book to find out.

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Happy Friday!!  Please join in with me today for Book Beginnings hosted by Rose City Reader and visit some of the other great bloggers over there, too.  My book today is the third and last book in the Magdalene series by Kathleen McGowan called “The Poet Prince”. 

Here is the first line:

“The Roman emperor Antoninus Pius was not a butcher.”

Hmmm…really?  This makes me wonder what, exactly, is going on that he has to make that distinction.  I won’t give too much away, but Pius has to make a grave decision about something that starts the ball rolling for this book.  Again, this is a FICTION book, but Ms. McGowan is excellent in combining fact and fiction.  The historical and art references are right on (I have been burning up Google while reading these books), and the weaving of the fictional story into these facts is outstanding.

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Please join me and other book lovers over at Rose City Reader today for Book Beginnings.  It is always interesting to find out what other bloggers are reading and their opinions about the books.  I hope you check it out and enjoy it as much as I do.

My book today is “The Book of Love” by Kathleen McGowan and it is the second book in a series of three.  Here are the first few lines:

“Heavy beeswax candles dripped along the perimeter of the cavern, illuminating the cramped meeting space.  The small community prayed with soft devotion, following the lead of the ethereal woman who stood before them at the stone altar.”

Can’t you just picture the stone walls of the cavern and the candlelight flickering against them with this “ethereal” woman leading a prayer service?  I have really enjoyed these books so far.  Now, don’t get me wrong, I am a Christian and I know that these are FICTION, but the storylines are really interesting and I have found myself looking up many of the historical names and places mentioned in these books.  The writer is excellent at weaving fiction with historical fact.

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Hello and welcome to today’s edition of Book Beginnings, a fun link party hosted by Rose City Reader for all you book lovers out there.  Grab a book, jot down the first line or two, and tell us what you think.  That’s all there is to it!

My book today is “Wicked Business” by Janet Evanovich:

“My name is Lizzy Tucker, and I used to think I was normal.”

From this first line, you really don’t know how this book is going to go.  If you are not familiar with Ms. Evanovich’s work, you might think that this may be someone with a serious problem in her life, but don’t fret, Lizzy is just fine. She just has a little extra gift. 

I always enjoy this author’s books, especially if I am looking for something on the sunny side of reading.  This book is fun, flirty and fast…just perfect for a lighthearted read when you want to escape from the real world.

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