WHAT SHE KNEW by Gilly MacMillan ✆ Cove Podcast: Episode 69

Greetings! 

This month's episode features Cove members Millenia and Roberta discussing the August 2016 Cove pick, WHAT SHE KNEW by Gilly MacMillan—Cove Pick #189! 

✘✘✘ Have you read WHAT SHE KNEW? Do you agree or disagree with our thoughts? Comment below and let us know what you think!

*Spoilers abound. Podcast is for those who've read the book.





For Download:



★ Book Review ★ Sacred America, Sacred World by Stephen Dinan!


Paperback: 288 pages
Publisher: Hampton Roads Publishing
Publication Date: July 5, 2016

Synopsis:

Infused with visionary power, Sacred America, Sacred World is a manifesto for our country’s evolution that is both political and deeply spiritual. It offers profound hope that America can grow beyond our current challenges and manifest our noblest destiny, which the book shows is rooted in sacred principles that transcend left or right political views.

Filled with practical ideas and innovative strategies honed from the author’s work with over 1000 luminaries via his company, The Shift Network, Sacred America, Sacred World rings with a can-do entrepreneurial spirit and explains how America can lead the world toward peace, sustainability, health, and prosperity. This vision of the future weaves the best of today’s emergent spirituality with seasoned political wisdom, demonstrating ways America can grow beyond its current stagnation and political gridlock to become a world leader in peace and progress.

Published to coincide with the party conventions and presidential debates, this book will promote a return to the sacred principles cherished by America's forefathers in order to create a “transpartisan,” non-ideological, pragmatic approach to social reform. This uplifting discussion explores evolutions in political leadership, environmental concerns, and economic reformation.

It is time to forge a bold new image of America’s future. Here is a road map for getting there.


Praise:

“If, as the Bible says, ‘where there is no vision, the people perish,’ then this book is our survival manual. It provides exactly the vision we, the people, have been searching for.” ―Mark Gerzon, author of Leading Through Conflict and The Reunited States of America


Cove Member Cheryl Reviews—

Sacred America, Sacred World by Stephen Dinan



This book is a very powerful and unique read. Based on how if we as individuals open our minds and become a more spiritual nation, we could save America and maybe even the world. 
Dinan speaks of the many accomplishments of America as a whole, from our very beginnings of separating our nation from Great Britain, to the equality of African Americans and women from the 1960s until present day.

He speaks about becoming a better nation by being more of an American family as a whole instead of just being individuals chasing those materialistic dreams we may have. It is a much needed and enlightening book in a time where our political world is in such shambles. He calls this new ideal an American Evolution as opposed to the American Revolution. Pointing the way to becoming a great nation again and hopefully changing the world as well.

This book is a must read for anyone who is upset about America's political turmoil. It's very thought provoking and it personally made me feel a little better about how the world may co-exist in a more peaceful way. I myself do not watch a lot of news, political or otherwise; however, I do keep an eye on what is going on in the world and America. I just chose not to be overloaded with it all. His thoughts range from economy to being a greener world and being a leader in this evolution; and, to me, possibly a new and shiny star in the world.

I really enjoyed reading this book and I hope others will look for it as well.




Buy Links:



About the Author:

Stephen Dinan is the CEO of The Shift Network and a member of the prestigious Transformational Leadership Council and the Evolutionary Leaders group.

As the former Director of Membership and Marketing at the Institute of Noetic Sciences, he was the driving force behind the Shift in Action program. He also directed and helped to create the Esalen Institute’s Center for Theory & Research, a think tank for leading scholars, researchers, and teachers to explore human potential frontiers. Visit: http://www.sacredamerica.net





★ Book Blitz ★ STING by Sandra Brown—Sneak Peek + Dream Cast + $50 Visa Giveaway!!



We're so happy to share a sneak peek of bestselling author Sandra Brown's latest release—STING! 

Check out Sandra's dream cast and don't miss the awesome giveaway—just enter below for a chance to win a Coach Tote + autographed copy of STING + $50 Visa Gift Card!



by Sandra Brown
Publisher: Grand Central Publishing
Publication Date: August 16, 2016
Genres: Adult, Romance, Suspense

Synopsis:

When Shaw Kinnard encounters the incongruously elegant Jordie Bennet in a seen-better-days bayou bar, it’s not love at first sight. He’s there to kill her. Instead, he abducts her, eager to get hold of the $30 million her brother has pocketed from his badly bent boss. Now they are on the run from said boss—and the FBI.

Burning for answers-and for each other-this unlikely pair ultimately make a desperate move that could be their last.

With nonstop plot twists and the tantalizing sexual tension that has made Sandra Brown one of the world's best-loved authors, STING will keep readers on the edge of their seats until the final pages.





* An Exclusive Sneak Peek! *


Mickey wedged himself into the passenger seat. As subordinate partner on this job, it fell to Shaw to drive. Which was okay by him. He hated riding shotgun. If and when a situation went tits-up, he liked having control of the vehicle. 
He put the key in the ignition, but Mickey said, “Hold on. We’re not going anywhere yet.” 
Shaw’s heart bumped. “Why not?” 
“We’re doing it here.” 
Shaw just looked at him, then, “You joking?” 
“No. Panella said there’s no time like the present.” 
“Hell, there isn’t,” Shaw hissed, gesturing back toward the bar. “We were seen in there.” 
“Which is another reason why Panella said to go ahead.” 
“That doesn’t makes sense.” 
“Makes perfect sense.” 
“Only if you want to get caught. Speaking for myself, I don’t.” 
“So then don’t get caught.” Mickey grunted with the effort of extracting his pistol from the holster lodged between the folds of his belly. “Panella advises against it, too.” 
“Easy for him to say. It’s not his ass that’s exposed, is it?” 
Mickey gave him a sidelong glance. “First time out and you’re going soft on me.” 
“Not soft, old man. Sensible. I don’t see why the fucking hurry.” 
“I explained that.” 
“Yeah, but tomorrow would be soon enough.” 
“Not anymore. Panella has changed his mind. Small town like this, where everybody knows everybody? Word gets around quick that there’s two ‘strangers’ in town.” 
“Okay. So we wait to do it till she goes back to New Orleans.” 
“That could be days. She doesn’t go into the city on a regular basis. Works out of her house here a lot. Anyhow, it’s not our decision to make. Panella says get her done, especially now that we happened to be caught under the same roof as the target.” 
Shaw understood the reasoning, but he still didn’t like it. Not at all. 
Mickey kept talking. “Like you, Panella is scared that maybe her showing up here tonight isn’t a coincidence.” 
“That’s what I said, but I was only mouthing off. Her coming here has gotta be a fluke. There’s no way she could know about us.” 
“Well, whatever, Panella said to do it now, so . . . ” For punctuation, Mickey used the slide of his 9mm to chamber a bullet. 
Shaw realized two things: His vote didn’t count, and further argument was pointless. “Shit.” He pulled his pistol from its holster and glanced back toward the door with the crackling neon sign above it. “So how do you want to do it?” 
“We wait here till she comes out. If the redneck asshole leaves with her, you pop him. I’ll take care of her.” 
“If she comes out alone?” 
“I’ll do the honors,” Mickey said as he worked his hands into latex gloves. He passed a pair to Shaw. “You take her purse. Panella says to make it look like a robbery gone bad. A random crime.” 
“With no connection to either him or her brother.” 
“With no connection to anything.” 
Shaw scoffed. “Like anybody will believe that.” 
Mickey chuckled. “Not your problem who believes what. You’ll be far and away, enjoying your half of two hundred grand.” 
“That’ll buy a nice boat.” 
“That’ll buy nice pussy.” 
“Your mind’s in the gutter, Mickey.” 
He chuckled again. “Where it feels right at home.” 
Noticing motion from the corner of his eye, Shaw took another look through the rear window. “Here she comes.” 
“By herself?” 
Shaw waited to answer until the door had closed behind Jordie Bennett and no one followed her out. “Yep.” 
Since the building didn’t have any exterior lighting, the parking lot was almost in complete darkness. A pale, slender moon was obscured by the moss-bearded branches of an oak that extended across three-quarters of the lot. There were no approaching headlights from either direction of the narrow state road. 
Seizing the opportunity, Mickey opened his car door and got out, moving with more alacrity than Shaw would have thought him capable of. The fat man was jazzed. Mickey Bolden relished his line of work. 
But so did Shaw. The tequila shots hadn’t given him near the rush that straight-up adrenaline did now. 
Being as light-footed as possible, they followed Jordie Bennett as she wended her way through the parking lot. It was jammed with dented pickup trucks and salt-water-corroded heaps. Her recent model sedan was a shiny, sleek standout. She used a key fob to unlock the driver’s door. 
Shaw captured another drift of that seductive fragrance as she suddenly did an about-face. 
Apparently his and Mickey’s footfalls on the crushed shells hadn’t been as light as they’d thought. Or maybe animal instinct had alerted her to mortal danger. In any case, when she saw them rushing toward her, her lips parted on a quick inhale, her eyes went wide with alarm. 
As Mickey swiftly closed the distance between them, his right hand snapped up from his side with precision and deadly purpose. 
The sound suppressor on the pistol muffled the shot, but in the surrounding stillness, the spitting noise seemed as loud to Shaw’s ears as a fire alarm. 
Mickey dropped like a sack of cement, his ravaged head hemorrhaging a red tide over the crushed shells. 
Jordie Bennett watched in horror as a stream of blood funneled toward her sandals. Then she looked up at Shaw, who still held his pistol shoulder high and extended toward her. He said, “My half just doubled.”







BUY LINKS: Amazon | B&N | iTunes | Kobo



STING Anecdote:
Even though it’s almost thirty years old, the movie “Top Gun” and its characters are referred to several times. If the soundtrack followed the relationship between Shaw and Jordie, it would start out with “Danger Zone” and end with “Take My Breath Away.”

If you’re on Spotify, you can find the TOP GUN soundtrack here:


Sandra's Dream Cast!

Shaw – Tom Hardy



Jordie – Jaimie Alexander






About the Author:

Sandra Brown is the author of more than sixty New York Times bestsellers, including DEADLINE (2013), LOW PRESSURE (2012), LETHAL (2011), TOUGH CUSTOMER (2010), SMASH CUT (2009), SMOKE SCREEN (2008), PLAY DIRTY (2007), RICOCHET (2006), CHILL FACTOR (2005), WHITE HOT (2004), & HELLO, DARKNESS (2003).

Brown began her writing career in 1981 and since then has published over seventy novels, bringing the number of copies of her books in print worldwide to upwards of eighty million. Her work has been translated into over thirty languages.

A lifelong Texan, Sandra Brown was born in Waco, grew up in Fort Worth and attended Texas Christian University, majoring in English. Before embarking on her writing career, she worked as a model at the Dallas Apparel Mart, and in television, including weathercasting for WFAA-TV in Dallas, and feature reporting on the nationally syndicated program “PM Magazine.”

In 2009 Brown detoured from her thrillers to write, Rainwater, a much acclaimed, powerfully moving story about honor and sacrifice during the Great Depression.

Brown recently was given an honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters from Texas Christian University. She was named Thriller Master for 2008, the top award given by the International Thriller Writer’s Association. Other awards and commendations include the 2007 Texas Medal of Arts Award for Literature and the Romance Writers of America’s Lifetime Achievement Award.



* Giveaway! *





BURIAL RITES by Hannah Kent ✆ Cove Podcast: Episode 68

Greetings! 

This month's episode features Cove members Millenia and Roberta discussing the July 2016 Cove pick, BURIAL RITES by Hannah Kent—Cove Pick #188! 

✘✘✘ Have you read BURIAL RITES? Do you agree or disagree with our thoughts? Comment below and let us know what you think!

*Spoilers abound. Podcast is for those who've read the book.





For Download:



★ Blog Tour ★ A CUNNING PLAN by Astrid Arditi — Guest Post + $20 Amazon Giveaway!

A Cunning Plan banner

We're excited to welcome Astrid Arditi to the Cove blog! She's the debut author of A CUNNING PLAN, the first in her brand new Sloane Harper romantic suspense series! 

This blog tour is organized by Lola's Blog Tours. Don't miss the special giveaway below ~ enter for a chance to win a Kindle Fire + a $20 Amazon Gift Card + 2 signed copies of A Cunning Plan!!

A Cunning Plan
(Sloane Harper #1)
by Astrid Arditi
Genre: Romantic Suspense
Age Category: Adult
Release Date: May 8, 2016

Synopsis:
Determined to put her family back together, Sloane Harper stalks her ex husband and his annoyingly stunning mistress, Kate. And she’s not the only one. Handsome IRS agent Ethan Cunning is surveying them too, but not for the same reasons. He is attempting to nail Kate’s playboy boss.
Ethan and Sloane decide to help each other, which sends Sloane’s wobbly life spinning out of control. She’ll have to face danger, humiliation, and scariest of all, the dating scene, to lure her daughters’ father home.

Losing control was the best thing to happen to Sloane… until it turned lethal.


* GUEST POST *


A Cunning Plan’s Cast
by Astrid Arditi 

This isn’t the first time I dream-cast my novel. Actually, part of my process as a writer is making detailed character descriptions, including pictures of the actors that inspire me.

Friends who’ve read the novel usually tell me how full of imagery it is, like watching a movie. Unlike some authors I know, I don’t write to a playlist but rather to a movie unfurling in my mind, that I try to capture on paper as quickly as I can.

This quote from William Faulkner sums up my approach to writing fairly well: “It begins with a character, usually, and once he stands up on his feet and begins to move, all I can do is trot along with a paper and pencil trying to keep up long enough to put down what he says and does.”

So A Cunning Plan started with my heroine, Sloane Harper that was loosely based physically on model and budding actress Dree Hemingway.

As she took a life of her own, I now see a lot of young, goofy Cameron Diaz in Sloane.

Dree Hemingway

Cameron Diaz

To complete the female cast, I had a goth Olivia Wilde in mind for Claudia, Sloane’s housekeeper/best friend and the great Emma Thompson in the role of Bizzy Harper.

Olivia Wilde

Emma Thompson

Sloane’s rival for her ex husband’s affections, Katherine Stappleton, would be the smoking hot Paige Turco.



Younger versions of the Fanning sisters would incarnate Sloane’s daughters. Elle for Rose, and Dakota for Poppy.

Elle Fanning

Dakota Fanning

As for the male cast, I had George Clooney in mind when crafting Sloane’s ex husband, Tom; a mix between Theo James and Ben Affleck for my darling Ethan Cunning, and Olivier Martinez in the role of Gabriel Varela.


George Clooney

Theo James

Ben Affleck

Olivier Martinez



* BUY LINKS *

Amazon | Amazon UK | B&N | Kobo | iBooks




About the Author:

Astrid Arditi
Astrid Arditi was born from a French father and Swedish mother. She lived in Paris and Rome before moving to London with her husband and daughter back in 2013.

After dabbling in journalism, interning at Glamour magazine, and teaching kindergarten, Arditi returned to her first love: writing.

She now splits her time between raising her kids (a brand new baby boy just joined the family) and making up stories.

A Cunning Plan is Arditi’s first published work.



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