Winner: Fool For Books Giveaway Hop

And the winner of our FOOL FOR BOOKS GIVEAWAY HOP is.....

~Enamored Soul~

Thank you to everyone who joined in the fun!!

To the winner: Check your inbox and reply to the "winner notification email" with the postal address where you want the book(s) to be sent to.

Please note that the winner has one week to reply. If no response is received after one week, a new winner will be picked.

WW28: A WILD LIGHT

WW28
A chance to showcase your favourite!

• First you grab our Wicked Wednesday pic.
• Then you grab a book. Turn to page 28. Take the first sentence. And then you post it in your site with a link back to WW28.
• Come back to Cherry Mischievous - WW28 and give us the url of your post (in a comment at a WW28 post) so that other WW28 readers can find your WW28 offering.

WW28 book offering : A Wild Light by Marjorie Liu
Page 29, 1st Sentence:

I backed away from him, feeling cornered in that expansive room.

There was no page 28, so I picked the first sentence in page 29.

About A Wild Light:

For too long Maxine Kiss has felt an inexplicable darkness inside her-a force she channels into hunting the demons bent on destroying the human race. But when she finds herself covered in blood and crouched beside her grandfather’s dead body with no memory of what happened, Maxine begins to fear that the darkness has finally consumed her.

Source: Info in the About A Wild Light was taken from the author's website at http://marjoriemliu.com/index.php?/novels/details/a_wild_light/ on 20/09/2010.

Review: SASHA'S CALLING

Sasha's Calling by T.C. Archer

Genre: science fiction erotica

Format: ebook

About Sasha's Calling:

Nothing can stop freelance thief Sasha Smirnov from saving her planet -- except, Dirk, the gorgeous ambassador with polychrome eyes. Is it lust or designer pheromones? He is hot, too hot to resist -- or forget. A single, sizzling kiss burns him into her memory, and her body, but she can't afford to stop for passion, let alone love.

Sasha needs to get as far away from Dirk as possible and take the classified data she stole with her. So she stows away on a ship outward bound, only to discover Dirk's the pilot. Now she can't get away from him, or the system, but he will let her into his bed...

Source: Info in the About Sasha's Calling was taken from the publisher's site at http://www.loose-id.com/Sashas-Calling.aspx on 30/03/2011.

Review:
Sasha Smirnov is on a mission to save her planet and the people on it. Not only is the safety of Magnus 3 important but also the safety and sanity of her father. Working freelance and sneaking on to Centor, where she is stealing important information. Sasha is discovered and a chase ensues which leads Sasha to stumble upon the Warp Generator. This technology will save her planet. To get this information into the right hands (these hands do not include her boss's Orsans enchanced mauling hands) She must escape alive and avoid the Pinkertons who seem to know her every move. Before Sasha can escape Centor, she runs directly into Dirk Roscoepilot and in an attempt to hide from her persuers, she takes the initiative, plasters herself to Dirk in an explosive kiss. Fleeing to the nearest ship and determined to stowaway to safety, Sasha is having complex feelings about that kiss and the reaction she's having to it. What she doesn't expect is to encounter Dirk again, or that the ship she is hiding on is none other than his and he's determined to finish what she started.

I really enjoyed this book. It was fast paced, full of action with a few laugh out loud moments. Really, who wouldn't want some maxi-boob cream?? I'd actually prefer some boob-be-gone, and would love Dirk to rub some of that on me :) I loved the chemistry between Sasha and Dirk. It was an instant, hot attraction and Sasha was sure she was fighting some pheromone Dirk was wearing causing her feelings to go haywire because having such strong feelings for Dirk just seemed impossible. Dirk's character seemed somewhat questionable, I knew he had feelings for Sasha, but his motives were throwing me off. Sasha wasn't sure she could trust him. I knew these two needed to be together and as we gleamed more information about Dirk I was able to let my guard down with him as Sasha was doing the same. Overall, this was a really good read for me, the only thing that maybe bothered me a little, was all the terms. I've only read a few books that have been based in space and I would of loved to have a glossary to refer to, to some of the other planet names, or other species we encountered. It also threw me off at the end when Sasha acknowledged she loved Dirk and told him she loved him but he didn't say it back. I would have like to have heard Dirk say it as well. The story was told through Sasha's point of view and I knew how she was feeling, but I would of liked to have a glimpse into Dirk's feelings. Regardless, I still really enjoyed this and can't wait to see what else T.C. Archer puts out.

Buy Link:


Author Links:
www.tcarcher.com
blog
@TCArcher
MySpace

Acknowledgement(s): We would like to thank the sponsor for the review copy received.

Fool For Books Giveaway Hop

Win £10 BookDepo book!

What is a giveaway hop?
Simple - Each participating blog hosts a giveaway and then we link up together allowing our followers to hop easily from one giveaway to another. For followers that means lots of chances to win free books. For host blogs it means lots of new visitors and followers. It's a win-win!

The Fool For Books Giveaway Hop is hosted by I Am A Reader, Not A Writer & The Bookish Snob. It will take place on April 1st & 2nd.

Each blog will host their own giveaway. There is no requirement on the minimum or maximum value of the giveaway. It can be books, swags, amazon gift cards, or anything else that has to do with books.
All participating blogs will be linked up through a Fool For Books Giveaway linky.

This is what you can win here at Cherry Mischievous:
Prize: £10 Book Depository book of your choice

Contest is open to international readers, subject to BookDepo shipping limitations.
To Enter: All you have to be is a follower of this blog to be entered and leave a comment on this post with a way to contact you, preferably an email add.

• You have to be a follower via Google Friend Connect to be eligible for the draw.
• If you are not yet a follower, just click that "Follow" button on the sidebar to get included in the draw. And then leave a comment in this post with your email add. Or, if you don't want to leave an email add, check back after April 2 to see if you won. Or email it to me at cherrymischif-foolforbooks [at] yahoo [dot] com with the name/alias you are using to enter this contest so that I could marry your email add with your entry.
• If you are already a follower, the same goes with the comment and a way to contact you.
• Please note that you have to make a comment in this contest post to indicate your interest in winning to be entered in the draw.
• Because I've drawn a random follower before and he didn't want the prize because he wasn't interested. So now, a follower needs to indicate their interest to be entered...
• If you've already won in previous contests here at Cherry Mischievous, it does not disqualify you from winning again. That means previous winners have equal chances of winning as much as the other followers who hasn't won anything yet at Cherry Mischievous.

Extra Entries:

• A participant of this contest gets one extra entry credit every time he/she spreads the word about this contest after verification of the url address or "proof" given in the comment. However, only one extra entry will be credited per site. Like for example, you can tweet as many times as you like but that will count only as one extra entry credit. Although we do appreciate it if you tweet multiple times about this contest!

Contest Ends:

• 2nd of April 2011

Rules:

• Open only to Cherry Mischievous followers (via Google Friend Connect). Because the main reason I am hosting this contest in the first place is to reward my readers, therefore this contest is for followers only :)
• Not yet a follower? Just click the "FOLLOW" button on the sidebar. Easy peasy!
• Then post a comment with a way to contact you in this contest post.
• This contest is open internationally. However, since the prize is a BookDepo book, it also means that this contest is limited to countries where BookDepo ships to. Please check if your country is one of those where BookDepo will ship to before entering this contest. Please see here for the list of countries where BookDepo ships to: http://www.bookdepository.co.uk/help/topic/HelpId/27/Countries-we-ship-to-with-free-delivery#helpContent.
• Winner will be picked among the followers who commented. Winner have one week to claim prize otherwise prize will become forfeit or as stated in the winner announcement post.
• Please note that cover art used in this post for the prizes are stock photos, they may not match the cover art of the book(s) that you will get.
• Void where prohibited.
• Questions? Ask! cherrymischif-foolforbooks [at] yahoo [dot] com.
• Please read the blog's Disclaimer as it forms part of the contest rules. By entering this contest you declare that you have read the terms in the Disclaimer and agrees to be bound by said terms.

Go visit the other blogs in this hop and get your chance to win more bookish prizes!

SUSPENSION OF DISBELIEF

Suspension Of Disbelief - is described by Wikipedia as:

"...Samuel Taylor Coleridge, suggested that if a writer could infuse a "human interest and a semblance of truth" into a fantastic tale, the reader would suspend judgement concerning the implausibility of the narrative... It might be used to refer to the willingness of the audience to overlook the limitations of a medium, so that these do not interfere with the acceptance of those premises. These fictional premises may also lend to the engagement of the mind and perhaps proposition of thoughts, ideas, art and theories."

(Wikipedia, 2011: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Suspension_of_disbelief)

Another aspect that I look for in a book is "suspension of disbelief". Sometimes when an author is so talented, he can convince the reader so utterly of the world he has created that the reader is transported to another world entirely. That world is so convincingly real that it is so very easy to think that it could happen or "suspend disbelief". As far as I can see, there are two major factors that people in the literary industry attributes to "suspension of disbelief": One, the author factor. And two, the reader factor.

1. Author Factor
• Author's Convincing Talent: bryngreenwood's comment highlights the idea of "believability" of a story/scene/narrative and the author's convincing ability, in which he said that:
  

  "....last night I had to quit watching a movie because I just didn't believe in the characters. I said, "Look, I'm willing to believe that a neo-Nazi skinhead could fall in love with a black woman, but I don't believe that this skinhead is falling in love with this woman. Simple as that."

  (Isabel Roman, 2009: http://bit.ly/fefTZa)
• Author's Convincing Talent: Isabel Roman supports the "author's convincing ability" argument and states that "suspension of disbelief" requires a delicate balance of how the writer weaves his fiction. And I quote her:
  

  Ordinarily, you might not accept there are true, real Witch Hunters in the world, but presented as fact within a universe, it could be made believable. You can’t be tentative when creating a universe such as this. While dealing with magicks and so on, there’s still that careful line between what people will generally accept as “Well, that’s magick”, and what they’ll say as “That’s ridiculous.”

  (Isabel Roman, 2009: http://bit.ly/glOOxT).
• Consistency: Allison Pang further argues that the author's consistency with the world he has created plays a major role in the reader's "suspension of disbelief" (Allison Pang, 2011: http://bit.ly/h73e3M). An author is not allowed to break his own rules.
2. Reader Factor
• Another factor attributed to "suspension of disbelief" is the readers or audiences' frame of mind (Welkos, 1993: http://lat.ms/eAxY6M). How receptive is the audience to the world the author has created?

So, "suspension of disbelief" is influenced by the human interest and semblance of truth in the story, plus the author's covincing talents with consistency and the reader's receptiveness.

Whether it's 90% author's talent and 10% reader's receptiveness, is up for debate, because there is no solid evidence that I found to substantiate either way. However in my experience, when it comes to "suspension of disbelief", I find it important that it has to make sense, for me to be able to suspend disbelief. To me, "It happened like that just because it's magic" wouldn't cut it. It wouldn't convince me as a reader to suspend disbelief. Consequently, I would have the tendency to put that book down and pick up another. In which case, I probably would not buy another book by that author ever again. So I say, on top of Allison Pang's "consistency" argument and Isabel Roman's "delicate balance" theory, that the story also has to make sense for a reader to suspend disbelief. So in your experience as a reader, what do you find makes it difficult or easy for you to suspend disbelief?

Pirates Of The Caribbean: On Stranger Tides Trailer

I liked the previous Pirates of The Caribbean movies. Except probably the second, not so much with that one. But this latest is looking like the best ever yet ;)

In theatres: 20 May 2011.

Other Pirates Of The Caribbean movies:
1. Pirates Of The Caribbean: The Curse Of The Black Pearl
2. Pirates Of The Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest
3. Pirates Of The Caribbean: At World's End
4. Pirates Of The Caribbean: On Stranger Tides - official Disney site:
disney.go.com/pirates

WW28: DEAD LIKE YOU

WW28
A chance to showcase your favourite!

• First you grab our Wicked Wednesday pic.
• Then you grab a book. Turn to page 28. Take the first sentence. And then you post it in your site with a link back to WW28.
• Come back to Cherry Mischievous - WW28 and give us the url of your post (in a comment at a WW28 post) so that other WW28 readers can find your WW28 offering.

WW28 book offering : Dead Like You by Peter James

Page 28, 1st Sentence:

Except the boat had no engine.

What do you make of that? The start of the mystery thriller? I haven't read this book, so I don't know...

About Dead Like You:

The sixth novel in the award winning Detective Superintendent Roy Grace crime series.

Don’t imagine for one moment that I’m not watching you. . .

The Metropole Hotel, Brighton. After a heady New Year’s Eve ball, a woman is brutally raped as she returns to her room. A week later, another woman is attacked. Both victims’ shoes are taken by the offender . . .

Detective Superintendent Roy Grace soon realises that these new cases bear remarkable similarities to an unsolved series of crimes in the city back in 1997. The perpetrator had been dubbed ‘Shoe Man’ and was believed to have raped five women before murdering his sixth victim and vanishing. Could this be a copycat, or has Shoe Man resurfaced?

When more women are assaulted, Grace becomes increasingly certain that they are dealing with the same man. And that by delving back into the past - a time in which we see Grace and his missing wife Sandy still apparently happy together - he may find the key to unlocking the current mystery. Soon Grace and his team will find themselves in a desperate race against the clock to identify and save the life of the new sixth victim . . .

Source: Info in the About Dead Like You was taken from the author's website at http://www.peterjames.com/books-dead-like-you.htm on 08/12/2010.