BLOG TOUR: The Christmas Chronicles by Tim Slover, Review + Giveaway!

Hi there!

Welcome back to Satisfaction for Insatiable Readers.

The holidays are fast approaching and with them the influx of seasonal reads keeps growing and growing and growing and...well, you get the picture.  Among the many titles, a few gems seem to stand out from the bookish treasure, one of which happens to be the feature of today's post.  Today we play host to Pump Up Your Book's blog tour featuring a story that delves into the the life of the man in red himself.  You know...jolly old Saint Nicholas, Papa Noel, Santa Claus...he has many names, and many stories have been told about him, but none that I've encountered thus far that are quite like this.  Are you ready for a magical ride?  Hold on tight!  Today's blog tour guest and book of choice is....

The Christmas Chronicles:

The Legend of Santa Claus

by

Tim Slover

Have you ever wondered who Santa Claus really is or for that matter how he got his start? If so, you are among the many...if not get ready to start! Within the pages of this book, the answers to these questions and more are uncovered as we read a short biography of the big man in red. His story has much of the magic one would expect but with much more hardship and subtle joys than one might anticipate. In the end the message is clear...and heartwarming to say the very least.  Get ready for a good dose of holiday spirit where in the end the real question is...do YOU believe? 

I have to say that this book is definitely making its way onto my "read during the holidays" annual list.  That's right, I have a list and check it twice, gonna find out whose...okay, maybe not, but the list exists in my mind and right up there at the top is A Christmas Carol...with this book to keep it company.  The characters of this tale are pulled straight from the Christmas classics we know best and yet presented in a new and original way.  The backgrounds they are given deviate from the norm but work seamlessly nonetheless. 

You'll delight in getting to know Klaus in his younger days.  Be over joyed at the surprises that Dasher (yep, the reindeer) has in store for you.  Just try not loving Anna's free spirit and her cooking skills!  She's the future....okay, well can't spoil that, but she's important...and her recipes still sound delicious in description.  Let's not forget Castle Noel and the "Elevated Spirits" and...well, there's simply too much to marvel at...trust me though, you will marvel.  But as with every light hearted tale, there is a dark cloud that hinders its "heroes" and in this case it's actually literal later in the story.  There is a dark force working against the kindness that Klaus endeavors to bring to the children of the surrounding towns.  Just who or what it is is rather surprising...as well as the lengths they will go to in order to see the season's demise, not that unlike the real world's own efforts if you think about it...

Too often the holidays get rushed into each other leaving little time to focus on the joy and fun brought by each.  Take a look at this past year.  In my own hometown, when we were ready to check out the Halloween decorations and costumes, there were Christmas lights being put out in the very next aisle.  Oh and we're not talking about late October, we're talking end of September first week of October...so yeah, kind of early and that's really saying something from our family since we generally LOVE the Christmas season.  It just seems like it's becoming so commercialized in some aspects that the stores are getting near that dreaded point of no return where all holiday items will be out at once.  (Wait.  Scratch that....don't want to give them any ideas....)

Reading allows us the chance to add time back into our schedules in our own little way.  We slow down the pace of the world around us, even if only for a brief time, and take in a story of our choosing, in this case a seasonal tale of wonder and magic.  It gets us in the spirit of the season.  Resets our wildly spinning clocks of "must dos" and "finish nows".  Allows us the time to appreciate the holidays as they come and gain a perspective on what they are truly about.

Recommended reading for all ages, with a bit of guidance for the younger kiddos as not quite everything that happens is jingle bell jolly...no foul language or sensuality issues, just not all sunshine and roses.  Adding this short but sweet tale to your yuletide experience may not change the world nor add hours to your day, but it just might help rekindle that innocent wonder many have lost along the way; perhaps it wasn't truly lost...but merely misplaced.

One final note...something I found rather interesting between the ARC and the final copy is the cover art.  Now I for one (though I'm certain I'm not alone), love a good cover and while both versions of this one are good, I tend to gravitate more so towards the ARC version (seen over there on the right...the final cover is near the top of the post).  What say you readers?  Which one grabs your attention?

This book was released November 2010 so it should be available at a store near you...but just in case, a quick link to one of many online shopping portals should you find yourself in need of a quick addition to the "must-give-this-Christmas" list.  ARC for review received courtesy of Cheryl at Pump Up Your Book Promotions and the great folks at Random House Publishing Group.  (THANKS!)  For more information on their respective sites, feel free to visit them online or follow along on Twitter (1 and 2)!  (The links for which are included in the prior sentence...feel free to click!)  That being said, their generosity does not stop there.  No sir.  Wouldn't this make the perfect little book to add to your holiday reading collection?  Wait...you were already thinking that?  (Yay!)  Perfect!  You'll want to pay close attention to this next bit then....

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Thanks to both Pump Up Your Book Promotions and Random House Publishing Group, I have the extreme pleasure of offering YOU a chance to win a copy of this book all your own!  That's right.  It all starts today and runs through December 20th so the winner can be announced on December 21st...which happens to be the first official day of winter this year (pretty cool, huh?)!  One copy up for grabs to spread a little holiday cheer...and boy, who couldn't use a good dose of that?  (*raises hand*)  Here's the scoop....

The prize...

(1) copy of The Christmas Chronicles:  The Legend of Santa Claus by Tim Slover

(Cover may vary but the story is what really counts here...and it's GOOD!)

How to enter...

Fill out this FORM.

--- Interested in a  few bonus entries? ---

No problem!  There be a few ways listed on the entry form...

The rules...

*Open to US/Canada mailing addresses only!  No P. O. Boxes please.

* Entries will be accepted from Wednesday, December 8th, 2010 through Monday, December 20th, 2010 at midnight CST.  The entries will be tallied and entered into the random.org randomizer, after which a random number will be picked by their number generator.  (This way all the entries are mixed up nicely.)

* All entries must be submitted using the form accessible through this post.  You MUST include your email address in order to be counted as well as contacted should you be chosen as the winner!

*The winner will be announced and contacted via email by Tuesday, December 21st, 2010 and will have 48 hours to respond with their mailing address.  Should they fail to respond in the given time frame, a new winner will be chosen.  If you choose to include your full name and mailing address in your contest entry, no worries....the time frame issue is erased.

*The winner's name and address will be forwarded to Random House via Pump Up Your Book Promotions for prize send out only and then discarded.

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So there you have it!

Another great read to potentially add to your TBR list and another chance for you to win a bookish prize this holiday season.

Good luck to all those that enter.

Until next time...happy holidays...and happy reading!