Even More Peculiar Pictures

Miss Peregrine's Home
for Peculiar Children
~The Graphic Novel~
Miss Peregrine’s Peculiar Children
Book 1
By Ransom Riggs & Cassandra Jean
Amazon ~ Powell's ~ Jan's Paperbacks

When Jacob Portman was a boy, his grandfather regaled him with stories of his fantastic life at Miss Peregrine's home during the Second World War, even sharing photos of the remarkable children with whom he resided. As Jacob grew up, though, he decided that these photos were obvious fakes, simple forgeries designed to stir his youthful imagination. Or were they...?

Following his grandfather's death—a scene Jacob literally couldn't believe with his own eyes—the sixteen-year-old boy embarks on a mission to disentangle fact from fiction in his grandfather's tall tales. But even his grandfather's elaborate yarns couldn't prepare Jacob for the eccentricities he will discover at Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children!

My Review of the Novel

It seems I'm in a re-reading mood all of a sudden. What could be better than re-reading your favorite books? Why, getting to experience them again for the first time, of course! And that's exactly what Cassandra Jean has achieved with Ransom Riggs' intriguing novel about Peculiar Children. This graphic novel adaptation contains the same plot as the original novel, so if you're wanting a review of the story, you should probably click that big link up there. But if you're interested in how the adaptation came out, please read on.

Winner Announcement

Congratulations
~Tiffany W.~
On Winning The Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children Giveaway!

Thank you to everyone who participated by liking, tweeting, and/or just reading the review. It was a great turnout this time around, and I hope to offer more giveaways in the future.

In case you missed it, here's my review

~Miss Peregrine's Home
for Peculiar Children~
Miss Peregrine’s Peculiar Children
Book 1
By Ransom Riggs
Amazon ~ Powell's

A mysterious island. An abandoned orphanage. A strange collection of very curious photographs.

It all waits to be discovered in Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children, an unforgettable novel that mixes fiction and photography in a thrilling reading experience. As our story opens, a horrific family tragedy sets sixteen-year-old Jacob journeying to a remote island off the coast of Wales, where he discovers the crumbling ruins of Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children. As Jacob explores its abandoned bedrooms and hallways, it becomes clear that the children were more than just peculiar. They may have been dangerous. They may have been quarantined on a deserted island for good reason. And somehow—impossible though it seems—they may still be alive.

A spine-tingling fantasy illustrated with haunting vintage photography, Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children will delight adults, teens, and anyone who relishes an adventure in the shadows.

We're Peculiar. Aren't you?

~Miss Peregrine's Home
for Peculiar Children~
Miss Peregrine’s Peculiar Children
Book 1
By Ransom Riggs
Amazon ~ Powell's

A mysterious island. An abandoned orphanage. A strange collection of very curious photographs.

It all waits to be discovered in Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children, an unforgettable novel that mixes fiction and photography in a thrilling reading experience. As our story opens, a horrific family tragedy sets sixteen-year-old Jacob journeying to a remote island off the coast of Wales, where he discovers the crumbling ruins of Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children. As Jacob explores its abandoned bedrooms and hallways, it becomes clear that the children were more than just peculiar. They may have been dangerous. They may have been quarantined on a deserted island for good reason. And somehow—impossible though it seems—they may still be alive.

A spine-tingling fantasy illustrated with haunting vintage photography, Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children will delight adults, teens, and anyone who relishes an adventure in the shadows.

You remember in school when you were given a picture and told to write a story about it? Or maybe you've had a writing exercise where you have to use a picture and a phrase within your short story. Well, regardless of whether or not you've done it yourself, I think we can all agree Ransom Riggs has gone above and beyond the minimum requirements.

An Awesome Announcement for Audiophiles

Do you love classics?
Do you love audiobooks?
Do you love getting free stuff???

Then Amazon's latest offer is perfect for you!

Basically, Amazon is trying to get the news out about their newest line of tablets (Kindle Fire HD) having whispersync technology, which syncs the e-book you're reading with the audiobook you're listening to. So if you want to continue listening to a book, but forgot your headphones at home, you can go ahead and keep reading and then the audiobook picks up your progress the next time you read. Pretty neat, no?

To spread the word, Amazon is offering 22 e-books for free download, PLUS the 22 corresponding audiobooks through combined Audible accounts. So if you have a Kindle reader, tablet, or free app and an Audible account (and free app), you can take advantage of this offer!

Simply click any of the links below, purchase (for FREE) the e-book and you will be directed to a confirmation screen. On that confirmation screen will be a link to Audible to purchase (once again, for FREE) the audiobook. If you're interested in multiple audiobooks, I'd suggest holding off on the actual checkout since you'll get a confirmation e-mail each time you check out.

A Word Of Caution:
Be sure that you are logged in to your Amazon-linked Audible account prior to clicking any links to purchase the Audible audiobooks. I made an account with a different e-mail than my Amazon account, and thus now have two separate accounts. I was logged into my other account when I clicked my first Audible link and now can't get the free download promotion applied to that one book. Luckily I don't think I'll be reading A Tale of Two Cities in the near future, so it's not a complete loss...

So without further adieu, here are the books available:

Complete List of 22 Titles

The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum
       Read by Anne Hathaway ; 3 hrs and 52 mins
Wuthering Heights by Emily Brontë
       Read by Anne Flosnik ; 12 hrs and 19 mins
The Mysterious Affair at Styles by Agatha Christie
       Read by David Suchet ; 6 hrs and 8 mins
The Moonstone by Wilkie Collins
       Read by James Langton ; 18 hrs and 49 mins
The Fortunes and Misfortunes of the Famous Moll Flanders by Daniel Defoe
       Read by Davina Porter ; 13 hrs and 15 mins
David Copperfield by Charles Dickens
       Read by Simon Vance ; 33 hrs and 53 mins
A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens
       Read by Jon Smith ; 13 hrs and 15 mins
The Sign of the Four by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
       Read by Patrick Tull ; 4 hrs and 6 mins
The Three Musketeers by Alexandre Dumas
       Read by John Lee ; 23 hrs and 38 mins
The Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame
       Read by Shelly Frasier ; 6 hrs and 34 mins
A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man by James Joyce
       Read by John Lee ; 8 hrs and 35 mins
White Fang by Jack London
       Read by Bob Thomley ; 8 hrs and 8 mins
Moby Dick by Herman Melville
       Read by Frank Muller ; 21 hrs and 20 mins
Black Beauty by Anna Sewell
       Read by Nathaniel Parker ; 5 hrs and 21 mins
Frankenstein by Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley
       Read by Simon Vance ; 8 hrs and 21 mins
Dracula by Bram Stoker
       Read by a Full Cast including Alan Cumming & Tim Curry ; 15 hrs and 28 mins
Gulliver's Travels by Jonathan Swift
       Read by David Hyde Pierce ; 9 hrs and 52 mins
Vanity Fair by William Makepeace Thackeray
       Read by John Castle ; 31 hrs and 6 mins
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain
       Read by Elijah Wood ; 10 hrs and 12 mins
Ethan Frome by Edith Wharton
       Read by Scott Brick ; 3 hrs and 47 mins
The House of Mirth by Edith Wharton
       Read by Wanda McCaddon ; 12 hrs and 11 mins
The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde
       Read by Simon Prebble ; 8 hrs and 6 mins

Yeah, that's right. You can enjoy the voices of Anne Hathaway, Elijah Wood, and Tim Curry in your ear FOR FREE!!!

So if you're like me and love listening to your books (whether you're reading along or not) I hope you take advantage of this promotion for some free lit and audiobooks.

Disclaimer - I first read about this announcement a couple days ago from one of my favorite blogs, The eBook Reader, but figured I should also do my part in spreading the news. Go check him out for great eReader & tablet reviews, tips, tricks, and news. Or just go read his article covering this announcement. You'll be glad you did.

Disclaimer Part Deux - I have no clue when this promotion will end. It stands to reason that Amazon will want all the hype they can get, but do be sure to check the Bold Red Kindle Price before you purchase.

Books...In...Space...

You might want to hit the More Info button for a neat link...

As part of his April 14th publication, Kevin McGill built a high altitude balloon system equipped with an HD GoPro camera, and a mount for the book. He sent it 100,000 feet up, which is considered near space. The near space area is between 65,000 and 350,000 feet.

Kevin explains:

"I wanted to show teens where a book could truly take them.
See, in the near future, fourteen-year-old hero, Nikolas, discovers that our moon is the cradle of all magical civilization. In order to travel there, Nikolas and company have to launch and ride a shuttle to Moon. When they read, they can go 100,000 feet above the Earth's surface, and more!"

Pretty cool, huh?

And besides giving us stunning visuals and a great adventure, Kevin is also offering a free Kindle Fire as the prize for the person who can correctly (or closely) guess the distance between the launch site and the landing site (not including the height of the tree).

Click HERE to enter.
But hurry—the contest ends this Saturday, May 5th!

But here's what all the fuss is really about:

~The Merman and The Moon Forgotten~
Nikolas & Company
Book 1
By Kevin McGill
Amazon

Nick lives in a time when one can extend their life indefinitely through cerebral downloads, zip from country to country in hovercars, and have every whim taken care of by the ever faithful nannydrones.

Nick hates it.

Aside from the refugee camps, overpopulation, and unchecked consumerism filling every city across the globe, Nick just doesn’t belong. That is when he hears the voice of a woman:

“The Rones lie about their true intent. They enter the city of Huron at the peril of us all.”

Shortly after, his slightly crazed grandfather reveals to him:

“All you’ve ever heard about the Moon is a lie, my dear Nikolas. He was not always a mere satellite, a ghost wandering the stars. In an age before our own, Moon was our twin, and in him bore the whole of magical life. The cradle of this magical civilization was a fantastic metropolis filled with fire-breathing winged lions, volcano-born nymphs, automaton-legged mermaids, and so much magic you can smell it. We called this city Huron, and you, Nikolas, are her steward.”

Meanwhile on the moon, the senior stagecoach driver Yeri Willrow thought he was performing a simple drive and drop for his mysterious passengers, until they are attacked by foul-breath red-eyed creatures. He soon learns that his passengers are a family of automaton-legged merfolk, and he is their only hope. Yeri suddenly finds himself tasked with saving the merfolk or they will fall to the peril of the creature most foul.

---

Oh, and just in case you were wondering, you should have read this post's title like this beloved Muppet Show intro:

Ah, the good old days...

No Rain On This Parade - It's A Winner!

The winner of the In The Storm blog tour giveaway is...
DJL
of Denim-Jacket Librarian Dishes
Congratulations!!!

The winner was chosen using Random.org, and will be contacted by email shortly. She will have 48 hours to respond before I choose a new winner.

If you didn't win this time, don't worry, there will be more chances in other contests in the future. If you have any questions or concerns please feel free to leave comments or send me an e-mail.

I Swear I'm Not A Zombie

...though I sure feel like it right now.

You may have noticed that I've been a bit less active in the last week or so. Long story short, I've been ill.

Therefore, even though technically the In The Storm Giveaway is set to end at the end of today, I'll be extending it another week. Hopefully I'll be feeling better then.

So, in closing, click the link above or below to enter for a chance to win an e-copy of Karen Metcalf's speculative fiction novella.

We Have A Winner - And She's A Live One!

The Winner of the DFF Giveaway is
Nora of The Bucket List!
Congratulations!!!

I've gone ahead and forwarded your e-mail to J.R. Turner,
who should be contacting you shortly with your prize.

As for the rest of my readers:
If you didn't win this time, don't worry, there will be other contests in the future. If you have any questions or concerns please feel free to leave comments or send me an e-mail.

Congratulations! We Have A Winner!

Congratulations, Emi London, You've Won My Blogoversary Giveaway!

The winner was chosen using Random.org, and will be contacted by email shortly. She will have 48 hours to respond before I choose a new winner.

If you didn't win this time, don't worry, there will be other contests in the future (next week, in fact). If you have any questions or concerns please feel free to leave comments or send me an e-mail.

Thank you to everyone who entered!
I'm grateful to you all for your continued support.

Let Me Hear You Howl! It's Been A Year!!!

That's right, as of today it's been a full year since I started blogging!
It sure has been one hell of a ride.

From Demonic Rambling to Angelic Reading

From Dodging Hitchhikers to Catching Mockingjays

From Hopping Around to Checking My Mailbox

I want to thank you all for coming here and joining along on my ventures. And what better way to do that than ask you to...

You can have your pick of one of the following four selections...

~ How To Write Science Fiction & Fantasy by Orson Scott Card ~
~ The Lord of the Rings Trilogy by J.R.R. Tolkien ~
~ Trickster's Choice by Tamora Pierce ~
~ Zan-Gah Duet by Allan Richard Shickman ~

Contest Is Now Closed

Entrants must be 13 years of age or older
Contest deadline is Midnight PST February 24, 2011
Winner will be chosen using Random.org
Contest open to US Residents Only
(Sorry to any Internationals out there, but I can't afford the shipping right now)
ONE ENTRY PER PERSON!

Once again, I want to thank you all for your continued support and feedback. If you have any questions, comments, advice or criticisms, please don't hesitate to leave a comment below.

Best of Luck!