What’s on my iPod: “I can’t make you love me” by Adele
The last person I followed: @dawntrippwriter
What I’m Reading: The Orchard by Jeffrey Stepakoff

1. HERE, HOME, HOPE in Women’s World

Kaira Rouda’s HERE, HOME, HOPE was featured in Women’s World this week as the best beach read to uplift and inspire. (The issue went on stand this past Thursday.) Liz Fenton of Chick Lit is Not Dead and author of THE D WORD, contributed to the article.

Here is what the blurb said:

“Fenton calls this novel, ‘a fabulous, inspiring read about Kelly Mills Johnson, who’s approaching the big 4-0 and tackles her mid-life crisis with humor, heart… and Post-it-Notes.’ What role do sticky notes play? ‘Kelly examines her life and puts together a big plan with the aid of those Post-its; it’s a must-read for any woman who’s ever thought about changing her life.'”

More about HERE, HOME, HOPE

Kelly Mills Johnson becomes restless in her thirty-ninth year. An appetite for more forces her to take stock of her ordinary middle-American existence and her neighbors’ seemingly perfect lives. Her marriage to a successful attorney has settled into a comfortable routine, and being the mother of two adorable sons has been rewarding but exhausting. Meanwhile, Kelly’s own passions lie wasted. She eyes with envy the lives of her two best friends, Kathryn and Charlotte, both beautiful, successful businesswomen who seem to have it all. Kelly takes charge of her life, devising a midlife makeover plan.

From page one, Kelly’s witty reflections, self-deprecating humor, and clever tactics in executing that plan—she places Post-it notes all over her house and car—will have readers laughing out loud. The next instant, however, they might rant right along with Kelly as her commitment to a sullen, anorexic teenager left on her doorstep tries her patience or as she deflects the boozy advances of a divorced neighbor. Readers will need to keep the tissue box handy, too, as Kelly repairs the damage she inflicted on a high school friend; realizes how deeply her husband, Patrick, understands and loves her; and ultimately grows into a woman empowered by her own blend of home and career. Coming May 2011, Here, Home, Hope will surely appeal to readers of chick lit and other women’s fiction titles who are ready to transition into something new in their own life.

2. THE D WORD on Novelicious

THE D WORD by Liz Fenton and Lisa Steinke of Chick Lit is Not Dead is featured on Novelicious. Here is a highlight from the article:

“We don’t usually cover ebooks on Novelicious, but we just have to make an exception for The D Word. First off, this book is written by the two fabulous ladies who run the awesome Chick Lit is Not Dead website and secondly, it sounds really really great…”

More About THE D WORD

Jordan Daniels and Elle Ryan thought their lives would become less complicated when they walked away from their respective relationships one year ago. But instead, they find themselves vying for a relationship with the same divorced man.

As a spiritual counselor, newly single mother Jordan Daniels makes her living predicting other people’s futures. If only she could foresee her own. A year after filing for divorce from her husband, Kevin, he seems to be the one moving on effortlessly, while Jordan still can’t bring herself to fill his old underwear drawer. But it’s not until Jordan’s polar opposite, Elle steals Kevin’s heart, that Jordan becomes convinced she’ll be replaced both as a wife and a mother to her five-year-old son, Max.

When Elle met Kevin, the last thing she wanted was another relationship. Especially not with a man with baggage-she already had enough of her own. She left her fiancé, Chase right before their wedding to avoid the imminent D word, something she’s convinced runs in her family like a disease. But a year later, she’s no closer to becoming less skeptical about marriage. And despite her attachment to Kevin and his son, when Elle sees just how far Jordan’s willing to go to win Kevin back, Elle starts to question if she should have left Chase in the first place.

In THE D WORD you’ll walk in the shoes of Jordan and Elle as they discover that sometimes you’re not that different from the person who makes you feel the most insecure.

3. CRUSH CONTROL on Escape Through the Pages

Escape Through the Pages interviewed Jennifer Jabaley this week on her new novel CRUSH CONTROL.

Here is a piece from the interview:

“I am usually the skeptic in the audience at hypnotism shows. Have you ever been hypnotized, or would you ever want to be?

“When I decided to write Crush Control, I did a lot of research about hypnotism. That included a trip to Las Vegas to witness an actual performance. A good friend of mine went along and she was definitely the skeptic. I wasn’t sure how I felt. But during the initial part of the show, the induction, the hypnotist had twenty volunteers on stage, but there was a woman in the audience sitting right behind us who became hypnotized just by listening to him onstage. He recognized this and pulled her out of the audience and on to the stage. Then at the end of the show he reminded us all that all the volunteers had started up on stage but this one lady had not so she would be confused when she woke up. And when she was woken up, the look of complete confusion and even panic was something that could not have been acted. That forever sealed the deal for me that hypnotism works. And my skeptical friend? She was convinced, too.”

More about CRUSH CONTROL

Willow Grey is about to learn a thing or two about life, love and total mind control!… Willow has spent most of her life as her mother’s sidekick in a popular Las Vegas hypnotism show. So when she and her mom move back to their sleepy southern hometown to start over, she thinks she’s in for a life of quiet normalcy. Except that her new life turns out to be anything but, when she decides to hypnotize Quinton, the hottest guy on the football team, to fall madly, deeply, head over heels in love with her. But what started out as an innocent way to make her best friend, Max, jealous soon gets way out of hand and Willow begins to wonder if the mind—and more importantly, the heart—is something you can really control.

4. HOTEL NO TELL on My Friend Amy

My Friend Amy has a great Q&A this week with HOTEL NO TELL author Daphne Uviller.

Here is a highlight from the article:

“Q: You used to work for a New York City law enforcement agency. How much of Zephyr’s adventures in Hotel No Tell come from your actual experience?

“A: I worked for a watchdog group that investigates crime and corruption in the public school system. None of the cases that the fictional SIC handles is identical to any real one I worked on. But, certainly, I drew on the hubris of our perps and the astounding ability of people to deny to themselves that they’re committing a crime. For instance, I make mention of a school principal taking kickbacks, which was the theme of more than a few of our cases. I also borrowed from the enormous and enormously entertaining personalities of my former colleagues. One thing that is completely true: most of the investigators were named Tommy.”

More about HOTEL NO TELL

Hotel No Tell is the sequel to Super in the City; Zephyr Zuckerman, on the verge of 31, is now a junior investigator with New York City’s Special Investigations Commission (SIC). She’s undercover as a concierge at the Greenwich Village Hotel, trying – and failing – to track down a missing hundred grand. Her detective boyfriend has moved out because of their disagreement about reproducing (he wants kids, Zephyr doesn’t), and she’s left with her Holland Lop bunny named after a famous atheist, an old friend who’s married and miserable in suburban motherhood, and one new friend who’s a wedding planner in dire need of an exorcist. It soon becomes clear that the trouble at the hotel goes much, much deeper than a little old-fashioned laundering. Before Zephyr can master the reservation system, she is yanking at the threads of a multi-million dollar egg donation scandal and re-examining her own motives for opting out of mommyhood.

5. Dr. Andrea Bonior on Let’s Talk Live

Dr. Andrea Bonior, author of THE FRIENDSHIP FIX, was on Let’s Talk Live this week talking about celebrity babies and single parenthood.

http://bcove.me/uypuhraj

More about THE FRIENDSHIP FIX

Had enough of that bridezilla? Feeling alone in a new city? Dealing with the trauma of the worst breakup ever—with someone you never even made out with?

We’ve heard the path to fulfillment has much to do with relationships. But while it’s often thought that for young women, it’s all about finding the right man, real women beg to differ: It’s friendships that are at the heart of happiness. Unfortunately, they’re also at the heart of drama, stress, and sometimes not-so-great escapades after that fifth martini. And, technology, from texting to Facebook, has made all friendships more complicated than ever.

At last comes The Friendship Fix, jam-packed with practical ways to improve your life by improving your circle. From dealing with friends-with-benefits to coworkers from the dark side, from feeling alone to being desperate to defriend a few dozen people, Andrea Bonior, Ph.D. helps you make the most of your friendships, whether they be old, new, online, or in person.