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Monday, November 29, 2010

When I’m not writing… with Jeaniene Frost

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As you guys know, Jeaniene is one of my absolute favorite authors so I’m really excited to have her on the blog once again! It’s always a pleasure to have her around and I really hope you share my enthusiasm! She is indeed the author of The Night Huntress series and its spin-off and her next release, This Side of the Grave is due February 22nd, 2011 and I CAN’T WAIT to get my hands on it.

 

 

H1It should surprise no one that when I’m not writing, I like to read. I discovered romance novels at the age of twelve and even used to measure my allowance in terms of how many books it could buy. As a teen, I didn’t mind being sent to my room when I was bad because that’s where all my books were. It was love of reading that first made me want to write my own stories. One of the only downsides to writing is that I have less time for reading now, but I still make sure to squeeze some new reading in even when I’m on deadline. I’ve noticed that if I go too long without reading, I tend to get cranky (somewhere my husband is nodding in fervent agreement, lol). Romance may have been my first literary love, but I also enjoy horror, urban fantasy, supernatural mysteries, and the occasional non-fiction book.

 

H2Alas, over the course of about twenty years and over a dozen moves, I lost a lot of my books. At one early point in our marriage, my husband thought a huge cardboard box filled with novels was junk meant to be thrown away, and he did exactly that. It’s a testament to how much I love him that he lived through such an egregious mistake *wink*. On the top left shelf of the above photo, you can see all that’s left of my teenage romance collection. Some readers love the convenience of not needing shelves because all their books are now stored on an electronic device. I say more power to them, but I love having stacks of physical books around me. When I was little, my grandmother had a room with floor to ceiling shelves on two walls and a big comfy couch along the third, and it was my favorite room to spend time in when we visited her. My husband and I intend to move out of Florida next year and my one wish is to have floor to ceiling shelves in a room of our new home. Cross your fingers for me that it works out! 

 

H3As you can probably guess, I’m also a movie buff. My idea of a nice evening at home involves sitting on the couch with popcorn and watching a DVD. Even though it’s too large for our current living room (as you’ll see in the next photo), recently we bought one of those big sectional couches and words cannot express how much I love it. Both hubby and I can fully stretch out with our pillows and blankets while the movie plays. It’s one of my favorite ways to unwind. We also make sure to cover our couch with various throw blankets because somebody  - points to the spoiled doggie in the picture - thinks the couch is hers, not ours. We’re lucky she graciously allows us to use it as long as petting her is part of that use, heh.

 

H4I also love listening to music, but nowadays I listen to most of it while I write. My husband jokes that my laptop is really just an expensive radio, because it’s what I use to play songs while I write on another laptop that’s so old, it’s probably the original prototype (in my defense, I take the “radio” laptop with me when I go out of town because it has WiFi, so it DOES have other uses :). I create different soundtracks from iTunes for each book, with different artists depending on my  mood, but some of my favorite bands are Sarah McLachlan, Coldplay, The Fray, Smashing Pumpkins, Kings of Leon, Linkin Park, Carolina Liar, U2, White Lies, Lifehouse, and 44. Below is a photo of my writing space with the blue “dinosaur” laptop on the desk and the red “radio” laptop on the left of it. The desk itself is actually quite old. It belonged to my great-grandfather and my grandmother used to do her homework on it when she was a child.

 

If you’re wondering about the items on top of the desk, the pillow was a gift from my fan site moderator; the roses were from my sister when I first hit the New York Times; the unicorn was a gift from my niece when she was a child (and she was so proud to tell me that she’d bought it with her own money); the cat-o-nine tails was a gag gift from my critique partner in honor of my heroine, and the  pig and the bear were what my grandmother held the last two weeks of her life in the hospital. My grandmother was an amazing lady. To her last, she kept her sense of humor, joking that she’d get better only if the pig started to fly. My heroine’s middle name, Kathleen, is in honor of my grandmother.

H5The other thing I enjoy doing in my spare time is roaming through cemeteries. Yes, this sounds odd to a lot of people, but most cemeteries are very pretty, and the historic ones are like outdoor museums. The author photo in my books was taken by a friend while we were wandering through a cemetery in Baltimore, MD. I wanted to scale the fence to get to the blocked off, older section of the cemetery. She very sensibly noted that the fence had metal spikes, and getting impaled by one of them would ruin our plans for the day. Since I’m not very athletic (or graceful) and probably would have skewered myself if I tried to vault over those spikes, I settled for taking pictures of that section of the cemetery from inside the fence. You can just see the tips of the fence spikes at the bottom of this picture.

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Thank you so much Jeaniene for sharing with us, and it’s such a lovely attention to name Cat after your grandma’s name. Love it =)

halfway-to-the-grave-lg-174x300 one-foot-in-the-grave-lg-174x300 at-graves-end-lg-174x300 destined-early-grave-xl-174x300

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thissideofthe graveDanger waits on both sides of the grave

Half-vampire Cat Crawfield and her vampire husband Bones have fought for their lives, as well as for their relationship. But just when they’ve triumphed over the latest battle, Cat’s new and unexpected abilities threaten to upset a long-standing balance…

With the mysterious disappearance of vampires, rumors abound that a species war is brewing.  A zealot is inciting tensions between the vampires and ghouls, and if these two powerful groups clash, innocent mortals could become collateral damage. Now Cat and Bones are forced to seek help from a dangerous “ally”—the ghoul queen of New Orleans herself. But the price of her assistance may prove more treacherous than even the threat of a supernatural war. …to say nothing of the repercussions Cat never imagined.

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Jeaniene very generously offered a signed copy of Eternal Kiss of Darkness (picture me jealous!) to one lucky reader!

It is open internationally (Thank you Jeaniene!)

All you have to do is leave a meaningful comment and FILL THE FORM

Giveaway ends  Dec 13th, 2010.

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Enjoyed this post? There will be more “When I’m not writing…” posts in the future!

Please visit This Page to find out who my future guests are, and a chance to suggest authors you would like to see featured!

Authors, you would like to visit and share with us?

Please email me at TyngaUF(a)gmail.com

Tynga is a 32 years old mom of two, from Montreal, working as a lab technician in an hospital specialized in heart disease. In her free time, she enjoys reading all things Paranormal and photography.

Follow Tynga on: Facebook | Twitter

62 People left their mark' :

  1. i love The Night Huntress series ! and i just can't wait to read This Side of the Grave.

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  2. Hi :)
    Thank you for the wonderful post Jeaniene. I love that antique desk. Thank you for sharing the pictures too. I like how you have your book covers facing you, like each is a dream fulfilled inspiring you to create another.
    All the best,
    Rob

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  3. That is super sweet how you named Cat! I loved reading your thoughts.

    Lane

    moiraethefates(AT)gmail(DOT)com

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  4. woah those are some gorgeous bookshelves, I don't think I'd ever want to write if I had so much to read! :)

    thanks for hosting this giveaway, signed books are so meaningful.

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  5. What a great guest post! Lucky you Tynga!

    I just recently started reading the Night Huntress series. Well, listening to them acutally. Tavia Gilbert did an amazing job bringing these characters to life! I'm currently listening to At Graves End.
    I too like to have shelves of books around me, and all of those books that I listen to or read in ebook format and loved very soon find their way to my permanent shelf. My bookshelves are arranged by "books I loved" (my permanent shelf) "books I need to read" and "books for giveaways"
    Do you separate the books on your shelves in any specific way?

    Also, is there anyone in particular that you draw some of your characters personality traits from? I absolutely adore Bones' wit and sarcasm.
    I'll keep it to just those 2 questions but watch out if I ever get the opportunity to interview you!! lol Thanks so much Jeaniene for this wonderful guest post and the signed book offer!

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  6. I really enjoyed the interview. I thought the story about the 2 laptops was funny.

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  7. You have an adorable spoiled puppy. I have one too that also believes the couch is hers, not ours. She is a queen.

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  8. Thank you for this international giveaway ! Hope I'll be lucky^^

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  9. Thanks for the giveaway. The book really sounds good. Tore923@aol.com

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  10. Excellent interview! LOVE Night Huntress and Jeaniene. <3 <3 <3

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  11. I absolutely LOVE the Night Huntress Series!! I cant wait till the next book comes out!

    - Kaitlyn Vega

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  12. I've enjoyed all of jeanine's books. can't wait until the next book comes out.

    sgiden at verizon.net

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  13. Thanks for the great look into your life outside of your books. Love cemeteries as well.

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  14. I'm a huge fan of the Nighthuntress series. Bones is my favorite fictional hero. Can't wait for the next one. I'm going through Cat and Bones withdrawal!

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  15. I love the Night Huntress series! I love this post because we get to see authors in a different prospective - as readers :)

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  16. OMG!!! I love the nighthuntress series!!! Great interview really enjoyed learning more about Jeaniene. Thanks for the giveaway too!

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  17. I love your books. The covers you get are so beautiful too. Do you know what Vlad's series will be called? He's going to be so much fun to read ;).

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  18. Your laptop is just an expensive radio. Too funny! Love the series and can not wait for This Side of the Grave!
    Great post Tynga!

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  19. I've just discovered the Night Huntress series - I've read Halfway To The Grave and love the feeling that I still have a few books to read to get 'caught up' - nothing better than finding a series you love and working your way through the series!

    I also agree - I want floor to ceiling bookshelves! I keep seeing them in the background of TV shows and I'm jealous!:)

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  20. I have been reading all your books since 2007! You are my favorite author of all time. I always recommend you to friends and family when they ask for suggestions. I was fortunate enough to win a signed copy of Halfway to the Grave a while back and it sits high on a self far out from the little hands of my three-year old! Haha! I'd love to get them all signed or at least get a second copy of each; one for reading, one for show. XD

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  21. can't wait for TSoTG !

    love how you honor your family connections.

    my blue "dinosaur' died of a fried mother board last year. lol

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  22. I love Cat and Bones so much, I really have no excuse why I haven't started the 'spin-off' yet. Your spoiled doggie reminds me of 2 certain fatties of the whiskered variety sitting on the couch next to me.

    b(dot)cardone(at)hotmail(dot)com

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  23. I loved First Drop of Crimson and I really want to read Eternal Kiss of Darkness. This post was wonderful to read, it hurt my heart to hear that whole box of books were thrown away I would have cried and the dog is so cute, mine thinks our new futon is his.

    I also think it was really wonderful to name Cat after your grandma she really does sound like a wonderful person.

    Scribing Shadows
    sterr004[at]gmail[dot]com

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  24. Oh... My... God... Look at these shelves!! So many books and DVDs !! I'm jealous. Really. =p

    And the puppy is really cute :) (haha my dog thinks our couch is hers too! But my dog is bigger and our couch smaller... That is a problem sometimes *laughs*)

    Well, it seems we have a lot in common : reading, watching DVDs, puppies, listening to music (awww Coldplay, and Kings of Leon, and Linkin Park, and U2 !!!). I'm glad to read that =)

    Thank you for this great post and for the giveaway :)

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  25. Great interview. Love th Night Huntress series. Can't wait to read book 5. :)

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  26. Really great interview Thank you so much.I have read some of them from a friend can't wait to read more!

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  27. I've been hearing really great things about this series. I really need to get on it! Love all your books, can I have them? lol

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  28. Really interesting post, thank you! I loved the stories of the items on top of the desk, especially the one about the pig. :)

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  29. So many people start reading romances when they're teens or younger. I actually only started reading them 3 years ago when I was twenty-one. It turns out it's my favorite genre. If anyone happened to throwaway a box of my books away, I don't know if he or she would survive to see the next day. :P

    Thanks for stopping by Jeaniene! I adore the Night Huntress series and I can't wait until the next installment.

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  30. i absolutely love jeaniene frost's books! thank you for this post. it is always nice to see the other "side" to the author.

    my favorite genre is paranormal romance followed by urban fantasy. i used to read other genres but after being introduced to paranormal romance about 3 years ago, nothing can compare.

    jeaniene, more power to you and keep writing! your very first book is still my most favorite - cat and bones!!!

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  31. Jeaniene is such a good person and writer!! Night Huntress is by far one of my favorite series.
    I want to read This Side Of The Grave so badly, just can't wait.

    Thanks for the great interview.

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  32. I'm not one for wandering around cemeteries, but would have loved to spend more time in one we went to in Louisville this summer. The sculptures were amazing.

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  33. I love all the bookshelves :)Yours are waaaay more organized looking than mine. My dad once threw away a giant bag of books that was up in the attic. It's been years and years and I still mourn them :(

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  34. I love wandering around old cemeteries. It reminds you of how short life was for most people back then. I'd love to win EKOD - it's the only one of Jeanniene's books that I haven't read.

    jen(at)delux(dot)com

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  35. Thanks again to Tynga for having me on her blog, and thanks for all the kind comments!

    Re-"Do you separate the books on your shelves in any specific way?"

    Some I have grouped together by author, but I'm lazy so they're not all that way. One day I'll organize them, maybe to celebrate if I ever get those floor-to-ceiling shelves!

    "Also, is there anyone in particular that you draw some of your characters personality traits from?"

    It's such a mishmash of different things/people plus my own sick mind, and sometimes characters will turn out very different than I originally pictured them. Who says I'm in control? *wink*

    "Do you know what Vlad's series will be called?"

    No, not yet. Still mulling that with my publisher.

    Thanks again, everyone!

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  36. Is that a Shiba Inu? Yea, I would zero in on the dog. What can I say? I like dogs. ;)

    Great interview. Love your writing.

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  37. My dog thinks he's the king of myself (plus the sofa, plus the bed..and so on)
    It's really nice to know the other side of our favorite authors.
    Thank you so much.

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  38. I just recently found your books and you have a new fan. Can't wait to read the rest. Love all your book covers too.
    Sue B

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  39. First off, your couch looks amazingly comfy! And the dog is adorable :) When I lived in Japan for a summer, I was surprised at how many shibas I saw (and since "inu" means "dog" in Japanese, they are essentially Shiba Dog Dogs here).

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  40. This is so great, thanks for sharing!
    I love your books and am counting down the days until Feb. 22.

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  41. I was the same way as a teenager, I didn't mind getting sent to my room and spending the day/night with my romance books.
    I love the Night Huntress series, it's my favorite out there and I rave about it to everyone.
    Thanks for the great post!

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  42. Great interview and the desk is gorgeous. I have the first couple of this series in my TBR pile. I really need to read them.

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  43. Thanks for this great post!!I love being able to find out more about my favourite authors :)
    I can not wait to get my hands on This Side of the Grave... 2 more months!!

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  44. I love this series and would love to read this book. Thanks for a great giveaway.

    icewoman96 at gmail dot com

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  45. Yes, Melissa, she's a Shiba Inu. Spoiled rotten but that's okay. She's my only child ;-).

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  46. I love hearing about authors. Thank you so much for sharing. And yeah, I thought that was a Shiba Inu...those are such cute dogs!

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  47. I love this section!
    It's very interesting knows all kind of different thins aboutt authors. And I want ceiling book shelves, too! It'd be as have your own library :D

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  48. I love Jeaniene Frost's books, and I couldn't get my hand on a copy of Eternal Kiss Of Darkness due to my age and the fact that my parents are very much so unwilling to buy books through the internet; heck, they're unwilling to buy books! Also I couldn't find it in a store nowhere! I really loved the interview, Jeaniene Frost sounds like such an amazing and foremost good person. She is the best author in like, for-ever! ;) I loved the Balitmore comment, due to music preferances. :) I admire Jeaniene for her talent and how she features people close to her in her books and in interviews, and how she keeps memories of them close to her! :)

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  49. I was looking for more Vampire books to read and had posted on twitter for suggestions. A young lady from Germany suggested to me via twitter that I try Jeaniene Frost books. Well that started my journey to Bones!! If ever a female character I wanted to be it would be CAT, because where Cat goes, Bones is sure to follow. I fell in LOVE with Cat and Bones as well as all of the other players in the books. I cried with them and was angry at them and sighed in relief at their safe returns. The books offer a wide range of emotion and tastes. Your excited one moment then angry the next and anxious and then crying and at last laughing. There's romance, action, drama, mystery and at last VAMPIRES. I hate the wait for the next book but I am soooo happy to be along on this wonderful journey that Jeaniene Frost has taken so many of us readers on! I soooo can't wait for This Side of The Grave! February 2011
    I wanna be Cat so I can have Bones ;)

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  50. Absolutely LOVE this series!! I am starting to get my friends and family into them, and so far they are really loving them too! I found Bones in Unbound, and got hooked on him, so I looked up Jeaniene Frost, and found her luscious series with Cat and Bones.

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  51. This is of my favorite series. No wonder it's so creepy, with the author admitting that in her spare time she likes to wander through graveyards. Fascinating!

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  52. Ooooh! I loved this post, since Jeaniene Frost is absoluteyl awesome and seeing all the photos and stuff made me really happy to know more about her!

    I love her Night Huntress series and would love to buy them in physical form, since I have the ebook versions.

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  53. I prefer physical books to ebooks. There's something about the feel, look, smell....it's heaven!

    lovemybabysquid@yahoo.com

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  54. This series is soooo amazing!! I haven't had the chance to read it entirely but as soon as I get the chance that's number 1 on my list!!

    Thank you for the great giveaway! I'm in :D

    moonlightgleam(at)gmail(dot)com

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  55. I really enjoyed reading this post!Jeaniene is among my favorite authors too,and certainly my absolutely favorite writer of paranormal romance!Thanks for the wonderful post!

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  56. I just read First Drop of Crimson and loved it. I didn't realize the whole series going on. I look forward to reading all of them. I've read lots of good stuff about it. Thanks for the contest and I'd love a chance to win the next book.
    Tanyaw1224(at)yahoo(dot)com

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  57. I love hearing about authors in their every day life. Thank you so much for sharing with us this lovely feature Tynga!. Like Jeaniene I had a home with floor to ceiling shelves (my personal heaven since i was a child) now I want it back!! – students apartments don’t have such a space =/ . I absolutely adore Half way to the grave (buyed two editions USA & then spanish one!) & the wit and sarcasm of her characters. I prefer physical books to ebooks also!! though not so fan to visit cementeries but I admit that some are really impressive ^^

    Thanks for this great opportunity Tynga!

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  58. I have a dinosaur laptop too! XDDD I don't use it anymore, but it's great for decoration :P Poor Windows 95 hahahah XD
    Thanks for the giveaway :D

    sweet.sayumi@yahoo.com.br

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  59. Yay! Thank youuu for the giveaway opportunity :)
    I absolutely LOVE this series, can't wait for "This Side of The Grave" especially Bones-- wish he was real! :D
    btw your bookshelves are beautiful!! I still need to fill mine up, their all over the floor lol

    Vanessa Martinez
    vmartinez1218(at)gmail(dot)com
    @vmartinezwrites

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  60. I absolute love these books!! I can't get enough of them and I wish there were more. Jeaniene you are hilarious, thanks for all the entertainment!

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  61. Been wanting to read this series for awhile, hoping Santa will be nice and place them under my tree

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  62. Thank you for the chance to win!!

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