"I BELIEVE IN PINK! I believe that laughing is the best calorie burner. I believe in kissing, kissing a lot. I believe in being strong when everything seems to be going wrong. I believe that happy girls are the prettiest girls. I believe that tomorrow is another day and I believe in miracles."— Audrey Hepburn

“To be yourself in a world that is constantly trying to make you something else is the greatest accomplishment.” - Ralph Waldo Emerson

Every night, friends. You have done what you could. Let it go.

“Finish each day and be done with it. You have done what you could. Some blunders and absurdities no doubt crept in; forget them as soon as you can. Tomorrow is a new day. You shall begin it serenely and with too high a spirit to be encumbered with your old nonsense.” ― Ralph Waldo Emerson


Thursday, June 9, 2016

Torn By Cynthia Eden

In New York Times bestselling author Cynthia Eden’s latest novel featuring the Last Option Search Team (LOST), one agent’s investigation entices a killer into making her his prey. PARTNERS…FRIENDS… Forensic anthropologist Victoria Palmer has always been better with the dead than the living. Shutting down her emotions, she lets few people in. But then Victoria’s latest investigation takes her and agent Wade Monroe to Savannah, Georgia. Handsome, dangerous, and more than ready to play dirty on any case, Wade weakens Victoria’s aloofness with just one glance. …TO LOVERS Wade knows their recent cases have pushed Victoria beyond her limits. But her skills are crucial to finding a college student who went missing five years ago. Victoria is able to determine she was murdered, and that the killer is still on the loose. And when the vicious murderer targets Victoria, Wade must do everything in his power to protect Victoria… because he refuses to let a woman he loves be torn from him...again. ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Award-winning author Cynthia Eden writes dark tales of paranormal romance and romantic suspense. She is a New York Times, USA Today, Digital Book World, and IndieReader bestseller. Cynthia is also a two-time finalist for the RITA® award (she was a finalist both in the romantic suspense category and in the paranormal romance category). Since she began writing full-time in 2005, Cynthia has written over thirty novels and novellas. Cynthia lives along the Alabama Gulf Coast.

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 My Review:
Wow, I loved this book. I just wish I had had time to read the others in the series before reading this one. his is the fourth! I am now going to have to play catch up. I am one that really likes to read her books in order too...oh well. I am not a reviewer that believes in putting up any spoilers so I am deliberately vague about the story line in most of my reviews, but highly recommend this one folks. This book has everything I enjoy in a good read. A good strong woman, a strong man, and intelligence in both. I love forensic anthropology and so when these things all come together in a great mystery with a little love thrown in with great writing I cannot resist. I didn't know about these until this one was offered up to me as something to review and I jumped at the chance! Please take my word for it...Pick them up...you won't be sorry...Start with this one if you must, but read them all.
As you may have guessed, this one gets a 


 from me...I can't wait to read the rest of them!

So that's it for this one...
For now...



Monday, May 23, 2016

Here I Am!

Good Afternoon,
It's been a while and so I thought I should check in...you know, in case you all thought I might not be around anymore...I am though...I just haven't written in a while...It has been a stressful year in my life. I don't like that. I don't like that at all. So I don't write about it. I figure you all don't want to read about all that shit in your free time...this stuff is suppose to be for pleasure reading, right? so..anyway...Here I am...My daughter sent me a text while I was at work the other day, it went something like this..."My time hop says that a year ago today we found out that you had breast cancer again...I love you Mom" Sweet...So I posted that on FB and said I love her too...I don't know what I expected...but it was not what I got...interesting...

It will be a year on July first since the bilateral mastectomies. I had quite a long recovery time which must have put something out of wack at work, because I only got a 1% increase this year..a joke! But this is a pink, happy place, right? I am hoping for more this year because I have actually become cleared on, what for me, is a new procedure(Pre implantation Genetics Biopsy) I guess we will see...biopsy.mp4 for those of you that would like to take a look at this fascinating stuff, it really is...there is the link...

So anyway...later in the year, I had reconstruction with implants...sounds good, right? Well, I am one of the few people that can say that my original girls were quite something and oh so much better than these fake ones...I will let it go at that...lol



So I am hoping for bigger and better things from here, but what is with this cold and rainy spring!?! Anyone???

I have taken to reading light hearted cozy mystery bundles and have taken a break from my regular hard core regulars but I will return to them I am sure...
What are you all reading?

Oh and don't worry, the advocacy is still going strong. I am now the Chair of the Komen Advocates in Science Steering Committee and have been doing all kinds of good stuff...maybe I will go into more detail on that in another post...

For now...





Tuesday, March 1, 2016

A New Release For You Today!

Just for you! Dear to my heart and just up my alley...History...By Laura Kamoie and Stephanie Dray!

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We are absolutely thrilled to bring you the Release Week Blitz for Stephanie Dray and Laura Kamoie’s AMERICA’S FIRST DAUGHTER, a historical fiction novel is published by William Morrow, an imprint of HarperCollins, and releasing March 1, 2016! AMERICA’S FIRST DAUGHTER is a compelling, richly researched novel by bestselling authors Stephanie Dray and Laura Kamoie. Drawing from thousands of letters and original sources, the authors reveal the fascinating, untold story of Martha “Patsy” Jefferson Randolph, Thomas Jefferson’s eldest daughter. Patsy was one of the most influential women in American history: not only the progeny of a founding father – and the woman who held his secrets close to her heart – but a key player in the shaping of our nation’s legacy. And her story is one seldom told, until now. Make sure you grab your copy today!

    Americas First Daughter - cover

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    About AMERICA’S FIRST DAUGHTER: In a compelling, richly researched novel that draws from thousands of letters and original sources, bestselling authors Stephanie Dray and Laura Kamoie tell the fascinating, untold story of Thomas Jefferson’s eldest daughter, Martha “Patsy” Jefferson Randolph—a woman who kept the secrets of our most enigmatic founding father and shaped an American legacy. From her earliest days, Patsy Jefferson knows that though her father loves his family dearly, his devotion to his country runs deeper still. As Thomas Jefferson’s oldest daughter, she becomes his helpmate, protector, and constant companion in the wake of her mother’s death, traveling with him when he becomes American minister to France. It is in Paris, at the glittering court and among the first tumultuous days of revolution, that fifteen-year-old Patsy learns about her father’s troubling liaison with Sally Hemings, a slave girl her own age. Meanwhile, Patsy has fallen in love—with her father’s protégé William Short, a staunch abolitionist and ambitious diplomat. Torn between love, principles, and the bonds of family, Patsy questions whether she can choose a life as William’s wife and still be a devoted daughter. Her choice will follow her in the years to come, to Virginia farmland, Monticello, and even the White House. And as scandal, tragedy, and poverty threaten her family, Patsy must decide how much she will sacrifice to protect her father's reputation, in the process defining not just his political legacy, but that of the nation he founded.   America's First Daughter - RWB teaser 2   Advanced Praise for America’s First Daughter: “America’s First Daughter brings a turbulent era to vivid life. All the conflicts and complexities of the Early Republic are mirrored in Patsy’s story. It’s breathlessly exciting and heartbreaking by turns-a personal and political page-turner.” (Donna Thorland, author of The Turncoat) “Painstakingly researched, beautifully hewn, compulsively readable -- this enlightening literary journey takes us from Monticello to revolutionary Paris to the Jefferson White House, revealing remarkable historical details, dark family secrets, and bringing to life the colorful cast of characters who conceived of our new nation. A must read.” (Allison Pataki, New York Times bestselling author of The Accidental Empress)   AFDBlurb1_edited-2     Author pic- Stephanie DrayAbout Stephanie Dray: STEPHANIE DRAY is an award-winning, bestselling and two-time RITA award nominated author of historical women’s fiction. Her critically acclaimed series about Cleopatra’s daughter has been translated into eight different languages and won NJRW's Golden Leaf. As Stephanie Draven, she is a national bestselling author of genre fiction and American-set historical women's fiction. She is a frequent panelist and presenter at national writing conventions and lives near the nation's capital. Before she became a novelist, she was a lawyer, a game designer, and a teacher. Now she uses the stories of women in history to inspire the young women of today.

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Author Pic - Laura KamoieAbout Laura Kamoie: Laura Kamoie has always been fascinated by the people, stories, and physical presence of the past, which led her to a lifetime of historical and archaeological study and training. She holds a doctoral degree in early American history from The College of William and Mary, published two non-fiction books on early America, and most recently held the position of Associate Professor of History at the U.S. Naval Academy before transitioning to a full-time career writing genre fiction as the New York Times bestselling author of over twenty books, Laura Kaye. Her debut historical novel, America's First Daughter, co-authored with Stephanie Dray, allowed her the exciting opportunity to combine her love of history with her passion for storytelling. Laura lives among the colonial charm of Annapolis, Maryland with her husband and two daughters.

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An Excerpt 
“And what of our future . . . ?” I asked.

Mr. Short smiled. “If you could give up all thoughts of the convent, our future depends upon the orders your father is awaiting from America. Your father has asked that in his absence, I be appointed in his place as chargé d’affaireswith commensurate salary. If I receive such an appointment, then I can present myself to your father as a worthy suitor. Otherwise, I’m afraid he’ll consider me a wandering wastrel without employment.”

“He would never!”

Mr. Short chuckled mirthlessly. “You think not? I have in my possession a letter from your father lecturing me on the need to build my fortune. The most memorable line reads: This is not aworld in which heaven rains down riches into any open hand.

How churlish of Papa, but had I not, from the youngest age, also received letters filled with his lectures? “You mustn’t worry, Mr. Short. If my father requested your appointment, then it’s sure to come. But until it does, how can I be sure of your intentions in asking for my love?”

I didn’t expect him to laugh. “You’re Jefferson’s daughter, to the bone. You want evidence. Well, give me the chance and I’ll give you the proofs you require—both of my love and of the world you should love too much to abandon even for God. I wouldn’t have you enter a convent, much less love, in ignorance.”

“What do you think me ignorant of?”

With mischief twinkling in his eyes, he stopped, drawing me into a grove of trees. Beyond us, in the ditch, we heard boys playing a ball game in the dim lamplight. Somehow, in the dark, Mr. Short’s fingertips found my cheeks, and his mouth stole over mine. This first kiss was soft and tender. As if he feared frightening me. Nevertheless, it shocked me. It was like my heart was a loaded cannon he’d held fire to, and it threatened to shoot out of my chest. But I wasn’t frightened and I didn’t pull away. Instead, it seemed quite the most natural thing to kiss him back, mimicking what he did, glorying in every soft, sweet sensation.

At the feel of my lips teasing softly at his, he groaned and pulled back. “Oh, my heart . . .”

The sweet taste of him still on my lips, our breaths puffing in the night air, I asked, “Have I done something wrong?”

He held my cheeks in his hands. “The error was all mine. I’d beg your pardon if I could bring myself to regret it, but I never want to regret anything with you, so tonight I must content myself with one kiss.”

Only one? I wanted to lavish a thousand kisses on his face. Hislips, his cheeks, his ears. The desire was a sudden hunger, a desperate plea inside me echoing like the cry of peasants for bread.

“What if I’m not yet content? Wasn’t kissing me meant to be the proof of your intentions?”

“No, Patsy. Kissing you, then stopping before satisfaction, is the proof of my intentions, which I hope you’ll see are honorable and directed toward your happiness.”







Thursday, January 14, 2016

January 2016 continues...

So as 2016 continues to begin, I continue to wish things would get better...Monday was the kidney surgery...I suppose it went well, but of course the aftermath is still with me and I am still off...At the risk of TMI(hey this is my blog) I cannot hold it at all...Luckily I already had 2 days scheduled off...The kidneys are throbbing...and even though it was not done at GBMC I still was able to run into a nurse that I know:)

I have looked at many pictures of cute puppies and pinned a lot of pink stuff...read a little...and oh...have I mentioned the three day migraine...I don't know what that is about but I am so over it! The Maxalt isn't working...and while the Hydrocodone/acetaminophen does wonders for the throbbing kidneys it does nothing for the migraine...

Ah well...the sun is out and I am alive...

I see the Plastic tomorrow and Vered has offered to arrange a second opinion...


I received these from my parents...very cheerful:)





Love in the Light: Release Week

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We cannot tell you how excited we are to bring you the Release Week Blitz for LOVE IN THE LIGHT by Laura Kaye! LOVE IN THE LIGHT is a novel told in dual POV and Part Two of her bestselling Hearts in Darkness Duet. This much anticipated follow-up is finally here! Make sure you grab your copy of this sexy novel today, and if you're new to the series you can grab the first novella HEARTS IN DARKNESS for just $.99 for a limited time!

  Love in the Light - cover

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  About LOVE IN THE LIGHT (Hearts in Darkness Duet #2): Two hearts in the darkness… Makenna James and Caden Grayson have been inseparable since the day they were trapped in a pitch-black elevator and found acceptance and love in the arms of a stranger. Makenna hopes that night put them on the path to forever—which can’t happen until she introduces her tattooed, pierced, and scarred boyfriend to her father and three over-protective brothers. Must fight for love in the light… Haunted by a childhood tragedy and the loss of his family, Caden never thought he’d find the love he shares with Makenna. But the deeper he falls, the more he fears the devastation sure to come if he ever lost her, too. When meeting her family doesn’t go smoothly, Caden questions whether Makenna deserves someone better, stronger, and just more…normal. Maybe they’re too different—and he’s far too damaged—after all…   Love in the Light - Teaser 1   Praise for LOVE IN THE LIGHT: "Readers that have been anxiously waiting for more of this story will be thrilled with the passionate and poignant way Kaye dives back in with this complicated and much loved couple. Love in the Light will have readers falling in love with Caden and Makenna all over again!" ~ Jay Crownover, New York Times Bestselling Author of the Marked Men Series "Sexy, emotional and incredibly heartwarming, fans of Laura Kaye won't be disappointed!" ~ Monica Murphy, New York Times Bestselling Author of the One Week Girlfriend Quartet "Laura Kaye has a gift for writing beautifully damaged men and Caden Grayson leads the pack with enough vulnerability to twist your heart in knots." ~ Tessa Bailey, New York Times Bestselling Author of the Line of Duty Series "This book delivers - sweet romance, smoking hot sex, an entire tissue box full of angsty drama, and such love shining off the pages that it will blind you." ~ Christi Barth, Author of the Shore Secrets Series "This follow up to one of the most beloved couples in romance is delivered in the emotional and touching way that only Laura Kaye can do. Love in the Light is everything I could have wanted for Makenna and Caden--and more!" ~ Jillian Stein, Read-Love-Blog   Love in the Light - Teaser 2      Here is an excerpt:“Do you want to get changed and I’ll set dinner out?” Caden asked.

“Yeah,” Makenna said. “Sounds great.” The kitchen, dining area, and living room were one big room, with her bedroom door toward the far end. She paused there and looked back. Caden moved around her little kitchen, comfortably and familiarly, and he just looked so freaking good there. In her space. Well, their space now.

He still had his townhouse in Fairlington, but he rarely slept there anymore. And it was so bare bones in furnishings that he preferred they not sleep there because he feared she’d be uncomfortable. A part of her wasn’t sure why he even kept it at this point.

“What?” he asked, giving her a skeptical look.

She grinned and leaned against the door jamb. “I rode our elevator today.”

He shook his head. “Anything interesting happen?”

“Oh, I got trapped with a smoking hot stranger and made out with him in the dark. The usual,” she said.

He smirked. “That never happens.”

Makenna threw her head back and laughed. Still smiling, she changed into jeans and a pink camisole with a low back, and then she threw a warm, chunky caramel-colored cardigan over that.

She found Caden sitting at the set table, containers of food overflowing with several types of noodles. It smelled amazing—savory and spicy and like she could eat everything she saw.

For a moment, the look on his face made her think he was upset about something, but then he saw her and his expression transformed into a sexy smirk. “Smoking hot, huh?”

Laughing, she took the seat next to him. “You fishing for compliments, Grayson? I already said you were freaking gorgeous.”

“Yeah, but that’s not the same as smoking hot.” He arched a brow, and damn if his playfully smug, expectant expression wasn’t hot as hell with his brow piercing and the widow’s peak of his dark hair.

She picked up her fork. “Okay, then how about this? You are so freaking gorgeous and so smoking hot that you make my heart race and my mouth water and my panties melt. Every time I see you. How’s that for a compliment?”

Caden’s smile was slow coming but so damn sexy. “I like tattoo night.”

She laughed and shook her head. “So do I.”



And don’t miss the first title, Hearts in Darkness, at 99 cents!

    Hearts in Darkness -99 sale       Author PhotoAbout Laura Kaye: Laura is the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of over twenty books in contemporary and paranormal romance and romantic suspense. Growing up, Laura’s large extended family believed in the supernatural, and family lore involving angels, ghosts, and evil-eye curses cemented in Laura a life-long fascination with storytelling and all things paranormal. She lives in Maryland with her husband, two daughters, and cute-but-bad dog, and appreciates her view of the Chesapeake Bay every day.        

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Sunday, January 3, 2016

Reflections

Happy New Year! At least I sure hope so...because as some of you may know 2015 has not been my friend:(  I try not to make this a sad pink place but jeeze...the year started out with some of us losing a very special woman. Sue was a genuinely good person who brought goodness and light where ever she went and she will be forever missed...we begin 2016 remembering that at this time last year we lost her... Things could only get better from there right!?! well, one would think so...She and I would have celebrated an anniversary together. It was on New Years Eve in 1994 that I found my lump and went through all that followed. And so it had been 20 years in January 2015 since my diagnosis of breast cancer...20 years! And while I would not have wished for such a thing, many things have happened to me as a result of that fateful day that cannot be denied, both good and bad. I am not the person that I would have been...A story for another day...

Fast forward to May of 2015 and it is time for my yearly mammogram. You guessed it...I am now a two time breast cancer survivor, as I was diagnosed for the second time following a stereotactic biopsy. 
July 1, 2015 I had bilateral mastectomies. After being out of work an unprojected 11 weeks, I headed back to work. Not completely healed. But with the Dr. OK.
I had not particularly favored reconstruction but went ahead with that. It is not going well. One expander was destroyed before heading back to work and it is now becoming clear that the other is not retaining fluid as it should be and therefore not expanding.

Just last week my plastic surgeon had the nerve to ask me if I had ever considered gastric bypass surgery as, if I were smaller, she would not have to make my breasts as big...let that sink in for a minute...

Just typing that sends my BP up...Let me get this straight...You, who have no idea if I am even a candidate and have no idea what my eating habits are...in order to make your job a little easier...think I might want to get gastric bypass surgery...Gee, let me think about that for just a tiny little minute...Um...NO!!!

First of all, I will not go into detail here, but I and my primary care know what I put in my mouth each day and there is not enough food to bypass my stomach unless you need me to starve. When I walked every single day I lost nothing at all...

So, I have breast cancer and the treatment for same to thank for this...don't get me wrong, I am thankful for the treatment and happy to be here:) Just not so much for the metabolism I am left with and people like her...She will just have to work harder...I also have some news for the little Dr. I, even as a perfect size 2, had a C cup...so you have your work cut out for you no matter what!  

Sorry, did I mention the whole thing brings the rage out in me..."just breathe"


OK, so anyway, just recently I have found out that in the next two weeks I have to make a decision about what to do about all of this...I will be seeing My PCP tomorrow in order to have presurgical testing for the bilateral cystoscopy with laser lithotripsy on the 11th. Both of my kidneys have many large kidney stones Oh joy...

SO it looks like 2016 will have to finish up some things from 2015 before we can begin anew. But I think my word for this new year is going to have to be Adapt...More on that later...Also my new mantra will be...What would Sue Do?...WWSD?  

Now of course there were some good things in there...I reread the entire JD Robb In Death series while I was recovering:) Loved that!

My Daughter has been a Godsend and my Husband and My Parents have rallied around me to show me much love and support...

I have had the last two and a half weeks of the year off for the first time ever and that has been nice...although I did work Christmas and the weekend...I cannot complain though, as it was the first time in over 26 years that I had had to do so...

I go back to work tomorrow and have to let them know about the little surgery...so wish me a little luck...

Oh and hopefully you will see me here at TrulySimplyPink a little more often in 2016:)