Things That Make Me Go Mmmrrh … Mary Stewart on Kindle!
September 27, 2018 by A Slice of Orange in category Things That Make Me Go Mmmrrh . . . by Geralyn Corcillo tagged as Kindle, Mary Stewart, Touch Not the Cat
Guys! Mary Stewart books are now available on Kindle – and many of them at very inexpensive prices! If you don’t know Mary Stewart, she wrote books that are gothic-like romances sprinkled with some magic elements and some suspense, set in (her) present day of the nineteen fifties, sixties and seventies. I have been reading her books in paperback since I was a kid, but now that I have time to read only when I am in my car and my Kindle reads aloud to me, I am overjoyed to be able to enjoy her books!!!!! This week, I reread one of my all-time
favorite books: Touch Not the Cat by Mary Stewart on Kindle.
In this book, Bryony Ashley, who is living abroad, wakes suddenly one night, receiving a telepathic message from her Lover – a boy and then a man she has been secretly communicating with telepathically her whole life – but she doesn’t know who he is – she just knows that they grew up together and have known each other all their lives. He tells her that her father is dying. Her father’s questionable car accident leaves Bryony an orpahn disinherited from her family’s large, crumbling estate back home in England. Bryony returns to Ashley Court to settle estate matters and hopefully discover the identity of her Lover. But when she gets home, the comfortable and familiar are laced with secrets and danger ….
Enjoy this and so many Mary Stewart books on Kindle at beautifully affordable prices!
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Introducing Poet’s Day by Neetu
September 26, 2018 by Neetu Malik in category Poet's Day by Neetu Malik tagged as Neetu, Poet's Day, poetry, words
Poet’s Day
A Slice of Orange is delighted to welcome poet, Neetu to our rotation of authors.
Neetu’s poetry is an expression of life’s rhythms and the beat of the human spirit. She draws upon diverse multicultural experiences and observations across three continents in which she has lived. She has contributed to The Australia Times Poetry Magazine, October Hill Magazine, Prachya Review, among others. Her poems have appeared in The Poetic Bond Anthology V and VI published by Willowdown Books, UK, NY Literary Magazine’s Tears Anthology and Poetic Imagination Anthology (Canada).
Neetu lives in Pennsylvania, USA and will be publishing a poem on the 26th of each month here on A Slice of Orange. Her column will be titled Poet’s Day.
Enjoy!
A Clock Stops
In the shapeless hours
of an endless night
the old clock
stops ticking
I hear it chime once
a labored groan, only half-shrill
I do not need to look
at its brass pendulum
to know it is still
all I know this time
unlike all other times is
its motion cannot
be restored.
© Neetu Malik
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TO WRITE OR NOT TO WRITE BY VERONICA JORGE
September 22, 2018 by Veronica Jorge in category Write From the Heart by Veronica Jorge tagged as To Write or Not To Write, Veronica Jorge
Some things, I find, are too precious to be shared. Like a priceless jewel, they are best kept secreted away; handled and admired in private.
A vivid memory surfaces. September: first week of school. The teacher’s voice, like chalk streaking across a blackboard, screeching the assignment, Write an essay titled, My Summer Vacation.
I picture myself staple-gunned to the board. My whole self, exposed.
Ignoring the homework was not an option. Okay, it was, but the consequence was an ‘F.’ Not a good way to start the school year. So I used my imagination and wrote about a make-believe trip. In other words…I lied. Shhhh!
My summer vacation included friendships, family outings, shared moments and experiences; some too happy, or too sad to put into words. But it was mostly about all of the places I went within myself that made me grow and go back to school just a little bit older and wiser.
I cannot express how I felt sitting out on the fire-escape staring up at the night sky and dreaming of worlds beyond the stars, in spite of the car hor
ns and fire engines whizzing by. Sometimes my elder brother would join me and point out various constellations; he knew all of their names. Or he’d tell me tales from Greek mythology, like The Wings of Icarus. I knew there was a lesson in that one; follow your parent’s advice.
And why would I want to tell anyone what it was like to go to the Hayden Planetarium with my brother, or share a secret and a hero sandwich with a new friend, or quietly walk shoulder to shoulder with my best friend while eating a Mister Softy ice-cream cone?
Reveal my treasures in an essay?
To a stranger?
For a grade?
I don’t think so!
Which brings me back to the topic of writing, or not. That is the question; though the fact that I ask it seems to provide the answer, “Not.”
I am most content when writing just for myself, or for a small circle of intimate friends. The coffee, sweets, and conversations we share last a life-time and deepen our relationships.
That is the reader and the audience I cherish most.
See you next time on October 22nd.
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September Featured Author: Rebecca Forster
September 21, 2018 by Rebecca Forster in category Featured Author, Featured Author of the Month tagged as Finn O'Brien Thrillers, Josie Bates Thrillers, Rebecca Forster, September Author of the Month
Featuring Rebecca Forster. September Author of the Month
Rebecca Forster started writing novels on a crazy dare.
Now she is a USA Today and Amazon bestselling author of 29 books which the CBS Legal Correspondent calls, “Perfect. . .impossible to put down.”
After earning her MBA, Forster spent 14 years as a marketing executive before taking the leap from a corporate to a creative career. A fulltime author, speaker and teacher, Rebecca focuses on legal and political thrillers, but is known for bringing an uncommon sense of character and compassion to her work. Her Witness Series, featuring attorney Josie Bates, has resided on the Amazon bestseller lists for over three years in both the U.S. and U.K. and is a featured series at Audible.com. Before Her Eyes, a cross genre thriller, captured the winning votes for Reviewers Choice for Best Mystery.
Rebecca teaches the craft of writing and the cultivation of creativity at programs that have included the acclaimed UCLA Writers Program and as a guest speaker at legal associations, writer’s conferences, women’s symposiums and philanthropic groups across the U.S. She has made repeat appearances at the Los Angeles Times Festival of Books and volunteers at Southern California middle schools to bring the excitement of writing into the classroom. Appointed to the Patient/Family Advisory Board at Torrance Memorial Hospital, Rebecca advocates for closer relations between patients, families and medical staff to improve care.
Rebecca lives in Southern California. She is married to a prominent Los Angeles Superior Court judge and is the mother of two grown sons. Travel is a passion and when she is not writing you can find her on a tennis court, in front of a sewing machine or on the couch with a book in her hand.
I don’t think the adventure is over yet – and I know that there are still a zillion books to be written – so I hope you’ll check back for updates. Better yet, drop me note. I would love to hear from you.
Below are just some of her books in print.
In a small Scottish village I came upon an unexpected treasure!
September 20, 2018 by Meriam Wilhelm in category A Bit of Magic by Meriam Wilhelm tagged as cakes. treats, England, Honesty Box, Ireland, Scotland, treasuresI just returned from a long, wonderfully exhausting trip to Europe with my husband. All along the way I faithfully jotted down interesting locations, names and legends in my Book O’ Names – hoping to include a few in one of my future books. I fell in love with shop names like, Thistle Do Nicely and A Spinkle of Kiltness and enjoyed meeting interesting people like Killian the kilt maker and Hamish the sweater weaver.
Throughout England, Ireland, Scotland and Norway we met charming, welcoming people all happy to share their stories. Beautiful old ghost filled castles and open green fields filled with cattle, sheep and Shetland ponies made the trip even better. And, of course, a trip down Strawberry Lane was just too cool to pass up.
Near the end of our travels we came upon the quaint village of Hoswick, Scotland. Venturing down the exceptionally narrow main street, we parked in the one spot big enough to house our massive tour bus; a bus that was half the length of the main street.
The town of Hoswick was tiny but beautiful, situated near a body of clear blue water with rock filled shorelines and lush hills of green. Although I hadn’t noticed it when we drove in, I soon discovered that the village consisted of only two shops and a neighborhood Welcome Center. A dozen or so houses were clustered nearby. Clothes freely flapped on yard clotheslines and the town taxi cab driver chatted up visitors as she waited for her next fare.
We visited the two shops that sold beautiful hand knit sweaters. Although the sweaters were quite lovely, they were made for cold Scottish winters and were far too heavy for either of us to wear on the beaches of California, so we decided to take a walk.
It was in this small Scottish village that I came upon an unexpected tiny treasure; a shop the likes of which I had never experienced before.
Adjacent to the Welcome Center a petite hand painted sign directed us towards Emma’s Cake Corner. As both my husband and I love cake, we couldn’t pass up the possibility of enjoying a late afternoon sweet treat before returning to our ship. Following the sign, we walked up a stone pathway, that ended unexpectedly at a private driveway. I was certain that we had missed the cake shop, although I wasn’t sure how.
Disappointed, we turned around to retrace our steps and stumbled upon a turquoise and yellow painted shed with a sign Emma’s Cake Corner tacked to the front of it. We had not discovered a traditional bakery at all, but rather something quite different. As I tentatively reached to open the shed door, I heard a child’s voice yell, “Mum, there’s someone in the Honesty Box!”
Not discouraged by the warning, my husband opened the turquoise doors and was surprised to find a plethora of treats. Cupcakes, brownies, cookies and more were all individually wrapped just waiting to be discovered. And on the bottom shelf were all sorts of tantalizing local candies. A simple hand scripted sign thanked visitors for coming to Emma’s, encouraged them to help themselves and asked shoppers to please write down what they took and the cost. There was a metal box to place coins in and a plastic container that held any change that might be needed. The Honesty Box held the most incredible looking treats ever and all that was asked in return was for us to be honest and pay the required coins.
We were the first to discover Emma’s but certainly not the last. Before long, it looked like our entire tour bus was loading up on the sweets, happy to pay the very reasonable fare. My husband and I had started a trend and one that seemed to make at least one very small child happy. We could still hear her giggling as we headed back towards the bus.
Since coming home, I have shared our discovery with my friends only to learn that Honesty Boxes are nothing new. They can be found just about everywhere. While baked delights might not be as common, eggs, fruit and vegetables are apparently available in countryside Honesty Boxes throughout the U.S.
I share my story with you because Honesty Boxes were new to me and just might be new to you too. I thought you might like to create your own Honesty Box or maybe even include one in one of your own upcoming stories – that’s what I plan to do!
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