Rebecca M. Douglass, Author

Title: Bounce Author: Megan Shull Publisher: Katherine Tegen Books, 2016. 373 pages. Source: Library Publisher's Summary: Seventh grader Frannie Hudson wonders what it would be like to trade in her family for a new one. Her big brother ignores her. Her mean older sister can’t stand her. And her parents have just announced they’re going on a last-minute vacation—without her. When Frannie makes one desperate, crazy wish—BOOM!—she magically bounces into a whole new life, with a totally different family. And. It. Is. Amazing! There’s only one catch: waking up as someone else keeps happening. Plunged into lives and adventures she’s only imagined—from being a pop star to meeting one super-cute boy—Frannie finds courage in the unforgettable friends and families she meets along the way. But as her new life spins out of control, Frannie begins to worry if she’ll ever get back home. A celebration of the power of love and connection, Megan Shull’s extraordinary new novel capture...

At the request of my mother (and the librarian at the retirement home), I have created a large-print edition of Death By Ice Cream , with more to follow if this one flies. In case others are thinking of doing the same, I thought I'd share what it took. Cover: In the best of all worlds, you'd probably do a new cover just for the LT book. Since I don't have the funds for that (the more so as I'm dubious about this making the money back), I opted to use my okay Photoshop skills to enlarge the regular cover. Why enlarge? Because to make a LT book work, you probably need to use a larger format, unless you are already at the 6x9" size. Even then you'll need a much wider spine--something I didn't adequately account for when doing this one (I decided it's good enough, though, and am not going to change it). For the next book, I will probably try taking the separate pieces and enlarging them individually to assemble a proportional cover according to the specs f...

  Title: Lucky Broken Girl Author: Ruth Behar Publisher: Nancy Paulsen Books, 2017. 243 pages. Source: Library Publisher's Summary:   Based on the author's childhood in the 1960s, a young Cuban-Jewish immigrant girl is adjusting to her new life in New York City when her American dream is suddenly derailed. Ruthie Mizrahi and her family recently emigrated from Castro's Cuba to New York City. Just when she's finally beginning to gain confidence in her mastery of English and enjoying her reign as her neighborhood's hopscotch queen, a horrific car accident leaves her in a body cast and confined her to her bed for a long recovery. As Ruthie's world shrinks because of her inability to move, her powers of observation and her heart grow larger. She comes to understand how fragile life is, how vulnerable we all are as human beings, and how friends, neighbors, and the power of the arts can sweeten even the worst of times. My Review:  This was a lovely story, a...

It's time for the April Fiction in 50 blog hop! I'm posting up early so that it's ready for you Sunday no matter what time zone you're in. What is #Fi50? In the words of founder Bruce Gargoyle, "Fiction in 50: think of it as the anti-NaNoWriMo experience!" Pack a beginning, middle and end of story into 50 words or less (bonus points for hitting exactly 50 words). The rules for participation are simple : 1. Create a piece of fictional writing in 50 words or less, ideally using the prompt as title or theme or inspiration. Bonus points for hitting 50 words exactly. That’s it!  But for those who wish to challenge themselves further, here’s an additional rule: 2. Post your piece of flash fiction on your blog or (for those poor blog-less souls) add it as a comment on the Ninja Librarian’s post for everyone to enjoy.  And for those thrill-seekers who really like to go the extra mile (ie: perfectionists): 3. Add the nifty little picture above to your post (credi...

Running a little late today!  Do you have any idea how many photos you can shoot trying to catch the crashing surf at just the right moment? Editing the photos from our trip to Maui last month has been a challenge, to say the least. I'm still working on the crater, but today we'll drive the Hana Highway... in the rain (because it is a rain forest. Which has that word "rain" in the name for a reason). For those who missed it, the first part of our trip (a day spent biking around West Maui; did I mention that we don't go on vacation to lie on the beach?) is here . The drive to Hana (and actually on beyond to the coastal part of Haleakala National Park at Kipahulu) was meant to be a recovery day. We got an early start to beat most of the traffic. The narrow, sort-of-two-lane road to Hana has become a tourist destination, which is too bad, because the road would be perfect for biking if there were no cars! We knew starting out that the day would be wet, and while that...

 First, some newsy bits. A huge thanks to all the bloggers who helped with the launch of Death By Adverb. It's really taking off, and I'm grateful! Second, I have just released a new Large Type version of Death By Ice Cream. This is perfect for your mom, or anyone with vision issues. If this one sells at all, I'll work my way through the rest of the books to create large type editions of each. If it doesn't sell, I may do it anyway :) Now for the day's post: I'm appearing today at the Tick Tock blog --please jump on over and take a look at what I have to say about some of the characters in my story!

Title: The Tuscan Child Author: Rhys Bowen Publisher: Lake Union Publishing, 2018. 352 pages. Source: Library Publisher's Summary:   In 1944, British bomber pilot Hugo Langley parachuted from his stricken plane into the verdant fields of German-occupied Tuscany. Badly wounded, he found refuge in a ruined monastery and in the arms of Sofia Bartoli. But the love that kindled between them was shaken by an irreversible betrayal. Nearly thirty years later, Hugo’s estranged daughter, Joanna, has returned home to the English countryside to arrange her father’s funeral. Among his personal effects is an unopened letter addressed to Sofia. In it is a startling revelation. Still dealing with the emotional wounds of her own personal trauma, Joanna embarks on a healing journey to Tuscany to understand her father’s history—and maybe come to understand herself as well. Joanna soon discovers that some would prefer the past be left undisturbed, but she has come too far to let go of her ...

It's next week! Get your post ready for the April Fiction in 50 blog hop! What is #Fi50? In the words of founder Bruce Gargoyle, "Fiction in 50: think of it as the anti-NaNoWriMo experience!" Pack a beginning, middle and end of story into 50 words or less (bonus points for hitting exactly 50 words). The rules for participation are simple : 1. Create a piece of fictional writing in 50 words or less, ideally using the prompt as title or theme or inspiration. That’s it!  But for those who wish to challenge themselves further, here’s an additional rule: 2. Post your piece of flash fiction on your blog or (for those poor blog-less souls) add it as a comment on the Ninja Librarian’s post for everyone to enjoy.  And for those thrill-seekers who really like to go the extra mile (ie: perfectionists): 3. Add the nifty little picture above to your post (credit for which goes entirely to ideflex over at acrossthebored.com ) or create your own Fi50 meme pic…. and  4. Link back t...

This week Chuck Wendig's challenge was to take a title from Stephen King... and write a completely different story. Since I don't read horror, I don't know much about any of the books he listed, but this one I hadn't even heard of. I'm pretty sure this isn't what King did with it, and I'm doubly sure he never turned it into humor so I'll claim the bonus points he offered for changing genre. In 870 words, I give you... Under the Dome It sat on the table like an overgrown metal mushroom, and we all tried to pretend we didn't see it. It wasn't easy. Smooth, rounded, silver... it drew the eye, and our desire grew with the passage of time. Not so much a desire for what lay under the dome, as a desire to know. I could lift the dome, end the suspense. I wasn't a child anymore. I didn't take orders from anyone, nor did any of us gathered there. But she said not to touch it, and she commanded our obedience, if not our respect. No one touched the g...

Title: Three Strikes, You're Dead (Eddie Shoes #3) Author: Elena Hartwell Publisher: Camel Press (April 1, 2018)   Paperback: 288 pages Source: Great Escapes tours ARC ISBN-13: 978-1603817271 Digital 13: 9781603817288 Publisher's Blurb: Private investigator Eddie Shoes heads to a resort outside Leavenworth, Washington, for a mother-daughter getaway weekend. Eddie’s mother Chava wants to celebrate her new job at a casino by footing the bill for the two of them, and who is Eddie to say no? On the first morning, Eddie goes on an easy solo hike, and a few hours later, stumbles upon a makeshift campsite and a gravely injured man. A forest fire breaks out and she struggles to save him before the flames overcome them both. Before succumbing to his injuries, the man hands her a valuable rosary. He tells her his daughter is missing and begs for her help. Is Eddie now working for a dead man? Barely escaping the fire, Eddie wakes in the hospital to find both her parents have arri...

Yup, it's another great cozy on tour! Title: The Advice Column Murders Author: Leslie Nagel Publisher: Alibi , 2018.  250 pages Source: Great Escapes Book Tours electronic ARC ASIN: B073QYK1HS Publisher's Summary:   What’s the couple next door really hiding? Vintage fashionista and amateur sleuth Charley Carpenter finds out in this engrossing cozy mystery from the USA Today bestselling author of The Book Club Murders. In a small town like Oakwood, Ohio, everyone knows everyone else’s business—except for Charley Carpenter’s standoffish new neighbors, who tend to keep to themselves. But behind closed doors, Paxton Sharpe’s habit of screaming bloody murder at all hours of the day keeps Charley awake all night. Coupled with the stress of the increasingly delayed expansion of her shop, Old Hat Vintage Fashions, the insomnia is driving Charley crazy. Her only distraction? The local paper’s irreverent new advice column, “Ask Jackie.” Jackie’s biting commentary usually lea...

Leaving SF and all those clouds To arrive in Maui with all those clouds... Recently the Ninja Librarian and spouse traveled to Maui for a bit of a vacation. Being the people we are, it didn't involve a whole lot of lying around and relaxing. First thing we did on arriving was rent a pair of bikes for the next day, with a plan to ride around West Maui (58+ miles and 4400' of climbing, for those who want to know--actually a little easier than the ride we might have done had we been at home). I'm going to give a shout-out to Krank Cycles of Makawao, because we didn't really get how the whole bike rental thing works, and showed up at 4:30 Saturday afternoon, figuring it would be easy to pick up a couple of bikes and be on our way. In fact, the place was busy, and the lone salesclerk/mechanic, Josh, ended up staying about an hour and a half past closing to ready a couple of bikes for us. So they get top ratings from us. This guy was on the sidewalk in front of the bike shop....