So finally after 2441 comments in the various chats & 22,644 page views our winners are:

:::drumroll please:::

Wait! For those who don’t remember, we did a 7 week reading challenge, with 15 books & 14 authors joining us via our Black Book Chats.  The rules were pretty simple.  (Read. Discuss. Read. Discuss.)  We had some awesome chats, met some new friends and added even more books from our guest authors to our reading lists.

Prizes were to be awarded to the 4 people 5 people who read the most books and participated in the most discussions with our guest authors.  We also had special author prizes.  (*I added an extra winner for both the chatters & the authors.)

Okay…here goes…

PRIZES & WINNERS
1st Place – $50 Amazon.com (or other bookstore) gift certificate  — Sharon
2nd Place – gift pack of books — Jaime
3rd Place – gift pack of books — Angelia
4th Place – gift pack of books — Linda
5th Place – gift pack of books — LaDena

Please send your complete name and mailing address to us at info [at] rawsistaz [ dot ] com to claim your prizes.

AUTHOR PRIZE - The 2 authors 3 authors who brings the most active participants to their chat will win 3 months of FREE advertising on RAWSISTAZ.com for any month of 2010 (alternating between Top Shelf, Side Bar & Book Trailer ads). 

Winners: Shelia Goss, Dyanne Davis & Beverly Jenkins

*Also, as a treat for our ALL our participating authors, we would like to offer you a free one month ad. Just send the book cover for your latest book (or upcoming book) attached to the email and include the book title, release date, your website address and the requested month(s) you’d like the ad to run on the RAWSISTAZ.com website in the BODY OF THE EMAIL MESSAGE to: advertise [at] rawsistaz [dot] com with HOLIDAY READING CHALLENGE in the subject line.  We will add it as either a TOP SHELF or SIDE BAR ad for any remaining month in 2010.

1. The Boy Next Door by Irene Sabatini ISBN: 031604993X
2. Mrs. O by Mary Tomer ISBN: 1599952580
3. Role of a Lifetime by James Brown , Nathan Whitaker , Tony Dungy ISBN: 0446541176
4. On the Line by Serena Williams , Daniel Paisner ISBN: 0446553662
5. Nelson Mandela’s Favorite African Folktales by Nelson Mandela ISBN: 1600246664

TO ENTER:

1) In the comments section below, share your 5 Favorite Books of 2009 and include the author’s name.

and

2) Fill out the Contest Entry Form with your complete mailing list. (No P.O. Boxes)

*All three winners will receive one whole set of books (5 books each) and will be announced via this post at the end of the contest.

The long-awaited new novel by ZANE—The Queen of LOVE & SEX!

“Throughout the centuries, love has been defined in many ways.  In today’s society, most people relate love to a deep feeling of sexual desire and attraction.  They believe that as long as the sex is incredible, then love is definitely blooming in the air.  Too many people confuse lust and sex and end up trapped in toxic relationships.  The world is full of people who remain in relationships that they realize they have no business being in.  Yet they stay, hoping and praying for change, believing that the other person will eventually appreciate them and recognize their value.  It is a cycle that leads to regret, despair, and many times, depression.

Yet…every once in awhile, two people meet by pure chance; and not while they are out on the hunt for a new lover.  There are no expectations between them, allowing nature to takes its course…the right way.  They get to know each other, never realizing that their interaction might lead to the ultimate experience; the one thing that most of us crave our entire lives.   What results can be “a total eclipse of the heart.”

So begins ZANE’S much-anticipated hot new novel, TOTAL ECLIPSE OF THE HEART (Atria Books; $25.99; December 1, 2009).

Zane is a powerhouse. In addition to penning sizzling novels of contemporary erotic fiction, she is the publisher of Strebor Books—a flourishing imprint of Atria Books.  She’s also recently journeyed into the realm of the small screen with “Zane’s Sex Chronicles,” part of the Cinemax After Dark television line up.

What is really close and personal to her heart, however, is using her fiction and nonfiction to reach out to those who are striving for intimate relationships in responsible, healthy, and satisfying ways. Indeed, TOTAL ECLIPSE OF THE HEART is a story of love—unintentional love—that enables two individuals to discover that they don’t have to give up their dreams or feeling of self-worth in order to find happiness.

Brooke Alexander, a waitress who has self-esteem issues regarding her lackluster existence and her fluctuating weight, is in love with Patrick Sterling, one of the most prominent attorneys in Washington, D.C.  On his good days, Patrick is the man in every woman’s dream. On his bad days, Patrick’s behavior is demeaning and he is angry at the world.  Brooke adores Patrick—at least some things about him—but he’s stressing her out and causing her to alienate most of the people in her inner circle.

Damon Johnson, who’s been married to Carleigh for four years, is one of “the last good men” —compassionate and honest, worshipping the ground his wife walks on.  He’s also a man with goals and aspirations.  Sure, he pulls in a six-figure income as the Human Resources Manager at a Fortune 500 corporation, but he dreams of building his own empire.  Carleigh, a woman who has her own issues with men, treats Damon like a trophy husband, however, and views his plans as a joke. Damon loves his wife with all of his heart, but he’s beginning wonder if he made the right decision when he asked for her hand in marriage.

The lives of Brooke, Damon, and Carleigh are changed forever the day they attend a music festival in downtown D.C.—the day that Damon saves the lives of both women when an SUV careens out of control.  In the days after the accident, all three of them struggle with its repercussions, and an unlikely friendship begins between Brooke and Damon after she calls to thank him. They find that they’re immediately drawn to each other, and are soon caught up in intense conversations that range from their goals and dreams, to children, and eventually to their own relationships.

Brooke and Damon quickly realize that are playing a dangerous game, but it’s a game that neither of them can back away from. There is something going on between them and it’s growing deeper.  It may have started out because of the accident, but it’s become so much more than just a friendship.   Conflicted and caught in a web of intense feelings, both Brooke and Damon must decide if they should focus on their current relationships and try and make them work…or jump at the chance to find true love.

TOTAL ECLIPSE OF THE HEART is a provocative tale of love and heartbreak, a story in which Zane explores what happens when you cater to your emotional well-being and discover the meaning of unconditional love…or, rather, experience a total eclipse of the heart.

TOTAL ECLIPSE OF THE HEART: A Novel By Zane
Published by: Atria Books 
ISBN: 978-0-7434-9929-3
Pages: 256
Price: $25.99
Pub Date: December 1, 2009

————————————

WIN A COPY by filling out the Contest Entry Form with your complete mailing list.

If you are a winner, please let us know when the books arrive and also take a minute to share your thoughts via Amazon.com, BN.com or one of the other online outlets so others can get IN THE KNOW.

And, if you missed out this time around, don’t worry because we will be back next week with a full week of contests in celebration of our 9-Year Anniversary, so be sure to stop back by.

Congratulations to the following winners:

AUGUST END OF MONTH CONTEST:

- Kim (SC)
- Gabrielle (GA)
- Brenda (SC)
- Monique (OK)
- Sharon (OH)

NAPPILY IN BLOOM CONTEST

- Jaime (MO)
- Chocolat Bunni (GA)
- Wana (MI)
- Kidada (MD)

NAPPILY IN BLOOM by Trisha R. Thomas
St. Martin’s Griffin, September 15, 2009
Trade Paperback, 288 pages, $14.99
ISBN: 978-0-312-55764-5
ISBN10: 0-312-55764-7

Airic and his famous televangelist wife, Trevelle Doval, make the evening news when Airic is accused of domestic battery and his life is suddenly turned upside down. But when Venus and Jake try to suspend Airic’s visitation rights with Mya, they discover that Airic isn’t willing to go down without a fight.

Meanwhile, Jake’s best friend, Legend, turns up on his doorstep with trouble not far behind. The past is back with a vengeance, including blackmail, murder and enemies who are looking for payback. But everything takes a dangerous new turn when Venus goes missing. For Jake it’s now a race against time to save the woman he loves.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
TRISHA R. THOMAS is the author of Nappily Faithful, Nappily Married, Roadrunner, Would I Lie To You and the top selling Nappily Ever After, which was a finalist for the NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Literary Work. Her debut novel was optioned by Halle Berry and Universal Pictures for adaptation to film. Trisha lives in Riverside, California.

ENTER TO WIN AN ADVANCED READING COPY

1) Share your favorite Nappily book (and why) in the comments section below or what you just finished reading and your thoughts.

AND

2) Fill out the Contest Entry Form.

Contest Ends September 1st and book will ship September 2nd.

END OF AUGUST CONTEST

Five (5) winners will be selected  from the COMMENTS area of the posts from our topics this month to receive a copy of Darkness in the Mirror by Erica Lewis, Putting it Back Together by Rhonda M. Lawson, and Loving Dasia by Ana’Gia Wright, compliments of ML Brown & Associates.

TO ENTER:

1) Participate via the comments section during our Book Chats & Blog Tour discussions.

2) Fill out the Contest Entry Form.

OUR PRIZES

DARKNESS IN THE MIRROR by Erica Lewis

Life can be stressful enough for a normal person, so what does it do to a person who is already unstable?

Ondie Reid has been diagnosed with schizophrenia; however, with medication and therapy, she is living a normal, productive life. She is trying to get her daughter’s father, Dexter, to realize this so he will take her back.

Dexter has no intention of taking Ondie back. He has already started a secret relationship with her younger sister, Serita.

When tragedy strikes and secrets are revealed, it affects Ondie’s emotions and her frail mental state. Can she be saved before it’s too late?

LOVING DASIA by Ana’Gia Wright

Stood up at the altar by the love of her life, Dasia Warrington contemplates her next move in life. Fed up with men and near depression, a chance meeting with a man in her honeymoon hotel is not exactly what she has in mind, but with very little money and no place to live, an offer of a roof over her head is hard to turn down.

Meeting the beautiful Dasia is a wake-up call to real estate tycoon Grimarious Guatreaux. Aside from the hurt from his last relationship, G has a family secret that sometimes puts his life at risk. But something about this woman makes him want to take a chance on a relationship once again.

As their romance blossoms and G moves Dasia into his mansion, things become complicated. G wants nothing more than to protect Dasia and make her happy, but now his secret life is a threat to both of them. Dasia begins to investigate, and learns of her man’s dangerous double life. If both of them make it out of this alive, there just might be a chance at happily ever after.

PUTTING IT BACK TOGETHER by Rhonda M. Lawson