Vacation photos!

As I mentioned before, I was on vacation in the Seychelles and Dubai for three weeks and here are a few photos (we took over 3000...)

The beach of our hotel.

On the island La Digue

Exploring the island Curieuse

Enjoying the sunset in the pool.

And watching fruit bats.

And sometimes being watched by fruit bats...

Seeing cute mammals in the Vallé de Mai on the island Praslin

Exploring the national park Vallé de Mai

Petting a turtle on the island Cousin

and discovering endangered birds nesting on the ground

Then we flew to Dubai

and spent a few days in the desert

...watching gazelles

and riding camels

and drinking sparkling wine in the dunes

and taking walks shortly after sunrise

and stalking the oryx antelopes in front of our entrance door

and then in Dubai marveling at the highest building of the world: The Burj Khalifa

and enjoying the view from our room

and going shopping in the Dubai mall, buying too many Arabic sweets...

Book Love: BY BLOOD by Tracy E. Banghart

I'm back from my vacation (Seychelles and Dubai), but before I do a post filled with too many photos, I want to recommend a book to you. My friend and crit partner Tracy wrote it and I loved it.

It's called By Blood as you can see and here is the official summary:
For 17-year-old Emma Wong, spending a summer in England should be a dream come true. Gorgeous scenery? Check. Lots of hot guys with accents? Yes, please. 

Spending two months with her mom, Dr. Mike (don’t call him her stepdad), and their pooping, puking infant son? Not what she had in mind. It’s a disaster even her favorite cherry red leather jacket can’t fix (leather and spit-up do not mix). 

Not only does she get put on diaper duty (gag), but there’s also Dr. Mike’s cute research assistant to contend with. The only thing more embarrassing than her trying to plant one on him hours after they meet is knowing he’ll be a witness to her family’s dysfunction all. summer. long.

So when Emma meets a mysterious girl who happens to be a Druid, the summer suddenly promises to be far more intriguing than she expected. Powerful rituals, new friends, an intoxicating sense of freedom . . . and Simon, the sexy foreign stranger she was hoping for. It’s all a perfect distraction from dirty diapers and awkward family dinners.

Trouble is, intriguing doesn’t often mean simple. And Emma is about to discover just how not simple her life really is.

I loved Emma. She has flaws but that only made her feel like a real person to me. I especially loved her progressing relationship to her little half-brother! 
Did you like Anna and the French Kiss because of its lovely foreign setting, then I should tell you that By Blood makes you fall in love with Oxford (and the hot boys that roam the streets there...hehe). You can feel that the author knows her setting. I visited Oxford once before I read the book and then once again after I read it, and Tracy just nailed it. The British vibe, the pubs, everything. And the mystery really caught me off guard. A book that will surprise you!
If you like contemporary mysteries, foreign settings and hot boys, then this is for you!
You can buy it here.

Impostor blurbs!

I've been sitting on this for weeks, but today I can finally reveal the wonderful blurbs Impostor got!
Are you excited? I AM.
It's such a daunting experience to send your book to writers you admire and I'm truly stoked by what they had to say about my book!

"IMPOSTOR is one of those books that manages to walk the tricky line between fun and suspenseful. I was quickly lured into the covert world of Variants and the hunt for a brutal serial killer, but it was Tessa herself who ultimately won my heart. No matter what face she's wearing, Tessa is an endearing hero whose yearning for love and acceptance is one we can all relate to."
- Marissa Meyer, New York Times bestselling author of Cinder

"With its compelling mystery and intriguing characters, Susanne Winnacker's IMPOSTOR kept me reading late into the night. I really enjoyed it!"
- Jodi Meadows, author of Incarnate

"A thrilling whodunnit that kept me guessing until the very last pages."
- Amy Plum, International bestselling author of the Die for Me trilogy

I can't tell you how excited I am about this. 
There's still more news I want to share with you, but that has to wait. But soon! Don't forget Impostor's pub date is May 23, 2013 now! You can add it to your goodreads shelf or even pre-order it (see sidebar)! ;)
And there are exciting giveaways coming up in the future. Big giveaways, so stay tuned!

Winner!

It's time to announce the winner of the Impostor ARC!

It is:

Alexandra (SleepsonTables)

Please send me an email with your address to books@susannewinnacker.com

Countdown ARC giveaway!

Today marks the 4-month countdown to the publication of IMPOSTOR!
I can't believe we have less than half a year left!

To celebrate this special day, I'm giving away a signed ARC of IMPOSTOR!

CAN TESSA POSE AS MADISON . . . AND STOP A KILLER BEFORE IT’S TOO LATE? Tessa is a Variant, able to absorb the DNA of anyone she touches and mimic their appearance. Shunned by her family, she’s spent the last two years training with the Forces with Extraordinary Abilities, a secret branch of the FBI. When a serial killer rocks a small town in Oregon, Tessa is given a mission: she must impersonate Madison, a local teen, to find the killer before he strikes again. Tessa hates everything about being an impostor—the stress, the danger, the deceit—but loves playing the role of a normal girl. As Madison, she finds friends, romance, and the kind of loving family she’d do anything to keep. Amid action, suspense, and a ticking clock, this super-human comes to a very human conclusion: even a girl who can look like anyone struggles the most with being herself.

There are several pieces of good news I'm sitting on right now (blurb-y things among them), but hopefully I'll be allowed to share them soon!
This giveaway is international and open until January 31st! I'll announce the winner February 1st.
All you have to do to enter is leave a comment for this post.
But like usual you can gain extra entries:
Tweet about the giveaway + 2 entries
Blog or Facebook about the giveaway + 3 entries
Good luck!

The Weepers in Germany!

Today The Other Life hits shelves in Germany!
It's called The Weepers - Und sie werden dich finden and the publisher is Heyne/Random House!

I'm so excited to see it in stores around here!

Resolutions!

Happy new year!

Last January I wrote down a few resolutions for 2012. Here they are:

-         write two books

I wrote only 1 book this year, but I edited two other books, so that counts for something, right? 

-         read a minimum of 80 books

I read 82 books!

-         eat less meat (only once a week)

This was a HUGE success. I haven't eaten meat since June. My husband and I are now even following a vegan diet at home! And I've never felt better. I've lost 33 lbs since June and the husband even 38 lbs! There are two amazing blogs that helped me tremendously: 

Healthy Happy Life and Oh She Glows 

If you're interested in eating less meat, or just eating more healthy meals, you should check them out!

-         work out on my elliptical every day. 

Well, I have been working out about two times a week. But I'm planning to work out more often in the future.

-         Have more patience 

FAIL. I'm just not the patient kind.

Now comes the fun part, my resolutions for 2013:

- read a minimum of 85 books

- write two books (I think this year I'll actually manage to do it!) 

- start a writing diary where I write down my daily word count to keep track of my progress

-  lose another 20 lbs

What are your resolutions for 2013?