GIVEAWAY: Barbara Ashford's SPELLCAST
After last year's slew of spring giveaways, I got a little burnt out hosting them. Yet I'm making an exception here, for many reasons, and you'll see why.
Maggie Graham is having a very bad day. First, she loses her job. Then the bathroom ceiling in her Brooklyn apartment collapses. That’s when Maggie decides she needs to get out of town. A weekend in Vermont seems like the perfect getaway.
When she stumbles on the Crossroads Theatre, reviving her acting career is the last thing on her mind, but a week later, she’s back in summer stock at a theatre unlike any she’s ever known.
Director Rowan Mackenzie is even odder than the collection of misfits that comprise the cast. What kind of director casts people in the roles they need? And never leaves the grounds of the theatre? And possesses the power to transform a train wreck of a show into a magical experience for cast and audience alike?
There’s a secret at the Crossroads, and Maggie is determined to uncover it before summer’s end - if she can prevent her mother from discovering her whereabouts, deal with the staff’s efforts to thwart her, and avoid falling prey to Rowan Mackenzie’s charm. She never imagines that she will uncover secrets about her past that will change her life - and Rowan’s - forever.
I've know Barbara Ashford since 2005, and was thrilled to have the opportunity to beta-read and critique Spellcast when it was a work in progress. It's a fascinating thing, helping someone with a manuscript, only to turn around and see it in print a year later (hey, that's my name in the acknowledgements! Woot!). When Barbara contacted me to see if I wanted the publisher to send me a free copy for review, I told her that I'd much rather buy my copy when it was released so that I could support her, but if she wanted to send me an ARC for a giveaway, I'd be more than happy to oblige. Now that the ARC is here, I'm excited to send this off to one lucky winner, even though most of you probably have never heard of this book, let alone this author, and therefore have no idea why this excites me so.
First off, I know. The cover isn't great. It gives the wrong vibe to the book and makes it a wee bit cheesy-looking. Please don't let that turn you away from what's a really great story. Sure, you've got the premise up there, but let me point out some of the plusses of this book:
1) A mature heroine who's self-depreciating but always willing to lend a hand to whomever needs it, whether they want it or not.
2) A delightful focus on magical theatre and all the humor that comes with certain allusions to said musicals.
3) A romance that isn't about lust, but rather a mature, well-developed relationship that really makes sense in the real world, rather than these lust-at-first sight bits we usually get in urban fantasy.
4) Writing that will at times make you laugh and at times really choke you up. I'm not kidding on this part: I laughed and nearly cried while beta-reading this novel. I can't wait to read the finished product to see if it still has the same effect on me!
5) A subtle, but lovely use of magic. I've not come across a book quite like this before, and I'm thrilled it got published.
6) This book will have a sequel, but it also easily reads as a stand-alone.
Convinced yet? If you have even the slightest romantic bone in your body, please, enter the giveaway! Here's the deal:
1 winner will receive an ARC of Spellcast by Barbara Ashford
To enter, please fill out the following form. 1 entry per person, limited to US residents (sorry, I just can't afford to ship to Canada now).
CLICK HERE TO ENTER
Now, I'll be the first to admit I'm a little biased. I know the author personally and have obviously read the book pre-publication. That said, I've read the author's other works (which are published under a different name), so I'm very well of her strengths and her weaknesses. This is a great book, and one I hope will move you. Granted, of course, you have at least a tiny romantic bone in your body! :)
Deadline: Monday, May 2. Winner will be announced on Tuesday, May 3. Good luck to all, and thanks for entering!
Maggie Graham is having a very bad day. First, she loses her job. Then the bathroom ceiling in her Brooklyn apartment collapses. That’s when Maggie decides she needs to get out of town. A weekend in Vermont seems like the perfect getaway.
When she stumbles on the Crossroads Theatre, reviving her acting career is the last thing on her mind, but a week later, she’s back in summer stock at a theatre unlike any she’s ever known.
Director Rowan Mackenzie is even odder than the collection of misfits that comprise the cast. What kind of director casts people in the roles they need? And never leaves the grounds of the theatre? And possesses the power to transform a train wreck of a show into a magical experience for cast and audience alike?
There’s a secret at the Crossroads, and Maggie is determined to uncover it before summer’s end - if she can prevent her mother from discovering her whereabouts, deal with the staff’s efforts to thwart her, and avoid falling prey to Rowan Mackenzie’s charm. She never imagines that she will uncover secrets about her past that will change her life - and Rowan’s - forever.
I've know Barbara Ashford since 2005, and was thrilled to have the opportunity to beta-read and critique Spellcast when it was a work in progress. It's a fascinating thing, helping someone with a manuscript, only to turn around and see it in print a year later (hey, that's my name in the acknowledgements! Woot!). When Barbara contacted me to see if I wanted the publisher to send me a free copy for review, I told her that I'd much rather buy my copy when it was released so that I could support her, but if she wanted to send me an ARC for a giveaway, I'd be more than happy to oblige. Now that the ARC is here, I'm excited to send this off to one lucky winner, even though most of you probably have never heard of this book, let alone this author, and therefore have no idea why this excites me so.
First off, I know. The cover isn't great. It gives the wrong vibe to the book and makes it a wee bit cheesy-looking. Please don't let that turn you away from what's a really great story. Sure, you've got the premise up there, but let me point out some of the plusses of this book:
1) A mature heroine who's self-depreciating but always willing to lend a hand to whomever needs it, whether they want it or not.
2) A delightful focus on magical theatre and all the humor that comes with certain allusions to said musicals.
3) A romance that isn't about lust, but rather a mature, well-developed relationship that really makes sense in the real world, rather than these lust-at-first sight bits we usually get in urban fantasy.
4) Writing that will at times make you laugh and at times really choke you up. I'm not kidding on this part: I laughed and nearly cried while beta-reading this novel. I can't wait to read the finished product to see if it still has the same effect on me!
5) A subtle, but lovely use of magic. I've not come across a book quite like this before, and I'm thrilled it got published.
6) This book will have a sequel, but it also easily reads as a stand-alone.
Convinced yet? If you have even the slightest romantic bone in your body, please, enter the giveaway! Here's the deal:
1 winner will receive an ARC of Spellcast by Barbara Ashford
To enter, please fill out the following form. 1 entry per person, limited to US residents (sorry, I just can't afford to ship to Canada now).
CLICK HERE TO ENTER
Now, I'll be the first to admit I'm a little biased. I know the author personally and have obviously read the book pre-publication. That said, I've read the author's other works (which are published under a different name), so I'm very well of her strengths and her weaknesses. This is a great book, and one I hope will move you. Granted, of course, you have at least a tiny romantic bone in your body! :)
Deadline: Monday, May 2. Winner will be announced on Tuesday, May 3. Good luck to all, and thanks for entering!