Melissa Blanchard Book Corner

The pictures are from “Whiskey Beach,” by Nora Roberts, the first book I’ve ever had signed by the author in person.  The last picture is one that Laura Reeth, Nora’s personal publicist, offered to take with my iPhone, which sealed the memory for me.  I traveled from Minneapolis, Minnesota to Boonsboro Maryland, over 1,000 miles, for this experience and would do it again in a heart beat.

Why?  For me it was a wish come true. Right after I signed up for the Brunch with Nora (which was just an e-mail from Nora’s blog Fall Into The Story (http://fallintothestory.com/) so I mailed in my RSVP. I knew I wanted to attend the book signing on the same weekend, it was as I was making the arrangements to travel to Boonsboro MD I found this album on iTunes, “Julie Andrews Selects Her Favorite Disney Songs” many were favorites of mine from a childhood Disney album but the one song that really felt right to express the moment I realized I was going to visit my favorite author was “When You Wish Upon a Star (from ‘Pinocchio’)” Cliff Edwards and Disney Studio Chorus,

DISNEY

When You Wish Upon A Star Lyrics

When you wish upon a star
Makes no difference who you are
Anything your heart desires
Will come to you

If your heart is in your dream
No request is too extreme
When you wish upon a star
As dreamers do

Fate is kind
She brings to those who love
The sweet fulfillment of
Their secret longing

Like a bolt out of the blue
Fate steps in and sees you through
When you wish upon a star
Your dreams come true

Fate is kind
She brings to those who love
The sweet fulfillment of
Their secret longing

Like a bolt out of the blue
Fate steps in and sees you through
When you wish upon a star
Your dreams come true

these lyrics are submitted by Cora Hume
Source: http://www.elyrics.net/read/d/disney-lyrics/when-you-wish-upon-a-star-lyrics.html

Nora Roberts’ books have been capturing my heart since I first picked up her Cordina’s Royal Family series in 1986.  After that I just kept looking for her books at libraries and bookstores.  I could read her work for hours, even when re-reading her books, I find it very difficult to stop reading.  Nora’s writing has an energy that engages my imagination until the very last page.

In person, Nora is very much the same.  She has a seemingly inexhaustible energy, to sign books, chat with fans, and pose for pictures.  Nora is very engaging and appreciative of her readers.  It was a meeting I’ll never forget.  She signed “Whiskey Beach,” “Thankless in Death,” and “Kindred in Death,” the last two she signed as J.D. Robb.  It was an excellent day and a beautiful memory, I’m very thankful to Nora Roberts and all who helped get the word out to all, even people in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

“Whiskey Beach,” by Nora Roberts is about the damage done by rumors designed to convict an innocent man in the court of public opinion.

Abra Walsh doesn’t believe in gossip.  She’s experienced first hand how damaging words are to a person’s life.  Abra is on a mission to see that Eli Landon fights back against the false accusations.  She has an ally in his Grandmother, Hester Landon, who mysteriously took a fall down the steps some two months before Eli arrives at Bluff House at the very spot where she landed.

This is a mystery that kept me guessing until the very end.  Eli knows he didn’t kill his wife but has no idea who did kill her a little over a year before the story starts.  Just when Eli begins to respond to Abra’s gentle urging to live again, a private investigator turns up dead and the old rumors start up all over again.

Will the person that killed his wife come after Abra or ultimately Eli? Is it the same person that killed the private investigator?

“Whiskey Beach” is an excellent mystery romance that will keep you guessing.  The characters have depth with an integrally woven plot that drew me in and kept me hooked until the last page. All created within a vividly descriptive world by the sea.

Here’s a quote from page 4 of Nora Roberts’ “Whiskey Beach”:

“Sleet slapped at him [Eli Landon] when he climbed out of the car, but the cold, that whistling Atlantic wind, cut through the outer layers of lethargy. Waves boomed against the rock, slapped against the sand, combining into a constant hissing roar. Eli dragged the house keys out of his jacket pocket, stepped onto the shelter of the wide stone portico to the massive double entrance doors hewn more than a century before from teak imported from Burma.”

An excellent romantic suspense novel that starts in winter’s cold and end’s with the sweet promise of Spring. Hope you all get a chance to read “Whiskey Beach” and share in spending some time by the ocean.

The physical book is a work of art that takes me back to the quality of the books my Grandmother used to buy – made to last. Craftsmanship is fantastic. Above you can see the quality of the graphic arts included not only on the outer covers but on the inside of the front and back covers as well. Very well done.

The audiobook is also very well done by Narrator, Luke Daniels. He put emphasis on the words that I wouldn’t have thought of when reading silently bringing more meaning to the story.

I purchased the audiobook at:

http://www.audiobookstanddl.com/9F06783A-2485-4B86-822F-90B59FC19C7B/10/119/en/ContentDetails.htm?ID=8C4600C8-0A2B-43E6-91BB-718F7B134673

I bought the hard copy signed from:

http://ttpbooks.com/

The brick and mortar version on this occasion. Loved the atmosphere, very inviting as was Maryland. Great vacation for one or the whole family. Keep on reading everyone.