Author Archives: Cecelia Dowdy

Never Been Kissed By Melody Carlson

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Never Been Kissed by Melody Carlson

From the Back Cover
New School = New Chance for That First Kiss
Summer is ending, and for once that doesn’t seem like such a bad thing to Elise. She’s hoping that starting fresh at a new high school will turn her first-kiss prospects around. New guys, new friends, and a new lease on life.

What she wasn’t counting on was all the new pressure–to hang with the right crowd, wear the right clothes, and date the right guy. Just when it seems she’s on top of the world, everything comes crashing down. Could one bad choice derail her future?

This book will be kind of nostalgic, reminding you how you felt when you were a young, insecure teenager. Elise has moved with her mother to a new town. When she meets the “in” crowd at school, sharing a lunch table with them, she feels that she’s on top of the world. Finally, it appears she’s being accepted. Wanting to elevate her feelings of self-worth, she lies to her young friend, who lives in her apartment building, telling the story about a fake boyfriend back at home and the booming social life that she used to have.

Now that she’s in a new school it appears that Asher, one of the most popular guys in the school, really likes her, however, his girlfriend keeps getting in the way, and Elise just wants them to break up so that she can be with him. When she starts receiving secret emails from Asher, telling of his true feelings, she hopes that things will work out between them.

However, things go awry when Elise is arresting for sexting. Stunned, she doesn’t know what to do. Her faith is tested as she comtemplates the worst.

I enjoyed this book. I think it should be recommended reading for all teenagers. I think they can learn a huge lesson from Elise’s experiences. Elise finds herself tried and almost convicted, barely giving her a chance to defend herself. The book also shows how seriously the law regards the crime of sexting. I think most young people may not be aware of the extreme nature of this offense, and by reading this book, it will make them more aware.

I highly recommend this book, especially if you have a teenager.

Many thanks to Baker/Revell for providing me with a free review copy.

~Cecelia Dowdy~

Question From A Writer

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John asked the following question:

I’m interested in themes and plots and directions. I have great characters, settings, dialogs, etc. I’m not so sure how to move it along at a clip a modern reader (and publisher) would like.

I have the same problem. Seriously. All I can suggest is, make something HAPPEN!! Create drama in your characters’ lives and have the other characters to react to it. Death, serious illness, pregnancy, etc. Also, you can have one of your characters to receive a mysterious letter…what’s in that letter is my guess, but the news will rock the world of your main character, and other characters will be shocked to hear about this happening in their friend(s) life. Your story is one large drama and each chapter is a segment containing a mini-drama. Another good thing to do is to study other writers, see what they do and see if you can learn from their examples.

Give your characters a serious flaw. I’ve noticed that it’s easier for me when I write about the themes of financial dishonesty and alcoholism. What issues are you passionate about? What issues are your characters passionate about? If you know your characters well enough, you’ll know what kinds of things could happen to them that would bring them to their knees, seeking God, wanting answers for the traumatic events happening in their lives! I blogged about this subject over at Writers’ Rest Blog awhile ago.

I hope that little bit of information helped. Without knowing more about your characters or your storyline, that’s about all I can suggest to get you started!

~Cecelia Dowdy~

Wonderful Words About Chesapeake Weddings! :-)

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La Verne Ford wrote the following comment in yesterday’s blog post:
The Chesapeake Weddings three-in-one collection is wonderful so far. I am now reading Bittersweet Memeories. They are [an] inspiration to me and very encouraging. They have reached the very core of my heart.

La Verne, thanks for the kind words. I’ve heard many positive things about Chesapeake Weddings and I’m glad so many people have enjoyed the stories.

Just wanted to point out that Chesapeake Weddings is still available at christianbook.com. Also, I’m still working on other projects. One is sitting at a publisher, and I’m waiting to hear from them. I’m also talking to a literary agent about another proposal. Hopefully, and prayerfully, I’ll get a contract for another novel in 2011! 🙂

~Cecelia Dowdy~

Book Giveaway – YOU MUST FOLLOW THE RULES TO ENTER!

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THIS BOOK GIVEAWAY IS OVER. SEE THIS BLOG POST TO VIEW THE WINNER! STAY TUNED FOR OTHER BOOK GIVEAWAY ANNOUNCEMENTS IN THE FUTURE! 🙂

I’m hosting another book giveaway! ONE winner will receive the titles listed above. IF YOU WANT TO ENTER THE DRAWING YOU MUST DO TWO THINGS:

#1. You must join my mailing list! You can join my mailing list here:

If you’re already on my email list, then you can skip step one.

#2. You must comment on this blog post to enter and LEAVE YOUR EMAIL ADDRESS IN YOUR BLOG POST – IF YOU DON’T LEAVE YOUR EMAIL ADDRESS IN YOUR BLOG POST, THEN YOU WON’T BE ENTERED INTO THE CONTEST! I need an email address so that I can contact you if you win!

I’ll be drawing the winner within the next few weeks or so! 🙂

~Cecelia Dowdy~

Bake Until Golden

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Bake Until Golden by Linda Shepherd Evans and Eva Marie Everson
From the Back Cover
Two cups of flour, a cup of sugar . . . and a generous pinch of scandal
The ladies of the Potluck Catering Club may have thought that competing on The Great Party Showdown reality show in New York City would be the biggest adventure of their lives. But they weren’t counting on the strange goings-on they would confront when they returned to Summit View, Colorado.

When a shocking event rocks their small town, the ladies are stunned–especially when the fingers start pointing at one of them. Will old friends stick together through their trials? Or will they be torn apart by tragedy?

Full of mystery, friendship, and faith, Bake Until Golden is the final book in this popular series.

Linda Evans Shepherd and Eva Marie Everson are award-winning authors, successful speakers, radio personalities, and avid readers of fiction. They are the popular authors of The Potluck Club, The Potluck Club–Trouble’s Brewing, The Potluck Club–Takes the Cake, and the Potluck Catering Club series. They’ve also led numerous Bible studies and women’s retreats. Linda lives in Colorado and Eva Marie lives in Florida.
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My thoughts? This book was well-written, and I could see a lot of people being intrigued by the storyline. You have a group of ladies who run the Potluck Catering Club, and they’re local celebrities in their small town. Each woman is going through an emotional drama. The dramas deal with various topics such as: death of a spouse, a cheating boyfriend, a daughter who has to go to a foreign country to see her husband who’s been in a life-threatening accident, and the murder of an old friend. I found it hard to keep all of the characters straight in my mind. But, this is no reflection upon the writers, it’s just the way that I’m wired as a reader. I usually have a hard time reading novels where you have a bunch of women (more than 2 or 3) and each character has a point-of-view. After awhile, with so many points of view, I can’t remember the names of each character from chapter to chapter, and then I have to try and remember how all these females are connected. I’d recommend this novel if you want a slightly suspenseful read with lots of viewpoints and lots of characters.

On the upside, since this is the Potluck Catering Club, food is mentioned throughout the novel and I loved that! Also, there are many tasty-sounding recipes in the back of the book! I think I’ll keep this book and try some of those recipes! The recipe for Sunshine Cake sounds simply scrumptious! Also, the cover is fabulous! I want a piece of that yellow cake with chocolate icing! Yum! 🙂

Oh, many thanks to Baker/Revell for providing me with a review copy of this novel.

~Cecelia Dowdy~

Tandem By Tracey Bateman

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Tandem by Tracey Bateman

As obsession and loss become dark partners, how far must the people of Abbey Hills go to survive?

Six months ago, brutal murders shook the small Ozark town—murders that stopped after a house fire reportedly claimed the killer’s life. Lauryn McBride’s family auction house has taken responsibility for the estate sale of one of the victims—the enigmatic Markus Chisom. Submerging herself in Chisom’s beautiful but strange world, Lauryn welcomes the reprieve from watching Alzheimer’s steal her father from her, piece by piece. She soon realizes that centuries-old secrets tie Abbey Hills to the Chisom estate and a mysterious evil will do anything to make sure those secrets stay hidden. Even the man who grew up loving her may not be able to protect Lauryn from the danger.

When Amede Dastillon receives an unexpected package from Abbey Hills, she hopes it might be the key in tracking down her beloved sister, long estranged from her family. Visiting Abbey Hills seems the logical next step in her search, but Amede is unusually affected by the town, and when mutilated carcasses begin turning up again in the small community, the local law enforcement isn’t sure if they are confronting a familiar evil or a new terror.

Two women brought together by questions that seem to have no answers. Can they overcome the loss and darkness threatening to devour them—or will their own demons condemn them to an emotional wasteland?
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This book is the sequel to the novel, Thirsty. Lauryn is the owner of an auction house business. Markus, a vampire who was killed in a fire, has an estate that needs to be settled. Lauryn forwards some old letters found in Markus’s house to Amede, a member of an old family who has ties to Markus. Amede comes to Abbey Hills seeking more familial heirlooms, but, in reality, she needs to find her estranged sister, Eden, who did not die in the fire with Markus, as most of the town assumes.

I think I enjoyed Thirsty more than Tandem. I’m not sure why. It could be because Thirsty dealt with an alcoholic and that’s a theme that I like to read about in novels. I think the author did a great job with the characterization with Lauryn and her battle with caring for her ill father. As her father’s Alzheimer’s gets worse, it’s hard for Lauyrn to accept that she may need to let her father go if she’s not able to care for him any longer. The battle of caring for an older parent, for an only child, is something that lots of people struggle with, but I felt that the father in this story was a bit selfish. I sensed that he didn’t want his daughter to be happy with anybody…except himself. But, that could’ve just been my interpretation of the situation. I didn’t think Lauryn’s dad wanted to see her happily married with children, and that’s kind of sad when you think about it.

There’s a deep, dark mystery woven into this story as people and animals are killed, in an almost ritualistic way. The killings are being done by a vampire, but, it’s a mystery as to which vampire is doing the killing. I think it’s a bit hard reading about vampires in a Christian novel because such creatures don’t exist, but in the book, they do exist, yet, you know they’re not a true part of God’s creation.

The theme of unrequited love pops up when Billy, the preacher’s son, appears, complete with a bi-racial daughter who looks exactly like him. Lauryn has had a crush on Billy since elementary school and that crush has never developed into a full-blown romance. Billy abandons Lauryn on graduation night and she doesn’t see him again until his recent appearance. Bits and pieces of backstory are thrown into the book regarding Lauryn’s upbringing and her “romantic” moments with Billy.

Also, you’ll see the main characters in Thirsty make a few cameo appearances in Tandem, which was nice.

This is definitely a chilling, mysterious book and I recommend it to those who’d want to read a book about the supernatural with a Christian message.

~Cecelia Dowdy~