BLOGMANIA is HERE! FINALLY!

It’s been months of preparation, and I’ve not been as active in promoting this as I’d planned. But, hopefully you all remembered that it was coming! BLOGMANIA is finally here!

What is Blogmania? Long story short: it’s a giveaway spanning 175 blogs and lasting two days. Starting NOW. Ending 12:00am (EST) Sept. 17, 2010. All blogs have $100+ in giveaways available for you to sign up for. For more details on what exactly is going on, check out the post HERE. You can start here, or on any blog participating. There is a list of participating blogs at the end of this post.

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And now for the good stuff: my giveaways. I have 5 prize packs. The theme, although it’s very loosely reflected in the prizes, is Fall Into Reading.

Package 1: International Prize Pack

As the name of this implies, this is for INTERNATIONAL readers. Included are a PDF of Northern Roses and Southern Belles by Caroline Clemmons, 6 mini-bookmarks from IvyLeaf, a tote bag with leaf design from Lovely Pieces Design, a pack of bookmarks from Creative Artworks, and the book of your choice from Book Depository (up to $20 USD).

Northern Roses and Southern Belles: In a country torn asunder–from the Canadian border to Texas, from Maryland to Arkansas, from the battlefield of Antietam to the Red River Campaign–brave men and loyal women see their lives turned upside down. Peril lurks behind every tree and near every homestead, but the hard-fought love of a man and a woman surpasses all. Six talented writers provide stories of romance and danger centering on Union and Confederate soldiers, spies, blockade runners, renegades, and battlefield nurses during a period of corsets, hoopskirts, and gentlemen callers.

Mini-bookmarks by IvyLeaf: These mini bookmarks or clips are hand-formed from 20 gauge copper, brass and silver-plated wire, then flattened so they will not tear or damage the pages they mark. They only measure about 1 inch by 1 inch. They are so cute and do the job well of keeping several places in your book or journal. The winner will receive an assortment of fun shapes.

Leaf Design Tote: This pesticide-free cotton tote supports organic farming! Super lightweight organic cotton tote bag, this size is great for everyday use and is easy to roll up and carry with you for on-the-go plastic-bag-free purchases. Features blue leaf gocco-printed design. Each leaf is individually Gocco-printed by hand, so every tote bag is unique.

Reading for Life Bookmarks: These one-of-a-kind bookmarks are made with two layers of heavy watercolor paper and are hand-painted. Book/reading-related quotes are hand-written on both sides of each bookmark. The bookmarks are then protected with a coat of satin varnish on both sides. Shiny ribbon adds a nice touch, and hangs outside the book for easier spot-finding when you’re ready to read again. Phrases included are “A book is a garden carried in the pocket,” “There is no substitute for a book in the life of a child,” “A library is a hospital for the mind,” and “If you can read this, thank a teacher.”

Book Depository: Winner chooses one book, costing up to $20 USD, from Book Depository. I will order it and have it shipped to you.

Package 2: Manifest and More

This package is open only to readers in the U.S. (Sorry, everyone else!) Contents of this package include a Manifest prize pack from Online Publicist, knit mittens by Jackie D’s Knit Boutique, a signed copy of a book in the Riyria Revelations series by Michael J. Sullivan (winner picks which book), a box of herbal tea from Celestial Seasonings.

Manifest prize pack: This pack includes a copy of Manifest by Artist Arthur and a whole bunch of swag! (I am jealous – wish I could keep these things for myself! LOL) If you are not familiar with the book, check out my review. The swag includes a poster, a tote, a pen, a notebook, and a coin purse.

Mittens: Warm hand-knit mittens by Jackie D. Keep your hands cozy and warm in these cute hand knit winter mitts made of supersoft wool. Heathered yarn with color gradations from caramel at the fingertips to icy green to medium blue at the wrist with small flecks of turquoise, orange, red, and green throughout. Split seams at the wrist with a teal blue vintage button detail. The gathered stitch design used is called “butterfly.” There was only enough of this yarn to make one pair, so they are totally unique! Sized to fit most hand sizes. Length: 10″

Signed book: “The Riyria Revelation is a multi-book saga that tell one story in six episodes, rather than a string of sequels based on the first successful story. The entire epic tale was completed before the first novel went to press allowing for a tale that unfolds across the whole breadth of the series, with secrets deliberately hinted at in one book being fulfilled in later novels and some saved to the very end. Yet despite this, each book is a full episode, with its own beginning, middle and end, which can be enjoyed independently.” The books are The Crown Conspiracy, Avempartha, Nyphron Rising, The Emerald Storm, and Wintertide, with a sixth book coming next April. The winner gets to choose which book in the series (through the soon-to-be-released 5th book, Wintertide) that they want, and Michael will sign it. The first four books can be seen HERE, and Wintertide is HERE.

Tea: A box of herbal tea from Celestial Seasonings. It’s the Fruit Sampler, which includes Raspberry Zinger, Country Peach Passion, True Blueberry, Wild Berry Zinger, and Black Cherry Berry.

Package 3: Books and Earrings

This package is for U.S. readers only. Included are a copy of Heart of the Matter by Emily Giffin, Dear John audiobook, a copy of Shiva’s Arms by Cheryl Snell, an ARC of How Clarissa Burden Learned to Fly by Connie May Fowler, an ARC of Pretend All Your Life by Joseph L. Mackin, and Happy Colors earrings by Serendipity Rose.

Heart of the Matter: Tessa Russo is the mother of two young children and the wife of a renowned pediatric surgeon.  Despite her own mother’s warnings, Tessa has recently given up her career to focus on her family and the pursuit of domestic happiness. From the outside, she seems destined to live a charmed life. Valerie Anderson is an attorney and single mother to six-year-old Charlie–a boy who has never known his father.  After too many disappointments, she has given up on romance–and even to some degree, friendships–believing that it is always safer not to expect too much. Although both women live in the same Boston suburb, the two have relatively little in common aside from a fierce love for their children.  But one night, a tragic accident causes their lives to converge in ways no one could have imagined. In alternating, pitch-perfect points of view, Emily Giffin creates a moving, luminous story of good people caught in untenable circumstances. Each being tested in ways they never thought possible. Each questioning everything they once believed. And each ultimately discovering what truly matters most.

Dear John audiobook: An angry rebel, John dropped out of school and enlisted in the Army, not knowing what else to do with his life–until he meets the girl of his dreams, Savannah. Their mutual attraction quickly grows into the kind of love that leaves Savannah waiting for John to finish his tour of duty, and John wanting to settle down with the woman who captured his heart. But 9/11 changes everything. John feels it is his duty to re-enlist. And sadly, the long separation finds Savannah falling in love with someone else. “Dear John,” the letter read…and with those two words, a heart was broken and two lives were changed forever. Returning home, John must come to grips with the fact that Savannah, now married, is still his true love–and face the hardest decision of his life.

Shiva’s Arms: Shiva’s Arms is about what happens when cultures collide. Alice meets Ramesh, and they fall in love. She’s American; he’s Indian. His family does not approve – especially not his mother, who is named Shiva but goes by Amma. Amma basically does what she can to make Alice pay for ruining her son’s life. When Alice succumbs to clinical depression, things get further complicated. The relationship between Amma and Alice is nothing but negative. Then Amma falls ill, and Alice is forced to help bring Amma back. It’s a story about cultural differences, love, and reconciliation.

How Clarissa Burden Learned to Fly: This is the story of a woman in her mid thirties as she tracks one day in her life during which she ultimately transcends the quagmire of her middle-aged existence and leaves her husband.

Pretend All Your Life: In the eerie winter after New York’s most famous day, enigmatic egoist Dr. Richard Gallin has no end of troubles. A success on his own terms– Park Avenue plastic surgeon, father, art collector, libertine Gallin is suddenly hard-pressed to hold on to his place in a post-9/11 world he hardly recognizes. And it’s not just Richard Gallin whose identity is in flux. The turmoil in New York has tilted the surface of the world’s greatest city, and everybody is scrambling for opportunity. Take the enterprising journalist seeking strange justice, the Wall Street dissembler hoping for new life, a Nicaraguan rebel conjuring his American dream, the beautiful wife trapped by her perfect penthouse sky… Twists ensue that only the unleashed desires of these human hearts could produce as someone close asks Gallin to do something he could never be prepared to do. Just as he asks another to do what was previously unthinkable. Pretend All Your Life takes place in just six days, during which the dilemmas these characters face echo many of the major questions of our time about responsibility, beauty, identity, ambition, and love. An incisive, surprise-filled portrait of a place and a people on the verge, this is an unforgettable debut novel that resounds with life at a defining moment in history.

Happy Colors earrings: This pair is versatile with so many colors and occasions – dangling from French ear wires are garnet colored 4mm cathedral glass beads, 7mm iridescent blue/gray coin shaped mother of pearl, 2mm redish dichroic sparkling rondelle beads, 1mm labradorite rondelle beads and sterling silver and gold filled findings.

Package 4: Vintage Prize Pack

Another package for U.S. readers only. If you collect vintage things, this is for you. Up for grabs is a vintage copy of David Copperfield by Charles Dickens from Sadie Olive, a vintage book from Brixiana, and Esme earrings from Athena’s Little Owl.

David Copperfield: This is a vintage copy of Charles Dickens’ book. If you love Charles Dickens and/or vintage books, then this is a must-have!

Vintage book: This is titled Tracy and Hepburn: An Intimate Memoir by Garson Kanin. I do not have a description for this book, as it is being kept off the Esty site specifically for Blogmania.

Esme earrings: These have a vintage look to them. From the Esty shop: “A delicate diamond shaped filigree drops from simple antique brass loops. Beneath, a large citrine swarovski crytallized element faceted bead sparkles brilliantly. These earrings have gorgeous antique charm. They are approximately 2 inches long.”

Package 5: Christian Book Pack

This is for U.S. readers ONLY, too. Included in this package is a copy of Battlefield of the Mind by Joyce Meyer, Hearing From God Each Morning also by Joyce Meyer, The Bridegrooms by Allison Pittman, and a slouch hat from Phineas and Lou.

Battlefield of the Mind: Joyce Meyer uncovers the tactics of the soul’s enemy and gives a clear-cut plan to triumph in the fight for the mind. Joyce will teach you how to renew your mind through the Word and stand victoriously at battle’s end.

Hearing From God Each Morning: In the hustle and bustle of today’s busy world, sometimes it’s hard enough to hear yourself think, much less take a minute to stop and listen for the voice of God. But learning to recognize God’s voice and the many ways in which He speaks is vital for following His plan. This devotional; drawing from How to Hear From God, Knowing God Intimately, and The Power Of  Simple Prayer shows the reader through a daily reminder, how God speaks through their own thoughts and feelings, their dreams, and the words of other people. Joyce Meyer reveals the ways in which God delivers His word and the benefits of asking God for the sensitivity to hear His voice. Joyce asks the question, “Are you listening?” and shares how to do just that…on a daily basis.

The Bridegrooms: Tragedy hits the Allenhouse family on a hot summer night in Ohio when a mother of four vanishes. Eight-year-old Vada virtually grows up overnight and raises her three younger sisters while her father loses himself in his medical practice in the basement of their home. Now, Vada is a grown woman, still making her home with her father and sisters. Her days are spent serving as an errand girl for Cleveland’s fledgling amateur orchestra; her evenings with Garrison Walker, her devoted, if passionless, beau. Dizzying change occurs the day the Brooklyn Bridegrooms come to town to play the Cleveland Spiders and a line drive wallops the head of a spectator. The fan is whisked to the Allenhouse parlor, and questions swirl about the anonymous, unconscious man. Suddenly, the subdued house is filled with visitors, from a flirtatious, would-be sports writer to the Bridegrooms’ handsome star hitter to the guilt-ridden ballplayer who should have caught the stray shot. The medical case brings Dr. Allenhouse a frustration and helplessness he hasn’t felt since his wife’s disappearance. Vada’s sisters are giddy at the bevy of possible suitors. And Vada’s life is awakened amid the super-charged atmosphere of romantic opportunity.

Slouch Hat: This hat is made to be your favorite! It’s perfect for a guy or a girl and made to fit most adult heads from about 22″. Wear it slouched, pull it down and let it stand tall, or flip the brim and wear it more like a traditional cap. Made of 80% acrylic/20% wool.

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How to Enter:

Entry is simple. Leave a comment below with the package you would prefer to win. (If you would like more than one, list them all in the same comment.) That’s it! No strings attached. (Although, if you like what you see, please do follow!)

Entries will be accepted until midnight (Eastern) September 17. Winners will be chosen randomly with the help of random.org. I will send the lucky winners an e-mail notification. (It will come from proudbooknerd(at)gmail(dot)com, so make sure to add this address to your safe list or address book to ensure it doesn’t get lost in junk/bulk mail.) If I do not get a response by 9.m. Saturday, September 18, a new winner will be chosen. With the exception of the International Prize Pack, all giveaways are ONLY open to those in the U.S.

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Finally, use this link to continue on to the next blog:

FTC Disclosure: All items reviewed were either obtained by me for my own enjoyment or sent (from the author, publisher, publicist, via tour sites, etc.) in exchange for an honest review. I receive no monetary compensation for my posts. All opinions expressed are my own.

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