Book ♥ Soulmates: September 2013

#BSMPhotoADay in October: Halloween Edition

We're always excited about our #BSMPhotoADay challenges but this month we're extra excited because we've partnered with Savy from Books with Bite to come up with a fun and super spooky list for Halloween!

Reminders

This challenge is conducted on Instagram, but you're welcome to join via Twitter.
Please tag all photos with #BSMPhotoADay.
The Book Soulmates account on Instagram (http://instagram.com/booksoulmates) is run and accessed by all of us at Booksoulmates. We tag each photo with the name of the person who uploaded it so you know which one of us uploaded which pic.
Savy from Books with Bite will be co-hosting this month's challenge with us so don't forget to visit her sites: blog, Instagram, Twitter, Facebook.

Do not hesitate to contact us if you have questions on any of our daily prompts!

We are very thankful that everyone's support has helped make this feature so popular. We understand that we're not the first and won't be the last to come up with a #photoaday challenge. We do not have a copyright on this idea. We do, however, have copyrights to the content of OUR monthly challenges. We work very hard to come up with a completely original list every month and we ask that anyone who decides to host their own PLEASE not use any of our content in any way, shape, or form. It's already happened more than once and it was NOT cool!
Thank you!

If you decide to join us, which we sincerely hope you do, please don't forget to tag us so we can see all the awesome pictures and follow you back (if we don't already)!

Have fun and see you on Instagram...or Twitter!

Guest Post & Giveaway: Out of Line by Jen McLaughlin

Today we have Jen McLaughlin with us to talk about

Anti-Heroes

As I sit down and hit play on my DVR, I realized something I’m doing that I didn’t even realize I was doing. The shows I look forward to watching the most? The ones I get the most excited about for premieres? Well, almost all of them have anti-heroes. From a writing standpoint, this is excellent. It takes a lot of work to make a reader/watcher care about a character who is more villain than hero.

Readers and viewers tend to idolize our favorite characters, so when we see him cheating on his wife, or shooting someone, or making drugs and selling them, it takes a lot of caring on the readers/veiwers viewpoint for them to still root for him to get his happy ending. When I think antihero, a lot of names come to mind.

Tony Soprano. Walter White. Donald Draper. Jessie Pinkman.

All of these men have one thing in common—they’re no hero. And yet, we still like them and want to see them, ultimately, redeem themselves. Most of them probably won’t. Most of them will probably stay the same way they’ve always been…yet still we love them.

So peeps, tell us
Who are some of your favorite anti-heroes to read or watch?

I think my favorite anti-hero has to be Eric Northman from Sookie Stackhouse. He's not a good guy but he's not really all bad either! Although, he's ALL delicious ;) Right, ladies?

IMPORTANT LINKS:

Don't forget to visit our BLAST post for more info on Jen and OUT OF LINE!

Visit Jen's WEBSITE for more info on the awesome stops on this tour!

*in announcer voice*
But wait! THERE'S MORE!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Bloggiesta Fall 2013 Finish Line

My list was certainly ambitious and I didn't get to do all the things I wanted, but overall I'm pleased with my progress. They were all things that needed to be done and we're a little closer to really whipping this blog into shape (especially with the new look we're working on).

The items that are crossed out are the things I managed to get done completely and the highlighted items are either a WIP or still pending. Slowly but surely!

Accomplishments:

Our new look

Put finishing touches and complete new design (so excited!) SOON!
~~To keep or not to keep Blog Roll?~~ Decided to keep (at least for now) and updated it.
~~Figure out how to organize our MANY media buttons.~~ DONE! They will be unveiled with the new design.
~~Figure out how to do Contact Form.~~ DONE! Added new Contact Us page to the sidebar.
~~Update Review Policy.~~ DONE! Also added new Contact Form JUST for review requests.
Rethink how we do threaded comments. IntenseDebate isn’t working properly. This can wait for the new design so I passed on it for now.
~~Redo Menu Bar.~~ We deleted the old one and simplified it until the new one can be installed with the new design.

Catch up on all emails and clean up inbox!

Play catch & release with review requests. STILL. SO. MANY.
Delegate review requests. Need more reviewers! May begin "hiring" soon ;)

Work on book reviews

Write pending reviews STILL. SO. MANY.
~~Make sure that "Reviews" and "Books Read" tabs are updated.~~ DONE!
~~Make sure that all reviews are on Goodreads, Amazon, and B&N.~~ DONE!

Work on pending posts

Create ‘drafts’ for upcoming posts
Work on discussion posts
Make plans for Banned Books Week Unfortunately, I ran out of time and I have some work events to attend so I have VERY little time to blog this week :( BOO!!
Arrange giveaway posts to find old books new homes. Christmas giveaway? *wink*

Think about new ideas to revamp RAK. WIP!

Instagram

~~Finish #BSMPhotoADay list for October.~~ DONE!

Bloggiesta Fall 2013 Starting Line

Who's ready for Bloggiesta? I am. . .

Welcome to the starting line for Bloggiesta… the blogging marathon created several years ago by Natasha from Maw Books Blog and led by our most awesome mascot PEDRO (Plan. Edit. Develop. Review. Organize.)

The idea behind Bloggiesta is to spend these next three days working on perfecting your blog and connecting with other bloggers who are doing the same thing. Spread the word and get all your friends to come and fiesta with us!

Dates: Friday, Sept 20th - Sunday, Sept 22nd

What I'm hoping to accomplish:

Our new look

Put finishing touches and complete new design (so excited!)
To keep or not to keep Blog Roll?
Figure out how to organize our MANY media buttons
Figure out how to do Contact Form
Rethink how we do threaded comments. IntenseDebate isn’t working properly.

Catch up on all emails and clean up inbox!

Play catch & release with review requests
Delegate review requests

Work on book reviews

Write pending reviews
Make sure that "Reviews" and "Books Read" tabs are updated
Make sure that all reviews are on Goodreads, Amazon, and B&N

Work on pending posts

Create ‘drafts’ for upcoming posts
Work on discussion posts
Make plans for Banned Books Week
Arrange giveaway posts to find old books new homes
Think about new ideas to revamp RAK

Instagram

Finish #BSMPhotoADay list for October and get November started (have an idea already)

Reach out!

Go through “Unread” on Bloglovin
Visit other blogs and comment
Participate in at least (1) mini challenge
Participate in at least (1) Twitter chat

Olé bitches and good luck to everyone who is participating!!!

Winner of INFINITYGLASS!

We have a winner for our INFINITYGLASS giveaway:

CONGRATULATIONS!
Ariel from The Librarian's Bookshelf

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Please email us at booksoulmates @ gmail . com with your mailing address so we can send out your prize!

Happy reading!

Where did RAK go?

I'm writing this post because some of you have asked about RAK going all Houdini and disappearing for the past couple of months. Truth is that it has fallen by the wayside. It has gotten a bit stale and it doesn't get the participation or traffic that it used to. To be frank about it, it's gotten rather boring! It is still near & dear to our hearts so we want to make it work by trying to come up with way(s) to REVAMP it and make it fun again!

Isalys had what she thought was a really great idea to re-energize RAK and subsequently do something good with it, but sadly that idea crashed and burned before it even got off the ground :( (Still quite heartbroken about that!)

We really appreciate those who've asked about it and stuck around. We welcome any and all suggestions you have to liven it up!

If you do have an idea or suggestion, feel free to comment below, email us at booksoulmates@gmail, or tweet us with the hashtag #keepRAKalive.

Thanks!

Blast: The Prodigal by Michael Hurley

Pride, betrayal, forgiveness . . . and the eternal sea. The Prodigal tells the mystical tale of four people on Ocracoke Island whose destiny is tied to an abandoned schooner, thought to have been lost at sea more than a century ago, that one day drifts ashore. Marcus O’Reilly, a renegade Catholic priest, must confront his inner demons. Ibrahim Joseph, a Bahamian fugitive, must face his past. Aidan Sharpe, a fallen lawyer, struggles with self-doubt and his growing affection for Molly McGregor, a fearless towboat captain who cannot find the courage to love. They will all be drawn into a 2,000-year-old mystery that unfolds with the reappearance of the ship.

“A masterpiece of artistic imagination. Hurley’s eloquent, hypnotic style will have readers following, unquestioningly, to the very end.” –ForeWord Clarion Review

“Stirring, romantic, and evocative of the sea’s magic.” –Kirkus Reviews

WHERE TO BUY

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Michael Hurley lives in Raleigh, North Carolina with his wife Susan. Together they have four children ranging in age from 19 to 23. Born in Baltimore in 1958, Michael studied English at the University of Maryland and law at St. Louis University. He is licensed to practice law in Texas and North Carolina. A lifelong sailor, he obtained his captain’s license from the U.S. Coast Guard in 1992 and took six months off from the practice of law to work as a sailboat charter captain in New Bern, North Carolina. Between 1995 and 2003, while practicing law full-time, he also wrote and published Paddle & Portage, a quarterly literary journal on wilderness canoeing enjoyed by more than 10,000 subscribers in 48 states. When he is not sailing or writing or canoeing, Michael continues a hopeless quest to prove that his piano teachers at Baltimore’s Peabody Institute were wrong about him all along.

GIVEAWAY

1 Winner will get a $50.00 Gift Card to Amazon

Must be 13+ To Enter
Open Internationally

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Entangled COVET'S One Day Sale!

Announcing the Covet One Day Sale!!!!

TODAY ONLY (Sept 17), all Covet books are on sale for just $0.99 each. That means you can grab all of these great stories for less than $15!!

Covet Books have all the sexiness, emotion, and happily ever after that readers have come to expect and love from Entangled. They are firmly grounded in the contemporary world, but each novel brings in supernatural twists, breaking the contemporary and paranormal rules, alike. To find out more about their titles, chat with authors, participate in special events, and find out what books you’ll be coveting (you see what we did there?) next, visit the Entangled website, follow on Twitter, like their Facebook page, and join their Book Club!!

Click on the covers for the links to Amazon!!

P.S. The fabulous Covet Authors have put together a scavenger hunt with a Kindle Fire as the GRAND PRIZE! Hop over to the event page to join in the fun!

Good luck and happy shopping!