Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

Short Summary:
One day, Julie hears a loud thump coming from the kitchen. When she goes to investigate, she finds her husband Henry, a gourmet food-loving, social butterfly dying from a heart attack on the kitchen floor. Henry dies, leaving Julie to raise their young daughter Liz alone.

Overcome with grief, Julie tries to keep it all together with Henry gone, but as she tries to put her life back together, she finds more and more pieces of his life that she never knew existed.

As she unravels the lies Henry told, it doesn’t take her long to discover that he was a liar and a cheat.  Betrayed not only by her husband, but also by a close friend of the family who had been sleeping with Henry for years, Julie shares the healing process she must go through in order to forgive her husband, find closure, and move on to an even better life.

My Review:
I  couldn’t put this book down! I was constantly in suspense over what was going to happen next. The writing was so visceral that I could almost feel Julie’s raw pain coming through her words.  I especially loved the parts where she described trying to date again and the many difficulties that come with trying to find someone new who fits into your life and you into theirs. And finally, the parts where she called up the “other” women to discuss their affairs were absolutely priceless.

On first glance, many people might think this book is about a man and his many affairs, but really, it’s about a woman—Julie—and how she reconciled the life she thought she had with the life she actually had.

If you’re looking for a book about recreating your life when everything has crumbled to pieces around you, this is the book for you.

Have you heard about or read Perfection? I’d love to hear what you think!

Book: Perfection
Author: Julie Metz
ISBN: 9781401341350
Publisher: Voice
Source: Purchased

Giveaway:

Did you know Julie was on Oprah in January? If you missed it like I did, you might be excited to hear that Oprah is re-airing the episode this Friday July 30th. Be sure to check it out.  If you want to see notes from the episode or read an excerpt from the book, check it out on Oprah.com.

In anticipation of Oprah re-airing this episode, Stephanie from BookSparks PR has offered up a copy of this book for giveaway to one of my lucky readers! Thanks Stephanie!

Here’s how to win:

1. Show your support for this blog by following me via Google Friend Connect OR by liking my blog on Facebook. (Hint: Look in the right hand column.)

2. Subscribe to my blog’s RSS feed. (Hint: Right hand side under my blog header.) This is optional, but definitely appreciated.

3. Fill out this form: (Closes August 7, 2010)

Perfection Giveaway

Do you Tweet?
On July 30th, Julie will be on Twitter answering the question, Perfection is…?

Check out her Twitter at @juliemetzwriter and join in the discussion of what perfection is to you. (I think there will be prizes)

To the June Giveaway Winners:

• Nancy at Amusing Reviews won a copy of Eternal on the Water by Joseph Monninger




• Introverted Jen at The Introverted Reader won a copy of The Middle Place by Kelly Corrigan




• Arch at Archana’s Reading Korner won a copy of Perfection by Julie Metz




• Karen at Finding My Muse won a *Signed* copy of The Help by Katherine Stockett

Winners will receive an email notification soon. Check back in a few days for July’s giveaway.

Thanks so much to everyone who participated!

]]> http://www.winterwrite.com/archives/2574/feed 1 http://www.winterwrite.com/archives/2364 http://www.winterwrite.com/archives/2364#comments Wed, 02 Jun 2010 03:19:52 +0000 Sharla http://www.winterwrite.com/?p=2364

Looking for a great summer read?

I like to do a giveaway each month, but because of school responsibilities I’ve been slacking.

So, to make up for missed giveaways for March, April, and May, I am combining them all into June where I will give away a different book each week to my lucky readers.

Here’s the schedule:

Week 1 Giveaway:
June 6th, 2010
Eternal on the Water
by Joseph Monninger

Week 2 Giveaway:
June 13th, 2010
The Middle Place
by Kelly Corrigan






Week 3 Giveaway:
June 20th, 2010
Perfection
by Julie Metz

Week 4 Giveaway:
June 27th
The Help
**Signed by Kathryn Stockett**

Here’s how to have a chance to win:
Enter once to win one of the above four titles.

1. Show your support for this blog by following me via Google Friend Connect OR by liking my blog on Facebook. (Hint: Look in the right hand column.)

2. Subscribe to my blog’s RSS feed. (Hint: Right hand side under my blog header.) This is optional, but definitely appreciated.

3. Fill out this form:

WinterWrite’s June Giveaway

This giveaway runs through the month of June (June 1, 2010 — June 27, 2010).  A different winner will be chosen each week on June 6th, 13th, 20th, and 27th. Winners will be chosen at random using random.org and notified by email.

*Winners are restricted to the U.S. & Canada only.

Good Luck!

The Help was one of my favorite books from 2009.  So, I thought it would be a perfect choice for my February giveaway!

Summary:

The scene for this book is set in Mississippi 1962 where a young university graduate named Skeeter returns home to live with her parents. Before long, she lands a job writing housekeeping articles for the local newspaper. Not knowing much about housekeeping, Skeeter asks Aibileen, her friend Elizabeth’s black maid, for advice to write in the weekly column. The two meet often and become friends.

During this time, Skeeter’s other friend Hilly wants to start an initiative to ban black maids from using the same household bathrooms as white people. Skeeter thinks the initiative is unfair and discriminatory. With the help of Aibileen, Skeeter secretly begins collecting the stories of the local black maids for a book she is trying to pitch to an editor in New York City.

This little summary just doesn’t do the book justice. Enter my giveaway and read it yourself!

Here’s how to have a chance to win:

1. Show your support for this blog by following me via Google Friend Connect OR by becoming a Facebook fan. (Hint: Look in the right hand column.)

2. Subscribe to my blog’s RSS feed. (Hint: Right hand side under my blog header.)

3. Fill out this form:

Giveaway Form: The Help

This giveaway runs through the month of February (Feb 1, 2010 — Feb 28, 2010).  The winner will be chosen at random using random.org and notified by email on March 1, 2010.

*Winners are restricted to the U.S. & Canada only.

Good Luck!

Thanks to Hachette Book Group I am able to offer this book to one lucky winner. If you’d like a copy, please read the instructions below and enter to win.

Summary from the Publisher:
You don’t have to be a student of geography or cartography to have an interest in the world around you, especially with globalization making our planet seem smaller than ever. Now you can IM someone in Alaska, purchase coffee beans from Timor-Leste, and visit Dubai. But what do we really know about these lands?

With its relevance to contemporary issues and culture, WHO OWNS THE WORLD makes for fascinating reading. Both entertaining and educational, it provides cocktail party conversation for years to come and is guaranteed to change the way you view the U.S. and the world.

WHO OWNS THE WORLD presents the results of the first-ever landownership survey of all 197 states and 66 territories of the world, and reveals facts both startling and eye-opening. You’ll learn that:

–Only 15% of the world’s population lays claim to landownership, and that landownership in too few hands is probably the single greatest cause of poverty.
–Queen Elizabeth II owns 1/6 of the entire land surface on earth (nearly 3 times the size of the U.S.).
–The Lichtenstein royal family is wealthier than the Grimaldis of Monaco.
–80% of the American population is crammed in urban areas.
–The least crowded state is Alaska, with 670 acres per person. The most crowded is New Jersey, with .7 acres per person. –60% of America’s population are property owners. That’s behind the UK (69% homeownership).
–And much, much more!

Here’s how to have a chance to win:

1. Follow me via Google Friend Connect. (Hint: Look in the right hand column.)

2. Subscribe to my blog’s RSS feed. (Hint: Right hand side under my blog header.)

3. Post a comment telling me that you have done these things.  Please be sure to include your email address, so I can contact you if you win.

This giveaway will run until midnight on January 30, 2010.  The winner will be chosen at random and notified by email on January 31, 2010. *Winners are restricted to the U.S. & Canada only.

Good Luck!