This cartoon pretty much describes how I have felt about New Year’s Resolutions in the past. I mean after a while I learned my lesson with this tricky little tradition.
Sure, I made a few resolutions in the past – many moons ago. What have I resolved to do? Pretty much what every other American resolves to do:
Many years I resolved to stop biting my nails. How they hay does one do this? To this day I cannot figure it out. My husband says, just stop doing it. Sure, I say, and you just stop scratching yourself. I don’t think he found the humor in that – ha ha ha. I mean how does one stop doing something that I don’t even realize I am doing until my nails are bitten so low they hurt and I have hang nails on my thumbs that require band aids.
So after several years of trying and failing I stopped resolving to stop biting my nails.
I have also resolved to lose weight. This just makes me want to eat more. I mean really you tell me NOT to do something and that just makes it all the more appealing. Just like the bad boy syndrome. Don’t even pretend that a bad boy isn’t appealing. LOL.
So after attempts at resolving to lose weight I started resolving to accept myself the way I am. That sounds all nice and pretty right? It’s a lot harder than it sounds. I still work on that every day. I will say that I think something like this comes with age. I stopped resolving this as well.
I’ve resolved to save money. Let’s all laugh now and move to the next one.
I’ve resolved to be a better person. This is very vague and wide reaching. Exactly what does this entail? I hold the doors for others at the mall, I try not to glare at people in public who annoy me (oh please like you haven’t been in line with someone behind you that is like “OMG did you hear…?” Actually, I didn’t hear but thanks to your loud voice – I have heard now!) I recycle, I try to take things in stride when I don’t like the way things go. But let’s face it. You can’t just become a “better” person because it’s your New Year’s resolution. You have to work at something like that. It doesn’t happen overnight. And invariably – I am human – and sometimes I get annoyed and tell people about it. LOL.
Eventually I looked in the mirror and realized that making a New Years Resolution was like guaranteeing myself that it wouldn’t happen.
So I gave it up. Why bother making a resolution I was destined to fail then feel like crap because I didn’t do it. *Shrugs* Seems like a vicious cycle to me.
I became like Gerald:
And I pretty much made fun of others who tried to make New Year’s Resolutions:
So to all of you Resolution believers out there. Keep on resolving. It’s a New Year and anything is possible!
Just for fun I googled New Year’s Resolution. I found this list of the top made New Year’s resolutions. Have you resolved to do any of these? Has anyone NOT resolved to any of these? Lol.
Top most made New Year’s resolutions
• Drink Less Alcohol
• Eat Healthy Food
• Get a Better Education
• Get a Better Job
• Get Fit
• Lose Weight
• Manage Debt
• Manage Stress
• Quit Smoking
• Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle
• Save Money
• Take a Trip
• Volunteer to Help Others
Cambria Hebert is the author of the young adult paranormal Heven and Hell series. She loves a caramel latte, hates math and is afraid of chickens (yes, chickens). In addition to her many writing credits she is also the co-host for JournalJabber, a blog talk radio show that focuses on writing and books. She currently lives in Pennsylvania where she is plotting her next book.
Satan Jack invites you to come…and indulge yourself in his journey to save the angel he loves. After running Hell for over a thousand years, one foul-mouthed Seraph has changed his end game.
Even if it means destroying the universe, Jack refuses to give up on his woman. He didn’t know what love was until Emma’s skin pressed against his, the addiction to any of his other vices paling in comparison. Jack has never been a fearful man, but he gets it now. Fear comes when you have something to lose. Or someone.
“Your boyfriend’s back, Missie. You look lovely tonight. Drink this wine; it’s spicy and deep. Much like yourself. That drip on your bottom lip looks delicious. May I taste it? Do you like when I ask or would you prefer I just take?
Dirty girl, I knew you’d want it rough. Look how soft your skin is. I think I could just taste every little bit. I believe a night between us is long overdue. I’ve learned a new trick. My smoke can travel all over you, touching any place that craves me. Right now? It’s your neck so I’ll let the smoke slide under your clothes.
I have only one request before I toss you onto that bed. I need to know where Debra Anastasia is. She owes me…something. Why do you press your lips together? Is it because I’m Satan? Does giving me what I ask for make you feel guilty?
Debra deserves anything she gets. She took my foul-mouthed angel from me. And you know how long ago that was. All this time I’ve waited. I’ve been patient. Now she won’t tell me how the sequel ends, only the title. Bittersweet Seraphim? That tells me exactly nothing. If the title gave some hint of victory I might be less vicious with her.
But enough about my needs. Come to me, Missie. Let me pull your hair off your shoulders and kiss your neck until you purr. Let my smoke shackle you to my bed, that way when the pleasure overcomes you, I’ll be able to…push you further than you’ve ever gone.
Just one whispered word about where she is and then we’ll get started.”
~Jack
Suffering is worst when you’re doing it alone. But Emma’s taking Hell like an angel—even though her languishing began with having her seraph wings torn from her back. Now her worst enemy lords his body and his evil desires over her while she tries desperately to remember the words to her favorite prayer.
As Devil, Jack used to have Hell and its women humming like well-oiled machines. Too bad he’s nowhere near the place now. Stuck on Earth as a human, he must work with a ragtag team of exiled minions and half-breeds to save the angel who’s become all that matters.
Rescuing a seraph is the plan, but breaking into Hell means letting evil things out. Once they collide, minions and angels converge in the battle of the ages: good versus evil. But which side is which? Will Jack destroy the world as he fights to save Emma, his true and timeless love, from a damnation he designed?
An action-packed sequel to Crushed Seraphim, this tale reveals—time and again—what happens when the heart’s deepest desires break free. With a story both sizzling and sensual, emotional and enigmatic, Debra Anastasia invites readers to join a battle with nothing less than love on the line.
Hello, book nerds! Thanks to the wonderful people over at Tribute Books, I have a read-along excerpt from author Emma Michaels’ newest series, Owlet! The read-along is part of a blog tour; you can check out more excerpts here: Owlet Blog Tour. And don’t forget to enter the mega giveaway at the end of this post.
“I’ll be missing you, Izzy.”
She didn’t want to leave her father’s arms. He had acted so strange the night before and she was worried about him. She didn’t understand what had happened, but the way her father acted towards her had changed. It was like the distance he had put between them emotionally was slowly melting away, and Iris didn’t want to leave and have that distance reappear. She was worried it would grow back and leave them even farther from each other than they had been before.
“I love you,” he whispered in her ear as he hugged her close, slipping something around her neck. He had rarely ever said the words aloud. She had always known he loved her but saying the words was different. It meant more.
Diana pulled her towards the terminal as her father waved goodbye.
“I love you, too.” Iris said making sure it was loud enough for him to hear.
Diana stopped for a moment and smiled, yet her expression immediately changed when her gaze fell to Iris’ neck. It was like she was seeing a ghost. Iris looked down and saw that what her father had slipped around her neck was the unique chain from the night before; she was now wearing the golden feather.
Please bring my dreams back. I could only dream of darkness last night, Iris thought.
Clasping the feather between her hands, she walked away.
Emma Michaels is the author of the ‘A Sense of Truth’ and ‘Society of Feathers’ series. Her goal with her latest YA novel Owlet is to give others what she did not have growing up; a strong female protagonist with asthma. While her previous aspiration was to be a lady knight she realized that not being able to run more than a few feet might become a hindrance so turned to writing instead. Her day jobs include being a cover artist, marketing consultant and silk screen designer.
As the founder of The Writers Voice blog, she loves to connect authors and readers. As a book blogger turned author, she was born and raised in Los Angeles, California, until she moved at eighteen to Washington State. Suddenly, the world was a new place filled with tall green trees that reached further for the sky with every moment, making her want to do the same. Ever since, she has tried to make her life something new and different from what it was before, pursuing her future career, setting high goals and reaching for them. With the support of her fiancé, Chihuahua, and her amazing blog followers and fellow bloggers, she wants to prove to the world that anything is possible and help inspire fellow literary lovers to reach for their dreams.
Somewhere between falling and flying… there is a girl.
Iris has a secret. She lost her memory eight years ago and never told a living soul. After an asthma attack one night she finds out that her dreams of a strange house on a snowy island may be a memory resurfacing but the more she learns about the past the more she realizes the life she has been living is a lie. As the façade her father has built starts to crumble around her she will have to decide which means more to her; the truth or her life.
Who knew that zombie slayers had time to tweet?! But apparently they do, and luckily, I was able to collect a few of their tweets to share with y’all today!
@AliceRBell: Monsters again? Seriously?
–@ColeCHolland reply: babycakes blonde needs to man up
–@AliceRBell reply: YOU man up!
–@KatMeowParker reply: is this some kind of code for making out??
@KatMeowParker: Frosty can suck it raw!
–@thehottestfrost reply: U know U want me
–@KatMeowParker reply: Yeah, I do. I want U dead.
–@thehottestfrost reply: now THAT’s gotta be a new code for making out
@ColeCHolland: I feel like killing something tonight—good things the zombies R out
SHE WON’T REST UNTIL SHE’S SENT EVERY WALKING CORPSE BACK TO ITS GRAVE. FOREVER.
Had anyone told Alice Bell that her entire life would change course between one heartbeat and the next, she would have laughed. From blissful to tragic, innocent to ruined? Please. But that’s all it took. One heartbeat. A blink, a breath, a second, and everything she knew and loved was gone.
Her father was right. The monsters are real. To avenge her family, Ali must learn to fight the undead.To survive, she must learn to trust the baddest of the bad boys, Cole Holland. But Cole has secrets of his own, and if Ali isn’t careful, those secrets might just prove to be more dangerous than the zombies.
GENA SHOWALTER is the New York Times and USA TODAY bestselling author of the Intertwined novels and several other popular YA and adult series. Her stories have been featured on MTV and in Seventeen magazine and have been praised as unputdownable.” Growing up, she always had her nose buried in a book. When it came time to buckle down and get a job, she knew writing was it for her. Gena lives in Oklahoma with her family and three slobbery bulldogs. Become a fan on Facebook, follow her on Twitter @GenaShowalter and visit her at HarlequinTEEN.com. website | twitter | facebook | goodreads Gena Showalter on Harlequin Website
Kismet Book Touring and Harlequin Teen are offering some exciting giveaways to those of you who are following the tour! Check it out!
A brand new Kindle Paperwhite, with Alice in Zombieland cover art, signed to the winner by Gena Showalter! The winner will also receive a personalized signed copy of Alice in Zombieland! Here’s how to enter:
Look for the White Rabbit Contest
Each day, the white rabbit will appear on one site and stay there for 48hrs. Once you have found the rabbit, click on it and you will be directed to a Rafflecopter entry form for the Grand Prize Giveaway! To enter, you must answer the daily question found at the Tour Stop!!!
TODAY’S QUESTION:
You have 140 characters to catch Cole’s attention, what would you tweet him?
TOUR STOP GIVEAWAY
In addition to the grand prize giveaway, I also have one hardcover copy of Alice in Zombieland to giveaway on the blog today. To enter, please just fill out the Rafflecopter form! a Rafflecopter giveaway
They’re everywhere, hiding in plain sight. Chances are, you’ve interacted with one or two of them in your lifetime without even realizing it…
Demon hunter Evelyn Brighton saves unsuspecting humans from the malevolent creatures masquerading around them every day. Working under the Lebriga Corporation’s direction, she never fails to bring her A-game with her keen skill, fiercely independent spirit, and the best weapon in her arsenal: the Divinity blade.
Evelyn’s world is turned on its ear, however, when she is ordered to train cocky new recruit Daniel Summers. They both feel an instinctive pull drawing them to one another, the ancient spells tattooed into their skin illuminating whenever the two hunters come into contact. But with evil looming over the city of Los Angeles, Evelyn and Daniel’s mutual competitiveness and sense of duty to Lebriga and all humankind forces them to hold back their desires. Will their restraint be enough to keep them focused and save southern California, or will the dark forces prevail?
Set in modern-day Los Angeles, Divinity is an action-filled, fast-paced marriage of urban fantasy and paranormal romance. Edgy, witty, and sexy, it will bind you in its spell.
Adrenaline junkies, are you ready for this?! Divinity was a high-octane, fast-paced adventure of epic proportions! Sure, the premise was a bit familiar, but it was the type of familiar you never really get tired of.
Set in the modern world, but also sneaking in bits of old lore and legend, Divinity pairs together Hunters (demon slayers) and Handlers (demonologists). Their objective is to work as a unit to fight the forces of evil, and luckily for us, Leever didn’t hold back when it came down to the gory details of what it means to go up against the bad guys. I loved the action scenes. They were vivid and I could actually “see” them happening in my mind.
Since Divinity is set in the present timeline, there were a few things that threw me off. Evelyn, the heroine, works for a secret Corporation that I desperately wanted to know more about. The corporation’s infrastructure largely remained a mystery to me throughout the story, and I had some difficulties accepting some of the decisions they made. Also, I often found myself wondering how the world around the ciaos was reacting. When you have demons taking over a large part of L.A., someone’s bound to notice, even if they are only regular humans.
I have to admit that I was a bit disappointed with the romance in the story. I wasn’t completely sold on it. I’ve never been a fan of romances that develop from instant physical attraction only, and that’s the type of relationship Evelyn and Daniel seemed to have. And since Evelyn was more than a century older than Daniel, it didn’t really seem believable that she’d suddenly feel this undeniable pull towards him without them really getting to know each other. Yes, she did have a conversation with her friend which showed her opening up like she never had before, but I would have like to see her have meaningful conversations with Daniel instead. And since the novel was only about 190 pages, I definitely thought there was room to develop a more authentic relationship between Daniel and Evelyn.
But I don’t think the romance issue I had will bother UF readers as much as it did me. Plus, Divinity featured a fun cast of characters, each with their own personality traits and stories to tell. At times, I did feel overwhelmed with the amount of secondary characters there were, but I also found myself really wanting to know their individual stories.
Divinity was a fun, quick read, and I’m looking forward to reconnecting with the characters in next book in this series, Entity.
This cartoon pretty much describes how I have felt about New Year’s Resolutions in the past. I mean after a while I learned my lesson with this tricky little tradition.
Cambria Hebert is the author of the young adult paranormal Heven and Hell series. She loves a caramel latte, hates math and is afraid of chickens (yes, chickens). In addition to her many writing credits she is also the co-host for JournalJabber, a blog talk radio show that focuses on writing and books. She currently lives in Pennsylvania where she is plotting her next book. 
GENA SHOWALTER is the New York Times and USA TODAY bestselling author of the Intertwined novels and several other popular YA and adult series. Her stories have been featured on MTV and in Seventeen magazine and have been praised as unputdownable.” Growing up, she always had her nose buried in a book. When it came time to buckle down and get a job, she knew writing was it for her. Gena lives in Oklahoma with her family and three slobbery bulldogs. Become a fan on Facebook, follow her on Twitter @GenaShowalter and visit her at 
