I read this book and saw the Robert Redford version of the film in high school and really don't recall too much of either other than I wasn't all that impressed.
So, while I didn't expect to be impressed with the story with the new Baz Luhrmann production starring Di Caprio, I did expect to be impressed by the sets, costumes and music and on those points I wasn't disappointed. He makes visually stunning movies. Totally Wow!
I can't say anything bad about the acting because the cast is so fabulous.
Is it worth a view? Yes.
Worth a buy? It's not one I'd watch over and over.
Actually, come to think of it, I have trouble watching any of Luhrmann's films over and over. They are just so emotionally deep. Except I didn't cry over anyone in this. Again, I think that's the story, not the presentation.
I'm always wanting Gatsby to get over Daisy and move on to someone else.
Do you love Gatsby?
Tuesday, November 12, 2013
Friday, November 8, 2013
Spy for a Spy
We're celebrating the launch of Spy for a Spy, sequel to I, Spy! Read on to get a cool spy tip for your daily life, free & discounted reads, and enter to win some great prizes! You can also find Spy for a Spy at the special $3.99 launch discount on Amazon, Kobo, Barnes & Noble and JordanMcCollum.com!
About the Book
Canada is probably the last place you’d expect to find an American spy. And it was the last place CIA operative Talia Reynolds expected to run into fellow operative Brand Copley. AKA her new boss. AKA her ex-boyfriend.Just the guy every woman wants to face in the middle of planning her wedding. Once again, Talia’s lying to the man she loves, but this time, to protect his heart.
After Brand takes over Talia’s latest case and steals her newest agent, he assigns her to spy on her old boss—who’s suddenly giving her every reason not to trust him. With only weeks until the big day, planning falls by the wayside as she goes into damage control mode. But when Talia discovers Brand’s real motives, fighting him is the only option, no matter what the personal and professional cost.
More about Spy for a Spy | Add Spy for a Spy to your Goodreads to-read list!
Hone your spy skills
Spy skills can come in handy in the most unusual situations, like this one . . .Further hone your spy skills by reading Spy for a Spy!
About the author
An award-winning author, Jordan McCollum can’t resist a story where good defeats evil and true love conquers all. In her day job, she coerces people to do things they don’t want to, elicits information and generally manipulates the people she loves most—she’s a mom.
Jordan holds a degree in American Studies and Linguistics from Brigham Young University. When she catches a spare minute, her hobbies include reading, knitting and music. She lives with her husband and four children in Utah.
Join the party & enter to win!
As part of the debut of Spy for a Spy, Jordan is co-hosting a launch party with Julie Coulter Bellon, author of Pocket Full of Posies. Join us November 12 on Facebook (Jordan's and Julie's pages) and Twitter (follow Julie and Jordan) for drawings throughout the day, and enter to win more fabulous prizes here!!a Rafflecopter giveaway
Special deals!
Spy for a Spy is a sequel to the novel I, Spy, available for 99¢ at Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Jordan's site this week only!To save her country and her secrets, CIA operative Talia Reynolds will have to sacrifice the man she loves. More about I, Spy.
Also, as a free gift this week, Jordan is giving out free e-copies of a prequel novella, Mr. Nice Spy, on Amazon and her site!
Thursday, November 7, 2013
Carol of the Tales
Carol of the Tales and Other Nightly Noels: An Advent Anthology, Volume 2
Christmas carols capture the spirit of Christmas, and Carol of the Tales and Other Nightly Noels brings beloved carols to life like never before. Throw your cares away with the tales from sweet silver bells. Find out how Santa Claus dabbles in time travel, and feel the redemption of a dying wife's parting Christmas gift. Experience all this and more in these heartfelt, entertaining tales donated by a team of authors from across the country, working together for a good cause. The proceeds from the sale of this book will be donated toward Autism research and advocacy.
Anthology authors include: Shirley Bahlmann, C. David Belt, Rebecca Carlson, Loretta Carter, Madonna D. Christensen, Danyelle Ferguson, C. Michelle Jefferies, Theric Jepson, Ryan Larsen, Angie Lofthouse, Betsy Love, J. Lloyd Morgan, Janet Olsen, Teresa G. Osgood, Brian Ricks, Jennifer Ricks, Peg Russell, and Michael Young.
Carol of the Tales is the 2nd book in the Advent Anthology series. Both anthologies are available in paperback and Amazon Kindle
formats from Amazon.com.
To kick off the release of the second anthology, a Christmas
concert will be held at American Fork Junior High on December 7th,
2013. The concert will feature the Saltaires Barbershop Chorus. All proceeds from this concert will be donated to charity as well. Purchase: Tickets for the Concert: https://tickettool.net/en/index/eventpopup/b54dab4bd0a13fa6975068f4784dfaa5
formats from Amazon.com.
Purchase “Sing We Now of Christmas”: http://amzn.com/1479266248
Purchase: “Carol of the Tales”: http://amzn.com/1484145526
To kick off the release of the second anthology, a Christmas
concert will be held at American Fork Junior High on December 7th,
2013. The concert will feature the Saltaires Barbershop Chorus. All proceeds from this concert will be donated to charity as well. Purchase: Tickets for the Concert: https://tickettool.net/en/index/eventpopup/b54dab4bd0a13fa6975068f4784dfaa5
Blog Tour Giveaway!
Use the rafflecopter below to enter to win wonderful prizes, such as tickets to the concert and copies of the anthology.
Other Blogs on the Tour:
Tuesday, November 5, 2013
Wuthering Heights
I've never been a Bronte fan. I've read Jane Eyre and seen the film (although not the most recent one) and I just don't get the style of writing.
Many long years ago I scraped through the first 10 pages of this book and then shut it forever.
So, when I finally finished Season 3 of Downton Abbey *sob* there was a 1998 copy of Masterpiece Theater's film version of Wuthering Heights inside the case. I grit my teeth and sat down to watch it, while I folded laundry of course. I hoped by watching this classic I might gain some interest or insight to the Brontes but it wasn't to be.
It was painful. I couldn't get myself to care about any of the selfish characters in the story and didn't shed a tear when anyone died. What does Cathy see in Heathcliff? So don't get it.
I don't know if any of the other versions are any better, but since the story won't change, I doubt my opinion would.
The best thing about this film was Matthew Macfadyen, except he's only in it for about 10 minutes max.
Worth a view? No.
My apologies to you lovers of Bronte and their books. I don't think I'll ever be a fan.
Many long years ago I scraped through the first 10 pages of this book and then shut it forever.
So, when I finally finished Season 3 of Downton Abbey *sob* there was a 1998 copy of Masterpiece Theater's film version of Wuthering Heights inside the case. I grit my teeth and sat down to watch it, while I folded laundry of course. I hoped by watching this classic I might gain some interest or insight to the Brontes but it wasn't to be.
It was painful. I couldn't get myself to care about any of the selfish characters in the story and didn't shed a tear when anyone died. What does Cathy see in Heathcliff? So don't get it.
I don't know if any of the other versions are any better, but since the story won't change, I doubt my opinion would.
The best thing about this film was Matthew Macfadyen, except he's only in it for about 10 minutes max.
Worth a view? No.
My apologies to you lovers of Bronte and their books. I don't think I'll ever be a fan.
Thursday, October 31, 2013
Tips for NaNoWriMo
A few quick tips for those of you participating in NaNoWriMo this year:
1. Commit and sign up
2. Outline
3. Divide up your daily word count for the month
4. Write in small time increments
5. When you hit your word count goal for the day stop writing
6. Sprint
7. Get support from fellow writers and the people in your home
8. Let some things slide
9. Trim your nails
10. It's okay if you fall short of the 50,000 words in 30 days!
Good luck! I'm cheering for all of you!!!
1. Commit and sign up
2. Outline
3. Divide up your daily word count for the month
4. Write in small time increments
5. When you hit your word count goal for the day stop writing
6. Sprint
7. Get support from fellow writers and the people in your home
8. Let some things slide
9. Trim your nails
10. It's okay if you fall short of the 50,000 words in 30 days!
Good luck! I'm cheering for all of you!!!
Blackmoore
If you loved Edenbrooke, then you won't be disappointed by Blackmoore and will love it just as much, perhaps even more.
As a romance writer, I bow in admiration to Julianne Donaldson's mastery of her craft. I don't know what her past history as a writer is, but I know few writers who can knock it out of the park with their first book like she did with Edenbrooke. I was curious if she could do the same with Blackmoore. She totally did.
Blackmoore has a different voice and tone than Edenbrooke. Where Edenbrooke was playful with lurking danger, Blackmoore is more serious and wild. The writing of the book takes on the flavor of it's moor environment: bleak, windswept but undeniably beautiful in it's own way. I'm not doing justice to the writing. I'm not sure I can. I think reading it is your best option to understand the point I'm trying so unsuccessfully to illustrate.
I loved the heroine. Kate wants to flee her family and with serious good reasons. She has locked up her heart to spare another pain. If I was still a nail biter, I'd have chewed them off in the first few chapters. Ms. Donaldson sweeps us into the book and into Kate's heart with seeming little effort. Another mark of a great writer. Plus her descriptions of eyes are incredible. I don't know how she came up with so many ways to describe them. A master class.
My heart ached all the way through the book for Kate and Henry, but I couldn't put it down. I had to know how it would end, which I wouldn't dream of spoiling for you.
Look, if you can't guess from my gushing. I loved it. It easily goes on your 'must read' list for 2013.
What will this brilliant woman write next? And will we have to wait 2 years for the next one? Did you find Blackmoore equal to Edenbrooke?
http://www.amazon.com/Blackmoore-ebook/dp/B00E8IIWDM/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1381092464&sr=1-1&keywords=blackmoore+by+julianne+donaldson
Kate Worthington knows her heart and she knows she will never to marry. Her plan is to travel to India instead—if only to find peace for her restless spirit and to escape the family she abhors. But Kate’s meddlesome mother has other plans. She makes a bargain with Kate: India, yes, but only after Kate has secured—and rejected—three marriage proposals.
Kate journeys to the stately manor of Blackmoore determined to fulfill her end of the bargain sooner rather than later and enlists the help of her dearest childhood friend, Henry Delafield. But when it comes to matters of love, bargains are meaningless and plans are changeable. There on the wild lands of Blackmoore, Kate must face the truth that has kept her heart captive. Will the proposal she is determined to reject actually be the one thing that will set her heart free?
Set in Northern England in 1820, Blackmoore is a regency romance that tells the story of a young woman struggling to learn how to follow her heart.
As a romance writer, I bow in admiration to Julianne Donaldson's mastery of her craft. I don't know what her past history as a writer is, but I know few writers who can knock it out of the park with their first book like she did with Edenbrooke. I was curious if she could do the same with Blackmoore. She totally did.
Blackmoore has a different voice and tone than Edenbrooke. Where Edenbrooke was playful with lurking danger, Blackmoore is more serious and wild. The writing of the book takes on the flavor of it's moor environment: bleak, windswept but undeniably beautiful in it's own way. I'm not doing justice to the writing. I'm not sure I can. I think reading it is your best option to understand the point I'm trying so unsuccessfully to illustrate.
I loved the heroine. Kate wants to flee her family and with serious good reasons. She has locked up her heart to spare another pain. If I was still a nail biter, I'd have chewed them off in the first few chapters. Ms. Donaldson sweeps us into the book and into Kate's heart with seeming little effort. Another mark of a great writer. Plus her descriptions of eyes are incredible. I don't know how she came up with so many ways to describe them. A master class.
My heart ached all the way through the book for Kate and Henry, but I couldn't put it down. I had to know how it would end, which I wouldn't dream of spoiling for you.
Look, if you can't guess from my gushing. I loved it. It easily goes on your 'must read' list for 2013.
What will this brilliant woman write next? And will we have to wait 2 years for the next one? Did you find Blackmoore equal to Edenbrooke?
http://www.amazon.com/Blackmoore-ebook/dp/B00E8IIWDM/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1381092464&sr=1-1&keywords=blackmoore+by+julianne+donaldson
Kate Worthington knows her heart and she knows she will never to marry. Her plan is to travel to India instead—if only to find peace for her restless spirit and to escape the family she abhors. But Kate’s meddlesome mother has other plans. She makes a bargain with Kate: India, yes, but only after Kate has secured—and rejected—three marriage proposals.
Kate journeys to the stately manor of Blackmoore determined to fulfill her end of the bargain sooner rather than later and enlists the help of her dearest childhood friend, Henry Delafield. But when it comes to matters of love, bargains are meaningless and plans are changeable. There on the wild lands of Blackmoore, Kate must face the truth that has kept her heart captive. Will the proposal she is determined to reject actually be the one thing that will set her heart free?
Set in Northern England in 1820, Blackmoore is a regency romance that tells the story of a young woman struggling to learn how to follow her heart.
Wednesday, October 30, 2013
Big Announcement!
I've been looking forward all year to participating in NaNoWriMo and deciding between two books I want to write, but sadly I won't be writing my 50,000 words in 30 days this year. There are two reasons why:
1. I'll be gone to Florida for 10 days for Thanksgiving. That combined with not writing on weekends only left me 16 days to write, and while I managed it in 22 days last year, even I'm not that crazy!
2. I've decided to launch my first novel FALLEN ANGEL on FRIDAY, FEB 7th, 2014!
The best time to launch a romance novel is February when we celebrate Valentine's Day, right?
So, I need the month of Nov to make one final pass at the manuscript and get it ready to load, set up a blog tour, and finalize the art work so I can be ready to send out ARCs in Dec to those on the blog tour, etc.
It's a big undertaking that I'm both nervous and excited for!
I've paid close attention the past 3-4 years to all my writer friends who have published both traditionally and indie and have seen the pros and cons of both. I drafted query letters and prepped manuscripts and even got rejections all of which I felt brought me that much closer to being a 'published' author.
What really put my goals in perspective last month were two things:
1. Just before I left for Midwest Storymakers my hubby and I had lunch. He asked me (paraphrased): "You've got 3 finished novels. What are you going to do with them? When are you going to get them published?"
2. I spent the Midwest Storymakers conference pondering: What are my goals with my novels? To be an international bestseller? (not likely) national bestseller? (again not likely) land a movie deal? (my fave fantasy), fame and fortune? (no thanks) to write and produce a good product? BINGO!
Plus, I realized, even if I landed an agent/publisher today, my book likely wouldn't come out for another year or two. Fallen Angel has already languished on my computer for far too long. Ring on Her Finger is almost ready to go. The Make-Out Artist needs editing and then it's ready too.
Self publishing fits my goals. Write a good story, edit it to within an inch of both our lives, then deliver a clean and beautiful copy for the world to read.
Make $10 bucks to celebrate with ice cream paired with an incredible brownie and fudge sauce. LOL!
I applaud and support my fellow authors who publish traditional and indie. I hope they'll be just as supportive of my decision and my work.
So, here's to big decisions and big announcements!
Is anyone out there excited too?
Fallen Angel Blurb
When her angelic beauty, famous voice and precious memories are wiped out by one a motorcycle accident, a rising opera star must choose between the fiancé she cannot remember and the man who fell in love with her at first sight.
In
Fallen Angel, Antonio Tonon does not
believe in love at first sight until he sees her fall into a street in Milan and get hit by a motorcycle.
Compelled to know who she is and if she can return his affection, he becomes
her hospital volunteer only to learn that the accident erased her memory. But
the road to love is obstructed by her tyrannical mother, Renatta’s fiancé
(Marcello), and Antonio’s own lower social status. Forced to redefine his ideas
of honor, love, and family, Antonio must find a way to marry Renatta before she
bends to the will of her mother and resumes her place on the opera stage. If he
fails, Renatta will wed Marcello and sentence Antonio to a lifetime of
loneliness, for love at first sight never happens twice.
1. I'll be gone to Florida for 10 days for Thanksgiving. That combined with not writing on weekends only left me 16 days to write, and while I managed it in 22 days last year, even I'm not that crazy!
2. I've decided to launch my first novel FALLEN ANGEL on FRIDAY, FEB 7th, 2014!
The best time to launch a romance novel is February when we celebrate Valentine's Day, right?
So, I need the month of Nov to make one final pass at the manuscript and get it ready to load, set up a blog tour, and finalize the art work so I can be ready to send out ARCs in Dec to those on the blog tour, etc.
It's a big undertaking that I'm both nervous and excited for!
I've paid close attention the past 3-4 years to all my writer friends who have published both traditionally and indie and have seen the pros and cons of both. I drafted query letters and prepped manuscripts and even got rejections all of which I felt brought me that much closer to being a 'published' author.
What really put my goals in perspective last month were two things:
1. Just before I left for Midwest Storymakers my hubby and I had lunch. He asked me (paraphrased): "You've got 3 finished novels. What are you going to do with them? When are you going to get them published?"
2. I spent the Midwest Storymakers conference pondering: What are my goals with my novels? To be an international bestseller? (not likely) national bestseller? (again not likely) land a movie deal? (my fave fantasy), fame and fortune? (no thanks) to write and produce a good product? BINGO!
Plus, I realized, even if I landed an agent/publisher today, my book likely wouldn't come out for another year or two. Fallen Angel has already languished on my computer for far too long. Ring on Her Finger is almost ready to go. The Make-Out Artist needs editing and then it's ready too.
Self publishing fits my goals. Write a good story, edit it to within an inch of both our lives, then deliver a clean and beautiful copy for the world to read.
Make $10 bucks to celebrate with ice cream paired with an incredible brownie and fudge sauce. LOL!
I applaud and support my fellow authors who publish traditional and indie. I hope they'll be just as supportive of my decision and my work.
So, here's to big decisions and big announcements!
Is anyone out there excited too?
Fallen Angel Blurb
When her angelic beauty, famous voice and precious memories are wiped out by one a motorcycle accident, a rising opera star must choose between the fiancé she cannot remember and the man who fell in love with her at first sight.
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