Triple delight

I've been having Internet issues (yeah, again) and haven't been getting around to my favorite places as frequently as I'd like. Hopped over to akalol's This Beach Called Life and what did I find? Not just a brilliant award (I love these!), but a review of Café Au Lait as well!

They're both going on my sidebar, right over there -> -> ->

Thank you, akalol, for my first smile of the day!

I'm passing the Brilliante Weblog award along to: Zinnia, Nyc/caribbean ragazza, Guanaguanare, Spiral Skies, 40 is the new 20, The Urban Recluse, and The Anti-Wife.

And just to round things off, South Florida Caribbean News has a feature on Café au Lait.

Review #3

I really apologize for the 'me! me! me! my book!' tone that this blog has taken of late. It goes against the grain but... my novel is a brand new release and I have to do my part to promote it. In addition, I've promised to share the journey - so here we go again.

Another review! This one from Susan Barton over at Romance Readers at Heart, and I love it! Thank you, Ms. Barton! You certainly 'get' the story!

First author interview

I've been interviewed by Shades of Romance, the award-winning online magazine for readers and writers of multicultural romance.

Here it is: Debut Author: Liane Spicer.

Thank you, LaShaunda, for all the good work you do on our behalf!

Seagull in flight

As seen on the blog of my compatriot, Guanaguanare, the Laughing Gull. There are no words.

...and now the winners...

After the party the team retired, bleary-eyed and blissful, to an undisclosed location where my writer-buddy Vaughn picked the two winners of signed copies of Café au Lait out of a hat.

Here he is with his first pick...


We have a winner!


...and another!


Congratulations, PJ and Jason! I'll be mailing those copies off to you pronto, and I hope you enjoy the read! PJ, by the way, is a blog buddy who hails from the UK and can be found at her eclectic, entertaining and thoughtful blog, The Urban Recluse. Jason Evans' blog, The Clarity of Night, is a virtual campfire for those who appreciate truly beautiful words and images. Go see for yourself!

Thank you, everyone, for joining in the fun. It's been a blast!

It's a party! Come on over!

September 8 marks the official release of Café au Lait on to an unsuspecting world. A couple great reviews are out already, I've had my very first fan letter, and it's time to celebrate, so the blog is !!!having a party!!! I'm giving away two copies of the novel and everyone who leaves a comment here will be entered in the draw on Wednesday (***see update below) when (I dare assume) enough sobriety has returned to enable me to write names on little pieces of paper.

To ensure fairness to all, fellow writer Vaughn has been designated to pick the winners from a hat. I'm not a hat person myself but my mother has agreed to lend us one of the ridiculous things she wears in the yard and to the market. Let the fun begin!

It's all happening on the beach here at Maracas Bay on the north coast of my island....



...where we're dancing on the sand, plunging into the waves, running across the street to buy shark-and-bake with tamarind sauce from the booths over here...



...and listening to the music of the wind and the breakers. We've got lots of drinks in the coolers so grab a glass of something and join in! We'll be here all day and all night and the day after that and the day after...

***The draw will take place today, Thursday, at an undisclosed location (snort) and I'll post the results on the blog on Friday.

The virgin orchid & fruit of the vine

I mentioned the orchid we call the virgin back in my birthday post. The small white flowers cover the plant and last just one day. Yesterday it bloomed again...



And here, somewhat out of focus, are the first grapes from my mom's vine. They're small and not at all sweet, but we love them.