Monday, August 30, 2010

BOOK GIVEAWAY: For Time & Eternity

I am super thrilled to do another Allison Pittman GIVEAWAY!!!! This time for her book FOR TIME & ETERNITY. Wow! I LOVED LOVED this book!!! I can't wait to give one away to a special reader and promote it as a MUST-READ!

This book was my favorite read this year. Seriously, I loved it! It was one of those books that I carried around the house with me...every few minutes mattered. I think my 3 year old was neglected for, like, 3 days when I was reading this book. {grin}
I’m a pretty avid Historical Fiction reader and a Pittman fan, so when I heard that she was writing a book based on the history of the Mormon church, I was instantly intrigued. Two words consumed my mind...
Plural marriage! 
I have a huge fascination with this culture of plural marriage and sister-wives. Not because I’m interested...oh no, but because I am so curious about how people, real men and real women, go about making these decisions. I devoured For Time & Eternity.
I’m not going to go into super detail of the story line so NO BIG SPOILERS here...but I do want to go into the way I was emotional reeled in with the writing and characters. 
Camilla Deardon is a young girl at the outset. She knows that she is supposed to stay away from the Mormon camp but when she meets Nathan Fox, she can’t. Imagine being a lonesome 15 year old girl who suddenly is being charmed up & down, backwards & forwards by an attractive young man who has an entire family (his church) to offer. Everyone seems happy & cheerful, unlike her household where her father is unyieldingly strict and her mother is just a very dutiful mother, nothing more, nothing less. The companionship she feels with Nathan and the people he introduces her to were unlike anything she had ever experienced. ...and they are on their way to ZION.
What Pittman does so well is that you fall in love with Nathan along with Camilla. You know she shouldn’t let him dupe her but you can’t help but keep pushing her toward him. He’s handsome, charismatic, and completely smitten with the Mormon prophecy. She has never met someone so passionate about spirituality. Can you blame her near instantaneous love for Nathan and what he says he can provide her with? No...you can’t. Camilla is also so likable...sweet, naive, and longing to belong.
Camilla does go against her parents and runs away with Nathan. I was so invested at this point I couldn’t put the book down. The story moves forward rapidly here and she has been married for several years and has two daughters. She seems happy and still as in love as the day she met Nathan. Plural marriage is running rampant at this point and while she does not appreciate the practice, she also assumes that it won’t touch her life because she and Nathan are so in love. But, when Nathan and Camilla go through a devastating loss they both seem to reflect on their emotions, spirituality, and perspective...just as we all do in real life. As they consider their future they are suddenly on different planets, neither really understanding the other. 
The wonderful thing about this story is that you can really put yourself into Camilla’s, and even Nathan’s, shoes. Camilla believing whole-heartedly that plural marriage is not right and you want to fight for her. But, Nathan is so lovable and charmingly handsome, you can see yourself swooning, lost in his gaze. You feel his loss, his hurt, and love for Camilla as much as you feel Camilla’s righteous anger about plural marriage. Pittman's writing is spot on. She owns the craft!
As the reader, you’ll have huge emotional reactions to names like Evangeline, Brigham Young, Rachel, and...AMANDA. Beautiful. Sweet. Innocent. Amanda.
And with that I will let you figure the rest out. I HIGHLY recommend this book. Extremely well-written. Well-rounded characters. Believable and superb story-line. Compelling. 
In my opinion...best book of the year! 

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If you want to enter the giveaway here's what you do...


You have the chance to get your name in the hat 2 times! You may do this on Facebook or on Blog.


1-comment on this blog post.
2-post a link from your blog or Facebook page back here (comment a 2nd time to let me know this is done).


Don't let this giveaway pass you by! 


A winner will be drawn on FRIDAY & receive a PERSONALLY AUTOGRAPHED copy of For Time & Eternity, by Allison Pittman.


by Elizabeth

12 comments:

Ashley said...

Sounds interesting.

hewella1 at gmail dot com

merrideth said...

WOW! Elizabeth it's 6:15 in the morning and I can't believe You've got me intrigued in this book! I guess I am what you might say...(not much of a reader) but I am liking this book and your description of it has me all intrigued!

Shana said...

Your teaser has hooked me & if I don't win I'll have to hunt down the book personally to read it!! Sounds a little Beverly Lewis"ish" and she's one of my favorite authors! :D

ShanaMWilson said...

Your teaser has hooked me! I can't wait to read this book! If I don't win, I'll hunt it down & get it! It sounds a little Beverly Lewis"ish" and she's one of my favorite authors!

Anonymous said...

Please enter me in this contest.

Thank you


CarolNWong(at)aol(dot)com

Unknown said...

oh please choose my name!!!! I cant wait to read this one!

Unknown said...

umm, second time to post... I want to win!

Trisha said...

I have been looking for a new novel to read. I love historical fiction; this sounds like a great read!

Emily said...

I've been dying to get my hands on a copy of this.
Please enter me!

Emreilly303@gmail.com

deb said...

Sweet, sign me up!
Please enter me!

Dreilly316@gmail.com

Elyssa said...

This looks like such a great book! Please enter me!

lubell1106(at)gmail(dot)com

Jennifer said...

Awesome! Please enter me!

jennycohen104(at)gmail(dot)com