A-Z Challenge Reveal: Classic Monsters

As the A-Z Challenge ramps up for April, today is the A-Z Challenge Reveal created by Vidya Sury!  Not too long ago, I took a tally on my blog to find my blog topic.  And the winner is...Classic Monsters.  Cool huh?

I've already put together a list but I would love to hear which classic monster you'd like read about.  Of course I will be covering many of the classic characters featured in this picture.  Any suggestions?

Comment and let me know.

The A-Z Challenge starts April 1st.  Sign up today if you haven't already.

Mina B.

4th Annual Lucky Leprechaun Giveaway Hop

Happy Saint Patrick's Day, minions!  Any plans to celebrate this lucky day?  How Irish are you?  Do you like your beer green?  I'm not a big fan of green beer any more.  Didn't we all go through that phase?  Now I like my beer with a green lime wedge dumped in my corona.  

Source

Okay...in the spirit of Saint Patrick's Day and all things Buffy, I had to post this awesome gif.  Remember when Buffy went through her beer phase?  #GoodTimes


Anyway, to celebrate the luck of the Irish, I decided to participate in this month's giveaway, 4th Annual Lucky Leprechaun Giveaway Hop Co-hosted I Am A Reader and by Books Complete Me from March 17th to 24th. 

Since this giveaway must be book related, I'm giving away one (1) FREE $10 Amazon Gift Card to one lucky winner.  How's that sound?  Feeling lucky yet?


To enter:  
You MUST be a follower of my blog and MUST fill out this entry form. (And yes, I do check GCF)

Extra entries…

+2 Follow me on Google Plus

+2 Like me on Facebook/MinaBurrows

+1 Tweet this via Twitter (limit 1 retweet)

The Lucky Leprechan giveaway runs from 12:01 AM on March 17th - March 24th, midnight. Contest is open to International participants.

Want to see who else is participating? Visit I Am A Reader, and check out all the links and hop on by.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Have a happy and safe holiday!
Mina B.

Book Buzz: Blood and Fire by Tori L. Ridgewood

Tori L. Ridgewood’s released Blood and Fire: Book Two of the Talbot Trilogy last month. If you remember, I featured Book one, Wind and Shadow last fall. Since then, the series has received some great reviews on Amazon and other blogs so congrats to Tori! And now onto Book Two! Here's the synopsis:

What chance does one witch have against five vampires? Alone, not much. But Rayvin’s allies are gathering…

The battle between good and evil supernatural forces heats up in the long, cold November nights of the former mining town. But how will Rayvin’s motley crew of spellcasters and shapeshifters cope when they discover the threat they face is even greater than they imagined?



Purchase Blood and Fire: Book Two of the Talbot Trilogy on:  

Amazon
Smashwords

LuLu

The Talbot Trilogy books:


0. Mist and Midnight (prequel)


1. Wind and Shadow


2. Blood and Fire


3. Crystal and Wand

About Tori:

After her first heartbreak, Tori found solace in two things: reading romance novels and listening to an after-dark radio program called Lovers and Other Strangers. Throughout the summer and fall of 1990, the new kid in town found reading fiction and writing her own short stories gave her a much needed creative outlet. Determined to become a published author, Tori amassed stacks of notebooks and boxes of filed-away stories, most only half-finished before another idea would overtake her and demand to be written down. Then, while on parental leave with her second baby, one story formed and refused to be packed away. Between teaching full-time, parenting, and life in general, it would take almost seven years before the first novel in her first trilogy would be completed. In the process, Tori finally found her stride as a writer.

At present, on her off-time, Tori not only enjoys reading, but also listening to an eclectic mix of music as she walks the family dog (Skittles), attempts to turn her thumb green, or makes needlework gifts for her friends and family members. She loves to travel, collect and make miniature furniture, and a good cup of tea during a thunderstorm or a blizzard. Under it all, she is always intrigued by history, the supernatural, vampire and shapeshifter mythology, romance, and other dangers.

Tori is currently working on Crystal and Wand: Book Three of The Talbot Trilogy. She lives in Kirkland Lake, Ontario, Canada with her husband and two children. She is a full-time teacher at a local high school.

You can find Tori at the following places:

Tori on Twitter

Tori's Website

The buzz from Tori's fans is they love the wicked series and can't wait for Book Three.  Go Tori!  Have you read the series?  

Mina B.

Friday's Brew

It's Friday.  Whoop Whoop!  I have a few things for my Friday Brew including Katniss Everdeen, an Epic Giveaway and Fred is back too.  Wahoo! #TGIF

Bring on the Fire

To kick start everything, did you know Catching Fire is out on DVD today?  Well it's marketed practically everywhere including that rock we writers sometimes live under.  If you're a loser like me and didn't get a chance to see this in the movie theaters, now's the time to watch in the lap of luxury in your own living room.  Wahoo!  That's my kind of movie-watching.  

On a side note, I can't begin to express how much I loved this series.  When reading Catching Fire, I still can remember how chilling it was for Katniss when President Snow visited her in her own home.  It's such a killer series.  I'm glad the movies are up to par, but seriously folks, if you ever need an escape, Suzanne Collins will take you there with The Hunger Games.

Epic 2000 Followers Giveaway!

Alex J. Cavanaugh's blog is nearing 2000 GFC followers and to celebrate, he's hosting a giveaway! 

He's only a few short of reaching his goal so let's help him, minions!  See the details here.  First place prize includes one copy of the any book in the Cassa sci-fi series, $10 iTunes card, and one book donated to the library (middle school, high school, public) of your choice.  Grand prize – Signed copy of all three books, $10 iTunes card, t-shirt of your choice from Neat-O-Rama, designed by Retro Jeremy Hawkins, and three books donated to the library of your choice.   Those are some wicked prizes, huh?

Fred Snoozing

I mentioned before how Fred is getting older and naps rather frequently.  This is a shot of him in his new bed, where he spends about half of his day sleeping away.  There was a time when I would never be able to sneak up and capture a shot like this.  Those days are over.  He doesn't even move.

Have a wonderful Friday and enjoy your weekend!

Mina B.

IWSG: A-Z Topics

I can't believe it's March and it's already the first week into the month. *Sigh* Insecure Writers Support Group created by Alex J. Cavanaugh is back and this month's wicked co-hosts are Tina Downey, Elsie, Elizabeth Seckman, and Julie Flanders!

Today, all I'd like to mention the upcoming A-Z blogging event which starts in April.  Are you ready?  Have you thought of a theme?  I've though of several but I'm still not sure.  Last month, I posted only once so the thought of committing to posting every day has me a little worried.  Last year, I did Chaucer.  *smacks head*  And no, I'm not doing Shakespeare this time.

Still, I have several ideas.  I decided to list them below and see what you all think.

*  Classic Monsters:   Hmmm, I'm not sure about 22 classic monsters.  I might be able to do it but...
*  Unforgettable lines in classic literature:  This would be fun but probably biased.
*  Author Spotlight:  I thought about doing a sign up for those who want me to feature their paranormal/sci-fi books.  I kinda do that already but a month of it would be cool.
*  Feature my book, Blessed Blood.  Yes, the bane of my existence is still ALIVE!  I'm very close again with this darn thing, I can almost taste it.  I could possibly feature snippets of my novel?  Hmmm.....

I'm not sure so I've decided to put it to a vote.  And every one counts!  Here's what we'll do.  You post your thoughts in a comment and at in a couple of weeks, I'll take a tally.  "What say you?"

Anyway, that's my insecurity this month.  What type of insecurities are you faced with this month?  

Mina B.