Happy February, everyone! Although I'm not a big fan of winter, February isn't too bad because once it's over, spring is right around the corner and so is the release of my second novel, CHANGE UP. :) To celebrate February, I'm giving away three books which all contain stories about a certain four letter word: Sara Hantz's THE SECOND VIRGINITY OF SUZY GREEN, Wendy Toliver's THE SECRET LIFE OF A TEENAGE SIREN, and Cecelia Ahern's P.S. I LOVE YOU. 
I picked up THE SECOND VIRGINITY OF SUZY GREEN last year and really enjoyed it. After hard partier Suzy's perfect sister dies, her family picks up, moves, and Suzy reinvents herself, even joining a virginity club at her new school. Her new life is perfect until her ex-boyfriend pops up.
After I read THE SECRET LIFE OF A TEENAGE SIREN, I really wanted a flute. After self proclaimed band geek Roxy's sixteenth birthday, her grandmother passes along a family secret and Roxy turns into a siren with the power to control all men. But, in order to maintain siren status, she can't fall in love. Will she be able to resist? Loved this one.
A blockbuster movie and book, P.S. I LOVE YOU will change the way one looks at love, loss, and moving on. A great movie, but the book is better. And once again proves, the book is always better then the big screen.
To enter to win all three love books, tell me about your worst and/or best Valentines Day ever. My worst Valentines Day involved a high school basketball game, my boyfriend at the time, a cast up to my knee, and a relative. My best Valentines Day was twelve years ago when my hubby and I went on our first official date. :)
Here are the contest rules:
1. To enter to win the above mentioned three books, leave a comment and tell me about your worst and/or best Valentines Day ever. If you don't celebrate Valentines Day, tell me about your favorite novel about love.
2. The contest ends at midnight on February 28th, 2009. The winner will be posted on March 1st, 2009. A family member or friend will pick the winner (including my dog at times). :)
3. The contest is open to EVERYONE. Don't be shy my writer friends. :)
4. If you post the contest on your blog, MySpace, Facebook, or anywhere else, you automatically receive two entries.
Good luck and Happy Valentines Day!! :)
51 comments:
Even though, I have never celebrated Valentine's Day in the way it was meant to be, I do have a worst one.
Two years ago, I was rollerblading over to the local elementary school where I work. I was taking the day off, because I was having some stomach pain that was making it hard to work. But, I had to take some medicine over to my mom, who also works there, and had just had gum surgery. I had just finished calling her to tell her to open the door to let me in. I finished putting my phone in my backpack and was about to get to the double doors where she would greet me.
Apparently, there was some uneven concrete that I didn't see. I rolled right over, lost my balance and slammed right into the double doors. I tried to grab hold of the door handles to get my balance back and not fall. I even tried to use my stopper. But, I forgot it was on the other foot. So, my foot went flying out from under me, I landed on my butt, my left leg landed on the ground, my right knee slamming into my left rollerblade. As my knee hit the rollerblade, it bent at weird angle, and I could feel each bone move.
I was laying there for what felt like 5 minutes. It was really 10 to 20 seconds for all this to happen. I started to cry. And my mom ran out one of the double doors. One of the teachers, whose classroom was right next to the entry I was laying at, came out to see what happened.
My mom told him to call the nurse and in the meantime, she tried to get my rollerblades off. It hurt like heck! The nurse came with a wheelchair, and started to wheel me off to the health office. I had to lay down on the bed with ice on my knee for half an hour. After that, my mom took me home. I couldn't walk very well. I thought that it was just sprained, because I have done this before on my left knee, so we didn't go to the ER.
I took the next 2 months off of work because of my knee. I had to have surgery after getting an MRI because the pain wouldn't go away after 2 weeks. Turns out that I had dislocated my knee and somehow popped it back into place. But, there were little chips floating around. After surgery, I had to do PT for 2 months. But, I went to Disneyland with my brother and sister-in-law a couple of weeks after my surgery. We rented a wheelchair and got to skip a lot of long lines!
But, that was definitely the worst Valentine's Day ever for me. I was crying every time I had to get up to go the 15 feet to the bathroom.
~Meredith
PS. sorry it was so long.
Wow, Meredith! What a story! Thanks for sharing.. I had a similar experience.. Immense pain on Valentines Day - I fell during a basketball game and severely sprained my ankle - casted, the whole bit. But, your Valentines Day sounds much more painful. Yikes.. Hope you have a good one this year.
My first meaningful V-Day was a complete balls-up. The boy I had been flirting with for a whole semester of year ten didn't get me anything but his best friend gave me a yellow rose from his garden. 1) He wasn't the boy I wanted and 2) The rose...it was yellow. Being the shallow little wench I completely ignored the BF for days but treasured that little rose, it might not have been from the guy I wanted but for the first time I felt like someone wanted me!
I still feel immensely guilty for that poor boy who put himself out there and was left hanging. Never knowing that it meant a lot.
I can remember saying plenty that day 'but...it's ...yellow' lol
Hm, I can't say I had a terrible Valentine Day nor a great one. Like, I did nothing special so far in my sixteen years of life. I know, lame eh? I'm not allowed to date until 18 so I got not stories to tell sadly.
The only thing I remembered was receiving a Mary-Kate and Ashley movie and a heart shaped chocolate when I was in grade... four? Five? That is all I can recall out of all my Valentine Days...
Oh yes, and I have linked this contest on my blog as always!
I prefer to dwell on the best Valentine's day and not the worst. So the best was my freshman year in college and there is a huge college hockey tournament in Boston the first two MOndays of Feb. every year and I desperately wanted to go. But my boyfriend at the time wasn't in to sports and since it was on V Day I decided to pass that year. Well on the day of he showed up at my door with peanut butter cups (my fav candy), a Wizard of Oz poster for my dorm room and two tickets to the hockey game that night. It was perfect, and yes i know that its supposed to be the other way around, girl buys boy sports tickets, but I have never done anything conventionally.
Plus they have all gone down hill since that one so I am going to keep thinking on it fondly.
Best Valentine's ever.....came home from work...hubby had taken boys to his Mom's...a bubble bath and a glass of wine were waiting!!!
Hi, Adele! Love this story.. :) Thanks for sharing.
Hi, Diana! No way.. Not lame at all. :) You'll have plenty of stories to tell.. There's all sorts of pressure with V Day.
Hi, Erika! What an amazingly thoughtful gift. Love it. :)
Thanks for posting.
Hi, MJ! Nice! ;)
My best Valentine's Days normally involve chocolate covered strawberries! Yum!
I have little memories of Vdays which sucks a lot, but there was one I loved the most. I was in grade 8th and there were a few student teachers coming to own school to complete their last year of university. The month was Feb, so they decided to hold a Vday part with lots of games. At the end we all got gifts, and more important, some more couples were formed ^^
Thanks for the contest!
Hi, Thao! Sounds like a blast. :)
that movie didn't intrigue me for some reason. i went back and forth on going to see it at the theater. perhaps my netflix queue. :)
and once again, my comment has nothing to do with the post. sorry! :)
Aye, like 6 years ago, my boyfriend and I broke up on Valentine's Day. He was being annoying, and I had enough of it, so I told him to leave. He proceeded to throw the roses he brought me across the room, breaking the vase and scattering the roses everywhere. I then looked at the roses, then at him, and said "actually, leave and never come back, because that was just psycho" lol I guess it could be considered a good one as well, because I got rid of a loser, and am now happily with my current man for 4.5 years now. :)
Keri;
U have such great contests!
I enjoy winter (but this one seems LONG and DARK and COLD). Can't wait to see ur new relase!
When I was in kindergarten, my crush gave me a little skunk that you opened and it had solid perfume inside... **sigh**...
If only my DH were so romantic. Ha. But, he changes the oil and mows the lawn, so I can't complain.
Much.
I'll get you posted on my blog shortly (tomorrow, most likely).
:-)
lmy favorite love/romance novel is..*drumroll please*
TWILIGHT
i know, i am so not original but it's definitely my fave <3
stephanie
juiciliciousssreviews
I guess my stand-out Valentine's Day was in college, when my boyfriend surprised me with a puppy.
The dog turned out to be much more devoted than the boyfriend.
Hi, PJ! Yummy! :)
Hi, Virginia! Sure it does.. :) Did you read the book??
Hi, Brooke! Good decision. Sounds scary.. :)
Hi, Angela! Thanks.. Urgh.. Winter. And more snow tomorrow. The good thing is, it's 5 p.m. and the sun is still up.
Hi, Marianne! Awe!!! A boy once left me love notes in my coat pocket in first grade. My hubby never did that.. :)
Hi, Stephanie! A goody.. :)
Hi, Adrienne! LOL.. :)
My worst Valentine's Day would have to be a few years ago when I was depressed over a long-gone relationship with a boy who turned out to be gay.
But it's all good because now I'm with the love of my life and looking forward to this Valentine's Day :)
I blogged about your contest here:
http://blogs.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=blog.view&friendID=18902716&blogID=468176596
Hi, PepsiVanilla! Enjoy your Valentines Day!! :)
I don't celebrate Valentine's but my hubby still likes to treat me on that day :) We'd go out for a nice dinner and movie :)
bunnybx at gmail . com
Great contest. I put a link to your blog on mine today giving you the Lemonade award for such a great blog.
warmly,
Terri
http://heartfeltwords4kids.blogspot.com
Hi, Bunny B! Perfect.. :)
Hi, Terri! Thanks bunches!!
Worst Valentine Day? That would be each of the ones I spent in Junior High. They always had one of those school fund raisers where you pay 25 cents and you could buy a kiss-o-gram for someone at school.
I never got one and it was always painful to sit through classes and watch everybody else's pile up.
Thank goodness Junior High ends!
i never really had a real valentines day i was married for over 20 years but he was not what i would call romantic, he would pick up a card and hand it to me still int he bag from the card store so i guess they where all the "worst"
All these books sound great--too bad I do not have the sort of memory that syncs with a calendar. No Valentine's Day memories at all...
Best Valentine's Day EVER?
1991....the day my then-boyfriend became my fiance (who is my now-husband).
Worst Valentine's : My boyfriend brought me a valentine's card and a gift ("Friends" cookbook) and proceeded to break up with me via the card. The old "I hope we can still be friends" line. Bleck!
Glad you liked the interview over at Virginia's place. ;)
Best----2005. Finding out I was pregnant with our first. He had just left for Iraq the week before. It helped me feel closer to him!
This Valentine's Day will be my least romantic...we are refinancing and scrambling to get all the $ necessary to do it. In the long run this will be a good thing, but it also means limited funds for presents...so, I'm asking my husband to remove the goose poo off the exterior of my second story kitchen window as my present.
I've never really celebrated Valentine's Day, but my favorite novel about love is The Great Gatsby. :)
Oh, Janette! I remember the carnations (our version of the kiss o grams) and feeling the same way. Urgh.
Hi, Mindy! Maybe this year will be different.. Does he sign the cards? :)
Hi, Alyssa! I have two that really stick out in my mind, but like you.. Most are a blur. :)
Hi, Amy! Awe!! Happy Engagement Anniversary. :)
Hi, Carmen! Yikes! :)
Hi, Estela! That is the best story ever! Thanks for sharing. :)
Hi, Anita! That's true love. :)
Hi, Tower of Books! One of my faves! :)
I don't have any special Valentine's Memorys, neither good nor bad... But this Valentine I got a really sweet letter with personal messages from everyone in my family. It meant a lot to me because I live in the US right now while my family lives in Sweden, and I won't meet them until next year... So it was really nice to see that they were thinking of me!
Sara
What a lovely trio of books the winner will get! My best Valentine's Day was actually long-distance. Last year, my boyfriend sent me a giant box filled with: candy, stickers (I'm obsessed), cute random stuff, and a stuffed duck!
I have linked to this contest in my sidebar on my blog: http://stephsureads.blogspot.com
Thank you, Keri!
stephxsu at gmail dot com
I have a best/worst Valentine's Day. When I was engaged to my hubby, I had been sick with some strange virus. He had planned to take me ice skating, and to dinner, like we did on our very first date, but instead, he set up a little table, ordered take-out, got me roses, and we ate in candlelight, with music playing in the background. It was so sweet! After we ate, he gave me a DVD of the very first movie we watched together, Serendipity, and while we watched it I got so sick again, that he ended up taking me home early. He stayed with me until I fell asleep. I'm sure I looked horrible. The stupid virus made my eyes swell up, so I could barely open them. He loved me anyway though!:)
Hi Keri,
My favorite book about love is the unforgettable Gone with the Wind.
It's probably the most realistic novel about love I've ever read, too - no matter how much you care about someone, there's no guarantee that they'll return your love, and too many people confuse attraction/infatuation with love.
But it also reminds me that no matter how bad things get, they could be different tomorrow. Because tomorrow is another day. :)
I just discovered this blog and it's so great! I haven't read your first book yet Keri but I'll have to get it right away. Then I'll be ready for the second one! Sports have always been a big part of my life and now with three sons that's how we spend all of our time.
One of my best and worst Valentine's Days was the same day. Back in high school I had finally broken up with a guy I had been with for 3 years and it didn't end well. I had met someone new and was thrilled to be going to a party for one of our first dates. Unfortunately the old boyfriend was also there and decided to give me a nasty card for Valentine's Day. I cried and was miserable for awhile. Fortunately the new guy stuck with me and we are very happily married. He knows the way to my heart now is by doing the dishes and helping with the kids - which he has always done without a second thought.
I'm adding this to my blog and I look forward to more great stuff here. Thanks so much for a fun contest!
www.wrightysreads.blogspot.com
5wrights1@verizon.net
I've always been a little Anti-Valentine's Day. Even when I have/had a boyfriend around the holiday, I still don't like it. I'm like the Grinch - tiny little heart, lol
But I am a sucker for a love story, odd right? I have to say one of my favorite love stories is Walk to Remember by Nicholas Sparks or This Lulliby by Sarah Dessen (Cause who doesn't want a clumsy musician? Acutally if I had a Dexter, I would veto the Grinch thing and completely celebrate Valentine's Day.)
sammyjones57(at)hotmail(dot)com
my fave novel about love is the truth about forever
theodoragroger@yahoo.com
My favorite novels about love are the ones written by sarah dessen. She always writes a story in which the girl gets the fantastic boy, but never too easily. It's always a long way to happiness in these books, and maybe that's why I find them very truthful and realistic: true love and authentic happiness do not come easily, they're hard to get... and what would be the point in being happy and joyful if it didn't involve effort and time and complications that were finally solved?
Thanks a lot!
cata2404@gmail.com
I have never celebrated valentine's day, but my favorite love novel is twilight.
Yes it sounds like what most of the people says but I just never get bored of reading it and love how edward gets intrigued about bella who is different from evereyone else to him. I like because it is how every relationship should be .
Great contest!
Thanks!
thanks for the oportunity.
Gone with the Wind is such a classic!
My worst Valentines Day... That's an easy one for me. It was a few years ago, when me and my family were snowed in at a hotel in a blizzard for three days, one of which was Valentines Day. We literally couldn't drive out of the area the hotel was in, so we were stuck. And the hotel only served breakfast. And all the restaurants in the area were closed (except for a really EXPENSIVE pizza place, and their pizza was awful.) We (family) were stuck in a hotel room with barely any food. I bet that beats everyone else's worst V-Day.
paradoxrevealed (at) aim (dot) com
Like other folks, my worst Valentine's Day included being snowed in with my parents and sister (whom I love -- but still, not very romantic!) and being unable to see my boyfriend at all. We were also dangerously low on snack foods! I know, woe is me! But at the time, I was devastated.
Thanks for the chance to win! :)
Megan -- writing.meg [at] gmail.com
Picture it, Valentine's Day on my five year anniversary. Met my boyfriend at a hot dog place--and promptly broke up with him. I was away at college and sooo over it.
The bad part? He was going to propose. Oops.
Valentines Day is actually my birthday so I love every Valentines Day! Happy 18th birthday to me!!!
& I blogged about it on my blog:
fortheloveofbooksblog.blogspot.com
Taylor
My worst Valentine's Day:
Boyfriend and I made a plan to go out of Valentines Day at the city. I bought a beautiful dress and I was so excited. On night before Valentines Day, however, there was a snow storm and Boyfriend was stuck because his car was buried in the snow.
Sue
okibi_insanity[at]yahoo[dot]com
I blogge about this contest at my LJ:
http://okibi-insanity.livejournal.com/4805.html#cutid1
Sue
okibi_insanity[at]yahoo[dot]com
Please include me in your drawing. My worst Valentine day was when my husband forget. He only did that one time. Favorite was the next year. He made up for it with a new car.
Thanks
Carlene
Willreadforever@verizon.net
Hi, Sara! What a wonderful gift!! Are you having fun in the US?? What an amazing adventure for you!
Hi, Steph Su! Too cute!! And how thoughtful! Thanks for posting! ;)
Hi, Chantele! Awe.. So romantic!!! Thanks for sharing. :)
Hi, Marian! What a great book! And what a perfect description of the message. :)
Hi, Wrighty! Thanks for your kind words! :) I know what you mean about sports being a huge part of your life. :) Sounds like a prince! And so glad you ditched the frog. :)
Hi, Sammy Jones! I know what you mean.. V-Day isn't my fave holiday because I remember all the times the day made me feel like crap. :) But, like you, I'm a sucker for a love story - great picks! :)
Hi, Amy! Good one!! :)
Hi, Cata! I agree. Dessen writes some great love stories. :)
Hi, Josefa! So true!!! ;)
Hi, Deltay! I agree. :)
Hi, Paradox!!! Yikes.. :)
Hi, Megan! Yikes.. :)
Hi, Suzanne! Seriously?? :) Gulp. :)
Hi, Taylor! Happy Birthday!!! And thanks for posting. :)
HI, Okibi Insanity! Love your name. :) Did you get to go another time?? What a bummer. Thanks for posting!! :)
Hi, Carlene! Yikes.. But, a new car.. Nice! :)
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