The Rare Month of June

This year, the month of June crept up on us slowly and silently, easing it's way into the summer season, instread of "busting out all over" like the song so aptly implies. It was a chilly spring with lots of rain, and the foliage and flowers huddled until the last moment to greet the summer sun.

June is one of my favorite months. The world is new and green. It’s the time of year when the smell of roses, lily-of-the-valley, and wisteria linger on the mist as dusk arrives. It’s the month when you can smell sun-baked hay in the fields and fresh-wet earth in the gentle rains.   

If you close your eyes, you can hear a repertoire of songs from the birds—the trill of the song sparrows, the cry of the killdeers and blue jays, the chatter of the chick-a-dees, and the soft lilt of the whippoorwills. It’s a time when the wind whispers in the pines and leafy maples, and bobs and bends the tall meadow grasses into rippling waves.

June is a time of motion and excitement as butterflies, bees, and hummingbirds juggle for space and a taste of the blooming flowers. But June is serene and calm when nightfall arrives and a sliver of a golden moon hangs in the star-filled sky…and the only interruption in the silence is the tranquil sounds of night insects and tree frogs serenading each other in the grass.

And what is so rare as a day in June?
Then, if ever, come perfect days. . . 
     --From: The Vision of Sir Launfal 

 by James Russell Lowell

OUT IN THE FIELDS

Out in the Fields

by Elizabeth Barrett Browning

The little cares that fretted me,

     I lost them yesterday,

Among the fields, above the sea,

            Among the winds at play;

Among the lowing of the herds,

           The rustling of the trees;

Among the singing of the birds,

            The humming of the bees.

The foolish fears of what may happen,

I cast them all away,

Among the clover-scented grass

            Among the new-mown hay;

Among the rustling of the corn

            Where drowsy poppies nod,

Where ill thoughts die and good are born—

        Out in the fields with God.

Remembering Those Who Served

Formerly known as Decoration Day, Memorial Day is a U.S. federal holiday to honor the men and women who died while serving in the United States Armed Forces. The holiday is celebrated every year on the final Monday of May after Congress declared it a national holiday in 1971. It is often thought to be the start of the summer season in the United States.

The holiday originated after the American Civil War to commemorate the Union and Confederate soldiers who died in the Civil War, and it was later extended to honor all Americans who have died while in military service. It was General John Alexander Logan who was instrumental in declaring a special day in May to be reserved to honor fallen Union soldiers who died during the Civil War (1861-1865). However, it was not until the 1880s that the term Memorial Day was assigned. And it was not until 1967 that the holiday was legally recognized as Memorial Day.

President James A. Garfield was the first president to speak on Memorial Day (then Decoration Day) while he was a Civil War General and Republican Congressman. On May 30, 1868, he spoke at Arlington National Cemetary, saying: "“If silence is ever golden, it must be beside the graves of 15,000 men, whose lives were more significant than speech, and whose death was a poem the music of which can never be sung.”

Each May, Memorial Day is the time when people visit cemeteries and memorials, and place flowers on the graves of their deceased service members as well as on the graves of their loved ones. Volunteers and cemetery personnel place flags on the graves of those who have served.

SHIFT HAPPENS by J.C. McKenzie

I'm pleased to showcase J.C. McKenzie on my blog today. Born and raised on the Haida Gwaii, off the West Coast of Canada, J.C. McKenzie grew up in a pristine wilderness that inspired her to dream. She writes Urban Fantasy and Paranormal Romance.

BLURB:

Andrea McNeilly's job as a government agent is not asking questions, but then a routine assignment turns into a botched assassination of a Master Vampire's human servant. Answers become a priority. Her search to discover the truth is riddled with obstacles, the largest being an oversized Werewolf who resembles a Norse god. Andy can't afford the distraction he offers, because if she fails, she faces eternal enslavement.

Wick's job is to monitor Andy, but he prefers more intimate activities, none of them G-Rated. His choices, however, are often not his own. His ability to help Andy is limited by his bond to the Master Vampire.

Facing many trials and challenges along her path to redemption, Andy learns the value of her freedom might be set too high.

EXCERPT:

A large black wolf trotted into the clearing to confront me. He had a white-tipped snout, white boots and mitts and would have looked cute had he not been the most intimidating Werewolf I’d ever seen. Standing tall and solid, power rolled off of his body. His eyes bore into mine. I sniffed the air. The strong Werewolf scent of rosemary swirled around me, strong and seductive, laced with sugar. A weird fuzzy sensation spread out from my chest. Whoa.

Alpha.

My other form growled low, demanding release, straining against my skin. The energy of the wolves built—layers upon layers of excitement and impatience. The air pulsated with anticipation. They could sense the imminent kill.

Let me out! My other form repeated, throwing her power against my built up walls, howling in defiance.

When the energy of the Werewolves surged, I finally released her. My wolf form flowed out fast, wiping out the feline in little more than a heartbeat. Smaller, weaker and the size of a natural wolf, a Shifter in this form was no match for a Werewolf, especially a dominant one. I had time to meet the eyes of the Alpha for only an instant before the pack leapt forward. My limbs shook. It went against every instinct ingrained within me, but I rolled onto my back—submissive.

TRAILER:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GvQ79fXVrj0

BUY LINKS:

Amazon.com - http://ow.ly/v1zuV

Amazon.ca - http://ow.ly/vbANV

Amazon.co.uk - http://ow.ly/vbAWV

Amazon.com.au - http://ow.ly/vbB17

Available in print and all other electronic formats on July 16^th, 2014

CONTACT INFORMATION:

Contact Information:

Website: www.jcmckenzie.ca

Blog: www.jcmckenzie.blogspot.ca

Facebook Page: www.facebook.com/j.c.mckenzie.author

Twitter Page: www.twitter.com/JC_McKenzie

Amazon: www.amazon.com/author/jcmckenzie

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/JCMcKenzie

MAY GIVEAWAY: 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

UNDER STARRY SKIES – Now in Digital and Print

EXCERPT:      
                  Tye smiled down at her and pulled her close, her back to his chest. He kissed the side of her forehead. “I love you, Maria,” he whispered in her ear. “You know, it’s time for me to settle down. You don’t have to live in a room at the inn or a house with your sister. My ranch house is too large for one man. Let’s get married. We could raise some cattle for me and some chickens for you. And a passel of kids for both of us.”
                  "And I’d lose my job. You know the school board is opposed to having a married woman for a teacher.” She twisted her head up to look at him.
                 "Forget the dang school board—”
                 "Tye—” Maria glanced at the dance floor and spotted Millie moving toward the door on the other side of the barn. She wiggled free from his embrace, turned toward him, and pulled his face down to meet hers, her lips touching his. She kissed him soundly, brazenly. “Hold that thought, Rancher Ashmore. We need to discuss this, but there’s something I have to do right now. Right this minute.”
                 "What? Hellfire! Where are you going?” 
                 To catch a murderer. Maria smiled. “I need to talk to Millie Hanson. It’s really important.”                

                 "For the love of Pete! Why now?” he asked in disbelief. “Maria, I’m trying to propos—”
                "Please, Tydall. Not now. I’ve waited all evening to corral Millie and talk to her alone, away from the clutches of Aunt Emma.” Before he could utter another word, she slipped away and disappeared across the barn floor, threading her way among the dancers. 

LINKS:

Kindle:

http://tinyurl.com/mdjemmz

Book:

http://tinyurl.com/lg4b374 

Welcome Spring! Can You Hear Us?

Spring has almost come to Central Pennsylvania. Despite Punxsutawney Phil and the calendar, it has decided to come late this year. . . and only every two days of the week. The other five days, good ol’ spring takes a vacation, often giving us median temperatures of 40 degrees with lots and lots of rain. But during those two days, when the temperatures tease us and rise to the dry 60s, the sights and sounds in our neighborhood reach resounding levels recognizable even to the deafest ears. From every corner of the neighborhood,  people scramble out like hibernating bears leaving their caves as they double time to try to squeeze a month’s worth of chores into 48 hours.

Outside, you can hear the roar and chug of the lawn mowers as everyone hurries to cut and groom the infant blades of grass to an even, precise height. Down the street, someone is pulling a weighted roller behind his tractor, stomping down the young growth instead. Across the street, Paul Bunyan has decided to raze two clumps of 30-year-old birch trees and his chain saw makes an intermittent, but ear-shattering call-to-duty noise.

On the lawn, the robins chirp, the wrens chatter, the song sparrows attempt to sing while far off the red-wing blackbirds stand guard in a high pine bough and complain about the confusion below. Somewhere someone starts a motorcycle. It harmonizes with a weed-eater—or is it a rototiller? Then the dogs join the ruckus. From the corner lot, a dog barks and his calls are returned by two other howling friends.

In the middle of the chaos, the tree trimmers arrive to hack at the 40-year-old ash, maple and flowering crab trees on our front lawn which have grown unruly and scraggly.  Have you ever heard the racket of a wood chipper and a chain saw together?

At least I know, when all the work if finished, when shadows grow long and night falls, peace and silence will reign again. And the only sounds you might be able to hear will be the merry soft songs of spring peepers in nearby wetlands.

Ahhh…welcome spring. Can you hear us?

Cover Reveal: UNDER STARRY SKIES

After many readers' requests for a sequel to RED FOX WOMAN, it will finally arrive in May. This time, the youngest Ashmore brother, Tydall, is featured. Below is the blurb from the back of the book.  And of course, here is a sneak preview of the awesome cover!

Hired as the town's school teacher, Maria O'Donnell and her sister Abigail arrive in the Colorado Territory in 1875, only to find the uncle they were to stay with has been murdered. 

Rancher Tye Ashmore is content with life until he meets quiet and beautiful Maria. He falls in love at first sight, but her reluctance to jeopardize her teaching position by accepting his marriage proposal only makes him more determined to make her part of his life. 

When their lives are threatened by gunshots and a gunnysack of dangerous wildlife, Tye believes he is the target of an unknown enemy. Not until Maria receives written threats urging her to leave does she realize she may be the target instead of the handsome rancher.

With the help of Tye, Abigail, and a wily Indian called Two Bears, Maria works to uncover her uncle's killer and put aside her fears. But will she discover happiness and true love under Colorado's starry skies?