Perhaps you're gearing up for a little vacation (I'm jealous) and need some good reading material? This week I am here to help! Not only do I highly recommend Deb Raney's new book, After All, but I also have to tell you about another book that just released yesterday:
This book is by another one of my favorite authors, Carla Stewart. I've talked about Carla's beautiful writing before, and I have to say, this new book is just as wonderful as the first two. There is MUCH to love about Stardust, but for me, it's the nostalgic, wistful feeling I got from the second I started reading. I absolutely LOVE Carla's soulful writing, deep with description and so good at transporting me back in time.
Here's a little about the book:
Shortly after burying her unfaithful husband, Georgia Peyton unexpectedly inherits the derelict Stardust motel from a distant relative. Despite doubts from the community and the aunt who raised her, she is determined to breathe new life into it. But the guests who arrive aren't what Georgia expects: Her gin-loving mother-in-law; her dead husband's mistress; an attractive but down-on-his-luck drifter who's tired of the endless road; and an aging Vaudeville entertainer with a disturbing link to Georgia's past.
Can Georgia find the courage to forgive those who've betrayed her, the grace to shelter those who need her, and the moxy to face the future? And will her dream of a new life under the flickering neon of the STARDUST ever come true?
Because I didn't live in the 50's and 60's, the era this book takes place in, it's fascinating for me to get a glimpse of how things were during those pivotal years in our country's history. Carla paints vivid word pictures and her characters spring to life and stay with you, pulling them into their story and making you care.
But don't take my word for it. You can get your own copy right HERE! I promise you won't be disappointed!
To celebrate the launch of this beautiful new novel, I asked Carla to play along with my "5 Questions." She is such an overachiever, she answered all 10 of the ones I sent over... so I get to share all of them with you (because this lady is a hoot...you'll fall in love with HER as much as you will her books!)
1. If Hollywood made a movie about your life, who would play you?
Kathy Bates, of course. She’s a mess, but she has a soft side.
2. What's something about the 60's, the era you write in, that you remember vividly?
JFK assassination. Coming into my 8th grade class after lunch and hearing the news. I felt sick to my stomach. I think we all realized our fears of Communists taking over our country really could happen if even the President of the United States was vulnerable.
A memory that NO ONE but people from my adopted hometown has: There was a hangout called the “Katari” in the basement of a downtown building and decorated sort of hippie style. You could get cokes and listen to the jukebox during the week, and on Saturday night, they had dances with a live band. ALL the cool people hung out there and you could smell the pizza from “The Cellar” next door. Those were the days!
3. What could someone expect from their stay if YOU were running Stardust?
Fresh coffee any time of the day or night. Served in stoneware mugs and not Styrofoam or paper cups.
4. What are three things you must have every day?
Fresh coffee in a mug.
Time alone.
Prayer.
5. What's something most people don't know about you?
That my parents bought me from a band of gypsies. You didn’t know that? Well, maybe you also didn’t know that I once played Abe Lincoln’s mother in my fourth grade play, which led to a lifetime love of character roles in stage plays. Now I prefer to invent the characters in stories.
6. Is there another genre you'd like to try writing in someday?
I’d love to write a literary novel. Or a family saga.
7. What is your guilty pleasure?
Reading. Especially on a beautiful day when I can take a book and a glass of wine to the patio and ignore the world.
8. Who are some writers you admire?
Jeannette Walls (The Glass Castle)
Harper Lee (To Kill a Mockingbird)
C. S. Lewis
Dick Francis
Writing friends I admire:
Sarah Sundin
Susan Meissner
Lisa Wingate
9. If you could have dinner with any three people (living or dead), who would you choose? Don't say Jesus because he's already there.
Jimmy Stewart
Simon Peter
Katharine Hepburn
10. If you could be any character in fiction, who would it be?
Scout Finch from To Kill a Mockingbird. Yeah, I know she’s a kid, but she surely grew up to be a woman who made a profound difference because of her childhood experiences.
I'm so excited to give away not one or two but three books this week on my blog...come back tomorrow and find out how you can WIN Stardust!
Or, if you can't wait, head over to amazon and snag your copy today!
