{"id":5139,"date":"2017-02-22T15:13:28","date_gmt":"2017-02-22T09:43:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/travellingthroughwords.wordpress.com\/?p=5139"},"modified":"2017-02-22T15:13:28","modified_gmt":"2017-02-22T09:43:28","slug":"book-spotlight-giveaway-sweet-southern-hearts-by-susan-child","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/travellingthroughwords.com\/index.php\/2017\/02\/22\/book-spotlight-giveaway-sweet-southern-hearts-by-susan-child\/","title":{"rendered":"Guest Post & Giveaway: Sweet Southern Hearts by Susan Schild"},"content":{"rendered":"

<\/a><\/p>\n

<\/div>\n

<\/a><\/p>\n

Sweet Southern Hearts<\/b><\/p>\n

Author<\/b>: Susan Schild<\/span><\/p>\n

Publisher<\/b>: Lyrical Press<\/p>\n

Genre<\/b>: Contemporary Women’s Fiction<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/div>\n
<\/a><\/div>\n

Susan Schild welcomes you back to the offbeat Southern town of Willow Hill, North Carolina, for a humorous, heartwarming story of new beginnings, do-overs, and
\nself-discovery\u2026<\/p>\n

\u00a0When it comes to marriage, third time\u2019s the charm for Linny Taylor. She\u2019s thrilled to be on her honeymoon with Jack Avery, Willow Hill\u2019s handsome veterinarian. But just like
\nthe hair-raising white water rafting trip Jack persuades her to take, newlywed life has plenty of dips and bumps.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n

Jack\u2019s twelve-year-old son is resisting all Linny\u2019s efforts to be the perfect stepmother, while her own mother, Dottie, begs her to tag along on the first week of a free-wheeling RV adventure. Who knew women \u201cof a certain age\u201d could drum up so much trouble? No sooner is Linny sighing with relief at being back home than she\u2019s helping her frazzled sister with a new baby\u2026and dealing with an unexpected legacy from her late ex. Life is fuller\u2014and richer\u2014than she ever imagined, but if there\u2019s one thing Linny\u2019s learned by now, it\u2019s that there\u2019s always room for another sweet surprise\u2026<\/p>\n

\n

Add to Goodreads<\/a><\/p>\n

Amazon<\/a> * Apple<\/a> * Google<\/a> * Kobo<\/a> * Nook<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\"unnamed\"<\/p>\n

<\/div>\n

Tell us some really interesting things about yourself!<\/strong><\/p>\n

1. I didn\u2019t start writing until \u2026ahem\u2026 a bit later. Let\u2019s just say my first book was published by Kensington Publishers after I started getting those nice early bird invitations from AARP. So, if you\u2019ve told yourself you\u2019re too old to try a creative hobby that piques your interest, cut that out! Take that two-step class, get lessons on playing the bagpipes, learn to knit an afghan or join a writing group. Maybe you\u2019ll write your memoirs\u2026or the next blockbuster novel.<\/p>\n

2. I was a psychotherapist in a past career. I\u2019m still intrigued with psychology and believe in the power of therapy, but have fun with it in my books. In book one, Linny reads the self-help bestseller Snap Out Of It and Boogaloo with Your Inner Goddess to get over her thieving ex-husband and in Sweet Southern Hearts, she practices what she thinks is an attitude of gratitude for the possibility that her ex could get swept off a mountain in an avalanche.<\/p>\n

3. My readers tell me they love that the heroines in my books range in age from age thirty-eight to sixty-eight and all are still having adventures, falling in love, starting new families and finding their happily ever afters. They\u2019re playing pickle ball, hitting golf balls at a driving range, going online to find a sixty-year old husband, and going on all gal RV adventures across the heartland of America. The best things in life don\u2019t just happen for the young heroines!<\/p>\n

4. Tucker, my Black Lab\/Shepherd mix dog is my writing companion and sleeps on his bed (the one with the fire hydrants on it) beside my desk when I write. When I get temporary moments when I\u2019m scratching my head and wondering Where in the world was I going with this scene?, taking breaks for a game of toss the ball with him help me get un-stuck. Here\u2019s an article I recently had published in New Spirit Journal about the joys of having a dog in your life.<\/p>\n

5. Not trying to brag, but I can back a boat trailer pretty well. Once you figure out that you turn the wheel the opposite way than what your brain is telling you to do, you stop the embarrassing zig zagging and back up smooth and straight. You can quietly say Hah! to the men at the bottom of the public boat ramp who have heaved sighs and shaken their heads when they spot a woman backing a boat.<\/p>\n

6. I am trying to rekindle my interest in cooking. Had gotten into a boring rut, and though my family didn\u2019t complain, I wanted to shake things up a little. I have been trying out simple new recipes that I got from Southern Living, and using the crockpot more. Last week, I made double batches of Chicken and Three Bean Chile Verde and a Lemon Orzo Soup with Chicken Meatballs. Both were delish, and I froze the other half. I may be on a domestic goddess tear with this\u2026<\/p>\n

<\/div>\n
\"Displaying<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n

Linny\u2019s heartbeat galloped under her life jacket as they shot down the rapids of the Ocasoula River. Eyes wide, she watched as their orange raft careened toward a jagged boulder, bumped it hard, and spun them toward a patch of choppy water. As the water rushed around the three of them\u2014Linny, her new husband Jack, and their beautiful, Ms. Outward Bound\u2013type goddess of a river guide\u2014they dug deep and paddled hard, straining to pull through the eddy. With a whoosh, they were pulled backward down the roaring, foaming river. Linny shot Jack a panicky glance, but he was grinning exultantly and looking like he was having the time of his life. With the flick of a braid and a pirate\u2019s smile, the guide thrust her paddle into the rapids, turned the raft around, and steered them downstream toward calmer water. Too soon to relax, though. Linny saw more rough waters ahead and tensed.
\nBe a shame to lose a third husband, she thought crazily and paddled harder.
\nThe nimble-footed photographer from the outdoor center jogged along a path on the riverbank, snapping away as their raft rocketed toward the Turbinator, the Class III rapid that roiled ahead in the home stretch of the river trip. The photographer\u2019s ponytail bounced as he raced ahead of them, taking shots as their raft bucked, dove, and finally glided through the rain-swollen Ocasoula.
\nSoon, a shivering Linny stood at the takeout, hugging herself and rubbing her arms. She\u2019d been splashed thoroughly and didn\u2019t want to think about how cold the water would have been if they\u2019d flipped over. Though it was late June, the guide told them the water temperature was only in the midfifties. Linny found herself grinning like a fool as she waited for Jack to come back from the
\ntruck with his wallet to pay for their pictures. She\u2019d been terrified, but she\u2019d had a blast.
\nA white water rafting trip might not be high on most women\u2019s lists of a must-do on a honeymoon, but when Linny had seen how Jack\u2019s eyes sparkled as he reminisced about a rafting trip he\u2019d taken when he was in his twenties, she\u2019d said, \u201cLet\u2019s do it!\u201d in an enthusiastic, practically perky voice she\u2019d hardly recognized. In this new and complicated marriage, being a good sport and flexible as Gumby were going to ease the way. Though rafting wasn\u2019t her thing, Jack had cheerfully gone on the vineyard tour with her yesterday and, on the drive up to the mountains, had tagged along, not looking bored, as she\u2019d poked through vintage aprons and yellow Nancy Drew books at an antique store.
\n\u201cHere you go, ma\u2019am.\u201d The young man held out his camera and scratched one mesh- sandaled foot with the other as he watched her view the shots he\u2019d taken.
\nIn perfect clarity, the fellow had caught them at the moment she and Jack got sling-shot skyward in their raft after diving down into the roiling water of that last rapid. Linny peered more closely at the picture. The photographer had captured the Carolina blue sky day, the Day-Glo orange of the raft, the lithe young goddess at the helm, and her and Jack\u2014the glowing, sun-drenched newlyweds. Twice coming down that river they\u2019d almost flipped and been swept into the churning waters. Linny\u2019s teeth had chattered and she\u2019d buzzed with adrenaline and fear, but she looked alive and exhilarated as she beamed at Jack, pure joy in her eyes. With powerful arms, he was digging away with his paddle, helping power them through. But Linny spotted two details that made her eyes well up: Jacks\u2019 new gold band glinting in the sunlight and the look he\u2019d given her just as the photographer had taken the shot was one of wonder and delight. He looked like he was thinking, How did I get this lucky?
\n\u201cYou did a great job.\u201d Linny smiled at the young photographer.
\n\u201cThanks.\u201d The young man blushed and pulled down the brim of his cap. He pointed to the visitors\u2019 center. \u201cJust give me a minute to load the pictures and you can pick the ones you want.\u201d
\n\u201cThanks. We\u2019ll be over as soon as my husband gets back,\u201d she said.
\nHe raised a hand and loped off.
\nLinny loved saying my husband. She\u2019d probably said it too many times over the three days of this honeymoon. My husband and I are from Willow Hill. My husband is a veterinarian. My husband likes unsweetened tea. Linny smiled at herself. Yup, she was being obnoxious, but she didn\u2019t care. She was so dang happy that she couldn\u2019t stop. Well, at least for a while.
\nAt age thirty-nine and with her streak of bad luck with husbands, the odds of her and Jack finding each other and falling in love weren\u2019t great. Linny sent up a quick prayer of pure gratefulness. After her beloved first husband, Andy, had died of a brown recluse spider bite while cleaning out a shed for Linny\u2014an item on the too-long honey-do lists she always kept for him\u2014she\u2019d been lost for so many years and thought she\u2019d never be happy again. Then Buck the charmer came along. She should have known a golden boy driving a vintage Caddy wouldn\u2019t be good husband material, but she\u2019d married him anyway. He\u2019d turned out to be trouble, but just as she was considering divorcing him, he\u2019d up and died on her. When his aneurism blew while he was in bed with a woman named Kandi, he\u2019d left her broke.
\nLinny had sworn she\u2019d steer clear of men or die trying, and then she\u2019d met Jack. Technically, she\u2019d accidentally hit him in the head with a bourbon bottle while recycling at the dump. She smiled and shook her head, remembering. Most women would pretty up that how-we-met story, but Linny told people the unvarnished version. Maybe she just wanted to spread the word that second chances, fresh starts, and true love were all still possible, even at her ages. The happily ever after you yearn for just might not look the way you thought it would.
\nSo, a few days ago in a backyard ceremony, Linny had married Jack. A small-town vet with a twelve-year-old son and an exquisite ex-wife who was just a little too chummy with him for Linny\u2019s taste, Jack came with complications. But so had she. And today she was buoyant and happy.<\/p>\n

<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n

\n<\/a><\/div>\n

<\/a><\/p>\n

Website<\/a> * Facebook<\/a> * Twitter<\/a> * Amazon<\/a> * Goodreads<\/a><\/p>\n

Susan has an undergraduate degree from James Madison University and a master\u2019s degree (MSW) from The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. She has used her professional background as a psychotherapist and corporate trainer to add authenticity to her characters.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>Susan is a wife, a stepmother, and a dog lover. She and her family live near Raleigh, North Carolina where she is busy finishing up the third novel in the Willow Hill Series.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/a><\/p>\n

\n

a Rafflecopter giveaway<\/a><\/b><\/span><\/p>\n


\n<\/span>
\n
\n<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/div>\n
<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Sweet Southern Hearts Author: Susan Schild Publisher: Lyrical Press Genre: Contemporary Women’s Fiction Susan Schild welcomes you back to the offbeat Southern town of Willow Hill, North Carolina, for a humorous, heartwarming story of new beginnings, do-overs, and self-discovery\u2026<\/p>\n

Continue reading ➞ Guest Post & Giveaway: Sweet Southern Hearts by Susan Schild<\/span><\/a><\/div>","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"spay_email":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[52,74,99,187,204,328,358,376,411],"class_list":["post-5139","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-miscellaneous","tag-blog-post","tag-book-list","tag-books","tag-fiction","tag-guest-post","tag-new-release","tag-promo","tag-reading","tag-spotlight"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":11744,"url":"https:\/\/travellingthroughwords.com\/index.php\/2018\/05\/15\/11744\/","url_meta":{"origin":5139,"position":0},"title":"Degrees of Love by Lisa Slabach – Book Spotlight and Giveaway","date":"May 15, 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"Book Details: Book Title: Degrees of Love: A Novel by Lisa Slabach Category: Adult Fiction, 344 pages Genre: Women's Fiction Publisher: Bookbaby Release date: Dec 1, 2017 Tour dates: May 1 to 18, 2018 Content Rating: PG-13 + M (Adult themes including infidelity, occasional F-word, non-explicit sex scenes) Book Description:\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Miscellaneous"","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/travellingthroughwords.files.wordpress.com\/2018\/05\/2d5b2-degrees2bof2blove.jpg?w=350&h=200&crop=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":8739,"url":"https:\/\/travellingthroughwords.com\/index.php\/2017\/07\/21\/seven-threads-a-book-of-short-stories-by-jason-atkinson-guest-post-spotlight-giveaway\/","url_meta":{"origin":5139,"position":1},"title":"Seven Threads: A Book of Short Stories by Jason Atkinson (Guest Post, Spotlight & Giveaway)","date":"July 21, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"Book Details Book Title: Seven Threads: A Book of Short Stories Author: Jason Atkinson Category: Adult Fiction, 151 pages Genre: Thriller and Suspense Publisher: Mascot Books Release date: July 4 , 2017 Tour dates: July 10 to 28, 2017 Content Rating: PG Book Description In this collection of seven short\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Miscellaneous"","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/travellingthroughwords.files.wordpress.com\/2017\/07\/84aac-seven2bthreads.jpg?w=350&h=200&crop=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":10045,"url":"https:\/\/travellingthroughwords.com\/index.php\/2017\/09\/25\/the-sky-throne-by-chris-ledbetter-guest-post-spotlight-and-giveaway\/","url_meta":{"origin":5139,"position":2},"title":"The Sky Throne by Chris Ledbetter (Guest Post, Spotlight and Giveaway)","date":"September 25, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"Book Details: Book Title: The Sky Throne by Chris Ledbetter Category: YA Fiction, 300 pages Genre: Fantasy Publisher: Month 9 Books Release date: April 18, 2017 Tour dates: Sept 18 to Oct 20, 2017 Content Rating: PG + M (No f-words but there may be some mild profanity, and mild\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Miscellaneous"","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/travellingthroughwords.files.wordpress.com\/2017\/09\/20233-the2bsky2bthrone.jpg?w=350&h=200&crop=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":9603,"url":"https:\/\/travellingthroughwords.com\/index.php\/2017\/09\/19\/a-year-in-the-company-of-freaks-by-teresa-neumann-guest-post-book-spotlight-giveaway\/","url_meta":{"origin":5139,"position":3},"title":"A Year in the Company of Freaks by Teresa Neumann (Guest Post, Book Spotlight & Giveaway)","date":"September 19, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"Book Details: Book Title: A Year in the Company of Freaks by Teresa Neumann Category: Adult Fiction, 515 pages Genre: Historical Fiction Publisher: All's Well House Release date: Dec 21, 2015 Tour dates: Sept 11 to 29, 2017 Content Rating: PG + M (Little violence and profanity, no f-words, no\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Miscellaneous"","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/travellingthroughwords.files.wordpress.com\/2017\/09\/73159-a2byear2bin2bthe2bcompany2bof2bfreaks.jpg?w=350&h=200&crop=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":9417,"url":"https:\/\/travellingthroughwords.com\/index.php\/2017\/08\/25\/the-invitation-by-tyfany-williams-guest-post-spotlight-giveaway\/","url_meta":{"origin":5139,"position":4},"title":"The Invitation by Tyfany Williams (Guest Post, Spotlight & Giveaway)","date":"August 25, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"Book Details: Book Title: The Invitation: To Journey Through a Conscious Mind \u200bCategory: Adult Fiction; 40 pages \u200bGenre: Poetry Publisher: Tyfany Williams Release date: March 31,2017 Tour dates: Aug 21 to Sept 1, 2017 Content Rating: PG-13 + M (\u200bfor mature content of love and relationships etc. 1-2 word usage\u2026","rel":"","context":"Similar post","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/travellingthroughwords.files.wordpress.com\/2017\/08\/3c9e1-the2binvitation.png?w=350&h=200&crop=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":6210,"url":"https:\/\/travellingthroughwords.com\/index.php\/2017\/04\/04\/behind-the-title-creation-of-a-love-story-by-romance-author-cynthia-roberts-guest-post\/","url_meta":{"origin":5139,"position":5},"title":"Behind the Title (Creation of a Love Story) By Romance Author Cynthia Roberts: Guest Post","date":"April 4, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"Creating romantic fiction has been a passion of mine, ever since I was old enough to understand the connection between the sexes. \u00a0I think I was twelve, when I wrote my first love story and like most young minds; I truly thought it was a masterpiece. There\u2019s another masterful connection\u2026","rel":"","context":"Similar post","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/travellingthroughwords.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/04\/author-photo-150x150.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/travellingthroughwords.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5139","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/travellingthroughwords.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/travellingthroughwords.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/travellingthroughwords.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/travellingthroughwords.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5139"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/travellingthroughwords.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5139\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/travellingthroughwords.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5139"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/travellingthroughwords.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5139"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/travellingthroughwords.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5139"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}