9 days until Christmas

 

Julie is married with eight children and ten published books. She loves to travel and her favorite cities are probably Athens, Paris, Ottawa, and London. She would love to visit Hawaii, Australia, Ireland, and Scotland someday. She loves to read, write, teach, watch Castle, The Blacklist, and Hawaii Five-O, and eat Canadian chocolate. Not necessarily in that order.

Please take a minute to visit Julie at one of the links below:

WEBSITE | BLOG | TWITTER | FACEBOOK | GOOGLE+ | PINTEREST

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LDSWBR: What is your favorite Christmas song/hymn? Does it have special meaning to you?

JULIE: My favorite song is Silent Night. There’s just something so reverent about it. My second favorite is I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day. I love the message in that one.

LDSWBR: Do you get together with friends/family to play board games on Christmas or New Year’s? What games do you like to play? Do you have a favorite game from your childhood?

JULIE: We do board games on New Year’s. Our favorite games are Disney Scene It, Survive, and Risk. We also have a Bellon family Air Hockey Tournament. I might have to relinquish my crown this year!

LDSWBR: If you could recommend only one book from those you read this year, what would it be and why?

JULIE: I would probably recommend Longing For Home by Sarah Eden. I love the depth of her characters and the emotion in her stories. Love all her books!

LDSWBR: Thanks, Julie!

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Pocket Full of Posies

AMAZON | KINDLE | NOOK | SMASHWORDS

They say to keep your friends close and your enemies closer . . .

Hostage Negotiation Team member Bart Gutierrez is shocked to find Lucy Aguayo, a girl he knew as a teenager, working for the deadly Castillo drug cartel. This revelation uncovers a secret in Bart’s family so big it forces him to accept a dangerous offer: infiltrate the cartel to keep his family safe. Once inside the cartel’s headquarters he discovers that a large-scale attack on America is imminent and the only way to prevent it is to bring Lucy in on his plans—and hope she doesn’t betray him.

Lucy Aguayo has become a key player in the Castillo cartel, but not for money or power—she’s on a mission of vengeance for her father’s murder. Just when she gets a chance to bring down the cartel leader responsible, Bart Gutierrez appears, stirring up buried feelings and disrupting all her plans. But as the enemy closes in from all sides, Lucy must choose between being free from her past or finding justice for it. Can she give up everything she’s ever worked for and reach for something more?

 I *love* air hockey. A family tournament would be a blast. Who would be Air Hockey Champion in your family tournament?

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**To enter the LDSWBR Countdown to Christmas 2013, leave a thoughtful comment below.**

Because this is a raffle-style drawing, commenting on each Countdown to Christmas 2013 post will give you more chances to win. Please click through to the website as only comments submitted directly on this post will be accepted.

Prizes include a $50 Amazon gift card and the author-donated books listed below. This is raffle-style drawing where all entries throughout the contest period are entered into the same “hat” for all prizes. US only. 18 years and older please. See all contest rules and restrictions below.

Following LDSWBR is not required but you may want to consider doing so during the contest so you don’t miss any posts or chances to enter the drawing. You can follow us through email, Twitter, Facebook, Google+, Instagram, and Pinterest (links in our sidebar.)

If one of our LDSWBR reviews has ever helped you find a book you enjoyed, please consider helping us spread the word about the LDSWBR Countdown to Christmas 2013. A link posted to your friends and family either in email or on your favorite social network would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

By leaving a comment and entering the Countdown to Christmas 2013, you agree to the contest rules below:

NO PURCHASE NECESSARY; entrants must be 18 years or older; open to residents of continental US only; giveaway begins December 3, 2013 and all entries must be received by 12:00 Midnight December 23, 2013 Mountain Time; to enter, complete the required entry on each post and any additional entries of your choice if listed; LDS Women’s Book Review reserves the right to determine what is considered a thoughtful comment as per each post’s required entry; giveaway prizes include a $50 Amazon gift card and a variety of book prizes donated by featured authors; the number of eligible entries received determines the odds of winning; LDS Women’s Book Review is not liable for technical problems which may affect entry into the giveaway; winner identity will be verified by email address; winner will be selected December 28, 2013 by use of a sequence generator on random.org; winner will have until January 4, 2014 to claim their prize; if any prize winner forfeits or does not claim prize, prize will be re-awarded to next winner in sequence; all prizes will be awarded; limit of two prizes per entrant; this contest/giveaway is not associated with Facebook, Twitter or any other entity unless otherwise specified; by entering the giveaway you give LDS Women’s Book Review the right to publicize your name on the LDS Women’s Book Review blog; winner agrees to release LDS Women’s Book Review from any liability as a result of winning; email comments and questions to LDS Women’s Book Review – ldswbr (at) gmail (dot) com; giveaway subject to Utah regulations; VOID WHERE PROHIBITED BY LAW.

**Book Prizes (as of 12/16/13 – more to be added to this list!)**

• Rocky Road by Josi S. Kilpack (personalized copy)
• Shannon’s Hope by Josi S. Kilpack (personalized copy)
• The House at Rose Creek by Jenny Proctor (signed copy)
• Penumbras by Braden Bell (signed copy)
• The Reluctant Blogger by Ryan Rapier (personalized copy)
• Just Ella by Annette K. Larsen (personalized paperback)
• Longing For Home by Sarah M. Eden (signed copy)
• Mile 21 by Sarah Dunster (ebook or signed paperback)
• Blackmoore by Julianne Donaldson (audio CD)
• Finding Sheba or Ruby’s Secret by H.B. Moore (winner’s choice; format of choice)
• Pocket Full of Posies by Julie Coulter Bellon (or other Hostage Negotiation novel of choice in either paperback or Kindle)

 Previous Countdown to Christmas 2013 posts:

• Rocky Road and Shannon’s Hope by Josi S. Kilpack (12/3/13)
• The House at Rose Creek by Jenny Proctor (12/4/13)
• Penumbras by Braden Bell (12/5/13)
• The Reluctant Blogger by Ryan Rapier (12/6/13)
• Just Ella by Annette K. Larsen (12/7/13)
• Longing For Home by Sarah M. Eden (12/9/13)
• Mile 21 by Sarah Dunster (12/10/13)
• Blackmoore by Julianne Donaldson (12/12/13)
• Finding Sheba and Ruby’s Secret by Heather (H.B.) Moore (12/13/13)