Book Synopsis:
When wedding planner Anne Hawthorne meets George Laurence, she thinks she's found the man of her dreams. But when he turns out to be a client, her "dream" quickly turns into a nightmare. Will Anne risk her heart and career on this engaging Englishman?
George came to Louisiana to plan his employer's wedding and pose as the groom. But how can he feign affection for a supposed fiancee when he's so achingly attracted to the wedding planner? And what will happen when Anne discovers his role 
has been Stand-In Groom only? Will she ever trust George again? Can God help these two believers find a happy ending?
If you would like to read the first chapter of Stand-In Groom, go HEREMy Review:
Stand-in Groom is a unique story that is full of humor, angst and Southern flair.
Kaye Dacus has thrown a proper Englishman into the heart of Louisiana with a wedding planner, her large family, and her very bruised heart. Wedding details, delicious scents, and a healthy serving of Dino and Frank fill the book, too.
If you love stories that throw obstacles at the couple you know should be together, and you love the idea of weddings and details involved in weddings, or delight in Southern fiction, romance or Englishmen then check out Stand-In-Groom.
Come back Wednesday. Kaye has sent her answers to the Dregged questions and you won't want to miss them. In the meantime, go check out the first chapter. And, if you are curious, Kaye has an inspiring blog....Fabulous by Forty...pretty cool.
...wished you could change an ending to a book?
Well, now you can. Kind of.
You can help determine a verdict/ending to Randy Singer's upcoming book.
Click on the cover or here.
You can watch a bit of the "trial" and cast your vote.
After years of failed diet attempts, Chantel Hobbs discovered the missing ingredient to permanent weight loss: to change your life, you first have to change the way you think.
She developed a balanced plan for exercise and nutrition and lost two hundred pounds. Now, through writing, speaking, and her work as a personal trainer, she inspires others to achieve far more than they thought possible.
In Never Say Diet, now available in trade paperback, Chantel provides everything readers need to lose weight for good, including:
* Simple, step-by-step workout routines that fit into a normal weekday schedule
* A realistic approach to nutrition that helps people break their bondage to food
* Strategies for staying motivated when life takes unexpected turns
* Keys to dealing with discouragement by relying on God’s strength 
* The secret to moving beyond past failures and getting over old excuses
Chantel helps readers make the five commitments that are necessary for changing their lives. Her high-energy, no-nonsense approach inspires readers to achieve results that last in body, mind, and spirit.
Personal Trainer: Her newest book, The Never Say Diet Personal Fitness Coach, now allows readers to have Chantel show up each week to inspire, encourage, and energize them on the journey to a healthy life that centers on body, mind, and spirit.
This fitness guide helps readers set new weight-loss goals and create an exercise schedule that works in the midst of life’s constant demands. Readers will be inspired with Scripture, and they will welcome Chantel’s healthy eating plan with simple, energy-and-nutrition-packed recipes. Weekly checklists and personal evaluations direct readers in reaching their goals. Plus, Chantel’s personal and entertaining stories provide the motivation needed to get through even the most frustrating days.
With Never Say Diet and The Never Say Diet Personal Fitness Coach readers will establish new fitness habits that burn off excess weight, increase strength, and establish a new, healthy way of living.
My Review:
I'm convinced that any weight loss program can work. But, and it's a big but (no pun intended), most of them won't work for most people. As individual as folks are, and for as many reasons as people overeat, or eat junk, or refuse to exercise, there is need for different stories, scenarios, or different motivation.
I was a little put off by the cover of Chantel Hobbs' Never Say Diet. Which of us who are in need of self-discipline and diet wants to be confronted by the picture of a blonde Barbie Doll look alike? Can she be trusted? Did she really have a weight problem or was she just a little out of shape?
Once I started the book I quickly began rethinking my first opinion. Chantel, in all her blonde bodacious beauty has been in the trenches of self-hatred and humiliation. As I read her story, I identified with her and her wisdom, teaching and enthusiasm. I don't know if Chantel's journey will change your life. It's up to you. Her advice is wise, difficult and challenging, and full of common sense and overall simplicity. Her cheerleading is designed to spur. If nothing else, her book is cheaper than signing up with yet another weight loss clinic. If you are ready, if you want to change how you think and how you live, you should really consider looking into Never Say Diet.
The companion "The Never Say Diet Personal Fitness Trainer" is a journal with a little more motivation tossed in. You'll need "Never Say Diet" the book to use it. It's valuable if you plan to follow the program, but not necessary. If you have to make a choice between journal and book, buy the book.
Erin Healy, co-author of Ted Dekker's latest thriller, Kiss, dropped in with some fabulous answers to the Dreaded Dregs questions.
Thanks, Erin. Scroll down to catch part one where you can get a sneak peek at the first chapter of Kiss.
If you could change something in any novel, what would you change about it and why?
Old Dan and Little Ann would not die in Where the Red Fern Grows … because when my daughter gets around to reading that book, she’s going to be inconsolable for days.
Favorite turn of phrase or word picture, in literature or movie.
You rush a miracle man, you get rotten miracles. –Miracle Max, The
Princess Bride
What period of history intrigues you the most?
Early American, because the first novels I read as an elementary schooler
that captivated me were set in the period, and because Sarah Vowell has a… uh … perspective on that era like no other.
What would you write if there were no rules or barriers?
I probably wouldn’t write! I’m needy that way. I need rules like a need a
map. They give me a place to start, a direction, and more openness to
being surprised along the way.
What makes you feel alive?
Three diet Pepsis before nine in the morning.
Book, music, person, food you would take with you on a very long trip?
We’re going to Ireland, right? With a name like Erin McMahan Healy I
really need to go to Ireland … My Kindle. (I’m such a cheater, I know. But ONE book?) Loreena McKennitt. My sister. Power bars.
Favorite season and why?
Winter, because curling up in a blanket next to the fireplace with a book
and a stainless travel mug full of coffee is most uncomfortable in summer. I love the snow. The rain. Sigh. I really need to go to Ireland.
What would you do if you had only one week to live?
I would cry and ask God for more time. If he said no, I’d write letters to
my husband and children telling them my love and hopes for them, then I’d turn off the computer, walk away, and spend the rest of my waking moments holding their hands and listening, touching, talking.
What is your favorite word?
Discombobulated.
Superhero you most admire and why?
Mr. Incredible. Because it’s never too late to be who you were made to be.
Grammatical pet peeve:
I’m an editor. I have a lot of them. Most irritating, though, is when
writers announce they “just don’t like” a grammar rule and so claim the
right to ignore it. It’s not creative license. It’s stubbornness.
Pick one of the “story starters” below and give us a sample of your voice.
A crack broke the stillness as Terry tugged on the frozen door.
The editor half of me, whom I try to lock away in a broom closet while I
write, is talking loudly and demanding to know what motivation anyone can have for depositing a door in a meat locker.
Ted Dekker is back. This time he's brought along a friend. Erin Healy joins him and adds an extra dimension to his work.
Here's a bit about the book, the link to the first chapter and my review. Erin will be back on Wednesday to share her thoughts when encountering the Dregs questions.
Book Description:
Let me tell you all I know for sure. My name. Shauna.
I woke up in a hospital bed missing six months of my memory. In the room was my loving boyfriend-how could I have forgotten him?-my uncle and my abusive stepmother. Everyone blames me for the tragic car accident that left me near death and my dear brother brain damaged. But what they say can't be true-can it?
I believe the medicine is doing strange things to my memory. I'm unsure who I can trust and who I should run from. And I'm starting to remember things I've never known. Things not about me. I think I'm going crazy.
And even worse, I think they want to kill me.
But who? And for what? Is dying for the truth really better than living with a lie?
Sometimes dying with the truth is better than living with a lie.
After a car accident puts Shauna McAllister in a coma and wipes out six months of her memory, she returns to her childhood home to recover, but her arrival is fraught with confusion.
Her estranged father, a senator bidding on the White House, and her abusive stepmother blame Shauna for the tragedy, which has left her beloved brother severely brain damaged. Leaning on Wayne Spade, a forgotten but hopeful lover who stays by her side, Shauna tries to sort out what happened that night by jarring her memory to life. Instead, she acquires a mysterious mental ability that will either lead her to truth or get her killed by the people trying to hide it.
In this blind game of cat and mouse that stares even the darkest memories in the face, Shauna is sure of only one thing: if she remembers, she dies.
Would you like to read the first chapter of KISS? Then click here.
My Review:
Kiss is an interesting blend of what-if and humanity at it's worst, at it's most resilient.
Full of paranoia, back-stabbing intrigue and political posturing, Kiss delivers a page-turning read.
More cat and mouse than outright adrenaline, Kiss, also asks some deep questions about the human condition. Healy has added softness to Dekker's usual black and white evil vs truth scenarios. But this isn't a purely girl read by any stretch. Not totally believable, like Dekker ever falls into that category, but conceivable and that's where Dekker seems to reside. Like I said, the land of what if, well done.
My Review:
This film is far more entertaining than I expected.
Depending on the movie I either like Eddie Murphy or can barely tolerate him. This is one of his keepers. With near perfect comedic physical humor, Murphy plays a believable space ship and ship captain. Some of the dialog is comedy gold. Murphy's robotic awakenings and learning curve are laugh out loud hilarious.
Amazingly clean with the exception of a few party scenes where the crew reacts to new stimuli including mojitos and salsa dancing. A number of crew members (the weapons expert is exposed to the Rockettes and is never the same, the tech guy finds MySpace) play out some stereotypes that tend to get annoying, but do add a bit to the story. Plenty of bodily function humor. The mostly family friendly storyline makes for some predictability.
Fans of Murphy's Daddy Day Care and Dr Doolittle, and fans of Galaxy Quest should find much to like.
