First, the back copy:

Samantha Evans is determined to make a name for herself in the cutthroat world of advertising. Newly hired by a prestigious ad agency, she volunteers to work on location in Mexico City as a personal assistant to the beautiful and driven creative director Katrina Edwards.

At first the association seems promising. But Ms. Edwards seems preoccupied in a way that makes Samantha increasingly uneasy. In fact, many in the group seem like they are not being completely open about the project including David Ayala, the mysterious and moody photographer for whose attention the two women find themselves competing.

After several strange accidents and numerous appearances by an unknown man, Samantha discovers the truth: not everyone on the team is in Mexico to create a stellar advertising pitch. When her sleuthing leads to her abduction, she is brought to the pyramids of Teotihuacán and comes face-to-face with the venomous evil of the South American crime boss known as “The Serpent.” Now Samantha must not only fight for her life, but she must also discover if she can trust the man she’s come to love.

Here’s the gorgeous author: **waves** Hi Kim!

The good stuff: the author knows her Mexico stuff. The setting is portrayed in clear detail. I had no trouble picturing anything and had complete trust that the author was telling me like it is.

The main characters were interesting and well developed.

The mystery is cool–there’s a nice twist I didn’t see coming.

Overall I enjoyed the book. I will complain that the beginning is pretty slow, and sometimes, all that lovely Mexican description kills the pace. I have to admit, the cover and title had me expecting a different type of book. This is definitely a romantic suspense novel, heavy on the romance.

Click here to buy: Venom

And click here to visit the author’s website: K.C. Grant

I’m drowning in writing busyness but no “real” writing is getting done.

I’m working on several book reviews, including one national-market book in which I must interview the author. Eeek! I’m scared! There’s a heavy amount of reading to be done.

I also prepare for and teach a writing class for teens. I love it! Please don’t say I should give it up.

I have to admit, I really like seeing my name in the newspaper. But in the meantime, I barely get five pages written each week. FIVE PAGES FOR A WHOLE WEEK.

Pathetic.

If they were polished pages, that would be perhaps different. But they are more like draft-level. This is even a bit less than a nano-writer has to produce EVERY SINGLE DAY.

This is to say nothing of regular busyness, like family stuff, church stuff, teaching piano, being the midnight bookkeeper for the family business. EVERYONE is busy, right? Others find that balance. So must I.

Productivity is not happening over here.

______

My latest book review: Cinder and Ella, Deseret News

I just read a post on Brandon Sanderson’s blog about magic systems.

The Cost of Magic, plus Superman

If you are, or ever plan to write a story that has magical elements, you simply must read this post. Not optional.

A little something to chew on: when you watch Superman fight a bad guy, it’s cool, but it’s not very tense, is it? So why is the Superman story interesting or compelling? Read the blog post.

This tickles me. I spent a long time gazing at it. Me=Nerd.

I’m sorry I couldn’t figure out how to make this click-zoomable. So I must insist you click here to be able to read the tiny writing. And you really NEED to.

If anyone knows how to do the click-zoom and would like to teach a willing pseudo-geek, let me know.

Here’s the blurb:

Mandy Steenburg thinks her doctorate in education has prepared her to run any school district – until she tangles with the moonshine-making, coon-dog-owning denizens of a tiny district in Pacific Northwest timber country. She’s determined to make a difference, but the local populace still looks to the former superintendent for leadership. When Mandy lands in the middle of an old feud and someone keeps trying to kill her, instinct tells her to run. And though she has to literally swim through perilous waters, she finds a reason to stay and chance the odds.

At first I thought, hmm. A romance? Not usually my thing. The main character is a school district superintendent? Sounds hard to form a connection.

But, I really liked this book. The writing is skillful. I admit, I’m a grammar snob, and adverbs and point-of-view shifts get my knickers in a bunch. None of that stuff here. I was left to enjoy the unfolding of the story without such distractions.

I’m from Washington state, so I immediately loved the setting. I never met any moonshiners during my years in the Northwest, but things felt realistic and believable.

Although some plot points felt predictable, there were still enough surprises to keep me happy. Plus, it’s squeaky-clean enough to buy for anyone without fear.

One thing that bugged me: the main character gets teased/bullied by the students she’s put in charge of, since they preferred the previous superintendent. I sort of scratched my head at that, because as a kid I had zero interaction with the district superintendent. I wasn’t aware of that layer of administration at all. I checked with my high school daughter, and she agreed. Perhaps in a small district, in a super small town atmosphere, this sort of thing could happen. Still, it stopped me.

I recommend this to anyone who likes a clean romantic suspense full of great descriptions and interesting locale.

Disclaimer: Author Christy Monson is one of my best friends. But I can say without any qualms that her new middle-grade novel, Texting Through Time, is a great little book, and I’m not saying that because she twisted my arm. Honest!

Actually, I begged for the privilege of being on her blog tour.

Some phones are smarter than others.

In the new book, “Texting Through Time,” published by Cedar Fort, Micah and Alicia’s phone is so smart it can take kids back in time. The siblings accidentally trigger the experimental time-travel app and land at Brigham Young’s side.

In order to get back to their own time, the kids must figure out how to use the phone and then journal about what’s happening by sending text messages. Their adventure takes them to key scenes throughout President Young’s life, from his 11th birthday party to excitement along the pioneer trail to his later years as a prophet of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

Today’s kids will love reading about interesting and often little-known details about President Young’s life. With modern-day Micah and Alicia, they’ll learn what it was like to be a kid in New England, go on the trek West, and live in frontier Utah.

“Texting Through Time” is skillfully written by first-time author Christy Monson. Details are thoroughly researched, but Monson never forgets to keep the young reader in mind. The characters and dialog feel realistic and will make it easy for kids to relate to the story. There are spiritual lessons to be learned as well, and Monson keeps these moments age-appropriate and never preachy.

Charming illustrations by Rosalie Ledezma add fun and interest to the pages. (ahem from Proud Margot…Rosalie is my daughter) See some cute previews of these drawings at Confessions of a Logophiliac.

The pre-teen crowd would love finding this delightful book under the Christmas tree. Find more information about it at www.textingthroughtime.com or www.christymonson.com.

“Someday you will be old enough to start reading fairy tales again.” –C.S. Lewis

(I’ve looked for the source for this beautiful image…if anyone bumps into it, please let me know. I’d love to see it larger.)

Can I learn this?