Guest Blog & Giveaway with Stephanie Julian

Stephanie Julian’s Top 10 for 2011

10. Glee on Fox
Yes, I’m a total Gleek. My mother raised me on musical theater with many trips to Broadway (before the Disneyfication of Times Square, which isn’t totally a bad thing) so this should be no surprise. I love the dancing, the singing, the mashups, the Sondheim, the Barbra and, yes, I even love when they do Gaga. Go figure.
9. “American Capitalist” Five Finger Death Punch.
As the mother of two sons, I realized when they hit their teens that I could scream at them to “turn that music down” or I could embrace it. I embraced. Hell, I hugged the crap out of it. While my guys and I share a love of Bullet For My Valentine and Avenged Sevenfold, FFDP is a band that’s solely mine in our house. And I think their newest album is their best yet. Fast, furious, angry, bitter and wonderful.
8. “Begin Again” Hell Or Highwater
Saw these guys at the Mayhem Fest this year. They’re unsigned but the members have been around awhile. When they started to play, my youngest son and I looked at each other and nodded. Oh yeah, we liked. I bought their album and I haven’t stopped listening to it since. Solid, hard rock fronted by former Atreyu drummer-singer Brandon Saller. Give “Gimme Love” a listen and tell me you weren’t singing it all day.
7. Once Upon a Time on ABC
Maybe I’m biased. I do write stories featuring fairies and elves and magic, so this show must have been written just for me. Snow White, Prince Charming, the Evil Queen, Rumpelstiltskin, Jiminy Cricket…still waiting for Belle and the Beast and Ariel, the Little Mermaid, and I’m sure they’ll show up eventually. I’m rooting for Snow and Charming and I’m hissing at the Queen and I’m hanging on every episode.
6. Community on NBC
One of the two funniest shows on TV. Modern Family is the second but while Modern Family draws laughs from the common experiences we share as parents, sons, daughters and lovers, Community draws on pop culture. And I’m a pop culture junkie. The writers don’t go for the easy laugh. Every single joke is hard-won and if you watch the show a second time, you laugh harder at everything you missed the first time around. The characters are quirky and hard to love and yet, you do. And Joel McHale is HOT! Brilliant TV.
5. CHANGES by Jim Butcher
I’ve been a Harry Dresden fan since I bought STORM WARNING for my husband, who read five pages and said, “This isn’t for me.” Turns out it was definitely for me. I’m so in love with Harry. When I read a Harry book, I hear Harry in my head. He as a very distinct voice. CHANGES, for me, was a game changer. I’m not going to discuss the storyline because if you haven’t read it, I don’t want to spoil anything. And if you have, well, then you already know this is one amazing book. I haven’t read GHOST STORY yet, so I’m putting my fingers in my ears if you want to discuss it. I’m actually saving it for a time when I need a sure thing.
4. KISS OF SNOW by Nalini Singh
How do you satisfy readers who’ve been waiting for the culmination of a love story that’s spanned years? Singh manages to pull it off in spectacular fashion. KISS OF SNOW was epic in length and scope and fed my voracious appetite for her world. Hawke and Sienna’s love story is perfect and that’s the highest compliment I can give.
3. Royals Hockey
My husband and I have season tickets for the Reading Royals, a professional ECHL hockey team based in Reading, PA. My husband is a huge hockey fan. I wasn’t until the Royals opening night in 2001. Then I realized just how wonderful the sport of hockey is. And how hot the guys are. Football and baseball players may steal most of the spotlight but for my money, hockey players are hands-down more athletic by far. And make much better heroes…
2. Avenged Sevenfold
I saw them twice this year (if you want to get picky, I saw them three times in 13 months). I’m a huge fan, have been since my sons began listening to them about six years ago. I took my guys to the 2008 Taste of Chaos tour, mainly because I wanted to see Bullet for My Valentine (another band that makes me scream like a teenager). And then A7X took the stage. I was transfixed. I’ve become a total fangirl. When I learned they were going to play the arena in my home town in January, I was one of the first in line for tickets. My favorite song remains “Little Piece of Heaven” and I have a huge crush on lead guitarist Synyster Gates, who is the physical model for Tivr, Etruscan God of the Moon, which leads us to…
1. Writing HOW TO WORSHIP A GODDESS
Seriously, I so enjoyed writing this book that I even enjoyed revising it because it gave me the chance to go through the book and read it again. I love Brandon, a professional hockey player. I did mention earlier I had a thing for hockey players. I love to revisit favorite characters from my series and in HTWAG, I got to spend time with Cal and Tessa from WHAT A GODDESS WANTS, and give more face time to Cat and Ty. I hope readers enjoy it as much as I have.

How To Worship A Goddess

By Stephanie Julian

Out Now!

HE'S EXACTLY WHAT SHE'S ALWAYS WANTED...

Lucy was once the beloved Goddess of the Moon. These days the goddesses of the Etruscan pantheon are all but forgotten. The only rituals she enjoys now are the local hockey games, where one ferociously handsome player inflames her divine blood...

AND SHE UNLEASHES HIM LIKE A FORCE OF NATURE...

Brandon Stevenson is one hundred percent focused on the game, until he looks up and sees a celestial beauty sitting in the third row. A man could fall hard for a distraction like that...

Where to Buy:

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | The Book Depository | IndieBound

http://www.stephaniejulian.com/

GIVEAWAY:

Thanks to Sourcebooks I have (1) copy of How To Worship A Goddess to giveaway. To enter leave a comment along with your email address. Open to U.S & Canada. The winner will be announced on December 10th. Good Luck!