From Tia’s Pen:   I used to look at the Carmen Brown series by Stephanie Perry Moore and think to myself, I can’t wait until my baby  girl can read. Well, I still think that way, but this time I know my daughter will be able to enjoy Moore’s books at an even earlier age. I know your little girls will fall for the Morgan Love Series just like I did. Your daughter will be able to relate to the ups and downs in little Morgan’s life, but they’ll also share in her victories. She’s a little lady in the making, and even at her young age she’s learning how to trust God. Aren’t we all?

The books in the Morgan Love series are cute, realistic stories, but parents will appreciate that Moore has thrown in some education aspects as well. Your girls will grow their vocabulary and even learn a few new math skills as they read along!  (They’re chapter books geared toward 7-9 year olds). Of course I’m an advocate of all books that teach a Christ-center message, but I also cheer for the Morgan Love series because it features an African-American protagonist. Our girls need that. But I encourage parents of all races to introduce your girls to Morgan Love. She’s in second grade now, but who know….we might get a chance to grow up with her! I give the Morgan Love series my high heel STOMP of approval!

About The Morgan Love Series:

A+ Attitude

Morgan is sad and mad at the world because things are not going the way she wants.  Why does my daddy have to leave again to save the country?  Why do I have to go live with mommy and her new husband? Why does my mommy have to have a new baby? Why do I have to go to a new school?  Why do I have to make new friends?   Why? Why? Why?  Though she is having a hard time adjusting to all the new things in her life, especially her new baby brother and stepdad, Derek, Morgan makes up her mind that no matter what is going on, she is going to have an A+ attitude.

Speak Up

When Morgan discovers that Antoine and Alec, the new kids on her block are big bullies she doesn’t know what to do. When she goes back to school, she finds out that Alec is the also the new kid in her class. When her friend Trey, stops hanging out with her and the others and hangs out with Alec instead, she is worried. She doesn’t want Trey to get into trouble nor have the other kids think she’s a tattletale. Morgan is having a hard time knowing what she should do.  Should she continue to keep quiet or is it time to speak up?

Something Special

Morgan, wanting to fit in with the crowd, teases a large girl and a special-ed kid at school.  When she is caught she has to go to the principal’s office.  When she finds out how much her teasing hurt her classmates she feels bad. Later, while playing together, Morgan and her cousins all share a secret wish.  Morgan wants to be prettier. Drake wants to be taller.  Sadie wants longer hair. When she goes to vacation bible school Morgan learns that God made each person just the way they are for a reason, even those kids she laughed at and teased. Just the way they are, is okay and they are all something special to God. 

Right Thing

When Morgan lets her best friend, Brook talk her into doing something her mommy tells her not to do, she gets into trouble.  But that does not stop Morgan from disobeying her mommy again.  When she ignores her mommy and takes her iPod to school, she not only gets in trouble but is badly hurt by one of the older girls.  She learns that when she doesn’t obey her parents she is not only letting them down but God too. The next time Brook tries to talk Morgan into doing what she knows is wrong; Morgan decides to do the right thing.

No Fear

Don’t be afraid. Have no fear. That’s what Morgan’s parents and grandparents were always telling her.  But she was having a hard time doing what they said as she thought about the big test coming up and wondered if her daddy was on the navy shipped that was recently attacked. When Morgan shares her fears with her mommy, her mommy tells her about the good news from God and about Heaven, Morgan begins to understand why her parents and grandparents are always telling her to have no fear.

Purchase the Books Online at: Amazon.com or BarnesandNoble.com.

About The Author: Stephanie Perry Moore

STEPHANIE PERRY MOORE is the author of many Young Adult Christian fiction titles, including the Payton Skky series, the Laurel Shadrach series, the Perry Skky Jr. series, the Faith Thomas Novelzine series, the Carmen Browne series, and the Beta Gamma Pi series. She is also the co-editor for the impactful BibleZine, REAL. Mrs. Moore speaks with young people across the country, showing them how they can live life fully and do it God’s way. Stephanie currently lives in the greater Atlanta area with her husband, Derrick, a former NFL player and author, and their three children. Visit her website at www.stephanieperrymoore.com.

I get this question all the time, so here’s another answer to it: The Alec London Series by Stephanie Perry Moore & Derrick Moore. So here’s a review…From Tia’s Pen.

The series is geared toward kids (girls will like it, too) ages 8-12.  I must say there’s a special place in my heart for Stephanie, because she referred me to Moody Publishers who ended up publishing my very first manuscript….and four others after that! I’ve read and thoroughly enjoyed Stephanie’s teen series as well (I’m young at heart). The fact that she’s teamed up with her husband for the Alec London Series just means these books are twice as nice!

Readers are introduced to Alec London in Making The Team, the first book in the series. Alec has enough problems in his life with his big BOTHER (or more accurately big brother), Antoine. To make his life even more complicated, his father lands a job as the new assistant principal at his school. Groan!

Alec is a Mama’s boy (in the good sense of the word), but she takes an acting job that sends her across the country to California to pursue her dreams. To Alec, that’s a nightmare. Now he’ll be forced to handle his father, brother, problems at school, and these crazy feelings he’s having for Morgan, a girl that’s a friend in his class. Alec is lashing out at everyone, so his dad encourages him to temper his aggression and stress by trying out for the football team. He does! But he ends up making the team and his older brother doesn’t. Even though problems continue to mount for this fourth grader, he’s finally able to build a relationship with his Dad and build a faith that assures him that being on God’s team always makes him a winner!

About the Authors:

STEPHANIE PERRY MOORE is the author of many Young Adult Christian fiction titles, including the Payton Skky series, the Laurel Shadrach series, the Perry Skky Jr. series, the Faith Thomas Novelzine series, the Carmen Browne series, and the Beta Gamma Pi series. She is also the co-editor for the impactful BibleZine, REAL. Mrs. Moore speaks with young people across the country, showing them how they can live life fully and do it God’s way. Stephanie currently lives in the greater Atlanta area with her husband, Derrick, a former NFL player and author, and their three children. Visit her website at www.stephanieperrymoore.com.

DERRICK MOORE is a former NFL athlete who played for the Detroit Lions, Carolina Panthers, and Arizona Cardinals following his successful college football career. Since his retirement from the NFL in 1998 he has been in demand as a motivational speaker for professional teams, civic groups, churches, and the Fellowship of Christian Athletes. He is on staff with FCA, serving as the chaplain of the football program at Georgia Tech. Derrick is the author of The Great Adventure and the general editor for the Strength and Honor Bible.

Purchase the Books Online at:

Amazon.com

BarnesandNoble.com

For more information, follow the following links:

http://www.stephanieperrymoore.com

http://www.tywebbinvirtualevents.com

From Tia’s Pen..

I met Pat Simmons in the summer of 2011, and she approached me as if we were childhood friends. She’s intriguing, engaging and downright fun. It’s no wonder that Pat is able to write books that yank you into a story just the same as her personality draws you in.  Guilty By Association is the first book I’ve read by Pat, but now it seems I’ll have to add her other novels to my already overstocked bookshelves.

Pat comfortably uses the male point of view to write the story of Kevin “Kidd” Jamieson. Kidd’s anger and bitterness about his absentee father affects every area of his life. Initially he’s not interested in the genealogy of the man he’s always hated, but Kidd loves his mother enough to accept an offer from a distant cousin that moves him to St. Louis. Soon the Jamieson legacy takes a hold of Kidd, and so does a woman named Eva Savoy.

Leave it to a woman to crumble the walls bricked up around a man’s heart. And leave it to God to heal a man’s wounded heart.  Guilty By Association is about the making of a man and the road he takes to discover his biological lineage, but more importantly how he discovers that he was adopted by God and chosen to be a part of the royal family! That’s a heritage to be proud of!

The Jamieson Legacy continues with Pat’s other upcoming releases: The Guilt Trip (June 2012) and Free From Guilt (October 2012).  Now let me introduce you to Pat Simmons!

Meet the Author: Pat Simmons

Pat Simmons is a self-proclaimed genealogy sleuth. She is passionate about digging up the dirt on her ancestors, then casting them in starring roles in her novels. She has been a genealogy enthusiast since her great-grandmother died at the young age of ninety-seven years old. Pat has won numerous awards for her novels which include: Talk to Me, Grace and Humility and Still Guilty, which was voted the Best Inspirational Romance for 2010. Pat is best known for her Guilty series: Guilty of Love, Not Guilty of Love, and Still Guilty. She is continuing the series through the Jamieson Family Legacy trilogy: Guilty by Association, The Guilt Trip, Free From Guilt. Pat has recently been nominated for the best Christian fiction award by the African American Literary Awards for her latest release, Crowning Glory.  Pat and her husband live in Missouri and have two children. Visit Patricia at http://www.patsimmons.net.

About the Book: Guilty By Association

CLICK HERE to watch the book trailer for Guilty By Association.

For more information about Pat and her books, you can find her online at:

www.patsimmons.net

twitter.com@patsimmons

facebook.com/patsimmonsauthor

 View the blog tour schedule at: http://www.tywebbin.com/blog-tours/authors-on-tour/2012-tours/

I must let all of my readers know that although I typically ONLY review Christian/inspirational fiction, Connie Briscoe is one of my favorite authors so I couldn’t pass up on the opportunity to read her latest work. I’m a huge fan of the P.G. County crew, but recently stumbled upon one of Briscoe’s “hidden treasures”….a book called A Long Way From Home. It’s a historical novel that transports you into a story inspired by Briscoe’s own lineage. It was one of my summer reads so I mentally had to shift my mind when it was time for me to delve into Money Can’t Buy Love.

Although the plot and the “moral of the story,” of Money Can’t buy Love is easy to predict, it doesn’t detract from the book being an enjoyable read. There’s a scripture in the Bible (Ecclesiastes 10:19) that says “money answers all things.” Ultimately Lenora finds out the answer to one of life’s most important questions. Not only can money not buy love, but it defintely can’t buy happiness or peace of mind. Briscoe creates characters that are real, lively, and have flaws….like us all. It’s worth reading to see if Lenora Stone would be one of your friends….or your enemies!

About The Book…At age thirty-eight, instead of socializing with Baltimore’s A-list, Lenora Stone photographs them for Baltimore Scene, a glossy magazine filled with beautiful people who, unlike Lenora, never have to worry about car trouble and overdue bills. Lately even things with her boyfriend Gerald haven’t been right. They’ve been together for three years but he can’t seem to ask the one question she’s been waiting to hear.

Then just when she thinks things can’t get worse, Lenora wins the jackpot in the Maryland lottery. In a heartbeat, all her dreams become possible. She quits her job and indulges her every desire—starting with a shiny, silver BMW and a million-dollar mansion. Gerald is finally ready to put a ring on her finger, and the city’s most exclusive women’s group is dying for her to join.

Yet as her life starts to come together, the things Lenora holds dear begin to fall apart. Has her world really changed for the better, or does fortune come with a heavy price?

Purchase the Book Online at: Amazon.com, BarnesandNoble.com, and BooksaMillion.com.

About the Author…Connie Briscoe has been a full-time published author for more than 17 years. Her work has hit the New York Times, Chicago Tribune, Washington Post, Boston Globe, Boston Herald, USA Today, and Publishers Weekly bestseller lists.

Visit her online at http://conniebriscoe.com.

About….A Good Excuse To Be Bad
Smart gorgeous and too tough for her own good, bail recovery agent and
single mom Evangeline Crawford moved to the burbs for a quiet life.
Fortunately, it’s not turning out that way…

Angel has to admit she’s feeling restless. The only excitement in her life
is her schoolgirl crush on the town’s new pastor, Justus-too-Hot-to-be-Holy
Morgan. But a fateful encounter and a job gone wrong at Club Night Candy in
Underground Atlanta is about to change all that…Soon, Angel’s trying to save
her divazilla twin sister from her big mouth and a scandalous murder charge,
and probing a church cover-up–with none other than Justus by her side. But
Angel has one more pressing concern; will Bella be ready for kindergarten? Only
time will tell for this bad girl gone good whose days are once again far from
boring–and hopefully far from numbered…

About….Miranda Parker

Miranda Parker is the author of the Evangeline Crawford
Bounty Hunter Series. After graduating from college, she began working as a
features editor for various magazines and spent many years as a publicist for
national recording artists, actors, ministers, and authors. However, writing
fun, fiesty, redemptive bad girl gone good stories is her passion. She resides
with her family in Georgia near a horse ranch and her daughter’s Girl Scout
Troop. On a perfect day she can be found curled up with a good book or in a
movie theater with a bucket of popcorn.

Visit the author online at http://www.mirandaparker.com/.

Watch the “A Good Excuse To Be Bad” book trailer on Youtube at:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1_-iIDGCMP4

Purchase the Book Online at:

Amazon.com, BarnesandNoble.com, BooksaMillion.com

For More Information:

Visit the author online at http://www.mirandaparker.com/.

Visit blog tour schedule at http://bit.ly/AGoodExcuseToBeBadBlogTour