Double Giveaway Monday: Rearview Mirror and crafty stuff for readers and writers!

Happy Monday, friends! It sounds like an oxymoron, “Happy Monday”, but if you are a reader of our blog, then you know Mondays are happy days this month because we have MORE great giveaways for you!

Giveaway #1: Rearview Mirror by Stephanie Black

Today you have the chance to win your own copy (your choice of either print or Kindle version) of Rearview Mirror by Stephanie Black. Here’s a little bit more about the book:

On a rainy night eight years ago, Fiona Claridge lost control of her car and crashed, injuring herself and killing her roommate, Mia Hardy. Now, she strives to keep the painful past at bay by staying burrowed beneath the demands of her job as a college professor in a small New England town. But when someone starts leaving her gift-wrapped boxes containing malicious reminders of Mia’s death, Fiona’s guilt and grief come flooding back.

She assumes her stalker is Kimberly Bailey, a disgruntled student, and enlists the help of fellow professor James Hampton. But when Fiona encounters the angry wife of an old flame, it becomes clear her student isn’t the only one with an eye for revenge. Cruel messages escalate to danger, then murder. As past and present become horribly entangled, Fiona struggles to unravel the truth about a determined killer—before she becomes the next victim.

This book is one of those ones that will get its hooks into you and you will find yourself sneaking away to read a few pages whenever you can. While it sounds cliché (you all must know by now how I love my clichés), reading this book was like putting together a 1,000-piece puzzle. Only you’ve lost the box. So you don’t even know what the finished picture is supposed to look like, just that you have enough pieces that look like they should go together that you’re desperate to find out what will happen when they do.

The author, Stephanie Black, had all the pieces and she knew exactly what the finished picture looked like. She handed me one piece at a time, page by page, in just the right order so that I didn’t know what the final picture was until about 3 pages from the end. She would give me pieces that completed entire sections, but then when I tried to fit the sections together I realized I didn’t have the connecting pieces, and then that made me wonder if they even connected at all! It kept me guessing up until the very end.

To be honest, I wasn’t sure I would like this book very much. I don’t usually read mystery novels; I’m not into the whole murder & darkness thing. The beauty of Rearview Mirror is that Black gets you to care about the characters. It’s a story that’s about more than just solving a mystery- it’s about family relationships, forgiveness, making mistakes, and how the weight of guilt can affect your life.

With Rearview Mirror, Stephanie Black brings us a world of carefully crafted mystery centered on complicated and realistic characters. She takes us on a journey through a maze of peculiarly interconnected events that bring these characters together in an urgent need to discover the truth- a need that you might be surprised to discover becomes as much alive in you, the reader, as it is in the characters.

Rearview Mirror is available at Seagull Book, Deseret Book, and Amazon. You can find out more about Stephanie Black and her other books at www.stephanieblack.net.

Author Stephanie Black

Giveaway #2: Crafty Goodies!

Now, on to giveaway #2 for today: some handmade craftiness from me to you! Today, I have choices.

Behind Door Number 1…(drumroll please)…a Twilight necklace! This necklace features a pendant made from a Scrabble tile that has been embellished with part of a page directly from Stephenie Meyer’s bestselling book, Twilight!

Behind Door Number 2…a set of Twilight clip magnets! Are you a closet Twihard? That’s okay- you can have these clips on your fridge and only you, your family, and your carton of milk will know. Read your favorite quotes and smile as you reach for your late-night snack. Plus, they’re handy for holding important papers.

And last, I wanted a choice for you non-Twilighters, so behind Door Number 3 is…a motivational scrabble tile plaque for your desk! 5 little letters (for a total word score of 8) will remind you of your passion and inspire you to get writing. The letters have been permanently affixed to the tray, so they will remain intact and inspirational for years to come. A classy and fun conversation piece to add to your home!

GIVEAWAY RULES (I agree, this giveaway totally rules.)

Just like last week, we will have TWO winners- one for Rearview Mirror and one for one of my crafty goodies. But, unlike last week, this week you can let me know which prize you'd like to win as I will do two separate drawings- one for the book, one for the crafts. You are allowed to enter both drawings- just let me know in your comment that you'd like to be entered to win both. If you don't specify which drawing in your comment, then you will be automatically entered to win both prizes. You can only win ONE prize! If you are a winner in one drawing, you will be out of the running for the other.

ALL ENTRIES MUST BE MADE BY 11:59 PM MST tonight, January 16, 2012. Winners will be posted tomorrow morning in our Winner's Circle (tab at the top of the blog home page).

As usual, there are multiple ways to earn entries into this drawing, make sure you take advantage of ALL of them.

1. Leave a comment on this post (don't forget to specify which prize you'd like to claim if you win!)

2. Become a follower of this blog or tell us you already are (you must clearly state in your comment on this post that you are a follower to receive credit for this).

3. Follow MMW on Facebook (again, you must clearly state in your comment on this post that you have done this to receive credit).

4. Advertise this spectacular month of give-aways on your blog or Facebook page. (clearly state!)

5. And, because I want to give you even more ways to win, you can earn an extra entry this week by visiting my other blog over at The Beautiful Thrifty Life and following me over there- don't forget to let me know in your comment on THIS post if you've done that.

Can you believe we're only halfway through this month of giveaways? Make sure you keep coming back for MORE chances to win every day (except Sundays) this month!