Staci Troilo Archives | Page 8 of 25

Book Spotlight: Finding Eliza by Stephanie Pitcher Fishman

I thought I’d mix things up a little bit, and talk about books this month.

Sure, you can go online and find hundreds of reviews for books by Stephen King, Nora Roberts, James Patterson… If an author is already a NYTBSA, he or she hardly needs a book review from me.

But what about the “little people” that New York has forgotten?

I’m taking books that I like from different genres this month and spotlighting them here.

Hopefully you’re looking for a book in one of these genres, and you’ll give my recommendation a try.

This week’s genre: mainstream literature

Sub-genre: historical

Finding Eliza by Stephanie Pitcher Fishman is a story of a woman’s quest to understand her family and to come to terms with a painful loss. At her grandmother’s behest, she attends a “genealogy party” only to discover there is so much more to her history than she ever thought.

Finding Eliza takes place in contemporary Georgia, but there are several flashbacks to the 1930s which accurately and poignantly depict the tribulations many faced in the pre-desegregation south. The author seamlessly traverses between the contemporary angst felt by her main character and the desperation felt by her ancestors.

Finding Eliza is an engaging and compelling novel. The plot is well-conceived and the characters are entertaining and memorable. In addition, the settings are so beautifully constructed, you can see the landscapes and taste the lemon squares. I’m giving this book 5 stars and know you will do the same.

In the interest of full disclosure, I must mention that I assisted the author with editing this novel, but my involvement in no way impacted my opinions of the book. If you’re looking for a getaway to Georgia and want to read a story that is so emotionally engaging that you’ll both laugh and cry as you turn the pages, look no further than Finding Eliza by Stephanie Pitcher Fishman.

Stephanie is professional genealogist specializing in Midwestern and Southeastern United States family history. She’s written seven family history research guides as well as several articles and blog posts for genealogy websites, and she also speaks on the topic.

Connect with Stephanie at her website.

Find Finding Eliza on Amazon.

Book Spotlight: Answering Annaveta by Lorna Faith

I thought I’d mix things up a little bit, and talk about books this month.

Sure, you can go online and find hundreds of reviews for books by Stephen King, Nora Roberts, James Patterson… If an author is already a NYTBSA, he or she hardly needs a book review from me.

But what about the “little people” that New York has forgotten?

I’m taking books that I like from different genres this month and spotlighting them here.

Hopefully you’re looking for a book in one of these genres, and you’ll give my recommendation a try.

This week’s genre: historical literature

Sub-genre: romantic suspense (contains Christian themes)

Answering Annaveta by Lorna Faith is book one of a trilogy that begins in 1913 Russia. The story follows young Annaveta and her journey to adulthood. She encounters great hardships, devastating heartbreak, and dangers few of us can comprehend. But she also discovers boundless compassion and unwavering love.

This book is an excellent combination of historical facts and character development. It shows the ups and downs of family life, the positives and negatives of living in pre-World War I Russia, and the best and the worst elements of society. Continue reading

Book Spotlight: The Princess and Her Dress by Arthur Grimm

I thought I’d mix things up a little bit, and talk about books this month.

Sure, you can go online and find hundreds of reviews for books by Stephen King, Nora Roberts, James Patterson… If an author is already a NYTBSA, he or she hardly needs a book review from me.

But what about the “little people” that New York has forgotten?

This month, I’m taking books that I like from different genres and spotlighting them here.

Hopefully you’re looking for a book in one of these genres, and you’ll give my recommendation a try.

This week’s genre: Children’s Literature

Sub-genre: Christian Fiction

The Princess and Her Dress by Arthur Grimm is a children’s book written in the classic fairy tale style. There are castles, kings, a princess in peril, a prince coming to her rescue, a moral learned, and a happily ever after ending. All of the major elements were met for a successful fairy tale, and it was a fresh story (if you’re looking for a change from the traditional stories from our youth).

Where Grimm differs in his approach is in incorporating a Christian element. This book not only will entertain young children, it has a positive and faith-affirming message woven seamlessly into the plot. Often secular stories lead children away from God’s message; this one reinforces it. Continue reading

Laci and Del: Birthday Wishes

It’s the first Friday of the month. Time for another installment of short fiction. You can, at any time, find this work or any of the First Friday Fiction Features (#FFFF), by going to the My Work tab, clicking on Freebies, and selecting the story you wish to read.

Remember that 2014 is the year I’m trying serial work. This is part 8 of 12.

Laci and Del: Birthday Wishes

Laci’s stomach churned. This was so not a good idea.

After she and Del had talked out the misunderstanding that had broken them up for a year, they had each explained it to their families in the hopes of putting to rest the hard feelings that had developed. She wasn’t sure it had worked, particularly where his mother was concerned.

His birthday should be a day of celebration, not a day of détente.

She swirled the knife through the fluffy white frosting on three-tiered fudge cake she’d baked that morning. Just when she thought it looked perfect, Del ran his finger through the top.

“Mmm, that’s good.” Continue reading

Memories, Extended Family, and Reunions—What Really Matters

We’re smack in the middle of summer. The kids have been asking about a trip home, which is funny, because it hasn’t really been their home since they were in diapers. But we all still call it “home,” because that’s where family is.

And summer is the ideal time for family reunions. We won’t be attending any this year, I’m afraid. Between work schedules, football camp, and tennis practices, we just ran out of time to make the trip.

Which is sad, because we always said family comes first. And they still do, but this year, they’re going to have to come first from afar.

nuclear family — I keep in regular and frequent contact with these folks — even if they are a motley crew.

Informative and Emotional PTSD Talk by Pamela Foster

Most of the time, the content of my blog posts reflect subjects found in my fiction: family issues, romantic themes, mysterious elements, etc. Every now and then, however, I share a post regarding a conference I attended, a book I read recently, or something more writing specific.

Today’s post is kind of a combination. Part “here’s info about a speech I heard” and part “I’ve read books by this author and I highly recommend her.”

Over the weekend, I had the opportunity to attend a local speaking engagement given by Pamela Foster at the Farmington Public Library. If you ever have the opportunity to listen to Pamela speak on any topic, I encourage you to do so. She is a wonderful presenter. This particular talk was on PTSD in our combat veterans. Continue reading

Five Tips for Keeping Pets Safe in the Summer

We’re in the middle of a glorious summer. But time moves so fast, and I’m in the middle of a lot of changes. I know I’ll blink and I’ll be writing about leaves changing or snow falling before I know it. Now, though, other than my new (and exciting) job and the new releases I’m preparing for, my mind is on summer fun. Bocce games, tennis matches, lounging by the pool or splashing in it. But we can’t forget about summer safety. Especially for our pets. In Type and Cross, the new novel I’m releasing this fall, one of the characters is an animal rights advocate. She would be the first one to remind us that animals need special care in the heat. So here are 5 tips for caring for our pets in the “dog days” of summer. Continue reading

The 238th Great Anniversary Festival

2nd US President — Official Presidential Portrait of John Adams (by John Trumbull, circa 1792) via wiki commons http://www.whitehouseresearch.org/assetbank-whha/action/viewHome

Here in the United States of America, many of us are coming back to work after a three day weekend. We just celebrated our country’s 238^th birthday. The day before the Declaration of Independence was approved by the Second Continental Congress, John Adams wrote his wife a letter in which he said about that day, “I am apt to believe that it will be celebrated by succeeding generations as the great anniversary festival. It ought to be commemorated as the day of deliverance, by solemn acts of devotion to God Almighty. It ought to be solemnized with pomp and parade, with shows, games, sports, guns, bells, bonfires, and illuminations, from one end of this continent to the other, from this time forward forever more.”

It is of little matter today that Adams was referring to July 2, the day the declaration was signed, and we celebrate on July 4, the day the declaration was made public to the masses. What is important is that 238 years later, we do celebrate as he envisioned: with parades and picnics, games and fireworks. Continue reading

Laci and Del: Fireworks

Remember that 2014 is the year I’m trying serial work. This is part 7 of 12.

Laci and Del: Fireworks

As Del pushed off the dock, Laci listened to the chirping crickets and croaking frogs, their cheerful melody a mockery when juxtaposed against her occasional sighs and Del’s sporadic mutterings. A bunch of them were spending the three-day weekend at Del’s cousin’s lake house, and so far, despite everyone’s determination to have a great Independence Day holiday, she felt the tension between her and Del as solid and tangible as if an actual wall had been erected between them.

A wall she could walk around or climb over.

The tension? She didn’t know how to overcome.

Avoiding That Sleazy “Car Salesperson” Feeling

I want to start by saying if you work in car sales and don’t employ any of the tactics I’m about to discuss, I both apologize in advance and I commend you. I’d also like to ask you to contact me; my husband and I will consider working with you in the future if at all possible.

I had a different post planned for today, but after my experience this weekend, I thought I’d discuss this instead.

My daughter is about to start driving. And she’s nervous about it. She’s already put it off for a year. We decided there’s a line between not rushing her and making her face her fears—and she had crossed it, so we’re kind of “forcing” her to test for her permit. The problem is, or was, before Saturday, I had a big vehicle. A really big vehicle. Wide, long, three rows of seats plus cargo room in the back and engine space in the front. It was like driving a miniature movie theater. It was really comfortable to ride in, and we all loved it (well, maybe not my husband, but the rest of us), but there was no way a terrified driver was going to drive it in a straight line down the street, let alone navigate turns. Continue reading