Table Manners by Mia King

We're only a few days away from the official release of TABLE MANNERS and I gotta tell you---I can't wait! I'm in rural Washington right now, looking at the gorgeous lakes and trees and mountain that inspired GOOD THINGS and its sequel. The trip from Hawaii to Washington was ... well, let's just say that I had my hands full with three kids, bags, car seats, diapers, snacks, DVD player, ID, and stickers. My three year old spilled apple juice all over him an hour into the first five hour leg of the flight. Cue to me in the airplane bathroom, rinsing his pants while bouncing the baby in the Bjorn. Lovely! There's some kind of heat wave in Washington now, and it's much hotter than what I'm used to in Hawaii. I know---funny, isn't it? But life's like that, full of the unexpected, and sometimes you just gotta roll with it. So when I was in Borders today and saw that they already had my books out, I was like---I'm rolling with it! Remember, I'm not in Seattle proper (I'm a good hour plus away), so seeing my books outside of major metropolitan areas is a good thing, even if the books are out a bit earlier than expected. I just posted some early reviews here and there are also a few lovely links and blog posts mentioning TABLE MANNERS:

• One Literature Nut: A lovely author profile of me and TABLE MANNERS.
• Book Binge: The three lovely ladies of Book Binge did a book watch shout-out for TABLE MANNERS.
• Food Loves Writing: Amazing photography of the book and sparkling pomegranate lemonade (recipe featured in TABLE MANNERS) by the very lovely and talented Shannalee. Looking at those pictures again are making me VERY thirsty! Image (c) Food Loves Writing.

Yes, I know I just wrote "lovely" a million times but despite this sweltering heat (it's 10:30 at night and I'm still sweating after a shower!), I'm just so full of gratitude for all of you who take the time to read my books and write about them (or take pictures of them!!). THANK YOU! What else? Oh, yes. A contest. I am giving away a signed copy of each of my books (that's THREE books, signed to you or a friend), a special edition ceramic GOOD THINGS wall/desk plaque that says "Live Simple," something delectable to eat and/or drink (TBD---I am going shopping next week!), plus other author goodies and swag. The contest runs from August 4 to August 31 11:59 pm HST. No purchase is necessary to win---you just need to come back on August 4 and leave a comment on my August 4 Release Date post. Now for the bonus entries: if you leave a review for TABLE MANNERS on amazon.com and/or bn.com during the contest period (and leave a comment with your review in the body of the comment and where you posted it), you will get not one but ten entries (twenty if you post at both sites), dramatically increasing your chances to win. Yes, this contest favors those who leave reviews (after all, it is my book's release date!) but it is a random drawing using random.org so it is possible for anyone to win. Plus this giveaway is open to readers everywhere (must be 18 years or older). And to make it more fun, for every increment of ten people who post, I'll add more great stuff to the winning bounty (iTunes/amazon gift cards, foodie gifts, etc.). Look for details on Aug 4 or subscribe to my spam-free newsletter. I'm off to cool off---sparkling pomegranate lemonade anyone?