Thursday, February 5, 2009

CFBA presents WORD GETS AROUND by Lisa Wingate


This week, the
Christian Fiction Blog Alliance
is introducing
Word Gets Around
(Bethany House - February 1, 2009)
by
Lisa Wingate



ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Lisa Wingate lives in central Texas where she is a popular inspirational speaker, magazine columnist, and national bestselling author of several books. Her novel, Tending Roses, received dozens of five-star reviews, sold out ten printings for New York publisher, Penguin Putnam, and went on to become a national bestselling book. Tending Roses was a selection of the Readers Club of America, and is currently in its tenth printing.

The Tending Roses series continued with Good Hope Road, The Language of Sycamores, Drenched In Light, and A Thousand Voices. In 2003, Lisa’s Texas Hill Country series began with Texas Cooking, and continued with Lone Star CafĂ©, which was awarded a gold medal by RT BOOKCLUB magazine and was hailed by Publisher’s Weekly as “A charmingly nostalgic treat.” The series concluded with Over the Moon at the Big Lizard Diner.

Lisa is now working on a new set of small-town Texas novels for Bethany House Publishers. The series debuted with Talk of The Town and continued with Word Gets Around. A new series is also underway for Penguin Group NAL, beginning with A Month of Summer (July 2008), and continuing with The Summer Kitchen in July, 2009. Lisa’s works have been featured by the National Reader’s Club of America, AOL Book Picks, Doubleday Book Club, The Literary Guild, American Profiles, and have been chosen for the LORIES best Published Fiction Award.

ABOUT THE BOOK

When Romance Is In the Air, Word Gets Around

Lauren Eldridge thought she'd wiped the dust of Daily, Texas, off her boots forever. Screenwriter Nate Heath thought he was out of second chances. Life's never that predictable, though. Cajoled by her father, Lauren is back in town helping train a skittish race horse set to star in a Hollywood film. But the handsome screenwriter gives her more trouble than the horse. And Nate is realizing there's a spark of magic in the project--and in the eyes of the girl who is so good with horses. Daily, Texas, has a way of offering hope, healing, and a little romance just when folks need it most.

If you would like to read the first chapter of Word Gets Around, go HERE

What people are saying:

"Lisa Wingate writes engaging stories that strike the heart. God has gifted her with a marvelous talent and I, for one, am most grateful."
Debbie Macomber, New York Times #1 bestselling author

THOUGHTS FROM JEN

A movie star, a screen writer, a horse trainer, a washed up race horse, a small town... what's not to like? In Word Gets Around, Lisa Wingate goes back to that old Hollywood premise, Hey kids, let's put on a show! But this isn't just any show. Nate Heath has to put aside his doubts and make something out of a stinker of a script that's been passed over for years. Lauren Eldridge has to face a painful past in order to come back to her home town and train the horse that's supposed to be the star of the show. Justin Shay is facing a career that's almost over and sees The Horseman as his ticket to respectability as an actor. And to top it all off, half the town's been put up as collateral on the hopes that the film will get a green light. The stakes are pretty high.

I found this to be a really fun, engaging book. There are some truly deep, moving moments, but it's mostly a great visit to a place you've never been. (At least I've never been there... I'm sure folks who've lived in a small town are going to recognize one or more of the colorful characters.)

I particularly enjoyed Wingate's writing style. She chose to write the book in first person, and alternates between Lauren and Nate. So the first chapter is Lauren's point of view, the second is Nate's, the third Lauren, and so on. Her writing is so spot on that even if she didn't start each chapter with the POV character's name, you'd still know whose head you were in.

This is the second book in the Daily, Texas series. If you didn't read Talk of the Town (I didn't) you'll still enjoy this book. But you might want to pick them both up and read them in order. Why not stay in Daily a little longer?

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