Hello? EIR? Anyone home?

I know, I know. 

You're wondering what we're doing over here, 

not posting anything for an entire week.

Well, I guess you could say . . . we're plotting. 

But that sort of statement needs to be followed by a sound effect resembling something like: "Muah-ha-ha-ha!" and accompanied by a lot of reverb. Sadly, I've misplaced the reverb button on my laptop, so... I guess an explanation of sorts is in order.

The truth is, we are plotting something. Something AWESOME. In fact, soon we are going to be absolutely SLAMMING YOU with reviews--especially YA reviews--to put a little ooomph into that {and occasionally YA} plug at the top of this page.

Right now, we're hard at work drinking frappucinos coming up with a content rating system for YA and a new overall rating system (the bride & groom thing doesn't necessarily translate that well to YA, y'know?) and, well,  generally just getting ready to knock your socks off with awesomeness.

So hang in there... we'll be blowing your minds... soon.

Image credit: <a href='http://www.123rf.com/photo_10078438_women-reading-book-and-using-laptop.html'>evdoha / 123RF Stock Photo</a>

Recommended: ROSES HAVE THORNS (a novel of Elizabeth I) by Sandra Byrd (Ladies in Waiting series)

What it's about (from publisher Howard Books):

From the acclaimed author of To Die For comes a stirring novel told that sheds new light on Elizabeth I and her court. Like Philippa Gregory and Alison Weir, Sandra Byrd has attracted countless fans for evoking the complexity, grandeur, and brutality of the Tudor period. In her latest tour de force, she poses the question: What happens when serving a queen may cost you your marriage — or your life?

In 1565, 17-year-old Elin von Snakenborg leaves Sweden on a treacherous journey to England. Her fiancé has fallen in love with her sister and her dowry money has been gambled away, but ahead of her lies an adventure that will take her to the dizzying heights of Tudor power. Transformed through marriage into Helena, the Marchioness of Northampton, she becomes the highest-ranking woman in Elizabeth's circle. But in a court that is surrounded by Catholic enemies who plot the queen's downfall, Helena is forced to choose between her unyielding monarch and the husband she's not sure she can trust--a choice that will provoke catastrophic consequences.

Vividly conjuring the years leading up to the beheading of Mary Queen of Scots,Roses Have Thorns is a brilliant exploration of treason, both to the realm and to the heart.

Why you should read it: Each title in Sandra Byrd's Ladies in Waiting series has hooked me into its world, but this latest novel, set in the court of Elizabeth I, is not only the final of the series, but my favorite. Roses Have Thorns gives a backstage peek into Elizabethan times — a little bit like the Tudor court version of modern celebrity gossip, but much more intimate -- and altogether lovelier. Beautifully set against a woman's heartbreaking hunger for love, Roses Have Thorns is one of those books in which your eyeballs just can't seem to move fast enough to soak in every rich detail and every delicious secret.

Scandalous gossip! Court intrigue! Forbidden romance! Roses Have Thorns is addictive reading — a guilty pleasure that will transport your heart to the edge of despair and, with a sigh, to the renewal of hope.

(the bulk of this review first appeared at USA Today's Happy Ever After blog. It has been updated for EIR readers.

Recommended: TAKE A CHANCE ON ME first in a new series by Susan May Warren

What it's about (from publisher Tyndale House):

Darek Christiansen is almost a dream bachelor — oldest son in the large Christiansen clan, heir to their historic Evergreen Lake Resort, and doting father. But he's also wounded and angry since the tragic death of his wife, Felicity. No woman in Deep Haven dares come near.

New assistant county attorney Ivy Madison simply doesn't know any better when she bids on Darek at the charity auction. Nor does she know that when she crafted a plea bargain three years ago to keep Jensen Atwood out of jail and in Deep Haven fulfilling community service, she was releasing the man responsible for Felicity's death. All Ivy knows is that the Christiansens feel like the family she's always longed for. And once she gets past Darek's tough exterior, she finds a man she could spend the rest of her life with. Which scares her almost as much as Darek learning of her involvement in his wife's case.

Caught between new love and old grudges, Darek must decide if he can set aside the past for a future with Ivy — a future more and more at risk as an approaching wildfire threatens to wipe out the Christiansen resort and Deep Haven itself.

Why you should read it: Darek is a gruff and angry former dare-devil firefighter with several axes to grind, but he has a definite soft spot when it comes to the tender way he is raising his preschool-age son, Tiger, alone.  *swoon alert!* A graduate of the foster care system, Ivy has made a successful life for herself, but she doesn't believe love, romance, or family are things she can ever claim for herself. When one moment of loneliness and compassion purchases a date with the town's most ineligible bachelor (Darek), however, she can't help but be drawn into his life--especially after she meets his big, loving family. 

The Christiansen family is the ideal Ivy dreamed of during her messed-up childhood, being shuffled from one foster home to the other — and she would do anything to protect them. But as Ivy settles into her new town--and romance begins to sizzle with Darek--she realizes that Deep Haven is too small, and too close-knit a community, to keep anyone's secrets for long. And the secret she keeps could put her on the outs with Darek and his family for good.

Take a Chance on Me is the first of six books in this new series from prolific author Susan May Warren — and I couldn't be more excited! I've already fallen in love with the Christiansen family and I can't wait to see how Warren brings true and lasting love into the lives of Darek's two brothers and three sisters.

(the bulk of this review first appeared at USA Today's Happy Ever After blog, but it has been updated for EIR readers.)

Eyes of E'veria Blog Tour + Giveaway! Books, Swag, & (of course) CHOCOLATE!

Click here to purchase

Hey! Did y'all know that THE REMEDY (Eyes of E'veria, book two) is now available at Amazon? Well, my dears, it is! And to celebrate, I (with the awesome awesome wonderful help of super-tour-booker Joy Tamsin David) will be making the rounds of the blogosphere throughout the month of May. We'll be promoting both THE RYN and its sequel, THE REMEDY with interviews, guest posts, giveaways, and more!

Eyes of E'veria Blog Tour: NOW through May 31, 2013!!!

You can visit (and like!) MY FACEBOOK PAGE for daily tour updates or just hop over to MY WEBSITE for a regularly updated list of links to where you can get the inside scoop on THE RYN & THE REMEDY as well as multiple chances to win! There will be one giveaway package for EACH stop on this blog tour (limit one package per winner) So make sure you visit all the sites!

I've been so busy keeping up with the various stops on the blog tour, that I failed to offer the giveaway right here at home! A hundred pardons, EIR readers! And here, at long last, is how you can enter the EIR portion of this giveaway!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Recommended: THE HOUSE THAT LOVE BUILT by Beth Wiseman

What it's about (from publisher Thomas Nelson)

Brooke has only loved one man, her late husband. Owen's rebuilding after a painful divorce. Can a mysterious house bring them together for a second chance at love?

In the charming town of Smithville, Texas, Brooke Holloway is raising two young children on her own, supporting them by running the family hardware store. The last thing on her mind is falling in love. But she's intrigued when a stranger moves to town and buys the old Hadley mansion. She's always heard that house holds a secret — maybe even a treasure — and she can't wait to see inside. When she meets the new owner and they spend time together, she can't deny the attraction. Could God be giving her another chance at happiness? Or is she betraying her late husband's memory by even thinking that way?

Owen Saunders bought the Hadley place to spite his cheating ex-wife. She'd always wanted to restore an old house in Smithville. Now he's going to do it without her. But if anything needs restoration, it is Owen's heart. Then he meets Brooke and her kids and finds himself tempted by love. Can he bring himself to trust a woman again?

Throw an eccentric uncle into the mix, along with the town's teenage troublemaker, and even a finicky cat — and one thing becomes clear: God is bringing them all together for a reason.

Why you should read it: Beth Wiseman built a name for herself penning Amish fiction, but The House that Love Built is a clear departure from that popular genre (otherwise, readers-who-know-how-I-feel-about-Amish-fiction, you know it wouldn't have landed on my rec shelf!) In this novel, Wiseman lives "in the now" with contemporary mainstream-American characters in the picturesque town of Smithville, Texas. Her characters are broken by the loss of spouses through death and divorce, but the romance, while resisted by both parties, sparks to life with layers of instant-but-building attraction. Add in a few light bulb moments in which her characters reconcile themselves with the idea of a second chance at love, but then back pedal out of fear, and you can hardly wait for those moments when, after reclining into the sweet compatibility of friendship, a surprising kiss reminds them that there could be something more.

Every time I come across an author who isn't afraid to portray broken people as they really are, I cheer. And I cheered for this one! Even though it is what I would classify as a "sweet romance," there is just enough grit in the characters' hearts and pasts to make them accessible to the rest of us sinners. And the repeated backpedaling from love is very true-to-life -- and to these characters. 

A theme of forgiveness is threaded through both characters' stories, and minor characters help to vividly redefine what a "family" can truly become if we allow ourselves to open our concept of that word up to a fresh interpretation. Although the story starts a bit slowly, the characters soon reel you in to their romance and it becomes hard to walk away from them. A few twists, turns and revelations later, the tale is rounded out with a sweet and satisfying ending.

(the bulk of this review originally appeared at USA Today's Happy Ever After blog, but a bit extra has been added for the EIR audience.)