Author Amber Daulton Here today!!!


We are happy to have

Amber Daulton

With us today!
Author of
"A Hero's Heart" 

Rad-Reader:  How did you come up with such an intense character as Jarrett Brandt?


Amber:  I adore tough, flawed heroes, especially those battling addiction, so I suppose Jarrett is a homage to action movie heroes. You know the kind, bad boys who are ice on the outside, cotton candy on the in, filled with personal honor and wild in bed? YUM!


Rad-Reader:  His father was a piece of work, right there in your face.  But, was his mom made to be passive aggressive or was that just me reading more into it?


Amber:  I don’t believe that Linda, Jarrett’s mom, was passive-aggressive. Even though she was an obedient wife, she was strong when it counted and often put her foot down and defied her husband when needed. She was hesitant and timid toward her son because she didn’t want to push him away.


Rad-Reader:  I felt his pull to come home was to show himself he could face his demons, his brother being the safest.  Or was it always to show his parents and see Marissa Reinn Brandt?


Amber: Jarrett definitely wanted to face his demons and make peace with his deceased brother. He didn’t want to see his parents or Marissa because that would just be too difficult and awkward for everyone involved.

Rad-Reader:  Marissa was one spunky chick.  She wanted Jarrett forever.  It wasn’t until her husband came home damaged and more edgy like the Jarrett she remembered that she married him.  You kind of slip that in quietly if you aren’t paying attention, you miss it.  Was it meant for her husband to seem to take more risk when he found she was using him as a substitute for Jarrett?


Amber: After Joel came back from the war, he acted tougher, more confident and Marissa found herself drawn to him. It wasn’t until after they married with a child that she realized that she didn’t truly love him as he deserved and that she had unwittingly used him a substitute for the man she really wanted.


Rad-Reader:  Jarrett’s mother loved him even though she loved her husband and stood by him.  She showed it by giving him something she saved for him.  How did you come up with this touch?


Amber:  I’m a romantic at heart and I love second chances, plus I’m a girly girl. I love jewelry. Jarrett gave Marissa a promise ring as a symbol of his love and devotion but then he abruptly left her and disappeared for ten years. The pain Marissa experienced is heartbreaking. Linda kept the ring because, even though Marissa had married her other son, she knew that Marissa still held the key to Jarrett’s heart.


Rad-Reader:  The betrayal: Was that thought of from the beginning or was it something that came to you as the story progressed?


Amber:  I decided to go with a betrayal plot as I first outlined the book. Jarrett and Marissa’s emotional problems carried throughout the book, as well as Jarrett’s uncanny ability to lie his booty off for his family’s own good, but I wanted the action part (the betrayal) to come from a secondary or outside source.


Rad-Reader:  Did you do any research on DEA agents?  Their life styles?  Their families?


Amber:  I always do a ton of research to make a fictional book as authentic as possible even though I twist facts now and then. I researched different DEA divisions, office locations, publicized missions of influential agents, lifestyles, how the job affects agents’ families, qualifications to join the agency, plus so much more.


Rad-Reader:  What are the first 3 words you think of when you think of your newest book?


Amber: Action. Suspenseful. Sexy.


Rad-Reader:  What would your newest lead character like about themselves? 


Amber:  Jarrett has a lot of problems but he wants to right the wrongs in his past, keep his loved ones safe and never disgrace himself again. In other words, what he likes most about himself is his determination.


Rad-Reader:  Laptop, desktop or longhand when writing your wonderful story like anything “A Hero’s Heart”?




Amber:  I plot longhand and on my laptop but I write the story exclusively on my laptop.


Rad-Reader:  Do you prefer e-books, paperbacks, or hardback books?


Amber:  I read all three kinds of books but I prefer print books. It doesn’t matter whether it’s paperback or hardback but I love to have a physical copy of a book in my hands.


Rad-Reader:  Do you read reviews and do they affect your day either way good or bad?


Amber: I do read reviews. I always feel honored and overjoyed with good reviews but I try to view bad reviews as a way to improve. However, though, I ignore bad reviews if the reader doesn’t give constructive criticism or reasons why she/he didn’t like the book.


Rad-Reader:  Who does your covers and do you have any say over them?



Amber:  I’m not sure who creates my covers but I don’t have much say as to what the covers look like. I tell the editor what I want, she relates it to the BTGN design department and, as far as I know, the cover artist picks and chooses what he/she likes from my ideas to create the cover. 
Rad-Reader:  I thought that was a really good cover it was exactly what you thought you were going to read about. 



Rad-Reader:  What are you working on now?


Amber:  Right now, I’m writing the second book of a trilogy that I plotted last year. (I haven’t contracted the series yet with my publisher.) These books have nothing to do with A Hero’s Heart but the leading males are all bad boys with tempers and serious problems.


Rad-Reader:  There are a lot of books turned into movies any you can think of you like the movie better than the book?


Amber: Well, I know a lot of fans may not agree with this, but I enjoy the True Blood series on HBO more than I do The Southern Vampire Mysteries books by Charlaine Harris. Both are incredible but, since I watched the show before I read some of the books, I like it better.


Rad-Reader:  Is there an author you would like to meet and why?


Amber:  Christine Feehan and Sherrilyn Kenyon are my two favorite authors. They easily bring their characters to life and I connect so much with those characters. Their books are must haves for me, no matter the series.


Rad-Reader:  Where can we reach you? Facebook, Goodreads, Tweeter, etc…


Social Media Links:



Facebook Author Page – www.facebook.com/amber.daulton.author

Facebook Friend Page – www.facebook.com/amber.daulton.5



IN IT FOR THE LONG RUN

IN IT FOR THE LONG RUN                  JIM ROONEY
Posted:  Jan. 10, 2014

  Inspired by the Hank Williams and Leadbelly recordings he heard as a teenager growing up outside of Boston, Jim Rooney began a musical journey that intersected with some of the biggest names in American music including Bob Dylan, James Taylor, Bill Monroe, Muddy Waters, and Alison Krauss. In It for the Long Run: A Musical Odyssey is Rooney's kaleidoscopic first-hand account of more than five decades of success as a performer, concert promoter, songwriter, music publisher, engineer, and record producer.

As witness to and participant in over a half century of music history, Rooney provides a sophisticated window into American vernacular music. Following his stint as a "Hayloft Jamboree" hillbilly singer in the mid-1950s, Rooney managed Cambridge's Club 47, a catalyst of the ‘60’s folk music boom. He soon moved to the Newport Folk Festival as talent coordinator and director where he had a front row seat to Dylan "going electric."

In the 1970s Rooney's odyssey continued in Nashville where he began engineering and producing records. His work helped alternative country music gain a foothold in Music City and culminated in Grammy nominations for singer-songwriters John Prine, Iris Dement, and Nanci Griffith. Later in his career he was a key link connecting Nashville to Ireland's folk music scene.

Writing songs or writing his memoir, Jim Rooney is the consummate storyteller. In It for the Long Run: A Musical Odyssey is his singular chronicle from the heart of Americana.

HUBBY'S REVIEW:
For me this should have been a good read from a person who was in the music business from the 60s and forward. He was the musical director for some of the Newport Jazz Festival concerts. Now I have a number of those records yes records and cds. But that the music that comes across those does not come across these pages for me. I kept reading thinking it was me. He was part of some of the most interesting people in the business. Muddy Waters, James Taylor, Bill Monroe, and Allison Krauss, just to name a few. The feeling you get when you listen to any one of these artists is amazing and I now it is difficult to put it into words but for me this book was flat. For the life he has had and the things he has done I was expecting something a little better. Maybe someone else will see something it that I missed and I can go back and reread at another time.

THE ROAD OUT OF HELL: SANFORD CLARK AND THE TRUE STORY OF THE WINEVILLE MURDERS

THE ROAD OUT OF HELL         ANTHONY FLACCO, JERRY CLARK, MICHAEL STONE
Posted:  Jan. 10, 2014

The Road Out of Hell by Anthony Flacco  From 1926 to 1928, Gordon Stewart Northcott committed at least 20 murders on a chicken ranch outside of Los Angeles. His nephew, Sanford Clark, was held captive there from the age of 13 to 15, and was the sole surviving victim of the killing spree. Here, acclaimed crime writer Anthony Flacco—using never-before-heard information from Sanford’s son Jerry Clark—tells the real story behind the case that riveted the nation.

Forced by Northcott to take part in the murders, Sanford carried tremendous guilt all his life. Yet despite his youth and the trauma, he helped gain some justice for the dead and their families by testifying at Northcott’s trial which led to his conviction and execution. It was a shocking story, but perhaps the most shocking part of all is the extraordinarily ordinary life Clark went on to live as a decorated WWII vet, a devoted husband of 55 years, a loving father, and a productive citizen.

In dramatizing one of the darkest cases in American crime, Flacco constructs a riveting psychological drama about how Sanford was able to detoxify himself from the evil he’d encountered, offering the ultimately redemptive story of one man’s remarkable ability to survive a nightmare and emerge intact.


HUBBY'S REVIEW:
This story is a true crime that took place between 1926 & 1928 in a town called Wineville, outside of L.A. The story starts off with the life of the young cousin who by the age of thirteen is sent with his older cousin to help him on his chicken farm in California. They Canada and make the drive all the way down. The terror starts on the trip and does not end for years. It is not until his sister who after a visit and notices changes in her little brother that she knows something is horribly wrong. When she returns to Canada she writes a letter to the local sheriff who at the time was looking for two missing boys. When they came across Sanford and got him away from his uncle Gordon Stewart Northcott. He told the police everything and where to look for the buried bodies. After the first bodies showed up the police now new what they had sort of. Sanford led them to the graves and because of the work he did with the police Gordon was sentence to death along with his two grandparents. Gordon was put to death after two tears and after about a year in the Whittier Boys School, Sanford was able to back to his home town in Canada. In 1935 he married June Mclnnes and she became good friends with his sister Jessie. With the help of both of them he would be able to get through times of not sleeping and nightmares. He was able to join the military and served with a Canadian 6th field Regiment from 1939 to 1946. After the war he got a job as a postal carrier and worked there for 28 years. He and his wife adopted two boys and they grew up not knowing about their fathers’ childhood. After leaving the postal job to keep his mind busy he volunteered at local museum and other local charities. He and his wife were married for over 50 years before she passed away. He passed away not soon after wards. He did tell his oldest son when he was older because a story was coming out and he thought maybe they would make reference to his story. his son is the one who felt his father’s story should be told. I got this book from net galley.



HAVE YOURSELF A CURVY LITTLE CHRISTMAS

HAVE YOURSELF A CURVY LITTLE CHRISTMAS   SUGAR JAMISON
Posted:  Jan. 10, 2013

Have Yourself a Curvy Little Christmas by Sugar Jamison  A Special Holiday Novella!

On the first day of Christmas, Dina Gregory, former wild child and prodigal daughter returns home to New York on a mission. Finding her young son’s father and making him take responsibility for the child he created is the only thing on her wish list. But instead of finding the man she was looking for she runs into his stuffy older brother Ben.

Ben has never liked Dina, but being trapped together on the holidays allows him to see a different side of her. She brings back his Christmas spirit and in the process reminds him what it feels like to love.  Dina’s past makes her wary of falling in love, but Ben is determined to make her stay as his permanent Christmas gift. 

HUBBY'S REVIEW:

This is a love that does not start out that way. Dina is going to the home of her sons’ father and ask for help. When she arrives there the staff lets her in and she is brought in to see the brother he informs her that his brother was killed in a skiing accident she makes some off the wall comment but the brother knows that the child is related just by looking at him. He wants her to stay since there is a storm coming through and though she wants to leave she knows she needs to stay for her and her baby. That is when everything starts to come apart in Ben’s life he has pushed down feelings since his wife passed away that now she is starting to get him to open up. To actually decorate the house for Christmas, even leaving the home on more than one occasion. This is not to say there are not problems but they can be worked out. The character of Dina is very funny and really helps makes for the story to be a fast read. This is a very good story with a lot of funny moments. I got this book from NETGALLEY.

AN ENGLISHMAN IN COLOMBIA

AN ENGLISHMAN IN COLOMBIA        DAVID WOOD
Posted:  Jan. 10, 2014

An Englishman in Colombia by David Wood  Murder, cocaine, street mugging, bombs and aggressive Amazonian Indians combined with exotic beach resorts and colorful characters make David Wood’s book on Colombia an interesting and adventurous look at the most dangerous and alluring country in Latin America.

David portrays the capital Bogotá as a mixture of colorful street people merging with a vibrant culture. The author’s travels in Colombia bring him into contact with many different characters and he outlines the problems experienced in a city characterized by the great contrast of wealth and poverty and the influence of the cocaine business.

From detailed personal accounts of incidents such as street muggings, a bomb explosion in central Bogotá and the blowing up of an aircraft by the drug cartels which results in the death of his business partner, David draws us into the heart of this compelling country.

The author gives clear descriptions of life in places like the Sierra Nevada Mountains where he climbs to the lost city of the Tairona Indians and experiences the culture of the Indian tribes. He also considers the history and culture of cities like Cartagena with its colonial heritage.

The book portrays Colombia as a land of great contrasts, beauty and vibrancy contrasted with excessive violence, poverty and crime. The result is a shocking and intimate reflection of life in Colombia today.


HUBBY'S REVIEW:
For me this was a hard book to get into. Dealing with real people and addiction, murder and other things the good parts of the story were not coming fast enough for me. It was a well written account of what he did and of the people he saw, just for me it was not my cup of tea that day. I got this book from net galley.  2 out of 5 stars

THE RIGHT PATH

THE RIGHT PATH                               JOE SCARBROUGH & GEORGE NEWBREN                  
Posted:  Jan. 12, 2014     

The Right Path by Joe Scarborough Joe Scarborough—former Republican congressman and the always insightful host of MSNBC’s Morning Joe—takes a nuanced and surprising look at the unexpected rise and self-inflicted fall of the Republican Party. Dominant in national politics for forty years under the influence of the conservative but pragmatic leadership of Dwight Eisenhower and Ronald Reagan, the GOP, Scarborough argues, is in a self-inflicted eclipse. The only way forward? Recover the principled realism of the giants who led the party to greatness.
 
In the aftermath of Lyndon Johnson’s 1964 landslide, the Republican Party appeared to be on the verge of permanent irrelevance. LBJ’s Great Society was institutionalizing sweeping liberal reforms, and the United States had a thriving, prosperous economy. Yet in an instant everything changed, and the next four decades would witness an unprecedented era of Republican ascendancy. What happened?

In The Right Path, Joe Scarborough looks back in time to discern how Republicans once dominated American public life. From Eisenhower’s refusal to let “the perfect be the enemy of the good” to Reagan’s charismatic but resolutely practical genius, Scarborough shows how principled pragmatism, combined with a commitment to core conservative values, led to victory after victory.

Now, however, political incalcitrance is threatening to turn a once-mighty party into a permanent minority.  

Opening with the passage of the Voting Rights Act in 1965—the high-water moment for liberalism—and ending with the national disillusionment that set in after Hurricane Katrina ravaged New Orleans, The Right Path effortlessly blends American political history with astute analysis and pithy, no-holds-barred commentary. Both a bracing call to arms and a commonsense history, The Right Path provides an illuminating look at conservatism and its discontents—and why the GOP must regain its former tone and tradition if it hopes to survive.
 

HUBBY'S REVIEW:
This is a political book and a history book as well. Maybe a little of both. He starts off by saying that the republican party has lost their way and peoples votes because of a lack of guidance and thinking that or by actions of a Republican President of not caring, not caring for the people of the country. When Hurricane Katrina hit New Orleans, there massive destruction. But for what seemed liked days there was no response by the federal government and he compared this to the watts riots in L.A. when Gov. Pat Brown was in France and felt that he did not need to come back to California right away. For me that was a good point to make because after the riots and the governor coming back and having to deal with a new republican in the upcoming elections. What people forgot is Pat Browns campaign worked to make election against him and then he lost to a no name Reagan, who later would be President and who people compare new republicans to. He also compared that after Johnson was elected saying he would not increase our involvement in Vietnam we actually increased the amount of troops sent there. This was compared to Bush and our fighting in Afghanistan which everyone for the most part was for, supported. Then invaded Iraq this lead to disillusionment, lack of trust in the office and of the Republican Party. Combined with the massive fool up with Katrina the people of the United States were tired and felt that the party had lost touch with them. By him making all of these correlations and going back to the sixties and what happened during that it made sense to me. I could to see what the author was trying to get me to see. For after Johnson we had Nixon who no one thought would be there after two defeats, President, and Governor of California. Now he is elected even after he resigns you only had a Democrat for four years then Reagan for 8 and Bush for four. If you go back a little farther you had Eisenhower throughout the fifties. Even though I could agree with him on the way the party went down or has severed. Who knows if they can make it back any time soon because for me they need young blood and ideas that are more for everyone. Who knows? I liked the book for the most part. I got this book from net galley.

THE CHRISTMAS TRAIN

THE CHRISTMAS TRAIN                        DAVID BALDACCI
Posted:  Jan. 10, 2014

The Christmas Train by David Baldacci  Disillusioned journalist Tom Langdon must get from Washington D.C. to L.A in time for Christmas. Forced to travel by train, he begins a journey of rude awakenings, thrilling adventures and holiday magic. He has no idea that the locomotives pulling him across America will actually take him into the rugged terrain of his own heart, as he rediscovers people's essential goodness and someone very special he believed he had lost.

The Christmas Train is filled with memorable characters who have packed their bags with as much wisdom as mischief ... and shows how we do get second chances to fulfill our deepest hopes and dreams, especially during this season of miracles.


HUBBY'S REVIEW:
I liked this story for a number of reasons. First it was set on a train and I have always liked trains growing up in a town that was there because of them. Second the man of the story Tom, cannot fly in the U.S. because he broke the tsa agent hand wand at the airport and was put on a restriction list. Though the people behind him were applauding at the time. And third he must have overcome his fears of commitment when he meets the women who he feels left him years before. They now being trapped so of speak need to work out the past. This is mostly from his side, she is firm in how she feels and lets him know about it. Along with this story line there are others as well. You get to meet the people who work on the trains and who provide the service in the sleeper cars, the food cars, handle luggage and all of the other duties it takes to go cross country on a train. The characters of the story really add to the making of this book and bring everything together. There are times you forget about the two main characters and allow yourself to get caught up in some of the other ones. They might be a lonely older person who lost their spouse and wanting to be with family did not want to fly, so they took the train to be with more people and feel safe. Just one example. But Mr. Baldacci really makes you feel as you are with these people on the train. A beautiful story not just for Christmas time but for any time. I got this book from net galley.  

SANCTUARY WITH THE COWBOY

SANCTUARY WITH THE COWBOY          M.J. FREDRICK
Posted:  Jan. 10, 2014

Sanctuary with the Cowboy by M.J. Fredrick  When an on-the-job incident sends her home to her family's Hill Country ranch, Detective Aubrey Cavanaugh wants to hide away with a good bottle of vodka to ease her mind and her guilt.

She doesn't want to deal with family, friends, and least of all her former lover, Erich Harlan, who is now the ranch foreman.

Erich Harlan has his hands full with overseeing the ranch while Aubrey's parents are away. But he can see she is hurting. He might be the last person she'd turn to, but he won't give up until he knows what's causing her pain and how to make it go away.

After a dozen years apart, will she be willing to find Sanctuary with the Cowboy?


MY REVIEW:

    Aubrey came home with pain, fear, hopelessness, and guilt.  Erich saw her coming home two weeks early with happiness, fond memories, and worry that something was wrong.  His worry was warranted since she was late getting out to the truck when he was waiting to pick her up at the airport.  You see she was drunk which she was so totally unlike her.  She was normally drunk on other things mainly him back in the day almost 12 years ago now.  Then she was feisty, now she looked tore up.

     After a few days she finally reveals the events on the job as a cop that brought her that unhappiness and sent her straight home.  There’s more to the reason she came home but it’s on a need to know basis at least in her mind.  Erich takes her to meet with one of his friends back from Afghanistan, so she can talk openly.  She does and her spirit seems a little lighter.  Things aren’t great but better.

     Aubrey is making an effort to fit in with her family and now Erich.  She helps her mom with one of the Christmas events and she is struck with how she is all alone.  No home, no family, and no man, well she would like to hope that Erich would be there if she were to change things but she just cannot think that way.  She really needs and wants more from Erich, like high school 12 years ago.

    Erich’s shy about it he has a lot to lose now with working for her father, his heart for good since she walked away from him last time without a backwards glance and he wants a relationship not a romp in the hay.  Find out what Aubrey’s secret is and if it can harm those around her.  See if her and Erich have a future the way he hopes for.  Find out if Aubrey is still excited on her job at HPD or if she wants more and if Erich is included.

     This was much bigger short then you would think in this what 35 pages.  There were some really funny spots where you found yourself smiling big, sadness for her PTSD, fear at the major twist in the story and then love a relationship of something never lost.  Free off of Amazon.

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