Mailbox Monday – May 17, 2010

Welcome to this week’s edition of Mailbox Monday hosted each Monday by Marcia at The Printed Page.

To play along, visit Marcia today and leave a link to your mailbox…then go visit other bloggers through THEIR links.

I received a hardcover edition of Stay by Allie Larkin through a Shelf Awareness offer. I couldn’t resist it when I read this in the book description: ‘[...] Van drowns her sorrows in Kool-Aid-vodka cocktails and reruns of Rin Tin Tin, and does what any heartbroken woman in her situation would do: She impulsively buys a German Shepherd over the Internet.‘ I love books with dogs that help the protagonists recover from heartbreak…and when the dog is a German Shepherd…well, it is sure to make me smile. By the way, the dog on the cover is the author’s dog Argo!

Allie Larkin lives in Rochester, New York with her two German Shepherds, Argo and Stella…Stay is her first novel. Read more about Larkin and her work on the author’s website.

I won the The Yellow House by Patricia Falvey in a giveaway on Kristen’s blog We Be Reading. Published by Hachette in February of this year, the novel takes place in Ulster in the early part of the twentieth century. Author Robert Hicks says: ‘The Yellow House is an eloquently written story of the emergence of hope and love in a time of struggle and confusion in Ireland.‘ Read an excerpt here.

Patricia Falvey grew up in Northern Ireland before immigrating to the United States at the age of twenty. She divides her time between Texas and Ireland. The Yellow House is her first novel. To learn more about Falvey and her work, visit the author’s website.

Lindsey, Publicity Manager at Viking/Penguin, sent me Promises To Keep by Jane Green who is donating 20% of her royalties from this book to breast cancer research. I think Lindsey is a bit of a mind-reader, because I have been thinking about reading a book by this new-to-me author for some time now. Promises to Keep is ‘a novel about the hard choices we have to face, about having to be your parents’ child long after you’ve grown up, and finally, about the enduring nature of love.‘ Green wrote this novel to help her through the traumatic loss of one of her best friends, Heidi, who lost her battle with breast cancer last year. Promises to Keep will be released in June 2010.

Jane Green has written eleven previous novels, some of which made the New York Times bestseller list. Raised in London, she now lives in Connecticut with her husband and six children. Learn more about Green and her work by visiting the author’s website.

Terrie from Other Press was kind enough to send me a finished copy of By Fire, By Water by Mitchell James Kaplan. You might remember I highlighted Other Press and mentioned this book on that post a couple of weeks ago. By Fire, By Water is historical fiction set in the 15th century and is due for release this week. The book flap reads: ‘ In this story of love, God, faith, and torture, fifteenth-century Spain comes to dazzling, engrossing life.‘

Mitchell James Kaplan lives in Pennsylvania (he has also resided in California, Germany, Connecticut, New York, and Paris).  This is his first novel. To learn more about Kaplan and his work, visit the author’s website. Oh, and just as an aside, Kaplan will be at the Other Press booth (#4340) at the BEA for a signing at 10:00 AM Wednesday the 26th…I plan to be there!

I won an Advance Readers Edition of Huck by Janet Elder through a Shelf Awareness Mother’s Day promotion (I also had a copy sent to my friend Katey…who, like me, is a dog lover!). This is a true story about a lovable toy poodle named Huck who goes missing and about the lessons an animal can teach those who love them, and how a beloved pet can open the hearts of strangers. I have a feeling this one might make me cry!

Janet Elder is a senior editor at The New York Times. She lives in Manhattan with her husband, their son,and the family dog. Huck is due for release in September 2010 through Random House/Broadway Books. To learn more about Huck and his family, visit the book’s website.

What books came into YOUR home this week?