Today's creature: the Emperor Tamarin. :-) 
Hello! Today I'd like to introduce you to my friend Sandra's latest book--good enough to eat! Let Them Eat Cake
By Sandra Byrd
…Chick-lit never tasted so good! LET THEM EAT CAKE is one of those rare chick-lit novels that integrates faith elements without being preachy, and includes plenty of romance without it being the only point of the protagonist's existence… Five star review, faithfulreader.com
Book Summary
Lexi Stuart is at a critical crossroads. She’s done with college but still living at home, ready to launch a career but unable to find a job, and solidly stalled between boyfriends.
When a lighthearted conversation in French with the manager of her favorite bakery turns into a job offer, Lexi accepts. But the actual glamour is minimal: the pay is less than generous, her co-workers are skeptical, her bank account remains vertically-challenged, and her parents are perpetually disappointed. Her only comfort comes from the flirtatious baker she has her eye–but even may not be who he seems to be!
So when a handsome young executive dashes into the bakery to pick up his high profile company’s special order for an important meeting–an order Lexi has flubbed– she loses her compulsion to please. “What am I going to do?” he shouts. “Let them eat cake!” she fires back with equal passion and a nod to Marie Antoinette. And then, something inside Lexi clicks. Laissez la révolution commencer! Let the revolution begin! Instead of trying to fulfill everyone else’s expectations for her life, Lexi embarks on an adventure in trusting God with her future–très bon!
Let Them Eat Cake was a Christy Award finalist for 2008
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1400073278
Bio:
Best-selling author Sandra Byrd married the country boy who accepted her dare to eat escargot, and lives with him and their two children in Seattle, Washington. She’s published nearly three dozen books in the Christian market including her latest series, French Twist, which includes Let Them Eat Cake (2007) and Bon Appétit (September, 2008). Most of her other books are for the Young Adult market, and she’s published a book for new moms, Heartbeats.
Many of Sandra’s shorter works appear in periodical markets such as Relevant, Clubhouse Magazine, Pockets, Decision, and Guideposts. For the past seven years Sandra has shared her secrets with the many students she mentors through the Christian Writer’s Guild. Before turning to full-time writing, Sandra was an acquisitions editor in the ABA market.
Sandra’s first submission – and rejection – was at age 12.
1 1/2 pounds beef tenderloin, well trimmed, meat cut bite-sized pieces (about 1” square)
4 tablespoons (3/4 stick) butter
1/2 cup finely chopped shallots
2 ½ cups sliced mushrooms
2 cups canned beef broth
3 tsp corn starch
1 cup sour cream
2 tsp
Over medium high heat, gently sauté beef tenderloin in 2 tablespoons of butter for about 2 minutes, till just seared on all side. You’ll still be able to see red. Remove from pan and set aside in a rimmed dish or baking sheet so you collect the juices.
Over medium high heat, sauté shallots and mushrooms in remaining butter until soft and wilted, about 5 minutes. Mix corn starch into cold beef broth, whisk to blend. Pour into pan, and stir together with shallots and mushrooms till thickened, two or three minutes.
Today's photo: a tarsier. 
Noble Legacy series, book 3 Finding Stefanie ISBN 1-4143-1019-
When she put her dreams on hold to help run the family ranch, she never imagined they would slip out of sight. Luckily for Stefanie, those dreams are about to come knocking at her door.
Lincoln Cash has gained fame and fortune on the big screen, but a crippling secret leaves him one last chance to make his mark on the movie industry. With dreams of hosting a new film festival,
Unfortunately, a house fire threatens his plans. So does opposition from his new neighbor Stefanie Noble, who's not thrilled about his Tinseltown changes. What Lincoln and Stefanie don't know is that the fire won't be the last disaster to threaten
Read chapter one: http://susanmaywarr
About Susie: Susan May Warren is the award-winning novelist of over twenty novels, many of which have won the Inspirational Readers Choice Award, the ACFW Book of the Year award, and have been Rita or Christy award finalists. Her compelling plots and unforgettable characters have won acclaim with readers and reviewers alike. She loves to write and help other writers find their voice through her www.MyBookTherapy.
For some of my friends who want this photo, here's the official 2008 retreat picture. Click on the photo to enlarge. 
Hi, everybody! Here's a look at a new book from a friend of mine, Rachel Hauck. You can order it here. About the book: She's the last of five sisters to find true love. So, when Elle Garvey's wide receiver-turned-
*** Romantic Times Book Club Review of LSWE Top Pick, 4.5 Stars Hauck is quickly making a name for herself as an insightful and thoughtful author. It's great to catch up with characters from previous novels as well as meet new ones. Elle is vulnerable, yet wise, and the romantic angle will leave you sighing with delight. ***
Interview How did Elle come to be?
RH: Elle was a great, funny, beautiful, character in Sweet Caroline. She had a small story line going and I saw that she was strong enough to carry her own novel. So, I proposed her as the next book and my editor loved it.
How much of you is there in Elle? Your husband in Heath?
RH: I think there’s some of us in each of the characters. Tony’s strength and confidence in Heath, my love of prayer in Elle. She is more controlled and goal oriented than I am, but I am one who looks a head like Elle.
What was your favourite scene to write?
RH: I had a few favorite scenes. I think the scene with Julianne and Elle in prayer chapel is one of my favs. And almost all the scenes with Elle and Heath. And oh, I love, love the first scene with Heath after he’s moved to Beaufort!
What do you hope readers take away from this story?
RH: There’s something you discover about yourself in meditative, concentrative prayer you cannot discover any other way or place.
Why did you pick the setting of Beaufort, South Carolina?
RH: A worship leader friend of mine wrote a song called Praise House. The slide background for the song lyrics was of an old, white, clap board shack with the words Praise House painted across the front. When I asked him about the shack and the song, he showed me a home video of his trip to Beaufort, looking for this elusive praise house he'd seen on the internet. I loved the scenery and the setting, loved seeing the lowcountry, and thought I needed to set a book in South Caroline. Since it's not far from my home, the research was easy.
Elle's an artist. Is this reflective of you? Perhaps a secret passion or hobby?
RH: No, I only can dream of being an artist. Seriously, I can't draw stick people. I love art and when Elle came to live in Sweet Caroline, she came as an artist. Didn't really even have to think much about it. Elle is a reflection of society today - very artsy and romantic, feeling oriented, living by intuition more than "thought and reason." If you study the Romantic Era of the 1800's, the landscape of society today is very much the same. We're in a Renaissance of that time. So, having her go on a journey of prayer really fit her emotional palette.
What is the number one challenge facing most Christians in the realm of prayer?
RH: Of course, this is my opinion based on observation and experience, but it's time management. We just have so many voices and sounds in our lives today. So many choices. It's hard to carve out time to get alone with God. I'm not talking "Quiet Time," setting aside fifteen minutes to read a devotional and pray - which is a component of getting to know the Father - more about stealing away to be with Him. Contemplative, soaking prayer takes time, discipline and concentration. I still struggle, but those days I sit at His feet for an hour or more - either alone or in a corporate prayer setting - is when I feel the most connected with Him. We need all kinds of prayer - on the run, emergency, pleading, hopeful, thankful prayers. But we also need to find time to sit and soak. Song of Solomon 2:14 says, "O my dove, in the clefts of the rock, In the secret place of the steep pathway, let Me see your form, let Me hear your voice; for your voice is sweet, and your form is lovely." Jesus is talking to the individual believer here about stealing away with Him. He longs for those alone times. In the clefts of the rock, in the steep pathway speaks of the difficulty of getting to the secret place with Him. There are a lot of things I do in my life that will account for nothing in eternity. I remind myself that setting aside time for Him is one thing that will endure, and prosper both now and always. There's a great line in the book from a wise friend of Elle's, and it's one I adopted for myself, "Pray is not inactivity." It's a very active, and proactive verb!
So, what's in the pipeline for you?
RH: Ah, look for something fun and interesting in the spring! ;) How’s that for a sneak peek?
I am here in Orlando, retreating with my novelist pals. When I arrived on Thursday afternoon, Mark Mynheir and Jim Bell helped me carry my luggage--and my hats--from the car. 
Q: Elizabeth Westbrook is a proponent of women’s rights – a suffragette and a woman aspiring to be the first photographer/
A: While the dichotomy grew out of Elizabeth’s developing character, it was also a conscious choice on my part. I just didn’t know at the outset what her physical weakness would be. When I first started “getting to know” Elizabeth Westbrook, I quickly discovered she was a strong-minded woman. Not a current day feminist,per se, but she was determined to achieve her goals, wanting above all to be the woman God wanted her to be. And yet, even in that earnest and honest desire, her perspective was skewed. Part of her journey in From a Distance is learning what it means to give God her dreams, to surrender her aspirations for His.
Q: What drew you to the Civil War and freed slaves as issues to set alongside the infant feminine movement?
A: Being born and raised in Atlanta, I’ve long held an appreciation for Southern history, and for the Civil War in particular. I’ve looked forward to writing a book where I could blend the rugged backdrop of the Colorado Territory with that of the antebellum South. I’ve read numerous accounts and diaries from men and women of that era and have a deep respect and appreciation for what they endured, and for their contribution to this country’s rich and diverse heritage.
Q; Josiah’s story is truly one of mercy and grace in a person’s life. He tells Elizabeth, “Knowin’ Jesus has already sifted through what’s comin’ before it gets to me…Well, I reckon that ought to be enough.” This is not an easy lesson for anyone to learn. Can it be taught be any means other than pain and loss? Do you think this is the key to understanding why people have to endure suffering?
A: I truly believe that a faith like Josiah’s has to be refined by fire, as it says in I Peter 1:7. By trials. I know that, personally, I grow closer to God in the hard times more so than the easy times. A dear friend once said, “Nothing happens to me but what it first hasn’t been sifted through the loving hands of my Heavenly Father.” I believe that. I believe God is sovereign and He knows what’s coming down the pike, so to speak, in my life. And that nothing touches me or my life that hasn’t been “allowed” by His sovereignty.
Now, does that mean that everything that happens to me is purposed by God? No, I don’t believe so. I believe that we live in a fallen world where sin exists, and that just as I have free will, so does someone else who’s chosen not to follow God. And when our “free wills” collide, things happen. Sin happens. Be it fair or not, we pay for the consequences of others’ choices. Oftentimes dearly.
Did God want me to be sexually abused when I was a little girl? No. I think His heart broke when that man took me in a back bedroom and, on repeated occasions, sexually assaulted me. But God (obviously) allowed that to happen. And through the years, He’s also provided healing for those emotional wounds, as well as avenues to share that healing.
Writing Revealed (my second book) was a healing journey from sexual abuse for me that I hadn’t anticipated. But God knew. I believe that when I first created Annabelle Grayson’s secondary character in Rekindled, God knew I’d writeRevealed, and He was already waiting for me in that moment a year later as I wrote Annabelle’s story, even as He was with me in that current moment when her character first “stepped onto the page.”
And something more… I believe that years ago—even as a man lured a little six-year-old girl into a bedroom and sinned against her—God was already setting into motion a plan for her healing. And that He knew I’d someday answer His call to be a writer, and that His glory would be made known through the story of a prostitute who was abused at a tender age. I never could have written Revealed, I never could have gone to those dark places in the human heart, had I not experienced such pain. And then later…such amazing joy!
Q; Daniel, Elizabeth and Josiah all reach a point where they either choose to share or are forced to share the truth about their circumstances. Why do we feel so compelled to hide what is painful from others when it is in the sharing of our trials that we often find forgiveness and freedom from the guilt often associated with those trials? Why is it so difficult to see and understand how God works in our lives even through these difficult times?
A: It’s hard to take off the mask and let people see who we really are—warts and all, as the saying goes—because it makes us vulnerable. And when we’re vulnerable, we can get hurt. All over again. And who wants to intentionally open yourself to more hurt? And yet, when we’re vulnerable, we’re real. (Writing this makes me want to run grab my copy of The Velveteen Rabbit and read it all over again!) Being real, being authentic, is such an attractive quality in a person.
As I get older, I see God most through these difficult times in my life, and yet my seeing Him, sensing and witnessing His presence, doesn’t always help me to understand the “why” behind something He allows. I’ve long ago surrendered the quest to figure out why God does something. Searching for the answer to a “why” has never led to a deeper faith step in my life. Choosing to trust Him despite not knowing the reason why something happened, choosing to trust (in the words of Job) “though He slay me”….does.
Q: Will we get to see more of these three great characters in the next book in this series? How many books will this series contain?
A: Yes! We’ll see these characters in the next two books, which will release in 2009.
Q; What exciting things is God doing in your life right now? Any closing words of encouragement you want to share with your readers?
A: An exciting (and memorable) moment happened for me recently. My husband and I are having some landscaping done, and one afternoon the landscaper asked me what I did for a living since I was “always home.” LOL! I told him I was a writer, and he shared that his wife loved to read. And that she was currently on bed rest, due in three weeks with their fourth child.
I gave him a set of Fountain Creek Chronicles (Rekindled, Revealed, Remembered) to give to his wife. Well, I got an email the next night saying that his wife was loving Rekindled and was telling him every single scene when he got home from work, so he wouldn’t have to read the book—his wife had already told him everything!
The next day he arrived. I met him in the backyard to discuss some details and he said, “Before we start, I just want to thank you for writing that book.”
“Rekindled?” I asked.
He nodded. “My wife finished it last night. She loved it.” He got a little quiet. “She came up to me afterward and told me that reading that book made her love me more, and that she was more committed to our marriage now than she had been.”
There are moments in your life when you wonder if you’re doing what God made you to do. While I have no clue whether I’ll be still writing novels ten years from now, I have no doubt that I’m doing what God designed me to do…for this moment in time. And I’m grateful to share the hope in Christ that He’s entrusted to us. That’s what this brief little journey called life is all about.
Q:What aspects of your work do you enjoy the most?
A: Having written! When the book is done, all revisions made, and I’m holding that first “hot off the press” copy in my hands. Oh, that’s a wonderful feeling.
The next best thing is typing “THE END” on a first draft.
Q: Preach it, sister! What are the most challenging problems for writers?
A: I can only speak for myself, but it’s discipline. Discipline to write a set word count everyday. Discipline to keep at it when “the muse” isn’t particularly generous that day. Along with the discipline of writing even when you don’t feel like it, comes the discipline of exercising each day, after those long hours of sitting (not good for the hips!). Then the discipline to “turn off the story” (or at least mute it) when you’re with family and friends. Again, sometimes easier to do than others, especially when I’m on deadline. Like now!
Q: For what achievement would you like to be remembered?
A: I most would like to be remembered for having made a difference in people’s lives. In the end, people are what matter. Not achievements, not awards, not accolades, not print runs, not bestseller lists. But people.
Amen! Thanks for stopping by! And tell me the truth--doesn't that gal on the cover look like she's thinking, Where'd I lose my pearl earring? LOL!
~~Angie
