Fairer Than Morning by Rosslyn Elliot

Please welcome debut author, Rosslyn Elliot!

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Ann dreams of a marriage proposal from her poetic suitor, Eli-until Will Hanby shows her that nobility is more than fine words.

On a small farm in 19th-century, young Ann Miller is pursued by the gallant Eli Bowen, son of a prominent family. Eli is the suitor of Ann's dreams. Like her, he enjoys poetry and beautiful things and soon, he will move to the city to become a doctor.

Ann travels to Pittsburgh, accompanying her father on business. There she meets Will Hanby, a saddle-maker's apprentice. Will has spent years eking out an existence under a cruel master and his spirit is nearly broken. But Ann's compassion lights a long-dark part of his soul. Through his encounters with Ann's father, a master saddler, Will discovers new hope and courage in the midst of tremendous adversity.
When the Millers must return to Ohio and their ministry there, Will resolves to find them, at any cost. If Will can make it back to Ann, will she be waiting?

Read an excerpt here:

About Rosslyn:
Rosslyn Elliott grew up in a military family and relocated so often that she attended nine schools before her high school graduation. With the help of excellent teachers, she qualified to attend Yale University, where she earned a BA in English and Theater. She worked in business and as a schoolteacher before returning to study at Emory University, where she earned a Ph.D. in English in 2006.

Her study of American literature and history inspired her to pursue her lifelong dream of writing fiction. She lives in the Southwest, where she homeschools her daughter and teaches in children's ministry. For more about Rosslyn, visit her website.

Link to buy the book.

Contest

Win a custom made period dress ... and a KINDLE from Rosslyn Elliott!
Enter 9/1-9/20!

To celebrate the release of her debut novel, Fairer Than Morning, Rosslyn Elliott is giving away two fabulous prize packages. The first is brand new KINDLE in her Fairer Than Morning Kindle Giveaway. Then on September 20th she's giving away a $200 gift certificate toward a Custom-Made Historical Reproduction Dress (from Recollections) during the Fairer Than Morning Book Club Chat Party on Facebook! Sigh...romantic.

Fairer Than Morning is receiving wonderful reviews - Library Journal said, "A well-written historical series debut…". Read more reviews here.

Be sure to join the fun and enter the Kindle contest -


One winner will receive:

* Kindle with Wi-Fi

* Fairer Than Morning (for Kindle)

To enter just click one of the icons below. But, hurry, giveaway ends on 9/19. Winner will be announced on 9/20 at Rosslyn's Book Club Facebook Party. Details and official rules can be found when entering the contest.

Then be sure to RSVP for Rosslyn's Facebook Party! During the party Rosslyn will be chatting with guests, hosting a book chat about Fairer Than Morning (don't worry if you haven't read the book yet - you could win a copy!) & historical Fiction, testing your trivia skills. She'll also be giving away that $200 gift certificate toward a FABULOUS custom-made period dress from Recollections!

Is there a med out there for blogfobia?

Because I think I have it. A disease. Blogfobia. See, I can't even spell phobia! How'd it all start, Rachel, you ask.

Well, um, see, a loooong time ago, 2002, I started blogging in Diaryland. Just fun little tidbits about my days, news of my writing, my first book contract, life at the office. Which, btw, was nothing like the TV show.

I switched to Xanga, then Blogger. I hopped onto MySpace, then Facebook and a myriad of other social sites. Blogging became key to a new writer's existence. Everyone started blogging.

All my deep, personal thoughts, funny bits about Santa Mouse Christmas songs suddenly became fodder for comparison to all the other genius writers now blogging. People started, gasp, giving stuff away. Books, iPods, prizes. Bloggers were funny. Wise. Full of publishing industry information.

Suddenly I'm Aubrey Montegue in Chariots of Fire, running the Steeple Race, landing in mud puddles, tripping over hurdles, coming in last.

Am I to be funny? Every day?! Am I to be deep and wise? Every day?! Should I give stuff away? Did I mention I'm a fledgling author?

Am I to go on about publishing industry news? Add posts of self promotion? Interview other authors. Write book reviews.

Ahhhh, I don't know what to blog any more! Is there such a thing as a blogging trainer? I need to get in shape!

I don't feel so good.... "Mooooommm!"

Don't worry. There's not enough people who read my blog to pick up my germs and spread the disease. Maybe there's a blogphobia hospital where I can recoup with all the other authors suffering from "what do I blog?"

I use all my best brain to write books! Now, I must write an award winning blog. Sorry, I'm just not that competitive.

Don't worry. I'm strong. I'm healthy. I'll recover.

Guest blogger, Cami Tang

Please welcome my friend, author and guest blogger, Cami Tang.

The mystery of worship

Worship is such an intimate thing. It's very hard for me to describe it, even though I've been a worship music leader at my church for several years.

Originally, when I had just started working with the youth group as a staff member, my youth pastor asked me to lead music for the youth group meetings on Saturday nights. The junior high and high school kids aren't very picky, and so I didn't worry about missed notes, forgotten lyrics, etc.

One time, we had problems with the projector and couldn't get the lyrics up on the screen, so we did the entire set without them! The kids just kind of mouthed words and looked a little confused, but they didn’t really mind.

However, a few months later, the youth pastor wanted me to put together an all-youth worship team to lead music for Sunday service. He wanted to give the kids a chance to serve the church in this way, and there was an opening for an additional worship team.

This made me more nervous. The people in Sunday service tend to be more discriminating, and more vocal if they don't like something. Teens aren't known for being on time for practices, or even for Sunday service. They're not known for playing completely accurately if they're not taking something seriously. They're also not known for really valuing the opportunity to serve at church, even though the youth staff tries to help them to understand why it's important.

But, my pastor had asked. So I gave it a go.

The kids stepped up to the plate in ways I would never have dreamed. They came to practice on time. They made an effort to be serious about their playing and not goofing off. And they seemed to understand why it was important for them to be there, playing on the worship team.

Most important, they started to understand how to worship.

No just standing and singing words, but in being a worship leader. In worshipping themselves as they played or sang. In thinking about God or the congregation and not themselves.

I have to admit, they were helped along by some very key youth retreats that happened around the time the worship team started doing a turn at Sunday service (my church has four worship teams, and we each take one service a month). The youth retreats focused on true worship, and the kids on my team took the messages to heart.

But I didn't expect to be affected by their new attitudes. I had taken on the job like a youth staff worker leading a small group, but then I started to realize that I was a worship leader and a worshipper myself. It changed my whole conception of what worship was, of how to worship.

I wanted to infuse part of that mystery of worship in my writing. I was able to write a few key scenes in ONLY UNI that tried to convey the kinds of things I feel when I worship the Lord. Trish's experience is a mix of my experience and the experience of the teens on my worship team.

I hope Trish can influence other people, too, to seek the mystery of worship of our Lord.

Camy Tang is the loud Asian chick who writes loud Asian chick lit.

She used to be a biologist, but now she is a staff worker for her church youth group and leads a worship team for Sunday service.

She also runs the Story Sensei fiction critique service. On her blog, she gives away Christian novels every Monday and Thursday, and she ponders frivolous things like dumb dogs (namely, hers), coffee-geek husbands (no resemblance to her own...), the writing journey, Asiana, and anything else that comes to mind.

Visit her website a www.camytang.com for a huge website contest going on right now, giving away five boxes of books and 25 copies of her latest release, ONLY UNI.

Amy Grant's book, Mosaic

I have copies of Amy Grant's book to give away. Leave a comment to be eligible for a drawing.

I loved this book, being both warmed and challenged by Grant's most charmed life. Born in a family with Nashville roots to a doctor and his wife, Grant is the youngest of four sisters. By the stories she tells, she's lived a privileged, loved, charmed life, being discovered at fifteen by a music producer looking for a new Christian music sound.

Yet, I was moved by her stories, and felt God's love for her and through her. I sat in McDonalds drinking a Diet Coke, finishing the book, weeping, just with a glad-God feeling. "Thank you for Amy Grant."

This is not an autobiography. Don't expect details of her relationship with Gary Chapman. I appreciated Grant's approach to his part in her life. She recognizes him, but never comments. As spectators, we all know their marriage had its ups and downs. We can't begin to know the whos and whys - it's not for us to know. There are always two sides to every story, marriage, relationship and Grant honored her children by avoiding details of her life with Chapman.

Great read.