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GREAT SUMMER READS 2020, DAY 12, FEATURING AUTHOR DONNA HATCH #donnahatch #lovingthebook

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Multi-award-winning author of 25 best-selling Regency Historical Romances, Donna Hatch is a hopeful romantic and an adventurer at heart. Each book she writes is filled with wit and heart and plenty of swoon-worthy romance. Donna sings, plays the harp, and loves to ballroom dance. Her family, including six children and two cats, recently left their native Arizona for the Pacific coast of the US. No matter where they live, she and her husband of over twenty years are proof that there truly is a happily ever after.



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The widowed Elise is a perfect English lady living within the confines of society for the sake of her impressionable young son. Her quiet world is shattered when she meets the impulsive and scandalous Jared Amesbury. His roguish charm awakens her yearning for adventure. But his irrepressible grin and sea-green eyes hide a secret.

A gentleman by day, a pirate by night, Jared must complete one last assignment from the Secret Service before he can be truly free. Elise gives him hope that he, too, can find love and belonging. His hopes are crushed when his best laid plans go awry and Elise is dragged into his world of violence and deceit. She may not survive the revelation of Jared’s past…or still love him when the truth is revealed.

The Guise of a Gentleman is a wholesome Regency Romance, a.k.a. “clean” that explores finding one’s true self, loyalty, honor, and trusting loved ones. With plenty of swashbuckling action, it provides a several good twists that play off of familiar situations and proudly proclaims the redemptive power of love. 



Top Ten List:

Donna’s Top 10 Favorite Things to do in the Summer
1. Go for long walks with a friend
2. Have a tea party
3. Go to the beach
4. Build sandcastles
5. Watch the sunset
6. Visit gardens
7. Make ice cream
8. Hike with my family
9. Play miniature golf
10. Read a good book
 (Actually, I love doing most of these in the winter, too.)





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GREAT SUMMER READS 2020, DAY 11, FEATURING AUTHOR KARLIE LUCAS #karlielucas #lovingthebook

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Karlie Lucas is a school crossing guard by day and a writer/artist by night. 

 A graduate of Southern Utah University, Karlie received a B.A. in Creative Writing, with a minor in art. She is a member of Sigma Tau Delta, The International English Honor Society, SCBWI, as well as ANWA, the American Night Writers Association.
Karlie is interested in all things magical and mysterious, especially elves and dragons. She is an avid fan of J.R.R. Tolkien and J.K. Rowling.

 When not writing, Karlie can often be found drawing, baking, watching her favorite old school shows, or just spending time with her family.

 She currently resides in Dallas, Texas with her husband and a cat named Kally. 

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 For hundreds of years, the gates of Tarragon have been sealed from the outside. Prophecy speaks of the day the last Key Keeper will return and wake the dragons from their spell-cast slumber, returning them to their rightful home.


Seeking to fulfill her father’s dying wish, Anwen Porter travels to the Drakonii Mountains where she meets Tyler, a mysterious local with a secret. With his help, she learns more about her clouded past and her own abilities. But when Courtney, a lovesick mage, tries to insert herself into their plans, things begin to go horribly wrong.
With death threatening at every turn, Anwen must learn to rely on her newfound friends to survive. 

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Top Ten List:

Top Ten People I would like to meet.
1. J.R.R. Tolkien. I mean, who wouldn’t want to meet the “father” of fantasy?
2. J.K. Rowling. If she can make it with an oddball fantasy series, surely I can too, and I’d love to pick her brain about that.
3. Joan of Ark – I think her life story is just fascinating.
4. C.S. Lewis – He was an amazing writer. Can’t imagine what life would be like without Narnia.
5. Robin McKinley – She’s always been one of my fave fantasy authors. I have a few bones to pick though, about hinted stories that never got written.
6. Mark Twain – He seems like he’d have been a great guy to know.
7. Albert Einstein – Would love to meet the man who contributed so much to how we see the world.
8. King Charlemagne – An ancestor on both sides of the family, I understand he was one of the first people to instigate a public education system for his people. That, and he had some really cool things happen in his life. 
9. Harrison Ford – He’s one of my fave actors of all time. He’s just awesome.
10. Danny Kaye – Another childhood favorite actor, I think Danny and I would have gotten along swimmingly. That, and the fact that he sang like a dream, even though he couldn’t read a note of music.




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GREAT SUMMER READS 2020, DAY 10, FEATURING AUTHOR BECCA MCCULLOCH #beccamcculloch #lovingthebook

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Becca McCulloch is a wife, mother, professor, and writer but rarely in that order (if in any order at all). At night, she transitions from mild-mannered educator into mild-mannered artist, writing about LDS (Mormon) issues in a modern and complex world. In 2016, she won the Storymakers’ First Chapter Contest/General Fiction category. In 2019, her novel, Hermana, was named the General Fiction category winner for the LDS Publishers Media Association.


Becca resides in Utah with her husband, 2 children, Great Dane, two cats, and a pesky, yet friendly raccoon that won’t leave the outdoor shed.




WINNER! 2019 general fiction book of the year from the LDS Publishers Media Association.


Bookish and street-smart Lannie Lewis wants to be more than the child of a broken home who flunked out of music school. Full-time mission service will carry her away from the problems with her dad and immerse her hands in the work of God, or, it would if she’d stop hiding in the bathroom and wishing the island had better bug spray. When a disaster transforms her mission into a world of peril and overwhelming need, she will have to learn to hear the Lord’s voice for herself, even if it means she stands against the crowd. 

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Top Ten List:

1. I won my first writing award at age 17 for a fictional letter Eliza Hamilton wrote her husband.
2. I kissed a senior boy under the mistletoe when I was a freshman. It was my first kiss.
3. I’m a foster mom (and I love it). I’ve mothered 9 children, though most don’t live with me anymore.
4. I was friends with a man later killed by the CIA (true, I promise)
5. I worked for nearly a decade as a dietitian at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles.
6. I’ve always been politically active. In 1984, I refused to go to bed until the election for President was decided.
7. I have a lot of pets. We are one bunny away from being a petting zoo.
8. I can’t grow plants. Indoor, outdoor, annual, perennial – I’ve killed them all.
9. I met my husband on an LDS dating site.
10. Like Lannie in Hermana, my mission was interrupted by a natural disaster (a hurricane).




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GREAT SUMMER READS 2020, DAY 9, FEATURING AUTHOR REN GARCIA #rengarcia #lovingthebook

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REN GARCIA, is a Science Fiction/Fantasy author and Texas native who grew up in western Ohio. He has been writing since before he could write, often scribbling alien lingo on any available wall or floor with assorted crayons.

He attended The Ohio State University and majored in English Literature. Ren has been an avid lover of anything surreal since childhood, he also has a passion for caving, urban archeology and architecture.

His books are published by Loconeal Publishing and include: The League of Elder: Sygillis of Metatron, The Hazards of the Old Ones, The Dead Held Hands, The Machine, and The Temple of the Exploding Head. LoE Book VI: Sands of the Solar Empire was released in July, 2012 and Book VII: “Against the Druries” was released in 2013. His next set of books,  “The Shadow tech Goddess” was released in 2014 with the most recent book, Stenibelle, released in June 2015.

 He currently lives in Columbus, Ohio with his wife, and their three dogs.


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Starfarers and explorers, the League settled on Kana thousands of years ago. They found it to be a paradise, a perfect, virtually uninhabited planet waiting just for them in the cradle of space.

Lovely Kana … it was too good to be true …
But, all was not as it seemed. Simmering beneath the ground was a demented god who had soaked Kana in blood for untold ages, luring in victims, lying to them, and rejoicing in their suffering as they died at the hands of his dark angels.
And there will be blood again … From his Temple in the ground, the Horned God stirs.
When Lord Kabyl of Blanchefort, a young man troubled by the weight of the world, dares give his heart to a girl from a mysterious ancient household, one that pre-dates the League itself, he comes to know the shadows of the past that hover over her.

He comes to know of the Horned God, and for love he is destined to face him. All roads lead to the Temple of the Exploding Head, a place of evil and death, rooted in the ancient past, but also tied to the distant future.   




Top Ten List:

10:  Ren was once engaged to a woman 25 years his elder.
9:    Ren visited New York City and admired the World Trade Center towers just a month or so before the tragedy of 9/11.
8:    The FBI once put a gun in Ren’s face.
7:    Bad hearts run in Ren’s family. He’s already outlived most of his paternal grandfathers, all of whom died in their 30’s.
6:    Ren’s poor eyesight went undiagnosed until he was in the 3rd grade. Up until that point, he was considered “mentally challenged”.
5:    Ren broke his neck playing volleyball in college.
4:    Ren often sleeps on the floor, finding it more comfortable than the bed.
3:    Ren was once held at gunpoint and frisked by the guards of the Prince of Saudi Arabia.
2:    Ren was introduced to his wife via Match Makers International.
1:    In a vast extended family of exclusively brown-eyed people, Ren somehow managed to get blue eyes.   




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GREAT SUMMER READS 2020, DAY 8, FEATURING AUTHOR CAS PEACE #caspeace #lovingthebook

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Cas lives in the lovely county of Hampshire, southern UK, where she was born. On leaving school she trained for two years before qualifying as horse-riding instructor. During this time she also learned to carriage-drive. She spent thirteen years in the British Civil Service before moving to Rome, Italy, where she and her husband, Dave, lived for three years. They enjoy returning whenever they can. Cas supports many animal charities and owns two rescue dogs. She has a large collection of cacti and loves gardening. She is also a folk singer/songwriter and is currently writing and recording nine folk-style songs to accompany each of her fantasy books. You can listen to and download all the songs from her website: www.caspeace.com 

See the video of her performing live at the King’s Envoy book launch here: http://www.caspeace.com/cas-peace/the-wheel-will-turn



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Taran Elijah’s quest for knowledge uncovers a plot that threatens the world…

Desperate to learn how to control his innate Artesan powers, Taran embarks on a foolhardy plan to acquire the teaching he craves. The military backlash his action unleashes forces Albia’s High King to send Major Sullyan as an envoy to the Fifth Realm. But a dark and treacherous power is moving through the realms and all will feel its influence.

Captured and tortured by the power-hungry Lord Rykan, Sullyan is trapped in Andaryon. Aided by the unlikeliest sources, the major formulates a plan to defeat Rykan and end his quest for the throne. But Sullyan’s strength is fading fast and time is running out. The only thing that can save her is Rykan’s mysterious Staff, which lies buried in the ruins of Taran’s cellar.

Sullyan’s lover, Robin Tamsen, sets out to recover the artefact, but the enemy is two steps ahead of him. If Robin fails to secure the Staff, Sullyan’s life, the Artesan craft, and the very existence of their world is under threat.


Review:
“Cas Peace’s Artesans of Albia trilogy immediately sweeps you away:  the drama starts with King’s Envoy, continues unabated in King’s Champion, and climaxes in King’s Artesan, yet each volume is complete, satisfying.  The Artesan series  propels you into a world so deftly written that you see, feel, touch, and even smell each twist and turn. These nesting novels are evocative, hauntingly real. Smart. Powerful. Compelling. The trilogy teems with finely drawn characters, heroes and villains and societies worth knowing; with stories so organic and yet iconic you know you’ve found another home—in Albia. So start reading now. I, for one, can’t wait to find out what will happen next.

Janet E Morris: Bestselling Author of The Sacred Band of Stepsons series; the Dream Dancer series; I, the Sun; Outpassage; The Silistra Quartet;and editor of the Bangsian In Hell series. Famed contributor to the shared universe fantasy series, Thieves World.


  
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Top Ten List:

1) Anthing to do with animals, especially dogs and horses. My favorite horse breed is the Friesian, which is why I put one in my novels. I also own two rescue dogs and support many animal charities.
2) Singing, especially folk-style songs. I also sing in my local church choir.
3) Chocolate!!
4) Dragons and (I have to admit!) unicorns. I have collected figurines and statues of dragons and unicorns since I was small and have a vast collection, some of which live outdoors. But I don’t like “twee”, only ones that look like they could be real.
5) Reading, especially fantasy and sci-fi.
6) Country walks.
7)All wildlife, especially butterflies. I used to breed and release UK varieties, and belong to the Butterfly Conservation Society.
8) Did I mention chocolate?
9) Spending time with family members.
10) Playing my bodhran (Irish drum). I can’t read music so decided to take up drumming instead! It’s fun and very theraputic.





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GREAT SUMMER READS 2020, DAY 7, FEATURING AUTHOR WENDY LEIGHTON-PORTER #WLP_author #lovingthebook

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A graduate of Exeter University in the early 1980s, I spent 20 years as a teacher of French, Latin and Classical studies, before a change of career led me to writing children’s fiction. Currently residing in Abu Dhabi, I live with my husband and our beautiful Tonkinese cat.

The Shadow of Atlantis is the first in a series of time-travel adventures, featuring 3 children and a rather special cat called Max. I’m now working on the 17th book, The Shadow of the Great Fire. The series also includes several novellas that feature Max the talking Tonkinese cat undertaking solo adventures. As I take my young readers on a magical mystery tour through the past, I’m hoping that my love of history, myth and legend will rub off on them too. 


Book 16 of the Shadows from the Past is a solo adventure for the feline hero of the series, Max the talking Tonkinese cat. The story is set in 1651, during the English Civil War:

The rightful King of England is on the run. With a price on his head and in fear for his life, Charles Stuart is desperate to escape his pursuers, the Parliamentarians who executed his father. A rich reward has been offered for his capture and everyone is on the lookout for the young man. Nowhere is safe. How will he ever manage to flee the country without help?
Never fear – the Guardians of Time have a Special Agent lined up for the job … but he just so happens to be a cat!



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This book is FREE on Amazon today 9 June 2020


Top Ten List:

TOP 10 FAVOURITE BOOKS (in no particular order)
1. The Wind in the Willows – Kenneth Grahame. This is my all-time favourite book from my childhood. Mr Toad was my hero!
2. The Jeeves and Wooster complete series – P. G. Wodehouse. The master  of comedy, Wodehouse’s lightness of touch appears effortless and these books are wonderfully funny. I love them so much that I even named one of my cats after the character of Bertie Wooster!
3. Pride and Prejudice – Jane Austen. As relevant today as it was when it was written, this has to be one of the greatest classics ever. Austen’s incisive observations and witty dialogue are timeless… and who wouldn’t love Mr Darcy?
4. The Silver Pigs – Lindsey Davies. The first book in an entertaining detective series set in Ancient Rome, featuring the amiable private investigator Marcus Didius Falco. This was my favourite in the series.
5. The Daughter of Time – Josephine Tey. I first read this as a teenager and it remains one of my favourite mystery stories of all time. It also introduced me to the story of Richard III and the fate of the princes in the Tower – the subject of one of my own books, The Shadow of the Two Princes.
6. Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone – J. K. Rowling. I remember when this book first came out – there was so much marketing and hype before it even appeared in the shops that I was intrigued to find out what all the fuss was about. I was bowled over by the great story, but also because all the little details are so clever.
7. The Winter King – Thomas Penn. A non-fiction masterpiece that is a must for all history buffs, this account of the reign of King Henry VII won the accolade of History Book of the Year when it was published. I love this author’s work. Thomas Penn presents history in such an engaging way that I find his books difficult to put down.
8. The Brothers York – Thomas Penn. By the same author as above, this compelling historical documentary recounts the lives of King Edward IV, the Duke of Clarence and the infamous Richard III, three brothers of the House of York, one of the two rival factions during the Wars of the Roses.
9. Sovereign – C. J. Sansom. I have read all of C. J. Sansom’s historical novels featuring the sleuthing lawyer, Matthew Shardlake. This book is the third in the series, but it was the first one I read and maybe that’s why it remains my favourite. Set during the reign of the notoriously cruel Henry VIII, the narrative is gripping but also terrifying – so much so that it actually gave me nightmares after reading it. However, the intelligent and compassionate humanity of the protagonist lifts the story out of the mire of Tudor brutality. Being a fast reader, I love novels that I can lose myself in for a long time and, at 688 pages, this is a satisfyingly big, fat wedge of a book!
10. The Odyssey – Homer. From the father of Greek storytelling, this epic is the ultimate adventure –  even though the tale is thousands of years old, it remains fresh and exciting.





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GREAT SUMMER READS 2020, DAY 6, FEATURING AUTHOR DAVID HARRIS #davidharris #lovingthebook

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David Harris Lang writes adventure thrillers set in Asia. 
He has lived and worked most of his life in various countries throughout the Asian region, and his writing is informed by his love and knowledge of the different cultures, foods, thought, and architecture of the different regions of Asia.










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Four Irish Travelers from gypsy families journey to Western China to find the 3,000-year old mummified and bejewelled head of their Celtic ancestor. With a psychotic Japanese woman with Yakuza connections as their guide, their odyssey takes them to the Taklamakan Desert of Western China. 
When one of the Travelers is found dead of unknown causes in an obscure Hong Kong museum, finding the killer becomes one of the most challenging cases for Hong Kong homicide detectives Angela Cheung and Ian Hamilton as they match wits with the Russian mob, a Nigerian art smuggler, the Yakuza, and a murderous bare knuckle boxer.


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Top Ten List:

1. I was born in New York, but my family moved to Asia when I was 6 years-old. I have lived and worked throughout Asia most of my life. Consequently, my stories are set in Asia, it is my ‘neighborhood’.
2. My father and Grandfather were fur traders in China from 1923 to 1937. When the Japanese invaded China in 1937 they barely escaped just before getting thrown into an internment camp. My novel ‘The Journal of Rabbi Levy Wang’ is set in 1937 China and describes the escape of two Western businessmen from the country, along with a precious ruby and an historic Torah.
3. My stories are thrillers, and of course thrillers have ‘good guys’ and ‘bad guys’. However, my good guys are not completely good, and my bad guys are not completely bad. There is always conflict, in the proponents’ minds as well as between each other. These conflicts inevitably erupt into physical fights. Since the age of fourteen I have been involved in the martial arts, from judo, to Shotokan karate, to Muay Thai, to Taekwondo, to Western boxing, and these skills enable me to accurately describe these fights in my novels.
4. I am a total foodie. I therefore sneak very accurate descriptions of local Asian cuisines into my writing. I therefore not only take my readers on a thrilling odyssey but my succulent food descriptions make them hungry to boot!
5. I’ve always had a dog. I connect with most dogs. Some dogs, though, especially ones whose eyes are covered with hair, I have difficulty with.
6. As well as being a writer I am an architect. I have designed and built shopping malls throughout Asia. This vocation has allowed me the opportunity to travel to some very obscure and seldom-visited parts of Asia.
7. I got into writing because I felt that the corporate world was sucking the creativity out of me. I vacillated between starting to paint or starting to write, finally choosing writing as it was not as messy as painting (I hate cleaning brushes). I travel a lot, so I write a lot on airplanes.
8. I am, on the whole, a very positive person (or at least I try to be). There are some parts of our current culture, however, that really annoy me, such as peoples’ obsessions with their smartphones. Real life is happening around you, people, get your attention out of your phone screen!
9. I had a knee replacement (thank you, twenty years of Taekwondo). This is not necessarily a ‘fun’ fact, but it is interesting to me how the human body modifies and adapts to something so alien being placed in the body as an artificial knee. (Seeds of a story there?)
10. I am a very unsuperstitious person, but I do believe in connections. I have a Chinese gold ring that my grandfather wore in the 1920’s. The band of the ring is two intertwined dragons, and on the face has the Chinese characters for long life and prosperity. When I wear that ring, I feel connected to not only my ancestral lineage, but to some ancient power.




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GREAT SUMMER READS 2020, DAY 5, FEATURING AUTHOR MARNI GRAFF #GraffMarni #lovingthebook

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Marni Graff writes two award-winning mystery series: The Nora Tierney English Mysteries and The Trudy Genova Manhattan Mysteries. She teaches writing workshops and mentors the Writers Read program, and is Managing Editor of Bridle Path Press. 



Graff also writes the crime review blog Auntie M Writes, www.auntiemwrites.com.



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Nurse Trudy Genova is making plans to take her relationship to NYPD detective Ned O’Malley to the next level, when she lands a gig as medical consultant on a film shoot at the famed Dakota apartment building in Manhattan, which John Lennon once called home. Then star Monica Kiley goes missing, a cast member turns up dead, and it appears Trudy might be next. Meanwhile Ned tackles a mysterious murder case in which the victim is burned beyond recognition. When his investigations lead him back to the Dakota, Trudy finds herself wondering: how can she fall in love if she can’t even survive?

 Readers of Death Unscripted, the first book in the Trudy Genova Manhattan Mystery series, will find the same pleasures in this sequel: fast pacing, engaging characters, twists and turns on the way to a satisfying close. From the award-winning author of The Nora Tierney English Mysteries, this second series is a winner. Once again M.K. Graff reveals her talents in crafting this delightful mix of amateur sleuth and police procedural.

Part procedural, part cozy, Death at the Dakota is a well-crafted and highly entertaining mystery.- Bruce Robert Coffin, #1 bestselling author of the Detective Byron mysteries.  

I fell in love — not only with co-protagonists, Trudy and Ned, the richly detailed and historic setting of The Dakota, and the unique cast of characters, but with the unusual plot of Death at the Dakota. Sherry Harris, Agatha Award nominated author of the Sarah Winston Garage Sale Mysteries



  
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Top Ten List:

Top 10 Favorites, in no particular order and besides my husband and family:

1- My dogs, Radar, a 10 yr old Italian Spinone and our new Aussie Doodle puppy, Seamus
 
2- Mysteries to read, esp. a series
 
3- Pizza, well done with pepperoni
 
4- Vodka gimlet, heavy on the lime juice
 
5- Black and White movies from the 30-40s, esp Cary Grant and Katherine Hepburn
 
6- The hour before sunset when everything it lit with a subtle glow
 
7- The UK; a real Anglophile for travel
 
8- New York City
 
9- Crisp new stationary 
 
10- Clean sheets





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GREAT SUMMER READS 2020, DAY 4, FEATURING AUTHOR RANDY LINDSAY #randylindsay #lovingthebook

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RANDY LINDSAY is a native of Arizona. He lives in Mesa with his wife, five of his nine children, a dog, a cat, and a hyperactive imagination. His wife calls him the “Story Man” because he sees everything as material for a story. He has three books traditionally published and four indie-published titles.
As a family historian, Randy has 14 years of genealogy experience. He has researched over 5,000 names in his own family tree and helped over a dozen other people in their ancestral quests. He has a passion for family history and a newfound appreciation for the frequency in which family relations can turn out to be different than what everyone believes to be true.

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“Raised in a family he bore little resemblance to, Randy was jokingly referred to as “”the milkman’s son.”” This warm and candid memoir chronicles the unraveling of a family secret, which begins with Randy’s dad having dreams about deceased relatives urging him to complete their family tree. Randy agrees to help with the genealogy, but after his searching leads to a dead end, he takes a commercially available DNA test. The results reveal a possible genetic match to a sister, which begins a familial quest that forever changes the author’s life.

Featuring a cast of vivid characters, richly drawn from two distinct families, The Milkman’s Son, reveals on man’s family tree, pulling back layers of new information as he gets closer to the truth–a biological father, siblings, and family members he never knew existed.
This is a story of accepting, forgiving, reuniting, and, most importantly, it’s about the bonds that connect us and the unconditional love that makes us feel like we belong. “

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Top Ten List:

Here are my 10 favorite things:
1.My all-time favorite thing is . . . my wife. 
2.My favorite flavor ice cream is Rocky Road.
3.My favorite food is ice cream. 
4.My favorite movie is “It’s a Wonderful Life.” (The original.)
5.My favorite activity is going to the movies. 
6.My favorite distraction is family history research. 
7.My favorite book is Damnation Alley by Roger Zelazny. 
8.My favorite author is Edgar Rice Burroughs. 
9.My favorite song is “Lean on Me” by Bill Withers.
10.My favorite band/singer is Bachman-Turner Overdrive. 




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GREAT SUMMER READS 2020, DAY 3, FEATURING AUTHOR WENDY LEIGHTON-PORTER #WLP_author #lovingthebook

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A graduate of Exeter University in the early 1980s, I spent 20 years as a teacher of French, Latin and Classical studies, before a change of career led me to writing children’s fiction. Currently residing in Abu Dhabi, I live with my husband and our beautiful Tonkinese cat.

The Shadow of Atlantis is the first in a series of time-travel adventures, featuring 3 children and a rather special cat called Max. I’m now working on the 17th book, The Shadow of the Great Fire. The series also includes several novellas that feature Max the talking Tonkinese cat undertaking solo adventures. As I take my young readers on a magical mystery tour through the past, I’m hoping that my love of history, myth and legend will rub off on them too. 


Ten-year-old twins Jemima and Joe Lancelot have no idea why their parents have disappeared, but a mysterious old book belonging to their father holds the answer … and so begins a quest to uncover the truth. 

Together with Max their Tonkinese cat, and Charlie from next door, the children embark on an epic adventure, travelling back in time to the lost city of Atlantis, unaware of the dangers that await them. 

Can they save the people of Atlantis from the disaster which is about to destroy their land forever? And will they find their way back to the safety of their own time before it’s too late?

The Shadows from the Past time-travel adventures for Middle Grade readers take place over the course of the school summer holidays. The Shadow of Atlantis is the first book in the series and this is where it all begins. As the mystery unfolds, my young heroes embark on a magical journey into the past and a quest to unlock the secrets of an old book that is a gateway into the pages of history. 


Top Ten List:

10 FACTS ABOUT ME
1. I’m a “cataholic” or, more specifically, a “Tonkaholic”. I’m know I’m biased, but I think Tonkinese are the best cats in the world. Beautiful to look at, with jewel-like eyes of aquamarine, they have amazing personalities – super-intelligent, loving, sociable and talkative.
2. I have a passion for history and archaeology. I love delving into the past and am in my element when I get the chance to explore ancient ruins.
3. Books and reading are an essential part of my life. My Dad taught me to read before I even started school and I’ve never been without a book in my hands ever since. I often have two or more on the go at the same time.
4. I’m at my happiest by the sea, with the sound of waves lapping on the shore. I think it must come from being born under the astrological sign of the crab!
5. My favourite time of year is early summer when the weather is warm, but everything is still fresh and green.
6. I’m originally from the UK and was lucky to grow up in a beautiful village in the Cotswolds.
7. My main home is in France, but I’ve been living in Abu Dhabi (in the UAE) for the past 6 years, because of my husband’s job.
8. One of my guilty pleasures is Sticky Toffee Pudding! I can never resist it when it’s on the menu. 
9. My husband teases me for being uber-competitive!
10. As a former teacher of French and Latin, I obviously love languages. I speak several, some better than others, and never want to stop learning. I’m ashamed to say that my Arabic hasn’t yet progressed beyond the basic stages, though – it’s hard! 


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