Cover Reveal and a Contest

 

 

It's here! The cover of Worth the Time, book two in the Waltham Academy series. To celebrate, I'm giving away a 25 dollar Amazon Gift Card. (I'm giving away a second gift card on my author FB page--check it out. https://www.facebook.com/laurajacksonwrites)

 

Here's a link to pre-order the kindle edition: Worth the Time Kindle and the paperback Worth the Time Paperback.

 

And here's the chance to win the Amazon Gift Card!

 

 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

 

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Waiting

 

 

 

There were 400 years between the Old Testament and the New.

 

400 years of silence.

 

400 years of waiting for the promised Messiah, the One who would set the captives free.

 

 

How they longed for Him to come. I imagine each generation talked about His coming. Who would be the chosen mother? How would they know it was Him? How would He rescue them?

 

I also imagine many gave up looking for Him. After centuries of hearing nothing from God, perhaps the prophets had been wrong. Perhaps the prophets had made up the coming Messiah.   

 

And then He came. In a manager, unknown and uncelebrated except by a few. After 400 years of silence, there He was!

 

The Savior had finally come, the wait was over, but they rejected Him. Surely a baby born in a manger, a man who was silent when accused, a man who rejected the spiritual leaders of the day wasn't the answer!

 

But He was. And He still is.

 

Are you in a season of silence, of expecting waiting, of nearly giving up hope that God will do what He promised to do?

 

How often we reject Him because He doesn't answer the way we want Him to!

 

If you're in a season waiting, allow this verse to encourage you as it has me.

 

 

Psalm 27:14 (ESV)

Wait for the Lord; be strong, and let your heart take courage; wait for the Lord!

 

Instead of waiting for a child, a spouse, a promotion, a new job, a new car, friends, let's wait on the Lord.

 

Waiting on people and circumstances will cause us to grow weary.

 

Waiting on the Lord will give us strength.

 

*I love my King James Version Touch Bible App. I can click a word, and it tells me the definition. Here in this verse, one of the meanings for the Hebrew word (Kaw-Vaw) means to bind together, perhaps by twisting.

 

This season, bind closer to Jesus, for He is always Worth the Wait.

 

 

I'm giving away a prize today!

Leave a comment telling me about something in your life that was worth the wait to win a copy of my February release Worth the Wait. (You'll have to wait till then to get it.)

To make the wait a little shorter, I'll send you this:

 

 

I'll pick a winner next Monday. Be sure to leave your email address. (I can only ship to the US.)

 

 

Finally, enter to win a Kindle donated by the authors of HopeSprings:

a Rafflecopter giveaway

 

 

 

 



 

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First Chance to Win a Kindle

 

 

 

Check out Elizabeth Maddrey's blog today for a chance to win a prize and enter to win a kindle.

Good luck!

http://www.elizabethmaddrey.com/a-story-and-a-giveaway/

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Giveaway: Duchess

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Congrats to Michelle for winning Dead Lawyers Tell No Tales.

Today, I'm giving away Duchess by Susan May Warren. I'm currently reading the second book in this series and am looking forward to Duchess. It's the perfect book for a giveaway as hopefully the Kate, the Duchess of Cambridge, will finally have her baby this week! I've never been one to follow British royalty. I've never been interested in British history or culture, but I think Kate is fantastic. She just seems so classy and elegant. Plus, she and William seem to genuinely care about each other.

So to enter to win, leave a comment about whether or not you're interested in the royal baby or British culture/history/royalty. Be sure to leave an email address so that I can contact you if you win. I can only ship to the US. I'll pick a winner next week.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Giveaway!

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Congrats to Linda for winning The House that Love Built. Sorry it took me two weeks. Last Saturday was the start of one of my dog sitting jobs, and it was 107 degrees. I didn't do much thinking that day.

 

Today, I'm giving away Undeniably Yours by Becky Wade. I LOVE the cover. I know for a while, the covers haven't been showing actual faces. To enter to win, leave a comment about what you like or don't like to see in book covers. This is a little thing, but it always stands out when I see it--historical fiction where the girl has highlights. I doubt girls trying to save the farm were worried about their hair.

 

Be sure to leave your email address. I'll pick a winner next week....unless it's another scorcher. I can only ship to the US.

 

Giveaway!

 

Congrats to Michelle for winning Unrivaled.
This week, I'm giving away The House that Love Built. To enter to win, leave a comment about something you've built.
I'm a person who doesn't like putting things together. I don't have the patience to do things step-by-step. I'd rather pay someone to do it. Thankfully, my sister and my mom are two people who are good at following those directions and putting stuff together.
However, I did put together this little end table/night stand from Bed, Bath, and Beyond. I was so proud!

I'll pick a winner next Saturday.
I can only ship to the US.

I'm SO SORRY for the past like month. I promise to mail the books this week. Promise. Forgive me.

 

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Giveaway!

 

 

 

Congrats to Beth for winning A Dangerous Stage. Today, I'm giving away Short-Straw Bride. The sequel just came out, so it's a great time to read this one if you haven't.

If you've already read it, feel free to pass the link along to someone who hasn't.

 

To enter to win, leave a comment about a time you were short-strawed. (I think I made up a new word.) Or, you can tell me if you use a straw to drink or just straight from the glass....I couldn't think of a time I got the short straw, so I had to think of something else. :)

 

Be sure to leave an email address. I can only ship to the US.

 

Guess what? Tomorrow is the last day of school. I'm SO ready. My school is amazing, but I'm ready to relax and work on my second book.

 

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Giveaway!

Congrats to Faith, who won a copy of Wings of Glass.
I'm sorry that I waited so long to pick a winner. Usually, I do it the next week, and to be honest, I have no excuse for not doing it Thursday. Well, my computer has randomly been crashing, which is frustrating.

Today, I'm giving away a copy of Til Grits Do Us Part. I loved this series, and I can't wait to see what Jennifer writes next.

To enter to win, leave a comment about what makes the South (or North) different? Grits is a Southern thing, and I know my mama likes them a certain way.  :) One thing I love about the South is that people are friendlier. Whenever I visit some cities up north, I'm usually shocked that the cashiers, riders on the subway, etc don't chit chat.  Maybe that's a Texas thing....

However, you can beat the weather our northern friends experience. We don't experience all four seasons down here, and it's always a pleasant surprise to have a cool front. I also love the historical aspect of the New England area. (See my posts on my love for Boston.)

Be sure to leave an email address.
I can only ship to the US.
I will pick a winner next Monday.

Giveaway!

Today, I'm giving away a copy of A Noble Groom by Jody Hedlund. I LOVED this book. 

To enter to win, tell me what you think makes someone noble. To me, a noble person is someone who does the right thing because it's the right thing, a person of moral principle.

Get a second entry by following the blog. (Be sure to leave a comment telling me you follow. I know that's annoying sometimes, but it's the easiest way to keep up with the number of comments/entries.)

I will pick a winner (via random.org) next Thursday. 
I can only ship to the US. 
Be sure to leave an email address so that I can contact you.

Congrats to Juli for winning Secretly Smitten. I sent you an email asking for your address.

Happy Resurrection Day Sunday. So thankful for Jesus and a light in this dark world. 

Giveaway!

Today, I'm giving away a copy of Queen of the Waves. I just finished it yesterday and really enjoyed it. I plan to post my review this week.
To enter to win, leave me a comment telling me about how you are the queen of something. When I taught middle school language arts, I was the Grammar Queen. I LOVE grammar. Now that I've been out of the classroom a few years, I already feel like I lost some of my skills. During the week, I pull three groups of dyslexia students, and soon I hope to be the coding queen. I love it.

Leave a second comment, letting me know you follow the blog, to get a second entry. Be sure to leave your email address in one of the comments. I'll pick a winner next week. I can only ship to the US.

Have a great week!

Giveaway!

Congrats to Karen for winning Larkspur Cove!

I thought I already gave this book away, but I'm giving away a copy of Karen Kingsbury's Loving.
To enter to win, let me know what you are loving. Right now, I'm loving summer. YAY! It's what makes the rough days in education worth it.

To get a second entry, follow the blog and leave a second comment letting me know you follow.
I'll pick a winner next Monday.
I can only ship to the US.
Remember to leave your email address. I'll pick another winner if there isn't an email address.

Giveaway and Link!

Congrats to Paula for winning Need You Now. If you didn't win, I have the copy I read that I will probably give away in a few weeks.
Today, I'm giving away A Sound Among the Trees.

To enter to win A Sound Among Trees, leave a comment about trees. I LOVE me some trees. They minister to my soul. Thankfully, I live surrounded by beautiful trees. Or, you can leave a comment about today's YA books, what you read as a teen, or basically anything!

Get a second entry by following the blog and leaving a second comment letting me know you follow.

I can only ship to the US.

Please leave your email address so that I can reach you.


As many of you know, I am passionate about good books for kids/teens. While I am against censorship, I strongly believe we need to match kids with age-appopriate books. There is a lot of garbage out there, especially for teens. Of the 50 plus books I got free at the library convention a few weeks ago, only a handful are ones I would want my eleven-year-old niece reading. With that being said, I want to mention a great new author for Christian YA, Betsy St. Amant. Addison Blakely: Confessions of a PK Kid is her first YA book, and here's a cute interview with both Betsy and Wes, the cute but rebellious boy in the story. http://theboredmommy.blogspot.com/2012/05/commercial-break-book-review-of-betsy.html If you are looking for a Christian book that deals with real topics for young adults, check this one out. (I reviewed it on my blog here.)

That's just my opinion, and I think I'm going to start posting about authors I enjoy for teens because reading the back of some of these books that are coming out in the next year left me wanting some good old fashion coming of age stories! (Can you tell I don't enjoy science fiction or fantasy, both of which are the rage right now?)




Happy reading.